Labyrinth: Jareth/Sarah - The Thirteenth Hour
Title: The Thirteenth Hour
Author: ilerya82
'Verse: Labyrinth
Claim/Pairing: Sarah Williams & Jareth, The Goblin King
Media: fanfic
Word Count: 1,149
Rating: This particular part is T - but this is going to be a much larger fic and I urge you to read the ratings accordingly!
Disclaimer: Again, I do NOT own Labyrinth. If I did, would I be here making fan art and shipping? Hells, no! I'd be making things happen! ;)
Summary: Jareth has been watching Sarah since she left the labyrinth beyond the Goblin City with her brother, waiting for the right moment... The moment that she would realize the truth...
Table/Prompt/Listing... for _____ Community: can't take my eyes off of you from my bingo card for love_bingo
Prologue
With each twist, each turn, each stair, she drew closer to her goal and with time running short, her search grew more urgent. It seemed every time she neared Toby, he would appear in another location. Now, with the final moments ticking out on the clock she saw him below her, perched on the edge of an archway, legs dangling over in to the abyss in his red in white striped pajamas.
Toby…She focused her thoughts on her brother.
She had to get to him - she had to stop this madness, this game. She had to have her brother back. Sarah closed her eyes and shook her fears from her mind. Sarah understood now what she would have to do.
Jump, said a voice inside her head, Jump, Sarah, there’s no time to lose.
She leapt from the edge of the platform, a literal leap of faith, and the world began to crumble in ruins about her as her body drifted through the air. Bits of stone and stair twirled past her as she floated down to the only solid landing space. What had once been a room filled with staircases and archways, leading in gravity defying directions lay in ruins, every inch crumbling before her as she glanced about.
He emerged from the shadows of the only remaining archway; Jareth - the Goblin King, swathed in a costume of warm, creamy shades of off white cloth. Sarah steeled her resolve as he approached her though she felt as though her legs would give out beneath her. She felt his predatory gaze upon her with every step he took. The Goblin King was at once terrifying and breathtaking.
“Give me the child,” Sarah’s voice trembled as she spoke, belying her confidence.
“Sarah, beware,” Jareth interrupted, “I have been generous up until now, but I can be cruel.”
“Generous?” Unbelievable! Sarah thought as she continued, “What have you done that’s generous?”
“Everything!” he spat at her, “Everything that you wanted, I have done.” Jareth began to circle her where she stood. “You asked that the child be taken. I took him. You cowered before me. I was frightening. I have reordered time. I have turned the world upside-down… and I have done it all for you! I’m exhausted from living up to your expectations of me. Isn’t that generous?”
“Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered…” she began softly. Feigning confidence, Sarah could feel the stinging threat of the tears that she could not shed in this moment. “I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City.” She advanced towards him as Jareth began to back away from her. There was a haunted look in his eyes, but every inch of her being knew that she must continue. She must rescue Toby. “For my will is as strong as yours… and my-”
“Stop!” came his raspy plea. “Wait.” He conjured a crystal to his fingertips. “Look, Sarah. Look what I am offering you… Your dreams.”
Mismatched eyes beseeched her, pleaded with her to stop, and for an instant she faltered. No matter how wonderful the prize, the cost was too great to pay. Sarah continued her advance.
“And my kingdom as great…”
“I ask for so little.” There was a sadness in his eyes the Goblin King spoke, “Just let me rule you… and you can have everything that you want.”
“Kingdom as great… Damn! I can never remember that line!”
“Just fear me, love me, do as I say… and I will be your slave,” Jareth’s final plea was dripping with promise.
“My kingdom as great…” she muttered in a feeble attempt to block him out, “My kingdom as great…”
Sarah, you can everything you’ve ever wanted, the voice sang inside her head.
But it was too late, the final line echoed inside her. The air within her lungs pushing the sound past her lips, almost unbidden, the true meaning of her words a mystery. Words had power in the Underground, much more power than she knew, and these words would save her brother from becoming a goblin.
“You have no power over me.”
Sarah!
They reverberated in the air around her as the clock began to strike thirteen. The world melted around her, dissolving back into the foyer of her family’s home. The clock continued to chime as a white barn owl fluttered its way out the open living room window.
Sarah watched its path as it flew out of her life… Forever.
The dream never changed, it always ended with Jareth’s pained escape and the realization that there came a time when childhood fantasies and toys should be put away in favour of real life. Her father always used to tell her that she couldn’t live in a fairytale forever, and he was right. When that owl had flown from their window, Sarah had realized that it was time for her to grow up. Look where her fantasies and daydreams had gotten her - into a whole heap of trouble!
She’d always thought that the dreams would dissipate with time, melting into her childhood remembrances as the years went by. Sarah turned over and glanced at the digital clock on the bedside table. 2 A.M. She pushed the stray chestnut strands from her face and tried desperately to shake the malaise from her mind.
The dream made her uneasy, especially now that ten years had come and gone since her foray into the Underground and the Labyrinth beyond the Goblin City. The images in her mind were still as vivid as when she’d been in the moment, fighting to save her brother’s young life from an eternity as a goblin. Shouldn’t her recollections be dimmed, less focused and less intense after all this time?
Why can’t I dream of Hoggle or Ludo or Didymus? Any one else instead of him? Sarah thought as she rolled onto her side to face the window. The light of the New Moon left an eerie glow across her room. Familiar objects cast strange shadows bathed in the crisp, blue light making her mind race.
A soft rustling noise came from the opposite corner of the room. There were things in the shadows; she knew they were there, even if they didn’t make themselves known to her, she could feel their presence. They were always there. Watching. Waiting. Listening.
She squeezed her eyes shut tightly and prayed that sleep would find her swiftly. As she began counting backwards from one hundred, she swore she heard the telltale hoot of an owl at her window. Pulling the covers up until her head was almost covered, Sarah opened one eye just enough to peek at the window before burying her head beneath the duvet.
Perched on the windowsill was a single, white barn owl with its gaze firmly fixed upon the young woman who slumbered within, unable to tear his eyes from the vision of her...
Author: ilerya82
'Verse: Labyrinth
Claim/Pairing: Sarah Williams & Jareth, The Goblin King
Media: fanfic
Word Count: 1,149
Rating: This particular part is T - but this is going to be a much larger fic and I urge you to read the ratings accordingly!
Disclaimer: Again, I do NOT own Labyrinth. If I did, would I be here making fan art and shipping? Hells, no! I'd be making things happen! ;)
Summary: Jareth has been watching Sarah since she left the labyrinth beyond the Goblin City with her brother, waiting for the right moment... The moment that she would realize the truth...
Table/Prompt/Listing... for _____ Community: can't take my eyes off of you from my bingo card for love_bingo
Prologue
With each twist, each turn, each stair, she drew closer to her goal and with time running short, her search grew more urgent. It seemed every time she neared Toby, he would appear in another location. Now, with the final moments ticking out on the clock she saw him below her, perched on the edge of an archway, legs dangling over in to the abyss in his red in white striped pajamas.
Toby…She focused her thoughts on her brother.
She had to get to him - she had to stop this madness, this game. She had to have her brother back. Sarah closed her eyes and shook her fears from her mind. Sarah understood now what she would have to do.
Jump, said a voice inside her head, Jump, Sarah, there’s no time to lose.
She leapt from the edge of the platform, a literal leap of faith, and the world began to crumble in ruins about her as her body drifted through the air. Bits of stone and stair twirled past her as she floated down to the only solid landing space. What had once been a room filled with staircases and archways, leading in gravity defying directions lay in ruins, every inch crumbling before her as she glanced about.
He emerged from the shadows of the only remaining archway; Jareth - the Goblin King, swathed in a costume of warm, creamy shades of off white cloth. Sarah steeled her resolve as he approached her though she felt as though her legs would give out beneath her. She felt his predatory gaze upon her with every step he took. The Goblin King was at once terrifying and breathtaking.
“Give me the child,” Sarah’s voice trembled as she spoke, belying her confidence.
“Sarah, beware,” Jareth interrupted, “I have been generous up until now, but I can be cruel.”
“Generous?” Unbelievable! Sarah thought as she continued, “What have you done that’s generous?”
“Everything!” he spat at her, “Everything that you wanted, I have done.” Jareth began to circle her where she stood. “You asked that the child be taken. I took him. You cowered before me. I was frightening. I have reordered time. I have turned the world upside-down… and I have done it all for you! I’m exhausted from living up to your expectations of me. Isn’t that generous?”
“Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered…” she began softly. Feigning confidence, Sarah could feel the stinging threat of the tears that she could not shed in this moment. “I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City.” She advanced towards him as Jareth began to back away from her. There was a haunted look in his eyes, but every inch of her being knew that she must continue. She must rescue Toby. “For my will is as strong as yours… and my-”
“Stop!” came his raspy plea. “Wait.” He conjured a crystal to his fingertips. “Look, Sarah. Look what I am offering you… Your dreams.”
Mismatched eyes beseeched her, pleaded with her to stop, and for an instant she faltered. No matter how wonderful the prize, the cost was too great to pay. Sarah continued her advance.
“And my kingdom as great…”
“I ask for so little.” There was a sadness in his eyes the Goblin King spoke, “Just let me rule you… and you can have everything that you want.”
“Kingdom as great… Damn! I can never remember that line!”
“Just fear me, love me, do as I say… and I will be your slave,” Jareth’s final plea was dripping with promise.
“My kingdom as great…” she muttered in a feeble attempt to block him out, “My kingdom as great…”
Sarah, you can everything you’ve ever wanted, the voice sang inside her head.
But it was too late, the final line echoed inside her. The air within her lungs pushing the sound past her lips, almost unbidden, the true meaning of her words a mystery. Words had power in the Underground, much more power than she knew, and these words would save her brother from becoming a goblin.
“You have no power over me.”
Sarah!
They reverberated in the air around her as the clock began to strike thirteen. The world melted around her, dissolving back into the foyer of her family’s home. The clock continued to chime as a white barn owl fluttered its way out the open living room window.
Sarah watched its path as it flew out of her life… Forever.
The dream never changed, it always ended with Jareth’s pained escape and the realization that there came a time when childhood fantasies and toys should be put away in favour of real life. Her father always used to tell her that she couldn’t live in a fairytale forever, and he was right. When that owl had flown from their window, Sarah had realized that it was time for her to grow up. Look where her fantasies and daydreams had gotten her - into a whole heap of trouble!
She’d always thought that the dreams would dissipate with time, melting into her childhood remembrances as the years went by. Sarah turned over and glanced at the digital clock on the bedside table. 2 A.M. She pushed the stray chestnut strands from her face and tried desperately to shake the malaise from her mind.
The dream made her uneasy, especially now that ten years had come and gone since her foray into the Underground and the Labyrinth beyond the Goblin City. The images in her mind were still as vivid as when she’d been in the moment, fighting to save her brother’s young life from an eternity as a goblin. Shouldn’t her recollections be dimmed, less focused and less intense after all this time?
Why can’t I dream of Hoggle or Ludo or Didymus? Any one else instead of him? Sarah thought as she rolled onto her side to face the window. The light of the New Moon left an eerie glow across her room. Familiar objects cast strange shadows bathed in the crisp, blue light making her mind race.
A soft rustling noise came from the opposite corner of the room. There were things in the shadows; she knew they were there, even if they didn’t make themselves known to her, she could feel their presence. They were always there. Watching. Waiting. Listening.
She squeezed her eyes shut tightly and prayed that sleep would find her swiftly. As she began counting backwards from one hundred, she swore she heard the telltale hoot of an owl at her window. Pulling the covers up until her head was almost covered, Sarah opened one eye just enough to peek at the window before burying her head beneath the duvet.
Perched on the windowsill was a single, white barn owl with its gaze firmly fixed upon the young woman who slumbered within, unable to tear his eyes from the vision of her...