A persistent headache and rolling wave of nausea was what finally broke through Sarah's drunken slumber. She moaned pitifully and blinked slowly, waiting for the sleep to clear from her eyes and adjust to the room around her.
Her ruminations of whether she should venture to the toilet, stalled as she realized she wasn't in her apartment bedroom. Icy fear sliced through her foggy brain- clearing the cobwebs- as she assessed her surroundings. Letting out a sigh, and dropping her head back to her pillow, she remembered, family. Yes, she was visiting Toby, her Dad, and Karen for a week, and was currently sleeping in her childhood bedroom. Today was her last day.
Fear abated, she stuffed her head underneath the pillow and decided to sleep a little longer before using the bathroom.
However, her reprieve was cut short as a large hand shook her shoulder. "Wake up, Precious, this isn't a social call," his voice, normally warm and filled with a teasing note- especially with her, was instead authoritative and cool.
Sarah groaned again but otherwise didn't move. He snatched the pillow covering her head and pushed at her shoulder, urging her to roll over. "I need you awake and…" he bent down sniffing, reeling back as the stench of last night's alcohol assaulted his nose. "Sober." He sighed. Well, that's what got her into this mess.
Finally, Sarah gave in and rolled onto her back, squinting at him. "Jay go-way I over," she mumbled. Jareth interpreted it as 'Jareth, go away, I'm hungover.'
"Yes, I know," he formed two pea-sized crystals in his hand, gently settling one on her forehead and the other on her camisole clad stomach. They melted as soon as they touched her, curing her hangover almost instantaneously.
She sighed in relief, smiled at him gratefully and sat up wishing she had planned ahead and set a glass of water on the nightstand. While the more awful effects of overindulging in alcohol were gone, her mouth was still cottony and dry. Sarah ran her fingers through the massive tangle of her thick, dark hair, with the intent of getting up and guzzling a gallon of water, when she paused. He was standing there looking at her expectantly. "Can I help you?" she asked.
"It's far too quiet for a late Sunday morning, don't you think?"
"Far too quiet?" she echoed, confused. Then it dawned on her- it was far too quiet, especially with a 10-year-old boy and a yappy Jack Russel Terrier in the house. Her green eyes darted to the dog bed in the corner of her room. It was empty. Sprocket, her dog, usually woke her with sloppy kisses no matter how early- or late- she slept. And whenever she visited her family, Sprocket and Toby entertained themselves, by playing fetch in the yard or exploring the nearby park. Happy barks and giddy child laughter could be heard by half the neighborhood- she was sure.
That icy feeling of fear slammed into her head once more, only it was 100 times stronger. Jumping up, she skittered out her room and thundered down the stairs, frantically searching the house- calling out "Toby!" and receiving no answer. She stuck her head in the kitchen "Dad? Karen?" Usually they were sitting at the table- her dad reading the comics section and Karen working on the crossword puzzle. But it was empty. No signs of breakfast being eaten or puzzles mastered.
"Outside!" she shrieked a little hysterically as she scrambled for the back door, not noticing that she had to unlock it. "It's nice out- they must be out in the yard. Sprocket! Here, boy!" She yelled stepping out. The yard was lush and green and thoroughly empty except for a couple of squirrels.
Slamming the door shut, her eyes darted around the room as she thought. "Maybe they went on a drive." Sarah ran through the house to peek out of Karen's large picturesque window. The family minivan was parked in its usual spot. In fact, Sarah's beat up Gremlin was parked behind it. Well, that meant...
She whirled searching for him. "Jareth!" she bellowed, nearly slamming into him as hot boiling anger took over her senses. "What did you do with them?" she poked him squarely in the chest- it was hard- plated and his clothing dark and familiar- a glittering cloak hung gracefully from his shoulders. Sarah gasped and took a step back. He was in his child-napping attire.
He smiled a cold smile and crossed his arms. "It's not what I did with them, my Sweet, it's what you wished for."
"I- I wished for?" Anger melted away, once again replaced by confusion, her voice small and broken. "I wished for. I don't remember wishing for anything, Jareth. I wasn't even home last night." She searched his face, thinking that perhaps he was playing a sick joke. His expression was firm and cold- almost as cold as the chest plate he wore.
"Of course, you wouldn't remember, would you?" Tucking his hands behind his back, he slowly circled the young woman. "You were out having a little too much fun, weren't you?"
Sarah's shoulders slumped as she heard the disapproval in his voice. "I was just catching up with friends. And I- I got a little carried away." The last thing she remembered was trying a new mixed drink- The Eraser, and then… nothing. Hell, she didn't even know how she got home. "But I wouldn't wish them away. Come on Jareth, you know that."
"But you did," he said sharply stopping in front of her.
"You know how it happened don't you?"
He nodded but otherwise stayed silent on the matter.
Sarah screwed her eyes shut with pain of what she knew she had to do. "And I have to Run again to get them back."
"Not necessarily." The teasing lit crept back into his voice, causing her to look at him again. "You could always offer to take their place." He gently hooked a gloved finger under the camisole strap that had slipped down her arm and pushed it back into place- letting his hand linger there.
With that action, Sarah became aware of just how under-dressed she was- camisole and panties. She blushed, pushed his hand away, and moved behind the couch to put something in between them. "No," she said firmly. "I'll Run."
Jareth glared at her, "Spoilsport," he groused, grabbing her hand and tugging her towards the large window.
"Wait!" Sarah dug her heels in. "I'm not going dressed like this."
He dropped her hand and glanced back at her. It would have made watching her Run exceptionally more exciting- for him. "Damn. Am I not allowed to have any fun?"
"No, you're not. Wait here." She turned to head back upstairs to change when another of his crystals was tossed her way, gently bonking the back of her head and dressing her in jeans, a black fitted t-shirt, knee-high boots and a satchel."
The jeans and the shirt looked like it had come from her apartment closet, while the satchel and boots were new.
Jareth noticed her admiring them. "The finest dragon-hide. Near replicas of my own," he waggled his own booted foot to demonstrate.
"Oh," Sarah was speechless. "Thank you." She turned her attention to the satchel, noticing that it was made of the same glossy material, and looked inside. It contained a flashlight and a peach. She glared at Jareth, who smiled innocently.
"I thought you'd like another twirl around the ballroom?"
"Fat chance," she handed him the peach and stalked towards the kitchen for non-drugged provisions.
He rolled the peach between his palms and took a bite. Waste not, want not.
Working quickly, she stuck granola bars, bagged trail mix, beef jerky, and four bottles of water in the bag. Checking to see what he was doing- eating- typical male, she dug through the junk drawer grabbing a small compass, pad of paper, and a sharpie pen. Sarah didn't know if the Underground had magnetic fields, or if the compass would work, but it was worth a shot.
"Jareth," she walked back into the living room. "I just need to brush my teeth really quick." He grunted, still working on the fruit.
Sarah darted upstairs to not only brush her teeth but wash her face and run a comb through her hair- tying it into a ponytail. If she had more time, she'd braid it, but figured that could wait until later, instead drinking water straight from the tap. She took a moment to empty her overly full bladder and think. A flashlight probably meant darkness, and darkness meant a temperature change.
She didn't remember what the weather was like during her first Run through the Labyrinth- being so focused on saving Toby. "It's probably changed," she reasoned. "Right?" she asked herself.
Sarah knew he was real. That the Labyrinth and saving Toby truly happened, but by banishing him with her declaration of "you have no power over me," she hadn't seen or heard from him for 9 years. His goblins, faeries, dwarves and other creatures- that was a different matter- they were free to come and go as they pleased. There was always something visiting her and Sprocket.
He knew this, of course, and kept an eye on her over the years but was unable to visit unless explicitly invited by her. But Jareth wasn't the King of the Goblins for nothing. Discovering loopholes was one of his specialties, and he found out that if by chance they met, and if she was in an extenuating circumstance, he would be free to reenter her life
Cue one flat tire on a desolate highway. A highway that cut through the part of the woods that he enjoyed gliding through. Recognizing her immediately, he landed and offered his help. Not believing that he was there with friendly intentions (at first) and swung her tire iron at him.
Since coming back, he quickly shed the authoritative kingly manner with her- instead enacting a gentle teasing and cultivating an amiable banter between them. What was downstairs wasn't the Jareth she now knew- that cold Jareth of before frightened her. "Fuck," she cursed, flushing and washing her hands. "How in the hell did I manage to wish all of them away?" The relationship between Sarah and her family had improved over the years and they generally got along whenever she visited. Something must have happened last night to tick her off enough to say the ill-fated words starting with "I wish."
But still, she didn't know if the Labyrinth had changed in the decade she last saw it. Most likely- everything changes with time. And like most people, she didn't like going into the unknown but had to prepare the best she could. She grabbed a travel first aid kit and a bottle of ibuprofen from the bathroom cabinet and walked across the hall to her room. Rummaging through her small suitcase, Sarah pulled out her hooded college sweatshirt and tied it around her waist, buckled her watch on her wrist, and pocketed a small swiss army knife from the dresser. Figuring that if anything, she could use it to cut through something.
She was ready.
Sarah crept down the stairs, mentally going through everything she remembered about her first Run and comparing that with all she had on her.
Jareth heard her descent and looked up from carving the peach pit into a tiny goblin figurine with a crystal knife. "Finally," he snorted, "women." Banishing both the pit and the knife and held out his hand for her to take. "Ready?"
Sarah paused and took a deep breath and looked into his blue eyes. The coldness was still there, but underneath it lay a warm feeling, almost like he had a fondness for her. "Yes," she took his hand and he pulled her once again towards the large window overlooking Karen's finely groomed flowerbed and yard. As soon as his back touched the glass, it twisted and glowed- much like one of his crystals. The flowerbed, yard, street and houses faded away as they walked through it.
Disclaimer: I don't own Labyrinth or any recognizable characters. They belong to Jim Henson and Co.
AN: This has been on my computer since September, and I finally thought 'eh, stick it out there- see what happens.' I'm planning on taking my time with this, so weekly updates will be rare. I do intend to finish though (I highly dislike abandoned fics).
This, like most of my other fics is self-edited so all errors are mine. Ideas, questions, comments are welcome.