Holly Remembers

[manniness]

Title: Holly Remembers

Series: Part 2 of On the Threshold of Christmas

Author: Manniness

Rating: M (for some serious sensuality and steaminess... oh, and a sudden existential crisis which leads to Angst)

Summary: It turns out that doorways are rather agreeably amorous places!

Notes: Holly Remembers was written for the aiw_advent 2010

Alice remembers!

Alice

Comments

[just_a_dram]

Ohhhh, much, much love for the conversation between Thackery, Mally, and Tarrant at the beginning. I really didn't think anything could top it in this part. Honestly, just write reams of this sort of thing. I'll eat it up with a spoon.

Speaking of which: spoons! What a great slang term.

"Oh, how he wishes he could be one of those men for her - a man who is just contemplating his first, brave step into a new world rather than stumbling along the underused, overgrown, and ill-maintained rutted track that stretches between his past and a monotonous future."

A dash of angsty self-doubt, stir, add smexiness...with phrases like "butter on watchworks" for ultimate flavor, bake...perfection! This was hot and so very Alice-y and Hatter-y. It's blown my brain a bit.

You are evil. Just a little bit. Still fangirling you though. I can't quit ;)

And OF COURSE I want Thackery at dinner! *Ahem* Can you arrange that?

[manniness]

OMG, thank you for commenting! I was starting to wonder if I had somehow blocked visitors or comments to this! But everything's fine now, because here is Proof that I didn't hallucinate posting this last night. (^__~)

Oh, man, I LOVE the tea party at the beginning. I kinda wish I could just stop the story there because it is so Awesome. But. Tarrant and Alice have this romance-shmomance stuff they want me to write. *grumbles*

And Thackery at your Christmas dinner. Hrm... did you put it on your Christmas List? (^__~)

[just_a_dram]

Those two...sheesh! Getting in the way of teatime with their shenanigans.

I think everyone has been sucked into a holiday black hole. That is the impression I'm getting at least. Hence, no comments on this awweesome fic.

And dern it! I put a Kindle on there, but didn't think to put Thackery. That's what I get for sloppy list making.

[yappichick]

OK, it's settled. I'm having both Mally and Thackery come over to my house for Christmas dinner. LOL

I love how Mally, being perfectly Mally, is the one who goes and finds Alice standing in the doorway. Even a mouse with her muchness can only handle so much lovesick!Tarrant, ROFL.

Tarrant's insecurities showing themselves here are perfect. There's something endearing to me about seeing him Wanting Alice without Knowing that she Wants him back...(I guess I'm a sucker for emotional whump! LOL) Though, dude, come on, Alice is in your doorway, that should be telling you something, LOL.

You did an absolutely fabulous job of describing Alice's desires without Saying Too Much. (Which is really a gift.)

I can not wait until Part 3 comes out! (But, boo hoo, I'll be at the in laws all day so it might have to wait until the 26th...OR, since you're a day ahead, you could post it early on Christmas and it would be like a Christmas Eve present! Yeah! That's it!!!!)

[manniness]

Hey there, California Fan Girl! (^__~)

I'm sure Mally will be thrilled with an invite to Xmas dinner! Especially if you're serving "Lafriden" cheese! (^__~)

And, oh, I suppose I could post Part 3 nice and early on Christmas morning here. (Which would make it Christmas Eve where you are.)

(^__~)

[niphuria]

This is so incredibly funny and hopeful and romantic and then...angsty! He doesn't even ASK her. He doesn't give her a CHOICE. He's making her decisions for her, and is unknowingly doing just what Society and her family has been doing to her all along!

Oh, you write such EVIL angst! :)

But yet, I'd LOVE to have Thackery over for dinner! He's TOO adorable!

I didn't know about "spoons" being a term for fancying someone. Interesting!

[manniness]

Poor Tarrant. He's so up and then so down. But he commits himself wholeheartedly to whatever he believes in and, unfortunately, he believes Alice deserves... More.

I think this is my favorite Thackery-Mally-Tarrant scene that I've written thus far. Mally... oh how I adore you. She gives a new connotation to the term "mousy", doesn't she?

Me? Write EVIL angst? *blinks innocently*

And, seriously, hit up wanderamaranth for her Victorian era Internet resources. She's, like, got archives of Good Stuff to get lost in. (^__~)

[clay_roses]

Oh, goodness, you didn't need to credit me for showing you that term! I'll take it, though. :D

While this does have angst towards the end, there are so many humorous moments in between that the angst seems that much more affective when you do get to it. I particularly liked the line towards the beginning concerning Tarrant's worry for theoretical unfair laddies....*snorfle*

And of course, you know that I love the sprinkled references to "Through the Looking Glass" you made here, most especially Tarrant's thoughts on having to go back to prison if Alice decided that he had stolen her kisses, after all. Kinda puts a new spin on the Knave stealing tarts, doesn't it? ;)

And the very last sections of this segment...with Alice's thoughts on acquaintanceship and how parts of her were meeting parts of Tarrant...*cough*...That was extremely hot stuff, right there. The UST when Tarrant pulled away from her though nearly killed me. Luckily I revived myself enough to leave this comment and move on to Part 3! ;)

[manniness]

Oh, I like the thought of the sentence the Knave would have received for stealing the tarts! No wonder he was so panicky! (^__~)

OMG, like, in the first part, the line about Tarrant looking pleased with himself is my favorite, in this part, I think the line about Alice being please to make his acquaintance is my fav here. Although the whole tea party makes me guffaw, honestly. I love me some AiW tea party time, lemme tell ya.