AN: Thanks for the reviews. I realised that last chapter was UBER tiny. So
this one is a bit bigger :0) so Enjoy! Also, to address one question.I
don't remember off the top of my head who asked (sorry!!!) I did start
writing this before Buffy and Spike became an official item, I have been a
Spuffy addict for years! I started writing this way back when Season 4 was
actually happening. Going back and writing the rest of it now, is proving
to be interesting..I keep forgetting that Dawn wasn't quite in existance
yet., d'oh.
Anyhow, Read, Review, Enjoy ;)
Anne-Marie
Buffy stumbled as she walked up another set of stairs, automatically her hand reached out to steady herself, instead she brushed against Spike's arm. He paused and looked back at her, a sober expression on his face. Buffy smiled, but stopped, somehow not sure of what to do.
"How are you doing Spike?"
"Just fine Slayer."
"Right, because everyday you deal with stuff from you childhood."
"Who says I don't?"
"You aren't the brooding type Spike. That's Angel's department, he's good at it, you on the other hand, suck."
"I am not brooding. Just didn't have anything to say."
"That hasn't stopped you before."
"Ok, I am not just fine, you happy now?"
"Not really."
"No, of course not." Buffy could hear Spike roll his eyes. Buffy stumbled on another step.
"Ow!"
"You ok there, pet?" Spike offered her a hand and was mildly surprised when she took it, her small warm hand grasping his tightly, looking for and giving reassurance in this strange land.
Sarah hadn't realized how many times one could walk around the Escher room and still have infinite paths to choose from.
"Jareth?" She was afraid to break the silence, that somehow it would hurt her or worse, him.
"Yes Sarah?"
"What's going on?"
"I'm not entirely certain. Lady Trevlei has hated me for a long time now, but she has never been of any worth as an adversary. Her magic is more nominal that real. I have a feeling you and your cohorts there have more magic than she does naturally. As to how she obtained this new power, that is what we need to find out, in the mean time I am taking us somewhere safe."
"The Escher Room?"
"Sarah, we are already in the Escher Room. It is safe for now. None can come in here unless I will it. However, I would be a rather useless king if I stayed holed up in here."
"I suppose so." Sarah was quiet in thought for a minute, then spoke again, "How is it we are safe in here?"
"This room is its own reality, my reality."
"But.I thought the rest of the Underground was too?"
"No, I just rule that, I admit I have shaped parts of it to suit my own needs."
"Ow! Ow! Ow!" Buffy tripped again.
"Well, Buffy, it seems fortunate that we have arrived at our destination." Jareth addressed the cursing slayer, who was rubbing her knee. He swung open a large wooden door that looked as if it had always been there, yet Sarah would have sworn that not two seconds earlier another staircase had been in its place.
"So we can stop, Mr. StairMaster?"
"Stop? My dear girl we are just beginning." Through the now open door Buffy could see a landscape, riddled with small hills and valleys, lush green grass, all and all Disney couldn't have imagined a better sunny, pastoral setting.
"How does that do us any good? Its sunny out, until the sun sets we are stuck here."
"What are you talking about Buffy?" Sarah asked the other girl.
"Look Sarah, there are things in this world, or our world, whatever, that just don't do well in the daytime. Vampires for instance."
"Vampires? Buffy, you aren't making any sense.." Spike shifted to his game face.
"Actually, luv, she is making perfect sense."
"You look like those things that attacked us in the park." Sarah gasped.
"Well yeah, you don't actually think they were science experiments gone wrong? They were vampires. Like me."
Sarah backed up a little, in the limited space this cozied her up with Jareth nicely. Buffy got up from her sitting position on the steps.
"There is nothing to worry about Sarah. He can't hurt you, even if he could, I wouldn't let him."
"What can you do? Are you going to go all Xena on him like you did in the graveyard?"
"Well yeah, it's my job. Vampire Slayer and all that jazz." Jareth quirked his head at this.
"Sarah, whether William is a threat or not, that is not the issue at hand, we need to get out of here, now. If he were going to hurt us, he would have tried already. We need to get as much distance between ourselves and that two-bit hack as possible."
"Ok, fine." Sarah walked out the door.
"So Spike isn't a threat, how do you propose to get him out into Mary Poplins-land without turning into a IBC?"
"I assure you Vampire Slayer, he is in no danger from this sunlight."
""saright Buffy, I trust him."
"Why Spike? How can you be sure this joker is the same guy you met way back when?"
"Slayer.I know in my gut. Just trust me."
"Hrmph. Fine, whatever, its your life."
Jareth walked out into the glade, Spike followed him, not wishing to look cowardly and delay his exit from the Escher Room. He felt as silly as a child jumping into a swimming pool with its hand on its nose, when he slowly opened his eyes to a balmy blue sky. Standing back in the shadows Buffy watched as Spike was slowly illuminated, the black of his duster picking up some grays she had never before noticed.
"You coming pet?"
"Of course." Buffy ran out into the glade, catching up with Xander's cousin.
"Hey Buffy."
"So Sarah, we know Spike's connection, how do you fit into this cosmic puzzle?"
"That is simple Buffy." Jareth turned his head to address the slayer.
"Really?"
"Oh yes, you see, she wished her little brother away to me, so as to make him a goblin."
Buffy stumbled as she walked up another set of stairs, automatically her hand reached out to steady herself, instead she brushed against Spike's arm. He paused and looked back at her, a sober expression on his face. Buffy smiled, but stopped, somehow not sure of what to do.
"How are you doing Spike?"
"Just fine Slayer."
"Right, because everyday you deal with stuff from you childhood."
"Who says I don't?"
"You aren't the brooding type Spike. That's Angel's department, he's good at it, you on the other hand, suck."
"I am not brooding. Just didn't have anything to say."
"That hasn't stopped you before."
"Ok, I am not just fine, you happy now?"
"Not really."
"No, of course not." Buffy could hear Spike roll his eyes. Buffy stumbled on another step.
"Ow!"
"You ok there, pet?" Spike offered her a hand and was mildly surprised when she took it, her small warm hand grasping his tightly, looking for and giving reassurance in this strange land.
Sarah hadn't realized how many times one could walk around the Escher room and still have infinite paths to choose from.
"Jareth?" She was afraid to break the silence, that somehow it would hurt her or worse, him.
"Yes Sarah?"
"What's going on?"
"I'm not entirely certain. Lady Trevlei has hated me for a long time now, but she has never been of any worth as an adversary. Her magic is more nominal that real. I have a feeling you and your cohorts there have more magic than she does naturally. As to how she obtained this new power, that is what we need to find out, in the mean time I am taking us somewhere safe."
"The Escher Room?"
"Sarah, we are already in the Escher Room. It is safe for now. None can come in here unless I will it. However, I would be a rather useless king if I stayed holed up in here."
"I suppose so." Sarah was quiet in thought for a minute, then spoke again, "How is it we are safe in here?"
"This room is its own reality, my reality."
"But.I thought the rest of the Underground was too?"
"No, I just rule that, I admit I have shaped parts of it to suit my own needs."
"Ow! Ow! Ow!" Buffy tripped again.
"Well, Buffy, it seems fortunate that we have arrived at our destination." Jareth addressed the cursing slayer, who was rubbing her knee. He swung open a large wooden door that looked as if it had always been there, yet Sarah would have sworn that not two seconds earlier another staircase had been in its place.
"So we can stop, Mr. StairMaster?"
"Stop? My dear girl we are just beginning." Through the now open door Buffy could see a landscape, riddled with small hills and valleys, lush green grass, all and all Disney couldn't have imagined a better sunny, pastoral setting.
"How does that do us any good? Its sunny out, until the sun sets we are stuck here."
"What are you talking about Buffy?" Sarah asked the other girl.
"Look Sarah, there are things in this world, or our world, whatever, that just don't do well in the daytime. Vampires for instance."
"Vampires? Buffy, you aren't making any sense.." Spike shifted to his game face.
"Actually, luv, she is making perfect sense."
"You look like those things that attacked us in the park." Sarah gasped.
"Well yeah, you don't actually think they were science experiments gone wrong? They were vampires. Like me."
Sarah backed up a little, in the limited space this cozied her up with Jareth nicely. Buffy got up from her sitting position on the steps.
"There is nothing to worry about Sarah. He can't hurt you, even if he could, I wouldn't let him."
"What can you do? Are you going to go all Xena on him like you did in the graveyard?"
"Well yeah, it's my job. Vampire Slayer and all that jazz." Jareth quirked his head at this.
"Sarah, whether William is a threat or not, that is not the issue at hand, we need to get out of here, now. If he were going to hurt us, he would have tried already. We need to get as much distance between ourselves and that two-bit hack as possible."
"Ok, fine." Sarah walked out the door.
"So Spike isn't a threat, how do you propose to get him out into Mary Poplins-land without turning into a IBC?"
"I assure you Vampire Slayer, he is in no danger from this sunlight."
""saright Buffy, I trust him."
"Why Spike? How can you be sure this joker is the same guy you met way back when?"
"Slayer.I know in my gut. Just trust me."
"Hrmph. Fine, whatever, its your life."
Jareth walked out into the glade, Spike followed him, not wishing to look cowardly and delay his exit from the Escher Room. He felt as silly as a child jumping into a swimming pool with its hand on its nose, when he slowly opened his eyes to a balmy blue sky. Standing back in the shadows Buffy watched as Spike was slowly illuminated, the black of his duster picking up some grays she had never before noticed.
"You coming pet?"
"Of course." Buffy ran out into the glade, catching up with Xander's cousin.
"Hey Buffy."
"So Sarah, we know Spike's connection, how do you fit into this cosmic puzzle?"
"That is simple Buffy." Jareth turned his head to address the slayer.
"Really?"
"Oh yes, you see, she wished her little brother away to me, so as to make him a goblin."