Chapter Four: Thoughts and...Imps?
Disclaimer: I'm afraid the wonderful Labyrinth is not mine...It is Jareth's. Though I did talk to him the other day, and we're negotiating the possibility of me taking over the job of ruling the Goblins for him. Hopefully he'll agree to my proposition. You think I might convince him if I make him some chocolate chip cookies? I make some really yummy chocolate chip cookies...
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Sarah hurried down the hall, away from her anger, away from her fear, and most of all, away from him. Blinking her eyes, she realized there were tears in them. She quickly brushed them away. He wasn't worth crying over.
But then she saw his face again in her mind. That tragic, lost expression he had worn, only for a split-second, when she had called him a monster. She hadn't realized she would hurt him so much, for she obviously had. But then his expression had immediately transformed into one of anger. His voice had held a quiet fury in it.
Sarah wandered around until she came to her room. She would have liked to explore the castle, but she didn't want to risk running into the Goblin King again; not until she had cooled down some.
She entered her room and found Ell there, making up the bed. The goblin girl jumped as she saw Sarah.
"Oh, Miss, I-I'm sorry... I was only straitning the room up a bit-"
Sarah held up her hand to silence the stuttering goblin. "It's alright! Thank you, but I really would rather be alone right now, if you don't mind."
Ell nodded. "Anything you say, Lady Sarah. I'll be up later with your lunch, if you wish."
"That would be nice, Ell. Thank you."
"Your welcome!" cried the little goblin as she curstyed and left.
Sarah sighed and walked over to the tall window on the right side of the room. Pulling back the heavy blue curtains, she realized that the window was really a glass door, and it led to a small balcony. In desperate need of fresh air, Sarah quickly opened the door and stepped outside. It was rather cold, and as Sarah looked out, she gave a delighted cry. It was snowing! But this wasn't the same snow as Aboveground. This snow was even whiter, and seemed to sparkle. She didn't know how to describe it. It was just beautiful!
Looking out over the balcony, Sarah gasped at the beauty and magnificence of everything. The rooftops of the goblin city sparkled and glittered in the sunlight. Small goblins, just like human children, were playing in the snow, as their parents watched, delighted.
Beyond the goblin city was the Labyrinth. Some parts of it were covered in huge snow-drifts, while other parts were untouched by the falling snowflakes. She gazed at the many tunnels and passages, trying to find something familiar. But that was practically impossible. The maze was always changing; walls revolved, floors caved in, and doors appeared that hadn't been there before. She doubted that even Jareth knew all of its secrets.
Jareth...Her thoughts continued to wander in his direction. But why? He was such a confusing person. Why had he brought her to the Underground? Sarah thought she had seen the last of him thirteen years ago when she had defeated his Labyrinth. Why did he choose to show up now? Now that she was a grown woman; now that she had a job; a life of her own...
But was it a life? Her life wasn't at all how she had dreamed it would be. She'd had glamorous fantasies of a wonderful life. In her mind she'd been rich, famous, and had a romance beyond compare. But where had such dreams gotten her? A tiny apartment, a job as an insignificant journalist, and no love-life even worth talking about.
Sighing, Sarah re-entered her room, shutting the door behind her.
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A week passed, then two, and Sarah hadn't seen Jareth at all since that first day. She had spent most of her days wandering around the castle. She'd stumbled upon many different rooms, some of which were very strange. For example, there was one that seemed like a small jungle, right inside the castle! And another room had played the most beautiful music the moment she opened the door. But, try as she may, whenever she left a room, Sarah could never seem to find it again. This castle was just like the Labyrinth; it always seemed to be rearranging itself.
The rest of the time, Sarah spent talking to Ell. All the other goblins were so uncivilized in the absence of their king, there was no one else to talk to. But it turned out that Ell wasn't as annoying as she seemed. Or maybe it was just that Sarah had gotten used to the talkative young goblin by now. Either way, Sarah had many interesting conversations with Ell. Sarah would persistantly ask Ell questions about Jareth, but the goblin girl could never seem to answer. 'No, I'm sorry, Miss, I don't know where the king has gone.' or 'No, Lady Sarah, I'm not sure why King Jareth brought you to the Underground, but I'm glad he did.' were the only responses she ever got on that subject.
But, nevertheless, her stay in the Underground wasn't as horrible as she had expected it to be. She only wished Jareth were around more...No! What was she saying? She was perfectly happy with his absence. But she was fooling herself. The truth was, Sarah missed him.
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Several days later, as Sarah was exploring the castle, she found herself in a strange room. It was an open, expansive area that seemed to be an ornate entrance-way. There were stairs on either end that led to who-knows-where, but in the front, there was a large, magnificent set of doors. Stepping forward, Sarah cautiously pushed them open. What lay before her eyes delighted her! She was outside, in a beautiful courtyard. There were flowers everywhere, along with fountains of crystal-blue water and majestic trees. But the really amazing thing was that just beyond the courtyard, snow was steadily falling, and yet flowers continued to bloom.
Walking out into the courtyard, Sarah twirled about several times, dancing in the marvelous sunlight. It was astounding how beautiful this place was; much more beautiful than anywhere in the Aboveground. Birds sang in the treetops, and butterflies flitted among the flowers. Sighing, Sarah sat down on a stone bench and closed her eyes dreamily.
Suddenly, she felt something grab her shoulders. Jumping up, Sarah quickly spun around, but...there was nothing there. Puzzled, she looked around her, but she saw nothing...Wait! There was something! A shadow glinted in the treetops...there seemed to be some sort of strange creature jumping from limb to limb. Some sort of squirrel...or something...
Then it landed, and was still. It looked at her with huge, unblinking moon-like eyes. It was a small, black-furred creature that reminded Sarah of a mix between a monkey and a flying-squirrel. Sarah almost laughed; it looked so unusual! It crouched on the tree limb, just staring at her. Then, all of a sudden, it started chattering. It's harsh sounds filled the courtyard, hurting Sarah's ears. The sound was ear-shattering!
Sarah covered her ears with her hands, waiting for the horrid shrieking to stop. Finally, it subsided, the sound still echoing in her mind. Sarah looked up at the branch where the creature had been, but...he was gone! Everything was still for a moment, but then Sarah gasped as she felt tiny hands on her shoulders. She screamed as she tried to get the clinging creature off her back, but it would not let go.
Then it spoke! "Whatchya doin, silly girl?! Whatchya doin?!"
Sarah was stunned for a moment. She hadn't thought it could talk, but she soon recovered. "What am I doing?" she repeated angrily. " I'm trying to get you off of me!" The little creature promptly scuttled off her shoulders and onto the ground beside her feet. "What are you, anyway?"
"What am I? Oh, me is Limpel! Yes, that be my name!" The little creature said. "And you is Sarah!"
"How did you know that?" Sarah asked curiously.
"Oh, you is having bad manners! You is not even saying 'pleased to meet you!' Me would think that the girl who defeated the king's labyrinth would have better manners!" Limpel scurried up a tree and sat on a limb that was eye-level to Sarah.
"Yes, me is thinking that! But I will excuse such rudeness...this time!"
Sarah was appalled. This strange, impish creature, who had just jumped on her shoulders, thus scaring her out of her wits, was reprimanding her about manners. "What are you doing here? And how did you know I defeated Jareth? That was such a long time ago."
"Long time? No...me doesn't think so. Thirteen years is not a long time for Limpel; no it isn't!" Limpel said energetically. "And as for me knowing about it? Well, everybody knows! We tell that story to our children, yes we do!"
Sarah couldn't help but smile. She was a character in children's bedtime stories?
"Though...our king does not like to hear that story. Once, my friend Kala came to see Goblin King, yes she did! Poor Kala...she was always foolish. Well, Kala starts talking to Goblin King, and she brings up you. She says that our king has neglected his kingdom ever since you left. Poor Kala..." Here the strange imp covered his face and slowly shook his head.
Sarah was fascinated. "What happened to her? Tell me."
Limpel peeked at Sarah through his tiny fingers. "Well, Goblin King gets angry, and...he banishes her to the Bog of Eternal Stench forever!" The creature moaned. "Tis best not to mention you in the presence of our king..."
"He banished her just for mentioning me?" Sarah was horrified. The poor creature...
"Yes, he-" But suddenly, Limpel jerked and looked up. His furry little body became tense and alert. Sarah stared at him. "What's wrong?"
But he continued to stare straight ahead. He seemed to be looking past her. Sarah felt the hairs on the back of her neck rising as she quickly looked behind her. Nothing there...
"It is coming..." the impish creature cried as it scampered off into the trees, disappearing from sight.
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Hee, hee, hee...! I'm evil, I know. But everyone loves me anyway! ^_~ I think...of course, my homicidal sister is not of that opinion... *glances around nervously, as if expecting to be attacked at any second* Well, anyway, I shall see you all in the days ahead...Fare thee well! R\R!
Luv, Mask of Twilight
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Disclaimer: I'm afraid the wonderful Labyrinth is not mine...It is Jareth's. Though I did talk to him the other day, and we're negotiating the possibility of me taking over the job of ruling the Goblins for him. Hopefully he'll agree to my proposition. You think I might convince him if I make him some chocolate chip cookies? I make some really yummy chocolate chip cookies...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sarah hurried down the hall, away from her anger, away from her fear, and most of all, away from him. Blinking her eyes, she realized there were tears in them. She quickly brushed them away. He wasn't worth crying over.
But then she saw his face again in her mind. That tragic, lost expression he had worn, only for a split-second, when she had called him a monster. She hadn't realized she would hurt him so much, for she obviously had. But then his expression had immediately transformed into one of anger. His voice had held a quiet fury in it.
Sarah wandered around until she came to her room. She would have liked to explore the castle, but she didn't want to risk running into the Goblin King again; not until she had cooled down some.
She entered her room and found Ell there, making up the bed. The goblin girl jumped as she saw Sarah.
"Oh, Miss, I-I'm sorry... I was only straitning the room up a bit-"
Sarah held up her hand to silence the stuttering goblin. "It's alright! Thank you, but I really would rather be alone right now, if you don't mind."
Ell nodded. "Anything you say, Lady Sarah. I'll be up later with your lunch, if you wish."
"That would be nice, Ell. Thank you."
"Your welcome!" cried the little goblin as she curstyed and left.
Sarah sighed and walked over to the tall window on the right side of the room. Pulling back the heavy blue curtains, she realized that the window was really a glass door, and it led to a small balcony. In desperate need of fresh air, Sarah quickly opened the door and stepped outside. It was rather cold, and as Sarah looked out, she gave a delighted cry. It was snowing! But this wasn't the same snow as Aboveground. This snow was even whiter, and seemed to sparkle. She didn't know how to describe it. It was just beautiful!
Looking out over the balcony, Sarah gasped at the beauty and magnificence of everything. The rooftops of the goblin city sparkled and glittered in the sunlight. Small goblins, just like human children, were playing in the snow, as their parents watched, delighted.
Beyond the goblin city was the Labyrinth. Some parts of it were covered in huge snow-drifts, while other parts were untouched by the falling snowflakes. She gazed at the many tunnels and passages, trying to find something familiar. But that was practically impossible. The maze was always changing; walls revolved, floors caved in, and doors appeared that hadn't been there before. She doubted that even Jareth knew all of its secrets.
Jareth...Her thoughts continued to wander in his direction. But why? He was such a confusing person. Why had he brought her to the Underground? Sarah thought she had seen the last of him thirteen years ago when she had defeated his Labyrinth. Why did he choose to show up now? Now that she was a grown woman; now that she had a job; a life of her own...
But was it a life? Her life wasn't at all how she had dreamed it would be. She'd had glamorous fantasies of a wonderful life. In her mind she'd been rich, famous, and had a romance beyond compare. But where had such dreams gotten her? A tiny apartment, a job as an insignificant journalist, and no love-life even worth talking about.
Sighing, Sarah re-entered her room, shutting the door behind her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A week passed, then two, and Sarah hadn't seen Jareth at all since that first day. She had spent most of her days wandering around the castle. She'd stumbled upon many different rooms, some of which were very strange. For example, there was one that seemed like a small jungle, right inside the castle! And another room had played the most beautiful music the moment she opened the door. But, try as she may, whenever she left a room, Sarah could never seem to find it again. This castle was just like the Labyrinth; it always seemed to be rearranging itself.
The rest of the time, Sarah spent talking to Ell. All the other goblins were so uncivilized in the absence of their king, there was no one else to talk to. But it turned out that Ell wasn't as annoying as she seemed. Or maybe it was just that Sarah had gotten used to the talkative young goblin by now. Either way, Sarah had many interesting conversations with Ell. Sarah would persistantly ask Ell questions about Jareth, but the goblin girl could never seem to answer. 'No, I'm sorry, Miss, I don't know where the king has gone.' or 'No, Lady Sarah, I'm not sure why King Jareth brought you to the Underground, but I'm glad he did.' were the only responses she ever got on that subject.
But, nevertheless, her stay in the Underground wasn't as horrible as she had expected it to be. She only wished Jareth were around more...No! What was she saying? She was perfectly happy with his absence. But she was fooling herself. The truth was, Sarah missed him.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Several days later, as Sarah was exploring the castle, she found herself in a strange room. It was an open, expansive area that seemed to be an ornate entrance-way. There were stairs on either end that led to who-knows-where, but in the front, there was a large, magnificent set of doors. Stepping forward, Sarah cautiously pushed them open. What lay before her eyes delighted her! She was outside, in a beautiful courtyard. There were flowers everywhere, along with fountains of crystal-blue water and majestic trees. But the really amazing thing was that just beyond the courtyard, snow was steadily falling, and yet flowers continued to bloom.
Walking out into the courtyard, Sarah twirled about several times, dancing in the marvelous sunlight. It was astounding how beautiful this place was; much more beautiful than anywhere in the Aboveground. Birds sang in the treetops, and butterflies flitted among the flowers. Sighing, Sarah sat down on a stone bench and closed her eyes dreamily.
Suddenly, she felt something grab her shoulders. Jumping up, Sarah quickly spun around, but...there was nothing there. Puzzled, she looked around her, but she saw nothing...Wait! There was something! A shadow glinted in the treetops...there seemed to be some sort of strange creature jumping from limb to limb. Some sort of squirrel...or something...
Then it landed, and was still. It looked at her with huge, unblinking moon-like eyes. It was a small, black-furred creature that reminded Sarah of a mix between a monkey and a flying-squirrel. Sarah almost laughed; it looked so unusual! It crouched on the tree limb, just staring at her. Then, all of a sudden, it started chattering. It's harsh sounds filled the courtyard, hurting Sarah's ears. The sound was ear-shattering!
Sarah covered her ears with her hands, waiting for the horrid shrieking to stop. Finally, it subsided, the sound still echoing in her mind. Sarah looked up at the branch where the creature had been, but...he was gone! Everything was still for a moment, but then Sarah gasped as she felt tiny hands on her shoulders. She screamed as she tried to get the clinging creature off her back, but it would not let go.
Then it spoke! "Whatchya doin, silly girl?! Whatchya doin?!"
Sarah was stunned for a moment. She hadn't thought it could talk, but she soon recovered. "What am I doing?" she repeated angrily. " I'm trying to get you off of me!" The little creature promptly scuttled off her shoulders and onto the ground beside her feet. "What are you, anyway?"
"What am I? Oh, me is Limpel! Yes, that be my name!" The little creature said. "And you is Sarah!"
"How did you know that?" Sarah asked curiously.
"Oh, you is having bad manners! You is not even saying 'pleased to meet you!' Me would think that the girl who defeated the king's labyrinth would have better manners!" Limpel scurried up a tree and sat on a limb that was eye-level to Sarah.
"Yes, me is thinking that! But I will excuse such rudeness...this time!"
Sarah was appalled. This strange, impish creature, who had just jumped on her shoulders, thus scaring her out of her wits, was reprimanding her about manners. "What are you doing here? And how did you know I defeated Jareth? That was such a long time ago."
"Long time? No...me doesn't think so. Thirteen years is not a long time for Limpel; no it isn't!" Limpel said energetically. "And as for me knowing about it? Well, everybody knows! We tell that story to our children, yes we do!"
Sarah couldn't help but smile. She was a character in children's bedtime stories?
"Though...our king does not like to hear that story. Once, my friend Kala came to see Goblin King, yes she did! Poor Kala...she was always foolish. Well, Kala starts talking to Goblin King, and she brings up you. She says that our king has neglected his kingdom ever since you left. Poor Kala..." Here the strange imp covered his face and slowly shook his head.
Sarah was fascinated. "What happened to her? Tell me."
Limpel peeked at Sarah through his tiny fingers. "Well, Goblin King gets angry, and...he banishes her to the Bog of Eternal Stench forever!" The creature moaned. "Tis best not to mention you in the presence of our king..."
"He banished her just for mentioning me?" Sarah was horrified. The poor creature...
"Yes, he-" But suddenly, Limpel jerked and looked up. His furry little body became tense and alert. Sarah stared at him. "What's wrong?"
But he continued to stare straight ahead. He seemed to be looking past her. Sarah felt the hairs on the back of her neck rising as she quickly looked behind her. Nothing there...
"It is coming..." the impish creature cried as it scampered off into the trees, disappearing from sight.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hee, hee, hee...! I'm evil, I know. But everyone loves me anyway! ^_~ I think...of course, my homicidal sister is not of that opinion... *glances around nervously, as if expecting to be attacked at any second* Well, anyway, I shall see you all in the days ahead...Fare thee well! R\R!
Luv, Mask of Twilight
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