Thanking the QLFC Commandos
THEDRABBLEOFBLUE: Haruna
Word count: 959
Disclaimer: I am not J. K. Rowling so I don't own Harry Potter nor am I Rachel Macwhirter so I don't own the song Hey Alice either.
Is It Greener Here?
When he first read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, he hated Alice. The girl lacked any semblance of common sense. She just cried and cried.
However, he loved the imaginary and the sense of revolt that went hand in hand with reading something so distant to the normal—something his aunt would surely disapprove of—and knowing she couldn't do a thing about it.
When he first entered the Wizarding World, he often felt that he might have been a bit too hard on Alice back in primary school. It wasn't her fault that she asked those stupid questions. He was asking similarly stupid questions now. It suddenly seemed like a natural reaction to finding a whole new world that defied the natural order of things. His respect for the Caterpillar went down a few notches.
And now he had a choice to make. He could leave this twisted Wonderland behind and disappear into the wonderful anonymity of the mundane world or sacrifice his dream of being just Harry. Only, he would never be just Harry in the mundane world, either, would he? Forever hiding a part of who he was.
He sipped his bitter coffee. Just another customer, unworthy of a second glance. He mused why the passport in his pocket felt so heavy.
When did he stop being the reckless Gryffindor and become so hesitant? At least he wasn't a crybaby like Alice.
He almost choked as the next song started on the radio with, "Hey Alice!"
She did not know much about the Muggle World. Oh, she knew enough to look as inconspicuous there as she did in the Wizarding World, so as far as purebloods were concerned, she knew quite a lot. That being said, she found the Muggle World incredibly strange. As if someone had put the world on its head or maybe as if it was a distorted mirror reflection.
It was as dangerous and corrupt as its magical counterpart. Only, she could not navigate it with the same ease. She wasn't deluding herself into thinking otherwise. But they considered dungeons to be out of fashion and not even crazy murdering psychopaths were in the habit of using them. And Luna quite liked that.
Besides, as far as Luna was concerned, strange was another word for interesting.
There were, of course, other things she loved about the Muggle World. The variety of beverages and meals one could get a hold of on their side of London, the ever-changing fashion, the breathtaking art and science. And the music!
No, she did not venture into the Muggle World simply to relax for awhile somewhere, where nothing reminded her of the terrible things that... She shook her head and ordered herself a cappuccino.
As she looked for an empty spot, she noticed a familiar mop of black hair. The raven-haired man was the only occupant of the table for two. Luna smiled as a new song started playing. Not everything in the world she considered normal was bad; she would have stayed on this side of the unseen divide and never looked back if that was the case.
She headed over. She never expected to meet a friend here, but meeting a friend was always a plus.
"Hello, Harry," she said. Her voice was barely audible over the "The rabbit seems to call your name" of the music. She idly wondered when it had gotten so loud.
He started. "Hi, Luna."
For a while, they simply drank coffee in comfortable silence as the song went on and on. Luna silently conceded that she really disliked how she just didn't seem to understand some things. To know there was a reference but not be able to pinpoint it just might be the Ravenclaw version of torture.
Who was this Alice? Why did she leave the Wonderland? Did she regret it? Was she the only one in this fine establishment who did not know the answers to the aforementioned questions?
She looked into the emerald eyes of her companion and said, "I get a feeling this is not the Wonderland."
He gave her a rueful smile. "I thought that the Wizarding World was."
"Oh, and who is the rabbit, then?"
"Well, the bunny ears would suit you."
"Sure thing, Alice. But to me, the Wonderland you spoke of is home."
"Don't call me that. Alice is a whiny brat. And that is the point, Luna. She went home. And he stayed at his."
"What a sad ending."
He looked at her inquisitively.
"Well, he showed her his home and she did not return the favor if I understand it right. Besides, the idea that wonder is tied to only one land is just wrong."
Harry laughed; he hadn't felt this light in weeks. "Well, do you want me to show you around here, bunny?"
"That depends, Mister Rabbit, on whether you'll explain who this Alice is that I hear so much about," she replied with a grin.
"I'll do one better, Luna."
"Oh?" she inquired, her eyebrow lifting, the grin not leaving her face.
"Yes," he breathed, leaning in and kissing that grin.
Ron never got why Luna called her husband Cheshire, but then again, he thought all the bunny remarks were about Luna's Patronus. Hermione never quite got the nerve to correct him. Not even when Harry and Luna got into a massive row about whether to call their daughter Alice or not.
And nobody quite had the heart to ask Lily Alice Potter why she chose the song "Hey, Alice" to play at her parents' funeral or why the epitaph on their tombstone read:
"Every land is a Wonderland if you just open your eyes, and if you are lucky, you might even hear a rabbit call your name."