Boy, did I ever strike a funny nerve with that bit about David Bowie! I know that a million people have used it, and I know that it is completely predictable, but how could I help it? I just LOVE him as Jareth, totally cool!

Anyway, I have slaved long and hard over this chapter, and I hope y'all enjoy it. Things are starting to build up for the coming of the High Queen Clarissa... and there will be a SHOCKING surprise with it! I just hope y'all like it, for I have planned it all through the writing of this story:)

Oh, my hand is getting better, I still have it in a splint, but it feels better each day and my typing speed has improved greatly!

Enjoy this chapter... I need not command because I KNOW you will;)

Jareth was being very secretive, and Sarah wasn't the only one to notice. The whole kingdom was wondering just what was up with him, and every single person had their different opinions. Some thought he had gone slightly paranoid, and the way he was always looking over his shoulder was proof. Others thought he was on a secret mission from the High Queen, and his letters written in invisible ink were proof. But, it was his sneaking out of the castle in the middle of the night on three occasions, dressed in black and wearing a hood over his head, that convinced most everyone that he had some dark and terrible secret, and everyone had their own guess as to what it might be.

Sarah had noticed his attitude during dinner after she had left her father. She had tried to engage him in conversation, but he wasn't able to concentrate on what she was saying for more than a few seconds before his mind wandered off again. He had walked her back to her room as usual, but his kiss goodnight felt more like she was kissing a cousin and not the man she was crazy about.

Needless to say she was worried, but she wasn't going to start jumping to all kinds of conclusions. Her own guess, and she was determined to keep it only as a guess and not let it grow to certainty, was that the impending visit of the High Queen was heavily on his mind and there were certain things he needed to take care of before she arrived.

But then rumors came to her ear, rumors of his having a secret lovechild, and it bothered her deeply. She told herself over and over again that it was nonsense, laughed it off, and tried to go on with her days in a normal fashion. But, a few nights later she couldn't get the horrible question out of her mind: Did he have a lovechild, or worse, a lover on the side?

After tossing and turning for what seemed like hours on end, terrible possibilities for Jareth's stranger than usual behavior running through her mind, she got up and started pacing the room, and when that didn't help she decided to sit out on her balcony for a little while. Perhaps the cool night air would do her some good.

Only it didn't, and the moon was just bright enough to keep her awake. As she sat there, trying to enjoy the lovely night but not succeeding, she heard something in the gardens below. Looking down, keeping just out of sight should anyone be down there, she watched in amazement as Jareth came out of an arbor. She knew it was him, even though his whole body covered in a black cloak, she would have recognized him anywhere by the way he moved.

He looked one way, then another, and proceeded quickly and quietly out of the garden. Sarah hopped up and ran out of her room and down the hall to the tower at the far end. From there she could see the whole of Goblin City from three different angles, and she soon spotted the dark lurking figure darting quietly from one structure to another as if trying to confuse any possible watchers.

In one building he went, only to come out of another a few moments later. Sarah suspected there were secret passages under the city for him to do such things. Somehow using magic to whisk himself from one place to another just didn't seem likely. Why would he go through all the trouble of sneaking into the city under cover of darkness of he was going to use magic later on?

After a while he disappeared into a little shack and didn't come back out again. At least she didn't actually see him come out. She stood there for a moment longer, her fingernails tapping on the stone window frame, wondering what to do, when she noticed that a staircase had materialized to her right. She gazed up and saw that it led to an opening in the ceiling.

"You weren't there before." she said to the stairs as she took a few careful steps up. When they didn't vanish under her feet she continued up to the opening.

The opening led to the top of the tower that looked down over the main door and portcullis. Sarah walked up to the battlements, which were chest high to her (probably to make sure no little goblins could fall to their death below, she mused) and had the most breathtaking view of the city spread out before her. Looking up she felt like the stars and moon were just an arms length away from her grasp.

But she wasn't interested in that sort of thing, all that she could think of was Jareth. What was he hiding? Was he hiding anything at all? Why so secretive?

Casting her eyes back down on the city she watched for any sign of the king.

JSJSJS

Jareth had no idea he was being watched by Sarah. If he had looked up and saw her he would have darted right back into the castle and spent the whole night coming up with some reasonable explanation. But he didn't see her, and went on his mission in blissful ignorance.

He loved running around in the dark, covered in a black cloak, going from one house to another via the secret passageways. It felt like he was a child again, sneaking around the castle on his various little missions that ranged from the theft of sweets to getting out to play with his goblin friends without his father or mother noticing.

Only this time he was sneaking out for a much different reason, and it had nothing to do with having fun with the boys on the block!

At last, deciding that he had run around enough to confuse anyone who might be watching him, he went into a little shack, crept past the sleeping goblins, opened a secret wall and slipped into it and down a flight of dusty steps which brought him to a door. It was far too small for him to fit through without great discomfort, but he forced his way in, managing to keep his shoulders from being wedged in so tightly that he would have to use magic to get free again.

Standing in the room was a goblin, fat, round and rather plain looking at first sight, but when he smiled he became almost too cute to stand.

"Ah, yer Majester!" the little goblin bowed low, his nose touching his knees, at the appearance of his King.

"Hello, Cribble." he said, throwing back the hood, his hair standing out wildly. The room was lit only by a few candles, but it was enough to show the small table and chairs that sat around, each covered in rubbish of one kind or another. The ceiling was so low that Jareth felt the top of his skull press painfully against it if he stood to his full height, so he quickly brushed a stool off and sat down on it. "Have you completed what I commissioned?"

"Ya, ya!" he said excitedly, his little voice scratchy and rough, a perfect match for his outward appearance, Jareth thought to himself. Cribble bounced up on a stool next to a forge, the forge being the cleanest place in the room, and removed from a hidden panel a small crude box. "Yer request in here."

Jareth reached for it, but Cribble drew it back just out of his range, causing the king to raise an eyebrow. Anyone else who saw it would have cowered, but not that goblin. He knew he was safe from a great deal of the king's displeasure, knew exactly how far he could push him before getting into serious trouble.

"Na ah! I get pay first, then give item." he pointed to the table where a money box was set out. Jareth eyed it and then the goblin in turn.

"Don't you trust me, Cribble?" he asked, his voice dangerously soft and kind. Unfortunately it still didn't have the desired effect, and the goblin just shook his head.

"Cribble trust only when money is down!" he pointed again to the box.

Groaning, Jareth pulled out a little bag and dumped half of the contents into the box, then glared at the goblin. "I give half, you show me item. I like item, I pay remaining half. Agreed?"

Outwitted, Cribble handed over the box and watched as his master looked at it, waiting to see any signs of displeasure from him. But, to his delight, there were none, only a look of pure delight. And, more importantly, the rest of the money was dumped into the box. A nice little pile of golden coins that shone nearly as bright as his eyes.

"It is perfect, my dear Cribble! Now I know why I keep you in my services, however much you may annoy me." he pulled the hood back over his head and started for the door.

"You keep me because I only one who get yer jewelery made perfect. You Bog me, no more pretty shiny things!" he laughed, closing the box and hiding it under a loose floorboard.

"So true. Only do take some of that money and hire a housekeeper! This place needs some tender loving care right away!" Jareth said while brushing a spider web out of his face. Quietly he left the room via a second door, made his way up to the ground floor, and went out by the back door. He thanked his lucky stars that he hadn't hit his head on that door jamb again, and hurried out into the city.

JSJSJS

Sarah had been watching for Jareth for ages, and she hadn't seen him leave the shack. The night air, which had been so warm before, had cooled and left her feeling chilly. Sighing heavily, but refusing to leave the spot until she saw Jareth, she wrapped her arms tightly around herself and leaned against the battlements.

"I just wish I had a heavier robe!" she muttered to herself, shivering and rubbing her hands up and down her arms. The sleepwear she had chosen was, indeed, a bad choice for a chilly night. A deep rose pink thing, all floaty light fabric and lace, it was perfectly suitable for being indoors, not outdoors. But, then, she hadn't expected to be standing there spying on Jareth all night, so how could she have known it was a bad choice?

It was all a perfect recipe for anger, and angry she quickly became. So angry, in fact, that she never felt the dark figure come up behind her, never saw him lay his hands on the walls on either side of her, and never realized that he was there until a soft voice whispered in her ear.

"Chilly, love?" the words were spoken soft and low, but it made Sarah's insides quake in terror. Her heart jumped and raced in her chest as she spun around and came face to face with Jareth. His eyebrow quirked in a manner that Sarah took to be curiosity.

"J-J-Jareth!" she managed, her voice shaking from the shock of seeing him. "W-What do you here?"

"I think that I am the one who should be asking that question." he smirked in amusement when she dropped her eyes. "Were you sleepwalking, or just enjoying the view?"

Sarah saw that she was blocked from getting away, and did the only thing she could: she turned her back on him and faced the city. Not that she was looking at it, she was far too flustered to take notice of anything, and her mind was racing to find some explanation for being outside at such an hour.

"Or could it be that my beloved was..." he moved his head down, brushing her left ear with his lips. "...spying on me?"

Sarah shivered, and it wasn't because of the cold. If anything she was far too warm right then, burning with humiliation from being discovered, and because he was standing so close to her, driving her crazy. But she was determined to make sure he didn't see either facts, and put on a brave face.

"And what if I was spying?" she asked boldly, hiding well, or so she thought, her nervousness.

"I just want to know why." he spoke into her ear again. With his sharp Fae eyes he could see that it was turning red, so was her neck. He allowed himself a smile, he just loved teasing her.

"Perhaps I have been hearing rumors about secret visits to the city you have been making every night for the last three nights." she knew she was treading on dangerous ground on which it would be very easy to anger him, but she was feeling more and more brash with him tickling her ear, which was irritating the heck out of her!

"Ah, you mean the ones about my having a secret lover or some such nonsense. My dear, I thought you knew better than to listen to the idle rumors spread about by goblins!" he chuckled, taking one hand off the wall to brush the long hair away from her neck. "But, I suppose, it has shown that you are wildly jealous of me."

"I am not!" she said stubbornly, feeling at once like a fifteen year old again, trying to ignore his hand smoothing down her arm.

"Oh, but you are! Why else would you let rumor drive you to stand out here in the cold and watch me while I attend to my private affairs?"

If Sarah had an answer for him it was dashed like a wave against the rocks when he started kissing her neck. Though she tried to hold onto it all her irritation melted away swiftly. She leaned back against him, unable to resist, and closed her eyes. She felt him wrap his arms around her, blocking out the sudden cold breeze with his cloak, holding her tight.

"I-I- could I ask just one thing?"

"Um?" he worked his way up and behind her ear.

"What were you doing out there tonight?"

Jareth, not wanting to ruin the perfect moment, took his gloves off and took her left hand in his. With his right he took the crude box out of his pocket and opened it, carefully taking out the contents. Sarah felt something cool slip onto her ring finger. She moved her hand out into the moonlight and saw the most beautiful ring sitting against her skin. It was made the most perfect silver, the band carefully formed into a delicate Celtic knot pattern, and set on it was a small blue stone cut in the shape of a teardrop, and glowing with an internal fire.

"Will you marry me?" for the first time he was really asking for something, not demanding it. It was a strange feeling for him, a hopeful one with an undercurrent of uncertainty. What if she said no? What if she said yes? He felt as if his whole life hung in the balance.

Sarah felt at once like laughing and crying. Had he really asked her? She knew he had, but it seemed to wonderful to be real. It felt as if it was all the most perfect dream, and she feared that when she answered it would all end, and she would wake up and find herself back in her old room, surrounded by the things that made up her childhood, and all that would remain of the dream were memories.

"Yes, I will." she said at last, waiting for the dream to end, to fall down around her.

But it didn't. It was all real, and she found herself shedding silent tears of joy while Jareth kissed her.

For that moment everything was perfect, everything was right, and there was no one in the whole world but the two of them.

I can't help it, I just LOVE romance between Jareth and Sarah! Really, if ever two characters were made for each other they were:)