A Prophecy Speaks
Author's Note: I do not own Labyrinth. I do, however, own every character that I've created. There are a lot of them in this chapter.
Chapter 14 –or- The Arrival of Guests
As Jareth had told her, assorted royals began to arrive the day before her birthday. Her chair in the audience chamber was finished, and was only slightly more feminine than Jareth's. It was only temporary, as she knew she would be redecorating sometime before the wedding.
Sarah smoothed the front of her dress and gave Jareth a smile. She would be with him to greet the various nobles that would be arriving today. He was wearing black and red today, and she felt her sapphire dress complimented him well. She had never taken off the necklace he gave her, and the emerald glistened against her skin.
The past couple of weeks had been hectic. Etiquette lessons a lot of it, including political instruction. And, of course, there had been the dozens of kisses that left her breathless.
Sarah was not allowed to speak to the nobles unless they addressed her, since she was still a commoner. She really did not mind, since she would not know what to say anyway. She would politely curtsy and keep her mouth shut.
Jareth reached over and squeezed her hand as the horn sounded to let them know the first guests had arrived.
"Their Royal Majesties, King Danol and Queen Carys of the Dragonlands, and Her Highness, Princess Cara of the Dragonlands," the goblin announced.
Two women and a man entered the room. Sarah rose and gave a graceful curtsy. She heard the Princess give a twinkling laugh.
"Oh Jareth, she is absolutely perfect!" The princess laughed heartily. Sarah rose and took her seat. The Queen, with her flaming red hair and orange eyes, made her way to Sarah and beckoned her to rise. Sarah did as she was told as the princess offered Jareth a smile that he returned with sincerity.
"My child, you are exquisite! My blessings on you both. I hope we will have some time to get to know one another," the Queen said as she turned to Jareth.
"There is fire within her. A very deep flame. Guard it well," Jareth nodded, and a goblin maid named Core led the nobles to their rooms.
Sarah took a deep breath.
"That went well," she said. "At least I didn't embarass myself."
Jareth smiled, and they waited for the others.
Others showed as the day wore on. Sarah got tired of curtsying so much. There was Carla, The Ice Queen and Xandra, the Queen of Trees showed up also. By tradition they both were not married. The Ice Queen was achingly beautiful, with silver skin and blue hair. Her eyes were all white, and her lips a pale shade of blue. The Queen of Trees had been warm, and friendly. Her skin was a rich shade of olive, and her eyes were like almonds. Her hair was the shade of fall leaves that have turned red. She was tiny, and very slender. She had brought the couple a gift.
"Your Majesty, when you wed, plant these two seeds underneath your window on your wedding night to insure the conception of an heir," Xandra bid him before she was escorted to her room.
"Jareth! I never thought about kids!" Sarah said with shock in her voice.
Jareth smiled at her.
"Don't you want to have children?" he asked her gently.
"Yeah, but we do not have to worry about that right now. Who else is coming today?" Sarah asked to change the subject.
"The merfolk will be here today. Tomorrow will bring everyone else that will be attending," Jareth explained.
Sarah sighed as the goblin announced the Merfolk.
"His Majesty, King Mephis of the Merfolk. Their Highnesses Princess Consort Merissa, Prince Marcus, and Princess Malene of the Merfolk," he announced.
Four people floated into the room. Sarah stood to curtsy, and Jareth floated a sphere at her with a wink. It popped over her head. Three of the four Merfolk bowed, and the fourth inclined his head. He had silver scales, and his Princess Consort had golden ones. The Prince and Princess had blue scales, and were twins.
Sarah soon heard why Jareth popped a sphere at her. The Merfolk did not speak as much as gargle, and the sphere had made it so she could understand.
"King Jareth. The woman you are about to marry is very beautiful. We are happy for you. The prophecy will be fulfilled, then?" King Mephis asked. Jareth nodded.
"King Mephis, I thank you for your compliments towards my future bride. I hope you enjoy your stay," Jareth said as the Merfolk floated down the hall.
"Xandra will be staying on for a bit after your coronation. We have a kingdom to run, and I will be going away for a bit for a conference soon. She can teach you a lot. I think you will get along well," Jareth explained.
Sarah did not like the idea of Jareth going away. She knew it had to do with the dwarves. She had only picked up snippets of conversations and letters about an evil dwarf king. Hoggle knew nothing of it. He had been in exile in the labyrinth for so long he did not hear from his kind anymore. He was happy here.
Author's Note: I would like to thank my readings of various fantasy authors for some of my inspiration, including Anne Bishop, Jacqueline Carey, and David Eddings. These books have been well read. The inspiration for Xandra came from the Dryads of Eddings' books, and I did not mention it in the previous chapter, but the dilemma of being a powerful male who still had never been kissed after thousands of years came from Anne Bishop's Black Jewels Trilogy. The name Mephis also comes from that set of books. So yeah, I am a book geek.