Jareth carried Sara back to the bed chamber where she had spent the last few days. The tears in his eyes made it hard for him to see. Rolardin was scrying for those that could have cast the spell. He knew that they had to be within a certain distance in order for the spell to work.
The guards had been sent out to watch for people who were acting suspicious. The villagers nearby, knowing that Rolardin didn't sent out the guards speciously, went about their normal daily business. They realized that to get in the way would be very bad. Stockade bad. They stayed out of the guards way and knew that whoever they were looking for would soon be caught.
Meanwhile, Caronara and Rolardin were doing all they could to break the spell. They were casting counterspells and spells of their own in order to break the concentration of the person casting this one. They knew the spell because the Court had punished many in the past for casting it. The person had to be somewhere secure and quiet because they would have to concentrate until the desired effect was reached.
Dris was trying to think of who might want Sara dead. The only name she could come up with was Alamorn, Sara's cousin who stood to inherit her father's kingdom should she not be able to.
Alamorn was not nice to many people. He was a vicious creature who would do anything to get what he wanted. Handsome were his looks but that was the only nice thing most people could say about him. He was the type of person who would rather beat someone up than talk to them.
Jareth would not leave Sara's side. He wanted to kill the person who was doing this to his love but only if it would help her. When Dris or anyone else of his family entered the room, he would look at them and then go back to watching Sara.
"Son, you need to eat." Caronara was standing in the doorway holding a tray that the maid had returned to the kitchen without touching.
"When Sara is whole again, then I will eat."
"But if you are not healthy, how will you take care of her?"
"Very well, mother. Bring the tray. I will eat. Has there been any sign of the person or people doing this to Sara?"
"No. But something curious has come to our attention. Alamorn, Sara's cousin, Tarmain's nephew actually, was staying here for a few days and is suddenly gone."
"Alamorn? Could he be doing this to Sara? After all, should there be no heir to Tarmain's kingdom, he would stand to inherit one of the most profitable kingdoms in the Underground."
"He's greedy but I don't think even he would stoop this low."
"I will destroy her. I will let her live but I will keep her in this state for a long time." Alamorn chuckled in his dark little corner of the dungeon. He had found a quiet place where he could keep his concentration on the task at hand. "Maybe I should tap into her fears and send a few of them to haunt her troubled dreams." He closed his eyes and started pushing his way into Sara's mind. Once there, he found two or three things that she was absolutely terrified of and started planting troubling dreams in his cousin's head.
In her dreams, Sara saw herself and Jareth sitting on a blanket in the sun. They were in a beautiful meadow full of flowers and located near a peaceful, babbling brook. They were enjoying a picnic.
Of course, the peaceful scene didn't last long. Suddenly, Sara was pushed backward on the blanket and 'Jareth' was trying to force himself on her. "No!!!!!! NO!!!!! Please don't!!!!!!!! He wouldn't!!!!!!!!!" She was fighting hard but she knew she couldn't win.
Meanwhile, Jareth sat beside her bed, trying to wake her up and not having any luck at all. He was holding her close to him. "Mother, who can help shield her dreams from this evil creature?"
"I can, Jareth my friend." Jareth's childhood friend, Ordinal, stood in the doorway to Sara's room. "I felt her dreams hurting her from Court. Seelie Court is now helping to find Alamorn. We believe strongly that he is the one doing this. He will be punished for trying to destroy his cousin this way."
Jareth was almost in tears. He didn't know dream magic and had no way to protect her from her fears. "My friend, I have to send you in to protect her. The man wearing your face to attack her can't keep up the masquerade with you in there. You will be able to protect her while I find out where he is."
"Hurry, Ordinal. She is losing the battle against him."
Jareth lay down on the bed at the direction of his friend. He fell asleep holding Sara and found himself in her dreams. He threw the man on top of Sara of and across the meadow. He took Sara in his arms. "Sara, look at me. I'm here. That wasn't me." Sara needed no convincing though as she wrapped her arms around Jareth's neck and buried her face in his neck. He held her tight as she cried.
"Who's doing this to me, Jareth? Help me."
"A friend of mine is trying to track down the man who wants to hurt you. He sent me to you to protect you. We know that you're weak and I can help you."
Alamorn had tried to pull back to his own mind when he realized that Jareth had been sent in to save Sara. He felt someone chasing him.
Suddenly, Alamorn felt like he was being slammed back into his own body as someone tackled him from behind. His concentration ruined, he tried to attack the person who dared to intervene in his torture of this child who would take his uncle's kingdom from him.
A full squadron of soldiers burst into the room and grabbed Alamorn. "You are under arrest by order of the Seelie Court." They hauled him upstairs in order to face King Rolardin and Queen Caronara. Not to mention King Jareth. None of whom liked him right now.
"This is your cousin, Alamorn. Sara, we're sorry we thought he was harmless. He is the one who has been trying to kill you."
"I will succeed. That kingdom will be mine." Alamorn was trying to get free of the guards holding him.
"Alamorn, had you decided to talk to us instead of taking things into your own hands, we might have been able to work out a deal for you to rule your uncle's kingdom. There is no chance now."
"She isn't even Fae! How can she rule one of our kingdoms when she isn't even one of us!!!"
Before anyone could react to stop him, Alamorn broke free from the guards and lunged at Sara, knocking her out of Jareth's grasp and across the room. He reacted quickly and pulled her to her feet. He angled her to lean out of the tower window where he was to await transport back to court to stand trial. "Come closer and I'll push her out."
Jareth felt his heart leap into his throat. How could he save Sara without endangering her? He was thinking fast but he apparently didn't think quick enough. Suddenly, he saw a bright flash of light and when he could focus his eyes again, both Sara and Alamorn were gone.
"We have to find them. There's no telling what he'll do to her now that he has her alone with him."
Everyone else agreed and wondered how to find them. Jareth slumped into a chair and buried his face in his own hands.
The guards had been sent out to watch for people who were acting suspicious. The villagers nearby, knowing that Rolardin didn't sent out the guards speciously, went about their normal daily business. They realized that to get in the way would be very bad. Stockade bad. They stayed out of the guards way and knew that whoever they were looking for would soon be caught.
Meanwhile, Caronara and Rolardin were doing all they could to break the spell. They were casting counterspells and spells of their own in order to break the concentration of the person casting this one. They knew the spell because the Court had punished many in the past for casting it. The person had to be somewhere secure and quiet because they would have to concentrate until the desired effect was reached.
Dris was trying to think of who might want Sara dead. The only name she could come up with was Alamorn, Sara's cousin who stood to inherit her father's kingdom should she not be able to.
Alamorn was not nice to many people. He was a vicious creature who would do anything to get what he wanted. Handsome were his looks but that was the only nice thing most people could say about him. He was the type of person who would rather beat someone up than talk to them.
Jareth would not leave Sara's side. He wanted to kill the person who was doing this to his love but only if it would help her. When Dris or anyone else of his family entered the room, he would look at them and then go back to watching Sara.
"Son, you need to eat." Caronara was standing in the doorway holding a tray that the maid had returned to the kitchen without touching.
"When Sara is whole again, then I will eat."
"But if you are not healthy, how will you take care of her?"
"Very well, mother. Bring the tray. I will eat. Has there been any sign of the person or people doing this to Sara?"
"No. But something curious has come to our attention. Alamorn, Sara's cousin, Tarmain's nephew actually, was staying here for a few days and is suddenly gone."
"Alamorn? Could he be doing this to Sara? After all, should there be no heir to Tarmain's kingdom, he would stand to inherit one of the most profitable kingdoms in the Underground."
"He's greedy but I don't think even he would stoop this low."
"I will destroy her. I will let her live but I will keep her in this state for a long time." Alamorn chuckled in his dark little corner of the dungeon. He had found a quiet place where he could keep his concentration on the task at hand. "Maybe I should tap into her fears and send a few of them to haunt her troubled dreams." He closed his eyes and started pushing his way into Sara's mind. Once there, he found two or three things that she was absolutely terrified of and started planting troubling dreams in his cousin's head.
In her dreams, Sara saw herself and Jareth sitting on a blanket in the sun. They were in a beautiful meadow full of flowers and located near a peaceful, babbling brook. They were enjoying a picnic.
Of course, the peaceful scene didn't last long. Suddenly, Sara was pushed backward on the blanket and 'Jareth' was trying to force himself on her. "No!!!!!! NO!!!!! Please don't!!!!!!!! He wouldn't!!!!!!!!!" She was fighting hard but she knew she couldn't win.
Meanwhile, Jareth sat beside her bed, trying to wake her up and not having any luck at all. He was holding her close to him. "Mother, who can help shield her dreams from this evil creature?"
"I can, Jareth my friend." Jareth's childhood friend, Ordinal, stood in the doorway to Sara's room. "I felt her dreams hurting her from Court. Seelie Court is now helping to find Alamorn. We believe strongly that he is the one doing this. He will be punished for trying to destroy his cousin this way."
Jareth was almost in tears. He didn't know dream magic and had no way to protect her from her fears. "My friend, I have to send you in to protect her. The man wearing your face to attack her can't keep up the masquerade with you in there. You will be able to protect her while I find out where he is."
"Hurry, Ordinal. She is losing the battle against him."
Jareth lay down on the bed at the direction of his friend. He fell asleep holding Sara and found himself in her dreams. He threw the man on top of Sara of and across the meadow. He took Sara in his arms. "Sara, look at me. I'm here. That wasn't me." Sara needed no convincing though as she wrapped her arms around Jareth's neck and buried her face in his neck. He held her tight as she cried.
"Who's doing this to me, Jareth? Help me."
"A friend of mine is trying to track down the man who wants to hurt you. He sent me to you to protect you. We know that you're weak and I can help you."
Alamorn had tried to pull back to his own mind when he realized that Jareth had been sent in to save Sara. He felt someone chasing him.
Suddenly, Alamorn felt like he was being slammed back into his own body as someone tackled him from behind. His concentration ruined, he tried to attack the person who dared to intervene in his torture of this child who would take his uncle's kingdom from him.
A full squadron of soldiers burst into the room and grabbed Alamorn. "You are under arrest by order of the Seelie Court." They hauled him upstairs in order to face King Rolardin and Queen Caronara. Not to mention King Jareth. None of whom liked him right now.
"This is your cousin, Alamorn. Sara, we're sorry we thought he was harmless. He is the one who has been trying to kill you."
"I will succeed. That kingdom will be mine." Alamorn was trying to get free of the guards holding him.
"Alamorn, had you decided to talk to us instead of taking things into your own hands, we might have been able to work out a deal for you to rule your uncle's kingdom. There is no chance now."
"She isn't even Fae! How can she rule one of our kingdoms when she isn't even one of us!!!"
Before anyone could react to stop him, Alamorn broke free from the guards and lunged at Sara, knocking her out of Jareth's grasp and across the room. He reacted quickly and pulled her to her feet. He angled her to lean out of the tower window where he was to await transport back to court to stand trial. "Come closer and I'll push her out."
Jareth felt his heart leap into his throat. How could he save Sara without endangering her? He was thinking fast but he apparently didn't think quick enough. Suddenly, he saw a bright flash of light and when he could focus his eyes again, both Sara and Alamorn were gone.
"We have to find them. There's no telling what he'll do to her now that he has her alone with him."
Everyone else agreed and wondered how to find them. Jareth slumped into a chair and buried his face in his own hands.