The Usual Suspect
When Sarah finds out that something precious has been stolen from her she immediately suspects the Goblin King. This time however, Jareth is innocent. Sarah must therefore learn to trust her enemy if she is ever to regain what is hers.
Chapter One
Sarah's body twitched involuntarily, jerking her from her half hearted slumber. She blinked blearily, waiting for the room to settle itself back into focus as her exhausted mind endeavoured to catch up with itself. It was darker than it should have been she decided after a few moments. Outside a blanket of fierce grey clouds smothered the sky and Sarah wondered absently where the sunny afternoon had gone.
She tried to leaver herself up off of the sofa, distantly acknowledging a crick in her neck, when a muffled whimper of discontent caused her to glance down. For a split second she simply stared, her brain apparently having failed to hook up all the proper lines of connection yet. Then she smiled softly, raising a hand and brushing it tenderly over a head of tarnish blonde hair. The child stirred, shifting itself in her lap before settling down once more. Hardly daring to move but knowing that she couldn't spend another night out of bed she cautiously gathered the small bundle into her arms and rose to her feet.
Silently she left the living/dining area, walking past the closed door of a currently unoccupied room before reaching her own. The apartment wasn't very big but it suited her needs well enough. At least for the moment. The same might not be true given time but there was use worrying about it, not yet. She pushed the door open with her foot, wincing inwardly at the squeaky hinges. She really should fix that. Unsurprisingly her room also wasn't particularly large. With the addition of the cot she had been forced to exchange her old double bed for a single and even then she still had to edge around the wall to reach her wardrobe.
Careful not to jostle her passenger she flicked the light swift as she worked her way over to the cot, making an awkward one handed attempt to pull back the covers before then setting the child down. The tiny body fidgeted, a pair of gray/green eyes drooping open to peer up at her in a rather dazed fashion; the young mother held her breath. Seconds later the shiny orbs glazed over, the pink lids falling back into place. Thankfully Sarah exhaled and smiled once more.
For a few minutes she remained standing there, hovering over the bars of the cot and gazing down at the sleeping infant. She filled with such a warm, almost fuzzy, feeling of contentment at that moment that she could have happily stayed there forever. There was only one thing missing.
With that thought a black shadow streaked across mind. Unwittingly acknowledging its presence Sarah frowned slightly, the expression marring her peaceful moment. She banished it just as quickly as it had appeared but the mood was irreparably spoiled.
Heaving a somewhat haggard sigh Sarah glanced over at the clock on the miniature table next to her bed. Half past eight. It was still early but she was tired. She had got so little sleep the night before that she'd nearly ended up sprawled out in the living room again. Suspecting she would be better off trying to snatch some sleep while she had the chance Sarah shuffled over to her bed and pulled her pyjamas out from under the pillow. While she changed the persistent flashing of the light of her answer machine caught her eye. Automatically she reached out to press the playback button, nearly tripping over her trousers, before she paused, eyes darting over to the cot and its snoozing occupant. Karen had been the one to suggest she put a second phone in her bedroom, however, given the circumstances it quite often caused more trouble than it prevented.
Tip toeing out of the room Sarah slipped down the darkening hall, coming to a stop next to the phone mounted on the wall next to the front door. Propping herself up on a side table she pressed the button, letting her head fall back and her eyes close as she listened.
You have TWO new messages. The machine informed her. First message received TODAY at 16:58.
BEEP...
"Hey Sarah it's Carol. How are you? Hope mum and baby are doing well. I'm just calling to ask if you know where the Nicholls file is. Beth said you had it last and Michael is asking for it. Apparently there's been some sort of mix up. I won't bore you with the details. Can't wait for you to come back to work hun. Everything is such a mess without you. What? – "
There was a pause as the speaker seemed to move away from the phone.
"Oh Michael says hi. Anyway got to go. Ring me when you can. Bye."
BEEP...
End of first message.
Sarah grinned lazily. She hadn't seen Carol and the gang from work since they came round to visit her after she had been let out from the hospital, even Michael had tagged along, looking distinctly uncomfortable amongst the mass of cooing women. Thinking about them Sarah suddenly realised she missed them. She couldn't honestly say that she was looking forward to working again but she missed her friends.
Absently wracking her brain as to where she had stowed the Nicholls file Sarah received a nasty shock as the second message started to play
...received TODAY at 18:04
BEEP...
"Sarah," came a distinctly unwelcome voice. "It's me. Look, I know you're angry but we really need to talk -"
Sarah slammed her hand down on the stop button and immediately deleted the message, glaring furiously at the machine as if it was to blame. She stayed like that for almost a minute, her muscles tense and her breathing sharp, dark thought dancing across her mind once more. How dare he!
Her anger continued to spiral higher until she belatedly realised that her nails had almost broken the skin of her palm. Calming, Sarah took a purposely deep breath and forced herself to relax. She dropped her shoulders and raised an almost steady hand to sweep back her dark hair. Now wasn't the time for this. She was tired. She needed sleep.
With this as the only plan of action she trudged back to her room. Leaving the door ever so slightly ajar out of habit more than anything else Sarah made a quick inspection of the cot and it's inhabitant before switching off the light and collapsing onto her bed.
She was asleep within minutes.
That night Sarah slept soundly, her dreams undisturbed. She didn't wake once. Not even when it started to rain softly and thunder rumbled in the distance.
**
Sarah was pulled from her peace and quiet the next morning by a persistent and unpleasant wail. Instinct made her shoot out of bed and carried her halfway across the room before she realised that the noise was being made by her alarm. Frowning she turned towards it, pressing the button down, and wondering what it was she was doing up at this hour. It took her a moment to click.
Work.
Of course. She was up this early so make sure she got to work on time. Giving a disgruntled sigh she traipsed across to her wardrobe, not noticing how she walked unnecessarily close to the wall. Opening the door she sorted through her meagre selection of suits before picking a plain black trouser and jacket set. As she dragged the clothes on she couldn't quite dismiss how odd the act itself felt. The clothes too felt strangely stiff and uncomfortable, just like when she had first started having to wear them to work.
Giving herself a quick shake Sarah studied herself in the mirror. Unsurprisingly she looked quite tired. She hadn't been getting much sleep lately. She didn't know why. Promising herself she'd have an early night Sarah then went about her morning routine, feeling almost as if she were having to relearn it all over again. Odd. She'd felt that way when she'd gone back to work after she'd had Katy...
Finally she was ready, finding her bag on the hook by the front door she stepped out, reminding herself to call her daughter when she got home.
The door closed with a slight click and the apartment fell silent.
Author's Note:
What's this? A new story? But I haven't finished the last one yet. O dear. This could get ugly.
Ah well...Inspiration (annoying creature that she is) has stuck again and will not be ignored. This is an idea I've had floating around for a while. Please let me know what you think. A yay or nay will suffice although feel free to elaborate.
Nightzchild
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the Labyrinth characters and/or matching accessories...They don't come in my size.