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Duchess | |
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公爵夫人, Kōshaku Fujin | |
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Alias | |
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Alice | |
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Personal Information | |
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Gender |
Female |
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Height |
119 cm |
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Hair |
Pink |
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Eyes |
Maroon |
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Status |
Deceased |
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Nationality |
Wonderland |
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Occupation |
Alice's substitute |
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Debut | |
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Manga |
Chapter 4 |
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Voice Actor | |
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Drama CD |
Taeko Kawata |
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Relationships | |
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Pet |
Cheshire Cat |
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Butler |
Fish Footman |
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Friends |
Rogy Bibi Coco |
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The Duchess | |
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Succeeded by |
New Duchess |
The Duchess (公爵夫人, Kōshaku Fujin) was formerly Alice's substitute and the unrequited mistress of the Cheshire Cat.
Background
The Duchess finds a wounded Cheshire Cat
The Duchess was assigned with the role of becoming Alice's substitute, as well as the mistress of the Cheshire Cat. After the Cheshire Cat stabbed the 88th Alice, the Mad Hatter witnessed the situation and shot the Cheshire Cat, managing to hit his right arm. Thereafter, the Duchess found the Cheshire Cat, remarking on his dirty appearance. She asked him if he knew her, to which the Cheshire Cat acquiesced, telling her that "the Cheshire Cat is the Duchess' pet cat". The Duchess then invited him to come with her and promised him that she will tend to his gunshot wound. Since then, the Duchess and the Cheshire Cat became close with each other, albeit having a rather difficult challenge of avoiding intimacy; hence, she promised herself to never love her pet cat, since she is Alice's substitute.[1]
Following her execution, the Duchess was replaced by her successor.[2]
Appearance
The Duchess was a little girl with a pale complexion, pink short hair, and large eyes. Her height was only 119cm (3'10"). On her hair laid a big hat on her right where one portion of her hair was curled as her bangs. She wore a black-and-white stripped dress fit to her small stature and size and a big ribbon behind her neck. Underneath her outfit, she wore a pair of white undergarments reaching to her knees. She wore brown knee-high boots with laces of ribbon tied into it.
Personality
The Duchess was very sweet and mature for her age. She was devoted and motivated in her role as Alice's substitute. It took Alice to like her for her kindness and they were very good friends. She expressed her love for Cheshire Cat not long before she died, beheaded by the Queen of Hearts.
Plot
Arrival of the 89th Alice in Wonderland
The Duchess as Alice's substitute
The Duchess orders her fish footman to escort the 89th Alice to her residence. Upon their arrival, the Duchess warmly welcomes Alice and gets her "special guest" some tea. As Alice looks over the window, he notices people outside doing something stupid again; however, the Duchess informs him that they are conducting a welcome parade meant for him, the new Alice. Despite their welcome, he retorts that they do not seem to notice him, but the Duchess explains that no one wants anything to do with Alice, causing him to be confused. At that point, she serves Alice tea, but he notices a small burn at the back of her palm. He lends her his necktie to tend to her wound and she thanks him for his kindness. Alice tells her that he shall hurry in killing the White Rabbit, leading her to think that he is surely determined to become the real Alice. She further questions Alice and his similar personality with the previous Alices who abandoned their past and sacrificed many things in life, so she asks him whether he still wants to become Alice nevertheless. Before he could answer, the Duchess notices that "it" is back and orders her footman to open the door, but the footman refuses to do so as she cannot escape. She tells him that she wants Alice to escape the situation, to which the footman accepts; the Duchess bids him farewell and apologises for cutting their conversation. She then lets the footman take Alice away from the place.[3] As the Duke searches for Alice, the Duchess presents herself to it as Alice, confusing Alice. The Footman explains to him that it is the rule given to her; as she comes close to the Duke and later seemingly "hugging" him, it drips some sort of liquid on to her skin, burning her, making Alice recall her wound from earlier. She then reassures that she will be by its side as Alice; the Duke then drags her away. Later, she is seen at her mansion, full of wounds and burns presumably caused by her physical contact with the Duke.[1]
Ruckus at Town Square
The Duchess stops the Mad Hatter from killing the Duke
As the Duke goes berserk at town square, the Queen of Hearts questions the whereabouts of the Duchess as Alice's substitute. One of his Trump Soldiers tells him that she is confined in her mansion, unable to stop the Duke the previous night as he swallowed all of his regrets. The Duchess later arrives at town square, halting the Mad Hatter from shooting the Duke, lest Wonderland will overflow with Regrets. The Hatter remarks that he knows such information and instead orders her to stop the monster. She answers that he does not need to remind her of her job; she calls the Duke's attention as Alice, but the Duke senses her as a fake and lands an attack at her. With the Duke about to attack her, the Duchess thinks of wanting to know more of Alice's story and ponders if it is alright for her to love her pet cat. As she opens her eyes, she sees the Cheshire Cat shielding her with his body, apologising to his mistress that he cannot pretend not to notice her after all.[4] He further apologises for getting her clothes dirty, but she tells him not to. She reprimands him for doing something unnecessary such as saving her despite not being the true Alice; after all, she must perform her role as Alice's substitute or she will lose reason to exist and she would not be his mistress by then. The Cheshire Cat merely pats her and smiles. The Duchess gets chided by the Hatter for being useless, but she decides to still help. However, the Hatter stops her and decides to shoot down the Duke himself; she worries about the distance of the Duke from their location, but the Cheshire Cat assures her that the Hatter is a skilled marksman. Upon Alice's sudden interruption, however, the Hatter misses the target, shocking the Duchess and the Cheshire Cat. As Alice proclaims to the Duke that he is Alice, the monster eats him up, making everyone astounded.[5] As the Hatter tries to shoot the Duke, the Duchess stops him again, since Alice is inside the monster. Furthermore, she tells them that she saw the past and regrets of the residents of Wonderland, which she describes as sad and painful nightmares. She places her trust in Alice, saying that the real Alice should understand those more than her, as she is merely a substitute.
Later, the White Rabbit appears and slashes the Duke with his rapier, retrieving Alice. She becomes relieved at Alice, only for the White Rabbit to remark that he is not Alice. As he leaves, the Duchess orders the Cheshire Cat to carry Alice to her mansion.[6]
Aftermath
At some point after the Duke has been killed, she tells the Hatter that he was the only one whose past and regrets she did not see in the black ink. She asks him his purpose in Wonderland, but only receives a grin as a response.
The Duchess at her execution
As Alice wakes up at the Duchess' mansion, she greets him with a lovely demeanour and returns his tie, putting it on him. As Alice vaguely remembers what had happened to the Duke, he comes to know that it has been killed due to its uselessness. He tells her that she should not now be a replacement, to which she answers that she will not be anymore. Alice becomes relieved, but the Duchess asks him again if he still wants to become Alice amidst the challenges. He confidently answers that he will become Alice. Presumably some time ago, she places a reminder at the sugar pot, stating that there is no sugar available for anyone who will not serve Alice tea, directing the message at the Mad Hatter. Later, she is fetched by the Knave of Hearts and the Trump Soldiers, where the Knave tells her that she does not have to go to the trouble of going to her execution, but she tells him that useless people like her, due to her failure in becoming Alice's substitute, should not be in Wonderland, assuring him that a new Duchess shall take her place. She poses a challenge to the 89th Alice, wondering if he shall be able to finish the story, and she thoughtfully asks the Cheshire Cat to help Alice in his journey. Before the Queen beheads her, she asks him a favour to tell the Cheshire Cat the last words she wanted to tell him. She thanks him, then the Queen beheads her.[7]
Trivia
- The Duchess's hobbies consist of dressing up and thinking about Alice.
- The Duchess's special skill is making tea more skillfully than the Mad Hatter.
- It is unknown when the Duchess had her first love, since she considers it as a "private" matter.
Quotes
- (To the 89th Alice) "I don't really understand Alice. All the Alices who have been brought to Wonderland have sacrificed many things to become the real Alice. Without being bound by the past, they only thought of moving forward, and abandoned many of the things important to them. It's because you can't become Alice without doing that. Even so, do you still want to become Alice?"[3]
- (To the Cheshire Cat) "Don't do unnecessary things... I've got to be Alice's substitute... Because... I'll lose my reason to be here... I won't be able to be your mistress anymore!"[5]
- (Referring to the Cheshire Cat) "You mustn't name a pet. You mustn't put a collar on a pet. Those are Wonderland's dull rules. You are the Duchess' pet cat and my lovely pet. That's our insignificant position and an absolute relationship that can't be opposed."[5]
- (To the Mad Hatter) "When I stopped him from going berserk... Many different thoughts entered my mind. Those were the past and the regrets that had been abandoned by the people of this country... Sad and painful... 'Nightmares'. Everyone's... Feelings towards Alice. 'The real Alice' should understand those more than I do. I'm just a substitute."[6]
- (To the Cheshire Cat before her execution) "Bye bye, Cheshire Cat."[7]
- (To the Knave of Hearts) "Useless people shouldn't be in Wonderland. It would be no good if I got in the way of Alice reaching his goal... So my turn is already over. A new Duchess will become Alice's substitute."[7]
- (To the Queen of Hearts at her execution) "I wasn't able to become Alice. I didn't want to trouble him like Alice did. So I kept enduring it... But... I should have let myself be jealous. I should have acted like a spoiled child. Those are my regrets. [...] Thank you very much. Your Majesty."[7]
- (Final thoughts) "Cheshire Cat. I love you."[7]