Tarrant

He watched her from his seat on the bench. Alice strolled easily through the gardens, her attention on the array of flowers laid out before her in their full beauty. To him, Alice stood out against the flowers. Her beauty far surpassed theirs. She was radiant. The way the sun made her hair glow like gold was enchanting. The dress she was dressed in was not one of his but it suited her. Since she had come back, Alice had adopted the courts fashion. Large ball gowns were a favorite of the Queen. Alice's dress was a deep jade green with a rather low cut neckline which exposed far more than he cared for the other men to see. White lace adorned the edges of the neckline,cuffs of the sleeves and hemline. White pearls decorated the bodice with what seemed to be little black diamonds, or perhaps onyx, lining the inner edge of the sleeve cuff just before the lace, the lower edge of the bodice, just above the skirt. The black jewels also appeared in subtle vertical lines on the skirt going from top to bottom. The pearls came from the upper corners and worked their way down, slowly fading out until they met the line of black, cutting them off.

The dress certainly suited Alice but it wasn't Alice. It wasn't what made Alice, Alice. Tarrant wasn't pleased. He didn't want to see her in something like that again. The style maybe but not with all that glitter and glam. He was willing to bet that Alice was wearing a corset with it. Alice detested corsets. The longer Tarrant looked at that thing the more he disliked. This wouldn't do. Tarrant decided right then and the there that this atrocity wouldn't stand. Just when he was about to call to her, he stopped.

Alice was kneeling in front of a rose bush with one of the delicate flowers cupped in her hands. As she bent forward to smell it, delicate curls from what was left hanging down from the bundle on top of her head, fell forward into her face. She bushed them back gently to reveal a smile. And that smile, oh, it took Tarrant's breath away. There was something behind it, something secret. Like there was something she was keeping all the herself and the world could guess and never. It was a precious secret and it was all her's. Just then Alice looked over and saw him staring at her with a look on his face that could only be described as dumbstruck. Then, she smiled even wider. The rose was forgotten and Alice was in front of him in mere seconds.

Tarrant could feel the blush creep up his neck and onto his cheeks. Even after seeing her everyday Alice's beauty still got to him. Those eyes pierced his soul like none before and those lips, dear God, those lips drove him crazy. Alice was crouched in front of him, a lazy smiled played on her lips. As Tarrant looked at her, words seemed to escape him. Not a single coherent sentence came to him. All Tarrant found himself capable of was a few awkward syllables which were nothing but utter nonsense. His blush grew even deeper. Alice was watching him with amused interest. If only she knew the effect that she had on him. So many of his feeling had become so much stronger since she had left him all that time ago, yet, those weren't the only things that had changed. Alice had changed in so many ways but in so many ways she was the same as when she left. Her looks had only gotten better while she was away, not to mention her body. Tarrant had seen that young woman grow into a beautiful lady, a lady with very healthy curves. Perhaps Alice had gotten taller but Tarrant was still taller than her by quite a bit. Though what had changed the most was her personality. Tarrant had watched her ardently since his return to the court. Something was different about the way she carried herself. Her walk was more confident and commanding but she had all the grace and elegance of a Queen. Tarrant didn't know what all Alice had gone through while she was back in her word but he knew something important had happened.

Alice sighed, Tarrant snapped back to focus. She almost looked impatient. Had Alice said something? Something important? Maybe someone needed help and he was too busy daydreaming about her to notice. Oh, maybe he had done something to make her cross with him, but what? Tarrant began to panic. He didn't know what he had done. Maybe he was just overreacting and he was just reading into it. Or maybe not. Then started the scratching in the back of his head. At first it was soft but the more he panicked the more violent the scratching became. If Tarrant didn't leave or find a way to calm down soon, the madness was sure to take him over again. Without warning, Tarrant was on his feet and running for the garden exit. No one could see him like this, Alice couldn't see him like this, Tarrant needed to get to his workshop before things got too far out of his control.

Tarrant didn't know how long it took him or how he even managed it but he locked himself in his dark corner once again. The edges of his vision began to turn red. Dresses and boxes began to distort before his very eyes. Voices and scratching. The walls were melting around him, giving away to nothing but hellish black. The scratching stopped, leaving him alone with the voices. Do it… Run from her again, how we love the thrill of the chase. Scream. Scream for us… your suffering is our song. SCREAM. Do it. Why is a raven like a writing desk? I wonder what Alice sounds like when she screams. Oh, yes, we can make her scream, can't we. We think it'll be a wonderful sound. Just like a bird trapped in a cage. You have her trapped here Tarrant. She's only here because you were too weak to do it. DO IT. Set her free. You're weighing her down. She doesn't love you… You're a freak. An insane freak…

The voices went on and on until he couldn't take it any longer. Tarrant gripped the sides of his head in anguish. They wouldn't stop. On and on and on and on they went. DO IT, Scream. An angry cry wrung itself from his throat. Again and again he screamed in the hopes of drowning out the voices. The louder Tarrant screamed, the louder their howling laughter became. Suddenly sobbing faintly blended with the laughter.

"Alice…"

Alice

The sun shined down kindly in the gardens. Each flower glittered in the light, shining bright with the morning's dew. However, none were as beautiful as the roses. Vibrant red petals, silky to the touch. The color of romance was red, or, at least it was where she came from. Now, now Alice thought the color of love to be lavender. Yes, lavender just like her Hatter's eye when he looked at her. The very thought of Tarrant's eyes on her made her giddy. Her thoughts drifted to a few days before when she has first arrived back in Underland and encountered Tarrant. His eyes had been so many different colors that day. Yet, out of all of them, lavender had stuck with her the most. Alice kneeled down to inspect her rose a little more, bending forward to smell its' sweet aroma. A few locks of her hair feel forward into her face. When the sweet scent of the rose overtook her senses, ALice couldn't help but smile. It reminded her of so much. It reminded her of the days of the past that were spent running through the gardens with her father when he was home from one of his voyages. The first time she came to the dream land and the people whom she had met that had forever marked her life. But the thing that it truly reminded her of deep in her heart was Tarrant. Every time Alice had fund herself back in Underland, Tarrant was her constant. The smile that came to her lips was pure and sweet. It was the most at ease she had ever felt, all because she thought of him. Alice brushed the hair back behind her ear.

There he was. Tarrant was sitting on a bench not too far from where Alice was kneeling by the roses. A blush was coloring his cheeks and he looked utterly dumbstruck. He must have been watching her for a while then. Alice felt her smile widen, of course he was watching you. He loves you. Alice abandoned her rose and quickly made her way over to Tarrant, crouching down in front of him. His eyes never left her, not once. Alice watched in complete amusement as she watched Tarrant try to come up with something to say. The more he stuttered the darker his blush got, though, his eyes were a loving shade of lavender. Alice thought about saying something but couldn't think of anything of interest. Her lips turned down in a small frown when she couldn't think of anything witty to say. A frustrated sigh escaped her. Tarrant who had been sitting nearly stock still suddenly went rigid. Alice rose to her full height, gently placing her hands on his cheeks trying to catch his eye. When she managed it, Alice felt her heart sink. The lavender was gone, dark red tinged with black had replaced it. Only one thing could do that. Madness. The madness was back. Just when Alice was about to call out to him, Tarrant stood and made a mad dash to the gardens exit.

Alice felt her heart pounding in her chest. There was only place Tarrant would have gone. His workshop seemed like it was miles away as she ran through the halls. Silently she was cursing the gown she was shoved into this morning. By request of Mirana, Alice had taken to wearing gowns. She allowed her to wear color as opposed to the pure white that everyone else did. Right now, it was only weighing her down. When Alice finally reached the doors to the workshop it was too late. The doors were locked. Guards had been removed after Tarrant had proved that he could be trusted to behave again. The patrols had passed no more than five minutes ago and the next set wouldn't get this far down the hallway for another half of an hour, but by then who knew what state Tarrant would be in. Would Alice be able to pull him back again? God help her. All Alice knew was that she wasn't going to wait around until the guards came to her.

The rapid sound of the heels hitting the stone floor echoed up and down the hallway. Alice just prayed that she would find help soon. After an eternity of running, the sound of armor clinking greeted her ears. When the guards came into view Alice stopped dead in her tracks and waited. Her body was tense like an animal ready to pounce. When they were almost on top of her, Alice turned back around to the way she came and ran. Confused shouts sounded off behind her but she knew that guards would follow nonetheless. By the time they came upon the workshop, Alice couldn't breathe. One of the guards tried the handle but it wouldn't budge so he reached for the set of keys on his belt but before he could even get the key off the ring a scream came from inside. The scream sounded as if someone was being attacked, like they were fighting for their very life. More soon followed afterwards. Each one sounded less and less human. They were never the same. Some sounded broken and others were violent. But each one broke Alice's heart a little more each time. The guards refused to unlock the doors. They insisted that Tarrant was a danger to everyone in the castle in his current state. Too many people were at risk if he got out of his room. Each time Alice tried to ask that they open the doors they just shook their heads. Eventually they left when ALice stopped asking. They tried to make her go somewhere else but she refused. Alice refused to leave him. Then, when they insisted that Tarrant would hurt her if she went in there, she charged them. An animalistic scream tore from her. Tarrant would never hurt her. The very idea that anyone thought that sent her into a rage. Alice ripped the key from the guard's belt. Before they could stop her, Alice unlocked the door and rushed in, slamming the door behind her. The lock clicked into place. Nothing fazed the Hatter, who stood in the middle of the room. His hands gripped the sides of his head so tightly that his knuckles were a ghastly white color even against his white hands. His screaming never ceased no matter how much she called to him. Nothing got to him. Alice dared not touch him. Even though she knew he would never hurt her, she couldn't risk it for fear of sending him even farther of the edge.

For the first time in her life, Alice realized that words had escaped her. She had nothing to say. Absolutely nothing. It was a horrible feeling. There was nothing she could say.

Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. NOTHING, repeated over and over again in her head. All she could do was watch her Hatter sink further and further. He sounded like he was in so much pain. Alice just wanted to make it stop and take him in her arms and hold him close, and never let him go. Everything began to overtake her. Soon the tears started to come. It seemed as if them would never stop. When she started to sob, Alice couldn't take it anymore. She feel to her knees with her face in her hands and she sobbed. Alice sobbed until it felt like she might choke on her tears. Until she was nearly blue in the face. The tears never stopped but the screaming did. In all her grieve, Alice didn't hear the screaming stop and she nearly missed,

"Alice…"

The tears stopped for all of a moment.