Author's Note: To the guest reviewer who wondered how high Sarah can kick - it's easy to kick a man in the shoulder if he does you the favor of kneeling in front of you. The fact that she might be giving him a view when she does kick him in the shoulder hasn't occurred to Sarah ... but Jareth wasn't complaining, was he?
Anyway, on to the much-anticipated shopping trip...
Fifth Avenue was a wonder to Della, so Sarah gave up and let herself be led into every shop that caught the fae woman's eye. So far she hadn't bought too much, despite admiring clothes in Elie Tahari, perfumes in Sephora, jackets in Karen Millen, and more clothes in Aritzia and Michael Kors. Sarah thought they might get away with just the three dresses Della had chosen, the coat, and the one perfume she couldn't live without.
Then they came to Saks, and Cartier Saks, and Sarah saw the gleam of jewels in Della's eyes. Owl though she might be, she was as drawn to shiny baubles as any magpie. Something about Della told the jewelry salespeople that she had money to spend, and they flocked to show her whatever pieces she expressed an interest in. Sarah stayed by the door, happily ignored.
Until someone grabbed her elbow and yanked her aside. "Are you insane?" Alix hissed at her. "Do you even know who you've brought to my city?"
"Cadelinyth, Queen of Etaron," Sarah answered in the same hushed voice. "Relax, Alix. She just wanted to shop, we're keeping a low profile."
"That is the daughter of the sorceress of Astolwyr," Alix ground out. "There is no such thing as 'low profile' when you have her traipsing around Saks Fifth Avenue!"
Sarah glanced around, and whispered, "Look, we're not here to cause trouble. She hasn't had a chance to get Above and do any shopping in decades. I'm not going to tell anyone she's here, and she hid her power before we showed up."
Anything Alix might've said in response was cut off by Della's voice. "You must be Alix. Pleased to meet you," she said, offering her hand and a brilliant smile. Sarah noticed she'd picked up a pair of earrings that probably cost what she made in a month, and then Della turned that smile on her as well. "Incidentally, Sarah, speaking the full name of any of the fae can summon us."
Alix glared at them both, pointedly ignoring the proffered hand. "You're going to cause havoc," she muttered.
"I'll try not to," Della replied gently. "Come with us. You can make sure I don't get into too much trouble. We were planning on lunch at Ai Fiori, which you're welcome to join us for. I'll buy."
"I won't have your charity," Alix snapped, "but I might as well keep an eye on you both." On that sour note, they all headed out. The dryad's shoulders were tense, and she glowered at the foot traffic around them.
"I appreciate having the guidance of someone much better versed in these lands than I am," Della said. For some reason, that only made Alix clench her jaw tighter.
As they strolled up Fifth Avenue, Della's gaze roved over the storefronts, looking for another shop to explore. And Sarah groaned as she saw what caught the Queen of Etaron's eye. Only one store on Fifth Avenue had its windows draped in pale pink crepe paper. "Whatever is that?" she asked.
"Something that'll definitely get a rise out of Thiel," Sarah admitted, and winced when she realized her pun. Della crossed the street, weaving between slower pedestrians as naturally as any lifelong New Yorker, and quickened her pace.
Alix dropped her face into her palm as she and Sarah followed. "Are you seriously going to take a five-hundred-year-old fae queen into Victoria's Secret?!" she hissed.
"Hey, she wants to shock her husband, this is the place to do it," Sarah muttered back.
Up ahead, Della's silvery laugh rang out, making several passersby smile. She'd obviously gotten a look in the front windows, and realized what sort of shop it was.
…
If the animosity between Alix and Della wasn't awkward enough, helping her pick out lingerie was. She wanted Sarah's opinion, not quite trusting the dressing room mirrors, and this wasn't a view of her lover's mother that Sarah had expected to deal with.
Not that she was any kind of prude. Sarah had her own collection of tempting underthings, few of which Jareth had yet seen outside of dreams. But Della was, quite frankly, disgustingly beautiful, and every damn thing she picked out looked good on her. Her charm and charisma were in full flower, as the saleswomen fawned over her. "Your friend has such a good eye for color," one of the women gushed to Sarah.
"Nah, that's my mother-in-law," she said laconically, watching the woman's eyes widen.
"Good grief, unless you're marrying a five year old, I really need to know her beauty routine," the saleswoman said.
Della kept inviting Alix's participation, despite her reluctance. At least she didn't summon the urban fae into the dressing room to get her opinion, the way she did Sarah. "Tell me, Alix," she said lightly, holding up a froth of lace and satin she'd just plucked from the rack. "Do you think I should get the blue, or the black?"
Alix wasn't looking at her; in fact, Sarah realized the dryad had parked herself in a corner, staring at the ceiling, the entire time. "Not as if it matters," she replied, her voice clipped. "Anything you wear will look good on you."
"Yes, but I'm trying to decide which looks best," Della replied gently. "Blue to bring out my eyes, or black for the contrast?"
Alix only shrugged. "Buy both, why not? That's what credit's for." And that, in the end, was what Della did.
Sarah, meanwhile, leaned down to whisper in Alix's ear, "What's wrong?"
The dryad turned toward her and growled, "You brought the Princess of Astolwyr, Queen of Etaron, Owl's-Child, Sorceress' Daughter, half a dozen godsdamned ballads about her, to my city! What isn't wrong, Sarah?"
Sarah sighed. "It's only for a few hours, and I'm watching her, Alix."
"Like you could do a damned thing to stop her," the dryad spat back. "You know damned well this is stupid, and somehow she wheedled you into it. That's what her kind does, Sarah, they hang about looking gorgeous and let everyone give them what they want before they even have to ask!"
"What do you think she's gonna do?" Sarah whispered, while Della paid for everything … and let herself be talked into some more perfume, as well. "Take over the place? There's nothing here she wants, Alix! She's got a kingdom, her mom's got a kingdom, her son's got a kingdom – it's like Oprah, everybody's already got a kingdom. All she wants is lunch and lingerie, Alix."
"I know damned well she doesn't want to take over. I've lived here for sixty years, I'm not stupid, Sarah Williams," Alix snarled under her breath. "It's not what she could do, it's what she is. We urban fae are little, little fish, Sarah, and you brought a fucking shark up here with you!"
That use of profanity – which was very rare among fae of any kind – let Sarah know just how upset Alix was. She tried to soothe her temper with a little humor. "Well, the shark had a bagel with lox for breakfast, and she's planning champagne and caviar for lunch. I don't think she's going to have room for you."
The look she got in response to that was utterly withering, despite the mirrored glasses. "I was not being literal," Alix growled.
Della swept up to them then. "Sarah, the cashier wanted to know if a perfume sample would sweeten your daughter's temper," she said. Alix – who did look almost young enough to be Sarah's child – ground her teeth. "I corrected her misunderstanding. But I confess, I'm curious, too. Alix, what is the worst-case scenario you're envisioning due to my presence?"
"I need a cigarette," the dryad muttered, and stalked outside.
"Della, tone it down," Sarah whispered. "She's not normally like this."
"No, of course not. I would've thought she'd loathe Jareth more, but he speaks well of her, and he would not have done so if she treated him likewise," the fae queen mused. "We'll see. I would rather her not hate me."
They caught up as Alix took a deep drag off her clove. She turned to stare at Della. "Have you any idea what chaos you would cause, if I were seen with you?" Alix muttered angrily, smoke rising from her nostrils in dragonish plumes.
"Am I so disreputable Above? Surely I cannot do that much damage to your reputation," Della replied, keeping her voice amiable. Sarah could only watch, feeling a little sick to her stomach; she liked both fae women, and had hoped they would get along.
So far, not so good.
Alix took off her glasses and polished them aggressively before slipping them back on to hide her eyes. "No. But being seen with you, as an ally or a servant, would force me to take actions that I do not yet want to set in motion."
"We are being reasonably discreet," Della tried to soothe. "My glamour ought to hide my power well enough."
"But your face is not hidden," Alix spat. "And surely I am not the only one Above who has seen your portrait, my lady."
Della glanced around to see if they were watched, then passed a hand over her face. Her hair was now an unremarkable brunette, and her lovely face seemed plainer. "Forgive me, Alix," she said gently. "That was my error. I should have given the matter more forethought."
"Yes. You should have," Alix grumbled.
Sarah wanted badly to elbow the dryad and ask her again what the hell was wrong. Alix had always been incredibly politically savvy, always willing to make alliances and foster trust. Now she seemed bent on alienating or even angering Della, who was enough of a power to set all the urban fae in New York City on their ears. But asking that question just now might be the spark that set off a powderkeg, and she wanted to get through the day without any explosions.
They had Della's purchases sent over to Sarah's apartment, and since Ai Fiori was at the other end of Fifth Avenue, Della chose to get a cab. Sarah sat in the middle between the two fae, not wanting to imagine what would happen if they were too close. She had the impression that Alix would've liked to just ditch them both, but something held her there.
Ai Fiori was one of the finest restaurants around, and the prices showed it. Della tried to pay for them all, but Alix insisted on a separate ticket, radiating sullen misery. The food was amazing – Sarah had had caviar before, and never been particularly impressed. But with pastry and crème fraiche and a sprinkling of chives, it was divine. The lobster bisque with black truffles was just as stellar, and Della insisted that she try a bite of foie gras. Sarah had never had it before, though she knew what it was. To her surprise, it tasted nothing like liver – but that might've been the strawberries and balsamic.
Even Alix seemed to mellow a bit under the influence of food, though she was still uncharacteristically quiet. She did at least admit that the lobster with mushrooms was delicious. Della ordered something called a Royal Blush, which according to the menu included sparkling wine, lime, mint, cherry, and vodka. She ended up drinking three of them with no apparent effect, to their server's amazement. Sarah stuck with cider, wanting to be as sober as possible. Alix skipped the alcohol for spring water.
Della kept up the conversation, asking them both about the city, and though Sarah's answers were far more congenial, never once did the fae queen slight the dryad or stop trying to include her. Sarah was beginning to think that Della had the patience of a saint.
As they left, after a bill that made Sarah wince even though she wasn't paying, she was proven wrong. At least the queen waited until they were on the sidewalk, and a little distance away from any other pedestrians. "So what exactly are these actions you don't yet wish to take?" Della asked, as lightly as she'd asked about the weather.
The dryad's shoulders stiffened. "I owe you nothing, Queen of Etaron. Certainly not such information."
"Peace, cousin!" Della exclaimed, and for some reason that made Alix bare her teeth in fury. The older fae tried again to mollify her. "No, you owe me nothing. I ask out of interest, and you are free to answer or not, as you will. Please, forgive me if I've given offense."
Sarah could hear Alix grinding her teeth. Her next words were clipped and harsh. "I have no reason to trust you, sorceress' daughter. Or to forgive."
"I understand," Della said, very gently. And then, looking full into the dryad's face, she asked, "What high fae woman tried to cut down your tree, Alix?"
Alix's jaw clenched, and Sarah saw her knuckles go white. Every tree on the block swayed, as if in a high wind, though Sarah knew it was only Alix's rage bleeding out along her primary power. That kind of unconscious, uncontrolled power was like nothing she'd seen from the dryad before, and it scared her – though not for herself. For a moment she believed Alix would actually lash out at Della physically, and then all hell would break loose. Calm as Della had been, she couldn't ignore such an assault.
But the dryad controlled herself, only stepping forward and peering over those mirrored lenses, up into Della's face. "Your Majesty. You spoilt, selfish bitch. Go. Fuck. Yourself." With that, she spun on her heel and stalked off.
Della let out the breath she'd been holding. "That didn't go as well as I'd hoped," she said in mild tones.
"You think?" Sarah sighed. "Did you have to bait her?"
"I didn't mean to, until the last," Della admitted. "I knew there could only be one reason why she hated me on sight, and I hoped by bringing it into the open we could get past it. I fear that whoever wounded her, did so more deeply than I'd guessed."
Sarah raked a hand through her hair. "Dammit, Della. I like Alix. She's never been anything but good to me. And yeah, everyone I know and everything I read tells me not to trust strange fae, but she knows that too. She's got a sense of humor about it." She glowered at the queen, who had the grace to look chagrined. "I really, really hope she's not pissed at me, too."
"You're not high fae, Sarah. It isn't you who sets her blood to boil." Della folded her arms, a worried look in her eyes. "We ought to get Underground. If she's angry enough, she might decide come after me – and I promised not to start a war."
"Furious or not, Alix isn't that stupid," Sarah replied, but they hurried back to her apartment, and the mirror that would take them quickly to the castle.
…
"Are you done terrorizing the shops of New York?" Jareth drawled, as Della enlisted the goblins' aid in moving her parcels to her suite. Sarah was helping direct them.
"For now," she said. "Where is your father?"
"Hiding in the stable, I think," Jareth replied. "I don't think he appreciates the prospect of watching you model everything you bought."
She and Sarah met each other's gazes, and both laughed. There was enough in those pink boxes to rock Thiel's world for months to come, and if he'd only known, he would've insisted on seeing them now. "His loss," Della said. "Son, I have need of pen and parchment. There's a letter I must compose."
That piqued his curiosity. "Who are you writing to?"
"Sarah's friend Alix. I offended her somehow, and would like to send a formal apology. If, Sarah, you will consent to deliver it."
Wincing, she let out a sigh. "I guess. Does it have to be right now? I'd let her cool down first."
"I do not like to let offenses simmer," Della said. "If you please, Sarah? I hate to tax you with so much traveling back and forth, but I suspect she may take a written apology better than any I could've spoken."
"What did you do?" Jareth asked, brows drawing together in consternation. "That dryad has more sense than half the nobles I've met. And you of all people managed to nettle her? Everyone loves you, Mother."
"Not that one," Della replied. "For what it's worth, I think it's more what I am than anything I may have done. But I will not have her hate me, if I can avoid it. She's been a good friend to Sarah."
"And an ally worth cultivating," Jareth replied.
Della smiled sadly. "And this is one more trait of mine you have, son: I respect her more, and want her good opinion more, because she told me off. Very few fae would dare call me a spoiled bitch to my face. Courage like that should be honored."
