Strangers 'Til Now - A Labyrinth fan fiction

Chapter 7 - A Proposal

One day, nearly 4 months into Sarah's training, an invitation arrived. Jareth had been waiting for it since the Duke's visit. He knew the Duke wouldn't hesitate to tell his mother about things going on in the Goblin Kingdom.

He arrived late for their training session, the invitation in hand.

"Today, my pet, all things need to change. Tomorrow we'll begin our journey to the Fae Kingdom. We'll need to look and play the part of two Fae's in love. At the end of the week, you'll be announced as the future goblin queen."

"That seems fast. I've only been here a few months."

A glare from him silenced her. His patience wore thin as the days swept by. Jareth left the room after handing over the invitation from his parents. He needed to speak with a certain goblin...

After searching nearly a half hour, he heard him knocking out the fairies and counting them as he went along. It was a usual pastime for this particular goblin.

"Hogwart!" Jareth yelled as he rounded the corner.

"You'd think you'd have learned by now. It's Hoggle!"

"Oh, hush hush," Jareth beckoned Hoggle to come closer, which he did cautiously. "If you tell a soul about what I'm going to ask you, I'll banish you and Sarah's other friends to the Bog of Eternal Stench!

"Now Hogwash. How do I get Sarah to accept my proposal? Tomorrow we leave for the Fae kingdom and I don't want her to say no and the trip to get off on a bad start."

"Well for starters, don't threaten to bog her friends!" The goblin squeaked. If Jareth truly needed and wanted his help, he wouldn't dare Bog him, only threaten to.

"I suppose you could just romance her a bit," Hoggle said after thinking hard. "She's always talking about how she wishes you would talk with her more about things. She says she hates the mystery you surround yourself with."

"Mystery?" The king questions.

His eyes glaze over in thought as he thinks about what Hoggle revealed. The goblin was too afraid to interrupt or leave.

"Higgins, I have a plan! I'll just have to tell her what she wants to hear."

"Well only tell her if it's true," Hoggle reminded him.

"Yes, yes. We'll I've a proposition for you. You come to dinner at the castle tomorrow and convince Sarah to accept my proposal. I'll leave it to you to invite that beast and the one who never shuts up as well."

"I'll agree, but only because I know I can't refuse. I will never understand why Sarah accepted your offer in the first place. Some part of her must like you..."

Jareth headed back to the castle, making a detour to the castle glass blower for a special request. Once that is accomplished, he locks himself in the throne room until dinner.

Meanwhile, Sarah is occupied by Hoggle. The pair sit in the castle garden, catching and releasing what look like butterflies.

"Sarah, are you happy here?" He asks her.

"I'm alright Hoggle. I miss Toby a lot, but I'd have to be stupid not to be grateful to Jareth. He's taught me a lot in a short amount of time."

"So... You love him?"

She pauses to think.

"I tolerate him. I guess you could say I respect and admire him. At least when he's not being heartless. I'm sure I'll grow to love him. It's inevitable that we will be together."

They sit in silence until Pansy announces dinner. Sarah is surprised when Hoggle accompanies her to the dining room. Even more surprising is that Jareth doesn object when they enter.

Not a minute after they sit, the voice of Sir Didymus is heard from the hallway and he and Ludo enter the room.

A round of hello's are exchanged and everyone sits to eat. Before Sarah can ask why everyone is there, Jareth offers and explanation.

"I know you missed your friends so I invited them here tonight. I thought you'd appreciate the company."

Sarah narrowed her eyes but said nothing. She knew he was up to something. Her suspicion grew as the meal went on. Jareth revealed nothing until everyone was finished.

"Sarah," She looked up from her plate and their eyes met. "I have loved you since before we met. I know you may not love me yet, but I am confident you will in time. I am offering you all the time you want."

He stood and walked to Sarah, getting on one knee and taking her hands into his.

"Will you be my queen?"

His eyes bore into hers and she felt hers tearing up at how genuine he was being. She really did begin to cry when he took out the goblin made engagement ring. She stuttered out a yes and he slipped the one of a kind ring on her finger. He pulled her to her feet and hugged her close, kissing her forehead. He worried it'd be an over kill if he kissed her on the lips.

He pulled away and gazed at his (official) fiancé and queen to be.

"Ahem," They broke eye contact to see Sir Didymus standing.

"Now that the two lovebirds are engaged," He paused before brandishing his sword. "I shall fight thee to the death! Thou did not ask my permission to wed thy lady friend!"

Jareth looked at him in amusement. He couldn't be serious. But he was. Sir Didymus took his friendship with Sarah very seriously, as he did with his job as guardian of the Bog of Eternal Stench. Sarah looked perplexed for a moment before addressing him.

"That won't be necessary Sir Didymus," She said. "You want me to be happy, don't you?"

"I, well, erm- Yes I do my lady." He admitted.

"Well I can't be happy if I lose either one of you to a duel," She explained.

He nodded and put away his sword.

"Very well my lady. I will stand down for thee." He turned to Jareth. "But be warned sire. I'll not hesitate to duel thee, should my lady become unhappy."

Sarah ushered her friends out of the room as Jareth laughed. He had no intentions of ever making Sarah unhappy. He'd prove it even if it killed him in the end.

Sarah reentered the room after telling her friends goodbye. She smiled shyly and Jareth felt a rush of affection for her. He crossed the room quickly, anxious to hug her again. She grew alarmed and took a step back. He realized his sudden movement startled her and stopped.

"Are you happy, my pet?" He asked her.

"I'm content."

"Well, do you think you can love me?" He passed by her, beckoning her to follow him. It was getting late and they both needed to rest for tomorrow journey.

"I never thought it would be possible, but maybe I can," She said, thinking out loud more than answering him.

"Your thoughts are running wild, my pet," Jareth teased her as they reached their suite.

"You can read my mind?" Sarah screeched. "That's not fair!"

Jareth gave her a toothy smile. He didn't answer her question, but instead changed the subject.

"You'll want to get to sleep as early as you can. It's not a long journey, but it will wear you down." Sarah knew he wasn't going to answer her. She entered the bedroom. "Good night Sarah."

"Goodnight jerk!" She thought.

His laugher again echoed through the room. She slammed the door shut.