Chill

I wrapped my red wool cloak around me a little tighter, surveying the damage in the throne room. Thank god for the insulating powers of wool — it was pretty damn nippy in here, even with my shielding spell giving me a buffer. The goblins in the room hadn't been so lucky. They were basically in cryofreeze. I hoped to hell it was reversible.

I sighed and shifted my gaze to the silent figure on the throne. "Look, I know older slang isn't obvious sometimes, but when I said 'chill out', this is not in fact what I meant."

Jareth's eyes glittered with rage held just in check. Right. Attempt at levity, fail.

When in doubt, try direct. I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to tell me what's wrong? It's probably faster than me guessing."

"You know what's wrong, Sarah." The words cracked like ice in the brittle air.

"No, Jareth, I actually don't. That's why I asked just now."

"You wouldn't be so disrespectful if you weren't wearing that ring of protection."

Hmm...this was what we called a clue. "True. And I'm very grateful you gave it to me, or I'd be an icicle right now like the rest of your poor subjects in here." I looked down at the ring on my left index finger, a lovely little thing full of potent Faerie magic that Jareth had made me start wearing when I began visiting more regularly. "So, who's been disrespectful to you?"

He glowered and twiddled his fingers in a way that conveyed a particular kind of fussiness.

Wait. I knew that twiddle. "You talked to Karen, didn't you?"

His expression darkened further. "As if you didn't know."

"I didn't till just now. She didn't mention anything about you."

"Ha! That's because that putrid cockatrice hung up on me before I could get out more than 'hello'."

"Please don't insult my relatives." I wracked my brain for recent home events. "Was this Thursday by any chance?"

"It was."

"I never could get the hang of Thursdays," I muttered. "Right. That would be the day Toby collapsed and had to be rushed to the hospital."

Jareth leaned forward at that news. "Is he alright? Why wasn't I told?"

"Ironically given our current circumstances, he had a nasty bout of heatstroke. But he'll be okay. And you're being told now because this is the first chance I've had to talk to you."

"Ah."

"'Ah' is right. Sometimes it's not about you, you know."

"Impossible."

"Mmhmm. So can we undo the current mess here then?"

"I was rather enjoying the quiet, actually."

"Some people just go for a nice walk by themselves when they want some quiet, you know."

"I'm not some people."

"Ha! Don't I know it."

"Perhaps that quiet walk you mentioned is a good idea. Care to join me?"

The air was definitely getting warmer in here. Safe to leave while things thawed, I'd wager. "Love to."