Chapter 8: Let Us Partake in a Stroll
The sun was setting, lazily drifting over the landscape to relinquish the day once more into night. Deer, birds, squirrels, anything that flourished during the day passed one another to burrow in their dens and avoid the creatures that developed in the stretches of the dark. This movement of changing shifts stirred Marak from his slumber, producing a long yawn from his lips.
The first thing he noticed was that he was holding a girl in his arms. It took a moment of blind confusion until he remembered the events of the previous day. He had her in his arms. In his arms…and she was asleep. All he had to do was throw her over his shoulder and dash off to where Shamus was. Just get up and leave, and maybe put a leash on her since she proved to be a bundle of surprises. Yet, he could have done that before with an ancient spell used since the beginning of creation, and he could have snatched her from that library to avoid this trouble. Marak sighed and shrugged. He didn't have the pure will to kidnap in him.
I'm a failure as a Goblin King. I'm not acting goblin enough.
Ever since Marak Pantherclaw was a young goblin, he always dreamed of courting a lovely elf or human girl like he heard in stories. It would be like Beauty and the Beast where the protagonist had no choice but fall in love with the cantankerous monster. Of course, when he grew older, he knew that the type of courting expected from him was to either snatch a human from her bed or to bribe the Elf King. But Marak always harbored that desire for a love before any marriage. It was that hope that kept him from dragging Mabrey screaming and crying from her home. It was that hope that delayed him from his kingdom. It was that hope that created a fierce envy for Dani and Gresh's love.
"I can't do this to you anymore." Marak whispered into Mabrey's winter frizzed hair. He pulled the girl closer like a child would to their favorite doll. "I never should have pursued you. I shall take you back and never bother you again."
"It's amazing what a day's rest can do to make someone act like they were knocked in the head." Marak pulled back, his heart soaring from the shock that she was actually awake.
"I see that you are somewhat of an actress yourself." Marak commented. He truly believed she was asleep. Mabrey did not move.
"Don't tell me that you're giving up already. Really, I thought you were a better goblin than that." Mabrey said. She dared not to turn, lest she loose her nerve. She had heard what the Goblin King muttered from behind. At first she was thrilled, excited, exhilarated…but. But then she remembered that in her hurry to flee, she had erased her life from before. She withdrew her bank money and "transferred" out of her university in the full intent to create a new her. A new Mabrey that Marak could never find, and now he was proposing to take her back to a life she permanently erased.
Stupid…I even got rid of my apartment.
"I mean, it's not like I want to go with you or anything. In fact, I'm sure once we're off I will get away again, and that next time will be the time you will never find me." Mabrey said to defend her actions. I mustn't have him think anything otherwise. Marak obviously stifled a chuckle, and out of her curiosity, Mabrey turned. Again, she was taken aback from what she could see from the stars reaching inside of the cave. The alien nature of his ears, eyes, mouth, and now the tail she saw curled the cave floor created a mysterious shiver. The bizarre fact was, she was not cold.
"So instead of being brought home, you'd rather I take you to some foreign part of the country, or my country for that matter, so you can blindly jump out of my grasp and immediately start a new life? You like surprises, eh?" This time he could not keep himself from laughing until his sides began to ache. "I have never met someone like you, Mabrey. You are simply unpredictable, little cat!" After a couple of laughs, he smiled and stood, releasing Mabrey from his arms. A sudden burst of freezing air snuggled against Mabrey's skin and she forced herself to resist jumping back into his arms for warmth.
"What are you doing now?" Mabrey asked.
"I'm bending to your extremely strong will! Let's see how far I can go without you slipping away to sight see!" Marak scooped Mabrey up and turned to depart.
"Hey! I can walk by myself, thank you very much!"
"Oh, no. Now, you just said that you had no intentions of sticking with me, so I need to be sure to keep a firm hold on you, little cat. Plus," Marak placed Mabrey on her feet and stepped away. Mabrey instantly wrapped her arms around her as the cold crept into her coat. "You seem to be slightly chilly without me." The girl pouted.
"Then don't hold me the way you were before." Marak frowned. He really had wanted to hold her bridal style, but a piggy back ride should do. He bent in order for Mabrey to clamber onto his back and almost strangle him with her locked arms around his neck.
"If I hurry," Marak struggled to say, "We will be at our destination before daybreak." He went for the directions that lead to the road they previously were traveling. Mabrey held on for dear life as her escort traveled through the ice and branches more delicately that she had the night before.
"So, where are we going? What was the point of going to Missouri?" Mabrey pondered say she could be occupied with something other than this night escapade.
"I have to meet with one of my stationed subjects. She owns stocks that are very important in maintaining our supply, and I am needed to see her progress. We'll be moving from our home of half a century, and so the pillars of our finance need to be stable."
"Why are you leaving your home? Is it getting infested with termites or something? Where is your home? Where are you moving to?" She teased. Marak chuckled.
"You really are a little cat. You are so curious about everything!" Marak took that moment to rearrange her on his back. "To answer all of your questions at once, my Kingdom must move to follow our elves. Those creatures decided that Hollow Hill was becoming unbefitting for their presence and pranced off to Ireland. Now with our magic source depleting, I have decided to move the Kingdom to follow those pretty people. Though, if the problem were termites, this would be a bit simpler."
"I can tell you that you do not like elves too much, then." Mabrey replied. She had unintentionally asked another question and she mentally kicked herself. She did not want to fall into the category of curious Marak created for her. She could not help herself, though.
"My grandmother was an elf. In fact, she was the last elf to marry a goblin for she was a sort of parting gift the elves bestowed my grandfather. They left her alone and scared. She was the daughter of the highest ranking elf lord, and she was thrown at us by their king and left alone in an unfamiliar area. I could never understand women being traded off as gifts." Marak sighed, his head pounding. "They have a new lord now, and hopefully when we make our move, we will not have to have such compromises."
"Well, then how would you get your people married with elf women?" Marak was struck down by that one. How would he? Marak despised the thought of tearing away those poor daughters from their families to only be allowed once in a while to meet their loved ones. The human women were different. Somehow how they could accept loving a goblin more than an elf woman can. The Kingdom would have to be no choice but to exchange bride gifts with chronicled knowledge. Marak stared at the road that now passed under his feet.
There has to be a better way. But in his mind, Marak knew there wasn't.
"Hello? Are you there?" Mabrey poked Marak's cheek with her finger, which efficiently woke him from his daze.
"Yes, I am. And for your reply, well, I hope that problem will be solved before we arrive. Perhaps a traveling epiphany?" Mabrey poked his cheek again.
"Stop joking. You'll figure it out, I'm sure you will."
"Oh, I know that. I have you in my grasp, and if that can be done, anything can!"