Author's Note: Yup, I'm the worst. I make no excuses other than I'm not a professional. I do this for funsies. Still quicker at writing than George R. R. Martin. (Sick burn)

Anyway, this was a tough chapter for me. I really had difficulty figuring out how to make puzzle piece A fit into puzzle piece B, and who I wanted my characters to truly be. I wrote and rewrote this chapter a few times. (Didn't say I proofread it several times, forgive me for the grammar errors).

Long story short, I shall accept the rotten tomatoes you guys throw at me with grace and dignity, as I deserve them for being a stupidly slow writer. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and I shall strive, as always, to continue writing. You all are amazing, and it's LITERALLY your reviews that prompt me to write more. If it weren't for the reviews, I'd forget about this story and give up. I'm so thrilled with all of you that have enjoyed this story, and hope you continue to believe in my slow... slow... slow writing (runs and hides from boos and tomatoes).

Justice watched from the ballroom with sheer joy as a despondent Sarah huffed and made her way to the gardens. By the state of her rage, the young witch could guess that the Goblin King had done more than enough to remind Sarah that he was, in fact, male. However, Justice discovered a much more interesting story walking back through the terrace doors.

Jareth walked through the door with an expression that was serene enough, but she watched with amusement as he looked over his shoulder to check that Sarah was gone, and release a long, suffering sigh. She nearly laughed allowed when she saw him look upward in silent prayer, and then scan the room. He found what he was looking for in the refreshment table.

The Goblin King's expression turned to a glower as he stalked over and poured himself what appeared to be a very strong drink. Unfortunately for Justice, her extremely entertaining voyeurism came to a halt as he brought the glass to his lips for a second long draft, and caught sight of her.

His expression turned murderous.

She barely had a chance to compose herself before she felt the telltale shift, and smelled the glimmer of his magic.

"I do hope you have been enjoying yourself." Came a dangerous voice behind her.

She kept her face impassive as she turned toward him. "Of course, your majesty. This party is a rousing success, I think." … a great success, indeed.

She smiled at him gently, but she could tell the snark behind her statement had not been lost on him. "How long have you known?" He snarled through his gritted teeth.

"I'm sure I don't know of what you speak, your majesty." She said serenely as she took a small sip from her own glass.

It was deuced hard to control her expressions as she saw the storm of turmoil on his face. The man was more emotionally involved with young Sarah than Justice had previously thought. Justice liked the man. Not many witches would admit to liking a Fae, but Justice had been in the company of the Goblin King for long enough to know that he was a good man. He did his job well, and he treated those in his kingdom fairly. What's more, he was fun. He liked to have a good time, and was always entertaining. However, she had noticed that he seemed to be lonely. Oh, she'd seen him with his fair share of paramours, but there was no emotion behind any of his decisions, any of his actions.

She couldn't say what had made her decide to intervene with him and Sarah, but she'd had an inkling the first time she had heard the, now notorious, tale about the girl who had bested the Goblin King. It was an amusing anecdote amongst the Fae nobility, but Justice had noticed the King's expression each time the tale had been brought up. Many assumed he was embarrassed by the encounter, and that explained his silence and refusal to speak on the subject, but Justice had a touch of the empath about her, and she had not seen embarrassment in him. She had seen loneliness in his eyes whenever the girl had been brought up.

It had fascinated her. The Goblin King had been such a strong, proud character that his reaction to a young girl spoke volumes. It was one of the incidents that had made Justice begin to truly like the Fae monarch as a person. Oh, she didn't fancy him or anything like that. She'd been a confirmed bachelorette her whole life, and had yet to be persuaded from that state. However, she had decided in that moment that she was fond of the stupid man, and determined that, should the opportunity arise, she would help… and dear lord, had an opportunity arisen.

It had been like Christmas when she had seen the young girl walk into her kitchen with the glimmer attached that hid her true form. What was better, when she had finally removed the glimmer from the girl, she had discovered the creature was beautiful. It made her feel like a young girl with dolls, forcing their faces together, and it was making her gloriously giddy.

"You do realize I can have you removed from this castle, do you not?" He snarled at her response.

She held back her smile as best she could. "The girl was terrified to see you again, Jareth. She has… an opinion of you, in case you hadn't noticed."

"Oh, I noticed." He said with more venom than she had ever heard from the monarch.

"I figured if keeping up her little disguise helped her feel more at home, and more able to keep her mind on caring for the boy, then I saw no harm in helping her. Frankly, I was astonished the disguise fooled you." She said honestly.

"Disguise? What disguise are you…" She watched as his mismatched eyes rounded in shock. "… there is no grandmother here… is there?" He said stonily.

Justice shook her head slowly, and hid her amusement as Jareth cursed. The man was clearly affected by the girl. How fascinating.

"Jareth, old man!" Came a loud voice behind them.

Justice let out a sigh in annoyance and anticipation. Reegan seemed to materialize out of nowhere to join the conversation.

As much as Justice found herself enjoying the company of the Goblin King, she found his best friend to be the epitome of irritating. The man was the definition of a player, a new girl on his arm, and often, in his bed, every night. He couldn't be bothered to take anything seriously either. The world wasn't something to be made better, but something to be used for his enjoyment in his eyes. He infuriated her. She supposed it didn't help that she couldn't argue that the man was gorgeous. His dark, wavy hair contrasted beautifully with each of his mismatched blue eyes.

"Don't call me old man!" Jareth snapped at his friend.

"Lord, Jareth, what's crawled up your backside?" He said with a glance between him and Justice.

Justice smirked as she said slyly, "What else gets a man in such a huff?"

She watched as Reegan's confused expression turned into a devilish grin. Justice mentally shook her head. The man vexed her to no end, but she would be hard pressed to find a man who could be called more handsome than the Fae noble. She hated how often she found herself staring at his smug face.

"A girl?! Since when do you do anything, but bring girls to your bed? I don't know that I've ever seen you so worked up over a female, well, apart from that human girl from so many…"

Justice snorted as Jareth's eyes nearly set fire to his friend. She watched as Reegan's face delighted in his dawning understanding.

"Sarah!? She's here!?"

Jareth had completely turned to stone. His fury could almost be tasted in the air… and it was delicious to Justice and … apparently, Reegan.

"Indeed, she is here." Justice said before she could think better on the subject. "In fact, it seems she's been staying in the castle under Jareth's nose without his knowledge."

"Really!?" Reegan responded with barely masked glee. He flashed a wicked grin in Jareth's direction before continuing.

"Is she as lovely as I have heard?"

Justice caught on immediately. "Oh, I would say she certainly is. Such a young, supple beauty with eyes that flash one minute and turn into a meadow sea the next."

Reegan smiled at her acceptance of the game. "Is that so? Well, in that case, I do believe I shall have to make her acquaintance… very soon." He said with a pointed glance at Jareth.

The Goblin King did move then. Justice was inclined to believe that Reegan suddenly wished they had not played this game. Jareth's lip curled into a mock of a smirk, but Justice was reminded of a snake's or crocodile's smile. He stalked up to Reegan very slowly, and Justice watched as the other man took a nearly imperceptible gulp and stepped back in retreat.

Justice couldn't blame him. She wasn't even the target of his disdain, and she felt the need to retreat, as well.

"I'm going to say this one time… friend" Jareth intoned coldly. "Do. Not. Come near her."

With one last snarl in Reegan's direction, he turned and stalked away.

Justice and Reegan stood for a few moments in stunned silence. Reegan slowly turned her way and smirked in disbelief. "Bloody hell, the man is crazy about her."

"In this one instance, Reegan, I believe you and I are in complete agreeance."

Sarah walked the length of the gardens several times attempting to calm her quaking emotions within the blue evening light that shadowed the exquisite scene. She somehow took solace in the quiet dark colors lightly illuminated by candles, and the dancing, enchanting lights of the underground. She made her way to the sounds of the fountain, and sat on a bench that overlooked the turquoise water filling the small pool. The midnight sky shown overhead, and the moon seemed to bath the leaves and grass surrounding the stone center in a dark navy light that turned the greens into a lower color.

"Well… that's not good…" she thought to herself.

It was bad enough that she reacted to his presence silently, in her own head. But thanks to that little stunt of his, Jareth had managed to pull out her darkest longings for him to see. The feel of his breath on her neck still had her insides melting, and she was doing her best to not squeeze her thighs together in response.

What was wrong with her? She wasn't innocent. She had known men. Granted, none of them were golden gods that managed to shine like a sun, but… men! She sighed. So, she found the man attractive, big deal. He was still annoying. Although, his story niggled at her. The more she thought on it, the more his depiction of what had happened seemed to make some pieces fit.

She heard the sound of the two boys approaching, and she shook herself out of her reverie. None of this really mattered. She may have been wrong about the extent of his crimes, but the man was still an ass. What was worse, he was becoming a dangerous ass. She had to focus on her brother, and he was nothing but a distraction. He seemed to enjoy tormenting her, no matter what he said, and she needed to have all her faculties about her to make decisions for her soon-to-be king little brother.

"Sassy! Sassy!" came the gleeful voice of her brother. "Look what Koga just taught me!" She watched as the boys pulled both of his hands to his right, and then sweep them across his body. A sudden burst of wind blew across her in an impressive gust.

"Toby, that's incredible!" She said earnestly. The young boy puffed his chest out in pride.

"Koga's the incredible one, Sassy!" He said with bright eyes. "He knows all sorts of amazing stuff."

She looked at the older boy who had averted his gaze shyly.

"Thank you so much for helping us, Koga." She said gently to the obviously uncomfortable child.

He turned to look at her with a hesitant smile on his boyishly handsome face. "No thanks necessary, ma'am. Toby's…" He trailed off and looked at her brother with what could only be described as affection. "Well, Toby's the best friend I could ask for!" He said with a sincerity that could only come from one so young.

She smiled brightly and chuckled "Well, in that case, you better not call me ma'am! We're family now, Koga, and my family calls me Sarah… or Sassy if you prefer." She said with a wink. Toby nodded his head vigorously in agreement.

"Yeah, Koga! From now on, we're brothers, if you want!" The younger boy smiled brightly at his new friend. Koga seemed extremely taken aback by the warmth and welcome he received, but slowly, an honest smile spread over his face. Something in his discomfort niggled at Sarah, though. He seemed to be uncomfortable with the word family… and that concerned her.

"So, Koga," she began delicately, "You must have been excited to see your mother again today! How long has it been since you'd seen her last?"

She saw it then. It was only on his face for a split second before he looked away, but Sarah had seen the dark look that had crossed his face at the mention of his mother. She had wondered as much after having met the flighty Elf Queen. She supposed it was only in the woman's nature to be everywhere at once, but boys Koga's age did tend to need something a bit more stable… At least, Sarah hoped that was what was behind his clear dislike for his mother.

"…It's been awhile." He responded noncommittally. Sarah decided not to push the subject further at the moment. She had gotten the answer she needed.

"Well… then…" Toby responded, thinking seriously. His face suddenly brightened as if he'd come to a definite conclusion of some kind. "You'll just have to spend more time with us! You don't see your mom very much, and we lost our parents years ago. We'll be the misfit family!" He said brightly.

Sarah worried for a moment that he may have offended Koga, who still very much had a mother, if an absent one, but she saw the other boys face widen in surprise and slowly spread into an affectionate smile as he watched her brother. Koga took his hand and ruffled Toby's hair.

"Haha, I guess that makes you my kid brother, huh? Gotta do what I say." He said teasingly.

Toby huffed and pushed his hand away. "Yeah, right! You're not that much older than me! I'm not taking orders from you!"

"I'm a year and a half older than you!" Koga retorted with a chuckle.

"So!? I can still beat you in a race!" With that, Toby disappeared in a flash, and Koga shouted his irritation at the head start as he teared after him.

Sarah laughed at the two. She was extremely glad that Toby seemed to have made such a fast friend. He seemed like such a good boy too. She sobered a little as she wondered about his family life, but she supposed the best thing she could do for him in the meantime was show him what a good family really looked like… even if theirs was a bit unconventional.

She turned her head toward the stairs in time to see Justice making her way over toward them. Sarah smiled in greeting and waved. She mused that Toby wasn't the only one lucky enough to have made a fast friend in the castle.

"Hey!" The witch said as she made her way over to where Sarah sat. "Sorry I couldn't get over to you sooner. Mother can be a bit of a bear when she wants to be," she said with an inward cringe. "So," she continued with an eyebrow waggle, "How'd the party going? Anything… interesting happen?"

Sarah felt her cheeks redden. "Nope, nothing in particular." She said quickly looking away.

Justice let out a put-upon sigh. "Oh, come on, I saw Jareth leave you on the terrace! What happened there!?"

"Nothing," she replied with blazing cheeks, "he just wanted to talk."

"He recognized you, didn't he?" Justice said with a barely masked note of glee.

Maybe Justice wasn't such a good friend after all, she though derisively.

"… Yes, ok? Yes, he recognized me, and toyed with me, and cornered me, and…" She paused, the memory too fresh and… well, intense to think about just now.

"… aaaaand?" Justice pushed unabashedly.

"And, he's an ass." Sarah cut off succinctly.

Justice laughed. "He certainly can be, that's for sure. Although, I gotta say, that man both is an ass, and has an ass that even a witch like me can't ignore."

Sarah turned to her stunned. "I thought witches don't like Fae?"

"We don't, generally, but that doesn't make us blind." She said with a wink. "Although… ah, never mind" She cut herself off.

"What?" Sarah prompted.

"Well, don't tell him I said this, but Jareth is actually one of the few Fae in the kingdom that I actually like… as a friend." She added quickly and honestly. "I know you won't want to hear it, but I genuinely think he's a good dude. But, you two have a history, and I get that."

Sarah sighed and turned to watch the boys cut across the fountain clearing in cheerful giggles. "I'm coming to realize that I might have been wrong about him being an evil son of a bitch." She admitted grudgingly, "But that doesn't mean I don't still think he's the most arrogant bastard I've ever met."

Justice laughed. "Now, that, I can firmly agree with you on."

"So long as he can truly help Toby with whatever it is his body is going to go through, then I can be civil."

Assuming MY body doesn't drive me crazy first. She thought.

"Well, that's a good thing, cause… there may be something I need to tell you." The witch said sheepishly.

Sarah turned to look at her, and saw that Justice was avoiding her eyes like they would surely set her on fire. Sarah felt like a stone fell in her gut.

"...What did you do?" She accused sharply.

Justice flashed her best please-don't-kill-me smile before saying, "I may have sort of let it slip that… there is no grandmother here… maybe."

Sarah felt her mouth fall open.

"To be fair to me!" the witch continued quickly, "he had already guessed! I just… didn't deny. Well, he might have not guessed if I didn't let slip that you had been in a disguise… but still! He guessed!"

She felt her head begin to pound, and she let out a bone deep, weary sigh as she leaned forward and pinched the bridge of her nose with her hand.

"No, no… he was bound to figure it out when he recognized me tonight." She responded tightly. "Just one more thing I have to contend with, no more hiding."

Justice gave her a sympathetic smile and rubbed her shoulder encouragingly.

"It'll be alright, Sarah. I swear. He's an annoying prat, but he'll be great for Toby. Really he will."

"I know… I know, logically he's the best thing for Toby right now. I just…" Sarah trailed off as visions of Jareth's intense gaze flashed in her head. His smoldering mismatched eyes seemed to be able to make her squirm even as she imagined them. Not to mention the things he had done as he held her only an hour before…

She looked back to Justice and saw her smiling like a cat in cream at her. "What?" She said as her face flamed.

"... You like him, don't you?" She teased with a cheshire grin.

"Absolutely not!" Sarah nearly shrieked.

Justice threw her hands up and laughed in surrender. "OK, ok! I'm just saying!"

Sarah shot her one last glare before saying. "I think it's time for Toby to head to bed."

Justice nodded as she chuckled. "I'll walk you back to your rooms."

Sarah barely paid attention to Justice and Toby as the chatted to each other while walking down the halls of the great castle. He thoughts were a swirl. There was no way she could like that man. None at all. Although… there was certainly no denying at this point that she found him attractive. It burned her up inside with embarrassment and rage that he had played her like a damn fiddle. It rankled.

The more she stewed the more she kept circling one thought, SHE did NOT get played by men! Sarah would have never classified herself as a heartbreaker, by any means. She wasn't cruel, but she had been known to have boys chase after her a time or two. She knew one thing, and one thing only. If Jareth thought he could burn her, he had no idea the bonfire he had just lit. The smile that crept over her face may as well have been war paint.

As if she had summoned the devil himself with her unholy glee and wrath, Jareth appeared before them as they turned to the hallway that held the door to their rooms.

He was leaning against the wall next to the door lazily, as if he'd been waiting for them. Sarah's hate-fire burned with a fury as she noticed that he didn't seem to be the least piqued, while she quite literally felt like melting someone's face off. Still, she was nothing if not an actress.

Jareth had noticed their approach, and Justice and Toby had noticed him. Sarah knew she held a perfect mask of indifference as their little trio stopped a few feet in front of their doorway. Jareth seemed to only have as for her. He wore that same devastating smirk that only heightened the fire in her blood… with which emotion, she didn't want to think about, but she knew she was on fire.

Justice looked between the two of them quickly before smirking and saying, "I'll just take Toby inside. Be good you two."

Jareth only spared her the briefest of sardonic glances as she passed him with the future king before returning his eyes to Sarah. When Sarah heard the door close behind Toby and Justice, she smiled her most devastating smile. She wasn't a vain woman, but Sarah knew she could make a head turn if she wanted to. She knew it might be a bit course, but she figured if she was going to go to hell, she might as well do it in style, as she proceeded to clasp her hand in front of her waist… gently forcing her breasts upward.

"It seems you wished to speak with me… my liege." She asked in a breathy tone.

She saw it instantaneously, a nearly imperceptible fall in his smirk, but more importantly, a swift dilation of his pupils. Oh, that's right. You're not the only one who can play this game.

She watched the man take a few blinks before clearing his throat and replying. "I simply came to inform you that your brother's lessons will begin immediately after lunch tomorrow. He needs to begin to contain his powers as swiftly as possible."

Her smile faltered a touch at this. "Is… is he truly in danger from himself?" She asked seriously.

Jareth's smirk completely faded, and was replaced by something she was not prepared for, a smile of genuine care and sympathy. She felt like she'd been punched in the face. She stood and watched him dumbstruck as he replied with all semblance of honesty, "He'll be fine, Sarah. It can be a rough process in the beginning, but I promise I will do everything I can to keep him safe. He does need this."

She felt herself breathing heavily. Dear God, I'm in trouble. She grabbed a hold of herself quickly, and nodded to him before averting her eyes.

A moment of silence passed between them before she heard a soft chuckle and looked up to find him smirking at her in full force yet again.

"You're welcome to come, of course. It's sweaty work, and I'm sure you'll want to watch your wolf in action." He purred to her.

And just like that she was snapped out of the spell, and her fury came back in full force. It took every ounce of her self-control not to slap that leer off his face. Instead, she closed her eyes, took one deep breath, and opened them again to look at him the way a tigress looks at a lamb.

He could tell something was wrong. She could see it on his face, but she did nothing to calm him as she took a deliberate step toward him and put a hand on his well-muscled chest. She tried not to let the feel of its warmth break her concentration as she said through a purr in her most sultry voice possible, "hmmm, what an enticing suggestion. Do you remove your shirt? I think I would like to see you… all wet."

She finished the last looking up at him through half lowered lids. He definitely wasn't smirking now. His eyes were wide, and she could feel that his breathing had gotten heavy under the hand that rested on his chest.

"I...I…" he began, but she cut him off, as she gently began to run a finger over the plains of his chest like the kiss of a feather.

"After all," she nearly hummed at him, "You got to see me half naked last night." Jareth's muscle in his jaw was working. His pulse was hammering, and his eyes were dark and stormy as he let out a low growl.

"That was you?"

"Ummhmm" she returned as she carefully let her tongue dart out to wet her lower lip. His eyes immediately went to watch the action with blatant hunger.

"Don't you think it's only fair," she continued, "that I get to see you equally… bare?"

His eyes were incredibly dark now. Some part of her mind realized she might have taken things a touch too far, but all she could feel right now was her own pulse rapidly beating, the feel of his chest under her palm, and the desire for… more.

"Sarah…"

Her name came out in a rumbling warning that almost sounded like a plea. She couldn't tell which. It didn't matter. Her plan was working beautifully. And while her own reaction had been a bit stronger than she had anticipated, his was nothing but perfection.

She smiled that devastating smile at him once more as she began to walk past him, trailing her hand on his body as long as she dared. She opened her door behind him and walked in before slowly turning around.

"Hmm, shame. I suppose you're just a puppy after all" She said with a wink.

His mouth fell open in a magnificent look she would remember for the rest of her life.

"Now if you don't mind. I have to see what Justice has done with my brother. Sweet dreams… your majesty." And with a smirk and a chuckle, she closed the door on the dumbstruck monarch.