Chapter 8: Rebellion
Rei-
Jareth had ignored everything but Sarah and Haruka.
'Let her go. Drop her.' Rei thought, feeling helpless when little Chibi-Usa fell out of the tree and right into the inhuman person's arms. Could there have been a worse situation? They had all been, as Usagi had promised Sarah, been watching from just outside the temple, but no one had expected Chibi-Usa to be in the tree. Usagi had cried out and only Rei holding her arm had stopped her from running to the little girl, her future daughter. That, in itself, was a long story.
Chibi-Usa was from a future some several hundred years yet to come. The little firecracker of a girl had come back in time to learn from the senshi. She was an opinionated, too smart for her own good, mischievous, and, at times, a little bit wicked. Sufficed to say, everyone loved her dearly. To see her in the arms of someone they were all pretty sure was dangerous and, Rei knew, was inhuman. Sarah seemed to be afraid of him, but not afraid enough that she wouldn't speak to him privately.
"Usa…"
Rei looked sharply at Usagi and tightened his fingers around Usagi's arm. "Don't move."
"She's my daughter!" Usagi came as close to sounding angry as Rei had ever heard her. Usagi rarely became angry. She would get upset, irritated, jealous, annoyed and a variety of other unpleasant emotions. She did not get angry unless they were up against some megalomaniac super force that had a track record of killing people or stealing souls or some other madness.
Rei swallowed hard. That little thought didn't sit well with Chibi-Usa looking so helpless. "He's not like anyone we've fought. He's different. Don't do anything," She hesitated on the word stupid, knowing that Usagi would take offense and that it might trigger her to do something 'heroic'. "Don't do anything rash."
Usagi nodded, not once taking her eyes of Chibi-Usa. "I'm calm, but he'd better put her down." There was a threat in her voice and her fingers inched towards the broach at her breast, even as tears welled in her eyes. People so often forgot that ditzy little Usagi was also a warrior. A reluctant warrior, but a warrior all the same. She could think calmly and she could make hard decisions when the situation called for it. She could kill.
Matoko had her transformation rod in hand, as did Minako, though Ami was still concentrating on gathering as much data as she could through her translucent computer. Leave the information gathering to Ami, Rei knew she was better suited to fight. She, too, drew out her transformation rod out. She had to pull on the chain around her neck from which the transformation rod hung. It was really the only sensible place to keep it. Putting it in a pocket, even if she had one in her school uniform, would have been too dangerous as it might have fallen out. She needed to keep it close, though. Therefore, Minako had come up with the brilliant idea of turning the burden into a decoration and it was made into a necklace.
The situation didn't look too bad. Sarah wasn't afraid for the little girl, she gave Jareth a disapproving frown and made a motion with her arm. It seemed she was telling him to put Chibi-Usa down. Maybe it would be alright.
"Look!" Makoto jabbed her finger to the right and Rei followed the motion. Only then did she notice they weren't the only ones watching what went on under the old tree. Standing on nearly the top of the steps leading up to the temple were Haruka and Michiru, holding hands. Michiru's mouth was a tight little line, the only outward sign of her anger. Haruka didn't have nearly so much self control and had her teeth bared with her fury. Before anyone could do anything, Haruka leapt into the scene, transforming while she ran to them and had her sword at Sarah's throat. Michiru was right behind Haruka, also in her uniform.
From bad to worse.
There was a long moment of silence before Usagi lost it and, frankly, Rei had to give her credit for holding out for so long. "Let her go!" Usagi began screaming and Minako and Ami had to hold her back from rushing into the situation and making it even worse. "Let my baby go!" She was screaming as loudly as she could, straining against her friends, but they wouldn't let her. The tears were now running down her face freely and her fingers were curled like claws as she reached for her broach.
Rei stepped in front of Usagi and took her face in her hands. "If any of us attack, Chibi-Usa will be killed! Get a hold of yourself."
Jareth-
Someone was yelling, but Jareth paid no attention. There was work to be done. A child to be protected.
It was more than a matter of pride, now.
"Put her down or I'll kill this girl." A blade pressed against Sarah's pale flesh. Sarah's eyes, wide with fear. "Do it now!" The deep voiced blonde pressed her blade closer, close enough to pierce Sarah's skin and a tiny bead of crimson blood swelled at the blade's edge before it rolled down Sarah's throat, dripping down into her white blouse. "I'll take her head if you hurt that child! I don't bluff."
Jareth glared, but he didn't immediately set down the little girl. In fact, he tightened his grip on the child. His instincts and years of conditioning refused to allow him to put the child in danger and that girl was definitely dangerous. Her eyes were hard and Jareth had no doubt that she would carry out her threat. "What a pity."
"A pity for you. Drop the princess!"
"Princess?" Jareth looked down at the little girl again, surprised. "Really?"
"Yes, really!" The little girl obviously had a mind of her own and answered for herself. She'd gotten passed being frightened and now gave Jareth a rather haughty look. "You'd better do what she says or you'll be in big trouble. Just you look." She pointed over Jareth's shoulder.
"I don't think I will just now. Thank you anyway." He turned his eyes back to the tall girl holding Sarah. They must be about the same age, though Sarah was shorter by a few inches. Sarah was also still injured and Jareth didn't appreciate her being manhandled in such a manner. Unfortunately, the little girl didn't seem to like being ignored and started to struggle. "Now, now. This isn't the time, little one." Jareth held her securely. If he were to let her go now, there was no telling what would happen. She'd be in great danger if the woman with the sword was to get a hold of her.
"Usa-chan!" There was another child running towards him. It was another girl, a pale, dark haired child. She was skinny and frail, pale as a ghost. Her pallor only made her dark eyes look bigger than they should have looked. She was dressed entirely in black and Jareth could almost feel how tenuous her grasp on life was. "Don't hurt her! Don't hurt Usa-chan!" The poor child was nearly crying and it was really no wonder. Her friend was in great danger from this crazy blonde. Well, she needn't have worried. Jareth wouldn't, couldn't, let a child be endangered, not when he was right there and could stop it.
There was something odd about the pale girl. She felt different from any other child Jareth had ever met.
He couldn't leave Sarah, but he couldn't let the pink haired girl be put in danger. "Sarah, a wish might help at this point." No one by the young girl with short black hair was moving. It wasn't hard to tell that he was holding someone of great importance.
Sarah understood what he wanted, but didn't trust him. "I-I can't."
"You must."
The little black haired girl ran right passed the blonde holding Sarah and right up to Jareth. She grabbed the little girl's hand, but looked at Jareth with watery, frightened eyes. "Let her go! Please, don't hurt her!" She was ill. Jareth recognized that immediately. Her body was frail and failing. Sickness made her weak, it was the cause of her unusual thinness. Her eyes were very large, almost too large for her pale, narrow face. She was trembling so furiously that Jareth honestly thought the poor child might faint. She was older than she looked, closer to a young woman than a child. Still…she was close enough for what mattered. She was a child.
Jareth was in a bit of a predicament. His power was, more or less, limited to within Labyrinth. Here, he was nearly helpless but for a few parlor tricks. Besides, even if he could have an all out battle with the tall blonde, he couldn't risk it. There were too many children around. Human or not, they were children. The pink haired girl he was holding, the little black haired girl, even the inhuman girls who'd sheltered Sarah were still children. He couldn't risk their lives. The tall blonde and her blue haired friend, though…they were adult.
Jareth looked again at Sarah's frightened eyes. She was still injured, still bleeding and weak. Over her shoulder Jareth saw the tall blonde girl with a face like a warrior. She was very serious and, obviously, she was the same as the girls who'd taken Sarah to this place. Their uniforms were too similar to be coincidence. Whoever they were wasn't really important. The children were obviously threatened by the insane blonde, they must be from some rival force and she meant to kill them or perhaps hold them hostage. "Sarah, you must! They'll kill her."
Behind him, Jareth heard the other young girls, shouting, but he wasn't really paying them any attention. They weren't the ones with a sword at Sarah's throat. 'Damn her!' Jareth thought, darkly. 'Sarah's mine! She fought Labyrinth and earned a wish. She earned the greatest prize Labyrinth could give and I gave her what she most desired. Freedom. She's mine.' Logic had no place in Jareth's world or in his mind. One couldn't live within the Labyrinth and be dependant on something like logic or sense, after all. His reasoning about Sarah made sense…to him. She had been in his power. He had released her. Therefore, she belonged to him.
Jareth happened to glance to the left, just behind the tall blonde and he caught sight of a sparkle between the branches of a bush. Hoggle. Good little dwarf. Jraeth nodded, once, and had faith that Hoggle had seen and would not only understand but obey. Hoggle rarely failed.
"Stop with the drama!" The tall blonde shouted. "Release the princess!"
'I can't do anything without a wish, Sarah. Help me.' Did she think he would completely abandon her when he'd come to all the trouble just to find her?
Whatever Sarah was thinking, she'd made her decision. "I wish the goblins would…" The rest was lost in a furious yell.
Hoggle burst out of the bushes just behind Sarah and the blond girl and threw himself at the blonde girl's knees. She was knocked forward and her grip of Sarah gave way. For a terrible moment, Jareth feared that the sword would cut Sarah as she fell, but the blonde girl kept a firmer grip on her sword than on her captive and released Sarah rather than her weapon.
"…away." Sarah breathed the last word as she hit the ground.
Jareth felt more power rush to him. He couldn't just forsake Sarah and Hoggle was no fighter. Best to send reinforcements until he could return.
The pink haired girl fell limp in Jareth's arms the moment Labyrinth's power brushed against them. Using only one arm to hold the little girl, Jareth leaned over quickly and wrapped his free arm around the dark haired girl's shoulders, just to be sure. She seemed very much afraid and he wouldn't take one child just to have the other left in harm's way. The dark haired girl squealed with fright, but Jareth didn't hesitate. He'd explain to her once he'd gotten the children somewhere safe.
Then, he'd go retrieve Sarah.
Sigh…again.
The power blossomed within Jareth and then stretched out like a thread stretched out, a path. As easily as a human drew breath Jareth followed it as easily. They were in Labyrinth.
The first thing Jareth was aware of was that he was in trouble. He could feel the heat of Labyrinth's anger like a hot coal in the middle of his brain. It was such a great burn that he almost dropped the little girl he was holding and it took him a moment to get a hold of himself. Whatever had angered Labyrinth could be dealt with. First, the children.
The little pink haired girl was unconscious, limp on Jareth's arm. It was probably just fear and shock of being caught in such a situation. Probably. No, it didn't seem right. Jareth had taken many children over many years and this had never happened. He turned to the other little girl, the dark haired child who was still tucked under his arm. "Are you all…" He broke off when he noticed something was wrong with her. Her eyes were blank and staring. Her fingers jerked uncontrollable and her head twitched to the side. "What's the matter? Are you hurt?"
"I…I…" She got no further when Jareth felt something seize him and pull him back so hard that his long hair fell in his face and he let out a grunt of surprise. He landed on his feet, but only after stumbling and nearly loosing his footing. He almost dropped the pink haired girl, but managed to hold onto her. When he looked back, he saw that the dark haired girl hadn't moved, but stood very oddly. Her arms hung loosely at her side and her knees were slightly buckled. Her head was straight, though, and she stared right at Jareth. "I am…a hand clasped to her chest suddenly and she cried out in pain. "I am hurt! I hurt! I have failed!" Then, a brilliant flash of light swallowed up the girl and her scream. The scream stopped abruptly and the light vanished instead of fading away. When he was alone in the halls of his castle, Jareth found that the only thing left where the dark haired girl had been standing was a small, pale red crystal, only slightly bigger than the ones he used.
Dead Moon Circus-
"Oh, pooh! My lovely dolly's been spoiled." The image of Hotaru's body vanished and, with it, the images transmitted from it back to the Dead Moon Circus. Four young girls sitting in a circle around the image looked at each other, one of them pouting, cutely. "I spent all night making that one, too. She was so pretty!"
"Spoiled, my tush! She'd dead.
"Dolly's can't die. Can they?"
"Of course not. She's only teasing you." She held up a hand on a miniature image of Hotaru, just before she'd dissolved in the strange world appeared. "Poor little dolly, though. She was very pretty. I wanted to keep her, too."
Labyrinth-
Jareth-
"Master?" Jareth spoke out loud as he stepped cautiously towards the crystal on the ground where the girl had been. Labyrinth wouldn't kill a child. That just wasn't possible. Jareth licked his lips, uneasily. No, Labyrinth wouldn't kill a child. A defenseless child that Jareth had brought to Labyrinth and exposed her to such danger. That would mean that Jareth had killed her. "What's going on?"
Another force stopped Jareth from advancing, several yards from the crystal. He could only watch as the crystal dissolved like sugar in hot water until there was nothing left but vapor and even that was swept away in the wind. The wind carefully carried the vapor away, out a window, but what happened to it after it left the castle, Jareth had no idea.
"What was that?" It couldn't have been human. Labyrinth wouldn't allow a human child in its care to be harmed, let alone hurt her itself. Very suddenly, he remembered that he wasn't done yet. Whatever the thing had been, Labyrinth had taken care of it. Toby still needed to be taken away from those people and then Sarah would need help. Jareth spun around and instantly found himself in the nursery where he lay the little girl, the princess, down on one of the beds. "I won't be long. You're safe here." Still, the thought nagged at him, why didn't she wake? Something was wrong.
Earth-
Rei-
Hotaru? Where…? How…?
Little Hotaru had been killed and then reincarnated into a baby, again. How could she be here now? It just wasn't possible. She was living with her father on the other side of the country, wasn't she? Yet there she was looking just like the last time they'd seen her, even dressed in the same clothes. It just wasn't possible.
Hotatu had been the senshi of Saturn, the destroyer. She who was forced to live with a sickly, weak body was the strongest of the senshi and had a right to her title. She could destroy whole worlds with a single attack from her glaive and was the most feared of the senshi. Even the other senshi had feared her, in the beginning. They had feared her so much that Haruka and Michiru had been on a single-minded mission to kill her before her power emerged. Now she was a friend, in a way, as she had saved not only them but all of Earth by sacrificing herself. However, her power was still just as fearsome.
"It's all right, Usagi." Rei listened angrily to Ami's reassurances. How Hotaru had come to be there didn't matter. She was in just as much danger as Chibi-Usa and they would have to rescue her. "We'll get them back. Don't cry." She didn't bother to look at them. It was easy enough to know what Usagi was feeling. She'd just watched her daughter get kidnapped and no one had been able to stop it. With all their power, they hadn't been able to stop it.
They had more immediate concerns. Rei transformed, letting the spirit and power of Mars wash over her. She felt the fire in her, twisting and boiling for release. Her miko outfit was gone, replaced by the uniform of her destiny, her senshi outfit. It was the same outfit she'd worn in another life and one which she proudly wore now. Rei didn't hesitate when she held out one hand and her bow appeared. She didn't falter when she raised a hand and the arrow of flame grew to life in her fingers.
The fire arrow shot through the distance with fatal accuracy and Rei just waited for it to hit its target, the ugly little creature who'd attacked Haruka. The nasty little thing had helped in Chibi-Usa and Hotaru's kidnapping. It, whatever it was, was an enemy. Her attack came only moments after Michiru's. Unlike Rei's attack, Michiru couldn't use her power, it was too broad, too unfocused. She attacked physically and with a plan. She didn't jump on the little thing, but on Haruka and pinned her to the ground. She used her own body to shield her lover from Rei's attack. Rei's arrow went right over them and struck the ugly creature in the shoulder. It screamed and clutched at itself with pain.
All Hell broke loose.
There was a roar, like an earthquake. Rei could almost swear that she felt the ground under her feet shift and imagined some ancient god shaking the planet. A tree was thrown across the temple's yard, landing between where Rei stood with the rest of the inner senshi and where Haruka and Michiru were just starting to get to their feet. They wasted no time, that was for sure.
It was a monster. A massive beast with shaggy orange fur, teeth like a lion and bigger than almost anything Rei had ever seen. It held massive, gorilla-like arms over its head and waved them. Rei could only think that to be struck by one of those arms would at least break a few ribs. At most, it could mean death. It rushed directly to Haruka and Michiru and both women jumped to their feet. They were, after all, warriors above all else. Aqua haired Michiru reacted first with her usual cold expression.
Sarah saw the beast and yelled out, "Ludo, no!"
The beast took the full brunt of her attack, he fell to the ground, landing heavily and groaning pitifully. The attack didn't stop it, however. It surged to a sitting up position, but didn't try to stand. Then it threw back its head, letting out a terrible bellow. It was so awful a sound that they all had to put their hands over their ears to block the sound out.
Minako threw out her own attack, her chain of energy, and ensnared the beast. It didn't do much good. She had it, like a cowgirl roping a steer, but the beast wasn't trying to get away. It was just wailing.
Sarah had gotten to her hands and knees and crawled to the little creature that had attacked Haruka. Over the creature's mournful bellowing, Rei couldn't hear what Sarah was saying, but she was talking to the nasty looking thing. It looked vaguely like a little man, but it was thoroughly grotesque to look at. No matter. The orange furred beast was the more important threat. They circled around it, Haruka looking angrier than Rei had ever seen her and Michiru fearsomely cold. Now they just had to decide what to do with it.
Ami, still keeping her place near Usagi, yelled, "It's similar to that man who took Chibi-Usa and Hotaru. Not exactly, but much of the genetic make-up is the same. Maybe we can use it to track him down."
How like Ami, absolutely brilliant. "How do we trap it?" The ground rumbled again and Rei had to spread her feet apart to keep her balance. "Venus can't keep it chained up forever."
Minako laughed nervously and Rei noticed sweat starting to form on her forehead and cheeks. "Don't know if I'll be able to hold it for another minute. Somebody better think of something."
Again the ground shook and something hit Rei on the ankle. She looked down, but there was just a small stone. She looked back at the beast. Minako was right. Something had to be done and it didn't look like a kind of creature that one could reason with. Maybe killing the monster was the best way to deal with it.
Hoggle-
The pain was terrible. Like a hot poker in the arm. He swore as loudly as he could and his eyes were squeezed so tightly shut that he could feel himself crying. What kind of magic could do such things, Hoggle had no idea. In reality, he had very little experience with any magic other than Jareth's. This kind of magic wasn't supposed to exist on Earth.
Ludo was calling the rocks. At least the ogre was good for something. The stupid creature was one of the most useless of all Jareth's subjects, but he was relatively harmless unless you managed to upset him. Putting Sarah in danger was one of the best ways to upset Ludo.
"Hoggle? Can you hear me? Open your eyes."
"Sarah?" There she was, all soft hands and worried eyes. Worried for him. "Get out of here! They've managed to get his attention!"
Sarah turned around, obviously worried. She was smart to be worried. She knew what it meant to get HIS attention. It wasn't good to get Jareth's attention, ever. Usually, it wasn't anything good. As she looked around for the danger, though, Sarah's eyes fell on something else and she gasped. "Ludo!"
The rocks came, then. Rolling and tumbling up the hill, crashing through a carefully kept garden and people started screaming. Sarah held Hoggle close, as if she thought the rocks would accidentally hurt him. Ludo was more careful than that. The rocks came near them, but never near enough to hurt them. At first the magic girls tried to destroy the rocks, but that only made smaller rocks and rocks didn't care what size they were when Ludo called for them. The girls ended up taking to the trees just to get away from the rocks and only then did they get the idea that to stop the rocks they had to stop Ludo. One of the girls, one with very short blue hair, held up her hands and began calling something out. That was when that Toby got in the way.
"Stop it." Toby shouted, standing in front of Ludo. It looked ridiculous, to see such a small boy standing defiantly between the two powers, but Hoggle kept silent. That small boy was his prince and would be king when Jareth tired of his life. Little Toby, whom Hoggle remembered as a baby wearing red and white stripped pajamas, had more power bottled up in that tiny body than any human could imagine. "Stop fighting!"
Instantly, Ludo obeyed. He stopped his howling and looked at the child, confused. As brainless as Ludo was, even he could feel the power coming from Toby and he felt the compulsion to obey as Hoggle did. The rocks stopped moving and Ludo tilted his head slightly to one side as he always did when a thought was trying to form in his head.
The magic girls weren't nearly so willing to obey the little boy. When Ludo's rocks stopped moving, they abandoned their shelter and faced Ludo and Toby. It was the girl with the strangely long blond ponytails on either side of her head who spoke, addressing Toby. "Get out of the way. We don't want to hurt you."
"You're mean." Toby started to shake with his little hands balled into fists. He wasn't talking to the pigtailed girl, but to the blonde Hoggle had tackled just a few minutes ago. "I don't like you. You tried to hurt my friend. You hurt my sissy!"
"He kidnapped our friends." The tall blonde said, evenly.
"Friends? You were going to hurt that little girl AND my sissy!" There was a moment when time seemed to slow when Jareth reappeared and leaned over Toby, putting his arms around him, and then both Toby and Jareth were gone.
Sarah started to panic. She blinked and sat up a little straighter, though she kept one hand on Hoggle's, and looked around wildly. "Toby? Toby!"
Hoggle did his best to calm her and patted her arm. "Don' you worry. He's with Jareth."
"Isn't that reason to worry?"
Hoggle could only shrug. He didn't rightly understand what was going on, but at least the little feller wasn't between that crazy girl and Ludo anymore. "You'd best get yer self away, little lady." Hoggle swallowed his fear at the sight of the impending battle. Ludo wasn't smart enough to be worried about little things like pain or death. All he knew was that Sarah had been in danger and he'd rushed to the rescue. The only thing that could make it worse would be if Jareth had actually brought…
"Varlets! Stand down, vile knaves!"
"Oh, no…" Hoggle stared in horrified fascination at when Sir Didymus leapt from wherever he'd been concealed and into the open. He was a tiny creature, standing no taller than Sarah's knees, and looked something like a Earth fox. Hoggle didn't know exactly what Didymus was, except that he was a royal pain in the backside. Didymus had only one eye, the other hidden behind a black patch. Whether the eye was missing or Sir Didymus wore the eye patch purely for effect, Hoggle didn't know. He wouldn't put it passed Didymus to wear it just for the sake of how dashing he thought it made him look. Didymus had a lot of delusions like that. Such as believing that he was the greatest knight of all time. His heart was in the right place, but his brain just couldn't seem to keep up with his mouth.
Didymus waved his little rapier menacingly at the girls, giving a great leap that put him square in the middle of them, right next to Ludo. "Stand down, I say! I have no wish to harm damsels, but if thee threatens my most noble brothers, then I shall put thee to the test!" His eye caught on the girl with very short blonde hair and the sword she held. "Doest thee fancy thyself a swords master, gentle maid?"
"What the Hell are you?" The blonde girl growled. She held herself tall and proud, her sword tight in her hand. Most likely, she had taken offense at being called a 'gentle maid'. Hoggle was vaguely impressed. She wasn't just dismissing Didymus, a mistake many people made.
Didymus jumped again, this time his springy legs landed him on Ludo's broad shoulder, and he swept his hat off his head to give the girl a flowery bow. "Thee may address me as Sir Didymus, fair maid. Might I ask by what name thee art called?"
She was taken aback by his speech and blinked before regaining her composure. "I am Uranus, the outer senshi. It's my duty to protect the royal family, including the princess who was just kidnapped! Where did that man take Hotaru and Chibi-Usa!"
"The business of his majesty is no concern of mine, for I am but a lowly knight, his majesty's humble servant. Forgive my rudeness, fair maid, but thee hast caused injury to mine brother, sir Hoggle and threatened the life of my most honored lady, Sarah." His hairy eyebrows twitched and lowered to shadow his eyes. "May I ask what reason you had for this? I beg of you, tell me a reason that will prevent me from having to challenge thee. As I have said, I have no wish to battle one so fair as thee." Even though the sweet words poured from his muzzle like honey, his throat also emitted a low chattering noise, a sign of his anger.
"Stop! Stop! Stop!" Sarah was on her knees and shouting as loudly as she could. She was long passed angry. She beat one fist on the ground as she shouted and didn't look up until Hoggle touched her arm. For him, her face softened. "I can't stand." She whispered, looking at Hoggle helplessly. As Hoggle had known for a long time, Sarah hated feeling helpless and this was probably the worst time to feel like that.
But Hoggle didn't have much of a shoulder to lean against, anymore. He was injured himself and it would take a trip back to Labyrinth before he could heal. Still, didn't mean he couldn't help. "Right, then. Ludo, get yer self over here. Lend her a hand."
Ludo obeyed without question, rising from where he'd fallen with a great deal of difficulty. He made his way to Sarah. He picked her up with Hoggle admonishing the gentle giant to be careful as Sarah had already been hurt enough and held her like one would an infant. "Sarah? Hurt?" His deep voice was a low, anxious grumble.
Sarah just smiled at him encouragingly and patted his great, hairy arm. "I'm alright, Ludo. I'll be fine." Sarah then turned a more serious expression to the enemy. "Well, this is a fine mess. What did you go and do that for?" This was aimed at Haruka whose mouth fell open at the question, even though she didn't turn away from Didymus.
"What did I do it for? Are you mad? He had the princess and even I could see how dangerous he was!"
Sarah rolled her eyes. "Would you give a child to a maniac swinging a sword around? Of course he took her!" Sarah took a deep breath and rubbed her blood-shot eyes with a fist. "Right…" She looked around at everyone around them. All of the girls dressed up in little sailor suits and all looking ready to fight. "This isn't getting us anywhere. I have no idea what's going on or who you people are, but you've managed to loose me my little brother and now I don't even know if Jareth will let him come back. All we were doing was talking, why couldn't you leave it at that?"
"He had the princess." A girl, slightly older than most of them, repeated. Her voice and face were placid, but she held something in her hand tightly, a weapon of some kind. It was only after a moment that Hoggle realized it was a little mirror and he was instantly wary. Mirrors were dangerous.
"That poor little girl fell on him!" Sarah snapped back. Either she didn't see the little mirror or she didn't understand how dangerous it was. The later was most likely true. Humans never realized power when they saw it and it seemed that Sarah was no different. "You two jump out of nowhere and just start making threats. I'd have been surprised if he did give her up." Sarah leaned into Ludo in a more comfortable position. "Maybe she's better off where she is."
A girl with very long pony-tails approached and seemed to be having a hard time controlling herself. "Call him back. Chibi-Usa wasn't in any danger. They thought he was dangerous and were trying to protect her." She was very young, younger than Sarah. Though she was small, her voice was strong. She looked as if she'd been crying, but had stopped. There were other girls behind her, all of them looking very serious and ready to fight. Warriors.
Hoggle gulped and fought to keep his place next to Ludo and Sarah. He wasn't a fighter and freely admitted he was a coward. Almost anything could frighten Hoggle. He had no weapons and no way to protect Sarah. If he let her get hurt, Jareth would take it out of his hide, literally.
"Calling Jareth isn't something to be done lightly. He should be showing up again soon, though." Sarah, though, wasn't afraid and she didn't back down. "I need to know what's going on." Her eyes went to one of the girls with very long black hair. "Rei? You were there after I was attacked by that boy with the blonde hair and pointed ears. He's the one that rescued me and brought me to you, isn't he? I'd recognized his voice after I'd woken up. You know who he is, don't you?"
Labyrinth-
Jareth-
"You left sissy with those bad people!" Toby yelled, jin the midst's of his temper tantrum. "Why did you leave her? You could have brought her and now they're going to hurt her!"
"They won't do any such thing." Jareth looked down at the little girl who seemed to be sound asleep. He'd seen far too many temper tantrums in his time to be worried about one, now. "I have guards posted with her, she'll be perfectly fine." Outside the castle a storm was just beginning and it worried Jareth. Labyrinth simply didn't have storms unless it was angry or unless Jareth wished them to happen.
"I wanna go back!" Toby stomped his feet on the floor. "Now! I want sissy!"
"No. Not yet, anyway. We'll go back in just a moment." Jareth leaned over the princess' body and looked at her closely, though he didn't touch her. This was very wrong. He could see she was breathing, a slow but steady rise and fall of her chest proved she was alive. Her heart was beating and there was good color in her cheeks. Still, she didn't wake. "I need to speak with a higher source. If you want to keep an eye on Sarah, come with me." He abruptly stood and started out the door. He knew Toby would follow him, what with the promise that he'd be able to see Sarah, and it was confirmed when he heard little feet padding after him. He was reminded just then that he would have to get Toby some decent clothes. The boy just couldn't be left to wander about in his pajamas.
"What about her?" Toby pointed at the sleeping little girl.
"She'll be safe enough. She should have woken up by now, though." The first stop was to his bedchambers where he showed Toby Gobdhin's Glass. When Toby was comfortably seated in front of it Jareth showed him how to command it and set it to look in at Sarah. Before he left the room, he couldn't help but take a glance himself. It seemed that Sarah was handling the situation admirably. Of course she would be. If she could handle Labyrinth, then she could deal with anything.
Sarah was sitting on Ludo's lap, resting against his chest, while Hoggle glared at the gathering of inhuman girls. They were no longer surrounded, but facing the whole group of seven girls. All of them were now in the strange, skimpy uniform. Jareth scowled at the image, but Sarah didn't seem afraid. In fact, she looked rather angry. Good for her.
Jareth left Toby staring at the looking-glass in rapt attention, his little mouth just a bit open and looking very much like a child hypnotized by a cartoon.
Why was there never enough time? Jareth wasn't constrained to time in the same way that most mortals were, but even he had boundaries to follow. It took time to get to the Esher Room and more time to go down to the soul of Labyrinth where they could speak more easily. What he found in that place was something he'd never expected to see.
Labyrinth was angry…at him.
That creature! You've allowed that THING into me!
Jareth fell to his knees, overcome by the force of Labyrinth's anger and the pain it caused him. Sucking in a breath when he was able to, Jareth whispered, "Forgive me, master." Though he didn't know what he was apologizing for. The stone floor under his hands felt odd. Not like stone at all, but soft and malleable. It was like rubber. Labyrinth was so angry, it could barely contain its physical form and that was dangerous. There were many, many people of Labyrinth who wouldn't survive if anything were to cause Labyrinth to abandon it's form. His people would die. "Master…master, please. Tell me what I've done to displease you."
Displease me! My most treasured of pets, you have brought a foreign agent into me. Get rid of it!
"It? Foreign agent…the child?"
No! That thing which possesses the child, living within her mind. A creature from a land of dreams, an avatar as you are. It invaded her mind and rests there, using her to get into me. I will not allow that child to wake least the thing inside of her wakes also.
"Forgive me." Jareth echoed himself and struggled not to let the pain get the better of him. "Then that other girl…"
No girl, not even a child! That one was nothing but a distraction, an illusion, and it is well gotten rid of. The pain diminished and Jareth was filled with warmth. Excuse my temper, darling one. You couldn't have known. Even I did not know until they were here and it was too late. You did nothing to harm any child, rest your mind. The spy is gone but that other one must be taken away. The child it inhabits will die, otherwise. A human body can not cope with two forces pulling on it at once.
Jareth nodded, but didn't understand. He didn't have to understand all of what was going on. The child was in danger here and he would have to take her away. It was unusual, though. Labyrinth rarely gave up what was given to it and Sarah had wished the girl away. "Who is she, master?"
Just a girl. Send her back, my darling pet.
"She was in danger, there."
Take her back and return her to the people she was with.
There was no sense in arguing with that tone. "Yes, master."
Dead Moon Circus-
Hawk's Eye-
Naked.
He was completely, bare-assed naked.
At least the room was warm and that gave him some comfort. Oh, yes. Sarah. Ringmaster. He'd just given her to those senshi girls.
The room was dark but not so dark that Hawk's Eye couldn't make out Fish Eye's slumbering form on the bed next to him. Fish Eye's head resting on his arms while he lay on his belly. He was as beautiful as the day he'd been created and Hawk's Eye. His skin was still pale and his face still delicate. His long pale blue hair was still the same. Affectionately, Hawk's Eye reached out and brushed aside a bit of Fish Eye's hair to uncover an ear. Even his ears were delicate.
His face was turned towards Hawk's Eye and Hawk's Eye could see the two triangular markings, one blue and one purple, on his left cheek. Hey all bore similar markings and they were a point of great pride for the three of them. They alone, of everyone at the Circus, had those two marks. The marks of Ringmaster. They were not creations of the Circus itself nor were they outsiders welcomed into the Circus and 'adopted'. They were created by and belonged to Ringmaster and the marks were like collars, showing the world that they belonged to her.
"You look better."
"I'm fine."
"The last time you said that you collapsed and almost died. We can die, you know. We aren't like the others here." Tiger's Eye sat in a chair, half in shadows, with one legs drawn up to his chest and both arms wrapped around that leg. His eyes shone in the darkness.
"I know that." Tiger's Eye winced slightly when he swung his legs around and stood up, slowly. His skin felt sticky and there was a smell of something familiar in the air. The medicine that Fish Eye made. He'd have to bathe to get it all off. "What's been going on?"
"Nothing. We waited for you to wake up." Tiger's Eye stood and helped Hawk's Eye to dress, wrapping the cloth around his chest that served as a shirt. It was a simple wrapping that draped over one shoulder, but in his condition, Hawk's Eye found it nearly impossible to even raise his arms above his shoulders. "We haven't been outside this room since we brought you back. Here, your gloves."
The implications weren't good. "We'll have to run for it." Hawk's Eye put a hand on Tiger's Eye's arm and they stood close together. He took great comfort in Tiger's Eye's warmth. "Do you believe in her? Sarah, I mean." He leaned in closer and put his other hand on Tiger's Eye's other arm, running it up slowly until his now gloved fingers came to rest on Tiger's Eye's long tapered ear and he touched Tiger's Eye's razor blade earring.
"I do." Tiger's Eye spoke with more conviction than he'd felt about anything in a long time. "I have no doubts. She is our Ringmaster."
"There is still proof to be considered. You weren't sure about her, before." Fish Eye had woken and now propped himself up on one elbow, watching them. "I don't know that there is any way we can prove she is, or was, our Ringmaster. She obviously doesn't remember anything. Your skirt's on the dresser, Hawk. Tiger remembered something while you were sleeping. He saw king Jareth in Sarah's dream mirror. Do you think that's enough proof? I do. Who else would have such a connection to the Labyrinth's king? Reincarnation isn't impossible, we've all heard of it being done before."
"Jareth?" That made a great difference in everything. Hawk's Eye shivered, a ghost passing through him. "Whether we believe in her or not, Zirconia must have noticed something's wrong, by now. We've been hiding in here for quite a while. We can't take the chance that she isn't Ringmaster. If there's even the slightest chance…anything would be better than Zirconia." He paused. "If we bring her back here, maybe Circus will revive. I don't think it even speaks to Zirconia, no matter what he says. Maybe…maybe…maybe… I'm so tired of maybe's that I could throw up. We don't know a bloody thing about what's going on, do we? Where did Zirconia come from in the first place? Why did he show up right after Ringmaster was…was killed?" Hawk's Eye finished dressing. He was tired and sore, but ready. Ready for anything. "You had a good point before, Tiger. Why are we hunting Pegasus? What will Zirconia do once we've caught him? Zirconia never bothered to tell us. I hate not knowing what's going on. Tiger, you believe in Sarah. Right?"
"Right."
"Fish, you believe?"
"Yes."
"Then it's decided." Hawk's Eye took a deep breath. "We're leaving the Circus. We'll follow her. Then, if Zirconia does threaten her, we can protect her."
To be continued…
A/N: I'm taking lots of liberties with the Sailor Moon cast, especially with the powers they can use. I don't know if the Amazon Quartet can do things like make illusions with those little crystal balls they have, but they're too similar to Jareth's crystals for me not to use them. Just wanted to mention, Haruka is my favorite senshi and the only reason I like the show at all. Well…Haruka and Michiru. Therefore, if I make Haruka seem like a real witch, it's not because I don't like her. That's just the way the story works. I don't know how old Haruka and Michiru are, but I believe they're older than the Inner Senshi so I made them both adults for this story, at least in Jareth's eyes.
