A/N: Phish Tacko beta'd this. Go check out her page, she's an awesome author!

Chapter 51

Alice and Carlie stayed with Tarrant for the rest of the day, and that evening, Mirana and Harvey came by. By this point, Mort was wide awake, and was watching Star Wars with Anakin in the common room. Hearing the movie, Alice persuaded the rest of the group to join the writer, seeing as how Tarrant was still feeling slightly nervous. She hoped that the movie might take his mind off of the morning's events.

"May we join you?" Alice asked, leading the group into the common room.

Mort shrugged.

"Sure, why the hell not?" He moved over so that a few people could fit on the couch with him.

"What are we watching?" Tarrant asked.

Mort's mouth dropped open. "Seriously?"

Tarrant seemed confused. "Am I supposed to know?"

"Uh. Yes. It's only one of the most famous movies ever made! It's Episode IV... A New Hope..." He noticed the blank look on everyone's faces.

"I'm sorry, we have no idea what you're talking about," Mirana finally said.

"Good Lord. You're serious?"

"Yes," Harvey said, starting to get annoyed.

"It's just... everyone knows Star Wars. At least, they've heard of it. They'd recognize it if they saw it."

"We're not from around here," Carlie reminded him.

"Are you from another planet?!" Mort asked, coming off a bit harsher than he'd intended. "I mean, um… Let's just start at the beginning, then."

Carlie nodded, watching as Mort played around with the remote control for the blu-ray player. He flipped the movie back to the beginning.

"Now, you need to read the opening lines. They explain a lot."

A few members of the group nodded, and they all stared at the screen, reading.

By 11 PM, they were almost done with the second movie. Tarrant was starting to nod off, resting his head on Alice's shoulder, while Carlie seemed bored. Mirana and Harvey were both very interested in the movie, and continually asked Mort questions. He was all too happy to answer as best he could, making for some interesting conversation, at least, for the three of them.

Schnabel and Ashley, who had both just finished up with their paperwork for the day, joined the group.

"Ohh, Episode V?" Ashley asked, excitedly.

"Yes! We're going to watch Episode VI soon. This one's almost over."

"Neat. That one's my favorite."

"Really?!" Mort asked. "How did I not know this about you?"

"Well it's not every day that we discuss Star Wars," Ashley replied.

"I named my son Anakin Skywalker."

"Touché. I don't have an answer for you, Mort."

"SHHHH!" Mirana hissed, interrupting them. "I want to see the end!"

"Okay, okay, calm down," Mort said. He and Ashley did get quiet, though.

By the time the movie ended, Tarrant was totally asleep with his head on Alice's shoulder. She was also starting to get tired.

"Perhaps we should call it a night," She suggested, moving to get a bit more comfortable.

"I want to watch the next movie," Mirana said.

"Why don't I just take Tarrant to bed, then, and you guys can watch the next one," Alice replied.

Hearing everyone talking, Tarrant began to stir. "What time is it?" He asked, cracking his eyes open.

"A little past eleven. Come on, let's get you back to your room." Alice wrapped an arm around Tarrant and helped him stand.

"I don't want to miss out," Tarrant replied. "Everyone else is staying up."

"No one else here is eight months pregnant. You need to rest," Alice said.

Tarrant shook his head. "Not fair."

"Come on, you're sounding like a child now," Alice said, shaking her head.

"He's an adult. If he wants to stay up he can stay up," Mort cut in.

"I think you just want him to watch Episode VI with you."

Mort smirked. "Okay, maybe you're right on that."

Harvey sighed loudly, turning all attention towards him. "I think it would be simpler if we just agreed to watch the movie tomorrow. I'm a bit tired now, too."

"Fine," Mort agreed. Mirana shrugged, also in agreement. Tarrant just pouted.

"Still not fair," He said, crossing his arms.

"Life's not fair. Let's go," Alice said, taking Tarrant's hand and leading him back to his room. "We'll see you all tomorrow."

Once they were in Tarrant's room, Alice pulled open his bureau and chose a pair of pajamas for him. All of the sets were ones that Tarrant had made himself, stitched together from various pieces of cloth. She chose one that was mostly red and orange and handed it to him.

Tarrant took the set of PJs and yawned.

"See, told you that you needed to rest."

"Yeah, yeah," He said, unfolding the outfit. He looked at Alice nervously. Even though they were dating, he still felt somewhat shy undressing around her.

"I'll turn around," she said, turning to face the door.

"Thank you," Tarrant mumbled, slipping out of his clothes and into the pajamas. They were a bit snug, considering how far along he was, but he managed to get them on.

"Okay."

Alice turned back around. "All ready, then?"

Tarrant nodded and crawled into bed, yawning again as Alice pulled the comforter around him.

She stayed with him for a few moments, gently running her fingers through his hair.

Just when she thought he'd fallen asleep, Tarrant spoke up. "Alice?" He asked.

"Yes?"

"Can you stay with me tonight?" His voice was soft and small, almost like he was nervous about asking her. "I mean… you can stay with Mirana and Harvey and Carlie if you want. It's okay."

"I'll stay with you, Tarrant. Of course." She leaned in and kissed Tarrant on the forehead.

Tarrant smiled. "Thank you, Alice."

Alice smiled back, and crawled under the covers with him, not bothering to remove her dress. Sighing, she wrapped an arm around Tarrant's waist at least as best as she could. She could feel the baby kicking lightly inside. She was about to ask Tarrant how long she'd been at it for when she heard him snoring. She decided not to wake him.

Before they could watch Star Wars the next morning, Dr. Schnabel asked Tarrant to come in for an exam. He was getting close to his due date, now, and Schnabel wanted to make sure that everything was going well.

There was the usual acts of taking Tarrant's blood pressure, pulse, and weight, before doing an ultrasound. Alice, Carlie, Mirana and Harvey were there in the room with him, and stared in awe at the picture of Tarrant's baby on the screen.

"She's sucking her thumb, as you can see," The doctor explained. "And she's got her other hand free."

"Wow… she actually looks like a real baby," Tarrant said, surprised. Even up to last month, the baby had looked a bit odd, as if not entirely human.

"She's pretty much entirely grown now. A little more to go, but she's fully developed, for the most part," Schnabel said.

"When's the exact due date?" Carlie asked.

"Three weeks from today. Obviously, it could be a bit earlier or a bit later."

"Wow! We're going to be parents in less than a month!" Alice said, happily.

Tarrant nodded. "It went by so quickly…" A nervous look suddenly crossed the hatter's face.

"What's wrong?" Mirana asked, noticing it immediately.

"N-nothing," Tarrant replied. "Just… it just hit me that I'm going to be a father soon, and I have no idea what to do. I didn't prepare much."

As they spoke, Dr. Schnabel began removing the ultrasound gel from Tarrant's stomach.

"You know," The doctor said. "You could probably talk to Mort about it. He didn't expect to have a baby at all, and he's been able to handle it. He might be able to give you some advice."

"That sounds like a great idea," Carlie agreed. "We'll be watching Star Wars with him today anyway."

"Okay," Tarrant agreed, "I'll see what he has to say."

00

The group met up with Mort later in the morning. He was sitting on the common room floor, playing with Anakin.

"Hi, Mort," Alice greeted, as the rest of them took seats on the couches.

"Hey guys. I have the movies ready."

"Great," Mirana replied. "But I think Tarrant wants to talk to you first."

Mort turned to Tarrant, who was looking down at his hands nervously. "Okay. What's up?"

Tarrant opened his mouth, but didn't speak. It almost seemed as if he were trying to figure out what to say.

After a few seconds of silence, Alice spoke up for him. "Tarrant is nervous about fatherhood and wanted to know your thoughts on it. What the hardest parts are, the best parts, all of that."

"Oh," Mort said. "Well, that's a complex question."

"Go on," Tarrant whispered.

"Well, the worst part is the diaper changing, and constant crying, and never having any time to yourself, and always having to put the kid first before any and all of your own needs. Also, the lack of sleep."

Tarrant's eyes got wide. "I see."

"But the best part is knowing that you brought someone into this world who you love more than anything, and who you can raise to be a good person."

Tarrant smiled. "That's nice, I suppose."

"It's the best feeling ever. Seriously, nothing compares to the love you feel for your child."

"I'm sure."

"And of course, your daughter could be good natured. Anakin's a trouble maker by nature."

"Hopefully, she'll be good," Alice said. "But we'll love her no matter what. Plus, Tarrant, you have me here to help you."

"I know, I know. It's still just... a lot to take in, I guess."

"You'll be fine. Really, if I can raise a kid, you can definitely do it. I'm bat shit crazy after all," Mort said, grinning.

"Fair enough," Tarrant agreed. He was starting to feel a little bit better.

"So, movie time, then?" Mort asked hopefully.

"Put the DVD in," Mirana told him.

"Yes ma'am!"

Mort eagerly put the disc into the player, and the intro to the movie began. The group sat silently for the next few hours, watching the movie intently.

00

The following weeks went by quickly. Alice spent a lot of time in Underland at Tarrant's house, preparing for the baby and their new life together. She and Carlie had spent a few days cleaning it out, and getting the items that they felt would be necessary.

Mirana had given them some money so that they could buy a crib and everything else that the baby would need, and Tarrant spent a lot of time making clothes for his daughter. In one week alone, he managed to sew her six outfits, all with various colors and patterns. He also planned ahead, and made a few larger ones for when she got older.

Tarrant found that as time went by, he was feeling less and less like his usual hyperactive self. He'd noticed that he was starting to get tired more often around 7 months, but he'd still always had a lot of energy. Now, with only a week or so left, he felt like sleeping most of the time. Schnabel, Ashley and Alice practically had to pull him out of bed to get him to do basic tasks, like shower and eat.

Today was no different. Alice had come to see Tarrant having spent the past several days working on his, rather, their home in Underland. She was somewhat surprised to see that Tarrant was still wearing the same pajamas as when she'd last been there.

"Tarrant, have you gotten out of bed since I was here last?" She asked, sitting down next to him. He was curled up, as best he could, with the blanket wrapped around him up to his nose.

"I get up to use the bathroom," he mumbled into his pillow.

"But don't you do anything else? Eat? Shower? You had those same pajamas on the last time I was here, three days ago!"

"Don't need to eat," Tarrant replied tiredly. "I'm big enough as it is."

Alice rolled her eyes. "You're pregnant, not fat. You need to eat."

Tarrant just shrugged. He was tired. He didn't feel like doing anything.

"And you need a bath, love." Alice was never one for kissing ass, really. She tended to just get right to the point, and she could actually smell him.

"If I must…" Tarrant replied, trying to sit up.

Alice helped him along, and he sighed, rubbing his lower back.

"Does your back hurt?"

"Yes. It's been hurting for a few days. It's from carrying the baby around, is all. I'm still not used to it, even after almost nine months."

Alice frowned, and rubbed Tarrant's back. "Perhaps a hot bath will help, then." She stood up from the bed, and put her hands out, offering to help Tarrant stand.

Once he was up, she led him to the bathroom, and started running the warm water. Noticing that Tarrant was still in his pajamas, she spoke up. "Do you want me to leave you alone?"

"Um…" Tarrant looked around, nervously. "I dunno."

"If you're embarrassed, I can come back later when you're done, if you think you can get out all right."

Tarrant sighed, still feeling confused as to what he should do.

"I have an idea. Why don't we put some bubbles in the water so it hides things a bit?"

Tarrant smiled. "That's a great idea. That's why I love you, Alice, you're always coming up with good ideas."

Alice smiled and shook her head, "Well, thank you, Tarrant. I love you too." She found the bottle of soap on one of the sides of the tub and began putting some in, watching as bubbles filled the bathtub.

"I'll turn around and you can get in."

Tarrant nodded, and began taking off his clothes once Alice wasn't looking.

Alice could hear him grunting and sighing as he moved. It was probably very hard for him to get into the bathtub. Finally, he told her it was okay to turn back around.

Alice wanted to laugh. Tarrant was sitting in the bathtub, almost entirely covered with white foamy bubbles. There were even some on top of his head.

"How'd you do that?" She asked, wiping them off.

"I dunno. They attacked me."

"The bubbles attacked you?"

"Yes."

"You're being silly, Tarrant." She cracked a smile. "But it's cute."

Tarrant sat there for a while, lying back and enjoying the feeling of the hot water as it relaxed his muscles. Then, suddenly, he let out a soft cry.

"What's wrong?" Alice asked, seeing the look of pure pain on Tarrant's face.

He rested a hand on his stomach. "I think… I think the baby might be coming!"

"Are you sure?"

"It hurts. I think I'm having contractions," Tarrant said, cringing again as another one hit him.

"Okay, alright, don't panic," Alice said, "We need to get you out and down to the delivery room then. Can you stand up?"

Tarrant shook his head. "I think I need help."

"Okay, sure," Alice replied. She was sure that Tarrant could see how nervous she was, but she was trying her best not to show it. "Take my hands and I'll pull you up."

"Okay…"

It took most of her strength, but Alice managed to get the hatter standing. He was still covered in soap suds.

"Here you go," She said, handing him a large towel. "Wrap that around yourself and we're going to walk down the hallway."

Tarrant did as he was told, covering himself with the towel. Once he was dry, Alice wrapped an arm around his back, and helped him out of the bathroom. She could feel Tarrant's arm shaking as they moved, obviously, he was terrified.

"It's okay, you'll be fine, I promise," She told him.

Tarrant said nothing, and she could feel him bracing himself as he was overtaken with pain.

"Come on, we're almost there," She said, leading him into the nearest delivery room. She helped him onto a bed, making sure that his towel was still in place. "I'm going to go get the doctor. You just wait here."

As she was walking away, Tarrant reached out and grabbed her arm. "Please don't leave me here."

Alice's heart broke as she saw how scared and upset Tarrant looked. "I promise, I'll be back in a moment. I just need to get the doctor to come help you."

Reluctantly, Tarrant let go of her.

"I'll be right back," Alice said again. She took off running to find the doctor. The last she'd seen him, he'd been in the common area with Mort, watching Star Wars. Thankfully he was still there.

"Dr. Schnabel!" She called. "I need you to come see Tarrant. I think he's going into labor!"

The doctor nodded calmly. "Alright, alright, calm down. I'll come with you."

He followed Alice down the hall to the room where Tarrant was. The two went inside to find Tarrant lying on the bed, gripping the sheets as tight as he could.

"Are you in pain, Tarrant?" The doctor asked.

"Obviously," Tarrant groaned through gritted teeth.

"Alright. I need to examine you, to see what's going on."

Tarrant nodded in consent, not even caring that Alice was in the room.

"I'm going to see if I can get a message to Carlie and Mirana," She said, excusing herself again momentarily. The only way to get in contact with them would be through mail, and she wondered how long it would take for them to get her note. Hopefully they'd get there within a day or so.

She quickly scribbled a note and put it in an envelope. She was walking towards the mailbox when she noticed Carlie, Mirana and Harvey all walking up the street towards the shelter.

"Guys! I was just writing to you!" She said, running over towards them, "Tarrant's in labor!"

"I TOLD you!" Carlie said. "I can tell when my brother needs me."

"Okay, okay, you were right," Mirana replied, then looked at Alice. "Carlie had a feeling that Tarrant needed us to come, so we decided to see how he was. Good thing we did."

"Perfect timing. Come inside."

Alice showed them to the room where Tarrant was. He was now dressed in a hospital gown, and Dr. Schnabel and Ashley were both in the room.

"So, what's the verdict?" Alice asked.

"He's 4 cm dilated, so, the baby will be out soon."

"Ohh," Tarrant groaned as he felt another contraction hit him. "It hurts!"

Alice took hold of his hand, and squeezed it. "It'll be okay."

"When he gets to 6 cm, we'll administer an epidural," Ashley said. "It should help the pain."

"Hopefully…" Tarrant answered, closing his eyes. "Hopefully I'm not like Sam…"

"Don't worry about that, you won't feel any pain," Carlie said, taking Tarrant's other hand.

Tarrant nodded. "I'm still scared. It hurts."

"It'll be fine, I promise."

Alice could see that tears were starting to form in Tarrant's eyes. "I mean it REALLY hurts."

Now everyone was starting to get concerned.

"Is that normal?" Carlie asked Dr. Schnabel.

"Well... He shouldn't be in THAT much pain. Let me check him again."

Everyone turned around while Dr. Schnabel did his exam, and could hear Tarrant groaning the whole time.

"Everything looks fine, this delivery is going completely normally. Tarrant, I think you're just stressing yourself out a bit."

Tarrant's friends turned back around, and could see tears running down his face.

"I think something's wrong," He whispered.

"Sweetheart, you have to stop being so worried... It's making you feel worse," Alice said, gently running her fingers through his hair.

"Would it help convince you if I did an exam as well?" Harvey asked. If Tarrant's problems were truly mostly psychological, perhaps having a second doctor confirm that all was well would help him calm down.

Tarrant's eyes got wide. The thought of having his friend's fiancé look him over seemed scary. He didn't really see Dr. Schnabel as a friend, so it was a bit easier with him... but he was a bit closer to Harvey.

"It'll only take a moment," Harvey added.

Alice squeezed Tarrant's hand again. "Let him examine you, so you can put your mind at ease."

Tarrant sighed, but finally agreed.

Once again, everyone turned around. Tarrant couldn't help but feel extremely embarrassed as Harvey looked him over. It was probably the most humiliating moment of his life, next to when Stayne had raped him. He didn't want to think about that now, though. Definitely not.

He could feel Harvey poking and prodding him, and it just brought back more memories. He tried his best to push them away, but they weren't fading.

Then he heard Harvey's voice.

"Dr. Schnabel is right, everything's going normally. There's no reason for you to be in as much pain as you are."

Tarrant nodded and sniffled. "If you're sure."

"I'm sure."

Everyone turned around again. Tarrant still had tears pouring from his eyes.

"Come on, little brother," Carlie said, forcing a smile. "Would I ever let anything happen to you?"

"N-no," Tarrant stuttered.

"I'm telling you that you'll be fine, you just need to calm down, so please trust me when I say that." She looked Tarrant directly in the eyes.

"Okay..." Tarrant replied. He seemed to calm a bit.

"Good boy."

Tarrant started to smile, but groaned as another contraction came.

"They're starting to get more frequent," Schnabel said. "Perhaps we can administer the epidural now. Tarrant needs to lie on his side."

"You heard the doctor," Carlie said. "Turn over."

"Ugh," Tarrant sighed. "I can't."

"Yes you can, come on." Carlie rested a hand on Tarrant's shoulder, and started to help him move.

Frowning, Tarrant eventually managed to get onto his side, though it felt very uncomfortable.

"Good job," Schnabel said, trying to keep Tarrant calm, "Now you're going to feel a little pinch as I do the epidural."

Tarrant yelped as the doctor inserted the needle into his back, so Alice put a hand on his side to calm him and keep him still.

"You can't move, love, just let the doctor do his job."

"This is uncomfortable," Tarrant said, looking up at Alice with big sad eyes.

"It's almost done."

"Okay, we're good," The doctor announced a second later. "Tarrant, you'll feel better in a few seconds."

Sure enough, a few seconds did pass by and Tarrant felt physically better. He seemed to calm down a bit.

"There ya go, all better now, right?" Alice asked, helping Tarrant turn onto his back once again.

"Yes, thank you," Tarrant said, though he still looked a bit frightened.

"You're at 6 cm," The doctor informed him. "Still another four to go before you'll have to start pushing."

Tarrant squeezed Alice's hand as hard as he could, feeling very nervous. He just wanted this to be over with. Having to be in labor for much longer was a scary thought to him. All he could think was that the epidural might wear off, and he'd be in horrible pain.

Carlie's voice broke him out of his thoughts. "Tarrant! Stop panicking! I can see it all over your face."

"I just want this to be over," He whispered.

"It'll be over soon, and we'll be here the entire time with you."

"Okay."

An hour and a half went by before Tarrant moved up to 8cm, and it was another hour after that before he was at ten. All in all, it was actually a relatively normally-paced labor, but it didn't feel that way to him. Every minute felt like an hour and every hour felt like a day.

When it finally was time to push, the doctor let him know.

"Tarrant, the baby is going to come soon, so you need to help her come out."

"I'm afraid," He said, eyes filling with tears.

"You'll be fine. Take a deep breath, and then on the count of three, push, ok?"

Tarrant nodded weakly.

"One, two, three," The doctor counted. "Push."

Tarrant pushed, gripping Carlie and Alice's hands as he did. He could feel the baby moving down and pressing up against his insides. It wasn't painful, but very uncomfortable.

"Okay, you need to push again."

Tarrant sighed. "Alright..."

Alice held his hand tighter. "It's okay, darling, you'll be okay. You can do this."

Tarrant nodded again, then pushed as hard as possible.

"A few more."

Tarrant could suddenly feel something wet between his legs, and he noticed that Alice and Carlie were looking down at him.

"What... happened?" He asked, terrified at what the answer might be.

"Nothing, don't worry about it." Alice replied.

"No... tell me."

"It's just a little blood. Don't worry about it," Carlie said.

Tarrant glanced down and could see blood on the sheets. He was thankful that he couldn't see below his stomach.

"Oh... my... God..." He said under his breath.

The doctor could tell that he was starting to hyperventilate.

"Tarrant, it's okay, it's normal to bleed a little," Schnabel said. "And you need to push again. The baby's almost here."

Tarrant started breathing harder, obviously panicking, as tears filled his eyes.

"It's fine, love, I promise!" Carlie said. "Now do what the doctor said."

Tarrant closed his eyes, and used all of his strength to push one more time. He could feel the baby coming out of him, stretching him as it did.

The next thing he knew, there was a baby crying.

"You did it!" Alice said, watching as Ashley cleaned the infant off. "You did a great job!"

"Oh..." Tarrant said softly. "It's over?"

"Yes, and she's so beautiful," Alice said. "I'll love her as if she were my own."