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 Nine:

Somewhere out there anywhere
I don't care, Get me out of here

(Deep- Nine Inch Nails)

Sarah had been taken by surprise when the horrible looking creatures had jumped on her and knocked her out. She hadn't known why they had been focusing so much on her, she barely knew how to fight. Now, having woken up in a groggy state in an unknown area, she was beginning to think that that was the very reason she had been targeted. None of them were really paying attention to her in the dank room. They more seemed as if they were waiting for something. Fear suddenly overcoming her foggy mind and she jerked forward to run past them, only to be stopped by rough ropes that tied her to the chair she was in. Now even more fearful and hearing the malicious laughter of some of the creatures, she looked around anxiously, hoping to find some way to escape. She didn't know why she was here and she honestly didn't care too much as long as she got out of there. Nothing was close to her except the evil little creatures who now leered at her in sadistic amusement. She shuddered when she noticed their eyes for the first time. Hollow, by all she could see, they had no eyes, merely empty sockets gaping towards her. The effect was more than enough to frighten her in and of itself.

Years ago, she had found Jareth somewhat frightening, but now she was finally understanding exactly what he had meant when he had said he was being nice. She closed her eyes tightly, her breathing shallow and quick in her fear as she heard the things approach her, surrounding her, as if feeding on her fear. With every step they took she grew more fearful and soon she began to feel the prick of tears against her eyes. She was trying to force herself not to cry, but she was largely unsuccessful. She didn't know what these creatures intended to do with her as she felt one slimy hand touch her arm. She jerked away, and so did the creature as what she could only assume was the door slammed open. All of the creatures that surronded her scurried away as she heard the footsteps approach her slowly. She kept her eyes closed, fearing what she would see, but the feel of a soft humaniod hand on her chin surprised her enough to have her forget herself.

"So it seems they did succeed." A velvet lined voice filtered into her ear as she stared.

She hadn't known what to expect, but what she saw wasn't it. His handsomely exotic features marked him clearly to her as a fae, but from his smirk she sensed no warmth towards her. His platinum blonde hair that reminded her Jareth's was tied back in a smooth and tight ponytail. His tailored clothes were just as extravagent as the Goblin King's had been, but they also held hints of morbid design. She pulled her head away from him a little, noticing black pointed nails. He chuckled, the sound deep and almost seductive. Almost, if you had no reason to fear him, but she did and it sounded as cruel as she knew that he was. His hand darted forward, this time wrapping itself around her throat instead, the action nowhere near gentle.

"You, my dear little mortal, will get me what I want." He told her smugly.

"And what is that?" She asked, defiant and curious. He laughed at her question, pulling back from her.

"Your lovely little friend, the Fae." He answered, his strange, goat-like eyes darkening as he spoke, "She is mine and your lover should not have taken her from me."

The comment took her slightly aback. It had taken a moment before she realized who the fae in front of her was talking about. Maelle. He wanted Mae. She could only guess why, but she wasn't keen on finding out, already able to tell that whatever it was, she wouldn't like it. What he meant about her lover, whom she assumed he meant as Jareth, having taken Mae from him, however, she wanted to know more about. She had always gotten the impression from her friend that she had feelings for the King, and it seemed they were close... She wondered if perhaps he had moved on and was only interested in her any longer as a way to fix her kingdom. She frowned, unsure and not wanting to think about it either. She had more important things to worry about than Maelle and Jareth's relationship.

He was watching her intently, studying her with a crucial eye. She shifted nervously under his gaze, not enjoying the feeling that she was getting from him. It felt like he was looking right through her, sensing her every thought and feeling. She felt naked before his gaze. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in, trying to ignore the feeling. He simply laughed at her for doing such. She kept her eyes closed as she heard his footsteps fade away, leaving her alone, the creatures having long since left them in there. The feeling of unease remained firmly seated in her stomach despite her new found silence.

o0o

Maelle was eerily calm as she followed the obvious tracks that the vile Alal that had taken Sarah from them and demanded a ransom. Geoff trailed carefully behind. He respected her a great deal, but this was a side of her he had never seen. Her magic aura seemed to pulsate about her in her silent anger, making his stomach actually churn if he came too close. Since he had seen her read the note, her anger and her magic had fluxated violently. He had never before seen her actually use any of it, so seeing it raging like a wildfire was distrubing. He knew the reason though, and that was why he was following her. Linda, or Sarah as she had turned out to be, had lied to them, had hid her true identity from them. He knew that if the fae infront of him had known that that they would have left the very day to the city, taking the shortest route and fighting violently to defend her. He knew the reason why they hadn't followed the shortest path. It was largely uninhabited, save for a few very dangerous creatures. Only enough to count on one hand, but from the way that Mae described them, the two of them would not be able to stand a chance against even one. They were vicious and powerful and she would be endangering even herself to fight them or even to take that path, even if there was a chance they could be avoided.

He shuddered a little at the thought and continued to follow her, but stopped short when he felt another swell of her energy. She turned towards him abruptly, her face blank as she moved towards him. He took a step back from the force and, with a slight look of realization her power suddenly fell so that her aura returned to normal. She bowed her head a little as she approached him before looking him in the eye.

"I have to leave you hear, Geoff." She told him matter-of-factly, "It's going to be dangerous, and I don't want you endangering yourself."

He frowned, but nodded, understanding why she wanted him to stay there. He had watched her fight and had seen how violent and unpredictable she had been. He had only guessed that she had not been more successful because she had been forced to control herself. She glanced around them for a moment before walking to one of the nearest wall and examined it for a moment before tapping carefully on one of the stones. It was a moment before anything happened. A fuzzy blue worm crawled out of a hole near where she had tapped. It looked between the two of them cheerfully, it's red scarf and odd hair swayed with it as it moved.

"'Ello there Miss Maelle, what's the occasion?" The little worm asked, it's accented voice cheery. Mae smiled at it sadly for a moment.

"I need you to watch Geoff here while I take care of some things..." She said, motioning towards the boy. The worm nodded, still smiling.

"Lovely! I'll tel the missus to put on some tea." He said, nodding towards them before retreating into his home, calling after him, "Come on in, Geoff."

Geoff looked at Maelle for a moment confused as to how he would get into there. She motioned towards the hole and smiled a little, amused. He stood there for another moment before he reached for the hole. He was surprised to find that when he tried to reach his hand into the worm's entrance, it easily entered, his arm following and then the rest of them. He soon found himself inside of the worm's house. He turned around and saw Mae's retreating form disappear in a very large vision. He turned towards the worm, surprised to find himself about the same size. The worm chuckled, shaking it's now large head as it turned and moved towards the decorated part of the home.

"You humans, always taking things for granted..." He murmured, amused.

A/N: Ah! I'm sorry for updating this later than usual! Today was busy! The next chapter will be epic though. Hehe. Thanks for the reviews! I love all my readers! 3