Those Cruel Eyes Edition 1

Chapter 21

"Emmeline! I've got you! Hang on!"
"I don't have much choice!" Emmeline cried, holding his arm while he held hers. Slowly, he pulled her up onto the rock which Jareth himself was standing on. He waited for the combined weight to send the rock tumbling down into the gorge. Nothing happened. Jareth and Emmeline looked at the ground, confused. With a shaky laugh, Emmeline realized that they were on the other ledge. They had crossed the bridge.
"I... don't think... that... I've ever been so scared in my life!" Emmeline exclaimed.
She started to cry. "You saved my life," Emmeline sobbed. "Thank you!" Jareth grabbed her shoulders and hugged her.
"No problem. Like I would've left you. But, you were holding onto the rock when you fell, so how did you end up on the edge of the cliff?"
Emmeline thought for a minute. Jareth's words really hit her in the face. "I don't know," she said slowly.
Emmeline looked at Jareth and he looked at her.
"Hoggle," they said in unison. Emmeline stood up and tilted her head to look at the sky. "Hoggle," She said, "Thank you so much for saving my life. I owe you now. I really appreciate what you did for me. I'm sorry I was such a... a teenager to you." She looked back to Jareth and shrugged at his amused expression.
"I didn't," came the hoarse voice from behind her. Emmeline whirled around and was face-to-face with her 'rescuer'. "I never saved you. I never will. Not you. I don't like you. Or you," Hoggle said nastily, looking at Jareth. Hoggle turned back to look a Emmeline's bewildered face. "So, run along, little rat, and try not to get yourself killed, because I'll have to answer to your mother of why her worthless, nosy daughter went splat." With the familiar melting into thin air trick, he disappeared.
Stricken by Hoggle's attitude, Emmeline sat down and covered her face with her arms and shivered.
"He called me a rat." Emmeline said, her voice muffled by her arms. "He said I was worthless,"
Jareth could hear her voice breaking. He sat down beside her and put his arm around her shoulders.
"Maybe we should have some time to rest."
"No," Emmeline got up and shrugged his arm up. She wiped her face with her sleeve. "I'm sick of his attitude, sick of his rudeness. I hate him and I want him off that damn throne!"
Jareth stepped back away from her slightly, for she looked truly ticked off. Her eyes glowed like neon signs. She looked at him and saw his alarmed expression.
"Sorry, I shouldn't have said that. I just... exploded."
"That's okay." Jareth said. "I couldn't have put it better myself." Emmeline smiled at him.
"Let's go beat our next task," Emmeline said, walking off to the path ahead of her. Jareth shrugged to himself and followed her. Suddenly, she froze.
"Wait a sec," Emmeline murmured, "If Hoggle didn't save me, who did?"