Sarah felt like she was floating on air. She must be asleep again, but instead of dreams, she was filled with self-recrimination. When she should have been thankful that Jareth was miraculously alive, she had treated him terribly! What on earth had possessed her to say such a terrible thing to him? He obviously had taken it the wrong way. He would never forgive her.

Why would I kiss you?

Her immediate assumption had been that he was taking advantage of her unconscious state. It had happened in the past with other man, or had come close to happening. She had grown to hate being kissed and even looked at. Waking up in a passionate lip lock had been disconcerting, at best. Realizing that she was kissing and being kissed by Jareth and that her entire body was aflame had been… disorienting, dizzying, frightening and confusing! She had forgotten what was going on, and that he wasn’t supposed to be there in the first place.

She had seen him die, had felt for a heartbeat and not found one! So was she going crazy? Or was she dreaming of him? It was as if she were in a dense fog. She had no idea what was real and what was the product of her confused mind.

What she had meant by her words was that she would never knowingly kiss a handsome, desirable, powerful king! It had come out all wrong, though, and he had taken it as an insult, which was confusing in itself.

He should have been asking the things she was asking herself now. What right did she have? Who was she? Just plain pathetic Sarah, who until recently was a slave who didn’t remember her name or past. What a ridiculous notion that she would have the gall to kiss him! She – a common nothing of a girl!

Why would he kiss me? was the question that weighed upon her mind. He had said that he kissed her. That made even less sense than her kissing him! Her mind was spinning.

Maybe if she concentrated, this strange feeling of being weightless would dissipate. It was bizarre, almost as if there was a current flowing through her. A current of what, though? She had no idea. All she wanted was to wake up so that she could find Jareth and attempt to apologize to him. Then she would find a hole to crawl into and hope it would cover her over.

Oh, it was so humiliating! He must have felt just how much she was enjoying that kiss… It had been full of love and lust and just completely everything she had. Her whole body grew warm just thinking about it. She had felt things she had absolutely no business feeling for him! Her cheeks were on fire as she wondered what must have been going through his mind.

What was she? Nothing. How ridiculous was she to kiss a king? What would he ever see in her? Nothing. She was certain he was regretting the arrangement he had made ten years ago, binding himself to her. Despite his words to the contrary, he had done what he had done when she was fifteen. The woman she was today had gone through too much in her life, had been reduced to… nothing. The word was foremost in her mind. She was nothing, no one. How many times had she heard it? Too many to count.

Nothing, tra la la?

So why did she feel as if a blanket of… love were enveloping her? Because that was how she felt. As if there were someone who loved and adored her, the way a man adores a woman. Surely this was a dream! She had experienced many dreams of being loved; those dreams had saved her life. But in reality? No.

Why couldn’t she be beautiful and worthy of love? Was it too much to ask? For some, it was too much to ask. She had no right to ask. She wished she did… She wished… Wishing was dangerous, but for the life of her she couldn’t remember why. What harm could it do?

Sarah thought of Jareth, of the hurt look on his face at her thoughtless words. Why would she kiss him, indeed! What a stupid, stupid thing to say! He was far too kind to realize the context in which she had said it. Truly, why would he kiss her was a better question! He was beautiful… ethereal. His mouth was so sexy that she nearly melted every time she watched him speaking. ‘I wish I wasn’t afraid to show Jareth how I feel about him,’ she thought purposefully.

Suddenly Sarah felt herself drop, as one does in a dream. Just as in a dream, she jolted awake, her heart pounding a mile a minute. Surprised, she looked around to see that she was still in Jareth’s bedroom. The sun was setting, or possibly rising; she wasn’t sure which way his room faced. At any rate, there was little light in the room.

“Sarah? Are you all right?” she heard Jareth’s voice ask cautiously. Jareth… there was something she was supposed to do about Jareth. Glancing over, her gaze focused on his lips as he was speaking, asking her again if she was all right. Oh, yes, that was it; she remembered now…

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Jareth sat at Sarah’s bedside, reading and trying to find a way to help her deal with the magic with which she was being infused. He had no idea when he gave her ‘certain powers’ all those years ago what it would eventually mean for her. Startled, he watched as she suddenly fell straight down, bouncing slightly upon his bed. He stood quickly, wondering what had happened to cause the sudden change.

He was thrown off guard when Sarah launched herself from the bed and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her slender body against his. She was hugging him so tightly that he had trouble breathing… or perhaps it was being in such close contact with her that was having that effect, he wasn’t sure.

“Sarah, I—”

“You’re alive,” she mumbled into his neck, her tears wetting his skin. His mouth watered with the desire to taste their salty sweetness. “Oh, you’re alive… What would I have done… Jareth…”

She pulled back slightly and he saw that her eyes were glazed over. He couldn’t help but wonder if she was in full possession of her faculties, but then she sighed and pressed her lips to his in the most searing kiss he had ever experienced. His mind went blank as her tongue slid past his lips and into his mouth. A moan vibrated against his mouth as she tangled her fingers in his hair almost painfully.

Jareth wrapped his arms around her and pulled her flush against the length of his body, dragging her off the bed. Instead of setting her feet on the floor, however, he felt her wrap her legs around him, bringing her into dizzyingly intimate contact with him. It was his turn to moan as she continued to assault him with kisses, making little noises in the back of her throat.

His hands had a mind of their own as they wandered from her back down to her rear and up again. He had no idea what had caused this new side of Sarah to emerge, but he wasn’t going to fight it while it lasted. Her heels dug into his buttocks as if she couldn’t get close enough to him to satisfy herself. He was finding it harder and harder to breath, his heart slamming against his ribcage as if it wanted to escape and join hers. He felt her beginning to rise away from him and clung tighter to her as she dragged her lips across his cheek and dropped her face down to the crook of his neck, where she kissed and licked his jaw and throat. Jareth felt sure that he was going to implode, or explode, and he didn’t give a damn if he did!

Sarah bit his earlobe and he nearly went through the roof. If they didn’t stop soon, things were going to happen that neither of them was ready for. Well, they were obviously ready in at least one way, he mused.

“Sarah,” he murmured, tilting his head back as she moved her head down to lick at his collarbone. The movement caused delicious friction, and he regretted having to stop her. “Sarah, love.”

“Love,” she repeated, her voice husky. “Yes, I do, Jareth. I love you.”

Stunned, he held on to her as she continued to drive him slowly out of his mind. “I… you do? I love you, too, Sarah.”

She stopped abruptly, holding perfectly still. Her body tensed as she stared at him, her eyes going wide. “Oh… shit,” she muttered, dropping her forehead against his chest. “What am I doing?”

“Well, I believe you were giving me a demonstration of—“ he began in a teasing tone, but he quickly realized that she was completely mortified.

Sarah was trembling against him as she quickly disentangled her legs from around his waist, blushing profusely as she realized just how much he had been affected by her attentions. “I’m so sorry,” she said contritely, her voice a mere whisper. Her head was ducked down and he was unable to see her face, but he knew that she was crying. “Oh, I’m so sorry. Please forgive me for… for… I don’t know what the hell came over me. I honestly think I’m out of my mind! I must be completely insane to have… Oh, what was I thinking?” Her voice rose in panic and mortification.

Jareth stared at her, taking in her dark watery eyes and kiss-swollen lips. Her hair tumbled around her shoulders and he thought she looked like a siren of the wild. “Sarah,” he said, his voice thick. “Please do not… do not apologize for what you just did and said, it would kill me.”

She was shaking her head, however, and didn’t appear to have heard him. “I have to… Oh, what was I thinking?” she asked again, hurrying toward the door. “Just… just pretend that I momentarily lost my mind, okay? Could you please do that? And forgot that I was here?” she pleaded, pulling the door open and stepping out into the hall. As he watched her leave he was unable to move, rooted to the floor, he heard her mutter, “Just who do you think you are, Sarah Williams?”

What an odd thing for her to say to herself. What did it mean? He was beginning to have an idea, though, and he didn’t like where her thought process apparently was taking her.

Finally he was galvanized into action and ran for the door. By the time he got out into the corridor, he was just in time to see Sarah disappearing into her own rooms, the door shutting firmly behind her. He stood there, debating whether or not to follow her and demand that they work things out, when Rista came around the corner.

He and Penelope had practically grown up with Rista, and at times she took liberties that few servants would dare. She stopped now, looking him up and down slowly, a knowing smirk on her piquant face. “Ye look like somethin’ the cat drug in, Yer Majesticalness,” she razzed him.

“Stuff it, Rista,” he growled, frustrated in more ways that he cared to think about.

She winked, completely unaffected by his mood. “Out with it, then. Who’ve ye been kissin’ on?” she asked. “Ye din’t give Miss Sarah mooch time, now, did ye?”

“For your information, you nosy git, she attacked me,” he replied, keeping his voice low.

Rista looked confused. “Well, then, why’re ye all bent outta shape? Seems that’d be right up yer alley!”

“She did not finish what she started,” he said in frustration, running a hand through his mussed hair.

She nodded. “I should knew it was somethin’ like that. Well, leave ‘er alone, then. Be gone with ye, and let Rista see to your girl-queen. I’ll get ta the bottom of what’s buggin’ ‘er, if I can.”

Jareth very nearly protested, but then thought better of it. Perhaps what Sarah needed was to talk with another female. “Fine. Let me know what she says.”

Curtseying in a dramatic fashion, Rista inclined her head. “Right, then. An’ any message ye want me to convey to ‘er, like you think she’s keen-like, or somethin’? Aye, it’s a long time since the schoolyard, Yer Fancypantsness,” she said smartly.

He made a mock-threatening move toward her. She squealed and ran toward Sarah’s rooms. Shaking his head, he grinned and went back into his own chambers, already replaying the last few minutes in his mind.

She said she loved him!

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Sarah was pacing frantically in her room, heedless of the fact that she was light-headed and her heart was pounding dangerously fast. Every once in a while, too, she felt almost as if she were lifting off the ground, but she grabbed onto whatever piece of furniture was handy, concentrating on her feet touching the ground, and the sensation would go away for a while.

She had wished to be able to show Jareth how she felt. That was what had started the whole fiasco! Well, she would have to curb wishing dramatically, as in cut it out of her vocabulary and thought! Clearly she had the power to grant her own wishes even when they weren’t spoken aloud. She had never had that ability before… Why did it seem to be getting stronger? There had to be a better explanation that it being cause by Jareth’s love for her. What an idea!

She kept up a running tirade at herself, feeling furious and stupid all at once. “What the hell was I thinking?” she muttered. “He is a king, I am a slave. Just get that through your thick skill right now, Sarah. Ugh! What must he be thinking? Why would he care if I’m in love with him? Damn him and his sexy mouth!”

Flinging herself down on the bed, she buried her face in a pillow, fighting back tears of frustration. She had kissed the Goblin King. No, she had attacked and tried to seduce the Goblin King. She, who was no more royal than Kermit the Frog. She, who had lived Aboveground most of her life and Underground as a slave for the last five years. She, who had never so much as had a boyfriend, had thrown herself at a very experienced man who thought of her as a silly little girl. Oh, but it was amazing, she thought. Being so close to him, having her hands on him… kissing him… their bodies practically one…

“Stop it!” she ordered herself. “You’re being ridiculous! He doesn’t want you and he never will. And even if he does, he just doesn’t realize what a nothing you are!”

“And so that’s why I found ‘im standin’ in the hallway lookin’ all hot under the collar and goofy-like,” Rista’s voice said, dripping with sarcasm. “Ye’d’ve thought ‘e won the world, that one.”

“What are you talking about?” Sarah mumbled, not bothering to glance up at her maid. Jareth had looked ‘hot under the collar’ and goofy?

“Why, ‘is Majesticalness, is who,” Rista answered saucily. “Ye ought to know, bein’ as yer the one who put that damn cute idiotic grin on ‘is face. Shameful, ‘e is. Wishin’ ye’d’ve finished what ye started.”

Now she knew Rista was pulling her leg. Sarah finally lifted her tear-stained face to stare at her maid and friend. “Right,” she said. “What you saw was him laughing at my stupidity and unable to believe my audacity.”

“Mmm,” Rista replied noncommittally. “I’ve known Jareth fer a long time, Miss Sarah, and I ain’t never seen ‘im lookin’ like that over no girl,” she went on, sitting on the edge of the bed. “Like he’s ‘ead over ‘eels in love.”

Sarah refused to believe it. She miserably shook her head and dropped it back down. “What is wrong with me?” she wailed. “What must he think of me?”

Rista giggled. “I don’t e’en want to venture a guess,” she said saucily. “I don’t e’en want to think about it!”

“Neither do I,” Sarah said.

“Ye’re sure not likely t’be sayin’ that for the same reasons I am,” Rista replied, still laughing.

Sarah lifted her head again to stare at Rista. “What are you going on about? How long have you been in my room, anyway?”

Rista grinned. “Long enough,” she answered cheekily. “He does ‘ave a right sexy mouth, doesn’t ‘e? Ye’d be right lucky to have a man like him in yer bed each night!”

“Rista!” Sarah groaned again, the maid’s words not doing anything to help her clear her mind. “You have to help me. What am I going to do? How can I be afraid of him and think of him as a king and at the same time try to… to… Oh, what did I think I was trying to do?”

“Jump ‘is bones?” Rista suggested.

Dropping her face into her hands, Sarah nodded weakly. “Yeah, pretty much,” she confessed shamefully. “Oh, what’s the matter with me?”

Rista rubbed her back. “If ye don’t mind me sayin’ so, I’d be wonderin’ what was wrong with ye if ye didn’t attack ‘im!”

“Rista, you’re not helping,” Sarah said wearily.

With a sigh, Rista gave Sarah’s hair a gentle tug. “I’m tryin’ ta,” she said. “Ye need ta listen, Sarah. No matter what ye think o’ yerself, ye have to realize that others see ye far differently than ye see yerself. Now… Jareth… high and mighty royal Goblin King that ‘e is, powerful an’ bone-meltin’ gorgeous, loves ye. An’ what’re ye doin’ about it? Nothin’!”

Sarah sat up. “Rista… I don’t deserve him. I… I’m so not worthy of him, it’s not even funny. You don’t know what I’ve been through. I’m not queen material. He could do so much better than me. Why would he love me? And what if he only thinks he loves me because he feels sorry for me, or responsible for me? I couldn’t bear it if I believed he loved me and then he changed his mind.”

Rista threw her hands into the air. “Oh, ye’re haverin’ on about all these terrible things ye’ve imagined, an’ none of ‘em are bein’ true. Ye’ve got to have a bit o’ faith in the man an’ give ‘im a chance, Sarah. He does feel responsible for ye; he feels ‘e ought to have come and rescued ye when the Taker said ‘e had ye, even though he had no idea it was ye!”

Sniffling, Sarah nodded. “I know that,” she said. “That’s why I think he’s just… confusing pity and love. I just can’t… I… I’d like to be alone for a little while, Rista, if you don’t mind. Please don’t let Jareth come in here.”

“Oh, hell an’ damnation,” Rista complained, but she headed toward the door. “I understand ye’ve been through much, Sarah,” she said softly, “but now ye’ve got the chance to be happy an’ loved. Don’ be a bloody fool an’ throw it all away.”

Closing her eyes, Sarah shook her head. “She doesn’t understand,” she whispered. “No one understands that there is nothing left of me to love…”

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Jareth stood outside his rooms, watching the door to Sarah’s rooms closely. Had he dared, he would have tried to listen to the conversation within, but he was afraid of what he might hear. He hoped that Sarah was willing to see reason; if anyone could talk sense into a person, it was Rista.

The door swung open and the little maid slipped out of the room, shaking her head. Muttering to herself, she walked quickly down the hall in his direction, rolling her eyes when she caught sight of him. “Eesh, Jareth… I don’ know what ta say. She’s too convinced o’ her own way o’ thinkin’. Ye can’t blame ‘er, after all she’s been through. She’s sure that ye were laughin’ at ‘er and thinkin’ she’s crazy. Ye musta made quite the impression on ‘er when she was ‘ere last.”

Jareth was at a loss as he watched Rista hurry down the corridor, still muttering to herself. How could he convince Sarah that he loved her? What were his options?

He could allow things to continue in this awkward vein and try to give Sarah the space she obviously desperately wanted, hoping she would come around.

He could forget about her and try to find someone new, thus showing her that she was right all along… ‘Right, as if I could forget about Sarah and find another to fire my soul the way she does!’ he thought to himself.

Or… he could go to her right now and not leave her alone until she believed him and accepted that he loved her and that she was stuck with him. Grinning, he knew that he had a plan. Straightening his back, he walked down the hallway to Sarah’s room. He knocked on the door, but there was no reply.

“Sarah,” he said. “Please let me in. We need to talk.”

After a few seconds, he heard her muffled voice. “There’s nothing to talk about!” He could tell that she had been crying.

“Yes, there is,” he said. “If you do not open the door, Sarah, I will come in anyway.”

“Please… just don’t, Jareth,” came her reply. “Don’t waste your time.”

Sighing, Jareth took a moment to place a spell on Sarah’s room that would not allow anyone to exit it without his approval. He wouldn’t be surprise if he entered and saw her disappearing, having wished herself away. Then he willed himself inside. She was wearing a white robe, laying face down on her bed, and appeared not to have heard his entrance. He moved forward cautiously.

“Go away, please,” she murmured piteously. “Why are you here?”

He smiled. At least he had her attention; despite asking him to leave, she turned right around and wanted to know what he wanted. He moved over and sat down on the edge of her bed. “I am not going away,” he told her, “but if you would be so kind as to sit up and look at me, I will tell you why I am here.”

Turning her face away from him – not that he’d been able to see it in the first place as her hair was in the way – she said, “I can’t look at you.”

“Of course you can,” he replied lazily.

Groaning, she said, “I think I may just wish myself away from here…”

“Go ahead and try it,” he invited. “But you should know that it won’t work. I have… restricted your powers.”

Sarah sighed heavily, causing him to smile again. Even though she was completely sincere in her reactions and had good reason to feel the way she did, she was such a drama queen that it was almost amusing. He sobered, though, remembering what his father had told him. She finally lifted her head to look at him and it took his breath away. Her dark hair was wild and hung around her face and shoulders in loose waves. Her green eyes were shining with unshed tears, and her mouth was slightly open. And she had no idea how devastatingly gorgeous she was, lying there in bed.

“You can do that?” she asked, not really looking upset about it, just curious.

Jareth nodded. Swallowing hard, he removed a glove and reached out to gently wipe a tear from her cheek. Without thinking, he then moved the pad of his thumb over her lower lip. Her eyes dilated to nearly black and he heard her breath hitch, but then she moved away, eyeing him warily. “What are you doing here?”

“I wish to speak with you,” he said, resisting the urge to put his thumb to his mouth and taste her tears on his skin. “We cannot go on like this, not knowing what to say to one another.”

She sat up straighter, tugging at her robe to keep it closed tightly. “I know what to say,” she replied. “I need to tell you that I’m glad you’re alive. I didn’t say it before, but I was so afraid that you had been killed defending my honor…” The way she said honor made him realize she didn’t think much of her honor, and he felt very said. She went on after a few seconds. “And I wanted to tell you how sorry I am for my ridiculous behavior. I don’t know what came over me.”

Jareth sighed. “Sarah, did it ever occur to you that ours is a mutual attraction?”

The look she gave him suggested that it had not occurred to her, at least not seriously. “Sure, because I have so much to offer.”

“Yes, you do,” he agreed, ignoring the dripping sarcasm in her voice. “You seem to think that I want the girl who ran my Labyrinth back. I do not. I much prefer the beautiful and enchanting woman that girl has become.”

She shook her head. “Please don’t say those things. I… I’m not beautiful, Jareth. I… I told you that I was beaten and whipped… what I didn’t tell you was that the first man used a flagellum… ” She stood up, keeping her back to him and moving a few feet away from the bed. Before he knew what she intended, she dropped the robe to her waist and moved her hair aside.

Jareth swallowed hard. He understood… he knew he was supposed to be seeing something truly horrifying. But all he saw was her perfectly smooth, creamy back. Obviously she hadn’t been told of the healing. He stood and walked very slowly over to her, placing his hands on her shoulders. Leaning down, he placed a reverent kiss on the back of her neck. Then he carefully replaced her robe and turned her around to face him.

“I apologize for not thinking of it; I had assumed my mother or the healer would have told you,” he said, his voice hoarse. She had thought she was showing him something incredibly personal, and he was deeply touched. “Your scars have been healed. Your back is… perfect.”

She stared at him blankly for a long moment. “I see…”

“Are you unhappy?”

“I just… I didn’t realize that the scars could be taken away,” she said softly. “I would have wanted that, eventually… it’s just that… they belonged to Elise, and I’m having a hard time letting her go. She… she is who I’ve been for five years. Sarah is who I was before that. But who am I now? There’s…” She blinked away tears. “Don’t you see? There’s nothing left of me now.”

Jareth frowned. He didn’t know what to say. Her expression was so hopeless and bleak. He hadn’t noticed until now just how lost she really was. “Sarah, you are not nothing. Please don’t say that.”

Sarah shook her head. “You don’t understand.”

He started to move closer to her, but she backed away from him. “I want to,” he said, afraid he was losing her, bit by bit.

“I can never… never be what you would want me to be,” Sarah said. “You may think you have feelings for me, but you can’t have feelings for nothing. I have nothing to offer you. I’m not a… that is… I could never be a queen. You…” She paused, clearly struggling. “You own me… so you can do what you want with me, I suppose. But if I had a choice, I would reject the crown. Just so you know.”

“Sarah…”

She gave him a watery smile. “I’m so sorry,” she said. “I just… I just can’t.”

“You are trying to make me give up,” he said incredulously. “Sarah, you have been through hell. I know that. I know that I am to blame for it. I… I cannot reorder time to that extent. I wish I knew what to say to you, but there are no right words in this instance. What…” He looked away, finding it hard to continue speaking. “What would you have me do? Go on without you? I…”

Jareth felt Sarah’s eyes on him, but he couldn’t look at her. He didn’t need to see what he could not have, and she had made it clear that she didn’t want him. Perhaps she loved him, in her own way, but obviously she held him accountable for what she had been through, and how could he blame her? That was why she had wanted him to see her scars. It would have left an indelible impression, one that would have haunted him for the rest of his days, the way Sarah was haunted by having lived through it for the rest of hers.

Nodding slowly, he moved over to the window to look out. “I shall leave for the Labyrinth in the morning. I am certain my family will wish you to stay here for as long as you want. I will not bother you again; I realize that I am the last man on earth you would ever want. You… you are released from your enslavement. I shall not seek your hand. Any… ramifications that occur because of your refusal to take the throne I shall deal with.”

His heart was breaking to say these things, but he wanted more than anything for her to be happy and feel free. If giving her up and going away would do that, then he would acquiesce. Nevertheless, he could hear his voice growing thick and slow with the effort of talking through his tears. Still, there was more that needed to be said.

“I… I will love you forever, Sarah, whether or not you are perfection embodied or you are scarred, whether you are whole or fractured, whether you love me in return or not. My heart is yours and will always belong to you.” He straightened. The hard part was out of the way. One more item of business and then he would be gone. “I… I was Aboveground before I went to the Taker’s castle, and I spoke with Tobias. It is his desire to come here and be with you, and I promised him I would return for him if you approved the arrangement. Say the word, and I will bring him to you.”

Sarah was silent for a very long time, and he began to wonder if she was going to speak. When she did, her voice was quavering as though she had been crying, and she said, “I… Jareth, thank you. I… yes.”

He nodded once and stepped onto the ledge. Spreading his arms wide, he let himself drop, the wind whipping against his wings a brutal welcome to his new reality… a reality without the woman he loved by his side. He did not look back. Had he done so, he would have seen Sarah there watching him with tears streaming down her face.