*~*~*Collab between YoshiSkittlez, Ghost Shadow, Tanderbolt, and I*~*~*

Emerging from the Caterpillar's home feeling both relieved and burdened at the same time, Edric's mind was filled with questions. Was he really just acting to hide himself? 

Checking the gold pocketwatch he kept in his waistcoat, Edric took one look at the time before grimacing; he had been gone over an hour. 

Deciding to [i]not[/i] take the scenic route, Edric couldn't help but smirk to himself as he took a single step forward and disappeared in a puff of smoke, suddenly appearing back with the rest of the group as if he had never left in the first place. 

Jefferson had started to stir from his sleep not moments ago, closing his already shut eyes even more before sitting up and opening them back up with a somewhat loud groan. Reaching to the back of his head, just as he had done in his dream, he winced considerably feeling the raw sting there, resting over the top of a rather sizeable lump that had begun to form. Keeping his hand there, as though that would help to numb the pain, he shot Edric a rather crass look, though it didn't last long. His scowl faded away as his lips turned up into a broad smile, unable to contain what he was feeling right then. Alice. She was alive!

His attention quickly turned from Edric then as a thought hit him like a ton of bricks. It all could have been a dream, just as he had worried. Pulling his hand back from his head, ignoring the small spot of blood on his fingers, he pulled at the collar of his frock and plunged his hand down his chest, frantically searching until finally-

Jefferson slowly brought his hand back out, within his grasp a small, silver key decorated with a small rose nestled into the handle with black leaves. A small chain attached to the inner workings of a clock fastened to the key spiraled it's way down the shaft, interlocking with itself over the bit. If at all possible, Jefferson's smile grew even wider and moved to stand up, though the throbbing in his head prevented him from doing so, sending him back on his ass, dropping the key back to his chest and held his head.

"Alice! Alice! She's alive Edric! She's here!" Jefferson exclaimed enthusiastically despite being hit over the head with a blunt object by his best friend a little over an hour ago. His enthusiasm, however, was cut short when he remembered how Alice had referred to her brother, and his smile started to fade. "What did you do to her [i]this[/i] time?"

Edric smiled broadly as Jefferson awoke, completely ignoring the look he got at first as the Hatter quickly moved onto the truth. His sister [i]was[/i] alive. 

"Perfect!" He exclaimed, running a hand through his mess of hair as a shiver of excitement ran through his very being. The feeling however, turned to a dead weight in his stomach as Jefferson asked his second question. What he did. 

His smile fading slowly, Edric clasped both his hands together slowly, letting out a sigh. "I...ran." He said simply, breathing in deeply before continuing, 

"During her execution. I couldn't watch, t'was too painful. So I ran, like a coward." He finished on a serious note, mouth twitching. 

"I liked to think she wouldn't remember...or at least.....I don't know. For years, I've tried to justify my reasoning. There was nothing I could do, but...I should have been there. What did she say?" He asked, a still somber look in his eyes. 

Getting himself back up (albiet slowly this time) Jefferson got back on his feet, dusting off the seat of his pants from the grass from his afternoon snooze, however his attention snapped back to Edric the moment he began to explain, for once being able to ignore the pain his head was giving him.

"You... ran?" He asked, his eyebrows unsure whether or not they wanted to furrow or raise up in surprise. He wasn't sure [i]what[/i] he was supposed to be feeling at that moment, but what he [i]was[/i] feeling was a sense of hurt, betrayal, and even a mite bit protective over his younger friend. He and Edric had been friends for years, since they could walk, the two had been inseperable and told each other anything and everything... but Edric had kept this from him and he wasn't sure he could understand that. Shaking his head, stepping closer to Edric, completely forgetting that they weren't alone, Jefferson sized himself up to his friend, looking him straight in the eye with an unreadable expression. 

"You left her. When she needed you most... you [i]left[/i] her to die..." He said slowly, trying to push the images that came to him from his mind. He didn't want to think about Alice like that, not ever. He raised his hand then, making a tight fist and for a moment looked as though he was going to attempt to punch Edric square in the jaw but instead, he loosed a finger and pointed it at him accusingly, keeping his lips pressed into a thin line. "I'm beginning to understand why she doesn't want to see you... or why she doesn't want to come back to Storybrooke..." Finishing with a slight sneer on his upper lip, he turned to Snow and Killian and clapped his hands together rather jovialy and stepped over towards them.

"Well now, we'd better hurry. Alice is going to have supper ready for us when we get there. She's not exactly patient, so we better get going." He said, waving both his arms in a sweeping gesture as though he were trying to push the two of them into walking just by using the air. "Oh, which reminds me..." Pulling his hands back to him, he used his right hand to roll up the sleeve to his brown overcoat a few inches, finding a small red line across the top of his arm. It was hardly noticable, just a small cut Alice had given him with a piece of paper in case the key didn't work that ended up getting covered up by his arm hair anyway, but it was there. "A-yup. Okay, don't piss off Little Rabbit when you go to bed. Noted." He nodded to himself and then looked back to Snow and Killian, blinking a few times as he didn't understand why they weren't moving.

"Oh!" He exclaimed, realizing he hadn't told them [i]where[/i] Alice was, and turned back to face Edric. "That's right. She's at your place. Big ol' mixup at the portal, The Queen hasn't laid a finger on her here. Lead the way, Sir!" He proclaimed in a slight bow, and motioned with his hand for Edric to begin walking again.

"Yes...quite right. Come now, shouldn't be too far." Edric said to the others before walking off in one direction, the location of his old house practically imprinted into his brain. He wasn't going to pretend that Jefferson's words hadn't hurt him...but he deserved as such. 

Remaining silent, he kept his gaze either in front of him, or looking from side to side. Was Caterpillar right? Could he [i]really[/i] change? He couldn't help but remember the first time he met Heather...he was harsh, cruel, and condescending. But he at least had dignity, had a sense of pride. Now he was little more than a flawed joke of a man. 

Sometimes he wished he could go back, or at least revert the wrongs he had committed. But he had to live with his mistakes, for now, at least. 

The question now was: could he face Alice again? Look her in the eyes and say he was sorry? Or would he run again and hide? 

Killian listened to the conversation that took place between the Hatter and the Cat. He was going to ask the Cat as to where he had been the entire time, until the Cat told the Hatter about what he had done to anger his sister. 

When Jefferson started to lead them towards where Alice was. As they walked, Killian sauntered up to walk next to Edric and he commented, "Leaving your sister to die...That's actually surprising," He then asked, "So where have you been, Cat? You seem happier, despite what just happened,"

Snow spoke up to comfort her friend. "Look, he's going through a lot right now, I know this isn't easy for him. He hasn't seen her in years, I don't think we need to be dredging this all up right now. Edric, if you want to take a minute to collect yourself, we all understand, I'm sure Alice would too." What she heard about his decision worried her, though it remind her of how he had been cowardly at other times. Snow made a mental note of it, as she did with every character flaw she saw in others.

"I never said I was proud of what I did, blacksmith...but I did it." Edric replied somewhat sharply, though he lacked the defensive tone that came with such a remark. "I was meeting with an...old friend of mine. Perhaps I even encountered some old demons of mine, that information is mine to keep." He finished, cocking his head around to look at Snow, "No, no, I'm fine...thank you. I've had over five years to collect myself. This is simply the moment I've been waiting for. " Edric added, a tinge of fear to his voice, though he mostly kept a neutral stance. With that being said, Edric continued forward, more resolute than ever. 

Killian was silent after Snow White spoke up in defense of her friend, and he listened to what Edric had to say. Knowing that he wasn't going to get anymore information about what had happened to him, he shrugged silently and followed after Edric. 

Snow didn't say another word, but she did put her hand on Edric's shoulder as a subtle gesture of support. If he needed her, she would always be there for him, though she was not sure if the reverse was true. Not everyone had her same moral conviction, many people who appeared strong could reveal themselves to weak in times of trial. But she said no more, instead letting the young man be alone with his thoughts.