It was clear that Jareth was not going to tell them how to get home, Dillon knew that. What was his reason for keeping them here? What did he gain from it? He was not going to be able to get home without earning the right to. Dillon was going to ask Pashmina, but he knew she would get in trouble for telling him too much information. So he had a change of plan about his escape. He would have to find someone who would tell him what task he must complete to get home. If he could that, his siblings could go with him. With new information he learned, he would have to be careful. He could not ask a fae, whatever that is. Dillon had never heard of one before. Jareth said he was a fae, so Dillon would watch out for people that looked like Jareth. The goblins were too stupid to give any useful information.
"Are you ready, Dillon?" Pashmina asked.
"Yes. I just got to ride her like I did yesterday," he answered, patting the Pegasus on the rump.
"Here are some gloves. It's starting to get chilly up there. I don't want you to get cold, and lose your grip," the elf chimed. She handed him the gloves. Though he needed to go the Aboveground, he was going to miss this little elf. He thanked her, and put on the gloves. Dillon took a deep breath then got on the horse. This was his chance; he could not screw this up. He gently pulled the reins to guide the Pegasus into the air. The horse started flapping its wings. It was not long until they were in the sky. Dillon was shaking due to a combination of his nerves and the cold. He guided her further from the castle. The goblin city was under him now.
He could faintly hear Pashmina telling him he was going too far. If he was going to escape, he had to ignore her. In the distance, he could see the place where the city ended. This was also where the Labyrinth began. He urged the beast to go higher. Dillon wanted to be deep in the clouds so no creatures could find him. He swatted the Pegasus so it would go faster. They were almost at the Labyrinth now. The horse hit some invisible force field. The impact sent them tumbling out of the sky, and on to the ground.
Toby had to help Roberto out of the place where they were going to have their reception. He did not want his brother-in-law to make a spectacle of himself. The man was sobbing uncontrollably, like a toddler being dropped off at daycare. Sarah stayed behind to talk to Christina. He was thankful for that at moment. Roberto was clearly furious at Sarah, and he did not want an argument breaking out. In the twenty-one years that he has known this man, he had never seen him act like this. Toby was concerned and curious about what Christina had said to him.
"Are you alright, bro?" he asked, mentally kicking himself for asking such a stupid question, "What happened?"
"That bitch cheated on me, again! I should have left the first time. I should have never trusted that whore," Roberto cried.
"Easy there, bud. That's my sister you're talking about. What do you mean she cheated on you again?" he questioned, slightly angered.
"Christina said she left with a goddamn stripper!"
"Wait, when did she cheat on you the first time?" Toby probed.
"A few years ago, Luna was still in high school. This is when Sarah worked there. Luna was going to her classroom during lunch time. She wanted to ask her teacher something about a project. When she opened the door, she found Sarah and her teacher having sex on his desk. She called me crying to pick her up. I did, and she told me what happened," he wept.
"Oh my God, I had no idea. Poor Luna! That must have been horrible to see. I just can't believe my sister would do something like that. I'm so sorry, Roberto," Toby responded, becoming a little teary eyed himself. He was mostly sad for his niece. They were only six years apart, so since they were children he often thought of her as a little sister. Toby thought about when he first held her in his arms. She was so innocent. Now, because of Sarah, she wasn't that anymore. He wished he could have known. If he did, he could have been there for her.
"I don't what the hell to do. I don't want to be with her anymore. I can't love Sarah if I can't trust her. But I also don't want to lose the kids, you know. Whenever there's a divorce, the kids almost always go with the mom. She can't put her children before her own needs now. How is she going to be able to take care of them alone?"
"Don't you dare, Roberto! Don't you dare say I'm not fit to raise my children! You are not fit to be a father. How could you want a divorce, knowing how much pain you'd cause them?" Sarah yelled. Toby was startled; he did not know Sarah was there the whole time. He figured this was his cue to leave.
"Don't turn this around on me! I'm not the bad guy here. You were the one who did this! Please tell me something. How come whenever everything is going good, you always have to fuck it up, huh? What, am I not good enough for you, is that it?" he asked.
"It's because I've never loved you, Roberto!" she blurted before she could stop herself, "I've tried. Believe me, I have. I was going to leave you in the beginning, but then I found out I was pregnant with Luna. I thought I was supposed to stay. So I tried to love you, but I never could."
"I am sorry, then. I am sorry that I gave you this horrible life. I'm sorry that I tried to make you happy. I'm sorry that you could feel what I felt on our wedding day. I'm sorry you could not feel how I did when each of our beautiful children born. I'm sorry I was nothing, but an inconvenience. I just feel so sorry for you. Such a pity," he growled. When he said that, she felt rush of familiarity. He sounded just like Jareth. Without thinking she went up to her husband, and kissed him.
"Your heinie! Your heinie!" a little goblin yelled. Jareth was sitting in his office doing mindless paperwork. He was thinking about the conversation they had at breakfast. What could he say to them? This damn goblin keeps breaking his concentration.
"Whatever do you want?" he groaned.
"Pashmina makes tears!"
"Why is she crying?" Jareth asked with worry heavy in his voice.
"Boy goes on horsey. He goes up and up and up and then he falls down. Boom!" the goblin explained, putting his hands in the air for emphasis.
"I need you to listen carefully, okay," the king said while conjuring up a crystal, "You must give this to the girl with the babe. Tell Grog to get the horse and buggy ready. He must take her and the babe to the Pixie kingdom. Can you repeat what I said?"
"Um. . . girl gets bubble. Grog gets horsey. Babe, girl, and Grog goes to pixies," the goblin repeated.
"Very good, now hurry." Jareth summons another crystal to see where exactly did Dillon fall. The boy was at inner border on the labyrinth. He saw him covered with bruises and blood. From the way his legs were positioned, they looked like they could be broke. Pashmina was crying with his head on her lap. Dillon seemed to be unconscious at least the king hoped he was. Depending on how high the fall was, it could have killed him. His hands went cold at that thought. He needed to get there fast. He transported himself to where Dillon was.
"Thank the gods you're here! I told him to stop the Pegasus and he didn't. He hit the magic wall protecting the labyrinth. I got another Pegasus so I could find him. How'd you know to come?" She cried.
"A goblin saw what happened, and informed me. Does he have a pulse?" Jareth asked terrified of what the answer might be.
"Yes, but barely. We need to get him help fast! The Pegasus is fine though," she sobbed. The king nodded, and placed a hand on Dillon and Pashmina. The next moment they were in the infirmary in the Pixie kingdom. He used his magic to place Dillon one of the beds.
"Your majesty! What happened?" an older male elf doctor asked.
"He fell off a Pegasus. You have to heal him as fast as possible. He does not look like he will last long."
"He's a human?" the elf asked.
"Yes, but we cannot turn him into a goblin unless it is a last resort."
"Alright, I think we'll be able to fix him, but it will take a few days," the doctor assured him.
"That is fine, thank you. Come Pashmina we will stay in the waiting room."
Luna was sitting in the throne room with the goblins. Howie was happily bouncing on her lap. She convinced them to play the quiet game. Luckily, they agreed, and that saved her from a worse headache. They were quiet until one goblin came bursting in the room holding a crystal. He ran to Grog to whisper something to him.
"Luna and Baby comes with Grog," he informed while gesturing for her to follow him. She carried the baby over to him.
"What happened?"
"His heinie wants Luna and baby to goes to pixies," Grog stated.
"Why?"
"I no know. When we's in buggy Luna calls him with bubble," he answered. She nodded, and followed the king out the throne room. They zigzagged through the castle until they found an exit. They made their way to the stables, and Luna sat in the buggy waiting for Grog to set up the horses. He handed her the bubble. It clouded for a moment, and then showed Jareth and a small crying girl. As it cleared she notice the girl was an elf, and they were in some kind of waiting room.
"Jareth?" Luna called out.
"I am glad you received my crystal. I am afraid I have some bad news," Jareth spoke inside the crystal.
"What happened? Where's Dillon?"
"We are in the hospital at the Pixie Kingdom. Dillon fell off a Pegasus," he informed her.
"Oh my God is he okay?" she cried.
"He is critically injured. A few bones may have been broken. He is unconscious, but thank goodness he is alive. The best doctors in the Underground are working on him, I assure you."
"Will they be able to fix him?" Luna wept.
"Yes, my love. In a few days he will be back to normal. I am having Grog take you to the Pixie Kingdom so you can be there for him."
"Thank you. I'll see you there."
"Okay precious. I will see you soon." His image on the crystal faded. She placed the crystal to the side just in case she would need it later. Howie placed his chunky star-shaped hand on her face, and caressed her cheek in an intimate manner. Luna leaned into his palm, smiling weakly as she did so. He took this opportunity to shove his finger up her nose. She scrunched up her face before moving his finger. The babe giggled contently on her lap.
"Are you trying to cheer me up? You are such a sweet little guy! Yes you are. Yes you are!" she said trying to sound upbeat for his sake. She was so worried about her brother. Luna prayed that the doctors were as good as the king said. Having an accident on a normal horse would be damaging enough. A horse that can fly would double that. What if Dillon could never walk again or worse? It would be all her fault. She should have never agreed to all three of them coming here. Then again, she could not have left Howie here all alone.
"What did his heinie say?" Grog asked taking the driver's seat in carriage. They slowly lifted into the air.
"They are in the hospital. Dillon fell off a Pegasus," she answered.
"One time I sees a fiery falls off a Pegasus. He's head came off!" he chuckled.
"That's horrible!"
"He puts it back on! They heads always comes off and they's legs and they's arms," the goblin explained. Of course they did. Luna had to remind herself that these creatures were not the same as the ones at home. Though removable appendages seemed like a pretty terrifying gift, she guessed it would have had its advantages. She decided to drop the subject. The girl bounced Howie in her lap, as she waited to arrive at the Pixie Kingdom. The felt like the trip was a few hours long, but her sense of time has been thrown off since she arrived. The pixie castle was a sparkling periwinkle with towers that were tall and an area that was vast. It looked like the toy princess castle she had when she was a child. There was a crystal colored moat, a white fence, and a lavender draw bridge. At the bridge were two winged pixie guards with long swirly whirly mustaches.
"State your reason for coming to the glorious pixie castle," The guard asked, sounding like a lollipop kid from The Wizard of Oz.
"His heinie needs Grog, Luna, and babe because boy falls off Pegasus, but his head no falls off," Grog answered.
"Excuse me?" The second guard chimed with a voice slightly deeper than the other. Luna opened the curtain to translate.
"The Goblin King has requested that we see his highness in the infirmary," Luna restated.
"What is you relation to the Goblin King?" the first one probed.
"I suppose I'm his goblin babysitter."
"Then why would he need your services here rather than at the Goblin Kingdom?" the second one questioned.
"Just let us in," she growled.
"Not until you solve our riddle. I see without seeing. To me, the darkness is as clear as daylight. What am I?" the former riddled.
"Come on, really? It's a bat. You stole that from Batman Forever!" she pointed out.
"You partake in watching the Aboveground movies too?" the first asked, sounding surprised.
"Hey! What are ye guys doing o'er there?" a different voice boomed in the distance. The two goblins took off their mustaches, and ran off giggling. She looked over to see who was speaking. It was an old dwarf with earth tone clothing. "Damn pixies! I'm sorry that thems fooled you. Say, you look familiar, have we's met?"
"No I don't believe so. I'm Luna, this is Grog and Howie," she explained.
"I'm Hoggle, and I'm the real guard here. Where would you be going?"
"We're going to the infirmary to see the Goblin King."
"Jareth? Gods, I hope I don't bump into hims," he commented seeming a little frightened.
"Why not?"
"He banished me from him's kingdom ages ago."
"I'm sorry, Hoggle. Are we allowed in?"
"Yes, yes. Go in," he said while moving out of the way so the carriage could enter passed the fence. Grog parked the buggy in a stable, and all of its occupants exited the vehicle. While holding Howie in one arm, she used the other to hold Grog's hand. Grog smiled lightly at her. He guided her to the door of the castle, and then opened. Inside it looked even more extravagant. The borders of the walls were bordered with precious gems. The walls were mixed with different pinks and purples. It was the most beautiful place she had ever seen. Pixies rustled about the castle joking and snickering around. She noticed the two "guards" from earlier whispering to a group of pixies. The group chuckled while staring at Luna. They wondered through various halls until they found the waiting room to the hospital. They could tell it was the right place as soon as they passed it. Unlike the rest of the castle this room was a blinding white. When they peeked in they saw Jareth, and the crying elf girl.
"Luna, I am glad you have made it. I was beginning to get a little worried," the king smiled as he walked towards them. Howie stretched his arms out for him. Luna gave the babe to Jareth.
"Sorry about that. There were to pixies pretending to be guards, and giving us a hard time," she enlightened. He conjured a crystal, and let it pop on her shoulder. Her dress was now touching the floor, and her chest was completely covered.
"Pixies are mischievous little things. Though most of them just like to frolic around, some are very dangerous. Pixies are not to be trusted. Some are known to prey upon beautiful young women, such as you. Since you are unaware of most of the Underground this makes you an easier target. Do not be alone with one ever. Do you understand?" Jareth warned.
"Yes, your majesty. Where is Dillon? Can I see him?"
"He is in the emergency room. They are performing a procedure on him right now so we cannot interrupt, but later we might be able to."
"I hope they can make him better. I was just so scared that−" her voice broke, and she began crying. Jareth caressed her face with his knuckles before tilting her chin.
"Look at me, Luna. Do not fret, my dear. I promise that Dillon will be alright," he kissed her forehead, "Now, I do not believe you have met my goddaughter. This is Pashmina." The little elf wiped her eyes, and walked over to them. Luna bent down to shake her hand.
"It's nice to meet you, Pashmina," she greeted feebly.
"It's nice to meet you too. I wish it was on a better circumstance. I'm so sorry. I'm the reason he's in here. I tried to tell him to stop. This is all my fault," Pashmina cried. Luna went to the elf, and picked her up. For a moment, Pashmina was confused. Then she relaxed when Luna rubbed her back in a motherly motion. The elf laid her head on Luna's shoulder.
"It's not your fault, pumpkin. Dillon doesn't listen to anyone. I appreciate that you care so much about my brother's wellbeing. He's lucky to have you," she assured her. Pashmina's crying subsided, and Luna put her down. Jareth noticed that Luna had the uncanny ability to soothe beings. It was incredible how easily she could make someone feel better.
"Your majesty, is it alright if Grog takes me home? Someone's got to keep an eye on those goblins or they will cause a disaster," the elf asked.
"They will cause a disaster either way, but yes you can go home. Grog, take Pashmina home," the king ordered.
"Yes your heinie," Grog responded. The two beings waived goodbye and then left the room. Jareth kneeled, putting the baby on the ground. He let Howie use two of his fingers for support as he stood up. Luna watched as he attempted to walk towards her. He wobbled a bit, but Jareth made sure he would not fall.
"Thank you for comforting my goddaughter. She really needed that."
"No problem. Do you think she likes him? I mean like more than a friend," Luna asked nervously. Jareth and Luna sat in the waiting room chairs. Howie sat with one leg on each of their laps.
"I had not thought about it, but I suppose it is entirely possible. She rarely gets to see any boys her age," he stated.
"She is such a cutie pie. I think they'd make a good couple, don't you?"
"I do not," he answered before changing the subject, "What do you think of my twin sister's kingdom?"
"Your sister is the Pixie Queen?"
"Yes, her name is Lillian, and her husband is King Cyril."
"I think it is extravagant," she answered.
"Modesty has never been my sister's strong suit," he chuckled.
"That is funny because I never believed it to be yours either," the deep velvet voice of a woman chimed. At the door was two fae that seemed to be the king and queen. The three royals gave each other nods of acknowledgement. Luna passed the baby to Jareth so she could curtsey to them. They seemed more tradition than Jareth, so she did not want to start off on the wrong foot. The queen had flyaway blonde hair and mismatched eyes like Jareth. Her face was much softer, and her build was smaller. She wore a silver circlet, and a tattered yet elegant lavender dress. The man had dark hair with a regal beard and blue eyes. The king sported a large silver crown bejeweled with pink opals. He had a wine colored cape with a trim that looked like it was made from Dalmatian fur. His tunic was lavender with metal sleeves. He had white leggings with violet knee high boots. They both had pendants similar to Jareth's.
"So the rumors are true, Jareth," Cyril laughed.
"What rumors do you speak of?"
"Some of the pixies said that you had a secret love child with a forest nymph. You were supposedly here getting the child evaluated by the doctor," the pixie king enlightened. Jareth smiled slightly, but for some reason did not offer a response.
"Oh my. I am Luna. I'm no forest nymph, your majesty. This is my younger brother Howie, not our child. We are here because my other brother was injured," Luna replied.
"What a shame. I would have been so happy to have a nephew," Lillian responded.
"Luna, has any one told you that you look exactly like a forest nymph? Your eyes are such lovely forest green. Your skin color is as russet and beautiful as the shaft of a tree. Even your dress is of the forest. Not to mention the exotic shape of your body is like that of a nymph. I would be willing to bet that your body must taste of sweet syrup. Your beauty is definitely worth the attention of royalty," the pixie king examined. Cyril was blatantly looking over Luna with lust in his eyes. She expected the queen to be angry, but her eyes looked completely unfazed by the behavior. Luna was too shocked at the king's brazenness to answer.
"Yes she is quite lovely, but I am sure we would both appreciate it if you keep such comments from escaping your lips," Jareth hissed with venom in his voice. Luna sat back down to him, resting her head on his chest. He wrapped his arm around her protectively.
"Is she your courtesan, brother?" Lillian questioned. Luna's mouth dropped.
"That is highly uncalled for. The siblings wished themselves to me. While in my kingdom, her brother had fallen off a Pegasus. That is all," Jareth growled.
"If that is all, why are they not goblins?" she questioned.
"If given the choice between a gorgeous woman and a goblin, do you really think he would choose the latter?" her husband countered.
"I just help watch over some of the goblins, and keep them out of trouble. I can't do that if I'm a goblin," Luna argued.
"Very well then. Will you be staying here for the night?" the queen asked.
"If that is possible then yes," Jareth answered.
"There is room in the nursery for the babe, if you would like. Do not worry our best knights are keeping guard. Lucky for you Jareth, you finally get to meet your niece," Lillian stated.
"I have a niece?" Jareth questioned.
"Yes her name is Primrose. She is about six months old. If you would accept my invitations instead of moping around your castle all day, you would know that. It has been more than two decades since you have last visited."
"I was not moping I was tending to my kingdom!" he argued.
"Now that you have a goblin sitter, you have no excuse for not coming here," she countered.
[Hi pumpkins. Lotsa fun stuff going on in this chapter like: flying horse accidents, a divorce, and Jareth's relatives. Hooray for Hoggle and Pixies with false swirly whirly mustaches! I feel that false mustaches just make every situation better. That's why I have so many. I have a mustache that fits every occasion. Going to a fancy party? Bring a fancy mustache. Going to the old west? Rock a cowboy 'stache. Going to tie some chick to train tracks? Take an evil villain mustache. It really makes you stand out from the crowd. I hope you find my advice useful. Bye-bye!]