Hey guys! Thank you so much for the reviews! It helps me better understand you and what you want out of the story as a writer, of course im gonna still stick to the plot I made but understanding my target audience and hearing your thoughts really helps me improve! :)

I'm going to try and update at least once a week but I have quite a lot of stuff too do so that might not happen, so far so good though!

I don't know if I mentioned this but I'm actually a professional writer so this fic is juts self-indulgence and practise while I sort out my original fiction.

Also, what are your thoughts on smut? I really want to highlight the difference in relationship dynamic between Jareth/Olivia and Jareth/Sarah, also I can't decide if Sarah should actually feature or not, if she does it'll waaaaay in the future.

again inspired by dark souls and zelda twilight princess (im also working on a zelda fic because that's actually my main fandom, i LOVE ZELDA!)

Olivia skulked through the catacombs with a sullen disposition, striking down enemies that dare stood against her and the Aegis Sword.

The sword was a marvel; working with Olivia in a way she had never experienced before. Her movements were intuitive and precise, the deadly way in which she fought was unparalleled despite never really having wielded a sword in her life.

It was terrifying, she knew this, and yet it was as if the sword held a power over her she could not name. Like a drug addict without acknowledging her addiction, she wondered if the sword was helping her or using her.

Her mind constantly strayed to Jareth's warning, and his offer, so Olivia assumed that the sword had been linked to her and that was why she had gained this unnatural ability.

An omen for sure, Olivia knew that such a thing must come with a heavy price beyond what Jareth had said. She wondered if the souls she had sent back to the grave, for the skeletons must be powered by something, were connected.

Her musings were interrupted once again by an overly zealous pack of raging skeletons, once again dispatched by the Aegis Sword.

She could feel the thorned vines tighten every time she tried to resist or make a move the sword did not approve of and reasoned that she might as well just go along with it until she had slain the minotaur.

That was another concerning thought of hers. Before, defeating the minotaur was always optional, even if her survival chances dwindled with its living, but now she had to kill it or she would die also, especially as Jareth wouldn't just hand her the antidote.

Not exactly her preferred manner of living but Olivia knew better than to look a gift fae in the mouth, especially as she believed Jareth's bite would be worse than his bark.

She thought of her sister frequently too. Olivia wondered how she was being treated in the Goblin City, making a mental note to enquire to Jareth about it the next time they spoke, and they would speak again, that was one thing she was very of.

It was funny, she mused, that the only thing she could be certain of in this strange land was it's strange king's reactions.

Jareth would probably be incensed if she mentioned it to him.

Olivia smirked, making another mental note to tell him of her certainty.

Another skeleton downed and Olivia realised that she was going in circles around the dreaded catacombs. She fought back a string of profanities as she forcefully sent the skeleton's skull flying with a well aimed kick.

It clattered down an ill lit corridor noisily, and Olivia grimaced at the noise.

She stood stock still in the darkness, waiting for the shuffling of assembling bones at the racket she had made, but nothing happened. The silence was deafening in itself.

Olivia wondered how Fern was doing too, and if the funny dryad missed her at all or if he had gone back to his dryad family. She shook her head, realising that she had never once asked about his family, but then again he had never spoken of them despite his chatty nature.

Maybe all woodland life was family to him? But then again maybe not, Olivia didn't consider all mammalian life her family after all.

Her mind then strayed to Jareth again, and she cursed herself for continuously thinking of him.

The king was less hostile than before, though she was still cautious of his intentions, and Olivia found herself actually enjoying the game they played, even involuntarily. It was confusing, maddening, and she pitied him.

That was the worst part, the pitying, because in Jareth she saw herself.

True, she had never kidnapped anyone, nor was she the sovereign of her own kingdom, but she had felt that bone deep loneliness before. Even now it had settled in her darkest places, filling her lungs and sitting in her throat.

Olivia loved her family, and she loved her friends, in particular she missed Saorise, her best friend and the only person to ever really understand her, but still that ache was not eased.

She was terrified at the feeling Jareth invoked, that his playful nature was boarding on more than their fierce rivalry.

Olivia mused that if the circumstances were different, not so dangerous, not so sudden, that they could even have been friends.

And it was this particular revelation that frightened her so much.

'If I have befriended my enemy, have I not defeated him?' That quote, from some man whose name Olivia couldn't place at the moment, rang heavily in her mind around and around.

She could befriend Jareth. She had done it before with other people she was less than fond of, by her nature Olivia was a charismatic, friendly woman who never really hated anything or anyone.

Well, her subconcious whispered, there is him.

She told her subconcious to fuck off, and resumed her fast pace, footsteps echoing loudly in the quiet catacombs. It had been a long, long time since she last thought of her ex and she didn't intend to let him distract her now.

And even disregarding him, Olivia's previous best friend, someone she trusted more than anyone had ended up only valuing her purely for what was in her pants. That was no way to make friends, she thought, to befriend someone with the expectation that they could become more.

It hurt her terribly when her friend betrayed her like this, and Olivia worried that if Jareth was attracted to her, not a far-fetched thought, she was no fool she knew they had undeniable chemistry, and she was not interested then the same thing would happen again. Only this time with a powerful, vengeful sorcerer-king at her throat.

But, if that didn't happen and she did befriend him, then not only would he learn some humility, she would make sure of that, but she believed that he'd be loyal and fierce too. And that power which could easily destroy her, could be used to his benefit if he had someone level-headed to guide him, she would also get her sister back.

Befriending Jareth wasn't a terrible idea, but that didn't mean it was a good one either.

Fdefesgrfthytghkjul,ikl

Jareth was getting sick of these compulsory balls.

When he was younger, and more virile, he had loved to flaunt himself for all to see, regardless of gender or orientation.

He had always been considered particularly attractive amoung the fae, and his court had fed his ego over the years, assuring him of not only his staggering beauty but also of his unrivalled power.

Only, with unrivalled power came unrivalled fear, and unrivalled fear came with enemies, ones he would rather not tangle with.

The king sighed as he was handed yet another glass of unknown alcoholic beverage, his boredom clear to all but the ladies, and a few lads, that swooned around him.

His mind strayed to Olivia, the Not-Sarah who was steadily becoming more intriguing than a Sarah had been in a long time, and her progress within his labyrinth. She had become ensnared by the Aegis Sword and he had carefully omitted detail about it.

True, the sword had enchanted others before and they had all fallen to their doom, but none had survived so long as she, especially once the thorns had dug their way into the skin.

Jareth was almost scared of Olivia and her potential.

She was beautiful too, not something he wanted to admit but she had held his attention far longer than the fae ladies had and as such thought it dishonest to completely ignore her beauty, and she intrigued him.

It had been a long time since he last had taken a lover, and though he would never bestow such an affectionate nickname upon her, he did feel the stirrings of arousal in his gut when they fought.

He wondered if she'd look so angry in the heat of the moment, if she was as violent and feisty in bed as in battle.

For so long Jareth had grown tired of boring battles and of wailing whores who he cared little for. Olivia was different, she was fire and angst, death and destruction, surely she would be a mighty conquest and if he succeeded, if he made her fall in love with him then he'd have her loyalty, and her loyalty came with the Aegis Sword.

He could give up Jayne, a single child for the most powerful weapon in existance was a deal too good to pass up.

Of course, this all relied on whether or not Olivia managed to slay the minotaur and if Jareth could stand her company for more than a few moments at a time.

He grimaced as he spotted the mask of a woman, made to look like a distorted version of his new interest, already the fae had heard tale of Olivia and how she had grasped the Aegis Sword. Already his enemies must be planning in secret whispers to dispel the troublesome girl, knowing that she could potentially destroy them in the sword deemed her worthy.

So who was she?

Greatest friend or worst enemy?

Only time would tell.

Once again, Olivia was lost.

She knew she was making progress though the catacombs, if videogames taught her anything then it was that when you were faced with a myriad of obstacles then you were on the right course. And Olivia had cut down countless enemies and blustered through terrible trials.

The catacombs had thus far proved to be incredibly difficult, and Olivia found it nearly impossible to check her watch between the dim lighting and irrepresible skeletons.

She sighed, dodging another blow and slashing at the offending skeleton, sending it's bones clattering to the ground below noisily.

There was a screeching sound, and Olivia turned around to find herself facing two very unique, very deadly skeletons.

They were tall, taller than any human, and clothes in dark robes. They both carried two massive scythes, blades glinting beneath the dried blood.

"You..." the first hissed, "you have...entered our...domain..."

"disturbed...their rest..." the second one said, and she named them Wardens.

Olivia slowly raised from the floor, Aegis Sword held aloft in front of her as the Wardens slowly advanced on boney feet.

"and now...you shall...join them..." they said in unison, lurching forward.

Olivia yelled, throwing herself to the side to avoid the First Warden's blades, curved in an arc where her head had been and clanging loudly into the wall.

The Aegis Sword told her what to do, and Olivia felt her body move on its command.

She swerved left, beneath the blades of the Second Warden, before ducking behind it and dodging the First Warden again. They were fast, faster than Olivia was, but she had the Aegis Sword.

The Second Warden spun in a circle, blades outstretched in a whirlwind of danger and clattered against the Aegis Sword as Olivia blocked. She clenched her teeth together, muscles screaming as they tried to hold onto the sword and keep their position.

While she was busy blocking the Second Warden, the First Warden had seen an opening and taken a chance to cut her down.

Olivia screeched, dropping to the ground in a roll as the First Warden slashed at where she had been. She looked up just in time to watch as the blades narrowly avoided her head, slicing a few of her loose hairs as the blades sunk deeply into the Second Warden.

The warden howled, thrusting his swords down at Olivia between them as it thrashed around, trying to dislodge the First Warden's blades.

Olivia quickly sprung up and nimbly jumped onto the Second Warden's bowed back, left hand tightly fisted in the ratty robe, and she swung the Aegis Sword down into it's next, slicing through the bone and decapitating the Second Warden.

It fell to the ground, Olivia quickly following, bones clattering against the ground and she rolled to the side as the First Warden struck the ground where she had fallen.

Olivia didn't celebrate her victory, but she was instantly more confident now that she had killed one of the powerful wardens.

But her success only seemed to spur the First Warden on, and its eye sockets glowed a terrible, vibrant red as it wailed at her, freezing Olivia in her tracks. Its voice was so loud and so grating, it was like her brain was trying to escape from her skull and it was then that Olivia realised that her ears were bleeding.

Blearily, she opened one eye, horror filling her chest like cold water as the First Warden's scythes sliced towards her.

And then it stopped, the blades less than an inch from either of her eyes. She could feel her eyelashes flutter irritatingly against the blades.

Olivia's gaze flickered to the frozen warden and saw vines wrapping around its joints, stilling its hands and the swords attached.

She jerked backwards, scuttling on the ground to put more distance between herself and the First Warden.

It wasn't dead, or actually it probably was but Olivia could see that it was still mobile, shaking in its attempt to free itself from the vines that trapped it.

Olivia approached the First Warden cautiously, sword held at the ready as she tried to ascertain exactly what had caused the vines to trap such a powerful foe.

The vines weren't like the ones that accompanied the Aegis Sword; they were thornless and smoother, appearing to be far less painful than the ones that held Olivia and she felt a small twinge of envy, at the softer vines, and pity for their similar predicament.

"Thank goodness I got to you in time!" Said a familiar voice and Olivia whirled around, heart jumping in her chest with excitement.

Standing behind her, well, in front of her now, was someone she had dearly missed.

Fern wasn't grinning, a strange sight indeed, as he surveyed the catacombs, disgust evident on his handsome face as the vines that trapped the First Warden were held tightly in his bark hands.

Olivia's grin was filled with relief as she ran straight into the dryad's arms, nuzzling her face into his leafy clothing, and squeezed his middle tightly. Fern bowed his body, returning her hug whilst still holding onto the vines.

"You came!" Olivia squealed, eyes shining with mirth as she pulled back, still holding onto the dryad.

He smiled smugly, "Miss me that much?" he teased.

Olivia giggled in embarrasement, "A little, I thought I was going to die there," she admitted, turning her gaze back to the First Warden, poking him with her finger, "but this guy's friend isn't as good as mine,"

Fern laughed, wrapping the vines tighter around the First Warden and tying them off, kicking the warden and watching as it fell to the ground with a loud, drawn out groan.

"How did you even find me?" Olivia asked, side stepping around the fallen warden and gently nudging its scythes with her booted foot. They looked pretty cool, she thought, but the Aegis Sword was far more useful and there was no way she'd lug those scythes around too.

Fern gestured for her to follow, "Let's go, those vines won't last forever and that one you killed will get back up soon, I'd rather have distance between us when that happens," he grimaced,

Olivia frowned, "Wait, what?"

The dryad shrugged, "You can't kill something that's already dead, you've probably been fighting the same skeletons over and over again,"

She grunted, "great, thatg's not completely inconvenient at all,"

Fern laughed at her, "undead soldiers are the best, they don't need food, sleep, companionship, they just fulfill their purpose. The only thing they require is magic to keep them risen,"

"and let me guess, you know all this because the trees told you?" She asked, almost in disbelief, but Olivia was beginning to learn that she needed to suspend disbelief in this strange new world.

"yeah they did, they also told me that you were getting into trouble, and as much as I really didn't want to come down here I decided that having my only friend be killed was far worse than some pesky undead," he explained and Olivia felt a rush of affection surge in her chest for the dryad.

"I'm your only friend?" She asked,

He raised a brow, "that's all you took from that? That I have no friends?"

"yeah," Olivia said, grinning cheerfully.

Fern smirked, "dryads are pretty reclusive, even if we live in big clans, and most people bore me,"

"but not me?"

"but not you,"

Olivia chortled, "I don't know whether to be flattered or offended," she confessed.

Fern laughed, "why not both?"

"Thank you, by the way, for saving me," she said, walking side by side with him.

The dryad smiled softly, "it's alright," his smiled warped into a teasing grin, "but you owe me a favour now, one I can cache in at any time!"

Olivia groaned, remembering the rules of the fae, "fantastic," she deadpanned, and Fern laughed again.

Olivia leaned back against the wall, breathing heavily as she rested. She had been constantly moving ever since Jareth had whisked her away, and Olivia was feeling the strain of her physical activities, even with Fern for company.

She didn't have time to rest, she knew that, she had to venture on and rescue Jayne. But she was so, so tired, and her body was begging for reprieve.

Her stomach rumbled testily, reminding her of how long it had been since she'd eaten.

With burning lungs and aching muscles, Olivia slid down the wall to sit heavily on the ground, sword lying haphazardly against he thigh.

Olivia hissed, eyes squeezed shut as the thorned vines tightened around her wrist, scraping her bones together painfully and forcing the breath from her lungs. Her knees shook, and still the vines kept tightening.

She hadn't told Fern the price she paid for grasping the Aegis Sword, but she guessed from his intuitive concerned glances that he already knew, and if not then surely the trees, plant life, or whatever would've told him by now.

They still had to get out, and Olivia couldn't leave through the tree roots like Fern had arrived.

It must be useful, she thought, to be so connected to nature than you can travel quickly through it anywhere, anytime.

"C'mon," Fern said, wrapping a slim arm around her shoulders and heaving her up, "can't stop here, not until we're out of the catacombs,"

Olivia nodded, wiping sweat from her brow, "yeah, and I still gotta kill the minotaur,"

He rolled his eyes, "still going for that, huh? Why don't you just skip the minotaur and go straight to the castle? Lob the king's head off instead?"

"He's not so bad..." Olivia said, earning a scoff from Fern, "besides, he said if I bring him the minotaur's head then he'd give me the antidote for this," she lifted her arm, showing the thorns biting into her skin.

Fern grimaced, "ah, yes," he said, "I'd forgot about that..."

"Well, I can't exactly just forget," Olivia muttered, eyes downcast.

The dryad nodded, "well, I'm helping you so at least you're not alone," he said kindly, "and when did you speak to Jareth?"

Olivia sighed heavily, "when I first got to the catacombs, though I'm pretty sure he's watching me now!" She shouted, waving the Aegis Sword high in the air with an annoyed face.

Fern laughed, "Spying on pretty girls is one of his favourite past times,"

"Gross and weird," Olivia commented,

He chortled, "well, only pretty girls of interest, pretty boys too, and probably anything neither, inbetween, both, and whate-"

"alright, alright, I get it," Olivia interrupted, "GK's frustrated, maybe if he took that stick outta his ass it might help..."

Fern burst out laughing, "you can be the one to tell him that!"

"Tell him? Dude probably alreay knows, kinda hard not to know when you're sexually frustrated," Olivia said, before stopping short as she thought hard, "wait, he's not married and this is an archaic society," she eyed Fern questioningly, "is virginity still coveted?"

Fern shook his head, "I'm not so sure about how traditional fae do it, but dryads are horny shits, we have a mating season in spring and 'spread our pollen' so to say,"

"Thanks, Fern, I really wanna know how you bone," Olivia said sarcastically, "want I actually asked was whether or not virginity is important, Jareth is ancient so him being a virgin is...odd, by human standards at least," she frowned, "I'd be too curious to stay a virgin that long,"

"yeah, but humans have shorter life spans," Fern countered, "so he's not that old in fae years,"

"you still haven't answered by question," Olivia pointed out, "unless you really don't know?"

Fern shrugged, hands up in the universal gesture of surrender, "I might know but if GK, a great nickname by the way I'm so using that, is actually watching your every move then he's always watching this conversation," he pointed out,

Olivia giggled, "Great then let's ask him!" She cupped her hands around her mouth, bending slightly at the waist and shouting into the dark caverns of the catacombs, "Hey! GK! You a virgin?!"

Her only response was the echo of her own voice, carrying in the darkness.

She shivered, "That...might have been a bad idea..." Olivia admitted with a wince, and just as she realised her error the ground started to shake.

Unbeknownst to Olivia, because she wasn't paying attention, she had led them into a large circular room, standing high on a ledge thag went all around the massive sand pit in the centre.

She leaned over the ledge, and theorised that the pit must be at least fifty feet deep and right in the centre of it was a huge skeleton, its skull resembling a wolf with spiriling horns. Its spine was massive too, no doubt to support the huge head and Olivia grimaced as a violent shiver wracked through her.

Fern stood beside her, peering down at the monstrous skeleton too, "I have a bad feeling about this..." he said gravely.

And then, the skeleton moved.