There was a part of Sarah that loved the pageantry of fae balls. The venues were a set designer's wet dream, with each event trying to one up the previous event, they had long ago passed beyond the realm where even the most flamboyant of drag queens would consider the theatrics just a bit too much.
The costuming was also an enormous amount of fun, but as she was still catching up on Underground politics, she left the details to Jareth. Not only did he have the experience and flair for selecting an appropriate outfit, he ensured that they represented their kingdom in the correct manner for the occasion. Sometimes that was blending in, reflecting the hosts or contrasting the theme, and sometimes it was dressing in a manner that leaned more towards fetish or into outright intimidation.
While Sarah enjoyed the dramatics of the presentation, it was the people she could have done without. Trade negotiations could be annoying enough, but that tended to be one kingdom at time and the balls were definitely more of everything.
She knew the major kingdoms and their rulers, but was still getting a handle on the various nobles, courtiers and minions that were allied to each, although it had taken her all of five minutes to realise that a ball was like stepping into a nest of vipers who thrived on gossip and intrigue. The behaviour was not dissimilar to insecure teenage girls who didn’t understand that their brief moment of bitchy high school glory had been the high point of their shallow lives.
As a rule Sarah followed Jareth’s lead, which mostly consisted of looking gorgeous and either dangerous or harmless while displaying no emotion. Rook had been a surprising source of maintaining her balance at these events. She had reminded Sarah that she was a queen, above most people in the room and needed to remember that being confronted by a passive aggressive courtier was a sign that they were foolish enough to think that sniping at royalty would not be recalled during a future discussion over trade. And, if that failed, to imagine how she would remove body parts, which implement she would use and the relative state of said tool. Sarah had quickly discovered that contemplating the thought of scooping out a particularly spiteful lady’s eyeballs with a rusty spoon apparently broke her resting bitch face in such a manner that even the most seasoned of mean girls blanched in fear.
While Sarah had been learning how to conduct herself at these gatherings, she could still see the strain it put on Jareth. The tension in his jaw and around his eyes after an encounter with someone particularly obnoxious that seemed obvious to herself as indicators of imminent violence were overlooked by attendees with a lack of self preservation. Keeping in physical contact with Jareth had so far reined in his urge to bog annoying people, but he didn’t fully relax until they returned to the Goblin Kingdom.
Flare
Drabble:
There was a part of Sarah that loved the pageantry of fae balls. The venues were a set designer's wet dream, with each event trying to one up the previous event, they had long ago passed beyond the realm where even the most flamboyant of drag queens would consider the theatrics just a bit too much.
The costuming was also an enormous amount of fun, but as she was still catching up on Underground politics, she left the details to Jareth. Not only did he have the experience and flair for selecting an appropriate outfit, he ensured that they represented their kingdom in the correct manner for the occasion. Sometimes that was blending in, reflecting the hosts or contrasting the theme, and sometimes it was dressing in a manner that leaned more towards fetish or into outright intimidation.
While Sarah enjoyed the dramatics of the presentation, it was the people she could have done without. Trade negotiations could be annoying enough, but that tended to be one kingdom at time and the balls were definitely more of everything.
She knew the major kingdoms and their rulers, but was still getting a handle on the various nobles, courtiers and minions that were allied to each, although it had taken her all of five minutes to realise that a ball was like stepping into a nest of vipers who thrived on gossip and intrigue. The behaviour was not dissimilar to insecure teenage girls who didn’t understand that their brief moment of bitchy high school glory had been the high point of their shallow lives.
As a rule Sarah followed Jareth’s lead, which mostly consisted of looking gorgeous and either dangerous or harmless while displaying no emotion. Rook had been a surprising source of maintaining her balance at these events. She had reminded Sarah that she was a queen, above most people in the room and needed to remember that being confronted by a passive aggressive courtier was a sign that they were foolish enough to think that sniping at royalty would not be recalled during a future discussion over trade. And, if that failed, to imagine how she would remove body parts, which implement she would use and the relative state of said tool. Sarah had quickly discovered that contemplating the thought of scooping out a particularly spiteful lady’s eyeballs with a rusty spoon apparently broke her resting bitch face in such a manner that even the most seasoned of mean girls blanched in fear.
While Sarah had been learning how to conduct herself at these gatherings, she could still see the strain it put on Jareth. The tension in his jaw and around his eyes after an encounter with someone particularly obnoxious that seemed obvious to herself as indicators of imminent violence were overlooked by attendees with a lack of self preservation. Keeping in physical contact with Jareth had so far reined in his urge to bog annoying people, but he didn’t fully relax until they returned to the Goblin Kingdom.