Jareth entered the throne room and was confronted by all sides. Emma, Ovster, and Tarrence began speaking to him all at once. Their individual questions merged into one jumbled mess and he grimaced inwardly. He raised a hand and the babble ceased. Though eager for news, his Lords were by no means stupid. Their faces were anxious and he spoke right away, but with a sad heaviness in his voice. "As the bell forewarned, there have been Immortal deaths."

Emma gasped. "Deaths?" She searched Jareth's eyes, but finding no comfort there shuddered,"Both of them?" Blindly she felt for a chair and nearly collapsed into it.

Ovster looked at Emma with pity and sighed. "Well, may their next life treat them better."

Jareth hesitated, but then replied, "They will not return."

A heavy silence fell into the room and Emma's eyes grew angry, "Do not say such things!" She forgot a moment to whom she was speaking and raised her voice to a yell.

Jareth merely rubbed his temple with a gloved finger. "There was nothing left of them."

Now Ovster chimed in. He waved his hands in agitation, "Jareth, be reasonable. We do not just fade away! We are the Immortal."

"The fact remains the same whether or not you choose to believe, but *I* know the truth." Jareth's voice cut away any other argument. Emma's eyes misted over and Ovster grabbed a chair next to her and clumsily sat in it.

Only Tarrence remained standing with the king and he turned to ask, "Why? Why would they not return?"

Again the room fell in silence. Jareth took a deep breath and watched the lords before him. "Murder,"
he said clearly. "I think it was because they were murdered. It was an unnatural passing."

They spent the remainder of the morning discussing the scene in the clearing and then what would become of Stivin and Brynt's holdings. It was decided that, for the time being, the three remaining lords would assume responsibility for lands that bordered their own. Jareth was uneasy with this proposal. Torin was surrounded both by Fenra and Laslo and Tarrence would be gaining much territory from the arrangement. It had also been Tarrence to suggest the solution, and maybe Jareth was being irrational, but ever since Tarrence had brought those slave girls into Dorensae he had become wary of the Lord of Torin.

But in the end, Jareth acquiesced. Ovster then suggested they return to their lands immediately, an idea seconded by Tarrence. This Jareth approved whole heartedly. He was tired of having all the lords, especially Tarrence, in Dorensae. Emma, however; decided to stay. Her mate, Sajal, still remained in Cordel and there was no reason for her to rush away. Besides, she had a few things left to discuss with Jareth. They both watched as Tarrence and Ovster took their leave and prepared for their departure.

"So, now what happens?" Emma said softly.

Jareth looked down at her as she sat in the chair, hands folded in her lap. He took a deep breath. "Now, we move forward."

Emma nodded and pushed her long hair out of her face, "I've been thinking, Jareth, about these goblins." She paused to see if he was at all interested, and when his eyebrows rose she continued. "Maybe there's a pattern that we aren't seeing..."

"A pattern?" Jareth sat in the chair Ovster vacated. "What kind of pattern?"

"I'm not sure. Do you keep records of them?"

Jareth sighed. He hated those papers that each day grew larger in number. "Yes, they're in my office. Would you like to see them?"

Emma's eyes lightened considerably. She needed something to do, something to take her mind off Stivin and Brynt. "Very much so."

Jareth stood and extended Emma a hand, which she graciously accepted. Together they walked out of the throne room and down the many corridors and up the flights of stairs that separated the lower levels of the castle from the upper levels. All the time, there was a light conversation. Though Emma wished to speak to Jareth about the strange Lady Sarah, she sensed this would not be a good time and refrained from mentioning her. As they rounded a passage, Didymus came into view approaching them.

When nearer, he bowed to them both and then straightening began to speak. "You wished to know of his arrival, Majesty."

Jareth's eyes narrowed, but he managed to keep his temper. Didymus was only playing the game by rules that Jareth himself had implemented. He nodded to Didymus and turned to Emma, who watched with poorly concealed curiosity. "I'll send the papers down to you, Emma. Would that be satisfactory?"

Her eyebrows rose ever so slightly. "Of course. I think I shall go to the garden, seeing I'm so close." Jareth acknowledged this and then continued down the hall and disappeared around a corner. Didymus began to walk away, but Emma grabbed him by the elbow. "Wait. What was that all about?"

Didymus shook his arm loose and shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Really!" She scowled at him. "Didymus, I have known you your entire life! And Jareth, for that matter. You can't pretend that something wasn't off just now. I've never heard you speak to each other in that matter before!"

Didymus didn't meet her gaze, instead he began slowly walking down the hall, Emma beside him.
"Its nothing, Emma."

She heard the sadness lingering in his voice and frowned. "Is he mad at you?" The idea was ridiculous. As long as she'd known Jareth and Didymus, Didymus was one of the few close to the king that never managed to incite Jareth's wrath, which was considerable.

Didymus smirked. Emma didn't know the half of it. Mad? No, Jareth wasn't "mad" at him, he had just about decapitated him, but he would not say so to her. He shook his head, "Leave it alone, please, Emma. If you mention it to him," at this he stopped and stared her straight in the face, "like I know you're tempted to do, you will just make it worse."

She tapped her slender fingers against her mouth and thought for a moment, leaning against a hall wall. "Maybe, if you apologized?" She knew it was a bad suggestion the moment she said it, for Didymus's face turned harsh and angry. "Ah, so it is he that needs to apologize, is that it?"
She took Didymus's silence as an affirmative and pushed away from the wall sighing, "It won't ever happen. Its not in his nature."

At this Didymus laughed. "Don't I know it." He flashed Emma a smile, "Look, I appreciate this, I really do, but I've work to do." He was surprised when Emma stepped forward and gave him a small kiss on the cheek. His hand touched the spot on its own accord and he found himself stuttering for something to say.

Emma just gave a small, breathy laugh. "Honestly, Didymus. Somethings never change." She began to leave him and walk towards the balcony garden when she paused and looked back at him still standing in the hall. "He won't stay mad forever, you know that, right?" Jareth's moods were constantly changing; it was one of his worst traits, and it was also one of his more predominant.

Didymus sighed, but a grin started to grow on his lips. "Yeah, I know."

"Good." With that, Emma turned back around and made her way to the balcony. She hoped that whatever had come between Jareth and Didymus was settled soon. Didymus served more than just Jareth's second in command. In her opinion, Didymus was Jareth's humanity. He was what kept Jareth from being a tyrant, something he was easily capable of doing. She loved Jareth with all her heart, for he was a brother to her, but the man was frighteningly powerful. With one thought he could rule the Underground with an iron fist and none of the other Immortals would be able to stop him. Not with their current numbers anyway. That was another bothersome thought.
As far as she knew, no Immortals had been born recently. And with Stivin and Brynt dead their numbers were dwindling. She pushed the thought away as she entered the balcony garden. She had enough to worry about without borrowing trouble. The sun was bright, the air refreshing,
and so she sat on a bench in silence waiting for the goblin papers to arrive.

Short, I know. But with school and all I think the chapters will be shorter for now on. Next chapter: Jareth and the mysterious Piertre.