We're All Mad Here

"Before I take you around Wonderland," Brendon began "I should give you a little information on it. As I just said, it's different from how Mr. Carroll described it. That's mainly because things change over time and this place is no exception to that rule.

"Wonderland is divided into three, uh, states; each one is ruled by a different person. The first state is ruled by Ryan, who you'll think is the mad hatter. Ryan is a little crazy, but he is a good guy. Just don't drink too much of his tea.

"The second state is ruled by Jon, who resembles the Chesire Cat. He's a very witty guy who likes to trick people. If you're not careful around him, he'll hurt you. You have to be very intelligent to deal with him. He's made me out to look like a fool several times.

"Spencer and Spencer rule the third state. They're like-"

"Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum," I guessed.

"Exactly," Brendon said. "And then the Queen rules all of Wonderland. The three rulers hate her and don't do anything that she tells them to."

"Don't they get into trouble?" I asked.

"They're immune from being punished," he replied. "So, the Queen punishes they people they rule over instead."

"So," I began "what's the deal with you?"

"I am one of the few humans in Wonderland." he told me "Most of Wonderland's inhabitants are crazy, food-stealing animals and talking plants. Anyways, since I'm human, I'm allowed to cross state borders as I please and the Queen cannot harm me because of something that one of the rulers have done. However, I can be punished if I break a law."

"There's laws?" I asked. I had always assumed that Wonderland was pretty much a rule-free place.

Brendon nodded and said "Each citizen is given a rule book upon registration. They are required to carry the rule book around with them at all times. If a royal officer catches you without your rulebook, you go immediately to jail."

"That sounds a little harsh," I commented.

"Then you don't want to know what happens if you break a law then." he told me "After I give you the tour of Wonderland, I'll have to take you to the Royal City so you can register yourself."

"I don't plan on staying, Brendon." I said.

"You have to, Emily." he informed me "Everyone who enters Wonderland has to stay here or move on to the next world. You can't go back. No one has ever made it back to where they originally came from."

"What about Mr. Carroll then?" I asked "How did he find out about this place and get back to my world to tell about it?"

"No one knows for sure," Brendon replied. "Some think that he might've went from Wonderland to the other worlds until he got back to yours."

"What do you mean when you say other worlds?" I asked.

"Throughout Wonderland there are doors to other worlds." he replied "Each one will have a bronze plaque on it, indicating where it leads. I, myself, have spotted Middle Earth, Narnia, A Galaxy Far Far Away and Oz. I don't know if what's on the other side of the door is what the plaque says it is or not. I've never bothered to check."

Brendon pulled a gold pocket watch out of his pajama pocket and looked at it. I saw that all of the numbers on the face of the watch went backwards. The time read nine in the afternoon. Brendon let out a sigh and snapped the watch closed before returning it to his pocket. He then turned to me.

"Ryan will be furious with us," he said. "He doesn't appreciate visitors past nine. We'll visit him anyways."

Brendon gave me a smile and grabbed my hand. Leading me to a stone pathway. As we walked closer to our destination, the scent of tea in the air grew stronger. When we got closer, I could see steam rising from different spots. I could hear voices as I got even closer.

Eventually, we arrived at our destination. A small, golden sign read "Residence of the Mad Hatter." A stone wall with a wooden gate in the center sat before us. Brendon dropped my hand and walked over to the gate. I slowly followed him.

"Have time for some company, Ryan?" he yelled over the gate. All fell silent.

"Of course!" a cheery voice yelled back.

Then the gate in front of us slowly creaked open.

"It looks as though Ryan is in a good mood, which is fortunate for us," Brendon told me.

"What happens if he's in a bad mood?" I asked.

"You really don't want to know," he replied "Just act nice and he won't do anything to you. If he tries anything, I'll protect you."

I felt a whole lot better once he told me that, but it still didn't completely erase the funny feeling that I had in my stomach.