Chapter 13

#86 Seeing Red

A crystal sphere shattered into a thousand tiny fragments against the stone wall of the Goblin King's throne room. This wasn't how things were supposed to go. She wasn't supposed to have chosen her brother over him. Her loyalty to an infant that was only a half-brother, while admirable, was infuriating. He hadn't been sure that it was her the prophecy spoke of at first, but when she'd made it to the oubliette in under five hours, his doubts had melted. From that point on it had been a race to convince her that the Underground was where she should stay. The drugged peach, while admittedly cheating, had been a last ditch attempt to show her what she could have. So when she'd shown up in that impossible room of stairs and archways, created of her own imagination, and he'd offered himself to her, he'd been cut to the quick when she rejected him.

But that wasn't how it was supposed to happen! The shattered crystal sphere reformed and flew back to his hand. He squeezed it slightly before throwing it forcefully at the wall again. Everything he'd been told, everything he'd read about the prophecy had indicated that while she would win his challenge, she would also choose to stay. That was how it was supposed to be. The young woman had been selected by fate; there were no other options! She was to be his equal, his mate, his Queen! It wasn't fair…

He jolted to a stop in his pacing. Those had been her words, and his response to her applied to his own situation. The base for comparison was non-existent. Well if the wench could disobey prophecy then so could he! He didn't care what the consequences would be. He would simply forget her, because that's all she deserved to be, a bad memory that one could shove into the recesses of the mind and forget about. The shattered crystal was once again re-formed and thrown across the room. The exertion used to smash the delicate material against the harsh stone wasn't enough. He needed something else to get her out of his system. He decided then and there that this would be the only time he would allow himself to vent over her. Once this was over, he would forget about her and move on.

A clouded expression shrouding his visage, the Goblin King transported himself to the sparring room he usually used with his cousin to practice their skills. Without hesitation, he grabbed a long wooden staff from it's place on the wall and whipped around ferociously, slamming the end against the practice dummy with so much force it wobbled in place, nearly tipping over. He continued his assault against the offending straw-filled burlap dummy until sweat covered his body and dripped down his face. His loose poets shirt clung to his lean form, the sweat soaking through along his chest and back. His hair hung limp along his skull as he stood breathing raggedly, one hand steadying himself with the staff.

That was when he heard it, a lost weeping sound calling out to him. Her voice wrenched his heart and despite his earlier fury, every fiber in his being reached out toward her. Not bothering to clean up, he transported to the Aboveground where he saw her shuddering form curled upon her bed. "I'm sorry, Jareth… so sorry…" she muttered.

He didn't think she knew he was there, but the sound of his name coming from her lips still made him jump. It was late… darkness had come and the party had ended, and despite her victory, Sarah lay sobbing on her bed, pleading for his forgiveness. What had he missed? How had this come to be? Was she not satisfied with her triumph? He took a step towards her, his knees coming into contact with the bed. If he dared to, he could reach out and touch her, but would she accept his touch?

The need to console her overrode his fears and he hesitantly placed a gloved hand on her shoulder. Her entire body froze and he feared that he had done wrong by touching her. Slowly, her head turned and he could see the tear stained and red-splotched face of the girl who'd conquered more than just the labyrinth. Her hands rapidly wiped away the moisture from her eyes as she took in his form leaning over her. Her eyes wandered away from his to the left. Confused, he followed to see that he was still holding the staff. He dropped it hastily and the moment it hit the floor she thrust herself at him, wrapping her arms around his waist and burying her face in his silk shirt near his abdomen. "I'm so sorry! I had to choose and I couldn't choose to leave him there! I swear I didn't mean to hurt you! Please forgive me!" she cried, wetting his shirt with her tears.

His surprise at her sudden nearness melted away and he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "There is nothing to forgive, Sarah."

"Yes there is! I never wanted to hurt you like that! You didn't deserve it!"

He couldn't argue her logic. He hadn't really deserved to be hurt like that… but he fought his case anyway. "Sarah, I tricked you into coming Underground with that book. It was written that you would come and I found a way to get you to do so."

She raised her face to him. "That still doesn't excuse what I did when I got there."

He sighed and pulled her tighter against him. "I think we're both searching for forgiveness, my dear."

"You… what do you need forgiveness for?" she stuttered, sniffling.

"For deceiving you, for not telling you of the prophecy and letting you make your own decision."

"But what about what I did? I took you for granted and made your subjects turn against you and then after everything I tore your castle apart and rejected you."

He smiled and shook his head. "That room wasn't real, Sarah. It was a creation from your imagination and it was only torn apart by your leap of faith to get to Toby when you decided that it didn't matter any longer and you would do anything to get to him."

She re-buried her face in his shirt. "I'm still sorry, and I'll forgive you if you think you need it."

"Thank you," he murmured as he gently stroked her hair with one hand. "And I forgive you, my dear."

They stayed still for a long moment, he stroking her hair, she taking comfort from him. Eventually they shifted so he was sitting on the bed and she lay curled in his arms. At some point, Sarah drifted off to sleep, and Jareth gently kissed her brow and settled back so he was more comfortable against the headboard. This would be enough for now. The warmth of her in his arms and the trust that emanated from her being was enough, but tomorrow would eventually come and they would have to discuss the prophecy. But for now… this was enough.

o O o O o O o

A/N: Okay, so this was going to be something totally different… something longer and more complex, but then I decided that I really don't have the time to plot out something like that and chose instead to satiate the plot bunnies by writing this for the 100 themes challenge.

I hope you enjoyed!

Labyrinth (c) Jim Henson & Co.