Chapter 28

Jareth laid Sarah down in a bed in the Room of Requirement, then turned around and locked the door behind him. Not many students knew about the room, but the few that did could come in at any moment, and Jareth would need his full concentration.

Jareth healed the small cut in Sarah's head, then healed the minor concussion. Carefully, he wrapped his mind around hers and began to weave spells of dreamless sleep over her. He sighed and sank into an armchair by the bed. There wasn't much else he could do besides wait.


Sarah felt incredibly groggy. She didn't move for a few moments before slowly blinking open her eyes. The first thing she noticed was that she was lying in a queen-sized bed instead of that house. She slowly turned her head, suppressing the urge to close her eyes and go back to sleep. Jareth was sitting in an armchair next to the bed, but his head was hanging over the back of it, and his mouth was open slightly. Sarah thought he might just be drooling.

Sarah struggled to prop herself on her elbows.

"Jareth.", she called hoarsely. She cleared her throat, and she was surprised at how dry her throat was. Bloody hell, how long had she slept?

"Jareth.", she said again, louder this time. He jerked awake and blinked slowly at her.

"Sarah?", he said groggily, then shook his head. "Go back to sleep. You really should sleep."

"How long have I been asleep?", Sarah asked, ignoring his order.

Jareth summoned a crystal and looked into it. "Nearly a day.", he answered, then vanished the crystal.

Sarah sat bolt upright, ignoring her head's protest.

"What?!", she shouted, then moved to get up.

Jareth stood suddenly and glared down at her. "Lay down.", he ordered. His look was so intense that she did as she said. "Good. Now go back to sleep."

Sarah shook her head. "I've slept enough, thank you.", she said stubbornly, although her body rebelled against her, telling her sleep would be a very nice thing to do at the moment.

Jareth sighed and walked around. She didn't dare look. She heard two distinct thumps of something hitting the floor, then the bed moved, and an arm suddenly wrapped around her and pulled her close.

"Please go back to sleep.", Jareth whispered in her ear. "You turn me on when you argue."

Sarah snorted. "Jareth, I'm starting to think everything about me turns you on."

Jareth grip tightened. "How very, very true, my dear. Now sleep."

Sarah shook her head. "No."

Jareth sighed again. "I will not get up until you go to sleep.", he threatened. As if that were actually a threat.

Sarah still shook her head. "No.", she repeated.

"Will you say no to everything I say?", he asked.

"Yes.", she answered before she realized the trick he'd pulled.

"Ha! You said yes." He cackled for a few moments before sobering up. "Do you want me to stay here forever?"

"Yes.", Sarah answered before she thought about.

Jareth was silent for a few moments. "I would do so, if only I could."

Sarah turned over to face him, and wasn't sure if she should be alarmed or excited that his face was so close to hers.

"What do you mean?", she asked.

He sighed and looked at her forehead instead of into her eyes. "Sarah, I have to leave soon. My kingdom won't last for long without me, with just my brother standing in. I can't stay forever. Surely, you knew that."

Sarah glared at him. "Don't call me 'Shirley'.", she muttered.

He smiled briefly. "Sarah, I know you know that I couldn't stay up here forever." His grip tightened even more. "Sarah, I have waited a very long time to have you in my arms, and I am unwilling to let you go. But I have to. Unless, of course, you come with me and become my queen. But I must leave by the end-of-term." He thought for a moment. "When is the last day of term?"

"Today.", Sarah murmured miserably.

Jareth's expression hardened. "Well, then I suppose you don't have long to make up your mind then."

Sarah sighed. "Jareth, you just as well as I do that there are some things standing in our way."

His eyebrows went up. "Like what?"

"Well, I'm only seventeen-"

"And you are of age up here as well as the Underground.", Jareth interrupted.

"And you rule a bloody kingdom.", Sarah reminded him.

Jareth shrugged. "Rule it with me."

"And I really wanted to finish school first. Can..." Sarah hesitated. "Can't you at least wait another year?"

He stared at her for a few moments, and Sarah couldn't tell what he was thinking.

"Jareth?", Sarah asked tentatively.

He jumped slightly, and his eyes refocused on her. "Hm?", he said.

"Jareth, just so you know, whatever I'm going to do... I do love you.", she whispered, and buried her head in the part of his chest that his shirt exposed.

Jareth sighed. "I know, love. But it just makes it all the more harder if I have to leave without you."

Sarah was silent for a few more moments. "Jareth, Laura told me about that connection... erm, thing. I dunno if there's a name for it or not."

Jareth tensed up. "I know she did.", he muttered. "I told her not to."

Sarah looked up at him. "Why?"

Jareth looked down at her. "Because I didn't want you getting any ideas."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Jareth, would you really be all that mad if I got ideas? You seemed to have forgotten the chocolate sauce."

He grinned. "I have to concede, you're right. But I do not want you to do anything you would regret."

Sarah shook her head. "Jareth, how on Earth could I regret you?" And she kissed him.

"Wow. You're kissing me.", Jareth murmured. "My, how the tables have turned." Then he kissed her.

"Jareth, if you want the tables to turn, you have to let me kiss you first.", she muttered in mock-anger, pulling away from him slightly.

"Sarah, we aren't going to discuss this, are we?", Jareth asked. "One whole discussion about kissing isn't enough for you?"

"Yeah, but that was a couple of months ago.", Sarah argued defiantly.

"Sarah, that was quite enough for me. Talking about it is no fun."

"Well, then, shut up." And she kissed him again. And then, one thing led to another...


Jareth stood at the foot of the bed, staring down at a sleeping Sarah, the covers pulled up to her chin, a small smile on her face. He'd had to weave a sleeping spell over her, because he did not want her to be awake for this. For extremely selfish reasons.

Jareth ran his fingers through his hair. "Sarah, I must leave.", he said quietly. "My kingdom is in disarray and cannot last any longer without me. I am sorry you are not awake for this, but it is my own fault. I am coward, and I cannot stand goodbye. It may not really be goodbye, for I am coming back. But I could not stand to see the look on your face, for that would cause me even more pain." He took one more long look at her before turning and walking out of the Room of Requirement, locking the door behind him.

Jareth walked into the Great Hall in the middle of lunch, ignoring all the faces that suddenly turned towards him as he did. Dumbledore stood.

"Jareth, where have you been?", he asked. "And where is young Miss Williams?"

"She's in the Room of Requirement.", Jareth answered. There were footsteps coming from behind him, but he didn't dare look around. "Oh, and by the way, I resign." The footsteps had suddenly stopped right behind him, and Jareth found himself turned around by Harry.

"I did not give up my magic just so you could turn around and leave my sister with a broken heart!", Harry spat in Jareth's face.

"I'm not leaving for good, you moron!", Jareth spat back. "Why the bloody hell would you think that?"

"Because you resign remember?"

Jareth tapped his chin. "Oh. Right. Well, I have to go. My kingdom can't stand much longer."

"Jareth, you have your bloody power, thanks to me. Moldyshorts is gone. What is the problem?" Harry rubbed his face. "I just know, if you go, Sarah will become the second ghost of Gryffindor, and her best friend'll be Sir Nick."

"Hey!", protested Nick from the Gryffindor table.

Jareth cocked his head to the side. "Even if she would, which I doubt, are you sure it has nothing to do with the fact that you'll miss me too?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Of course, I'm going to miss you, everyone is going to miss you."

"Especially the female population of the school.", Snape said.

Jareth smiled a sickly sweet smile. "Aw, Snape, you're going to miss me too?"

Laura snorted into her wine, and Snape went red.

Harry resumed his glaring at Jareth. "Why can't you wait one more year, huh?"

Jareth smacked his head. "That's when I'm coming back, idiot."

"Jareth, you can't leave.", Harry growled.

Jareth got right in his face and hissed, "Watch me." And Harry pulled back a fist and punched him. Jareth stumbled back a bit before coming back with a blow to Harry's stomach. Harry gasped as all the air was knocked out of him, and he doubled over before ramming Jareth in the gut and against the wall. Jareth brought his knee up to make a second contact to Harry's stomach, and Harry stumbled back. They were both breathing hard.

Harry straightened up, still holding his gut. "Go then, if you have to. But you've lost my approval."

Trying not to show how much those words hurt him, Jareth nodded curtly and swiftly walked out of the Great Hall, doing his best not to see Sarah's hurt, angry face when she woke up to find him gone.


Please don't kill me! If you must, kill me because this one was kinda short, not because of how it ended. There's still the Epilogue, everyone, so please, stay calm! And I'm sorry it is so short. My muse has gone on vacation. Kokomo, I think. But.... only one more chapter, the epilogue, obviously, to go!

Now... who wants chocolate?!