Three days. It would be three whole days before Jareth showed his face again, and even then it was initially only for a moment. A chance meeting even, which, considering the size of the castle, was hard to believe.

It was in the dining room. She'd woken earlier than she had the previous two mornings (she was tired, drained emotionally and physically) and followed her empty stomach to the kitchen where food was being prepared; the smells were enchanting – she couldn't help herself.

The first night she'd spent in the castle was a bit of a blur. She sat on the edge of that bed and waited for his return. Food was brought to the chambers, and she was informed that Himself was taking dinner in the library – she took that to mean that he wasn't exactly in the mood for company; so, after eating her fill, she'd curled up on the bed and slept.

The sun was high when she opened her eyes again, and being that there were no clocks near her anywhere, she'd guessed it was about midday. She tested the doors and was shocked to find them open easily under her hands. She took that to mean she was off whatever "punishment" she'd been on, and went off to look around. She didn't wander too far—a few rooms in the castle that were unlocked, the gardens immediately outside the castle doors. The last thing she wanted to do was get lost—it wasn't like she had a map or anything to get back.

Lunch had rolled around and still there was no Jareth; she was beginning to worry. By dinner time, she'd asked the goblin that brought her food where he was.

"Kingy is wanting to be alone, Lady," was all he offered, and Sarah, disappointed and hurt, hadn't asked again.

Day two was more of the same, though she had managed to wander a bit further and track down a familiar face. Turning the corner to see Hoggle had been one of the most comforting sights she'd ever seen. She spent the day in the gardens with him and didn't notice the time again until the sun sank low beyond the horizon. Back in the room she was now referring to as "hers"; she ate in lonely silence and wondered what she'd done to make him so repulsed.

Was it that she'd told him she loved him? Was the chase all he really wanted, and now that it was over he wanted nothing more to do with her? She couldn't think of a single thing that she'd done to deserve this… banishment. And the way he'd looked at her when he asked her… something about it set her teeth on edge. Perhaps it really was buyer's remorse.

Making her way through the kitchen, she'd cleared her throat to gain the attention of the goblin hovering over the pots and pans, and he'd immediately shuffled her into the dining room. Apparently, she wasn't welcomed in the kitchen. It was there that she'd caught her first glance of Jareth in days. He was sprawled across the chair at the head of the table (really… did he sit in all his chairs like that?), eyes far away, contemplating a speck of dirt on the wall—or the entanglements of the Universe for all she knew—hair askew, riding crop securely in hand tapping against his boot to some invisible metronome she couldn't hear. Only the sound of her pulling out her own chair had brought him around… and still, he said nothing.

He'd looked at her, eyes passing from the tip of her head to where she disappeared under the table and back again, before staring off into space again.

They ate in silence.

It wasn't until he stood to leave that Sarah again found her voice but, weak but determined, the sound of his name falling from her lips managing to stop him dead in his retreat.

"How long are you going to keep ignoring me, Jareth," she asked annoyed.

"I haven't decided yet, Precious," he answered truthfully, surprising even himself. And with that he left the room, leaving a gaping Sarah behind to stare at the space where he'd been standing.

Hours later, when the sky was red and the sun was hanging low on the horizon, the same goblin who'd been preparing her food and bringing it to her the nights and mornings before, knocked lightly on her door before entering. He was carrying something of navy blue and he brushed by Sarah to place it on the neatly made bed.
There was a note written in beautiful script that simply stated "For dinner tonight." Sarah wrinkled her brow for a moment and looked down at the Goblin who was patiently waiting for her to finish.

"Lady has one hour before dinner," he said simply. And with that, he was gone. Sarah sighed as she dropped the simple missive back down on the bed and fingered the delicate lace and velvet.
"Still trying to dress me up like a doll, Jareth," she muttered to no one, and made her way to the bathroom to wash away the day's dirt; she'd taken to spending a lot of time in the garden with Hoggle, and couldn't help planting or picking flowers on occasion…

…some of which adorned her hair when she'd finished getting ready. She didn't want to think about the "hows" or the "whys" of the dress, which fit her perfectly, she simply decided to appreciate the fact that it did, and enjoy the feeling of the dainty fabric against her skin. If Jareth had picked this for her (and she had no doubt that he did), he knew what he was doing.

The navy blue played sonnets against her creamy skin, the neckline dipping just low enough to show the vast expanse of milk-white before cinching up in an almost corseted fashion, and then falling from her waist in waves of blue and silver.

Not what she would have picked for herself (she was more of a jeans and hoodie kinda girl), but stunning just the same. Her feet adorned tiny silver flats and Sarah silently thanked whatever God there was that Jareth wasn't a heels kind of guy.

"Come on feet," she muttered to herself after a quick glance in the mirror, and she made her way back down to the dining hall.