Author's Note: Standard Disclaimer, I don't own Labyrinth or the characters, etc. etc. etc.
Chapter 1
Reality isn't what it used to be.
~Walter Truett Anderson
Sarah awakened with a gasp. She
scanned her room, amazed to see no sign of her friends after their wild dance
last night. Only the ordinary was discovered—no streamers or confetti, not one
forgotten hat.
Was I dreaming? It
seemed so real…
She crossed the room and sat at her vanity. Peering into the mirror, Sarah anticipated Ludo or Hoggle popping into view at any moment. Only her jade eyes and brown hair greeted her instead.
"Hoggle? I need you," she whispered. "Please Hoggle…"
Nothing?
Her heart ached; the loss of her first true friends—to her
own imagination nonetheless—hard to bear. A solitary tear formed and crept down
her cheek.
I wish… I wish that my
dream had actually hap…
"Sarah, honey, please hurry—you will be late!"
Sarah swiped at her tear and bolted down the stairs. To trigger Karen's anger so early in the day would be a mistake. Pausing just inside the kitchen, she gaped at the unexpected sight.
"Mom?"
"Who did you expect to make your eggs, the queen of England?" Linda Williams laughed and placed a plate on the kitchen table. "Now, sit and eat, you won't be late for school again. Geometry test today, right?"
Sarah slid into her chair. Her
heart galloped within her chest as she stared blankly at her food.
Why is mom here? Where
is my step-mother…? Where is Toby… TOBY!
"Mom, where's Toby? Is he still asleep?" Sarah strained to keep the tension out of her voice. When her mother did not respond, Sarah repeated her question. "Mom— Mom! Where's Toby? Where. Is. My. BROTHER?"
"Sarah. Are you feeling all right? Is this your idea of a joke? You know very well your father and I can not have more children." Voice cracking, she turned away from her daughter. "How could you be so cruel…?" she whispered.
Sarah
kicked at every pebble in her path as she trudged towards the school.
What the heck was I thinking? I don't have a baby brother. Mom and dad divorced? Ha! I guess my
imagination was working overtime last night, dreaming up a brother and the whole Labyrinth thing. Stop!
Focus, Sarah—Test today. What's the formula for the radius of a circle?
Sarah chuckled and jogged the rest of the way to class.
Karen stood at the base of the stairs screaming for Sarah to come relieve her of Toby. "Damn that girl, Toby needs breakfast before she leaves for school," she said, wandering back into the kitchen.
"I am starving. Mmm, peaches." Karen bit into the fragrant peach then quickly ate the entire fruit, pausing only to pry out and throw away the pit. "Delicious…"
Her husband walked downstairs and into the kitchen to join her. "Dear, where is Sarah?"
"Who?" she said. "Have a peach, dear, it is delicious."
