Lavender. That's what she smelled like when she hugged him. Behome was appalled that he didn't recognize his favorite scent on Kalina. When she had first wrapped her arms around him he almost panicked. Tentatively he returned the embrace and smelled lavender. He remembered her smile before she hugged him…a real genuine smile…
" Is everything okay?"
Behome snapped out of his thoughts and looked into gold eyes. She was looking at him strangely and started to ask something else when Jareth decided to make an appearance. The soft look that was in Kalina's eyes disappeared as she scowled at the Goblin King. Behome quickly stood between the two so that Kalina wouldn't get the notion to make Jareth pay for what she had went through. He could sense her heart still beating rapidly from the experience even though a few hours had passed. Jareth flashed him a appreciative smile as he opened his mouth to talk.
" Kalina," Jareth said, " I-"
He was interrupted by Kalina's angry snort. " I refuse to listen to you," she said, letting out the anger and terror that needed to be let out, "I refuse to talk to you, I refuse to even be in the same room as you…When I am ready to face you again, I will come to you, until then, I don't want you spying on me or trying to contact me."
And with that, she stalked to her bed and laid down with her back to them, a clear sign for them to leave.
" This is my kingdom," replied Jareth, his patience wearing thin, " I'll talk to you when I damn well please. Tomorrow you'll finish the library then you will clean the stables. After you are done you will come to me for your next job."
Kalina didn't respond and Behome started to go towards her when Jareth placed a hand on his shoulder.
" Leave her Behome," he said, " if she wants to be alone, she will be alone."
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Only when Kalina heard the two men leave did she move from the bed. Sitting up, she thought back on what Jareth had said.
He doesn't realize that I have always been alone she thought ever since eight years old I have been alone.
Thunder rolled in the distance making Kalina tense up. There was something scratching at her door. Getting up she made her way to the door and opened it slightly to see who or what was on the other side. Gandolf nudged the door wider so he could get through.
" Hey," she whispered as she closed the door and locked it, " Jareth better not know you're here."
Gandolf meowed and trotted to the bed. Jumping on it, he settled on one of the huge pillows that adorned the bed. Kalina followed and sat on the bed. Sighing, she ordered the lights off and laid in bed. She missed Earth and came close to cursing Steph but thought the better of it. It wasn't her fault that the girl was so greatly influenced by her parents.
" Do you want to know why Jake's parents didn't approve of me?" she whispered to Gandolf as she stroked his fur and he started to purr. " They were rich and I wasn't. I barely had enough to get by. That and I'm not a certain petite blue-eyes blonde." Kalina continued thinking of Jessica, Jake's best friend. She hugged herself. Not one to feel sorry for herself, Kalina was angry at the self pity she was feeling and realized that she was slipping into depression. She was stuck in a world where she didn't belong.
" I wish I had the framed picture of my parents," she said to Gandolf, "at least I would have something to remind me of the good times." She thought briefly of the picture of her and Jake but thought better of it. It would probably just depress her. He didn't have any pictures on display at his place. Pictures of him and Jessica as kids were all over the place however. Probably the product of his mother since she always visited. Closing her eyes, she drifted off into a troubled sleep.
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Kalina finished mopping and looked at the now clean and organized library. She didn't feel any happiness though. Her thoughts kept going over the past twenty-four hours. Closing her eyes she shuddered at what had almost happened to her.
Rape was number one in her top three fears. Two being confined spaces and three being spiders. She didn't fear death. When it was her time it would be her time. Taking one more glance at the library, she noticed the crystal ball that was on a table by one of the chairs. She had dusted around it, not wanting to disturb it and was highly tempted to use it to check on Jake.
Kalina
Kalina was alert now. The whispering was back and she didn't like it one bit.
Bring her to us
Ignoring the whispers and walking out of the library, Kalina decided to be nosy and see what the other rooms of the castle looked like.
Several hours passed before she entered a room that she knew was special. It was huge, something one would expect of a …
" Honeymoon suite," whispered Kalina out loud. The bed was a huge canopy bed, white chiffon hanging from the top to the floor. It was piled high with pillows encased in silk. A gold vanity table took one corner of the room, it's seat was small and delicate. There were two cherry wood dressers and a humongous tub. The fireplace was made out of marble and there was a balcony outside the French door windows.
" This isn't a honeymoon suite," Kalina said to herself, " it's a-"
There were voices outside the room and the knob started to turn. Kalina dived under the bed just in time for the door to open. Jareth and Behome walked in.
" I need to get her here," Jareth was saying, " ever since she left..."
She heard Behome sigh. " She's not going to help you…not after what you put her through. I doubt she even knows that you had a role in saving her last night."
Wow thought Kalina, remembering what Behome said about her being the same age as Sarah this room has probably been waiting for her for the past seven years!
Jareth was pacing now. " It's custom Behome, something my father decreed should be done simply because of his dislike of humans. If I didn't follow his orders…I don't care, I'm going to get Sarah here and I will marry her, regardless of what my father thinks."
" What if she has someone else?" asked Behome.
Kalina could hear the smile in Jareth's voice. "She doesn't."
" Please tell me you haven't been spying on her OR making sure her relationships don't work."
Jareth stopped pacing, " She longs for me, Behome, the same as I long for her."
Behome was ushering Jareth out of the room, " We need to get out of this room Jareth."
Only after she was sure that they were far from the room did Kalina get out from under the bed. She was wondering if she should just wish Sarah here but not knowing whether Sarah wanted to be here stopped her.
" I wish I knew if she wanted to be here," said Kalina, fully aware of what she was saying.
There was a loud whoosh and suddenly she was standing in front of woman with long dark hair and gray eyes.
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Sarah took a step back as the gold eyes stared at her. The woman looked around her apartment then suddenly went to the pizza that she had just ordered and grabbed a piece.
" I'm sorry," she said, " I haven't really eaten in a few days. My name is Kalina."
Sarah wasn't scared of her, it was the feeling that radiated from her.
" He sent you didn't he?"
Kalina looked at her and said, " I sent myself actually. I needed to know what you feel for Jareth." Finishing the slice of pizza Kalina walked back towards her and stood with her arms crossed.
" How did you come to know him? Did you wish someone away?"
Kalina laughed, and Sarah noticed it was a sad laugh. " Quite the opposite. I was wished away by my fiance's younger sister. So far, I've had a rather trying week. So, how do you feel about him, I need to know."
" He asked you to wish me to him?"
She could tell Kalina was starting to lose her patience. " I'm not one to blindly follow orders. He has no idea that I'm here…I think the Labyrinth though…she wants you there too. She kept telling me to bring you there, that I was the one to do so. But before I do anything I need to know how you feel about him. Do you love him? Would you be happy living in the Underground forever?"
Sarah thought back on the past few years. She hadn't been happy for a long time simply because she kept thinking of a certain fae with mismatched eyes. That and her family had disowned her. Her boss had fired her for daydreaming too much and her dreams of being an actress were long gone, replaced by bitter reality. If she was with Jareth…
Taking a deep breath, she looked at Kalina and gave her answer.
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Hope everyone enjoyed. Another chapter to be posted in a couple days or tomorrow if I'm able to ;-).
