Chapter Three: Succor for a Dream

Sarah melted into the kiss. She’d have to be dead not to be affected. She wasn’t dead—she was affected. It felt like her bones were suddenly made of jelly and it was probably a good thing she was already kneeling on the floor because if she wasn’t, her legs would have probably given out.

The kiss wasn’t gentle. It was forceful and passionate. Jareth’s hands were on her shoulders and she felt his tongue lightly trace the seam of her lips, teasing, inviting her to take the next step and deepen the kiss. Sarah almost did—her hands crept up, ready to wrap around him—and then her senses came back to her. This was the Goblin King she was kissing, the one she hadn’t seen in ages, who had just bought her off of some creatures. If he was kissing her because he thought it was his right to do so, he was in for a surprise.

Sarah placed her hands on his chest and shoved him hard. Luckily, Jareth was distracted so the movement came as a surprise and he had to catch himself from falling backwards. The kiss was broken. He lightly ran a thumb over his lips, as if he had just had a good meal and was making sure there were no crumbs, but the gesture was achingly sensual and despite Sarah’s resolve, she followed the movement hungrily with her eyes.

“I—I didn’t come back for that, so keep your hands to yourself, Goblin King!” Sarah sputtered, looking away from his lips.

“Really?” Jareth seemed unaffected by the rejection. He stood and went to the throne, sitting back on it, and propped an elbow against his leg, cradling his chin in his hand, and studied her closer. “What a shame.”

Sarah blushed and her attention was drawn to the Goblin King’s face. It was angular, not a very kind face. His eyebrows swept upwards, his lips were thin but sensually shaped. He looked younger than she remembered—but was that because of magic or because she was older? His mismatched eyes were the best feature, though. Rimmed with dark lashes, they were two different but equally intense colors. Cold blue and deep brown; neither gave away any secrets.

One thing Sarah had not thought about was how much she would be affected by seeing the Goblin King. It stood to reason, though, didn’t it? He was inhumanly beautiful, strangely captivating, and he was her first real crush. However, she was a mature woman who would not let her libido get in the way of her mission. Plus, it seemed doubly cruel to sleep with the Goblin King if she intended to take his heart—literally.

“Don’t you have any qualms about seducing me right off the bat?” Sarah said, standing up on still-shaky legs. She hoped he didn’t notice. “I mean, I figured you’d be pissed to see me again.”

“ ‘Pissed’, hm?” Jareth smiled, amused. “Not really. Frankly, dear, I haven’t thought of you much these past years. Why should I? I have plenty to do here.”

“But…but…” Sarah frowned. “At the time…”

“Oh yes, I was angry at the time, but as they say, time heals all wounds.”

“Oh, good.” Not good, for some reason she was a little annoyed. She’d thought of Jareth and now she had to live with the knowledge that he hadn’t thought of her at all. She gritted her teeth and muttered, “But, I’m not staying as some tariff payment, you realize?”

“Well, of course.” That damn smile hadn’t disappeared from his face. “There is no slavery in the Underground. You are free to go, if you like.”

“Actually, I—I wanted to stay for a while,” Sarah said, looking away. She was inviting herself to the Underground, how embarrassing, and just after assuring the Goblin King she didn’t fancy him.

Jareth frowned. “You want to stay here? In the Underground?”

“Just for a little while.”

Jareth took a step closer and Sarah automatically backed up, her heart suddenly pounding. However, Jareth just took another few steps until he was only a foot away from her. Sarah found herself staring at his chest. She had grown since she’d last stood in front of him; now her forehead came to his lips. She watched as Jareth tugged off a glove and she saw that he wore a small ring on his pinky finger. It had a wide, masculine-styled band in gold with a crystal in the center. He grasped her wrist and Sarah jumped, looking up and meeting his eyes. Her breath caught in her throat as she found herself falling, trapped in his gaze.

“Why, Sarah? Why would you need to stay in the Underground?”

“I—I just wanted to,” Sarah said.

There was a flare in the corner of her eye and her gaze jerked to the ring. It had glowed briefly, a bright white light, and then went back to its clear, crystalline state. Sarah frowned, confused, and then Jareth sighed and murmured, “You’re lying, Sarah. Tell me the truth. Why would you need to stay in the Underground?”

“Can that tell when I’m lying?” Sarah nodded towards the ring.

Jareth only said, “Tell me why you’re here, Sarah.”

Sarah met Jareth’s gaze again. The problem was that she couldn’t figure out the emotions behind Jareth’s voice. His expression gave nothing away; there was a tinge of something in his voice, though, but she couldn’t decipher what it was. After a moment, she looked away and said, “I—I’ve been having a tough time lately…I don’t know what to do. I feel so goddamn helpless. You should know me well enough to know I hate feeling helpless.”

She held her breath, half expecting the crystal to flare again, but it stayed clear. She let her breath out slowly. So the ring won’t flare for half-truths, she thought. She didn’t need to tell Jareth everything, just enough so that the ring wouldn’t flare.

“What has happened, Sarah?” Jareth loosened his grasp on her wrist, so it wasn’t quite bruising.

“A year ago, my father became very sick with a heart condition. He needed a new heart and he was on the donor list, but we were told it would be nearly impossible to get him a heart in time. He’s steadily been getting sicker and sicker. To make matters worse, I’ve been seeing things ever since I left the Labyrinth—magical things. Now Karen thinks I’m crazy and she doesn’t leave Toby alone with me anymore, so I barely get to see him at all!” Sarah felt tears mist her eyes and she tipped back her head to keep them from falling out of the corners of her eyes. On top of everything, she didn’t want Jareth to see her cry. “The things I’ve seen—creatures from one’s worst nightmares. Some hold beauty, some hold only malice and death. Sometimes, the most beautiful creatures are the most deadly. I’ve seen horrible things—and I’ve lost Toby because of it. Why Jareth? Why did you let me see these things?”

“I’m afraid it’s a side-effect of your time in the Labyrinth, Sarah, and has nothing to do with me. Did you come here to ask that?”

“Not entirely. I just…I wanted to get away from my life for a while.” Sarah held her breath again, sure that the ring would flare, but to her surprise it stayed clear. She stared at it, surprised, and wondered what that meant. She thought she wanted a mundane life—she was sick of the magical creatures that lurked in the corner of her vision, especially the ones that smiled at her and tempted her, trying to make her their prey. She was always on guard, her whole life had changed. She always kept salt with her, she was careful never to give her full name to someone she’d just met, she always wore a ring of iron on one finger and a ring of silver on the other. After combing her hair, she thoroughly cleaned her comb and burnt the loose strands in a metal wastebasket; she also burnt anything with her blood on it. The Labyrinth was far from the mundane life she craved. It was odd that the Labyrinth was somewhere she considered “getting away.” Not Hawaii, Spain, Florida—it was the Labyrinth.

Sarah stared at Jareth, her mouth slightly agape. I felt the most alive in the Labyrinth, she realized. The challenge of finding my brother—of avoiding temptation—made me feel alive in a way that I haven’t since then. Do I want to feel that way again?

“So you felt like you could just appear in my kingdom?” Jareth’s mouth turned down at the corners. He released his grasp on her. “How very like you—how selfish.”

Sarah sputtered, “Excuse me?” Now that he wasn’t touching her, she added, “It was a mistake. I planted a seed and it grew into an oak tree and there was a portal…” She trailed off, seeing a slightly guilty expression pass over Jareth’s face. “I thought so! You left it! Why?”

“A mistake,” he said. “I had grandiose plans in those days.”

“And you don’t now?” Sarah scoffed. “I don’t believe it.”

The Goblin King smiled back. It was a slow, lazy smile filled with promises. Sarah felt a thrill go down her spine. He said, “Hmm, seeing you again made me realize that while my plans may change, they are always grandiose.”

“It’s too bad that I don’t have a convenient ring to tell me what’s truth and what’s not,” Sarah muttered.

“Convenient for us both.” Jareth tipped his head back, considering her with a small half-smile on his face. It wasn’t a pleasant one, it was a cold, amused smile, like a predator who’d unexpectedly found his prey. “I must admit, I like this development. You were always such a…challenge, Sarah. I find myself both exasperated and invigorated by the thoughts of what you might do here, if given the chance. I find myself unable to look away from you.” He reached out and touched her hair, letting it slide through his fingers, but his gaze didn’t leave hers. “I find myself captivated all over again. How inconvenient. I’m rather disappointed in myself.”

He didn’t particularly sound disappointed; he sounded excited and confident, like someone who was ready for a race—or a battle. Sarah could hear her heart pounding in her ears. It seemed loud enough to echo in the throne room. Jareth’s smile widened, almost as if he heard it and knew that his words had affected her. She shivered, but her chin set with stubbornness and she said, “Nothing’s going to happen.”

“And as I said before—that is a shame. But, how can I promise to be a good boy? In fact, I think you’d be disappointed if I was a boring gentleman.” Jareth said the word like it didn’t taste right in his mouth. He continued, “I will give you a choice, instead. For succor, I demand payment.”

Sarah frowned. “What do you want?” she asked, not bothering to hide the suspicion in her voice.

“A dream,” Jareth said. “Just something as small as a dream—”

“Yeah right! I remember what your ‘dreams’ are like!” Sarah thought back to a ballroom filled with people who laughed at her behind grotesque goblin masks; fear as she searched and searched, not quite sure what she was looking for; confusion, because she knew she didn’t belong there.

“That dream? I made it for you, Sarah, and it was nearly perfect. So nearly perfect.” Jareth gently touched her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze again. “Tell me you didn’t like it, tell me that it didn’t thrill you and that you wished it had never happened—the dance, the magic.”

Sarah remembered the elation of meeting a pair of mismatched eyes; of feeling soft kid gloves against her fingers; the wonder of being whisked away onto the dance floor and how the world had faded until only two people were contained within it. Her confusion, fear, anger—it had all been forgotten for one glorious moment. Sarah was one of the few people who could say that she had had one perfect moment in her life. And now she was staring at those same mismatched eyes again.

Sarah didn’t like how he could catch her with his eyes. Every time she looked at them, she wanted to look for longer. It was like that when she was young, too. When she looked into Jareth’s eyes, she always saw unnamed possibilities, some of them tantalizingly dark and wicked. Something inside her rose up to any challenge Jareth brought. It made her feel just as wicked, like she could bend mountains to her will if it meant winning against him.

Sarah looked away first and Jareth laughed. Angry, she jerked her head away from his touch and he let his hand drop.

“A dream is my demanded payment,” Jareth said.

“When you say ‘dream,’ what do you mean?”

“Exactly that and nothing more, Precious Thing,” Jareth said in an almost sing-song voice. More seriously, he added, “When a person sleeps, they dream. Beings here in the Underground, they do not dream, it is one reason why humans are so precious to us.”

Sarah snorted, showing she didn’t buy that “precious human” line for a moment. “What will taking a dream mean for me? Will it be painful? Will I be trapped?”

“No. You won’t be trapped. You won’t even miss it and you can go back to your beloved life whenever you want.”

Sarah licked her lips and said, “Fine, I agree then. A dream.”

Jareth smiled and said, “Close your eyes, Precious.”

Sarah opened her mouth to tell Jareth if he expected her to trust him enough to close her eyes he could go stuff himself, but something in his expression made her stop, the words already balanced on her tongue. While he looked eager, almost incandescent with triumph, he also seemed—happy. I don’t have much choice, anyway, Sarah said. I can either go back home empty-handed or do what needs to be done. Sarah sighed, her eyes fluttering shut, and said, “Well, just don’t make me regret this, Goblin King.”

“Perhaps I should be asking if I will regret this…” Jareth murmured, almost so softly Sarah didn’t hear it.

She heard a soft sound of movement, then she felt Jareth deftly unbutton the top button of her blouse. She recoiled, but Jareth smoothed a gloved hand over her cheek, reassuring her. “I promise, Sarah, it’s nothing,” Jareth said.

Sarah held still and he unbuttoned one more button, then pulled away the corners of her shirt so that the base of her neck to just above her breasts were uncovered. He touched something cold to her skin and Sarah gasped. Suddenly, before Sarah could react, Jareth put one hand behind her head to hold her in place and drove the cold object into her skin with his other hand. Pain blossomed, sharp and clear, causing stars to wash over the darkness behind her eyelids. Sarah made a choked, distressed sound. Jareth didn’t soften his hold on her and the pain became worse, stabbing and intense, until Sarah whimpered and had to bite her lip to keep from screaming.

When Jareth finally released his hold on her, she stumbled back, her eyes flying open. It had only been a moment, yet the pain had lasted for what seemed like minutes. As soon as Jareth had let go, the pain had disappeared. Her hands flew to the area just above her breasts where it had been most concentrated. Her fingertips grazed against something cold and she looked down to see a silver object embedded in her skin. It was in a triangular shape, but the bottom curved downwards like horns, and an odd golden crest was imprinted at the tip. Jareth’s pendant.

Sarah looked at Jareth in disbelief and betrayal. “You said it wouldn’t hurt!”

“Actually, if you think back, I only said ‘no,’ that you won’t be trapped by giving me a dream, you only assumed that my ‘no’ encompassed everything you asked.” Jareth reached out and touched her lips. His finger came away bloody.

Sarah licked the area he had touched and tasted blood. She’d cut herself when she’d bit her lip to keep from screaming. She said, “You’re a cruel bastard, Jareth. Time had dulled my memory of that fact—it won’t again.”

“No, I doubt it will—or that it ever did.” Jareth licked off the blood from his finger. “However, the pact has been made. The pendant will return to me only when it has the dream.”

“And when will it get the dream?”

Jareth smiled. “When the time is right, it’ll collect it and bring it back to me. Until then…” He made a grand, sweeping gesture and said, “Welcome back, Sarah Williams!”

Author's Notes: Happy 4th of July everyone from the USA! The fireworks may be cancelled in my corner of the world due to a bunch of thunderstorms we've had lately. It's a shame. I hope if you celebrate it, that you have a wonderful day. :)

Anyone spot the pun I tried to do with the chapter title? Anyone? "Succor for a dream"? Get it? *goblins groan in the corner of the room and throw chickens* Hey, it amused me! XD

I'm enjoying writing a non-fluffy version of Jareth and now that all the pieces are in place (well, mostly) I have some delicious scenes in the works. I'm also amused by this version of Sarah. I wonder how many pacts she's going to agree to before the story is done? XD Also, since I'm new to the site, I'm wondering about finding a beta reader for this story. I'd like to cut down my time on editing so I can devote that to newer chapters, but on the other hand, I tend to get chapters out quickly when I can. Not sure what to do, so if you have suggestions, please don't hesitate to tell me.

Finally, some brief shout-outs:

Sibhs: Thank you! Well, hope this chapter was worth the wait! :)

Lovelace's Amarantha: Thanks! I can't wait to see what happens next, either. I keep telling myself I'm going to plot this story but then I write another chapter instead. I have a bad feeling it's gonna bite me in the ass soon. _ But, yes, I agree, I'm definitely enjoying writing this version of Sarah. I always like my heroines to be strong-willed, opinionative, and...well, worthy of the title of "heroine." :)

FaeriesMidwife: Thank you for checking out my other stories! I'm glad you're enjoying this darker fic; I found myself needing a break from the fluffy Jareth of "Bound and Delivered" and "The Clockwork Heart" (which is one reason I haven't updated those yet. *blush*). I've also decided that rarely should Sarah's plans go according to her wishes, because it leads to much more fun that way. Like sudden, hot, Goblin King kisses. XD

Please leave a review and tell me what you think so far. Have a wonderful [long or not] weekend! :) Knowing my recent bout of creativity, you guys will be hearing from me soon.

The Fine Print: I own nothing in regards to the Labyrinth, except for my original characters. Otherwise, all characters are owned by their original copyright holders.