A Time for Forgiveness

MackenzieW

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the movie "Labyrinth." They belong to Jim Henson Productions.

"Dad, I told you I'll be home in a few days," Sarah Williams said, holding the phone between her shoulder and ear. She was boiling some spaghetti for dinner and using a new recipe to make her own sauce. "I have two more finals to finish and then I need to finish packing."

Sarah leaned over to pick up a seasoning she needed as her father continued talking. "No, it's not that I'm avoiding anyone. Dad, I get along with Irene now. No, it's not because I have plans with Mom instead. She's not even on this coast!" she exclaimed, stirring the sauce. "I swear to you it's because I still have finals. And because I still have a few more presents to get."

Her father laughed as she strained the pasta. After a few pleasantries, Sarah ended the call. She prepared a bowl and tried her creation. "Delicious," Sarah said. "And Dad and Irene thought I'd be living on takeout for the next four years."

Sarah took her bowl and decided to forgo sitting at the table. If her roommate caught her, she'd be a dead woman, but Sarah didn't care. She liked sitting on the seat by the window, watching New York City as she ate. Sarah had moved there when she enrolled at NYU, studying literature. She had at one point wanted to be an actress, but that all changed after a strange dream she had as a teenager.

She swore it was real, though she never told another soul about it except as bedtime stories to her baby brother. Her father and step-mother thought nothing of them, praising Sarah for her imagination. Irene, when trying to bond with her step-daughter, often tried to convince Sarah to write the stories down and submit them for publishing. Sarah refused, believing them to be too personal for her to share.

That all changed shortly before the end of her junior year. She had been dating a senior at her school since January and he had invited her to his prom. Excited, Sarah had gone shopping for a dress with some of her friends and Irene, who was delighted to share the experience with her step-daughter. Sarah had found the perfect dress and was absolutely giddy over it. She rushed home, eager to show her friends from the Underground. As she modeled the dress, she twirled around her bedroom and knocked over a pile of books. She didn't notice, but it made a rather loud sound below as her father quickly came running up. Sarah had been making a comment to Hoggle when her father opened the door.

"Sarah? Who are you talking to?" he asked.

Sarah whirled around, noticing her room was empty. "No one," she replied, smiling. "Like my dress?"

"It's beautiful," her father replied. He wasn't smiling. "Change and meet me downstairs, please."

After an emotional fight, Sarah ended up going to therapy. She realized she had dreamed the whole thing, a product of her unresolved feelings about her father's new family. And that she was suffering from hallucinations. Within a year, Sarah was declared better and, despite her father's misgivings, off to live in New York City. She found a decent roommate and was strengthening her relationship with her mother. As she finished her meal, the phone rang again.

Sarah dumped her dirty dishes in the kitchen sink and picked up the beige phone. "Hello? Oh, hey…The entire night? Okay, thanks for the heads up. Just try to be quiet if you get back before seven, okay? I have an early final and need all the sleep I can get. Mhmm. Thanks. And be safe, okay? See you tomorrow," Sarah said, hanging up the phone. Her roommate had met someone at a bar and would be spending the night with him. While the quiet would be good for her studying, Sarah didn't particularly care to stay by herself. But she would be okay.

Late that night, Sarah awoke. She wasn't sure why. She lay still under her covers, trying to determine what had awoken her. She knew she wasn't cold nor did she have to use the bathroom. She didn't hear any sounds coming from the next bedroom over, so she was still alone. Perhaps she just awoke on her own or due to a dream she could no longer recall? She sat up, straining to make sure she heard nothing. Convinced, Sarah rolled over to face her bedroom window. That's when she noticed a white barn owl flying away over the city.

That wasn't a sight common to Manhattan, especially in the winter. Sarah got out from under the covers to watch as it soared in the night winds. She couldn't shake the feeling of déjà vu the owl arose in her, but it was a beautiful sight anyway.

Three days later, Sarah finished her finals. Her friend Max helped her pack her car. "I think that's everything," she said, rubbing her arms. "Thank you again for your help."

"You're welcome," he replied, giving her a hug.

"You have a safe flight back to Cali. I'll see you next month," she said.

"You drive safely and I'll see you next year."

"One-upper."

"You love me."

"Merry Christmas, loser."

"Merry Christmas, love," Max replied, smiling. Something about that phrase bothered Sarah, but she wasn't sure why. She opened her door, gave a little wave and got in. With a shake of her head, she started her car and drove out of the garage and into Manhattan traffic.

About an hour later, Sarah was on the open road. She enjoyed the fact that she could drive the speed limit and had no other cars near her. The closest car was just a blur of a trunk ahead of her. A snowstorm had clearly passed through the area recently. Snow hung on evergreen boughs. As she drove over the bridge into her hometown, she could see the river had completely frozen over. As she looked out her passenger window, she could see people already on the pond about a half-mile away. Sarah's smile grew wider; she was home.

As her car pulled up to her house, she could see someone watching from the window. Parking, she got out and popped her trunk. Before she could reach for her bags, something small and warm hit into her. She twisted her upper body to look down at the happy face of her little half-brother. Who wasn't wearing a coat. "Goodness, Toby! Do you want to freeze? Get inside before your mother kills you. Or me. Or both of us!" Sarah scolded.

Toby laughed. "I don't know why you're laughing, she's right!" Irene said, exiting the house. "Welcome home, Sarah," she said, kissing her step-daughter's cheek. She turned to her son, hands on her hips. "You—inside. Now."

"But Mo-om!" Toby whined. She gave him a look and he hung his head in defeat. Sadly, Toby marched into the house.

"I swear that boy will be the death of me," Irene sighed. "Your father will be out shortly to help you with your things."

"That's okay, I can manage on my own," Sarah said.

"Nonsense. I will not force my baby girl to carry in her luggage by herself," Robert Williams said, coming out of the house. He kissed his daughter's cheek before hosting her luggage from the trunk.

"Thank you, Daddy. I've missed you."

"Missed you too, sweetheart. Now, let's get inside before we both freeze," Robert said, picking up another bag. Sarah closed her trunk, adjusted the packages in her arms and followed her father inside the house.

"Dinner will be ready in an hour," Irene said, sticking out from the kitchen.

"But I wanna eat now!" Toby whined, pouting. "I'm hungry!"

"I go away for three months and you lose all your manners!" Sarah exclaimed, watching as Toby grew more petulant. Sarah sighed. "I shouldn't be rewarding this behavior, but I'll tell you this—if you promise to be on your best behavior for the rest of my break, I'll take you out and play in the snow until supper."

"Really?" Toby's eyes grew wider. "Please, Mom!"

"Wait, I first need to hear you promise to be good," Sarah said.

Toby pouted but then said, "I promise."

"Good. Irene?" Sarah looked at her stepmother.

"If it gets him out of my hair, I am for it," Irene replied.

Toby let out a yell of joy as he ran to change into his snow clothes. Sarah also went to find her winter boots, hoping her father remembered to bring them down from the attic. She found them sitting in her closet and slipped them on after putting on another pair of socks. She slipped on another sweater and went to grab her coat from the coat rack by the front door. Toby was standing there, all bundled up so all she could see of her beloved brother was his nose.

By the end of the hour, that nose was very red. They had attempted to build a snowman, but Toby soon lost interest in that. He decided he would rather throw snowballs at his unsuspecting sister instead. She threw some back and a full out snowball war was declared. After that, they fell into the snow and made some snow angels. "Sarah! Toby! Come in and get ready for dinner!" Robert yelled.

"Come on, Toby," Sarah said, lifting her little brother up from the snow. Toby ran inside while Sarah shook the excess snow off her coat. As she looked up, a white barn owl took off from a nearby tree. It looked like the same one she had seen flying over Manhattan a few nights prior—but that was impossible.

With one last look, Sarah entered the house to get ready for dinner with her family.

"Wake up! Wake up!" Toby yelled, running into Sarah's room. He jumped onto her bed, jumping up and down on the mattress to shake his sister awake. "It's Christmas, Sarah! Christmas! Come on, wake up! I wanna open presents!"

Sarah tried to burrow deeper into her blankets. She cracked open an eye to see the clock by her bed. It was still only six in the morning. By her estimation, the sun wasn't even up yet. "Toby, go back to bed," she groaned. "Lemme sleep!"

"But I wanna open my presents!"

"You know, it's still dark out. Santa could come back and exchange your toys for coal!"

"Nah-uh!"

"Uh-huh!"

"Toby, go back to your room and wait till the sun comes up. Please. Or else I'll have to call Santa."

"You wouldn't!"

"Oh, really?" She picked up the phone next to her bed and pretended to dial a number.

Toby gasped. "I'll go back to bed! I'll wait for the sun to come up! Don't call Santa!" he pleaded.

Sarah hung up the phone and her brother ran back to his own bedroom. Score one for me, she thought, heading hit the pillow again. Within seconds, she was asleep again.

At the much more reasonable hour of nine o'clock, Toby eagerly dove under the tree to see what Santa left for him. "Look, Sarah, Santa left you a gift!" he exclaimed, handing Sarah a small box wrapped in the same shiny green paper that Toby's gift was wrapped in.

"Oh, he didn't have to do that!" she replied, casting a look at her father. The man just continued to gaze ahead, smiling. She opened the wrapping to reveal it wasn't a box, but a book of old fairy tales. "Well, I certainly appreciate what Santa picked out for me. What did he get you?" she asked, hugging the book as Toby gleefully tore into the paper.

Within a half-hour, Toby had opened all his presents and was now playing with his new video game. "I have one more gift for you," Robert told his daughter, pulling out another box.

"Dad! Don't you think you've outdone it?"

"I cannot overdo it when it comes to my family," he replied.

"Don't try to argue, he'll just keep repeating that phrase," Irene called from the kitchen. "Drives me insane."

Sarah opened her father's last present. "A cell phone?" she asked, holding up the bulky thing. "Why would I need a cell phone? Business people use these."

"Yes, but with you in the city and driving between here and there, I worry. What if you get a flat? What if your engine stalls? What if you run out of gas?"

"What if you meet up with a homicidal maniac loose from the jail?" Irene chimed in from the kitchen.

"Shut up," her husband snapped back.

"Daddy said a bad word!" Toby said, pointing at his father. "Daddy has to sit on the couch now!"

"Well, thank you, Dad. It was very sweet of you," Sarah said, kissing her father's cheek.

"Tomorrow, we'll go and sign you up for a number and a plan," he said.

"Daddy! You have to sit on the couch!" Toby said, pulling his father up. "You said a bad word!"

"Well, Dad, you better go and do your punishment. I'll put this in my room for now," Sarah said, watching her middle-aged father get manhandled onto the couch by his school age son. She walked to the staircase when she noticed one last present hanging by the back of the tree. She leaned down to see it, reading her name. It was from someone with the initial "J." She believed it to be from a school friend and brought it back with her to her room. If it was from who she thought, she definitely did not want her family seeing the present.

As she sat on her bed, she opened the box to find a crystal ball inside. "This is an odd gift," she said aloud, picking up the crystal. She placed it by her bedside and went back out as her relatives began to arrive.

Sarah didn't pay much attention to the crystal by her bed for the next few days. She got acquainted with her new cell phone, giving her friend Max a call as a thrill. "No, really, your dad gave you a cellular phone for Christmas?" he asked.

"Yeah, because he's insane and has these fantasies worthy of a horror film," she replied, lying on her bed.

"Really? Maybe I should talk to him…get a few ideas," Max mused.

"Don't humor him. Please. It sounds like Irene hears enough."

"Aww, is someone being sympathetic with her wicked stepmother?"

"Max! I haven't thought of Irene like that since I was fifteen!" she said. "Since I realized I wasn't in a fairy-tale…" She sat up. "Max, look, I'm going to have to end this call. Still not sure how everything works bill-wise. Yes I'll talk to you tomorrow. Love ya too."

Sarah put down her cell, approaching the crystal. She picked it up and tossed it between her hands for some time, trying to think. As the crystal twirled before her eyes, it looked cloudy. She became hypnotized—the ball passing from right to left, right to left, right to left…It became blurry, cloudier…Right to left, right to left, right to left…A figure started to grow from the clouds…Right to left, right to left, right to left…A face with wild hair…Right to left, right to left, right to left…Two mismatched eyes stared back her, one green and one blue…

Sarah dropped the ball. Her breath was caught in her throat and she clutched her blankets tightly. It was a dream. Nothing more. Perhaps I need to take a nap, she thought.

The ballroom was packed with masked revelers. They twirled to soft music, but Sarah was not ready to join in their dance. She was content to stand off to the side, watching. Waiting. She wasn't certain who for, but she knew she couldn't dance until that person arrived. As the music died down, the dancers parted to let one masked man cross the dance floor. He stopped in front of Sarah and bowed low. He straightened up and held a gloved hand to her. She took it and he led her to the dance floor. As the music started up again, she felt like she was just gliding across the floor. She couldn't see her partner's eyes; they were obscured by the mask. But that didn't matter, not now.

As the world falls down…

Why did that sound familiar to her? Her partner twirled her, dipping her as a finish. The others applauded as he straightened her up again. He kissed her hand and escorted her off the floor. "Remember, Sarah, remember," he whispered, kissing her cheek.

Remember…

Sarah woke up from her nap feeling more tired than when she laid down. "Sarah! Can you play with me?" her brother yelled up the stairs.

"In a minute, Toby," she yelled back in response. She took one last look at the crystal and left, still haunted by her dream.

"I knew he wouldn't make it to midnight," Sarah whispered.

Her father carried her brother to his bedroom. Toby had put up a valiant fight, but had fallen asleep during their last game of Clue. "Maybe next year," Robert whispered. "Thanks for helping me."

"Gladly," she replied, leaning against the door. She heard a strange tune coming from her room. "Oh, I think that's my phone," she said. Her father looked at her. "Max gets a thrill calling me on it, thinks we're so futuristic. I'll let him wish me a happy New Year and be down to ring it in with you and Irene."

Sarah found her phone and answered it. "Max, come on! It's not even midnight!" she said, laughing.

"Sarah?"

She nearly dropped the phone. That voice…it sounded so familiar. "Who…Who is this?" she asked.

"Sarah? You've forgotten me? You've forgotten your old friend Hoggle?"

"Hoggle," she whispered.

"That's right, Sarah, you remember me," her friend said. "We miss you."

"We?"

"I got Sir Didymus here and Ludo. We all been worried about you."

"I'm fine, Hoggle. You don't need to worry."

"Of course we worry! That's what friends do! We still friends, aren't we, Sarah?"

"Yes, Hoggle, we are still friends," she replied. "Don't be silly."

"But friends need each other. You don't need us anymore. It's been ages since you called for us."

"Oh, Hoggle…Hoggle? I still need you! Hoggle?"

The phone was dead.

Sarah let herself into the empty house. Now that the holidays were over, things had calmed down. Toby had returned to school and her parents back to work. And she was enjoying the silence. As much as she loved her family, she needed a break from them. She plopped down on the couch, ready to get lost in melodrama. She had three channels to choose from and tried to find who offered the best escape.

After a couple hours of back-stabbing best friends, two timing spouses, star-crossed lovers, long lost twins and frustrated patriarchs (or matriarchs), Sarah decided to make herself a snack. As she prepared a sandwich, Sarah noticed she had gotten colder. She had shed her sweater while sitting on the couch as she had been wrapped in a blanket, but now the January chill had crept in again. "Why is my sweater so far away?" she asked herself. Oh well, she figured she'd be back under the covers soon enough.

Sarah turned, plate in hand, and bumped into something large and furry. "Ahh, fair lady, fear not! We have fetched you your sweater!" Sir Didymus exclaimed, bowing to Sarah. The young girl wasn't sure how to respond to seeing her old friend, a fox in a knight's outfit sitting atop a dog, in her kitchen. "My lady?" Sir Didymus asked again.

Sarah put the plate down on the table. She leaned down to take the sweater from the dog's mouth. "Thank you, Ambrosius," she said, giving the dog a pat. "And you, Sir Didymus."

"Anything for a lady," the fox-like creature said. "Shall we escort you to the living room, my lady?"

Sarah smiled and picked her plate back up. "Lead on, good sir," she replied, laughing.

When they reached the living room, Sarah was pulled into a giant hug. "Ludo!" she exclaimed.

"Ludo happy to see Sarah!" he said.

"I'm happy to see you as well," she said. "Where's Hoggle?"

"Hoggle didn't come. Said Sarah mad," Ludo explained.

"I'm not mad. You tell Hoggle that," Sarah said, petting him.

They were gone before her family came home. Sarah was so elated from seeing her old friends, she didn't mind when Toby kicked her in the shin while demonstrating what he learned in karate. She didn't really register pain until her step-mother noticed she was limping. Her father gave her an ice pack and Toby a stern lecture on showing other people his karate moves. The pain eventually subsided and when she went to bed, she finally got a good look at how bad the bruise was.

Sarah sat down on her bed and rolled up her pajama leg. The bruise was a dark oval on her thigh. It was mostly black but starting to grow purple. "Tsk, that's painful," a male voice commented.

Sarah whirled around to face a man she hadn't seen in years. "You!" she exclaimed.

The Goblin King slid out of the shadows. He hadn't changed—the same wild hair, the same mismatched eyes, the same dark cloak. "Yes, me," he replied, chuckling. "We've missed you terribly, Sarah."

"We? Is that the royal 'we,' Jareth?"

"I almost forgot your sense of humor. No, that isn't the royal 'we,' Sarah. Your friends—Sir What's-his-name, Lump and Hogwash."

"Sir Didymus, Ludo and Hoggle. Honestly, you never did get his name right," Sarah said, arms crossed.

Jareth waved his hand dismissively. "But that doesn't change that we miss you," he said.

"I'm touched. You miss me?"

"Of course I miss you, Sarah," he replied. "Our little game didn't end the way I had hoped."

"Kidnapping my brother is a game?"

"Still have that selective hearing."

"Still have that annoying habit of ignoring common sense."

"Still seem to like picking a fight with me."

"You make it so easy."

And with that, Jareth leaned down and kissed her. Sarah stood there, mind and body frozen by the action. He pulled away, smiling. "Well, that went well," he said.

Every nerve in Sarah's body regained feeling at the same time. Her whole being tingled, as if being poked with hundreds of needles. She lifted her arm, feeling like she was trying to lift it through water, and slapped Jareth. The pins stopped poking and everything returned to normal.

"Perhaps I spoke a bit too soon," the Goblin King amended, rubbing his sore cheek. "I will admit you are stronger than you appear."

"I would've thought our last encounter would've proved that to you!"

"Ahh, your quick tongue. How I do miss it!"

"I haven't missed you," Sarah said, sitting down on her bed. "And I'd appreciate it if you left my room. Now."

"Is this how you treat an old friend?" Jareth asked, leaning against her dresser.

"Old friends? No. Old enemies? Yes. Get out."

"You wound me," Jareth replied, hand over his heart. "Come, why all this hostility?"

"You kidnapped my brother…"

"You wished him away!"

"I didn't think you were real!" Sarah said defensively. "And that's just the first offense."

"Offense?"

"Oh yes. You made me run the Labyrinth, had Hoggle give me a drugged peach, almost bogged me and your goblins nearly killed me!"

"I gave you some great stories to tell young Toby as he grew up, didn't I?" Jareth asked.

"That's not the point. And another thing…How did you know about Toby's bedtime stories?" she asked, curious and a bit suspicious. "Did you spy on me?"

"Spy is such a negative word. I prefer watched over."

"How? Do you have a crystal hidden somewhere?"

"No, no crystals save the one I gave you for the holiday you call Christmas," Jareth said. "After you left the Underground, I was severally weakened. I could only remain in my owl-form. Once I could regain my regular form, it still took so much energy I could do nothing else. It took me years to gain enough power to create my crystals, yet a link to this world.

"Once I could do that, I bided my time. I waited for the perfect opportunity to contact you and decided on now."

"And thought, what? That I'd just swoon into your arms?" Sarah asked, tapping her foot. "Well guess what? You're wrong."

Jareth sighed. "You were always so stubborn," he said. "It's one of the things I love about you. But right now, it's infuriating me."

Sarah rubbed her forehead before collapsing on her bed. "Jareth, it is very late," she announced. "I should be asleep already."

"Is that an invitation?"

The Goblin King ducked in just enough time as the pillow sailed past his ear. He looked to see an irate Sarah glaring at him. His smile fell a bit. "I can see I am not welcome," he said, ignoring Sarah's triumphant noise. "I shall leave you."

"And don't come back."

As the words left her mouth, Sarah could see the man deflate. His shoulders sagged and his body started to crumple to the floor. When he turned, his eyes were dull. "If that is your wish," he said, voice hollow.

"Jareth…Damn, you know how to guilt a girl."

"I don't want your pity."

"Jareth, could you come back another night so we can continue our discussion? Please?"

"Yes, my lady," he said, bowing low. "I will come again as soon as it is feasible."

With a swirl of his cape, the Goblin King was soon replaced with a white barn owl. Sarah shook her head; how could she miss such an obvious clue? The window blew open behind him, allowing him to leave and soar into the night sky. As the cold winter winds chilled her room, Sarah closed the window and watched the owl disappear. "What have I just agreed to?" she wondered aloud.

As she climbed into bed, she was surprised to find herself both relieved and excited. One chapter was over and a new one was just beginning she thought as she rolled over and let sleep claim her.

I wrote this as a Christmas gift for another website I belong to and have decided to post it as my first Labyrinth fanfic. Right now, it stands as a one-off piece. I could expand on it later if inspiration hits.