The Raven and the Writing Desk

Author's Note: So I felt the need to continue my oneshot, and I liked the idea, so here's my version of Alice and Tarrant's family life. Only, they have a girl… not a boy.

Description: Follow up to It's Okay to be Terrified. Alice, Tarrant, and their young daughter Raven still reside in Marmoreal. When Chessur introduces his nephew, Raven automatically takes a liking to him. But Tarrant suspects that there is something about him, and no matter what Alice says, he doesn't like the new boy. Maybe because he has a strange obsession with Tarrant's hat.

Pairing(s): Alice/Mad Hatter (Tarrant Hightopp), OC/OC

Original Characters: Raven Hightopp, Charles "Charlie".

Rating: K+ for mild language and some fluff. (Despise the word If you can believe it. But it's fluff nonetheless)

Prologue: Birth of the Raven

"I've been thinking of words that start with the letter R…" Tarrant Hightopp declared that morning at breakfast. His very pregnant wife, Alice, came in with a tea tray and set it on the table.

"And what have you come up with so far dear?" she asked, handing her husband his usual tea cup. Tarrant reclined in his chair, putting one leg over his other knee. He smiled at his wife and took a sip of tea before responding.

"Rare, rich, ravenous, Regal," he began. Alice smiled and took her own teacup off the tray before taking a seat across from her husband.

"What about Raven?" she recommended.

"An excellent one if I do say so myself," Tarrant complemented. He got up and approached Alice's stomach. "What do you say little Raven? Do you like that word?" he asked in cooing voice. Alice giggled as the baby kicked once…twice… three times before settling down once more. Tarrant's eyes shone green, showing his contentment with the child's response. "Ye know, if I didn't know any better I say she be doin' the Futterwhaken in there," he said in his outlandish accent. The baby kicked again, causing Alice to giggle.

"The thing is, she just might be," Alice said. Tarrant cackled and stood up, planting a chaste kiss on his wife's lips before stepping back to his chair and his tea. The couple drank tea in silence for a few minutes. Those minutes were cut short when a voice came from out of nowhere.

"What, no tea for me?" the voice stated. Tarrant, infuriated at the voice, bit down on his tea cup, nearly shattering it. A cat appeared above the couple, its paws resting under its chin. Tarrant stared up at his guest with enraged yellow-orange eyes. Alice put her hand on top of his, her metal ring clinking lightly against his matching one. He took a deep breath and looked up at the floating cat. He raised a frazzled orange eyebrow and tried to ignore the cat, hoping that he'd get annoyed from the neglect and just leave him alone.

"Good morning Chess," Alice stated cheerfully much to his dismay. Tarrant groaned loudly, now the cat would never leave… Curse the day he decided to marry such a sweet, innocent woman.

Okay, he takes that back. More like curse the damn cat who thinks his beloved hat is alive, which most certainly was not the case the last time Tarrant checked. He removed his hat and his checked it to make sure this was still the case. It was, so he returned it to its rightful place atop his head. Chessur floated over to the hat and Tarrant grabbed the brim defensivly.

"Good Morning sweet hat," Chess purred. "How are you today?" Tarrant growled from beneath the brim, causing Alice to chuckle slightly.

"How many times do I have to tell ye? This is my hat. Do ye hear meh? MY hat!" Tarrant said. Chessur backed away slightly, causing Alice to break into a fit of giggles. Tarrant and Chess stared at Alice, confused expressions on both of their faces.

"What's so funny Alice?" Tarrant asked. Alice kept giggling and eventually it became full out laughter.

"The baby is kicking a lot and it's tickling me!" she said in the midst of her almost insane laughter. Tarrant smiled at his laughing wife. It was good to know that he had found such a wonderful woman. Chessur sat down in one of the chairs around the table and sighed.

"So I guess this means no tea?" he asked innocently.

Queen Mirana of Marmoreal was a lover of all creatures, and she wanted to keep it that way. She believed in life and peace, and loved the miracle of bringing a human into the world. But when her champion, Alice Kingsley… no, it was Alice Hightopp now, went into labor, it was more nerve wracking than watching the same woman cut the head off the Jabberwocky. But once upon a time she had given birth to triplets herself. So she could personally understand the shrill cries coming from behind the rather large double doors that led to the infirmary of the castle. Had they always been that large? Mirana had never taken notice. She looked over at Tarrant, who was practically digging a hole for himself with all the pacing.

"The pacing is going to do nothing for you Hatter," Mirana stated calmly. "You should be in there with her." Tarrant's eyes shot up to meet the queen's gaze. They shone a deep blue, signifying worry. He sighed and continued pacing. An especially shrill cry came from behind the doors. Tarrant began pacing faster. Mirana grabbed his wrist.

"This is your child too Tarrant…" she said. The Hatter thought about this. She was right; it was his baby that was being brought into the world. Screw the pacing; he was going in there to see his child brought into the world. He would be there for her. Tarrant swiveled towards the door, throwing them open, closing them behind him. Mirana smiled as she heard a relieved cry come from the woman that she called her champion. Everything would be okay now. But why on earth was she still worrying? Another cry came from the room, followed by whimpers and reassuring coos in Outlandish. Mirana relaxed a little bit, she knew now that Alice would be fine. Or at least she hoped that was the case.

"Alice, you're doin' great. Just a little more!" Tarrant said, holding onto his wife's hand. She had her eyes squeezed shut, and she let out a cry that Tarrant could swear was the loudest yet. But from that one cry came several broken ones, and they were coming not from Alice's mouth, but from the little being on the other end of the bed. The cries didn't cease, and they brought burning tears to Tarrant's eyes as the physician brought forth his daughter… no, their daughter. This was the fruit of Alice's labor. This was their baby. The physician handed the little bundle to Alice who cradled it gently. She had tears in her eyes as well as Tarrant. Both parents admired the child. She was a true sight to behold. He was a father now… Alice was a mother. It was almost too much for Tarrant to conceive. But he was doing it.

"Hey Tarrant?" Alice said weakly. Tarrant escaped his thoughts to face his wife. "Why is a Raven like a writing desk?" Tarrant chuckled and kissed his wife ardently. He broke away and was inches away from her face.

"I haven't the slightest idea," he said. Alice smiled up at her husband.

"What are you going to call the baby?" Mirana's voice rang out from across the room. Her hands were clasped into the hands of two of her three children. Tarrant and Alice turned from the baby who had calmed slightly to Mirana. Tarrant's brows furrowed and he and Alice exchanged a glare. She looked at the little girl in her arms.

"Raven… her name is to be Raven," Alice said. Tarrant looked at the little bundle, and he nodded in agreement.

"I like that name, Raven. Welcome to the world Raven Hightopp," he cooed in his lisp. Alice handed him the bundle in her arms and he held it close. The baby didn't cry when she was in his arms. She knew who her Fa was. She knew… It brought salty tears to Tarrant's eyes.

Alice looked at her husband and child. She really resembled him in more ways that she. Well Alice, she IS a Hightopp, can you expect any less? Alice's gaze fell upon Tarrant's eyes, which were now an emerald green. Welcome to the family Raven. You're home now… Alice thought to herself. The moment was just about perfect. Suddenly, two smiles appeared in the air.

"Well, I hope I'm not late to the party!" Chessur's voice came from one of the mouths. Tarrant turned to their guests and he snarled. Chessur fully appeared, along with a shorter boy who looked remotely similar to Chessur, except… well, human. He had short chestnut colored hair with violet streaks, and cat ears. He wore a jacket and a striped dress shirt to match his hair, and pants that were obviously too big for him. He had his hands in his pockets, which overall made Tarrant want to go into conniptions. Alice put an arm on Tarrant's shoulder to calm him down.

"What do ye want Chess?" Tarrant asked. Chessur gave a smile and gestured to the boy by his side.

"I just wanted Charlie to meet the new Hightopp," he said. Tarrant's eyebrows met in the middle of his forehead in confusion, as did Alice's.

"Who is Charlie?" Alice asked. Chess pointed a thumb at the boy by his side.

"He's my nephew," Chess said simply. The boy waved. Raven began to coo in Tarrant's arms, and she reached for the boy. Tarrant's eyebrows remained creased as to his daughter's behavior. Mirana put a hand to her chin.

"If I didn't know any better, I'm guessing that these two are soul mates… I've never seen a newborn react to another so positively unless it was the child's parents," Mirana observed. Charlie blushed, and he whispered something to his uncle. Chessur nodded, and he turned to Alice, Tarrant, and Mirana.

"I'm very sorry, but we need to take our leave now. Congratulations both of you," Chessur said. He elbowed Charlie.

"Bye," Charlie muttered. And with that they disappeared into thin air. As soon as they were gone, Raven began to wail. Tarrant bounced her up and down, trying to get his baby to calm down. Mirana crossed her arms over her chest.

"That is one weird cat," she stated. Tarrant sighed and turned back to the baby, who had calmed down by now. Alice sat in the bed, confused as to the possibility of a raven and a cat together. Raven was her pride and joy, and she would see to it that she was happy, no matter what.

Tarrant wasn't pleased with Mirana's declaration about "Charlie" and his little girl. He knew he didn't have to worry about it for the time being. His Raven was all he needed to think about now. But when she gets older, that boy will get nowhere near her. He found himself thinking as he admired his daughter's auburn hair.

~~~End of Prologue~~~