Okay, time to go on. I think that it is time that we have some troubles.
DISCLAIMER:
Labyrinth and all that is connected to it belongs to someone other than me!!!
Though the characters not appearing or named in the movie or any other work of fiction are of my creation.
Then … Now … and For Eternity
Chapter Three:
Conal and Beryl Return!
As a way to give the ladies some time to catch up with one another's lives, the men took Rini to play in her favorite room (that is when she visits the Goblin King and Queen in her time) – the Escher room.
For the first twenty minutes life was wonderful. But then Hoggle brought the news. "Yer majesty, there is a woman asking for an audience with ya. I tried telling her ya's on yer honeymoon, but she won't accept it."
"Alright Hoggle. Um … tell her that I am in a meeting and that I will greet her as soon as I can." Sarah decided to handle things diplomatically – but not on her own. ^Jareth love. There is a visitor wanting to speak with me, and I'm still not used to all of this. Could you meet her with me?^
^Of course my love. I will meet you in the conventional throne room. Have Hoggle send her in only after we are there.^
Sarah smiled and nodded. "Hoggle do not bring this visitor into the common throne room until Jareth and I are both there."
"Yes yer majesty." He smiled and bowed. It was good to have Sarah home, and that she was her rightful place of Queen.
Sarah turned back to her sister and guests. "Well, looks like duty calls."
"Oh go on sis, you love this. We'll go meet up with Nephrite, Darien, and Rini in the Escher room." Molly chuckled.
As Jareth came down the stairs from the room he and his wife once battled in, all of the ladies went in. The sight of it sent chuckles through the Goblin King. "Won't they be surprised. Ready for your first audience, my love?"
"Let's hurry through it. I want to go say bye to the others, and then get back to our honeymoon." Sarah smiled as Jareth let his hands agree with her.
With a wave of his hand Jareth changed the room only slightly. Instead of his single throne, an identical one appeared beside his. With a mixed look of pride, joy, and true love he offered his arm. Sarah took it as they crossed the room and sat on their thrones. Holding her husband's hand Sarah noticed that Hoggle was waiting for their say. Jareth simply grinned at his love – she was the one who would pace this meeting.
"Alright Hoggle. Show the Lady in."
"Yes my Queen."
Sarah smiled at that. She knew that they would always be friends, but that Hoggle also held her as his rightful ruler; if she only knew how much so right then.
Hoggle didn't like this woman. He got a feeling of cold darkness off of her, and worried for Sarah. The fact that this woman only wanted to see the Queen made Hoggle worried. Thankfully Sarah must have seen it, because she called for the King to be with her.
Not to be understated, Hoggle trusted Jareth with his life. He knew that the King would keep Sarah safe.
Even when he was under the spell of forgetfulness, Hoggle quickly learned respect for Sarah. She accepted him as a friend, even when he seeming lied to her, turned coward, abandoned her, and helped to drug her. She even forgave him for it all after he risked his life for hers.
Sarah was a rare jewel as far as friends went. The entire Underground agreed with Hoggle on that. When she summoned them all at the same time for the first time since that long past celebration, they knew it was for something important.
She announced how she was in love with their King, but that was not a surprise to the creatures before her. In fact they were all cheering that their friend finally admitted the truth that they all saw coming. Then she showed them all her ring – a ring all knew had turned the last true Queen into a Fae from a human. Sarah told them that she decided that when she finally came home as their Queen, she would be a Fae … not a human.
That had received mixed views. Some loved their friend as she was but would leave the choice to her, others didn't want her to change. But there were those – Hoggle most outspoken of them all – didn't want their Queen to remain mortal. They knew that mortals had such short lives, and always held pain in their hearts in wait for the day they would be told that they had lost Sarah to death. Sarah never knew her friends felt that way.
Hoggle barely hid his shutter as her came into the antechamber. "Their majesties will see you in the common throne room now, madam."
"I only came to speak with this Queen Sarah." The odd woman snapped.
That had Hoggle on edge more so than before. Why would this woman want to only talk to the Queen? "It was the Queen's decision to involve the King. Please follow me."
"No. Tell that weak little girl who is pretending to be a Queen that I will see her alone shortly." The strange Lady chuckled and disappeared before Hoggle's eyes!
He knew that this meant trouble! Fast as his short leg would carry him, Hoggle rushed back to the throne room – collapsing to the ground as he tripped through the doorway. "Trouble!"
"Hoggle, what's wrong?" Sarah gasped as her friend came into the room in a panic.
After the little dwarf panted a few times to catch his breath, he told him what the woman had said and how she vanished. Sarah was pale with shock and fear, Jareth was red with anger, and the rest finally had to have Nephrite teleport them out of the Escher room just to find out what was wrong.
Again Hoggle explained the threat to the new Queen's safety. Nephrite had a bad feeling. "Hoggle describe this woman to us."
"Red hair, pale skin, pointed ears, orange eyes, a strange tiara wit a jewel on top of da center dat's like her earrings …" he stumbled through.
That was enough for all of the Scouts, Jareth, and Nephrite. "Beryl!"
"I thought she was Moon dusted!" Sarah barely whimpered as she rocked in fear. Jareth responded by taking her into his arms and holding her close.
Serena stood there with her arms crossed thinking hard, "I did too. After all of the power the Silver Crystal hit her with, I was sure we'd never hear from her again."
"Hoggle, show me exactly where Beryl was standing so that I can get some readings on my computer." Amy calmly ordered.
Unsure of these new people and being ordered by them in front of his King and Queen, Hoggle looked over to the monarchs for their leave. Once Sarah numbly nodded, Jareth did as well. Grumbling about some proprietary rule or another, Hoggle did as ordered.
Nephrite had been communicating with the stars all of the time. "She either has learned to hide herself well from the stars, or she has help. This was the first they knew of her survival for certain, but they all knew she hadn't passed on. And they cannot pinpoint her exact location. It's as if she vanished."
"There has to be something we can do rather than stand around talking until the next time the trash Queen shows up!" Venus fumed. She remembered all that she and the others had laid on the line that day.
Jupiter and Raye were pacing in their agitation. Molly curled into her husband's arms, remembering how she had lost him twice before because of Beryl. "Luna, I think you had better at the least give me my power crystal back. That way I can help protect Sarah too."
"No Molly. Don't you see? She'll come after you too once she finds out that you're here!" Sarah shouted. Then, taking a breath, she spoke more calmly. "I doubt that she would be so brazen that she'd come after me, even if it is to only threaten or frighten me, with the only people to shut her down here as guests. And we don't know if she knows that you are here or about you and bro getting married yet. I'll be okay. Let's just focus on keeping here out of the castle."
Nephrite shook his head. "Little sister, I'm not certain that she has left. If she didn't nothing in either world would keep her hidden from the stars. We have to find her."
Amy and Hoggle came back in at that moment. "I agree with Nephrite. But with all of the new factors the Underground creates I can't find her with my computer's long range scanning abilities. I'm afraid that we'll have to go room by room to search her out."
"Then that is what we will do. Sarah, please stay in here with an armed guard. I need to know where you are and that you are cared for." Jareth held his wife close. Barely wed and already he was guarding her life.
Sarah nodded and the group left, two squads of armed Goblin soldiers surrounding the thrones.
Once they left Sarah returned to her throne and settled in to wait. Why would Beryl want to see her alone? It was doubtful that the false Queen knew of Sarah's Scout connection. The fact that Sarah looked and had the same name of Jareth professed only love hopefully was a matter of history repeating itself for Beryl. At least that was what Sarah was hoping for.
After a few minutes of silently contemplating the situation, Sarah noticed that the guards were all collapsing around her. "What's going on? Jareth!"
"Now we wouldn't want the old man showing up while I congratulate the bride very personally, would we pretty Sarah?" It was Conal!
"Get out of here, you monster!" Sarah spat as she moved from her throne to stand tall before the intruding jerk that wanted her and her husband's kingdom for himself.
"Not until we get what we've come for." Came a voice from behind her.
Steel like arms wrapped around Sarah, pinning her arms to her sides. The hands landed on her belly filling it with a cold shuttering sense. "She's carrying his child … his girl child!"
"Let go! Jareth! Help me!" Sarah screamed in what felt like vain.
Conal slapped her face hard to silence her screams. Then he locked on a collar and two wrist cuffs on the new Queen. "What do you want to do about it, wife?"
"You will have a claim to her once the manacles do their job. She'll be repulsed by that brat Jareth, and hungering for you. I want Jareth. He's my best hold to two other kingdoms he doesn't know he has power over. I take his child by her into my belly, and soon it will become my child by Jareth.
"It will only take hours for the process of growing it in my belly. Once I birth it and it grows to one day old the change is permanent. Making me Jareth's wife by default, as I will have birthed him a child obviously long before he ever wedded Lady Sarah, and his Queen. We both become free of each other and get what we desire most as well, husband."
Conal chuckled as he rubbed a thumb across Sarah's cheek. "You come up with interesting plans, wife. Soon you will willing be my whore Sarah." Then he roughly smashed a kiss against Sarah's mouth.
Hot tears poured from her eyes and then it all faded to black. What happened? Where was Jareth? She was pregnant with a daughter already … after only one night with her true husband? And then the pain shot into her, along with the doubts, old hates, and desires she would never had on her own.
Another shorty. I am so cruel! But, it is such a great cliffhanger!
Do I really have to tell you who Conal's wife is? If so re-read this chapter!