Vengeful Nightmares
Chapter 12
How did I lose control so quickly?
Jareth massaged his arms as the tears dried on his face, the salt in them making his cheeks feel stiff. He tried to conjure a crystal, but it just blew away in a puff of black smoke, laughing at his weakness. Weakness…From the first day he had brought Sarah back to the Labyrinth, he had felt like he was being drained of his very blood. It was so subtle at first, but no longer.
The dreams had gotten away from him. In the beginning, he had been able to just sit back and let them happen. What the people under his spell would dream about depended entirely on them. Then, when he gave them substance so that they could do some damage, it had been necessary to be more attentive. He didn't want them to do too much damage; not until it was time. What he hadn't known was that with substance came life. While Sarah possessed half of his power, he could not control their every movement. They were just too powerful for him to manage, and he had essentially created a 'monster'.
When Jareth had tried to take away their substance, the understandably fought for their lives and lost…temporarily. They still had substance, but it was as if they were made of spider silk. And, since they still had substance, they were still alive. While the people were awake, the dream substance would lie dormant in the ground until it was once more their time. Then they would strike again. How long would it be before they would gain back their full tangibility? Jareth could only guess. He had expended most of his energy trying to keep that from happening, but he could feel it slipping away, like a good dream that you try unsuccessfully to hold on to while on the edge of wakefulness. His power over them would not last, and he knew it. He had put his beloved in danger.
But why was his power diminishing so quickly? That was what he hoped Sarah would find out in the city of the fae. He would not be able to make the trip; she was now far more powerful than he. If she chose to, she could shape-shift. He wondered what she would turn out to be…
* * *
"Is that everything?" Sarah asked, doing a last minute 'luggage check'. Sarah, Ludo, Hoggle and Sir Didymus were gathered near Jarjuk's front door, soaking up the last warmth from the morning cooking fire.
Hoggle smirked at her. "You asked that two minutes ago, and the answer's still the same. Yes."
"Excuse me, smarty. I'm just making sure." She pulled a sour smile, feigning annoyance.
Didymus shook his head in bemusement. Why they got so much enjoyment out of arguing with each other, he would never know. "Two berries on a branch…" he muttered to himself.
"Say somethin' 'bout berries?" asked Hoggle, squinting one eye as he glanced sidelong at the fox. "Berry season's over."
"As you say, Sir." Didymus sighed, brushing out Ambrosious's tangled hide. The 'steed' stood stock still, briefly baring his teeth in pain when a tangle ripped loose.
Sarah stood up, and went to say good-bye to and Mina. As she drew near, she saw that little Bree's lower lip was trembling as tears started down his face. "What's the matter?" she asked gently as the door opened and closed. Her friends had already left the house, and were waiting outside.
The baby monster looked up at his mother, and launched himself into Sarah's arms. "No go! No go, no gooooo!" he wailed, crying as though his little heart would break.
"Oh honey, don't cry." She said, "You make me sad when you cry."
"Why…" he frowned, working his mouth over the difficult act of forming human words, "Why…go?"
"Because…because I have something important to do. Big people just have things they need to do, that's all. I need to stop the bad dreams from happening."
The baby sniffled, and looked up at Sarah. "Me go. Go…Sawah."
"No, sweetheart. You have something important to do, too. You have to stay here with your mommy. You don't want your mommy to be sad, do you?"
Bree shook his head.
"Of course not. Don't you think she'd be sad if you left?"
Bree nodded. He held out his arms for Mina, who cradled him tenderly to her breast. The female monster reached forward, and gently pulled Sarah's head to her shoulder. "Mina always remember…Sarah. Always welcome."
"Thank you, Mina. I'll never forget you. I hope I'll see you again someday." Sarah picked up her pack, and went to join her other friends on the 'porch'. Mina followed behind. Jarjuk was out front, talking to Ludo.
"Ready?" asked Hoggle. Sarah nodded, sniffing briskly. It surprised him how much it hurt to see the tears on her cheeks. Now he knew how she must have felt when…
He turned away. A year before, he would have laughed if someone told him that he'd actually care whether someone cried or not. As someone who had tried so hard to keep people away, Hoggle had to wonder; was this good or bad? Do I like to care? Sometimes it actually hurt. He didn't like to hurt; that was the very reason he had stayed alone. But Sarah would not let him. In the beginning, she had had to bribe him, to force him to help her. Where had avarice turned to friendship and compassion? It was all so new to him. He felt love for this girl. He had been so confused at first, thinking, 'Am I in love with her?'. He had felt confused and frightened. He had thought about it for hours, but it always came out the same. This was not romantic love. His heart did not 'skip a beat', like in the cliché.
Sarah was beautiful, there was no denying that; though he appreciated her beauty for what it was, Hoggle did not wish to be her love.
Hoggle had never had a sister, or a daughter for that matter, but he recognized his love for Sarah as being that sort. And, when he had realized that, he had smiled to himself. He had gone from 'no friends' to 'best friend'. It wasn't bad at all!
As the group turned to leave, Bree gave a howl that was similar to Ludo's rock-calling howl. They turned around, and gazed in wonder at what Bree had summoned. A cloud of blue, green and yellow butterflies surrounded the small group and, especially, Sarah.
Bree was saying good-bye.
* * *
I don' want to go there. It ain't my home no more. If I hadn't got turned around, I wouldn't have to go there…No, that's wrong. If I hadn't gone to Town Monster, I'd be…But why? Why did this have to happen now? I didn't wanna remember…
Hoggle plodded along silently between Sarah and Ludo, lost in thought. In truth, he basically felt lost altogether. The Dwarven Kingdom was pretty close to Town Monster; in fact, they would reach it before nightfall. Close as the Dwarven Kingdom was to Town Monster, the dwarves had no truck whatsoever with the monsters. They preferred to keep to their own kind, and dealt with no one but themselves and the fae, who were the true rulers of their town. It was called a kingdom simply because it sounded more important than a town.
Hoggle did not want to go there. He felt as if he had swallowed a whole hard boiled duck egg, and it had stuck in his gullet, making it hard to breathe. But he would go there. He couldn't hide anymore.
But what if I see my father?
The dwarf swallowed. It was entirely possible. Dwarves were a lone-lived race, and Hoggle's father had not been old when he had run away.
Oh, God…
It was too late to turn back; they were now in sight of the town. Hoggle's heart was hammering; he could feel the concussion of each beat striking his backbone.
All right, Hoggle. You can do this. He won't recognize ya, just get a grip. Yer doin' this for Sarah. She needs you. She can't do this alone…She was there for you, now it's your turn. Why're you bein' such a kid?
"You okay?" Sarah asked quietly, sensing Hoggle's discomfort.
"Yes. Why?" he said, trying to sound casual and nonchalant.
"Just asking." She shrugged, letting it drop. "This place looks pretty big. How long do you think it'll take to get through?"
"A day…maybe two. We'll have to spend at least one night here." Hoggle replied, kicking a small branch off the trail and out of his way.
No one impeded their progress when they entered the town, but several dwarves stared curiously, even balefully at them as they passed by. Everyone but Didymus was supremely uncomfortable under such close scrutiny, and the whispers that reached Hoggle's ears made him get very red in the face.
"…doing, bringing strangers here?"
"Filthy monster…"
"…crazy coot needs a human wench…"
"…would ya look at that…"
This was mostly from the young men. The women ignored them, unless a few of the children got too close. So far, Hoggle couldn't see anyone he knew or remembered…but they might have changed somewhat. He had been gone a long time.
Sarah was glad she had had a long talk with Sir Didymus on the subject of acting out. His sense of smell was not nearly as good as he liked to believe, but his hearing was excellent. He heard every snide remark made against 'Sir' Hoggle's honor, but he restricted his actions to a piercing look, or a warning rattle of his little sword in the scabbard.
Yes, he was very well behaved…until someone threw an ice ball at Sarah, hitting her in the ear. He snarled loudly, drawing his sword with a flourish while Sarah dropped dizzily to her knees.
"Thou cowardly knave! Durst thou accost yon lady so? En garde, Sirrah!"
The culprit quickly disappeared into the crowd that had gathered to taunt the livid fox. That crowd was made up entirely of teenagers and small boys, and while Ludo stayed his 'brother's' hand an older dwarf came running to break it up.
The dwarf looked to be twice as old as Hoggle. He boxed several ears, and raged, "Shame on ya! Attackin' a stranger like that, and a woman to boot! Off with ya, or so help me, you'll feel the back of my hand!"
"Li'l bastards…" Hoggle muttered, holding a packed handful of snow to the back of Sarah's neck while she shook it off. "That kid better hope I don' find out who he is!"
"I'm okay, Hoggle." Sarah muttered back, slowly getting to her feet.
"Ya sure?" he asked anxiously.
"Yeah." Sarah turned to the old dwarf who had intervened. "Hey, thanks."
"Ah." He waved it off, and came reluctantly forward. He nodded to Sarah, and fixed his eyes on Hoggle for a long moment. "Wait, you…Yer Molger's boy, ain't ya?"
Hoggle licked his dry lips, and gave an unhappy nod.
The old dwarf shocked them all by spitting in Hoggle's face. "You got a lot of nerve, showin' yer face here! Who do you think you are, anyway? Ungrateful whelp! You done that man wrong, leavin' town, and leavin' him with no one ta care for him."
Hoggle slowly wiped the spittle from his face, and said, "If there was anythin' he was good at, it was takin' care of himself! I got nothin ta say to you."
"Don't ya wanna know where yer Pop is now?" the old dwarf snarled as Sarah put her hand on Hoggle's shoulder, making her loyalty clear.
"I don' care." Hoggle said sullenly.
"What else is new?" the old one snorted, turning away.
Hoggle clenched his fists, and finally called, "Where is he?"
"Huh. He won't be thinkin' of you no more."
Hoggle pondered this, his face pale as putty.
Sarah narrowed her eyes in hatred at the old one's retreating back. "That son of a bitch! How dare he?"
"Ah, let it go, Sarah. Can't be helped." Hoggle sighed. He brought them through the town, and stopped in front of a small building. He knocked on the door…no answer. He rang the pull bell, and still nothing. He wiped at the clouded window with his sleeve, and peered into the house. Turning over a rock, which turned out to be hollow, Hoggle retrieved the house key and opened the door. Ludo, who was too big to fit through the door, waited outside.
"Hello?" Hoggle called with more bravado than bravery. His voice echoed off the walls, and he noticed a black ribbon wrapped around the banister. An envelope lay open on the table, and Hoggle picked it up, and began to read.
"Uhh…" He swallowed, and turned to Sarah and Didymus. "Well, there's no one here. This is my father's house. Make yourselves at home…he won't be back." His clipped, indifferent voice took Didymus aback, but Sarah only looked somber.
"What dost thou mean, Sir Hoggle?"
"He's dead." The dwarf snapped. "I'll be back later." He turned and left them there, shutting the door behind him.
* * *
Night had long since fallen, and Sarah had been searching the town for hours, looking for Hoggle. He had never returned, and the dreams were beginning to show themselves. There was no one around to question about Hoggle's whereabouts, and even if there was, they probably wouldn't talk to her. Hoggle was nowhere to be found. Sarah had just arrived at the one place she hadn't searched, and she wondered why she hadn't gone there in the first place; the cemetery.
She was able to locate Hoggle by his trail of footprints he had left in the snow. His was the only set of footprints in the cemetery, and she found him sitting in the snow with his back to a tombstone, oblivious to the cold. He wore the same apathetic mask he had worn before. He looked dazed, in shock. Her shadow fell over him, and he didn't even realize it.
Sarah knew she was taking a chance by doing so, but she sat down beside him and tucked a fold of her cloak about his shoulders. He jolted briefly, and looked over to see who was near him. He stared mutely at her for a moment, and his face just shattered. "Oh, Sarah…" he pressed his face into her shoulder, overwhelmed by the pain. So much pain in such a short time!
"The bastard blamed it on me, damn it! What did I ever do to him? All I ever did was exist! Blamed me for his drinking problem! Dared to call my mother a…a…Ohh, God!" he screamed, hyperventilating, his small shoulders shaking wildly. "He killed himself, Sarah! He b—blamed me for his life going to h—hell! S—said I k—k—killed him as much—as he d—did!"
Sarah just wrapped her cloak more tightly around the two of them, and held him. She couldn't tell him it would be all right. She couldn't do anything to take the hurt away. It angered her that Hoggle's father had done this to his son, and that she couldn't undo it.
Hoggle, on the other hand, felt wretched about what he had confessed. Disloyalty to his father…as much as the man had done to him, the unspoken rules of the Dwarven Kingdom were clear; a son did not disobey his father. A son did not dishonor his father. The father was the head of the house, and all children, even his wife, were subordinate. It was perfectly acceptable, in other words, for a husband to beat his wife, and a father to beat his children. 'Very likely, there was a good reason' was the usual view on that subject. Hoggle had left his home and father after rebelling against him; an unpardonable sin, in dwarven eyes. Hoggle was one of the few dwarves to object to this, to leave home.
The worst of it was that Hoggle half-believed it. His guilt had returned full force, made worse by the fact that he could no longer reconcile with his father. Had he even wanted to? He didn't know, and it no longer mattered. It was too late.
"How did it happen?" Sarah finally asked, "Do you know?"
"N—no…"
"I can tell you." came a gruff voice from directly in front of them. Hoggle stiffened, gulping back sobs as he lifted his head to look.
Cold, gray eyes glared back at them. A dwarf stood with his back against a tombstone, his arms folded. Sarah and Hoggle could see right through him to read the inscription:
Molger
Husband, Father, Model Citizen
Rest In Peace
