A Beating Heart - Chapter 5

"One of these days letters are gonna fall from the sky…
… telling us all to go free…
But until that day I'll find a way to let everybody know that you're coming back…
… you're coming back for me…"

Chapter 5

When the door snapped shut, the small group stood in the hallway in dumbfounded silence. They all found themselves wondering the same things. Had that really just happened? Was that really Alice? Why was the little girl calling her 'mummy'? Tarrant found that the last question had a greater affect on him, and he wondered with detached curiosity why the thought of Alice loving someone upset him so.

After a few moments of simply standing there, the trio snapped out of their stupor just in time to see the other two men attempting to sneak away. "Captain, I would like a word with you," Mirana said calmly, yet with a firmness that Hamish hadn't heard before.

The small man turned around slowly, his expression a mask of indifference. "Yes, your Majesty?" he said, reaching a hand out to halt the other man, who was still on the move. "If you don't mind my saying so, however, I think it would be best if we conversed outside, in a less… cramped environment?"

The Queen nodded stiffly. "Tarrant? Would you lead the way?" The Hatter simply moved forward, and, as he passed, both Hamish and the Queen saw that his eyes had turned a fiery orange. Whether they knew the meaning of the color change or not – or even whether they noticed it or not – both sailors seemed to realize that their means of escape had just been cut off. The taller one visibly gulped at the sight of Tarrant's flat-out menacing expression. They walked out onto the deck, but the open air did little to ease the nearly-visible tension surrounding the little party. Hamish noticed that most of the prisoners were gone, but before he could ask, he saw a white knight shuffling several of the last to an awaiting carriage. If captain Ghleo noticed that the Queen was practically confiscating his 'cargo', he said nothing.

As soon as the group stepped off the ramp and onto solid ground, they stopped. They merely stood there in silence a moment, each reacting differently to the – unusual , to say the least – situation. Tarrant's eyes kept changing from orange to blue to green, and then back again. Hamish periodically rubbed his temples as if he was getting a headache, and kept shooting confused glances toward the ship. Mirana looked strangely calm, but if one knew her well enough they would have seen how her raised hands twitched every so often in agitation. Ghleo looked as if he was trying to maintain an indifferent demeanor, but he was failing horribly. The mystery man looked nervous and somewhat frightened.

"What is your name, sir?" Mirana asked calmly, looking right in the tall man's eyes.

"Wh-What?" he stammered, jumping at the sudden noise on the now-quiet beach.

"Get a grip, sailor!" the captain snapped, cutting in. "Her majesty asked for your name." He glared at the other man, who seemed to shrink under his gaze.

"Captain," Mirana said sternly, "I don't believe I addressed you."

"A thousand pardons, your majesty," the little man replied less-than-sincerely.

"Now, your name, sir?" She turned back to the matter at hand.

"Byrant Ipshaw, f-first mate of-f the Ifreann," he answered nervously, glancing from side to side. Mirana raised an eyebrow at his behavior. Then again, anyone would be more than a tad shaken up after an attempt on their life.

"And why, exactly, did the woman attack you?"

Again, the man seemed to hesitate before answering, and, again, Captain Ghleo interrupted.

"That woman is a murderess, your majesty, and my poor sailor is in no such condition to discuss these matters at the moment. You saw yourself what the wretch can do, and she should be punished immediately. There is no telling the danger she could pose to others if kept as she is," he said, straightening his jacket and giving Byrant a pointed look.

Tarrant, who had been silent this entire time, finally erupted. "An' wha' would cause 'er tae be tha' way, eh? An' wha' wou' she be doin' on yer ship in the first place, ye slurvish—"

"Tarrant!" Mirana snapped, breaking the Hatter from his brief spell of madness. "Calm yourself. Hamish? Would you be so kind as to escort everyone back to my carriage? I'd like to have a word with the madwoman's keeper myself. Call a second carriage when you arrive back at Marmoreal, if you please." She gave a pointed look to Hamish, who immediately understood – being the sharp Englishman he was – that he was not only to keep Tarrant under control and keep an eye on the two men, but also to keep the full extent of Alice's identity a secret.

"Your majesty, there is no telling what that lunatic can do. Perhaps I should accompany you," Ghleo said, as Hamish and Tarrant exchanged a few private words.

"I feel confident that I shall be fine without your presence," the Queen replied.

"Please, your majesty, I insist."

"If it disturbs you that much, sir, then I shall have a guard accompany me." She waved over one of the white knights that had just stepped back through the trees, who immediately joined the little group at her command. Ghleo's eyes hardened, but he feigned relief at the statement.

"Thank you, your majesty; you know my only concern is your safety." With a nod towards Hamish, the Queen and the knight disappeared into the ship once more. Hamish, at the Queen's command, began leading the remaining three toward the awaiting royal carriage. All of the others, now containing the soon-to-be freed slaves, had long since departed.

"Nasterson?" the redhead called as they approached. The horse stood at attention, though he looked around in confusion when he saw that Mirana wasn't with them.

"Yes, sir?"

"Her majesty requests that we return to the castle without her."

"Sir?"

"We will send for another at once, when we arrive at the castle," at that, the talking horse seemed satisfied, and the four men entered the coach to depart.

Linebreak

Neither Hamish nor Tarrant saw either hide or hair of either Mirana, Alice, Andrea, or Mia for the rest of the day. They escorted Byrant and Ghleo to the castle and left them in the hands of several guards, unsure of what else to do. Eventually, Hamish returned to his chambers and Hatter to the windmill, as there was little more that they could do.

"Tarrant," Hamish had said as the Hatter had started to leave back down the road. The madman had turned around, his coloring slightly faded and his eyes blue with worry. "She'll be okay." He wasn't sure whether he was trying to help himself or Tarrant, though. Tarrant had nodded, attempted to smile reassuringly – but failed – and continued on his way.

The next morning, Mirana reappeared looking tired; worry lines creased her forehead as she paced through the throne room. She held up her hand for silence each time someone attempted to talk to her. Hamish could only watch as she remained lost in her thoughts. During late afternoon, she finally broke out of her semi-trance.

        The Queen called a guard over, told him something quietly, and sent him on his way. After he departed, she resumed her pacing. Soon after that, though, she looked up from the floor, and seemed to notice for the first time the redhead watching her. She blinked, and waved him over.

"Mirana?" he asked, seeing as they were the only ones present in the throne room at the moment.

She sighed and rubbed her dark eyes in a very un-Queen-like manner. "How much did you see yesterday on the ship?" she asked.

"You mean the incident with… Alice?" he asked nervously.

"Yes, you were there before I arrived, and I need to know exactly what happened."

Hamish was about to ask why, but decided against it after seeing the look on her face. Instead, he did as was requested, and relayed the events of the day before to the Queen. He told her every last detail he could remember, right down to the color of the dress Andrea was wearing, though Mirana's frown seemed to deepen ever so slightly when he mentioned it. "Tarrant would know more; he was there even before I," he finished. Mirana nodded, and soon the pair elapsed into another silence. She had fallen back into her lost-in-thought state, and Hamish only stood by her side awkwardly.

Suddenly – so suddenly, in fact, that the redhead nearly jumped in surprise at the sudden noise – she nodded and thanked him, before departing. Her voice held a note of finality that prevented him from following.

Linebreak

After several hours at the windmill and a failed tea party, Hatter insisted that they move the little group closer to the castle. After seeing the absolutely panicked expression on their friend's face when they tried to argue, both Mallymkun and Thackery agreed to move to the gardens outside Marmoreal. Neither had any idea what was going on with Tarrant, as he had told them nothing of the Alice Incident, and merely agreed out of concern for his wellbeing.

When they finally made it to Marmoreal with all the things needed for a proper tea party, however, things didn't seem to get any better with Tarrant. He attempted to put on a happy face for his companions, but it only came out forced and added to Mally's worry. Eventually, the trio gave up having a decent tea, and Thackery left for the kitchens of the castle. The Dormouse remained behind, however, and watched as Tarrant sighed and slumped in his chair.

"'Atter, wha's wron'?" she asked, her eyes full of concern as she looked up at him. She rested her tiny paws on his teacup, just as Tarrant averted his gaze, and instead focused on a twiddling with a scrap of cloth at his sleeve. "You can tell me anythin', you know?"

Tarrant paused, and was about to respond, when Mally's gaze flitted to something behind the Hatter, back to him, and then back again. Her eyes widened briefly, before she completely turned her body to face whatever was coming out of the castle. The Hatter watched her behavior curiously, before a thought struck his mind and he turned quickly. At first, he didn't see what had made Mally stop, but, as his gaze wandered about the gardens, he finally laid eyes on Andrea chasing Mia. No, it wasn't Alice, as he had hoped.

Apparently, both had come from the castle while Tarrant had been conversing with the Dormouse. As the two watched, the little redheaded girl took off sprinting away from Andrea, who rolled her eyes and followed. The brunette looked tired - but happy – and it made the Hatter almost smile to see the innocent joy with which Mia carried herself; as if she had no idea of everything that was happening around her.

"'o is tha'?" Mally asked, raising a tiny eyebrow as she watched the pair running.

"They are, ehm, guests at the castle, currently," Tarrant responded rather stiffly. His thoughts had taken an unwanted turn, as prompted by Mia's presence and terms of existence. Still, though, he could not figure out why it bothered him so.

"Oh…" she watched them for a few moments, appearing lost in thought. As they looked on, Andrea finally caught up to Mia and nearly tackled her. As they wrestled on the ground – the brunette apparently trying to get the young girl to do something she didn't want to – Mia gave a little high-pitched laugh of delight.

"Come now, ye silly thin', it's no' tha' bad!" Andrea laughed in her heavy accent, standing and slinging Mia over her shoulder.

"I won't! The water's so cold! I won't take a bath!" She complained back, though she was grinning the whole time.

"Yer such a mess, mae dear; I don' know 'ow yer mother's put up with ye all these years!" the brunette chuckled as Mia continued to struggle. The mention of the girl's mother nearly put Tarrant over the edge, and he found himself struggling to keep his emotions in check. Images of Alice afraid and broken on the floor of the cabin room kept invading his thoughts, and soon he was standing. The movement caught Andrea's eye, and she turned. Her eyes widened when she saw him, and she hastily bowed, still struggling to keep the little girl in check. "I'm so terribly sorreh, sir!" she exclaimed, "I didn't see ye there."

She quickly turned to go back inside, just as the Hatter advanced. "No, no, lass; I wish a word with ye," he called, barely winning the battle he held with his subconscious. Andrea slowly turned around, holding the now-calm Mia in her arms carefully.

"Yessir?" she asked, keeping her eyes down. Upon seeing the way she acted, he couldn't help but wonder what had happened aboard the ship to make Andrea – and all the others, for that matter – so obedient. He nearly shuddered at the thought.

Tarrant took a deep breath, calming himself, before he continued. "How is she?" he asked, knowing that both knew exactly who he was talking about.

Up until this point, Tarrant had forgotten that Mally was with him. That is, until she finally reached where he was and scampered up on his shoulder. "'Atter, wha's goin' on? 'O are you, and wha', and 'o are you talkin' abou'?" she asked, looking back and forth between the two. Andrea looked mildly surprised at something about the Dormouse, but she said nothing.

"Shush, Mally, dear." Hatter said, never taking his eyes off the brunette – who remained silent. "Do continue, madam," he prodded, smiling softly and nodding to show that it was okay.

"I've been instructed not tae say anythin'," she replied, not lifting her eyes. They stood there a moment, Hatter looking down at the Andrea clutching the little girl in front of him, when a thought suddenly popped into Tarrant's head. It was something that had been eating away at the back of his extremely frazzled mind for longer then he realized, and – when the time came – he didn't have time to stop and even remotely think about it when the words poured forth from his vocal chords.

"At least tell me where the lass's father is," he said quickly – desperately, almost – gesturing to Mia. This statement made Andrea almost look up, and Mia even stopped her struggling. Mallymkun, who had been watching the whole thing unfold from Hatter's shoulder, raised an eyebrow at him and began to look back and forth between the formerly enslaved woman and her best friend.

"I don't know," she replied, shaking her head slightly.

"Do ye at leas' know wha' he was like?" Tarrant asked in reply. He had no idea why all of this was bothering him – not in the least – but it hurt him deep inside. At the tone of his voice, the woman before him slowly raised her head, curiosity burning in her eyes.

"No, sir; I ne'er met 'im. Ne'er met this poor lass's mum, either." She gazed down at the redhead in her arms, and Mia turned her head slightly to peek back. Her statement, however, threw Tarrant for a loop.

"Pardon?"

"She was found, 'nd mae dear friend took 'er in. Started callin' 'er mum, she did, 'nd the girl didn't 'ave the 'eart tae tell 'er otherwise." She smiled softly - never lifting her gaze from the girl in her arms – and brushed a lock of orange hair from her face. Tarrant stood there, speechless and dumbfounded, staring at the pair. For some reason he couldn't figure out, this news made him feel unhealthily happy, and he resisted the urge to futterwacken right then and there. Mia turned her head to look back behind her 'aunt' once more.

If this girl was not Alice's real daughter… she had not given her heart to any man from the Otherworld. It was such an Alice thing to do, really – taking in a poor, helpless little child off the streets and giving her a home. So sweet and kind; so brave. "Hmm?" Apparently, Andrea had been saying something.

The brunette smiled and shook her head. Mally, however, had had enough. "Ahm sick an' tired of carryin' on li'e I know a wo'd ah what yer sayin'! 'Atter, tell mae what's goin' on this instant, or Ah'll–"

"Mummy!" The little mouse's rant was cut short by the happy exclamation from the little girl in Andrea's arms – who immediately started squirming - and everyone turned to see what was happening behind them. Hatter and Andrea, of course, already knew what was coming, but Tarrant didn't really know what to expect. Honestly, the last time he had seen the Champion, she was on a murdering rampage, and the time before that she had been a strong-willed, healthy woman. Andrea, in the process of turning, ended up setting down – nearly dropping, really – the little struggling girl. Mia, in return, took off sprinting toward the blonde woman standing at the doorway into the castle.

"Oh mae God…" Mally gasped, staring. "Is tha'…"

And it was.

Standing there, just now standing up with the little redhead in her arms and a smile on her face, was Alice, the Champion of Underland. She stood tall and strong, not a trace of the day before left in her stature. She grinned at her daughter, not noticing the others standing there. And for a second, Tarrant believed that things were going to be okay.