New Crystals, Old Dreams- Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I know that I do not own these characters and I am not disillusioned enough to believe otherwise.  I borrow and hope you enjoy.  So, now on to the story that I have made up. 


Her jaw dropped as she stared up into his mystifying eyes.  He was just the same as she remembered and yet completely different.  She couldn’t explain the divergence from the Goblin King she’d known before, but all she knew was that he put her even further on edge.  Was he colder?  Warmer?  There was absolutely no definable emotion coming from the man standing in front of her, but he had that same old crooked grin that seemed permanently a part of his face.

He was wearing the same outfit he had when he’d first appeared to her.  It was what she could only assume was his formal armor.  The black shining cape was glittering in the dim light of her darkened room.  His chest plate armor was likened to dragon scales in its overlapping strength.  The high, up turned collar of the cape went curved around his head, turning him into the quintessential villain of fantasies.  He even had it perfectly down to still having those black gloves covering his elegant hands.

She shivered looking at him, her breathing deep and uneven and it seemed that was just the way he wanted it.  Showing his first bit of emotion since he appeared, he smirked deeper and walked around her room appraisingly.  She was transfixed, simply watched him as he looked over her things, his casual gracefulness captivation and yet so very foreign…a bright light amongst her modest belongings.  Finally, she heard his voice, the lyrical tones of it set her mind to screaming for having forgotten how it could entice and chill all at the same time.

“So Sarah, what is the meaning of this?”  His mismatched eyes shot to hers and suddenly she couldn’t find her voice.  She had never been putty to him, she had been strong.  Now wasn’t a time to try anything different.  Straightening her back she feigned the air of superiority that was eluding her.

“I called you, isn’t that obvious?”  Jareth walked over to her and trailed a regal finger down her trembling cheek that betrayed her true feelings.

“Still so juvenile are we Sarah?  You try to put on an act, but your body betrays you.”  His face was so near that she could feel and smell his warm, sweet breath on her neck.  He was circling her like a predator and she wished she didn’t feel so very like his willing prey.  “You act so young for one so grown.”  She felt her defenses fall and knew that this could either be her undoing or her triumph.

“I didn’t know what else to do.”  She felt so weak and helpless saying that, but Jareth came around in front of her and stared down at her as if thinking her over again.  His blue-green stare was boring into her very soul as he fought the battle of the wills. 
“Why did you call Sarah?  You denied everything I offered you a long time ago.”  He sounded regretful and annoyed all at the same time so she didn’t know which one he actually felt. 
“Because I wanted to be in the Underground.  I feel like I belong there.  This place is so cruel.”  He gave that condescending short laugh and circled around behind her again.  Leaning in behind her he spoke quietly to her.

“You still don’t have a very good basis for comparison now do you Sarah?”  He had said this to her in the Labyrinth.  Things were still coming back to her slowly.  Too slowly.

“I have a much better basis for comparison Jareth.”  She sensed him tense and shiver.  “What was that for?”  She turned to face him, but he was no longer there.  She was scared out of her mind that he had left her there to suffer the fate of her father and Claire.  What would they do to her?  Certain they would send her back to the asylum, she hunched her shoulders, defeat sinking in like unwelcome rain before she felt a hand on her shoulder and jerked.

“Jumpy Sarah?”  It was him.  He had used that damned Fae ability of teleporting.  She hated that!  Her stomach turned as hope returned anew.  He laughed at the fury and fright in her eyes.  “Did you think I had left you?”  Nodding meekly she sighed deeply, relieved.  “Oh no, I won’t leave you as you left me.  I have you now and I have no intentions of letting you go.”  The silky drawl of his voice made it a threatening promise that, shockingly, sent a thrill through her system.

“Before we go…What made you shiver a moment ago?”  He wrapped his arms around her nonchalantly.  It wasn’t exactly a loving embrace, only for the necessity of teleporting them to his world.  She felt him inhale and exhale severely.

“That was the first time I had ever heard you say my name.”  With that they were sent to his world.  They didn’t show up on that lone hill over looking the labyrinth this time.  This time she was taken right to the mighty gates of the goblin castle.  “It’s nice to finally be home.”  Her brows furrowed at the comment.

“What do you mean?”  They passed through the gates that seemed much nicer since the last time she was here.  In fact, she looked behind her at the little town she had Ludo assault with boulders and it was much nicer.  No longer was there a dusty haze in the air.  It seemed clear and clean.  What was all this about?  She turned back to Jareth…it was strange thinking of him with his name instead of the Goblin King and much shorter to say.

“This is the first time I have seen this place since you banished me into the Darkness.”  Sarah stopped dead.

“What do you mean?”  The Goblin King turned to face her, she thought of him that way because he seemed more his old self in that one fluid motion of whipping around on her.

“I mean that when you discarded what I offered you all those years ago, you exiled me to a world that Fae and God alike fear.” 

“Where did I send you?” Sarah asked timidly.  The fire in those mismatched eyes was enough to make her feel like she had just been marked for revenge…which she most likely had been LONG before this moment, she thought with a sinking stomach.

“You sent me to The Darkness.”  She didn’t understand what this was, but was terribly afraid to ask him anymore about it.  Perhaps it might come up later.  He whisked his cape back and she watched it billow away as he turned around quickly to make his way into his castle.  Sarah followed a few paces behind him, too afraid of the wrath she had seen in his eyes.  When they reached the gates of the castle there was a great uprising as the goblins noticed their master and lord returning.

“Open the gates!  The King is back!”  A little goblin that was playing guard up in a tower shouted to the gate keepers.  And that was all she heard the whole time as they entered and Jareth made his way to the throne room.

Sarah was in awe of her surroundings.  It hadn’t been this beautiful and striking when she had first made her way here.  No longer did it look drab and dank.  She thought back to how it used to look.  Partially crumbling towers had been slowly making their way to deterioration.  The stones had been covered in moss and nasty mildew that had given them a slimy green color. 

She hadn’t seen much of the castle the first time she had been here because, well, she had been a little preoccupied on her first trip, but she was starting to remember the things she had seen.  The grand staircase in the foyer of the castle used to be broken and the right side of it used to be missing all the steps from the middle of it to the floor.  As she looked at it now she saw that it was all beautiful black marble with flecks of gold and silver in it.  The staircases were perfectly curved up the sides of the walls and there was a plush red runner going down each. 

She looked up and gasped at the spectacle above her.  There was a five tier grand chandelier hanging in the middle of the room and it was lit with thousands of pearl white candles.  Surely that hadn’t been here the first time she had come through.  She was staring at the chandelier so intently, wondering if the lit the candles by magic or not, that she didn’t notice Jareth stop and she bumped right into his back.  He turned around to steady her with a smart little smirk on his face.

“Having trouble walking as well?”  She glared at him, not knowing where the courage to do so came from.

“I was looking around and was just shocked at how much it has changed.  I wasn’t paying attention to you…Your Highness.”  Where she had expected to be slapped and thrown in an oubliette for her sharp tongue she only heard a soft laughter.  He found her amusing did he?  “I didn’t wish myself here to be made fun of.”  His laughter stopped and he seemingly flew over to her he moved so fast.

“But you did wish yourself here Sarah.  I do not really care why you did or did not do so, but as you can imagine I am not entirely the same man you encountered before.  You banished me to a place that makes you think very hard about your decisions and I have done a lot of thinking about you.”  She shivered at the venom in his voice and jerked back when his hand came up to her face.  Jareth’s hand merely grazed her cheek and rested under her chin.  “You never have to shirk away from me Sarah.”  His voice was surprisingly soft and caring now.  He was getting very confusing.

“I don’t know what to think about you.  You contradict yourself in so many ways.  You have me intrigued one minute and terrified the next.”  He smiled this time, not a smirk, but his whole mouth got into it.  It was a beautiful sight.  Throwing his arm around her shoulder, he led her through the foyer into a room that was even more spectacular.  Jareth pulled her close as his mouth grazed her ear to whisper into it.  Her body was stiff with the confusion and discomfort of the situation.

“This is the Grand Throne Room.  There is a smaller one that is circular and simple stone.  That one is used for more of a personal space with friends.  It is where I kept your brother.”  She felt like him, but was too enthralled by her surroundings to try anything drastic at the moment.

“What is this one used for?”  All around her was glittering gold and marble.  It was a marvel to behold.  The flooring was swirling white and black marble with a strange gold marble square section in the middle.  She had never seen marble like that and was mesmerized by it.  When she looked up at the ceiling she saw three grand chandeliers, but being smaller, they weren’t as impressive as the five tiered one in the foyer.

The two thrones at the front of the room were gigantic and looked to be made of pure gold.  The high arched back chairs curved into elaborate Celtic knot designs through the back.  The arms of the thrones were eagle claws and the legs were lions back legs.  So the thrones themselves were representations of griffins.  This whole room was just…overly royal.  When she looked over at him, Jareth looked extremely amused at her astonishment of the castle.

“This room is used for entertaining the Fae, Gods and Goddesses that come to visit and either do business or enjoy merriment.”  Her eyes went wide.

“Gods and Goddesses?  You mean mythology is real?  Like Zeus, Hera and all those guys?”  Jareth smiled and laughed a bit at her ignorance.

“No dear Sarah.  I do not mean Zeus, Hera and all those guys as you so eloquently put it.”  She glared at him.  She hated people making fun of her.  “Oh calm down.  I want to explain things to you for you need to know, this is your world now and you must know how it works.”  Hands on her hips, she looked up at him belligerently.

“Then teach me Obi-wan.”  His brow furrowed as he didn’t understand her reference.  “All I mean is teach me.”

“Fine, I did not mean Greek mythology…that stuff is a lot of rubbish.  I am talking about Celtic mythology.  I am talking Morrigan, Danu, Dagda, Brigit, Medb.  They are all real…as real as you and me.”  She knew that she must have looked like an eager child learning her favorite subject in school, but she didn’t care.  Her ardor did receive a soft grin from Jareth though.  “You will learn more and more as time goes on.  For now I want to know what has happened here.”  She looked up at him, amazed.

“You mean…?”

“Yes Sarah, I am just as surprised as you are at the transformation of the Goblin City and my castle.  I want to know what has happened in my…absence.”  Sarah grabbed his sleeve.

“Ok, I want to finish this now.  If you are mad at me for beating you at your own game then lets get this over with.”  Jareth looked into her eyes and she felt his pain, his confusion.

“I want to hate you and love you all at once Sarah.  We will have this discussion, but not now, not here.”  Knowing it was the better choice, she let it go and followed Jareth as he was greeted by more of his goblins.  They looked as ugly as ever, but now they looked clean and groomed.  It seemed as if they cared what they looked like now and Sarah was just as curious as their king was.

“Sire!  You have returned.”  She watched Jareth look down at the Goblin who was tall for its breed, but still shorter than even Sarah.  He came up to her chest and if she thought that goblins might like pretty human girls she might have been a little worried about him staring at her breasts. 

“Yes, Blix…I am back.”  Blix looked up at Sarah and his ugly, disfigured jaw dropped.

“You brought her!”  He didn’t say it in disgust or anger as she might have thought he would have.  The tone in which he said it was actually more reverential. 

“The goblins remember Sarah do they?”  The horrid little head nodded rapidly and his eyes were locked on Sarah.

“Oh yes we do!  She left an impression on us that won’t soon be forgotten!  Plus, we have been told that she would return with you.  We just had to make everything pretty for her and she would want to come back.”  Jareth looked disturbed.  Sarah was shocked, how could they know that she would come back?

“Who told you all those things Blix?”  The goblin looked down at the ground in a motion that showed he was reluctant to tell.  The Goblin King lifted Blix’s head.  “Tell me Blix.”

“Oh sire!  It was Her Greatness! She graced us with her presence and told us all these things!  She told us that if everything was beautiful and clean here that you would return with Sarah and…”  He drifted off and wouldn’t continue.  Sarah knelt down in front of the goblin and his face went pale…for a goblin anyways.  He grabbed at her arms and tried to get her to stand back up.  “Please miss stand up!  You shouldn’t look up at a Goblin!  We should look up at you!” 

“I’m sorry.”  She stood up since she seemed to have frightened him deeply.  Looking over at Jareth, she searched his face for an answer in his eyes.

“They must think very highly of you to treat you in this regard.  The only people that get such honor from goblins are the Fae, Gods and Goddesses.”  Her eyes went wide as she looked down at the goblin that seemed to cower in front of her.  She placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I am so sorry to have upset you.  I only wanted to ask what the rest of the story was.  He would bring me back and…?”  The goblin looked ever more uncomfortable, if that was possible. 

“I really can’t tell you.  I have told you more than I was supposed to already, but I can take you to Her Greatness.”  Jareth started at the remark.

“She is still here?” 

“Yes my lord.”  Jareth gave a little hand gesture that she was sure meant ‘get on with it.’  The goblin led them through the Grand Throne Room and into the hallway.  It was the same polished grey stone walls and the red runner through the hall was the same as on the stairs in the foyer.  It was a short walk and a brief climb up one flight of stairs that took them to great double doors.  Blix bowed to them and then opened the doors.

This was a bedroom as Sarah could see and it was all decorated in deep, rich reds.  The four poster bed was made from dark mahogany wood and draped with thick red velvet material.  It was then that Sarah noticed a beautiful woman draped on a plush red couch in the middle of the room. 

She stood and her medieval style dress flowed around her.  The luxuriant crimson color of her dress made the paleness of her skin seem a bright light in a dark room.  She had emerald green eyes and fire red hair.  When Sarah looked at the dress closely she noticed that the bodice was covered in elaborate Celtic knots and designs.  She was, in a word, breathtaking. 

Jareth must have felt the same way, because when she looked over at him he looked like he would drop to the ground and start worshipping her any minute.  It was then that she finally heard the woman’s voice.  It was a beautiful lilting voice, her Irish accent thick and beautiful.

“Jareth my darling, it has been so long.”  She walked over to Jareth and hugged him tightly.  He returned the hug and Sarah couldn’t help but feel a tug of jealously towards the gorgeous woman caught up in his arms. 

The next comment out of Jareth’s mouth however would make her feel as if that moment of jealously was the stupidest thing she ever could have thought.  Jareth pulled the woman back and kissed her lightly on both rosy, freckled cheeks.

“Hello mother.”


(A/N:  Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and the next will be up soon!)