Alice's Heart : The Taste of That Betrayal

"Zoe! Where's Zoe?" Sebastian stopped right at a large fence separating the woods towards the hill and the way where they had stopped. It was the environmental boundary between the wild and the realm for humans. He scanned the servants who had bowed to him. It made it much easier for him to spot where Zoe was standing. A perfectly formed smirk appeared on his face after he found Zoe right under his capture. The woman then walked over to him and looked down. "Did you take Alice with you?"

Zoe nodded hesitantly. She glanced over at where Alice was standing, the woman clearly looked confused as to why they had suddenly stopped halfway when the hill was still out of sight.

"Get her here,"

"I will," Zoe squeezed her eyes shut for a moment then walked unsteadily toward Alice. Would she be able to sacrifice her own best friend for a creature that she couldn't even imagine how terrifying its form was? She knew the fact that Alice was 'Princess Alice' in the book, but still, she couldn't bear the misfortune bestowed upon Alice.

Alice was still flabbergasted by the sight presented before her. She clearly felt comfortable standing in that place, even though her logic told her that the place looked so terrifying. It was silent and seemed to be hiding something dark within. Her eyes shifted when she saw Zoe walking towards her blankly.

"Sebastian wants to talk to you,"

"No," replied Alice quickly. She didn't want to talk to Sebastian after what happened. How could he still have the nerves to talk to her after what just happened?

"Alice, please don't get me in trouble. Just go and see him for a bit," pleaded Zoe with the bad feeling she was trying to push away. She tried not to look Alice straight in the eye; unable to cope with reality. Her breathing grew heavier, inwardly pleading for Alice to give in and just obey- because in a matter of seconds she couldn't keep her mouth shut any longer not to tell her to run away from the scene.

Alice frowned at how Zoe had overreacted that day, unlike usual. She sounded like she was begging. "Alright, but remember, I'm doing this because of you. Not because of him,"

Zoe held her breath in her throat as she watched Alice walk away from her towards Sebastian. Alice's every move echoed how she would never return to her head. Has she made a mistake by allowing that to happen?

Alice, who knew nothing about it walked without feeling the slightest burden. She finally arrived before Sebastian with the cold expression she wore. Her gaze was like a dagger ready to draw at him.

Sebastian could feel Alice's fury aura on him, it was filled with disappointment mixed with anger. Clearing his throat, he tried to show that he was in control in her presence. "Hold my hand,"

"Are you crazy?" Alice narrowed her eyes in disbelief at what she heard.

The servants couldn't help, but stare at the scene. Sebastian had just been indirectly called crazy by Alice, even seemed to be rejected.

"You're mad at me, I got it. But it's for your safety, just follow my orders." Sebastian groaned in annoyance- making a note to himself that Alice's stubbornness would never change. She could be as hard as a rock when what she heard contradicted what she expected. "And Alice, you seem to have forgotten what I've been telling you since the first time we met. I don't come on a good line with rejection,"

Alice gritted her teeth, taking her eyes off Sebastian's bloodshot eyes which when he got angry they would flare up and turn dark like rubies. A second later her hand was grasped by something cold, but soft. His hand was already gripping hers, tightly, as if he knew she could slip away at any moment. They continued their way through the gate towards the hill.

In between their walk, Sebastian asked in a low voice; almost like a whisper. His eyes scanned their surroundings carefully. "Are you afraid of the scenery around you?"

The forest looked neglected and almost untouched by humans. The leaves on every tree that grew even seemed to wither and fall. The billowing fog didn't allow them to see the sky even a bit. But since earlier Alice had no definite expression on her face as they deepened into the forest. "No, I am just wondering why there are no wild animals in this forest. I used to think wild animals lived here,"

"It's true, Alice. They really live here," Sebastian answered shortly. He pulled out his sword then pushed Alice to stand behind him. "Everyone take a step back and be careful!"

Just as they were talking about it, two panthers came up to them. Alice tiptoed, trying to see the shape of them over Sebastian's shoulder. Her lips parted a moment later to discover that their forms were not as common as those described in school. It was the first time she had seen an animal that could stand up like a human. It was then she realized that what they had encountered was not just an animal. They had fluffy white hair. Their two long fangs towered past their mouths. Both of them wore a lot of shiny jewelry to cover their lower parts. "What are they, Sebastian? Are they-"

"You see this isn't the time for an explanation," Sebastian interrupted Alice before she could ask any further, his eyes fixed on the enemy in front of them.

"So that day has finally come..." said one of the panthers in human form. "... I can smell the princess's awakening. She's around here. Her smell is so strong like jasmine,"

"I wonder which one she is out of the many ladies you have brought, Silas."

"Shut up!" Sebastian cut them with a harsh glare. They had cheated by using their magical powers to drain away his power. His legs slowly felt weak like he was about to collapse in a few minutes, but he kept trying to be strong. Someone had to protect Alice. He quickly unleashed his skill, slashing his sword at the first panther. But the unnamed panther managed to dodge it and swiftly raised its sharp claws that turned into iron with deadly sharp tips.

Alice was getting more and more clueless about their conversation, but it intrigued her to find out more. "Silas?" In the midst of her confusion, someone pulled her hand away from there. It was Zoe. She pulled Alice to run with her, leaving everything behind including Sebastian towards the hill.

"Zoe, let me go! I can't let Sebastian fight the panthers alone," Alice urged Zoe to let her go by trying to free her hand.

"Trust me, Sebastian is strong enough to handle them. Can't you see how scary they look? Can't you see how their claws turn to iron? We wouldn't have had another great escape if not now!" answered Zoe breathlessly. "And soon we will reach the hill,"

"Then what do you expect when we get there? No one will be able to help us. This forest is clearly inhabited by strange creatures," snapped Alice. She couldn't stop thinking about Sebastian. It didn't matter that the man had hurt her heart, but still, she couldn't lie about how her feelings for him only grew deeper. But why did the panther call him Silas? Her thoughts were shattered when Zoe let go of her hand. She had thought it was time for her to escape, but her breath hitched when she saw a large hill with a dark cave that she had no idea what creatures were lurking inside of it.

"Are you sure this is the hill where the servants bring food every year?" Alice asked without rash.

Zoe gulped and shrugged her shoulders, completely unconvinced. After what she'd been through, she wanted so badly to back out, but she couldn't just do that.

"Let's check it out," said Alice, taking the lead. "Hello?" Her voice echoed all the way to the end of the cave. The hairs on her neck stood up, but even so she didn't feel scared at all. What's wrong with her?

"Alice," Zoe gripped the hem of Alice's coat, shivering in fear. "We need some light. See, the deeper we go, the darker it gets."

"Hmmm, let me think." Smiling, Alice immediately picked up some stones that happened to be there. She was about to gather some more when Zoe took a deep breath and asked her to listen to what she had to say for just a moment. "What's wrong, Zoe? You look really tense. Are you scared? Or cold?"

"Listen carefully, okay? Alice, what you know in that book, it's all true. It's all real and all you have to know is, it's about you. Princess Alice is you," Zoe explained it in such a rush and panic was etched on her face. "The curse is true and this cave is a bridge to where the beast lives. Do you know why all the servants didn't freak out or left Sebastian like we did? That's because they aren't really servants, Alice. They are as strange as the panther creature earlier, their ears are even pointy and long. Please believe me. I didn't believe any of this until a week ago when I overheard Sebastian's conversation with one of the servants- I mean that pointy eared creature. You do understand, don't you?"

Alice had no expression, but slowly the corners of her lips lifted, her laughter escaping. "Just because we share the same name doesn't mean that children's bedtime story is real, Zoe."

"It's real, Alice. Sebastian arranged all of this to get you here, except for the panther attack, it was beyond his expectations. But I swear, he asked me to bring you here!" Zoe really didn't know how else to explain to get Alice to believe her.

"So the servants are like some kind of strange creature you say? So what about Sebastian and his family?" Alice folded her arms across her chest waiting for Zoe to answer, but the woman just froze in complete silence. "And what about you? You've lived with them since you were little, so it's impossible that you just overheard it all a week ago."

"I'm one hundred percent human, Alice!" snapped Zoe, feeling it hurt how Alice's question sounded like accusing her of being one of them. "I'm telling you the truth. And I could swear that I'm not one of them. In fact, this is all so new to me. I even feel guilty about putting you in this position of danger, out on this hill. I shouldn't have done this, but I'm terrified. I don't know what to do, Alice. I'm so sorry," A moment later just as she was about to continue, the ground they were standing on shook. The two of them panicked as a crack appeared and split the two halves between them. "Oh no, Alice!"

"Zoe!" Alice started to scream as the crack separated her from the mouth of the cave, separating from Zoe. "Hold on there, I'll jump."

"What? No, Alice! This crack is getting wider, jumping will only harm you." answered Zoe before they finally drifted apart. Out of the blue, the ceiling of the cave slowly fell and in a blink of an eye the cave seemed to be leveled to the ground. "Oh no, nooo! Aliceee!"

The last thing Alice remembered was how Zoe's call to her turned into a shrill, horrible scream. Something hit her head so she didn't have a chance to see what was going on. Her vision became blurry then suddenly it was pitch black. It knocked her unconscious without having time to ask for help.