Sarah heard the words as if from a deep well. "Dead on arrival."

Her mind fogged, her vision went cloudy, and she vaguely felt an arm around her to guide her to the nearest seat. The toilet, she remembered. Toby was in the bathtub…

"Oh god, Toby!" she screamed. She fought to get to her baby brother, but it seemed like she was trying to move under water.

"Miss?" Someone was talking to her, trying to get her to answer questions about the accident.

Duly, Sarah told them she must have blacked out.

Her eyes teared as she told him that she thought she'd only been out for a moment. Certainly not long enough for Toby to have…to have…She couldn't bring herself to say it.

"It's ok, Miss. We're going to take you to the hospital now, so we can make sure you're all right." The anonymous EMT led her outside to an ambulance and helped her get in.

Turning to the woman, Sarah spoke softly. "My dad, and Karen…they have to be told." Her voice was almost dead, her eyes had glazed over, and her skin had gone grey.

She barely heard the cops say "…Probably be charged with gross negligence. Poor girl, she looks exhausted; it's no wonder she passed out. She should never have been left with the child in the first place."

♠ ♠ ♠

"Ok Sarah, why don't you tell me one more time?"

The faceless detective sat in front of her and tried to look encouraging. Sarah could see that he blamed her for Toby's death…frankly, so did she. She looked down at hands that seemed to be part of a different reality, and let her mouth tell the tale once again.

"I didn't sleep the night before, but Karen insisted that I get up to babysit Toby. My dad told her that I needed to sleep and that she should hire a babysitter, but she refused, and started yelling at me. I gave in so Dad wouldn't catch any more shit from her, and they left. I started to give him his bath, and my vision grayed for a moment. I thought it was only for a moment. When I recovered and looked down, he was there," her breath hitched painfully and the picture flooded her mind. "He…he was blue, and floating just under the surface of the water. I picked him up and ran downstairs to call 911."

Throughout, the cop had taken notes; though he'd written it all down before. He looked up at this beautiful young woman, sitting here in an ugly grey jumpsuit, and felt nothing but pity. It had been her parents' fault that the boy had died, but now she was going to live with the guilt for the rest of her life.

"Miss Williams, you are going to be processed and then let go. If you don't wish to go home, I can arrange for you to be taken somewhere else."

She looked up stupidly, having expected him to tell her that they were going to charge her and take her to trial. "Isn't Toby's funeral today?" She asked. She'd been in here for three days, and she didn't quite remember what day it was.

He nodded. "Yes it is."

Sighing, she looked into his eyes, and it seemed that a part of her had returned to the present. "I would like you to take me there."

♠ ♠ ♠

Dry eyed and staring, Sarah watched her baby brother get lowered into his plot.

She walked up and dropped a red rose onto the tiny coffin, then walked away; not being able to bear the stares.

♠ ♠ ♠

The Goblin King sat on his throne and watched his love walk from the child's funeral.

"Oh, Sarah. If only you had accepted my offer." He mourned for her pain, as well as for the loss of a child he'd liked.

"My Lord?" his advisor, Kaden, asked.

Jareth looked up at the other man, and the pain in his eyes blazed from the center of his tortured expression. Carefully controlling his voice, he responded. "Yes?"

Compassion evident in his eyes, Kaden stepped forward to place a hand lightly on the King's. "Perhaps you could bring her back here? She doesn't appear to have anywhere else to go, as I doubt her step-mother will welcome her back."

Sudden inspiration lit up Jareth's face. "I think I can do a little better than merely bringing her back here. He stood in a fluid, graceful motion and placed a hand on Kaden's shoulder. "Thank you, my friend. I think I can handle it from here."

Pleased with his King's sudden improvement, but a little puzzled, Kaden risked a question. "What is it you're planning to do, My Lord?"

The Goblin King turned, dark blue starry robes swirling around his booted feet. "I have all the power allotted to me as a King of the Fae to work with…I will do anything I wish." He turned and abruptly left the room.

With eyebrows nearly in his hairline, Kaden merely smiled. It would certainly be interesting to see what Jareth had come up with.