An After Dark Fairy Tale
Chapter 8
"If I could save time in a bottle…"
Sarah reached out aimlessly from under her duvet to turn off the clock radio alarm. She managed to hit the snooze button, after much fumbling. Her head felt fuzzy as it often did when she'd been pulled from a deep sleep, and yet she didn't feel rested. She had been having the most vivid dream but the details were frustratingly elusive. All that remained was a lingering sense of uneasiness.
Instead of starting her day, Sarah remained on her back staring up at the damp patch on the ceiling. If she squinted, it resembled a grotesque, grinning face. This is how people wind up seeing Jesus and the Virgin Mary in toasted bread, Sarah thought to herself as she rubbed her eyes before reluctantly getting out of bed.
A casting call for an orange juice commercial beckoned, and she had to be ready. It would probably end in humiliation and rejection, they usually did. Why am I putting myself through this? Sarah wondered for the umpteenth time. The thrill had gone out of auditioning long ago but money was tight. If she didn't get some extra income there was no way in hell she was going to make the rent again this month. Her landlord had already warned her if she missed one more payment, she would be out on the streets.
All Sarah ever wanted to be was a respected actress of stage and screen, like her mother. When you've chased a dream for so long, it's hard to stop, even when you're getting nowhere. She let out a long wistful sigh, maybe it was time to swallow her pride, face reality, and try to start over. Sarah told herself that this was it — make or break. If the orange juice commercial was a bust then that would be that. No more pretending. She would have to go in search of a new dream.
Sarah glanced at the clock, it was almost eleven. "Damn it, I'm gonna be late," she muttered, reaching to grab her purse.
There was an unexpected knock at the door and she scrambled to answer it.
"I haven't got time for this," she grumbled under her breath.
The FedEx guy was propped against the wall like he had all the time in the world. "Delivery for a Miss Sarah Williams." He thrust a small, box-shaped parcel into her hands before she could protest.
Sarah was intrigued and she scribbled her signature on the docket. No one sent her gifts these days. She forgot what a rush it could be to get a surprise parcel in the mail. All concerns about her hurry to get to the casting call were temporarily forgotten. Sarah closed the door and gave the box a gentle shake. The contents clunked around inside and felt heavy for its small size. She briefly wondered if it might be a gift from her mother as Linda used to send theatre props and trinkets to her all the time when she was a teenager. But there was no return address label or any clue as to the identity of the sender. Sarah tore impatiently at the wrapping to reveal what was inside. The gift box was shiny and it glittered with a whole rainbow of colours. She eased off the lid and saw a card with a short note written in fancy calligraphy.
Please find enclosed — your dreams, love always, J.
With a shaky hand, she lifted the card to reveal what was underneath.
"No," Sarah gasped in astonishment. It couldn't be, could it? He wasn't real, was he?
The Goblin King only existed in a book. That was the truth she had been clinging to. She had spent nine years convinced her adventure in the Labyrinth was all a dream, and that he was nothing more than a figment of her imagination. And yet, there, nestled on a bed of midnight-blue satin, was a crystal ball.
Sarah held the box securely in both hands and sank down onto her tatty armchair. Her mind was full of memories from her time in the Labyrinth. How long she sat staring at the glass orb, she couldn't be sure, but the sound of the clock chiming midday shook her out of her stupor. Perhaps the whole thing was someone's idea of a joke. But Sarah had never told anyone about her encounter with the Goblin King, real or imagined. It had to be from him, it just had to be.
She was afraid to lift the crystal ball out of its box, even though she desperately longed to touch it. Sarah pondered: What were her dreams? Did she even know anymore? Her hands were trembling so badly she feared she would drop it and be forced to watch her dreams shatter all over again. After taking a few deep breaths, Sarah carefully scooped the orb up with both hands and held it aloft.
The morning had been grey and rainy, but the sun suddenly broke through the clouds. A beam of light shone in through Sarah's apartment window and the crystal ball sparkled with glitter. She peered intently into the glass as an image slowly began to emerge. Tears welled in her eyes and she smiled, despite her lips quivering with emotion.
"Of course!" Sarah exclaimed."That is exactly what I would wish for."
Jareth wore a frown of concentration as he sat on his throne. Now and then, he swiped at random goblins who ventured too close to him with his swagger stick. He kept his gaze fixed intently on the crystal ball in front of him, watching every emotion and expression on his beloved Sarah's face.
"Oh, my precious, without you I'm nothing," Jareth sighed.
Fae were by their nature capricious beings, capable of great generosity or terrible acts of malice, if the mood took them. For Sarah's sake, the Goblin King had attempted to be unselfish. He decided to give her something she truly wanted, instead of what he desired. It didn't mean he was above trickery or deception to win her heart — nothing was off the table until she was his wife and queen. But Jareth was afraid his love for Sarah would be his undoing.
How could he play the cruel Goblin King when her happiness was so intertwined with his own? There were many ways he could entrap her and keep her with him forever. Jareth was a great trickster, after all. But he wanted her to come willingly, and to wish to be his. If he was forced to fall back on old, bad, habits, he would. Winning Sarah's love was the ultimate prize and she would not escape him again. But Jareth would at least strive to be worthy of her.
The time they had spent together, which only he would carry the memory of, had served as both a precious gift and a warning to him. Jareth's follies had been revealed to him as had the goodness of her innocent heart. How tenderly Sarah had cared for him when he was injured, despite his mercurial behaviour towards her. Jareth would not let such a rare jewel slip through his fingers, particularly not when he knew how sweet it was to be loved by her.
If I'm serious about turning over a new leaf, I really ought to stop abusing the goblins, Jareth mused as he set down his swagger stick.
"Bring me the dwarf, the monster, and the canine knight," he commanded one of his guards.
The Goblin King needed to properly prepare his subjects before the arrival of their new queen. Events had been thrust upon him the last time around and there was no way for him to cover his tracks. That was one mistake he wouldn't make again. The unexpectedness of Sarah's last encounter with his subjects led him to reveal painful truths. Only the memory wipe had saved Jareth from her hatred and disgust. But what Sarah didn't know about couldn't hurt her. He would leave nothing to chance this time around.
Jareth took the scrying crystal out from its bronze, goblin-sculpted, cradle and held it aloft in his gloved hand. "Enjoy your dreams, my darling Sarah," he said as his velvet tones travelled through the ether from his world to hers. "You need only say my name, precious, and I will appear."
Ebony flicked back her raven tresses with a weary sigh. This neighbourhood was usually reliable when it came to harvesting the lost and the lonely. But it wasn't yielding any harvest today, only winos that looked worse than boggarts.
There was a chill in the air and the rain was really starting to pound down on the cracked pavement.
"I hate this world," Ebony muttered under her breath.
A flashing neon sign caught her eye — Larry's Diner — It would serve as shelter from the storm, if nothing else. Ebony wondered if an indulgent, creamy coffee might calm her ire, but she doubted it. She found an empty booth that looked out onto the street from which she intended to keep watch for a suitable lost soul. As she awaited her coffee order, her mind began to wander and she silently cursed her brother.
Stupid, Nox! He had always been far too impulsive. He couldn't even keep his mouth shut and pretend to go along with their father's demands. True, the Tooth Fairy Princess was uglier than a troll, but all he had to do was marry her. If she had met with an unfortunate accident down the line, no one had to be any the wiser. Instead, the pair of them had been banished to this awful place when they could have one day inherited the Midnight kingdom. The hatred she felt for her brother would soon outweigh her love for him, and then where would they be?
The door to the diner opened and a bedraggled young woman stumbled in. Her long hair was dripping all over the floor and she looked as if she'd been battered by more than the weather. The girl was pretty and had an air of quiet desperation.
"Bingo," Ebony said to herself with a satisfied smile.
Desperate was exactly how she liked them and the mean streets of this city never let her down.
Nox checked the weapons cabinet in his office. His magic had faded due to his prolonged stay in the mortal realm and he was going to have to rely on more rudimentary methods of defence. His club was a haven for all kinds of creatures. It seldom attracted trouble, so long as everyone got what they wanted, but it always paid to be prepared.
The Midnight Prince did miss his powers but at the same time it was liberating to be free of his family' shackles. The Fae hierarchy had so many rules and regulations, it was suffocating. He felt more at home among the rebellious types who patronised his establishment. The nightclub was his kingdom, hidden away from human eyes and influence, except for the fae-touched. There were also plenty of mortals who sought his invitation, rich and powerful people who longed for the kind of thrills only he could provide.
Nox reached for the TV remote and shook his head over the report of a missing woman on the news.
"Anyone with any information about the whereabouts of Meredith Laker should call the number on screen right now..."
She wasn't one of his — some other monster had got to her first. Pity, the Midnight Prince thought, redheads are always popular with my clientele. Maybe Ebony would bring him one when she returned. His sister always had an eye for the right kind of girl. If he didn't know better, he might think she had more than a vested interest. One day, Ebony might figure out he'd used her to break free of the life he was born into but didn't want. Nox didn't care. His affection for his sister wouldn't stop him from disposing of her if the need arose.
He clicked the button to change the TV channel and began dancing to a music video. His shirt was hanging open and he ripped it off altogether.
"Hell, yeah, I'm a wild one," Nox sang and rocked out to the head banging beat. "They ain't got nothing like this back home."
He turned up the volume until it was loud enough to shatter glass.
"Of course, you can stay here as long as you need to — this is your home. Your old room is exactly the same as you left it, you know," Irene assured her with a warm smile.
Sarah knew she was gawking in shock and she snapped her jaw shut. "I thought…"
Irene cut her off with a look of disappointment. "You thought your wicked bitch of a stepmother had thrown your stuff out into the street." She shook her head.
Sarah sheepishly looked down at her feet before meeting the older woman's eye and offering a heartfelt apology. "I'm sorry," she said. "Truly, I am. I never gave you a fair chance." She really hoped it wasn't too late for them to be friends.
This was her dream: to be close to her family and to start over. Sarah knew acting wasn't her future and she needed time to figure out what was. The crystal ball had shown her it was possible, and that if she reached out to her family, they would welcome her back with open arms.
Her father and Toby had been over the moon to see her again. Irene and Jenna were wary at first, but they wanted to make it work as much as she did. Sarah was so happy to be home, she forgot all about the orange juice commercial and her crummy job at Larry's Diner. Everything she needed in the world was right there with her. Well, almost everything.
Sarah climbed the stairs in anticipation and slowly walked towards her bedroom door. It had been years since she'd passed over the threshold, and yet it all looked the same. Most of her stuffed animals and trinkets had been gifted to Toby and Jenna long ago, but a few of her childhood keepsakes remained. There was the bookend that resembled Hoggle, the stuffed toys that looked like Ludo and Sir Didymus, and then there was that figurine. Sarah set down her suitcase and tentatively stepped over to her vanity unit where it stood.
"You need only say my name, precious, and I will appear."
Dare she call on the Goblin King? Now she knew for certain he was real and not just part of a teenage dream. He had gifted her, her dreams and she ought to thank him for it. But what if he wanted something in return? The Goblin King wasn't to be toyed with. He had no power over her, though, had he? Sarah replayed their last meeting in her mind. He had appeared to be so sad and defeated when she turned him down. She took a deep breath, it wouldn't hurt to say hello, would it? Sarah reached for her little red leather-bound playbook. It was old and battered from repeated reading in her teenage years.
His name wasn't written on any of the pages, only his title, the King of the Goblins. The one who fell in love with the girl. But Hoggle told her he was called Jareth. Sarah thrilled at the thought of him, with his unruly mane of blond hair and his strange blue eyes. How handsome she had found him to be, if arrogant, and with a big… ego. It had all been too much for her at the tender age of fifteen. She had been distracted by her romantic notions of him but reclaiming Toby remained her ultimate goal. Now, Sarah was nine years older, and things had changed. No other man ever looked at her in the smouldering way the Goblin King had, like she set him aflame with desire. None had ever touched her as if she was the most precious thing in the world to them. He alone had taken her into his arms and danced with her as if she was a queen — his queen.
Sarah traced her fingers over the lettering on the book cover — The Labyrinth. It all began there. Smiling at her reflection, she brushed out her long, chocolate brown tresses and fixed her lipstick. It wouldn't hurt to make an effort, Sarah thought. She hastily unpacked her suitcase and selected a change of clothes. The box containing the crystal ball was carefully set down on her nightstand. Sarah made sure her bedroom door was locked as she straightened the hem of her black skirt and popped open an extra button on her sage coloured blouse. She sat down on the bed and then sprang back up again. How would it look to be waiting for him in that position? She blushed, her cheeks growing hot until she was sure her face was as red as a beet.
"Oh, fuck it!" Sarah cursed.
She fanned herself and tried to regain her composure. It was now or never. "Okay, here goes nothing — Jareth?" she called.
It wasn't a dramatic entrance. A light summer breeze blowing through her room and there he was, standing behind her and purring in her ear.
"Yes, precious."
Sarah swung around to face him. Her nerves were jangling but she tried not to show it. She caught her breath and attempted to be nonchalant. "Wow, no thunder and lightning this time?"
The Goblin King smiled in a warm and affectionate way. "I can be understated, on occasion," he said with a twinkle in his eye.
His clothing was anything but an understatement. Jareth wore silk, lace, and high-collared leather, all in varying shades of blue. He hadn't aged a single day in nine years. If anything, he looked even more attractive and alluring than he had then.
"I, um, it's been a long time," Sarah faltered.
Jareth bowed his head in reply.
"I just wanted to, um, say thank you, I guess, for the gift you sent me." Sarah pointed to the box on her nightstand, her nerves getting the better of her.
She was adorable like this, Jareth decided. His love for her swelled in his chest until he thought it might burst. Only the memories of their past lovemaking would sustain him through what could be a slow burn of a courtship. It was better like this, though, he judged. Even if it meant suppressing the urge to claim her there and then on her bed, surrounded by the remnants of her childhood. It was a test of his fortitude, to be sure, but it would make their inevitable coupling all the sweeter.
"You should never thank a Fae, you know," Jareth scolded her with an expression of mock-disapproval.
Sarah was alarmed over her faux-pas, but he quickly sought to reassure her.
"Thanks should be given by rewarding the gesture in kind, not with words. It needn't be anything elaborate, so long as it's offered in the same spirit as the original gift was given," Jareth explained, knowing Fae etiquette could be tricky for the uninitiated to wrap their heads around.
Sarah frowned and chewed on her bottom lip in contemplation of his words. What could she offer him in return for her dreams? There was only one other acceptable way she could think of to thank someone, without spending money she didn't have. Half-closing her eyes, she leaned in closer towards him until her mouth was only inches from his.
The Goblin King watched her every move with fascination. He attempted to rein in his enthusiasm, not wanting to scare her off or alarm her.
"I don't know why you sent me that gift after nine years. I only know I'm glad you did," Sarah said, hoping he could see how sincerely grateful she was.
"Has it really been nine years? It feels like only yesterday," Jareth smirked.
Sarah leaned in closer still and pressed her lips to his. She didn't linger too long but it was enough to know one kiss with the Goblin King would never be enough. It felt right somehow, as if they'd done it before, and yet there had been the thrill of anticipation not associated with the familiar.
Jareth took her hand in his. "Why I sent you the gift is not important. Believe me when I say, I only wished to make you happy again, as your dreams told me you were not." He wasn't lying, exactly.
Sarah gasped. "You can see my dreams?" She blushed hoping he hadn't been privy to any of the ones that featured Goblin King inspired erotica.
Jareth concluded it would be wise not to elaborate too much. "I can only sense the mood of them. Your dreams are for you alone to create and shape."
The time had come for him to take his leave. He brought her hand to his lips and pressed a lingering kiss there.
"If ever you should need me, remember, I'm only a word away," Jareth promised.
His velvet voice aroused her like an intimate caress and Sarah shuddered with desire. She would be calling on him again, and soon, of that there was no doubt.
THE END.
The song referenced at the beginning of this chapter is 'Time In A Bottle' by Jim Croce as the lyrics seemed to fit the mood of where Jareth and Sarah are after Chapter 7.
I would like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has taken the time to read this fanfic and leave a review. It is much appreciated.