This chapter wouldn't have been out here unless for my great beta, Sennethe! Thank you so much!

Here's Chapter Six folks...

I bopped in time to the music while going down the corridor, humming along and singing at the few parts I knew. Of course I used some very interesting lyrics.

"Pants, magic, pants," I sang, while walking. "(Pants, magic, pants)"

That had been a fun lesson, telling Case and Jenny those were the words. I wondered if they were singing them now. Would Jareth be mad at them, or would he just be annoyed with their voices? Unlike me, my siblings couldn't sing a note – well, maybe Case but if you hear Jenny about to sing, you should run for cover, immediately. Or would, the singing be under rule two, and so they would shut up and not endanger me from Jareth's wrath?

"Oops," I said quietly. "Maybe teaching them that wasn't such a good idea after all."

The music died out right after I said that, leaving an ominous silence.

I let out a nervous squeak. I hated ominous silences - they always led ot disasters. I mean, in movies and such that's when the bad stuff always happened. All I need right now, I thought. Is for someone to say 'it's quiet, too quiet,' and then –

"AAHHHH!" I screamed as I saw something scamper across the corridor. I backed up and pressed myself against one of the walls, which was luckily right next to a sconce.

I panted, against the wall for several seconds. Then I tried to talk rationally, "Look," I said to myself, not caring I sounded insane. "It was just a rat or something – just a rat. Those things are common, or a goblin or something. I'm fine, the maze isn't meant to kill you – just to test you. I'm –"

"That's what you think."

I looked up startled. "Who was that?" I trembled.

"Look behind you," said the voice. I could tell now that it was a woman's. An older one's because it was rather er, mature.

"Hate to break it to you," I said. "But I'm standing up against a wall. There's nothing behind me."

Then, something pinched my bum. Hard.

"Ahh!" I screamed and leapt away from the wall and into the center of the hall. "What do you think you're doing?" I screeched.

"Getting your attention," said the same voice. However I could now see where it came from.

The wall I had been leaning against had a large mural that seemed to start at the sconce and extend for some ways in front of me. No fork could be seen ahead, nor another sconce. The mural was of rather, how shall I put it? Um, brazen women? They were all curvy and whatnot, but they were all in varying states of undress. Skimpy tops were common. I looked behind me, and saw the opposite wall was similar – except it was a painting of er, armed men trying to rush towards the women on the opposite wall. I was starting to believe they were nymphs.

"Okay," I said still in disbelief, that a painting was talking to me. "How in Hades does this correlate to my psyche and stuff? I don't think I lean in that direction and all, but still this is rather odd to know that this is a part of you."

The nymphs laughed at me. Quickly, but it stung. "It's a part of everyone," One of the taller ones said almost huskily. "Some people are just more aware of it than others."

"Well not me," I said firmly. "I haven't even gotten a first kiss – not going in that direction at all yet. I turned fifteen like two weeks ago – what do you take me for?"

As if she hadn't heard my last comment, the nymph moved forward in the painting and said, "We could always change that," She smiled and I felt sick.

However, I am a nice person, so I said, "Thanks, but no thanks. Er, you're a painting and I'm not so it wouldn't work anyway. I don't lean in that direction for one thing, and I'm not even that pretty and I've got braces and OH MIGHTY ZEUS IN OLYMPUS, HOW THE HADES DID YOU DO THAT?"

As I was speaking, the nymph's hand had moved forward and more forward and had come out of the painting and reached towards me.

"See," said the nymph giggling. "Come with us, you'll like it you'll see."

I watched in horror, as most of her came out of the painting – she kept one hand on the wall however, as if she couldn't leave it like in tag with bases.

I backed away as she reached towards me again and felt a hand on my shoulder. I shrieked, and whirled around to see an armed man, with a horrible grin leaning from his portrait.

I twisted free from his grip, and started to run down the hall. I could feel them though – the nymphs and the men, pulling at me, and my clothes, in one direction and another. Fear gave me flight, and I dodged and screamed, and bit on one occasion. Their laughter and voices followed as well – I just kept running, through the dark as they chased me and at last I could see a pool of light up ahead. I ran harder, losing breath, but with my last I screamed, "LEAVE ME ALONE! I KNOW HOW TO USE SING AND I'M NOT AFRAID TO USE IT YOU PERVERTED FREAKS!"

The grabbing stopped, and slowed and I was in the light. I bent over, hands on knees, and panted. I had never run so fast and so far in my life. I turned behind me to look at where I had come – but the murals seemed to end farther back and I could hear or see nothing of the paintings.

I was so relieved that I missed the footsteps behind me, but I felt the breath on my ear and heard the voice that murmured, "So, Elisa, how do you-"

Of course the voice (Another painting! My mind screamed.) didn't finish that thought for I stood up very quickly, and shoved my elbow into the thing's chest, stepped on the inside of its foot, punched it in the neck, and brought my foot up into a very painful spot on my attacker. I did this all without even turning around.

I heard a loud groan and the sound of a body hitting the floor and I breathed a sigh of relief. I had learned how to do that but never had actually done it before. It seemed to work.

I turned slowly to see my attacker was and couldn't quite make out who the person was. It was a man for sure but his back was to me, curled into a fetal position and rocking slightly. He was in a gray shirt and black - were those tights?

Tights?! Only one person I knew wore tights. I snuck a look at his hair. Or had that odd hair.

"Oh crap," I murmured. "I just used SING on the Goblin King." I winced at the rhyme and tried to think up a good excuse for attacking him. None came that would probably satisfy him. Crap.

"I'm in deep shit."

Excuse the swears in this chapter...it was all I could do to keep it this tame. Elisa is in quite a bit of trouble - I think she deserves a bit of potty mouth.

Thank you again to all those who put up with rereading the last chapter! Now if you'd take the time to press that cute blue buttom below...

Posted: 5-1-08