Chapter Thirty-Eight

After breakfast was finished, Jareth led Sarah over towards the library, "With most of the castle being hung over after last night, I thought you'd enjoy exploring our library and spending a cozy day indoors."

Sarah was excited. She'd always dreamed of having a room in her home devoted entirely to books… she just never pictured her home to be a castle. On their way to the library, Jareth pointed out where his study was, then took her over to another room in the same hall. It had a breathtaking view of the Labyrinth from the tall windows and was empty except for a fireplace. There was a small door at the back of the room which led directly to the library.

"I thought this room would be perfect as your personal office. You can furnish and decorate it to your own tastes."

"This is mine?" she asked in delight.

"You'll need a space within the castle that's exclusively yours and not shared with me. You'll want the privacy to work on your Underground stories, in addition to having a formal office for your duties as Queen".

"What kind of duties can I expect as your Queen?" she asked, a little uneasy.

Jareth shrugged, "Whichever ones appeal to you, for the most part. I figured that at some point, you'd want to take an active part in the ruling of the Kingdom."

She nodded. He was right… it wasn't in her to be just a passive partner. He then led her into the library.

"You may wish to take the next few months to observe the governance of the Kingdom and see which areas you would like to take as your purview. Aside from military matters, there really isn't anything that you couldn't excel at."

Military matters… with what Lily had told her, female Othánas were kept far away from the battlefield, and for good reason. She wasn't Othánas, but she was Jareth's wife… this restriction would be doubly important for her.

"You will also undertake combat lessons. This shouldn't be difficult for you, as you've already taken some form of defensive classes in university. You'll learn hand-to-hand and weapons-work, depending on which weapon you have the most affinity for."

"Wait… you teach your women to fight, even though they can't be in the Army?"

Jareth looked at her, surprised. "Of course we do. In a sense, you could say it is a 'last resort'. Every man wants the women in his family able to defend themselves. Girls start their combat lessons from a young age, just as the boys do, usually at the same time they start formal schooling. Lily is an expert on fighting with daggers and will likely be your teacher in the use of them." He laughed, "I know I wouldn't want to fight against her with her chosen weapon."

"Wow… I had no idea. It makes a lot of sense, though," she said, nodding.

"You will also learn how to utilize and control your new magic," he said. At her look of surprise, he shrugged, "You are my Queen. You share my power and that of the Labyrinth. It will likely manifest differently for you, being a woman. You probably won't have combat magic except in extremely dire circumstances, but you should have transporting, some conjuring and Healing magic." His brows drew together, "To be honest, I'm not sure what kind of magic you will end up being able to wield. Part of your lessons will be to determine what powers of mine you will be able to channel."

Sarah turned and walked around the library for a bit, feeling rather overwhelmed. Jareth appeared to sense this, as he walked behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. "Precious… none of what I have described has to be learned immediately. Except perhaps for defense… I would like you to start that right away. Besides that, you have years ahead of you to learn all of this. This is not your university where you must cram knowledge that we fling at you and pass an exam in a short amount of time."

"I know. It's just… a lot."

He nuzzled her neck briefly, then turned her around to face him, "I know. And I have every confidence that you will conquer this as you've conquered everything else that's been set before you." He kissed her softly, "There is only one area in which I would give you a word of caution," he said, seriously. "Now that you are my Queen, you share my authority. That means that your words carry the same weight as my own. As you know, words have meaning here in the Underground."

She nodded, and he continued, "With Garthan, Lily or Randel, this is not an issue. With our other subjects, and any visitors from other kingdoms, you may wish to take care in your dealings with them, especially with what is said. It is possible to inadvertently promise something that you may not have intended. If a subject ever comes up that you are unsure of, you can always defer it to me for the time being. Simply say that you will discuss it with me and let that be your answer." He then took her hand and kissed it, "I want you to understand, love. You are autonomous. You do not need my permission to make any decisions, save those that touch on the military or the security of the Kingdom. I only urge this caution until you are comfortable with your new authority."

He led her over to one of the couches and they sat down. "This is going to be especially important when we are dealing with other heads of state. Consorts in other kingdoms do not share official power with the reigning monarch, but they do possess influence. Thus, when a foreign royal couple visits, or we interact with royals in another kingdom, you will keep company with the queen while their king meets with me. Any concerns, messages, agreements, or grievances that the king does not wish to present formally to me personally will be passed along by the queen to you. These meetings between queens are sometimes more important than those of the reigning monarchs."

Sarah could understand this. It was actually a clever way to exchange information between the monarchs in an unofficial manner. "Who did this before me?"

"Lily did, on occasion, if the monarchs came here. It wasn't really optimal. While Lily is the wife of the highest official in the Kingdom, she is not my queen. She took on many of the duties that would technically fall to you, such as the overall supervision of the running of our castle."

"Oh… I wouldn't want to be acing her out of her job…"

Jareth laughed, "Oh, she'd appreciate the change, believe me. She and Garthan have been thinking about having another child in the next few years. I know she's wanted to spend more time with Anduin."

"Only if you're sure," said Sarah.

"I would encourage you over the next few months to shadow her in her duties, so that you may see how things operate and consider where you would like to make changes. You might also like to get involved in the running of our Aboveground holdings. As a human yourself, you are uniquely qualified to deal with the various situations that arise."

While it was still overwhelming, Sarah was happy that she wouldn't be simply ornamental, but a vital part of Jareth's kingdom and a true partner. Only military and security matters were outside of her authority, which suited her just fine… she was no general.

Jareth frowned slightly, "I forgot… we'll need to give your parents the address and phone number of the Irish Estates when you move here permanently. This way, they have a means to contact you. You can transport there to use the telephone anytime you wish to; it's strongly warded and guarded. Perhaps we can even have your family there for a visit."

Hearing this, Sarah threw her arms around him and kissed him thoroughly. When they finally came up for air, he traced her cheek with his finger and smiled.

"So… what was that I heard earlier about spikes?"