Sarah's P.O.V
"Lady! Lady I've found lots! Sees!" A small Goblin weighed down with objects rushed towards, nimbly jumping over the piles of junk in his way.
"That's excellent." Sarah informed him, crouching down to better see his findings.
There was a smashed clock, an old one eyed teddy, part of a snapped pencil, a badly cracked hand mirror, a book with mostly torn pages and a solitary sock. Sarah's heart sank as she looked over the other Goblin's piles of junk and saw that none of them had found anything that even remotely resembled a peach.
She did her best to smile, this was the fifth time they'd played 'treasure hunt' and each time the Goblin's had failed to find the enchanted peach. Sarah was finding it very hard not to despair.
"Who's won this time Lady?" The first Goblin asked eagerly.
"Well, it looks like you have the most items on the list so I guess it's you." The first Goblin cheered whilst the others looked crestfallen.
"Don't worry, you'll have a chance to win next time." Sarah comforted them.
"Can we play again." A small Goblin asked hopefully.
Sarah glanced up at the darkening sky, they'd spent most of the day hunting objects in the Junk fields. They'd only taken a break when a Goblin from the Castle had delivered a Picnic lunch, which Sarah had shared with her new friends. She was exhausted from climbing through the mountain of junk and wanted nothing more than to take a hot bath and crawl into bed.
"Not today, it's starting to get dark and we'd never find anything once the suns gone down." The Goblin's all looked miserable, " you can always come back and play tomorrow." Sarah placated.
"Cans we reallys lady?" another asked.
" Of course! Why don't we all meet back here tomorrow and have another game?" Sarah suggested.
The Goblins clapped their small grubby hands in delight.
"Tomorrow I is gunna win!" one muttered confidently.
Sarah felt a tugging on her now rather grimy skirt and looked down to see the Goblin who had just won peering up at her.
"Lady, do I get a prize for winning?" he asked hopefully.
"Of course you do." Sarah said, thinking quickly, "you can pick one item from your pile to keep."
The ecstatic Goblin perused his pile carefully before he grabbed the sock and pulled it onto his head like some bizarre hat. He proudly preened before the other Goblins who looked on enviously. Sarah hid a smile and shook her head, Goblin's were odd little creatures.
"Well, come on then, lets head back to the castle." Sarah sighed, making her way back towards the gate, the Goblins following happily.
"You know, you guys never told me your names." Sarah pointed out as she clambered over a heap of broken chairs.
"That's Snig, Cogsnap and Quark." The first Goblin said, pointing to each Goblin in turn. "And me," he said proudly pointing to himself, "I'm Cretin!"
"What?" Sarah asked, turning to look at the Gobin.
"Cretin. King named me himself!" Cretin said happily.
"But that's a horrible name!" Sarah exclaimed.
"No, it ain't. Cretin a good name, not many Goblin's called Cretin." Cretin told her.
"What's a common name for Jareth to give a Goblin?" Sarah asked.
"Moron, lot's of those in Goblin City, That's why i likes being a Cretin, less of them so not as confusing."
"I can't call you Cretin, it's just so...mean." Sarah said.
"Hows about you give him a new name?" Cogsnap suggested.
"One that's even better than Cretin." Snig added
"What name would you like?" Sarah asked Cretin.
" Hows about Idiot?" Quark volunteered.
"Nah, plenty of thems," Cogsnap said," whats abouts Bogbreath?"
"Or Twat!" Snig piped up.
"No, none of them," Sarah said thoughtfully, "How about Barnaby?"
"Nots heard of any Barnabys before." Cretin said uncertainly
"You'ds be one of a kinds!" Quark pointed out.
"Yeahs! I be Barnaby!" the newly named Barnaby exclaimed.
"That's settled then, from now on you'll be called Barnaby." Sarah proclaimed.
"Hope King don't mind." Barnaby wondered nervously.
"If he does tell him I said he shouldn't call you Cretin."
"Ok Lady." Barnaby said uncertainly.
They hurried through the streets of the Goblin city, passing shops that were closing for the night and several taverns that were packed with Goblins and Chickens alike, all singing and squawking at the tops of the lungs.
As they neared the Castle, the huge doors were flung open and an agitated looking Greta rushed out and grabbed Sarah's hands and began pulling her inside.
"There you is Lady, i was getting worried! Looks at the state of your dress! All dusty and dirty, this won'ts do! No it most certinly wont's! You Four!" Greta barked at Barnaby, Quark, Snig and Cogsnap, "Clears off! Go on, shoo!"
Waving goodbye the four Goblins scappered off.
"Hurries Lady, we must have you dressed fors dinner quicklys or King will bes very angry."
Sarah grouned, she'd forgotten all about having dinner with Jareth.
"Can't I just skip dinner and go to bed?" she asked hopefully.
Greta shook her head.
"Nos Lady, King insisted that you musts have dinner with him tonight. He wont's be here tomorrow sees." Greta told her as they rushed down the Corridor to Sarah's room.
Sarah stopped dead right outside her door.
"Wait Jareth isn't going to be here tomorrow? Where's he going?"
Greta shrugged.
"Hows would i knows." She tugged Sarah into the bedroom and dashed to the wardrobe.
Sarah smiled, if Jareth wasn't going to be around then he wouldn't get suspicious of her returning to the junkfields.
"What dress Lady like best?" Greta asked, holding up two dresses for Sarah's inspection. Sarah picked one and Greta rushed her behind the screen to change.
-x-
Jareth's P.O.V
Jareth sat sidewides on his throne tapping the tip of his riding crop against his leg absent mindedly as he listenned to reports from his moronic subjects.
"The cleaners have no covered half the Labyrinth now your Kingship." Squeaked a nervous Goblin in front of him. " But they run into a spot of trouble."
"Let me guess," Jareth said boredly, "They crashed through a wall?"
The Goblin nodded.
Jareth sighed.
"Have one of the mechanics thats working on repairing Humongous go over and fix it and gather a few Goblin's to repair the wall. If anyone complains, threaten them with the Bog." Jareth told the Goblin, waving him away.
When no other Goblin appeared in front of him, he was thankful, he'd had enough of the Goblin's for one day. It was always the same with Goblins, either they had broken something or were fighting over something stupid like a chicken.
He relished the few minutes of peace for he knew it would not last. Five minutes later he was flinging a Goblin from the throne room window for blowing a dart at another Globin that had missed and hit Jareth's boot instead.
"Weeee!" Cried the Goblin as he sailed through the air.
"Nice throw King!" A Goblin exclaimed behind him.
Turning Jareth saw the small group of Goblin's he had sent to accompany Sarah standing in the archway. For some reason Cretin was wearing a blue and green striped sock on his head.
"Ah Cretin, I trust that Lady Sarah has also made it safely back to the castle, because if you left her behind there will be dire consequences." All the Goblins nodded. "Excellent, i trust there was no problems?"
"No King, Lady taught us a new game!" Barnaby told him.
"Yeah Treasure hunt!" Cogsnap chirped excitedly.
"Really? And I suppose this new game is the reason Cretin is wearing hosiery on his head?"
The Goblin happily stoked his sock hat lovingly.
"I wins this!"
"And he's not Cretin anymores!" Quark interjected nervously.
Jareth raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, and why is that?" he asked
"Cause Lady said it's mean." Snig said.
Jareth chuckled, trust Sarah to defy him even on Goblin names.
"Did she now? And what, pray am I to call him if not Cretin?"
"Barnaby!" Cretin now Barnaby said proudly.
Jareth snorted.
"Who ever heard of a Goblin named Barnaby?"
"I'm the first!" Barnaby squeaked indignantly.
"One of a kinds!" Snig agreed, nodding.
Jareth shook his head as he settled back on his throne.
"Sarah may call you whatever she pleases, but to me you'll always be Cretin."
-x-
Sarah's P.O.V
Sarah strode into the dining room, the skirt of her gown swishing about her as she walked.
"I'm really tired, so tonight do you think we could eat without you getting on my last nerve?" she asked taking her seat.
"Why Precious, whatever do you mean? When am I ever anything less than a gentleman?"
Sarah raised an eyebrow.
"Do you really want me to answer that?"
Jareth chuckled and shook his head.
"I promise to be on my best behaviour tonight, dear one."
There was silence for a few minutes as Sarah began to pick at the food on her plate.
"I hear you've been giving my Goblins new names." Jareth said, amusement glittering in his mismatched eyes.
"I could hardly call him Cretin could I?" Sarah replied idignantly.
"Why not? I do it all the time." Jareth sated, taking a sip from his wine glass.
"Well, you shouldn't. You wouldn't like it if someone called you Cretin." Sarah pointed out.
Jareth gave a snort.
"No one would dare call me Cretin," Jareth told her, "Besides, he is a Cretin."
"No he's not! He's sweet, they all are."
Jareth shook his head. No one had ever described Goblins as being sweet before. Annoying, yes, but sweet? Never.
"In order to keep my earlier promise my love, shall we agree to disagree." Jareth suggested.
"Fine." Sarah muttered, returning to her plate.
There was a few more minutes of silence before Sarah dared venture a question.
"Greta mentioned that you weren't going to be here tomorrow, is that true?"
Jareth paused and eyed her carefully.
"Yes Precious it is. Why? Will you miss me?"
Sarah ignored his question and asked.
"Where are you going?"
"Now that Sarah is a Question I won't be answering. I have to keep some secrets or where's the mystery?"
Sarah opened her mouth to protest but Jareth raised a hand.
"No Sarah, you'll just have wait and see. Patience is after all, a virtue."
Sarah resisted the urge to growl, so much for his promise, this was going to be a long evening.