Bonus points for anyone who can tell me who's who~~

---

 

"Wakey wakey!" a voice called out, smacking her in the head with a pillow.

 

Jeri groaned and moved her head so that she could see who had smacked her, seeing her brother with his usual grin. She groaned and rolled back over, trying to go back to sleep and was hit with a pillow again.

 

"Alright, alright I'm…. up?"

 

When she lifted her head, her brother was gone and the door was left wide open. She rolled her eyes and got out of bed, heading out of her room towards the kitchen for some breakfast. But as soon as she stepped out of her room, she tumbled down a set of stairs, landing hard on her back.

 

"Are you kidding me… where did those come fro-whoa…"

 

In front of her was a long hallway that seemed to stretch out for miles.

 

"This is obviously a prank, so I'm going back to…bed…"

 

As Jeri turned to return to the stairs she had just fell down, she found no stairs behind her, instead there was a brick wall.

 

"But… there was- oh for heaven sakes!" Jeri growled standing up and brushing off her rear.

 

She huffed and continued down the long hallway. She got to the end of the hall and entered a large white room with a chandelier hanging from the roof.

 

"Fancy…" she hummed.

 

Suddenly, her ring slipped from her finger, dropped to the floor and began rolling towards the wall. Jeri dashed after it and dove for it when she realized it was heading right for a crack in the wall. She slammed her hand down on it before it could go through the crack and sighed in relief. Her relief disappeared when the ring popped out from between her fingers and flew into the crack before she could stop it.

 

"Are you kidding me?!?" she hollered banging on the wall.

 

She growled and hit the wall again, but felt something under her hand. She looked up and saw a small piece of paper taped to the wall. She squinted in order to try and read the small print.

 

"'To get it back, look on the table'," she read. "Table? What table? There's no table-"

 

She stopped herself when she looked behind her, and sure enough, a table had magically appeared in the middle of the room with a vase full of flowers. She stood up and cautiously walked over to the table. On top of it was a little bottle with a note attached to it. She picked the bottle up like it was a contagion and read the note.

 

"Bottoms up," she read, with a raised eyebrow. "Why does that sound familiar…?"

 

She pondered for a couple seconds and looked around the room, wondering if someone was playing a prank on her. She popped the top off and gave the liquid a sniff.

 

"No smell…" She stared at the bottle for a couple seconds, shrugged, then downed the entire contents.

 

She smacked her lips a couple times and hiccupped, dropping the bottle to the floor as well as… herself? Yes, Jeri was suddenly falling towards the floor at a high rate of speed. No, she wasn't falling, the table was just getting… bigger?

 

With a short shriek, she somehow slid through the opening of the bottle and fell on her rear.

 

"Oh… you have got to be kidding me…" she muttered, looking around to realise that she had indeed, shrunk. She stood and attempted to jump up to the top of the bottle, but it was too high for her. Starting to get frustrated, Jeri her body against the side of the bottle several times, managing to tip it over onto its side, allowing her to crawl out.

 

After getting out of the bottle, she patted down her pants and looked around the room. Her eyes drifted over to the crack in the wall where her ring had slid through and whooped in excitement, running over.

 

"There'd better not be any rats back here to eat me or so help me Shisus," she muttered, managing to squeeze into the crack.

 

She followed it along until she saw a small light at the end. She quickened her sliding and popped out of the crack, falling right into a bush. Groaning, she managed to heave herself out of the bush and actually look around her new location.

 

It seemed like a forest, but miniature considering she was the size of a mouse and the trees and what-not looked "average" size to her. Her thoughts were interrupted when a bubble floated out from the trees and over towards her. She popped it with her finger and a familiar aroma that she couldn't quite put her finger on enveloped her nose. Several more bubble came out from  the forest, so Jeri decided to follow them; see where they're coming from.

 

As she walked, she felt like she was being watched, but every time she turned around, there was no-one and nothing there, making her huff.

 

She managed to get out of the forest and soon stood amongst a group of giant toadstools.

 

"Oh god, I must be high; I'm seeing giant shrooms…" Jeri groaned.

 

"You are not high, I am."

 

Jeri whipped around to try and find the location of the voice.

 

"Who said that?!" she called out.

 

"I am high, for my head stands above your, for I am up and you are down," the voice riddled.

 

Jeri raised an eyebrow and slowly looked up.

 

There on the toadstool was a man that appeared in his mid to late twenties with blond hair and a green mask covering the upper half of his face. He wore no shirt and a pair of torn jeans covered his legs. The man had a set of what Jeri could only describe as antennae on his head, as well as two more sets of arms other than his "normal" ones. One set was crossed over his chest, another was stretched out behind him for support and his "normal" arms her holding and turning a crack for a small bubble gun.

 

"What are you supposed to be… a cricket?" Jeri snorted, not quite sure what to make of this strange looking man.

 

"Not a cricket, for cricket's can jump.  No, not a cricket, but a baby fly of butter," he riddled again, no emotion showing on what she could see of his face.

 

"A fly of butter? It sounds contagious, I think you should have it looked at," she joked again.

 

"Those who joke in times like these, are those who fail in times of need," he riddled again.

 

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?!" she barked, planting her fists on her hips.

 

The man didn't reply, simply continuing to crack his little toy to produce bubbles. Jeri gave an irritated sigh and began to walk off.

 

"Which way is right, and which way is wrong? What is the path that will lead you home," the man riddled again.

 

"I don't want to go home! Not until I find my ring," Jeri shot back, starting to get ticked off with his words.

 

She quickly walked away from the small grove before the man could respond, missing the small smile creep onto his otherwise unreadable features.

 

She continued to walk through the forest, pushing past vines and low branches.

 

"Of course, it would help if I knew where my ring is," she muttered, coming to a stop with a sigh.

 

"Little madam you do be lookin' sad," a voice chirped from her left.

 

"Little madam's shouldn't  be lookin' sad, nopity nope nope," another voice chirped from her right.

 

"Madam?" Jeri questioned, raising an eyebrow.

 

"Yep madam," the left voice chirped again.

 

"Indeed indeed."

 

"Do you guys want to come out of the bushes or are you going to just creep me out with the disembodied voices?" Jeri asked, crossing her arms.

 

It was silent for a couple seconds until the bushes to her right rustled, making her turn to look at them. A man a little older than herself stepped out, a wide grin on his face. He had a slim, handsome with deep brown eyes, slightly shaggy sandy-brown hair and was wearing pink overalls with a white shirt underneath.

 

Just as she was about to speak, she was knocked forward onto the ground and felt someone pull off her shoes and socks.

 

"Hey!" she barked, trying to kick her feet away from whoever her attacker was.

 

They eventually slipped the items off of her feet and jumped over her with a laugh. This man appeared a little younger than the first with black hair and brown eyes. He was dressed in a similar fashion as the first man, but instead of having a handsome face, he had a baby-faced one.

 

The two men laughed and ran off, one carrying her shoes and the other carrying her socks.

 

"You jerks! Get back here!" she hollered, running after them.

 

She ran through a large bush and tripped over a tree root, ending in her slamming her forehead against a tree. She slid to the ground and whimpered, holding her head and trying to hold back tears.

 

"This is just peachy," she sniffed. "I lost my ring, I'm the size of a mouse, and I just had my shoes stolen, so now I'm freezing."

 

"If you're having that bad of a time, maybe you should have a little advice thrown your way…" a voice from above her claimed.

 

Jeri blinked in confusion and looked up. Up in the tree, high above her head, was a boy with a smirk and face paint covering the top half of his face. On top of his head were pink and purple car ears and she caught sight of a pink and purple striped tail waving from side to side behind him.

 

"The last time someone showed even remote concern for me, they jacked my feet," Jeri growled, not falling for his cute face.

 

The boy's smirk lessened, but didn't disappear.

 

"I suppose that's understandable," he laughed.

 

He leaned back and flipped under the branch and disappeared, making Jeri's eyes widen. She stood and took a cautious step forward, trying to find the boy. She gave a short shriek when she felt a tap on her shoulder, making her swing around with a small glare.

 

"The hell are you, a Houdini Nekojin?" she barked.

 

"Although I have no idea what that is, you may call me Cheshire," the boy replied, sweeping his hand to the side and entering a bow.

 

Jeri's glare lessened and instead raised an eyebrow. Now that he wasn't up in the tree, she could see him a little better. He couldn't have been more than a couple years older than herself and had dark brown hair and deep brown eyes. His mouth also seemed to be in a constant smirk, giving her a troublemaker vibe.

 

"After you're finished watching me…" he teased, making Jeri's face go slightly pink. "If you truly wish to find what you're looking for, you should follow the path until you find the Hatter," he explained, taking a couple steps back, his body slowly becoming transparent.

 

"Hey, wait a minute! What path?! What the hell's a Hatter?!" she yelled after him.

 

With a final smirk, the boy disappeared, leaving Jeri alone in the woods. The teen shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. She looked around and sure enough, a path could be seen off to her right. She sighed and began walking towards it. It looked like it was made out of brick, but it was warm and squishy on her feet, making her sigh in content.

 

She continued down the path for a couple minutes until she heard something in the distance.

 

"Is that… music?" she asked herself.

 

She quickened her pace and the music got louder, also being accompanied by singing. She followed the singing and pushed through a couple shrubs and trees, making sure to keep track of where the path had been. The singing and music got louder and louder, Jeri for some reason finding that she was smiling hearing the upbeat song. She finally pushed through the last bush and nearly fell back into it.

 

It was a large grove, and scattered all around it were tall and slim girls dressed in nothing but leaves, vines and flowers, each one having a different flower on their head. The girls were singing and dancing with large smiles, filling the area with laughter and a feeling of joy. Not wanting to interrupt the song, that and not quite sure what to do, Jeri didn't move from the sidelines.

 

One of the Flower Girls noticed Jeri standing at the side and smiled at her. She skipped over and, not stopping her singing with the others, grabbed Jeri's hand and pulled her back into the grove with the others. None of the other Flower Girls seemed to mind that she was pulled into their little party, as some of them began dancing and singing around her.

 

With a smile and a tug from the girl with a Dahlia in her hair, Jeri began dancing with them, somehow knowing exactly what dance moves they were going to do.

 

The song came to a close and the Flower Girls all laughed with each other, turning to Jeri.

 

"You dance beautifully, but I haven't seen you around here before…" the girl with the rose claimed.

 

"I guess you could say I'm new to the neighbourhood," Jeri laughed nervously, rubbing the back of her head.

 

The girls laughed with her and Jeri got to look at all of them. They had many of the same features; dark hair and eyes, slim faces and bodies and many of them were smaller than herself. They all had some sort of leafy-green covering their… parts… and they all had different flowers either behind their ear, on top of their head, or surrounding their head like a petaled halo. She saw a Red Rose, Tiger Lily, Petunia, Iris, Tulip, Daffodil, Lily, Daisy and Dahlia and many others on the girls.

 

"Yes, even I have to agree that that was quite a performance," another female voice stated from behind.

 

Jeri turned to see another older girl, looking much like the other girls, but with a beautiful Belladonna as a collar rather than in her hair.

 

"What's your name little flower?" she asked, walking forward.

 

"Flower?" Jeri questioned. "I'm not a flower, I'm a teenager…"

 

"A teenager..? I've never heard of a flower called that…" The Tiger Lily whispered.

 

"Maybe she's a new discovery?" the Lily offered with a shrug.

 

"It's because I'm not a flower…" Jeri laughed.

 

"Not a flower?" The red rose questioned.

 

"Then does that makes her…"

 

The Flower Girls all looked in between each other and turned to glare at Jeri, the teen feeling a cold chill run up her spine.

 

"A WEED!!!" they screeched, dashing towards her with rage in their eyes.

 

Jeri yelped and ran in the opposite direction, trying to get away from the furious flowers.

 

"We refuse to have weeds in our garden!" one of them roared.

 

Not wasting any time, Jeri dashed through the bushes, away from the grove, back towards the path. As soon as she stopped running, the music started up again like she hadn't just been chased by ravenous garden flower girls. She sighed and continued back towards the path.

 

After a couple minutes, the music had all but faded, but she still couldn't find the path she had been following.

 

"This is weird… I followed the same way I did when I left…" she muttered. "So where's the path…?"

 

"OUT OF THE WAY!!!"

 

Just as Jeri turned towards the voice, she was plowed into with a shriek, the person toppling onto her lap with a grunt. She looked down to see a small man was splayed across her lap. He had slightly darker skin with black hair and dark brown eyes. On top of his head, twitching, were two pure white rabbit ears.

 

She reached out to touch the ears, but the man suddenly got the wind back in him and jumped up from the ground.

 

"Ohhh! This is bad! I'm really really late!!" he whined, looking at the many watches lining his lower arm.

 

"I'm sorry you're late, but could you possibly tell me where the path-"

 

"I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date! No time to say Hello, Goodbye, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!!" he rambled, quickly dashing off through the forest.

 

"Hey! Wait a minute! You may be late but I'm lost!!" Jeri yelled, running after him.

 

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no! I'm overdue, I'm really in a stew! No time to say Goodbye, Hello, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!!" he rambled again, dashing through a large bush.

 

"Hey! C'mon I really need some heEEEELP!!!"

 

She gave a short shriek when she got through the bush and ended up walking off of a small cliff. She landed however, not on the hard ground as she thought she would.

 

"Glad I could be of service to you, fair lady," a voice from under her wheezed.

 

Jeri yelped and quickly shot up into a standing position. She had somehow managed to land on a man with sandy brown hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a short-sleeved jacket that was undone and a pair of pressed pants.

 

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to land on you…" she apologised, helping him to stand.

 

"Don't worry about it fair lady, I'm glad I managed to save your own bottom from bruising," he laughed, brushing off his pants and jacket. "May I ask what a girl like you is doing out in the Woods?"

 

"I was told to follow a path to some someone, but I got lost and I was-"

 

"Asking the White Rabbit for directions?" the man assumed with a knowing smile.

 

"Yeah, a lot of help the jerk was," she grumbled.

 

"Well, I just happen to know where the path happens to be, if you'd like to accompany me," he offered, extending his hand with an exaggerated bow.

 

"Umm… sure… Mr…?"

 

"My friends call me Dodo," the man claimed with a dimpled smile.

 

"Alright… Dodo," she laughed, finding the name odd.

 

"And your name, fair lady?" he asked.

 

"Oh… it's Jeri," she replied, following after him.

 

"Jeri? Not a very feminine name now is it…" he pondered, his index finger on his chin.

 

"It's a nickname; I don't like my real name," she explained, crossing her arms in a pout.

 

"Ah I see, I meant no offence," Dodo said. "Now shall we-my goodness, where are your shoes?"

 

"A pair of twin jerks in pink overalls jacked them," she growled, swaying from foot to foot, now realizing how cold she felt.

 

"Well now, we can't have that," Dodo claimed, walking over to a large bag. Jeri watched as half of his body bent into the bag, making her have an image of Mary Poppins pop into her head.

 

"A-ha! I thought I had some in here!"  he claimed, coming out of the bag.

 

The items in the man's hands made Jeri's eye twitch.

 

"I am not wearing those," she growled, giving him a glare.

 

Dodo gave her a confused look and looked down at the shoes he was holding. They were a pair of white strappy platform sandals with a small bow on the side of the shoe.

 

"What's wrong with them?" he asked.

 

"First of all, they're all straps, they wouldn't keep my feet warm in the least. Second, they're heels, I have enough back problems thank you," Jeri listed.

 

"Hmm, I guess you're right… But I can't let you walk around on the cold ground with no shoes…"

 

Dodo's face suddenly brightened and he walked back over to his bag. He placed the shoes back in and lifted the bag onto his back. He then swiftly walked over to Jeri and lifted her up in his arms, earning a small shriek from her.

 

"W-what are you doing?!" she stuttered.

 

"Keeping you warm," the man grinned.

 

Jeri's face went slightly pink and she sighed, wrapping her arms around his shoulders as he began walking.

 

"So, how long until we get back to the path?" Jeri asked, refusing to look up at him.

 

"About an hour's walk," Dodo replied.

 

"An hour? Does the thing migrate?!" Jeri cried, not believing her ears.

 

"Of course not, it's a path, it doesn't move," Dodo laughed.

 

Jeri muttered and crossed her arms in a pout.

 

The rest of the walk was fairly silent, Dodo managing to carry her for the entire time, despite Jeri telling him to put her down because she was heavy.

 

"I dare say my dear Jeri, that we've reached your destination," Dodo claimed, rousing her from her thoughts.

 

Jeri looked over and sure enough, the path was coming into view through the trees. When they were standing on it, Dodo slowly released her, Jeri's feet instantly warming up making her sigh in content.

 

"Well, I'm glad that I was able to help you in your time of need Jeri, I hope that we meet again soon," Dodo claimed, entering another dramatic bow.

 

Jeri laughed and hugged him, Dodo giving her a shocked look.

 

"Thank you so much Dodo," she thanked with a smile.

 

Dodo smiled down at her and gently patted her on the back. They separated and Jeri continued down the path as Dodo walked back into the Woods.

 

After what felt like an hour, Jeri had to stop and sit down, choosing to sit in the middle of the path so it didn't run away from her again.

 

"Holy hell what I wouldn't give for a car," she groaned, massaging her aching feet.

 

Feeling like she was being watched again, she looked around. When she brought her eyes back to the front she saw a familiar figure.

 

"Ah, you're…!"

 

Cheshire's smirk grew and he turned, walking further down the path until he disappeared.

 

"Hey, hold on a second!" Jeri cried, bolting up and after the cat-boy.

 

Jeri dashed down the path until it abruptly ended, in front of her being a small white picket fence. Straining her ears, she could hear more singing, but it was different that the flower girls' song.

 

Taking a deep breath, Jeri pushed she small gate open and walked towards the music. She exited the trees and found that she was in what looked like a small courtyard. A long table sat in the middle with mismatched chairs all around it. The table was covered with a white table cloth with several stains on it and dishes were scattered all around it. At the opposite end of the table sat Cheshire, perched on the back of the chair, his usual smirk on his face. Another man suddenly bounded around the table and tripped sending a kettle flying, Cheshire easily catching it with his tail.

 

"Good catch kitty-cat!" another man laughed.

 

Giving him a quick glance, Jeri realized that he also had a pair of rabbit ears on a head of blond hair, but they were a sandy brown as opposed to the other man's white ears.

 

"Oh, it looks like we have a visitor!" the rabbit man exclaimed with a broad smile.

 

Jeri bucked up her courage and walked forward.

 

"I… I was told… to come and find… the Hatter…" she stammered.

 

"The Hatter? Well you've come to the right place!" the rabbit man cheered with a smile.

 

"I… have?" she questioned, not sure if it was another trick.

 

"And what can the Hatter do for a beautiful young lady such as yourself?"

 

Jeri jumped and looked beside her. Not having noticed that there was a man sitting in the large-backed chair beside her, along with the fact that he was silent, he gave her quite a scare.

 

Due to her standing and him sitting, his large brimmed top hat was covering his face, but Jeri could see that although his clothes seemed to be high-end, they were greatly tattered and torn, his top hat having a small 3/4 card sticking out of a small ribbon around the base.

 

When Jeri didn't answer his question, he tilted his head so that she could see his face.

 

He had slightly pale skin, a couple black locks sticking out from under his hat and deep brown eyes that danced with silent laughter.

 

Remembering the man's questioned, she blinked a couple times and shook her head.

 

"Um… Cheshire said… that you could help me," she claimed, pointing to the grinning cat-boy.

 

"And what is it that you need help with?" he asked, motioning for her to sit in the seat next to him.

 

Jeri sat down and caught the Hatter looking down at her feet.

 

"It seems you ran into Dee and Dum," he sighed, reaching under the table.

 

"Dumb is right," she muttered.

 

The Hatter laughed and pulled out a pair of simple running shoes, offering them to her. Jeri took the shoes and did her best to brush the bottom of her feet off.

 

"Do they fit?" he asked as she slipped them on.

 

Jeri nodded, moving her toes around. Hatter smiled and rested his elbows on the table, lacing his fingers together and resting his chin on his fingers.

 

"Now, back to you needing help, because I'm assuming it wasn't your lack of footwear that was bothering you," he teased.

 

"No, I actually lost something really precious to me, and I had to come here to try to get it back. But I'm hopelessly lost and have no idea where to look," Jeri explained, feeling the other three watching the two of them.

 

"Something precious? May I ask what?" Hatter asked, intrigued.

 

"A ring my friend gave me," she answered.

 

"You're this upset about a ring?" the rabbit man asked with a raised eyebrow.

 

"It was a birthday present from him, and he moved away so I barely get to see him anymore," she shot back.

 

"It sounds to me that this boy is very special to you," Hatter spoke, a soft smile on his lips.

 

Jeri turned back to him and nodded with her own smile.

 

"I think she likes him~" Cheshire teased with his usual smirk.

 

"Oi! I do not!" Jeri barked, glaring over at him.

 

Cheshire simply smirked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

 

"Whatever your relationship may be, I cannot turn a blind eye to a pretty lady in need," Hatter claimed, standing from his seat.

 

"You'll help me look for it?" Jeri asked, her face brightening.

 

He smiled and Jeri jumped up from her chair and hugged him, Hatter laughing and giving her a one-armed hug back.

 

"Now gents, we have a ring to find," Hatter announced. "Dormouse, have you heard anything by any chance?"

 

Jeri's attention moved over to a sleeping form that she failed to notice before. He appeared even younger than Cheshire, but something told her that he actually wasn't. He had slightly messy brown hair with two small round ears nestled in his locks.

 

"I heard the Queen found something shiny, apparently it's her new treasure…" he mumbled, not lifting his head.

 

"Did you by chance hear where she found it?" Hatter added.

 

A soft snore came from Dormouse making Jeri chuckle and Hatter raise an eyebrow.

 

"I guess not…" he laughed.

 

"Well, what about talking to the Queen?" Jeri asked, looking up at Hatter.

 

"I'm afraid that's not possible, nor very wise…" he replied with a sad smile.

 

"Why not?"

 

"She may be the Queen of Hearts, but that doesn't mean she has one. She's a cruel ruler who only believes in her own salvation," Hatter explained.

 

"W-wait! Someone like that has my ring!?" Jeri yelped. "I have to go get it before she breaks it or something!"

 

"Are you insane?!" The rabbit man squeaked. "She'll have your head lopped off!"

 

"I promised Hangeng that I'd never take that ring off and now it's in the hands of some… barbaric over-lady! I'm getting it back whether you guys help or not!" Jeri barked, standing to march out of the courtyard.

 

Hatter quickly grasped her upper arm, stopping her and making her look up at him. He gave her a nod and a small smile, making a smile of her own grow onto her features.

 

"We'll need more than just the two of us however to storm the Castle of Hearts," Hatter claimed, looking over his shoulder to the rabbit man and Cheshire. "March, Chesh, would you mind rallying up some help?"

 

Cheshire gave his usual grin and disappeared while the Rabbit man, March, shrugged and bounded out of the courtyard.

 

"What about Dormouse?" Jeri asked, motioning to the sleeping man.

 

"He'll be there, now come along," Hatter replied, walking out of the courtyard.

 

Jeri gave him a confused look, but followed after him, leaving the sleeping man behind.

 

The two walked through the woods until they came back to the path, Hatter leading the way. Jeri had to admit, she was a little nervous. They had claimed that the Queen of Hearts was some type of tyrant who liked decapitating people if they weren't like her; what if she wouldn't give Jeri her ring back?

 

"Hatter?" she called. The man turned slightly, looking at her to continue. "What if… what if she… doesn't give back my ring. And do you really think we should storm a castle for it?" she asked.

 

Hatter laughed and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "If she won't give you your ring back, then you might have to challenge her for it; she may be tyrannical, but she's really just a coward hiding behind her guards. And we've been looking for a reason to storm the castle for years," he explained with a grin.

 

Jeri felt herself smile, not only feeling that she could trust his word, but feeling safe when he was close. She nodded and the two continued down the path.

 

After what seemed like an hour, Hatter lead her off of the path into a small clearing. In the distance, Jeri could see a large green wall made of vines.

 

"What is that?" she asked, looking up at her guide.

 

"The maze. It stretches out all around the castle acting like a mote. It's really easy to get lost…"

 

Jeri gave the man a panicked look making him chuckle.

 

"Don't worry, we'll find our way, I have faith in you," he claimed.

 

Before she could say anything, Hatter dashed off into the maze. Jeri scrambled after him, but by the time she entered the greenery, there was no sign of him.

 

"Hatter!" she yelled, aggravated.

 

When there was no reply, she groaned and continued walking, placing her right hand on the wall. There were moments when she heard a twig snap or murmured voices, but she never ran into anyone.

 

She turned another corner and came face to face with another boy. He looked around her age with dark auburn hair and brown eyes. He had a cute round face and his cheeks reminded her of small Mochi balls.

 

The boy's eyes widened and he quickly looked around and ran up to her. "You shouldn't be here, if you get caught by one of the other guards, they'll take you to the Queen for trespassing!" he hissed, shaking her by the shoulders.

 

"5C!"

 

The boy quickly spun around, grabbing Jeri and holding her against her back so that whoever it was couldn't see her. "Y-yes?"

 

"Keep patrolling! Just because you're a kid doesn't mean the Queen won't punish you for being lazy," a male voice scolded.

 

"Y-Yes sir!" the boy squeaked.

 

Jeri could hear footsteps walking away and felt the boy relax slightly and heard him sigh. He released her and Jeri gave him a sceptical look.

 

"Why did you help me if you're a guard for the Queen?" she asked.

 

"Just because I'm her guard doesn't mean I like her," he grumbled. "Look what she did to me!"

 

He pulled on his ear and leaned down slightly so that Jeri could see the large club earring decorating his lobe, a golden 5 etched into it.

 

"She pierced your ear?" Jeri guessed.

 

"No! She FORCED me to become one of her servants! I had a happy life, then she came and destroyed my town and turned half of us into slaves!" he cried.

 

Jeri's eyes softened and she looked back to his earring. "Why don't you just take it off?" she asked.

 

"I can't, only the Queen can… something about mechanics…" he mumbled.

 

Jeri gave him an apologetic look, but brightened when a thought came to her. "You… don't like the Queen?" she tested.

 

He quickly shook his head with a disgusted look making her laugh.

 

"I came here with a friend, and HIS friends are rounding up others who want to see the Queen overthrown, why don't you join us?" she offered.

 

5C's face brightened slightly, then dimmed. "But… what if we get caught?"

 

"You're a guard right?" 5C nodded. Jeri grinned and held out her wrists. "Then catch me."

 

He gave her a confused look for a couple seconds, then brightened, catching onto her plan. He pulled out some rope and loosely tied it to her wrists and brought her through the maze.

 

The two went through several twists and turns, and Jeri started wondering if her "guide" was actually as lost as she felt. She was just about to ask him this when they turned the corner and the castle stood right in front of them.

 

"Well, here it is…" 5C claimed.

 

He turned and gave her a wary look, Jeri only nodding. He gently tugged on the rope and began leading her into the castle, Jeri looking over her shoulder.

 

"I hope Hatter's alright…" she mumbled.

 

"Pardon?" 5C asked, looking back at her.

 

"Nothing," she claimed, shaking her head.

 

He simply shrugged and continued to lead her down the hall. Seeing an alcove off to the side, Jeri quickly pulled the two of them into it, motioning for 5C to take the ropes off of her wrist.

 

"Do you know any other people who aren't a fan of the Queen here? Anyone willing to rebel?" she asked as he untied.

 

"Yeah, 10S, 7D and 9D are just a couple that I know of, why?" he asked, slipping the ropes off of her.

 

"Tell them about the plan, and I need you to make sure that our reinforcements are able to get into the castle," she explained, rubbing her wrists.

 

"Who's getting into the castle?"

 

5C quickly jumped in front of Jeri and the girl froze, not even noticing the tall man sneak up on them. Her guard quickly relaxed and sighed, glaring at the newcomer.

 

"Jeez 10S, you scared the living daylights you of me!” he scolded.

 

"Sorry," the man apologized, giving his fellow guard a smile.

 

"Wait… did you say 10S?" Jeri asked, stepping out from her hiding spot.

 

"Yeah, Jeri, this is one of the people who I'm sure will help us," 5C claimed, motioning to the man.

 

10S was a tall, lanky man who seemed to be more leg than body. He had dark brown hair that fell slightly in his eyes and brown eyes that seemed to hold a smile behind them. Much like 5C, Jeri caught sight of a small Spade hanging on his ear with a 10 etched into it.

 

"What am I helping with…?" he asked, giving them a wary look.

 

"Knocking the Queen down a peg or fifteen," Jeri claimed.

 

10S instantly grinned and nodded making Jeri grin as well.

 

"Alright, you two go find some more rebels and I'll find the Queen," Jeri claimed, making her way down the hall.

 

"Just be careful of the Aces," 5C called out. "They're the Queen's finest."

 

Jeri nodded and continued down the hallway as the two guards ran in the opposite direction.

 

After what felt like nearly an hour, Jeri had to stop herself from walking right out in front of four heavily armoured guards standing in front of a set of large oak doors. Each guard had a helmet that covered their entire face with a black Spade, black Club, red Diamond or red Heart decorating the face area of the helmet. Inside each shape, was a runny red/black 'A'.

 

"Those must be the aces," Jeri assumed.  "5C said that they're dangerous, but how can they even see?"

 

Just as the words left , a loud crash came from the right, making the four turn their heads towards it. They seemed to communicate some way and the Club and Spade walked off towards the noise. Jeri huffed when she realized that she still had two guards to worry about.

 

"Ace! Ace!" a female voice called out.

 

The Diamond guard turned, but the Heart didn't so much as twitch. A young girl wearing the normal guard uniform ran up and gave them a worried look.

 

"There are intruders coming up the back way to the castle!" she reported in terror.

 

Both guards instantly stood straighter and walked towards the girl. She nodded and ran down the hall right passed Jeri. As she passed, not only did she catch sight of her Diamond earring with a 9 etched onto it, but she caught the smirk on her face as well.

 

Jeri grinned when they rounded the corner and dashed towards the now unprotected door. She was about to push it open when she heard a voice from the other side.

 

"So much racket out there! WhoEVER is making such dreadful noise had better be silent or I will silence them!"

 

Jeri shuddered, shying away from the door slightly. She jumped nearly three feet in the air when a hand was placed onto her shoulder. She swung around to see Hatter standing behind her.

 

"Where the heck have you been!?" she hissed.

 

"Had to make a detour," he replied, thumbing over to the end of the hall.

 

Jeri followed his gesture to see March standing behind them staring down at the Club and Spade Ace, eyebrow twitching. When one moved the slightest bit, he whacked them over the head with a frying pan, making a loud 'pang'. Jeri raised an eyebrow at this, turning her attention back to Hatter.

 

The man simply gave her a grin and a nod, motioning for her to open the door. Jeri turned and with a deep breath, pushed the doors open.

 

The Throne Room was obviously very large, covered in white and grey marble, from the floor to the tall columns to the ceiling. There were blood red drapes hanging in front of the tall windows with crimson seats under each one. A red carpet stretched from the door to the throne that stood at the back of the room.

 

"Is that her?" Jeri asked, seeing a figure sitting in the large plush chair.

 

Hatter simply nodded with a slight scowl.

 

"So, you must be the intruders," the Queen mocked, a smirk crawling onto her face.

 

She was a tall and elegant looking woman with pale skin. She wore what looked like a black and red Victorian wedding dress with lots of ruffles and long cuffs around the hands. She had long strawberry blond hair that was braided over her shoulder with red roses tangled through the braid and her face was covered with a decorative heart shaped mask.

 

"Is there a reason you disturbed me in my castle little pest?" she asked, sounding slightly disgusted.

 

Jeri flinched at being called a pest, feeling anger bubble in her gut. Just as she was about to retort, she noticed a glimmer on the Queen's right hand.

 

"Hatter she's wearing it!!" she cried, pointing towards the woman.

 

The Queen gave the two an offended look and looked down at her dress.

 

"Did you come all this way to disapprove of my wardrobe!? How dare you!!" She growled.

 

"Not your dress you tyrant, that ring!!" Jeri shouted back.

 

The Queen smirked and brought her right hand to her front to gaze at the item.

 

"Yes, lovely isn't it? The Ace of Hearts brought this back for me when they came back from patrol in the Mushroom Forest. I don't think I've ever seen a ring so suited for my finger," she mocked.

 

"It's not yours! Return the ring to Jeri!" Hatter shouted, stepping forward.

 

"Or what, Hatter? You'll make me a Wellington? I'm shaking," she shot back, her smirk growing.

 

Jeri noticed this and quickly swung around and ducked in time for a 2 of Spades to miss her with their sword.

 

"Guards! These trespassers have threatened your Queen! Off with their heads!!" she screeched, standing from her chair and pointing to the two.

 

The 2 of Spades raised their sword once again and Jeri dashed away, leaving Hatter with a 7 of Hearts. As the Queen's laughter rang through the room, more metallic footsteps entered the room, Jeri's head quickly turning towards the noise. A 10 of Diamonds and 5 of Hearts stood at the door, one holding March up by the ears and the other holding a very dented frying pan.

 

"The March Hare is their accomplice! Off with his head!!" The Queen ordered.

 

"NOOO!!" Jeri cried, running towards the two guards.

 

Just as the 10 of Diamonds raised their sword, a hand shot out and grabbed their wrist. The two guards turned in time to get a small bubble gun knocked against their helmets, knocking them out and dropping the Hare.

 

"Y-you…" Jeri mumbled, recognising the blond.

 

"You're late Caterpillar!" March Hare growled at the blond, dusting off his coat. "Jeri look out!"

 

She heard a 'pang' from behind her and quickly swung around to see the 2 of Spades falling to the floor.

 

"I dare say that beheading a pretty young lady such as yourself would be very unfortunate," the man grinned, twirling a cane around his finger.

 

"Dodo!" she cried with glee, hugging the man.

 

Another loud 'clang' sounded off to the side and Jeri turned to see that Cheshire was now standing beside Hatter, an unconscious 7 of Hearts on the ground. The girl turned to the Queen who looking a little panicked.

 

"Where are my Aces! ACES!!!! GUARDS!!! PROTECT YOUR QUEEN!!!" She screeched.

 

Just as the words left , a large group of guards ran into the room and formed a barricade between the group and the Queen, making her smirk.

 

"Jeri!"

 

The girl turned to see 5C run in with a group of other guards, no doubt rebels and even caught sight of the White Rabbit she had met in the Woods. Many of them were holding swords, passing them to the unarms allies in the room, Caterpillar taking six. 5C walked over and handed her a sword as well, the teen taking it gingerly.

 

"I… I've never used a sword before," she admitted, looking up at him.

 

"Well, there's no time like the present," he claimed.

 

Jeri nodded and stood beside her allies in a small line against the Queen's guards.

 

No-one moved for a couple seconds until March Hare somehow got his hands on an iron kettle and chucked it at one of the guards, it knocking them out with a painful 'pang'.

 

The two small armies clashed and Jeri did her best to knock her foes out, her eyes trained on the Queen's right hand.

 

She managed to find a small hole in the Queen's army and dashed through it, raising her sword as she got closer to the Throne. Just as she was nearing the steps, a sword connected with hers, forcing her to jump back.

 

"You're late!!" The Queen barked.

 

The Ace of Hearts bowed their head slightly and raised their sword higher, a challenge to Jeri.

 

Jeri's grip on her sword tightened and with a roar, she charged forward, the Ace easily blocking her attack and pushing her back. She came at them again and managed to twist her sword so that it caught the side of their helmet. However, they managed to twist their own sword, knocking hers out of her hand.

 

"Good! Now, off with her head!!" The Queen ordered.

 

Jeri froze as the Ace raised their sword above their head, ready to strike. She clenched her eyes shut and turned away, mentally preparing herself for the blow.

 

"What are you doing!?!" The Queen screeched.

 

Jeri's eyes slowly opened to see that the Ace had lowered their sword. She gave them a baffled look, especially when they reached up and slid their hand under their helmet. The Heart helmet came off and they dropped it to the ground, Jeri's eyes widening when she saw the face behind it.

 

"D….Daddy?" she squeaked.

 

The man's eyes softened and he bowed his head. Rather than saying anything, he simply turned to the side allowing Jeri access to the Throne steps. She instantly bolted up them to a now panicking Queen.

 

"Ace!! ACE!!!!!" She screamed as the teen got closer.

 

"Shut. UP!" Jeri  roared.

 

Bringing her fist forward, it connected with the Queen's cheek, the Heart mask falling off of her face.

 

"Now give me back my-!"

 

Jeri was interrupted when the Queen backhanded her across the face, the sound seeming to resonate through the Throne Room. Jeri slowly turned back to the Queen as she stood.

 

Now that the mask was gone, Jeri could clearly see her face. Her face was nearly completely covered in make-up; her cheeks dusted with a light pink, her lips a bloody red, and eyeshadow that nearly touched her forehead. And for the first time since Jeri had arrived in this strange place, she met someone who did NOT have brown eyes.

 

"No….. not you…" she whimpered.

 

"You DARE to even lay a finger on me you pest," the Queen growled.

 

Jeri's body began to quake as her eyes stayed trained on the woman's face. The Queen noticed this and firmly pushed the girl's shoulder, making her teeter backwards.

 

With a shriek, she fell down the steps, her back landing hard on the marble floor. Jeri raised her head to see the Queen slowly descending the stairs, an evil glint in her eyes as she pulled a dagger out from her dress. Jeri scuttled backwards on her elbows away from the woman, fear laced in her eyes, making the Queen smirk.

 

"Jeri!"

 

Just like in the action movies that her brother loved so much, time seemed to slow down.

 

The Queen lunged forward as Jeri turned to the side. She raised her hand in time to catch a short sword and in an attempt to defend herself, brought the sword in between herself and the Queen.

 

The Queen's eyes widened as much as Jeri's did, the teen's face having small droplets of blood on her cheek. Jeri slowly moved the short sword to the side and the Queen's punctured body fell to the ground with a lifeless 'thump'.

 

"Jeri! Are you alright?" Hatter asked, sliding to the floor beside her in worry.

 

Jeri slowly nodded, not taking her eyes away from the Queen's body. 5C came over and toed the body warily, as if she'd jump up and slash at him with her dagger.

 

"She's dead…" he reported, sounding shocked.

 

Everyone looked over to Jeri the girl's eyes still wide with shock.

 

The Caterpillar came forward with a chuckle, knelt down next to the Queen's body and slid the ring off of her right hand, wiping the drops of blood off on his torn pants. He walked towards Jeri and offered it to the girl.

 

"You have chosen the correct path," he reported with a smirk.

 

Jeri gave him a puzzled look, but took the ring from one of his many hands. She smiled and hugged it to her chest, slipping it onto her finger.

 

"I'm glad you got it back," Hatter said, patting her head with a smile. "This Hangeng must be very important to you."

 

"Yeah. And I don't know why… but… you kind of remind me of him…" she claimed.

 

Hatter gave her a quizzical look making her laugh.

 

"The Bloody Red Queen is dead!" someone cheered.

 

"We're finally free!" another added.

 

"Three cheers for Jeri!"

 

Everyone cheered and Jeri laughed as Hatter helped her off of the floor. She squeaked in surprise when he lifted her up onto his shoulder and began parading her around the room, everyone crowding around to cheer for her.

 

"Jeri! Jeri! Jeri! Jeri!"

 

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

 

"Jeri. Jeeerriiii~~. Jeri!"

 

The girl's eyes slowly opened and she lifted her head slightly to see Kyuhyun looming over her.

 

"Mmm… Kyutie?" she mumbled, lifting her head more.

 

"Hey, you fell asleep while we were filming, you OK?" he asked, patting her back.

 

"Yeah… I'm just tired," she replied, rubbing her eyes.  "Did you cause trouble for me?"

 

The maknae gave her a cat-like grin making Jeri laugh and he helped her stand up. Before she could go anywhere, someone grabbed her and swung her up into their arms, making her jump slightly.

 

"Neeerrr! Georgie~, put me doooown~!" she whined, pushing against him.

 

"I have to make sure my baby sister is nice and warm after her nap!" he stated with a smile, holding her tighter.

 

Jeri groaned but gave up, resting her head against his chest. Her eyes shot open when she felt something slide off of her feet.

 

"YA!! Donghae gimme back my shoes!!" she yelled as the man ran off with a grin.

 

The others laughed as he held one to his chest like they were a national treasure, Eunhyuk now holding the other and Jeri pouted.

 

"Aww, now look what you did! You made Jeri sad!" Sungmin scolded the younger man.

Jeri continued to pout and crossed her arms over her chest, making Leeteuk laugh. As some of the others scolded Donghae for stealing her shoes, Jeri brought her hand up to her front and unconsciously began spinning the ring around her finger.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I wanted to update before I go for my sugery tomorrow as I expect I won't be writing or editing or anything really until I'm all recovered so here you go guys~ I'll see you all again in the next chapter~!

Thank you for subscribing and following along with me as I attempt to bring you an even greater experience with Jeri and the gang~!

Thank you to all subscribers as well as silent readers, and a special thanks to arandomperson, iheartbts, FixRate, DolphinWorld and Arashi93 for upvoting~!