Valentine Evenings

A/N: I'd like to thank everyone who took the time to read my first chapter, and even surprised me by adding my story to their favorites within the first few hours it had been published!! :)

Now to the legal stuff! I do not own Labyrinth, or any of the characters, that right belongs to Jim Henson & Co.

Chapter 2: The Path Between the Stars

Sarah's slumber had instantly been overcome with a jolt of adrenaline. She thrust herself upright, and found herself in a staring contest with the Goblin King.

He had the most self-satisfied grin plastered across his lips. He looked triumphant, and eager.

"You forget, dear Sarah, that no matter how soft you might have uttered those words; to me, they sound clear as crystal."

Sarah was completely mortified. Half unaware of what she had even done, she scooted towards the opposite edge of her bed, squeezing her face between her fingers.

Jareth laid himself on the empty side of Sarah's bed, crossing his legs, and allowing his hands to sit behind his head. Compared to Jareth's usual get-up, he was dressed rather casual. His white shirt, somewhat open, and his glorious, dark gray pants, that still seemed like they had been painted on, rather than any cloth Sarah had ever laid eyes upon. It made Sarah blush! She had always been so curious to why he chose to wear such tight pants in the first place…?

Jareth turned his head towards Sarah, allowing his suspicious eyes to work magic of their own upon her.

She could only continue to stare at him—She had nothing to say! She was embarrassed!

There Jareth was, at her command—lounging in her bed! Wallowing in Sarah's "defeat". She could absolutely kick herself.

"So, Sarah, now that you have my company… What are we to do? And don't say you don't know, sweet Sarah, because you must have had something in mind…"

Sarah groaned. She glanced at the Goblin King through her fingers. His face was slightly turned towards Sarah, and she could see his eyes peeking through his lashes, through slightly opened eyes.

As much as Sarah despised Jareth, she couldn't help but want him. He had an almost sickening aura about him. It was extremely magnetic, and the nearer he drew, the pangs Sarah felt in her chest grew to incredible proportion. It was almost unbearable to wear her poker face any longer.

"Well…" she reluctantly murmured as she bit her lip. "I don't know if you need sleep, but I do. So I'm going to bed."

She turned over, and let her back face Jareth, as she brought her legs to a bend.

"Hmph, you would, Sarah. Wish me here only to accompany you while you sleep. What a strange, girlish fantasy," Jareth said through a devilish smirk.

Sarah sat up and turned her body straight towards Jareth. She felt the sudden adrenaline rush through her veins, straight to her brain. How dare he say such a thing??

She balled up her fists, and proceeded to try to grab Jareth by the shirt, only to be pulled by the Goblin King himself.

He brought her face, and her body close to his. His eyes were focused on Sarah's almost-quivering lips. He could feel her blood pumping; he could almost smell Sarah's passion, hoping it was the sort of passion that consisted of a severe case of confused, angry and lustful hate, which he felt defined love quite well.

Breath songs in my head
Slow arrow flies &'burning
And the trouble we possess
While the sunshine goes on sleeping
The sunshine

He himself began to sit up. He held Sarah by the jaw with his left hand, sinking his fingertips into Sarah's flesh.

He placed his cheek on hers as he began to whisper in her ear, "Sarah, please, I'm begging you. Come to the Underground with me, you will not regret it. You have my word."

Sarah was trembling. She could only clench Jareth's shoulders, as he spoke to her, whispering sweet promises into her ear.

She was beginning to feel mesmerized, enchanted by the bewitching words Jareth was murmuring to her, but was broken from the hex by loud banging on the front door.

Sarah blinked rapidly; seemingly shaking off whatever Jareth was in the process of doing. Her expression turned from that of a deer in the headlights, to a predatory hawk.

Jareth's eyes widened with concern, as Sarah took off to answer the door, quickly hopping down her stairs to see who could possibly be paying her a visit at this hour.

"Sarah!" Jareth hissed, as he quickly got up, and somehow appeared before Sarah's front door, his hands on each wall, body against it.

"Don't open this door, you'll regret it, I promise you, Sarah, please. Let's go to the castle."

Sarah rolled her eyes.

"Jareth, I'm not fifteen anymore. Now let me see who it is, before I wish you away!!"

Jareth turned his head away, and stepped forward, all the way to the end of the hallway, hiding in the darkness.

Sarah opened the door, and found it to be Stanley, her neighbor.

Though she didn't care much for him, she always lent a helping hand to those in need.

"Stanley? What can I do for you?" she asked, eyeballing him with curiosity.

"Sarah, is it too much trouble to borrow your phone? I locked myself out of my apartment, so I need to call up a buddy of mine…" he requested as he took a quick observation of the environment.

Sarah felt uneasy. He seemed too eager to come inside. Jareth was right, and now she didn't know what to say.

"Um, well, you see, I-uh… I—" Sarah began to stutter as Stanley was inching his way through the door, only to be interrupted by a hand pulling the door wide enough to reveal Sarah's new, rock star-esque boytoy standing behind her.

Much to Sarah's horror, there was Jareth—shirtless! Was he trying to save her…like that?? It seemed like he attempted to appear somewhat like an "Above dweller", only he appeared to look more like he was from a hair band in the 80s.

His hair was the same, nothing on his face seemed to glisten in the light. Really, all he did was lose the shirt he was wearing, only appearing to be in his pants and boots, with an amulet hanging around his neck.

Perhaps he was just trying to make it look like they were interrupted…?

"Sarah, darling who is it? Come back to bed, dearest—Oh my, what do we have here?" Jareth smirked, as he shot Stanley a dirty look.

"And what is it that we can do for you?"

Stanley's demeanor instantly went from a confident, overpowering male, to a mortified child, caught in the act, upon the sight of Jareth. He also seemed slightly confused by Jareth's odd appearance.

"I just needed to borrow the phone," Stanley said as he cleared his throat.

Jareth cocked his head to the side.

"Oh really? Well, there's a payphone downstairs, mate. Sarah, go fetch this fellow some change," Jareth replied as he crossed his arms, and allowed Sarah to slide past him.

Stanley continued to inspect Jareth's outfit.

"I didn't know Sarah had a boyfriend."

Jareth let out a chuckle, "Well, now, I wouldn't exactly say that. We're old… friends."

"From college?" Stanley muttered.

"No, actually, I met her before then. We've been acquainted for quite some time. And nothing has ever stopped me from coming to Sarah whenever she finds herself in quite a pickle, even when she might not know it." Jareth's eyes were set on Stanley's.

Stanley eye's widened, and he quickly turned away, "Well! Actually, I think I have some change in my truck, tell Sarah thanks anyways for me! Later, man!"

Jareth chuckled as he saw Stanley bolt down the stairs. He shut the door, and locked it, and walked into the rest of the apartment, and found Sarah sitting at the table.

Her arms were crossed, and she was staring at the floor.

"You knew it… You knew he was up to something."

Jareth grabbed his shirt off the counter and approached Sarah.

"Well, obviously. But it's not like you ever listen to me, am I right?" Jareth stated.

Sarah knew it was true, and she felt her eyes water. What if she had allowed Stanley in? What would have become of her? Would he have… had his way? And robbed the place…?

Jareth noticed Sarah starting to cry. He let out a sigh, and pulled his shirt back on.

"Sarah, come, come now. Those tears aren't going to make anything better. Now then! Are you going to wish us back to the Underground? That's not the last visitor you'll be having this weekend, dearest. So now, I'm really urging you."

Sarah gave Jareth a puzzled look.

"How did you know about this?"

The look Jareth returned was not mutual at all, but rather annoyed by Sarah's ignorance.

"Sarah, don't mistake me. Just because you think my main goal is to make you surrender to me, doesn't mean it's my only mission," Jareth laughed.

"Why, if I didn't watch over you, you'd be in a handful of difficult situations! And if I didn't intervene on occasion—well, there would just wouldn't be a Sarah Williams to pursue!"

Sarah scowled at Jareth with aggravation. It was just like him to help her for his own selfish reasons. He wanted her to himself, so that's why he warded off creeps like Stanley.

There were several occasions when Jareth had somehow popped up, in strange places. On the subway, when she was lost in Manhattan. When a bum harassed her for money. When she was out with her girlfriends, and drunk "alpha males" tried desperately to get in her pants. Jareth always made some appearance. Thankfully, he wasn't completely obvious, and would always find some way to disguise himself. As a snow owl, who attacked bums and drunk frat boys. On the subway, a crystal rolled her way, and told her how to get home.

Jareth was displaying a prideful smile for Sarah.

"Oh, Sarah! Always thinking that I'm so selfish, even though everything I ever do, I do for you. A 'thank you' would be pleasant once in a while, you know. But I'm a very generous person, Sarah, so there's really no need. Which is why I'm going to ask you one last time, are you going to come with me to the Underground? Or wait around to see what happens next?"

"I'm not your little conquest, Jareth. I'm going to stay here; I can take care of myself, thank you! And for the record—I wish you would go away now." Sarah declared, certain that she would just not answer the door this time.

Jareth submitted Sarah a poisonous visage.

"Suit yourself, Sarah. You're going to change your mind later, dearest, just-you-wait." Jareth said as he walked back into the shadows.

Wants to feel you shake and shooting
He will be our leader
Wants to feel you shake and shooting
He will be our leader

All that was left of him was his echoes. Sarah let out a snotty "hmph", and walked up to her loft.

If I knew you were just going to try and get me to give in to you, I wouldn't have wished you here in the first place.

Sarah curled up in her bed, and clutched her second pillow close to her chest.

He's probably just saying those things to scare you, Sarah. It's just like him to do something like that. He's never genuine.

She watched the digital numbers on her clock slowly change. It was 3:30am, and she still hadn't fell asleep. She was too busy contemplating whether or not wishing the Goblin King away had been such a good idea. The lack of energy soon overtook her body, and she slowly slipped into unconciousness.

It had possibly been three hours since Sarah had fallen asleep. Everything was still, and quiet in her apartment.

She was caught deep in her dreams. Another one of Jareth's ignored gifts to Sarah; Eternal sweet dreams. He felt that life in the Above was enough of a nightmare for anyone, and wished Sarah to have sweet dreams every night. When she slept, she always slept pleasant. She had noticed this when she was around eighteen, and felt perhaps it came with older age?

Sarah stirred, and squeezed the pillow even tighter. Her dreams always took place in the Underground. And on the anniversaries of Jareth and Sarah's first meeting, Jareth replayed her dream in the ballroom. He always thought it was a sweet gift from Sarah. As much as she physically displayed her "dislike" for him, he knew it was untrue. The dream she gave him contradicted it all. Her only problem was that she was so proud, just like he was. Always running from him.

But Jareth always made sure he was only a few strides behind her.

Every time Sarah had this dream, it was like new all over again. The butterflies in her stomach, the pacing of her heart. It was euphoria.

A knee on the corner of Sarah's mattress sunk the left side down.

Sarah's eyes opened, with such warmth fluttering inside her, eager to see the villainous king.

But to Sarah's terror, it was a strange man, accompanied by two others, with bandanas tied around their faces.

She let out a scream, and was ready to jump, but was quickly pinned by two of the men, and the last one was attempting to duct tape Sarah's mouth.

"SHUT UP, SHUT UP!!" he bellowed, but Sarah refused.

All she could think about is how she wished she had listened to Jareth for once. Just once, oh how she wished…

Sarah turned her face down towards her shoulder, and screamed, "I WISH THE GOBLIN KING WOULD COME TAKE ME AWAY, RIGHT NOW!"

And within a heartbeat, Sarah was gone.

The men were in a battle of tug-of-war with the pillows and blankets.

Upon noticing this, one of the men slid his bandana down.

"What the hell?? Where'd she go??"

He turned towards the other men.

"Stan, what the hell's up with this broad? She's gone!"

Another man slipped down his bandana, revealing he as Sarah's neighbor Stanley.

"I don't get it man, what the hell?? What could have happened?"

The other man turned to Stanley, and shoved him.

"I thought you said this chick was loaded, what the hell Stanley?! She doesn't have shit here!"

"Yeah, and where's your glam rock wannabe? He's nowhere to be seen!"

"We better split guys, now!"

The three men quickly took a look around, making sure they had left nothing behind.

Meanwhile, Sarah's eyes were shut, while she had her hands in front of her face like a child. There was silence, and dim candlelight. Sarah opened her eyes, and slid her hands around her, discovering she was in some sort of bed. Was she in a hospital?

No, it smelled too delicious to be a hospital. The scent was intoxicating, and sensual. She sat up, and observed her surroundings.

She was in a large bedroom of some sort, with high ceilings, painted with murals of faeries, and some sort of a sky map. There was a large balcony, with heavy red wine colored curtains to Sarah's left. The bed she appeared to be laying on was equivalent to a California-king, and had tall, wrought iron posts, and a canopy intertwined with a sheer material whose color was identical to the curtains covering the balcony. There where stained glass windows on each side of the bed and on the opposite side of the balcony was a large wardrobe, and an open door to some sort of washroom. Directly in front of the bed was a pair of large, heavy wooden doors.

There were bookshelves on the wall near the balcony, which seemed to go as high as the ceiling. There was a little stairwell up to a platform that the shelves began on. In the area was a large chaise, with small tables on either side, with a bowl of exotic fruits, and a bottle of some sort of wine. There were mounds of books next to it, and on the other table, papers, and a quill.

Sarah sat up, and began to scoot off the bed, gazing at her surroundings, only to be stopped by a familiar character standing in front of her.

Jareth.

He was flashing his cocky grin, hands on his hips.

"Dearest, Sarah. It's really a pity that you never listen to me."

His demeanor quickly turned from arrogant to compassionate, and the most sincere Sarah had ever encountered Jareth.

His hands slid through her hair and he brought her head to his heart. He sank down onto his knees, and held Sarah who was in too much shock, and humiliation to tell him to buzz off.

She found herself wrapping her own arms around Jareth, crying into his chest, squeezing him, pulling his shirt.

Jareth laid his head against Sarah's, and could only feel his blood beginning to boil.

He couldn't force Sarah to come to the Underground. It didn't work that way. He could only try to persuade her, like he did. He even warned her about her fate, but she was so stubborn. If Sarah hadn't wished him away, he could've helped her. The other times, Sarah didn't know the Goblin King was watching, and never objected once. But this time, he could only hope that Sarah would wish herself to safety in the Underground.

Jareth only knew he had to punish the men who had attacked Sarah.

He was grinding his teeth, and clenching his fists.

They're going to pay for this day.

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A/N:Hurrayyy, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. :) Thank you all SOOOO much for adding my story to your alerts/favorites, and for all of your wonderful reviews!

You guys are wonderful, and since I'm so grateful, my next update will consist of two chapters, and maybe a fanart or two on my deviantart page! Hehe, I promise you won't be disappointed, I've been a student of art for several years, and it's a passion of mine! I've been working on some fanart to go with the story… So I will post my deviantart ID in the beginning of the next chapter!! (It currently has nothing in it, I recently joined.)
Maybe I should start spoiling you guys more often…?