He stood at the edge. The harsh wind blowing his hair into his face. His fine clothes catching on the sharp rocks. He looked around at his kingdom. He would miss it. But it didn't matter. He looked down. Over 50ft. That would do nicely. Casually, as if stepping off the kerb to cross the road, he places his foot onto thin air. Falling for a moment he transformed, feeling the wind beneath his snow-white wings one last time before he dropped. His subjects gathered to watch the sight. A small white dot falling from the sky. Many speculated as to what it was. No one knew so they headed towards it, watching it fall gracefully. As they gathered near the object one noticed something. It was a bird. A white bird. An owl. The white barn owl came down to the earth and the one who noticed screamed, they knew. 'Oh dear...' The owl thought. The owl braced itself. It thought of her, his one true love, and how she rejected him. How would she feel after she heard? What would she do? Would she cry? He didn't know. As if in slow motion, the people watched the owl as it fell. 'Goodbye, Sarah,' he thought. The bird hit the ground in a flurry of feathers. The people all gasped and ran forward, for they knew now. The object was not just a bird, but their King. A lone white feather, speckled with Crimson blood drifted away on the breeze as the birds form began to change, until a man lay on the ground. His clothes were torn, nearly every bone shattered, sandy blond hair turned scarlet from the blood, a red lake around the body. Mismatched eyes closed but strangely a smile on his bloodied face. No one knew why the corpse of a king smiled.
A girl was sitting at her desk, reading a book. The window was open as it was the middle of summer and it was very hot. Suddenly, there was a blast of cold wind and a lone feather blew onto her book. A white feather with speckles of Crimson. She looked at it for a moment, then realisation dawned on her. A white feather... A white barn owl... And the Crimson must have been... Blood... She gasped. Looking into the mirror she decided to try something.
"Jareth... I-I need you..."
The image shown was not of the arrogant King she once knew, but of a fine silver casket decorated with jewels and engraved with images of a labyrinth and many creatures. On the top of it was a detailed carving of an owl. Flowers were laid on top as his subjects stood neatly in the throne room, all wearing black. The top of the casket was left open so she could see his face. His eyes shut, she would never see them again, never hear his arrogant voice again. He looked so peaceful, what shocked her most was the slight smile on his face. She didn't know why the corpse of a King smiled. She saw all her friends there. They actually looked sad, she would have thought at least Hoggle would be slightly happy at the news of the death of his most hated and feared King. But they all looked very saddened. She couldn't look away but she forced herself too. She turned away and put the feather in a small box, and locked it. She put the key on a chain and set it on her bedside table. As she climbed into bed she heard a voice. His voice.
"It's only forever, not long at all"
Tears dripped down the side of her face, she couldn't believe it... He was gone...She slept dreaming of her childhood enemy that night, how he danced with her, sung to her, begged her to love him, she felt responsible for his death in a way. It was her fault. If she hadn't rejected him... But she fell asleep without answering herself.
The next day, Sarah Williams was found dead, clutching a white feather speckled with Crimson.