Epilogue

"Sarah, you're being ridiculous."

Sarah glanced up from her designs that lay strewn across her desk to the Goblin King, who was sprawled lazily on her bed in jeans and a button-up shirt. "I am not. I don't bother you when you're busy, do I?" She rolled her eyes at the rhetorical question and returned to work, now highly distracted by the fae trying so hard to bring her attention elsewhere.

"Not intentionally, precious." He shifted so he was lying on his stomach, chin playfully propped up on his hands.

"I can't help being the subject of your thoughts, Jareth. Unlike a certain someone." She gave him a sideways glance and squinted her eyes at him.

It had been two months since their initial agreement to see each other (however informal and untraditional it may have been), but in all honesty, neither of them had gotten to see the other as much as they would have liked. Jareth had to catch up on the tremendous amount of work he had missed during his time aboveground, and Sarah was kept busy at work. Usually, Jareth barely had enough time to drop by for a hello or quick dinner. Sarah had to admit that she missed the amount of time they used to spend together, but duty called, and she wasn't about to give up her hard-earned career for some extra time with the Goblin King. 'No matter how awfully tempting that may be,' her inner thoughts added.

And yet here he was, as temptingly gorgeous as always, strewn across her bed as if to say "do what you will with me." He had come to ask her on a date tonight, about which Sarah was immediately up in arms, as she had had no prior warning and had a mound of work to complete before tomorrow.

"You need to learn to be more flexible, dearest." He smirked toothily, gazing at her relentlessly with those icy, mismatched eyes.

"Oh, I need to be more flexible," she retorted as she scribbled some notes down on an index card. "A few hours notice wouldn't have killed you?"

Jareth shrugged. "I wanted it to be a surprise."

"Sure you did," she scoffed. "Look, I'm sorry Jareth." She spun around in her chair to face him. She almost choked at what she was about to say next as she took in his lithe and subtly muscular figure. "Tonight's just not a good time for me."

His mouth turned downward into a slight frown, but Sarah knew it was a ruse. "Well, that's quite unfortunate." As he finished his sentence his frown broke into a faint smirk, and Sarah knew that he was brewing trouble under that unruly mane of his.

"What, Jareth," she growled impatiently, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible.

Sarah heard him shift and stand from his position on her bed as she turned back to her desk, pretending to concentrate. "What if you didn't have all of this work due in a few hours, hm? Then would you come with me?" His voice was like liquid chocolate and made Sarah's insides want to melt. How did he do that?

She sighed heavily, and without looking up at him, knowing it would break her concentration, conceded through gritted teeth, "Yes Jareth, I probably would. But we both know that-"

"I can reorder time," he finished bluntly.

If she hadn't thought it impossible, she could have sworn that she felt the self-satisfied grin spread across his face, satisfaction radiating off his form behind her. She hadn't thought of that one. She felt his warm, gloved hands settle onto her shoulders, grasping her firmly but gently, and she shivered at his touch.

"We have all the time in the world, Sarah."

She turned around in her chair to face him, narrowing her eyes and trying desperately to remain in control of the situation. "Now that is not fair," she replied, determined to sound resolute.

"Perhaps not," he began mischievously, his hands massaging her shoulders and working his way down her arms. "But if something isn't fair, though still works in your favor, you'd best not complain, precious." He brought his lips to her neck and bit down gently, causing Sarah to moan softly as she felt his cool breath on her skin.

"Mm, alright," she relented. "But if I don't get to work on time tomorrow-"

"You will," he stated rather harshly as he stood up straight and spun her chair around to face him. His face lit up with childish delight as he lifted her from the chair by her hands and drew her to him.

"Wait, I'm not-" Sarah started as she looked down at her business clothes that were disheveled from her long day at work and sitting hunched over at her desk.

"You look lovely, Sarah," Jareth interrupted.

"For having 'all the time in the world,' you certainly seem like you're in a rush," Sarah noted suspiciously. But the creative, younger, fairy tale-loving part of Sarah was giving in to his impish giddiness and wry smile. She shook her head. "You never fail to confound me, Jareth."

"I could say the same, Sarah dearest," he chuckled softly, pulling her against him. "Hold on tight."

Having done this a few times now, Sarah grabbed onto the sleeves of Jareth's shirt, wincing that it would probably wrinkle. But before her mind could wander further concerning the creases in the Goblin King's clothing, she felt the tell-tale compression sensation as her ears popped and they were transported to the Underground.

But when Sarah's head stopped spinning and she slowly opened her eyes, she saw something she certainly had not expected. Never once loosening her grip on Jareth's strong arms, her eyes widened as she took in the scene around her.

They were standing in what seemed to be a ballroom, although it differed drastically from the ballroom of her dream so many years ago. Gone were the tatters and dilapidation of the Goblin Kingdom she had now come to realize were a thing of the past. Rich tapestries hung from its walls, and liquid moonlight bathed the polished wood floor. The most striking differentiation between her memories and this, however, was that they were completely alone. Sarah caught herself when she met Jareth's eyes, that had apparently been watching her reaction the entire time, and quickly snapped her jaw shut.

"I'm flattered that you seem to like it Sarah, but if you don't loosen your grip on my arms, you may very well ruin my plans for the evening." He smirked at her in the moonlight.

She jerked back at his words. Ruin what plans? 'Wouldn't you like to know,' her inner voice answered her unspoken question. She glared at Jareth in the dim light flooding in from the glass windows. She instantly regretted opening her mouth, as her wavering tone made it obvious that she had been contemplating his answer. "So are we just going to stand here in the dark staring at each other or what?"

He let out a bark of laughter that reverberated around the spacious room, nearly making Sarah flinch at its suddenness. "I wasn't planning on it, but I would be more than happy to take you up on that offer." He lowered the pitch of his voice as he stepped closer to her, shoes clicking on the smooth floor, his frame now so close that it blocked out all light from view. "Although, should staring at each other become dull..." He flashed his teeth in a wicked grin, only to be met with Sarah defensively crossing her arms across her chest.

"Forget I said anything," she retorted, betraying her inner thoughts. Of course, she would have preferred to do something more than simply stare at each other in the dark, but she wasn't about to admit that to Jareth. As well as they might have been getting along, there was still a part of Sarah that couldn't stand to lose, even if the consequences for losing weren't necessarily against her own wishes.

Jareth responded with a smirk, but was silent as he stepped back and bowed deeply, extending his arm toward her. She stared blankly, unsure of what he was offering.

"Must I ask, Sarah?" he said, lowering his pitch, all traces of jest now absent from his voice.

Warily, she extended her own arm and placed her hand in his. As she did so, he pulled her almost roughly into an embrace.

"Jareth, what-"

He shushed her as he began to move slowly across the dance floor. "Just relax."

Music started to play from an unknown source, and memories of an earlier time and a similar situation came flooding back to Sarah. But this time, there was no one to save, no time constraints. Gone were the excessive and gaudy decorations, the white dress, the glitter in her hair. This was real. And they were completely alone. But something about it just seemed too good to be true; too planned, too perfect. Sarah looked up at Jareth and bit her lip before looking away again.

Suddenly, he stopped, and took her chin in his gloved hand. He raised her face to his, although she still refused to make eye contact. "What's wrong?" It was almost a whisper, and she could hear the sincerity and nervousness in his voice. A nervous Goblin King? That was certainly new.

"N-nothing," she started hastily. "It's just..." She almost painfully pulled herself away from his arms, wrapping her own around herself to replace the lost warmth. When she didn't finish her sentence, he spoke.

"I see." His voice suddenly seemed cold as he turned from her slightly.

At this, she chanced a glance up at him, only to meet his eyes with hers before quickly returning her gaze to the polished floor.

"Perhaps this would be more to your liking."

Sarah felt a burst of cold wind, causing her to look up into the eyes of a Jareth dressed in gray breeches and a leather jacket, reminiscent of the outfit he had worn during their meeting in the tunnels of the Labyrinth. She could only stare, her lips moving without forming words.

"Or perhaps this?" He flourished his hand again and with another blast of cold air his outfit changed to the daunting black armor he had donned during their first encounter. His golden locks became unruly, his arms now crossed over his chest. His face distorted into one of intimidation, then frustration as he took another step towards Sarah. "Or perhaps," he added, emphasizing the final syllable, "you might prefer-"

"Stop!" Sarah protested, finding the confidence to meet his icy gaze. She pressed her palms against his black chest plate, not once looking away.

He clenched his jaw at her reaction, but slowly began to relax under her gaze. He sighed heavily, contrasting with his menacing demeanor. "Sarah, I need you to be honest with me." He looked into her eyes and placed his hands softly on her shoulders. "I'm not sure what it is you want from me."

"Everything that you wanted I have done."

"Jareth, I..." It was her turn to sigh now. "I just want you to be you. I don't want the Goblin King of my childhood fantasies." She replaced her palms that were resting on his chest with just a finger, and looked up into his melted gaze. "I want to know you." He opened his mouth to object, but she continued. "The good...and the bad." She smiled as she watched him absorb what she was saying.

"Sarah..." he removed his hands from her shoulders and took a step back.

"I don't want any more tricks, Jareth." She continued. "And as hard as it may be for you to believe after everything we've been through together...I do want to get to know you better. I want to know the man who has influenced my life, the man who..." she trailed off, unsure about how to express her feelings. But before she could, she felt him grab her hand tightly.

"Can I show you something?" he asked abruptly.

Taken aback by his sudden change in attitude, Sarah nodded jerkily. "Um, okay..." And before she could ask any questions, she found herself again pressed against Jareth's chest, experiencing the pressurized teleportation whose sensation she had still not grown completely accustomed to.

When she opened her eyes, she found herself in darkness, absent from Jareth's warm embrace. Unable to see anything, Sarah began to panic. "Jareth?" she asked, her voice absorbed by the silence. A candle light flickered, and relief flooded through her as Jareth's face was illuminated in the darkness. He seemed to again be wearing his clothes from the aboveground, his face uncharacteristically grave.

"Where are we?" Sarah asked in a whisper, glancing around her for another presence.

"We are quite alone," he responded as if he could sense her fears.

Light from candles along what appeared to be stone walls began to flicker and brighten the room, highlighting what could only be described as old ruins of a stone building. Sarah gasped as realization dawned. They were standing in the destroyed Escher room. Everything was exactly how it had been on the day she had spoken those fateful words, changing both of their paths forever.

"I couldn't bring myself to return here for many years," Jareth reflected, disrupting the silence. Sarah jumped when she realized he was now standing quite close to her. "I'm ashamed to say it, but it was a weakness of mine for a very long time." He didn't go into detail, which she was grateful for. She had no desire to relive that scene any more than he did.

"That's...understandable," she managed, uncertain of how to respond to the situation.

"When I finally did come here," he continued as if he hadn't heard her, "I came to rid myself of the weight on my heart. I came in order to put my memory of you to rest, once and for all." His eyes focused on the wall opposite them, refusing to look in her direction. "For some reason, I couldn't imagine never seeing you again...couldn't imagine living without you. I was...desperate, you might say, to rid myself of these feelings." He shrugged a bit, his tone lightening. "Needless to say it didn't exactly work."

Sarah shifted her weight uneasily from leg to leg. She found listening to this confession highly uncomfortable, particularly because she was the cause of it. As much as she appreciated this new, honest side of Jareth, it made her uneasy.

"So I found myself here, in this room." He motioned with his arms to the area around them. "I had no direction. I felt lost, for probably the first time in my very long life."

Sarah opened her mouth to speak, but he noticed and held up a hand to stop her.

"But then," he smiled, "I paused for a moment."

They were suddenly submerged into pitch blackness, and Sarah's thoughts couldn't help but flash back to the similar situation in her apartment not months ago.

"Sarah, look."

"If I can't see anything, how am I supposed to-" She felt two strong hands rest on her shoulders, and she realized that Jareth had positioned himself in front of her.

"Look up."

And as she did, Sarah gasped. Above them, through the ruins and the darkness of the Escher room, were stars. Bright stars, both large and small, that formed a blanket over a seemingly endless sky. And not just one moon but several made their way across the night sky at different speeds, the glowing orbs growing closer and farther apart as she watched in amazement. Bending galaxies seemed so close that Sarah almost felt that she could reach up and touch them, their swirling colors filling the night sky.

"It's..." there were no words that she knew to describe the exquisite beauty that she was gazing upon. Any and everything that she had ever seen paled in comparison.

"I know," Jareth whispered. She had almost forgotten he was there. "And I realized, even with all of my status and all of my magic, how helpless I truly was in the grand scheme of things. I had tried to alter fate, and in doing so, believed that I had ruined my chances of ever seeing you again, let alone receiving a second opportunity to build a relationship with you."

Sarah tore her gaze from the sky and forced herself to look at Jareth. "But-"

"And then I received the summons that I thought would never come." He smiled at her, but an inner pain was reflected in his eyes. "Don't you see, Sarah? I had given up; I had moved on. I had to move on. And then, when I least expected it..." he motioned at her, and she understood.

She smiled back at him genuinely. She returned her gaze to the sky. "You can alter fate," she said slowly. "But it always has a way of coming back to you, as if it truly knows what your heart desires."

"I move the stars for no one."

"Sarah." His voice was barely a whisper, but she returned her gaze to him, listening attentively.

"Jareth?"

She suddenly found himself wrapped tightly in his arms, not caring one bit that he might have been holding her a little too tightly for her to breathe properly. He buried her face into her neck, and she melted in his embrace. His long fingers tightened their grip on her sides, pressing her body against his and creating feelings and reactions within her that she didn't feel she could control for much longer.

His lips were on hers, and she was overwhelmed by the emotions she felt through the display of passion. Desperation, loneliness, tenderness, ecstasy. His hands pulled her hips closer to his as he ran them down her torso, causing her to gasp as they broke apart, breathless.

"Sarah," he rasped as he ran his fingers through her long dark hair.

The sensation caused Sarah's head to fall back, the rest of her still pressed against the man who was now doing unspeakably wonderful things to her neck and to the rest of her body. "Jareth," she whispered.

He slowly sank to the stone floor, bringing her with him while placing kisses along her collarbone. He pulled off his gloves one at a time with his teeth, his hands never completely leaving the woman before him. "Stay with me, Sarah," he spoke softly, his words not a question.

She didn't answer immediately, her head still swimming from all of the things his hands were doing to her, and instead stifled a moan.

"I am certain I am not the only one who feels the pull of the fates between us," he continued, his breathing becoming heavy. He looked down at her, limbs and hair splayed on the tile floor where she had rejected him not a decade prior. "Be with me, Sarah."

Her entire being was begging for emotional and physical release. She was in love with Jareth, fate or no. And she knew in her heart that no matter where life took her-took them-she would only be truly satisfied if she had him by her side. If that was made a constant, she was confident that everything would work itself out from there. She reached up and tangled her fingers in his long, platinum hair and pulled his face toward her, eyes darkening. "Damn the fates."

That was the only signal he needed. He smirked seductively at her, and managed to say, "Now that's the Sarah I know," before being consumed by both her passion and his own.

And there they lay, expressing their love for one another in what once was a place of sorrow and defeat, forever to be known as the place where dreams were fragmented and the foundations of reality, love, and understanding were built.

The End

A/N:

First comes the necessary apology that it took me 4 months get this epilogue up. Did you all forget about me? I moved to Japan back in September and once the semester started, well... Also, adapting to a new lifestyle, culture, school, and language are not exactly conducive to writing, particularly in English (as I spend the majority of my time using Japanese). I hope the quality of my English writing has not worsened... But I could make excuses all day. The fact is, my first fan fiction has officially come to an end. Thank you all so much for supporting me through this process, and thank you for your kind comments and reviews. As any writer knows, reviews are what keep you going, and believe me when I say that I read and take to heart every one of them.

That said, over these past months I have been brainstorming ideas for new Labyrinth fics that I am really excited about. While speaking Japanese might not help my English writing ability, traveling around Japan is inspiration material like nothing else! It's truly a beautiful country. I have the rest of January off and the entirety of March off school as well, and I plan to do some major outlining and writing for stories that I feel are more in depth now that I've tested the waters and my writing ability with this one. Thank you again everyone, and please let me know what you think of the story as a whole and what I might be able to do in order to improve my writing in the future. Hope you enjoyed! ;)