CHAPTER 5

Sarah fidgeted nervously as she sat waiting for Jareth to arrive and sure enough, within moments of her defiance he appeared, once more seemingly from nowhere. His beauty was not something you could get used to but there was always something off about it, not quite sinister but not quite friendly at the same time. His platinum hair lay gently upon his shoulders, the pale colours of his makeup doing nothing more but accentuating his insane eyes. Sarah scolded herself for focusing too much on his appearance - now was not the time to act like her teenage self. Trying her hardest not to react to his sudden appearance, Sarah simply stared at him her mind asking her how he had gotten there so quickly.

I bet he's watching me. She forced down a shudder.

Jareth's expression was almost unreadable as the corners of his mouth twitched upwards ever so slightly at the woman before him. His eyes raked over her form and the dress pushed haphazardly to one side. Finally, he spoke.

"You are not dressed." His tone was casual, perhaps teetering on indifference as if he were simply pointing out the weather.

Unsure what to make of the situation, Sarah ignored the wave of fleeting panic that was beginning to grow inside her. Instead she attempted to mimic his tone, keeping her voice steady and seemingly uninterested.

"No, I'm not."

Mouth finally giving in to a smirk, Jareth was amused by Sarah's words. Clearly, she was still as insolent as ever. He decided to play her game.

"Were my instructions not clear enough?"

Sarah's eyes narrowed as she spoke through gritted teeth. She knew it would not be wise to let him infuriate her again but as the anger rose slowly within her, she could feel her control ebbing away.

"They were perfectly clear, thank you."

"Then why did you not follow them?"

Jaw set firmly, Sarah rose from her seated position but kept the sizeable distance from him. She enunciated every word, eager for him to get the message.

"You do not control me."

Jareth's eyes flashed menacingly but subsided almost instantaneously, his smug air still as strong as before. Mouth turned upwards in a smirk; he feigned picking at a non-existent thread protruding from him glove. A short, sharp almost musical laugh escaped from him lips.

"Wrong, Sarah. I do."

Unable to control herself any longer, Sarah let out a more than audible sigh of frustration. She knew she was acting like a child but she had long gone past the point of caring and yanked the nearby dress off the bed, throwing it across the other side of the room.

"I am not putting that thing on, and there is no way I am going anywhere with you."

But she did not receive the reaction she had predicted. Or wanted. He simply stood motionless; his voice just as calm and level as before with only the slightest hint of mock innocence at her expense.

But how do you want him to react? Her mind questioned. She couldn't answer that.

"You are perfectly happy to follow my other orders; Tolbas informs me that you are compliant with him every morning and evening."

Sarah scowled at his reasoning.

"Yes well, I have no choice in that."

Jareth's expression had hardened now along with his tone of voice - he was in no mood to carry this charade on any further.

"And you have no choice here." He sighed in irritation, eyes twinkling ever so slightly. "You are being ungrateful again, Sarah."

"Ungrateful?" Sarah all but shrieked, a tinge of hysteria unmistakable in her voice. "Stop acting like I want this!

Jareth raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow at her outburst. Why was she being so damn defiant? If she paid the slightest bit of attention she would come to realise his actions were all going to be for her benefit.

"Don't you want to be treated like a Queen?"

She let a moment of silence pass before speaking again, her voice weaker and almost defeated. She could not let her thoughts wander back to her family – it hurt too much.

"I want to go home."

Jareth rolled his eyes as her childish manner but could not help but smile as he spoke, sarcasm dripping off his tongue.

"I want never gets."

Sarah's cheeks flushed in anger. She was not a naughty child and manners would be wasted on him. She would not ask nicely.

I am not saying please.

But what if he agrees?

Get a grip, that's never going to happen.

She swallowed her pride.

"Please. I want to go home."

Jareth's expression became slightly mischievous as a sneer grew on his face.

"Beg."

Stop now Sarah.

She sighed, her eyes pleading.

"Please. I beg you. Let me go home."

Jareth paused for a painfully long time as if he were considering her request at great length. Of course, this was the man who freely took younger siblings from frustrated humans regardless of their pleas for forgiveness. He would not say yes.

"Well-" he responded curtly, "-we can't always get what we want. "

Sarah, unable to produce a quick enough response simply glared at him in her embarrassment, letting her hatred flow freely through her.

One day I will wipe that stupid smug smile off your bloody fa-

"Change now-" he interrupted, "-and we will leave. Or this-"Jareth gestured lazily to the room around them, "-will be no more. I can easily place you in less…comfortable quarters if that is what you prefer?"

Biting back a scathing reply, Sarah kicked herself mentally for being so damn materialistic. She wasn't stupid, she knew what he was implying but she also knew that swallowing her pride again for just a little bit was worth a few more nights in an actual bed. Besides, it made no sense to suffer for something that was inevitably going to happen anyway.

He may not control me, but he does have the advantage, she thought resentfully.

Desperate to regain some form of control, she demanded after him as he made his way out of the bedroom door.

"Where are we going?"

He stopped but did not turn to look at her.

"I will return shortly. Please be ready to leave when I do."

The door shut silently behind him leaving Sarah alone.

"Stupid Goblin-man, thinks he's so amazing..." Sarah's mumbled rant trailed off as she walked to the other side of the room to retrieve the dress, pulling off her bland gray attire and pulling the white beauty hastily over her head and her body. She hadn't noticed that it the back of it came up only to her lower back, leaving the rest of her pale flesh on show. Sarah had not felt so self-conscious in clothing since –

She didn't want to think about it. Real or not, dancing with Jareth had ultimately not been a great experience for her. Sighing, Sarah went about quickly detangling her hair, paying little attention as to what she looked like in the dress. That was not something she cared for too much right now. As she brushed out her curls, a thought crossed her mind -shoes? She hadn't worn shoes in weeks and had simply grown accustomed to the cold stone upon her soft feet.

Clinging to the poster of the bed, Sarah raised her left foot to examine the extent of the dirt on her soles, her eyes widening at their near blackness. No time to deal with them now, most of it will be hidden anyway. Sarah rifled through one of the bottom drawers of the wardrobe until she found a pair of shoes that weren't likely to break her legs if she were to walk in them. Settling on a pair of roman sandals with criss-cross straps that reached just below her knee, Sarah stood motionless in the room, waiting for the tell-tale sounds of movement from outside the door, informing her of Jareth's presence. And of course, in less than three seconds of her finishing dressing he had reappeared. Saying nothing, his eyes raked over her appearance before he beckoned for her to follow him.

"Come."

For a split second Sarah did not move, considering another act of defiance as her inner self yelled at her to stand up for herself. But soon enough, rational Sarah kicked in and caused her to come to the conclusion that for this occasion, compliance was necessary.

When will you say no, though?

They walked in silence for a few minutes, Sarah struggling to keep up with Jareth's graceful strides; the click of his heels echoing in the stillness. Without thinking, she voiced her silent thoughts.

"Why are we walking?" The moment the question left her lips she felt ridiculous. What was it about this place that made her act so childishly? Once more, Jareth did not turn to look at her as he replied.

"What do you mean?" His tone was causal and in no way mocking as she expected it to be.

"I mean-" she said slowly, trying to regain herself without shaming herself anymore, "-why don't we just get there by magic?"

Jareth's light chuckle filled the corridor and Sarah could feel a scarlet blush creeping up her neck. He had no right to make her feel like that.

"You are quite naïve, Sarah."

Her gaze narrowed as it bored into his back, her jaw tight in annoyance.

"I am not naïve! How do you expect me to know-"

Her words were cut short by Jareth's hand held upwards, silencing her immediately. They had arrived at a set of tall, wooden double doors which Jareth opened with ease revealing the last thing Sarah ever expected to see. A ballroom, easily the size of a football pitch filled her gaze.

"Are we still in the castle?" Sarah's voice was a mixture of awe and fear, her words coming out no more than a whisper.

"No." His response was quiet as his eyes raked over the scene ahead of him.

They were now stood at the top of a very luxurious and long marble staircase that wound precariously downwards until it hit the floor below them. Sarah swallowed hard – she never had been a fan of heights. But, what scared Sarah the most was how similar this was to the ballroom of her dreams, yet how different it was at the same time. When she was fifteen, it had seemed shabby, neglected and filled with arrogant masked people sneering and laughing at her.

This can't be the same one.

For one thing, it was far larger and grander with rich tapestries hanging from the walls and a crystal chandelier suspended from the high ceiling. Her neck protested in pain as she craned it upwards. The whole affair seemed far less gaudy and cheap than her memory. Jareth gripped her arm just above the elbow proceeding to lead her down the staircase. His hold wasn't tight, but still firm enough to keep control but for the moment, this did not bother Sarah as her mind was going into overdrive.

As they descended she could see the graceful dancing figures more clearly – they were stunning. But even that would be the wrong word to describe them; she had never seen people so beautiful in her life. Sighing inwardly, she added another feeling to the list she would be experiencing tonight: inadequacy. Along with panic, fear and confusion, Sarah was not expecting to enjoy whatever was ahead of her. But what exactly was ahead of her? Was she supposed to dance? More importantly, why was there even a dance? Just as the thought had entered her mind she felt Jareth's warm breath on her ear, his voice low as her murmured.

"Once every few hundred years, the elders of the Underground convene in order to discuss its running and ensure that every kingdom is behaving accordingly. This is the celebration to note the end of their meeting."

Sarah was confused – every kingdom? There were more? Jareth continued before she could voice her concern.

"You will meet a lot of people tonight, Sarah many of which will know who you are. Remember, most will be royalty so there is no room for tantrums."

Fuming once more at his treatment of her, Sarah bit down on her lip to prevent herself from proving him right. Instead she simply kept her eyes forward, eager not to trip over the hem of her dress and send herself tumbling stupidly down the remaining stairs. But with Jareth guiding her, they reached the bottom with ease and were greeted by many heads turning to stare. Sarah felt like a freak show, a blush creeping onto her face suddenly realising how plain she was in comparison to those around her.

She made a small sideways glance to Jareth beside her but he was simply looking over the room before them, his expression slightly bored, a small crease forming in his perfect brow. Was he worried? Sarah had no time to consider this as she was guided forward in the direction of a flawless couple stood nearby, so beautiful her chest ached.

The man was tall with a slim build, bigger than Jareth's but still graceful and he wore his shoulder length chocolate colour hair in a neat ponytail which clung to the back of his neck. His face was hard yet his eyes were gentle, a soft ocean of blue as opposed to a glacier.

The woman on the other hand was smaller, coming up only to the man's shoulder. She was willowy with a waterfall of ice blonde hair that fell effortlessly down her back and had diamond gray eyes that came alight when they fell upon Sarah. Jareth began to speak but Sarah could not pay attention, the words going over her head as she threw her gaze elsewhere, feeling sufficiently awkward.

"So this is the human?"

Sarah's mind snapped back at the reference, ignoring the annoyance in her mind of being spoken about instead of to. She could feel the woman's eyes boring into her, studying her intently and she glanced quickly at Jareth for some sort of aid but his expression was complacent, offering nothing. The woman's silvery voice chimed in once more.

"Come now, Goblin King she is obviously scared. You should not have brought her here. Shilo?"

The woman said the final word so quietly, Sarah was almost sure she had not said it at all. Unsure of what it mean, Sarah nearly had a heart attack when another woman, more of a similar age to herself joined them, appearing almost out of thin air. Like the older woman, she was tall and svelte but instead of blonde, wore elegant curls of strawberry blonde hair and shared the same eyes at the man beside her.

Are they related? Sarah couldn't be sure but her question was answered for her.

"Yes, Mother?" Shilo's voice was just as dainty and Sarah was sure the moment she opened her mouth to speak she would sound like a man in comparison.

"Shilo," she spoke slowly as if for Sarah's benefit, "this is Sarah and no doubt we are boring her with our conversation, so why don't you take her and perhaps show her around? I'm sure that'll be far more interesting for her."

Sarah fought to keep a neutral expression as the woman's tone became increasingly more patronising – she was eighteen for God's sake, not eight! Once more, all four pairs of eyes were upon her and Sarah kept her gaze firmly to floor and she followed meekly behind the young woman, away from the others. A few moments of awkward silence passed before Shilo spoke, not looking behind her.

"So you're Jareth's human." It was not a question.

A flash of rage passed through Sarah as she was referred to once more as belonging to Jareth. She was her own person and would gladly die before she belonged to anyone, least of all Jareth. However, it rushed through her quickly and passed, her mind telling her to remain polite. No need to cause a scene. Jaw clenched, she spoke.

"I am not Jareth's."

Amused by Sarah's annoyed tone of voice, Shilo stopped to turn and face the girl behind her, an eyebrow raised in scepticism.

"No, of course not. You did outsmart him after all, and I must applaud you for that. It did not however do anything to lessen his arrogance."

Sarah said nothing in reply, unsure if she was being mocked or not but she was also painfully aware there was nothing really to say in response. She'd have given anything for them just to stand there in silence. Yet the Princess continued but Sarah could not help but notice she was perhaps talking to herself more than her; her voice sounding faraway and dreamlike.

"Yes, you were quite the talk of the Underground for a while. Your actions were so very…extraordinary."

Sarah gave a non committal murmur in response.

"Of course, in my Father's kingdom we get many humans paying us a visit. Not quite for the same reason as Jareth's though."

A small voice of curiosity popped into her mind, a million questions wanting to be answered. Up until moments ago Sarah had no idea that there was anything beyond Jareth and his Kingdom but now she had learned that everything she had read about as a child was quite true. It was mind blowing. Sarah bit her lip before speaking hesitantly. It would be rude not to ask, she decided.

"Your Father's Kingdom?"

Immediately she realised she'd decided wrong. Shilo's gaze narrowed and Sarah was unable to make out if she looked offended or just confused. After a second her expression changed to one of wide eyes and a little of patronisation, as if Sarah should already know.

"The 'Realm of Eternal Light'" she said simply, "or as some humans have called it - 'The Garden of Eden'"

"The Garden of Eden?" Sarah asked, incredulous, "Like in the bible?"

Rolling her eyes, the princess gave a bored sigh.

"That is one trait I have never liked in humans – you like to steal. Surely you cannot believe that one being created the entire universe, including my world? No, it was two humans that stumbled across us and decided to claim the idea of it as their own."

Sarah felt idiotic as she forced back an argument defending her intelligence. There was no point in fighting with the woman, she was at a humungous disadvantage. Instead she simply looked back at the flawless couples dancing before them, muttering her reply.

"I guess not.."

Sarah let her gaze travel the room until they fell upon the couple who had been identified to her earlier as Princess Shilo's parents but they were alone, with Jareth nowhere to be seen. Feeling a small wave of panic rise in her, Sarah opened her mouth to raise her concern but Shilo was already speaking; her stare equal with Sarah's.

"Yes, he disappears like that a lot, you will know this of course. I did find it ever so irritating"

Confused, Sarah wondered for a brief second whether she could read minds but dismissed it almost immediately, feeling stupid. But one question that did make sense was whether Shilo knew Jareth or not. She looked back to the Princess.

Maybe she could help me get home? Thethought flitted through her mind.

"You know him well?" she asked cautiously.

Shilo's mouth opened in preparation to speak but apparently thought better of it, closing it and giving a small smile, looking on the verge of a grimace.

"We were betrothed once."

Jareth was betrothed? Her mind automatically dressed him in a morning suit and top hat, standing at a church altar; a nervous smile on his face. It didn't look right at all. The Jareth she 'knew' was jealous, selfish and apparently incapable of love. Sarah knew she probably shouldn't pry, but the subject seemed to interesting not to question it. She decided to risk it.

"What happened?"

The look Sarah was given indicated clearly that she had definitely asked the wrong question. A murderous, manic glare replaced the dreamy far off look that was nestled in her blue eyes before causing Sarah to suck in her breath in fear, unease running through her. Shilo all but spat her words at her.

"You happened, my dear."

Sarah felt sick to her stomach. But before she could even begin to comprehend the woman's words, she was speaking again; a smirk painted on her face.

"And it looks like you've done it again, Sarah."

Following Shilo's eyeline, Sarah's gaze fell upon a man on the ballroom floor, in the arms of another woman yet his cold stare did not move an inch from her. What the-? Her chest constricted uneasily as she registered his appearance in her mind. Tall and well built, his long hair fell past his shoulders with some gathered into a small ponytail on the back of his head. Although the majority of it was brunette, Sarah could just about see the odd streak of red and blue hidden amongst the brown. But what confused her the most was the way he was dressed. His eyes were dark and heavily shadowed, with a deeply rich purple colouring his lips. What is it with men and make up in this place? Clearly he was royalty but leather coat trimmed with fur seemed almost shabby but still expensive at the same time. It made her head hurt. Before Sarah could even open her mouth to ask who he was, the man had joined them, his wide eyed gaze still unmoving from Sarah.

"King Xavier. How nice to see you."

Shilo's bored voice was low, sarcasm all too obvious in her tone. Xavier's head cocked to one side as he finally tore his stare from Sarah.

"Princess Shilo." His voice was an American drawl, smooth as velvet. For some reason she felt a shiver travel quickly down her spine. "Still as beautiful as ever."

What a creep.

Immediately as the thought entered her mind, Xavier looked back to Sarah, the corners of his mouth upturning in intrigue. Sarah blanched.

Crap! Did I say that out loud?

"And who is this?"

The princess simply smirked haughtily.

"Jareth's human."

All but used to being talked over, Sarah said nothing as she was introduced and swallowed down the rising fear in her. The man before her, like Jareth was beautiful, but beneath the beauty something quite sinister was plainly evident. It unnerved her. Whilst her face betrayed her fear, his simply lit up in excitement as his voice grew softer, tinged with intrigue.

"So you're Sarah."

Turning to Shilo for some form of familiarity, Sarah felt her stomach drop as she saw nothing but an empty space next to her. She bit her bottom lip awkwardly as she stared at her knotted hands. A split second passed in silence before the smooth voice, now far closer to her, filled her ears.

"Would you care for a dance, Sarah?"

Placing an unnatural emphasis on her name, the man bowed a fraction, his hand held out in offer. More than reluctant, Sarah looked around desperately for Jareth – why the hell would he abandon her like this?

"Oh, I don't-"

But before she could get her stuttered response out, Xavier had taken her hand and was lightly guiding her to the centre of the ballroom floor. Lightheaded with panic, Sarah grit her teeth and told herself calmly that it would be over soon and all she needed to do was keep her mouth shut and everything would be fine.

Everything will be fine.

But would it? Not only was she in a strange place with a strange man, the one person that was even remotely familiar to her was nowhere to be seen. Anything could happen. Scolding herself for her dark thoughts, Sarah turned her attention to concentrating on the waltz but found she need make little effort with Xavier gliding her effortless around the crowded room. She tried in vain not to look at him but even so, Sarah could feel his glare aiming for her eyes causing unease to run through her. His hand travelled up from the small of her back to between her shoulder blades pressing firmly so her face was now inches from his.

Oh God, what is he doing?

Her mind was screaming but her mouth could only find the will to utter a helpless "uh". He span them around once more, Sarah's gaze travelling upwards to the bright ceiling, the lights and colours almost blinding her. Stomach clenching, she forced down the bile rising in her throat as she inhaled the man's musty scent, it was all too much – her head began to throb before –

"Oh!"

Letting out a gasp of surprise Sarah realised the room had stopped spinning and now stood next to her, finally, was the Goblin King. Her heart leapt a little as he first registered in her mind but this quickly dissipated as she took in the look of pure anger etched into his features. But he wasn't looking at her. Sarah looked at the man still holding her from the corner of her eye, him being seemingly unaffected by Jareth's expression. His own was mirthful and cocky.

"Come now, Goblin King, we haven't finished dancing."

For some unknown reason, a stab of shame pierced Sarah and she shied away from the King, gravitating herself towards Jareth. She would be glad to forget this strange evening as soon as possible.

"Sarah." Jareth did not look at her as he spoke but still, she flinched involuntarily at his expressionless voice. "It is time to leave."

Nodding meekly, she turned to follow but was stopped as she felt a hand upon hers, pulling it upwards.

"Until next time."

Xavier pressed his warm lips against her hand before turning his attention to Jareth, a small laugh emitting from his mouth.

"I trust you have not forgotten our arrangement?"

Sarah heard a sharp intake of breath before a forced "no" came from Jareth's direction. Clearly he disliked this man more than she did.

"Good. Then I shall see you very soon."

Without warning, Sarah then felt a tight grip around her upper arm and in next to no time they had reached the top of the marvellous marble staircase and were now walking down the same dark, stone corridor as before, the sweet melodic music fading quickly behind them. Finding no more reason to remain dignified, Sarah fought against his iron grip.

"Hey, ow, get off me-"

"You are never to speak to him again – do you understand me? How could you be so stupid?"

Jareth's thunderous voice rang out in the stillness but he did not pause to look at her and simply carried on forward. For a moment, Sarah felt a rush of fear at his livid tone but this was soon replaced with her own anger at the entire situation he ultimately had put her in.

"Stupid? What the? How do you expect me to know who to talk to or not? And besides, I had very little choice in the matter – where were you?"

Suddenly they came to a complete stop, Sarah tripping over her feet slightly at the loss of momentum. They were outside her door.

"Sleep."

Jareth opened the door wordlessly and left without even so much as a glance in Sarah's direction. Confused and exhausted, Sarah closed the door behind her and climbed straight into the plush bed, falling immediately into a dreamless sleep.

A/N: I am so sorry this took so long! I have been super busy lately and on top of that, I left my chapter notes at home when I went back to uni after Christmas D: But it's done now :) I understand am introducing a lot of new characters but they all have their part to play in the story, I promise :P Hope you guys had a great Christmas and New Year :D