Chapter 8, A Moment Of Fallacy

Jareth sat in his throne, overlooking the two trembling forms that stood before him.

"But- Majesty, didn't we do good?" Asked one. The furry Goblin turned to his partner for assurance.

"Yes, yes, We only try to please." Spat the other.

Jareth leaned forward and sighed.

"Well you have most undoubtedly failed." He said, trying to sound stern and angry. The truth was, he really didn't care. He had more on his mind at the moment, and everything had worked out for the best. Hadn't it? Regardless, the two had to be dealt with; and the sooner done, the less chance Sarah would be on trial for murdering two of his subjects.

"Majesty not happy?" The first one asked, looking to the other with a perplexed expression.

"But, lady- she make you angry. She say bad things, things not allowed." The second answered. They both inched closer together.

"Lady must be punished, she no respect the King." The first one said with sudden sternness.

Jareth moved back into his seat. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do. They were just following the law. They were acting as I would expect them to...mostly. They don't deserve to be punished, not really. He rolled his head to the side, looking at the door. But, they did almost kill Sarah, twice. And, they went behind my back. He turned his head back to the scene that lay before him.

"The issue here is that you operated in secret, without my knowledge or approval." Jareth said. The two looked to the floor, awaiting the inevitable. "That woman, whom you have tried to so graciously rid me of, is none of your concern. You will interfere with her no more. Am I understood?" He cocked an eyebrow.

The two looked up, shocked to say the least. They were expecting to be bogged, or worse, certainly not a lecture.

"Yes, yes, Majesty." They spat in unison. Jareth cracked a smile.

"Before you start feeling relieved, you will be punished." He said with a sneer. " You will go out into the Labyrinth and...trim, the Taking Hands." He said. They looked at him questioningly. One was about to speak, but Jareth was quick to usher them away.

He laughed to himself at the thought of those two actually trying to trim the hedges. That would be quite a sight, if they can manage not to get ripped apart. He chuckled. Usually, a sentence like this would mean certain death, and it certainly would for any normal person. But they were not people, they were Goblins, and they were magic. The idea of having their limbs ripped apart while trying to trim irritated hedges while simultaneously putting themselves back together seemed a good and long punishment. They'll be out there for days. Sarah'll be gone by the time they get back. Unknown to him, his smile began to wane.

"Sire." A screeching voice shook his thoughts. He looked down from his seat, and saw a wrinkled Goblin staring at him with the upmost concern.

"Yes?" Jareth asked the creature. His foot had started to tap. He didn't really enjoy conversation with the Goblins, he was getting annoyed already.

"Lady say such bad things, why you not punish her?" The Goblin asked. Jareth turned his head to face his subject.

"Because she will be gone soon enough." He said, plain and simple. It seemed his answer wasn't good enough for the little man.

"So's. You's punish us all the time. And lady- me never seen Majesty so angry." The creature looked at him with wary eyes, trying not to set him off. With a huff, Jareth turned the rest of his body to face him.

"What is your name?" He asked. The creature took half a step back at his question.

"Margle, Majesty." Said the newly named Margle.

"Well, Margle, if you really must know, she hates this place. She is feeling more misery every second of being here than any punishment I could inflict on her, so there is really no point is there?" He spoke slowly.

Margle took in his King's words. Goblins were simple minded creatures, Jareth hoped it was a simple enough answer.

"Why she hate Underground? It way better than Aboveground." He asked. Jareth's expression twitched, almost revealing the slight surprise that swept over him.

Jareth sat for a moment, deciding on how to answer the Goblin's question. It clearly threw him off guard, as he actually took the time to think of a response. She hates this place because of me, because of what I put her through. He thought. So foolish, if she had only taken what I had offered... He forced his mind away from the dark path it was about to take.

"I can't blame her." Was Jareth's response. Margle didn't seem to notice that he was no longer paying any attention to him.

"But why? Everything is so easy, so possible here, why would lady not want to stay forever?" It asked. Jareth heard what Margle was saying, and even managed to respond, but his mind was drifting farther and farther away.

"Forever, that's not long at all." His eyes stared at nothing. "It's true, life can be easy here. But, it's not always swell now is it?" He shot Margle a smirk. "The truth is, this is a place for the lost and the lonely, and nothing more." His glance shot away once again. "That's Underground." For the first time, he actually sounded resentful towards his kingdom.

"But, why would lady not wanna live Underground? This place of dreams, nothin never hurts again." Margle's eye's tried to follow Jareth's. "That's Underground." He retorted.

Jareth leaned back in his throne. He looked up at the ceiling with closed eyes and smiled.

"No one can blame you..." He whispered. "For walking away." His smile widened. "Too much rejection...no love injection." He opened his eyes, and stared at the pale stone. "Life can be easy, it's not always swell." He looked away and shook his head. Margle watched with concern, he spoke as if he were talking to someone, when he was clearly talking to himself. "Don't tell me truth hurts little girl." His eyes darted to the side. " 'Cuz it hurts like hell..."

Suddenly, Jareth whipped around to face Margle, who stood openly agape. He had a large smile on his face, and waited for the Goblin to react as if on cue.

"But down in the Underground, you'll find some one true. Down, in the Underground, a land serene, a crystal moon." His voice had elevated by this point. He was singing.

The Goblins scattered around the room drew their attention to their King. They enjoyed his random bursts into song, and soon joined in.

"It's only forever, not long at all." He looked to Margle as if he were singing to him. "The lost and the lonely, that's Underground. Underground!" He jumped up from his seat in a grand gesture. "Daddy, daddy, get me out of here!" He exclaimed, starting to move across the room. The Goblins started to chime in -"Heard about a place today."

"I, I'm Underground." Jareth sang, kicking up random Goblins as he made his way about the room. "Nothin never hurts again." Chimed the Goblins. " I heard about a place today, where nothin never hurts again."

Sarah was bored, as usual. She had been in her room all morning, telling herself she was occupying her time, and not waiting, waiting to see if Jareth would come to her again. It was well past noon now, and it became apparent that he wasn't coming. She let out a huff, and almost smacked herself in the face for allowing such an action. What am I doing? Keeping myself locked up to be called on like some damsel? No, I need to stop making this into something it isn't. ugh. Her boredom was getting to her.

She got up and decided to take some kind of action, and make her way to the throne room to find "some means of entertainment".

She heard a bellowing as she made her way down the hall. It grew louder as she neared the throne room. If she wasn't mistaken, she thought she heard singing? No one noticed her peek around the door.

Sarah's eyes widened. There were Goblins, lots of Goblins, and they were dancing, or what she assumed was supposed to be dancing. She tried to make out what they were saying as they bounded by, but she couldn't discern their screeching voices. Somehow, her attention was not on the riot that was overtaking the throne room. It was on something else, something she couldn't see. She heard a voice, through all the hollering of the Goblins. It was deep, and beautiful, something she'd heard before. It was Jareth.

He was in the center of the room, completely engrossed by what he was doing. She didn't know if she was supposed to be there, and didn't know how he would react to her seeing him. So, she did her best to remain hidden.

She watched him closely, he had a smile larger than any she'd ever seen. She didn't think it was possible. The way he moved amazed her, and made her feel a little self-conscious about her own abilities. He has such a beautiful voice, how could I have forgotten that? And...Wow, he knows how to dance. She gaped. She focused on him more intently when she saw something change. It was quick, and would probably have gone unnoticed by someone who wasn't staring down every fiber of his being, but she saw it. His smile became strained, and he let out a sigh. His body stiffened a little, and he ceased his dramatic dance moves. He was just standing now, swaying to the beat. It was as if a brick of reality had shattered his dream.

"No one can blame you." He said, his voice significantly softer. She strained to hear him. "For walking away." He turned his head, and looked to the side. "But too much rejection, na na." He looked down to the floor before throwing his head back. "No love injection, na na na."

Sarah felt odd all of the sudden, this whole time, she hadn't actually been listening to what he was saying.

"Life can be easy. It's not always swell." His smile returned, but it was subtle, as if he were remembering something. "Don't tell me truth hurts little girl, 'cuz it hurts like hell." She felt a heat rise at his words. "But down in the Underground, you'll find someone true." Though he wasn't facing her, and although he had no idea she was even there, she felt as though he was singing to her. "Down, in the Underground. A land serene, a crystal moon." His voice regained its original energy, but it sounded different, there was more passion. "It's only forever. That's not long at all. The lost and the lonely, that's Underground." He started to prance around the room once more.

Sarah snuck out of the room just as easily as she entered. She stood in the hall, and silently listened to the rest of the song. She had mixed feelings at the moment, and needed to collect herself. Does he really just break into song and dance at random? I knew he sang but...really? Well why not, he's good at it. Fuck, he has the most amazing voice I've ever heard. Still, it's kinda weird. No, not really. He's surrounded by nothing but Goblins everyday, I'm sure it's perfectly normal. Once cleared of that thought, she moved onto another. What was he singing about...who was he singing about? It seemed...I feel...No, no assumptions. I can't just assume he was singing about me, urgggh why can't I get this through my head! She stopped groaning at her own mind when she heard the song end.

She wanted to go in, to act as if she had no idea what she had seen or heard, but she couldn't. She didn't know what to do, and she really didn't want to make a fool of herself in front of him. Ugh, fuck. She groaned, pulling her hand away from the door just as she was about to open it. She stood, waiting. Ugh, no. She growled to herself, before turning around and walking back to her room.