A Dreamer's Heart ~ Chapter Four
She found him on the back porch, leaning heavily against the frame of the screen door, and breathing laboriously. His goblins were running around inside the house screaming 'Jareth', while mimicking Sarah's frantic search of every room.
"It seems I'm incapable of returning home just yet," he informed her with as much dignity as he could muster, refusing to lift his gaze from the floor.
She slowly approached him, stopping a couple feet away. Her heart beat so fast the sound of it thumped in her ears. "I didn't mean to hurt you," she told him in an unsteady voice. "I don't feel the things you say I should, and I don't know why. But, you were never just a part of a story, Jareth. Never." She walked closer, noticing how his arm trembled under his own weight as he leaned on it. "Let me help you back inside?" she asked tentatively, not sure if his ego would allow any more help from her.
He remained unmoving for a moment, allowing all the emotions he could sense from her wash over him, soothing his wounded heart, his battered pride. Her apology was heartfelt, he knew that much, felt it in fact. What he hadn't expected was how upset she had become when she couldn't find him, and he hadn't needed his magic to sense that at all. She had been terrified that he had simply left, vanished into thin air, never to return.
He lifted his head to see her expression of helpless uncertainty as she waited for him to answer her, wringing her hands in front of herself. She was so confused internally that even he couldn't make sense of any it, despite his years of sensing other's emotions. Of course he would allow her to help him back inside, what choice did he have? Besides, it was while he was at his weakest that she was the most comfortable around him. She seemed to thrive on having him to fawn over, and he was desperate enough for her attention to continually give her that comfort.
Nodding his consent, he shifted his weight away from the door frame, closing his eyes wearily as she slipped under his arm to support him with an arm around his waist. Slowly they made their way through the kitchen, Jareth leaning heavily upon her shoulders.
By the time they reached the living room, the little bit of strength that Jareth had had gave out. He grabbed Sarah, turning her in his arms so that his chest leaned against her back. With his arms around her shoulders, and his hands hugging at her sides, he rested his chin at the crook of her neck. "I need a moment," he told her weakly.
Suddenly the goblins noisily entered the room, screaming their king's given name in unison while waving their arms frantically in the air. Sarah stared dumbly as they ran past them into the kitchen, through to the back porch, then out the back door into the woods.
"I was 'not' waving my arms in the air like that," she stated defensively, though she couldn't deny screaming his name just as they had mimicked.
"I need to lie down, Sarah," he whispered in an exhausted voice, placing more of his weight upon her. She uncrossed his arms from around her, ducking within his embrace to turn around and lend him more support.
"Here, lay down on the couch for now," she directed, leading him over to said furniture. "I'll help you back to the bed later, when you can at least stand on your own."
He allowed her to lead him to the couch, pulling her down on top of him as he fell back onto the cushions. She squealed in surprise, struggling to regain her balance so she didn't bodily land on top of him, only for him to grab her wrist to hold her with as much strength he could muster. He grunted painfully when her elbow jabbed him in the ribs while she struggled.
"Oh, shit, Jareth, I'm sorry!" she apologized quickly, still trying to avoid her body landing fully on his.
Shifting on his back, he pulled a leg up onto the couch to stretch out. "Just be still!" he commanded, his authoritive tone clear even with his voice as weak as it was. She ceased all movement to stare at him blankly, her body positioned half on half off of him in a most awkward position, while he retained his hold of her in a loose grasp. "You've become an emotional upheaval, Sarah Williams," he breathed laboriously. "And I'm too exhausted to ignore what you're projecting. Just be still."
"You can really sense my emotions?" she asked curiously, remaining as still as possible in her awkward position.
He raised his arm up over his head, over the arm of the couch, holding her arm to pull her down upon his chest. After being assured that she wouldn't struggle against him anymore, he released his hold of her, letting his arm hang limply at the elbow behind his head. "Yes," he finally answered, closing his eyes tiredly. "Just… be… still."
She stared up at him at an angle, her head hovering at his shoulder in the uncomfortable position he had pulled her into. His breathing leveled as he quickly fell asleep under her, and although she was tempted to carefully remove herself from him, something told her that doing so would only upset him further. So, she rested her head upon his shoulder, her hand lying upon the other one, then slowly shifted herself to accommodate the rest of her body with his.
She felt the steady beating of his heart under her hand as she thought about things. She heard the screen door open then slam shut, and the noise of goblins filtered into the house. They stopped dead in their tracks at seeing Sarah and Jareth piled upon each other, limbs all twisted together, while their king rested. With their arms frozen in the air above their heads, their eyes bulged, and their mouths gaped open, they stared dumbly at the pair.
"Go play with bubbles in water," Sarah told them in a hushed voice, though if all the noise the goblins were making hadn't disturbed the king, she doubted anything could. A resounding cheer echoed throughout the house as they clamored onward towards the bathroom.
Sarah sighed deeply, wondering why she suddenly didn't care what mess they might make. Listening to the steady sound of his heartbeat, Sarah let the feeling of peaceful content surround her. Within minutes her eyelids grew too heavy to keep open as she fell asleep.
Jareth took a deep breath of relief as soon as she drifted into slumber. He'd never realized how much his magic protected him from sensing another's emotions. He'd always been able to selectively search for what he needed to know from any particular creature, disregarding the rest of any inner turmoil. But Sarah's entourage of panic, anxiety, fear, embarrassment, and brief flashes of desire had been simply too much.
Making her rest with him had seemed the best way to get her calmed down, luckily it had worked. She'd even been thrilled at his authoritive tone to be still, which he made a mental note for later use. He also discovered that she did in fact use her magical gifts when he projected calm acceptance towards his goblins as they noisily entered her home. When she had calmly told them to go play with the bubble water, he knew she had sensed his calm countenance. Once she had become attuned to him, she had then sensed his weariness and had absorbed it as her own, lulling her to fall asleep.
Taking a deep relaxing breath, Jareth resigned himself to rest. Listening to the sounds of happy goblins and running water, he soon was fast asleep.
XxXxX
Sarah slowly opened her eyes to find herself in the dark, only the soft glow of light filtering from the hallway broke the darkness. Becoming more aware of her surroundings, she realized that she had conformed herself with Jareth while asleep. Her arms were wrapped around his ribs with her hands splayed flat between his back and the couch cushion. Her legs were entwined with his, she discovered as she tried to stretch and felt his one leg covering hers, and her head lie comfortably upon his chest with his arms holding her in a loose embrace.
She thought of all the times she had dreamed of waking up like this, how nice it felt to be held and feel the warmth of someone she wanted to be with. That last thought gave her pause, and her heart quickened with the thought. But, before she could analyze it any further, his hand slid under her shirt to touch soft skin with gentle fingertips, then simply rested his palm at the small of her back. She closed her eyes refusing to let this euphoria end just yet, not allowing coherent thought to ruin the moment, and silently wished he'd repeat his gentle caress.
Her breathing deepened somewhat as his thumb leisurely brushed over her skin in a short sweeping motion. She couldn't help but react to the stimulation and stretched her back slightly in an attempt to hide her reaction just in case he was awake, which somehow she knew he was, and that he was simply resting with her lying on top of him. She had no desire to move, and she had a feeling that neither did he.
"Can you still sense what I'm feeling?" she whispered quietly, breaking the quiet of the room.
"Of course. You're content at the moment," he replied just as quietly. "And your pulse quickens when I caress your skin," he added in a pleased tone. "Should I assume you enjoy the feel of my touch?" he asked, brushing his thumb over her skin once more.
"Yea," she answered honestly. "It feels nice." She suddenly took a waking breath and gathered herself to move from him.
"Sarah," he addressed softly, tightening his embrace slightly. She paused, her muscles taught to lift herself from off of him. "Be still," he stated in a voice used to being obeyed. "We may never have a moment such as this again, and I for one would like to enjoy it while it lasts."
She relaxed again, settling her head back to his chest. "I shouldn't feel tired like this," she semi complained. "We've slept most of the day."
"I'm thoroughly exhausted," he explained. "And you're sensing this from me as your own fatigue."
"How come I didn't sense it before?" she questioned calmly, finding a strand of his hair to idly twirl around her finger.
"You've sensed certain things from me, Sarah, you simply can't tell the difference from your own emotions and someone else's while your upset."
"That's why you wanted me to lay with you," she concluded. "You knew I'd feel how tired you were and fall asleep."
"I had hoped for that outcome," he replied.
"So, why are you still so tired? You were healing quickly before today."
"Perhaps I simply need to be babysat with more diligence," he replied lightly, the corners of his mouth curling up with amusement. "I seem to continue hurting myself."
She raised her head from his chest to peer at him in the dark. "You heard me say that to you," she accused lightly, catching the brief glint of teeth as he smiled in response. "A lot of good that would do," she replied dryly, resettling her head on his chest. "It's not like I can stop you from using your magic." She picked her head up again to look at him. "Or can I?"
"No," he answered simply, resuming his light caressing of her back.
"I didn't think so," she surmised, resting her head again. After a moment of lying in silence, she spoke again. "Could you move your hand a little to the left?"
"Like this?" he asked, shifting his fingers to the left side of her back.
"Yea," she purred. "Just like that."
Jareth smiled deviously in the dark.
XxXxX
Lugging her favorite chair from the den to her bedroom had been a good idea, until it turned into a major event. Sarah had turned it on it's side to finagle it around the corner at the hallway, then turned it upright again for it to fit down the hallway itself only to get it stuck between the wall and the closet that protruded just enough that the back of the chair wouldn't budge past. To matters worse, she couldn't get it to back out either.
Grunting in frustration, she kicked, punched, pushed, climbed over it to pull it, body slammed it, and forcibly shoved at it before collapsing into the cushion completely exhausted.
"Lady need help?" Dink asked tentatively, peeking out from her bedroom.
Sarah lifted her head from the back of the chair, opening her eyes to look at the little creature. "I'm trying to get this chair into my bedroom," she stated, as though no one in the house was aware of her struggles with the piece of furniture. "And now it's stuck." She ran her fingers through her hair, leaning on her elbow while slumping to one side. "I don't think you can help, Dink, but thanks for asking."
"Did Lady try kicking it?" Dink asked, seemingly to be helpful.
"Yes," she answered with exasperation. "I tried kicking it, shoving it, pushing, pulling, you name it, I've tried it."
"Maybe try jumping up and down," he suggested with a gleam in his dark eyes, his lips curled back with apparent goblin humor.
"Dink." Jareth's voice weakly filtered into the hall, his tone laced with warning.
Dink cocked his head to one side, his ears visibly lowering at the sides of his head at hearing his king's voice, then looked back at Sarah. "Dink can't move chair with Lady in it," he told her in a simple yet polite tone.
"I think it's just a little too big for you, Dink," she started saying as she rose from the chair. "But, be my guest, give it a try."
"It is too big for Dink," the goblin stated agreeably, looking up at her. "But not too big for Dink, Zip, Stink, and Crumb." The other goblins appeared in the hallway next to and around Dink as he said their names. "We move chair for Lady," he told them. They all nodded in agreement and turned to face the piece of furniture.
"Where we move it to?" Zip asked suddenly, looking at Dink.
"We move it to the closet?" Crumb asked hopefully.
"I think it pretty where it at," Stink added.
"We move it to room King sleeps in," Dink told them with a little bit of impatience.
"Ohh…" the others chanted, then focused their attentions on the chair. Within seconds it vanished from the hallway.
Sarah went to stand by the doorway of her room to find the chair perfectly positioned where she had planned to put it. "Wow, that was very helpful. Thank you."
"Lady welcome," Dink replied, smiling up at her expectantly. "We have ice cream now?"
"Ice cream?" Sarah echoed, quirking her brows. "I don't have any ice cream."
"We know that," Dink replied, the others chuckled at finding her answer funny. "We get our own. But, King say we must ask Lady first."
"Oh," she voiced perplexed. "Uhm… sure, go ahead." With shouts of elation the goblins vanished from sight.
Sarah entered her bedroom and checked on Jareth as he rested quietly in the bed with his eyes closed, his breathing steady. She knew he wasn't asleep but merely rested peacefully, and she only knew that because of his warning to Dink a few minutes before hand. It made her wonder exactly how often he had been aware of her talking to him, touching him, while she had cleaned his wounds.
"Let me know if you need anything," she whispered at him, brushing aside some blonde strands from his face.
"Did you refuse them?" he asked, knowing that she hadn't. He'd heard everything since she had begun her task to move the bulky structure, even more so after it had become stuck.
"Was I supposed to?" she asked, suddenly apprehensive for allowing the goblins to have ice cream. She glanced over her shoulder towards him as she reached for her book on the nightstand next to her bed.
The corners of his mouth turned up slightly. "You still take things for granted," he commented fondly, opening his eyes to meet her questioning gaze. "I suggest for you to stay alert for their return and command them to take their ice cream home immediately."
"What did I take for granted?" she asked apprehensively, straightening her back. "They only asked to have ice cream."
"What they call ice cream is not what you think it is," he informed her with his arched brows rising slightly with amusement.
"Lady!" Dink's voice suddenly called from the kitchen. "We bring ice cream!"
"I'd run if I were you," Jareth suggested, his eyes alight with humor.
Edged on by his warning Sarah dashed into the hallway, racing through the house as though there were a fire. She reached the kitchen to stare open mouthed and wide eyed at the cow with snow piled high on her head and back. "It's a cow," she murmured in shock.
"We make ice cream!" Dink announced happily.
"Go home," she commanded firmly, pointing at the goblins. "Right now!" All the goblins vanished. "And take your ice cream with you!" She added, still staring at the beast. The cow and all the snow suddenly vanished too.
She made her way back to her room on weary feet. "Thank you," she stated towards Jareth after entering her room. She retrieved her book and sank down upon her cozy chair to read while Jareth rested.
Jareth smiled inwardly, relishing the feel of relief he sensed from her. He had a feeling that she wouldn't appreciate such a mess as that in her home. He opened his eyes after hearing her turn a couple pages in her book, and simply watched her as she read her novel.
He'd already read the thing in its entirety, and thought it was interesting how mortals continued to dream within their literature while denying the existence of beings such as himself. Hoping to find some clue as to what Sarah's dreams were filled with these days, he had taken it upon himself to start reading each of her books whenever she wasn't looking. He had quickly found great insight as to why she was emotionally confused at any given moment while around him. Of course it was also the reason why he wasn't healing as quickly as before since he used his magic every time her back was turned.
As she turned another page, unaware that he watched her, he noticed how her cheeks flushed, how she nibbled at her bottom lip while her eyes devoured each page in anticipation as her story unfolded. He knew precisely which part of her story she was currently reading when she gasped softly, her lips parting to allow her slightly uneven breaths to flow unnoticed.
His own pulse quickened as she licked at suddenly dry lips, her eyes traveled along the script intently, darkening with desire as she read arousing details printed out before her. Her fingers made slight stroking motions as she held her book. Jareth smiled inwardly as he calculated how easy it would be to finally make Sarah Williams his. He simply had to offer her the correct dream.
He waited patiently as she turned another page with impatient fingers, her eyes catching the next word before the page was fully turned. He steeled himself in anticipation, awaiting her reaction to the sudden turn of events in her book at about this point. Then she gasped loudly, her eyes growing wide, and her mouth forming an O with disbelief. "No," she whispered in response, scanning the rest of the open pages for any hint that what had been started, would be finished. But, the scene changed suddenly to leave the reader in frustration. Jareth knew this, and was rewarded for his patience as her eyes subtly glided towards him, dark with arousal as though seeking him out to fulfill the need that had been left unsatisfied. She blushed profusely at seeing him watching her and quickly turned her head away, letting her hair fall over the side of her face to hide her discomfort.
"Your book is very interesting," he commented, breaking the silence.
She whipped her head around to look at him with wide eyes. "You've read this?"
"Sensing the emotions it insights in you are much more interesting than reading a book," he answered covertly.
"How come you never mentioned 'sensing' things within people before?" she asked, trying to change the subject away from her book.
"Why would I?" he countered quizzically. "I can alter time, erase the memory of a child within an entire world, does my being aware of other's emotions really seem that odd?"
"No," she voiced demurely. "I guess not, not when you put it that way it doesn't." she tucked her hair behind an ear and licked her lips. "Can you read minds, too?"
"Sarah," he stated patronizingly. "I wouldn't have fun at all if it weren't for some moments of unexpectedness. Though, I suppose I could if I wanted to. Should I try it on you?"
"No," she answered quickly, her voice tainted with fear. "I didn't mean it as an invitation, I was just curious."
He chuckled lightly, rolling onto his back, and closing his eyes. "I've never felt the desire to invade the thoughts of another, Sarah. I'm not about to start now."
She stared at him for a long moment, watching his chest rise and fall with steady breaths, then blatantly just stared at his face. he was just as captivating to look at as she remembered all those years ago. Placing her book to the side, she curled one leg under her and sank back in her chair more comfortably.
"What's it 'really' like in the Labyrinth?" she asked with curiosity.
An arched brow quirked questioningly as he opened his eyes and turned to look at her. "You've seen it," he replied with a lilt to his voice. "It's not that different from when you were there." Then he shifted his head on the pillow to look upon her more intently. "Or are you really asking what 'I'm' like when I'm not being formidable?"
She dipped her head slightly, diverting her eyes from his steady gaze. "Maybe I am," she admitted softly, raising her eyes to meet his again. "It's not like I had the chance to get to know you the last time we met," she chuckled uneasily.
"I offered you that chance," he replied pleasantly, his tone calm. "You refused it."
She huffed in sudden agitation, unfolding herself from her chair. "No matter what I say it's going to lead back to what happened years ago, isn't it?" she asked in frustration. "I'll just leave you alone. You need to rest anyway." She dropped her book on her chair and headed for the door.
"I'm only formidable when I need to be," he told her with closed eyes, catching her just before she reached the hallway. "If that relieves any of your curiosity."
She turned back to stare at him. She wanted to sit and talk with him. She wanted to know him better. "I bet that took a lot for you to admit, didn't it?" she quipped, placidly. If he was going to make an attempt to get along, then so would she.
"You have no idea," he responded with deep sigh, smiling slightly at hearing her return to sit in her chair.
"But everyone feared you," she continued amicably.
"Of course they fear me," he replied matter of factly, looking over at her. "I am the most powerful being in the entire kingdom. Well, second to the Labyrinth, of course," he added in a respectful tone.
"Are there others like you?"
"Why?" he asked pleasantly, though his eyes hardened slightly at her question. "Looking for a basis of comparison, are we?"
She heard the sharp edge his tone had taken, actually 'felt' a surge of possessiveness from him. "Having you to deal with is more than enough for me, Jareth," she stated airily, refusing to let him bait her again. "I was only curious about your background. Family, friends, others like you, that's all."
"There are no other's like me," he replied, a hint of loneliness laced his voice. "Once I became Lord of the Labyrinth, I had become something far apart from anything that I once called kin." She searched her mind for something polite to say in response to that, but came up empty. Any sort of condolence just seemed… lame. "Your compassion on my behalf overwhelms me, Sarah, but it's unnecessary."
She turned her thoughts instead towards a subject change, and blurted out the first thing that popped in her mind. "Do you like pizza?"
"I do, actually," he replied readily, just as grateful for the subject change as she was. "Can you get some?"
"I can," she stated agreeably, smiling. "As long as you promise not to use your magic while I'm gone," she chastised mildly, then in a more pleasant tone. "I need to go to town for a few things anyway, and make appearances before people wonder what's wrong with me."
"Then I'll rest quietly while you're gone," he stated appeasingly, a small smirk playing at the corner of his lips.
"You make it hard to believe anything you say, you realize that, don't you?" she accused playfully, though she really wasn't kidding.
"I strive for it," he grinned, his eyes alit with mischief for the first time since his accident.