A/N: OK so for anybody who is reading any of my other stories, don't panic! I haven't given up on them. I'm sort of stuck on those and this idea just kept hitting me in the head until I finally just sat down and started writing. Hopefully, inspiration will hit me for those stories as well.

This story was inspired by Coldplay's "Viva la Vida"

Chapter One: Downfall of a King

You have no power over me.

Those were the fatal words that had caused this insufferable feeling.

Jareth, the King of the Goblins, was stuck in bed in complete agony, enduring what would appear to be the worst cold in the world. Except this particular "cold" would last from 6-9 months. A year at the most, although it was rare for it to go on that long.

This was the reason why Jareth always did everything in his power to keep the Runners from finishing the Labyrinth. A win for the runner meant a loss of strength, magic, and health for the King/Queen and who honestly would want to be sick for 6-12 months?

And yet, he had failed. Sarah Williams had defeated both the Labyrinth and its King, resulting in what he called "his sickness".

In reality, his defeat left him completely and utterly weakened. He barely had the power to think straight when he was defeated. And then he had exhausted himself after making one last visit to Sarah. All Tempe (his old, Fae "nanny" of sorts) knew was that when he had returned, he had collapsed, unconscious, and didn't wake up until a little over a week later.

Now, she continued to look after him and care for him as she used to when he was a child. Every day she cursed Sarah Williams' name for making her king (who was more a son than master to her) suffer in so many ways. In human years, he would only be in his mid-twenties and already he was madly in love with a woman who would most likely never want him and he was determined to have nobody but her.

Even now, Jareth watched her through a crystal, using up bits of whatever power he had built up just to watch her and wish for more than the young Sarah was willing to give.

Tempe watched him with a sad smile on her face from her place in the doorway of his bedchambers.

"You know," she began, then chuckled when he jumped and popped the crystal-turned-bubble while blushing with embarrassment at being caught 'misbehaving' in a sense. "You really shouldn't be doing that. Your strength level is low enough without you pushing the limit every time I turn around."

He grinned as well as a sick man can and said, with a plugged up nose and slight slurring of words, "Come on, Tembe. Where's da fun in that?"

She shook her head. "Oh yes. With you, following the rules is never fun." They shared a knowing smile, but then Tempe's expression changed from one of amusement to one of worry when Jareth's eyes grew bigger and a long coughing fit occurred.

A line of sweat appeared on Jareth's forehead and he was forced to lean back and close his eyes to get rid of the dizziness that followed.

Tempe was instantly at his side, brushing damp hair away from his face. He made an attempt to get back up, but she gently held him down and shushed him when he tried to protest.

"Really, Jareth. You're pushing yourself too far. Your body can't handle this constant changing. Now please, get some rest. No crystals, no goblins, and no legal documents … at least for a few hours."

He sighed and looked up at her, his mind feeling somewhat fuzzy from the exertion that he had been putting his body through for days. He knew she was right and he nodded in compliance. Then he chuckled quietly as he remembered something from his past.

Tempe tucked him in and made sure he was comfortable as he said sleepily, "Tembe. Do you 'member da time when I asked you to marry me?"

She nodded and said, "Yes I do. You said that it was because nobody could ever take care of you like I do."

He nodded then snuggled into his pillow, and yawned as he asked, "How" – yawn – "how old was I?"

Tempe didn't have to think long. "You were about eight years old. Your mother found it amusing when you told her, but your father didn't. It was only a few years after that you lost him."

But Jareth didn't hear anything she said because he had fallen asleep almost instantly after asking his question.

Tempe smiled, ran a hand through his hair, and kissed him on the top of his head. "Sweet dreams, Jareth. Always remember that I love you."

He smiled in his sleep.

Unfortunately, his peace didn't last.

King Hakon, the Fae king of another area of the Underground, decided to take advantage of Jareth's condition. He just happened to be Jareth's younger cousin and the two had hated each other since they first met (Jareth at the age of six and Hakon at the age of four). This was Hakon's chance to take from his cousin what he had always wanted … the Labyrinth. He had always envied Jareth's control, love, and connection with the Labyrinth and he wanted it.

Only two days after Tempe's talk with Jareth, the Goblin King was forced awake by the sounds of fighting and hands shaking him awake.

He jumped up to find a tense and worried Tempe, still holding his shoulders.

"Tembe? What's going on?" he slurred. Tempe hurriedly looked around and said as quickly and clearly as she could,

"Jareth, Hakon is attacking with his army! Gordon is out there now with your army, but they're not going to last much longer."

"What?!" he cried out. Jareth tried to get up, his intentions perfectly clear to Tempe, but she knew that if he went out there to fight with his people, Hakon wouldn't hesitate to kill his own family.

"No, Jareth! If you go out there, you'll be killed."

"Den what do you want me to do, Tembe?! I can't just leabe them out dere to die!"

She knew he was going to hate what she was about to tell him. "You have to go into hiding."

"WHAT?!"

"You heard me. You're going to have to go into hiding. Hakon won't hesitate to kill you in the most humiliating way possible and you can't help your people when you're dead."

Jareth knew she was right, but he wouldn't admit it to himself. Tempe knew that she had to act fast if she was going to save the life of the man she considered a son and that it was going to take something drastic to convince him.

Tempe dropped to her knees and her eyes teared up. She grasped his hands, placed her forehead against his knuckles, and whispered, "Please, Jareth. Please. Do this for me. Do this for yourself. Do this for your people, your parents, the Labyrinth, everybody. Please."

He knew what he had to do. Tempe only did things like kneeling down to him when it was severely important and he was beginning to fully grasp the danger of the situation he was in.

"Ok. Ok." He allowed her to support him and lead him out a back door.

She hugged him and held him tightly. "Use your magic, Jareth. Use what you have to get you started." She pulled away and held his head in her hands, looking him in the eyes. "Take care of yourself. Come back to us. Get healthy. Be strong. Stay alive." She brought his head down and kissed it.

He held back the tears that threatened to spill. He couldn't believe that this was actually happening. These kinds of things just didn't happen to him. They don't happen to royalty. It just wasn't fair (though he winced when thinking the expression, being reminded of Sarah).

Tempe whispered, "I will see you again," before turning back and reentering the castle to meet its fate with the rest of Jareth's people.

Jareth waited until he was sure that she was gone then used all of his will to conjure up any magic he could find in himself. He couldn't believe what he was about to do, but the pain of his body changing and shifting made him believe it.

After he made his change, he felt faint and fell over, unconscious. It wasn't until hours later that he woke up. He jumped to his feet and quickly looked around. Finding nobody in the darkness around him, the ex-king took a deep breath and scampered away into the night and into his new life … as a goblin.

A/N: So I hope you liked it. I know I did. Leave me a review and let me know. I appreciate anything that you have to say and will answer any questions that you have the best I can. Thanks!! I love you all. A writer is nothing without their reviewers and their fans.