Guess who's back.. Back again!
Hey guys!.. So I guess I got enough reviews to actually post this (cause I've kind of been holding out on you) I've had MOST of this written for awhile, it just took me a while to go back and tie it into the ending of what I'm NOW calling Two Roads. If I can survive writing these there will be four stories, this being #2.
I realise this is a short chapter but I needed to get it up to start giving me initiative to get back in the saddle. My reading week is coming up and so I SHOULD have time (between Self Studies on Diabetes and Baking coconut tarts and Dutch Chocolate cookies to write a longer chapter.
... Standard Disclaimer applies, not mine yadda yadda yadda. David Bowie is a dreamboat, and Jim Henson is a genus. You all know this..
So without further adieu, I give you Yellow Woods.
"Do you why the city at the heart of the Labyrinth is the Goblin City?"
"Well my dear, it's not like I'm going anywhere." Her stomach was grossly concaved, the hardness of it confirmed of what lay beneath, or more so, what wriggled and danced.
"The city was once the great capital of the Fae. Back when man was first learning to walk the labyrinth was created by a dark queen, not evil, but powerful in her ways, she was kind but harsh on the magical people she loved. They soon grew angry of her ways, much like a teenager who rebelled against a hard but loving mother." He eyed her pink cheeks, both reminded of her once abhorrence to her stepmother, Sarah secretly wishing for her warm comforting presence to help her with the morning sickness. Jareth was great but was often busy still trying to run a country while having a pregnant wife was difficult.
"Anyway. The angry soon grew in numbers and they pooled their magic and enslaved the queen, sending her to the heart of the labyrinth, but not before she could cast one final spell that reduced them all to the childlike beings she thought of them as. They had been her children, and naughty children had to be punished, but she still loved them, so the goblins remained slightly magical in the new state they had, and she cared for them from the center of the maze, helping the soil be fertile so they could grow food for their tables, helping the animals be heathly, and when a new king came to rule she attempted to connect with them, to help them understand what her country needed. Goblin kings scorned the woman who had been taken from her throne and the Queen had become angry, refusing to cooperate with the kings, until a scare young prince reached out and asked for help." He smiled at the love the echoed in her emerald eyes.
"And what did the Labyrinth say to this scared prince?" Her hand fluttered over her bloated womb. Smiling at the memory of the fiery woman he had danced with at their swearing ceremony.
"She asked him to fear her, love her and do as she said and she would serve him for all of time."
"You stole those words from her? Jerk." Her smiling face and laughter told him otherwise.
"She told me just before you arrived that you would be special, that you would anger me beyond all other's before and all other's after. No woman has ever frustrated me so, but no other would I care for more." Jareth smiled and traced her cheek with the back of his fingers. "And she was right," Sarah's smile widened.
"You are such a charmer, I really hope that this one doesn't take TOO much after you." She laughed as his brow raised.
"On the contrary my dear, can you imagine having an exact copy of you?" His mind flashed to the fifteen year old who had peaked a perfectly plucked brow at his warnings and threat.
"Let's agree that this child will be his or her own person."
"Agreed." Sarah moved to get out of the bed and groaned at the worried look on her husband's face, "Oh for the love of all the relms, Jareth I HIGHLY doubt that me walking from here to the throne room will affect me as much as you fear. Women have had babies many times before." She grew quiet at his look. Not women Here, it said.
"Darling, you are not expected to do anything while pregnant. This kingdom nor any other has seen direct blood-heirs since my mother gave birth to me. All my younger siblings are profits of the Labyrinth." He frowned slightly at the thought of his younger siblings last cry, last whimper, last time they showed emotion, last time they were corrupted by childish thoughts. Though Amara was capable of emotion, she rejected it. Unlike him.
No one knew the reasons why Fae had such troubles. It was the royal families that often adopted his collected children for that he served. He had been the last child born to underground royalty to his knowledge. And therefore he would see to her every need till she birthed the babe.
Helping her up she stretched and smoothed out her gown that accommodated her ever growing belly. She was eight and a half months along and complained louder everyday. He helped her waddle to the large vaulted hall and smiled, he couldn't ask for more, the love of his life on his arm and their babe in her belly.
Standing in the throne room he held court as well wisher's came to rub her stomach for good luck or admire the boy from a recent runner that she was amusing. Mother's of court parted advice on mothering, Sarah nodding and holding back all eye rolling.
Sarah smiled politically at them all, thanking them courteously. She glanced at Jareth and he merely shook his head. This woman had practically raised her little brother, and ran the labyrinth for the child. He had no worries about her being a mother. It was ensuring the child could survive his weak Fae blood.
His brow pinched in worry as his eyes drifted back to Sarah from his considerations, her voice had become raspy and her face was paler then normal. The child she had been playing with fisted her skirt tightly, whimpering in concern of his adored caretaker. Without even thinking he moved to her side, ignoring his previous conversation.
"Sarah?" His voice was laced with fear and concern.
"I'm fine, just a dizzy spell." She laughed, trying to wave him off.
"The queen needs to rest. Her condition easily tires her." He announced. Jareth set the child in the arms of a waiting She-goblin and took Sarah back to their room before she could comment otherwise. Her eyes were fearful but her voice remained steady.
"Sarah, your white as a sheet." They didn't lose control until they were safely in private. Her face suddenly constricted in pain and her hand the had been on her protruding stomach clenched her chest. She was in utter panic and she bent almost falling on the floor.
Gasping for breath she cupped her stomach, and trembled "Jareth." Her eyes drew closed as she swayed towards the bed. He caught her as she became unconscious, resting her on the bed her summoned the healers.
He sat at her bedside while they tended to her, he had collected all the human healers he could shortly after learning of her condition. Holding her hand he smiled, looking at her large belly and tearing up at the early days of the pregnancy. She must live. He was ashamed at the thought of his lack of care for the child at that point. Above all else he had to keep her.
Seven Months Prior
After the ceremony of their swearing he had been summoned back to the Capital. The king wanted to officially greet their new daughter-in-law, soon to be Queen of Underland.
She was now Queen of the Goblin City and had transitioned nicely. He chuckled at the weeks and weeks she had been playing the role - title less. Everyone but him had known it would come. He had just assumed that he would be alone forever. Until she told him to smarten up and love her properly.
They travelled back to the capital Sarah insisting to take the long way of carriage, although it was only a two day trip it was two days too long.
Sarah had accompanied her husband back to the Capital City with her secret still hers. It had been over eight weeks since she had last been cranky and miserable, almost two months since she had gorge herself on chocolate and locked herself in her room.
But Jareth hadn't noticed.
He had been more preoccupied with the upheaval from their marriage and the celebration that there would be a new Queen for the soon to be King. She hadn't been sure that she could hide the morning sickness, which had worried her. Sticking solely to the lemon juice and apricots she had come to love from the land. She grew ginger in her garden and added it to much of her foodstuff, explaining that it had a lovely flavor, not explaining the soothing effect it had on her stomach.
Jareth had never seen childbirth, the thought had occurred to her between the middle kingdoms between theirs and the capital. So he would just naturally assume she had taken ill and ignored it, apart from his usual doting. She smiled secretly to herself wishing there was a 7-11 that she could pick up a pregnancy test at. She hated the thought of telling him and not being certain. Although she had never been this late before, it wasn't unheard of.
At least that's what she had kept telling herself.
The week that they had spent at the Capital was much more uneventful yet much more fun then the previous time. Her face would forever tinged crimson thinking of it. And she was married.
Wife. Married. These were words she like, but had yet to come accustomed to. Queen. That was another one, the first time she had felt the pull she had rolled out of bed, and her ass of a husband had laughed.
"Darling, as much as I love you, you still owe me for letting you win."
Oh no he didn't. "You didn't LET me win. I won, suck it up and get over it, now, what the hell was that?" She said roughly, the clench on her stomach was tight, like a fist pulling it from her body.
"A wish." Her brows shot up to her forehead.
"That's what it feels like when someone makes a wish?"
"A straight out, wanting wish, yes."
"What's a none straight out non-wanting wish." Her curiosity got the better of her, she had already started crawling under the warm heavy blankets that were beginning to chill with his lack of presence.
"The best example, the only example is your wish. It took you forever to get the words out. Who wishes and then doesn't clarify." He rolled his eyes. Looking down at her un-amused expression he shrugged, kissed the top of her head and left in his full Goblin Regalia.
"As for the record, you can sleep on the couch." she mumbled to the thin air. Rolling over she crinkled her forehead and shivered slightly, not used to being without the warm body behind her. A child rarely got wished away in the middle of the night.
She had gotten no sleep that night till the inky black out the large window turned crimson with the sun and a pair of warm arms wrapped around her middle and soft lips kissed her shoulder.
"The child will be better off here. You have a playmate, love." She was already drowning in sleep. All he could do was pull her deep into his arms and sigh with contentment.
At the capital, events were unfolding that Sarah couldn't understand. He had tried to keep her under wraps but now, as the future Queen of All he was forbidden to be as selfish. He didn't want to explain to her that he was being childish when he refused to take her to the royal gallery because someone was throwing a party in their favour, he just went and grumbled and bemoaned the entire time. Every ball and every ceremony that was thrown for the future Queen he drug his feet, complaining the entire time, until she finally broke, mid-dance, at the Gala for the Children of the Mound.
"What the HELL is your problem Jareth?" She said icily.
"I don't know what your talking about." He sniffed, trying to look bored. "I hate these things, you know that." She squinted and started walking to the balcony. The very same in which she had thoroughly intimidated his elder sister a mere two and a half months prior
"You also know that we have to attend, and you know that this means a lot to your people, which I know is important to you." Her eyes were soft and caring and it nearly broke his heart trying to avoid blabbering it all out. "So come on Oscar, why so grouchy? Someone try and dump something in your can?" His thin brow arched and his lips curled into a veiled smile.
"Love, I'm a selfish thing." he said, sobering to the fact that needed to be out between them, he would forever try and lock her away, just for himself. "And I don't like to share."
"And you think I do?" The thought levelled him. It had never occurred to him that she felt the same way. That the love that he had harboured since she was a girl playing dress up in the park was mutual. The very mention that she even could fathom to understand made his chest feel lighter, no longer did he feel weighted. Her eyes were dark and knowing, for the first time in weeks he looked past the façade that was the Queen and saw Sarah.
She had a secret. It had been hiding in her Mona Lisa smile and he had been too ignorant to see. "I should damn myself to the depth's of tartarus for ignoring you for so long. How can I ever earn your forgiveness."
"By not holding the next eight to nine months against me. Providing all the parts work the same."
"Of course. Anything my love." Barely a second passed, not even a breath and the words struck him. "Eight to Nine months. Till what." A pooling of warmth swept over him, despite the bitter cold that whipped his platinum hair around, for she had reached out for his hand and covered her stomach with it, her small hands seeping warmth into his large pale one.
"Eight to nine months for me to get fat, cranky and eventually, make you a father." Her eyes glistened with unshed tears, "I had hoped to keep my secret for a little longer. But I guess you would have found out one way or another." He was still in shock.
He was going to be a father. A father. Fa. Dad. Parent. Daddy. Parent. Caregiver to an offspring.
"Your- I mean, you-" His deceptively quick mind had failed him for the first time in over two centuries.
"Really Jareth. Is it really that hard to believe. We humans are very.. Productive. Just call me a fertile myrtle. I had thought to get a better reaction then this. I thought you'd be happier." He shook his head and smiled at her, the tear that had glimmered in her eyes now ran rivets down his face.
"I never thought it possible. I never expected to happen, let alone this quickly.. Have I told you how much I love you." She smiled and folded herself into his arms.
"You can tell me however many times a day. But come labour I may not appreciate it so much." The words went over his head, he was more concerned with her stomach, and consequently, what was growing inside.
"An heir."
"A child." Her voice was threatening. "I realise royal protocol is different, but my baby is going to be a child above all other duties." He looked up at her and saw everything he had ever wanted to see in his mother in that spilt second. Her voice was fierce and threatening, like a lioness protecting her cub. Mama bear mode, a voice drifted through his head.
"Agreed." The smile that emanated from her was echoed in him. The happiness that haloed them was almost blinding…
The eyes were always watching. Always observing. They knitted and weaved into powerful circles yet they didn't assimilate, for they had a goal, and were being well compensated at that. Staring at the girl with peaches and cream complexion that held the meticulous attention of one king, a man soon to be the most powerful man in all the lands.
They had watched the expressive Queen spin around with the Royal Prince Heir and various other members of court. They had heard the tiff she had with the Royal Princess Heir weeks back and had seen her secretly leave with King Jareth. Predicting the swearing that had happened weeks after had been easy, and the sickening glow they had was out right awful. But his orders were clear. No touching till the hammer dropped.
Eyes stared at the door off to the side that they had disappeared through, arm in arm smiling at each other. "Make your move Milady. And I'll be ready."
Duh duh duh duhhhhhhh.. Can you guess where I'm going with this.. OOoo I'm just EVIL!.. Sometimes I feel like Amara. And then I remember I fangirl squee at EVERY review. So leave LOTS.
This will be a treat in that I hope to have my next chapter up by Friday, it may not be long but you will have more! So I'm going to go power write and listen to 'Hero's' and 'Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy' in between my Labyrinth Soundtrack Album again for inspiration ..