Yes, this chapter is extremely short, but we have a little fairytale coming up next chapter that Sarah can't hear just yet. So we get the finale on the events of the Champion's Ball and we'll follow with the next chapter in a few days. Don't worry; as trying as the Ball was for Sarah, it was necessary to introduce Lyselle's part in our little tale. It really was a win in the end and we'll see that the opinions of the elders are FAR different in a few chapters. And that will do Sarah a world of good.
And yes, Queen Sarai being crowned is coming. Rest assured. There's just a few things to still get settled, as yet.
Jareth was not as much a fool as Sarah sometimes thought him to be. He did, after the Champion's Ball was finished, tell her about Lyselle. Just not immediately. There was a rather predictable aftermath of renewed possession and dedication in light of her jealousy of earlier, and he much preferred that to an argument.
Cuddled up to him in bed, Sarah looked so content with herself that he almost put off the conversation. That might backfire, though, so he nuzzled her brow until she looked up at him. "You mentioned that there were those at the ball who had warmed my bed," he told her.
"I did, but why bring it up now?" she asked, those green eyes losing their blissful starriness to narrow daggers at him.
"Because one of them in particular hates me now, and is so in love with her anger that she could not bear to hide it beneath pretty words. We fae are normally good at controlling our reactions and pretending courtesy to those we'd like to flay and salt. That she did not … worries me." It hadn't worried him so much at the time, but Lyselle's insults had stung more deeply than he liked to admit, even to himself. Now that he reflected, he saw the edge of madness in her eyes, and felt ashamed for having let her goad him.
Still, the situation might not be beyond saving, if he were wise, and if he kept his Champion well informed. Jareth sighed and ran a hand through his tousled hair before voicing his other main worry. "Also, it would have delighted her to think you were concerned, even for a moment. I do not ever want to give her that satisfaction."
There was a disquieting pause of tense silence from Sarah, her expression deceptively neutral as she looked up at him. "Who was it?" she said, in that too-calm voice of hers.
"Lyselle of Galeraessian," he told her. And when he saw no recognition in her eyes, Jareth added, "She has violet hair…"
Sarah cut him off with a snarl, pulling away from him in a temper, but didn't leave the bed. Instead, she only sat up and glared at him. "It was her. That's where the damn feeling came from. I thought so. It was her earlier, the one that had me so pissed at you and the rest of them. Dammit, Jareth. Was she trying to get back into your pants while you were dancing? Because the two of you seemed to be having a very intense conversation."
He couldn't help laughing, despite her anger. "It was intense. She was mostly bent on trying to convince me I was a fool to choose you – which only proves that she is the fool. I told her otherwise rather forcefully, and I got the last word. I'm afraid that her denigration of you provoked me to the point where I set out to wound her, and succeeded."
"Great. Angry, bitchy ex. Should've expected that. And she's ridiculously gorgeous. Somehow I should've expected that, too. I said it earlier and I mean it. We've danced around this for fifteen years; I didn't do this with you for all that time just to end up alone after. I swear, Jareth, if I ever catch you with her or anyone else, certain parts of you are gonna stay inside them. "
She probably expected him to be angered by the threat to his manhood. Instead, Jareth kissed her despite her toothy grimace. He treasured her fierceness, even when leveled at himself. "I expect no less of you, my Sarai. And would deserve no different, were I so stupid as to betray you so. As for beauty, you outshine her in every way. Lyselle is a pretty child, and has been for far too long. You are a woman and a champion, a warrior and a savior, and even if you looked like a goblin you would be a thousand times the woman she can ever hope to be."
That made her laugh, finally, and Jareth kissed her again, catching her wrists and gently attempting to pull her back to him. "Do you truly think so little of your own beauty, Sarah? I know you have mirrors Above. Look into them more often."
Muttering under her breath, Sarah gave a roll of her eyes before she gave in and snuggled back down beside him again, giving an almost petulant sigh of aggravation as she nestled her head on his shoulder. "These days, mostly what I see in the mirror is where the wrinkles are gonna start and the shadows that stay under my eyes. Oh, and that I need to pluck my eyebrows."
Jareth made as if to kiss her brow, and lightly nipped her skin, getting a startled yelp in response. "Do not change one hair, Sarah. You are perfect. At fifteen you were a rosebud, all promise cloaked in the softness and innocence of youth. Now your beauty is in full flower. No fae can look into your eyes and fail to see that. Besides, your brows give you some of your most emphatic expressions. I would not have you change them to suit some silly standard of beauty that never looks natural."
"Says the man with the up-swept perfectly-maintained fae brows," Sarah muttered, though there was a faintly affectionate smile on her lips as she reached up to trace one with a fingertip.
"That's natural, for me. The blame belongs to my father. It's a trait of his bloodline." Jareth rumpled her hair affectionately.
Sarah propped herself up on one elbow. "Your parents are on their way, right? You haven't really told me much about them."
Jareth curled a lock of her hair around his finger. "Like my grandparents, it is quite the tale. I will tell it to you, love, but not this moment. Suffice it to say, you will adore my mother, and she will feel the same about you. My father will certainly approve of you, as well, but he will not show it so readily. For the rest of their story, I will let you meet them both first. They tell it better than I do."
Sarah pouted at him. "Not even a spoiler?"
Jareth nuzzled her forehead. "Hmm … my father kidnapped my mother, originally. It most emphatically did not go as he'd planned."
"Oh come on!" Sarah exclaimed, but he would say nothing else on the matter. Indeed, he much preferred to return to convincing her that no other woman could possibly hold his attention, not when he had lovely Sarah in his bed.
