Part IX I'm giving up slowly

'Yes Oyster, what did you think I was, a crab?'
At this there was much laughter, snickering, snorting, hisssing, cackling.
And a walrus laugh, coming from me.
But I don't even think its funny!

'How dare you silly people types call that a walrus noise!' said the top hat wearing walrus.
'We sound nothing like that!'

Upon hearing this proud announcement, all of the little oysters (for there was quite a multitude I could see now) began to tickle the walrus and he proceeded to make that exact sound, but ever so slightly higher in pitch and quicker in rhythm.

'But thats quite enough of all this silly talk, we must find something more interesting to speak of!' (he cleared his throat here) ' The time has come the walrus said to talk of many things, of shoes and ships and sealing wax and cabbages and kings. And why the sea is boiling hot and whether pigs ha...'

Suddenly, the carpenter pulled out his hammer, and bonked the walrus on the top hat and subsequently on the head. And you simply had to say 'bonked' because it was just so accurate as to the noise that the hammer made.

'ENOUGH' he cried. 'Enough! Enough! ENOUGH! I don't want to hear one more bloody word about bloody cabbages and bloody KINGS!!!'

'well!!!well!!!....well? well how dare you!'
Sensing an argument in the works, I stepped in.
'Oh please don't argue, in front of a guest and all!'
The pair made 'hmmmm....well all right' and 'mmmm... I guess so' noises and I decided I had won them over, at least for the minute.

"I have something for us to discuss gentlemen!'
At this they turned their full attention to me and I decided to ask the question that had been bugging me since I arrived here.

'So gentlemen, where is Alice?'
Instead of becoming ensconced in deep enthusiastic discussion, they both turned white as a sheet and started shaking.
'What?'
-shiver-

'What?!?'
-shiver-

'WHAT!'

They pointed over to my left, I turned and saw Alice, turning to see me.

The ever present cannon hole made it possible to see most of the carpenter behind her.

But he's behind me!
Turning around, I double check that he is indeed behind me, and he is.

I look back at Alice and realise neither of us have spoken, she seems to be waiting for me to talk first.
'Are you...' I began to querie her health, when I realise her mouth moves exactly as my own.

I look down at myself and I see it there, right in the middle of my beautiful blue summer dress.

The cannon hole.