Thanks for coming back! Once again, please R&R. Other than that there isn't much to say this time.
~XxXxX~
Sarah remembered the words that beat the Goblin King that night.
You have no power over me.
And after migraine-worsening concentration, his words from that night were steadily coming back to her.
How you turned my world, you precious thing
You starve and near exhaust me
Everything I've done, I've done for you.
That line echoed in her head more loudly than the others.
Then it hit her. The speech he made right before she defeated him.
"Generous? What have you done that's generous?"
"Everything! Everything that you wanted I have done. You asked that the child be taken, I took him. You cowered before me, I was frightening. I have reordered time. I have turned the world upside down and I have done it all for you! I am exhausted from living up to your expectations of me."
I have done it all for you...
Sarah had to stop for a moment. Her heart hammered in her chest and her breathing was labored. Jareth noticed she had stopped immediately.
"What is it, Sarah?" He asked, concern in his voice.
"You..." she whispered raggedly.
"Speak to me, Sarah." He pleaded. He wrapped a hand around her arm, holding her up.
"But what no one knew is that the King of the Goblins had fallen in love with the girl, and he had given her certain powers." She whispered.
Jareth let go of her. He stared at her, wide-eyed. "What are you doing, Sarah?"
"Jareth, the offer you made me, was it to stay in the Goblin City...with you?"
He didn't speak at first. "You remember?"
She nodded.
"It was a mistake. Such an offer should not have been made to a sixteen year old child."
She said nothing. Once she caught her breath, they continued toward the castle.
~XxXxX~
Jareth was fuming. She was entirely too close to figuring out the truth and it terrified him. Raw anger coursed through his veins. How dare she behave so presumptuously? He decided to return her to her home once he retrieved his kingdom. His feelings for her had not been buried deep enough for the last eight years. He had allowed them to wait under the surface shallowly. That would not happen again. Her assertiveness unnerved him enough that she may force him into doing something hasty.
He walked several steps ahead of her, attempting to keep his distance. The heat from her body was like a beacon to him, he was aware of her every move.
It took them an hour to reach the gates of the Goblin City.
Jareth led her to the far east side of the castle wall and found a crack large enough for them to get through. From there, they quietly made their way to the service entrance of the castle. Although they did encounter a few goblins on the way, none of them caused any alert. Most of them missed Jareth's rule so much, they turned and ran the other way.
They found Leer in the throne room. He sat on the throne, one leg over the arm, his scepter in his hand, sword in the scabbard at his side.
Jareth glanced in the corner of the room. There, a group of women sat on the floor, fear in their eyes. William Happin sat beside the false king.
"What are you doing here?"
He stood. "Hello, dear. It should not come as a surprise to you that our marriage was nothing more than a means to an end."
Jareth was seething. The man had something Jareth could only imagine and yet he tossed it aside. He stepped in front of Sarah, a crystal already becoming his sword.
Leer laughed. He sent out his wives and they filed into another room one by one. "It is beneath you to rescue a damsel in distress, Jareth."
Jareth threw his head back and laughed louder. It unnerved the false king. "I am here for my kingdom, nothing more." Jareth said.
Moving to the middle of the room, circling each other, Leer drew his sword.
"When I kill you," Leer told him, "the first thing I'm going to do is marry your princess."
On the outside, it seemed as if Jareth had no reaction, but internally, rage coursed through his veins. He moved toward Leer. As Jareth waited for Leer to take action, Will sowly made his way toward Sarah.
"Not looking forward to being wife number seventeen?" Will asked Sarah.
Sarah gave him a look. "Perhaps being Leer's wife might prove more useful than being married to you."
Will scowled at her and struck her across the cheek.
Not one to wait to be rescued, Sarah punched him, landing the blow on his eyebrow. He clutched his face for a moment, releasing it when blood didn't flow freely. Sarah waited for his next move, but she looked away to assure herself Jareth was alright. It was the distraction that cost her. Will manuevered behind her, pressing his knife to her throat.
"Don't move." he whispered.
She froze and cursed under her breath. Somehow she became the damsel in distress anyway.
The true Goblin King bested Leer in moments. He was disarmed and dead before he had time to digest his lunch. Jareth's eyes found Sarah, trapped behind a knife's point.
"Will, you have lost. Release her." Jareth said slowly.
"I will not. If I cannot have your kingdom, I should at least have your beloved."
Sarah's mind was reeling. She hadn't the slightest idea what Will was referring to.
"That would be very stupid." Jareth promised.
Sarah felt heaviness in her hand. It was a crystal! How had it gotten there?
She asked it to get her out of this mess and it dropped from her hand, landing with an oddly soft thump. It exploded lightly, just enough to panic Will. Sarah's neck was nicked, but otherwise she dashed away from what was her husband, unharmed. She ran to stand beside Jareth, whose relief shown obvious on his face.
"The Bog of Eternal Stench, I think. Then to the mortal world. Somewhere cold."
In the middle of a plea for mercy, Will vanished.
Satisfied, the Goblin King put the symbol of his authority back atop his blonde locks where it belonged. He then turned to Sarah.
"I believe thanks are in order."
She smiled. "I didn't do anything. It was you who had to rescue me. Several times."
Jareth smirked. "You may be unaware of this, but your mortal-,"
"Ex-mortal." She corrected.
"Yes, alright. He made another prophecy." He magicked another crystal. Sarah watched as Will whispered a prophecy. The first stanza was the prophecy that made the Goblin King come for her in the first place. The second stated her help in the retrieval of the kingdom for Jareth, the true King. The crystal faded to black before she saw the last stanza.
"So I was supposed to help you this time around also?" Sarah asked him.
"Yes. It was always going to be you." He paused. "Now, it is time to see you home. Shall we?"
Sarah was not ready to leave her Goblin King, but she nodded.
"Make your wish."
"I wish.." she stopped. "Your Majesty?"
"I may have earned my title once more, but you may still refer to me as Jareth." He said, confidently.
"Jareth, then. You made me an offer once before."
The King raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I recall."
"Why?"
He didn't speak, just gazed at her.
"Why did you ask me to stay with you eight years ago?"
For the first time in his many, many years, the Goblin King was flustered. It took him several moments to recover. "Make your wish and go home, Sarah."
"No. I won't." She said, stubbornly. Pressing the issue was dangerous with Jareth's temper, but she no longer cared.
Jareth's jaw clenched, anger once again present in his eyes.
Her features softened. It was always going to be you. "I wish you would tell me what it is you meant."
Jareth winced at the request, but it was a wish and it had to be granted. "I merely meant..." He let the sentence die and took Sarah by the hand. Sarah, who had defeated his Labyrinth and returned to save his kingdom, glowed more brightly than the best lantern. He pressed his mouth to hers in a deep kiss. Words had failed him, but his action would not.
He felt her knees buckle. The two of them dropped to the floor together. He released her.
Rather than wait for another rejection, Jareth fled the room, snapped his fingers. The palace around Sarah vanished. She was returned to her home, and the emptiness that had finally begun to disappear, made its way back, into her very core.
~XxXxX~
I know this seems very short, but I promise you, this little tidbit is only the beginning. Things may have seemed to settle down, but Sarah and Jareth are in for much more.