You&#x27;re late for tea!

The Hatter gave a noise of shock. “A shield? Why, that’s quite interesting!” He pointed to the large bird, shaking his head. “That, my dear, is a JubJub bird. It was originally one of the Red Queen’s pets, but I’m going to assume it escaped after her banishment. The bird...

The bird let out what sounded like a squawk, circling the two. "Well, that's an amazing thing you can do! But we're also going to have to find out how to get out of this quite sticky situation.." he gave a 'hmm' and started to look around.

She rolled her eyes. “Yea, fun..” She sounded sarcastic, but a small smile was tugging at the edges of her lips as she said this.

" It’s been a while since I’ve had a shopping trip with other people." She thought…

"I think the real question is what style of clothes do you want. Are you going for comfort? to turn heads? Once we settle that finding a store should be much easier"

The Hatress blinked. She wasn't sure what kind if clothes she wanted. She had never really gone shopping, seeing as she had never needed to when she was male. "I have an idea! Why don't you pick? You seem to love the idea of shopping, and I absolutely have no idea what I'm doing!" She looked at Leanansidhe, then to Ella. "Well? Good idea?"

"Thank you. You can keep it if you want, since it’s made with your spare fabric and such." She smiled at him, blushing slightly from his enthusiasm. She couldn’t remember the last time someone was this this excited about a toy she made for them, or even giving someone a toy…

She smiled, thinking how cute the Hatter was acting after receiving his toy. His joy was almost childlike.. Maybe I don’t like kids because they don’t act like kids… she thought to herself. Maybe it’s because they feel entitled to this stuff, while the ones I don’t see have the Hatter’s attitude… "It’s so nice to see someone reacting this way to a little gift. Pretty cute too." She reached out and poked him. She would have poked his nose, but she thought that she was just a hair too short to reach.

He laughed a bit as he was poked. "Well, you see, its not too often that I get gifts. Its very thoughtful of you to give it to me!" He smiled. "Especially when it's from a friend, those are the most precious gifts of all!"

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"So, I guess I managed to turn that frown upside down!" He clapped his hands together. "I don’t know of anyone.e who likes to frown, because if you frown you’re obviously unhappy!"

"I know somebody who frowns all the time. He’s such a buzz kill. Usually pourin’ on somebody’s parade. I think his parents didn’t get ‘im the Pokemon card he wanted when he was a kid or somethin’ like that.”

"Oh my! That man must not be very happy, then. He might just need someone to help bring that smile back. Everyone has a hidden smile, if they only know where to look!''

The Hatter pointed off to the distance. “We’d need to go to Moreal. The Queen might have a solution. She is very good at finding solutions.”

Toby smiled for the first time in three days, and he nodded. “Alrigh’, thanks very much!” He didn’t know what sort of political system they would have here, or if they would have one at all, but of course it was a monarchy. He hoped the queen was sane, or at least saner than those he’d met so far in Underland. “Is she nice? The Queen, I mean?” He asked, taking another sip of tea.

He nodded. "The Queen? She's the nicest person in all of Underland. You'd like her, I'm sure." He got up and began to walk, motioning for the boy to follow. "By the way, did I ever catch your name?"

She rolled her eyes. “Yea, fun..” She sounded sarcastic, but a small smile was tugging at the edges of her lips as she said this.

" It's been a while since I've had a shopping trip with other people." She thought back to the shopping trip she had experienced a few years back 'I wonder what I'll be able to persuade them into..'

The Hatress clapped. "So, shall we go then? I can't wait! Oh, this will be fun!"

"Thank you. You can keep it if you want, since it's made with your spare fabric and such." She smiled at him, blushing slightly from his enthusiasm. She couldn't remember the last time someone was this this excited about a toy she made for them, or even giving someone a toy made specially for them. So this is what's it like to be happy again….

"Thank You! I will set it on my hat and carry it there!" He put the plush on his hat, grinning widely. This was a very nice thing for her to do, and he absolutely loved it.

"Oh yes! Of co—" he looked up, seeing the bird. "Well this is no good. Not at all."

She didn’t quite understand what he was getting at at first. It took her looking up and taking a bit of a step back before she frowned a little bit at what she was looking at. After that, there was no hesitation. A protective barrier of a hazel color very much like the color of her eyes wrapped itself around the both of them and she stood there protectively. It burned brightly and it looked like it’d be dangerous to run into.

"My goodness, what on earth is that thing?!" she exclaimed. "Don’t worry, it’s just a shield. I wouldn’t touch it — thing’s a hazard to anything that touches it and tries to get to us."

The Hatter gave a noise of shock. "A shield? Why, that's quite interesting!" He pointed to the large bird, shaking his head. "That, my dear, is a JubJub bird. It was originally one of the Red Queen's pets, but I'm going to assume it escaped after her banishment. The bird landed a few feet in front of them, just staring them down for a bit.

“Well, my question is, am I a pretty girl?”

"Um, Hatter..? Why are you a girl all of a sudden?"

"Well, you see, this magic grey faced person came along and poof! Now I’m a girl. And I do feel positively cute!"

"I…

"Did someone say clothes!?" Leanan sang as she appeared in a swirl of sparkles.

Ella tilted her head to the side in response to the Queen of Exiles’ sudden arrival. “I didn’t think it was that easy to summon someone as powerful as you, Leanansidhe.”

“Clothes? Well i—” The Hatter, more or less Hatress now, looked at the other who entered. “Ah! What a lovely entrance! Yes we were just discussing clothes, and how I am too small for my own now!”

Ella put up her hands and took a step away from the two. “I make toys. Toys are my strong point, not clothes. I can’t offer a lot of help here.”

" well clothes shopping is definitely one of my strong suits and I am more that willing to help. By that way…" she gestures to the Hatress. " who is this darling young woman?"

The Hatress looked between them as they talked, then smiled. "I'm the Hatter. We've met before! I was in a different body type then, I suppose." She looked at Ella. "Are we going to go shopping? That sounds like fun!" She squealed.

He looked at it, then started to laugh. “Like it? I think its completely wonderful! I’ve never been drawn before, and its quite marvelous! “

"Thank you.. I thought that you might make a nice plush. Not literally of course, but a toy in your image would sell quite well……" She looked up at him, hope shining in her visible eye. "Would you mind..? I might even be able to make a version of it here if you have the right materials.." She said as she looked around the room, searching for fabrics of the correct colors.

"A plush? Why that sounds quite interesting!" He gave a smile, sitting at a desk. "If you need material, its usually all scattered about and such!"

"Perfect.." she said, halfway sarcastically. Her eye started to glow pink and she brushed her bangs out of the way to give herself a wider field of vision for locating the needed materials. "Fabric, ooh lots of different colors here.. Well that’s an odd place for thread to be, at least the needles were up on a shelf…" She turned back to the Hatter, a small needle between her teeth. "You wouldn’t happen to have any stuffing, would you? I know hatters wouldn’t have much use for it, but you never know. I suppose I could make do with some moss if you don’t."

The hatter stood up, walking to a shelf and grabbing a jar. “Well, here’s some stuffing. I do have special hats made with it.”

"Perfect!" she said, unsarcastically this time. She put the materials she was currently holding onto a clear space on the desk and took the jar. "This should be just the right amount too.."

The Hatter smiled, watching as she did her stuff. He was curious as to how it would look. Him! As a toy! How curious it was, indeed!

Ella quickly cut a pattern out of the main fabrics, stitching them together into a faceless, hollow shell. She then made the face, carefully cutting out pieces of different colored fabric for his eyes and eyeshadow and stitching on a smile with a stray piece of red thread. After all that was done, she stuffed and sewed up its back. The completed doll looked like a chibi version of the Hatter. “Do you like it?”

He watched her work, picking up the toy after she was done. "Look at it! Its a tiny me! How truly amazing!"

"Of course I do! I know Underland like the back of my hand!" He held up a hand, tilting his head as he saw a spot on his glove. "How’d that get there?"

"Oh good, darling!" she shook her head. "But do pay attention to where you’re going, darling! We have to get out of here!"

"Oh yes! Of co--" he looked up, seeing the bird. "Well this is no good. Not at all."

The Hatter gave a nod. “We’re going to exit the forest and go straight to the White Queen’s castle. I know a shortcut!”

"Is that so? I certainly do hope you know where you’re going, darling! The last thing we need here right now is trouble!"

"Of course I do! I know Underland like the back of my hand!" He held up a hand, tilting his head as he saw a spot on his glove. "How'd that get there?"

"I would love some."

He started to pour her a cup, smiling. “So, how are you enjoying Underland so far?”

"Oh yes, it’s simply splendid! I must must make some friends while I’m here."

"Oh certainly! There’s the March Hare, McTwisp, the White Queen! You should meet them all!"

"Those sound like wonderful places to start." Leanan clapped her hands together.

The hatter stood quickly. "Off we go, then?"

“Welcome! Welcome. Its a lovely day for tea, yes?”

Toby scowled up at the odd-looking man and crossed his arms. “I’ve been los’ in this place wif no idea where to go for three days an’ the firs’ person I see offers me a cup o’ tea.”

He wasn’t in a particularly good…

The Hatter cocked his head to the side. “Oh now that’s no good at all. Three days? Much too long, indeed. But you want to know a secret? Tea can be very soothing to ones who are upset! So, take a seat and have a cup!” He gave a smile, motioning to a chair.

Toby looked up at the strange man, then down at the chair, then sat down and folded his hands in his lap. “Fanks. ‘O are you, exactly? An’ wha’ is this place?” The boy wondered whether it would be polite for him to pour his tea himself, or wait for him to pour it. In London, he rarely poured his own tea, but this was certainly not London.

"Im The Mad Hatter! And this, lad, is Underland." He gave a smile, then slid the teapot over to him. "Don’t be shy! Pour yourself a glass! Tell me, how did you get to Underland?"

"Mad?" He asked, looking up at the hatter. It certainly explained a lot.

Oh, he was to pour it himself. Doing as he was told, the boy poured some in the teacup at the place he was sitting at and took a small sip.

"I was jus’ walkin’ back to the shop from across the city. I took a shortcut through the woods since I though’ i’ would be faster, bu’ there was a big hole in the ground covered by a whole bunch of leaves, I still don’ know wha’ i’ was. Anyway, I fell real far an’ ended up in this weird room wif a really little door, long story short, I ended up ‘ere after a bi’, wandered for three days an’ my only company was a smilin’ cat. An’ a talkin’, smilin’ cat at tha’."

"Yes, Mad. Completely bonkers, really." He listened to the boy’s story, putting a hand to his chin. "Ah, you must have fallen down one of McTwisp’s rabbit holes. Why it was covered with leaves, I may never know." The Hatter laughed a bit.

"Chessur. That’s the cat you were following. He is a sly one, that cat. Tried to take my hat a few times!"

"Cat’s aren’ supposed to talk, they jus’… jus’ make cat noises an’ stuff!" Toby said, shaking his head.

"I kept askin’ ‘im where I was s’posed to go, an’ ‘e’d never tell me ‘cause I didn’ know where I wanted to go. I jus’ wanna go ‘ome…" Toby said sadly, looking down at his teacup and swirling it around a bit.

"Of course they can! Maybe you’re just not listening hard enough!" He leaned over a bit. "But that Cheshire does like to make people go all twisty turny!" He leaned back in his chair.

"Home? I don’t know where your home is, but I will gladly help you get there! What is your home like?"

Toby looked up and sighed, picturing London. “Well, I live in London, tha’s in England, bu’ I dunno if you’ve ever ‘eard of either o’ those. Anyway, i’s rather gloomy mosta the time, Flee’ Stree’ a’ leas’, ‘xcept for a few places tha’ are nice.” At that, he immediately imagined the brightly colored candy shop a few doors down from him.

"My actual ‘ome, like, my ‘ouse, ‘s built in to a meat pie shop. I work there wif me mum an’ sell meat pies, an’ I reside back far in the building, where the shop turns into a house." He didn’t know if any of this at all would make sense to the Mad Hatter, for he hadn’t seen anything resembling a city, town, or even a house while he was there, though he probably hadn’t seen everything while wandering.

"Actually, I believe I have heard of London before. It was very long ago, but I recall McTwisp commenting on it!"

He listened intently, his smile never fading. “Well, that sounds rather fascinating. I know a way to get you home and back to your mum, if you’d like!”

Oh, good, he did know what London was. Or at least heard of it, which was better than nothing. And how to get home?! The boy’s heart sped up, and he leaned forward intently, nearly knocking over his tea. “Back home? For real? How?!”

The Hatter pointed off to the distance. "We'd need to go to Moreal. The Queen might have a solution. She is very good at finding solutions."

He looked at it, then started to laugh. “Like it? I think its completely wonderful! I’ve never been drawn before, and its quite marvelous! “

"A plush? Why that sounds quite interesting!" He gave a smile, sitting at a desk. "If you need material, its usually all scattered about and such!"

The hatter stood up, walking to a shelf and grabbing a jar. “Well, here’s some stuffing. I do have special hats made with it.”

"Perfect!" she said, unsarcastically this time. She put the materials she was currently holding onto a clear space on the desk and took the jar. "This should be just the right amount too.."

The Hatter smiled, watching as she did her stuff. He was curious as to how it would look. Him! As a toy! How curious it was, indeed!

"You want to know something funny? Last time I saw a JubJub was when I almost lost my head!" He looked at the sky, still hearing the sound but not yet seeing the bird.

"Is that so? That all sounds terrible, darling. If you keep up, maybe we can at least get away from it. Do you still know where we’re headed, darling?"