A/N: I now have a plan for updating and being organized-all my files are organized by fandom, then by story, and I'm doing plot outlines for everything now. It's not all completed, but it's a work in progress and I wanted to get stuff out there. So, without further ado,

-Thanks to my beta Azzie (Inkfire) and anyone who still reads this poor neglected little story that would much appreciate reviews ;)-

Chapter Four: Wonderland:

Autumn awoke to birds singing, much like she used to at home, except the songs and voices were different. Sitting up, she rubbed her eyes blearily and looked around. Golden sunlight filtered through the emerald roof above her head, turning everything into brilliant, vibrant hues of yellow, green, and brown. Flowers bloomed around her in vivid shades of blue, purple, red, and white. She rose shakily and reached out a hand to gently touch the nearest tree trunk. It was rough against her fingertips. Inhaling deeply, she could smell the flowers and clean, fresh air. The music of the birds intermingled with that of running water nearby. She gathered her things and made her way slowly through the forest until she found the happy little stream.

The teen knelt carefully on a rock near the shore and cupped her hands, drinking her fill of the sweet, cold water. That taken care of, she sat back on her heels and listened to her stomach growl for a moment. She had a few granola bars with her, but not enough to last for long, especially not with her athletic metabolism. She had to find a way to get food.

Autumn blinked as the harsh reality caught up to her. She was alone, in a strange place, she no longer dared think of it as a separate world, she had little food, and no idea what was safe to eat and what wasn't. She didn't know where she was or who else was here.

Well. Sitting here isn't going to help me any. She thought, standing carefully. She dared not risk losing her only source of water, so she followed the spring upstream until she found a clearing ringed with bushes that were full of fruit of some kind. Autumn paused in the shade at the edge, scanning the area for any living creatures. Her eyes widened when she heard a voice muttering to itself and she ducked behind a tree quickly. Peering out from behind a nearby bush, she waited until the owner of the voice appeared.

"Ungrateful they are, ungrateful they aren't. Making me cook everything, all the time, do this, make that, too much salt, needs more salt, why can't they make sense? They're all mad, mad, madder than me, oh, how can that be? Not only that, they're thieves, the lot of them, they took my spoon and won't give it back!"

Taking a spoon? What is going on? Autumn scanned the clearing again until she spotted what looked like a rabbit of some sort picking berries and throwing them at the basket he'd set nearby. One of the berries missed and hit the bush in front of her. Autumn ducked back behind the tree and held her breath as the rabbit came closer. Not only could he talk, but he sounded insane. Best to stay away from this one.

But whatever fate ruled this place had a different plan in mind. The rabbit crawled under the bush to fetch his berry, only to end up sitting on Autumn's hand. He looked down, then his eyes wandered up her arm to her face.

"Well. Lookee what we have here!" he laughed maniacally. "Who're you, young missy?"

"My name is Autumn." she told him uncertainly. Something told her not to lie.

"Are yeh lost?" he asked, looking around.

"A bit." she admitted, embarrassed.

"Well, c'mon then. There's food back there." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder, and she just nodded.

Everyone's mad here...but it's probably best if I play along so they don't decide that I'm a threat. She thought carefully. She helped the Hare pick berries after he remembered to introduce himself, and once they had filled his basket, she followed him silently out into the open.

A magnificent white palace stood on the sweeping plains before them, and Autumn blinked in shock. It was beautiful, full off shining surfaces, sparkling fountains, and neat emerald plant life.

The March Hare was already halfway down to the plains by the time Autumn was done drinking in the scene, so she tore her gaze away and hurried after him. She ran past talking flowers, bees, and other insects and animals that conversed with each other as though it were a normal, everyday occurrence. There were a few whose abilities were so strange that Autumn had to turn and stare for a moment before chasing off after the Hare again.

Everything was so strange, but beautiful. So amazing and wondrous. This really is Wonderland. Autumn realized suddenly, and her heart felt lighter than she could ever remember feeling before.