Hello Again everyone! This is a sort of a sequel to With his help, she finds home so if you haven't read that, then you probably should or else this might be very confusing! This "sequel" doesn't exactly follow a plot. Just a bunch of One-Shots about Alice's new Adventures now that she is back in Underland with her Hatter. I hope you all enjoy.
Summary: Alice and Ron finally find out that they were being watched during their adventures. How will they react?
What they thought was private... wasn't private after all.
Disclaimer: I do not own Alice in Wonderland.
"You were watching?" Alice whispered her face stayed in the same shocked state as the Queen solemnly nodded.
"When? What did you see? Which parts? How often did you watch?... What did you… hear?" Alice rambled, blushing greatly at her last remark.
"I am very sorry Alice, in the beginning, we did it because we wanted to know you were safe… soon enough though, we watched because we missed you greatly" Mirana squeaked.
"Are you angry Alice? Are you… going to leave?" The Hatter whispered.
"I'm… I'm not angry, I'm just… embarrassed," Alice managed a small giggle.
"I assure you Alice, we did not see anything improper or lewd, we only watched some of your travels to distant lands"
"Which ones did you watch?" Ron asked nonchalantly, "We have had our share of adventures the past year, do tell which ones you know of" he requested, gently squeezing Alice's hand under the table.
"Yes, Tarrant, please tell me which one's you know of" Alice said nervously.
"Ummm well, I told you I knew about your naughty Rum Party…" he chuckled nervously. "And, there was that time right before you came back, it's how I knew about the engagement…" he confessed, looking up at Alice apologetically.
"There was that time you were sick in your ship." Chessur yawned. "I remember losing my appetite during that one" he said. Alice and Ron laughed at the memory.
"Also, we saw when you bought those presents in China" Mirana said, giving her a grateful smile. Alice finally relaxed a bit, thinking that they didn't see anything too embarrassing.
"Don't forget all those times you were talking to a Hat like some crazy person!" Mally laughed.
Alice froze in her seat instantly as a blush crept to her cheeks. She quickly looked at Tarrant who had tilted his hat forward to cover his flushed face.
"Yes you were talking to a Hat!" Mally laughed clutching her stomach, "Oh! Oh! And remember when she was asking Absolem about Hatter courting any one, and she said 'Tell Hatter I think he's NIIICEE' don't you remember?" she mocked, looking to the other guests for support. Alice was beet red at this point and didn't know whether she was more angry or embarrassed. She heard another chuckle at the table and turned to see Ron trying to contain his laughter. He finally gave in and joined the dormouse as Alice glared at him. Soon enough Chessur was also laughing, and so was McTwisp. Alice finally gave up and slumped her shoulders, giving The Hatter a shy smile.
"Well, I still think he is nice…" she defended weakly before giving in to the laughter and letting out a small giggle. "Alright, come clean! What else did you see?" she asked the group, who was now more comfortable than they were a few moments ago.
"It was rather hilarious watching Tarrant get so riled up every time he saw you two together!" Chessur added. Alice quickly looked at The Hatter who had once again covered his face with the brim of his hat.
"Really?" Ronald chimed. "Do tell Chessur! How riled up was The Hatter?" Ron laughed.
"I suppose he was quite angry! Seeing you two in your little secret garden area, watching your little game with your parents, seeing you gaze at each other oh so lovingly, I believe he was madly jealous! Why I remember he almost gave poor Niven's here a nervous breakdown when he watched your Departure Party!" Chessur rambled. The Hatter growled at Chessur who merely waved him off. "Oh please Tarrant, Alice had to sit through the embarrassment, now it's your turn!" he laughed. Alice giggled at the sight of a very red Hatter looking at her apologetically. She grasped his hand gently underneath the table, which seemed to have relaxed him a bit.
"You were… jealous?" Alice whispered. The Hatter nodded his head weakly, looking up at her under the brim of his hat.
"You two were so…umm… close. And, and I was… I just wished I was the one holding you, or caring for you when you were sick, or… I just wished I was with you, and every time I saw you holding his hand…" The Hatter managed to say.
"Don't worry Hatter! You will have all the time to hold her hand now that she's back!" Ron laughed. "Tell me Mallymkun, what else did you see?" he asked. The Hatter looked at Alice questioningly, his eyes gazing deep into hers. Alice just blushed slightly and nodded her head, earning her a great smile from her Hatter.
"Well speaking of jealousy" a voice suddenly said. They all turn to see Absolem fluttering in from behind some trees. "Let's not forget our Champions rant about The Queen's court!" he said.
"Of course! What was it she called them?" Chessur purred raising an eyebrow at Alice who was covering her face with her palm; The Hatter looked at her amused and smiled greatly at the sight of a very embarrassed, very red Champion.
"TARTS!" March exclaimed before throwing a teacup into the distance. "BLOODY TARTS!" he said tugging at his ears.
"Oh I remember that!" The Hatter said, brushing Alice's arm gently. She looked at him through her lashes and he raised a bushy orange brow at her. "You were making fun of me sweet Alice" he said, his accent slightly audible. "Just so you know…" he said in his husky voice, slowly leaning closer to her, "I only like attention from one Lady, and she isn't any of them" he whispered in her ear. Alice blushed madly at the Hatter's boldness.
"Oh yes! Do you all remember when we kept singing Ron's song? We sang that song every time we saw Hatter for days! Alice you should have seen him! He was so embarrassed!" Mally exclaimed.
"Hatter and Alice having TEA!" March started to sing; he hopped up on the table and started tossing sugar cubes in the air as he finished the song, earning a hearty laugh from the group.
"Ah! That song! I still sing that to my silly girl every once in a while, I sure love seeing her turn red and puff her cheeks at me!" Ron joked, poking Alice on the rib.
"Be quiet you!" Alice huffed, slapping him playfully on the arm. The rest of the group happily finished their tea, laughing about the adventures they've witnessed. After tea, everyone went their separate ways, all except Alice and Tarrant who stayed in their seats smiling at each other timidly.
"Alice?" Tarrant whispered.
"Yes?" Alice responded turning to face him.
"I enjoyed watching the fireworks with you last night… at the ball. I loved being with you very much. I know that… what I mean is, I saw that night you watched the fireworks in China with Ron and I heard what you said, and well... I really wished I was there with you too and since I couldn't be… I… well I hope you enjoyed watching it with me" he nervously rambled
"My sweet Hatter, I loved watching the fireworks with you! I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much if you weren't there. I like being around you, and being… close to you" she timidly confessed. Tarrant takes her hand and gently pulls her up from her seat.
"I want to bring you somewhere; it's my special place… It's where I go to think of, you" he said blushing at the last part of his sentence. Alice smiled as she followed him down a small path that leads to a pond. There was a patch of blue flowers on the ground where he led her to sit. He sat next to her, holding his hand out to a small blue flower that eagerly jumped up to his palm. He smiled at her lovingly and placed the flower on her hair. "I used to come here to calm down… after we've watched you through the looking glass and you were with Ron. I used to get so angry at the sight of him running his fingers through your hair, or touching your cheek." He confessed, looking down at the blue flowers converging around them.
"Hat… Tarrant, you watched us the whole time, yet you did not once realize that Ron is only a friend?" she giggled. "Ever since I left… I've only been able to think of you. Initially I didn't understand why I kept dreaming of you and how you looked the day I left. I didn't understand why every time I would have a new suitor, I ended up comparing them to you. I was utterly confused until Ron came along and helped me realize that I…" she explained, hesitating at the last bit. She looked up at Tarrant who was looking at her happily. "So dear Hatter, what else did you see through the Queen's mirror" she said trying to change the subject.
"Ah, well I saw quite a bit…" he said turning a slight pink. "Um, I heard you talk about your dream, about me" he squeaked. "I was happy when I heard it Alice, so very happy." He said with a glimmer in his eye. Alice giggled slightly at his confession.
"I would have told you about that dream… eventually" she giggled.
"I saw when you cried Alice," he said, the smile on his face slowly fading. "I saw you crying about me Alice; it broke my heart to see you cry. I wanted so much to just come to your world and hold you in my arms and tell that I love you" he said as his breath hitched in his throat. "You must believe me Alice, I wanted to tell you" he said pleadingly. "I'm sorry Alice…for making you cry."
"Tarrant…" she started searching her mind for something to say to comfort her restless hatter. "I Love you… so much" she merely whispered, smiling up at him.
"I Love you too Alice, I promise to never make you cry again" he said as he gently placed a kiss on her hand. He sighed deeply before placing his arm around her and letting her lean into his shoulder. He chuckled as he contemplated whether to tell her about the mishap with Mirana accidentally showing them Alice as she was getting out of the bath. Alice looked up at him curiously and he gently shook his head. She smiled and shrugged before leaning back into his embrace. 'She doesn't have to know about that one' he thought to himself before placing soft kisses on her hair.
