100 Theme Challenge

Theme 52: Deep in Thought. Dedicated to Becca.

Disclaimer: Yadda, yadda legal jargon, blah blah blah, lawyer talk, ramble ramble ramble, basically I don't own anything that belongs to rich people who aren't me. Blah blah blah, I'm poor, and make no money…. Yadda yadda yadda

I walked down the long hallway towards High General Ivory's study. My tennis shoes squeaked on the floor. Jareth had said that I should dress like a young boy of the court, but Sarah didn't make me. Besides, I thought most of the other boys my age looked like girls. I didn't want to look like a girl. Jareth sometimes acted all embarrassed by it, but Ivory said that she thought it gave me a distinction from the other little boys.

I liked Ivory. She was real cool and stuff. She always let me hang out in her office when she wasn't doing anything important. The only thing I didn't like about her was that she didn't like my sister, Sarah. I couldn't figure why either. Sarah was really cool too. They were both so cool that they should have been best friends, but girls are weird—especially the big ones.

So, I wanted my sister and Ivory to be friends so badly that I spent all morning long trying to figure out why Ivory didn't like Sarah. I asked Sarah if she liked Ivory, and Sarah just shrugged and said that Ivory didn't really pay much attention to her, but she like her ok. So after I spent all morning thinking things out, I figured it out. Ivory had a crush on Jareth.

It wasn't like it was a big secret that Jareth liked Sarah. He was always making funny eyes at her. Sarah didn't like him none. She just liked him as a friend. Ivory made funny eyes at Jareth too. She never made a big deal about it, since she wasn't all girly. But that had to be it. She was jealous of Sarah. I'd made up my mind that I was going to confront her about it.

I squeaked a little bit louder when I passed Jareth's study. I came to the little goblin about three feet taller than me that guarded Ivory's door. She called him Porter, but his name was really Sengus.

"Hiya Sengus!" I yelled. He didn't hear that good.

"Holo! Whadya want?"

"Is Ivory in?"

"Aye." We stood there for a minute. He didn't say anything else. I stuck my hands in my pocket and waited, but nothing happened. Sengus was stupid.

"Well, can I see her?" I asked.

"See who?"

"Ivory."

I hated going through this. Ivory told me I always had to wait for the porter to open the door. I walked in one time without asking. She was having an important meeting with some other generals. Sarah grounded me for a whole month for that. I didn't think it was very fair.

"What about her?"

"Can I see High General Ivory, Sengus?" I yelled. Jareth poked his head out. He gave me a weird look. He said it wasn't right that boys of the court run around in the High General's office. I told him Ivory said I could. He didn't argue. He never argued with her.

"Yup." He finally opened the door.

Ivory's office was the second coolest place in the palace. The first was the training grounds. Her desk was at the end of the office. She was sitting there writing papers. I didn't know how she could write so much. I hated writing letters. But everyone, even Sarah, told me I had to learn if I was going to live in the Underground. It was so stupid.

I looked to the left of me at the huge table. It had Ivory's battle plans on it. She had everything in the Underground mapped out. I usually liked to come in and look at everything. Sometimes she told me I could map out my own battles, but I couldn't do it today. I had deep important questions to ask.

I walked up to Ivory's desk and just stood there. She didn't look up. I knew she heard me. Ivory always knew when I came in. She had like a super power. I just waited for her to say something, but she never did. I tried to be patient, but I didn't want to wait any more.

"Why don't you like Sarah?" I asked. I knew the answer, but I wanted to see what she said first.

Ivory looked up at me and raised an eyebrow. "What?" she asked.

"You don't like Sarah. Why?"

"Who says I don't like Sarah?" She asked, putting her pen down.

"No one."

"Don't be so presumptuous Young Master Toby. It's not very good of you." She replied going back to writing. I made a face. I hated it when she called me "Young Mater Toby."

I walked over to her big table and picked up one of the dragon figurines. "I thought about it and I know why." I said looking at her again.

"Why is that?" She asked, not paying attention to me. I could always tell when she was really paying attention.

I knew I had to be cool about this. I wanted to make it seem like it was—non-challente—I think that was the word that Sarah used about Jareth. "Because you like Jareth." I didn't look at her to see what she was going to do.

She snorted. "Of course I like Jareth, Toby. He's my king."

"Not like that. You 'like' like him." I said.

"I haven't the pleasure of knowing your meaning." Ivory smirked at me.

"Yes, you do. You just don't wanna say. You don't like Sarah, because Jareth has a crush on her, and you want Jareth to be your boyfriend."

"My boyfriend? Toby, I did not grow up in the Above. What do you mean 'my boyfriend'?"

"You wanna date him, so you can marry him."

"That's absurd Toby. He's a king. King's don't marry their high generals." She said laughing.

"Yeah, but none of the other high generals were girls." I crossed my arms and looked at her hard.

"Still, Toby, the king loves your sister, there's nothing to be done about that." She stopped. I think Ivory was going to say something important, but she didn't want me to know that I was right. That's how she always was. I couldn't be right.

"Well, Sarah don't like him none. Sarah don't like no body." I told Ivory. I was right; she didn't. Ivory did say anything.

"It's no matter who she does or doesn't like. Sarah and I aren't very much alike."

"That's no excuse. You and Sarah aren't like anybody here." I replied throwing my hands up. "You should be best friends. I don't think that Jareth's that great anyway."

"What is it that you would like me to do then Toby?" She asked.

"Be Sarah's friend. She's really lonely down here. She doesn't like to do kid stuff and I don't like to do grown up girl stuff, but you can do that stuff with her." I said. Then I leaned on her desk. "And I want you to admit that you 'like' like Jareth."

"I'll see what I can do about the first, and of course I like him Toby. He's my king."

"That's not what I mean. You do everything he says, and you stare at him funny."

"I have to do everything he says Toby; I'm his subject. And I wasn't aware that I stared at him funny. It's probably because I used to be his personal guard and take a lot of care about his personal being."

I sighed. "Fine, be that way." I said.

"I will, because it's the only way I can be." She replied.

I walked towards the door. I had a few minutes to think since her study was so long. I got to the door and stopped. I turned around and ran back to her desk.

"Ivory," I said. She looked up at me.

"Yes Toby?"

"I just thought of something."

"What?"

"You never said that you didn't like Jareth and want to marry him." She stood to her feet.

"Toby!" She yelled. I ran back to the door as fast as I could. I knew Ivory wouldn't really let that slide, and I didn't want to stick around to find out what she'd do.

Author's Notes: So yeah, here you go next challenge. As always thanks so ever much to Zeta Sigma, my faithful reviewer. I'm glad at least someone in the world is enjoying this. I decided to go a loose route for this one and do something light. Toby's about eight in this one. He's been considering for a long time why Ivory and his sister don't get along. Out of the mouth of babes and all.