Villainess Of Hearts

It was in the darkness that the certain Hat Maker noticed that he wasn't alone in the dungeon as he thought he was. Instead, Nicholas Hatter stared at the glowing eyes outside the cell and he blinked, "...is that you, Chesire?" He really wished that he had more lights, but the place he was in was dark, dusty and… dirty?

But it didn't stop him from seeing the uninvited observer that arrived. Their eyes were glowing in such a way that their other features became much more obvious. "Hmm… do I know you?" It was the young man who prowled closer towards his cell. The man nuzzled his face with a hand, "I haven't met a man like you in my entire life." The cat person declared it with such a huge grin as their cat ears twitched above their head. 

It made the Hatter raise a brow, but then he shook his head, "You haven't come here to release me from the cell, are you?"

Chesire tilted his head. "Why should I? I don't dabble in politics."

Nicholas Hatter shouldn't have expected too much from them. "Fair enough. I just got myself in here by mistake and I really should think about escaping." He glanced at the solid walls and ran his hand through the bricks and wondered aloud. "Would that Knight's words work here?" The Hatter tried opening a pathway to the secret tunnel of the Castle…

To no avail.

It made him frown but he sighed, "I guess it makes sense that the entrance and exit counterspell is different." He could only consider that the secret pathway as something activated by some kind of magic that had been available in ages past, at least before magic dwindled terribly. Once again, another failsafe by the previous Rulers.

Not that it helped the previous ones.

"What are you blabbering there? It must suck to be trapped there." The Chesire reappeared inside the cell and floated around, they were flat on their belly and pointed all around the four corners of the cell. "Yes, the space here is too small and it's somewhat filthy… I wonder if there are rats here?"

Nicholas Hatter snorted and leaned his head against the wall, "You're the filthy one, cat."

"I happen to keep myself quite clean. Look, you're the one sitting on the floor." Chesire harrumphed as they floated above the available bed. The bed was actually just a wooden board plank for sitting. 

Needless to say, the place that he was stuck in was a place where he needed to leave as soon as possible.

. 

.

.

Although escaping the guards to prevent capture was one thing and escaping out of the dungeon was another thing. And so Nicholas Hatter had stayed in till the morning, and the nasty cat had left him after showing off their dinner last night—somehow they had gotten fish once again and weren't keen on sharing.

His last thoughts before his consciousness faded away was wishing he had tea with his friends.

When Nicholas Hatter awoken after what felt like minutes—he wiped his grimy face and wished that the cell even actually had a place for him to wash and tidy himself up. "I guess I am going filthy and it's only been one day...oh, there you are." The man snatched his hat off from the stone floor and dusted it. He placed it back atop his head and considered his situation once more.

No ideas crossed through his mind.

For the first time in quite awhile, the man drew upon a blank. Zip. Nadda. Zilch. Utterly nothing. They were trapped here and were going to die inhaling all the dust bunnies, wasn't he? At least, if he didn't die of starvation first. 

And to even consider that the Queen would notice his presence and come rushing over was something out of a daydream. "I would need to get the job done by myself, I can't rely on anyone but myself." He stretched his limbs and glanced around—there were no windows, and he was completely by himself… but since he slept and woke up, it meant that it was probably morning. He had a good bodyclock.

Especially when one added to the fact that the cell was not enshrouded in complete darkness as before, it meant that the entrance where he came from had light spilling from it. Nicholas Hatter rubbed his chin, pondering how flexible he was—and then heard a creaking of the heavy iron doors.

"Oh, a soldier is coming." Hatter hoped they had a key, or even a sword… he'd probably work with it to escape from the cell at the moment they came close. Yes, that was the plan. He didn't even need to think too hard, all he needed was the execution.

Until he heard familiar voices.

"Hurry up ye twat! We don't have all day!"

"Mallory, we should be a little nicer to the Soldier, shouldn't we?"

"I'm being decent ye old lout, at least I'll be more nice to them than when I finally see that daft Hatter's face."

Nicholas Hatter turned back to each portion of the walls and started knocking. "Secret door? Secret door? I'd appreciate it if you opened up now—"After a couple of minutes, the footsteps came to a close and he heard the voices of his tea friends upclose. 

"What are ye standing around for Nicholas? You're free now. I don't get how ye were stupid enough to come here uninvited in the first place chap." Standing in all of her glory was Mallory, Harold and also a familiar-looking soldier.

Nicholas sent a look at the Soldier and managed a laugh, "Ah, I remember, you're Ace aren't you? Mind keeping this cell locked until she goes away? What do you say, we're good friends now aren't we?"

Ace had been about to open the cell door.

"Stop messing around and get out of yer cell, it's time to get back to yer home—" Mallory rubbed her face. "Honestly, all the things I do for ye and Harold, it's driving me nuts."

It made the Hatter smile a little, "It's because you love us though."

"Shut yer yapping and get out—had to go toe in toe with the Queen's Knight with a butterknife to get yer ass out." A snort escaped Mallory's lips, but she didn't disagree with what he said. And he could already see the lovestruck look on Harold's face.

"Wait. What?!" A clang of the keys sounded. 

The Soldier stared at Mallory with widened eyes and his mouth had dropped ajar. Perhaps they imagined Mallory as some battle maiden. But as for Nicholas, he could actually imagine the scene. But that meant that the Queen of Hearts knew he had been imprisoned didn't she? Nicholas gulped and wiped his hands on his pants. What would she think?

Would she consider him as some fool?

Even perhaps telling her that he was worried about her safety would make the woman laugh—she was surrounded by Soldiers and her Knight was incredible. But that didn't stop the fact that an assassin had managed to come into her room didn't it?

The thought of it made his stomach churn.

The Hatter actually didn't need to think too hard because as soon as he left the dungeon, he quickly came across the Queen herself. And she was only wearing a nightgown. He had always known that the Queen of Hearts was beautiful—even when she was mad possibly, but this was a sight supposed to be reserved for a loved one. Nicholas stared for a moment, until he said, "Y-Your Majesty!" The Hatter made his way to her and tipped his hat, "Thank you for saving me."

He did his best not to stare too long or too hard.

And it was helpful that her Knight was giving him looks that promised a 'long brutal death' if he kept looking at her. Not a swift death at all, but Nicholas steered away from the man's gaze and looked at the Queen of Hearts. It was still rude not to look at the person you were conversing with.

Almost like before, there was a smile on her face but she looked disturbed. There was a wrinkle in her brow that wasn't eased by her smile. "It's not an issue, I am actually quite apologetic on behalf of the King about the condition you've been placed in." She looked at him from top to bottom, and yet she still looked distracted. "Could I offer you and your friends breakfast and a warm hot bath for you?"

Her words were enough to make his face warm up.

Nicholas thought he looked appropriate enough, but of course a Queen like her would think otherwise. But should he really be taking advantage of her hospitality? "It's fine, Your Majesty. I think I can return—"

"Nonsense! You can do it here, so there's no need to go any further." She pursed her lips. Her ruby eyes were looking at him and only at him. Her brows were knitted together as she continued, "I want to make it up to you, so I do insist that you take care of your needs here, Nicholas."

She called him by name.

And it would be a lie to not admit to himself that he felt honoured and pleased to be called by such. Nicholas could have choked in this moment, once again it was a reversal of roles—the Queen was insisting him to stay and not the other way around. He glanced behind him to check what his friends thought of her offer.

"Well, if the Queen of Hearts is showing hospitality—who are we to deny her, Nicholas?" Mallory gave him a pointed look.. The message she was giving him was a clear one and so the Hatter would turn back to the Queen of Hearts and accept it.