Dandelions in Shadow

Chapter 1: The Contestants

"Are you sure you don't want to come home for Thanksgiving break with me?" Sarah asked as she finished packing her clothes.

Her pixie haired roommate glanced up from her laptop, brushing her bangs out of her eyes as she did so.

"Huh?" Elizabeth blinked owlishly. "Oh umm...no, no thanks. I think I'll stay and work on my screenplay. Besides, I'm not exactly looking forward to seeing my new stepdad. Haven't seen him since the wedding and I plan on keeping it that way," she muttered, rolling her neck around a bit. "Man, writer's block can be such a bitch."

Sarah chuckled. "Are you sure? Last chance."

"Positive. Instead of me going, why don't you stay here to help me with my script?" Liz pouted and pleaded with her big periwinkle blue eyes.

Sarah's rump made contact with her suitcase as she wriggled around, trying to get the latch to close. She smiled in satisfaction when she heard an audible click and glanced across the room at her Bambi-eyed roommate.

"Nothing would give me more pleasure but Toby's really been wanting to see me. I don't want to disappoint him."

"How is the little guy?" Liz asked, kicking her legs back and forth in the air. She would type away on her laptop before snorting and deleting the entire paragraph she had just written.

"He's great. He's got good grades in school, he loves to read and he's developing quite a talent for drawing." Sarah opened her desk drawer and pulled out a sheet of paper. "Look what he drew for me earlier this year."

Liz's eyes widened and she sat up straight upon witnessing the drawing.

"Is that you?" she asked, aww apparent in her voice as she took the drawing from Sarah.

The picture showed Sarah in an emerald gown that trailed behind her and accentuated her figure. She had her chin up in defiance while she held out a ruby encrusted sword in her right hand.

"You're telling me your nine year old brother drew this." A hint of skepticism crept into her tone.

Sarah nodded, glowing with pride for her little brother.

"Yes, he's always been very gifted."

"Wait, isn't this the same brother who believes himself to be clairvoyant?"

A smile played at Sarah's lips. "Yeah, it's funny. Most of the things he draws tend to come true but that can't be true in this case. I'm carrying a sword for crying out loud," Sarah deadpanned, letting out a tiny snort.

Liz pursed her lips in thought. "Maybe you're starring in some sort of play." She heaved a heavy, dramatic sigh. "Why can't Toby dream me as a super famous screenwriter with a hot actor on my arm?"

"You have Jesse," Sarah pointed out as she packed up a few books into her nearly jam packed duffel back to read on the plane ride- a few included Northanger Abbey, Emma and Great Expectations.

"We're on the outs again. He's such a typical wishy-washy guy. If I so much as talk about getting back with him, please slap me as hard as you can."

Sarah smirked. "Will do. Never liked Jesse, anyway." She suddenly straightened up as a thought suddenly occurred to her. "You know who I heard is also staying on campus for Thanksgiving?"

"Who?"

"Tom."

"Tom Sterling?" Liz perked up in her seat a bit.

"The very one." Sarah grinned so hard it hurt her cheeks. "And I also think he might have a thing for you."

Liz narrowed her eyes in disbelief. "No way."

"Way."

"What? Are you sure? How do you-

Before Liz could finish her question, the door to their dorm suddenly burst open, making the sunflower paintings on their wall shake a bit.

"Eddie, do you ever knock?!" Elizabeth screeched, quickly adjusting the skirt she wore that was starting to ride up too high.

Their white haired friend walked into the room like he owned it, grinning in Liz's direction before throwing himself onto Sarah's bed, making a whale sound as he did so. Sarah smacked his Doc Martens lightly.

"Shoes off the bed, please," she ordered.

Eddie rolled his head toward Sarah lazily before complying with her request. He tossed his arms behind head and crossed his legs at the ankle. He slid his feet off the bed so that they hung from the edge.

"If I took a guess at what kind of conversation I interrupted. One- You were contemplating the inner workings of the universe. Two- You're obsessing over that tool Jesse again. Three..." Eddie smirked. "This is my favorite guess, by the way. I'm thinking you guys were thinking about the possibility of a threesome with me."

Sarah tossed her head back and laughed long and hard while Liz rolled her eyes. "Eddie, you think literally everyone wants to fuck you."

"It's not untrue, Liz. You can't tell me you didn't want to fuck me the first time you met me." Eddie sighed fondly at the memory. "Still remember it like it was just yesterday. The three of us are literally squad goals, you guys."

Liz was flustered for a moment. "You're so conceited. You-

Eddie's ringtone suddenly went off.

"Hey, what's up? Uh-huh. Uh-huh. OK. I see...Fuck off! Fuck you! No, fuck you! Shut the fuck up! OK. OK. Bye."

Sarah and Liz exchanged bewildered glances. Finally, noticing the strange looks they were giving him, Eddie clarified by saying, "Oh, that was my grandma. Says she's going on a trip to Brazil with her fake ass rich boyfriend this Thanksgiving sooo..." Eddie reached out quick as lightning for Sarah's wrist and tugged her onto the bed beside him. He squeezed Sarah to his side, rubbing his cheek against hers affectionately. "That means I'm free to join you for Thanksgiving if the invitation is still open."

Sarah giggled. "Of course. The flight leaves at eight AM tomorrow so start packing and by that I mean more than just a change of underwear and a toothbrush."

"Fuck," Eddie cursed playfully. "Fine. Two extra pair of underpants and a jumbo sized box of condoms then." He winked. "Ya know...just in case. Thanksgiving is the best holiday for a hook up, after all."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Right. Just be ready in time for tomorrow, dork." She glanced in Elizabeth's direction who had gone back to typing. "You're welcome to join us if you change your mind in time."

"Thanks but I really want to finish this screenplay. I'll send you guys a draft in a couple of days. Could really use some opinions."

"What was it about again?" Eddie asked, sitting up on one elbow to try to catch a glimpse of the screen of Elizabeth's laptop. "Aliens? Cannibals? Ballet?" He shook his head. "Nah, that last one sounds preposterious."

"Only the last one sounds ridiculous to you?" Sarah giggled.

Liz made a face at all of Eddie's ideas. "It's a love story, Eddie. It's sort of Cinderella meets Pride and Prejudice. Still working the kinks out so I don't really want to give too much away but I'm really excited about this screenplay. I think it's my best one yet." Liz grinned, practically bouncing in her seat from excitement. She paused when she caught a glimpse of something. "Hey, check this out. Another missing girl." She planted herself on her desk chair and rolled herself in front of Sarah's bed, twisting her laptop around so that her friends could see. "This time it's one from Colorado. Authorities say Natalia Pierce, age 23, was last seen camping. Her friends claimed she would keep seeing and hearing singing in the woods. They followed her footprints leading to a lake. Her clothes were found on shore and divers were sent into the lake but no sign of a body was found."

"Tally," Sarah breathed as she sat up straight and stared at the picture of the young woman with light brown hair that hung just below her shoulders in ringlets and tortoise shell hazel eyes.

"You know her?" Eddie asked, matching Sarah's Indian-style position.

Sarah bit her lip and barely managed a nod. "Yeah...yeah, I know...I knew her. We were friends all through middle school but then freshman year came along. She had a crush on this guy in my drama class. Someone spread a rumor that I liked him too and that the only reason I wanted to play Juliet was to kiss him."

"She was your best friend but she didn't believe you?" Liz asked incredulously.

Sarah shook her head. "At first she ignored me for a couple of weeks. Soon after, she became part of the group of people who called me strange."

"Whata bitch," Liz whispered under her breath.

"Yeah, I was being bullied so much I ended up having to switch schools. Around junior year I heard from one of my neighbors- who was an aunt of hers- that she had moved."

"And who says karma's not real?" Liz hummed in delight.

Sarah frowned. "Come on, Liz. Even I don't think she deserved to be abducted."

"Duh, of course. I meant the part about moving. Who needs that kind of negativity in their lives?"

"You really think she was abducted and not dead?" Eddie interjected.

"Well, the article says they never found a body." A small smile tugged at her lips. "That means there's hope that her family might find her."

"Ever the optimist." Eddie bumped his temple affectionately against Sarah's. "Well, I'd better go get mentally prepared to go take a shower and start packing."

He climbed off of Sarah's bed and moon walked out of the room with one last wave.

Liz blinked and shook her head at Eddie's random exit. "OK well, that's enough gloom for one day," she muttered, exiting the article and switching back to her screenplay tab. "Hey, Sarah, can I borrow your Jane Eyre novel? I've been wanting to read something new to get the creatives juices flowing but everything on Amazon is shit these days. Thought I'd try going back to classics."

"What happened to yours?" Sarah asked warily.

"I lost it. I could've sworn I had left it on my desk a few days ago and now it's gone."

"Alright but...treasure it. First Editions aren't easy to come by," Sarah said matter-of-factly. "I don't even know how Jeremy managed to find one."

"Jeremy?" Liz smirked. "He's that hunk your mom was dating, right?" She pointed at the picture taped to Sarah's mirror on her dresser. "Are they still together?"

"Still together and still very much in love." Sarah stared fondly at the picture of them on her desk before a look of sadness stretched a dark cloud across her face. "Anyway, take good care of that book."

Liz rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. I heard you. I just need it for some inspiration for my screenplay since it takes place right around that same time period. But should it be a comedy throughout or end it in trajedy? Which to choose?"

"Well, from the notes I read, your main male character sounds a lot like Henry Higgins from My Fair Lady so you might want to start there. But not the Audrey Hepburn version, I'm talking about the Leslie Howard one. That's my favorite," Sarah chirped.

Elizabeth blinked. "Never seen that version before."

"Oh, you'll love it." Sarah floated over to her shelf of DVDs and pulled out the black and white film to present to her.

Moments of the last twenty four hours rushed back to Eddie in a flash. He groaned as spots danced in front of his vision. He saw an image of Sarah and him laughing and nudging each other in encouragement whenever a cute steward would walk by. Another one was a memory of them approaching Sarah's childhood home and catching a glimpse of Toby at the highest window with a small dark shape behind him. He also saw himself and Toby talking animatedly as Sarah excused herself to help her stepmom in the kitchen. His memories launched forward to Eddie offering Sarah and her parents some wine he had brought. They politely declined in favor of waiting for dinner. He made a joke about it being happy hour somewhere in the world that Sarah chuckled over before taking his glass of wine and sauntering back toward the guest room. Eddie was about to pass Toby's room when he heard Toby's voice...and another voice coming from inside it.

The door was open a crack and curiosity got the best of him. He could see Toby talking to his companion, and he balked when he saw who the second voice belonged to. He blinked several times at the short man with large features in old fashioned clothes. No...he wasn't a man but some sort of creature. Eddie's voice got stuck in his throat as he continued to gawk at the elf...gnome or whatever it was in Toby's room. Toby's eyes widened into saucers when Eddie's wine glass slipped out of his hand and his eyes rolled back in his head. He felt himself drop to the ground like a sack of potatoes. In the distance, he heard random voices shouting at him and footsteps vibrating against the wooden floor in their haste to make it to him. He heard his name being cried out once more before he slipped into darkness.

"What the fuck?" Eddie shook his head. "How much did I drink?

"Half a glass of wine." Sarah sighed as she helped him sit upright in her bed.

"Damn." Eddie grunted as he ran a hand through his hair. "Never considered myself such a light weight before. I had the craziest dream, Sarah."

Sarah bit her lip and glanced at the ceiling not suspiciously at all. "You don't say?"

Eddie arched an eyebrow and glanced around. "Yeah...sorry if I worried your parents. I don't know what was wrong with me." He half shrugged and shook his head. "Guess I'm just tired. Jet lag and all that jazz."

"My parents had to step out so they don't know you collapsed." Sarah sighed and rubbed her face against her hands. "I can't lie to you." She peeked at Eddie through her fingers who regarded her strangely. "I guess there's no way around this. Eddie, remember that short story I wrote back in sophomore year that Liz turned into a play?"

Eddie snorted. "Duh. I played the Goblin King. She forced me into the tightest pair of tights. Gives a whole new meaning to blue balls." He snickered.

"Well, it's all true," Sarah said lamely. "Most of the events that came from my short story really happened."

Eddie gave her a deadpanned expression. "Sarah, might be time to get back on the meds."

Sarah growled. "I was never on any!"

"Yeah?! Then you should start because you sound One Who Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest insane. Next you're going to tell me that a Tarzan- looking Tom Cruise is going to come charging in here on his unicorn to take me to his diamond encrusted castle to have my favorite pineapple pizza for lunch with the whole cast of Le Miserables while we all proceed to have some huge ass orgy on top of said pizza," Eddie spat out with a roll of his eyes. "Come on, Sarah! Do you know how crazy you sound?!"

"Now don't be calin' Sarah crazy, ya human stain," Hoggle grumbled as he appeared from behind Sarah's bedpost.

Eddie gawked at Hoggle for a long moment in utter disbelief before letting out a very unmanly shriek. He scrambled to his feet and jumped off of Sarah's bed, tripping over his haphazardly tossed Doc Martens. He flipped onto his back and crab walked until his back hit Sarah's door. His hands clutched at the sides of his jeans as he stared pale faced at a concerned Sarah and annoyed Hoggle.

"Oh, my god! It talked! That thing just talked!"

"Who you callin' a thing?!" Hoggle growed, taking one menacing step toward him.

Sarah ran to Eddie, sliding on her knees half way to him. She tenderly held Eddie's shoulders as she forced him to look at her.

"Eddie, get it together," Sarah urged, gazing beseechingly into Eddie's horrified brown eyes. "He's my friend and he's harmless. I promise."

Eddie glanced at Hoggle out of the corner of his eye. "Interesting group of friends you have, Williams," he muttered dryly.

Sarah frowned. "He's loyal and sweet. Be good to him and he'll be good to you. Get on his bad side and well, let's just say that you don't want to make an enemy out of a goblin," she muttered. "Just listen for a minute. Hoggle told me that Liz has been taken by the Fae."

Eddie sat up straight. "Hold on. Liz is missing? Fairies took her? So everything is true then- everything that was in that play you and Liz wrote?"

"Yes."

"You wished your baby brother away?"

Sarah looked away in shame, her veil of dark hair curtaining half of her face. "Yes."

"The Goblin King gave you a drugged peach?"

"Yes."

"...Did you guys fuck?"

"What?! No!" Sarah scowled. "Eddie, I was fifteen for crying out loud."

"But Liz had your characters kiss in the play. Thought she didn't have them get it on for censorship or some shit."

"We didn't kiss and we definitely didn't sleep together. God." Sarah rolled her eyes. "I won my baby brother back, I went home and I haven't seen or heard from Jareth since. Until now that is. It looks like he might be the one behind the disappearances."

"That's what I cames to tell ya and Toby, Sarah," Hoggle piped up. "I don't attend court much unless called on but I err...found out somethin' important. The human women have disappeared because of Jareth but he's not the direct cause- his older brother Icelos and his adviser, Ingaceous have taken it upon themselves to find Jareth a suitable consort. It's the only way Jareth will agree to an arranged marriage his mother planned. The girls that Icelos abducts are ah random in appearance but Ignaceous' choices are more err...specific..." Hoggle trailed off, discomfort apparent in his face.

Sarah kneeled by Hoggle and squeezed his shoulder.

"Please...go on, Hoggle."

"Ignaceous steals women who..." Hoggle coughed. "Who erm look like ya, Sarah."

"What?" Sarah's eyebrows arched high.

"He steals women who erm...bear a close resemblance to ya. I think Ignaceous understands Jareth's obsession with ya after all this time."

"Obsession?" Sarah breathed, shaking her head incredulously.

"Yes. Ever since ya defeated him, it seems he can't stop thinking about ya."

Eddie arched an eyebrow. "I thought you said nothing happened between you two."

"Nothing did happen." Sarah sighed impatiently. "We have to get Liz, Tally and the other girls out of there."

"One doesn't simply just waltz into Mordor and demand their women back," Eddie drawled, dragging himself up off the floor and sauntering across the room dramatically. "If this Goblin Dousche guy is obsessed with you, isn't he gonna recognize you the second you show up before him?"

"He's right," Hoggle muttered, folding his arms in front of his chest. "It's too dangerous, Sarah."

Sarah ran her hands through her hair in agitation as she paced back and forth across her room.

"I can't sit here with my hands folded in my lap and do nothing. They're my friends. There must be some way I can sneak in." Her green eyes set in determination. "There must be." she whispered.

"Hey, hold on. In the play, wasn't the girl supposed to have some badass powers? Can't you just alter your appearance or something?" Eddie suggested.

Sarah shook her head. "The only power I ever had was the power to not let anyone have power over me...if that even counts as a power."

"What the hell kind of power is that?" Eddie demanded.

"Watch it," Hoggle spat out. "It was powerful enough to defeat Jareth." He frowned, clasping his chin in thought. "It could be that your powers are under developed, Sarah. Power like that doesn't just go away. Your power is probably somethin' very specific and you prolly use it all the time without eve realizin' it. But there is another who was touched by the Fae."

"Toby," Sarah whispered. "That's right...the drawings he made that could predict the future." She smiled widely, cupping her mouth to smother joyous laughter as she hopped in place. "Toby has magic! Oh, my god! Toby! Toby! Come in here quick! We need you!"

A few moments later Toby appeared in the doorway in super hero jammies with some blue paint smeared on his right cheek.

"Yeah?"

Sarah kneeled in front of Toby and took both of his small hands in hers.

"Toby, is there anything else you can do besides the future predicting drawings? Have you ever tried to practice doing anything else?"

Toby looked flustered, tugging his hands free for a moment.

"...I did," he mumbled. "But I ended up doing some bad things so I stopped."

"Bad things?" Sarah's brows drew together. "Like what?"

"I didn't want to tell mom and dad that I was being bullied. I thought I could handle it." He shut his eyes. "I got so angry. Fire appeared in Billy's hand and it was burned really bad." Tears formed in the corner of his eyes when he locked gazes with Sarah. "I wanted to learn how to heal him. I tried to practice with plants and stuff but nothing happened so I stopped practicing."

Sarah drew Toby into her arms. "I wish you had told me about this. I could've helped you somehow...I don't know how but I would've thought of something." She gave Toby a soft kiss on his forehead. "You didn't meant to hurt him and I'm sure in time you'll learn how to heal. But before you cut yourself off from magic, did you try doing any other tricks like...transformation by any chance?"

"Yeah..." Toby smiled. "Remember that nice old lady with the weird eye down the block who always brings by fresh apple pie?"

A slow smile started on Sarah's face. "You cured her catarax?"

"Yup." Toby grinned proudly. "I didn't do it for the pie but if she wants to give me extra pie for my good deed I won't say no."

They both shared a laugh at this.

"Oh, Toby, that's so sweet. Using your powers for good."

Eddie stepped forward and ruffled Toby's head. "I admit that's pretty cool of you, Tobes."

Toby ducked his head and preened at the gesture.

"Toby, the reason I was asking you about knowing anything about transformation is because there's some girls that have gone missing. They've been taken to the Underground. I need to go after them and I need your help."

"We need to go after them, you mean," Eddie corrected. At Sarah's look of hesitance, he added, "Liz is my friend too. We'll go together."

"Then you'll both be needin' disguises, I s'ppose. Can ya do it, Toby?" Hoggle asked.

Toby squirmed a bit as he shifted from foot to foot. "Well, I'm not as good as Kris Angel. I'm better at small illusion magic. Transformation magic takes a lot out of me."

"Then we can't risk it. We'll just have to disguise ourselves the old fashioned way. Eddie, your make up skills still sharp?"

"Wait!" Toby rushed forward to stand in between Eddie and Sarah. "Maybe you don't need like a full on transformation. Hoggle, you said some of the girls that were captured looked a lot like Sarah, right?" Hoggle nodded.

Sarah glared at Toby. "Were you listening in the whole time?"

"Yeah," Toby shrugged sheepishly. "But anyway, I can do small changes. I can alter your look a bit so that you look like you yet not you. You umm...get me?"

"Yes," Eddie answered, grinning. "That's brilliant, Tobes." He turned to Hoggle. "You let that Ignay...whatever-his-face know that you found a girl that you think would be suitable for Jareth's contest. Sarah, you let him kidnap you then you and me go storm the castle like a couple of baddasses. Toby, you just focus on Sarah's transformation. I'll take care of my own makeover. We don't want you to force yourself any more than you have to."

"OK, cool. Where should I start?" Toby asked, excitement rolling off of him in waves.

"Umm...can you make me a lighter tone?" Sarah asked, gesturing to her face

"Sure, no problem. What else?"

"Forehead a little bigger, chin more pronounced...nose a bit smaller maybe," Sarah mumbled the last part, coughing a bit in embarrassment.

Eddie smirked. "Your nose? Really?"

Sarah flushed. "Shut up. I've always wanted it smaller." She gestured her thumb and fore finger close together, offering a sheepish half-smile. "Just a bit."

"Ok and...done."

The three of them watched transfixed as Sarah's features shifted around before finally settling on her new face. Sarah walked over to mirror, mouth opening in aww as she touched her strange, yet familiar face.

"Nice. Look's like you could be your own sister." Eddie smirked as a sudden thought came to him. "Now make her boobs bigger, Toby."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Eddie, the point is not to stand out." She glared daggers at Eddie. "And what's wrong with my boobs?!"

"Nothing, nothing but you know what they say." Eddie waggled his eyebrows suggestively as he cupped his own chest. "Bigger is always better."

"Moving on," Sarah announced as she walked over to her dresser and held up her Goblin King figurine. "You can use this as a reference for your Fae look."

Toby laughed. "How about we break out dad's Peter Pan Halloween costume from last year? Now that would be hilarious!"

"Hell no." Eddie gave him a dry look. "Time to go thrift store shopping. I'll meet you guys back here in two hours."

"Whoah," Sarah breathed.

Toby and Sarah sat on the edge of Sarah's bed as they stared at Eddie in his Fae get up. Eddie had returned wearing a gold silk shirt with ruffles on the front along with tight leather pants, a long white coat with gold buttons and Victorianesque lace up boots. The tips of his dark hair from the back had been spiked up, making him resemble some sort of eighties glam rockstar. He had completed the look by wearing gray contacts, powdering his hair and covering it in gold glitter.

Eddie smirked. "Think I'll fit in?"

Hoggle snorted, crossing his arm over his chest. "Just barely passing for fae but it'll do, I s'pose."

"I love it," Sarah stated, unable to stop fawning over Eddie's costume. "And your make up! That foundation and highlighter makes your skin look amazing."

"Splurged at Sephora. Don't have a dime to my name left over but I was worth it." Eddie smirked.

"Sure you are...better lend me that highlighter later." Sarah turned to Hoggle and Toby. "Looks like we're all set, Hoggle. Please, go let Ignaceous know about discovering my existence while I...wait to be captured I guess?" She chuckled, half-shrugging. "As soon as you've told him about me, take Eddie to the center of the Labyrinth. Be discreet and as soon as I arrive there, mix him in with the Fae. We'll go from there. Piece of cake."

"Sarah, ever notice how often we get into trouble whenever you say those three words?" Hoggle groaned, slapping a hand against his forehead. "But alright, I understand."

Hoggle threw one last dirty look in Eddie's direction before hopping through Sarah's mirror.

"Alright, you guys really can't be here for this. Eddie, get into the closet. Toby, go to your room."

Toby stomped his foot and made a face. "I don't want to go to my room. I want to be with you, Sarah. Can't I just hide in the closet with Eddie? I'll be really quiet, I promise. Pinky swear," he whined, holding his pinky out.

"Just putting this out there, I spent many years trying to get out of the closet so I'd rather not go back in," Eddie chirped.

Sarah chewed on her bottom lip. "Toby, this could get very dangerous and I don't want you caught in the crossfire."

"This guy is only abducting young girls. He's not gonna care about a kid catching him. In his mind, who would believe Toby even if he told anyone?" Eddie pointed out.

"Well, yeah...I guess that's true but-

"Sarah, just lay down on the bed and try to look...enticing. Toby and I will wait in the closet. I'll make sure Toby is hidden in the farthest back of the closet so even if that Iggy guy catches me, he won't see Toby."

"Yeah," Toby piped in. "I'm not strong enough to make both of us invisible but I can make myself invisible for at least a couple of minutes. Just enough time for that fairy guy to see there's no one else with Eddie."

Sarah nodded uncertainly. "Alright, fine. Just...be very quiet."

She sat on her bed and kicked off her shoes. Before Eddie joined Toby in the closet, he turned back and stood before Sarah. Before she could inquire on what he was up to, Eddie had started unbuttoning Sarah's green sleeved shirt half way down and ruffling up Sarah's hair.

"Hey! What're you doing?!" Sarah shrieked.

She slapped his hands away and jumped back, red faced and huffing as she clutched her shirt to her chest like the offended young maiden she was.

"Well, you are playing a part, Sarah. Lay down, arch your back a bit and pout your lips." Eddie grabbed Sarah's face and pushed her lips together so she looked like a fish.

Sarah gave him a dry look. "...Just get in the damn closet, Eddie!" she muttered through her fish lips.

"Alright, alright." Eddie splayed his hands in front of him to get Sarah to calm down. He shot her one last look of concern before entering the closet and shutting it behind him.

Sarah breathed in and out a few times as she steeled herself for what was to come. She glanced at the clock. It was 11:47. She reached into her nightstand drawer and sifted through some of her childhood classics before settling on Anne of Green Gables. She laid down in the center of her bed, laying her head on her giant fluffed pillow. The words barely registered in her mind as she slowly flipped through the pages. After what seemed like an eternity, she glanced at the clock. It was midnight. Weird how she hadn't heard her parents return. Right on cue, thunder was heard in the distance and when she glanced up, there stood a beautiful man at the foot of her bed. He had white locks of hair that rested below his shoulders, aqua-colored eyes and a narrow, aristocratic chin. He stood there in a form-fitting leather suit, tilting his head curiously as he observed Sarah.

The book had slipped free from Sarah's hands and landed on the floor with a thud as she opened and closed her mouth a few times but no words came out. The man smiled, a faint quirk of the lips.

"The dwarf was not lying," he murmured softly. "You do bare a great resemblance to Sarah Williams. I daresay King Jareth will be very pleased, indeed."

She had a role to play as Eddie had reminded her earlier. Sarah finally collected herself as she straightened her back and squared her shoulders as she gazed defiantly back at the man.

"Dwarf? King Jareth? Who are you? What do you want?"

Sarah threw her legs off the bed, holding her book firmly in her hand as if it would act as some kind of weapon. She moved backward until her hip collided with the edge of her dresser. She jumped, a bit startled.

The man drew his arms behind his back as he walked slowly toward Sarah the way a predator would with his prey.

"Forgive me. Where are my manners? I am Ignaceous, adviser to the King of the Goblins. He made a promise to be married very soon but only under the condition that he take a consort. That's where you come in, lovely." He gently cupped the back of Sarah's wrist with the faintest of touches, letting her struggle against him for a bit before allowing him to lift her hand to his mouth to kiss it. "I've taken a group of very fortuitous women to the Underground, the world of the Fae, in order to undergo a contest for the king. Whoever wins will become the king's consort and shall never want for nothing."
He offered his gloved hand to her. "I can tell you lead an unsatisfying life. Come with me and all of your dreams will come true."

"And if I don't come willingly?"

Ignaceous smiled patiently. "Willing, unwilling, I'll still have to insist you come with me. It's an opportunity a young, beautiful woman such as yourself should not pass up. There's nothing to fear. If Jareth does not choose you, he'll simply have your memory wiped and send you back to your drab life here in the Aboveground. Isn't that generous?"

"Oh, well when you put it that way," Sarah mumbled, rolling her eyes.

"There's nothing to fear," Ignaceous repeated, holding her gaze with his. "Take my hand."

"...If he doesn't pick me, I'm free to go home, right? Can you promise that?" Sarah asked tentatively.

"I can think of no reason why His Majesty would not let you return here. His Majesty is many things but he's not a monster. And he only requires one consort. Those were his terms."

"But what if I am picked? Will I ever be able to come visit my family?"

"Unfortunately, I have nothing to do with that decision. If King Jareth chooses you, perhaps you can come to some sort of arrangement with him. All I can suggest is that if becoming his consort holds little to no appeal to you then..." Ignaceous leaned close, pressing his cheek against Sarah's as he whispered into her ear. "Best not to draw attention to yourself." He pulled back and smiled. "Will you join the Fae this evening? It won't take more than a few hours of your time. It's Jareth's last day to make his final decision."

Sarah's hand hesitantly hovered over Ignaceous before placing it palms down over his. Finger by finger, his hand gently clasped around hers. A slow smile played at his lips.

"Excellent," he murmured.

Shimmering smoke surrounded them as they were suddenly transported to the Underground. Sarah felt dizzy as she fell to her knees, clinging to Ignaceous' breeches.

"A little warning would've been nice," she gasped out.

"Forgive me." Ignaceous held a hand out for Sarah and quickly jerked her to her feet. "Welcome, my dear...to the castle beyond the Gobin City," he announced, spreading his arms out in grandeur.

Sarah glanced around her lavish surrounding, spying a window near by. She walked toward it and there it was, the Goblin City she had fought her way through eight years ago.

"Come along. We must have you dressed for the evening."

"Dressed? Jeans and a shirt not fancy enough for His Majesty?" Sarah teased.

Ignaceous chuckled. "I'm afraid not." He pressed a hand to the small of Sarah's back as he ushered her forward. "Aurora will prepare you for Jareth?"

He took Sarah to the end of the hallway and up a flight of stairs where they came upon a room with an open door that showed a woman, undoubtedly Fae, with golden hair that curled at the ends and violet eyes dressed in a muslim pink gown. She was bustling about as she tidied up the room. She stopped when she sensed their presence. She blinked owlishly as she stared from Sarah to Ignaceous to Sarah and back again.

Aurora grinned. "Oh, Ignaceous, another mortal to play with. How delightful."

Ignaceous gently pushed Sarah forward, clasping her shoulders in his hands. "Hoggle alerted me about this beauty and seeing as how it's Jareth's final day to decide on a consort, I thought she would make a wonderful addition to the competition. Don't you agree?"

"Yes, indeed." Aurora circled Sarah like a vulture, making Sarah squirm uncomfortably. She titled her chin up to meet her gaze when she finished. "Endless possibilities with this one."

"I'll leave you to it, then." Ignaceous smirked as he turned to walk away.

"Wait, you're leaving?"

Ignaceous nodded. "Much as I'd love to stay and watch Aurora at work, I have to speak with Jareth about tonight's festitivites. I will be seeing you both again in an hour or so. Rest assured, Aurora will take very good care of you, Miss..."

Sarah opened her mouth and promptly slammed it shut. Shit. She had forgotten to make up a name.

"Umm...I'm Serena," Sarah lied.

"A lovely name," Aurora simpered as she played with the end of Sarah's hair, trying to decide on an appropriate hairstyle.

"Yes, indeed. Good luck, Serena or since apparently you don't want all your dreams to come true then...how does that mortal phrase go again? Break a leg."

Sarah smiled and thought to correct him but stopped herself.

"Thank you, Ignaceous."

"Your very welcome, Serena."

With that, Ignaceous shut the door behind him and left Sarah alone with Aurora.

"Alright, Serena, I think I've thought of the perfect outfit for you." Aurora opened the doors of a large wardrobe and started sifting through the sparkly dresses inside it.

"Oh, boy," Sarah mumbled as Aurora presented her choice of outfit.

The next thing she knew, she was being shoved behind a screen door with a Lotus flower design and forced to remove her clothes. Aurora tossed the outfit over it, landing unceremoniously on Sarah's head.

"This outfit is positively luscious," Aurora gushed. "Even the Mighty Jareth will not be able to resist you. Come out so I can do your hair and make up now."

"I'm not going out in public like this," Sarah growled.

"Come now." Aurora made a beckoning motion. "Let me see you, Serena."

When a few moments went by without Sarah stepping out, Aurora sighed and tugged Sarah out from behind the screen door. She stumbled forward, standing a few feet away from a bronze floor length mirror. Sarah stared at herself in utter distaste. She wouldn't even wear something like this to the beach. She was wearing a silver sparkly top with sheer, wispy sleeves that hung below her shoulders and exposed an ample amount of cleavage and belly. The long, silver skirt she wore was surrounded by thin chains of seed pearls that fell loosely from waist to ankle with long slits on both sides.

"You're kidding me with this, right?"

Aurora smirked. "Not at all, Serena. You must do your utmost to gain Jareth's favor. It's a rare opportunity to become a king's single consort. You'd be lucky indeed to become Jareth's."

Sarah groaned her disgust. "Sorry but I refuse to belong to him or anyone."

"Fiery spirit you've got there." Aurora giggled. "You're so pleasing to work with that I'd say you're almost tolerable. Certainly much more than those other cowardly mortal girls I had to dress and primp. All they did was weep mournfully. They should've been crying tears of joy! Given the chance of a life time and they choose to be so negative. Those ungrateful girls," she tutted.

"If you think it's such a wonderful opportunity, why don't you become Jareth's consort?" Sarah huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

Aurora stared at Sarah before bursting into laughter.

"You're funny for a mortal. I could never become Jareth's consort. I've known him since childhood. I'd rather tease him for eternity than share his bed. For me, the former would be more pleasing than the latter."

Sarah stared at her. "So you're like his best friend, then?"

"Yes, well, I suppose that's one way of putting it. I am his closest female friend but his bond with Ignaceous is something minstrels should sing about." Aurora chuckled. "He's very loyal to Jareth."

"Yes, I noticed."

"But enough about me, let's finish getting you ready for Jareth."

It was like being in some fantasy version of the set of The Bachelor. Sarah had never seen so many beautiful women in one room before. She glanced from her outfit to the rest of there's and was miffed to discover that most of the girls were much more decently dressed than her. The girls were talking amongst themselves as they were surrounded from all sides of the ballroom by goblin guards and Fae. Sarah gently pushed her way through the throngs of women, glancing around haphazardly in hopes of catching sight of Liz.

A cool hand grabbed onto her elbow, making her come to a screeching halt. Sarah looked over her shoulder, expecting to see her blonde pixie-haired friend.

Sarah's eyes widened. "T-tally?"

"It is you..." Tally breathed, shaking her head incredulously. "I can hardly believe it. I haven't seen you in years." She laughed. "Out of all the places in the world, I never imagined we'd run into each other in a fairy castle."

Sarah ducked her head and bit back a smile. "Yeah, what are the odds of that, right? I read the article recently about your disappearance. I didn't imagine Jareth's followers were behind it. Who brought you here? Ignaceous?"

"No. It was that creep over there."

The brunette followed Tally's finger to find a tall man with honey colored short cropped hair that fell into his matching golden eyes. He was dressed in a green and gold outfit, walking with a swagger that Sarah had scene only once before.

"His name is Icelos." Tally crossed her arms over her chest as she watched him walk closer to the ring of women. "Apparently, he's the king's brother.

Sarah reached out and squeezed Natalie's shoulder. "Don't worry. Ignaceous assured me that Jareth would not imprison the women he doesn't choose. Just don't attract attention.

Natalie arched one slim eyebrow. "How can you trust anything they say? I remember you telling me a while back that you've been here before but still."

"I don't know for sure." Sarah shrugged. "It's just a gut feeling. When I met him, I felt like he was someone that wouldn't lie to me."

"You were always too trusting." Tally sighed.

Icelos now stood in front of the women with his hands clasped in back of him with a predatory smile.

"Welcome, ladies. Tonight King Jareth is going to choose one of you lucky ladies as his consort. Please, do not be deterred just because this title means you'll be queen and less than a wife but it does not mean that the title is any less grand. I cannot stress what a wonderful opportunity this is for you ladies."

"Oh, my God! We've heard this a thousand times already!" a girl groaned.

Sarah perked up at the sound of that voice. Liz. She craned her head a bit and saw she was a few rows ahead of her. Her nails bit into the palms of her hand when she saw Icelos' gaze turn glacial at Liz's outburst.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Look, no offense, but most of us don't want to be here. No matter how awesome you make the royal life try to sound, we all just want to get this over with and go home. The love of my life might ask me out this Thanksgiving break and here you are farting around with some contest we all could care less about! So send out King Gerald so he can reject us already!"

Icelos walked closer to Liz, the sound of his boots quietly echoing all around them. He cocked his head slightly as he regarded Liz.

"I haven't decided yet on whether or not I regret choosing you for tonight's festivities. You have spirit. The king may find that amusing. As for purposely letting him reject you...I won't allow that." He smirked. "If I don't see that you ladies aren't pouring your little hearts out in your individual performances, I will personally make sure you get thrown into the Bog of Eternal Stench. Yes, it's as bad as it sounds so I implore all of you not to risk it," he snarled. "King Jareth will be with us in a few minutes so I suggest you think carefully about what kind of performance you'll present him with."

"Sorry, I totally forgot my sock puppets at home. And I usually carry them with me everywhere with me. You know since its so common for me to perform for fairy kings." Liz crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head in mock disappointment.

Icelos moved his jaw around in irritation before finally walking off.

"Do as you please. I'll make sure you march yourself straight into the Bog!" he hissed.

"Do that and I'll make sure to drag you down with me!" Liz shouted back.

Sarah dragged a hand down her face and groaned. Elizabeth had to pick now of all times to take a page out of Eddie's book of sass? She wasn't usually like this unless she had downed some liquid courage.

"Oh, Liz..." Sarah groaned.

Natalie blinked. "You know that girl?"

"Yeah, she's the reason I came here. Actually, I was hoping to help all the other girls escape."

"How are you gonna do that?" Tally gestured all around them. "We're surrounded. And you heard what Icelos said. I don't know about these girls but I don't want to find out what the hell a Bog of Eternal Stench looks like." She snorted in a very unladylike manner.

"I'll find a way," Sarah whispered. "I promise. Let's just go over to Liz for now. You know, safety in numbers and all that."

Tally nodded and followed Sarah as they gently pushed their way through. Sarah now stood with Liz's back facing her. She smiled as she reached out to tap Liz's shoulder. She visibly jumped at the touch and slowly turned around to face her. A large grin stretched across her face as a tiny squeal bubbled its way past her throat. Liz lept forward and threw her arms around Sarah's frame.

"You're here! I can't believe you're here! I've never been so glad to see a familiar face in my entire life! Sarah, this place is such a freakshow!" She stepped back for a moment and frowned. "Wait...you look sort of different. Did you get a nose job or something?"

Sarah resisted the urge to clamp a hand over her nose.

She shook her head. "No, no nose job. I promise. I'll explain everything later. Eddie's here with me. He's gonna help me find a way for all of us to escape."

"Eddie's here too?" Liz squinted as she gave the room a 360 sweep. "Where is he? Don't tell me he's gonna swing in from a vine or drop down from the chandelier to save the day."

"Hey, whatever works." Sarah smiled and half shrugged. "We'll see him soon. He's gonna arrive with the rest of the Fair Folk." Sarah paused as she glanced at Tally out of the corner of her eye. "Oh. Right. This is Tally. She-

"Hey, isn't she the girl you used to be friends with that turned into a bitch-" She gasped and clamped her mouth shut. She gave Tally a sheepish grin. "Sorry, I sometimes lack a foot to mouth filter."

Tally shrugged and smirked. "It's alright." She shook her head, running a hand through her curls. "I was a bitch. So since Icelos graciously gave us some extra time to think over our performances, what are you girls planning on doing?"

"Still had my heart set on sock puppets," Liz joked.

Tally giggled. "I was thinking of singing myself. I'm a little rusty but with Icelos encouraging behavior, I should be able to find a way to sing like a nightingale somehow. What will you, Sarah?"

Sarah made a face. "I honestly have no idea. This is so dumb and unfair..." She paused. She sounded like her fifteen year old self and she visibly cringed at the thought.

After a few minutes of talking things over, the room had soon filled up with even more Fae. Jareth had not turned up yet but she could see Eddie enter with a group of other Fae. He caught Sarah's gaze from across the room and tossed her an encouraging wink. Relief bloomed in Sarah's chest upon seeing his familiar face. Ignaceous suddenly crossed the room to stand with his back facing the large golden throne.

"I now present to you, Jareth, the Master of Illusions, Seducer of Dreams...the King of the Goblins." He bowed and turned to watch Jareth stride toward his throne.

Sarah watched over the shoulder of some tall blonde girl as Jareth conversed with Ignaceous briefly before taking his seat on the throne. Icelos chose to stand near Jareth on his right side with his hands clasped in front of him. He crossed his legs at the ankle and rested his cheek against his fist. He looked just as he had years ago except bored and...miserable? Before she had the chance to contemplate the matter any further, Icelos took the spotlight from Ignaceous.

He smiled and he spread his arms wide in a warm, receiving manner.

"Welcome, all! Tonight's entertainment will be an interesting one. As you can see, we have mortal women joining us for the evening. A consort will be chosen among one of these lovely young ladies. Let's get things started now, shall we?" He searched the crowd of girls and for an instant, Sarah wondered if he was looking to bully Liz first. She instinctively drew her much shorter friend behind her. When Icelos spent a few moments searching, he gave up and grabbed a random curly-haired brunette.

"You will do, my beauty."

Icelos grabbed the girl by the wrist and twirled her across the floor until she stood mere yards away from Jareth. He glanced down at her in boredom as she shivered in fear under everyone's gaze. The rest of the evening went like this. The girls performed while Sarah made sure to keep Liz out of sight. Icelos' eyes caught Tally's and he offered his hand to her. She scowled at him, pushed his hand aside and strode confidently toward Jareth.

"I guess I'll be singing a song."

"Very well," Jareth muttered.

And she sang...and boy, could Tally sing. When she finished there was a full heartbeat of silence before the entire room burst into cheers. Tally looked pleased with herself but was shocked when Jareth yawned and stretched where he sat.

"Why, that- " Tally started.

Icelos was by her side before she could finish that sentence. "Very well done, indeed. Just lovely." He ushered her toward the corner of the room where the rest of the girls that had had their turn currently stood. "Now be a good girl and stand by quietly for now."

Tally bared her teeth at him before marching off to join the other girls, making sure her curls hit Icelos in the face as she walked off. One corner of Jareth's mouth had quirked up faintly in amusement. Icelos scowled as turned to choose his latest victim. Sarah had been staring in Eddie's direction when Icelos suddenly sounded very close.

"You."

Sarah blinked as she stared up at him. "Me?"

"Yes, you," Icelos muttered impatiently. "Come along, girl."

He didn't offer a hand this time, merely gestured toward Jareth. Suddenly, Sarah's legs felt like lead as she felt everyone eyes, including Jareth's on her. She clenched and unclenched her fists at her sides as she swallowed hard. When she didn't move, Icelos ushered her forward with one hard shove. She squealed as she skidded forward, barely managing to catch herself before she fell on her face.

"How will you entertain us, girl?" Jareth sighed.

What was she going to do? Should she sing too? Recite a poem perhaps? She shook her head, biting her lip. She had come into this room with the intention of not drawing attention to herself. This wasn't a part of the plan but maybe she could end all this if she did draw some attention.

Jareth chuckled. "Did you bring me a mute, Icelos?"

"Actually, Your Majesty, I was the one who brought her for you." Ignaceous smiled. "Mute she is certainly not."

"Then speak, girl. Time is short."

Sarah froze visibly at that comment. Way too much deja vu in one day. She dipped her head and curtsied.

"I could sing a song, recite a poem, story or joke but it seems, Your Majesty has been put through enough boredom for one night. I'm rusty but I'd like to perform a dance for you. Is there anyone here who can play the piano for me?" Sarah called out into the large room.

A hand shot straight up from the Fae crowd and Sarah couldn't help but smile. She knew Eddie wouldn't let her down. Eddie sauntered over to the white grand piano near the ring of contestants. He ran his fingers across the keys in one glide before glancing back at Sarah to hear her request.

"Player's choice," Sarah said simply.

Eddie nodded and began tapping his way across the piano, creating a soft, almost sad tune as Sarah began her dance. She lifted her arms high above her before slowly striking a bare leg out in front of her. The tempo suddenly turned more seductive as it matched Sarah's dancing. She slowly brought a hand out, caressing one side of her face as it trailed down her neck and between the valley of her breasts. Sarah swayed her arms as if they were wings before skipping a few feet and giving a couple of fast turns on her toes.

'Thank god for those ballet lessons,' Sarah thought.

Sarah ran in Jareth's direction and leapt. She landed gracefully as her arms came back down in a circle in front of her, twirling and twirling until she was on her knees. Her hands ran seductively through her hair as she tossed her head back in apparent pleasure. Slowly, she rose to her feet, her gaze never once wavering from Jareth's intense mismatched eyes. Sarah fought down the nervous quivering of her body as she moved closer to Jareth and steadied her shallow breathing. She was now within arms length from Jareth who watched as her hands wove through her dark veil of hair and her hips swayed tantalizingly in front of him. Before Sarah could think things through, she had turned her back to Jareth and was rubbing her back against his front as she held onto his knees. A soft gasp escaped him. Sarah spun around and straddled him, her gaze not leaving his as she caressed his cheek. Jareth stared up at her as if in a trance, his arms laying stiffly at his side.

Sarah bit her lip, trying to hold back a smile at his reaction. "Your Majesty, since I have your full attention now, may we talk negotiations?"

Before Jareth could respond, Sarah caught a glint of something out of the corner of her eye. Her heart seized up in her chest as her mind caught up and registered what was happening. In the blink of an eye, Sarah had grabbed the sword from the scabbard at Jareth's waist and crossed his sword against the assassin's, creating a powerful clang that echoed throughout the room.

A/N: Sorry there wasn't much Jareth in this chapter but that will change starting with chapter 2. I really enjoyed writing Eddie's character. Feels like that one crazy friend we all know. lol Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Plz R/R for a new chapter. I really want to know what you guys think so far.