Video

[pottershotter]

[James pops up o the screen, in what is clearly a pre-planned and perhaps even rehearsed message. By now he's been in Wonderland so long that the network devices are no longer a mystery to him, and he's nicely centered in front of a blackboard and grinning.]

Hullo! I'm James Potter - yes, that one, and if it sounds vaguely familiar it's likely because my future son is going to be a rather famous wizard.

[He waves a hand though, like it isn't a big deal. No one can fourth-wall James Potter harder than he's already fourth-walled himself.]

Now that that's out of the way, I've been thinking a lot about Wonderland lately, and how long it keeps people here. When I first arrived, it was fairly common for people to vanish after a year or less, but lately I've noticed more and more of us have been staying longer and longer. I'm not certain why either, but it does present one awkward problem - counting ages. [James vaguely gestures at himself.] I'll wager a guess that no one would believe I'm in my twenties, right? And it's hard to feel I'm twenty-two when I'll never look the part as long as I'm here.

[He's right. Frankly, he looks like he's barely out of school, and even that's being somewhat generous.And there's the pesky fact that he's only scheduled to live until twenty-one at home, but that's not the point.]

So, I've been thinking about how to reconcile the two ages in a way that won't take ages to explain in casual conversation, and I think I've got it.

[He steps aside and reveals a formula on the board - A (+W).]

The 'A' stands for age - the age you were when you arrived - and the 'W' is the amount of years you've spent in Wonderland. For myself that would be...[Underneath his formula he writes 17 (+5)]. So, I'd write it this way, and in conversation I'd say "seventeen and five" - you know, like that song about the blackbirds and the pies? I forget how it goes, but it'd be like that.

Does that roll off the tongue as well as I think it does? I'll keep trying to make it happen either way, and maybe it'll start to catch on. I could start a trend here! But I'd also welcome theories on why Wonderland seems to be keeping us longer and longer, because frankly that should be alarming everyone at least a bit.

[On that cheery note, he waves the camera goodbye and shuts it off.]

Comments

[circlejerked]

Out with the old and in with the new is a ominous thought.

_{[He hadn't wanted to seriously consider the possibility that they'd all could've been here before and not known, but this guy's story adds fuel to the fire. If it's true, it'd make this place even more dangerous, and he'd already been thinking this is "adult diapers" level of dire.]}

But-- _{[And it's a slim "but," he's aware.]} --it works to our advantage if we're not disappearing into thin air with our memories wiped. I'd rather get to the bottom of this from the inside and stay who I am than Wonderland's pawn.

_{[Not that he isn't already. It's worse when it involves coming and going at random, though.]}

[pottershotter]

[The bright side is welcome. James has never been one for wallowing.]

Agreed. All of this time is a curse, but it's also a blessing. We might be able to do what the prisoners before us couldn't.

[It could change everything and it's what keeps James going every day.]

[circlejerked]

I'm counting on it! I'm not normally one to stay in one place for long--and it sounds like you've got some responsibilities to get back to. Fathering heroes and changing diapers and the like.

_{[His smile is teasing but in an amiable manner. Changing diapers is a noble calling in some circles.]}

Nice thinking with the mathematics. You must get a lot of questions for you to resort to equations to save time.

[pottershotter]

I'm apparently going to be a very busy man!

[He laughs a bit at that, taking the good natured-teasing for what it is.]

I do get a fair amount of questions though - that's what happens when you've been in Wonderland as long as I have.

[Five years is such a long time...]

[circlejerked]

_{[Apparently so. But someone has to change those diapers.]}

After all this time, I bet you three know more about Wonderland than anyone else. Have there been other changes that have stood out besides people sticking around longer?

_{[Anders doesn't have the same experience as James in order to spot patterns; perhaps there have been other shifts in the way Wonderland operates that he hasn't noticed while he's been busy finding his footing.]}

[pottershotter]

Hm...it's hard to say. I ought to talk to Evelyn about that, actually. She's got all sorts of research and data and if we went through it we might be able to pinpoint more differences between Wonderland five years ago and Wonderland now.

[It's worth a try, at least. And finding changes might make it easier to figure out how Wonderland changes in the first place.]

[circlejerked]

_{[He nods along in agreement.]}

Sounds like a good idea. With everything you've managed to document over the years, there has to be something that could help us.

_{[Evelyn's work in the library as certainly been a boon in that regard.]}