Candies and Pumpkins (Part One)

He'd first re-appeared in her life when she was twenty-one and carving a jack o'lantern. She wasn't sure she liked his choice; she had been up to her elbows in pumpkin muck and suddenly she'd felt tingles along her skin; enough to make the hair on the back of her arms stick up. When she'd glanced up, she'd seen him sitting there in her favorite armchair, the overstuffed one she'd bought at a yard sale.

"Jareth," she'd said, surprised.

"Sarah," he'd answered, amused and with that know-it-all smirk.

She waited for the explanation, squelching up another handful of pumpkin seeds and orange goo, depositing it on the newspaper laid out for the purpose. Jareth watched; distaste causing his thin lips to draw down in an inverted cupid's bow. Annoyance at his silence—and the fact she was noticing the curve of his lips—caused her to ask, "Why are you here?"

"Why not?" Jareth answered, idly twirling a crystal sphere on the back of his hand. "Do you wish me to be elsewhere?"

"It's been six years, Goblin King. I find myself wondering why now and not, say, when I was sixteen or seventeen or eighteen—"

"Or nineteen? Or twenty?" Jareth grinned.

Sarah frowned, wondering how the Goblin King always managed to make her feel silly and young. She may have grown from her fifteen year old self, but the Goblin King looked painfully, wistfully, exactly the same. She stared at the corn silk hair that billowed about his face in dreamy wisps, the outlandish clothes, the glitter that seemed to make his skin glow, and of course, the crystal sphere.

"Perhaps I felt like visiting," Jareth answered, enigmatically, "and the veil between the worlds is thinner on All Hallow's Eve. Everyone knows that."

He always liked enigmatic, riddle-filled answers. Sarah bent over her pumpkin, scraping up the last of the seeds. She said, "Stay, go, whatever Goblin King."

"Truly Precious?" the Goblin King had said, his voice just above a whisper.

"Oh yes, truly," Sarah had answered, amused. "I don't mind."

She hadn't thought it through completely, but she heard a noise—it sounded like "Wonderful"—and when she had looked back towards Jareth, she found herself alone.

That was it, the whole visit. Her twenty-first Halloween, the Goblin King popped in to say hello for the first time.

# # # #

On her twenty-second Halloween, Sarah opened the door of her apartment while awkwardly carrying a plastic bag with a large pumpkin inside. She stopped in the threshold, because the Goblin King once again sat on her favorite armchair, his legs dangling over the side.

"You're back," she said, surprised.

"Did you miss me, Precious?" Jareth asked.

Sarah snorted and put the pumpkin down on the counter. "Why should I? Last year you barely said hello to me—and before that, we haven't had a very cheery history."

"I don't know about that," Jareth answered, swinging his legs around. "We had a rather nice dance, if I recall."

Sarah didn't say anything—mostly because she did recall that dance, and it still filled her heart with tingles and her stomach with butterflies. No one could ever match the way the Goblin King had lightly touched her and whisked her away, as if she had been flying. But Sarah kept her face hidden from Jareth, in case he saw anything in her expression she didn't want him to see, and said, "I guess so."

She took out the pumpkin and fetched her special pumpkin carving knives. Jareth watched, curious, as she laid out newspaper over the kitchen island and dove her knife into the soft, orange flesh of the pumpkin's crown.

He said, "You're doing that again."

"I do it every year," she said. "There should always be jack o'lanterns for Halloween."

"Jack o'lanterns? Halloween?"

"Don't tell me you don't know what Halloween is?" Sarah asked, surprised.

Jareth frowned. "There's no such thing as Halloween in the Underground."

"It's tons of fun," Sarah said. "You carve pumpkins and dress up in costumes and give out candy and watch scary movies…" Sarah grinned. "I'd think it would be your kind of holiday."

"While I admit that scaring children does hold a certain appeal, I don't see how carving squashes or costuming would be valid."

"It's for fun," Sarah answered. "Stick around, you'll see."

And the Goblin King did stay. He lounged on various bits of furniture—from the armchair to the sofa, and then perched on a barstool, but eventually he went back to the armchair—as Sarah carved her pumpkin, set it outside with a candle, and made candied apples for the trick-or-treaters. She'd always made candied apples, since she was ten years old and helping her father. Now it was tradition. Her father still made candied apples with Toby, but Sarah was hundreds of miles away. There was a pleasant feeling knowing that even if she wasn't with family, she shared this tradition.

She liked choosing different toppings: some of the apples were coated in chocolate, some in caramel; some had multi-colored sprinkles, some were coated in peanuts, or walnuts, or almond slivers; she had a few with butterscotch, and a few with a white chocolate crust. The neighboring kids always made sure to visit Sarah's small house, enjoying the multi-colored, delicious treat. She limited herself to fifty candy apples and the kids knew if they wanted one, they had to arrive early.

Jareth watched from the corner of his eye, as he flicked through the cable channels, every time the doorbell rang and Sarah opened it to yet another child with a pail or bag raised and yelling joyously, "Trick or treat!"

He watched as Sarah extended the tray and let the child choose a cellophane-wrapped candy apple. Near the end of the night, a little girl with large eyes dressed as the Wicked Witch of the West regarded the apples with such intensity—making sure to choose the brightest, most sprinkle-encrusted one—that Sarah couldn't help but chuckle when the door closed.

Jareth said, "The costume was amusing, although I liked the Mad Hatter better."

Sarah turned, noting how Jareth looked with the tight, black dress shirt. It had black, glittery threads woven into it, giving off the most subtle brilliance when the light hit it just so. And, of course, he had paired it with his signature too-tight-pants and leather boots. She watched one of his gloved hands stroke the material of her sofa's armrest, absently. He had surprisingly long fingers.

Sarah glanced at the few candy apples on her tray and decided to end early that Halloween. She went outside and blew out the candle in the jack o'lantern, then flicked off the porch light and when she stepped back inside, she locked the door and went to sit next to Jareth on the sofa.

He stiffened slightly, then relaxed as she rested her feet on the nearby ottoman and offered him the candy apple tray. "Want one?" she asked.

He regarded the treats with an expression as thoughtful and intense as the little girl's, as if he were choosing something much more important than a candy apple, and Sarah felt a smile tug her lips. Carefully, Jareth grabbed the stick of a chocolate-and-walnut one, then undid the cellophane and took a bite.

His eyes widened. "This is rather good!"

"Of course," Sarah sniffed. "I made it, didn't I?"

After that, she always made two extra candy apples. One for herself, and one for a certain Goblin King.

# # # #

On her twenty-third Halloween, Jareth appeared just after Sarah put out the carved pumpkin—and he didn't come alone. Goblins managed to sneak past him, much to his annoyance, and frolic around the apartment. Sarah laughed as Jareth tried to tell them to go back to the Labyrinth immediately. They didn't listen. She was less happy when they got into her sock drawer.

The goblins would have eaten all the candy apples if Sarah hadn't kept them out of arm's reach, and Jareth hadn't threatened with the bog every time the creatures snuck towards the tray.

Once again, Jareth watched from the corner of his eye, while flicking through Food Network, as Sarah handed out the candy. Near the end of the night, he pointed and said, "Was that the Mad Hatter?"

"Yeah."

"But that was not the same costume."

"No," she said, going to the kitchen area, "that was a Joker costume—from the new movie." She glanced at Jareth and only saw confusion, so she added, "Never mind. You don't have to have the same costume every year, though."

Sarah had purposefully made a few extra candy apples this year, thinking that the Goblin King would visit, and she was glad she'd planned ahead because she handed the candy to each goblin.

They gave her wide, crooked-toothed grins.

"Thanks Lady!"

"Mmm, candy!"

"Kingy was right about yo—"

"Jeebo!" Jareth said, warningly.

"What? What did the King say about me?" Sarah asked, glancing with amusement at Jareth.

Jeebo chomped down the whole candy apple, cellophane and all. Sarah winced as Jeebo picked out the cellophane from where it had caught between his teeth, then chewed on the wooden stick. He glanced nervously at the other goblins, then murmured, "He said Lady was really nice—"

"Bog," Jareth said, and Jeebo disappeared in a puff of glitter.

"Oh, Jareth! Why bog him for a compliment you gave me?" Sarah asked, grabbing the last two candy apples and plopping down on the sofa.

"His memory is not entirely factual, Precious," Jareth said, switching off the television. "I recall saying that your confectionaries were quite delightful."

"Oh, is that what you said?" Sarah asked, smirking, and offered him one of the candy apples.

"Indeed," Jareth said, reaching for it, but Sarah didn't let the stick go. Their fingers brushed; she could feel the warmth of the Goblin King's skin against her own. She looked up to see the Goblin King watching her with such an intense look in his eyes, she felt her heart pick up speed. She felt her cheeks heat and hastily let the candy go.

Jareth thoughtfully unwrapped the cellophane and took a bite, then he asked, "Where is your family, Sarah?"

Sarah blinked, surprised by this question. She leaned back on the sofa and said, "They're back home, I mean, where they've always been." She selected the other candy apple, a caramel one, and added, "Toby's eight now."

"Eight! Has that much time flown through the mortal lands?" Jareth shook his head in wonder. "Perhaps I have been away too long."

"You don't visit up here often?"

"No, not often," Jareth said, then glanced at her. "Never had a reason to before."

Careful, Sarah's inner voice whispered, even as her heart seemed to give a jerk in her chest. Jareth's words were an invitation—and perhaps a trap. Sarah decided to ignore them.

"How is everyone in the Underground?"

"You mean your friends," Jareth said, his voice coated with amusement—and something else, something darker. Sarah shifted, uneasily, wondering if she'd made a mistake, but Jareth answered casually, "Hodgehead, Ludo, and Didymus are fine. You should speak to them more often."

Sarah winced. "I…"

"Grew up?" Jareth finished, looking up from his candy to meet her gaze. "Ah, Precious, I know." He cast a hot glance over her body that left her blushing furiously, then looked away. "But, trust me, the magic of the Labyrinth doesn't easily leave. You shine like a beacon because of your time there. I would advise you to not fight it."

Sarah shifted uncomfortably, unsure of what to do with the information, so she changed the subject and asked Jareth if he wanted anything to drink. The Goblin King shook his head, so she went to the kitchen area to get a glass of water for herself. He said, his voice seeming to caress her back, "How is young Toby? And the rest of your family? How is…Karen?"

If he thought she wouldn't notice the slight pause, he was underestimating her. Sarah snorted, wondering just how much the Goblin King knew about her family life. She said, "Toby is fine. Enjoying school, from what I hear. And Karen is fine, too. Regardless of how I was like when I was fifteen, I'm older now and I'm okay with Karen. We may not be best friends—or even mother and daughter—but we're…okay. And I'm not two states away from them because of some self-imposed exile to get away from her, before you think of something dramatic."

"Why would I do that?"

"You always claimed I was childish like that," Sarah answered. "But I'm here because I went to Chicago University and then just stayed around here because I got a job."

"And what do you do?" Jareth leaned forward, propping his chin in one hand and delicately holding the half-eaten candy in the other.

"Set designs," Sarah answered.

"Do you enjoy that?"

"Yes," Sarah said, smiling.

They lapsed into silence for a few moments. Sarah finished off her candy. She could feel it settle heavy in her stomach and her eyes began to drift closed. She fought the lethargy, knowing she had to stay awake because there was a Goblin King in her home, and perhaps the mischievous goblins would come back, too. But, soon, her head lulled and her eyes drifted shut.

She jerked awake a moment later and sighed, glancing at Jareth. "It's funny that you're here now," she said, half to herself, and then before she could really think about what she was doing—and whether it was a good idea or not—she leaned her head against the Goblin King's shoulder.

Jareth stiffened. "What are you doing, Precious?"

"Mmm? I dunno," Sarah murmured, her voice slurring with her exhaustion. "Just don't move for a little while…just a little while…not very long at…"

And then Sarah started dreaming. Or at least that's what she thought she was doing, because she could have sworn the Goblin King began humming a song that was painfully familiar; one she'd heard once upon a time when she'd worn a white dress and danced with a king…

And she felt him gently run his fingers through her hair and felt him kiss the top of her head. Definitely had to be a dream, because the Goblin King wasn't being snarky or snide or smirky or challenging or frustrating or stubborn. Instead, he hummed through the song and sighed, then said, "Ah Precious, it's really not fair at all."

When Sarah woke the next morning, she was alone on her sofa with a throw laid over her. The candy tray was empty. She found a note on her fridge from Jareth, asking for forgiveness since the goblins seemed to have eaten all her ice cream and sliced cheese. Jareth's handwriting was very angular, filled with sharp corners. Sarah traced over his name, wondering what next Halloween would bring. For the first time ever, she wished the year would go faster so she could see him again.


Author's Notes: Hi everyone. Look! I'm still here! And I come baring gifts - Halloween-themed gifts, to be specific! I know, I know, I have plenty of WIPs and I can hear some of my readers saying, "Hey, CQ, what's the deal? Why haven't you updated any of your OTHER stories?" Well, my pretties, the deal has been this: my life imploded, quite simply put. I got a new job which means I'm ridiculously busy. I grieved for a friend who died. And I went through a separation-that-will-eventually-be-a-divorce. And all of this within the span of four months. So, yes, that's the reason behind my sudden absence.

I wanted to do something for Halloween, though, and then this story came to my mind. It's different than my usual style and I'm just playing around a bit. You know, no pressure. It will either be a two-shot or a three-shot, dependent on word count. I'll upload the rest of it in the next week, so it should be done (*crosses fingers hopefully*) by Halloween (Can you believe it's nearly November?).

Sometimes, I just want a slightly-fluffy, friendly Goblin King, and this story will aim to please. Will I be able to keep it K-rated? Well, that's a mystery even I don't know yet...

So, what did you think? Please leave a review! Let me know! Does it pique your interest? Has my writing style changed a lot? Do you have a sudden urge to throw pumpkins at me? (Not the face, please!) All suggestions/reviews/thoughts/questions/etc. are welcome and replied to!


Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth in any way, shape, or form. No, not even the Goblin King, although there are days I wish I did...