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Eventually the realization came to Sarah that no matter how angry at Jareth she was, that it was fading day by day. He had played a horrible game with her, but in a way, what was done was done. There was almost nothing for her here, and he was still offering her everything.
Everything was the only thing he could offer her; it was all he could do. And while it sounded odd to say that he could only offer her everything, it was true. He would have to offer her everything if he wanted her to leave all she knew here.
And ultimately, none of it changed what she wanted. No matter the means by which she had come to them, Sarah still wanted her dreams.
"I wish to speak to Jareth."
Nothing happened.
"Jareth?" she asked, spinning around, knowing that she would find him right behind her, arms folded and smug look on his face.
Nothing. Sarah suddenly became nervous.
"Jareth?"
"Sarah," she heard his voice. She turned again, finding him not present, but only reflected in her mirror against the wall.
"Why didn't you come?" she demanded.
"I wished to see how badly you wanted to talk to me, under the circumstances."
"Circumstances?"
"Last time we spoke, you were rather angry. Perhaps what I did-- I had not anticipated such an adverse reaction from you. But what do you wish to say now?"
"Does it really matter what I say?" Sarah asked. But she caught an odd manner in his voice. Narrowing her eyes slightly and turning her head to the side, she asked a random question that popped into her head. "And what if I said that I didn't want to speak to you ever again?"
"Then I would disappear, and never bother you again."
Something suddenly caught in Sarah's throat. "But you said--regardless--and I did wish--"
"I make the rules, I break the rules." He gave a small, rather despondent smirk. "Truly, I am bound in that I cannot do anything in this world that someone does not first wish. However, I am not required by any means to grant every wish made. For instance, if I took someone every time they were wished away, the Labyrinth would be crawling with humans--and I don't turn them into goblins, before you ask. I'm free to choose which wishes I honor--though sometimes I'm sure sometimes the wishers would rather I not honor them." He paused. "But only what you want, Sarah. And do you really think I wish to have someone here who hates me?"
Sarah's mind was spinning. If she truly never wanted to see him again, Jareth would disappear from her world just like that, throwing her previous words into the wind.
She looked deeply at him from the mirror, trying to discern if he was telling the truth. (Had he ever really lied? she suddenly wondered. Twisted words, yes, warped perceptions, certainly, but lied...?)
Right now his eyes held the promise of an offer--the same offer that he had presented her with since the beginning. Her dreams for eternity. She became conscious that his eyes were silently imploring her to take that offer. If she turned him down, Sarah knew she would never see him again. She realized that he in no way wanted that.
And neither did she.
"I can't forgive you yet for what you did," Sarah began slowly, "but I can't hold it against you forever, either. I can't keep thinking on what might have happened, I can only act on what has happened. I'm not pleased about how you went about it, but I won't waste the rest of my life regretting an angry decision; I would be punishing myself as well by not accepting."
"Then you still accept?" he asked after a moment.
She smiled faintly. "Yes, I still wish you would come and take me away."
Suddenly he vanished from the mirror, leaving her only staring at her own reflection. Sarah panicked for a moment, before she felt his hands on her shoulders and saw him appear behind her. She didn't turn around, but merely stared at his reflection.
"I love you, Jareth," she said. "Do you love me?"
"I always have."
It was silent for a moment. Then she smiled, still looking at him in the mirror. "We need a new rule. I'm sick of you sneaking up on me. No more of this appearing behind me crap. If I say 'I wish,' you had better show up facing me."
Jareth disappeared, and was then suddenly standing in front of her, leaning against the mirror and blocking the view of her reflection. He grinned. "Deal."
Sarah took a step forward, standing only inches away from him. She looked up. "Good."
For a moment nothing happened. Then he leaned down, brushing her lips with a light kiss. Sarah slowly returned it, and felt his hand curving around her back, drawing her closer. She felt her own hands come to rest on his chest and neck. The kiss deepened, but it was still slow, sweet.
They stood that way for a few moments, before Sarah felt Jareth pulling her forward, his grip on her also loosening slightly. The next thing Sarah knew, her face and body were pressed up against the cold surface of the mirror. She stepped back and opened her eyes, only to find Jareth grinning at her from the other side.
"Hey!" she exclaimed, giving the mirror a slight smack with her palm.
He smiled pleasantly. "You never said anything about rules for leaving." Jareth leaned up against the edge of the mirror, which looked rather odd, as if he were only on the other side of a window. Then he then extended a hand through. Now he was leaning on mirror and passing through it. "Join me?" he asked.
"Not yet," Sarah said slowly. As much as she was tempted to take his hand and never look back, she couldn't yet. "But soon."
"This probably isn't the best time to bring this up," he said after a moment, "since I only just got back in your good graces--but it is not necessary for you to leave forever."
"But I thought you could only come when called."
"My power in this world is limited to what someone wishes, yes. However, all that is required for me to come is someone out there to say something along the lines of 'I wish that there was still magic,' or 'I wish there were still things like that in the world.' And then I'm free to come and do as I choose, because merely by being here I've fulfilled the wish."
"I see," Sarah said thoughtfully. "But no, I don't want two lives. I only want one. And I mean to break with this life; there's nothing here for me. I've tried, really, to find something, but there's nothing. I'm sure that's bad, but I don't care. I'm almost through with it; I'll join you, soon. Very soon."
