Blunder into Wonder

[Mary Darling]

She must be dreaming, was the conclusion Mary Darling had first drawn upon waking up in a field of flowers. Of course the dream had felt eerily real and though she had pinched the flesh on her forearm to try to rouse herself, she found she could not leave the slumber land. The last memory she had was sitting out in the garden back home; the day had been warm, much like the one in her dream, and she was reading a Dickens novel. It made perfect sense to surmise that she had simply grown tired in the heat and ended up here- wherever here was. An annoying, niggling sense of doubt told her that this was not the case, that the butterflies resembling slices of bread and flying around her were inarguably real. If that were the case, then there would be many questions to ask and many answers to seek.

“But it must be a dream,” Mary sensibly reminded herself. “And if I cannot awaken, then I suppose I must entertain the fancies of my imagination.”

Smoothing down the skirt of her dress and patting her hair, Mary took another look around her surroundings; the field stretched on forever it seemed and though it was a lovely sight, she decided to make a path toward a forest located behind her. Normally she would not venture out into the unknown alone and certainly not into a forest but as this was all a dream and nothing made much sense anyway, she could not see the harm in pursuing this course.

“Oh, I do hope I wake up soon; there is much left to be done before George arrives home.” Mentioning her husband’s name prompted Mary to glance around curiously for him but why would he be here? Again that sense of doubt ran through her, drawing a shudder, and Mary moved a bit more quickly, no longer finding the field as serene as she first did.

[norrington]

Norrington could keep pace with many a naval officer when it came to drinking hearty brews, but he certainly never had so much as to put him into a stupor where hallucination exceeded reality. What was going on? After attending a ceremonial dinner for Governor Swann and nursing a couple glasses of wine as a guest, Norrington climbed into a carriage and was on his way home when suddenly he found himself in a field of flowers. Blinking furiously as he fought to make sense of his sudden departure from comfy cushions to dewy grass, the man found comfort in reaching for his sword, though he did not withdraw his blade.

“Mr Hollings,” he spoke to the air, on the off chance that he was hallucinating and his driver could in fact hear him. His voice was clear, authoritative. “I need a physician.” Silence met him in response. “Mr Hollings!” he tried again. Once more he found himself unanswered. Though the silence was disturbing, Norrington would not succumb to discouragement and indeed found hope in the figure of a woman up ahead.

“Pardon me! Madam!” he called to the one heading in the direction of the forest, instantly springing into a jog to catch up to her. She was dressed as someone belonging to an urban community and looked just as peculiar as he must have in this location; hopefully he would not seem too intimidating- a man racing towards a woman all alone- and that his officer’s uniform would put her at ease and not send her running.

[Alice]

Far away, in another realm of existence, sat young Alice. She was seated under the foliage of a large tree, in the park closest to her home, in Oxford. Her back rested against the tree, which was away from a nearby path. Dinah was seated on her lap, smiling and rubbing her nuzzle against her master's delicate fingers as she was stroked. Alice had a smile of her own, as she watched her pet. Both of them didn't have a care in the world, and they wouldn't have suspected anything strange to happen to them.

[Anita Radcliffe]

They had sat down to tea, she remembered. Yes, four o’clock had come round and like so many times before, it took both the efforts of Nanny and Anita to pry Roger away from his work. For certain Anita thought they would have to literally take the trumpet out of Roger’s hands, or grasp the bell of the horn and lead him away like a dog on a leash to get him to leave the room, but repetitious knocking on the study door finally drew him out, though it left both women with sore knuckles. Perhaps it was only the comfort of having another instrument close by that convinced Roger to join Anita for tea, for Anita heard the light and cheery sound of piano keys being danced over as they walked by it before settling onto the sofa.

“Rolly’s been gaining weight again,” Anita sighed; more often than not, their teatime conversations concerned their brood of Dalmatian dogs. “I think it’s time for another diet, poor thing. How can he eat so much?”

The conversation carried on like this for some time before Anita finally gave Roger leave to entertain them with a tune on the piano, gesturing with a soft smile and short wave of her hand. With a motherly sigh and gentle shake of her head, Anita sank into the crook of the sofa, her eyes drifting close while Roger played them a sweet melody. Humming along to the familiar tune, Anita’s lingering grin flickered momentarily, then stretched when she heard the music stop.

“Is that it, dear?” she inquired playfully. “It’s not like you to stop in the middle of song.”

Upon receiving no answer, Anita opened her eyes, startled to find herself in the middle of a lush field, surrounded by flowers.

“What on Earth--?”

The attack of surprise that left a heart-clenching feeling in her chest began to ebb when she concluded that she must have fallen asleep during Roger’s song. Adults must always find a rational explanation for situations they do not understand and dreaming was certainly the most rational solution in this case. This was a most powerful dream however, because Anita could not recall the scent of flowers so strong in her dreams before, nor had the breeze on her face felt so real, nor had… she jumped from fright upon feeling something stir behind her and turned around to discover her husband in the grass.

“Roger? Oh, Roger where are we?”

Once again she was startled upon hearing calls from a voice unfamiliar to her and Anita looked around to spy a man running towards a woman at the edge of a forest.

[Wendy]

Mother’s have this wonderfulness to them in that they are always there for their children. Mother’s are the first ones to greet you with a hug in the morning and the last ones to give you a kiss before bed at night. When one scrapes one’s knee or bruises an elbow, Mother is always there to make it better; more than once an injury has been healed by soothing words or a brush of her lips. Yes, a mother is always there for her children.

Needless to say it was extremely confounding to Wendy that afternoon when she came home from school, expecting a kiss and a fond “hello dear, how were your lessons?” from her mother only to find that she was not there. Wendy made her way through all the rooms, carefully checking each one with their canine nursemaid Nana at her heels (Nana had not seemed to notice Mrs Darling was missing until the girl expressed her concern which was also peculiar) but turned up motherless in the end. But that was impossible! Everyone needed a mother, even Peter Pan, so where could hers be?

“Perhaps Mother is out shopping for groceries,” expressed Wendy, doing her utmost to think as a grown-up would by viewing the situation from all angles instead of spiraling into an immediate panic. Nana gave her a doubtful look, implying that Mrs Darling would have done her shopping much earlier in the day.

“John is taking extra lessons, Michael is at the zoo with Mrs Brownley and her boys; there is no need for Mother to be involved in any of those matters. Oh, Nana now I really am beginning to worry,” the girl sighed frightfully. “Well,” Wendy continued, buttoning up her coat, for tears would do her no good, “I suppose I must go out and find Mother, for she would most certainly search for me.”

Nana looked uncertain regarding this plan, whimpering when she saw Wendy fish through a small change purse for some coin, but Wendy pat her head reassuringly and said, “Now then, it is only for the train fare and I am sure Mother would not mind.” Leaving a note for Father to say she had gone out looking for her mother, Wendy turned to Nana with one last set of instructions before departing. “Be sure that everyone eats their vegetables at dinner time.”

Mrs Darling had a sister in Oxford and it was for Oxford that Wendy was bound. It was a most unusual time for Mrs Darling to be there now when it was so near to dinner, but it was the only option left unexplored and Wendy must eliminate every possibility before going to the police; missing mothers were a serious matter after all. Wendy had never taken a train by herself before but she knew the procedures and soon she was on her way; as to the exact address of her aunt, of this she was not sure, but she knew the location well enough and had been to Oxford many times. One of Wendy’s dearest friends lived here and it just so happened that she came across her when passing through a park.

“Why Alice, Alice Liddell!” the girl exclaimed. “Oh, how good it is to see you!”

[Alice]

Alice had continuously stroked a delicate finger along the top of Dinah's head, as the girl idly watched parents and children mess about in the park. Even though the day was passing, it was still a lovely time to be outside. Alice would have played with her family, too, if they had joined her. But as unfortunate chance would have it, they declined her offer to join.

The blonde girl's thoughts were interrupted when she heard a very familiar voice. She looked up from where she sat and saw the gentle, warm face of the older and taller girl, Wendy Moira Angela Darling. Ms. Darling's genteel smile was infectious; Alice returned a warm, pleasant smile of her own, as she gently set Dinah aside and got up on her feet. "Wendy! Hello!" She curtsied politely. "It's nice to see you, too! Have you come to play here?"

Alice really liked Wendy, and the two had been good friends ever since they first met some time ago. Humorously, every single person who had participated in a conversation between Wendy and Alice has stated that the two girls' voices bear an uncanny resemblance to each other. Alice wasn't entirely convinced that their voice was exactly the same; after all, Wendy was older and slightly more mature. But, if people insist...

After her curtsy, Alice stood upright and locked her hands together. Dinah sat on the earth and smiled up to her mistress's friend. "Miaow," she mewed politely.

[Wendy]

“I do wish I had,” Wendy answered honestly to the fair-haired child, “But unfortunately I have some very serious matters to attend to.”

Now Wendy had done admirably for a girl of twelve, composing herself in the face of this crisis, but for some reason- perhaps because she was in the company of a friend and fellow child- the walls of maturity she had placed began to crumble and in a rush of emotion, Wendy sank down beside Alice, hiding her face in her hands.

“Oh Alice, I’m so afraid!” Her breath hitched from crying and when Wendy looked up to face her, one could see the tear stained trail left behind on her cheeks. “I’ve lost my mother.” Catching her breath once more as she fought back worried tears, she explained how she had come home to find the house empty and why this was most unusual. Finally she said, “I’ve come to see if she is with my Aunt but deep down I just know she isn’t there. I’m afraid I- I-“ and here Wendy felt the most shame in admitting this, “I don’t know what to do.” Biting into her lip, the girl looked away; she was the most irresponsible daughter ever!

[Alice]

What a very unexpected turn. Alice thought that Wendy would answer cheerily as usual, but here she was, sunken and vulnerable. It was a terrible sensation to hear such a close friend weep so fervently, and Alice was more than empathetic. Her thin eyebrows furrowed, and her lips tugged into a sympathetic frown. Then Wendy revealed why she was so upset: Mrs. Darling was missing. Wendy explained the situation, and admitted that she had no idea where her mother could be. When Wendy looked away, Alice pulled the older girl into a very tight and affectionate hug.

"Oh, Wendy, I'm so sorry! Please, don't cry! I'm sure that..." The blonde winced because she couldn't think of how to finish that sentence. How would she know where Mrs. Darling was? In fact, she had even less an idea than her friend. But she had to remain strong and optimistic, for Wendy's sake.

Alice pulled from the hug and smiled very warmly. "Wendy, please don't worry. You won't be alone in your search, because I'm coming with you. Please let me help." After a pause the girl said, "I think we should visit your Aunt anyway, and if she isn't there, we'll just keep looking. Mrs. Darling is a very polite woman, and I know she wouldn't just leave without notice."

Alice didn't know too much about Mrs. Darling, but they had met. She liked the woman, and... actually, come to think of it, Mrs. Darling sounded very similar to her sister, Edith... eerily similar.