Fall of Wonderland!

Twelve

ASPEN DÜLGER
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"Imagination is the only weapon against reality."

★♥︎♠︎♣︎♦︎

Alice wasn't technically supposed to leave the tower without permission. Did that stop her? Absolutely not. Years of sneaking out of classes had her prepared to sneak past the guards around the palace and make her way into the market.

People from all sorts of card signs mingled together trading goods and coins in stalls. Alice preferred this place. It reminded her of the lower-class section of the Spade District.

Alice, being as distracted as she was, bumped into an old man and knocked the sack he was carrying onto the ground. Alice pulled her hood tighter over her hair. "I'm so sorry!" She quickly apologized, helping pick everything up. The old man reached for the knife at his belt.

"Wait! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bump into you, sir." Alice quickly apologized. There was a loud scraping as he drew his knife.

"Hey! Big Pando, back off!" Alice turned to see a girl calling after the old man. She was pale-skinned and wore a bright orange hijab.

Big Pando nodded. "Alright, I'll let you go this time, kid, but only because Aspen knows you."

Aspen, the girl, grinned widely, stepping up to introduce herself. "Aspen Dülger, expert at navigating these streets. Your not from around here, are you?"

Alice laughed. "Nope." She parted her hood slightly to show her hair. "From the palace." She explained.

Aspen's eyebrows shot up. "How'd you get past the guards? I hear it's difficult."

"I used to have to sneak around all the time in the Spade District. Especially to get out of class."

Aspen smirked a toothy grin. "I'm skipping class right now."

The crowd parted to make way for a huge group of guards. Alice stiffened, but before she could act Aspen was leading her away through alleyways and past stalls.

"Thanks, that was a close one, Aspen." She held out her hand. "I'll have to owe you."

Aspen shook it. "What's your name again?"

"Alice Liddell, Ace."

• Sorry, the next few chapters will be a bit short! •