Lost And Lonely - A Labyrinth Fanfic [UPDATED VERSION]

17) Sweet With a Hint of Creep

Jareth wandered toward the sleeping girl; his heels lightly clicking on the stone below him. Raven was completely out of it. She didn't even wake to the sounds of his shoes, which were being fairly noisy. Below her was a book, pages marked by a leaf between the paper sheets.

He wanted to come clean; to explain that this was bound to have happened, her one day coming to his world and staying. But how to break it to her was the tricky part. There were a million ways she would respond. One of them was one he feared; her leaving his world.

If he was going to tell her, it would be now- now when she's capable of waking up to his voice, hearing the truth. Or shall he wake her?

Gently nudging the sleeping girl, Jareth held his breath as he heart pounded in his chest.

"Nnmph..." She mumbled, slowly coming to.

"I need to tell you something, Raven."

"Can't it wait?"

"I'm sorry, but no. It needs to be said now while the moment is right for it." Jareth sat himself in the grass, facing Raven as she woke herself.

"Well, what is it?"

"Listen..." The Goblin King started hesitantly. "One night, I was wandering the streets of the mortal world, and I came across a raven- the bird. And...it...it led me to you, as a child; maybe just a few days old."

"Jareth what-"

"-Please let me finish." He gulped. "I gave your little red book to your mother before I left, as a gift. That same little red book you've held onto for so long, is from me. I watched you grow up, and become fascinated with fantasy and mythologies and legends. You were bound to come to my world, Raven. It wasn't fate, it was destiny. I wanted to be your teacher, or...even more than that..." He finished while looking away, completely ashamed of himself.

"So..." Raven paused as she took all the information in. "You Edward Cullined me?"

"I- ...who?"

"Never mind, I'll explain that later." She shook her head. "But...you wanted me here? So you could teach me this incredible magic?"

"Please don't be ang-"

"I'm not mad, Jareth. In fact, it's...sweet, in a slightly disturbing and super creepy way." Raven chuckled lightly. "I get it. You're lonely here being surrounded by goblins day and night. You needed a change in your life here, and that raven somehow knew that."

"Actually, that raven is a resident here. I catch him watching me every so often. I'm just surprised that you're not screaming at me for doing this to your life."

"Honestly Jareth, I know I should be chewing your ear out, but I can't. I'm...actually grateful that you did this."

"Wait, what?"

"I hated that life back there, because nobody understood me. But now that I know everything really real, I'm glad that I'm here now."

"I...uh..." Jareth stuttered, before grinning ear-to-ear. "I'm glad you're here, too."