Well here's a second one to make up for my long absence! Please enjoy!(and critic)
Jan. 3rd, Nikki, age 8
"Hiya Jarry! Were you lonely waiting for Nikki? Mommy made Nikki do homework downstairs; Mommy doesn't believe you help Nikki!" Nikki complained to her friend and she threw her book-bag to the ground by her door. She smiled at him lovingly, happy that she had not even needed to call him for him to be there.
Jareth smiled down at the little child he now found himself going to entertain without even being summoned. He scooped her up into his arms and tickled her stomach as she gasped for him to stop.
"Of course I missed you, Nikki dearest. Your mother is to grown up for her own good," he said with more disdain in his voice than he had meant to let out. Thankfully, Nikki was pulling on the collar of his shirt and did not notice.
"Does Jarry want to play in the woods again? We can invite the firery's!" Nikki suggested suddenly, the idea bringing a large smile across her face. Jareth nodded his head and set her down, she smiled up at him before running down the stairs and to her mother.
"Mommy, can Nikki go to the forest?" she asked her mother, hugging her legs. Sarah gave her a half-hearted smile and nodded.
"Only for a little while, okay? Then you have to eat dinner," She told Nikki as she opened the back door and let her walk out.
"Okay!" Nikki called happily running into the small wood that bordered her fence. She jumped over it, to excited to use the gate, and ran straight for the Firery's circle. They welcomed her happily and they danced around the fire one of them had lit. Nikki laughed as they threw their heads around and even saved one from landing in the fire, to which they were very grateful.
After an hour or so, Nikki managed to pull Jareth around the fire and got him to dance with her as well. She laughed as the Firery's bumped into him and knocked him off course. Disrupting his solid dance moves. Long before Nikki was ready for it to end, her mother called for her, and she hugged everyone goodbye.
Her mother scolded her for the messy state she was in, and sent her to take a bath before eating. Nikki did so grudgingly and ate quickly. She asked to be tucked into bed early, and Sarah did so, after checking to make sure she did not have a fever. As soon as the door was shut, Nikki jumped out of bed and called for Jareth.
She watched him change from owl to human with a smile, and hugged him happily.
"I was just about to bed," he told her, sitting on her own.
"Nikki sorry Jarry. Will Jarry sleep with Nikki 'stead?" she asked pleadingly.
"I don't know, you did make me dance with those annoying Fiery…" he teased her, looking away as though considering. Nikki pouted and turned away; telling him he had fun dancing and he knew it.
Jareth smiled at her pouting self and pulled her close tucking her head under his chin and leaning against the wall. Nikki sat there pouting, waiting. Finally, his breathing was slow and even, and she snuggled into his chest, smiling happily. Jareth hugged her tighter and laughed slightly as she squirmed and gasped.
"Sweetest dreams, dearest Nikki," he blessed her, kissing her forehead before tucking it back under her chin.
"Nighty-night," she replied with a sigh, closing her eyes, and smiling brightly.
Seven years later
Not knowing how to respond, Jareth just stared sadly at her. To tell her he was wished away by the very mother she already despised would be to tarnish Sarah's name forever. So he said nothing, and turned away from her hardened stare.
"The exit is here," he told her quietly, before climbing up the ladder and meeting the twilight. Nikki followed him silently, she had hit a cord with both of them, and so she squirmed under it guiltily. Ashamed of bringing such sorrow to them both. She lifted herself out of a giant, vine coved pot, and looked around.
Ten yards to her left there was a vast forest, dense and menacing looking. To her right, another ten yards off, was a river, flowing quickly. Surprisingly, the fast-flowing river looked safer than the forest…
Nikki stared at the rock Jareth had leaned against with hesitation. She was not sure she could stand being next to him after all this; at least, she should not have been able too. To her surprise, she walked next to him and sat down close to his side. She refused to look at him though, for some reason, suddenly just happy to be near him.
Jareth smiled slightly at the tiny smile crossing Nikki's own face. For the record, there was not a better place there could have been for them to enter.
"The Forest of Truth," he spoke with a knowing tone, "Opens you to the truth within you."
"Even the truth you try to suppress," he added with a knowing smirk.
Nikki made a pouty face, pursing her lips for a moment, before it grew into a smile. She looked up at him, her eyes shinning and proclaimed:
"I hate you!"
Jareth laughed full-heartedly, Nikki joining in a second later. It was true she hated him for leaving her, but there must have been a good reason. He had taken her to his castle after all, something he said he would never do. He had taken her to there to make up for leaving her. It was not enough, and she would get her answers, but for now, she was happy just to laugh with her boyfriend again.
…
'Boyfriend?!!!' Nikki screamed in her head, her laugh cutting short as she had a mini-panic attack. What the hell had she just thought of Jarry as her boyfriend for?! Jarry, for Christ's sakes!
"Are you ill again, dearest?" Jareth asked Nikki again as she seemed to panic. He could only guess the forest had awakened her to a truth she did not want to believe.
"N-no! Nikki fine!" Nikki squeaked out, her mind too shaken to convert third-person into first-person. Jareth smiled lovingly at her as she tightly wrapped her knees in her arms and hid her face as it burned. He had realized the truth about how much he had really missed her.
"Alright then, get some rest, Nikki dearest, we set out tomorrow," he told her smiling, as he lay down and used the rock's edge as a pillow. Nikki nodded in her knees. When she finally lifted her head again, night had fallen, and Jareth was asleep.
Nikki stared down at him with-unknown to her- the same loving smile he had given her, 'He's so handsome,' she thought dreamily to herself.
Needless to say, Nikki had another anxiety attack and ran to the rivers edge, the farthest away she could get from the forest. She stared at her distorted image in the rushing water with a crazed expression. What the Hell was going on? How could she having these thoughts about Jarry?
"The foressst appearsss to have quiet the affect on you…" a voice spoke with a hiss.
Nikki looked up quickly and squeaked at the sight of a snake. Not just any snake, a big, snake. A snake whose head was twice the size of her own, with a body just as thick. Its thick body wrapped around a branch dipping into the water, though Nikki sensed it would not need the branch to stay in place, and that it was just a lazy retreat. The snake appeared to smile at Nikki's reaction.
"The foressst affectsss beingsss differently. Sssome are treated with twiccce asss much power asss othersss…" the snake told her with the same knowing tone, "Do you fear what you realizzze?"
Nikki stared at the snake with wide eyes, before nodding slowly.
"N-Nikki does, she doesn't want her thoughts to be hers…," she told the snake slowly, quietly.
The snake nodded in understanding, "Sssometimesss, what we wisssh not to underssstand, are the thingsss we mussst know."
Nikki nodded her head, pretending to understand, before she got an idea.
"Excuse me," she asked, "who is the king of the Labyrinth?"
The snake looked at her Nikki with a sudden confusion, "The king…? We have only a…"
Suddenly he stopped, and something snapped into remembrance. He slowly tilted his head away from Nikki, and transferred his gaze to Jareth.
"I sssee. Ssso he isss, and you are…" The snake turned back to her, "Jareth isss the King of the Labyrinth!"
Nikki nodded happily; she had gotten another to believe in Jarry! Hopefully, soon everyone would remember him, and he would be solid again.
Nikki suddenly shivered at the memory of walking through Jareth. She shook it away, forcing it out of her head. No way would she let Jareth stay that way! Suddenly, she realized the snake had said something odd.
"Excuse me, but what exactly is Nikki?" She asked with a puzzled expression.
The snake did not answer. Instead, he turned his head upward, looking past her shoulder. Nikki gasped as she felt a hand lay on her shoulder. She jerked away in surprise and twisted around. Staring down at her with a smile was Jareth. He leaned down and touched her face, and did not go through it!
"Jarry's solid again!" Nikki cried happily, grabbing his hand and hugging it. Jareth's smile grew as he picked her up and hugged her to him.
"I thank you, Nikki dearest, were one step closer to making me real again," he told her, looking down with a smile.
"My king," the snake suddenly spoke as he bowed his head.
"I thank you as well, serpent," Jareth told the snake, his face suddenly hardened, "I ask that you remind those in the river of my title."
The snake nodded, "I ssshall do that, my king. I promissse the river at leassst will remember the Goblin King. Farewell," and with that the snake disappeared under the water with not so much as a ripple.
"Wait! What is Nikki?!" Nikki shouted as she pulled slightly away from Jareth as she looked in vain for the snake in the rushing water. Jareth pulled her back next to him as she gave up her search, the snake was long gone. Nikki gave an annoyed grunt, which made Jareth laugh at her un-lady ness.
"Don't laugh at Nikki! Snake said you were something- the king. He said that Nikki was something too! What did he mean?" Nikki huffed at him, to curious to blush at their closeness.
Jareth raised an eyebrow, pretending to be amused, "I'm sure he just meant that you are the one to save me, nothing more Nikki dearest. Now come to bed," Jareth commanded slightly with another smile. Nikki gave him a skeptical stare, but followed anyway. Not that she had a choice; Jareth had her gripped around the waist. Jareth led her back to the rock he had been leaning against, and sat them down, "I'm afraid it I use my magic now, I will be a ghost before morning. I hope you don't mind the ground," he explained to her leaning his head against the rock. He opened his arms wide in a welcoming way as she stared down at him.
"Jarry wishes!" Nikki forced herself to say as she turned her back on him and curled up in a ball. The dang forest was sending the worst possible thoughts to her and she was starting to hate her decision when she felt an arm wrap around her waist. Nikki gasped and twisted around to stare at Jareth with wide eyes. What was he doing? She could get him on a pedophile charge for this (not that she would). More to the point, Jareth was holding her!
"Growing up certainly changed you, you used to pout and refuse to sleep until I held you," Jareth said from behind closed eyes. Nikki stared at him, her cheeks burning.
"N-Nikki's had many years to practice sleeping on her own…" Nikki told him sadly, turning back around and pulling as far away from him as she could. Jareth furrowed his brow and pulled her effortlessly to his chest.
"Years of your life down the drain."
Nikki stared at the ground with wide eyes. She had just broken sleeping on a giant stuffed dolphin (a poor replacement for Jarry) a year ago! This was not progress, though truthfully, Nikki really did not mind. She waited for Jareth's breathing to slow to a calm and even pace impatiently. When it had, she slowly turned around and faced him, studying his features. They had not changed in the least; Nikki suddenly felt old and made a 'nya-nya' face at him. Then, without a second thought, buried her face into his chest with a smile, comforted at last.
Suddenly, she felt the arm around her waist tighten. Her eyes widened as she heard Jareth's familiar snicker.
"Apparently you haven't changed that much," he smirked, kissing the top of her head and tucking it under his chin, "Sweetest dreams, dearest Nikki."
Nikki felt herself blushing, caught again, "Nighty-night," she whispered, and closed her eyes. The smile was hard to hide…
