Disclaimer: I own none of this or none of that.

I'm craving feedback…

Duchess- '…and the moral of that is-"Be what you would seem to be"-or if you'd like it put more simply-"Never imagine yourself not to be otherwise than what it might appear to others that what you were or might have been was not otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to them to be otherwise."' `I think I should understand that better,' Alice said very politely, `if I had it written down: but I can't quite follow it as you say it.'

-Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

"I can't do it." Hermione was holding on to the door for dear life.

"Granger…come on." Malfoy was holding out his hand for her. The only way out of the courthouse was to descend from the terrace, then, with luck, climb down while using the building.

"Let's go check the other doors, there's got to be-"

"Granger," he said more menacingly. "Look, it's only a short way down."

Hermione peeked down and was sure that he was off his rocker. "What are you MAD? There are more than four stories to this place."

"Yes but there's a lot that we can hold on to," he said this and took her hand. He climbed over the railing with one hand sustaining himself and the other still holding her.

"Look, I'm fine, still holding on." He suddenly slipped and disappeared from view, sending Hermione into a frenzy.

"Draco!" Hermione lurched forward, ready to bring him back up. He erupted in laughter and brought himself back up.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't help it." He held his chest for air as he continued his laughter. She had felt as if all the blood in her body drained out and her breathing became irregular.

"You're such a jerk!"

Malfoy wiped the smile off of his face as he saw something move inside of the library. "Come on." Hermione was forced to climb over the rail and duck beneath it. The group of officers had entered the library and searched the terrace. "No one here, sir."

Malfoy began his trip down by carefully gripping window panes and stones that stuck out from the rest. Hermione took a deep breath and followed him carefully. She kept her eyes on where she was going next and dared not look out to the rest of the view.

"It's beautiful, you should see it." Malfoy had paused and was looking around at the view.

"I'm sure it is, maybe when I get down."

"Oh, come on. You've probably faced worse things than this." His top hat had flown away but it seemed that he was too entranced to notice.

Hermione held on harder and slowly turned her head around. For once, she could honestly say that Draco Malfoy was right about something. It was a bird's eye view of the city and beyond the city was the ocean. The sun was still in its morning phase and it reflected stunningly on the ocean. Birds flew past them and it seemed like a little piece of heaven. Her heart seemed to be floating in air and she looked down to Malfoy, who in turn smiled up at her.

"Told you so." The wind blew her hair into a messy ball but it was unimportant to her. At the moment she felt as if she were flying…and it was the first time that she enjoyed the feeling of it.

"I see now why you boys enjoy flying so much."

"Yes, that and of course spitting on people." Hermione shook her head and couldn't help but laugh. They continued their journey downwards and before Hermione knew it, they were mere feet from the floor. She looked up momentarily and could not believe that she had climbed down a four story building. Malfoy whistled once he was on the ground and helped Hermione off the last part of the building. His German horse galloped into view, much more intimidating than when he was in his stall.

"Good boy." Draco mounted it and held his hand out for Hermione to take. She took it and with great strength, he lifted her onto the horse. She had never ridden side-saddle but seeing as he had instructed the horse to go as fast as it could, there was no time for lifting her leg over.

"Where are we going?" she managed to yell at him. He had led the horse into the city streets, which were slightly more inhabited than before. Draco ignored her question and guided them into a more shady part of the city. It wasn't as bad as Knockturn Alley but more of a place were criminals might reside. They ventured deeper and deeper into the dark streets and stopped at a very discrete antique shop with darkened windows. Malfoy searched the street and seeing as no one appeared, he dismounted the horse and helped Hermione off.

"They might steal your horse."

"I doubt it." He rasped on the door three times and then waited a minute before doing a complicated series of knocks.

An old man that slightly resembled Mr. Ollivander opened the door and smiled at them. He said nothing but motioned for them to enter. Once inside, the old man turned the open sign so that it read 'closed.'

"Is he here?" Malfoy stiffened as the old man straightened out and was nearly as tall as he was. The old man nodded and led them to the back of the store and down into a basement. The large underground room was full of metals and old furniture, Hermione even saw a couple pianos under some artifacts. There was a shelf with many scrolls and some overflowed onto the floor. They were led to a solid wall were the old man pushed a section and it opened up to another room, one only slightly lighted. It looked as if it were some restaurant, only there was no food. There were about ten booths with curtains closed and only one with them open. A light hanging from the ceiling did nothing to light up the people inside of it and a thick cloud of smoke loomed over the booth. The old man motioned for them to sit there and once up close, Hermione could make out the bodies of a man and a very thin and provocative woman. They were sharing a pipe from the middle of the booth that emitted strange but sweet scents. Draco motioned for her to be seated first and before he did, the old man took his coat and hung it for him.

"Go." It was the low voice of a male and Hermione was slightly frightened by it. The girl next to him stood up and left. She wore a red dress that was far too short to be in public and it was amazing to see that Malfoy did not even glance at her once. Ron and Harry often let their eyes wander and Hermione always felt irritated when they did it in front of her. The curtains were shut and the man leaned forward but it was still impossible to see his whole face.

"Hatter." He blew a grand puff of smoke and offered the pipe to him. Malfoy took out a cigarette from his vest pocket, showed it to him and lit it with matches that were on the table. The man shrugged and continued to smoke.

"The Caterpillar?" Hermione hadn't meant it for it to be so frank but she just couldn't believe that the wonderland characters were becoming more and more corrupted from their original selves.

"And who might you be?" He puffed smoke in the direction of Hermione.

"Not important. I know you have ties to the other side and we need safe passage." Malfoy sat back and exhaled from his nostrils.

"You've asked me before…my response is still no." He paused before saying, "Not Important is no citizen here…as are you."

They were silent for quite some time.

"What's in your left pocket?"

Hermione looked at Malfoy to see if the question was directed at him and he turned to her. She felt inside her pocket and took out the forgotten small mirror. Her thumb went through it and it rippled like water.

"A key to the Looking Glass…" He spoke very slowly and sat back.

"What's that?" Draco eyed the tiny mirror.

"Only keys can activate the Looking Glass. When not activated, it's just a plain and ordinary mirror. It seems that you might actually have a chance now. In exchange for this favor, I'll need something of great value."

"Like what?" Hermione feared that he might ask her for the mirror.

He took a long time on deciding what he wanted. "It would be useless of me to ask you for that stick you hide so I will settle for something else. Something from both of you. From you, Hatter, a lock of your hair." The hand belonging to the man slid some scissors to him. Draco took them and cut a long piece of hair from the back and handed it to him. It glistened under the light and the Caterpillar put it in a small jar.

"And from you, Not Important, an emotion."

"What do you mean by an emotion?" Hermione looked from Malfoy to the Caterpillar.

"I am incapable of feeling the emotions of those from your world." He had stopped smoking and his whole body turned towards her. "Real emotions are a controlled substance in this world and we take every opportunity to get some."

Malfoy was still smoking and often touched the spot where he had cut off the hair.

"What kind of emotion do you want?" Hermione found this the easiest task and was more than willing to do it.

The Caterpillar pushed a large and strange bottle to the center of the table between them and uncorked it.

"Love."

Hermione was taken aback. "I- I've never been in love."

"Think of family."

She thought of her parents and the bottle magically filled with red, clear liquid. She thought of all the Weasleys and the red substance hardly rose in level. She then thought of Ron and the liquid turned dark red.

The Caterpillar took the bottle and smelled it. "Passion…I have enough Love in this, I will be satisfied if you fill the rest with Passion."

Hermione went red in the face and tried to think of everything she could but the bottle would not fill. She even thought of her first kiss with Victor Krum and it would not do.

"I…can't do it."

"What a shame…" The Caterpillar resumed his smoking. Malfoy had put out his cigarette and had asked for a glass of water. The old man brought it and he took many large gulps.

"I wish I were able to help…but I do nothing for free."

Draco turned to Hermione. He looked at her with a very callous stare and looked back at the Caterpillar. He started fidgeting and fixed his collar numerous times. He then took to either scratching his head or running his hand through his hair.

"You alright?" Hermione figured that he was just very annoyed with her for not completing her task

"How bad do you want to get out of here?"

Hermione gave him an exasperated stare.

"Thought so." He moved next to her and closed the distance between them.

"What are you doing?"

Malfoy put his hands around her neck. She heard him breath in and her eyes widened as he kissed her, first softly and then ardently. Her body tensed up and she felt her face grow hot. He smelled of smoke, she hated him and she would have sickened at the idea of ever kissing Draco Malfoy but she let it happen. It was strange that she forgot mostly everything and focused on the feel of his lips on hers.

Hermione's body began to loosen up but the kiss was broken as the Caterpillar cleared his throat. The bottle was now almost full to the rim and he corked it. Draco immediately moved away from her and lit another cigarette.

"How do we get to this Looking Glass?" Draco wiped his mouth and took another large gulp from his glass of water. She felt awkward and slightly light-headed. No one had ever kissed her like that and she thought of how disgusted Ron and Harry would be if they ever found out. As she started to feel herself smile she quickly thought of all of his faults and remembered every infraction he had ever committed. Draco, on the other hand, looked quite cool and collected but if the lighting were of better quality, she could have been able to see the slight pink tinge on his cheeks.

"The Looking Glass lies in the hands of the Red Queen. It is very difficult to get to her, seeing as the borders are very closely watched. If you head east, you'll find that the security is held at a minimum, however, you'll find yourselves in a very thick forest and what lies in it. Beware of the Queen of Hearts' henchmen for they lie there and they are never what they seem." He handed them a folded piece of paper across the table and Malfoy opened it. Inside it was an intricate drawing of what looked like a maze and three circles around it. "This will guarantee you both safe passage with my man- if you successfully exit the forest."

Draco took the paper and stuffed it into the inside pocket of his vest. The curtains were drawn back and the seductive woman sat down next to the Caterpillar. He nodded at Malfoy who in turn stood and was offered his coat by the old man. Hermione followed, but was startled when the man took her hand. He had come into the light fully and she was able to see that he was a black man. On the center of his hand were a pair of wings tattooed and rings all around it.

"Would you change things if you had the chance?" The question had caught her off guard.

"I suppose…if they needed changing. Why do you ask me that?" He let go of her hand and remained silent. She saw as he uncorked the bottle and took a large drink from it.

"I shall show you out now." The old man beckoned them to leave and she saw as the Caterpillar took the woman's hand and kissed it. Then he lay back and was once again, consumed in shadow. They were escorted back to where the entrance to the shop was only to find that once they stepped out, it was a completely different street. Draco's horse was still waiting outside which he took by the reins and led through the street.

The street was filled with shops and vendors who all yelled the quality of their merchandise. The people on this street were in Victorian attire and they were all ordinary. Perhaps the only thing that was strange was the Queen's emblem in every wall or carriage. There were guards at every corner but they missed them completely.

"Do you think they know about us escaping?" Hermione asked him this while looking all around her.

"Of course, they are just too stupid to look for a male with a top hat on." His blonde hair shined in the sunlight and she was hardly able to see were he had cut the large lock of hair off.

The busy street was near to the ocean and she could easily smell the salt in the air. An open carriage passed by with a very elegant woman in it. Her dress was quite beautiful and of the highest quality. Her large hat was just as beautiful and just as white as her dress. She looked down at Hermione and stuck her nose in the air. Hermione rolled her eyes and tried to keep up with Malfoy.

The bustle of her dress was very dirty and she felt very uncomfortable having it drag. She picked it up and quickened her pace. There was the smell of freshly baked bread and she remembered that she hadn't eaten. Her stomach growled but luckily, the street was too crowded and noisy for anyone to hear it.

Malfoy tied his horse to a post outside of a small bed and breakfast. He held the door open for her and the smell of food hit her like a wave. She didn't know what they were doing there but she dare not ask him. It was a pretty little thing and the dining room was converted into a small café. A plump woman with a kind face approached them.

"Hello, Hatter! Where's March?" The apron she wore was much too tight on her and she wore a large cap of linen on her head.

"Hello, Cook. He wasn't feeling up to coming with me…any open spots?" He ran his hand through his hair. There were only a handful of tables open and she led them to the one all the way in the back. Draco sat at the chair with his back facing the wall and Hermione directly opposite him. The room was nicely decorated with roses and Victorian furniture. There was a larger window that had a perfect view of the street and beyond that, very far away, was the castle.

"And who is this pretty mouse?" She took Hermione's chin in her hand. Malfoy ignored her question. "They'd pay a fortune for your hair and for your eyes especially."

Hermione retracted her head and felt somewhat disturbed by her comment.

"What'll it be then?"

"The regular for me…Granger?"

"Whatever he's having."

"Easy on the pepper." He added and the cook left.

She looked everywhere she could to avoid his eyes and took to staring out the window. A small and portly boy stared at her while eating with his family. He had round cheeks and messy, brown hair. He was transfixed on her and ever so often she would smile at him. It became quite annoying after awhile, especially when he started to make faces at her. She couldn't help but laugh at him as his mother slapped him across the head. The boy seemed unscathed and smiled at her, as if to show that he was strong and resumed his eating without staring at her.

"I-er- I wouldn't encourage you to mention our little touching of lips to anyone, got it?" Draco stared at his gloved hand as if it was the most interesting thing he had ever seen.

"Kissing anyone as vile as you, I'd much rather have kissed Filch."

"Right…Well, we both know how catastrophic it would be for our reputations to be tainted by something as miniscule as a simple thing like that."

"What a lovely couple! How long have you two known each other?" It was a waitress with their plates. It was eggs and toast, not exactly Hermione's favorite but she was not about to complain. The waitress set tea down for them and looked at them with a warm smile.

"We aren't together," Hermione responded.

"That's what they all say, Miss." She winked at them and disappeared from view.

"I nearly vomited," he said, starting on his plate. Hermione had already started with hers and was wolfing down the food. He paused to stare at her in disbelief.

"Are you just going to watch me stuff my face or what?" Hermione felt uncomfortable as he was watching her. She really didn't care what he thought, all she knew was that she was hungry.

"I've never seen a girl with that kind of appetite. I thought your kind only ate like birds."

"It's some stupid idea we have about impressing a guy but I don't buy into it. Sooner or later they'll find out that you actually like food." She slowed down as she became full and chewed her food thoroughly.

"What do you think the Caterpillar meant by changing things?" He looked up at her and after taking a sip of his tea, responded to her question.

"He's in an underground democratic party that wants a direct democracy instead of this absolute monarchy. They'll often ask me to poison a hat or two but I've become faint of extremism."

"Well, I'm glad to hear that. I take it that you know how to navigate around this world?"

"Not exactly, common sense really. I just meet people and ask around. Carefully that is." He added three extra sugar cubes to his tea, which astounded Hermione.

"You shouldn't use so much sugar, it's bad for your teeth."

Malfoy looked at her and drank it while keeping eye contact. "What would you know about teeth?"

"My parents are dentists- er…teeth doctors."

"Right, well I'd worry more about my own teeth if I were you. Wouldn't want people to think you actually care, would you?"

"No, you're right." She shook her head and smiled at his comment.