AN: I am not happy with this chapter. I don't want to chronicle every one of the moments between Sarah and Jareth in the castle, but I don't want everyone to feel rushed through the story. I wanted this chapter to pass like a montage in a movie-scenes from several different days showing the two of them together, stuff like that. But, I don't think that it turned out too well. The balcony scene, however, turned out better than I expected. For those who want to know what happened to Mark, don't worry, you will find out later. Remember, this is Sarah's POV, and it you are getting it as she is. Think of this story as her telling it to someone else after it has all happened. Okay, I will stop now...Go Read!
Chapter 4
Transition
I did not find out what Jareth had done when he finally returned later on that day. He refused to say anything about it, even when I repeatedly nagged him about it. The only thing he did say was that he knew that what had happened would make Mark think about his own mortality more often. When I heard this I shuddered, knowing what Jareth was capable of. I pitied Mark because I knew that he would be confused about what had happened, if Jareth had let himself be known in any way. And Jareth was not good at keeping himself hidden.
Thankfully, I was given my own room that day. I had a sneaking suspicion that Jareth had lied to me when he told me that he didn't have any rooms kept for guests, but decided not to question him. It was lovely in its appointments, all light wood, shining silver, and thick tapestries covering the walls. It was the realization of all of my childhood fantasies-a room that I could escape into my thoughts in. Jareth had come looking for me the next day when I had not appeared at breakfast. I had lost track of time sitting on the window ledge, looking out onto the landscape.
"Sarah?"
"Hmmm?" I answered dreamily. I lifted my head from the sill to see who it was. Jareth stood behind me, eyebrows raised in concern, "Oh! Sorry, I didn't know it was you. I was just wondering something." I slid off of the ledge to assume a more proper position.
"What were you wondering?"
"Thinking, actually, about how I would thank you for the room. Its lovely. I've never seen anything like it."
"Yes, well, I couldn't have you in my room the entire time. That would be a bit awkward, wouldn't it? Unless.."
"Don't even think about it! I am still a little mad at you, and I am engaged. Remember?" I held up my hand to show him the diamond on my finger. My cheeks were burning at the nerve of him to suggest something like that.
"I was only joking. I rather prefer solitude to constantly trying to keep someone else happy. Shall we?" He offered his arm, which I playfully smacked before allowing to be led away.
* * * * * * * *
Before I knew it, two weeks had gone by. It had been two weeks of new discoveries and realizations. Most of all, I had returned to my imagination which had so long ago escaped me. Jareth filled my days with tours of the castle and labyrinth and history lessons of the fae. When he wasn't there to make me laugh with a funny anecdote, I spent time wandering the hallways of the castle, the library, the garden, anywhere I could think and dream. I often thought about what spending my life would be like in the castle, only to brush away thoughts of what living in the castle would ultimately mean. I would have to be apart from my family and friends, and I knew that the separation would be too hard on me.
Nights were a different story. They were lonely-I couldn't sleep most of the time, and I stared at the ceiling thinking about Mark. Not that I wanted to, But, I couldn't just forget about him. He was the man I was supposed to marry, the one that I was going to promise to love and obey forever. I felt caught in a trap, one of my own design and making. Tears soaked my pillow, and I fell into old habits of covering up what had happened. Jareth was never suspicious (at least I thought that he wasn't) of my nightly crying. When he saw me in the morning, I was always ready with a smile and eyes that were not puffy. When I could sleep, it was filled with hellish dreams and often I woke up in a cold sweat, not remembering where I was at first and fearing every dark corner of my room.
After spending a few sleepless nights in my room, I began to venture out into the darkened castle at night. Two nights found me wandering aimlessly until the dawn, and a third saw me in the library, admiring shelf after shelf of books, some of which were in a language that I could not even begin to understand. I had pulled one off of the shelf and opened it when I was startled by a voice behind me.
"That one isn't too interesting, unless you love reading about the agricultural properties of the Underground." I turned quickly to see Jareth behind me a few rows, arms crossed over his chest.
"Jareth! You scared me!"
"How do you think I felt when I heard someone rattling around in here? I felt certain that I had been invaded by many small noise-makers." His eyes danced in the light of the torch on the wall. "What are you doing?"
"I couldn't sleep, so I thought that I would come in here. What are you doing in here?"
"Ahh, always questioning motives, aren't you? I can be in here if I want. It is my castle after all." He took a few step closer until he was directly in front of me.
"Well, I think I will be going. Good night." I turned again to go, but Jareth called to my back.
"Is there anything you want to talk about, Sarah? You seem preoccupied."
I stopped and turned again. I expected him to be smirking like he usually was, but he seemed genuinely interested in what I had to say. I sighed as I surrendered to the inevitability of the conversation we were going to have. "Can we go someplace else? I never feel like I can say anything out loud in a library."
The room around us wavered and melted, turning into a sort of meeting room filled with tables and chairs. A large fire was crackling merrily in the fireplace, and beside it sat two chairs. He led me to them and we sat, staring at the flames lick at the inside of the fireplace.
Into the night we talked about anything and everything. I didn't talk about Mark, to be honest I didn't think about Mark when I was with Jareth. He made me forget the hurt that I had been through and focus on all the positive things that had happened in my life. And so, from then on, that is how we ended our days. Near the end, I realized that I was falling in love with Jareth and I was afraid of my feelings. I knew that I had to do something, so I made a startling announcement during one of our talks .
"I have to go back."
Jareth looked pained, "Whatever for?"
I avoided his eyes and twisted my hands in my lap. "I have a family that deserves to know that that I am alright. I have a job that I have been absent from for over a week. I could get used to being waited on hand and foot, but I am an adult now, and I need to face the realities that I have created for myself."
Jareth sighed and closed his eyes. "If you must go, then you must. But, I will be watching."
"You really don't have to. I will be fine."
Jareth kept silent and I knew why. He was afraid for me to go back. He knew what waited for me and what was bound to happen. But I was determined to go and face Mark again. It was weighing on my conscious that he had heard nothing from me, and for some strange reason I didn't think that he deserved to be left in the dark.
"Sarah, I want to show you something." Jareth said abruptly.
"What is it?"
"Come with me." Jareth took my hand and led me through the castle, up staircases and through drafty corridors. At the end of a particularly dark hallway, we came upon a set of large wood doors. Dust thickly covered them, and I knew that they had not been opened in years. They creaked on their rusty hinges as Jareth pushed them open, revealing a large, darkened, open-air room. I saw immense chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, holding candles that had never been lit. Large draperies closed off most of the room from the night air, but a few of them had been pulled back to reveal the night sky. The polished stone floor shone beneath our feet as we crossed the room, heading for the balcony that was on the other side of the room.
"What is this room?" I asked, looking up at the ornate paintings on the ceiling.
"What does it look like?"
"It looks like a ballroom, or someplace you would hold a party."
"Yes, except it has never been used. I never found a reason to open it up for use before."
"Then why now?"
"Because it is the best place to view what I am about to show you."
"And what is that?"
"Just wait."
We stepped out onto the balcony into the beautiful night. The air was cool and filled with moonlight from a perfectly round moon. My eyes swept across the silvery landscape, seeing lights glow within windows in the goblin city, watching the hedges and walls of the labyrinth shimmer.
"Sarah, look." Jareth pointed up to the sky, where hundreds of shooting stars were darting across the sky. "It is said in Fae folklore, that if a newly wed couple stands beneath such a sky, their lives will be filled with many blessings. The shooting stars represent their dreams and hopes and wishes for their future life together, starting out on their journey into becoming a reality. Such a night only comes once every two hundred years."
From somewhere in the city, a creature began to sing in a language I did not understand. The melody was beautiful, haunting, like a song about a lost love. I stood mesmerized, not wanting to take my eyes away from the beautiful sight. If only....
"It's late. You should get some sleep. I will take you back in the morning." Disappointment ran thick in his voice.
"Wait. Can't we just stand here?"
"It is rather late, Sarah."
"I know, but I don't want to go in just yet." I glanced about the balcony, then into the beautiful room, "Dance with me?"
"What for?"
"Because, it would be a shame not to have used this room, and we never got to finish the dance from before."
"Before?"
"You know, the one that caused me to swear off peaches?"
"Ah yes. Well, I suppose since it is your last night here, I will indulge you."
The creature sang on as we made our way back into the ballroom. Jareth quickly caught the tempo and moved me around the floor with ease, as if waltzing was something that he did everyday. My heart was hammering in my chest, threatening to give away the feelings that were going through my head. I couldn't help but wish that it wasn't my last night in this magical land where everything was possible.