AN: Hi guys! Thanks for all the super reviews! I never even
imagined that I'd get this many (nearly 150) and they all mean
a lot! Hope the past couple of days have been good for everyone...
Disclaimer: *scratches head* Damn. I got the chapter out, isn't
that enough creativity? Standard disclaimers apply! =) Muhahaha...
******************Sacrifices: Chapter Fourteen*****************
Jareth cradled his aching, pounding head in claw like hands. Sarah
knew, of his love, his love for her. She knew and she had just lain
there, not condemning, not rejecting, but damn it, not embracing, not
accepting his words, his heart, his immortal soul, his eternal love.
She had even had the nerve to ask... to ask when it was she had so
totally ensnared him, the mighty, cold, Goblin King.
'Do you believe in love at first sight?' Jareth wouldn't have
believed in love at all until she had swept into his life, with her
child like demands, with her eyes, her haunting, dark, dark eyes.
It had been a mistake, to bring her back, to bring her here. To let
her reenter his life. He shouldn't have gone at all, to claim the
child, to finish their bargain. It was a technicality and Sarah, had
she been High Sidhe, had she been one of his people, his equal, could
have, would have been able to contest his will, his claim on the
little girl named Melanie.
He forgot sometimes, how little she really knew, how powerless she
really was. There was something about Sarah that reminded him so much
of one of the High Sidhe, a High Sidhe without the cruelty, without
the pettiness, without the ugliness in her soul, a dream made flesh,
flesh and woman and mortal, mortal turned immortal.
He should have let her live her life with the human. Should have let
her raise the child, be married, find her happily ever after. Would
have let her live with her fiancé, and simply have taken the girl, to
love as his own, to love as a being cherished by the only person he
would ever be able to care for.
Damn it he should have said no! He should have denied Sarah's
desperate deal, her offer, her sacrifice. He should have gathered the
toddler in gentle arms and borne Melanie to his world, away from
Aboveground and an almost mother who would have missed her so very
much. Perhaps it was selfishness on his part but Jareth could never
deny Sarah her dreams, her wishes, no matter how often she rejected
them.
And she had wished to save the child.
Perhaps some part of himself, some animal, instinctive part had
recognized that, had laid the trap, had plotted it to end like this
all along. Hoggle had thought as much. And the damn creature was
right about another thing... If he had taken her at all, he should
have taken her long ago. Not out of pity or compassion for Sarah but
because...
Because he had stared into her eyes and seen a longing there. He had
seen the way she looked at him sometimes, half hungry, still wary, but
not frightened, not hateful, angry still, but he was no longer a
monster in her mind. He was no longer a monster, even if he would
always, to some extent, be a villain...
But he could never be her Prince, her cliched Knight. He could never
satisfy the little princess inside her dreamer heart because another
had claimed that position before him. Had ridden into her life, had
saved her from the fires of Hell, had borne his Sarah away from
certain death.
Jareth's mouth curled into a twisted smile. Well, he had saved her
from certain Death, even if she wasn't quite as appreciative of his
rescue as she had been of Devon's... Damn, the name came out bitter
even in his mind!
Jareth's head snapped up from his seat on a wooden bench in one of the
sparse outer rooms of his quarters. Magic flared into the room, a
precedence for the trumpet fanfare that followed. The Goblin King
drew himself up in an instant, face rabid as Evirey stepped into his
castle.
She bowed, a picture of austere royalty, though her flimsy robes were
still as revealing as always. Unicorns weren't much for modesty, and
Evirey knew she was beautiful. Her eyes danced though, danced and
gleamed with triumph.
She carried an official missive in blunted fingers and, as a messenger
for the Sidhe Court, had its full protection. Jareth couldn't touch
her. He should know, he had created the spell. Only in the
Aboveground were messengers killed for being the bearers for bad
news. Here messenger was one of the safest positions in the entire
Underground.
"What do you want?" Jareth snarled. Evirey laughed, a tinkling of
light made sound as she rose and held out the rolled up parchment.
"I bring you a summons to your Judgment Session Jareth." He raised
cold brows as he snatched the document away and scanned the words
angrily.
"How many virgins did you have to sacrifice in order to get it this
fast?" Evirey smiled and she was a cat with cream and a canary on the
side. Revenge was a Unicorn specialty.
"Does it matter?" she sneered elegantly. Evirey was the only other
immortal who had ever been able to blend style and disdain as well as
he. "The date it set, three weeks hence. You had better be there
Jareth, you risk your kingdom if you defy us in this. We shall all be
waiting..." With that last, satisfied sing song parting, magic flared
again and the Queen of the Unicorns was gone.
And Jareth was damned.
The official missive turned to fine ash as one sharp word from Jareth
set it ablaze in his palms. Sarah knew he loved her and in two weeks
they would stand before a court of his bloodthirsty peers. In two
weeks he would have to prove, to in front of a room of enemies, that
Sarah belonged to him. In three weeks she would have to prove that
she belonged to him.
Or she would be Evirey's... Draculo's... Tortar's... Even, perhaps,
Melani's. And Jareth would have truly lost her for forever.
******************************************************************
The spell faded from Drevlyn's taloned hands. Melani, Queen of the
Dragons, rocked back on her haunches, green eyes thoughtful. 'What
happened in his bedroom do you think?' Drevlyn shrugged.
"I don't know my Queen. He... I have rarely seen Jareth come
unraveled and he is perilously close to losing his sanity, and temper,
in all this." The little Queen snorted imperiously.
'I believe that Jareth has already lost his temper Dragon Prince.'
Drevlyn smiled and it was an emotionless, glittering thing.
"Nay my Queen... Jareth was angry little one but he still kept some
semblance of control, even as he tried to blast you from existence.
If had truly lost all control of his anger..." The smile faltered
and failed as the Goblin King's almost brother sighed and closed
yellow eyes. "If he had truly lost all control of his rage we would
be standing in a smoking crater right now. It is a dangerous thing,
to hold as much power, as much raw energy and emotion as Jareth does.
"The council fears him, and rightly. I... If I think about it too
much I can almost be afraid of him too. Be glad my Queen that the
Goblin King chooses sharp words and sardonic amusement over ambition
and power or our world would be a very different place than it is
today, bloodier, darker, a very different place indeed." Melani
closed jaded eyes in response and sighed herself, dark silver smoke
drifting from her elegant nostrils. She would be a beautiful Queen
one day...
'Jareth, Jareth is old, even for an immortal, isn't he?' Drevlyn
smiled that brittle smile again, all teeth, and replied softly,
unconscious pity creeping into his voice as he stared into a place and
time long past.
"He... we grew up together some Melani. He was older than I was but
Goblins mature much slower than Dragons. Much. He... he is old. I
am not young myself but Jareth. He can remember the pyramids being
built, has seen the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. He has walked
islands where no man has sullied the green perfection with the
cacophony of mortal voices or greed.
"I am his almost brother Melani. I am always, will always, be there
for him but he has traveled much of his journey on his own. I... I
don't know what to think of him in love Dragon Queen. I don't know
what draws him to the human named Sarah Williams but I know that he
has never let himself be so trapped, so ensnared by another. And I am
very afraid that he will be hurt, hurt so badly that I can't heal him,
that he can't heal himself."
Melani's air escaped as a hiss of steam. 'Then he truly loves her?'
Drevlyn's sad smile and gentle nod answered the question. 'Then you
shall watch out for your brother and I shall watch out for my sister,
for my Sarah. If an immortal Goblin King can be hurt so easily, by
someone who holds nothing but beauty in her soul, then a newly
immortalized human can be just as burned.' Drevlyn laughed softly and
bowed to his Queen, yellow eyes warming to somber gold.
"Agreed."
*********************************************************************
Sarah woke with feeling of warm dry scales against her bare skin. She
rolled over and jumped at the sight of the amused Dragon Queen
lounging next to her like a giant golden cat, bright against the dark
of Jareth's silk sheets.
"What...?" Sarah asked, trying to gather her thoughts. She was too
surprised to flinch when the Dragon Queen reached up with taloned
'hands' to pat touch Sarah gently on her cheeks. A deep emerald gaze,
so dark that Sarah could barely see the slitted pupils in the Dragon's
bejeweled eyes, studied her.
'You have questions, ask me, and I will answer to the best of my
ability. I am at your service.' Sarah shivered as the voice, warm,
bright, and already so much more mature than the stuttered speech of
her as a defiant, newborn Queen, touched Sarah's mind in a way that
was more comfortable than Sarah liked.
"I... Why do you speak mind to mind when Drevlyn speaks out loud?"
There was a sudden narrowing of suspicious eyes as Sarah thought of
something, "Can you read my mind?" The Dragon Queen laughed.
'No Sarah. Dragons cannot read minds. I speak this way because this
is how all Dragons speak when we are in our true forms. Our snouts
are unable to produce vocalizations necessary for external language.
When we are in our version of human form, like you have seen Drevlyn,
we are only able to speak aloud. I will not be able to take human
form for fifty years, until I'm fully grown.' The talons lowered as
the Dragon Queen sat on all fours and looked, amused, at Sarah, who
was rather ataken back by the blunt, uncomplicated answer.
'Any more questions about your new world?' Sarah smiled grimly as she
sat opposite of the young Dragon, Indian style.
"More than you could possibly imagine. First where is everyone?" The
Dragon Queen yawned.
'Drevlyn is back in our, my rooms, pacing. I did not feel his
presence was required. Jareth is, is attending matters of state, and
that is all the information I have at this time.' The last coaxed a
softer smile from the immortal human.
"Good enough... Now what exactly happened back there, with the egg,
and you, and Jareth..."
AN2: Yeah, not the most thrilling of chapters but can you guess what's
coming up? Think the Sidhe Court in all its grandeur... LOL, loads
of fun huh? ;) Adjective time, hehe.
PS: The title doesn't really fit for this chapter but oh well...
imagined that I'd get this many (nearly 150) and they all mean
a lot! Hope the past couple of days have been good for everyone...
Disclaimer: *scratches head* Damn. I got the chapter out, isn't
that enough creativity? Standard disclaimers apply! =) Muhahaha...
******************Sacrifices: Chapter Fourteen*****************
Jareth cradled his aching, pounding head in claw like hands. Sarah
knew, of his love, his love for her. She knew and she had just lain
there, not condemning, not rejecting, but damn it, not embracing, not
accepting his words, his heart, his immortal soul, his eternal love.
She had even had the nerve to ask... to ask when it was she had so
totally ensnared him, the mighty, cold, Goblin King.
'Do you believe in love at first sight?' Jareth wouldn't have
believed in love at all until she had swept into his life, with her
child like demands, with her eyes, her haunting, dark, dark eyes.
It had been a mistake, to bring her back, to bring her here. To let
her reenter his life. He shouldn't have gone at all, to claim the
child, to finish their bargain. It was a technicality and Sarah, had
she been High Sidhe, had she been one of his people, his equal, could
have, would have been able to contest his will, his claim on the
little girl named Melanie.
He forgot sometimes, how little she really knew, how powerless she
really was. There was something about Sarah that reminded him so much
of one of the High Sidhe, a High Sidhe without the cruelty, without
the pettiness, without the ugliness in her soul, a dream made flesh,
flesh and woman and mortal, mortal turned immortal.
He should have let her live her life with the human. Should have let
her raise the child, be married, find her happily ever after. Would
have let her live with her fiancé, and simply have taken the girl, to
love as his own, to love as a being cherished by the only person he
would ever be able to care for.
Damn it he should have said no! He should have denied Sarah's
desperate deal, her offer, her sacrifice. He should have gathered the
toddler in gentle arms and borne Melanie to his world, away from
Aboveground and an almost mother who would have missed her so very
much. Perhaps it was selfishness on his part but Jareth could never
deny Sarah her dreams, her wishes, no matter how often she rejected
them.
And she had wished to save the child.
Perhaps some part of himself, some animal, instinctive part had
recognized that, had laid the trap, had plotted it to end like this
all along. Hoggle had thought as much. And the damn creature was
right about another thing... If he had taken her at all, he should
have taken her long ago. Not out of pity or compassion for Sarah but
because...
Because he had stared into her eyes and seen a longing there. He had
seen the way she looked at him sometimes, half hungry, still wary, but
not frightened, not hateful, angry still, but he was no longer a
monster in her mind. He was no longer a monster, even if he would
always, to some extent, be a villain...
But he could never be her Prince, her cliched Knight. He could never
satisfy the little princess inside her dreamer heart because another
had claimed that position before him. Had ridden into her life, had
saved her from the fires of Hell, had borne his Sarah away from
certain death.
Jareth's mouth curled into a twisted smile. Well, he had saved her
from certain Death, even if she wasn't quite as appreciative of his
rescue as she had been of Devon's... Damn, the name came out bitter
even in his mind!
Jareth's head snapped up from his seat on a wooden bench in one of the
sparse outer rooms of his quarters. Magic flared into the room, a
precedence for the trumpet fanfare that followed. The Goblin King
drew himself up in an instant, face rabid as Evirey stepped into his
castle.
She bowed, a picture of austere royalty, though her flimsy robes were
still as revealing as always. Unicorns weren't much for modesty, and
Evirey knew she was beautiful. Her eyes danced though, danced and
gleamed with triumph.
She carried an official missive in blunted fingers and, as a messenger
for the Sidhe Court, had its full protection. Jareth couldn't touch
her. He should know, he had created the spell. Only in the
Aboveground were messengers killed for being the bearers for bad
news. Here messenger was one of the safest positions in the entire
Underground.
"What do you want?" Jareth snarled. Evirey laughed, a tinkling of
light made sound as she rose and held out the rolled up parchment.
"I bring you a summons to your Judgment Session Jareth." He raised
cold brows as he snatched the document away and scanned the words
angrily.
"How many virgins did you have to sacrifice in order to get it this
fast?" Evirey smiled and she was a cat with cream and a canary on the
side. Revenge was a Unicorn specialty.
"Does it matter?" she sneered elegantly. Evirey was the only other
immortal who had ever been able to blend style and disdain as well as
he. "The date it set, three weeks hence. You had better be there
Jareth, you risk your kingdom if you defy us in this. We shall all be
waiting..." With that last, satisfied sing song parting, magic flared
again and the Queen of the Unicorns was gone.
And Jareth was damned.
The official missive turned to fine ash as one sharp word from Jareth
set it ablaze in his palms. Sarah knew he loved her and in two weeks
they would stand before a court of his bloodthirsty peers. In two
weeks he would have to prove, to in front of a room of enemies, that
Sarah belonged to him. In three weeks she would have to prove that
she belonged to him.
Or she would be Evirey's... Draculo's... Tortar's... Even, perhaps,
Melani's. And Jareth would have truly lost her for forever.
******************************************************************
The spell faded from Drevlyn's taloned hands. Melani, Queen of the
Dragons, rocked back on her haunches, green eyes thoughtful. 'What
happened in his bedroom do you think?' Drevlyn shrugged.
"I don't know my Queen. He... I have rarely seen Jareth come
unraveled and he is perilously close to losing his sanity, and temper,
in all this." The little Queen snorted imperiously.
'I believe that Jareth has already lost his temper Dragon Prince.'
Drevlyn smiled and it was an emotionless, glittering thing.
"Nay my Queen... Jareth was angry little one but he still kept some
semblance of control, even as he tried to blast you from existence.
If had truly lost all control of his anger..." The smile faltered
and failed as the Goblin King's almost brother sighed and closed
yellow eyes. "If he had truly lost all control of his rage we would
be standing in a smoking crater right now. It is a dangerous thing,
to hold as much power, as much raw energy and emotion as Jareth does.
"The council fears him, and rightly. I... If I think about it too
much I can almost be afraid of him too. Be glad my Queen that the
Goblin King chooses sharp words and sardonic amusement over ambition
and power or our world would be a very different place than it is
today, bloodier, darker, a very different place indeed." Melani
closed jaded eyes in response and sighed herself, dark silver smoke
drifting from her elegant nostrils. She would be a beautiful Queen
one day...
'Jareth, Jareth is old, even for an immortal, isn't he?' Drevlyn
smiled that brittle smile again, all teeth, and replied softly,
unconscious pity creeping into his voice as he stared into a place and
time long past.
"He... we grew up together some Melani. He was older than I was but
Goblins mature much slower than Dragons. Much. He... he is old. I
am not young myself but Jareth. He can remember the pyramids being
built, has seen the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. He has walked
islands where no man has sullied the green perfection with the
cacophony of mortal voices or greed.
"I am his almost brother Melani. I am always, will always, be there
for him but he has traveled much of his journey on his own. I... I
don't know what to think of him in love Dragon Queen. I don't know
what draws him to the human named Sarah Williams but I know that he
has never let himself be so trapped, so ensnared by another. And I am
very afraid that he will be hurt, hurt so badly that I can't heal him,
that he can't heal himself."
Melani's air escaped as a hiss of steam. 'Then he truly loves her?'
Drevlyn's sad smile and gentle nod answered the question. 'Then you
shall watch out for your brother and I shall watch out for my sister,
for my Sarah. If an immortal Goblin King can be hurt so easily, by
someone who holds nothing but beauty in her soul, then a newly
immortalized human can be just as burned.' Drevlyn laughed softly and
bowed to his Queen, yellow eyes warming to somber gold.
"Agreed."
*********************************************************************
Sarah woke with feeling of warm dry scales against her bare skin. She
rolled over and jumped at the sight of the amused Dragon Queen
lounging next to her like a giant golden cat, bright against the dark
of Jareth's silk sheets.
"What...?" Sarah asked, trying to gather her thoughts. She was too
surprised to flinch when the Dragon Queen reached up with taloned
'hands' to pat touch Sarah gently on her cheeks. A deep emerald gaze,
so dark that Sarah could barely see the slitted pupils in the Dragon's
bejeweled eyes, studied her.
'You have questions, ask me, and I will answer to the best of my
ability. I am at your service.' Sarah shivered as the voice, warm,
bright, and already so much more mature than the stuttered speech of
her as a defiant, newborn Queen, touched Sarah's mind in a way that
was more comfortable than Sarah liked.
"I... Why do you speak mind to mind when Drevlyn speaks out loud?"
There was a sudden narrowing of suspicious eyes as Sarah thought of
something, "Can you read my mind?" The Dragon Queen laughed.
'No Sarah. Dragons cannot read minds. I speak this way because this
is how all Dragons speak when we are in our true forms. Our snouts
are unable to produce vocalizations necessary for external language.
When we are in our version of human form, like you have seen Drevlyn,
we are only able to speak aloud. I will not be able to take human
form for fifty years, until I'm fully grown.' The talons lowered as
the Dragon Queen sat on all fours and looked, amused, at Sarah, who
was rather ataken back by the blunt, uncomplicated answer.
'Any more questions about your new world?' Sarah smiled grimly as she
sat opposite of the young Dragon, Indian style.
"More than you could possibly imagine. First where is everyone?" The
Dragon Queen yawned.
'Drevlyn is back in our, my rooms, pacing. I did not feel his
presence was required. Jareth is, is attending matters of state, and
that is all the information I have at this time.' The last coaxed a
softer smile from the immortal human.
"Good enough... Now what exactly happened back there, with the egg,
and you, and Jareth..."
AN2: Yeah, not the most thrilling of chapters but can you guess what's
coming up? Think the Sidhe Court in all its grandeur... LOL, loads
of fun huh? ;) Adjective time, hehe.
PS: The title doesn't really fit for this chapter but oh well...