"I can see all the hats in this shop—and aren't they all yours?"
Nicholas did not know what to think. The Queen of Hearts stared back at him with a cool but determined expression, and her gaze never left his face. She was insistent that he rested now rather than later. There was a heavy feeling in his chest, even as he looked back at her. He really should appreciate it—but it felt like she was encroaching on too much.
Hats were his business, it wasn't hers.
Nicholas Hatter knew more about the trade than she ever would and he would make it to the deadline while keeping up with the quality of his hats. He could do this! Even if time was against him. Time was against him? It seemed like he had poured on more thought and depth to it than he should have. But it still held a ring of truth. Well, time wasn't working in his favor, that was for certain, but there was one thing that could not be forgotten.
He was talking about the Queen of Hearts.
