Disclaimer: Okay, we all know from my previous disclaimers on my previous fics that I do NOT own Labyrinth or any of it's characters. I believe the rights go to Jim Henson on that one. But all the other non-related characters (such as Kelly, Penelope, Xithieron, Sirion, and others) are all MINE! (::hugs self::) I love me! And now, here is my latest fanfic! Ta-da!!!

Slow Burn

Chapter 1: The Beginning of Misery

Xithieron let out a long exasperated sigh as he listened to his wife prattle on and on about how her pen pal had finally accepted her offer. He had never planned for things to go this way for his son. But it was the way things must be, sometimes.

"...And she said the girl is very beautiful," Penelope was telling her son. "She has a lovely personality too, although she is a bit of a dreamer at heart. She sounds like just your type! Honestly, Jareth, I thought you'd be happy we'd found you a wife..."

"Since when have you cared as to whether I was happy?"

"This girl will do some good for you! Aside from the fact that she is mortal, I see no other flaw in her at all. She truly is a priceless gem."

"A mortal?!" Jareth's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. There he stood, in all his refined elegance, wearing a billowy white poet's shirt that dipped into a deep V at his chest. This was accompanied by his signature black boots and leather gloves, and topped of with a charmingly tight pair of grey pants. Yet the look of helpless stun on his face was as apparent as ever. Had she not seen him for herself, the Queen would not have beleived her son capable of looking as he did at the moment. "I will not wed a human, nor will I bed a human. What you ask of me is cruel, Mother. I am the Goblin King, not some mindless puppet to be bossed around to your fancy!"

"I have not seen her, but my friend has assured me that she is most lovely and... pure."

He crossed his arms at her words. "I refuse!"

"You have no say in the matter," His mother continued. Queen Penelope was dressed every bit as regally as her son, if not more so. She sported a Victorian-style red and white dress with gold trim. Her golden hair sparkled in what little light there was left in the day. The orange sky gave her an ethereal glow that made her appear younger than she really was. "The wedding date has already been set. You will marry this mortal girl."

"Father," He turned to Xithieron with a pleading look, focusing his eyes on the cold steel gray ones that returned the very same gaze. "Must I really go through with this? Surely Mother has gone mad! I would never wed one which I do not love! Surely you would not ask that of me! You already know of the mortal to whom I have vowed my heart to not so long ago. I beg of you, Father. Please do not allow her to do this!"

The High King ran a smooth finger through his silvery hair, refined with age. "It is our belief that it is high time you ceased this endless skipping around from one woman's bed to the next. Marriage would be good for you. It is time you settled down, my son."

Jareth didn't like this one bit. Why would his parents suddenly decide upon his fate for him?

"I have not been with any other women for well over a full year!" Throwing his hands up high over his head, a thought ocurred to Goblin King. 'Not since her His mind purred against his will. 'Not since that raven haired beauty with the choking emerald green eyes that bested me at my own game... have I even so much as cared for the company of another. If I ever did wed a mortal, certainly I would want it to be her. And only her! I will accept no less than Sarah Williams herself!' He wanted so badly to tell his parents this, but he knew they were every bit as stubborn as himself, and they would never agree to such a thing. He was uncertain of precisely when it had happened, but the Goblin King really had fallen in love with the girl!

"Very well..." He reisgned with yet another sad sigh. "I will do as you wish. May I please leave now, as I have matters to attend to?"

"Certainly," Remarked Penelope, with that cold, calculated victorious smile of hers. "I will see to all of the necessary arrangements."

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Back in his castle, Jareth lounged comfortably in his uncomfortable throne, amidst all the little (and some not so little) Goblins that could be seen running cheerfully about. Gods, what he would give for just one day as a Goblin. They were so careless, so oblivious to everything going on around them! Gloved fingers clumsily twirled a crystal about. The shiny orb held a picture of a girl. And not just any girl, no. She was the girl, the one who still held his heart. She was gazing longingly in her mirror back in her room, running a comb through her Sixteen-year-old brunette mane thoroughly.

"Oh Sarah," He asked aloud, and the Goblins ignored him as usual, which suited him just fine. "Tell me, what is it that you so long for? I know that you are lonely, as am I. Why, then, did you still reject my offer? I could have given you the world!"

"Could you?" A voice very familiar to him answered back. It was Sirion, an old friend of his. "But would you have given her the world, Jareth? Perhaps she does not want your world..."

"Cirion, when did you arrive here?"

"I let myself in after I heard what had happened between yourself and your parents. Hope you don't mind."

"Not in the least," Jareth gestured to the empty room. "Please, have a seat." The black haired and dark skinned man laughed at what was aparently intended as a joke.

"You know what?" With a flick of his ebony wrist, Sirion conjured a small wooden chair from seemingly out of nowhere. He sat, but it was a wonder that the tiny chair supported such a massive build. "I think I will." The pair of them shared a laugh once again. "Now what is it that's troubling you, Jareth? I've never seen you quite like this."

"It's her again, Sirion. Sarah..." Jareth closed his hand around the crystal, causing it to vanish. "I cannot stop thinking about her. And my parents wish me to wed another; a stranger, no less!"

"Then maybe that's what you should do. Maybe it was meant for you and the mortal to part ways. It wouldn't do for you to wed a mortal anyway."

"Perhaps you are right, Sirion," Jareth put a thoughtful finger to his lips, while picking up his cane with the other hand. "On the other hand," He looked at the cane. "The other girl is a mortal as well. So the fates have conspired against me yet again."

Sirion leaned forward in his chair. "Or so it would seem. Have you forgotten how short lived those from the mortal realm are, Jareth? You would easily outlive your new bride a thousand times over! And what better way to welcome her than with such news. I think you should go through with it."

"What choice do I have to begin with, my friend?" The Goblin King that somewhere, sometime, he would live to regret falling in love with the girl. But he did not expect it to be now.

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Just as Sarah was halfway through brushing her hair, there was a knock at her door. Karen's head appeared when she did not answer. With a roll of her eyes, and a flip of her chocolate locks, Sarah was standing in the doorway, inquiring as to what her wicked stepmother wanted NOW... She should have known that she would just barge in like that anyway.

"I only wanted to remind you that your Father and I want to talk to you tonight at dinner," There she stood, as Karen as ever, with her hands planted on her hips. "It's about something important. And dinner is almost ready."

"Fine, okay," Sarah brattily rolled her eyes, and turned back into her room. "I'll be down in a minute."

"Sarah," Oh no. there was a hand on her shoulder. She knew what that meant, and she whirled to face her stepmother. "We've been really concerned about you. You won't talk to anybody, you don't have or want any friends, and you stay locked away in your room all the time. You've been doing this for over a year now. Are you okay, hon?"

"I'm fine."

Slam!

After slamming the door ever-so-sweetly in Karen's prudent face, Sarah flung herself down on her bed in a fit of rage that she had gone through so many times lately. Why didn't they just bring her her dinner in her room like they always did? She never thought she'd miss school, but after this weekend, she was looking forward to Monday. Her classwork was the only thing that ever got her mind off of him.

With a sigh, she remembered what Karen had said. They were "concerned" about her. Well, let them be "concerned"! Let the whole damn world be "concerned" so long as they left her the hell "alone"! Sarah Williams wanted nothing to do with any of it anymore, and had considered suicide on more than one occasion. However, she would never really do such a horrid thing! Sarah was too much of a dreamer for that. She wished she did have friends though, her real friends; her true friends. Her friends back in the Labyrinth. And she even wished she had gotten to be better friends with him.

Damn it! Here she was, thinking about that stupid Labyrinth again! His Labyrinth! It was enough to make her blood boil with sheer frustration. She sighed again, long and heavy, and pushed herself up off the bed. She'd had enough, and she was going to settle this whole thing once and for all. Grasping a pair of worn out old tennis shoes, Sarah pulled them onto her feet, and ran to her vanity mirror bothering to tie them. Sticking a hair clip in her hair to tame it a bit, she bolted out the door, and down the stairs, taking them two at a time. She just wanted to get this over with!

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A/N: Hey, I told you guys I had another Labyrinth fic I wanted to do. And now the first chapter is done! Two is close on it's way; I am so inpired to do this fic right now! And having a wonderful time with it, too! I can't wait to get my first review for this one! I sincerely hope that this one lives up to everyone's standards and expecxtations! I tried really hard to make this good, so please try to bear with me, and get through the boring beginning part. Okay? okay! So who's going to give me my frist wonderously glorious review, hmm??? I really do want to know what my readers think, please! So if you took the time out of your oh-so-incredibly busy day to read this, then please take the time to send me two or three words about how you feel! Even if it's just two words like "love it" or "hate it". Or you can even leave the "it" part off if you want! Seriously, anything will help! And constructive criticism is always welcome, as it is in short supply. Thank you so much for reading, and I look forward to hearing from all of you! Thanks!

-Kaline Reine