A/N: A special thanks to all who reviewed. Snaps to you all.
HAUNTED
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Jareth was slouched on his throne, watching the goblins scuttling about. Disgusting as they were, they were always amusing. His father had always despised his position as their king, but he rather enjoyed it. Goblins were stupid, but fierce in battle, and cruel when seeking amusement through others. Much like himself, they were feared and therefor they were respected.
He heaved a heavy, burdened sigh, and slowly got to his feet. He waved a gloved hand lazily at the far wall of the throne room, and an archway appeared there. He stepped inside, and the wall closed up behind him, throwing him into darkness. He summoned a crystal, and a light omitted from it, casting dim light on the narrow stairwell. He carefully descended, his heavy footsteps echoing throughout the small space.
He finally reached the bottom, and thrust the door on the landing. No goblin had ever set foot here, in his private domain. He kept very precious things in here. He walked through the long hallway, and through another door.
The walls were lined with a rounded display case, with hundreds of crystal balls resting on plush cushions. Their glow illuminated the circular room, and the small model of the labyrinth in the center of it all. His private getaway, his trophy room.
He lifted a crystal from its perch, and gazed within. He could see the face of a small child, teary and miserable, trapped forever inside. His father had turned the children he took into goblins, but since goblins kept themselves well populated on their own, Jareth had decided to keep his children as trophies, proof of his greatness, of his power.
He set the crystal down, and slowly walked around the shelves, silently observing the images within. Boys and girls in all periods of dress, of all ages. And they were all his, symbols of his many victories. He stopped at the other end of the room, where an empty cushion sat. The cushion that would have held Toby's prison, had he not grown so fond of the boy.
He took the one beside it, his most recent conquest. An infant boy by the name of Aaron. He had taken the babe only seven years ago, a few months before he had first laid eyes on Sarah. He had been tempted to overlook it, but it had been his first summoning in nearly fifty years, and he wasn't going to let an opportunity for a little amusement pass. The boy's older brother had not lasted long, before he broke down crying.
"JARETH!" a loud, shrill screech sounded behind him. He spun around to see his mother behind him, looking angrier than he had ever seen her. Her lips were drawn and white, and she was shaking. He struggled to maintain his composure, and carefully asked her, "Mother, is something bothering you?"
"Don't you stand there and be so smug, you little... you little... I can't even think of an insult!"
"Oh, what did I do wrong now?"
"You know very well. Which part of 'leave the girl alone' do you have trouble comprehending?"
"Mother, you're over-reacting..." he began.
"Over-reacting?" she bellowed. Jareth could feel the raw energy of her anger building inside the room.
"Mother, I know you fail to see things from my point of view, but I assure you that I'm only acting on the girls best interests."
"Best interests? You're trying to kidnap her, and use her for your own amusement! And this is the fate your trying to bestow on your own nephew?" she snapped, gesturing around the room. "I never liked your father changing human children to goblins, but this is just cruel!"
"Don't be absurd mother, I'll take good care of the lad. He'll be fine company for mine and Sarah's children."
"Jareth, for god sake, have you no mercy in you!? Leave the poor girl alone! She's a child!"
"Mother, you don't understand. I've waited for so long. I've planned for years. I must have her, I want her."
"Exactly how long?" she demanded.
"Since she was nine, so... almost seven years."
"Nine? Jareth, how could you possibly justify desiring a girl that young?"
"I wasn't planning on taking her then, mother. I had every intention of waiting."
"And you won't wait now?"
"I'm tired of waiting. I've watched over her, protected her, witnessed her transformation from charming little girl to beautiful woman."
"Fifteen is not a woman, Jareth. Fifteen is practically a baby."
"Hardly. Never seen a babe with such fiery eyes, such a perfect form."
"Not physically a babe, but mentally. She still needs the warmth and love of her parents, she still needs to grow. You'll understand someday when you become a father."
"You say that, and yet you're determined to keep my intended away from me," Jareth said, turning away from her.
Nuala's anger reached it's peak. The shelves began to shake, and the crystals threatened to fall to the ground, shattering to bits. "Mother, please calm down. I promise that no real harm will come to the girl."
"You will do nothing to the girl, harmful or otherwise. I spent twenty five hundred years watching your father take human girl after human girl, and will not allow my own son to follow in his footsteps. Even if you turn young Sarah immortal, what is to become of her when you grow tired of her? You can't take her back above, she'll be different from all other humans."
"I don't see myself ever growing tired of her. I mean to have her forever," he said, crossing his arms stubbornly, and pouting his lips.
"Jareth, I will not sit idly by and watch you tear this poor thing apart. I don't want to hurt you Jareth, you're my son. I love you. So I'm giving you this last warning: dump that potion you purchased, and forget about Sarah Williams. I know you're lonely, but you've been with women from our world before, marry one of them." She hissed as she vanished into thin air.
Jareth breathed in relief. He couldn't risk approaching Sarah for a while. He would simply have to wait a few months, until it all died down, and his mother and sister's suspicion lifted, and they no longer watched her so closely. He would, for the time being, have to content himself with watching her from afar.
If there was one thing he had, it was patience. And for Sarah, he would wait forever... or at least until her sixteenth birthday.
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A/N: Don't be fooled by this chapter. There's more Sarah/Jareth coming very soon. Just one or two more chapters, and I'll leave this for a while, so I can go on vacation. I'll return, and try to update right away.
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