So, we had our first assassination attempt:
Who do you think it was? Was this an intimate act of anger, or is war really brewing? What is Sarah's next step in the relationship…?
This chapter is more world-building and immersive. Jareth + Sarah at the end.
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Over the next week, a buzz went through the Labyrinth. Citizens everywhere gossiped and surmised over the assassination attempt.
"Honestly, I'm surprised it didn't happen earlier. It's not like she has much favor in this kingdom…"
"I thought people viewed her as some sort of symbol?" replied a young Fae named Annalissa to Lady Chelsea.
Chelsea answered Annalissa's remark with a glare that silenced the young Fae; Chelsea didn't want to hear how—allegedly—important Sarah was to the realm. But she did want to stir up opposition to Sarah.
"Did you hear?! Lady Sarah was attacked by an Ice Giant!"
"Ice magic. It wasn't actually an Ice Giant, and we don't even know if the attack was planned by the giants."
"Pretty obvious, if you ask me."
"I'm so glad she's okay. Our king would be lost without her," said Baroness Jepha to her wife. Sylviana nodded in silent agreement. "I think she's changed him for the better…"
"I can see why someone would try to remove her from the Underground; the king would be so much better off without her, if you ask me."
"Yes, but assassination is pushing it a bit, don't you think? Sure, the king has always been a distracted man, and she's one heck of a distraction. But I wouldn't ever wish her dead…"
Even the goblins talked about the attempt on the War Bringer's life. Death had almost arrived for the lady who had founded the Rock Games; goblins didn't realize a game called "bowling" already existed, and created a much more dangerous version of their own. Two teams of ten goblins, arranged in bowling pin-like formations, had great fun rolling (or shotputting, if you were strong enough) giant rocks at the other group to see how many gobbos they could knock out. It was a new favorite past-time in the Goblin City. Those accolades aside, they knew their king was beside himself because his lady-love had almost died. He sulked more than usual this week, and he hadn't even bothered to throw any of them out a window in days.
Meanwhile, theater rehearsal has been postponed for the whole troupe. Each actor had been interrogated by the king himself. It was a grueling interview for each and every one of them, but it seemed none of them had anything to do with the icicle. When rehearsal commenced once more, Sarah showed up with four armored goblin guards.
"Security measures have to be taken," Jareth had said emphatically, holding onto the table in front of him with a white knuckled grip.
"The attacker wouldn't dare attack in the same place twice, right? Must they really come to rehearsal?"
"They must."
And that was the end of the discussion. Jareth had even changed the location of their meals. Something about routine and predictability making one an easy target. The dining room in which they found themselves that morning had more windows than the usual dining hall, so Sarah couldn't complain.
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"I'm not saying the Ice Kingdom is to blame. I'm saying that ice magic was involved. And that means, most likely, an Ice Giant was also involved." Jareth spoke to Hubert Highclark, the High Wizard of Wexford, and the sorcerer and sultan Chikrish Fathad of Baghreb. He purposefully met in secret with the two rulers unbeknownst to the rest of the council; he wasn't yet sure who he could trust.
The two magic users looked at one other, each waiting for the other to speak.
"You can't believe the Giants would want to start a war," said Chikrish. "That's the last thing Malachi would want. If anything, he'd try to stay on our good side; it's magic he's after. Killing Sarah wouldn't accomplish anything. In fact, it would drive a wedge between the kingdoms and get him further from his goal."
"I…am of a different opinion," Hubert interjected tentatively. "If they're planning an attack, the first move would be to weaken their adversary. Chikrish is right; they're after magic. They're after magic because they're after power. The Underground might be first in their attack-strategy. You are, after all, the nucleus of our world."
"Bah!" was all Chikrish could retort. Hubert gave him a look of disdain.
"Gentlemen, let's not lose our heads. Not just yet. We have zero reason to believe this was an act of war. But, the magic had to come from somewhere."
Silence fell over the group.
"The tracking spell didn't work?" asked Hubert.
"No. Whoever cast this used an something, an object of some sort, to channel the magic. We can't trace the magic to the object, and even if we could, we have no magic or spell that could trace it to the user."
"Even magic has its limits," said Chikrish solemnly.
"But, if this wasn't an act of war, why? Why Lady Sarah? If they, whoever they are, wanted to get to you, why not just go for the throat?"
"Maybe they will. Maybe this was meant to weaken or rile me. Maybe the adversary is just…me. Me instead of 'the Kingdom' as a whole. But I can't imagine anyone wanting the throne. My uncle certainly doesn't want it. The Crystal City doesn't want us back under their rule; that much I know for sure."
The three sat in pensive silence.
"Then we're at a standstill," said Hubert. "Rather, you are at a standstill. You'll have to take precautions and hope that whoever did this will think twice about acting again."
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Hoggle's hut was a woodland paradise. The tiny log cabin had a roof of thick moss and thatched sticks and straw. The floor was covered in multiple knitted rugs, and the little table before Sarah was set with tatted doily coasters and potholders. She took a last sip of tea and set her mug, made from roughly sculpted clay, down onto one. The cottage was a modest two-room hut of a washroom and kitchen-slash-living room. A ladder of sticks and twine led up to a loft, where Sarah assumed Hoggle's sleeping quarters were situated.
Sarah sat in a wooden chair with crocheted cushions and coverings. The whole cottage was a collage of hand-made objects and trinkets. Woven baskets hung around the kitchen and living room in which they sat, along with whittled wooden utensils and tiny figurines. The bowl of fruit in front of her was filled with apples freshly picked from the back yard. Sarah had no clue Hoggle was so crafty; she tried to picture him tatting a lace doily—and was unsuccessful.
It was not cold, but a cozy fire crackled in a wood-stove anyway. Still, Sarah squirmed.
She had a very uncomfortable conversation to conduct. She blushed with guilt; this was the first time she had ever been to Hoggle's home, and she was about to deliver bad news.
Well, bad news according to Hoggle.
She had needed to talk to Hoggle all week, but as luck would have it, he invited her over for tea. He had seemed…odd. Secretive. Sarah had chalked it up to the guards making him nervous.
"Your home is beautiful, Hoggle."
"Why thank you, Sarah! Made it all myself, I did. Of course, the occasional scrap from the junkyard makes its way here to be fixed up n' repurposed. And this needed some Goblin craftsmanship, it did," he said flicking the wood-stove.
"I love it," Sarah approved with a friendly smile. Hoggle's eyes flicked nervously to the door. "Don't worry," Sarah quickly said, "I'm sure the guards can't hear us."
"It's not them I'm worried about."
"Hoggle, no one is coming to get me," she reassured him, reaching out to take one of his gnarled hands in her own.
After she had been attacked, Sarah immediately told her friends what had happened. Sir Didymus had been ready to lead a battalion into a war. To Sarah's surprise, Jareth had actually granted him two more guards to join him on his patrol of the Bog of Eternal Stench and its newly built bridge—although, he had to persuade the squirrelly knight no active plan of attack was in the works. Even after that, Didymus wasn't satisfied; he wished to stay close to Sarah.
Ludo had cried big salty tears. It was all Sarah could do not to cry herself; she had to be strong, for all of them.
Hoggle had been silent at first. The concern on his face melted away into something else. Sarah couldn't tell if he had been afraid or sad—until he spoke.
"It's because you're with him. If you weren't associated with that rat, this wouldn't have happened. You're not safe with him."
"Oh Hoggle, we don't know that!"
"Really?!" yelled Hoggle, angry tears in his eyes. "Only bad things happen whenever he's involved. And now someone's trying to hurt you. Oh, Sarah!"
Hoggle had run into her arms and cried on her shoulder. She wrapped him in a bear hug and let him cry for a few moments before leaning back from him.
"Listen to me." She looked into his watery eyes. "I won't let anything bad happen. No matter what. I would never let anything happen to me or you. It's going to be alright." She hugged him again; the embrace had been much needed and felt good.
Now, here in his own homw, she couldn't bear to see Hoggle upset again. But it was her life; she had to live it.
"Hoggle…" she started, not knowing how to begin. She fidgeted with a doily. "Remember how Jareth would visit my dreams back when he was…less reasonable," she said, choosing her words carefully.
"He's still unreasonable," Hoggle harrumphed.
"Yes, well…I visited his dream the other night—not on purpose!" she exclaimed quickly, responding to the disapproving look Hoggle gave her.
"You 'accidentally' visited his dream?"
"Yes, accidentally. I didn't even know I could do that. I'm still figuring the whole dream thing out. But I'm getting off topic…"
She told Hoggle about what she saw; how Jareth had dreamt of her as his equal. How the dream was soft and kind and sweet and nothing like the old nightmares Jareth used to give her.
How she thought he had changed.
"I guess, what I'm trying to say is…I'm ready to make it official. To date him exclusively. He's shown me he's changed. I'm ready to pursue a future with him, and I feel ready to ask him to be m-my…my—"
"You're what?!" snapped Hoggle, standing.
"My boyfriend."
A look of something like relief passed over Hoggle's face. It quickly turned back into scorn.
"I'm not asking him to be my husband or anything," said Sarah quickly, figuring Hoggle's relief was due to her not saying "husband." "I just know he's ready to have a healthy relationship, and this could be worth pursuing."
Hoggle still said nothing. His face was covered in mixed emotions. He was considering, considering, considering…
He frowned and his lip turned out in a pout. He crossed his arms and slumped into his chair.
"Sarah, I know it's no use trying to stop you. You're as stubborn as they come, and if your mind's made up to do something, you're going to do it. I won't say I like it. I won't say I like him. But… that dream means something. And there's a reason fate or the Labyrinth or whatever wanted you to see it. But don't think for one minute I'm gonna take my eye off of him. If he mistreats you even once I'll…I'll—"
Sarah reaches across the table and took the dwarf's balled fists in her hands. She smiled warmly.
"I know, Hoggle. I know. Thank you."
She stood and gave him a hug.
When she sat back down again, Hoggle's eyes darted to the door once more. Sarah had expected a long lecture, more protesting, or at least a little complaining, but Hoggle's mind was preoccupied with something else. Sarah looked behind her at the door.
"Hoggle, I promise they aren't going to come in, and I'm certain there won't be another attack. No one would dare attack me while I've got you here to protect me," she said playfully.
"Uh huh," Hoggle responded, not really hearing her. His eyes didn't leave the door.
Sarah furrowed her brow in confusion. Just then, Sarah swore she heard a thump from somewhere in the cottage.
"One…two…three…four…" Hoggle counted, and on seven, another thump came.
"Sarah, m'dear, there's something you need to know about me…" The hairs on the back of Sarah's neck stood on end. "…but first, there's some folks you gotta meet."
With that Hoggle leapt to his feet and strode into the middle of the kitchen. Sarah gripped the arms of her chair with a white-knuckled grip. She forced herself to stay seated.
"This is Hoggle we're talking about," she thought. "He would never mean me harm."
Hoggle threw back a dark green rug to reveal another rug of dark blue. He used his feet to kick it to the side, revealing a trap door with a brass ring fixed securely to one side. Hoggle heaved it open and grunted under the weight of it.
"I'm fine, guys…I got it. Don't…worryaboutme," he sputtered, lifting the door and setting it, with difficulty, noiselessly down.
With the trap door open, a ragtag group of seven people ("beings" would be a better word) poured forth from the floor.
Sarah didn't recognize any of them, until the frantic flutter of wings buzzed through the room. Pickering Junip shot straight up to the ceiling and buzzed around with a few black beetles who had already taken to flying there.
"Pickering Junip!" cried Sarah, remembering to close her eyes and bow her head in the proper pixie greeting.
"You can call me just Pick, Lady Sarah," said the pixie alighting on the table and returning the bow.
"Well then, 'Just Pick,' you can call me Just Sarah." The pixie winked at her.
The little hovel was crowded with many figures, but Hoggle held a finger to his mouth and called for silence.
"Sarah, I'd like you to meet Minxx," he said in a hushed tone. He gestured to a goblin with light gray skin and a hooked nose.
"Representing the Aboveground, Your Ladyship," said the apparent Minxx with a deep bow. Minxx was tall for a Goblin, but still didn't even reach Sarah's shoulder. He (he?) was dressed in enough layers to brave the winters of Nunavut and then some. No less than three knitted hats were piled on his head, and the sleeves of his jumper obscured his hands and reached to his knees.
"You already know Pick, from the Enchanted Forest." Pickering bowed dramatically. "This is Rohan, representing Baghreb."
A dark-skinned boy bowed next. He was tall and lanky and looked no more than twenty.
"At your service, ma'am." He smiled awkwardly and a blush creeped up his neck.
The next in line was a woman of Venus-like proportions. Her olive skin was set off by her large, dark brown eyes. She wore a leather dress and moccasins, and a fur pelt was draped around her, the animal head hood hanging low over her brow.
Sarah couldn't help herself. "Is that…a seal?" she ventured.
"Guilty as charged," said the woman with a quick, playful curtsy. "Name's Meera. Selkie. From the Wizarding World of Wexford."
Sarah smiled and nodded her head to the Selkie, looking to the next in line; she had to steel herself against the impulse to back away. The next to be introduced was a humanoid creature with thick, spiraling horns framing his face.
"That'll be Dane," grunted Hoggle.
The creature said nothing, but bowed low and elegantly. He was tall. His hooves were large and fur-covered legs thick and muscular. He wore only a front-covering loin cloth and satchel draped across his bare chest.
"Are you a satyr?" asked Sarah shyly.
Dane huffed out a sound like a horse's snort and scuffed one of his hooves.
"Hardly," he replied. "I am a faun. I represent the Crystal City."
Sarah gave a little gulp. The faun was intimidating. His eyes were not human like a satyr's, but those of a deer—dark with large, square pupils that felt like being sucked in if you stared too long.
"I guess that leaves me," said the woman standing to Dane's left. "I'm Frisia. Nymph, from the ocean kingdoms."
"Don't forget me!" cried a little voice. Two tiny white mittens slapped themselves onto the table and a pair of coal-black eyes peeped over the edge at Sarah. Sarah stood to see what—or who—was on the other side of the table.
Standing on their tip-tip-tippy toes to peer over the table was a tiny being made of snow. They had a round, snow head placed on top of a smooth snow body on two snow legs. They weren't wearing mittens—that was the shape of their hands. In fact, they weren't wearing clothes at all. They were roughly the size of a toddler and had no apparent features other than the black coal-like eyes that peered out of their head. Sarah wondered if she should gift them a carrot nose to complete the look.
"Sorry about that, Quynn! This here's Quynn, they're from the—"
"Ice Kingdom?" Sarah asked with rhetorical good humor.
"That I am!" they cried before folding into a deep bow.
"We're all here," continued Hoggle. "Let's settle in and I'll make more tea." Dane sat at the top of the trap door, letting his long legs dangle over the edge into the tunnel below. Pick made herself comfortable in the middle of the table next to the fruit bowl. Rohan snapped and a cushy arm chair appear out of thin air; he quickly seated himself in it. Hoggle shot him a look of disapproval. The rest of the group found chairs and stools to sit on, though Quynn jumped up onto the arm of Rohan's chair and leaned back next to Rohan with a long, comfortable sigh.
Sarah looked around from face to face.
"Representing…are you guys some sort of government organization?" Sarah asked. Now that she had gotten over the shock of the entourage who had poured out of the floor, the questions were piling up. Who were these people, why were they here, and what the heck did Sarah have to do with any of it?
Dane huffed out a scoff. Quynn smiled like they knew a secret.
Frisia the nymph spoke. "Quite the opposite. More like…extra-governmental organization." Dane chuckled.
Hoggle set mugs and a steaming kettle full of tea on the table. He poured a tiny mug that Sarah assumed was for Pickering and left the rest to serve themselves.
"We are the Keepers," said Hoggle, looking at her with an earnest gaze. "For centuries this organization has protected the realms and the kings, queens, and leaders of each land. We represent the people. And if a leader does not represent the people…"
Silence fell around the group. The Selkie Meera caught Sarah's attention and drew a finger across her neck in a motion that could only mean one thing…
"You're assassins?!" cried Sarah.
"No!"
"Never!"
"Just once."
"Of course not."
"What I'm trying to say is…" Hoggle cut in, placing his palms on the table and throwing a giggling Meera a stern look, "the Keepers have been watching out for the kingdoms since the kingdoms existed. Sometimes that means protecting the monarchs. Sometimes that means protecting the lands from the monarchs."
Dane replying "once" had not been lost on Sarah. "Very Templar Knights of you," she spoke. "If you're extra-governmental, how is Pick part of this?"
"I was grandfathered in," Pick answered for herself. "I was a Keeper long before I was the Representative. I'm the first 'monarch' to ever be a Keeper. Or rather, I'm the first Keeper to be a monarch. Representative," Pick added, sure to emphasize the democracy of her land.
"It's best to think of us as spies," said Rohan. "Spies with a bit more…influence."
"Okay, if you're spies, surely you guys knew what Jareth was up to when I was running the Labyrinth. Hoggle, why didn't you—"
"I wasn't a Keeper then," Hoggle said, an embarrassed flush coloring his neck.
"The King played by the rules, Lady Sarah," said Minxx sadly. "Magically, he didn't do anything wrong."
"Though he almost did," added Rohan sternly. "At the end. He reordered time. If you hadn't actually made it there before thirteen hours, which thank the stars you did, the world really would've turned upside down. Your will was stronger than his, but had he decided to ignore that and fight against you, it would've been an egregious breaking of the rules. Luckily, you were successful, your will was stronger, and he relinquished. Otherwise, we would've had to intervene. My magic is nothing compared to the Goblin King's, but someone would've had to reset the balance."
Everyone nodded solemnly.
"I'm sorry, Sarah. But he played by the rules. He is—was—a rat who threw many obstacles your way, but he played fair and square, and you won fair and square." Hoggle didn't do much to assuage Sarah's frustration, but the group had painted a clearer picture of who they were and what they did. She wouldn't ask them to elaborate on how they "once" acted as assassins…
"After you ran the Labyrinth, that's when things went a little haywire," Minxx said.
"Minxx!" scolded Frisia. The faces around the table looked as though they'd been caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
"Haywire how?" asked Sarah, eyes narrowed.
"It's not your fault dear, and it's nothing to worry about," assured Frisia suspiciously.
"Oh just tell her," said Meera, "It all worked out fine in the end. It's just his majesty went off the rails for a bit. He was beside himself, and the magic throughout the lands…fluctuated, let's say. The Underground is basically the nucleus of our realms. His majesty was out of control for a bit and neglecting his duties."
"It wasn't that serious," said Dane. "Sure, magic was spiking or falling for a bit, but he handled his duties well enough."
"But he was pretty sloppy about it," Quynn added to the quickly developing spat.
"Please!" cried Hoggle, throwing his hands wide. Pick gasped and looked at the door. The others realized that they risked being discovered, and a breathless silence fell over the group. No one moved.
After a few beats, a knock came at the door.
"Lady Sarah, are you alright in there?" called one of the guards.
"I'm fine, thanks. Just having a little heated debate. Thank you for checking on me; I'll call if I need you," Sarah replied through the door in her calmest voice possible.
The guard grunted from the other side but did not open the door or even peer through the window.
The group sighed in relief.
After a few more moments, Hoggle spoke. "We're getting off topic. The point is Sarah, someone tried to kill you, and we need to figure out who and why. Was this an affront to you, the king, or on the kingdom itself? Never before have the Keepers revealed themselves to a monarch."
"Not a monarch," Sarah added quickly.
"Monarch. Future Monarch. Object of a monarch's affection. Whatever your title, Champion of the Labyrinth makes you important enough. This could be a petty act of some anti-human separatist. Or it could be an act of war. We just don't know. The middle-way explanation is that it's an act of revenge or hate against Jareth. We can't rule that out as a possibility. We need to figure this out, and in the meantime, we need to protect you."
"As far as war is concerned," Quynn piped up, "I am one-hundred percent sure King Malachi isn't involved. Those who would've supported the Ice Giants' agenda during the war are few, but they're not nonexistent. It's plausible that the ice magic came from one of those groups, but all of the Ice Giants who could pose a possible threat are known to us, and no one's engaged in any suspicious activity."
Sarah's head was spinning. She didn't want to be caught up in the middle of some political scheme. She had just settled into her life here. She had her freedom (sort of). She had acting again. She and Jareth were getting along. She was ready to move on with her life.
Unfortunately, someone else didn't want her to.
"Hoggle. Everyone. Thank you. Your protection is appreciated. Really. But I just want to get on with my life. I'm finally starting to enjoy myself here, and I don't want to jeopardize that by joining some sort of secret society."
"We're not asking you to join, and we're not asking you to uproot your life any more than you already have. But we may need to work with you, and we're going to need to put a tail on you at all times."
Sarah's jaw dropped. They were going to spy on her? What about privacy?
"You're going to follow me around?!"
"It looks like you're already being followed," said Dane with gravity in his voice.
"How can the eight of you keep up with all this?" Sarah asked in disbelief.
"Oh, we're more than eight. We're the leaders, the main entourage, but we outsource," said Meera in her sassy, happy-go-lucky way.
Maybe it was Meera's tone or the fact that things out of Sarah's control were in motion and gaining momentum, but Sarah was annoyed.
"Ok, Ok…" Sarah soothed herself out loud. "Alright, fine. And thank you. Really, I am grateful. I'm just frustrated. Let me know how and when you need my help. Just tell me what to do, and I'll do it. The only thing is, I can't go wandering around the Labyrinth. Jareth says. I don't think he's placed a spell on me or the gates or anything, but if he finds me sneaking around, he will."
The group exchanged looks.
"Duly noted," said Rohan.
"We're on defense, not offense. We're sitting ducks until further notice. All we can do is prepare for the worst," said Hoggle glumly.
"And hope for the best," added Sarah. She tried to sound hopeful.
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Sarah sat on the edge of the pit in the throne room. She bounced a very happy, baby-sized goblin on her knee. Three other small goblins waited their turn. Sarah was happy for the distraction; she didn't want to be alone with her thoughts. Darell stood nervously next to the throne since it was unoccupied. Jareth spent much of his time flying over the Labyrinth patrolling and keeping a lookout. Darell might be the king's advisor, but the nervous way he picked at his nails set Sarah on edge. Still, she was happy not to be alone. Her magical world had gotten so big and complicated. All these other realms, all these other rulers, and now there was the Keepers too—plus someone was trying to kill her. Whatever their end goal was, be it revenge, hate, or war, they meant to achieve it with Sarah's death. She couldn't help but check over her shoulder every minute or so. Sarah missed when it was just her and the Labyrinth.
She set the Goblin she was bouncing down into the pit and set the next one on her knee. It made horsey noises as it clapped its hands gleefully.
Sarah was waiting for Jareth; she was ready to have a private talk about their near future together. Sarah refused to let whatever maniac was out to get her stop her from living her life. She still wanted to think of the future. A Champion couldn't let their feathers be so easily ruffled, could they?
Speaking of feathers, two appeared out of thin air and drifted gently to the floor, announcing the incoming arrival of the king. The air above the throne began to ripple and glitter. A white barn owl appeared and landed lightly on the right arm of the throne. It let out a high-pitched screech.
"Hello, Jareth," said Sarah, gently setting the goblin in her hands onto the floor.
The barn owl flapped his wings and grew larger and larger, until the Goblin King sat in the throne. He was dressed in a brown leather vest over one of his signature white, poofy-sleeved shirts. Brown leather leggings were tucked into chestnut-colored boots.
"Hello, Sarah." He said two words, but the sultry tone of his voice spoke volumes.
"May I request that we have a moment alone?" Sarah asked, her voice low. The Goblin King raised his eyebrows, but his face betrayed no emotion. He raised his hand, and all the Goblins froze for a split second before scurrying out the door.
Sarah tried to sit up straight for a moment, but then opted for a more relaxed, natural position. She didn't want to look nervous—which she was.
She propped her hands behind her and leaned back comfortably.
"I've been thinking about us a lot lately," Sarah began.
'I'm surprised you have time to worry about such trivial things with the current state of affairs," he said leaning forward and propping his elbows on his knees.
"Not worrying," said Sarah with a slight smile. "Thinking." She took a deep breath.
"You might be upset I accidentally intruded on your dream the other night, but I'm not." Sarah didn't let his disapproving look stop her. "I think you've listened to my needs. You've respected my boundaries. You've…you've changed. In a good way. And I've done a lot of healing myself. I've moved on from the way things used to be." The normally stony-faced Goblin King looked genuinely intrigued in what she was going to say.
"What I'm trying to say," Sarah continued, "is I feel safe with you. I feel happy with you. I'm ready to pursue a future and be exclusive, if you're currently not involved with anyone and want the same thing. Jareth…" The king was on the edge of his seat; he looked as though the anticipation would topple him forward if he leaned out any more. "Will you be my boyfriend?"
The king's lips parted in shock and his eyes widened. Sarah held her breath as he said nothing and looked at her. Though no magic was used, time seemed to stand still. Jareth snapped his mouth shut, and a soft, warm smile spread across his face. He rose and came to Sarah. He extended his hands towards her, which Sarah took, and he lifted her to her feet.
"Yes," he whispered. They gazed into each other's eyes. There were no sparks or electricity; Sarah felt peaceful. She felt warm and at ease. This was so different than the way things used to be. There was no need to fight. There were no heightened emotions. This felt good. This felt right.
Jareth drew her into a hug, his chin resting lightly against her head.
"Though," he added quietly; Sarah could hear the smile in his voice. "I prefer the term 'partner.' I do believe I've outgrown 'boy' friend. And I most certainly am not involved with anyone else. Since you, no other woman has even existed for me, my love."
Sarah relaxed into him. The warmth of his body and musky smell of his skin invited her to hug him tighter. She could stay in his arms all day if only life would allow. Jareth lightly pushed her away to look into her eyes.
"I'm going to make this right. I'm going to do this right. And I won't let anything come between us." He stroked her right cheek with his thumb. With his other hand he stroked a lock of her hair. Sarah couldn't help but smile. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach.
The king lifted her right hand to his lips and placed a gentle kiss on it. Nothing could ruin this moment.
A tall goblin guard burst into the throne room.
"You're Highness!" he cried. Before Jareth could throw sharp words at the guard, the goblin continued. "Come quickly! Follow me!" The goblin ran back out of the room. Jareth rarely looked genuinely concerned, but a goblin unafraid of waking the king's wrath after such an intrusion was enough to procure such a look. Jareth dashed after the guard and Sarah jogged behind. The guard led them to the front gate.
Words written in dripping, wet paint across the outer side of the giant door read,
"Human go home."
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Dun dun dunnnn. But hey, we got us an official couple. 😉 Time for some spicy chapters…