Hey everyone, I am so sorry, I cannot begin to express how sorry I am for super long delay! I hope that you guys don't hate me for taking so long to update this! I wish I could have updated sooner, but my computer crashed and everything was wiped off, so now I can only work on my stories at school and the library. Since y'all have waited long enough, I will begin this chapter without further ado!

"Slow down Alice," Tarrant chastised his beloved. "You're going to get sick. Again."

"I'm fine," Alice mumbled around a mouthful of toast. "I can finally hold down solids, and I am ravenous." She shoveled a pile of eggs into her mouth as soon as the words were out of her mouth.

"Even so," he argued. "You don't want to upset the boy!"

"It might be a girl!" Alice growled playfully. They had been having the same argument for the past three months, ever since they had discovered that she was pregnant.

Tarrant chuckled and took his lovers hand, stroking it gently with his calloused thumb. "Either way," he said gently. "You don't want to upset the baby. You know how picky he-"

"Or she!" Alice interjected.

Tarrant smiled and continued. "You know how picky our baby can be. I don't want you to get sick again. You know that you end up feeling terrible all day whenever you do."

"I know," the tiny blonde murmured. She rubbed the growing lump in her abdomen and squeezed her hatter's hand tightly. "She's moving." Alice took his hand that was still clutching hers and pressed it to her belly where she had felt the small flutter of movement. "Can you feel it?"

Eyes narrowing, Tarrant focused on the sensations in his hand. He could feel her pulse throbbing under her skin and her gentle breathing, but nothing else. He still could not feel his- their- child as it kicked and turned within his Alice.

"Nothing yet," he answered dejectedly. His eyes were a dull blue and Alice could feel disappointment pulsing through his veins.

"It's okay," she encouraged. "You'll get to feel her eventually."

"But I want to feel him now," he whined petulantly, lower lip sticking out adorably.

Alice chuckled. "Well you will just have to be patient." She gently folded her arms over her gradually expanding belly. The baby was still kicking and moving, but the tiny blonde kept that to herself.

"But Alice!"

"Tarrant, I cannot make the baby grow faster, so you will just have to wait." Her tone was serious and scolding, but Tarrant could tell that she was teasing him.

"It's not fair," he moaned in mock despair. "He is my baby too, so why can't I feel him?"

"Because you," she looked him in the eye and pointed to her stomach "don't have to carry her around in your body for the next six months. Since I do, I get to feel her move first!" Alice looked triumphant for a heartbeat before Tarrant reached out suddenly and started tickling her sides. She squealed with mirth and tried to squirm away from his grasping hands. This too, was a familiar ritual. Tarrant would tickle her in the mornings if she wouldn't get out of bed, but he was always careful, so as not to inadvertently hurt the baby. They had already had one close call and were not keen on another one.

"Stop!" Alice gasped. "I can't- breathe!"

Tarrant reluctantly stopped tickling her, but he didn't entirely let go. Instead he pulled her into his lap and held her close. "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too." They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes before Alice spoke again. "Is your hand still cramping?"

Tarrant chuckled. "Do you need to ask?"

A small smile spread across Alice's lips as she answered. "I haven't felt anything, but sometimes you've said it was faint, and I didn't feel anything at all."

"I wonder if the bond will strengthen over time?" he mused quietly.

"It does seem as though it has become stronger," Alice answered. "When the ceremony was first done, I could feel everything for a couple days, but then it faded. Now it seems like it is getting stronger again, but slowly."

"It was probably so much stronger in the beginning since we were both so unaccustomed to the sensation of someone else's emotions. It may be waxing now as we become closer and more comfortable to each other's minds in our own."

Alice nodded quietly, sudden drowsiness taking over her. In place of the morning sickness- whoever decided to call it that was a filthy liar- came bouts of sleepiness where Alice could barely keep her eyes open. It didn't matter how well she slept, it would always smack her in the face at random intervals.

"Alice?" Tarrant asked, panic in his usually serene voice. "Are you okay?"

"Mhm," she mumbled. "Just sleepy as usual."

"Let's go," he said without a hesitation, standing up with Alice in his arms. "Off to bed!"

"No!" she grumbled. "I have slept enough!"

"Alice, love," Tarrant murmured gently. "You need to rest; you don't want to overexert yourself."

"I've eaten breakfast. How is that overexerting myself?" she pouted.

Tarrant hesitated. "You're right." Carefully he put her on her own feet. "Would you like to find Tueful and go for a walk?"

"Why do we need Tueful?" Alice asked with a slight tilt of her head.

"In case you get tired, or your feet start to hurt, or you get to hot, or in case you-"

"Hatter!" Alice barked. "I will be fine. I'm only three months along, and I am far from helpless."

"I know," he murmured, snaking his arms around her still-slender waist and pulling her close. "That doesn't mean I don't want to protect you though."

Alice sighed and gently laid her head on his chest. "I know," she whispered. Through their bond, Alice could sense him silently begging for her to agree to finding the Bandersnatch before they left for their walk. He was worried they would get too far away from the palace and Alice would collapse. Having "heard" enough, Alice pulled away from her lover. "What are you waiting for? We have a Bandersnatch to find!"

Tarrant grinned and squeezed her tightly before he released her. Alice, not wanting to be lose contact fully, grasped his hand and allowed him to lead her on a Bandersnatch hunt. A grin pulled at her lips at her hatter's enthusiasm.

I'm sorry it's so short, but I just cannot figure out what else to put in this chapter without it sounding tacky. I'm sorry! DX