A/N: This chapter ought to clear more things up, not that the previous chapter didn't have its bulk of info. XD

Ganta stared at the floor. His mind was at a loss for what to do. There'd been so much he'd seen in such a short amount of time, so much he'd learned. He brought his hand to the collar of his shirt and his fingers played rubbed at the somewhat stiff fabric.

When Ganta had been given his set of clothes, he was a little shocked. He was expecting something uniform like everyone else but instead he received an all-black attire; a pair of slacks, a pair of shoes, and then a double breasted jacket with twin golden buttons trailing down from the high collar to the straight edge.

Ganta was curious as to why he had such drastically different clothes but there wasn't anyone to ask. Ganta had been stranded in this room for a few hours now. When the guard had left him, he simply indicated that there was a shower towards the back, that clean clothes would be set out by the time was done and the Queen would summon him later for orders.

Ganta wasn't so sure he liked the idea of being ordered but then, what choice did he have?

Ganta laid down on his bed. Well, at least he assumed it was his for now anyway. The room was pretty spacious. It was clean, all white, no decorations or anything, just a bed, a table and a dresser. In the back had indeed been a shower, a full bathroom actually. Eventually Ganta had inspected the place enough that he found his own light dial and dimmed the room to almost complete darkness. Ganta wasn't sure why but he suddenly felt like the dark wasn't so bad anymore. After the things he'd seen in this light filled kingdom...well the dark certainly couldn't get any worse.

Ganta suddenly noticed voices from outside of his door. He turned over and strained his ear to hear them but he couldn't make out what they were saying. He could tell one voice was female and the other male. It sounded like some kind of argument. The male voice was deep...and certianly annoyed.

Senji! Ganta thought, sitting up slightly.

"Fine!" Senji shouted clearly, "If it'll get you away from me then all right!"

Sure enough, the door was thrown upon and light bombarded Ganta. Ganta went to cover his eyes, let out a yelp of pain and then fell off the bed.

"Close the door!" Ganta yelled.

His command was obeyed and the room went dark again. Ganta very slowly and very cautiously lowered his arms to see Senji standing there without his monicle and with his hand extended down toward Ganta.

"Well," Senji grunted, "c'mon kid, or do you wanna just stay down there?"

Ganta blinked twice and then pouted. He pushed himself off the floor.

"I can get up on my own, Senji," Ganta said as he took a seat back on the bed, "and quit calling me a kid already."

Ganta sat down on the bed. There was a slight puase of silence before Senji decided to sit down on the bed next to Ganta. Their hands brushed against one another for a moment and Ganta flinched away.

"What?" Senji asked.

"L-look," Ganta said, "I know everyone thinks I'm this- Alive or whatever and I know that the Hatter and the Alice are-"

Ganta couldn't bring himself to say it. Just the idea made his stomach tie up in knots and when Senji was so close it didn't help.

"Stop worrying about that," Senji grunted, annoyed.

"How can I?" Ganta asked, refusing to let Senji's tone end the conversation.

There was an even longer pause of silence this time. Ganta akwardly placed his hands on knees and sighed. He knew Senji wasn't one to talk about his feelings but this needed to be cleared because-

because- because I don' know! It's just weird and akward and I don't know.

"Can you tell me what the propechy is at least?" Ganta asked, resigning to the end of the topic, "Everyong keeps talking about it, so I may as well know what it is."

Senji stood up from the bed and put distance between himself and Ganta. He had his back turned to Ganta as he took off his captain's hat and sat it down on a table. He then walked over to his wall and put his back against it. He was facing Ganta again.

"Hear my child so that you may know," Senji began somewhat reluctantly, "for with these words, the future I'll show."

Ganta leaned in closer. So the prophecy was in rhyme. Interesting and yet, Ganta felt it was right.

"When the Jubjub bird no longer flies

and the Catepillar still and coldly lies

the head of red will come to rise.

Fear the red, its throne of thorns.

The sacrafices not to be mourned-"

"-that's the Red Queen and her kingdom isn't it?" Ganta asked, "...and the Gladitorials."

Senji crossed his arms and looked at Ganta.

"You want to hear it or not?" he asked.

Ganta nodded and allowed Senji to continue.

"The white of light will conquer slight

but not by birth and not by right."

That's the White Kingdom...and Queen Makina.

'I am Makina, the second White Queen by tribute, not blood'.

"The red will rise and consume all

until the day of the Alice fall.

Innocent frame, innocent eyes

downcast but Alice too shall rise.

Lost in thought, in reality.

A path is found at a tea party.

Hatter will know Alice by sight, in hush.

Two souls bound mates that have yet to touch.

The Hatter hides Alice under his brim

for Alice is united... as one with him."

There was a bit of an akward pause there. Senji looked off more to his right but Ganta looked directly at Senji. Ganta was a little...breath taken in a way. Before Ganta could make anything of it though, Senji went on.

"But destiny calls Alice into the light

to see horrors of red exposed by white.

Into the red, deeper and deeper still

to the heart and the Jabbewock's kill.

The Jabberwok, my child, shall return

with lying flesh and eyes that burn,

with jaws that grin and claws that die

and all shall be paid, an eye for an eye.

A child of red and a child of white,

the grandest battle Wonderland will fight

And in the end, Alice and Wonderland will part

but not without the beat of the Tumtum's heart.

All have fallen, so sets the sun

in the darkness stands the one."

Ganta was speechless. He could already see correlations between the prophecy and reality and he didn't know what to do with them. More importantly, there was only one question he could manage to ask.

"The one is me isn't it?" Ganta asked quietly, gripping the fabric of his dark pants, "I'm going to be the only person left..."

Senji just huffed at the notion and kept looking off to his right.

"All of this...this craziness," Ganta began to tear up and the anger in his voice became apparent, "All of this suffering just for everyone to die?!"

"Woah," Senji said, his attention now focused on Ganta, "Calm down, will ya?"

Ganta stood up from the bed. His small body seemed to tremble he was so distressed and angry.

"What kind of world is this, huh!?" he screamed, his voice breaking, "What's the point of all this if everyone's going to die!? Why do I have to be left, huh!? Why just me!"

Senji stood up straight and looked at Ganta sternly. He took a few steps towards Ganta. He towered over the boy, looking down at him.

"Calm down, kid," Senji said, "for all we know you may not even be the Alice."

"You know I am!" Ganta shouted and pushed Senji away from him "I know you know! Why else would you try so hard to hide me if I wasn't? You knew it when you saw me! It says so in the prophecy! YOU KNOW WHAT I AM!"

Senji grabbed Ganta by the wrists and held him firmly. Ganta tried to pull away from him. Ganta was crying so hard and he wasd so embarrassed but he knew he couldn't stop.

"Okay!" Senji shouted, "All right? I did know!"

Ganta seemed to snap out of his sobbing and begin to calm down. Senji had a pained look on his face, stern as the pain might be and the expression forced Ganta to calm, to concerned with it to panic anymore.

"I just didn't know I knew..." Senji admitted.

"...wh- what do you mean?" Ganta asked as he sniffled.

Senji sighed and released Ganta's wrist. He resigned himself back to the bed where he sat looking somewhat defeated. Senji didn't want to talk about this but there was really no getting around it.

Everybody's gotta fess up at some point, he reasoned.

"I just...I knew you were something special," Senji said, "The minute I saw you, I knew I liked you. I don't like just anybody, kid."

Ganta recalled their first meeting; that strange approval and affection he felt from Senji's smile, the lingering touches, the way Senji just up and spirited him away to the mushroom tops.

"When Dormouse told me that the Queen wanted me to find something, I didn't let her finish because I knew that something was you."

"But you still brought me here," Ganta argued.

"They were going to find you one way or another," Senji pointed out, sounding a little irritated, "and I'd prefer the Makina find you over the Red Queen, but I wasn't going to just hand you over. I had to know what they had in mind...I had to try and protect you."

'The Hatter hides Alice under his brim.'

"I didn't care if you were the Alice or not," Senji said, "I just knew I had to keep you safe and if they thought you were the Alice...the way the prophecy is viewed, it means either one of two things."

Ganta didn't bother to ask what it meant. He just waited for Senji to collect himself enough to say it.

"Yeah, you could be the only one that survives," Senji, "but the way it was explained to me, it means you're going to die."

"What?!" Ganta squeaked.

"Think about it, kid," Senji tried to explain, "Alice and Wonderland will part but not without the beat of the Tumtum's heart. If you take the Tumtum's heartbeat, you take Wonderland's heartbeat. If that's done, it means you're a goner."

"But it says that there will be one in the dark," Ganta pointed out.

"Yeah, but it's anyone's guess who that one is..."

There was absolute silence as the possibilities sunk in. So either the whole world died except for Ganta or Ganta died with it. Either way, all of Wonderland was destined for an end.

"Why is this happening?" Ganta asked.

Senji seemed to understand without Ganta explaining.

"I know everything here looks nice," Senji said, "but it's not like that at all. It's fucked up and, I hate to say it, but maybe this is the way it's got to be."

"I thought you didn't believe in that stuff," Ganta said.

"I believe in the nature of things," Senji grunted, "and the nature of things is to kill."

"There's got to be another way," Ganta said quietly, "It can't all be for nothing."

"It's not," Senji pointed out, "these people, the white kingdom, most of Wonderland, would rather die than be subjected to the Red Queen. And they'd die trying. They'd bring down the whole damn world to stay free."

Ganta went and sat down on the bed again. He could understand the idea of rather dying than living in hell. He just wished there was some other way.

"Do you think that's going to happen?" Ganta asked, "Do you think everything's going to die?"

"It's starting to look that way," Senji said, rubbing his neck.

"...then why would you try to keep me from fufilling my destiny?" Ganta asked.

Senji didn't say anything to Ganta. Ganta didn't look at Senji when he asked his question either. He just waited in anticipation and silence. If the whole world really was destined to die in this war, then why stop Ganta from bringing it to the end? Why try to prolong the suffering? Or worse, make it so that it would never end?

Suddenly, a strong hand laid on Ganta's shoulder. Ganta looked at it with surprise and said nothing as Senji abruptly pulled Ganta closer. Ganta was leaning over and in front of Senji's chest. Senji's hand met with Ganta's slowly. Senji's hands sheltered Ganta's and Senji rested his head on top of Ganta's.

It should have been awkward but each movement was so slow that it was almost like a question. Is this okay? Senji's arms asked and Ganta's seemed to reply Yeah.

Senji held Ganta in his arms. It just felt right. The way they were with each other, the intimacy, the closeness, even the underlying sexual implications. Ganta had the urge to turn and kiss Senji. He wanted to just lean over and invite Senji's lips to his own. He wanted to let all this happen.

However, the door opening and the light that flooded in sort of killed the moment. Senji reacted quickly, turning hiding Ganta underneath him.

"Close the door!" Senji shouted, "Geez, I've only got one eye left and you're gonna make it blind?"

Ganta struggled under Senji but it was the equivalent of fighting against a brick wall. Ganta let out muffled cries of irritation.

Why does he always do that? he thought. annoyed.

"Oh," Karako's voice said, amused, " Am I- interrupting something?"

Senji lifted his body enough so that he could look at Ganta. Senji's face had a blush to it but Ganta's was beat red. Ganta was pinned under Senji. He felt flustered but at the same time he felt a little turned on.

Senji looked down to see the slight bump of aurosal in Ganta pants. He smirked a little.

"Shoe's on the other foot now, huh, kid?" Senji said.

Ganta scrambled under Senji and freed himself. Embarrassed, he covered his slight erection and prayed it would go away. It didn't help the awkwardness any that Karako was now in the room either.

"We were just-" Ganta's mind blanked for an excuse,"- just talking."

Karako smiled at Ganta a grin that seemed to say 'yeah right.' She had already closed the door at this point and casually walked up to the table where she picked up Ganta's glasses and Senji's monocle. She handed them to the two.

"Listen," Karako said, standing before the two men sitting on the bed, "Queen Makina doesn't have time to ask this herself, so it looks like it's going to have to be me and I need to know...are you with us?"

There was quiet as the question sat heavily in the air. Ganta didn't know how to reply at first. He couldn't just let people suffer. So many already had. Ganta had seen people literally be pulled apart. Even before they were slaughtered, most of them were mentally unstable or just plain terrified. The prophecy indicated that this type of rule, these horrors would expand adn Ganta couldn't live with himself if he did nothing.

But was the only option death? For everyone, for himself?

"What do I have to do?" Ganta asked.

Senji's head snapped toward Ganta.

"Hey," Senji said, "you don't have to answer her."

Ganta didn't look at Senji. He couldn't say why but he just couldn't look at him.

"So that's how its going to be," Senji said.

Senji got up and made his way for the door. Karako was about to say something but Ganta shook his head and she let it go. Senji left and once more the room went quiet.

"Just tell me one thing," Ganta said, "is it true that everyone is going to die?"

Karako cocked her head to the side and looked a little concerned for him. She sat down beside him on the bed and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Who told you that?" she asked.

"The prophecy..." Ganta said.

Karako laughed lightly.

"Look, kiddo," she said, "the prophecy does have a lot of truth to it but its not always how it seems."

"What do you mean?" Ganta asked.

Karako smiled and gestured to Ganta.

"Well," she said, "take you for example. For the past some odd hundred years, everyone thought you were supposed to be a girl and look."

Ganta wasn't quite sure how to take that but he ended up smiling at Karako in the end. There was some comfort in that. The poem did seem obscure in a lot of places but maybe that was the point.

"You really think I'm the Alice?" Ganta said.

"I know you are." Karako answered quickly, "There's something special about you, Ganta. I can feel it.

Ganta felt a little special in that regard and at the same he felt like the title was a bit much. He was destined and stuff. It seemed like a bit much to be destined for something. Ganta wasn't so sure he had that much muchness in him.

"All have fallen, so sets the sun and in the darkness stands the one," Karako recited before smiling, "I like to think that means one side, one kingdom."

Karako put a hand over Ganta's to reassure him. She gave a little squeeze on his fingers and then relaxed. The somberness of her sad aura returned and she looked at Ganta very seriously.

"Even if we do all fall," Karako said, "At least the red falls too. No one will ever have to suffer that way, never again. I'd take the peace of death over constant torture any day...you may have seen the clips...but I was in the Gladitorials, Ganta. I wouldn't wish it on anyone."

"I'm sorry," Ganta said.

Karako put an arm around him. It was a friendly gesture, soft and casual but still comforting. With the shift in her weight, her bell jingled quietly. The colorful little buttferly was a little dishelved and sat off center. She still had that sad look on her face.

"Don't be," she said, "it's not your fault."

Karako gave another squeeze to Ganta, this time around his arm. She pulled her arm back and rested her hands on her lap. She sighed and Ganta wondered just what it was that was going on in her mind. She'd been through a lot, that much could be assumed at this point. Ganta couldn't help but feel that it wasn't just the Gladitorials. Somewhere, he knew that her pain had a lot to do with the Catepillar, Nagi.

She is the Butterfly, it's not really a stretch to think that they're involved somehow.

Ganta also knew somewhere in his heart that it was better that he didn't ask.

"So Ganta, what's it going to be?" Karako said.

She held out his hand to him. It was dark, soft looking in a strange way. Her fingers were a little long but they were slender and lithe. Her face was feminine, pretty but her short hair and stark colors made her look exotic and fierce.

Ganta took off his glasses for a moment, they were still unecessary in the mostly dark room. As he did, he looked into Karako's eyes. They were a golden yellow, bright and glimmering in the dark. They were like tiger's eyes and they spoke volumes of ferocity and power...and goodness.

Karako was a good person. Ganta could see that. It was a little hard to tell with the others but Karako was absolute in her goodness. Someone this smart, this strong and this good wouldn't back a cause that wasn't worth it. And even if it wasn't worth it, those tiger eyes had seen so much...they even made Ganta start believe that it was at least worth dying for.

"I'm in," Ganta said, taking and shaking Karako's hand.

"Good," Karako said with a smile, "then that means we've got to go hunting."

"Hunting?" Ganta asked, "For what?"

Karako got up from the bed and her hips swayed as she approached the door. She brought a finger up to her bell and gave it tap, letting the little bell chime cheekishly.

"Why, a duchess of course."

A/N: DUN DUN DUUUUUUUUUN. O: