I walked then walked again. At some point, I walked faster.
—Where am I going?
A part of me questioned myself internally.
—To the Queen of Hearts' abode!
Another part of me said.
My now agile body helped with my marathon. My first body had barely any stamina and my second was fatigued and obese. I don't think I could've walked this far with them. Thanks, Alice, for the body. I'll return it to you when I can.
—But where does the queen reside?
I've not the slightest idea.
—You know bits of the plot of Alice in Wonderland, don't you? Why not follow the plot? Instead, you go to the queen immediately. Why not the twins? The Cheshire cat? Or the Mad Hatter? Hah! Regret is coming your way.
The voice in my mind echoed as it spoke. A voice that was once mine. Meaning, the voice in my head was mine back when I was a child.
A dark hue entered my vision. Jerking my head towards it, it was gone
Ever since I had met that fire god, I had been seeing shadows of items and people in the corner of my eye. Once I try to get a good look at them, they disappear.
I haven't seen those shadows since I was thirteen. Am I ill? I know I'm not the only one who could see them though. Erika could, and she's well.
My hand cupped the rock of the weirdly color changing mountain as I grunted. A cold breeze made my hair dance. A small pebble fell as I pulled myself higher up the mountain, and I thought if I should go back. Looking down, I was hundreds of meters away from the ground.
Huh? But I've only been climbing for thirty minutes though.
One might question why I'm even climbing. Well, a few hours ago, just when I decided to go to the queen…
-
"A thousand peso bill?" I said, reluctant.
There was a blue bill underneath my loafers. Isn't Alice in Wonderland based in the states? Or was it England? I wondered.
What could a one thousand Philippine peso bill be doing here?
I decided to entertain whoever dropped the bill here. Because I was sure that it was dropped on purpose.
My hand attempted to grab the money, but it moved away! Oh. I get it now. There's a string tied to the bill and they expect me to stupidly chase the bill. How comical!
I had no time to spare and had no need for the money. I'll earn money when I get out of this place— or this world. I don't like being in a female body at all. Just to relieve myself had been a pain.
Walking away as I ignored the money, I thought about which character in the movie could've done this. The scummy rabbit? The cunning Cheshire cat? No… it's definitely the Mad Hatter. His eccentric personality fitted this situation. He could tell me where the queen lives!
Finally, I decided to chase the bill. I tried to reach and it retracted. Damn you, Hatter!
Gritting my teeth, I tried to calm myself before reaching for the bill again. Again and again and again until the bill jumped into the bush. I jumped after it.
—Thud!
"Oh? We have a visitor who came unnoticed." A sly voice of a man spoke. "How goes you?"
Raising my head from the grass, I saw a man dressed with funky colors. He had face paint all over his face like a clown's and he wore a hat. A hat…
"You…" I stood, "must be the Mad Hatter."
He whistled. "Yeah, I guess this body is called that."
…?
"What do you mean by that?" I demanded.
Could it be that I'm not the only one who had fallen in the hands of that god? What an interesting thought. I wonder how long he'd been hopping into different worlds. I've only started and I'm already feeling wrecked.
The rats in his arms are asleep. One awakened and ran to the Mad Hatter's shoulder.
The Mad Hatter only smiled at my question. He had a deviating aura.
"Answer me, Hatter." I hissed.
"Now, now, calm down, lady. Take a seat— no! Don't sit there! We have other visitors, you know? While you are welcome to join us, it doesn't hurt to announce your arrival."
I suspiciously sat on the seat opposite to him. I was at one end of the long table and he was on the other.
"Good girl." He said, clapping once. "Now, let us talk. May I ask your name?"
…
"Ant."
He smiled wider. "An interesting name! Ant in Wonderland! Hey, hey, Ant—"
Interrupting, "Answer me first." I verbalized my thoughts.
He seemed to be even more amused. A teacup flew towards him when he motioned with his finger to come.
"Love it!" He said with a snap of his fingers. "Ask me anything!" He poured tea in the cup. Then using his finger, the cup floated towards me.
I had an array of questions, of course. But I must stay calm and diligent, and not show weakness.
"Who are you? Tell me your real name, Hatter."
I knew he would be skeptical of me but I wanted to take the chance. Who knows? He might answer honestly.
The Mad Hatter looked at me like he was entertained, like I was just an actor in a drama for his entertainment. I despised that look.
"My name?"
-
January 23, 1988.
"Ant! You should not do that!" A mother with a thick accent scolded his son.
His son, who did not have that same accent, replied snarkily, ripping papers, "Eh? Why not? This auntie here is telling me that something is wrong with my mind!"
The psychiatrist sighed, writing something in her clipboard.
"I-I am sorry, doctor. My— My son, he— he will be alright?"
The wrinkles near her mouth move. "It's ADD. There's no cure to it but as long as medication is done religiously, his symptoms will be lessened." She said, matter-of-factly.
The mother's son continued to rip the pictures the psychiatrist asked him about.
"O-Oh, thanks so much. H-How much is medication?"
"Take a look," said the doctor, handing out a prescription.
-
"My love. Please listen. Our son needs medication. I don't have a job. Will you be paying?" The mother asked the man with marbled hair.
The father threw his newspaper in her face.
"I'm tired of being used by you! You're lying about this act, aren't you? I'm out! Out of money because you keep spending!" He stretched her hair, causing a scream from her.
The mother choked a cry, the prescription crumpled in her hands.
In the kitchen, a boy spoke to me. He had blonde and messy hair. His eyes were bluish gray. He had such flattering features that I could still remember him after years. I even paid a lot of [] just to be able to talk to him at this moment.
"You there."
—Huh?
His voice was a little unclear. We were in two different realms after all.
"Tell me your name."
I wonder what he can see me as, I mused.
—Anton.
He replied with a name I couldn't ever forget.