A/N: Thank you to eeryone who has taken the time to review! i appreciate it!
and so, i shall post part 2 without stalling (only forever... right?)and whining...lol.
Its a bit different, but there IS a system to it all! i promise!
AngelaScarlet: yes ma'am. posting:)
SilverWing02: thanks, i'm glad you like it so far! What can i say, Sarah is a confused (..and slightly dazed..) little girl right now... but she'll figure it all out, she's pretty bright... i think so, anyway...we'll just have to see. lol.
HiddenOperaAngel: yay - good for you that ur curious! thats how sarah is too! the whole toby thing will be clearer at the end of the fic. Its not clear cut, though..more like a bond he and Jareth share b/c of Toby spending the 13 hours in Jareth's constant company as a baby...quite the baby-sitter, eh? heheh. Toby has a connection with him and will never really loose it. Kind of like fanfic writers..and readers...;)
here's part 2, enjoy!
PART II:
Chapter I
"Sarah - . . . Sarah . . . Sarah – listen to me . . . Sarah?"
She woke up suddenly, blind with the unfinished dream that had carried her off, wrapped up in its soft, magical wings. She had been far, far away – somewhere so nice, so serene, somewhere . . . But that didn't matter now – the magic had been cut short, her dream rudely interrupted, and even the fairy dust was gone. What had woken her?
"Sarah! Can you hear me?"
A sound? No, she couldn't hear anything . . . the pillow-like silence of a cold November night pressed in on her from all sides, stifling, killing every noise that tried to penetrate it. She could hear nothing . . . yet she was wide-awake in the middle of the night on a Saturday. How often did that happen? She sat up, tucking her feet under herself, trying to keep in as much warmth as possible, her mind in confusion, her huge, gray-green eyes wide with wonder and fear.
"Please, please listen Sarah! Hear me!"
A touch? Almost . . . she didn't hear that just now . . . no, she felt it . . . but . . . Her heart beating wildly she squeezed her eyes shut, forcing herself to concentrate, clear her mind and listen . . . No, not listen, there was nothing to listen to . . . right?
"Sarah – just listen to me, just listen – it's hard to get through to you . . ."
That cold, oddly familiar voice . . . the same breathtaking accent . . . she could almost see the pale gleam of his piercing, hauntingly mis-matched eyes . . . almost see that proud face of his, almost . . .but how could that be? Yet it had to be him . . .
"Jareth?" she half whispered, half screamed; the memory becoming to much for her forced calmness to deal with. It was too strong – her thoughts and emotions broke loose from the tight ball of absolute attention she had forced them into a few seconds ago, and were now wildly chasing themselves around and around her spinning head . . . so dizzy, she couldn't understand anything he was . . . saying? thinking?
"Sar . . . . . . . . . . li . . . . . . . don't . . . . . "
It was all coming to her through the static of her own confusion. She couldn't stop guessing, wondering, thinking, her emotions would not be suppressed, she was close to losing hope of ever hearing that velvety voice again . . .Help! She thought, mentally reaching out to him.
Pain shot through her forehead, blessed, cleansing pain, killing all of those unwanted thoughts she had been trying so hard to catch . . . Concentrate, she told herself, just calm down and concentrate . . . C'mon Sarah, you can do this, this is easy, right? Deep breath, close your eyes . . . ok, you're calm . . . Jareth?
"Look into the mirror . . ." Came to her like a breath of fresh air, sweetly perfumed with the rich tones and that characteristic accent you could never forget.
Shakily she got up and stumbled over to the mirror, faintly glinting at her from across the dark room. A pale, wide-eyed girl of sixteen looked back at her – no longer a child, but as far yet from a woman as a down-covered swanling is from a majestic swan. Already out of the shell, but not yet fully feathered . . . Her hair, indeed seemed feathery, gleaming pure black in the pale moonlight that the mirror reflected on to her delicate face.
Suddenly her reflection blurred, the mirror becoming clouded and filling with numerous reflections, just like the inside of a giant crystal ball . . . Which it probably is, she told herself, wondering at her own wonder. Once again she saw a feathery silhouette – nothing more than a shadow, really. She couldn't see his features, not even the unforgettable eyes that had haunted her dreams, nothing but the silhouette . . . I guess that's the way he wants it . . . and finally – that voice of his had caught up with her. There was so much she wanted to know!
"Save it, Sarah. I know – you're dying to understand it all, but there's no time – just listen."
That was a command. Yes, it was very definitely Jareth. If she had even the tiniest of doubt left about that, there was no mistaking it now. Still as sarcastic and haughty as she remembered him, still as overpowering, and still knowing her better than she knew herself.
But I must know! How is it that you can talk to me? How did that happen when you said that it could never happen again? How –
"Sarah."
I have to know!
"Get used to disappointment."
God! He was still as unbearable as ever! She could almost see his Cheshire cat grin, almost taste the irony in his voice as he enunciated that last, cruelly mortifying phrase. He definitely hadn't changed.
"Something strange is happening Sarah – something that even I can't fully understand – "
Imagine that! She thought . . . but quickly checked herself in mid thought and continued listening – his tone was far from the usual cool one he preferred to use – it was troubled, worried, even distressed . . .
"Sarah, please listen – this is extremely important! Time has turned back. You have done something to turn it back – you have to stop it!"
"WHAT?" She almost screamed, but ended up biting her tongue just in time – the last thing she needed was for her parents to see her talking to a Goblin King.
What are you talking about? She thought venomously – the panic rising up in her chest was barely letting her breathe.
"You didn't do anything strange Sarah? No careless words or wishes? You do have powers you know – I did give them to you. Unfortunately, as you also know, you broke the bridge to my world, and I can no longer watch over you, keeping you out of trouble, or at least correcting your mistakes . . . Sarah, Sarah . . . what have you done?"
Really. It figures. He didn't know. Didn't know that she had been a perfect angel this past year – no only did she not play pretend, she didn't even imagine anything out of the ordinary. True, she had one wild, all-denying tantrum after last seeing him, when she almost broke the mirror . . . but after that, and up to this day she had been a model child.
She was perfect in school, the perfect and reliable daughter, the perfect big sister to Toby, in other words – someone so completely opposite of the old, dreaming, emotional, fantasy-filled Sarah, that it took her parents a long time and many doctor visits to get used to this change.
She was sure he could read those thoughts as they flashed by her, blurring together into a nearly visible blue- gray streak, but just to be sure, she emphasized them, and mentally hurled them at the mirror, receiving shocked, puzzled silence in return.
Exactly what HAS happened? She asked carefully, not wanting to provoke him into another sarcastic paradox he was so fond of.
Too late.
"Oh, nothing, nothing at all! Just that time started working backwards and everything that I had managed to rebuild since you destroyed it started falling apart all over again. Along with my power. Oh, and lately, I've also been feeling your emotions. I wasn't sure for a long time – you were so unnaturally calm, but when your old temper flared up – I knew it. I've been trying to get through to you ever since."
But how –
"I don't KNOW!" he snarled. Nearly a tangible slap in the face. "If you haven't noticed, I don't really have control over anything now, thanks to you!"
Jareth, you know . . .
"Yes, sure" he interrupted again, his voice – a hiss. "Sure I know – you're s o r r y and you want to f i x it . . . or so you say . . ."
I AM sorry – in case you've forgotten, it nearly killed me – though you probably don't care enough to remember! She mentally yelled back. She could feel him flinch, as though from pain, but didn't hear a response. How could he forget – it had only been a year! Didn't he know that she'd do anything, ANYTHING . . .
You know I wish –
"Sarah, stop!"
You KNOW I wish I COULD do something! You KNOW that if I could relive everything all over again, it would have been different! I only wish I could . . .
Her words carried themselves into the nothingness between them, fading away into the distance, echoing a little as they crossed the threshold between two worlds . . . She could hear herself breathing, feel her own pulse, but she felt like she was suspended somewhere in space, waiting, waiting for an answer that she knew would come, even though she hadn't asked him anything. For a moment there was complete, absolute silence, and then she heard the long awaited response –
"Wish granted, Sarah. Already."
What do you mean? She questioned tentatively – His icy-cold tone and tired, worn out voice were not exactly fitting for a wish granting.