Adult-FanFiction.org : Movies

Perchance To...	By : Rhondda Category: G through L > Labyrinth Views: 5268 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I do not own Labyrinth or any of the characters seen in the movie. There is no money being made by this story

Chapter List
- 9
- 10
- 11
Sarah awoke to the sounds of the camp in action. Outside she heard people, horses, livestock and armor in motion. It was amazing she had managed to sleep through any of it.
She tried to recapture the traces of a fleeing dream. In it someone was singing to her among the stars. It escaped her completely as she realized she was fully awake now.
Blinking the sleep from her eyes, she slipped from bed to find a shallow bowl and pitcher of water adorning a small stand. Surmising its purpose, she washed her face, the cold water washing the last remnants of rest from her eyes but not easing the dull ache in her head.
She heard the rustle of tent flaps behind her and spun to find Jareth striding into her section as if he owned it. Belatedly, Sarah realized he did.
He was already dressed in gray tights, riding boots, a white open fronted shirt and a familiar asymmetrical leather jacket. In his hand was a riding crop, the head of which was a silver hand holding a crystal. He looked too damned chipper, to top it all off.
Oh God, Sarah hoped the Fae had discovered the joy of coffee.
Holding the towel she'd used to dry her face before her, she glowered. "Don't you ever knock?"
Jareth looked around, eyes wide with mock innocence. "And what am I supposed to knock on? This is a tent, you know."
"Well, ask to come in, or something. For all you knew I could have been naked in here." Sarah snatched a silk robe up and hurriedly put it on.
Jareth snapped gloved fingers, which was quite a trick. "Damn, another opportunity missed. I shall have to work on my timing. Do you usually sleep in the nude? I do." He did not bother to hide his amusement at Sarah's discomfort.
"Are you just here to drive me to distraction, or is there a point to this visit?" Sarah was hoping Col would walk in soon to save her, because she wasn't about to answer his inquiry. Then she had to question from what exactly she wanted saving? There was no obvious threat here, just annoyance.
"Do I distract you, Sarah?" Jareth sprawled lazily on the only chair in the room, watching her with almost predatory interest.
"No. I think annoy is the proper word, in your case. What do you want, Jareth?" She refused to be intimidated, or to give into the butterflies beating furious wings in her stomach. They had been appearing more frequently the longer she remained in the Underground. It had to be a spell.
"We set out in two hours. There should be enough time to break your fast and prepare. Luckily for you the ride to Annwn will only take six hours with the gates. Sai did tell you the protocol for the Rade, didn't she?" Jareth lifted a filmy article of clothing on the end of his crop.
Mortified, Sarah recognized the corset that passed as bras around here. She angrily snatched it away, glaring at him for teasing her like that. "Yes, she did. Absolute silence. I ride toward the back with the minor nobles. No servants or baggage. The camp will be sent on to the next spot by magic. Does that cover everything?"
Jareth pointed to the undergarment still in Sarah's hand. "Oh, I doubt that does. Don't you risk falling out?"
He neatly dodged the cushion tossed at him by way of a reply. They're almost playing together. "Temper, temper," he admonished. "Assaulting royalty carries a stiff penalty." He was obviously in a good mood this morning and feeling particularly playful.
The tent flaps snapped open once again as Sai and Col entered the room. Col crossed her arms and hrumphed at Jareth. Sai was not as subtle.
"You," she pointed at him. "Out."
"This happens to be my tent." Jareth tugged at his gloves, amusement showing in his eyes.
"It also happens to be Sarah's room, so go kick some goblins or frighten some children. She's going to lose enough privacy tonight." Sai glared.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Sarah looked suspiciously at all three of them.
Col smiled an amused smile. "It means that Gwyn is obligated ta offer the best rooms in his castle to the King and Queen tonight, and the second best room to the Crown Prince. He can't slight anyone no matter how much he may wish to, because of the laws of hospitality." Col fingered her apron. "It also means, child, that you two will be sharin' a room tonight."
Sarah's eyes narrowed as she glared at Sai. "You knew about this?"
Sai nodded, looking amused. "We saw no reason to worry you. I'm sure everything will be fine."
"Of course it will." Jareth stood and cocked his head to the side. "Are you afraid of me, Sarah?"
She raised her chin, defiant. "Of course not."
He closed the space between them and reaching out, toyed with the tie of her robe. "Are you afraid of your reaction to me, then?"
Sarah snatched the tie away. "Don't flatter yourself."
"Then there should be no problem, should there? Good day, ladies." He made a jaunty bow and left.
Sarah turned to Sai. "Why do you put up with him?"
Sai smiled slightly. "Because he is fiercely loyal to his friends and those he protects. Because he has a strong sense of honor for a Fae. And because he expects more from himself than he does from others." She sighed as sat in the chair Jareth had vacated. "Let me tell you a story."
Sai steepled her fingers and met Sarah's gaze, unwaveringly. "Once there was a boy working in Jareth's stables. He was oh, ten or so. The boy accidentally dropped the heavy saddle of one of Jareth's guests in an unfortunate spot. Terrified, the child set about cleaning the mess from the saddle, but the saddle's owner walked in before the child was done. The Fae lordling took it upon himself to hitch the boy to the rafters by his wrists and whip the child with his riding crop until his back and arms were bloody with stripes and the poor child's cries could be heard within the goblin castle."
Sarah's eyes darted to Col, who was busily packing away clothing, her lips pressed into a tight, white line and her eyes glistening with unshed tears.
Sai continued. "Jareth arrived out of nowhere, knocked the arrogant lordling on his ass into another unfortunate pile, then hung the man up by HIS wrists from a stable beam, handing the riding crop to the boy to repay the blood debt. The boy was too hurt, and to be honest, too good of nature to repay the debt. With a wave of his hand the boy was sent to his mother's care and Jareth, having no reluctance to dole out just punishment, paid the debt for the boy, sending the lordling home whipped and bloody, his own back practically flayed open. Then Jareth tended the boy's wounds himself, with magic and tinctutures and tenderness. Jareth earned the hatred of a minor Fae noble that day, in defense of a supposedly worthless human servant. That noble now slithers after Gwyn, hoping for a chance to pay Jareth back one day."
Sarah took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Ian?"
"He got over it. These days if anyone tried to beat him he'd knock them flat and let Jareth know there's an ass on the loose. Sarah, don't get me wrong. What Jareth did to Lord Giles was not pretty, in fact it was coldly vicious, as it needed to be, matching the number of stripes, only cut the deeper, lashing skin away. I understand that Giles still bears scars and Ian stays well clear of him. As a matter of fact, Jareth probably went a bit far in his rage. But who is going to dress down the High Prince? However, Jareth does protect his own." Sai held out a mass of red cloth. "Anyway, I brought you this."
"What is it?" Sarah unfolded the full skirt before her.
"It's an illusion. I've told Ian to get you a regular saddle and this skirt has two flaps that hide the fact that it's actually very full pants. Titania seems to be favoring you. Use it to your advantage and ride astride." Sai winked. "We'll be riding in the back of the procession with some of the minor nobility. Jareth arranged for us to be flanked by six Fae ladies who are aligned with him and prepared to defend you if need be. I'll introduce you before we start out. Ladies Oriana, Macha, Lunid, Cariadwyn, Dana and Kalar all have been graced with children by Jareth."
Sarah felt her jaw tighten. He certainly seems to get around, she thought to herself. "Thanks for the skirt." She knew her tone was a bit too brusque.
"Are you alright, Sarah?" Sai looked at her, as if nothing at all were wrong with dropping her in the middle of a passel of Jareth's past mistresses.
"I'm fine. Let's get this over with." Sarah gestured to the clothes Col had picked for her.
--------------------------------
Once free of the tent Lady Saishoku almost fell over laughing.
"You are an evil woman. I don't know why my boy married you." Col clucked her tongue then started to giggle herself. "Did you see the look on her face?"
"Oh yes. Let her stew all day. Maybe she'll begin to wonder why it should bother her. Before she takes it all out on Jareth I'll fill her in. I do think I'd better go warn the ladies in question though. They'll find it most amusing, to say the least." Sai grinned.
"Oh, and how will their husbands be takin' it?" Col wiggled a finger at her daughter-in-law.
"They won't know until after and then I imagine they'd be most amused, as well. Cariadwyn, though. I mean, she's a Glaistig. She'd more likely drain a man of his last drop of blood than bed him." Sai started to giggle again.
"Aye. But she does dote on Karen so. One could not find better mother material." Col looked wistful then grinned. "Go, work your evil ways. I've got goblins to care for."
Sai kissed Col on the cheek, then practically bounced off to inform certain ladies of the Fae court of her latest trickery.
------------------------------------------
Sarah felt much more comfortable ahorse this time. Sai led her to a group of females close to the back of the procession. All were beautiful. Three were Fae, one an elf, one a dryad and the last appeared Fae but for the cloven hooves mostly hidden by her flowing green gown. Well, the ethnic diversity of the Underground compared with New York. Maybe she could delude herself into pretending she was home for a while. Not likely. Sarah found herself comparing her own features to the women surrounding her and felt herself coming up short.
She stopped herself, wondering why she should care or bother. It really wasn't any of her business who Jareth slept with, or had children by. Why didn't the High Queen just play grandmother to any of their children... unless they were all grown. The long lives of the Fae were certainly disconcerting.
By the time the silent procession started on its way, she found her stomach in knots for no reason at all. The ride was eerie. The only sounds being the clapping of hooves, the jingle of the silver bells on tack and bridles and the rustle of clothing.
They troop passed through meadows covered in wild flowers. Passing into farmland, Sarah noticed that people, or rather beings, working the fields would pause to watch the procession pass. Sometimes a child would rush forward with wild blossoms and press them on highborn ladies who accepted with radiant smiles and a gentle touch.
The sixth time a child approached Sarah noticed something. Not one child had been Fae or elvish. Most had been human, with one dwarvish boy being the exception. She wished she could ask Sai about this, but kept her silence, as was expected.
By the fourth hour Sarah's hips began to ache. Riding astride had its own disadvantages. Sai seemed to notice and she wove a healing spell. As the pain went away Sarah again noticed a tingling on her finger, coming from the unicorn ring. It wasn't the sharp shock she had felt the day before, more a pleasant warmth, but it was noticeable.
Ahead loomed another gate and the procession passed between the stones. It was disconcerting to see the riders step through and not emerge again. At her own turn she felt the dark and cold, then she was no longer in a meadow.
Sarah gaped. The light here danced and seemed diffuse, darker. Her eyes traced upward and she saw fish. FISH. She was looking up from the bottom of a lake. Yet all was dry and the land appeared normal. She felt a pressure in her chest and the fear that the watery sky would pour down and drown them all. It was claustrophobic. Looking about, panicked, she saw the others were ignoring this terrifying sight.
Sai reached out and took her hand. Sarah looked to her friend who smiled reassuringly. The ladies around her closed in, on each face a look of encouragement and acceptance.
Ahead of them loomed a city, and a sprawling castle. She took a deep, shaky breath and nodded to the others.
This was Annwn.
- 9
- 10
- 11
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Perchance To...