A/N: I do not own the movie Labyrinth or anything associated with it…
Chapter 2: Underground
"You!" Her tone was scathing. The blood rose to her cheeks as she glared at Jareth. He returned every bit of venom. Why again had he been so anxious to see her?
"What the hell are you doing here?" she asked, her hands working furiously into and out of fists.
He looked at her with his intentions clear. It was time to perfectly honest with her; no little games this time. "Sarah, I came because you drive me crazy. I cannot live without you there."
Sarah stared at him, completely lost. "Wait. You take the trouble to torture me to no end? But now you claim that you can't live without me? What, do you need a little plaything to watch suffer in your labyrinth?" she spat, filled with a hatred she couldn't explain.
Jareth looked offended, then angry. "I've been kind in my explanations. I did it all for you. But you are blind to that!" he said, moving closer to Sarah. She backed away, turning to find him right next her. He grabbed her arm before she could run and pulled her to him. His eyes betrayed pain and tenderness, but his face expressed only anger. Sarah's eyes widened in fear. Jareth's grip was like iron on her arms, pinning them to her sides as he leaned down and gently kissed her. Sarah screamed, trying to kick him. He released her with a satisfied smile.
"My feisty little dear, calm down. Did you think I would hurt you? Or perhaps… that I would force you into bed with me?" he asked, a smirk on his face. Sarah froze. Why had that made her almost hopeful? Why did she feel like she wouldn't fight back if he were to force her into bed? She didn't respond, her face betraying nothing, but somehow, the Goblin King knew her thoughts.
"Sarah, Sarah… You have no idea how appealing that is to me," Jareth murmured, his face inches from hers.
"Don't touch me!" she shrieked, backing up quickly. Jareth instantly grabbed her hand, smirking. Sarah stared at his hand in horror. Was he really going to…? No, he wouldn't. He may be cruel, but he would never… But she didn't know that. She didn't even pretend that she knew his personality. He released her hand with a laugh. How he enjoyed toying with her so. Her expression was of confusion. She didn't understand him at all.
"Sarah… Don't you understand? I'm not going to hurt you," he said soothingly. He put a hand on her arm. She didn't recoil. "Sarah. I'm going to kidnap you." Jareth's grip tightened on her arm. Sarah stared at him in horror as he pulled her close. "You're going to want to hold on."
Against her will, Sarah found herself clinging to the Goblin King in fear. He smirked, not looking down at her. Sarah felt herself being pulled from the earth, and let out a shriek. She knew where they were going. They were going Underground.
Jareth lightly set Sarah down, who had, rather unsurprisingly, passed out. The journey between could do that to those unprepared for it. He set Sarah on his large, lavish bed. He moved her slightly to paint a picture of beauty. Oh, how much more beautiful she was, after only a year. He watched her with a soft expression, able to stare at her without a resistance. He stroked the side of her face gently. Her lips curved into a smile at his touch. Was she awake? Or was this instinctive?
One of Jareth's abilities was to see into the thoughts of others. He used his ability on Sarah. Curiosity was getting the better of him. Sarah's thoughts surprised him. A dream, the very same one he'd had that morning, in fact, was going through Sarah's mind. Except this time, he saw it played through.
He was shocked by what his dream Sarah did. Was this really how she felt? Had she just been shocked into hating him at his appearance? He didn't know, but he was shaking at the possibility.
Sarah opened her eyes. She didn't initially take in Jareth's presence. She yawned, taking in the large bed she was laying on. It was comfortable; she didn't want to get up. She closed her eyes again and leaned back, reveling in the soft mattress.
"I'm glad you like my bed." Sarah sat bolt upright, her face whitening. Jareth was staring at her with a smirk. "I did get you into my bed. Not with me, per say, but you're in my bed nonetheless."
"You. What did you do to me?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him. "Don't tell me I'm back Underground…"
"That's exactly where you are, lovely," Jareth said, suddenly standing beside Sarah. He stroked her cheek gently. She closed her eyes for a moment and delighted in his touch before realizing who it was, and what his gesture meant. She flinched almost immediately, much to the surprise, and disappointment, of Jareth.
Sarah's face was bright red, the dream still vivid. The Goblin King's smirk made her wonder maybe he knew what she was thinking, or perhaps what the dream was. She had never known the extent of his power, but mind reading? That was too out there. She shook her head quickly to rid herself of the thought.
"Sarah, it's nothing to be ashamed of. It's just human desire," he said before adding, as an afterthought, "Although I'm not human. I'm Fae." Sarah looked at Jareth with curiosity. She nodded for him to continue, and he willingly obliged.
"Fae are like faeries. I'm sure you've heard of them from your faerie tales. You understand human desires, sexual and material. Fae do not feel material desire, other than in appearance. Why do you think I wear such extravagant clothing? But my warning comes now, the Fae feel sexual desire amplified," he admitted, much to Sarah's surprise. "However, I won't harm you, I promise. I love you, Sarah."
Sarah's eyes were still fixed on Jareth's face. She saw the softening of his expression when he said the words 'I love you.' Absentmindedly, she placed her hand on his. He looked down in surprise. When he did, Sarah noticed it, but did nothing to move it. If he truly cared… she could withstand him. In fact, she could maybe even like him. Privately, Sarah thought that it wouldn't take long for her to really love him. She already liked him, but she would never show it until she was ready. After all, he had taken her little brother, even though it had been at her request. She hadn't liked his attitude at all; it had repulsed her. But his face… it was beautiful. She had felt attraction for a very shallow reason, but as she heard him speak of himself, she was seeing more of him, and she liked it. Falling for a person's soul was something very different than falling for their face.
She had kept her gaze on Jareth's face the whole time, and she couldn't help but smile. She leaned in towards him and allowed their lips to meet. Jareth froze in surprise. She pulled her head away from his and turned away, her face not quite crimson, but pretty close to it. Why had she done that? It was a stupid impulse that she shouldn't have let take control of her. Despite her anger at herself, she wondered if she really meant it, or if it were a "pity thing." She wanted to let him know that she wouldn't hurt him… but she had already hurt him so much. Sarah's emotions were in turmoil, a chaotic mess of confusion, attraction, and anger.
"You humans are a complicated mess of emotions. How do you live with it?" Jareth asked, examining the back of his gloved hand, seemingly uninterested. Sarah jumped; she had completely forgotten that he was there. She glared at him.
"We manage," she spat, irked. "I'm a teenage girl with goddamn hormones, okay?" Jareth laughed at that, looking over at her with a smirk.
"And what kind of hormones does that entail?" he asked softly, leaning towards her. She stared for a moment before the meaning of his words sank in. She crawled backwards swiftly until her back hit the headboard of the bed. She began to try to climb up it, much to Jareth's amusement. He sat and watched her pathetic attempts to run away, hindered by the location of the headboard.
"Don't break the headboard, love," he said as he stood and walked towards her. Sarah screamed as he grabbed one of her ankles and pulled her towards him. He looked down at her, releasing her ankle and walking away from her. As he exited the room, he turned to her.
"Sleep. You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow."