OoooOOOoo
Chapter
OooOOoooo
Jareth was bored- he hated balls and didn't know why he had come to this one. It seemed like it was a masquerade on top of being a slow, boring sort of dance. He sighed. Tales, Legends, even small mythical creatures and stories liked these balls. But they never were all that exciting to the Goblin King. He much preferred the kind of dancing that he got up to with his subjects and the Wished Away- dances that defy gravity, involved kicking and wild singing.
"Hey, there- fancy seeing you at one of these."
Jareth snorted. "I don't know why I come anymore." He glanced at the person who had dared to come talk to him. He supposed his air of ill-suppressed annoyance was putting everyone else off. He was surprised to see a young, human-appearing woman with wavy dark hair and bright green eyes. She looked a lot like the last Runner he had been forced to fall in love with. He looked away.
"Well, even a hermit like you needs to have a little more social interaction than goblins can give once in a while." She laughed.
"Hmph. I have had my fill of dragons and ponies recently as well." He quirked a side of his mouth involuntarily.
"Oh, alright then." She nodded sagely. "Obviously good conversationalists based on your recommendation of them."
Jareth huffed a small laugh and turned to her. "Well, who are you then, my dear? It seems that you have me at a disadvantage."
She beamed a smile at him. "Oh, I'm a minor story..." She twirled a strand of hair in her finger. "Not even a main character, I'm afraid. And you know how it is for women."
"Don't even have a name?" Jareth smirked. "Typical. Your storyteller has no imagination."
She smiled sadly and shrugged.
"Well, my dear, for this story, how about we call you 'Sarah'?" Jareth said recklessly.
The newly christened Sarah raised an eyebrow. "What a common name. But it seems to have some significance for you."
Jareth shrugged and crossed his arms.
Sarah kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you." She smiled against his skin. "You want to get out of here?"
"Absolutely." Jareth smirked.
Sarah led him to the balcony, which wasn't exactly what Jareth had thought she had meant, but perhaps she was from a rather innocent tale. "Well, what do you think?" Sarah spun and faced him, grinning.
"It's a lovely view." Jareth said diplomatically. But when he looked at her rosy expression, sparkling eyes and the elaborate white gown- the statement became more truthful.
Sarah laughed. "So generous of you."
"I like to think so." He moved over to her and leaned against the balcony beside her. "Though most don't seem to think of it that way."
"I guess it depends on your basis for comparison." Sarah shrugged.
Jareth felt something lurch inside of him at that statement. "Indeed."
Sarah spun and leaned close to him and Jareth felt his pulse jump in his neck. "So, are you this charming with all the girls, or am I a lucky one?" With that, she pushed him delicately on his chest, sending him tumbling over the edge.
…
And into water.
Jareth managed to keep from being submerged, barely. So great was his shock it took a second to notice the ungodly stench that now was all around him.
"That little wench Bogged me!" Jareth shouted in surprised anger.
"It's only fair, Goblin King." A voice laughed from above.
Jareth glared up at the apparently aptly named female. "Fair? What do you know of fairness?"
"Oh, don't be so grumpy." She smiled from where she was hanging upside down by her knees, her gown threatening to spill indecently over her head.
"Grumpy! You Bogged me. I am far beyond grumpy!" Jareth hissed.
"Hmm. It seems you missed a spot." Sarah commented.
"What?" Jareth frowned. Then his eyes widened. Sarah had released her grip on the tree limb and was falling. Jareth scrambled back but she hit with a truly impressive splash. The wave washed over his head. Jareth had thought himself mad before- but that was when he had still had his well coiffed hair. Now he was positively livid! "You! You!" He spluttered, wiping off the much from his face. Then he caught site of Sarah. His jaw snapped closed with a click. "You're filthy."
Sarah laughed. "I hope my gamble that you know a way to clean off this stench proves true."
"And if it doesn't?" Jareth asked, actually curious.
"Oh, well then we will be forever stuck together as social pariahs, covered in this ungodly odor. We will resent each other mightily, but begrudgingly keep living together, as we have no option."
"That's... a really depressing view of the future."
Sarah put her hand on his shoulder. "But at least we will have each other." She said seriously, before moving in closer.
Jareth's heart felt like it was constricting, so he gulped. "And that's a good thing?"
Sarah blinked. "Of course. Don't you think so?"
He looked away.
"So is that what's in store for us or do you know a place to clean off? I think I'm getting leaches." She made a face.
"I do." He started to wade for the shore.
"Hold up, I'm coming two."
…
"Here we are." Jareth swept a rank, dirty arm to show off the steaming pool in front of him. "The cleansing waters."
"Very nice." Sarah complemented.
"And of course, our clothes are ruined, as we need to be naked to enter the purifying pool."
"Naturally." Sarah rolled her eyes, but obediently started to shuck her outer petticoats. "Could you help me?" She asked, batting her eyelashes at him over a smirk.
"My dear, it would be my pleasure." Jareth assured her. He went around behind her and began to unlace the corset. Sarah flicked her still muck-damp hair out of the way and shifted to give him better access. Despite the ungodly odor, Jareth felt his blood stirring.
"Well, thank you, my liege." Sarah stepped out of the dress haughtily, garbed now in little more than muck and, yes, a few leaches. She grimaced in disgust and bent over to pick the leeches off of her ankles.
Jareth moved forward and ran his palm over the round swell of her bottom.
"Do I have a leech there, too?" Sarah purred.
"I did think I saw one." Jareth lied.
"Hmm." She slipped away from him, keeping him in the corner of her eye as she went to the edge of the water and tested its temperature. Finding it satisfactory, she lowered herself in. Almost instantly the mud evaporated and the oppressive smell lessened considerably. "Well, get in, Goblin King, or we shall smell all night." With that, she dipped her head under the water, coming out soaking wet but no longer muddy.
Jareth hurriedly pulled off his shirt and breeches and entered the water as well, dunking to rid himself of the muck in his white-gold hair.
Arms slid around him from behind and he turned.
"You are a lot smaller without all that fluff on your head." Sarah murmured as she ran her fingers though his wet locks.
"I assure you, madame, that I am not small at all." Jareth grinned back.
"Oh, shall we test that?" Sarah swam forward, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.
"Absolutely. The past two Runners..." He shook his head- now was certainly not the time to be thinking about all the nonsense that had been going on lately. He pulled her to him and kissed her deeply, humming in pleasure at her immediate response.
Sarah pulled back, smiling. "Well, you know what they say."
"What?" Jareth asked, not really listening as he let his hands roam.
"These things come in three."
….
Jareth rolled over in bed and slid his leg underneath his partner's. A feminine mumble met his efforts. He ignored it with a smirk and started to move next to her. Sarah seemed to finally start to awaken and reciprocate.
"Jareth, what time is it even?"
"Doesn't matter, love- you can sleep in as late as you want." Jareth whispered into her ear.
"Well, I suppose..." She allowed.
Jareth captured her lips, smiling.
Sarah waved her free hand, but Jareth captured it with his and wove their fingers together. However, she still broke off the kiss to look up into space. Jareth grumpily followed her line of site. There, hanging in the darkness, was a glowing clock. He was pleased to see that it had the proper number of hours- thirteen.
"Jareth, it's not even yet four!"
….
"Well, it's an interesting way to play croquette I'll give you that." Sarah said, holding her squawking chicken aloft.
"I's made it up!" One of the goblins proclaimed proudly. It then proceeded to throw the chicken through suspended crystal balls/soap bubbles. The idea was to get the chicken to flutter through a train of them, until it hit the ground and took off running.
"I think playing it against the Goblin King." Sarah noted. "Seeing as he has total control over the crystals."
"But chickens hate King." The goblin disagreed.
Sarah grinned and chucked her chicken. It balked and didn't pop a single crystal. "Hm. Well, I guess I'm not so good at this." She turned to Jareth. "Your turn, I think."
Jareth took up a chicken then, with great concentration, sent his sailing through all of the obstacles.
"See!" Sarah laughed. "Entirely unfair."
Jareth swept her into his arms, and she laughed breathlessly, suspended almost upside down. "You should know better than to try to best me in a game, love."
"What's the score?" Sarah called to the goblin.
"King two." The goblin grumbled. "Me one, Lady nothing."
"Best three out of five?"
….
"I want you to stay with me." Jareth said suddenly.
"Stay?" Sarah turned from punting a goblin. "But I have been staying with you." She frowned in puzzlement. "I haven't been attending to my story in ages... not that it needs it."
Jareth stood up from his throne, walking over to her. He took the screaming goblin from her hands and chucked it over his shoulder. "I know. I mean officially."
Sarah gulped. "I..."
"Please just say yes." Jareth pleaded with her.
"But... why?" She looked down.
Jareth put his gloved finger under her chin, raising it up. "We have fun together, don't we?"
"Well, yes." Sarah replied. "Of course."
"We fit together..."
Sarah smirked, making Jareth's lips twitch as well.
"I mean, I've been lonely, before you came. Only the goblins, the Wished Away, and the Runners... and always I am bound by the Story as to how we all interact. This..." He gestured helplessly.
"I know what you mean." Sarah sighed. "But I don't think it will work that way."
"We can make it work." Jareth said fiercely.
Sarah stepped into his arms, tucking her head under his chin. "Like the mortals say- house, a dog, a picket fence and three children?"
"Three?" Jareth scoffed. "We need more than that!"
Sarah looked at him askance. "We're fae, Jareth. We don't have children easily."
"Precisely why we need to try for so many. They can run wild with the goblins." He hugged her tightly.
"We're adopting if you think that is going to happen. I'm the one that would have to bear all these brats."
"Hmm." Jareth said into the top of her head, then kissed her hair. "Maybe. I do have a unique in on the baby trade."
Sarah laughed. "How many are we talking here? Four, five?"
"Oh, at least six." Jareth replied calmly.
Sarah's eyes took on a wicked gleam. "Six!"
…
"All joking aside, how do I know what you are feeling is real? You fall in love with those Runners all the time." Sarah sighed, her arms crossed over her chest as she turned away from the Goblin King.
"I can't help falling in love with them, dearest- it's in the words. But they always leave, anyway. They leave because they reject me and win, or they leave because I win and they get punted out of the Labyrinth. Even if they were to accept my proposal, it would never work."
Sarak turned half way, looking at him, bereft. "But... how can I love someone who is always mourning his love for others?"
Jareth bent on a knee, taking her hand and looking up at her earnestly. "It's not the same with you, love. I fell in love with you because of who you are, not because of any words, any spell."
At this, Sarah shifted uncomfortably and looked away.
Jareth scooted forward and pressed on. "We fit together, you and I. We like the same things, we can talk, play stupid games... you even like the goblins."
"How do you know that you're not just hoping for this to be true. We haven't even known each other that long!" Sarah protested, falling down onto her knees as well.
Jareth looked into her eyes. "When I am with you, I am happy. I think about you all the time, and it is distracting and wonderful. There is nothing I want to do but to make you happy. Please stay with me."
Sarah looked at him, her eyes shining.
"I love you."
Sarah rubbed her hand over her face. "Jareth, I..."
"Don't." He cut her off hurriedly. "I know it is quick. You don't have to say it." But inside his heart was starting toward that familiar feeling of shredding, of hopelessness- it didn't matter that it was something he chose this time, the ending was going to be the same.
"Oh!"Sarah grabbed him in a tight hold. "Don't do that. Don't do that... I... it's just a bit of a shock is all. Words mean so much to you, I didn't think you would come out and say it so baldly."
He hiccuped an unhappy noise.
"Oh, Jareth... I... love you two." Sarah whispered. "I didn't mean to, but I do."
And this... this was a new feeling. His heart wasn't shriveling, it wasn't breaking apart. It felt full, and huge, and he just laughed helplessly at the sheer joy of it. "You do?"
She punched him in the shoulder, causing him to fall back and laugh. "You're an ass! Making all this drama for no reason! Why couldn't we have just stayed with playing games and having fun. You never let me win and I'm determined to win once."
"I'll let you win right now, if you want." Jareth offered, feeling uncharacteristically and truly generous.
Sarah sniffed. "Ha. I'm in it for the long game. I will win and you won't even see it coming." She smirked at him. "You'll think everything is going swimmingly and then all the sudden it will go all pear-shaped. And you'll be all 'what is this? All sixes and seven?"
….
Jareth frowned slightly. He was listening for the baby moving, but that wasn't what his expression was for. His concentration was shattered at the moment. Something didn't seem quite right.
"Do you hear it, dearest?" Sarah asked softly, running her fingers through his soft, downy hair.
"No." Jareth sighed, sitting up. "Maybe you're not eating enough. It's starving the poor child."
Sarah laughed. "Oh, I don't think so." She grinned at him, the edge to it a bit malicious. "I already eight."
…..
Jareth felt a shock of cold dread shoot through his being and settle in his stomach. He swallowed nervously. His wife was obviously pregnant now, leaning back on her pillows and looking at him oddly.
"What's wrong?" She asked, her eyes half lidded.
But he didn't want to speak. If he was right... if he was right... oh dear gods. He shook his head in horror.
"Jareth?" His wife's voice sounded concerned. "What's wrong? Talk to me?"
But he couldn't. He... couldn't. Now that he was thinking about it, now that he was paying attention. He knew where he was. And it was the Labyrinth, yes, but more specifically... the feeling of his magic was too strong. The surroundings too... abstract. There had been that one goblin, though... right. It has said something. Could other things say something when... when... he didn't want to think about it.
He looked at his wife, who's brow was furrowed in confusion. He gulped again and licked his lips to try to get some moisture on his tongue. "Now, I don't want you to say anything." Jareth said quickly. "Just listen to me for a second. Either I am being overly paranoid and possibly having a mental break due to impending fatherhood, or this really is as I fear. And if you could please, with one word, let me know if you know what I am talking about, or if I'm quite insane, I would really much appreciate it."
Sarah looked at him, her eyes calculating now, and a bit sad. "Nine."
…..
Jareth curled up into a ball. He felt empty- worse than empty, like he was imploding. Like his whole world had turned to ash and shards and they were pulling him into his center and he would never escape. "No." He whispered brokenly. "No, no, no, NO, NO!"
"Ten."
…...
"Bog it!" Jareth cried out. Now it was quite clear. This magic... his magic- to trap the runner for the thirteen hours, or less if it was broken- a sure way to lose at least one hour, though. And he was trapped, somehow. How had he not noticed? How! Well, he knew how, of course, it felt like his own magic because it was and it felt like the Labyrinth, too. Familiar, comforting. All a lie.
A toneless voice. "Eleven."
…...
Jareth deliberately avoided making even a peep of a sound. It was almost over. How could it be almost over? Was Sarah real? How could she be? Of course she was not. Ah, what a clever trick to keep him distracted. Probably pulled it all from his own subconscious.
"Jareth." Sarah cooed at him. She no longer appeared pregnant.
Lies. Tears leaked out of Jareth's forcefully closed eyes.
"You know how this works, now, don't you?" Sarah asked. "You have to say something, so that I can reply. I would have thought that you would have caught on earlier, honestly. I wasn't being all that subtle, especially in the beginning. You should have known the rules better than me!"
Jareth said nothing.
"Still just going to sit there in a pathetic ball? And what will that solve? Either way, when the hour is up, time will tick on. You just want to be miserable?"
Jareth looked at her, and his heart, which he had thought was totally destroyed- it made a painful lurch at the sight of her. She was beautiful. Even more so in this light- as the victor. Her smile was vicious. And Jareth was even more in love with her than he had been. All impossible, though- she wasn't real. Of course not. Who could love him? His existence was rigged to preclude the possibility.
"Please, please don't say it. Just let me ask you something first."
Sarah looked at him, then nodded.
"Did you do this to deliberately lie to me? To tear my soul like this?"
"You're being overly dramatic again." Sarah rolled her eyes. "Of course not. You know how this curse works. You set the way everything would go. Why you started us in a ballroom? I don't know. Why you dumped yourself in a bog? Even less of a clue. Though I did jump in after you." She grinned maliciously. "But I knew it wasn't real, didn't I?"
"Are you real?" Jareth asked miserably.
"No." Sarah raised an eyebrow. "I told you. I'm not the main character in this story. I didn't even have a name, did I? Just a pawn to win this contest. To conquer your power."
"You didn't start with that goal." Jareth frowned. He would have sensed that.
"No, I didn't." Sarah waved a hand. "I was trying to give you a piece of the Labyrinth back. You had been neglecting it for many Runners, now, and I rather think you couldn't even see it."
The peach. He had known it was there. "Why did I eat it?" He snarled to himself.
"Don't look at me." Sarah shrugged. "I don't even know if you knew you were doing it."
"I didn't." Jareth frowned. "I don't remember eating it."
"Hmm." Sarah looked him over. "It was in the water."
"The water?" Jareth thought back. He drank water all the time- what water?
"Well, no matter. Are you going to try to win this?"
"I won't... if you will stay with me." Jareth had to stop, his throat was closing up. "If you will let me stay with you..." He swallowed, then wrapped his arms around himself tightly. "Until the end." He whispered brokenly.
Sarah looked at him, something like pity in her eyes. "Well... there isn't much left of this hour." She noted uncomfortably.
"I know." Jareth closed his eyes.
Sarah sighed. Jareth thought she was going to say it... say 'eleven' and have this scene end. But instead her arms came around him. "You are a fool, you know."
Jareth didn't reply, he just put his head onto her shoulder. "You're dying."
"I never existed."
"You're dying from my perspective." Jareth managed to squeeze out of his constricted throat.
"You'll be ok." She said unhappily, stroking his hair and curling up around him. "It will all be ok." She kissed his forehead. "You've been through this before."
"Not like this." Jareth said brokenly.
"No." Sarah sighed. "But you know how to cope."
"This time... this time might be the one that breaks me." Jareth shuddered. When it had been the spell, it was just the feeling that had been there- but without his own thoughts and rationale to back it up, it had been hollow. The love, the grief, he could distance himself if he wanted to. And he did. He was good at it. This time... looking back he could tell that it was a dream, but like in a dream, the middle sequences were filled in. It honestly felt like he had lived for over a year with this woman. That they had slowly fallen in love... he had been looking forward to children. His own children!
"It's time." Sarah said. "Twelve."
…..
Jareth was crying almost as soon as he felt the scene forming around him. And again Sarah was with him. She led him to a bed and he wrapped himself around her. Her body felt comforting, familiar against his own. He couldn't imagine that this would never happen again. That it had never really happened at all. How was he going to sleep? How could he? It seemed to him that he had been sleeping with her for a long time. He already missed her.
They didn't say anything, nothing at all. When the hour was over, everything shattered.