Six
By the time the Wimberly's prepared to leave late in the afternoon Jareth was beginning to question his judgment. He had been living a quiet, complacent, simple life; he had taken a degree of pleasure in escorting such an attractive woman about; and had considered him self to be a shrewd business man. His life and kingdom were on track. And today he realized that he was bored out of his senses.
Their carriage appeared and the family came out. He noticed that Leslie had split the left side of her lip. She had only been out of his sight long enough to gather her few belongings. He asked if she was all right. "Fine," she said with a smile. "I tripped over one of my bags." Having helped her into the carriage, he bid them farewell.
Lingering outside he considered his position. Five years ago he had his world turned up side down partly by his own hand and partly by Sarah Williams'. He had enjoyed every moment of those thirteen hours. She challenged him, taunted him, and (probably unwittingly) had flirted with him. They had battled it out one maneuver after another, in a dance of wills. He had felt alive!
Yet his kingdom had suffered. While one half of his subjects accelerated in their desire to play his games, a smaller portion banded together to revolt. After she left the Labyrinth her self acted out, with holding nourishment and resources. That first year after her departure he tried everything to reason with the life force of the Labyrinth, but the voices refused to cooperate. Shortly after that he began entertaining the company of the Wimberly's.
Absently he kicked at a small stone and went inside. Up stairs he headed for his personal study, the one room in the castle that still held memories of his life five years ago. Trinkets, pictures, a juke box- a few human items that brought him comfort. He was not surprised to find Sarah there. She stood looking at the old record player. She smiled at him. "This," she pointed at the machine. "This is something I never imagined you having."
"Well goblins aren't known for being musically inclined, and I enjoy listening to a decent piece of music. Here." He punched a button and the juke box glowed alive with color. He watched as she began to flip through the selections.
"In my senior year of high school," she said. "I read a graphic novel called 'V For Vendetta.' The lead character, V who was some how both the protagonist and antagonist had a juke box." The selections flipped by- Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Etta James. "He would turn it on of an evening and he would dance with the story's leading lady. Even in their world the juke box was out of place." Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole. "I thought about what you said this morning," she continued. She stopped searching through the selections. "I want vengeance."
He examined her face in the pale colors. "What made you change your mind?"
"I spoke with Bartholomew today. The evil mother didn't use protection. Screwing with my life is one thing; screwing around with an innocent child's is another."
Reaching out he punched a series of buttons. The mechanical arm swung out and pulled forth a record. Etta James' voice began to fill the room. He held his hand out to her. There in his study he danced with her, knowing full well that he was treading along a thin line. But dancing with Sarah was so addictive.
When she put her head against his chest, she smelt his scent. For five years she had chased after this elusive smell matching the equally elusive man. Her professor had been the closest match. Her first day of class she knew what he was. And when he smiled at her, she knew she had to spend as much time near him as possible. But that night, that night something had gone wrong.
She realized she was crying against Jareth. They had stopped dancing and he was holding her. She held onto him. After five years she really did not want to let him go.