Of Diviners and Goblins
Chapter III
By Sailor Northstar
Disclaimer: I decided I needed a new disclaimer! Once again, I don't own the any of the characters of Labyrinth, talk to Henson about it. Galadrea is mine, and the characters I make up. ::::Bows deeply::::A sincere hearfelt thankyou goes out to R.A. Salvatore and other writers of the Forgotten Realms, for helping to detail the world that Galadrea and Jareth are wandering in. Now that that's done, on with the story!
In silence the two adventurers rode along the forest-shaded road. The sun shone brilliantly down through the leafy canopy, and all around they could hear the sweet sound of birdsong. All in all, one of Toril's more beautiful days. After leaving Zador's weapon shop, they had bought two horses from one of the local farmers.
"So, copper for your thoughts?" Jareth asked, feeling strangely peaceful for the first time since he could remember. Galadrea shook her head and glanced over at him.
"You're awfully cheerful now," she chided, glad for the change in his attitude. I don't know what's brought it about, but its a welcome change, she said silently. "After all, you've lost whatever powers you had, got stuck with your former victim for a guide, and possess only a few low level spells to make up for it." THAT earned her a nasty glare. Grinning, she went back to enjoying the day. She could still feel his glare on her, but she ignored it. It felt so good to be on the other side of the table now, and damned if she was going to waste the opportunity for a little payback!
His good mood thoroughly spoiled by her observations, the Goblin King started to brood on his current situation. First, an avatar of Toril's goddess of magic strips him of his powers, leaving him with what little magic he had managed to master after being trounced by a mere apprentice diviner, and now he was forced to rely on said diviner for help. Wonderful. What did I ever do to deserve THIS? So caught up in their own feelings, it was no wonder that neither of them noticed the shadows in the forest. Shadows that seemed to move with the silent ability of elves, but the bulky forms belied that. When the attack came, it was too late.
Like a stroke of death, the arrow shot out of the undergrowth, piercing the neck of Jareth's mare. Both mounts went crazy, and it was all they could do to keep from being thrown. Throwing himself clear, the king barely made it to safety before the mare collapsed. Behind him he could hear chanting, and knew that Galadrea was casting a spell. Narrowing his eyes, he drew his sword from it's scabbard with one smooth gesture and prepared for battle.
From the undergrowth came creatures at least six feet tall. Covered completely with fur, with dog-like faces, the bugbears were dangerous opponents. Two of them headed directly for Jareth, two more went after Galadrea. When she had seen Jareth's mare go down, Galadrea had known they were in big trouble. I've got to risk a spell, there's no other way to get out of this. Mystra, wherever you are, please don't let this backfire!
"Shakris t'sli elt electis!" she chanted, and in from her gloved hand shot a forked lightning bolt. The deadly light blasted through the two bugbears, frying them in mid-attack. Blinking, but not questioning her good fortune, she glanced over at Jareth.
"JARETH! TO YOUR RIGHT!"
With a ringing of cold steel, the king met the first bugbear's charge, wincing slightly at the strength driving that jagged sword. With a slight pivot, he managed to throw the creature off balance, and his next stroke opened the monster's stomache. A flash of light from behind him coupled with screams of pain let him know that Galadrea was holding her own.
"JARETH! TO YOUR RIGHT!" came Gala's scream. On pure instinct he brought his golden sword up to intersect a vicious blow from a battle axe. Planting his foot in the creature's stomache, he managed to by himself a little time as he shoved the creature back. Unfortunately, it didn't fall, but those precious seconds were all he needed to open the bugbear from hip to shoulder. Breathing heavily, he glanced around for any more of the monsters. Galadrea quickly dismounted from her horse and rushed to him.
"Damn! Are you alright?" she asked, worried. There was so much blood, and for some reason, she was afraid that some of it was his.
Wiping his forhead, he smiled smugly at her. "What's this? Worried about me? I'm flattered!" he said, pretending to be amazed.
Her eyes throwing sparks, Galadrea retorted, "You ARE my responsibility, you know! Can't have it said that those who travel with me always get themselves killed, can I? It'd ruin my reputation!" Jareth's smile fell, and he coldly observed the carnage the two of them had wrought.
"No, the blood's not mine. It's from the creatures," he said, wiping clean his sword's blade on a patch of clean grass. "But now what are we going to do? My horse is dead," he asked, pointedly, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. Worried about your reputation are you? Well, then, let's see what I can do about that! Galadrea just glared.
Damnit to the Abyss! How in the name of Mystra does he manage to put me in these positions? And shut up you! she asked of her subconcious, before it could make a very snide remark. It was so hard to concentrate like this, she couldn't even think straight. Damn him! Why does he affect me like this? she asked of anyone that was listening.
"Is everything all right?" came his smooth voice at her ear. Ever since they had defeated the bugbears, Jareth had ridden behind her. Gala had originally insisted on holding the reins because it was HER horse, but now, she was regretting her decision as she felt his hand tighten around her slim waist.
"Everything's just fine, Jareth. And would you mind loosening your grip please?" she replied through clenched teeth. God's, his touch was maddening. But what really ticked her off was that he knew it, and was deliberately baiting her!
The only response she got to her reply was husky laughter. As his breath touched the back of her head, she couldn't help but shiver. "Cold?" he asked slyly. With a vicious twitch of the reins, she made her gelding rear on its legs suddenly. A very undignified yelp came from behind her as Jareth's other hand joined his right at her waist.
As the horse settled down, Galadrea offered an excuse. "Oops, Cloudstrider must be jittery after that ambush the day before yesterday," she said, hiding a smug grin. The grin faded as Jareth tightened his hold on her, causing her to whimper in pain.
"Do not, I repeat, DO NOT, attempt something like that again, do you hear me?" he whispered into her ear, furious. He was holding her close, pressing her against him. They sat like that in silence for a few minutes, the only sound they could hear was birdsong, and Gala's breathing, which was coming quite fast.
Gulping, she finally whispered, "You can let go now, Jareth." In response, his grip on her loosened, and his hands slipped down to rest on her hips.
"Just so long as we have an understanding, my dear," he said gently. Her breathing under control, Galadrea snapped the reins again, and they continued on their way.
By the end of the week, they had come out of the mountains, and into Uthgardt territory. As they rode, Galadrea filled Jareth in on the various tribes, and their strong hatred of outside trespassers. Not even Jareth could repress a shiver as she related to him the factual information of just what exactly the barbarian tribes did to those they caught. Every night they made camp, each time using a shelter spell to create a safe, hidden haven.
"Thank goodness for Leomund!" Galadrea exclaimed as she stood at one of the windows, watching the storm rage out in the night. Behind her, the crackle of the magical fire provided a reassuring presence. Hearing no reply, she turned to see Jareth seated at one of the desks that the shelter automatically provided, studying his spellbook intently. Seeing him like that, his face intent on a tome, tugged at something in her heart. He's a born scholar, she thought. The look of concentration softened his features. Galadrea wished that that perfect moment could last forever.
She turned back to the window, several thoughts flitting through her head. At last, having made up her mind, she strode over to the desk she had claimed has hers. Her movements caught the Goblin King's attention. "What are you up to?" he asked, slightly irritated at having his studying interrupted.
Galadrea responded by removing her spell book, and pulled her chair over to his desk. "I know for a fact that teaching yourself magic is a dangerous process at best, and lethal at the worst. It's one of the first rules we learn at the tower. From the time we reach the journeyman level, all inhabitants are expected to help teach the apprentices, and make sure they didn't experiment with anything by themselves. The advantages of such a study system is that the journeymen can relate to the apprentices, because the journeymen understand the difficulties of learning spells for the first time." Reaching out, Galadrea tapped the page that Jareth had been studying intently for the past hour.
"Take for instance this burning hands spell that you are trying to memorize. Allow me to make a conjecture: you can't decide how the second syllable of the first word is pronounced, correct?"
"That's it exactly, Gala. What are you suggesting? That you become MY teacher?" Jareth laughed lightly at that idea. Galadrea sighed patiently.
"No. It is obvious that the reason that you haven't made more progress is that while you have read the syllables in tomes of learning, you haven't heard exactly HOW such combinations are sounded in order to recieve the desired effect. Now, the vowel 'a' is not pronounced like it looks, or like you've been taught to speak. It is, in reality, more akin to the elvish pronunciation of 'aaah'. However, it's only pronounced that way in dealing with fire spells. Do you understand?" she asked, and Jareth leaned back in his chair to contemplate what Galadrea had just told him.
"I didn't realize...you're right of course," he finally said, his voice thoughtful. Jareth studied Gala through eyes narrowed in thought. "A bargain, then. You help me increase my understanding of magic, and I leave you alone. Are the terms satisfactory?"
Galadrea blinked in shock. Well girl, what do you expect? He won't let himself be indebted to you any more than he already is, and he knows exactly what he's doing to your mental state. A soft, friendly smile lit her face, "It's a deal Jareth. Now, What other problems have you been having?"
Outside, the rain continued to pour down, and the lightening to strike. Yet inside, two mages sat, discussing the various in's and out's of spellcasting, as if they had been comrades for years...
Greet the new day in Chapter IV?
Call it quits and head to the party?