Chapter Ten: The Wedding of the Harrowed

Jareth arrived early at the temple. He had to track Icca down. He knew wouldn't find Sarah before the wedding ritual, so his first task was to settle his score with his once-lover.

He saw his target loitering in a temple garden, smiling to himself amidst the greenery and statues. The temple garden was beautiful in a very manicured way. Not a white stone was out of place on the path and the moss that existed was trimmed and toned.

"Icca," Jareth said, smiling at him, as he swallowed his anger and kept his mask in place. "You have a similar mind to me. A stroll about the garden is just what one needs before a wedding. They are such tiresome, dull affairs. Well, unless they involve an orgy or two, which sadly these days, they don't."

Icca's smile wavered for a moment but was replaced with a less self-congratulatory one.

"Jareth," he said, striding towards him. "You are looking…well."

"And why shouldn't I?" he said, gesturing widely. "I am a King after all."

"One that is still without an heir," came a familiar voice from behind him. Jareth turned so he could keep both Icca and the intruder, Diddershins Gly, in his vision. He felt the flare of anger at the sight of his cousin, acknowledged it and let it go. Diddershins would want him to cause a scene. The council would love for Jareth to be deemed unstable, and in the heat of the moment he could accidentally reveal any one of his minor Aboveground transgressions.

He hadn't lied to Sarah when he admitted he broke a lot of the rules of the High Council, but they were below their notice. Addressing them in such a public place would not be ignored. So, breathing deeply, he smiled broadly at his cousin and gave a slight bow.

"I congratulate you for your conquest, Lord Gly," Jareth said, coming out his bow with a smile still plastered on his face. "You won your lady very swiftly."

Diddershins bared his teeth in a replica of a smile. "I dare say she was very amenable to the idea of marriage. I am certain that it shall not be exceedingly long before I get an heir off her."

"And you never considered to make one of your illegitimate offspring, your heir?" Jareth asked, a saccharine tone to his question. "Instead of a mortal."

He scoffed. "A Hoimailuaquk, King Jareth." He strode forward, hands behind his back, plait swinging side to side. "None of my mistresses can boast such power reserves."

"I suppose not," he admitted. "Yet, you would have a bevvy of heirs to choose from without risking the law."

"No laws were broken by me," Diddershins said, bringing his hands out from behind his back and holding them wide. "I didn't even have to resort to kidnapping. She came willingly."

The revelation that Gly knew that Sarah was not just fae-touched, but a Hoimailuaquk froze the blood in his veins solid. It wouldn't just be a matter of using her for her fertility. Gly would drain her of her magic for his own ends. Once Jareth would have been tempted to do the same. But he had grown to know her, to care for her, and Bog damn it, he loved her. Her power was no longer the drawcard he thought it was.

He had given her The Chronicles of the Labyrinth, hoping that Sarah would learn about herself, about her powers. She never read much further into it before her vanishing. He knew now, that if he wanted to truly keep her power to himself, he never would have risked her finding out just how much power she had over him. Which she would have learnt had she read the book.

He very much doubted she came to this wedding willingly, as Gly claimed. Sarah was too smart for that. Jareth knew that Gly had some compulsion magic that could make lesser beings obedient to his every will, but Sarah was too strong for that. Surely, Gly would realise that she wasn't just a power source to drain and utilise.

In the days before the Underground and the Aboveground were separated, Gly was exactly the fae that would set traps in woods and make fairy rings everywhere. He had the ability to make himself completely irresistible to mortals. Jareth never did learn what he did with the ones he captured. When the separation happened, Gly was one of the ones that found it the hardest to adapt. Especially when he learnt that he was so close, yet so far away from being in Queen Ismaila's position where she could still go Aboveground.

It was no surprise to Jareth that he had worked to remove Ismaila and he was now doing the same to remove him so that he could gain access to the Above without restraint.

Surely, he realised that being a Hoimailuaquk that Sarah held the key to the future of the entire fae-kind. That her first born was destined to become the next High Fae. Surely, Diddershins would realise that draining her of her power would be treason; that it would cut his own life short. Milidred, the current High Fae was born to the role as an ancestor of a previous Hoimailuaquk. But her line was ending. And as it came to a close, she entitled a favoured fae to select the new Hoimailuaquk from the mortal realm.

If Jareth failed in his mission to stop the marriage, he would reveal to Diddershins the power he held by keeping her magic intact. He would not allow Sarah to become a sacrifice just because pride would not allow Gly to become the father of the next High Fae, a position that almost held more respect and prosperity than that of the High Fae itself.

Jareth glanced up to the sky where the Celestial Towers stretched over their heads. Stardust from that formation was what gave their kind magic. And had given Sarah the heart of a Hoimailuaquk in the first place. As much as he wanted Sarah for himself, he would rather her be whole and holding her own. He wouldn't see her drained for power and he wouldn't risk his world and his kind for his pride.

But until it became a problem, he wouldn't reveal this information to anyone. It would only make Sarah more desirable and less likely to be free of this sham of a wedding.

"Well, I must deepen my congratulations then," Jareth said, hiding the contempt from his voice. "It seems you have really pulled this off."

"Thank you, cousin, for attending my wedding." He turned to re-enter the temple. "It surprises me and heartens me that you are here."

"Why the surprise, cousin?" Jareth asked, smirking. "You are my cousin and my heir after all. Of course, I would attend."

"And you had no designs on the human yourself, Jareth?" Diddershins asked over his shoulder. Jareth didn't miss the fleeting look he gave Icca, who remained pensive and quiet.

Jareth smirked. "I would have enjoyed getting my revenge after she thwarted me, cousin, but as you have so been so astute as to notice, I have Icca."

Now that he had been mentioned, he let out a puff of air and seemed to stiffen next to Jareth. He threw him a sidelong smile and winked, before watching Gly disappear back into the temple.

"You mean it?" Icca asked when they were once again alone.

"Mean what?"

"That you have me?" Icca was frowning with disbelief.

"You doubt me?"

"I thought…I thought you would be heartbroken over the mortal." Icca's brow was raised as he looked at Jareth askance.

"Heartbroken?" Jareth laughed. "You thought that I would be heartbroken over a mortal chit? Whatever for?"

"You have been spending a lot of time with her of late," Icca said, his shoulders hunching.

"Have I?" Jareth asked, raising a brow of his own. "And how do you know that?"

"You are not the only one with a bird form, Jareth."

"You have been spying on me?" he asked, raising the second brow. "You admit to breaking the rules and conducting espionage on a king."

"Jareth," Icca said, plaintively. "I love you and I only wanted what was best for you."

"Love isn't spying and kidnapping and obsession, Icca," Jareth said, snidely. "Sarah—the mortal taught me that.

"Kidnapping?"

"Diddershins didn't break a rule," Jareth said in an indifferent tone as he moved away to inspect a nearby shrubbery. "He was telling the truth. He didn't have to break a rule when someone else did the kidnapping instead. Someone who was given a boon by the High Fae and could slip into the mortal world unnoticed."

Icca was standing stock still, but Jareth refused to tear his eyes off the green leaf he was fondling.

"All this time, I've been blaming myself for the threat Travis posed against Sarah. I even apologised for it." Jareth gently stroked the back of a leaf with a gloved finger. "Can you imagine it? A fae king apologising to a mere mortal."

Icca shrugged. "Why would you do such a low born thing?"

"Because I believed it was my fault Travis stalked, harassed, threatened and maimed her," Jareth said, keeping his eyes on the plants. "But it was you pulling his strings."

"He was easy to manipulate," Icca replied with candour. "The rot was already there. I merely probed it."

"And to what end, I ask?" Jareth said turning to a perpetual water fountain that almost defied gravity.

"She defeated you," Icca explained. "And Travis was able to make her life miserable."

"Ah, so you did it out of revenge for me."

"Of course," Icca said, nodding eagerly. "Everything I do, I do for you."

Jareth heard the words he had long uttered to Sarah echoing in his mind. I move the stars for no one. Was it any wonder she couldn't trust a fae such as him? How he viewed Icca and Gly—as that how she viewed him?

"And how was Sarah's torment supposed to be a comfort to me?"

"He was just a tool," Icca said. "My plan was to have you fall for her. The poor hard done by maiden who needed rescuing."

Jareth laughed. "There's your first mistake. And while she sought me out, she is made of sterner stuff than to let a little stalking and harassment get to her. Did you also manipulate Gavin into stalking her?"

"No, he did that all on his own," Icca replied. "He was fae-touched but troubled. He latched onto the mortal's magic like it was a balm to his guilt for the loss of his sister. Like she could help him," he scoffed.

"Her magic?" Jareth asked slowly.

Icca merely replied with a puzzled expression as Jareth took a seat on a granite bench. Icca followed, sitting dangerously close to him.

"And what do you know of her magic, Icca?"

"I made her, Jareth," Icca admits, fondling Jareth's knee. "She is mine. By proxy of course. High Fae Milidred bequeathed me the boon of choosing the next Hoimailuaquk."

The expected elation of being right never came. Instead, he just felt his anger once more. Sarah's entire life has been nothing but a tool in Icca's arsenal.

"Your mother revealed with her innate talent of seeing through time and space who the soul was that would bond with yours," Icca continued, unaware of Jareth's simmering fury. "Sarah's mother was easy enough to convince to fall pregnant with a few hollow dreams."

Jareth gave Icca a look that expressed extreme patience. He watched his Adam's apple bob before he started on with his explanation once more.

"How easy it was to choose her to be my Hoimailuaquk and how easy to let her break your heart. Not once, but twice. Once when she beat you at your wee puzzle and the second when she willingly married someone else."

"What do you mean 'willingly'?" Jareth asked through gritted teeth.

"Oh, I had asked her if she would rather marry you. And while she had mentioned something about the devil you know, in the end she had chosen Diddershins Gly out of the two of you."

Jareth snarled. "That isn't willingly. And she has been Underground for longer than thirteen hours."

"Stop being so selfish, Jareth. If you marry me, I get what I want and the council get what they want. Sarah marrying Diddershins gets both of them what they want. Everyone gets what they want but you, but what's one fae's desires when pitted against all of that?"

Jareth reeled at the venom laced in Icca's voice. His eyes were flashing, nostrils flaring and his nails had tapered to claws that he was currently digging into his knee.

"You are a King, you have privileges only some of us can dream of," Icca continued, snarling. "You have an entire kingdom and thousands of subjects in your power and thrall. You have the power of dreams and how do you use it? To run a wee game for those irresponsible mortals who wish their family away. It is about time you make a sacrifice."

"A sacrifice?" Jareth asked through clenched teeth.

"You want to lose everything?" Icca asked, digging his claws in just a touch deeper. "Or would you rather throw everything you have away for a girl who doesn't want you?"

Jareth didn't answer. He had hoped that over time, Sarah would come to love him, marry him, provide him with the all-important heir. But hearing someone even hint at her non-existent feelings reeled him in.

"If you truly wanted an heir, you could have married some silly Lord's daughter and had done with it," Icca said in a softer tone, releasing his grip on his leg. "You may only be half fae, but no one but me would have gone to these lengths to win you."

If truth be told, Jareth was very unlike his peers in this regard. He had never wanted to be won this way—the conniving, the double dealing and all the schemes. The more he experienced of these games, the more he realise Sarah was right. Love was built on trust, respect, and compatibility. Not games and intrigues.

"Oh, and you're smarter than that, Jareth," Icca said, as an aside. "She is my boon and therefore exempt to then thirteen-hour rule."

"I suppose you also hoodwinked my father into giving Gly a crystal?" Jareth asked with a calmness he didn't feel.

"Yes, Jareth, you can relax now. Both your parents are innocents in this. Just pawns. But aren't you intrigued? Would your Sarah ever go to such lengths to win you?"

Jareth knew she would not.

"It was rather long winded and convoluted," Jareth pointed out, huffing with relief as Icca retracted his claws completely.

"I have been in love with you for centuries," Icca said, inspecting his nails. "What is a few years of a mortal's life? Besides, a long-term plan avoided me from scrutiny and suspicion. You were quick to blame Diddershins. No one even looked at me."

"And you created her as a Hoimailuaquk for me to fall in love with?" Jareth asked.

"Yes, and to break your heart," Icca clarified. "Once your heart is broken, it would become mine to repair."

"Yes, I will come to that point in a minute," Jareth said, smoothing the fabric of his trousers where Icca had been digging his claws in. "Diddershins doesn't realise the full consequence of marrying a Hoimailuaquk, does he? It has been many centuries since the last one and it is not common knowledge."

Icca shifted on the stone bench. "No, he doesn't realise he can not drain her for her magic as he believes. Not without dire consequences."

"Consequences that extend to you as her Maker."

Icca nodded.

"So why on Earth are you allowing this to happen?"

Icca gave him a vulpine grin. "My plan hit obstacles and diverged on the way but in the end I have exactly the consequence I have wanted."

"Except I am not heartbroken." Jareth turned to face Icca and tipped his chin up with one finger and stared into his eyes. "Your plan failed."

"Has it?" Icca whispered. "I know you're particularly good at masking. Will you truly just accept Sarah walking down the aisle in half an hour to marry a fae you hate? One that will rape her and—"

"You said it was willing. If Sarah is a willing participant in this wedding, then I can not stand in her way."

Icca frowned. "You won't fight for her? Do you not love her?"

Jareth dropped Icca's chin and rose up off the bench.

"What is your plan now that my heart is not in need of mending?" Jareth asked coldly. "She has made her choice and I have to respect that."

"But—"

"But what?"

Icca's gaze fell to his feet. "And if I admit that it is not willing? That Diddershins has used compulsive magic to get her to marry him?"

Jareth snorted. "As if anyone is foolish enough to believe any different. Sarah would never marry a fae she just met. So, what is your plan now that I know she hasn't really chosen him over me?"

Icca audibly swallowed before also rising to his feet. "I can stop the wedding as I can grant permission for my Hoimailuaquk to marry or not."

"What's the condition?"

"Father," Jareth greeted Marshall just inside the temple door. His father gave him a stern look before throwing his arms around his son's shoulders.

"It is good to see you."

Jareth awkwardly patted his father on the back. Fae didn't embrace one another and certainly not in public. And most especially not at a society function such as a wedding.

"How is your mother?" Marshall asked as he always did. Jareth knew they both pined for one another and there would never be any chance of reconciliation. Not at least until a new High Fae was on the High throne. But unless, Icca managed to stop this wedding, that fae would likely be Diddershins' child and even less likely to allow Ismaila back into the Underground.

"She is as well as she can be," Jareth gave his rehearsed response with a sigh.

"And how are you, son?" his father asked, clasping a hand to his elbow. "It must be hard seeing Lord Gly marrying your Champion."

Jareth didn't respond to this statement, instead he looked past the mingling crowds to where he spotted Sarah standing near the alter. She was standing with her hands in front of her, unmoving, unblinking, and completely impassive. She was, of course, beautiful in the fae dress woven from the finest silk and jewels, but her expression and body language remained completely indifferent to her surroundings. Almost like she wasn't even present inside her body.

Jareth longed to storm over there, but he remained where he was, turning his attention back to his father.

"She is a pretty lass," Marshall said in a hushed tone. Jareth nodded. By mortal standards she was captivating. He didn't give a toss how she was seen under the microscope of fae standards. To him, she was unerringly beautiful. Even in this temple dedicated to the heavens, she was the only thing to arrest his gaze.

The temple was round with a glass domed ceiling that perfectly framed the Celestial Towers (which looked much the same as the Aboveground telescopic view of the Pillars of Creation). There were no benches or seats, merely an altar in the wide-open space. The walls were columns covered in vines, interspersed with heavily manicured pots plants.

Despite the beauty and serenity of the place, Sarah seemed unmoved. Surrounded by courtesans fussing over her, some of which were current and former mistresses of Diddershins, she remained blankly staring at the altar at the centre of the temple.

"I presume you have a plan," Marshall whispered, having noticed Jareth's gaze once more.

Jareth didn't answer but moved his head so slightly it was almost inconceivable. Marshall merely blinked and then moved off to mingle with an acquaintance on the other side of the temple.

He didn't question how his father knew how he felt about Sarah. Perhaps he had somehow found a way to converse with his mother. And if that was the case, he was better off not knowing.

Fae avoided him because of his position as the Goblin King but possibly because of his heritage too. It was no different now. A wide berth was given as the chamber slowly filled up.

"How did you know about my plan?" Icca asked at his elbow. It has been easy to fall into a relationship with him when he was persona non grata and Icca was the only one who gave him the time of day. But he had learnt from that mistake too.

A fae obsessed was a dangerous creature. And he was about to lose Sarah which he now knew was the biggest thing he could lose. And he had a whole kingdom at his disposal to forfeit.

"Diddershins Gly isn't clever enough to concoct this plan," Jareth said out of the side of his mouth. "And you are exquisite at creating traps. So, when I found Sarah in an interdimensional trap between realities, I knew Gly couldn't have done that."

"Ah," Icca replied looping his arm through Jareth's. "I did wonder how long it would take before you found out."

"You do not seem fazed for having been discovered."

Icca chuckled. "I wanted you to know the lengths I went to. I know how your parents got together after all." His shoulder butted against his. "I wanted you to experience such romance. Except I couldn't kidnap you but I could get your soulmate kidnapped."

Jareth wanted to yank his arm away from his captor so violently. But instead, he gave a beatific smile. "Again, it hasn't broken my heart, but—"

"But I have won you all the same," Icca interrupted, placing a kiss on his cheek. Jareth smiled at Icca before turning his gaze back to Sarah, who, to his horror was now looking right back at him. But his horror was quickly replaced with confusion as her eyes remained dead and her expression blank.

Guilt soared through his every cell in a way he had never known before. Monogamy was not a common trait amongst the fae. It wasn't unusual for his kind to have multiple partners, but he felt like he was betraying Sarah as he stood there, arm in arm with Icca Debe. And it hurt more to see her completely unsurprised at his betrayal. Icca's smug expression probably wasn't helping either.

She looked away as the bells started chiming and a hush descended over the temple.

Diddershins Gly entered from the side enclave with the officiant and moments later the rituals started. Jareth was too tense to pay much attention to the proceedings. He kept his eyes on Sarah as she went step by step through the pre-nuptial routines. She remained aloof and passive and did not again look his way.

"Not yet," Icca whispered, half an hour into the wedding, bringing his free hand up to clutch at his fingers that had curled into a ball. "Soon, but not yet."

Jareth was beginning to doubt the plan was going to work. He had all but sold his body, mind, and kingdom for Sarah to be free of Gly. He wouldn't be happy until the moment it paid off. And seeing how deep they were getting—how close to being officially married she was…

Everyone was now kneeling down in the temple. Everyone but the bride and groom, and the Officiant, Lord Stiven, who remained standing, holding hands, surrounded by flowers and lace.

"Who speaks for her?" the officiant asked, and Jareth's heart froze in his chest. It began pounding again as the earth felt like it tilted with the one look she threw in his direction.

"I do."