A Short Part of the Story

“Look, Alice.” John said. “The rest of the council has known for a time about your exploration and it’s not entirely keeping them content with you.”

John continued.

“No one will stop you, but that’s just because they do still like you, even though it is the job of some people to stop you.”

Alice was not unaware of what John was saying. In fact she was completely conscious of it. She continued on with the exploration because that was her nature. One of curiosity.

The both of them knew that she couldn’t be stopped anyway because she was quicker on the ascent than anyone else was due to years of doing so. But Alice asked a question anyway.

“Why would you let me do the runs up there anyway?”

“Because they’re scared.”

John continued.

“They do not wish to see a destroyed home, but they wish to know what the damage has been.”

“I understand this, John. What I don’t understand is why they can’t just accept the way life here is. What happened was awful, and I may not fully understand it, but they need to move past that. That was before most of us here were even alive. They all need to face their fears…”

Alice knew that she had overstepped a boundary, but at the moment that was fine with her; she thought it ridiculous that one could be so afraid of an idea.

“I know that this doesn’t bother you, but it bothers everyone else. No one knows what to expect from this.”

John continued.

“All we want from this is to know if it’s safe above. We want to know if we can go home and not have to deal the suspense of living down here. You know as well as anyone how dangerous it can be.”

John continued.

“That’s why we want you to go up and let us know what has become of the home we once knew. We want to give you some supplies and want you to go up as soon as possible.”

“How long do you want me gone?”

“It was decided upon that if you can get above and it’s relatively safe, a week should be fine. Come back and give us some form of a report on what it’s like.”

“That I can do.” Alice continued, seeing this as a good moment for a bargain. “I do have one condition though.”

“Yes?”

“I want Beatrix to be released from the awful exile that you have placed her in. It is absolutely no longer necessary.”

“Alice…”

Cutting John off.

“No…” Looking more than stern. “That is my condition.”

“Alright,” John sighed, “I can make that happen.”

Alice looked at John.

“Thank you… For everything…”

“You’re welcome.” John looked at Alice. “Is there anything else you would like to discuss?”

“Not right now.”

After that Alice got up and walked away and left John’s office. On her way down the hall Janice appeared and Alice looked smug because of the way Janice was staring.

“Yes Janice, I know.” Smiling now. “Fuck you, Alice.”

Janice now defeated, walked away with her head down crushed and ashamed.

Alice walked away content with this outcome. She usually found a way to irritate Janice without actually doing anything as Janice almost blindly disliked Alice. But, for this instance, Alice had gone a few wonderful steps farther. Alice made it to the doors to exit the building and greeted the doorman.

“Hello, Kingsley. How are you?”

“Oh, I’m fine. I haven’t seen you in a while. How are you, Alice.”

“I’m good. Just taking it easy.”

“That’s good. How’s Beatrix, I haven’t been to see her in a while?”

Alice looked at Kingsley and smirked.

“She says hello.”

“What’s the look for Alice?”

Alice’s smirk grew even wider.

“She’s coming back…”

Kingsley looked a bit taken aback.

“That’s very funny Alice.”

Alice stared at Kingsley.

“You can’t be serious.”

Alice continued to stare to make a point that she wasn’t going to put up with Kinsley’s doubt.

“I’ll tell you more about it another time, but for now I do need to go.”

“Alright.” Kingsley said baffled while opening the door for Alice.

“Have a good one.”

“You too, Kingsley.”

Alice walked off and she heard the door close shortly after her exiting. She now made her way back to the edge of the city with good news in mind and pondered over how to break the surprise to Beatrix in a sly way.

IV

Alice had now gotten back to Beatrix’s asylum and was relieved in a way that felt like all the weight upon her had left. She could now see her friends again under normal circumstances that didn’t require secrecy. She was overjoyed beyond words at this. She was ready for this even though the time they had for right now would be short.

Alice decided she was not going to break in this time, but knock, remembering the last time she knocked on a door to get Beatrix’s attention was years ago in one of Beatrix’s homes shortly after they first met a few years ago. Alice had knocked the first time with no response and now a second with still no response. She decided to try one last time before she would allow herself to think about breaking in as it was now a habitual manner that she had picked up over the years of doing this. She knocked persistently for a few moments without stopping before she could hear Beatrix incomprehensibly yell through the shut door.

Alice heard her friend unlock the door and didn’t think twice about what she had dreampt up about doing while on the way there. She barged in and went at her friend and kissed her with no resistance. And the night proceeded

Alice found herself in total darkness, unsure of where she was. She called out for her friend with no response whatsoever. She stood for a moment in the darkness unsure of what was going on or what to do. She couldn’t see anything around her, just the pitch black darkness. After a moment she felt something grab her shoulder and she jumped and turned to see what it was and there was nothing. She stood there. Maybe Bea was playing some awful prank on her. She then heard whispering from all directions. Not being able to make out what they said in the first place, they grew steadily louder. Just as they grew loud enough to be almost unbearable, a scream wailed out and Alice screamed along in panic. Then there was only one sole whisper. Incomprehensible and unrecognisable, she followed it out of both curiosity and fear. She followed for what seemed like eternity and then the voice stopped. Alice felt like she had not gone anywhere because she couldn’t tell if she had really even moved in the first place. Then the whispering of the masses started again but one whisper was louder than any of the others. Alice then realised that they were all coming from behind her. She turned around and saw the faces of Beatrix and Kingsley both warped by and ravaged by insanity and some form of cruelty done to them. The whispering stopped and her friends spoke in tandem.

“You did this Alice. You did this to us.”

Alice, taken aback by this, tried to speak but was cut off buy a sharp, searing pain in her stomach. She looked down and saw a knife had been thrust into her, she looked ahead again and had seen Beatrix had been the one to do this. She had no time to speak now as blood was seeping from her wound. She was in pain beyond what the wound had caused. Beatrix and Kingsley spoke again, but Alice was beyond being able to make out what they said out of the blurriness of blood-loss. Then, with one last moment of conciseness, her friend pushed her and she began to fall into a gape in the ground she had not realised was there. She tried to scream but was incapable of doing so. At this she closed her eyes and began to weep and let out one last attempt at screaming before…

“Alice! Alice!”

Alice came to consciousness and stopped the senseless screaming she had been doing. She looked to her side and saw Beatrix springing out of bed at the sight of her and screamed again.

“Alice!”

Alice didn’t look at her and put her head into her knees not being able to handle what just happened. Beatrix got out of the bed and walked over to where her friend was. She scoured into a corner and Beatrix continued to approach.

“Alice, what’s wrong?”

She was met with no response. She continued to approach. She got right next to Alice and said nothing, just looked at her distressed friend. She wrapped her arms around her and stayed that way for a few moments.

“It’s alright, mac.” Beatrix said, trying to calm down her friend. “Whatever it was, it was just a dream.”

Alice looked up. Tears were running down her face. Sobbing she was, at the confusion of a nightmare.

“You…”

Bea looked at her friend confused.

“You killed me.”

“It was just a dream, mac.” Beatrix hugged her friend just a bit tighter. “I would never do such a thing. You’re my best friend, remember.”

“I know… It was just so awful…”

Beatrix kissed her friend and Alice went to hug her back.

“I’m sorry.” Looking at her friend mournfully.

“It’s alright.”

“Did I wake you?”

“No. I’ve been up.” Beatrix explained. “I was making us something warm.”

“What do you mean?”

Beatrix grabbed Alice’s hands and helped her get up from the corner. She grabbed a blanket and guided her to the kitchen and had her sit down. She then wrapped the blanket around her. Not realising that she was cold up until that point Alice shivered slightly. Beatrix grabbed to considerably large mugs, handed one to Alice and sat down.

“So…”

“Yes?”

“How did your meeting go?”

“That’s a fairly large question.” Alice said before sipping her drink. “This is good. What is it?”

“Just some hot chocolate concoction with some alcohol.”

“Oh good.” Alice said jokingly. “Give the girl who doesn’t drink much a spiked drink.” She paused and spoke again, “Are you trying to get me in your bed?”

They both chuckled.

“It is good though.”

“So, we have a lot to talk about.”

“Well, go ahead then.”

“I’m being sent here with you.” Alice said straight faced.

Beatrix didn’t looked amused. Alice smiled and laughed.

“Hmmm.”

“What?”

“I don’t really know how to put any of this.”

Beatrix thought for a moment. And responded. “Alright, give me the worst part first.”

Alice stared at her friend. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“..... They’re sending me above…..” Alice continued. “They want to know what it’s like. If it’s safe. If we can go back and not be stuck in ‘hell’ any longer.”

“I see.” Beatrix said. Taking this a bit more lightly than Alice had expected.

“They want me to stay for a week, if possible.”

“I see.” A little more taken aback this time.

“Just be safe, Alice. I need some company other than the already rare appearance of Kingsley.”

“I make no promise.”

“The best part?”

Alice stared.

“As you’re already in a chair, I can’t tell you you’ll need to sit, but you may want to put your glass down.”

Beatrix held her glass and sipped disregarding what Alice had just said.

“I got the approval for you to come back to the city.”

Beatrix dropped her glass and partially choked on warm liquid. The glass broke and she coughed for a few moments before she could speak again. By this time, Alice had grabbed a broom and swept up the mess and made her friend another cup of the concoction based on what she had seen left out on the counter and sat back down to resume the conversation.

“You can’t be serious?”

“Yes…” Alice said sternly. “Yes I can be.”

“How?” Beatrix said, completely dumbfounded.

“That was my condition for going up. I didn’t really give him a choice in the matter.”

“And you decided to tell me this just now?”

“Well, I came up with it then and there, I came back here, and we fucked.” Alice smiled enjoying the thought. “I was going to tell you after we finished, but you fell asleep.”

Alice continued.

“But, nevertheless. Now you know.”

For a time nothing was said after this in the fact that, in a way, the both of them were in disbelief at the situation, that until now, had seemed impossible. Alice had got what they both wanted and fixed what never should have happened in the first place. Things were starting to come together in a way that seemed oddly trite, but for once that was okay with Alice, she was content that she would have her friend back in her life more than she currently was.

Once an almost uncomfortable time was up Alice decided it was time to go for now, got up and kissed her friends forehead.

“I should go for a bit.” Alice spoke to her friend. “I need to borrow a truck anyway.”

“For what?”

“For getting you moved into my place.”

“You don’t have to do that…”

“Yes. Yes I do.” Alice insisted. “It’s absolutely the least I could do.”

Before anything else could be said between them, Alice walked away and said faintly, “Love you, Bea.” And walked out the door to return home.

At this point, Alice had now made it back to her brownstone before the rest of the town had come to wake up, so she was content. She gathered her door key and unlocked the door and entered into her solitude. Once she closed the door she noticed an envelope on the ground.

It was simply addressed, Alice. She knew that this was another letter from John, but what it consisted of, she had the faintest idea. She walked to her parlour room and sat in her favourite chair and opened the letter and began to read.

Alice,

I write this to you because I lied; I have not been beyond the door above since before you came into this world, but it is not like what people here think it is.

No war savaged the earth above. There was conflict, but war never did outbreak. The original inhabitants came here in fear of something that was stopped, little to their knowledge, it never went farther than words.

I do not know what you are in for above, but what you will find is not that of disaster. Things will be different from what you have read because books here are out of date by twenty years at least, but you will see a world beyond what you know nonetheless.

I apologise for not telling you this until now, but my chambers aren’t the safest place for that news to be broken.

I have prepared some things for you take with you on the way above that may prove helpful. I will have them for you once you are ready to go above.

John

The letter ended there. Alice now confused, anticipated a long journey ahead, but she had looked forward to this for years. She insisted to herself she would not falter and venture forward. Now was the time to move onward and start again.

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