Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or nifty crystal balls from
"Labyrinth".
Chapter 15
Sarah's eyes flew open in alarm. Where was she? Why couldn't she move?
Her panic attack subsided as she recognized the drapery hanging above her head as that on the Goblin King's bed and realized that she was immobile because said king was lying partially on top of her, snoring up a storm.
So this was married life.
Maybe if she eased just a little to the left.
The snoring stopped abruptly.
Hallelujah.
Sarah eased further toward the edge of the bed and was brought to an abrupt halt by a pair of sinewy arms.
"But darling, we were only just getting started." murmured the Goblin King, nuzzling Sarah's neck.
Instantly, Sarah felt weak in the knees and very, very warm. With a great and valiant effort, she remained capable of rational thought. And boy did she need to think.
Sarah turned toward her (gulp) husband with what she hoped was a promising smile.
"I just need a moment for.well, you know." Somehow she managed to sound apologetic instead of desperate.
"Ah.of course," Jareth clucked, all understanding.
Sarah was just stepping out of bed when she realized that she didn't have a robe. Crud. She knew she was married to Jareth. She knew they had just spent the entire night buck- naked together. She knew that they would probably be spending every night in a similar condition for the rest of their lives. And yet, somehow with the sunlight streaming into every corner of the room, she felt shy.
Hoping against hope, she tried gently to tug the sheet away from him and wrap it around her body. He smiled at her wickedly and kept a firm grip on the bedding.
"Why Sarah! I should have known you'd be a cover stealer!" he laughed, maintaining his hold on the blankets as she tried again to yank them away from him. He enveloped her in his arms and pulled her so close she could feel every inch of his skin glued against her body.
"Whatever shall we do with you?" he murmured huskily, lips already searching for hers.
On cue, she blushed. Nuts.
"Um.it's a little chilly." she muttered, unable to meet her husband's eyes as she tried to disentangle herself from his embrace.
"And that should make the view all the more enjoyable!" he crowed, eyes glowing with anticipation.
Sarah grit her teeth. Okay so it would be a long, naked, freezing, thoroughly witnessed walk to the bathroom then.
Seeing her obvious distress, Jareth took pity on her. He really couldn't deny her anything.
"Fine, fine. No lovely morning vistas for me today," he sighed, conjuring his robe from thin air and tossing it to his wife.
Gratefully she snatched the robe and wrapped it around her as far as it would go (which was nearly twice). She wasn't certain if she should bolt for the bathroom or the door. Glancing over to the solid wall of stonework where the exit should have been she remembered that there wasn't a door anymore. Damn that Jareth. He really did think of everything. With a small sigh of resignation, she trotted off to where she hoped the loo still existed.
As soon as she was alone, Sarah's brain started to work overtime. In only three days she had married her worst enemy, changed her species, been gifted with near-immortality, and was now an active and significant part of the government of a foreign nation. Her family had to be worried sick about her. But she could go to the Aboveworld and see them today, right? Speaking of a visit, what the heck was she going to tell them? "Oh hi. Yeah, I was kidnapped by a Goblin King who forced me to become his bride if I ever wanted to see you again and now I'm immortal and a queen." That sounded splendid. Her family would completely understand why she had disappeared for days and failed to write or call.
She wondered if Jareth would allow her to visit her family alone or if he would insist on accompanying her. That could get.weird. If he did come with her (and this was even weirder) Sarah wanted her family to accept him as her husband and try to make him welcome. She was still unsettled about the circumstances of her marriage, but she was also a practical person. Eternity was eternity. It simply wouldn't do to have her family at odds with her spouse. Maybe she could get him to wear jeans or something - just for a day or two. She could only imagine what her father's reaction might be to the leather/tights/glitter combination. Oh god.
Almost as important was the matter of figuring out how she was going to teach herself about magic. Jareth had studiously avoided answering any of her questions about the strange experiences she'd been having. She wasn't certain about what he might be hiding, but it frightened her a little.
The more she thought about it the more certain she became that the reason Jareth's crystal had shattered two nights ago because she had wanted it to. At the time she had thought he was going to do something terrible to her and so her desire to stop whatever awful spell he was planning had been pretty darn strong. So strong that it seemed to slip outside of her control - slip outside of HER. Even remembering the force that had seemed to rip itself out of her body was exhausting - and exhilarating.
Sarah had to smile to herself at that. If nothing else, she doubted her marriage would be dull. Maybe she should try changing Jareth back into a bunnyrabbit.
Speaking of her husband, she didn't want him to get suspicious. Reluctantly, Sarah left the bathroom and padded back to the bed.
He was gone.
"Jareth?"
No answer.
Oddly, Sarah felt a little hurt.
She started to shuffle dejectedly toward the study when without warning, she felt herself swept off of her feet and straight into a pair of powerful arms.
"So lovely to have you back," Jareth murmured before covering her mouth with his.
"Mmmmph!" she squeaked, twisting against him. Within seconds her robe was lying in a heap on the floor and Sarah found herself once again captive in Jareth's embrace. She thought she should protest -at least until plans were set for her to visit her family. Well, nuts. Would wrapping her arms around her husband and returning his kisses with enthusiasm qualify as sufficient resistance?
Details. Pah.
Jareth spent the next several hours garnering his own impression of married life. If the first day was any indication, he expected to spend the rest of eternity floating in a shimmering haze of lust and pleasant exhaustion.
Several hours later, the lovers lay spent across the bed, Jareth lightly caressing Sarah's back.
"Jareth?"
"Mmmm?"
"I'm going to see my family today, right?"
Crap. He had planned today for Sarah's coronation. Invitations had been issued and all the nobles from the Underground were to be in attendance. He could always postpone it, but that might cause a war. Temperamental. That was Fae nobility for you. But if he told Sarah no.
Racking his brains, he tried to stall.
"Well, darling.you won't be able to see them right away."
Sarah felt her whole body turn to ice. He had betrayed her.
"WHY NOT?"
"We didn't get to discuss everything that's involved in being my queen. Sarah, today is your coronation. I cannot postpone it and yes, you absolutely MUST be there." Even if I have to gag you and chain you to the throne, he thought.
"Jareth, you gave me your word that I could see my family as soon as we were married."
"No, Sarah, I didn't. I told you that you could visit them AFTER we were married. I never said exactly when."
He knew he was being a jerk. He also knew he didn't have a choice.
Sarah was so angry that she couldn't even cry. This was too cruel - even for Jareth. Without another word, she stood up from the bed, now uncaring about her nakedness and strode from the room.
It wasn't fair but that was simply how it was.
Fine.
She would just have to do this herself.
Jareth stared after her, knowing he was in for some serious trouble. WHY, when everything was going so splendidly, did something stupid (like a critical function of governing a nation for example) have to go and screw it up? He had already scheduled Whimsyn to prepare Sarah for the coronation ceremony, but now thought that perhaps he should sit in on the preparations himself. He couldn't risk his young queen doing something rash - like running away - right before she was expected to appear before all of the most powerful figures in the Underground. Now that Sarah was bound to him as his wife, he could find her anywhere she might run simply by listening for her heartbeat in his own blood. But now that she was his wife, she could RUN because the spell that had been holding her as his captive was no longer in effect. She was no longer mortal.
No, he really didn't dare leave her side while she was in a temper like that.
Frantically, Jareth tried to think of some way to placate his wife. He was a little slow at it since he had never cared to appease anyone before. Everyone had always bent over backwards to appease HIM. Goblins balls! What was he supposed to do?
After a moment, he followed Sarah into the study. He found her standing in front of a plain, stone wall that had once been the French doors leading to the balcony that she had tried to use as an escape two nights ago. Yes, he did think of everything and thank the gods for that. Sarah didn't turn to face him, but he could see her shoulders shaking. It physically pained him to see her crying like that.
"Sarah - "
"Go away."
"No."
She turned to face him and the sight of her nearly took his breath away. Sarah was still naked, hair tangled, face tearstained. Her beauty hit him like a physical blow, but it was more than that. For that one second her guard was down and he saw the woman within - proud, frightened, strong - and deeply, deeply hurt. Jareth had braced himself for her rage, not this gut-wrenching, heart-stopping pain. Knowing he was the cause was almost more than he could stand.
"Sarah - "
"Jareth, just go."
"Please hear me out!"
Her eyes widened in surprise. She had never heard Jareth say 'please' before.
"Sarah, I should have told you about the coronation. The ceremony must be completed today. To postpone it would be such an insult to the nobles attending that I would risk a war. I will not thrust my kingdom - OUR kingdom - into such a position. You have my oath as your husband that we will visit your family as soon as the festivities are finished."
"And exactly how long are these 'festivities'?"
"Three days or so."
Sarah couldn't rip the image of Toby's worried face from her mind.
"THREE DAYS?!"
Jareth was getting so frustrated that he wanted to zap something into oblivion.
"I gave you my word that you could visit them and you will - AFTER your duties to our kingdom are complete."
"And what if I refuse to take part in these 'duties'? You promised to let me see my family after I became your wife. I've held up my end of the bargain and you have yet to deliver on yours."
Sarah knew she was walking on landmines and really, she would never deliberately send the kingdom to war. After all, her friends lived there and she had no intention of putting them in danger. But she had to have SOME kind of leverage in this situation. What little trust she had in Jareth had just been badly shaken. Was he really going to let her see her family or had the whole thing just been an elaborate lie so that he could have her under his power - in every way?
"My dear.I do not think refusal is among your options," Jareth hissed, stalking toward her in a manner that made her turn a little pale. She put up her hands to ward him off, but Jareth grabbed her wrists and held them in his steel grip.
His hold was painful, but Sarah didn't struggle. She looked him straight in the eye and made a decision.
"Jareth, I will take part in the coronation. No matter what you seem to think, I am not such a spoiled brat that I would start a war just to make a point." Her voice was quiet, but her eyes held something sad and unsettling.
With that Sarah had said her piece and simply stared at him for a moment, but Jareth didn't release his hold on her. When she tried to tug her way free, he only tightened his fingers around her wrists.
"No, you're not running from me. I have something to say to you. Sarah, I gave you my word that you would see your family and you shall," he said softly. "I made a grave error in not telling you about the coronation ceremony. My dear, I'm certain you must think only the worst of me as your husband at this point, but I would like to prove otherwise. Write them a letter and I will see that they receive it today. Tell them that you will be coming to see them in three days' time accompanied by your husband."
A-aaallrighty then. So he would be coming with her after all.
"To prove that I am keeping my word to you, I will even give you a crystal so that you can watch as they open the letter."
Sarah swallowed.
"How much time do I have before I need to prepare for the ceremony?"
"No more than an hour. You should eat something."
He relaxed his death grip on her and stroked her hair back from her face.
Sarah was oddly touched by his concern. She was also trying to think of some convincing story she could give her family that would explain a week- long disappearance without a phone call and the startling addition of a new husband in tights and glitter. At a loss, she turned to the only person she thought could help her.
"Jareth, what on earth am I going to say in that letter?"
"Just what I told you. Is there anything wrong with that?"
"Look.let's talk about this over breakfast. Do you have paper and a pen or something around here?"
Five minutes later the newlyweds were ensconced back in the bed, munching on crumpets and pouring over a mostly blank sheet of paper with several blotches on it since Sarah was somewhat inexperienced with using a quill. When he had kidnapped Sarah, Jareth had never expected to get her to agree to marry him while her family was still alive to hear about it. This unplanned- for contingency was starting to get a little messy.
"Could we say I rescued you from.from .a dragon?"
Sarah gave him a withering look.
"Okay, okay. Just kidding. I know! I rescued you from a band of thieves who had kidnapped you and were about to kill you because they discovered that you had no money."
Sarah snorted in disgust.
"Why are YOU always rescuing ME? I think it makes more sense to say that I was called away in the middle of the night to say goodbye to a friend on her deathbed and you.were her cousin.yeah."
It was Jareth's turn to snort.
"Where would you have been 'called to' that didn't have a telephone? I think we should stick with me rescuing you from something. It's much more romantic."
Sarah burst into laughter. She wasn't certain where abducting her and then feeding her cheese dogs fit on the romance scale, but it was decidedly suspect.
"Okay. A friend calls me in the middle of the night with an emergency and when I head over there.I trip and hit my head?" Sarah thought a bump on the head might be her only safe explanation for marrying someone as .ah.unusual as Jareth would appear to be in the Aboveworld.
"Okay. I find you - but why haven't I rushed you to a hospital?"
Damn. A hole in her story already.
"Umm - you didn't know there was anything wrong with me at first. You saw that I had a nasty bruise and.and."
"You were lost."
"Right!"
"And when I took you home with me to get you out of the rain."
"I got a bad fever!"
"Right.so I took care of you, but you kept getting worse so."
"You called a priest and told him that you wanted him to marry us in case I died so that I wouldn't die a sinner because we had already slept together!"
That whole concept was foreign to Jareth, but he nodded anyway, deciding to trust his wife on this point when it came to Aboveground society.
"And by the time you had recovered, your memory had returned."
"But we had also fallen in love so we decided to stay married!"
Jareth practically burst with joy when he thought of Sarah actually falling in love with him. He didn't think she loved him yet, but he planned to do everything in his power to encourage her feelings.
Sarah thought the whole thing was pretty far-fetched and probably full of holes, but it was the best she could come up with on such short notice. Smiling, she penned a clean copy of the letter and passed it to her husband.
Jareth folded it into a charming paper airplane and sent it straight into the fire in the hearth.
Sarah was preparing to fold HIM into a tiny little airplane pilot and send him to the same place when he produced a crystal and presented it to her with a flourish.
Inside, Sarah saw her brother Toby pick up the mail from the box.and then drop the mail on the lawn.and head toward the house in a dead run clutching a crumpled envelope in his fist. He reached the door screaming "MOM! MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMM!!!"
"Toby! Are you alright, sweetheart?" Karen came running.
Toby couldn't even speak, but held the envelope out to Karen. In a second Karen was screaming "RICHARD! RIIIIIIIIIIICHAAAAAAAAAAARD!!"
Sarah's father came running and the little family huddled around the envelope as Karen ripped it open. Sarah's family stared at the letter with worried frowns as they read through it several times.
"Richard, do you think this is real?"
"It's very strange that she hasn't called. This guy she's supposedly married to - why wouldn't he have a phone? Or help Sarah get to a phone so that she could call us and tell us she was safe? I'm calling the police."
Crud. That wasn't what Sarah had been hoping to accomplish. Now they were more worried and suspicious than ever. She looked over at Jareth who appeared to be in deep thought.
"Sarah, we don't use telephones here."
Well duh.
".but .perhaps a voice spell? On the telephone in your world.Yes! All right, I'm going to give you this crystal and I want you to speak into it. Tell me when it sounds like a voice over a telephone."
"Huh?"
"You know! Like what you hear from someone when you answer the telephone. It's not like having a person in the same room with you is it?"
"No, not really."
"All right then."
Sarah felt beyond silly holding some glowing crystal and saying 'test, test' over and over again. It reminded her of doing sound checks in the theater and she got completely homesick.
After a few minutes, they had the sound right.
"My love, prepare to call your parents and explain everything."
Fabulous. She couldn't have been more confident.
She heard her parents' phone ring in Jareth's other crystal and was soon saying "Dad? Karen? Hi!" She explained her disappearance just as she had in the letter with a few added details about how Jareth's phone had been out, she hadn't been carrying ID on her, he didn't know what number to call and thought her family might freak out if he called them instead of her, etc. Sarah knew the story was wobbly at best, but they seemed to buy it now that she was actually speaking the words herself. Ahhh. Years of theater training. She could sell any script by now.
Jareth was so proud of his wife he thought he might float through the air with a silly grin on his face. He became especially intrigued with the conversation when Sarah's parents started asking her about him and their sudden marriage. The girl practically gushed into the crystal "phone" about how happy she was, how he was utterly gorgeous, kind, witty, and generally everything she had ever dreamed of in a man.
Sarah supposed she was laying it on a little thick, but how else was she to explain something that would otherwise be completely out of character for her? She hadn't even DATED a man in four years. Sheesh.
Finally the conversation drew to a close with Sarah's repeated promise to visit in three days' time. Her family kept pressing her for details on where she was, but she only said she needed a little more time to feel like 'herself' again after that bump on the head and her extended illness. Hell, she needed at least that much time to give her husband a makeover so that her parents wouldn't pack him off to Vegas when they saw him.
Just then, a sharp wrapping on the wall/door/whatever reminded them that the coronation ceremony wouldn't wait. Hundreds of nobles were gathered and Whimsyn called through the door that he had JUST the shoes to make Sarah's new golden gown look positively FLAWLESS.
With a mutual sigh, the newlyweds figured that being 'flawless' wasn't such a bad way to face all of fae society. Hopefully Whimsyn had coffee.
Chapter 15
Sarah's eyes flew open in alarm. Where was she? Why couldn't she move?
Her panic attack subsided as she recognized the drapery hanging above her head as that on the Goblin King's bed and realized that she was immobile because said king was lying partially on top of her, snoring up a storm.
So this was married life.
Maybe if she eased just a little to the left.
The snoring stopped abruptly.
Hallelujah.
Sarah eased further toward the edge of the bed and was brought to an abrupt halt by a pair of sinewy arms.
"But darling, we were only just getting started." murmured the Goblin King, nuzzling Sarah's neck.
Instantly, Sarah felt weak in the knees and very, very warm. With a great and valiant effort, she remained capable of rational thought. And boy did she need to think.
Sarah turned toward her (gulp) husband with what she hoped was a promising smile.
"I just need a moment for.well, you know." Somehow she managed to sound apologetic instead of desperate.
"Ah.of course," Jareth clucked, all understanding.
Sarah was just stepping out of bed when she realized that she didn't have a robe. Crud. She knew she was married to Jareth. She knew they had just spent the entire night buck- naked together. She knew that they would probably be spending every night in a similar condition for the rest of their lives. And yet, somehow with the sunlight streaming into every corner of the room, she felt shy.
Hoping against hope, she tried gently to tug the sheet away from him and wrap it around her body. He smiled at her wickedly and kept a firm grip on the bedding.
"Why Sarah! I should have known you'd be a cover stealer!" he laughed, maintaining his hold on the blankets as she tried again to yank them away from him. He enveloped her in his arms and pulled her so close she could feel every inch of his skin glued against her body.
"Whatever shall we do with you?" he murmured huskily, lips already searching for hers.
On cue, she blushed. Nuts.
"Um.it's a little chilly." she muttered, unable to meet her husband's eyes as she tried to disentangle herself from his embrace.
"And that should make the view all the more enjoyable!" he crowed, eyes glowing with anticipation.
Sarah grit her teeth. Okay so it would be a long, naked, freezing, thoroughly witnessed walk to the bathroom then.
Seeing her obvious distress, Jareth took pity on her. He really couldn't deny her anything.
"Fine, fine. No lovely morning vistas for me today," he sighed, conjuring his robe from thin air and tossing it to his wife.
Gratefully she snatched the robe and wrapped it around her as far as it would go (which was nearly twice). She wasn't certain if she should bolt for the bathroom or the door. Glancing over to the solid wall of stonework where the exit should have been she remembered that there wasn't a door anymore. Damn that Jareth. He really did think of everything. With a small sigh of resignation, she trotted off to where she hoped the loo still existed.
As soon as she was alone, Sarah's brain started to work overtime. In only three days she had married her worst enemy, changed her species, been gifted with near-immortality, and was now an active and significant part of the government of a foreign nation. Her family had to be worried sick about her. But she could go to the Aboveworld and see them today, right? Speaking of a visit, what the heck was she going to tell them? "Oh hi. Yeah, I was kidnapped by a Goblin King who forced me to become his bride if I ever wanted to see you again and now I'm immortal and a queen." That sounded splendid. Her family would completely understand why she had disappeared for days and failed to write or call.
She wondered if Jareth would allow her to visit her family alone or if he would insist on accompanying her. That could get.weird. If he did come with her (and this was even weirder) Sarah wanted her family to accept him as her husband and try to make him welcome. She was still unsettled about the circumstances of her marriage, but she was also a practical person. Eternity was eternity. It simply wouldn't do to have her family at odds with her spouse. Maybe she could get him to wear jeans or something - just for a day or two. She could only imagine what her father's reaction might be to the leather/tights/glitter combination. Oh god.
Almost as important was the matter of figuring out how she was going to teach herself about magic. Jareth had studiously avoided answering any of her questions about the strange experiences she'd been having. She wasn't certain about what he might be hiding, but it frightened her a little.
The more she thought about it the more certain she became that the reason Jareth's crystal had shattered two nights ago because she had wanted it to. At the time she had thought he was going to do something terrible to her and so her desire to stop whatever awful spell he was planning had been pretty darn strong. So strong that it seemed to slip outside of her control - slip outside of HER. Even remembering the force that had seemed to rip itself out of her body was exhausting - and exhilarating.
Sarah had to smile to herself at that. If nothing else, she doubted her marriage would be dull. Maybe she should try changing Jareth back into a bunnyrabbit.
Speaking of her husband, she didn't want him to get suspicious. Reluctantly, Sarah left the bathroom and padded back to the bed.
He was gone.
"Jareth?"
No answer.
Oddly, Sarah felt a little hurt.
She started to shuffle dejectedly toward the study when without warning, she felt herself swept off of her feet and straight into a pair of powerful arms.
"So lovely to have you back," Jareth murmured before covering her mouth with his.
"Mmmmph!" she squeaked, twisting against him. Within seconds her robe was lying in a heap on the floor and Sarah found herself once again captive in Jareth's embrace. She thought she should protest -at least until plans were set for her to visit her family. Well, nuts. Would wrapping her arms around her husband and returning his kisses with enthusiasm qualify as sufficient resistance?
Details. Pah.
Jareth spent the next several hours garnering his own impression of married life. If the first day was any indication, he expected to spend the rest of eternity floating in a shimmering haze of lust and pleasant exhaustion.
Several hours later, the lovers lay spent across the bed, Jareth lightly caressing Sarah's back.
"Jareth?"
"Mmmm?"
"I'm going to see my family today, right?"
Crap. He had planned today for Sarah's coronation. Invitations had been issued and all the nobles from the Underground were to be in attendance. He could always postpone it, but that might cause a war. Temperamental. That was Fae nobility for you. But if he told Sarah no.
Racking his brains, he tried to stall.
"Well, darling.you won't be able to see them right away."
Sarah felt her whole body turn to ice. He had betrayed her.
"WHY NOT?"
"We didn't get to discuss everything that's involved in being my queen. Sarah, today is your coronation. I cannot postpone it and yes, you absolutely MUST be there." Even if I have to gag you and chain you to the throne, he thought.
"Jareth, you gave me your word that I could see my family as soon as we were married."
"No, Sarah, I didn't. I told you that you could visit them AFTER we were married. I never said exactly when."
He knew he was being a jerk. He also knew he didn't have a choice.
Sarah was so angry that she couldn't even cry. This was too cruel - even for Jareth. Without another word, she stood up from the bed, now uncaring about her nakedness and strode from the room.
It wasn't fair but that was simply how it was.
Fine.
She would just have to do this herself.
Jareth stared after her, knowing he was in for some serious trouble. WHY, when everything was going so splendidly, did something stupid (like a critical function of governing a nation for example) have to go and screw it up? He had already scheduled Whimsyn to prepare Sarah for the coronation ceremony, but now thought that perhaps he should sit in on the preparations himself. He couldn't risk his young queen doing something rash - like running away - right before she was expected to appear before all of the most powerful figures in the Underground. Now that Sarah was bound to him as his wife, he could find her anywhere she might run simply by listening for her heartbeat in his own blood. But now that she was his wife, she could RUN because the spell that had been holding her as his captive was no longer in effect. She was no longer mortal.
No, he really didn't dare leave her side while she was in a temper like that.
Frantically, Jareth tried to think of some way to placate his wife. He was a little slow at it since he had never cared to appease anyone before. Everyone had always bent over backwards to appease HIM. Goblins balls! What was he supposed to do?
After a moment, he followed Sarah into the study. He found her standing in front of a plain, stone wall that had once been the French doors leading to the balcony that she had tried to use as an escape two nights ago. Yes, he did think of everything and thank the gods for that. Sarah didn't turn to face him, but he could see her shoulders shaking. It physically pained him to see her crying like that.
"Sarah - "
"Go away."
"No."
She turned to face him and the sight of her nearly took his breath away. Sarah was still naked, hair tangled, face tearstained. Her beauty hit him like a physical blow, but it was more than that. For that one second her guard was down and he saw the woman within - proud, frightened, strong - and deeply, deeply hurt. Jareth had braced himself for her rage, not this gut-wrenching, heart-stopping pain. Knowing he was the cause was almost more than he could stand.
"Sarah - "
"Jareth, just go."
"Please hear me out!"
Her eyes widened in surprise. She had never heard Jareth say 'please' before.
"Sarah, I should have told you about the coronation. The ceremony must be completed today. To postpone it would be such an insult to the nobles attending that I would risk a war. I will not thrust my kingdom - OUR kingdom - into such a position. You have my oath as your husband that we will visit your family as soon as the festivities are finished."
"And exactly how long are these 'festivities'?"
"Three days or so."
Sarah couldn't rip the image of Toby's worried face from her mind.
"THREE DAYS?!"
Jareth was getting so frustrated that he wanted to zap something into oblivion.
"I gave you my word that you could visit them and you will - AFTER your duties to our kingdom are complete."
"And what if I refuse to take part in these 'duties'? You promised to let me see my family after I became your wife. I've held up my end of the bargain and you have yet to deliver on yours."
Sarah knew she was walking on landmines and really, she would never deliberately send the kingdom to war. After all, her friends lived there and she had no intention of putting them in danger. But she had to have SOME kind of leverage in this situation. What little trust she had in Jareth had just been badly shaken. Was he really going to let her see her family or had the whole thing just been an elaborate lie so that he could have her under his power - in every way?
"My dear.I do not think refusal is among your options," Jareth hissed, stalking toward her in a manner that made her turn a little pale. She put up her hands to ward him off, but Jareth grabbed her wrists and held them in his steel grip.
His hold was painful, but Sarah didn't struggle. She looked him straight in the eye and made a decision.
"Jareth, I will take part in the coronation. No matter what you seem to think, I am not such a spoiled brat that I would start a war just to make a point." Her voice was quiet, but her eyes held something sad and unsettling.
With that Sarah had said her piece and simply stared at him for a moment, but Jareth didn't release his hold on her. When she tried to tug her way free, he only tightened his fingers around her wrists.
"No, you're not running from me. I have something to say to you. Sarah, I gave you my word that you would see your family and you shall," he said softly. "I made a grave error in not telling you about the coronation ceremony. My dear, I'm certain you must think only the worst of me as your husband at this point, but I would like to prove otherwise. Write them a letter and I will see that they receive it today. Tell them that you will be coming to see them in three days' time accompanied by your husband."
A-aaallrighty then. So he would be coming with her after all.
"To prove that I am keeping my word to you, I will even give you a crystal so that you can watch as they open the letter."
Sarah swallowed.
"How much time do I have before I need to prepare for the ceremony?"
"No more than an hour. You should eat something."
He relaxed his death grip on her and stroked her hair back from her face.
Sarah was oddly touched by his concern. She was also trying to think of some convincing story she could give her family that would explain a week- long disappearance without a phone call and the startling addition of a new husband in tights and glitter. At a loss, she turned to the only person she thought could help her.
"Jareth, what on earth am I going to say in that letter?"
"Just what I told you. Is there anything wrong with that?"
"Look.let's talk about this over breakfast. Do you have paper and a pen or something around here?"
Five minutes later the newlyweds were ensconced back in the bed, munching on crumpets and pouring over a mostly blank sheet of paper with several blotches on it since Sarah was somewhat inexperienced with using a quill. When he had kidnapped Sarah, Jareth had never expected to get her to agree to marry him while her family was still alive to hear about it. This unplanned- for contingency was starting to get a little messy.
"Could we say I rescued you from.from .a dragon?"
Sarah gave him a withering look.
"Okay, okay. Just kidding. I know! I rescued you from a band of thieves who had kidnapped you and were about to kill you because they discovered that you had no money."
Sarah snorted in disgust.
"Why are YOU always rescuing ME? I think it makes more sense to say that I was called away in the middle of the night to say goodbye to a friend on her deathbed and you.were her cousin.yeah."
It was Jareth's turn to snort.
"Where would you have been 'called to' that didn't have a telephone? I think we should stick with me rescuing you from something. It's much more romantic."
Sarah burst into laughter. She wasn't certain where abducting her and then feeding her cheese dogs fit on the romance scale, but it was decidedly suspect.
"Okay. A friend calls me in the middle of the night with an emergency and when I head over there.I trip and hit my head?" Sarah thought a bump on the head might be her only safe explanation for marrying someone as .ah.unusual as Jareth would appear to be in the Aboveworld.
"Okay. I find you - but why haven't I rushed you to a hospital?"
Damn. A hole in her story already.
"Umm - you didn't know there was anything wrong with me at first. You saw that I had a nasty bruise and.and."
"You were lost."
"Right!"
"And when I took you home with me to get you out of the rain."
"I got a bad fever!"
"Right.so I took care of you, but you kept getting worse so."
"You called a priest and told him that you wanted him to marry us in case I died so that I wouldn't die a sinner because we had already slept together!"
That whole concept was foreign to Jareth, but he nodded anyway, deciding to trust his wife on this point when it came to Aboveground society.
"And by the time you had recovered, your memory had returned."
"But we had also fallen in love so we decided to stay married!"
Jareth practically burst with joy when he thought of Sarah actually falling in love with him. He didn't think she loved him yet, but he planned to do everything in his power to encourage her feelings.
Sarah thought the whole thing was pretty far-fetched and probably full of holes, but it was the best she could come up with on such short notice. Smiling, she penned a clean copy of the letter and passed it to her husband.
Jareth folded it into a charming paper airplane and sent it straight into the fire in the hearth.
Sarah was preparing to fold HIM into a tiny little airplane pilot and send him to the same place when he produced a crystal and presented it to her with a flourish.
Inside, Sarah saw her brother Toby pick up the mail from the box.and then drop the mail on the lawn.and head toward the house in a dead run clutching a crumpled envelope in his fist. He reached the door screaming "MOM! MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMM!!!"
"Toby! Are you alright, sweetheart?" Karen came running.
Toby couldn't even speak, but held the envelope out to Karen. In a second Karen was screaming "RICHARD! RIIIIIIIIIIICHAAAAAAAAAAARD!!"
Sarah's father came running and the little family huddled around the envelope as Karen ripped it open. Sarah's family stared at the letter with worried frowns as they read through it several times.
"Richard, do you think this is real?"
"It's very strange that she hasn't called. This guy she's supposedly married to - why wouldn't he have a phone? Or help Sarah get to a phone so that she could call us and tell us she was safe? I'm calling the police."
Crud. That wasn't what Sarah had been hoping to accomplish. Now they were more worried and suspicious than ever. She looked over at Jareth who appeared to be in deep thought.
"Sarah, we don't use telephones here."
Well duh.
".but .perhaps a voice spell? On the telephone in your world.Yes! All right, I'm going to give you this crystal and I want you to speak into it. Tell me when it sounds like a voice over a telephone."
"Huh?"
"You know! Like what you hear from someone when you answer the telephone. It's not like having a person in the same room with you is it?"
"No, not really."
"All right then."
Sarah felt beyond silly holding some glowing crystal and saying 'test, test' over and over again. It reminded her of doing sound checks in the theater and she got completely homesick.
After a few minutes, they had the sound right.
"My love, prepare to call your parents and explain everything."
Fabulous. She couldn't have been more confident.
She heard her parents' phone ring in Jareth's other crystal and was soon saying "Dad? Karen? Hi!" She explained her disappearance just as she had in the letter with a few added details about how Jareth's phone had been out, she hadn't been carrying ID on her, he didn't know what number to call and thought her family might freak out if he called them instead of her, etc. Sarah knew the story was wobbly at best, but they seemed to buy it now that she was actually speaking the words herself. Ahhh. Years of theater training. She could sell any script by now.
Jareth was so proud of his wife he thought he might float through the air with a silly grin on his face. He became especially intrigued with the conversation when Sarah's parents started asking her about him and their sudden marriage. The girl practically gushed into the crystal "phone" about how happy she was, how he was utterly gorgeous, kind, witty, and generally everything she had ever dreamed of in a man.
Sarah supposed she was laying it on a little thick, but how else was she to explain something that would otherwise be completely out of character for her? She hadn't even DATED a man in four years. Sheesh.
Finally the conversation drew to a close with Sarah's repeated promise to visit in three days' time. Her family kept pressing her for details on where she was, but she only said she needed a little more time to feel like 'herself' again after that bump on the head and her extended illness. Hell, she needed at least that much time to give her husband a makeover so that her parents wouldn't pack him off to Vegas when they saw him.
Just then, a sharp wrapping on the wall/door/whatever reminded them that the coronation ceremony wouldn't wait. Hundreds of nobles were gathered and Whimsyn called through the door that he had JUST the shoes to make Sarah's new golden gown look positively FLAWLESS.
With a mutual sigh, the newlyweds figured that being 'flawless' wasn't such a bad way to face all of fae society. Hopefully Whimsyn had coffee.