NOTE: I do not own the Labyrinth or any part of the movie, book, or characters. There may be OCs pop up, but you'll know them from the canons. :] I do not claim any part of the film to be my own. Characters belong to Jim Henson and whoever else owns their rights.

Day broke on the tiny town of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania as the rays of sunlight beamed into a young woman's room. The light bounced off of the dozens of posters plastered here and there over the walls, teenage and young adult faces beaming down. They had been her idols once, but not now. The walls themselves were painted a light rosy pink, the sun bringing out the gloss in the paint. The twin sized bed was covered with blankets of a similar pink shade, tangled around the long legs of a young woman who lay deep in slumber beneath them. Her long dark hair tangled beneath her and some fanned out onto the pillow, small tangles placed in just the right places to irritate her when she brushed her hair out in the mornings. Her right hand was up by her face, palm up. Her pale skin seemed to fade into the cream-colored pillow, sun never seeming to seep into her skin to warm up her color. The young woman sighed softly in her sleep, her body rising with the intake of air. Her chocolate brown eyes fluttered open, her long lashes batting for a second as the sun swept into her vision and blind her momentarily.

The young woman slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands. Her soft lips parted in a yawn as she swung her long, slender legs out from under the tangled covers, standing to her full height. She stepped over old stuffed animals that had been tossed on the floor the night before and some old books that lay dog-eared and open to random pages in neglect and carelessness. She sat down on the small stool before her vanity, her eyes seeing her reflection for the first time that morning.

Sarah hadn't changed much since she was fifteen. Her hair had gotten longer, of course, and her body had matured into that of a woman. Her ski slope nose still felt – to her – a little large for her slender face. Of course, many boys who had dated her said she was "a looker", but who were they to say that? They only wanted in her pants. Of course, back then, she had been rather scrawny and loud-mouthed. At twenty, she had grown into a five foot six frame and had gotten a little bit more mature. She always had described herself as a colt stumbling around right after birth; Sarah never had been very graceful. The only time she'd really ever been graceful had been that day at the … No. Why would she ever remember such a thing? It had been Hell for her. Ever going back there would be pointless and she knew it. Why even remember the place that had caused her to mature and become a woman? She'd almost lost Toby to that man because of her selfish desires and wishes.

Him. She hadn't thought of the Goblin King for so long. She never really wanted to. Sarah had immediately erased all images of him and the Labyrinth from her memory – as well as Toby's – for good. She didn't want Toby recalling that place and ever asking her about it. Sarah didn't think she could bear it. The memories were still strong and fresh in her mind as if they had just ended the night before. The ballroom scene still played in her dreams, but this time it had a different ending. He had paused time for their intimate dance, his mismatched eyes gazing down upon her with an unreadable emotion. For a while, their little race didn't matter; it was just the two of them in their own little world, in their own Labyrinth.

But this was the present. Sarah knew things were different now. She was grown up and grownups didn't believe in fairy tales, goblins, Goblin Kings, or magical lands where any of the preceding existed. Toby had moved on from fairy tales and adventure stories to Tonka trucks and dinosaurs, preferring those items. She and Toby were still as close as two catfish in a skillet, but she knew things weren't the same. Not since that night.

One night – about four years after the incident - Toby had come to Sarah, asking about a dream he had had. A tall man with feathered blond hair and mismatched eyes had come to him, speaking about a Labyrinth near the Goblin City. Toby asked Sarah what this man meant and who he was. Sarah, overreacting, had screamed at Toby and almost uttered those words that had started that trip years before: "I wish the goblins would come get you right now!"

Sarah stared morosely into her mirror, her dark eyes watching her reflection as she sighed once more. She caught movement out of the corner of her eye toward her window, her head jerking that direction instinctively. Nothing. The curtain was loose, flowing gently against the window in the slight breeze her window, open a smidgen, caused. Sarah could have sworn she saw something white flutter from her windowsill, but her mind seemed most imaginative right after she woke up. Yawning and stretching her arms out from her body, she heard the satisfying popping of her joints and stood. Her hair could wait. Her stomach grumbled, low and strong, as it signaled her intense hunger. She hadn't eaten the night before and if she didn't eat soon, she'd end up eating Toby. Giggling to herself, Sarah stepped out of her room, tripping on a teddy bear named Lancelot. Steadying herself, Sarah placed Lancelot on the end of her bed, muttering, "Now you just stay there, mister. You'll get in less trouble." With that, she turned and walked out of the room.

Outside her window, a white barn owl hooted on a tree branch.

Sarah padded into the kitchen, her thin cotton pajamas suddenly feeling warm on her body. The ground floor of her home always felt so much warmer than the upstairs, but that didn't bother her. She stepped to the fridge, opening it and leaning over to survey the contents. Milk, eggs, half a loaf of bread, leftover lasagna from two nights ago - might not be good, should probably pitch it soon - ham salad, and pickled eggs. Hmm. Sarah's brow furrowed as she mulled over her ingredients. Finally, she pulled out the milk, eggs, and the half loaf of bread and shut the refrigerator door with her foot. Placing the food on the counter, she leaned down and pulled a skillet from a rotating rack in the side pantry. Placing the skillet on the stove top, she heated the burner to medium and turned back to the ingredients she had just pulled from the fridge. She opened the egg carton and picked out two healthy eggs. Cracking one and then the other on the side of the skillet, she dropped the yolks and whites into the skillet, watching the liquid being to bubble under the heat. Sarah knew it would take at least a minute for the eggs to being frying and her bladder was nearly bursting, so she quickly skidded out of the kitchen and down the hallway to the bathroom.

As she washed her hands, Sarah watched her reflection in the tiny mirror above the sink. Her eyes had dark circles underneath them from lack of sleep. She knew that she should be getting more sleep, but nightmares had been keeping her awake at night. Nightmares that had once upon a time been her favorite dreams to have. Now his face plagued them all, smiling down at her that fake smirk, that one that told her he pretended to care about her. Sarah's gaze finally truly connected with the image in the mirror, one not of her own face. The reflection rendered her frozen solid. A man stared back at her, his piercing blue eyes peering into her own. His left eye, the pupil further dilated than the other, seemed to gaze deeper into her, past her facial features and past her heart. It saw into the deepest reaches of her soul and her mind, reading her innermost thoughts. Sarah shuddered as the reflection mirrored her reaction. Her jaw dropped. The expression seemed almost comical on the Goblin King's face, his high mess of perfectly tangled hair seeming to glow in the light from the fixture above her. Sarah shrieked, stepping back from the mirror.

"Get AWAY from me!" she screamed. Her hands went to cover her eyes, to keep him from looking at her face. She didn't want him to look at her. Sarah peeked through her fingers, finding her own reflection in the mirror once more. Sighing softly, she placed one hand on her heart to feel her racing heartbeat. The hand on her chest seemed to calm her as she stepped forward to shut off the water she had forgotten to turn off in her fright. She sighed softly, leaning on the sink to calm herself.

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!

Sarah's head jerked up as the words floated on her lips. "Oh no. The eggs!"

Authors' note:

Ooopsie. Looks like Sarah forgot about her breakfast. o:

Anywho, yes, Sarah is a darker woman now. Not all doom and gloom, but more withdrawn. Some insight:

- She's 20 and lives on her own. She's repressed all memories of the Labyrinth and magical creatures. She, however, took all the decorations from her old room and replaced them in her new room at her home. Why? You'll see. ;D Anyway, I write faster if I have reviews (and it helps to be in the mood - which I have been a lot recently). So review? I know this chapter was slightly boring, but I was thinking up the plot as I went and was on auto-pilot. It'll get better, I promise. :]