(Author's note: Okay I'm not too sure if I'm happy with where this whole story is going to go, but hope you bear with it hee hee. Thanks again for the reviews, and as for your questions...well...*sniggers* I'm not answering them here! :p)
Chapter VI
Children scattered at the king's return, screaming and concealing themselves behind the lace curtains when he crossed the middle of the hall. Eldemay tried to coax them from their hiding places, wondering what worried them so. Indeed she felt a sense of overwhelming dread in the presence of this king, particularly now Didymus was nowhere to be seen, but she could not fathom the cause of their distress. Had he done some terrible thing of which only she was unaware?
Jareth turned at the back of the room and let himself sink into the comforts of the throne. A little too comfy, he mused. He resisted the urge to slouch or prop up his boots as he regarded the princess who stood awkwardly in the centre of the marble floor.
"Would you like to sit down?" He rested his chin upon the knuckles of his right hand.
Eldemay looked at the man seated in the only chair.
"I'm fine, thank you."
The king gestured for her to come forward. She did so, somewhat reluctantly.
"Would you like to sit down?" he repeated.
Now only a foot away from the throne, Lady Eldemay trembled, unable to comprehend what he was meaning. The man made no effort to relinquish the chair and she had to keep convincing herself that no other places were in sight.
"No, I-," she started, but was cut short as he lashed out and grabbed hold of her, tipping her onto his lap, one hand preventing her skull from smacking onto the throne arm and the other hooking under her legs to trap her against him.
"What *is* it with today's girls? They never let a man show any courtesy." (1)
The princess quivered in his frightfully gentle grasp, her chest rising and falling rapidly within her restricting gown, heart fluttering like a caged butterfly. The scent of cinnamon sparked a distant recognition but only served to make her uneasier.
"Who *are* you?" she whispered, yet again cursing herself for not using the more appropriate 'let go' or 'put me down'.
"I thought you knew," Jareth taunted.
Eldemay struggled uselessly for a moment before answering, "I did. I just can't remember your-." She broke off as the warmth of his embrace combined with his piquant fragrance caused her to yawn.
"I think Sarah's had a little too much excitement for one day."
The king rose from his seat, the girl in his arms mumbling a complaint. He presented a furtive smile then passed a hand in a circular movement before her face, immersing her in sleep. After having left the room, he ascended the palatial staircases to her chamber to put her to bed. When she touched onto the smooth sheets, her eyelids flickered lazily.
"Will you tell me your name?" she said in one even breath, not even noticing that her lilac dress had transformed into a sapphire blue night-slip and her tiara had vaporised.
"You'll remember when the time is ripe." He pulled the quilted covers over her with incredible diligence but such strength it was as though he were sealing a tomb. He lingered momentarily, leaning over her, his indistinguishably curved nose in line with hers, their lips almost meeting. Then he withdrew and made for the door.
"Wait."
He stopped, one boot upon the hall carpet, then turned to see her sitting up, her face lit with a faint glimmer of hope and the desire to understand. The agonising chaos bubbling in her heart and soul pleaded for a response that would unlock what she had repressed.
"Do you love me?" she asked quietly.
The man in the doorway appeared to make a choking sound and put a gloved palm to his lips in the way that one would when preparing to cry or vomit. The hand bunched up and he bit the joint of his index finger. Jareth, unable to contain himself, exploded into a fit of sadistic laughter, then spun on his heel and left the princess to weep.
* * * * *
Lady Eldemay awoke to a dark room, suspicious that he was standing close by, expecting. Seeing that she was alone, she had the strangest feeling that she was not supposed to be, as though she were briefly free of invisible puppet strings.
The princess got out of bed and tiptoed to her door. From there, she peered into the dimly illuminated hallway and, after discerning the coast was clear, crept down to the lower level of the castle. She hesitated outside the shining black doors of the great hall to listen for any signs of life. There did not seem to be a sound beyond them, nevertheless she made her escape into the gardens.
She was surprised to note that there were no stars in the sky, yet she was inexplicably comforted by their absence. She felt that even they could spy on her somehow and found herself keeping to the shadows to evade an imaginary searchlight. The neatly pruned hedges retained their beauty in the darkness, the soft hisses of running water and wind-blown leaves continued through the night, and Eldemay wandered barefoot along the flag-stoned walkway she had seen from the tower window.
After some time she stumbled upon an opening in the bordering hedgerow, a trellised ingress leading to an enclosed garden. In the centre was an apple tree, tall and bearing many red fruits. The surrounding area was lit with a number of floating orbs that danced and bobbed between the branches and about the trunk.
The princess had been on the verge of investigating the garden further when a small figure situated in the corner caught her eye. It was a little girl, quite a lot younger than Eldemay, who sat upon a rickety three-legged stool to one side of the lawn. Her hair was a burnished copper colour and she wore an old-fashioned grey frock. Either the girl had not noticed another presence or she was ignoring her, engrossed in whatever it was she held on her lap.
Stepping closer, the princess could see that the object was a cloth doll, unfinished, and the child was sewing on a brown button for an eye.
"You're her, aren't you?" the girl said without looking up.
Lady Eldemay blinked. "Excuse me?"
The child reached into a wooden bowl beside her stool and plucked out another button before continuing. "You're the one I've seen in my ball."
"Ball?" the princess asked, bewildered. She followed the thread's course as a strikingly different eye fastened into the rag doll's face.
"I lost it though. If I had it, I'd be able to show you," said the girl, separating white spaghetti-like strings that sprouted from her creation's head.
"Where did you lose it?"
"Somewhere over there," the child answered, pointing towards the apple tree. "But it looks just like the fruit."
Eldemay nodded as the little girl returned to her work, slightly perturbed by the assortment of pins piercing the doll's belly. She headed for the tree in search of the toy, astonished to discover that the hovering globes were in fact fairies bearing miniature lanterns. Reaching the base of the centrepiece, the princess saw that apples littered the grass at her feet. At least, they looked like apples, except they were split open in the middle and were completely hollow. She circled the tree, scanning every splash of red in the greenery but found no red ball.
"It must have got caught in the tree," she said to herself.
The plant was too thin for her to climb and she was not decently dressed to attempt to. Instead, she stood on the tips of her toes and picked the first red object she laid eyes on.
Almost immediately, the red sphere popped open. There was a terrible squealing noise and a dozen spiders spilled out, crawling over her bare arms and scuttling inside the sleeves of her nightdress. She yelped, dropping the empty shell, and shook them off, spinning around and beating at her clothing.
"Those aren't apples! They're egg-sacs!" she cried.
She calmed down as the last spider darted timidly into the grass, and spotted something carved into the tree-bark. There were words hidden in the shadows. The princess snatched a fairy from the air, taking care to avoid its savage teeth, and forced it to hold its lantern so she could read the inscription.
"An apple never falls far from its tree."
Considering her newly gained advice, Eldemay released the annoyed creature and set about forming a plan. Approaching the tree again, she grasped the slim trunk and gave it a moderate push. One object fell from the branches but did not split open, despite the dark line at its middle. She watched as it rolled across the lawn, bouncing unnaturally, then came to a halt near the entrance. Another collection of arachnids burst onto the path and scattered out of sight.
The princess smiled. She took hold of the bole of the tree and shook it violently, egg sacs raining from the branches, each one rolling to the edges of the garden before emptying itself.
She stopped and surveyed the ground where a few loose apples had landed. Three of them were real apples, scarlet and leaking juice at the merest touch. The fourth one was paler in colour and when her fingers gripped the smooth contours, she gasped at how cool it was. As she lifted it level with her face, the shining surface of red became the clear face of crystal. Inside there was a girl who looked extraordinarily familiar.
She was a dark-haired adolescent, her eyes closed in sleep, sprawled upon a stone floor in a dreary courtyard.
Lady Eldemay narrowed her eyes then turned to inform the child of her success but, like so many other things in this artificial world, she had vanished. The princess glanced once more at the glass ball with its vision and then strode back through the gardens.
Chapter VI
Children scattered at the king's return, screaming and concealing themselves behind the lace curtains when he crossed the middle of the hall. Eldemay tried to coax them from their hiding places, wondering what worried them so. Indeed she felt a sense of overwhelming dread in the presence of this king, particularly now Didymus was nowhere to be seen, but she could not fathom the cause of their distress. Had he done some terrible thing of which only she was unaware?
Jareth turned at the back of the room and let himself sink into the comforts of the throne. A little too comfy, he mused. He resisted the urge to slouch or prop up his boots as he regarded the princess who stood awkwardly in the centre of the marble floor.
"Would you like to sit down?" He rested his chin upon the knuckles of his right hand.
Eldemay looked at the man seated in the only chair.
"I'm fine, thank you."
The king gestured for her to come forward. She did so, somewhat reluctantly.
"Would you like to sit down?" he repeated.
Now only a foot away from the throne, Lady Eldemay trembled, unable to comprehend what he was meaning. The man made no effort to relinquish the chair and she had to keep convincing herself that no other places were in sight.
"No, I-," she started, but was cut short as he lashed out and grabbed hold of her, tipping her onto his lap, one hand preventing her skull from smacking onto the throne arm and the other hooking under her legs to trap her against him.
"What *is* it with today's girls? They never let a man show any courtesy." (1)
The princess quivered in his frightfully gentle grasp, her chest rising and falling rapidly within her restricting gown, heart fluttering like a caged butterfly. The scent of cinnamon sparked a distant recognition but only served to make her uneasier.
"Who *are* you?" she whispered, yet again cursing herself for not using the more appropriate 'let go' or 'put me down'.
"I thought you knew," Jareth taunted.
Eldemay struggled uselessly for a moment before answering, "I did. I just can't remember your-." She broke off as the warmth of his embrace combined with his piquant fragrance caused her to yawn.
"I think Sarah's had a little too much excitement for one day."
The king rose from his seat, the girl in his arms mumbling a complaint. He presented a furtive smile then passed a hand in a circular movement before her face, immersing her in sleep. After having left the room, he ascended the palatial staircases to her chamber to put her to bed. When she touched onto the smooth sheets, her eyelids flickered lazily.
"Will you tell me your name?" she said in one even breath, not even noticing that her lilac dress had transformed into a sapphire blue night-slip and her tiara had vaporised.
"You'll remember when the time is ripe." He pulled the quilted covers over her with incredible diligence but such strength it was as though he were sealing a tomb. He lingered momentarily, leaning over her, his indistinguishably curved nose in line with hers, their lips almost meeting. Then he withdrew and made for the door.
"Wait."
He stopped, one boot upon the hall carpet, then turned to see her sitting up, her face lit with a faint glimmer of hope and the desire to understand. The agonising chaos bubbling in her heart and soul pleaded for a response that would unlock what she had repressed.
"Do you love me?" she asked quietly.
The man in the doorway appeared to make a choking sound and put a gloved palm to his lips in the way that one would when preparing to cry or vomit. The hand bunched up and he bit the joint of his index finger. Jareth, unable to contain himself, exploded into a fit of sadistic laughter, then spun on his heel and left the princess to weep.
* * * * *
Lady Eldemay awoke to a dark room, suspicious that he was standing close by, expecting. Seeing that she was alone, she had the strangest feeling that she was not supposed to be, as though she were briefly free of invisible puppet strings.
The princess got out of bed and tiptoed to her door. From there, she peered into the dimly illuminated hallway and, after discerning the coast was clear, crept down to the lower level of the castle. She hesitated outside the shining black doors of the great hall to listen for any signs of life. There did not seem to be a sound beyond them, nevertheless she made her escape into the gardens.
She was surprised to note that there were no stars in the sky, yet she was inexplicably comforted by their absence. She felt that even they could spy on her somehow and found herself keeping to the shadows to evade an imaginary searchlight. The neatly pruned hedges retained their beauty in the darkness, the soft hisses of running water and wind-blown leaves continued through the night, and Eldemay wandered barefoot along the flag-stoned walkway she had seen from the tower window.
After some time she stumbled upon an opening in the bordering hedgerow, a trellised ingress leading to an enclosed garden. In the centre was an apple tree, tall and bearing many red fruits. The surrounding area was lit with a number of floating orbs that danced and bobbed between the branches and about the trunk.
The princess had been on the verge of investigating the garden further when a small figure situated in the corner caught her eye. It was a little girl, quite a lot younger than Eldemay, who sat upon a rickety three-legged stool to one side of the lawn. Her hair was a burnished copper colour and she wore an old-fashioned grey frock. Either the girl had not noticed another presence or she was ignoring her, engrossed in whatever it was she held on her lap.
Stepping closer, the princess could see that the object was a cloth doll, unfinished, and the child was sewing on a brown button for an eye.
"You're her, aren't you?" the girl said without looking up.
Lady Eldemay blinked. "Excuse me?"
The child reached into a wooden bowl beside her stool and plucked out another button before continuing. "You're the one I've seen in my ball."
"Ball?" the princess asked, bewildered. She followed the thread's course as a strikingly different eye fastened into the rag doll's face.
"I lost it though. If I had it, I'd be able to show you," said the girl, separating white spaghetti-like strings that sprouted from her creation's head.
"Where did you lose it?"
"Somewhere over there," the child answered, pointing towards the apple tree. "But it looks just like the fruit."
Eldemay nodded as the little girl returned to her work, slightly perturbed by the assortment of pins piercing the doll's belly. She headed for the tree in search of the toy, astonished to discover that the hovering globes were in fact fairies bearing miniature lanterns. Reaching the base of the centrepiece, the princess saw that apples littered the grass at her feet. At least, they looked like apples, except they were split open in the middle and were completely hollow. She circled the tree, scanning every splash of red in the greenery but found no red ball.
"It must have got caught in the tree," she said to herself.
The plant was too thin for her to climb and she was not decently dressed to attempt to. Instead, she stood on the tips of her toes and picked the first red object she laid eyes on.
Almost immediately, the red sphere popped open. There was a terrible squealing noise and a dozen spiders spilled out, crawling over her bare arms and scuttling inside the sleeves of her nightdress. She yelped, dropping the empty shell, and shook them off, spinning around and beating at her clothing.
"Those aren't apples! They're egg-sacs!" she cried.
She calmed down as the last spider darted timidly into the grass, and spotted something carved into the tree-bark. There were words hidden in the shadows. The princess snatched a fairy from the air, taking care to avoid its savage teeth, and forced it to hold its lantern so she could read the inscription.
"An apple never falls far from its tree."
Considering her newly gained advice, Eldemay released the annoyed creature and set about forming a plan. Approaching the tree again, she grasped the slim trunk and gave it a moderate push. One object fell from the branches but did not split open, despite the dark line at its middle. She watched as it rolled across the lawn, bouncing unnaturally, then came to a halt near the entrance. Another collection of arachnids burst onto the path and scattered out of sight.
The princess smiled. She took hold of the bole of the tree and shook it violently, egg sacs raining from the branches, each one rolling to the edges of the garden before emptying itself.
She stopped and surveyed the ground where a few loose apples had landed. Three of them were real apples, scarlet and leaking juice at the merest touch. The fourth one was paler in colour and when her fingers gripped the smooth contours, she gasped at how cool it was. As she lifted it level with her face, the shining surface of red became the clear face of crystal. Inside there was a girl who looked extraordinarily familiar.
She was a dark-haired adolescent, her eyes closed in sleep, sprawled upon a stone floor in a dreary courtyard.
Lady Eldemay narrowed her eyes then turned to inform the child of her success but, like so many other things in this artificial world, she had vanished. The princess glanced once more at the glass ball with its vision and then strode back through the gardens.