Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Spinoff of Alice in Wonderland)

Chapter 7: Pride, Wisdom and Certain Death

Saying that Alice was scared was a complete understatement; she was completely and thoroughly horrified.

"What's wrong, Alice?" the Red King questioned, spitting out her name as though it was poison. "Does the Cheshire Cat have your tongue?" His tone changed from bored to infuriated in a matter of seconds. Or was it a mixture of both? The fury heard was disguised in the form of a calm, even voice, much unlike George back at her home who took no care in attempting to not share his obvious anger with everyone who happened to cross his path. A cold shiver traveled down Alice's spine as she contemplated what to say in such an overwhelming presence.

Despite the Red King's tone, Alice could not help thinking that everything he said sounded fake, almost as if he practiced what he would say many times before; perhaps even on other Alice's.

When Alice remained silent, the Red King continued, his voice betraying an obvious hint of annoyance. "You know, many of the others have been on their knees begging for mercy. Before you try, I suggest you understand that I don't take too kindly to imposters of Alice."

Again, silence engulfed the large space with only the sound of Alice's beating heart occupying the room. The guards surrounding her stood still and unmoving, almost as if they were dead soldiers who watched the living. It didn't help that the soldiers were only cards and possessed no faces whatsoever.

Alice decided that her best chance of survival lay with speaking the truth.

"Oh, great and glorious Red King," Alice began, trying to imitate Annoyance while attempting to flatter the man who stood before her. "There seems to have been a mistake. I am indeed not the Alice you are searching so desperately for, but I hope to be of some service to you despite my lack of proper origin." Along with her small speech, Alice did a deep curtsy that even her mother would have been proud of. She desperately hoped that flattery worked in sparing her life.

'Oh, if only mother could see me now!'

The complete absence of sound in the room was filled with both anxiety and nerve-wrecking prayers. 'Please, God, I'm not ready to die yet!'

All of a sudden, memories of her time with the dwarfs came flooding back to Alice.

Sarcasm lifted his right index finger and placed it against the left side of his neck, quickly dragging it to the other side. While doing so, he repeated in a shrill voice what he probably heard from this Red King.

"Off with their heads!"

That simple phrase echoed in Alice's mind for what seemed like ages.

At that time, Alice recalled more than just the dwarfs. She remembered her mother and father playing with her in the garden when she was a child. She remembered the two twin daughters of the Winston family, Holy and Hope, and their ridiculous stories of romance and happy endings. She remembered everyone in those few moments; the Baron's who would have been her family (and still will be if she finds her way back), all the maids and butlers who've looked after her since her childhood, the gardeners who planted her favorite flowers when she asked, the chief who always made the best meals, her private tutor who taught her everything she knows, the boy from the garden.

'Yes, that peculiar boy...'

Alice recalled what he said to her in the garden about knowing how she would come again. In that moment, she wondered if the boy would ever find the person he was looking for. Then again, he was only a figment of her imagination, so he would find the girl if she wished him to. In the moments before her certain death, Alice promised herself that she would go back to the garden and find the girl the boy was looking for.