Audrey settles in on the stoop to wait. 

"It's alright, Jabberwock. Don't be disappointed if he doesn't come: these things take time."

Everless finds Hatter in his room, and taps on the glass until he lets her in. 

"Audrey is confirmed as the missing Queen," is the first thing she tells him, after landing on his shoulder.

She fills him in on their encounters with the Jabberwock and the Four of Hearts on their way downstairs, ending with Audrey's request that Jabberwock be allowed into Hatter's house.

He hesitates for a long time, leaning against the front door, considering whether to open it and what he will say.

The Jabberwock has been known for years as a vicious monster, impossible to reason with, which kills without provocation or need. And yet, as Everless says, how much damage can a small bird possibly do? 

He hides the blackberries in a sealed container. Then he opens the door.

Audrey half-turns, and smiles. 

"Hi, Hatter! I was a little afraid you wouldn't come. Hatter, Jabberwock. Jabberwock, Hatter." She gestures to the bird on her shoulder.

Jabberwock chirps, "Hello!" and attempts something like a bow.

"Alright, that's kind of cute," Hatter admits.

He steps aside and holds the door open.

"You might as well come in."

Audrey can't surpress her smile as she steps up to the door - then she pauses.

"Say, Jabberwock. Have you ever been in a house before?"

"No," it says quietly, pressing closer against her neck. 

"Not ever been in a house." 

It seems to be getting steadily better at talking, although it's still leaning on repetition. 

Audrey restrains her urge to pet the bird. "New things can be scary. Is this new thing scary or not?"

She looks over at Hatter. "Jabberwock is used to being treated as a monster, which means people trying to trap you or hurt you or worse. I think they've had enough fear in their life, don't you?"

Jabberwock settles down on Audrey's shoulder, just a little.

"House...not scary," they say eventually, not sounding very certain. 

"Audrey here, not scary. Audrey is kind." 

"Audrey is kind even to someth - someone that's killed people."

Hatter still looks dubious about Jabberwock, but is secretly rather charmed by the little bird and its childlike speech. 

"If you do get scared while you're in my house, I'll leave a window open so you can get out," he says. "Or you look small enough to get up the chimney."

Audrey steps inside, and looks at Hatter seriously. 

"There are old, old ideas about this sort of thing. An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. The thing in us that can love the evil is at once our worst side and our best. We make peace with our enemies, not our friends." 

She sighs, and shrugs. 

"I don't know what will convince you. Words are just words, no matter how old they are. The things that endure aren't always the things we would like to. To me it's so obvious, the pattern is clear and wrong and needs to be fixed. Pain spreads and blossoms and births more pain. Fire consumes with no hearth to hold it. The way is wrong and needs tending because all is out of true and I need so badly for people to see but the pattern is around them too..." 

She takes a deep breath. 

"What I mean to say is... Jabberwock. Does hurting people ever help?" 

Jabberwock looks at Audrey, and Hatter, and back to Audrey.

"...No?"

Hatter meets Audrey's gaze, just as solemn as she.

"Wise words, my lady, and well spoken," he says when she is done.

"You will make a great queen - or at least a far better one than Marcella."

"I suppose it can be argued that getting one's own way is an important skill for a queen," Audrey deadpans. 

"In any case, we have important things to discuss. First of which is with regard to the Jabberwock." 

She looks at the tiny bird on her shoulder. "You were scared to death of Four. I take it you don't like Marcella much?"

Shiver. Feathers poofing out until the little jay looks about twice the size. 

"Small now. Scary."

Audrey nods. "Would you like Marcella to stop being so awful?"

Slow blink.

"...yes?" 

Said in a tone which suggests that the answer should be obvious.

"And you're clearly willing to take risks towards that goal, given that you came to warn me about Four." 

She looks at Hatter and Everless. "You heard the bird. Anyone opposed to letting them join us?"

Everless shakes her head.

"Not as such," Hatter says, "but it isn't our call to make. I've sent messages to the King and Queen of Diamonds, and one or both of them should be here soon."

He glances out of the window to see whether they are here yet; no luck. 

Audrey nods. "True, true. I'd rather not have to repeat everything I have to say for them either. In the meantime, maybe everyone could get to know Jabberwock a little better?"

Everless takes this opportunity to begin peppering Jabberwock with questions. 

"How old are you? Do you have a name other than Jabberwock? Where did you come from? Have you always been that shape until today? Why did you kill people? Are you going to do it again?"

"Don't know. Don't remember." 

This seems to be a common theme in the answers, with one exception.

"Never meant to kill, only scare. People trying to hurt me. People not hurt me, I not hurt them."