**Rock Stars**

The band now had a saxophonist.

They also had a cellist, a bassist, a harmonicist, and a flippin' keytarist all rolled up into one multitalented, egotistical, megalomaniac named Jareth. Every day the man showed up with a new instrument or two and seamlessly wove the sound into the songs the band already played. Who knew they could use a saxophone in a metal band? But Jareth managed to make it sound like it belonged there. It really was impressive. And Toby loved him almost as much as his fan girls did. Sarah had never seen Toby so infatuated with anyone. Overnight Jareth had become his hero. What would happen to him once the Goblin King was done playing rock star? Sarah tried not to think about that.

It was the fourth day since Jareth had "auditioned" and he had stayed away from Sarah the entire time. No more stalking her behind closed doors. No more, "I need you." Nothing. He left when Toby went home only to return for band practice the following day. For some reason Sarah had assumed he would try to move in—she had even prepared valid arguments as to why that wouldn't be a good idea for him—but of course that was foolish. He still had a kingdom to run. In fact, other than his cryptic warnings of, "time is short. You must return soon," whispered to her before he left each day, the king barely even acknowledged Sarah's presence.

And it irked her more than she admitted.

He didn't ignore the fangirls though. He jumped right into full rock star mode there. A small harem left with him after each rehearsal. Where he took them she had no idea, nor did she dwell on it. Much.

She didn't know what game he was playing, but she was no longer a scared fifteen year old girl chasing a dream in a bubble. She was an actress. And a damn good one too! She would not let him know how much he got under her skin.

The practice set was almost over and the fake blondes and redheads that filled her living room had already staked out their positions for when the band put away their instruments. Sarah wasn't surprised to see most of them clamoring for prime Jareth spots—irritated, but not surprised. She was not jealous that he seemed to prefer the ease of their company to the challenge of seeking out hers. After all Sarah was only concerned about what her future held. She wasn't interested in the Goblin King as a person. Who cared if he was a gorgeous musical genius who made her go weak in the knees simply by saying her name?

Okay, maybe she was a little jealous. But only because he was supposedly here for Sarah and yet he spent his time with all those other bimbos—admittedly they were stunningly beautiful bimbos, but still—didn't he have a job to do or something?

Well, if he wanted to play games, she'd play to win.

As the music died down, Sarah went straight for Marcus. His long, black hair was slick with perspiration where it had escaped from the leather throng with which he'd tied it back. If she looked closely, she could see evidence of his exertion on the tight black t-shirt he wore, obviously chosen to show off his biceps. The laborious task of keeping a fast tempo for nearly an hour straight every day was bound to give a man some definition.

"You did great today, Marcus," she cooed over the low chatter filling the living room. She gently placed her hand on his well-muscled forearm and smiled. It wasn't as difficult to be near him as she had expected from his saturated exterior—the pleasant musky aroma he gave off was a far cry from the old gym sock smell she was anticipating. Sarah wondered briefly if it was a magic thing since his king always smelled delicious as well. Not that she paid attention to that sort of thing.

Remembering her purpose for being there, Sarah leaned in a little and said, "I especially liked the drum solo in the third song—you really outdid the others there."

Marcus grinned at the praise, then darted a look at Jareth to see if he noticed. His sovereign didn't so much as glance in their direction, but Sarah got the distinct impression that he was paying close attention. Good.

"Thanks, Sarah. I'm glad you liked it." His sincerity almost made Sarah feel guilty for leading him on, but then she reminded herself that it was only a game to him as well and she let the feeling subside.

Time to go in for the kill. "So, I was wondering. After all the people clear out of here, would you like to go get some coffee or something? I'm feeling a bit stifled by…" a hand landed on her shoulder making Sarah pause. It was Toby.

"Hey! Sorry to interrupt, Sis, but I wanted to ask Marcus if he was coming with us. We're going to head out for a while—you know, do some guy stuff. No offense, Sarah, but we really haven't done much together as a band since you became our manager and Jareth thinks it would be good for us to go and blow off some steam. You know, just the guys." Toby had not learned the fine art of subtlety.

Sarah looked over her shoulder and noticed that they had Jareth's complete attention now. He stood with each of his arms curled around the small of two different girls' backs, his left eyebrow cocked in a challenging expression, his lips quirked up in a smirk as if he knew he'd won this round. And he had. Marcus would not be foolish enough to go against a direct request from his king. Sarah shot his royal highness a glare before resigning herself to give up the point.

She sighed. "Sure, Toby. I understand. You guys go off and have some fun."

After a moment's hesitation, Marcus piped up. "You know, Toby, I'm not sure I'm feeling up to going out tonight. Why don't you and the rest of the guys head off without me." Sarah shot Marcus a surprised glance. Surely he wasn't going to defy his king. That would ruin all her plans! She needed him to stay as a man in order for her scheme to work. It's not like she could make Jareth jealous by flirting with a talking furball!

Jareth casually untangled himself from the bimbos, moved over to their little group, and slung his arm over Toby's shoulder. The girls huffed and walked away, not daring to interrupt a "band meeting," but definitely affronted by the dismissal. In fact, the entire room was clearing out unusually early. Word must have gotten around that there would be no "after show" that evening. The fangirls were quickly grabbing purses and heading out the door, leaving Sarah's home with a little peace and quiet. That Jareth immediately broke.

Pretending he hadn't been eavesdropping on the earlier conversation, Jareth questioned Toby, while pinning Marcus with a look that spoke of bogs or worse should he refuse. "So, Tobias, is Marcus here ready to leave?"

Toby shook his head. "It looks like it's just going to be the four of us tonight. Marcus isn't feeling like heading out." The look of adoration that came over Toby's face at his inclusion into Jareth's circle of friends made Sarah want to punch him. She had never seen such hero-worship from anyone, let alone her brother.

"Is that so, Marcus?" Toby heard it as a question; Marcus heard it as the challenge Jareth had intended.

Once again Marcus surprised Sarah. Not quite daring to look his king in the eye, Marcus squared his shoulders defiantly and said, "I don't think it's a good idea to leave Sarah here all alone. There's been some strange things going on with her health and all. I think one of her roommates should stay, and I volunteer."

Sarah was touched. Was he really defying Jareth so that she wouldn't have to deal with her magic withdrawal? Her heart softened a bit toward Marcus. Maybe he did have actual feelings for her after all. It didn't change the way she felt toward him, but it made her second-guess her plan at using him to score points against Jareth.

Toby's face fell and he scratched at the back of his neck. "He's right, Jareth. Sarah has had some health problems lately. Maybe he should stay." Toby was clearly torn between offending his newfound hero and making sure his sister was safe. Sarah was glad she still held some of his loyalty.

The Goblin King smiled. Again, to Toby, it might have looked friendly—although Sarah couldn't imagine how he could be that blind. Sarah, and Marcus, saw it for what it truly was; a threat. "Marcus. I am sure Ms. Williams will be perfectly fine here on her own. After all, she is a grown woman." His smile turned mocking as he focused in on Sarah. Looking deep into her eyes, he continued, "Should she need help, she knows who to call."

Sarah took Jareth's not-so-subtle challenge. Her eyes never leaving his, she replied, "It's okay, guys. Marcus, go have fun. I could use some time alone anyway."

Jareth nodded almost imperceptibly, breaking his hold on her. She noticed the other band members had gathered around and were looking a little worried, but Sarah wasn't afraid. She had already formed a plan. As soon as they left, she would head for bed and let the magic withdrawal knock her unconscious. Sarah doubted Jareth would leave her alone after investing so much time in her, so she could wait it out. And when he returned, he was going to do some explaining. He wasn't getting away with evading her any longer. He said he needed her—she had the upper hand. If he needed her, then he was damn sure going to tell her why!

Either Toby remained oblivious to the tension in the room or he conveniently chose to ignore it. He was still young enough that selfishness won out over responsibility if given any way out. In his mind, Sarah had given her blessing for him to hang out with his buddies and he was determined not to waste another minute. "Great! Sorry for leaving you out tonight, Sarah. I hope you understand. It's a guy thing." And with that, they all walked toward the entryway. "Enjoy your night!" Toby called over his shoulder as he headed out the door followed by Gabriel and Nathaniel. Marcus hesitated at the threshold, but Sarah waved him on. With hunched shoulders he followed the others out.

Jareth was the last to leave. "Sarah, when you have decided that enough is enough and you are ready to take sanctuary in my kingdom, you know what to do." Did she imagine the look of concern that crossed his features?

Sarah's eyes narrowed. "I'm not going anywhere until I have some answers, Jareth. Enjoy your night out, but don't expect to hear anything from me until I've found out what exactly you're not telling me."

Jareth's lips twisted in a half snarl. "Don't defy me, Sarah. Time is short." And with that he closed the door behind him.

"You sound like a broken record!" Sarah yelled at the closed door. She thought she heard Jareth laughing as he walked down the driveway.

Sarah sighed. "Well, I better get in position. Who knows how long I have?" Sarah grabbed an apple off the counter and headed up stairs. She made sure to take care of all her personal business (just in case) and then sprawled out on the bed, flipping through channels on her small TV as she waited for the exhaustion to overtake her. Last time it had taken a little over 30 minutes.

This time it only took ten.

It started slow. She felt the normal bone weariness that she had been expecting from her last two episodes creeping up on her, beginning at her head and slowly moving its way down her body. Sarah turned the TV off, closed her eyes, and prepared to fall asleep. She almost smiled—Jareth thought he could win simply by wearing her out. She'd show him. She would greet him at tomorrow's rehearsal fully rested and ready to spar.

She snuggled deeper under her covers, letting her mind go blank, but something was different. She suddenly felt colder, as if her comforter was sapping the heat from her body rather than holding it in. Sarah began to shiver uncontrollably, cocooning herself within her blankets, but feeling no warmth. As her body temperature plummeted, she noticed an increasing feeling of pain. It was more than just withdrawal symptoms. It felt like something was draining the energy directly from her body through a thousand tiny wires connected to the pores in her skin.

At the same time, her emotions were shrinking within her once more. She knew she was in unbearable pain. She knew she should be terrified. But she couldn't summon the willpower to cry out. It was as if her soul had been separated from her body and was watching it writhe in misery, then taking notes on how she should react. It was a separate entity.

She lay there, paralyzed, willing her vocal chords into action, but unable to move or speak. Did Jareth know this is what would happen if he took away all the magic from her life? If the Goblin King had known, would he have left? Was this an example of his cruelty?

At that moment, she didn't care. She would surrender to him if he would only appear to take away the pain. She didn't know how much longer she could last. Her energy was almost completely gone. It felt like a blizzard had begun under her sheets, turning her core to ice and freezing her to immobility. She was certain she was not going to survive. She mentally cursed her stupidity. At least if she'd gone with Jareth, she might have had the opportunity to see her family again. Now she would be lucky if there was even a body left to find. A single tear leaked from the corner of her eye—her last remaining vestige of emotion fell in liquid form, staining her pillowcase with its salty presence.

She was going to die.

And then the rumbling began.

.

.

.

A/N – And I think that's where I'll cut off for now. What is that rumbling? Hmmm…

Yes, I'm feeling a bit evil tonight. Sue me.

I'm surprised no one guessed my reason for the long delay between the last two chapters besides Nanenna. Yes, Spider Solitaire holds a dangerous draw. Don't give in to its pull! Nanenna has not told me what cyber-dessert she desires so I am just sending over the whole kitchen from the Cheesecake Factory. I'm sure she'll find something she likes there and since it is all done cyberly, it's free for me!

As always, thank you so much for taking the time to send me a review. You really make my day just saying you're still reading. Plus, if you review you give me a chance to look at your stuff (if you've written any)…I'm always looking for good laby fics! :-D As for the challenges that have been sent my way…next chapter. I promise we will see some of those challenges appear in the next chapter. So keep reading! :-D (I hope to have the next chapter up by this weekend, but I have a busy week planned so no guarantees…)

Reviews are much appreciated as always (it will make me write faster…I promise!)