Alice winced as the hard landing sent waves of pain through her bottom half. She glanced about to see where she had ended up. It was dark, but not night dark. Twilight dark. The morning was poised to break, bathing the world in a dim, purple glow. It took her a moment to realize she was back in Hickory Dickory. There was no mistaking the little shops and the dormant mechanical devices.

How had she ended up out here?

That's when she looked up and found that she was sitting in front of the End of Days Clock Tower. It loomed over her like an ominous beast, the ticking of its many hands deafening in the quiet pre-morning hours. Had she tumbled out of the clock? It seemed impossible, but considering her history with impossible things, she wasn't about to write the idea off. Besides, hadn't the townsfolk claimed that Time himself lived in the clock tower? But he had said that Nowhere wasn't an actual physical place. Then could this tower be a portal to it?

She rose to her feet and examined the structure, searching for a door or an entrance of some sort. As she did, someone grabbed her shoulder from behind. She turned on her heel, prepared to pull out her Vorpal Sword and fight off whoever was after her, be it a Black Swan, Dodgson, or some other person who wanted her dead. But then she saw that it was Ina, her eyes wide and uncharacteristically filled with emotion. Tart sat on her shoulder, chattering his concerns and scolding her thoroughly.

"Ina?"

"Alice, where have you been? How did you get out here? Where is Ace?"

She was wild-eyed and panicked. It took Alice by surprise to see her so out of sorts. Shaking her head, she pulled her sister into the shadow of the clock tower, somehow feeling safer in its presence.

"Listen, Ina, there's been a change of plans."

"What do you mean? What happened?"

Taking a deep breath, Alice pushed down all her fears and resignations about telling someone the truth. The full truth. Everything. Starting with this.

She pulled out the pocket watch and held it out to Ina. "Ina, my mother wasn't lying when she said this was a gift from Time. It is."

Ina furrowed her brow as she stared down at the timepiece in Alice's hand. "What do you mean? How do you know?"

"Because he just told me."

Ina's gaze flickered to Alice's face. The astonishment in her eyes was unmistakable.

"I met him," Alice said. "I met Time."

She then proceeded to tell Ina everything. About how she had obtained the pocket watch. About its strange ability. About her plan to defeat Dodgson on her own and how it had backfired horribly. About how Ace had been hurt and was now suspended in a near-death state until she succeeded in helping Time execute justice on Dodgson.

After she had relayed all of this information to Ina in a rather harried manner, Alice watched as her sister digested it all. Her expression was unreadable, but after a moment, she closed her eyes, shook her head, and opened them again. She turned to Alice, a hard determination in her gaze.

"So all we have to do is make my father believe he is stealing the watch from you?" she asked.

Alice shrugged. "Basically. But I don't have the first clue as to how to do that. Do you?"

Ina's gaze became distant, but she nodded her head. "I think I have an idea. But we'll have to make it convincing." She turned to Alice. "Which means you may have to get hurt."

Remembering the pain in Ace's eyes as blood poured from the stab wound in his stomach, Alice gritted her teeth. "It's fine. I'll do whatever it takes."

Ina nodded again and looked about the still-dark town. "Perhaps we should discuss this somewhere more private."

~

All was silent in their room at the Walrus and the Carpenter save for the soft chewing of the oysters in the mattress. Alice was thinking over the plan that Ina had come up with. It was good. Better than anything she could have thought up. But it would most assuredly put Ina at risk. Would Dodgson believe her? Would he show her mercy?

From what she had seen of the man, she doubted it.

"Ina, I—"

"Don't."

"Don't what?"

"Don't tell me you can't let me do this. Don't tell me it's too dangerous. Don't try to sneak off and do this on your own."

Shaking her head, Alice gazed down at the watch in her hand as she played with its chain. No, she wouldn't do that again. She had been foolish to think she could do this all on her own. She had nearly lost Ace with such thinking. She could still lose him if they didn't get this right.

"I just don't want you to get hurt, Ina," she said, looking up at her stepsister. "I've lost so many people in my life. Some that I don't even remember. The thought of losing one more person...I don't think I could bear it."

Tears leaked from her eyes, and before she could wipe them away, Ina leaned forward and did it for her. She gave a soft smile, an expression so rare for her that it took Alice by surprise. Inching closer, she awkwardly put her arms around Alice and held her tight.

"What is it you and Ace keep saying? We're family?" She squeezed Alice tighter. "Nothing can stop that from being true. Not distance, not death, not even Time can change that fact. You never truly lose people, Alice. They always stay in your heart. Even if you can't remember them, like your mother and father. If they weren't still in your heart, would you feel so much emotion every time someone mentions them?"

Alice sniffed and ran a hand under her nose. "How do you know that?"

Ina smiled. "You wear your heart on your sleeve. It's not hard to tell." She turned Alice's face towards her. "Even if I die, I will always be here with you. Nothing will change that. And if I do die, I will die happy knowing that I was able to help you."

Alice's chest tightened, and more tears trickled down her cheeks. She leaned her head against Ina's and took a shaky breath. "I'm so happy I met you, Ina."

Running her hand up and down Alice's back in a very motherly way, Ina replied, "So am I, Alice."

"I think my mother must have loved you very much."

"Why is that?"

"Because I can't imagine anyone who has known you for any period of time not adoring everything about you."

She gave a crude laugh. "Tell that to my father."

"Dodgson only loves himself. There's no room in his heart for anyone else. Besides," Alice shifted and looked up at Ina with a gentle smile, "he clearly doesn't know you well at all. He underestimates you terribly."

Raising her eyebrows, Ina leaned closer. "Let's hope that will work in our favor."