Nothing, Nothing tra la la?
By Adrienne Valentine
Summary: The Labyrinth is engaged in war, the King is weak and there are few willing to ally with him. While his Labyrinth provides sufficient defenses, it can only do so for so long and the the King knows it, waiting for the only one who can assure victory- the only one who had defeated his Labyrinth.
Genre: Adventure/Romance
Rating: T to be safe.
Disclaimer: I do not own Jareth, Sarah, Hoggle, Sir Didymus, Ludo or any other of the characters you'd notice from the movie or the 'Return to the Labyrinth' Manga (not many of them will be in here, though, if any.)
Chapter Seven:
Swear this one you'll save
Better lock it, in your pocket
(Secret - The Pierces)
The sun woke Sarah the next morning, leaving her feeling at a loss that she had not dreamt of Jareth after she had fallen asleep again. She felt more rested, however, than she had since the dreams had begun. It was an odd feeling and she wasn't sure if she even liked it or not. She looked around and noticed that much like the night before she and Maelle were the only ones awake. Mae's cot was already put away and she was trying to wake Geoff, who seemed to still want to sleep and was swiping at her hand when she tried to shake him. It made her chuckle a little to watch it. He was older than her and yet he still acted like a child sometimes. With a sigh, she stood, putting her own cot away as the other human finally woke, grinning broadly at the fae, who looked slightly annoyed. He too soon begun putting away his cot and the three of them taking out their rations and beginning to eat it as they sat near each other. Sarah glanced at the other woman once she had finished, waiting for the explanation that she had promised. The woman sighed, having finished her smaller rations before the other girl, looking at Geoff, who noticed her glance with curiosity, still eating.
"It seems we need to be more careful with our dreams." Maelle begun, looking off into the distance for a time, frowning.
"Why?" Geoff asked between bites, not having experienced the dreams as of yet.
"There is a flower in the Underground that... well, it enchants dreams." She explained, "It's uses were originally beneficial, used mostly as a way to contact love ones while they slept..."
"It sounds harmless enough." Sarah said quietly, bringing the fae's attention to her. She sighed.
"It was then, but the special property of such dreams allows the dreamer to access an astral state, projecting them to various locations." She paused for a moment, "The problem, however, was that the astral form of the dreamer was, in fact, entirely connected to their body, unlike in a normal dream. While when used to connect with loved ones, it is indeed harmless, but it can and often is used for more sinister purposes."
"Meaning what, we could wake up with bruises or something?" Geoff asked, having finished his food and seeming entirely interesting.
"You could dream yourself a death and then find yourself dead." She deadpanned, "The flower can be controlled and it can also simply be released wildly, the effects lasting to various degrees. It seems that you, Geoff, have been unaffected as of yet, but I am unsure of how long that will last."
"What if the dreams are good?" Sarah asked tentatively, not wanting to give herself away. Mae frowned at the statement.
"Since we do not know who is sending the dreams to you, we cannot be sure of the intent. They may turn bad without warning, having allowed you the good to leave open the path for the bad." The fae spoke, her voice slightly strained, "Without knowing the sender, and more importantly, without the experience to pull yourself back from such dreams, it is dangerous to allow them to continue."
"So what can we do about it?" She asked, disappointed slightly.
"I know a brew that blocks the flower's effects. It's easy for me to make, so I can have a ready supply. The dreams, if they manifest at all, will not hold any of the other affects. If you are injured in them, you will not really be injured." Mae nodded, "However, I doubt that the caster would be powerful enough to get past the brew, as it was created when the flower's properties were discovered. Mostly for those who were angry at their loved ones."
"Alright, sounds good." Geoff said, shrugging.
Sarah was slightly disappointed by the whole thing. She didn't want to give up her dreams with Jareth, but she also agreed to some degree with the fae about the danger. She didn't know who was sending her the dreams, as Jareth had seemed confused by her presence himself. She even wondered if it really had been Jareth. Perhaps that had been part of the dream's illusion. Perhaps her dream-Jareth would attack her even. The thought frightened her. She had been frightened by him when she was younger and had run his labyrinth to retrieve her brother, especially after the cleaners, but it had been a long time since he had. If he became violent towards her, or even his image did... She didn't want to be afraid of him again. The thought itself was disturbing. The conversation, however, ended there as Mae stood and went to dig the things she would need out from her bag. The two humans sat there in silence while she worked, pondering over the new information that they had found out.
Geoff, having not had any dreams, felt less worried, more interested. He was curious as to who might be sending them dreams, and why would dreams be sent to them. None of them, he figured, were all that important, so unless it was so widespread that they were sending it in general to whoever was closest, which would make him think that they'd have less control or they would be less effective. Either way, he wanted to find out the reasoning behind all of it. He was the kind of person who liked finding out mysteries.
After some time Mae returned to where the other two were sitting, her pack on her back and all of her weapons strapped on her. She smiled at them half-heartedly, her mind still on the dream that she had had that night. She knew who it was who was sending the dreams to her, and that he was strong enough to get past her defense. She knew that her companion would be safe, as the dust that had been left on her after her dreams had been lightly coloured. It was the one way that an observer could tell if the sender was hostile or friendly. Whoever had been sending her companion the dreams was friendly, but since she had been sent a very hostile dream, it was possible that her attacker would attack either of her companions. It was highly possible and she knew that it was one of his tactics. She sighed, repressing her frown. She hated him. With a small shudder, she nodded at the others as they finally had finished getting ready.
It was that man that knew more than she did. He sat lounging back in a large plush chair, leather boots resting on an obsidian table, a mirror floating in his view. Inside the mirror were the three companions in the Labyrinth. He wore a smirk on his face as he listened to them speak. His eyes shifted to the brown haired girl once again and paused there, concentrating on her. Her image became larger and he raised a dark brow at the face. Then his smirk widened as he remembered something very important. He knew he remembered her face as soon as he had seen her and he finally knew why now. He remembered the 'dream ball' that the Goblin King had hosted for his human love, and while her appearance was different, he had still recognized her. She had, after all, remained mask less. With a movement of his hand, the mirror's image dissipated and lowered to the table in front of him. He snapped his fingers and a dark creature quickly appeared next to him. It was the same size and had a similar appearance as that of a goblin, but instead of the slightly silly looking appearance of the goblins, this creature seemed more malicious. It's fanged smile spoke of potential horror.
"I want the human girl that my fae travels with." He said, his dark voice sounding seductive and dangerous at the same time. The creature's grin broadened before it bowed and disappeared. He chuckled to himself. "I'm not going to be just a spectator in this little affair any longer."
He laughed once more as the mirror rose in front of him once again, focusing on the small travelling companions, who were doing nothing but walking before he switched the view in the mirror. It travelled to a light haired and tired looking fae. He was recognizable as Jareth. He smirked at the sight. He had never been openly hostile towards the man, even after he had stolen what was his, but now he had the opportunity to get his revenge. Whispering and warmongering, encouraging the Lord to wage his war was not enough for him. No, he wanted a more personal touch. He wanted the fae to feel what he had felt. More so, he wanted to see how strongly he felt for the human woman. He knew exactly how as well. He would get his revenge and he would get what he wanted with one simple plan. The only thing he needed to complete it was the girl.
Jareth felt himself being watched as soon as it began, he dismissed it at first, as known allies were allowed to scry his lands on occasion, but a growing sense of unease overtook him and, with a wave of his hand, he ended the scrying. He frowned. He had been searching his books since he had spoke to Sarah the night before. He had thought that she might have been somehow sending herself to him or was with someone who was able to. Knowing that she knew nothing of how she was arriving worried him. Perhaps her trip through his realm had given her more power than he had previously believed. He had allowed her to retain the ability to see Underground creatures and speak with them, but he had not given her other powers. Not that he had been aware of, at least. He paused, thinking for a moment of their last encounter, wondering if perhaps her denial had given her more than he had thought, but after another moment and recalling the dust that had transferred to his hand, he shook his head.
That was the sign of someone else's hand involved in the matter. Who's however, he didn't know. He wished to thank whomever it was that was allowing him to see his Sarah during the nights. It had given him strength. and a few of his subjects had noticed, but he had not told them why. He smiled a little, looking forward to the night that would come. He was not expecting that he would get very far with the girl, but he enjoyed her nightly company. Whether it meant the same to her that it did to him or not, he did not want to pass up an opportunity to see her. He only hoped that her visits did not stop. He smiled a little as he remembered her last two visits, when she had allowed him to kiss her. A froze for a moment when he heard a knock on the door and with a wave of his hand, allowed it to open.The small squat dwarf walked in, only really nodding his head. He no longer fully feared the King, but he respected his position well enough and had come to respect him once he had learned that the King had been sincere in his feelings for her.
"Yes, Hedgewart?" He asked with a small smirk. He knew the dwarf's real name, but his reactions were amusing.
"It's Hoggle." The Dwarf said stubbornly, always his reply to his name being said wrong.
"None has been able to find her yet, sire." Hoggle said, sounding himself slightly worried. "Maybe I should go out and look for her?"
Jareth could easily see that the dwarf was quite worried about the girl. They had been close friends and he had regretted cutting off their contact. He frowned a little at the dwarf's offer. He knew that perhaps it would be a smart idea, as if she had had her memory altered or she was hiding, that she would trust her friend. He also knew that if he was injured she would blame him for it and he was trying this time to truly win her over. Not only for his kingdom, but for himself and, despite that she would not admit it, her. He had not asked about her life from his subjects who visited her, but they had told him one thing. She had not married nor been serious with any man as of then.
"She may be trying to reach here, Higgle, and I do no believe that my face would be the first she would wish to see." He said with a sigh. The dwarf opened his mouth to speak, but the King raised his hand to stop him, "I understand your concern, but as I'm sure you are aware, it is dangerous at the moment, and she would be very upset if you were to become injured."
Hoggle nodded, sadly, before leaving the room, closing the door behind him. Jareth leaned back once again in his chair, frowning. He himself wanted to leave the castle and search for her. He had even brought up crystals to scry for her, but he also did not want to push her. She needed to come to him on his own, he knew, but he didn't want her to get hurt. He didn't even want her to get caught up in the war. He couldn't send her back if she came to him, not until the war was over at least, but he did wish that she had not come. He knew that she could perhaps end the war with her presence alone, but he did not want to put her in any danger. Another sigh and he closed his eyes, waiting for the sun to fall so that he could see her again.
A/N: There's the explination. O.o That was a lot of dialouge for me. Hope this chapter didn't confuse anyone. They will be switching a bit more now on who it's following, but we'll be checking in on Sarah and her little group more than the others. Now is when the action is really going to start. I hope you enjoy!
