What an odd situation

[curiouserx2]

Mundane, is it? How very odd.

Perhaps this is a dream. Is that it? If so, how curious. How can I be a figment of your imagination if it is my dream? If it is my dream, then I've made you up, not the other way around. But why would I imagine a person who is imagining me imagining them?

Oh dear. And I thought rabbits with waistcoats were distressing.

Comments

[qball]

Everyone knows that dreams are just electromagnetic pulses in the brain, duh. Well, the human brain, anyway. Xubolchians do it in their feet! ...I don't know what you're talking about, anyway.

[curiouserx2]

Xu...bolchians? Dream with their feet? Really! They'd rather be careful about what sorts of shoes they wear, I imagine. Pinched toes must give them rather pinched dreams, of boring things like geography, or sums.

[qball]

Well, they're really called [link to soundfile], but Xubolchi is the best way of trying to stuff it into this alphabet. Not that I'd expect you to know any of that, they're very gamma quadrant. And that's where their brains are! Not very attractive, really. Actually, mostly very slimy.

[curiouserx2]

I imagine they don't think it unattractive at all. After all, a snail is rather slimy, but he must be used to it, and still think another snail is quite lovely. Perhaps they find us unattractive.

What is a "gamma quadrant," anyway?

[qball]

I wouldn't know, they're very boring.

Oh, you're one of the primitive humans, aren't you? I'll tell you, as long as you promise to, I don't know, disrupt the space time continuum. Look. [Wherever Alice is, Q appears floating in space in front of her. He snaps his fingers again, and a miniature floating disk of stars appears, about two feet in diameter.] That's your universe, see? [He speaks very slowly, for the benefit of this primitive primate girl.]

[curiouserx2]

[Alice is quite used to seeing floating cats, at least, and a floating person isn't too far off. She's also rather used to being talked down to by caterpillars. Still, Q is hardly Absalom, so he gets a look.]

There's hardly a need to be rude. I'm not stupid.

[She turns to the disk of stars.]

Imagine, the sun just one of those millions of stars.

[qball]

[She isn't amused? Or shocked? Or anything? Clearly, Q has to step up his game. He sniffs, a bit superior. Well, okay, a lot superior.] It's not my fault I'm more evolved. [Huff!]

[He pokes one of the billions of stars floating in the mini galaxy, and pulls it out, enlarging it to about the size of a tennis ball.] This one, actually. Sol.

[curiouserx2]

[Alice reaches out to touch the image]

The sun has a name? I suppose it must, to tell it apart from the other stars when looking at it like this. But what a curious way to see it! Like we're among the stars ourselves!

[qball]

[Q lets the tennis ball sun float out toward her. It's just a collection of reflected light and particles, can't hurt anyone.] Yep. Your scientists named it, it's your sun, after all. You've only got one, though, so it got a pretty boring name.

We are among the stars, duh. If you want to get all poetic, which you probably do because humans always do, you're even made of stars. [He rolls his eyes like the long-suffering jaded teenager he clearly is.]

[curiouserx2]

Made of stars? But how can that be, when I'm nothing like a star?

And...hang on. Are you not human, then? You look human.

[qball]

[He siiiighs.] Do you know what atoms are?

Eugh, no, I'm a Q! I'm choosing to look human for your benefit. I could look like anything if I wanted to! A Bolian! [He snaps his fingers, and with a flash of light looks like a young male Bolian, still in the same uniform.] Or a Ferengi! [He snaps his fingers again, and, now, a Ferengi. And then he snaps his fingers a third time, and looks human again. He crosses his arms, pouting slightly.] It's just easier this way. For you, not me. [Clearly.]

[terriblycrowded]

Alice! How wonderful it is to see you again, and you being a proper Alice a right Alice a correct size and age Alice, Alice.

[Forgive him, he's surrounded by Alices that aren't his Alice.]

[curiouserx2]

Hatter! How wonderful indeed! And yes, it's me, I'm quite certain this time. Muchness and all.

Oh, I do hope this is not just a dream, then. I've so wanted to see you again since I last left Underland.

[terriblycrowded]

And I've much wanted to see Alice again, though I suppose that was obvious with the wanting you stay.

Oh! No, no this isn't a dream. Though I know of the most marvelous dream if Alice would like.

[curiouserx2]

I would like, very much. Please tell me?

[shattered_looking_glass]

Dreams have a rather curious way of becoming reality, one might find.

[curiouserx2]

I have found that sometimes what we think of as dreams are actually memories of reality. But you mean it the other way round, don't you? Dreams becoming reality? Quite curious, yes. Has this happened often to you?

[shattered_looking_glass]

Entirely possible. Memories have quite an impact on certain dreams, I've found.

Indeed I do. And it's happened quite more often than one would like.

[curiouserx2]

I can think of a fair number of dreams I would like to come true. But there are also horrid dreams, of course. Perhaps if one could choose which dreams came true?

[shattered_looking_glass]

As can I, but I'm afraid the horrid ones rather outweigh those.

If such things were true, my life would be quite a bit easier, I think.

[curiouserx2]

Oh dear. What sorts of horrid dreams have come true for you?

[shattered_looking_glass]

Plenty.

Though, I'm not entirely inclined to share them with a stranger.

[As much as this girl doesn't feel like a stranger.]

[curiouserx2]

I understand. Dreams are such private things, aren't they?

My name is Alice, by the way. Alice Kingsleigh. What's yours?

[shattered_looking_glass]

If one chooses to keep them that way.

...Alice Liddell.

Strange, I'm meeting quite a few people who share my name recently.

[curiouserx2]

Really? How peculiar! I believe I've only ever met one other Alice in my life. Besides you, I mean.