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1Sarah came to on a desk.  It felt she was in school again, with her head down on a desk, arms folded underneath her head.  Was she having another school dream?  One of those ones where she'd forgotten she had an exam to take, and now she had to power through differential calculus with no understanding of basic algebra, and had only a dull xacto and a 2 inch pencil as companions?
2She blinked her eyes.  Her hair fell in front of her face in a dark brown sheet.  With a groan, she stretched her arms out on the desk and sat up in the chair.  This was not a school.  
3This was definitely not a school.  Where was she?  She sat at a long wooden desk with thick cabriole legs.  The chair was covered in threadbare maroon fabric, and held up by mismatched spindle legs.  What were these weird antique rejects? 
4The rest of the room was similarly ugly.  It was an ovoid chamber, with a long open window along one curved half of the room.  The window itself had no actual... windows.  It was just an open gap.  There was an opening in the wall leading out to a balcony, or what she guessed was a balcony, considering no trees were visible.  A long pink floral sofa covered the wall opposite to the window, and curved with the room.
5The saving grace of the room was on the ceiling.  It vaulted upwards with long curves spines running across the room.  In the center, a long steel chandelier extended down and split into curved antler-esque rods with light emitting from the points. On the side opposite the desk, a staircase led down from the chamber, but Sarah had no desire to see more ugly furnishing quite yet.  
6Sarah stood up from the desk, and walked through the opening out onto the balcony.  She looked over the edge and nearly lost her... well, whatever she'd eaten last.  This was definitely a balcony.  And she was definitely at least 10 stories up.  
7She looked down and saw only untamed forest and vines crawling up the side of the tower.  What was this, a Rapunzel dream?  Was she supposed to toss her hair out the window and wait for someone to come climb up?  She picked up her hair and examined it.  It was the same length she remembered, and certainly not long enough to climb up tower with.  It didn't appear to be getting any longer.
8She looked out onto the skyline.  Out across the land, she could see another structure growing up out of a ragged hill.  A closer look showed that it wasn't just a hill.  It had a maze-like structure fanning out from the center and enclosed by high walls.  
9A labyrinth.  And not just any labyrinth.  The labyrinth she had run 15 years prior.  The tower was his tower.  What was she doing here?  What kind of stupid dream was this?  Then again, she'd had dreams about the labyrinth before, but never from a vantage point like this.  Mostly they were her dancing around a  ballroom full of leering eyes or her running up and down and upside down impossible staircases with his voice in her head.  
10This was comparatively quiet.  Too normal.  Too strange.  But she knew without a doubt, dream or not, that was Jareth's castle.  That was the goblin city.  That was his labyrinth.  
11She backed away from the ledge, back into the room.  She heard a small pop, and turned around.  A book dropped out from the air and onto the center of the desk with a faint thud.  She picked it up, and read the cover.  
12So, You're a Queen!:  An Introduction To The Underworld.
13_______________________
14Across the way, in his own tower, Jareth sat at his own desk.  He might look like someone casually poring over bookkeeping with a pair of spectacles on, but he was actually quite nervous.  About two hours prior, he had received a message detailing a new ruler had come to the underworld.
15Before he could finish reading, he had then received a second message congratulating him on a new protégé, as one of his own champions had now come back to establish their own kingdom, and would now be living to the east of his kingdom.  He had peered out the window, indeed, to see a new tower growing up east of his own kingdom's perimeter.  
16Sarah was back.  It was the only option, actually, as Sarah was the only one to have championed the Goblin Labyrinth since his ascension.  For the next ten minutes, he switched his outfit thrice, intending to pay her a visit and see to any questions she had.  
17Then he realized that he would not be welcome company, not after their last meeting.  Instead, he changed to as quiet of an outfit as possible, pulled out the bookkeeping he'd been meaning to take care of for days, and sat himself at his desk.
18Sarah would find her way here soon enough.  He had faith in her ability and her strength.  She would not want to see him, but he was the only one she knew, and she would have questions.  And she would not be happy.
19Despite the cheery welcome provided to all new rulers, no one really came to the underground willingly.  She would be no different.  He only hoped she would take it in stride.  
20An hour into staring at figures and pretending to care, he heard a fluttering and a pop on the balcony outside the window.  He kept his eyes focused on the book.
21"What the fuck have you done?"  She certainly sounded angry.
22He scritched out a word on the page, refusing to look up.  "Sarah, what makes you think I had a hand in this?"
23"You really think I'll believe you had no part in this?  It's just a coincidence that I'm back here?"  Jareth finally worked up the nerve to look up at her.  Sarah had grown up.  No longer was she the bratty girl he remembered. 
24"Don’t get ahead of yourself, my dear.  Not everything revolved around you.  Don't think you're the only one who's ever beaten a labyrinth.  You're the first to have beaten mine, sure, but these things happen."  He turned his eyes and attention, as best he could, back to the bookkeeping.
25Sarah grabbed the book and threw it to the ground.  "Don't call me "my dear," you asshole.  Tell me why the fuck I'm here."
26Jareth looked at the book now littering the ground, its pages disheveled now. "Well, you wouldn't be here for no reason.  What was the last thing you remember before showing up in your castle?"
27"How do you know I ended up in a castle?"  Sarah furrowed her brow and started down at Jareth.  
28"Anytime someone is whisked away, be it child or adult or animal, the rulers involved are notified." 
29"Rulers?"  She crossed her arms in front of her and flicked her eyes to the side and back, like she was remembering something.
30"Yes, Sarah.  Haven't you read the book yet?  It's rare for us to receive a new ruler.   How wonderful, you'll fallen into a livelihood on your first day."
31Sarah uncrossed her arms and paced back and forth in the chamber.  She clenched and unclenched her hands, and finally sat on the couch facing the desk.  It appeared that her lot was sinking in, and she was quickly panicking.
32"Why am I here?  How did I never notice the other kingdoms when I was here?"
33Jareth remembered his own panicking.  There was little he could do right now.  He stood and moved to the front of the desk, leaning against it, facing Sarah.  "Well, you never answered the bit about what you were doing prior to coming here."  He grabbed for a bottle of cider that appeared out of midair and reached for a glass that had appeared on his desk.  "Let's start with that."  He poured the cider into the glass and handed it to her.
34"Why should I trust anything you give me?"  She glared at the glass with a slight sneer.
35"Come now, Sarah.  We're equals.  I have no game to play."  He handed the bottle to her.  "Look, it's even a brand from Aboveground."  
36Sarah inspected the bottle.  It really is an actual branded bottle of cider, even one she's had before.  "How did you get this?  It doesn't matter, you still could've faked it.  That peach looked just like a regular peach."
37"We're not banned from being Aboveground.  We're just limited.  You really should read the book.  It'll tell you much more than I can.  Besides, I got "So, Now You're a King!" not, "So, Now You're a Queen!" and I took over this kingdom from someone, rather than having to build a kingdom from scratch.  Your task is a bit different."  
38Sarah handled the bottle back to him, and held her hand out.  "Fine.  I'll drink the cider.  I like cider."  Jareth handed her the glass, and finished pouring his own.  
39He held out his own glass for her to clink with her.  "To reacquaintances."  She granted him a clink, but not the phrase.  Her loss.  "Now, what were you doing?"
40She closed her eyes and drained half the glass before speaking.  "I was drunk and wished myself away."  
41"Sarah, why would you do a thing like that?  Surely you know the consequences of wishing someone away by now."  Jareth left his spot on the desk in favor of sitting next to Sarah on the couch.  She responded in kind by moving further to the opposite side.  
42"It doesn't matter.  I'll just go and read the stupid book."  She drained the last of the glass and stood.  
43"You figured out how to change into your flying form, I take it?  I think I heard a little flutter."  Surprisingly, she blushed.  "Oh come now, it can't be that embarrassing."
44"It's none of your business.  You obviously like your own form.  Hoggle told me you refused to change for a month after I beat you.  How nice it is, being an owl."
45"They fit in well.  No one really gives them a second glance.  They're basically hardy pigeons, in terms of nondescript-ness.  So what are you, Sarah?  A dashing mallard?  A charming cardinal?  A graceful swan?"
46Sarah glared harder than she'd glared yet, and she'd been doing quite a bit of glaring since her arrival.  "You'd see me anyhow, so whatever."  She placed her hands together over her stomach, and with a pop, her flying form stood in her place.  
47"Really?  A flamingo?"  Jareth burst into laughter at the sight.  "Oh god, are you serious?  Ana is going to love you, dear, but stay away from her garden parties.  Oh goodness, this is beautiful.  Westerly, you are an absolute cad."  Sarah strode back over to him and pecked at his shoulder with her beak.  "Ouch, stop, I'll stop laughing."
48Sarah turned back into her human form with another pop.  "I'm leaving.  I'll go read the stupid book and start my kingdom."  She strode back to the balcony and looked back.  "You're an asshole."  With another pop, she was back into flamingo form.
49He waved at her.  "Good luck, Sarah.  I'm here if you have questions or need anything."  Sarah squawked and flew off.  Jareth picked up the book from the floor and moved out onto the balcony to watch Sarah's flight back eastward.  "I'm so sorry, Sarah."  
50______________________
51Sarah landed back onto her own balcony, and quickly changed back into her usual self.  "Yeah, that was a great idea.  Go visit the asshole who brought you here in the first place.  Great fucking idea."
52She sat back down at the ugly desk, and stared down at the book she'd left.  "Why do I get such an ugly desk?  His desk was nice.  How come he gets nice things?"  She thought back over their meeting.  Jareth still looked similar.  His hair had calmed down, at least.  It was still wispy and blonde, but rather than long and nest-like, he'd changed it into a swooped back look, and it looked... honestly, pretty nice.  He still wore leather gloves and boots and shirts not buttoned up quite as much as they ought to be, but overall?  
53A decent improvement from the Goblin King in her dreams.
54The book still sat at the page she'd left.  She's eschewed the introduction for the section on "How to transform into your flying self," found in the chapter on transmogrification, including transforming into your galloping and swimming self.  Thankfully, the book came with detailed instructions and diagrams, and left little to chance on the subject.  This was no Ikea instruction pamphlet.
55With a sigh, Sarah flipped back to the beginning of the book, past the table of contents, and into the first chapter.  
56______________
57So, You're a Queen!  An Introduction To The Underground
58Chapter One: Welcome to the Underground!
59Welcome to the Underground!  Sure, you must be wondering what finds you here.  Where is this place?  How did I get here?  Why am I here?  Who brought me here?  What's my purpose in life?
60First off, we would like to wish you a hearty congratulations!  For you to find yourself, you must have first run and won a labyrinth in the past!  You should be very proud of this fact.  Rare is the challenger who bests a labyrinth and its ruler.  Beating a labyrinth is a difficult task indeed, and few are up to the challenge.  Congratulations, you!
61As for why you've returned to the underground, you're here because at some point after beating a labyrinth, you've either a) been wished away by another party, or b) wished yourself away.  How you first visited the underground and how you find yourself returned will change some aspects of your initial time here, and these important distinctions will be covered in more detail later.
62Because you have bested a labyrinth, the undergroudn recognizes that you yourself are deserving of your own labyrinth and kingdom!  This is an honor!  It's up to you to nurture and cultivate your kingdom and labyrinth and its populace.  We will cover more about the structure of kingdoms in the second chapter.  
63All rulers of a kingdom are in charge of a labyrinth, which is there to challenge those who wish themselves, or someone else, or who have been wished away.  Different labyrinths and kingdoms are suited for different types of wishes.  Different situations call for different labyrinths and kingdoms. Rulers handle these situations and wishes in different ways.  It is up to the ruler to devise their particular rule.  However, when a new ruler (such as yourself) arrives to the underground, a meeting is set up to discuss the rule. This will be covered more greatly in chapter three. 
64Now, where are you? As we've said, you're down in the Underground! This is a magical land. Certain things will be reminiscent of your own fairy tales and myths, and that's no coincidence!  Some myths are inspired by the labyrinths and kingdoms, and quite frankly, some labyrinths and kingdoms are inspired by myths.  The Underground itself is quite vast, and divided into five states, which are divided each into five different regions.  These regions are then divided into kingdoms, each of which is ruled by one ruler.  These differences and areas will be covered in chapter four. 
65You might also want to know who runs this whole place. Well, that's a difficult question! Each of the five states has a head ruler which is elected every 10 years. When decisions regarding the state must be made, the heads of each five regions of the state meet to discuss. If decisions regarding the underground as a whole must be made, each head of state meets, along with five sub-heads from each region to discuss the underground. As well, the Underground itself has five head figures who see over a variety of supportive aspects of the land -- Northerly, Easterly, Southerly, Westerly, and Early.  How politics work will be covered in more detail in chapter five. 
66We now arrive at the meatiest question of all -- what's your purpose here? Your purpose is to lead. You will lay the labyrinth with tests for those who arrive in your kingdom after a wish away has been made. How this works is up to you.  Not all labyrinths exist to prison wishers/wishees.  For instance, the mer kingdom brings in young adults who have wished themselves out of abusive romantic relationships. Their labyrinth tests and nurtures self-worth and coping ability. Those who don't meet the requirements of these tests within the given time are kept in the kingdom to foster those abilities. More on different types of labyrinths and tests and populace are covered in chapters two and three. 
67Chapters six through ten cover various aspects of magic and its usage in the underground. This is a practical application. Other books found references in the back of this text will help with theory and creating your own magic. For now, we want only to get you started on your own journey.  
68Finally, what if you want to leave the underground? This is a tricky subject to cover. Depending on how you first came to a labyrinth and how you have returned, this changes. First instance, if you were wished away the first time, and wished away again, you may shadow under your mentor for five years, and if at the end of that time, you wish to return to the aboveground, you may. If you were wished away, and have wished yourself back, you may first go through shadowing for five years, and then make a case for your return. If you wished someone else away or you wished yourself away the first time, and now someone else has wished you away, the case is the same -- you may shadow for five years before making a case.  However, if you wished someone else away or wished yourself away, beaten a labyrinth, and now you've wished yourself away, you must first nurture a kingdom for 20 years, and then present your case to the heads to decide. 
69We wish you the best on your journey within the underground, whichever path you choose! We recommend that you take a few minutes to explore your current castle before continuing onto chapter two. 
70"Are you kidding me?  Twenty years?  I have to live here for twenty years and then I can make a case for leaving?  By the time I got back, everything would've gone on without me.  I would be old.  I would be useless.  How would I catch up with technology?"  She threw the book out into the room.  Sarah stood up from the desk and walked around the ovoid room before taking a seat on the ugly pink couch.  "What am I supposed to do?"  She rubbed at her eyes, and lay down on the cushions, and thought back to what she'd been doing before here.  
71_____________
72"Wait, what?  You're leaving?"  Sarah dropped the kitchen towel she'd just used to take the dish out of the oven.  The lasagna sat on a crocheted trivet on their countertop.
73"I'm leaving, Sarah.  I'm sorry."  
74"But you're going to miss dinner." She looked at the lasagna again. It's golden crust bubbled. This was a beautiful lasagna. Truly in the top five best lasagnas Sarah had made. She'd bought everything she needed yesterday. Cartons of ricotta. Eggs. San Marzano tomatoes. Fresh garlic and onions and basil and cream. Expensive pasture-raised italian sausage from a local butcher. 
75Tonight was a special night, but not for any particular reason like an anniversary or pregnancy announcement.  Sarah just felt like it was a good night to show Quentin how proud she was. He'd landed a spot at his dream company a couple months prior, and had been under pressure to learn all he could. She knew it was stressful, but also that it was what he wanted. To show her support, she had made his favorite dish. Lasagna. 
76"Sarah, I don't mean leaving tonight. I mean leaving, leaving. Like, leaving you." He stared at the door. "I'm sorry. Really, truly, sorry." 
77Sarah stared at him staring at the door. She stared at the door. She stared back at him. "You're... leaving?" 
78"It's not your fault. None of it's your fault. It's mine. I'm so sorry." 
79"Do you mean you have to leave for your job or something? Like, move?" She picked up the dish towel and set it on the counter next to the lasagna. 
80"No, I'm not leaving for my job. It's just... look, I'm sorry. I've met someone. Someone else. We're not together or anything like that, yet, but... Look. This is a long time coming. I'm not happy. I hate how I feel. And deep down, I don't think you are either." He sat down at one of the kitchen table chairs. "Sarah, I can't keep pretending like I'm happy with you." 
81Sarah crossed to the side of the kitchen with the table, and sat facing him. "How long have you been pretending, Quentin?" She thought back over their past year. They'd grown more distant as Quentin got closer and closer to landing this job. It had taken three months of rounds of interviews before he was chosen. Before that, he'd spent two months waiting to see if he'd get an interview at all. Before that, even, he'd spent half a year polishing up his work to show to possible employers, especially his current one. 
82Sarah wanted to be supportive. She'd tried. And succeeded, in some respects. But two years of him being miserable in his old job wore on her. Months of him waiting and waiting tapdanced on her nerves. She tried her best not to show it, choosing instead to keep busy with side projects of her own. Once he started having success, the period where she thought everything would be smooth sailing, she felt resentful instead. But rather than talk about it, she overcompensated, she knew. The guilt of resentment made her try to be the best wife possible. But, apparently, even that couldn't hide the cracks. 	
83"It's been a long time, Sarah. And I'm sorry for that. Really, I am. But I want us both to be happy, you know? We're not. I know you won't leave, though, so I will. I'm setting you free, Sarah. You can do so much more without me, I know it." 
84"And you can do so much more without me, too?" 
85"Well, yeah. I can." He stood up from the table. He walked back into the living area of their apartment. "I'm going to go stay with Ben for a while. I put down a deposit on an apartment today, but I can't move in for another couple weeks. I'll come by tomorrow and get my stuff packed up while you're at work. Ben has a storage unit I can use to store everything for now." 
86"So that's it? No discussion? Just leave?" Sarah was getting angrier now that it was sinking in. 
87"Sarah, there's nothing to discuss. I know you're angry right now, but you'll be glad I walked away from this. I know it." 
88"What don't you know, Quentin? Jesus fucking Christ. Get the fuck out." 
89"I'm sorry Sarah. Really, I am." With that he grabbed the suitcase he'd packed and left in the hallway, and strode out the door. He looked like he was leaving on vacation. In a way, he was. 
90Sarah stood up and walked back into the kitchen. The lasagna stared at her from the counter. She glared back at it and turned to the refrigerator. With a fury, she opened the door and pulled a bottle of cider from the door. Rather than fetch a glass, she popped the cap with a magnetic bottle opener from the fridge and started on the 24oz of hard apple. She filled a bowl with the lasagna, and brought it out into the living area.
91She sat on their leather sofa, and alternated her swigs of cider with forkfulls of layered pasta. The silence was too much for her, and so she turned the TV to a trashy reality show.  Even that didn't work to distract her.  She ate and she drank and she stewed. What was the goddamned point? She'd put years of work into this relationship. Well, four years. Maybe it wasn't a long time, but it was a long enough time.
92No wonder he hadn't proposed.  They'd talked a little bit about marriage, but never deep enough to get it down.  Both of them had skirted the topic.  Both of them knew it wouldn't make them happy.
93Quentin wasn't wrong, but did he have to be so goddamned calm and rational about it? Just feeling angry made her feel stupid. How could he be so diplomatic about it? He even sympathetically said he was sorry. How could she stand being mad about it? She felt like she had no right to be mad. She felt like she had every right to be mad. 
94Once she was done with the full bottle of cider and the full bowl of dinner, she took both into the kitchen and threw them both in the trash, along with the pan and the lasagna and the carrot cake she'd had waiting in the fridge and the bottle of his favorite wine and the salad she'd made to go with all of it. Fuck him. The trash was overflowing. She tamped it down enough to close the lid. She grabbed another bottle of cider, popped it open, and drained half. 
95Sarah returned to the living room and flopped onto the couch. The ceiling continued to look like a ceiling. No changes despite the changes in their relationship. The couch continued feeling like a couch. The fan overhead kept its whirring sound just the same. 
96She stretched her hands up in front of her face, reaching towards the blades. She thought back to when she was 15. She had asked the goblins to take Toby away from her. She loved Toby now. He was 14 and had managed to balance his surly teenage self with the part of him that looked up to her. Some weekends he would come stay with her and Quentin, and they would play video games together and watch movies. She was glad they had a good relationship. Unlike her and Quentin. 
97Did goblins take away adults? Would they take him away? What would that matter? It's not like she'd know; he was gone. She might not even see him again. Who would care? What if she asked them to take her away? Would she go to the goblin king and become a goblin herself? She'd get to see Ludo and Hoggle and Sir Didimus again. The last time she'd called on them was just before she met Quentin. She hadn't felt a need to do it since. Wouldn't it be nice to see them again? 
98... Would she see Jareth again? She knew he still reigned as the Goblin King or whatever dumb name he'd come up with. Was he still stealing babies? Maybe he took adults too. Maybe he'd show up and play with his stupid balls and steal her away. 
99"I wish someone would come and take me away. Right now." She closed her eyes and sighed, and fell asleep.  
100__________________
101She sighed. 
102"Hello dear. I wanted to see how you were doing, being back in the underground and all that." 
103Sarah gasped and sat up on the ugly pink sofa. Standing in front of her in the middle of the room was a very tall woman with short, curly black hair with and a flowing black floral gown. She had the largest, roundest, reddest glasses she'd ever seen. 
104"Does no one here wear normal clothes?"
105"I'm afraid not.  I'm Leona. I'm one of the other Queens. My kingdom is to the northwest of yours. How are you getting along, little one?  What's your name?" 
106"I'm sorry, that was really rude of me.  Your dress is beautiful.  Does everyone dress up all the time?  Sorry, it’s nice to meet you.  I'm Sarah." 
107"Ohh, Sarah! You're the one who beat Jareth all those years ago! I remember that ball, dear; you were so beautiful."  
108"You were there?" Sarah tried to remember the fever dream. "That was real?" 
109"Oh yes, dear. We'd had that ball planned for months.   Would you care for some tea?"  She snapped and a tray of tea appeared on the desk.  She snapped again and a coffee table found itself in front of the pink couch.  Leona strode to the desk, picked up the tray, and brought it to the couch.  She sat next to Sarah, and poured a cup to her.
110"Whoa, that was really cool.  Thank you."
111"Don't worry dear, you'll be able to do it yourself soon."  She smiled.  "Anyways, we were all so sad Jareth would have to miss that ball due to his having a new labyrinth challenger, but imagine our surprise when we saw you in that big poofy dress. I'm sure we gave you a fright, love, but that's just what we do. You performed splendidly, though. Jareth just stood there in shock when you threw that chair. I don't think he expected it at all." 
112"I guess I had always assumed it was just an illusion or a dream or something. That asshole drugged me with a peach. He roofied me with a peach of all things. I haven't been able to each peaches since. I loved peaches before.  They were my favorite fruit."  Sarah sipped the tea.  
113"He could've chosen a better way, I'm sure, but he would never have really harmed you." Sarah shivered. Of course he would've. 
114"Well, thank you for visiting me. I'm sorry I don't know much about the underground yet, or the other kingdoms." 
115"Oh, don't worry. That book over there will help. If you need advice or just someone to talk to, please, feel free to come over. Has Jareth visited you yet?" 
116"No, but I already visited him." 
117"Oh, did you already learn how to transform yourself?"  She looked impressed.
118"I looked up the bird transformation."  Sarah felt proud at that, even if it was a kind of childish thing.
119 	"Goodness, what form has Westerly bestowed upon you? If it makes you feel better, I'll change first." She folded her hands in front of her and changed quickly into a colorful toucan. 
120Sarah stood and clasped her hands on her stomach, and turned into a flamingo. She gave a squawk and returned to her usual form. 
121With a honk, Leona followed suit, the honking quickly segueing into laughter. "A flamingo, really? Oh, Ana will love you." 
122"Who is Ana?  Jareth said the same thing." 
123"The Queen of Hearts, the master of wayward children who wish themselves away out of boredom and wistfulness. She plays croquet with flamingos. Or well, she uses the flamingos to play croquet." She mimed knocking a ball with a mallet. 
124"Wait, wait, wait. Like, Alice in Wonderland Queen of Hearts?" Sarah raised an eyebrow. 
125"Well, yes, though Alice has her own Kingdom. I'll leave that to the books, though. They're a much better resource than I am." Sarah stared for a second, then shook her head to clear it. 
126"Okay. I'll read the book." 
127"Sarah, I must take my leave. Again, visit anytime. I'd be glad to help you get settled in." She smiled and changed back to her toucan form, and flew low to the window. She sat on the sill and bowed at Sarah. Sarah waved as she took off into the sky, heading northwest. In the distance, she should see the White towers with flowing banners and flags. 
128 	She wondered what sort of Kingdom and labyrinth Lenora ruled. Well, there was always the book.
129__________________
130Not long after Sarah left, Jareth concentrated long enough to finish his bookkeeping.  Bookkeeping wasn't exactly a common task for him, but if he wanted to keep his kingdom running smoothly, it was a necessity. A computer would've been a happy helper, too, but with magic, what was the point? Any magic sufficiently advanced is indistinguishable from technology.
131Despite the magic within the Underground, mundane chores still existed. Politics still mattered. The Underworld would be lawless without it, and from what he'd read, that's exactly how it had been in the beginning, before the Five Directors stepped into the help with the mundane support.  
132Jareth wondered how Sarah was settling into her new home. While yes, new rulers had the opportunity to leave the underground, it very rarely happened. Almost never, actually, unless a ruler had been around for a long enough time to warrant wanting to finally die.
133The former Goblin King had been one of those. Jareth had shadowed him for three years prior to taking over. The man had been the Goblin King for several millennia prior to Jareth's return to the underground, and when Jareth returned and shadowed under him, he'd asked him to take over.  
134The book might say you could "nurture a kingdom for 20 years" and then present your case to leave, but that was a joke. No one wanted to present a case to go back to your world, which has left you behind, after twenty years of building a life for yourself. Even if you did, no one would allow it. You would still need at another couple of years shadowing a replacement before you can even leave, and then only if the heads and the Five allowed it.  
135Jareth wanted to leave the underground in the beginning, so he'd chosen shadowing over starting his own Kingdom. By the end of the first year, he knew there was nothing left for him in the Aboveground. Two hundred years later, his own labyrinth was beaten for the first time.
136The Goblin Kingdom and its labyrinth got its populace from children who had been wished away by relations other than parents, and occasionally, their would-be champions. Whenever one of the worlds sensors picked up a wish for a child to be taken away, Jareth and his lead goblins swooped in. The wisher would be given a chance to either let the child be taken and forget, or to challenge the labyrinth. The wishee, depending on age, was given a similar proposition -- except that they wouldn't forget having been wished away.
137Jareth himself had been wished away as a child.  
138________________
139At nine years old, Jareth had become an orphan.  
140His family held a title, albeit a small one.  Even so, he didn't want for anything as a child.  His parents had a small estate with a small crew of servants, including a Governess.  She would recommend books for him, which he read voraciously.  She treated him kindly, but firmly.  
141One day, his parents had left on a trip to London.  He was left in the care of his Governess, which wasn't too much different from usual.  Even when they were there, he generally was cared for and spent his time with her.  
142Two weeks after they left, they received word that both parents had perished in an accident.  His guardianship would now be his Aunt on his mother's side.  Within a few days, he was packed up and moved out to her own larger estate, and stripped of his Governess.  Instead, she was replaced with another, much less personable tutor.
143Jareth was hardly Jane Eyre, but he did receive his fair share of abuse, mostly at the hands of the tutor moreso than his aunt.  He would rap him on his knuckles or his ear when he did things incorrectly.  Even when he did things correctly, he would find some reason to find fault.  
144Within a few months, the tutor grew bored and left for London and more schooling, leaving Jareth needing a replacement.  His Aunt, who hadn't wanted to deal with him whatsoever, was as distraught as an uncaring aunt could be, and wished him away rather than deal with the trouble of finding him a replacement governess or tutor.  Hell, she could've sent him off to boarding school.  It would've come out of his money, not hers.  
145Instead, she wished him away, and along came the goblins and the reigning Goblin King.  He offered her the option of taking the child and forgetting, and she chose to.  He offered Jareth the option of running the Labyrinth for himself and returning.  
146Jareth took the Goblin King up on the challenge and run the Labyrinth.  At nine years old, he was practical enough to know certain things, like questioning authority, but not so old that he judged the world only on how it should work.  Rather than get frustrated at the Labyrinth's ability to conceal, he projected his own thoughts into it.  
147With that, he was able to find the easier paths in the Labyrinth, only occasionally getting stuck on certain things.  He failed the honest liar guards, but chose correctly with the helping hands.  His biggest triumph involved concealing himself as a goblin.  Oddly enough, it was the fireys who helped with that task.
148They found a variety of cloths and coats to drape about him, a large-nosed mask, and a large colander for a hat.  It looked preposterous, but fooled the goblins.  As for the Goblin King, at the time he was too busy entertaining a paramour to care about a child running the labyrinth.  
149Jareth interrupted the two sharing a rather vulgar moment, and announced that he had made his way to the castle beyond the Goblin city, and that kindly, he would like to return to his home.  The Goblin King tossed a globe at him and sent him off.  
150Thankfully, the colander, mask, and coats stayed.
151When he returned, he discovered the truth behind the Goblin King's offer.  The wisher might forget about the child, but the rest of the world did not.  His Aunt had returned and he had returned, but she no longer knew him.  
152Of course, everyone else remembered him.  She was confined to her room after a sort of nervous breakdown brought on by, well, everyone calling her crazy for forgetting that she had a nephew.  Her husband hadn't much wanted to deal with Jareth either, and he was shipped off to another relation.  Thankfully, this one enrolled him in a boarding school, and the rest of his adolescence was quite boring.
153As he neared 30, he seemed to have everything going for him.  He had an education, had inherited the estate of his parents, and was in the midst of courting a lovely girl.  His life was at its peak.  
154One day, he went to call on the girl at her parents own estate nearby.  Instead of being allowed in to see her, her father took him to his office and closed the door.  He apologized for the indiscretions of his daughter, who was now betrothed to another.
155A week later, they were wed.  Jareth sequestered himself and one night, in a fit of drinking alone, wished himself away.  
156Half a year after returning to the underground, the girl gave birth to her first child.  
157________________________
158Jareth sighed at the memory.  What a stupid git he had been.  The girl wasn't even that nice.  Honestly, he just wanted to get a wife so that people would stop telling him to get a wife, or saying that stupid line about how "it's a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife."  
159Then again, wishing himself away had brought to him a sizable more fortune than a wife would've taken.  The Underground was not as concerned by social rules and customs.  In those days, the rulers were a little less flamboyant, but the former Goblin King's trysts weren't anything unusual for a king or queen.  In fact, his paramour was another ruler, one from another state.  
160The Underworld had opened up a world of possibility to him, and while at times, it was lonely and frustrating and filled with annoying goblins to take care of, he was happy.  Creating and maintaining a labyrinth gave him an outlet.  He had all the books he could ever want, and the ability to go Aboveground for more if he so desired.  
161He could now be Aboveground for three days at a time before needing to return.  New rulers could only spend an hour or two tops before being pulled back.  However, the more self-sufficient the Kingdom is, the more time one has to be Aboveground.  
162He still wished he could string electricity through the place and have a TV or a computer or a stereo system.  Sarah would certainly feel out of place without her creature comforts.  Much more so than he had.  Two hundred years ago, electricity hadn't yet been reigned in and strung across the world.  
163Sarah would eventually need his help in adjusting.  He would help. 
164
165The rest of the castle proved to be fairly bare.  The floor above the tower housed her bedchambers, which unfortunately consisted currently of a lumpy twin bed and a lamp.  In a panic, she realized that she would be in the dark in a place with no electricity come nightfall.  She didn't actually know when nightfall was, either.  Where was a clock?
166She made a note to finish reading the book, and to get to the magical part as soon as possible.
167The floors below included an ugly ballroom amalgamation, a dining hall, a kitchen with no tools, and another eight floors of empty, gradually larger space, ending at a ground floor with a vast entryway currently overrun by vines.  
168She trudged back upstairs to the desk chamber with the desk, and picked the book back up.
169______________
170Chapter 2. So, You Have a Labyrinth and Kingdom.
171Because you are unavailable for the shadowing program, you are now the proud owner of a new Labyrinth and Kingdom! We have high hopes for you and your feifdom, and periodically, you will be visited by the region heads and state heads to check your progress and to provide any assistance to help you on this journey.
172What does it mean to have a Kingdom? A Kingdom is a lot like a family. The denizens are your children, and you will raise them with your own rules. Other rulers run their kingdoms in special ways. Some are more strict, some prefer a hands-off approach, and some prefer cruelty. Our only rule is that denizens of your kingdom may not encroach upon other kingdoms. Should this happen, you will be stopped.
173As all kingdoms function differently with different cultural attitudes, we implore all rulers to reserve judgement.
174The first thing you should do as a new ruler is decide what sort of a ruler you are. Are you a supportive leader? A diplomatic, yet aloof teacher? A hard-fisted dictator? The world is your oyster here. We take all kinds.
175The rule which will govern your labyrinth and kingdom will help with deciding this matter. Rules and their usage will be covered in more detail in chapter three, but with regards to the kingdom and its citizens, it must be given equal consideration in the decision of what kind of ruler you will be.
176For instance, some kingdoms are populated not by those wished away, but by those who do the wishing. Some are populated only by those who are wished. Some labyrinths do not allow the wishee to to enter. Some do not allow the wisher to enter. This changes how the populace is made up, and must be carefully considered.
177The good news is, the underground is fluid. Should you decide later on that a part of the rule isn't working correctly or that the denizens are too homogeneous or too thinly spread, corrections can be made. However, all changes must be first agreed upon with region and state heads.
178We suggest that you first read Chapter three before planning out your Kingdom's rule and structure. As well, rulers within your region will be visiting once a day over the next few weeks to help with your planning.
179As this takes time, your Kingdom and Labyrinth will not officially begin for another two years. Over the next two years, you will be instructed in labyrinth construction and you will be given a handful of denizens to populate your kingdom from some of your neighbors.
180We hope you enjoy your new life in the underground. Creating and ruling a kingdom can be highly fulfilling and offers a wide range of satisfying activities.
181___________
182Chapter Three: It's About People, Stupid
183Every Kingdom within the underground has its own rules and populace. With the exception of the starter population granted to new Kingdoms, all occupants of the kingdom save for the ruler come from someone who has either been wished away or who has wished someone away.
184As you wouldn't be here unless one of these had happened to you, the fact of the labyrinth's existence shouldn't be a surprise. However, your own experience will vary greatly from all other rulers. No one has the same journey.
185So, over time, you will receive many visitors to your labyrinth and kingdom, and with those visitors, you will gain a population. Visitors become citizens.
186However, different kingdoms work in different ways. Not all labyrinths are there to trap visitors into staying. Some work more as rehabilitation centers than prisons, though some work as prisons as well. Some function as new lives, quite similar to their previous lives. How this works is up to the individual kingdoms.
187For instance, the aforementioned Mer kingdom works by rehabilitating those who wish themselves away from abusive situations. To win the labyrinth in that kingdom means you already have the ability to easy remove yourself from your current abusive situation. If you can prove that, you win. However, only a minority of the vistors to the labyrinth try to prove oneself in the challenge, and far fewer win. To date, only a handful of challengers have beaten the labyrinth within the Mer kingdom in its three millenia of existence. Three of them now have their own kingdoms.
188As for their rule, it is as thus: If a partner in an abusive romantic relationship wishes oneself away in order to escape their situation, they are brought to the Mer kingdom. Here they are tested with their ability to see and escape abusive situations. The citizens of the Mer kingdom, are able to go through rehabilitation and leave the Kingdom (albeit not as champions of the Labyrinth), but very few choose that path.
189On the other hand, the Land of Hearts works by absurdist authoritarianism. The Queen of Hearts runs her kingdom with confusion and impulsivity. The kingdom is populated by military-esque citizens and fairly typical people. However, the labyrinth gets its visitors solely from children who wish themselves away due to boredom or a want of wonder. This Labyrinth has only been beaten three times, and boasts one prior champion as a current Kingdom ruler.
190These are just two examples of the different Kingdoms found within the Underground. For more information regarding the different Kingdoms, we recommend A Brief Census of the Underground, which can be found in the top drawer of this desk.
191As for the labyrinth itself and different styles of tests and challenges found within, we recommend Practical Labyrinth: A Guide to Architecture, Game, and Aesthetics, found in the same drawer.
192We recommend spending time now thinking of yourself as a person and what you want to convey as a ruler, and how that applied to your new kingdom and labyrinth. After that, we recommend moving onto the next chapter, which will cover the geography of the underground and its variety.
193________________________
194The more Sarah read, the angrier she got.  Not only that, she was getting hungry, especially after her castle exploration.  Sarah was hangry.
195She wanted to go home.  She wanted go home and eat lasagna even if it was a Stoufer's lasagna she popped in the microwave for five minutes.  She wanted to go home and throw all of Quentin's stuff out of their apartment.  She wanted to go out to a bar and meet up with friends, even.  Something that wasn't this. 
196This was stupid.  It was lonely.  She was hungry.  
197So she did the only thing that felt right at the time.  She flew back to Jareth's castle.  
198She flew into the room he'd been in before.  Instead of being at his desk, she found him asleep on the couch.  His blonde hair was tousled and one leg was sticking up and over the back of the furniture.  
199Instead of changing back into her usual form, she decided to go up to his ear and squawk at him.  Sarah knew this was a cruel thing to do, but who was crueler than the man asleep on the couch?  
200Jareth screamed and threw the book at her.  With a pop, she screamed and transformed back.  Her brow was now bleeding, and she was seething.  She was seething less because she'd just been hit with a book and more because she'd be to blame for getting hit with a book.
201"Goddamnit, Jareth."  She rubbed her brow with her fingers and brought away blood.  
202"Don't goddamnit me, of course I throw the book at you.  What the hell do you expect?  Oh, let me just give a little squawk in a sleeping person's ear; oh that'll really get them going."  He stood up from the couch, strode to the desk, and pulled out a first aid kit.  "Come here, you stupid girl."
203"Don't call me stupid, asshole."  She came to the desk anyhow.  "I'll take care of it myself."  
204"Sarah, could we call truce on the namecalling?  It's not helpful for either of us.  I'm sorry for throwing a book at you.  What did you need?"  He stepped aside from the kit.  He snapped, and a mirror appeared for Sarah to use.
205She took out an antimicrobial wipe and cleaned up the blood, followed by a bandaid set over top.  "Why should I agree?  You are an asshole.  You're a creepy asshole and the only reason I'm here now."  
206"Sarah, I didn't wish your brother here.  I didn't wish you back, either.  If you'll remember, you asked me to take the child.  I took him.  I realize that you don't want to be here and you want to go home, but I can't help you with that.  I can only offer you assistance with being here, now."
207"That doesn't take away you being a creep.  You still roofied me with a peach.  What kind of person does that?  You know what they do to people who drug someone?  They put them in jail, that's what.  You creeped on a 15 year old.  That's not normal, Jareth."  The more Sarah said, the less comfortable she felt even being there.  Why had she flown here in the first place?  Why didn't she fly to Leona?  Leona would've magicked up some pasta for her and made tea and listened to her.
208"Sarah, I was just doing my job.  I realize you were a young girl, and you had some overblown fantasy you wanted to achieve, but that wasn't me.  I gave you, that's right, you, what you wanted.  You wanted the glamorous life your mother leads, I gave you that ball.  And trust me, I can do much better than a bratty teenager.  This place is filled with beautiful people.  Companionship isn't lacking for me, little girl."
209Sarah felt small.  Tiny.  She had spent years thinking she had escaped the grasps of someone who felt something for her at a time when she couldn't understand it herself.  "I'm not a little girl.  I'm not a little girl, and I just want to go home."
210"Come now, Sarah, that's exactly something a little girl would say.  But look, I will stop with the name calling.  You're a woman, not a girl.  Stay here, I'll be back in a moment."  He walked to the staircase and had gone a step when Sarah called out. 
211"Where are you going?"  She wrapped her arms around herself.  
212"Just to get food. I'll be back in a moment."  He disappeared from sight and Sarah sat on the couch.  She felt stupid.  Had he really felt nothing?  Was it really just misconstrued by her?  
213A few moments later, Jareth returned, followed by a goblin carrying a tray of finger sandwiches.  Jareth himself carried a large carafe of water and glasses.  
214All were set on the table in front of the couch, and the goblin left back down the staircase.  "I hope this is sufficient.  None of them contain peach, I promise."  
215"Thanks."  They ate in silence for a few moments.  "You said you could go Aboveground.  Can you tell me how?"
216"I can show tell you how, yes, but don't be fooled by its draw.  In the beginning, you can only go Aboveground for a few minutes, tops.  It's best to wait a few months before going.  At least then you can stretch it to half an hour or so."
217"That's it?"
218"Well, after a few years, you can spend several hours.  I can be Aboveground half a week now, but I don't go very often.  Every time you go, it takes a week before you can go back.  Plus, I know what you're thinking."
219"What's that?"  Sarah poured another glass of water for herself.  
220"You want to see your family, correct?  Perhaps a husband?  Do you have children yet, Sarah?"
221Sarah laughed and took another drink of water.  "No, no husband.  No children.  I would like to see my family, yes, and I would like to talk to Toby."
222"Ah, the boy.  Why is it funny that you have no husband or children?"
223"I wished myself away after my partner of four years walked out on me.  After I made him really good lasagna."  She shuddered at the memory.  The lasagna was really good, though.  "I thought about wishing him away."
224"It wouldn't've worked.  You only get to wish someone else away once.  And, if you'd done that, you still would've ended up here.  That's the rules."
225"The underground is a dick."
226"You speak more vulgarly than you used to, Sarah."  He chided her.
227"I haven't spoken this rudely since I was in college.  Being wisked away and told I'll never return does that.  So I won't be able to see Toby for a while?"
228"Actually, Sarah... it's not a good idea to go see him at all.  He won't remember you.  Your family won't, either.  It's the cruel joke of the Underground.  We don't really exist anymore.  Even if you go back, it's not the life you had.  Even the people who get wished away twice are forgotten.  The Underground doesn't like rulers to leave."
229"What the hell?"  
230"I know it's frustrating Sarah.  We all want to go home in the beginning.  We all want our lives back.  But, that's not a thing you're going to be able to do.  I'm sorry for that."  He looked genuinely sorry for her fate.
231"Fine.  I'm sorry for bothering you with this.  I'm going to leave now."  Sarah stood up from the couch and strode toward the window.
232"Wait, Sarah."  He got up and followed her.  "If you allow me, I can make your castle a little more comfortable.  It'll at least help you until you have a better grasp on magic yourself."
233Sarah squirmed.  Could she trust him with that?  He knew where she lived anyhow.  And she was in his castle, on his turf, and he'd done nothing to harm her thus far.  She relaxed.  "Okay.  Fine."
234She placed her hands together on her stomach and popped into flamingo form.  Jareth quickly transformed into his own barn owl self.  She jumped onto the sill and out the window, followed by Jareth, and flew back to her new home.
235Both flew into the room and switched back into normal forms.  Sarah stood to the side, watching Jareth take in the room.  She felt slightly embarrassed by the state of the room, despite her lack of control over its ambiance.  
236"Well, it could use some work."  He walked to the desk and flipped through her copy of So, You're A Queen!, before setting it back on top of the growing pile of books from the drawers.  
237"Okay, well.  I have a kitchen downstairs, and a bedroom upstairs.  I really just need some food that'll keep until I can get the whole magic thing down."
238"Sarah, don't worry.  I'll grant you what creature comforts I can."  He headed towards the staircase.  "Upstairs first, or downstairs?"
239"Downstairs, I suppose.  Kitchen is three floors down."  He headed down to the floor below, and Sarah followed.  The first floor below included an informal dining room and parlor, currently furnished with a single table and a folding chair.  Down one more floor was the formal dining room, which contained only a picnic bench.  
240Underneath that, lay the kitchen.  It had a large wooden oval island in the center with warped counters lining the entire room, save for the area saved for staircase entrance.  "Here it is," Sarah spread out her arms like Vanna White, "in all its barren glory."  
241"It's rather sad, isn't it?  Let's see what I can do."  He pulled some of the crystal balls she'd remembered out of his jacket.  After twisting them for a moment, he sent one off to the island, one to the counter, and one to the walls.  The island morphed into a copper topped solid structure with drawers lining the sides.  The counters morphed into smooth rock and metal surfaces, with wooden cabinets underneath.  The walls became filled pots, pans, and a pantry came into being on the side opposite the staircase.  
242Inside the pantry sat a large icebox, filled with ice and vegetables and fruit. The pantry also housed bags of rice and flour and sugar and salt, and a large reservoir for water.  "The water will refill itself.  Don't worry; it won't grow bracken.  I'm afraid I've brought you no meat for the moment.  If you look in the icebox, there's also some of those finger sandwiches for you."  
243Sarah couldn't help but smile at the picture her new kitchen made.  "Thank you.  Really, thank you."  
244"Now then, where to next?"  
245"I really don't need anything else.  Food covers it."
246"Come now, there's more I can show off.  How about your office?  I can make short work of that, I hope.  Or the bedroom.  I'm sure they've stuck you with a straw pallet or something."
247"It's not that bad.  I mean, it's a twin bed, but I can deal with it."  They walked back up towards the office floor.  "I wouldn't say no to some blankets, though."
248On the way up, they stopped at the parlor and informal dining floor.  "Here, I can at least put in some lighting for you."  Jareth released another two crystal balls to a set of fire lamps to the walls.  
249They made their way back up to the office floor.  "What do you want most here?"
250"A less ugly couch would be nice."  She wrinkled her nose at the floral pink lumpy couch.  
251"I can do that."  He twirled another two balls in his hand, and sent one off towards the couch, which plumped itself up and turned a lovely shade of dark brown leather.  The other he sent off towards the desk and chair, turning it into a surprisingly modern metal and glass fixture.  
252"Jesus, do you just read interior decor magazines all day?"  As soon as it came out, Sarah realized how rude it was.  "I'm sorry.  This looks great.  Thank you."
253"I do own a decent collection of Veranda and Elle Decor."  
254"Oh.  Color me surprised."  Sarah really was surprised, but then realized she shouldn't be.  He might be flamboyant, but obviously, he knew what he was doing flamboyancy-wise.  
255"We all need a hobby."  He shrugged.
256"I suppose so.  I guess I could take up knitting or something."  
257"The world is your oyster.  So, bedroom?"  He pointed upwards.  
258Sarah motioned for him to follow her, and up the staircase they went.  The room was smaller than the office, but as it still took up a floor, it was a pretty vast space, big enough for a giant bed and a sitting area and a nice bathroom off to the side.  
259For now, just the small twin-sized straw bed sat off to one side, lacking even a pillow, blanket, or sheet.  
260Jareth strode to the bed and sat down.  "This may be the worst bed I've ever sat on."  
261Sarah walked to the far side of the bed to sit down.  "It's pretty bad.  We have a king-sized bed at home.  Or had, I guess.  I wonder if Quentin will take it now that I'm gone."
262"You'll have paramours to fill your bed soon enough, my dear."  He stood and walked to the middle of the room.  "So, what do you want?  Or would you like me to just do my magic?"
263"Do your magic."
264Jareth pulled three more crystals from his jacket.  Where did he store them?  He must have some kind of pocket bigger on the inside.  That jacket was pretty formfitting, and he'd already pulled out a handful of balls.  
265He spun the crystals, releasing one at a time.  The first went towards the bed, shifting it into an explosion of white silk and shiny lace with blue edges.  He released another to go with it, creating a large wooden frame and posts, spiraling up.  
266"Holy... it's like winter wonderful of bed."  Sarah stared at it.  
267The last crystal Jareth sent underneath the bed, creating a large fluffy rug for it to stand on.  The entire thing then shifted to be centered on one end of the ovoid room.  
268"I would do more, but I'm running a bit low."  
269"On magic?"  Sarah wasn't sure yet how exactly that worked.  
270"Yes, it's a sort of energy thing.  If you do it to much, you'll get much more tired.  Plus, it's more draining to use outside your own kingdom."
271"Huh.  What do you do to get it back?"
272"Eat, sleep, rest.  The usual.  Perhaps we could eat some of that food I put in your kitchen?"  Jareth asked.  Sarah wasn't sure how long she should let him stay in her castle.
273"Sure.  One moment though."  Sarah stepped a couple paces back, and made a running leap onto the bed.  It was fairly low to the ground, so she didn't need to jump high, but what's more fun than jumping onto a bed?  She giggled.  "Oh god, it's so fluffy.  This is magical.  Wait, literally, it's magical."  She rolled to her back and sat up, scooting herself up to the top with the pillows.  "This is the best bed I've ever had."
274"I can be generous."  Jareth swagged to the bed, looking proud of his work.  He sat on the edge of one side, and laid back across it.  "This is pretty good work, if I do say so myself."
275"Good work, Jareth."
276"You should see mine."  He raised an eyebrow at her.
277"That would be inappropriate."  Sarah's face turned cold.  
278"Come now, Sarah.  It's an innocent offer.  I would do only what you ask of me."  She didn't doubt that fact.  Innocent offer or not, he made it sound much, much less so.
279"And you ask for so little in return, right?"  Sarah swung her legs over and off the bed.  "Dinner?"
280"Gladly!"  Sarah stood and walked towards the staircase, Jareth behind her.
281__________________
282Jareth knew he was coming on to strong, but he couldn't find out why he was coming on at all.  Sarah was still far too young, far too childish for his tastes.  How long had it been since her run of the labyrinth?  Over a decade?  Still, barely a child.  He was pushing 250 years old, and that was young for the Underground.
283Part of him wished to push her if only to show her the darker sides of the Underground before everyone else got to her.
284Instead, he followed her down into the office area.  "Wait, Sarah.  Would you like to learn how to bring something within your castle to you?"  
285She lit up slightly at the prospect.  "Could you teach me?"
286"I can.  Which would be preferred since I am not willing right now to go all to way down to the kitchen and back up.  Despite how i look, I am exceedingly tired.  I may have been too much of a braggart in this redecoration project."
287"Oh.  I told you I only needed blankets, Jareth.  I appreciate your work, don't get me wrong."  
288"Sarah, new rulers come so rarely.  When else would I get a chance to create so much?"  
289"Then, thank you for your hospitality."  Sarah crossed her arms in front of her.  "So, magic training?"
290Jareth walked over and sat on the couch he'd made.  "Let's get started.  This is an easier thing to do, so you don't need to have a catalyst for it." 
291"A catalyst?"  
292"Like the crystals."  He fished a crystal out of his jacket.  It was his last one he'd brought with him.  "All rulers create their own catalysts.  I prefer these crystals.  Have you met anyone else yet?"
293"Leona came by.  I don't think I saw her use anything, and she gave me this coffee table and this teaset."  She pointed to the black lacquered table and the silver tea tray with stark white dishes.  
294"I thought it might've been her.  She uses jewelry.  She wears enough that even if she uses one, you'll never notice."  He juggled the crystal for a moment and then slid it back into his jacket pocket.  "Anyways, you'll find your method over time.  They're Also useful for having a cache of energy.  You'll have times when you don't need to create a whole lot or use a bunch of it, and those are the times to store it for winter.  But, you still use energy even when you have a catalyst."  
295"Does winter even exist here?"
296"Only if you make it so.  But this is not the time to discuss building your kingdom.  For now, you're learning how to call something to you."  He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and clasped his hands together.  "Now, close your eyes."
297Sarah closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around herself.  Defensive.  "Okay."
298"Now, view in your head the three floors down where your kitchen lies.  Within that kitchen is the pantry at the far side.  In that pantry, is an icebox, and in that icebox is a tin with finger sandwiches.  Now, really see that tin and sandwiches.  Do you see it?"
299"Yes."
300"Now, visualize that tin and sandwiches as sitting on your desk."  
301With a pop and a slight thunk, the tin of sandwiches appeared on the desk.  Sarah opened her eyes wide.  "Whoa, I did it."
302Jareth smiled at her.  "That you did.  Now, open the tin to make sure the finger sandwiches are actually in it.  If you're not careful, you'll forget to include the contents of a container only move the container.  You don't have to think really hard about the contents, just as long as you know there's contents in it, really.  I don't really know the specifics of how it works.”
303Sarah walked to the desk with a smile on her face, and opened the tin.  She pulled out a small cucumber sandwich.  "Sandwiches!"  She placed it back in the tin and brought it over to the couch where he sat, and sat on the other end.  "I feel a little sleepy now, though.  Is that normal?
304"Yes.  You've also changed into your flamingo self a few times today, too, right?  And you're as new as you can be.  You're probably exhausted."  He pulled out one of the sandwiches and took a bite. 
305"Will it always be like this?"  She asked and took a bite of the cucumber sandwich.
306"You'll still get tired, but your stamina will grow.  The longer you're here, the less tired you get."  
307"How tired are you now?"
308"Very.  Thankfully, I'm only a short flight away and eating is a pretty quick way to regain some energy."  He popped another sandwich into his mouth.
309"It's getting dark, isn't it?  How” do you tell time here?"
310"Other than it getting dark?  We have clocks, even if we don't have actual electricity."
311"I'll have to find a clock eventually."  Sarah closed her eyes.  A moment later, she had two glasses, and another moment later, a carafe of water.  "Ta-da."
312She poured them each a glass and handed one to Jareth.  "Thank you."  He drank half and stood up.  "I should take my leave."  
313"Of course.  Thanks for the help, Jareth.  I appreciate it."  Jareth walked towards the window.  Sarah stood and walked behind him towards the window.  "Until next time?"
314"Anytime, Sarah.  You know where I am."  Within a moment, he was out the window and flying off.  
315Sarah watched him fly off.  "Now what?"
316_______________________
317Sarah woke up the next morning wondering where the hell she was at.  She also realized quickly that she had all of one set of clothing, which she had worn for the past two days.  She was due for a bath.  
318The bedroom floor had a chunk scooped out as a bathroom.  It currently had somewhat... basic furnishings.  It had a working toilet (though how it worked, Sarah would never know).  A fairly nice clawfoot tub with a showerhead, also surprisingly functioning.  It only had a basin with a dry pitcher of water, but that was easily changed.  
319She drew a bath and sunk into the water.  For how sparsely furnished the rest of the castle was, Sarah was surprised to see a selection with jars of soaps and salts for the bath.  It was a nice comfort.  She added some lavender crystals into the water and inhaled.  It felt nice.
320She still wanted to go home.  She lay back and closed her eyes, and drifted softly.
321"Hello, dear.  How are you doing on your second day?"  
322Sarah shot upright and covered her chest with her arms.  "Hello, Leona.  Sorry, I didn't hear you come in."
323"Oh, that's alright."  She was wearing a short gold sparkly dress with several thin gold chains falling down her torso, rings on each finger, airy shoulder duster earrings, and a gold circlet around her head.  And very tall red heels.  "I'm glad your bathroom wasn't as lacking as your office, I see.  How did you manage to score such a nice bed, too?  It looks like a caketopper."
324"Oh, that was Jareth."  
325"Has he already found his way into your bed?"  She tutted at the thought.  "He's too good at that, but really, he shouldn't be so cavalier with a protege."
326"Oh, no, no.  Nothing like that.  He just redid some of the furniture.  I had no food or kitchen tools."  
327"Ah, well.  Do watch out for his antics.  But he is decent, don't get me wrong."  She smiled.  "Oh dear, you need to finish bathing, don't you?  Have you got a towel?"
328Sarah looked around the room and shook her head.  "No, I don't.  Or any other clothing."  
329Leona's eyes widened.  "Well, we'll just have to change that, won't we?"  She snapped and a rack with a set of very fluffy towels grew up out of the floor.  "Finish bathing.  We can get you all set up with clothing.  Would you mind another person joining us?"
330"Um, who?  Also do you know which of these jars I should use for my hair?"  She gestured at the row of jars along the wall near the tub.  
331Leona considered the jars.  "Ah, the dark green one should be fine for your hair, the light blue one is good for cleaning everywhere else, and the pinkish one will soften your hair nice.  The cream colored one is lotion for when you're done bathing.  Also, that red striped one is for your mouth.  It's sort of like what is it -- toothpaste?  But you don't need one of those little scrubby sticks."  She scrunched her nose.  
332"Oh, thank you.  So who would be joining us?"
333"Oh, Alice.  She's a dear." 
334Sarah boggled at the idea.  She could meet Alice, the real Alice?  Well, why not?  "Sure, that should be fine."  She reached for the dark green jar and scooped out a bit of the soap to run through her hair.
335"Wonderful.  I will be back in a little while.  One of those towels is a rather nice robe, by the way, so don't worry about getting dressed."  She smiled and walked out of sight.
336Sarah finished lathering the soap through her hair, followed by the cream for her hair.  She let it sit while washing, and making a mental list of all the things she would need to get a hold of to keep up her routine.  Could she get a hair dryer?  Make up?  Razors?  
337Once finished, she dried off with one of the wonderfully fluffy, warm towels, spread the lotion over herself, and wrapped up the robe.  She felt too much like a spoiled princess, despite the still somewhat dingy surroundings.  
338Sarah didn't know when Leona would be showing back up with Alice, so felt it best to lay on the bed until they returned.  Why not?  It was a lovely bed.  Ridiculously plush.  She wondered what kind of bed Jareth had.  Not that she would want to be in it, but rather because she wanted to see what kind of thing he would make for himself.
339Would it be some weird red silk monstrosity?  Would it be filled with weird furs all over it?  She couldn't really think of anything not ultra over the top.  His hair might've toned down since her first time in the Underground, but he still wore tight pants and shiny jackets.  Though, granted, the tight pants were more in line with current styles and the jackets still looked great.
340Sarah cast the thoughts aside.  She didn't need to care about him.  She had her own things to worry about now.  Like building a Kingdom.  A Kingdom that wouldn't actually start for another two years.  She sighed and stared at the ceiling.  
341She still wished she could go home.
342"Sarah, dear, are you ready?"  She heard Leona call from the stairwell.
343She sat up.  "Yes, Leona."  She smiled and stood when she saw Leona come in.  Behind her was a much shorter woman, with very long blonde hair and a ruffled cream and brown floral skirt filled out with a petticoat.  She knew it was a petticoat because she could see the edges peaking out underneath, and it was full, very full and a pale blue color.  She wore a white and brown striped shirt on top with a high color, tied with a pale pink bow.  She wore tights and boots, and had a bow pulling back her hair.
344"Ah, you must be Sarah, yes?  I'm Alice."  She strode over and extended her hand.
345"It's nice to meet you, Alice.  Did you know there's a book written about you?  Wait, yes, of course you do. Sorry."  She shook her hand and blushed.
346Alice chuckled.  "Yes, that was written when I was child, after I'd run the labyrinth."  Sarah felt at ease with Alice's nature.  Leona was a motherly, somewhat overbearing personality, whereas Alice seemed quiet, but calming.  
347"So, shall we get started on getting you into some clothing?  What kind of things do you usually wear, Sarah?"  She picked up the dress Sarah had been wearing, which she'd only worn because she wanted the night with the lasagna to be special.  It was a colorblocked black and white sheath, and looked nice, but compared with the clothing she'd seen so far in the Underground, boring. 
348"Well, I work in an office, so generally office wear.  You know... skirts, button downs, slacks, that sort of thing?"
349"That seems dreadfully boring, Sarah.  Surely there's something you like better than that.  This dress is ok.  But not very interesting.  I hate to steer you into things, but here you can wear whatever you want.  Be daring, be dashing.  We'd tut at you more for being boring than for stepping out."
350"She's quite right about that.  Though I can't say much; I wear things like this most days, and other than the skirts being a good bit shorter than I would've worn when I lived Aboveground, they're a little similar.  But I do get a little ... wilder when we have balls and such."  Alice chuckled to herself at an unknown memory.
351Sarah thought about it.  "Well, I suppose I do like louder clothing.  When I was in college, I wore a lot of bright colored shorts and tank tops and ridiculous tennis shoes."  
352"We can do bright."  She snapped and an outfit appeared on the bed.  It had leggings with bright geometric shapes, and a long white sheer shirt, with a white undershirt.  She snapped again and colored bangles with a long strand of colored beaded appeared, as well as a pair of white boots.  "Accenting!  Instead of just a rainbow of colors, you see."
353Sarah was impressed with the choice.  "Ok, sure.  I'll wear that.  Um, I don't have undergarments, though." 
354"Ah, yes.  Hmm."  She picked up the bra I'd cast aside with the dress.  She snapped, and a similar one and a set of matching underwear fell onto the bed next to the outfit.  "Take all of that, put it on.  If something doesn't quite fit right, we can fix it.  Alice is quite good at that."
355Sarah took all of the pieces into her bathroom with her and changed.  
356The leggings and boots fit, but the shirt would need taking in.  Sarah stepped back out into the room, and Alice made short work of tailoring the shirt for her.  "There we go, Sarah.  How is that?"
357"Perfect.  Better than anything I had at home, that's for sure."  Sarah smoothed her hands of the front.  The sheer material was fitted through the torso, and flowed out from her waist to nearly her knees, muting the colorful material underneath.  She slid the bangles on and wrapped the long beaded cord around her neck thrice.  "How does it look?"
358"Smashing, dear."  Leona answered.  She beamed.  "So, what other clothes can we get you?"  
359"Well, I would like some shorts.  It's pretty warm here.  Colorful ones?  More underwear, good god, more underwear.  I think some more boots would be good, but these are beautiful and I'll probably wear them forever."
360"Don't worry, you'll soon have a ridiculous collection of boots."  Alice chuckled.  "Shorts would be good.  More leggings, definitely.  Short skirts, too, to go with the leggings."  She pulled a deck of playing cards out of her pocket.  She sat one on the bed and tapped three times, turning into two pairs of shorts one orange, one green; two riotously short skirts, one with diagonal striping of pink, blue, and yellow, and one with a sinuous pink and purple pattern; white leggings and polkadotted leggings.  She sat another next to it and brought in two silky shirts, one white, one black, both with large ties at the neck; as well as a loose silky white dress and a long, a regular, and a cropped tank.  "These should do you well for now."  
361"Wow."  Sarah gaped.
362Leona went to the bed and began pairing them up and adding other accessories.  A scarf, a shortsleeved bolero jacket, a long silky cardigan, a vest.  When she was done, Sarah had at least a weeks worth of clothing laid out.  "Don't worry, you'll soon come into your own style.  This place, if nothing else, gives us time to develop a certain.. creativity.  It's required, really."
363"She's right.  Plus, we can always change things. And we like having themed get-togethers, you know.  Costumes are kind of a past-time here."  Alice laid out another card and tapped.  It turned into a selection of sumptuous undergarmets.  "These should fit you a little better that what you have now."  
364"Thank you.  Thank you both.  This is exciting."  Sarah smiled.  "Would you like some food?  Jareth put some things in my kitchen, but I think I only have sandwiches ready."  
365Leona smiled.  "Oh, no need for that, dear.  Would you like to come visit my Kingdom?  You should get out some, see what else there is for you to see.  Jareth's castle and labyrinth are definitely suited to him, but we all have our own spaces."
366"Alright, sure."  
367"Besides, I really want Alice to see you in your flying form."
368Sarah walked backwards a couple paces from the bed, and brought her hands together at her stomach, and felt the quick transformation.  She gave a small squawk.  
369Alice tried to hold out for a couple seconds, but quickly dissolved into giggles.  "Westerly is an idiot.  But that's beautiful." She held her stomach.  "So beautiful.  I don't mean that sarcastically, Sarah, I swear, you really are beautiful." She tried hard to calm her laughter. "Oh but it's still gold.  We'll have to take you to Ana sometime." 
370"I know, my dear, she's going to love it."  Leona was similarly trying to calm herself.  
371Sarah popped back into her usual self.  "Well, I hope she does.  By this point, I'll be disappointed if she does anything other than declare her love for me and propose on the spot." 
372"Well, she may not want to marry you, but I'm sure she'll want to do something."  Leona gave a sly smile.  "You look lovely, dear.  We'll have to schedule a welcoming party for you soon.  You must, must be shown off."
373"I suppose it wouldn't be too bad to meet more people here."  I walked back over to the bed.  "Maybe by then I make my own clothing.”
374"Well, I'm not sure about that.  It really does take a while to get that down, but practice will make perfect."  Leona snapped and another two pairs of boots appeared.  One black, one brown.
375"That's true.  But, we can help.  As for the party, ball, or celebration -- whatever happens -- we will make sure you stand out, little one."  Alice folded her hands in front of her.  "Now, shall we go?"
376Quickly we were off, following Leona northwest towards her own kingdom with it's white peaks and banners.
377Rather than a large window like Sarah's tower had, Leona preferred an open rooftop entrance for those who flew to see her.  Leona's towers were stark white, with dark wooden accents.  The rooftop was dark wood, smooth and clean.  
378A staircase led underneath, into a wide circular room with a similar white and dark wood interior and black furniture, with golden statues, paintings, steel accents.  This was Leona's parlor room.
379Leona pulled a rope on the wall and gestured at one of the couches.  "Please, sit.  We'll have food delivered shortly."
380The three women sat on the plush couch.  Leona snapped and a teaset appeared on the low table in front of them.  She poured a cup and handed it to Sarah, and then one to Alice.  
381"So, Sarah, what happened to bring you back Underground?"  Alice asked, and took a sip of tea.
382"Oh, the usual I suppose.  I had a sudden breakup and drunkenly made a wish.  In hindsight, I suppose I should've known better than to do something like that."  Sarah brought the cup up to her face and inhaled.  Leona's tea was green and lemongrass with honey.  "Leona, this smells amazing."  
383"Thank you, dear.  And oddly, that's a common way to end up back here.  Jareth's story was similar.  I came after a benefactor chose to discontinue his arrangement with me.  I was a courtesan in those days, dear."  
384Sarah wondered what Jareth's story was.  "Did you enjoy it?"
385"Quite a lot.  But, that particular benefactor had been one I loved dearly, and that scared the pants off of him, I'm sure."  She took a sip of her own tea.  
386"Alice, what was your story like?"  Sarah asked.
387"Oh, goodness.  Well...it's not very pretty, I'm afraid."  She turned shy.
388"That's very true, dear.  But you've done very good work here, Alice."  Leona encouraged her.
389"If you don't feel comfortable telling me, that's fine."  Sarah felt guilty for asking such a personal question.  Of course most people's reasons for returning to the underground would be unhappy.  People rarely made wishes to wish someone or themselves away out of happiness.
390"Oh, no, you'll learn anyways."  She smiled.  "After my run of the labyrinth, I returned to my daily life, but I wasn't able to move past it so well.  I couldn't give up that something had happened, and no one believed me.  In the beginning, people humored me -- that's how Rev. Dodgson wrote his books, after all.  But as I got older, it became worrysome.  I suppose I was a bit obsessed with it.  It took over everything I did, I guess.  But I knew it was a real thing."
391She stopped to take another drink of her tea before continuing.  "By the time I hit my late teens, I had toned down somewhat, but I had no desire to be something I wasn't, and no desire to marry and become a wife and have children who might wish themselves away for the same reason I did.  The pressure to begin courting, to find a husband... well, it sort of broke me.
392"I ended up in an asylum at the hand of my parents.  They kept telling me that I was fixated on a dream, that I was obsessed with something that never happened.  But, that's the thing.  The Alice books show me as a small child.  I wasn't.  I was 9 at the time.  I was well old enough to remember whether something had happened, and more than sufficient to tell dream from reality, you know?  Then again, I guess the Underground is somewhat separate from reality.
393"Anyways, I had been in the asylum for three years when I finally had enough clarity to wish myself away.  I found myself here.  I had thought I might end up back in Wonderland, but even Wonderland would've been an improvement against that life.  
394"So, now I take the wishes of those who have had something happen, and no one believes them.  If they wish to return, they have to prove that they're ready to deal with not being believed.  I give them the option of staying with me, where they will be believed and the can live their life amongst others who will take them seriously."  She finished and drained the rest of her tea.  
395"I think Leona is right; it sounds like you do good work."  Alice looked sheepishly proud at Sarah's compliment.  "Leona, what's your rule?"
396"I'm afraid mine is less humanitarian.  When someone loses a large fortune, and wishes themselves away, I take them.  If they can win, it's because they've proved they can live well with their lot in life.  Of course, if they could've done that, would they have wished themselves away in the first place?  I have had a handful of people make it, but no one has returned to the Underground yet."
397"Interesting.  I'll need to find my own rule eventually, right?"
398"You will come into in your own time."  Leona assured her.  "New rulers have six months to decide upon it, and there's another three months to ensure the details and kinks are worked out with the state heads and the directors.  But, you will have assistance in creating it, don't worry.  Ah, here's our food now."
399Three women in flowing silky jumpsuits tight at the ankles, wrists, and waist came in bearing platters of food, and sat it upon a dining table.  On it sat bowls of fruit, cheese, bread, and other small dishes.  One of them also came with a couple of bottles of wine.  
400One of the women poured wine for all of them, and another set the table with bowls, plates, utensils, and napkins.  
401Leona stood, and Sarah and Alice followed her to sit at the table and eat.  They ate while Leona and Alice shared little stories about their kingdoms and labyrinths and things their people had done and do.  
402Leona's kingdom focused on people being happy with serving others.  Leona served her people, too, and by learning to serve, they were happier without their wealth.  
403Alice's kingdom gave people a place to feel secure and happy within who they were, and to feel validated with their memories.  She focused on giving people ways to express their anger or frustration with their experiences, including many artistic avenues.  Her kingdom served also as a sort of art hub for the other rulers; several of Leona's paintings were from Alice's denizens.
404When they were done with their meal, Sarah thanked them for their hospitality and help, but begged her leave.  She was tired and itched to read more in the book she'd left on the desk. 
405Leona gave her a hug and held Sarah's hands in front of her.  "Yes, dear, we absolutely understand.  You probably haven't had that much time alone since you've arrived.  Go, read, take a long bath, whatever it is to make yourself feel comfortable.  You're got a lot of work ahead of you, and you need to make sure you're ready."
406Sarah gave Alice a hug as well, and thanked her for the beautiful clothing.  "Of course.  It's the least we can do."  She pulled out a card and tapped it in her palm.  It turned into an intricate paper bird.  "Here, if you need anything from me, any questions or anything, just write it on a piece of paper and stick it in her beak.  She'll fly it to me.  Or the same for Leona.  Just tell her where you need her to go.  I may send you a message of my own, so if another one of these ladies shows up, you'll know who it's from."  She smiled at the bird, who was now perched on Sarah's shoulder.  "And don't worry, she shouldn't have any issues keeping up with you on the flight home."
407"Thank you, both, seriously.  I'll keep in touch easily now."  Sarah smiled and changed, and off she and the paper bird flew.
408
409Sarah spent the rest of the day reading from the So, You're a Queen! book, this time moving onto the fourth chapter, the Map of the Underground.  
410
411On the first page was a foldout map of the underground, showing the divisions between each state.  The states were hexagonal in shape, with quadrilateral divisions between regions.  Each state had five regions, and each region had a multitude of kingdoms within it.  
412
413Chapter Four.  The Map of the Underground
414The Underground consists of five states, Eastern, Southern, Western, Northern, and Central.  Delineations between the states are somewhat similar to geographic ideals found Aboveground.
415The Eastern State covers what are considered in Aboveground as East Asian and Southeast Asian denizens.  This includes Japan, the Korean peninsula, China, Indonesia, Pacific Islands, and others.  
416The Southern State covers the South and Central Americas, and includes Spain and Portugal in the mix for language reasons, as well.  These sometimes shift, however, into the Western State or back.
417The Western State covers the western countries.  This includes western and central Europe as well as southern Europe, and the British Isles, North America excluding Mexico, and Australia.  
418The Northern State includes Russia, Scandinavia, and all eastern european countries. However, the Northern State sometimes shifts kingdoms between themselves and the West State, and occasional the Central State.
419The Central State includes those areas considered the central of the world.  This includes all African countries, all Middle Eastern countries, and West Asian countries, including India and Pakistan.  
420Wishers/wishees from these regions generally go into the corresponding states, but at times, may be placed into other states, depending on culture and language, or on very rare occasions, necessitated by a very specific wish not covered in their state.  
421For more information about the specific state, we refer you to the Annotated Atlas of the Underground, found with the other books referenced in your drawer.  
422__________
423The fourth chapter was painfully short, but atleast it led to another recommendation.  Sarah pulled out the Annotated Atlas of the Underground from the drawer and paged through the maps for a moment.  She found the section for the Western State, and saw the separations between the 5 regions of the state.
424The Western state consisted of five states, each named after gemstones.  Amethyst, diamond, emerald, ruby, sapphire.  Sarah's own kingdom resided in the Ruby region, which sat at the southwest region of the state.  Diamond sat center, amethyst northeast, emerald northwest, and sapphire southeast.  
425Within the ruby region sat 53 kingdoms.  The region was divvied up further into 5 provinces, each with red plant names, like Coral, Rosewood, Currant, Poppy, and Amaranth.  Sarah's new home was within the Currant province, which had currently 9 different kingdoms.  
426It housed Sarah, Jareth, Leona, Ana, and Alice, as well as four others.  The four others were Lucas, Leah, Sasha, and Etienne.  Sarah decided she would look up the other four once she'd finished running through So, You're a Queen!'s last chapters.  
427Sarah skimmed through Chapter Five, which covered current state heads and a little information about the directors -- Westerly, Easterly, Southerly, Northerly, and Early.  Very little was said about them as people, merely that they were a sort of support staff for the underground.  
428Sarah wondered how true that was.  Did this thing really run like that?  How did it start?  One thing she hadn't yet seen in any chapter was a good description of why the Underground existed at all.  How old was it?  Did the five directors start it?  
429The sixth chapter began the magic instruction, but Sarah decided it would be best to take a break.  She could take a walk, or go visit someone, or take a nap, or take a bath.  A nap sounded like a very, very good idea. 
430She hadn't thought to ask for sleep clothing, but then again, why bother?  She hadn't been in the habit of wearing much clothing to sleep in the past, so she didn't feel a huge need to wear clothing now.  She stripped down and slipped into the bed.  It really was sumptuous. 
431She curled into the sheets and hugged one of the pillows, and quickly fell asleep.
432When she woke up, it was late afternoon judging by the shadows cast over the land and the reddening sky.  Sarah decided the best course of action would be to find some food first.  
433In her now stocked pantry, she found a selection of cheeses, fruit, and bread.  Rather than take it upstairs with her, she decided to bring them to her once she was back up and sitting.  Once she was back on her couch with Leona's gifted table in front her, she called the items to her, starting first with a platter.  After that, she called a glass of water to go with her meal.
434Using magic was still surprisingly draining.  But, if nothing else, being drained meant she could pass the time by sleeping.  She had enjoyed having company, but now that she was alone again, that pervasive loneliness set back in.
435She thought about Toby.  He wouldn't remember her.  As she ate, she thought about everything she would miss.  He was starting to be a young adult, going on dates, getting into trouble with friends.  He'd even admitted the last time they'd had a weekend together that he'd tried smoking pot.  The scamp.  
436At his age, she'd been kind of a nerd.  After the labyrinth, she fell in with a group of drama kids and went on those dates her stepmother had been wishing for her to go on.  And yes, she'd even smoked pot.  It wasn't her thing, though, but she'd smoked enough during college parties and such.  
437She told Toby to be careful with it, but Toby had the same reaction she did -- paranoia wasn't a fun time.  So, he promised to stick to the occasional beer.  
438Sarah wished the best for Toby.  She hated that she would miss seeing him turn into an adult.  She made it a priority to have some way to run into him once she could visit Aboveground.  He wouldn't remember her, but if nothing else, she'd be able to see him doing well for himself.  She knew he would be.
439Once she was finished eating, she tried doing the opposite of calling the dishes and remains to herself.  Instead, pictured them sitting on the large island in the kitchen, and when she opened her eyes back up, they were gone.
440Just to be sure, she took the stairs back down to find them sitting plainly on the countertop.  She beamed.  She took the stairs back up, grabbed the book A Brief Census of the Underground, and headed into the bathroom.  If nothing else, she could have something to read.  
441She drew a bath, choosing the same lavender as before, and also adding a dollop of the soap Leona had recommended.  She remembered seeing a long tray in the kitchen, and called it to her to use as a makeshift table over the top of the tub, as a place for her to place a book.  
442With that, she settled in and relaxed, looking at random at the different kingdoms.  Each kingdom had a brief description, generally something like "Mer Kingdom" or in Jareth's case, the "Goblin Kingdom," but some were more abstract, like the "Blue Kingdom," which was a Western State, Amethyst Region kingdom with those who wished themselves away from too much rainy weather.  
443She spent an hour or so paging through the book and it's short, succinct descriptions. 
444After that, she decided to finish her actual bathing, followed by a stint deciding what she wanting to wear the next day.  A dress?  Shorts?  More leggings?  Sarah couldn't decide, and felt it best to defer the decision until the morning.
445She walked down to the kitchen and grabbed a couple pieces of fruit to eat before bed.  Halfway up the stairs, she remembered she could've just magicked them to herself, but she was already tired enough.  She settled into the bed and fell asleep.
446_____________
447Sarah awoke the next day around the same time the sun came up.  She was still feeling antsy without having a clock, but at the same time, it was refreshing not having one.  No alarms.  No need to be somewhere at a set time.  No work, that's for sure.  
448Prior to finding herself back underground, Sarah had worked in an office as (architect? draftsman? engineer? accounting? customer service? marketing? buyer?), and while generally she liked her work, it was nice not having that weight on her shoulders.  At the same time, the idea that now she was gone, and that no one knew it, and that she wouldn't again have lunch with her team or her friends at work or her friends outside of work or her family or anything was mind bobbling.  
449It was beginning to settle in.  She wouldn't see them again.  They wouldn't see her again, but they wouldn't even know she was gone.  If nothing else, she had met people here, in the Underground who so far had been uncommonly generous.  
450If Leona and Alice were anything to judge by, her time here would be, overall, not lonely.  But here, now, in this room, she felt lonely.
451Did people marry here?  Did people want to stay married, given that they would be together for so long?  Were they able to have children?
452If they were, Sarah thought she would've heard about it.  Then again, Leona had only spoken briefly about people's trysts.  And Jareth had rudely told her that he had his own.  What would that mean for her?
453Dating hadn't been on her mind in years.  Did they date here?  Not that people could date, given that they had their own kingdoms.  Of course, the kingdoms had their own cities and populations, so perhaps some of them functioned more like the real work anyhow.  Was this not a real world?  The Underground was more than the rulers.  How many people lived in each kingdom?
454Well, if region had 50-ish kingdoms, that would be 250 per state, which would be 1250 rulers in all.  If each kingdom had a thousand people, that would mean over a million people lived in the Underground over all.  But, as the book had mentioned, people from the Kingdoms didn't go to the other Kingdoms.  Could the population marry and have children?
455It would certainly be a way to gain a population.  Sarah had more questions than she could handle, now.  With that, she got out of bed, and started her day.
456Rather than read more about the denizens of the Underground, she decided today was the day to start learning more practical magic.  In the sixth chapter, she found instructions for calling existing things to her, or existing things away.  The same instructions Jareth gave were listed, as well as some tips for ensuring you didn't end up with an empty container or the wrong item or sending things the wrong way.
457As well, it explained that items existing could only be moved within ones own Kingdom.   Things that already exist could not be moved to someone else's kingdom without having a means of shipping it, basically.  Thus, someone could create something that flew, and then send the item via flying, but not via instantaneous methods.
458The next chapter covered controlling things like heat or water or air movement.  Air movement used less energy than moving items, but water and fire required more.  The method involved as combination of meditative breathing and visualization similar to moving items.  
459Sarah tried this out sparingly via the tub and pushing out water, managing only a trickle.  She felt it best to not use fire unless she had someone with her, out of fear of catching everything she now owned on fire.  Air was an easiest one for, and felt the most comfortable alongside the meditative breathing.  
460Finally, she came to the chapter explaining catalysts and how to use them.  Bringing something new into being required catalysts, which were basically items imbued with a cache of energy, but allowed one to extract energy without as much waste as using it to control things.  
461The first thing she had to do was decide upon a type of item meaningful to her, one that she had a connection to.  This was a hard thing for Sarah.  She looked around the items she had near here.  Blankets, lace, wood, cups, utensils, pots of soap.  Nothing carried enough meaning for her. 
462She realized she might need advice from people who had been here longest, so she decided the best course of action would be sending notes to those she knew -- namely, Alice, Leona, and Jareth.
463The paper bird Alice had given her had spent much of its time perched nearish to Sarah, but somewhat skittishly distant.  She walked to it, reached out, and gave it a pet.
464"Hello, little one.  I should name you, shouldn't I?"  She peered at the colorful pastel paper used in its creation.  It had tiny flower patterns on each sheet, each in different hues.  "Blossom?  Nah.  Pastel?  Maybe.  Dusky?  Petal?  Hmm."  She gave it another pat.  
465The bird looked akin to a small falcon, with fairly long tail feathers.  "Flowy.  I like flowy.  You're Flowy, now."  Flowy gave an airy squawk.  
466Sarah opened the drawer at the desk, which she'd noticed earlier, contained a stack of plain paper and a pencil and a knife.  She used the knife to sharpen the pencil before pulling out a sheet to write the first note.
467Dear Leona,
468Thank you for all of your help with settling in.  You've made me feel so welcome here.
469Settling in is going well, and I've been working through some of the practical magic reading in this book.  So far, I think I'm doing alright.  
470However, I'm having trouble choosing a catalyst.  Could you tell me about your catalyst and how you chose it?
471Feel free to send a note back or visit -- whichever you prefer.  You're welcome whenever.
472Best wishes,
473Sarah
474She folded the note into a smaller square, wrote "Leona" on it, and set it to the side.  It felt a lot like being back in school and writing notes to her friends.  She wondered if she could remember the cool ways she used to fold them.  
475She drew another piece out to address to Alice.
476Dear Alice,
477Thank you for the lovely gift of this beautiful paper bird.  I've decided to call her Flowy.  I'm truly in awe of you creating something so lovely.  
478I have a question for you, though -- I'm having trouble choosing a catalyst.  Could you tell me about your playing cards and why you chose them?  
479You're absolutely welcome to visit whenever, or if you prefer, just send a note back.
480Best wishes,
481Sarah
482She couldn't actually remember a good paper fold for the note, so she folded it similarly to Leona's.  She addressed it and set it alongside the first note, before grabbing paper for Jareth's.
483
484Dear Jareth,
485Thank you for all of your help since I've arrived.  Alice gifted me Flowy, which is the name of the lovely paper creature delivering this note.  
486We talked a little last time about catalysts and how they work, but I'm having trouble choosing a catalyst for myself.  Could you tell me about your crystals and why you chose them?
487Please, feel free to send a note back or visit.  Either is fine.
488Best wishes,
489Sarah
490
491She folded and addressed the note, and gathered the three notes into a stack.
492"Okay, Flowy, I need these delivered.  I need this one," she held up Leona's note, "delivered to Leona."  She sat it down and held up Alice's, "This one needs to go to Alice." She set it to the side with the first note, and held up Jareth's last, "And this one needs to go to Jareth.  If you don't know who Jareth is, he lives in the castle due west of here."  Flowy gave a nod and an airy squawk.
493She put the stack back together and held it out to Flowy.  "So, how do I do this?  Should I tie them to your foot or something?"  Flowy tilted her head at Sarah and opened her beak wide enough to fit the notes in.  "Oh, in your mouth?"  She slid the notes to her mouth and Flowy took the notes entirely within her beak.  "Thank you."  Sarah smiled at her.  
494Flowy spread her wings and flew to the window sill and looked back at Sarah before flying off to the recipients. 
495A colorful paper bird was sitting on Jareth's desk when he got back from overseeing a very raucous game of dodgeball.  Dodgeball, for the past 50 years, had been the goblin kingdom's national pasttime.  Monthly, a large game was held, and Jareth's duty was to attend and commence the proceedings.  
496Admittedly, it was fun to watch.  Jareth preferred rugby himself, and when possible, would take trips Aboveground to see big rugby matches.  It was his secret.  Back in his closet, he had a rack with jerseys he would don before making the trip.  His Underground clothes would never have fit in during a match.  
497The bird, or falcon, really, saw him enter and flew to his shoulder.  "Hello, there.  You must be one of Alice's pets.  I don't think she's ever sent you before."  He had seen Alice's work before, both in events she'd held and in letters she'd sent via her creations.  The bird pushed a folded note out of its mouth and held it out.  
498The note had his name written on it.  He pulled the note from the beak.  The bird then flew from his shoulder to the windowsill.  Jareth opened up the note and read.  The bird's name was Flowy.  "Flowy, are you?  What kind of name is that, Sarah?"  Sarah needed help with choosing a catalyst.
499He wasn't surprised.  Choosing a catalyst was hard, and not everyone could tell what would be the most meaningful object at first glace.  Jareth hadn't.  
500Flowy stared at him and gave an almost inaudible squawk, sounding more like a whistle of air than a vocalization.  "Are you waiting for me to give you a note back?"  The bird bowed its head in confirmation.  "I'll just fly with you."  
501Jareth changed into his barn owl self, and set off with the paper bird.  He had to admit, the paper feathers were beautiful.  He wondered what he had to do to get one from Alice.  He wondered what Sarah had done to receive one from her.  
502Flowy, he tried in his head to call it such despite his dislike of the name, flew ahead of him, its long tail feathers trailing behind an impressive, colorful windspan.  
503When he arrived at Sarah's window behind Flowy, he saw she already had company.  Alice and Leona were already sitting with her.  
504Leona wore a maroon and white floral silk dress, with long sleeves and a high neckline.  She was surprisingly subdued today, with only a set of gold chain necklaces draped down her front and a set of rings on her hands.  She sat to one side of Sarah, with Alice on the other side.  Alice was dressed in a usual short victorian style, this time with a mint and brown colored dress, complete with ruffles and lace.  
505Sarah sat in between them.  The last time Jareth had seen her, she was wearing a crumpled black and white dress.  Now she wore bright green shorts with a silky white blouse, a rainbowy neckscarf, and blue and white polka dotted leggings, with a pair of white boots.  Her hair was pulled back high and twisted into a rope braid.  
506The women looked up as he and Flowy flew into the room.  Flowy came to a stop on Sarah's knee.  Jareth changed and stood in front of the low table set with tea.  "It looks like you're settling in well, Sarah."  
507"Oh, hello, Jareth.  It's been far too long, hasn't it?"  Leona smiled up at him.  It hadn't been more than a month since she'd last seen him.  "Let's get you a seat, shall we?"  Leona snapped, and another couch matching the first appeared behind where Jareth stood, knocking against the back of his legs.  He sat, and Leona came around to sit with him.  "Tea?"  She was already pouring and handing him a cup.
508"Yes, yes, and yes.  Thank you, Leona."  She nodded and topped up the other three cups, moving her own to the side she now sat on.
509"How are you, Goblin King?"  Alice greeted him.  
510"Quite well.  I take it you received a note from Sarah as well?"  
511"And happily so.  We arrived only a few minutes before you, I might add."  She offered up a plate with tiny cakes.  "Petit four?"
512"Gladly."  He took one of the offered cakes. It was a citrusy little confection with a tiny orange blossom.  "From your bakery, I presume?"
513"Yes, the girls who run it do wonderful work."  She beamed.
514"So, have I missed the catalyst stories?"  Jareth inquired.  He knew what Alice and Leona's catalysts were, but he'd never actually asked them why.  
515Sarah answered.  "Not yet; just tiny cakes and tea time.  I hope I'm not taking too much of your time, any of you."
516"Of course not, dear.  If you were, we would've sent back little notes, believe me.  But, I think all of us have fairly self-sufficient kingdoms now.  I've been running mine for nearly four hundred years.  Alice's is newer, but still, she'd had a century of experience.  Jareth, how long have you had yours now?"  Leona popped one of the tiny cakes in her mouth.  
517"A bit over two hundred.  And goblins aren't as difficult to rule as you would think."
518"Why do your people turn into goblins?"  Sarah asked.
519"It's written into the way the Kingdom functions.  My predecessor created it.  I could redo it, I suppose, but to be honest, I'm afraid of racial tension.  What would happen if I had two types of people?  Besides, being a goblin doesn't change who they are at their core.  It just changed the way they look."
520"Why aren't you a goblin?"  
521"Perks of being a ruler, I guess."  He picked up another petit fours.  "So, Sarah, where should we start with catalysts?"
522"Well, I suppose we could start with the person who's had a catalyst the longest.  So, Leona?  I mostly want to know why it was chosen, you know?"
523Leona rubbed at one of the rings on her hand.  "Well, that's easy enough.  In my life as a courtesan, I preferred my gifts to be in the form of jewelry.  It was a short jump to using jewelry as a catalyst.  Specifically, I use rings.  When I first came back Underground, I had these rings on my hands, you know?  So from there, I turned them into catalysts and made more rings.  That's kind of the secret.  You make a catalyst, and then you make more of the object with it, and turn those into catalysts.  Now I wear lots of rings, and I keep a pocket of spares just in case."  She held out her hands to view.  She had a ring on each finger.  
524"How hard was it to choose?"  Sarah asked.
525"For me?  Easy.  But I chose it also because I had it on my person at the time.  It seemed obvious."  Leona shrugged.  "What about you, Jareth?  I don't think you've ever talked much about those lovely balls of yours."  She winked.  
526"I suppose I don't talk about them, usually.  I just use them."
527"More like play with them."  Sarah accused.  
528"Can you blame me?  I think I make it look rather dashing, personally."  Jareth was trying hard to not give in to the innuendo.
529"Most people try not to play with their balls in mixed company."  Sarah didn't care for ignoring the innuendo.
530Alice failed to stifle a giggle.  "I'm sorry, really.  This is very juvenile of you all."  
531"It is, isn't it?  Thank you for being the voice of reason, Alice."  True to his nature, Jareth pulled out two of the balls and began to spin them in his hand.  "As for why I chose crystal balls, I collected marbles as a child, played marbles, you know?  One of the shops in the village near my parent's estate growing up was a glassmaker, who as a side thing, would create these beautiful glass marbles.  When I went back there as an adult, he was still there, still creating glassworks, glassblowing, lampwork.  
532"As a hobby, I had him teach me some things, including how to make glass spheres.  My first large work was just a crystal ball.  My first one came out all misshapen -- barely spherical, bubbles all through it.  By my tenth try, they were actually spheres, and by the twentieth, clear.  Not long after, I found myself back down here.  My predecessor had a crystal ball he let me use to make my first catalyst, and from there, I created more."  Jareth used one of the crystals to create another crystal, this one with rainbow striping twisting and turning through the center, constantly moving rather than suspended.  He handed it to Sarah.  "A gift.  It's a crystal, nothing more."
533She marveled at it.  "This is beautiful, Jareth.  Thank you.  I don't owe you my firstborn child for this, do I?"
534"Nothing owed.  Besides, children are something rulers can't have.  It's kind of a touchy subject for some people, so be careful with making jokes."  He cautioned.
535"Oh, thank you.  I was wondering about that earlier, so that's good to know.  Do people marry?  I know people fuck, since both you and Leona have mentioned it."  
536Leona chose to answer her, instead.  "Ah, there are a couple of cases of people being... monogamous?  With eachother?  But most of those last no more than 30 years or so, though I do know of a couple of cases going strong for centuries.  It just depends, of course.  But marriage?  Not really.  We still have kingdoms to run, you know?"  She smiled encouragingly at Sarah. 
537"I believe we're down to Alice now, right?"  Jareth tossed out as a welcome subject change.
538"Yes, I believe we are."  She pulled out a deck of playing cards.  "Not all of these are catalysts, mind you.  I only make the hearts catalysts.  As for why, well, it's a holdover from my time in Wonderland.  I fell in love with playing cards when I got back.  A deck of cards was one of the few niceties I was allowed during my asylum days, so it happened to be in my pocket when I found myself here again.  Just like Leona, I sort of fell into it."
539"It seems like all of you had big connections to your things.  I can't think of anything I have a big connection to like that."  Sarah looked disappointed.  
540"Did you have anything on you when you showed up?"  Jareth asked Sarah.  
541"Just a dress.  No pockets.  Just a pair of earrings, and boring ones at that.  No shoes, even.  I work in marketing.  I like running.  I hike on occasion. I read a lot.  I had a collection of teddy bears, and they still live in my parent's house.  Or used to.  My favorite food is strawberries."  Sarah sighed.  "Why is my life so boring?"
542"Well, nothing says you can't change your catalyst.  A catalyst is just a container.  The only reason why people prefer to pick one is because without knowing your catalyst pretty intimately, it doesn't hold power as well.  But, if you don't like one, you don't have to keep it."  Alice reassured her.  "Usually things that are fairly small, but with some substance are the most common."
543"She's right.  The item should be somewhat important to you, but sometimes it takes time to find the right thing.  How about we each give you some items to play with first?"  Leona offered.  She snapped, and on the table appeared a selection of jewelry for Sarah.  "Even if none of these are right, you can still wear it."  She smile slyly.
544"I think Leona has a good idea, here."  Alice drew a card and tapped, turning into a pile of keys, buttons, pens, and coins. "I'm afraid my things are mostly useless, unless you want to string them up into a necklace."  
545"Definitely a good idea."  Jareth spun a crystal on the table, becoming a pile of marble-sized gemstones, and a set of compact mirrors with gem inlays.  "you can string the gems up on those same necklaces, I'm sure."  
546"Thank you all.  Surely, there's something I can work with in here."  Sarah looked over the piles in front of her, perusing the jewelry first. "I wear jewelry, sure, but usually it's just small things.  Tennis bracelets, teardrop earrings.  I love these pieces, tough."  The pile had enameled brooches, large beaded bracelets and long necklaces, pieces with multicolored gems strew through them, even twisted strands of pears.  "I'm not sure I'll use any for a catalyst, but I will wear them."  She smiled.  
547Sarah looked over Alice's pile.  "I do like pens.  I had a small collection of fountain pens.  I would feel bad making them disappear, though.  Perhaps the buttons, though.  I like the buttons."  She smiled and picked up a few.  "Keys, maybe.  But I'm not sure yet."
548She continued onto Jareth's pile of gems.  "These are beautiful, but I'd feel like I'm copying you if I have something crystal-like."  She picked up one of the compacts and ran her hand along the inlay on the front, and found the clasp to open it.  "I love this.  It's really beautiful.  It's not so much about the mirrors though, as it is this inlay.  Maybe if I chose something with inlays?  This is another thing I'd feel bad for making disappear."  She considered it more.
549"How about we let you spend some time with the objects first, and then you can get to know them a little better.  Give them a try with being catalysts."  Alice suggested.  
550"I can do that."  Sarah agreed.
551"Well, I hate to run off, but I have some work I need to get back to, Sarah."  Alice stood to leave.  
552"Myself as well.  Do get some rest, dear.  You're probably exhausted."  Leona stood as well, and Sarah followed them to the window to see them off.  
553"I'll let you know if I find the right thing, or if I don't.  Thank you for the help, seriously."  
554"You're welcome.  I'm working on your welcoming party, but the way.  We're looking at around two weeks from now, but I'll let you know the specifics soon."  Leona turned to Alice. "I'll keep you up to date too, since I'll need your help."  She motioned to Jareth, who had stood to join them as well.  "You too, Goblin King."
555Alice and Leona changed, and flew back to their homes.  Jareth and Sarah watched as they flew off.  
556"Do you get how to do it?"  Jareth asked.  Sarah turned around to face him.
557"I think I can handle it, but I suppose seeing someone else do it can't hurt."  She strode back to the couch and sat.  She sifted through the piles, pulling out one of the larger buttons, a beaded bracelet, an amethyst, and one of the compacts.  
558Jareth watched her, and then came over to sit across from her.  He pulled out one of the crystals he had from his jacket, and spun it.  Sarah watched it become a stack of four crystals.  
559"You've already read a little bit about creating catalysts, correct?"  He set the four on the table, all in a straight line.  
560"A little bit.  It's the same kind of thing as with messing with fire and water and air, right?  Except, you're thinking about pushing what, like... essence?  Into the object?"  She tried to explain.
561"Very similar.  It's harder at first.  Did you have one of those -- fire, water, air -- that was easiest for you?  I think most people have one that's best for them."
562"Air is the easiest for me."  He hand up a hand and pushed a gust towards her.  "Of course, they're all fairly easy for me now.  You'll eventually learn to combine them a bit.  I'm fond of steam rooms, myself."
563"I'll have to remember that."  Sarah held up her own hands and worked through the breathing she'd been doing before.  She emitted a gentle breeze, though nothing like the gust Jareth had produced.  
564"So, you use a similar feeling as you would with air.  Instead of air, however, you switch the idea of it to pure energy.  Sort of... try to see it as energy moving through yourself, like your blood."  He picked up one of the crystals.  "It might help for you to try at the same time as me."  
565Sarah picked up the amethyst and held it between her hands.  Jareth closed his eyes.  Sarah followed suit and began the breathing she'd used for moving air.  
566She tried to visualize herself as having energy moving through it like veins carrying blood.  She saw it as pure gold.  moving through and around her body, down from the brain, through the spine, down her legs, back up, around her torso, through her arms, and down into her hands and out through her palms.  She could feel the amethyst in her hand, cold and sharp.  Gradually, the amethyst warmed.  
567"That's probably as much as you'll get this time."  Jareth startled her slightly.  His own crystal now glowed white.  The amethyst appeared to be slightly lit, but not near as brightly as the crystal.  "How did that feel with the stone?"
568"Good, I think.  I didn't like how it felt in my hands really, though."  She set the amethyst on the table.  "Next one?"
569"Sure."  Jareth picked up the next crystal in the line. Sarah picked up the large button and held it between her palms.  Jareth's eyes closed again, and Sarah shut her own.
570She went through the same visual, starting with veins and blood, switching to golden streams.  She tried to feel it, moving through her body, into her arms, down to her hands, out her palms.  The button felt insignificant against her palms, dull and slightly warm.  Sarah tried to sense a change in the button, but nothing came.
571"I don't think it worked."  She opened her eyes and peered at the button.  "I thought buttons could be pretty convenient if I had them attached to my clothing or something, but I just don't feel much with it."
572"Without at least somewhat of a connection to it, it's unlikely to do much for you.  Try the next one."  He sat down his own new catalyst, with a glow similar to the first.  He picked up the third one in the line.
573Sarah picked up the beaded bracelet and examined it.  It had catseye beads with brown twine tied around each bead, making a zigzagging pattern.  She felt the twine and the beads, a mixture of rough and smooth, warm, and slightly cool.  
574She closed her eyes and tried the visualization again.  She felt the beads and twine against her palm, and as she visualized pushing the golden energy out her palms, she could feel the beads warming and tickling her palms.  After a moment of it, she opened her eyes to see the bracelet.
575"Much brighter."  Jareth remarked.  The third crystal now glowed with the other two.  He picked up the fourth.  "You actually looked at this one first.  Taking a moment to really look will help you get more connected with it.  Try it with the compact as well."
576Sarah set the bracelet next to the amethyst.  She picked up the compact and ran her fingers along the top inlay again.  It had flat pieces of colored, speckled stone inlaid in a floral pattern on silver metal.  She pushed the button latch, and looked at the mirror laid within.  She looked at herself in the mirrors, her eyes, her cheeks, her brow, her nose, her chin.  She knew herself.  
577She kept the compact open and held it cupped in her hands.  She went through the same steps of visualization, this time pushing the energy through the inlay and bottom of the compact, up into the mirrors.  
578She opened up her eyes to see the compact out of the mirrors like a tiny lamp.  "So pretty.  I can't really use it as a mirror anymore, but it makes a lovely flashlight."  She closed the compact, shutting off the glow.  
579"Don't worry; the glow will fade a little.  How are you feeling now?"  Jareth knew creating four catalysts in a row would only exacerbate her tiredness into exhaustion territory.
580"Like I want to sleep for a full day."  Sarah set the compact next to the bracelet.  "I guess I'll try using them tomorrow. For now, though, I think I want to go to bed.  Can I kick you out?"
581Jareth picked up the four crystals and stowed them in his jacket.  "Of course.  If you want, I can show you more tomorrow about using catalysts."  He stood to leave.  
582"I'd like to say I can do it myself, but honestly, I think help would be good."  She stood and followed Jareth to the window.  "Thank you."  
583"Alright then.  I'll see you tomorrow.  Get rest, Sarah.  The days ahead will be tiring, I know, but you are remarkably accepting of your situation."
584"Well, what else can I do?  I guess I could hole myself up in my tower and block out the world, but that wouldn't do any good.  Plus I have a gigantic fucking open window.  Seriously, anyone can just walk in.  How would I stow myself away in the first place?  And I had no food."
585"I suppose the directors have done a good job of keeping new rulers away from alienation.  All new rulers are placed in a castle with a window facing towards the labyrinth they bested.  They get a book with some information and instructions and are left to their own devices.  It's hard to do without help, which is kind of the point."  He looked out the window at his own Kingdom.  "Anyway.  I would best take my leave.  Get rest."  He changed, flew up to the sill, and looked behind him.  
586Sarah waved, and off he flew.  
587"To bed, I guess."  She walked up stairs, undressed, and settled into bed.  As with all her days now, sleep came quickly.
588_____________
589 Out of respect for Sarah, Jareth waited until nearly midday to pay her a visit.  He had thought about coming earlier in the morning, but he supposed she wouldn't be particularly happy about him arriving with her still asleep.  
590So he went a round around the city, visited the current mayor, had breakfast, and read a little before heading out.  When he arrived, Sarah was sitting at her desk reading through A Brief Census of the Underground.  Today she wore striped pink and purple leggings and a gauzy white dress, with again, white boots.  Her hair was pulled to one side and braided, and she wore a necklace with strands of amethysts.  
591"Ah, engaging reading, isn't it?"  He interrupted her perusal.  Jareth wore black denim pants with a black and silver pinstriped button down, and stiff grey jacket with a high collar.  His boots came up to mid-calf and were matte rather than the shiny ones he usually preferred.  
592She looked up from the book.  "Hello, Jareth.  I wondered when you would be coming.  I was going to send a note if you weren't around by noon."  It was 11:43 according to her clock on the wall.
593"Are you ready to get started, then?"  
594"As ready as I can be, I suppose." She stood from the desk.  "Where should we do this?"
595Jareth look around the room.  "This room should be fine, but it would be helpful if we had a higher table.  So, let's have you start with that."  
596"Alright.  Which of the catalysts should I use first?"  She walked over to the low table by the couch and picked up the bracelet, the amethyst, and the compact.  "I don't think the button would do anything, but I might as well try."  She added the button to the pile.
597"Fair enough.  Go ahead and set them on your desk."  He walked over next to her desk.  "Let's start with the button, since it's the weakest of the four."  
598"Alright."
599"Now, most people have an action they use with the catalyst.  I spin mine, Leona snaps, Alice taps her cards, Benjamin rubs his between his hands, the list goes on.  Some people throw them, toss them in the air, whatever.  It doesn't really matter what you do -- the act is just to help with visualizing.  For some people, like Alice, the catalyst becomes the object."  
600Jareth pulled of the crystals from his jacket.  "For me, it depends.  If I'm putting something on a surface, like a table, I spin them where they will go.  If it's a larger object or an object that's... well, less corporeal, I spin it and let it float to where I need it."
601Sarah held the button cupped in her hand.  "How should I use a button?  If I'm trying to make a table, I might as well throw it where I need it to go."
602"Sounds like a good idea."
603"So, how do I create something?"  She walked out to the center of the room with the button in her hand. 
604"Well, it starts with visualizing it, same as you would move something that already exists.  The difference is that you need to have a very, very good idea of how it's put together.  This gets easier the more you do it, but in the beginning, it's quite difficult.  Remember, though -- most of us have had centuries of work."
605"Okay.  So imagine a table?"
606"Not just that; imagine the shape of the legs, how they attach to the tabletop, the apron supporting the legs and the top, maybe a trestle running the length of it."
607"An apron?  What is a trestle?"  She's never heard the terms before, or at least in describing a table.
608Jareth walked to the low table, and pointed at the wood on the underside.  "Alright, do you see how there's a bar of wood in between the legs, attached to the underside of this table?  That's an apron.  It helps support the legs at the top."  He walked back to the desk.  "Do you have a sheet of paper?"
609She pulled out a sheet and handed it to him.  He pulled a pen from his jacket and sketched out a front view and a side view of a table.  "So, a trestle starts with a bar connecting the legs that are closest to each other.  The other bar connects these two bars together, in an I-shape."
610"Ohh, that's what it is."  She nodded.  "Okay, I think I get it now."
611"Good.  So, close your eyes and really try to see the table, what it's made of, how it's connected.  The screws or nails holding it together.  I wouldn't worry about detail for now.  Just make the legs straight for now.  Think about the thickness of the tabletop and how wide the legs are in relation to it.  How far down the apron extends, and where the trestle begins and its thickness.  When you have that fully in your mind, throw the button."
612She took a moment with her eyes closed before throwing the button.
613Where it landed now stood a very spindly table with a sagging paper tabletop.  As they both looked at it, the paper sagged, and the spindly legs fell towards the center.  
614"Well, that didn't work."  Sarah sighed.
615"It's not surprising.  Even with a good picture of it, if the catalyst isn't up to par, the object won't hold together."  Jareth blew the pile of sticks and paper over to the far corner by the starcase.  
616Sarah picked up the bracelet next.  "Same thing?  I think I'll try rubbing this in my hands or something.  Is there any difference if the catalyst isn't put where the object is supposed to be?"
617"No, there's not.  Benjamin keeps his in his hands, and his method is to imagine the catalyst turning into dust and the dust becoming the object."
618"Okay, I'll try that."  She repeated the process, closing her eyes for a moment and rubbing the catalyst in her palms.  
619Where the first attempt had been, a new table appeared.  This one was still thin and a little spindly, but made of a much more ridgid material, and didn't fall over.
620"Okay, well that's better."  Sarah walked to the table and pushed on it.  The legs were wobbly and not attached well, but it held together.  "Maybe I'm not imagining the wood thick enough?  And it doesn't look like I had the screws tightened enough."
621"It's a trial and error process.  Plus, you've never built furniture before.  I have some woodworking books and magazines I can lend you that may help with it.  The difficulty with creating a labyrinth and all of this is that you need to know a bit about what it is you’re creating, too.  Of course, we still have it easier than trying to make it Aboveground, since it's fairly instantaneous.”
622"Thanks.  So, what should we do with this table?"  
623"Well, it's not going to hold up a whole lot, so you probably want to try make another one.  Do you want me to put it in the pile with the other one?"
624"Sure."  Sarah walked to the desk and picked up the amethyst.  "Now, how to use the gem?"  She studied it for a minute.  "I could throw it, but that's not very elegant.  I could just do the same as I did with the bracelet."
625"Your choice."  
626"Okay."  Sarah repeated the motions again.  After a moment, a much more robust table appeared.  This one had thick, almost too much so, legs, with a thick straight tabletop and matching robust trestle running the length of it.  "Well, that's better."
627She walked over and pushed on the table.  Nothing moved.  "It's sturdy, but it's not particularly pretty."
628"For now, it doesn't need to be."  Jareth walked over and felt the table.  "Pretty rough, though."  
629Before either could say anything more, a new paper bird flew into the room.  This one looked like a phoenix -- all red and yellow and orange paper.  Shiny, with long tailfeathers.  It flew over to the table and perched on it, facing Sarah.  It held up a claw with a letter in it.  
630"Oh, hello."  She accepted the letter, and gave the phoenix a scratch on it's neck.  It gave an airy purr.  "Ah, it's from Alice.  She wants to know how I'm doing today and if I've recovered from yesterday."  
631She walked over to the desk and wrote out a note quickly.  "I'm letting her know I'm, fine and that I'm working with you on some things, and offering her to come over as well."
632"It would be good for you to get advice from more than just me."
633"I thought so too.  Do you see Alice and Leona often?"  She asked.  She handed the note out to the phoenix, who took it in his claw, and flew to the window and out.  She gave it a wave.  
634"Decently often.  Leona enjoys holding events.  She think I don't get out of my castle often enough.  Alice is a little quieter, but she spends a good deal of time with Leona and Ana."  
635"I've only met you three so far."
636"Oh, don't worry, Leona will make sure you meet more people at your party.  And, don't worry, you'll get to know others soon enough.  If a new ruler is out of their province, most people leave them alone for at least the first year, anyhow.  New rulers are generally quite busy."  He reassured her.
637"I suppose I have more than enough time to meet people now.  No need to rush it.  I'm glad to be busy.  I haven't had much time to think about other stuff.  Like how Quentin is doing, or Toby, or my parents, or my friends.  Or atleast, I try not to."  She looked listless now.
638"You will have days where that gets harder, but it's ok to have them.  As for your former lover, fear not -- you will meet others here.  It's the national pasttime of Underground rulers."  
639She looked at him sharply.  "Have you slept with Alice and Leona?"
640"Leona and I have had our dalliances in the past, but it's been at least a century since we've stepped into that territory.  Alice, once, a few years after she arrived.  Don't give me that look, Sarah.  I've been here for over two hundred years."
641"I get that; I'm not a virgin.  But why shit where you eat?"  She spat.  
642"There's no need to be so vulgar."  He smirked.  "And I don't usually 'shit where I eat' as you say.  I generally spend my nights with those who are outside of Currant, or if possible, outside the state."  
643"Who are you seeing now?"
644"No one, Sarah, but I don't see why that concerns you."  She blushed and turned.  "What, are you still under the assumption that I had feelings for you when you were a child?"
645She spun back around.  "What the hell, Jareth?  I'm not trying to play as a jealous crush, here.  Sorry for not understanding how you people whore around.  I thought you were a creep when I met you, and whether or not it was real didn't make think you were any less of a creep."  She seethed.  "The past few days you've done a lot to help me and I appreciate it, and yeah, I don't think you're a creep anymore, but that doesn't mean I want to hear you talk how you've slept with your fucking neighbors."
646"Fine, we won't speak about it again.  But Sarah -- remember, you brought it up."  
647She relaxed.  "Whatever, let's just move on.  Get back to work, whatever."
648"Fine.  First let's have you make a couple more catalysts, rather than use up the last one."  
649Sarah sat on the couch and created another five catalysts using the amethysts and compacts.  When she was done, she reclined back on the couch.  "I just want to take a nap."  
650A white goose came through the window, and quickly turned into Alice.  Today she wore a large floppy hat, white and red gingham chicked ruched, sundress, and black boots.  "Hello, Sarah, hello, Jareth.  Are you alright, Sarah?  You look like you're about to fall asleep."
651"She just made five catalysts.  And she could probably use some food."  
652"Oh, well, I can fix that right up."  She smiled and pulled out her deck of cards from a pocket on her dress.  She pulled out a card, squatted down, and set it on the ground.  She tapped it and it turned into a huge green, grassy rug.  She moved to sit cross-legged on the rug, pulled out another card, and tapped.  It became a large wicker picnic basket.  "Come, come."  She beckoned.
653"Ohh, a picnic?"  Sarah stood up and came quickly over to Alice and sat on the other side of the picnic basket.
654"I suppose I could go for that."  Jareth strode over and sat on the rug with them.  "What do you have in there?”
655Alice opened the basket and pulled out a stack of dishes.  She handed one each to Jareth and Sarah, and laid one near herself.  She pulled out utensils -- forks, spoons, large serving spoons, and set them next to her plate.  Next she pulled out dishes of potato salad, watermelon, and deviled eggs with clear wrap covering the top. .  She then pulled out a tray of sandwiches, each cut into triangles.
656She removed the wrap from all the dishes and sandwiches and set them out.  She placed serving spoons into the three dishes.  "We don't have anything to drink, though.  Could you do the honors, Jareth?"  
657"Gladly.  I'm thinking beer today.  What kind do you two prefer?  I like all the pale ales these microbreweries have these days."
658"Ohh.  Lagunitas IPA, all the way."  Sarah suggested.  Jareth spun a crystal, and called forth a sixpack.  "How does that work?  Have you even had it before?"
659"Yes, and I know where I got -- if you know where it's from, it's easy to call Aboveground things."
660"Huh.  I'll have to remember that."
661They sat and ate the picnic lunch, spending time talking about Sarah's attempts at creating catalysts and her attempts at using them.  She pointed to the new, sturdy table, and the pile of broken tables in the corner.  Alice gave suggestions on visualizing items, and also suggested reading books on the subject more.
662 Jareth and Alice shared things they'd read and learned over the year, and even things they'd tried creating with their hands rather than via magic.  Both agreed that spending time doing things by hand helped with creating them, as you were able to understand what something felt like or went together much easier than just reading.  But, you didn't need to become a master of it.  
663Alice said this included basic sewing, basic gardening, woodworking, etc.  She even reassured her that if she wanted, she would be able to create architectural works as well, and suggested adding some architecture reading to her growing list.  
664They ate their sandwiches and eggs and potato salad, nibbled on crisp watermelon, and drank their fill of the beer.  It was a lovely, fairly normal feeling afternoon for Sarah.  It was some normalcy to find in her new found studies.  
665After lunch, Alice packed the picnic basket back up.  "Sarah, do you want the picnic basket?  I have one at home already."
666"Sure, thank you.  Can I keep the rug, too?  It's so cozy."  
667Alice beamed.  "Of course."  
668Sarah took the picnic basket and set it on her desk for now.  "I'll move it later.  Plus, we still have some food in case we get snacky.  And three beers left, one for each of us."
669"How are you feeling now, Sarah?  Still want to take a nap, or are you ready to start?"  Jareth asked.
670"I'm ready to go.  I guess I just needed to eat."  Sarah picked up the catalysts from the low table and moved them to the high table.  "Shall we?"
671Over the next couple of hours, Alice, Jareth, and Sarah worked on creating more objects.  A bookshelf, a long set of gauzy curtains for the long window and the rod to hold them up, a plain but warm throw, and she also got instruction on how to use a catalyst to clean a room.  Once the walls were clean, she used the last catalyst to paint the walls a creamy white.  
672Alice and Jareth added their own additions.  Both added books to the book shelf.  Jareth added panes of glass to the window and a door leading to the balcony.  Alice added some paintings from her kingdom to the walls.  
673By the end of it, Sarah was exhausted.  Even though most of the energy used came from the catalysts, it still required a decent amount of current energy to be used.  It was now hitting late afternoon, and Sarah wanted only to read and sleep.
674"I hate to kick you two out.  You've helped immensely today; seriously, thank you.  But, I just want to take a bath and sleep."
675Alice grabbed her hands.  "Oh, Sarah, there's no hard feelings.  I need to get some work done at home anyhow.  I'm afraid I won't be able to visit you tomorrow, but I promise I'll see you soon."  She pulled Sarah into a hug.  "Get some rest, Sarah."  
676"Same, Sarah.  Get some rest.  Rest tomorrow, even."  
677The two went out the open door to the balcony, and quickly flew off.
678Sarah took a moment to magic the picnic basket down into the icebox.  She walked to the bookshelf, chose a novel Alice had left on her bookshelf, and headed upstairs and to the bathroom for a relaxing bath.  Then, to bed.
679__________
680The next day, Sarah woke up, got dressed, and ate some of the leftovers from Alice's picnic basket.  Today, she decided, she would work on cleaning up the rooms.  She sat at the low table, and created another five catalysts before heading up stairs to use one to clean the bedroom and bathroom.  
681She went a floor down to the ballroom-esque room.  She decide that it would no longer be a ballroom, and she would figure out a better use for it.  Maybe guest rooms.  She cleaned out everything from the room.  This floor had similar windows as the floor above, but with openings on both sides rather than just one.  She could see out east of her kingdom, seeing a neighbor with glassy spires sticking up out of the ground.  
682Once the walls, ceiling, and floor were clean, she practiced using fire by throwing things out the window and shooting fire at them.  She didn't hit them very well, but it didn't matter too much.  The room was empty and barren, now, but that made it more useful in her opinion.
683This room also had a balcony, with a staircase leading down to the room below.  The balcony was more of a patio -- fairly wide and vast, with wrought iron railings.  She decided not to make this floor into guest rooms.  With this patio and floor, it should be used for entertaining, though probably not for a ballroom.  She had higher hopes for the floor below the kitchen.  
684She went another floor down to the makeshift dining hall.  Right now, the dining table was a more rickety affair than the high table she had upstairs, and currently had only two chairs, both of which had ripped caning on the seats.
685She magicked them both upstairs to the now empty floor, and used anther catalyst to clean this room.  The wood floors now gleamed, and the walls and ceiling were presentable.  The ceilings throughout the building had the same decoration as her office -- all with wooden beams laced across, with long, steel lighting hanging down from the center.  She would keep those.  
686This room had windows spaced all around the walls, tall and slit like.  These were also now gleaming and shiny.  A door out to a balcony sat on the west side, and led out onto a large patio with enough space to entertain here, as well. The patio had a staircase leading down to the floor below, and another leading up to the patio above.  
687Another floor down was the kitchen, which was mostly clean, save for some grime still left on the walls and windows.  She used another of the catalysts to rid the room of all its dirt, and also to paint the walls a lovely mint green.  
688The kitchen had a set of double doors leading out onto another patio, just a smidge larger than the two above it.  Sarah realized she basically had an entire other tower just in these patios.  She thought gleefully about the parties she'd be able to host, with guests milling out the patios and rooms.  She could keep the kitchen as the middle floor -- workers could disperse food easily from the middle, and guests could filter up or down.  
689The next floor down was currently empty and grimy.  She set another catalyst to cleaning it up, revealing beautiful floral wallpaper and dark wood floors.  The windows were just like the upstairs formerly ballroom floor.  She realized that this floor should definitely be the new ballroom.  It was huge, spacious, beautiful.  More like a gymnasium than a floor.  
690The windows had another gap in them for a patio on the west side of the tower, this one even bigger than the last, but this one opened up into a vast staircase on one side, now currently becoming overgrown with vines.  At the bottom of the staircase, it opened up into the ground floor entry way, which she knew as well was overgrown.  
691She would need more than the catalysts she had to clean up this.  She was down to the last catalyst she had made.  She used it to clean the ground of this patio, but she knew she'd need to repeat the process for each of the balcony; they were all covered in a grimy patina.  
692She made the walk back up via the patios, and into the floor below her office.  She went up the usual staircase there, and up into her office.  It was now getting into mid-afternoon, and realized she should probably eat.  She pulled the food from the picnic basket from the kitchen to her desk, and ate.
693She just wanted to sleep now, but it seemed like such a waste of a day.  She thought about what she could do.  She could drop a note to Leona or Alice or Jareth, but they were busy doing their own work.  She could take a bath.  She could read a book.  She could stare out the window.  She could sit here at this desk and put her head on it and be despondent.  
694She settled for heading back upstairs to read the book she'd pulled off the shelf the night before, and settled into bed to read and nap.  She got through a couple of hours of reading before passing out for a long night of sleep, rather than the nap she had intended.
695__________
696The next morning, she woke up, took a bath, dressed, and headed down to her study.  Someone was already sitting on her couch, reading a book.  
697She stepped back.  "Uh, hello?"
698The person looked up from the book they were perusing.  "Oh, hello, Sarah!  I thought I'd busy myself until you finished getting ready." 
699"Alright.  I'm sorry, but who are you?"
700The person was a man, albeit kind of feminine.  He had dark hair, short on the sides and brought into a quiff on top.  He looked like a One Direction member.  "I'm Early.  One of the directors?  I'm just here to see how you've been settled in with your first week Underground."  
701"Oh.  Well, it's nice to meet you.  I would say I'm settling in alright.  I have some neighbors who have helped me learn some stuff, so that's good."
702"Wonderful!  It's so much easier when our new rulers have help.  I suppose one of those would be your mentor, Jareth, correct?"  He closed the book and sent it back to the shelf with a wave.  
703"Yes, Jareth has been helpful."
704"Well, good, good!  Alright, Sarah.  I'm going to put a little mailbox in here.  Should you have any questions for us, feel free to drop a line.  Just place the note in the mailbox, and we'll get it immediately.  We'll either send a note back -- this will drop down in front of you, no need to check the mail, you see -- or we'll dispatch one of us out to help you!"  He waved his hand again, and a box on a post appeared next to the Sarah's desk.  It looked like a very nice mailbox, with decorative iron and polished wood.  
705"Okay, thank you."
706"Well, it's been nice meeting you!  Each of us will check in with you regularly until you're all set up.  You'll get more information about that later.  For now, this is just so we know you're not starving in your castle, alone, with no hope of knowing where you are.  Thankfully, you're doing very well!"  He stood and walked closer to where Sarah stood.  "Well, goodbye Sarah!"  He waved and faded away.
707"That was weird."  Sarah said to nothing.  She thought for a moment, sat at her desk, and then pulled a piece of paper and a pencil out of the drawer.
708Dear Early,
709Thank you for the visit.  It was lovely to meet you!
710I have a question: could you send me back a note just to let me know the mailbox works, and so that I know what it looks like when I get a note from one of you?
711Thanks, and best wishes,
712Sarah
713She walked to the mailbox, opened the front, slid the note in, and closed it up.  She opened it again, and the note was gone.
714Sarah wasn't sure how long it would take to work, so she sat back down at the desk and waited.  She pulled out more paper and made a list of things she'd like to get done.
715Within a few minutes, she heard a pop and a letter plopped down on the table in front of her.  The envelope had gold trim and script writing, and was addressed to Sarah, Currant Province, Ruby Region, Western State and sealed with a wax stamp.  
716She popped the wax stamp and opened the envelope, pulling out a creamy linen paper with gold details.  She quickly read the note.
717Dearest Sarah,
718Of course!  I'm also sending you a couple of books that I think you'll enjoy.  Check your mailbox.
719Warm regards,
720Early
721It was written with the same flowing script handwriting.  She heard a thump from the mailbox.  
722She left the letter on the table while she strode to the mailbox.  Within the box, she found three thick tomes, deep deep red with gold lettering entitled The Great Myths of the Underground, vol I, II, and III.  They were beautiful.  The pages included full color illustrations.  She paged through the first, which included myths of how early rulers came to the Underground and how they influenced the Aboveground with their myths.  
723It went back very, very far.
724Sarah went back to her list of things to do that day.  So far she had:
725Make more catalysts
726Finish cleaning the patios
727Clear some vines from the steps
728Try cooking via magic
729She added sending notes to Jareth, Leona, and Alice to the list, as well as reading more in the new books from Early.
730She first sent the notes to the three.  To Leona, she asked how she was and how the party planning was going.  To Alice, she thanked her for the books, especially one on clothes making.  She asked how she was and about how she learned to make animals out of folded paper.  To Jareth, she told about Early's visit and thanked him for the woodworking books.  She asked if he knew a good way to cook via magic.
731Sarah went on with the day, creating another six catalysts -- one of which was used to create another pile of gems and compacts.  She spent the rest of her morning cleaning up the patios and clearing debris from them via fire and air.  
732While she was cleaning, she received back notes from all three.  Leona let her know the party had been moved up and would be a week from that day, and would be hosted in her kingdom.  Leona asked how Sarah was doing with learning, and asked if she needed any help.  Alice said she learned it from an old lover and that she would tell more about it the next time they were together, and asked if she wanted any more books.  Jareth's note asked if she needed any more books, and offered assistance on making food via magic.
733Sarah went back upstairs once the patios were done, now with only two catalysts left.  She decided to pay Jareth a visit rather than having him come to her castle.
734He wasn't in his office, so she flew around the castle a little, finding him in the chamber with some of the goblins.  She gave a squawk, startling some of them.
735"Ahh!"  "Beejeesus!"  "Wahh!"  They cried.  Some of them hid under things, some hid their eyes, and a couple just stared.  
736"Hello, Sarah!"  Jareth stood from the study wood chair he was occupying, and walked to her.  He patted Sarah's head, and in return, Sarah moved to bite his hand.  "Whoa, now."  He jerked his hand out of the path of destruction.
737Sarah changed.  "Hello, sorry.  Instinct as a flamingo, apparently."  
738"Of course.  Food?  I could show you my kitchen, but it's mostly staff that uses it.  Upstairs, then?"
739"Sure."  
740Together they went up to his office, and Jareth showed her some of the tricks to ensuring whatever food you called into being was the right food.  All in all, it was similar to creating objects, but also required knowing more about how something tasted first. 
741Jareth suggested that she use her ability to go Aboveground at times to try new foods -- it was a good way to know the taste of what you want.  Plus, creating currency to be used Aboveground was easy.  
742They talked a bit about Sarah's goals with clearing the vines from the staircase and the entryway.  Together, they flew back to her castle and the entryway.  Jareth showed her how to light the vines on fire and control them so as not to start a forest fire (though, thankfully, fires didn't cross kingdom borders).  By late afternoon, they had cleared the vines out of the entryway and off the steps, and had gotten a start on the vines crawling up the side of the tower.  
743Jareth also used his own magic to teleport the two of them back to her office.  He explained that teleporting yourself was a lot like teleporting an object from somewhere else in the kingdom.  
744"It takes some work, but soon, you'll be able to do it, too.  It requires a bit more energy than other things, but it's less physical energy than walking, I assure you.  Though walking can be nice, too." 
745"Huh.  I'd try it myself, but I am absolutely beat right now."  It was only 7pm according to the clock, but Sarah wanted nothing more than to slip into bed.
746"Thus is the curse of a new ruler.  It'll get better.  The first year you'll sleep almost as long as you'll be awake."  He reminisced.  "Anyways.  Get some sleep, Sarah.  Let me know if you need any help tomorrow."
747He left, and Sarah headed back up to her room with one of the novels Alice sent.  Quickly, again, she was asleep.
748The next day, Sarah cleared all of the vines crawling up the tower, using Jareth's techniques to keep everything from burning.
749She also cleared out a good swath of land in front of the staircase leading to the entryway and patios.  She cleared enough that she could place a small pond and garden out front.
750She used one of her catalysts to put in a long, oval pond.  She wondered about creating plants in her kingdom, and decided to ask Leona.  
751Sarah decided to try teleporting via Jareth's instructions, and within a few moments, found herself exactly where she needed to be.  She scrawled out her question on a note and sent it to Leona.
752In the meantime, she made a lunch for herself -- two grilled cheese sandwiches and a big bowl of tomato soup.  It was nice having something comforting for herself, and she could see how she could make it better the next time.  She dipped the triangles of grilled cheese into soup and chomped them down.  It was delicious.
753Soon after, Flowy returned with a note and a packet from Leona.
754Sarah,
755Plants are a very interesting part of the Underground!  We can even create new plants, but it's helpful to start from somewhere, of course.  
756These are some seeds you may enjoy.  They grow hedges.  Not just any hedges -- these reshape themselves to whatever you want, via non-catalyst magic.  It's like creating fire or air; you just think about it!  
757I have some lovely tall men hedges in my garden.  They're really quite lovely.  I like to change their poses.
758I'll have to visit some time and see how they turn out -- they take a couple of weeks to reach full size, but you'll have some small sculptures within a few days.  Just scatter them where you need and water liberally.  This pack should go quite far, but if you need more, just let me know.
759Best wishes, darling,
760Leona
761Sarah went back out to the area she would be gardening, and scattered them around the pond.  She watered them in what she could assume was a liberal fashion, and wondered if the pond would help as well.
762She teleported herself back to the office, and decided to spend the rest of the day reading and bathing and sleeping.
763__________
764For the next two days, Sarah cleared out two more floors.  The lower floors were much  much larger than the upper, and she hadn't even started on the lowest two floors.  The base of the tower was huge.   
765She was able to get most of the two floors, albeit she couldn't finish the debris cleanup.  Sarah spent half of the days cleaning, half of them resting and reading.
766The day after, Leona and Alice paid her a visit to talk about the party planning.
767"Oh, dear, I believe you will love it.  You must come visit and see it."  Leona implored.
768"You must, Sarah, really.  If you don't love it, we need to know!"  Alice assured.  "If it's not what you want, we want to make it precisely what you want."
769"Alright, alright, I'll visit."  Sarah smiled at the two and their excitement.  She knew she would love it, if only for the fact that they were so excited for it.  Nothing spurred on enjoyment as much as seeing someone else happy for her.
770Together, they flew to Leona's castle and onto a large patio.  "This is the garden entrance to the ballroom."  Leona pointed out her man-shrubs.  "Aren't they beautiful?"  They were a good 30feet tall, and admitted, beautiful.
771"Whoa.  Yeah, they are.  They're like green marble, Leona.  It's beautiful!"  Sarah had no need to be coy about it.
772Leona also had some large trellises with vines and flowers flowing over and down, and ribbons around posts and large tufted circular seating areas -- some above, some recessed into the ground, and tables everywhere.  "Leona, this place is gorgeous.  Like, stunning.  I'm amazed, truly."
773"Oh dear, this isn't even the best part!  Come, come inside."  Sarah followed Leona and Alice through the large glass double doors to the inside.
774Inside was incredible.  She had deep wooden walls with white and gold trimmings, dark hardwood floors with white floral patterns flowing over top, big tufted seating around the edges, and a huge floral chandelier casting light over the entire room.
775"The theme is flowers, dear.  I hope you like it.  We've tried to incorporate flowers into everything.  We want people to show up wearing flowers, to show up dressed like flowers, to eat flower-foods, drink floral wines, you name it."  Leona and Alice waited to hear Sarah's opinion.
776"That's beautiful, both of you.  Seriously, this is amazing.  I couldn't ask for anything better than this -- you're both geniuses and I love it."  Sarah couldn't help but smile and try to stifle the tears in her eyes.
777Leona and Alice gave her a big hug and giggled.  "Oh, I'm so glad you love it, Sarah.  I'm so excited for you!"  Alice giggled and held her hands.  
778"So, so excited.  Tomorrow, we're going to have you visit Ana with us -- she has good ideas for your dress, and you need to meet her!"  Leona planned.  "Tomorrow morning, bright and early?"  
779"Of course, whatever you want.  I feel like a princess."
780"A queen, dear, you're a queen now!"  Leona corrected.  They all giggled.  "Now, let's get you home.  You've got a lot to do tomorrow!"
781Together, they flew back to her castle.  Alice and Leona made dinner for them all, sharing stories about their own first parties and the dresses and nervousness and food and drinks and how they both went on for three days.  
782"How will I be able to stay up for a couple of days?"  Sarah asked.
783"Oh, don't worry -- you'll be able to sneak off and sleep for a little bit.  Everywhere sneaks off for a bit.  We have more than enough rooms spare.  And we'll have at least three different dresses for you.  Not as elaborate as the first, of course, but everyone ends up in as casual clothes as possible by the end of it."  Leona assured her.
784"And you'll be able to meet a lot of people.  Most everyone from the underground will be there at some point.  The directors will show up and say a few words each, and generally use it as a time to mingle with the rulers.  It's quite nice."  Alice added.
785"Oh, that reminds me.  Early paid me a visit."  Sarah remembered.  She hadn't told anyone but Jareth yet.
786Leona reassured her.  "That's not surprising -- the other four don't usually visit on official duty until after the first month.  They like you to settle in a bit.  Once the rest start visiting is when you get truly, truly busy."  Sarah wondered what all would be involved.  "Don't worry, they're very helpful with getting your Kingdom set up.  The state heads are much more difficult to work with in terms of getting your rule worked out, dear."
787"Oh goodness, yes.  The directors are a god-send with dealing with them on that.  I went through three straight weeks of deliberations and living in the Capital to get my rule set up."  Alice remembered.  
788"That sounds like a trying time.  I still have no idea what mine should be.  No idea."  Sarah sighed.  
789"You'll have help, dear.  And the directors are good at working on ideas with you.  You'll see, you'll see."  Leona assured her.  Leona was doing a lot of reassurance for Sarah.  "Now, you go get some rest, love.  We'll see you bright and early in the morning."  
790Alice and Leona left, and Sarah yawned and headed back upstairs for yet another night of beautiful sleep.  
791____	
792The next day, Sarah was awoken by Leona and Alice.  Thankfully, they were kind about it -- they brought her breakfast and juice and cookies, and different soaps and shampoos and lotions for her bath.
793"The next few days are for you, dear.  We all eventually have champions who go on to have their own kingdoms.  It takes a village to raise a child, and it takes several of us to raise a new ruler.  You'll help someone get settled in too, believe me."  Leona assured her while combing out her hair afterwards.  "I'm not sure yet what we'll do with your hair."
794"Hmmm.  Curls, maybe?  I loved the curls she had that time, remember?"  Alice reminisced about Sarah's time running the labyrinth, and the ball Jareth forced her into. 
795"Well, I used to curl my hair sometimes.  I could go for curls."  Sarah added.  "Can you curl hair with magic?"
796"Of course, dear.  And more.  You can grow it, cut it, curl it, color it, whatever you want, really.  We all tend to fall into a style, though, of course."  Leona twisted a ring on her hand.  "We should probably wait until we have atleast one dress down, of course."  
797"Definitely.  I'm sure half of the people there will end up with pink or purple hair to match their flowers.  I kind of love it when that happens."  Alice giggled.
798"Well, I've never had blue or green hair before.  I think I could do that."  Sarah tried to imagine herself with bright colorful hair.  She was tempted to try it herself, if she knew how.
799 "Alright, I'd say we're about ready to go.  You're about out of clothes though, I'd think.  How about something a little different today?  Ana's a bit of a stickler when it comes to dress codes."  Leona snapped, and held up an above-knee white dress with a full skirt and red piping.  Leona herself wore long cream and red number, and Alice wore her similar lolita-esque style but with red embellishments and tiny heart leggings.  
800"Yeah, Ana expects visitors to be very much... themed.  I don't mind too much, and she's not the only one, of course, but she can take it a bit to the extreme.  Everyone must have at least one heart on their person."  Alice pointed to her leggings.  Leona pointed to her heart-trimmed hat, and to the heart buttons the dress she'd chosen for Sarah.  
801Sarah quickly dressed, including leggings, boots, and hat, and followed them downstairs, to the window, and off to Ana's castle.  
802Ana's castle rested west of Alice's and northwest of Jareth's kingdom.  They flew overtop of the Goblin kingdom, towards a cluster of creamy stone towers with red pointy tops and flags.  Sarah could see the bright green hedges of the labyrinth, arranged in the shapes of card suits, especially hearts.  There were hearts everywhere.  
803They landed on a wide bridge over a moat separating the city from the castle.  Quickly, Leona changed from her toucan form, Alice from her heron form, and Sarah from her flamingo form.  
804"Ana's very much about formality.  If you arrive in her castle, you get a very big welcome.  Don't be scared, love."  Alice advised.  They walked up to the doors, knocked, and were greeted by trumpets and a slow-reveal of the door opening.  
805A large man wearing a barrister wig and formal robes called out from a tall platform.  "The Queen of Hearts hereby welcomes Alice, Leona, and Sarah to Wonderland.  All rise in respect to the Queen and her visitors."
806Those milling about were mostly already risen, but those not immediately came to attention.  This mostly included a smattering of people, and a large group of suited guards with pikes.  Alice, Leona, and Sarah continued onto the platform in front of a a pair of doors.  
807"All bow in arrival of the Queen of Hearts."  Another series of trumpets, and every turned to face the large doors that led out onto the platform.  Everyone bowed down, included Leona and Alice.  Sarah followed suit.
808The doors opened, and out walked a woman of fairly normal height, but imposing stature.  "All rise," cried out the man.
809They rose.  The queen, Ana, wore a 50s style dress with a small red fascinator.  Her skirt was pencil and black, her top white and silk, with a large red heart on top.  She wore a strand of large pearls, and white gloves.  Her makeup was pale with crisp black eyeshadow and red, red lips.  Her hands were adorned with multiple heart rings and a bracelet of hearts and heart earrings.  Her tall pumps were red with black hearts.  Her blonde hair was coifed up into a french twist
810"My dear Alice, my dear Leona.  How good to see you!"  She held out her arms to Alice and Leona for hugs, respectively.  They air kissed.  "And you must be Sarah!"  She did the same with Sarah, hug and air kiss.  She held Sarah's hands in front of her.  "How good to finally meet you.  Leona and Alice have told me a little about you.  I'm so excited to help with this dress, dear."  She let go and turned around.  "Come, come, we have much work to do!”
811They followed her up into the castle and through a series of doors and stairs.  "So, Sarah, you're Jareth's champion returned?"
812"Yes, I am.  Oh, how should I address you?"  Sarah didn't want to be rude.
813"Oh, Ana is fine.  If you were a challenger or one of my subjects, I'd insist on your highness or your excellency, but you my dear are a queen yourself.  You may call me Ana."  She smiled at Sarah.
814The interior of the castle was mostly white, marble, white wood, white metal, with gold and black and red accents and plenty of hearts.  The floor was white marble with the occasional red marble heart inlay with a black border.  The walls were adorned with art depicting tarot cards, chess sets, playing cards, mahjong tiles, and a variety of other game scenes.  The ceilings swept upwards in art nouveau esque curves of gold and red, and contained crystal clear and red chandeliers with hearts, more hearts.  
815Ana pushed up a set of double doors with gold handles and sweeping curves in gold, more art nouveau. They ended up in a wide room with a variety of mannequins in different states and styles of dress.  
816"Here we are.  So, Sarah, what sorts of flowers do you like?"  She led them to a table with plush chairs... with heart embroidery on them.  The table was dark wood with a marquetry depicting chess pieces in battle.  "Oh, the table is beautiful, no?  I had it commissioned by Emile Galle.  I do not know if you are familiar with this name.  He was the most fabulous ebiniste during the time of art nouveau."  She pointed to a series of red and pink vases along the wall.  "Those are his as well.  Such a beautiful artist."  She sighed.  "Ah, so, flowers?"
817"Hmmm... I like roses  I suppose.  Hibiscus flowers, definitely.  Lilies.  Poppies.  Cherry blossoms.  Elder flowers."
818"Alright, let's see."  Ana pulled out a piece of smooth glass in the shape of a heart and slid her hand over it.  On the table appeared sprigs of each.  The roses included white, red and creamy yellow.  The hibiscus, bright red with deep green stems.  The lillies, white with dashes of deep red in the center. The poppies were bright red with spindly green stems.  The cherry blossoms were bright pink with brown sticks attached.  The elder flowers were bushels of bright white with green.  
819"I like the elder flowers for you.  I think this should be the first dress."  She held up the sprig of flowers and turned it upside down.  "I am thinking it has a long train of flowers, flowers dripping through the bottom.  A white bodice like a bride.  Tight.  Flowers in your hair, too."
820She picked up the hibiscus next.  "The hibiscus, I am thinking will trail along your shoulder and down, and through a sash across you, with a train of hibiscus for the second dress.  What are you thinking, Alice?"
821Alice picked up the cherry blossoms.  "I would rather see the cherry blossoms as the second dress.  I think the brown and pink would make a beautiful train for her.  I'm thinking a blue background, brown twigs wth the blossoms trailing down and out."
822"Mmm, yes.  You are in charge of the second dress, Alice.  Leona?"
823"I like the lillies.  I'm thinking a sash of lillies, similar to what you were saying with the hibiscus, but covering the bodice only and up into her hair.  The lillies would surround and support the bottom of her hair, which would be pulled up."
824"Sounds lovely.  You're in charge of the third dress.  The hibiscus dress, then will be a short affair.  Something very hawaiian.  I'm thinking a very full skirt, like those ones the girls in the 50s wore with their little soldier boyfriends out dancing, you know? I will take care of that.  Alice?"  
825"I'll take the poppies.  Something simple, with a wide black belt and and full skirt."
826"Good, good.  Leona?"
827"I believe that leaves the roses.  I'm thinking simple, lace with roses.  Pink.  Long, silky, very sleek.  Definitely a dress that can be worn straight to bed."  She winked.  
828"Lovely.  Shall we get started, then?"  Ana stood and clapped her hands.
829For the rest of the day, Sarah was poked and prodded and changed into dresses.  Her hair was tried up, and down, and curled, and grown, and straight, and colored.  By the end, she was exhausted.
830But, she had six beautiful, perfect dresses and a miasma of different hairstyles she'd be going through.  The elderflower one was her favorite, and she was glad it was first on the list for the night.  
831Ana brought in sandwiches cut into heart shapes with fruit and brie and cucumbers and tuna for lunch, and later for dinner, perfectly cooked steaks and potatoes and wine.
832It was nearly nightfall when they were totally finished.  Sarah was nearly falling asleep, and knew she needed to go to sleep.  
833"Sarah, dearest, we need to get you to bed, don't we?"  Leona offered.  "Why don't we have you sleep in one of my rooms?  It'll allow us much more easily to get you ready there."
834"That sounds wonderful.  I'm afraid I'll fall asleep just flying right now."  Sarah yawned.
835"Then let's get going now.  Alice, would you like to stay as well?"  Leona put an arm around her shoulder and squeezed.
836"Sure, sure."  Alice yawned, too.  
837"That settles it.  I will see you three in the morning, yes?  I am excited for you, Sarah.  You will be so beautiful.  And I am so excited to see everyone else's creations.  They will be beautiful!   So beautiful!"  Ana led them to the balcony outside the room.  "Get some sleep my dears.  You will need it!"
838She waved them goodbye as they flew off and back to Leona's castle.  
839Leona showed Sarah to a room with a large bed, inset into the ground with steps leading to it.  Alice gave her a pair of silky pajamas with red, red flowers on them.  Sarah changed, and snuggled into the blankets.  
840She spent a few minutes being nervous about the next day, before falling asleep.
841Sarah woke the next day on her own and alone.  She ventured out into the hallway, and followed the servants rushing around to the ballroom, where Alice, Leona, and Ana were busy coordinating people.
842"Good morning, Sarah!" Alice called out to her and waved.  "Come here!"
843Sarah strode over to where they stood in the middle of the room.  "Good morning, everyone.  Leona, I slept amazing, thank you."
844"Of course, dear.  The guests will start arriving in a few hours.  We must now get your hair and makeup and dress ready, ok?"  Leona offered.
845"Alright.  Where do I need to go?"  Sarah asked.
846"With me.  I'll be taking over your getting ready.  First we must get some breakfast in you!"  Ana motioned her to follow.  Sarah followed her out of the ballroom, into the hallway, and up a set of stairs to another hallway.  They walked down to a set of doors, into a large dressing room housing the dresses Sarah would be wearing. 
847"Here we are.  Now, food first, of course."   She smiled, and motioned Sarah to sit at the table.  She pulled out a heart and ran her hand over it.  A platter of eggs, potatoes, bacon, greens, fruit, and carafes of carrot, orange, and apple juice appeared, alongside two plates and glasses. "Let's eat!"
848Ana loaded up her own plate, while Sarah fixed hers.  Ana preferred carrot juice, while Sarah chose orange.  
849"So, how long have you been running your kingdom?"  Sarah asked.  She wasn't sure what she should or shouldn't ask about.
850"Oh, a bit longer than Jareth, so maybe five centuries?  I remember his predecessor.  Jareth is quite the improvement, I'll say."  She reminisced.  
851"What was his predecessor like?"  
852"He was fairly cruel.  He's the one who started having his citizens turn into goblins.  Of course, by the time Jareth came around, he was so tired of being underground, that he mostly just let his kingdom live as they would.  Before, he would work them like slaves.  He wasn't well liked, even at the end."  She took a drink of her juice.
853"I wonder how many rulers are like that."  Sarah said.
854"There are a good deal.  Some kingdoms are run quite harshly.  But, we all have different ways of ruling.  When you meet with the directors and the heads, you'll hear that fairly often.  No one way is the correct way, you know?"
855"Sort of like anthropology, I suppose."
856"We reserve moral judgements."  Ana clarified.  "Most people fall in the middle somewhere you know, of being cruel versus being all giving.  And well, we can't be all good.  None of can run a labyrinth to where we want people to win.  Having citizens is how we work.  And, the heads and the directors keep things in check if people have too many labyrinth champions."
857"How many champions do most people have?"
858"Well, it depends.  I've had five.  Only one has gone on to return.  It's generally assumed that you'll have about one every century.  As we've gained more rulers over the years, we've received fewer challengers per ruler."
859"Since the rules get more specific?"  Sarah deduced.
860"Well, yes.  I receive a couple challengers a month.  Some people have more, some less."
861"Huh.  How do you know if people beat the labyrinth or not?  Or what are your rules for it?"  Sarah asked.
862"I give people the standard 13 hours to make it to the center, through the outer labyrinth, through the grounds and through the soldiers, and to the center of the castle which is itself a labyrinth.  Most people give up and concede by the fourth hour.  If they continue, most finished the outer labyrinth, but are stopped trying to pass the guards.  I have cages all throughout the grounds where people get stored until their time is up."
863"Can they get out?"
864"Only if they really try, but my challengers are all under the age of 13 -- very rarely do they get out of the cage if they get caught.  If they don't get caught on the grounds, it's more likely they make it into the castle.  There, I have lots of distractions.  Cakes, pretty rooms, tea parties, you know.  They get pampered, they get shown the good life.”
865"That sounds like a good way to run a labyrinth and a kingdom."
866Ana beamed.  "I enjoy it.  My citizens are happy.  I have mandatory military service, but we are not fighters.  It's for show, really, as it gives them something to dress up in and  for traipsing about.  Most of my citizens prefer to landscape, to grow roses, to trim hedges.  Or to make beautiful clothing.  It's all quite frilly."  She giggled.
867"I do like this place."  Sarah admitted with a smile.
868"I'm glad!  Now, let's get started getting you ready."
869Sarah followed her to the bath in the room attached.  It was a large bath, more like a small swimming pool.  "Alright, first things first -- we need to get you washed and scrubbed and softened.” She pointed at a line of pots on a low table next to the basin.  “The blue pot is for washing your hair, the purple for conditioning, the pink is for washing yourself, and the green is lotion for afterwards.  There are razors next to there, and the cloth has a scrubby side.  You know what to do, I’m sure.”  She smiled at Sarah.  
870"Alright, first things first -- we need to get you washed and scrubbed and softened.” She pointed at a line of pots on a low table next to the basin.  “The blue pot is for washing your hair, the purple for conditioning, the pink is for washing yourself, and the green is lotion for afterwards.  There are razors next to there, and the cloth has a scrubby side.  You know what to do, I’m sure.”  She smiled at Sarah.  
871"Alright, I'll get started then."  Sarah answered.
872"Good, I want you to relax, though.  I don't want to see you out of there for at least an hour."  She closed the door behind her as she left.
873Sarah went through the motions of bathing -- scrubbing her scalp and hair, running the conditioning mixture through the strands.  She finished washing and ridding hair and spent the next bit just lounging in the basin.  The water was constantly flowing, warm and soothing.  It smelled of lavender.  
874Sarah inhaled the scent and went through each body part, feeling as each relaxed with the scan through her body.  By the end, she was boneless and content, and somewhat pruney.
875She toweled off and smoothed the lotion into her skin and face.  The fragrance of vanilla and bitey anise hit her nose, and she inhaled.  It was beautiful and perfect.  
876She found a wide-toothed comb and ran it through her hair, smoothing the tangles out as it dried.  She wasn't sure how she should come back out, but figured she shouldn't put her own clothes back on.  On the shelf with the towels was a plush robe, so she slid it on.
877She took a deep breath in and walked out into the room. 
878"Ah, you're done!"  Ana looked up from the book she was reading.  "Let's finish getting you ready!  Come, sit."  She motioned to the chair next to her, in front of a mirror.
879"Alright.  I love this lotion, by the way.  It smells heavenly."  Sarah complimented.
880"It's lovely, no?  We'll start with your hair.  I think for the first dress, it should be lengthened, and curled at the ends.  Are you good with this?"
881"Sure."  She sat in the chair and felt Ana moved the hair back behind her.
882Ana pulled out a heart and ran her hand over it.  Sarah felt her hair grow, which admittedly, was a weird feeling.  Ana picked up the hair, and Sarah could see the ends twisting up and curling slightly.  Her bangs and the hair framing her face lifted away, curling slightly.  
883"Perfect, perfect.  This will be lovely.  Makeup will be understated.  Your eyes will be lined, of course.  A good deep rose lip.  Good?"
884"Sure."  
885"Close your eyes, please.  It feels weird if you don't."  Ana pulled another heart out, repeating the motion.  Sarah felt her eyelids grow slightly heavier and her lips softened.  "Open, go ahead."  Her eyes were lined, smokey brown.  Her cheeks were a nice light pink, her skin was smooth and clear, and her lips were a deep, slightly dark rose.  
886"It's wonderful.  It doesn't even feel like makeup."  She ran a fingertip over her cheeks.  "No wipe-off either.  How does that work?"
887"Well, it doesn't really clean off.  You'll have to um, magick it off later.  But we can do that, don't worry."  She give her a reassuring smile.  "Alright, now dress time.  Come, come."
888Sarah stood and followed her to the dress now on a mannequin.  
889"Okay, disrobe.  Don't worry, it's nothing I haven't seen before."  
890"Alright."  Sarah gingerly removed the robe, setting it on the chair next to her.  
891Ana went behind the mannequin, undid the fastenings, and pulled the dress up and over.  "Okay, this will be a little complicated to do up.  I'll need you to step into it."  She handed the dress to Sarah.
892Sarah stepped into the top, pulling the straps up and over her arms.  Ana came around behind her to attach the fastenings and to make little adjustments with the fabric as she laced it.  By the end, the dress was a perfect fit.
893"Alright, and now shoes.  Your feet will be hidden, so we'll grant you some flat shoes for today.  And gloves, of course."  She pulled out a heart and ran her hand over it, turning into a pair of silvery flats and a pair of white gloves with elderflower trim.  She sat them on the floor in front of Sarah.  "Good, good, go ahead and put them on.  I'll pull out some jewelry for you."
894Ana walked to a cabinet along the wall, opening it up to show a vast selection of jewelry.  "Oh, wow."
895"Leona does love jewelry.  Most of the pieces are her own creation."  She pulled out a silver and diamond dripping collar.  "This will look well with the dress."  She draped it around Sarah's front and attached it in the back.  "Ah, lovely."
896Sarah felt the stones.  "Wow.  This is gorgeous."  Ana held a pair of matching earrings in her hand, offering them to Sarah.  "Nice."  Sarah put them in, and turned to look at herself in the mirror.
897It was a little bit like the ball Jareth had made her attend, but now she was grown up.  Not a girl in a piece of fluff, all puffed sleeves and tulle.  
898Behind her, she could see Ana holding up a silver and diamond circlet.  "This is the last piece."  She fit the circlet over Sarah's head, finishing the costume.  "Beautiful, Sarah."  She smiled in pride at her work.
899"Ana, thank you.  This is all so beautiful.  I look like a bride."
900"Of course.  We wouldn't make you ugly.  Now, come on, I need to return you to Leona and Alice, so I can finish preparing myself.  Guests will begin to arrive soon, dear.  You are going to do splendidly, don't worry."  She gave Sarah a pat on the cheek.
901Ana led Sarah down the hall, down the stairs, and through rooms back to the ballroom.  Leona and Alice were now ready themselves, fully decked out.  Leona wore a dress of black orchids dripping down her long sleeves, and feathery black hat.  Her lips were a deep dark red and her eyes were linked with smokey black kohl.  
902Alice wore a full dress, with a corset with green vines as laces.  The skirt was filled with deep red roses, and her arms were covered in green vines as a sort of set of gloves.  The effect was striking.  Her blonde hair was woven through with thorny vines and roses.  
903"You both look incredible."  They pulled unimpressed supermodel faces and poses.  "Absolutely spot on."
904But, they couldn't hold it and devolved into giggles.  "Ah, I can never understand how models can stand to look so unhappy."  Alice said inbetween her laughs.
905"Me neither.  Don't worry, Sarah, very few people want to appear too cool to care.  We like to care, and we like people to know that we care."  Leona calmed herself enough to say.  
906"Good to hear.  So, be sure to compliment everyone on their outfit?"  Sarah asked.
907"Of course!  We pride ourselves on creativity.  You will see some wild things.  There are, of course, some people who are much more conservative with their outfits, but we all strive to be interesting."
908"What other etiquette things should I know?  Bad topics to discuss?"
909"Well, I wouldn't ask too much about people's lives in the past.  Asking what region they're in is good.  Some people don't like to talk about how long they've been here."  Leona tapped her chin in thought.
910"Oh, and don't judge people too much on their ... well, sexual actions, I suppose?  You will see people obviously going to head off with someone, and you may see them again head off with someone else entirely.  Or with two people. or you get the idea."  Alice nodded.
911"So, free love.  Okay."  Sarah nodded.
912"It will take some getting used to, I'm sure, but it can be wonderfully freeing.  But, Sarah, you will feel... what's the word?  Tender, I suppose?  In the beginning.  It's alright.  It takes a few years before you adjust to relations here."  Leona offered.
913"It does.  It's not necessarily good or bad.  We're here for a long time, and while it can be nice to be with one person for a long time, generally... we're not going to be.  Plus, we can't live together for long periods, you know?  A couple days here or there is fine, but we still have duties to attend to and kingdoms to run."  Alice adjusted the vines on her arm.
914"Okay.  I can understand it, but it's definitely... different.  I mean, I haven't realy wanted to get married or anything, but I certainly got used to living with someone.  I've had short relationships and relationships that weren't really heavy on the talking part, but I'm getting that it's the norm to just sleep with people here?"
915"Well, it's not quite like that.  You can't ... well, you can't just be with someone and expect to never interact with them again.  It's just a different part of the relationship, you know?"  Alice offered.
916Sarah sort of understood.  
917Alice and Leona gave her some tips on how to compliment people in the Underground or to evade questions or to compliment enough without being a lie or without offending.  Sarah was appreciative of the help -- she still hadn't interacted with that many people yet, save for Alice, Leona, Jareth, and Ana.
918Ana joined them, in a dress covered in bleeding heart flowers.  The dripped down her skirt, and dripped off her jauntily placed hat.  Together they complimented each other dresses, in jest and in honesty.  Sarah had to say, if everyone looked even a quarter as good as they did, it would be a beautiful party.
919Not long after, Jareth arrived, followed by a slightly older man..  Jareth wore a long cape covered in green and white snowdrop flowers.  The other man wore a striped cape of white with stripes of bulbous spindly red flowers.  
920"Lucas, it's nice to see you again."  Jareth greeted him first.  He greeted the other three, hugged Leona and Alice, and followed with airkisses to Ana.  He saw Sarah and took her hands.
921"You must be Sarah.  It's nice to meet you.  How are you settling in, little one?"  He was warm with an open face.
922"Really well, thank you.  Everyone has been very kind to me.  Do you live nearby?"  Sarah asked.
923"Yes, I do; my name is Lucas, and my kingdom is southwest of Jareth's.  Please, visit any time.  My doors are open."  He gave a slight bow.
924"Lucas also has the best library in Ruby.  Once you've had a couple days to recover from the party, I can take you there."  Alice offered.  
925"Please, yes.  I've brought back some more books you may like, Alice."  He said with a smile.
926"Oh!  Of course, then.  Lucas is a librarian.  His entire kingdom, pretty much, is a library.  It's beautiful."  Alice glazed over slightly.  
927They were interrupted by the arrival of another guest.  This one was a little younger than Sarah, and looked to be more akin to Alice's age.  He wore a cape of red berries with small white flowers and green and brown stems.  
928"Etienne!  How have you been!"  Lucas was excited to see the younger man.  
929"Lucas!  Quite good in the four hours since I saw you last."  He smiled brightly.  "And this must be Sarah!"
930"I am."  She smiled demurely.  "And you're Etienne?"
931"Quite.  You're Jareth's newly arrived protege, am I correct?'  
932"You are correct.  It's nice to meet you."  She extended a hand, which he took and raised to his mouth to kiss.  
933"A pleasure."  
934Ana spat something in French at him, which he quickly retorted and stuck his tongue out at her, which they both laughed at.  Sarah glanced between them.
935"Oh, don't worry Sarah, I merely commented on his ability to lay it on thick."
936"And I told her she would to with someone as pretty as you."  He smiled brightly at her.
937"Well, thank you, and I don't think you're laying it on too thick quite yet, but I'll watch out for it."  Sarah came back with.
938More people began trickling in, including the other residents of Currant, and some more residents of Ruby, including a man from Poppy, two from Rosewood, and one from Amaranth.  
939Sarah was introduced to all of them, introduced herself, and gave a compliment of their own flowery outfits.  She also remembered that she had forgotten to compliment Lucas, Etienne, and Jareth, and promptly gave them their own.  
940They began their own compliments of everyone else, and everything devolved into a large match of outcomplimenting eachother.
941More people arrived, including a group from the Diamond region, more from the Ruby provinces, and a couple from Emerald.  Sarah tried her hardest to commit to memory some of the names, including Esther, Ariadne, Francois, Juno, Gustav, Noah, and Nikola.  But many of the names went in one ear and out the other, and as more people arrived, Sarah wondered how she would be able to greet them all.  
942Thankfully, Alice, Leona, Ana, and Jareth were serving as a buffer for Sarah, and she wasn't required to do a whole lot of active talking.  She felt fairly overwhelmed already.
943The groups began arriving more rapidly.  A large group of Sapphire arrived, then a large group from the Northern Kingdom.  Soon the ballroom was beginning to fill up with people dancing around, sipping on drinks, eating little canapes.  Another group from the Southern kingdom arrived, decked out in colorful flowers more akin to Carnival costumes.  
944The groups from out of the Western kingdom were not as apt to come and visit, but some were and many were enthusiastic about the arrival of another.  Sarah had the chance to meet a ruler who was just passing their fourth year as a ruler.  He was from the Southern kingdom, and was now the third youngest. 
945The second youngest person, who Sarah had just replaced as the youngest had arrived with a group from the Central state.  She had been in the Underground for two years and was in the early days of her Labyrinth being open.  She gave Sarah a warm hug and told her she had some busy, but wonderful days ahead, and to keep faith and to allow herself to ask for help.
946Sarah agreed with the advice.
947Soon, there were groups from all of the kingdoms and regions. Sarah had been standing and introducing herself to people for hours, and just wanted a small break.  Alice was kind enough to lead her to a nearby room to cool down for a few minutes and have a drink and relax.  
948"How are you holding up?"  Alice asked, once Sarah had finished with the bathroom. 
949"Not bad.  I don't know how I'll remember all their names.  Early brought me a set of books that talk about all of the rulers, so at least some of them will be familiar now." 
950Alice handed Sarah a glass of water.  "Oh, they're beautiful, aren't they?  They should be here soon, by the way.  And don't worry; you should be pretty well done with introductions now.  In about an hour, we'll be serving dinner.  You're probably getting a little hungry by now."
951"God, I am.  Will I be sitting with you guys?"  Sarah asked.
952"If that's what you want, of course you will be.  Usually the tables tend to divvy up into regions and provinces.  The other Currant folk will be sitting together, most likely, and some Rosewood folk."  Alice checked the time.  "We should probably go back.  Sorry to rush you, but it would look back if you weren't here when the directors arrive."
953Together, they headed back to the ballroom where people were still mulling about.  Alice was stopped several times on the way back to Leona and Ana and Jareth, to talk and to introduce Sarah.  Sarah gave the standard compliments she was now down to, and together they tried to get through the crowd as quick as they could.
954"Southerly and Northerly have arrived."  Leona stated, casting her eyes towards the entrance.  Two very tall women, one pale with long straight light brown hair and one dark-skinned with long curly black hair had entered.  Neither of them wore flower-centric outfits.  Both were decked out in silvery white robes.  
955"Do I need to do anything different?"  Sarah asked.
956"No, child.  Soon the state heads will arrive soon, too.  So you know, our state head is Hildagardis.  She's a bit.."  Leona trailed off.
957"Intimidating.  Don't expect compliments.  She can be warm, once you know her for a while, but being a state head has definitely pushed her more cold."  Jareth finished for her.
958"So don't try to be friendly with her?"  
959"That would be wise.  Be formal, be polite.  And, if she asks you to do something, do it.  She will be very much a supporter of you if you treat her with respect, but if you don't, she will make your establishment much, much more difficult."  Jareth implored.
960"I've got it.  I should probably practice being a little more formal then, shouldn't I?"  Sarah asked.
961"It wouldn't hurt, dear, but you've been good with formality so far."  Leona reassured her.
962"Ah, Easterly and Westerly are here, too."  Two men were now entering, both tall, both in grey suits.  One had dark hair pulled up, the other had blond hair longish and parted to the side.  
963"No early?"  Sarah inquired?
964"He always comes late."  Leona quipped.  Everyone laughed at the irony.  
965Southerly and Northerly were now working their way towards them.  
966Sarah turned to Alice.  "Which is which?"
967"Think of the world.  Those in the southern hemisphere are generally darker, those in the north, lighter."  Alice replied.
968"Well, that makes it simpler."  
969Southerly and Northerly approached them.  "Hello, Jareth, it's good to see you.  Leona, Ana, good to see you both.  Alice, so nice to see you again."  Southerly greeted them first.  "You must be Sarah.  I'm glad to finally meet you."  She smiled genuinely at her, and extended a hand. "I'm Southerly.  I believe you've already met Early, but you'll be able to meet the rest of us tonight."  
970Sarah received the hand offered.  "It's lovely to meet you, Southerly.  Thank you for seeking me out.  You look beautiful."
971"Thank you, child."  She bowed slightly.  Sarah followed the motion.  
972"It's lovely to see all of you again, Jareth, Ana, Leona, Alice."  Northerly repeated the greetings.  "And so nice to finally meet you as well, Sarah.  I'm Northerly."  She offered her own hand, which Sarah took.  "If you haven't noticed, our brothers -- save for Early -- are slowly making their way to you as well.  If you all don't mind, we have a great deal many people to speak to before the state heads arrive."  
973"Of course."  Sarah offered.  "Please, do you what you need."  
974Southerly and Northerly filtered back into the crowd.  Westerly and Easterly were still working their way through the crowd.  
975"So I suppose Easterly is the one with the black hair, and Westerly is blonde?"  Sarah asked Alice.
976"You're catching on."  Alice commended.
977"When do the state heads usually arrive?"
978"Oh, generally once most others have made it, and one the directors have settled in.  Early should be here soon, I would think.  Unfortunately, once he does, it'll take forever for him to make it up here.  All the women flirt with him."
979"I suppose that's not surprising.  He looks like a One Direction member."
980"A what?"
981"A boyband member.  You know, those bands with young guys who sing and dance?"  
982"Ohh, those things.  Goodness gracious.  I remember when the Beatles were such a huge thing and I'd read all these news stories when I had a chance to go Aboveground about them.  They were kind of foppish."
983Sarah laughed.  "They are, aren't they?  But you see what I mean?"
984"Absolutely.  But, all of the directors are very kind people, so I suppose he can be as flirty and foppish as he wants."  Alice laughed.
985"Do the directors... uh, fraternize with the rulers too?"  Sarah asked.
986"Sometimes, but they generally try to be more discreet than the rulers are.  And state heads are similar."  
987"I still don't totally understand what they do."
988"Oh, I don't think anyone totally gets what they do.  They keep the magic that we can use in check, and also are the ones who give limits to what we can do.  But, they're also very good at helping you work around the limits to get what you need accomplished accomplished without turning the world upside down.  They're a very good resource."  Alice offered.
989Westerly and Easterly made their way up to the group.  
990Westerly spoke first.  "Good evening, Jareth, Leona.  It's lovely to see you both."  
991"Always, Westerly."  Jareth said
992"Westerly, lovely work with Sarah's flying form, I must say." Leona added.
993"It is, isn't it?  Has Ana seen it?"  Westerly asked.
994"Of course, I could've died laughing."  Ana added.  
995"Ah, and always lovely to see you, Ana."  Westerly brought her in to do the air kiss thing.
996"Wonderful to see you too, love."  She replied.
997Westerly continued working through the group.  "Alice, I see you're helping Sarah settle in as well.  It's nice to see you again."  To Alice, he gave a quick hug.
998"Always glad to see you, Westerly.  In case you aren't aware, this is Sarah."  She motioned to Sarah next to her.
999"I assumed so, of course."  He looked her over.  Sarah looked him over as well.  His blonde hair was combed down over his forehead, right before deep blue eyes.  *"Beautiful dress, I must say.  I would guess this is Ana's work.  Am I correct?"  
1000"You are.  I would've said it's like magic, but it actually is."  Alice, Westerly, and Sarah had a small laugh at the joke.  "It's nice to meet you, Westerly."  
1001"Likewise, Sarah."  
1002Meanwhile, Easterly had been greeting the rest of the group, and had now made his way to Sarah and Alice.  "Alice, it's lovely to see you again."  Easterly had the hair of a Disney prince, long on top and swooped up slightly. He had dark eyes, toasted almond skin, and Asian features.  "And you must be Sarah."  He looked her over.  
1003"I am.  You must be Easterly."  Sarah blushed slightly at the intensity of his look-over.  
1004"At your service.  I believe you've met my sisters already, and Westerly of course.  Early should be here soon, though I believe you've already met him, haven't you?"  He asked.
1005"I have.  He paid me a visit last week and gave me some lovely books."  
1006"I'm glad to hear it.  You'll be getting visits from all of us soon, as I'm sure you're aware.  But, I'm glad we could meet before, a little less formally, of course."  Easterly offered.
1007"Though it's not like our visits are terribly formal in the first place."  Westerly added.
1008"If it's anything like Early's, they'll be pretty quick, I suppose?"  Sarah asked.
1009"Heavens, no.  When we get into the real visits, they'll be all-day affairs.  But, I assure you, quite painless."  Easterly gave a quick wink.  
1010"I look forward to them."  Sarah offered.
1011"As do we."  Easterly looked to the rest of the group.  "I'm happy to see you all, and enchanted to meet you, Sarah.  However, I believe we have more people we need to finish meeting, though.  Brother?"  
1012"Of course.  Lovely to see you all again, and lovely to meet you, Sarah."  Westerly added before they faded back into the crowd as well.
1013"The underground isn't short on attractive people, is it?"  Sarah asked.
1014Alice gave a little chuckle.  "Not, it's not.  Magic, thankfully, allows us to become our best looking selves.  Most of us returned to the Underground before we were terribly late in our lives, but even those that come older can appear much younger than they were."  
1015"And I suppose having magic at your disposal means you have the best fitting clothes and such."
1016"That's the ticket."  Alice smiled.  "Oh, it looks like Early finally arrived."  Towards the entrance, Sarah could see Early working his way through the crowd, greeting people quickly, stopping only briefly to speak to people, unlike the other directors who had taken their time making their way to the group.
1017"I suppose so.  That means the State heads will arrive soon, right?"  Sarah asked.
1018"It does, but don't worry.  We'll be here to help smooth the introductions, Sarah.  We don't want to cast you to the sharks.  Not that they're sharks, mind you."  Alice reassured her.  
1019Early arrived.   "Ah, it's lovely to see all of you again.  Leona, Jareth, Ana, Alice.  And Sarah, it's wonderful to see you continuing to settle in beautifully.  I'm glad your neighbors are doing such a good job with helping you get settled in.  Leona, the party is beautiful.  You've truly outdone yourself."
1020"Thank you, Early.  I'm glad you like it."
1021"And Ana, that dress is stunning."  Ana gave a little thanks and a blush.  "Jareth, I've heard you've been a good influence thus far on your protege."
1022"She's a quick study, I must say."  Jareth complimented.
1023"I have high hopes."  Early quipped.  "Sarah, you look beautiful.  You've had a chance to meet my brothers and sisters, I hope?"  
1024"Yes, Southerly and Northerly came by earlier, and Westerly and Easterly left just before you came over.  It's good to see you again, Early.  Thank you for the books, by the way.  They're amazing."  Sarah smiled at him.
1025"They are, aren't they?  I'm glad they've found a good home with you."  Early beamed.
1026"I'll gladly read any other books you recommend."  Sarah said.
1027"Of course.  I recommend visiting with Lucas before me, though.  I just have anthropological records and history data.  Lucas on the other hand.. well, the man is a beast when it comes to books.  You really must visit with him."  Early suggested.  He was animated as he spoke, and his enthusiasm was palpable.
1028"I met Lucas for the first time earlier tonight, so I look forward to visiting with him again.  I'd definitely like to visit him, and I'm glad he's in Currant, too."  Sarah smiled.
1029"Definitely.  There are a few other librarians, too.  There's two in the Central state, one each in the Southern, Northern, and Eastern states.  They're all wonderful resources."
1030"Too bad I only speak English."  Sarah sighed.  
1031"You won't be limited by that, don't worry.  We have our ways."  He gave a wink.
1032"Oh, Sarah, the heads have arrived."  Alice pointed out.  She had been in conversation with the rest of the group while Early and Sarah talked.
1033Sarah looked out towards the entrance.  Five people in earthy and gold robes had shown up.  "Which is which?"
1034"Well, Hilda is our head -- she's the short one with the blonde hair, with the crown braid.  Evgeni is the Northern head -- the shorter man with the cropped hair.  Ofelia is the Southern head -- both her and Moana have curly black hair, but Ofelia is the shorter one.  Moana is the Eastern head, but she's the tall one, darker too.  Dalitso is the Central head -- he's the dark and taller man."  Alice pointed them out one by one.
1035"I see.  You said they'll speak, right?"
1036"Yes.  Not all at once, of course.  Hilda will speak first, since you're under her state.  Then the others will speak based on seniority.  Moana is the oldest, then Dalitso, then Ofelia, then Evgeni."  Alice and Sarah watched them make their way to the group and ostensibly, to the dais behind them.  They stopped only to speak with the directors, who had quickly moved to greet them.  
1037Hilda led the charge, quickly coming up in front of Sarah.  "You must be Sarah, yes?"  Hilda didn't smile as she said it.  
1038"Yes, ma'am, I am Sarah.  It's a pleasure to meet you."  She tried to be as deferring as possible, but hadn't actually been formal really before, so she hoped she was doing it right.
1039"Likewise, Sarah.  In case you're not aware, I am Hilda, the Western head.  We'll save the rest of the introductions until after we've all spoken."  She gave a brief nod to the other heads, who followed her up onto the dais.  
1040The group fell back towards the rest of the crowd, giving space for the heads.  The room quickly fell silent as the heads fell into their places.
1041"Good evening, everyone.  I'm glad to see such a heavy turn out to embrace our newest ruler, Sarah.  As we're all aware, Sarah will be tasked with the same challenge all of you have already been through -- namely, creating and sustaining your own kingdoms and labyrinths.  For the next two years, Sarah will working on establishing herself as a ruler, cultivating her Kingdom, creating a labyrinth, and getting it ready to begin taking challengers.
1042"This is a hard task, as we all know from experience.  Some of you may be called to task to assist Sarah with this, in the form of spending time either in her Kingdom or in hosting her in your kingdom.  We will sent these notices soon, and we appreciate your assistance.  
1043"We are happy to have you join us, Sarah, and we look forward to seeing the world you create.  Now, I will let the rest of the heads speak."  Hilda took her place to the side, as Moana came forward to speak.
1044"Leona, you have created a very moving space here, and I commend you for your efforts in championing this event.  From all of us, thank you."  The room gave a quick thank you to Leona, who bowed slightly.  "Sarah, I look forward to seeing your efforts, and I look forward to working with you on establishing yourself as a ruler.  
1045"Please know however, that we will challenge you.  We are very serious about our work, and we do not accept amateur abilities.  You will be tested, you will be critiqued, and you will improve.  We believe in you, and we will help support you to do your best, but you must put in a great deal of effort yourself, as well.
1046"Now, Dalitso has a few words."  Moana moved to the side as well.
1047"Thank you, Moana."  The man moved to the center to speak.  "Moana speaks the truth.  You will be tested.  Now, while we do not accept insufficiency, we do not make you flounder, either.  As Hilda mentioned, you will find yourself working with other rulers over the next few months.
1048"We implore you to learn from them.  Listen to them, hear them, take in what they do.  Learn to see more than what they tell you.  Explore where you are.  Test yourself in their labyrinths.  See what lies within and beyond those spaces.  Our labyrinths are a continuation of who we are, and within each of them we see not only the creator, but also a reflection of ourselves.
1049"Study them, and find your own path through it.  We expect great things, Sarah.  Now, Ofelia has a few words."
1050Dalitso stepped back, and Ofelia stepped forward to the center.  "I want also to urge you, Sarah, to study as much as you can when you work with other rulers.  Don't stop at just the labyrinths or the castles -- look at the people, as well.  All rulers have different ways of ruling.  All kingdoms function differently.  No one is better than another.  
1051"You will hear that often, and we truly mean it.  Take time and search outside and within yourself, and find your our ruling method.  Others are a good example of different ways to do things, but its within yourself that you find how you want to rule.  There are many different ways, and the correct way is one that flows naturally with you.
1052"It may seem confusing now, Sarah, but it will grow clearer over your years.  And it will take years.  Now, Evgeni, you have a few words as well, correct?"  Ofelia stepped back, as Evgeni stepped forward to the center.
1053"I do, thank you Ofelia.  There is little I can say that the others have not already spoken.  Sarah, don't forget to ask for help.  We have time.  No one around you is so short on time that they cannot help you, and you will struggle to find those who refuse to give assistance.  
1054"Allow others to help.  It's another form of growth, and having assistance isn't failure -- it's success, if anything.  It can be another form of leadership, another form of ruling.  Find those methods as you learn.  Good luck, Sarah.  I have high hopes."  He stepped back with a smile.
1055Hilda stepped back to the center.  "Thank you, everyone.  Leona, I believe you have your own announcements now, correct?"  She gestured to Leona.
1056Leona stepped up to the dais as the heads stepped down.  "I do, and thank you all of you.  Those were very kind words, and I believe we all feel a new sense of enthusiasm and concurrent motivation with Sarah.
1057"Now, it's time for us to join and to feast.  If you could all find your way to a table, we will begin."  Leona ended up on a clap and stepped down off the dias.
1058Those in the crowd began milling towards tables and chairs, arraigned in curved tables scattered all along the room.  Leona directed Sarah to the front table, where the other Currant members sat as well.
1059"Thank you, Leona."  Sarah said, with as much gratitude as she could.  
1060"You're very welcome, Sarah.  And I mean that in the most direct sense -- we want you to feel welcome.  I hope we've succeeded."  Leona looked expectantly.
1061"Absolutely.  All of you have been wonderful.  And I truly appreciate it."  
1062A chorus of "you're welcome" went up.
1063"Now, it's time for us to eat."  Leona snapped, and her staff began filtering in with trays of food, pitchers of wine or water or other drinks, dishes and utensils, napkins, breads, everything that could be wanted.  
1064Everyone began eating, while conversation went on.  Occasionally questions were asked of Sarah, but mostly she took the time as a break, to eat and the drink and to not talk for a bit.  And to not stand.
1065Everyone had been standing for a pretty long time.  Sarah was pretty exhausted of standing.  They ate and they conversed a bit.  Everyone complimented Leona on the food choices and her staff and the party as a whole.
1066Dessert came out, which included candied flowers. Everything was beautiful and delicious.  People in the underground could definitely cook.  And plan parties.  That much was certain. 
1067Sarah hoped she could pull off an event like this someday.  If no other goal existed, throwing down a good time would be a worthy challenge.  What would her challenges be?  What sort of people would she bring to the underground to be tested?
1068She wasn't sure.  A deep reflection would be needed, but it sounded like she'd be getting that in the next few months, with studying under other rulers and visiting them and them visiting her.  She was glad to not be left up to her own devices.  But still, it was daunting.  And she was kind of scared.
1069But, that's ok.  All would be fine.  She had met a good variety of people, and had met even more.  And the directors appeared to be helpful.  She hoped for the best, if nothing else.
1070After the meal, the tables were cleared out to make space for a dance floor, and people began to dance.  Sarah danced with a pretty wide variety of people -- she began with Lucas, if only to spend time speaking to him about his library.
1071"Really, an entire floor is devoted just to comic books?"
1072"Truly.  It's been somewhat of a vice for me since their invention.  I will probably need to open a second floor soon, but for now it holds.  I haven't read them all, I must admit, but I enjoy the collecting and overseeing most of all."
1073"I can understand that sentiment.  I look forward to visiting you, Lucas."
1074"I look forward to showing my castle to you.  I hope you enjoy it.  Nothing bring me more joy than sharing it with people."  Lucas said with a smile.  
1075After their dance, Sarah was asked to dance by Etienne. "I accept, of course.  I'm afraid I'm not the best dancer, but I will leave myself in your capable hands."  They took to the floor.
1076"Fear not, Sarah, you will learn to dance over time.  And, besides, as the wine flows more heavily, we all forget a little.  But by that point, I'm not sure how much dancing we really do, no?"  
1077"Perhaps.  The others told me these parties tend to go on for a few days.  How do people do that?"
1078"Well, Leona has more than enough rooms for people to take rests.  Plus, many people end up leaving to go home for a while, and then come back.  You'll see the costumes began to get less elaborate in a few hours, as people switch out."
1079"I don't think I've ever been to a party that lasted that long.  It still seems exhausting."
1080"Oh, it is.  But you'll understand them well enough, I'm sure.  They're a good opportunity for us to... I suppose, play a little?"  
1081"Ah, to sleep around I guess?"
1082"That's one way to put it, yes."  He laughed a little at it.  "Thank you for the dance, Sarah.  What you lack in skill, you make up with natural grace.  And you didn't step on my toes even once."  He left her after kissing her hand, off to find another partner. 
1083A man from the Southern kingdom came next, decked out in birds of paradise flowers.  He was fairly flamboyant, but nice.  His name was Otavio, and he was a lovely dancer.  He swung her around, taking the lead.  
1084They didn't really speak, but she enjoyed the enthusiastic dancing.  He thanked her, gave her a quick kiss on the mouth and a wink, and went off to find another partner.
1085"Well, alright.  This isn't so bad."  Sarah said to herself.  
1086"What, were you expecting torture devices?"  Alice asked.
1087"Of course not, but dancing now is either a bunch of dudes grinding up on you in a dark club, or a bunch of too cool hipsters who barely sway during a show."
1088"That doesn't sound like much fun.  Would you like to dance?"
1089"Sure.  I take it there's not much of a stigma against dancing with the same sex here?"  Sarah asked.  They took to the floor.
1090"No, not much at all.  It's a nice perk.  And before you ask, no there's very little stigma against those relationships either."  Alice knew what was on her mind.
1091"Well, that's pretty progressive.  Even now, Aboveground, it's still difficult."
1092"We all have our own preferences.  I may like to dance with other girls, but I'm not terribly into sleeping with them.  But, just being able to do this, to dance, it's pretty freeing."  She smiled.
1093"I'm glad to hear it.  The music is actually not bad, too.  I was expecting classical or something, but this is pretty contemporary."
1094"We do keep somewhat current, you know."  
1095"I guess it's difficult to imagine.   Everyone has been here for so long."
1096"Well, we still enjoy our trips above.  I like to go during the fashion weeks.  It's really mesmerizing."  Alice reminisced.  
1097They finished up the dance, and continued on.  "Thank you for the dance, Alice."
1098"Of course.  Now go, you have a line of partners, I'm sure."
1099Sarah continued dancing, working her way through a cadre of partners.  Some women, some men, some from other states, some from her same region.  After a while of this, she knew she needed at least a little rest.
1100Jareth approached her with a glass of water.  "Come, let's get you somewhere you can rest for a few minutes.”
1101"Oh god yes, please."  Sarah followed him out onto one of the balconies, out into the cool breeze, to a bench along one side.  
1102It was dark out now, but Leona had decorated the patio to be lit and covered in flowers.  "Leona outdid herself didn't she?"  Sarah asked.
1103"That's her modus operandi.  But we all get good at it.  You'll have your turn, too.  There's generally another big party right before ones labyrinth is opened up.  You'll have to host it of course, but you'll be fine."
1104"Oh, well that sounds kind of fun, actually.  I still don't know what kind of kingdom I want, though."
1105"You have time to think about it.  But, you should still think about it, of course.  You'll get it in under control, Sarah.  You've already done well so far."
1106"Do you mean it?  You're not just being nice?"
1107"Of course not.  If you really stuffed it up, it'd look bad on me, and I'd have to fix it.  So yes, I'm honest on that front."  
1108"Thanks."  They drank their drinks in peace.  A staff member came by at one point, offering more wine, which Sarah accepted.  "I don't know how long I'm supposed to stay.  I've slept so early the past couple weeks.  Then again, I haven't had to use any magic today, so I'm not near as tired."
1109"When you feel like you can't do any more, let Leona know.  She's got a room prepared for you, I'm sure."
1110"Probably the same one I was in last night."   Sarah drained the glass quickly.  'Okay.  Back to dancing.  I have to admit, the dancing is fun.  I haven't gotten to dance like this since I was in college.  It's pretty refreshing."
1111"Glad to hear it.  If you'd like, we can go a round before you continue on your quest to dance with every person here."
1112"Of course!"  They hit the dance floor, to a moderately paced song.  
1113"Is everyone really good at dancing here?" Sarah asked.
1114"We have a lot of time to get good at things.  Plus, our parties last for days and we have wine and drugs.  We may not have parties all the time, but there's at least one a month.  Plus big events around the holidays.  And we find reasons to make holidays."  
1115"What's the downside of the Underground?"
1116"I'll leave that for you to figure out."  Jareth said.
1117"Sometimes I can't tell if what we're doing here is a prison or just a really good place.  I don't know if I fully understand yet that I won't see my family again."  
1118"Sarah, I would wait to continue that line of thought until the party is over, and you're alone.  If you keep pondering it here, you'll just make yourself unhappy."  
1119"I know, but sometimes it's nice to have someone to talk to."
1120Jareth thought about that.  "It is.  Once it's over and you've rested some, come and talk to me about it.  I can share some experience."
1121"Thanks, Jareth."  The song ended, and Sarah and Jareth stepped off the floor.
1122Sarah was soon assauged by more possible partners, and for the next few hours, danced and drank and spoke with a wide variety of people.  She'd discovered that the language barrier wasn't an issue, and finally brought it up to Alice.
1123"Oh, dear, it's a characteristic of the Underground.  We have sort of.. innate language abilities?  They take a while to develop, but I'll work with you a bit later on it.  You'll realize it when you start hearing another language."
1124"Good god, what other weird perks are there?"
1125Alice chuckled.  "You'll figure them out over time.  It definitely gives an advantage to living here.  It still applies to Aboveground, too, which will be helpful for wherever you visit."
1126"When did you start visiting?"  Sarah asked.
1127"Not for the first year, and not more than a couple times for the next couple years.  It wasn't worth it, and it was exhausting to do.  Plus, I was still pretty mad at what had happened."
1128"Understandable.  I know my family won't remember me, but it'd be nice to at least see that they're doing well, you know?"
1129"I do.  Just don't fall into the trap of trying to approach them.  It won't work.  They don't remember you, and they're ... well, it's like they're programmed to distrust you now.  It messes with their heads, I guess.  Like something shouldn't be there, you know?"
1130"Huh.  I guess that makes some sense.  Maybe they sense we shouldn't be there anymore."
1131"I guess so.  People are starting to wind down a little, find rooms, split off.  It might be nice to go rest for a bit, maybe take a nap."  Alice suggested.
1132"Oh god, that would be great.  Do you remember where my room was?"  Sarah asked.
1133"Of course, follow me.  I think I'd like to get a nap first.  Let's let Leona know first."
1134Together, they found Leona and let her know they'd be off resting.  
1135"Rest well, little ones.  I'll be going in a bit myself, but not for resting."  She winked.  She currently had a handsome man from the Southern state on her arm.  "I will see you both in a while."
1136They went out of the hall, up two flights of stairs, and to the hallway where Sarah's room lay.  "Here you go, Sarah.  Rest well.  The other dresses should be in there as well, now.  My room is across from yours; when you get ready to go back, let me know and I can come help with your hair and such."
1137"Thanks, Alice.  What would I do without you?"
1138Alice chuckled.  "Have ratty hair, of course.  Goodnight, Sarah."  She waved her off and went into her own room.
1139Sarah closed the door and began undressing, and found the silky pajamas she'd worn folded and sitting on the dresser.  "I could definitely sleep.  I hope I don't sleep too long."
1140She laid down in bed, and quickly drifted off. 
1141Sarah was woken up by Alice.
1142"Sarah, Sarah, wake up." She was standing over her holding a glass of juice and a plate. "I brought you breakfast. You've been asleep too long now. It's nearly morning, now."
1143"What? Really? Good god, I'm still tired." She sat up in bed and accepted the plate and juice. "Thanks."
1144"Of course. Don't worry, the party is still in full swing. It's a little lulled down right now. There's still a few people milling about, but most people have gone to rooms to sleep for a bit or to do whatever. Everyone will be back by mid-morning or so."
1145"Well that's good. That gives me a little time to recover, I suppose."
1146Alice chuckled. "No one will blame you. Being new is exhausting. You'll be fine."
1147"Thanks, Alice." Sarah ate the sandwich on the plate quickly and drank up the juice. Once done, she got out of bed. "So, which dress should I wear?"
1148"Well, I like the cherry blossom one a lot. What do you say?"
1149"I agree." Sarah stopped in front of the dress with the cherry blossoms. The branches flowed down her back and trained out. It was beautiful. "But, when I start dancing, I want to switch into the hibiscus one. It'd be easier to move in."
1150"Good choice." Alice helped her get the dress down and get it on. Once finished, they headed back to the hall, where only a few people were milling about. "Is Leona gone?" Sarah asked.
1151"I guess so."  Alice answered.  "She might be resting.  It looks like there's some games going on, though.  It might be nice to join in.  I'm going to go find a chess match."  Alice walked off towards the chess tables now littering the room.
1152Sarah was sort of dumbfounded.  What should she do?  What could she do?  She knew some boardgames sure, if it was checkers.  But she didn't see checkers tables.  She knew how to play mancala.  
1153"Sarah, want to play a game with us?"  Someone called out to her.  She turned around.  Easterly was calling to her.
1154"Huh?"
1155"We have a game of mahjong going.  You could come play with us.  We can teach you, don't worry."
1156"Uh, sure.  Why not?"
1157Easterly smiled at her.  "Why not indeed?"
1158She joined them at their table.  Two of the players stood up to let her and Easterly play, leaving to join another table.  A man and a woman still sat at the table.   "Please, sit."  Easterly replied
1159"Sure.  Uh.  Is this like the matching game?"
1160They laughed at her.  "No, no, it's not.  But it does have tiles."  One of the members, a guy with long hair tied back replied.  "I'm Xun."
1161"Shun?"
1162"Xun.  With an 'x'."  
1163"Oh.  I see. So, uhh.  How is it played?"
1164"Have you played rummy before?"
1165"Rummy?"
1166"Like the card game?" The woman replied. "Sayuri, by the way."
1167"Nice to meet you both.  I'm afraid I haven't played it."
1168"Well, that's ok.  We can still teach you.  Have you played poker before?"  Eastelry asked.
1169"Yeah, I think I understand that."  
1170"That's something.  Okay, you have a hand of 13 tiles.  You have to make threes-of-a-kind, sequential runs, like one-two-three or five-six-seven or such.  With a full hand, you'll have four of those three sets and a pair.  You'll understand more as you play."
1171They shuffled the tiles quickly, running their hands over and through the tiles.  They started pulling them towards themselves, lining them up into rows.
1172"You'll make two rows of 17 tiles."  Easterly said.  "Stack the rows on top of eachother.
1173Sarah began pulling tiles to herself, slowly stacking them up.  Everyone else was done well before her.  
1174They pushed their rows to the center, and Sarah followed suit.  They rolled a set of two dice and began from the person to her right, pushing the tiles six stacked to the right.
1175"Okay, we draw a tile, and we discard a tile."  Easterly explained.
1176"Okay.  I think I can do that."  
1177"It gets more complicated than that, but let's get you started with just making threes of a kind and runs, okay?" 
1178"Alright."
1179For a few rounds, Sarah would take and discard a tile, finally getting a three of a kind.
1180"Pong."  Sayuri called out after Easterly discarded a tile.  
1181"That means she wants to steal a tile to make a three of a kind.  You can steal for a three of a kind any time, but if you want to steal to make a run, it has to be discarded by the person before you.  Make sense?"  Easterly asked.
1182"I think so.  I don't really know, but I think so."
1183"Good, good."  They watched Sayuri then discard a tile.
1184They went a few more rounds, with Sarah stealing for a run at one point, and putting together a three of a kind.  Before she could complete a pair and another three of a kind, Sayuri won.
1185"Ikkitsuukan yakuhai."
1186"Okay, here is the complicated part:  You can only win if your hand has winning conditions.  Sayuri's hand contains a couple of things.  She has a three runs within circles -- one-two-three, four-five-six, seven-eight-nine, and she has a three of a kind of the fortune tiles.  So, she has two fan."
1187"Fan?"
1188"Yes.  Fan are ... sort of.. multipliers?  They tell you how many times you'll multiply the points she gets.  You can't win without a fan.  There are a wide range of fans -- the most common being either all threes-of-a-kind or 'pong' or a fully concealed hand where you declare that you need only one tile -- that's called riichii.  It gets more complicated than that.  I'll point out things when they happen, ok?"
1189"Okay."
1190"Just don't expect to win for a while."  Xun said with a wink.
1191"I'm fine with that, I guess."  Sarah retorted.  
1192They played a few more games, each time Sarah gaining a little more knowledge into ways to win.  She still didn't totally understand it,but she liked the candor of the game and the teasing that went on.
1193Slowly, people began coming back.  Some joined the tables of games going on, some sat and drank and talked.  Some watched the games going on, and some found alcoves to get close in.  
1194"I think this will be my last game."  Sarah said.
1195"Ah, we may need to wind it down a little."  Easterly stated.  "Leona will probably call for lunch, soon.  Maybe you would like to go visit her when we're done?"  
1196"I would, yeah."  They went through the next game quickly, with Sarah ending up a tile away from winning -- but still short.  "Thanks for showing me how to play.  I'd love to play again soon, okay?"
1197"Of course, Sarah.  We may play more tomorrow morning if you would like?"  Sayuri offered.
1198"Thanks, Sayuri -- I'd enjoy that."  Sarah smiled.
1199She worked her way around the room, finding Leona in the same area as Alice, playing chess.  Alice had moved on from chess and was now playing hearts with a group including Ana.  
1200"Leona, hi."  Sarah said.  
1201"Oh, hello, dear.  Let me finish this game, okay?"  Sarah sat and watched them play for the next few minutes, until Leona finished, and own.  "Good to go.  It's nearly lunch, isn't it?  It's about time for us to put up the games, then."
1202Leona stood and strode to the front of the room, where she could ring a bell and get everyone to quiet down.  "Good morning, everyone.  It's lunchtime, so If you could, finish up your games in the next few minutes.  Lunch will be arriving in ten minutes."  
1203She walked back to Sarah, who was now watching Ana and Alice and another two people play their card game.  They were quickly finished, and packing the cards back up.  
1204A few minutes later, most of the tables were cleared and food began to be brought out.  They ate their sandwiches and talked and more and soon all the people from the night before were back.  
1205After lunch, all the plates were taken away and people either went back to games or conversation.  A couple hours later, a few people began playing instruments and singing, and a dancefloor opened up.
1206Occasionally the bands would shift and the music would change, people filtered in and out.  Sarah joined the dancers, partnering up for some, dancing in a group for others.  It was nice.  
1207The night passed by similarly to the first night.  Food was served, people danced, people talked, people snuck off to other places.  
1208Sarah wondered what it would be like to sneak off with someone.  Could she just choose someone, flirt with them, and find a place to be with them?  Was she able to do that?  
1209She had her fair share of relationships when she was younger.  Sure, that all fell by the wayside when she got into her relationship with Quentin.  But, before that time, she had enjoyed herself.
1210What would it feel lke to go back to that time?  She could do it.  She could find someone, flirt with them, and do this.  But who?
1211She sat at one of the tables nearby to take a break.  It was nice to sit alone, drink a drink, watch the people go by.  Everyone else was in their own world.  It was nice being in her own world.
1212She watched couples as they danced.  Their hands would move lower, rise up, back down.  The two would step closer, closer, a hand to the neck, to the small of the back, through the hair.  Sometimes they would tease.  Taunt.  Or persue.  
1213What was that like?  She almost couldn't remember.  She had to admit, having people dance with her or get close or ask flirty was nice.  People so far hadn't been gross about it -- no one had made rude comments or anything.  So that was nice.
1214She continued watching for a while, feeling tired and sleepy.  Instead of dancing, she decided she would find Alice or Leona and take a nap.  She wandered around the room for a bit, trying to find one of them, but no luck.  Instead, she found a free alcove with a couch and sat back, falling asleep.
1215A while later, she awoke to someone's voice and the feeling of weight shifting next to her.  
1216"Hello, little one."  Came the voice to her side, sitting on the sofa next to her.  
1217Sarah opened her eyes and looked over.  "Hello."  She sat up straight.  
1218"Sorry to wake you.  Leona asked me to check on you."  Sarah wasn't sure if Leona would do that.  The person sitting next to her was a man.  
1219"Okay.  Where is she now?" 
1220"Just over there."  He pointed towards a cluster of tables halfway across the room.  Sarah could make out Leona and Ana.  They waved.  He gave a little wave.  Leona gave a thumbs up.
1221"Oh.  Thanks.  Uh.."  Sarah trailed off.
1222"Adrian.  Sorry."  He looked sheepish, which was surprising to see here.  Lucas was the only moderately sheepish person she'd met so far, and she bet even he had no trouble with women.  
1223"Sarah.  I think you already know that.  Nice to meet you."  Sarah took back what she was thinking.  There was no way this guy had any trouble meeting women.  Maybe the sheepish thing was a ploy, a strategy he used.
1224She could understand it working.  He had slightly long dark brown hair, and a little bit of stubble.  He had a slightly germanic accent.  
1225"Lovely to meet you, Sarah.  Sorry if I scared you a little."  
1226"It's alright.  I needed to be woken up, anyhow."  She smiled at him.  "Is there something about to happen?"
1227"No, no.  Mostly dancing now.  Dancing and flirting and finding someone to while the time away with."  
1228"I see.  Should I let you get back to that, then?"  Sarah asked.
1229"Aren't I doing that already?"  
1230"You know, I thought you were being coy at first, but now I know better."  
1231He blushed and laughed. "I am sorry, Sarah.  I feel embarrassed even having said that."
1232"I suppose people in the Underground aren't quite as subtle about their wants, are they?"
1233"Perhaps not.  It can be freeing, being open about what you want, but there's still something to be said for subtlety, isn't there?"   He asked.
1234"I guess I can't judge.  In the relationship I was in before, we practically scheduled our times together.  There was little subtlety involved."
1235"Oh, but that's just boring.  People here may be less subtle, but they are anything but boring."
1236"Well, we'll see about that."  Sarah stood up and positioned herself in front of him, extending a hand.  "Want to dance?"
1237"Of course."  She led him to the dance area, joining in with the other dancers.  They danced closer, smoother, more intimately than she had done with the others.  The music was speedier tonight, more like the songs she had heard in college when she would go to a club with friends.  
1238Sarah decided to dance with Adrian longer than just a moment, as she had with the others.  The music shifted into a downtempo bit, and the two found themselves, pressed in by the others around them.  Adrian's hand drifted down her waist, and pulled her closer
1239"Sarah, what do you want?"  He leaned close and spoke softly.  
1240"What do I want?"  She directed towards him
1241"Do you want to be alone?  Do you want quiet and solitude?  Do you want company?  Do you want to spend your time in a mass of people, feeling the energy soar over you?    Or do you want to feel the rush of closeness with someone?  To feel their want and to share your own desires with them?"
1242She felt herself blushing.  "I want to be close."  She slid her hand into his hair.  
1243"We'll be as close as you want, then."  He ran a hand up her neck and into her own hair.  "We can go wherever you like."
1244"I know there are little spaces here for people to tuck into to, to be alone, but I'd rather be... more inconspicuous."
1245"Then I know a good place to go."  He took her hand.  "Follow me." 
1246He led them out of the hall and into the rest of the floor, up a set of stairs, and then another, down a hallway, and to a room.  "This is the room Leona has for me.  I hope you don't mind."
1247"No, of course not.  I'd rather be out of sight.  I feel kind of... like I'm under a microscope, you know?"
1248"I suppose I do.  Come, come, you will be only under my microscope now."  He led her into the room and shut the door behind them.  
1249He was on her in a second, his lips pressing into hers, her mouth opening to him. He ran his tongue over hers, sucked her bottom lip into his mouth, ran his hand into her hair.
1250"I need to get out of this ridiculous dress." She said suddenly. "Not that I mean we should immediately get into bed, but seriously, I have flowers everywhere.” 
1251"We should get you out of it.  We men are lucky -- our flowers are kept only to capes and jackets pretty much."  He undid the cape around on his neck and slid it off.  He came around to the back of Sarah and undid the fastenings for Sarah's dress.  "Would you like something to wear instead?"
1252"Um.  Yeah, actually, I would.  Sorry."  
1253"It's not problem, Sarah.  I don't expect you to be immediately comfortable with being so undressed so quickly."  He pulled out a silver top and spun it on the table next to them, becoming a pair of silky pajamas.  "I hope these are acceptable for you."
1254"Yes, I think so.  Do you mind turning around?"
1255"Of course."  Adrian turned and faced the other direction out of respect for Sarah.
1256Sarah changed quickly, leaving the dress on a side table.  "Thanks.  I appreciate the gentleman-ness of this.  I'm done now."
1257"We all generally try to be gentlemen.  Well, not all of us, but the ones I associate with, at least."  Adrian sat on the bed.  
1258"I suppose eventually I'll meet someone here who isn't very nice."
1259"You will.  But hopefully, by that point, you'll be a bit more versed in how things work in the Underground."  
1260"Let's stop talking."  Sarah straddled him on the bed.  
1261"Good idea."  He pulled her back with him on the bed.  
1262__________________
1263Jareth had been dancing with a lovely girl he knew from the Southern state.  They'd had their fun together before.  He wondered if he should do it again.  It had been a while since he'd spent time with another person, in bed at least.
1264He wondered where Sarah was.  He scanned the room, seeing her asleep on a sofa in an alcove.  He smirked slightly, though he realized he couldn't blame her for being exhausted.  Being new here had been heavily exhausting.
1265But, she was so vulnerable as she was.  What would stop someone uncouth from coming upon her?  
1266"Excuse me, Silvi.  I'm going to go speak to Leona for a moment."
1267He strode across the room to where Leona was sitting with Ana.  "How long has Sarah been asleep over there?"  He asked.
1268"Oh, don't worry about it.  I've kept an eye on her.  She'll be fine.  Because, I just sent Adrian over to check on her.  No worries."
1269"Adrian?  Are you trying to play matchmaker, Leona?"  
1270"Calm down, Jareth.  Adrian is a nice boy.  If Sarah wants to do anything with him, it's her decision.  He's about as gentlemanly as they come here, and I can't think of anyone less threatening than him as her first foray into relationships here."  Leona took a sip of her wine.
1271"Do you really think she's ready for anything like that?  She's still young."  Jareth wasn't sure about this.
1272"She's not a child anymore, despite how you remember her."  She handed him a glass of wine.  "Calm down."
1273He accepted the glass and drank.  "I know she's not.  But she may not fully understand yet that people here don't sleep together in hopes of a relationship."  
1274"Oh, knock it off.  She's an adult.  Did you ever think maybe she wants something less long-term?  Besides, we've all had our own relationships here.  You spent nearly a decade with Miriam."  
1275"Yes, and it took two more decades before we could be in the same room together."  
1276"How is that any different than what Sarah is used to?  Sure, there's less people, but it's not like we're around each other all the time."
1277Jareth sighed.  "You're right, I know."
1278"You sound jealous, Jareth.  It's unbecoming on you."
1279Jareth recalled his words to Sarah, accusing her of the same.  "Maybe you're right.  I'll let it go; if Sarah wants to spend time with Adrian, so be it.  You're right.  He's not a bad person.  Sort of boring, I guess, but not malicious."
1280"If you actually talked to him, you might not think him that boring."
1281"I think I've spoken to him enough to find him dull."
1282"Have you ever even seen his kingdom?"
1283"Never felt I should."
1284"You would like it, I think.  He's a more interesting person than you think.  Maybe more than you.  I think Sarah would do well to spend some time with him."
1285Jareth prickled.  He had been watching out on the floor, watching the two of them dance.  Now he held her close.  "I suppose."
1286"Don't try to claim you're not jealous, Jareth.  I can see it in you.  You look like you would drag him off and punch him in the nose."  She chuckled.  "You're the one who should be lectured on how Underground relationships work."
1287"It's just concern.  It's like an older brother looking after a younger sister."
1288"Keep telling yourself that, Jareth.  The rest of us aren't as blind."
1289"Fine.  Well, whatever, they're leaving now.  Whatever happens happens."  Sarah and Adrian were heading out the door, through the hallway now.  
1290"Go find your own entertainment, Jareth.  Maybe Silvi?  She looks like she's about to leave with Zyanya.  Maybe you could join in on that."
1291He gave a despondent laugh.  "No, if Silvi's leaving with another woman, she doesn't want my kind tonight at all.  And Zyanya isn't a huge fan of me."  He watched the two women embracing, heading for a secluded alcove.  
1292"Well, I'm sure you could find some companionship.  Away from here."
1293"I will take the hint.  Have a lovely night, Leona."  Jareth went off in search of his own companion.  
1294____
1295Sarah woke up early the next morning.    She was naked, in bed with Adrian.  He was really quite beautiful.  
1296"Hello, sleepyhead.  Sleep well?  I suppose we could get back to the party, couldn't we?"  He brushed hair out of her face.
1297"We could, but I need a dress.  I'm not sure how to get back to my room, either."
1298"Oh, I know where you probably are.  Leona most likely put you near where Alice's guest room is."  
1299"Yeah, actually, I'm across the hall from her."  She remembered.
1300"That's very, very easy then.  It's one floor up from here."  He smiled.
1301Together, they redressed and found their way up to Sarah's room with all of the dresses.  
1302Sarah found the four dresses left.  "Well, I think I can skip a couple of these.  No lillies.  Too much work.  The hibiscus one is cute.  And much easier to get around in.  Or maybe this one with the poppies."
1303"The hibiscus one, definitely.  It's cute."  
1304"Thanks."  Adrian turned away again while she changed. 
1305Together, they wandered back down to the party.  Sarah watched Adrian as he walked.  He was cute -- a little lanky, graceful limbs.  She didn't regret a thing.  It was fun, even.  She still wasn't totally sure what she was supposed to do afterwards.  
1306The room was again fairly sparse, and filled with people playing games and talking.  Easterly, Xun, and Sayuri were once again playing mahjong, albeit at all different tables.  They all gave her a little wave as she passed.  
1307Sarah and Adrian found Leona playing backgammon with Lucas and another woman watching them, who she had met but unfortunately, couldn't remember her name.  
1308"Hello, Leona, Lucas."  Sarah approached them first. 
1309"Oh, hello, dear."  Leona greeted them.  "Good to see you, Adrian."  She said with a sly smile.
1310"You as well, Leona.  And hello Lucas, hello Oighrig."  Adrian greeted them all.
1311"Lovely, Adrian.  How are you, Sarah?"  Oighrig asked.  
1312"Great, thanks."  Sarah wasn't sure what else to say.  "How is the game?"
1313"Quite good dear, but we must get back to concentrating."  Leona went back to throwing the dice.
1314"I suppose we may want to move on, then."  Adrian suggested.
1315"I'd like to go play mahjong with people I played with yesterday.  You don't have to join me if you don't like."  Sarah suggested.
1316"That's fine; I see some people I'd like to play cribbage with."  He answered.
1317"Oh, awesome.  Well, I'll see you later, then?"
1318"If you'd like.  It's up to you, Sarah.  I would like to see you again, of course, but I take no offense if you want to continue your journey with someone else, or many someone elses.  Just know that I will gladly spend time with you again, if you'd like -- be it today or weeks, months, years down the road."
1319"Thanks, Adrian.  I guess I'll get used to how it works here.  For now, it's fairly confusing.  I don't want to hurt anyone, you know?"
1320"Don't worry.  Most of us are far too old to be hurt by those things anymore."  
1321"I suppose I'll understand eventually.  Enjoy your game, Adrian.  I enjoyed spending time with you last night.  You made me a very, very happy girl."  She gave him a shy smile.  "But, I think you're right.  I think right now I'd like to explore more of what this place has to offer."  
1322"Of course."  He pulled her in for a close hug.  "Enjoy, Sarah."  He gave her a kiss, and sent her off.
1323Sarah waltzed to the Mahjong tables, and sat in watching Easterly's game.
1324"Good morning, Sarah.  I trust you ... slept well?"  He asked.
1325She blushed.  "Fairly well, thank you."  
1326"I'm only teasing you.  Adrian is a nice man.  And sex in the Underground is hardly taboo."  
1327"I think I'm getting the idea.  I did grow up in a fairly cavalier society, so it's not like that's stunning to me."  Sarah quipped.
1328"Perhaps, but we are much freer here than you are most likely used to."  He flipped his tiles to show a winning hand.  
1329"Aishhh, again?"  The man across from him said. 
1330"Sorry, Jiwoo.  I'm going to bow out, though."  Easterly stood from the table.  "Would you like to go for a walk, Sarah?"
1331"Uh, sure.  Why not?"  She stood from her own seat and followed him out of the hall.  "I don't actually know where I'm going, though."  
1332"That's alright, we're only going out to Leona's gardens.  Sometimes it can be more comfortable to speak with less people around, no?"  
1333"I suppose."  She agreed.  "Though, now I'm a little worried.  Is there something you want to tell me?"  
1334"No, no, this is just a walk, Sarah."  They were walking out into a garden now, with trellises puffed high with flowers, and rows of bushes, a creek running through it.  
1335"Her gardens are beautiful."  
1336"She's done a lovely job.  Don't worry, you'll get there too if you want."  He reassured her.
1337"I hope I can.  I haven't gotten a whole lot of work done yet."
1338"From what Early told me, you've gotten quite a bit of work done so far.  You've cleaned up the tower and even pushed back some of the overgrowth."  
1339"How did he know?"  She asked.
1340"We do have eyes.  And getting around the Underground is a little easier for us."  He smiled.
1341"You guys are able to transport wherever, right?"  
1342"Yes.  Though, as you know, the rulers cannot.  Which is why you all have flying forms and swimming forms and such."  They stopped at a huge tree with a bench lining the bottom.  Easterly sat down, and patted the seat next to him.
1343Sarah sat down.  In front of them was a small pond filled with huge lilypads.  Lotus flowers floated in the water.  Cattails softened the edges.  Blown glass sculptures dotted the outside, brilliant, vibrant colors flowing around the edges.  It made for a beautiful picture, with Leona's own castle towering above the tops of the hedges and trellises.  They were blocked from view from the patio and the partygoers.  
1344"So I've heard.  Mine is a flamingo, by the way.  Though I haven't tested my swimming or galloping form yet."  
1345"A flamingo?  Oh, Westerly.  He does have a sense of humor when it comes to choosing the forms.  You'll have to try swimming sometime.  It's good fun."  He implored.
1346"I'll remember that.  Does Westerly choose all the forms?"
1347"Yes, he does.  We each have set duties we perform."
1348"Really?  What are yours?"  She asked.
1349"Well, I take care of a few things.  Mostly dealing with travel to and from Aboveground, and limiting."
1350"Huh.  How does that work?"  
1351"Ah, you're a little too fresh for me to really explain that to.  Unfortunately, Sarah, it will be some time before you can truly visit Aboveground.  I apologize for my answers being so vague."  He pulled two glasses of orange juice and champagne out of the air.  "Consolation prize."
1352"It's alright.   Thank you."  She took the offered glass and sipped.  "I suppose I have a lot to learn, and hopefully enough time to do so."  
1353"You do.  It's going to be difficult, but we fear not -- we want to help you and we want you to do well, Sarah."
1354"I'm glad for that.  I have no idea what I'm doing.  Right now, I'm attending a party.  A party I've been at for three days now.  Shouldn't I be working?"  She asked.
1355"No, no this is still important.  These events give you time to see new parts of the Underground.  It's only the beginning of what you'll see."
1356"I suppose.  Though I've only seen three other kingdoms so far."  She sighed.
1357"That will change soon, actually.  We'll be setting you up to visit and stay with other kingdoms for a week at a time, soon.  Some you'll know, but some will be totally new.  It will do you good.  You'll see some that you won't agree with, you'll see some you wish you could have yourself, and some that are, well, kind of boring.  But they are all their own thing."
1358"It's kind of mindnumbing to think about.  And daunting."  She admitted.
1359"Don't worry, Sarah.  You can do this."  He reassured her.  
1360"Thanks, Easterly.  I'm still scared, though.  I see all these impressive things other people are doing.  I see their work and what they can do, and I feel kind of useless.  I don't have these grand notions of what I want to be.  I can't think of any defining features of my life other than the fact that I was stupid enough to wish my brother away and lucky enough to beat Jareth.  
1361"I don't have any humanitarian goals or even vengeful fantasies.  I don't know how I can just create a kingdom out of the blue.  Everyone seems like they have their great niches, and I just feel dull.  Ordinary."  She sighed.
1362Easterly only smiled.  "It's a very human thing, Sarah.  There's nothing wrong with being scared or feeling less than.  It's quite normal.  It takes a long time to be extraordinary, and even those with a clearcut idea of what they wanted to do still had to go through the trials and tribulations of getting it fleshed out and working."
1363"I suppose.  I just wish I had something I really cared about."
1364"You'll figure it out, Sarah.  You will.  You aren't the first to have these thoughts, and you certainly won't be the last.  But I have faith in you.  Visiting other kingdoms and doing the work you're currently doing in your kingdom will lead you to great introspection.  Soon, you will find that little ember within you that sets you on fire."  
1365"I appreciate the kind words.  I hope I can succeed."  She leaned back against the trunk and looked up into the cascading branches.
1366"Adjusting to the Underground won't be linear.  I can't say I know what it's like -- afterall, my siblings and I have never been Aboveground -- but I've helped enough rulers with their journey to know it's difficult."
1367"I guess it's no different than starting a new job."  Sarah watched the leaves moving.
1368"Sarah, you're not so naive.  It's much, much more than that.  The real meat of what I want to talk to you about is relationships."
1369"More of this?  I swear, everyone keeps giving me advice on how relationships work here."
1370"Well, it's not to be taken lightly.  You aren't going to feel great in the beginning.  Raw, probably.  It's hard to switch from a life where relationships are a huge part -- in terms of romantic ones, life-long ones, to a place where it's crucial to accept that all relationships will end."
1371"I haven't been with anyone I've wanted to spend my whole life with, so I guess that's not that bad."
1372"Yes, but you were living with your last partner, correct?"  Easterly asked.
1373"Well, yeah."
1374"Here, though, you can't live with someone -- you could stay over, if your kingdom is in good enough self-sufficiency.  But you can't make a life, not like you have."
1375"Why are we talking about this, Easterly?"
1376"Because I want you to be fully aware that you will have things that will hurt."  He leaned back and looked up as well.  "It's not just to say 'don't take things seriously' or anything, and I'm not saying anything as trite as 'don't fall in love' -- what I'm trying to get across is that it's alright to feel hurt, or to be in pain if you do get feelings for someone.  You'll learn over time how to both compartmentalize and redistribute those feelings."
1377"So don't just ignore them?"
1378"Exactly.  Let them exist.  They might hurt, but they're still valid.  And besides, there's nothing wrong with loving someone.  You'll learn more that you can contain a lot of love in one person.  For more than one person.  Sometimes that includes intimacy, sometimes not."
1379"What, so everyone just loves everyone like some sort of free love paradise?"
1380"Not quite.  Yes, everyone -- and by that I do seriously mean everyone -- has relationships with other people.  And yes, occasionally some people host these free love paradise parties you're thinking of.  But it has more to do with companionship, and caring, alongside intimacy.  And different forms of intimacy."
1381Sarah turned to face Easterly.  "So, what is it like for you and your siblings?"
1382"We're not so different.  We may not be rulers, but we still have relationships with them.  The only thing we discourage really is relations between rulers and denizens.  It happens, of course."
1383"Really?"
1384"Yes.  Again, we discourage it.  The denizens don't live indefinitely.  It's better to, well, stay separate."
1385"I doubt you and your siblings have relations with the denizens."
1386"Of course not.  We're rarely in contact with them.  But yes, we do... mingle, I suppose, with the rulers."
1387"Hmm.  So, what, I should just start whoring it up with the other rulers?"
1388"If that's what you'd like, sure.  Though you will be quite busy over the next couple years."
1389Sarah sighed and stood.  "Shall we go back, then?"
1390Easterly stood as well.  "Sure."
1391They walked back up into the building.  Sarah played another few rounds of mahjong with Easterly and a couple of other people, until lunch was served.  They played another few rounds after lunch, before the final night of dancing and enjoying the company of other people.  
1392Sarah found herself in the company of Adrian again, dancing and then exploring each other.   They spent the night together, and woke up together.  Adrian left to return to his own kingdom, in the Amethyst region, the Plum province.  
1393Sarah found Leona and Alice and bid them goodbye, and flew back to her own kingdom.  She hadn't been home for several days, and was glad to be back.  
1394But, instead of working or doing anything productive, she decided to relax and read instead.  She decided to deem it a resting day, and leave work to the next day.  After all, it'd been an exhausting few days.  It was nice to relax.  She took a bath.  Read a book.  Took a nap.  Made some food.  Took another nap.  And finally, slept and slept.
1395Sarah awoke the next morning.  Her head was still swimming a bit.  Still exhausted.  But, she knew she had work to do.  A lot of work to do.  Would there ever not be work?  Of course not.  There would always be work.  Centuries of it.  And no days off really -- not as a ruler.  
1396Or at least none until she got her kingdom self-sufficient, which could be a very, very long time.  She awoke and dressed.  Leona had been kind enough to provide her with another few sets of clothing to wear before she left.  She decided she would try making some clothing of her own that day, as she'd spent time the day before reading a book on how clothing comes together.   It was one of the ones Alice had left her.
1397She strode downstairs to the kitchen, resolving to also try teleporting as well.  She fixed breakfast quickly, and walked it back upstairs on a tray.  She sat on the couch, drank her coffee, ate her fruit and oatmeal, and jotted down what she wanted to do.  
1398Sarah decided to check on the hedges she'd forgotten about completely.  It'd been a few days now.  According to Leona, they grew fairly rapidly.  Flowy flew across the room and sat on her shoulder while she wrote and ate.  
1399She jotted down a few other items, like beating back more vines and making another pond -- maybe even a moat.  What else did she want to do?  Wall creation in the downstairs levels?   
1400As she was writing, a letter popped into the air and landed on the table above her plate.  It was addressed to Sarah, Western State, Ruby Region, Currant Province.  Sh wondered why they bothered addressing them -- of course it was going to her.  But at the same time, the normalcy was reassuring.
1401Sarah,
1402We hope you enjoyed your welcoming party.  It was a lovely affair for all of us, and we enjoyed meeting you and getting to know you.  Easterly hopes you'll play mahjong with him again -- he says it was very fun!  
1403As we mentioned, you will begin shadowing other rulers soon.  As such, we have decided upon your first assignment.  You will be shadowing Aghi, who lives in the Western State, Amethyst Region, Heather Province.  You have probably met him briefly, but no one will judge you if you don't remember him.  
1404He will be arriving at your castle tomorrow morning to show you the way to his own kingdom.  We recommend you look him up on the books Early gifted you -- it will help with having a notion of what to expect prior to arriving.  
1405You will be staying with Aghi for one week, during which your lodging and meals will be provided.  As well, clothing will be provided to you by Aghi as his kingdom's climate is a bit different from your own.  We hope you enjoy your time with him, and learn everything you can.  
1406If you have any issues or questions while you're with Aghi, please send us a note -- either via his mailbox, or you may send that paper bird of yours (don't worry, she knows where to go).  
1407Best wishes,
1408The Directors (Northerly, Easterly, Southerly, Westerly, and Early).  
1409PS Aghi is quite the gentle giant -- don't be afraid!
1410Sarah read over the letter again and sighed.  It looked like she wouldn't be able to get much work done as it was.  She finished eating her breakfast and decided to do what work she could.  
1411She quickly checked on the hedges, choosing to fly out the window and down to them instead of walking.  They were currently a good four feet tall and strong.  The pond looked good still.  No signs of weird decay or anything.  She wondered if she should make it bigger.  She used air to move the hedges into circular shapes.  
1412She spent a couple of hours or so removing debris from the edges and beating back small vines, before realizing it was getting into midday.  She was hungry and tired now.
1413She flew back up to the office room, and walked down the stairs to the kitchen again, making lunch, and bringing it back upstairs.  She pulled one of the books off the shelf about clothes making, opening it up to a simple sundress.  As she ate, she studied the pattern and how it came together, getting as good of an idea in her head as she could of the cut and assembly.  
1414After eating, she created a set of catalysts, preferring the gems now over the others.  The mirrors were nice, the gems felt comfortable to her.  She decided however, that she would start making them smaller than the large gems Jareth had gifted her in the beginning.  That way, they would be much more portable for her.  
1415Her first attempt had fraying seams and weird proportions.  The second fixed the seams.  The third was much closer in proportion, but not her size at all.  The fourth was dead on with proportion, and almost fitting.  The fifth, finally had the right size and proportion and good seams.  
1416The sixth, she made in the print she wanted -- large black and white stripes with polka dots on top.  A little retro, a little kitsch, but cute enough for herself.  She tried it on and decided it would be her dress for the rest of the day!
1417Sarah was fairly tired now, and decided it would be better to rest and get ready for the next day.  So, she took a slow, relaxing bath, choosing to read about Aghi instead.
1418Aghi was a blacksmith.  His labyrinth brought in those who wished themselves away from war.  To win, they had to prove they could deal with war and were ready to give themselves to battle.  Or, they could choose to live in his kingdom and give themselves to creation and peace.  
1419Aghi was Swedish.  He was a fairly large man -- not fat, just tall and big.  She recognized him, barely.  He had attended the party in a great tree of a cloak, with bark all over it.  It was lovely, and really quite fitting for his demeanor.  Jareth and Leona had spoken with him with easy friendship, and they appeared to like him.
1420Sarah trusted their judgement, or at least Leona's.  Mostly.  So, she finished bathing, dressed in another pair of silky pajamas from Leona, and quickly fell asleep.
1421In the morning, she awoke and got dressed.  She wasn't sure if she should already have some sort of clothing that would work for Aghi's kingdom, so she wore boots and tights and a sweater and a longer skirt.  It still wasn't exactly warm clothing.  She hoped he would have something she could wear in the mean time.
1422She wasn't sure exactly what time he'd be arriving, so she quickly ate oatmeal and fruit, and settled down at her desk with a book.
1423About half an hour into the book, a crane flew in and landed on the floor in front of her desk, quickly turning into a very large man.  
1424"Hello, again, Sarah."  He greeted her.
1425"Lovely to see you again, Aghi."  She answered.
1426He pulled a bag from his shoulders and opened it.  "I brought you more appropriate clothing to wear, since I assumed you wouldn't have any."  He handed her a large furry cloak with a hood, and a robe-like dress with hefty fur-lined boots.  
1427"Thanks, I'll change real quick, alright?"  She took them upstairs to change.  The dress was a little big, and she kept her tights on underneath as well as a camisole just in case.  The boots were great.  
1428She decided to leave the cloak off until they were ready to leave.
1429She walked back downstairs.  "Alright, is there anything we need to do before leaving?"  She asked.
1430"No, anything you need can be provided to you there.  If you have any catalysts made, I'd take those, but otherwise, you should be fine."  He smiled at her.
1431"Alright, let's get going them."  She pulled on the cloak, closing it securely.
1432She changed into her form and waited on Aghi to do the same.  He chuckled at her form before changing, leading the way out of her own kingdom.  They flew over top of her own kingdom, over Jareth's, over Ana's.  They flew over a wide variety of other kingdoms, each with their own themes.
1433Some were more modern -- even one with skyscrapers, while other were more medieval: battlements, cobblestones, wood buildings, turrets reaching high.  Some were slightly futuristic with bulbous towers.  Some were bright bastions of color, others neutral, others mostly black, others all white.  They each had their own personality.
1434Sarah wished she could get to know all of those kingdoms.  She realized she could, given enough time.  What a wonderful idea.
1435They continued flying, finally swooping down into a very snowy kingdom nestled within a mountain range.  He directed her to a large stone castle.  She could see down into the city, with its stone houses and fires.  It was charming.  It wasn't all snow and stone -- rather, there were bright roofs and statues abounding too.  
1436They flew onto a balcony on the top floor, changing.  Sarah felt the cold and her teeth chattered.  Aghi opened the door, and led her in.
1437"Welcome, Sarah.  It's quite cold right now -- the snow season lasts for a few months every year, and I'm afraid you've hit the dead center of it.  It's quite pretty in spring and summer, though, I swear."
1438"I believe you.  I'm just not used to snow and cold.  It's very cold.  Sorry.  Thank you for the clothing; I don't know what I would do if you hadn't.  Good god, it's cold."
1439He led her to a room with a large fireplace, currently with a robust fire.  He motioned for her to sit on a plush sofa with a table in front of it.  He summoned mug of hot cider, spiced and fragrant.  "Sit and drink for a bit.  You'll adjust soon, little one.  I'll make sure your room is ready, and be back in a few moments."
1440She sat and drank as asked, and took in the room.  It was vast, and would've seemed cavernous had it not been for the warm walls and furnishings.  It was homey and comfortable, instead.  Lush without ostentation.  
1441She felt comfortable, but still out of place.  The cider was delicious.  She did love cider, and she was glad for the offering.  It wasn't alcoholic, but she enjoyed it despite that fact.  Probably more because it wasn't, if she was to be honest with herself.
1442She sighed and relaxed deeper into the sofa, sipping away at the drink.
1443Aghi walked back into the room, looking Sarah over.  "You look like you're feeling much more comfortable now."  He smiled.
1444"Quite, thank you."  She smiled.  
1445"Come now, your room is prepared."  He motioned for her to follow.  She sat the mug down on the table, stood, and followed him out.  
1446They walked out of the room, and down a hall.  The hall had a similar feel to the room -- warmth from the wood paneling and the warm lights.  Tapestries adorned the walls.  It was dark, but not that confusing way that casinos or stuffy houses tended to be.  Instead, it was the same comfortability she'd seen in the other room.  It felt open, without being suffocating.
1447The hallway led to a great open landing, showing the inside of the building -- a huge open room obviously meant for entertaining flowed down the large set of stairs, connecting the other levels together on its way down.  Another similar, albeit smaller, staircase graced the other side of the building.  Each corner had a hallway leading away from it, and Sarah could see similar ones on the floors below.
1448Aghi stopped and leaned on a railing.  "This is my home."  He looked over at her expectantly.
1449"It's beautiful.  Really, it is."
1450He smiled at her rosily.  "Thank you.  I hope you enjoy your time here.  Now, let's keep on.  Your room is on this floor, but in the east wing."  He continued his journey, walking in front of where the staircase met and led to the floor above.  The floors cascaded down with larger and larger landings to encompass the huge staircase, like an upsidedown pyramid. 
1451 She followed him to the hallway directly opposite where they were coming from.  Sarah supposed they'd just come from the west wing, then.  They entered a similar hallway -- this one was more green and brown themed, as opposed to the purple and reds found on the other side. 
1452He stopped halfway down the hall, opening a door to a large suite.  "This will be your quarters.  Everything is hopefully to your liking.  In the closet, you'll find more clothing."
1453They walked into the entry room, which boasted a beautiful set of plush chairs and sofas and tables.  On one side was an open door to a bedroom, on the other, to a bathroom.  "Oh, the dress I'm wearing is a little big, by the way.  Is there any way I can get them altered?"
1454"Of course.  I'll have the seamstresses come up and fix them later today.  For now, though, I'll show you more of the kingdom.  I would change into another dress, though.  And probably one with more skirts and stuff to it.  It's quite cold."  Aghi pulled a bell next to the door.  "One of the handmaids will be up in a moment.  I'll be in the library across the hall."
1455He walked out, and Sarah walked into the bedroom to check out the closet.  It was filled with a selection of long dresses and coats and underclothing and sweaters and capes and boots.  And a selection of scarves and hats. 
1456Well, at least she'd be well equipped to deal with the cold in a layering fashion.
1457"Hello, miss."  A teenaged girl with curly red hair walked in.  "I'm to help you dress."
1458"Ok.  Uh.  What do I need to do?"
1459"Let's just pick out what you want to wear first."  She smiled.
1460"Alright."  Sarah pulled out a green dress.  "I like this one, but I'm not sure what else is supposed to be worn with it."
1461"Oh, I can figure that out for you."  She set the dress on the bed, and came back to the closet.  She pulled out a set of petticoats, a thick camisole, a cascading cardigan, and a cape.  She also pulled out a wooly hat and a thick scarf.  "I know it seems like a lot of clothing, but if you're to go outside, you'll need it.  It's frightfully cold here."  She smiled.
1462"I believe it.  So, what first?"
1463"Go ahead and get undressed.  Then we'll get you into the underclothing first.  It's not bad, but it requires some fiddling to get the ties done up."  
1464Sarah undressed to her underwear and took the camisole handed to her.  "What's your name?"
1465"Liselott.  The camisole is the easy part, just put that on over your head."  
1466"Thanks.  I'm Sarah."  She pulled the camisole on over her head, while Liselott got the petticoat layer ready.
1467"Nice to meet you, Sarah.  Now you'll need to step into this one."  She held the garment out for Sarah to step into, and then pulled it up behind her.  "Arms through the holes."
1468Sarah did as she was told, and Liselott pulled the ties closed on the back, tightening a little like a corset, but not near as tight as she would think one of those would be done up.
1469"Now, we'll get this dress on you."  She held the dress out.  "Same deal. step into it.  The dress you were wearing before didn't adjust like this one, so it was a bit big -- this one should be more fitting since it's laced up. But I can see it'll probably still fit a little weird in the shoulders and sleeves.  We'll get that fixed on the others while you're gone."
1470"Thanks."  She stepped into the dress, and put her arms through the long sleeves as Liselott pulled it up and tightened the laced the same as the petticoats.  The sleeves were long.  
1471"Well, we'll have to roll the sleeves up a little, but I can tack them up for now."  Liselott rolled the sleeves up, pulled out thread and a needle, and tacked the sleeves up with quite stitches within a few moments.
1472"Wow, that's fast."
1473"Gotta be, miss."
1474"Thanks."  Sarah smiled at her.
1475"Alright, the cardigan should be easy enough, just slide it on over.  The sleeves are a little shorter so it should be fine.  The scarf we'll get on you, but the cape and hat I'd save for before you leave.  You'll get pretty hot walking around like this here."
1476Sarah did as she was told.  "Thanks, Liselott."  She held the cape and hat in her arms.
1477"Alright, get on with you, dear.  When you need help changing again, just ring the bell.  I'll be right up."  
1478"Thanks."  She smiled.  Liselott smiled with a wave and left the suite.  Sarah looked at herself in the mirror, all bundled up.  She flashed a fake smile.  "Okay."
1479Beginning to brace herself for the cold, she went out the door herself to the library across the hall.  Aghi was sitting on a couch reading a book.  
1480"Okay, I think I'm ready to go now."  Sarah said
1481Aghi looked up from his book.  "Oh, good!  Let's head out, then."  Aghi closed the book and set it on the table next to him.
1482The two walked back out into the hall and into the main center, and down the staircase.  They went down four flights, finally hitting the main floor.  "Aghi, this place is gorgeous."  The floor was covered in planks of dark hardwood, running diagonally across the room.  Candalabras dotted the walls, and along the edges hid alcoves with plush sofas.
1483"I should hope it is.  It's had nearly seven centuries of work put into it."  
1484"Really, seven?"
1485"Well, nearly.  I think it's about six hundred and seventy now.  But I certainly couldn't tell you the exact day or anything anymore.  It's been too long."
1486"I suppose after a while, you stop counting."
1487"You do.  But that doesn't mean it's all bad.  You find other things to do.  It might be a frightfully long time, but it's nice at the same time.  All that I've done, I couldn't've done in one lifetime and certainly not without the abilities you gain by being a ruler."
1488"I suppose so.  I guess it takes away the fear that I have no idea what to do.  I have more than enough time to figure that out, I suppose.  Though I need to figure out what to do with my own labyrinth fairly quickly."  She sighed.
1489They reached the atrium, which had a tall ceiling with slanted windows above.  "You will, but you'll figure it out in time.  And it need not be that emphatic.  Many of us are here because of some grave injustice, but it's not necessary.  Just be yourself."
1490"That always sounds like a cop out to me."
1491"I suppose it is.  All we really judge people on is their creativity.  All kingdoms function differently, and as long as you take care of it and nurture it and let it blossom, it's fine.  There's a balance between control and letting things play out, and the trick is to find that."
1492"I guess I'll understand that better to more I see."
1493"You will, Sarah.  Alright, are you ready to brave the cold?"  They'd reached a door to the outside now.  It wasn't the large doors at the front of the atrium -- instead, they were existing through a smaller door a few yards to the side of it.  "Come on, now.  Cloak and scarf."
1494Sarah slipped the cloak on and wrapped the scarf around her neck, and placed the hat on her head, followed by the hood of the cloak being drawn up.  Aghi opened the door, letting in a slight breeze, but still a cold breeze.  "Ah, still cold."
1495"It may help to put the scarf up a little more over your face."  Aghi had donned a large furry coat with a hood.  No scarf on his face, though.
1496Sarah did as instructed and pulled the scarf up to cover up her jaw and nose, leaving her eyes uncovered.  "That helps, thanks."
1497"We'll go through the grounds a little, and then venture into the city.  It'll be easier once we get there -- there are walkways with coverings, so the wind won't bite in so much.  But, most people here are fairly used to the cold."
1498They walked through the middle of the gardens out front, with its frozen over fountains and frosty plants with dripping icicles.  "I take it the gardens are meant to look just as beautiful in winter?"
1499"Of course.  This place is meant to have long winters, so I wanted it to be beautiful year round.  It has its charm, that's for sure."
1500"It really does."  They continued on, and over a large bridge, down to another gate.  They went through the gate, with a man standing guard.  
1501"Good morning, Your Majesty."  The man said with a smile.
1502"Good morning, Vertti.  We should be back in a few hours.