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White Rabbit Chapters 5-8 (Reupload)
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Chapter 5
For the first time, Rabbit felt intensely guilty. How could she have done such a thing? She couldn’t remember Alice well, but she still knew enough. Alice’s blur was that of the most delicate, innocent, loving person she’d known; she wouldn’t dream of hurting another person, and had often said so. Why then, did she lose her life? Rabbit tried to think of a reason. Surely she’d had a reason. Unfortunately, she found no one to blame but herself. What kind of monster had she been? It felt horrible, but she knew she still had a task at hand, so she picked herself up and went back out through the basement. It was dark as she headed down the road; she hoped she could find her way.
Luckily, the address she’d been given was rather close by. Apparently, this ‘first meeting place’ was a rundown old restaurant, filled with smoke and suspicious and disgusting characters. Rabbit dearly hoped she wouldn’t have to enter. Fortunately, Hatter appeared from an alleyway beside the building and waved her over. She moved toward him, hoping to receive some answers. She didn’t have time to get a word in, though, because he spoke as soon as she was near.
“Rabbit!” He said, taking her hand and shaking it, “How good it is too see you.”
“Yeah, you too…” She said, not mentioning that she had just seen him, or that he was still a complete stranger to her.
“How have things been?”
“I don’t know.” She said truthfully, “To be honest with you, I don’t know much of anything.”
“Oh, right” He said “I’d forgotten about that. Although I guess that’s all right. After all, you forgot everything!” He laughed hysterically at his own joke.
Rabbit was not amused. “I know. I was hoping you’d help me, but if you’re going to be like that-“
“Oh come on, Rabbit, I was just messing with you.”
“I can see that.”
“Okay, okay, I’m sorry. Now, where to start?”
With this, he started a very long, rambling story about everything imaginable. It was confusing at times, but Rabbit picked up some of it. According to him, they’d first met right there, in the alley behind the restaurant; he failed to explain what exactly they were doing there, but oh well. Not even a few days later, she had started working for him. It took her a moment to understand exactly what they did for a living, despite Hatter’s efforts. Apparently, they did odd jobs for other people, but they were the jobs that “No one else would want to do”. They had done everything; stolen, delivered illegal messages, and even gotten rid of people now and again. Understandably, this was a bit hard for her to take in.
“So… we used to hurt people? For money?”
He sighed. “If you wish to be blunt about it.”
“But that’s crazy. You’re crazy.”
“Oh yeah, because you’re a real sane Sally yourself.”
Rabbit shrugged. He had her there. “Alright. I’m sorry.”
Hatter continued with his story, explaining briefly some of their more specific adventures. And then he stopped. Rabbit didn’t get it.
“That’s it?”
“As far as I know.”
“What about everything else? The things I saw and heard today? What about… Alice?”
He faltered a moment. It seemed he had hoped to gloss over Alice, at least for now.“Oh. Alice. I thought you didn’t remember.”
“I didn’t. At least not at first.”
Hatter looked around. “I don’t think this is a good conversation for public ears. Let’s get you home. We’ll figure everything out then.”
Once they’d returned, Hatter put some water on for tea and took a seat at the kitchen table. Rabbit had been sitting already, but didn’t quite notice when he sat across from her due to the way she had been looking the place over. It was small, but still cozy as some would say, and mostly ordinary. Once she had finally noticed Hatter across the table, she paid no attention to the description of the kitchen; after all, whatever she was going to learn was probably much more interesting. He took his hat off momentarily, fiddling with it a moment.
“So,” he said finally, “How do you know? Have… you seen her?”
“She’s dead.” Rabbit said bluntly.
“I see… I had thought it might be so.”
“What made you so sure?”
He paused a moment, unsure of how to continue. “Well… are you aware of what happened?”
“I know who killed her, if that’s what you mean.” She said, voice filling with guilt despite the blankness on her face.
“Oh… I was hoping you wouldn’t remember that much.” He said with certain sadness “If it’s any consolation, you didn’t really want to do it. Initially, it was my idea.”
Rabbit couldn’t believe it. She gripped her fingers on the table.“Why? What could she possibly have done?”
“It wasn’t like that… I don’t know how you could understand…”
“Start explaining.”
“I don’t know what-“
“Just say something, Hatter!”
He looked at her, seeming to relent at her boldness. It seemed oddly familiar. “Since you insist. Alice wasn’t like everyone else. A special case, if you will.”
“How so?”
“Tell me, Rabbit; do you recall hearing about a place called ‘the above’?”
“’The above’?” It seemed familiar, but she couldn’t quite find it. Suddenly, she remembered a story she’d heard as a child. “Oh, yes. I remember now. They used to say that there was another world out there; that Wonderland wasn’t by itself. They used to say there were people there, just like us, but different at the same time. I think someone used to tell me that story.”
Hatter nodded “I think most have heard it.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
He paused “What if I told you it was more than a story?”
“Are you saying that place is real? Wait a minute… are you saying that’s where Alice was from?”
“Yes and yes. There’s a door that links the two worlds together. Somehow she wandered through, and at precisely the same moment you happened by. I guess you could say she followed you home.”
“I see… what happened after that?”
“Well, we knew where she had come from, and we knew that she wouldn’t be safe by herself. All it would take would be for someone to discover her secret, and who knows what they’d do?” He leaned across the table. “That’s why we kept her here. For a while, it was absolutely perfect. Of course, this was because she didn’t know what we did when we were out all day.”
“She never knew?”
“I didn’t say that. She found out eventually. Needless to say, she didn’t take it too well. She was quite delicate, you know. Cried at the thought of a little mouse drowning.”
“She probably wanted to leave.”
“At first. Fortunately, we were able to talk her out of it. I guess she came to terms with it; she said she was trying to think about how nice we’d been to her before she knew it all, and that she trusted us because of that.”
“But it was for naught. She trusted us, but we had her killed.”
“Hold on there now, I told you it wasn’t quite like that. We had good reason.”
Rabbit couldn’t believe how patient he was being; how… calm. He really believed what he was saying.
“Alright then, what was it?”
“I’m getting to that. First, you need to know about someone they call the Queen.”
“Ah yes, our ‘dear old friend’”
“Exactly. I suppose you assumed we weren’t too fond of her, which is completely correct. She was one of our more frequent ‘customers’. Short on money? Need a shady job? Go to the Queen. It seemed she was calling us up daily sometimes; always with an assignment of the strangest nature. We always just did them without question; after all she’s filthy rich, and our services were dwindling in demand. After a while, it was basically just us and her.”
“So what’s her part in all this?”
He looked down, seeming to recall the story with sadness. “We couldn’t hide Alice forever. Eventually, the Queen found out we had another girl living at our house. A girl she found quite interesting. Very early on, I think she knew something was up. Finally, she somehow figured it all out. She came to us one day, and basically said that she knew everything, and made insane demands that we would have to keep; if we didn’t, everyone would know. There was no way we could keep it all up, so we ran. We moved countless times, and tried every trick in the book, but she always found us. Finally, the last time, she gave us another offer. She’d take back all demands if we, as she said, let her ‘take Alice off our hands’. Of course, we knew what this meant. For some reason, she wanted her dead. We were horrified, but we didn’t know what else to do. Then one day, I came up with an idea; the Queen would never get her, because we’d do it ourselves.”
“So you decided to kill her?”
“Unfortunately, yes. It was the only way I could think of. I couldn’t bear the thought myself, and neither could you. I think if I hadn’t been careful, the minute I said it you’d have sent a knife right through me.”
He laughed again. Rabbit sighed; and she’d thought he was going to be serious for once.
He snapped out of it soon. “It was too bad really. We thought about sending her home, but it couldn’t be done. The door only opens every so often, and predicting when it will is impossible. Eventually, it came down to this; if we didn’t kill Alice, the Queen would. And the Queen makes it hurt.” He inhaled, pained. “There was a time when it took a man nine whole days to die, slowly losing reality bit by bit. Who knows what would have been done to Alice, fragile as she was?”
Rabbit was understanding the whole logic behind it, almost too well. “But if we did it… it’d just be a quick shot; she’d never even know.”
“Exactly.”
Rabbit nodded, oddly comforted for a brief moment. She cringed as she was reminded of her wound, due to the sudden throbbing. “Except I think she did know. Something was fighting me, at least.” Rabbit said, holding out her hand.
Hatter cringed. “And your good hand, too. Alice was always handy when she needed to be.” He was interrupted when the kettle started whistling. “Ah, perfect timing. We’ll have to do something about that slice.”
He quickly poured two cups before crossing the kitchen and rummaging through a drawer. He found a needle and thread, and carried everything to the table. He threaded the needle, and dropped it in his teacup. Grabbing a rag, he sat at the table and took her hand.
Rabbit stared at the gaping slice. It was still open, for every time it started healing, a simple movement would ruin everything.
Looking it over, Hatter started blotting at it with the rag.
“My goodness, this really needs cleaning. What were you doing?”
Rabbit smirked “What wasn’t I doing?”
Hatter laughed, and put his hands up to his eyes like binoculars. “There it is, one of Wonderland’s rarest creatures, I’ve never seen it in its natural habitat before! One of Rabbit’s smiles!”
“Oh, shut up.” She tried to continue the banter, but the open air on her hand was excruciating now, causing her to clench her teeth.
Hatter brought her hand back to his attention. “But seriously, this is bad.”
“You don’t say?”
Hatter pulled the needle from the cup and knotted the thread.
“Wait,” Rabbit said, “What are you doing?”
“Helping you. Unless, of course, you want a gaping, rotting, hole in your hand.”
“Good point.”
Rabbit tried hard not to cringe when the needle went through her skin. Luckily, she found that after the first stitch, the shock of it wasn’t quite so horrific.
“See? It’s not that bad.” Hatter said, rather gently, “You wouldn’t believe how many times we’ve stitched each other up.”
“Actually, it doesn’t surprise me much.”
“Ah, so you’ve seen all those scars.”
“Yes… How did you-?”
“How did I know about them? Well quite frankly, I was there when most of them got there, m’dear.” He snipped the thread. “There, all done.”
Suddenly, something occurred to her. “Hatter, what happens when the Queen knows what I did?”
Obviously, Hatter hadn’t thought of this. “I suppose she’ll be quite angry.”
“And from what I’ve heard, when she gets angry, bad things happen.”
Hatter’s eyebrows scrunched. “We shouldn’t be here. She could come for us any time.” He rose quickly. “Pack a bag; and hurry!”
They ran down the hall to their respective rooms. Rabbit tossed some clothes into an old suitcase, and was in the hallway a moment before Hatter. They were on their way out when there was a loud and angry knock at the door.
“Oh no,” Hatter whispered. “We’re too late.”
Muffled cries were coming from the other side. Whoever was knocking wasn’t here for a leisurely chat; that was certain. They would have to find another way out.
“What now?” Hatter was starting to panic.
“The basement.”
“What?”
“Just trust me.”
They ran down the stairs, and Rabbit rushed to the widow she’d used as a previous entrance.
“The window!” She said, just as they heard the door crashing open upstairs. “That’s how I got in earlier!”
“Good.” Hatter said, “Ladies first.”
And they crawled out the window and into the night.
Chapter 6
Rabbit had no idea where they were going, and she hoped Hatter had some sort of plan. She didn’t know a thing when it came to safe locations; everything seemed the same to her. Obviously, this was not a good day to be an amnesiac. She wasn’t sure if she could trust the maniac, but it didn’t seem she had much choice.
They walked in silence for a long time, concentrating on putting as much distance between them and the house as possible. Finally, when the bustling city gave way to the countryside, Hatter dropped his pack and flopped on the ground up against a tree. Rabbit sat down as well, grateful for the much needed rest. She had so many questions to ask, but she felt there wasn’t much time; her companion had already closed his eyes, his hat placed on his chest. She decided to prioritize her questions, asking the most relevant one for the moment.
“Where are we going?”
“Do you want the honest answer?” He said, opening one eye.
“Yes.”
“I have no idea.” He sat up, stretching and yawning a moment. “All I know is I’m way too tired to think right now. To be truthful, Rabbit, I usually left most of the thinking to you. You were always so much better at planning ahead than I was.”
“Well I hate to break it to you, but I doubt I can do anything of the sort at the time.”
“That’s fine with me; it was probably about time I woke up the ol’ brain anyhow. But in the meantime, it’s best we get some sleep. We’ve both had quite the day; you especially.”
Rabbit looked around nervously. She didn’t like the thought of them both just sleeping out here. “Isn’t someone supposed to keep watch or something?”
“In a remote place like this? We’ll be able to hear anything for miles. But if you’d rather stay up all night, be my guest.”
He slid down, curled up in the grass and soon was snoring soundly. Rabbit, however, had a bit more difficulty finding sleep. She lay down on the cold ground, doing everything in her power to relax. She looked up to the cloudless sky, filled with countless stars. It really was quite beautiful, and despite all that had happened she felt much calmer; but whenever she did, something would ruin it.
How many times had she done this? How many times, when she still knew who she was, had she slept under a tree on the side of the road? When she asked these questions she felt as if she was seeking answers about someone else; like she was tracking down the life story of an ancient relative as opposed to her own. She felt like a soul in the wrong body, with people she’d never met who cared for her like family. Or a person, at least. None of it made sense; so many things had happened that seemed to be linked to her past, shouldn’t one of these triggered some sort of recollection? It was with these thoughts swirling through her head that Rabbit, horribly exhausted, finally drifted into a restless, dreamless sleep.
They woke at dawn, heading down the road just as the sun finished its opening act in the sky. Hatter was in high spirits as usual, whistling as he went and doing his best to make conversation with Rabbit, who was doing her best to hide her irritation. Didn’t this man ever stop talking? There was no way he could have slept much better than she had, yet he was all but skipping down the road like a child in the middle of July.
Rabbit was torn from her thoughts when she heard a rumbling behind her. An old horse drawn cart pulled up beside them, and Rabbit realized just how diverse the world must be. Back in the city there had been cars everywhere, but out here anything of the motorized sort would be a highly unlikely sight. The man perched at the front took notice of the pair, and waved cheerfully.
“You two traveling far?” He called, “I’d be happy to take you as far as the village up ahead.”
“Thank you, sir,” Hatter said, tipping his hat to the stranger as they jumped up into the back, “Would there by any chance be a place to eat there? We have quite a way to go today.”
“Why certainly,” He said, but his face turned grim when he got a look at Rabbit, “Although I’m afraid the people there are a bit simple minded. There may be a bit of trouble acquiring anything for the lady.”
Hatter reddened slightly, as if there was something he had hoped he wouldn’t have to explain.
“Yes, well… thank you for the warning at any rate.”
“Any time. Of course I never understood that way of thinking myself.”
“Of course” Hatter said quickly, trying to end the conversation. “We understand fully.”
Conversation with the driver was minimal after that. Rabbit and Hatter settled down in the back, trying to be as comfortable as possible in the wooden cart. Rabbit felt odd asking so many questions, but could restrain no longer.
“What was he talking about?”
“What do you mean?”
“You know exactly what I mean.”
“What, the thing about simple minded people? I’m sure that was just…”
“Just tell me.”
“Well… it’s your eyes, Rabbit.”
“My… eyes?” For the first time in a while, Rabbit was reminded of the dark circles around her eyes. “Is that what this is all about?”
“I’m afraid so. It’s a rare thing, you see; the genetics and family lines have to add up just so. Some people seem to think there’s a problem with that. Lots of rumors and legends have developed, and there really just aren’t many people left to confirm or discredit any of it. Personally, I never got it; what’s so great about being similar to people anyway? Either way, little places, they’re afraid of Wonders; some sort of superstition.
So that was why he’d seemed so embarrassed; after all, how do you explain to someone that they’re some sort of social taboo? So that must be what she was; a Wonder. This term felt right in her mind, despite the fact that it did nothing else for her.
When she looked back over at him, he seemed even more anxious. Apparently, he’d thought her period of silence was due to being upset.
“Sorry,” he muttered, “There’s nothing else I could say.”
“Whatever,” She said, “I’m sure I’ve put up with those problems before. If I did before, I should now; despite my lapsed memory.”
“If you say so.”
Soon afterward, the cart pulled into a small village. The man let them off at the gate, and they were left to navigate the place on their own. As they walked down the main street, if indeed a dirt road with five shops could be called a main street, Rabbit could feel the collective stare of everyone populating the area burning into her. Hatter leaned in close.
“Probably not used to new people going through town.” He muttered, “Places like this often only get a visitor about once a decade.”
“Right.” She said, “I’m sure that’s the case.”
They came to a small inn at the end of the road, and saw some empty tables inside. This was a good sign. Strange village or not, Rabbit was starving, and she was certain Hatter was as well. She knocked at the door, hoping that all would go well.
A tall man, presumably the innkeeper, opened the door. He looked them both up and down before speaking.
“Yes? What can I do for you?”
“Morning sir,” Hatter said, “Not intending to bother you, but we’ve been travelling a long time and were wondering if you knew of a place where we might grab something to eat.”
“We got food here,” He grunted, seeming occupied and slightly worried. “Unfortunately, there’s no room. Maybe you can try somewhere else.” With this, he slammed the door. The two continued town, despite the many empty tables they’d seen right near the window, but had just as bad luck everywhere else. Once they made it to the edge of the village, they figured they may as well leave and try elsewhere. Unfortunately, a small group of about five or six blocked their path.
“And where are you going?” Asked a first.
“Traveling. Just passing through.” Rabbit said, hiding her annoyance as best she could. These people were trying her patience.
“Oh?” said a second “And why, pray tell, did you choose to stop here?”
Hatter shrugged “It was on the way.” Despite his nonchalance, Rabbit could see him slowly edging sideways and followed suit.
A third man stepped forward “Really? You didn’t have anything else in mind?”
“Look,” Rabbit said, “We don’t want any trouble.”
“Oh come now,” The first said, “Who doesn’t want a little trouble nowadays? These are dangerous times. Different times.”
Rabbit was getting angry now “What are you insinuating?”
He smirked “You know exactly what I’m saying, my little Wonder friend. Our world has seemed to not need its special little flowers as much, yeah?”
This was all too much. He wasn’t even being creative. Usually, Rabbit would have tried to keep herself contained, but one can only take so much. If these imbeciles wanted trouble, that was just what they’d have. She picked up a stick and smacked it against a nearby horse, which jumped from the shock, upturning a vegetable stand and a rain barrel. She took the resulting uproar as an opportunity to escape, and ran as fast as she could, with Hatter close behind. They ran until the cries of the stunned villagers could be heard no more.
When they finally stopped, they sat in the grass.
“Well,” Hatter said, “That went better than I’d thought.”
“How did those things usually go?”
“It all depended on your mood really.” He said, laughing at the memory, “When you were mad, we’d fight our way out, beating the tar out of anyone who dared to get too close.”
“And in a good mood?”
“It was always different every time; although there were quite a few times when you would make complete and terrible fools out of them. It was hilarious.”
“Well, it’s definitely more interesting than beating the tar out of people.”
“Interesting doesn’t do it justice. You used to have this funny little habit of threatening to turn young ladies into frogs. Once you even walked close to some sap and looked him up and down, mumbling about what wonderful leather his skin would make for book binding.”
“Disturbing, yet original, I suppose.” Rabbit wasn’t sure how to feel about herself.
“It was amazing; I don’t think I stopped laughing for days.”
“Huh, that may be the most positive thing I’ve heard about myself all day.”
“My pleasure.”
Rabbit looked over the vast green valley. “Where to now?”
“Not sure. Our best bet would most likely be to continue the way we’re going. We want to get somewhere that no one could possibly recognize us. It wouldn’t hurt to find something to eat either.”
“Is that honestly all you can think about?”
“Like it isn’t just as much on your mind. We should be having lunch right now.”
“If you must know, I’ve hardly been thinking of it; although now that you mention it, I can’t seem to recall the last time I had anything to eat.”
“See? Now you’ll be thinking of it all afternoon.”
“Sure. Whatever you say, Hatter.”
She stood and started down the road once again; Hatter trotted up beside her, and soon they were on their way, moving at a more leisurely pace and making calm conversation. It was so different from the frantic dash they’d made the night prior, and Rabbit was almost enjoying herself as they went along. Still, she couldn’t help but feel slightly concerned; if they had gotten this far on foot, how close could the Queen have gotten with better means of travel? Of course, she didn’t voice this question; the last thing they needed was to be needlessly fearful. Nonetheless she quickened her pace slightly, hoping it wouldn’t be noticed.
If Hatter knew, he didn’t make it apparent. “I’d say we picked a pretty good day to be fugitives, don’t you think? The weather hasn’t been like this in ages; always pouring rain or burning sun. Today’s different though; perfect conditions for on foot travel.”
“That so?”
“What, you don’t agree?”
“Sure I do. It’s really nice here.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
Rabbit was caught off guard; had it been that obvious? It didn’t seem possible. It was a rare occasion for her to betray her thoughts; this much she now knew.
“Problem? What gives you that idea?”
“You must remember that, though I am a stranger to you, you are no stranger to me.”
“I still don’t see-“
“It’s the Queen isn’t it? You still think she can find us.”
“How did you…?”
“You always were a nervous little Rabbit. There were many times when we’d get clean away, and you’d still think there was trouble weeks later; unfortunately, you were usually right.”
“You mean this has happened before?”
“Oh, millions of times. Of course, we weren’t usually running from our own kind; usually it was the law behind us. Those were always the best times, I think; when we were traveling. Sometimes we took Alice with us; it was like we were taking a trip, just because we could.”
“…You miss her, don’t you?”
“Of course. She was so…”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.”
There was quite a silence after that; neither one could think of anything to say. And so they were silent; lost in their own thoughts. All the while, Rabbit couldn’t stop beating herself up; why had she done such a thing? Even after Hatter had explained their motive and that it wasn’t her idea, she still couldn’t understand. Surely, they could have figured something out; and even if they couldn’t, Alice had been their friend. They’d been her protectors; from what she’d heard, a great deal of their lives had to do with Alice. In a way, it seemed pointless to try to remember her old life; they’d never have that again. Everything would be different from now on. Then again without those memories she felt so lost, and regaining them, even just for the purpose of cherishing, would still be worth the while. She was tired of feeling like the wrong person, like she’d been thrown in the middle of a story that wasn’t hers; she wanted to feel like her old self, whatever that was.
It was in this manner that Rabbit was thinking the entire long journey until a town rose in the distance. It was large; a good place to be lost and blend in with the thousands of faces.
Rabbit tried her hand at being optimistic. “Look at that. I’m sure all problems will be solved.”
Luckily, she didn’t have to try to keep it up long; Hatter soon took over “Finally! Food, shelter, and a place to hide all in one; it’s a criminal’s one stop!” He laughed out of the sheer happiness at this good fortune. Rabbit just shook her head, although she found herself becoming more used to these outbursts.
They crossed the city lines, once again thrown into the chaos of civilization. The place felt strange and foreign, not unlike everywhere else, but Rabbit remained confident this time. There was no way anyone could pick them out of this crowd. For now, they were safe; she could only hope they would remain that way.
Chapter 7
Rabbit and Hatter slipped into a small café in the middle of town, and soon had their plates before them. Rabbit hadn’t realized just how hungry she was until that precise moment, and was grateful that there was no need to wait any longer. Both of them were silent, concentrating only on the simple task. When she finally had finished what she wanted, she almost laughed at the sight of Hatter, who had cleaned his plate long ago yet still glanced at her like a starving child. It was at this moment that she remembered something she had said long ago.
“Hatter,” She had declared irritably that day, “Look at what you’re eating! No wonder there’s never any food in the house.”
Taking this to mind, she shoved her half filled plate across the table. When he looked up at her questioningly, she shrugged.
“Go ahead,” She said, “I didn’t want it anyway.”
She watched in mild amusement as he tried to finish as quickly as possible while still retaining some dignity. He was only half way successful, but that obviously didn’t matter to him as he sat back contentedly, wiping his face with a napkin. Rabbit shook her head.
“Sure you’ve had enough?”
“I think I’ll manage.”
They exited after paying the bill, and walked down the road. The afternoon was slowly shifting to evening, and the number of people was starting to thin out. They moved casually, but by the course they were taking Rabbit could tell Hatter had some sort of destination in mind.
“You’ve been here before, haven’t you?”
“We both have.” He said, “Last time, we needed a place to hide out for quite a while. You brought us here, to a house a few miles down the way; you said something about it being important. So I figured if it was that important, it may be beneficial to make our way there once again.”
“I see…” She paused momentarily, realizing just how difficult she must have been making it for him, “I’m sorry about all this. It can’t be easy.”
“No reason for that. We’ll get you back soon; we just need to find the right thing.”
“Maybe you’ve been too easy on me.” Rabbit said, “Maybe that’s why nothing works.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, all this time you’ve been talking to me carefully, because I obviously know nothing, and I’ve been thinking in my head all this time about how I know nothing, so maybe I can’t remember anything because we keep insisting I can’t remember anything.”
“I think I see what you’re saying, but what are we supposed to do?”
“I don’t know; it was just a thought…”
“A good one. All we need is a plan to go with it.”
Suddenly it hit her. She felt stupid for not seeing this sooner.
“What if we pretend I can remember?”
“What?”
“Stay with me here; think about the last time I saw you before all of this. I’m assuming we parted ways.”
“We did.”
“Right, so just think about what you’d say if this whole thing had happened, but I never forgot a thing. Talk to me like you used to.”
“It’s worth a shot, I suppose.” He cleared his throat a moment, and when he spoke again he sounded vaguely different. Some may not have noticed it, but there was definitely something else there. “Alright Rabbit, where in the heck are we going this time?”
She searched her mind thinking of what she knew. “Well obviously we’ll have to get out of the way for a while. After the whole thing with…”
“Yes, I know that. But more specifically?”
“Somewhere important. We can stay there a while.”
“I see…” He paused a moment, “You’re sure you went through with it?”
“Absolutely certain… although truth be told, I’m not sure how I feel about that.”
“Come now Rabbit, remember what we said; no hard feelings. It was for the best.”
“I know; you’re right, I suppose.”
“…I still miss her though.”
She nodded, “I know; I’m sure we always will.”
“She was rather unforgettable, wasn’t she?”
“Yes… all her art projects.”
Hatter laughed “The way she always scolded us when we stepped out of line.”
“She was one of a kind, really.”
“She was indeed.”
Rabbit started to wish they hadn’t done this; all the talk of Alice was starting to get to them. She could only hope one of them wouldn’t start crying.
“It wasn’t fair,” she said, “This world was too harsh for her.”
“I know,”
“She didn’t belong with us; we tried to protect her, but we only put her in more danger.”
“Rabbit…”
“Maybe she should have never come to us.”
“Will you stop that?” Hatter said, rising close to a shout, “Do you really think I don’t feel guilty about it either? So sure, you killed the girl; I’m sorry, I know that hurts. But I told you to do it, didn’t I? You know what that means? Not only am I responsible for all this, but I had to put you through this as well! So you feel bad, I get that, but other people have problems too. It’s times like this I wish I had just gone through with my original plan and done it all myself. Sure you’d hate me, but hearing all the hate would be more bearable than all this guilt. All these what ifs and should haves. I’m tired of it, Rabbit! Things used to be so much simpler, you know.” He quieted down, letting his words sink in, and seemed slightly regretful. But only slightly so. “Well, now I guess you really do hate me. It was only a matter of time, I suppose.”
“Hatter, I…”
“No, forget I said anything.” He said, and tried to brighten up a bit. “Let’s just get to that important place of yours. I don’t think it’s possible to be more tired than I am right now.”
“Yeah,” Rabbit said, starting to lose her ‘I know everything’ demeanor, “It shouldn’t be far.”
“When we get there, I think we need to figure some things out more specifically. I doubt the Queen will let this drop.”
“In that case, I suppose she’ll probably be looking for me more than anything. I don’t suppose she knows about your part in all this.”
His eyes widened in horror; obviously, this hadn’t occurred to him. Rabbit was starting to feel less confident about this plan. That look was more than fear for a friend; it was more like extreme terror for the girl who didn’t even know her name yesterday. Obviously, the delicate situation was hard for him to forget.
“I suppose we’ll have to be careful, then,” He said, regaining his composure and shoving his hands in his pockets, “Of course, it’s not all that strange; you’ve gotten us in trouble on quite a few occasions. In fact, I’m starting to wonder who’s really working for whom around here.”
“Hatter, I can’t do this anymore.”
“What are you talking about? We’ve hidden out countless times, what’s the problem?”
“No Hatter, I mean this whole acting thing. It’s not working.”
“Really? I could have sworn I was talking to the old Rabbit for quite a while. It was a little eerie, as a matter of fact.”
“I suppose it would; after all I’ve probably been a completely different person up until now.”
“You’re not that different.”
“You don’t have to be so nice about it.”
“Okay, so it’s different. You were scaring me there for a while, Rabbit.”
“Hopefully that won’t last too long.”
As they went on, there were increasingly less people surrounding them. Soon they came to a road that looked as if it hadn’t been used for ages; it was old and cracked, and overgrown with trees. Still, Hatter led on, and Rabbit stopped a moment.
“Are you sure this is the right way?”
“Of course. Watch your step.”
They went only a short way on the road before coming to a house, falling apart with age. If it had been painted once, all color had been stripped away, along with pieces of the house itself. They waded through the waist deep grass up to the door, and stepped over the threshold into the old building. The inside was not much better than the outside. Furniture was overturned, wallpaper hung off the wall from years of abandon, the windows were shattered; Rabbit couldn’t believe the disrepair.
“This is the important place?”
Hatter nodded “it was just as bad then. You ought to go upstairs, that might be more illuminating.”
She considered this a moment; the stairs were ancient, and the rail was long gone. Would they hold? Before she had a chance to think it over, Hatter took her good hand and pulled her upstairs.
When she entered the upstairs hall, she couldn’t believe her eyes. It was like a moment had been frozen in time, just so she could come and observe it all. She could see inside a few of the rooms, and she felt an odd sense of mystery; it looked like something had happened here, something that made the occupants of the house leave in the middle of everything. A book was lying open on the floor in one room, a glass of water still sat on the nightstand in another. It was all rather eerie seeing these things; eerie and familiar. She knew she’d been here before, but not only as a hiding place.
“Hatter,” she whispered, “I think I used to live here.”
“That’s very possible,” He said, “You never told me why it was important; I suppose that would make sense.”
“Something’s not right.”
“What?”
“Don’t you feel it? Something happened here; it’s like the place is frozen in time. If we’d just moved away, that wouldn’t be the case.”
“I didn’t want to admit it, but I felt something to that effect.” His gaze turned to the end of the hall, “Hello…”
“What is it?”
“The door at the end of the hall; you never opened it when we were here before.”
Rabbit moved to the door, but hesitated before touching the knob. She didn’t know what could be in there. She took a breath; she couldn’t let herself get scared now. Slowly, she turned the knob.
She let out a small gasp when she stepped inside. It was a child’s room, and the familiarity was painful. Whatever had happened had been centered in this room. She looked around the room, examining the books in the corner and the toys on the bed, until she heard Hatter across the room.
“Rabbit,” he said, “I think you’d better take a look at this.”
Chapter 8
Hatter was standing across the room, holding a frame he’d picked up off of the floor. Rabbit all but ran to him, and met the sight with mixed feelings. The glass was shattered, but what was on the other side was apparent. There were three people in the photograph, a young couple and a small child; they stood on a bridge, the pair smiling so kindly. Even the little girl seemed happy, despite the lack of a smile on her face. Rabbit smiled; they looked so pleased, so glad to be together, yet she knew that this had been cut short. It was bittersweet, because she knew who was in the picture.
Hatter scrunched his brow. “Is that…?”
Rabbit nodded. “Yes, that’s me. I must have been real young.”
“Was that your family?”
Somehow, Rabbit was certain of what she said next. “Not originally; I think they were… family friends of some sort. I still called them my parents, though; at least I think so.”
“That’s right. I now recall something you said years ago; about these people.”
“What’s that?”
“Well, something happened; you never told me what, all I know is that these people promised your parents they’d take care of you.”
Rabbit froze; suddenly, she could remember who these people were, and what had happened here. Now she could vividly remember the sudden event here; the sights, the sounds, everything. She must have looked horrified, because Hatter had put both hands on her shoulders and led her to the edge of the bed. They sat down, and Rabbit tried to pull herself together; when she thought of that day, she felt sick. If this was what memories felt like, she preferred the confusion.
“What’s happening, Rabbit? Did you get something in your head?”
She said nothing, only slowly nodded.
“That’s funny, you still seem like before.”
“I don’t remember everything, only a piece; only an afternoon. It was a horrible afternoon; that’s when the place got so messed up.”
“What happened?”
“I don’t know if I…”
“No, go on.”
“I was there,” she said, pointing to the corner, “I was reading one of my books, when I heard strange noises coming from downstairs. And so, being curious as I was, I silently opened the door and stood near the banister rail. There were a bunch of strange men in the living room with father, talking in hushed voices. And… and…”
“And?”
“One of them had… a… I can’t.”
“What Rabbit? What did he have?”
“I can’t say it. I can’t.”
“Come on Rabbit; I need to know what has you so flustered.”
Rabbit couldn’t choke out the words. She reached into her pocket and removed the revolver, setting it on her leg.
“I see,” Hatter said, “I believe I can infer what became of your Father. And you were there?”
She nodded.
“And you were young, from what little you told me before.”
“Very.” She said, looking down, “I don’t know what happened to my Mother. She hid me in the closet, and then she was just… gone. I did as I had been instructed, and ran to the home of those people there.” Rabbit pointed to the picture, “That’s where I lived. I don’t know why their picture is here; I suppose it was taken before I lived with them.”
Hatter nodded thoughtfully. “I suppose it all makes sense. I know that when we’d have to get rid of people, you’d always be looking around right before. I asked you why; you said you wanted to see if his kids were around.”
They sat quietly for a moment before Rabbit spoke.
“I wish I hadn’t remembered. That was one of the things I was trying to forget.”
Hatter put a hand on her shoulder. “We don’t have to stay.”
“I hate to cause trouble.”
“Not at all.” He said with an anxious glance around the room, “I was starting to have second thoughts about the place myself.”
So they left, despite not knowing where else to go. They made their way back into town around nightfall, and it was nearly empty. The city was actually rather pleasant at night, and Rabbit was glad to take a chance to sit and enjoy it. She looked around from her spot on a park bench, only halfway listening to what Hatter was saying. Their conversation was innocent at first, but once again drifted back to Alice.
“We should do something,” Rabbit said, “The Queen made us do this all; we should do something about it.”
“We can’t knock her off, if that’s what you mean. We tried, but it didn’t work out. If we even wanted to try, we’d need you back, m’dear. Frankly, in this state your planning skills leave a bit to be desired.”
“Yes, I know.”
“Of course, we’ll just have to fix that.”
“What if we don’t?” she said, “What if I’m stuck like this… forever?”
“Will you stop that already? You never would have been so doubtful before, and there’s no reason for it now.”
“But-”
“Rabbit, no.”
“Alright, fine. But how? What’s your brilliant plan this time?”
“Give me a minute, won’t you? All this thinking is hard work, you know.”
“Probably because you just aren’t used to it.”
“That’s most likely true,” He said with a laugh.
“But I don’t get it,” Rabbit said, “I can vividly and perfectly remember that specific day; why can’t I recall anything else?”
“I don’t know for certain, but it makes a bit of sense when you think about it. That room and those things you saw helped you, but they only pertained to one thing; in other words, in order to know something, you’d probably need something that really made you think of what happened other times. It’s a stretch, but it’s better than nothing.”
“But Hatter, I had a room and a photograph, and every thought was perfectly intact; but I’m trying to remember my recent life the hardest, and I have a person who witnessed a majority of it. But do I get anything back? No.”
“I know, Rabbit. Maybe it doesn’t work with people; maybe it’s like you said, how we’re insisting that you don’t know…”
“Oh yeah, and what a great proposition that was.” Rabbit said, “Let’s face it, my ideas only lead to disappointment.”
“You got out of pris’n just fine.”
“You let me out.”
“Sure, I unlocked the door… but there were a whole bunch of guards there.”
“You killed them off.”
“…You unlocked the safe.”
“You gave me the password.”
“Fine then! That’s the last time I try to boost your self esteem. You’re too tough a nut to crack”
Despite his attempt at a stern look, she knew he was only poking fun. Still, maybe he was right; maybe she was being too hard on herself. After all, she’d found that useless mushroom, she’d made herself that knife, and she’d managed to decode Hatter’s message; she’d found her way home, and figured quite a few things out along the way, despite her lack of memory. Maybe she was still the same person Hatter so often spoke of. And if this was true, maybe she could do more then they’d thought. Despite this thought, she still hoped he would have at least a vague idea of what to do next.
“Got that ingenious plan yet?”
“Still working on it” He muttered
“You know, we could still off her, if we wanted to.”
“Are you mad?”
“Most likely.”
“Okay, granted; regardless, I told you why we can’t do that.”
“Yes, yes, I know, we need to get my memory back, that’s more important, I can’t plan now, and you don’t know how to think… whatever.”
“We’re talking top danger here, Rabbit; top danger!” Hatter was starting to get flustered. “She probably knows of a hundred ways to kill a person!”
“As do you, I’m sure.”
“Well I suppose, but…”
“And I used to, at one time.”
“That’s not the…”
“And we’re a long way away; I’m sure I can find some recollection on the way, especially if we take a longer route.”
“Rabbit…”
“Hatter, we’re going.”
He sighed. “I never could argue with you before; why start now?”
“Are you sure?”
“I suppose…”
“Really?”
“Alright, alright! We’ll do it; it’s not as if I haven’t wanted to.”
“Then I suppose it’s settled.” She said, beginning to yawn, “But for now, I think we ought to find a place for the night.”
“Good idea,” He said, as they started down the street.
They searched the town, and eventually found a small hotel with rooms that could be paid for with the small bit of cash they had left. When they entered the room, Hatter immediately sprawled out on one of the beds, heaving a contented sigh. Rabbit thought this to be ridiculous at first, but soon understood the feeling herself as she finally took a chance to relax in her spot across the room. After a minute or so, Hatter laughed to himself for what Rabbit hoped was the last time of the night.
“You know Rabbit,” He said, “It’s good to know you’re doing the thinking again around here.”
She couldn’t help but smile, just a bit. “I guess I am, aren’t I?”
“I like it much better this way.”
“As do I, as do I.”
And it was with these words still in her head that she soon fell gratefully to sleep.
For the first time, Rabbit felt intensely guilty. How could she have done such a thing? She couldn’t remember Alice well, but she still knew enough. Alice’s blur was that of the most delicate, innocent, loving person she’d known; she wouldn’t dream of hurting another person, and had often said so. Why then, did she lose her life? Rabbit tried to think of a reason. Surely she’d had a reason. Unfortunately, she found no one to blame but herself. What kind of monster had she been? It felt horrible, but she knew she still had a task at hand, so she picked herself up and went back out through the basement. It was dark as she headed down the road; she hoped she could find her way.
Luckily, the address she’d been given was rather close by. Apparently, this ‘first meeting place’ was a rundown old restaurant, filled with smoke and suspicious and disgusting characters. Rabbit dearly hoped she wouldn’t have to enter. Fortunately, Hatter appeared from an alleyway beside the building and waved her over. She moved toward him, hoping to receive some answers. She didn’t have time to get a word in, though, because he spoke as soon as she was near.
“Rabbit!” He said, taking her hand and shaking it, “How good it is too see you.”
“Yeah, you too…” She said, not mentioning that she had just seen him, or that he was still a complete stranger to her.
“How have things been?”
“I don’t know.” She said truthfully, “To be honest with you, I don’t know much of anything.”
“Oh, right” He said “I’d forgotten about that. Although I guess that’s all right. After all, you forgot everything!” He laughed hysterically at his own joke.
Rabbit was not amused. “I know. I was hoping you’d help me, but if you’re going to be like that-“
“Oh come on, Rabbit, I was just messing with you.”
“I can see that.”
“Okay, okay, I’m sorry. Now, where to start?”
With this, he started a very long, rambling story about everything imaginable. It was confusing at times, but Rabbit picked up some of it. According to him, they’d first met right there, in the alley behind the restaurant; he failed to explain what exactly they were doing there, but oh well. Not even a few days later, she had started working for him. It took her a moment to understand exactly what they did for a living, despite Hatter’s efforts. Apparently, they did odd jobs for other people, but they were the jobs that “No one else would want to do”. They had done everything; stolen, delivered illegal messages, and even gotten rid of people now and again. Understandably, this was a bit hard for her to take in.
“So… we used to hurt people? For money?”
He sighed. “If you wish to be blunt about it.”
“But that’s crazy. You’re crazy.”
“Oh yeah, because you’re a real sane Sally yourself.”
Rabbit shrugged. He had her there. “Alright. I’m sorry.”
Hatter continued with his story, explaining briefly some of their more specific adventures. And then he stopped. Rabbit didn’t get it.
“That’s it?”
“As far as I know.”
“What about everything else? The things I saw and heard today? What about… Alice?”
He faltered a moment. It seemed he had hoped to gloss over Alice, at least for now.“Oh. Alice. I thought you didn’t remember.”
“I didn’t. At least not at first.”
Hatter looked around. “I don’t think this is a good conversation for public ears. Let’s get you home. We’ll figure everything out then.”
Once they’d returned, Hatter put some water on for tea and took a seat at the kitchen table. Rabbit had been sitting already, but didn’t quite notice when he sat across from her due to the way she had been looking the place over. It was small, but still cozy as some would say, and mostly ordinary. Once she had finally noticed Hatter across the table, she paid no attention to the description of the kitchen; after all, whatever she was going to learn was probably much more interesting. He took his hat off momentarily, fiddling with it a moment.
“So,” he said finally, “How do you know? Have… you seen her?”
“She’s dead.” Rabbit said bluntly.
“I see… I had thought it might be so.”
“What made you so sure?”
He paused a moment, unsure of how to continue. “Well… are you aware of what happened?”
“I know who killed her, if that’s what you mean.” She said, voice filling with guilt despite the blankness on her face.
“Oh… I was hoping you wouldn’t remember that much.” He said with certain sadness “If it’s any consolation, you didn’t really want to do it. Initially, it was my idea.”
Rabbit couldn’t believe it. She gripped her fingers on the table.“Why? What could she possibly have done?”
“It wasn’t like that… I don’t know how you could understand…”
“Start explaining.”
“I don’t know what-“
“Just say something, Hatter!”
He looked at her, seeming to relent at her boldness. It seemed oddly familiar. “Since you insist. Alice wasn’t like everyone else. A special case, if you will.”
“How so?”
“Tell me, Rabbit; do you recall hearing about a place called ‘the above’?”
“’The above’?” It seemed familiar, but she couldn’t quite find it. Suddenly, she remembered a story she’d heard as a child. “Oh, yes. I remember now. They used to say that there was another world out there; that Wonderland wasn’t by itself. They used to say there were people there, just like us, but different at the same time. I think someone used to tell me that story.”
Hatter nodded “I think most have heard it.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
He paused “What if I told you it was more than a story?”
“Are you saying that place is real? Wait a minute… are you saying that’s where Alice was from?”
“Yes and yes. There’s a door that links the two worlds together. Somehow she wandered through, and at precisely the same moment you happened by. I guess you could say she followed you home.”
“I see… what happened after that?”
“Well, we knew where she had come from, and we knew that she wouldn’t be safe by herself. All it would take would be for someone to discover her secret, and who knows what they’d do?” He leaned across the table. “That’s why we kept her here. For a while, it was absolutely perfect. Of course, this was because she didn’t know what we did when we were out all day.”
“She never knew?”
“I didn’t say that. She found out eventually. Needless to say, she didn’t take it too well. She was quite delicate, you know. Cried at the thought of a little mouse drowning.”
“She probably wanted to leave.”
“At first. Fortunately, we were able to talk her out of it. I guess she came to terms with it; she said she was trying to think about how nice we’d been to her before she knew it all, and that she trusted us because of that.”
“But it was for naught. She trusted us, but we had her killed.”
“Hold on there now, I told you it wasn’t quite like that. We had good reason.”
Rabbit couldn’t believe how patient he was being; how… calm. He really believed what he was saying.
“Alright then, what was it?”
“I’m getting to that. First, you need to know about someone they call the Queen.”
“Ah yes, our ‘dear old friend’”
“Exactly. I suppose you assumed we weren’t too fond of her, which is completely correct. She was one of our more frequent ‘customers’. Short on money? Need a shady job? Go to the Queen. It seemed she was calling us up daily sometimes; always with an assignment of the strangest nature. We always just did them without question; after all she’s filthy rich, and our services were dwindling in demand. After a while, it was basically just us and her.”
“So what’s her part in all this?”
He looked down, seeming to recall the story with sadness. “We couldn’t hide Alice forever. Eventually, the Queen found out we had another girl living at our house. A girl she found quite interesting. Very early on, I think she knew something was up. Finally, she somehow figured it all out. She came to us one day, and basically said that she knew everything, and made insane demands that we would have to keep; if we didn’t, everyone would know. There was no way we could keep it all up, so we ran. We moved countless times, and tried every trick in the book, but she always found us. Finally, the last time, she gave us another offer. She’d take back all demands if we, as she said, let her ‘take Alice off our hands’. Of course, we knew what this meant. For some reason, she wanted her dead. We were horrified, but we didn’t know what else to do. Then one day, I came up with an idea; the Queen would never get her, because we’d do it ourselves.”
“So you decided to kill her?”
“Unfortunately, yes. It was the only way I could think of. I couldn’t bear the thought myself, and neither could you. I think if I hadn’t been careful, the minute I said it you’d have sent a knife right through me.”
He laughed again. Rabbit sighed; and she’d thought he was going to be serious for once.
He snapped out of it soon. “It was too bad really. We thought about sending her home, but it couldn’t be done. The door only opens every so often, and predicting when it will is impossible. Eventually, it came down to this; if we didn’t kill Alice, the Queen would. And the Queen makes it hurt.” He inhaled, pained. “There was a time when it took a man nine whole days to die, slowly losing reality bit by bit. Who knows what would have been done to Alice, fragile as she was?”
Rabbit was understanding the whole logic behind it, almost too well. “But if we did it… it’d just be a quick shot; she’d never even know.”
“Exactly.”
Rabbit nodded, oddly comforted for a brief moment. She cringed as she was reminded of her wound, due to the sudden throbbing. “Except I think she did know. Something was fighting me, at least.” Rabbit said, holding out her hand.
Hatter cringed. “And your good hand, too. Alice was always handy when she needed to be.” He was interrupted when the kettle started whistling. “Ah, perfect timing. We’ll have to do something about that slice.”
He quickly poured two cups before crossing the kitchen and rummaging through a drawer. He found a needle and thread, and carried everything to the table. He threaded the needle, and dropped it in his teacup. Grabbing a rag, he sat at the table and took her hand.
Rabbit stared at the gaping slice. It was still open, for every time it started healing, a simple movement would ruin everything.
Looking it over, Hatter started blotting at it with the rag.
“My goodness, this really needs cleaning. What were you doing?”
Rabbit smirked “What wasn’t I doing?”
Hatter laughed, and put his hands up to his eyes like binoculars. “There it is, one of Wonderland’s rarest creatures, I’ve never seen it in its natural habitat before! One of Rabbit’s smiles!”
“Oh, shut up.” She tried to continue the banter, but the open air on her hand was excruciating now, causing her to clench her teeth.
Hatter brought her hand back to his attention. “But seriously, this is bad.”
“You don’t say?”
Hatter pulled the needle from the cup and knotted the thread.
“Wait,” Rabbit said, “What are you doing?”
“Helping you. Unless, of course, you want a gaping, rotting, hole in your hand.”
“Good point.”
Rabbit tried hard not to cringe when the needle went through her skin. Luckily, she found that after the first stitch, the shock of it wasn’t quite so horrific.
“See? It’s not that bad.” Hatter said, rather gently, “You wouldn’t believe how many times we’ve stitched each other up.”
“Actually, it doesn’t surprise me much.”
“Ah, so you’ve seen all those scars.”
“Yes… How did you-?”
“How did I know about them? Well quite frankly, I was there when most of them got there, m’dear.” He snipped the thread. “There, all done.”
Suddenly, something occurred to her. “Hatter, what happens when the Queen knows what I did?”
Obviously, Hatter hadn’t thought of this. “I suppose she’ll be quite angry.”
“And from what I’ve heard, when she gets angry, bad things happen.”
Hatter’s eyebrows scrunched. “We shouldn’t be here. She could come for us any time.” He rose quickly. “Pack a bag; and hurry!”
They ran down the hall to their respective rooms. Rabbit tossed some clothes into an old suitcase, and was in the hallway a moment before Hatter. They were on their way out when there was a loud and angry knock at the door.
“Oh no,” Hatter whispered. “We’re too late.”
Muffled cries were coming from the other side. Whoever was knocking wasn’t here for a leisurely chat; that was certain. They would have to find another way out.
“What now?” Hatter was starting to panic.
“The basement.”
“What?”
“Just trust me.”
They ran down the stairs, and Rabbit rushed to the widow she’d used as a previous entrance.
“The window!” She said, just as they heard the door crashing open upstairs. “That’s how I got in earlier!”
“Good.” Hatter said, “Ladies first.”
And they crawled out the window and into the night.
Chapter 6
Rabbit had no idea where they were going, and she hoped Hatter had some sort of plan. She didn’t know a thing when it came to safe locations; everything seemed the same to her. Obviously, this was not a good day to be an amnesiac. She wasn’t sure if she could trust the maniac, but it didn’t seem she had much choice.
They walked in silence for a long time, concentrating on putting as much distance between them and the house as possible. Finally, when the bustling city gave way to the countryside, Hatter dropped his pack and flopped on the ground up against a tree. Rabbit sat down as well, grateful for the much needed rest. She had so many questions to ask, but she felt there wasn’t much time; her companion had already closed his eyes, his hat placed on his chest. She decided to prioritize her questions, asking the most relevant one for the moment.
“Where are we going?”
“Do you want the honest answer?” He said, opening one eye.
“Yes.”
“I have no idea.” He sat up, stretching and yawning a moment. “All I know is I’m way too tired to think right now. To be truthful, Rabbit, I usually left most of the thinking to you. You were always so much better at planning ahead than I was.”
“Well I hate to break it to you, but I doubt I can do anything of the sort at the time.”
“That’s fine with me; it was probably about time I woke up the ol’ brain anyhow. But in the meantime, it’s best we get some sleep. We’ve both had quite the day; you especially.”
Rabbit looked around nervously. She didn’t like the thought of them both just sleeping out here. “Isn’t someone supposed to keep watch or something?”
“In a remote place like this? We’ll be able to hear anything for miles. But if you’d rather stay up all night, be my guest.”
He slid down, curled up in the grass and soon was snoring soundly. Rabbit, however, had a bit more difficulty finding sleep. She lay down on the cold ground, doing everything in her power to relax. She looked up to the cloudless sky, filled with countless stars. It really was quite beautiful, and despite all that had happened she felt much calmer; but whenever she did, something would ruin it.
How many times had she done this? How many times, when she still knew who she was, had she slept under a tree on the side of the road? When she asked these questions she felt as if she was seeking answers about someone else; like she was tracking down the life story of an ancient relative as opposed to her own. She felt like a soul in the wrong body, with people she’d never met who cared for her like family. Or a person, at least. None of it made sense; so many things had happened that seemed to be linked to her past, shouldn’t one of these triggered some sort of recollection? It was with these thoughts swirling through her head that Rabbit, horribly exhausted, finally drifted into a restless, dreamless sleep.
They woke at dawn, heading down the road just as the sun finished its opening act in the sky. Hatter was in high spirits as usual, whistling as he went and doing his best to make conversation with Rabbit, who was doing her best to hide her irritation. Didn’t this man ever stop talking? There was no way he could have slept much better than she had, yet he was all but skipping down the road like a child in the middle of July.
Rabbit was torn from her thoughts when she heard a rumbling behind her. An old horse drawn cart pulled up beside them, and Rabbit realized just how diverse the world must be. Back in the city there had been cars everywhere, but out here anything of the motorized sort would be a highly unlikely sight. The man perched at the front took notice of the pair, and waved cheerfully.
“You two traveling far?” He called, “I’d be happy to take you as far as the village up ahead.”
“Thank you, sir,” Hatter said, tipping his hat to the stranger as they jumped up into the back, “Would there by any chance be a place to eat there? We have quite a way to go today.”
“Why certainly,” He said, but his face turned grim when he got a look at Rabbit, “Although I’m afraid the people there are a bit simple minded. There may be a bit of trouble acquiring anything for the lady.”
Hatter reddened slightly, as if there was something he had hoped he wouldn’t have to explain.
“Yes, well… thank you for the warning at any rate.”
“Any time. Of course I never understood that way of thinking myself.”
“Of course” Hatter said quickly, trying to end the conversation. “We understand fully.”
Conversation with the driver was minimal after that. Rabbit and Hatter settled down in the back, trying to be as comfortable as possible in the wooden cart. Rabbit felt odd asking so many questions, but could restrain no longer.
“What was he talking about?”
“What do you mean?”
“You know exactly what I mean.”
“What, the thing about simple minded people? I’m sure that was just…”
“Just tell me.”
“Well… it’s your eyes, Rabbit.”
“My… eyes?” For the first time in a while, Rabbit was reminded of the dark circles around her eyes. “Is that what this is all about?”
“I’m afraid so. It’s a rare thing, you see; the genetics and family lines have to add up just so. Some people seem to think there’s a problem with that. Lots of rumors and legends have developed, and there really just aren’t many people left to confirm or discredit any of it. Personally, I never got it; what’s so great about being similar to people anyway? Either way, little places, they’re afraid of Wonders; some sort of superstition.
So that was why he’d seemed so embarrassed; after all, how do you explain to someone that they’re some sort of social taboo? So that must be what she was; a Wonder. This term felt right in her mind, despite the fact that it did nothing else for her.
When she looked back over at him, he seemed even more anxious. Apparently, he’d thought her period of silence was due to being upset.
“Sorry,” he muttered, “There’s nothing else I could say.”
“Whatever,” She said, “I’m sure I’ve put up with those problems before. If I did before, I should now; despite my lapsed memory.”
“If you say so.”
Soon afterward, the cart pulled into a small village. The man let them off at the gate, and they were left to navigate the place on their own. As they walked down the main street, if indeed a dirt road with five shops could be called a main street, Rabbit could feel the collective stare of everyone populating the area burning into her. Hatter leaned in close.
“Probably not used to new people going through town.” He muttered, “Places like this often only get a visitor about once a decade.”
“Right.” She said, “I’m sure that’s the case.”
They came to a small inn at the end of the road, and saw some empty tables inside. This was a good sign. Strange village or not, Rabbit was starving, and she was certain Hatter was as well. She knocked at the door, hoping that all would go well.
A tall man, presumably the innkeeper, opened the door. He looked them both up and down before speaking.
“Yes? What can I do for you?”
“Morning sir,” Hatter said, “Not intending to bother you, but we’ve been travelling a long time and were wondering if you knew of a place where we might grab something to eat.”
“We got food here,” He grunted, seeming occupied and slightly worried. “Unfortunately, there’s no room. Maybe you can try somewhere else.” With this, he slammed the door. The two continued town, despite the many empty tables they’d seen right near the window, but had just as bad luck everywhere else. Once they made it to the edge of the village, they figured they may as well leave and try elsewhere. Unfortunately, a small group of about five or six blocked their path.
“And where are you going?” Asked a first.
“Traveling. Just passing through.” Rabbit said, hiding her annoyance as best she could. These people were trying her patience.
“Oh?” said a second “And why, pray tell, did you choose to stop here?”
Hatter shrugged “It was on the way.” Despite his nonchalance, Rabbit could see him slowly edging sideways and followed suit.
A third man stepped forward “Really? You didn’t have anything else in mind?”
“Look,” Rabbit said, “We don’t want any trouble.”
“Oh come now,” The first said, “Who doesn’t want a little trouble nowadays? These are dangerous times. Different times.”
Rabbit was getting angry now “What are you insinuating?”
He smirked “You know exactly what I’m saying, my little Wonder friend. Our world has seemed to not need its special little flowers as much, yeah?”
This was all too much. He wasn’t even being creative. Usually, Rabbit would have tried to keep herself contained, but one can only take so much. If these imbeciles wanted trouble, that was just what they’d have. She picked up a stick and smacked it against a nearby horse, which jumped from the shock, upturning a vegetable stand and a rain barrel. She took the resulting uproar as an opportunity to escape, and ran as fast as she could, with Hatter close behind. They ran until the cries of the stunned villagers could be heard no more.
When they finally stopped, they sat in the grass.
“Well,” Hatter said, “That went better than I’d thought.”
“How did those things usually go?”
“It all depended on your mood really.” He said, laughing at the memory, “When you were mad, we’d fight our way out, beating the tar out of anyone who dared to get too close.”
“And in a good mood?”
“It was always different every time; although there were quite a few times when you would make complete and terrible fools out of them. It was hilarious.”
“Well, it’s definitely more interesting than beating the tar out of people.”
“Interesting doesn’t do it justice. You used to have this funny little habit of threatening to turn young ladies into frogs. Once you even walked close to some sap and looked him up and down, mumbling about what wonderful leather his skin would make for book binding.”
“Disturbing, yet original, I suppose.” Rabbit wasn’t sure how to feel about herself.
“It was amazing; I don’t think I stopped laughing for days.”
“Huh, that may be the most positive thing I’ve heard about myself all day.”
“My pleasure.”
Rabbit looked over the vast green valley. “Where to now?”
“Not sure. Our best bet would most likely be to continue the way we’re going. We want to get somewhere that no one could possibly recognize us. It wouldn’t hurt to find something to eat either.”
“Is that honestly all you can think about?”
“Like it isn’t just as much on your mind. We should be having lunch right now.”
“If you must know, I’ve hardly been thinking of it; although now that you mention it, I can’t seem to recall the last time I had anything to eat.”
“See? Now you’ll be thinking of it all afternoon.”
“Sure. Whatever you say, Hatter.”
She stood and started down the road once again; Hatter trotted up beside her, and soon they were on their way, moving at a more leisurely pace and making calm conversation. It was so different from the frantic dash they’d made the night prior, and Rabbit was almost enjoying herself as they went along. Still, she couldn’t help but feel slightly concerned; if they had gotten this far on foot, how close could the Queen have gotten with better means of travel? Of course, she didn’t voice this question; the last thing they needed was to be needlessly fearful. Nonetheless she quickened her pace slightly, hoping it wouldn’t be noticed.
If Hatter knew, he didn’t make it apparent. “I’d say we picked a pretty good day to be fugitives, don’t you think? The weather hasn’t been like this in ages; always pouring rain or burning sun. Today’s different though; perfect conditions for on foot travel.”
“That so?”
“What, you don’t agree?”
“Sure I do. It’s really nice here.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
Rabbit was caught off guard; had it been that obvious? It didn’t seem possible. It was a rare occasion for her to betray her thoughts; this much she now knew.
“Problem? What gives you that idea?”
“You must remember that, though I am a stranger to you, you are no stranger to me.”
“I still don’t see-“
“It’s the Queen isn’t it? You still think she can find us.”
“How did you…?”
“You always were a nervous little Rabbit. There were many times when we’d get clean away, and you’d still think there was trouble weeks later; unfortunately, you were usually right.”
“You mean this has happened before?”
“Oh, millions of times. Of course, we weren’t usually running from our own kind; usually it was the law behind us. Those were always the best times, I think; when we were traveling. Sometimes we took Alice with us; it was like we were taking a trip, just because we could.”
“…You miss her, don’t you?”
“Of course. She was so…”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.”
There was quite a silence after that; neither one could think of anything to say. And so they were silent; lost in their own thoughts. All the while, Rabbit couldn’t stop beating herself up; why had she done such a thing? Even after Hatter had explained their motive and that it wasn’t her idea, she still couldn’t understand. Surely, they could have figured something out; and even if they couldn’t, Alice had been their friend. They’d been her protectors; from what she’d heard, a great deal of their lives had to do with Alice. In a way, it seemed pointless to try to remember her old life; they’d never have that again. Everything would be different from now on. Then again without those memories she felt so lost, and regaining them, even just for the purpose of cherishing, would still be worth the while. She was tired of feeling like the wrong person, like she’d been thrown in the middle of a story that wasn’t hers; she wanted to feel like her old self, whatever that was.
It was in this manner that Rabbit was thinking the entire long journey until a town rose in the distance. It was large; a good place to be lost and blend in with the thousands of faces.
Rabbit tried her hand at being optimistic. “Look at that. I’m sure all problems will be solved.”
Luckily, she didn’t have to try to keep it up long; Hatter soon took over “Finally! Food, shelter, and a place to hide all in one; it’s a criminal’s one stop!” He laughed out of the sheer happiness at this good fortune. Rabbit just shook her head, although she found herself becoming more used to these outbursts.
They crossed the city lines, once again thrown into the chaos of civilization. The place felt strange and foreign, not unlike everywhere else, but Rabbit remained confident this time. There was no way anyone could pick them out of this crowd. For now, they were safe; she could only hope they would remain that way.
Chapter 7
Rabbit and Hatter slipped into a small café in the middle of town, and soon had their plates before them. Rabbit hadn’t realized just how hungry she was until that precise moment, and was grateful that there was no need to wait any longer. Both of them were silent, concentrating only on the simple task. When she finally had finished what she wanted, she almost laughed at the sight of Hatter, who had cleaned his plate long ago yet still glanced at her like a starving child. It was at this moment that she remembered something she had said long ago.
“Hatter,” She had declared irritably that day, “Look at what you’re eating! No wonder there’s never any food in the house.”
Taking this to mind, she shoved her half filled plate across the table. When he looked up at her questioningly, she shrugged.
“Go ahead,” She said, “I didn’t want it anyway.”
She watched in mild amusement as he tried to finish as quickly as possible while still retaining some dignity. He was only half way successful, but that obviously didn’t matter to him as he sat back contentedly, wiping his face with a napkin. Rabbit shook her head.
“Sure you’ve had enough?”
“I think I’ll manage.”
They exited after paying the bill, and walked down the road. The afternoon was slowly shifting to evening, and the number of people was starting to thin out. They moved casually, but by the course they were taking Rabbit could tell Hatter had some sort of destination in mind.
“You’ve been here before, haven’t you?”
“We both have.” He said, “Last time, we needed a place to hide out for quite a while. You brought us here, to a house a few miles down the way; you said something about it being important. So I figured if it was that important, it may be beneficial to make our way there once again.”
“I see…” She paused momentarily, realizing just how difficult she must have been making it for him, “I’m sorry about all this. It can’t be easy.”
“No reason for that. We’ll get you back soon; we just need to find the right thing.”
“Maybe you’ve been too easy on me.” Rabbit said, “Maybe that’s why nothing works.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, all this time you’ve been talking to me carefully, because I obviously know nothing, and I’ve been thinking in my head all this time about how I know nothing, so maybe I can’t remember anything because we keep insisting I can’t remember anything.”
“I think I see what you’re saying, but what are we supposed to do?”
“I don’t know; it was just a thought…”
“A good one. All we need is a plan to go with it.”
Suddenly it hit her. She felt stupid for not seeing this sooner.
“What if we pretend I can remember?”
“What?”
“Stay with me here; think about the last time I saw you before all of this. I’m assuming we parted ways.”
“We did.”
“Right, so just think about what you’d say if this whole thing had happened, but I never forgot a thing. Talk to me like you used to.”
“It’s worth a shot, I suppose.” He cleared his throat a moment, and when he spoke again he sounded vaguely different. Some may not have noticed it, but there was definitely something else there. “Alright Rabbit, where in the heck are we going this time?”
She searched her mind thinking of what she knew. “Well obviously we’ll have to get out of the way for a while. After the whole thing with…”
“Yes, I know that. But more specifically?”
“Somewhere important. We can stay there a while.”
“I see…” He paused a moment, “You’re sure you went through with it?”
“Absolutely certain… although truth be told, I’m not sure how I feel about that.”
“Come now Rabbit, remember what we said; no hard feelings. It was for the best.”
“I know; you’re right, I suppose.”
“…I still miss her though.”
She nodded, “I know; I’m sure we always will.”
“She was rather unforgettable, wasn’t she?”
“Yes… all her art projects.”
Hatter laughed “The way she always scolded us when we stepped out of line.”
“She was one of a kind, really.”
“She was indeed.”
Rabbit started to wish they hadn’t done this; all the talk of Alice was starting to get to them. She could only hope one of them wouldn’t start crying.
“It wasn’t fair,” she said, “This world was too harsh for her.”
“I know,”
“She didn’t belong with us; we tried to protect her, but we only put her in more danger.”
“Rabbit…”
“Maybe she should have never come to us.”
“Will you stop that?” Hatter said, rising close to a shout, “Do you really think I don’t feel guilty about it either? So sure, you killed the girl; I’m sorry, I know that hurts. But I told you to do it, didn’t I? You know what that means? Not only am I responsible for all this, but I had to put you through this as well! So you feel bad, I get that, but other people have problems too. It’s times like this I wish I had just gone through with my original plan and done it all myself. Sure you’d hate me, but hearing all the hate would be more bearable than all this guilt. All these what ifs and should haves. I’m tired of it, Rabbit! Things used to be so much simpler, you know.” He quieted down, letting his words sink in, and seemed slightly regretful. But only slightly so. “Well, now I guess you really do hate me. It was only a matter of time, I suppose.”
“Hatter, I…”
“No, forget I said anything.” He said, and tried to brighten up a bit. “Let’s just get to that important place of yours. I don’t think it’s possible to be more tired than I am right now.”
“Yeah,” Rabbit said, starting to lose her ‘I know everything’ demeanor, “It shouldn’t be far.”
“When we get there, I think we need to figure some things out more specifically. I doubt the Queen will let this drop.”
“In that case, I suppose she’ll probably be looking for me more than anything. I don’t suppose she knows about your part in all this.”
His eyes widened in horror; obviously, this hadn’t occurred to him. Rabbit was starting to feel less confident about this plan. That look was more than fear for a friend; it was more like extreme terror for the girl who didn’t even know her name yesterday. Obviously, the delicate situation was hard for him to forget.
“I suppose we’ll have to be careful, then,” He said, regaining his composure and shoving his hands in his pockets, “Of course, it’s not all that strange; you’ve gotten us in trouble on quite a few occasions. In fact, I’m starting to wonder who’s really working for whom around here.”
“Hatter, I can’t do this anymore.”
“What are you talking about? We’ve hidden out countless times, what’s the problem?”
“No Hatter, I mean this whole acting thing. It’s not working.”
“Really? I could have sworn I was talking to the old Rabbit for quite a while. It was a little eerie, as a matter of fact.”
“I suppose it would; after all I’ve probably been a completely different person up until now.”
“You’re not that different.”
“You don’t have to be so nice about it.”
“Okay, so it’s different. You were scaring me there for a while, Rabbit.”
“Hopefully that won’t last too long.”
As they went on, there were increasingly less people surrounding them. Soon they came to a road that looked as if it hadn’t been used for ages; it was old and cracked, and overgrown with trees. Still, Hatter led on, and Rabbit stopped a moment.
“Are you sure this is the right way?”
“Of course. Watch your step.”
They went only a short way on the road before coming to a house, falling apart with age. If it had been painted once, all color had been stripped away, along with pieces of the house itself. They waded through the waist deep grass up to the door, and stepped over the threshold into the old building. The inside was not much better than the outside. Furniture was overturned, wallpaper hung off the wall from years of abandon, the windows were shattered; Rabbit couldn’t believe the disrepair.
“This is the important place?”
Hatter nodded “it was just as bad then. You ought to go upstairs, that might be more illuminating.”
She considered this a moment; the stairs were ancient, and the rail was long gone. Would they hold? Before she had a chance to think it over, Hatter took her good hand and pulled her upstairs.
When she entered the upstairs hall, she couldn’t believe her eyes. It was like a moment had been frozen in time, just so she could come and observe it all. She could see inside a few of the rooms, and she felt an odd sense of mystery; it looked like something had happened here, something that made the occupants of the house leave in the middle of everything. A book was lying open on the floor in one room, a glass of water still sat on the nightstand in another. It was all rather eerie seeing these things; eerie and familiar. She knew she’d been here before, but not only as a hiding place.
“Hatter,” she whispered, “I think I used to live here.”
“That’s very possible,” He said, “You never told me why it was important; I suppose that would make sense.”
“Something’s not right.”
“What?”
“Don’t you feel it? Something happened here; it’s like the place is frozen in time. If we’d just moved away, that wouldn’t be the case.”
“I didn’t want to admit it, but I felt something to that effect.” His gaze turned to the end of the hall, “Hello…”
“What is it?”
“The door at the end of the hall; you never opened it when we were here before.”
Rabbit moved to the door, but hesitated before touching the knob. She didn’t know what could be in there. She took a breath; she couldn’t let herself get scared now. Slowly, she turned the knob.
She let out a small gasp when she stepped inside. It was a child’s room, and the familiarity was painful. Whatever had happened had been centered in this room. She looked around the room, examining the books in the corner and the toys on the bed, until she heard Hatter across the room.
“Rabbit,” he said, “I think you’d better take a look at this.”
Chapter 8
Hatter was standing across the room, holding a frame he’d picked up off of the floor. Rabbit all but ran to him, and met the sight with mixed feelings. The glass was shattered, but what was on the other side was apparent. There were three people in the photograph, a young couple and a small child; they stood on a bridge, the pair smiling so kindly. Even the little girl seemed happy, despite the lack of a smile on her face. Rabbit smiled; they looked so pleased, so glad to be together, yet she knew that this had been cut short. It was bittersweet, because she knew who was in the picture.
Hatter scrunched his brow. “Is that…?”
Rabbit nodded. “Yes, that’s me. I must have been real young.”
“Was that your family?”
Somehow, Rabbit was certain of what she said next. “Not originally; I think they were… family friends of some sort. I still called them my parents, though; at least I think so.”
“That’s right. I now recall something you said years ago; about these people.”
“What’s that?”
“Well, something happened; you never told me what, all I know is that these people promised your parents they’d take care of you.”
Rabbit froze; suddenly, she could remember who these people were, and what had happened here. Now she could vividly remember the sudden event here; the sights, the sounds, everything. She must have looked horrified, because Hatter had put both hands on her shoulders and led her to the edge of the bed. They sat down, and Rabbit tried to pull herself together; when she thought of that day, she felt sick. If this was what memories felt like, she preferred the confusion.
“What’s happening, Rabbit? Did you get something in your head?”
She said nothing, only slowly nodded.
“That’s funny, you still seem like before.”
“I don’t remember everything, only a piece; only an afternoon. It was a horrible afternoon; that’s when the place got so messed up.”
“What happened?”
“I don’t know if I…”
“No, go on.”
“I was there,” she said, pointing to the corner, “I was reading one of my books, when I heard strange noises coming from downstairs. And so, being curious as I was, I silently opened the door and stood near the banister rail. There were a bunch of strange men in the living room with father, talking in hushed voices. And… and…”
“And?”
“One of them had… a… I can’t.”
“What Rabbit? What did he have?”
“I can’t say it. I can’t.”
“Come on Rabbit; I need to know what has you so flustered.”
Rabbit couldn’t choke out the words. She reached into her pocket and removed the revolver, setting it on her leg.
“I see,” Hatter said, “I believe I can infer what became of your Father. And you were there?”
She nodded.
“And you were young, from what little you told me before.”
“Very.” She said, looking down, “I don’t know what happened to my Mother. She hid me in the closet, and then she was just… gone. I did as I had been instructed, and ran to the home of those people there.” Rabbit pointed to the picture, “That’s where I lived. I don’t know why their picture is here; I suppose it was taken before I lived with them.”
Hatter nodded thoughtfully. “I suppose it all makes sense. I know that when we’d have to get rid of people, you’d always be looking around right before. I asked you why; you said you wanted to see if his kids were around.”
They sat quietly for a moment before Rabbit spoke.
“I wish I hadn’t remembered. That was one of the things I was trying to forget.”
Hatter put a hand on her shoulder. “We don’t have to stay.”
“I hate to cause trouble.”
“Not at all.” He said with an anxious glance around the room, “I was starting to have second thoughts about the place myself.”
So they left, despite not knowing where else to go. They made their way back into town around nightfall, and it was nearly empty. The city was actually rather pleasant at night, and Rabbit was glad to take a chance to sit and enjoy it. She looked around from her spot on a park bench, only halfway listening to what Hatter was saying. Their conversation was innocent at first, but once again drifted back to Alice.
“We should do something,” Rabbit said, “The Queen made us do this all; we should do something about it.”
“We can’t knock her off, if that’s what you mean. We tried, but it didn’t work out. If we even wanted to try, we’d need you back, m’dear. Frankly, in this state your planning skills leave a bit to be desired.”
“Yes, I know.”
“Of course, we’ll just have to fix that.”
“What if we don’t?” she said, “What if I’m stuck like this… forever?”
“Will you stop that already? You never would have been so doubtful before, and there’s no reason for it now.”
“But-”
“Rabbit, no.”
“Alright, fine. But how? What’s your brilliant plan this time?”
“Give me a minute, won’t you? All this thinking is hard work, you know.”
“Probably because you just aren’t used to it.”
“That’s most likely true,” He said with a laugh.
“But I don’t get it,” Rabbit said, “I can vividly and perfectly remember that specific day; why can’t I recall anything else?”
“I don’t know for certain, but it makes a bit of sense when you think about it. That room and those things you saw helped you, but they only pertained to one thing; in other words, in order to know something, you’d probably need something that really made you think of what happened other times. It’s a stretch, but it’s better than nothing.”
“But Hatter, I had a room and a photograph, and every thought was perfectly intact; but I’m trying to remember my recent life the hardest, and I have a person who witnessed a majority of it. But do I get anything back? No.”
“I know, Rabbit. Maybe it doesn’t work with people; maybe it’s like you said, how we’re insisting that you don’t know…”
“Oh yeah, and what a great proposition that was.” Rabbit said, “Let’s face it, my ideas only lead to disappointment.”
“You got out of pris’n just fine.”
“You let me out.”
“Sure, I unlocked the door… but there were a whole bunch of guards there.”
“You killed them off.”
“…You unlocked the safe.”
“You gave me the password.”
“Fine then! That’s the last time I try to boost your self esteem. You’re too tough a nut to crack”
Despite his attempt at a stern look, she knew he was only poking fun. Still, maybe he was right; maybe she was being too hard on herself. After all, she’d found that useless mushroom, she’d made herself that knife, and she’d managed to decode Hatter’s message; she’d found her way home, and figured quite a few things out along the way, despite her lack of memory. Maybe she was still the same person Hatter so often spoke of. And if this was true, maybe she could do more then they’d thought. Despite this thought, she still hoped he would have at least a vague idea of what to do next.
“Got that ingenious plan yet?”
“Still working on it” He muttered
“You know, we could still off her, if we wanted to.”
“Are you mad?”
“Most likely.”
“Okay, granted; regardless, I told you why we can’t do that.”
“Yes, yes, I know, we need to get my memory back, that’s more important, I can’t plan now, and you don’t know how to think… whatever.”
“We’re talking top danger here, Rabbit; top danger!” Hatter was starting to get flustered. “She probably knows of a hundred ways to kill a person!”
“As do you, I’m sure.”
“Well I suppose, but…”
“And I used to, at one time.”
“That’s not the…”
“And we’re a long way away; I’m sure I can find some recollection on the way, especially if we take a longer route.”
“Rabbit…”
“Hatter, we’re going.”
He sighed. “I never could argue with you before; why start now?”
“Are you sure?”
“I suppose…”
“Really?”
“Alright, alright! We’ll do it; it’s not as if I haven’t wanted to.”
“Then I suppose it’s settled.” She said, beginning to yawn, “But for now, I think we ought to find a place for the night.”
“Good idea,” He said, as they started down the street.
They searched the town, and eventually found a small hotel with rooms that could be paid for with the small bit of cash they had left. When they entered the room, Hatter immediately sprawled out on one of the beds, heaving a contented sigh. Rabbit thought this to be ridiculous at first, but soon understood the feeling herself as she finally took a chance to relax in her spot across the room. After a minute or so, Hatter laughed to himself for what Rabbit hoped was the last time of the night.
“You know Rabbit,” He said, “It’s good to know you’re doing the thinking again around here.”
She couldn’t help but smile, just a bit. “I guess I am, aren’t I?”
“I like it much better this way.”
“As do I, as do I.”
And it was with these words still in her head that she soon fell gratefully to sleep.
And here's the next tweaked chunk. There's probably just one or two more installments before I'm caught up and the new content is coming. Have fun.
© 2015 - 2024 ztun7856
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