Chapter One

"Turn back Sarah! Turn back before it's too late!"

Sarah bolted upright and gasped. In hazy confusion she clutched at her tangled blankets and it took her a minute to realize she had been dreaming. Her relief was short lived as disappointment washed over her. "Just a dream…" Before she could get settled back down, a quiet tap at the door sounded before Toby, her young brother entered clutching a teddy bear under his arm. Grateful for this distraction, she welcomed him by lifting the covers and moving over.

"Can't sleep?" She asked.

"No. I don't want to go to school tomorrow." He said.

"How come?"

"No reason."

"It's those bullies again isn't it?" He grimaced.

"No, not just that. School is boring. It's hard to pay attention and then I look stupid when the teacher calls on me and I don't know the answer."

"What would you rather do if you didn't have to go to school?" Everything might have been so different, she ruined her life and her brothers too.

"Play outside." He was a smart little boy, he had a knack for insect identification. Sarah shuddered although it had nothing to do with bugs.

"Being a grown up isn't as fun as it seems."

"Tell me a story." He yawned. And Sarah complied, for she felt as though she had told it to him a hundred times, just as she relived it in her own dreams more than was healthy. "Once upon a time, there was a selfish girl that never wanted to help out…" Toby was asleep before she even made it into the labyrinth. Sleep did not come easily to her and her mind turned to the things she usually avoided thinking about. She tried not to think much about her time in the Labyrinth because it made everything in her life seem so ordinary and mundane. When she had defeated Jareth, she was happy to have Toby back and was sure that she could call on the friends when she needed them. But as she got older and her interest in the opposite sex piqued, she found that no one could live up to the standard that he had left upon her. When she'd finished high school, she ended up with an office job. She also joined the local theater, but it did not hold her attention the way she believed it would. Adult life was disappointing and she didn't want to own this unpleasant fact. She watched Toby sleeping and envied how young he was, and also wondered what adventure she had denied them both by bringing them back to this uninteresting world. Had it really happened? She was too old now to make believe with the same innocence she had, even when she was fifteen. It was the Goblin King's fault that he couldn't keep her. He had forced her to grow up in that crazy maze and she had learned her lesson well. Life wasn't fair, but the worst part was that it didn't get any better as it went on.

The day dragged at work and she had begun to dread going to the theater. One of her fellow actors kept hinting heavily that he'd like to see more of her and time and time again she turned him down.

"So Sarah, are you coming up to the bar after class?"

"Sorry Steve, not tonight."

"What about tomorrow night, it's Saturday and I got two tickets to the…"

"I'm sorry, I'm not free tomorrow night either." She said, cutting him off gently. He could not seem to take a hint and she had exercised being cruel to those who desired her more than she ever wanted to again.

"I won't give up on you Sarah." At this, her eyes began to sting.

"I'm very flattered, but I'm just not interested in seeing anyone just now." She said.

"I understand, did you want a ride home, did you maybe change your mind and want o come to the bar?" Steve asked.

"No thanks. I'll lock up! You guys have a good time." She called as the last of them filed out of the theater. The theater, though small, was architecturally beautiful. With high domed ceilings and rich red velvet curtains, the crown molding on the ceiling crisscrossed with patterns of fruit and flowers. She liked to be alone here, enjoying the silence after all the noise of daily life. Her phone alarm went off and she frowned. Already ten o'clock and she had to get up early for a meeting at work. She closed the stage curtain and picked up her bag to go. A battered old book fell out onto the wooden stage floor, she picked it up tenderly and ran her fingers over the worn cover.

"Say your right words…" She repeated for the thousandth time. "But what are they now?" Wishing with all her heart there had been a sequel to get her through.

"Jareth, I wish I could see you again." Tears welled up before she could stop herself. She brushed them away impatiently. "Silly. Being sentimental does not suit you." She said decidedly.

"I rather think it does." A voice drawled from behind her, causing her to jump and upset a stack of metal chairs. "Although it's easy to see you are no more graceful than when you last tramped through my labyrinth…" He trailed off looking irritated.

There he was, leaning against the wall up on the balcony looking perfectly at ease. He looked the same as she remembered, better even. Dressed in all black with a silver lining in his high collared cloak. His face was a little more lined, but over all, nothing could have delighted and terrified her more.

"I must be dreaming." She whispered.

"I see time has not made you any smarter. I am here because you wished it, so I can assure you that you are not dreaming, though I cannot say I am pleased to see you." He replied. Too excited to be hurt by these words she was suddenly afraid to blink, lest he disappear.

"I was beginning to think you must have been some crazy fantasy I'd made up." She murmured feverishly, not taking her eyes off his god-like face. He continued to examine his nails. His eyes suddenly met hers and it sent a shock wave through her.

"So, what'll it be this time, more pesky relatives for me to whisk off?" She chose not to answer, her brain whirring as explanations chased each other around wildly.

"Well? You've called me back, what do you want?"

"I want thirteen hours." It was followed by a ringing silence of shock and disbelief.

Jareth hissed, but said nothing else.

"I come of my own free will and I demand to be let back into the Labyrinth." She said. "And why on earth should I do that?" Jareth's voice smoothed over his ruffled feathers.

"I will disclose the full reason when I find you in the castle at the center of the Labyrinth." His eyes narrowed and a squirm of pleasure caused her to fight back a threatening smile. He had taken the bait. Could it be that easy? No, she could not afford to think she'd won, not yet.

"The Labyrinth may not be the way you remember. I'd hate for you to be disappointed."

"You sound bitter."

"Not as foolish as you look I suppose. Wonder what else you've learned." He said.

"Life isn't fair, isn't that the most profound lesson someone can learn?" She asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

"As you wish…" He said indifferently. He was suddenly standing near her and the theater had faded in an unobtrusive way. They stood in the dusty, desert-like landscape she had stood on almost a decade ago. "I'll be waiting to hear your reason." He said as he too faded away, the echo of his words disappearing into the wind. She wanted to scream for him not to go. She glanced at the disappearing clock and more anxious than she would have expected of herself, she began her journey for a second time.