An: hello everyone! I noticed some new reviewers. Welcome to the newbies! I read each and every one of my reviews and cherish them all, so please don't anyone think that their review or opinion doesn't mean anything. It means something to me. I am so glad to have my PC back. I made sure I made CDs of all my stuff so I now have backup just in case anything ever happened to my computer. I was really lucky that I didn't lose all of my files and programs. But anyway, hopefully I will be back to the old routine of posting a chapter everyday or every other day. This story does need to be finished sometime. This is the longest story I have ever written. Well onto the story!
Beware of empty entranceways...
Ary opened her eyes slowly, letting them focus on her surroundings. There was a sound in the room and she turned her head to see Megmora sitting in a chair beside her bed. The dragon gave her an odd toothy smile, which Ary attempted to return, but it just wasn't happening. She let out a deep sigh instead.
"Is my mommy back yet?" She asked with hope in her small voice.
Megmora sadly shook her head. "I'm afraid not child."
The little girl suddenly seemed angry. "How could he have let that mean man take my mommy? I thought Jareth loved her? Why didn't he protect her?"
Megmora was taken back at her anger. The child always seemed so fond of her King, but she had to realize that Ary was frightened. She was in a strange world, and her mother had been taken from her. The only other person who was familiar to her was off trying to save her mother and right now she needed to blame someone for her loss and she had chosen Jareth.
"King Jareth wasss taken by sssurprisse asss we all were. I would hardly sssay that he let Gorgin take her." The dragon gently rose from the chair and sat carefully beside the little mortal girl. The child looked lost, and as if she were going to break down and cry again at any given moment.
'I want to go home..." Ary whined. " I want to watch cartoons, and eat ice cream. I want to see my Uncle Toby and ride my bike. I don't want to be here anymore. I want my mommy and I want us to go home!"
Megmora frowned. "And what of King Jareth? You would leave him...jussst like that, after all he hass done for you and your mother?"
Ary opened her mouth to speak and suddenly began to cry. Megmora pulled her into her arms gently. "Let it out little one." She rocked the little girl in her arms and soon she was sleeping once again. Megmora hoped that her words had been in confusion, frustration, otherwise the Goblin King and a certain mortal woman were in for a great deal of heart ache.
* * *
"This can't be right." Hoggle said softly. He stopped and gazed at two empty tunnel entrances before them. One swerved to the left and the other to the right.
Jareth stopped beside him, planting his leather encased hands on his slender hips. "What can't be right? That you don't remember which tunnel to take?" He asked insolently.
"No..No No.. There used to be a guardian here. The tunnel that goes to the right, leads to the dungeons. There ain't no guardian here, unless I've gone blind and don't see it. Although it was a huge hairy thing, lots a legs and eyes."
"Let's not complain that it isn't here. Maybe he's out on a lunch break or something." Jareth suggested dryly.
" It's well past lunch time and the guardians don't leave their posts for such trivial things. I ain't likin this one bit. We haven't seen any guardians."
"Perhaps they were relieved of their posts. Perhaps there has been no one to guard for so many years that they were sent home."
"That ain't likely. The guardians have been heres for hundreds if not thousands of years."
"Well let's pass through and find Sarah before they decide to come back." Hoggle nodded and they entered the tunnel.
It was very quiet and quite dark, but they pressed on.
* * *
Sarah shivered and pulled her knees to her chin trying to stay warm. The stone was cold and being so deeply underground certainly didn't help. The torches were too far away to provide any true heat. She had not dressed in the best of clothes for a trip to the Underground. The day had been warm and she had chosen a simple sleeveless dress. It was tattered and so dirty now and provided no warmth. There was the burlap blanket draped carelessly over the bed, but it looked so dirty and she didn't want to touch it. She wished she didn't have to touch the wall or the floor either.
She had no idea how much time had passed but she knew she wanted out of this room. It felt like she was locked away in a tiny box with sides that were closing in on her. Sides that had every intention of crushing her and squeezing the life out of her.
She wanted a warm bed, particularly one with Jareth in it, so that she could fall asleep feeling safe in his arms. She wanted a hot bath, something good to eat. She sighed, letting her face fall into her knees and she curled into a ball, trying to remain warm, using her own body heat. The cold around her was damp and at times it crept through straight to her bones. She gazed at the door and let her eyes focus on the flickering flame of a distant torch.
"Jareth...where are you?"
* * *
"How much further to the dungeons?" Jareth asked for the 8th time.
Hoggle growled. "Oooh! Stop asking me that! I don't knows an exact measurement. We still have a ways to go. The dungeons ain't exactly small. In fact they are a maze in and of itself. Hundreds upon hundreds of cells."
"Oh how wonderful..." The Goblin King let out sarcastically. He tired of walking through these dark tunnels. He was cold and his feet and legs were starting to ache from so much walking. He wanted to find Sarah and hold her in his arms and see the love she felt for him shine back at him through her beautiful hazel eyes. But thinking of Sarah also brought a feeling of dread to him. How was he going to approach her about her being pregnant with his child? "You messed up royally this time didn't you?" He said softly to himself.
"What was that?" Hoggle asked stopping and turning to look at the King who walked a short distance behind him.
'Nothing." Jareth told him. "Absolutely nothing."
"There's the dungeons?" Hoggle told him. Jareth's tired expression lifted and he walked quickly to the dwarf's side as they appeared at the entrance to a new hallway.
"Sarah!!" Jareth called out. His voice echoed through the endless, empty hallways lined with dungeon cells.
"What are you, some kind of idiot? You want everyone to know that we's here?" Hoggle told him pointing an accusing finger.
"How else are we going to find her?" Jareth barked at him. His patience was slipping rapidly. Hoggle could see that the King was edgy.
"We look through all the cells till we find 'er."
"Are you mad? That could take days, even weeks. Look at all the cells!" Jareth gestured with his hand towards the maze of dungeon cells that spanned in every direction.
"We either look quietly or get eaten by a guardian because we started yelling for her."
"I think you are full of rubbish! There have been no damned guardians. The only creatures I have seen have been rats and mice, spiders and a few bats!" Jareth continued.
Hoggle suddenly shrank back in fear and Jareth regarded him strangely. Had his temper scared the dwarf that much? Hoggle was trembling, his lower lip quivering. "Look out!!" he suddenly cried.
Jareth looked up and jumped out of the way just in time to narrowly miss the crab like claw of a giant beast from flattening him. Jareth threw himself hard against one wall as the beast, who looked to be a mix between a spider and a beach crab reached out with it's sharp claws. The beast was relentless and didn't seem to tire from snapping at the King with his claws, while Jareth was beginning to tire easily.
"How do we get past it?" He looked desperately for Hoggle who suddenly seemed to be missing.
"You coward!!!" Jareth roared, his eyes finding the hallway empty except for himself and the beast. He was alone with this giant angry beast and he had no magic to protect him. His attention faltered for a moment and in that moment the beasts claws knocked into him. The Goblin King went sprawling to the ground. He fell unconscious onto his stomach, his blond hair spread out around him as the beast moved towards him, with the intention of turning the Goblin King into it's next meal....
Beware of empty entranceways...
Ary opened her eyes slowly, letting them focus on her surroundings. There was a sound in the room and she turned her head to see Megmora sitting in a chair beside her bed. The dragon gave her an odd toothy smile, which Ary attempted to return, but it just wasn't happening. She let out a deep sigh instead.
"Is my mommy back yet?" She asked with hope in her small voice.
Megmora sadly shook her head. "I'm afraid not child."
The little girl suddenly seemed angry. "How could he have let that mean man take my mommy? I thought Jareth loved her? Why didn't he protect her?"
Megmora was taken back at her anger. The child always seemed so fond of her King, but she had to realize that Ary was frightened. She was in a strange world, and her mother had been taken from her. The only other person who was familiar to her was off trying to save her mother and right now she needed to blame someone for her loss and she had chosen Jareth.
"King Jareth wasss taken by sssurprisse asss we all were. I would hardly sssay that he let Gorgin take her." The dragon gently rose from the chair and sat carefully beside the little mortal girl. The child looked lost, and as if she were going to break down and cry again at any given moment.
'I want to go home..." Ary whined. " I want to watch cartoons, and eat ice cream. I want to see my Uncle Toby and ride my bike. I don't want to be here anymore. I want my mommy and I want us to go home!"
Megmora frowned. "And what of King Jareth? You would leave him...jussst like that, after all he hass done for you and your mother?"
Ary opened her mouth to speak and suddenly began to cry. Megmora pulled her into her arms gently. "Let it out little one." She rocked the little girl in her arms and soon she was sleeping once again. Megmora hoped that her words had been in confusion, frustration, otherwise the Goblin King and a certain mortal woman were in for a great deal of heart ache.
* * *
"This can't be right." Hoggle said softly. He stopped and gazed at two empty tunnel entrances before them. One swerved to the left and the other to the right.
Jareth stopped beside him, planting his leather encased hands on his slender hips. "What can't be right? That you don't remember which tunnel to take?" He asked insolently.
"No..No No.. There used to be a guardian here. The tunnel that goes to the right, leads to the dungeons. There ain't no guardian here, unless I've gone blind and don't see it. Although it was a huge hairy thing, lots a legs and eyes."
"Let's not complain that it isn't here. Maybe he's out on a lunch break or something." Jareth suggested dryly.
" It's well past lunch time and the guardians don't leave their posts for such trivial things. I ain't likin this one bit. We haven't seen any guardians."
"Perhaps they were relieved of their posts. Perhaps there has been no one to guard for so many years that they were sent home."
"That ain't likely. The guardians have been heres for hundreds if not thousands of years."
"Well let's pass through and find Sarah before they decide to come back." Hoggle nodded and they entered the tunnel.
It was very quiet and quite dark, but they pressed on.
* * *
Sarah shivered and pulled her knees to her chin trying to stay warm. The stone was cold and being so deeply underground certainly didn't help. The torches were too far away to provide any true heat. She had not dressed in the best of clothes for a trip to the Underground. The day had been warm and she had chosen a simple sleeveless dress. It was tattered and so dirty now and provided no warmth. There was the burlap blanket draped carelessly over the bed, but it looked so dirty and she didn't want to touch it. She wished she didn't have to touch the wall or the floor either.
She had no idea how much time had passed but she knew she wanted out of this room. It felt like she was locked away in a tiny box with sides that were closing in on her. Sides that had every intention of crushing her and squeezing the life out of her.
She wanted a warm bed, particularly one with Jareth in it, so that she could fall asleep feeling safe in his arms. She wanted a hot bath, something good to eat. She sighed, letting her face fall into her knees and she curled into a ball, trying to remain warm, using her own body heat. The cold around her was damp and at times it crept through straight to her bones. She gazed at the door and let her eyes focus on the flickering flame of a distant torch.
"Jareth...where are you?"
* * *
"How much further to the dungeons?" Jareth asked for the 8th time.
Hoggle growled. "Oooh! Stop asking me that! I don't knows an exact measurement. We still have a ways to go. The dungeons ain't exactly small. In fact they are a maze in and of itself. Hundreds upon hundreds of cells."
"Oh how wonderful..." The Goblin King let out sarcastically. He tired of walking through these dark tunnels. He was cold and his feet and legs were starting to ache from so much walking. He wanted to find Sarah and hold her in his arms and see the love she felt for him shine back at him through her beautiful hazel eyes. But thinking of Sarah also brought a feeling of dread to him. How was he going to approach her about her being pregnant with his child? "You messed up royally this time didn't you?" He said softly to himself.
"What was that?" Hoggle asked stopping and turning to look at the King who walked a short distance behind him.
'Nothing." Jareth told him. "Absolutely nothing."
"There's the dungeons?" Hoggle told him. Jareth's tired expression lifted and he walked quickly to the dwarf's side as they appeared at the entrance to a new hallway.
"Sarah!!" Jareth called out. His voice echoed through the endless, empty hallways lined with dungeon cells.
"What are you, some kind of idiot? You want everyone to know that we's here?" Hoggle told him pointing an accusing finger.
"How else are we going to find her?" Jareth barked at him. His patience was slipping rapidly. Hoggle could see that the King was edgy.
"We look through all the cells till we find 'er."
"Are you mad? That could take days, even weeks. Look at all the cells!" Jareth gestured with his hand towards the maze of dungeon cells that spanned in every direction.
"We either look quietly or get eaten by a guardian because we started yelling for her."
"I think you are full of rubbish! There have been no damned guardians. The only creatures I have seen have been rats and mice, spiders and a few bats!" Jareth continued.
Hoggle suddenly shrank back in fear and Jareth regarded him strangely. Had his temper scared the dwarf that much? Hoggle was trembling, his lower lip quivering. "Look out!!" he suddenly cried.
Jareth looked up and jumped out of the way just in time to narrowly miss the crab like claw of a giant beast from flattening him. Jareth threw himself hard against one wall as the beast, who looked to be a mix between a spider and a beach crab reached out with it's sharp claws. The beast was relentless and didn't seem to tire from snapping at the King with his claws, while Jareth was beginning to tire easily.
"How do we get past it?" He looked desperately for Hoggle who suddenly seemed to be missing.
"You coward!!!" Jareth roared, his eyes finding the hallway empty except for himself and the beast. He was alone with this giant angry beast and he had no magic to protect him. His attention faltered for a moment and in that moment the beasts claws knocked into him. The Goblin King went sprawling to the ground. He fell unconscious onto his stomach, his blond hair spread out around him as the beast moved towards him, with the intention of turning the Goblin King into it's next meal....