Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from "Labyrinth". I guess I own the
apple juice at least for a little while because I drank it. : )
Chapter 16
Sarah's coronation passed in a blur of parties, ceremonies, and enormous dinners. Jareth was at her side every minute offering support and guidance. He was also the ultimate Cliff Notes on fae nobility. The sound of his voice in her ear whispering the names of the nobles she didn't know and reminding her of the proper greeting for each was the best gift she could have asked for.
Sarah had known that her chosen career path in the Aboveworld might have led to a brush with fame eventually if she was lucky; but she had never dreamed of what it would really be like to be stared at by everyone and have her life picked apart down to the tiniest detail of the buttons on her dress to who she said hello to and what she had for dinner by an entire society. She vowed that if she ever made it home to see her family, she would send Julia Roberts an enormous sympathy bouquet. Jareth (blast him) took everything in stride and made it all look so easy. Sarah had never expected to be so jealous of her husband! Couldn't there be just one, teeny, tiny thing that he was just a little bit unsure of?
As she laughed with strangers and racked her brains for etiquette and protocol, she couldn't help but be struck how beautiful her new home was, even if it did come with an enormous amount of responsibility. Every ball or dinner seemed like a magical circus event with performers and fountains and fireworks - and every manner of strange creature seemed to appear there. It was damnably difficult to determine which ones were pets, which servants, and which royals. Jareth had to stop Sarah more than once as she was preparing a formal address for beings that were actually the Underground equivalent of an Aboveworld poodle or pet parakeet.
After the first day of misaddressing parakeets, Sarah tumbled into bed exhausted. As she felt the Goblin King's arms close around her and his soft snores begin, her body was screaming for sleep but her mind refused to listen. Through all of the endless pomp and mingling she hadn't been able to completely draw her thoughts away from her upcoming trip home. She hadn't had the opportunity to discuss the visit with Jareth yet and was praying that he wouldn't be as stubborn as he usually was.
When an hour later, Sarah was still staring at the ceiling with her eyes wide open, she decided that the least she could do was put the few hours she had to herself to good use. She couldn't ease her worries about visiting her family while Jareth was sleeping but she COULD start on her studies about magic. In fact, her studying was probably best pursued while her husband was in dreamland. Easing slowly out of the bed, she grabbed Jareth's robe (for some strange reason he had yet to provide her with a robe of her own), picked up a candle and slipped out the door that Jareth (after much convincing) had finally agreed to put back into the wall. Given that she was now sneaking out to find Jareth's library and learn a little magic of her own, she supposed he had a right to be somewhat paranoid.
Silently she slipped into the corridor outside. Which way was that dratted library? Sarah had spent so much time performing her various duties as queen that she hadn't had much time for exploring since her afternoon with Hoggle. She paused for a moment considering - right, left, or straight? Thinking the right hallway looked somewhat familiar, Sarah started down it, trying to feel confident; but as she continued, she became less certain of her choice. The shadows on the walls seemed to take on a life of their own, growing deeper and deeper until the frail light of Sarah's candle was barely bright enough for her to see where she was going. She saw another hallway on the right - was that the way?
Her heart in her mouth, she started down the passage only to stop abruptly. What was that noise? She thought she heard a faint scurrying and cackling just a little further on ahead. It sounded like.GOBLINS! Sarah wasn't certain if she should be afraid or not. Technically, she WAS the new Goblin Queen, but she had yet to encounter any of Jareth's goblins on her own. She felt something furry run over her foot and gave a little squeak of alarm. That had better have been a goblin because if it was really a rat, she was going to completely freak out.
"Who's there?" she called, praying to every god she could think of that some random servant would pop around the corner and say 'It is only I, my lady' or some such nonsense. Instead, she heard faint snickerings and laughter and then a low, ominous growl. That growl sounded like it was coming from something that hadn't had anything to eat in a long, long time. That growl had also sounded awfully close.
Like any sane woman, Sarah obeyed her instincts and turned around and started running. She knew this was probably not the best first impression to leave on her new minions; but if that thing back there was a rat instead of a goblin, or one very large, hungry goblin instead of a rat, she was taking no chances. Sadly, running proved to be a mistake. The breeze from her flight proved to be just enough to blow out her candle. Sarah was forced to stop running so that she wouldn't smack into any walls, but the pitch darkness didn't seem to be an obstacle for whatever was chasing her. If the noise was any indication, whatever it was seemed to be gaining.
Fighting her rising panic Sarah stumbled ahead blindly, trying to feel for any obstacles in front of her with her hands. The scratching and scurrying kept getting closer and closer. Sara bit back her frightened sobs as she plunged onward into the blackness ahead. Suddenly she slammed into something solid. Rather SOMEONE solid. Someone who held her fast in spite of all of her struggles and screams. Strong arms yanked her close and a gloved hand closed over her mouth.
"Sarah, love, it's only me."
Jareth.
Instantly she stopped fighting and sagged against him in relief. The scurrying noises behind her ceased abruptly as she rested her head on his shoulder. To her great irritation, she was still sobbing.
"Darling, what happened? And what on earth are you doing out of bed?"
Ah yes. She'd have to explain that one somehow.
Thinking quickly, Sarah gasped, "I couldn't sleep and.and.I was thirsty. I had this weird craving for.um.apple juice. I went looking for the kitchens and I got lost. My candle went out and there were these strange noises - something seemed to be following me!"
"Shhh.my dearest, I would never allow any harm to come to you. You must believe that."
Jareth pulled her even more tightly against him and rocked her in his arms. After a moment her tears subsided. Oddly, she found that she was clinging to him.
"What you heard was just my goblins. They love to play games with anyone up and about. You have to take them firmly in hand - show them who's boss," he chuckled. "They probably didn't know it was you."
"Oh," Sarah said in a very small voice. Goodie. Her first day as Queen and she had already make an idiot of herself.
"And Sarah, if you want anything at all, just wake me and ask. There are a few advantages to being my queen you know." And the woman I love, he added to himself, though he certainly wasn't ready to share that piece of news with her yet.
Jareth still had the nagging suspicion that his wife wasn't telling him the whole truth about why she was up and wandering about in the middle of the night, but he decided to let it go just this once. Perhaps he should remove the door from their chambers again? No. He was too curious to learn what she was really up to. Whatever it was, his lovely bride would try again - that is if he knew his Sarah. In moments, he had conjured a light spell, produced a goblet of apple juice and was escorting Sarah safely back to their room.
Sarah looked up at him with a mixture of gratitude and suspicion. He had seemed to believe her reasons for being awake and out of bed readily enough. Perhaps she could go even further?
"Jareth, there is one thing I did want to ask you for."
"Yes, love?"
"I really do love to read. I was wondering if you would mind if I borrowed a book from your library now and then?"
"My dear, it's our library now. Of course not."
"Oh! Good.Will I be able to read many of them though?"
"What? Oh, of course! I'll manage a translation spell in the morning so you can read any books you like. Is there anything you would like to read tonight?"
"Actually, I think all of the excitement I got myself into has worn me out. I'll definitely take you up on your offer tomorrow though. Thank you, Jareth."
With a smile, he lifted his already nodding wife into his arms and tucked her snugly under the covers. He could hardly wait to find out just what she was up to.
The next day, Sarah's concentration was suffering as she endured the endless stream of nobles and well-wishers who kept pressing around her. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were bright so she looked plenty alert and alive, but her mind was already in Jareth's library, delving through every tome on magic that she could find.
She had started to notice the immense forces of magic that seemed to permeate every aspect of life in the Underground. She could see guests performing various spells all over the assembly hall. She was able identify the conjuring magics easily enough since a spell was pretty obvious if someone pulled something from midair that wouldn't usually have been there - like a glass of water or a doughnut. But other things.she could see the gestures and hear a casually muttered incantation once in awhile with no noticeable change, but she felt certain that some kind of spell had just gone off. There always seemed to be some kind of prickle in the air anytime magic was put into play.
That night, she curled against Jareth, grateful that he seemed to think she would be too tired for his attentions while the coronation festivities were occupying their days. Actually, she had so much adrenaline pumping through her system, she doubted she would manage sleep even if she knew her life depended on it. She waited until the king's breathing had been deep and even for some time before she lightly slid from the bed, grabbed the robe and candle and made a beeline for the library. She'd been smarter about it this time and made good and certain that her husband showed her the correct path to both the library (and the kitchens so that her story would look less suspicious) before they'd attended the morning banquet.
Sarah padded out the door and down the hall as quickly as she could while remaining silent. She wasn't certain how much time she would have before Jareth caught her - if he did. She decided to tell him the truth if he ended up finding her. Well, sort of the truth. She would tell him that she had once again had trouble sleeping and had gone looking for a book to pass the time.
Finally, she reached the double doors of the library and gently pushed them open. Once inside, she almost gave up hope right there. The library was enormous and the light from her candle was fragile at best. How would she ever manage to see her way around, let alone find the particular books she was looking for? She shuffled inside, closing the door behind her. She wasn't ready to give up hope yet.
She remembered the cabinet that Jareth had pointed out as the library's organization system. It wasn't exactly like one of those antiquated card catalogues she remembered from when she was a little girl, but it was close enough. Sarah opened the low wooden doors of the cabinet to reveal a series of notebooks labeled like an encyclopedia. With any luck, she would find the books she was looking for under "M". After a few minutes of searching, she came up with "Magic: a Brief History" listed at over 3000 pages and "Magic Users: Sorcerers Through the Ages". Not really what she was looking for. Surely Jareth didn't keep books on spells locked up somewhere else? To the best of her knowledge, the goblins couldn't read and everyone else already knew how to use magic so there wasn't much of a point in hiding books about spell-casting now was there? What if she looked for certain kinds of magic instead?
The first kind of spell that came to Sarah's mind was conjuring since A. it would be obvious if she had performed the spell correctly and B. light spells were probably conjuring spells and she could sure use some light about now. She thumbed through the cabinet some more, until she located the tome that would list any resources about conjuring that might be available.
Sarah was so intent on what she was doing that she never saw the library door open and close, making only a whisper of noise against the thick carpet.
After a minute, she located the reference numbers for several books on conjuring. Great. Now all she had to do was figure out where those books were located in this monolithic library. For once, luck was on her side and she found the books she was looking for within fifteen minutes of patient searching: "A Rabbit, A Pound Cake, A Hat", "Creative Conjuring: 2000 Recipes", "The Power of the Word: Conjuring Out of Thin Air". Sarah didn't need a rabbit, a pound cake, or a hat nor did she have any ingredients for anything on hand. (In fact she felt a little stupid that she hadn't thought of that in the first place.) However, thin air seemed to be present in abundance, so she settled on the third book and skimmed the contents for light spells.
She saw three different light spells listed, but the text didn't explain how any of them might be different from one another. Shrugging her shoulders, she looked over the words for the first one. Was she supposed to hold her hands in a special way as she said them? Jareth always seemed to do everything with a graceful flick of the wrist. Okay. Fine. She would just pretend to be him.
Sarah read over the instructions and tried to concentrate. Her heart was pounding. She could do this. Hell, she had to do this. Her candle had burnt so low it could go out any second. She whispered the words to herself and practiced Jareth's wrist flick. As she was preparing to stand tall and deliver the spell for the first time, a shower of sparking light burst over her. So whispering worked as well as shouting then. She would have to remember that.
Sarah stood gawking in amazement at what she had done. WOW! SHE had done THAT. A slow smile broke over her face as she stared up at the sparking light. She didn't sense the presence behind her until it was too late. A pair of arms closed roughly around her and a voice growled low in her ear.
"No wonder you're having trouble sleeping. Perhaps if we shut out some of this light, you'll find it easier to stay in bed."
The next thing she knew, she felt a scarf drawn over her eyes and tied tightly.
Damn, damn, damn.
"Jareth.I.was only."
"Only what? Sneaking around at night with your 'insomnia'? Looking for something to keep you amused? My dear, if amusement is what you crave, I can think of several activities to occupy your time."
Sarah felt Jareth's hand trace the curve of her waist and hip as he held her in place with one arm. His meaning was unmistakable.
"Jareth."
Sarah lifted her hands blindly to ward him off, but he easily caught them and held them together before she could tear off the blindfold.
"I'm certain we can cure your sleeplessness, love," he murmured with a sinister chuckle. "To bed with you then."
Sarah felt a rush of air and then Jareth's body pressed against hers as he eased her down on what had to be their bed. She reached up in a second attempt to tug the scarf away from her eyes, but he stopped her again by twining his fingers with hers and pressing her hands into the pillows above her head.
"Oh no, Sarah mine. Lying to your sovereign will not go unpunished."
Crap. She should have picked up the book about pound cakes. If she turned her husband into pastry, she might be able to get out of this.
Chapter 16
Sarah's coronation passed in a blur of parties, ceremonies, and enormous dinners. Jareth was at her side every minute offering support and guidance. He was also the ultimate Cliff Notes on fae nobility. The sound of his voice in her ear whispering the names of the nobles she didn't know and reminding her of the proper greeting for each was the best gift she could have asked for.
Sarah had known that her chosen career path in the Aboveworld might have led to a brush with fame eventually if she was lucky; but she had never dreamed of what it would really be like to be stared at by everyone and have her life picked apart down to the tiniest detail of the buttons on her dress to who she said hello to and what she had for dinner by an entire society. She vowed that if she ever made it home to see her family, she would send Julia Roberts an enormous sympathy bouquet. Jareth (blast him) took everything in stride and made it all look so easy. Sarah had never expected to be so jealous of her husband! Couldn't there be just one, teeny, tiny thing that he was just a little bit unsure of?
As she laughed with strangers and racked her brains for etiquette and protocol, she couldn't help but be struck how beautiful her new home was, even if it did come with an enormous amount of responsibility. Every ball or dinner seemed like a magical circus event with performers and fountains and fireworks - and every manner of strange creature seemed to appear there. It was damnably difficult to determine which ones were pets, which servants, and which royals. Jareth had to stop Sarah more than once as she was preparing a formal address for beings that were actually the Underground equivalent of an Aboveworld poodle or pet parakeet.
After the first day of misaddressing parakeets, Sarah tumbled into bed exhausted. As she felt the Goblin King's arms close around her and his soft snores begin, her body was screaming for sleep but her mind refused to listen. Through all of the endless pomp and mingling she hadn't been able to completely draw her thoughts away from her upcoming trip home. She hadn't had the opportunity to discuss the visit with Jareth yet and was praying that he wouldn't be as stubborn as he usually was.
When an hour later, Sarah was still staring at the ceiling with her eyes wide open, she decided that the least she could do was put the few hours she had to herself to good use. She couldn't ease her worries about visiting her family while Jareth was sleeping but she COULD start on her studies about magic. In fact, her studying was probably best pursued while her husband was in dreamland. Easing slowly out of the bed, she grabbed Jareth's robe (for some strange reason he had yet to provide her with a robe of her own), picked up a candle and slipped out the door that Jareth (after much convincing) had finally agreed to put back into the wall. Given that she was now sneaking out to find Jareth's library and learn a little magic of her own, she supposed he had a right to be somewhat paranoid.
Silently she slipped into the corridor outside. Which way was that dratted library? Sarah had spent so much time performing her various duties as queen that she hadn't had much time for exploring since her afternoon with Hoggle. She paused for a moment considering - right, left, or straight? Thinking the right hallway looked somewhat familiar, Sarah started down it, trying to feel confident; but as she continued, she became less certain of her choice. The shadows on the walls seemed to take on a life of their own, growing deeper and deeper until the frail light of Sarah's candle was barely bright enough for her to see where she was going. She saw another hallway on the right - was that the way?
Her heart in her mouth, she started down the passage only to stop abruptly. What was that noise? She thought she heard a faint scurrying and cackling just a little further on ahead. It sounded like.GOBLINS! Sarah wasn't certain if she should be afraid or not. Technically, she WAS the new Goblin Queen, but she had yet to encounter any of Jareth's goblins on her own. She felt something furry run over her foot and gave a little squeak of alarm. That had better have been a goblin because if it was really a rat, she was going to completely freak out.
"Who's there?" she called, praying to every god she could think of that some random servant would pop around the corner and say 'It is only I, my lady' or some such nonsense. Instead, she heard faint snickerings and laughter and then a low, ominous growl. That growl sounded like it was coming from something that hadn't had anything to eat in a long, long time. That growl had also sounded awfully close.
Like any sane woman, Sarah obeyed her instincts and turned around and started running. She knew this was probably not the best first impression to leave on her new minions; but if that thing back there was a rat instead of a goblin, or one very large, hungry goblin instead of a rat, she was taking no chances. Sadly, running proved to be a mistake. The breeze from her flight proved to be just enough to blow out her candle. Sarah was forced to stop running so that she wouldn't smack into any walls, but the pitch darkness didn't seem to be an obstacle for whatever was chasing her. If the noise was any indication, whatever it was seemed to be gaining.
Fighting her rising panic Sarah stumbled ahead blindly, trying to feel for any obstacles in front of her with her hands. The scratching and scurrying kept getting closer and closer. Sara bit back her frightened sobs as she plunged onward into the blackness ahead. Suddenly she slammed into something solid. Rather SOMEONE solid. Someone who held her fast in spite of all of her struggles and screams. Strong arms yanked her close and a gloved hand closed over her mouth.
"Sarah, love, it's only me."
Jareth.
Instantly she stopped fighting and sagged against him in relief. The scurrying noises behind her ceased abruptly as she rested her head on his shoulder. To her great irritation, she was still sobbing.
"Darling, what happened? And what on earth are you doing out of bed?"
Ah yes. She'd have to explain that one somehow.
Thinking quickly, Sarah gasped, "I couldn't sleep and.and.I was thirsty. I had this weird craving for.um.apple juice. I went looking for the kitchens and I got lost. My candle went out and there were these strange noises - something seemed to be following me!"
"Shhh.my dearest, I would never allow any harm to come to you. You must believe that."
Jareth pulled her even more tightly against him and rocked her in his arms. After a moment her tears subsided. Oddly, she found that she was clinging to him.
"What you heard was just my goblins. They love to play games with anyone up and about. You have to take them firmly in hand - show them who's boss," he chuckled. "They probably didn't know it was you."
"Oh," Sarah said in a very small voice. Goodie. Her first day as Queen and she had already make an idiot of herself.
"And Sarah, if you want anything at all, just wake me and ask. There are a few advantages to being my queen you know." And the woman I love, he added to himself, though he certainly wasn't ready to share that piece of news with her yet.
Jareth still had the nagging suspicion that his wife wasn't telling him the whole truth about why she was up and wandering about in the middle of the night, but he decided to let it go just this once. Perhaps he should remove the door from their chambers again? No. He was too curious to learn what she was really up to. Whatever it was, his lovely bride would try again - that is if he knew his Sarah. In moments, he had conjured a light spell, produced a goblet of apple juice and was escorting Sarah safely back to their room.
Sarah looked up at him with a mixture of gratitude and suspicion. He had seemed to believe her reasons for being awake and out of bed readily enough. Perhaps she could go even further?
"Jareth, there is one thing I did want to ask you for."
"Yes, love?"
"I really do love to read. I was wondering if you would mind if I borrowed a book from your library now and then?"
"My dear, it's our library now. Of course not."
"Oh! Good.Will I be able to read many of them though?"
"What? Oh, of course! I'll manage a translation spell in the morning so you can read any books you like. Is there anything you would like to read tonight?"
"Actually, I think all of the excitement I got myself into has worn me out. I'll definitely take you up on your offer tomorrow though. Thank you, Jareth."
With a smile, he lifted his already nodding wife into his arms and tucked her snugly under the covers. He could hardly wait to find out just what she was up to.
The next day, Sarah's concentration was suffering as she endured the endless stream of nobles and well-wishers who kept pressing around her. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were bright so she looked plenty alert and alive, but her mind was already in Jareth's library, delving through every tome on magic that she could find.
She had started to notice the immense forces of magic that seemed to permeate every aspect of life in the Underground. She could see guests performing various spells all over the assembly hall. She was able identify the conjuring magics easily enough since a spell was pretty obvious if someone pulled something from midair that wouldn't usually have been there - like a glass of water or a doughnut. But other things.she could see the gestures and hear a casually muttered incantation once in awhile with no noticeable change, but she felt certain that some kind of spell had just gone off. There always seemed to be some kind of prickle in the air anytime magic was put into play.
That night, she curled against Jareth, grateful that he seemed to think she would be too tired for his attentions while the coronation festivities were occupying their days. Actually, she had so much adrenaline pumping through her system, she doubted she would manage sleep even if she knew her life depended on it. She waited until the king's breathing had been deep and even for some time before she lightly slid from the bed, grabbed the robe and candle and made a beeline for the library. She'd been smarter about it this time and made good and certain that her husband showed her the correct path to both the library (and the kitchens so that her story would look less suspicious) before they'd attended the morning banquet.
Sarah padded out the door and down the hall as quickly as she could while remaining silent. She wasn't certain how much time she would have before Jareth caught her - if he did. She decided to tell him the truth if he ended up finding her. Well, sort of the truth. She would tell him that she had once again had trouble sleeping and had gone looking for a book to pass the time.
Finally, she reached the double doors of the library and gently pushed them open. Once inside, she almost gave up hope right there. The library was enormous and the light from her candle was fragile at best. How would she ever manage to see her way around, let alone find the particular books she was looking for? She shuffled inside, closing the door behind her. She wasn't ready to give up hope yet.
She remembered the cabinet that Jareth had pointed out as the library's organization system. It wasn't exactly like one of those antiquated card catalogues she remembered from when she was a little girl, but it was close enough. Sarah opened the low wooden doors of the cabinet to reveal a series of notebooks labeled like an encyclopedia. With any luck, she would find the books she was looking for under "M". After a few minutes of searching, she came up with "Magic: a Brief History" listed at over 3000 pages and "Magic Users: Sorcerers Through the Ages". Not really what she was looking for. Surely Jareth didn't keep books on spells locked up somewhere else? To the best of her knowledge, the goblins couldn't read and everyone else already knew how to use magic so there wasn't much of a point in hiding books about spell-casting now was there? What if she looked for certain kinds of magic instead?
The first kind of spell that came to Sarah's mind was conjuring since A. it would be obvious if she had performed the spell correctly and B. light spells were probably conjuring spells and she could sure use some light about now. She thumbed through the cabinet some more, until she located the tome that would list any resources about conjuring that might be available.
Sarah was so intent on what she was doing that she never saw the library door open and close, making only a whisper of noise against the thick carpet.
After a minute, she located the reference numbers for several books on conjuring. Great. Now all she had to do was figure out where those books were located in this monolithic library. For once, luck was on her side and she found the books she was looking for within fifteen minutes of patient searching: "A Rabbit, A Pound Cake, A Hat", "Creative Conjuring: 2000 Recipes", "The Power of the Word: Conjuring Out of Thin Air". Sarah didn't need a rabbit, a pound cake, or a hat nor did she have any ingredients for anything on hand. (In fact she felt a little stupid that she hadn't thought of that in the first place.) However, thin air seemed to be present in abundance, so she settled on the third book and skimmed the contents for light spells.
She saw three different light spells listed, but the text didn't explain how any of them might be different from one another. Shrugging her shoulders, she looked over the words for the first one. Was she supposed to hold her hands in a special way as she said them? Jareth always seemed to do everything with a graceful flick of the wrist. Okay. Fine. She would just pretend to be him.
Sarah read over the instructions and tried to concentrate. Her heart was pounding. She could do this. Hell, she had to do this. Her candle had burnt so low it could go out any second. She whispered the words to herself and practiced Jareth's wrist flick. As she was preparing to stand tall and deliver the spell for the first time, a shower of sparking light burst over her. So whispering worked as well as shouting then. She would have to remember that.
Sarah stood gawking in amazement at what she had done. WOW! SHE had done THAT. A slow smile broke over her face as she stared up at the sparking light. She didn't sense the presence behind her until it was too late. A pair of arms closed roughly around her and a voice growled low in her ear.
"No wonder you're having trouble sleeping. Perhaps if we shut out some of this light, you'll find it easier to stay in bed."
The next thing she knew, she felt a scarf drawn over her eyes and tied tightly.
Damn, damn, damn.
"Jareth.I.was only."
"Only what? Sneaking around at night with your 'insomnia'? Looking for something to keep you amused? My dear, if amusement is what you crave, I can think of several activities to occupy your time."
Sarah felt Jareth's hand trace the curve of her waist and hip as he held her in place with one arm. His meaning was unmistakable.
"Jareth."
Sarah lifted her hands blindly to ward him off, but he easily caught them and held them together before she could tear off the blindfold.
"I'm certain we can cure your sleeplessness, love," he murmured with a sinister chuckle. "To bed with you then."
Sarah felt a rush of air and then Jareth's body pressed against hers as he eased her down on what had to be their bed. She reached up in a second attempt to tug the scarf away from her eyes, but he stopped her again by twining his fingers with hers and pressing her hands into the pillows above her head.
"Oh no, Sarah mine. Lying to your sovereign will not go unpunished."
Crap. She should have picked up the book about pound cakes. If she turned her husband into pastry, she might be able to get out of this.