Alice wandered.

Although she could never go far within the confines of her parents' home as a child, she now had plenty of room at St. Kennedy's Mental Institution.

Only The Nurse ever bothered her and that was only for treatments.

Alice didn't like the white walls of her room though. Nor the white floors or ceiling or clothing.

It was all too colorless.

Even the tea was colorless

She could easily imagine a piping hot cup of real tea that wasn't watered down or in a plastic cup like the one she currently held. In her mind, she was drinking fragrant mint tea that was poured from a delicate kettle in a fine piece of china.

The only thing better than drinking tea was drinking tea with friends.

Alice had friends.

She just had to find them.

Alice began drifting away from the white walled rooms of the institution until she was drifting along a worn trail that wound through a series of woods. Her feet touched the soft dirt floor soundlessly. She gazed about curiously at the twisted branches of the surrounding trees. Their boughs seemed too long and heavy for their slim trunks yet they still stood with their branches entwined with one another.

As if they were holding hands.

She glanced down at the dirt trail beneath her that felt similar to the yellow brick road she had traveled upon the day before.

The fresh scent of mint suddenly hit her nose and her feet soon began to wander down the winding trail. She began to hear voices as she got closer to the mint aroma.

The trail finally opened up into a clearing full of long grey-green grass that tickled her ankles. There were rows of red rose bushes on the hillside. Small, strange little people could be seen with red paint brushes as they painted the white roses red.

A long, rectangular table was directly in front of Alice. Several different figures of various shapes and sizes sat about the table which was lined with ceramic china. None of the cutlery or utensils matched one another which seemed to parallel the very people, or fixations, around them.

"Is that-?" A timid, high pitched voice started.

The heads at the table turned as they became aware of a new presence. One of them in particular, a short man wearing a top hat with a glue ribbon, grinned widely as his catlike eyes caught sight of her.

"Oh! Alice! You're just in time for tea!" The Hatter exclaimed while lifting a large kettle. "Please take a seat! Anywhere you'd like."

Alice didn't hesitate to take a seat beside a white rabbit with beady eyes who appeared more interested in adjusting his spoon and fork than the premise of fresh tea. The poor hare couldn't seem to come to the decision of whether or not the spoon was on the inside or outside of the fork. When he did finally come to a decision, that spoon belonged on the inside, he began to refold the already folded silk handkerchief on the table.

To her left, there was a tiny door mouse, hardly larger than her fist, who sat unenthusiastically up against her teacup. The mouse sniffed blankly as the Hatter stepped up onto the table with the kettle in hand. The table was large but there still wasn't much room for his feet which inevitably troded upon the many tea saucers and empty horderve trays.

A twitchy hare with ruffled gray fur leaned away as the Hatter poured his tea. Lazy wisps of steam wafted up from the drink as the Hare finally leaned back into a normal posture and tentatively reached out towards the cup. The Hare had thin black gloves over his paws that seemed oddly out of place.

"Hare, why are you wearing gloves?" Alice asked as The Hatter poured her tea. The cup was warm and welcoming in her slender fingers.

The Hare looked hesitant to speak, he opened his mouth before quickly shutting it. A striped, purple cat, who I hadn't noticed before, answered for the Hare from the seat across from me.

"He's worried that he might get a paper cut my dear," The cat replied kindly as a strangled large grin grew on his feline features.

The Hare nodded. "I f-fear I might be coming d-d-down with something as well. I've been burning up a-all day," The Hare claimed and patted his furry brown head with a napkin.

The purple cat, Cheshire, suddenly disappeared with a swish of his fluffy tail before reappearing on the back of Alice's chair. His tail rested lightly on her shoulder as she took her first sip of tea.

"He believes that he's been sick since last month," Cheshire said with contempt.

The Hatter poured the last cup, which was the door mouses, before stepping off of the table and sitting back down.

"Oh! How I love having guests!" The Hatter said with a smile. "Tell me Alice. Have you any idea why a raven is like a writing desk?"

Alice's brow furrowed as she pondered the riddle but the Hatter didn't wait for her response.

"Dearest Dormouse, is the tea too hot?" The Hatter asked, his large green eyes held little real worry.

The Dormouse shifted slightly before sniffing again. "I think I'm off my tea," The Dormouse said in a miserable voice. Her thin hair ruffled slightly as a cool breeze swept through the air.

"You said that yesterday, the day before, and possibly the day before that," The Hatter said, "I think I might be becoming slightly concerned."

The Dormouse just groaned softly before rolling over onto her side and slightly wrinkling the edge of the White Rabbits handkerchief. The Rabbit promptly gasped and reached out to gently prop the Dormouse onto her own dinner cloth so that he could fix the handkerchief. The Dormouse appeared hardly bothered.

The Hatter suddenly crackled almost fiendishly. "Oh what a lovely day! What lovely tea! Maybe it will rain later," The Hatter hoped.

The clouds above were growing thicker but the sky was still blue above them. The Hare wrung his gloved paws together. "I hope not, I'd h-ha-hate to catch a cold and the mud.... oh dear."

"It's just a bit of rain," Cheshire noted absently as he appeared wisply in the chair beside the Hare. His long purple tail swished behind him.

"Not all of us can just disappear at any time Chess," The Rabbit insisted before cleaning his thinly rimmed glasses.

Cheshire hummed apathetically. "Perhaps, however, unlike you, I'm not afraid to get my paws wet."

"Maybe it'll snow," Alice said peering up at the sky. "I hope it's green snow. Green snow is lime flavored."

Everyone at the table began cackling. All aside from the Hare who shook his furry head.

"Oh n-no no, no, that sounds highly unsanitary," The Hare said.

The Hatter tittered as he sipped from his tea cup. "Everything sounds unsanitary to you sweet Hare," The Hatter said. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you mad," The Hatter added, earning a few sniggers.

Cheshire's feline smile widened, displaying his rows of sharp teeth.

"We're all mad here," Cheshire claimed just before peering at me and suddenly fading into the air.

"Ms.Liddell?" A familiar voice asked from behind Alice. Alice turned to see a nurse in a pressed uniform standing in front of a colorless white wall. Alice turned back to see only another white wall in front of her. There was no longer soft grass under her feet, only the rough, scratchy fabric of her padded cell. The scent of tea had disappeared. As did the Tea Party guests, whose laughter and bickering was now far away noise.

"It's time for your treatment," said the same voice. The nurse approached Alice shortly and quickly made due with the white vest that enveloped her.

Alice didn't make any movement or any response to the Nurse's actions. She just stayed still and absently admired the Nurse's neat black, nearly blue hair. Alice was almost tempted to rip it out and keep it for herself.

She had done so to the Other Nurse before this one.

The Nurse soon ushered Alice down a cinder block lined hallway that led to the treatment room. Alice was placed into a leather chair that she found familiar.

Just like normal, The Nurse strapped down her wrists in leather bounds. Then, The Nurse placed a last strap across her forehead. Just like normal. Lastly, there was a small prick in Alice's neck that she had been anticipating. She didn't even wince as the thin piece of metal breached her pallid skin.

The soft hum or the electric generator sounded faintly to Alice's left.

The Nurse was checking over the restraints just as Dr.Iracebeth walked into the room. Without warning, Alice gently grabbed the Nurse's hand before she left. The Nurse nearly jumped in surprise before turning.

"Did you need something Ms.Liddell?"

Alice nodded as she envisioned a wide, Cheshire like smile spread on The Nurse's face.

Alice cleared her throat just as Dr.Iracebeth rubbed the electrodes against one another as she prepared the treatment procedure.

"Have you any idea why a raven is like a writing desk?"