Lacia's Tales- Wonderland

2) Raven

Chapter 2- Assembling the team
Raven

I was really starting to get worried about where Lacia might be. After everyone had searched for her, we realised just how much danger she could be in. I knew that I'd need to stop her from handing herself over to Jafar but I didn't know where she was!

I was going to lead a search team to find her, but I needed to get people to help me. Darling already volunteered, closely followed by Apple and Maddie. I was about to ask Cerise if she would come with us, when Lizzie Hearts ran up to me. "Raven! I just thought, maybe Lacia has already gone to Wonderland by now. I saw the white rabbit earlier, maybe he was in Ever After looking for her. But if she's still in the Neitherworld then she might be deliberately trying to get through to Wonderland without the use of a rabbit hole. She might be opening a door from the Neitherworld into Wonderland!"

The Neitherworld! I really should have thought of that. The doors there could get you to where you needed to be in the land of the living so it would make sense if there was a way to wonderland there. 'Lizzie that's brilliant!" I told her enthusiastically. "Will you come with us to help find her? We could use you!"

Lizzie looked fairly pleased with that offer. "Of course I will come Raven! I'll help you find Lacia and bring her back home!"

I grinned. I would need all the help I could get if I was going to the Neitherworld.

At that point Dexter came running up to me, panic in his eyes. "Did you just say that you're going to find Lacia?"

"Yeah I am. She's my sister and if she's in danger then I owe it to her to help her. She saved us when we were fighting my mother."

"I'm coming with you." Dexter declared.

I immediately started to protest. "No, Dex this might be dangerous. I care too much to let you get hurt!" I really would never forgive myself if Dexter was injured, or worse, just because I let him.

"No Raven! You go into dangerous situations all the time! You fought against the Evil Queen! And you didn't seem to care about your own life! I'm coming with you, even if you don't want me to! You are going up against a very evil sorcerer and I will not let you go to Wonderland and face him without me there. I'm the prince, and I want to be able to make sure you're safe." Dexter started to calm down towards the end of his speech and he looked at me so sadly that I thought he might start crying.

"Hey, Dex if that's how you feel, you can come if you want, but I just didn't want you to be put in harm's way," I told him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"No, I want to come. That way I'll know if you come up with any terrible plans."

I gasped dramatically. "Terrible plans? Me? Never!" I laughed, causing Dexter to let out a chuckle.

Apple came up to us then, ruining the nice moment. "Okay guys, Headmaster Grimm is not going to let us do this so we need to arrange a distraction. Someone who doesn't want to come with us needs to get him away so we can gather the troops and leave!"

She had a point. "Well Darling, Maddie, Dexter, Lizzie and us two are coming so we need someone else to do it."

"Which reminds me," Apple started. "Cerise is also coming, and Poppy O'haire. They heard about this and decided to come."

I nodded my head. This was good that they were coming. The two and Lacia had formed a friendship over the last while.

But the distraction. It needed to be something that would distract Headmaster Grimm for long enough that he wouldn't notice us not being in class, and it had to be someone that we trusted who did the distraction. It struck me like lightning

"I think I know exactly who can help us for the distraction.

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Third person pov

"HEADMASTER GRIMM!" The door to the Headmaster's office barged open, and he barely suppressed a sigh.

"You will not believe what absolutely shocking thing has happened now!" Briar Beauty came strutting into the office, very obviously in distress.

"And what has happened Miss Beauty?" He said, trying to get this over with quickly.

"The mirror-net is down! And I know exactly what you're thinking, you're thinking 'why's this such a big deal?' Well it's a big deal because Humphrey Dumpty is missing! He didn't show up for school today and we don't know where he is! And he's the technician so we can't get the mirror-net back up without him! We need to find him, now! Ca-cause i-if we d-don't-" Briar then dropped to the floor, asleep.

Headmaster Grimm glanced at his mirror-pad, it didn't seem like there was anything wrong though. He went to tap the screen, but it shut off.

He walked over to where Briar lay on the floor and attempted to wake her up. It was a halfhearted attempt, but an attempt nonetheless.

He checked his mirror-phone. It did not turn on.

Now, there wasn't actually a problem with the mirror-net. Nor was Humphrey Dumpty missing. He and Briar Beauty arranged this so that Raven, Apple, Maddie, Darling, Lizzie, Dexter, Cerise and Poppy could sneak away from school to rescue Lacia.

Humphrey had said he would be able to interfere with the mirror-net connection in Headmaster Grimm's office. Everywhere else would be fine.

It was nothing short of a miracle that this plan had actually succeeded.

And so Headmaster Grimm went to inform the other staff of the supposed missing student, completely unaware that Humphrey was not the student they should be looking for.

Briar let out one last mighty snore as he left the room, shutting it. As soon as he was gone, Briar's eyes snapped open and she got up off the floor.

"I can't believe he actually fell for that!" she said to herself.

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Raven's pov

Briar let me know that the plan had worked and that everyone was looking for Humphrey. No one would notice we were gone.

"Okay guys!" My friends all looked over to me. "It's time to go to the  Neitherworld!"

"Woop woop!" Dexter shouted. He was quickly shushed.

I took the piece of chalk out of my pocket and drew a door onto the empty wall, making sure to include a doorknob. Putting the chalk away, I stepped back and knocked on the door three times. A green light came from where the chalk lines were and the lines became cracks. Slowly, the door swung open with a creak.

Ominous much?

"Are we ready people?" Apple addressed everyone. "Ready!" Darling said fearlessly.

"Ready as I'll ever be to walk into the literal land of the dead," Cerise said quietly.

I lead the way, stepping through the doorway and waiting for everyone else on the other side.

Once everyone had came through the door, I grasped the knob and shut the door behind us. Only then did I look around at the place we all now found ourselves in.