“Where did you even get a car?” Jareth pointed up. “You stole it?” Sarah gasped in surprise.
“No, love. I bought it.” Rook snorted in amusement.
“What are you planning to do with the car when you’re finished?”
Jareth carefully placed the component parts of what he’d been dismantling into neat rows and reached for another car part. “We haven’t decided. The goblins want to either eat it or turn it into armour.” He gestured to a pair of goblins who were lovingly fondling car parts, which did help to explain why they were behaving if they had a vested interest in taking ownership of the project. “Or we could reassemble it and sell it Above.” He ignored the goblins' hooting in displeasure at that suggestion.
“That explains the Haynes manual and the cardboard box.” Sarah nudged the items in question.
“You never did clarify the reason for the box.” Jareth glanced at Rook, who shrugged in response.
“It’s a universal law. Whenever you put cars back together, there are always parts leftover.”
Jareth frowned in confusion. “That makes no sense. If you put it back together, there will be nothing left.”
Sarah laughed. “No, it’s a thing. There’s always bits left.”
“And they go in that box?” Both Sarah and Rook nodded. “And then what happens?”
“The box goes in the boot of the vehicle to take up an inconvenient amount of space,” Rook answered.
“Or you put it in the garage, forget to give it to whoever you sell the vehicle to and then keep the box of parts through three different house moves.”
Jareth looked between the two women, certain that this was a joke and looking even more confused at their serious expressions. “Why would anyone buy a vehicle that no longer works?”
Sarah shook her head. “Oh no, it always works.”
“That’s not possible.” Jareth was looking even more befuddled. “So you store and convey these parts for eternity?” The women nodded again. “What if the next owner requires the vehicle to be disassembled?”
“The cycle continues,” Sarah explained with an amused grin.
Jareth shook his head in denial at the scenario they had just described. “Humans make no sense.”
Rook shrugged. “I don’t make the rules, I just observe them.” She was briefly distracted as the goblin on her shoulder made another plea for her gloves. “Later, lad. If you behave you can have a puppy ride back.” She chuckled as the other goblins scattered amid the detritus perked up in excitement. “That means all of you.” She grinned at Jareth’s beseeching look.
Sarah decided to leave them to it and was not surprised to later see a large wolf stalking through the castle halls with a barn owl perched on its neck and an improbable number of goblins astride its back, with one of them chewing contentedly on a black nitrile glove and another trying to balance a curved wheel arch on its head. “Goblins,” Sarah muttered under her breath. “They’re all goblins.”
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ninetydegrees
Remnants
2023-05-09 10:34 (UTC)Drabble:
“Where did you even get a car?” Jareth pointed up. “You stole it?” Sarah gasped in surprise.
“No, love. I bought it.” Rook snorted in amusement.
“What are you planning to do with the car when you’re finished?”
Jareth carefully placed the component parts of what he’d been dismantling into neat rows and reached for another car part. “We haven’t decided. The goblins want to either eat it or turn it into armour.” He gestured to a pair of goblins who were lovingly fondling car parts, which did help to explain why they were behaving if they had a vested interest in taking ownership of the project. “Or we could reassemble it and sell it Above.” He ignored the goblins' hooting in displeasure at that suggestion.
“That explains the Haynes manual and the cardboard box.” Sarah nudged the items in question.
“You never did clarify the reason for the box.” Jareth glanced at Rook, who shrugged in response.
“It’s a universal law. Whenever you put cars back together, there are always parts leftover.”
Jareth frowned in confusion. “That makes no sense. If you put it back together, there will be nothing left.”
Sarah laughed. “No, it’s a thing. There’s always bits left.”
“And they go in that box?” Both Sarah and Rook nodded. “And then what happens?”
“The box goes in the boot of the vehicle to take up an inconvenient amount of space,” Rook answered.
“Or you put it in the garage, forget to give it to whoever you sell the vehicle to and then keep the box of parts through three different house moves.”
Jareth looked between the two women, certain that this was a joke and looking even more confused at their serious expressions. “Why would anyone buy a vehicle that no longer works?”
Sarah shook her head. “Oh no, it always works.”
“That’s not possible.” Jareth was looking even more befuddled. “So you store and convey these parts for eternity?” The women nodded again. “What if the next owner requires the vehicle to be disassembled?”
“The cycle continues,” Sarah explained with an amused grin.
Jareth shook his head in denial at the scenario they had just described. “Humans make no sense.”
Rook shrugged. “I don’t make the rules, I just observe them.” She was briefly distracted as the goblin on her shoulder made another plea for her gloves. “Later, lad. If you behave you can have a puppy ride back.” She chuckled as the other goblins scattered amid the detritus perked up in excitement. “That means all of you.” She grinned at Jareth’s beseeching look.
Sarah decided to leave them to it and was not surprised to later see a large wolf stalking through the castle halls with a barn owl perched on its neck and an improbable number of goblins astride its back, with one of them chewing contentedly on a black nitrile glove and another trying to balance a curved wheel arch on its head. “Goblins,” Sarah muttered under her breath. “They’re all goblins.”