The room Alice stepped into was extremely dark. She could just barely make out the lines of a tea table and a set of chairs. She had to guess this was Hatter's sitting room. There didn't appear to be any candles or lamps so Alice crossed the room to the windows, hoping that opening the curtains would bring in some light.
To her disappointment though, the windows behind the curtains were boarded up. She could only guess as to why and those guesses were not at all pleasant. Turning away from the window and her dark thoughts, Alice walked to the only other door in the room. She assumed this was the Hatter's sleeping chamber. Placing her ear at the door, Alice listened for some sign of life on the other side.
There was the faint creaking of floor boards. Gathering her muchness, Alice opened the door and poked her head inside.
"Hatter?"
No answer.
Alice frowned and stepped inside. The room smelled stale, as though it had never been washed. Letting her eyes adjust to this new darkness, Alice scanned the room. The faint lines of a large bed were the most visible, followed by a bench at the foot of the bed. And in front of the bench was a figure rocking back and forth.
Hatter.
Alice quickly walked forward and knelt in front of him. Even in the darkness, she could tell his trademark hat was missing. Her heart panged softly at the sight.
"Hatter?" She kept her voice soft, not wanting to startle him. He remained silent but twitched slightly at the sound of her voice. She knew she had to keep trying.
"Hatter? It's me, Alice." This time she spoke a little more loudly. The Hatter stopped rocking and sat still, almost like a statue. Hoping she was getting somewhere, Alice tried one more time to reach her friend.
"Hatter please?" This time she reached out and laid a hand on his shoulder. She held her breath, hoping her would come back to her.
He did. Just not in the way she suspected.
With a roar of rage, Hatter swung out his arm, seemingly intending to knock her across the room. Alice's mind went blank as her instincts kicked in. In the nick of time she rolled out of the way. Gaining her feet, she scurried back into the sitting room. Dodging the windows and tea table, she moved into the most open space possible. The Hatter wasn't far behind her.
Alice still couldn't see his face, but she could feel the rage coming off him. There was something else there as well, but she didn't have time to name it as he was swinging at her again.
"Yer not her! Be gone abominable figment! Yer not my Alice!"
MY Alice?
Alice didn't take the time to think about his possessiveness. She knew she had to calm him before he hurt himself.
Oomph …
Alice gingerly rubbed her side where his fist had caught her.
Or myself for that matter …
He seemed slightly stunned for a moment. Perhaps it was the fact that he had made physical contact with something he thought to be nothing more than mist or perhaps he was simply tiring, but Alice didn't care. She acted quickly and stepped up to him.
Her hands shot out and she captured his cheeks in her hands. He stilled even further. Alice thought she saw his eyes widen but she couldn't be sure.
"Hatter stop this right now!" She kept her voice steady and authoritative, but her hands gentle. Softly she rubbed her thumbs on his cheek bones. She could feel the tension leaving his body slowly. They stayed quiet for a moment before he spoke.
"Alice?" He lisped softly.
Alice felt her heart swell at the sound. Relief warring with the last dregs of fear, she let herself nod slowly, forgetting that neither of them could really see the other.
Suddenly the door burst open and light flooded the room. Alice caught sight of the Hatter's eyes. For the briefest of moments they were a confused murky blue, but then they scanned her face and they bled to red. Red with black streaks. Fear once again flooded her body as he let out another roar. His arms knocked her hands aside and reached out to hit her.
He was stopped almost immediately by two chess piece guards and Alice felt her own arms being tugged back. She didn't register anything but Hatter's furious eyes and voice.
"Yer not her! YER NOT HER! DINNA COME BACK, YE HEAR! COME BACK AND I'LL END YE!"
With that, the Tweedles dragged her from the room. The heavy metal door thudded shut loudly behind them, but Alice could only hear the thudding of her own heart. That and the echoing of sobs of her poor Hatter.
After shrugging off the Tweedles, Alice raced to the throne room. Mirana was sitting on the throne looking lost in thought. The sight infuriated Alice.
Marching up to the throne, she took a deep breath to begin her oncoming tirade.
"How could you?" Mirana had the good grace to look guilty but Alice was only just beginning.
"Who in the world thought it was a good idea to lock a mad man up in a room with his own thoughts? That place isn't fit for criminals your Majesty! It's no wonder he's gone around the bend again! No contact, to be shown no love or friendship by those who are supposed to care about him? HOW COULD YOU LET THIS HAPPEN?"
"That's enough Champion." Alice wheeled about to see a very serious Chessur. The sight of his great eyes and non-smiling face made her pause. He looked deliberately to the queen.
Alice took the hint and looked back.
Mirana sat with her head in her hands, absolutely still. She seemed to not be breathing. Alice hurried forward to kneel before her. Hesitantly Alice reached out to grasp the White Queen's hands. Mirana kept her head bowed.
"Majesty? Mirana? I'm sorry, I shouldn't have shouted like that." Alice knew her temper had gotten the better of her. If she wasn't careful, it could muddle her entire time here.
Mirana finally looked up at her. Alice's heart ached at the silent tears coursing down her face.
"No Alice, I must apologize. Things truly have gotten out of hand with Tarrant, but you must understand I did what I did to not only keep us safe, but to keep him safe!"
Alice tilted her head in silent continuation for the Queen to continue. Mirana drew a shuddering breath and sat up squarely on her throne.
"About a year after your leaving, Tarrant's madness started to manifest more strongly. His temper would lash out at what seemed like random moments. The fits came randomly for another year and then, at the second anniversary of your leaving, they became a weekly occasion. Still I did nothing, but I began to notice a pattern. I wasn't sure how to combat it and eventually it became too late. Six months ago, Tarrant tried to stomp Mally to death."
Alice covered her mouth with her hands, trying to stifle her cry of shock. Mirana looked off into space, seemingly lost in the memory evidenced by the violence of her shudders. Eventually she looked back at Alice.
"What … what could have made him act so … so unlike himself?" Alice was afraid of the answer.
"She told him the shade of blue cloth he was working with would have suited you." Mirana's voice was soft.
Alice began to shake her head, unwilling to believe what she was hearing but Mirana wasn't finished.
"The pattern had finally made itself known. Acting out at teatime? Always when someone was wearing blue? Whenever the Vorpal armor was taken down to be cleaned? He was going mad at the signs of you Alice. His missing you put him in this state. I knew what I had to do, to protect everyone but especially Tarrant. I shut him away from the world because if by any chance had hurt one of our friends in a fit of madness, his guilt and grief would have taken him from us forever."
Alice was the one shedding silent tears now. Hiccupping, she knew she had to ask the question that would surely break her heart.
"Why did you board up his windows?"
Mirana's shoulders slumped again.
"He tried to jump. He thought he heard your laugh on the wind and the window was the only way to you."
Alice broke down. She cried and cried and cried. In the back of her mind, she was grateful this room wasn't flooding with her tears. The thought sobered her slightly and eventually she was able to stop. Taking a deep breath, she stood up and brushed her skirts out. Looking the White Queen in the eye, she made her stand.
"This is my fault."
Mirana opened her mouth to protest, but Alice raised her hand, asking for silence.
"It is. But by fate, I am going to fix this. I will fix Hatter; I will bring him back to us, to me. Or I will die trying."
She turned from the White throne and walked back to the doors.
"You did hear him, didn't you Champion? He promised to kill you if you return to him." Chessur's voice had never been so dire. The White Queen was quick to follow.
"I won't lose you Alice. I will not lose you and Tarrant both." Mirana's voice was trembling. Alice paused with a hand on the open door and looked back at her sovereign.
"I have to try. You have to understand Mirana. Before I was your Champion, before I was Underland's Champion, I was HIS champion. And I will not fail him."
With one last encouraging smile to her and Chess, Alice swept from the room.