AUTHOR [P.O.V.]

They travel to Wonderland and enter by way of Rabbit Hole. Slowly they drift downward, past clocks and tables and fireplaces, Goofy lying on his back enjoying the ride. When they reach the bottom, Sora, Y/N and Donald land softly on their feet, while Goofy falls over with a big thump, Y/N walked over to Goofy's aid. They hear the quick pattering of feet as a white rabbit in a waistcoat carrying large clock dashes past them.

White Rabbit: "Oh, my fur and whiskers! I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!"

He pants heavily.

White Rabbit: "Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear! I'm here, I should be there."

They watch him scurry away.

White Rabbit: "I'm late, I'm late, I'm late! The queen, she'll have my head for sure!"

They decide to follow him down the hall, where they reach a door, which reveals a smaller door underneath. They enter the Bizarre Room and see the White Rabbit scurrying across the tiled floor, several sizes smaller than before. The ticking sounds of a multitude of clocks lining the walls fill their ears as they watch the rabbit run through a small wooden door with a large doorknob on the edge of the room. Sora walks over to the door and kneels down in front of it.

Sora: "How did he get so small?"

Doorknob: "No, you're simply too big."

Donald jumps.

Donald: "It talks!"

Sora looks at it in surprise and confusion. The doorknob yawns.

Doorknob: "Must you be so loud? You woke me up."

Goofy [cheerfully]: "Good morning."

Doorknob: "Good night! I need a bit more sleep."

It yawns again. Sora gets closer.

Sora: "Wait, what do we have to do to grow small?"

Doorknob: "Why don't you try the bottle... over there?"

Sora turns and sees a table and chair form out of the floor. Two bottles appear on the table. The quadruple drink from the blue bottle and shrink down to the size of the door. Heartless appear and they defeat them, but by that time, the doorknob has gone back to sleep and the door will not open. They find another entrance to the Queen's Castle. Several soldiers stand guard as a trial is in progress inside a large hedge maze. Several roses line the hedges, some red and some white. A procession of cards parts to allow the trio to enter as a small blond girl in a blue pinafore dress is standing at a defendant's table. She looks up to the bench and is addressed by a large scary woman wearing a crown. The White Rabbit runs up a podium and catches his breath before sounding a note with a trumpet.

White Rabbit: "Court is now in session!"

Alice: "I'm on trial? But why?"

White Rabbit: "Her Majesty, the Queen of Hearts, presiding!"

The queen sits at the bench frowning in a red and black gown, holding a heart-shaped fan.

Queen of Hearts: "This girl is the culprit. There's no doubt about it. And the reason is... because, I say so, that's why!"

Y/N: "Huh? That doesn't make any sense at all."

Y/N stated as she crossed her arms.

Alice: "That is so unfair!"

The queen taps her fan like a gavel.

Queen of Hearts: "Well, have you anything to say in your defense?"

Alice: "Of course! I've done absolutely nothing wrong!"

Alice folds her arms and the White Rabbit gasps.

Alice: "You may be queen, but I'm afraid that doesn't give you the right to be so... so mean!"

The queen scowls.

Queen of Hearts [yelling]: "Silence! You dare defy me?"

She slams her fists on the bench.

Sora: "Hey, guys, we should help her out."

Y/N: "I agree."

Donald: "Yeah, but the--"

Goofy: "We're outsiders, so wouldn't that be muddling?"

Donald: ""Meddling"!"

Goofy: "Oh, yeah. A-hyuck! And that's against the rules."

Queen of Hearts: "The court finds the defendant..."

She raises her fan.

Queen of Hearts: "Guilty as charged!"

Alice looks astonished.

Queen of Hearts: "For the crimes of assault and attempted theft of my heart..."

Sora and Y/N gasps.

Queen of Hearts [yelling]: "Off with her head!"

She points to the girl and the Card Soldiers gather around her.

Alice: "No! No! Oh, please!"

Sora: "Hold it right there!"

Sora and Y/N came running in with Donald and Goofy runs after them.

Queen of Hearts [angrily]: "Who are you? How dare you interfere with my court?"

Sora: "Excuse me. But we know who the real culprit is!"

Goofy: "Uh-huh. It's the Heartle—"

Goofy covers his mouth quickly and looks at Sora.

Sora: "Anyway, she's not the one you're looking for."

He points to Alice as the queen leans on the bench, tapping her finger.

Queen of Hearts: "That's nonsense. Have you any proof?"

She smirks at a speechless Sora and Alice is imprisoned in a cage next to the bench.

Queen of Hearts: "Bring me evidence of Alice's innocence! Fail, and it's off with all of your heads! Gather as much or little evidence as you please. Report back here once you're ready."

Sora and Y/N talk to Alice while a Card Soldier stands guard.

Alice: "Who are you?"

Sora: "I'm Sora."

Y/N: "Y/N."

Goofy: "I'm Goofy, and that there's Donald."

Alice: "Pleased to meet you, though I do wish it were under better circumstances. I'm sorry you got mixed up in this nonsense."

Y/N: "It's okay, Alice. But we're here to help."

Sora: "Why are you on trial in the first place?"

Alice: "I should like to know the very same thing! Apparently I was guilty from the moment I took the stand!"

Sora: "That's crazy! So, where are you from?"

Alice: "Hmm, curious. I can't quite remember. You see, I found this mysterious rabbit hole. When I tried to peek inside, I tumbled in head over heels... And I found myself here."

Sora: "So you're from another world!"

Goofy: "That's funny. Maybe you don't need a ship, then."

Donald: "I don't get it."

Alice: "What do you mean "another world"?"

Y/N: "Uh! That doesn't matter right now."

Card Soldier: "Enough! The defendant will be silent!"

Sora, Y/N, Donald, and Goofy enter the Lotus Forest and look around. A cat's face appears out of thin air, except this cat was smiling widely. It's head bounces around the area, in and out of vision, until resting atop a large tree stump. The cat's body appears, standing on its head rather comically. It's body is lined with purple stripes. It steps off and places its head back on its body, grinning incessantly.

Donald [yelling]: "Who are you?"

Cheshire Cat: "Who, indeed? Poor Alice. Soon to lose her head, and she's not guilty of a thing!"

Sora: "Hey, if you know who the culprit is, tell us!"

Cheshire Cat: "The Cheshire Cat has all the answers— but doesn't always tell. The answer, the culprit, the cat all lie in darkness."

The cat starts to vanish.

Sora: "Wait!"

Y/N: "Hold on!"

Cheshire Cat: "They've already left the forest. I won't tell which exit. There are four pieces of evidence in all. Three are a cinch to find. The fourth is tricky. Big reward if you find them all."

Donald: "Should we trust him?"

Y/N: "I'm not sure."

The cat returns.

Cheshire Cat: "To trust, or not to trust? I trust you'll decide!"

He then disappears. The quadruple defeats Heartless in the Lotus Forest before finding some Footprints near a large flower. After climbing to one of the treetops, Sora and Y/N find a hole in the trunk of a tree. They enter it and find themselves in the Bizarre Room again, this time on top of the huge stone stove. Near the two burners, they find a Stench. 

They return to the Lotus Forest and travel further in, finding a large boulder and several Dalmatian puppies. They climb the boulder and reach a lily pad, where they discover an Antenna. As they travel along with lily pads, they see a hole in a high corner of the woods. They make their way over and enter. They fall into the Bizarre Room, on top of a faucet sticking out of the wall. Jumping to a nearby wooden ledge, they find some Claw Marks. After saving this evidence, the Cheshire Cat appears on the faucet, still grinning.

Cheshire Cat: "Well, look what you've found. Nice going."

Y/N: "Nice to see you too."

Sora: "Now we can save Alice."

Cheshire Cat: "Don't be so sure! She may be innocent, but what about you?"

Y/N: "Huh?"

Sora: "What do you mean?"

Cheshire Cat: "I won't tell. But I'll give you something."

The Cheshire Cat gives them the Blizzard spell and disappears. They return to the Queen's Castle and speak to a Card Soldier.

Card Soldier: "Are you ready to present evidence before the queen?"

Sora: "Yes."

Card Soldier: "Very well. Counsel, step up to the podium."

Sora stands at the defendant's table, while Donald, Y/N and Goofy are in a separate box.

Queen of Hearts: "Now, show me what you have found."

Sora presents their four items of evidence.

Queen of Hearts: "Well, that's certainly a lot of evidence, but I'm still not impressed. Cards! Bring forth my evidence!"

The cards present the queen's box of evidence and the five boxes are shuffled around to Sora's confusion.

Queen of Hearts: "Hmm, checking all five would only be a waste of time. All right, then. Choose the one you wish to present. I'll decide who's guilty based on that evidence."

Sora: "What? After all the trouble of collecting it?"

Queen of Hearts [yelling]: "You dare object? Then you will lose your head! Now, choose! One box!"

Sora chooses one of the boxes.

Queen of Hearts: "Are you certain? No second chances!"

Sora: "I'm sure."

Y/N clasps her hands together hoping Sora would get it.

Queen of Hearts: "Now we shall see who the real culprit is."

Inside the box is a Soldier Heartless.

Queen of Hearts: "What in the world was that?"

Sora: "There's your evidence. Alice is innocent."

Queen of Hearts: "Rrrrrrrgh... Silence! I'm the law here!"

She pounds on the bench, angrily.

Queen of Hearts: "Article 29: Anyone who defies the queen is guilty!"

Donald [jumping up and down]: "That's crazy!"

Queen of Hearts [shouting]: "Seize them at once!"

The podiums and hedges disappear and a large crank tower rises from the floor. The Ten of Spades runs over to the tower's gear and turns it, raising Alice's cage at the bench. The queen lifts her fan and the cards leap into battle.

Queen of Hearts: "Cards! If they touch the tower, you lose your heads!"

They begin attacking the red and black Card Soldiers who come at them with axes. After knocking a couple out, they flutter to the ground unconscious.

Queen of Hearts: "Get them, you fools! Quit joking around!"

Sora and Y/N runs up to the Queen of Hearts, who tries to fight back with magic from her fan. Sora and Y/N dodge it and knock her over, exposing her heart-patterned bloomers. At this point, the Card Soldiers freeze on the spot for fear of their queen. Sora and Y/N run back over and they start slamming the Keyblade into the crank tower, with each strike lowering Alice's cage.

Queen of Hearts [angrily]: "Why, you!"

Eventually, the tower starts to crack and shatters into pieces. The flamingo head holding up Alice's cage drops to the ground and the curtain pulls back. Sora and Y/N run forward as the Queen of Hearts peers over the bench to see an empty cage.

Y/N: "What?!"

Donald: "She must've gotten kidnapped while we were fighting."

Queen of Hearts [slamming her fist]: "You fools!"

The cards stand at attention.

Queen of Hearts: "Find the one who's behind this! I don't care how!"

The Card Soldiers run in various directions at the queen's orders. Sora and Y/N talks to the Card Soldier, who was in charge of Alice's detainment.

Card Soldier: "I just looked away for a moment, and..."

Sora, Y/N, Donald, and Goofy walk back into the Lotus Forest and see a flower sneeze up a rock. It lands near the pond and the Cheshire Cat appears, standing on his front legs.

Y/N: "Hey, it's that cat again!"

Sora: "Have you seen Alice?"

Cheshire Cat: "Alice, no. Shadows, yes!"

Goofy: "Where did they go?"

Cheshire Cat: "This way? That way? Does it matter? Left, right, up, down! All mixed up thanks to the shadows! Step deeper into the forest to the deserted garden. You might find shadows in the upside-down room!"

The cat vanishes and Heartless appear again. Once they dispel the horde of creatures, they find a thirsty flower.

Flower: "Give me a potion and I'll make you bigger."

Sora and Y/N obliged and grew until they could almost touch the treetops. They knock the boulder into the pond and more lily pads rise out of it. They find a large nut at the top of a tree and Sora uses his Keyblade to knock it down. Sora and Y/N eat it and returns to Donald and Goofy's size. They travel to the back of the wood and find another entrance to the Bizarre Room. 

This time, they find themselves standing on the side of the room. More Heartless appear and in the shuffle, Sora and Y/N knock a teddy bear off a shelf and it falls horizontally onto the armchairs below. Sora lights one of the lamps in the room, which reveals a painting on the floor of a beach in both night and day. They enter the painting and return to the Lotus Forest. 

At the furthest part of the forest, they enter the Tea Party Garden, seeing a long table with several chairs. Teapots and dinnerware line the table as lanterns hang overhead. A painting of the Mad Hatter and the March Hare is hung at the edge of the table. The expressions on their faces are one of sadness. A sign is posted next to them reading "A very merry unbirthday. Sit down to get your present." They sit at various chairs and the Hatter & Hare's painted expressions change to ones of joy and happiness. The enter the door in the house nearby and find themselves standing on the ceiling of the Bizarre Room. The Cheshire Cat sits waiting for them.

Cheshire Cat: "They're hiding somewhere. And the momeraths outgrabe. Want to find the shadows? Try turning on the light."

The cat vanishes and Sora jumps onto one of the lamps and lights it. The cat reappears on the other lamp.

Cheshire Cat: "It's too dim. Make it brighter."

Sora: "What next?"

Cheshire Cat: "One more lamp that you need to light."

The cat disappears and Sora lights the other lamp, summoning the cat once more.

Cheshire Cat: "All the lights are on. You'll see the shadows soon. They'll arise in this room, but somewhere else. The shadows might go after that doorknob, too."

Y/N: "That cat is really buggin' me."

The cat leaves and they make their way back to the Queen's Castle to enter the correct way into the Bizarre Room. Upon entering the room, they spot the Cheshire Cat on the table.

Cheshire Cat: "You'll have a better view from higher up."

Sora, Y/N, Donald, and Goofy climb the table and the cat stands up.

Cheshire Cat: "The shadows should be here soon."

He taps his toes daintily on the table.

Cheshire Cat: "Are you prepared for the worst? If not, too bad!"

He points upward and the enormous Trickmaster Heartless appears. It lands on the floor with its accordion-like hands and jumps over the table, landing on its large pointed boots. It stands up to its full height, towering over the table, unraveling both of its long arms. It stares down at them with its five stacked heads. It folds its arms together and pulls out two giant matches, twirling them in the air. 

Sora gets a running start, leaping off the table and striking at the Trickmaster's faces as it raises its matches high in the air. It slams them down onto the chair, sending it flattened into the floor. Sora jumps up, using the length of his Keyblade to deal blows to the Trickmaster. He knocks it out for a second, and it falls to its knees, though not for long. It starts to sing to itself and swings wildly, hitting Donald, who shrieks. It continues twirling the matches, walking over to the stove. It bends over the stove and lights them, sending fireballs at the three of them. Goofy blocks them with his shield and Sora and Y/N sends a Blizzard spell, effectively putting the fire out. After several more hits, the Trickmaster lowers its arms and falls to the ground. It attempts to stand but crashes to the ground, its arms laying at its side. A large heart floats of its torso and it disappears. Sora and Y/N hears a noise behind them and turns, seeing the doorknob yawning.

Doorknob: "What a racket. How's a doorknob to get any sleep?"

Y/N: "Good morning to you too."

It yawns widely and they see a Keyhole inside its mouth. A light shines around Sora's Keyblade and it reacts with a will of its own, pointing at the Keyhole and releasing a beam of white light. They hear a locking sound and the doorknob finishes yawning.

Donald: "What was that?"

Sora: "You hear that? Sounded like something closed."

A small green object falls to the ground in front of them, shining.

Goofy: "This gummi ain't like the others. No, sir."

Donald: "Okay, I'll hold on to it."

Donald picks up the gummi block and the Cheshire Cat appears on the table, peering down at them.

Cheshire Cat: "Splendid. You're quite the hero. If you're looking for Alice, she's not here. She's gone! Off with the shadows, into darkness."

The cat vanishes with his grin.

Sora: "No..."

Y/N places a hand on her friend's back.

Y/N: "Cheer up, Sora. I'm sure she's fine."

Donald: "Let's go back to our gummi ship. We might find her in another world."

Goofy: "We've gotta go to a save point to return to our ship."

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Edited on ??????????

Originally published on August 29

Word Count: 3015