Breaking Barriers (Chapter 28 up)

Sarah awoke with that all too familiar feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach. Today was the day. For all the happiness she had felt the last couple days there had always been the festering sore of today in the back of her conscience. Today she faced the Goblin King once again... and she was none too pleased about it. She should be happy: he was finally going to tell her what the hell was going on here, but she knew the evening was going to be frought with embarrassments. And at this moment she was very much lacking the type of confidence she needed to face her adversary. She knew she needed to get some guts though, and quick. The Goblin King was going to be ruthless, he had made that abundantly clear the last time he spoke to her. She knew if she wanted to even stand a chance against him she'd have to do something.

But right now all she wanted to do was go back to sleep and pretend none of this had happened.

Sarah rolled over and tried to think happy thoughts. She thought of Jareth's look of anguish when she had denied him her love.

Somehow that only made her feel worse.

She was just beginning to doze off again when there came a very soft knock on her door. In a moment Curlique's tiny face appeared through the crack in the door. Sarah sat up in her bed and tried to smile, if only for the little goblin's sake. Sarah hoped it did not look strained. The dear creature had been nothing but sweet to her, but the thought of Jareth continued to loom over her. Her anxiety could most likely be seen clearly on her face.

"Hi Sarah," Curlique's lips turned up in a shy smile.

"Good morning, Curlique," Sarah couldn't help speaking these words with a bit of a sigh.

The little goblin's smile faded a little, but she pretended not to notice Sarah's obvious reluctance.

"The Goblin King bid me to assist you in light of today's events..." Curlique continued hesitantly.

"Of course he would..." Sarah muttered under her breath, "So what torture is it to be today?"

"Well, first of all, perhaps some breakfast? Then his Highness requested I do something more suitable with your hair..."

"My hair. Jareth is concerned with my hair," Sarah stated, "Good God that man has far too much free time on his hands. Tell "his Highness" that my hair is already quite suitable enough for a mere dinner, thank you very much-"

"-Eh...hem...hem," Curlique was clearing her throat nervously, "I'm afraid it will be a little more than dinner, Sarah..."

"What?!"

"I promise I will do a good job! You have such lovely hair, Sarah, I could do all sorts of things with it-"

"What do you mean, 'more than dinner?'" Sarah pressed, "I thought this was simply a little show that Jareth needed to put on. You know, just another chance to dress me down and make me feel even more horrible than I already do? But it was supposed to be just him and me with hopefully me gaining an upper hand for a change and ending our conversation with how I should be sent home immediately!-"

"-A ball..." Curlique interjected quietly, "A ball is intended for this evening."

For a moment Sarah gaped at the goblin. Then threw up her hands in disgust.

"I give up! No...! No!" Sarah voice rose with intensity, "There is no way in hell I will ever put myself in that type of situation again. I was under the impression we were meeting for talks, and ONLY talks..."

"But Sarah-!" Curlique nearly yelled, startling Sarah out of her tirade.

"I... I really wanted to do your hair, and... and his Highness said you didn't even have to dance with him... he even said you didn't have to wear the white ballgown... you could wear one of mine..."

Sarah calmed down at the mention of the dress.

"He said that?"

"I truly don't think he intends to trick you this night. The Goblin King has told me little of the masquerade ball you attended last time, but one thing I know for certain is that this won't be a hallucination of any kind. All of the goblins are scheduled to attend. At precisely 8 oclock all of us are going to transform into our human forms for the rest of the evening, and... and I was really hoping I could be human... one last time..."

Curlique's eyes began to fill with tears. Immediately Sarah's hard disposition softened. Surely it wouldn't be all that bad? Not any worse than only dinner with him would be? And the little goblin was right. This WOULD be real. She would be under no less chance of an enchantment than she would otherwise.

"Alright..." Sarah knelt down and put her arm around Curlique's shoulders. The goblin sniffed and looked up at Sarah with hope in her round eyes.

"But on one condition."

Curlique nodded emphatically.

"You must not leave my side at the ball, at least until midnight. Please do this for me, Curlique."
"Of course Sarah, I would love to!"

Sarah was suddenly reminded that this goblin was indeed only a child. A ball must be enormously exciting for her.

"Well then," Sarah stood up briskly, "how about that breakfast?"

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Jareth had awoken with a smile on his face. All night he had dreamed of the upcoming ball. Sarah would be infuriated when she found out about it. But he was certain her fury would dissipate before the evening began. Sarah would be rendered helpless, a victim of her own memory. He could just imagine her wide eyes staring at him, falling under his spell of seduction. He would once again be in control of the situation and she would easily comply to his wishes. The fact that he had given her some leeway in regards to the ball would put her even more under his power. She would believe he had relented and after a carefully applied kiss on the hand and intricately planned conversation she would be putty in his hands.

Just as Jareth had ordered Curlique to get Sarah ready, Jareth needed to get himself ready. Being the exceedingly self-occupied man he was, he had an entire team on hand to make him look as appealing as possible. Back in Sarah's world there would have been several raised eyebrows at his endeavors and people would have no doubt questioned his... preferences. But here no one breathed so much as a word of doubt. The goblins were stupid, yes, but even they could sense the hidden admiration the King held for the young girl and knew better than to go against his wishes. Therefore they mindlessly did whatever was asked of them. Jareth alone knew what Sarah liked, her expression at the masquerade ball was proof enough of that. Therefore he had decided he would remain in nearly the same guise he had worn in that rather pleasant dream he had conjured up for Sarah four years ago. But tonight he would wear a darker hue, one that set off a bit more of the emotion he was looking for. That one night of magic had made it very clear to him that Sarah was capable of desire, but Jareth had seen little of that expression over the four years they had been seperated. He hoped to bring that emotion back to the surface tonight.

But unbeknownst to him, Sarah was planning a little mischief herself.

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After breakfast, it was suggested to Sarah by Curlique to take a quick shower in the now completely accomodating water-closet. It was while wetting her hair Sarah was struck with an almost evil notion. For a brief instant, she tried to forget the little thought that had somehow wriggled its way to her brain, but the more she thought about it, the more it appealed to her. And the Goblin King certainly deserved it after the type of treatment she had received from him.

She would seduce him. Why she hadn't thought of it earlier, she did not know. This was what she needed to instill her confidence! It was clear Jareth must have some reserved feelings for her, that had been apparant the moments leading up to his destruction. Well, it could have been an act, Sarah could not forget that... but either way he had been made weak and shortly after she had been sent home. Yes, that was it! These were different circumstances of course, so she wasn't sure what she hoped to accomplish by doing this, but the last time Jareth had shown such vulnerability she had been able to get home. And even if she didn't accomplish that tonight, she would have the satisfaction of knowing she could control him to an extent. Let her see him falter for a change! And if he responded before the night was over she could rip the carpet out from underneath him. Sarah almost rubbed her hands together in evil delight. How completely gratifying would it be to tell the Goblin King that he meant nothing to her? Perhaps then he would send her home.

She only hoped she had the guts to do it.

Smiling to herself, Sarah washed her hair in more of the lavendar concoction that had been supplied to her earlier then rinsed and towel dried it. After it had air dried for an amount of time Curlique then directed her to have a seat on the chair before her dresser mirror. Curlique stood on a stool behind Sarah and brushed through her hair. The gold brush seperated the nearly black silken strands and Sarah heard murmurs of approval coming from the little goblin. Her hair was her most prized possession and one of her best qualities, Sarah thought without arrogance. Curlique had set a little box of multicolored beads, ribbons and pins on the dresser. This could be fun! Sarah thought to herself. It was almost like attending prom!

After that fateful dream of crystals, ribbons, masks, and... Jareth... Sarah had steered clear of all the dances at her high school, including prom.

"Well," Curlique stated with more confidence than Sarah had ever heard from her, "What shall we do with your hair today?"

Suddenly feeling like she was on trial, Sarah was at a loss for words. She didn't know what she wanted. She'd rarely gone to salons in her world and when she had it had only been for a trim.

"Well, uh... I'm not really sure... you see, maybe..."

"Let's just start with some basic questions," Curlique said in a professional tone, "Which dress will you be wearing tonight?"

Sarah thought for a moment. For some reason she had the immediate inclination to wear the blue one. It was really quite lovely when it caught the light just so. It glowed, iredescent, and the trail shimmered like a thousand diamonds.

"The blue one," Sarah said.

"Ah, excellent choice," said Curlique immediately rummaging through the box and carefully selecting another smaller box filled with crystal blue and silver beads. Sarah gasped as they sparkled in the light. At that Sarah started to take a distinct pleasure in this treatment. Let her be princess for a day and see if Jareth dared ruin it for her!

Curlique paused in her work, gazing intently at Sarah for a moment.

"I should let something be known to you about that dress, Sarah."

Sarah gave her a quizzical look.

"What do you mean?"

"His Highness permit me to put a happiness enchantment on the gowns, so I figured one more on the blue one couldn't hurt."

"What sort of enchantment?"

Curlique blushed.

"It's supposed to make you appear desirable to admirers... even more so, I suppose..."

Sarah blinked, then smiled. Maybe Fate was finally putting Herself to good use. Perhaps that's why she had felt an immediate attraction to the blue gown. Things were definitely working in her favor. Curlique spoke, interrupting her thoughts.

"Now what kind of over-all appearance do you wish to achieve?" asked Curlique, Sarah's strands already twined in her deft fingers.

Again Sarah inquired her as to what she meant.

"Well, we could go sweet and innocent... prim and proper, or," Curlique's shyness returned as she looked back at Sarah, "... seductively sexy."

Sarah grinned at her, feelings of mischief returning.

"Really?..." Sarah commented specutively, "Let's go with... seductively sexy..."

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A/N My my Sarah is feeling bold. One would think she would learn her lesson by now... but who knows? Perhaps Sarah will come out on top this time (no pun intended) lololol

Sorry for the delay folks. As a busy college student I have to WORK to find time to write this fic. The hit count has continued to go up though, which is exciting. Thanks again to kookookitty who always has thoughtful and humorous insights. Thanks for reading ~TheArtist