Chapter Seven
Two Weeks Later…
"It's… lovely. Thank you."
Garthan looked at the token that the jewel crafter handed him. For so long, he'd wondered what it would be like to have a courting token made from his sigil… what it would look like. Now he knew.
When he'd commissioned it, he knew exactly what pendant would have to be attached. That boar's tooth. Funny, he didn't even know why he'd taken it at the time. Perhaps Danu was guiding his hand that day.
It was with some panic that he'd realized that the Spring Equinox was over and the unbonded girls would be going home. While he was well aware by then that he was heart-bonded to Lily, he wasn't at all sure that she knew it. He'd run through about a hundred schemes to keep her in Caladh that didn't involve him humiliating himself… only to find that Jareth had solved the problem for him.
Lily was now Chatelaine of Caisleán Caladh. Her organizational skills and easy manner led Jareth to offer her the position. After only a week on the job, the difference in castle life was remarkable.
She got along well with the King on a personal level, too. She fit right into the easy camaraderie between himself, Jareth, and Randel. Those two treated her like a beloved sister, and she took them under her wing with much affection. By now, he'd realized that they were on to him… they knew very well his feelings for Lily and were letting him know in their own indirect way that they approved.
I should count myself lucky. I can just imagine what would have happened if those two decided to matchmake…
For the past two weeks, in between both of their duties, they'd spent more and more time together. Every time he saw her, his heart skipped, even when it was for the fifth time that day. Sometimes they'd go riding, other times they would sit together in the library, reading together. Once, she'd accompanied himself, Jareth, and Randel to a stretch of grass beyond the castle, where he'd found out that she was indeed a skillful soccer player, easily able to keep up with the men. He chuckled to himself when he recalled the day they'd spent in the conservatory, when she'd heard his singing voice for the first time. Her look of delight warmed his heart.
Two weeks wasn't much time in the scheme of things, but he knew he was so far gone in love with her that he wanted to give her his token, life-bond with her and start their life together. As he walked back to the castle from the Craftsman's District, he rehearsed over and over again in his mind what he would say.
After the first busy week of getting the castle staff into shape, Lily found herself with a few free hours. Garthan was somewhere in the city, so she'd grabbed a blanket, a basket of fruit, bread and cheese and a bottle of wine and took herself and her favorite book over to a secluded little spot in the garden to enjoy the beautiful day.
Things were progressing wonderfully. They were so much more comfortable with each other now. Certainly, Garthan felt more at ease with her than he had in the beginning. She was glad that Jareth and Randel had both given her some insight into Garthan's reticence. It was a contradiction, surely… that someone so professional, so put together, could be prone to an almost crippling shyness in certain social situations.
"That's because when he's acting as High Councilor, or in his capacity as Spymaster, he's not personally involved. He can remove himself emotionally from the situation. That's how he functions so well. In a social situation, he can't remove himself. It becomes personal. That's what trips him up," said Jareth, when he'd pulled her into the garden for a walk with him and Randel, shortly after the ball.
Randel agreed. "That's why he was able to cut that boar to ribbons with just a sword. It wasn't him fighting the boar, in a way. He'd detached himself so that he could see the situation clearly without personal emotions getting in the way. It's a defense mechanism. Things can't hurt him if he's not connected to them."
Jareth nodded vigorously, "And he is very much connected to you. This is why he finds it so difficult to express himself to you. The boar could only hurt his body. You can hurt his soul."
She looked at them both solemnly, tears welling up in her eyes, "And you must know… I would never… I…"
Jareth covered her hand with his. "We know, Lily. We do. And someday he will too."
Armed with that knowledge, she was able to understand what drove him, and what held him back.
At first, their communication was almost always initiated by her, but as he became more relaxed in her company, she found that he was a delightful conversationalist and extremely knowledgeable on a wide variety of subjects. He had a wonderful sense of humor too, a tad sarcastic, just like her own. She found that with every passing day, her love for him grew by leaps and bounds. Everything about him pleased her, from the timbre of his voice, his scent, his laugh…
And he was so… tender with her. So gentle and loving. He treated her like she was the center of his world. Every touch, every glance conveyed his love to her, even if he didn't put it into words.
That innate shyness he had was probably the reason he had never tried to take liberties with her. They would walk with arms linked, he would take her hand and kiss her knuckles, but beyond that… he hadn't tried anything. She knew he wanted to… that was obvious. She shrugged to herself; she would just have to make the first move in that direction.
Almost as if she'd summoned him just by thinking about him, she looked up and saw him walking toward her. She gave him a sunny smile and motioned him over. He looked nervous, a little pale and his eyes skittered away from hers. She moved to make room for him on her blanket and invited him to sit with her.
As he complied, she noticed that she could see faint colors swirling around him. His aura. She was starting to see it. This pleased her immensely.
He looked over at her, searching her eyes for a few moments before reaching into his pocket, withdrawing an object, and then holding it out to her, while looking down at the grass.
It was his courting token.
All of that rehearsing he did on the walk to the castle went right out of his head. He couldn't even look at her. His lips parted, he tried to speak, but no words would come. He sat there like a hunk of rock, staring down at his hand, holding the token out to her.
Say something, you idiot! Something! Anything!
Tell her how beautiful she is.
Tell her how much you love her.
Tell her that your world will never be complete without her.
But the words just wouldn't come.
She looked at the token in his hands… his sigil beautifully worked in gold. The pendant… oh by Danu, it was a boar tooth. One from the very boar that had attacked her. So that was why he'd cut it out of the beast.
She looked back up at him. He didn't meet her eyes. He kept staring down at his hand, looking for all the world like his voice had left him. He finally dragged his gaze to hers.
All the love, the passion, and the desire that she'd ever wanted in her life was right there, staring back at her. He didn't need words to tell her what she wanted to know.
So, she answered him… also without words. She placed her hand on his cheek, twining her other hand in his hair, and kissed him. After a second's pause, his arms came around her and he returned her kiss with fervor, sending her heart and spirit soaring with their shared passion.
After what seemed like forever, she pulled back a moment to look at him, her eyes hazy with desire. "I love you," she said, softly, then kissed his cheek gently. She heard his breath hitch as she continued, "I fear you." Another kiss, this time on the tip of his nose as she let her fingers trace his features. "I will do as you say," she whispered as she kissed the corner of his mouth. She then met his gaze directly. "You rule me, Garthan."
He made a strangled sound and began kissing her with a heat that melted her very blood. At some point, they fell back onto the blanket, arms wrapped around each other, their lips fused into a series of kisses that became ever more ardent. He rolled her onto her back…
And she felt the boar tooth pendant stab into her, two inches to the right of her spine.
After a quick trip to the Healer (who had laughed fit to die when he'd given her the explanation as to why they were there), Lily was feeling just fine. She looked over at Garthan, who was walking beside her, and trying very hard not to look back at her. He eventually lost the battle and glanced over… and both burst into raucous laughter.
"This is one to tell our children, you know. How many people can say that their courting token sent them to the Healer?" she said, still laughing.
"At least it was just a flesh wound," said Garthan, also laughing.
"And it's very lovely… when the blood is cleaned off it," she returned with an impish smile as she touched the medallion around her neck.
"Ah… I see congratulations are in order," came a voice ahead of them. They looked up to see the King grinning at them. "But why would you need the Healer?"
Garthan looked away, embarrassed but still chuckling. Lily curtsied to the King, "Oh, because he stabbed me in the back with his courting token, Sire."
For a moment, the look on Jareth's face was priceless. He turned to Garthan, "You do know that you're supposed to offer it to her, not assault her with it, right?"
The three of them laughed. Lily then shrugged, "All is well that ends well, Sire. Besides, it makes for a good story to tell our son someday, when he's ready to present his own token."
Garthan snorted, "Yes, I will be sure to encourage him to find a pendant a little less… sharp."
"Indeed," said the King, smiling. He then took Lily's hand and kissed it. "Well, my dear, may I express my delight that Garthan has found so gracious a lady as yourself?" She smiled her thanks, then he looked over at Garthan, "That's twice that she's had to go to the Healer because of you. We really need to talk about your courting techniques."
"The first time was because of the boar, not him," Lily said, smirking. Then she leaned up and kissed Garthan softly. "And since it seems to have been effective, I don't think he'll need to change a thing."
After a bit more lighthearted banter, Jareth took himself off and let the couple finish their walk. He was happy, truly, for Garthan deserved the love of a good woman, and Lily was by far one of the most incredible ladies he'd ever had the privilege to meet. Already he could tell that she was going to fit right into their little 'family' splendidly. If he could choose a sister… he'd have chosen her, without a doubt. Randel felt the same way.
A touch of sadness couldn't be avoided though. What he wouldn't give to find what Garthan had found…
