Alright! CHAPTER 11! I'M SORRY, BUT THIS IS LIKELY THE LAST CHAPTER I'M GOING TO UPLOAD FOR A WHILE. I'VE GOT 2 BIG PROJECTS COMING UP. BUT DO NOT FEAR! FOR I SWEAR THAT I SHALL RETURN! I OWN NOTHING!
CH.11: Knights, and Rabbits, and Queens, oh my!
Alice and I had been walking for some time now. I turned to her, "Alice, where are we going?" The brunette looked at me with her turquoise eyes and smiled. "To the Castle of Hearts. I want to introduce you to Vivaldi!" I looked at her with surprise. "Castle of Hearts! Doesn't Peter White live there!" Alice's pleasant expression turned sour. "Don't remind me! I want to avoid him as much as possible!" I smirked at her, "Don't worry, I've wanted to settle a score with him for a while." She smiled a bit. "I suppose if you're here, he won't be able to do mu-" Alice was cut off by a loud rustling from the bush next to us.
She squealed and jumped behind me. I stepped in front of her, donning a face that said I was prepared to defend both myself and her. I felt inside my bag and clapsed my hand around my knife. There was more rustling and branches snapped as the possible threat tried to emerge from the brambles. Then, out of the bush, fell… a dude? Alice let out a relived sigh, followed by an angry huff. "Ace! Could you please stop jumping out of bushes?" The bush man 'Ace' looked up from the ground. "Ah, sorry Alice. Who's your friend?" Ace picked himself up off the dirt. I let go of my knife and took my hand out of my bag.
Ace was yet another good looking young man…what the hell was with this world and hot dudes? How did Alice put up with this for so long? Ace had short, chestnut brown hair and eyes the color of rubies. He wore a coat that matched his eyes with black trim and various, seemingly useless, zippers and buttons. Alice took the liberty of introducing us.
"Ace, this is C.J. C.J, Ace; the Night of Hearts. Ace, where are you trying to go?" He scratched his head and gave an airy grin. "To the castle." He turned to me, "So this must be the new foreigner I keep hearing about." His eyes showed a curiosity that, for some reason, made me uncomfortable. I put on a welcoming smile anyway. "Nice to meet you Ace!" Alice then grabbed his sleeve and proceeded to drag him off in the direction of the castle. "Ummm, Alice? Why are you dragging him?" She gave me a tired look, "Because if I don't, he'll wonder off and get lost again. No offence Ace, but you couldn't find your way out of a paper bag." He laughed, "No offence taken, Alice! But I like getting lost! I got to meet C.J!" I gave the red knight's back a wary glance from behind. There was something… almost fake about him I couldn't quite put my finger on. Perhaps he was more than he seemed. "Ace, at least try to stay on the trail!" Then again, perhaps I'm overanalyzing again.
We reached our destination without much event. Upon reaching the castle gates, I was stunned with the sheer size of the place, much less its appearance. I had been impressed by the Tower of Clover, but this place made it look like a freaking mini-mart! The castle was completely vamped out in hearts. Heart windows, heart tiles, heart patterns, even the rooms were curved at the top in the shape of a heart's top!
The three of us approached the grand gates. The guards saluted and allowed use through. As we passed through the front door, maids in black and red uniforms bowed to us. One of them, a taller one with a narrower head than the others, greeted us. "Welcome back Sir Ace, Lady Alice and guest. The queen has been anxious to see you and is awaiting your company over tea in the garden, Lady Alice. Sir Ace, the queen has asked for you to go to the Amusement Park and inform Gowland that she is unable to attend the territory negotiation." Finished relaying her instructions, she turned back to whatever task she was doing. Ace grinned, "Well, I guess I'm off then." He turned and left the castle without another word. I looked at Alice, slightly worried. "Will he be alright? Won't he just get lost again?" Alice waved her hand in dismissal. "It's alright. I have a feeling Vivaldi just wants to get rid of him. And he knows how to handle himself, so don't worry." I nodded. A guard walked up and said that he was to escort us to the gardens.
When we reached the lush garden, I finally got to meet the queen of hearts. She was almost unrealistically beautiful, with dark violet eyes and matching hair in pigtails that cork-screwed down. Her dress was huge and poofy, red and black heart designs repeating throughout it and a corset like top that exenterated her womanly curves. A little crown stood askew upon her violet head, completing her queen look. Her face lit up upon seeing Alice. "Alice! We have missed you so!" she left her chair gracefully and embraced Alice. Her eyes fell on to me. "Are you the new foreigner?" I nodded, unsure how to act around royalty.
She beamed and pranced over to me. She examined my face carefully, a calculating look on her face. I blushed profoundly. No one had ever looked at me so strangely… especially another woman. It was uncomfortable to say the least. She took a step back and beamed, clapping her hands together in delight. "Yes, she is very nice to." She looked at me with a friendly smile, "A friend of Alice's is a friend of ours. You may call us Vivaldi. And what is your name?" I nodded, still nervous. "C.J, umm…Vivaldi." Vivaldi turned to a nearby maid, "We will take our tea in my room. Bring us some refreshments." "Yes, your Majesty. What would you like?" Alice said politely that she would like herbal tea. I thought on it for a moment. Would they have…. "Do you happen to have pumpkin hot chocolate?" Everyone gave me an odd look. "What? I like pumpkin flavored stuff." The maid nodded. "I believe I know another maid that drinks something similar…I shall ask her." The maid bowed and darted off to her task.
Vivaldi turned back to us. "Come with us." She then proceeded to wherever it was she was going. Alice and I followed a bit behind. Alice leaned over to me a bit. "She must like you very much to show you her room. Only a few maids and myself are allowed in." "Why's that?" I prompted. Alice giggled. "You'll see."
And see I did. Vivaldi's 'secret room' was filled to the brim with adorable plushies. They were piled high practically everywhere. In the center of the room was a table with a pristine, crisp white lacy cloth draped over it. A maid walked in, adding another heart-shaped chair to the two that were already there. The three of us all sat down. I looked around a bit more, and, out of the corner of my eye, I saw one toy that caught my attention.
It was a long and lanky stuffed tiger, its plush fur covered with irregular stripes of black and burnt orange with a creamy white belly. Despite it being the likeness of a fearsome beast, the tiger's features were chunky and pudgy. Its big, golden glass eyes stared at me from its place in the pile. Memories of the past flooded my head and caused it to spin as I starred at the tiger. "Oh, has that one caught your eye?" I was snapped out of my trance by Vivaldi standing and dislodging the toy from the pile. "We won this in a game of balloons at Joker's Circus on a business trip. Do you fancy it?" I stuttered, "N-n-not really. It's just that I used to have one just like when I was little." And still owned. It was sitting on my desk back in my room at home. It was a lot more raggedy and beat up than this one, but this one looked the same as it had when Big Brother had given it to me.
Vivaldi's eyes widened, then she smiled radiantly. "Is that so? Then you may have it!" my jaw dropped and my cheeks flamed scarlet. "What? N-no! I couldn't…" Vivaldi cut me off. "Oh, but we insist! We were never very fond of it anyway. And what better way to show our new friendship!" She held out the tiger to me. I gingerly took the offering from her, feeling the softness of its fur. Unlike mine, this one was firm and soft, it's stuffing still intact and its limbs stiff, as mine had been once upon a time. A pang of homesickness hit me. Nevertheless, I clutched the toy and held it tightly against my chest. The smell of dust floated up, tickling my nose. I recalled how often I hugged this tiger's twin, held it when I cried, how I walked around with it in my arms.
An image of my Ni-san watching me while I played on the floor with it flashed through my mind. His calm and peaceful smile, as though all had been right with the world. "C.J! Are you alright?" my head jerked up to meet Alice's eyes full with worry. "Eh?" Vivaldi was also standing up, her brow creased in concern. "You were crying…we are sorry. We did not know the toy would cause you to…" I waved my hands, cutting her off. "No, no! It just slipped out! I'm fine. It's just that I miss mine." Alice cocked her head, unconvinced. "O.K…"
I grinned and held up the tiger, "I'll call him…Haru." Vivaldi gave me a strange look. "Haru?" I flushed. "Well…that's what I called mine…." There was a knock on the door. A maid' the same one tasked with bringing our refreshments, entered carrying a large tray. She laid out some mini sandwiches and a plate of cookies and set our drinks out on the table. She looked at me warily. "My friend let me use some of her mix for your drink. I didn't know how much to put it…I hope it's not too strong." I picked up the mug and took a swig. "You added coco?" She tensed up and nodded slowly. "Umm…yes. That's what my friend recommended." I grinned at her, "It's awesome! Not to strong and just enough cream! Thanks a bunch!" She seemed surprised and her face flushed red. "Umm… your very welcome Lady Thourn." I was just about to correct her about the 'Lady Thourn' thing, when she rushed out the door as fast as she could.
Vivaldi and Alice leaned a little closer to me. "…Pumpkin flavored?" they said in unison. I looked at them. "Yes, pumpkin flavored. I love anything pumpkin flavored! Pumpkin pop tarts, pies, cookies, anything!" The 2 exchanged a look. Vivaldi laughed, "Very well then! We will ensure the kitchen keeps a stock of treats for you!" She rested her chin on her hand. "Even though you wear pants, you're very cute C.J!" my face turned scarlet for the hundredth freaking time today. WTH! Ever since I got here, I can't keep a façade up!
"M-me? Cute? No, not at all!" Alice looked at me and smiled radiantly, "Oh, but you are! You have a very cute face, and your tough, but you still blush so easily!" I bowed my head in embarrassment and accepted their compliments with less than grace. It was just that no one but Ni-san had ever called me cute before. Scary, sadistic and a psycho, yes. But never cute. Vivaldi smiled, "Now, have any of you read a good book lately? We've been finding that we have much spare time on our hands as of late."
And that's how it went on for several hours. Making small talk about whatever came to mind and munching our snacks in the room filled with toys. Vivaldi proved to be very pleasant company, even though I hadn't thought I would get along with the 'queen' type. I know I didn't in school. But Vivaldi was very polite and graceful and we quickly became friends. As I was chugging down the last of my pumpkin coco, Alice yawned. Vivaldi stood up. "I suppose we have kept you two for quite some time. If you would like, you may use the guest quarters to rest. We insist that we see you again C.J. We would like to know more about your job." We both nodded, tired. I grabbed Haru andwe followed Vivaldi out of the room and waited while she called a maid to escort us to our temporary rooms.
A maid quickly appeared, bowed, and waited patiently as we bid our goodnights to the Queen of Hearts.
The maid stopped in front of a door. "You may use these rooms during your stay. If you need anything, you're sure to find a servant about in the halls." She turned and left us in front of the doors. I turned to Alice, a huge grin on my face. "I like Vivaldi! I can see why you two are so close." Alice giggled and winked, "In this world ruled by men, we girls have to stick together." I was about to make a comment when a voice sounded through the hallway, "ALLLLLIIIIIICCCCEEEEE!" A blur of red and white plunged into Alice's stomach, knocking her to the ground and scaring the crap out of me.
I looked down at the pair on the floor to see a familiar pair of bunny ears. "Peter! I'm tired and I don't want to deal with you right now!" I cracked my knuckles, "But I do." I let loose an aura of mass destruction. That was the first time I actually saw someone's hair get scared. I grabbed the damned rabbit man by his ears and started shaking him violently. Alice stopped me when it started to look like I was going to actually break his neck. She sighed, "Gezz, where have I seen this before? C.J, the last thing we need is a dead rabbit in front of our rooms."
I gave her a pout, huffed in anger, and dropped him. I leaned against the wall, maximum casualty. You know, as though I hadn't just tried to strangle him. "Fine. But next time he jumps you, I'll throttle him." He looked up from the floor, white ears pinned to his white head. "Miss Thourn, please don't be angry with me. My dear Alice was so lonely, and you seemed to be the only one who I was allowed to bring. And you've made her so happy since you've come!" Alice's face tweaked, "Who said I was your Alice?" she then turned to the room behind her and slammed the door in his face.
Ouch, that's harsh. I glanced down at the man on the floor. His heart broken expression was heart meltingly pathetic. I sighed, "On your feet." I grabbed his hand and yanked him up. He looked to me with an expression of true pain. "Thank you. Miss Thourn, I'm sorry for bringing you here. I thought it might make my sweet Alice happy, but all I've done is made her angrier with me and dragged you into all this." Crap. I scratched my head, "Umm…it's C.J and, I guess it's O.K. I'm sure Alice is just pissed that she's trapped in world against her will." His ears perked. "You think there's still hope? But what should I do? No matter how hard I try or what I do, my dear Alice keeps pushing me away!" I looked him dead in the eye. "First, try talking to her like a normal person. And cut the stalker crap, it's just weird. And stop trying to force yourself on her! How about being friends first." He cocked his head. "Be friends? Will that get her to fall in love with me?" I turned and opened the door to my guest room. "Who knows? These things take time." He leaned in, "Does that mean you will you help me?" I twitched. "No! I'm not going to help you! It's just that watching you chase her around like a lost puppy is pathetic." I closed the door, leaving a small crack to see his sullen face. I sighed, "But, you do have my support." His face was bright and cheery when I closed the door and plopped down on the jumbo bed.
I tossed my hat over to the nightstand and tugged my hair out of its braid. I was so tired that I didn't even bother to change into one of their night gowns. I rolled over, clutching Haru to my chest. The Castle of Hearts. Another territory filled with strange and interesting people. Ace; the lost knight, Peter; the love struck rabbit, and Vivaldi; the queen herself. I closed my eyes. I liked Vivaldi and hoped to be good friends with her. Peter actually didn't seem like a completely bad person, as much as I hate to admit it. Ace was… I guess it was still too early to tell what he was like.
Only one more territory to go, then I'll have met all the role holders…. My mind drifted to sllep as that thought rolled through my mind.
THAT'S IT FOR NOW! IT'S A LOT LONGER THAN LAST CHAPTER! REVIEWS ARE WELCOME, PLEASE VOTE, AND TO ALL THAT BOTHER TO READ MY CRAPPY ASS STORY, I THANK YEE FOR YEE'S SUPPORT. *SNIFFEL*
AND YES, THERE IS PUMPKIN FLAVORED HOT COCO! I'M DRINKING IT AS WE SPEAK! UNFORTUNATLY, THE STORES ONLY SELL IT DURING THE HOLIDAYS. TT-TT SAME FOR THE PUMPKIN FLAVORED POP TARTS. TT_TT AND MY COOKIES! TTOTT