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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏𝟗
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐁𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐃 𝐖𝐀𝐆𝐎𝐍

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Kaden continued to stand in the back of the Queen's wagon as she took them through the Wonderlandian forest. Every now and then, the Red Knight would glance down at the genie sitting in front of him. He couldn't help but wonder if this man's magic was strong enough to help the Scarlet boy regain his heart. The thought brought a sense of hope to Kaden, only for it to mix with a sense of dread when he remembered who they were up against. The Red Queen doesn't give up what she thinks is hers very easily.

The brunette boy was soon pulled out of his train of thought when the carriage began to slow down. Kaden looked around at his surroundings, which slowly began to become familiar to him. Soon his eyes landed on a small abandoned wagon. The same wagon that he, Will, and Anastasia lived in when they first arrived in Wonderland. An unexpected wave of anger began to wash over Kaden before his attention landed on the woman in red.

"Why are we here?" the brunette boy asked as the Red Queen jumped out of the wagon and onto the forest floor, "why did you bring us here?"

"Silence. You will not speak unless spoken to," was all the blonde woman said in response, causing Kaden's mouth to be sealed shut while anger continued to course through his veins.

"What is this place?" the genie questioned after watching the Red Knight fail to get answers out of Anastasia before he began to stand up when he didn't get a response, "what are we doing here?!"

With a flick of the Red Queen's wrist, Cyrus was forced back into a sitting position on the carriage's seat. Both of them watched with annoyance in their eyes as the woman in red walked toward the wagon. As soon as she disappeared into the abandoned wagon, the genie turned to face the boy. The raven-haired man just studied the Red Knight for a long moment before finally opening his mouth to speak. "Why do you follow every one of her demands?"

"I don't have much of a choice," Kaden responded before turning his attention away from the abandoned wagon to stare at the genie, "she has my heart. The only way to get it back is for Indigo to remember."

"Remember what?"

"Who she truly is," the Scarlet boy told him then he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small purple stone, "luckily I stole this from Jafar before he and the Queen went their separate ways."

The genie's expressionless face immediately morphed into confusion after hearing the knight's words. However, before he could question the boy any further, the Red Queen reappeared from the wagon and began walking toward them. Kaden instantly shoved the stone back into his pocket as they watched her approach the carriage before stopping a few feet away with a smirk on her face. No one said a word as the blonde woman lifted her hand to reveal Cyrus' bottle in her possession.

"Yes, that's right, genie," the woman in red said as the smirk on her face grew, "you have a very big decision to make."

Hours had passed since they left the abandoned wagon and began their journey to an unknown location. While they continued through the Wonderlandian forest, Kaden couldn't help but think of Indigo and her safety. As far as he knew, Jafar needed her for his plans. He never learned why or for what but just the idea of the evil sorcerer needing her to achieve his goal made the Scarlet boy nervous. Especially since Indigo couldn't remember anything since arriving in Wonderland.

It wasn't long before they heard a large explosion in the distance, causing the three of them to turn their attention in the direction of the sound. Kaden was shocked to see the Queen's castle up in smoke as anger flowed through Anastasia's veins before a smirk appeared on Cyrus' face.

"Jafar's on your side of the board, Your Majesty," the genie mocked as he turned his attention back to the road ahead of them, "looks like you're running out of moves."

"He may have destroyed a few pieces, but in the game of chess there's only one queen, and she's more important than them all put together," the woman in red responded while trying her best to keep all of the emotions building up inside her at bay.

"Perhaps, but it doesn't look like Jafar's playing games," Cyrus responded in an eerily calm tone as Kaden looked between the two people sitting in front of him.

"Neither am I. Now tell me, where is Alice?" the Red Queen demanded, only for the smug smile on the genie's face to grow.

"Why would I ever tell you that?" the raven-haired man questioned as he looked away from the woman next to him and at the passing trees.

"Because she's going to be found, along with your precious Indigo," Anastasia responded as she glanced back at Kaden before her full attention landed on Cyrus, "the only question is, whether it's by him...or us. The choice is yours."

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On the other side of Wonderland, Indigo walked behind Will and in front of Alice and Percy as he led them toward the place where he believed the Queen was keeping the White Rabbit's family. They had been traveling for what felt like an eternity with very little information on their destination from the Knave of Hearts. It wasn't until they passed a stone covered in the whitest of flowers that Indigo realized where they were heading. The Lark girl was surprised that Will would even consider coming back to where they were heading. The only time she had been there, other than with the Scarlet brothers, was when she needed a place to hide. It was a sacred place to them and she knew leaving it be was the best way to honor it. Especially with all the memories it held.

When the small abandoned wagon came into view, Indigo immediately saw the change in Will's demeanor. His shoulders sagged and he began to walk slower than before. It wasn't until they finally reached their destination that she noticed the usually smug look on his face replaced by a frown.

"Uh, you and the Red Queen used to live here?" Percy questioned after taking in the rundown wagon covered in vines.

"No. The Queen wouldn't be caught dead in a place like this," the Scarlet man responded while trying his best to hide his emotions from his allies, "but a girl named Anastasia and I...yeah. We had a few laughs here."

"What makes you think this is where she'd be holding Rabbit's family?" Alice asked as she looked away from the wagon to meet Will's gaze.

"Every now and then, Ana and I would acquire something of value that we wanted to keep hidden," the Knave explained before his attention landed on the place he used to call home, "our wagon turned out to be a lovely hiding place."

"If it looks shabby on the outside, no one in Wonderland would bother checking if there's anything of value on the inside," Indigo said before looking over at Will and sending him an innocent smile, "no offense."

"I'll let that slide because you're right," the Scarlet man responded before he looked over at Alice and Percy, "wait here."

No one moved a muscle as they watched Will cautiously enter the wagon. As soon as the door closed behind the Knave, Percy began pacing back and forth. His actions drove Indigo crazy but she didn't say a word. She knew what it was like to lose someone you loved after all. What felt like an eternity of the Scarlet man being inside the wagon passed before the White Rabbit let out a long sigh, drawing Indigo and Alice's attention to him.

"I'm telling you, it's no use," Percy stated before taking off his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose, "Alice, what if the Queen...what if my family is..."

Before he had a chance to finish his statement, the wagon's door was pushed open. Everyone instantly spun around to see Will walking out along with the White Rabbit's family. His children didn't hesitate to race down the stairs and across the clearing toward their father with his wife following right behind them.

As Indigo watched the family reunion happening in front of her, she couldn't help the jealousy forming inside her. She wanted what they had, to be reunited with the one she lost. But deep down she knew it would take a lot more than wishing to get Kaden's heart back. Indigo would have to face the Red Queen head-on and come out victorious. Something that no one had ever been able to do.

"Okay, where to?" Percy asked, drawing Indigo's attention back to the situation at hand to see the White Rabbit's family beginning to walk out of the clearing.

"Where Cyrus is going, the Outlands," Alice responded before she turned and began leading her allies toward their next destination.

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It took them about half a day to reach the mountaintop that Alice led them to. When they finally arrived, Indigo felt a wave of disappointment wash over her. There was nothing but trees and rocks as far as the eye could see. No shelter. No food. Not even a water source. The sight alone made the Lark girl wish she stayed back at Will's wagon. Even if it was small and rundown, it was a warm place to sleep and Indigo would give anything to have that right now.

"Is this where Cyrus is supposed to meet you?" Will asked as they continued to walk along the grassy mountain path.

"Yes," Alice responded before the smile on her face grew larger than humanly possible, "Cyrus!"

"I don't want to burst your bubble, Alice, but your safe place isn't all that safe," Indigo stated while her eyes scanned over their surroundings, "you can be seen for miles."

"Uh, maybe...maybe he's hiding," the White Rabbit said in an attempt to bring Alice hope before the Kingsleigh girl picked up her pace.

"Maybe he's just inside," the blonde woman told them, causing her three traveling companions to exchange confused looks before they watched Alice disappear into thin air.

Will and Indigo immediately stopped in their tracks and stared at the place their ally once was before they exchanged another glance. The two of them began to follow Alice when they noticed Percy wasn't joining them. When they looked back at the White Rabbit, they found him staring in the direction they had just come from.

"You coming?" Indigo asked, drawing Percy's attention to her and Will before he let out a long sigh.

"Uh, better I stay out here. Keep watch in case anyone comes looking for us," the White Rabbit responded with a hint of uncertainty in his voice that didn't go unnoticed by the Knave and the Spade.

"Don't try anything funny," Will demanded while keeping his unamused gaze glued to the furry creature, "I don't want to make rabbit stew, but I will."

"I know. Of course not. We wouldn't want that," Percy told them before Will and Indigo sent him another look.

That lasted for another moment then the two of them turned around and followed Alice. When the two of them made it to the other side of the invisible gateway, they were shocked by what they saw. A large tent with everything someone would need to survive stood in front of them, completely hidden from the outside world. If Indigo had known about that place sooner, she wouldn't have had to sleep in the underground tunnel.

"All this time, we've been using rocks for pillows, when we could have been sleeping here," Will said while he looked around at everything that surrounded them.

"We were on the move," Alice responded without looking over at him or Indigo.

"Wouldn't have been a bad place to rest me weary feet, is all I'm saying," the Knave told her as he walked across the tent and sat down on the bed before he began bouncing up and down on the mattress, "is that a bathtub?"

Both Alice and Indigo looked over at Will with blank expressions on their faces as he continued to bounce up and down like a child. When the Scarlet man saw the looks on their faces, he immediately stopped moving and folded his hands in his lap. Indigo did her best to suppress a laugh as she walked to the other side of the tent and sat down next to Will.

"This doesn't make sense. He should be here," the Kingsleigh woman muttered before she went back to looking around the tent.

"Anywhere else he might have gone?" Indigo asked, causing Alice to turn her attention toward her with a slightly irritated look on her face.

"No," was all the blonde woman said in response then went back to searching for any sign of her genie.

"Maybe he's left a note," Will suggested, only for the Kingsleigh woman to look over at him with anger written all over her face.

"What do you think I'm looking for?! There's nothing here!" Alice shouted, causing both Will and Indigo to jump and exchange a look while the Kingsleigh woman looked around at the tent that surrounded her. It wasn't long after that when the blonde woman let out a long sigh and looked back at the Knave and the Spade. "I know what you two are thinking."

"We're not thinking anything," the Scarlet man responded while he and the Lark girl continued to look anywhere but at Alice.

"You're thinking he's been captured," the blonde woman said with tears in her eyes as she slowly walked toward Indigo and Will.

"We never said that," the Lark girl told the curious traveler while the former began to grow uncomfortable under Alice's stare.

"You think he died trying to escape," the Kingsleigh woman hissed as she stopped right in front of the two sitting on her bed, "or do you think he didn't really escape in the first place?"

"I think he's not here, Alice," Will stated before getting to his feet and standing protectively in front of Indigo while staring at his distressed friend, "which means we're running out of time. And options. Now the Rabbit's outside. If we're gonna leave Wonderland-"

"We're not leaving without Cyrus!" Alice declared before her attention fell on the curly-haired girl who was still sitting on the bed, "would you leave without Kaden?"

"Of course, I wouldn't," Indigo responded as she got to her feet to stand next to Will, "but I also wouldn't stop you guys from leaving if that's what you chose to do."

The Kingsleigh woman just stared at the young girl for a long moment before she turned and walked back toward the entrance. An uncomfortable silence surrounded them as the Knave and the Spade watched their friend while she stared out the door. However, as soon as Alice moved the tent flap, her entire demeanor changed. Her shoulders seemed to relax as the tension throughout her body vanished.

Before Indigo had a chance to question what Alice saw, the latter shouted "Cyrus!" and sprinted out of the tent. The Knave and the Spade exchanged a confused look before they walked outside to find the traveler and the genie wrapped up in each other's arms. But what caught them by surprise even more was the sight of the Red Queen walking up the mountain path with her Red Knight following behind her.

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