A/N: I made some changes. Tell me what you think!


He had promised himself that he would move on from her, that he would not come at every opportunity to get even the briefest glimpses of her. She had rejected his love, he reminded himself. But, still, he could not stay away from her. Once, years ago, it would have given him great joy to spy on her as she acted out her stories, now, it was a torture beyond description. Yet he could not stay away. He could not stop himself from coming again and again and tearing his heart into a thousand pieces. Jereth knew that this would eventually destroy him, but that wasn't enough to stop him from coming to see her.

He watched, in his hominid form, in modern clothes from a tree as his beloved Sarah rehearsed her lines with her co-star. Jereth couldn't remember the man's name, which was strange since, unlike his dopleganger, he didn't have troubles with names.

As he watched the two go through the motions and recite the romantic lines he knew that he was growing increasingly jealous – and he knew that he had reason to be. Sarah liked him, a lot more than the 'Goblin King' wanted her to. In fact, the only thing Jereth wanted was to run over to her and beg her once more to love him. But fear stopped him; he could not take being rejected a third time.

Sarah and the man were practicing outside in a beautiful park, one that was noticeably similar to the one in which she used to rehearse the play 'The Labyrinth'. The little book had come from her mother, who, in turn, had gotten it from a disguised Jereth. He had known that she would enjoy the story. He hadn't intended her to live it. But life did tended to take unexpected turns.

How he wished he were allowed to change history. But he wasn't and he had to live with the consequences of his own actions – and the pain of her rejection.

Jereth watched them for almost five, tormenting, hours until it was finally to dark for them to read their scripts. Before Sarah left she went on her toes and kissed the very tall man on the cheek. Jereth's heart clenched agonizingly and his stomach lurched up into his throat where it nearly emptied it's self. Jereth was barely able to restrained himself from lashing out at the unsuspecting man. The fact that he would then have to face Sarah's anger and that she would likely never forgive him was the only thing that stayed his hand.

He took a deep, shaky breath as he shifted his position behind the tree to watch Sarah go by. He followed her – staying carefully out of sight – to the edge of the park. As she started walking down the sidewalk he shifted to his owl form and continued following her.

What he didn't know was that he had been seen by none other than Sarah's co-star, Erik. The man stood rooted to the spot, completely dumbfounded. He had just seen a man transform into a white and pale gold owl. In the years that he had known Sarah he had seen some very strange and inexplicable things that he had come to except as real and even understand. As a result was not one to attribute something he couldn't understand to something he could – such as 'it was a trick of the light' – but he wasn't quiet sure what to make of what he had seen either.


Jereth flew through the air with the expert ease that came from long practice. Below him Sarah walked down the deserted street. She was the only person that could be seen. Well, her and one idiot that came ripping through the intersection in a tricked out sports car.

Jereth's enhanced hearing heard the sickening sound of soft flesh and hard bone giving way to the car's speed and weight.

Sarah went across the hood, the windshield, the roof, collided with the fin and finally bounced onto the ground where she lay on her side, very, very still. The person in the car kept going. Jereth dropped straight down and landed in his Human form, heedless of who might see him. Carefully, he rolled her over onto his waiting arm as he – with his heart in his throat – called her name.

She was unconscious, unmoving and unresponsive in anyway.

Jereth had never been so terrified in his long life.

From the shadows a figure watched and observed the him as he healed the Human female. This, the figure decided, would have to be reported; Jereth has a weakness for a mortal woman.


Carefully, he laid her on her – in his opinion – woefully inadequate bed and stared at her peacefully sleeping face. A finger came up and tenderly stroked her now unmarred jaw. She stirred slightly, but remained asleep. Were any to see him in that moment they would have clearly seen the conflict on his face as an internal battle fought it's self in the confines of his heart.

In his world he could protect her, but it was not her world, she was not safe here, she did not belong in his world, he wanted her by his side, she had rejected him. On and on the argument went until, eventually, without realizing it, he began to sing. The conflict in his still pounding heart given voice. When she began to stir he fled through her open window and spread his owl wings. He would not try to fight his emotions this night – because he knew it was useless.

Sarah woke with a start and looked around, half panicking. The twenty five year old flopped back onto her bed when she realized that being hit by a car must have been no more than a bad dream. With a yawn she rolled over and went back to sleep, forgetting to take off her clothes. Had Jereth been there he would have smiled.