Unforgettable - Heartless

Chapter One - Madder than Mad

To say that Hatta was surprised to see Catherine, Raven, and Alice at his Hat Shop would've been an understatement, though Catherine couldn't really be certain if it was, since Hatta was mad. To say that Hatta wasn't surprised to see them just suddenly appear in his Hat Shop also would've been an understatement, even while he was insane.

"To what do I owe this pleasure to dear Queen?" Hatta asked, on his knees and the teacup shaking in his hand.

"There is no Queen of Hearts now, she's dead," Cath responded, taking Hatta's hand and pulling him up.

"Why that's not possible, for you are right here and I am right here. Surely I'm alive, why come you are considered dead," Hatta stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Hatta, the Queen of Hearts is no more, only Catherine Pinkerton, a girl who wants to own a bakery."

Hatta's eyes narrowed. "That girl was a foolish girl, and she is no more. She had betrayed dear Hatta and her own heart. She had killed him, and in her own betrayal, killed herself. Ah, I see dear Alice is here," Hatta bowed, his wild white hair flying all over the place.

"Good evening Mr. Hatter," Alice curtseyed, her eyes betraying a hint of tension in them, worrying she'd be caught in the crossfire.

"Please call me Hatta," Hatta said, an eccentric grin on his face.

"Hatta, I've come to deliver good news," Cath interjected, bringing the Mad Hatter's attention to her again.

"News is never good," Hatta said.

Choosing to ignore that, Cath continued. "I had a dream, and it told of Fate unwinding, and all of us given a second chance."

"Hearts without their Queen chasing the dreams of a Mad Hatter," Hatta said impudently. "I had the same dream Catherine, but I am Mad, so let me ask this question, why is a Raven like a writing desk?"

"No, Hatta, we saw Jest, Alice has this power to travel between Wonderland, and she met Jest," Cath smiled when Hatta's eyes cleared suddenly, his eyes no longer distant.

"Are my ears deceiving me, Raven?"

"I can vouch for the queen, Alice's power, I can deem," Raven responded.

"Prove it then, dear entourage. You've come this way and that, the road is twisting, yet you've come to me, even while the path leads you to the mythical Treacle Well," Hatta said, his violet eyes piercing like they had been before. "Why talk to the Mad Hatter?"

"Because Cath thought you had the right to know. I can send you to the Forgotten, but we can only stay for a minute before we have to return to Hearts," Alice warned Hatta just as she'd warned Cath and Raven.

"Why are we traveling to this Forgotten if Jest is not Forgotten?" Hatta asked.

"I'll explain later. But Hatta, you have to trust me, and hold on tight," Alice took Hatta's hand, turning to Cath and Raven perching on the former's shoulder. "I'll take Hatta, we'll be back in a day. I can't take you two though, or else I might never get all three of you back here. You have to understand that the Forgotten isn't a perfect place. With every power, there's a curse, and with every good thing, there's a bad thing behind it."

"Alice, what do you mean?" Cath asked.

"Don't succumb to the Forgotten. It's beautiful yes, but even the dead have sins they must repay through Time. My time here, in fact, is limited too. If I stay too long, I'll lose myself, the price of holding such power," Alice smiled wryly, before waving her hand, and with a breeze followed by a pop, she and Hatta were gone.