Eric Campbell
“Alice? Alice?! ALICE!?”
“Yes sister?”
“Oh Alice!”
Edith yells, running over to her younger sister and sweeping the younger girl into her arms. She holds the younger girl tightly to her, and Alice closes her eyes as her older sister’s long, brown hair grazes over Alice’s button nose, the gentle scent of roses filling her senses.
“Oh Alice, I was so worried about you.”
“I was only doing a bit of light reading Edith.”
Edith pulls away from Alice and taps her cheek gently with the tips of her fingers, a cross, concerned look evident on her face.
“You had me worried half to death…”
Alice stands to her feet and brushes the dirt off her baby blue dress before taking a look around. Her arm throbbed slightly from her fall, but as she looks up, she doesn’t see the hole in which she fell in. Alice lets out a small sigh and wonders why she doesn’t feel fear as she looks around the dark forest that surrounds her. It was eerily quiet, the only sound to be heard was the beating of her own heart and the breath she takes in and releases.
And yet, it all seems familiar.
Alice takes a step forward, wonder filling her head as she walks past the cold, barren trees black with death and the absence of life. The skyline behind the trees was painted the color of blood, slowly turning black as the sun drifted below the line, to begin night. A smile played on Alice’s face as she walked; she knew she recognized this place.
“Oh! The last time I was here, the trees with alive with color and strange animals that I could never find back home.”
“A lot has changed since you were last here, Alice.”
Alice turns around to see a cat perched on a tree branch, but the cat looked sick; it pink and purple striped fur was dull and matted, its skin hung off his bones, almost as though it had recently lost a lot of weight, his long whiskers drooped and Alice wondered if there was blood attached there. His tail swished gently around his paws and Alice smiled warmly at his presence.
“Cheshire Cat, how do you do? You look awful.”
The Cheshire Cat let out a bark of a laugh before choking off with a rough cough that riddled his body. When he was finished, he turned back to Alice and gave her his wide grin, but Alice noted that he had blood staining the roots of his teeth.
“Nothing gets past you Alice.”
He stands to his feet and jumps down, his bones moving in an unsettling way; Alice could practically count every bone in his body.
“Cheshire, what happened here?”
“We are unsure Alice. All we know is that Wonderland is going to hell.”
The Cheshire Cat stalks forward, leaving Alice to follow him as he walks through the dying forest. Alice takes this moment of silence to think as she strokes each decaying tree she passes.
“Where are we going Cheshire?”
She asks quietly, not looking at him. The Cheshire Cat pauses and turns back to her, his head seeming too big for his body.
“You don’t remember this path, Alice?”
“Alice, hold my hand so you don’t get lost.”
“Where are we going Edith?”
“We’re going to a place where people can help us Alice. That’s all, don’t you trust me?”
“Of course I do sister.”
Alice tried to remember the rest of the memory, but just as quickly as it had appeared, it disappeared, making her wonder if it was real.
“No, Cheshire, I don’t remember; was I supposed to?”
The Cheshire Cat sighed, turning his head forward to continue walking.
“Don’t you trust me?”
“Of course I do.”
“Then keep your mouth shut; you never know what’s in these woods anymore.”
Alice responded by keeping quiet, instead just following the cat; she had no idea where they were going, but she realized that this mattered not; after all, what was an adventure without the journey?
“Cheshire-“
“Alice! What did I say about keeping quiet!”
Alice quickly shut her mouth again; she felt foolish for saying anything at all. After a moment or two of silence, the Cheshire Cat stopped and turned to face her, a grim look upon his normally grinning face.
“We’ve arrived. Quick, get in; we mustn’t be out here longer than we have to be.”
Alice looked to where the Cheshire Cat was gesturing to; a small hole at the bottom of a decaying tree. She gave him a questioning look, but when she saw the look on his face not change at all, she bent down to her knees and crawled inside the hole.
Almost at once, she began to fall. She remembered this hole, but this time was different than the last time she was here; instead of tea and clocks floating all around her, the hole lit by a beautiful, blue light, instead was echoes of distant screams and the clocks were all broken and the hands were stopped.
The tunnel was lit by red light.
Alice landed onto the ground and saw a lake; she remembered this lake to be surrounded by grass and life, the lake being fueled by a waterfall. Now the lake was drying up and the grass turned to ash under her footsteps.
“Terrible, isn’t it?”
Alice turned around to see the Cheshire Cat staring at the black water, his eyes unfocused with the memories of things Alice did not know.
“What happened?”
She asks again, hoping this time, she might get a straight answer for once. The Cheshire Cat didn’t say anything; he just kept looking at the water. Alice let out a small sigh and turned back to the lake, stepping forward toward its water. She could have sworn that she heard whispers coming from the depths of the lake, but she shook her head and ignored them, chalking it up to her being mad to hear whispers.
“Alice, no!”
But Alice couldn’t stop, she kept walking towards the water, the whispers getting louder and louder with each step she took towards its glossy surface, wondering why the Cheshire Cat would ever tell her not to-
“DON’T TOUCH THE WATER!!”
The Cheshire Cat roared, leaping forward and sinking his claws into Alice’s skin, causing a loud yowl of pain to split from Alice’s throat. She stumbled away from the lake and shook the weak cat off her, clutching her arm where he had just attacked her.
“Cheshire Cat, why would you-“
“Do you not listen to instruction Alice!? I specifically told you not to go near the lake!”
The Cheshire Cat hissed, bearing his yellowing fangs at her with anger.
“Alice dear, don’t go near there!”
Edith called kindly from the porch deck before returning to her book. Alice turned her back on her sister and kept walking forward towards the large hole in her backyard. She didn’t understand why Edith wouldn’t let her near the hole; there wasn’t anything wrong with it, was there?
“Maybe just a quick peep.”
Alice said to herself quietly, reaching the large hole.
“I’m sorry Cheshire; I won’t do it again.”
Alice whimpers, rubbing her arm to clear away the blood droplets. The Cheshire Cat sighs, hunching his shoulders slightly, making his bones stick out even more. He walks over to her slowly until he was close enough and then he began to lick her arm gently where had scratched her. Alice didn’t say anything as the Cheshire Cat licked her arm and was soon amazed when the pain in her arm disappeared. The Cheshire Cat stepped away from Alice and licked his muzzle, looking around.
“I’m sorry for that Alice, but the lake is dangerous; I’ve seen too many friends die in the waters of that lake. Those whispers you heard were their souls, trapped here in Wonderland and their voices beg for others to join them, to free them.”
Alice clenched her hand, but nodded in understanding.
“I’m sorry.”
The Cheshire Cat shook his head gently and began to walk across the beach, alongside the water of the lake.
“Come; we were supposed to meet him ages ago.”
x.x.x
“Alice, it’s going to be okay Alice. Can you hear me? I love you so much Alice. I hope you never doubt that.”
“Sister? I’m scared.”
“I know you are Alice, but I’m here. I’m here with you. I promise.”
“Alice, darling!”
A wide smile bursts onto Alice’s face when she sees the Mad Hatter, his arms open wide and an ear-splitting grin present on his pale face. Like the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter was looking rough; his skin was even paler than the last time Alice saw him with deep, purple bags under his eyes. His normally bright red hair hung limp against his face and his clothes hung off his body, ripped and repaired with patches. Alice walked into his arms, her smile slipping from her face.
“Mad Hatter, what on earth is wrong?”
She questions, pulling away from the embrace. The grin slips from the Mad Hatter’s face, but he quickly recovers, a smaller smile replacing the larger one. “Oh Alice, there’s been so much that has been wrong, and yet, nothing has been wrong at all. Funny, isn’t it? The things we thought we loved were the things that betrayed us the most.”
Alice tilts her head, confused at the complicated riddle, but before she can question it, the Hatter claps his hands together and calls for everyone’s attention.
“Come, friends! Let us have tea!”
“Alice, do you know where you are?”
“Of course I know where I am.”
“Where are you Alice?”
“Alice?”
Alice looked up to see the Mad Hatter giving her a concerned look and Alice had to wonder yet again what tricks her mind were playing on her; but she shook her head and straightened her shoulders, giving the Mad Hatter a reassuring smile. “Oh Hatter, there’s no need to be concerned; I’m absolutely perfect right now.” The Mad Hatter smiled back and turned around, journeying to the table and Alice had to wonder as to just how true her statement was.
“Hatter, can you please explain to me as to why Wonderland is like this now? I just don’t understand why my precious Wonderland is decaying.”
The Mad Hatter sat down at the long table, the tattered cloth ripped with holes fluttering as he disturbed the fabric. He let out a sigh, rubbing his eyes gently with his fingers. “Alice, I cannot fully give you a reason as to why Wonderland is decaying, for not even I know exactly what happened. One day life was as it always was, and the next thing we know the ground turned to ash beneath our feet and plants curled and died beneath our touch.” As the Mad Hatter was talking, Alice took a seat at the table and poured her companion a cup of tea, still listening intensely to his story.
“But Hatter, I don’t understand; how did Wonderland become this way?”
The Mad Hatter gave a brief thank you before sipping at his tea. “Alice, as I said, I cannot tell you; but, I have a feeling it has something to do with you.” The Cheshire Cat jumped onto Alice’s lap and laid down, purring quietly as Alice began to stroke his back, ignoring the way tufts of fur came out with each movement.
“Me? What could I have done to the decay of Wonderland?”
The Mad Hatter put his teacup down and closed his eyes for a moment, as though he needed a small moment to himself to think. “Alice, you are the creator of Wonderland. Without you, there is no Wonderland; therefore, the decay of Wonderland must be linked to you in some way.”
“But Hatter, I would never want to have Wonderland decay! This is my home!”
“Well then Alice, you must fix it; Wonderland is our home too, we can’t leave and journey between worlds.”
Alice thought for a moment, taking time to scratch the Cheshire Cat behind his ears. “You’re right Hatter; I made a mess of this world, now I must fix it.”
Edith walks into the room, her purse clutched tight against her chest; why she was feeling nervous, she wasn’t entirely too sure, but the thought of having something to keep her grounded, like holding her purse, calmed her nerves in ways she couldn’t explain. She took shallow breaths as the man across from her smiled not unkindly, standing from his chair to greet her.
“Greeting Miss. Liddell, how are you doing this morning?”
Edith smiles shyly in response, giving a small nod. “Well, Dr. Harris. Tell me, how is she today?” The smile on Dr. Harris’ face fell slightly, but he quickly fixed it. “Well; but, Miss. Liddell, we must discuss options.”
“Options?”
Dr. Harris brought Edith to a long window, the sight inside making Edith gasp quietly. “Yes, options. I’m afraid that she is too far in and won’t ever be cured.” Edith stared inside the window for a little longer before turning to the doctor, a grave look on her face.
“Can I see her Doctor?”
Dr. Harris sighed and tucked his hands into his white coat. “You’re welcome to, but I must warn you; she will not know you’re there.”
“That’s a risk I wish to take.”
The doctor nodded his agreement. “Alright, I’ll let you in.” Edith turned back to the window as the doctor left the room, watching.
“Would you like another cup of tea Hatter?”
Alice asked, lifting a tea kettle that only she could see.