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Belca

You wanna take this shit outside, brat?

0 · 474 views · located in Down the Rabbit-Hole

a character in “On the Wings of a Dream”, as played by Bani

Description

"Tact is for people who aren't witty enough to be sarcastic."
Image

Full Name: N/A

Nick Name: Belca

Age: 17

Gender: Female

Personality: Belca is outspoken and curious, never mincing her words. She can be extremely sarcastic to people she doesn't like, but is polite when she deems the person worthy. She will go to great lengths to protect people, even though she claims she doesn't care about anything that isn't any of her business. She tends to be a little naive and honest to the point of being rude, uncaring of the environment. She also has a tendency to accept things as they are and live in the moment, making the best of everything even though the situation might appear completely abnormal. She's also quick-tempered, but her anger fades just as easily as it appears and she readily admits her mistakes, always willing to learn and absorb everything. She also seems to be a good swordswoman, even though she tends to lose her head at times, she can also come up with rational courses of actions once she has calmed down enough.

Hair Colour: Silver

Eye Colour: Silver-ish amethyst.

Quirks:
● She loves sharks. In fact. she has a shark plushie with her that seems to have been transmitted to Wonderland along with her.
● When she's irritated, she tends to be very loud.
● If anybody tries to protect her, she gets very angry.
● She doesn't mince her words to anyone, even if she respects them greatly.

Appearance Description:

Quotes:
● You're nothing but another brat that needs beating some sense into.
● I don't need your help!
● Don't call me a damn girl!
● Wanna take that outside?
● Its just the truth, though.

Likes:
● Sharks
● Water
● Music
● Nature
● Honesty
● Fighting

Dislikes:
● Lies
● Rude People
● Lying People
● People In General
● Being protected

Powers: [To Be Updated Later]

Chain: The Duchess

Weapons/ Things They Are Carrying: A sword, a small shark plushie.

Back Story: : Belca doesn't remember anything, and doesn't seem bothered by it outwardly, and seems to think it was for the best. It almost seems as if some part of her retains a faint impression of her past and has judged it traumatic enough for her not to bother with trying to recover her memories.

So begins...

Belca's Story

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Character Portrait: Belca
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#, as written by Bani

Belca ... ? That sounds about right ....


Something was definitely off, she thought as she stared at the floor. She had tried looking around but no matter how long she walked, nothing was visible. Not even the goddamned walls or the freaking ceiling!
Cocking her head to one side, she examined the possibilities, having at last grown tired of swinging the sword she had with herself around, absent mindedly cuddling the little shark plushie in her arms. Heh, it seemed she loved sharks ... and soft things ... and cuddling with soft things ...

Could she possibly be dead? That didn't seem to be the case, because this wasn't Hell - Hell was supposed to be a lot warmer, wasn't it - and there was no way she could have gone to Heaven, because ....

.... because of what? She frowned. There must have been a reason why she thought she could have gone to Heaven, but what was it? Was she a bad person? She stared at her reflection on the water on the floor. She didn't seem like a bad person, but not everyone looked like they were, right? So ....
Having concluded she was a bad person, and she wasn't dead yet, she set out to find out something more about this place - which might have seemed a less daunting task if she could remember something - anything - about her own self.

Fighting back the sudden panic that threatened to overwhelm her, she plopped down on the floor, noting to herself that she liked the feel of water. So, sharks and water.

"Well, if I can't remember my name, I'll just name myself something!" she declared, struck by a brainwave, "Its not like I liked my name anyway - why else would I have forgotten it? I wouldn't forget something I liked, would I? Just like the shark and the water...."

She tackled this new matter of names with gusto. What else did she like?

An image of a old bell flashed in her mind, and she smiled widely. "Bel ... I like that name..."

But it seemed too plain, somehow, so she decided to come up with variations on that. "Bella? ... Belna? ... Belma? ... Belka? Belca ...." she muttered aloud, testing the way the words felt. Belca had a certain ring to it.

"Belca it is then. I'm Belca from now on! Now that I have a name, to find out where I am." she leapt up, trying to pick a direction to walk along, figuring that if she walked along long enough, she would eventually stumble upon something or someone

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Belca
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#, as written by Bani

Belca ... ? That sounds about right ....


"So, I'm in a hall thingy that never ends." the girl now self-christened Belca announced aloud. She had decided she liked to hear herself think, and it was awfully quiet with no one around anyway, though she would never admit the sound of her own voice soothed her a little.

"What do I do now? How long can I make it without food? There's plenty of water on the floor ... and I'm not above not drinking it just because I've been walking in it. Not if it betters my chances. I want to know where I am anyway. Is anyone even listening?" Belca muttered, a little tired from all the walking she was doing. "ANYONE HEEE-EERE?" she shouted, before falling abruptly silent.

You're only wasting your energy ... there's no one here, and you've been here long enough to know it.

"But I don't want to die." Belca reminded herself sternly. Speaking aloud had a wonderful effect on her nerves, apparently. "So I can't give up at any rate. And there must be some way to get out of here. There always is."

That ... feeling just now, it felt so nostalgic. As if it had been familiar to her ...

"Well, I'll worry about that after I get out of here. First things first."

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Sinistra "Tweedle Dee" Lato Character Portrait: Destra "Tweedle Dum" Lato Character Portrait: Rhiannon Jakalyn Pierce
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Cheshire

She continued to float higher, her body still limp. The words of the Chains were lost to her as she ignored everything below. She was irritated and bored and was almost to the top of the ceiling. She was preparing herself to leave, to disappear back to her tree when the Queen suddenly revealed The Great Hall. She twisted herself around, happily surprised at the change of scenery. Who had done it? Were they fighting already? She looked down upon the Chains with interest, but the new contestants caught her eye. They seemed lost, too uptight to be creatures from Her Wonderland, then again being in the Queen's company does that to people. She twitched her ears and flicked her tail, letting her jewelry sing to her as she studied them. They seemed 'normal', almost dreadfully so and this excited Cheshire immensely. She hadn't seen a 'normal' creature in her Wonderland for quite some time.

Allowing herself to fade, besides her manic eyes and wonderful grin, she makes herself known to the children. Appearing a nose length away before the first child she takes a few seconds to study before moving on to the next. A variously coloured mist follows suit, emphasizing her bright wide eyes and glowing teeth. "Well aren't you all dull," she croons in her ectasy, her eyes changing rapidly from yellow to blue to green and back again. She counted the children. Two males were present in this little crowd, which surprised her. Female's for some odd reason were more common to venture into her Wonderland. Interested in these two, she swept around them, taking note of their traits and composure (or lack of one). The young one with the long silvery hair, put her off, reminding her of that wretched White Rabbit. However, the other seemed boring as well, though the short blue hair was at least something fun. Her eyes widened looking over the blue haired child in sudden recognition. Her grin grew exceptionally larger. "Oh, aren't you the clever one?" she exclaimed, swirling around the kid, "You're not at all what you seem to be are you?"

She decided to try this one out. The surprise was refreshing and hopefully the child would be too. She jumped away from the trailing mist and landed upon the child's shoulders as a cat, nestling against the neck. Pleased to finally be resting against something warm and soft, she can't help but purr. The short hair was a plus. She wouldn't have to dig around to get comfy. Oh yeah, Cheshire decided, this one's a keeper.

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Destra "Tweedle Dum" Lato Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Eve V. Kimberly
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Cheshire

Her closed eyes seemed to smile in that content way felines do. She stopped purring, her ears twitching as her contractor spoke. "If it's not too rude to ask, who are you...what are you?" If it's not too rude? Was she serious? She opened one eye upon her child and then to the others around. They all seemed to be taking things in stride. Her grin shrunk a bit, assuming their abilities to adapt so quickly was because each child was 'gifted'. Why else were they in her Wonderland? She sighed. At least this Rhia creature wasn't dull. Though fear tinted her voice, she kept it well under control, which would be useful later on.

Lazily, she opened her other eye and began kneading the child's neck. "Your manners are surprising for one who's been kidnapped from their world." The marks in her fur shimmered as several shades of purple and indigo rippled across her form. Unsatisfied in her current state, she faded only to reappear on the child's other shoulder. She snuggled once more against the girls nape. Now that things were finally in motion her mood was lightening up. Now was the time for fun, for molding her future underling. She would not fail in this aspect. She clears her throat ceremoniously before speaking. "I am The Majestic..The Knowing," her smile grew as her list of names rolled smoothly off her tongue, pausing dramatically for emphasis. "I am The Shifter..The Powerful..The Lost-And-Found." She shrugged her head, suggesting her contractor to follow her gaze across their surroundings and the Chains near them. "You, like them, are in my Wonderland." It was difficult remaining composed. Having knowledge over a person who was so 'out-of-the-loop' was exhilarating! She would enjoy it to the fullest. "Call me Cheshire," she said simply, "That name seems to tie everything together."

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Duchess Sophie

The Duchess had been observing the candidates carefully, trying to decide not which one would have the best chance of winning but which one would need her help the most. At last her eyes fell upon a girl with silver hair. She could tell with one glance that this one needed teaching in the ways of ladylike behaviour.

"Come along my son," she said, stepping forward, "I fear that there is a tremendous amount of work to be done with this girl."

Silently she stopped behind the girl, arranging her dress neatly and tidying her son's hair before coughing quietly to announce her prescence.

"Hello my dear," she said majestically, "My name is Duchess Sophie Vespre but you may address me as the Duchess."

She hoped that she had succeeded in appearing grand and noble.

"This here is my son." she continued, gesturing to her boy and was dismayed to find that he had started reading one of his books again.

It was terribly rude of him to be reading infront of company, she really thought she had taught him better, she had half a mind to set the infernal thing on fire but there were more important things to attend to.

"There is a game about to begin and if you want to have any hope of surviving then you'll need to form a contract with me," said the Duchess, hoping that she wasint sounding too pushy, "I'll explain more once we get to my home, by the way, what's your name dear?"

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Duchess Sophie

The Duchess winced as the girl swore at her. It appeared she had her work cut out for her if she was to turn this foul mouthed creature into a real lady.

"Honestly now," she said fixing the girl in her gaze, "There's no need for that kind of language."

She had to admit, the remark about her clothing had cut a little deep, it wasn't nice to insult a lady's appearance.

"I must say, your manners are atrocious," continued the Duchess, "Were you never told that if you have nothing nice to say then don't speak?"

Really, all she had wanted was to politely introduce herself and then explain things once they were somewhere more comfortable, perhaps over a cup of tea. She could see however that the stubborn girl had no intention of going anywhere untill she had some answers.

"I was not the one who brought you here or gave you your amnesia," said the Duchess, trying her hardest to speak warmly and calmly despite the child's verbal offense, "I also have no intention of harming you, such behaviour would be unbecoming of a lady such as myself."

A small noise behind her made her pause as her son shifted his position and turned a page in his book.

"You were right about the game though," added the Duchess, "It's most unusual. Nine others besides you were brought here by the Queen of Hearts and you are each meant to contract with one of the chains of Wonderland, I myself am one such chain. The chains and contracters then have to battle the other pairs untill one pair is left, the ones that lose are sent to the lower levels, let me assure you, it's somewhere you don't want to go. Please believe me when I say that neither of us has a choice in this and it is for both of our benefit that I request you contract with me."

There, she had said all she could with as much passion as she could bear, her eyes were nearly overflowing with tears as she begged the girl to accept but all in all it came down to the girl and whatever decision she made.


Isaiah "Grey" Gris

Grey had to supress a gasp as his body floated into the air, it was a most perculiar feeling but then he realised it was Absolem who was doing it. Soon after, the man explained about his ability and how Grey himself would develop something similar.

"I wonder what kind of ability I'll have," thought Grey before he was nearly dragged off his feet by Absolem.

Hurrying to keep up he began to look around, was it his imagination or was the scenery changing for once? He couldn't be sure. As the pair continued on their way he started trying to think of something to say but all that came to him was another riddle.

"The rich man needs it, the poor man has it and the dead eat it, what is it?" Grey asked Absolem, not really expecting an answer, "Where exactly are we going if you don't mind me asking."

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Duchess Sophie

The Duchess blinked at the child before her, really, she was far too direct for her own good. Still, she wasn't going to back down from the challenge. This girl would become a woman whether she liked it or not and the Duchess was determined to enter a contract with her.

"If it's all the same to you, I'd like to start walking back to my home while I explain things to you," said the Duchess, "I'm begining to miss the smell of pepper and would like to rest my feet before this game begins."

Without waiting for an answer she turned on her heels and began to walk away. If the girl chose not to follow her then it would be because of her own stupidity. After a few steps though she looked back and saw that her son had taken the girl by the hand and was leading her along gently.

"Chains are the residents of Wonderland and each of us have certain...abilities," explained the Duchess, if the girl wanted to know more about these abilities then she'd have to compromise, "Before I say another word however, I'd like to know your name,"

The Duchess smiled, she would quite happily give the girl all the information she wanted but she'd have to learn how to use her manners to get it.

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Alde Beriel [Queen of Hearts] Character Portrait: The White Rabbit Character Portrait: Belca
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White Rabbit


"B-But..." Stuttered Rabbit before sighing in resignation, "Yes, Your Majesty!"

With trembling fingers, he fiddled with his tie - as an attempt to pull it up - before tentatively stepping into the Great Hall. Rabbit would always ponder about the Queen's sometimes reckless decisions but whenever the Lower Level was related, Rabbit understood that no wasn't an option. He had heard terrible stories about the Lower Level and that terrible Jabberwocky; a shiver ran down his spine by just thinking about it. He mentally shook his head, he thanked his tail and whiskers that he was blessed to be living in the more... civilised area of Wonderland.

Where was Hatter anyway? Rabbit knitted his eyebrows together, he couldn't help blaming the odd-bod but if it wasn't for him the small boy wouldn't have to deal with the Queen's game. Even Rabbit had to admit they haven't always been the most fun. If it wasn't for this, all of them could've spent this wonderful afternoon in a tea party. He scanned the area and saw that Absolem had already found his own Contractor - a boy with long silver hair - and watched as the Caterpillar dragged the unlucky fellow out. He had to suppress a chuckle before drifting his attention to the Duchess who was also conversing with another, a girl with a rebellious demeanour. They seemed to be... enjoying themselves. Cheshire was nowhere to be found. He's most likely brought his own child back to that wretched forest. Thought Rabbit.

Only a few where left to be claimed, however one girl brought his interest. She had placed herself quite far away from the rest of them. He strided closer towards her and pushed up the bridge of his gold-rimmed spectacles. Her whole being was themed on the colour white; what with her pale skin, snow-coloured hair and her simple dress. The only exception was her irises, they were a lovely shade of green. Unlike most residents of Wonderland, Rabbit didn't need to tilt his head up in order to look at her. She only looked about one inch taller than himself.

"Why, hello there child." Muttered Rabbit and tried to look as superior as possible; despite being shorter, "I am White Rabbit, it's a pleasure to meet you."
He paused for moment in order to brush minor creases from his shorts.

Now that he was at a distance where he could examine the girl properly, he came to realise that she looked extremely frightened; she was shaking and had kept a firm grip on her dress. Little Rabbit understood how she felt though, he had still managed to hold onto a drop of his humanity. Besides, how else could you react in such circumstances?
"Now don't be afraid." He said tenderly, "What is your name?"

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Duchess Sophie


"Belca?" questioned the Duchess, "What a curiously wonderful name."

The fact that the girl had relinquished her name gave the Duchess hope that she wasn't fighting a lost cause to make the girl into a lady. She paused for a moment as she heard the girl ask her son what his name was, come to think of it, she didn't even know. Not knowing the name of her own son was slightly unnerving but she pushed the thought from her mind. She reasoned that her boy had lasted without a name so far and could continue to do so but still, she couldn't keep the feeling that she had lost a precious part of her memory.

"My boy doesn't speak," said the Duchess, trying to keep a calm exterior "And oddly enough, I can't recall him ever having a name. Perhaps you'd like to give him one if it makes you feel better."

She continued on her way, leading the girl out of the hall, finding the way the water swirled around the bottom of her dress unpleasent.

"The place I found you is known as the birthing place but I'm unsure why," said the Duchess, "It's located within the Palace of Hearts but we shan't reamin here much longer."

Soon enough they had left the palace behind and were making their way along Lake Lacie and deeper into Wonderland till eventually her mansion was in sight. The Duchess's face broke into a wide smile as she saw the pigs and momeraths roaming around outside.

"This world is called Wonderland," she explained as she led the Belca towards her home, "Don't you agree it's a beautiful place? By the way, I suggest you duck."

This last piece of advice she offered to Belca as she opened the door to the mansion and was met by a scream of pepper from the cook and a block of knives flying through the air out the door. In fright her boy shimmered and once again became a pig.

"We shall have tea in the conservatory," she remarked joyfully, sidestepping the knives and walking inside.


Isaiah "Grey" Gris


Grey smiled as Absolem answered the riddle correctly, he hadn't expected it to be a challenge for him, rather it was to test he taller man's skill at riddles and wasn't disappointed.

"I'm not actually sure," replied Grey, when Absolem asked if he was hungry, "Considering how long I've been here I should be hungry but I feel nothing, still, I should probably eat something to keep my strength up."

Grey continued along, trying to keep up without crushing anything as Absolem pulled him along. To keep his mind busy he began to think of his cards again, hoping that he might remember some more about each one but was frustrated that all he could recall was that the cards were called Tarot cards.

"This place is beautiful," he said in answer to the question of what he thought, "I feel like it should remind me of something, perhaps a book I read before turning up here."

He buried himself in his thoughts again but was once again disappointed to see that there were no answers to be revealed.

"If it's not to rude to ask, why did you say the others call you Caterpillar?" asked Grey before he could properly think the question through.

Instantly he regretted it, he felt that perhaps he had gone to far to satisfy his curiousity. Hoping to make amends he decided to change the topic to another question that had been burning in his mind.

"Never mind," he said hastily, "When I woke up here I wasn't in that hall where you found me, I was somewhere else, it felt...wrong."

He then proceeded to describe the wasteland he had been in upon waking, asking if Absolem knew anything about it hoping against hope that he would have an answer.

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Isaiah "Grey" Gris

Grey tried to push thoughts of the wasteland out of his head as Absolem informed him that he should never go to places like it by himself but he couldn't help but remember its ruined beauty.

"Well I didn't exactly choose to wind up there," said Grey, "But I understand."

He knew he'd never succeed in removing the memory of the wasteland from his mind so instead tried to replace it with something else. It occured to him that Absolem's answer about being called the caterpillar had been very metaphorical and wondered if the man was a poet, he definitely had the right sort of mind to be one.

"I think I can handle fighting girls if there's such a risk involved," said Grey, "However, I'm not sure how good I'll be in a fight but I'll do my best and never give up."

He felt in his heart that he wasn't trying to be brave and tell Absolem what he wanted to hear. The truth was, he didn't want to let the man down. Despite the fact that Absolem had a certain coldness about him and the two hadn't known each other very long, Grey had grown to like the man and wasn't surprised to find he truly trusted him.

"You can count on me Absolem," he said, "I won't let you down and I know you won't let me down, I trust you."

He continued following Absolem wondering why the man had seemed so troubled when he had brought up the wasteland but didn't think that now was the right time to ask about it. Binging out his tarot cards he began to shuffle through them while humming the tune again. Suddenly, one of the cards flew out of the pack, without even thinking he reached out and caught it between two fingers before turning it round to see which one it was.

"Oh no," he whispered, "This can't be good."

He had remembered that if a card fell from the pack during shuffling then it held some significance but that wasn't all, staring at the card he began to remember its meaning, in his hand was...

"The Tower," said Grey, "Collapse, despair, defeat, danger, disaster, hostility, hate and destructive events."

Just looking at the ominous card filled him with dread.

"I hope this is just a warning rather than a prediction," he said to Absolem, "The future doesn't look so good."


Duchess Sophie

"Well that was an impressive display," said the Duchess, leading Belca into the conservatory, "You seem to know your way around a sword."

She didn't bother to offer an explaination for the violent greeting for she felt that it should have been clear that the cook was the one to blame.

"Oh look how the momeraths roam outside the window," cried the Duchess gleefully as the cook brought a tray of tea and cakes, muttering the word pepper, "They're simply so adorable and green."

With that she went to the bookcase and took out a book, she figured that she might as well start editing Hopping Mad now as she may not get another chance.

"I do so love literature," said the Duchess, "I wrote all these books myself about the other chains, feel free to read some if you like."

For the next few minutes she set about tidying up the story, pausing only to sip a cup of tea. Soon she brought her process to a stop, she felt like there was something else she should tell the girl infront of her.

"Ah. yes," she said, "We have three days for orientation before this game actually begins, I assume so you can get used to Wonderland and discover your ability as well as learning to work with me."

She had no doubt that the girl was strong, especially after seeing her skill with a sword. She wondered what Belca would think of her when she saw what she was capable of.

"In any case, there is time for that later," said the Duchess, "For now I insist you eat something as it will be a while before dinner and I can't have you wasting away on me."

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Duchess Sophie

The Duchess raised an eyebrow as the girl asked if the books were just an index of scandal.

"Of course not, silly girl," she said in a dismissive voice, "That would make it non fiction and non fiction is a dirty and disgusting thing."

It did occur to her that perhaps the girl wasn't part of her target audiance, she had also noted that she had picked up the story about the twins which had been far more intense than what she usually wrote.

"If you don't like it though then you could always ask to borrow one of my son's books, they have interesting titles and I have no idea where they come from," she continued, "Sinistra and Destra aren't really like how I showed them in that story by the way but then again, nobody ever knows for sure."

She began to think of the twins and how they were always at war with one another, she was sure that they'd be loving this game very much. Another part of her wondered if they'd been contracted yet, she hoped so.

"They're really quite charming once you get to know them," she said, "Quite handsome young lads they are too."

Feeling she had said quite enough on the matter she reached for the teapot, tapping it twice before pouring it into her empty cup. Instead of the same tea pouring out as before, a pleasant smelling green tea flowed out.

"Ah, green tea with jasmine, how refreshing," she remarked, taking a sip, "I see you've grown tired of being a pig again, so soon."

It was true, despite the fact that he had transformed only moments before, her son was once again sitting on the floor as a boy, reading a book.

"What is it you're reading this time?" she asked, reaching for a cake.

Once the cake was in her hand though she'd lost the desire to eat it. Frowning she began to focus on it untill it became a block of chocolate which she hurridly began to eat. She knew that it would turn back into cake very soon. As the last piece disappeared she looked over to her son who was holding up the book for her to see.

"The Lord of the Rings trilogy," she read aloud, "How very perculiar, I bet it's as odd as it appears."


Isaiah "Grey" Gris

"Singing flowers?" asked Grey, tilting his head to the side, "Now I'm sure I've heard that somewhere before, what sort of things do they sing?"

He continued following Absolem, absent mindedly as he tried to work out what the concept of singing flowers was so familiar. Grey almost bumped into Absolem as the man came to a stop by a large mushroom, Grey opened his mouth to ask where they were but Absolem seemed to be preocupied with something else, with a start he realised there was another man sitting on top of the mushroom. As Absolem and the man began to talk, Grey soon got lost in thought. Had Absolem just called the other man Cheshire and what did the man on the mushroom mean by Absolem preferring men? The words made Grey blush but he wasn't sure why, no doubt it would make sense when he memory came back properly. Soon all three of them were inside the mushroom which struck Grey as odd.

"A room without doors or windows nor any walls or roof," he thought, remembering another riddle, "What else could it be other than a mushroom."

He was glad to see however that this mushroom was laid out like a house. Thoughts of caterpillars and mushrooms began to flow through his mid in an unstopable torrent.

"I'd greatly appreciate a drink," he replied when Absolem asked, "I didn't even realise how thirsty I was."

He went back to his thoughts as he began to hum the tune that felt so familiar. The message from the tarot cards had been a little frightening but like Absolem had said, the future was fickle, still, he couldn't help but feel uneasy, perhaps his cards would come in useful during this game. He gave a start as he realised that Cheshire was talking to him.

"Jabberwocky?" said Grey, "That sounds really familiar, it's like..."

Suddenly it all made sense to him. It was as if this last piece to the puzzle had unlocked the part of his memory that had been evading him for so long. That was why everything seemed familiar, it was like the book he had read about a girl falling down a rabbit hole as well as the other one where she went through the mirror. Unbidden, the words of a poem bew into his mind.

"Twas brilig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"
recited Grey.

He was sure there was more but it would take so long to say it all.

"I'm sure that it's probably nothing like the poem described but it made one thing clear," he said, "It's something to be afraid of. I remeber something about a vorpal blade too. Is any of this correct?"

He sat in silence, waiting for the other two to respond, hoping that he hadn't just made a fool of himself.

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Isaiah "Grey" Gris

Grey sat sipping his hot chocolate as Cheshire and Absolem continued to trade witty remarks. Really, the way they acted around each other made them seem almost like siblings.

"Now there's a thought," said Grey, "I wonder if I have any brothers or sisters back wherever I'm from."

The concept didn't ring any bells though so he decided not to persue the matter further. Instead he turned his attention to Chesire. The person was so very enigmatic but still, Grey felt a liking for him. He felt like Cheshire probably just wanted friends despite the way he talked to people.

"Now who could have imagined that I'd ever be sitting in a mushroom and drinking hot chocolate?" thought Grey to himself, gazing around the room.

The place was quite nice but it was clearly set out with efficiancy in mind rather than style or comfort. Suddenly his cheeks behan to burn, he had just worked out what Cheshire had meant by his remark before.

"Clearly I'm a little slow on picking up innuendo," mumbled Grey, unsure whether he should be ok with this knowledge or not.

Now that he had worked it out he couldn't stop thinking about it. Absolem had denied being gay but looking at the way he moved and behaved, even sometimes the way he spoke, it wouldn't have been a far stretch for it to be true.

"It's not like it really matters anyway," said Grey quietly to himself, "There are certainly more important things to worry about than someone's sexuality. But then I can't help wondering what my preference is."

For the life of him he couldn't imagine whether he liked girls or boys or both or neither but like he had told himself, there were bigger things to worry about and this was soon proven when Absolem warned him to keep a strong will.

"Got it," said Grey, "Becoming a puppet doesn't sound like fun at all."

The more he heard about the Jabberwocky, the less he liked it but he didn't feel scared. He was certain that Absolem would protect him no matter what, even in the face of such a formidible sounding foe.


Duchess Sophie

"Oh, do you know of it?" said the Duchess as Belca repeated the name of the book, "I have no idea how he gets them, they just seem to appear. The Queen of Hearts is the one that brought you here but as to how I'm not quite sure, you'd have to ask her."

She smiled at her boy as if he was the cleverest thing in the world.

"He had one called Maximum Ride last week and another called Eragon the week before that," she continued, "I've never got around to reading them myself, I've always been too busy writing my own stories. I suppose it's the best I can do for company."

She smiled again as she took another sip of her tea and then frowned before a look of concern crossed her face. Trying to keep her face blank she willed herself to remain calm.

"It's just my imagination," she told herself.

But she couldn't help herself. Just then she had been sure she had smelt a faint whiff of decay as if it had been carried into the room by a distant wind. She prayed that it wasn't so because that smell could only mean one thing. Looking at her son she noticed he had sensed it too, even the cook had left of her screeching for a moment and out in the garden the pigs and momeraths were running around in a crazy panic. She looked at Belca wondering whether she should tell her or not, she didn't want to make the girl panic but then again, she seemed a sturdy sort and could probably handle it.

"Tell me, Belca," said the Duchess gravely, "What do you know of the Jabberwocky?"

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Duchess Sophie

The Duchess looked on in alarm as Belca banged her head against the table.

"Good heavens child, are you alright," she asked in a slight panic, "Cook! Fetch the pepper!"

She found this to be very odd behaviour and wondered if the girl had experienced a seisure or something similar, the last thing she wanted was for the girl to come to harm, even if she was very rude and ill mannered.

"I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about," she said as Belca brought up something called Alice in Wonderland, "It sounds like something my boy would read."

Honestly, her she was trying to talk about something serious and the girl was spout some nonsense.

"I don't know about the Jabberwocky being the top of the food chain as such but it's definitely something to fear," she said darkly, "It's like a parasite or a disease and it spreads through living things. Rest assured, if it gets ahold of you then your life will become a nightmare you can't wakeup from so it would be in both our best interest to stay away as far away from it as possible."

She looked the girl straight in the eye, willing her to see that what she said was the truth. She hoped that she hadn't scared the girl too much but it was something she needed to know about.

"Believe me, I'll do everything in my power to protect you from anyone who means you harm," said the Duchess, "Jabberwocky or otherwise."


Isaiah "Grey" Gris

Grey frowned, confused at himself, Cheshire had made an interesting point, why did he trust so easily?

"I don't really know why I trust either of you, maybe it's because neither of you have given me a reason not to trust you," said Grey, "Or perhaps I just see the good in people, I'm not sure."

He was a little alarmed by the harsh way Absolem was talking to Cheshire but he realised it was all part of the way their relationship worked, he supposed that neither would be happy unless one of them was trying to get under the other's skin. Grey wondered briefly why Absolem said he would have taken the first exit out of Wonderland if he was given the chance but soon gave up trying to work out the reason, the man, much like himself, was an enigma and no doubt he had a personal reason for what he said. He had noticed with a smile that Absolem had placed himself in the way of Cheshire so that he had Grey on one side an the woman on the other, it appeared that the man wasn't so cold and calculating as he let on.

"I'm glad I contracted with Absolem," he thought to himself, smiling at the man as he led him by the hand, "I don't think I'd feel as safe if I'd contracted with someone else."

But then again, was that simply because it was Absolem and he was the first person he'd met here or was it because of something else?

"Well it looks like I solved that riddle," he whispered, feeling heat rise to his cheeks.

Soon they had reached Cheshire's tree which the woman had made appear out of nowhere. Grey shifted nervously at the prospect of meeting someone knew, hopefully they'd get along.

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Rhiannon Jakalyn Pierce Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Duchess Sophie

The Duchess looked away from Belca as the girl claimed that she could defeat the Jaberwocky with ease.

"No, you couldn't," she whispered sadly, feeling tears begin to form in her eyes, tears she hoped the girl couldn't see.

She thought it was admirable that the girl thought she could take on the Jabberwocky and win but that just showed how much she was underestimating the fearsome creature, despite the fact that this girl had a rude streak in her almost as long as the Queen's hair, the Duchess knew that she would rather die than she her taken over by the blight that was the Jabberwocky.

"Fancesco!" exclaimed the Duchess, pulling herself together, "What a marvelous name, we can call him France for short. Now that reminds me of a song."

She absentmindedly began humming the Lobster Quadrille while nibbling on a cake, it really was a lovely song and was a spectacular sight when everybody danced.

"Well now, dinner should be ready soon," said the Duchess, "How about we train a little untill then."

Without waiting for an answer she opened the door to the conservatory and walked outside, picking up her croquet malet on the way. While she waited for the girl to follow she affectionately rubbed a momerath between the ears.

"I expect you to come at me with everything you've got," she called out, "Don't hold back or you'll regret it."

Looking forward to the match she readied herself, smiling. Belca would be in for a rude awakening she was sure.


Isaiah "Grey" Gris

"Well, I think so anyway," said Grey, a little doubtfully, "Sorry if I seemed obsessed with the subject, I just felt that it was an important part of who I am and wanted to know."

Grey looked away, still aware of the heat in his cheeks. He turned his mind to Absolem's riddle, it was a fairly simple one when you thought about it.

"An echo," he said, distracted by the cat jumping down from the tree with a girl in his arms.

He noticed that the girl looked a little scared, perhaps she was nervous about meeting new people too? But then again, he supposed that he would be scared to fall from that hight, especially in the arms of someone a odd as Cheshire.

"I know trust should be an issue," he whispered to Absolem, "But don't you think everyone deserves a chance?"

What was he saying? Absolem probably knew better so why couldn't he just accept what the man was saying but try as he might, he couldn't manage to block off his desire to trust Cheshire and the new girl.

"Rhia," he said quietly, trying to get used to the name, "Um, it's nice to meet you."

Wary of Cheshire's warning, he timidly held out his hand.

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Sinistra "Tweedle Dee" Lato Character Portrait: Destra "Tweedle Dum" Lato Character Portrait: Rhiannon Jakalyn Pierce
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Isaiah "Grey" Gris

Grey squeaked as Absolem picked him up, he hadn't been expecting it and the position he was left in was a little embarassing, but he knew now wasn't the time to worry about whether he looked like a blushing bride or not. As Absolem began to run, levitating Rhia as he went, a pain began to grow in the back of Grey's mind.

"Is this what he's feeling?" thought Grey, "Surely it's not that bad."

Suddenly, the pain surged forward in a blinding burst before returning to its previous ache. It was then that he knew that he was only feeling a fraction of what Absolem was feeling, he could share Absolem's pain at a toned down level yet still know how bad it was for him.

"He'll kill himself if he has to do this for too long," he thought in a panic.

He knew that he'd be devastated if that happened, despite only having known the man for a short while, he felt that he had bonded with him, if the truth was told, Absolem was the closest thing he had to a friend. He was relieved when Absolem finally came to a stop.

"Absolem...I..." he said, voice shaking.

Silently he walked up to the man, taking his hands down from his head and holding them for a few moments before wrapping the man in a tight hug and clinging to him like a child, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. He didn't care what Rhia thought, she could never understand what Absolem had done so they could get away, the man had definitely earned his trust now.

"I can't believe you were willing to go through so much pain for us to get away," said Grey, stepping away from the man, hoping he hadn't embarassed him, "Are you going to be ok to walk? Like you said, we need to keep moving."

In the distance he could still hear the din from whatever it was that had run out of the wood. He hoped that Cheshire was alright.


Duchess Sophie

"My word child," said the Duchess, shocked, "Have you never played croquet? This is a croquet mallet."

Sometimes the girl seemed so intelligent but then she couldn't even identify something as simple as a croquet mallet.

"Well now, not too bad," said the Duchess glided out of the way of the first slash, "Of course there's always room for..."

She broke of the sentence as she was forced to block the second of Belca's attacks with her mallet, it appeared the girl was a little faster than she anticipated. So the girl was fast and judging by the sound of the impact from the sword, she was reasonably strong too.

"Overall, rather decent on the offensive," thought the Duchess, "But lets see how well she defends."

Without a word she dashed towards the girl, twisting gracefully to the side at the last moment before jumping into the air and spinning around behind the girl.

"Behind you," cried the Duchess in a singsong voice, bringing the mallet down.


Destra/Tweedle Dum

"Well, there are others like you that have been brought here," explained Destra, "And as unpleasant as it sounds, you must eliminate them to win, it's the only chance you have for survival."

Destra wondered how the girl would react to this news, he wasn't sure if she would approve of the concept behind the game, but then again, she had no choice but to play, just like everyone else.

"I know it's a grim prospect but don't worry, you don't actually have to kill anyone," he said, hoping this would make it sound better, "And you get to have someone help you or perhaps protect might be a better word, all you need to do is enter a contract."

This was the moment, if she agreed to join him in a contract then he'd be in the game with a shot at winning.

"I know we've only just met but I was wondering if you might consider me," he said, shyly, taking off his cap and looking away bashfully, "If you contract with me, it'd be in both our best interests."

With luck the nervously cute display would have won her over, after that it'd be game on.


Sinistra/Tweedle Dee

He watched on in disgust as his brother began to act all shy and bashful, if that was how he was going to do things then two could play at that game.

"Co-contrarywise," he stuttered, shuffling his feet nervously, "It'd be in both our best interests if you contract with me."

He was sure that the girl would overdose on cuteness any time soon, who could resist two insecure guys that were too scared to talk to a girl, he always thought this act was brilliant when trying to win someone over, the only thing that seemed to work better was the brotherly love routine that he had used to pull with Destra long ago. In any case, he was sure that he'd be the one she picked, he naturally had the warmer personality.

"Or n-n-not," he mumbled, purposefully stuttering again, "I don't want you to feel like I'm pressuring you or anythng."

He was satisfied that he had milked the act for all it was worth, soon she'd make a decision and then it would all begin.

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Sinistra "Tweedle Dee" Lato Character Portrait: Destra "Tweedle Dum" Lato Character Portrait: Rhiannon Jakalyn Pierce Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre
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Destra/Tweedle Dum

He blinked at Moonlight as she suggested contracting with both of them, he didn't really like the idea of having to work with his brother but then again, it would eliminate the risk of losing to him in the game.

"Why that's a lovely idea!," he exclaimed, forcing a smile onto his face, "That means we won't have to fight each other."

Now that he thought about it, if there had been any person more qualified to work with him it would have been Sinistra, even though they couldn't stand each other, there was no denying that they made one hell of a team when they wanted to.

"Don't you think that's great Sinistra?" he said, letting his voice squeak, "Moonlight will be like a princess and we'll be her knights in shining armour."


Sinistra/Tweedle Dee

This was the perfect opportunity, now he'd be able to keep an eye on his pesky brother easilly and without fear of getting eliminated in the game, he'd work with him now but wouldn't stop trying to find a way to cheat Destra out of the prize.

"It's a brilliant idea!" he said, dancing about excitedly, "Contrarywise, We''l ber her knights in shining armour and Moonlight will be like a princess."

He thought back to a time where the contradiction in each others words had been more to defend the other's statement and knew that Destra would be the perfect ally for him.

"We should get out of here though, you can come to our home in the woods," he said, grabbing Moonlight's hand.

He looked Destra in the eye to confirm that they now had a truce, for the time being at least.


Duchess Sophie

The Duchess smiled as Belca pushed her back, the girl had recovered from her awkward position quite fast. She was about to say something when she felt a sting on her wrist, the girl had smaked her wrist with the flat of her blade, causing her to drop the mallet.

"Oh, how rude," she said angrilly, "That hurt."

The girl was in for it now, she wasn't going to hold back any longer. Elegantly she threw her body backwards in a handspring, with luck it would drive a kick in to Belca's face but really, she didn't care if it connected or not. Picking up the mallet she proceeded to throw it at the girl before bringing out a giant pepper grinder.

"You're in trouble now," she said gleefully as she began to turn the handle.

Of course pepper grinder gattling gun wouldn't seriously hurt Belca, it was really nothing more than a distraction in it's current state, but the girl didn't know that, did she?


Isaiah "Grey" Gris

Grey raised a questioning eyebrow as Absolem claimed that he was fine, he didn't look one hundred percent but he was definitely looking a little better.

"Do you think you could have done anything to help Cheshire if you stayed?" he asked, "You did the right thing, I don't think Rhia or I could have got away without your help, I know how hard it must have been for you to leave Cheshire behind and it was just as brave of you to do it as it was for Cheshire to stay behind."

As Absolem grabbed his hand again and set off, he grabbed Rhia's, urging her to move forward too. She looked distracted by something though. Cautiously he gave her hand a squeaze to get her attention.

"Cheshire's going to be ok and he'll come find you us all soon," he said soothingly, "You heard what Absolem said, it was important for the two of us to get away."

He was conflicted inside, he knew that he should be distancing himself from Rhia because eventually they would have to fight each other but seeing her upset coupled with seeing Absolem in pain was overwhelming him with the desire to help.

"Man, I'm really not cut out for this game, am I?" he thought to himself, "But I'm going to have to do what it takes so I don't let Absolem down."

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Sinistra "Tweedle Dee" Lato Character Portrait: Destra "Tweedle Dum" Lato Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Eve V. Kimberly Character Portrait: Belca
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Destra/Tweedle Dum

They had arrived at the place Rabbit had found them previously, the garden which was like an arena, very soon they would arrive at the home that the two shared. He wondered why he still lived with his brother when they clearly didn't get along but now wasn't really the time to worry about such trivial things.

"You have to promise to keep this place a secret," whispered Destra to Moonlight, not bothering to mention that just about everybody knew where the house was, "We don't normally allow girls but seeing as you're our princess we'll make an exception."

Turning a corner he walked up to a cottage that was nestled between two large gnarled trees. A path led from the front door to a little bridge which rose over a brook. Flowers grew all along the sides of the path and house, bluebells and forget-me-nots were the most common to be seen.

"Come on in," he said merilly, he truly was glad to be back home, "We can have elevenses and you can try my cake."

Sinistra/Tweedle Dee

Snatching a wild rose from a nearby bush he offered it to Moonlight.

"For you, princess," he said, smiling warmly.

Even though the brothers had a truce going on they still wanted to outdo each other and right now, getting Moonlight to like them was the only outlet for their competitive streak.

"You'll probably find my pastries a lot tastier," said Sinistra, giggling, "I just hope you're hungry."


Duchess Sophie

The Duchess laughed darkly, she like the look of hopelessness on the girl's face.

"Well it serves her right for being such a rude creature," she thought desicively.

Suddenly she felt something approach. Surely it couldn't be...

"Cheshire!" she cried, throwing the pepper grinder down and running towards the prescence.

She had seen the cat at the meeting with the Queen but hadn't had the chance to catch up. How she missed the days where he...she...it, had stayed by her side in the kitchen with her and her boy while the cook praised the wonders of pepper. At least she thought there had been days like that, now that she thought about it she couldn't quite remember, perhaps it had actually been a dream or a scene in one of her stories. She'd have to ask the cat when it arrived.

The setting changes from Down the Rabbit-Hole to Wonderland

Setting

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Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Cheshire

Cheshire's nose tickles slightly, bringing about a smile of relief. Pepper. Duchess' house was close. He could hear shouting in the near distance which fueled his aching body further. He was exhausted. Adrenaline had helped him through his fight and outrun the Plague, but it was ebbing off, reminding his body just how hard he had worked it. Dizziness was beginning to warp his mind, threatening collapse. He shook his head. With a final burst of energy, he rebelled against these feelings and soared into Duchess' yard, head down like a ram. Collapsing, though a lovely idea at this point, before Duchess and her child wouldn't do. He still retained his pride, regardless of how beaten it was.

His introduction didn't turn out exactly how he was planning, however, as he barreled straight into the Duchess' contractor. With a grunt he tumbles a few feet and chooses to remain on the ground, the transformation into his human male form to occurring in mid-roll. He looks around the familiar area, pushing away the darkness which threatened his vision, and laughs aloud. He made it. His dull, yellow eyes drag across the property. He almost despised how everything here was still brimming with life whilst his land wilted away. The thought passes quickly however when he locates his previous tree. His eyes widen as he traces along every limb. It too had been marked, the bark still carried deep etches were his claws had touched. He thinks back on how often he had laid in its branches and remembers how homely the place was. Why did he leave again? He found himself wondering, until that shrill voice shocked through his system: 'Cheshire!' Oh yeah..

He sighed, bringing a hand up to his face, as Duchess scrambled towards him. He realized, seeing the blood on his hands, that he didn't exactly look his best. His ears folded down on his head. He hoped he wasn't in for one of her lectures. Introductions and presentation were a big thing for her and being in his current state, he could only pray she would ignore appearances. Unless, of course, it meant a little first aid. His ever-present grin strained against the sting of open wounds and overworked muscles. "That would be most pleasant.." he mumbled aloud, closing his eyes.

The setting changes from Wonderland to Down the Rabbit-Hole

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Isaiah "Grey" Gris Character Portrait: Sinistra "Tweedle Dee" Lato Character Portrait: Destra "Tweedle Dum" Lato Character Portrait: Rhiannon Jakalyn Pierce
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Duchess Sophie

"Oh dearest Cheshire, it's so wonderful to see you again," she exclaimed, hugging the man tight, "I see you've already met my contractor, Belca, she's a lovely girl deep dow..."

She froze, there was something wrong with the cat, looking down she saw blood smeared all over her dress and the stench of decay was all over him.

"Oh no Cheshire, not in my house you don't," she said darkly, "How dare you lead that thing here."

She wanted to slap the cat for doing such a foolish thing but refrained from doing so, it would set a bad example for Belca. Instead she helped the cat to his feet and led him inside, sitting him down by the tea and cakes.

"Although I'm furious at you for endangering my contractor and my son, I can see that you need help and I'm not one to refuse those in need," said the Duchess calmly, "With luck the pepper will keep it away for now."

She wasn't sure if this was true or not but at the very least she hoped that the smell of pepper would distract it long enough for them to get away. Silently her son appeared with a pile of bandages and a bowl of warm water which she used to begin cleaning and binding the cat's many wounds.

"Honestly, how do you get yourself into scrapes like this," she said, trying to cause him as little pain as possible while washing out the cuts, "In any case, you came right on time for dinner, at least we should have some time to discuss what to do."


Isaiah "Grey" Gris

Absolem looked troubled but Grey knew that trying to read the man's mind would be like trying to thread an eyeless needle which was to say, impossible. Still, he didn't like to see Absolem worried. To take his mind off of things he began to sort through his tarot cards again, examining the details of each one. He was in the process of examining the ace of wands when he thought about how useful it would be to have a weapon like the staff depicted on the card. Before he knew it, the card was gone and in his hand was an elegantly detailed staff. Bewildered he looked from Rhia to Absolem and back to the staff.

"Umm...Absolem?" he said uncertainly, "What just happened?"

Was this the ability that Absolem had talked about or was it just the way the cards worked? He remembered back to the place where Absolem had found him, the cards hadn't been wet despite floating around in the water for several minutes. Maybe there was something magical about them.


Sinistra/Tweedle Dee

Smiling he opened the door to the cottage, for some reason it always smelt of fresh baking, even if they hadn't made anything for weeks.

"Come on in and make yourself at home," he said heading towards the kitchen, "I'll make us all some hot drinks, do you like tea?"

The walls of the cottage were lined with all sorts of things, artwork, cross stitch, masks, all of which had been made by either him or his brother in an atempt to outdo the other. Sometimes it just seemed like everything was a waste of time, he wondered what he'd be able to accomplish if he wasn't always trying to best his brother, perhaps he'd have made friends with some of the other chains, then again, probably not, he was too fond of tricks for that to happen.


Destra/Tweedle Dum

Leading Moonlight inside he sat down on a sofa and gestured for the girl to take any seat she felt like. He wanted her to be as comfortable as possible before explaining the game further.

"I'm sure you must be really tired and hungry," he said, "We'll do everything to make you comfortable here,"

He considered telling her the story behind the Rattle but wasn't too sure if it was something she really needed to know, perhaps later on. For now it would just be best for the girl to relax and build her strength up. No doubt he would have to tell her exactly what he and Sinistra were capable of when it came to fighting but he wanted to avoid sharing that information for now incase she asked for a demonstration.

"Fate must think it's hillarious to give us an ability that we're too afraid to use," he thought grimly.

The setting changes from Down the Rabbit-Hole to Wonderland

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Cheshire Character Portrait: Duchess Sophie Vespre Character Portrait: Belca
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Cheshire

He groaned as the woman embraced him, keeping his body as limp as possible. The sudden motion left his head swimming and he would've swatted her if it wasn't for the fact he needed her help. Instead, he glared pass her shoulders, a low growl growing deep in his throat. His narrow eyes found Duchess' contractor and he almost laughed aloud. You poor thing, he thought, musing over the girl being stuck with Duchess. "I hope you have a hard head," he murmured indignantly, meaning from his collision and for her contract.

He was overjoyed when Duchess released him and sheepishly grinned at her scolding. It was rather funny seeing the mixture of emotions at war in her face, though he was relived when she didn't scold him further. He took her offered hand and allowed himself to be ushered inside. He purred softly as he was placed before various treats and instantly melted into the chair. His head was still swimming and the cushion of the seat felt more than welcome. He gazed about the house, unconsciously licking an open gash on his lower arm. Nothing had changed really, this both disappointed and relieved him. Everything still reeked of pepper and the shouts of the cook and his sailing objects were ever noticeable. He was happy to be in a familiar place that still had yet to be corrupted by Jabberwockey, though he wouldn't remain here long.

Mentally, he was cursing himself for getting separated from Absolem and the children. The frustration of not knowing if they were safe or not was overwhelming, but he knew better than to run directly for them. Not with Jabberwockey at his heels. His tail flicked this way and that, revealing the irritation within. He kept quiet, knowing it was better to let Duchess rant, especially since he was testing her already. He was relieved she didn't give him any lectures and he wanted to keep it that way. Though inside the sanctity of her home, couldn't help but be on edge. His ears were pricked up and twitching about, listening attentively to any signs of danger outside. Only when she began cleaning his wounds did he put his full attention on her. He jerked back with a hiss, his ears low and hair bristled, "Ow! Easy woman!"

He couldn't help but complain, her light touch felt like sandpaper on his injuries. He let her continue however, it was something that had to be done. He wasn't against keeping his complaints to himself though and was happy to squirm and growl when she cleaned the worser wounds. He glared pass her, his head and ears lowered, refusing to make eye contact. "It's not like I volunteered," he hissed when she commented on his getting into scrapes. The pain of cleaning and bandaging his wounds was making him grumpy, and he did his best to keep his tongue in check. One thing he knew, you did not piss off your doctor. Though, when his unhappy eyes found Duchess' boy he couldn't bite back the frustration, "You've certainly grown some. Are you on the menu?"