Just a short, cliche one-shot. I wrote this a while back, and I still just love it. So, I put it up. So... yeah. A little cheesy, but this is what comes from the idea of an ornery little prince meeting a magic-fascinated little girl.
I don't own Labyrinth, Jareth, or Sarah. Disclaimers galore!
Hope you like it.
Every little girl wants a prince charming. They swoon, they dream, and they may gain any number of crushes on fairy book characters. Thinking back now, I do think... I had one. My very own prince charming; the boy running about the neighborhood like he was always about to get caught. I remember that summer like it ended yesterday.
...
"Sarah, where are you going?" I flinched, hating it when one of them turned to me in the middle of an argument.
"I'm just going to play outside." I called back, taking a step closer to the outside.
"Be back by dark." Dad insisted.
"Just like that? You don't even know where she's going!" I shut the door, hating when my parents argued at all. Without even hesitating, I turned to walk across the street. I need to get out of here. I just need to run. Why do they argue so much? Is it because I didn't clean my room? That's when it started this morning, wasn't it?
"Hey, Sarah!" Susan called out. I stopped to look around. Oh, this is her house?
"Hey, Sue."
"You going to the park?"
"Yeah, why?" She doesn't usually talk to me much. She's just sitting out on the porch.
"My brother says there's a new kid making trouble there. So, unless you want to get blamed for something, I wouldn't go there if I were you." she insisted.
"Oh, your brother is always making things up."
"He does not!" she objected. "You know what? Go on to the park. See what I care." she went back inside. I shrugged it off and continued on towards the park. I always go there when Mom and Dad are arguing. It took me so long to get there. Maybe I can talk them into doing my ninth birthday here next week? Maybe they'll be happy then.
When I finally got there, I found a nice bench and sat down. Taking a deep breath, I swung my legs and hit something.
"Ooow!" a boy's voice screamed, I jumped up, heart racing.
"What are you doing under a bench?" I gaped, watching him get out. He had to be only a bit older than me, and at least a head taller, with wild blond hair sticking up everywhere.
"Hiding, what does it look like? And you blew my cover." he glared at me. "Who are you supposed to be anyways?"
"I'm Sarah, and this is my bench."
"I don't see your name on it." he scoffed.
"I'll go find a new one then. Fine."
"Wait." he rushed forward, making me stop. I looked back at him. He looked nervous.
"What?"
"Will, will you help me hide?"
"Who are you hiding from? Is it a game?" I asked, wondering if I could play too.
"Sort of... I ran away. I don't want to go back quite yet, and if my Dad finds me, he's going to kill me." he shrugged.
"Why did you run away?"
"Well, they never let me have any fun. I'll go back tonight, I promise, but I just wanted to have some fun." he shrugged.
"But it's no fun just hiding." I pointed out. "What's your name?"
"Jareth the Goblin Prince!" he puffed his chest out with pride.
I laughed. "You're not a prince. There are none in America."
He pouted. "Am too. And I'm not from this, 'Amricka' place. As I said, I ran away."
"Prove it. Where's your crown? Where are you from? England?" I demanded, skeptic.
"What? No, I don't wear a crown. I'm the goblin prince. Sheesh." he rolled his eyes at me. "I'm from the Underground. Where do you think?"
"Where is that?" I have never heard of this place.
"You don't believe me, do you?" he looked hurt. Raising a hand like he wanted a 'low' five. Then, from out of nowhere, a crystal appeared. I gaped, grinning widely.
"Oh my gosh! You can do magic? That is so cool, you are a prince, aren't you? Lets go have fun, this way!" I dragged him off and he laughed. I pulled him over the river and to the best climbing three. "No one will find you up here."
We met in that park almost every day, my prince charming and I. He would show off his magic and get a big head as I fawned over it, but then he'd start acting like a prince and I'd push him out of the tree. Around the end of summer, a man showed up to drag him off, and made me swear never to tell anyone about either of them.
The end of summer also brought Mom and Dad's divorce. So, my new friend, sadly, fell to the back of my mind. I missed him, but with Mom leaving and slowly becoming more distant, my prince charming became nothing more than a dream long ago. Maybe he never existed, because, magic isn't real. Right?
But, children grow up and a prince is no longer what they want. They want a job, a home, and a family. I grew up, the very night I made that wish. At the time, when I faced the Goblin King, my brain and my heart would try to kill each other, and my nerves were at war with my need to save Toby. Of course he seemed familiar, and of course I was unsurprising when Hoggle told me the Goblin King's name; he's the main antagonist from my favorite book.
But, why did he seem so sad when it was all over? Like he expected more?
Well, I only began to connect all the dots five years after I returned from the Labyrinth. When the young girl who yearned for a prince had fully grown into a young woman who needed a king. Dad and Irene were moving, and they gave me the house. Toby was starting first grade, in a different state.
I was alone in my new-old house, in the attic, cleaning it out. Grandpa's boxes, where we'd stuffed his stuff when he died, were in the corner. Halloween and Christmas decorations, which had been left for me so Toby could pick out all new stuff for the new house, were in another corner.
Presently, I'm sitting under the dusty window for light, pulling a box labeled with my name in sparkled ink.
I sighed, wiping my hand over the top. Everything my my room from before the divorce I either threw away or stuffed up here. I couldn't bare to remember my old life. Dad had felt so bad about what they'd put me through, he helped me completely restock my room. Mom even gave me her vanity as a goodbye present. That, and the mattress, are the only things still in the room downstairs.
I opened it, smiling at the childish decor. Stuffed unicorns, hanging fairies, and a whole collection of smooth stones I had once believed had magical properties. Only a small step away from what my room held afterwards.
Several boxes later, I found one full of books. Classical fairy tales, and a photo book. Curious, I sat back against the wall and opened it up. Baby pictures, all three of us as a happy family, when I was about four, and me with a few of my friends before they decided to grow up too soon.
Then, there was a crooked picture of me in a costume dress, in my park. I was grinning like the happiest girl in the world, but, from how old I was, this had to be right before the divorce. What would I be so happy about? And, who would have been with me in the park? The only one I've ever taken there is Merlin.
In the back of my mind, memories stirred. Like, there was someone else there. Was there someone else there?
I flipped to the next page. More pictures of me, in more costumes, at the park, and I started to remember. This is when I first started acting my stories out. I had so much fun. By the next page, I was really starting to wonder who was taking these pictures.
I halted, staring wide-eyed at the single picture on this page. All around it, notes were scrawled in my terrible hand writing, and another, far fancier pen. There was a boy, grinning with sharp teeth and mismatched eyes. Around him hung a younger girl, only by a year or two, with shoulder-length brown hair and deep green eyes. One of her arms was hugging the boy's neck, with his arm up to hold onto it, while the girl's other arm was obviously outstretched to hold the camera up.
Sarah Williams, age 9. My writing curled around the top of the page.
Jareth Goblin, age 12. My heart refused to work properly; all those memories returning. Now I know why I loved that summer so much, even with the divorce. It all came back. Every magic trick, every tree we climbed, every story we played together. My little Prince Charming.
"No." I shook my head. It was far too clear. Impossible! Even ignoring the name, this little boy had fluffy blond hair, one brown eye and one green, and his smirk was exactly the same. I shook my head. "No..."
On the next page, there were two pictures. The little boy was hanging upside down from a tree, and I held the camera to show his grin. He held the camera again as I sat in the stream, soaked, sticking my tongue out at him. He'd pushed me in, and I told him I wouldn't talk to him for a week. Then he dried me off magically, asking for my forgiveness.
We pretended the river was, what he called, 'The Bog of Eternal Stench'. Our bench was always the 'Castle beyond the Goblin City'.
This boy, whom I spent the best summer of my life with, grew up to be the evil Goblin King? No, no. I just don't see it. He was always playing around, having fun, making up new games and terrorizing the local pigeon population. He always made everything a game, except when I came to the park in tears, crying about the arguing. Then, he'd always be so sweet...
I found the last page, paling at it. My heart began to ache. This was a newer camera than what the photos started off with. He'd put it on the timer. I remember that day so clearly now...
"Are you sure you know how to do this?" I frowned, watching him play with my camera.
"Of course. I figured it out the other day. I just want one picture of us." he grinned back at me. "You have a million."
"I can hold it." I leaned around to see the tripod he'd conjured.
"Don't worry about it. There." he stood up. "Ten seconds." which was plenty of time to rush back to the bench and sit with me. I shifted my dress over my knees carefully.
"Are you still going to come when school starts?" I asked, looking up. I was counting in my head, and it was only at seven.
I looked directly at the camera as it made a humming sound. All of the sudden, he reached over and kissed my cheek. My eyes flew wide and my face grew warm all over. The camera flashed at exactly that moment, and I was still sitting there, sputtering, after the picture was spit out.
Jareth laughed joyfully. "Of course I'll come! I'll always come, and someday, I'll bring you back to see my kingdom."
"You will?" I asked, voice an octave too high as I put my hand up to my cheek. He jumped up and grabbed the photo, waving it so that the picture would develop.
"Definitely!" he grinned at me. "I will be king one day, you know. Then, all those rules will go away, and you'll be able to come over any time you want."
"That would be so cool." I started to get control of my thoughts again. He got a mischievous smirk that always got me excited. That meant magic. So I stood quickly to watch as he flipped the photograph, and it duplicated itself.
"How do you do that?" I gasped, already forgetting that I was embarrassed.
"And when I'm King, and you come over to play, I'll teach you all kinds of magic. It isn't that hard." he insisted.
"I can't wait." he gave me one of them, and I stared at it. His eyes were closed, lips on my cheek, pulled up in a grin even as they puckered. My jaw hung slack, and a blush ran all over my cheeks. It started to creep back again.
"And maybe," he was right next to me again, making me jump, "you can be my queen. Then we'll rule the Labyrinth together."
"Do you promise?" I asked, lowering the picture. His face sobered and got serious.
"Yes."
"You promise you'll always come back, and you'll never forget me?" I asked, tears in my eyes. Why am I crying? I only cry when Mom and Dad are arguing loudly and I get scared.
"I promise." he insisted earnestly. I threw my arms around him, hugging tightly.
"Thank you."
He hugged me back. "I'll never, ever forget you."
I was crying. In the dim light of the attic, half the boxes around me opened and sorted, and dozens of spiders watching me like I was crazy. I closed the photo album.
"I wish this boy was here." I let out, wiping at my eyes. For a moment, nothing happened. I managed to dry my eyes before a man stepped out of the shadows.
"Sarah?" his voice was concealed and emotionless. The events of the Labyrinth all came back to me. It was just another game, just another of our games. How many times did he play the bad guy, and I the heroine? But I had hated him, those five years ago.
"I'm sorry." he didn't answer, only staring at me. I couldn't move from my spot. "But, you didn't keep your promise."
I would have remembered him, I never would have forgotten about him if he had. But then, his father found out about his visits here and took him away.
"Yes, I did." he spoke in that same, unforgiving tone. "I came every week, Sarah. I was forbidden to be seen there again, but I always came."
"The owl?" I blinked, surprised. He nodded and crossed his arms, looking down at me.
"And I never forgot." he was accusing me of exactly that. I felt my eyes grow wet again. I looked down.
"I'm sorry."
"Why did you call me here, Sarah?" he demanded, letting out a sigh.
"Because, I remember now." my voice was quiet. He'd played with me, the entire way through. Then I rejected him, let him know that I didn't remember him.
"And?" he demanded, pushing himself off from the wall. "Why would you wish to call such a villain into your home? If you hadn't realized, I am king now. Which means I have a kingdom to lead."
I didn't look up from the photo book. I'd truly hurt him. I sensed his eyes zero in on it directly, and he let out a sigh.
"I know you were going through quite an ordeal after I left. I don't blame you for forgetting everything. A child must grow up, after all." he sounded sad now. "Is there anything else you wished?"
"Do you still hate me?" I asked, looking up. He actually looked surprised then.
"I've never hated you."
"Then why not just tell me? Why didn't you try and remind me?" I demanded.
"What do you think I was doing? Every challenge you faced, it was one we played as children." It's true. I can remember each one. The choice of the doors, I remember him giving me the riddle with puppets. The Bog, it was the stream. And the bridge over it... Sir Didymus. He always used to tell me about his fencing teacher who guarded the bridge.
"But why didn't you tell me?" I objected. "Obviously, I didn't remember any of it. Why?"
"What's said is said now, Sarah." he turned his head. "It cannot be changed."
"I would have loved to remember." I sighed. "That was the best summer of my life, you know. Before the divorce, I loved it so much..."
"Goodbye, Sarah." he wasn't looking at me.
"Jareth..." he froze, and I realized that since I'd forgotten about that summer, I'd never once spoken his name. All throughout the Labyrinth, he was always 'Goblin King'. But saying it, I felt years younger. Like a little girl who'd found her prince charming.
Can't I be a grown girl, with her king?
"If you have nothing more to say," he glanced over his shoulder at me, closer to the wall he'd come from, "then please, let me leave."
"Do you want to play a game?"
He turned towards me slowly, curious and cautious.
"First one to the bench wins. If I win, you make me an ice cream cone." Those were always the rules. A race to the bench, and every time I won, he'd conjure me a strawberry ice cream cone.
"Aren't we a bit old for these games now?" he sighed, tired.
"And if you win, I'll stay in the park all night." he always hated going home, and wanted to stay there with me.
He sighed and shook his head. "If I win, you'll come over to play."
"Deal." I was still sitting there, and he was far closer to the trap door out of here. "Head start for the shortest?"
"And no one will be the wiser." he recited with me. I smiled and made my way down to bottom floor. I was walking, and as I reached the front door, he stepped up with me. He never gave me much of a head start.
"Can you still run?" he asked. I stepped out onto the porch and didn't bother to lock up as I shut the door in his face.
I took off down the street, still barefoot, to the familiar path I'd gone down ritually every week for years. Behind me, he quickly caught up, running and grinning at me like he was twelve, and I nine. But, I started to go faster. The park came into view, and just as I started to think I'd lost him around the corner, a barn owl flew over head straight into the trees.
He was already sitting on the bench, taking up far more space than he had last time we were both here together. I paused to catch my breath.
"Now why would you ever make a bet with me like this? Surely by now, you know I always cheat." he mused, watching me as I panted. I stood up straight, smiling.
"I know." On those nights after each of our races, my parents were too angry at each other to realize the illusion in my bed was not me, as I lay in the grass with my best friend... eating strawberry ice cream.
He smiled to me and held up a small, pink, frozen cone. "Why would you forget, Sarah?" he demanded of me, finally asking for answers. I sat next to him. We were both far larger than our younger selves, so I was forced to sit close. Of course, back then, we sat close anyways.
"It was the divorce." I sighed. "It made me so upset, and scared. I thought that if I grew up, maybe they wouldn't separate. And, grown ups don't believe in magic."
"Do you?" he asked importantly.
"I do." I do believe in magic again. He twisted his hand and held up a photo. The very same one I had in the back of my photo album. It's the original, the one he copied magically to give to me.
"And you still want to visit my kingdom?"
"I've already visited your kingdom." I shook my head. He frowned at me. "But, you did say you'd teach me magic."
"And that I would make you my queen." he nodded, staring at me hesitantly.
"Do you promise?" I asked. My eyes had grown wet again. He stared at them, not answering at first. Stupid tears, why are you coming back again?
Then, "Yes."
And just like eleven years ago, I threw my arms around him.
Told you it was rather cliche. But, I'm still fond of this story. I just couldn't get the idea of those two meeting before, and young Jareth is so fun to write... ornery little guy... And I also feel like the Goblin King (or prince as the case may be) isn't really evil. He just loves to play games.
And Sarah, you'd have to change her attitude in the movie a bit to match. This version of Sarah would have been a bit more curious and closely watching him- almost as if he were familiar -than just being afraid of him and so determined.
Did you like it? Grammar/spelling issues? Care to just say hi? R&R!