A trip down the rabbit hole? I don't think so.

VOL. 1 l The Bittersweet start

Chapter 1

I sat up on my oversized bed. The room seemed to glisten at the light that shone through the giant window, which was on the far side of my room. My eyes were not yet used to the sunlight as it gradually grew stronger due to the sun rising. It was nearly dawn.

I slid out of my warm bed, my body feeling cold, not only because I'd left the warmth of my bed, but also because of my dream. The dream that I always dreamt of when I started to enjoy my life in this dreaded palace. Stifling a small yawn, I stretched my arms, making my way to the bathroom.

The bathroom was just as big as my bedroom. It was titanic white with light peach components. The light, too, glistened through the soft curtains.

As usual, I went over to the sink, washing my face and brushing my teeth. I saved the bath for later, after I finished my morning exercise. After all, I had to keep fit someway. The sun had finally stopped rising. It was different in Wonderland, the sun rose at 4 am in the morning and always stops rising at 5 am. Then it waits, only to keep rising at 6am.

As I finished up, I changed into my training gear. And by training gear, I mean the clothes used for hunting. They weren't bright or colourful, but they were dull and light-weighted. They allowed me to move fast as I possibly could, also giving me a fair amount of protection.

I slowly opened the door, peering out into the hallways of the palace. There was nothing but silence. The hallways were dark and the curtains weren't drawn. The queen hated it. She hated having light in the palace so early in the morning. She hated to be woken up early in the morning by a servant. Whomever the servant, high in rank or not, would have a death sentence if they woke the queen in the morning. Unless of course, they would prove to be of use or it was her husband, the King of Hearts, who woke her up.

Casually striding along the hallway, I scanned the pictures on the wall. They were of noble people who've been of some use to the queen. Not realizing on where I was heading, I bumped into a maid.

"Watch where you're going, you wretched litt-..." Her eyes grew wide at the sight of my face.

"You little...?" I questioned, a smirk showing upon my face against the darkness.

"Oh, nothing your highness. I'm ever so sorry. Please forgive me."

"Don't worry," I said, scanning her clothing and what not. "I suppose you're here to wake up my sister?"

"W-why y-es, your highness. The princess asked to be woken up early today at the first dawn. She said she wanted to go walking around for her morning exercise."

Bullshit. That girl isn't the type to go exercising, let alone be woken up so early in the morning.

"Will her best friend be there to?" I asked, straightening out my clothes.

"Yes."

"Very well," I said, patting the maid on the shoulder. "Good luck. The princess has quite the temper. Just like the queen, but don't worry, she can't sentence you to death or anything. I suggest, the best way to wake her up without letting her lose her temper would be to..."

I trailed off. There wasn't a way to actually wake that girl up without any damage caused to yourself.

"Y...your highness?" The maid asked.

"Well, I'd say shove something up her mouth, but, to be honest, I have no idea. Here, have some candy." I pulled out a handful I had in my pocket and gave it to her.

Giving a quick smile, I walked off quickly. There was only one reason the princess would be waking up early and that would be to bother me. She always gets in the way, trying to find out a way to hurt herself and blame me. One time, she ran across my training area when I was about to fire an arrow. Ripped her dress and I had to mend it back for her.

Now jogging, I ran across to the back door and into the kitchen. The cooks were readily baking and cooking. You could hear the knives slicing through the produce and hitting the chopping boards. I went up to a fruit basket, taking an apple. Biting it, I went over to one of the cooks near the shelves.

"Do you have anything that you don't want anymore?" I asked, taking another bite out of the apple.

The cook turned and looked at me, about to speak until I heard a voice call out to me.

"Your highness!"

I spun around, only to see it was a good friend of mine, Robin.

"What made you wake up so early in the morning?" I said, giving a small smile.

"Woke up only to see the sun rise this morning," he said, his smile lines indented a little. Robin's body was toned, the muscles bulged a little as his clothing wrapped around his arms. It showed that he had been working out. Quite frankly, he never had those muscles before. I mean, I'm not trying to be mean or anything, but those muscles are much more defined. He smiled as his light brown, almost golden, hair shone from the sun. "Also to beat you in training today, your highness." Robin gave a bow, almost to the point where he was mocking me.

"Is that a challenge?" I questioned.

"It might be, your highness." He gave a nervous chuckle. His green eyes shone like emeralds in the bright morning light.

"Well then," I began. "We'll just have to see who wins."

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Chapter 2 - The Training Session

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