Chapter 12

Nearly two weeks had gone by since Izzy's wonderful afternoon with her boss and his sweet wife, and she still had not heard from Jareth. Izzy buried her worry about him, knowing full well that he was watching her from afar at all times, protecting her as he always had.

He had whispered so in her dreams on more than one occasion in the past two weeks. He had not left her with any knowledge or lack thereof of his realm, or what Signora Venti was really up to. She knew that he would answer her many questions in an instant if she asked him, but she chose not to ask. And he chose not to reveal any more or less to Izzy than what she already knew at the present. Izzy supposed he left it up to her to figure out on her own.

Above all, she knew that Jareth had not abandoned her, that he loved her as much as ever. Izzy decided to focus solely on the present. She would not think of what mysteries the future held for her, it only made her anxious to be with Jareth.

Instead, she had made it a point of checking up on Kris whenever Joe had mentioned that his wife was doing poorly. The woman always seemed to brighten, and the pain of her MS lesson whenever she saw Izzy.

Together they had discussed at length the possibilities of Signora Venti's intentions and researched various Tuscan legends of goblins. Still, despite all their research they lacked the answers they both sought.

Joe simply took it all in stride. He smiled and shook his head, going out of his way to avoid the two women when they got together. He'd learned that sticking his nose in where the supernatural was involved only left him drained and vulnerable. That was his wife's department, definitely not his.

Izzy simply observed her boss with amusement. She couldn't blame him for not wanting to mess with something beyond which he had any control or skill. Kris was the gifted one. Joe just went along for the ride.

Izzy sat thinking over these things as she mused over what little research she and Kris had managed to accomplish yesterday afternoon. It had amounted to basically nothing, with the exception of various New Age websites written by people that claimed to have intimate knowledge of the goblin realm.

One site particularly had interested Izzy. She'd been fascinated with one woman's supposed encounter with the Goblin King. The woman, who had chosen to remain anonymous, had called her version of the Goblin King, Jared, rather than Jareth. She described this "Jared" as one who appeared as a handsome human man with dark eyes and thick black hair.

But after "Jared" had spirited the anonymous woman away to his magical, dark realm he had reportedly transformed into a hideous, beast-like creature with claws much like a lion's. The article continued on to portray him as a sadistic murderer who paraded around collecting small, unwanted children from various places to feed upon, though his appetite and lust for blood were never fully satisfied.

Izzy had immediately clicked out of the site in disgust. Obviously, this anonymous lady had never actually met Jareth, but only wished she had.

Either that, or she once tried to seduce Jareth and he rejected her advances outright, and this webpage was her only means of exacting her revenge on the Goblin King, Izzy though sardonically. Ha! It would be only too like him to do such a thing, she mused.

When Jareth wanted something, he got it. When he didn't want something, there was no convincing him otherwise. Plain and simple. A Cheshire cat grin spread over Izzy's face as she sat thinking of him. He was most definitely "one of a kind." And he was hers and hers alone… Sublime.

Somewhere, she imagined, Jareth was laughing at the priceless expression on her usually serene face. He alone knew her every thought. How it must please him that she thought such things about him. She could just imagine his glee as he watched her through one of his crystal orbs, somewhere high in his elegant palace.

The faint sound of singing drifted from up from the apartment below, before the loud beep of the microwave drowned out the singing. It was Mrs. Venti, singing an Italian folk song as she cleaned. Though they had not spoken since Izzy had found the note under her door, she'd caught the elderly lady spying on her in the kitchen window of the Venti's apartment over the vegetable market. It had become a regular occurrence over the past week.

Izzy had begun to count on the fact that every evening on her return from work when the cab dropped her off on the curb Signora Venti would be standing visibly at the window overlooking the road, waiting for Izzy's return. Izzy would pretend not to have seen her, then purposefully glance up at the window, where Mrs. Venti would promptly disappear from sight, thinking she'd remained unseen.

Izzy knew the woman was probably keeping an eye (and ear) out in case Izzy should venture out of her apartment this evening as well. Well, no such luck tonight, Signora. I'm not going anywhere. I'm gonna sit on my couch and watch movies 'til I fall asleep, so good luck at attempting to spy on me tonight.

Izzy had come home from work an hour ago, feeling simply awful. She hoped she wasn't coming down with a head cold. She heated up some leftover curry broth from last night's dinner in the microwave and sat down to watch Labyrinth.

The DVD was the first thing Izzy grabbed at random from the cabinet of DVD's and CD's on which her small, flat-panel television rested. It was just as well. She missed Jareth something fierce tonight and hoped watching her favorite childhood movie would be a comfort, if not at least nostalgic. Besides, she realized, she hadn't watched the film in years.

The movie was little more than halfway through by the time she finished her soup. She was sprawled out on the sofa, covered in a soft plush throw, the empty bowl and spoon resting on the floor next to the white, un-upholstered sofa. "Movie" Jareth and Sarah danced and stared into each other's eyes, while "As the World Falls Down" played softly in the background.

It was this scene that had made Izzy fall in love with the movie in the first place. She loved David Bowie's voice and the looks on the dancing couple's faces as they stared into each other eyes. As far as she was concerned the rest of the movie was an excuse to put David Bowie on the movie screen. Even at the age of 39, with the beginnings of crow's feet around his eyes, Bowie was sexy.

"Every thrill has gone, wasn't too much fun at all. But I'll be there for you..ooh, ooh…" Bowie sang. And suddenly there were two voices singing the song. One was Bowie's, coming from the TV screen, while the second was coming from behind her in the room.

"As the world falls doooooowwn," the voice sang along with the television. Izzy smiled but did not turn around. She knew exactly whose voice it was, and it was slightly off key.

She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the back of the couch. Gentle hands brushed her long hair back from her neck, soft lips placed a kiss in the curve of her throat. She sighed and opened her eyes to see Jareth peering down at her on the sofa from where he stood just behind the couch.

"Hello, darling. Miss me?" Jareth grinned. "How can you watch this dribble?" He drew out the last word in a long breath.

Izzy smiled. "How can you call it dribble when it's about you?"

Jareth laughed loudy. "Ah so it is… It's also the most expensive practical joke the goblins and I have ever played on the human world…. Just look at that hideous eye shadow he's wearing! It takes up nearly half his face. In the beginning of the film it's purple, halfway through it's the palest blue, and toward the end it's tan! And don't even get me started on the thick layer of lip gloss." He laughed again, winked at Izzy, and kissed her lips.

She playfully pushed him away. "What d'you mean the most expensive joke? You've succeeded in goading my curiosity. Now spill!" She demanded an explanation with a teasing glint in her eye.

Jareth laughed again, a rich, hearty laugh. "Oh… back when I was bored and stupid, with nothing better to do, one of my… shall we say, "friends," decided to make a small wager. He bet me 500 of his favorite slaves that I couldn't expose the secrets of the Forbidden Realm to the human world without the humans being aware of it. Obviously I won the bet, because here you sit watching the results of my efforts." He grinned widely, waiting for Izzy to ask him to elaborate.

Izzy simply looked at him, with eyebrow raised expectantly. "Oh?"

Jareth sat down next to her on the sofa, picking up her blanketed feet and placing them in his lap so as to keep her comfortable. With one arm around her shoulders he played with a piece of her hair in between his fingers.

"Oh, don't worry. I promptly set the slaves free. They all live and work in the Goblin City now." He said this with a god-like air of boredom, as though it were common knowledge.

"I meant about the joke," Izzy quipped. He was toying with her. She knew he knew fully well what she had meant. He had that mischievous glint in his eye.

"Oh that… ya see, Ladon never expected me to not only reveal the secrets of the Forbidden Realm, but to immortalize myself and the Goblin Kingdom on the big screen as well. Let me tell you…" He chuckled, "He was not happy in the least." He smiled a broad smile. "It was one of my happiest times in all my 1300 years as King, watching Ladon admit defeat.

See the goblins and I had sat up for nights studying various humans and devising ways to win our little bet, when I got the idea to whisper secrets of the Goblin Kingdom to Jim Henson in a dream. Of course I did the same to George Lucas. Went out of my way to make up a plot involving a girl's quest through the Labyrinth, describing the Forbidden Realm, the goblins and myself in detail.

And Bowie doesn't even look anything like me, despite the fact that I distinctly described myself to Mr. Lucas and Mr. Henson," he sneered. Now that Izzy could see the real Jareth next to his screen counterpart they really did look nothing alike she agreed.

And if you think that's bad, wait 'til you compare the real Forbidden Realm with the screen version." He laughed again. "There's no comparison! But of course you know movie directors, always taking liberties with history…"

History? The thought that the movie Labyrinth was old history in Jareth's world was ludicrous.

"And of course they were the laughing stocks of Hollywood." Jareth continued, "No one ever thought that the great George Lucas, creator of Star Wars would stoop to produce a film that involved Jim Henson's puppets. Ha! ...It was the biggest commercial flop of 1986, but in the Forbidden Realm it was the joke of the century."

Izzy listened to the tirade, suppressing a giggle. She simply watched Jareth with the slightest of smirks at her mouth. "And to think it's considered a "cult classic" film now thanks to fans such as yourself."

He gestured toward Izzy with a wink and grin. "I can't believe you like this! Couldn't believe it when I watched you obsessing over it when you were nine. But this… this is just… subpar." He emphasized the last word in his English accent with utter contempt, yet his eyes were shining with teasing laughter.

Izzy cracked. She'd held off the giggles as long as she could. She collapsed in a fit of laughter and threw her arms around him, covering Jareth with kisses, which he eagerly accepted. Izzy felt his fingers entangle themselves in her hair as he passionately returned her kisses.

Nearly 20 minutes later, they lay in each other's arms on the couch, covered in Izzy's plush blanket, their clothes scattered on the floor. The last few minutes of the movie continued.

The screen version of Jareth watched the girl while he sang, "Everything I've done, I've done for YOU! …I move the stars for no one."

"Toby!" Sarah cried on the television screen as she ran after her baby brother, crawling over staircases that led nowhere.

"Doesn't it strike you as odd that David Bowie was nearly 40 years old when he acted in this flick, but his love interest is only 15?" Jareth asked sincerely, looking down at Izzy, as she lay back against his chest while the two of them watched the movie.

At this Izzy craned her neck to look up at him and cracked up laughing. "Thinking he robbed the cradle, Jareth," Izzy cracked. "Sounds a bit familiar doesn't it?" She laughed all the harder as she teased him.

"And that's coming from the 1,300 year old Goblin King, who's had his eye on me since I was two!" Izzy laughed until her sides ached.

"Actually, I'm 1,332. I was 32 years old when I was crowned King, and that's the age I've been ever since. You're 25. Seven years isn't that big of an age difference…"

"Yeah, if you don't count the 1300 years you've been immortal!" Izzy cut him off. She grinned and craned around to kiss Jareth. "But so what if you did rob the cradle, baby. I'll follow you to hell and back to be with you…"

***Author's Note: I was waiting on my Beta Reader to edit chapter 12 before I posted it, but decided to post it anyway. I promise I haven't abandoned, not forgotten my little story here. I have soo much more fun ideas in store for Izzy, but since classes and work have taken precedence over my writing I'm only part way thru chapter 13 at the moment. I will finish it and post ASAP. Hang in there with me please. (Btw, If any of you have ideas for the story I'd love to hear them)! Thanks.