fates_illusion

Midday in Napa Valley. A light breeze blew in off the coast, keeping the afternoon pleasantly cool. It did nothing to dissipate the thick fog that settled over the de Rochefort estate, however, and it billowed, twisted, and turned like a living labyrinth of mist. It carried with it a scent of those wild, untamed lands far from the prying eyes of humanity.

It carried more than that. Creatures moved around in the fog. No two of the bizzare creatures were alike. Though all wore drab, hand-dyed clothing, and many were small, wrinkled, and very brown, others were brightly colored and resembled nothing human. All the goblins were busy placing potted plants and trees their king had given them, twins to some of the plants of the Labyrinth. Tied to the Underground, the plants were recognizably other and would always follow the seasons and weather of the Underground, rather than the human world.

None of the goblins questioned their king. It was never a wise thing to question Jareth if one wanted to remain out of the Bog. And one never wanted to be tossed in the Bog. The smell would never wash out. Besides! The half-fae thing was interesting! One of the smallest goblins crept into the house through an open window and looked around at all the odd things inside. There! On a desk! A small box that made loud noise when you pressed a button! The noise was loud enough that it got startled and dropped the box. It ran and hid from the noisy box, then promptly forgot why it was scared and began poking about again. Down the stairs to the wine cellar. Oh! Fun times down here. Look at all the wine! It tried to pick up a bottle of wine bigger than it was and fell over, breaking the bottle in the process. Drat! A waste of good wine.

It crept back upstairs. There was a bigger noise-box up there, and this one made pictures too! How cool was that? Good smells came from the kitchen! It climbed onto the counter to taste the soup. Yuck! Needed more salt. It picked up a likely looking shaker and dumped it in, glass and all. Yuck! Still not right. It jumped off the counter and kept exploring.

Oooh. It was in a bedroom now! It poked through various drawers and in the closet. Funny looking clothes in here. It took one of the delicate pieces of cloth out of a drawer and stuck it on its head and modeled it in the mirror, then promptly fell over laughing. That was hilarious! These must be funny looking people to wear such weird hats. It would keep this funny hat to show the king. It crept back out the window and down to the lawn, where the other goblins were leaving, back to the Underground. Overhead, a barn owl watched serenely from a nearby tree.

((The cottage in question is owned by sunnotshadows and is also the home of several Fera.))