but as I told you... I didn't chase the white rabbit!

[heartgatherer]

Who: The Alices and Clock
What: Open the first door and see what you find. Hopefully it's a key... maybe it's something more.
Where: World One - The Country of Clover
Warnings: General violence and disregard for life.

 '▒▒▒▒▒, you fool... it was all just a dream'...

If she could have thought that to herself, then she might have believed it. Here were the high vaulted ceilings of Clover Tower that she'd grown so used to since the shift to the Country of Clover. And yet her name was still lost to her. She could not think it... could not say it... It was as though someone had stolen it entirely, as odd of a thing as that sounded. That was all she needed to know to prove she wasn't dreaming. Then that meant it was as the rabbit and cat said-- in order to retrieve the rabbit's keys, they needed to enter the doors and the door took them straight into peoples' hearts.

This one no doubt was supposed to be her own. How else could this place be replicated so accurately? None of the others should know a thing about Wonderland. After all... this was her dream. Her messed-up, embarrassing, dangerous... oh no.

Outside the window the forest, the castle and the Hatter Mansion were all as they should be. But what had happened to the others? If they had been split up, there was no telling what manner of characters they might have met. While they should be safe as Outsiders, Clover has never seen any other Outsiders. Like this, there's no way to be sure they're safe.

Whatever's happened - this is no time to be sleeping. She needs to verify what's going on in this world and the whereabouts of the people that entered with her. If this was a true and accurate reflection of the world that she knew, then she needed to warn them of a great many things.

Down the tower stairs she goes... to investigate the fate of herself and those who had gone with her.

Comments

THE TOP OF CLOVER TOWER - LOCKED DOOR

[worldkeys]

[ If and when they deem to explore it, the top of Clover Tower is now home to a large golden door with an inlay of many slots with strange shapes inside it. The bottom crack is glowing faintly.

A small slip of paper is attached to the door that reads interestingly in handwriting Clock might recognize as 'vaguely similar to someone she knows' (perhaps a female of some sort?).

It can be further looked at or left alone. Either way, it is clearly locked.

If inspected, the paper reads as follows:

'I am part of all of you, inside all of your domains, yet I am excepted by one at the same time. You break me, but I continue on.' ]

Re: THE TOP OF CLOVER TOWER - LOCKED DOOR

[notsogreedy]

Ankh reads the paper, looks from it to the rest of the door, then back to the paper. It didn't take him more than one look at it to come up with an answer (and he wants to roll his eyes at it because he's already heard enough talk about people's hearts here), but...

"... It's obvious, but what are we supposed to do with it?"

[mearry]

[ C-ta stands in front of the door, foot tapping impatiently as he thinks of something to answer. These kinds of riddles are annoying, it's irritating that this is necessary to finding the key.

You break me, but I continue on. What could it be? ]

...Time?

[zinit]

["All of you, excepted by one." Six; seven minus one, presumably the one whose heart this is. (For that matter, whose heart is this? It's... Strange.) Qilby extends a finger to trace the lines of one of the slots; they're all different shapes, ]

[And there is one thing he knows he's gained, and he suspects the others have as well (the others and their insignificant lives, how sad, really)...]

See, normally I'd say 'identity' or 'a soul,' but none of those could fit into a slot. So for something physical, aah...

[Well, of course, though he hasn't caught on that they're clocks yet:] Whatever's ticking inside our chests, isn't it? That's something that's 'inside all of our domains,' right now. [Are they going to have to perform surgery to get them out?]

[Gross, bloody, but he's done surgery before. If he has to (and if he has to without regard for lives), he'll do it, gladly.]

[frozentear]

[Is that a riddle? What does that even mean...

...hmm. Part of all of them, can be broken... and they're all going in each others' hearts, so that's probably it.

He traces the inlays with the fingers of one hand, going from one to another as he inspects them. What are they for?]

Somewhere in a tree...

[stolenface]

It's probably not who anyone wants to run into. The face is familiar, but the clothes aren't. Except, to maybe, Clock. But his ears--black as midnight, to contrast to his blond hair--are out in the open, and he seems to be quite content to laze about with his too-wide, sharp-toothed grin. He seems all too pleased with himself, tail twitching with contentment. It's probably weird seeing his hands, confirming that the "paws" were just gloves with claws and not much else.

Do you dare approach the feline?

[heartgatherer]

Hurrying down the path, Clock stops when a familiar pattern of pink a black flit across the corner of her vision. It's her first reaction to be relieved, ready to greet the cat gladly- however mischievous he is. But "Bo--" is barely out of her mouth before she realizes that that's not the cat who's here now, although she wasn't wrong about the clothes.

She considers walking right past... even takes a few more steps before she stops, talking with her back to him. "...no one likes a stalker." Insults aside... "Have you come to watch us?"

[bakegarasu]

Well. There's someone who doesn't mind approaching the cat. He looks up at the feline, the most tiny of quirks of his lips confirming that yes, he approves of this cat.

"Did you get stuck?"

[dolosa]

You seem to be fully entertained.

[ Even if most people don't want to run into him, when it comes to Rei Hazama -- well. She finds herself rather amused, swinging her scepter about. ]

[bakegarasu]

Tick, tock. Tick, tock. There's a feeling that reaches deep inside of him, compels him - and he has to answer. He has his sword, or a sword, and that's all he needs. He heads out, intent on carrying out his mission.

'Kill', is it? Well. He's only too happy to comply. It's what he's made for, what he's supposed to do. There's nothing to say that he can't, that he shouldn't, so he won't.

The current residents of the Country of Clover should beware the Knave of Hearts... because he has no reason to stop.

[frozentear]

The realization of what the keys to the door are still playing in his head, Sebastian wandered away from the tower. He went a different direction, into what looked like a fairly well-kept garden. The scent of the flowers was strong and unappealing, and he found himself getting tired of the scenery quickly.

He ceased paying much attention to his surroundings, trying to find a way through the gardens. While on his way through he began to approach Otoha without realizing it, though there were still some bushes nearly as tall as he was in between.

[heartgatherer]

One person has no sense of fear. That would be Clock-- the one running around trying to meet with everyone despite the Country of Clover's obvious dangers.

Although the changes made to the people who arrived with her give her pause, as she remembers those who filled the roles before them, what ultimately surfaces is relief. They're alive. It seems she cares about that... always has.

"Oh! You're--"

Names, she... she doesn't even know them. Which probably seems funny considering the concern she's shown but-- that too is just how Clock has always been.

[zinit]

Ah, he's the Mad Hatter. Something in him knows this. --Part of him is insulted, both at the insult to his sanity and the one to his now-missing hat, but it's insignificant. What is significant is figuring out where that key is, and how to get his hands on it before anyone else.

Well, and shoving his headwings, along with his new animal appendages, haphazardly under this stupid new hat. Goddess, it feels unnatural, but it's better than walking around with your head hanging out.

(This ticking is going to drive him mad, if he wasn't already.)

He doesn't want to kill the young girl; that's alright enough. There's no need to snuff out the person whose heart it is, when she is likely the key to unlocking its secrets. Anyone else? They're not important, or certainly not as important as the objective.

To that end, you'll probably find him either examining the local flora, satiating his natural curiosity... Or practicing how to use this ridiculous gun one-handed, just so he can make sure he's prepared.

[bakegarasu]

There's someone else nearby, someone stalking him silently. He's got his sword drawn, but he's not attacking - not yet, at least. Carefully... carefully... this Hatter needs to die, but no need to do it until the time is right.

[dolosa]

[ Well, then. Her heart's a clock now and she can't say she's surprised. Her heart is empty, anyway, so you might as well stick a clock in it, to be honest. It doesn't change much except for the annoying ticking that makes her ears ring every now and again, but she pays it no mind.

It isn't really all that important.

This urge to kill is unnerving, however. . . but, whatever. He won't see it. And it's not like the deaths are 'real' in a sense. ]

Forgive me, Hajime.

[ Of course, she is planning on not killing with her own two hands - she has people for that, as a queen - but she won't be stopping the killings anytime soon. ]

Is this okay?

[notsogreedy]

[He has been more or less avoiding people--he has a similar plan, waiting for everyone else to kill each other, and he can feel the murderous desires at a distance so it's fairly easy to avoid them--but this one seems as if she hasn't fully embraced the idea.

He's in a tree nearby, having found it to be a good vantage point, and obscured enough that he's difficult to notice up there, provided he's not drawing attention to himself. He only overhears the words by chance.]

Hajime. Who's that?

[He may as well learn something before everyone inevitably ends up dead.]

(ooc: Permission info for his desire sense would be much appreciated!)

[mearry]

[ Urge to kill? Check. It basically radiates through C-ta's veins and, strangely enough, it feels familiar to him. Although he cannot place where this familiarity comes from, he definitely notices it, beneath the ticking of his new heart.

It's unsettling. He hates it. But he wants to go home, no? The cat said that he had something stolen from him-- and he has to find what that something is. No matter the cost.

A hand grips on the axe, as he rests against the trunk of a tree. Relax, C-ta. Relax. ]

Hm? Why are you apologizing? [ Might as well feign a relaxed tone of voice, green eyes hovering over the stranger's form. ]

[zinit]

[Qilby has his own attachments, sure, but he can't help the amusement that rises in him hearing someone else's. Ah, mortals: their fleeting connections; their simple, yet strangely complicated loves. He'd have found it interesting, were this a different time and place.]

[Still, he approaches with the same gentle, ??wise?? smile he always wears. (It's an easy act to slip into, though he doesn't remember a time when he was... Shit, that's concerning, but less concerning than the ticking in his chest. It will hit him like a train later.) Gently, he starts:]

Someone from home? [He seems almost wistful when he says:] It's easy to miss special people in a place like this, isn't it.

[heartgatherer]

[By now Alice has run all over the Country of Clover looking for her companions. What she's found thus far has been unnerving, to say the least. It seems as though they've all been fit into the roles of people she knew-- when she sees the other girl, she's afraid the same has happened to her as well.

But there's only one role-holder she could be, so that makes things a little more simple.]

Excuse me, you're--

[Names... why didn't she get anyone's names...?!?]

Are you alright? I mean-- you weren't hurt, were you?

[She can't imagine what coming to this world was like for others. She just hopes she can help get them all out safely before it's too late.]

[frozentear]

[Sebastian could take the ears and tail. He wasn't fond of the hat, and the ticking in his chest was increasingly irritating. But worst of all, these clothes were just too colorful. Sigh.

The forest was large, but for some reason he had a good sense of where he was. Wandering through the doors brought him to a seemingly isolated area, and he pulled out the gun.

For some reason, it didn't seem repulsive like it usually might have as a reminder of the war. Weapons were needed to get deep in the mines, but usually adventurers used swords or clubs. He didn't really have experience with either, and had never gotten all that far... but right now he felt like he might be able to fight his way through anyway.

He fired it at a tree once, twice, and the recoil was... satisfying. He wanted to fire it again and again.]

[stolenface]

[ Some time after Sebastian's latest revival, he'll find he isn't alone. A breath on one of his mousy ears, and then a bit of a nibble before a snicker and the breath is gone. If he turns, the Cat isn't too far away. ]

Hey, Alice.

[notsogreedy]

The desire for violence is a prevalent one around here. Ankh isn't surprised. He's seen that plenty of times before: humans who repress their desires and then get overtaken by them. In his experience, most people will easily give in to hurting and killing each other given the right incentive.

For Ankh, however, the effect seems to be a little backward. He lives on his desires to begin with, so what is there to repress? If anything, he might seem more peaceful than usual, lacking all his usual reasons for being prickly and reactive. He's probably going to die before the door can open, one way or the other, so why should he care, really? So is everyone else--and he isn't averse to being the person who takes their clocks from them, but for now he's just as content to let them all kill each other without getting involved.

So while some people actively hunt each other down, Ankh has taken to sitting in trees, keeping an eye on the situation while staying relatively hidden. He can sense those murderous desires, and he'll keep a distance from the stronger ones. For those who are less inclined to attack indiscriminately, he might let them approach. He might even strike up a conversation. He doesn't seem to have the same interest in violence that some of the others do, so maybe he's safe to be around.

Or maybe that's just a false sense of security, because in the end, that door needs to open, and that's as good a reason for killing as any.

[heartgatherer]

In a sea of murderous desires - some evident, others hidden - there is one girl who bears neither. In fact, the girl running through the forest seems intent on something quite different. Very simply put, she seems to be looking for something, or in this case someone. But if she doesn't intend to kill... then what? What is it that Clock desires? That's very simple. She wants to put a stop to the fighting before someone gets hurt-- or worse.

But rather than the faces she's familiar with seeing in this setting, she's looking for new ones, still fresh in her memory. It's a rather large task, since they seem to have been split up. But thankfully she knows this world well enough that finding them may not be quite as impossible a task as it seems. The forest was closest to Clover Tower, and the first place she decided to check.

Still... she's just a normal girl. Clock probably won't find Ankh unless he decides he wants to be found. But one thing is for certain-- she has no intention of giving up easily.

CLOVER TOWER (for those who have died)

[worldkeys]

[ Those who die will find themselves reawakening inside Clover Tower, the Neutral zone of the areas, on the ground floor, their body simply lying on the floor as though they had fallen asleep there. ]

[frozentear]

[Sebastian wakes up, and in his first moment of awareness he expects to be in pain. But there's... nothing. He feels fine. Did he dream that he died?

No, the clock in his chest is still ticking. And something is... weird. He moves his head to the side, trying to get a good view out of the corner of his eye. His hair is... blonde? And there's a note next to him.

...What does it mean that the frog is bad anyway? What frog?]

[mearry]

[ Get the clocks, right? Fine. Fine! No big deal at all. The clock ticks away in his chest, louder and louder as he makes distance from the tower.

C-ta didn't know how to feel, much less what to do. His instincts wanted something, anything to release himself from the strange emptiness in his heart. His lonesome heart wished for violence and blood to cover the land-- and he wanted to be the one to cause it.

The thought of it alone is enough to bring a small smile on C-ta's lips, hand tightening around the hilt of the axe. Rip a heart out? Easy. If it brings him one step closer to what he's missing, he'll do anything. ]

This place just gets stranger and stranger, huh? [ Causal conversation, in order to rope the stranger in. After all, a victim is necessary for this, no? ]

[zinit]

[An axe; what a weapon. Qilby finds himself wishing he had his other arm (or the Eliacube, so he could approximate one), just so he could wield his own axe - or any sort of polearm, really, would do. There's something satisfying about swinging around a scythe during a fight, the swish it makes slicing through the air... Or slicing through the skin of someone he despises.]

[But he doesn't have his arm, and so he probably looks like the perfect target. That's how it goes.]

Indeed it does - but nobody's heart is really a kind place. [A little hum.] Myself, I'm wondering what those keys are made of, that they could open interdimensional 'doors' like these.

[frozentear]

[After two deaths, talking to the door twice, and being chased by the cat:

Sebastian can be found anywhere within Clock's heart, searching for Clock. He seems a lot more skittish than earlier, and will be harder to spot if there's any cover available. He will take aim at anyone who he notices approaching, and will only potentially lower his gun when he sees who it is. If you're not Otoha, Ankh, or Cheshire, he'll be unlikely to shoot unless threatened. If you're Clock, he'll definitely not shoot.]

Closed to Clock

[worldkeys]

[ When Clock manages to finally bring herself to obtain all of the clock hearts, she will bring them to the door. Hanna, the door, will be utterly silent. There is no coughing, no banging, nothing. Even if Clock tried to speak to her, there wouldn't be anything. Perched nearby is the Cheshire Cat, just grinning. He watches as she places the clocks in the slots, and only then does the door move on its own. It swings open, away from Clock, and a bright light spills forth.

All that's left to do is to step inside. ]

[heartgatherer]

[This has been the worst thing that she's ever needed to do. She had wavered uncertainly for so long-- because how could she not? The one thing she'd always been set on was the value of a life. It was the very lesson she preached in the real world this one reflected. She had never budged, not even in the face of such vastly different lifestyles.

But this time had been different. Like it or not, it was the only way that any of them would be able to move forward. And even though they were strangers they... they all protected her and fought over her in the same way she'd grown uncomfortably familiar with. Yet again she was forced to face that uncomfortable reality that deep down this was what she had wished for. And because she had wished it... because her heart still desired it... these innocent people had been involved as well.

That was why she had to be the one to get them out. She couldn't leave them here. Fighting back her own ill stomach she'd collected them all.

And when she was finished... when she brought them to the door... she didn't feel much like talking. Her eyes were downcast as unsteady fingers gently placed the precious clocks into place. When the door finally opened, she hesitated. There was no telling what could come next. No one said this would be over. So she braced herself for the worst... if there really was anything worse than this... and forced one foot to follow the other through the door.]