He was running in slow motion. There were trees and he strangely remembered hearing birds, even though there were none to be found. The atmosphere was grey, but he still didn't know what he was running towards. There was no pain in his legs, and he didn't even feel tired. Dreams could be strange like that.

Jareth opened his eyes, pulling Sarah closer to him. He couldn't resist kissing her flesh, and it only served to wake her up.

"What time is it?" Sarah asked.

"Just past five." Jareth said, tucking some of Sarah's hair behind her ear.

Sarah smiled at him before saying, "I like my body when it is with your body."

Jareth pulled her closer.

"You're quoting the poetry of Cummings now?" Jareth asked as he made no hesitation to stroke her center.

"It is so quiet a new thing." Sarah responded, still keeping with the poem.

She didn't know that it was his favorite poem. The first time he read it he thought of her. Not caring that the lines were out of order, he followed up her line with one he saw fit given their current situation,

"I like kissing this and that of you," Jareth began, kissing her skin before adding, "I like slowly stroking the shocking fuzz of your electric fur and what is it comes over parting flesh..."

This clearly turned Sarah on as she began to move against his finger. After a few seconds, Jareth removed his finger and put it in his mouth, knowing that Sarah's eyes followed his every move. He could hear her whimper as she watched. Seconds later Sarah moved on top of Jareth, his hard length brushing up against her lower stomach. She stroked him slowly before lowering herself onto him.

It was then that Jareth realized he had never experienced a lover on top of him. Previously selfish in his carnal desires, Jareth watched in awe as Sarah slowly moved on top of him. He would do whatever was necessary for her to seek her pleasure. Their breaths and sighs mingled together in a unison that he understood to be fate. Yes, all of this was fate.

"I like the thrill of under me you so quite new." Sarah said as she continued before she kissed him.

Jareth met her movements with his hips, not caring if the whole of New York heard his cries. He could feel his release getting closer, but he couldn't take the separation. Sitting up, he clutched her body to his as the two continued to move in unison. Grabbing the arm with her scar, Jareth slowly ran his lips over it, wishing his flesh could aide in fading her past pains.

She leaned into him, resting her forehead against his as they continued to move.

"I'm close." Sarah whispered.

"Me too." Jareth responded, feeling the tension continue to build. He thought it fitting to continue the poem, "I like to feel the spine of your body..." he said as his hand traced her back. He picked up the pace without even realizing it before adding, "... and its bones, and the trembling firm smoothness and which I will again and again and again kiss..."

With those words he felt her come around him and it was then that he emptied himself inside of her. Jareth felt Sarah's body twitch as the two caught their breaths.

"Is this how it's going to be?" Sarah asked.

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you're really asking me." Jareth said as he softly kissed her face.

"Are we going to start every morning with such a, how do I put it, a bang?" Sarah asked.

The two laughed together, still in each other's embrace.

"I'm pretty sure I'd have no issues with the stamina. I am, after all, of the supernatural lot. I'd even go as far as to say that I'm insatiable."

Sarah playfully slapped Jareth's chest.

"Oh, stop it! No one likes a show off." Sarah said as she pulled him down with her.

Even though they were no longer joined, their skin still craved contact with one another. Sarah didn't appear to notice how she grabbed his hand and held it to her chest as their conversation continued.

"Do we have to leave this flat and act like there's a big world out there?" Jareth asked.

"If we want breakfast we have to."

"I don't need food to sustain my hunger." Jareth responded as he turned into Sarah and molded his body to hers.

He never understood how comforting such a thing could be as he rested his head in the crook of her neck. Sarah began to run her hand up and down his back. He traced his index fingertip over her skin, loving how such a soft touch effected her breasts.

"Your innuendos are tacky." Sarah said.

"Yes, but it's obvious they work." Jareth said, noticing the changes in her skin.

He was silent for a few moments, enjoying the rise and fall of her chest.

"I will never tire of such a luxury. I love every single thing about this moment here with me in your arms. I'm no longer a king. I am no longer anything, but in love. You've made me so happy."

"You still think you're not worthy?" Sarah asked softly.

"I'll always wonder about that. Would you? Could you?" Jareth stopped, worry etched in his voice.

"What?" Sarah said, lifting Jareth's head from her chest.

"Could you one day see yourself as my wife? I'm not asking that question right now, but I can't escape the images that pop into my head every now and again."

"Images or more fantasies you've cooked up?"

"In both worlds they vary. In this world we do the things we've already been doing. Visit museums. Eat out. Walk around. Visit your family. You continue to teach me your glorious instrument, and one day I surpass your talents and join the Philharmonic." Jareth added jokingly.

Sarah thought his last line rather funny.

"What about the other world? What can't we do here that can be done there?"

"Much of it's the same, but magic is no longer a limit there. You've no idea how I think about us, about you under me as we one day create a child. I can't do something like that here, well, I can think about it but it will not lead to fruition."

"Good thing I'm on birth control." Sarah said, still in a joking manner.

"I'm trying to be serious, Sarah."

"I know you are. Are you asking me if I would possibly be willing to leave this all behind?"

Jareth sighed as he returned his head to its previous resting spot.

"I don't even know anymore. I just want to be where you are. What's the point of it all if you're not there? Your heart is my heart. Your soul is my soul. And well, the bodies... we've already taken care of that now have we?" Jareth asked as he moved his hand towards her center.

"I guess that's the one thing in common with both worlds?" Sarah asked, her breath increasing.

"Of course." Jareth whispered as he inserted two fingers inside of her.

He had to taste her. He needed to taste her. Moving down her body, Jareth ran his tongue slowly over her slit, never growing tired of her body's reactions to him. Her torture was his torture too, so he didn't waste time in aiding in her release. If he could start every morning with her cries, he would label himself the happiest creature ever to exist. He didn't realize he was trapped until he felt her thighs grip him to her.

"You need to slow down a bit. A girl could grow addicted to all of these pleasures." Sarah said.

Moving up to meet her face, Jareth smiled before answering, "My darling, that's the whole point."

Life carried on for Jareth and Sarah just as it had before they became lovers. Jareth was happier than he had been for a long time, and he didn't have tell Sarah such a thing for her to understand. He always thought the shift would be life altering, but it wasn't. There was a comfort that came in their daily routine, and while such things bored him in the Underground, being in New York City allowed for such a thing to never occur. Museums. Concert halls. Movies. Dinners. Coffee. The Strand. Lunch. Folding sheets. Shopping for groceries. Going to bed at night. Waking up in the morning. There was joy in everything. To some, his life would be construed as boring, but to him, it was anything but.

He had been courting her for close to five months now. Her family had accepted him, Toby especially. He always greeted her with excitement when she returned from work, and some days she indulged in his carnal wants. There was the one time he took her against the door of his flat as soon as she closed the door. He knew the moment he saw her slip on a dress that morning that her wardrobe would make it all the more easy. She appeared to like it too given the bite marks on his shoulder as she came. He wore her marks with pride.

There was another time she tried to teach him how to make gnocchi. It became a small competition until Sarah appeared to drop something on the floor. Jareth wasn't paying attention until he felt her hands run up his legs. In a matter of seconds his trousers were on the floor and her hands were on him. He tried to pass the cooked potatoes through a mill as if nothing was going on, but he soon gripped the edge of the counter as she felt her mouth take him in. Her tongue worked wonders, and he tried to maintain control. She was slow and deliberate, knowing what he enjoyed.

"Fuck." Jareth grunted as he tried to keep his hips still. His breath soon picked up and he was so close. He looked down at his champion and tried to get her to move - he was about to burst. She didn't move, and when he came, she took every part of him in her. Still gripping the counter, he felt Sarah wrap her arms around his waist as she placed her head against his stomach.

"Are you good?" Sarah whispered.

"What do you think? My trousers are still on the ground." Jareth said, now moving one hand to run his fingers through her hair.

"I aim to please you too." Sarah said, looking up at Jareth.

"Dearest, you have no idea how you please me. I think we might have to order out. I'm pretty sure this dish is now ruined."

The two laughed.

"Oh, I think we can salvage it." Sarah said while zipping up his trousers.

And that was that.

Things were working out much better than he expected, and while most of him enjoyed every moment of it all, there was a small part of him that worried. He wasn't used to such happiness, something dark had to be waiting in the wings? Looking at Sarah as she browsed the poetry section of The Strand, all foolish thoughts exited his mind. She was in her own world, just as she was before he came back into her life. He couldn't resist watching her from a distance; he needed to be closer.

"I see you've found another Tennyson collection."

"Maybe it's a sign." Sarah said while flipping through the pages.

"I recall asking you once to read a line or two to me. Care to indulge me again?"

Sarah flipped a few pages before setting her focus on one particular poem.

"Oh, I love this one! I haven't seen in a few years." Sarah's eyes were welling up.

"What is it?" Jareth asked as he moved his thumb to catch a tear.

"I read it a lot when I was hospitalized."

Sarah took a few breaths before she began to recite the poem.

"Be near me when my light is low,
When the blood creeps, and the nerves prick
And tingle; and the heart is sick,
And all the wheels of Being slow.
Be near me when the sensuous frame
Is rack'd with pangs that conquer trust;
And Time, a maniac scattering dust,
And Life, a Fury slinging flame."

Jareth moved behind Sarah and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting the side of his head on her shoulder. He continued to her eloquent voice, not caring if the other customers saw the two of them.

"Be near me when my faith is dry,
And men the flies of latter spring,
That lay their eggs, and sting and sing
And weave their petty cells and die.

Be near me when I fade away,
To point the term of human strife
And on the low dark verge of life
The twilight of eternal day."

Sarah closed the book and re-shelved it before placing her hands on top of Jareth's. The two were silent for a few seconds before Jareth whispered the first thing that popped into his head.

"Marry me."

It was soft.

Sarah patted his hands before removing them. She turned to face Jareth, thinking that the was joking.

"Silly man." Sarah said before kissing him and moving to the next aisle.

He was serious, but the impulse didn't pay off for him. Oh yes, she would one day be his bride, for time was on his side.