Prologue

1986

Jareth could feel his heart shredding as Sarah rejected his final offer, forbidding him from her life. The Labyrinth had been beaten- and by extension, he, himself had been defeated. He knew that this wasn't the end, but it still hurt. He had offered her everything and she had walked away, unable to understand what he offered.

His love, his power, his kingdom… how could she reject such a thing? How could she leave the Underground?

Because she was too young. She could not understand what she wanted- at least, not yet.

It was a good thing that Jareth was patient. He had already waited hundreds of years for Sarah Williams; he could wait just a bit longer. The Labyrinth was a force all its own, and it would ensure Sarah's safe return to his kingdom. They both wanted the same thing; Sarah as the Queen.

But she had to come back willingly. That might take work on his part, but he was sure that it something he could accomplish. After all, Sarah already loved the Underground- that which she had seen of it, that is. He smiled darkly as the idea came to him. She might not want to come back… but she didn't have a choice if she was wished to him by, say, her little brother…