*I do not own Labyrinth*

**I apologise for the delay, I only hope you will forgive me. But at long last a new chapter. Enjoy**

Chapter Six

Interlude

Across the small camp Jareth sat propped against a tree, eyes closed. Sarah doubted he slept, and yet he did seem relaxed, more than she was considering the day. It was kind of impressive. He leaned into the tree, head tilted back against the trunk he blended into the night despite the pale color of his hair. The shadows seemed to move around him the longer she stared, though Sarah wasn't sure if they actually moved or if it was her exhausted mind tricking her eyes.

She was tired. More than tired, in fact Sarah was sure she had crossed a line somewhere, probably several hours ago and had now reached that crazy edge of tired where you literally can't sleep. Worse still her mind insisted on reliving the events of the last twenty four hours and it was awful. The fire cracked and sparked, sending bits of ember and smoke up to the star studded sky. Sarah watched it rise and tried not to think about anything at all. She tried to forget that she was in the woods with a King from another land. Tried not to think about impending death that still haunted her. She hugged the sleeping bag around her like it might ward off the nightmares. Her muscles ached, though not as wounded as he, she was still hurt. Her side was bruised where the thing slammed into her, her side and palms scratched from her slide across the gravel. Looking down at her hands she examined the small abrasions, distracting herself from thinking about the creature who caused them.

"You should be sleeping," Jareth mumbled.

Sarah jumped at his sudden words and looked back up at him. He had not moved, his eyes still closed. In her sleep deprived state she wondered if she imagined him speaking so she said nothing and poked at the fire with a stick.

"If you do not sleep," he began, this time she knew she wasn't hearing things. He was looking at her now from across their small camp. "You will be unable to keep up tomorrow. Your presence is already a hindrance, do not make it worse."

Sarah blinked and then glared as the words sank in. "Oh, well excuse me," She complained, "I didn't want to burden your high and mightiness! But seeing as you kidnapped me, rearranged time so I couldn't get adequate sleep, then you drag me along to the middle of nowhere and then would not let me leave, this is all your fault and frankly I think you could be a bit more understanding!"

He laughed again!

"Look you, you.." Sarah fumbled.

"Your majesty." He offered as she sputtered, and then smiled all the more when her mouth snapped shut in annoyance. "Your Grace is also acceptable." He added shifting his position, "It is far to late for getting into arguments and we must start early so again I will say that you should be asleep."

"Well I can't just sleep." She complained pulling her sleeping bag closer.

"Not sleepy?" He asked

"No, I'm beyond tired but my mind wont shut up." Sarah ran a hand over her face and rubbed at one eye. "Most likely trauma from the last twelve hours." She mumbled.

Jareth's smile disappeared as he slowly stood. Sarah watched him cross their camp and pull open his bag. His face pinched in pain his hand pressing against the wound on his side.

Truth be told most nights were like this. Insomnia was a near constant in her life now. It all started when she got back from the labyrinth. She seemed to be made for the night after that, staying up late and well into the earliest hours of the morning with no problem. Summer was glorious, when she had no reason to wake early and could sleep in. School put a damper on things though, early classes were the worst. She even resorted to sleep aids. None of which she had with her. If she had known that she would be staying with him she might have put some in her bag.

"I just need extra time to fall asleep." She mumbled.

"A common issue then?" He asked.

Sarah didn't respond, too wrapped up in her own self pity she instead focused on the flames and the wild chaos of her mind. Its all his fault no matter how I look at it... She thought, ignoring him as he took out a kettle, the sound of water pouring into the hollow metal container reached her ears.

Just beyond her sight he moved about, "Somehow I'm not surprised." he mumbled.

"By what?" She wondered despite herself.

"That you favor the night."

Sarah huffed. "I can't fall asleep easily, thats not the same as favoring the night."

"Oh?" He said.

"Yes. Normal people sleep when the sun sets."

Jareth laughed, "And you consider yourself normal?"

Sarah glared over her shoulder. He had his back to her doing something with the kettle. "Most people aspire to normality." she sniffed indignant.

Again he chuckled, "What an useless thing to do." He said coming back to the fire he set the kettle among the hot embers.

Sarah watched him as he settled down near her and tended the fire, slowly turning the kettle every so often.

"I suppose you favor the night?" She asked, "you are far from normal after all."

Jareth looked up at the sky, "I am not human." He said, then turned those ice blue eyes at her, "Different times of the celestial cycle resonate with different magic, no matter what world you are on." He paused, turning the kettle again. "I do favor the night, I always have it has to do with what I am." He paused, taking the lid from the kettle and looked inside.

Despite herself Sarah listened intently, his voice was soft and quiet and she found it soothing. But mostly he was distracting her mind from thinking about the unpleasant events of the day.

"Your world has a single moon." He began again as he took the kettle from the fire, "The heavens above my world have many, and the stars that cross my sky differ from yours but still they march unending. An eternal dance." He stood and again moved to their packs. "To be stuck, unable to sleep when you don't even like the night must be a trial." He admitted.

Sarah looked up at the stars. "I do like the night," She admitted, "Its peaceful at night, not many people argue and fight at night." Jareth didn't respond but Sarah felt the need to elaborate. "I was never afraid of the dark like most kids are. When I was young I would climb out my window and sit of the roof watching the night sky silently pass over me." Sarah sighed deeply remembering those lost days of innocence before her parents divorce and the following remarriages. "After my parents split I spent more and more time trying to escape reality, night time was the easiest." She admitted closing her eyes she let the darkness wrap around her.

She could hear Jareth moving around the camp, and then he was standing in front of her she could tell, his body was blocking the heat of the fire. She chose to ignore him, assuming that he would move on but he didn't.

"Here," he said, Sarah opened her eyes. A cup hovered before her, held in his hands, "Drink." Jareth demanded.

Sarah glared at the cup, "What is it?" She wondered not reaching to take it, refusing to trust anything he said or did at face value.

"Tea," He informed her, rolling his eyes. "It will help you sleep."

She snorted at that. Doubting very much that it would. Still it was cold and a warm drink was always nice. Taking the warm cup she sniffed the contents. Mint drifted up at her, curling around her senses like a warm blanket. Sarah almost smiled, something about mint tea on a cold night was very soothing. She sipped at the liquid, it wasn't too hot either.

Jareth sat back dawn, closer to her this time, his own cup in hand he watched the fire. "There is something about fire that both fascinates and frightens humans, why is that?'

Sarah pursed her lips, pondering the question. "A bit random." She mused sipping again at the tea.

He shrugged, sipping at his own. "Humans have evolved beyond the need for open flame to warm you. Yet still you maintain fireplaces in your homes, even going so far as to invent ways to have decorative fireplaces. I find it curious."

Sarah shrugged, drinking the last of tea, "We enjoy watching it?" she guessed. "I mean, I do anyway." Leaning back against the log behind her she watched the flames dance. "It moves like its alive sometimes, there are so many shades of red dancing and moving. Its always changing..." Her voice drifted, and she leaned down more, reclining almost to laying down. "Like life," She said, her mind felt slow and yet oddly clear. A fire was like a life, created fed, nourished and then left to burn out. "We start out so full of life with a fire in us." She mumbled. The idea was strong in her mind but the rest of her seemed to only want to shut down. Sarah looked down at her cup a little confused, she didn't remember packing tea.

"You burn so bright," He said quietly, staring at the fire.

Sarah looked up at him, her head heavy with sleepiness. Like a wave it washed over her pulling her into that deep oblivion of sleep.

"You burn down to the dim glow of embers, a former glory of what once was," He sounded almost sad. Sarah wanted to reply, to say something in defense of the human race but she was so tired.

Jareth reached for her, but he only took her cup from her weak grasp. "You end in ash," She heard him say as her heavy lids shut out the fire and the night. In the darkness behind her eyes only his voice drifted. "Dust to drift away and leave nothing behind. The tragedy of your race."

**End**

***A small reprieve before the journey begins. Stay tuned and please review.***