Sarah blindly fingered for the lamp on her desk. She didn't dare take her eyes off the shape in the dark. Afraid that, if she would even blink, it would be gone.

As her finger found the familiar switch, she flicked the light on. For a second, she was blinded by the light. As her eyes focused, she gave herself a second to calm down. A second to take things in.

He was here. He was real.

He was… different.

He was still very tall, seemingly a little over six feet. The clothing he was wearing was lavish, other worldly. With high boots and a tan leather jacket, textured with fine detail. He still sported the deep cut poet shirt, with loose pants tucked in his boots. The strange pendant hung from his neck, slightly twinkling in the light of the desk lamp.

His face was exactly as she'd remembered. Angular, sharp, with rather stern features. Yet somehow smooth.

Mostly his hair was different. Whereas she vividly remembered the big hairdo, cascading down over his shoulders, this was… well, different. It was tied back with a few braids, its length gently reaching his shoulders. His ears were pointed and a little longer than a normal person's ears.

It reminded her of elven depictions she'd seen.

"I… I…" She blurted out.

One of his hands moved up. She didn't miss the leather gloves. He held his forefinger in front of his pursed lips, shushing her quietly.

Gulping, Sarah didn't know what to do next. Her mouth was dry, her heart was racing, and her fingers were trembling. She'd never actually truly expected the bird to be more than just that. A bird. But she had always hoped.

Feeling a little stupid, she studied his face for any sign of what was to come. His face was schooled, blank. He seemed to be waiting for her to make a move.

"W-wh…" Sarah swallowed again. "What happens now?" Her hand moved to fumble with her shirt uncomfortably.

He shifted, causing her to stiffen a little. He moved towards her. Despite his heeled boots, he didn't make a sound. Not even the creaking of his leather jacket or the rustling of fabric. It was almost as if someone had turned down all volume.

All she could hear was her heart racing still.

He stopped almost right in front of her and her eyes frantically looked anywhere but up at him.

"You tell me." His voice was deep, soft. A quiet whisper. Seemingly so as to not awaken any other residents in the house.

Willing herself to look at him, her nervous gaze slowly crawled up to him. As soon as their eyes met, she felt a pang of familiarity. Those haunting dark eyes. She didn't think she could ever forget those, even if she tried. Looking into those eyes she tried to find her next words.

None would come.

He relented, stepping back and perching on her desk chair. While normally that chair would creak if you even looked at it, he managed to swoop down without as much as a breath from the weathered seat. He patiently waited, leaning his elbow on her desk and resting his chin on his hand. Ever so slowly, he studied her, then moved to gaze around the room.

It was all so unreal. Just seeing him lounge in her room made everything feel like a dream.

"Why are you here?" Even to her own ears, her voice sounded meek, wavering.

His dark eyes flicked back towards her and he leaned back, again completely silent. "Well," his voice drawled. "You insisted that I would face you, as the man I am." A strange smile appeared on his lips. "I am omitting some of that demand, for obvious reasons."

Sarah couldn't tell if he was amused or angry. A fierce blush set her cheeks aflame and she looked down at the floor. "I'm… I'm very sorry for that. It just all became a little… too much, I guess."

"I will condone it this time. I've had far worse verbal abuse." He tilted his head at her, much like she had seen the owl do. "So, what happens now?"

She looked up at him, a curious little glint was in his eyes. As if he was excited for it. "I am actually not sure…" She stepped back and sat on her bed, happy to put a little more space in between them. Idly, she picked up a few papers that slipped from her bag.

Anything to keep her still shaking hands busy.

"Is this a dream?" She looked up at him just in time to see him roll his eyes.

"This would make for a rather dull dream. No, it's not a dream," he assured.

Sarah looked outside her window. "So… just to know for sure. That owl… was that you?"

"Would it matter?"

Sarah looked back at him again. His face was difficult to read. "Yes," she said quietly, fumbling distractedly with her hands. "To me, it matters. Simply for sanity sake, it would be nice to know that I didn't just look forward to a random bird sitting in a tree every day. Besides, in the past few years, I have often wondered if that time in the Labyrinth ever even…"

"It was me."

It was a simple statement. Given in such a tone that didn't really invite her to ask more questions.

Despite many questions being raised due to his affirmation, one stood out. "Were you ever planning on approaching me?"

Jareth stared at her for a long time, his fingertips idly tracing invisible patterns on his cheek. It seemed like hours passed when he finally responded. "Yes and no." After he said that, he rose to his feet.

"Yes and no?" Sarah repeated questioningly. "What am I supposed to make of that?"

He walked to the window and turned his head slightly. "You have a vivid imagination, I'm sure you can think of something."

A weird shift in the air alerted Sarah. Somehow she knew that he was leaving. "Wait!" She whispered. "Please."

He froze and a strange sensation, much like holding your breath, a weird feeling of anticipation, hung in the air. He turned to her with one arched brow.

"Will I see you again?" Looking into his eyes she saw a strange glimmer, despite the lack of light.

"Is that what you desire?"

"Yes…" came her hesitant reply.

"Then yes." As he turned back to the window the sense of halted time lifted back to the strange sensation she had felt before. "In three days time." He opened the window and a bright light engulfed the room.

Sarah blinked against the light and a moment later he had gone, as if he'd never been there. She leaned forward to gaze out of the window, seeing a pale shape disappear into the night.