It had stopped snowing at last and the goblins had finally gone home.  Sarah smiled at the carnage they had left in her back yard.  Footprints in all shapes and sizes marred the perfect white expanse of snow.  The scratches in the crust from the formation of snowballs were like hieroglyphs that no one could read.  Sarah laughed and touched the nose of the snow-goblin they had built together.  She liked her visitors, Hoggle and the goblins were wonderful at cheering her up when she felt homesick, Ludo was an excellent teddy bear surrogate, and there was not a better Scrabble opponent in the world than Sir Didymus.  But something was missing.

The wind kicked up, swirling the loose snowflakes through the air, catching the sun like glitter.  Sarah shut her eyes to it and adjusted her hat.  She gripped the collar of her coat tightly around her neck and headed towards the copse of trees behind her lawn.  I'm not missing anything, she told herself firmly as she walked through the thick standing of fir trees.  Snow wafted from the heights of the trees, kissing her face so softly.  The cold of the snow's embrace made her shiver.

Sarah stepped from the shade of the trees and into the bright sunlight of the early afternoon.  The rays of the sun shimmered over the expanse of snow that coated the meadow of the local park.  The proximity of the large trees and its lack of hills made the meadow an undesirable spot for the children of the town to play in and so Sarah found herself alone.  

She smiled softly to herself as she observed the natural magic of the world she had chosen to live in.  A cold that had nothing to do with the weather trickled down her limbs, paralyzing her as she made a startling realization.  Today was the fifth of January what was thought of once as Twelfth Night, the Eve of Epiphany.  It was a magic night, and the sun would set soon.  How could she be so stupid?  She usually kept such good track of these days.

Sarah breathed deeply, filling her lungs till she thought they might burst the cold stabbing into her like icicles.  She stared at the place in the sky where the sun was shining, the bright white disk unseen behind the thin film of snow clouds.  A familiar metallic taste filled her mouth, and she knew she was no longer alone.

The wind whipped through the meadow and a mist of glittering snow intertwined with glitter of another sort to dance wildly around her.  She could feel him standing behind her, his body radiating a coldness that rivaled the very snow that was seeping into her shoes.

"I did not call on you," she said calmly.

Sarah heard him sigh sadly behind her, "I know you did not.  I came of my own accord."

"I do not want you, Jareth."

"Today is Twelfth Night," said Jareth softly.  "Do you know what that means?"

Sarah turned at last to face him.  The wonder of his presence struck her, she had grown since he had last stood before her yet still she felt dwarfed by his presence.  His dark cloak billowed around them, its dark tendrils seeming as though they wanted to pull her closer.  Her fingers itched to straighten the billowing mane of hair as it tangled in the wind.  "What does it mean?" she asked slowly, wary of any tricks he would surely try to play on her.

"The world is at last upsidedown but not of my doing," he replied his voice determinedly even as if he feared something in himself.  He stepped closer to her and she realized that beneath the aura of cold that surrounded him was a core that burned like the sun.

Sarah closed her eyes for the barest moment, unable to keep herself from reveling in the warmth of his nearness.  She caught herself and her eyes snapped open, afraid of the predatory stare he would give her.  To her surprise he merely stared at her with unblinking resolve, steadiness etched on his features.  "I-I don't understand," she stammered.

Jareth moved to touch her cheek, his hand frozen mere heartbeats from her skin.  Her heart warred with her head, wanting him to and screaming for him not to touch her.  His voice cut into her inner fight, "Today you are a queen, and I am lower than the earth.  But whether the world were upsidedown or not, still you are the only woman who can rule me."  He sank heavily to his knees in the snow, a swirl of glitter wafted from his movement.  "Forgive me!" he cried in a tortured whisper.  He closed his eyes slowly and bowed his head in defeat.

She stood there in the snow looking down on his golden-haired crown, his cloak wrapping around them, and suddenly none of it mattered anymore.  Her anger, his betrayal to her spirit, his ludicrous demand, it all seemed so unimportant.  He held nothing over her now as he knelt in the snow, the cold surely seeping into his very skin.  He had come to her with no demand, no ulterior motive, only that she would grant him some peace in his heart.

The missing piece fell into place within her own heart at last.  For years she had felt it, though she had always told herself that she had only imagined the inkling of pain in her breast.  Now she knew that she was whole, the strength of a hundred goblins and the bravery of Sir Didymus filled her nearly to the brim.  The love she let herself admit at last sent her overflowing.  She reached gently and placed her hand on his cheek, the warmth of him nearly burned her.

Slowly, deliberately she bent and placed her brow to his, his hair tickling her skin.  She felt his pulse jump as hers did in return when their skins touched.  Her mouth shaped the words that very nearly burst from her breast, and softly she gave wing to them.  "I do forgive you."  She felt him smile truly for the first time as the heat enveloped them both forever.