A/N: I wasn't so thrilled with chapter 12, so I'll probably be re posting it soon. I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed, and everyone who has actually kept with this story so far.
Haunted
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"No way!"
"Sarah, be reasonable..."
"Why don't you be reasonable? I'm not drinking that!"
"Toby drank it without any fuss!"
"Well good for him! I ain't drinking that bile!"
Robert groaned and turned up the volume on the television. His wife and daughter had been at it for nearly two hours, and it was really starting to get on his nerves. But he knew that it was best not to get involved.
"Sarah, it's good for you!"
"Nothing that smells that horrible, and is that shade of green could possibly be good for me!"
Karen let out a deep breath, desperately trying to maintain her composure. It was difficult, but necessary if she was to help Sarah overcome her nightmares. If she lost her temper, there would be no way to convince her stubborn stepdaughter.
"Sarah, please. It's for your own good."
"No. Effing. Way," Sarah said slowly and loudly. Karen groaned, frustrated. The time had come for drastic measures.
"Sarah, it's this, or I'm setting you up an appointment with the child psychologist at the medical center. Your choice."
"No, not Dr. Nesbitt! I've heard about him, he makes you talk to puppets!"
"Then drink it!" Karen hissed through her teeth, thrusting the mug full of hissing green liquid at the fuming girl.
Sarah reluctantly took it, eyeing the contents suspiciously. "Oh god, it looks like the stuff Linda Blair spewed in The Exorcist!" she moaned.
"Sarah..."
"All right, all right, but just tell me one thing before I do: Was that an eyeball I saw in there this morning?"
"Sarah, believe me you'd rather not know. Don't worry too much about whats in there, because after a whole day of stewing, everything kind of just breaks down. It should be fine."
Sarah sighed, plugged her nose and took a drink. It fizzed unpleasantly, and it was slimy.
"Sarah, swallow." She shook her head vigorously. "Sarah, I mean it. Swallow..."
She did, and it slid slowly down her throat. "Sarah, I know it's a little foul, but it really is better to just grit your teeth and chug it. It will be over before you know it."
She complied, and swallowed the remainder in one gulp. Karen smiled and handed her a glass of milk.
"What's that for?" Sarah asked, not yet releasing her nose.
"You'll want it in a moment, that concoction packs a little bit of an after taste."
Sarah let go of her nose and waited a moment, and sure enough, her mouth took on a horrible taste. It made her want to throw up, it was so vile. She couldn't place the taste, but it was enough to make her wish that she hadn't listened to her stepmother. She took a swig of milk, and the taste dissipated a little bit.
"I know it's awful, but trust me, tonight when you get a good, dreamless sleep, you'll thank me," Karen said, peering into the mug. She was surprised to see that it had eaten away at the enamel of the mug, exposing the porcelain. When Sarah started up the stairs, she tossed it in the trash can.
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Sarah slipped into her room, and shut her door. Before turning on the light, she shimmied out of her clothes, and slipped into her favorite pajamas, the blue ones with yellow stars. She flipped on the light switch, and sat at her vanity. She picked up her brush and began running it through her long dark hair. She stared at herself thoughtfully in the mirror. She had worn her hair in the same style since she was five, perhaps it was time for a change. Get it cut, or maybe even permed. She was sure that Karen would allow it, and be able to convince her father to do the same. She wondered what Nigel would think of it.
When she was finished brushing, she got up and strode over to her window. There were clouds rolling in, and the wind had picked up. They were in for a wet night. Good, maybe some rain would cool it down a bit. She watched as the tree outside her window thrashed about in the breeze, scattering the yard with debris. She heaved a huge sigh, and sat on the winow seat, and picked up her book of ghost stories. She loved reading them during a storm, it made them all the more spooky.
A flash of lightning illuminated the sky, and Sarah noticed something out of the corner of her eye. She turned to look. The sky had become dark again, but she could still see what had caught her attention. The goblin king, or rather his owl form, was peering in at her.
She felt her disgust bubble up inside of her. How long had he been there, unnoticed by her? Had he watched her change? She hit the window, and yelled at the bird," Shoo! Get away! Leave me alone!" It just cocked its head. Sarah was very tempted to open the window and throw something at it, but she was fairly certain that if she did, he would fly right into her room, and then she would be completely at his mercy.
"Sarah, is everything all right in there?" her father called through the closed door, "why are you shouting?"
"I'm fine dad!" she called back. She listened as his footsteps receded back down the stairs. She sighed, and looked out her window again. To her relief, he was gone. "Yeah, you better fly away," she muttered.
She set her book down and got off the seat. She flipped off the light switch and climbed into bed. Time to see if that vile stuff Karen had given her was going to do anything...
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Jareth was having problems entering Sarah's dreamscape. He couldn't understand why, but each time he approached, some unseen force forced him out. What was going on? How was he to get Sarah to surrender if he couldn't get into her dreams? Unless he was summoned, he couldn't simply take her by force, and he might run into trouble if he tried approaching her in her home.
He stormed out of his room, and into the twisted halls of his castle. He took in the impressive scene, the beatiful interior labyrinth of stairs that he had created especially for his Sarah. How it had hurt when she had disregarded all his hard work, focusing only on the child. He had only wished to prove his love for her, and she had cared nothing about his hopes or desires, caring only for her own. Cruel, selfish girl, and yet, she still managed to be so sweet, so innocent, so perfect. A flawless gem that belonged in his possession.
"Something wrong Jareth?" a soft voice said. He turned to see his sister walking down the vertical staircase beside him. Her dark blue eyes held a mocking gleam, and a knowing smirk on her thin lips.
"What the hell is up with the unannounced visits? First Nuala, now you.."
"Oh, we're just trying to make sure that Sarah remains safe, and well out of your grasp," she said, her smirk growing. A look of realization crossed Jareth's features.
"You did something, didn't you? You're the reason I can't access Sarah's dreamscape! What did you do, you conieving witch?"
"Nothing really, I just slipped her a dose of dreamsweep potion. Have fun trying to invade her dreams now, you pompous, swaggering peacock!" She stepped off the ledge, and onto the same platform as her older brother. She drew near to him, glaring up at him. It took all her self control not to laugh at the horrified look on his face.
"How dare you! If you think I'm going to let you get away with this, you're wrong!" he snarled.
"And what are you going to do about it? I've slipped some to Toby as well, so don't even think about trying to get to him, and we both know that despite your superiority complex, you hold no power over me."
"How very wrong you are, sister. I know that your power has begun to wane since you surrendered your immortality to save that mortal."
"That is true, and I think that we are now about even, where our power is concerned. After all, I always was the better sorcerer," she said with a rather smug grin. Jareth fumed. As much as he hated to admit it, she spoke the truth. When their mother had been training them, she had always praised his sister.
"I like what you've done with the castle, Jareth. Very M.C. Ecsher," she said, taking in the full effect.
"Just one of the many things I've done to try to capture your stepdaughter's fickle affection," he said, coldly looking his younger sister up and down. She had changed tremendously since giving up her immortality, eyes were the same, though they were surrounded by a good deal less makeup, her golden hair that had once hung in thick curls that reached her waist, was now cut short. Still a pretty woman, but she had lost that otherworldly beauty that defined their race. She had become human.
"Jareth, I must know, why Sarah? Why a fifteen year old girl, who is still so innocent to the world, and to the ways of men?"
"It is none of your concern, Karei, why she caught my eye. But innocent to the world? She is human! Part of an inferior race of creatures that thrive in misery, most of which is self inflicted."
"Oh, I don't know, Jareth," she said thoughtfully, "humans seem to get along just fine. They are not the pathetic creatures you believe them to be. The ways they've adapted to living without magic are amazing. And I'll tell you something else about humans: they don't enjoy being enslaved. Humans enjoy their freedom. Little wonder Sarah refuses to become your possession."
"Shut up! She may not like the idea, but she'll come to once I have her! She'll be at my feet, begging for my attention, right where she belongs."
"Jareth, Jareth, Jareth," she said, shaking her head at his stupidity, "You make the mistake of thinking that the universe is compromised of two types of people: Those born to command, and those born to be commanded. I warrent that you shall learn one day that this is not so, but I'm sure that it is not my place to do so. At least not tonight. Good evening. Oh, I'm sorry, it's good morning here, isn't it?" She gave her brother a little mock bow, and vanished.
Jareth let out an angry yell, so loud it made the windows rattle. He would not except defeat at his little sister's hands. If it was the last thing he did, he would find a way to make Sarah his.
And taking Karei's son away would be the perfect revenge.
A revenge that he had been waiting two years to take...
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A/N: And that was chapter 13! The magic number! What do you guys think of Jareth's gradual descent into madness? Don't think that I made a mistake when I labeled this Horror/Suspense! I have a few more dramatic twists up my sleeve!
One more thing: As this is my first fanfic, I'm a little unsure about this, so I would appreciate some feedback on this: How far can I go with violence or sexual implications before I have to change this to an M rating?
I love you my readers! Please review on your way out!