Disclaimer: this chapter contains a very mild reference to the use of drugs, hence this story being rated T. On a lighter note, *this is kind of spoilers* there is a rather big plot twist in this chapter: so brace yourselves...
Since their afternoon tea party after Elizabeth's first trip to Oz, they had hosted several more tea parties. Having stolen for Rumplestiltskin earlier that day, Jefferson decided that before they paid Victor their monthly visit, he would treat Elizabeth to the craziest tea party he'd ever attended. He took her back to Wonderland.
They were stood before the looking glass, Elizabeth's eyebrows raised as she glanced over at him with a surprised smile, "this isn't the door to the land without colour?"
"I thought perhaps you'd like to have a tea party in the land that knows how to throw one in style?"
Elizabeth nodded vigorously; unable to hide the excitement that gleamed in her eyes. Her gaze briefly trailed to the sight of her stomach in the mirror.
"I think our child is going to grow to be quite the connoisseur in tea parties."
With a laugh, Jefferson wound an arm around Elizabeth's before nodding towards their reflections.
"Shall we?"
"Yes!"
Elizabeth's smile only broadened as they stepped into Wonderland; as colourful as ever. Similarly to Oz, the weather seemed to be stuck in a permanent summer day, though everything seemed just a little brighter and vibrant in Wonderland.
Mesmerised, Elizabeth set off down the path, the colourful flowers that bloomed over their heads having captured her attention. She was so engrossed that she walked straight through the hazy, azure ring that steamed from the Caterpillar's hookah, wandering off towards the Red Queen's court. Jefferson hurried after Elizabeth and caught her elbow before she could stray any further.
"It's this way Elizabeth," Jefferson said, smiling softly at her.
He led her back up the path, pointing out the different types of plant as they went, and ignoring the flowers' haughty corrections. Over-sized mushrooms and flowers loomed above them as they ventured further down the path. To his relief, Jefferson eventually found Wonderland nonsensical crossroads, where all the directions were the opposite.
As Jefferson tried to puzzle out where the Hatter's house was, he felt a ripple in the air. Something brushed past him, and Elizabeth felt it too: she turned her head, looking behind them in confusion. But Jefferson kept his gaze on the tree before them, where a pair of bright blue eyes had briefly flashed. Elizabeth turned back around, exclaiming at the head that deftly floated just above the lowest branch, "Cheshire! Now there's a face I couldn't forget!"
Purring contently to her, the Cheshire cat's infamous grin broadened as his body appeared.
"Where to this time?" The Cheshire cat drawled as he slowly blinked down at them.
"You'll only hound us if I tell you- and then report back to the red queen," Jefferson muttered with a dismissive wave of his hand, his attention remaining on deciphering the conflicting sign posts. Feeling the Cheshire cat's eyes boring into him, he resolved that they were to take the northern pathway. Glancing up at the cat, Jefferson added, "I have plans that don't involve getting chased out of this land by the queen's guards."
"Oh I wouldn't dream of such a thing!" The cat's tone sounded offended, but with its permanent smirk, Jefferson was unsure whether the cat was really being genuine. Simpering, the Cheshire cat added, "and I hardly think that the pretty thing by your side is in any position to run."
"I'm perfectly capable, thank you," Elizabeth snapped, though she self-consciously looked down at the now rather obvious bump in her dress.
Jefferson also stole a quick glance at her, and found that he secretly conceded to agreeing with the smirking Cheshire cat. From beside Elizabeth, he could clearly see the rounded shape that stuck out from her still fairly petite frame. Jefferson hadn't fully realised just how big Elizabeth had grown over the past few weeks until he had caught sight of her reflection in the looking glass. She still had another three months of portal jumping, unless Rumplestiltskin relented to changing the agreement that they'd made after Elizabeth had first announced her pregnancy. Realising that he'd been staring for a little too long, Jefferson cleared his throat, hurriedly shifting his eyes up towards the branch where the Cheshire cat was perched.
"Which way do we go now, Jefferson?" Elizabeth pointedly remarked, still glowering at the seemingly unfazed Cheshire cat.
"This way…I think," Jefferson motioned to the pathway directly in front of them that meandered off towards the heart of Wonderland.
"Let's go then: I'm intrigued to see where you want to take me."
They started down the pathway, though out of the corner of his eye, Jefferson glimpsed the Cheshire cat beginning to fade away again, and knew that they were being tailed.
"I thought you said that you were avoiding the Queen?"
"I am," Jefferson didn't even bother to look back at the cat that he could feel against the back of his neck. He shrugged to stop the cat from latching onto his shoulders, still close behind them.
"Then you're going the wrong way…" Called the Cheshire cat, his feline voice a teasing whisper in his ear.
Jefferson swatted, but his fingers only touched air.
"I know which way I'm going," Jefferson lied, gesturing to the air, unsure of where the cat had now vanished to.
"Over here."
He followed the irritatingly sing-song voice and glared up at the Cheshire cat, who had reappeared on the wall of the Duchess's mansion, his maniacal smirk wider than ever.
"Don't worry, I won't go any further: if you do lose your way, or head, you know who to call."
"We'll keep you in mind," Elizabeth said, a perplexed look on her face at the faint sound of smashing of china that came from the open window in the mansion.
"Come on, you really don't want to incur the wrath of that cook when they've had too much pepper." Jefferson said, giving Elizabeth's hand a tug.
They continued on, following the path as it lead deeper into Wonderland. The woodland around them soon faded away into bright sunlight, replaced by the edge of the hedges that marked the boundary to the Red Queen's gardens.
"Those red roses look rather familiar," Elizabeth mused, her gaze fixated upon the brief glimpses of red roses that could be seen through the hedges.
"I may have stolen a few for you."
Elizabeth turned to him, her eyebrows raised in surprise.
"You stole from a queen: for me?" She asked, attempting to be scolding, but unable to hide the hint of pleasure in her voice.
"It takes more than a queen with a fascination for chopping off heads to stop me," Jefferson said, giving Elizabeth a flirtatious wink, before adding, "Especially if it's for you."
Stifling a laugh, Elizabeth rolled her eyes, but she couldn't stop herself from blushing like an infatuated school girl, her cheeks flushed with decadence at his remark. Swinging their entwined hands, she strolled amiably alongside him; suddenly halting as a rounded ball whizzed out of the hedge and across the path. The ball unfurled to reveal a rather disgruntled hedgehog that shook his head before burrowing away into the undergrowth.
"Did you see that?" Elizabeth exclaimed, looking back over at the Queen's gardens in fascination. Flashes of a flamingo's head shot up from behind the hedge, shrill shouts growing increasingly louder. As they rounded the corner, a gate appeared in an archway of the hedge, and they spied the Queen's out of control croquet game.
"They're playing croquet: with flamingos and hedgehogs? That's hardly the most sensible idea."
"Oh yes," Jefferson sighed, "and sensible is not a word in Wonderland's dictionary. Now unless you want to be beheaded, I think we should take this right."
Laughing, Elizabeth followed him down a new path: one that spiralled down comprised of stone steps. They reached the bottom and found themselves in a small meadow not too dissimilar to the one that Jefferson had brought Elizabeth to on her birthday. Laughing, Elizabeth followed him down a new path: one that spiralled down comprised of stone steps. They reached the bottom and found themselves in a small meadow not too dissimilar to the one that Jefferson had brought Elizabeth to on her birthday. As Jefferson scanned the expanse of meadows for any sign of one of the Hatter or March Hare's tea parties, he wondered if they truly were lost, until he saw the house at the end of the field.
From a distance, it seemed to be a rather nondescript house, but as they drew closer, Jefferson realised that the two chimneys were shaped like ears, the thatching of the roof sprouted up like tufts of fur. He had brought Elizabeth to the right place: confirmed by the table set out before the house, in which the March hare sat at, surrounded by many empty seats and various crockery.
Seeing them approaching, the March Hare promptly rapped at the tea pot, the Dormouse's head popping out, glancing around like a startled meerkat before sliding back into the teapot. Jefferson and Elizabeth reached the table, Jefferson slipping into the seat opposite the hare.
"The wanderer's returned," remarked the March hare, raising his tea cup as if to toast to Jefferson. The March hare glanced up at Elizabeth, who was hesitantly stood beside the table.
"You can sit down too: here, have some tea," the hare said, taking hold of the teapot and pouring out into a mismatching cup.
There was a muffled squeak, and the top of the teapot flew off, the Dormouse's head reappearing, drenched in tea.
"I was sleeping," the Dormouse cried indignantly, looking across at the table, her eyes widening at the sight of Jefferson sprawled on the seat, his feet outstretched so that they were resting on the edge of the table.
"You're back! You haven't visited in months!"
"He's been busy," The March hare interrupted, grabbing the Dormouse by the tail and unceremoniously dumping her on the table, droplets of tea dribbling onto the stained tea cloth.
The March hare turned his attention back to Elizabeth, who had remained stood uncertainly by the table.
"Come, sit," the hare said, the chair next to Jefferson's slide out, and Elizabeth obeyed, "any friend of Jefferson's is a friend of ours."
The Dormouse tutted in disagreement, striding between the plates to where Elizabeth had sat. Her beaded eyes scrutinised Elizabeth, who had the teacup to her lips.
"What's your name?"
"Elizabeth, what's yours?"
"Dormouse," the Dormouse said, taking in all of Elizabeth, her eyes landing on Elizabeth's stomach.
The mouse turned to Jefferson, shaking her head.
"I see you've already got a bun in the oven, without our approval."
Jefferson snorted, stifling his laughter under the Dormouse's stern gaze as he hurriedly swallowed the slice of toast that he'd taken.
"Since when did I need your approval?"
"Who knows what sort of girl she could be," the Dormouse continued, her voice lowering to a whisper that was still rather audible, "she seems to be a bit...normal- don't you think, March hare?"
The March hare shook his head indifferently, pushing a plate of chocolates encouragingly towards Elizabeth, who had lowered her tea cup and was watching the Dormouse.
"Normal? What's wrong with being-"
"Elizabeth is far from normal, I assure you: after all, anyone who enters Wonderland has to be just a tad crazy," Jefferson said, taking a swig of his tea.
"Still..." The Dormouse turned back to Elizabeth, eyeing her suspiciously.
Sipping her cup of tea whilst avoiding the Dormouse's hostile gaze, Elizabeth asked Jefferson, "You know these two well then?"
Jefferson saw the curious gleam in her eye and poured himself another cup of tea before taking a gulp of the warm, tingling beverage.
"I used to come here lots as a child," he explained, "Wonderland was the first realm that I ever travelled to: I've had quite a few tea parties here."
"I see," Elizabeth said, looking down at the plate that the March hare had been pushing towards her.
Seeing the chocolates, her eyes widened.
"I haven't had any chocolate in ages!" Elizabeth marvelled, her hands reaching out before she remembered her manners, "can I have one?"
"Stupid child," the Dormouse muttered, "of course you can, why would we offer you something and not let you have it?"
"Thank you," Elizabeth took a chocolate, the rich cocoa coating her lips as she bit into the chocolate, a blissful look overcoming her face.
Washing it down with some tea, Elizabeth took another chocolate. Watching her eat, the Dormouse grinned and leant back against Jefferson's teacup, her tail flicking out from the edge of the saucer. Taking a slice of the rich ginger cake that had always been his favourite, Jefferson too relaxed as the Dormouse began to chat rather amiably to Elizabeth, having forgotten her initial distrust.
But Jefferson should have known better than to relax, and realised a little too late why the Dormouse and March Hare were all too eager for Elizabeth to try a chocolate.
Jefferson had tried one himself, the strong taste of liqueur hitting his taste-buds, but he instantly recognised the suspiciously bitter taste that even a heavy dose of liqueur couldn't mask. Swallowing the chocolate, Jefferson could almost feel the world shifting around him, his senses growing distorted as he hurriedly reached into his satchel and pull out a piece of mushroom that could dull the effects of the drug that had spiked the chocolates.
Although the mushroom made Jefferson's own mind rather resilient to the Wonderland drugs, Elizabeth had absolutely no resistance to such drugs, and looking across at her and the almost empty plate, Jefferson realised just how many chocolates Elizabeth had eaten. She was giggling madly, wiping away tears of laughter, her cup of tea sloshing liquid onto her hands and the table-cloth.
Unfortunately, whenever he tried to offer Elizabeth some of the mushroom, she profusely refused, on the grounds that it wasn't chocolate, which she had declared to be her favourite food, and the only food she would eat for the rest of her life.
In an attempt to stop her from ingesting any more of whatever drug had spiked the chocolates, Jefferson had tried to slide the plate away from her, to little avail. Elizabeth had almost burst into tears at not being able to reach the plate, and the March Hare and Dormouse were no help: they were both off their heads themselves. Jefferson had been forced to surrender the plate of chocolates to Elizabeth, but he made sure to refill her empty tea cup in a hope of her drinking more tea. He could only pray it wasn't quite as laced with drugs as the chocolates.
Keeping one eye on Elizabeth, Jefferson glanced down at his pocket watch. It still read six o'clock, as it had done when he last checked, which he was sure was a while ago. Cursing under his breath at Wonderland's twisted magic that had frazzled his watch, Jefferson looked up at sky, where an amber glow streamed from the setting sun. Perhaps it really was six o'clock. Jefferson had no idea.
He snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of Elizabeth's sudden yell, "change seats!"
She unceremoniously dropped her teaspoon, and it fell with a clatter against her saucer. The March Hare and Dormouse had also discarded their crockery and both moved clockwise to the next seat. The March Hare had moved into Elizabeth's seat, and she had risen to go into Jefferson's seat, though he remained seated.
"Move!" Elizabeth whined, giving him a feeble push as Jefferson shook his head.
"We can't stay any longer," Jefferson said, sounding firmer than he felt as he stared up at her, trying to see beyond the clouded haze in her dark eyes.
"Why not?" Elizabeth demanded, china cracking as she shoved the stack of tea cups and saucers beside Jefferson, before flopping onto the table. Folding her arms tightly Elizabeth obstinately continued, "Well I'm staying."
"No, you're not. We're going to visit your brother, remember?"
"Don't want to see him," Elizabeth retorted, sullenly swinging her legs as far as she could. Momentarily distracting Jefferson, her fingers began to stretch like spiders legs across the tablecloth towards the chocolates.
"I'm sure you don't mean that..."Jefferson said, pausing as he swiftly grabbed Elizabeth's arm just before she could seize a chocolate.
Giving his best reprimanding stare, Jefferson's fingers clamped around her wrist like a vice, though Elizabeth's hand writhed desperately. She glared back at him, and swung a leg into his chest, but Jefferson didn't let go of her. Elizabeth dropped her head, her sulky frown growing miserable as she stared down at the plate of chocolates. Her head slowly lifted, and there was a wicked glint in her eye as Elizabeth's eyes shifted from looking at him to the chocolates.
"Fine, I'll go," she huffed, before adding with a conspiring grin, "only if you let me have one more chocolate?"
"Alright: but just one."
Elizabeth gave a triumphant giggle, tearing her hand from Jefferson's loosened grip. She swiftly grabbed the largest chocolate on the plate and brought it up to her lips, her eyes widening with glee as she popped the chocolate into her mouth. Jefferson watched as Elizabeth purposefully chewing in a leisurely fashion, savouring the chocolate. But as soon as she had finally swallowed, he leapt to his feet.
"Right, we're leaving now."
"But I want to hear the end of the story!" Elizabeth cried, desperately gazing over to where the Dormouse snoozed in his fallen-over teapot.
Her finger jutted out to poke the Dormouse and awaken it, and Jefferson hurriedly recited, "they lived in the bottom on the treacle well where they were learning to draw and drew things that begun with the letter 'M'. Isn't that right, March Hare?"
The March Hare blearily gazed up from staring into his tea cup and mumbled something inaudible.
"I'll take that as a yes. Come along Elizabeth, we wouldn't want to keep your brother waiting."
Elizabeth gave an absent-minded nod and reproachfully got to her feet, swaying slightly. When she tried to walk, one foot caught the other and she stumbled forward, Jefferson catching her by the shoulders to stop her from falling. Elizabeth didn't thank him; she seemed to be in her own world as she floundered along the path beside him, communicating only by her high-pitched giggles.
"A treacle well...you can't have treacle wells, silly Dormouse..."
Elizabeth's grasp on his arm suddenly tightened, and Elizabeth halted, forcing Jefferson to also stop. He turned, and Elizabeth grinned up at him, almost bouncing with excitement.
"Can we name our child Treacle?"
"I suppose so," Jefferson said with a weary sigh.
He knew there was little point disagreeing with Elizabeth, his attention upon the predicament of how to get Elizabeth to eat some of the antidote and quite how he was going to explain her childish behaviour to Victor.
Elizabeth was still murmuring to herself beside him, her laughter growing more hysterical with each step. Jefferson could hardly hear himself think, but was conscious of the weight on his arm lightening. Faltering footsteps that veered off the path sounded, and Jefferson turned in their direction to see that Elizabeth had torn away from him, her choked laughter fading as she began to gag.
'Oh gods not here, not when we're so close to the looking glass.'
Catching up with her, Jefferson gently steered Elizabeth to the nearby flowerbeds. He kept his eyes looking up at the sky, unable to block out the sound of her violent retching and rubbing her back until the sound faded away and Elizabeth straightened up. Jefferson's eyes trailed back down to look at her, and he briefly caught sight of her upheaval. To his relief, Elizabeth appeared to have thrown up most of the chocolates, immersed in tea coloured bile. For a moment, neither spoke, Elizabeth's head was bowed, sombrely staring down at the flower bed.
'Perhaps she's come to her senses.'
Jefferson's thoughts were short lived, as Elizabeth gave another giggle, her tone as chirpy as it had been moments earlier.
"Oops, silly me," Elizabeth said, taking a clumsy step towards the mirror.
Her knees buckled and Jefferson's hand was on her arm in an instant. Keeping hold of her, Jefferson sat Elizabeth down on one of the smaller toadstools and knelt down in front of her.
"You're not going anywhere for the moment," he said softly, his annoyance at her dissipating as his hands clutched the fragile girl, who wavered in the breeze, her lips trembling despite her wide smirk.
Tenderly stroking a thumb down her cheek, Jefferson took a piece of mushroom from his satchel and slipped into the cusp of his palm, as well as a flask of water.
"Here, you'll feel better after these," he said and handed Elizabeth both items.
Elizabeth obediently nibbled on the mushroom, her face contorting at the taste, before swiftly gulping down the water.
"Do you feel better?" Jefferson asked, his concern etched into each word as he glanced up at her.
Elizabeth nodded spiritedly, the gleam in her eyes returning as her cheeks brightened. His hands holding tightly onto hers, Jefferson helped her to her feet.
"Where would I be without you?" Elizabeth laughed between her hiccups.
Before Jefferson could respond, he felt the touch of her heated skin as her lips surged to his cheek, the reek of bile and narcotics emanating from her.
Gently pulling away, Jefferson lowly replied, "you'd be in black and white and married to a vampire: but not pregnant or intoxicated by drugs. "
Elizabeth gave another raucous laugh, teasingly nudging him. Keeping a firm hold of her, he led Elizabeth back through the looking glass and to the steel door of the land without colour.
As with their other two visits to her home, Elizabeth faded back into black and white, but to Jefferson's worry, her bubbly mindset remained despite the change in realm. Elizabeth was as giddy as ever whilst they cut through the woodland, strikingly dark in comparison to the brightness of Wonderland, to the castle.
Contrary to her attitude at the tea party, Elizabeth grew elated at the prospect of seeing her brother, and dashed up to the castle. Her feet upturned the gravel, hair billowing in the wind like dark streamers. Reaching the porch first, Elizabeth went on tiptoe and rang the bell, watching it clang. Soon enough, the door opened, and before Victor could even greet them, Elizabeth had embraced him.
"What have I done to deserve this?" Victor said, though his smile was fond as a beaming Elizabeth drew away from him and he studied her. "I can't quite believe you're at the end of your first trimester already."
"Me neither!" Elizabeth laughed, stepping into the castle, her eyes darting around the hallway. "Do you know where we've just been Victor? Wonderland! It's so colourful there, and the flowers can talk, oh, and there's a grinning cat!"
"Sounds like you enjoyed yourself."
Elizabeth nodded and added in a very matter of fact voice, "you'd hate it there."
Victor smiled to himself at that, but shot Jefferson a questioning look whilst Elizabeth was distracted by the family portrait.
"How about you go through to the laboratory Elizabeth? I just need to talk to Victor for a moment."
Elizabeth nodded at Jefferson's request and bound down the steps to the laboratory. Once the door clicked shut behind her, Victor turned to him.
"Well, she certainly seems to be a good mood. Please don't tell me you two have just-"
"No, like Elizabeth said, we were in Wonderland. You see, we went to a tea party, except the food and drinks may have been spiked. With drugs... But don't worry, because Elizabeth brought most of it back up, and I gave her this mushroom that counters the effects: at worst, she'll be in that mood until tomorrow..." Jefferson rambled, trailing away as he caught the look in Victor's eye.
"At the worst?" Victor said, his voice deadly quiet, "it doesn't matter if she's been sick or not, the drugs are still in her bloodstream: and in your child's!"
Victor sighed, shaking his head in disbelief, "you allowed my sister, and your unborn child, to ingest drugs? Drugs? Are you out of your mind?"
His voice grew louder, and Victor stepped closer, the dangerous glint in his eye making Jefferson fear he may well be eviscerated.
"Look I didn't realise until she'd eaten a whole bloody plate!" He protested, but Victor just scoffed.
"Jesus wept."
With that, he stormed off in down to the laboratory, Jefferson following behind. Despite her rather chaotic mood, Elizabeth hadn't completely obliterated the laboratory: instead she was perched on the steel table that she always lay on. She swung her feet, grinning at the sight of them before sliding her legs onto the table.
"We're going to call the baby Treacle!" Elizabeth announced exuberantly to Victor.
"Elizabeth, we are not calling our child Treacle," Jefferson said, reaching out to take her hand.
Elizabeth snatched her hand away and folded her arms with a sullen pout, "but you promised!"
"Would you like to be called Treacle?" Victor asked as he carefully lifting the hem of Elizabeth's dress.
"Yes!" Elizabeth looked back across at Jefferson, her eyes growing wide and pleading, "have you got anymore chocolate?"
"No, and I think you've had enough," Jefferson couldn't stand her hurt expression, but he knew Elizabeth was hardly herself: whatever magical drug had been inside the chocolate had made her become rather child-like.
Looking her in eye only worsened his guilt, so Jefferson let his gaze go down to what had once been Elizabeth's abdomen: and was now a huge, taut balloon of skin. Jefferson knew very little about pregnancy, but seeing her properly, yet again Jefferson dubiously wondered how much bigger Elizabeth could possibly get. Victor also seemed to be concerned, he had retrieved several papers from a file and was studying them intently, occasionally glancing back at Elizabeth's swollen stomach.
"I'm getting big, aren't I?" Elizabeth said excitedly, giggling at the touch of the round, metallic object that Victor had pressed to her stomach.
Jefferson studied the device with interest: it was unlike anything that he had come across before. The other end appeared to have two ear pieces which Victor had placed inside his ears, and was slowly moving the rounded edge along Elizabeth's stomach, ignoring her protests betweens giggles.
Pausing, Victor went back to reading the articles, his brow furrowing as he placed the ear pieces back in his ears, listening to what Jefferson realised was the child's heartbeat.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Jefferson demanded, unable to bear the strained silence and Victor's concerned expression.
Victor removed the ear pieces and looked up at them, his dark eyes graver than ever.
"The reason why you're so big for only three months Elizabeth is because there are two heartbeats," he said softly, looking at them both, awaiting their reactions.
Jefferson stared at him, Rumplestiltskin's words hitting him. The imp had never specified that their son and daughter was the same child. Elizabeth also remained quiet for a moment, breaking the silence with a sudden gasp.
"We can call them Treacle and Toffee!"