A/N: This takes place 12 years after the movie so we're in the late 90s now and Sarah is 28. Jareth, of course, is Jareth and who knows how old he actually is? Pff.
Sarah, Jareth decided, had become boring.
He'd given the girl everything, once. He'd offered her the universe, given her a taste of all he'd commanded, and yet in the end, it hadn't been enough for Ms. Sarah Williams. She'd simply taken what she wanted and left... a very Sarah thing to do, he'd decided later, after she'd left, after she'd thrown him away.
And this was what she'd done with her life after all of that?
He clenched his claws into the tree limb he'd perched on, tufting to himself because it was the closest owl approximation of the sneer he'd have made if he'd been in his normal body.
Sarah hadn't become an actress like she'd dreamed. Nor had she become a director, writer, or some other creator involved with the movie process.
No, his Sarah had evidently become some sort of human servant to an actress. He'd heard the title dropped more than once of 'personal assistant,' but it meant so little to him that he'd disregarded it almost out of hand.
What irony. He'd asked her to do as he bade and he would do the same in turn, and yet she'd rejected him out of hand... only to come and do the same thing.
But then, Sarah had always been a contrary creature and she'd always done her best to drive him crazy from the moment her hand had first touched his enchanted book.
Still, it was infuriating to see the proud girl he'd once known become a woman who deferred to others, who bit her tongue instead of saying what she'd truly thought. Sarah had not held back so with him, oh no.
Would she change her approach with him now?
The temptation was stronger than he could push away, now that he'd allowed himself to consider the idea. What would Sarah do now, some twelve years later, if he suddenly appeared in her world?
.
Sarah Williams was exhausted.
Keeping up with Penelope LaRue was worse than keeping up with a toddler. Though Penelope was nearly four years her senior, the woman was flighty at the best of times and an outright disaster at the worst. She was both needing of men and yet so unwilling to compromise in her relationships that she flittered in and out of them—and sometimes back into them—so quickly that Sarah had all but given up any hope of trying to remember which one Penelope was currently dating—and which one(s) she was currently bitching about.
For all her moodiness and flightiness, Penelope wasn't cruel and she wasn't mean, so Sarah saw fit to simply grin and bear it. Penelope paid well—very well in fact—and after her failed attempts at auditioning herself, Sarah wasn't in a place to be picky. L.A. wasn't a forgiving place to be broke and it was either this or wait tables or end up working at some topless bar.
Penelope was reliable, at least, and paid Sarah on time and Sarah got the added perk of residing in a small garden house on Penelope's very large estate. And Penelope was good natured when it came to her staff and she genuinely seemed to care about everyone she employed, even if it sometimes came off as self-absorbed or arrogant.
And Sarah got to travel, a lot. They were currently filming in the middle of the Canadian wilderness and before that, she'd been in Hawaii with Penelope for several weeks for filming several episodes for a show the actress was guest-starring in.
But some days, it almost wasn't worth it. Such as today.
Filming had just begun on Penelope's latest blockbuster, one she was co-starring in with a former lover, Alec Jamison. Alec hadn't been the most recent to break Penelope's heart, but the two had gotten hot and heavy in the trailer or the closet or anywhere else they could find on the last move they'd starred in together... Only for Alec to simply walk away the moment filming was done.
To be fair, Sarah thought, wincing at the word, she'd have been pissed, too, so she couldn't entirely fault Penelope for being upset.
But that had been two years ago and evidently Penelope was still holding a grudge. She had the work ethic not to bring it on the set with her, but the moment she was off, the hostilities began and woe be any of the film crew who crossed her path before she reached her trailer. She'd broken several props hurling them at Alec, one of which he'd been unable to dodge and had left him with a black eye the makeup artist hadn't been able to entirely hide. Filming on Alec's scenes would either have to be done from one side to hide the swelling or delayed a few days to allow him to recover.
It was, therefore, a relief when the producers announced they'd be hiring a specialist to ensure the film was produced on time. Not that anyone was fooled; the specialist was actually a fixer and he was there simply to keep things cordial between Alec and Penelope so that filming would continue unfettered—much to everyone's relief. The movie was a romantic tear-jerker, and everyone was more than a little concerned about how the lovemaking scene was going to play out.
Penelope had been back in the makeup room between scenes when the specialist was arrived and so Sarah had missed his arrival.
It had only been later, when Penelope was back on camera opposite Alec that Sarah had caught a glimpse of the so-called specialist.
And she'd had to lock her knees to keep herself standing when she wanted to stumble over to a chair in surprise.
The specialist looked exactly like Jareth—exactly like the hallucinations she had worked so hard to forget all those years ago...
Or, at least, how that man might have looked if he'd been real. The man before her now had blond hair that was longer than was fashionable these days for men, hanging down past his shoulders. He'd evidently attempted to appeal to current fashion trends as it had been pulled back in a ponytail and smoothed down to lay flat against his head. He wore a tight white shirt with a leather jacket and tight jeans and completed the look with black leather shoes. He had sunglasses on his face so she couldn't see his eye color but she could easily picture him with green or blue eyes. All in all, she estimated him to be in his mid to late thirties, though she couldn't quite guess his nationality by appearance alone.
He was lovely, in a reserved, modern-era sort of way, but it was a loveliness she was determined to ignore.
But for a moment, she saw a man with wild blond hair and a flamboyant outfit, complete with an elegant cape. As soon as she blinked, the image was gone.
She shook her head, determined to forget what she'd seen. It wasn't him, what happened wasn't real, and the sooner she remembered that, the better.
The man before her had the audacity to wink at her as he noticed her stare and walked over to greet her. "Hello, Sarah," he purred in a British accent that had an undeniable appeal. "I understand that you are the personal assistant for Ms. LaRue."
It wasn't a question but she forced herself to nod anyway, licking her lips at how dry they suddenly were. "I am," she said, trying to sound more confident than she felt. "You're the specialist, right?"
Just breathe, Sarah. He's not the same man; he can't be. The labyrinth and the goblins and him—they weren't real!
"Indeed I am. Justin Lawrence, at your service." He held out his hand and she took it, surprised by the firmness of his grip and the calluses on his hand. Somehow she'd expected to encounter smooth skin.
"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Lawrence," she said as he released her hand. "Penelope will be glad you're here."
Or, at least, Penelope had claimed she was when she'd heard the news. Sarah didn't care to guess if the actress had meant it and Penelope wasn't saying anything more about the situation currently.
He grinned. "Justin, please." He unscrewed the lid off of the bottle of water he'd been carrying and took a sip before continuing. "I understand you know more about the current circumstances, Sarah. Would you be so kind as to fill me in tonight after filming ends? I apologize in advance for the short notice and for adding to your already long day, but I'm afraid I can't be much help until I know more."
Sarah forced herself to look away and focus on the set instead. They were far enough away that light conversation wouldn't be picked up by the microphones, but that didn't mean no one would hear them.
"I really can't give you anything useful, Mr. Lawrence," she said, ignoring the click of his tongue at his obvious disapproval of her use of his last name. "Ms. LaRue doesn't really tell me much about her personal life. If you want to know more, you'll have to ask her."
She felt a shiver down her spine at the lie, as if he'd somehow known she wasn't telling him the truth.
"I see." The two words were full of disappointment. "You won't help anyone by not being truthful, Sarah."
The admonishment was sharper than she'd expected.
"Who says I'm not being truthful?" she deflected. The sooner this man realized he wasn't getting anything useful out of her, the sooner he'd leave. Penelope needed help, sure, but she wasn't going to appreciate Sarah blabbing about her personal life to a stranger and Sarah needed the job more than she cared about Justin Lawrence's respect.
"Cut! I think we can use that take," the director's voice boomed, interrupting anything he might have said in response. "Good work."
Sarah turned to smile at the man beside her. "If you'll excuse me, Mr. Lawrence. I'm afraid that's my cue."
And Sarah walked away, resolving to do everything she could to avoid the so-called fixer.
Unfortunately for her, the fixer seemed to have other ideas.
