THE PRESENT: ALICE’S FUNERAL, THE RIVER THAMES, A WEEK LATER.
T he Queen had just finished her speech about Alice. The crowd and kids clapped, thinking she was talking about the stubborn seven-year-old Alice in the books. Every news reporter in the world wondered why the Queen wept.
“I will always miss Alice,” the Queen said, flashing cameras surrounding her. “She will always be a part of my past, present, and future.”
“Do you plan to build a statue of her?” a reporter asked.
The Queen thought it over for a moment. It seemed like a good idea, but hell no. She wouldn’t make the people of England think there was someone as important as her in this life. She suddenly realized she didn’t care about Alice. What was she doing?
Her face twitched, and she yelled out, “Off with their heads.”
The kids began to laugh. “Why is the Queen of England acting as if she were the Queen of Hearts?”
“She is mad,” a child began to cheer. His friends liked the idea. Why couldn’t they all be mad in this world? They began singing. “We’re all mad here.
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Fabiola stood next to the March Hare. He had woken up after Mr. Tick and Mrs. Tock got what they wanted.
“I can’t believe she is the Real Bad Alice,” the March Hare said. “I thought she was a sweet girl who believed she was Alice. I liked the idea a lot.”
“You’re naïve, Jittery. That’s all. I will need you to grow up into a man.” Fabiola said. “Now that Alice is dead, the Wonderland Wars have just begun. Us against Black Chess.”
The March’s ears stood erect again. Fighting Black Chess without Alice scared him. “I wonder who this Mr. Jay really is.”
“I think I have an idea,” Fabiola said. “I won’t sleep well until I know who he is. So far, he is the man behind Black Chess. We need to find him, or we will never win the war.”
“Things got a lot more complicated,” The March said. “What are we going to do, White Queen? We’re almost powerless.”
“It’s a shame you’d say that knowing who I am.”
The March Hare shrugged. Of course he knew. The past was shadowing the future again. Clashes were unavoidable. Masks had been taken off, and there was no going back. “I know.” He nodded, about to cry. “I just can’t believe this sweet girl was Alice.”