Albion Grimm

I awoke on a bed with a knitted blanket draped over me and looked out into a strange purple light, at a sprawling castle before me. It had several pointed towers and was encompassed in purple light that hid all but the tips of the tallest towers and merged into a heavy fog around the bottom of the castle giving it an eerie feeling. How did I end up in this situation? I reflected on all that had happened. I recalled several things before I ended up here. First, I come from a world other than Wonderland. Wonderland… where everyone knows me as Alice. Second, I remembered what brought me to Wonderland. It was the Spinner of Tales. A strange person covered in a green cloak that hid all facial features hiding any indication of gender. “I wonder whose house this is,” I pondered aloud as I sat up and stretched. I frequently have tea parties with the Mad Hatter also known as Luke Estheim, as well as spending time with Kyle Knock, the Cheshire Cat and the Joker, Joker Braze. Hang on… After collapsing at my tea party with Luke, I woke up in this strange house. Just as I started looking around the seemingly deserted house someone started speaking. “So, you’re Ayla, Alice of Wonderland.” A man stepped out from a dark corner of the room. His voice rough and loud “How do you know my name?” “My name is Red.” After seeing how confused I was he continued. “I’ll answer all your questions later. I need you to come with me.”. He crossed the room in three large strides, his maroon cloak fluttering around his dark leather pants with every step. His hair shone light brown when it hit the light coming through the window and I could see his eyes sparkle. “What do you mean?” I yelled as he picked me up over his shoulder with ease even though I was wriggling to be but back down. “Hold still. I don’t want you falling on your head.” I immediately froze—I didn’t want to be dropped—and Red started walking.   He put me back down once we were outside where I came face to face with another man. This man was dressed like a butler but his clothing was a dark brown that was almost black with touches of bright blue. His hair was such a light blonde it almost looked white and picked up the blue colouring on his clothing. “Hello, Alice. I’m Hansel.” His voice was warm and soothing “My name is not Alice,” I huffed, annoyed that people were trying to call me that. “Then I’ll call you Ayla.” I didn’t know how these two knew my name. Everyone I had met in Wonderland insisted on calling me Alice, so I was surprised when they easily relented. “We have to take you to see someone.” Hansel looked into my eyes. “Someone?” “We’ll fill you in later. For now, let’s be off.” Red stated and they both began walking off. “Wait a minute! I’m not done talking,” I yelled after them and Red stopped walking. “Alas, we have a long way to travel, but we’ll try to make it as comfortable as possible for you.” The man who introduced himself as Hansel brushed aside my protest with a smile and started walking again. Hansel grabbed my hand and pulled me along until we came to big hole in the ground that seemed endless. Red jumped down with no hesitation and when I started to protest Hansel pushed me then jumped in himself. We fell for so long that I stopped screaming. When we landed, it was in a forest I had never seen before, surrounded by apple trees that reached up into a dimming sky. Despite falling from such heights, we somehow managed to escape injury, landing lightly on our feet. How could that be? As I frowned and took in my surroundings, Hansel spoke. “This is the kingdom of Grimm. It’s ruled by our sovereign, King Grimm.” “The King is also the one who ordered us to bring you here,” Red pointed out. “Wait a minute. Are you saying that we’re no longer in Wonderland?” “That’s right.” “And this King named Grimm is the one who ordered you to kidnap me?” My voice serious as I sought clarification. “Yes. Does that answer some of your questions?” Seeing as he’s resorting to k********g, he must be pretty dangerous. I closed my mouth, sensing the tension in the atmosphere. The King of the Kingdom of Grimm, and me with no one on my side. Realising my precarious position, I was starting to get a bad feeling. Hansel and Red feigned indifference, but I could tell they were keeping a close eye on me. I decided I wouldn’t stand much of a change if I tried to escape their watchful eyes. I was better off waiting until we got to a town so I could ask for help. I volunteered to walk myself, as I didn’t want to spend the entire journey upside down over someone’s shoulder, and we continued to head toward the Kingdom of Grimm.   I was told it would take several days to reach Castle Grimm. I had some reservations about camping outside, but aside from that, the journey was rather peaceful. During that time, I slowly started to regain my memory. By the time we reached the outskirts of town, all of my memories had returned. Armoured soldiers meet us as soon as we stepped foot in the town. “Welcome back, Lord Red. Lord Hansel. Please allow us to escort you to the castle. Albion is waiting. When we arrived at the surprisingly bright and spacious foyer. The soldiers bowed to Red and Hansel before turning their armoured faces to me. “You must be Alice. Welcome to Grimm Castle.” “Thanks.” I was so caught off guard by their surprisingly polite welcome that I didn’t even point out that they had my name wrong. At this rate, I don’t think I have to worry about being attacked out of the blue. “Where is His Majesty?” “His Majesty is in the Throne Room today, awaiting your return.” “I see. In that case, let’s head there right away.” I’m finally going to meet King Grimm. I was nervous as I followed Red and Hansel the soldiers behind me.