#(SO THIS OG WAS GONNA BE A DRABBLE AND THEN IM LIKE HMM LORE DUMP TO INTRODUCE AICHI TO KAI IN THIS AU? SURE XD

[universestreasures]

@crimsonkaiser​​ (Time For Aichi To Meet Bunny Boi Kai xD)

“Aichi!”

“Aichi, wake up already!”

“Supper’s almost ready!”

The voice of Aichi’s sibling stirs him awake, his arms stretching as he slowly wakes up from a nap under a tree in their house’s garden. It was a small cottage, located a fair distance from the nearby town. This was by design, of course. After all, the young teen had a notorious history of being bullied throughout his childhood, and after both his mother and sister Emi had enough of it, they decided to move to a small house in the middle of the forest. It wasn’t too far where it would be difficult to travel to get needed supplies, but far enough from any bullies or other such folk who would pick on him.

Some would say this sort of decision was cowardly, as if running away from a problem instead of facing it. However, when you were a shy and timid boy like Aichi Sendou, facing your problems was far from easy. In fact, facing his problems seemed to just get him into more trouble more often than not. He still had some of the bruises and scars to prove it. 

There is a small part of him that wishes he was stronger, wishes he could do something meaningful with his life. He enjoys studying and helping at home with his mother and sister, but such a peaceful quiet life got...repetitive. It was the same sort of routine day in and day out, as mundane as it could get quite frankly. Desiring a change of pace was only natural when you lived a life such as his own. 

And when a strong enough desire is put out into the universe, the universe might just respond in kind...

“I wonder what’s for supper. It smells really good.” Aichi muses to himself after taking a quick sniff in the air, moving to stand up from the comfortable position on the grassy terrain underneath the tree. He better make it back inside before he is scolded by his sister. It was moments like this that made him forget he was the elder of the two, Emi often more acting like the older sibling. If it wasn’t for her, Aichi probably would spend so much of his time daydreaming and laying out here. 

Something then catches his attention, cerulean hues shifting the smoke coming out of his family’s cottage’s chimney to instead a white hat that appeared to be stuck on a bush. While the hat itself didn’t seem like anything out of the ordinary, the fact it was out here in the middle of nowhere was odd. No one ever passed through these woods for as far as he and his family have lived here. Did it fly all the way here from town?

Curious, Aichi shifts his movements to head in the direction of the accessory, despite Emi continuing to call out to him from the cottage’s doorstep. It takes no time at all for him to reach the item, allowing him to examine it in more detail after picking it up. The top hat was pure black with a gold ribbon with black diamonds etched into it. Roses and playing cards also decorated the piece, making the entire thing stand out from any top hat he’s ever seen. 

Then again, he didn’t exactly know much about fashion, considering he was wearing nothing more than a plain white shirt with a black tie, light blue vest, and blue dress pants. His clothes looked nice, but were rather simple. That was jus the way everyone in this region dressed, but such a...personalized and weird hat like this had to have been custom made. Just who did it belong to then? 

The boy then decides to examine the inside of the hat for a label that might help him identify who the clothing piece belonged to or was made by. Thankfully, it was not hard to find despite the hat’s dark color. In fact, the red string etched into the fabric made it stand out from the item’s color, clearly another sign this was well made. Aichi then brings it closer to his face to read the name etched into it in a red string, the name being written in a beautiful cursive writing. 

“...Hatter? Guess whoever this belongs to this must really like hats. Maybe if it’s foreign?” He tilts his head, still perplexed but captivated by the strange hat. It was like nothing he’s ever seen before, and the mystery of who it belonged to or where it came from seemed to capture his attention completely. He continued to ignore Emi’s calls for him, no matter how loud they were.

Suddenly however, without any warning, Aichi feels himself being pulled forward by a strong force along with the hat he was holding onto. Turns out the strange object had a white string tied to it, and whoever was on the other side clearly was trying to take it back. The teen hangs on for dear life, his black shoes skimming through the grassy terrain as he is too in shock to process what’s going on. 

Screams of fear and confusion escape his lips as he is being transported deep into the woods. Sticks and leaves fly into his face, blinding him even to just what was going on. Before he knows it, he is suddenly taken into a burrow underneath a giant bent tree where he goes from being dragged by the hat to...falling in a dark hole alongside the hat?!

“What...What is happening to me?! Am I...Am I dreaming?! Am I...Am I dying?!” He can’t help but say such panicked words as he not only continues to fall, but also starts seeing weird objects float around him. Playing cards, roses, tea cups, flowers, clocks and all sorts of random things surround Aichi as he descents further and further away from his home. He really should have just listened to Emi’s calls instead of wandering off on his own.

The falling ends after what feels like an eternity, with Aichi crashing into a strange room with many doors, a table with a cake and a bottle with labels that said ‘Eat Me’ and ‘Drink Me’ respectively, and a checkered floor. The top hat that got him him into this mess is no longer in his own hands, but instead is now on the head of a stranger who also seemed to be occupying the space. He was taller than the teen, had striking green eyes and light brown hair, and an intimidating face that already told Aichi he was in big trouble. It sent a shiver down his spine as he could only stare up from him from his position on the floor. 

“You...You must be the owner of that hat...Hatter, r-right? I-I saw that name on the label...” He says as he weakly tries to stand, having took quite a hit when he fell onto the floor. The fact his bones didn’t break from that was some miracle. Maybe he really was already dead or dreaming.  “Where...Where are we, a-and why did you bring me here? I-I wasn’t trying to steal your hat or anything, I promise! I-I just wanted to know who it belonged to and why it was near my house!”