Screams of horror erupted and flailing of hands in feeble attempts to brush the swarm of insects. Everyone was surrounded by them.
Everyone, that is, except Jareth, who watched the scene unfold before him, seemingly unmoved.
Linda cautiously took a step back, a knowing terror in her eyes.
"I thought your kind was a myth."
Jareth took a step forward, his lips stretched along his uncanny smile, saying nothing.
"My g-grandmother spoke of you," she stuttered, hyperventilating. "The Tuatha Dé Danann of the Otherworld. I thought she was just making stuff up."
"My, my," Jareth drawled, quirking an eyebrow in mocking interest. "For the first time tonight, you've displayed some intelligence."
Linda continued to tread backwards, yelping when a cockroach skirted by her feet.
"Allow me to properly introduce myself to you, Linda."
His appearance flickered, allowing her to see through his human guise to the terrifying upswept eyebrows and magic, then flickered back to his disguise.
Linda shuddered, nearly tripping as she tried to not back up into a wall.
"I am known by many names and titles. One of those is Jareth, King of Goblins, Lord of the Labyrinth, and Giver of Dreams."
"No!" Her eyes widened at the recognition of the title.
He delighted in the fear behind the knowledge in her eyes.
"Yes!" he sneered. "You have made an enemy of the fae, for you are an enemy of Sarah Williams, who is under my protection."
"S-Sarah? Stay away from my daughter!"
He scoffed.
"Come now, you're playing the loving, protective mother? Where were you when she needed your love? Where are you now? You are here, attempting to convince me to dance with one of your conniving competitions. All to hurt the one person you should love most instead of spending meaningful time with her."
"You-you steal babies!"
"A pathetically weak argument. Curious, how did such a beautiful, intelligent woman come from a soulless person such as yourself?"
She bumped into a chair, yelping as she knocked it over.
"Your daughter is the only person to have ever bested my Labyrinth and has been granted the title of Champion, evidenced by the necklace that I gifted her as is my right as king. It is not costume jewelry that can be replicated by just anyone. Her victory is a feat you can only dream of achieving. You wouldn't even get past the corridor."
He barred his teeth in a menacing smile. "Linda, You speak of etiquette and class, as if Sarah needs any guidance from you. I'll have you know that she is closely acquainted with the most well-known faerie, including my own grandparents, the High King and Queen. She possesses wits and courage and showed compassion for all she encountered, something you'll never have and are incapable of."
She ran from him, trying to tell people who he was. They only reacted with derision, calling her insane when the cockroaches were the actual real problem before them.
Jareth snapped his fingers, revealing two destructive goblins: Iglepus and Oatie.
"Enjoy all the snacks you want and bring your friends along. But do not touch any person or cause them harm. Do not let the people see you, only her."
He pointed at Linda.
They drooled at the sight of the food, which Jareth conveniently made the roaches avoid.
"We will, Kingy!"
"One more thing," he made them pause. "See that young girl there?"
He pointed at Abby, Linda's intern, screaming at the roaches
"Do get her notebook away from her hands. There is a drawing of a necklace I'd like to take from her."
"You got it!" Iglepus saluted.
Jareth laughed maniacally, thoroughly enjoying Linda's screams and attempts to tell people his true identity.
The goblins causing messes right in front of her, but hiding from others, only convinced people of her madness.
She was her own downfall.
He disappeared into the crowd, leaving Linda to confront her worst fears while he approached the woman of his heart.
Sarah couldn't stop crying.
Look at her now. Sarah, the Champion of the Labyrinth, who bested the Goblin King at age sixteen, was crying alone in an abandoned room.
She screamed her heart out, drowning out all the sounds that were coming from outside the door, filling the room of silence with her own pain.
These moments were the worst.
All she could fathom was a darkness inside of her that she had battled her entire life.
The darkness threatened to consume her, leading down unspeakable paths of self destruction.
Memories of pity and abandonment stretched far and wide in her psyche, tearing her to pieces.
Was she truly worth loving if others just looked for her out of obligation and not from true affection?
Fortunately, she pushed most of them at bay, usually not letting them manifest in horrible ways.
Deep inside, she knew somewhere that those thoughts weren't rational or true, but she couldn't help thinking of them.
It was always the hardest late at night when she was alone and without another soul in her home to love her, and the insomnia fed her dangerous thoughts.
Her heart hurt.
She wanted to tear it out of her chest and destroy it, so that no one would hurt it again.
She couldn't take the despair and fear that loomed over her.
She still remembered, as a young child up until her teen years, packing her bags and waiting for her mother.
She would get so excited; she would sit outside the front door for hours, just waiting for Linda to retrieve her as promised.
She had so many ideas in her head of what their time together would be like.
Perhaps they would go hiking or trying delicious food.
Maybe they would just spend nights in, cozying up.
After all, before the divorce, Linda would cuddle with Sarah and sing her songs.
Her mother hardly ever came on the day they planned, let alone the planned time, blaming it on her sporadic schedule.
Many times, she forgot about Sarah entirely.
And still, Sarah waited every single time. She refused to go inside even after dark, to the frustration and heartbreak of her father.
The lost and lonely, Jareth had sang once, in one of his many songs. He described himself as such, but Sarah couldn't help but relate to it herself.
"Sarah?"
She knew his voice. She could pick it out from a crowd of people if it came to it.
She simultaneously wanted to push him away and pull him close.
She didn't want him to see her tears yet wanted him to wipe them away.
Her mind fought itself, neither side winning.
She couldn't choose.
She didn't have to.
A light source, at first dimmed and distant, grew ever brighter and closer. The source came into view, revealing its identity.
A glowing crystal.
Jareth found her, curled up behind a couch. He held a crystal in his hand, the only light source in the room.
He sighed in relief when he found Sarah. She laid on the floor, curling in a fetal position. Whether she was shivering from tears or the cold, he couldn't tell.
He let go of the crystal, letting it float in the air, following him as he knelt down in front of her. He slid his jacket off his shoulders, covering her with it.
"Sarah?" he gently nudged her. "You'll freeze to death on this cold floor."
She didn't make any sounds or movements that indicated that she even heard him.
He gently held her in his arms, carrying her to the couch.
"You're freezing."
Again, no response.
He sat her beside him, placing an arm around her shoulders to warm her up. If he had his way, he'd hold her in his arms until she could feel the love he had for her.
Until then, he would keep his distance.
Prior to going inside, he soundproofed them from the screams of terror of the roaches and made the door invisible, so they could be alone.
His lady needed him, and Jareth would make sure that he would do all he could to give her the support she needed without distractions.
Something unlocked in Sarah when he picked her up.
It was this feeling of being cared for in a way she hadn't had in so long, and her inner desire to be held by Jareth.
She delicately leaned on his shoulder, drawing her legs up onto the couch.
He smelled so nice and immediately lessened the darkness that was brewing inside of her.
He was always like that, even when they first met.
Despite him being a broody king, Jareth pushed her darkest thoughts away just by being in the same vicinity.
He made her believe in herself again and gave her a chance to redeem her selfish wish in sending Toby away.
And now, as friends, he reminded her that there was someone in the world who thought of her when she wasn't there.
When she was sad and alone at night, with no one to hold her, the thought of Jareth would lessen the pain.
Why couldn't her mother be the same way?
"Why is she like this?" her tone, tired and defeated, did not hold the same anger that she had felt earlier but infinitely more sorrow.
He adjusted the arm on her shoulder, holding the side of her head. "She's jealous."
Sarah grunted. "That's just what people say when they're trying to cheer someone up."
He laid his head on top of hers, his expression darkening. "I'm serious."
Sarah shook her head. "There's nothing to be jealous of."
"Your mother sees you as competition. You are intelligent, kind, and more beautiful than she could ever be, and that's of her own doing."
"Come again?"
"I mean that you exceed her in those qualities only because she won't improve herself. Your worst offense to her is your age. She allowed herself to be swept up and away by people who don't care about her. She thinks that your shine dims hers, when in reality, she doesn't realize that her own cycle of stupidity is what's preventing her from being better. One day, she will die a lonely, bitter woman, whereas you will continue to shine. Her tragedy is having the power to change but won't."
Sarah shook her head again.
He was wrong. Besides, even if it was true, it would make her look arrogant to agree.
He stared at her with hard eyes, daring her to challenge his words of praise.
She looked away, trying to shake away the feelings she had for Jareth.
The man she longed for, sitting right next to her, close enough to kiss. She could barely concentrate when she could feel the warmth of his body next to hers.
She stood with intent to move to another spot. Jareth immediately followed suit.
"Please, Jareth," she whispered hoarsely, her throat dry. "I want to be alone."
Those words slipped from her mouth automatically.
She didn't want to be alone, not really. He was the balm to her unhealed wounds.
She was only afraid that if she kept staying with him, she would fall harder and the inevitable separation would break her heart even more than it was now.
"And do what?"
He walked over, standing directly in front of her.
"Cry over a woman who isn't worth your tears? Who isn't worth your love? She's not even worth kissing the soles of your feet."
"She's my mother," she said feebly.
It was the only reason she could conjure up.
He gently reached over, holding her face, wiping tears away with his thumbs.
"That makes it worse. She should be there for you, not tearing you down. A mother should be their child's biggest supporter. When they choose to have children, that child should be their most important priority."
She didn't argue with him about that.
"I shouldn't have come here tonight. All it did was make me miserable and drag you down with me. You were right."
He smirked, bringing some lightheartedness to the situation.
"I usually am."
Sarah pouted playfully.
"Shut up."
"I mean it. I don't blame you, I understand why you came to see her. And, for the record," he tilted her chin up to meet his eyes, "I would attend this so-called 'party' all over again with you."
Sarah could hardly breathe, let alone speak.
The kindness and sincerity of his eyes were so much more mesmerizing than anything else she had ever seen.
"Why?" she whispered, wanting him to confirm that perhaps, she wasn't imagining his inner desires.
Jareth couldn't take it anymore. He had to tell her how he felt, even if it meant being rejected once more.
"Surely you know why, Sarah. Ever since you came back to my life, I have found meaning in it once more. You've reminded me of how large and beautiful the world is. There is no one I'd rather experience it with more than you. You must know how much you mean to me."
She paused in her tracks.
Images of a possible future splashed across her mind. Images, including them cuddling on the couch, disciplining goblins, dancing by firelight, stealing kisses when they thought no one was looking, falling asleep in each other's arms, and so much more.
These were images of a future she hadn't allowed herself to imagine.
That is, until now.
For the first time since she was a child, Sarah no longer felt the need to cage her heart, keeping it isolated for fear of it being torn apart after offering it.
She pressed the heels of her hands to her aching eyes. How foolish she had been to waste tears in a vain search of a woman who didn't care rather than fully love the man who did.
"You're right, Jareth. All this time, I've been thinking about my stupid, hateful mother when I should've been thinking of the people who care about me. I've been such an idiot. I'm so sorry."
She turned back to face him, but was too shy to look into his eyes.
"I love you, Jareth. I always have, I was just afraid to admit it. You're so good to me, and I don't want you to think that I don't see your efforts or that I don't appreciate them. I promise I do. I'm not asking you to love me back or anything like that I just-"
The rest of the sentence would be forever unsaid, dissipated by Jareth's kiss.
One arm encircled her waist, the other cupped her cheek. He swallowed her words that were marred by sadness and replaced them with his kiss, a present wrapped by the purest form of love that could ever exist.
There had been many lonely evenings where Sarah had watched a sweet rom-com, wondering what those kisses felt like.
She had been in many relationships in the past, but the kisses didn't feel comforting or exciting in ways she had imagined.
When she reunited with Jareth, she kept her wish to kiss him deep in her heart. The hidden wish was so strong that it manifested in her dreams, blossoming into a fantasy.
Sarah melted into his embrace, soaking in the magic of their first kiss together. She raised her arms to hold around his neck.
It was everything she dreamed of and more.
"Jareth…" she breathed his name as if it was the air itself.
"What is it, my love?"
He played with her hair, his heart overjoyed. He made sure she was looking right into his eyes.
"I will give you everything I am able to give, for I know your heart is good. I would not love you if it weren't."
There was no promise more serious than this. Only the fools or the wise would ever utter such large promises, for they must keep their word.
And Jareth was no fool.
He wiped her smudged mascara with a handkerchief, smiling when it all disappeared.
"You," was her answer, her brilliant green eyes filled with tears and her lip trembling. "I just want to be with you."
She leaned forward, laying her head on his chest.
"And to get out of this garbage place. As far as I can."
He smiled, placing a kiss on her forehead.
"My castle it is."
In an instant, they were there, within the castle walls. The warmth of the candle-lit hallway with generations of history etched into it was far more "cultured" and "rich" than her mother could ever hope to be.
"We're home, Love," Jareth announced.
Sarah grinned. What a perfect word to describe the castle.
"Yes, we are."
Pounding footsteps and giggles filled the hallway. The couple went to investigate, seeing the hoard of castle servants gleefully bounding away.
Sarah made a noise of curiosity, amused by the shared excitement.
Samuel, Jareth's secretary, was the only one to notice them.
"Oh! Good evening, Your Majesty. My Lady."
He hastily bowed to them both.
His eyes flickered to the king's jacket on Lady Sarah's shoulders and her lipstick-smeared lips.
Looking back at the king, he noticed the same shade of pink was stained on the king's lip and his arm around Lady Sarah, lovingly.
He recognized the design on her necklace, the laurel wreath. He knew that King Jareth designed it himself, having seen the sketches in his study and often wondered what the king was drawing it for.
It didn't take a genius to figure out what them being here tonight meant.
Samuel cleared his throat, doing his best to hide his giddiness.
"May I be of assistance in any way?"
"Just to inform me as to why you lot are all running, gleefully," Jareth replied, amused.
"Tonight, the moon will be spectacularly large and stars will fall! It will be a magnificent sight. I'm astonished that you weren't aware, with your avid interest in astronomy and all," he chuckled. "Won't you join us?"
"Not tonight, but thank you."
"The king and I have some plans together," Sarah added.
Samuel no longer contained his smile. He bowed.
"Then I shall be on my way. Enjoy your evening."
"We will, thank you," Sarah replied.
Jareth raised a roguish eyebrow to Sarah once Samuel bounded away. "What plans are you referring to?"
Sarah interlocked her fingers in his. "Plans for us to be together, right? Just the two of us?"
"Nothing more specific?" He took their interlocked hands, kissing her knuckles.
He progressed to her fingers, starting with her thumb. He slid his lips over to the next finger, staring at her with dark, possessive eyes.
Sarah's breath caught in her throat, the pleasant sensations making her scalp tingle.
It wasn't until he reached her pinky that she realized their surroundings had shifted from the hallway to the gorgeous, open garden terrace.
The terrace was lined with plants that were of all shapes and sizes.
Some were glowing and some a color that didn't have a name. Above the plants was an invisible dome, keeping them warm in the cold winter but was often removed in the summer.
The stars dotted the night sky, revealing a bright strip of the galaxy, even with the moon glowing large and majestic.
Sarah tugged on his hand.
"Jareth, look! The view of the moon is better from this angle."
Jareth marveled at her sparkling eyes and delight. More than that, she wanted to share her excitement with him.
To Sarah, he was not an afterthought. He was not someone who was just "there." He was important to her, and she wanted him to know.
Best of all, she saw him for who he really was and didn't shirk from him.
Finally, he understood what the poets of old meant when they said nothing was better than to love and be loved in return.
"I think I can see everyone down there," she pointed excitedly.
She made a face. "Weird, I don't see any goblins. They would love this kind of thing."
Jareth was behind her, looking a little sheepish.
Sarah eyes him warily.
"Uh oh, what did you do?"
At least her tone was playful and not angry.
"Well… your mother… I gave instructions so no one would be harmed, I vow to you this. Although, if they hurt themselves in the chaos, that is something I cannot control. Let's just say the goblins are-"
"Nope." Sarah held both her hands up. "I don't want to know anything about that tonight. You said that no one is hurt, and I trust you. I don't want to give her any more thought tonight. Not after she broke my heart."
Jareth took her hands, massaging them between his fingers and giving them a kiss.
"I understand."
"Besides," her tone softened at his kiss. "I want to spend the rest of the night just being with you. That means not just physically here, but emotionally present too."
He bowed deeply, slowly lifting his face, so his eyes could meet hers. His arm extended outward.
"Won't you dance with me, Sarah?"
Sarah gently placed her hand in his, letting him guide her to the center. His adoring eyes never left hers as it slid around her waist, pulling her close to him.
They waltzed around the terrace, her dress swishing by their feet in a swirl, adding to the elegance of her movements.
Jareth discreetly waved a hand behind him, making the glowing plants light up a little brighter.
He expertly dipped Sarah down, making her laugh when he lifted her up by the waist and spun her around.
Jareth pulled Sarah close to him once more, making sure that she was looking into his eyes the entire time, so that she may see the sincerity of his heart.
"Sarah, you are the balm to my soul. You speak highly of me tonight, but the truth is, it's also you who has been good to me. My heart is ever larger and more compassionate because of you. I hope to always make you happy. You deserve love, and I want to always be the one to give it to you."
Sarah's eyes filled with happy tears, touched at his raw and kind words.
"Jareth, I'll never take you for granted again. I feel ready to take the world with you by my side. I love you."
"And I love you, my precious Sarah. Merry Christmas."
"Merry Christmas indeed."
They fervently kissed with the utmost reverence, keeping that special moment in their hearts forever more.
Down far below them, the castle staff and goblins oohed and ahhed at the falling stars, both unnoticed by the couple, who could only focus on each other.
Why would they, when their most treasured wish already came true?
Thank you everyone, for reading! This is basically the end of the fic although there is one more chapter as a sort of epilogue. I'll post it here on FFN tomorrow since I have a trip coming. Have a wonderful holiday season!