Fall of Wonderland!

Seventeen

DEVIL CHILD
🍒
"I don't like the look of it at all, however, it can kiss my hand, if it likes."

★♥︎♠︎♣︎♦︎

Alice still wasn't out of the hospital. She was breathing, the doctors had told them. Lori, Valentina, and her Mother had all been checking in with the hospital staff for a few weeks.

Lori was surprised to see Valentina there, and not Mali. Mali handled her grief uniquely, Lori knew. When Mali was younger, her parents had died in an awful fire. Something about the trauma of that event and then the orphanage made it difficult for Mali to express emotion.

Yesterday morning, Lori had been marched into the palace by the Emperor of Diamonds himself. Mali had been instantly elated to see that Lori would take Julius' place as Knave of Diamonds. Valentina had given polite conversation, and Jude had simply smiled. Lori was already liking it there.

She just missed Alice so desperately.

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That night, Lori stayed up late working. She actually enjoyed the work that the Diamond Academy assigned her. Julius had done none of his.

She brushed a stray curl away from her face and pushed her glasses back up her nose. Her pencil was beginning to dull as she continued writing. Currently, she was working on a research project about the use of Wonderland's magic being transferred into energy.

Lori paused. There was a knocking on her window. She peered at the clock on her phone. It was past midnight, who in the world was knocking on her window? Lori marched over and tentatively parted the curtains. Somebody was standing on her balcony.

"What do you want?" Lori demanded, hoping they heard her. The person standing in front of her had dark red hair that was pulled into a tiny ponytail in the back. They worse shaded glasses and a black turtleneck.

"I need to speak with you, Miss Liddell," They said, voice sharp and refined, despite the barrier between them.

Lori knew that she could access her powers at any time with the sign of a threat. Her curiosity got the better of her as she opened the glass doors.

"Who are you?"

"I'm often called the Jester. But my name? Luciel."

"Okay, Luciel," Lori rubbed her temples. "Why are you here two in the morning?"

Luciel made a small bow. "The woman I work for has an offer for you, Miss Liddell—,"

"Lori."

Luciel shrugged. "If I'm going to call you Lori, you're going to call me Lucy." They smirked.

"Fine. Can you please just get on with this?"

Lucy nodded. "My boss' name is the Queen of Hearts. You've heard of her?"

"Why would the Queen of Hearts send a spy to my balcony at night?"

"Always asking the right questions, I like you already, Lori," Lori blushed, Lucy continued. "Let's just say that the Queen has bigger plans than the position she is in now."

"So what's my offer?"

"Have you ever felt like your sister was stealing the spotlight? Like she thought that she was better than you?"

Lori stopped listening for a moment. She was six years old again, walking through the woods with her sister. As they got closer and closer to Wonderland, the greenery became less green and more nonsense. The magic was growing stronger and stronger.

"Alice, maybe we should head back. We're getting too near the border of Dinah City." Lori has suggested.

Alice turned around and frowned. "Don't be scared, Lori. We're Wild Wonders, so Wonderland likes us." She giggled as a flower curled around her leg.

Lori stepped forward, and then again and again. The same flower lunged at her ankle, biting her. "Ah!" Lori exclaimed, looking up to see Alice already beginning to walk away.

"Wait! Ally!" Lori called in fright.

"Hurry up, Lori!" The memory began fading away.

"... So, I guess my question is, do you want to help us?" Lucy asked.

Lori looked up suddenly, surprised to see their dark magenta eyes a few inches below hers.

"What are the conditions?"