Disclaimer: If owned the Labyrinth, I would not be sitting around here and writing. Letmetellya.

Yes, Jareth is an idiot. BUT I DECIDED TO GIVE YOU THIS (ALBEIT SHORT) UPDATE EARLY TO MAKE UP FOR IT.

A loud banging woke her up, and her stomach clenched so hard, she wondered if that was the real secret to six-pack abs. Sitting half-way up on the bed, she rubbed her eyes, feeling exhausted and disconcerted. How had she even gotten back to room?

The door swung open, and a gaggle of goblins spilled into the room. "King want you!"

"Yeah!"

"West Wing!"

"He said so!"

"Meet you there!"

"We tell you!"

They hopped on her a few times until she actually got off the bed. Then they scurried off as quickly as they appeared. Not even waiting to escort her or anything. Jareth probably didn't want an audience, not that she blamed him. And she wasn't scared.

Not really. But...the West Wing, huh?

This was gonna suck.

He stood with his back facing her, waiting for her at the hall entrance. Tense, alert. The cold aloofness he projected yesterday was slipping, and she was surprised by how much that concerned her. Isn't this what she wanted? No more games. Just honesty.

But this scared her. He heard her behind him but didn't turn around. Instead, he led her to the empty bedroom. Opening the door, he finally turned to face her. Motioned impatiently for her to come in. Forgive her for not reading his mind.

"Jareth, what's going on?"

He tilted his head. Those ethereal eyes swirled with hurt and his already pallid face had paled significantly. "You are going to hate me." His voice remained as controlled as always.

And suddenly the room wasn't empty anymore, and a baby's cry captured Sarah's attention. As if in a trance, she walked toward the crib and peeked over the side at her baby step-brother. She leaned over and lifted him carefully from his prison, holding him against her shoulder and patting him gently on the back. His sobs turned into his sniffles, and he soon quieted altogether.

"I've missed you, you little brat," She whispered into his ear before settling him back on the mattress. Twisting back around, Sarah opened her mouth but shut it again. Her breath came in short gasps, and no book had prepared her for this.

He remained standing near the door. Wanting to escape? His voice cut through her shock. "I didn't have a choice, Sarah."

"I know," His brow wrinkled slightly at her confession. "I mean, I guessed. I didn't just research the Queen of the Labyrinth."

"I'm going to bog that stupid dwarf," The Goblin King's color slowly returned, and annoyance infused his tone. "He never should have shown you those stupid books."

Sarah shook her head. "Jareth, you lied to me, and Ronald Ruel had every right to set me straight."

"But you just said you already knew. Why are you so upset?"

"I knew you had to keep the baby, and I knew you had to get so many that you turn them into goblins," She looked directly into his eyes. "But I had hoped it meant you found a loophole. Instead...you were just going to hide him and let me stay here forever. Thinking that I had saved him."

She had felt so calm and in control up 'til now. But if he wasn't even going to apologize-

"I was wrong. I'm the villain here, remember?"

Close enough, she supposed. "Don't be melodramatic."

"I tried to send him back, but I couldn't," His voice remained carefully neutral, but she knew what he was doing. He was justifying. As overjoyed as she was about his feeling guilty about his part in this, she knew what she had to do. And how much it would hurt him.

"Jareth, I'm leaving. Our deal is void since you didn't fulfill your part of the bargain," She turned to leave.

He stood in front of her. Magically. "And I didn't turn him into a goblin."

"Promise me you won't," She crossed her arms. "I'll also be taking quite a few books from the library. There must be some way to return Toby, and I will find it."

Jareth crossed his own arms. "Why?"

"Because I made a mistake, and I have to fix it!"

"No, no, no," The Goblin King replied testily. "Why should I promise?"

She rose on tiptoe and kissed him on the cheek. "Because you made a mistake, and you have to fix it."

Then, Sarah walked past him. Stopping only to say "Take care of Toby for me" before vanishing into thin air.

He clenched his jaw. Looked back at the boy. Relaxed. "I promise."