(A/N) I hope you guys really like this so far. I think my other two fic's are going to be put on hold while I work on this one. I just got through watching the movie again (My 42nd time to be exact!! ;) and I can't believe I didn't write this sooner…they left soooo many issues to be resolved!!!!

DISCLAIMER: What part of "Thou shalt not steal," didn't I get? ;-)

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CHAPTER II - "You sure got his attention"

Sarah had been so sure she was ready, she was prepared. But now, when the time came and he was standing before her, she found it was all she could do to stand trembling, her gaze fixed on the ground at her feet.

Slowly, almost reluctantly, her gaze traveled up his imposing figure. He still wore the same black field boots, braced shoulders width apart. Upward still; grey breeches that were undeniably tight, leaving little to the imagination. Her eyes darted higher still, a dark mahogany waist coat, cinched low to expose a pristine white poets' shirt. It was left open at the collar and she could see the crescent shaped amulet that rested against his alabaster chest.

It was his expression that frightened her most. His face was still the same one that she remembered from that night, the same face that had haunted her dreams and nightmares. His mouth was fixed in that same arrogant smirk that she had just known he would be wearing and his mismatched eyes seemed to burn with a cold fire.

That face was shockingly familiar, with his wild platinum hair and calm gaze.

But however imposing, however frightening, she had summoned him here with her own words; she was past the point of no return and there was no changing her mind now.

The sultry sound of his voice cut right through the cry of the wind.

"Hello Sarah," he drawled. She forcibly repressed a shudder at the sound of his voice, "I see your patience has not improved with time" he grinned, "…such a pity."

Faster than she would have thought possible, he had moved to stand behind her. He brushed his gloved fingers lightly over her shoulder as he leaned down to her. She could feel his warm breath on her neck. "You of all people should know that these things cannot be rushed." He chuckled softy.

It was amazing how much he could place into that one sound; scorn, arrogance, pride, pity, and that know-it-all smugness that was purely Jareth. It took talent to be that expressive with nonverbal sounds. She told him as much.

"Well, I've had a long time to practice. But come now, Sarah. You haven't called me here for the simply for the pleasure of meeting…oh, what was her name again? Ah, yes; Kayla."

The apprehension that had been growing inside her was replace with cold fear, twisting in her gut like a living thing, and turning her blood to ice in her veins. There was her mistake. She should have known, she should never have given him a name.

Somehow she knew that she had just dug her own grave and it was only getting deeper… "She's in the castle isn't she?"

"Oh, Sarah. I would have thought you'd have learned better by now. What did you think the result of this little folly would be?"

He was so goddamn condescending. Sarah felt the first spark of her temper coming to life, "I thought I could talk to you like a rational person, that we could make a deal." she snapped.

"A deal is it? And why should I make any sort of bargain with you? What could you possibly have to offer that I do not already possess?"

Sarah ground her teeth, and was amazed when her voice came out calm and level. "Just hear me out, Jareth. Kathy is dying. You already know that. I want you to save her. You have the power to reorder time; I want you to change it for her, give her back the time she lost."

"And if I were to grant her….reprieve…. What would you offer me in return? Why should I concern myself with your problem? Why should I release her from my possession?"

Sarah swallowed thickly, "Wha-what…would you want?" God!-that was opening a can of worms so large Sarah was loathe to even think about it, but there was no other choice. She'd screwed it up in the beginning; he held all the cards now and he was well aware of it.

He was silent for a few moments, seemingly considering her offer. He pursed his lips and tapped the riding crop against his thigh as he spoke, "You wish me to grant her lost time, and her freedom; two boons, I think, so I shall ask for two in return. Fair enough?"

That was stretching too far, "What kind of favors?" she asked after a moment. There was no way she was giving Jareth two, unnamed favors, that would just be stupid.

"Does it really matter, Sarah? What wouldn't you do to ensure her return?"

Sarah closed her eyes and did her best to hide her wince. He had her. And he knew it. He left of the tapping of the crop, his eyes locked with hers as he scrutinized her body. Sarah's mind reeled under the implications. He could ask for anything-anything-and she would have no choice but to accommodate him. She dared not even think about the endless possibilities of what he might request.

His gaze raked lazily over her form, as he continued to appraise her with that arrogant smirk of his, "I thought as much. The way I see it, her time belongs to me. You wish me to give up something rightfully in my possession, yes?" Sarah nodded mutely, "Very well. But I want that time back."

"How-"

"You, Sarah. Your time. You could take her place."

…it's only forever; not long at all…

He stepped closer as she sunk to her knees on the harsh stones, as standing was now too much of an effort. "I might even make it easy on you."

…Not long at all…

"I don't have any other choice, do I." she didn't say it as a question.

The wind picked up, howling as it tore through the trees, then was silent. Jareth smiled, "It's done."

"That's it? As simple as that."

He grimaced mockingly, "You wound me, my dear. I said it was done, and so it is. You accepted my offer."

Sarah was silent as he spoke. The price wasn't important. She had been careless, naming Kathy in her call, now all that mattered was bringing her friend home. "Very well. I-I accept your terms."

A feral grin split his features. "Very good. Now, because of your selflessness, I will not require the eternity you are no doubt imagining. Instead, you will be my guest for the length of one month, residing in my kingdom for thirty-one days from blue moon to blue moon. During that time, you will be in my possession. You will be one of my subjects and will treat me as such, is that clear Sarah?"

She nodded, unable to speak. You can't speak of course when your throat has gone as dry as the stones you're kneeling on.

"If you attempt to run, our deal will be void, and she will be returned to her previous state, in my possession, do I make myself clear?"

"Will…my family know I'm gone?"

"No. For them, the briefest of instants, the mere blinking of an eye, will be all the time that passes while you are in my care."

Again, she nodded. At least that much was taken care of.

"Now, if that's settled-?" He gestured for her to rise, but Sarah made no move to obey. "Wait. What about the second favor? You never told me what it is."

"I'm aware. It will be named at the end of your stay, does that satisfy you?"

It didn't, but she knew perfectly well that it would have to do. She climbed slowly to her feet, unsure of what to do next. Jareth prevented her from having to think on it. Without another word he stepped closer, wrapping his arm gently around her waist and pulling her close. She could feel the heat of him even through their clothes. Then, suddenly, his warm breath on her neck, "Hold tight." And the word dissolved around them.

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Sarah stretched, arching her back, arms over head, until something popped and she felt marginally better. It had been such a strange dream, really. Impossible though. No matter how dark things looked she knew better than to call on Jar-on a certain Goblin King. That was simply inviting disaster in through the front door.

She rolled over and snuggled down further into the bed clothes. It was so good to sleep in for once…No matter how early she went to bed, sleep only seemed to make her more tired. She never stopped to consider the fact that it shouldn't have been as bright in her room as it was just then. Her west facing window let in only minimal sun, and the rays of early morning light that were pouring in were strangely out of place.

She pulled the sheets over her head, twisting them in her fingers. So soft….

Too soft.

Certainly not her own, well loved, slightly scratchy linen sheets.

One of her blue eyes opened just a crack.

Wrong color, too…

That was enough to jolt her fully awake. About the time that she was noticing that she was in a bed she'd never seen before, Sarah also realized that she was without clothes of any sort. Being in the bed made her nervous because she had no idea who it belonged to. Being without clothes made her nervous period so, wrapping the blue silky sheets around herself in a kind of makeshift robe, she rolled out of bed to look for them.

She jolted when the soles of her bare feet touched the cold marble floor. That was even more wrong. No one she knew, even vaguely, had marble flooring….Just how wasted had she gotten last night? Surely Kathy would have stopped her from doing anything too…Oh, shit.

Sarah recalled abruptly that the memories of the previous night had not been some strangely impossible dream, and the memory of Kathy, surrounded by those horrible tubes and machines left her blood running cold.

It all came crashing back and she had a pretty good idea of whose bed she might be in. That particular thought propelled her across the room to the only other door she could see.

It opened under her touch and revealed a walk in closet, complete with rows of boots and poet shirts, and those unmistakable breeches…

Sarah swallowed thickly.

This was not good.

Not good at all…

This was definitely Jareth's room, she had definitely woken up in his bed, and she was definitely and without a doubt without clothes of any kind.

No. No good.

Slowly, cautiously, she backed out of the closet and turned to survey the room with a suspicious gaze. The bed was certainly the center of attention, large and-she snorted-fit for a king. If she hasn't know it was his, she would have been jealous. Beautiful, dark cherry wood frame, the curtains surrounding it were thrown back to let in the early morning light. It was covered in silk sheets and feather soft blankets that were practically an invitation to curl up and take a nap. The floor was grey marble, veined with gold and blue, Sarah had never seen any stone like that. An ornate dressing screen separated another portion of the room that Sarah could only assume was the bathing room.

She felt a jolt of recognition when she saw the clock that was hung over the mantle of the fireplace. It was the same one that had counted down her allotment in the Labyrinth. The fireplace itself was large and spacious, and she could see that a few embers still glowed weakly from among the grey ashes. Wood was stacked nearby in a gold-or at least golden colored-holder.

A crystal pitcher filled with an unrecognizable amber liquid rested on the mantle, accompanied by several crystal goblets. There was no clutter, no odd clothing left out, nothing to suggest that this room was lived in like so many rooms that she had seen in the mortal world. It was cold, imposing and secretive; it fit Jareth a perfectly as those gloves of his.

As she contemplated his room, she became acutely aware of her state of undress. She supposed she could have put on some of his but the idea seemed unattainable, as though she would have to cross some impassible dimensional barrier just to step into a pair of pants.

Doing her best to put the thought of his pants from her mind, Sarah went back to the bed to begin her search for clothes anew. She checked under the bed, but no clothes. There was however, an old sock, a riding crop and a single, unmatched old boot. Apparently, no matter what world you were in, some things never changed. The thought brought a reluctant smile to her lips.

The smile was short lived though.

How long would he be gone? The idea that he could burst in at any moment, made her search even more desperately. In a trunk in the corner of the room she unearthed a slightly smaller shirt, still peasant style, a flowing green skirt, and-to her delight-her old, very comfortable shoes from her last trip to the Underworld. Sarah wasted no time on who they might belong to; anything was better than the sheet she was currently wearing, and wiggled into the clothes. They were a good fit, nice material and she knew even without a mirror that they would be flattering to her figure. Sarah smiled.

Jareth might be a bastard, but even she had to admit; he had excellent taste.

The only warning she had was a small, perfectly spherical crystal that rolled across the floor and came to rest against her left right foot. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end, and caught that unmistakable scent.

She didn't turn to confirm with her eyes what her sense had already told her.

Jareth…

"Sarah, my dear," he purred softly, "I must say, I think I preferred your previous ensemble…" She knew he'd been watching for longer than the last few seconds, and she knew with equal certainty that he was wearing that goddamn arrogant smirk that she had come to know and detest.

Sarah did her best to hide the blush that she just knew was covering her from her toes to her hairline. Jareth just has that effect on her. She sighed, seemingly with boredom, "Hello, Jareth. You know, you could just knock."

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(A/N) So?! What did you think? Love it? Hate it? Wanna take it home and marry it?! TELL ME!!!!!

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