A/N: This chapter is a collaboration with the great futrCSI1490. If you've never read her stuff, then please go do so! She was kind enough to give me the prompts to these five. Thanks again, m'dear! I hope these are what you had in mind.

I. (Takes place after the excursion Mirana and Alice took in a previous chapter when Tarrant got jealous of Underland)

After my whirlwind tour of Underland with Mirana, Tarrant was especially glad to see me. And he told me so over and over as we made love.

As my sweet husband slept, I decided to take a walk. However, as I rose from the bed, I woke him.

"Where are you going?" he asked with sleep and a touch of panic to his voice.

"Just for a walk. Go back to sleep."

"I'll come with you," Tarrant said as he got out of bed.

"Hatter, I'll be fine. It's just a walk."

"But what if you need me?"

"I'm not going far."

"But who will protect you?"

I paused. "Protect me? Tarrant, I need no one to protect me."

"There are things out there that you know nothing about, sweetness! If I come with you, I'll be able to watch for them and keep you safe and away from harm and those things that you know nothing about and therefore can't keep away from and –"

"Tarrant!"

"I'm fine," he muttered. "But … but Alice, I'm quite serious. You might need me and if I am here, then I can be of no use to you out there."

My temper was rising and I knew I would probably regret what was about to come out of my mouth, but there was nothing to be done with it now, the words came flying out.

"I do not need an escort, Tarrant. I am perfectly capable of taking a walk by myself. I've killed a jabberwocky and tamed both a bandersnatch and a mad hatter. I can handle myself, thank you very much!"

His face fell and I knew I had hurt his feelings. "Hatter, I …"

"Nae, lass, yeh're righ'. Go an' take yehr walk. I'll be 'ere when yeh come back."

He climbed back into bed and closed his eyes.

"I love you," I said quietly as I began to leave the room.

"Aye, I luv yeh as well."

As I walked along, I didn't know where to point my anger: myself or Tarrant. For my own piece of mind, I chose Tarrant.

"How dare he think that I can't take care of myself! After all those talks of how wrong the men in the Otherworld are! Perhaps he's just as bad as the rest of them."

However, as I continued, I was so focused on my anger that I wandered off the path. As I yelled to no one in particular, I missed the obvious trap: a pit covered with sticks and leaves. I shrieked as I fell to the bottom. It wasn't terribly deep, but enough to keep me right where I was.

I felt the stubbornness kick in and I clawed at the dirt walls, trying to climb. It wasn't working. I wanted to cry, but I knew it would do me no good. I was stuck and there was no getting around it. I had to hope whoever set the trap wasn't out to catch people, specifically Alices.

I leaned against the dirt wall and began to try to think of a way out. After a few minutes of no productive thoughts, I saw a familiar hat come into view.

"Alice! Thank 'eavens I found yeh!" Tarrant said.

"How did you find me?" I asked.

"Lass, I think I coul' find yeh 'nywhere. Give me yehr 'and," he said, reaching to me.

"I don't need your help," I lied, as I crossed my arms. Of course I needed him. But my pride spoke first.

"Alice, will yeh please jus' let me get yeh out?"

"I am perfectly capable! I am the Champi—"

"Exactly!" he yelled as his eyes began to change to gold. "Don' yeh see why I need teh be th're fer yeh? I need teh be worthy o' yeh. Yeh're th' Champion o' all o' Underl'nd and I'm a lowly 'atter. D'yeh no' understand? I'm no' on yehr level an' if I can protect yeh, then at leas' I'll 'ave that."

I stood completely still, letting his words wash over me. I felt like the bratty child I was behaving like. He didn't deserve this kind of treatment, specifically from his wife. "Not … not worthy of me? Tarrant, it's the other way around, darling. You are this amazing man. You led a resistance! You risked your life for me! You took unspeakable torture for me! If anything, I'm not worthy for you."

His eyes immediately returned to green and his face softened. "My dear one, it appears that neither of us are worthy of the other," he lisped, letting me know the worst was over.

"It would appear that way," I replied with a sigh and a smile. "So … could you help me out of this hole?"

"It would be my honor."

We walked back to the house, hand in hand, in silence. No words were necessary. Though, there was a good bit of yelling once we got back to bed …

II. (This one came out a bit more Reginald ala "When Curiosity Met Insanity" – I just finally got around to reading that and if you haven't, I highly recommend it!)

"Clean cup, clean up, move down, move down. Clean cup, clean cup, move down!"

There was a pause while Tarrant stared at me. "Um, Alice, dearheart, you are to move down now. Clean cup and all that."

"Tarrant, I do not wish to move at all. Do you realize that when you are in the mood for this, I don't get any tea?"

"Of course you do! And in a new and clean cup to boot!"

"No, I don't. I go to take a sip and you yell for me to move down. It's as if we're playing a terrible game of musical chairs or something of the sort. I just want to drink my tea."

"Alice, please, it is time to move down. You are in the way."

"Tarrant, no."

As he glared down at me, I know he wanted to get angry. The color of his eyes was just beginning to look a bit yellow. Well, that madman could get angry all he wanted, but I was not moving. All of this "Clean cup, clean up, move down, move down" business was ridiculous and I was not going to be a part of it anymore. I just wanted my tea! It was a tea party after all, albeit a mad one.

"Alice, why are you not moving down today? You've never refused to move before. Is there a reason you are taking all the order from the tea party?"

Suddenly I felt as though if my eyes could change color, then they would surely have shot to red.

"Taking all the order from the tea party?" I screamed. "What order could you possibly mean? There is no order to remove! Even on a good day this is madness. And I don't usually mind. In fact, I embrace it. I adore the insanity that runs around these tables. But honestly, Tarrant, today I just wanted to drink my tea with my husband and my friends. I do not see what is so bloody wrong with that!"

He stared at me again. There was still some anger, a twinge of annoyance, and a good deal of confusion on his face. But he knew he had lost.

"Fine. Clean cup, clean up, move down, move down … but go around Alice! The spoilsport won't move!"

I smiled as I finally sipped my tea. No one else was playing today anyway. Mally was asleep in a teapot and Thackery had wandered off after a bread-and-butterfly about an hour before. Chessur was probably around, just enjoying the show. I knew Tarrant's irritation with me would pass soon and he would probably forget all about it.

As I watched him circle the table and sit across from me, a tiny grin graced his face. Yes, he would forgive me.

III.

"Oh, Mirana, this is ridiculous! Another ball?"

"Alice, just hear me out! You're having a baby and –"

"Women have babies all the time!"

I don't know what came over me, I suppose I could blame it on the hormones, but I stormed out of her office. I had just yelled at a queen and ran away from her. My mother would be screaming "shame on you!" at the top of her lungs.

I managed to find my way to Tarrant's workshop. I walked in and slammed the door, making him jump and drop a roll of lace.

"For all that's good and felty, Alice! You startled me!"

"I'm sorry, darling. I just needed to get away from Mirana."

He put down the tool he was working with and sat me down on the couch. "Away from her? Cricket, what happened?"

"She's throwing another ball."

"Oh. For the baby?"

I nodded.

"Well, she's just very excited. After all, you are having a baby."

"Oh, not you too! Tarrant, babies are born all the time! I understand that you and I were important in helping to liberate Underland and it's a very special thing that we're having a child, but this is just too much!"

Tarrant grew silent. The look on his face clearly told me that I said something wrong. I hoped I hadn't offended him.

"Well, that's not exactly true. The people of Underland have been very scared to have children. No one wanted to bring another life into the world the Red Queen had created. You are the first to have a baby in many, many years."

"Oh," I said, quite embarrassed. "But still, I don't want another ball in my honor. I don't like the attention.

He paused and raised his eyebrow, as if he questioned saying the next part. "Alice, can you do this for me? This is also the continuation of my family. For a long time, I was the last of the Hightopps. And now, I have family again. Neither one of us fancies going to the balls very much, but this one has significance to me."

If I wasn't embarrassed before, I certainly was now.

"Oh," I repeated. "I suppose maybe a celebration wouldn't be such a bad thing."

"So, could you just tolerate this one? Even just for me?"

"Tarrant, I would do anything for you. And … I suppose I should go back and apologize to Mirana. I was dreadfully rude."

"I'm sure she'll forgive you. Are you all right now?"

"Yes, just humiliated with my behavior. I'll go talk with her right now." I stood up and kissed him gently. "Thank you, Tarrant. You're a dear."

"I try, pet. I try."

As I walked backed to Mirana's office, I knew our child would have an amazing father. Anyone who could tame an Alice like me, could handle children. Even if they were the mix of a Mad Hatter and a Crazy Champion.

IV.

"Tarrant, be serious! I can walk down to the kitchens to get a snack by myself!"

"Cricket, just let me come with you. What if you trip? What if someone with unhonorable intentions is in the castle?"

"What if there is a paranoid father-to-be in my chambers?" I teased. The joke was lost on him, without a doubt.

He tilted his head in annoyance. "Alice."

"Tarrant."

"Please just let me go with you."

I sighed. If this was what the next 4 months was going to hold, I was going to lose my mind, and not in the conventional Underlandian sense. Ever since I had begun to show, it became very real to Tarrant that he was going to be a father. He felt that he needed to protect us and diligently at that. "Fine," I reluctantly agreed. "If it will make you happy, you may accompany me to the kitchen. Even though it is a short walk, through a heavily guarded castle, full of friends who will vouch for my presence roughly every 20 steps."

The joke was once again lost on him. "Thank you." He offered me his arm and we began our tedious trip to the kitchens.

And so it went for a week. I enjoyed the time with my husband, but at the same time, it was completely unnecessary to be escorted around like a child. I knew he wasn't doing it to annoy me specifically and he was just trying to be his usual sweet self, but at the same time, I wanted to scream. I wanted to let my stubbornness take over and yell at him to give me some space. But I didn't. I did something just as stubborn …

I ran away.

As I reached the edge of the gardens, I knew I was going to pay for this. Tarrant would be angry and hurt and worried out of his already unstable mind. But I just wanted some peace and hoped it would all be worth it.

I sat under a tree with a new book and began to read, taking in the quiet sounds of the serene garden.

It was surprisingly about an hour before Tarrant found me. His usual calm green eyes were purple, a sure sign of worry, and his hat was in his hands, a sure sign of how fast he ran to find me.

"Alice! What are you doing out here? I've been searching forever for you! I thought something awful happened to you! Do you know how I've been worrying?"

He fell to his knees next to me and pulled me into his arms.

"Tarrant, calm down. I've been here the whole time!"

"But yeh dinnae tell me yeh were comin' ou' 'ere!"

"I didn't require your permission."

"But I want teh know yeh're safe!"

"And I am."

"But I dinnae know tha'! I've bin out o' mah head tryin' teh find yeh! Why did yeh run off? Did I do sumthin'?"

"In a way, yes. But I'm not angry with you. I just needed my peace."

He looked confused.

"Tarrant, do you remember when we were first married and you wanted to protect me from everything?" He nodded. "And do you remember how that turned out?"

"Aye, yeh fell into a hole and I 'ad teh save yeh!"

I winced. Technically, he was right. "Yes, but I wouldn't have fallen into the hole if I hadn't been so upset that you were being … well … overbearing. I don't mean to hurt your feelings, darling. I just need you to understand that I am my own person. I know how desperately you want to protect me, but you can't always do that."

"But now there's two o' yeh teh protect. And I worry."

"Of course you do. It's in your nature to be a worrier and a protector. But you can't always do those things."

He hung his head and the purple of his eyes began to fade. "I know, my love. But I've already lost so much, I just want to keep you safe."

"I … I hadn't thought of it that way." In reality, I couldn't figure out why that hadn't crossed my mind. "I'm sorry, Tarrant. I didn't mean to make you worry. I just wanted to make a point."

"It's all right, lovely. I just need you, and our baby."

"And we need you," I said as I placed my hands on his cheeks. He placed his on my ever growing belly and all seemed right.

"Shall we go back to the castle and get a snack?" he suggested. "I can let you go alone if you want."

"No, I think I would like some company for this snack."

He helped me to stand and we walked back to the castle, both thinking a little more of what the other needed.

V.

"Cricket, I love you dearly, but give it back," Tarrant said as calmly as he could.

"No," was all I replied.

"Sweetness, you do realize what you're holding, right?"

"Oh yes, I completely realize."

"Then you know the significance and will want to return it right away."

"Significance, yes. Return it … I don't think so. Not quite yet anyway," I said with a giggle.

Frustration was obvious on his face. As we faced off across the table, battle strategies began to be planned. He was probably faster than me, but I could make it back to the house since I was on the closer side.

"Are you trying to drive me mad?" he asked.

"Darling, you don't need me for that!"

He wanted to laugh, but his aggravation kept him from doing so. "Aye, lass. I don' need yeh for it, and yet 'ere yeh are, makin' me more an' more mad by th' minute!"

"Hatter, be reasonable! We're married now. What's yours is mine, after all."

"And, cupcake, yeh're welcome teh all o' my belongin's … usually. Today, I just wan' tha' back. Am I askin' too much?"

"Yes. You get it all the time and now it's my turn."

"Yeh had a turn! And now tis back teh mine!"

"Tarrant, you'll have to come and get it!" And with that, I took my chances and made a break for the house.

"Wiley woman!" he called from the tea tables, probably shocked that I actually took off.

I made it into the house and up to our room before he caught up to me. It wasn't necessary for him to run, of course. I planned to give myself up once he reached the bedroom.

He burst through the door and caught me around the waist. He swung me around a bit and playfully tossed me onto the bed.

"Are you quite finished now?" he asked, a grin just beginning to form.

"Oh, I suppose so. All good things must come to an end, after all."

He plucked the hat from my head and placed it back to his own. He leaned over me and his eyes began to darken.

"You know, you do look fantastic in my hat. But playtime is over."

"No, sweet Hatter, playtime is just beginning," I whispered.