AN: To everyone who reviewed the prologue, ya'll are absolutely awesome. I love you all.
**************************** Take Me Away: Chapter One ******************************
He didn't appear immediately. It would have surprised her if he had. He was Jareth after all.
He played his games but he never followed another's rules. He would come when he wished it,
not before, but he WOULD come. To Sarah, in the end, that was all that mattered.
So little else was left.
She was sitting curled in an overstuffed chair when the clock struck midnight, a worn copy of
"A Midsummer Night's Dream" in her hands when the room filled slowly with the scent of magic.
Or maybe it was simply Jareth's magic. It made her bedroom smell like winter and snow freshly
fallen. It made her think of darkness and ice and of skating under the moonlight. It made
her feel free, in a dangerously seductive way, but then, Jareth was seduction. It was what
he did best.
Sarah shivered in the imagined chill as it cut through the flannel of her pajamas. The lights
flickered once and died, casting the room in complete darkness. She started to go to the
window but thought better of it.
There was a heartbeat of silence, two, before the darkness condensed and died and the room was
bathed in the silver of magic. The Goblin King stood before her, terrible in his resplendent
glory. She had feared and defied him as a child. She was too old for both; Sarah could admit
his beauty, and vulnerability, to herself now.
And he was vulnerable, in ways even he didn't completely know. And that made him dangerous,
like a wild animal. Beautiful, unfathomable, and untamable. Sarah Williams had had ten years
to contemplate the Goblin King. She didn't know him in all his icy remoteness, but she
understood him on levels she doubted she understood herself.
She feared he understood her as well.
"Sarah..." Her name rolled odd and foreign on his tongue, like a spice, and though his face
was impassive she could sense his surprise, and indecision, as she lounged in her pajamas,
reading glasses on the tip of her nose. "You've grown up."
She shrugged at the slightly obscene innuendo behind the innocent words and rose, stretching
leisurely. She wasn't one to be intimidated, not anymore. Life had made her strong. It
hadn't given her much choice. "Children have the tendency to do that, despite their best
intentions."
He smiled despite himself, she could tell, and they shared, briefly, a sort of private joke
from the tempestuous time when Sarah had first learned that childhood couldn't last forever
as she despaired among the maze of Jareth's kingdom.
Happiness could last forever though, through him. She had heard the words he had spoken to
her, but she hadn't understood them until years later, until despair, once sparingly tasted,
had become all that she had known.. Jareth had offered her forever once. Come hell, high water,
or the Bog of Eternal Stench, he would again. She was counting on it. She was depending upon it.
"Would you like some tea, or should we be going immediately?" Sarah put the book gently down on
her chair and watched him expectantly. She laughed as he fumbled, cool arrogance shaken by her
indifference.
"You mock me?" came the dangerous voice of an irate King.
She smiled gently, a gentle unfurling curl of her lips, and shook her head. "You amuse me.
Really, Jareth," Sarah reprimanded with mild reproach, "did you really think I would have
changed so little?"
His intelligent gaze hardened and narrowed as they studied her anew, analyzing, contemplating.
"You're manipulating me."
"Very good Jareth, but then, I learned from the best. What kind of tea would you like, green
or decaff?"
He trailed behind her as she shuffled to the kitchen in her slippers, his dark cape billowing
behind him, brows drawn in a severe line. "Sarah..."
She ignored the silk of warning in his voice as she dug through her pantry for the tea.
"Sarah."
She turned and held two packets up. "Green of decaff Jareth, its hardly a difficult
question."
"I don't want your tea. I want to know what game you're playing."
"Green or decaff?"
"Sarah."
"Green or decaff?" She watched with continued amusement as he threw his finely gloved hands in
the air with ill concealed disgust.
"Green."
"Thank you."
Sarah bustled about the small, cramped kitchen of her apartment, grateful that Jareth's magic
seemed to light the room well enough that she fetched her kettle and filled it with water. She
could hear him behind her as he sat with boneless grace, sprawled in a chair at her breakfast
table, and the gentle tapping of what she assumed to be either his boot or riding crop, leather
against leather.
Her hands shook more than she would have liked as she filled the tea pot and turned on the
stove but then, that couldn't really be helped since she was terrified. Sarah Williams had
become a very good actress in the years since she had last confronted the Goblin King. She
was good at hiding things, even from herself, and she had hidden how frightening the Goblin
King truly was.
Silence fell heavy and uncomfortable between them before Jareth chose to break it.
"Sarah, what do you want?"
He sounded weary.
She turned and faced him, eyes flickering to the riding crop that was tapping a tuneless
rhythm against the dark leather of his thigh.
"Exactly what I asked for, for once."
She watched the fine muscles in his jaw clench with detached fascination before he replied,
softly, "I don't believe you."
Sarah laughed brightly and flashed him a dazzling smile. "Oh Jareth, I never lie. I may not
reveal the entire truth but I never lie!"
He stood with a quickness that left her breathless and towered over her, disbelief plain on the
elegant planes of his sculptured face, power pouring from him in waves that left her dizzy.
Hello intimidation. She spoke too soon.
One gloved hand reached up in a single fluid movement to cup her cheek boldly as long fingers
danced with restless movement across the taunt firmness of her skin. He dipped his head low
until full lips were breathing warm air onto hers and white hair spun gold obscured her vision
of her small, dark kitchen.
"Is this what you asked for Sarah because when you called you asked, you gave yourself away to
the goblins, to me?" He grinned ferally as he felt her breath hitch. Jareth's two toned gaze
met and challenged hers.
She shocked him by laughing, weakly, but laughing. "Yup."
His hand withdrew as if scalded. "Yup?" Jareth demanded somewhat weakly himself.
The tea pot shrieked, startling them both. Sarah turned back to her task and retrieved two
cups, pouring the tea and humming merrily under her breath, a hint of hysteria to the melody.
He watched, somewhat wide eyed as she handed him his tea.
"Do you want sugar with that?"
Jareth swallowed, heavily. "Two lumps please."
**************************** Take Me Away: Chapter One ******************************
He didn't appear immediately. It would have surprised her if he had. He was Jareth after all.
He played his games but he never followed another's rules. He would come when he wished it,
not before, but he WOULD come. To Sarah, in the end, that was all that mattered.
So little else was left.
She was sitting curled in an overstuffed chair when the clock struck midnight, a worn copy of
"A Midsummer Night's Dream" in her hands when the room filled slowly with the scent of magic.
Or maybe it was simply Jareth's magic. It made her bedroom smell like winter and snow freshly
fallen. It made her think of darkness and ice and of skating under the moonlight. It made
her feel free, in a dangerously seductive way, but then, Jareth was seduction. It was what
he did best.
Sarah shivered in the imagined chill as it cut through the flannel of her pajamas. The lights
flickered once and died, casting the room in complete darkness. She started to go to the
window but thought better of it.
There was a heartbeat of silence, two, before the darkness condensed and died and the room was
bathed in the silver of magic. The Goblin King stood before her, terrible in his resplendent
glory. She had feared and defied him as a child. She was too old for both; Sarah could admit
his beauty, and vulnerability, to herself now.
And he was vulnerable, in ways even he didn't completely know. And that made him dangerous,
like a wild animal. Beautiful, unfathomable, and untamable. Sarah Williams had had ten years
to contemplate the Goblin King. She didn't know him in all his icy remoteness, but she
understood him on levels she doubted she understood herself.
She feared he understood her as well.
"Sarah..." Her name rolled odd and foreign on his tongue, like a spice, and though his face
was impassive she could sense his surprise, and indecision, as she lounged in her pajamas,
reading glasses on the tip of her nose. "You've grown up."
She shrugged at the slightly obscene innuendo behind the innocent words and rose, stretching
leisurely. She wasn't one to be intimidated, not anymore. Life had made her strong. It
hadn't given her much choice. "Children have the tendency to do that, despite their best
intentions."
He smiled despite himself, she could tell, and they shared, briefly, a sort of private joke
from the tempestuous time when Sarah had first learned that childhood couldn't last forever
as she despaired among the maze of Jareth's kingdom.
Happiness could last forever though, through him. She had heard the words he had spoken to
her, but she hadn't understood them until years later, until despair, once sparingly tasted,
had become all that she had known.. Jareth had offered her forever once. Come hell, high water,
or the Bog of Eternal Stench, he would again. She was counting on it. She was depending upon it.
"Would you like some tea, or should we be going immediately?" Sarah put the book gently down on
her chair and watched him expectantly. She laughed as he fumbled, cool arrogance shaken by her
indifference.
"You mock me?" came the dangerous voice of an irate King.
She smiled gently, a gentle unfurling curl of her lips, and shook her head. "You amuse me.
Really, Jareth," Sarah reprimanded with mild reproach, "did you really think I would have
changed so little?"
His intelligent gaze hardened and narrowed as they studied her anew, analyzing, contemplating.
"You're manipulating me."
"Very good Jareth, but then, I learned from the best. What kind of tea would you like, green
or decaff?"
He trailed behind her as she shuffled to the kitchen in her slippers, his dark cape billowing
behind him, brows drawn in a severe line. "Sarah..."
She ignored the silk of warning in his voice as she dug through her pantry for the tea.
"Sarah."
She turned and held two packets up. "Green of decaff Jareth, its hardly a difficult
question."
"I don't want your tea. I want to know what game you're playing."
"Green or decaff?"
"Sarah."
"Green or decaff?" She watched with continued amusement as he threw his finely gloved hands in
the air with ill concealed disgust.
"Green."
"Thank you."
Sarah bustled about the small, cramped kitchen of her apartment, grateful that Jareth's magic
seemed to light the room well enough that she fetched her kettle and filled it with water. She
could hear him behind her as he sat with boneless grace, sprawled in a chair at her breakfast
table, and the gentle tapping of what she assumed to be either his boot or riding crop, leather
against leather.
Her hands shook more than she would have liked as she filled the tea pot and turned on the
stove but then, that couldn't really be helped since she was terrified. Sarah Williams had
become a very good actress in the years since she had last confronted the Goblin King. She
was good at hiding things, even from herself, and she had hidden how frightening the Goblin
King truly was.
Silence fell heavy and uncomfortable between them before Jareth chose to break it.
"Sarah, what do you want?"
He sounded weary.
She turned and faced him, eyes flickering to the riding crop that was tapping a tuneless
rhythm against the dark leather of his thigh.
"Exactly what I asked for, for once."
She watched the fine muscles in his jaw clench with detached fascination before he replied,
softly, "I don't believe you."
Sarah laughed brightly and flashed him a dazzling smile. "Oh Jareth, I never lie. I may not
reveal the entire truth but I never lie!"
He stood with a quickness that left her breathless and towered over her, disbelief plain on the
elegant planes of his sculptured face, power pouring from him in waves that left her dizzy.
Hello intimidation. She spoke too soon.
One gloved hand reached up in a single fluid movement to cup her cheek boldly as long fingers
danced with restless movement across the taunt firmness of her skin. He dipped his head low
until full lips were breathing warm air onto hers and white hair spun gold obscured her vision
of her small, dark kitchen.
"Is this what you asked for Sarah because when you called you asked, you gave yourself away to
the goblins, to me?" He grinned ferally as he felt her breath hitch. Jareth's two toned gaze
met and challenged hers.
She shocked him by laughing, weakly, but laughing. "Yup."
His hand withdrew as if scalded. "Yup?" Jareth demanded somewhat weakly himself.
The tea pot shrieked, startling them both. Sarah turned back to her task and retrieved two
cups, pouring the tea and humming merrily under her breath, a hint of hysteria to the melody.
He watched, somewhat wide eyed as she handed him his tea.
"Do you want sugar with that?"
Jareth swallowed, heavily. "Two lumps please."