The Darkened King

A Little Bit of Fluff

Sarah opened her eyes to find Jareth staring at her. Not in a creepy way, but in a way that informed her that he had been watching her for a time. She knew that he saw she was awake, but he said nothing about it.

Instead she sat up, dimly realized that he must have brought her a blanket, and then realized she had been asleep for quite some time. Her entire body was stiff and sore, she felt as if she had been cramped and bent oddly, which she had been.

It reminded her of the times she had given in to the little diva who was her brother and curled up with him to read, or tell, a story. His little "big kid bed" was not meant for an adult sized human and a mini one.

"I still don't have the answer, but I do have more questions." Sarah said as she crossed her legs and looked over at him. He looked terrible and she wondered when the last time he slept was. While she would never dare say that the Goblin King looked unstylish, he made looking like crap look good, but she was a little concerned for him.

Sarah looked around the darkened library and noticed that more time than she had thought had passed. It was strange, it had not felt like long, but the entire library had been thrown into shadow.

"You're an Old Soul." Jareth said without his normal teasing tone from his chair next to her.

"Right, would you also like to tell me that I'm also a wizard?" Sarah scoffed as she stretched and looked up at him. She expected him to be smiling, or at least for his eyes to be laughing, but he was serious and that almost frightened her.

 "Alright then, no laughing. Would you mind telling me what an Old Soul is?" She questioned when he remained silent.

"A human who, upon death, is reincarnated into a new body. They will live as many lives as they like and return to this world because they have left someone or something behind that they cannot live without. Even in death they return because they cannot bear to be parted from it." Jareth explained as he studied her for a reaction.

"Right, I believe in fairies, that isn't too long of a stretch. Mind telling me what I keep coming back for?" Sarah asked as the strange memories from long past clicked into place. She could create a timeline and, with Jareth's assistance, mark down the years she was in the world for. Maybe he remembered the life she lived in which she found out about the path. If he could do that, then she might be able to summon up the memories from that life. Though that was a large if. And if Jareth could not even remember why he had been sent into exile, Sarah doubted he could remember a date.

Did time even flow the same in both worlds? She knew that her ten hours in the Labyrinth had only been a few in her world and the few days she had spent had barely been a day. If she could find how differently time moved she could see how much time in both worlds passed before she "returned" to the world of the living. Perhaps there was a pattern in it that could shed some light.

"Normally by now you either tell me I am insane or ask me the strangest way you've died." Jareth commented and Sarah was taken by the stillness in which he sat, as if he was afraid that the smallest of movement would make her bolt.

Sarah scooted to one end of the fainting lounge and patted the space beside her.

"I think I am going to go with the latter, though don't you for a second think that I am letting you get away without answering my question." Sarah declared as he took the offered spot beside her.

"Well, you were once born into a royal family, a true princess. I will not say your name, but your father died when you were quite young and when you reached marriageable age, your step-mother poisoned you before you could take the throne from her." Jareth said and Sarah stared at him.