Chapter VI: Wayward Magic

The Almighty Disclaimer

Oh Moffat and Gatiss,

Henson and Doyle,

Pika-la Cynique the generous,

To you belongs all the characters

And none so for me!

A/N: This story was inspired by "The Thin White Sleuth..." by Pika-la-Cynique of Girls Next Door fame.

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Jareth gathered Sarah into his arms and carried her to the sofa. She clutched to him and he could feel her biting into his shirt. And the pain... how long had she been in that much pain? How could he have brushed it off as mere mortal pain?

The former Goblin King quickly rolled up Sarah's right trouser leg and removed her shoe and sock. There were spider webs wrapped around an oozing wound. It was the bare minimum needed to keep a magical wound from infecting the rest of the body. He could smell goblin in the cuts. More importantly, the Labyrinth's magic was creeping slowly into the rest of Sarah's body. Such powerful magic in a human, even an extraordinary human such as Sarah, was deadly. It was a miracle that it had not killed her already.

"Precious thing, you have to tell me exactly what happened. I will end up hurting you if I do not have the right information," Jareth said.

Sarah was gripping the sofa cushions and tears were forming in her eyes. "I don't... want to be in your debt. You'll ask for... something I can't give."

He flinched at how scared she was of him. "You won't be. This will be repayment for helping me earlier," Jareth said.

Sarah nodded and gasped out her answer. "I... was in Afghanistan. There isn't a lot of magic from the... other side but... the Americans have a lot and it has... a tendency to go bad. I was... out in a caravan when we were attacked. I was running around trying to heal... the soldiers... Jareth, please."

Jareth stroked her hair, trying to comfort her. "I need more information."

"I was shot... in the left shoulder. I went down and... no one was coming... I just... I called out for anyone... I wished for help... I felt...something pull me away. Then goblins grabbed me. Some of them tore up... my right leg. There were... five... who... grabbed my leg. No one can fix it. They've tried and... no one knows... anything about goblin wounds. Goblins aren't... violent... as often as others... No one... Underground... knows why it isn't healing... not even the goblins who helped. Please. Don't be... cruel."

"It is possible that... the Labyrinth pulled you away. It was fond of you. The goblins probably got some of the Labyrinth's loose magic in your leg when they finished bringing you to safety." Jareth moved his hands just above Sarah's body. The Labyrinth's magic was quickly moving to her vital organs. He had maybe ten minutes to stop it and he knew the Goblin King could not come and save Sarah with a Runner in the Labyrinth.

"I am going to have to remove the magic," Jareth said, "Sarah it will not be pleasant. You have to promise me something before I begin."

"Just... I don't care."

"Promise you won't try to stop me, no matter how agonizing it is," Jareth said.

"I promise. Get it out," Sarah hissed.

In a moment, Jareth sat on the sofa and put Sarah's legs on his lap. He could see the very distinct goblin claw marks and he felt as if he could guess who left them in some of the wounds. That was not for him to deal with now. He had to heal Sarah. I don't damn well care anymore. Sarah will not die.

"Precious, this will only take a minute but will feel like forever, which isn't long at all," he said.

"Shut up and fix it," Sarah growled.

Jareth slipped off his gloves and tossed them across the room. He then placed his fingers into the deep wounds, digging out the magic of the Labyrinth. Sarah screamed. He ignored this and continued his work. He flicked out the magic as he found it, splattering blood and glitter around the apartment. The Labyrinth's magic reverted back to its old master and gleefully came to Jareth to be removed from the human.

The former Goblin King found that there was no more wayward magic in Sarah after working for little less than a minute. He then went to work on cleaning the goblin residue in the wounds. This took only a few seconds. Jareth finally placed a general healing spell on Sarah's leg and he could see that the leg was eager to be put to rights. Feeling smug, he sent a little more of his magic to heal some of Sarah's minor scratches.

Jareth moved Sarah's legs so he could slide onto the floor. He willed a crystal to appear in his hand and threw it against a wall. The blood and magic disappeared. He did not want to face Mrs. Hudson again with such a large magical mess.

"Better precious?" he mumbled as darkness took him.

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Jareth awoke by being slapped. He grabbed the offending hand even before he opened his eyes. Sarah was leaning over him, furious.

"You stopped breathing, you idiot," she said.

"Oh, that is interesting," Jareth said, "It has been awhile since I have done that. I did not, however, deserved to be slapped, silly girl."

Sarah rested her head against Jareth's shoulder. "Do not ever make me think you died ever again."

"I doubt I will have need to do so in the future precious," Jareth said.

Sarah forced herself back up onto the sofa. "The leg hurts, but not nearly as bad as before. I think I will need the cane for a little bit."

"No doubt," Jareth said, "Can you do something for me?"

"What?" Sarah asked.

"I need you to send a text. The technology gods have it out for me so that whenever I have to do something important, everything electronic I touch falls apart."

Sarah pulled out her phone and typed out the number Jareth recited to her. "Now, use these words exactly. 'What happened at Lauriston Gardens? I must have blacked out. 22 Northumberland Street, please come'."

With a few clicks, the text was sent. "What was that about?"

"Just a hunch," Jareth said, "Are you hungry? We should go get some dinner. I know this lovely place called Angelo's. They make a very good dish of pasta. So good it would make the Mongols weep."

"Can you even stand up?"

Jareth pulled himself up using the sofa. "Can you keep up?" he said with a grin.

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A/N: This scene was one of the first to become clear in my mind and made me feel like I could write this story. I hope you enjoy.