Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Danny floated past a couple of tiny islands and wondered if he should just go to the Far Frozen after all.

He was exploring a new area, but there didn't seem to be a whole lot of anything to actually look at or do.

It was nice to not have to fight for his half-life like he did in most of the Zone, but on the other hand he was so bored.

The next island was much bigger than all the previous ones he had passed, which was promising. It was still pretty small compared to the Far Frozen or even Skulker's stupid hunting island, but big enough to land on and take a look around.

The area where he landed was a small meadow full of overgrown grass and sprinkled with colorful flowers.  In the distance there was a small forest.

A place like this back home would be full of bugs, birds, squirrels and maybe even people. Here there was nothing and no one.

Just the plants and a slight breeze that caused them to sway gently.

Before he could get too unsettled by the lack of… life? Unlife? Activity.

Before he could even figure out what to call that, a sudden movement caught his eye.

He followed it towards the edge of the forest.

Carefully he floated over to see what else might be on the island.

It was a rabbit.

Not a ghost rabbit. A regular rabbit. A pull it out of a hat, pure white type rabbit.

“That’s not right,” Danny said to himself.

He looked around to see if there were any natural portals nearby but came up empty.

Although, just because he didn’t see one now, didn’t mean the poor thing didn’t fall through one that had already closed.

“I should really get you home before you eat too much of that ghost grass.”

Danny floated closer to the rabbit but just before he could get his hands on it, it hopped out of reach.

“It’s okay buddy, I'm not gonna hurt you,” Danny said as he slowly creeped closer again, “I'm just gonna pick you up to get you back home.”

He tried again to snatch up the rabbit but it took off running instead. 

“Aw come on! I'm trying to help you!” He took off after the rabbit.

It tore through the woods much faster than he had expected, but he wasn’t going to give up that easily.

He knew he could out fly the animal but he didn’t want to hurt it by being too fast. He had to go at just the right speed to gradually do more than keep pace.

He learned that the hard way when he had tried to scoop Tucker up during a ghost fight. He felt so bad when he saw the bruises on him the next day during gym class.

And it was just one more reason for the local ghost hunters to be mad at him.

He pushed the memory aside so he could focus but just before he got close enough, it dropped out of reach down a hole.

Unfortunately, Danny was going much too fast to stop and he slipped down after it without much thought if that was a good idea or not.

The hole was much bigger and far deeper than Danny was anticipating so he picked up the pace.

His fingers were nearly able to touch the rabbit's fur when his descent changed.

He wasn’t sure how, or why, but somehow he stopped flying.

He did not stop moving.

Switching from a speedy, but controlled fall, to a plummet, was so jarring, Danny instinctively started to flail to try to slow down or grab onto the sides of the hole.

His attempts just caused him to start tumbling instead.

“No! No! No! No!”

It was hard to tell as he flipped around, but he could have sworn he passed framed portraits and random bits of antique furniture. None of it seemed to move as if they were suspended in place.

He was worried he might crash into something so he tried to make himself intangible, but that failed too.

Before his short life could flash before his eyes, he started to slow down.

He hadn’t run into anything, and the air around him didn't feel any different, yet he slowed down all the same.

He tumbled in the air a few more times before finally landing in a mismatched pile of colorful and incredibly plush pillows.

Most of his body was completely submerged in the pillows, but considering all the other piles of things he's found himself in, this was rather pleasant. 10/10, would land in again.

He looked up the way he came and sighed.

“That might as well happen,” Danny muttered to himself as he gazed up at the ceiling that was lacking a giant hole.

He tried to phase out of the pillows only to be reminded that his powers still weren't working.

It was just as well that the way he came wasn’t there anymore, he couldn’t fly anyway.

There was a soft thump that drew Danny’s attention back to the ground in front of him. 

The rabbit had emerged from the pile and was checking a pocket watch. It squeaked in surprise, tucked the watch into his vest pocket, and hopped off around the bend of the hallway ahead.

“Pretty sure that rabbit wasn't wearing clothes earlier.”

Danny pulled his way out of the pillows and couldn't help but notice the rabbit wasn’t the only one with new clothes.

While his new outfit was still black and white like his jumpsuit, it was much fancier.

He was now wearing a black suit coat, the kind with tails. He also had black dress pants that stopped short at his ankles and white dress shoes with a slight heel.

He had a white button up with matching belt and gloves.

The belt was just a belt, but his new gloves were much more detailed. They were shorter, stopping at his wrists, and had lacy trim with cut outs on the back of his hands that were shaped like his hero logo.

Just to be sure, he pushed one of his sleeves up and found his jumpsuit wasn’t there.

“I can't tell if it's weird that my clothes were replaced completely or if having this on top of my jumpsuit would be worse?”

He was tempted to dig through the pillow pile to see if his jumpsuit was in there somewhere, but he wasn’t sure what he was going to do with it if he did find it.

He also had a feeling if he stuck his head in there he’d end up with a stupid hat or something and he was not a hat person.

With nowhere else to go, Danny walked down the hallway to see where that rabbit had gotten off too.

The hallway led to a small room with a single door.

“Guess I'll see what's behind door number one.” 

The heels of Danny’s new shoes clicked as he walked across the checkered tile floor, echoing slightly in the empty space. He looked up and was surprised by the vaulted ceiling, it seemed so out of place in a room this small.

It didn’t take him very long at all to cross the room and reach the door.

Unfortunately the door was locked.

It was also a bit too short for him, but it was larger than the rabbit.

The rabbit that was nowhere to be seen.

Danny sighed and knocked on the door hoping someone might be able to help him get back to the ghost zone. Or back to where he had been before he…

“I'm so dumb.” Danny chided himself, “how did I miss something so obvious?”

He started to pace in front of the door.

“I followed a rabbit, a white one no less, down a hole and ended up here! Of course it's real! Why wouldn't it be? Just my luck.”

“Not sure what luck has to do with the realness of anything,” a voice Danny didn't recognize said with a scoff.

Danny spun on his heel towards the voice and only found the door.

He knelt down in front of the door and was able to get a better look at the doorknob. Carved into the brass plate above the knob were a pair of eyes, currently giving him a very annoyed look. The keyhole mouth was closed in a firm frown.

“Sorry, that came off rude.” Danny apologized, “I guess I'm just frustrated.”

“Oh that's quite alright, my boy,” the doorknob smiled. “What seems to be the trouble?”

“I thought the rabbit was lost and I followed him so I could help. Although, now I think he wasn’t lost after all, but now I am! I can't go back the way I came. I thought if I kept going forward I could find another way, but now I'm here and I'm too big for your door.”

“This might not solve all of your troubles, but I know how you can be the proper size to pass through.”

“You do?”

“Why of course!” the doorknob said happily, “Just take a drink from the bottle.”

“Bottle?”

“On the table just behind you.”

Danny turned and found there was in fact a small table with a little frosted glass bottle.

“I don't think I saw that when I came in.” Danny said knowing full well it hadn't been there at all.

“Sometimes things that are obvious are also hard to see. Just a matter of perspective.”

He supposed that made sense in a philosophical sort of way.

He didn't think the doorknob meant it that way since he was referring to a table appearing out of nowhere. 

Danny picked up the bottle and read the small label. 

Drink me.

He flipped it over but it was blank.

“How much do I need to drink?”

“Just enough to get to size. Too much and you'll go too far and could shrink into nothingness.”

Danny gulped down his nerves. “No pressure.” He mumbled to himself.

“Oh wait!” The doorknob said quickly. “I almost forgot, there should be a key up there too. Wouldn't want you to forget that.”

Danny looked down to the table and found there now was a small brass key, the handle was shaped like a flat little diamond.

It also hadn't been there a moment ago.

“Thanks,” Danny said as he picked up the key and tucked it into his jacket pocket.

“Think nothing of it. It was more for my benefit anyway.”

“How so?” Danny said as he uncorked the little bottle. 

“The last time I forgot, the poor girl cried her eyes out. It took so long to get all the water out of here.”

That sounded familiar to him, but It had been forever since his mom had read him the story.

“But that was ages ago.” The doorknob said with a fond smile.

Danny put the glass bottle to his lips and carefully tipped it back. The liquid was thicker than he expected and took its sweet time reaching his lips.

He tapped the bottle to hurry things along. Which did work, a little too well.

A sizable dollop of the syrup-like drink dropped into his mouth.

He hurriedly pulled the bottle away and set it on the table.

Once the shock had died down he was able to savor the taste.

“Oh, it kind of tastes like a cherry slushie.”

He suddenly felt like he was falling. Not falling backwards, more like being dropped or perhaps more like the floor falling away.

He instinctively tried to brace himself by gripping onto the table but he couldn't reach it.

The ground was much closer and the feeling of falling stopped just as quickly as it had started.

He looked up and found the tabletop was now above his head.

“Now that's better, don't you think?” The doorknob asked with a grin.

Danny nodded in agreement. He may not be crazy about being even shorter, but it was nice to know he wasn't going to get stuck here.

He pulled the key out but wasn't sure how he was supposed to use it. Just sticking it in the doorknob's mouth seemed rude.

Then again, asking might make him look dumb.

Being rude seemed worse.

“May I?” Danny asked, holding up the key.

“Why of course, good sir!”

The doorknob opened his mouth and made a perfect keyhole shape.

Danny placed the key inside and turned it until it clicked.

The key vanished and the door swung open.

“Welcome to Wonderland.”

Chapter Text

Danny stepped through the doorway and found himself in a dense forest with a narrow path winding its way through the trees.

All of the trees were incredibly thick and the lowest branches were all above his head and way out of reach.

The grass next to the path was thick and green, like the kind of grass rich people’s lawns are covered with.

Curious, he knelt down to see if it was as soft as it looked. He slipped off his glove and let the blades peak between his fingers.

It was very soft, it was like petting a dog.

“Well if those rich people's lawns are this soft, I guess it would be worth it.”

He stood back up and slipped his glove back on and looked down the path.

The way it twisted through the trees it wasn’t easy to see too far ahead and he had no idea where that rabbit got off too.

Or if he even wanted to keep following it.

Then again, the rabbit might know how to get back.

Or it might not.

He really wished he had some kind of plan.

He turned back around to ask the doorknob if he had any advice but found that he was gone.

The door was gone.

The wall and entire room that the door was in was just gone. Like it had never been there at all.

All that was behind him was even more trees, too dense to walk through. 

“Guess I’m going this way.” Danny said to himself with a sigh before walking ahead on the path before him.

He walked the twisting path through the woods and couldn’t help but notice how quiet it was.

No bird song.

No bugs buzzing around.

No animals scurrying in the grass.

It was an odd calm after the zone. Even in open spaces, the ghost zone was no place to relax.

Not that he was always tense and afraid there. When there weren’t any ghosts around Danny did enjoy the way the ectoplasm would swirl about like galaxies. The sprinkling of islands were like asteroids waiting for gravity to pull them together to form a new planet.

But this place was so still. It had nothing to hear, and nothing to look at but trees and grass. 

He got bored really fast.

There wasn’t even anyone to talk to.

Just him and his way too fancy clothes. 

Strangely they were rather comfortable. His feet didn’t hurt from walking in shoes that didn’t look like they were built for the outdoors. He wasn’t getting overheated with all the layers either. The material of the clothes wasn’t even a little bit itchy like nice clothes like this tended to be.

He clearly had nothing going on around him if he was thinking about his outfit of all things.

It was bad enough he was lost.

He stopped in his tracks and complained to no one, “Does this path even go anywhere?”

“It goes lots of places,” a voice said from just up the bend. “It all depends on where you wish to go.”

Danny sped up a little, eager to meet whoever was out here. He figured it didn’t matter who he found because whoever it was, it was better than endlessly wandering around dying of boredom.

He looked around the tree and found no one on the path.

“Wait, where’d you go?” Danny asked, hoping whoever it was wasn’t too far away.

“I'm exactly where I've been before. It's you that's doing the moving about.”

Danny looked up when he realized the voice was coming from above him.

There was a thick branch stretching out across his path, but there wasn’t anyone there. 

He looked around but there was still nothing.

“Why are you hiding?”

“I’m not. You just can’t see me,” the voice said and it was very much coming from the branch above him.

“It would be easier to talk if I could see you.”

“I suppose that is fair,” the voice said before revealing themselves to be a rather large striped tabby cat lounging in the tree above him. “Better?” The cat asked with a wide toothy grin that stretched from ear to ear which was both a little off-putting and very familiar. 

“Cheshire Cat!”

The Cheshire cat cocked his head to the side curiously, “what a peculiar way to do introductions.”

“What?”

“We’ve only just met and yet you are the one to introduce me.” The cat floated slightly above the branch and twisted in place so his back was down and his paws were up. His head stayed in the same position as if it weren’t attached to the rest of him. “I don’t think I’m as clever as you to do the same.”

Danny blinked as he tried to figure out what just happened.

Then he saw where he made his mistake. Just because he knew who the characters in the story were, they had no way to know who he was. “Sorry, I’m Danny.”

“Don’t be sorry Danny,” Cheshire Cat smiled his incredibly wide crescent moon-like smile, “It was quite fun. Maybe one day I’ll get to try it myself.” He righted his body and floated down from the tree to be eye level with Danny. “So what is it that you wanted to talk about?”

“You wouldn't happen to know a way out of these woods, would you?”

“I know lots of ways, but I'm not sure you could do all of them.” Cheshire cat slowly floated, almost like he was swimming, around Danny’s head as he spoke, “I could list them all, but that would take awhile, and it's not what you really want to know anyway.”

Danny sighed in agitation. He knew it wasn’t the cat’s fault, but it was hard not to get irritated at how easily he could float and be invisible. Why was this random cat allowed to have several ghost-like powers but Danny wasn’t allowed to have any?

As annoying as it was, Danny reminded himself that he didn’t need to know why it worked like that here. As soon as he got home it wouldn’t matter.

He just needed to get home first.

“I’m trying to find my way home, but I can’t go back the way I came. It’s a long way away from here and I need to get back to where I was before I fell down that stupid hole. Once I’m there I can get the rest of the way. Do you know, or know anyone who knows, how to get out of this place?”

The Cheshire Cat jumped from an imaginary perch and landed silently on the path, “Well that seems to be quite the pickle. Unfortunately I don’t think I know that path.”

Danny’s shoulders slumped in disappointment.

“But!” the cat continued, “it is almost tea time and the Hatter knows all sorts from his hatting business. You should come.”

“Is it okay if we show up uninvited?”

“I'm always allowed, so you can use my invite.” Cheshire Cat said as he started to walk away.

“Are you sure it works like that?” Danny asked, following the cat.

“Why not?” Cheshire asked in return.

Danny tried to think of why that didn't make sense but he wasn’t sure how to explain it.

Then he remembered he was in Wonderland and making sense was the opposite of what this place did.

So he followed the magical cat to a tea party in hopes that the insane hat maker had some useful connections.

It wasn't long before they arrived at the Hatter's place and Danny couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. 

If he had just kept going he would have ended up here anyway.

“Geez, I feel a little silly about complaining earlier when I wasn't that far away.”

“Oh you would have taken much longer to get here on your own.”

“How do you figure that?”

“It’s hard to get to places if you don't know they're there to be gotten to.”

“But I don't know where anything is? That's how being lost works. By that logic, I’d never find anything and I’d be lost forever.”

“I didn't say you'd never find it. Just that it would take longer. Maybe when you got hungry you would have stumbled across the gate.”

“Now that you mentioned it, food sounds good.”

The cat hopped onto the rock wall next to the fence gate before he continued, “then I suppose we're just in time.”

Cheshire nodded towards the gate before hopping into the Hatter's yard.

Danny looked to where the cat pointed and noticed the gate was latched on the inside. He easily reached over the gate and unhooked it before stepping inside.

There was a short man with a comically large hat arguing with a very disheveled brown rabbit, or Hare, Danny supposed. 

“No no no! I said the blue cups on the left and the green on the right! You've gone and put the green on the left and the blue on the right where it shouldn't be.” 

“I did not! Your hat must be too tight!” The hare protested from the opposite end of the table.

“Excuse me?” Danny asked before they got too far into their argument. He'd seen his friends argue enough times to know if he didn't intervene now, it was going to get ugly.

The pair turned to him with matching glares.

“I think I know what happened with the cups.”

“Do you?”

“Yeah, but I have to show you.” Danny said, walking up to the table. “You wanted the Blue on the left, right?”

“No, on the left.”

“Right.”

“No left!”

“Yes left!”

The Hatter smiled, “that's right.”

Danny refrained himself from reacting to that and just waved the Hatter over, “see the blue is on the left if you're on this end.”

“Told you!” The hare said before sticking his tongue out.

“Ah, but if you come on this side,” Danny said, gesturing for them to follow him around the other end of the table. “You can see the blue is on the right.”

The pair were quiet for a moment. Then they both went to the other end of the table.

Then back to the first end.

Then back again.

Danny sighed. “Should I explain it another way?”

The pair looked at him and nodded in unison.

“Okay. so stand so you are facing each other.”

They turned to each other immediately but were standing almost nose to nose, which was a tad too close for what Danny wanted them to do next.

“Okay take one big step backwards.” 

They did.

“Alright now raise your right hand.”

They did.

They both gasped when they realized when they saw it wasn’t on the same side.

“See, his right is your left.” Danny explained.

The pair then broke into a game of paddy cake which led to them to a playful slap fight.

“Are they always like this?” Danny asked.

“Always like what?” Cheshire Cat asked.

“Fighting with each other.”

“Only when the mood strikes.” Cheshire said with his classic grin.

“Was that a pun?”

“Was what a pun?” he asked as he slowly floated off the ground and twirled his head around like an owl.

“The mood strikes.”

“The mood strikes what?” 

“The pun!”

“The mood strikes the pun?” The Hatter asked, “That makes no sense.”

Danny exhaled in frustration, “Never mind!”

“No need to lose your temper.” The Hatter said.

“It's hard not to when I feel like I'm losing my mind.”

“You're only just feeling it now?” The Hare asked. “How strange.”

“What?”

“You've clearly lost your mind already.” The Hatter said with a knowing nod.

“How do you figure that?” Danny asked skeptically. 

“Easy!” The Hatter walked up and grabbed Danny’s ear before tilting his head to the side. Hatter leaned in close to peer directly into his ear canal. “See? All dark. No mind in there.”

Danny jerked away from the hatter and rubbed his ear. “I don't think it works like that.” 

He didn't think it would be a good idea to explain to this guy that you can't see someone's brain by looking in their ear.

“Not to fret dear Danny,” the Cheshire cat purred, “you're among good company.”

There was a crash and they all turned to look at the table.

One of the tea pots was now missing its lid and there was a small gray mouse in its place.

“It,” the mouse began with a sleepy sigh, “is time for tea.” Then it dropped back into the pot and out of sight.

Chapter Text

“Oh gosh, he's right!” The Hatter exclaimed, “Places everyone!”

The Hare ran around in circles while the Cheshire cat orbited around his head chuckling. 

Danny wasn’t sure what to do so he just stayed put and hoped he was out of the way.

The Hatter started doing laps around the table and on his third pass began assigning seats.

“Hare there!” He said pointing to a seat on the left side of the table.

“Cheshire, you and the boy sit there!” He ordered as he pointed to the plushest chair on the opposite side from Hare. Danny took the seat while the Cheshire cat perched on the top.

“And I'll sit here!” He declared before sitting at the head of the table.

Once everyone was seated Hatter turned to Danny, “Would you like to play mother or should I?”

“Go ahead?” Danny said having no idea what that meant. Was it because he wasn’t British like this guy seemed to be or if it was a Wonderland thing. He had no way of knowing for sure and was not about to ask.

“Why thank you! Let me just get my hat.”

Danny raised an eyebrow but decided not to question it.

Hatter ducked out of view for a moment and once he was sitting upright again he was wearing a new hat, on top of his other hat.

The new hat was a little straw bonnet with a very long pair of ribbons to be able to tie underneath his chin. It was decorated with freshly picked flowers. The flowers were so fresh that they still had the roots and clods of dirt attached which crumbled to bits every time he moved.

Danny was very glad not to be sitting directly next to the Hatter.

Unfortunately, the Hatter got up onto the table and walked across to be able to reach everyone’s cups so the dirt got everywhere anyway.

Seeing that the hare’s tea was mostly sugar cubes while the Cheshire’s was mostly cream, Danny didn’t feel bad about wanting both lots of cream and sugar. The Hatter ended up with the most actual tea in his cup.

“So what brings you to our neck of the woods on this golden afternoon?” the Hatter asked as he buttered an english muffin.

“I got lost in the woods. I was hoping I could find someone who could point me in the right direction."

“Which direction did you want to go?”

“Home? Or at least the Ghost Zone.”

“Ghost Zone? Why would you want to go somewhere so ghastly?”

“It’s not so bad,” Danny said with a shrug, “plus, it’s where I was before I followed that rabbit.”

“Too curious for your own good, eh?” the Hatter said between sips of his tea.

“Yeah I guess.” 

“Best be careful to not end up like the Oysters.”

Danny had a vague idea about a story within the story about curious oysters and how things ended badly for them.

“I’ll do my best,” he said before reaching for a very appetizing looking little cake.

The cake had some kind of jam filling. He had no idea what flavor it was, but eating it would be a fun way to find out.

The cake was so small he ate the whole thing in only two bites.

“Hey Hatter, what kind of cakes are these? They’re really good.”

The Hatter followed Danny’s finger to where he was pointing and his smile dropped in an instant.

“Did you just eat the whole thing?”

“Yeah?” Danny said as he started to feel like he did something wrong.

“Get up! Get up! Get up!” Hatter said as he stood up so fast he knocked his own chair backwards.

The Hatter pulled him out of his seat and pushed him over to a spot that was several feet away from the table, and anything else for that matter.

“Just stay there and don’t move.” Hatter instructed before he ran back to the table.

The Hatter grabbed the tea pot with the dormouse inside and joined the Hare in ducking behind the far side of the table as if he was going to explode.

The Cheshire cat just laughed and floated lazily around the table to join the others from above.

Danny was about to apologize but was interrupted by the sudden feeling of launching straight up into the air as if someone had thrown him.

Except no one was touching him and his feet were still on the ground.

Once the feeling stopped he looked around and he saw the tops of all the trees. He looked down and realized he couldn’t move his feet without knocking into the table.

“Can’t believe I forgot about the cakes that make you grow.” Danny said to himself as he looked around as much as he could without moving his feet.

In the distance to his right, he saw the most amazing looking castle. It glittered like starlight and the whole building wasn’t one single color but multiple colors that shifted like an aurora.

He was distracted from the view when he noticed a small pinching sensation quickly making it’s way up his leg.

He looked down and found the Cheshire cat was climbing up his leg like he was a tree.

“Why are you climbing me? You can fly!”

“It’s floating actually, and you’re much to tall for that.”

Danny rolled his eyes and placed his hand near the cat, “here, just jump on and I can lift you the rest of the way up.”

Cheshire did so without protest and Danny took him up and what he hoped wasn’t too fast for the little cat.

“So, besides me, what’s up?”

“That’s a good one”, Cheshire cat laughed, “but I have some sad news for you.”

“Oh?”

“You’ve been uninvited to the tea party.”

“Too tall?”

“Just a smidge.”

“That’s fair I guess. You wouldn’t happen to have anything to shrink me back down to a more normal size would you?”

“‘Fraid not.”

“Had a feeling that was going to be your answer.” 

Danny looked towards the castle in the distance and realized it wasn’t too far away. At least not while he was a giant.

“Thanks Ches. I’m gonna set you down and then head out.”

“If you’re headed to the Palace, make sure to keep your eye out for Time.”

Danny wasn’t sure what that was about but set the cat down anyway.

For all he knew, the cat was just saying nonsense.

Once his hand was free, he carefully walked into the forest. He took his time gently bending the trees out of the way so he could move without breaking or stepping on anything.

Being hunched over and walking so cautiously made the trip a lot longer than he had anticipated. But he arrived all the same.

Of course, now he was here and about as tall as the castle, there was no way he was going to get inside.

He sighed as he looked at the castle. He really didn’t think this through. He got here just fine but now he was stuck.

“Why do I keep doing this to myself.”

“Excuse me? Mr. giant?” a female voice called from somewhere below him.

There was a tiny lady leaning out of one of the tower windows waving her handkerchief at him.

Then he remembered that she was probably a normal sized lady, he was just huge.

“Yeah?”

“Why are you standing outside of my palace?”

“Because I’m too big to get in.” Danny replied automatically. He shook his head and tried again, “I mean, I saw your palace and wanted to see who lived here.”

“Well you’ve seen me. Now what?”

“I’m not sure.” 

What was he even doing anymore? 

“I was just trying to go home, but no one seems to know the way, and now I’m so big I don’t fit anywhere.” Danny took a shaky breath as his emotions started to bubble up, “I never fit anywhere. I’m always in the wrong place, doing the wrong thing, at the wrong time.”  His voice started to crack as his eyes watered, “why can’t things just work out the way they’re supposed to?” 

This was not what he wanted at all. He didn’t mean to start ramble on about all his problems.

“And now I’m crying in front of someone I just met, like a loser.”

“Oh you poor thing. Is this your first time being so big?”

Danny didn’t trust himself to talk anymore so he just nodded in agreement as he tried to keep his eyes dry.

“You see, the bigger you are, the bigger your emotions. They can be much harder to deal with at that size.”

He supposed that made as much sense as anything else around here.

“I think I have just the thing. You wait here and try to calm down, okay?”

“‘Kay,” he sniffled.

She disappeared out of view and was gone for a few moments before she showed up again.

“Here, eat this and I’ll meet you on the ground.”

He held out his hand next to her window and she tossed something small and soft to him.

He pulled it close so he could get a better look but it looked to be a part of something. Whatever it was it was purple and soft with just a bit of give when he poked it. Too soft to be a cookie but too dense to be a cake. Either way it smelled nice.

He looked to the window to ask if he was supposed to have the whole thing or not, but she was gone.

“Right, meeting me on the ground.” he said as he realized it might take her a bit to go from that tower all the way down.

He shrugged and decided he’d take his chances.

He tossed back the purple whatever and swallowed it whole.

It wasn’t on his tongue long, but it certainly tasted purple.

The next thing he knew he felt like he was falling.

Then he was standing next to the woman from the window. There was a pond a few feet away that Danny was thankful he hadn’t fallen into as he shrunk.

She was much taller than he thought she would be once he got back to his proper size. Although he wasn’t entirely sure this was his proper size.

He still felt small, but with nothing he was familiar with to compare himself to, he had no way to know for sure. 

Besides, maybe being so big threw off his perspective. That seemed like the kind of thing that could happen here.

“That’s much better, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, thanks. I’m Danny by the way.”

“Nice to meet you, Danny. I’m the Queen of Diamonds.”

“Diamonds? Not hearts?”

The Queen’s smile turned to a sneer, “no.”

“Sorry.” Danny mumbled as he looked away. He didn’t mean to offend her. She’d been so nice and he was still such a mess.

“It’s alright, Pet. You did just get over your first growth spurt. They can be quite disorienting." she said as she patted the top of his head.

“What happened to her?” Danny asked before his brain could warn him that it was probably really stupid to bring it up again.

She thankfully didn’t get angry. “You’re a curious one, aren’t you?”

Danny rubbed the back of his neck with a nervous chuckle, “yeah, it’s a bit of a habit.”

“I suppose it is important to know our history. Come, I can show you the tapestry in the library,” she said before taking his hand and walking towards the castle.

Danny trailed along behind her, but felt like for every step she took, he took at least five. There was no way she was that much taller than him. He must be shorter than normal. Childsized, or maybe smaller?

“Here we are!” The Queen said as she opened a very large door that led to an equally large room.

The Queen’s library looked like the kind of place his sister would love to get lost in. The bookshelves towered above them and were all filled with lots of books with very thick spines.

Danny held on to the Queen’s hand a little bit tighter out of worry that he might slip out of her grasp and end up wandering the stacks forever.

Thankfully they arrived at their destination before his worries could come true.

The Queen slipped her hand from his easily and picked him up like one would a toddler and sat him down and a plush stool in front of the tapestry.

He wasn’t exactly thrilled to be picked up like that, but it happened so fast it was hard to protest.

Instead he just crossed his legs and listened to her Wonderland history lesson.

“Long ago the Queen of Hearts ruled this land. Her reign was terrible and brutal." She started while she picked up a jeweled scepter that was stored on the wall next to the tapestry.

The scepter had a silver handle and a large diamond on top. Which was fitting.

“The Queen of Hearts was quick to anger and her favorite punishment was one that kept the executioner busy, either with the order or by sharpening is ever dulling axe.” 

She of course, pointed to a part of the tapestry with the executioner with his axe raised high over his head to a cowering group below him.

“The Queen of Hearts was rarely satisfied, so those under her either ran off to hide or lost their heads.”

The middle of the tapestry depicted figures running away in fear and an even larger pile of headless bodies.

“Until one day there was only one head left and only one person to blame.”

She pointed to a new part of the tapestry with the Queen of Hearts taking the executioner’s axe to her own neck.

“Geez, that's horrible.”

“Yes,” The Queen of Diamonds agreed, “but horrible things have to happen so good things can follow.”

Danny didn't think that was right, but also didn't think disagreeing with a Queen was a good idea.

“Now that the history lesson is over, let's be on our way to something better.”

Chapter Text

The queen picked him up from the chair and then took his hand to led him away from the tapestry. Instead of going back to the door they entered, they went further into the library. 

He still wasn’t thrilled to be pulled along like a child but it did let him look around without worrying if he'd get lost or left behind. 

There didn't seem to be anyone in the library but it was rather large, so they might just be somewhere else.

As they walked along, the Queen was talking about a party or something but he wasn’t really listening. 

Then they past a row of shelves that opened up into a study area. There were a few tables and chairs and the back wall had large picture up on the wall. 

“Is that a map?” he asked trying to lean back to get a better look as she continued onwards.

The queen slowed down as she looked back, “Yes, my cartographer did such a lovely job, didn’t she.”

“Yeah, can we take a closer look?” Danny asked as he continued to inch his way towards the map.

“Sorry dear, I can't let you do that.” The Queen said, standing her ground so he couldn't get any further away.

Danny's brows creased in worry, “why not?” 

“Because the map is written in Wonder and I know you can't read it because you just got here.”

“What if I don't look at the words? I just wanna look at the shape of the place.”

“Nice try, but still no.” She said before continuing to walk away from the map.

Danny was trying to decide if getting free of her grip to take a look anyway was a good idea, when she spoke again.

“How about I introduce you to my cartographer at the party? That way you can ask all the questions you like from the expert herself.”

All thoughts of escape and defiance left his mind. That was actually a really good idea.

“Thanks! When's the party?”

“That’s where we're headed, silly. After we get you a mask of course.”

“Mask?”

“For the masquerade of course! Were you not paying attention earlier?”

Danny hesitated but wasn’t sure he could come up with a good enough lie. “I might have been a tad distracted?” he admitted.

“Aw, of course you were, you curious little oyster.” The Queen said as she pinched his cheek.

He supposed he was lucky that she didn’t get mad at him, but he wasn’t sure he liked the way she doted on him either.

Then again maybe he was just overthinking it? Did he not like that she was being nice? She treated him like a kid, because he was one, it wasn’t the end of the world. Some adults were just like that.

It might be a tad demeaning, but once he met the mapmaker he could find a way out of here and finally go home.

The queen opened a door that led to a room that was either a really large walk-in closet or a compact costume shop.

She led them to a shelf that was, of course, too high for him to reach, but perfect for her. 

She finally let go of his hand while she looked over her options. She kept glancing over at him intermittently so he couldn’t really go anywhere while he waited.

After a minute or two she finally decided which mask to give him.

Instead of telling, or even showing him, what she picked she immediately pressed it onto his face.

All he was able to see was black before it got too close.

“Oh it’s perfect.” she giggled and then added, “or should I say purr-fect?”

Danny felt the mask and was impressed with how thin it was. He could barely feel it on his face and even tracing his fingers along the edge he hardly noticed where it ended.

He reached further up and found it extended above his head slightly in two triangle points.

Which probably looked like cat ears based on what she had just joked about.

“Come along Pet, we’re already running late.”

The pair exited the room and walked down a hallway until the sounds of a party already in progress meet them halfway.

Their was a fishheaded person, like a reverse mermaid, standing by the door. Once he saw them, he quickly stood even straighter and opened the door.

“Your majesty," the fishhead guy said with a ridiculously deep bow. His fish lips nearly kissed the floor with how far he bent over.

“Thank you,” the queen said, barely acknowledging him, as they walked passed.

There was another fishman on the inside of the room to which the Queen turned to to ask, “have you seen Beatrice?”

The fishman perked up at the question and then did his best to look around the room with his eyes on opposite sides of his head.

“I believe she’s by the punch bowl, Your majesty.” the fishman guard said with a voice slightly deeper than the first fishman.

The Queen looked across the room and that’s when Danny noticed she was the tallest person here.

The fish guys were a bit taller than him but everyone at the party seemed to be Danny’s height or smaller. Each party guest was an animal or wearing an animal themed mask, which made sense for a themed party.

Once again the Queen took his hand again and led him to somewhere new, this time the mapmaker Beatrice.

“Oh Beatrice,” the queen said in a slight sing-songy voice, “I have someone I’d like you to meet.”

Poor Beatrice nearly jumped out of her skin when she was addressed. “Oh, Your majesty, hello. I, um, who’s this?” Beatrice was wearing a bright blue dress which seemed oddly attention grabbing for someone who seemed to not want to be noticed at all. Her mask was brown with the top being covered by her bangs. She had brown bunny ears that were the same color as her mask which Danny figured must be attached to some kind of headband or something that was hidden by her hair.

“This curious little kitten had some questions about your map in the library. Why don’t you two talk during the dance." the queen said as she gently pushed Danny closer to Beatrice until he nearly bumped into her.

“Of course, your majesty, I’d be happy too.” she said with a slight bow of her head.

She didn't actually sound happy to have a stranger dumped on her.

“I'm Danny, by the way.” He introduced himself since the Queen failed to do so.

“Pleasure,” she said as she offered her hand to him. 

Danny took her hand and was led onto the dance floor.

The click of their shoes against the polished floor was drowned out by the band and the other party guests.

Once they were in amongst the other dancers Beatrice stopped and turned to face him without letting go of his hand.

She offered her other hand, “so what did you want to know?”

“Wait, are we really going to dance and talk at the same time?”

“Of course.” Beatrice said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Right.” Danny decided that this was the place to just go with it, instead of trying to fight it. 

Almost as if on cue, a new song started to play as soon as Danny got into the proper position.

Although Danny wasn’t a bad dancer, he would even say he wasn’t half bad, he did find it odd at how easy the dance came to him. His body just seemed to know all the movements despite having never danced like this before.

“So I noticed the map in the library and the Queen said I wasn’t allowed to look at it because I didn’t know the language. Is it really that confusing?”

“It can be. Especially if it’s your first time seeing it.”

“Why’d you make the map in that language then?”

“Because the Queen asked me to.”

“Is that a popular language?"

“Not really. Only a few select people in the Queen’s court and maybe a few really old people would know it.”

“That doesn't seem like a very useful map if no one can read it.”

“It wasn’t made to be used.”

“Then why make it?”

“Because she asked me to.”

They had danced around half of the floor and about as much of the point of the conversation.

“Anyway, I’m getting distracted. I was just wondering how much you knew about how to get in and out of here.”

“The Castle?”

“No, the whole place, Wonderland.”

“Why would you want to do that?”

“Because I don’t live here?”

“That’s an easy enough fix. The Queen seems to like you.”

“I, wait, what?”

“I mean, she invited you to the dance. She doesn't invite just anyone.”

“She doesn't?”

For a second he thought the tip of one of the ears on her mask twitched but that couldn’t be right. It wasn’t a real ear.

“No.”

Danny was quiet for a moment. He really didn’t know what to say or think about any that information. 

The Queen seemed rather friendly and almost casual with the way she had talked to him earlier. She just seemed like she was a more-the-merrier type of person for the party, not an invite-only type.

Or maybe he’s just really charming?

He did get Paulina to go to homecoming with him freshmen year.

Then again, Sam told him that was a girl head game thing against Sam.

He was getting way too distracted.

He blinked and refocused on Beatrice again.

“Look, the Queen is super nice and all, but I really wasn’t planning on moving in.” 

“That’s a shame. I was hoping you would join me on my next expedition." She looked off towards the floor and it kind of looked like her bunny ears drooped with her mood.

“Oh?” He felt something twinge on the top of his head but he decided to ignore it. 

“Yeah, I was planning on doing another trip around the different areas to get more detailed maps made. Tulgey Wood would be a bit of work, but I think the two of us could do it.”

“Is that the forest that only lets you get to places once you know that they are there to get to?”

“That’s the one! You’ve been?”

He didn’t have a chance to answer before he felt a sharp tug run down his spine that had him let out a quick hiss in pain.

“Ow!”

Danny immediately relaxed his hold on Beatrice when he realized he was the reason she had cried out.

“Oh my gosh! I’m so sorry.” Danny let go of her and took a step back to give her some space, but got distracted when he felt something brush up behind him.

It wasn’t something touching his back, it felt lower. Yet it wasn’t his legs?

He slowly turned and reached behind himself to see what it was and found a tail.

A cat tail.

His cat tail.

He did not have a tail a few minutes ago.

His hands were also looking suspiciously softer and fluffier and more paw-like than he remembered them being. 

“Danny?” Beatrice asked.

He looked back at her and he couldn’t tell where her mask ended and where her face began. 

Earlier it had been so obvious.

Her new little bunny nose twitched twice before she tilted her head to the side, “Are you not feeling well?”

His paw shook slightly as he slowly reached up to find his mask.

All he found was fur.

Chapter Text

He ran from the dance floor and weaved his way through the crowd. The crowd that was now only animals.

He ignored her calling him. He didn’t understand how no one else was freaking out.

Did they all know this was going to happen? Did they not even care?

He exited the ballroom and ran down the hall and opened the first door he found.

The door he picked wasn’t the best. It did not lead outside, but to a dimly lit storage room. He couldn't see where the bluish light was coming from but he didn’t really care either.

He sighed but stayed where he was.

He had no idea if anyone was actually following him or not, but it wouldn't hurt to wait it out.

He figured staying right near the door wasn’t the best idea so he walked further into the room passed the shelves of random odds and ends.

The surprising positive of turning into a cat meant that his footsteps were now completely silent. 

Of course, if he could use his powers that would be ideal.

Then the oddest thought crossed his mind.

He hadn’t tried using his powers in a while. Definitely not since he became a cat.

The other cat he met could do things.

Did that mean he could too?

“I guess the worst that happens is nothing.” Danny reasoned. “It’s not like there's anyone here to be embarrassed in front of.”

Danny looked around the empty room one more time just to be sure.

He was, in fact, still alone.

Then he held up his paw and focused on making it disappear. 

It did.

He quickly slapped his paws over his mouth to keep from shouting in surprise.

“Oh you've gotta be kidding me? Disappearing is for cats?” he muttered to himself feeling his tail twitch in agitation.

He sat back and crossed his leg over his knee as he tapped his foot, “I guess it makes sense, sort of? I've never seen any other cats here, so I guess it could be a cat thing, but also why?”

He paused when he realized he hadn’t passed any chairs. Or any surface for him to sit on. 

So what he was sitting on?

He looked down and saw nothing but empty air and the floor below.

“Right, cats float.” He remembered aloud, trying to ignore how much of a Loony Tunes bit this felt like.

He looked around the room and noticed that shelves weren’t all in perfect rows but created a maze-like path.

He floated forward and peered around the bend before he even asked himself if it was a good idea to go explore. 

Maybe the queen was right to make him a cat. His curiosity was practically a compulsion at this point. 

This realization did not stop him.

The shelf-lined path went on for a while, with several bends and turns until it reached a dead end.

There wasn’t a wall or shelf in front of him, but instead a large grandfather clock.

It was odd that he didn't hear it ticking until he was directly in front of it.

He wasn’t a clock guy, but even he could see that this was a rather nice one. 

The face of the clock had a cut out that showed a landscape that rotated as time passed to match the time of day. Apparently it was night now, judging by the starry scene on the face.

Danny sighed as he floated back to the ground, “I gotta figure out how to get out of here.”

He turned around to make sure the path he'd taken didn’t disappear on him.

For once it hadn't.

He felt a shiver run down his spine before he heard a familiar voice behind him.

“Where exactly are you trying to go?”

Danny spun around to face the grandfather clock and found Clockwork in its place.

Or at least he was pretty sure it was Clockwork. It sounded like Clockwork, but he was wearing something different than Danny was used to seeing him in. Although it was still time-themed and there can’t be that many people out there that dress like a clock if a clock wore clothes.

“Are you who I think you are?” Danny asked.

“I may not be a mind reader, but the answer is yes.”

A rush of relief washed over Danny. Finally someone who could actually help him.

“You still haven't answered my question.” Clockwork said.

“Uhh,” Danny responded smartly.

“You were looking for a way out, but I can’t help you if I don't know your destination.”

He wanted to say he just wanted to go home, but then he remembered how he'd been changed.

Should he even go home when he looked like this?

“I've been trying to get home, but all I'm doing is getting further and further away.”

“I see.”

“Can I go home now? It's not too late is it?”

“It’s never too late. You just need to be sure that's where you want to go.”

“Why wouldn't it be?”

“Being here has changed you, but you've gone through great change before. The difference is that no one will hate or hurt you for who you've become while you are here.”

Danny looked away and tried to ignore how parts of him had turned invisible. 

“If you stay, you'd easily fit in. You could even focus on your dreams here.”

Clockwork took a few steps towards the nearby wall and opened a curtain that wasn't there before. 

Outside the window was a view of the night sky unlike Danny had ever seen outside of photographs.

Stars filled the sky as dense as the milky way in the most uninhabited places on earth.

His nose was inches from the glass before he even realized he had moved.

The sight was incredible and he didn't want to look away.

“The Queen would be more than happy to let you chart the stars and explore the land to your heart’s content.”

“And if I go home instead?”

“You'd go back to your old life and never be able to return. It would be as if you had never left.”

“I can't even visit?”

“I'm sorry, that's not how it works.”

“How come you can be here?”

“Because I'm Time.”

Danny didn't feel like that answered his question. He also didn't think he'd get a better answer from Clockwork.

“So what will it be? Stay here and explore something new or go back to what's familiar?”

Danny really hadn't expected this to be such a hard decision. He'd spent his whole time here trying to leave and now he wasn't sure.

Now that he had the option, staying didn’t sound so bad.

While things were strange and confusing, it was kind of fun figuring them out. Plus Clockwork did have a point, nothing here had hurt him and everyone, while a little odd, had been nothing but nice to him.

There was probably so much more he could find here that wouldn’t be anywhere else. Things that maybe no one had ever seen before.

Danny looked out the window at the stars again hoping to find the answer he was looking for.

Would staying here be better?

Could he truly enjoy himself knowing all that he’d have to leave behind to do it?

Danny drank in the view of the stars one last time before finally tearing himself away from the window.

“I know where I want to go.”

Clockwork simply nodded and opened the glass door in his chest. Instead of the inner workings of his clock, it was pure darkness.

“Step inside and you will find yourself where you truly want to be.”

It wasn’t what he had expected but not much in Wonderland was.

He took a breath and then stepped inside.

Once he had passed the threshold the door closed and he was completely consumed in darkness.

All sense of direction vanished with his sight, along with the floor beneath him.

He reached out blindly and tried to move but had no way of knowing if he was even going anywhere.

He squeezed his eyes shut trying to hear or feel anything that would get him home.

His foot hit something solid and caused him to trip.

His hands flew out in front of himself to try and brace against the fall and to his surprise he felt something wooden.

Since he was still falling forward he pushed what he had reached away.

There was a creak of metal hinges when his vision was suddenly filled with a hardwood floor rapidly approaching his face.

He caught himself just in time.

The first thing he noticed was that he had caught himself with his hands! His human hands!

No more paws!

He hopped up and did a quick check that he had lost the tail. A quick pat on the head confirmed no more fluffy ears either. 

He was officially back to normal.

“Dude, what are you doing?”

Danny turned to the voice and found both his best friends standing in his bedroom doorway.

Both of them looking very confused.

He had never been more happy to see them.

He immediately ran over and pulled them into a hug. 

Sam wiggled out of his hug first, “Okay, what is going on?”

“I’m just really happy to see you. Both of you.”

“You’re acting like we didn’t just see each other a few hours ago at school.” Tucker said as he also slipped out of Danny’s hold.

“It felt longer.” Danny muttered to himself.

“Danny, what’s going on?” Sam asked as she placed a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s going to sound nuts, but I went exploring in the Zone and I found something. Some place.” he shook his head still in awe in how much happened in such a short amount of time.

“If you were in the Ghost Zone, why did you just exit your closet?” Tucker asked as he gave the closet a side eye.

“I’m not really sure. That’s certainly not how I went in.”

Sam brought the conversation back on track when she asked, “What did you find?”

Danny looked at his friends, so glad to be home, but also so excited to share what happened. “Wonderland.”

“Wonderland?” Tucker asked.

“Wonderland!? Like Alice’s adventures in?” Sam added.

Danny nodded eagerly, “yeah, that Wonderland.”

“No way.”

“Way!” 

“How?”

“I don’t know?”

Sam grabbed him by both shoulders and locked eyes with him with so much intensity it made him a little nervous.

“You have to tell me everything. Now.”

“Okay.”

And he did.