Title: Whispers of Magic
Author: Kathea
Pairing: Jareth/Sarah
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Time will tarnish your memory but some things will never go away even if they are only whispers.
AN: Set at least 10 years after the movie with a very grown up Sarah and a Jareth that hasn't changed one bit.
Disclaimer: This story was written for my entertainment, if by some miracle you were also entertained then I am honored. I obviously make no money from this artistic venture.
Review: Lady of the Labyrinth: Yes, really next week. It'll go by fast, I promise you. I know the phrase "If wishes were horses…" but I didn't intend to steal. It's my personal opinion that that phrase has become part of the collective vocabulary. I just like to have chapter titles that relate to the chapter content. JoeyNPacey2gether4ever: I like to tug on the heart strings. Lyn: I will. Layla Wendal: Well, thank you very much. I really do try to be creative and not bore people with a storyline they've read before. Solea: Sometimes I tend to pour on the sap, I really try not to but I just can't help it sometimes. Read the AN at the end of this chapter, I've got a question for you. ItsACrystalNothingMore: Thank you very much for such a high compliment. Moonjava: Well, let's see how you like this little slice (ha ha, did you get that? I'm sure you did.) I'm a dork.
Chapter 5: Faint Dead Away
This was the definition of opulence. The bed upon which Sarah was currently seated was covered by a maroon and gold coverlet with intricately designed flowers. Her eyes quickly scanned the rest of the large room. The color scheme from the bed carried throughout the room. There was a gilt mirror over a cold fire place and heavy maroon drapes over the windows. The furniture had a heavy, weighty feel to it. Certainly not a room that you could call delicate by any definition.
"But then again, this is the Goblin King's castle, what else should I expect?" Sarah whispered to herself as she ran soft fingers over the patterns on the bed. "How he manages to walk the line between over the top and luxury, I'll never know."
"It's because I have fabulous tastes." A rich voice said from an open doorway. Sarah sucked in fast breath to scream before the voice registered in her mind. Sarah stood and spun towards the door, her hands pressed against her rapidly beating heart.
"Must you do that?" Sarah said sharply and in turn received a cheeky grin. Sarah frowned at Jareth fisted her hands at her hips. "I suppose you must, it would be out of character for you not to."
"And what do you know of my character?" Jareth asked with steel in his eyes.
"Apparently," Sarah responded equally as sternly. "You have a bit of a temper."
Jareth was able to hold his pose for just a moment before bursting into laughter. "It's good to see," he said between chuckles, "that you haven't lost any of your attitude." Sarah smiled in relief at his quick change of mood, dealing with an irate Goblin King was not on her to do list. "How do you like your accommodations?" Jareth asked moving to sit on the arm of a heavy side chair.
"It's better than an oubliette." Sarah replied with a grin.
"Now, how could you ever think that I would house you in an oubliette?" Jareth bantered back.
"You've done it once before." Sarah countered with a raised eyebrow.
"Ah, yes, but you weren't a guest then."
"I was your enemy."
"No, you were my competition. There is a difference."
"Oh really?"
"If you had been my enemy you never would have made it out of the oubliette. But enough rehashing of the past; dinner will be served shortly and I'm sure you would like to freshen up."
"Is there a problem with my current attire?" Sarah asked with a curious smile waving a hand at the short skirt and tank top she was currently wearing. Jareth didn't hesitate to rake his gaze over her and a shiver ran up her spine when his eyes stopped on her face.
"Personally, I quite enjoy your ensemble but the kitchen staff so enjoys putting out a lavish meal when I entertain. So, we dress for their sakes." Jareth said with a wicked smile. "I'll be back later." And with decidedly magicless move he closed the door behind him.
"It seems," Sarah said to the empty room, "I don't know him at all." Confused by this sudden train of thought, Sarah began to empty her small bag in hopes that she could find something suitable to wear.
Thoroughly flustered by the meager offerings of her bag, Sarah paced around her room mentally reviewing the contents once again.
"Who would've thought," she mumbled under her breath, "catering to the whims of his servants, being genuinely kind and generous, not meeting my expectations, dratted man." Sarah stopped in her pacing and stared around her room again. "What in the world am I doing worrying about what to wear to dinner when I am in the castle beyond the goblin city at the behest of the king. God, but I am such a girl sometimes!" Her ever curious nature taking over, Sarah strode to one of the two ornately carved doors on the far wall of the room. Placing a firm hand on the knob, turning sharply the door opened before into a bathroom that would rival the finest spas. A deep sunken tub that would probably hold three people comfortably was situated under three stained glass windows, opposite it was a long marble vanity with a deep sink, and a large framed mirror reflected back the afternoon sun. All things considered, Sarah decided, she could quite possibly spend the rest of her life in this bathroom.
With curiosity once again killing the cat, Sarah turned quickly out of the bathroom and opened the other wooden door, not quite sure what to expect. Surely this was supposed to be a closet, Sarah thought. There was no doubt as to the purpose but it was completely empty except for one cloth covered object hanging near the door. Sarah absently rubbed her abdomen as she pulled the cloth off the object beneath it.
Outrage flared for a moment before Sarah reigned in her emotions. There was no need to stomp about and scream when Jareth was just being a polite host. How he knew that she had nothing to wear was an interesting question but Sarah wasn't about to turn down such a lavish gift. The pale blue material felt cool under her hands and Sarah lifted it gently off of the hanger. It would certainly show off her figure and the slit up the leg was most likely immodest. She thought a moment about taking a bath but since the operation of that room was still a mystery she only reapplied her makeup before slipping the dress over her head.
The fabric felt delicious against her skin. While being a nanny was certainly a well paying job, something of this quality was a bit out of her league. The dress slipped easily over her head and down her body. Fitting itself to her curves, Sarah wondered how Jareth had known her size so perfectly and then decided that she didn't really want to know anyway.
This time when Jareth appeared in the previously unopened door, Sarah was not startled. One meticulous eyebrow raised in surprise at her appearance before a seductive smile graced his face. Jareth watched her carefully; this was not the willful, selfish child who had run the labyrinth all those years ago.
"You seem surprised." Sarah stated archly.
"I will admit that I thought you would have screamed the castle down by now."
"Not living up to your expectations?" Sarah questioned smugly. Chagrined Jareth offered Sarah his arm and lead her into the hallway.
It was a quiet walk to the dinning room. The long table in the midst of a massive room was not where she was lead. Instead a small round table on a moonlit terrace was set for two. Sarah raised an eyebrow at the not so subtle air of romance that seemed to swirl around the area. Jareth looked over and caught her bemused expression. He shrugged elegant shoulders and pulled out her chair.
"What can I say, I'm subject to the whims of my staff."
The dinner was, of course, delicious. This was turning out to be a better vacation than she planned, Sarah thought. Twirling the wine in her glass Sarah turned her attention to the Goblin King.
"It seems that you have an unfair advantage over me." Sarah began. "You know some of what I have been doing but I know nothing about what you've been up to."
"You really want to make small talk?" Jareth asked with a smirk.
"What else is there to do?" Sarah responded with a shrug.
"I can think of a few things." Jareth said salaciously.
"Look, I came down here to have these stupid dreams stopped not to be propositioned by a horny Goblin King." Sarah began her eyes beginning to burn with anger. "You want to know something interesting, Jareth. I don't have sex anymore. Would you like to know why?" Jareth held up his hands in surrender but Sarah pushed on. "You see every time I would think about having sex, I'd think about protection and then I'd have to remind myself that I can't get pregnant anyway!" Sarah stood up, the force toppling the chair behind her. "So, if you don't mind, you can keep your innuendos to yourself." Sarah strode back the way she came, fury powering her steps. The tears started falling before she had even reached the hall to her room. She could barely see the handle to the door from the tears raining down her cheeks but she pushed the door open and shut it quickly to slump against it.
Sarah leaned her head back against the door, the wood cool under her palms. Quiet sobs shook her lean frame as all the refused dates and offers flew threw her mind. It wasn't self-imposed celibacy, it was self-imposed loneliness. Sarah had to fight the urge to fling herself onto the bed and instead quickly slipped the dress off and pulled on a long t-shirt. Settling under the warm coverlet, Sarah rubbed the heel of her hand over her stomach, there was a strange pressure there but Sarah dismissed it at stress and thankfully fell asleep.
The strong smell of coffee pulled Sarah from her heavy sleep. Opening bleary eyes, Sarah saw a tray of food resting on the small table in front of the fireplace. Her stomach gave a sharp twinge and rumbled hungrily. Sarah shivered when her bare feet touched the cool stone floor and she hurried to curl up in the chair before the fire that some wonderful person had lit. Sarah wolfed down the simple breakfast of hot coffee and toast with jam. It wasn't all that different from what she usually had. A lovely pink rose was laying beside the tray and underneath it a small piece of paper. Sarah lifted the rose to her nose and thumbed the paper open. All you have to do is call when you are ready, it read in what was obviously Jareth's heavy script.
Reluctantly rising from the chair, Sarah walked to the bathroom and opened the heavy door. To her surprise and delight the tub was full of water with steam rising off of it to fill the room. Quickly shucking her t-shirt, Sarah submerged herself in the water up to her neck. Silently thanking whatever servant had filled the tub and left the soaps for her to sample, Sarah relaxed in the water. She thought seriously about washing her hair but since there didn't seem to be any means of drying it, Sarah unwillingly left the tub and after drying off dressed quickly. She was sure that the skirt and camisole like tank top were not quite appropriate for meeting with a king but shrugged it off. Slipping on a pair of low heeled sandals, Sarah stood squarely in front of the door and gulped down any fears.
"Jareth, I'm ready now." Sarah said in a firm voice.
Two polite knocks sounded on the door before it opened before the Goblin King. His sharply handsome face was once again guarded and severe. Saying nothing Jareth extended an arm to Sarah. Inwardly fuming, Sarah took his arm and let herself be lead down the hall and out of the castle. How dare he be mad at her, Sarah seethed. He was the one that couldn't control his tongue. Struggling to remain quiet, Sarah was stunned to see that they were walking through the maze. It was the hedge maze, that much was familiar but this time it was less threatening and under other circumstances would have been a pleasant walk. They rounded a corner into a small courtyard and stopped walking.
"Dumm…Dumbledore?" Sarah asked shocked as she stared at the figure seated on the bench in front of her. Sarah would have sworn up and down that seated before her was a character from the most recent Harry Potter movie. A warm laugh reached Sarah's ears as the old man chuckled at her confusion.
"No, my dear. I thought that a more familiar figure would be more comfortable for you." the man's gentle voice said and then his blue eyes sparkled. "I will take credit for inspiring the story though. I'm rather proud of it if I do say so myself."
"So, you aren't Dumbledore?"
"No."
"Oh." Sarah sent a questioning look at Jareth but his blank look gave her no answer. Sarah plowed on, "then who are you?"
"I am a physical manifestation of the entity known as the Labyrinth, in short." The old man rumbled. Sarah's eyes widened as she tried to understand what was seated before her. She turned to Jareth for explanation again.
"So, why did you bring me to him…here…whatever?"
Jareth faced her with a pair of very tired eyes which quickly glazed over with ice. "When you informed me of the nature of your dreams, some elements of the dreams gave away the source." Jareth began giving a stern glance at the old man. "Your dreams were not really dreams but more the fulfillment of wishes."
"Before His Majesty makes me into too much of the villain," the man interjected. "Let me explain. His Majesty is correct in that I was sending you the dreams but it was because it was the only way I could fulfill your wish."
"What wish? I didn't make a wish." Sarah said getting angry.
"Sarah." Dumbledore admonished. "We both know that you did. We both know what you wish for every day when you wake up and every night before you fall asleep." Sarah looked away from both men accepting the truth in his statement.
"So, you grant wishes. I get that. In the only way possible, you granted my wish. I get that too. So why am I still here?" Sarah asked in a strained voice, her head pounding and lower back starting to throb. She reached back a hand to rub at the sore area, closing her eyes against the bright sun.
"According to the rules of the Underground, you must formally ask the Labyrinth to stop trying to grant your wish."
"No more dreams."
"No more dreams." Dumbledore confirmed.
"Alright then, I, Sarah Williams, formally request that the Labyrinth no longer try to grant my wish to have the ability to have children." Sarah heaved a sigh as the pain in her back intensified. Jareth was watching her strangely as she shaded her eyes from the sun.
"Done." Dumbledore's voiced echoed around her and what felt like a tidal wave of energy rocket through her body. Sarah's body wavered once before her knees went out from under her. Only Jareth's superhuman speed kept Sarah from crashing to the ground. As he cradled her unconscious body in his arms, Jareth glared at the little girl who was sitting where an old man once sat.
"What have you done to her?" Jareth growled at the little brown haired girl who was smiling at him.
"I granted your wish." The Labyrinth responded happily before disappearing in a burst of white light and the sound of tinkling bells.
AN: For Solea, are you the same Solea who is associated with Scattered Logic? If you are, can I just say that I'm honored that you would read my stuff. Wow.
AN2: This is my Harry Potter disclaimer. I do not own anything associated with Harry Potter or Albus Dumbledore. The idea to have the Labyrinth appear as Dumbledore came to me a few days ago and just wouldn't go away. Hopefully, ya'll get a good laugh out of it.
Till we meet again….