Kerist: Oh my Goodness. This chapter has dramatic irony! Gasp!
Seth: Shut up and do the disclaimer already.
Kerist: Fine fine.... you'd think my Muse would be proud of me for that little accomplishment.
Seth: You still haven't finished the story yet, girl. You've got a long way to go.
Disclaimer: Does anyone actually read the disclaimers? I doubt it. I don't own Coca-Cola. Though it might be kind of fun to. I've been to the World of Coke and it's fun to try all those different flavors. I don't own Labyrinth, but sometimes I'm afraid it's beginning to own me...
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Jareth was not happy. He had been expecting Karleigh to call out to him, wishing to go home. But now it seemed as if she was actually going to try and solve the Labyrinth! He leaned back and put his feet up on his desk. Did Lady Rachelle know the way through the maze? Jareth never remembered showing her. Seth could have at some point, but he doubted it. The Labyrinth could be dangerous. Lady Rachelle didn't like to put herself in danger unless it was absolutely necessary.
Across the room, Seth was staring curiously at one of the wine bottles he had broken. He looked from it to his hand. A year ago he had been able to fix this things just by thinking about it. While he was with Karleigh he still retained some of his powers. Perhaps Jareth had been wrong about his magic being gone. After all, if there was any place for it to come back, it would be in the Labyrinth.
He glanced over his shoulder at the Goblin King. Surely there is no harm in trying. It is a simple spell after all. Children can mend glass. Jareth wasn't looking at him. He was completely absorbed in his thoughts. Seth turned around and hunkered over the broken bottle, shielding his hands and the glass from Jareth's view. Better safe than sorry. Taking a deep breath, the Muse spread his fingers in the air above the wine bottle.
The air around him grew static. He gritted his teeth and tensed the muscles in his hands. This shouldn't be so hard. I've done harder things staying with Karleigh! Traveling across the world in the span of a few seconds is much more difficult than fixing a piece of broken glass!
Jareth turned his head. From his point of view, Seth was kneeling on the floor in front of where he'd dropped a bottle of Jareth's finest wine. For a moment Jareth wanted to believe the old Fae was just trying to seek some privacy in his grief. But the moment only lasted so long.
"Seth, stop."
He didn't budge. Jareth's command only made him try harder. A glass shard tipped slightly, but quickly became inanimate. Seth cursed and stood, whipping around to face Jareth. "What? What do you expect me to do? The only thing I have is to wait for you to take me to see Karleigh," he hissed, the static sensation disappearing. "And you don't seem like you're too keen on doing that anytime soon, Your Highness."
"If I bring you in front of the girl she will only condemn you," Jareth said calmly. He rose from his seat and slowly walked across the room. Gloved hands clasped behind his back, he was trying to formulate some plan. Lady Rachelle had spent more time pouring over magic books than was healthy. In the back of his mind, Jareth suspected that she knew more than even he did. "She will condemn me, and this entire place."
He reached Seth and sighed, talking more to himself now. "Lady Rachelle has turned that girl into a blasted vacuum. She's trying to solve the Labyrinth now. I can't figure out what that blasted woman's angle is. Why didn't she just send the girl here? And it's worse because Karleigh's sucking up the Labyrinth's magic to guide her!" He blanched at Seth's shocked expression. Thinking aloud had consequences.
Unfortunately for both men, Jareth wholly misinterpreted Seth's shock. The Goblin King assumed that by now the man knew Rachelle was a right bitch, and that she was going to have Karleigh leave Seth behind in the Labyrinth. On the other hand, Seth's heart was pounding furiously. Finally Rachelle had forgiven him! She had seen that Karleigh was in trouble and was helping her solve the Labyrinth! Admittedly, it could be to get on Seth's good side for calling the girl names earlier, but still, her efforts would have a noble end. Seth assumed that the anger in Jareth's eyes was because he was going to be beaten.
He was partly right. Jareth was incensed at the prospect of having an outsider, a woman no less, finding her way around his rules. If things continued on this course then Karleigh would either be destroyed before ever reaching the Goblin City or she would say the words to bind Seth to the Underground forever. The Labyrinth would not let her go without seeking its revenge, though. If not after saying the words then during the return trip home, it would yank all of its magic out of her body. The force would kill her.
Seth wavered before speaking. Essentially he had been raised in the Labyrinth. Things could have changed in his absence, but he was fairly certain of one thing. "Rachelle doesn't have the power to do that. That's cheating. The Labyrinth won't allow that."
Jareth had to be mistaken. Rachelle wasn't so stupid as to have given Karleigh magic to solve the Labyrinth! It would destroy her! He remembered being a child, and being forced to attend the funerals of Underground citizens foolish enough to try and use magic to solve Jareth's Labyrinth. Always closed casket services, those were. He tried not to think about the sight of those coffins.
Jareth nodded resolutely. "If you'll excuse me," he said, eyes glittering, "I need to speak with someone." He promptly disappeared. Seth stared at the place he had been standing, and then let himself laugh.
"Oh, Jareth, you've been beaten," he said in between chortles. His raised spirit allowed him to utilize one of the powers he had retained while working with Karleigh. An unbroken wine bottle flew out of the rack and into his hand. He uncorked it and took a swig, while strolling happily across the room towards the window. "Karleigh's going to show up any time now, and we're finally going to go back home."
The fear that had permeated him when Karleigh discovered his portrait in the Gallery was gone. He no longer dreaded telling her of his past, of the trial, and that his stay with her was supposed to be a punishment. They were going to have a good laugh about that last bit. Once Jareth's anger had faded, he could probably be persuaded to write a letter to the High Court.
Seth allowed himself to think of what it would be like to live Aboveground. Not just in Karleigh's imagination, but actually live. To have a real body again! He eagerly ran a hand through his hair. This was a fantasy he rarely permitted himself to entertain. Chances that he would be restored to full Underground status were nonexistent, but Aboveground... what would the High Court care if another human was running around?
Think of that. Me, a human! Karleigh would flip, Seth thought, taking another swig from the bottle. For the first time in over a year things were finally going his way. His face erupted in a genuine smile. It had been too long since he'd been this happy. Everything was going to work out perfectly.
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The shadows of the Labyrinth's forgotten corridor held no secrets from me. In my mind I could see every corner of the maze. Fiery Forest, the Oubliette, the Junkyard: all were inconvenient obstacles. At the beginning of this journey I had really hoped to spot the sites I'd seen in my favorite movie all those times. Now I realized how stupid it was to take Sarah's route. There was a much quicker one, if you only knew the way.
The cuts on my legs did not sting anymore. In fact they reminded me of how far I'd come since I had started my journey. The tiny red marks were symbols of how strong I was. What that lovely woman had done for me was a true blessing. My mind was completely and totally clear of the fog that had been clouding it before.
Why had I wanted to rescue Seth? I should have accepted Jareth's gift. Of course now I could not do that, but there was a greater prize. To see the look of surprise on the Goblin King's face when I marched triumphantly into his castle, before even the first day was spent, would be worth all of the hardships I had endured in this wretched place.
I frowned as I continued on down the shady corridor. It was a long stone archway, ancient green moss and vines growing out of the cracks, and was exposed to the air only every few feet. The lack of light was not an issue for me. Right away I had known that this was the best path to take. Not the shortest, but definitely the safest. My feet traveled with such confidence that I felt like I had been down this path before, dozens of times. But I had never seen it before, had I? Hoggle and I hadn't walked through here before I got trapped in the gallery, had we?
Do not get discouraged.
My head snapped up, and my pulse quickened. The voice sounded familiar and strange at the same time. But I kept walking. Somehow I knew that at the end of the passageway would lay a staircase. Ascend that, my mind told me, and I would run straight into the cellar of the castle beyond the Goblin City. The goal, that was the important thing.
"Do not get discouraged," I murmured, trying to push away the uneasy feeling that voice had summoned. It didn't feel or sound like one of my own thoughts. And it was definitely a mental sound, not a vocal one.
Echoes from the clicking of my feet against the floor grew louder as I approached the end of the hall. I thought my pulse had been speeding before, but now blood was rushing through me so quickly I thought the cuts on my legs might burst. This was it! I was almost there! "Do not get discouraged," I whispered to myself, breaking into a run.
Every once in a while it was nice to just exert myself in a decent run. Something that my muscles would be sore after. Running just made my body feel cleaned out. My blood circulation increased, and my lungs at least felt purged of dust and other things I'd collected just strolling around. The metal steps created a ringing when I brought my feet down on them. Imagine that! A metal staircase in the middle of the Labyrinth! The castle probably had indoor plumbing and electricity too!
Arms pumping at my sides I continued upwards. Unlike the staircase where I had first run into Jareth, this one ascended into light. My hair bounced wildly in front of my eyes. I jumped the last two steps and miraculously managed to land without breaking my ankle. I looked around. Several torches lined the walls of the cellar. Looked like I was wrong about the electricity thing. A ton of boxes were stacked up, all of them wooden.
"Oh, that's safe," I said, rolling my eyes. I sighed and slid to the floor. What's the rush? Jareth wasn't watching me, he was probably catching up with his dear friend Seth, his best friend Seth...
His lover Sethrida.
I tossed my head back and stared at the ceiling. "Seth's not a woman," I muttered, squinting. True, I had never seen him with his shirt off. Not that I wanted to or anything. "He can't be a woman! I would've known by now!" My voice died off and I glanced around, wondering if there were any goblins down here. Even if Jareth was... um... occupied with my Muse, any goblin would run up and alert him of my presence.
I clapped my hands to my head and began pushing. Perhaps that would squeeze out the incredibly disturbing mental image that thought provoked. "Seth hates strawberries!" I yelled. Damn it, I was going to delete Lifetime from my television. Channel surfing had never seemed so horrifying before.
My breath was slowly returning. I tried to distract my mind until it was normal again. "Let's see... what will I do when I get back?" My fanfiction would be an interesting thing to work on, now that I had firsthand experience. Maybe put in some JS action... oh hell.
Suddenly my breathing was normal again. I jumped up and started power walking across the room. Any moment now I'd stumble upon another staircase, and from there I could navigate my way through the castle until I found Jareth. Or a goblin. I shuddered. If I found one of those horrible little monsters first I'd just announce to Jareth that I was there. It wasn't worth risking him sneaking up on me on a tip from one of his underlings.
As I walked I said a little thank-you prayer to the mysterious woman. Without the knowledge she'd given me, I would never have been able to find my way here. Jareth would be laughing his head off at my stupidity. I might even still be stuck at the bottom of that well. My spirit was soaring now. I owed so much to that woman.
"My guardian angel," I murmured, smiling.
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Rachelle looked up from her chair. "Ah, hello, Jareth," she purred, stroking her neck. A fire burned in the fireplace before her. Because of the heat she'd changed into a thin, almost transparent nightgown. At least that was what Jareth thought it was. He had never really been an expert on women's fashion.
He scowled, furious. "What exactly did you think you were doing, Rachelle? Interfering with my game! What gives you the right," he walked forward menacingly, "to tamper with my Labyrinth?" His voice had lowered to a hiss, and he was desperately restraining himself from punching her. One, it would compromise his position. Two, it would probably knock that nightgown right off her. He settled instead for placing his hands on the armrests of her chair and leaning over her.
"Oh, Jareth, you're such a bore," she murmured, yawning. Jareth bristled. "Surely the great Goblin King can come up with an antidote for my poison?" she cocked an eyebrow. Wisely, Jareth bit his tongue. He was thinking of the fireplace poker. Rachelle reached up and ran one of her long nails across his cheek. Inside she was absolutely squealing with joy.
I've defeated the Goblin King! I've outsmarted Jareth! Ha! Seth will have to pay attention to me now! Even he had trouble matching wits with Jareth! She smiled warmly. "How is the little mortal doing? I know you've been watching her progress." Grinning, she curled a lock of hair around her finger.
Now was the point where Jareth would really have to be alert. His plan left a lot of room for variables, more than he felt comfortable allowing. Rachelle and he had matched wits before. She had lost every time. But she had a Plan now. Jareth knew about Plans. They were made up by eager amateurs and usually ended up creating huge disasters. Jareth really did not want to deal with a huge disaster.
Rachelle's mind wandered for a moment. She wondered what Seth was doing right then. Pacing around Jareth's library? Reading a book? If it was the latter, the tome was most likely something thick and heavy. A leather-bound original copy, one kept free from translation. She had always admired Seth's ability to pick up and become fluent in languages so quickly.
And what was the little mortal doing right then? That worried her. If Jareth wasn't lying, then she was in deep trouble. Something had to have gone terribly wrong with her magic. But if he was lying, everything was moving according to plan. In fact, Karleigh could even burst in the room before Jareth got around to answering her question. My, wouldn't the look on Jareth's face be perfect? She giggled to herself, and wished that it would happen. The man would be caught in a boldface lie, and then be told off by a nothing human girl, adding insult to injury!
Jareth took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the chair. "She's doing quite well," he said calmly. "Considering who gave her the instructions, she's doing quite well indeed." He kept his tone level and indifferent.
Rachelle frowned. What did Jareth have planned? "You think that my magic is inferior to yours?" she asked.
Smiling, Jareth leaned back. A small light was glinting in his eyes. "If it wasn't, would Karleigh be so lost right now?" It was dangerous to bluff, but Lady Rachelle did not have the crystals he did. She would have to wait for a snake to find Karleigh and bring back the news before she could tell if Jareth was lying. And the goblin outside the door would make sure that would not happen.
"Karleigh can't be lost!" Rachelle yelled, leaping up from her seat. "My spells wouldn't allow it!"
Jareth looked casually at the fireplace. "So you admit you wrongly used magic to fix the outcome of Karleigh's journey?" he asked, eyes flickering. The door to the room had cracked open slightly, and a goblin ear appeared in the space. "Knowing that it was wrong before you did it?" Jareth added, a little louder.
In her rage, Rachelle missed the warning signs. If she had just turned her head, she would have seen the head of the eavesdropper. Normally she would have kept her mouth shut after this point. But she wasn't so sure that Jareth would risk so much on a lie. She stomped toward Jareth, gown swirling around her ankles. Her hair, which she was wearing loose, created shadows on her face, warping its beauty into something obviously evil. "What else would I have been doing, Jareth?" she demanded.
The Goblin King smiled.
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At the top of the stairs I found another hallway. I grinned and confidently turned left. Down the hall was Jareth's throne room. "Finally," I whispered, combing my hair behind my ears. An insane grin had plastered itself to my face. "Finally." The hunger I had felt earlier was a distant memory. The pain of the rocks falling on my leg was gone. Even the sight of the empty Hoggle puppet was no longer terrifying. It was just a puppet, after all. No bones. No blood.
I tugged at the hem of my shirt. The journey had turned it ratty. I scowled. If I was going to be facing Jareth I wanted to be wearing something a little nicer than ripped shorts and a dirty t-shirt. My body felt grimy from all the sweating I had done earlier. I looked around and wondered if there was any possibility of taking a shower before I met up with Jareth. If I couldn't have nice clothes at least I could feel clean.
I stopped and tried to think. The woman had given me all the information I needed to get anywhere in the Labyrinth and the castle. Time to take a little bath would be no time at all considering how long it would have taken me if she hadn't been so kind. I sighed and wiped a half-formed tear from my eye. She was the only person that had been truly kind to me over the past few days. It was nice to know that some goodness could exist within the Labyrinth.
Wait, didn't you agree that Jareth wasn't a villain? He never would have turned Toby into a goblin! He was only living up to Sarah's expectations. He just wanted her to love him, didn't he? Remember the lines at the end?
I faltered. My own mental voice had popped up out of almost nowhere. What it pointed out kind of scared me. Since really paying attention to the movie, I had decided that Jareth wasn't all that bad. Why in the world had I been thinking otherwise? Yet even now there was a part of me telling myself to ignore that. Jareth had cornered me in the stairwell, hadn't he? He had commissioned that stupid painting, insulted me, and done that weird thing to my neck.
Instantly, my hand raised to my neck and began rubbing against the skin. There was no blood. I could not feel any puncture wounds, or scrapes, or blisters. But I knew that something had hurt me, despite the odd voice that was telling me I had only imagined it happening.
He has done you wrong, it said. I frowned and closed my eyes. When he first arrived, what did he do with your family, hmm? Do you really believe he just stowed them away somewhere for safekeeping? It would have been much easier to just kill them all.
That did it. Even if they could be mean to me and did neglect me sometimes, they were still my family! Jareth had no right to go messing with them. It was me who summoned him, not them. They didn't deserve whatever he had done to them. Even Thomas. Especially Thomas. He wasn't even in high school yet! Of course he would be a jerk toward me sometimes! My mother and father had never been bad to me. If they were alive, they were probably confused and terrified. I started walking towards the throne room again. Forget the bath. I needed to punch someone.
Seth and Jareth. Neither of them deserves your pity.
Now I was thinking about myself in the second person. I really needed to get out of here. My breath rattled in my chest as I approached the stairs to the throne room. Already I could hear the loud racket of goblins partying. All of the fanfictions I had read came to mind. Jareth wasn't always bad, but often the goblins were. Not usually the female goblins, but it was the males who hung out in the throne room.
I could fear my courage failing. Jareth was not who I was scared of. I could take him, I was angry enough. Raging fighters always fared better than calm and collected ones. But against an entire room of goblins, I knew I would be overwhelmed. "Sheesh," I muttered, blotting my palms on my shorts. I thought the Firies would be bad, but the goblins had always freaked me out too. Sure, they could be cute if it was two in the morning and you had just drank five glasses of Coca-Cola. But then you looked at their glassy eyes and remembered why goblin lore was never nice.
I stood at the foot of the stairs, gazing up at the doorway to the throne room. The noise was loud, and I could see the shadows of goblins dancing on the walls. None of the shadows looked human, and I didn't hear Jareth's familiar voice booming out any songs. Maybe he wasn't in there.
But if he wasn't there, where would he be? I'd never find him if he was somewhere else. I knew that there were hundreds of rooms in this castle. Searching all of them would be futile. Pride would not allow me to call out to the King. I wanted to be in control of the situation when we finally met. Sighing, I pinched the bridge of my nose and leaned up against the wall. Think! A solution was right before me, I could feel it. Just think harder...
Behind me the shattering of glass jarred my train of thought. Startled, I turned around.
"Karleigh?" Seth whispered. His hand was hanging limply at his side, fingers opened. I looked down. At his feet lay the broken remains of a wine bottle. A slowly expanding pool of red wine was soaking his shoes. Confused, I looked back at his face. He was just as shocked as I was. Strangely, I had not been anticipating our reuniting, and I had no idea what do to now that it was happening.
Hesitantly, he started walking towards me. "Are you okay?" he asked, reaching out his hand. I stared at it blankly. Suddenly I was blushing. I didn't exactly look poised and collected at the moment. When I didn't respond, Seth leaned forward and took my hand in his. He gripped it tightly and began examining me, which I accepted without protest. I wanted to cry. Damn. I was so embarrassed! Seth was real, he was a real person, and now he was seeing me and probably thinking that I had been hit by a truck.
I whimpered. Seth immediately drew me against his chest and gave me a tight hug. "Karleigh," he said, cupping my chin in his hand, "it's okay. We can go home now." You're to wish him to stay here! He titled my head up and we met gazes. I got another surprise.
"Your eyes are different."
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Kerist: Yay! I love that last line. It's probably not the best I've ever written, but I've been waiting to have Karleigh say it for months now. Wow. I've been writing this for months. Weird. Doesn't seem like it. Anyway. I think the story is going to have more chapters than I had anticipated. Seth and Karleigh are about to have a nice discussion.
Seth: You're making me look like a pathetic, sappy idiot.
Kerist: That's the point, Seth.Seth: I despise you.
Kerist: Anyway I hope to have the next chapter out sometime mid-November, because I'm already working on it.
Seth: Please save me. November is National Novel Writing Month. (Check her profile to learn more) And you know whose shoulder she's going to be crying on when she runs into trouble!
Kerist: (mutters:) Yeah, as one of the victims of the Assassin's Unit. HA! You can be the guy Jacqueline misses... oh wow! Wonderful idea! I think I can use that. Haha it'll be so much fun turning you into a criminal, Seth. Hey, at least you're finally acting like a Muse.
Seth: Did I mention that I despise you?
Lady Moofin: I'm curious as to what you thought was going to be in this chapter. Were you right about anything? Of course, you could always lie, but I know you wouldn't do that ;) Thanks for the review.
BlueyChan: You're right about Lord of the Flies. Vampires would have helped immensely. Hehe good luck with your geometry - my teacher last year was evilll..... thanks for your review.
Princess-RainbowRose: Oooh, I'm not telling. It should be a surprise (should) until the last chapter. Mwahaha! ::cough:: Anyway. Of course I told Jareth "hi" from everyone here. We had a lengthy discussion, he and I. Which is why he's acting considerably more intelligent in this chapter. Thanks for reviewing!
Fou Fou: Cliffhangers are fun. I actually feel sorry for Seth. I'm being mean to him. And it isn't over yet. (foreshadowing!) Poor Seth. Thanks for the compliment, and, of course, the review. Over five per chapter now!
Moonjava: Ah, a new reviewer. It must have been good for you to read all the way up to chapter ten. Hope the update didn't take too long for you. Thanks for reviewing.
Mab, Queen of Faerie: Ooh, I know I took a long time to update when the readers tell me they missed me. I hope I can write the next one before November. November... ::slightly worried:: I calculated and I have to write 1667 words a day. Which is a lot more than it seems. Anyway. Thanks for the review!