Down A Hole
By: Absinthe Dreams
Quick Announcement: A thousand apologies for posting the wrong chapter for chapter two. It's fixed now, and thanks to everyone who pointed it out to me. As an apology I've also posted chapter three. Hope you like it.
"The maddest thing of all
Might be the people who believe
That they alone are the sane ones."
-Anonymous
Last time:
"My name is Hermione," she interrupted shortly, frowning at him, "Not Alice and certainly not Mudblood." The way he said the word made it crawl on her skin, so obviously offensive, demeaning and cruel she couldn't help but deny it.
"Good for you," he mocked with a smirk, "If you want to survive for more than the next five minutes, I might make a point."
"Which is?" Hermione asked expectantly. "And what is a Alice, in any case?"
Ignoring her question entirely he smirked at her condescendingly, "Don't trust anyone, don't speak to anyone, and certainly don't take anything from anyone who's offers it freely. This isn't Wonderland anymore. It hasn't been for a while, anyway," he shrugged, "This is Underland now, and the Dark Lord and the Queen of Spades rule all the kingdoms, no matter what anyone says. But since you asked so nicely, I'll tell you this," he uttered with a tight smile and near drawled sarcasm to the girl staring at him with too wide and innocent eyes, "Alice isn't a who it's more of a what. A little bit of a name that's mostly a legend, and you want to be it, if you find yourself capable of being anything here at all. Trust me."
"Why are you telling me this?" Hermione asked curiously. Trying to make sense of his nonsense hurt her head.
"Better to be told, than forced to learn the hard way, stupid Mudblood. Now, you better get to it. Go back if you can, and if you're not quick about it another one of me will be likely be along shortly to finish you off."
"Another one of you, who?" Now he has me speaking in riddles, the bemused girl realized. Despite his disdain and obvious need to impress how stupid she was for not knowing basic things, he was quite engaging.
"We all have our roles, Hermione-not-Alice. Mine is to be one of my Lord's Death Eaters, and my Queen's White Rabbit." He looked her up and down dryly, "Yours is likely to still die in the next five minutes despite my excellent advice." He sighed and rolled his silver eyes, tapping his foot rapidly, almost like the animal he had first been. That's not logical, a part of Hermione pointed out to herself wryly. Rabbits turning into men didn't make logical sense, but then dreams didn't always make sense.
"Sirius Black is a damned fool to bring you here. But that's his role. Him and his sodding games. He's as mad as they say. He knows the Dark Lord kills his champions, all of them, but he keeps bringing you in. Fat little lambs for the slaughter."
"How awful, why would anyone do that?" She frowned, wondering who this Sirius Black was.
Draco, a man with rabbit ears who had practically been spouting gibberish since his introduction, gave her a condescending look of exasperation. As if she were the annoyingly obtuse one.
"That's the wrong question and besides, I don't have time to explain all that, really. Figure it out for yourself Hermione-not-Alice, I have things to attend to," he turned abruptly, walking into the purple mist.
"Wait! How do I get back?!" She called, stumbling after him, but the terrain of dead grass and thistles slowed her, her footsteps tripping over ground that was both rough and foreign. Forcing her to pick her way slowly and carefully. He advanced quickly, seemingly unhindered by the terrain, leaving her behind, his complaints trailing behind him.
"Not my fecking problem, is how... if he finds out I even spoke to a Mudblood he'll likely pluck out my eyes and cut out my tongue not to mention what he'll do to my other bits, better to have my head off by the Queen at that point, really...wait she says, as if I have the time…"
His voice faded off. She lost his trail. Still Hermione continued on, and as the purple mist dissipated, the grass grew taller and taller from the ground, until it was well above her head, obscuring her way, and her progress. Fighting through the thick of it, skirts clutched and features determined, the girl spilled out the other side and into a closed room.
Hermione frowned, looking around at the plain space, brown walls and red tile, she turned behind her to return through the grass...and frowned at a black door against more brown walls and brick red flooring that certainly hadn't been there before. Where was the grass? The purple mist? Now she was in a closed room, with only a door before her, a shiny gold plaque at its side.
With a shrug at the frivolous cast of her dreams, Hermione approached the door, squinting at the plaque to read the engraved words. They were almost worn off with age and time.
Gryffindor:
Your daring, nerve and chivalry
Must be what sets you apart
None shall pass through this door
Who be faint of heart
Hermione puzzled over the words. Strange. Well, there was only this room, and the door before her. It was no great mystery where her dream would lead her next. Her hand reached for the handle, but a casual voice caused her to startle abruptly, turning in alarm.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," his emerald eyes stood out, large and cat-like in his golden features. Messy chocolate hair brushed the stranger's forehead, a long lavender and midnight blue striped tail swishing in agitation behind him. It matched the similarly furred ears peeking through his unruly mass of hair. A silver hoop pierced his left cat ear.
"How else would you suggest I leave this place?" Hermione demanded, adding in shrewd afterthought, "How did you manage to get in?"
"In is just the same as out, and I'm always a bit of both," the cat eared boy explained patiently, "You can't come the way I did, but you still shouldn't leave that way. It'll make you Alice, maybe, or kill you, most likely."
"Excuse me, but everyone keeps saying Alice this, and Mudblood that," his cat ears twitched at the second term, and he frowned. "I'm just trying to wake up from this dream, but no matter how hard I try…" Hermione stiffened, her body going ramrod straight at the peculiar stranger leaned in and began sniffing at her. Like a cat might smell the air around you, curious and matter-of-fact.
"You've met the White Rabbit then," he grimaced, "Lucky Malfoy didn't kill you, he's one of the Dark Lord's minions."
"And you're not?" She surmised, giving up on getting much explanation from anyone at this rate. After all, dreams didn't always make sense.
"No," he recoiled, looking utterly offended. "I will never be loyal to him, or his false Queen." He spit on the floor, crossed his eyes and uttered solemnly, hand planted over his heart, "May her clock rot."
"Then, if you don't mind me asking, who are you?"
Harry looked the girl up and down, her black and red striped tights, her crimson dress with puffy sleeves and ruffled skirts, it was smeared with dirt and grass. She looked the part of tired raggamuffin, hair wild and eyes dull with worry and fatigue, surely this was no Alice, the door was here, but she'd never pass it's threshold. A nearly feline smirk lit his face.
"I'm The Cheshire Cat, of course, it's my job to guide you, and I don't recommend going through that door," He grinned widely, leaning over her in a familiar manner that would have appalled her Headmistress. "But if you insist on it, you should know the risk."
"And what risk is that, Mr. Cat?"
He blinked, and then sighed, "My title is the Cheshire Cat, my name is Harry Potter, you may call me Harry, muggleborn."
"What's a muggleborn?"
"As curious as me, eh?" Harry straightened and he sighed, "A muggleborn is a much nicer term for Mudblood, a foul slur the Dark Lord cooked up. You are a muggleborn, not a Alice, and so if you try and pass that door, you are sure to die."
"You can't die in a dream."
"I wonder, how do you know?" He cocked his head at her, "In any case, as the Cheshire Cat, I can send you back. You do want to go back, don't you?"
"Of course," Hermione replied instantly, brightening at the prospect of escaping this confusing dream. Or at least dreaming of things that made sense.
"Then eat this," he dug into his pockets, coming up with a small yellow candy, it certainly didn't help it's appeal as he began picking lint and hair off the small offering. Her nose crinkled.
"No, thank you."
"It's a forfeit, lemon flavored, and I can only offer it once," Harry's ears flattened, his tail twitching in agitation, "Don't be daft."
"I don't want it," Hermione closed his hand and pushed the candy back. Remembering the other fellow's warning not to eat anything here, or take anything freely given. The candy wasn't even tempting. Green eyes slitted in feline discontent.
"Stupid, foolish, idiot girl. Even if you are Alice, which is unlikely, you're hardly a match for him. Once you pass that door, even if you don't die, the Dark Lord will know you're here in Underland and his Death Eaters will begin the hunt." Harry tried to force the candy into her fingers, but the amber eyed girl stubbornly tossed the candy to the ground. It erupted into a cloud of smoke as it landed, dissipating after a few moments into nothing.
"Now you've done it," Harry ground his teeth, as he glared at the muggleborn, "Fine, go ahead and get yourself killed. See if I care." With that, he began to waver, his image flickering like waning candle flame.
"Oh bloody hell, I didn't mean it," he looked down at his disappearing form in dismay, "I guess this is goodbye, for now, Miss Muggleborn."
"It's Hermione," she uttered, but it was too late, he was already gone and she was once again alone in the small room.
"Right. Talking cat-man, bunny boy, what's next? A rat girl?" Hermione frowned at the door, pondering the curious man's warnings. In the end, however, she really only saw one logical outcome to her current predicament. Lightly, her fingers enclosed the handle, and she was surprised to feel a thrill of excitement pulse through her body.
The hairs on her arms raised like needles, her breath sucking into her lungs in a sharp gasp as she gripped the cool gold knob and twisted. She found no resistance, the door opened almost without her pulling it, and Hermione gaped at the scene beyond. What's more, the people gaped back at her, equally shocked by her sudden appearance.
A/N: Me again. Thanks for all the kind favorite and feedback, just knowing people took the time to read this bolsters my urge to keep posting. I know I'm falling short so far on smutty Tomione goodness. If you bear with me for the build up I promise to bring on the smolder. Until then, I hope you enjoy this chapter