Part XXV

You have lost yourself in dreaming, I have lost myself in you.
Now we lie beneath the sky, stars, and midnight blue.

Stars and Midnight Blue, Enya

"Everything's dancing," she whispered.

A solitary figure stood on the crest of a hill, overlooking a calm night sea. The evening breeze was fragrant and thick with mist. The sky overhead was a canopy of midnight blue and the full moon cast a silvery sheen over everything, turning the figure's pale hair to starlight - a contrast to the stark black of his simple clothing.

Jareth rubbed his eyes absently; his mind shrouded and his purpose lost. He had a strong sense that something wasn't right, that he should be somewhere else, but his thoughts were as scattered as the stars above. He felt drunk on the sensation.

And then he caught the faint hint of peaches… and something else.

Sarah.

As the mists cleared, Jareth could make out a woman standing in the sea's shallows, the spray darkening the pale blue hem of her dress. She was facing the far horizon, her profile obscured by long dark hair dancing in the wind. She was humming a song quietly - the tune both familiar and achingly distant. It drew him across the beach, silver sand dulling the high shine on his boots. When he was almost to her side she turned away and began running along the surf, black stands trailing out behind her. She was almost out of sight before he thought to follow.

The beach seemed to stretch for miles, but no matter how fast he pursued Jareth could not close the distance between them. Her laughter echoed back teasingly. Mockingly. A flickering light shone ahead in the distance; sinuous shadows twisting all around it. The girl was swallowed by the soft glow. As he approached, he could hear rhythmic music played with ferocious fervour and the distinctive crackle of a bonfire. The shadows became dancers; their wild faces bathed in firelight while their feet kept time to the sounds of fiddles, drums and whistles. They danced with abandon, as though driven by some primal force, and without warning Jareth was enveloped by their fold. Their movements were dizzying; the smell of the fire cloying.

Jareth licked his lips.

Sarah.

Familiar faces flashed by him in the dance. Memories surfaced momentarily only to drown beneath rhythmic beats. There were two women, twins, with their arms entwined as they spun in a reel. A grey-haired man sat carving, tapping his foot to the music as he cast wood shavings into the fire. A babe dressed in a distinctive red and white-striped jumper bounced to the music. Jareth reached for him as though by instinct, but he disappeared between the legs of a dancer with a giggle. He followed, but found instead a pair of young lovers locked in an intimate embrace. The boy had worked his hand under the girl's skirt and her dark head was thrown back in delight. She caught his stare and smiled wickedly, winking before returning to her tryst. A crown of ivy graced her brow. Something stirred in the back of his mind, his brow furrowing, but then someone handed him a tankard of ale. He took a sip and tasted peaches… and something else.

Sarah.

A woman grabbed his hand and pulled him into a frenzied dance, her green eyes alive with invitation and mischief. Her red hair glowed in the firelight and for a moment he remembered dancing with her before. She had worn a mask. But the sliver was gone as quickly as it came. She pouted prettily as he disentangled himself, before melting back into the fray.

Jareth spied a flash of blue through the dancers. He thrust people out of his way hurriedly, only to stop at the edge of the bonfire. The blue-clad woman was twirling around the flames languidly, her eyes closed and her arms outstretched. He grasped her hand to draw her near, his gloved fingers tipping her chin up gently.

"Sarah…"

The firelight danced in her obsidian eyes. Jareth dropped his hand in confusion. Soft laughter rippled over him like water when she smiled. She turned and flung herself back into the dance but a man garbed in black stepped forward to catch her. The girl pulled away, resisting, and Jareth found himself stepping forward to intervene. Piercing blue eyes locked with his own and for a suffocating moment Jareth thought he was looking into a mirror. The stranger raised an arched brow – the gesture so familiar it made Jareth ache. The dark-haired girl laughed again, before grasping the man and pressing her lips to his neck. She led him back into the dance.

It was a game and Jareth had no idea how to play.

He turned, feeling the circle close around him. Dancers pressed against him from all sides and his head began to throb. He was out of place and off balance, and all the while the fire seemed to grow warmer. Flames licked at his hair as the music built to a wild crescendo. The drums were making his head spin. He was being consumed. The pale-haired stranger caught his eye again, suddenly spinning the blue-clad girl wildly away from him.

And then the music stopped.

Everyone froze as if in anticipation. The carver was the only one unconcerned, the sound of his knife on the wood as rhythmic as the now silent drums. The dark-eyed girl turned and turned and turned, her blue skirts and mane flying wildly. She landed in Jareth's arms, her hair a mad tangle in her face. He raised a hand to brush it away and looked down into twin pools of green fire.

Sarah.

The Goblin King felt his world tilt. Before he could make sense of anything, Sarah had grasped his hand and they were dancing, the music beginning anew. Her eyes were locked on his face and for a moment he was lost again in a memory – of a different time and a different place. Their movements were natural and wholly unconscious, as though they had always been dancing and had never stopped.

The same figures flashed by him as they turned. The twins were whispering to one another furtively, mirrored smiles on their faces. The sultry red head had found another partner and was lost in their dance. The girl with the ivy crown winked at him again. This time her belly was swollen with child; her young man beaming. The carver continued his work, his movements methodical and unhurried. The blue-eyed man had his arms around the girl with obsidian eyes. She glanced over and he thought he heard her humming a child's lullaby over the music.

Jareth stared down in confusion at the blue-clad woman in his arms, but Sarah merely smiled.

It didn't reach her eyes.

Everything was wrong and right at the same time. It made his stomach churn. The striped babe was bouncing a crystal globe in his tiny hand. Jareth frowned at the sight, but Sarah was already drawing his face back to hers with a soft hand. Her tongue darted out to wet her lip and he knew himself lost.

The taste of peaches.

She smiled slowly. Knowingly. His heart matched the drums as they cricled the fire, but his limbs were lax and un-resisting. He felt the girl leading him around and around endlessly. He couldn't find the energy to care or stop.

And then an auburn-haired musician arose and began singing. The music changed tempo – the tune chilling and soft. Strain as he might, Jareth couldn't make out the words. The girl had slowed as well, her false smile fading. As they twirled around the fire again, the wood carver held aloft his finished piece, blowing the remaining shavings from it. Jareth stared at it, his mind beginning to clear as he felt a surge of raw power ignite his numbed limbs. His fingers flexed experimentally against Sarah's back. The girl had turned towards the old man as well, all remaining colour drained from her face. The carver held a figure of a man with the head of an owl, a crown atop its head.

Sarah looked up into the Goblin King's eyes and he smiled slowly. Sanguinely. "I did warn you… dreams are such dangerous and fickle things."

Sarah couldn't tell if his tone was mocking or compassionate.

And then everything changed. The world reeled and everything was falling…

When Sarah opened her eyes she was back in the opulent crystal ballroom of her memory. Abandoned masks littered the floor and cracks lined every wall, as though the room had been pieced back together shard by shard. The ceiling was left open to the elements, crowned by the myriad stars above.

She should be somewhere else…

Everything felt wrong, but she couldn't force order out of chaos. She caught her reflection in the cracked glass. Silver ball gown and hair entwined with crystal.

"No…" she whispered.

"Isn't this what you wanted?" demanded a bodiless voice. It resonated through her body. "Didn't you want to look beautiful for me?"

She closed her eyes, praying she would wake up once again to a classroom full of students, embarrassed but safe… untouchable. Praying she would wake up before she hit the ground. She licked her dry lips. Peaches… and something else.

Jareth.

Crystalline music began to play and she felt something brush lightly against her bare shoulders. Her eyes shot open in fear. A sea of lavishly-dressed dancers surrounded her. At first glance, she thought the men were wearing masks. She shuddered when she realized her mistake. Each male had an animal head rising from his shoulders where his own should have been. Their partners were unconcerned, dark hair elaborately coifed atop heads thrown back in ecstasy. A lone carver sat whittling in the corner, focused on his work.

Jareth.

Sarah wound her way through the dancers in a daze. A snake-headed man hissed at her as she passed, his tongue flitting across her cheek in a stinging caress. His partner watched her impassively, an apple clutched in her tanned hand. Sarah recoiled, backing away until she bumped into something solid. She spun to face a snarling dog-headed man. His partner was laughing at his antics, a pomegranate cradled against her pale breast. A grey wolf twirled past her, followed by a golden falcon. Sarah's heart beat wildly in her chest. Many of the dancers were locked in lascivious embraces, hands and mouths and teeth tangling. Sounds of fabric ripping. Cries of pleasure… of hunger. Beasts and prey draped in silk and jewels. Sarah cringed at the sight.

She turned to flee and stumbled into a couple. Blue eyes in an equine face stared down at her intently. The man huffed deeply, while his dark-eyed partner laid a gentle hand on Sarah's arm. She hummed a lilting lullaby as she took a bite from a ripe plum. The juice dripped down her chin and throat. Red against the white.

Sarah pushed past them, running until she met one of the fractured walls. She began beating her arms against it wildly, trying to deepen the cracks. A great slab of the crystalline mirror slid down, shattering at her feet. Sarah threw her arms up protectively, but was only hit with a spray of white feathers. The ballroom did not dissolve and she was wide-eyed, staring out into the the castle. She could see a large fireplace and stone walls, the great oak door and the carpeted floor a few feet below her. Portraits on the walls… a gilt frame surrounded the opening…

Her hands fisted in the folds of her dress until her knuckles bled white. She was inside the damned painting.

The dream had changed again. Everything had changed. Sarah slammed her hands against the unyielding barrier and closed her eyes to stave off tears. When she opened them again a woman was standing in the gallery. She had paused in front of the portrait. One hand rested against her pregnant stomach. Sarah choked back a sob as she recognized her own face, her own hand smoothing down her flat torso instinctively. A smiling Goblin King had come to stand behind the other Sarah, one hand entwining with hers over the child within. With the other, he stroked the back of her neck.

Sarah sucked in a sharp breath when she felt a gloved hand brush the hair softly away from her own bare neck.

"What a lovely sight."

Sarah squeezed her eyes shut, unwilling to see the face behind the voice. But the hand at her neck gently turned her and her eyes snapped open defensively. Jareth, unchanged and perfect, regarded her with wry amusement. His midnight blue frock coat reflected the starlight above...

…and she could taste peaches.

Wordlessly, he pulled her into the dance, past the wolves and serpents and hounds, his eyes never leaving her face. Sarah was lost to the movements. She followed him through a throngs of beasts and stolen brides, all the while wondering if this was her dream or his. As the thought flitted through her mind, an auburn-haired musician rose and began singing. Sarah strained to make out the words of his song, her steps faltering. Jareth stiffened, his hand pulling her closer, as though he feared she might be torn away.

Sarah swore she could smell the sea.

The silent carver stood, blowing the shavings from his piece once again. He held aloft the perfect likeness of a clock with thirteen numbers. Distantly, she heard Jareth curse viciously.

And then the walls of the ballroom collapsed, consuming the dancers within and shattering into crystal shards that rose to meet the stars.

The girl and the king stood alone on a cliff overlooking the dark sea. Seated on a stone outcropping were the carver and the musician. The king and the girl were dancing, neither knowing the direction, neither taking the lead, while the musician began to sing.

Much later, both the king and the girl would wonder from whose dream it was drawn and who was really singing to whom.

The words of the song rose above the wind with haunting clarity.

Breathing in the night
There's nothing else I'm needing now
The wind is at my side
And so are you
And together we will rise

Above all these word and promises we couldn't keep,
Together we will fly

Above it all now
But sometimes we will fall...
From the light
But it shines on us tonight...
And together we will rise

And surely it's a sign now,
That everything's in tune to some kind of higher plan
Yes surely it's a sign
That you were right...
And there's the secret line
That we've been denied...
And we're crossing it tonight
And together we will rise

The song rose in intensity until both the girl and the king thought they'd be lost within it. A force was drawing them together, like a cord tightening… binding… uniting.

Sometimes we will fall,
from the light
But it shines on us tonight
And together we will rise

Pass this line
That we're crossing here tonight
And together we will rise

The music began to soften again, sinking beneath the rising wind. The dancers stopped, hands clasped lightly. Their movements had taken them to the very edge of the cliff, the sea stretched far below them. The girl was certain the king was going to kiss her, as certain as she was that she was going to kiss him back.

But then the carver rose again, blowing dust from his final creation. In his hand he held a perfectly formed peach. With a sad smile he tossed the peach high into the air. It struck the moon and broke it into a thousand crystal shards. The stars began to fall like rain. The girl and the king tightened their grip on one another, both opening their mouths to speak.

But the world turned in on itself and the cliff slipped away. The girl and the king found themselves torn apart, falling towards the dark waters below.

Their words were lost in the wind.

Sarah awoke slowly to a familiar masculine scent once again. Her head throbbed and her thoughts were hazy. Groaning, she burrowed down into the feather pillow. A pillow that moved. Her eyes shot open. She was cradled against the side of a very warm Goblin King, his arm draped lazily along her back. They were sprawled on a grassy embankment, next to the sparkling pool. A peach lay forgotten beside them, a shallow bite missing from its ripe flesh.

Sarah held her breath as she looked up towards his face, dreading the mocking gaze. His eyes were closed, however, his chest rising and falling rhythmically with each breath. All traces of the usual arrogance were absent. His thin lips were parted gently, no trace of cruel laughter in them. He looked almost… vulnerable. Unable to stop herself, she brushed a lock of hair from his face. Sarah winced when he sighed softly, his bare fingers flexing against her back, but he did not waken.

Very carefully, she extricated herself from beneath his heavy arm and rose on unsteady legs. He shivered for a moment and Sarah remembered that he was still damp from his time in the pool. Biting her lip in indecision, she eventually flicked her wrist. The Goblin King was once again dry, if not immaculately garbed. She would question the wisdom of her actions later.

She stared at him a moment longer, conflicting emotions furrowing her brow and then turned away with determination. He would sleep right through the final strike of the clock. That or he would awaken and forget. Forget about her and forget about everything. Until it was too late.

Either way, time was growing short and soon enough it would all be over.

Sarah vanished leaving a crackle of magic.

She never saw the devilish smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

Let the dreamers wake. Let the sleepers rise.

Please R & R

AN:

So there you have it. The dream. A few old characters make their re-appearance, including the ill-fated Finn – albeit in fantasy form and a cameo from baby Toby. Hope you were able to follow it. Slight stream of consciousness (as befits a dream sequence). Also a bit of a shorter chapter than the last few but it has served its purpose.

The dream song used is called Rise and it's by the Frames. I urge you to find it online and listen to it. It's a beautiful song and I thought it really fit the characters and their relationship. I've been waiting to use it since this story's inception. The violins in it are haunting. It was also my wedding song (so I may be biased).

The line "their words were lost on the wind" was a paraphrase of a line from Chris de Burgh's The Tower.

You all make me blush with your reviews - you really do! Thanks.

A few notes:

Deeba the Unseen - Never really considered anything so drastic. The binding cord was almost more symbolic (like a hand fasting ceremony), the magic runs deeper. But novel idea.

J Luc Pitard - Very perceptive as usual ;)

Sajou no Uta - Glad they're helpful. I sometimes feel like I am footnoting myself!

Flame Wightstar - The harlequins are my original idea (to the best of my knowledge). I really do love 'em. Harlequins in general are naturally up for grabs, but if you want to use mine or my idea (masks etc), you are welcome to them - just throw me a nod :)