I am actually updating this story! WOOT! Can you believe it? I can't.
Disclaimer: I don't own it!
"What 'ave ye gotten yurself into?" Five minuets after Jareth exited, his threat still hanging in the air, Hoggle showed up.
"I don't know Hoggle. I thought that it was a good idea at the time, I think. It went downhill after the explosion. But enough about me, how are Ludo and Sir Didymus?" Hoggle looked away. "Hoggle, what's wrong?"
"They're gone Sarah." He turned back, his face covered in tears. "Didymus, the old nutcase, picked a fight 'e couldn't win. 'e challenged a Fae lord to a duel; poor fool didn't stand a chance." He broke into sobs. "Ambrosias died of a broken heart. 'e was loyal to the end though, guarded the fox's grave till the end."
"And Ludo?" Hoggle shook his head.
"Went after that Fae in a primal rage. The Fae took him out without a second thought." They sat in silence, remembering their three fallen friends. Sarah straitened and dried her eyes.
"Now lets stop this, you know as well as I do that Didymus would not want us morning his death, he died in battle, which is how he wanted it. As for Ludo he would have given anything for his friends and he did. We shouldn't morn them." A tear slid down her cheek. "That doesn't mean that we can't miss them, it means that we should remember them and… tell others about them so that they aren't forgotten. OK. Gone but never forgotten." She pulled Hoggle close, letting him cry on her shoulder, her own tears sliding down. The dwarf didn't pull away until both had cried themselves out.
"You's is right Sarah. They wouldn't want us crying over them. I won't cry for 'em no more. I's wont disgrace Didymus like that." Sarah giggled at the bravado.
"His courage seems to have rubbed off on you Hoggle." They filled the night with tales of the exploits of those unable to join them.
Sarah woke to a quiet knock on her door, sitting up she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "Come in."
After a short pause the door opened, three dish laden goblins entered the room, closely followed by their monarch. "I trust you slept well?" Sarah gave a curt nod in reply. "Good, we shall begin your lessons today." He sat down at a newly formed table. The goblins rid themselves of their loads and fled from the room. The teen raised a questioning eyebrow at their actions. "If you recall the last time they encountered you it was not the most pleasant of experiences. In fact it has been recorded as quite the horrific event." She could not tell whether he found it humorous or was annoyed with his subjects.
Sarah slipped out of the bed, the clothes she had worn the night before still on. She slowly made her way to the side of the table opposite the monarch. Jareth removed the lids from the trays displaying an array of unfamiliar fruits and breads. He handed her a plate.
"Bon appetite. Eat well, you'll need it. We shall begin your training after you've washed and dressed."
The lessons progressed well that day, Sarah was a fast learner, and the Goblin King made no inappropriate comments. He made no comments during the lessons that is; the moment he called an end for that day he started again. Sarah had bent over to right a chair that had been knocked over during the lesson, a low whistle emanated from the king and she immediately stood up. She turned to glare at him and found the king within arms reach of her. "I have some matters of state to attend to, but once I am finished I shall have some free time before dinner. Perhaps you'd like to further 'discuss' your potential ceremony." His eyes raked her form.
"So that's what you're calling it these days. How about…no?" She fought the urge to step back as he moved forward. An arm slid around her waist, she merely raised an eyebrow at him. "Actually, I did want to talk to you about that." A smirk came to his lips. "Do I actually need to have sex? Or can I just breach the hymen?" A surprised look covered his features for only a moment before he regained composure, then he leaned in closely.
"You must engage in an act of passion." His breath on her ear sent a shiver down her spine, a shiver she fought to suppress.
"So killing you from hatred counts?"
"Pleasured passion." He was so close that Sarah had trouble thinking.
"Oh, I'd take pleasure in it." He sighed and pulled away a little, keeping his hold on her waist.
"It must be sex Sarah, whether the hymen is breached or not. It's the climax that counts." His free hand trailed across her collarbone as he spoke.
"So I could just masturbate." She didn't like the smile that crossed his face.
"You couldn't do it yourself, your magic will render you paralyzed just before you could…finish, thus keeping you from doing it yourself. I, however, could lend my skilled hands to the cause." The hand moved from her collarbone to her abdomen.
"So we're back to square one, great." She slapped his hand away and pulled out of the half-embrace. Her heart was racing; she had to get away from him. The princess had never been treated like that, wanted. Affection had been lacking in her life, getting so much, in such intensity and of that kind left her breathless and hungering for more. She fought the urge to return to his arms and turned her back to him. "I thought that you had kingly things to get to." She heard him take a step toward her, and then sensed his departure.
"OUT, NOW!" Jareth kicked a goblin across the room and all of his subjects left the throne room, fearing his anger. He had pushed her too much, he hadn't expected her to be that innocent, that affected by a simple touch. He had also underestimated her; the composure she had kept even with her body's reactions was astounding. He collapsed onto his throne, pondering his next course of action. This didn't need to end badly; he could use this to get closer to her, but how? He pushed the planning to the back of his mind as the first appointment of the day entered the room.
Jareth returned to Sarah's room just before dinner, she sat brushing her hair at the vanity he had provided. She didn't get up or turn to look at him, though she sensed his presence.
"I thought that we had already finished the conversation." She said before he could open his mouth. The hand moving the brush through her hair did not stop or pause.
"I don't think that you understand the importance of it." He reached the vanity and extended his hand to take the brush, she ignored it.
"And I don't think that you understand what I'm going through. You were raised knowing what was expected of you, raised knowing what you were, what your future would be. I learned yesterday what I am and what I'm going to do for the rest of my life. My world was turned upside down and this time it wasn't done by you." He moved beside the chair, gently stopping her hand. The king placed the brush on the vanity and slowly pulled Sarah to her feet. Where has you strength gone now, little one?
"You can handle this. I know that you will handle this so much better then any other person I know." Her head was down and he lifted her chin gently. "Far better then your mother. She was raised as I was, and still could not take the pressure and responsibility. You are rash," The brunette blushed in remembrance of a particularly rash moment involving Toby and a little red book. "But you fix your mistakes and are not afraid to admit that you made them. I can think of none better to take over for your grandfather." He didn't want to use her fragile state against her, really… Who was he kidding? This was the perfect opportunity to get close to her. She looked up at him with hope in her eyes; he had to fight to hold down the smirk as he gave her a reassuring look.
"Really?"
"Yes, really." He was surprised when she threw her arms around him in a hug, but recovered quickly and returned it. Teenagers could be so emotional. She continued to cling to him, as though he was the only solid thing in the world, and he felt warm tears spread across his shirt. "Sarah?" She started to pull away, putting her hands to her face in an attempt to either hide or wipe away the tears.
"It's nothing, I'm just being a silly spoiled brat." Jareth kept a hold of her arm, lightly squeezing it in reassurance and not letting her flee at the same time.
"It's not silly. Sometimes we just need to cry." How cheesy do I sound? He pulled her closer and tucked the brunette's head beneath his chin, leaving his hand slightly tangled in her hair. "Go ahead; even the strong can be weak." I really need to stop this. I'm starting to sound like a bad funeral card. Sarah leaned into him; he heard her breath in deeply. The smirk forced itself out this time; she was so naïve. He stroked slow circles on her back.
When she was suitably calm, but still on that plane of fragility and irrationality that comes just after tears, he pulled back. Jareth met her eyes and leaned his head down slightly. Sarah looked up at him, mouth slightly agape; she closed it and swallowed, expecting what was to come. He closed the distance between their lips, just barely making contact in a slow, tender kiss. Sarah melted in his arms. Teen girls, such romantics. Like giving poison filled candy to a baby. He backed away slowly, like in a bad Romantic film, reaching a hand out to her as he backed up to the door. His eyes never left hers and he had to fight the urge to gag. Once the door was closed a smirk overcame his features. "As I said Princess, we shall see." He ignored the slight twinge in his heart as he plotted how further to win her over.