Title: Thrall
Author: Anisky
Summary: Love is not always gentle and kind, and he will never rest until he owns her body, mind, and soul. J/S, of a sort. Evil Jareth
Rating: R
Disclaimer: None of it's mine!
A/N: So, I should've asked this in the first chapter, or preferably even before the first chapter, but too late now; would anybody be willing to beta this for me? I have the plot mostly worked out, but there will probably be some consultation about minor plot tangles; besides that, I'd need a beta mostly for tone, characterization, and that sort of thing, opinions on whether what I've written makes sense or suggestions for better flow/characterization/etc. Also for typos I've overlooked, of course. If anyone's interested, please email me at melknapp at gmail dot com (or just say it in your review, I guess). (I'm good at taking criticism, I swear.)
So, without further ado...
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Chapter 2
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Was that a dream? Sarah wondered as she lay in bed the next morning. She didn't think so, but the whole experience had been so... surreal.
The King of the Goblins wants to be my friend, she thought, feeling somewhat delirious, and found herself giggling hysterically.
"Sarah?" Karen's slightly harried voice cut into Sarah's hilarity. "Are you up yet?"
Sarah took a few deep breaths to stop her laughter. "Yeah, I'm up," she called back after a few moments.
"Good," Karen yelled back. "Breakfast's in fifteen minutes!"
"Okay!"
Sarah sighed and forced herself out of bed. Morning was by far her least favorite part of the day. At least she had plenty to occupy her mind, she reflected.
Her life had become exceedingly weird, and she felt no small amount of pride in the thought. She'd wanted her life to be a fantasy story, and she was succeeding. Cool, she thought, as she opened her closet to rummage through her clothes for the day's outfit. She felt like something a bit flamboyant today, she decided.
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Jareth watched her in one of his crystals contemplatively. She appeared to be in a good mood, humming as she went about her usual routine. He smiled, pleased with this state of affairs; he knew that she would still be suspicious, but she was proving easy enough to win over. He threw the crystal into the air and let it vanish, then relaxed back into his throne. Yes, things were proceeding entirely to plan.
He let his mind wander to his encounter the evening before, the first time he had gotten to see her face to face since the catastrophe that had been her journey through the Labyrinth.
It had amused him, how her first thoughts had been worry over her brother; it had annoyed him a little as well, of course, as it was a reminder of her obsession with getting him back, but he was putting that to rights in any case. He had been slightly surprised, that her only concern be that he not hurt Toby, and she had given not a thought to her own well-being. Well, that was just as well. Her selfishness had been adorable, of course, but it was for the best that she had learned to put the concerns of others above her own. Soon enough, after all, she would serve him, and would be his needs and desires that she attended above her own.
His grin grew wider as he turned his thoughts to that time, not too far away, when she would live to serve him, defer to him, look to him for guidance... to love him and obey him in all things. He wanted her to be dependent upon him for everything. He wanted her to have no possessions except for those he had given to her, no friends but those to whom he'd introduced her, no thoughts that did not originate from and end with him.(1)
The mere thought of it made him harden, and at the same time it relaxed him, made him feel contented and... happy. How long since he had felt happy! He could only imagine how much better the reality would be, if the fantasy sent such pleasure surging through him. It was this thought that allowed him to hide his anger from her and be so soft and gentle with her; he simply reminded himself that soon she would be punished, and that soon things would finally be as they were meant to be, and he was calm enough to pretend.
But he couldn't move too quickly, or she would become suspicious. Best to wait a few days before coming to her again; that is how one would strike up a casual friendship, or at least, so Jareth had been lead to believe; he had not much experience with friendship himself.
Whenever he was not needed to maintain his newly constructed kingdom, the Goblin King watched the girl in his crystals, wondering when the best time would be to pay her another visit.
Finally, three days later, he conjured a crystal to see her sitting on a park bench, reading. She had stopped playing-acting at the park so much after the Labyrinth, deciding it was time to Grow Up a bit, but it was still one of her favorite spots, and she often went there to read or just to sit and collect her thoughts.
It seemed like the perfect opportunity to see her again, so Jareth vanished the crystal and stood up, getting ready to appear next to her. Then he paused and looked down at his attire; flawless as usual, but fitting for a Goblin King, not an Abovegrounder , and his Sarah was in public where anybody could see them. He wasn't sure how humans dressed, so he conjured another crystal and studied the raiment of the men who passed by her. There were too few; with a sigh of annoyance, he directed his crystal instead to a busy city street. After a minutes of studying the men who passed, he had a fairly good idea of what would be appropriate. He was unsure whether to dress casually or in the more formal garments he saw on a couple of men; but then he saw a man in a leather jacket, and the matter was decided.
He added a black t-shirt under the jacket, and a pair of jeans, as he had seen on most of the humans dressed informally. He conjured a mirror and considered himself, turned the jeans from blue to black, and tamed his hair in a ponytail at the nape of his neck.
Yes, the effect was quite satisfactory, he decided. Not as impressive as his usually wardrobe, but rather tolerable nonetheless.
He took a moment to make sure that he was calm, to slip into the persona of the friendly, teasing, clawless Goblin King, and then he disappeared, and reappeared next to Her.
Sarah, for her part, was so absorbed in her book that she didn't notice that a man had suddenly materialized beside her. Jareth, entertained by this, declined to immediately alert her to his presence. Instead he leaned back, enjoying the feel of an Earthly evening, warm and summery, but with a slight chill warning the fall was about to creep up upon this small New England town.
When she still didn't notice after several minutes (How adorable, he thought mirthfully), he stretched his arms and let one stretch across the back of the bench, so that it was almost cradling Sarah's shoulders.
Sarah shut her book, looking up and opening her mouth with the intention of telling off whoever interrupted her in such an overly familiar way. When she realized who it was, she was so shocked that she forgot to close her mouth.
Jareth smirked and placed a finger under her chin, gently closing her mouth for her. "Hello again," he said brightly.
"Hi," Sarah managed. Oh my gods, he looks so hot, she thought to herself. "I... I didn't realize you were there."
"Yes, I know," he said, with much amusement.
"How long were you sitting there?" she asked, almost afraid to know.
"Only about five minutes," he reassured her.
Five whole minutes of not noticing the Goblin King sitting next to her was plenty embarrassing to Sarah. "Sorry," she said sheepishly. "I just get so involved in the story sometimes, I don't notice anything else."
Jareth raised an eyebrow.
"Though only once have I ended up actually in the story, of course," she added, understanding only half of his response.
The Goblin King threw his head back and laughed. "I should hope so," he said, "there's only so much trouble one girl can get into."
"So there are other worlds?" she asked, eagerly. "Is trouble really the only way to access them?"
"There are," he said, "and usually, yes, if a human is in another world, it is because that human is in a world of trouble. You are one of very, very few to come back unscathed." For now, he added silently, and he couldn't stop himself from clenching a fist, hoping she didn't notice.
"Back from the Labyrinth, or back from any other world?" she inquired. She found this line of conversation beyond fascinating-- how lucky, how privileged she was, that there was somebody who would tell her about these things! She was learning things that so few humans ever knew.
"From any other world," he clarified. "You're the only living person to have come back from the Labyrinth... at least, the only one who remembers it, and kept the wished-away child."
"Wow," Sarah whispered, torn between pride and embarrassment at the implied praise. She had to pause a moment to ask her next question, as a couple ambled by, enjoying the late summer air. Finally they passed beyond hearing and she could continue the conversation. "How many are there on Earth, who have come back from other lands and remember it?"
Jareth thought about it for a moment. There was no harm in telling her the truth of the matter, he decided. The more he was truthful, the more he would appear genuine, and alleviate suspicion; and this would tell her nothing that could help her escape him.
"Currently alive... perhaps five," he said. "I'm not entirely sure. It might be four, or six. I don't always pay strict attention to the affairs of other realms."
Sarah nodded slowly, absorbing that. "Five," she repeated. "I'm not sure whether to feel comforted that I'm not the only one, or lonely because there are so few of us in such a large world."
"You don't need them to be not alone," Jareth pointed out, quietly. He was all she should need, and all she soon would need.
She looked up at him, once again understanding half of what he said. "You aren't what I expected," she admitted to him.
"What did you expect?" he replied lightly.
"Truthfully? It's a bit embarrassing." She looked down at her lap with a self-deprecating grin. "I was expecting a villain. I was expecting someone to hate me for besting him, conniving to steal back my little brother... or to get back at me. Not somebody who would sit here and tell me all about the things I'm dying to know. And especially not somebody who can make me feel... as you said. Not-alone."
The Goblin King was momentarily stunned at her response. He had so many conflicting emotions, and he wasn't sure which of them to settle upon. He was her villain, in some ways; he wanted to get back at her, certainly, and he hated her, but he also loved her in equal measure. The part he was playing was an act only to a point. Part of it was him. Did he already make her feel the way she said? Did he, as he sat her casually talking with her, pretending friendship, actually form a true connection with her?
Irrelevant, he told himself. All her thoughts would center upon him soon enough. He would be the focus of her entire being, so the depth of their connection now only mattered insofar as it would make her easier to mold into his slave.
He told himself that was why he was happy about banishing her feelings of loneliness; it was because she recognized him as her master, and responded to it. That was the source of his pleasure at the thought.
Sarah grew increasingly uneasy in his silence, worrying that she had said something wrong, that her confession had insulted him, or scared him off. Eventually she said, tentatively, "I'm sorry if I misjudged you... and I... I don't mean to put anything on you. About the not-alone thing, I mean, I--"
Jareth cut her off-- thankfully, because she had no idea what she'd been about to say. "Sarah, you said nothing wrong. I was simply... surprised by your words. But in a good way," he assured her. With his free hand he reached for hers', and took one of them gently in his. "I didn't dare dream that I would make you feel that way, you, surrounded by other humans, able to have friendships and companionship with those like yourself... something that is hard for me to find."
He was being too truthful. Why was he telling her this? All to ensnare her, Jareth told himself. And maybe, also, to reward her. He was happy that she saw that the two of them were connected, that they belonged together; it would be only a small step for her to realize that she belonged to him. She saw this truth, she felt a comfort in his presence; and as a reward, he let her see a bit of himself. That was right, he decided.
"But they're not like me," Sarah whispered, breathless at his touch, savoring the feeling of his hand on hers without even properly understanding why. Everything about him went to her head; being around him was like being drunk, on fine champagne. "They're not like me at all."
"I know they're not," he assured her softly. He lifted the arm that had been rested behind her, and stroked her hair. "You're special. You were born Aboveground, but you were meant for the Underground." You were meant for me, he added silently.
Sarah, having no idea what to say in response to that, remained silent, and tried to drown herself in the feeling of his hand squeezing hers and his fingers stroking her hair. They remained like that for a long time, both of them with a contentedness they had not realized was possible.
The bell tower chimed nine times, and Sarah realized that she had to get home.
"I have to go now," she said, picking up her book.
Jareth nodded, and removed his hands from her. Sarah tried not to shiver at the loss, because it was a warm evening and she would not be able to pass it off as cold. She stood up to leave, then after a few moments, turned around to check that he was still there.
"You know, there should be a way for me to decide when to see you, too," she said. "It's no fair, that you can just pop up, and I don't get a say in it. If this is going to be an equal friendship, I should have a way to contact you."
Jareth wanted to point out that they were not, after all, equal; he was simply a superior being. But he knew that if he were to say that, truth though it may be, Sarah would become very angry, and it would undo all the ground he'd gained.
Besides, her request had been perfect, and he had a response that would put her right where he wanted her.
"Well," he said, "you can call on me whenever you like, you know."
"I can?" she asked. "And it won't mean you can take somebody away or something?"
"Yes, you can. These things are quite simple, actually. Simply don't wish anybody away, and I won't take anybody." He didn't tell her the real consequence of calling upon him; she would discover it, eventually, when it suited his purposes. Instead, he winked at her.
Sarah blushed and laughed a little. "So I just call your name, and you'll come?"
"If I am able," he replied. "Often, if I am taking care of matters of state, then I won't respond to a summons."
Sarah nodded. "Of course."
"But otherwise," he continued, "yes, all you need to do is call my name."
"Cool," Sarah said, smiling. "And you won't get annoyed with me if I call you here?"
"Now, why would I get annoyed?" he asked gently. "Do you get annoyed when I show up?"
She shook her head, still blushing a little bit. "Quite the contrary."
"Well, there you have it."
Sarah nodded. "Well, thank you then," she said. "And, well," she continued awkwardly, "thank you for a very enjoyable evening. I really liked spending time with you."
"Likewise," Jareth replied. He nodded to her, then disappeared, leaving nothing but a smattering of glitter on the bench.
Sarah smiled slightly, and hugged herself, then headed home.
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(1) I think I owe this particular version of this sentiment to The House of the Spirits, by Isabel Allende. I tried to find where in the book Esteban thinks this of Clara for a couple of hours, but didn't find it; but I'm relatively sure that I got the idea of this thought from there.
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A/N: I want to thank everybody so much for their reviews!! I got so many more than I expected, and you're all amazing. I wish that I could reply to all of them, but sadly I'm rather busy; I'll try to reply to them next chapter (which hopefully will be coming more quickly than this one did!). Also, I wrote a portion of the last part while tipsy, so I apologize if things are a bit off, or don't make sense. Possibly I'll upload a revised version in the next couple of days, when I'm sober. ;)
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And as always, please review, whether your comments are good, bad or indifferent! I want them all! :)
