I know this kind of story is probablywearing thin by now but I needed to get it out of my system. Basically Sarah wishes her brother away AGAIN and has to complete the Labyrinth AGAIN.
Disclaimer: I ownnone of the characters used at all, nilch, zip, nada.As much as I wishI did.
Sarah wiped the tears from her eyes and put the phone down. She would not let him upset her, she wouldn't. Taking a deep breath, Sarah blew her nose and slumped in a chair. Picking up a box of chocolates she proceeded to stuff them into her mouth as quickly as possibly (Don't we all when we're upset, well I do anyway). She couldn't believe it. She'd really liked this guy and he'd just dumped her like a tonne of hot bricks and over the phone no less.
"Too spineless to tell me to my face," she muttered to herself.
In the five years since she'd solved the Labyrinth she'd never been able to hold a relationship together for very long. She had no idea why. It just always felt like there was something missing. Sarah still had that feeling with this guy but she'd decided that since she had that feeling with every guy, and it was not going to go away, she might as well pick the nicest one and try to be happy. Except this one had turned out to be a complete Jackass.
"No loss I suppose," she grumbled, "I'll just have to face up to the fact I'm going to die alone." She wasn't left in these dismal reflections for long as a yelling mass leapt into her lap.
"Toby!" She grunted, "Don't do that. I just ate a box of chocolates."
Six-year-old Toby grinned at her cheekily.
"All right young man, bedtime."
"No!"
"Toby," Sarah sighed. It wasn't easy raising him by herself. She'd had full guardianship of him since her Dad and Karen had died in a car accident about a year ago.
"Story!" Toby demanded.
"Oh ok. But you better have picked it by the time I get upstairs!" Toby ran off.
Groaning Sarah got to her feet and went upstairs. She lived with Toby in a small semi-detached house that she rented using the money from her insignificant job she hated and the money left to her in her Father's will.
"Toby where are you?" she called in a singsong voice. She heard giggling and walked into her bedroom. There was movement under the bed.
"Boo!" She cried dropping to her knees and peeking under. Screaming Toby scrambled out.
"So, do have a book?"
Toby nodded.
"Which one is it?" she asked.
Toby pulled out a book from behind his back and Sarah's breath caught in her throat.
"Where did you find that?" she gasped staring at the red bound leather, "Have you been going through my drawers again?" She hated that he'd found it because she still thought it babyish that she'd kept it all those years.
Toby grinned, "This is the book I want you to read."
"No Toby!" Sarah told him firmly, "It'll scare you." She also didn't want to admit that it scared her, ever since…
"I want this one!" Screamed Toby.
"NO!" Then Toby did what any six-year-old does when he or she doesn't get his or her own way. He threw a tantrum. (Well this is what my little brother does anyway but it might just be him).
"Oh Toby stop it!" Cried Sarah holding her ears, "All right already. Knock it off. I'll read you the story."
Toby stopped bawling as if by magic.
Sarah sat on her double bed and Toby sat next to her. She could hear the rain lashing at the window and the wind howling.
"Ok, once upon a time there was a beautiful young girl whose stepmother always made her stay home with the baby and the baby was a spoilt child who wanted everything for himself and the young girl was practically a slave. But what no one knew was that the King of the Goblins had fallen in love with the girl…" A picture of Jareth sprang unbidden into her mind.
Fear me, love me, do as I say and I will be your slave"…And he had given her certain powers. So one night when baby had been particularly cruel to her, she called on the Goblins for help…"
You asked that the child be taken" 'Say the right words' the Goblins said, and we will take the baby to the Goblin city and you will be free. But the girl knew that the King of the Goblins would keep the baby in his castle forever and ever and turn him into a Goblin…"
You have 13 hours in which to solve the Labyrinth before your baby brother becomes one of us forever
"So the girl suffered in silence until one night when she was tired from a day of house work and hurt by the harsh words of her stepmother…"
Toby whimpered. "Toby are you ok, I can stop now if you want."
"No, go on."
Sarah bit her lip but continued, "Goblin King, Goblin King where ever you may be, take this child of mine far away from me, but nothing happened."
"Those weren't the right words, were they?"
"No Toby," she replied warily, eyeing her brother.
"What were the right words?"
Sarah looked at the page debating whether it was wise. 'Come on' she chided herself, 'don't be a baby. What could happen?'
"I wish the Goblins would come and take you away. Right now."
WHAT"S SAID IS SAID!The words screeched through her mind and they were plunged into darkness. Toby screamed. Sarah held her brother tightly.
"Don't let go of me Toby! Do. Not. Let. Go."
They seemed to stay there for what seemed like an eternity, then the lights and came back on. Sarah looked down. Toby was still holding onto her, his eyes squeezed shut. She gave a shaky laugh, "A power cut, nothing else."
Toby opened one eye, "I thought the Goblins had come to get me."
Sarah gave him a patronising smile even though the same thought had occurred to her, "Come on, enough. Bedtime."
Toby followed her quietly into his bedroom next door and she tucked him in. Walking out the room she called from the corridor,
"Goodnight Toby."
There was no answer. 'Probably asleep already,' she thought to herself but she was feeling uneasy. Couldn't hurt to check.
She strode back into the room and went up to the bed. It was made neatly and quite obviously empty. Toby was gone. Oh great, not again. Turning slowly she came face to face with a smirking Jareth. Brilliant.
Please review so I know whether or not if this is any good, if I should continue, if there is anything wrong and so on.