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Tweak says, "Would you like a jelly baby?"

Jareth (goblin_king) wrote in labyrinth_rpg,
@ 2009-03-22 20:29:00

Entry tags:

armand, arrival, caspian, cathal, cimorene, claudia, complete, day four, edward cullen, faith lehane, gabrielle, giselle, hermione granger, ianto jones, jack harkness, jareth, juniper golding, legolas greenleaf, mercy thompson, ned the piemaker, nymphadora tonks, olive snook, pandora, robin of locksley, rose tyler, sarah williams, schuldig, severus snape, tara maclay, the doctor, willow rosenberg, xena, yaten kou, yuna

Who: Jareth and everyone!
When: Day Four, evening
What: The King 'invites' everyone to his masque...
Where: Jareth's castle
Rating: Anywhere from G to R, I suppose
Status: Complete

It had been raining earlier in the day, but it had cleared up a short time ago. Jareth looked out the window of his massive ballroom, empty for now, and felt a little bit disoriented by the fact that the Labyrinth had just disappeared. Of course, he'd made it happen, but it had been a long time since he'd felt so exposed. But he couldn't very well have people needing to wander through the Labyrinth, could he? And the two who had been running it had been transported to the castle already, and he knew from the screams of rage that they were being dressed at this very moment.

The king smiled and turned away from the window, checking out his ballroom. It was quite spectacular, with a large orchestra pit, many snack tables, and, of course, lots of empty space for dancing. This, he figured, would be a night to remember. He snapped his fingers and peered into the crystal that appeared there, scrying on each and every person he'd brought to the Underground. Some, he knew wouldn't come on their own, and he sent crystals floating out to ensare them. Of course, some might just be strong enough to resist that pull, so he had goblins standing by to bring others in. Whether willing or not, everyone would be attending, he'd seen to that.

Dressed in his finery, with an evil looking mask in the guise of a leering demon, he walked over to his throne. Draping himself casually over it, he waited. People would be arriving anytime, now. He didn't fool himself for a moment that some wouldn't take this chance to attack him, which was why he wasn't precisely there. Anyone who tried to attack him, he knew, would find their useless effort wasted against what was no more than a projected image.

He gestured, and a goblin slave brought him a glass of wine. This, he was convinced, was going to be a night to remember.

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dragonsprincess
2009-03-24 09:45 am UTC (link)

Cimorene shrugged, turning her back to the party and looking out at the dark grounds. Glaring was more like it, actually.

"I don't think that's how it works," she admitted. "Besides, the events had already been set in motion before I left. If I hadn't foiled Zemenar's plans in the beginning, he and his idiot son wouldn't try again. And again. And again," she said with a roll of her eyes. "The dragons had problems with the wizards long before I showed up. It is only a matter of time." Cimorene turned her head to look at Ned, remembering something Hermione had told her. "Besides, the tale of The Sleeping Beauty? Rose is my great aunt. Destiny is really focal where I'm from."

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bakersman
2009-03-24 12:57 pm UTC (link)

Ned's eyebrows lifted. Was this woman saying... "Wait, that story's real? How does someone fall asleep all those years just from a finger prick?" Shaking his head, he rubbed his eyes, once again convinced he'd wake up in just a moment. And, on looking back up, discovered he still hadn't. This was going to get really old, really fast.

"Surely someone else could do it," he protested, fascinated by the idea. "I mean, if it's already written then how..." This was way too much for any one person to take in. But he'd already taken in two full days of it.

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dragonsprincess
2009-03-24 10:11 pm UTC (link)

Cimorene shrugged. "You've seen me split the heavens and make a glass disappear. Is a christening curse that far off?" Cimorene wondered what he'd do if she disappeared.

"It was supposed to happen, I assume. But Jareth fouled it up," she said with a glare in the general direction of their host, though she couldn't see him from where they were standing, out on the balcony.

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bakersman
2009-03-24 10:23 pm UTC (link)

Almost on instinct, Ned's head followed around to where she was looking, but their view was blocked by the ornate doors to the outside. "Our dear king does have a way or ruining things with terrible timing," he commented, annoyance creeping into his tone. "But if it was already written, maybe there is a way back. Maybe you get back there in time for it to all play out as it was supposed to." It had potential. It was scary and worrisome and not entirely normal, but it definitely had potential.

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dragonsprincess
2009-03-26 11:06 am UTC (link)

Cimorene would have continued the conversation, and willingly, but she got distracted by a couple things, all coming one after another. First was a yellow-haired dog with a happy grin, coming barrelling onto the balcony. "Well hello!" Cimorene said with a rare soft smile, sinking delicately to a crouch to pet the dog. He was of the friendly sort, that was for sure, and she laughed as he licked her face, scratching behind his ears.

And then there were the screams coming from the ballroom. Decked out in her finest or not, Cimorene still had her sword belted to her waist, and she sprung to a standing position, drawing at the same time, and hurrying to the entrance way to see what was going on. There were fainting women all over the place, and startled looking men, but nothing to be fussing about. She turned back to Ned, sword still in hand, and her brow furrowed. "I think we missed something..."

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bakersman
2009-03-26 12:42 pm UTC (link)

The dog caused Ned's brow to furrow even more than the arrival of the screaming. Not only because it was a dog at a fancy dress party, but because it was... "Hmm? Sorry, what?" He processed it all much more slowly, as his mind was somewhere else entirely. That and he didn't often come across women wearing swords. "Do you always take that around with you?"

Instinct told him there was a reason there was a large furry dog in front of him. And it had found them, not some other group in the party. It was that instinct alone that kept him from reaching out to pet the dog. The fact that the dog seemed to know unsettled him further. It looked up at him happily, wagging his tail, but didn't try to get any closer.

"Digby?" Ned questioned, and when the dog perked up even more, he gripped the balcony for support. "Well... Whatever it was, it seems to be gone now. I'm sure we can ask around, everyone seems to have seen it."

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dragonsprincess
2009-03-26 10:54 pm UTC (link)

"Generally, yes," Cimorene admitted, returning to Ned's side, her fingers running idly through the dog's fur as she stood there. "I prefer to be able to defend myself, instead of relying on someone else to do it," she said with a light shrug. Simple enough, really.

"Would you think me a coward if I said that I'd rather stay in the dark?" she wondered, raising an eyebrow at him. It wasn't fear in the slightest, but instead the understanding that a person could only take so much at one time, and Cimorene was quickly reaching her limit.

She looked between Ned and the dog and raised her eyebrows. "Do you know each other?"

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bakersman
2009-03-27 12:56 pm UTC (link)

He watched her pet the dog with a small smile, but the retriever continued to bat his tail against the floor, giving that goofy doggie grin in Ned's direction. "Can't say I would," he agreed, tearing his eyes away to watch Cimorene. "It's crazy enough around here. I don't need or want to know what that...thing person man has in there that'll make half a ballroom faint."

For a long moment, he tried to keep from looking down at the dog. But his eyes were pulled back down and Ned took a huge breath before he glanced back up at his companion. "I think we do," he told her. "I... Well, I think that's my dog." So many retrievers looked the same, though, right? But he'd come to them. And hadn't brought himself to touch Ned at all, but had cozied right up to Cimorene. Typical Digby, find the pretty girl in the room and make her befriend him.

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dragonsprincess
2009-03-27 02:14 pm UTC (link)

She was glad that he didn't think her weak, because as much as she liked Ned, she'd have to prove to him just how weak she wasn't.

Cimorene crouched again at the dog's side, petting him happily. "You were brought here with your dog?" she asked, but a look at Ned's face made it fairly clear that that wasn't the case. "What's your name, boy?" she asked, looking at the dog, fully expecting him to answer her. After all, animals spoke where she was from. "Why doesn't he answer? And why aren't you petting him?"

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bakersman
2009-03-27 02:20 pm UTC (link)

That was a slightly embarrassing question, and yet, perfectly logical. Ned looked away with a sheepish expression. "His name's Digby. I've had him...for a while. At least, again, I think that's him. Looks like him, acts just like him. I don't know... I guess maybe he could've been pulled through when I was and he just hasn't found me till now?" It seemed strange, though.

But something else she'd asked made him smile. "And he doesn't answer because dogs don't talk. Well, at least, my dog doesn't. I guess around here some might? But he's a regular plain old Earth dog. No talking. And..." That really awkward question. Augh. "And I'm allergic to him. Not all dogs. Just him." The story he'd been telling since he was a kid spilled out freely. No matter how weird things were here, telling someone he couldn't touch his dog because it would die was just...weirder.

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	dragonsprincess 2009-04-01 07:39 pm UTC (link)
	"How odd," Cimorene muttered, shaking her head and giving the dog one last pat. She covered her mouth and stifled a yawn and then smiled at Ned. "Would you be opposed to me taking my leave?" she asked politely. "It's been quite a long day, and I really should retire." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	bakersman 2009-04-01 08:43 pm UTC (link)
	"No, not at all," Ned protested, offering a polite smile. "It has been an awfully long day." To say the least. It seemed every day there was too long. He gave her a dip of his head, unwilling to make an attempt to bow again. It was far too clumsy of him to even try it. "Sleep well...your highness?" Ned attempted the address, feeling how curious it felt to say it. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

dragonsprincess
2009-04-02 10:45 am UTC (link)

Cimorene smiled and shook her head. "Cimorene, please," she corrected. She'd never been one for the formality, unless it was absolutely necessary. "It was lovely to meet you Ned. And Digby," she said, smiling down at the dog. She really did get on better with animals than people. "Goodnight," she offered, and then took her leave, eager to return to her room and decompress.

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