Breaking Barriers (Chapter 28 up)

Jareth hummed quietly into Sarah's ear. Good gods, being this close to her felt incredible. His vision was wavering slightly, as if in a fog. It was hazy around the edges. His head seemed to be affected by it as well. A certain fuzziness had settled itself into his brain. He didn't think women normally affected him in such a way. Yet he had been fighting it the moment Sarah had entered the dining room.

Needless to say that by this point he had stopped fighting it.

Her mere touch on the way over to the ball had been pure heaven. The way her hand had tucked securely into the crook of his elbow, bliss. He really had fought bravely against the waves of emotion that had bombarded him, he really had, but Sarah had proved too much for him.

And now she had agreed to his request. He couldn't deny he had felt a certain reluctance to lie to her at this moment in time. He had been about to tell her the true reason for her being in the Underground. But as of now, he couldn't bear the thought of Sarah leaving and he was sure that if he had told her the truth, she would not be in his arms at this moment. Feeling Sarah in his embrace with her softness pressed so sweetly against him, Jareth knew he had made the right choice.

Gods, he'd nearly jumped out of his skin when Sarah had decided to move closer. Unable to conceal his increasing ardor any longer, Jareth had buried his nose into the fragrant curls of her dark hair and pulled her body even closer to him. The feeling of her soft flesh pressed against his frame sent a shockwave through him. If her hand on his arm had been heaven, then this had to be sheer perfection. How many times had he wanted to hold her like this throughout the four long years they had been apart? At the time Jareth had scarcely been able to admit those feelings to himself, and had banished the thoughts immediately. But that didn't discount the fact that he had had them. Whether he had let those sentiments bloom and come to fruition made no difference. He had still had them. And in rememberence of those moments Jareth felt a pain in his heart. Whatever spell he was under right now, whether by Sarah or the gods, they had brought his hidden emotions straight to the surface.

How ironic. Said a little voice in the back of his head. Isn't that precisely what he had intended to do to Sarah himself tonight?

Jareth's brows furrowed for a moment. Had it been? Had that really been his goal of the evening? Jareth tried hard to remember something, anything that would give him a clue, anything that was beyond this very moment, but nothing came to him.

Well, those thoughts were wrong. Jareth finally decided. He couldn't remember a thing let alone having made any plans. Besides, even if those thoughts were right, wasn't Sarah the one who had made the first move? He must have already insinuated those feelings inside her. Her sudden wish to be nearer was proof enough of that.

Satisfied with that answer, Jareth let his thoughts trail off. All he wanted to concern himself with now was how warm and alive Sarah felt in his arms. Yet, only able to touch her was beginning to become torturous. He felt a restless urge to move, to do something. In his fog-clouded vision, he was unable to discern what exactly needed to be done, yet a primal instinct was now swiftly rushing from his head to his toes. He felt if something didn't happen soon he would go mad.

But as it happened, he didn't have to do anything. Jareth held his breath as he felt Sarah move her arm down from around his neck and wantonly press his hips into her abdomen. Her stifled moan is what did him in.

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The feelings building up inside Sarah were beginning to become too much to bear. Although their bodies were already fused together, Jareth was just not close enough for her satisfaction. Before she could lose her nerve, Sarah brought her right arm down and wrapped it around Jareth's narrow hips. Ever so slowly, Sarah increased the pressure between them, hoping Jareth wouldn't notice. Finally, their lower extremeties made contact. Sarah tried to smother her moan of pleasure into Jareth's hard chest. Good God he felt amazing!

But how could Jareth not notice the exquisite feeling that suddenly erupted in his loins? Or the quiet sound of delight escaping Sarah's parted lips? Although Jareth normally fought against his carnal desires, right now he was far from normal. As his chest heaved, the Goblin King's body inevitably reacted to her closeness as a regular, full-blooded male's usually did under such circumstances.

Before Sarah even had time to truly enjoy her new position, she felt something stirring beneath her, something not quite right. What was that incessant poking in her stomach? Being the innocent she was, it took her a moment to realize what was going on. Suddenly she opened her eyes, widening them in alarm. Surely he couldn't be to this point already? With that thought reality came crashing down around her. With a gasp she flung herself off him. Before she could accidently peer at what had been going on below her she closed her eyes tightly. She heard a noise of protest escape Jareth's throat. She turned around, letting go a breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding. Her cheeks were hot with embarrassment. She hadn't meant for things to get so far! Before Jareth could stop her, Sarah dove into melee of goblins turned human and disappeared from his sight. A nearby clock struck its hour, the sound reverburating in Sarah's chest. She looked at the time and balked. It was already 11 oclock? How could that be? But before Sarah could contemplate this any further she felt a hand wrap around her wrist.

"Please, Jareth, I just need to be left alone for awhile," Sarah said in a miserable tone. She couldn't believe how quickly her plan had gone awry. When she had donned this magical dress she had merely wanted to test him... not... awaken the beast within!

The pulling at her wrist continued. Sarah looked up, defeated.

"Sarah?... Sarah!"

It was Curlique.

Without a second's hesitation Sarah pulled the young girl into a tight embrace.

"Curlique, I'm so glad to see it's you!"

The little girl giggled nervously.

"What's wrong, Sarah?"

"I'm sorry I haven't been with you at all yet, I really don't know where the time has gone-" Sarah rushed.

Curlique nestled her head in Sarah's shoulder.

"That's okay Sarah..."

"Listen, Curlique," Sarah grasped the child's shoulders and held her at arm's length, "Never, under any circumstances, allow me to wear this dress ever again." Sarah hugged her again.

"It's just too powerful. I'm not saying I don't love your work, Curlique, I do..."

"But Sarah," the little girl pulled out of her embrace and looked into Sarah's eyes, "I don't understand. Everything looked to be going just fine..."

"It was Curlique, it was..." Sarah reassured, then muttered, "A little too fine..."

Seeing the girl's confused face, Sarah rubbed along Curlique's jawline with her thumb, smiling, "I'll tell you about it later."

Sarah then stood up and looked around anxiously. She truly did not think she could face Jareth again after what had happened between them, at least not tonight. She had behaved ridiculously and the whole situation had gotten completely out of control.

"But-but Sarah," a piteous sob floated up from Curlique, "Why don't you w-want to wear my dress anymore...?"

Sarah looked down to see the little girl was rubbing her eyes. Fat tears rolled down her face. Sarah's heart squeezed in remorse. Kneeling down, Sarah rubbed her hand soothingly across the girl's back.

"Oh, Curlique..."

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As soon as Sarah ripped her body from his, Jareth's body cried out from the loss. What was going on? Had he done something wrong? He didn't know what had happened. All he knew was that the delicious warmth that had been pressing up against his body so sweetly was gone. He stood for a moment frozen in shock, then, too late, made a grab for her trailing arm. In an instant the mob had swallowed her whole.

But it was in the same instant she had disappeared that the fog that had been clouding his vision lifted. Jareth put a hand to his head as his surroundings crashed in on him. It was as if his body had sensory overload. He looked around in confusion. How had he even gotten here? He hardly remembered anything other than a vague sense of knowing he had eaten, somehow arrived here, and had danced with Sarah. For a brief instant he felt something... something that may have been a clue as to what had happened. It was the vestiges of desire and it was quickly fading... but how had it gotten there in the first place? Jareth looked around, hoping to find some sort of clue. Between the ever moving bodies of the goblins he spotted a nearby clock.

11 oclock?!

Where the bloody hell had the time gone? And what the devil was going on here?

There was only one way to find out.

With the blink of an eye Jareth sought out Curlique's mind once more. He peered out with bleary eyes. Now that was odd. Jareth tried to focus, but Curlique's vision appeared blurry to him. NOW what was going on? Surely his magic wasn't failing him?

Soon he realized what had happened. The girl had been crying. A pair of chubby fists suddenly invaded his vision as the girl wiped away her tears. He heard her blubbering voice as if it was from a far off distance. He could scarcely make out what was said. Something about not wanting to wear a dress. Suddenly Sarah's pretty face loomed before him. She looked concerned. Her brow was knitted and her eyes looked pitying.

"Oh Curlique..." he heard Sarah murmur, "... I'm sorry about the dress... I truly do want to wear it again, but I just can't..."

None of this statement made sense to Jareth, so he continued to listen.

"But-but... I-I don't understand..."

"Listen Curlique, you know how you put on that enchantment? You know, the extra one, the one besides the happiness one?"

Jareth experienced an uncomfortable feeling of inertia as his vision bobbed up and down.

"Well," Sarah continued, "I know you couldn't really tell, but it was really affecting Jareth. I mean it was just too strong. Do you understand what I mean? He wasn't acting like himself, he was starting to like me TOO much, and it was starting to scare me...Do you know what I mean?"

"But-but, what if I took off the enchantment, S-Sarah?..."

Curlique's voice trailed off as Jareth quickly exited the little goblin's mind. He had heard all he needed to hear. At his enlightenment via the use of Curlique Jareth remembered everything. Every single detail of the night swept through his memory like a tidal wave. Every moment of exquisite torture and every asenine comment he had made to the little witch stood in his mind with crystal clarity. Jareth clenched his fists, completely overwhelmed with rage. So the innocent Sarah had succeeded in making a fool out of him. He supposed he could be looking to the little girl goblin Curlique for punishment, but she could only perform minor enchantments. No, what he had experienced was a taste of Sarah's full-fledged powers combining with the power of the gown. The dress alone could not have rendered him so powerless. Now the question was whether Sarah had done this deed unwittingly like she had four years ago when she had banished him, or had she done it on purpose in the hopes he would send her home in his weakened state. Either way he intended to find out, and either way she was still guilty. She had known of the enchantment, that much was clear with what he had just now witnessed in Curlique's mind. But she had gotten more than she had bargained for. What a dear prize she had won, indeed. Jareth couldn't help but form a wry smile at this. Apparantly what had transpired between them had not been what she had hoped for... unless?

What if she had donned the magic dress not in hopes of returning to her home or to make him appear a fool, but for other purposes?

It certainly was an intriguing thought, but Jareth doubted she would do such a thing. She had been nothing but arrogant, demanding and defiant since she had set foot in the Underground. She certainly didn't have feelings for him. The fact she had pushed him away so hurriedly when reality was literally poking her in the stomach had made that clear. Up until then he had nearly believed her. She was a clever little actress, that was true, but he refused to be duped. Jareth still intended to seduce Sarah, but on his own terms in his own time. Which was why he had given her the production proposal. At least he had had sense enough to give her the false reason for her being here. The idea of putting on a play was a ridiculous one at the surface, but it gave the Goblin King vital time to spend with Sarah that he otherwise wouldn't have. And the fact that it was a play would endear Sarah to him. He knew of her dreams of becoming a star, and performing alongside her would undoubtedly put her at ease with him. Perhaps then he would finally be able to shed his villainous reputation in her eyes.

After he firmly put her back in her place.

He needed to gain her companionship and eventual lust in order for him to succeed. But right now he was furious. Right now all he wanted was his anger unleashed.

With a grim face Jareth looked about the ballroom. Now where had the little temptress gone to? It was impossible to tell where she was from the point of view of the little goblin. Jareth strode purposely forward weaving in and out of the hordes of his subjects. Those who did not part upon his arrival immediately received an impatient shove. Whispers followed him where there had previously been laughter. Most knew who Sarah was by this point and many had suspected that there would be an uprise at some point during the night. Excitement and nervousness filled the room until the very air was thick with it. As Jareth investigated each corner of the ballroom the goblins grew more and more quiet. Eventually the music ceased, trailing off thinly to pathetic conclusion. Finally losing patience, Jareth paused in his search to call forth his magic placing his fingertips at his temples. With razor-like precision he was now able to detect exactly where Sarah was. It was the same technique he had used when Sarah had first run away. Swiftly jerking to the left, Jareth walked the few paces he knew seperated him from the girl. Briefly, he braced himself for the onslaught of desire that the dress would invoke in him, but he was not too concerned. Now that he was aware of dress's magical properties he could ward himself against it.

Not to mention his temper was reaching a critical level. Any other emotion would quickly be overwhelmed by it, including lust.

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A/N

@chichi89- yes, indeedy Sarah is in hot water lololol

@Ikaru- thank you so very much :) And I couldn't help but notice our birthdays are only TWO DAYS apart!

@Vyperbites- I will most definitely return the favor and check out your story and review it ^_^ Hopefully it won't be too far over my head as I've only seen parts of the movie

@kookookitty- LOL XD

Thanks for reading ~TheArtist