Alice

Chapter Four

I awoke with a start, today was my last chance. After today I could not go back home ever again. My heart was pounding. I looked about me. I was in the meadow. Where was Collin? I was alone. What should I do? I decided to walk to our tree. I found Collin there. He was sitting, thinking. He was mumbling to himself something of the sorts of "it's all my fault" "too much pressure." He was worried for me. I decided to leave him be. I decided that it was wise to do so. I decided to go to visit the mad hatter and see what riddles he had for me today. 

But when I arrived at his tea table, only the Marge Hare and the White Rabbit sat at the end, along with Bartholomew the mouse. 

"Where is the Mad Hatter?" I asked.

"He has gone into that tree over yonder," Bartholomew said in his tiny voice. "Please find him, he's been gone for a while and we are all too frightened to go looking for him. We have duties to the Red Queen, Rabbit and I. And Marge Hare is in no mental state to go off on a mission like this." 

"Alright," I agreed. I don't know why I did, I suppose I was simply curious. But curiosity killed the cat so they say, or at least my mother and Loraine do whenever they disapprove of my so called childish behaviour.  Following Barthalomew's careful instructions, I opened a doorway in the tree. 

"Please let Collin know where I am," I said, as I began climbing down a spiralling staircase inside the tree.  Bartholomew nodded.

"Of course m'lady," he said courteously. "Good luck, I do hope that you return safely with the Hatter."

And then the door slid shut and I kept walking down the staircase until finally I reached the bottom. I reached for the doorknob and opened up the door, revealing a most amazing world. Like wonderland, only this world was much brighter. Everything seemed lit up. A centaur-man came up to me.

"What's a lass like you doin' in yer nightclothes at this hour?" he asked in a cheerful voice. "Where's yer dayclothes?"

"Well, you see where I come from it isn't day time at all," I tried to explain. "Well, my story is actually far more complicated than that, but this explination will have to do for the time being. Have you seen a strange little man, about ye high-" I held my hand low, near my waist. "-It's urgent I must get back as soon as I can before someone realizes I'm gone."

"Calm yerself, I'll help yeh," said the centuar. He seemed about 18 years of age. "In fact I have seen a man that fits this description. Funny fellah he is, rather mad I'd say. I think he went into this shop over here. Name's Merril by the way. What's yours?"

"Alice," I replied. I followed him into an odd little shop. It was filled with all sorts of doors. "What are all this doors for?"

"They lead to many different worlds. I tell ya, ya never know what yer gettin' yerself into, some of these worlds are a tad frightenin'," he said. "Ah, here we are, excuse me sir, this young lass was lookin' for ya."

Sure enough, around turned the Mad Hatter. Although he didn't look quite as mad. 

"Alice," he said, a look of panic was in his eyes. "You can't be here, you must go! Hurry!"

"Sir, Hare, Rabbit, and Bartholomew have sent me to fetch you. We must go!"

"Ah, but Alice I do not want to go. I've come here for quite a while now, whenever I come here I'm cured of man's curse of wonderland. I'm free. I can speak in more than strange riddles and song. Whenever I need to take a break I come here. I wish those fools hadn't seen me go through the tree passageway. Look, Alice, this was very sweet of you but I'm searching for a new world to be all my own. One day I will get away from the Red Queen's tyranny. Now, go. Before Collin gets too worried about you. Oh, one more thing. I'm terribly sorry about all the times that I have tricked and hurt you. There is absolutely nothing I can do about it, whenever I'm in wonderland I go completely mad. I hope you can forgive me."

That was quite a speech, I thought.

"Of course I forgive you."

"Oh, one more thing, before you go. Call me Phillip. My real name is Phillip Reynolds. Even if I act confused I will know you mean me."

"I will, Sir Reynolds." With that I ran back up the tree's staircase. The gang wasn't at the tea table any longer. I breathed a sigh of relief. I rushed to the tree to tell Collin what had happened. 

But when I got there, someone seemed to have gotten there first. The Red Queen. She had Collin tied up to a chair, mouth sealed shut by her hand. I sat at the bottom of the tree behind some shrubs and listened.

"LIsten boy," the queen said in a sickly sweet tone. "You'll be my groom whether you like it or not. Five days from now we shall be a couple. It's high time I get a new husband, and I think you're perfect, don't you?"

She must have lifted her hand for Collin said, "What happened to your old husband?"

"Oh," she cackled. "I took care of him."

I shrunk down into the leaves and tried not to make any sound as I shed my tears. What to do? I watched bleary eyed as Collin was taken in the hands of the Guards of Hearts off the queen's castle. I raced back home. I couldn't transform now. I needed to find a way to save Collin.

I lay on my bed choking on my tears. I felt that I had ruined everything.