**Twists and Turns**

It wasn't so much the glitter, but the amount of it that struck Sarah as overwhelming in the throne room where Jareth deposited them. It was as if he lived in a giant snow globe that was void of any water. Sarah had always considered glitter to be rather girlie, but in typical Goblin King fashion, nothing about his domain could be called anything but masculine.

Goblins of various shapes, sizes, and colors littered the floor and shelves of the vast area making it appear much smaller than it was. There were rather large ones with flat noses and bulging eyes carrying goblets of what she could only assume was ale. Others were chasing chickens or plucking their plumes. There were nearly as many feathers floating in the air as there was glitter. The room felt more like a barnyard than a place for a king—complete with straw and an inch of dirt on every surface. And the smell! You would think Jareth would at least cleanse the goblins that he bogged before allowing them back into his presence.

But as Sarah turned to face the Goblin King, it was obvious that the stench was the furthest thing from his mind. His Majesty stood in the center of the room with an expression on his face that could only be interpreted as jubilant. She hadn't noticed the slight creases around the corner of his eyes and mouth until they suddenly disappeared. The bone weariness that she had never consciously been cognizant of was gone. He looked fresh and full of vitality; practically glowing with rejuvenation.

These minute changes in him caused an immediate physical response. As a young girl he'd opened her eyes to the new world of sensuality, but that was nothing compared to the desire pulling her to him as an adult in his kingdom. It was like comparing a misty morning to a torrential downpour. She was drowning in her sudden urgent need to be near him, to possess his lips in hers, to determine whether they were soft and gentle or hard as stone as his chiseled features led her to believe. Saliva pooled in her mouth as she fought the urge to taste him. She had never found anyone so tantalizing before. It didn't help that the Goblin King—seemingly sensing her acute awareness of his person—was giving her a challenging smirk, encouraging her to throw caution to the wind and go for it. She bit her lip and inhaled—the stench reminding her that there was a room full of goblins probably trying to determine whether or not they should get some popcorn to enjoy the show.

Thankfully her brain wasn't long in catching up to her body. With the realization of the strength of her desire came a new emotion, driving out (or at least pulling alongside) her lust-filled thoughts. "I'm free," she whispered in awe, a wide grin splitting her lips. "Jareth! I'm free! The invisible weight is gone! I'm back!" she yelled as she closed her eyes and began spinning around the room, goblins quickly stepping out of her way—uncertain what to do about this unusual feminine presence in their midst. Their king never showed such unrestraint.

With her eyes closed, she didn't see the chicken beneath her feet, but she sure heard it. The indignant squawk that erupted from the pitiful creature echoed throughout the room like a siren, silencing the overall cacophony that was typical within the castle walls and pulling the undivided attention of every goblin in the vicinity. The squawk also broke Sarah of her reverie. Startled, she opened her eyes to see a group of goblins descending upon her. The murderous looks they were giving her as they began to circle confused her to no end, but she wasn't going to stand around waiting to be eaten. Thinking quickly, she attempted to grab the ruffled chicken that was still underfoot, but having never held a bird before, Sarah didn't know quite what to do. She didn't want to grab near its head in case it might peck at her, so she gently reached for its body, but the hen would have none of that. Sarah began chasing it around in a little circle before she finally gave up being nice and just grabbed it. The now angry chicken flapped its wings in her face, but Sarah held on. Eventually the thing settled down and Sarah caressed its back, soothing its feelings. It was much softer than she'd thought it would be.

Angry goblins watched her escapade with wary eyes. When they finally determined that her intentions were honorable, they resumed their original activities, virtually ignoring the woman in their midst.

Sarah gaped at the Goblin King who had watched the whole fiasco with the greatest indifference. "What was that all about?" she stammered.

Jareth shrugged. "The chickens are a protected species. They wanted to make sure you intended no harm to their precious pets."

"Precious pets!" she parroted in disbelief. "They treat them horribly! Look at them!" She pointed to a hairy goblin lounging on the window sill, tossing chickens to the ground below.

Jareth smiled. "Ah, but the chickens like to feel like they are flying."

"And the plucking?"

"Removing feathers that have been damaged."

"And the chasing?"

"I believe you would call it "tag". Really, Sarah, do you think there would be so many chickens in this room if they didn't like it here?" As he spoke, the king moved to sit in his throne. Or lie down in it. It was hard to tell the difference with him.

Sarah put the chicken down and picked her way carefully across the floor to stand before Jareth. He had pulled out a crystal and was staring intently into it, seemingly oblivious to those around him. She waited there for a minute, but the Goblin King had no inclination to speak. "Um. So…" she clapped her hands in front of her, clasping them and then releasing them in a stretch. Jareth looked up at her, raising his eyebrow. She raised hers right back. "Now what?"

"You are free to go about your business. I will call you should I need you." It was as much of a dismissal as Sarah had ever received.

Sarah's eyes narrowed, but before she could say anything, the goblins began singing a random song about slapping magic babies doing voodoo; it made no sense to her at all really, but it reminded her of something she'd been too preoccupied to think of until that moment. "Toby." Sarah whispered the name under her breath as she stared off into space.

"Pardon?" was Jareth's absent-minded response. He'd returned to viewing his crystal.

Sarah squared off to face him. "I said, Toby."

The crystal began dancing across the Goblin King's fingers. "What of him?"

Sarah gritted her teeth in frustration. He knew darn well 'what of him'! Taking a deep breath, she expelled it slowly, desperate to avoid breaking her promise already—she was determined to be respectful in front of his subjects. "What will happen to him now? He's gotten so attached to you. And what about Marcus, Gabriel and Nathaniel—what will happen to them?"

"Well, I must admit Master Tobias has proved much more useful over the years than I would have thought possible. I will not take away his road to stardom, if that is what you are worried about." He smiled at his own generosity.

Sarah folded her arms across her chest, partially in frustration of his obvious misconstruing of the situation and partially to keep from grabbing the crystal and throwing it across the room in her frustration. She wouldn't have a problem breaking the glass, but she was scared to touch it unbidden less it burn her or turn her into a goblin. Instead she sighed and pretended the Goblin King actually didn't know what she was talking about. "I'm not worried about his career. I'm worried about him. What will he think has happened to me? And what of your goblins? Are you going to bring them back?"

The ball in Jareth's hand began to move more quickly until it blurred, but Jareth's voice remained bored as if explaining why trees lose their leaves to a child. "Those from your home world will no longer remember you existed. All traces of your life there have been erased. As for my goblins, I feel they have been rehabilitated enough. They shall live out the rest of their mortal lives as humans. All memory of the Underground has been erased save for whatever memory is triggered by 'As the World Falls Down.'"

Sarah opened her mouth to protest—her family would remember nothing of her? How cruel!—but Jareth smirked and steamrolled past her objections, "I know you had been developing feelings for Marcus, but I assure you, had he returned here, he would have transformed into his goblin state and it would have been…awkward for both of you."

Sarah blushed.

"Tobias and his friends have served their purpose admirably. As a result, I have granted them their dreams. They will live out happy lives in the Above.

"What do you mean, they've served their purpose. What exactly was their purpose?" Her tone was calm and respectful. Her body language spoke of ripping his head off.

He stopped juggling and sat up. Staring her straight in the eye, he replied, "to get you here. It's always been about you. I told you everything I've done has been for you. I told you I needed you. Does it truly surprise you that I would use whatever method at my disposal that would work?"

There it was again. The whole "I need you" routine. It was really starting to get on Sarah's nerves. "WHY! Why do you need me so badly?"

Jareth sent her a warning look that spoke 'do not defy me,' but he verbally remained silent. Instead he began studying his crystal once more, conjuring up two additional crystals to twirl absentmindedly in his left hand.

He seemed bored with the conversation, but Sarah was beginning to understand him. The fact that he was juggling his crystals was a clear sign that he was uncomfortable. She pressed her advantage. "You don't know, do you?" Sarah barked out a laugh. "You don't know why you need me. That's why you haven't told me anything. That's rich!" Her anger was manifesting itself as laughter—with absolutely no mirth.

The king wasn't used to being laughed at.

Standing, the Goblin King loomed over Sarah, forcing her to tilt her head up in order to maintain eye contact. The air surrounding the two of them dropped ten degrees by his glare alone, but Sarah stood her ground. Jareth's voice was lowered nearly to a growl when he finally spoke. "Listen carefully for I will say this but one time. The information that I have obtained over the last several centuries cannot be condensed down to a level comprehensible to one who until now was rendered such a short lifespan. Do not question that which you cannot possibly understand."

They stood toe to toe, their faces only inches from each other and for once not a single lust-filled thought entered Sarah's head. There were however some of the murderous variety.

They glared at one another for several moments. Sarah knew he was dodging the question. She also knew she would turn pink and grow gills before he would admit it. The room had gone quite still as goblins prepared to see another creature sent to the Bog of Eternal Stench. Sarah didn't think he would send her to the bog—he'd promised after all—but she didn't want to push her luck.

Exhaling, Sarah took a step back and bit out as respectfully as she could, "I think I will leave you to your work now, Your Majesty." The title was spat out as a curse word, but the Goblin King chose not to react. "I will be getting myself acquainted with my new home should you need me." And with that, she turned and walked away without another glance in his direction.

Of course Sarah had no idea where she was going. Her last trip through his castle had been brief to say the least—four minutes was hardly enough time for a formal tour of the place! Her first instinct was to find some where to ride the emotional roller coaster that Jareth just threw out there. Losing everyone she'd ever loved in an instant was a bit of a rough pill to swallow, but if she was ever to find a way to keep her footing around Jareth, she must find out more about where she was and why. There would be time for mourning later...when she was alone. She would not give the Goblin King the satisfaction of watching her cry over her choices.

Meandering her way down the stone hallways was like moving through a mini labyrinth itself (except thankfully these walls did not shift). The passageways were optical illusions, often appearing to carry on endlessly only to throw up an "invisible wall" at the last moment. Sarah found if she tilted her head just right she could see the odd twists and turns and the castle almost began to make sense. Almost.

There were dozens of guest suites, parlors, and meeting rooms. The libraries—plural—were not overtly large, but books covered every ounce of wall space in each. She found one massive ballroom—different than the one in her dream. The walls were made out of gold and she could only imagine how the room must glow when lit. And she found the King's private suites, but a little voice stopped her before she could enter.

"'allo!"

Sarah smiled—she remembered that voice. She searched the wall in the direction the voice had come from and eventually found a little blue worm, complete with spiky blue hair and a little red scarf. "Hello. You're the little worm from the outer walls of the Labyrinth, aren't you?" she asked though she was certain of his response. The little guy would be hard to forget.

"Nah, 'twasn't me. You thinkin' o' me granpappy, Ol' Blue. I'm Shinah. Ah, but I remember you. You' the gal that beat the King. Granpappy always did feel a bit out o' sorts sending ya the wrong way like 'e did. But 'e knew if ya was the gal from the prophecy, ya'd find the way. An' ya did, din't ya?"

Sarah stared at him blankly. "Wait…what? So, you're not the same worm from when I was here last? How do you know who I am? And what prophecy are you talking about?"

The worm actually blushed. "Ah, Gol! There I go again! Openin' me big mouth where it don' belong. Though, I s'pose since ya the one from the prophecy, it won't hurt to tell ya 'bout it. Come inside. Have a nice cup o' tea. We'll talk."

.

.

.

.

A/N – So, I decided to end here since next chapter is full of information and excitement. I will be honest and say, I was not pleased with this chapter which is part of the reason this took so long to put up (That and not 1, not 2, but THREE vacations in September…yep. Three. All car trips. All with four small children in the back seat and a grumpy husband in the front… but I digress…). I kept hoping if I sat on this for a while I might change it, but nothing jumped out at me to change and I really just wanted to get on with the story so…here you go. I promise a lot more J/S interaction and some action sequences soon!

And, as always, thank you so much for your reviews! They really keep me motivated. And, I hope you noticed that I put in a few challenges in this chapter…specifically I answered startraveller776 and LadyCavalier…don't worry, 2SWEETCherry…your's is coming up soon :-D.

Thanks for reading!