Chapter 1
Those sparkling eyes would close slowly as Sarah let out a tiny sigh. It had been a long time, nine years to be exact. She aged, matured, and learned the true meaning of life. Life was dull. She knew this, since her life was certainly one to be considered boring. Her days consisted of working at a library.
Yes, Sarah became one of those lazy librarians, shouting at all the little kids that made too much noise. She lived in an apartment, which was placed in a city only an hour or so where her father, step mother, and step brother lived.
It would almost appear that she had lost all of imagination, her creativity, the basic ingredient to her soul. When she was younger, during those days of the so called labyrinth, she dreaming of such magical adventures was her passion.
Now that she considered herself as an adult, she did away with all of those thoughts. She figured that her experience with Toby and the goblin king was all made up, either a dream or just some story she thought of. It seemed to fit, since she read that book over and over. It would appear as though she actually did become boring, dull, spiritless, but this was Sarah. It was part of her, something she could never get rid of. She just ignored it.
So now here was Sarah, wearing a simple pair of jeans and a tee shirt, eased back comfortably in her cushiony chair. She refused to read adventure stories, or even glance at the kids shows on T.V., for she knew that if she did there was a chance she would get carried away with it. She lied to herself constantly. There was no way she would let herself use her imagination, or at least so she thought.
Looking around her cold apartment, there was little color, and very few personal touches, or accessories. She had her cat, flicker, who was a boring lazy cat, who enjoyed sleeping on her lap and lounging around by the window. She lived alone. Although she was a very pretty girl, and was constantly getting asked out on dates, she always turned them down because she felt no need for romance with her.
She was completely uninterested. She always dreamed of someone...but she knew not who. She pictured him, his tall lean figure, those daring eyes staring into her, his hairstyle indescribable. His voice was deep, challenging, as though daring her to even look at him.
Although Sarah knew she loved this man, even though she did not know him, she didn't even take the time to dream about him that much. Right now at this second, she still sat in that chair, sorting out different bills upon her lap.
Letting out a tiny yawn, she lifted up her hands, removing those reading glasses to rub her eyes gently. She didn't need glasses, but she thought that she looked smart in it, which she did. But it made her look older then what she was.
Getting up out of that chair, she stood, walking over to one of the windows. She even lied about her thoughts. She quietly wondered about her job, and her house, but inside she knew that she was dreaming about that place...The forbidden place, in which she refused to even say. She was dreaming about him.
She forgot that he came from there, but she knew he existed. She sometimes saw him, but as soon as she would rub her eyes, or look away only to glance back, he would be gone. She had this feeling that he loved her as well, but then again, she was unsure, since she rarely thought about him.
The night went by, slowly, as usual. She laid in her bed, dreaming dreams she claimed that had not existed, marveling that forbidden place. She woke up the next day, feeling slightly strange. As she eased herself slowly out of bed, she rubbed her eyes, trying to ignore the feeling that something was different. She got up, walking over to her dresser to pull out her outfit of the day.
Her color choice was grey, as usual, but the vibrant red caught her eye. It was tempting, but she overcame it and quickly shut the draw as soon as she pulled out her dull outfit. Moving her way to the bathroom, she looked into the mirror, then screamed, seeing herself...but it wasn't right. She was the younger her, dazed, confused, but yet happier then ever, chanting random lines from the book of that forbidden place.
Dropping the outfit on the ground, she quickly turned around, letting out a gasp as she saw something moving. She wanted to guess it was a goblin or something, but once again, she lied to herself, and figured it was a rodent, but surely enough, it was no rodent. Eyes widening as the creature jumped from out of the bed and onto her clothing, she let out a sigh of relief as she looked to Flicker, who had his black ears back, looking at her as though she was the stupidest creature that ever lived.
She was mature, but she handled her shock in such a way that it was almost disgusting. She just nodded, shooed away her cat, picked her clothes up, then walked away into another room to get changed. No laughing, no smiling, not even a tiny comment towards the cat, as though perhaps she would talk to him. But no, she didn't feel the need to communicate with her cat, since it was a cat, nothing more.
Getting ready for work, she dared not go back into that bathroom, too scared to face anything like what she saw before. Letting out a tiny sigh, she fed Flicker, had her own breakfast, which consisted of toast, an egg, and some coffee. Walking out of the apartment she then walked over to the bus stop, and waited for the bus to go to work.
She always arrived perfectly on time, sometimes early. Once she did get to work, she went to her desk, and made herself comfortable. She did her job, as normal, and even though it was a slow day, there was only an hour left.
"Sarah." Grace whispered, tapping her shoulder impatiently. "Those pesky kids messed up the whole fantasy section. Go clean it up." Sarah's eyes widened. "But..." She started, but the angered look of her boss prevented her from going on. "Now," Grace said, hovering over her. Sarah sighed, and felt her head get heavy. Standing up, she slowly walked over to the other end of the library. Picking up the books without actually looking up at the titles, only the authors, she began to place the books in the correct order.
Luckily it only took a few minutes, and she didn't seem to become interested in any of the books. Smiling some, she stood when she was done, proud of her accomplishment. Holding her head up high, she started walking triumphantly towards the other end of the place, where her desk was. As soon as she realized she was proud, she then cursed herself, realizing it wasn't normal.
But still, she still savored the moment, and kept walking. But within moments, she found herself distracted, and the next thing she knew she was on the ground, tripping over a book. As soon as she tripped, she kicked it in front of her, and ended up falling face down upon it. Opening her eyes, she gasped, bringing her hand to her mouth.
"T-t-the...Labyrinth..." She said, picking up the book. As she opened it, memories flooded into her mind. "Give me the child..." Slamming the book shut, she held it to her chest, then ran straight ahead, towards the exit. "Grace!" She called out, loudly, the first time she had done that in years. "Sarah! Be quiet! You know the rules!" Grace shouted back, quiet shocked. "Sorry..." Sarah whispered, letting out a tiny sigh. "I'm leaving early. See you on Monday."
Barging through the library doors, Sarah ran to the bus stop. Since she was a librarian, she was very popular despite the fact that she wasn't very social. "Evening Sa--" One called out, but she passed by so quickly that she didn't even hear him finish her name. Quite rude, but she couldn't think. "Gotta get home, gotta get home, gotta get home!" She kept saying to herself, but the more she tried to contain her excitement, the more it showed.
Looking at the bus times, she let out a long sigh. It would be another ten minutes before a bus would arrive. Which isn't exactly that bad, but she just wanted to get home. Leaning on the stop itself, she looked down at the book. It looked so familiar, even though she knew that it was probably a different version from which the one she had when she was younger. Smoothing her fingertips over the cover, she opened it to the first page, her eyes widening. There was her name, just where it always was. This was her book.
She remembered. When she first moved into her apartment, which was 2 years ago, she took her books and donated them all to the library. But what were the chances that she would find the Labyrinth book, her labyrinth book?
"Give me the child..." She spoke softly, reading the book. "Through dangers untold...and hardships unnumbered...I have fought my way here... to the castle beyond the goblin city...To take back the child that you have stolen...for my will is as strong as yours, and my kingdom is as great...You have no power over me."
Pausing, she let out a long sigh. "Toby," She mumbled, clasping her hands together to her chest. "It wasn't a dream after all. I remember...there was Hoggle...Didymus...The goblin ki--" She paused, looking up at the bus that just pulled in front of her, peering into the eyes of the bus driver, who placed his hands over his chest expectantly, his expression reading, "Get on now or I'm leaving. I have another whole shift to do."
Nodding to the bus driver, she approached the door, climbing in quietly. Looking in the back of the bus as she fumbled through her bag to get her card, she caught of glimpse of a man, a familiar man. Her heart skipped a beat as she saw him, those daring eyes peering into her. Blinking hard as the bus came to a short stop, she grabbed the closest pole and tried to keep her balance. As she looked back, he was gone.
"Miss," The bus driver cleared his throat, looking at the slot where you were supposed to put your card. "This is just not fair..." She said, then put her hand to her mouth afterwards, her old self shining through, that girl, with the innocent face, never understanding the concept of life.
Shaking the feeling of distress off, she kept fumbling. "I always have such a hard time finding my bus pass. I hate this, I wish I could find it, right now!" She said, not realizing what she had said. Those fingers lingered among her bag, finally feeling her card. Pulling it out, she smiled, putting it in the slot.
Finding a seat near the front, she didn't dare to gaze towards the back. It had been a long day, and everything seemed to come back. She felt young, she was young, but she felt young at heart, almost free. That imagination seemed to flow as her eyes caught sight as various things outside the window. For the first time in years, something went by really quickly. Her stop was next.
Pressing the button, she stood, grasping onto that pole for dear life. As the bus stopped, she smiled to the bus driver, who nodded back, slightly in shock that the boring lady that he had been seeing for a few months randomly smiled at him.
Skipping home, she felt so different, like a foolish girl in love. Was she in love? Perhaps, but the feeling that overwhelmed her was even better then love. She had her spirit back, her will, her dignity. She was so happy for once! Humming a familiar tune, Sarah approached the door of her apartment. After a few seconds of searching for her keys, she finally pulled them out, unlocked her door, then walked inside, kneeling down to give Flicker a tiny pat on the head.
"Hello Flicker, how was your day?" She asked, looking down at him. She never ever talked to him, since she never had the imagination to even think he might understand. Flicker lazily flopped over, exposing his tummy to her. Letting out a tiny 'Aww..." She rubbed his belly softly. "I missed you..." She admitted, feeling a connection to her cat for the first time.
There was a lot of firsts, since she had been a completely different person for the longest time. She never did anything, never experienced anything fun, or even the slightest bit exciting. Sarah was herself, the person she was born as, not the lie that she had created, it was as though she went through a whole personality change.
Moving into the living room, she peered out the window. "Wow, so dark already?" Sarah sighed, now noting the dark sky. "Seems as though it's going to rain," She said, making her way over to the couch now. Plopping herself down, she closed her eyes, pulling the blanket that was in a basket next to the couch over her. Nuzzling into that blanket, she then got enough courage to take out the book.
Looking through the pages, she shook her head, wondering why she was so stupid. "It all makes sense!" She said, sighing. That man, the one she dreamed of...he was Jareth, the goblin king. "'Just fear me...love me...do as I say, and I will be your slave...' he said..." Putting her hands to her chest, she felt that beating heartbeat. He was real, she saw him in her dreams, she saw him every once and awhile. He always gave her what she wanted, without taking the credit.
He was probably watching right then, too, and she knew it. The truth was...after all this time of dreaming about this guy, and then realizing who he was, and the fact that there was a possibility that he loved her too, she couldn't help but want to see him.
It started pouring. The sound of rain violently hitting the side of the apartment grew louder, and the roaring of thunder contributed to the busyness of the night. Clutching the book, she nodded to herself. "I can do it..." She said, biting her lip.
Thinking of the right words, she looked around the room, which was creepily dark. Keeping her eyes widely open, she examined each and every position of everything in the room. It was so dark, but she needed to know if it worked, that she would know. Opening her mouth, she took a deep breath, and then finally spoke. "I wish..." She started, trembling now from the nervousness, "I wish...that the goblin king would come here. R-right now."
Thunder echoed.
