"Good morning, Alice." Lupin said as she sat down, where some pancakes topped with fruit appeared on the plate before her. Her cup filled up with tea, which she sipped. Snape came to the table five minutes after.
"Good morning, Severus. Sleep well?" Alice asked.
"Better than usual." he answered. Some of the teachers raised an eyebrow or looked at each other. They all had one question in their minds: Is there something going on between them? After breakfast, Alice and Snape went off, since his was her first class. She told him about the area she visited in her dream that night. "Perhaps it's from being in the dungeons too much?" Snape asked. Alice shrugged.
"It could be anything, really." she said. Getting through the first class, the potion Alice made afterwards was perfect.
"You never cease to amaze me, Alice. Even I didn't get it right when I first tried it." Snape said, bottling up some of her Sleeping Draught.
"Well, I have a great teacher." she said. Snape looked into her eyes. Despite the smile on her face, her eyes always looked so sad. He didn't realize he had kissed her until he felt her warm lips on his. It was only for a second, but Alice's eyes were suddenly wide.
"I... ah... sorry, I..." Snape stammered. Alice bolted from the room. Once she was out the door, Snape kicked his desk as hard as he could. "What the bloody hell is wrong with me?" He sat down at his desk, frustrated.
McGonagall noticed Alice was blushing when she came in to her class.
"Morning, Professor." Alice greeted her.
"How was your last class?" she asked. Alice blushed even more.
"Fair." she didn't make eye contact with McGonagall.
"What did that man do?" McGonagall asked, talking about Snape.
"Nothing." Alice said. "At least, nothing bad. Um, don't tell anyone." McGonagall smiled.
"Don't worry, dear. Your secret's safe with me." she said.
During lunch, Alice didn't see Snape at the Table. Leaving her spot, she went down to the dungeons to look for him. She found him sitting at his desk with his hands in his hair. His face was on the desk and he looked frustrated.
"Severus?" His head snapped up.
"Alice?" She closed the door behind her and went up to his desk.
"I'm sorry I ran out. You just caught me by surprise." she said.
"I'm sorry to startle you like that." Snape apologized. "I don't know what came over me."
"It's okay, it's just... I... I've never had to deal with these things before. I've only been out of Rutledge for about two years. In the time I was supposed to be liking boys and dating, I was stabbing doctors with pencils and cutting myself with a teaspoon." Alice showed Snape her wrists, which held faint scars across them. "I'm just new to this." she said.
"So am I." Snape said. She nervously got closer to him, still not sure what to do. She held his face in her hands and kissed him.
Chess had just come from chasing the rat away from the castle when he saw Alice coming from the other way. She seemed like she was in a daze. She's not in Wonderland, is she? he asked himself.
"Alice?" he asked carefully.
"Hmm?" she answered.
"What's got you all dazed?" he asked. Alice blushed.
"It's... nothing." she said. Chess raised an eyebrow. The duo went to the next class, which happened to be Divination. Professor Trelawney had a pack of cards on each table. That lesson, they were going to learn about tarot cards. They were all paired up, including Alice- she got paired up with Ron Weasley. One person asks a question and the other deals three cards and reads them. She dealt three cards. The first was a reversed Knight of Cups- Selfishness, indolence, and a complete lack of maturity. The second was Seven of Pentacles- making difficult financial decisions; exercising patience and perseverance. The last was a reversed Four of Pentacles- using your power freely for your own enjoyment and the betterment of others. Relieved that he didn't get anything bad, Ron read Alice's cards.
Alice's first card was Death- forced sacrifice, rebirth, big changes. Alice knew that was all too true. Her second card was a reversed Hierophant- A calcified old regime, bad or incompetent advice. It made her think of pretty much every character in Wonderland; not able to give her answers. Her third card was The Lovers- a caring and trusting relationship, beauty and inner harmony, a decision calling for emotional control and faithfulness to spiritual values. Alice wondered if the last card had anything to do with the kiss.
Later that day, Alice was on her way to dinner when she was intercepted by Snape.
"Alice, I - ah - I was wondering if you would like to have dinner with me tonight? As in... privately." Snape asked.
"I would love to." He led Alice to his rooms where there was a table waiting for them. Two places were set, a vase with a single red rose sat in the middle and the room was illuminated by candles. Once they sat down, food appeared on their plates- the dish they loved the most. Alice tried a bite. The taste sent her back fourteen years. She hadn't tasted that dish since the last time her mother made it. It had been her favorite as a kid. After dinner, Alice and Snape talked about everything; how she liked it at Hogwarts, their childhood, likes and dislikes, and everything under the sun... and in Wonderland. A few minutes later, they decided to take a walk about the castle; Snape listening to Alice talk about Wonderland.
"...and Mock Turtle used to run the Looking Glass Line. There were stations in the Vale of Tears, Queensland, and The Dollhouse. I'm not sure of any others. I believe I rode on it once, when I was little. It was a very curious trip. I remember I used to have tea parties with Hatter. March Hare and Dormouse would always be there. In fact, I believe they woke me up when the fire started..." Alice paused, having seen someone in the corridor ahead. Snape saw, too. They silently moved ahead and just barely caught Lupin sneaking out of the castle.
"Where do you think he's headed?" Alice whispered.
"I have an idea." Snape said. They followed and came upon a tree. "Stand back." Snape froze the waving branches and they entered a large hole at the base of the tree. If I see a white rabbit... Alice thought. They walked along a dark tunnel and up into a creaky old house. They heard voices above and Snape led Alice up, as silently as they could. Someone yelled and, to Alice, it sounded like a student - one Alice knew to be smarter than most of her classmates. More voices and Alice thought there had to be at least four people in the room. They approached the door and Snape burst in, disarming a raggedy man in striped clothing.
"Vengeance is sweet!" Snape said. "How I hoped I'd be the one to catch you." His tone was a bit unnerving to Alice, but she merely watched the scene unfold.
"Severus-" Lupin tried to intervene, but Snape pointed his wand at him.
"I told Dumbledore you were helping a friend into the castle, and now, here's the proof." he said.
"Brilliant, Snape." Sirius Black - Alice recognized him from the newspapers - said. " Once again you put your keen and penetrating mind to the task and as usual come to the wrong conclusion. Now, if you'll excuse us, Remus and I have some unfinished business to attend to." Snape held his wand up to Sirius's neck.
"Give me a reason. I beg you!" Alice tried to grab his sleeve, thinking he was starting to go a bit too far, but he just held her back with his free hand.
"Severus, don't be a fool..." Lupin said.
"He can't help it, it's habit by now." Sirius automatically replied. Alice thought that they must be the friends that tormented Snape as a kid.
"Sirius, be quiet!" Lupin told Sirius.
"Be quiet, yourself, Remus!" Sirius snapped back.
"Listen to you two, quarreling like an old married couple." Snape remarked.
"Why don't you run along and play with your chemistry set!" Sirius mocked.
"I could do it, you know. But why deny the dementors? They're so longing to see you." He said with his eerily calm voice. Alice shivered a little at the mention of the dementors. "Do I detect a flicker of fear? Oh, yes. A dementor's Kiss. One can only imagine what that must be like to endure. It's said to be nearly unbearable to witness, but I'll do my best."
"Severus, please." Lupin tried again to reason with Snape. Alice noticed one of the students take his friend's wand. Alice tried to get Snape's attention, but he was too pre-occupied with his enemy.
"After you." he nodded to the students to get out. One, who she learned earlier was Harry Potter, raised his wand toward Sirius, but hit Snape with his spell instead. Severus! Alice rushed to him, trying to wake him. Lupin and Sirius then took Ron Weasley's rat, which soon transformed into a man - who didn't look much different from a rat. Unable to wake Snape yet, she watched the scene before her.