Alice Games

by Michelle R. Reid

  “No, not really,” I muttered, trying to hammer the idea into my mind. “There isn’t a logical reason to be. I mean, people go up and down every day. It’s simply a change in elevation. I, ah, just wasn’t expecting a sudden onset of it. Why did the wall, you know, rise?”

  Ace nodded, amusement. “You broke the rules.” He waited until I looked back at him. “It’s not allowed for the Alice to go over the maze. Oz was trying to prevent that.”

  My eyes widened. “So it wants to kill me?” I was shocked. I thought this place was supposed to like the Alice.

  “Not kill.” Ace shrugged. “Actually, it seems to like you. I don’t think it’s ever talked to another Alice like this before. But Oz does punish those who break its laws.” There was bitterness in his voice as his ears flattened back against his hair. He looked out over the ruins.

  What rules did he break? I wanted to ask, but I couldn’t. Was it things that White Wizard made him do, or ones he chose to do himself?

  I stared up at him for a moment, then realized how close our faces and bodies were. “Ah.” I stepped back. I was sure I imagined his hand flexing briefly in resistance against my back before he let go.

  Ace came out of his thoughts. That playful smile spread over his face. “Is there a problem?”

  Curse me, what was up with this constant heat on my face? “No, ah, there isn’t.” Except I really shouldn’t be like that with him. You’d think I was smarter than this. I cleared my throat and looked around, not down, trying to find something to distract myself. From this height, it was easy to do.

  At the same time Oz was punishing me for going over the walls, it was rewarding me too. The constant cloud coverage and perpetual mist that surrounded the maze lifted enough that I could see the whole layout of Oz around me. The three distant castles gleamed in the sun like jewels, putting buildings like the Neuschwanstein to shame. They were all structurally similar, but the air surrounding the buildings was very different.

  Behind me, the Ruby Castle gleamed like a fire, warm and inviting. Its glistening pale red walls and dark ruby roofs atop the turrets vibrated with life. The lush greenery around it thrived.

  In front of me was the Emerald Castle. It was just as beautiful, but there was a feeling of mystery and separation about it. It wasn’t just because the castle was literally resting on clouds, there was something off about it. As if, even though it was attached with a drawbridge, it wasn’t fully connected to the land. While its pale green walls and deep emerald roofs gleamed, the light seemed to come from the inside, instead of the sun above it.

  The last castle on my left was no less beautiful. It was the closest, looming overhead and jutting out of the ground like a frosted diamond, gleaming in the sun with assertiveness. It might be my preferred color scheme for a castle, but as with its owner, there was a feeling of coldness. The vegetation around the structure was few and far between. What plants were present looked shriveled and hampered under snow. I couldn’t see them, but I knew there were monster roaming around the snow, perfectly blending in. The Diamond Castle only had a few, small windows.

  “It looks more like a prison than a castle,” I muttered, not realizing the words were verbal until I heard them in my ears.

  Ace followed my gaze. He nodded slowly. “That’s because it is. The Diamond Castle is where White Wizard is locked up during Red Queen’s rule.”

  “With the Cheshire Cat,” I muttered softly. With Ace.

  How was it possible the teasing man standing next me could be that scary tiger I met the first night I was here? He’d been so threatening, so vicious while fighting Lional and chasing me out of the Ruby Castle. Why was he so different now? Which one was he?

  Ace’s mouth thinned in distaste. “Yes. They are locked in there together—until the Alice Games begins.” Contempt weighed heavily on his words. His own tone must have startled him because he blinked and looked down at me with a forced carefree air. “Well, what would you like to do?”

  I stared at him a couple seconds longer before I frowned around at the endless walls. At least I was closer to the end than I thought. “I’m ready to get out of here.” I pointed ahead, to the other side of Ace. “That looks like the other opening, right?”

  It opened up to a shallow ring of forest. On the other side lay multicolored patches of farmland, surrounding small towns. Some distance beyond that was a forest that was slowly swallowed up by mist so thick, I couldn’t see anything under it. Peeking out of the mist was the Emerald Castle.

  “Shall we?” Since he was already in the front, Ace took the lead. He walked along the stone top with confidence.

  I looked down at the narrow bridge I had to walk on. Just looking down made my palms sweat and my heart race. One wrong step, and I was in for a serious injury that I was sure wouldn’t heal in the morning. Suddenly this didn’t seem like such a good idea.

  I swallowed and willed my heart to slow. I moved a couple of steps forward. My legs wobbled and my breath caught.

  Ace walked back to me. Without asking, he reached out and took my hand.

  The heat of his hand in mine seemed to travel up my arm and sit in my cheeks. It was embarrassing that I blushed like this every time I touched him, especially when there was no way to hide it. Even so, just holding his hand gave me a sense of balance that I didn’t have before.

  “So, Ali, tell me about yourself.”

  I breathed out a weak chuckle. His attempt to distract me was transparent—but still it was sweet. I drew a deep breath and moved one foot forward, clutching his hand. He raised his eyebrows, waiting. Oh, he was actually expecting an answer.

  “Well, I’m, ah, just about to graduate high school and start at Cornell. I was actually taking a tour of the campus when I,” I paused, trying to come up with a good way to put getting shoved down two flights of stairs, “came here.” I took another wobbling step forward, and Ace smiled, his eyes dancing.

  “What’s a Cornell?” he asked as he led me forward. He was careful to keep his tail tucked to the side so I wouldn’t trip on it.

  Holding his hand made things easier. It was hard to tell if it was because he improved my stability with the extra contact, or if his touch was that reassuring. I should let go, but a larger part of me didn’t want to. Following him, my steps became sturdier.

  “It’s a university,” I answered.

  “What’s that?”

  “A university?” I asked in surprise. “It’s a place of higher learning. People go there to learn more. You don’t have them here?”

  Ace’s head bobbed in thought. “There’s nothing like that here. Sounds like fun, actually. We do have a large library in Ruby Castle. Past Queens had people write down their skills and knowledge to be left in the library for those who could read.” His voice grew wistful and maybe a little sad.

  Right, he was the grandson of a scholar. “You don’t look like the kind of guy who sits there and reads in a library.” He looked like a Californian jock, ready to hang out on the beach and have fun with all the girls in bikinis. Definitely not the kind of guy who would hold my hand. A frown tugged at my mouth as pain stabbed in my chest.

  He flashed a smile back over his shoulder, one ear flopped to the side. “Surprise you? I actually spent a long time in that library, reading about Oz and other things. The library in Jewel Castle was bigger, but after it was destroyed, we were only able to replace half of it.” He faced forward as we skirted over a right turn. “It was a good place to hide when I wanted a break. There aren’t many people who visited it, and fewer who could climb high enough to bother me. There’s this thin, tall window at the top in the corner. It was the perfect place to read and look at Oz when I just wanted to relax.” His voice was thick with nostalgia.

  I smiled, just picturing it in my head. It sounded like a wonderful place. Briefly, I wondered if I was a person he would come down for. My eyes flared in surprise. No, I did not want to be special to him. He was the Cheshire Cat. Even if we lived in the same world, he
wouldn’t even see me in the crowd.

  My toe caught on a rock jutting up, and I pitched forward. Before I could even gasp, Ace had me in his arms, wrapping his fingers around my shoulders and using his body to catch mine. Shocked at how fast he reacted, I stood with my cheek pressed against his pounding heart, hands spread on his chest.

  He was so in tune with me, he knew I was tripping before my mind even registered it. That knowledge caused my heart to race as much as his closeness.

  My cheeks went up in flames and I pushed back, an embarrassed smile on my lips. “Sorry, I’m a klutz sometimes.”

  “Really?” Ace’s brows went up and his head cocked to the side. “I had the impression that you were overly observant and knowledgeable about your surroundings.”

  I looked to the side, blushing more. That was true, unless I was distracted by something—or someone—else.

  Ace took my hand and started along the wall top. “What do you study at the university?”

  “Botany. The study of plants.” I relaxed, concentrating on the subject. It was safer to think about than the large warm hand enfolding mine.

  Ace laughed. “Ah, I should have guessed.” We walked around a left turn. “You were fascinated with the water lilies.”

  I sighed. I’d hoped we wouldn’t talk about those flowers. “Yeah, they were interesting.” I paused. “Red Queen and Hareson seemed to be afraid of them, but they didn’t seem dangerous to me.”

  Ace shrugged. “It depends on who’s around.”

  So if Ace was around, they were safe? Interesting. “I want to study them more. From the way you talked, no one else from my world has studied them. Think of the discovery I would make with all the information I could bring back to my world. Of course, I’m not even sure Earth’s equipment would work on anything I bring back from here. Magic doesn’t really exist on Earth.” I paused, dreading what I was about to say. “Unfortunately, that can’t happen anyway. I’m sorry, but I lost the water lily you gave me. It was in the wagon when I entered this Domain. I don’t think I can get it back.”

  Ace glanced at me. “Hey, it’s okay. It’s just a flower.”

  “No, it wasn’t,” I mumbled.

  His ears folded back against his skull but he didn’t say anything. We walked in quiet for a minute. Ace was the first to break the silence. “Why are you so interested in plants?”

  Why did he have to ask that question? Did I really want to alienate him by telling him the honest truth? When I didn’t answer at first, he glanced over his shoulder, expecting. I bit my lips together.

  It wasn’t until he looked forward—not at me—that I finally answered. “Plants don’t like or hate you because of who you are. They’re plants. They don’t care if your IQ is twice what theirs is. Or that you don’t care about fads or fashion. They don’t whisper behind your back because they don’t understand you. I can go into a forest, be surrounded with hundreds of life forms, and be at peace.”

  I paused, a little shocked that I finally voiced the resentment I’d always buried. Usually I pretended not to care. Why should I bother with people who never tried to comprehend me? Despite how logical my mind was, my feelings weren’t.

  I looked to the side. “I’m sure you wouldn’t understand.”

  Ace gave a mirthless laugh. I hadn’t heard that tone from him before, so bitter and hard. It was chilling. “I understand all too well.” He was quiet for a minute, tail twitching. When he spoke again, his voice was carefully light. “Did you have that lonely of a childhood?”

  I shook my head, biting my lips. “No, not really. I have an older and a younger brother. I do have friends, but high school was tough. That’s the learning place you finish before university. Everyone there was so hot blooded with hormones, it was stupid.” My free hand jumped up and pulled at my hair. “I’m not very good with emotional people. I’d rather fix their problem and send them on their way than get tangled in it.” I looked around the ruined castle. A lot of good that philosophy was doing me right now.

  My eyes dropped to the ground, and I sucked in a breath.

  He glanced back to ensure I was okay, then motioned with his chin. We came to a stop.

  Grasping his steel-like arm to anchor myself, I leaned around and saw what he gestured to. “Ah.” I sighed, staring at the eight foot gap between the walls. “It’s a dead end.” We’d been getting close to the end, but now we’d have to backtrack a long way. How long would this place torture me?

  “Here we go.” That was the only warning Ace gave me before he scooped me up in his arms.

  My heart dropped, and an extremely humiliating and girlish squeak escaped. We were twenty feet in the air!

  “What are you doing?” I gasped and pushed against his chest, wiggling.

  He grimaced and wobbled on the wall.

  I froze, heart in my throat and ready to spew.

  He set me down and held onto my forearms to help keep me balanced. “I’m taking you to the other side. That’s where you want to go, right?”

  I stared up at him, mouth parted. “How do you expect to do that?” I wildly motioned to the gap. “It’s eight feet across. It’s not like we can just jump.”

  He smiled and shrugged. “That’s exactly what I’m going to do.”

  I gaped at him. Jump across? He could do that, while carrying someone? I’ve already started to get the sense that he’s not a normal human, but to be able to do that—I couldn’t wrap my mind around it.

  Ace was the Cheshire Cat. What if this was just a trick, and he dropped me on purpose? After all, wasn’t he supposed to do what the White Wizard aid? And the White Wizard didn’t want me to get to the Emerald Castle. How could I trust him, and how crazy had I been to trust him this far?

  I must have been quiet for too long because Ace gave a little laugh and shook his head. “It’s really not that hard. Trust me.”

  I blinked out of my thoughts and stared up into his rich, laughing, brown eyes. “Can I? Can I trust you?”

  His eyes widened in shock when I turned his flippant words serious. His smile slid away, leaving his face blank. Then he nodded, his eyes piercing into mine. “Yes. You can.”

  I wanted to. Despite all the logic that said that I shouldn’t, there was a part of me that wanted to trust him more than anything. Almost more than getting home. It was a part I normally didn’t listen to, since it tended to get me in trouble. But for once, I didn’t fight it.

  I nodded slowly. “Okay.”

  His smile was instant and brighter than the sun. There was no tease twinkling in his eyes, just pure joy. It was breathtaking. But he only let me see it for a moment before he coughed and looked to the side. He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing, as he reigned in his emotions. “Here we go.” He warned and scooped me up again.

  Gasping anew, I wrapped my arms around his neck for dear life as I prepared to die.

  We didn’t fall. Holding me, he leapt across the gap and landed on the next wall as lithely as the cat he was. Maybe it was because I hadn’t let go yet, but he didn’t try to set me down.

  “Are you sure you’re not afraid of heights?” he asked in mild amusement, the skin of his throat moving against my forehead.

  My fingers should have dug holes in his shirt by how tightly my shivering hands were clenched. “Of course not.” My voice was barely audible, face pressed into his shoulder. I took a deep breath and forced my body to relax. My hands let go of his shirt and pressed against his chest. “But let’s not do that again.”

  He set me back on my feet, taking hold of my hand again. His smile was quick and amused. “I’m afraid we’ll have to unless you want to do a lot of backtracking.”

  I followed his gaze. There was at least one more gap before the end. Since he had the strength and athleticism, it would be easiest if he got me down too. My nostrils flared as I sucked in a breath and let it out. “Yes, we will.”

  His brow rose, ears coming forward with interest. “Do you always do things you hate?” He cho
se a direction and started to tow me across the wall.

  I laughed. “I’ve done homework fourteen out of the eighteen years I’ve been alive. I might be good at studying, but it doesn’t mean I enjoy math or English. I got A’s in them, but still.” I paused, realizing he might not understand all of what I just said. “Ah, an A is the highest score you can get in school.” My hand tugged at my hair.

  His head cocked to the side. “If you don’t like it, why do you do it?”

  “For a scholarship—ah, a free pass— to my university.” We took a turn and continued to walk. “Universities are expensive.”

  “Your parents are poor or unwilling to help?” he asked. His ear cocked back to listen.

  “Neither. They’re both teachers and doing all right. If I asked, they would have been willing to help, but I wanted to do it on my own.”

  “You are an odd Alice.” His head shook and tossed a smile back at me. “Do you ever ask for help?”

  I jolted and glanced away. Color hit my cheeks as my brows furrowed. It wasn’t a new realization. After all, my independence was the main conflict in the few relationships I’d tried. “If it’s my problem, I’m going to fix it.” I looked back at him. “Haven’t you ever done something you hated for a cause?” I asked, trying to change the subject back to him. Instantly I regretting asking the question. Because I already knew his answer.

  Instead of laughing and brushing it off like a carefree cat, he broke my gaze and looked around the maze. “We should go. Red Queen will be waiting for you.”

  I bit my lips. What had he done that he hated so much? Was it things that White Wizard made him do? I’d seen and heard so many things in this maze that changed my initial image of him.

  After our first meeting, he seemed like a laid-back guy who was too carefree to have loyalties. Now that wasn’t the picture. Honestly, wasn’t it the girl who was supposed to be complicated? This man-cat was the most interesting person I’d ever met. I was dying to study Ace and find out everything I could.

  It made me think of something I’ve been wondering for a while. “Ace, why did you stop being a knight?”