IMPORTANT A/N: Thought I was done with these... Before reading this chapter, if you'd open my profile and find the links under the 'A Different Journey' section, you'll have a heightened reading experience. As songs will be sun in this chapter - the second of the two links is Highly recommended to be followed before, or during reading. Thanks for the time in this lengthy Author's Note, because I know you're all waiting for the next chapter...

Here's Chapter Ten!

Jareth lounged on his throne, fiddling with the silver buttons on the contraption. Where was the power button again? He jabbed angrily and nothing happened.

"Mister Jareth?" asked Gwenhwyfar.

He turned towards the blonde child to his left. "Yes?"

Her eyes lit up. "How'd you get that?" she pointed at the contraption. Em-pee something or other.

"Your sister traded it," Jareth said. "Do you know how to use it?" His pride had almost out-won his curiosity, but the curiosity prevailed.

Gwenhwyfar nodded eagerly. "Elisa lets me listen sometimes. You press the silver round button there –" she pointed. "And then you just use skip to go through the songs. She has it shuffled so it's random but you can skip songs if you don't like it."

Jareth did as she instructed and a woman's voice came out singing of growing up in a small town. The goblins at hearing the music came running towards the throne, and Cathasach followed as well. The Labyrinth didn't seem to pick up on the music machine, but that barely surprised him. The Labyrinth tended to only notice music produced from beings of flesh and bone, and so the fact that it wasn't taken part didn't bother Jareth.

"How'd you get Elisa's music thing?" Cathasach asked in awe. "She never lets anyone listen to it 'cept Jenny sometimes."

That was interesting, and Jareth filed it away into the corner of his mind that held all the information he had learned so far about this Runner.

"Can you switch songs?" asked Gwenhwyfar suddenly. She reached over him and pressed an arrow button. Suddenly there was a male voice chanting. It continued for a minute or so before the beat heightened and the two wished-away started screaming (it most definitely wasn't singing) along and bouncing.

"One night and one more time. Thanks for the memories even though they weren't so great! He tastes like you only sweeter. One night and one more time, thanks for the memories, thanks for the memories. He-e tastes like you only sweeter!"

Jareth had to wince at the voices but the goblins seemed to enjoy it, picking up on the chorus and bouncing around with the children. They screamed and danced through the rest of the song and Jareth was quite relieved when it was over. He pressed the 'pause' button and the children came up to him all smiles.

Cathasach beamed. "Elisa listens to that group all the time though Amber and Courtney hate them. The group is really fun!"

"Yeah!" Gwenhwyfar nodded. "What'd you think Mister Jareth?"

He raised an eyebrow. "That was far from music. That was screaming – with drums."

"It wasn't!" exclaimed the two of them. Cathasach continued, "They've won awards or something – you should hear Simple Plan. They scream loads and Elisa loves them too."

"She had a crush on the lead guy or something, didn't she?" asked Gwenhwyfar. What? Jareth thought in outrage before mentally smacking himself. Why should he care if the Runner had feelings towards screaming lunatics?

"Maybe," said Cathasach doubtingly. "That was long time ago. That was back when we lived up North."

"No!" said the girl. "It wasn't 'cause it was before her birthday."

"No it wasn't!"

"Yes it was!"

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

"Was not!"

"Shut up," Jareth ordered. The children turned startled towards him. They looked like they were going to start fighting immediately again. "If you stay quiet you can watch your sister. If not, I'll send you to the Bog of Eternal Stench, do you understand?"

He wondered what the girl was doing now – they seemed to understand what the Bog was and it gave him the perfect excuse to watch her again. Perhaps he'd pick up something to later use against her. It was such a pity that he knew so little of her since he'd stopped paying attention to pre-calling signs years ago…

The children nodded and sat down in their chosen spots on either side of his throne. He liked it better than the cries of mortal babes on his lap – that was for certain They also seemed to be setting more of an example for his goblins – they definitely calmed some when the children did. Very interesting.

Jareth summoned a crystal and after a few passes over his hands blew on it so that it glided into the air. It became larger and slightly clearer as Elisa's form became visible. Apparently she had come across the sphinx.

No, he looked more closely. She seemed to have made her way past the sphinx. None had made it past him before – that went into the area of his mind reserved for this Runner. The riddling creature didn't appear on every running of the Labyrinth – but when he did and a runner came across him, none had made it past.

Elisa started apologizing and rambling at the sphinx – what was his name? Before the sphinx's patience broke and he growled at her. She jumped backwards and began apologizing again, while backing up. A feral grin appeared on Jareth's face as Elisa fell backwards and down the slide that led into one of the trickiest oubliettes in the Labyrinth. The place was filled with them and only a few knew how to set them off and where they were. The sphinx and Jareth, himself, included.

The crystal moved in on Elisa and he heard groans from her. He felt no guilt – he hadn't sent her down there, after all. He assumed that sphinx was off consulting his rule book or committing suicide. That was the case for sphinxes usually, but he cared little for that now.

Jareth could see in the dark of the oubliette quite easily. It was one of the things he could do, being Fey - but the wished-away and goblins wouldn't be able to see anything. "What happened?" he heard Cathasach ask one of the goblins, Ratter.

"Oubliette!" said Ratter eagerly. He then started rambling on who knew what, but Cathasach and the Gwenhwyfar followed him to a corner of the room and listened to him.

Jareth sighed. Well, as long as they were busy and not bothering him, that was what mattered. A few subtle movements of his hands later and the crystal was back in his palm, secure. He shifted his position so that he was at ease, and stared at the girl.

She was looking around, but of course that yielded no results. Her eyes grew wider and she stared mumbling something about panicking. After a minute or so though she calmed herself and started speaking.

"Alright," she said. The sound that came from the crystal was quiet and Jareth motioned to his goblins to silence them so he could listen. "No one can see in or see out which leaves sound. Sound. But what if no one can hear me?" She seemed to argue internally for a moment before her dark brown eyes lit up. "Of course – I should have remembered that from all the Barney movies years ago. Barney?"

Elisa's brow furrowed. "Who's Barney?" Obviously the oubliette's magic was already affecting her. She wouldn't be the first to become stuck in that Labyrinth and probably not the last either. Jareth let himself be entertained for a moment with the fantasy that he didn't turn Cathasach and Gwenhwyfar into goblins and actually raised them as his heirs. Now that wasn't a bad idea at all actually. They probably were too old to become goblins and Gwenhwyfar when old enough would become an excellent bargaining device to hold off the nagging members of court…

Music suddenly swept through the room. The Goblins and their King looked up startled. The children, themselves, paid no attention, though the goblins had perked up at the music. What was heard in the room was closer to what Jareth would have sung to himself and the goblins, than what Elisa's music thing contained but Jareth hadn't asked for music. The Labyrinth gained most of its power- was able to live, because of music. One of the things that made Jareth so suited to being the ruler of the Labyrinth, was that he sung as the mood swept him, which was quite often. For him, music was a way to release emotion, and this helped, basically feed the Labyrinth. In return, for providing this, the Labyrinth returned the favor, often with an instrumental in accompaniment with what was sung. But Jareth hadn't made any motion that he was about to sing – and this music wasn't for him, that Jareth could tell.

And neither the goblins nor the children could call for the music, so that left the Runner. Jareth stared in wonder at the little Elisa in the crystal as she started to sing.

"I am a question to the world. Not an answer to be heard. All a moment that's held in your arms. And what do you think you'd ever say, I won't listen anyway. You don't know me, and I'll never be what you want me to be." Her voice, he noted wasn't unpleasant but was slightly deeper than a girl's usually was. It wasn't all that amazing of a voice either – not even as good as his often-compared brother. It was odd that it was so deep though. Was it an alto as the mortals put it? The fact that she just broke out into song changed things…

There was a slight instrumental break which the Labyrinth provided and Elisa looked shocked for a moment before continuing on time. "And what do you think you'd understand? I'm a boy – no I'm a man," here Jareth realized that this wasn't Elisa's original song but still she kept on singing as if claiming she was a man was everyday. "You can take me and throw me away. And how, can you learn what's never shown? Yeah, you stand here on your own. They don't know me, 'cause I'm not here." Jareth thought this an interesting set of words, yet Elisa had a look in her eye that made this thought go hide in a corner of his mind, behind the clause affected part.

Her voice grew more powerful and her voice grew firmer, "And I want a moment to be real. Want to touch things I don't feel. Want to hold on and feel like I belong." Jareth recognized this feeling – and that Elisa was singing this with true experience. "And how, can the world want me to change? They're the ones that stay the same – they don't know me 'cause I'm not here.

"And you, see the things they never see. All you wanted, I could be. Now you know me, and I'm not afraid." Elisa smiled, almost shyly, before singing and asking, "And I want to tell you who I am. Can you help me be a man? They can't break me – as long as I know who I am." Her last line was a desperate life line.

"And I want a moment to be real. Want to touch things I don't feel - want to hold on and feel like I belong. And how, can the world want me to change? They're the ones that stay the same – they can't see me 'cause I'm still here." Jareth raised a brow, but again understood her feelings and couldn't help but relate to her. There'd been several times when he'd felt like this himself when dealing with his family…

Elisa's voice became more passionate as she sang almost desperately again, "They can't tell me who to be. 'Cause I'm not what they seem." Her song grew more fervent and fast paced as she sang faster, "And the world is still sleeping, while I keep on dreaming for me. And their words are just whispers and lies that I'll never believe." Her voice grew stronger and she closed her eyes and raised her hands as she held the note.

"And I want a moment to be real. Want to touch things I don't feel - want to hold on and feel like I belong. And how, can they say I never change? They're the ones that stay the same – I'm the one now, 'cause I'm still here." Her eyes opened and she sang more powerfully then ever, "I'm the one – 'cause I'm still here! I'm still here – I'm still here." Then finally as she sang more quietly, "I'm still here."

The music trailed off after and she seemed almost out of breath and Jareth couldn't blame her. That song was immensely powerful and she had pulled it off. Apparently she had music in her veins too – hopefully that shouldn't cause too many problems except an already noticeably large one.

Elisa's overall self had suddenly become much more admirable in Jareth's mind.

A/N: I don't think that quite counts as an evil cliffie...

Thanks for all who put up with the endless links involved with this chapter. Also, this chapter, again, wouldn't have been put together if it weren't for the amazing Sennethe, my beta.

And as for my reviewers - it's always great to here from you, though there weren't so many last chapter. I love to hear from you all though, so please take the time and hit that cute little button down there!

Posted: 6-02-08