Previously:
"At any rate," Blood continued, "it's true that you shouldn't wander around here. Elliot and I will guide you to the castle. Now… Miss outsiders." He said, moving to approach Alice and Sarah, who were still peeping out from behind the cover of the tree. "I keep putting the two of you in dangerous situations, don't I? I'm very sorry. It won't happen again." He apologized smoothly with the hint of a sly smirk, offering them a hand. "Please believe me."
'I'll believe it when I see it.' Sarah thought jadedly. "…" Her brow creased slightly with concern when she noticed the way Alice was staring at the handsome mafia boss and how she blushed as she accepted his hand. 'Oh boy…' Sarah thought warily, a little chagrined.
Chapter 4: Heart Castle
"Now listen." Elliot told Ace, irritated that he had to explain this again while he and Blood guided everyone to the correct path. "The castle is in the opposite direction from the way you were walking."
"You don't say!" said the knight, already heading off into some nearby bushes on another detour.
"Hey! Don't get lost while I'm talking to you!" Elliot snapped incredulously with a vein throbbing on his head, grabbing him before he could get any further. "You have a real problem, dingbat! Get help!"
"Hahahaha!"Ace laughed cheerfully while Elliot dragged him back onto the correct path. Alice and Sarah sweat-dropped as they watched. It would almost be funny if it wasn't also part of their problem.
"… They're so loud." Alice mumbled. At least Blood's presence seemed to be keeping things from escalating any further. "…" She glanced sideways at the mafia boss as they walked. Blood took notice of this almost immediately. He also noticed that while Alice was watching him, Sarah was watching Alice, as if on the lookout for danger.
"You're staring. Is there something on my face?" he asked Alice.
"Huh?" Alice said, surprised. She hadn't realized she had been so obvious about it.
"And I daresay I felt both of you staring at me earlier. Gawking is a little… naughty." Blood told the girls, deciding to tease them a little. Sarah remained as cool as a cucumber, but Alice immediately became flustered.
"No! I just…" Alice gasped, blushing out of embarrassment. "Y-You look a lot like someone I know. I was so surprised that I ran away from you last time… That was rude..." Alice explained clumsily.
"I was wondering if you ran because you didn't like me." Blood said calmly.
"I'm sorry." Alice apologized. "Really."
"But now… after that last heated glance… Do I remind you of someone you love, perhaps?" he asked seductively, leaning in close as he caressed one of her cheeks with his gloved hand.
"!" Sarah furrowed her brow, ready to jump in and intervene, when Alice slapped his hand away.
"… Hey! That's not true!" Alice shouted angrily. "That's not…" she said bitterly, lowering her head so that her bangs hid her eyes. Sarah's expression softened, and she stepped forward to gently place a hand on her mistress's shoulder in an attempt to comfort her.
"You don't seem to be lying. Hmm…" Blood said thoughtfully as he watched them. That maid was awfully protective of her mistress. "Then I suppose you're no longer together?" he asked Alice.
"S-Sorta." Alice answered sadly. "He loved someone else. So he…"
'Oh…' Sarah thought as she recognized who Alice was talking about, and it finally clicked why she had thought Blood looked familiar before. 'That's right… he looks a little like her old tutor… that jerk.' She thought, furrowing her brow and frowning at the memory of that man and how he had broken Alice's heart by dumping her for Miss Lorina.
"… I see." Blood remarked coolly, observing the emotions in their expressions. He turned away and started walking again. "What a despicable cur."
"Excuse me?" Alice said, angry on her ex's behalf, though secretly Sarah couldn't agree more. "That's kinda ironic, considering."
"Because I'm in the mafia? But I'm a different kind of cur." Blood retorted smoothly with a languid smirk as he looked back at the girls. "Were it me… I would never let go of a woman with such passion in her eyes. I would cut off both her legs if she ever tried to leave me. And she could tear out my heart if I ever tried to stray." Alice and Sarah both stared at him in astonishment with a hint of blush on their cheeks. Sarah's blush deepened as she gave herself a quick mental slap for getting caught up in his words. Although she liked the idea of a faithful man who would never abandon her, she didn't fancy having her legs cut off. That was a pretty crazy thing to say, even as a joke!
"Heh." Alice laughed, smiling. "That's funny. In a… creepy sort of way."
'It is…!?' Sarah exclaimed internally, appalled. Didn't she realize how dangerous this man was? That was a major red flag right there!
"I wasn't trying to be funny." Blood said, reaching out to caress a section of Alice's long blonde hair, sliding his hand down to touch the ends to his lips. "If you really looked at me with that heat, I guarantee you wouldn't regret it."
"L-Let me—" Alice started to say as she tried to pull away, feeling extremely uncomfortable with the suddenly intense look in his blue-green eyes.
"Please do not act so overly familiar with the young Miss!" Sarah said strictly, coming to the rescue as she quickly freed Alice's hair and placed herself protectively between the mob boss and her mistress.
"Oh? You're going to interfere in our little affair?" Blood asked, mildly amused by the fierce expression on the young maid's face. "What's the matter, sweetheart? Jealous?" he purred, reaching out to caress her soft porcelain face, but the maid quickly blocked his hand with her own before he could even lay a finger on it.
"Mr. Dupre, I realize it isn't your fault that you bear a certain resemblance to Miss Alice's ex, but I think I speak for the young Miss when I say that we would be grateful if you'd refrain from any actions that might make her feel uncomfortable as a result. Please at least pretend to act like a gentleman." Sarah deadpanned seriously, completely unfazed by his charms.
"…" Blood stared at her, somewhat disappointed by her reaction, though her resistance was a little interesting in its own way. She had a lot of guts talking back to him like that.
"Hey, Alice! Sarah! I think the mafia boss is trying to seduce you. Haha!" Ace laughed good-naturedly. Wow, two at once—Blood was really something!
"No, he's not. Blood's taste in women is totally different." Elliot said defensively on his boss's behalf with a frown.
"Really? But the mood was all… intense." Ace said, causing Alice to blush. "Too bad, boss man. They're trying to find Peter."
"Peter White?" Elliot asked, looking aghast. Blood was also slightly surprised to hear that the girls were out looking for the rabbit. "… Why would you look for that guy!?"
"I just have something to ask him!" Alice said defensively.
"We won't try to stop you…" said Blood. "… But be warned that he's a dangerous man."
"Uh… right." Alice said hesitantly, exchanging a look with Sarah. To hear a mafia boss say something like that was disconcerting. Was that rabbit-eared pervert really that dangerous?
"Well, should something happen… that knight will probably protect you." Blood said, holding his chin as he cast a glance at Ace.
"?" Alice said as the girls turned to look at the smiling knight. Sarah hoped Blood was right. She didn't fancy having to fight off an entire castle if something went wrong.
They continued a little further on in silence after that before the castle came into view on the ridge ahead.
"We're almost to the castle." Elliot said. "Your names are Alice and Sarah, right?"
"Yeah." Alice replied.
"Alice and Sarah, you can come over to our place later, if you want." He told them with a smile.
"And next time we'll give the two of you a proper guest's welcome." Blood added charmingly. "I'll be waiting, ladies."
"…" Alice's cheeks glowed with a touch of blush again as they watched the two gangsters walk away. They had brought the girls and Ace near enough to the castle gates so that even the knight couldn't get lost, and the two of them were allowed entrance as his guests. Sarah was a little unnerved to see that none of the other castle employees and servants seemed to have a face.
"Welcome home, Sir Ace!" two uniformed maids greeted him.
"It's good to be back." Ace responded with a friendly smile and a wave.
"And welcome, guests." The maids greeted Alice and Sarah with polite smiles.
"Peter's usually with the queen. We can try the audience chamber." Ace told the girls, leading them further into the castle. Just as Ace had suspected, they found Peter standing beside the queen's throne on the balcony overlooking the chamber.
"There you are—Peter White!" Alice yelled.
"…!" Peter gasped in surprise.
"I understand how you feel, Miss, but shouldn't we greet the queen fi—" Sarah started to suggest wisely, when the rabbit suddenly came leaping over the balcony railing.
"Alice!" Peter cried out with joy. "I knew you'd come! And you came so quickly…! My lady coming here proves she wants me near!" he cheered as he threw himself at her.
"Wai—" Alice cried out in alarm, but she needn't have worried. Sarah quickly pulled her mistress aside before the pervert could make contact, helping her dodge the rabbit's little love attack just in the nick of time.
"Aaagh!" Peter cried out in dismay as he crashed face first into the floor. "I love Alice, but you've earned my hate! Your unwanted interference makes me so irate!" he fumed at the maid with multiple veins throbbing on his forehead, getting ready to draw his gun.
"Are you out of your mind!?" Alice exclaimed incredulously, incredibly grateful to Sarah for the save. "Her 'interference' was totally wanted! I didn't miss you! I just—"
"You over there. The two young girls." A commanding feminine voice spoke abruptly. "Are you outsiders?" the queen asked as they glanced up at her. Sarah's eyes widened in shock when she got a good look at the regal woman for the first time.
"Uh… Who are you?" Alice asked. A bead of nervous sweat slid down the side of her face.
"We are the Queen of Hearts. We are also called Vivaldi." The queen replied coolly. "Tell me, child. Why do cry?"
"Huh? I'm not…" Alice started to say, when she noticed that Sarah was trembling. Alice was astonished when she looked at her maid and realized tears were streaming down her face while she stared up at the queen with wide eyes, looking as though she had seen a ghost.
"… Eh?" Sarah said, blinking, as she snapped out of it and became aware of what she was doing. "Ah… Please forgive me, Your Majesty." She said politely with a shaky voice while she hurriedly wiped away her tears. "I meant no offense… It's just… you look like someone very dear to me…" The queen's hair and eye color may be different, but their faces were exactly the same. "You look so much like my ma… It really startled me… She died when I was young, you see."
"…!" Alice gasped, glancing between the queen and her maid in surprise. Sarah's mother? Alice knew that she had been very important to her... No wonder the poor thing was so shocked. She wished she knew what to say.
"… We see." The queen said thoughtfully, eyeing the two girls with a solemn expression upon her face. "What is your name?"
"Sarah Smith. I'm a maid in service to the Liddell Family. This is my mistress, Miss Alice Liddell." Sarah answered respectfully with a curtsey, giving Alice a proper introduction while she was at it.
"Sarah. You appear to have received quite a shock. Perhaps some tea will help calm you. Prepare some at once!" she ordered the maids. "We shall entertain our guests in the garden. We shall have you accompany us for teatime… Sarah and girl who is named Alice."
"Have you calmed down?" the Queen of Hearts asked once the tea had been served. Even though Sarah was a maid, Vivaldi had both girls seated equally at the table she was sharing with them.
"Yes. Thank you very much, Your Majesty." Sarah said quietly while she held the warm cup in her hands, inhaling the soothing scent of the tea. Although the queen and her mother had strikingly similar appearances (aside from Vivaldi's lack of brilliant ginger hair), the way the two women spoke and carried themselves was very different. "I really must apologize to you and Miss Alice again for acting so disgracefully in your audience chamber…" It reflected badly on the family when a servant couldn't keep it together.
"Don't be ridiculous!" Alice told her. "You didn't do anything wrong."
"Thank you, Miss…" Sarah said with a small but grateful smile before attempting to shift the conversation to a less embarrassing topic. "It's very beautiful out here." She remarked, watching how the orange and scarlet light of the sunset reflected off the flowers and maze of hedges in the castle's garden.
"Yes, the evening is enjoyable." Vivaldi agreed. "It is a period of time we like."
"Psst! Alice!" Ace whisper-yelled to get her attention, leaning closer as he lowered his voice. "I'm gonna head for Julius' place now, so I wanted to say goodbye."
BANG!
"!?" Alice and Sarah both gasped in alarmed when Peter suddenly fired a shot between Alice and Ace.
"Step away, Ace. Now." The crazy rabbit said sternly, aiming his gun so the next shot would hit the knight. "Give my Alice her space. By her side is not your place."
"You can be pretty scary, Peter. I should probably get out of here." Ace remarked carelessly. "Bye, Alice! Bye, Sarah!" he told the girls with a bright smile as he turned to leave. "I'll see ya."
"Hmph. That man! He's always so rude." Peter fumed with a vein throbbing on his forehead.
'Says the man who fired his gun at a tea party…' Sarah thought as a bead of sweat slide down the side of her face, chagrined. This rabbit was mental! What if he hit Alice?
"You are loud, White." The queen said as she took a sip of her tea, annoyed. "Do you value your head?"
"…" Peter looked away, sulking.
'I don't think I can talk to Peter in a place this tense.' Alice thought as a bead of nervous sweat slid down the side of her face.
"It is to be noted." Vivaldi stated a little abruptly as she observed the adorable young girls sitting before her. "We well understand the depth of White's love for you outsiders. We may be able to love you, as well."
"My queen!?" Peter exclaimed loudly in alarm. "I care not for the other one, but Alice is mine! Please don't love her—I can certainly love her enough!"
"It cannot be helped, can it? As we said before, Alice is an outsider." the queen replied calmly. "And it seems that outsiders are those whom the inhabitants of this world may feel for."
'… What…?' Sarah thought, furrowing her brow slightly in confusion as she sweat-dropped. Why would they? What was so special about outsiders? An elegant queen with the same face as her poor, uneducated mother… was this really all just a dream? If so, then why not just have her mother appear before her as herself?
'That's weird.' Alice thought. 'Then does the fact that I'm having this dream… mean I want everyone to love me?'
"You, as outsiders, will someday go home… but while you are in this land, we shall grant you permission to stay at the castle." Vivaldi told the girls graciously.
"That's very kind of you." Sarah politely thanked the queen.
"Yes. Thank you, Vivaldi." Said Alice. "But we're already staying at the clock tower." Peter's ear twitched.
"The clock tower? You mean the home of Julius Monrey?" he asked with a frown.
"Is that so?" the queen said calmly, though she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. "Then they have made their choice."
"But that can't be!" Peter protested. "Please, my dear! You can simply move here!" he pleaded anxiously with Alice.
'Yeah, right.' Both girls thought. There was no chance of that happening while he was there.
"You need not push them to stay. They may visit the castle at any time." Said the queen.
"No! I don't care what happens to her extra baggage, but Alice should live here! Don't you agree!?" Peter asked earnestly.
'Extra baggage…?' Alice thought, sweat-dropping, as she glanced at poor Sarah.
'Is that what he thinks of me?' the maid wondered dubiously, taking another sip of her tea.
"Enough!" Vivaldi ordered sternly.
"…!" Peter flinched, shutting his mouth immediately when he realized he was on the verge of pushing the queen too far. The light came on in the post lamps placed throughout the garden when the sky suddenly darkened.
"Oh, has it become night?" Alice said, glancing around.
"It has interrupted our pleasant moment. Evening is the only period of time that should exist!" Vivaldi huffed in disappointment.
"Now that you mention it… in this world, is it normal for time to be so scattered, Your Majesty?" Sarah asked curiously.
"Indeed. It changes without rules, and the next period cannot be predicted." The queen replied. "We can change the time period at will because we are 'one with duties'… but the rule is that it must not be changed without reason."
'One with duties…?' Sarah wondered.
"It is regrettable, however—night has ended out teatime." Vivaldi said, bringing their little tea party to a close.
"Oh, yeah. We should also…" Alice said, swaying a little, as she stood up. "… Get back…" she said, looking dazed as she held her head.
"Are you all right, Miss?" Sarah asked, feeling a bit sleepy herself. 'That's funny…' she thought, bemused. 'I didn't think I could get tired in a dream. I guess neither of us has slept since we got here, but still… really?'
"Ah… in such a state, you will be asleep before you reach the clock tower." The queen remarked when she noticed how tired the two girls suddenly looked. "You must rest at he castle, if only for now."
"Maybe we'll do that, thanks." Alice answered gratefully while Sarah swayed slightly on her feet.
"White, see them to the guest rooms." Vivaldi ordered.
"Yes, Majesty!" Peter responded brightly at the idea of Alice extending her stay, more than happy to comply.