"So Yeojin," I said as we continued to walk down the path lined with giant talking flowers and peculiar creatures. "How long have you been in Wonderland?"
The petit girl exhaled as she began to recall her years spent in Wonderland. "Five years... I think?" She replied in an uncertain tone, staring up at the massive plants surrounding us.
I didn't respond, I just nodded my head understandingly.
"Although," she began, "I definitely had a harder time entering Wonderland compared to you."
I cocked my head to the side. "How so?" I asked, curious about her story.
"Well," she started, "For starters, the door wasn't unlocked when I arrived. On top of that, the door was about the size of a rabbit, so I had to drink a potion labelled DRINK ME in order to shrink."
"You shrunk?" I asked.
"Yes, but that's not all." She explained. "When I shrunk I realized the key to the door was still up on the table, and now I was too small to reach it."
I nodded my head once again and continued to listen.
"So, then a cake appeared labelled EAT ME. I ate the cake, and it made me grow — a lot. As a matter of fact, my head touched the ceiling"
"That's nonsense!" I interrupted, throwing my hands up into the air.
"Ah that's what I thought too at the time," she responded with a soft smirk.
"Anyway," she continued, "I ate the cake a grew way too big — so, I drank the potion with the key in my hand this time, and finally, I was able to unlock the door."
"Wow, I really did have it easy." I pointed out, earning an agreeing smile from Yeojin.
"Do you..." I trailed off, debating if I should ask the question or not. "Do you miss home?" I continued cautiously. Yeojin turned her head to face me and squinted her eyes in thought.
"Sometimes," she started, now looking back down at the ground. "I can't say I miss my family, seeing as I'm an only child—"
"Oh, same!" I interrupted with a grin. Yeojin's eyes lit up as if our connection ignited a spark within her.
"Really?" She questioned, a soft smile spreading across her face. I hummed in response and her smile grew wider. I was shocked that such a small resemblance would excite her to this extent, but I guess she doesn't have anybody in Wonderland to fully connect with, so our bond must have uplifted her.
"It's really nice to have you here Y/n. I've been waiting for someone from up there to join me down here, and when you finally came—I've never felt so happy."
I laughed. "I'm glad to hear that. I'm quite thrilled to be here myself—even though I have no clue what's going on."
Yeojin also let out a chuckle. "It's completely fine to be confused—I was too at first. But you must know that Wonderland is in your hands now. You have to slay Sooyoung in order to save us."
"Sooyoung?" I questioned.
"Oh... I guess we haven't actually told you about the Jabberwocky yet," Yeojin started. "The Jabberwocky is a dragon-human hybrid. Her name is Ha Sooyoung—she lives with The Red Queen as a human, but can take dragon form when in battle."
I gave Yeojin a baffled look, only for her to shake her head.
"Once again," she advised, "We know this is hard for you to take in—just trust us, please."
This time I could tell how serious she was. Perhaps it was the slight glisten in her eyes that made my heart shatter into a thousand pieces—or maybe it was her voice quivering when she said those last words. Either way, I wanted to help them—I wanted to help her. There was something about her that made me feel a certain way... Not love, no. Sympathy. I felt terrible for her. It could be the fact that we're both stuck in this world when we belong up above.
My soul ached. I was torn—how was I supposed to kill Sooyoung? I grew up isolated, not knowing how to defend myself from the world. I had no mental nor physical power to execute this beast, yet there was a spark inside of me ordering me to do so.
"Alright..." I began, gaining everyone's attention. I looked over towards Jungeun and Jiwoo who were standing side by side, holding hands. They continued to stare back at me, their eyes beaming with anticipation.
Chaewon, who was on the other side of Yeojin, pursed her lips together and gazed at me tensely—Yeojin doing the exact same—looking me straight in the eye with a hopeful expression.
Finally, Heejin, who was on my other side, gave me a reassuring glance. She nodded her head as if she was saying, "Take your time, we believe in you".
"I'll help you." I finally breathed out with a shaky tone.
The group stopped. Their faces lit up, generating both a warm and a high-strung feeling to spread throughout my body.
"Are you sure, Y/n?" Heejin asked tenderly. The question sent a shiver down my spine, allowing for a light blush to form on my cheeks. There was something about the way she spoke that made butterflies emerge in my stomach. Her voice was deeper than the rest of the girls, yet it was sweet and calming at the same time. It was addicting, naturally.
If I'm being honest, the overall aura of these women made me feel a certain way. They were special in so many ways, regardless of me barely even knowing them.
From the way Jiwoo brought so much energy to the group, and how Jungeun was naturally hilarious, to Heejin being calm and protective of everyone around her. It's the way Yeojin's eyes shone in the light and how Chaewon's tiny features and mouse-like voice made me feel so much joy. These five girls made me feel so many different emotions to the point where I was overwhelmed. Wonderland seems to be such a beautiful place, simply because of the beautiful women within it. It's like a drug, I'm simply obsessed with—
"Y/n?"
"Huh?"
I snapped back into reality and looked up at the small crowd in front of me.
"Are you alright?" Chaewon wondered. She furrowed her eyebrows in solicitude and took a step closer to me. "Heejin just asked you if you were sure you wanted to do this, but... You zoned out."
"Oh!" I exclaimed, "I'm terribly sorry—you see, I'm still getting used to the new environment. You're just that you're all so..." I trailed off.
"We're all so what?" Jiwoo urged in a disconcerted tone.
"Uh..." I paused, trying to think of the right word to say without sounding weird. "You're all so wonderful!" I finally concluded with a weak smile.
The girls looked at each other in silence, until Jungeun let out an uncomfortable laugh.
"Oh Y/n, you're special." She stammered and patted my head. "C'mon, let's keep moving, we're nearly at the White Palace."
I opened my mouth to respond but refrained from doing so, simply just smiling and continuing to walk onwards.
What was so funny about what I said? I know it was awkward but it was still a compliment... Perhaps they don't say things like that here.
I decided to shake the thought out of my head and focus on getting to the White Queen.
As we resumed our trip, Heejin told me stories of Wonderland. I listened to her carefully, not interrupting—how could I have? Everything she said was so intriguing.
As she continued to tell me her tales, the thought of the Jabberwocky crossed my mind.
"Heejin, what has the Jabberwocky done to Wonderland?"
At first, her expression dropped, but then she turned to me with a weak smile, indicating that she would tell me.
"You see Y/n it all started on Horovendoush day..."
Ten Years Earlier
"Oh, this is lovely!" Kahei announced as she walked over to a group of four people. The bunch turned towards her and bowed down to their queen.
"Oh, Your Majesty! How do you do?" The tallest of the group asked.
"I'm doing quite well, thank you, Hatter."
The girl smiled. "Oh please Your Majesty, just call me by my name, I insist." She asserted with a shake of her head. The queen laughed in response and nodded her head.
"Alright, only because you insist." She vowed with a grin. Her smile shone in the light, bringing her elegant face to life. Her hair was flowy, coloured a golden blonde, shaping her profile. Sparkling like diamonds, her eyes were full like a fawn, and her lashes were long and perfectly even. One might say she looked like a goddess or even an angel.
The people of Underland adored her. Everyone except for one. Her sister, Son Hyejoo. Hyejoo was adopted into the Wong family as an infant—she was practically Kahei's birth sister. As the two girls grew older, Hyejoo began to realize her power as the daughter of the king and queen. Although unlucky for her, Kahei was the eldest, making her heir to the throne—not Hyejoo.
Once Kahei was crowned as queen, Hyejoo swore that she would do whatever it takes to have that very crown sitting on her head.
"I must say, Your Majesty, you look absolutely stunning today." Admitted the shortest girl, Chaewon.
"Yes, Your Majesty, you look beautiful as always!" Added one out of the two Kim sisters, Jiwoo. Jungeun nodded in agreement.
Kahei let out a light giggle, embarrassed from the overwhelming compliments. She was used to the compliments at this point, but whenever she was told she was beautiful or that she was a wonderful queen, a smile always grew on her face.
"Oh gosh, you guys," She responded, "I don't deserve you."
Everyone laughed and smiled at each other.
Everything was peaceful. Everything was just right.
Yet at the same time, everything was about to go so wrong.
As the Kim sisters, Chaewon, Kahei and the Hatter were continuing along with their conversation, a bloodcurdling scream was heard in the distance.
Naturally, the group whipped their heads toward the direction of the cry, discovering the landscape in front of them was being burnt to a crisp by a dark purple fire.
Kahei turned around allowing for a gasp to escape her soft lips. She felt her heart shatter into a million tiny pieces. With her mouth hanging agape and her eyes open wide, she stood before her very own sister who stood on the back of the Jabberwocky, like a deer in headlights.
Hyejoo met eyes with Kahei and smirked. Her eyes contained pure evil, eating away at her soul the longer their eyes connected.
Hyejoo threw herself off the giant creature and paced towards her elder sister. Kahei swallowed hard as the younger approached her with such determination and greed filling her dark pupils. Her dark hair lay down, framing her pale face, and she wore a long red and grey dress which trailed behind her just as a brides gown would. There was a certain luminosity about her—perhaps it was just the blaze of the fire around them that made it look like so.
"Kahei," Hyejoo exclaimed with a phony smile and she stopped in front of her sister. "It's been a while, have you missed me?"
"Hyejoo, what are you doing?"
"Agh, already trying to act so high and mighty, aren't you, sis?"
"Hyejoo—"
"Don't call me Hyejoo anymore Kahei." Hyejoo spat. "Because now, I am your queen."
"Don't be ridiculous—"
Another yelp flew out of the White Queens mouth as she felt her pure gold crown being taken off of her dainty head. She looked behind her and met eyes with a woman who was a few inches taller than her, standing proudly with the crown hanging on her index and middle finger.
Her hair was pin-straight and dark as night, hanging a bit past her shoulders. Her eyes, almost just as addicting as Hyejoo's, were a dark purple and flared like a dragon, sending chills down Kahei's spine.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty," The woman said sarcastically while taking a mocking curtsy. She laughed and walked around Kahei to Hyejoo, handing her the crown.
"Good work Sooyoung," Hyejoo praised the taller girl as she placed the crown on her own head. Sooyoung didn't respond, she only smiled and nodded.
Kahei was at loss for worlds. She tried to speak but the sentences were being trapped in her throat. All she could do was stand before her sister in shock. She wanted to say something, she wanted to scream at her like she always did as a child... But this time, she just couldn't do it.
"Aww, is poor Kahei scared?" Hyejoo teased while elevating her eyebrows and pouting her lips. She let out another sinister laugh and turned towards Sooyoung.
"It's time to leave, Sooyoung, let's go." The new queen of Underland instructed.
Sooyoung nodded again and tightly squeezed her eyes shut, transforming back into her original form as the dreaded Jabberwocky. The dragon puffed, and Hyejoo climbed onto her back.
Before signalling for Sooyoung to fly away, she looked back down at her sister with a deadpan expression.
"Goodbye, sis."
Kahei didn't respond, nor did she have time to, for Hyejoo had already flown away on the back of the Jabberwocky.
For a moment, everything around her froze. She felt as if time had come to a stop entirely. Her heart lay heavy and her chest ached. She wasn't sad nor was she scared—she was simply in shock.
That night, her palace courtyard was destroyed, many innocent citizens died, and she lost all power over Underland.
~~~
"Oh... I'm sorry, I didn't know it was that bad." I spoke softly after Heejin finished speaking.
The rabbit-like girl shook her head. "Don't be sorry Y/n it's not your fault—you're here to fix the problem, not change the past."
Right, I got so caught up in the story I forgot I actually had to kill this thing.
I smiled politely, trying not to address her comment on the situation. Although I had agreed to help them, I didn't like to think about killing Sooyoung and tried to avoid doing so at all times.
We proceeded to walk in silence when I remembered a particular person mentioned in the story.
"Hey, Heejin," I piped up, earning the girls' attention. She raised her eyebrows as if saying, "go ahead".
"Who's the Hatter?"
Hejins face brightened at my question.
"Well the Hatter is also a very good friend of ours," She explained, "She lives an hour away from here in the old broken windmill—Chaewon often stays with her, along with the Marsh Hare," She continued excitedly. "She's quite the character, really—some even call her the Mad Hatter!"
I chuckled at Heejins overbearing enthusiasm. This was probably the most energetic I'd seen her all day.
"Well she sounds lovely, but what's her actual name? It couldn't possibly be the Mad Hatter."
"Oh, silly me, her name is—"
"Heejin!" Chaewon interrupted.
"What? Please Chaewon stop being ridiculous, her name isn't Heejin it's—"
"No! Heejin, they're here!"
The group stopped walking and Heejin faced Chaewon, whose face was covered in fear.
"Who is?"
"The red knights! We have to hide!"
~~~
WORD COUNT: 2510
ooh, ending with a cliff hanger~
hi guys! I'm so sorry for such a late update. school has been getting busy and I just hadn't gotten around to finishing this chapter, but it's here now! i also wanted to thank everybody who reads this, it means a lot to me :,)
I'm sorry if there are any mistakes, once again, I did a pretty rough edit through, but I hope it's still enjoyable.
another thing, LOONA HAD THEIR COMEBACK !! they did so well I'm so proud of them!
anyway, I also wanted to include this for new orbits reading this, seeing as I refer to LOONA by their real names in this book:
Heejin = Heejin
Hyunjin = Hyunjin
Haseul = Haseul
Yeojin = Yeojin
Kahei = ViVi
Jungeun = Kim Lip
Jinsoul = Jinsoul
Yerim = Choerry
Sooyoung = Yves
Jiwoo = Chuu
Chaewon = Gowon
Hyejoo = Olivia Hye
I hope this helps if any new orbits are reading!
have a great day/night!
remember to stay safe and healthy <3
IG: jxonhxxjin // loonathethreadss // rchjin