"Please take a seat, my dear, you are just in time for tea" a feminine voice called for Simon, he moved his head towards the source of the sound and for the first time since he had set foot into Wonderland he felt genuine fear coursing within him.

The Duchess stood before him holding tray filled with cups and a teapot, looking eerily too eager to have tea with the young man before her.

The colossal woman moved to the side and arranged the various cups and cutleries on a table beside her, whilst occasionally throwing glances at him.

Simon found the Duchess' domain not long after the Cheshire Cat departure, his aimless wandering eventually led him to what looked like an oversized dollhouse house split open and placed in the middle of the forest, it was a sight that truly caught his attention, but Simon was lured within it by its owner before he could ask too many questions.

"Tell me, Simon," the Duchess started as she arranged the second set of utensils on the table, "Where are you from? I can tell just by looking at you that you are not from these parts and Cheshire has talked very vaguely about you."

Simon moved a little closer to the imposing woman, still feeling a little wary of her presence.

"I am from Sweden, madam, I was traveling with my doctor to meet a colleague of his in London and somehow I ended up here."

Simon continued telling his story while Duchess was finishing preparing the table.

"I have never heard of this place called Sweden, but I assume that's very far away from here so what made you join us?"

"The Cat has taken something very important from me so I was partly obligated to be part of his plan, and to say that I have grown to dislike him would be an understatement, but…" Simon briefly lowered his gaze from the Duchess and images of the young girl from the glass mosaic popped into his head.

"I can't stop wondering why was I chosen for this task? Why me?"

"Chosen? Do you see yourself as some kind of savior? A white knight from an ancient tale?" a gravelly voice spoke from behind Simon's back which promptly made his reach for his gun but stopped midway when he assessed the source.

"Let me get this straight Simon, the only reason you survived in Wonderland was because I was with you, you are resilient I'll admit, and you are capable of killing Ruins, but you are not special in any way shape or form, I simply saw an opportunity when I found you and decided to take it."

"If you knew where Alice was then why didn't you go save her yourself?" Simon replied with an annoyed tone.

"Do you think that I didn't try? Do you think that I would bring you all the way here without a reason?"

The Cheshire Cat's face was devoid of his iconic smile and instead sported a very grievous frown, he stared at Simon dead in the eyes as he finished speaking before turning his attention to the Duchess.

"About time you showed your face, you mangy cat" the Duchess chimed in the conversation as she sat down at on end of the table.

"My most sincere apologies your highness, but you see, I merely desired

both you meet each other without having to bear my presence" the Cat replied within a very sarcastic tone and with a restored ear to ear grin.

This answer didn't please the Duchess who crossed her arms and assumed a very accusatory expression.

"I'll also assume that you haven't mistreated our handsome guest as you escorted him to my abode"

"Not a single hair has been torn from him on our way through the forest,"

the cat puffed up his chest and placed one of his paws on his heart,

"I swear," the cat said with the biggest toothed smile.

The Duchess rolled her eyes at the Cheshire Cat mockery but let it slide, not wanting to ruin the visit for her new guest.

"Alright, I think I have heard enough from you, why don't let Simon sit down and enjoy a cup of tea before we proceed with the rest of the plan."

Still feeling very dumbfounded by his previous interaction, Simon shot a puzzled glance at the Cat, but the feline didn't flinch and simply moved to the side to let Simon sit down on a chair beside him.

Simon reached out to grab a large metallic teapot close to him, but as his hand was about to make contact with the brass exterior the pot jolted awake and revealed two large red eyes on both sides.

Startled by the sudden movement, Simon swatted the pot with the back of his hand, knocking it down the table.

On the way down the machine sprouted a series of tiny legs from its underside before scuttling away as soon as it landed, disappearing.

"Simon, my dear, why do you want more tea when your cup is already full?" The duchess asked nonchalantly while holding a plate full of bacon.

Simon looked down on his cup and noticed that it was indeed full to the brim with the darkest tea he had ever seen.

"I didn't know you still kept that old Eyepot that Hatter gave you," the Cat said as he jumped on a nearby chair.

"Well, I have never been too keen on Hatter's contraptions but a gift is a gift and it would be disrespectful to throw it away, don't you think?"

Simon felt a bit remorseful for his action and thought that it would be a good idea to apologize.

"Miss…Duchess, Miss, I am sorry for the teapot if there is any…" he began to speak but was hastily interrupted by the Duchess herself.

"Oh no Simon, there is no need for it, really, you are already doing so much for us, just enjoy your tea."

Simon took the porcelain cup in his hands and started sipping the black tea, he never liked tea so he wasn't pleased by the taste although he had to admit that he always enjoyed the warm feeling of hot beverage and could feel the tension within him wither away with each sip.

As Simon finished his cup the Duchess got up her chair holding a box tied with a ribbon, which dwarfed within her grasp and placed it on the table close to Simon before returning to her seat.

"What is this?" Simon asked, placing his cup on the saucer.

"That is the reason I brought you, it's a one-way ticket to reach Alice, but go on open the box," the Cheshire Cat answered.

Simon moved his cup to the side to place the box in front of himself, he then untied the ribbon and removed the top of the box.

He peered inside and saw two items that laid on the bottom a red bottle and an old rusty key.

Simon pulled both items from the box, inspecting them as he did so.

The red bottle had a very sharp and pointy design and Simon could see an unknown liquid sloshing within, he settled down the key in his pocket and was about to open the top of the bottle before being hastily stopped by the Cat.

"I really wouldn't do that Simon, that bottle is something made for Alice to open, and believe me you don't want to be near her when that happens."

"I am glad we were able to get rid of those useless boxes," said the Duchess for the other side of the table.

Simon opened his bag and moved the bottle inside of it, making sure to place it somewhere that would prevent the cap from moving.

"Now Simon, follow me, there is something that I want to show you." The Cat said before hopping off his chair and walking away from the table.

Simon fixed the blunderbuss on his back and headed towards the feline, thanking the Duchess for the tea as he walked past her.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Simon, take care of yourself out there," the Duchess replied, adding a wink at the end of the sentence.

Simon picked up his pace and caught up with Cheshire, they walked side by side until they were outside of the Duchess view and into the wilderness again.

There the Cheshire Cat led Simon to a more concealed area which was not too far away from the tea party.

"Halt," Said the Cat in a stern tone.

Simon stepped aside as the feline swept away a patch of dead foliage to reveal a door embedded into the ground.

The door looked very old and worn out and had large black spots all over its surface, which reminded him of the burning house.

"Through this door, you'll be able to reach Alice and hopefully be able to bring her back to Wonderland, now take the key," the Cat said as he looked down to Simon's pockets.

Simon pulled the key out of his pants and knelt before the door as he inserted the little piece of rust into the keyhole.

He heard a faint from the inner mechanism before pulling the door open, with the sound of the creaking hinges accompanying his every movement.

Simon looked down and saw pitch-black darkness from where the door once stood, almost awaiting him to make a move.

"It's not like I have a choice now do I?" Simon said in a sarcastic tone.

"I am afraid you don't," the Cat replied.