Beside the sea...

 

'Looks interesting' said Alice. 'Let's see where it goes'. 'You're the curious one. You go. We'll wait here' replied Malice.

There was a high hedge and a gate. Beyond the gate it looked like a nice garden with a pond she muttered aloud...

'It's not a pond. It's the sea' said a strange bird... Where did it come from? 'I'm a dodo' it said in a rather smug voice. 'Were you invited for tea too?'

'No, I wasn't.  Anyway, it's a pond. It's too small to be the sea.' 'He's right, you know. It is the sea. It has a beach.' What a curious creature thought Alice.

Another creature flew in behind Alice. 'That's the Gryphon. ' explained the Mock Turtle' 'He's the one who invited us for tea.'

'Quite right' growled the Gryphon in what Alice thought was a very sinister voice. 'Only a bit wrong in one way. I invited them to be tea. I'm really feeling quite peckish.' The Mock Turtle and Dodo made a run for it as Alice started shooting...

The bullets had no effect and Alice had to duck as the Gryphon flew over her head. By the time she had turned around the Mock Turtle was already gone...

The Dodo swiftly followed...

'I suppose you're going to eat me now' Alice said defiantly. 'Of course not. Don't be stupid. I'm not hungry now and besides you're not mythical. I only eat mythical creatures.' 'Dodos are real!' 'Real dodos are extinct and have been for a long time. That dodo was mythical.' With that it flew off...

Leaving Alice in a garden by a pond that didn't really seem as nice as it had been earlier...