Bab 44: The Witch that Heals

"DOCTOR LAVENDER IS known for performing miracles in the world of medicine," Hartley explained. He watched, observing Alice's dumbstruck expression. Even though he wasn't sure why her expression was so drastic, he refrained from asking. Yet. "Spade hired her into the palace. She managed to fix my broken ribs in the matter of a week, something that should take maybe a month to recover."

"You flatter me, Your Highness," Doctor Lavender bowed her head humbly. "I am simply doing my job. The greatest joy in life for me comes from helping others achieve what they desire."

"Maybe she can take a look at your injuries as well, Alice," Hartley continued. "You look a little pale."

With her name explicitly called out, Alice snapped back to reality.

'It wasn't possible,' she thought. After all, there was no way the old woman that she had saved in Riverside Creek could be here in Gladiolum. On top of that, Doctor Lavender wasn't even anywhere near old. She wasn't in her roaring twenties, that was sure, but she couldn't be a single day over forty years old. Alice might even argue that Doctor Lavender was just a little over thirty.

"N-No… I'm… I am fine. It's just that Doctor Lavender here looks so similar to someone I used to know," Alice explained. Then, she continued in a softer voice, almost an inaudible murmur under her breath, "An old woman."

"I've been told I have a common face," Doctor Lavender joked. She held a roll of fresh gauze in her hands, preparing to wrap up the wounds on Hartley's arm. Slowly, she began to unwrap the old bandages, allowing his skin to peep through the fabric. Underneath, all Alice could see was silky skin, untainted by any wounds or bruises. Hartley looked to be pretty much fully healed. "Or perhaps you've seen me someplace else."

"Once," Alice admitted. "At the cafe in town. Wyatt told me that you owned it."

"Ah." Nodding, the woman smiled. "Yes. It's a cafe that I own and run, a business that started out from a hobby and personal pleasure."

Alice squinted. "And how do you know what a frappe is?"

"Are you interrogating the poor woman now, Alice?" Hartley cut in.

The second he spoke, Alice's eyes widened. While she was blaring her questions away at the doctor, she had subconsciously leaned forward and across the bed. Her hands were pressing onto Hartley's thighs, her upper body weight supported on him the entire time. Yet, this was the first time he spoke up about it. Nervously, Alice moved back. She cleared her throat lightly, flushing scarlet.

"It wasn't an interrogation," Alice denied. "You make it sound so… so…"

"Rude?" Hartley supplied for her.

"Yes."

"Well, you are making the doctor uncomfortable," Hartley stated. Then, he paused, furrowing his eyebrows as their previous dialogue flitted through his mind. "What even is a frappe?"

"A chilled beverage, Your Highness," Doctor Lavender answered. "Made with coffee and finely crushed ice, often topped with flavored syrup and whipped cream."

"Sounds like a whimsical drink," Hartley marveled.

"It is," the woman replied. "It's a recipe I learned during my visits to a far-off country."

"And where, exactly, might that be?" Alice piped up.

"Alice…"

"It's a place that can only be visited in dreams," Doctor Lavender responded. "So far away, so queer, and a place so magical that most might think it as a dream."

"And how do I get there?" With her heart thumping against her ribcage, Alice questioned once more.

There it was, her answer. She was right. This woman, Doctor Elise Lavender, was definitely someone that had been to her original world. If by some sort of sorcery or witchcraft, Doctor Lavender might even be the old woman herself. The way for her to go home was right there, just slightly out of reach. If only Alice could grasp it.

"I am afraid there isn't a way back." Doctor Lavender's answer sent Alice's world crumbling down into smithereens. As soon as it soared up, her hopes went down just as quickly.

"What do you mean by that?"

"The path there is currently blocked. It won't open up for a good amount of time," Doctor Lavender replied solemnly. Both ladies knew that they weren't talking about any average road. This was the yellow brick road, the path that led Dorothy into the land of Oz, the rabbit hole that sent Alice spiraling down into Wonderland. "If you're planning to go, I'm afraid it's not possible for now. Even miracles take time."

For a brief moment, Alice had forgotten where she was. It had slipped her mind that Hartley was in the room with her and that he was listening in to the curious conversation, not a single clue about what the two women were talking about. She didn't care, of course. In front of her were the answers she sought. If she didn't grab onto it now, who knows when else would the chance arrive?

"Is it too late to take back wishes?" Alice asked cryptically.

To which, the woman replied, "The adventure isn't yet over. When it is, the road will reopen. Then, you will be presented with the choice of continuing or abandoning it."

Alice dropped to the floor, her hands still resting on the bed. In the background, she could hear Doctor Lavender conversing with Hartley regarding his injuries. He had recovered, it seemed, and by the end of the day, he could go out of the room and walk around normally as long as he didn't exert himself too much. However, those were all details that Alice paid no heed to. The information simply entered through one ear and left through another. All she could think about was what she said about the adventure and how it had yet to end.

What more could be waiting for her in Gladiolum? What was so important that it barred her from leaving?

"Are you alright?"

Once again, Hartley's voice was what brought her out of her daydream. Alice looked up from where she sat on the ground, her eyes a little red-rimmed and puffy. Her lips trembled a little, unable to keep them from quaking as anxiety finally seeped through her veins. For so long, she had kept her emotions in. Her fears were all crushed beneath the rush of adrenaline and the dream-like experience of being in a world so different from the one she was from. However, now that the fresh new feeling was gone, all she felt was the raw panic and terror of being in a foreign world with no one she could fully depend on.

The people around her were friendly. Charlie, Wyatt, Spade, Miles, and even Hartley were all her friends. However, in the matter of one summer, she had experienced galas and balls, tea parties and gatherings, and finally, she had nearly lost her life in a freak accident.

Ultimately, Alice was just a girl that missed her home.

"No," she answered truthfully. "I don't think I am."

Gripping the sheets tightly between her fingers, Alice forced herself to stand up. Her quivering legs and shaking arms couldn't stop her from rising again. Forcefully, she wiped the stray tears that had leaked from her eyes, banishing them away as she sniffed in harshly. Many movies and television shows had warned her from a young age to be careful what she wished for. Now, she was simply paying the consequences of her wilful wishes.

The only way to correct it was to not see it as a mistake at all. The adventure wasn't over, like Doctor Lavender had said. If anything, it was just beginning. Alice should make use of the time she had in Gladiolum. After all, the woman had promised that the road home would be opened once the adventure came to its end.

"I will be, though," Alice assured. "I am stronger than I look."

"Oh, don't worry." Hartley chuckled. "I never pegged you for a dainty little flower."

"And you won't see me as one," Alice confirmed.

"Well, if it helps, Doctor Lavender said that if you need her, you can always find her at the cafe," Hartley mentioned. "Although, I doubt you're so weak-willed as to cave in so quickly. The Alice I had come to know most certainly isn't like that."

This time, it was Alice that laughed. She gently held onto Hartley's hand, kneeling by his bedside as she smiled up at him.

"You're very right, Your Highness," she said. "And thank you."

"What for?" Hartley asked. He tried his best not to squirm or take more than just a quick glance at their joined hands. Alice's palm felt so soft and warm over his skin. It made his hands tingle, a feeling he both hated and relished in.

"For saving my life."