Okay, maybe walking in a mysterious forest in the dark is not really the smartest choice you've ever made in your life.
Falling down, falling down!
Your hair flutters wildly with the wind as you fall down the curious hole—leading you to an unknown place that you haven't even thought of stumbling upon today. But, alas, fate is sometimes playful—dragging you to an uncharted path no one expects.
Your fall significantly slows down as time passes, and soon you find yourself floating instead of falling. Several items are floating along with you, making the journey less scary and more enjoyable! Flowers, tea cups, sweets, ribbons...and is that a cat toy?
This is getting weirder and weirder, but you can't help but be fascinated as your field vision is filled with the littlest of lights from several fireflies gathering around. How beautiful!
A bright light suddenly embraces you, making you close your eyes in surprise. Your body makes its landing on something soft and bouncy, and you open your eyes to see that it's a gigantic mushroom that cushioned your fall.
Well, that's a relief. At least you didn't get yourself hurt aside from some scratches.
You slowly slide down from the gigantic mushroom, landing on the soft grass all over the place. That's where you see several items scattered everywhere, as if asking you to pick one thing up.
"Oh my. How very kind of you to pick up one of my belongings." A playful, low voice suddenly speaks, and you see a gloved hand from behind reach out for the porcelain saucer that you just picked up.
You turn around and see a young man clad in blue formal wear with a matching top hat perched on his blond locks. He wears a relaxed smile as floats in front of you, and for a moment you forget that a floating person isn't normal at all.
"Oh, I apologize. It's strange for me to do this in front of someone who didn't come from here." He chuckles, putting his legs down and finally standing properly on his feet. "Welcome to Wonderland. You've come in the best timing than one could ever do, but I see that you're still a bit disoriented from your fall."
With a swish of his finger, two cups and teapots suddenly float in front of you. Perhaps it's the exhaustion from all the twist and turns that happened today, but you can't even bring yourself to question that. He hums as he tips the pots to pour what seemed tea onto the porcelain cups. "Would you prefer Darjeeling or Ceylon? Take it from me as a welcome gift. ♪"
…
"Don't worry—neither of these are poisoned." He laughs.
You picked the tea cup to the left.
The young man smiles as he grabs your chosen cup, putting it on the saucer you just picked up earlier. He gently hands you the drink.
The smell of Darjeeling hits your senses, but somehow...your eyes suddenly feel heavier and heavier as you take a sip from the cup.
"Oops. I forgot my favorite blend might be a bit strong for others."
…
At least say that before offering it.
It seems like you made the wrong pick this time.
But you're not the type to give up now, yes?
Shall we go back for a bit then?
I'll be waiting for you ♪
You picked the tea cup to the right.
The young man smiles as he grabs your chosen cup, putting it on the saucer you just picked up earlier. He gently hands you the drink.
You smell a mix of deep fruity notes and toasted, smoky aroma. A wave of refreshment washes over you as you take a sip from the cup.
"It's delicious, isn't it? Hajime-kun tends to favor that blend as well." He smiles fondly. "It might come off as strange, but would you let me invite you? It is his birthday today, and I'm sure he'll be glad to have you for his celebration. Come, I'll lead the way to the venue."
->
"Fufu. Thank you for taking your time to come with me. I'm sure your presence will add to the joy of today's celebration."
You walk along a shining road speckled by bits of precious gems and remnants of shooting stars. You sort of felt bad stepping on them, but seeing that the Hatter walked on it as if it was nothing took your cold feet away.
"You see, Hajime-kun is a dear existence in our little world." The Hatter slows down and walks beside you, all smiles as he starts talking about the celebrant. "This place was quite grim and tedious, but upon his—our dearest Alice's—arrival, the world was suddenly painted with pleasant colors that is his kindness.
"And he just comes along with whatever I ask him, so I really like that kid." He chuckles.
"So for today, I want him to have a wonderful day." He hums, looking to the path in front of you. "If I could, I'd give him everything in this world, you know? But that's a bit too haughty, even for me.
"I'm sure you'll find him as wondrous as we all do here."
The shining path soon ends with a wooden door adorned with tea party crockeries all around. The Hatter gestures for you to hold on the knob which resembles a tea cup handle.
->
"Nyaaaaa~ Haa-kun, are you gonna lend me your lap now? I've been waiting since forever, you know~?"
Your eyes widen when you feel a presence in front of you, which soon materializes into a young man clad in pink and purple overalls. He yawns, rubbing his newly opened eyes to make out his surroundings. His red eyes finally land on you, eyeing you with curiosity.
"Hm? You're not Haa-kun… Why do you have that bell then...?"
"If you're not Haa-kun then I've lost interest~" He fades away in thin air before you can even protest.
Weird.
A catboy who just appears and disappears on his own volition. That sure is a convenient thing to have.
You squeak when you suddenly feel an invisible weight on your shoulder, and it soon takes the shape of an arm dangling around you. He is such a clingy person, surely giving justice to his animal features.
"Hey, would you lend me your lap instead? I'm rea~lly sleepy."
You just nod silently, and you hear him do a little cheer in his earned victory right beside your ears.
He pulls away and makes his way to where he slept earlier. He motions for you to sit on the ground, which you follow with hushed obedience. You set yourself with your legs stretched out, and Ritsu takes his sweet time to settle his head nicely on your lap.
"Hm. It's comfy here~ not as comfortable as Haa-kun's though." He purrs as he closes his eyes once again. Ritsu's breathing soon evens out and you notice that he finally slips into a comfortable slumber.
Hm. Maybe taking one wouldn't hurt that bad.
…
The Cheshire soon takes his leave without any notice, leaving pink fur all over your clothes.
Buzz. This is the wrong way, you know?
Hehe. It's okay. It's not like it's the end of the world if you make bits of mistakes.
Look, you can go back for a bit.
See you, I guess~ (yawns)
You shake your head vigorously.
Maybe it's from the fact that this person's clinginess puts you off, but there's a nagging feeling that you might miss something important if you accept his request.
"Eh~" He finally removes himself from you, stretching up his limbs and neck. "Mmm. Okay then. Haa-kun did say that I should act more proper sometimes.
"And since it's his birthday, then I'll do just that ♪"
"Thanks for refusing my request~" He smiles. "If I did, I might've missed the party—Ecchan would be too noisy about it again. Besides, I don't wanna miss Haa-kun's special day."
"You'll come with me, right? I'll go there now so follow me if you don't wanna get lost~"
->
"You came from up there, right? Hehe~ you got pulled into the Wonderland unknowingly. That black hole up there is really a mischievous one, but it only shows up to people whom it likes."
He climbs up a tree not far from where you walked, and you shortly wonder if you should follow suit.
Nah. That's enough serving of risks you've taken today.
"Haa-kun is our celebrant for today~ For some reason, everyone is really in high spirits to prepare for it." He jumps into the next tree branch on your way. "He doesn't really realize it, but there's a lot of people who love him. Including me, of course~"
"That kid is a hard worker. And he offers help to anyone who needs it."
"He always spoils me, you see—giving me a very good lap pillow, humming me lullabies, and inviting me to Ecchan's tea parties. You can say we three have a peaceful little tea club here~"
"Though sometimes I wish he'd let himself rest. He always gives it his all in everything he does."
He hops and starts walking with you on the cobblestoned path. "That's why today, it's my turn to spoil him~ I think."
"Once you meet him, you'll see why everyone loves him." He chuckles, turning to the door covered with artificial sweets—some fancy, some grotesque—at the end of the path. He nods at you as a silent permission to open the door.
->
"AH! That's mine! That's mine!!!! Thank you!"
You take a few steps back from the item when someone suddenly comes down from the tree in front of you—hanging upside down with arms across his chest. His black bunny ears twitch as his honey-colored eyes stare at you, tilting his head in wonder.
"Mnnghmm??? Who are ya? Are you lost?" He pulls himself back up, sitting on the branch and then looking back down. "Nii-chan told me to not speak to strangers!"
What a good advice right there.
"But stillllll...your hair looks funny! So you fell from that place? Hehe~ it's been a while since someone did that! Welcome to the Wonderland! ...or something like that!"
You look up at the branch he's perched on, incredibly getting worried at how it's starting to break. Is he not noticing it…?
The branch finally snaps in half, making you run immediately towards the tree.
Unfortunately, you trip on one of the vines scattered all over the place—plopping face first on the fuzzy ground.
...All while the one you were supposed to save hopped off the tree just fine.
"Wa—" Mitsuru rushes to your side, shaking your body in an attempt to wake you up.
Ugh. You're just tired after all of that.
You decide to just let yourself lie down on the strange but very much needed comfort of the ground.
AH! That's danger right there!
It's okay! I always make mistakes too, so I guess we match now! Ehem ☆
Gimme your hand so we can play again!
See ya~! Yahoo!
"Mhm! I'll be caaareful! Thanks for the reminder!" The branch snaps in two, making your heart leap off your chest for a bit as you watch Mitsuru fall off freely from such height.
The black bunny however manages himself just fine by executing a somersault mid-air so he'd land on his toes.
He puffs his chest proudly after a perfect landing, and you can't help but clap your hands at his little exhibition.
"Ehem~ ☆ knocked that out of the pond!"
It's park… is what you want to say, but decided to keep the thought to yourself. For some reason, you can't bring yourself to potentially offend the young bunny.
"Ah. That's right! Are you here for Hajime-chan's birthday?" He grins at you, pulling your hand with his gloved ones. "I know a shortcut, so let's dash now! Tomo-chan will scold me if I'm late after all!"
->
Running isn't really your best suit and Mitsuru thankfully senses this, slowing down until you two were just walking at a manageable pace.
"It's finally Hajime-chan's birthday!!! All of us really prepared for it so I hope he likes it!!!"
You smile as your intertwined hands swing as you walk along a very secluded path—seemingly uncharted, but Mitsuru expertly treads the way as if he'd passed through this path millions of times before.
"Hajime-chan is a good boy!!! Nii-chan always says that. I mean, he's right and I agree with that!
"But sometimes Hajime-chan thinks otherwise, you know? It's not obvious, but he easily gets lonely sometimes! I wanna tell him lots of stuff, but I'm not really good with difficult words so I just give him a biiiiig hug!" He even stretches his arms upwards to press his point further. Very cute.
"Sometimes he forgets how just his words cheer me up! When that happens, I remind him how he did that a lot of times for me already!" He grins. "Hajime-chan's words are beautiful, just like how he is in everythinggg!"
He lets go of your hand as he runs towards the door, looking at the wooden door with different breads around it. "Haha! I always forget these breads aren't real! Oh well, I'm sure there's more food inside! Let's go!"
->
"Ah! That's mine! Please he—WOAH?!"
In front of you is a poor boy diving head, creating a quite unpleasant thump as he hits the ground. Several gift boxes fall down with him, unceremoniously dropping all over the place.
"Ow...ow ow…" He grunts, lifting himself up from the humiliating fall. You gently assist him by his arm, clutching it carefully to help him up. He flashes you an apologetic smile, scratching his head sheepishly. "T-Thank you… I'm real sorry for the trouble."
He starts picking up the gift boxes from the ground, and you decide to help him with the task—starting with the…
"Ah! Please don't touch that o—"
Too late.
After immediately touching the gift with your hands, a little yellow bird springs out of it—eyes seemed focus on your face as a stray braid from its light blue hair flutters from the momentum.
…?
What you didn't expect was a flock of doves coming out of the box all of a sudden, filling the place with tons of bird feathers fluttering all around.
Tomoya grunts in frustration. "Of course he slips his own prank even until here!"
I'm sorry! That was the wrong pick!
I know it's not much, but you can actually go back for a bit.
Aha...it's okay. Please don't apologize about it.
Would you let me lead you then?