Title: The Frabjous Day
Author: Sare Liz
Universe: Alice in Wonderland; Tim Burton Movie
Beta: Colleen. She just rocks. And apparently it was the squee heard round the world when I sent it to her. :)
Disclaimer: Were you confused about this? No, it's not mine. Though it's possible that Alice is now in the public domain, I happen to know that Johnny Depp isn't, so let's just say that I'm playing in the sandboxes of others and leave it at that, shall we? More tea?

Rating: M is for momeraths outgabing, miracles, mastectomies, more tea, and of course... mad hatters. Or just the one, in particular.

Chapter One: A Kiss for the Hero of the Day

***

"You... could... stay."

I looked into the widest, most vibrant green eyes in all of all the combined worlds and my resolve to go home faltered. It was a mad and wonderful idea and more tempting than words could say. Time ran differently here. I could possibly stay a bit and not be missed overmuch. There was no rush, after all. It wasn't as if I was required to leave immediately upon slaying the jabberwocky.

I tried to form the words as I looked into his eyes framed by the surprisingly beguiling orange sparkled lashes in the ridiculously painted face of his. A mad hatter, indeed.

"I, well. I suppose. For a little while."

"A little while?" he said, his face seeming to glow in a way I'd not yet witnessed.

"A very little while," I said, hedging. But the Hatter held out the crook of his arm for an escort, and though I didn't know where he meant to lead us, I placed my hand on the inside of his forearm, just below his elbow.

He had left his claymore on the battlefield, but he still cut quite a figure in his kilt and sporran. Now that the heat of the fray was left behind, I was trying not to concentrate too hard on the way he was dressed, or the memory of his voice when he would occasionally adopt a northern accent.

We strolled along, through the crowds, neither one of us talking. For all of his mad speech, and occasional bouts of lucidity, we had already spent long swaths of time together in silence when I had been riding his hat. Granted, at that point I was pondering my muchness or lack thereof, but still, the silence was not uncomfortable with him. This was a marked difference from the other ginger headed man in my life, Hamish, which brought my mind around to...

"Have you ever flown?

"Why yes, of course. Once involuntarily in the claws of the jubjub bird, and twice on my own."

"What was it like?" I asked, filled with curiosity.

"Lovelier and lovelier each time."

I smiled smugly. I had guessed as much and was more than content to have my suspicions confirmed.

By now I realized we were heading back to the White Queen's castle, which made a certain amount of sense. And that was odd for it to do so, but I continued on, unquestioning. I should, after all, like to get out of this armor and perhaps have a bath. And perhaps something to eat that would not alter my dress size.

"Could you possibly define for me your exact intentions by using the adjective 'little' to modify the admittedly ambiguous length-of-time noun 'while'?"

His question was out of the blue, but it didn't phase me. Nothing the man said really did. He was like my father, really, only younger, more colorful, and less restrained. I had never known Father, for instance, to wear teal, or orange.

"Little as opposed to long, a time that is significant enough to warrant attention, and yet short enough to leave before your welcome is worn."

"So that is your intention, then, to stay so long as you are welcome and not a moment more?"

"I suppose so, yes."

I glanced over as the hatter cleared his throat slightly. It made me think of glasses of water, which made me think that I should like quite a few of them, and possibly a bath, and that this mad hatter might as well, but then I thought ridiculous and scandalous things that made me blush.

"You would always be welcome, I should think," he said, staring straight ahead as we ambled on. It really was quite a walk when one was strolling leisurely and not riding a slightly-less frumious than usual bandersnatch.

"No, no, not always, I shouldn't," I demurred as I wondered how far the generosity of the obviously peace-loving White Queen would go, given that she also seemed to have a penchant for necromancy.

"How about forever, then?" he asked, and it sounded like his throat caught. His pitch was unusually high, as well.

"I'm sure forever would be far too long," I said, thinking that surely Underland time would not be so elastic as to allow me to return to any sort of world I knew at that point.

"A few days short, then?" He glanced over quickly to me and as I was perusing him in that moment, I caught his quick lopsided smile before he turned his head again to look at the road we travelled. "A while, you see, be it long or short or bent into a U is not nearly enough time."

My hand tightened on his arm involuntarily and my breath caught. "Enough time for what?"

I stopped, then, or he did, but there we were, alone on the road, surrounded only by the quiet of nature. We were facing each other and my hand, once on his forearm was now clutching the arm of his morning jacket, only much higher up on the sleeve.

"Alice. Valiant and lovely wielder of the vorpal blade, would you... am I too bold to inquire if it might be possible... that is, shall I kiss you?"

His eyes were mesmerizing and I felt them pull me closer and closer, and my breathing became deeper as well. "Yes," I said softly, my voice full of air.

He relaxed then, but did not move.

And did not move.

And did not move.

And did not move.

"Well aren't you going to kiss me?" I asked, admittedly confused.

"Oh, right. Yes, of course."

He was so tall that when he leaned in to me, even though I was looking up, first he came to my forehead. I could almost feel his lips, and certainly his breath, for he breathed in deeply, but murmured, "No." Slowly moving, he stopped at my nose and did the same - breathed in deeply, but then murmured, "No." He did the same at my lips and when I whined a little I saw the smile crinkle the sides of his brilliant eyes, even as his lids were half closed. Purple adorned the right lid and teal the left, but it worked for him. I wondered if he put it on himself, or if the dormouse helped.

Then he came even closer, but veered off to my left and I felt the brim of his hat brush by my ear just before I felt his hot breath. I blushed to think of how much I had been sweating in my efforts to vanquish to the jabberwocky, and certainly the back of my neck was ripe with it, but this seemed not to bother him at all. Instead I heard what to all perception must have been a sigh of contentment. Then things happened so quickly.

His left arm bent and held my own steady, though I certainly hadn't planned on letting go of his sleeve any time soon. His right hand found my other, and our fingers tangled together. We held on to one another tightly, in this fashion. His lips brushed tender kisses down my neck, and I found it suddenly quite impossible to breathe. As his lips began their return journey I felt the slick, wet, velvet heat of his tongue, darting, tasting, reducing my mental capacity to that of a gnat. I might have moaned and most certainly shivered, but at least I gasped which was just as well, as I needed air and hadn't been breathing.

"Marzipan," I heard him murmur, but it made no sense to me.

He kissed a trail back down again, the same path that was now scorched into my flesh and just before he reached my armor he paused, and licked broadly. I felt my knees tremble as I gasped the only name I had for him, "Hatter!"

"Yes, love?" he murmured just before his lips closed on my skin with an open mouth. He sucked then, his tongue teasing the bit of skin and he teased without mercy, and suddenly I just felt molten, and it was good that he had such a firm grip on my arm. I staggered against him, but he did not stop his delectable, fiery kiss. My head felt light and my body heavy, but my skin was alive, more alive than it had ever, ever been, and there was a strange and delicious curling in the pit of my stomach. I wanted more, but the armor was unyielding.

Still, the hatter continued.

Sensation compounded upon itself and it felt as if he were sucking all of the good and dormant things within me up to the surface and with each swirl and flick of his tongue my gasping breaths became harsher, my fingers clutching him stronger, and every muscle in my body growing tighter and tenser, tenser and tighter, swirling and building and growing. His tongue danced its forbidden, succulent dance as his mouth sucked me deeper, harder, more fully, more completely until I finally, simply burst.

I screamed as every muscle in my body clenched. The most surreal and delicious sensation washed over me, but my eyes were so tightly clenched shut that all I saw was a bright blinding white. I was hot and sweating all over again, and panting, but I felt so good, so delightfully wonderful and the light and tender kisses that he rained on my neck, up and down, up and down cemented my adoration for this strange and heroic creature who had sacrificed his life for mine twice, now.

"Stay," he whispered gently in my ear, his voice an octave lower as he used his northern accent, as he held me, now around my waist, though I could only feel the most vague of pressures, diffused as it was by my plate armor. My hands were clutching the lapels of his coat and with only a turn of my head, my face was buried the the riot of his bright ginger hair which smelled strangely and delightfully of elderberries.

"Yes," I said softly.

"With me," he added in a low rumble, nipping gently at my ear once, then twice.

"Yes," I said, smiling.

"Forever."

"No."

He pulled back. "Alice." He said my name in a plaintive tone and his entire face participated in his pout. He tugged me closer to him.

"Hatter," I replied, mimicking his tone.

"One day shy?" he asked, taking one of his hands from around me and pulling one of my own hands off his jacket. He held my hand in his, kissing and sucking the fingertips one by one as I internally debated the merits of bargaining. One day shy of forever wouldn't make much of a difference. An entire fortnight would be required for that, but what did it matter, now?

"Yes," I finally agreed.

His shockingly white face sported the most delightful smile and suddenly I found myself being swung around his exultant form.

"Callooh, callay, you are the right Alice, you are, you are, you are!"

I couldn't resist joining into his laughter. His happiness was completely contagious, and when I pressed my lips against his, we were both still smiling.

*End chapter *

End Notes: So. What do you make of it? You know, I adore feedback, like Hatter adores tea. It's always time for feedback. So, you know... just clickity-click on those green words below and let me know what you think. Gracias.

Edit: Notice it's different from the first time around? I made continuity edits. So it goes.