Chapter 40: That Jareth, He's Such a Giver
In a land of unicorns and tall, beautiful people like the elves and the fae, the dwarf king looked dumpy and insignificant. He tried to make up for it with the length of his stride (every step looked as if he were trying to step over a puddle) and the number of weapons he could carry at once. His belt bristled with daggers; he wore a short sword and buckler, and his bow and quiver of arrows were slung over one broad shoulder. His hair and beard were long and braided into thick tails, and his face wore a perpetual scowl.
All the men bowed to the new bridegroom and the ladies curtseyed. Sarah sank down into a deep curtsey amid her swirling skirts, but Jareth caught her elbow.
"Not so low," he murmured without moving his lips. Sarah rose in unison with everyone else and risked a quick look at Jareth.
There was a low hum of conversation when the dwarf king greeted everyone and went over to speak with the two unicorns. Jareth leaned over close. Under the pretext of a loverlike embrace, he whispered, "Whether you accept my offer or not, as my companion here you mustn't bow any lower than I do; and I'm greeting Daxon as an equal."
Sarah nodded. "I'll remember," she breathed. Jareth kissed her neck, so temptingly close to his lips, and loosened his embrace. Sarah slid her lips against his jaw as he withdrew and he blinked in surprise. "Have to make you look good," she teased in a whisper.
"You already do," he answered. "Oh, look, here come Alia and Arien." Jareth greeted his friends with a glad smile, embraces and kisses on their delicate horsey faces. They both nuzzled him in a friendly way, and Arien trotted over to Sarah and did the same to her.
Sarah was surprised at first, but then remembered from Jareth's "lesson book" crystal that the unicorns viewed a married couple as essentially two halves of the same entity. They loved Jareth, so they had to love his wife-to-be as well. Sarah pushed aside the thought that they were just assuming she'd accept Jareth. She'd think about that later. Or not.
Sarah bent down with a smile and embraced Arien, kissing her on both cheeks like Jareth did.
"It's nice to see you again, Princess," Arien spoke into her mind in a flutelike, musical voice.
"Likewise, Arien, but I'm not a princess," Sarah smiled.
Arien tossed her head. "Not in the human tradition, perhaps, but by ours you are. When you defeated the Goblin King, you were essentially adopted into the royal family of our world. It would not do for the king to have been bested by a commoner, after all! Besides, the name 'Sarah' means 'princess' in its language of origin."
"I didn't know that!" Sarah said in astonishment. "That sure explains all the 'your highnessing' that I've been getting around here. I think Jareth might have left some things out of my lessons!"
Arien snorted. "Doubtless he wanted your knowledge to be to his advantage, if I know Uncle Jareth!" She laughed a silvery, unicorn laugh, and Sarah agreed and joined in. Jareth, deep in conversation with Arien's mother, glanced over suspiciously. Sarah grinned and waggled her fingers in a mischievous wave. She chuckled to herself when, within seconds, he had excused himself and come over to see what they'd been talking about.
"Are you two talking about me?" he demanded.
Arien shook her mane and nudged Sarah with her muzzle. "Actually, we were talking about Sarah," she said.
"Sarah?" Jareth asked her.
"Yes, but you may call me 'Your Highness.'" Sarah told him, lifting her chin. Jareth playfully rolled his eyes and Sarah poked him in the chest. "Why didn't you tell me that defeating you made me a princess in this world? I've been trying to subsist on ramen and coffee while I finish college, and here I find I'm royalty!" She teased.
"Thank you so much, Arien," Jareth grumbled. He jerked his head towards her mother and said, "You can go now."
Chuckling, Arien trotted away, her hooves clattering lightly on the marble.
"I may yet regret introducing you to my friends," Jareth groused.
Sarah giggled and gave his hand a squeeze. "Oh, cheer up. If you like, you can fill in some of the blanks in my lesson book yourself. For example, what does a royal wedding entail here?"
Looking grateful for her changing the subject, Jareth explained in more detail about the thirteen days of feasting and celebration, and the actual ceremony that followed them.
"During the celebrations, people will offer Daxon his wedding gifts. That part is rather like a competition. The other monarchs all try to outdo each other with their gifts; whoever gives the best gift gets the most prestige." His face bore a self-satisfied smirk, and Sarah chuckled.
"So you'll be giving the best gift, of course?" she asked.
Jareth's smirk became even more pronounced. "Of course," he said confidently. "It is already done."
"What did you give him?"
"A vassal."
Sarah frowned, thinking of when she had seen him in the crystal, in conference with King Daxon and "The Troll King?"
He nodded almost imperceptibly. "Technically, King Blug should have been my vassal, since he lost my wager. But honestly, I have my hands full with the goblins--what on earth would I do with trolls along with them? And Daxon wanted them because they live here on his mountain, so there it is."
Sarah, eyes dancing, asked, "Let me get this straight: you gave King Daxon something you had no use for, and didn't want, and in return you get the prestige and admiration of everyone here?"
He nodded, adding with a smirk, "I also get Daxon in my debt."
Sarah raised her glass to him in admiration of his chutzpah. "You're something else," she told him. He bowed, graciously accepting the compliment, and raised his glass to his lips just as Sarah finished, "And maybe someday I'll figure out what!"
The Goblin King choked on his wine. Sarah smirked.