Villainess Of Hearts

This was… unacceptable! This was really—she fell into his arms and he carried her with ease. His face then completely shadowed over and he grasped her hand in his. "You've injured yourself too much, my apologies for not getting here as quickly as I could have been."

And then he worked his magic.

Her fingers were restored back to its fullness, and her nails were a healthy pink color.

But she couldn't exactly say she was happy.

Rosalyn Lockhart knew she was supposed to be grateful for him saving her life. But she recalled a conversation that happened to what seemed to be so long ago. "You don't happen to favour her as well, do you?" She said and glared at him crossly. "What did you say back then—I wouldn't have entertained you if I were."

The Time Man cleared his throat, "I'll bring you back first to my domain, Your Majesty. Alice will follow along, she has somehow stumbled upon here by accident."

It sounded like an excuse to her—and yet she hit her head against his chest and said nothing. This was nothing for her to get all fussy for and yet she was upset about this situation.

"Don't worry about me, Mister. Please take care of Miss—wait did you say, Your Majesty?"

"She's the Queen of the Hearts Kingdom." the Time Man said.

"Then that means—erm… apologies, Your Majesty."

She lifted her head and glared at Alice. "Weren't you about to say something? Will you not speak your mind in my presence?"

"A-ah… it was only something trivial that I've learned when I arrived in your kingdom, Your Majesty." she said. "You are related to the Lockhart House."

"Part of it—I am one of the sole remainders in the main Lockhart House. Whatever your sources may be, make sure that you hear correctly and not believe any baseless rumors." She frowned at him and then turned her head away. She rested her head against the Time Man's chest and sighed. 

She couldn't spare another ounce of energy into arguing with her or some sort. It felt like she had placed everything of her into fighting the fall to the abyss.

"You did well, Your Majesty."

Somehow it didn't feel patronizing when he said it. She continued to lay on his chest and for a moment she thought that she could hear something ticking—like a clock. 

"In this place, the weight of your soul is what determines how you fare in this place, and so thus the call of the beyond also affects you in some way."

"... I feel like you mocked me in some way." She said trying to be grouchy and yet it was difficult to do so. There was something about his presence that relieved her greatly even after the catastrophic incident at the cubes.

Soon enough they arrived back in the place where they held tea parties. A half eaten tart was on the table along with some desserts—he snapped his fingers and the table was cleared and then restocked.

The Queen of Hearts then took a seat, Alice was placed in the middle and the Time Man in front of her. She wasn't sure if this was the most pleasant encounter that she had—but then again, her experience with Catherine Duke nearly burning her tongue off was also amongst her most hated times.

Perhaps having tea with her… most vile enemy was mitigated because of that one incident with Catherine. At least she wouldn't burn her tongue with this woman.

But her attention needed to turn elsewhere beside this, she cleared her throat and addressed the Time Man. "Do you know what happened that caused this incident? I am not sure if you understand—"

"You, Alice and the King of Hearts crossed the labyrinth on a specific hour, time and day and triggered a small tear in the fabric of time and space." He said. "I am not sure where exactly you have ended up, but Young Alice found herself in my company."

"What matters to me right now is if you can restore this situation—you cannot expect me to be living with a teenaged Alexander and a young… you need to undo this. My place is not meant to be there, and that needs to be corrected."

"I understand," he said.

"Then will you fix this?"

"We have already tried to find out a way to stop this… but it is difficult to trace back and replay each possible location to where all of you could have been. It is only through chance and luck that Young Alice found herself here and informed me of the situation."

Somehow it felt like it was only a natural occurrence for the mere fact that it was Alice—she was Alice and so things worked out in her favor, whereas the Queen herself had to work twice as hard for her to come here.

There was no need to be upset about it, and yet she was.

Anger came to her naturally and she would have expressed and vented out the unfairness of things, but this was life. There was always indifference to circumstances—some would be Queens like her, others were pawns meant to be thrown in the battlefield. 

But there were those who survived and became Queens themselves.

Was that really unforgivable?

"Your Majesty of Hearts?" The Time Man asked.

Her train of thoughts halted, and she looked at him, "What is it?"

"Your tea is growing cold."

She frowned at the inane words but looked down and saw it was the truth. He must have surely given her tea, and so she drank it down quickly and finished it.

The cup clattered on the table.

"If I found myself back in Alexander's time in the past, then I find that the chances of him being in mine would be similar."

The Queen of Hearts then realized something, Alice never reacted even when she said her brother's name. Did she not recognize him or something?

"Thank you for the suggestion."

Her thoughts then drifted off—what if the King of Hearts ended up in an embarrassing time in the past? What if he had ended up in a dangerous time? "What would happen if he were to die during that time?"

"His death would occur and everything that was to happen next would never come to pass—it would be a continuous loop. He would still end up in the Castle whence he did but the end result would be the same, he will die always at the end."

It didn't make any sense, and yet her blood went cold.

"Then find him." Her voice was too authoritative—she paused, winced and said, "Please, I need you to find him."

A moment felt like an eternity as she sat and waited for his response… then he nodded. "If that is what you desire, Your Majesty. I will do it."

Relief found itself in her chest and she picked up her tea, drinking as she glanced around the dessert table and frowned slightly. "There was a half eaten tart before, where are the tarts now?"

Alice blinked, "Ah, those tarts were—"

"What tarts?" The Time Man said. "I have never actually had them. Perhaps it was a pie that you have seen or a quiche. We also have a mammon if you wish."

"I see."

Both trivial and important matters were given attention. The Queen understood that the situation with the King of Hearts was important and she should be more worried—but she had good faith that he would be found.

Time was on their side, wasn't he?

… that was something she was unsure of now. Perhaps he did not favor Alice as he claimed to be, but the world and circumstances tended to go her way. The Queen of Hearts recounted their last meeting before this one.

She asked herself to be sent away because he refused her request—and now she was asking for his help.

What a fruitless and useless situation to be in!

Rosalyn Lockhart wanted to do more and be more than what she already was, but this was her limitation. She could only do so much. The Queen was used to it—delegating tasks to her Knight, the Prime Minister and even her Informant to do her bidding. A Cook and Servant to prepare her food. Gardeners for the gardens. Soldiers to watch over the castle and Commoners to be ruled.

Now there were things only she could do, and she was proud of it. She thought she was far above others and their menial tasks and roles. She was a Queen!

But the cube allowed her to see that it was far from that case, and she was as helpless as anybody else.

It was a hard tart and bitter tea to swallow.

And then she saw something appear in front of her vision. It was a plate of three pieces of small roseberry tarts, and she looked up to hear and see the Time Man motion to the plate.

"Since you refused to give me the recipe that your maid servant has prepared for you—I decided to make one of my own. I had Young Alice taste it for me to see if it was palatable."

The Queen of Hearts looked at him and this gesture. He didn't exactly say that his decision to do this was for her sake, but she nonetheless only felt a warmth course through her chest.

He had made tarts.

Not perhaps specifically for her—but he also knew that she loved this, didn't he? She picked one up and took a bite and allowed the fresh and sweet flavors to settle on her tongue.

It was far from letting her conquer her terrible thoughts. But somehow this tart, the trouble he went to make such a thing and perhaps just his presence alone made her smile.

Perhaps she could find some more strength to bear with things. Life wasn't so bad, wasn't it?