"We're here!" Dori could smell Sally's cookies, causing the slight nausea that the Shifting caused, to evaporate.
"Oh, hello, Miss Evelyn! How are you, my dear?" Sally hated Dori's first name and always called her by her middle name. Sally came in, drying her hands on a dish towel. She enveloped Dori in a hug, her floral print shirt and pink pants smelling of vanilla.
"I'm fine, Miss Sally, happy late birthday."
"Oh, thank you, sweetheart. Now, where's that friend of yours?"
She turned to see Jareth lurking outside the doorway. "He's right here. He seems to be a little shy."
Don't be silly, come on in here." Dori grabbed his wrist and tugged lightly.
"Mrs. Mardin, it's lovely to meet you. My name is Jareth. You have a lovely home from the outside, I'm sure the inside shall be just the same." He kissed her hand and straightened. "I do thank you for letting me come this evening."
This must be something akin to 'Diplomat Mode.' Dori thought.
Sally seemed to enjoy the compliments. "Why thank you, young man. Glad to have you, the more the merrier in any celebration, we always say."
They were ushered into the kitchen and given chocolate chip cookies and lemonade. Dori watched as Jareth's eyes lit up when he but into the cookie and gushed at how good it was, and laughed when his face screwed up at the tart drink. These were things he had never tried before, she realized. Dori had finished her third cookie as Sally had concluded telling them about the time their son had eaten an entire batch of her cookies and thrown up on his girlfriend. She laughed so hard that she inhaled some cookie crumbs and started coughing like mad.
"You are supposed to breathe oxygen, not food." A voice spoke behind her as she drank lemonade in an attempt to soothe her throat.
"I'll keep that in mind, Mardy." She rasped at the gray-haired man.
"Are you alright?" Jareth asked beside her.
She cleared her throat and nodded, feeling better. "Yeah, fine." She half turned towards her coach and nodded at him. "This comedian is Alex Mardin, my coach. Mardy, this is my friend Jareth."
The blonde in question stood and walked to his host to shake his hand. It seemed Diplomat Mode was back on. "It's good to meet you, sir. I thank you for allowing me in your home tonight."
"Jareth, huh?" He looked Dori, his eyes laughing. He was no doubt thinking of a certain movie Dori loved. "No problem, son, none at all. Good to have you. Any friend of Theo's is a friend of ours." Jareth quirked an eyebrow at the name as both men seated themselves.
Mardy reached for a cookie from the diminishing pile. "So, Jareth, where are you from?"
Dori panicked for a moment. *Why didn't I think of that stuff?* She scrambled to think of something, and was amazed and nervous when Jareth opened his mouth.
"Actually," he said in his smooth brogue, "I grew up going between two places. My mother and father split when I was young and my mother moved back to Newcastle, in England. My father stayed in Glasgow, Scotland. One year with one parent, one year with another, the usual. Moved here recently and met Dori on the street the other day, when some young men accosted her. I escorted her home and here we are."
He's better than I thought. I could almost believe that if I didn't know the truth.
Sally's hand flew to her cheek. "Oh my! Evelyn, you are so lucky this man happened upon you! Is that where you got that mark on your cheek? I was going to ask, but I didn't want to pry."
"Yeah, one guy had a knife. Not a big deal, it wasn't deep so it healed fast."
"Well, Jareth, I think we owe you a great deal for saving our Theo here. I've been teaching this girl since she was knee-high to a grasshopper and we love her like she's ours."
After the hero's acceptance into the household, the next hour passed with Dori helping to finish baking the last batch of cookies. Mardy showed Jareth the rest of the house and the yard.
Once the cookies were finished, they started on perparing dinner to be cooked. Okay. I'm going to ask her. One. Two. Three.
Okay....Now!
Dori internally cursed herself for chickening out. She took a dep breath. Okay. This time for sure. "H-Hey, Sal?"
"Yes, dear?"
"Um, I was wondering if I can ask a favor of you and Mardy. You see, Jareth has recently lost his place to stay. I would let him stay at my house, but my father would never allow that and I can't let him leave without knowing he doesn't have a proper place to stay. Can he stay here? I'm sure he wouldn't mind helping out where you need him and he can do all the heavy lifting and such that Mardy can't do anymore." It wasn't entirely untrue, but it wasn't the real story, either, so Dori still felt a little guilty.
"Oh my, that is a predicament, isn't it. I'll talk to Alex about it tonight, but I'm sure he'd be just fine with it. We have been needing to mend the fence around the garden, but these old bones of ours can't do much anymore." She finished shaping the hamburgers and carried the tray to the backyard where Mardy undoubtedly had the grill fired up.
"All right, dear, here we are. Evelyn, why don't you show Jareth the garden?" Dori nodded and drew the slightly mystified goblin to the rear of the yard.
"You okay? You look odd." She asked him.
He nodded. "It is a bit odd. I've been to this world thousands of times over thousands of years, but I've never been here for more than about five minutes at a time. Being here for this long is strange to me, there is much to learn about this world, if I am to stay in it until I am allowed home."
The being in the back of Dori's consciousness shifted and seemed to purr at his statement. It had been silent thus far, so it startled the host. Her hand flew to the back of her head as if she could grab the invisible power.
"Are you alright?"
"Y-Yeah, I think so." He looked skeptic, but didn't push it further. "Anyways, this is the garden." Dori pointed out the various fruits and vegetables to him, picking a few here and there for him to try, as well as a handful of cherry tomatoes for herself. "And these," she said, pointing at a small plant full of small, pointed green peppers, "are jalapeños. They are not for the faint of heart and stomach, my friend."
"What do you mean by that? Are they poisionous?"
"No, but they are killer on your mouth, throat and sinuses. I would advise against eating one. I don't think you could handle them."
"Do you mean to say that I'm weak?" He mocked offense.
"No, but these are brutal. Though, if you need to try one to ensure your manly pride, go ahead. Don't say I didn't warn you."
He picked a small one, sniffed it and a shiver passed through him. Dori giggled and this seemed to steel Jareth's resolve as he glared at her half heartedly and bit off all but the stem. The young human watched as the burn hit his nose. He sniffed and his eyes watered as he struggled to breathe for a few seconds.
He coughed and threw down the rest of the vile vegetable. "Surely, this is poison? How can it be anything but?" He reached up to wipe his nose and Dori winced. A few seconds later, he gripped his face. "What is this? Ow!"
Dori laughed a deep, belly-aching laugh. The adults sauntered over at the ruckus.
"Oh dear, what's wrong with him?"
"He ate a jalapeño. I tried to tell him, but he did it anyways." She gasped out in between the dying chuckles, holding. "Oh, this hurts."
Sally chuckled and managed to look vaguely worried, while Mardy just laughed. "Why would you do that, son?"
"I had never had one before and, dare I say, I'll never have one again." He started to breathe in through his mouth and out through his nose. Catches on quick, this one.
Dori recovered and grabbed Jareth's wrist. "Come on, lets fix you up. Dinner should be done soon." When they were inside, Dori gave him a glass of milk and two pieces of bread. "Eat these kind of slow, they should help. It won't take the burn away completely, but it should lessen it."
"Is that better?" She asked, once he finished.
"Quite, though, my face still feels rather like it's on fire." Well, you are hot. Dori mentally facepalmed herself.
"Um, can't you just heal it? You know, with your magic."
"As I've said, I'm not one for healing magic. Besides, one can't heal themselves."
This surprised Dori, "That's unfortunate. Okay, you wash your hands so, this doesn't happen again. I'll grab some ice."
Dori grabbed two pieces and handed one to him. "Run this over your fingertips." She took the other on and skimmed it over the reddened skin of his upper lip. It looked painful. She remembered the many times she had had to do this to herself. I wish I could help him more. She looked at the skin and touched it with her finger; it looked decidedly less red.
In fact, before her very eyes, the reddness faded slowly back to his natural white. Whoa.
"I thought you couldn't heal yourself?"
"I can't."
"But you just-"
"No, I didn't." He looked at her meaningfully.
"You mean I did it?" She met his eyes and saw the seriousness there.
"You have much power in you, Little Witch. Most of it is dormant, and rest seems to be subconscious."
Right then, the roaring sound came back as well as the pain. The consciousness in her mind grew larger, stretching the limits of her psyche. She struggled to breathe, her vision went black and her knees collapsed. Strong arms wrapped around her waist holding her to an equally firm torso. Suddenly, it seemed another door in her mind opened and the roaring was sucked in like a bug to a vaccuum and the pain stopped.
She couldn't tell if her eyes were closed as she leaned her head against Jareth's chest as she caught her breath. "Are you alright? Did it happen again?" Jareth asked her as he helped her to stand steadily, keeping ahold of her upper arms. She gripped her head as it throbbed.
"Yeah. Kind of." She started to explain what had happened, but she heard the sliding glass door open.
"Are you okay, Evelyn?" The name was what Sally called her, but the voice was wrong; it was young and accented like Jareth's. Dori turned and saw a tall woman with dark hair, grey eyes, full lips and high cheek bones walk through the door.
Dori's hand covered her mouth to keep herself from screaming. "Who are you?"
The woman's eyebrows furled. "It's me: Sally. What's the matter with you?" The woman walked forward and Dori scooted behind Jareth's arm. "Alex, come in here, dear." The stranger called behind her.
A young, tall, man carrying a tray of still sizzling patties came through the still-open door. "What is it, Sal? Food's done, by the way." He had icy blue eyes, curly black hair that flopped over his forehead and the same high cheek bones as the woman.
Dori's eyes watered as she hid her face on Jareth's arm. What's going on here?
Do not be afraid, young one. What you see is the truth. They are your friends. These are their true forms. Dori could tell, this was the voice of whatever was in her mind.
What are they? Why would they lie to me? What is happening to me? She sniffed as the tears spilled over.
Your destiny, child. You have strong magic, which is not meant for this world. We are the Labyrinthine Consciousness and we mean you no harm. Your friends are Goblins, sent from our lands to protect you, many years ago. They changed their visage to camouflage themselves in your world. Would you begrudge them that?
Dori supposed she shouldn't be angry with them for that. Okay. That I can get behind, but what do you mean by destiny?
You cannot stay here, with the magic you possess. It would not be safe for you. You must come to the Labyrinth, to live out the remainder of your life in peace.
Leave? Dori couldn't leave. She had school and her father and her life here.
Your father? Do you really think it safe to stay with that poor excuse for a parent?
Well, I guess not. Dori felt like a child and that bothered her. So that's it? Because I'm magic I need to leave the only world I know?
Nay, we are not so selfless as that. The truth is, girl, we need your help. A age enemy of the Labyrinth and it's people has escaped. We need your assistance. Our bond to the king is weakened, he will not suffice as a host any longer. Yet, you, you are strong and kind, and your magic is vast. You are the perfect vessel. Each time you come into a new power, our bond will grow. Each growth will become less painful and take less time. This, we promise.
Don't I get a choice? Or am I just voluntold to be this mighty warrior?
Well, young one, think of it this way: if you do not help, your friend loses his home and a thousand people die. Can you handle that? The blood of a thousand people and the grief of your dear friend, both in your hands.
This sounded suspiciously like a guilt trip to Dori and it made her angry. Beyond that anger, though, she knew. She knew she couldn't allow hundreds of people to die. She would hate herself, forever loathing the monster she would see in the mirror.
She let out an angry, tired sigh. Alright. When do I have to leave?
There is no rush, yet. The Necromancer is no longer in this land, though she will return, make no mistake. Just go on as you are, and improve your magic. You will know when the time is right.
Tired of the guessing, Dori consented.
Good, now wake up. You've been in the Trance for about ten minutes and your friends are getting nervous.
Suddenly, Dori's eyes flew open and she found herself on the couch in the living room with three pairs of eyes staring worriedly at her.
"You've woken!" Jareth cried. "What in the Bog happened to you?"
Dori tried to sit up and a hand slowed her progress. "Take it a bit slow, friend. Don't rush."
The human girl looked at the goblin couple standing off to the side, looking as though they wanted to rush to her side, but were holding back. Now that she examined them, the woman was wearing the flowery, pink outfit Sally was wearing earlier, and the man was wearing Mardy's grey shirt and dark pants. They were different sizes and fits than she remembered, but the same nonetheless.
"Are you alright, dear?" The woman-Sally-Dori corrected herself, asked her.
"Yeah, Sal. I'm okay. Let's go heat up some hamburgers, I'm starving." Bewildered, Jareth started to protest and demand answers. He must have been shushed by Mardy, because she didn't here much after that as she took the small plate of patties and heated it in the microwave. When they were done, she grabbed two plates, opened up buns and made herself two hamburgers, then piled both plates with tater tots that had been made at some point in the evening.
Mardy and Sally busied themselves with their plates. "Jareth, come tell me what you want on these. I know you like tomatoes. Hold out two fingers." She put a dot of ketchup on one and mustard on the other. He didn't like mustard.
They all sat at the table in a tense silence with Jareth eyeing her like she was going to keel over at any moment. Dori didn't say anything until she was done with her first burger.
She started squishing tater tots to put on her hamburger. "Nine years. We've known each other for nine years. In all that time, you didn't think to tell me that you were goblins?" She took a bit while Sally looked shocked, Mardy choked on his drink for a minute and Jareth paused with the last of his second sandwich almost to his mouth.
"What do you mean by that, Theodora?" Somehow, Dori knew that his weakened connection to the Consciousness allowed the king to be fooled by their illusion.
"Show him." The lone human said calmly. The air around the Mardins shimmered a second before Jareth's face became very stoney.
"What is the meaning of this? The pair of you went missing almost two decades ago. You have Grave Flowers, for Goblins' sake!"
"Your Highness, were sent by the Mind of the Land to this world, to act as Theo's protectors." Dori got up to make her father his customary doggie bag of food.
"That doesn't answer why you didn't tell me; why you decided to lie to me basically my whole life." Dori wasn't angry, she was hurt. These two had been her parents more than her real parents had. She was also kind of angry that Jareth hadn't told her about the Mind's plan for her. Why would he keep something like that from her?
"Evelyn, it wasn't the kind of secret one springs on a person, no matter how young and open minded." Sally stated calmly in that motherly way she had.
"Come on, though. It's me. Mardy, you could have told me. You know me, you know me better than anyone else. Even after knowing how I felt about the Labyrinth? You bought me the movie for god's sake!" After putting the cake and burgers into two Tupperware dishes, and putting the dishes into a shopping bag she faced them all.
"What movie?" the King asked, testing out the word.
Dori shook her head, resisting the small urge to smile.
"Look, Theo, we've got no excuses. We thought we were doing what was best for you, for our safety and the safety of our mission. We have never intentionally tried to hurt you, and we have never lied about loving you like our own. Especially after losing...losing Rixton."
Dori nodded, knowing deep down that he was telling the truth. She felt awful knowing she had made him bring up a painful subject for them, but she still felt awful knowing they didn't trust her as completely as she thought they had.
"Look, it's getting late. My dad is home and he's going to be a-worried, if I don't get home soon. Thank you for dinner and enjoy the cake."
Without looking back, she walked to the front door, slipped on her shoes and grabbed the jacket she kept here and silently walked out the door. Dori didn't even bother to find out if they were going to let Jareth stay. He was their king, after all. It's not like they can turn him away, Dori told herself.
She thought and contemplated everything on the bus ride. She walked home swinging the bag softly and couldn't wait to get into bed. Dori has a bad habit of sleeping when things upset her. Gotta work on that.
When she got home, her father was sitting in the living room in his pajamas, watching a hunting show and drinking a Coors.
"Hello, Dad." She said somewhat timidly.
"Hey, kid. How was dinner at the Mardins'?"
He seemed to be in a good mood after his trip. "It was good. I brought you some hamburgers and a piece of cake. I'll just set it on the counter until you want it. I'm really tired, so I'm going to go to bed."
"Alright, goodnight, hon." Dori kissed the top of his head and headed into the kitchen. Pretty soon, she was in bed, face washed, pajamas on and wrapped up in her blankets.
She wasn't in the mood to put on her movie for the night, and she fell asleep feeling like a jerk and knowing she would have to apologize and explain herself.