15Yes, I finally decided to write more chapters to both my stories. I had originally planned on these being one shots, but I have received too many requests from fans begging me to continue them. I am not the most faithful of writers, so bare with me if chapters are far between. I promise to post them as soon as I am done writing them, but I do not promise perfection. It's fan fic people, get over it.
Also wanted to give a little shout out to tichtich2 for the praise and the encouragement. You can all thank her for getting me motivated to write more.
Sadly I do not own the Labyrinth or any of it's characters. Nor did I write the song Breakaway by Kelly Clarkson. Though I do love to borrow things that aren't mine, I make no money from them….
Sarah had closed her eyes for the shift into the under ground, just enjoying the feel of being pulled through the veil. Jareth turned her around and leaned his head down to whisper in her ear, "Open your eyes, Precious." She opened her eyes to the sight of the Labyrinth's vast expanse before her.
"It's so beautiful!," she whispered. Gods had she missed this place. She had known something was missing from her life, but before now, she had not known what it was. Sarah was content to just stand there, staring at the Labyrinth with Jareth's arms around her, but Jareth had other ideas. He stepped back from her and took her hand into his.
"Sarah, since you wished me from my own birthday celebration…."
"It was the last song Jareth, I didn't think you would mind," she said with a knowing smile.
"No, I didn't mind. That was more of a present to myself than an actual celebration. It was quite fun coming up with the idea of how to get you there, and then to have you sing that song. That was an even greater gift. Just how many songs have I inspired you to write?"
"Well," she said and looked at the floor as her face turned a nice bright red. "I didn't think I would ever see you again. And, Gods!, I've been having these dreams. Writing the songs was the only way to make any sense of what I've been feeling." Sarah looked up into his eyes, a slight smile on her face. "I even wrote a song about dreaming the dreams."
"Dreams precious?" Jareth purred with a lecherous smile on his face. "What exactly occurred in these dreams to cause you to write these songs and have these feelings. I would especially like to hear about the one that inspired that last song you sung." He was slowly backing her up until she felt the castle wall at her back. Jareth had his hands on either side of her, trapping her in place. He slowly leaned his head closer to her, his lips brushing against her ear, " Care to demonstrate?" He nipped her ear and licked it to sooth the sting away, causing a shiver to run down her spine and warmth to pool between her legs. He ran his nose along her neck, inhaling her sent. He could smell her desire, but also her fear. He didn't wish to scare her anymore. It was bad enough to have her fear him during her last time in his kingdom. And at the time he thought it was what he had wanted, her fear and her love, but he had come to realize that it was her love and respect he wanted. He stepped back with a smile, taking her hands into his and bringing them to his lips, kissing her knuckles then turning them over and placing a kiss on each palm. "Mayhap another time, precious. Now as I was saying before you interrupted and distracted me. Since you wished me away from my own birthday celebration, what would you like to do?"
Sarah took a deep breath to try and get her pounding heart under control. She thought for sure he was going to kiss her, and probably more. It had been fun flirting with him with all those people around, safe. But now that it was just the two of them, she wasn't so sure. She was definitely 100% attracted to Jareth, but was she ready to act out her dreams. Dreams were safe, you didn't have to worry about anything besides what you were feeling. Real life on the other hand was a lot more complicated. What did she really know about Jareth? Was what he offered at the end of there last encounter real, or just a ploy to get her to give up Toby? What did she even feel for him? Did she want to just fool around with this this incredibly sexy man, or did she want more? Until she knew more, she just couldn't make a decision about this. "How about a tour of the castle. I didn't get to see much of it the last time I was here."
"Of course, but we won't be able to see everything tonight. It's getting late and we both have things we must do tomorrow. So for now, will a walk through the gardens satisfy?"
"That would be lovely." He released one hand and tucked the other in the crook of his arm, leading her to a set of glass doors. That's when she finally looked around the room they were in. She noticed the pictures covering the walls depicted different scenes from the Labyrinth. As she looked closer she realized they were of the her time here. There was her talking to the worm, Hoggle helping her out of the oubliette. She turned to look at the others in the room and was stunned into immobility, causing Jareth to stop and turn to see what she looked at. The wall across from her had a mural coving it. It was different scenes from the crystal ballroom. Her first walking in, her searching for Jareth and him hiding. But in the center was Sarah in Jareth's arms dancing around the ballroom. "Wow!" was all she was able to get out.
"Yes, it was my favorite memory. All of these are memories I had preserved, but that was my most cherished. It was the one and only time I had held you in my arms."
Sarah didn't know what to think. All she could do was whisper, "Why?"
Jareth turned her to face him. "Do you truly need to ask that question?" He looked deep into her eyes and a sad smile came to his lips. "You were too young, weren't you, to even comprehend what I offered you. Sarah, what I asked you at the end of your journey, and you refused, was to be my queen. I loved you before you wished your brother away, I used to watch you act out your plays in the park. I loved you while you defied me and beat my Labyrinth. Watching you pass each and every test I set before you, I became even more fascinated and in awe of you. No one has ever beat my Labyrinth, most don't even take up the challenge. Watching you grow into the beautiful, talented women you've become. I never knew I could feel so much for just one person, but I do, for you."
He continued to stare into her eyes, trying to see what she was thinking. Sarah just stood there, not knowing what to think. Finally she tore her eyes from his and looked around the room once again. That's when she noticed the huge canopy bed near the wall with the mural. OMG! She was in Jareth's bedroom. She turned back to Jareth and he noticed the wide eyed look and decided to return her home. "I'll give you some time to take all of this in. If you decided you would like to come back for the tour of the castle, just say my name and I will here you." Sarah just nodded her head and closed her eyes for the return trip home. She felt Jareth place a kiss on the back of her hand as he said, "Goodnight, Precious. I hope to hear from you soon."
When she opened her eyes she was alone in her. Jareth loved her! Well, at least that part of her problem was solved. But she still didn't know anything about Jareth, or how she felt about him, or what she wanted to do. She sat down on her bed and looked at the clock. 1am and she just had too much on her mind to sleep. Plus, she was not in the mood for one of her Jareth dreams right now. She needed to think. So, she changed out of her dress into jeans and a t-shirt. Stepping out of her apartment she turned walk to the park, not noticing the owl as is quietly followed. It was still her favorite place to go. She wrote most of her songs there. Her apartment was a block farther from the park than her parents house had been, just in the opposite direction. She wasn't ready to work through the Jareth puzzle yet, so she worked on one of her new songs as she walked, softly singing it to herself.
Grew up in a small town
And when the rain would fall down
I'd just stare out my window
Dreaming of what could be
And if I'd end up happy
I would pray (Her voiced grew louder as she forgot about her surroundings and let the music take her.)
Trying hard to reach out
But when I'd try to speak out
Felt like no one could hear me
Wanted to belong here
But something felt so wrong here
So I pray
I could breakaway (Remembering high school and her not so popular status. She had tried to sit in, tried dating the local boys. But she just couldn't seem to become what everyone else wanted her to be.)
I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly
I'll do what it takes til I touch the sky
And I'll make a wish, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway (She wondered what it felt like to Jareth when he became the owl. To be so free and flying out over the Labyrinth.)
Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget all the ones that I loved
I'll take a risk, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway (She danced down the street, twirling around street lights and weaving in and out of parking meters, or just swaying with the music in her head. She was so caught in the moment that she still had not seen the barn owl as it flew past her to land in a tree and watch her in this unguarded moment.)
Wanna feel the warm breeze
Sleep under a palm tree
Feel the rush of the ocean
Get onboard a fast train
Travel on a jet plane, far away
And breakaway (The owl burst from the tree and flew straight into the sky. Diving and twisting, just exhilarated in the moment. Sarah's mood seemed to be catching.)
I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly
I'll do what it takes 'til I touch the sky
And I'll make a wish, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway
Out of the darkness and into the sun
I won't forget all the ones that I loved
I gotta take a risk, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway (Sarah started to run when she reaching the park. Just living in the moment. Imagining what life would be like when she finished college in a week. She raced over the bridge and up to the obelisk.)
Buildings with a hundred floors
Swinging 'round revolving doors
Maybe I don't know where they'll take me but
Gotta keep moving on, moving on
Fly away, breakaway
I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly
Though it's not easy to tell you goodbye
I gotta take a risk, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway
Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget the place I come from
I gotta take a risk, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway, breakaway, breakaway
Sarah walked over to her favorite bench near the pond and sat down to try and sift through her feelings for Jareth. When she first got back from the Labyrinth she was overjoyed with her triumph. She had defeated the evil king and saved her brother. But as she grew older she realized that Jareth wasn't evil. He really had done everything she expected of him. She wished Toby away, she asked to run the Labyrinth to get him back, and she refused her dreams. None of it was Jareth's fault. So she felt no animosity towards him, and she definitely felt a healthy dose of lust and desire for him. But she wanted more. The only way to find out if that was possible was to start spending more time with him and learning about his life. At least she didn't have the typical problem of worrying about his feelings. She was still reeling from his words from earlier. He loved her! How long had he been watching her before the Labyrinth, and how much has he seen since then? Was he the cause of her dreams, or were they just her wild imagination running away with her as usual. She came here to find answers, and instead found more questions. She stood up to head back to her apartment when she finally noticed the barn owl in the tree next to her.
"Did you follow me here from my apartment?" The owl inclined his head and blinked his eyes. "Well I'm heading back now. I'll call on you this weekend, if your not too busy. I'd really like that tour of the castle." A small smile came upon her face as she said, " And maybe we could start in the throne room instead of your bedroom?" Again the owl inclined his head, but his eyes seemed to be laughing at her.
Jareth followed her back to her apartment and flew home as she closed her door. So she is willing to come back, he thought to himself. He had been afraid she would react negatively to his declaration. At least he had hope this time. If she couldn't love him in return, maybe he could at least have her friendship. She was still the only one worthy of being his queen. Mayhap they could work something out. A partnership of sorts, until or if she ever wanted more. He was a patient man, for the most part, and a very persuasive one.