So sorry for the long delay! I've been really ill for about a week and trying to keep up with my classes. I realize this is a short chapter, but new stuff should definitely be up again by this weekend! A big thank you to all my readers.

The night had finally settled. The majority of the Resistance had been able to get out of the village safely. A few had been killed before the alarm got out, but luckily people had moved quickly after that. Having dealt with these situations before, plans had been in place to move people effectively. After that only a couple of people had been injured. Duchess herself had a grazed arm from a bullet. Haigha hadn't really been aiming at her, but rather the man next to her. His aim had been slightly off. Duchess could only be thankful that he'd been careless. She wouldn't be so fortunate next time.

Hatter however was far from calm. He hadn't seen Alice since they'd stopped. Sure, the group was large, but he should have found her by now. Worry had him frantic now as he searched through groups of people for any sign of his Alice. But no one he asked had any answers for him. They either hadn't seen her or had assumed she was with him. Hatter was at his wit's end.

It was almost morning when his frustration got the best of him. He yelled, punching a tree. The entire thing shuddered, raining pine needles down on him. This led to more cursing. Finally he realized what he must look like to everyone else, although to be honest he couldn't care less at the moment. He sighed, leaning his forehead against the abused pine. Hatter tried breathing deeply for a few moments in a vain attempt to calm himself, but a small cough interrupted him.

He looked up, ready to tear into whoever was bothering himself, but quickly checked his temper when he saw the curly-haired moppet standing meekly in front of him. Get a hold of yourself, Hatter. Alice wouldn't want him snapping at a wee thing like this no matter what was happening. He sighed and bent down to the child's level.

"Hey, sorry about that. Do you need something?" he asked in the gentlest voice he could muster. She nodded but didn't say anything. Her wide blue eyes gave away how intimidated she was. Hatter swallowed hard as he realized how much they reminded him of Alice's own stare. "It's ok, I won't yell at you, love. Promise."

"I saw the lady you're looking for sir those bad mad men were after me and they were going to take me away from my mommy but the Alice lady she stopped them sir she stood right in front of me and told me to run and so I did but she stayed and I hid and they knocked her on her head and she went to sleep and they took her away they just left as soon as they had her and I wanted to say but I was afraid you'd be upset but she's a really pretty lady and I don't want anyone to hurt her." The words tumbled out in a rapid jumble, but Hatter was able to pick up the girl's meaning. And what he understood made his stomach begin to tighten in horror.

They had her. They had his Alice. The bastards had taken her back to that woman, the same one who was hell-bent on destroying Wonderland, the only home he'd ever had. They could be hurting her and there was nothing he could do to stop it. At least not from this far away.

He walked away from the girl wordlessly. There had to be a way to fix this. He had to go see his father.

Alice woke up. Her head throbbed, and she felt like a horse had kicked her in the back. Hearing someone next to her, she kept her eyes shut and tried to remember what had just happened. She could recall the mad rush to leave the village, and then Hatter and her had split up, and then she'd seen that girl – oh! Everything rushed back. The fear, the darkness, the fight with those two freaks that she had lost. They'd definitely surprised her. Alice figured she was in pretty deep trouble now. Why couldn't she ever avoid getting caught by the insane rulers of Wonderland?

Sudden footsteps away from her and out of the room let Alice know she was safe. She cautiously opened her eyes and confirmed that she was alone. Alice sat up slowly, feeling the rush of blood from her head. Nausea immediately swamped her body. They must have hit my head pretty hard. Alice gripped the edge of the table she was sitting on, trying not to throw up. When she felt able, she looked around the room.

She felt a stab of panic when she realized that this was the throne room of the palace, the same one Hatter had argued with Jack in. Alice was trapped in the palace of Hearts, the same place that the insane Scarlett had control over. Luckily there was no one around right now. Alice climbed down from the table, cursing at her sore muscles. Hopefully she could get out before anyone noticed that she was gone.

Unfortunately those hopes were crushed as a woman walked in, holding a knife. Alice tried to keep her eyes on the weapon she held but was distracted her appearance instead. She was slightly taller than Alice, and her hair was just a shade or two darker, although there the similarities ended. The other woman, whom Alice could only assume was this Scarlett person, was less athletic and curvier than she would ever be, with a heart-shaped face and lips that looked like double-curved bows. Alice would have thought she was beautiful except for her eyes. The irises appeared to be perfectly black, like deep pits. Her presence screamed dangerous.

"So," she whispered, walking closer to Alice, "why shouldn't kill you right now?"

The question completely silenced Alice. Who was this woman? She swallowed and tried to find your voice. "You have no reason to kill me. I haven't done anything to you."

Scarlett laughed, but entirely without humor. "Oh, of course not. Why, you're an innocent angel, aren't you Alice? You've never hurt a soul, never made anyone suffer. You're just perfect, aren't you?"

Clearly the woman was insane. Alice tried again. "Listen, I have friends, and if they hear you've hurt me, I promise you that they'll make you regret it." She hated playing this card, but it was the truth. Alice cringed as she pictured Hatter if he heard that she'd been killed.

"Oh, trying to threaten me, are you, little Oyster?" She said the last word with venom.

"No," Alice said with a shake of her head. "Just a fair warning."

Scarlett didn't say anything for several minutes, just circled Alice. Alice tried not to meet those unnerving eyes but grew more anxious by the minute.

"So, you're what they want? You're what they're going to risk they're lives to get back? And what makes you think that?"

Alice paused before answering. "Because. There are people there that love me. They won't stop at anything to make sure I'm safe." The words shocked her as they slipped out between her lips. She wasn't used to having people other than her mother that she knew without a doubt would die for her. It scared her almost as much as it warmed her.

Scarlett's face twisted into a scowl. "Oh, really? Why you?" Her voice began to grow frantic. "Why you and not me? What makes you so different? Why would they love you and not me? You're nothing special!" Her voice rose into a shout at the end. For a split second, Alice swore that she could see purple and green swirling from the center of her eyes.

Scarlett seemed to regain some control over herself after a moment. "I won't kill you… yet. No, I need you. You're going to bring your little friends here because they love you so much. And I hope you get to watch them suffer. In the meantime, you can rot away in the dungeon. Let's see if they love you as much as you think they do."

Before she realized what was happening, guards materialized from the door and began to drag Alice out of the room. She was too weak to even try and fight them off, and her encounter with Scarlett had scared her. This woman was no Queen of Hearts – she was far more dangerous. Alice just hoped that Hatter and Charlie really would bring the Resistance and find some way to get her out of here.

As soon as Alice was out of sight, Donia motioned towards a Club. "Give her some tea. Abandonment should do the trick. That should make her feel perfectly comfortable here with us."

"They have her! They have Alice. We have to rescue her."

The leaders of the Resistance looked up to see Hatter staring Caterpillar, looking wild and panicked. Caterpillar gazed steadily back at his son. The rest of the leaders looked back and forth between the two, unsure of what was happening.

"Leave us," Caterpillar ordered to his council. He remained seated while his son stared desperately at him, wanting something, anything from him. As soon as they were alone, Hatter began speaking.

"Please, they have her. We have to get her now. There's no telling what Scarlett's goons will have done with her by now. Surely she's back in the palace. She could be in the dungeon. They could have injured her more than they got to me, and she's just an Oyster, she can't handle physical injuries the same way we can. Please, she'll die in there if we – "

Caterpillar cut him off with a hand. "S-Hatter, I know what you're telling me already. Scarlett has Alice in the city. We're almost certain she's been put in the dungeon, but no physical harm has come to her. One of our agents infiltrated the grounds and discovered this much, but he had to leave before he was found out. Plans will be put in motion very soon, but there has to be a plan if this is going to work. If you go rushing in there today, you would die and make things even worse for Alice. If you love her, you'll listen to me."

Hatter tried to ignore how his father had almost called him "son" but stopped at the last moment. As his mind floundered for something else to hold on to, another detail came to his attention.

"Wait," he said, raking a hand through his hair, "what do you mean by physical harm? Why the emphasis on physical?"

Seeing no reason to lie, Caterpillar told him. "We believe that Scarlett has given Alice emotion tea. One of the dark teas."

"What?" Hatter's voice was unbelieving. "That would be… that would be mad. Everyone knows that stuff destroyed people."

"We have no idea what her motivation is, nor what the effect of our teas on an Oyster will even be. However, we must simply hope for the best under the present circumstances –"

This time it was Hatter who interrupted. "Under the present circumstances! She could be going mad in there and you're just sitting here, doing nothing!"

"No, Hatter. We will rescue Alice. Never forget how important she is to the Resistance. But we won't do anything until we're ready. It will only be a matter of days." Hatter turned around, a tortured expression on his face. Caterpillar stood up and walked around the table, placing a hand on his son's shoulder. Hatter flinch but didn't jerk away. "Our Alice is strong. I assure you she will make it through this and be more glorious than ever."

Hatter slowly looked at his father, emotions all in a tumble. He didn't know if he could trust this man, particularly not with Alice's life. Unfortunately, he didn't have a lot of choice at the moment. He would have to set aside his considerable differences with his father in order to save her however – he knew that much.

He left the room, but couldn't stop himself from telling his father one thing as he left.

"She's not your Alice."

Charlie found him not long after, brooding by a fire. The knight knew better than to ask him about the conversation with his father. The young man in front of him was compulsively performing hat tricks, just staring into the fire with a determined expression, his jaw set. As Charlie sat next to him, Hatter acknowledged him with a nod but otherwise remained silent.

After a few minutes, Charlie spoke. "Harbinger, I know you love the Lady Alice and that she loves you in return. I have to believe that you will both come through this alive and together. There is something of destiny between you two that no other person can destroy."

Hatter glanced at Charlie, tears trailing down his cheeks. "Charlie... these people barely helped last time. Alice was the one who saved us all. How am I supposed to trust them now with her?" He paused to swallow. "I… I don't know what I'll do if I lose her again. I'm not strong enough for that."

"You're strong enough for many things, Harbinger, but I do not believe you will need to consider losing her. Besides, you've got me on your side. Surely we can take care of the Resistance as well as rescue the lady."

Hatter chuckled. "You know what, Charlie? I just might believe you there." A satisfied grin spread across Charlie's face at Hatter's words. Studying the eccentric knight, Hatter felt somewhat better. Perhaps they really could do this after all.

In the palace, a man named Jack Heart woke up.

He gasped. He'd been able to break through to the surface a few other times in the past few months, but this time was different, he could tell. The other times he felt as if he'd just been surfacing for air before being plunged back under, but now it was as though he'd been dragged out from the water forcibly. This time was different. Perhaps he would be able to stay awake this time as well.

His memories of these past months were foggy at best, although he knew for a fact that this Scarlett person was dangerous and basically in control of his kingdom. Also, she was completely insane. She was slowly but surely turning Wonderland right back into the land of tyrants and fear that it had been for so long.

But there was something else, something that niggled at the back of his mind and demanded he remember. This was what had forced him awake, the thing he must fix immediately. Before he took his power back, before he got rid of Scarlett. Unfortunately at the moment he was drawing a complete blank. He couldn't remember much of anything after his secret wedding to Duchess…

Duchess.

The bottom of Jack's stomach fell as he remembered. Duchess was gone. She'd fled less than a week ago. As much as she clearly didn't trust what Jack had become, she had been unable to stop herself from saying goodbye to him before she left. She had told him, right before running, that her heart was breaking at leaving him.

Jack cursed as he remembered his only response. "Well, I certainly hope you are swift on your feet. The penalty for treason is death when we catch you, you know."

Not only was Duchess, his wife, gone, but Alice was now trapped at the palace. He could barely recall Scarlett telling him this earlier that day. Jack knew he had to help her somehow. All this was his fault. She should never have had to come back to Wonderland.

But for know he had to bide his time and pretend to still be under Scarlett's influence. If she found out he was himself again, she would kill him without thinking twice.

This chapter kind of jumps around a lot, but we needed to catch up with all our characters.

Just to clarify, Donia = Scarlett. Right now however she's really the only person that knows her true identity.

Reviews, suggestions, and any comments are welcome! Next chapter up soon.