Chapter 8
Izzy awoke with a start. She had dreamed that Jareth had spent the night with her again. She sat up and looked over at the sleeping figure lying next to her in bed just to make sure she hadn't imagined him.
She was so tired of being haunted by images of him, images she could not longer differentiate between real and imaginary. Izzy leaned over him and kissed his back. He stirred slightly.
Jareth lay on his stomach facing the wall, one arm hanging limply off the edge of the bed. His massive mane of choppy, blonde hair hung over his face. It was amazing how much like an average human man he looked when he slept, Izzy thought.
Only she knew Jareth was far from the average human. He was the immortal King of Goblins, with supernatural abilities Izzy had only barely glimpsed. What would it be like to really make a life with him?
Where would they live? Would he give up his kingdom for a mortal life with her, or would he take her to his world? Izzy's mind was spinning with the possibilities. She wasn't sure she could handle seeing his world. She'd glimpsed it once in a dream and it had been a terrifying experience for her.
No matter. Izzy knew one thing, and one thing only. She was madly, desperately in love with this crazy, surreal, King of the Goblins and she damn sure didn't care how insane the idea sounded. It did sound insane, though, even to her own ears.
But she also knew that Jareth had shown her his true character. He loved her more deeply than she had ever been cared for by anyone, with the exceptions of her mother, father, and brother. God, she missed them.
What would her mother say if she could see Izzy in Jareth's company? Would she think Izzy was mad to even entertain the idea of having Jareth as a boyfriend… a husband?
Izzy forced the thoughts from her mind. She only wanted to enjoy the feeling of waking up next to him for the first time. She was in shock that he hadn't left her in the middle of the night as he had the last time he'd come to her.
She'd been so angry at him for leaving her, making her think it was all in her head. Couldn't he see that even though he'd erased her memories of him as a way of protecting her, that her subconscious had held onto those memories? Couldn't he see that even though her mind could not remember him, her heart refused to forgot him?
But the moment they'd made love for the second time her anger at him had dissolved as their thoughts once again were supernaturally melded. His every thought, feeling, or emotion was hers. Hers were his.
He'd shown her his true feelings for her. Jareth had never meant to hurt her. He'd only wanted to protect her. That was all the explanation he'd given as the two of them became absorbed in the torrent of physical sensations during the act of exploring each other's bodies.
Izzy ran her hands over his skin, kissing the beck of neck. She ran her fingers through his hair. Jareth moaned softly in his sleep. She kissed nibbled his ear, "Good morning," she purred seductively.
Jareth stirred at her loving touch and slowly opened his eyes. He looked even more typically human in this moment than Izzy had ever seen him. He smiled and rolled over to face her.
He sat up, propping pillows behind his back and pulled Izzy against him. She lay with her head resting on his chest while he stroked her silken hair.
"Are you going to stay with me?" She asked him bluntly, not bothering to beat around the bush. It was the one question she feared the answer to.
Jareth took a deep breath and sighed, choosing his words carefully.
"Its alright. I'm used to relationships not working out." Izzy answered before he could say anything. She was surprised at the sound of her own voice when it cracked. Her eyes brimmed with tears. "You don't have to stay. But please don't take my memories of us together. Please?"
Jareth was grateful that she couldn't see the stony expression on his face. He continued to stroke her hair mechanically.
"Isabel… I am a king. You understand that means I have… responsibilities. I cannot stay with you now. As much as I want to I… cannot."
He took a breath to continue speaking, but before he had gotten any more words out Izzy was out of bed. Not bothering to wrap a sheet around herself she ran into the adjoining bathroom and slammed the door. The heavy sound of her sobs was clearly audible.
"Isabel? Izzy come out and let me talk to you."
Izzy heard Jareth's voice from the other side of the bathroom door. From the sound of it he was pressed against the door, waiting for any sort of response from her. Izzy ignored him.
Suddenly a thought struck her as funny. They could be any couple in a relationship having a typical lover's spat. How odd that the powerful Goblin King should be subject to the whims and emotions of a mere mortal woman. Izzy smiled to herself despite her tears.
"Isabel Allain if you don't open up this door and let me in I'll simply come in weather you wish me to or not. Then you will have to hear me out." He spoke sharply in a faded British accent. He had not raised his voice, but it was dark and menacing. If it had been anyone other than Izzy he had been speaking to they would be right to be terrified of him.
Izzy waited. In an instant Jareth appeared in front of her, now dressed in the black jeans he had been wearing last night.
Izzy was seated, crossed legged on the side of the porcelain bathtub, peering up at him through her hair. She felt his hand grab her delicate wrist and pull her up to stand in front of him. She complied.
He was a good foot taller than her, with a lithe, muscular frame and broad shoulders. Standing next to him Izzy felt like a small, fragile sparrow.
"Izzy, listen." He paused a moment. "As King I have certain duties I cannot shirk. I am not free to stay here with you whenever I choose. However, I will come back to you. I give you my word. He paused a moment.
"Darling I would never abandon you. I want to marry you. I want…." He paused again.
Izzy hadn't moved. She stood in front of him, almost touching him, not daring to look at him. She hardly dared to breathe as she listened to his words. Her heart had nearly stopped. Had she heard him correctly? Had he said he wanted to marry her?
Jareth's voice softened. "Izzy look at me." His hand came gently under Izzy's chin, forcing her to look up at him. He was staring into her eyes, willing her to understand him. She saw only his fathomless dark eyes, eyes so brown they were almost black.
"Izzy… I want you to be my wife, my companion for eternity, my queen… please say yes."
Izzy's eyes swam with unshed tears of disbelief. She couldn't find her voice. She could only nod her head, pressing her body against him. "Y….Yes!" She managed to squeal after what seemed like an eternity of silence. "I will marry you."
Jareth kissed her passionately, squeezing her tight for a split second before backing away. In his outstretched hand was a bejeweled pair of silver, bangle bracelets. They seemed to have appeared out of thin air.
"Platinum." Jareth told her. "Made from the finest platinum, mined high in the mountains of the kingdom of King Ladon."
Izzy kissed him again. "They're beautiful," she said softly. She could hardly believe they were for her.
"They are bewitched. In my world bracelets such as these are the appropriate gift for a bride to be. They are the bracelets of ownership, signifying that you belong to me as my fiancé," Jareth continued. After we are married they will be melted down to be made into a circlet for you to wear in your hair, or as a necklace, symbolizing our unity as man and wife in one body, one spirit."
He smiled at her and placed the bracelets in Izzy's open palm. "I will understand if you do not want to wear them. Though bracelets like this identify a betrothed woman in my world, slaves also wear bracelets as a mark of ownership, though hardly with the same meaning."
Izzy was shocked to hear that there was such a thing as slavery in Jareth's world. But she wouldn't let such knowledge spoil this moment of bliss. She studied each bracelet individually, while Jareth watched her face eagerly.
The bracelets were identical in every way. They were heavily and ornately carved with flowering vines of various sizes. Thousands of tiny pink and white sapphires in the shape of flower petals lay imbedded in the platinum. Each flower had a bright, golden topaz at the center of the petals. Tiny, deep green emeralds expertly cut to look like curling leaves and vines completed the floral motif.
"Oh, they're stunning!" Izzy exclaimed over the craftsmanship of her bracelets. "Of course I'll wear them." She slid one bracelet onto each wrist then craned her head back for Jareth to kiss her. He complied willingly. Izzy pulled away feeling a peculiar warmth spread throughout her body, starting in her wrists. She looked down at her bracelets with a puzzled expression on her face.
"As long as you wear the bracelets no harm can come to you. When I am not able to be with you the bracelets will protect you. As my bride to be and future queen they grant you the gift of immortality." Izzy looked from Jareth to her wrists, incredulous. His was face was serious but his eyes sparkled.
Jareth leaned down, planting a kiss on top of her head. "Now, my love, don't you think you should get dressed?" He moved to turn on the shower behind her. Hot steam filled the small bathroom with considerable heat.
"I will only if you join me," came Izzy's smart reply. Jareth chuckled and began unbuttoning his pants while Izzy pulled the shower curtain aside to climb over the side of the tub.
Izzy let the piping hot water run down her neck and back, soaking her hair for a split second. She heard only the sound of the water running and waited expectantly for Jareth to climb in after her. When he didn't she peeked out of the shower curtain to see if he needed anything.
He had disappeared.
