Jareth made it up the stairs, but did not know which room was Sarah's, so he paused.
"Sarah, which room is yours?"
Sarah, through her tears, pointed to the closest door on the left. He nodded and toed the slightly ajar door open wider to let them both in.
Once inside, he made her lay down on top of the unkempt bedding, and with a tug pulled the bedding up and over her bare legs. Once he deemed her comfortable enough, he turned to leave, but was stopped by a hand on his arm. He looked down to see Sarah looking up at him, tears staining her cheeks.
"Don't, don't leave me, Jareth, please?"
His heart ached at her words but he hesitated to sit next to her. "I do not think that would be wise, Sarah."
Sarah cocked her head to the side, "Why?"
He stood straighter, "I feel it would be best if I just go back downstairs. I do not want to cause you anymore stress considering all that happened today."
"Is it because you're missing an arm?"
Jareth bowed his head, removed her hand from his arm and turned away from her. Sarah's tears were long forgotten as she seethed with anger. She scrambled out of her bed and ran around it to come face to face with Jareth.
"When did you become such a coward?"
He recoiled in shock, but soon he was filled with fury. How dare she.
His eyes flashed and he glared at her as he replied, "I am missing an arm, Sarah! Cianan ripped that from me at the same time he did my magic! I also found out that my mother was mortal, so I am a magic made Fae! A lie! And on top of that, I have tried my damndest to even remotely understand that this body you see before you is nothing more than a remnant, a shadow of my real one!"
The color drained from her face as quickly as her anger did, "Wait, you mean to tell me that...that-"
"That Cianan still has my real body, yes. Damn it, Sarah! You don't know how hard this is."
He traced a finger down her cheek, smoothing away the fresh tears brought about by his words. "You don't know what I would give to make sure you never cry again, Sarah. I wish I had not have been such a proud and headstrong fool when we had first met. If only I could've seen what you would've meant to me, than maybe this would've have never happened at all."
Sarah softly placed a hand on either side of his face, "You have already given so much, Jareth. I can't tell you what is going to happen at the end of this, but I can tell you that I would not be anywhere else but right here, right now, with you. When I though Cianan had killed you, something inside me broke, had shattered like glass. Then when I saw you standing in front of me so real, so ALIVE, I knew then that I couldn't run from what I was feeling for you."
"Sarah?" He softly asked, a bolt of nervousness shot through him.
"I love you."
Jareth exhaled shakily at her words. He could hardly believe it. He threaded his fingers through her hair and pulled her closer to him. He nipped at her lips as he spoke, "Let me hear you say that again, precious."
"I love you, Jareth. I love you with all my heart and soul." She replied as she pulled his lips softly against her own.
He pulled away to rest his forehead against hers. "You have no Idea how long I have waited to hear those words from your lips, Sarah. I was cruel and heartless when we first met, but over time, your strength, your kindness, and your courage slowly changed me for the better. When I first saw you in the Peach Dream, I was struck by how beautiful you were, and even now, I am still struck by your beauty, both inside and out. I love you Sarah. I will love you for the rest of eternity and beyond."
She smiled at him, a genuine smile that lit up her face and brightened her eyes. "Not forever?"
He smiled back, "Forever's not long at all. My love for you will last for far longer than forever. I can promise you that."
This time there was no gentleness in their kiss, only a bittersweet desperation to not let this moment end. Jareth broke the kiss to leave a trail of open-mouthed kisses down her throat which caused Sarah to throw a leg over his hip and let out a soft moan.
He pulled back away from her then, trying desperately to calm the fire cursing through his veins. This is not the time for this.
He refused to look at her, instead gazing down at the floor to gather his thoughts better, "Sarah, as much as we both may want this, I do not think that we should-"
"Stay."
Jareth looked up at her words and could hardly breathe. There Sarah was, breathing quite quickly, with her hair ruffled and her nightgown all crumpled, but her face was what had him rooted to the spot. Her cheeks were rather flushed and her eyes were wild with blatant want. She was absolutely breathtaking and it made him painfully obvious of how aroused he was.
He took a step back towards her, reaching his hand up to caress her cheek, smoothing the dark curls back away from them. He let his fingers trace the path that his lips had taken earlier. She leaned into his caresses, her breath coming in quick little pants.
"Stay with me, Jareth." She asked breathlessly, "Please?"
He closed his eyes and groaned.
He had never hated himself more than in that moment because he knew nothing could happen between them.
Not yet.
"Sarah, my sweet, I can't. As much as I want to...I still do not know the limits of this body that I now possess."
Sarah's eyes filled with hurt, but she nodded in agreement.
"I understand. Can you at least sit with me until I fall asleep?"
Jareth smiled.
"Of course, precious."
And that was how Valeria found them a hour later.
Jareth sitting next to Sarah in her bed, their hands entwined tightly, both deeply asleep.
She smiled.
I am glad that you have found someone to finally share your life with, my son.
It is time. We must go now Valeria if we are to do this. Let them sleep.
Valeria nodded and closed the door behind her.
They both disappeared in a shower of fireflies.
In the Labyrinth
Two hooded figures made their way quickly and quietly through the darkness toward a set of stone doors. When they reached them, the smaller figure pressed a hand to the weathered stone. A glow lit the gloominess for but a moment before it faded into the surface and with a low rumble, the doors slid slowly open.
The small figure turned and spoke, "This should be close to where they are. This unfortunately is as far as I can go. The rest is up to you. Good luck."
With a wave, the small figure shimmered and faded from sight leaving the taller figure to look upon the tendrils of darkness swirling before them.
Cianan's magic has already reached this far? This is most unsettling news. I must make haste to reach Sarah's friends quickly before the bonds are too strong to break.
The tendrils swirled and undulated, trying to get a feel for what was invading their master's domain. Then when she noticed a dim light among the shadows, the tendrils were upon her in the blink of an eye, wrapping around her arms and legs, pulling her one way than the other, violently shaking her back and forth in the process. She struggled against them trying to break free as she reached a hand out toward the faint glow.
The tendrils wound themselves tighter, constricting her movements and if she were still alive, her lungs would have struggled to expand from the force they were exerting on her frame.
She focused all of her energy on that glow, came to a stop and let the shadows consumed her. They slithered over her as her energy gathered deep within her, causing her skin to brighten. The light was dim at first but as she raised her hand once more, the glow gained strength turning into a powerful white light, and as she pointed a slim finger out, it burst forward, as brilliant and bright as the sun.
The darkness surrounding her fell away in a cacaphony of shrieks and growls, retreating from the light weaving through the air until they faded away from the room. The shadows' absence revealed Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus shackled to the wall, still living, but unconscious and badly hurt.
The light split into three sets of two and set about releasing the still forms gently to the floor beneath them.
Valeria kneeled beside Hoggle and stayed there until his eyes finally fluttered and opened.
He groaned in pain and moved to sit up, but stilled his movements with when she placed a hand upon his shoulder.
"It's alright, Hoggle. You are safe."
"Who are you?"
"A friend, nothing more. We will wait but a moment for your friends to wake up, but then we must retire of this place. Cianan does not yet know what I have done and I do not want him to know."
"What happens then?" Hoggle eyed the stranger suspiciously, not trusting them at all.
"We give Sarah and Jareth time to gain a weapon to defeat Cianan."
Hoggle Scoffed and turned to look over at Ludo's form as it twitched, signaling his waking up. "And how dya expect us ta do that?"
"By building an army strong enough to oppose Cianan."
Hoggle's shock rooted him to the spot as he openly gaped at the cloaked figure.
His next question was cut off by a guttural growl piercing the air.
The figure quickly stood up and nodded at him, "We must go now. Cianan has found out that you have been freed. Follow the lights, they will lead you to someone that can hide you from him. Go!"
He stammered in confusion, "But,-"
"GO NOW!"
He didn't need to be told a third time as he quickly spun on his heel and hobbled to his friends, pushing Ludo upright and picking up the still unconscious Didymus.
We're comin' ta help ya, Sarah. Hold on. Was the only thought running through his mind as he limped onward following the dim, glowing trail of lights in front of him, leading them on.
Leading them to their freedom.
A.N: I have went over this chapter numerous times and realized the sex scene in here didn't fit. So I removed it and put something else in that fits better with the situation. Plus with how Jareth acts towards her, he wouldn't have taken advantage of the emotions running wild in both of them. He would be the type of person to wait.