Disclaimer: I do not own either Labyrinth or The Hobbit.

Chapter 2

Balin and Dwalin brought Hoggle before King Dain, his hands bound behind his back. Balin began, "Your Majesty, we caught this filth at the foot of the mountain."

Hoggle protested, "I ain't no filth. I don't…"

"Silence!" shouted Balin. Hoggle cringed and complied.

Dain studied the smaller form. "This little fellow is about as big as Bilbo."

Dwalin sneered. "We thought so, too, but he declared himself to be a Dwarf."

"I am a Dwarf!"

Balin leered and Hoggle trembled. "Tell his Majesty who you serve."

Hoggle looked up. "I… serve the Goblin King. But I don't understand…" The comment about a dwarf serving a goblin king caught the attention of all in the throne room. Others came closer to see this interrogation.

Dain nodded; that explained why he looked so very different than normal. Prolonged exposure to evil can twist the features of a wholesome creature. "A Dark Dwarf, then. I've heard stories about dwarves who allied themselves with goblins, and these Dark Dwarves were always a threat to the reputation of decent dwarves everywhere. Dark Dwarves are never to be trusted by the decent races."

"I ain't Dark. What you got against goblins, anyway?"

The assembled dwarves weren't sure whether this bound cretin was daft or filled with gall. No one could be that ignorant. Dwalin narrowed his eyes. "Personally, or in a general way?" Hoggle trembled more violently. "I imagine you thought there was nothing wrong when the goblins almost burned us alive in those trees back in the Misty Mountains."

These people were almost burned alive? Goblins were responsible? That couldn't be possible! He didn't know any goblins who were that clever, never mind malevolent. More importantly, Jareth would never allow such a thing. But wait, where was that again? "Misty Mountains?" Hoggle knew every inch of the Labyrinth, and that sounded like a mountain range he'd never heard of.

Balin said, "And if you serve the goblins, that would explain why you failed to respond to a call to arms during the Battle of the Five Armies."

Hoggle's sense of justice outweighed his fear of his awful plight. "But I told you, Balin and Dwalin – there's been no war I've seen in my 100 years! You said this battle took place last year. We can't be talking about the same goblins!"

Dori realized that all was not as it seemed. "A year ago, Bolg led the goblin charge against the Dwarves, Men, and Elves. Who is the new goblin king?"

Hoggle stared. "New king? Jareth has ruled the Goblin Kingdom for over one thousand years!"

Nori looked askance. "One thousand years?"

Hoggle shrugged. "Give or take a couple decades."

Dain picked up Dori's thread. "Even if you aren't from the goblin kingdom in the Misty Mountains or Moria, it doesn't matter. The Elves know and will tell anyone willing to listen that goblins are evil, and have been since the beginning of time. Our experience corroborates that."

Hoggle shook his head and insisted, "Goblins aren't evil. They're not smart enough to be evil. Goblins are filled with tricks and mischief, but nothin' evil. They mostly do what they do because Jareth tells 'em to, but sometimes they figure out stuff on their own. Jareth's not exactly a goblin, though. I… he's not evil, either."

Balin reminded him, "When we first found you, you called him a rat." He thought for a moment. "You said something about hurting someone."

Hoggle sighed. "Jareth may be a king, but… he can also be a bit of a brat. He's good at comin' up with ways to make folk uncomfortable if they don't do what he wants, but I never seen him really hurt someone." He closed his eyes. "He scares me sometimes. He could do just about anything with his magic…"

Bifur shouted, "The Necromancer!"

Hoggle blinked. "Uh, no."

Dain thought of a conversation he had with Gandalf. "Is Jareth a renegade wizard?"

"No. Jareth ain't a wizard. He's a Fae. They have magic, and… I don't know."

Dain cleared his throat. "Why were you worried that Jareth might hurt someone?"

Hoggle stared at the floor. "It's complicated. See, sometimes humans (and more rarely, other folks) are foolish enough to not value their kids. So sometimes, they wish the goblins would take their child away. So the goblins come and bring the wished-away child to Jareth. Then Jareth either raises the child or sends it off to an Underground couple who wants the child."

He thought for a moment. "I've heard him threaten to turn the kids into goblins – he can do that, you know." Everyone in the throne room was horrified, as they heard that the Great Evil of ancient Middle-earth once did that to captured people, and that was the source of Orcs, Goblins, Hobgoblins, and the like. The Elves were particularly bitter about that.

Obliviously, Hoggle continued. "But he never does that to the wished-away kids; they have enough problems, being unwanted, and all. If the wishers change their mind and want the kids back, they have to run the Labyrinth. If they solve it, they win the kid back. At least, that's the theory. That threat spurs the wishers on to work faster to get through the Labyrinth. I understand that the threat works, for people who are serious about wanting their kids back."

Oin couldn't contain his curiosity, appalled by the idea of a child being taken away, wished away though it might have been. "What happens if the wisher loses?"

Hoggle knitted his brows. "Then, the wisher stands judgment. Jareth decides whether or not to give the kid back and why. It changes per case.

"Sarah, the human I told you about, wished her brother away and wanted him back. So Jareth sent her to run the Labyrinth. She is the only person to have solved it. She won her brother back fair and square." He sighed again. "I think Jareth fell in love with her, but she remembers him best as the one who took her brother away, never mind that she wished him away. It might hurt Sarah's feelings to talk about Jareth as anything other than… I don't know."

Bombur thought about this. "What about the other goblins?"

Hoggle shrugged. "What about the other goblins? With only a few exceptions, the goblins are only half as big as I am." He closed his eyes again. "I imagine they amuse Jareth. They…"

Dain interrupted. "Wait. The goblins of your realm are only half Hobbit height?"

"I guess so. You keep sayin' that I'm the size of a Hobbit, so, yeah."

Dain continued, "And your kingdom has been at peace?"

"For as long as I can remember, yer Majesty."

Dain closed his eyes. "I fear we have served you wrong, good Dwarf. Tell me your name."

Hoggle looked up with hope. "I'm Hoggle, yer Majesty."

"Balin, release Hoggle." The addressed dwarf did so with alacrity.

Hoggle rubbed his now free wrists. "Thanks." He sighed. "You know… Jareth's not all that bad. And you know? I think even Sarah might agree. She might not, but there's no reason I can't try to convince her."

Dain nodded. "If you can convince a court of Dwarves who believe that goblins are nothing but evil that your Goblin King is not at all malevolent, though he may be mischievous, I'm certain you can convince Sarah, who has already seen your king's mischief."

Hoggle smiled. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, yer Majesty."

Before anyone could offer any conciliatory gesture, Hoggle disappeared.

Once again, Hoggle stood in front of Jareth. "I must say, Hoggle, I thank you for thinking so highly of me."

Hoggle noted the Goblin King's tone of sincerity and raised one shoulder in a half-shrug. "It's just the truth, yer Majesty."

Jareth smiled warmly. "I suppose you're right. I can be a bit of a brat. As an absolute authority, I'm sometimes a bit spoiled." Hoggle paled, and Jareth shook his head. "No, no… I mean it. Thank you for defending me and my goblins to dwarves who have less reason to forgive goblins than you do. Further, I suppose I should thank you for… forgiving me my loss of temper."

Hoggle sighed with resignation. "It happens, yer Majesty."

Jareth smiled more broadly. "Hoggle, take the next three days off. You need to recuperate from today." Hoggle nodded. "And please recommend me to Sarah next time you see her."

This time, Jareth's request didn't fill him with dread. "I will, Jareth. I will."

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