A Year Without A Goblin King

~~~~~Prologue~~~~~

"NO!" the brunette yelled, rather loudly. "No! No! No!"

"Come on, Sarah," replied the blond man, currently taking up residence in the apartment's tiny kitchen. "I ask for so little…"

"Don't you dare start that again, Jareth!" Sarah cried angrily.

"You can't blame a man for trying, precious," Jareth replied, shrugging arrogantly. He took a seat at her kitchen table and grabbed a peach from the fruit bowl. Rolling it over his arms before taking a bite, he watched for her reaction.

"Can't I?" Sarah asked, placing her hands on her hips and glaring at the man invading her space. He always made himself at home, no matter where she lived.

Jareth had been coming to see Sarah for eight of the ten years since she had left the Underground, rejecting him and almost destroying his labyrinth in the process. The first time he showed after her run, she had been in her childhood bedroom, brushing her hair before bed. She'd almost had a heart attack, seeing the villain of her nightmares (and more than one erotic dream, but she would take that one to her grave) standing behind her. No longer was she the spoiled fifteen-year-old she had been when she fought for her brother's return. At seventeen, she was growing into a lovely young woman.

After informing her that he was simply investigating the disappearance of several of his goblins, they forged a shaky truce. Sarah had been visited by goblins almost every day since her time in the Underground. They had taken a liking to her and she enjoyed having them around. The goblins were a constant source of entertainment. She was amused by the mischief they caused, especially when it was directed towards her stepmother. Karen and Sarah had become much more tolerant of each other in the two years since that fateful night, but they were far from friends. Sarah was still expected to stay home with Toby, but she didn't mind it so much anymore.

Now, almost ten years from their first meeting and eight years since he reentered her life, they had formed a friendly bond. He came to visit her wherever she lived and helped her through many a crisis during her college years. She listened to his rants about court and various courtiers that were vying for his attention. They would tell each other stories about their very different lives. He, a king, and she, a high school English teacher. You couldn't find two more opposite friends than Jareth and Sarah.

Everything was running along swimmingly, until this night. Sarah had been watching television with her two boston terriers, Eric and Phillip. She felt the pull of Jareth's magic, announcing his arrival. Moving over to give him a spot on the couch, she continued to watch TV as if it were completely normal to have a Fae King pop in on her. Well, for her, she supposed, it was normal. They had talked amicably about mundane things until he sprung it on her. She reacted, much the way he expected. She jumped up from the couch and began her litany of excuses as to why it was a terrible idea.

"It's only a year," he began again. "That's not that long."

"To you, maybe," she argued. "But I'm Mortal, Jareth. M-O-R-T-A-L! I only get seventy or eighty years in this world, more if I'm lucky and take after my grandma Eileen. I do not want to spend one of my very few years listening to goblins argue about chickens and avoiding overly amorous Fae males, while you gallivant about in the Above."

"I need a break and you are the only one qualified to take my place," Jareth insisted. "Think about it Sarah. I've been Goblin King for over five hundred years. In that time, I've never taken a vacation."

"Why me?" Sarah asked.

"Because you are my equal," Jareth sighed. They'd already gone through this countless times.

"Only because you say so," Sarah rebutted.

"Only because you said so," Jareth countered. "You were the one that said that your will was as strong as mine and your kingdom was as great. Those words did not come out of my mouth."

She opened her mouth to deny it, but then closed it again. This was one argument that she was never going to win. Deciding to pick her battles, she worked her brain to come up with a new strategy.

"Sarah, you know more about my Kingdom than anyone else, barring myself," he urged, before she could fully form a new tactic. "You are strong and brave. You could face anything, precious. Think of it as a year of adventure. Didn't you say, just last week, that you were bored."

"Yes," she admitted, begrudgingly.

"Then, precious, accept my offer," he pressed. "Trade lives with me for a year. Allow me to take some time off. I promise to keep in touch and I'll give you a way to reach me if things get out-of-control."

Sarah turned away and stared out of her kitchen window. Drawing in a deep breath, she began thinking of the possibilities. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to rule the Goblin Kingdom for a year. It had to be better than teaching a bunch of horny, bored teenagers the classics. They never appreciated them the way she did.

"If I agree to this, and I'm not saying that I will, I'm setting a few ground rules," she announced, continuing to stare out the window before finally turning to face him again.

"Proceed," Jareth replied, suppressing the smirk that wanted to appear on his handsome face.

"Rule number one: If I decide to do this," she began, "I want your oath that you will not simply abandon me. This trade will only last one year and no longer."

"I give you my oath, I will not abandon you, precious," he vowed. "You are my dearest friend. I could never do that to you, not even after your rejection."

"We promised not to discuss that anymore," she reminded him. "You know very well that I was only fifteen and didn't know what you meant." She held her hand up, stifling continued conversation on that topic. "Rule number two: you will visit me periodically to hear reports about your Kingdom and to make sure I'm still alive."

"Naturally," he sighed.

"Rule number three: If things become more than I can handle, I want to end the trade with no repercussions," she demanded.

"Are you done?" Jareth asked impatiently.

"Yes," she said after thinking about it for a moment.

"Fine," he replied, standing. "When should we begin the trade?"

"At the stroke of midnight on New Year's," Sarah suggested.

"Does this mean you agree?" he asked, his eyes twinkling with hope.

"Yes, I suppose," she replied. "Shall we shake on it?"

"Wouldn't you rather seal this with a kiss?" he purred, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"Ha ha," she laughed sarcastically. "Don't make me regret this before we even start."

"I'll see you on New Year's Eve, precious," he said, holding his hand out to her.

"See you then," she replied, shaking the hand he offered.

Sarah watched as he disappeared and then shook her head at the empty apartment. What had she gotten herself into this time?

A/N: I know it's short, but I wanted to set up this story before the New Year's Holiday. Basically, I took two of my favorite Christmas things (Holiday Inn and A Year Without A Santa Claus) and mixed them with 24. This will be a real time story, told over each of the major American holidays of 2011. As I always say, reviews make me happy and happy people update faster.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize.