Disclaimer: Jareth remains to be copyrighted to Jim Henson, Aerobeds copyrighted to the company that makes them, Family Ties copyrighted to the person that created it, Ghostwriter copyrighted to the person that created it, the briefest mention of Back to the Future copyrighted to Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, and I'm copyright myself. Now more than ever…
"Shouldn't you be in bed?"
I groaned and held Itchie tight to keep her from leaping off my lap. "Jareth, go away. I'm not in the mood." I was flipping through channels, trying to find a decent infomercial to watch (or listen to as the case may be, as my television is behind me and to the left when I'm sitting at my computer); I finally had to settle on an episode of Family Ties ("A Tale of Two Cities: Part Two" if you're curious), setting the satellite to switch to Ghostwriter at 3, if I was still up (it turned out to be "Am I Blue? Parts 1 to 4" on Cable in the Classroom, if you can believe that one).
The Goblin King remained standing where he was, leaning against my Aerobed, probably sensing my foul mood. I didn't want to talk to him. I may've had the urge to watch the movie, but I didn't want to talk to him.
"Lisa," he said, coming to stand behind me and running a gloved hand through my hair. Itchie regarded him with her big brown eyes. Thankfully, she didn't growl or bark. While I didn't pull away, I did stiffen a little at his touch. "What's the matter?" he asked me, stroking my hair.
"Nothing," I insisted, this time pulling away a little.
He pulled me back with a hand on my shoulder. "If I believed that, I wouldn't be here."
Scoffing, I said, "Oh, really? I thought you were here to bug me about continuing 'Be Careful What You Wish For'."
"I had, originally," he admitted. "But now, I see you're not happy. What happened?"
I shook my head and he turned my face to look at him. Looking into those mismatched orbs, I had to tell him, but I still had enough willpower to not completely spill my guts.
"Just…I don't know when to mind my own damn business. Gets me into trouble." I looked away.
My chair shuddered, as Jareth had apparently knelt beside me. I felt his hand slip across my shoulders. "Jareth," I suddenly found myself saying, turning to him. "Why have you never come when I said the words?"
He fluffed my hair, looking more like…well, like a close friend than a Goblin King. He said, "Because you didn't mean them." Jareth put his finger to my lips to stop me from protesting. "Think about it, Lisa. When do you call me?"
"When I'm sad, or angry," I said after a moment's thought. "I was…going to call you again after…after." I felt a twinge in my heart I didn't like.
Jareth nodded. "If I had taken you to my Labyrinth, you wouldn't have been here to resolve the issues that made you wish. Understand?"
I scoffed again. "This I can't, until I get a message again. Last one was right. I take things too personal."
"And that's what I love about you," he said, squeezing my shoulder slightly. "It's part of your personality."
Against my better judgment, I turned my chair to face him leaned into him and he put his arms around me, hugging me. I could hear his steady heartbeat.
"Thanks," I whispered. I couldn't hug him back, because I was holding Itchie and trying to stop her from pushing her wet nose down the front of his shirt (something she'd done to me many times).
I felt him stroke my hair again. "Of course," he said, pulling away. "Now, about that story…"
Playfully slapping him, I said, "All right. I'll start the rewrite soon."
"Very soon, I hope," he said, grinning.
I nodded. "Either during Ghostwriter, or when I wake up. I have to do my Back to the Future story over the weekend or I'll have a few Backies out for my blood." I chuckled at his puzzled expression. "Fans of the movies. I know of two that will probably rope and tie me if I don't write chapter nine."
Jareth raised his eyebrow, stood, and leaned down over me. "Just don't let it get in the way of my story, Lisa." He started to stand, but I stopped him. I had to get my inspiration, after all, and I told him so.
"Well," he said, "I suppose, since you haven't written in a while." He planted a soft kiss on my lips, and was gone.
Sighing, I settled to finish watching Ghostwriter, wondering if I could ever get that fic back together, too.
Finis.