The Red Thread – Part Two
The Goblin King looked at her in surprise. "Why?" he said, his voice incredulous. "After all these years you dare ask me why? And you even have the book!"
"I haven't read the book since I was sixteen. Since…" Sarah stopped, but in her mind she thought: Since I gave up hoping to see my friends and moved on.
He must have found her expression interesting because he studied her for a moment. His mismatched eyes were half-lidded and once again Sarah found she couldn't read the Goblin King—she'd never been good at reading him. And the mask certainly wasn't helping. But, even the last time she'd been in this grand room, the ballroom of her dreams, dancing in his arms, she hadn't been able to read him. But there had been a few times when she'd caught something in his expression, in the way he looked at her…
Like when she'd broken the ballroom bubble with that chair and left him behind. Or when she'd said the Labyrinth was a piece of cake—boy, had she wished she could have taken those words back after she said them! Or when she had said those fateful words—"you have no power over me"—the words he hadn't even wanted to hear now, ten years later.
Just for a moment, Sarah nearly grasped something…something twinkled in her mind like a star and she reached for it. Once she had it, she knew that everything would make sense: why she was here, why the Goblin King seemed so offended by her question, why he had looked at her like that those few times…even why they were connected by a red string…
But then the twinkling went out and she couldn't remember…why was it just out of reach?
"If you can't remember, after everything, I won't tell you," the Goblin King said, decidedly, strangely echoing her own thoughts.
Sarah rolled her eyes. He sounded like a petulant child—"Well, if you can't remember my birthday, then I won't tell you!" When was the Goblin King's birthday? How old was this mythic creature before her? Hmm, those questions opened up even more questions…
Sarah pushed the thoughts aside and walked around the ballroom, looking at the beautiful platforms and the crystal chandeliers. "Fine," she said, as she idly paced the confines of the ballroom, "don't tell me, then."
While this was all interesting on one level, Sarah began wondering when this dream—if it was a dream—would end. Or, conversely, what should she do until it ended? Just walking around an empty ballroom wasn't much fun, and the Goblin King was being sulky. He had gone back to sit on the chair and was watching her.
A very low-hanging chandelier, with crystals bobbing off strings at the ends, proved too much of a temptation and she stood on tip-toe to tap one of the crystals, watching it dance on its string. It clinked against the closest crystal bauble next to it, giving off a pure tinkling noise.
"I didn't realize how beautiful this place is," Sarah said.
"It was like this before," the Goblin King answered.
"I was distracted before," Sarah said. "I—I found that particular ballroom very difficult. I didn't like all those people—all those watchers."
"Funny, you chose the dream. The peach only allowed it to come to the forefront. This ballroom, Sarah, is entirely your doing. It did not exist before, it has not been used since," he said, tilting his head slightly to watch her tap another crystal. "This place is imprinted with you."
"And you," Sarah shot back. "I know what you were trying to do."
"Oh, what was I trying to do?"
Sarah didn't look at him, pointedly staring at the crystal chandelier. In her mind, she could hear his silky voice from her memories: "…Turn it just so, and it will show you your dreams…"
"Trying to make me forget," Sarah answered, softly.
"Or…trying to make me forget." His voice was too close. She turned and he stood there, only a foot away. His eyes glittered behind the horrible mask, his full lips pursed, thoughtfully. He watched her. Sarah shuddered, unsure if it was from the weighted stare or his words.
He reached out a hesitant hand, almost as if he couldn't help himself, and touched her hair with the barest brush of his fingertip. He shuddered now; she actually saw his eyelids slide down to hide his mismatched eyes. Before he pulled his hand away, before she had even thought it through, Sarah grabbed his wrist. The contact was unlike anything she'd felt before, pure sensory overload. Her fingers tingled and when she looked at her hand, she saw the red thread tied there. It had shortened so that the string looped around her wrist and went immediately to the Goblin King's, looping around his, as well.
She asked again, because seeing it shorten and reappear made her suspicious of it, and because she felt he was keeping things from her, "What is the red thread for?"
"To keep us from forgetting," he answered, hopelessly. He had opened his eyes again and he was staring at her with something she didn't want to name, some fire that consumed him.
She said, and was surprised when her voice didn't sound bitter, "How the hell could I forget you?"
The Goblin King smiled. He moved to break her grip, but then held her hand in his, gently. His palm was warm. Sarah moved her hand in his grip until their fingers threaded together. She watched their entwined hands almost like she was watching another pair, as if her hand wasn't connected to her anymore. She had a distinct feeling her expression was one of surprise, but not displeasure.
"Would you dance?" the Goblin King asked, curiously.
"When?" She glanced at his face. "Now?"
"Now. We're in the ballroom, there's no one around…"
He said it like he expected her to say no and something in Sarah's heart clenched with a slew of emotions. Damnit, this was her reliving her past all over again. She was the confused, unsure mortal and he was still the magical being, the tempter.
She realized, feeling dread and exhilaration, that she didn't want to say no. Did she always have to say "no"? This was her dream, after all—and she'd already won back her brother.
"Okay," she said.
The Goblin King blinked, then grinned and grabbed her other hand, and before Sarah could say anything more, he swept her away across the marbled dance floor. She was wearing tennis shoes and they slapped dully against the tiles as they moved gracefully. Sarah had never been a good dancer—she could do the usual bump-and-grind type stuff that was required of at nightclubs, but that was about it. However, with the Goblin King, she'd never needed to know how to waltz. Just like in her ballroom dream ten years ago, he could sweep her off her feet and suddenly her eyes were fixated only on him. He glittered unlike anything else. When she was with him, she felt like her whole life up till that point had been in black and white; he was the Technicolor.
This could get complicated.
But it's a dream, she reminded herself. You've had a few about the Labyrinth, this is just another one.
"Me thinks the lady doth protest too much," a voice said in her mind, sounding curiously like her old high school English teacher. Sarah felt a small bit of dread form in her stomach, heavy like a rock. If only she could remember what she had been doing, when she had fallen asleep…
She wracked her brain, trying to reconstruct the time before she had obviously fallen asleep. Okay, Friday, what had she done Friday? Gone to work…she worked in an office, pretty mundane stuff. She clocked out at five, like every weekday, and then…?
I went to the bank, she remembered. Right, it had been payday, so she'd gone to the bank…and afterwards? Called Jim and asked if he wanted to go to dinner. Right, Jim, her boyfriend. They'd met at an Italian restaurant and had some nice food and conversation. Jim had walked her to her car and kissed her, promised to call her Saturday about arranging a date next week, and then…?
Watched a late night movie, went to sleep…
"Sarah, where are you, Precious?" The Goblin King sounded amused.
Sarah focused on him and smiled triumphantly. "I did buy two grapefruits! I was going to have yogurt with them."
He didn't miss a beat in the dance as he swirled her to an orchestra only he heard, leading her, and she willingly followed. He raised an eyebrow. "Grapefruits? Yogurt? What are you talking about?"
"I couldn't remember anything," Sarah said, "so I was trying to reconstruct my day. I remember now: I did wake up Saturday and go to the grocery store. I bought two grapefruits, yogurt, milk, and some stuff for next week. Then I went to my car…and then…and then…" Sarah struggled to remember. Finally, she sighed and shook her head. "It's gone. I can't remember. But I must have gotten home and napped? This is a dream, right?"
"Why?" the Goblin King asked. There was something in his eyes that Sarah couldn't identify, some emotion, and she wished she could take off his mask so she could see his whole face. "Why does this have to be a dream?"
"What else could it be?"
"Reality?" he murmured so softly she nearly missed it.
Her heart picked up speed. Despite having danced with him for at least five minutes now—time tended to stand still when she was held by the Goblin King—she wasn't even breathing hard, and he was pulling out all the stops, twirling her and spinning her across the ballroom. But now, her heart felt heavy and achy and her pulse thundered in her veins.
She could smell him: an earthy odor of fresh leaves, a smell that had permeated the Labyrinth and had always been associated in her mind from that day forth to magic. In the years that followed her visit to the Labyrinth, whenever spring came and she could smell it on the air, she thought of him and her time in his kingdom. Maybe, if she was honest with herself, she'd admit that a part of her glanced around looking for a white barn owl.
Maybe…if she was honest with herself…
"You said," Sarah murmured, slowly, trying to work her thoughts out so she could speak them adequately, "the ballroom connects you and I, that something happened here that connected us. Jareth, do you know what it was?"
The Goblin King shivered, she could feel the tremor move along his body and echo in hers through their joined hands.
He answered her question with a question: "Have you thought of me, Sarah, even once since you left the Labyrinth?"
It wasn't a question she had expected, and it wasn't an answer for her. She raised her eyebrows. "Have you thought of me, Jareth?"
"The red thread makes it difficult to ignore—"
"That's not an answer," Sarah interrupted, impatiently.
"I don't see why I must answer," the Goblin King said, haughtily. He executed a complicated move that had her twirling to arm's length, then he snapped his arm and she followed the motion, twirling back towards him—
Back towards him, a part of her mind whispered, as if the thought was important somehow—
And at the end of the twirl, she realized she felt fabric rustling against her legs and heard her steps making clack-clack noises instead of the dull thud of rubber soles. She looked down and squeaked with surprise to find herself wearing the white princess dress and matching shoes again. She reached up and touched her hair, feeling it held back from her face by the same crystal hairpins in the shapes of flowers and leaves.
She looked up at Jareth in surprise and saw he was wearing the same costume as he had been in the past: the bejeweled jacket in midnight blue, the white shirt, and the gray breeches. There were even blue streaks in his hair.
Jareth grinned and said, "For old time's sake."
"You're trying to distract me," Sarah said as he spun her close. For a moment, she was tucked against him, her back to him, and she felt his arms around her. She swallowed, mentally trying to slow her racing heartbeat. Please don't let him feel that. "You—you haven't answered my question."
"I said I don't see why I must answer," Jareth said, encouraging her into a graceful side-sweeping step then spun her so she faced him again. He settled a hand on her hip and Sarah could feel the warmth of his palm through the dress. "After all, I asked you first."
Sarah rolled her eyes. Technically, his question had been an answer to her question, so he still owed her some answers.
Feeling bold, driven by the pounding of her heart and a curiously light-headed feeling, Sarah reached up and delicately grasped the protruding nose of the goblin mask. She pulled off the grotesque thing and couldn't help smiling when the Goblin King's full face was revealed.
He was as handsome as she remembered—maybe more so, because now she could fully appreciate his looks as an adult. The high cheekbones, the angular features, the sweeping eyebrows over his amazing eyes, the straight and aristocratic nose over thin, sensual lips—oh yes, she remembered him.
"Why can't you ever just answer me, Jareth?" she murmured, exasperated.
Their eyes met and Jareth slowed, then stopped dancing. Sarah, still following his lead, stopped as well, but she didn't take her eyes off of his. He still held her hand, but the other left her hip to cup her cheek. Sarah didn't think it was possible, but her heartbeat picked up speed until she could hear it echoing in her ears.
Jareth's mismatched eyes stared into hers. His blue eye looked like a clear ocean; his brown eye looked like a bottomless abyss.
He stroked her cheek, his touch leaving behind tingles and causing a shiver to run down her spine. He noticed, and smiled.
He leaned close and Sarah had just enough time to feel a spark of panic—Oh crap, this is really going to happen and I don't mind! She thought—before his lips touched hers. It was a tender kiss, just the barest brush, soft like butterfly wings.
Sarah dropped the mask and heard it dully land on the marble with a soft rubbery sound, but the noise seemed far away. She reached up, wrapping her arms around the Goblin King and pressed herself against him, deepening the kiss.
Jareth took a sharp intake of breath, as if he was surprised by her reaction, and then he met her kiss with equal passion.
And Sarah's world fell down.
Author's Notes: Due to the kiss (and the kisses that will happen in the future :D), and the slight foul language, I upped the rating to T. I really enjoyed writing this part of the story because it was just fun writing Jareth trying to avoid answering Sarah's questions and Sarah finally getting exasperated and asking him why he can't ever just answer her. I think he managed to distract her again, though. XD
Well, what do you guys think? The next part, which I still am anticipating being the last part (although if it runs long, I may cut it into two), will reveal what exactly is going on. It also has all the action (whatever there is) in this story. :) Some of you did guess what the red string is trying to tell our hero and heroine...although Sarah doesn't quite know what that entails yet.
Please review! Leave your comments/questions/suggestions, I always reply to every review I get. What did you think? Has the pace picked up adequately? Any theories to what's happening? Hope to hear from you! And don't worry, you won't be left in suspense. I shall update VERY soon. Muhahaha! XD
Disclaimer: As always, I own nothing in regards to the Labyrinth. This fanfiction is completely not-for-profit, but I do ask that it is not reposted anywhere else without my permission. Thank you!