Chapter 12: Heavy in Your Arms

From Florence + the Machine. The song's mood suits this chapter and the next one as well.

Taria Robotnik: Here you go! :)

Pinkbubblegum13: Hopefully this chapter and the next few will aid in your curiosity…

Dawn was beginning to break over the land, displaying brilliant shades of burgundy, blue, gold, and peach. The air was sweet and fragrant, bearing hints of warmth and love, which Sarah knew must have been intentional. Through the night, as she and Hoggle had walked in silence, Sarah had begun to realize how she truly felt about the Goblin King. Yes, he was certainly much different than she was, for they were from completely different worlds. And Sarah had become quite tired of his mind-games and emotional tidal waves. But there was something there- something she could not quite understand- that told her she could trust him, despite all the evidence that told her otherwise. Sarah knew that if she could trust Jareth, then maybe she could learn to love him, too.

Pulling the crystal out of her pocket, she rolled it gently about between her hands, watching the glitter swirl inside the globe. The music rushed through her once more, sweeping over her like a dark sea spirit, capturing her inside its depths and seducing her into the black, icy sea bed. The humming vibrated inside her head, a soothing sensation Sarah did not want to cease. She could almost feel his arms around her once more, like they had been in her nightmare. Sarah felt as though she was walking inside a cloud, slowly drifting through time and space with the one who had control over it all, in this world, anyway. She did not realize where she was until she felt something tug at her sleeve.

"Hey-o! Sarah! Wake up!" Hoggle shouted.

"Wha…" Sarah yawned and shook her head, realizing that she had been sleep-walking with the crystal in both hands. Blinking rapidly, she looked around her and gasped.

"Hoggle! This is it, right? This is the center of the Labyrinth!"

"Pretty much," he sighed. He led her out into the open circle just as the sun began to rise. At first, Sarah thought she was seeing things- but she realized that she was staring directly at a large marble statue positioned in the center of the clearing. It was of a male form and a female form, waltzing dramatically, their hair swirling about them in an eternal gust of wind.

"I don't get it, Hoggle. Why didn't anything happen? Jareth didn't check up on me or anything. He didn't even send cleaners after us!"

"I dunno, Sarah. I'm beginnin' ta think that this is a trap-"

"Who are they, Hoggle?" Sarah stared up at the lovers made of stone.

The troll hobbled over to the base of the statue and pointed to the foreign markings engraved deep into the marble. "Why, can'tcha read it?"

Sarah looked at him sheepishly. "…no?"

Hoggle let out a frustrated sigh. "It says, 'In Remembrance of the Goblin King Lauretius, and his lovely Queen Evelyn'. Sheesh, are you dumb!"

Sarah's breath caught. "Evelyn? But that's a human name."

"Your point?" Hoggle's brow furrowed, and he sniffed in a most irritated manner.

She looked deeply into the eyes of the woman-statue. They were bright, happy, and full of joy and contentment. Then she looked into the eyes of the man. They seemed to be laughing, somewhat amused, and just as happy as the woman. It was beautiful, magical, enchanting. Sarah almost felt as if she should look away, for the expression held between the two was so pure and loving that it seemed too intimate to stare at.

Then it clicked. She turned to Hoggle slowly.

"Why doesn't Jareth have a queen?"

She was surprised when Hoggle fell over in a fit of laughter. "Cuz no one would have him, of course! Haha!"

"Thank you very much, Hoddle. I will take it from here."

Sarah jumped at the voice. She turned around and saw Jareth standing there, wearing his darker attire. With a snap of his fingers, Hoggle was gone, left chuckling hysterically in the Bog of Eternal Stench, which happened to be his personal kingdom.

"My time is up, isn't it? Did I fail?"

"You know very well that you did the exact opposite, my dear. You made it to the center of my Labyrinth within the allotted amount of time," The Goblin King approached the girl and cupped her chin. "Well done."

"So, why don't you have a queen?"

Jareth exhaled through his nose, his lips pursed in thought. "Because I have not proposed to her, yet," he gazed into her emerald eyes as if attempting to extract them from their sockets.

It took her a moment, but soon the deepest of blushes registered in Sarah's cheeks. "Oh."

"Yes, 'oh' describes it perfectly. Let us leave this place. I have much to discuss with you." In a burst of glitter, the pair was gone.

The castle was bright, glowing, and welcoming. Sarah felt the warmth wrap around her and she sighed happily. She turned her head and saw Jareth staring at her, a mix of pleasure and worry present in his eyes. After a moment, he settled down into his throne and closed his eyes.

"Sarah, I have something to tell you. But I'm afraid you will not like it."

Her heart raced inside her chest.

"You are… well. You came here originally on accident, because you wished your brother away. As the Goblin King, I found it the perfect opportunity to mess around with a human girl, play with her mind, confuse her and watch her suffer as I laughed. But after a few hours of watching you race through the Labyrinth, I discovered that you were different- much different than any other child I had previously encountered. You had determination, passion, and a fiery spirit. And once you ate the peach and fell under my spell, only then did I realize how…"

Jareth paused, with a somewhat thoughtful look on his face.

"…perfect you are."

Sarah felt her knees knocking together. She attempted to steady herself, but ended up having to lean on a pillar instead.

"But, alas, you defeated me. My original plans were ruined. You returned to the human world, and here stayed I, exactly as I had been before. After returning my kingdom to its former glory, I admittedly sank into some deep, dark place inside myself, depressed and exhausted from the entire experience of attempting to capture you and make you my…own." Here Jareth chewed on his lip. "I watched you for some time, as you started growing up and becoming your own person, no longer solely relying on your imagination to make you happy. Part of me was delighted for you, but mostly I was incredibly jealous and angry. For once one of my kind attaches themselves to another, they change dramatically. And if the feelings are not reciprocated…" he glared at her. "Things get a bit violent."

Sarah breathed deeply. "Who are you, then, if not human?"

The Goblin King stood up, his cape flowing all around him. "I am, technically, half human. My mother came into this world almost exactly as you did. My grandfather stole her baby sister away, and she endured a series of puzzles and tests in order to retrieve the child. During her trial, my father, the Prince of the Goblins, was watching her from afar, and informed my grandfather that he had taken a fancy to her. The trial was canceled, and instead the rest of my mother's time in the Underground was used so that my father could 'court' her. And when he proposed, she said yes."

"Just like that? After only knowing him for a few hours?"

Jareth left his throne and approached the girl cautiously. "Sarah, I'm not sure if you've noticed, but my kind possesses almost unlimited powers. We can control time, re-arrange space, and do anything else in between. That includes… permanent seduction."

"Permanent seduction? Do you mean…"

"It is impossible to refuse. No one in existence could resist it."

"But… but that's not FAIR!" Sarah shouted angrily. Jareth looked at her guardedly.

"Do you remember last night… the bed?"

All the color instantly left the girl's face.

"I almost did the same thing to you, my dear," he said, without any hint of mirth behind his smile.

Sarah sunk to the floor and put her head in her hands. "Why didn't you, then?"

She heard him come closer, and felt two strong hands grip her forearms. "I wanted you to love me by your own choosing, and not because of my selfish desires. But I have had a terrible way of expressing myself to you, and all I can do is apologize and ask for your forgiveness, if nothing else."

She raised her head and looked into his eyes. Her face was wet and full of tears. He gritted his teeth in spite of himself and looked away. "There's something else."

"What?" Sarah's voice was low and tired.

"Because of my original attraction and attachment to you… if you were at all to permanently refuse me… your future children would be taken away, forever."

She gasped loudly and covered her mouth in shock. Jareth's heart broke when he saw the stricken look in her eyes. It was as if he had slapped her.

"And not just that… you would not even get to meet them, ever. To use human terms, you would be barren for the rest of your life."

Her tears hot tears flowed in a continuous stream. Jareth could feel the anger and pain coursing through her body, and it made him ache for her.

"There's nothing I can do, and this is what I regret most, above all else. It's just the way things are here, and if it was in my power, I would give you as many human children as you wanted, with whomever you ended up falling in love with in the Aboveground. But I have made a terrible mistake, and I…" his voice cracked. Sarah looked up at him curiously. "If there's anything at all I can do… any way to make amends… anything…"

She reached for his cheek and caressed it gently, despite the tremor in her hand.

"I understand."

I will try to update as soon as possible. Thanks everyone :)