Chapter 28: Tighten Up
The fun song by The Black Keys.
Taria Robotnik: Glad you did! :)
The Queen of Water: Haha ok
Princess of the Fae: Thanks for all your input! Glad you like it dear!
livia696: Thank you love!
...corazon: Thanks! Input taken... they just happen to jump into the story in this chapter! ;)
Byoken: Aww! Here you go!
The land of the Underground was still bathed in velvet night light when Hoggle charged his way down to the Caverns. He tripped a couple times over misplaced roots and branches precariously positioned in his way.
"Ludo! Didymus! Anyone!" he shouted. "The King's kidnapped Sarah! We must hurry!"
Ludo growled as he awoke from inside his cave, rubbing his large eyes with a furry palm. Sir Didymus jumped right out of a tree branch, wielding his sword furiously.
"I say, who goes there? Who causeth all this racket?"
Hoggle reached the entrance to Ludo's cave, breathing heavily. "It's me… Hoggle…"
"Ah, so it is, my fine fellow!" Didymus quickly put his sword back in its sheath and went to shake the dwarf's hand. "Welcome back to our place of residence-"
"Can't talk now, Didymus! The King's kidnapped Sarah!"
Ludo rushed out of the cave. "Sawah in trouble?"
"Yes!" Hoggle flailed his arms in exasperation. "We must gather up all the creatures in this vicinity and storm the castle! Sarah's life could be at stake!"
"My, my, what a strange turn of events! But I shouldn't like to see the young miss harmed in any such manner, after all she went through for the kingdom! Come now, Sir Ludo, and let us gather the finest army in the Underground! We shall recapture our beloved Champion and lead her to safety!" The two creatures bounded off down the hill and up past the glittering stream, Didymus singing a war chant he must have learned long ago as a young knight.
The dwarf waited until they were gone. In a flash, he transformed into a dark, slender form, red eyes glowing in the mist of dawn.
Sarah awoke with a start. The castle had jerked a bit, and a loud crunching sound reverberated through the walls.
"Jareth?" she croaked, her voice a bit hoarse. How long had she been asleep? But the king was nowhere in sight. Sarah stood up from the pile of cushions, wrapping the soft blanket around her goosepimpled skin and tiptoeing to the heavy wooden door. She grasped the handle and pulled it open, stepping out into the drafty hallway and making her way down a few flights of stone steps. The crunching noise continued, along with high-pitched squeals and shouts. Those must be the goblins, she thought. What on earth are they doing?
"Gotcha," a low voice announced, as he pulled her into his arms. Sarah yelped, but immediately relaxed. Jareth was incredibly warm.
"What's going on?"
"The goblins think I have kidnapped you, love," he chuckled. "I'm starting to think that wouldn't be such a bad idea."
Sarah peeked around the corner, back out into the hallway, towards where the sound grew louder. "What will you do?"
Jareth nuzzled her neck. "Nothing," he said simply.
"Nothing? But what if they make a mess of the castle? It's so early in the morning…" Sarah groaned.
"Let them have their fun. I shall reward them with Goblin Ale later."
"Fun? Reward? Wha-"
"Hush, you." Jareth placed a finger on her lips. "Now, what would you like for breakfast, hmm?"
Sarah cocked an eyebrow. "Well, for one, I wouldn't mind it being a bit quieter around here."
Jareth sighed. "Oh, all right, I will speak with them." He reluctantly released her from his arms. "Run along to the dining room, now. I shall be there in no time."
The girl did as she was told, though she was a bit peeved he was addressing her like a child. Ah, well. As long as he made those pesky goblins settle down, Sarah couldn't complain.
Jareth poofed his more formal clothing onto his figure and approached the large wooden door at the entrance of the castle. He quickly fluffed his hair and, with a snap of his fingers, the door completely disappeared. A whole gaggle of goblins rushed in, yelling and bouncing about the rafters, but stopping immediately when the king crossed his arms.
"What is the meaning of this, disturbing me and my future queen at such an abonimably early hour of the morning?"
Sir Didymus, that measly little rat who used to guard the bridge in the Bog of Eternal Stench, rushed forward with the gallumphing Ludo tagging along behind him.
"We have come to rescue the Champion, your highness!"
"Rescue? Is she in any danger?"
"Hoggle make noise this morning," Ludo sighed. "Hoggle say Sawah in danger."
"Hoggle?" Jareth formed a crystal in his gloved hand and peered into it. "The grumpy old dwarf is asleep in his kingdom, see? And he hasn't left since I put him there." He showed the knight and his companion the sphere.
"But, your highness, if Sir Hoggle has not left his kingdom, then who was it who awoke us this fine morning?"
Jareth immediately smashed the crystal to the ground and growled. Sir Didymus blinked, and the king was gone.
"Where… what?" he said, looking at Ludo. The creature shrugged and sighed.
It's an abrupt ending- I apologize! But I wanted to get this up as soon as possible, since I've been working on it for almost three days and not making too much progress. Didn't want to keep you hanging! Expect the next chapter to appear within a week or so- I'm in the middle of helping out backstage with my school's musical, so that takes out a big chunk of time. But I love you all, and appreciate each one of your reviews, favorites, and follows! TTYS~
P.S: My poem Winterthorn needs some good critiquing, as much as I appreciate all the lovely compliments! 3 tnx
