Chapter Nineteen - The evening of discussion
Arian's dark eyes fluttered open to unusual surroundings. Her familiar piles of ancient
tomes and the bare stone walls of her room were nowhere to be found. Instead she was
in a small airy bedroom, tastefully decorated in lilac and silver (Sarah had got this idea
from Changing Rooms on TV) the everyday draughts were gone and the unnatural
orange glow of the street lamp outside streamed through the window onto the white
duvet. After her usual moment of grogginess she remembered where she was and
slammed her head down on the pillow with relief. The day had been exhausting but
there was still a whole new and exciting world to discover. She looked at the clock on
the bedside table and smiled at the novelty of seeing a twelve hour face, she still
wasn't used to it. It was eight in the evening and the city outside was still buzzing with
activity. A plane overhead, people laughing in the street, the neighbour's dog... It all
sounded so strange and yet so natural! For the first time in her life, Arian felt truly at
home and nothing was going to make her leave it. Not even Labyrinths and Goblin
Kings.
There was a knock at the door and the woman she had met earlier walked in. She
looked a lot more at ease than she had done before. No doubt Higgle had filled her in
on the details.
"I made dinner if you something to eat." said Sarah.
"Oh. Yes, thank you." the girl replied and quietly followed her downstairs. She could
hear loud snoring coming from the living room.
"Hoggle decided to go to bed early." Sarah explained.
"Oh."
"I hope you don't mind sleeping on the floor." she continued.
"No. That's fine." said Arian as they sat at the kitchen table. She eyed the macaroni
Sarah served her with suspicion, took a small bite then smiled. It must've been to her
liking.
"So, Arian, tell me about yourself." said Sarah.
"Well, I'll be fifteen in October and I love reading. Books from the aboveground are
my favourite. I know you're supposed to stop reading them when you begin to grow up
but I just find them fascinating." Sarah was surprised at how much the girl knew about
her world's literature, although she didn't know anything that came later than 1900.
She was also astounded to know that this girl was fluent in nearly all the Latin and
Arabic based languages and listened with fascination as the Goblin King's daughter
proudly chatted on about her plans for studying Eastern European languages and
possibly going on to look at Chinese and all other character based scripture. She told
her about her writing efforts and how to bind books properly and make repairs, how to
use a printing press and the differences between letterpress and flexography. She
talked about the Underground's constellations and astronomy and how the Labyrinth
worked on a fine balance between magic and time. Sarah just couldn't believe how
talented the girl was and even if the subject she was talking about was the most boring
thing on the planet, Arian would point out some fascinating fact about it and explain
every minute complexity with perfect clarity while still keeping you on the edge of
your seat. The girl could make a fine teacher with no problems at all. In return, Sarah
told her about her adventures in the Labyrinth and her life and memories with Toby
and how she came to England.
"...And then I got my job at St Catherines." she finished, proudly noticing that Arian
was hanging on her every word.
"What kind of place is St Catherines?" the teen asked.
"It's a school for girls. It's where children go to be educated. I teach drama." Sarah
explained when she saw her new friend's blank expression.
"All at the same time?" asked Arian. Sarah nodded "A whole building dedicated to
knowledge! And they have lots of tutors there?" another nod. Arian's eye filled with
wonder a the thought. Hundreds of like minded people all striving for the same goal,
leaning the importance of knowledge and life...
"Didn't you go to school?" asked Sarah wondering how Fae royalty dealt with
education.
"No. My grandmother taught me most of what I know, my father the rest."
"You have a grandmother?"
"Yes. The Queen Mother of the Labyrinth. She stayed with us for two years until I was
about ten then she left to travel the Underground. She doesn't like to stay in one place
for too long."
"And you're father?"
"We haven't been getting on that well recently..." Arian stated simply.
"Why's that?"
"I don't know." the child who been so talkative a few moments ago was now looking
uneasy and had once again fallen silent.
"Hoggle said something about a Peace Process." Sarah pressed further.
"Yeah. The two neighbouring kingdoms were at war and father was appointed to
make negotiations as a neutral party. I don't really know what it was about but it was
very time consuming." said Arian. She was reluctant to say anything else. But she was
pretty sure that Sarah was the nicest person she had met and felt the overwhelming
urge to tell her new friend everything she knew and felt. No wonder she had solved
the Labyrinth! All she had to do was engage some creature in conversation, make
them feel important and sneak in some strategic questions.
"Perhaps you resented him being away all that time." Sarah suggested.
"Yes that's probably it." sighed Arian, knowing full well it was only a fraction of the
truth. Sarah saw the tears welling up in her eyes and decided to call it a night. The
poor girl was exhausted as it was. They did the washing up together in silence and
then Arian faced a disturbed night on the living room floor with a snoring dwarf
keeping her awake on the sofa beside her...
Arian's dark eyes fluttered open to unusual surroundings. Her familiar piles of ancient
tomes and the bare stone walls of her room were nowhere to be found. Instead she was
in a small airy bedroom, tastefully decorated in lilac and silver (Sarah had got this idea
from Changing Rooms on TV) the everyday draughts were gone and the unnatural
orange glow of the street lamp outside streamed through the window onto the white
duvet. After her usual moment of grogginess she remembered where she was and
slammed her head down on the pillow with relief. The day had been exhausting but
there was still a whole new and exciting world to discover. She looked at the clock on
the bedside table and smiled at the novelty of seeing a twelve hour face, she still
wasn't used to it. It was eight in the evening and the city outside was still buzzing with
activity. A plane overhead, people laughing in the street, the neighbour's dog... It all
sounded so strange and yet so natural! For the first time in her life, Arian felt truly at
home and nothing was going to make her leave it. Not even Labyrinths and Goblin
Kings.
There was a knock at the door and the woman she had met earlier walked in. She
looked a lot more at ease than she had done before. No doubt Higgle had filled her in
on the details.
"I made dinner if you something to eat." said Sarah.
"Oh. Yes, thank you." the girl replied and quietly followed her downstairs. She could
hear loud snoring coming from the living room.
"Hoggle decided to go to bed early." Sarah explained.
"Oh."
"I hope you don't mind sleeping on the floor." she continued.
"No. That's fine." said Arian as they sat at the kitchen table. She eyed the macaroni
Sarah served her with suspicion, took a small bite then smiled. It must've been to her
liking.
"So, Arian, tell me about yourself." said Sarah.
"Well, I'll be fifteen in October and I love reading. Books from the aboveground are
my favourite. I know you're supposed to stop reading them when you begin to grow up
but I just find them fascinating." Sarah was surprised at how much the girl knew about
her world's literature, although she didn't know anything that came later than 1900.
She was also astounded to know that this girl was fluent in nearly all the Latin and
Arabic based languages and listened with fascination as the Goblin King's daughter
proudly chatted on about her plans for studying Eastern European languages and
possibly going on to look at Chinese and all other character based scripture. She told
her about her writing efforts and how to bind books properly and make repairs, how to
use a printing press and the differences between letterpress and flexography. She
talked about the Underground's constellations and astronomy and how the Labyrinth
worked on a fine balance between magic and time. Sarah just couldn't believe how
talented the girl was and even if the subject she was talking about was the most boring
thing on the planet, Arian would point out some fascinating fact about it and explain
every minute complexity with perfect clarity while still keeping you on the edge of
your seat. The girl could make a fine teacher with no problems at all. In return, Sarah
told her about her adventures in the Labyrinth and her life and memories with Toby
and how she came to England.
"...And then I got my job at St Catherines." she finished, proudly noticing that Arian
was hanging on her every word.
"What kind of place is St Catherines?" the teen asked.
"It's a school for girls. It's where children go to be educated. I teach drama." Sarah
explained when she saw her new friend's blank expression.
"All at the same time?" asked Arian. Sarah nodded "A whole building dedicated to
knowledge! And they have lots of tutors there?" another nod. Arian's eye filled with
wonder a the thought. Hundreds of like minded people all striving for the same goal,
leaning the importance of knowledge and life...
"Didn't you go to school?" asked Sarah wondering how Fae royalty dealt with
education.
"No. My grandmother taught me most of what I know, my father the rest."
"You have a grandmother?"
"Yes. The Queen Mother of the Labyrinth. She stayed with us for two years until I was
about ten then she left to travel the Underground. She doesn't like to stay in one place
for too long."
"And you're father?"
"We haven't been getting on that well recently..." Arian stated simply.
"Why's that?"
"I don't know." the child who been so talkative a few moments ago was now looking
uneasy and had once again fallen silent.
"Hoggle said something about a Peace Process." Sarah pressed further.
"Yeah. The two neighbouring kingdoms were at war and father was appointed to
make negotiations as a neutral party. I don't really know what it was about but it was
very time consuming." said Arian. She was reluctant to say anything else. But she was
pretty sure that Sarah was the nicest person she had met and felt the overwhelming
urge to tell her new friend everything she knew and felt. No wonder she had solved
the Labyrinth! All she had to do was engage some creature in conversation, make
them feel important and sneak in some strategic questions.
"Perhaps you resented him being away all that time." Sarah suggested.
"Yes that's probably it." sighed Arian, knowing full well it was only a fraction of the
truth. Sarah saw the tears welling up in her eyes and decided to call it a night. The
poor girl was exhausted as it was. They did the washing up together in silence and
then Arian faced a disturbed night on the living room floor with a snoring dwarf
keeping her awake on the sofa beside her...