To the Victor Go the Spoils

I imagined you'd all kill me if I just posted the last part, so here's the next one as well. Our theme is Suil a Ruin from Lord of the Dance. The verses here are a mix of both versions. Enjoy.

Ladymage Samiko ;)

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To the Victor Go the Spoils

Part 32 ~ Suil A Ruin

It was a long, lonely vigil for the Goblin King. He never took his eyes from the tiny figure in his arms, fearing that she would be gone in the instant he did. He never moved unless he thought it might make her more comfortable. The only sound that came from his lips was a song that echoed from his distant past, a song his mother had given him.

I wish I were on yonder hill

'Tis there I'd sit and I'd cry my fill,

And ev'ry tear would turn a mill,

And a blessing walk with you, my love

Suil, suil, suil a ruin

Suil go suchair agus suil go cuin

Suil go durrus agys eligh liom

Is go te tu mo vourneen slan

I'll sell my rod, I'll sell my reel

I'll sell my only spinning wheel

To buy my love a sword of steel

And a blessing walk with you, my love

Suil, suil, suil a ruin

Suil go suchair agus suil go cuin

Suil go durrus agys eligh liom

Is go te tu mo vourneen slan

I wish, I wish, I wish in vain

I wish I had my heart again,

And vainly think I'd not complain

And a blessing walk with you, my love

Suil, suil, suil a ruin

Suil go suchair agus suil go cuin

Suil go durrus agys eligh liom

Is go te tu mo vourneen slan

Come, come, come O love,

Come quickly to me, softly move,

Come to the door and away we'll flee,

And safe forever may my darling be.

And Sarah lay still in his arms.

It was only with the approaching dawn that Jareth felt the pain flow out from Sarah body to leave her almost lifeless in his grasp. But he could feel the stubborn will to live still within her and as he lay the girl down on the bed and himself beside her, tears of joy fell from his eyes and a prayer of thanks sped its way upward.

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Unknown to the couple inside, three pairs of eyes had witnessed the night unfold. The plump Maria and her sons silently retreated from the window.

"Thank God," Maria smiled.

"That was quite a risk, mother," Carlos reproved.

"I think it needed to be done," Adrien argued. "And it worked, didn't it?"

"I'm just grateful she called on me," Maria replied. "Yes, it was a great risk, but at least I could lend my aid."

"Well, I think we can leave these two to their own devices now, can't we?" asked Carlos pliantively.

"Are you sure?" Adrien was dubious.

Maria raised a silencing hand. "Nothing is certain, my dears, but I think we can let them resolve their differences on their own, now. We should return." Two small heads nodded in unison. Slowly the pair began to glow, their forms shifting to that of young men with long white hair before changing completely into light. And just as quickly, all three vanished, erasing all memory of "Maria," "Carlos," and "Adrien" from the people of the caravan.

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Sarah awoke to find sunlight streaming through the windows. She was glad someone had the energy to shine; she felt drained. Staying right where she was, on a comfortable bed feeling cozy and warm, and not moving an inch, was perfectly all right with her for the next fifty years. Fuzzily, she tried to remember why she was so tired. In the meantime, it would be worthwhile, she reasoned, to discover why her left side was warmer than her right.

She found Jareth curled up against her, his arm around her waist. A slight confused expression crossed her face, but she only vaguely wondering how he had come to be there. The question wasn't answered as the events of the night before filtered in, but that didn't seem to matter much. What mattered was that she had been able to do something. The pain had been horrible, but she didn't want Jareth to suffer anymore. He didn't need to suffer anymore.

Sarah turned to watch his sleeping face and smiled softly as her fingers traced the lines of his hand. That touch, light as it was, awakened him. His eyes blinked open.

"Sarah?" he said softly. "Sarah?" All of a sudden, he pulled her to him in a bone-crushing embrace. "You little idiot!" he whispered fiercely. "Never, never do that to me again!"

"Jareth?" Sarah gasped.

He loosened his grip to take her face in his hands. "Don't you understand, Sarah? You could have killed yourself last night! You nearly did, you bloody fool! Now promise me, promise me you'll never try that damned fool stunt again!"

"But I--" she said helplessly.

"Promise me!"

"But how can I see you hurting like that? How can I stand by and do nothing? Jareth," Sarah pleaded, raising her hand to his face, "I can't not do anything anymore."

"Sarah, Sarah," he said mournfully. "You don't understand. I am immortal. However much it hurts, I will always recover. The pain could kill you. By all rights, you should already be dead! And--" He paused, his eyes closing for a brief moment. When he looked up, Sarah saw so much love and pain in his eyes that she was frightened. "And I don't think I could survive without you."

"Don't you think I feel the same way?" she whispered, her voice breaking. "Jareth, I discovered last night how very much you mean to me. I won't let that go," she said firmly. "And I can't change my feelings, even for you, Jareth. I'm sorry, but I can't make that promise."

To her surprise--and, somewhat, to his own--Jareth began to laugh, a deep chuckle from deep in his chest.

"I should have guessed," he said. "You, my dear, are as stubborn as a weed. And I rather think you'll get worse as you get older. But, Sarah?" He suddenly turned serious. "Please, will you at least promise me to think before you act?"

She nodded. "And you? Will you be careful?"

"I swear it," he told her, brushing the hair from her face with a gentle hand. "Thank you. Sarah."

The words came so softly and with such sincerity that Sarah gazed at him in wonder. Then his face bent to hers and nothing else mattered anymore.