Chapter Four

Sarah's Second Year of College…

Sir Didymus was getting frustrated. Two years ago, he had been jauntily confident that he could persuade Lady Sarah to reach out to his King, hopefully restoring contact and eventually leading to a courtship. This didn't happen.

She came close, so many times. Just when he thought she was on the cusp of initiating contact, Hoggle somehow talked her out of it. While Sir Didymus liked Hoggle and even understood to a degree his fear of the Goblin King (although he himself didn't share it), he had to admit that Hoggle's grudge was becoming a real obstacle. The Othánas were running out of patience and quite frankly, so was he.

Thus, he asked His Majesty to assign Hoggle some sort of duty that would keep him away from Lady Sarah for the next two weeks. Ordinarily, both he and Hoggle would visit Sarah together, but it was clear that if he was going to move this matter forward, he would have to try and talk to her without Hoggle being present. It had to look like a natural part of his duties, so as not to forewarn Hoggle (or Lady Sarah, for that matter) that Sir Didymus was trying to get him away from her for a time. His Majesty agreed wholeheartedly, and cooked up a delightful little scheme involving trinkets, treasure, and a two-week trip to Stone Mountain. Hoggle was actually excited when he told Lady Sarah about it.

Now…to see if he could talk her into reaching out to the King before Hoggle returned…

If it weren't for the Ughlánas, I think I would have gone completely insane, Sarah thought to herself. There's nothing better to cheer me up than watching them try to play Twister.

She sat on the couch, absently watching as a group of Lesser Goblins, or Ughlánas as they were formally known, twisted and turned themselves onto the colored spots. At some point soon, the rules would be completely jettisoned and the Ughlánas would try to twist themselves into various pretzel shapes, just for the joy of doing so. That, and because they could sense that she was feeling blue and tended to do ridiculous things to try and brighten her mood. Usually, it worked.

Today, however… nothing seemed to bring her out of her funk. It was no surprise as to why, really. It was Valentine's Day, after all. She got to walk around campus, watching all the happy couples, watching as flowers were delivered to girls in her classes, wishing…

No. No wishing.

For the most part, she had thrown herself into her studies and avoided the social pitfalls of college. She didn't go to parties, didn't socialize with her classmates, and certainly never dated. There was a lot of male interest in her at first, but she quickly gained a reputation of being a "cold bitch", and guys stopped asking her out. This suited Sarah just fine, as she had no interest in the frat boys, jocks, and future CEOs that she ran into. They bored her.

They weren't him.

How exactly do you drum up interest in a mortal male when you've laid eyes on a mythical being like the Goblin King? How does a mere human compare?

They don't.

And yet… what other choice did she have? She didn't want to be alone forever. She wanted to have a relationship with someone, perhaps get married. Maybe someday be a mother.

I want to love and be loved.

But how can that happen when the only man who ever interested her was, in reality, a Goblin? Correction, an Othánas, she thought. A Greater Goblin. An extremely attractive Greater Goblin. Not only that, but one who lived in an alternate dimension on an alternate Earth.

A Goblin who roofied me, no less. Okay, maybe not roofied her in the sense that he didn't take advantage of her, but still. And she had to admit, Sir Didymus' explanation of that peach being just a Labyrinth trick made sense. It was the principle of the thing, though.

What I wouldn't give to be back in that ballroom right now…

Sarah stomped that thought right out of her head. But if she were honest with herself… deep down where no one else could see, she had to admit that on some weird level, she missed him, and wished that things were different between them. She thought about him all the time, and each time, her heart ached.

Dammit, I said no wishing!

"My Lady looks a little despondent. Is there anything I can do?"

Sarah looked up to see Sir Didymus perched on the vanity chair. There was no space for the vanity in her bedroom, so it had pride of place along the hallway to her room. This was a blessing since anyone coming through the portal would come to the living room instead of popping in on her where she slept.

She smiled. Sir Didymus could always cajole her out of a bad mood. Maybe he could work the same magic today. "No, not really. At least… it's nothing anyone can really help with. Thank you, though."

"Come, My Lady. Something has made you sad. Will you not confide it?" he asked, softly.

"It's just… Valentine's Day. I guess I'm a little blue since I don't have a Valentine," said Sarah.

"Ah… a day set aside for matters of the heart. As lovely as you are, My Lady, I cannot believe that some suitor has not tried to woo you."

Sarah snorted, "Oh, they tried. I just didn't want… they weren't…" she felt the despair bubble up within her and it echoed in her voice. "They're not him."

Oh my God, did I just say that out loud?

"Him. I take it you refer to His Majesty?" asked Sir Didymus, a compassionate expression on his face.

Sarah sighed. "It doesn't matter. It's not like I can do anything about it anyway," the sadness in her tone was palpable.

"Not true, My Lady. Have you not been considering making contact with the King? What has stayed your hand?"

"What am I supposed to do… send him a message that says 'Hi, remember me? I beat the Labyrinth. I'm all grown up now, want to go out on a date?' Even if I did something that insane, what's to say that he wouldn't try to take advantage of the situation?" Sarah looked down at the couch despondently. "That's assuming he's still single or that he even remembers me."

Sir Didymus chuckled, "Oh, he is still 'single', as you call it. He is not married or betrothed, nor is he courting or otherwise in a relationship with anyone Underground." He sat beside her and patted her hand, "And, if he didn't remember you, My Lady, then why does he allow the Ughlánas to visit you? Or Ludo, Hoggle and I? It is by his power that we come to you; you know that. By his very nature, he can tell when one of us crosses the portal to the Above and back. He is well aware of our continued presence here and yet has never forbidden it."

"But Hoggle says…"

"Hoggle," Sir Didymus cut in, a bit sharply. "I like Brother Hoggle, but he has disparaged His Majesty for years, and quite unjustly, if I may say so. And if I may also be so bold, neither Hoggle nor you, My Lady, have considered that if His Majesty truly was the… 'Rat' that Hoggle paints him as, he might well have thrown our friend into the bottom of an oubliette for the last five years, or even exiled him. But he has not. In fact, Hoggle is still employed by the very monarch he speaks so poorly of. The King has stayed his hand when it comes to Hoggle despite what I would consider extreme provocation… and all in consideration of you."

"Of me?" Sarah breathed. In the recent past, Hoggle had spoken of Jar– (no… His Majesty) in the most inflammatory terms. She had to admit, if she were the Goblin King, she might have thrown Hoggle into an oubliette for it herself. And here is Sir Didymus telling her that the only reason their friend had avoided that fate was because of the King's consideration for her?

"Indeed," replied Sir Didymus. "His Majesty is aware of your friendship and wishes not to interfere with it, even if he must suffer gross insults to do so. If anything, he has facilitated it. This is not the act of a monarch who dislikes you."

No… no it isn't. It's almost like he… cared about me, at least a little bit. Enough to let me keep my friends.

"So, what do I do? I'm afraid to… be too bold here. How do I try and contact the King without opening myself up to trouble?" Sarah asked quietly.

Sir Didymus appeared to give it some thought. "Why not write a letter of thanks? You had said previously that you would like to thank His Majesty for what you termed 'an incredible experience'. Perhaps if you were to express those thanks, while also disclosing why you have been hesitant to reach out…"

"Leave the ball in his court, you mean. That might be an idea…" Sarah said, pensively. It might work. She could clear the air, maybe get rid of the anxiety that plagued her every time she thought of him…

And maybe… just maybe…