So… Is 6 years too long for an update? I really wanted to finally finish this for you. Feedback I need: should this turn into a prequel for a story in present time with Sarah and Jareth, where Sarah remembers these events? Just wondering if the plot bunny should become reality. Thanks for reading!
Nutcracker Sweet
Like most Christmas tales, this one begins with snow. A snow that had begun with light, fluffy flakes, but quickly escalated into a blowing, stinging storm. In the middle of this blizzard sat a fairly large home, trimmed with evergreen and glowing lights as was tradition. This was the home of Sarah Williams.
You may have heard of Sarah Williams; you may recall her journey through the labyrinth of the goblin king, Jareth. Perhaps you have read and re-read her story, learning about the young woman who recruited the inhabitants of the strange land to her side, and managed to defeat a legendary king. But before Sarah Williams was a determined young woman, she was a thoughtful little girl, looking out the window at the snow.
After staring at the swirling snow for twenty minutes, Sarah had taken to peering at her family through the slats of the banister, watching them gather, laughing happily. Her heart lifted in anticipation. After a long day of waiting, the children had been banished upstairs while the adults readied the room. Every year, the tree was larger and larger, and the number of packages lying beneath it increased.
"Do you think Santa remembered my bicycle?" Sarah's cousin, Fritz, whispered. The little girl smiled.
"I'm sure he did; Santa knows everything." She grinned at him, and listened carefully to the sounds below. Suddenly, the sound of ringing jingle bells broke the adult conversations. The children hushed their play, and strained to hear the sounds rising upstairs from the floor below.
"Santa, you made it!" A voice Sarah recognized as her mother addressed an unseen figure. Sarah's eyes grew wide as she turned to her cousin. William, yet another cousin, joined the pair. "I'm sure that the children will be glad to see you," Linda Williams continued.
"He's here!" the three children huddled, trying desperately to get a glance of the room below.
"Children!" Sarah's father's voice called them, a cue for the mad dash down the stairs. Donned in Christmas pajamas, five children ventured downstairs, stepping on each others' toes in their hurry. Two large, wooden doors hid the room from sight. Sarah was nearly hopping on her toes in excitement. Her mother and father grinned, as did her other aunts and uncles, who were lined up on opposite sides of the doors.
"Merry Christmas," called Aunt Rosie, as she swung open the doors and let the children into the wonderland within.
Never had Sarah seen such a beautiful tree! The presents were piled as high as she was tall, and the branches of the monstrous evergreen were dripping with glass, tinsel, crystal and gold. Every color of the rainbow was represented on the glowing branches of the Christmas tree. The children stopped their frantic run to gawk at the brilliant display. William, the mischievous one of the bunch, started shaking presents almost immediately thereafter.
"William, put them down," the child's mother scolded. But the excitement was contagious, and soon the adults were dancing around, as giddy as the children. Before presents could be opened, however, Sarah's godfather, her mother's brother, Dorin, had to arrive. Sarah pressed her nose to the window, peering out into the swirling snow and listening for the bells that would announce her godfather's arrival.
An hour and a quarter later, the children were growing restless. It was hard enough to sit still and talk to the adults on a normal day, let alone Christmas! After a long wait, however, a knock sounded at the door, and the children could hear someone stamping the snow off his boots upon the mat.
"Uncle Dorin!" Sarah's childish shout made the adults pause in their discussions. Their gazes turned toward the young Williams child, who had run and leapt into the arms of a hunched but sturdy older gentleman. The relations smiled in recognition. "What did you bring us, godfather?" Little Sarah grinned up at the man, remembering the unusual and magical things that usually happened when their uncle came to call.
"Greedy little thing, aren't you?" Sarah's godfather scolded her playfully, trying to brush snow off his coat and appease the squirming child at the same time. Sarah simply smiled innocently, and searched her uncle's coat pockets. She was rewarded with a handful of sweets and a warning look from her mother.
"Stop loading them up with sugar, Dorin, we'll never get them to sleep." Linda Williams smiled despite her words, and took the sweets from her daughter's hand, save one. Sarah smiled sheepishly, then winked at her uncle; she knew that more candies would be forthcoming later in the evening.
As soon as the adults were settled, and Uncle Dorin had hung his large black coat on a hook by the door, the children knew that it was time to open their gifts. They patiently tried to curb their excitement, acting on their best behavior in hopes that they would induce the adults to begin the festivities.
"All right," William's father said finally, "Who gets to go first?" The next hour was a flurry of wrapping and ribbons, new toys and exclamations.
The occupation that Dorin claimed was toymaker. He repaired and created toys from the comfort of his large, sprawling Victorian home. In reality, however, he was somewhat of an inventor. On this occasion, he had brought a life sized doll, which he retrieved from his car. When he turned the knob on the doll's back, it marched around the room, grinning plastically. Dorin announced that this was a gift for all of the children. Fritz laid claim to it until his mother told him to please behave himself.
Uncle Dorin's next gift was to Fritz, who had ceased, for the moment, running about the room flying his new airplane. This gift was wrapped in a bright blue paper, dotted with silver. Fritz ripped into the package, dropping the shredded paper on the floor by his feet.
"It's a huge rat!" he shrieked. "The king of all the rats, he's the ruler of a great army. . ." Fritz went off with the new toy, creating a dream world of his own as he twirled it about in one hand, toy airplane in the other. William was next, and received a toy soldier, which boasted brilliantly painted shining metal.
The last gift went to Sarah, who had been patiently breathing her appreciation of the gifts her cousins had received. Her eyes lit up when she saw the gift that godfather Dorin had given to her.
"He's the goblin king," the man explained, smiling softly at the girl's reaction. The king of the goblins was perfect, from his spiky blonde hair to the midnight blue cape that wrapped around him. He held a crystal in his hand, holding it out as if to offer it to the viewer. His eyes were painted a mismatched blue and green, and looked so realistic that Sarah could almost see him blinking.
"He's beautiful," Sarah breathed, cradling in her arms like a baby.
"I want to play with it!" Fritz grabbed the doll out of Sarah's hand.
"No! The girl shouted, but it was too late. Fritz ran about the room, holding the doll aloft, making it fly as if it were his toy airplane. "Give it back!" Sarah squealed, chasing her cousin. But it was too late; with a crack, Fritz flew the goblin king right into a wall, and the crystal in his hand fell unceremoniously onto the floor. "Fritz!" The wronged girl sobbed, grabbing the doll back and cradling it in her arms.
"Fritz Williams, get over here." Fritz hung his head guiltily, not as sorry for stealing the doll as he was for the mishap. Uncle Dorin shook his head briefly, then smiled at the teary eyed girl.
"Come now, child," he said, "bring him here." Sarah sadly brought the goblin king over to her uncle, and placed the tiny crystal into his large hand. Uncle Dorin reached into his inside pocket and pulled out a tiny tube of clear liquid. He applied it to the bottom of the crystal, and magically repaired it, placing it back in the hand of the mysterious king. Sarah grinned and clutched the doll to her tightly.
"Now, now child, don't break him again. Gently." Fearful of breaking her new doll once more, Sarah placed him under the tree, back toward the wall so he wouldn't be disturbed.
"I'll let you rest and come back and get you later," Sarah promised the doll, moving to rejoin her cousins in their latest play. After hours of Christmas joy and festivities, however, the goblin king doll was completely forgotten.