**Time's Up**

Sarah picked up Jumpers and instinctively smiled as the cat's purr massaged away some of the stress. The tiger-striped tabby had found her way onto Sarah's windowsill three days after the guys moved in and Sarah hadn't had the heart to kick her out. Although she had been a dog person most of her life, she found that this cat was more like a dog than a cat anyway—a dog that loved to be cuddled close, magically draining Sarah's anxiety as she paced the floor in frustration.

As of midnight last night, her thirteen days were over and Sarah had learned next to nothing. Surprisingly, Sarah's new roommates knew very little about the inner workings of the Labyrinth, having spent much of their time as goblins near the grog tank. Sarah was beginning to suspect that was the real reason they had been chosen—loose lips sink ships and all that nonsense. It hadn't helped that Gabriel had found the solitaire game on her computer. Who knew so much time could be wasted putting a red card on a black one?

The only real bit of information that she'd gleaned from her near two weeks of emotional freedom was that she missed the passion of her youth. It was as if she just realized she had been breathing through a straw for the last fifteen years. All of a sudden she was able to think clearly, to smile and laugh without restraint, and cry abundant tears—which happened more often than Sarah would care to admit. One moment she would be discouraged by the superficial fairy tales that inundated the mythology and folklore sections of her local libraries, the next moment she would be crying on the shoulder of the nearest goblin-man (which almost always turned out to be Marcus). But the release it gave her was euphoric. She could not go back to her half-life.

And that made her focus more than anything else ever could.

She would never admit it out loud (or even to herself), but Sarah was scared. If the Goblin King was telling the truth (and she knew he was), she could not remain in the world she knew. She was dying. Sure, she felt more alive than she'd felt in years, but at any moment the Goblin King could take back his subjects and then it was only a matter of time before she wasted away to nothing. She wondered briefly if she would merely go to sleep as she had so often as of late, only to never wake up; or would it be painful—smothered by whatever unseen force caused her emotions to be lacking in the first place. The Goblin King offered her immortality, but at what cost? Would being his slave for eternity be better than a peaceful death with her family nearby?

He said he needed her. It all came down to what exactly he needed her for. And that was where her research came up short. Sarah read book after book, magazine articles about gardening lawn mazes, and even newspaper clippings about missing children—anything that might shed a clue on the world of the Goblin King. Most of what she read carried little resemblance to what she knew from her time there. The Goblin King himself was never mentioned in any of the books. Goblins, yes. Frequently. But nothing about a king. She found much about labyrinths in general, but it seemed that the Goblin King did not follow by any of the rules that govern normal labyrinths. In short, Sarah learned very little and her time was up.

Jumper leapt from her arms at the sound of the doorbell and Sarah's frustration deepened. It would be Toby. Again. Nathaniel came running downstairs to let him in and Sarah forced herself to maintain at least a neutral expression as the other guys began rearranging furniture in the living room.

Not that she was unhappy to see her baby brother, but her "manager duties" continually intruded upon her studies. Thankfully Toby still had school during the day so they could make their trips to the library undisturbed, but he found his way to her home every evening for band practice. As did several of the "fans" they had managed to obtain. Sarah had to physically remove one of the little harlots from her home when she found her trying to conceal herself in the upstairs hall closet. What exactly she expected to get from hiding in such a crude location, Sarah could only imagine.

The band members were gentlemen for the most part despite their fangirls' aggressiveness. Although the girls seemed to find her younger brother attractive, much of their attention was drawn towards the relative maturity of his bandmates and she was grateful that he was either oblivious or secure enough that he didn't seem to care. Gabriel was the only one who retired to the bedroom with any of their guests after the practices were over. Nathaniel seemed almost embarrassed by the attention, but he would snuggle on the couch with a girl or two as the band wrapped things up. Marcus, however, surprised Sarah. For all his talk about fornication, Marcus was the most hesitant to do anything with the women who were practically throwing themselves at him. Sarah asked him about it one night as he helped her wash the dishes and he simply responded that, "none of them hold a candle to you."

It made Sarah want to vomit.

Oh sure, her hormones instinctively began working at his blatant interest in her. All three of her new roommates were beyond physically appealing by traditional human standards and it felt good to be desired. But he was a goblin. Who knew when the Goblin King would decide to return him to his former self? Besides, such cheesy lines reeked of possession. He didn't want her; he wanted what he couldn't obtain. And Sarah was not a prize to be won by anyone.

"Sarah! I brought someone along that I want you to meet!" Toby exclaimed in greeting as he entered, breaking into Sarah's thoughts. Through the still-open doorway, Sarah could see cars parking down the street and she knew it would only be a matter of time before her living room was filled with dim-witted females. She groaned inwardly.

"Hey, Tob…" Sarah's voice cut off as a pair of black leather motorcycle boots captured her attention. Of course, it was the man standing in those boots that caused her mind to go blank. Swathed in black leather from head to toe, the Goblin King swaggered in behind her brother as if he owned the place. His hair was cut in its typical wild array, however, rather than looking out of place in the "real world," it merely gave him that extra rock-star appeal. Instinctively saliva began to pool in Sarah's mouth and she swallowed hard to keep back the drool. Stupid hormones.

Toby saw her awe-struck face and quickly made introductions. "Sarah, this is Jareth. He heard about our band on the radio and asked if it would be okay to stop in. He's thinking of auditioning, but he wants to make sure our style fits with his. I didn't think you'd mind. It's okay, isn't it?" he asked, concern growing as he took in Sarah's frozen form.

Sarah blinked quickly and pulled her attention back to Toby. "Yeah. Sure Tobes. It's your band, right? I'm just the manager. Um…Marcus, can I see you in the kitchen for a moment?" Grabbing Marcus' sleeve, she began pulling him out of the room. "Go ahead and begin without him. It'll only take a minute," Sarah called over her should as she ran away into the kitchen, dragging a less-than-willing Marcus behind her.

"What is he doing here? I thought I had to wish him into my presence! I'm not ready for this yet!" Sarah hissed, nodding her head back in the direction of the sound of musicians tuning up behind her.

Marcus looked just as disappointed as Sarah, but she suspected it was for other reasons. If the Goblin King were here in person, he may not need the goblin-men any longer. He opened his mouth to speak, but the silky voice of the Goblin King cut him off. "You needn't bother him. As you can see, he is almost as upset by these turn of events as you are." Sarah spun around, her chin automatically rising in defiance as she made certain to keep the Goblin King in sight.

She opened her mouth to tell him just exactly what he could do with his turn of events, but the Goblin King spoke before she could fully formulate the speech in her head. "What is it about you that turns my subjects against me so?" He asked, tilting his head to the side as if studying a rather difficult puzzle. He tapped his lips with his right index finger which was encased in a smooth, black leather glove. After a moment he shrugged. "Ah, well, this one's motives are obvious—he seems to have developed amorous intentions toward you and I suspect he is affronted by my interference." His lips curled in a semi-snarl as he gestured in Marcus' direction, before neutralizing his expression. "Maverick you may leave now. I have private business to discuss with Ms. Williams."

Marcus immediately headed for the door, but a gloved hand grabbed him by the collar before he got more than two steps. Pulling the goblin within inches of his face, the Goblin King spoke, his voice a study in calm as if he were discussing the weather or the color of the front lawn. "Do be a little more mindful of your countenance in my presence if you desire to remain as you are. Have I made myself clear?" Grudgingly Marcus nodded and the Goblin King released him, turning back to face Sarah once more. He paid little attention to Marcus' departure, making his dismissal all the more humiliating.

Sarah's gaze followed Marcus from the room. "Arrogant, self-centered, bully," she muttered under her breath. Inhaling, she faced the Goblin King. "You shouldn't be here. I didn't wish for you this time. I made very sure of that. What rule did you break to get in?"

"Sarah. I'm surprised at you. You should know by now that I do not break my own rules—bend them when the need arises, yes—but not break. I am free to enter wherever my goblins have dominion. You gave my minions complete access to your home so here I am." He held his arms out and gave her a mock bow.

Sarah glared at him, one eyebrow quirking in an attempt to look braver than she felt. "Oh, no Goblin King. They do not have complete access to my home. My bedroom is off-limits to them…and to you."

His lips quirked up in a half smile. "Come now Sarah. Your brother has properly introduced us. You may call me Jareth for the time being. In fact, I insist. It wouldn't do to draw attention to my full-time occupation with all these mortals around, now would it? As for your bedroom, I assure you that I would never enter there…unless you wished it." Humor glinted in his mismatched eyes and she blushed as she recalled wishing him in there only a short time ago—accidentally.

An awkward silence descended upon the room as Sarah fought for something clever to say. She had so many questions, yet they waited just outside her grasp when faced with the King himself. Jareth eased himself back against her cabinets, lounging in his cavalier manner, his right ankle crossed over his left as if he sat in a comfortable throne rather than leaning against the corner of a tiled counter. He seemed content to let her squirm for a few minutes. Sarah hated that he always appeared to have everything under control.

She sighed in defeat. Finally giving up on forming her phrases eloquently, she asked," Okay, Jareth. What exactly do you want from me?"

As if her question was a summons, he moved to stand before her, floating gracefully across the floor, but with a rough quality that screamed, "male" (everything about the Goblin King screamed, "male"). Sarah didn't think to back away. She couldn't. All thoughts flew out the window as he towered above her. She bit her lower lip and focused in on his perfectly formed mouth as he spoke. "Sarah, we should be returning to the living room," he practically purred, grabbing a lock of her hair and studying it as it slipped through his thumb and index finger. Her legs turned to liquid jelly, but she stood her ground. She wondered what kind of magic spell he used to make her libido go completely crazy with the slightest touch. He must release some sort of pheromone or something.

"After all," he continued, pretending that he was unaware of the affect he had on her, "Tobias might start getting concerned about his older sister being left alone with a mysterious, handsome stranger in the kitchen. Who knows what kind of mischief we might get into?" His gaze captured her own and his sinister smile showed that he was only half joking.

Sarah didn't take the bait. Zeroing in on the door, she stepped around him and exited the room, her legs becoming stronger as she got further away from his magnetic pull. Jareth's laughter chased her like demon fire as the door closed behind her, the sound carrying even above the opening chords of "As the World Falls Down." The small crowd gathered in her living room turned to see what was so funny and Sarah blushed as she tried to hide out of their eyesight.

Only when she took her seat on a barstool in the corner did she realize that he had evaded her question.

.

.

.

A/N – Hi all. I am SO sorry this took so long to get up. I'm not going to get into the multitude of excuses I have (including two separate ER visits!), but I will give a cyber dessert of your choice to the one who can figure out where a majority of my free time has been spent the last couple of weeks. (Hint: I wrote it into this chapter!)

LadyCavalier and startravler776, thank you for more challenges! You are too fun! :-D I only got to use one of your "suggestions" in this chapter Lady, but rest assured (both of you) that your challenges will be met!

Thank you again everyone for all your kind reviews. You truly make me smile! I'm so glad you take the time to read the words I put on paper (well, on screen…). I love seeing all the "hits" on my traffic page :-D.

And, to steal from some of my favorite authors on here: If you've read this far, please leave a contribution in the little box. :-D