Part 18: In which Alice encounters roadblocks and railways.

I'm still cold from my swim; I'm going to try the nearest door and hope there's a fire inside.

You'll need to eat a mushroom first.



That was my last purple mushroom. It's the elixirs from now, I guess.



Oh, this is the train station!

Well, that means we have to turn back.

Right, we-- what?

Well, going forward would advance the plot. We need to check the side rooms to get the fat loot.

...I wouldn't put it quite that way, but I suppose I'll regret not checking every nook and cranny. It's a pity I wasted a mushroom getting in here.

No you didn't.



I'm still cold from my swim, but for no good reason I'm going to walk past the first door and try this one.



Oh dear.

No need to worry about the ferret; we can't get down there anyway. This looks like a way out from somewhere, so I'm guessing we have to backtrack at some point... but we can't go forward from here.

That was my last purple--

*rewind!*



I'm still cold from my swim, so of course the best thing for me to do is ignore both doors and climb up this rope onto these surprisingly sturdy clouds.

I feel oddly nostalgic here.



Which puts me close enough to this door that I can easily fly up with my top hat.



Finally! Oh, thank goodness!

Close the door. You might let in that bread-and-butter fly.

Oh, I'm very sorry, mister...?

The White Knight.

Yay! I like the White Knight. He's one of the nicer folks in Looking-Glass Land.

I'm sorry, bread-and-butter fly?

That pest always leaves crumbs on my inventions. I wish someone would take it away. It's near the club.

I remember seeing that; it's just a screen to the right from here.

Would you like me to help you with that, then?

How kind; but I always find it more useful to sing if I want to forget that dratted creature.

Farewell, mutton!
Fare well, lamb chops!
Hello, salads!
I'm a vegetarian now.

(To the tune of 'Good Night Ladies'.)

Uh... didn't you just say you wished someone would get rid of it?

Excuse me. I have to talk to Humpty Dumpty. He can use his cravat over and over in the same room.

And he left. He's a bit... scatter-brained.

But his comment about the cravat intrigues me. Let's go get that bread-and-butterfly while we're up here.

I'm going to warm myself for the fire a bit first.



That fly will knock me down if I touch it.



Fortunately, I don't have to.

Whee! I like parasols.

Somehow, that doesn't surprise me.



It is a delicate bread-and-butterfly with wings that are thin slices of lightly buttered bread.

Yoink!

Did you... did you just stuff that in your pocket?

Yes. Yes I did.

Okay, just checking.

Before I go down...



...I'm going to check out this sign.

It is a smoke signal that says: 'Ferrets save at First Looking-Glass Bank.'

Odd.

I guess if a ferret takes something, we won't have to go all the way back to Wonderland. That's good to know.

Hopefully they won't take anything we need to get to the bank.



All right, let's see if we can persuade him to part with his cravat.

What a curious shape for a creature and what's that funny yellow fungus on your head? Never mind. I'll call you a surkey.

...of all the rude people I've met on this trip, you may very well be the rudest!

(Whoa, she's turning red!)

At least I know a cravat from a belt and a rope from a noodle.

That doesn't make any sense! And I'm a girl, not a-- whatever you called me!

You are what I say you are; and you are a surkey. That's short for simple turkey.

That's it. I'm going to scramble this egg.

Ack! Don't touch me. That fungus might be catching.

Where is he? Where did he run to? I'll show him some king's horses and--

Alice!

What?

_...nothing.

Whoa, I feel... I feel dizzy. It must be the stress. Oh, I forgot about the cravat! Now what do we do?

Don't worry about it. My savestate senses tell me you don't have what you need to get it yet anyway. By the time we come back, I'm sure he'll have returned.

Well, all right. The only other place left to go is farther to the right.



Oh no.

It's all right; it's just a short swim. _{And you could stand to cool off anyway.}

What?

Nothing.



I thought you said this was a short swim!

Just out to that buoy. I want to read the sign.

4000 miles to America.

4000 miles is not a short swim!

Which is why we're not going that way. You can head back now.

Of all the--

Let me start again.



Oh no.

Don't worry about it; it's one of those repeating water things. Which means the only place left to go is the train station.

Well, all right. (Whoa. Deja vu.)





I think I'll just stay small until I have to get bigger. I don't want to have to go all the way back to Wonderland for more mushrooms.

Works for me. Looks like the only other exit is that arch.



Huh. There's another open archway. I wonder where it leads?



Another mirror portal?

It's one-way or something; you can't enter it. I tried.

When did you try? We just got here.

Savestate senses.

That doesn't make any sense.

Don't worry about it.





Hooray, I made it to the train! I wasn't expecting it to be this easy. Oh, but there's a sign; I'd better eat a mushroom so I can read it.

And so you don't get stepped on by a passenger.



Excursion train to the Crystal Palace.

And it's even the right train. I can almost feel the weight of that crown now!

Next time on Alice in Wonderland, we experience the wonder of rail transit!

I hope it's safer than my last train ride.