Hi and welcome to my first fanfic ever! Please, please comment- if anything comes to mind for improving my story, please say!
Disclaimer- I don't own anything in this story, not the Labyrinth, etc- however much I wish I did.
It's Only Forever, Chapter 1, by Stylus Known.
Jareth looked out upon the Labyrinth, shrouded in the strange orange light, populated by the goblins he ruled over. Albeit reluctantly.Three crystals spun in his hand. Turning, turning. His face seemed passive, slightly snide even but his mind was whirling. With a twitch of his fingers the crystals came to a halt. He clenched his hand...and they were gone.He was thinking of the girl. She had come into his Labyrinth, which he had crafted with his own gloved hand, held together with magic and curses, populated with strange beings and goblins, she had come and defied him. And he had fallen. Back to his own reality, back to the Labyrinth. He returned to this castle, crystal in hand. And he watched.
Toby lay in his bed, grinning. His fifth birthday had come and passed three weeks ago, and his parents out. That meant it was Sarah babysitting.
"A story, Sarah. The story again!" he tugged at her sleeve, grinning.
"I just told it to you."
"Again!"
"How about a new one, then bedtime, ok?"
Toby weighed the matter in his mind carefully. He nodded, sitting back down on his pillow. He had graduated from the cot and now had his own bed, in the corner of Sarah's room. Her parents were surprised that she didn't give more of an argument against it- she was eighteen this year, after all. But she put up with him a lot better- since that strange night...
Sarah leaned against Toby's bedpost.
"You might know this one already. Once, not so long ago- when you were smaller, when you were a baby,"
Toby frowned. As a five year old he regarded that fact that he was once a baby with contempt.
"There was once a girl who was angry. She was angry at her step-mother and her brother, who never stopped crying. She did something very stupid, and wished that the Goblin King would take him away." Toby listened, his head dropping as she recounted her story to him, smiling at the memories. Toby fell, finally, asleep. Sarah continued, almost angrily.
"And then she found Toby in a strange room. She found him, and Jareth found her. He sang to her, sang to the girl he had danced with...who he hated and loved, who had defeated him. But she found her brother, she found him. But he offered her something instead, something she didn't think over, but she had no choice. He loved her. He said so, at least. When she got home later she realised that he had done so much..." a single tear fell. It landed on Toby's cheek. She wiped her own angrily, and turned to her mirror.
She let out a strangled scream. Eyes, from the darkness she saw eyes. Mismatched eyes...she turned. It was nothing.
Jareth stared into the crystal, cheek on hand, face passive as he watched her. She stared back through the mirror. As she was about to draw breath to scream again he put two fingers over his lips with a half smile.
"Have you forgotten me Sarah?" She stood back abruptly, her chair falling back- Toby stirred and murmured in his sleep. The eyes moved to look past her and fell upon Toby.
"Has Toby forgotten me? For I see you have not."
Sarah stood wordless at the sudden reappearance of Jareth, the Goblin King.
"And I have not forgotten you."
Sarah shook her head, backing away slowly from the mirror.
"Where are you?"
A sour look passed his face.
"Outside the Labyrinth. Thanks to you, Sarah. "
Sarah shook her head, but stopped moving.
"Why are you talking to me?"
"Very well, goodbye."
"No!" Sarah said, without thinking. "Are you ok?"
A hand appeared in the mirror, beckoning. Sarah turned to Toby and held his shoulder, rasing her arm as if fending off an invisible enemy. She felt Jareth's presence...this was all too weird. She felt sick and dizzy; all she could see were the eyes in the mirror, looking into her own. Then everything was over. She opened her eyes, surprised to find that they were shut.
The first thing she noticed was orange light. Strange orange light. Light she knew. The next thing she noticed was she was sitting on Toby's bed, and Toby was in it. He was still sleeping. But she wasn't in her room. And someone was watching her. Someone she knew. She was in the strange lands, of desert and ruin outside the Labyrinth.
"Welcome back" She spun around. There he was, sitting atop a bundle of tree roots, looking...exactly the same. She assumed he was immortal, but to see him exactly the same freaked her.
Toby woke with a murmur, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. Jareth looked past her and half smiled. "My you have grown, Toby."
Toby looked at the strange man and looked around.
"Is that the Goblin King, Sarah? The one you danced with?" Sarah turned. "I thought you were asleep!"
"I was, mostly." She turned in embarrassment to Jareth.
"Toby do you remember me?" he said, ignoring her. Toby slowly shook his head.
"I remember your voice."
Jareth nodded and looked away. Sarah turned to him.
"Why have you taken us here? Take us back, now!"
Jareth didn't move, he seemed to be ignoring her completely.
Toby rose from the bed, dragging the cover along with him. He was five, short for his age with slight traces of puppy fat not yet gone. He trundled over to Jareth and poked his in the arm. Jareth, with an easy movement, pulled Toby onto his lap and looked at him. "Well you have grown. When I saw you last you were a baby, you were so small." Toby shrugged this off and said in a confidential whisper,
"My sister told me about you. She said she didn't like you, and then she said she liked you then I fell asleep for a while then..." Jareth shook his head. "Shhh...She wouldn't like you telling me that. She would get annoyed."
Toby nodded.
"You took me, didn't you?"
Jareth was surprised at Toby's depth of comprehension.
"Only because I had to."
Sarah was being royally ignored; she watched the two for a while but broke in.
"Jareth take us back."
"Now why would I do that?"
"Because I wish you to."
"I still cannot."
"Why?"
"Until I get back to the castle I cannot."
Sarah shook her head. "Explain." She said bluntly, caring no longer for manners. Jareth smiled his smug smile, head on his side and said to Toby,
"Sleep." Toby immediately did, his head flopped to one side. A deep magical sleep.
"When you rejected my gift, when you defied me I lost the right to rule the castle. To regain that I must go through the Labyrinth, with only a shadow of m magic to help me. I...need your help."
Sarah sat down next to him and frowned. He had no right to take her in and out of her world like that, but she believed him when he said that he could not.
"I got through once, and you know the Labyrinth back to front, you made it, and if we've got Hoggle's help...I guess we could make it."
"You agree then? You will help me?'
Sarah could see from the distant look in his eyes how much it hurt his pride to ask for anything. But she was angry at him, but she had no choice...she had no idea what to think. She yawned, sleepy- he had taken her at night, after all. He turned to her.
"Sleep" he said, before she could protest. She sank into a sleep, leaning down against him. He looked at her, half with distaste, and half with the sad love he had put up with for so long...he barely knew what to think. His goblins had forgotten him- they would until he arrived at the castle.
He stayed awake and kept watch, holding in his hand a crystal, singing softly into the night.
Toby woke, and struggled out of the arms of who-ever he was leaning against. As a child of five he felt vaguely annoyed, but he accepted what had happened- he even believed it. He turned back to see Jareth, as watchful as the night before staring in silence.
"I'm hungry." He said. Jareth turned to him. A crystal appeared in his hands. It appeared to be changing into a fruit; a peach...Toby looked at it and felt immediately hungry.
"Would you like this, Toby?" Jareth said, an almost cruel smile appearing on his face. Toby reached forth to get it, and Jareth passed him the fruit. Toby smiled, it smelled as good as it looked- plump and delicious...He put it to his mouth, about to bite...
Sarah woke slowly. She sensed, rather then heard Toby struggle out of Jareth's grip. She knew exactly where she was- she remained still. When she opened her sore eyes she realised what was happening.
She let out a strangled "No!" but decided instantly action was better than words. She leapt forth and hit the fruit out of Toby's hand taking the piece out of his mouth-ignoring his protests.
She turned on Jareth.
"How dare you, how dare you give that to him? He is five years old. Five years old! "She turned to Toby.
"Toby, I want you to eat nothing that this man...person..." she stopped for a moment, unsure. Jareth was merely amused by her confusion. "Don't eat anything he gives you, ok Toby? I'll find you some food. Don't worry. Then we'll get out of here, ok?"
Oh, and by the way, if anyone happens to be free and willing to be a beta, I would love a beta- the person who said they would seems to have disappeared.
Thanks again,
Stylus.