"Your Majesty." Bauchan addressed him with a slight nod, speaking amusedly, using formality more flippantly than respectfully. "Its been awhile, perhaps too long?"
Jareth brought one gloved hand to his chin, resting the other on his elbow. "Bauchan, every time I see you I always end up wondering how it is that I allow you to remain in my kingdom. I dare not even think about what awful contraption you have waiting to unleash upon me."
Bauchman snickered. "My gifts?" He asked, incredulously. "Denizens come from every land to obtain my marvels-and the best I am always sure to save as presents to my king! And yet, you speak of them distastefully?"
"No more gifts. I give you your commissions, which function well enough that I suppose thats why I tolerate your residency...so long as you behave and obey."
Bauchan turned in to Sarah. "We go pretty far back, you know. Hes pretty uptight today, it seems, but it could very well be because of the last time I was here. I had a, lets say, "rough" project that I threw together with the purpose of directing castle refuse directly into the Bog of Eternal Stench. unfortunately..." He moved his head from side to side and put his hands up, "It sort of performed in reverse of expectations."
"And! If I recall correctly..." Jareth growled, looming closer, "I havnt seen you since."
"Ah, hehe, alls well that ends well no? The castle looks-and smells-absolutely marvelous! And you-" He took a sharp breath, "What a lovely cologne! I am manufacturing some of my own scents, you know-I may even have brought some-"
"NO!" The Goblin King boomed. He turned to Sarah. She detected a strange flicker in his mismatched eyes, but his face remained stern and unreadable. She tried not to act tense, but found it impossible to relax.
"I wouldnt have thought that you would return to my Kingdom, Sarah." He said in a low, even voice.
"I wouldnt have, if someone hadnt attempted to kill me, and mentioned you during the attack."
"I could have stopped him, if you'd recanted your words." He informed her. "I could have probably caught him then, as well."
"You know about the attack?" She seethed.
"It was I who woke you."
The womans face reddened considerably, and she stared at Jareth piercingly. "So you couldnt stop this creep from STABBING me, but you can watch me and invade my dreams just fine? Why where you even bothering me to begin with? I defeated you, why not just leave me alone! Dont you have other babies being wished away to entertain yourself with? Other loose-tongued suckers to troll with your maze?"
Bauchan looked at Sarah, as if she where suddenly much more than he had given her credit for. "I was wondering if this was the case..." He murmured. Jareth and Sarah both looked at him, icily.
He grinned. "Your Majesty, I come here only as an escort to this lovely young woman. If you dont object, I think I'll take my leave." He took a quick bow, then vanished.
"Dont leave me here!" Sarah screeched. She was just about to attempt to vanish herself when a strong hand latched onto her arm. "Ouch!" She howled, as the wound there was aggravated by the stretching of her skin.
Jareth drew back his hand and winced, as though grabbing her had pained him. "Allow me to see to your wound." He requested.
Sarah studied him for a moment. He didnt look angry-quite the opposite, in fact. He looked stressed, concerned.
"You cant make me do anything, can you?" She asked.
Jareth looked at her darkly. "I have no power over you." He breathed.
"You would like me to take those words back, wouldnt you?"
"If you did, I could protect you."
Sarah laughed, cynically. "Youre in danger yourself, Goblin King. Do you want to know what the guy said to me during the attack, or do you already know?"
"I know." He said in his low, even voice.
"Are..are you doing something about it?"
"The one behind this isnt someone I can just kill and be done with." He sighed. "Come with me, and we can sit down to talk." He offered his hand, and Sarah took it, grudgingly.
They reappeared in a comfortable study. Sarah took a seat, and Jareth pulled a chair up by hers and sat down as well. "Would you like something to drink?" He offered.
"No." Sarah replied.
"Very well."
He cleared his throat, obviously unhappy about what he was going to tell her.
"Quite some time ago, a Fae child was wished away to me."
Sarah gasped. The Fae wished away their own? Jareth gave a slight smirk in response to her surprise.
"This has only happened once, and the mother who wished the child away very much wanted me to take it. She had been tricked into marrying a man that she loathed, you see. She had never expected to have a child right away with him, since children are rarely born to Fae couples, and she saw the child as an end to her hopes of getting out of the marriage. Also, having him turned into a goblin and given to me was better, she supposed, than allowing her oh so abhorrent husband the joy of having a son. So, as precious fate has it, I am involved, against my will, the obedient slave of those who wish it of me."
"Such a pity." Sarah sympathized, borrowing his inflections.
Jareth looked as though he where going to comment for a moment, but then opted to continue his story instead. "So I took the child, and the mother ran The Labyrinth. During this time, the father caught on to what was happening, and demanded the return of his wife and child. I am bound by laws outside of my control, and he, as a Fae, should have already known that. Whats said is said. The only way to retrieve the child is to win him. Of course, she didnt. She fell into an oubliette, and when her time ran up, I came to release her."
He sighed, and his eyes glistened with pain. "She refused to leave the oubliette. She wanted to be forgotten, forever."
"Shes still there?" Sarah asked, breathlessly. Jareth closed his eyes and nodded.
"Her husband believes that I killed her. Hes convinced the entire Fae court of it. You see Sarah, you are not the only one to see me as a villain."
Sarah almost felt bad for Jareth. Almost. If he was playing her up, he was doing a damned good job. Of course, she knew he was anything but a dummy.
"It is this man, Gwawll, who wishes me dead. And you...Sarah. You are not aware of why hes after you, are you?"
"No. Im just a human, not even of this world."
"You are not. Not anymore."
"What do you mean?" She demanded. "What have you done?"
Jareth stiffened with ire. "Its always me, isnt it Sarah?! Its because I took your brother, because you ran The Labyrinth, and won. Nevermind that everything that I did, I did for you!" He stood up.
"The Labyrinth is the source of my power. It chose me to rule it, and after you defeated it, it gave some of its power to you, as well. What do you think of that, little girl?"
"Has nobody else ever defeated The Labyrinth?"
"Only you, and I, have defeated it."
"You?" Sarahs eyes widened. "You mean, you didnt just inherit the kingdom or something?"
He shook his head. "The Labyrinth chooses its rulers. It is its own magic, its own entity. Before I came, many Fae had tried to tame it, but failed. treacherous to inhabit, The Labyrinth and its surrounding lands became a dumping grounds of sorts for all things the Fae found undesierable-mostly goblins. Thus, it became not just The Labyrinth, but The Goblin Kingdom."
He seemed to calm down, and reclaimed his seat.
"Gwawll believes that whoever kills you and I will become infused with our power, and able to rule this kingdom. He wants revenge against me for the loss of his son and wife, and that is how he has chosen to obtain it."
"So what does this mean for me?" Sarah demanded. "The Labyrinth already has a ruler. Am I supposed to overthrow you or something?"
Jareth gave her a somber look. "You could." He said coldly.
Sarah paled. "I wouldnt, you know."
"But, Im so heinous." He aspersed.
"I dont want your kingdom." Sarah repined. "I just want to go home, and be safe."
Jareth looked at her, almost wistfully. "How have you been, up till the incident?"
Sarah couldnt believe he was suddenly just asking her how shed been, as if they where old friends catching up with each other.
"Just damn peachy, thank you very much!"
Jareth gave her a strained grin. "I enjoy your choice of words." He purred.
"Not your kind of peach, Goblin King. Not a rotten, drugged up one. A sweet one, where you get what you expect, and enjoy it, and there are no worms, or snakes, hidden inside."
"Did you enjoy any of the dreams I sent you? What I showed you was real, you know-at least in a sense. Its sort of an alternate reality type of thing. What is, what could be...if the stars align in the right ways."
"You need to just stay out of my dreams." She demanded.
Jareth sighed, discouraged. Sarah was all that he remembered, and more. He was agonized by her hostility, which he felt was uncalled for.
"There are three things that can happen with you, Sarah. You must believe me when I tell you that it was not I who caused this to happen, but The Labyrinth. The first is for someone to kill you, which they will try to do so long as you hold the power that you do. The second...is for you to rule alongside me."
He paused, looking for her reaction. Sarah looked sick.
"Keep going!" She urged.
"The third option would be to willingly give the power to me."
"If I did that, would I be left alone? I could go home, nobody would try to kill me, and you would stop spying on me?"
"You could go home, yes, but I couldnt be sure that you would be left alone. You are well known here, now. Some might still see...reason...to end your life."
Sarah rubbed her forehead as if what she had learned had given her a headache.
"Its really my only option, though, isnt it? Lets just do it, get this over with. I need to go home."
Jareth glowered at her. "No."
"What! Yes! You will, Goblin King! Take your damn hocus pocus bullshit out of me, and send me home!"
"No, not now!" He shook his head. "Youve got to think, Sarah. I wont have you making some rash decision because you are not thinking clearly, because you are at odds with me for mercy knows what reason. I wont send you home knowing that you could be in danger, and that I could not help you if you needed it. You see Sarah...whether you accept it or not, even if you never fear, love, or obey me, I am still your slave. I may hate it, but it is beyond my control. I am sure this too, will anger you."
Sarah opened her mouth to speak, but he brought up a hand to silence her.
"Dont. Say. Anything. Let me finish explaining this little situation from which we where so pleasantly derailed. I cannot kill Gwawll, and I dont know who he has working for him. There isnt really any end in sight to this threat. All we can do is stay vigilant, until I can think of something. Ill prepare a room for you, so that you can stay here. It is much too dangerous outside of my castle."
"I am not staying here."
"And why not?" He asked, exasperated. "What good would it possibly do you to go running off elsewhere, just to defy me?"
"You cant protect me anyway, Goblin King!" She reminded him. "So why have me stay? Im not recanting my words."
Jareth thought for a moment, her words being the truth. "Would you agree to stay with two women? I would much prefer you here, but they are reasonably competent Fae, and could protect you from being sighted with a spell."
Sarah nodded, slowly. "I would agree to meet them."
Jareth looked a bit relieved. "Take my hand then."
Sarah and Jareth arrived outside of a beautiful grey stone manor. Vines grew along the walls and dirt and cobblestone pathways snaked about the pleasantly decorated lawns.
"Epona and Bridgid are quite talented horsewomen. Ive known them since they where babes, and we trade from time to time. I must warn you that they will probably expect you to work while you are here...something that I would not expect should you stay at my castle."
"Im not afraid of a little hard work." Sarah replied. "And I love horses!"
"The crazy ones always do." Jareth whispered.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing!" He shouted.
"Tra la la? On our merry way?"
"You do like quoting me, dont you?"
"I cant help that youre so classic!"
"Are you complimenting me, Dear Sarah?"
"I wouldnt dare!"
"Of course you wouldnt."
He turned away from her and knocked. A small, pointy eared, green hued woman answered the door. "Your Majesty!" She fluttered. "You are here to see the ladies of the house, I presume?"
"Indeed."
The woman rushed off, and soon enough one of the women that they where there to see came to the door. Sarah inhaled sharply. The woman was no stranger. She was one of the friends that she had made inside her dreams.