Chapter 9: A History That Happens Now
"It is about time that you came back." Shamus said without looking up from his book. It was partially in goblin and the only possession he had brought with him from his apartment. Marak stood in the doorframe with Mabrey waking up from her slumber on his back.
"I had a bit of delay, but thankfully my little cat and I have come to a compromise." Marak was practically glowing with achievement and joy. That alone tore Shamus from his book, only slightly bewildered. Mabrey slid off of Marak's back and inched away toward Shamus.
"A compromise? Well good for you. If you can convince her to be your wife, then I am sure that you will not have a problem with the elves." Marak's beam wavered, becoming thin. Mabrey produced a hot blush, and Shamus rolled his eyes. So Marak had only managed to drag the girl here. If only Shamus could do something to alleviate Marak's fear of kidnapping, which in itself was completely insane for that was what goblins do.
"Listen, Shamus, I need to attend Trishka's appointment about the stocks, and then we'll leave. Can you look after this crafty human? She has promised me that she will escape again." The Goblin King turned to leave only to stop in mid-step, surprised.
"But you have been running nonstop since we got onto the road, and you have not eaten! Aren't you going to rest?" Mabrey asked, trying desperately to keep the concern out of her voice. Witnessing this, Shamus raised an eyebrow, clearly interested in this new development. Clearly, she still wanted to leave, but now considered Marak as a friend. If she did not, then she would not have bothered to ask. Marak, also deducing this outcome, only plucked the fingers that held onto his black sleeve off and answered her question.
"I plan to sneak some early pastries, but only if you promise to rest and eat yourself." Mabrey was about to retort when he added, "You're stomach was snarling a great deal, I could hardly hear myself thinking!" With that, Mabrey backed away, crossing her arms, and glared at the trickster. His laugh was soft and worn from exhaustion. Shamus would have urged his king to rest as well if it weren't for the way Marak was staring at him. It was a direct order from the King to his subject; take care of her. And with that, Marak was off to his meeting. The door closed, leaving an awkward silence beating down upon Shamus and his new consort. He would have gone back to reading his book, but he needed to attend to the girl now sitting on his bed.
"What would you prefer to eat?" Shamus asked after ten more minutes of absolute silence.
"Where's Dani?"
"In the conjoining room." She had caught him off guard, having him forget his original question and leaving him in a slight confusion.
"Any kind of cereal." Mabrey replied, taking her coat and shoes off.
"What?"
"You asked me what I wanted to eat. I told you." She said, pulling out the used packet heaters and throwing them in the trash bin.
"Oh…" Shamus said. He felt played, but let it pass. He ordered on the phone. Shamus was just in time for the Early Bird special the hotel offered. Once he finished putting in his request for the humans and goblins, he went back to his book. Mabrey saw the remote for the television in the room, but decided against it since Shamus had his nose planted in the book in front of him. She wondered if Marak would be all right, and in order to banish any scared thoughts she assumed that striking a conversation with Shamus would be pleasant.
"What are you reading?" Shamus started, the tuffs of feathers on either side of his head expanded and he directed his nonhuman bird eyes at Mabrey, clearly startled. He gave the book one last look over before closing it and setting the old thing back on the desk in front of him.
"It is a book from the King's Wife Chronicles. I'm on the part where-" Mabrey quickly cut him off, and he bit his lip in order to keep from talking any further.
"What is the King's Wife Chronicles? I don't understand." The eagerness in her voice was obvious.
"Originally, it was when Kings wrote about their Wives. They would write about the day he finds out she is bearing his child, or when she first gives him a nickname. He could write about the first time she smiles, cries, laughs, plans out her day, plays games with the children, becomes friends with a goblin, and so on and so on." Shamus had launched into his literate speech that he practiced while in school, even sitting up straighter like he used to in class.
"But after the King's Wife Kate Winslow took a liking to writing her own experiences, many others followed suit. So now the Chronicles includes both the King and the King's Wife's details about her stay in the Kingdom." He stared at the name of the one who wrote the begging of the book he had. It was Kate's, one of his favorite King's Wives. Shamus did not expect to see Mabrey stand and walk over to him. He backed away unconsciously, but relaxed when he saw that she was only interested in the book.
"This is in English." Mabrey said. She pointed at some scribbles next to Kate's name. "What's that?" Shamus looked and smiled.
"That's the goblin translation of Kate's name." He opened the book, revealing pages full of English with goblin translation crammed into the margins corresponding to the English counterpart. Mabrey read the book in awe, absorbing the words that sprung from the page like a thirsty animal finding an oasis. Shamus noticed how she leaned closer, even trying to match up the goblin to English. He would not be surprised if she learned the whole language by the end of the night.
"I'm back. You may now commence Plan C of escape." Marak chuckled when he opened the door to the hotel room some time later. He fell completely silent when he saw the two occupants of the room on the floor asleep. An open book was in front of them surrounded by empty bowls and glasses that probably used to contain breakfast. The Goblin King took that moment to watch the girl's sleeping face, which still had the expression of fascination. Her eyebrows were slanted down and a small smirk creased her lips. Marak had a strong and curious urge to brush his fingers along her jaw line, and was even bending down to obey that thought when he stopped, his hand lingering in the air.
I mustn't, he reminded himself. He pulled his hand back, and redirected his attention to the book.
"You eventually loved him in the end, right?" Marak asked the book, hoping some kind of a response would give him strength not only for the hope that Mabrey would too, but for the move he was planning and what awaited for him at his destination. Of course, the book only sat there. "Why thank you, that is a wonderful sign. I feel my resolution brimming just from you laying there."
"Excuse me, Marak, are you talking to a book?" Marak completely forgot Shamus was sleeping (or was he?) next to him.
"And what if I am?"
"I prefer for you to not know that answer." Shamus yawned and sat up. Marak stood as well and felt a wave of exhaustion claim his body. "You should sleep too. You told her you would look after yourself." Shamus noted when his king swayed on his feet.
"I should watch what I promise that cat. One day I'll tell her that I would give her the moon out of a whim and she would hold me to it." Marak remarked. "Very well, I'll rest, but you must wake me a good deal of time before our flight. I shall have to get ready and disguise this mismatch group of ours with a couple of spells." He mentally cringed from the thought of wearing those heavy winter clothes that he required to at least pass as a human, an overly dressed maybe creepy human, but a human none the less.
"I shall, but promise me one thing."
"Yes?"
"You told me I could wake you." There was something odd in Shamus's voice, and Marak felt that he would live long enough to regret asking his friend to wake him up.
The next night, Mabrey heard a distinct "What the hell?!" from the next hotel room and an answering "You asked for it." She wondered what in the world happened, but only spared a shrug. Before she got up to get dressed, her backpack with all of her clothes that she left on the bus was in the room, she picked up the book in front of her. She just happened to read a line and soon found herself completely captured by the story. And in that moment, a perfect time for her to grab her possessions and "commence Plan C," she read about how raising Catspaw was an utter handful. When Shamus came back into the room with a begrudged frown on his face, any chance of escape was gone, and Mabrey did not notice at all.