Chapter 2- Lonely Child

"Good evening, Alice, and welcome. You've done well. I'm the White Rabbit, a guide of this World. It's a rather big place, so call me if you need anything."

In the strange 'World' Allen had gotten into, he met it's residents- the strange and unnerving Cheshire Cat who wore a cape with a hood and had a tail and he resembled a human-like cat whose face cannot be seen but his creepy grin is always noticeable. He often asks questions and would disappear from time to time. The other one is the White Rabbit whose hair was parted with tree branches and had rabbit ears but one of them was torn like it had been bitten. He's a tad impatient, lazy and voices his complaints mostly to himself. They didn't seem to get along at all with each other. One of the only things they had in common, aside from being a guide was that they both call Allen and any other visitor 'Alice'.

As the Rabbit explained, the 'Worlds' are the embodiment of an Alice's heart. They are usually locked as it contains a private part of their memory. The White Rabbit is the one who manages the keys but it seems that this time, almost all of the keys were stolen by a certain someone except for one. Not wanting to leave the area he's in, the Rabbit forces Allen on a quest to gather them back by going through each world they're scattered in.

One by one, Allen ventured into each of the Worlds belonging to one of the children from the facility. He's been to Letty and Rick's (or was it just Letty's?), Chelsy's, and Joshua's. There, he found out what their lives had been before Teacher took them in. They suffered, they despaired and after every key he's obtained through being in their worlds, Allen found himself crying although he himself didn't know why.

"Oh, Alice. I see you've gotten another key. Well then, shall we open the door to the next World?" the White Rabbit asked although he opens it anyways whether or not Allen would agree "You seem to be crying again. Is this really going to be a common occurrence? Oh well, off you go!"

Upon entering the fourth room, he was greeted with a familiar sight- a room slightly messy with a few articles of clothing scattered here and there, a few empty bags of snacks and a pile of manga. In the middle of the room stood the raven-haired child. "Hey Alice! Wanna play?"

Allen had heard those words before from the other Worlds as if it was a part of the routine. He gave a nod and the boy gestured towards the closet "Open it!" and so he did and upon opening his eyes, he found himself in another World.

He was confused. The room he was in was in shambles and he could smell burnt wood around him. Charred remains of what used to be furniture was scattered around. Had there been a fire in here? He was reminded of how things ended up in Letty's world. Something tugs at his heart that he couldn't quite place but it had bothered him.

Leaving the room he was in, Allen was greeted to a whole area destroyed by fire. The windows are broken and most of the things unrecognizable. As he walked around, avoiding the debris and the cracks on the floor, he stepped on something and as he removed his foot from the item, he discovered that it was a knife.

He carefully picked it up and examined it. There wasn't anything at all strange about it but something at the back of his mind tells him there must be something more.

There was once a boy who lived with his mother and father. When he was young, his parents cared for him deeply and his days were filled with happiness and peace. As he grew older, however, he noticed his parents' sudden strange behavior. He tried to ignore it but day by day, his parents were slowly changing.

He couldn't understand it but one day, they started hurting him. He was scared and confused- had he done something wrong? He tried apologizing but it did not work. He tried pleading but his words fell on deaf ears. His parents called him a 'demon', a monster they must get rid of.

Allen's head hurt once again as he heard that strange voice in his head. He walked up to the front door and opened it. He got outside and saw that he was at what was probably an apartment building. He walked around until he found an elevator which he used to go down to the ground floor. Finally getting himself out of the building to the streets, he looked around and found Yuu sitting on the sidewalk while staring at the sky.

When he got close to the boy, Yuu turned his head to meet Allen's gaze "Hey!"

"Yuu. What are you doing here?"

Yuu shrugged "Nothing I guess." He looked behind him and then back at Allen "We're you in there?"

The blonde nods "Yeah. One of the rooms was burned badly. What happened?" he asked, knowing that the answer is probably something he would not like to hear

Yuu stood up and looked up at the building "That was where I used to live. My parents hated me and tried to kill me. They even tried letting me burn in there. When that didn't work, my mom killed herself."

Allen stood wide-eyed. He didn't know which one bothered him the most- that Yuu's parents tried killing their own son or that Yuu told him in a matter-of-factly way as if it was common knowledge. Joshua's situation flashed back in his mind. "That's terrible. I'm sorry."

"For what?" Yuu asked "Anyways, Teacher was here earlier."

"Really?" Allen remembered that in each of the other worlds, Teacher were there, too. He even got to meet him in Joshua's world "What did he say?"

"He said not to leave this place and then he left." Yuu stretched his arms up in the air "But I've been sitting here for a while and I'm bored! Wanna go somewhere?"

Allen followed Yuu down the street and they passed by a bus stop. As soon as they stepped foot on the bus stop, a bus had arrived as if it was just waiting for them. Stepping in, Allen glanced at the driver. He was wearing a normal uniform but no matter what he does, Allen couldn't see the man's face clearly. The blonde followed Yuu to the back of the empty bus.

"Hey Allen." Yuu spoke, breaking the silence "Is this a dream?"

"Huh? Why do you ask?"

"I live far away from the facility. There's just no way I'd suddenly be here without me knowing how."

"Yeah…" Allen paused for a bit "I guess you could call it a dream."

The bus stopped after a while. They stepped out and the door closes and the bus leaves. They found themselves in front of a rather colorful building. On the side of the gate, the sign reads 'Hyakuya Orphanage'. "An orphanage?"

"I used to live here, too." Yuu mentions which made Allen took at him "After the fire and stuff. I was taken here when I was 8."

After a fire that nearly consumed their home and the event of his mother taking her own life, the young boy was taken to an orphanage. He was bitter about the events of his life and was determined to isolate himself from everyone else but in the orphanage, he met a young boy who was adamant about becoming his friend and eventually, they became inseparable.

He thought that those days would last forever until he found out that the person precious to him was going to be taken away.

Allen heard the voice again after taking a step past the gate. Yuu was concerned and asked how he was. Ignoring the pain in his head, he told the other boy that he was alright and went straight through the door.

They stepped inside. It was clean and it kind of reminded Allen of the facility. They could hear the voices of children playing. As they walked around, they eventually passed by a few but the strange things is, they couldn't see their faces at all. It's like no matter how you try and make out a face, it comes up as a blur. Looking beside him, Yuu remained expressionless and wasn't bothered by it all.

They eventually found the stairs. On the steps sat a few children with one of them crying and the others trying to console her. "What's wrong?"

One of them looked up at Allen and answered "She lost her doll and wouldn't stop crying. Could you help us find it? If you help us, we'll let you pass."

Seeing as they wouldn't be able to advance and get up to the next floor with the children blocking the way, Allen agreed and went off to search for the doll. "What does it look like?"

The girl then described a small doll wearing an orange dress. It should have brown twin-tailed hair tied up by purple ribbons on each side.

They searched the rooms on the first floor and eventually, they found a child holding onto a doll that matched the description. When they asked for it however, the child wouldn't give it to them. "Alright, then…" Yuu sighed and asked "Would you like anything in return for it?"

"I'm hungry! Make me curry?" the child asked in a pleading voice.

"Huh? That's a bit too complicated. I don't know how we could even make one!" Yuu complained

Allen spoke up "Is there a recipe book here? Maybe we could use that and make some?"

They ventured towards the kitchen and searched for a book which they eventually found. Both being children inexperienced with cooking, it took them a while before they could start cooking and trying to cut the vegetables proved to be a hard task which left them with a few small cuts but eventually, they have finished and watched as the pot boiled.

"Everyone here likes curry." Yuu said "Try asking around and they'll tell you it's their favorite. I guess it's the same for me."

"It must have been fun here."

"Yeah, I guess. I usually hung out with Mika- my best friend." Yuu told Allen, his gaze not leaving the pot "Remember when I told you that you remind me of someone? I was talking about Mika. He had blonde hair and blue eyes, too but his hair was soft and wavy. He also enjoys books but his personality is kind of like Joshua's- smiles a lot and can be up to trouble, too."

After the curry was cooked, they both tasted it. It wasn't that bad but it was pretty bland and it wasn't really something anyone would enjoy. They placed some on a plate and along with a spoon, they took it to the young child with the doll. Allen looked at the child apologetically "It's not that good, sorry."

The child ate it and told him "It's okay. Thank you for the food!" and handed them the doll.

They went back to the other children and handed the doll back to the little girl who was happy to have it back. The other children thanked them and let them make their way upstairs. On the 2nd floor, the place was messier with toys and pieces of paper scattered about. When they got to the end of the hallway, they found themselves in front of a door which was banging as if someone was hitting it from the other side. Allen tried to turn the knob but it was locked.

Yuu's expression darkened- it showed frustration, anger and possibly guilt. He stepped back a little and handed Allen something and told the blonde "You should open it.". With a key in his hand, Allen placed it in the keyhole, turned it and after he heard a click, he opened the door. Inside, Allen saw a huge rabbit stuffed toy whose hands were tied up. It doesn't move but he could hear the faint sound of crying.

"Hey Alice!" They both looked at one corner of the room and saw the Cheshire cat standing there, waving at them "… and Alice! Long time no see." He said, directing the words at Yuu "You probably don't remember me anymore, though."

"What… is this?" Allen asked

"This?" Cheshire looked towards the crying boy "Why don't'cha ask Alice over there? He did this after all!"

When Allen looked at Yuu again, the boy's face had changed just like how it was for the children in the other Worlds- blackened and almost unrecognizable. Yuu was looking at him with a sad look in his eyes "He told me we were friends… that we were family. I thought they'd last forever but he was going to leave me anyways. So I tied him up and locked him here until the people who were gonna take him away left."

Allen was speechless, he didn't know what to say and eventually just let the other boy continue speaking.

"It was his fault wasn't it? I told him over and over again that I didn't want a family! I told him I don't believe in anyone anymore but he didn't listen!" Yuu grabbed Allen's arm and shook it "I believed in him but he lied and he was going to leave me!" the shaking eventually stopped and tears fell from Yuu's eyes "… I didn't want him to leave."

"Tsk tsk tsk!" said Cheshire as he grinned and stared at Yuu "Alice, that's not how you keep friends! But you don't actually care anymore do you? You don't have any more friends after all!"

Before Allen could say anything, he felt pain in his head once again.

The young boy didn't want them to take his friend away so he locked him up and lied to everyone "He ran off because he didn't really want to leave!" and they left. The others found out the truth later on and chastised him for his actions. It eventually broke into an argument between him and his friend.

When his friend had enough and told him "I hate you!" the boy gave up and it was the end of their friendship.

… The boy renounced having to make any connections with people.

When Allen opened his eyes once more, the room was quiet and Yuu was nowhere to be found. Cheshire Cat was still there watching him "You know, he had so little XXXX!" he said putting up his thumb and pointer finger in the air to demonstrate how much 'little' he meant "But I took it from him regardless… but he gave it to me willingly so I didn't actually steal it, right, Alice?"

After the cat left, the room was empty and the rope that tied the crying boy's arms lay on the floor. In the middle of it is a key. Allen picked it up and was soon back to where the White Rabbit was.

Teacher went back to where he left Yuu behind in the latter's World but he wasn't there anymore. He could only think of another place the boy could be in and walked the street towards the orphanage where Yuu used to live but it was too late as the World he was in was slowly breaking.

He remembered how he had met the boy all those months ago. He left the facility in the care of his friend Cliff and went on a little journey as he's heard that there are children everywhere else who had been acting strange and not wanting to waste any chances, he set out to meet them. Eventually, he found himself in Hyakuya Orphanage.

Inside, the observed all of the children. They all seem lively save for a young boy with black hair sitting alone in one corner. The other children seem to dislike him. He then asked the kindly old woman who acts as the orphanage's director about the child. What he found was that the boy came from a small family. No one understood why but his parents suddenly became violent and abusive towards him which confused those who knew them as they weren't the type of people who would do such a thing to anyone, much less their own child. After a failed attempt at killing the boy and his mother taking her own life, he was soon left in the orphanage's care.

He was unfriendly at first but after a while, he made friends with the other kids especially one child who was the boy's age. They were always together until the other boy was chosen for adoption.

"Yuu locked him up and told us that Mika didn't want to be adopted anymore. After we didn't find him, the couple gave up and left. We soon found out that he'd been in the storage room in the 2nd floor the whole time. Since then the other children have been wary of Yuu." The woman explained

"I see. You think he was the type to do such a thing?"

"That's the thing. Yuu might be stubborn and impulsive but I didn't think he'd be the type to go that far. We didn't even know where he got the rope he used! Stranger than that are the other children's reactions."

"Why?" Teacher asked perplexedly "I thought it was normal for them to feel anger at what the boy had done."

"Yes but it had been like this for days. They haven't had a decent conversation with him and when they would talk, it becomes an argument. The children here are nice as they have always been. I thought they'd give him a chance after a while. Especially Mika- he had gotten in a fight with Yuu before but they make up sooner or later and even when Yuu was at fault, Mika was the one who does something to fix everything." The woman looked inside the room and watched the blonde haired boy called Mika play with the little kids "He's just been so cold to Yuu lately."

Teacher went to talk with Yuu in private. The boy had told him of what he already knew. "What were you thinking when you did that to your friend?"

Yuu had a troubled expression on his face "I don't know really. I was upset over finding out that Mika would be leaving then while I was sitting in the room; I heard a cat meow and followed it. I got to the storage room and found a rope there and… I just did what I did."

Those words were enough for Teacher to make the decision to take Yuu back to the facility. When they had left, the other children didn't react at all and Yuu's friend didn't even see him off.

"You're back, Alice! Another key… good work. Time to go to another World."

Allen made his way to Stella's world.

It took a long time but Allen managed to gather the last key and was now being told by the White Rabbit how he could leave this 'dream'. He was handed a key with a sharp point and large handle. It looked like a knife and according to the White Rabbit, they do serve the same purpose. To get back to his own world, he must stab someone from this World whom he thinks is most evil and they would turn into a door that would lead Allen back home but that would mean whomever he would choose would have their soul left behind in this World.

He had to choose between everyone: Letty, Chelsy, Joshua, Yuu, and Stella. In the end, he had made an agonizing decision.

Teacher called the orphanage for the first time since taking Yuu in with him to the facility. The director had told him something strange had happened after they had left before- the children who used to ignore Yuu and dislike him suddenly went back to normal and were all confused as to how they could just let their 'big brother' leave without saying goodbye. The one who was affected most of all was Mika who had been depressed since Yuu had gone away.

After Teacher had told her of Yuu's current condition, she was devastated. She debated on whether or not to tell the other children but thought that they should at least know.

My parents changed one day and started hurting me. Then, then they tried to kill me. They told me I was a demon or something. I hated them y'know. I mean I saw how other families were and knew that my parents weren't treating me right so when I got to the orphanage, I thought of being a loner. I was told that maybe someday I'd have new parents but I didn't want new ones- my real ones weren't nice anyways.

There was this annoying kid there though. He wouldn't stop bugging me and kept saying we're friends… family. Telling him over and over again that I did not want a family or a friend didn't work as he still kept hanging around me. In the end, I caved in and we became best friends. My parents stopped giving me XXXX a long time ago so I already forgot what it felt like to have it back then but my best friend gave me lots! I found out that he was just like me and that his parents never gave him any XXXX either so it amazed me how he still give so much XXXX to everyone.

I was happy when I was with him. He gave me XXXX and I try to give some back but I think I suck at it but he didn't mind. One day, a couple wanted to adopt him. I guess I got selfish and wanted all of his XXXX for myself. He told me that I'd get adopted someday and would be given XXXX by my new parents but I didn't want new parents. I wanted him. Just him. He was enough. I XXXX him so much so I wanted to keep him.

Teacher, I did something bad didn't I? Maybe I really wasn't capable of giving XXXX. My parents hated me and soon, my mom killed herself because of me. Now everyone hates me. Even my best friend- the person I cared about the most hates me, too. Sometimes I think, maybe my parents were right. Maybe I was bad. What do you think, Teacher?

Tears fell down onto the open pages of the emerald green notebook as the young boy with wavy blonde hair sat on a chair next to the hospital bed of a sleeping black-haired boy. He held the boy's hand and squeezed it tight.

Outside the door, Teacher and Mr. Cliff were talking to each other. "Poor Yuu. Nightmare Syndrome, huh?"

"Yes. My research hadn't gone far enough yet. No one had woken up from contracting this illness so he might stay like this forever."

"Don't say that!" Mr. Cliff said as he stared the door to Yuu's hospital room "Someone is still waiting for him. That poor kid's been there for a while now hasn't he. He's been staying with you isn't he?"

"That's right. I just had him stay in Yuu's room."

"Hey! How are ya?" Joshua asked the sleeping Yuu

"He'd wake up again, won't he?" Chelsy whispered to Stella

"I'm sure he will!" Letty exclaimed "Sleeping forever seems like no fun at all."

"That's right! When he wakes up, we're gonna go play together." Joshua shifted his gaze to the child who had just joined them two days ago "And now, Mikaela is here, too!"

"Yep! It's not too late for a snowball fight yet!" Letty excitedly announced "The more the merrier!"

"Well, were hungry. We're going out for a bit, want anything?"

The two blonde boys watching over the sleeping child shook their heads. The others had left them behind. "Are you alright, Mikaela?" Allen asked the boy in front of him. Mika had moved in with them almost two months after Yuu had gotten into a coma.

Mika's eyes are red from crying too much. He never cried in front of the others but when he thought no one was looking, he cried. The others sometimes catches him but said nothing. "I'm fine, Allen. Why don't you go with them?"

"Are you sure?"

Mika nods and gave him a faint smile "Yeah."

Before Allen could fully close the door behind him when he left the room, he heard Mika speaking, probably talking to Yuu. Allen leaned on the door for a moment.

"Yuu-chan, please wake up. We're all waiting for you! You made so many friends…" Mika paused for a moment before speaking again but his tone of voice changed as if he was on the verge of crying again "I knew you would though cause you're kind."

Allen decided to get up and follow the others when he heard Mika speak again.

"You know, you're wrong Yuu-chan. You aren't bad and I just wished I had told you before you left. I read what you wrote in your notebook. I'm staying in your room now and found it there. I finally understand why you did those things back then and I forgive you."

The next words he spoke made Allen freeze on the spot. The word he had asked Yuu before that neither of them recognized could be heard clearly, even for just that moment.

"And Yuu-chan… I love you, too."