Chapter 9

"Which way do we go?" I ask.
   "Southwest," March Hare says promptly. I take out my compass and lead the way. I hope Old Man Time is not far at all. Time is ticking. Trea is in danger.
   "Does any one know what the Jabberwalky looks like?"
   "No. If we seen it, we'd be dead."
   "THAT"S reassuring," I say. That's why Mr. Dodo said he is likely to die. I pick up the pace.
   "Careful, Alyssa. You don't want to tire out. That wouldn't do you any good, you know."
   "I know that, ok? I just want to hurry so that I can be on my way to rescue Trea!" I say indignantly. March Hare seems taken aback by my sharp attitude towards him. "I'm sorry. I couldn't sleep well last night. I don't mean to be angry at you. I'm angry with this whole situation." I hear a rustle in the leaves.
   "I know, Alyssa." I hope that was nothing more than the wind.
   "I'd like to sing an old favorite song," Chess says.
   "Go right ahead. It won't do me a bit of difference," I say.
   "Twinkle, Twinkle little bat-" then boys join in immediately.
   "How I wonder where you're at-" March Hare picks up here.
   "Up above the world so high,
    Like a tea tray in the sky,
    Twinkle, twinkle, twink-
    -le twinkle-" and they drone on and on, in the Dimmerland nursery rhyme. Tea Tray. Trea. I'm sure that is one of his favorites, too. Tray. Trea. Same sounds, very different meanings and spellings.

I hear that rustle again. I stop dead in my tracks.
March Hare stops singing. "Alyssa, what is wrong?"
"Shh..." I hiss. "Do you hear that?"
They all stop singing. I strain my ears. I feel goosebumps on my head and neck. "Bandersnatch! Run!" I shout. I don't know what made me say it. I don't know how I know. I've never seen it. I only read a brief mention of it in Carrol's book. And that was in the poem of the Jabberwalk and the Vorpol sword! I look back. Large and clumsy in looks. Yet it some how runs quite agile. Much like a bear, swifter than a leopard. Which reminds me: why I am I looking behind me when I should be moving forward?

I turn back around to the direction I'm supposed to be going. We were heading this way, right? Where are the others? This time, I dare not look back. My heart is pounding. The Bandersnatch is coming close behind me, I can hear the laboring in its breathing... I think. Which is too close. I have to escape it. I need to escape it. I need to find old man time. I have to save Trea. I must kill the Bandersnatch. The revelation of that being the only way of escape terrifies me. And strengthens me. A Bandersnatch is not near as dangerous as the Jabberwalk. And yet... this is quite dangerous enough. Isn't it? I have to get out of sight... regroup... Oh. There are trees and sticks and rocks. Oh, how can I do anything worthwhile to the Bandersnatch with it chasing- hmmm...

There is a tree coming close. The Bandersnatch runs on four... A limb slightly higher than it might rear, but low enough that I might make it up... I jump and grab hold of the branch. With any luck, I'd be able to swing myself to the top of the branch before the Bandersnatch snatches me up. or down. or- WHY DO I CARE?!? My weight swings as I hang, using momentum. Trying not to think of death. "Trea..." I whisper. My leg catches the top of the branch. I hold on dearly as I swing my other leg precariously over the branch. The Bandersnatch passes under. oops. Stupid me. I wrap one leg around the branch and use both to pull me up so that I straddle the branch like a cowgirl on a horse. The Bandersnatch has turned around and is headed straight for me again. I scooch to the base of the limb, which is unfortunately lower than the branch is. I wrap both arms around the trunk of the tree to secure myself as I attempt to stand upright. I can barely keep my balance. "Shun the frumious Bandersnatch..." Should I really just... ignore it? Well... Things in Dimmerland certainly IS different than Earth. May as well give it a try. Right? Ugh. I'm talking to myself, aren't I?

But that's what I ought to do. Ok, I'll say the alphabet backwards. "z, y, x, w, v, u," the Bandersnatch growls. "t, s, r, q, p" It scratches at the trunk. "o, n, m, l, k, j," it sounds like the Bandersnatch is suffocating. "I, h, g, f, e," the sounds are as though they are disappearing. "d, c, b, and a." I open my eyes. All is clear. Its as though it never happened. How is that possible? My hand goes to the top of my head from pure astonishment. And I feel the hat. I feel a small grin form and nod my head. "one less thing for me to worry about, Trea. One less thing," I whisper. I take out the compass I put in my pocket. South west is where I am to go, so south west is where they will find me. I hope to find the rest of the group there. But I will not wait if they aren't. I have some one I need to rescue, and his name is Trea.

I put one foot in front of the other. I think of a million things at once. The Bandersnatch. The Jabberwalk. Trea. Old Man Time. March Hare. Trea. Chess. Salandra. Tweedles. Trea. The things around me. And Trea. No matter what I set to think about, my mind always circle back to Trea. Not that I want to, but why can't I get Trea off of my mind? Wow, that's a stupid question to ask. Especially to myself. A better question to ask is why does Chess keep calling me queen and majesty? That makes no sense! I haven't been here for more than, what,2? 3 days? Has it really only been that short of time? It seems like I've been here nearly my whole life! Not that I don't want it that way.

"Who are you?" I whip around, trying to find the source of the voice.
   "Where are you?" I ask, heart speeding up.
   "I asked the first question, which you are to answer." I look up, but I see no one. "The question was: Who are you?"
   "I am Alyssa," I say, still trying to find the speaker. "Now I get to ask the second question: Where are you?"
   "Where I am does not matter as much as where I am going." Where is that confounded person!?
   "Sir, that does not answer my question. Where are you?"
   "when you first asked the question, I was behind you. Then you asked again, and I was on your left, besides you."
   "That does not answer the question sir. Where are you NOW?"
   "At this moment I am going forward, towards you, so that you may see me. Stand still and I will come into your line of sight." Ok, whoever this person is is driving me crazy.
   "Then who are you?" I ask, exasperated. I don't think that even Chess is ever as annoying as this.
   "Old Man Time."

All that searching, looking for Old Man Time... and he is suddenly right here, as though he went looking for me. Finally, Old Man Time comes into sight, but he is too far away to make out. "Sir, may I come closer? I cannot see you well."
   "You may. But you won't like what you see." My heart beats heavily. What do I do? He says I won't like it. Is he deformed? Can't be worse than what I've seen so far. I walk steadfastly towards Old Man Time. I am not a coward. And I have delt with things that I don't come close to liking. I'm sure I can handle this.

Old Man Time walks towards me now. He is no longer a speck in the distance, he takes the shape of a man. Ok, I can handle that. Not an animal like Salandra or Chess. I keep walking towards him. "Why have you befriended me, Time?" I ask.
   "Because you are a good and special friend of Hatter."
   "But then why have you been giving me dreams before I met him? I hadn't even heard of you before I met him!" My heart stops as I see the color of his hair. Red. I try to breath and walk normal.
   "Because for time, there is no before or after. All is now. You may as well have met Trea." I do not scold him for using the forbidden name. I can't. For his hair is red and his eyes are green. He is Trea.
   "How is it that you are here?" I ask. "I thought the Jabberwalk had you!"
   "Trea is with the Jabberwalk." It sounds so strange for Trea to refer to himself in such a way. As though it isn't him.
   "How can that be?"
   "I am not Trea. I am preparing you for when you meet the Jabberwalk."
   "But Trea is not the Jabberwalk!" The distance between Trea and I has closed. My heart aches at the sight of Trea.
   "You are right. But the Jabberwalk could be him."
   "How can that be?"
   "The Jabberwalk will take on your greatest fears, and your greatest weaknesses."
   "Tell me, then. Why is it that you have given me the dream. The re-occurring one of the Jabberwalk and a kingdom."
   "I was trying to prepare you."
   "For what?"
   "The Jabberwalky."
   "I don't get it. Why am I always a queen in the dreams?" something clicks. "Why does Cheshire Cat keep calling me queen and majesty?"
   "Because... Trea is a king." The words are like noise. They don't make sense.
   "Excuse me, sir? A king?"
   "Yes. That would make you..." he trails off, as though expecting me to finish the sentence.
   "No. I am NOT Queen." I can't be Queen. He can't be King. "How can he be King?!"
   "In Underland, the royalty are indistinguishable from the commoners so that they can see better how to rule the kingdom. They are not rich, but neither are they poor." Tears well in my eyes, a lump grows in my throat.
   "Why is it, then..." I can't finish the sentence.
   "That he chose you?" I put my head down.
   "I am nothing special. So why me?"
   "He has told you before that he is friends with me."
   "Yes, he has."
   "Everyone has their own Jabberwalk to fight, girl. He had a weakness. And he knew he had to face it. He came to me to find out what it was." I look down, not willing to hear what I know he is going to say. "I did to him as I did to you. I appeared as his greatest weakness:" oh please don't say it. I will not be able to handle myself. "You."
   "Tell me you're lying! You're lying! Tell me that you are!" Tears run down my cheeks.
   "For you and for him, this was before you met. He has already done away with his Jabberwalk." This can't be true. This can't be true! "It is time you rid yours."
   "But the Jabberwalk has Trea in custody! How can I tell which one is which?!"
   "Your greatest weakness is also your greatest strength. You will know."
   "But-"
   "Your friends are here. Go on your way."
   "But-" he dissappears. The only sight of Trea dissappears. I collapse. "OH! Time, You confouded thing!" I sob. He has left and he took Trea with him. How can Time be so cruel?

Footsteps approach. I wipe my eyes. It is the sound of many footsteps. I take a deep breath and stand up. "I see that you have met Old Man Time," a gruff and coy voice says from behind me. I take another deep breath.
   "Yes I have, and I shall not hear or speak of him ever again," I say.
   "Why not?"
   "She said we aren't to speak of him!" March Hare says, scolding Chess.
   "Because," I say, "He might be a friend of Hatters, but he is no friend of mine."
   "But, he-"
   "CHESS!" March Hare shouts. "Can't you see that she is hurting?" Turning his attention towards me he asks, "Alyssa, did you find out what you needed to know?"
   "I found out about the Jabberwalk and his attack methods. Discovered that everyone has their own Jabberwalks to face."
   "and the dreams?"
   "Not discussing it."
   "Here," March Hare says, "Take the Vorpol Sword back. You need it far more than I do." I take it diligently in hand. I need to fashion a way to carry it without holding it in hand. 'beware the Jabberwalk, my son, the jaws that bite, the claws that catch...' how can he appear as Trea and still have those qualities? My mind is going a million miles an hour. I can't think about what is in front of me. Trea is king? Trea is king. And I... I am Queen? No, I cannot wrap my mind around that. How can I? It is not possible. But, even old man time said he chose me. But I am his greatest weakness. Did his Jabberwalk come back after he met me for real? Chess has been leading the way to the Jabberwalk. How...? Why...? Why does Time have to appear to me as Trea? It is such a cruel thing to do. But he did the same to Trea, and yet Trea is still Time's friend... Or at least, considers Time to be his friend. I look up in exasperation. Why does everything have to be so difficult?