I couldn't think of a title for this chapter... if you can, after reading it, include it in your review please!
Disclaimer: Okay I don't own Labyrinth, like you didn't know that already. I don't own McDonalds, and just for kicks, I'll let you in on a secret: I don't own you, either! Free will for all!
!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
Seth sat slumped over a desk. Jareth stood just behind him. Seth was looking glumly at the letter that Jareth had drawn up to send to the High Court. While excited at the prospect of getting back his powers, there was one glitch in Jareth's plan that he really did not cotton to.
If he got his powers back he was to agree never to speak to Karleigh again. She would be sent home without question and her memory of him and the Labyrinth would be erased. That was Jareth's touch, though, not the law's. "Change that," Seth ordered, pointing to the paragraph that stated all of that, "and I'll sign."
Jareth sighed. "You haven't read the second page apparently," he said. He turned the letter over and pointed halfway down the piece of paper. In the middle of a mess of handwriting, was the name of the person Seth would be bound to if and when he got his powers back.
"No!" Seth yelled, jumping up from the desk. "No way in hell am I working for that woman! She was the one who turned me over for stealing that stupid spell!" An edge of bitterness accompanied his shouts.
Jareth rolled his eyes. "You used to be in love with her," he pointed out.
Seth spun and landed a punch in Jareth's jaw. The Goblin King stumbled backwards, shocked at the sudden assault. He managed to catch himself on the edge of a chair before falling onto the floor, however, which was lucky for Seth. Otherwise he would've been even angrier.
Furious, Jareth conjured a crystal and threw it at Seth. The man barely had time to duck before it hit the wall and shattered, a mass of blue light shining out from the shards of glass before they fell to the floor. Seth shuddered and stood back up, walking away from the mess. "That could've killed me!" he hissed.
Jareth ran a gloved hand over his jaw, where a bruise was already beginning to form. "You should not attack someone who is trying to do you a favor, Seth," he hissed. This kind of insolence was not tolerated in the Labyrinth!
The Muse snorted. "We used to fight all the time. Ever since we were kids," he said. "You've grown soft, Jareth," he added, straightening his back. "A year ago you would've dodged that punch." He rubbed his hand and thought, A year ago my knuckles wouldn't hurt after it, either.
Sighing, Jareth collapsed into a chair. "Just tell me why you are being so damned stubborn about this."
Seth considered that for a moment. He had several reasons not to want to sign that contract, and he didn't think he was being stubborn, either. "You have no idea why she really pulled me up before the High Court, do you?" he asked, figuring Jareth would realize he was talking about Lady Rachelle.
Jareth thought otherwise. He waved his hand vaguely and repeated the story he knew all too well, "She figured out that you were using your lock picking hobby to steal highly guarded information from various nobles and royals, for political reasons. So she dug around until she had evidence and had you prosecuted."
Taking a deep breath, he moved onto the punishment the High Court had exacted. "You were declared guilty, and the jury sentenced you to have your Fae powers revoked. A human girl was found for you, your eyes were disguised, and you were sent to Aboveground to be her Muse."
While this was a favorite punishment of the High Court's, it was unheard of to be involved in a theft case. Everyone in Underground had been shocked at the verdict. Being banished to Aboveground to serve a human was a harsh punishment. It only happened to murderers!
A mocking grin spread across Seth's face. "But you don't know why she came into court that last day and yelled for the death penalty," he said. Jareth raised an eyebrow and countered, "Everyone knows she was drunk."
That was a good point, but Seth had more to say. "Hmm... she was angry with me because I slept with someone besides her," he shrugged, and ran an hand absentmindedly through his hair, recalling the painful trial. "Since she was the reason the whole trial started, I figured things were over between us. She had no right to be angry about me having another woman in my bed."
"Luckily for you the jury didn't listen to that rant," Jareth said. "That's a popular punishment for the gorier crimes, though." He paused, contemplating, trying to remember the name of another Fae that had received it. "Oh, hell," he said, suddenly remembering the Terrible Trio.
Seth seemed to remember them as well. He smirked. The Terrible Trio, most formerly known as Gabriel, Seamus, and Gideon, had commanded the Fae equivalent of Aboveground's mafia. Over two hundred people had died at their hands. For their crimes, the High Court had made them into Muses. "Unfortunately for you," Seth said, looking at Jareth, "they remembered very well what happened with Sarah Williams came here."
Jareth groaned. "Why did they get assigned to three people who had the power to make a movie? What motivated the jury to pick Brian Froud, Jim Henson, and George Lucas as the three humans they'd be Muses to?" Over six billion people on the planet and those three were chosen.
There was a rustling noise in the corner of the room. "Hello, boys," a female voice drawled. Jareth turned to face the newcomer, while trying to hide his shock at her sudden entrance. Seth stiffened and walked over to the window, focusing his gaze at a random point within the Labyrinth. He half hoped to catch a glimpse of Karleigh.
The woman was wearing a strapless blue gown that matched the color of left eye. The right eye was purple. She had a blue scarf entwined around her arms. A few loose wisps of black hair fell on her neck. The rest of her hair was done up on top of her head. "Having fun?" she asked, walking over to Jareth and pressing a blue nail to his jaw where a bruise was beginning to form. "Poor baby," she murmured, clicking her tongue. "Did my Seth hurt you?"
"Lady Rachelle," Jareth said, taking her hand in his and kissing it. "Looking as color-coordinated as you always do, my lovely." Even her perfume made him think of the color blue. He noticed then that there was a small amount of blue glitter sprinkled on her pale skin and realized that now it was probably on his lips. Damn, he cursed silently. As if Seth didn't already tease him for looking like a woman.
Lady Rachelle smiled. She bent down and kissed Jareth's collar, deliberately leaving a smudge of navy lipstick to mar it's stark whiteness. "Did he sign?" she asked quietly, eyes darting over to where Seth stood.
With a quick glance at his old childhood friend, Jareth replied, "No. He does not agree with the terms of the contract." Not surprising really, he thought idly, considering his fondness for that human. And if Jareth knew anything, it was what fondness for a human girl could do to a Fae.
That got him started thinking about Sarah and the movie again. The Goblin King always made a big show about hating the movie. But that was just a cover, really. The movie was one of his favorites and he adored the throngs of fans it had spawned.
Most of all, he enjoyed reading the fanfiction about himself. It was an excuse to get a computer at least. Also, many of them were highly entertaining. Though some of the authors seemed to have a peculiar and disturbing fascination with his pants.... "Jareth? Are you listening to me?" Lady Rachelle asked. Jareth snapped back into the present.
"Yes," he lied, smiling brightly.
She frowned at him, not believing it. Following in the footsteps of women everywhere, she asked, "What did I just say?"
After considering the principles of right and wrong, the consequences of fact and fiction, Jareth changed the subject. "Why don't you go and talk to Seth, hmm?" he asked.
Fortunately for Jareth, Lady Rachelle wanted to do just that.
!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
- - - End of Chapter - - -
Kerist: Well so Seth is a Fae! Gasp! He got banished cause he used his Fae powers for evil.. stupid Seth. But other Fae have done the same thing - and now they're being forced to be Muses for humans. (Fae are like humans, only immortal, and with magic powers, essentially)
And, okay, Lady Rachelle didn't exactly explain everything. But she did in the first version of the chapter! However her explanation was really long and it confused even me so I figured I had better rewrite it.... again.... and.... again....
Seth: Excuse her, she's being distracted by the extremely loud music she's listening to.
Kerist: It's not that loud! ::fume:: Anyway, moving on....
Thank you so much to all my reviewers! I have more reviews than I can count! Well... that's a lie. But there's more than I thought I'd get when I started this story. Yay!
Mab, Queen of Faerie, she really likes the color blue. Anyway, thanks for your faithful reviewing! BlueyChan, Yay I love that face you had at the end of your review! er yes ::cough:: distracted. Thanks for your review! Draco's Daughter, aw. I'm sure you'll be able to catch up to him eventually. ::smile:: Thank you for your review! sych77, Sethrida is an actual name! That amused me. Don't worry about taking a while to review! (I can't write that fast anyway.) Thank you for reviewing! Princess-RainbowRose, the pairing is decided, but the person Seth ends up with has some competition. Not naming any names here... hehe thanks for your review!
Next chapter will have Karleigh in it... promise. She was in this one but it was just getting too long!