Slow Burn
Chapter 37: Evil King
Kelly and Marek were just about to lock lips again, when they were interrupted by the High King's voice. Sarah looked at Jareth, who held her protectively in his arms now. When once she shunned him, she now looked to him for protection in her moment of greatest need.
"It is now time for the Goblin Queen's coronation ceremony," Xithieron's voice boomed across the room.
"What are you doing?" The High Queen remarked in a hushed whisper. "It isn't time for the ceremony yet. That's not for another hour."
"Shut up, you witless wench!" He hissed back at her, just as quietly. "I know that. This no longer concerns you. After tonight I will finally be rid of you!" He made it look to the others as if he were murmuring terms of endearment to his wife. Penelope was shocked, and did not bother to hide it.
"Goblin Queen, please ascend the stairs for your coronation." He looked at Sarah sternly, compelling her to obey. She did.
"Sarah," Something in Jareth's eyes warned her that it was dangerous to go, but hwe was powerless to stop her.
She shot him the sweetest smile, and it nearly broke his heart. "It's okay. I'll be fine."
Sarah knew it was customary for the Goblin Queen to recieve a blessing from the High King and Queen before she was joined by her husband for the rest of the ceremony. She left the Goblin King's side, to join the man who had taken advantage of her in the worst way possible. But she had put all that behind her now. She was a true Queen, and her demeanor showed it.
Kelly watched her friend with glee. After all, this was what she had been called here for. Had her husband really been telling the truth about what happened to Sarah? If he was, she had some nerve going up there like that. Marek looked like he was in awe, too.
"I stand before you, High King of the Underground," Sarah began her memorized lines with flawless skill. "Not as a peasant, nor as a Princess, but as a Queen. I ask for your blessing upon this sacred ritual."
Xithieron's silver eyes paled, and his heart hardened to her. "I give you no such blessing, former Goblin Queen."
There were whispers and murmurs throughout the large crowd that had gathered. Her breathing quickened and she could feel eyes on her. She felt him take her hand, and she tried to pull back, but he jerked her forward with a firm grasp.
"W-what?" She stammered, not knowing quite what to make of this.
"I give you no such blessing, because... You cannot be rightfully wed to my son. You are pregnant with my child, Sarah. I now take you as my new bride, as High Queen."
"That isn't true..." The girl's words fell on deaf ears.
Penelope gasped, and went forward to break them apart. "You cannot do that!"
He slapped her hard, causing her to fall down the stairs. The High King chuckled cruelly. "Yes, I can," He smirked evilly, showing his devilish fangs. "And I am. When we were kidnapped , and held in the cell together, I cast a fertility spell to seed you with my child. And I have succeeded."
"Let me go!" Try as she might, she still could not manage to wrench her hand away from that monster... "I don't want to be your Queen!"
"But you have no choice... It is the King's choice and right to wed whomever he wishes. I hereby declare my marriage to 'Penelope' null and void, on the grounds that she is unable to bear me an heir." He said her name, as if he were spitting vermin from his mouth.
There were gasps and shouts. "Is it true?" One Fae asked the High Queen,
"Yes," Penelope stood now, with tears in her eyes, at the base of the stairs. She was injured, and could not stand without help. The two subjects who stood closest to her had helped her up, so she did not fall. They helped her away from the stairs, in case something else happened. It was nice to know there were some who were still loyal. "I cannot have children..." She choked out the rest of her sentence.
Xithieron has apparently been checking up on his Fae laws. He was within his right to do as he had just done, but that did not make it morally right. Most everyone could plainly see that. Jareth was growling with anger now, he could not help it. Marek and Kelly were just watching from their corner with wide-eyed concern.
"Stay here, I'll be back for you," Marek told her. "I have to help the Queen. It is she that I serve, not that pig."
Kelly only nodded, speechless.
"You can't do this to me!" Sarah was sobbing in front of a thousand strangers now. And she didn't care. This was humiliating. "I'm already married. To Jareth!"
"I also declare that nonsense to be null and void as well. Although I suppose that I should thank him for delivering you so easily to me. Shall we continue with the coronation? It was my intent to crown you as High Queen on this day, not as Goblin Queen the way it was expected."
The doors to the ballroom burst open, and a redheaded woman with bright rainbow colored wings, and a crimson ballroom gown entered. "Stop this madness at once, Xithieron!"
'Sue?' Sarah thought, but kept her mouth shut. She looked just like the woman who had helped Karen plan her wedding. Tanya's mother, back aboveground...
"I am Queen Susuanni," She announced to those who did not know her title. "Queen of the Faeries. And I am here to stop this charade, this instant! 'King' Xithieron, and I use that term loosely, it was you who set up the entire kidnapping yourself! You made my daughter into the cowardly, wicked creature that she was when she died!"
More gasps and murmurs came from the crowd. A steady hum now filled the ballroom, but never got over the level necessary to still hear what was being said. All eyes were on the High King now.
"She speaks the truth. I did do that. And so much more... But it no longer matters. Sarah is now pregnant with my child, and she is to be my Queen. And there is nothing that can be done about it. I am the King, and it is by my hand this deed has been done. I claim both this woman and her child as mine."
"Not so fast," It was a young blonde haired Fae who spoke next. Marek was in the middle of the floor near Penelope, his eyes gleaming. "If our Queen was unable to bear you children, then how do you explain your 'son', the King of Goblins?"
Jareth was nowhere to be found, but presently no one was really looking for him. Although Sarah still scanned the crowd from time to time, in search of her beloved husband. At las she saw him working his way up to where she was being held tightly in her rapist's evil clutches.
It was good that Xithieron didn't see him. Jareth motioned for her to look somewhere else, so he could surprise his 'father'. But it was too late, and Xithieron saw him. Knowing what he intended to do, the High King spoke his name, as he aimed a leisurely hand at where his adopted was sneaking through the crowd.
"Jareth," He said, freezing the Goblin King in place where he stood. he could still speak, but was rendered completely immobile where he stood. "Was abandoned when he was a baby. We took him in and said he was our son. He is not of noble birth, nor blood. Which reminds me..." He placed a thoughtful hand to his chin, while still holding Sarah tightly by the wrist with the other. "That would mean he is not even entitled to hold the Goblin throne. Goblin King Jareth, I hereby strip you of your title as such."
"You are a bloody bastard!" Jareth grew angrier by the second,. Were he not frozen to the spot, he would have gladly murdered the high King, then and there. He had lost his crown, and the love of his life. What else did he have to lose, anyway? "You will pay for this, Xithieron! I will see to it!"
But there was nothing anyone could do, as Xithieron continued with the ceremony. Sarah had been looking forward to it all this time for this?! She was so angry at the man, she could have easily killed him herself! But she couldn't even free herself from his grip, much less do anything else about it.
He continued with his little speech. "I construed this entire ordeal of yours, Sarah. But think of it this way. It is for the greater good. Now this kingdom will finally have a worthy heir! And I will have the wife I have always dreamed of..."
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
A/N: Please don't hate me! It gets bad again, but it's just for now. Don't jump to conclusions about the outcome, either. You may be surprised... Well, I hope this does not disappoint. A fitting conflict, and I threw it in right at the last second, just as you thought everything would all be okay. What he says is technically true, it has been that way since the beginning. This is just piecing everything together. Lots of question about the situation will be answered in these next two chapters. And if you want Sarah and Jareth to live, I want lots of reviews! Lol. Of course, I wouldn't really kill them, but you know... It's going to be a fitting ending for a great fic. And as always, please R&R! I love reviews! And even if you don't review, I still have to say thank you for taking the time to read this.
-Kaline Reine