PART 1b Kevin let out a yelp and jumped spinning around in a circle at the newly amused voice rang out. He didn't see anyone as he looked around. From behind him from a tree limb a shoe suddenly dangled down. A glossy hard shoe with purple shoelaces. Kevin looked around starting to feel leery and wondering if he had heard that in his head before a voice suddenly called out again from behind him making him jump again. "Yoo hoo! If ya look left and ya look right, the only other ways to look is up and down!" The voice said happily. Kevin turned and looked up out of instinct and actually jumped back shocked. "OH MY GOD!" He yelled. "NICK!?" Nick Carter gave Kevin a toothy grin from his perch about twelve feet upwards on a tree limb. "Hi there!" He greeted cheerfully. Kevin stared at Nick with the same disbelief he had view bunny Brian. Sitting on the limb Nick grinned again at Kevin's disbelief. If Brian was weird Nick had crossed over into the twilight zone. Wearing a dark magenta suite with a purple shirt under the jacket, the turned cuffs on his wrists also purple ( As well as the bow tie he wore at his neck. ) that yet again surprisingly wasn't the oddest thing. More or so along the lines of the purple cat ears on Nick's head and the purple tail that was coming from his lower back. When he grinned he revealed sharp teeth in his mouth. Even from the distance Kevin could see Nick had gold cat eyes. "Wha..wha. what is this!?" Kevin demanded after a moment of sputtering as he stared at Nick in sheer disbelief. Nick yawned lazily revealing more sharp teeth as he stretched his arms out leaning back slightly completely uncaring to Kevin's shock. Kevin stared at him as the now cat Nick didn't answer soon enough. Seeing him act so blasé made Kevin start to tremble again with anger and sheer frustration. "Nick! What the hell is this!?" He barked stomping forward so he was closer. Nick stopped yawning and draped one arm behind his head and leaned against the tree trunk looking down at the irate Backstreet Boy with a grin, His legs kicked idly and swung back and forth as if he had all the time in the world. Nick watched as Kevin turned red with fury and was even more amused. "GODDAMN IT WHAT IS GOING ON!? THIS IS NOT FUNNY NICK! I SWEAR TO GOD THAT WHATEVER YOU'VE DONE THIS HAS GOT TO BE THE MOST IMMATURE THING YOU HAVE EVER DONE!? WHAT IS THE JOKE!?" Kevin was a tad bit more furious over the fact that if this was some kind of joke it made absolutely no sense and he could see no point in it and he was obviously the butt of it. Usually his cousin did participate in stuff like this but he couldn't see Brian doing something like this to him. Let alone dressing up like a freaking rabbit. ( A fact he had STILL yet to figure out and was now more lost seeing Nick like a cat. ) Nick stared down at Kevin with a sly grin and merely shrugged innocently. *That *did it. "SON OF A BITCH WHAT IS THE DEAL AND WHAT IS GOING ON!?" Kevin screamed up at Nick his patience for this bizarre fiasco had *snapped *. "NICK I SWEAR- " "I'm not Nick." Kevin's tirade was cut off as he blinked and stared at Nick surprised that he had spoken. Then what he had said registered. Nick grinned even more and slid away from the tree to a sit up straight now. He sunk his fingers into the wood of the tree limb he was sitting on; Kevin noticed then that Nick's hands were different to. His fingers where clawed... not like his fingernails were claws. But his actual fingers were pointed and easily went into the tree limb. Kevin stared at his hands a moment unable to think once again before raising his eyes to stare at Nick who grinned and shrugged again as if to say "sorry". "Oh... oh your not Nick." Kevin said sarcastically rolling his eyes and folding his arms in front of his chest just *waiting * for the punch line to this one. "Then who are you?" He asked snidely figuring he'd go along with this insanity for the moment. "I'm the Cheshire cat." Kevin stared at him... saficiated to say that had been the least thing Kevin had been expecting him to say despite the way Nick was dressed. He continued to stare at him not quite sure that Nick had just said what he thought he had heard he had just said. Cat Nick grinned at Kevin's silence as the older man looked at him with a blank expression. "Your... the whaaaaaaat?" Kevin asked slowly. Nick laughed whole heartedly and leaned to the side swinging his legs up onto the tree limb as he stretched on it laying on his stomach and rested his head in his hand, propping his elbow on the limb and folding his other arm under it. But turned his head so he could look at Kevin. His tail swayed around his legs slowly and hypnotically as he grinned mischievously. "I'm the Cheshire cat! I'm not Nick... my name is what I am!" Nick said cheerfully his tail flipping from side to side. Kevin stared up at him blinking rapidly. "Your... a cat... what..." Poor Kevin still had no clue what to make of this. Who the hell would? His cousin had run off and apparently had his own issues and now his youngest friend was sitting here claiming to be a cat. "WHAT'S GOING ON!?" Kevin asked... actually he more along the lines whined it out sounding like he was quite close to breaking down a crying. He just didn't get it. this had to be the cruelest thing ever done to him. Talk about a joke going way to far. Nick grinned tilting his head slightly in his hand. "You're a long way from home." He observed watching as Kevin turned away holding his head and inwardly swearing as he tried to think. "No shit Sherlock! Where the hell are we!?" He demanded turning around to glare upwards. At this point being polite was the last thing on his mind. Kevin turned around again looking at the place he was in. The dirt path was still cutting through the flowery ground and trees were all over. The smell of the flowers was light and pleasant and annoying the crap out of Kevin by now, it was very silent, not even the sounds of birds... but it wasn't *eerily * silent just... quite. Nick grinned at Kevin's back as the older man observed everything trying to process the freaky things that were happening. "We are in a forest." Nick said simply chuckling as if Kevin had asked a stupid question. Kevin gave Nick a sour look over his shoulder as he put his hands on his hips. "Duh!" He said nastily making Nick laugh. "Where is the forest!?" "In lots of places!" Nick said grinning. Kevin turned around slowly to give Nick a look that would have sent any music critic running away, but it annoyingly just seemed to amuse Nick even more. Oh! Not Nick! The Cheshire cat! Yeah right. "Are you *purposely * trying to *piss * me off?" He asked in a very controlled voice. A tini bit to controlled. That special controlled "I'm going to snap any damn second" kinda controlled voice. Nick was hardly threatened as he shrugged with that annoying smile still on his face. "No... I just answered your questions." He said sweetly but truthfully. Kevin hung his head with a moan and covered his face. "Where am I? AND I CAN SEE I'M IN THE FLIPPIN FOREST!" He snarled quickly as Nick laughed and stretched again. "You my lost friend are here!" He informed Kevin as if that would help, his cat ears twitched on the top of his head as he grinned. "Where is here?" "Where you are." Kevin had never had a more *irritating * conversation in his entire life. Not even the people in the music business and the executives were *this * annoying during a conversation. They came close... but fell short of where Cat Nick seemed to be. "WELL THEN WHAT DO YOU CALL HERE!?" He shouted his eye twitching as pain laced through his head. "Hmmmmmm..." Nick purred as if having to think about it. He finished stretching and with lazy ease did a small flip into a handstand and a slow small cartwheel back into a standing position. He then crouched down and gave Kevin a dazzling smile. "You are in Wonderland." He finally said the name of the place. "Wonderland?" Kevin echoed trying to see if he remembered anything like that. "Is that a theme park?" He finally asked... it was the only thing that came a mile close to sense. Nick giggled and shook his head. "Nope nope my lost friend! Its neither nor! It's just a land filled with wondrous things! Wondrous and mad things! Hence its name!" Nick said happily. "WHAT!?" Kevin asked exasperated. So far about one point six billion new questions had popped up since Kevin had woken up. "This is Wonderland! I said you were quite a ways away from where you're supposed to be!" Nick pointed out again. Like Kevin was supposed to get what that meant! "Where is Wonderland!?" He demanded. "Why its here of course!" Oh he was *not * going to get into another conversation like *this * again! Kevin clenched his fists and teeth wanting to run forward and knock Nick out of that freaking tree. "Where... on the EARTH... is Wonderland!?" He gritted out. "Hmm... its not on it. Its in it." Nick said nodding sagely. "Huh!?" Nick dismissed Kevin's surprise with a simple wave of his hand and began running his clawed fingers through his blonde hair looking board but still smiling looking quite friendly. "That really isn't important. Needless to say you're quite a ways away from where you were!" He said before licking his fingers a few times and patting his hair trying to get it to stay down. Kevin stared not believing what he was hearing and sure as hell not believing what he was seeing. At this point he wasn't too sure if he wanted to know how far away he was. "Well... how do I get back!? I have a concert to do I can't miss it." Kevin said nodding hoping that would make this semi pointless conversation actually go somewhere. Nick blinked stopping from licking his fingers again and looked at him curiously, his cat ears lowered a little and shot back up a few times quickly as a sign his interest was peeked. "Really?" He asked as if he hadn't known. "Yeah... so like I need to hurry!" Kevin urged rubbing his head. He himself suddenly blinked as something registered and Nick watched as his face twisted into an expression of fury. "Wait a second!? Why am I explaining this to YOU!? You know this just as much as I do! And what the hell is YOUR deal!? I have yet to figure any of this out but you and Brian dressed like THAT, this bizarre little event with you two has just alluded me!" He cried holding out his hands to Nick. Nick tilted his head blinking innocently. "Who's Brian?" Kevin felt like screaming but forced himself to remain calm. screaming and swearing wouldn't help anything...if anything it just seemed to amuse Nick even more. No matter how good it would have felt to rip those ears off Nick's head. ( He was still sure it was a headband. ) "Brian," He said with obvious forced calmness. "That STUPID bunny that went running through here screaming!" Nick stared at him for a moment losing his grin and had an honest confused look on his face which made Kevin falter slightly. Nick looked genuinely confused and didn't look as if he knew what he was talking about. Before he could say anything though Nick's eyes lit up and his face broke into a grin again as he laughed. "Oh! You mean the White Rabbit! Ha ha ha!" He laughed at Kevin's mistake. "The WHAT!?" Kevin's vocabulary couldn't seem to get past those two words. "The White Rabbit!" Nick said smiling. "The rabbit you think is this Brian! Brian is actually the White Rabbit! He's late you know." "Yeah... I kinda got that impression." Kevin muttered looking down for a moment at the dirt ground before his head shot up to glare at Nick again his shoulders tensing showing that he was about to blow it. And that's promptly what he did. "WHITE RABBIT! CHESHIRE CAT! WONDERLAND! GIVE ME A BREAK!" He shouted at Nick who wasn't at all fazed... his smile got even more sly as he squinted completely amused. "LISTEN! I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU WERE THINKING WHEN YOU TWO DECIDED TO PULL THIS LITTLE ASSINE STUNT BUT LET ME TELL YOU THIS YOU BASTARD! THIS IS THE SINGLE MOST RIDICLIOUS IDIOTIC SENSELESS PRANK YOU HAVE EVER PULLED AND I AM NOT GOING TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS STUPID INSANITY YOU HEAR ME!?" With that said Kevin whirled around and began to stomp away, his duster from his costume from the concert he had been about to do before this situation fluttered behind him. If Kevin thought that his little tantrum would somehow make Nick realize the error of his ways and that his so called "joke" had gone to far he was sorely mistaken. The Cheshire Cat watched with a grin as Kevin stalked off in a tizzy. He giggled under his breath at the man's actions before grinning even wider and slowly began to disappear. Kevin stormed away leaving Nick there in that damn tree. Fine! If he and Brian wanted to play animal buddies for the day let em! Kevin had no clue what the hell their deal was and didn't care! *Brown * Bear could come along and eat them he was to pissed off to care now. Kevin had run quite a ways into the forest when he had been chasing Brian before he had been forced to stop. He couldn't even see the tree line but followed the path muttering furiously knowing he would come along it soon. Kevin's head was still splitting especially after that one-sided argument he had just had, growling as he rubbed his temples Kevin formed a plan of what to do. He had to be close to the city or a town or something, he'd just go follow this path and it would take him somewhere and once he reached somewhere he would get a freaking phone and call and figure out what was going on. "Where are you going lost friend!?" Nick suddenly chirped swinging out from behind a tree right in front of Kevin making the older man yelp and jump back flustered. Nick beamed showing his sharp teeth again; he had leaned out suddenly from a tree right by the path. His clawed hands were embedded into the wood so he was on the tree base upside down. Kevin stumbled back shocked by Nick's sudden appearance. He sputtered for a moment as Nick chuckled crawling forward slightly, his hands reaching out and sinking into wood as he climbed around the tree a little still hanging onto it. "How'd you do that!?" Kevin demanded after he recovered and glanced over his shoulder quickly to where Nick had been. Nick's grin got even bigger. "I'm The Cheshire Cat my lost and confused friend... I know a lot and can do a lot!" The purple tail swished out teasingly. "Whatever." Kevin muttered disgusted with the whole thing. Nick climbed down slowly towards the ground, placing his hands onto the dirt Nick walked on his hands a few feet forward so his legs could get down. Gracefully stretching them down Nick leaned back sitting and smiled up at Kevin still. "Hmmmm... your going to go one way and go another but you still will end up exactly where you started." Nick stretched his legs and crossed them at his ankles and placed his arms behind his head relaxing against the tree and he smiled up at Kevin who glared down with a sour expression. "Nowhere!" Nick finished laughing. "I'm still not anywhere to begin with you idiot! You won't tell me anything!" Kevin snapped. Nick pouted slightly. "But I did... I told you, you're in Wonderland! You're the one who lost it and went off screaming." Nick said closing his eyes disinterested once more. Kevin looked exasperated. "This is such bullshit! I don't know what I did to bring this onto me but-" Nick suddenly opened his golden eyes and looked at Kevin... that egotistical smile on his face. "My poor lost friend, I always tell the truth! I'm not lying to you! This is Wonderland! A place of wondrous mad things! You're simply confused! Do you want some proof that I'm not joking and that I'm not this Nick but really what I am?" Oh Kevin couldn't *wait * for this one. He smirked and folded his arms across his chest getting a cocky expression of his own on his face. "Yeah NICK," He said stressing on the name. "I want proof and a goddamn explanation." "Okay!" Nick smiled and just stared. A few moments passed by as Kevin waited, both just staring at each other, humming Nick just stared. Kevin was about to snap again and demand "well?" when he suddenly saw something out of the corner of his eye and looked. "WOW!" Kevin bellowed in surprise almost falling down in shock. Still humming Nick's cat ears twitched and he laughed. Starting at his shoes and working its way up, Nick's body began to become translucent. As if starting at his legs he was becoming a ghost. Kevin stumbled back horrified and transfixed as he stared in utter sheer disbelief. "W-W-W-WHAT THE HELL!?" He cried watching, his eyes growing larger and larger. Nick continued to hum pleasantly still smiling as if nothing were wrong. His entire body became a virtual ghost except his head. This wasn't a trick... that was pretty freaking obvious. Not some kind of optical illusion or trick of the eye but the *real * thing! Nick's body was literally fading and disappearing right before Kevin's wide disbelieving eyes. Nick's cat ears twitched again and he winked at Kevin laughing. His head finally became slowly translucent like the rest of his body... but unlike it not quite a much. Everything was like a ghost... except for the purple bow tie. Kevin was speechless as Nick's body disappeared... fading from sight. Though he was still humming clearly... as he faded the song he was humming became... echoing. As if as he disappeared his voice slipped into the air itself. Nick winked one last before his head finally disappeared, fading away leaving only the bow tie as if he was still there. Maybe he was... cause Nick was still humming, the tune still all around in the air. Shocked into a whole new level of disbelief ( A feat which Kevin hadn't though possible till now. ) Kevin backed up a few feet his jaw hanging open. Oh... oh my... oh my god... he... he just... disappeared... Nick... faded... but... he... he... he DISSAPEARED! Kevin was so shocked his mind had been dumped into a gutter and he couldn't get past that blank phase. He made jerky movements like a puppet controlled by strings as he looked over his shoulder and turned around completely in a circle wondering where Nick was. He was still singing! "N...N...Nick?" He called out looking around wildly. The humming took on a even more gleeful type of tone... as if he were giggling somewhat as he sang, Kevin turned back around and looked at the bow tie which was still hovering in the air. He watched as it suddenly rose in the air and bobbed around playfully. Tilting from side to side it traveled over to Kevin who froze watching it. The humming became more definite seeing as which it seemed to travel with the bow tie, it floated in front of Kevin for a moment tilting like a sea saw before bobbing to the side and began to circle him. Spinning quickly Kevin followed with jaw dropped as it completely went around him back to what had originally been his front. It wasn't terrifying surprisingly... it was shocking yes and actually kinda... amazing, but not scary for some reason. Kevin watched mystified, as the bow tie danced around for a moment before disappearing around his shoulder, he quickly turned to follow it but apparently he was to slow because when he turned it was gone. Blinking Kevin looked around but didn't see the purple object anymore. The humming was teasing and playful and now fading, Kevin turned around in circles a few times looking for it but didn't see it. The humming was fading fast... as if Nick were going away. Softer... Softer... Softer... Barely able to hear... Silence. Kevin stopped and looked left and then right carefully listening, but he didn't hear anything. It was peacefully quite again. Kevin blinked and turned again looking down the other way of the dirt path. Nothing. "Nick?" He called out his voice being carried away into the forest. But he neither saw nor heard nothing more. "Nick!?" He called out louder. "Nick!? Where are you!? Nick!?" His voice steadily rose as he began to panic wondering if his friend really had faded away. His fears though were ungrounded as a moment later a purple tail dangled down from above and waved right in front of Kevin's face whacking against him lightly. "Ak!" He said batting at it before jumping back and looking up jumping again in surprise. Nick grinned down at him full and solid. Resting his head in his hand with his elbow propped on the tree limb he was on again, Nick laid casually on his side his other hand on his hip as if he were standing. "Wondrous eh lost friend?" Nick asked smiling, the purple tail behind him swishing. "I-I-I..." Kevin stuttered not sure what to say, cause at this point he was starting to get the *reeeeeeal * bad feeling Nick wasn't wearing a head band with cat ears on it and neither had Brian. "I-I-I-I" Kevin was like a broken record unable to get past that letter. Cat Nick watched him smiling waiting for him to react. "I...I... uh... I need... I need... to sit... yeah. Yeah that's it. I need to sit down." Kevin said sounding like he was gonna pass out if he didn't. He held his hands out like a timid blind man would looking for a place to collapse. Nick perked up and quickly swung back into a normal sitting position tilting his head down as Kevin drifted to the side of the path and turned back around shell shocked. He fell back onto his rear in the flowers, there was a small poofing sound as a light cloud of flower petals floated up and then back down. Nick hummed and kicked his legs waiting for Kevin's brain to fully process everything. Took about three minutes of semi dense silence but he finally managed to swallow a little and look around with a very *leery * expression. His eyes took in the perfect trees crowding in the forest and the flowers that made up the ground before his faze slipped up to Nick who was licking him fingers and then patting his hair. "I'm... in Wonderland." He said slowly drawing Nick's attention away from preening his hair. Nick blinked then nodded happily. "Yes yes my lost friend!" He chirped. "Welcome to Wonderland!" Nick yowled throwing out his hands into the air with flourish. His enthusiasm wasn't contagious. Kevin glowered at him slightly. "Where... exactly... is Wonderland?" He asked carefully. "Here!" Kevin's shoulders sagged and he rolled his eyes. "Gaaaaaah," He groaned before settling back into catatonic state again as he tried to think. "How... how did I get here?" He asked out loud more to himself then to The Cheshire Cat blinking he looked up and repeated his question this time addressing him. Nick shrugged. "You ran." "No! Not here," Kevin said frustrated but at least he had sorta gotten the hang of talking to Nick. "In Wonderland! Whatever the hell it is how'd I get here!?" Kevin was pretty sure that no matter what he would remember traveling to a place like *this *. For the first time Nick looked unsure, for a spilt second his cheerful smiling personality faltered and showed a cat that was nervous and uneasy at that question. He quickly slipped back into his normal personality but his nervousness was visible in his wavering smile. "That's... not really important now is it?" He asked quickly shying away from the subject as he clapped his hands to distract him away from that. "Huh? Oh..." The Cheshire Cat didn't have to worry cause Kevin seemed distracted in his own right. Kevin rubbed his head thinking. Okay... this couldn't be a dream. The pounding in his head had receded a little but was still there and if he was feeling pain then this couldn't be a dream... Maybe he was in a coma or something! Kevin perked up at that thought and continued to rub his head making his hair stick out slightly. Yeah! Maybe this was a coma induced dream or something! He found comfort in that thought. BACK NEXT |
| Wonderland |