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Chapter 10: Of Meeting…
Silai sat on the throne with Elsie in her arms, impatiently awaiting either of her parents with an explanation as to what in the world was going on. Just as she was about to scream, her father appeared with the mortal girl standing behind him. Elsie jumped out of her sister's arms and over to her father.
"Daddy, that scary lady is behind you!" his daughter said frighteningly as she grabbed a hold of his leg.
"Yes, Elsie she is," Jareth agreed as he reached down and pulled her into his arms, waving a hand to Silai to stand and walk over to him. "Now I want you both to listen to me carefully, Ok?" He motioned over to Ari to step forward. "This here is Arianna. You see, a few years ago, I fell in love with a mortal woman, her mother. Ari is my daughter and will now be living with us from now on."
"What?" Silai exclaimed as she looked over to her half-sister. "This cannot be! I am the heir! I am the one from the prophecy!"
"No Silai, you're not," Jareth snapped back. "The Labyrinth did not choose you and proof of that hangs around your sister's neck, not yours. Whether you like it or not, you are my daughter, but not my heir."
"Sissy?" Elsie stated.
"Yes, Elsie," Jareth stated. "Ari, this is Elsie and Silai, your younger sisters."
Elsie immediately wanted into Ari's arms, which held them open to her as Jareth handed his youngest daughter over. Elsie then hugged Ari around the neck tightly as Ari smiled to her father. She then pulled back and smiled.
"I'm Elsie!" the little girl announced.
"Really?" Ari joked. "I'm Arianna, but you can call me Ari."
"That's a cool name!" Elsie announced.
"So is yours," Ari stated with a grin. "Hey, would you like to have another older sister?"
"Yeah! Silly (Silai) never plays with me," Elsie pouted.
"Aw, well, I will if you want to," Ari responded, receiving another hug from Elsie. Jareth smiled even more and motioned Silai to come over and greet her sister, but the young girl shook her head.
"Silai," Jareth began to say.
"Just because she's my sister doesn't mean I have to accept it right away," Silai stated before running off.
"Silai!" Jareth called out.
"No, it's ok," Ari then stated. "I understand. I would be upset if I were in her shoes too. It's not her fault."
Jareth sighed and nodded. "Perhaps later, I can get her to sit with you for a bit to talk," he said gently.
"Only if she wants to," Ari agreed. "We both have enough on our plate anyway so-"
"Your majesty," a low voice called out.
"Ah, Leonidas," Jareth greeted. "Come, meet my heir, Arianna!"
Leonidas, with wide eyes, bowed to the girl before turning back to his King. "Your majesty, may I speak to you in private?" he asked. The way his voice sounded concerned Jareth greatly. Nodding, he turned to Ari and told her that he had a garden outside to wait in until he returned just before he left with the healer.
Jareth walked over to the door where Sarah lay within, but before he could enter, Leonidas stopped him.
"My lord, there is something you should know," he began slowly and unsurely.
"Yes, what is it?" Jareth asked.
"The woman…you're champion, she is the heir's mother, is she not?" Leonidas questioned as watched as Jareth nodded. "Where did she birth your child?"
"Aboveground I assume since I was not aware of the pregnancy," Jareth responded.
"I was afraid of that sire," he stated. "You see, the champion has been sick for a long while, and though it may not have been apparent to your heir, her mother is very, very sick."
"How sick, Leonidas?" Jareth asked shakily, worried now for the love of his life.
"You see sire, when a mortal gives birth to a fae's child, it is important that the child be born Underground. If the child is born Aboveground, the mother and child can contract a serious disease, an unknown named one that has been around far longer then any fae. If contracted, the child may be lucky, suffering only minor damage, but if not, they would die in the womb. If the mother contracted, which has happened in the champion's fate," Leonidas paused. "There is but one outcome."
"No," Jareth growled.
"Yes, my lord," Leonidas stated shakily. "Death."
Jareth paced himself as he walked into his own bedroom, looking over at the one being, no, angel that stole his heart. Sarah was standing at the balcony, looking out into what he assumed to be the garden; more then likely gazing at their beautiful daughter.
"She's so much like you," Sarah stated aloud, not even looking up at him. "Everything she does, the way she talks, I always loved the way you sang but I was disappointed to learn that she didn't have that talent. I guess that one got traded in for her storytelling."
"Which she got from you love," Jareth responded as he neared her and looked down at Ari. He heard her sigh heavily beside him.
"Yeah," Sarah agreed, her voice sounding a bit raspy. "But still, I always wonder if I made the right choices for Ari." She finally looked to him. "I'm sorry Jareth. I never meant to not tell you about her."
"There was no way that you could have," Jareth stated as he looked her directly in the eyes. "That morning, when I awoke…I had returned here, with the Labyrinth telling me that my destiny was over. Until today, I had no idea what the Labyrinth meant…except, I had some concern for when my necklace disappeared the moment I tried giving it to Silai."
"Silai?" Sarah asked.
"My other daughter," Jareth responded. "I have two other daughters other then Ari. Silai, is the oldest…or so I thought…and then there's tiny Elsie."
"So you're married?" Sarah questioned as she felt her heart break the moment he shook his head.
"I'm sorry Sarah," Jareth began gently. "I had no other choice. When I was no longer aloud back into your life, Shardae was forced upon me by her father and we had an argument that I should marry her before he passed away. When he did, we tried for a divorce."
"But?" Sarah questioned further.
"But Shardae had learned that she was carrying Silai," Jareth responded. "I am a man of honor Sarah; I take care of my blood."
"Will you take care of Ari?" Sarah asked shakily as she turned to look at her.
"He TOLD you?" Jareth exclaimed.
"He had a face that read everything," Sarah explained. "And when I asked, he couldn't lie to me." She shuddered as tears brimmed her eyes. "Just promise me you'll take care of her when I'm gone Jareth; that you'll love her."
Jareth immediately pulled Sarah into his arms, hard against his chest. "Don't!" he yelled. "Don't you bloody hell talk as if you'll die! I won't let you!"
More info on Shardae:
Shardae is the second niece of Queen Titana
Shardae's magical form is a dark brown falcon
Her magic skills include:
Transformation
Incredible Healing
Invisibility
and
Control over the winds
Shardae is very fond of Jareth...not in love, but feels the need to be overproctective of the only man to ever give her a miracle...CHILDREN.
OK, so the next chapter will have some BEHIND THE SCENES info on Jareth so stayed tuned and keep reading!