Page 91 of Knot My Wonderland

Heart's jaw tightened, ruby eyes flashing with barely contained emotion. "And let me guess—he positioned himself as the void bond."

"He didn't claim it outright," I admitted, "but the implication was clear." I studied Heart's face, the way tension lined his features. "You don't trust him."

"With good reason," Heart replied, shifting to face me more directly. "The King of Spades has manipulated Wonderland's politics for centuries. Nothing he does is without calculation—including his interest in you."

The silver patterns beneath my skin pulsed with quiet agitation as I considered his words. "But what if he's right about the pattern? About what Wonderland needs to heal?"

Heart was quiet for a long moment, his ruby eyes distant as he processed my question. Through our connection, I felt his internal struggle—strategic pragmatism warring with personal distrust.

"The King may be right about the pattern's purpose," he said finally, his voice carefully measured. "But his motivations for helping you achieve it are entirely self-serving. He wants you,Alice. Not as an ally, not as a political asset—he wants to possess you."

I felt a chill run through me that had nothing to do with the Sanctuary's crystalline atmosphere. "How can you be certain?"

"The way he looks at you," Heart replied, his hand moving unconsciously to rest over the Heart Stone. "I've seen that expression before, in my mother's eyes when she covets something particularly valuable. If it is love or obsession…I can not tell.”

"Love or obsession?" I echoed, the silver patterns beneath my skin pulsing with uncertainty. Through our connection, I felt Heart's genuine concern, the protective instinct that drove his warnings.

"Sometimes with beings as old as the King of Spades, the line blurs," Heart said, his voice softening. "He's existed for centuries, Alice. Normal human connections, normal emotions—they've become abstract concepts to him. Everything is strategy, calculation... acquisition."

I remembered the King's shadows, how they had reached toward the silver patterns beneath my skin with something like longing. There had been calculation in his dark eyes, yes, but also something deeper—something ancient and hungry that had recognized the pattern I carried.

"What if we need him?" I asked quietly. "The void bond... if it has to be someone who embodies that element, the King of Spades seems like the obvious choice."

Heart's ruby eyes darkened with something that might have been resignation mixed with fierce protectiveness. "Then we find another way," he said firmly. "The pattern may recognize elemental resonance, but it doesn't dictate who those elements must come from. There are other beings in Wonderland connected to the void—shadows that exist without his influence."

Through our connection, I felt his determination, but also the doubt he tried to hide. The King of Spades commanded the void courts with absolute authority. Finding another with comparable power seemed unlikely at best.

"You're afraid," I said softly, not accusation but observation. "Not of him, but of what I might choose."

Heart went very still, the Heart Stone pulsing against my chest with the sudden spike of his emotions. Through our bond, I felt layers of fear—fear for my safety, fear of the King's manipulations, and beneath it all, fear of losing what we'd begun to build between us.

"I'm afraid of what binding yourself to him would cost you," Heart admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. "The King doesn't share power or affection. Once bonded to him, the shadows would always have a claim on you."

I reached out, my fingers grasping his where they rested on the bed between us. The silver patterns beneath my skin spiraled outward at the contact, creating delicate traceries that briefly transferred to his hand before fading.

"I'm not making any decisions yet," I said, watching the silver light dance across our joined hands. "But I need to understand all the options, all the possibilities."

Heart's fingers tightened around mine, the Heart Stone warming with the intensity of his emotions. "Just promise me you'll be careful around him. The King has been playing this game for centuries—moving pieces, arranging circumstances to achieve his goals. You're not just another piece to him, Alice. You're the prize he's been waiting for."

Through our connection, I felt the depth of Heart's concern, the way it mingled with something more possessive and complex. The silver patterns beneath my skin responded to his emotional intensity, pulsing brighter where our hands touched.

"I'll be careful," I promised, though even as I said it, I wondered if being careful was possible when dealing with forces this ancient and powerful. "But Heart, what if being careful means missing the chance to save Wonderland? What if the King really is the only viable option for the void bond?"

Heart's jaw tightened, ruby eyes flashing with frustrated resignation. "Then we make that choice when we have to, not before. But I won't stand by and watch you sacrifice yourself to his shadows without exploring every alternative."

The determination in his voice sent warmth through our connection, the Heart Stone pulsing with fierce protectiveness. I squeezed his hand, feeling the silver patterns respond to our shared resolve.

"We'll find another way," I agreed, though uncertainty lingered at the edges of my thoughts. Through Chi's distant bond, I felt his work with Varik progressing—reality tears slowly stabilizing under their combined efforts. The foundational connection carried his satisfaction at the successful repairs, along with his impatience to return to my side.

Heart seemed to sense the direction of my thoughts, his ruby eyes studying my face with quiet understanding. "The bond with Chi grows stronger each time you use it," he observed. "I can feel the changes through our connection—the way your magic reaches for his across any distance."

"Does that bother you?" I asked, watching for any sign of the territorial frustration I'd sensed earlier.

Heart was quiet for a long moment, his ruby eyes fixed on our joined hands where the silver patterns still danced. "It should," he finally admitted. "Everything in me wants to claim you completely, to be the only one you reach for." The Heart Stone pulsed with the raw honesty of his confession. "But I've come to understand that's not how the pattern works—not how you work."

I felt his acceptance flow through our connection, tinged with lingering possessiveness but genuine nonetheless. "The bonds aren't a competition," he continued, echoing words I suspected the King of Spades had shared with him. "They're complementary. Chi gives you something I can't, and I..." He trailed off, uncertainty flickering through our bond.

"You give me something he can't," I finished softly. "Stability. Purpose. A connection to Wonderland's people, not just its magic."

---