Will it ever be normal? [ATTN: Alice!]

[Rose]

She didn't know how she had managed to get...well, here. The girl didn't know the place's name, and she wasn't even sure it existed, that it was all a result of working too late recently. One thing was for sure, Rose was for the first time in a long while, surprised when she opened her eyes and found herself in the most weird land.

Somehow, it seemed the blonde had passed out, waking up with a start. Brushing her long hair back from her face, Rose glanced up and her mouth dropped open at what she saw before her. It was a long, winding corridor, decorated with black and white tiles which made her feel dizzy if she stared at them too long. She had gone down the corridor, and was now suddenly standing in the middle of what appeared to be a forest.

Rose moved around, trying to see how far the forest went. She felt confused; how could she have ended up here?

[Alice]

The humming of a young girl carried through the air, and would have obviously caught Rose's attention eventually. The humming came from Alice. It was a pleasant hum, a catchy yet elegant melody that would've been stuck in one's head if one was exposed to it enough. She was seated under an unnaturally multicolored tree, on the ground, protected from Wonderland's sun by the tree's shade. Alice was seated on the ground, without a care in the world. Her large skirt had covered her feet and legs, but they were there. Her back leaned against the tree, while her palms rested on the ground. She smiled as she hummed, watching a bread-and-butterfly flutter by her face.

She didn't know an American friend of hers was now in Wonderland.

[Rose]

A sudden sound could be heard by Rose; it sounded like someone was humming a tune of some kind. Stepping back, the blonde tried to hear which direction the sound was coming from. For some reason, the voice seemed familiar, though she wasn't sure how anyone she knew could also be here.

Deciding on where the humming was coming from, the girl set off in that direction. She didn't have to go far, for the voice became louder by the second, and Rose found herself facing a strange, multi-coloured tree. It stuck out from the rest of the trees, though they weren't the colours Rose was used to either. She then got a glimpse of who was sat underneath the tree, and recognised them at once from their clothing. It was Alice, the little British girl she'd helped back in New York.

"Alice!" Rose said, her tone one of disbelief. How could she have found someone she knew here? She lowered herself down next to the younger girl, glancing once more at the oddly coloured leaves. "How...how did you...where are we? Do you know?"

[Alice]

A gasp replaced Alice's humming. The English girl looked up to see a teenager she remembered all to well. "Rose!" she exclaimed. She smiled and happily got up to her feet to curtsy. "Welcome to Wonderland, Rose!"

If Rose remembered the exact details of their first meeting, she could have remembered Alice mentioning the nonsensical Wonderland, which at the time seemed like the product of a girl's very active imagination. But now it was clearly all too real.

After her curtsy, Alice idly gripped the sides of her skirt and she leaned forward to smile inquisitively to Rose. "I must say, I didn't expect to see you here. But I'm happy you're here! Oh, Rose, it's so lovely to see you again!"

[Rose]

Wonderland. So that was the name of this place. To her, it didn't look like it was full of wonder, like it's name seemed to say, but Rose decided not to comment on that. She smiled to Alice, she had grown quite close to her back in their last meeting, and it was then the tall teenager realized how the younger girl had mentioned something about a place called Wonderland last time, but she could only vaguely remember the comment.

Rose gave a nervous laugh at Alice not expecting to see her here. "If I'm honest, I didn't expect to see myself here, Alice. But, it's nice seeing you too." Even being with Huntsclan didn't land her in these sort situations, and she was hunting for magical and strange beings then. A small part of her wondered if she should tell Alice about her secret identity, seeing as the girl had seemed to experience extraordinary happenings by just knowing this place.

But Rose decided it was out of the question. It wouldn't be fair to make such a kind, young girl like Alice think of her as nothing more than a heartless slayer.

[Alice]

Alice continued to smile. "But you are here, now," she said enthusiastically. She gestured to the unusually multicolored tree. "I was just resting here, but I would rather be with you." Looking back to the American, Alice's smile grew warmer, and her eyes also reflected this. "If you don't mind, Rose."

It was obvious that Alice was still highly fond of Rose, and clearly wanted to establish a friendship.

[Rose]

Despite her hesistation in the beginning at the situation of being lost, Rose found herself now realising that she felt more relaxed than she had in a long time. Wherever this place was, it appeared that it was far from anywhere she knew in the world, which meant it was far away from all of the troubles that were on-going at the moment. The Huntsclan were more determined than ever to capture the American Dragon, as they were preparing for their "Grand Equinox Hunt," an annual event in which they released magical creatures and hunted them down for trophies.

This had resulted in many long and sleepless night for Rose, and before long it would begin to show in her appearance.

The teenager smiled as Alice commented she'd rather be with Rose than continuing her previous activity, if she didn't mind. "No, I'd like that very much Alice," she replied kindly. The blonde still felt close to the girl, even though it had been a few months since their last meeting. "So...what exactly is Wonderland? I mean, I can kind of see it's a place, but I realise now it's not an ordinary one." Rose gestured to the colourful tree next to them, before looking back to Alice with an interested expression.

[Alice]

Alice's eyes and smile warmed up after hearing her American friend allowed Alice to stay with her. Alice was highly fond of Rose ever since the American helped her greatly. That, and Alice simply enjoyed the company and patient, calm, and affable demeanor of Rose. Of course, Alice was entirely unaware of Rose's strength, as well as her alter ego and secret life. But Alice would have never suspected any dubious quality in Rose.

Alice continued to express happiness even after Rose asked a question as complicated and difficult as the concept of Wonderland. "Oh, no," Alice shook her head to Rose. "Wonderland is far from ordinary." The younger girl looked up and brought her two index fingers to her bottom lip. "I suppose... the best way to describe Wonderland is... nonsense." She looked back to Rose and smiled again. "Yes, Wonderland is a land of nonsense, and of humor." Her smile softened when she recalled her arch-nemesis. "But Wonderland has an angry and dangerous Queen. We ought to avoid her."

Just then, as if on cue to emphasize Alice's point about nonsense, a rockinghorse fly neighed and fluttered close to Rose's nose.

[Rose]

If Rose was already confused, she became more so as Alice explained what 'Wonderland' was. "Nonsense?" The girl repeated her tone clearly revealing disbelief. She was familiar with magic of a kind, saw the most impossible creatures every day of her life, but nothing could have prepared Rose for what she'd found here. Although Alice's response had made her feel more confused, she could see what the girl meant about the land being...well, nonsense.

She listened on as the younger girl told her about a certain Queen of Wonderland. Rose thought for a moment, before asking, "Will I be able to tell if it's her?" She hadn't met any of the residents of the place yet, and the teenager wasn't sure if they'd all be human-looking.

At once, a strange type of insect fluttered close to Rose's nose, and...it neighed! On closer inspection, the blonde managed to see it looked like a horse with wings...but she wasn't very familiar with rocking-horses, so could only say, "It's a...horse-fly?" She looked to Alice to confirm this, and suddenly realised if the Huntsman knew about this place, the Huntsclan would have a field day.

Not that she'd tell them of course...

[Alice]

In childish amusement, Alice watched the rocking-horsefly flutter to Rose's face. She shook her head and held up her right index finger. "A rocking-horsefly," she politely corrected. Soon after, the rocking-horsefly neighed once more and then flew away.

Alice's smile faded, and she stepped closer to the taller, older girl. "Yes, you should know the Queen when you see her." Her face soured when she mentioned the Queen, which plainly suggested that Alice harbored animosity toward the ominous monarch. "But," Alice added more cheerfully, "we simply won't go there! We should be safe if we don't go among the Queen's grounds."

[Rose]

Alice corrected her as it being a 'Rocking-Horse Fly.' "Oh..." Rose said, again being lost for words, as she wondered if this was a dream or not. Of course, she kept reminding herself in frustration she should be used to this sort of situation now...but none of her dreams have ever included BOTH magical creatures and her friends before now...had they?

She listened to the younger girl speak about the Queen, and could tell from Alice's tone and facial expressions that she didn't think much of the said woman at all. Rose nodded in agreement at her mention they wouldn't go there, but she knew she'd protect Alice if they DID happen to encounter her at all.

"So, um, where do you normally go in...Wonderland, Alice?" She asked, still unable to say the place's name and believe it was real.

[Alice]

Alice always smiled up to her American friend. She was very fond of Rose, and looked up to her with high respect.

The English blond turned and gestured to a direction that she had memorized. "If we go that way, we would find the Mad Hatter's tea party. But I have not seen the Mad Hatter at all. I do hope he's well, wherever he is." She turned and pointed to another specific direction. There is a beach there, and an ocean."

She looked to Rose with a hint of embarrassment in her face and tone. "But much of the ocean is made of my tears. At least, I believe so."

[Rose]

Rose listened to Alice intently whilst she spoke of Wonderland. Of course, the girl was genuinely interested in this world by now, but it would help to know a little of the place's whereabouts, if by any chance she happened to get herself lost.

"The Mad Hatter?" the tall blonde spoke up, "Mad...as in angry, or...?" She hoped it her guess was correct. If he really was the insane type, she wasn't sure if she or Alice should be somewhere like this, though the English girl clearly knew Wonderland well. Perhaps the other area she mentioned might be better?

"Well, I suppose the beach is..." Rose stopped as Alice mentioned the ocean was mainly made of her tears. A feeling a uneasiness came over the teenager as she imagined how it might feel to swim in your friend's tears, but didn't show it on her face, for she was afraid of embarrassing Alice more. "You must've cried a lot, huh?" The girl said instead, concern in her voice and eyes.

"I guess the beach is good..."