Hello allJ Sorry that its been so long. Stress at work has a really effected my writing lately and I have had the worst writers block. I hope you haven't forgotten about me. Anyway, here are a couple more chapters to my story. Please read and review.
Things Change
Chapter 10
Sarah stared blankly at the spot where Jareth had stood only moments ago before he had left in his usual manner. What was she to think now? His actions had left her flabbergasted. Hand absently going to her forehead, she turned towards the bed, a smile spreading across her face as she ran the memory of the Unicorn in her mind.
She would make sure that she never let go of that wonderful memory, she could almost still feel that warmth that enveloped her after its horn touch her forehead. A Unicorn, she had actually touched and seen a real live Unicorn.
Laying back on the bed, she laid her head on the soft pillows, her eyes closed as she continued to think about that moment. Just before she drifted off to sleep she wondered why Jareth had given her that gift.
Laughter soared about the gardens as a young woman with dark blond hair and dark blue eyes laughed merrily. A warm smile spreading across her lips, she looked to Jareth with amusement, "Don't tell me brother that you honestly did that?" She looked towards Duncan, who was watching her as she sat on the garden's bench, "And you, Duncan, I thought you were his friend, to allow him to do such a thing."
Duncan's chocolate eye's shined with merry warmth towards Jareth's sister, "Princess, you know as well as I, that when your brother gets an inkling to do something he does it."
She looked back to Jareth who was leaning casually against the large willow tree beside the bench, "Oh brother, what am I to do with you?"
A sly grin crossed his lips as he tugged at the sleeve of his gloves, "Salia, you're as always overreacting. It will be gossip for a good few weeks and then no more would even be thought of the matter."
Duncan moved forward, a sly grin crossing his lips, a mischievous glint in his eyes, "Unless, a certain someone would keep that little gossip alive."
"Duncan," Jareth half heartily warned, "you wouldn't"
He smiled in return, making his way towards Jareth's sister. She squealed as he took her by the hand, pulling her up from the bench and began to spin her around. Laughter filled the whole garden as all within laughed merrily. Duncan looked away from Salia still grinning like the devil, "I wouldn't if, say, you gave me good reason."
Salia was being twirled around in a circle and then as they came to a stop leaned into Duncan hitting him lightly against his chest with her fist, "Duncan, you are such a tease."
Jareth moved away from the tree towards the two, "Good reason, you say? Hmm, how about the fact that if you do just what your implying I would…"
He was cut off by Duncan adding, "Throw me into the Bog."
Narrowing his eyes Jareth answered, "Make it so that you could not court my beautiful sister here. Now, that would be wrong, wouldn't it?"
Salia looked sternly towards Jareth, "Now, now, I'll have none of those type of threats besides, Jareth, you couldn't stop me from being with Duncan if you tried."
They all laughed in return. Sarah felt strange watching this, why was she dreaming about this? Did Jareth really have a sister, and if he did, where was she? She couldn't help but to smile watching the scene.
Sarah's gaze was specifically locked on Jareth, who was laughing, a smile on his face that was warm and loving. She had never seen him laugh and smile so, it was as if she was seeing a whole other Jareth entirely. Coldness wrapped itself around her making her look away.
Cold blue orbs stared at her mercilessly, a hardened expression written on Salia's face. The laughter died as the scene with Jareth and Duncan faded replaced with only Sarah and Salia within the garden. Salia stepped threateningly forwards, "What are you doing here?" she snarled.
Sarah backed away slightly, her heart lurching to her stomach as she saw the hatred and rage within the woman's eyes and they were directed at her. "I…I…" she faltered not able to come up with any sort of reply.
"LEAVE!" she cried, stepped closer towards Sarah, murder written within her eyes.
Sarah froze with eyes wide, not able to move or flee, like her whole entire being was screaming for her to do.
Salia continued forwards, "You do not belong here."
Her whole body jerked out of sleep, her eyes flashing open from her dream only to see the transparent face of Salia hovering over her. A cry escaping her lips, she quickly rolled out of the bed, eyes scanning the room.
The room was empty of any other occupants and Sarah shakily laughed at herself. It was only a stupid dream, nothing more. Sarah searched for some trace of her dreams. It was quickly fading from memory and for the life of her she could not recall what it had been about. The only thing she could remember was the woman with cold eyes glaring at her. She must have still been dreaming when she saw that woman's face, nothing more.
Rubbing the back of her neck, she could not shake the nagging feeling that there was something that she was supposed to be remembering. Looking at her reflection in the vanity mirror across the room from her, she noticed her haggard appearance. Shaking her head at the silliness of it all she walked towards the vanity, running the brush through her disheveled hair. The loud knock at her door caused her to jump, the brush being held protectively against her chest as she laughed at herself again. Why was she so jumpy, it was only a dream?
Duncan paced back and forth momentarily glancing at the mirror before him, just before he would go back to pacing. He could not get the young woman out of his mind and it was driving him mad. Duncan, Lord of Fantasies, the one and only Fae who seduced women easily and had them practically falling over themselves to be his next prize, found himself a prisoner of want. He wanted that young woman, a woman that his closest friend was in love with.
Running his hands through his short crop of black hair, he glared at his own reflection with disgust. He would not do this to his closest friend, no mater how much he wanted her. He just could not do that to Jareth. He would continue forward with his plan and insure that Jareth had her, not him. It would not matter how much he craved to pursue her, he would not give into that desire. Oh, but could he? If his plans were to succeed he would have to get close to her. Could he control himself around her? He had to.
Approaching his mirror, Duncan waved his hand in front of his reflection and his image shifted to Sarah's. She was in her nightgown sitting in front of her vanity brushing her long silken dark hair. His hand came up to her reflection wanting so much to feel her hair beneath his touch, to run his fingers lightly over her soft fair skin. He could still remember that light touch to her cheek within the garden, her eyes widening startled from the contact.
Duncan's hand tightened into a balled fist, the image of Sarah fading back to his own image. Turning stiffly away he shook his head at his own behavior, "You're a fool!"
Squaring his shoulders, as he took in a long deep breath, he made his way out of the room. He had a grand ball to plan and things to prepare, not to mention a plan he had to put into the works. Duncan would not allow his feelings to get in the way of the two people who so obviously belonged together. He had his chance for love long ago and lost that love, he would not allow the same to happen to Jareth.
Allowing a frustrated sigh to escape his lips, Jareth, the Goblin King, could not concentrate on the papers in front of him. Sarah's image kept coming to mind, not allowing him to concentrate on anything other than that warm and delightful smile she gave him. He would give anything to see that smile again. A light shown brightly in her eyes, a light that sent waves of satisfaction through his being. She was so beautiful.
He never thought that he would ever find love or ever be capable of the act. Especially after…he could not allow himself to think of the past. Tomorrow night was the ball at Duncan's estate and he was oddly looking forward to going. He wanted to dance with her again, hold her in his arms once more like they had that enchanted moment when she had taken his present. He would cherish that moment for as long as he lived. It was then that he saw that Sarah returned his feelings, though she was too young to understand those types of emotions then.
For the first time in a long time he actually looked forward at going to the ball with Sarah. What more of an opportunity could he ask for to show her what it was that he felt for her? He knew that she would be the most breathtaking creature at the ball and she would be by his side. A scowl crossed his features as he thought of Duncan and his subtle advances towards Sarah, though he denied it. Jareth knew better than to trust him with any woman, especially those that were too innocent to know what kind of Fae Duncan was. Duncan was a good friend and all, but when it came to women, he was anything but trustworthy.
Chapter 11
The morning came quickly to Sarah's opinion, as she rolled over so that she was facing away from the incoming sunlight. For some reason she did not sleep very well last night. Maybe it was her anticipation for the upcoming ball, she wasn't sure. One thing that she was sure of was that she did not want to get out of bed. Pulling the pillow out from under her head, she plopped it over her face with a groan. She was so tired and all she wanted to do was sleep.
Whispering stirred her from her sleep, as she could have sworn that she heard her name. Removing the pillow from her face, she groggily pulled herself up, running her hand through her disheveled hair. A soft breeze stirred her hair making her look towards the opened window. Without thinking, she made her way towards the opened window, perplexed as to why it was open.
Arms wrapped about herself, she stepped out onto the balcony, a strange feeling of foreboding welling up her spine. Something seemed strange, out of place.
"Sarah," whispered into her ear.
Turning, she saw a glimpse of a figure of a woman rushing towards her, and then she was falling. Her heart lurched in her chest as she felt herself fall. Screaming out loud, she bolted up from her bed, the darkness around her giving no comfort.
Her room suddenly illuminated with light, Sarah squinted against the harshness of it against her eyes, and almost screamed out again when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
Hearing her scream, it only took him a moment to materialize into Sarah's room. Placing his hand soothingly on her shoulder, he felt her jump from the contact, "Sarah, are you alright."
Recognizing Jareth's voice immediately, she threw herself into his arms, a quiet sob escaping her lips as the dream was still fresh within her mind. It had been so real; she could still feel herself falling.
He was taken by surprise by her actions as she had thrown herself in his arms sobbing. Wrapping his arms about her to try and comfort her, he whispered to her, "Shh, you're all right."
Sarah felt safe within his arms as she felt herself starting to relax, "It was so real. She…she pushed me from the balcony. So real…" she trailed off, her eyes feeling so heavy.
Relieved that she was all right and that it was only a nightmare that had caused her to scream, he rocked her in his arms. Willing his power about her, he secretly cast a protection spell against further nightmares. Sarah relaxed in his arms, her eyes drooping as she slowly fell back to sleep.
Realizing that she had drifted back to sleep, he eased her back onto the bed. She looked so peaceful as she slept and he found it hard to leave her side. Sitting on the edge of the bed beside her, he watched her as she slept, memorizing her every feature. Stroking a stray piece of hair from her face, he found himself unable to move away. Instead of leaving he stayed, watching her as she slept now peacefully.
Unable or caring to stop himself, he gently stroked her cheek, his eyes hungrily taking in her form. She was a beautiful sight and soon he would have her love. He was no fool, he could sense her desire for him. It was all too obvious from the intense moments that they had between them. The comical way she stumbled for words after catching herself leaning into him after he translocated them to the throne room. So many times where he could have easily taken her in his arms and kissed her senseless but no, he would not. Sarah was special and he would make sure that their first intimate moment would be one that she would cherish and remember.
Allowing the light within the room to dim once again, he pulled the covers up over her form and stood from the bed. The moonlight only accented her beauty as if reflected off her ivory skin. She almost glowed like an angel. Stepping away, he disappeared from her room leaving her to sleep in peace.
It was so bright, but not in a harsh way that hurt the eyes. Sarah could feel the soft grass beneath her feet as she looked around at the open meadow. A meadow that looked a lot like the one where she had seen the two Unicorns. At first she had thought that it was snowing, but no, it was that strange white feathery substance that drifted about the comforting air. Everything seemed brighter, more vibrant as she stepped forwards towards the small stream she had not noticed before.
Kneeling down before the stream, she looked into the clear blue waters only to be met with her own reflection staring back at her. Tucking her long dark hair behind her ears, she ran her fingers through the water, disturbing her own reflection as she peered into its depths.
Allowing the cool water to run through her fingers, she heard a sound from behind. Turning to see the source of that sound, she immediately stood as she recognized the Unicorn. Its intense blue eyes stared at her and what she saw within those eyes made her want to weep. There was a sadness but something else, something that she could not quite understand.
Sarah reached forward to touch him, but the Unicorn shook his head before jerking back into a run. For some reason unknown to her, Sarah found herself chasing after the creature. The open meadow quickly became thick forest as she found herself dodging overgrowth and trees that got in the way of her pursuit of the Unicorn, that just when she thought she had lost him she would see him at the corner of her eyes.
She felt a need, an insistence to pursue the magical creature. The deeper into the woods she ran, the darker it became. Stopping, she shivered as she wrapped her arms about herself trying to warm her chilled body. Sarah had lost the Unicorn and felt completely lost, not to mention scared.
Hearing an unsettling sound, Sarah backed up only to have herself fall back as she tripped over something. She could feel herself hitting the ground, but the soft ground beneath her cushioned her fall. Eyeing what had caused her to fall, she leaned forwards as she moved the weeds away from the large cement stone.
There the stone read:
Princess Salia,
Forgive her sins as she was led astray.
May her soul rest in peace and may she find the light.
Awaking with a start, Sarah quickly rubbed at her eyes as the sun's light assaulted her vision. She thought that strange, not the crazy nightmare that she vaguely remembered waking up from sometime that night, but just strange. It was not frightening, only disturbing in a way. Sarah wondered who this princess was and why did that name sound so familiar?
Shaking her head at her own thoughts, she rolled out of bed making her way towards the wash room. Sarah had a mission, and that mission was to find out what exactly she was going to wear to the ball that night. She would worry about dreams later. Somehow, though, she doubted that she would be able to get those words out of her mind.