"Little Alice fell

d

o

w

n

the hole,

bumped her head

and bruised her soul"

-Lewis Carroll "Alice in Wonderland"

We have lain here for quite sometime. The birds around us chirp like obnoxious clocks and twigs snap in mischievous taunting, raising our hopes that someone will come to rescue us, only to realize it was only a simple white rabbit.

We have only spoken with small phrases and hums of heartbeats. I wonder if I have lost my ability to create words with my tongue, but then I remember that sometimes words are pointless.

I wish I could make a ladder with all the silence I have built.

I have decided that silence gives far too much space for thought and too little for improvement.

I stopped feeling the cold bite of winter air a long time ago, as Octavius' heat radiates onto my skin and becomes mine and his, shared and somewhat wonderful.

I am screaming and at peace all at once.

"You're like Alice."

I jump at the sound of Octavius' voice, pressing myself up from his chest instinctively, staring down at his deep and drowning eyes.

"Huh?" I ask, my voice hoarse from lack of use.

"From that book. My mother would read it to me loudly when my father would shout too fiercely." His voice is far away, maybe up in the clouds or running in a field. Anywhere but in this cruel ditch.

"I don't-" I start to say.

"She was sitting with her sister by a rabbit hole, and she saw the rabbit, with a stopwatch. She chased it, and jumped down into the rabbit hole, never knowing what was going to be down there. I used to think that she was crazy, jumping down into Wonderland through a muddy slide. But now I'm not so sure. She was the only sane one in a world with talking animals and evil queens. Like you."

"I don't think I'm the sane one here." I giggle slightly, the idea rattling around my brain like a multi-colored bouncy castle.

"But maybe you are." He sits up suddenly, a silent groan escaping from between his teeth as he does so. "You were dropped into my world, my world of maniacal fathers and idiotic cousins. You were the most clear headed one that I saw in your group. You jumped in front of that skinny kid, you stood up to me when no one else did. You so insanely perfectly sane."

"I think that's a bit of an oxymoron there." I joke, brushing his hair back behind his face.

"Maybe, but it's true."

"Well, if I'm Alice then who are you?" I ask, smiling down at him.

His brow knits together in thought, placing his fingers under in chin in an expression of deep deep contemplation.

"I'm the Mad Hatter I suppose." Octavius finally decides, and a smile slowly stretches onto his face.

"How so? I don't think I've ever seen you wear a hat."

"Because I'm so wonderfully entranced by you, just as the hatter was with Alice." He says, his voice smooth and silky.

"Tell me, Alessandra, do you know why a raven is like a writing desk?" He asks.

I frown at him.

"How?"

"I haven't the faintest idea." He grins wryly.

Apparently our conversation had taken our attention away from the world around us, because we both jump violently when we hear a very familiar voice.

"Why is it that every single time I find you two together at least one of you is naked?"

"Klaude!" We both shout and I scramble to my feet.

"Hey Ale." He says, and I can hear the ghosts of tears in his throat. "Gotta tell you, this is the first time I have been happy to see you sitting on top of my half-naked cousin."

"Love you too." Octavius grumbles, and I help him to his feet shakily.

"Now, how the hell are you going to help us out of here?" I ask.

"Reinforcements, my dear Luna." He says, and with a great gesture of his hand, he lets out a piercing whistle, and in seconds, the pit is surrounded by hoards of pack members.

"Luna, give me your hand." A sandy haired soldier grunts, and I lift my arm upwards, doing as he says.

With ease, he hoists me halfway up the pit, and I brace my feet against the wall of the pit, climbing up like a rock-climber.

Suddenly, two more hands around around my waist, pulling me up and over the edge of the pit. Soft fabric hits my shoulders and I wrap the soft blanket around myself, the cold suddenly hitting me.

I am behind a hoard of soldiers as I can only listen to the grunts and struggling breathes while they help Octavius out of the pit. I peek through their legs, and watch as they place his body in a kind of hand held stretcher, and as a troop of wounded warriors, we are led all the way back to the pack house.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Knock Knock." I look up from my chair in Octavius' hospital room, to see Klaude in the doorway, Xander in his arms.

"Oh, my boy." I coo, standing up and picking him up into my arms. He immediately cuddles into my chest, banging his little fists against my shoulders.

"He wouldn't stop crying while you were gone." Klaude rolls his eyes, ruffling Xander's dark dark hair.

I look down at my perfect child, hoisting him up into the air.

"You missed me? I missed you so much baby." Xander giggles loudly and I hear a groan behind me. I whirl around to see Octavius sitting up in his hospital bed, a hand gripping his head.

"Hey, Octavius." I whisper, moving over to the side of his bed, feeling it dip underneath my weight.

"Hi." He responds groggily. "Hey, buddy." He reaches his hands out for Xander and I hand him over, watching father and son cuddle together. I think I might die from how adorable this is.

"How are you feeling?" I ask Octavius, rubbing my hand up and down his forearm.

"Awful, but having you and Xander here makes pain seem like a tiny prick to the finger."

"Really?" I ask, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Nope, it still hurts like hell." He groans, one hand going to his gut.

At the sound of Octavius' groan, Xander sits up in his arms, his hands going to his father's bare stomach.

"Boom. Better." He warbles, his speech stumbled and childish.

And Octavius bursts out laughing.

"My boy, a doctor/healer. Never been so proud." He laughs even harder, and nuzzles Xander into his shoulder.

And they stay that way, peacefully, for the longest time.