Thanks again to everyone following along with my story. Reviews give me something to look forward to! Thanks: LadyIconDragon, Jenny, Addie (no, you're not crazy. The name Jareth does suit him better), Silver Space, terrie, Winter, goodness, terrie (again, *L*), Sway (thanks again, your comments are a wonderful help!), terrie (yet again! don't get me wrong, I do love comments), lizz (I've been watching Labyrinth since I was about five, and thanks), and last but not least, Graffitibox (I am writing more!).

Alright… sorry ahead of time, but this chapter is a bit shorter than normal. I haven't had quite as much time as I normally do to write, but I am working on the next chapter, I'll have it up as soon as I can.

Andrea

            Chapter 4: A high vitamin C requirement, and a nightmare returned.

            Sarah pulled the few remaining seeds from the pomegranate she was eating, and popped the little red jewels in her mouth. She hadn't had one in years- her dentures couldn't handle the seeds- and she'd forgotten how wonderful they tasted. Sweet yet tangy, and slightly flavored of pears and raspberries. Her hands were dyed slightly red from where she'd broken some of the seeds open, but that would fade with washing.

            Jareth idly poked at his meal but did not eat much. Instead, he sat watching Sarah with a slightly bemused expression on his face. Never before had he seen someone devour so much fruit in one sitting. Perhaps fresh fruit was a delicacy Aboveworld, he considered. He knew virtually everything people bought came in… what were they called, cans?

            Jareth regarded the pile of discarded pits, peels, and seeds on her plate a moment longer. Mortals must have an unusually high Vitamin C requirement, he reasoned. Yes, that was it.

            At least she'd eaten, he reflected. For a moment, she had looked so pale he thought she'd be sick.

            Sarah set what was left of the blush-red outer shell and inedible white pulpy inside down on her plate, folded her hands in her lap, and looked pointedly at Jareth. I've eaten, will you tell me where the hell I am now?

            Mortals must have an unusually high vitamin C requirement, he reflected. Yes, that was it.

            Jareth cleared his throat and set his fork down beside his plate. He'd already decided to be straightforward with her. This was when, if ever, it would get ugly. "Very well then." He looked back up at her, and calmly met her brown eyes with his. "You are in the Underground, at my castle in the center of the maze that surrounds and protects my kingdom."

            She was absolutely silent as she stared at him incredulously- until she burst out laughing. Great, he thought, she wasn't taking him seriously. "We are not in your world," he added quickly. This brought on a second attack of laughter. He'd have to show her somehow that he was serious. She must realize how critical this situation was!

            "Damnit Sarah, listen to me!" he bellowed vehemently, standing up so fast from his chair he almost knocked it over. His tone of voice silenced her immediately, and she stared up at him with wide eyes. "I have brought you here to hear me out," he continued, his voice returned to its normal volume and intensity. She slowly nodded, her eyes still glued to his.

            "I wish to make you an offer." he said as he slowly sank back into his chair. "You are going to have a hard time believing what I say, but you must." He stopped, and caught her eyes. "You must, Sarah," he repeated quietly. "The consequences of your decision are very, very important- the fate of many people's lives will lie in your hands."

            She nodded one more time. He knew he had her full attention now.

            He also knew he couldn't just spring everything on the poor girl. He would have to do this gently. Jareth despised doing so, but he would have to beat around the bush a bit… let the seed of suspicion plant itself in her mind, grow a bit, then blossom fully as he told her everything. He rose from his seat and slowly started pacing the fine rugs laid out on the stone floor, his hands clasped behind his back.

            "The horrid nightmares you had when you were younger… what were they about?"

            Sarah shook her head. "I don't really remember them very well. It's been ages…" An unyielding look from Jareth compelled her to continue. "I guess… someone, I think a man, made me wish my younger brother Toby away." How did he know about her nightmares? She never told anyone about them.

            Jareth nodded as he continued to circle the table, far too nonchalantly for Sarah's liking.

            "Your granddaughter… Heather…What book was she reading to you when you fell asleep?" Sarah froze in place. Was he watching her even then? She clutched at her stomach under the table; those damned butterflies were back, working a knot in her stomach again.

            Jareth watched Sarah squirm. This was becoming uncomfortable for her; dredging up old, unwanted memories. Things she'd banished from her mind years ago.

            Sarah didn't recognize him yet, but she would soon. He was steering her in the direction of enlightenment, but she would soon figure it all out for herself.

            "She didn't get that far in the book, but you know it was that man who was in your dreams." He looked into her eyes, and she stared back at him.

            "I know that man, Sarah… he lives in this world." He stopped circling the table and looked directly at her again. "It wasn't a dream you had, not originally. You did wish Toby away but you were able to defeat that man to get the baby back. Never before had anyone bettered him." Jareth's tone softened and took on a more mournful note.

            "It almost killed him when you left… His wounded pride he dealt with, but a wounded heart he was never able to fully repair..." He turned his back to Sarah, and slowly moved to the window. He looked out over the valley below, brilliantly lit in the bright morning sun, and continued.

            "For almost seventy years he dealt with that pain in silence, looking out his bedchamber windows each sunrise and sunset, wondering every day if he'd ever see you again."

            Behind him and out of his field of vision, Sarah watched Jareth from her seat. A perplexed look crossed her face, as if she were almost grasping a very complex idea, but at the last second, comprehension was yanked away from her.

            He continued speaking, softly. "The man you defeated was from the book Heather read to you. It was called 'The Labyrinth,' wasn't it?"

            An uneasy silence answered his query.

            He stood at the window a while longer, closed his eyes and exhaled softly, then turned back to face Sarah.

            She was still at the table, though she had risen from her chair and now regarded him with guarded eyes. She'd suddenly remembered her name she had made for this man earlier, and wanted to know his real name. She tiled her head at an angle, and looked into his blue eyes with her own, frightened ones.

            "Who are you?" she asked.

            "You know who I am, Sarah," he replied quietly.

            She gazed into his eyes again. Those strange, mismatched orbs... So alien, yet so familiar...

            She looked deeper into his eyes, and saw the yawning black depths of an oubliette reflecting from the pupil of his right eye. The left was cold and calculating, but this darkness held another, unidentified, emotion.

            She paled suddenly. "You're him…" she whispered, her voice quavering a bit. "You're the Goblin King."

            He remembered the last time he'd heard her say that. She'd been fifteen, crying and scared, all alone and challenged by a stranger. He didn't think he could bear to see her cry again.

            Jareth closed his eyes in pain, wanting to deny her question.

            Gathering her courage, she slowly put one hand up, tentatively, and caressed his cheek.

            "Your name is Jareth." As her warm skin moved over his skin, he leaned into her touch and nodded, almost imperceptibly.

            She had been right then; she didn't have to compare his real name to the one she'd made for him- it was his name!

            But that also meant that standing before her was the very man who had stolen her brother, as well as haunted her in countless nightmares; stealing precious sleep from her on many nights.

            Oh God, she thought, he is Jareth!

            He felt the smooth skin of her fingers pull away from his cheek and he opened his eyes, waiting to see the hurt and betrayal in the woman's eyes.

            Instead, though, unfocused eyes met his. Sarah's knees buckled and she fainted, collapsing into his arms.

            *****