8. Time is fickle
Time was a funny thing in Wonderland and certainly not constant. Sometimes clocks ticked forwards, others times backwards but most often they did not tick at all. Time simply came and went as it please in Wonderland and the inhabitants certainly did not mind. Alice however, was extremely mindful of time and the fact that she was not getting any younger. Two days before taking another trip to Wonderland the blonde heroine had celebrated her 24th birthday. It had been a grand party, with many business partners, clients and family in attendance to celebrate with her. Alice had tried her best to enjoy herself, but she could not help but to be a little sad, for her truest friends could not be in attendance.
As predicted many members of her family made their concerns quite clear. Concerns about her being 24 and unmarried, without child and, seemingly, with no man courting her. She did her best to simply shrug off their statements and enjoy herself but by the end of the night she physically and mentally exhausted. It was that night which convinced her to take another trip to Wonderland.
Like always, she found her dearest friend in the midst of another tea party. This time he was shouting and raving about all the things elephants, jelly and clouds have in common.
"Alice!" He exclaimed upon seeing her and dashed across the table. Just as he was about to scoop her into his arms and embrace her, he noticed the terribly sad look on her face.
"Alice...are you well?" He placed a hand on her forehead. "You don't have a fever do you? I trust you have been remembering to wear a hat to keep that lovely head of yours warm? Perhaps you ate something bad? Oh! I have the absolutely best cure for tummy aches, all you need to do is mix to together a little bit of jellied---"
"Hatter." Alice said softly, giving him a gentle smile. Taking his hand, she gave it a small tug. "Can we take a walk?"
"Of course!" Picking up on her serious tone, the Hatter immediately agreed. Once they were a fair ways from the tea party he looked down at his companion with concern in his eyes.
"What ails you luv?"
She was silent for a moment. "I've been considering things that start with M."
"Ah! What a wonderful letter. What have you been considering? I know I've been thinking an awful lot about munchkins lately."
A gentle giggled sounded before a long stretch of silence then she squeezed the Hatter's hand softly and whispered. "...Marriage."
The Hatter froze on the spot, his eyes swirling as they darkened in color.
"Matrimony?"
Alice nodded.
"Madness!" The Hatter exclaimed, a bit of a Scottish accent leaking into his voice.
"You think so?" Again she spoke in a whisper and refused to meet his eyes. Still her hand gripped his tightly.
"Most certainly! Why...there isn't a single person in the Otherworld worthy of your hand!" Turning so that his body faced hers, he placed his hand under her chin and lifted her eyes to his. "Why consider such a foolish notion?!"
She ignored the question and instead asked one of her own. "No one in the Otherworld. What about...in Wonderland..?"
Time choose that moment to freeze all through out Wonderland as the Hatter's mind reeled with the implications of her question. Slowly, the hand gripping her chin slid to her shoulder as he stared into her eyes.
"I...I could think of one person...perhaps...of course...he is terribly mad."
"All the best people are." Alice's heart began beating frantically as she watched several different emotions dance across his features.
"Alice...I...would you...---"
"SO IT WAS YOU WHO STOLE MY SPOON!" a loud, grating voice stuttered from the across the clearing. Before Alice and Hatter could comprehend exactly what was happening, a porcelain tea cup connected with his noggin and laid the poor Hatter out cold.
The Hare didn't even bother to collect the supposed stolen spoon as he became distracted by a glittering firefly. A melodious sound filled the clearing as Alice found herself in the throes of hysterical laughter. Though the situation had turned terribly tragic, she found she couldn't help but see the humor in it. As the laughter faded and Alice settled to her knees beside the unconscious hatter, she felt a weight lift from her shoulders. Placing his head on his lap, she stroked his hair and hummed softly. She could wait a little longer.
Author's Note:
I was in the mood for something terribly fluffy. I hope I managed to keep Hatter in character while still being romantic.
In regards me spelling love as 'luv', I did a little searching around and from my understanding that's how the pet name can be spelled. If that's wrong than I'm sorry but I felt that spelling it 'luv' helped to convey the still developing nature of their relationship over spelling it 'love' which I felt would have given it a deeper feeling.
Am I making any sense or am I rambling? Anyway, I hope you enjoied and I'd love to see your reviews.
As always I'd like to say: I do not own Alice or her friends.
