The Knave of Hear t s:
Home?23 Minut es and a Hop Away
By Erica L. and
Nathan V.
The Mad Hatter and March Hare were
about to make a toast when I stumbled into their
party. I quickly recounted my escape, and, when
finished, I took in a much needed breath of air.
The pair stared at me blankly for a minute until
the March Hare, after shoving a cookie in his
mouth, stated that I was in a pickle. Between is far too dark and unpleasant to go
through. If I were you, I?d just hide in a hole in
the ground, or, even better than that, I?d pretend
to be an overgrown bush or maybe a fluffy dog!
That way, no one will ever find you. You may not
get to eat as many cookies, but at least that
frightful Queen won?t get you.
The Mad Hatter scratched his head
before taking a sip of tea and saying, ?Well, I
guess that we could dress her up like a tree...? ?Filled with resolve, I replied, ?Being
alone like that is the last thing I would want! I
have to get back to my family, so,thank you for
all your advice, but I must get to the Cave!?
I greatly disliked that idea and prodded
him for something more... helpful.
The Hare then excitedly suggested, ?Or,
we could dress her up as a pickle jar!
?Trying to get the two back on topic, I told
them that I needed some way to get back to the
Land of Spades. I asked them if they had a
horse and told them that I was excellent at
riding horseback.
?I wouldn?t do that if I were you,? the Mad
Hatter stated. ?Don?t you think it would be
terribly hard to carry a horse on your back that
long? The Queen would catch up with you far
too soon, so the only way you could get home is
by going through the Cave of Between.?
?But, of course you?d never be able to do
that,? interrupted the Hare. ?The Cave of
After awhile of convincing the pair that I
really did want to go into the Cave, that I didn?t
want to hide, and that no, for the last time, I did
not want to have another cup of tea nor did I
want to dress as a pickle jar of all things, I was
able to get the two to show me the way to the
Cave of Between.
Once the Hare finally set down his tea,
he hopped toward where he said the Cave was.
Along the way he tripped over a log, two
bushes, and a raccoon. After picking him up
from the forest floor for the fourth time, I asked
him to draw me a map.
(continued on next page)