Page 3 of Alec in Wonderland (Rainbow Tales #1)

“There you are.” Val waved at Alec. “The proper Alec size again.” He brushed off Alec's shoulders. “It's a bit warm for all that, don't you think?”

Alec looked down at his coat. “Uh. Yeah.” He shrugged out of it and then the sweater he wore beneath. Folding them over his arm, he asked, “Now, can you tell me where I am?”

“Ah, yes. No memories at all.” Val shook his head, frowning at the sushi cartoon on Alec's shirt. “Just as I suspected.”

“Yes, we've already determined that you know me, but I don't know you. I don't know where I am, why I'm here, or how the hell you turned from a man into a rabbit and back again. Now, how about you fill me in?”

Val grimaced. “Very well. This is Wonderland. You have been here before, but that was when you were a child. You seem to have forgotten us. Not surprising, as I said, but still hurtful.”

Alec looked around, feeling a strange sense of déjà vu. He should have been freaking out. In a panic. Or a dead faint. He had freaked out a little, but not as much as he should have. A man had turned into a rabbit and then Alec had fallen down a hole that spun him and everything else around and spat him out into this place. Where nothing made sense. And yet it did. Somewhere inside him, it made sense.

“This feels familiar.” Alec breathed in the fresh scents—much smaller now, and stared at the odd trees. Their branches couldn't seem to decide which way to grow.

“Well, at least there's that,” Val muttered. “Maybe the rest will come back to you. For now, all you need to know is that you have friends here and those friends are in trouble. The Queen of Hearts has declared war on the White Chess Queen. She has already conquered every card kingdom and now has her sights set on the Chess Kingdoms. We don't know when she'll attack, but the White Kingdom is closest to the Kingdom of Hearts, so we assume she'll attack us first. We need you to fulfill your destiny, Alec.”

“My destiny?”

“The Jabberwocky, Alec! The evil creature the Caterpillar warned us about. It's here! The Queen of Hearts summoned it. We need you, Alec. We can handle her card soldiers and even her Jubjubs, but not that gigantic flying beast.”

“A flying beast?” Alec gaped at Val. “And you want me to do what to this beast?”

“Well, the prophecy is rather vague about that. It says you will conquer the Jabberwocky. How you go about it is up to you.”

“Great. A prophecy.” Alec rolled his eyes. “Those always turn out well.”

“Come now. They're waiting for us. We're going to be late.”

“Who?”

“Who, what?”

“Who's waiting for us?”

“Everyone, of course. Come along!” With that, Val turned and strode down a path. “And don't forget the cake!”

Alec, still feeling that sense of déjà vu, picked up the cake, tucked it in his coat, and followed the rabbit-man. Again.