What you Wish For by Kitty Rasputin

Chapter 9-Revelations

Disclaimer-I own this situation, not the characters, except maybe Eliza and Tanith and they're not very nice.

They stared at Toby for a few moments in surprise before Sarah took a step back, untangling herself from Jareth's arms. She slowly turned red, avoiding looking at Jareth at all. This was exactly the type of bad example she didn't want to give her younger brother. "Toby," she began gently.

He scowled at her and stamped his foot on the floor. "I'm not stupid. I know that's what was going on. Don't try to lie to me, Sarah." He turned and ran out of the room.

She made a move to go after him, but Jareth held her back. "Let me take care of this. He's been through a lot lately and he could use a friend right now." He slipped silently from the room before she could protest.

She slumped down into a chair and put her head in her hands. Things were spinning out of her control very rapidly. Jareth had a way of making her feel fifteen again, vulnerable and unsure of herself. Truth be told, she had wanted him to kiss her. That in itself showed just how much trouble she was in. She couldn't afford any distractions at this point and Jareth was practically a definition of the term. She groaned out loud and headed for the backyard, hoping that the chilly air would help her clear her head.

Upstairs, Jareth knocked gently on Toby's door. After only a moment, he stuck his head into the room to see the child flipping through a small red book. His gaze sharpened at the recognition of the title.

"Don't let her push you away because of me." Toby's voice startled him with its force. He glanced up to find the eight-year old staring at him defiantly, more like his sister than he could imagine. "She's scared of what will happen if she lets you in. She's scared that she'll lose me. You can't let her do it, though. She needs you. Sarah needs your help."

Jareth stared at the child in wonder. He was so much more perceptive than anybody had ever guessed. He sat down on the edge of the bed and gathered Toby in his arms. "Listen to me very carefully, Toby. I have been looking out for Sarah for a long time, longer than she's even aware of. I may have even saved her life once. No matter what happens between us, she will always have my help. She helped save me from the biggest mistake of my life and I have been indebted to her since then."

Toby wanted to ask what that mistake was, but held back. He knew better than to pry into the Goblin King's personal business. "I shouldn't have yelled at her like that. It's just that she treats me like a child. I understand more than she thinks I do, especially about her. She's the only one that accepts me as being normal." For just a moment, his eyes flashed a darker blue, the type of cerulean blue that no human should ever possess.

Jareth had to stop himself from recoiling. His mind suddenly latched onto an amazing possibility that he had never thought of before. "Toby, do you remember everything that happened while you were in the Underground?" At his nod, he felt like cursing. This would be just the thing to send Sarah into an outrage. He noticed the kid's frightened look and hastened to reassure him. "Don't worry. Except for turning into a fae, you're perfectly healthy."

"I'm what?" Toby's excited yelp caused him to fall off the bed. When he straightened up, he was grinning from ear to ear. "I knew something was going on. Does this mean that I get to live in the Underground now too?"

Jareth hesitated, for the first time unsure of himself. This was his fault for cutting it so close on time. "I honestly don't know. I have to tell your sister about this first."

"Good luck with that," Toby said with a salute. Jareth couldn't help smirking at him. The kid was exactly like his older sister. Unfortunately, life really hadn't been fair to Sarah. He wanted to wait as long as possible before telling her that things were about to get worse.

"Why don't we go downstairs and eat dinner? I'm sure that our news can wait a little bit longer. Sarah's probably worried by now."

Sarah, in fact, wasn't worried. She had forgiven Toby for his outburst the moment he'd said it and assumed that the two men in her life were catching up. She was willing to give them all the time they needed. There was no telling how long Jareth's good mood would last.

She flopped down on the grass, staring up at the stars. The wind was practically frigid and it easily penetrated through her jeans and t-shirt. Still, she ignored the feeling without a thought. There was no possible way for her to think while she was in the house. There was so much that she hadn't been able to work through, not the least of which was her relationship with Jareth, if there was such a thing. She sighed, suddenly aware of how much of a hopeless romantic she had become. At what point had Jareth changed from her adversary to the love of her life? She sat up so quickly that it made her head spin. He couldn't possibly be the love of her life. She barely knew him. What had she been thinking?

You were just listening to your heart, a voice in the back of her head told her. She silently told the voice to go jump off a bridge. She needed to focus on the custody battle, not a possible relationship with the notorious Goblin King. Thoughts of being solely responsible for Toby had brought her back from the edge of suicide. She had almost been consumed by her depression and, thanks to her younger brother, had barely escaped. Jareth had shown up at the last possible second, but only by accident. The choice was crystal clear in her mind. She couldn't afford to be selfish anymore. She'd almost lost her brother for that reason before.

The back door opened and light from the kitchen flowed out. It didn't quite reach the spot where she was sitting and she made no effort to get up and return to the house. "Sarah?" The melodious voice nearly sent shivers up her spine. She couldn't even force herself to look up to see where he was at.

The hand that landed on her shoulder caused her to jump. "Sarah?" Jareth's voice was perplexed, unsure of what was wrong. He kneeled down beside her in the grass, totally unconcerned with how this would look. "Sarah, darling, what's wrong?" He tried capturing her chin with his fingers, but she quickly evaded him.

When she finally spoke, after a few minutes of sitting in silence, it was in a broken, almost hollow voice. "He is the only one I have left, Jareth. I can't risk losing him. Not to Eliza. Not because of you." Suddenly, she whirled on him, her eyes wild with fear and confusion. "Dammit, Jareth! You're the Goblin King! What are you doing here with me? Why did you even come back? And, bloody hell, why can't I keep you out of my head?" She jumped to her feet, anxious to get away before he saw the tears that were threatening to fall.

He caught her before she'd taken a dozen steps. Before she could react, he pulled her into his arms and cradled her against his chest. "Sarah, my dear, sweet Sarah," he murmured into her hair. Then, he chuckled. "You always did have a flair for dramatics. What makes you think that I would let you lose your brother? Now, more than ever, he needs to stay with you." He made no attempt to explain his remark. Instead, he pulled her down onto the swing. "I'm not going anywhere, Sarah. Whether you like it or not, we are bound together by some kind of fate. I should be able to forget you. You are the only one that has ever turned down your dreams. I offered you a place at my side and you denied me. You defied me at every turn and managed to earn the loyalty of my three most faithful subjects. I should hate you for that. Instead, I'm here asking myself the same thing that you are. Why can't I stop thinking about you?"

The intensity of his voice made Sarah stare at him in shock. What he wasn't saying was expressed by the look in his eyes. She could have never guessed that he felt the same way she did. "Jareth." Her voice was a little breathless and she had to turn away from him. "When did we stop being enemies. I mean, I never hated you for taking Toby away, but we were adversaries."

He pulled her close, suddenly aware of how cold she must be. He could not say anything else to her. It was obvious that he'd said too much already. There was a possibility that Sarah would leave because of it, but he couldn't help being honest with her. To his surprise, she didn't move away from him. Instead, she reached up and pulled his hair out of the ponytail.

"This doesn't mean that I like you." She was smiling, though, a hesitant grin that made her whole face light up. For just a moment, neither one of them was pushing at the other. They were completely and totally at ease with each other.

Jareth saw his opportunity and decided to take it. She had never been this comfortable with him before. Just as he was leaning in, he caught sight of Eliza lurking at the edge of the yard. Biting back a curse, he gently pressed his lips to her forehead. "Sarah, I don't want to alarm you, but Eliza is here and she's watching us." She stiffened instantly and he had to stop her from getting up. "No. If you move, she'll know we've seen her. No doubt she has already come to her own conclusions about us, but I want to change her mind. Do you think you can work up some tears?" He whispered to her lowly, certain that only she could hear him.

She risked a glance up at him. "It's a piece of cake," she murmured, trying to hide her smile against his chest. She had a fairly decent idea of what he was up to.

He pulled her closer so that her face rested in the crook of his shoulder. He smoothed out her hair in a gesture of comfort. "Don't get cocky, love. Remember what happened last time." He was relieved, though. Her sense of humor in this situation was beyond what he could have ever asked her.

Sarah untangled herself from his arms after only a moment and visibly wiped away the tears that were now streaming down her cheeks. She took a deep, shuddering breath that seemed to help her regain her composure. "I think I feel much better. Thanks for actually listening to me. I really appreciate it."

Jareth looked down at her with an almost paternal glance. "You looked like you could use a confidante. Besides, what kind of family friend would I be if I did not look after you as well as Toby? You have suffered just as much as he has, possibly more. Now, why don't we get you inside before you freeze to death?" He stood up, but made no move to help her. Excessive attention on her would raise suspicions that he was trying to squash.

"You're probably right. If I got sick, there would be nobody here to take care of Toby." She got up and started following him toward the house.

Before Jareth could assure her that he would be there if she needed him, Eliza stepped from the shadows. "Dear Sarah, don't you understand that I will soon be taking care of Toby? You shouldn't worry your pretty young head about something like that, especially since you now have a man to take care of you."

Sarah made no indication that she heard the other woman, instead opting to ghost past her into the house. Jareth lingered for a moment to speak to Eliza. "Whether you are aware of this or not, every single family friend is siding with Sarah for custody, including myself. Now, I suggest that you leave before I am forced to remove you." His voice carried more than a hint of a threat.

Sorry it took so long for me to update. I've been really busy with school and other things. I really think I went out of my way to get this turned into a great chapter. I really hope you enjoyed the fruits of my labor. Now, for the bad news. I will be going to Japan for the entire summer as part of a school program. I have no idea whether or not the Air Force base I'll be at will have a computer that I can use. I am, however, bringing several notebooks so that I can get the story further along.

To my reviewers: LabyLvrPhx, DaughterofSlytherin, mistude, Tiraspy, and angel's death-I hope this meets your expectation, even though they didn't end up kissing. I'm evil like that.