AN: Hello everyone. I dare say that the end is in sight. No this isn't the last chapter but I think it may be coming up soon. I feel like I am writing a novel. Yikes almost 40 chapters and eek look at all the reviews! 4 hundred and 81 of 'em as I post this. Give yourselves a big pat on the back for being such wonderful, dedicated readers and reviewers!!! Jareth clones to all my reviewers and cake too!

Mature beyond her years….

"What am I going to do Sarah?" he pulled back from her slowly and ran a hand through his wild blond hair. "What if she can't find it in her heart to forgive me? I don't know what will happen to me if I lose you… if I lose her." His eyes were full of fear and it was very unsettling to her. Not very much could shake the Goblin King, yet the mere thought of losing Sarah seemed to throw him into an emotional tailspin. She had great power over him.

"Jareth even if Ary decides that she wants to return home, I could visit anytime, just as you would have let Toby visit us here anytime." She reached up to touch his face gently as she had earlier. "All would not be lost. "

"How could we live like that Sarah? Going back and forth from your world to mine?" He gripped her shoulders. She could feel the tension in his touch. " We could never have a family. We could never live our lives the way we want to." His voice rose in frustration.

"Keep your voice down. Ary is sleeping." She ordered.

Her concern faded when she felt a warmth embrace her and they reappeared in Jareth's chambers. She gazed around at her surroundings. It felt like so long ago that she had been in here. Weeks worth of chaos, pain, joy, had taken place in a few short days.

Jareth took to pacing the length of his large room so Sarah settled at the end of his bed, allowing herself to rest comfortably on the soft mattress. She brushed her fingers over the blanket and despite everything that had happened in the last few days, despite the future looking uncertain, she smiled. Memories of lying in Jareth's warm embrace the morning after they had made love drifted through her mind.

Jareth continued to pace. A sound startled her and her smile faded. She looked up to see that Jareth suddenly had a riding crop in his hands. He was pacing back and forth and tapping the crop against his thigh. His head was bowed down as he walked, his blond hair hanging in his face. The only sounds in the room were the tap of the crop against his leg and the sound of his heels clicking on the stone floor. Sarah watched him intently. He had not said one word since he had transported them to his chambers.

It was times like this that made her realize how much she meant to him. He was allowing himself to walk along the edge of a cliff, letting his emotions take control of him. It was times like this that she realized how incredibly emotional and sensitive he really was. His arrogant behavior was a mask and a shield that he would use to hide his true feelings. She understood his reason to do this. She was guilty of doing it herself many times. One might go to great lengths to hide their feelings with false ones to throw others off. His arrogance and coldness had certainly thrown her off as a child. She never expected to find a loving, caring, compassionate man beneath all the arrogance and dominance.

He was in turmoil. The shoe was on his foot now. It had been her that morning, learning from Megmora that she had lost the baby. Jareth had been hurt too, there was no way she could dismiss that, but he didn't hurt the way that she had. Just as now she didn't hurt in the same way that he did. He had lost his temper and in front of her daughter. Ary had never shown any fear toward him and now she was afraid. Not only did the idea that the child was afraid of him, hurt him, but the knowledge that because of his actions, Ary might decide she wanted to return home. He might lose Ary and Sarah.

She couldn't stand watching him pace any longer and she rose from the bed, crossing the room to pull him into her arms. "Stop." She told him softly. "Wasn't it you who told me to stop blaming myself for the baby? There is a part of me who will always blame myself, but there is a greater part of me that knows that you're right. Mother nature took our baby from us. For some reason it was meant to happen. Just as for some reason Ary was meant to see that firey temper of yours. You told me yourself that she would see it one day, she did. Now we have to figure out how to make things right again."

'How Sarah? How we will make it right? How can I drive the fear from her? I've lost her trust."

"We might never drive it from her completely, but we can try." She reached out to stroke his face with his fingers and he closed his eyes at the touch. "She knows that you are a good person. She's seen what you've done for me, she knows what you have done for her. We need to make her remember that. We all have a dark side, all of us, myself included. I need to teach her about that, just as I need to explain to her that she has to make a decision. Does she want to stay, or go? I need to make her understand the weight of her consequences. That she will not be the only one effected by the decision she makes."

"But is the decision too great Sarah? Are you asking too much from a child who is 8 years old?"

Sarah gently pulled his bare hands into hers and guided him to the bed where she sat and pulled him down along side her. "I've thought about it myself. How can I give such a responsibility to my little girl? But it's not so much about responsibility. It's about being able to have a choice. Let me tell you a story." She pulled his hands into her lap and gently smoothed over his skin with one thumb as she continued.

"My father started dating my step mother when I was 10. I hated her, didn't want her to take the place of my mother. I wanted the old life that I had known to come back. But as time passed I knew it wouldn't return. I love my father dearly, but there was one thing he did that took me a long time to forgive him for." Jareth leaned in toward her, listening intently. "I went to visit my mother for a long weekend. She was doing a big play in New York City and she invited me to the opening. While I was gone my father and his girlfriend decided to have a small wedding and I wasn't even told about it. He went off and married this woman that I couldn't stand and didn't even tell me! Didn't ask if it was ok with me, didn't ask if it was what I wanted. Just went off and married her behind my back and expected me to be fine with that. It was devastating to me and then for them to have a baby together. That was the last straw."

"That's why you wished away your brother…you were angry with what happened."

She nodded. "And it wasn't only that. I knew he was a baby and he would get attention but they spoiled him rotten. Made me stay home with him every weekend so that they could go out to the movies and dinner. Then these rules started popping up out of no where about where I could go and who I could hang out with. Karen enforced them on me so I couldn't stray far, so I had to watch Toby and then she would tell my father that something was wrong with me because I didn't go out, didn't date. I told my father about her rules and he brushed me off, said I was being too harsh on Karen."

'No wonder you wished him away. You wanted your freedom."

"yes! My father, perhaps not knowing took my freedom away by marrying Karen. I lived in a cage. The only time I found freedom was when I managed to escape to the park and read lines from my books. I felt free when I could fantasize about myself in another place and time." She looked into Jareth eyes. "I won't do the same thing to my little girl. God Jareth, I love you with all that I am and I want nothing more then to marry you and stay with you forever, but in doing so I might take away my little girl's freedom. If she doesn't want to be here and share this life with us, I could be taking her freedom away and I won't do that to her. I will sit down and explain everything to her, and that includes my feelings for you and go from there. But that is why I've left such a big decision to rest on her shoulders. She has the right to make a choice about her future. A choice I never had."

"Sarah this is commendable that you would want to give your daughter such an option, but what about you? What of your happiness, your freedom? If a life here with me is what you desire and you are forced to return to the mortal world, what will happen to you? Will you fall back into depression ? I doubt that you will be pleased to go back to a job you do not enjoy, to spend your evenings alone. I could visit once and a while, but not very often. I have a kingdom to run."

"Then you understand my obligations to my daughter. You have obligations to your kingdom." She paused, tears in her eyes. "I know that you want me to stay with you here and I want to stay with you, you know that. Jareth I have an 8 year old. She can't take care of herself. She still needs me. If she goes…I go..end of story." She said her last words with a slight coldness but her tears betrayed her.

He sighed pulling her into her arms. And we'll both be miserable…

She sighed deeply and traced patterns on his chest with her fingers. "What was this I heard about you going after Gorgin?" She asked softly.

He pulled back slightly. "Who told you that?"

"Ary and Meg." She brushed back some of his hair from his eyes and gazed into them. "Why can't you just leave well enough alone? We're all safe."

'But for how long Sarah? You don't know Gorgin. He will not stop until he has what he wants and he wants my kingdom. He wants to use you as the bargaining tool and I won't rest until he's been captured or until he's dead."

"Jareth.."

"No Sarah. I'm going after him with my army if the bounty hunters have not picked him up and you are not going to change my mind."

"You are so stubborn!" She crossed her arms over her chest.

"And you're not? I want this kingdom to be safe should you and Ary be staying with and even if you don't stay it needs to be safe for my subjects and myself. I'll let the bounty hunters have their fun with him for a bit." He didn't tell her of his desire for revenge. He still blamed the loss of their child on Gorgin. He kissed her forehead. "I want to spend some time with my loved ones before their vacation time runs out."

Sarah fell against him and he hugged her to him. It was times like this where he wished he could manipulate time, but she would know, Ary would know if he gave the days more hours. He sighed and touched her hair. He would have to wait as Sarah would for Ary's decision. A small grumbling was heard and Sarah blushed.

One of Jareth's brows rose as he gazed down at her. "Don't tell me that you didn't each lunch."

"Then I won't tell you." She gave him a lop sided grin.

"Sarah…Have you eaten anything while you've been back at the castle?"

"No comment."

"I'll take that as a no?" She nodded. "Sarah you are thin enough as it is and you've just gone through stress which could make you lose more weight. We're going to get something to eat right now and we'll see if Ary is awake to join us. And after that, you're getting some sleep."

""Jareth, I'm fine."

"No you aren't. You've had a rough last two days, we both have. We'll eat and then we're going to bed."

"You'll stay with me tonight?"

"If that is what you want."

"Is that what you want?"

He grinned devilishly. "Sarah, you should know better then to ask. Let's get Ary and some food."

Ary was sitting up in her bed when she heard the door knob turn. The door opened and her mother and Jareth entered. Jareth walked in slowly, he seemed leery. Sarah gently squeezed his hand. He was nervous, she could sense it radiating from him.

"Sleep well, sweetie?" Ary nodded. "We're going to eat dinner now. Are you hungry?" The little girl nodded again. She looked carefully from her mother to Jareth. The Goblin King was standing close to her mother and her mother was holding his hand into her own. They both looked tired and weary. Ary jumped up off the bed and walked to her mother, taking her mother's other hand. Then she looked up at Jareth..

Jareth said nothing and attempted to smile at her, but it wasn't working. He cursed himself for letting a child make him feel this way. He felt so vulnerable, nervous, weary. Like mother like daughter. He thought bitterly. Sarah and her daughter had successfully managed to allow his emotions to take precedence.

Ary stared at him intently, her eyes locked with his. She stared at him for a long time and Jareth felt like time was standing still. And then the child shocked both adults. She released her mother's hand and hugged Jareth. Wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. The Goblin King glanced at Sarah who was suddenly beaming. Ary released him and Jareth knelt before her, confusion in his eyes.

"Ary…I'm terribly sorry." He started slowly. "I-"

Ary put a finger to his lips as she had seen her mother do occasionally when she wanted him to stop speaking. "I forgive you." She told him softly. "I know you didn't mean to get mad." His eyes widened. She put her arms around his neck and he lifted her into his arms. Ary hugged him tightly. He felt like the Jareth she loved and remembered. Pulling back to look in his mismatched eyes she knew he was the Jareth her mother loved. There was no trace of anger, of that fury she has witnessed in the hall.

Jareth looked to Sarah. He had a feeling that Ary had not been sleeping when they had talked in her room earlier.

Sarah smiled and Jareth balanced Ary on one arm so he could slip his other around Sarah. Sarah smiled at her daughter. Her baby was 8 years old and she was mature beyond her years. She had found it in her heart to forgive Jareth and they didn't even have to sit and talk about it.

"How does something from Eddy's sound for dinner?" He offered. His mood had changed drastically and he was grinning. There was a relaxed look to him.

"Eddy's!!!!" Aryanna cried out.

"I'm afraid that we won't be able to dine in, but perhaps we could order take out." He suggested.

"They deliver to your castle?" Ary asked him her eyes wide.

He and Sarah chuckled. "Not exactly." He told the child with a knowing smile.

"Can I have a cheeseburger with french fries?"

"You can have anything you want."

"What are you going to have mommy?"

"I think a chicken sandwich sounds really good right about now."

"No fish and chips this time?" Jareth asked her, brushing her hair with a light kiss.

"Too greasy. My stomach still isn't feeling like it's old self."

"Well a chicken sandwich it is then and a cheeseburger with fries for Ary."

"Yay!!"

Jareth felt as if a tremendous weight had been lifted off his shoulders and she smiled at the child in his arms. There was still worry in the pit of his stomach. He would be a fool to think that everything was suddenly ok. But he was content that for now they were all going to enjoy dinner together. He knew that Ary still had a decision to make, that despite finding it in her heart to forgive him that she still might choose to leave. He pushed the thought away. He planned on enjoying every second left of his time with Sarah and Ary.