I hear your demands, oh wonderful readers, and I deliver the long awaited chapter:)

Some of you were wondering what the source of animosity between Clarissa, Jareth and Rosalinda was, and I hope this will clear things up a bit.

Review, and thanks so much the reading!

In all his years of being the Goblin King never once had Jareth had any reason to speak to Clarissa unless they happened to be in the same room at the same time. If anything had to be said then it was said at one of their rare meetings, or mentioned in the few letters that passed between them, but never had she called on him or he on her.

All good things must end, I suppose, Jareth thought as he looked at the image of Clarissa that hovered in one of his crystal conference orbs. She had requested an audience with him that evening, saying she wanted to know how his preparations for the trial were going, and he had been obliged to join her as he was unable to come up with an excuse not to. Besides, it will give me a chance to ask a few questions and hopefully help a friend.

"I don't know how you managed it, Jareth, but since it is done there is nothing I can do but comply." Clarissa said, looking as if she were walking on thin air and not moving at all, fingers tapping her very pointy chin. "It has been a long time since any one king, or queen, has gotten all the others lined up behind them in agreement. For though everyone is loyal to me, getting them all to fall in behind me for anything is something I haven't managed to do in all my thousand years of being queen. For you to do so speaks volumes. You really don't want this trial to last longer than it has too, do you?"

Jareth lowered his eyes. "Do I detect a hint of disgust in your tone, Majesty? But then, I forget how fond of law and politics you are; they were always your forte, the one thing that ever gave you any joy I sometimes thought. But here you stand alone; no one else really likes those two subjects, and I was able to play on that for my own means."

Clarissa stopped walking and cast him an angry glare, though somehow he got the feeling there was nothing behind it other than mere annoyance. "That is hardly ethical, Jareth. We are here to give out punishment and justice, not pick sides and treat the whole process as nothing more than a game!"

There was a stiffness in Jareth's back and neck that made him want to flop back in his chair in his customary slouching manner, one leg over an arm. And a chair sat close enough for him to do so without any hesitation, but he couldn't do it. With so much worry weighing on his mind he was sure that letting down his stiff demeanor would crush him completely.

"Somehow I get the feeling that his process is but a game, Clarissa, a game of power and seeing who will win the day, and it is being played because you wanted it that way." he turned on her, eyes flashing with irritation and anger. "Your father put the Order of Oblivion on the demon before he was assassinated, and it has stood until you decided you wanted to bring it to trial because you wanted all parties to get justice. Well, you said how the game was to be played, and I am merely following your lead."

Clarissa moved closer until only her eyes were showing in the orb. Jareth noticed the green markings on the skin around the eyes, and wondered if she wore makeup to enhance them. "You had better hope that the way you are handling this doesn't come back with serious repercussions!" she ground the words out in a threatening voice, and then quickly withdrew a good distance away. When she spoke again all traces of her anger were gone. "I guess I should congratulate you on what you have done; you are a shrewd one, the most cunning king I have ever known, and I have known a few. Even my own father was not a crafty as you have proven yourself to be."

Jareth didn't acknowledge her compliment, knowing it was given in a very bad grace. A little voice in his head told him he should be ashamed of what he had done in getting the other six monarchs to rally behind him, to name him as their representative in the trial and accept any justice given to him as justice for them all. But he didn't feel anything like shame; what he did might be an old trick, rarely used in modern days, but reading up on it he discovered that though it wasn't done often, and wasn't always looked well on, it wasn't illegal. Besides, he had promised Sarah he would make sure that the demon wasn't set free, and this was as good a way as any to make sure his word was kept.

"What he didn't have in craft he made up for in wisdom, Clarissa." and I wish you were more like him! Jareth didn't dare speak the words. It was a shame that Clarissa wasn't the cool headed, collected and charismatic monarch her father had been; that, in addition to her obvious cunning and determination, would have made her a truly great ruler. But it was not so; though everyone was loyal to her as was expected, no one really liked her personally. "He would have thought things through before acting so rashly, as you have been know to do on more than a few occasions."

Clarissa jerked her golden haired head up, knowing right away of what he spoke, and her shoulders tensed. "This is a subject we have been on many times. Jareth, and I don't see the point of going on it again." she looked at him, the upset look on her face telling just a little of what she was feeling. "I will maintain, until proven otherwise, my belief that Rosalinda is guilty of helping to bring down her father. I did what was right when I put a Death Order on her head."

Jareth growled, and the markings around his mismatched eyes grew several shades darker. "You didn't even try to find out if she was guilty or innocent. Your father would have looked into it himself before declaring her a practitioner of black magic."

"But, as you implied with your earlier words, I'm not my father." she let slip a sly smile, and Jareth felt his skin crawl. "This is my reign now, Goblin King, and I rule as I see fit. In The Fallen One's case I preferred not to take a chance; black magic users are to be dealt instant death because such magic is a danger to our society. Knowing the history of the Underground, of how some of the first rulers used black magic to keep control of the common folk and how it always ended up in disaster, I chose to have her done away with to avoid any chance of a possible threat.

"If you want my opinion, you are the one who acted unwisely in seeking her out and giving her sanctuary. You not only put yourself in danger but also disobeyed my orders, neither of which are things that a truly wise man, or king, would do." her scolding tone got under his skin more easily than a sharp blade, and he knew that if they had been in the same room he would have deal her a good slap across the face. He had never hit a woman before, but in her case he was more than willing to make an exception. "And then you extended that sanctuary outside of you kingdom so that she could harness her powers as a Healer, putting even more lives in potential jeopardy."

Jareth's temper flared up like a pile of paper that someone had set a match to, and his normally pale face took on a heavy shade of red that wasn't at all becoming to his striking features. "Just let me ask you this, Clarissa!" he somehow managed to keep his voice down to a low bark. "If she is guilty then why hasn't she done anything to suggest she is contaminated by black magic in all these years? You deem her so dangerous, so deserving of death, and yet with all her alleged powers she hasn't so much as tried to use them! And believe me she has had many chances to try; I see her frequently, and never once has she tried to do the obvious thing of killing me and taking the kingdom as her own-"

"She never needed to kill you, not when she had your heart in the palm of her hand!" she screamed back at him. "You loved her so much you were blinded by it, couldn't see that she was manipulating you at every turn while hiding behind her so-called graces and virtues!"

"Shut up, Clarissa!" now Jareth shouted, rage boiling inside of him like molten lava. Amazingly she did do as he said and shut her rosebud mouth so tightly the corners puckered. "If you say one more thing against Rosalinda I swear you will regret it! You hate her, you always hated her because she was your rival, and she won the fight even before it began. If you want my opinion now, I think that you put a Death Order on her head because of your dislike for her, and you hate me now because I got to her first and made her beyond your reach! Am I right, Clarissa?" he leaned in again, nose just touching the orb and hair falling into his eyes, making him look truly savage. "Am I right?"

Her silence was answer enough of an affirmation for him. He had suspected as much for quite some time, but never had gone so far as to accuse Clarissa to her face, but at last she had provoked him into speaking unguardedly. He also suspected that there was some anger directed at him for the time he had flatly refused to even consider Clarissa as a potential wife; it would have made a very powerful alliance, and his family had urged him to think carefully about it, but he had crushed the idea almost as soon as it had been laid at his feet.

"I want someone with a heart in their chest," he had said to his father, the chief person who pressed for the marriage. "From what I have seen she has none, and I doubt that time will make her grow one."

In retrospect he was sure that was where the source of her true hatred of him came from, the fact that he had turned down the proposal, and had then acted very hastily in turning to Rosalinda immediately afterwards, adding insult to injury. Nothing could have said his true feelings on the subject more clearly than that act. Her chances for the most powerful alliance in the Underground were gone in an instant, so it was no wonder she hated him.

Clarissa was thinking of the same thing at that moment, and she turned stiffly away, the sight of him being more than she could stand. He could see her fingernails digging into the flesh of her right bicep, making dark red marks spread along the skin until it reached her elbow, and knew she would have bruises within a very short time. Be sure to wear long sleeves, Majesty; we don't want the public to ask questions! Keep up appearances! he thought with a scowl, wishing he could do the exact opposite and declare to the whole Underground just how much they loathed each other.

"Have you anything else to say, Goblin King, or is this offensive interview at an end?" she asked, shoulders sagging as if greatly fatigued. Jareth noticed that her eyes had suddenly gone dark, though he was thinking it had more to do with her being upset with him than from weariness.

"Yes, now that you mention it. One last thing before we call it quits for the day." he said, putting on his typical proud and snobbish demeanor. Swiftly he stood up straight and tossed his hair back, an act at hiding his own fatigue from her; he had reordered time in the Aboveground, prepared for a trial he was not looking forward to, argued with monarchs, worried constantly about Sarah and her father, and had the worries of where Rosalinda was and why a demon would steal a pendant on top of it all. He was worn to the bone, so tired he couldn't figure out how he kept going, but he wouldn't show that to Clarissa. She would ask questions, and he wasn't eager to answer them. "I have an urgent need to speak with the demon on a certain matter, one which I must add is very private. Might I get an audience?"

Clarissa shifted her shoulders ever so slightly, an action that was not lost on Jareth, and her speech was suddenly very tight and controlled, and the icy edge was gone. "I don't think you talking to him would do any good; ever since coming here he has flatly refused to speak to anyone, and I doubt that even using extreme methods could make him say anything. Just what did you want to talk to the demon about, if I may be allowed to ask."

Jareth looked out the window, amazed that the darkness of night was already falling over the land, while he thought back to his little conversation with Lucinda. She had asked him not to reveal to anyone that her family's royal pendant was missing, and her reasons for it were painfully obvious, but still he had promised to look into it. And this was the perfect opportunity to do some digging.

"Are you quite alone, Clarissa?" he asked, turning back to face the orb. She cocked her head to the side, curious about what he could have to say that needed such secrecy.

"Quite." she said confidently.

"The demon is assumed to have stolen a royal pendant." he said, deciding to be as vague on details as was possible. "I will not say from whom, the person prefers to remain unknown for obvious reasons. But there is some evidence to suggest that while plundering a kingdom the sacred item was stolen, and the person in question would like to know what became of it."

Clarissa's face turned a whiter shade of pale for an instant in what Jareth took to be concern. "That is a matter for great secrecy, knowing how important the pendants are to us all and how they are irreplaceable, though I really doubt the demon would have anything to do with it; any pendant is completely worthless to anyone who is not Fae. However, I will see what can be learned, and when you arrive for the trial I should have answers. Until then, Goblin King."

"High Queen." he bowed his head, and then laid his hand over the orb, making the light within fade along with Clarissa's image. Slowly he flexed his head from side to side, the bones in his neck cracked and popped with the motion, and then threw open the window to let in the fresh evening air. He could smell just a hint of rain, and sensed that it would come over the Labyrinth sometime that night.

Out along the horizon the clouds hung low. They were all a dull scarlet color that was occasionally shot though with burning reds and golds, as if on fire. He hoped Sarah was watching the show as the colors danced, shifted and faded as the sun sank low; she was in need of some beauty to lift her spirits after a long and hard day.

Leaning both hands on the stone window frame he wondered briefly where Sarah had gotten herself to and what she had done for the day. He hadn't checked on her since his first conference of the day, though many times he had wanted too; things had just gotten in the way, throwing unexpected and worrisome blocks in his path. The most worrisome of which was Rosalinda; she hadn't returned yet, and his sending out of search parties hadn't revealed where she was, confirming that she was indeed out of his realm and beyond his sight.

"Where have you gone? And why with Giric, knowing better than anyone what he tried to do to me because you were a witness?" he asked, wishing the air that now blew wisps of his hair against his cheeks would carry his voice to wherever she was hiding at. If she was hiding at all.

That same feeling of something being horribly wrong came back to him, creeping up his scalp like the icy fingers of a dead person, though he couldn't say from where it hailed. Not for the first time he wished it was possible to see what the future held, or at least be able to see the smallest hint so he could prepare for it. But Fate wouldn't give away its secrets, only on occasion it gave out the smallest signs that one could rarely understand before it was too late. Whatever was coming he knew he was part of it, so was Rosalinda and Sarah. They felt it too, though they were as clueless about their roles as he was.

The clock chimed; it was nine in the evening, time to return Jake to the Aboveground. Without bothering to close the window, Jareth walked slowly away from it and left the room. What he had anticipated all day had now arrived, and with it a strange sort of dread. Having had Jake around for so long he had grown to have a sort of affection for the man, and the prospect of having him gone made him feel like there was going to be a big blank spot in his life.

And he worried how Sarah would take it; she loved her father very much, and though he fully understood her reasons for wanting some space between them he feared it would be harder to take than she fully realized yet. But Sarah was a tough one, however much she had been knocked down and pushed around, and he knew she would get through it just so long as he was there for her to lean on once in a while.

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Klaus wasn't the kind to hurry. He was a man of deep thoughts and reflections, plots and schemes, not given to action, which was one of the things that had kept him in Clarissa's good graces for so long. She was, herself, a very cunning lady with a mind capable of forming the most complex ideas, but at times she grew impatient and was given to rash decisions. It was his voice, the one of caution that kept her from going too far and made her walk a straight and narrow path.

But, for the first time that century, he was in a great hurry, so much so that his wizards robes flew out behind him as he trotted long the halls of the High Court. Attendants, visiting diplomats and people of nobility all jumped aside as he ran by, each one in wonder at his flustered state. The sound of curious whispers followed him, but he paid them no heed. He had to find his queen, and quick.

Clarissa was, herself, in a hurry, and in as much need of her trusted wizard as he was of her. They nearly collided near her private apartments, and it was her quick reflexes that kept them from running headlong into each other. Her sudden sidestep and graceful turnabout didn't register in Klaus's mind until several seconds after, by which time he had managed to bring himself to a complete stop.

"My Lady!" he gasped, his pale face covered in a strange hue of pink that told Clarissa of his flustered state. One look and she knew he had been running, and if he were running it had to be important. But, she thought, that nothing could be more important than what she had to tell him. "There is something you should know-"

"It can wait!" she snapped, looking over her shoulder to make sure that no one was witnessing their little exchange. Thankfully the white marble halls were empty save for the two of them and several large, priceless paintings and works of art. But that didn't mean they wouldn't shortly be joined by someone, so she quickly shooed him into her room and locked the door. "You of all people should know better that to behave so out in the open! But I have not the time to speak on that matter, what I have to say is far more important and potentially dangerous."

Klaus forced himself to be quiet and give all his attention to the High Queen, though he doubted very much if what she had to say was anywhere near as important as the news he had for her. Calmly he tucked his long arms into the wide sleeves of his heavy wizard robes, though he did it more to hide his shaking hands than show respect or submission to the lady.

"Jareth is on a dangerous path, but whether or not he is aware of it I don't know. It seems that he is looking for a missing pendant." she whispered after a moment, eyes easily piercing the dark to watch the wizard's reaction to her words. His blank face changed in a split second, becoming at once so dumbfounded that it was almost comical, even to humorless Clarissa. "What have you to say about that?"

"My Lady," Klaus's mouth and throat were so dry it was painful to speak. "Jareth may well be closing in on all of the pendants at this very moment! Whilst you spoke with him I had a feeling, a strange feeling, and took some time away from trial preparations to see that all was well in the Dead Land-"

Anger radiated from Clarissa as she suddenly approached the wizard. Fear got the better of him and he took as step or two back before regaining control of himself. "I told you, fool, that under no circumstances were you to ever look into the Dead Land at this time of night! What if someone had come in while you gazed into your mirror and caught an eyeful of what is there? How could you explain it without ruining nearly a thousand years worth of work?"

"I acted foolishly, I admit that, but it was for the best!" he shivered as she glared at him. They were close to the same height and could easily stare into each others eyes, but she had a way of making him feel as if he were no more than knee height to a goblin. "What I came here to tell you was that there are trespassers there, in that very room of the castle, and one of them I instantly recognized as The Fallen One Rosalinda."

Clarissa was taken completely aback and looked as if someone had slapped her across the face. "Rosalinda? In my father's place?" she took a few shaky steps away from Klaus, mind trying to come to grips with it all. "How did she find out? More importantly, when did she find out? Do you have an answer for me, wizard?"

Klaus shook his head. "No, My Lady. But, her being there at the very time you were speaking to the Goblin King about a missing pendant seems to be too much for a mere coincidence. At any time during your brief visit did you get a sense that he knew more than he was letting on?"

"No, but that is nothing to go on. Those Labyrinth monarchs are known for their crafty, cunning and secretive ways. One should never take them for granted, a lesson I learned the hard way, so let us not do so here. We will assume nothing at this time, but keep our minds open to all possibilities until we get some answers." she turned sharply on her heel and strode over to her wardrobe. Quickly she yanked the sliding door open and pulled out a heavy cloak and heavy fur under coat, both of which she put on.

"And where do we get answers, Majesty?" Klaus asked innocently, though he had a terrible feeling that he knew the answer already.

"We are going to pay an unexpected visit on our trespassers!" she said, red lips turned up in a bone chilling grin. "Don't just stand there, Klaus! You are coming with me, so get your wraps on. It won't do any of us any good if you should freeze to death."

Unable to come up with something to deter the lady from going through with her sudden plan a slight pout formed on his face as he bowed and left the room. He wasn't keen on going to the Dead Land; he hated the cold and snow, and the fear of snow demons was something he had never been able to overcome for all he had been around them quite a bit over the years. But it was knowing what had happened there that gave him the horrendous feeling of someone running cold, dead fingers up his spine, and was one of the few things that made him wish he had never been in position to assist Clarissa in her plans.

Yes, Clarissa is a woman scorned, and by Jareth of all people!