a/n: "Over My Head" is (c) the Fray. Just to let you know. We don't own it XD.
5
Wednesday arrived, and Aunt Helen, Evelyn, and Trinity got up early to feed horses before loading up horses to go to Spruce Hill to ride.
"So this boy," Helen said, for about the millionth time that morning, "He's meeting you there?"
Trinity rolled her eyes. "Yes, Aunt Helen. Yes he's been around horses a long time, yes he's an experienced rider, and no we're not going anywhere else with him except for Spruce Hill."
Helen fell silent, and rolled her eyes. "Fine."
"Whatever."
Evelyn focused on dishing grain to the horses, to hide her smile. The two were definitely related.
After about an hour, all the horses were fed, and hay was put into bags that the horses could eat out of on the road. Then the younger women helped Helen back the truck up to the horse trailer so they could hook it up. Gary, Helen's husband and Trinity's uncle, did the actual attaching of the trailer hitch.
Then it was time to get horses. Trinity and Evelyn knew they were going to bring Trigger and Lady, but they didn't know who to bring for Jareth.
"He rode Spiff last time he was here," Trinity mused as they walked away from the barn, away from Helen and Gary. "But we're bringing a mare…"
"Spiff and Lady are alright loading together," Evelyn said.
"Yeah, but do they allow stallions at Spruce Hill?"
"Oh. You're right, they probably don't."
Suddenly, Trinity snorted.
Evelyn looked at her, confused.
"We could bring Little Dude." Trinity spoke of a pony that had given Jareth trouble early on in his mission for learning how to work hard.
Both girls laughed.
"Kidding," Trinity finally said, "How about Storm?"
Storm was a big black horse that was Trigger's best friend. Raiv had ridden him three years ago, but not much. The horse hadn't been affected by the evil Fae's presence.
"Sounds good," Evelyn said.
So Trinity led Trigger and Storm down from their pasture while Evelyn got Lady. The three horses were loaded, along with extra hay, water, tack, and grooming supplies into the trailer, and they were off. Evelyn had learned how to drive with a horse trailer at the other barn she and Vorian worked at, so she got to drive. In exchange, however, Trinity got control of the stereo. The small girl loved heavy rock music, but limited it to things Evelyn could tolerate. She jokingly complained that this severely limited the choices on her iPod, but she really didn't mind.
The drive to Spruce Hill was only about an hour. Jareth met them at the parking lot and helped them unload. He was dressed in modern clothes; jeans and a black t-shirt Trinity had bought him when he'd expressed an interest in her dark style ("gothic" she called it, or sometimes "emo"; terms Jareth wasn't familiar with). It had the letters ACDC printed on it, and she'd informed him that they were a musical group she liked. He only wore it because she had a t-shirt similar to it, and had chosen to wear it today to Spruce Hill. He'd chosen to keep his hair in layers down to his shoulders, because Trinity seemed to prefer it to the severely overgrown mullet look.
When he saw Storm, he stopped. He'd been expecting Spiff, his old friend from his first days at Helen's farm.
"Uh…sorry," Trinity said, catching the look in his eyes. "We don't think they allowed stallions on the trails here. So we brought a gelding that would do okay with Lady and Trigger."
Jareth nodded. Evelyn wondered if he was thinking of Raiv, who'd ridden Storm before.
They groomed the horses, and tacked up without incident. Then they rode to the Spruce Hill front office, so that Trinity could take in the horses' medical records, saying that they didn't have anything contagious that other horses on the trails could pick up. While she was gone, Jareth held on to Trigger from Storm.
"Evelyn," he said. "I…require your assistance, with something very important."
"Yes?"
"I, well…I want to ask her. The question."
Evelyn gasped, and squealed. "Of course!" she exclaimed, quietly. "What do you need help with?"
XxXxX
The trail was a pleasant one. On the map Trinity had acquired, the trail they had chosen was supposed to take four hours ("Which probably means it'll take us five or six," she said, rolling her eyes) and led up a mountain and back down in a loop. First, it passed a lake.
Which meant the horses had to stop and play in the water.
"Watch out!" Trinity yelled, laughing as Trigger lifted up his foot and pawed at the water, splashing everybody except for her.
Lady lifted her feet high and brought them down hard into the water, as if splashing Trigger back. Evelyn worked with her, trying to get her to swim. At first, the mare was hesitant, but she trusted her rider, and made here way deeper, so that Evelyn was wet up to her knees.
Jareth stood watching the girls for a little while. After a few minutes, he tentatively nudged Storm towards the water's edge, wanting to join in. The black horse walked boldly out to where Trigger was standing with Trinity. He nudged Trigger once, then put his head into the water. Jareth had no idea what his horse was doing, until the horse dropped out from under him, and rolled to one side.
"Gah!" he spluttered, smacking Storm's withers.
Both girls were laughing hysterically.
"Wow!" Trinity exclaimed, "He tried to roll!"
Storm righted himself, and shook himself off, Jareth still attached by the saddle. The goblin king grumbled, then grinned as he shook his own hair out. He was soaked.
All three dried in the warm summer sun as they rode. They didn't worry about the tack, as most of it was faux leather. The swim had invigorated the horses, and all six beings were cheerful as they headed up the mountain.
XxXxX
Vorian had just arrived at Helen's farmhouse. No one was there, so he felt bad for being here, once again without anyone's knowledge. But Trinity's message (delivered by Jareth) was clear.
Vorian,
I know this goes against a lot of what you've been taught, and yeah, even in this world it's kinda rude. But this project me and Evelyn are working on is mine, too. So if she gets onto you, you can blame me. But I think this will help both of you. I know how you feel about her, and I want you to know that I totally want you both to be happy. So I want you to go into Evelyn's and my room while we're at Spruce Hill with Jareth. Go to her laptop. I'll pull up the file before we leave, so it'll be there waiting on you. Read what she wrote about you, okay? Jareth and I think it'll help you out if you know how she feels. I promise I didn't edit anything; she really poured herself out in that segment.
Take care of her,
Trinity
Despite this letter, or perhaps because of it, Vorian was nervous as he walked slowly down the hall to the girls' room. His heart was pounding in his chest; he could hear it. But he was determined. He was determined to do this, if not to learn about Evelyn, than just because Trinity had asked him to. If she thought it would help, then he could read whatever she wished.
He found the laptop open, with a picture slideshow going as the screensaver. Evelyn had taught him about computers, so he knew to hit a letter to get rid of the moving pictures. Just like Trinity had said, there was an open document on the screen. He scanned through it until he found his name, and started to read.
XxXxX
The trio had been riding for about two hours when they stopped to rest. It was lunchtime, so the horses were tied to trees so the humans could sit on a fallen tree and eat the sandwiches they'd packed in the saddlebags.
"What a perfect day," Evelyn said, finishing her sandwich quickly and standing up. "We're up pretty high. I wonder what we could see from that rise there?"
She moved away from Jareth and Trinity, walking over to a grassy rise a short distance away. She made her way to the top of it, and then looked out at the marvelous scenery before her. Stretched out beneath her was the lake, surrounding by trees. In the far distance, she could see fields and more woods.
"It's beautiful up here!" she called, and then turned and walked back to where Trinity and Jareth sat. "You should go look."
Jareth clambered to his feet and offered his hand to Trinity. Evelyn smiled reassuringly at him, and then moved over to where Lady stood. From that point, she wouldn't be able to see Jareth and Trinity on the rise, and they would have the privacy Jareth wanted.
Jareth cleared his throat, somewhat nervously, as he kept Trinity's hand held gently in his and led her to the top of the rise. He had asked for Evelyn's help, and she had given it. Now he just needed to have the courage to speak his mind, the courage to speak at all.
"Wow!" Trinity exclaimed as they came to a stand on the grassy rise. "The scenery is beautiful! There's the lake…and the woods are gorgeous!"
"I don't need to look out far to see something beautiful and gorgeous," Jareth said quietly, and Trinity looked up at him.
He was gazing down at her steadfastly, completely oblivious to the scenery. Her cheeks turned pink beneath his gaze, and she turned her head to look away. She felt his hand on her chin, stroking her cheek with his thumb, and she looked up at him again.
"I never thought this could happen," Jareth said quietly, moving his face so it was only a few inches away from hers. "I could never have believed that within such a short time of Sarah's refusal, one would come who would mean far more to me than she ever could have. I never thought my salvation from pain would come in the form of a small girl with black hair and such expressive blue eyes."
Trinity wished she could think of something to say, but what could one say to match words such as those?
"You rescued me from myself, something that would have been impossible for anyone else. You, my dearest Trinity, are my savior. I owe you my life, my love and my heart, all three of which I give you freely."
The words were rolling freely off of his tongue now, and the emotion in his voice kept Trinity amazed and entranced.
"I couldn't bear it if you were to suddenly leave me, if I suddenly had to go through the rest of my life without you. Even one week away from you, seven days with twenty-four hours each, is enough time to nearly kill me. I love you, beautiful woman that you have become, and I want you to stay with me always, to rule beside me and be my queen."
Jareth slowly dropped to one knee, and Trinity's eyes widened. He couldn't be… No he wasn't. There was no possible way Jareth, Jareth himself, the Goblin King, the lord of the entire Underground, was…proposing?
"Trinity, queen of my heart, dearest one of my life, my savior, my rose and my life, will you marry me?"
Tears formed in Trinity's eyes, and she let out a small sob.
"I can offer you the world, but I want, more than anything else, to offer you myself. My time, my never ending devotion, my very being is all yours, at your disposal. I should be lost if you leave me. Please, my darling, please spare me more agony, the agony of never seeing you again, or never having you as my own."
Jareth reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a small velvet-covered jewelry box. He opened it, revealing an absolutely stunning ring made of black diamonds and the purest rubies to the woman he loved.
"This was my mother's," Jareth smiled. "My father gave it to her when they were married. When she was killed, the ring was given to me. I want you to have it. Whether or not you will have me as your husband, this ring belongs to you."
"Oh Jareth," Trinity breathed, tears streaming down her cheeks. "It's beautiful. I'll accept it from you, but only on one condition."
"And that would be? If you want me to move the stars, I shall. If you want me to turn night inside out, or make the sun disappear, I will," he offered, taking her hand in his and gently moving the ring onto her left ring finger.
"I don't want that. I'll only take this ring," Trinity said, taking in a deep breath and closing her eyes, "If I can have you along with it. I will marry you, Jareth. I will. There is nothing I want more."
Jareth smiled and stood up.
"My queen," he breathed, pulling her to him and holding her against his heart. "I love you, more than day and night, more than summer and winter. This heart that beats so freely beats only for you. You have made me the happiest man alive."
"I love you," Trinity smiled, looking up into his eyes. "I love you so much. I had hoped so much you would ask me."
Jareth smiled and lowered his mouth to hers.
The newly engaged couple spent several moments in silence, entirely absorbing each other. Kisses had never seemed sweeter, and embraces had never been so endearing.
Presently, Jareth picked Trinity up and spun her, and she let out a laugh of complete delight. Evelyn, who was still standing quietly next to Lady, smiled.
When Trinity and Jareth resurfaced from their own little world, Evelyn was waiting. She ran to Trinity and threw her arms around her friend. She cried with her, tears of complete joy streaming down her cheeks.
"I'm so happy for you!" she exclaimed, dancing with Trinity. "Oh, and your ring is gorgeous! Oh, how exciting! How wonderful! Congratulations to both of you!"
"Thank you! Thank you!" Trinity laughed, jumping up and down with her friend. "Let's get riding again, otherwise I'll be so excited I won't be able to get into the saddle!"
Evelyn laughed and wrapped her arm through Trinity's.
"I don't think you could get any more excited, but let's go."
XxXxX
Vorian finished reading Evelyn's writing for the fifth time, just as amazed with it as he had been the first time he read it.
She loved him? It was what he wanted, but she hadn't seemed to…
Scared? He was sorry for that, and made plans to amend it…
His strength… clearly, Vorian decided, he would have to make the first move himself. But how does one go about giving affection to a woman who fears him? He would have to show her that he loved her through his actions, if they hadn't gotten the message across already. He would have to show her that he would keep her from heartbreak. He wanted her to trust him with his heart, but…
He wasn't sure he was worthy. Could he hold this woman's heart without breaking it? Was he strong enough, and yet tender enough, to hold something so fragile? What reason did she have to trust him?
There was no doubt in his heart that this woman meant everything to him. She was his sun, his light. But was he worthy of her?
Finally, Vorian got up and stretched his cramped muscles. He'd been kneeling by the laptop for an hour or two, and was very stiff. Slowly, he made his way out of the house and to his truck, which was parked down at the barn. Trinity's aunt was out shopping, so she wouldn't know he'd been there. He climbed into the cab, and started the engine. As the engine warmed, he heard music from the stereo. He'd left in a CD Evelyn had burned him, and he laughed nervously when he heard the song.
And suddenly I become part of the past
I'm becoming the part that doesn't last
I'm losing you and it's effortless
Without a sound we lose sight of the ground
In the throw around
Never thought that you wanted to bring it down
I won't let it go down until we torch it ourselves
And everyone knows I'm in
Over my head
Over my head
With eight seconds left in overtime
She's on your mind
She's on your mind
How well it fit. How fitting that the one who had introduced the song to him was the woman he wasn't willing to let go. He put the stereo on 'repeat' and then put the truck in gear. He listened to the song all the way back to his home in the human world.