Tenshi-san: I'm a horrible updater. I'm slower than I have any right to be. I apologize.
DISCLAIMER: I still don't own this. It still belongs to the Henson's. I do own Rhiannon. I keep her in a small sparkly pink box with all my other original characters.
Chapter Four: It Has The Hands In It. And Glitter.
Now we stood in deadlock in front of the Blue Shields. "You're lying."
"Am not! The way on is the other way! This leads—""Boom-poo-boom!" interjects Red.
"To Certain Death!"
I rubbed my forehead. "Let's say, just for the sake of a hypothetical argument, I wanted to go to my certain doom and destruction. I'd go this way." I pointed to the door.
"Rhiannon, why would anyone want to die?" asked Merry.
"Because I know what will happen, and it doesn't involve death."
The Red guards finished a fiercely whispered conversation. "We have voted. You may do down the door the Blues are guarding. But don't tell Him we didn't do the riddle."
"I assure you, I would never go blabbing secrets to His Worshipful Majesty of the Lycra Pants. Shall we continue?"
Of course, halfway down a hundred foot shaft being pinched in uncomfortable spots, my brilliance at choosing this route was called into question.
"I swear to the Queen of Air and Darkness if one more hand cups my ass one more time, I shall lodge a complaint!" shouted Tegau.
"Would you rather they let go?"
"Hey! Stop stealing our lines!"
"Oh, I apologize." I seem to be doing a lot of that today. It makes me mad.
"Humph. Well, up or down?"
"Down. Please." When in doubt, be polite.
"What? Another one! Do people like to molder now a days?" asked one set of Helping Hands.
"Who cares? She chose down!"
"Oh, man! Down!?"
"Can't you guys go up!?"
"NO! I want to go down! I'm pointed that way! And down is the way to go!" I was beginning to lose my temper. (And, no, I didn't run and find it.)
"Fine." And so we dropped into the oubliette. Fun.
"What is this?"
"An oubliette."
"Oh. It's dark." Said Merry.
"That's the idea, Ms. Obvious. You should molder quietly in the dark of the oubliette."
"Very good. But... perhaps some light is needed."
"Jareth?"
"Your Majesty, if you please."
"I don't please. I don't get called the Grand High Leader of Poo-Bahs." Jareth held up his favorite toy, a crystal that glowed softly and shed its light through the room.
"I am the king, even if you don't please, so, I should be treated accordingly."
"Who died and made you king?"
"No one. I've always been Goblin King."
"Woo. What a job. But why did you show up to terrorize my pitiful excuse of a party?"
"I came to help." He rooted around under his cloak, pulling out another crystal. He threw the glowing one at me.
"Hey!" I caught the crystal and started to fade. "How am I supposed to keep it lit?"
"Think of light." The crystal grew brighter and started to flash. "Not that kind of light!"
"Well, sorry! This is harder than it looks!"
"Concentrate!"
"Stop yelling at me!" the light evened and cast through the cave a soft light.
"You do realize you shouldn't be able to do that."
"Then why did you throw the damn thing at me?"
"Tut, tut, there are children around, so watch your mouth."
"Shove it, Jareth. Why?"
"Because?"
"Stop answering my questions with questions! "I threw the crystal at him.
"Ow!"
"Well, do you feel more civilized?"
"I should leave you here." he growled.
"Please, no! Anything but that! Not with these people!" I dropped to my knees in front of him and grabbed his hands. "Please!"
"As nice as it is to have you on your knees in front of me, enough with the histrionics."
"You are one sick puppy. Why don't you stop toying with her and finish what you started." Galen stood; arms crossed and fairly exuded unhappiness.
"I always finish what I start." Jareth raised his eyebrows. "Why do you care is I toy with her?" he grinned. "You wouldn't like her, now would you?"
"Like? Like! As if. I wouldn't lower my standards that far."
"Both of you are assholes. Now, how do we get out?"
"Uh-uh-uh. Now there's a price." Jareth grinned.
I stood and brushed off my knees. "Whatever it is, I'll pay it."
"Really?"
"I'll do anything to get these people out of my hair."
Jareth grinned. "Then shake on it." We shook hands, and the deal was made. I suppose it would be normal to say that i had no idea of what a mess I had just gottten myself into. "Now, I suppose I could release you into the passage..."
"Underground."
"Doesn't the truth hurt, Jareth. You're a big softie."
"Oh, shut up."
"Did you ever get the feeling they are reading a script we can't see?" Merry edged closer to Rhys and Galen. Galen snorted.
"Leave it up to her. She doesn't know what she's doing."
"Then why are we following her?!" cried Merry. Always the hysterical one...
"It's not nice to talk about people behind their backs." I said.
"Turn arouund, it'll be to your face."
"Children!" Jareth growled, "I have taken time from my busy schedule-"
"What schedule? All's you do is prance about kicking goblins." This, by the way, isn't a good idea. Refrain from teasing Goblin Kings in the future.
"I could just leave you here. That's becoming a more attractive solution by the moment."
"So are you."
"......" Well, that did get him to open the door.
So, now we stood in the underground corridor and i started walking to the right.
"You need to stop gambling with our lives just to get some attention from that thing."
"Ah, he's not that bad."
"You shoulden't encourage him."
"Why not? It's fun, and I'm bored..." Galen glowered. He seems to do a lot of that. "Relax, cheer up, we're almost to the way out."
"Really! That's it! We're free!" Well, Kaie, uh, he like's his exclamation points. Which, in my opinion, is a sure sign of madness.
"No, not all the way out. Just out of the end of the middle." I sighed. Well, you would too, if you knew what Kaie would say.
"Oh! That's good too!!" Kaie get's very old, very fast.
Tenshi-san: Look, a new chapter! Wow... that took me ten minutes to write at the end of my senior year of high school. And I'm in college now. Yes, I know I'm slow. But... I'm halfway through the plot! Now, where'd I put the plot... putters off