Chapter Ten
Sarah woke before Jareth, dawn not yet kissing the sky. Her body trembled. She had eaten something of a large snack before bathing and the decadent activities of the night before, but her stomach cried out for more.
She was grateful to find there was a spread of camp food available for her selection. Bars of oats, nuts, and honey baked to a chewy-crunchy consistency, flagons of sweetened pomegranate juice, dried jerky flavored with sugars and marinades. Whole fruit, nutty wheat bread rolls, and sharp cheese completed the selection.
Sarah took her fill, licking her fingers clean before collapsing into one of the camp chairs.
And just as suddenly, found herself in a sun-soaked glade in the midst of a massive forest. Birds sang high above, and moats of golden dust glimmered in slanted beams of sunlight.
Sarah pulled in a panicked breath, finding she was sitting on a wide boulder. Moss cushioned her seat, but when she went to stand a melodic voice rang out, "It's alright. You're not here. Your body, at least. Only a part of your mind."
Zeroing in on where the voice came from, Sarah found a fae woman perched on the branch of a spreading oak tree. Her legs kicked as she looked down, a smile on familiar-seeming features. "Who are you?"
"Jahari. I doubt Jareth told you about me." She leapt down, landing with surprisingly quietness on the leaf-strewn forest floor. Her fall had taken her into a crouch, and she looked up with a grin showcasing crooked teeth. "I'm his older sister." The grin widened as Sarah's jaw dropped. "And while my brother has a gift with dreams, I have the same with day dreams. Visions. It's how I brought you here. I just want the opportunity to talk."
Sarah put the boulder between her and Jahari, giving her a silent nod.
"Not one for polite conversation, I see." The fae woman smiled again.
Her hair was shorn close to her skull on the sides, but was far longer on the top, falling down her neck and spine. Like a horse's main. It was the same kind of silvery gold that Jareth's was, darker at the roots. She wore something that looked like a general's uniform, rows of buttons on her jacket and tight trousers leading to knee-high polished black boots. Silver tassels fell from her shoulders, and silver stars adorned her breast.
Hands behind her back as she regarded Sarah, Jahari said, "I will get to the point. I wanted to ask why you are doing this."
Sarah blinked. "Why am I doing what now?"
Another smile. "Why are you helping Jareth, who has been banished eternally, break loose the bonds of magic? What are you gaining from this?"
Hackles rising a little, Sarah said, "You made sure the fae race was supreme, that only you all had connection to the source of magic, to the shaping of things."
"Yes, and even within our own kind, it is hard to manage those who would abuse such powers. There are reasons we live by the rules and the bounds of the wellspring. Can you imagine the chaos if it were to be set free utterly?" Jahari began to pace, light and shadow rippling across her uniform. "I don't know if you know how bad magic can be. I can see the shadow of it upon you, but you are like a visitor. You have not had to live within our world, and our laws. You do not understand. Your ignorance is—"
"Stop it," Sarah snapped. "I am aware enough."
"Are you?" She stilled, face in shadow while the rest stood in bright sunlight. Somehow the shadows seemed to darken, to begin to twist. "I don't think you do. Your friends were tortured for a decade in their dreams by my brother, your lover. Perhaps I could give you a taste of the same. Time, after all… is very different, in dreams. I could keep you here for what would feel like years, and then send your broken mind back into your body."
Sarah paled. She could swear some of those shadows were like horns sprouting from Jahari's head. "And what would be the point of that? Sadism?"
Jahari laughed. "The original question remains, Sarah Williams. Why are you helping Jareth, The Goblin King? What have you been promised? Or do you have ulterior motives?" She moved at this last, coming back into full view, gaze intense.
Sarah blinked. Surely this one knew of the prophecy? It seemed like something that should be well-known, especially in the Underground. "He asked me to help him."
"And you agreed out of the kindness of your heart?"
She frowned. "What does it matter?"
Jahari stared for a moment, then burst out laughing. "You don't know!" She pointed straight at Sarah. "Are human lives so disvalued now that none of you have a plan of what your years will be like? A purpose? Direction? Motivation? Are you simply to flicker and die? Oh," she clicked her tongue. "But you can't die. My brother made sure of that, didn't he? What did he do?" She tilted her head in a manner so like Jareth that Sarah took a step back.
Her head was reeling.
She did not want to confess to Jahari that she had lacked almost any motivation for some number of years. Ever since Toby was struck and killed. It had thrown everyone into disarray, and then one death following another… she had been living in a trance for some time. Just putting one foot in front of the other, hoping each day would be a little more bearable than the one before it.
So far, not so much.
"Is it that you desire to be Goblin Queen? Or you want to be his wife?"
Wanted to be his wife? Sarah tried to school her features. For all intents and purposes, she was already. Jareth had explained to her the bonding was midway between the engagement and marriage. The marriage would kick in on the summer solstice, approximately six months after their bonding. It was meant to ensure marriage was something both parties wished to undertake.
He was not her husband yet, but barring unforeseen difficulties, he would be.
She swallowed. She had not truly touched on that yet, mentally or emotionally. Everything had been such a whirlwind of events and lust and secrets and revelations that she had gotten lost to it. And now they were on the march to war, and the wellspring.
"I—" Sarah began.
And then Jareth spoke from behind her, hand coming down on her shoulder to make her jump, whipping her head around with a wide-eyed stare. "Hello, sister. I should have known you would try something like this."
"Little brother," Jahari purred. "We may as well talk together, the three of us. Sarah was just about to tell me the real reason she's helping you."
Jareth squeezed her shoulder, then ran his hand down her arm so his fingers twined with hers. "Sarah has her own reasons for what she does."
There was something about the way he pulled her back, held her close, that made Sarah feel like he was telling her not to talk. She lifted her chin, staring down Jahari. "I don't have anything to say to you."
The older fae clicked her tongue. "Shame." Her smile was sharp and sudden. "Did my brother tell you why we banished him from the court? Did he tell you I was the one who forced him out?"
She was opening her mouth for more, but Jareth took in a sharp breath, and while one hand still held Sarah's, he wrapped the other arm around her, and took a step back, giving her the sensation of falling…
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Sarah woke with a whole-body snap, as though she were a strummed rubber band. Someone—Jareth, surely—had placed her on their bed. She looked for him but did not find him on her first round of the pavilion. It rang empty, though there was fresh food, cool water, and wine, she ignored it all, going instead to the slitted entrance.
Pulling the heavy cloth aside, Sarah nearly bumped into the guards that stood elbow-to-elbow just outside the perimeter. "Excuse me," she said, clearing her throat.
"My lady," they said as one, while other nearby guards came closer. The one with the mustache said, "Apologies, your majesty, but his highness decreed you not leave the tent while he remains away. He's meeting with the centaur leadership, he said to tell you, and will return soon."
"Can you send for Hoggle and his friends? Neira?"
The guard hesitated. "Not this time, your majesty. The king asked you to wait for him." The goblins black eyes were soft and apologetic.
Sarah granted him a smile. "It's okay. Thank you."
She paced, and was grateful when she had only done a handful of rotations before Jareth appeared, magic peppering her skin like rain.
"I apologize," he said the moment his gaze fell on her. "I needed to be able to talk to you alone first. I heard you asked for your friends."
"I'm getting a little tired of you keeping them from me," Sarah said, an edge to her voice. "I don't like feeling like your kept mistress."
Jareth swallowed and reached for her before seeming to think the better of it.
Silence stretched between them.
Sarah took a deep breath. Her head was reeling. Crowded with a barrage of questions and fears. "I know," she started, keeping her voice low. "That there's a massive history, that there is more to any of this than what I understand, because this is not my world. I've only been a visitor before now, and—" she cut herself off, frowning. "Is this it? Am I here for good? Is this my world now? Because if it is, then you and I need to have a long talk."
"I agree, precious," Jareth said quickly. "Only that we are going to be expected with the centaur court soon, and I need to be able to talk about politics and not personal matters during our negotiations. I have to be a king, Sarah, but I am still yours. I promise you that all your questions will be answered in time."
"You've had almost ten days!" she protested, throwing up her hands.
"And you were unconscious for half of them. We were also, delightedly, making love to one another. How many times has it been, now? Have you been keeping count?"
Her cheeks flamed red, and Sarah turned from him before flinging herself into a camp chair, fingers at her temples. She propped her elbows on her knees and leaned forward, rubbing at the tension in her forehead. "How long until we're expected to show up? I assume I'm also needed, I can't just stay here?"
"Not unless you want further rumor to spread of your being bedridden. It is better to show strength, I would advise you find a way to make at least a general appearance. If you like, I can wait to summon you until after negotiations have completed." He sighed, standing before her with his arms crossed over his chest. "I can comfortably have us wait another twenty minutes, no more."
"Then talk fast."
He raised an eyebrow. "You asked many questions. Which would you give priority?"
"Am I here for good?"
He was silent for a heartbeat longer than what was comfortable. "You don't have to be," he said, though the words sounded forced. "But I would like it very much if you were."
"So I could go back?"
"Yes."
"But you don't want me to."
"No, I don't."
She smiled. "Second question. Is it wrong I'm marrying you? That we're bonded?"
"It is not common, but it is not forbidden. Not by any laws in any of the kingdoms. Just, some frown upon it a little more than others. The centaurs, for example, may give you a gentle ribbing. The forest elves are going to pretend we're nothing to each other, even if I introduce you with all your titles. Even if we're fully wed."
"Okay." She tapped her foot. "What the hell got you kicked out of the fae court?"
Jareth pulled in a breath, and she braced for a lie. "I don't know if I can tell you that."
"Why not?"
"Because I'm afraid once you know, you won't want me anymore. That you will take their side." He stood stiff-backed as he said this, arms still folded over his chest, and Sarah saw that he was holding himself back, as though preparing for some sort of attack. "What I did was reckless, but I was young, and I still believe…" he trailed off, closing his eyes for a moment before he spoke again. "I still believe what I'm doing is the right thing."
"What you're doing? So this is all tied together? Your banishment and this war campaign?"
He scrubbed his hands over his face. "Yes and no. Sarah, love, we have to away."
She felt she was no closer to understanding, and said so. "Tell me, now, precisely what you did."
Jareth's hands fell from his face, and he gazed at her with stark hopelessness. "We march now to finish what I started: to free magic, to release the wellspring. Only when I was still at court, I attempted to do so by poisoning the watchers of the well." He swallowed. "And one of them is my mother."
Sarah blinked. "You tried to kill your own mother?"
"Yes. But I failed spectacularly. Only one of the watchers fell to my plan, and there are thirteen of them in total. The one who died was the youngest of them all, and a friend." He looked stricken. "It was the only loss I've ever experienced. I had not realized he was to be sworn in that day. I had not realized the others would let him take of the poisoned fruit without saying anything, even though they knew."
Her stomach seemed to bottom out. "Poison fruit? Like the peach you gave Hoggle during my run? The one that brought me to—to whatever that was."
"Yes. Just like that, though my techniques have refined over the years."
"So it was some kind of hallucinogine?" she asked, her voice getting a little high.
"Precious, please—" he begged. "We have to go."
Sarah rose, lifting her chin. He may have had some height on her, but it was not by much. She glared at him. "You came into my life and brought me here, without explanation, without giving me a chance to pack my things—nothing!" She took a deep breath, her thoughts reeling but words flying to mind like silver arrows. "You've withheld important information from me, you've distracted me with mind-blowing sex, and you think that just because your life is busy, you have the right to shunt my needs to the side?"
His expression darkened. "And where have I been lacking, in providing for your needs? Do you hunger? Are you unclothed? Do you have nowhere to rest, nothing to do? Do you not have jewels and riches beyond imagination at your fingertips? Books? Your friends? I have provided plenty!" he said the last with a snap.
"Because you want to use me!" she yelled back, taking a step forward. Her emotions were on high, and she knew she should think more before she spoke, but she spat her words as fast as they came to mind. "You say you love me, but you barely know me. All I am to you is some means to an end. You—"
"I have been watching you for years." He interrupted.
"Watching!" she stamped her foot. "I was alone! If I had known you were there, known you were watching, that would have made a difference, would have made me…" she trailed off, then narrowed her eyes at him. "You drink grief, and pain. You enjoy the taste of it. So were you making it to where I would have more of it while I was in the Above?"
"Never," he said, stepping forward so they were much closer, only a hands span between. She could smell his breath as she raised her face to look at him. "I've told you before and will again, I never wish to cause you pain. I—" he narrowed his eyes this time. "You do believe I love you, don't you?"
There was the prick of tears in her eyes and she swiped them away with the heel of her palm. "I don't know," she choked.
Sarah's heart was thundering, and thoughts and emotions were swirling, agitated. A part of all of this was that she did not want to face the fact that Jareth had admitted to attempted murder of over a dozen fae, and that he had succeeded in murdering his friend. If that was what happened to those closest to him…
Withdrawing when he attempted to reach for her, Sarah said, "Don't try to distract me."
"Is that what you think I'm doing, silly girl?" he demanded, sliding forward and reaching for her again. "I offer comfort."
"Don't call me a girl," she grumbled, but let his hand slide up her arm to her shoulder, let him pull her into a gentle embrace. "I'm almost thirty."
"Positively ancient," he quipped, fingers running through her hair. "I do love you. I promise you, I do. But please remember I am fae, and my long-lived perspective sees the world far differently than you. Add to that, I have been awaiting these moments for centuries, beloved. There is much I want in this world, but what the next several months offer is going to change the course of history entirely, and—"
"Build an empire to withstand time," Sarah quoted from their first night. She pulled back enough to look into his eyes. "You really mean it? You want to rule with me, forever?"
She was not sure what answer she wanted the most.
"Yes." He smiled and cupped her cheek. "Now can we please away? I fear we've insulted our hosts."
She nodded, and he brushed the pendant at her breast, a rush of magic flowing over her whole body so that she shuddered and saw, a breath later, that she was clothed in formal military dress. She smoothed her hands down the wool jacket with its double row of carved gold buttons and looked up to find Jareth was in his Goblin King armor. His severe expression bloomed into a wide grin when he caught her looking at him, and he pulled her closer.
"I promise also, precious, that I will no longer keep your friends from you. Even if we are to have these conversations in front of them."
"You better not," she warned. "It's wholly unacceptable."
"You're right and I'm sorry." He raised her hand to his mouth, laying a kiss across her knuckles. "I will answer the rest of your questions soon, this I vow. Now, are you ready?"
She took a deep breath. "Let's go."
Author's Note:
Hello, friends.
Thank you for your patience in awaiting this chapter. I struggled with it a little while.
I've been struggling with a lot of things. Aren't we all. Sending all the good vibes out there with this story and I hope it finds you in a decent place.
Please know if you're also keeping up with other works of mine that they are being puttered away on, it's just been a slog lately.
Thank you again for your patience and if you enjoyed/have feedback, please leave a contribution in the little box.
xoxo,
~CrimsonSympathy