A Secret Revealed [Alice!]

[Rose]

The innocent creature squeaked in fright as it ran as fast as it could across the woodland floor. At a first glance, the creature looked like it could be just an ordinary, harmless, little bunny rabbit. Well, apart from it's strange glow and orange skin tone, also patterned with purple swirls. No, this was a rare kind of magical creature, one of the last of it's kind.

That might've been why a certain young Huntsclan member was not far behind, chasing it full speed, Huntsstaff at the ready to shoot out a net in order to capture the poor creature when they got close enough.

The Huntsgirl tore through the trees, avoiding any obstacles with all the grace of a ninja, a fierce and cold look in her dark blue eyes. Behind, her long, blonde plait, the only other part of her body visible besides her eyes and hands, flew around her as the nightly winds got more and more violent.

The chase had gone on for at least twenty minutes, non-stop through the trees. It didn't help that the girl in particular was in one of the worst moods. She'd just found that the American Dragon, the one she'd been sworn to slay for months on end, was actually Jake Long, a boy from school who'd she become close to, and care very much about. Unable to slay him, Rose had spared the dragon and was now feeling the Huntsmaster's wrath because of it.

At once, it seemed the little creature slowed down. Poising her staff, Rose stopped. She hesistated for a moment, before attempting to fire a green blast at it. She didn't like hunting defenceless little creatures, like this one, but the intensity of her mood was getting the better of her.

When the shot missed, Rose gave a furious growl, a sound that could be heard from quite a distance away, and continued the chase.

Eventually, coming to a clearing, the animal veered off the path, and attempted to hide somewhere in the undergrowth. Stopping in the clearing, Huntsgirl's eyes widened in more fury as she realised she'd lost the creature in all the foliage. Raising her staff in her hands, she angrily looked around, making sure no leaf was un-turned.

"Better come out and face the music now, furball." Her words stung like a nest of wasps. "Or when I find you, how you'll be sorry you ever were a magical creature."

[Alice]

Alice had left Merlin's cottage and was on her way home, but she heard a loud commotion. "Now, what do you suppose is that?" she asked herself in a whisper. The curious girl quietly walked to the direction from where the noises were coming. She covered her mouth to stifle her gasp after she heard what sounded like an attack. She stopped and stared wide-eyed for ten seconds, before she summoned enough courage to continue. She lowered her hands, inhaled, and stepped to a large tree that was closest to the struggle. She, very stealthily, shifted her weight so she could look around the tree. Her bottom lip dropped when she saw, for a moment, an intimidating, heavily concealed person attack what looked like a unique, rare bunny. Even in Wonderland, rabbits weren't illuminant. So what right did this person have, hunting and scaring a poor, frightened rabbit?

Alice narrowed her eyes, and her black eyebrows complimented her look of anger. She was the angriest she had been in a while, and she waited for the right opportunity to intervene. The strange rabbit hid, and Alice watched the girl insult said rabbit. Furball?

The only thing that prevented Alice from stepping out into the open was the (obviously female) hunter's staff. It intimidated Alice. But, she had to do something! She couldn't allow the poor, frightened creature to be hurt, or worse!

Alice, stalwart, decided to speak loudly from behind the tree after hearing, 'how you'll be sorry you ever were a magical creature.'

"That," Alice loudly exclaimed from her hiding spot, "you won't!" She hid behind the tree completely, but her eyes were still sharply narrowed.

[Rose]

It would be almost impossible for the little creature to sense where the Huntsgirl was, as she was making sure her footsteps were as quiet as possible whilst she walked around. The only way for the creature to be able to tell where she was would be to come out from its hiding spot, and that would mean it would likely be captured..or worse, slayed.

A fierce look on what could be seen of her face, the young girl knew this would turn into a waiting game if she didn't act soon, but didn't want to face the risk of going back to the Huntsmaster empty-handed. She'd already failed slaying the American Dragon, the main prize right now, and she would surely face worse punishment if she didn't capture this creature now. The last thing she wanted was to move away from New York, where Jake was, the only one who understood her right now. Despite this, Rose was still aware that she was acting selfishly, trading a defenceless creature's life for her own needs.

That was the curse of being in the Huntsclan.

Shifting her grasp so she now only carried the staff with one hand, she clenched her free fist tightly, her stance clearly showing she was ready to attack at the slightest movement.

What Rose didn't expect, however, was for a voice, a young girl's from what she heard, to shout out from somewhere besides the clearing. The sudden intervention startled Huntsgirl, and next to her, a growth of leaves suddenly rustled. Pointing her staff, she attempted several times to shoot at the movement, but the voice had caught her off-guard and she missed. By now, the creature had once again hid, making Rose even more angry. She also should've recognised the female voice as familiar to her, but she was so blinded by fury now, she hadn't even considered that.

"Whoever you are, you better get out of her now! Or, this staff could be pointing at you very soon." Rose shouted out, turning her gaze towards the direction she thought the sound had come from, still keeping her staff pointed at the leaves. "Besides," she haughtily added, "I doubt you could take me on, if the best you can do is call out whilst hiding."

Deep down, she knew she really didn't want to have to hold the person at, well, staff-point. But her darkening mood was putting whoever it was in a dangerous situation, and she only hoped this would be enough to scare whoever it was away.

[Alice]

Inside her head, Alice scolded herself. She was probably stupid for involving herself into this, but she didn't care; she had to try to rescue the poor, helpless rabbit. Alice did not look from the tree, but she heard the attacker's voice clearly. For a moment, Alice's face expressed fear. That staff sounded awful! But she hardened her face, as she decided what to say.

"Why are you chasing that rabbit?!" Alice shouted from behind her tree. "You ought to be ashamed of yourself! That rabbit must be so scared! I only want you to leave him alone!" Alice shouted, and so her voice was projected loudly, much louder than usual. Because of this, it would have been understandable if Rose still did not recognize the voice completely.

Alice knew that the more she spoke, the more she gave away her location. That's why she was ready to move around the tree and stay out of sight, if the attacker would approach. But even that was very risky; she was bound to be spotted sooner than later. Alice looked left, then right, and listened intently, waiting for a response. She even feared breathing much.

[Rose]

The teenager listened for a moment, still hoping the person might go away now. As much as she didn't want to, she knew that she must capture this rabbit, and whoever it was from outside the clearing wasn't making her job any easier. Huntsgirl sighed in annoyance; why did nearly all of her hunts involve some kind of distraction? It was bad enough when other magical creatures showed up to fight against her; now she was having a pointless arguement with someone she couldn't even see!

"You wouldn't understand!" Rose shouted out, now more frustrated that the girl hadn't gone away. Must she be so stubborn? "What business do you have anyway, telling me what I should and shouldn't do? Now, just go away, before I find you and make you really regret coming here!"

She hadn't forgetten about the magical creature at all, but decided that she should find the person if they refused to leave. The Huntsgirl then realised that if the conversation carried on much longer, she couldn't risk them leaving if they found out too much. The blonde slowly headed in the direction of the tree she was now sure the person was hiding behind.

[Alice]

Alice listened to what the antagonist had to say. And what the antagonist had to say did not settle well with Alice. Perhaps it would have been foolishly optimistic to expect the huntress to repent, but her obstinate demeanor irritated Alice. The English girl's face hardened even further as she listened to the shouting.

Then Alice heard footsteps. Soft, quiet footsteps. Alice knew that she couldn't stay behind the tree. She quickly ran and hid behind another large tree, and prayed that she hadn't been spotted as she moved from one hiding place to another.

"I won't!" Alice shouted from her new spot. "Until you stop hunting that rabbit!"

[Rose]

As she got closer to the tree, Rose knew she couldn't be far away from the person now. Every few seconds, she turned her head back to check whether the creature had moved or not. Tightening her hold on her staff, she prepared to jump next to the stranger and attack instantly. But before she could do that, the person spoke up again, and it appeared that their voice no longer came from the tree Huntsgirl currently faced.

At this, something snapped. She was already in a foul mood with other conflicting factors in her life, and she couldn't fail this mission. From this point, Rose no longer cared for the stranger to keep distracting her from her hunting. Before the teenager could stop herself, she turned, her eyes blazing, her hands so tightly clasped around the staff, there was a danger it could break in her strong grip.

"If you're so brave, why don't you come out and face me? But, I suppose you wouldn't have the guts for that." Her voice was still filled with rage, but now it was audibly softer. When whoever it was came out, were they going to get a shock!

[Alice]

"Oh, dear," Alice whispered to herself. She was starting to regret her bravery, because from the tone of the enemy's voice, she sounded very livid. Alice wasn't brave enough to reveal herself; even if she wanted to move, her legs were beginning to feel very heavy due to fear. But she could still speak. And although her voice sounded less brave than moments before, she still managed to shout with dignity.

"Why, if my friend Rose were here, she'd...she--she'd teach you a thing about manners!" She bit her lip and frantically looked about for another place to hide, if there were any.

[Rose]

It was clear now that Rose was very, very furious with whoever kept speaking with her, and it looked like she was ready to viciously attack them. She was getting closer to the tree the younger girl was behind, and any moment now, they could be in great danger for their life. Her staff was slowly raised as she prepared herself again for whoever she saw behind the tree.

What happened next, however, shocked the teenager to the core.

"Why, if my friend Rose were here, she'd...she--she'd teach you a thing about manners!"

The revelation was so sudden, that Rose nearly dropped her staff out of shock, just managing not to accidentally fire a blast out. After this, she now recognized who it was. Alice. Oh, how could she have been so stupid not figure that out in the first place? She'd been so caught up in getting that magical creature, she'd actually forgotten momentarily what Alice sounded like. Or more so, she'd forgetten her humanity. Alice, her friend, the little girl that trusted her so much...what had she done?

'Scared the living daylights out of her, probably.' Rose thought miserably.

But, now it occurred to her that she couldn't suddenly stop and reveal herself to Alice. She knew the English girl [and, quite rightly so], would never forgive her, and she didn't want her friend to live with the burden of knowing this terrible secret. By now, the teenager had been silent for a few minutes, and knew she had to act quickly.

Without thinking, she quickly went up to the tree she thought Alice was behind, and jumped, landing [hopefully] next to the girl.

[Alice]

The intimidating huntress had fallen silent for a few moments. With all of those minutes, Alice became incrementally more scared. She tried to remain as quiet as she could, even restricting her breathing to bare minimum. Alice had turned her head to listen over one side of the tree, but she heard the huntress jump from the opposite side. Alice spun and screamed in fright. She covered her mouth and her eyes could only look helplessly to the intimidating huntress, whose eyes diminished Alice's remaining courage.

After Alice's scream, the glowing rabbit brightened, revealing his hiding spot--directly behind Alice.

Alice made one more attempt to be brave. She lowered her hands from her mouth and asked, "Who are you?" As she spoke, she fought hard to keep her voice steady.

[Rose]

Although she had plans for what to do with Alice, the girl felt a tug inside as the little blonde screamed in fear as she landed next to her. Despite the agony that was increasing inside her at seeing her friend like this, Rose managed to put on a intimidating stare, as if she was really going to hurt Alice.

But, a glow from behind the English girl stopped her. It was that stupid rabbit creature! Although she didn't really want to harm the creature, her emotions were getting too much for her. Even finding out about Jake hadn't been this bad, at least they now knew each others' identities, even though Rose still hadn't got over the fact she'd spent the last few months or so intent on killing her crush.

The girl had to admit, Alice was being pretty brave to say she was now standing over her. Being tall for her age, Rose's stature only became more frightening. When asked who she was, the teenager momentarily looked away, before suddenly placing a hand on Alice's arm, moving her roughly [though not too hard] out of the way, her eyes focussed on the now-cowering rabbit.

"That's not something you need to know." She finally replied, her voice now calm, and almost with a saddened undertone, before regaining what she could of her composure. "Now, you'd better go, before something happens." It wasn't threatening, like last time, more of a slight pleading.

[Alice]

Alice wasn't expecting the stranger to grab her arm and roughly force her out of the way. She managed to keep her balance, but she wasn't as scared as before. This is because of the huntress's blatant change of tone. Alice hardened her face again, and shook her head when the tall, obviously female huntress requested the English girl to leave.

"I won't," Alice said with more confidence than the last time she spoke. "Why do you act so differently now? You're not like how you were just a moment ago!"

At that point, Alice remembered something about the huntress: her eyes. Alice stepped so she could be closer to the stranger's front again, so she could examine the eyes. It was obvious that Alice was trying to intense examine what could be seen of the huntress's physical features. Something about her seemed... familiar?

[Rose]

The Huntsgirl refused to reply when Alice questioned her on the sudden change she'd had. 'Great, Rose. How are you going to get out of this one?' She thought, annoyed that she'd once again, let her emotions for someone she cared about over-whelm her. The creature, now confused on what was happening, dared to squeak softly. Although Rose immediantly went to charge her staff, she now realised she didn't have the heart anymore to hunt the creature...

'Well, I guess this means I'm leaving New York, for good. Still, Jake wouldn't wanted me to do this...just for him.' The blonde knew she couldn't display any emotions that might make Alice even more suspicious, and now decided the best thing would be to quickly hurry away from the situation.

Rose then noticed that Alice had moved around so she was now almost facing her. After a moment, she realised that the younger girl was staring deeply at her, and turned away quickly, feeling panic rising. She knew she mustn't let the English girl get another close look at her. Without warning, she quickly started to walk away from Alice and the rabbit.

[Alice]

Alice stopped examining the huntress when the staff glowed. The English girl was prepared to intervene, in any way possible. She had come this far to defend the rabbit to quit now. But to Alice's surprise, the huntress turned and started off.

"Wait!" Alice exclaimed. Frustrated, Alice closely followed the huntress. Despite hurrying, she managed to speak continuously. "Why are you leaving now? I'm pleased that you stopped hunting the rabbit, but you still haven't asked my question! Who are you?" After a pause, Alice was overwhelmed with annoyance and frustration. She grabbed at the huntress's arm, and attempted to hold her back. "Listen to me! Who are you?"

[Rose]

Rose walked quickly, her speed increasing every few steps. She just wanted to get out of here, before anything else happened. This hunt had been a disaster, and something she'd never forget.

As she continued to leave, it became clear that Alice was not giving up. She continously kept calling to her, but Rose simply ignored the girl's questions and increased her pace. 'Please, just go away, Alice. Stop following me.' Her mind was practically begging for the younger blonde to leave her alone. Things would only get worse if she didn't stop.

A grab at her arm momentarily stopped the teenager. But, she shrugged off her hand and simply replied, "You don't want to know. Now, just leave...please."

With, she attempted to continue forward. But, she was so concerned with trying to get away from Alice, she forgot about the sharp, long branches in front, which she promptly headed straight into. Attempting to free herself in a panic, she tugged hard, falling free of the branch and landing on the ground.

...what she didn't realise was her mask was now still in the branches, and her face was fully visible to Alice.

[Alice]

Even after the huntress shrugged off and continued, Alice was stubborn. She continued to pursue the obstinate female, until said female accidentally walked right into the long, sharp branches. Alice stopped and watched as the huntress, in a panic, harshly freed herself.

"Oh!" Alice exclaimed as the huntress fell to the ground. She instinctively placed a hand on her chest as the stranger tumbled. Alice looked to the branches and saw the mask was attached. This was the perfect opportunity to discover the stranger's identity.

Alice hurried to the stranger's front, and bent to help her up. "Let me help you." But she didn't help after all; when Alice examined the face of the strange teenager, the English girl gasped loudly and fell on her rump. She planted her hands on her cheeks as her sight remained on the huntress. She shook her head, wishing dearly that this was not happening.

There was no denying it; the face of the girl who scared the poor rabbit and Alice, who threatened Alice, who carried a dangerous weapon...

Alice didn't even say Rose's name. She was in such a state of shock that she was inconsolable, and remained seated on the ground, shaking her head.

[Rose]

For a moment, Rose just sat still on the ground, clearly surprised at what had happened. She was unaware at just how much had went on when she'd freed herself from the branches. It was only when Alice came over to her, offering her a hand, did she snap back to reality. A questioning look appeared on her face, and she was about to ask why, after all this, was the girl helping her?

But, at the sudden change of emotion on the younger blonde, did Rose stay silent. She mirrored Alice's gasp as the Victorian girl fell down next to her. She stood up immediantly, wanting to know what was wrong.

"What? What is it--" She never finished the sentence as her hand came up to her face, and that was when she realised, in horror, what had happened.

Turning her gaze to the branches, the look on her face became one of regret as she saw the mask, hanging.

Looking back to Alice, Rose knew there was no point in even attempting to ask for forgiveness. Placing her hands on her hips, she glanced down to the ground, her face clearly expressing she was ashamed of what had happened.

"So, now you know." She managed to say, her voice cracking in the process.

[Alice]

Alice remained still. No longer shaking her head, she just stared at the unmasked Huntsgirl, even when tears escaped her ducts. Alice's blue eyes became damp, and soon Alice began to cry hard. She covered her face with her hands and sobbed noisily, feeling very hurt and betrayed. She forgot about the rabbit's current well-being at this point. All Alice could think about were the events prior to the revelation.

[Rose]

As Alice started to cry, Rose continued to stare at the ground, unable to even look the girl in the eye. She'd never been good at consoling anyone--heck, she hadn't even given thought that this situation might happen. Although a part of her desperately wanted to rush to Alice and comfort her sobs, the rest of her knew it just wasn't possible. More so, it would probably make things even more awkward.

Finally glancing up, it was obvious that the teenager looked very sorry in what she had caused. After another moment of silence, Rose managed to choke out some words.

"Alice, it-...I-" She sighed, trying once more, "It wasn't supposed to be like this."

[Alice]

After her last sob, Alice exhaled and pulled down her hands to reveal an intensely angry face. The look Alice made to Rose was a look Rose had never seen from the English girl prior to that night. Before, Alice looked at Rose as a trusted, devoted friend. Now Alice looked to Rose as if she were a demon. It was beyond obvious that Alice was entirely livid with Rose. The tears continued, and Alice's nose was damp. But she did not intend to stay, to listen to Rose anymore.

She did not speak another word. She got up to her feet and started to quickly walk away from Rose. She clenched her hands into fists as she walked, and she was just one push away from exploding into a fury of anger. Alice was not her normal self; she was now a brooding, moody girl with intense animosity towards an ex-friend.

When Alice was out of the area, far away from Rose, she reverted back to depression and tears. She ran all the way back to her home, avoided all contact with her family, and cried herself to sleep.

[Rose]

Rose knew she should be helping her...well, was she even a friend now? After all, it was her fault, she'd made this happen. But, she just couldn't, and continued standing in front of Alice, staring at her intently. 'It was a mistake coming out here tonight,' the teenager thought, wondering if now would be a good time to turn and leave. It was getting dark though, and she wasn't sure if it would be safe to leave Alice out here on her own.

As the younger girl ceased sobbing, Rose took a step back at seeing her face, and now realised it was probably for the best that she hadn't gone near her. The teenager looked away, her face becoming even more saddened when she saw how Alice was looking at her. She wasn't one to cry, but she still felt very upset at what had happened.

'Just look at her face, look what you've done to her!' Her thoughts shouted out. 'You're just like the rest of those jerks in the Huntsclan; heartless.'

Alice quickly got to her feet, and immediantly walked away from Rose, which she couldn't really blame her doing. She quickly started after her, but then decided to let her go. Although she knew the girl shouldn't be left alone, trying to go with her would make things worse. The rabbit, now sure that it was no longer being threatened, squeaked to Huntsgirl, almost in an angry manner, and headed off into the surrounding trees.

Sighing, the teenager looked down once more, closing her eyes, trying to find some calm. This only made her more upset, and with a yell, she opened her eyes, swinging her fist into the nearest thing she could punch, a tree next to her. Leaving a deep fist mark in the tree, Rose picked up her staff and torn mask, before heading the opposite way from where Alice left.

...maybe she really was heartless.