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akainagiTen Further Trips Through Wonderland (Trips 76-80)
Author:AkaiNagi
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Alice/Tarrant
Summary: Prompts 5-10 (Table 8) from![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
10_prompts.
Prompt: Heartbroken
It was too difficult to sleep in the bed they had shared what seemed to be a lifetime ago. He had tried to sleep there the first few nights of Alice’s absence. The strangeness of her not being there next to him was so disconcerting that he took to sleeping at his work table.
When he found that a nurse had been assigned to look after his daughter, that took away his last reason for leaving his workroom at all. The guilt he suffered for abandoning his child compounded the fracture of his already broken heart. Looking at her was like looking at Alice in miniature. The grief and pain this brought to the surface made him fear his madness might come out in his daughter’s presence. So for her safety, at least that’s what he told himself, he stayed away.
Time, the bastard that he was, was getting even for having been bested all those years ago by drawing the Hatter’s agony out as long as possible. The days Alice was away seemed to stretch into forever. And every day the certainty that she wasn’t coming back crept further and further into his heart. He had lost her.
The meals Mallymkun brought him had no flavor, and sat like lead in his stomach. His tea was bitter no matter how many lumps he put in it. He choked his food down not through any desire to nourish himself, but because Mally, dear creature that she was, begged and pleaded and threatened and poked him with a hatpin when he didn’t.
He still worked, at times. He set out to make something and then halfway through realized he was making it for Alice. Everything he made always ended up being for her. Then in a rage he would unmake it. Shredding it with his scissors or sometimes ripping it apart with his bare hands.
She was dead to his world. Yet he still saw her, sometimes. Standing in the corner of the room, or sitting next to him. She was always smiling. One day it seemed so real that he actually was sure his wife had returned. A great joy rose in his heart only to be dashed when he realized she was only in his traitorous mind.
Was she smiling even now, he frequently wondered. What was she doing? Who was she with? What was she wearing? Was she happy? Was she (hope against hope) thinking of him, or had she settled happily into her new life without him.
He hoped she was happy. Even in his misery and anger, even in his heartbreak at her absence, even if she never came back to him.
He wanted her to be happy.
Prompt: Leaving
The news that the Hatter had left his workshop was startling enough.
The news that he had left the palace completely spread through Marmoreal like wildfire.
Mally went into a panic when he was missing from his workshop come breakfast time. She checked his quarters. He wasn’t there. Immediately fearing the worst, and wanting to waste no time, she went straight to the top. The Queen summoned her guards. Questioning each of them revealed that he Hatter had left the palace grounds in the late evening, heading west towards the Outlands. The guard who saw him leave heard him say only one thing:
“I’m going to be with my Alice.”
Prompt: Punctual
Alice had forgotten how awful pishalver tasted. She had also forgotten how hard the landing was after one jumped down a rabbit hole. It was like déjà vu; the pishalver, the upelkutchen, the tiny door and the tiny key. Although this time she took some sensible precautions to make sure she didn’t have to travel all the way to Marmoreal at an inch high and naked. Once through the little door, she reached back in for the upelkutchen and pishalver, and, with a little trial and error, managed to get herself back to the right size. Then she reached back through the door and fished out her clothes, which she had been careful to keep within distance. It would not do to show up at the palace in the nude.
Once the necessities had been taken care of, she had the luxury of taking in her surroundings. Her heart swelled with the knowledge that she was almost home. She greeted the flowers as she passed by and they answered with a cheerful hello. Some of the older ones greeting her by name. She could hear the flowers whispering amongst themselves, the older ones explaining to their younger counterparts that they had just been greeted by the White Queen’s Champion, of all people. The one who had saved Underland from the Red Queen. Usually such talk frustrated Alice, but for once she rejoiced in it. Who would have thought that talking flowers had become so normal to her that she had missed them while she was away?
She hurried on her way, her mind thoroughly occupied with thoughts of seeing her family again. She hoped Tarrant wouldn’t be too cross with her for being so late. She couldn’t wait to throw her arms around him and kiss him senseless. She couldn’t wait to hold her daughter in her arms again.
She followed the familiar paths. Here was where she had been chased by the bandersnatch. Here was where she had met Chess for the first time.
She was coming soon to a place near and dear to her heart; the house of the March Hare. It was there where Tarrant had first taken her hand. It was there, she was sure, where she first fell in love with him. Whether it had been as a child or as a woman of nineteen, it didn’t matter; she had fallen in love with him at fist sight. Suddenly the desire to see him became so strong it caused a lump to rise in her throat.
At last she came upon it; that long table set for a teatime that would never resume. God, she wanted her Hatter so bad she could practically see him, sitting there at the head of the table. In her mind’s eye she saw him so clearly.
The Tarrant of her mind’s eye came alive at the sight of her, his eyes lit from within by joy. And when he rose from his seat at the table, and indeed began to walk down the table, sending cups and plates clattering under his feet, taking the shortest route to where his wife stood, Alice began to suspect this was more than her mind playing tricks. And when her imaginary Tarrant grabbed her and kissed her with a passion that left her breathless, she realized that this was no imaginary Tarrant.
This was her husband.
She threw her arms around him with a sob of joy, knocking his hat off in her enthusiasm.
Her very real Tarrant whispered in her ear, “You’re terribly late, you know.”
“I know,” she answered, tears streaming down her face. “Can you forgive me?”
His arms tightened around her waist and he buried his face in the mane of her hair. “Don’t I always?”
Prompt: Eternity
It felt like an eternity to Mallymkun. This waiting. The queen had sent Bayard to search for the Hatter at Mally’s urging. In his depression, Mally had exclaimed, who knew what he was capable of doing to himself?
So all Mally could do now was wait. She thought to herself that if this was a taste of what Tarrant had been going through for weeks, waiting for Alice to return, no wonder he had descended as far as he had.
During that interminable day Mally blamed everyone she could think of. She blamed Alice for leaving her husband, she blamed the queen for sending Alice back to the other world, she blamed herself for not keeping a better eye on her beloved Hatter. If she had been more diligent, this would not have happened.
And as night began to fall, so did Mally’s spirits. She sat on the high balcony, watching for any sign of Bayard or Tarrant. She was so intent in her mission that she didn’t hear the queen come up behind her.
“Mallymkun,” she said kindly. “Do not despair. Tarrant will return to us. You will see.”
Mally shook her head frantically. “You can’t know that. You don’t know how depressed he’s become. Why did Alice have to leave? Why did you let her go? If she hadn’t gone none of this would have happened!”
“All creatures are led by their hearts. Your heart leads you to care for Tarrant the way you do. Alice’s heart led her to go to the Overworld to see her family. Tarrant’s heart leads him now. We must trust in the people we love. If you follow your heart, it will not steer you wrong.”
Mallymkun thought this to be so many words. But as she sat vigil throughout the night, she began to wonder, and by the first light of dawn, as Tarrant, Alice and Bayard came into view of the Palace, she knew the queen had been right.
Mally was the first to greet them just outside the palace grounds, embracing her Hatter as best she could given her small size, and then poking him soundly with her hatpin for making her worry so. By way of apology he let her ride the rest of the way to the palace on the brim of his hat.
Her Hatter was smiling again, laughing again, he was himself again.
Mallymkun’s heart was full to bursting with the joy of it.
Prompt: Falling in Love Again
The first thing Alice did upon her return to the Palace was to reacquaint herself with every hair on her daughter’s head, every inch of her skin, every sound she made.
The second thing she did was to seek out Mallymkun. She got down on her knees in front of the small creature, and, with tears in her eyes, thanked her from the bottom of her heart for taking such good and diligent care of her husband.
Mally had wanted to be angry at Alice, but in the light of such sincerity, her anger dissipated. “Just see that it doesn’t happen again!” was the only admonition. Alice happily agreed.
The third thing she did was visit Lady Ascot. The great creature was beside herself with joy that her mistress had returned. Alice promised her a good long run tomorrow morning, for today, she still had much to do.
The fourth thing she did was to visit the Queen. She thanked her for allowing her the opportunity to see her family again. Thanked her also for keeping an eye on her husband in her absence. She apologized for being away from her duties as an advisor for longer than expected and hoped that the Queen would forgive her extended absence. The Queen, magnanimous as ever, forgave all, and welcomed back her advisor with open arms.
The fifth thing she did was to get a cup of tea from the royal kitchens, courtesy of Thackery. He made the best tea, and she had missed it in her absence.
The sixth thing she did was take her daughter, and some of her toys and play in Tarrant’s workshop while he worked. Having them together as a family again filled her heart to overflowing and helped heal some of the grief she had felt since learning of her mother’s death. Every once in a while she would look up to her husband and catch him watching them, a gleam of happiness in his eyes, and his joy increased her own tenfold.
The seventh thing she did, after Lara was abed for the night, and dusk had fallen, was to reacquaint herself with her husband. With his lips. His skin. With the ways she could bring him pleasure. With the way their bodies fit together just so. With his moans, his cries, his whispers. With the sound of him gasping her name at the height of his passion.
She reacquainted herself with her world. And fell in love with it all over again.
Author:AkaiNagi
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Alice/Tarrant
Summary: Prompts 5-10 (Table 8) from
10_prompts.Prompt: Heartbroken
It was too difficult to sleep in the bed they had shared what seemed to be a lifetime ago. He had tried to sleep there the first few nights of Alice’s absence. The strangeness of her not being there next to him was so disconcerting that he took to sleeping at his work table.
When he found that a nurse had been assigned to look after his daughter, that took away his last reason for leaving his workroom at all. The guilt he suffered for abandoning his child compounded the fracture of his already broken heart. Looking at her was like looking at Alice in miniature. The grief and pain this brought to the surface made him fear his madness might come out in his daughter’s presence. So for her safety, at least that’s what he told himself, he stayed away.
Time, the bastard that he was, was getting even for having been bested all those years ago by drawing the Hatter’s agony out as long as possible. The days Alice was away seemed to stretch into forever. And every day the certainty that she wasn’t coming back crept further and further into his heart. He had lost her.
The meals Mallymkun brought him had no flavor, and sat like lead in his stomach. His tea was bitter no matter how many lumps he put in it. He choked his food down not through any desire to nourish himself, but because Mally, dear creature that she was, begged and pleaded and threatened and poked him with a hatpin when he didn’t.
He still worked, at times. He set out to make something and then halfway through realized he was making it for Alice. Everything he made always ended up being for her. Then in a rage he would unmake it. Shredding it with his scissors or sometimes ripping it apart with his bare hands.
She was dead to his world. Yet he still saw her, sometimes. Standing in the corner of the room, or sitting next to him. She was always smiling. One day it seemed so real that he actually was sure his wife had returned. A great joy rose in his heart only to be dashed when he realized she was only in his traitorous mind.
Was she smiling even now, he frequently wondered. What was she doing? Who was she with? What was she wearing? Was she happy? Was she (hope against hope) thinking of him, or had she settled happily into her new life without him.
He hoped she was happy. Even in his misery and anger, even in his heartbreak at her absence, even if she never came back to him.
He wanted her to be happy.
Prompt: Leaving
The news that the Hatter had left his workshop was startling enough.
The news that he had left the palace completely spread through Marmoreal like wildfire.
Mally went into a panic when he was missing from his workshop come breakfast time. She checked his quarters. He wasn’t there. Immediately fearing the worst, and wanting to waste no time, she went straight to the top. The Queen summoned her guards. Questioning each of them revealed that he Hatter had left the palace grounds in the late evening, heading west towards the Outlands. The guard who saw him leave heard him say only one thing:
“I’m going to be with my Alice.”
Prompt: Punctual
Alice had forgotten how awful pishalver tasted. She had also forgotten how hard the landing was after one jumped down a rabbit hole. It was like déjà vu; the pishalver, the upelkutchen, the tiny door and the tiny key. Although this time she took some sensible precautions to make sure she didn’t have to travel all the way to Marmoreal at an inch high and naked. Once through the little door, she reached back in for the upelkutchen and pishalver, and, with a little trial and error, managed to get herself back to the right size. Then she reached back through the door and fished out her clothes, which she had been careful to keep within distance. It would not do to show up at the palace in the nude.
Once the necessities had been taken care of, she had the luxury of taking in her surroundings. Her heart swelled with the knowledge that she was almost home. She greeted the flowers as she passed by and they answered with a cheerful hello. Some of the older ones greeting her by name. She could hear the flowers whispering amongst themselves, the older ones explaining to their younger counterparts that they had just been greeted by the White Queen’s Champion, of all people. The one who had saved Underland from the Red Queen. Usually such talk frustrated Alice, but for once she rejoiced in it. Who would have thought that talking flowers had become so normal to her that she had missed them while she was away?
She hurried on her way, her mind thoroughly occupied with thoughts of seeing her family again. She hoped Tarrant wouldn’t be too cross with her for being so late. She couldn’t wait to throw her arms around him and kiss him senseless. She couldn’t wait to hold her daughter in her arms again.
She followed the familiar paths. Here was where she had been chased by the bandersnatch. Here was where she had met Chess for the first time.
She was coming soon to a place near and dear to her heart; the house of the March Hare. It was there where Tarrant had first taken her hand. It was there, she was sure, where she first fell in love with him. Whether it had been as a child or as a woman of nineteen, it didn’t matter; she had fallen in love with him at fist sight. Suddenly the desire to see him became so strong it caused a lump to rise in her throat.
At last she came upon it; that long table set for a teatime that would never resume. God, she wanted her Hatter so bad she could practically see him, sitting there at the head of the table. In her mind’s eye she saw him so clearly.
The Tarrant of her mind’s eye came alive at the sight of her, his eyes lit from within by joy. And when he rose from his seat at the table, and indeed began to walk down the table, sending cups and plates clattering under his feet, taking the shortest route to where his wife stood, Alice began to suspect this was more than her mind playing tricks. And when her imaginary Tarrant grabbed her and kissed her with a passion that left her breathless, she realized that this was no imaginary Tarrant.
This was her husband.
She threw her arms around him with a sob of joy, knocking his hat off in her enthusiasm.
Her very real Tarrant whispered in her ear, “You’re terribly late, you know.”
“I know,” she answered, tears streaming down her face. “Can you forgive me?”
His arms tightened around her waist and he buried his face in the mane of her hair. “Don’t I always?”
Prompt: Eternity
It felt like an eternity to Mallymkun. This waiting. The queen had sent Bayard to search for the Hatter at Mally’s urging. In his depression, Mally had exclaimed, who knew what he was capable of doing to himself?
So all Mally could do now was wait. She thought to herself that if this was a taste of what Tarrant had been going through for weeks, waiting for Alice to return, no wonder he had descended as far as he had.
During that interminable day Mally blamed everyone she could think of. She blamed Alice for leaving her husband, she blamed the queen for sending Alice back to the other world, she blamed herself for not keeping a better eye on her beloved Hatter. If she had been more diligent, this would not have happened.
And as night began to fall, so did Mally’s spirits. She sat on the high balcony, watching for any sign of Bayard or Tarrant. She was so intent in her mission that she didn’t hear the queen come up behind her.
“Mallymkun,” she said kindly. “Do not despair. Tarrant will return to us. You will see.”
Mally shook her head frantically. “You can’t know that. You don’t know how depressed he’s become. Why did Alice have to leave? Why did you let her go? If she hadn’t gone none of this would have happened!”
“All creatures are led by their hearts. Your heart leads you to care for Tarrant the way you do. Alice’s heart led her to go to the Overworld to see her family. Tarrant’s heart leads him now. We must trust in the people we love. If you follow your heart, it will not steer you wrong.”
Mallymkun thought this to be so many words. But as she sat vigil throughout the night, she began to wonder, and by the first light of dawn, as Tarrant, Alice and Bayard came into view of the Palace, she knew the queen had been right.
Mally was the first to greet them just outside the palace grounds, embracing her Hatter as best she could given her small size, and then poking him soundly with her hatpin for making her worry so. By way of apology he let her ride the rest of the way to the palace on the brim of his hat.
Her Hatter was smiling again, laughing again, he was himself again.
Mallymkun’s heart was full to bursting with the joy of it.
Prompt: Falling in Love Again
The first thing Alice did upon her return to the Palace was to reacquaint herself with every hair on her daughter’s head, every inch of her skin, every sound she made.
The second thing she did was to seek out Mallymkun. She got down on her knees in front of the small creature, and, with tears in her eyes, thanked her from the bottom of her heart for taking such good and diligent care of her husband.
Mally had wanted to be angry at Alice, but in the light of such sincerity, her anger dissipated. “Just see that it doesn’t happen again!” was the only admonition. Alice happily agreed.
The third thing she did was visit Lady Ascot. The great creature was beside herself with joy that her mistress had returned. Alice promised her a good long run tomorrow morning, for today, she still had much to do.
The fourth thing she did was to visit the Queen. She thanked her for allowing her the opportunity to see her family again. Thanked her also for keeping an eye on her husband in her absence. She apologized for being away from her duties as an advisor for longer than expected and hoped that the Queen would forgive her extended absence. The Queen, magnanimous as ever, forgave all, and welcomed back her advisor with open arms.
The fifth thing she did was to get a cup of tea from the royal kitchens, courtesy of Thackery. He made the best tea, and she had missed it in her absence.
The sixth thing she did was take her daughter, and some of her toys and play in Tarrant’s workshop while he worked. Having them together as a family again filled her heart to overflowing and helped heal some of the grief she had felt since learning of her mother’s death. Every once in a while she would look up to her husband and catch him watching them, a gleam of happiness in his eyes, and his joy increased her own tenfold.
The seventh thing she did, after Lara was abed for the night, and dusk had fallen, was to reacquaint herself with her husband. With his lips. His skin. With the ways she could bring him pleasure. With the way their bodies fit together just so. With his moans, his cries, his whispers. With the sound of him gasping her name at the height of his passion.
She reacquainted herself with her world. And fell in love with it all over again.
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(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-16 12:28 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-18 04:02 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-16 01:58 am (UTC)I was so worried that he was going to miss her somehow and they wouldn't be back together. I love how he ended up waiting at the tea table for her, like he always has. It was like he knew in his heart that she was finally coming home.
I loved Mally and how much she cares for Tarrant. How she's angry at Alice, but at the same time forgives her because she loves him just as much.
And I LOVED the last prompt. Every word of it, I can't pick out one line. Just, what a lovely happy way to end this set.
(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-18 04:03 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-16 03:03 am (UTC)i also loved the falling back in love with underland part...loved it loved it loved it can't say it enough. your stories reduce me to a pile of gibberish kadsjfkadfjkalkdflove.
<3
(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-18 04:05 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-16 05:45 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-18 04:06 pm (UTC)*looks shifty*
(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-16 12:20 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-18 04:06 pm (UTC)Your icon is so cute.
(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-16 12:47 pm (UTC)I also love that he was waiting at the tea table for her--so perfect.
(no subject)
Date: 2010-04-18 04:08 pm (UTC)I've said it before, I'll say it again. I freakin' love that old tea table.
Thank you as always for the wonderful comments!