Footsteps pranced into the room and guilt took slumber’s place.

“You can’t sit here all day you know. At least let me clean this place up. I can still smell the kimchi where she dropped it yesterday.”

“I could practically see her heart break when the jar did. Better get the daisy vase too. She threw quite a fit at him.”

~~~

The large oak towered on a hill, providing a grand overlook of Wonderland. It was mostly forested valley, the lush growth thick enough to conceal whatever mysteries it held. On the other side of the valley, a towering red castle rose arrogantly out of the hillside and clashed with the greenery. Tao and Kyungsoo hiked a winding path up the hill.

“The King has banned that color outside of his palace,” Kyungsoo quoted Chanyeol through ragged breaths, taking in the landscape.

“What? Oh yes. The King is a greedy man. He hoards riches, servants, and has even gone so far as to hoard an entire color for himself,” Tao scoffed.

“I still don’t understand.”

“Nobody does, but everyone obeys his command, otherwise,” Tao made a cutting motion with his finger on his neck, “It’s ‘off with your head.’ If you’re particularly unlucky, you’re thrown to the Do-Do birds.”

Kyungsoo shuddered and hoped he never had the misfortune to experience either.

“The kid wasn’t always like this,” Tao muttered, but the words were lost in his panting breath and the windy afternoon.

At a closer distance, Kyungsoo noticed the oak was actually a home, with a door in the trunk and quaint little windows carved into the branches. Set up in the front was an elongated table with a lace cloth and kitschy wooden chairs around it. It was bare of company and food, but a large, steaming tea kettle stood in the center. Tao gave three solid knocks on the door before turning to look at Kyungsoo.

“I have to go now. The Hatter and I don’t exactly…get along. But I have a hunch he’ll like you. Just call for me whenever you’re ready to go, alright?” And with this brief goodbye, Tao disappeared into the air. Kyungsoo cursed to himself under his breath. He had no idea what kind of character the Hatter was, and wasn’t sure if he could last long without his new friend’s guidance.

The door creaked open, and Kyungsoo caught sight of a young man. His hair was chestnut brown, and a pair of long, floppy ears stuck out.

“Are you here for tea? It doesn’t start until later,” the man asked, his voice thin and high with a slight gravel to it. The prominent cheekbones and friendly vibe made Kyungsoo wonder if they had already met before.

“N-no, that’s not what I came here for. I’m looking for…” Kyungsoo became silent when something behind the man captured his gaze. On the coat rack in the hallway sat a lone black hat. The man in the doorway noticed Kyungsoo’s shift in attention, and he turned around to see what had distracted him.

“Ah, the Hatter?” Kyungsoo nodded. He still couldn’t shake his feelings of déjà vu.

“Well come on in! You look spooked stiff, you could almost be a statue. Come inside,” he beckoned. Kyungsoo followed him inside, and the man closed the door behind them.

“By the way, you can call me Chen. Technically I’m the March Hare, but we don’t exactly follow the King’s rules in this house…”

“Um, I’m Alice. I-I mean Kyungsoo,” Kyungsoo spat out the first name that came to his mind, and the tips of his ears turned red. Jongdae chuckled at him, and Kyungsoo tried to recall where he had heard the name before.

“There’s no need to be so jumpy, it’s like you’re a child separated from their mother.” So I guess Tao is my mother now.

“But at any rate, can I get you something to drink? Tea, perhaps? My treat.” Kyungsoo accepted the offer politely.

While Kyungsoo sat in the living room, awaiting Jongdae and his cup of tea, a man in a white, button-up shirt walked casually down the stairs, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his pants. Kyungsoo silently observed him as he made his way over to the coat rack. His heart began to hammer when tan, slim fingers reached for the hat, and lazily tipped it onto a dark mop of hair. Kyungsoo stood straight up, and the sudden movement attracted the man’s attention.

 “Oh Hatter, there you are! Someone’s here to see you, says his name’s Kyungsoo,” Jongdae chirped upon entering the room.

“Is that so?” Kyungsoo had no doubt of the man’s identity as soon as the deep voice left his full lips.

“Care to join me on my stroll? Then we can talk,” the Hatter held his hand out with an awkward but strangely endearing smile.

“Oh, but wouldn’t you care to have some tea first?” Jongdae asked. The Hatter shook his head and brushed past him, Kyungsoo following his lead.

They made their way down the hillside, a strange sense of familiarity still washing over the smaller man. They entered the woods, quiet with morning, the rising sun shining through the trees.

“So, how exactly did you get here?” the Hatter asked, his tone and expression unreadable.

“Um, I don’t quite remember. Tao dropped me off, said that you had a way to get me out of…here,” Kyungsoo said, and for a moment the man’s expression faltered into an emotion he couldn’t place.

They didn’t enjoy the peaceful woods for long, as the same hand pressed over his mouth, and he was pulled into the shelter of a tree hollow.

“, I didn’t think they would catch on to you this quickly,” the Hatter breathed into Kyungsoo’s ear as he wriggled about in a panic. The faint galloping of hooves echoed through the grove, and from outside the burrow, he could see a group of white horses harnessed in red.

“We just saw them a minute ago, where did they go?” one of the horsemen exclaimed.

“If we don’t have him by the end of the day, we won’t have our heads either,” another one sighed.

Kyungsoo stilled, and the hand dropped from his mouth as he comprehended the situation. The sound of hooves and metal faded further down the trail. The two looked at each other. Kyungsoo could feel the Hatter’s heart hammering against his back.

“H-he’s after me…” Kyungsoo breathed. The Hatter could only nod back, his eyes nearly the size of Kyungsoo’s.

“And when the king wants something, he gets it.”

“Hatter, what kind of a person is the king? Have you ever met him?” The Hatter’s features became stony.

“I guess you could say we have.”

“What kind of a person is he? Do you think he sees me as a threat? What’s going to happen?”

“I suppose he does. Don’t worry your pretty head over any of it. I’ll make sure he never gets a hold of you.” The Hatter twisted a finger around a lock of Kyungsoo’s hair, who mockingly smacked him and scoffed.

“My pretty head? What am I, a girl?”

“I don’t know, you tell me, Alice.”

“Y-you heard that? Look, my name is Kyungsoo, alright. Do. Kyung. Soo.”

“Of course it is.”

“Then, what’s your name? Pretty sure you didn’t come into this world with a hat on your head.”

“Jongin. Kim. Jong. In. No blood relation to Kim Jongdae.”

“Well, Kim Jongin, do you always pull guys you’ve just met into dark secluded places and try to feel them up?”

“I-I was not feeling you up, I’m just protecting you,” Jongin pushed him away, his face a shade that would have upset the king. Kyungsoo chuckled at him.

“And I’m sure that’s why you practically nibbled on my ear.”

“We need to get back to my house while it’s safe.” And Jongin began a mad dash through the woods before Kyungsoo could get another look at his face.

“You two are sure back awfully soon,” Jongdae commented as the two men burst through the door in a panting mess, both breathless and red. He appeared to have been waiting for them, sipping his tea next to Kyungsoo’s cooled cup.

“It’s the king,” Jongin blurted out. Jongdae rose from the chair, his expression darkening.

“Oh no, they’ve caught onto him already?” Jongin nodded.

“Look, Kyungsoo, I think it’s safer if you stay here with us,” he offered. It didn’t take much for Kyungsoo’s immediate agreement.

“Well, since you’re staying overnight anyways,” Jongdae smirked, “I hope you like tea.”

~~~

Kyungsoo sat up in bed, poring over a random book in one of the Hatter’s white nightgowns. He felt a bit silly wearing such a feminine and old-fashioned garment, but he was starting to grow fond of the Victorian-esque clothes that people wore here. He didn’t care to admit it, but he liked how the quilts he tightly cocooned himself in smelled faintly of Jongin. He kept his racing mind busy with reading while the rest of the house slept.

Or, so he thought they were, until a wild-eyed Hatter burst through the door. He was clad in a similar outfit to before, this time in a dark wine-colored fabric. Kyungsoo hollered and threw the covers off.

“H-Hatter, why are you up? Do you know what time it is?” Kyungsoo stammered.

“Why am I up? Do you know whose house you’re at?” Jongin chuckled.

“P-pardon?”

“You can’t expect to stay in the Grand Oak without attending at least one of its tea parties. Before Kyungsoo could question further, clothes were tossed in his face.

“Put these on, and meet us downstairs,” Jongin beamed, and with a slam of the door, left as suddenly as he had arrived. Kyungsoo blinked down at the clothes in his lap; white pants, a pale blue trench coat, and a bowler hat to match.

“What am I, his wife? Why does he keep dressing me,” Kyungsoo emptily complained and donned the attire. He inspected himself in the mirror, and for once appreciated his youthful appearance that usually had him carded and embarrassed. He smiled, and set off to see what kind of teatime celebration could be held in the middle of the night.

A stair step creaked beneath his foot, and the faces of the Hatter and the Hare turned to look, one gaze notably more attentive than the other.

“Wow, Kyungsoo, you look fantastic! Like it was made just for you,” Jongdae chirped, only to be elbowed in the side by the Hatter.

“You idiot, you’re the one who sewed it together,” Jongin scorned. Jongdae beamed at his handiwork, and Jongin also seemed to be quite appreciative in his own way.

“Well, we shouldn’t keep the guests waiting any longer; it would be a pretty pathetic move on our part if the kettle cools.” Jongdae opened the door, and the three men walked outside. The rich smell of meats and desserts permeated the chilly night air. The brassy kettle shone a proud bronze, illuminated by the light from the house and various lanterns decorating the table.

“Speaking of pathetic moves, Kyungsoo, it’s best to decline tea from the Hare outside of tea parties. It’s usually spiked with laxatives. Good thing I showed up when I did earlier,” Jongin muttered into his ear. Kyungsoo shot a nasty look at the back of Jongdae’s head.

Seated around the table were twenty-five or so guests, the occasional tail or ears. Jongin took a seat at the head of the table. Next to him was a seat for Kyungsoo, his name carefully spelled out as…

“Alice?!” Kyungsoo sputtered.

“Further evidence that the Hare’s a bit of what you would call a troll,” Jongin remarked, earning a scoff a bit further down the table from a guest that actually was a troll. Kyungsoo leaned on the table cloth and drummed his fingers nervously, surveying the scene. The table brimmed with guests and a contagious air of festivity. The chairs at the other end were empty, save for a thick cloud of light pink smoke. Kyungsoo could barely make out the outline of a man within it.

“Caterpillar, I’m telling you, if you don’t stop smoking at our parties, this one will be your last,” Kyungsoo could hear Jongdae reprimanding this “caterpillar,” or at least yelling at him.

“You say that to me at each party, but invite me every time, so whose fault is it? I’m not even sorry one bit,” an airy voice breathed. Jongdae stormed back to the other side in defeat, cursing in what he probably thought was under his breath. A late night gust cleared the smoke, revealing a rather attractive man puffing on a wooden pipe.

“And that would be the smoking Caterpillar, or Joonmyeon. I actually have no idea why he calls himself that, aside from the tattoo on his wrist. On his other wrist is a butterfly. He has some sort of badass philosophical story to it that he tells everyone. But I think he’s just smoked up.” Kyungsoo laughed with the Hatter, but couldn’t help but feel, the longer he stared at the Caterpillar, that he uncannily knew him.

The two empty seats on Kyungsoo’s left were claimed.

“Oh, hello there again!” the pointy-eared man grinned and waved at Kyungsoo like he was fifty feet away and not two.

“You seem to be acquainted with the Hatter. Curious, you were giving off a totally foreign vibe earlier,” Kris remarked in his usual aloofness.

A little further down the table, Jongdae chatted with an orange-haired man. He had ears on top of his head like Jongdae’s, but unlike his, they were white and stuck straight out. His face was young, but had a certain twitchiness that gave him an older look.

“That’s the Hare’s cousin, the White Rabbit. He’s actually on time for once. He’s always rushing around and missing his appointments. Jongdae calls him Minseok when he’s at our house,” Jongin explained, after looking to see who Kyungsoo was staring at.

Jongin had just finished divulging information on each of the party guests to Kyungsoo, when Jongdae ceased conversing with Minseok and climbed onto the table.

“Hello! It’s nice to see you all here as usual!” He addressed the guests, his back to the other end of the table where Joonmyeon puffed away.

“Now, we have a special guest here with us tonight! His name is Alice. He makes a living raising the Do-Do birds at the castle! Let’s give him a warm welcome!”

Jongdae gestured towards the head of the table, and the colorful guests turned to clap politely at a flustered Kyungsoo. Jongdae took his seat at the head of the table with a quiet, “It’s for your own good.”

The king was now looking everywhere for an intruder by the name of Kyungsoo, and who knew who was at that table? To that thought, he gave Jongdae a small smile of appreciation.

The party settled into lively interaction. The Tweedles had the occasional food fight, with Chanyeol chucking his bread rolls at an irritated Kris. Jongdae introduced Minseok to Kyungsoo, and they fell into a cheerful conversation about cooking kimchi spaghetti. At times, a light gust of nighttime wind would clear the smoke, and a spiteful gaze pierced Kyungsoo’s bubble of safety. Everyone was full on exotic teas and heavenly sweets, and having the times of their lives. Joonmyeon stood up in his chair.

Everyone watched as he pointed his pipe into the air and pushed on a trigger. A bright flare of light whistled into the sky.

“Caterpillar! What do you think you’re doing?! And why the hell is it red?” yelled Jongdae. From the edge of the woods came a horse’s whinny.