Disclaimer: Like I said, working on it.
Warning: Jareth and Sarah may be a little out of character.
So Simple, So Strong
Ch.24: Just Hold On
Jareth's eyes grew wide. "What do you mean 'this is what you feared'?" Elron lifted his head. "In ancient times, when this magic was used, there were some cases in which the recipitant of the magic falls ill. Sometimes mild cases, like small fevers, things like that. Others, it just starts out with small fevers and grows into something bigger."
"Like Sarah?" Jareth asked quietly. Elron nodded. "Much like Sarah. Some cases have even been fatal. Like you bring them back to life only to watch them die again. The only thing I can do for her right now would be to make a potion that helps to ward off the sickness and hopefully, prevent anything further that could harm her." "Well what do you need? I could have it here in an instance."
Elron shook his head. "There are some ingrediants that I will have to get from aboveground. I might take a couple of days, but I will have it prepared soon." Jareth looked down at Sarah, shivering in his lap. "But do we have a couple of days? What about right now? What can you do for her now?" The Elven King stood and cast a sorrowful glance at his long time friend. "I can do nothing now. I only know of minor things to help keep her comfortable."
"Well what are they?" Jareth asked eagerly. "Just keep her warm. Try your best to ward of the chills. They'll be getting worse soon. Do you know what malaria is?" Jareth shook his head.
"It's an aboveground disease that causes high fever and chills. That's about as much as I know about it. But this is much like that. She's probably in alot of pain right now, but there's not much I can do about that. Try your best to keep her fever down. If it gets to high, the heat could very well drive her mad before it kills her." At this statement, Jareth's eyes grew wide and fearful.
"I'm sorry to be so blunt," Elron said, "But now is not the time to beat around the bush. Her life is in danger and I will do my best to save her. I must be off now." Jareth just nodded his head and a light 'thank you' slipped from his lips as Elron disappeared. He looked down at Sarah. Her cheeks were flushed and a new sheen of sweat had broken out across her forehead. She was shivering slightly.
He pulled her close to his chest and wrapped his arms around her, holding her as tight as he could without hurting her. He kissed her temple and brushed the damp hair from her face. "Just hold on Sarah love." he whispered. "Just hold on."
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Jareth was becoming increasingly worried. Sarah was starting to cry out in pain and he was doing his best to comfort her. She was getting warmer and warmer by the hour. He kept a cool washcloth pressed to her forehead and hoped that would help some. He had sent a crystal to Lina and asked her to watch little Dominique until further notice because Sarah was very ill. She agreed and he dismissed her of her duties for the next couple of days.
He looked down at the shivering woman in his arms. He loved her so much. He didn't know how he would be able to survive if he lost her a second time. The first time was hard enough. He could still remember the pain. It had hurt so much. And he never wanted to experience it again. A wimper brought him out of his train of thoughts.
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Sarah's eyes were open and she was trying to focus on Jareth's face. There was pain shooting through her head and it seemed just about every inch of her body. She let out a small wimper and he immediantly looked down at her. "Sarah love? Are you alright?" He could have slapped himself. What a stupid question! Of course she wasn't alright! But yet, she smiled at him. The look of shock spread across his face only made her smile wider.
He blinked away the suprise before smiling back at her. "Jareth..." she whispered, her voice hoarse. "Yes love?" He brushed the hair off her forehead and kissed her cheek softly. "I-what's going on?" Jareth sighed. He seemed almost reluctant to tell her.
"Well, the particular magic that Elon used to bring you back has also been known to make the recipitant sick. Some cases are worse than others. Your's being one of the worse cases." "Oh." was all she said. Finally, after a long silence, she looked back up at him. "Am I gonna die?" Her bluntess startled him for a moment. "I-I don't think so. Elron went for ingridients for a potion that he says will help. But to be honest, I-I really don't know." Sarah nodded her head in a quite understanding.
"I will get you some water." Jareth moved to put her down, but Sarah grabbed his arm weakly. "No," she whispered. "Just hold me. Please." "Alright love." He sat back down on the bed and pulled her close again. She snuggled into his chest. "Everything hurts. And it's so cold." Jareth ran his hands up and down her arms in an attempt to warm her. "I know love. I know."
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It was getting worse and Jareth was starting to panic. The chills grew more and more severe. She could hardly recognize him now and this worried him more than anything. For fleeting moments, her eyes would flutter open and she would whisper his name. The next moment, she would look up with big pain filled eyes and cry out mom. Her fever was getting alarmingly high.
He tried to use his magic putting a cooling spell on her. It seemed to work for a few minutes and then the fever went right back up. When she finally settled down into a seemingly peacful sleep, Jareth gently laid her down and crept from the room. He went down to the kitchen to inquire the whereabouts of Lina. He didn't think any little girl should have to go a long period of time without seeing at least one parent. He hadn't seen her in a little while and he missed his little girl. He figured Sarah would sleep for at least a couple of hours.
He found out from a little goblin named Idgla that Lina was outside in the rock gardens. He dissapeared and re-appeared in the garden. Lina whirled around and blushed befor dipping down into a deep curtsie with Dominique balanced on her hip. "Hello Lina." Jareth greeted. "I came to see my little love." Lina nodded shyly and stepped foward, placing the babyin his arms.
Jareth twirled her around in his arms. "Oh how I've missed you little on!" he cried. "I love you so very much." He kissed her pudgy little cheek. "Thank you so much Lina for watching her I'm hoping Sarah will be better in a couple of days and I can come and get little love." Lina once again nodded shyly. "How is Sarah?" she asked. A sad look spread across Jareth's lovely features.
"Sadly, not very well. But Elron is helping in her recovery and I'm hoping for a quick recovery."
"I will be more than happy to keep Dominique until she is recovered. And um-well...could you tell Sarah hi for me? I know that's really a rather ridiculous thing to say, but I can't think of anything alse." Jareth nodded his head in understanding. "I will." Suddenly, a sharp cry pierced his very soul. It wa Sarah and something was terribly wrong. "Lina I must go." He gave Dominique a quick kiss on the head before shoving her in Lina's arms and dissapearing.
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Sarah was on the floor, her body convulsing violently. Blood poured from her nose and her eyes were rolled back in her head. Jareth started to panic. He rushed to Sarah's side, unsure of what to do. After a few moments, the convulsions stopped and her nose stopped bleeding. Her eyes went back to their normal positions, but she quickly shut them. With a wave of his hand, the bloody mess was cleaned up.
"Sarah love, what happened?" She shook her head weakly. "I don't...I don't know. I was laying on the bed and then-and then..."
"And then what love?" Her eyes were fluttering open and closed and she couldn't seem to focus. He pulled her to his chest and hugged her close. "I'm sorry." he whispered. "I'm so sorry that you have to go through this. This shouldn't be happening. Not to you." Sarah let out a short laugh that startled him. "It happens to the best of us."
Jareth kissed the top of her head and sighed softly. "Let's get you back to bed." He picked her frail form up off the ground and laid her down on the bed. She was already asleep. He kissed her temple. "Sweet dreams love." Then he set off to go and check on Elron's progress.
END CHAPTER
Otay, sorry for the super super short chapter, but I was trying to hurry and get one out. I just got back from Camp W.O.W. with my youth group. IT WAS AWSOME!! I had alot of fun. So sorry for the long delay. The next chapter will be longer and then I think there's only one more after that. So hang tight everybody! And thanks for all the lovely reviews on the last chapter!!