Chapter 2
Disclaimer: I don't own Jareth, Sarah, or anything else from the movie Labyrinth. It still belongs to Jim Henson productions. I'm just enjoying the chance to play in the sandbox.
When Leslie woke up, she was surrounded by silk. A dark red silk gown. Black silk sheets on a beautiful bed. Deep blue walls with silver glitter. It was nothing like any room she'd ever been in.
Sliding out of bed, Leslie looked herself over. There were no more bruises, faded or otherwise. Had she just dreamt it all? "Dreams..." she murmered. "My dreams..."
Realiziation hit her just as the door opened. In stepped the Goblin King, resplendant in leather and satin. "I see you're awake."
"Yes. Was I not supposed to be?"
"You would have woken up eventually. I've been monitoring your dreams, Leslie. I was hoping you would have woken up sooner, actually. Those were nightmares."
Leslie shrugged. "It wasn't all bad. But, does this mean I don't have Orchid?"
Jareth nodded. "None of it was real, I'm afraid. Right now, of course, you have a choice to make."
"What kind of choice?"
Jareth waved a hand, changing Leslie into a gown, and motioned for her to follow him as he explained. "When somebody chooses their dream, they are placed in one of these chambers. At the same time, however, they are Aboveground. I didn't always have these chambers, though. Take that Rip Van Winkle chap, for example. While he dreamt of dancing in a fairy ring, he was asleep on the mountain. However, as the Aboveground's population grew, there were fewer places to stow dreamers, so I started bringing them here."
"You mean there are people in these rooms living out their dreams, but still dreaming?" "Oh, absolutely. The only problem is that there still has to be a body in the Aboveground. This is where your choice comes in. In order to give you your dreams, I had to reorder time. You were hit by a semi while crossing the street, and you currently lie in a coma. You must choose whether to awaken from the coma with all your memories, awaken with total amnesia, or to die there and live out the rest of your life here in the Underground."
Leslie stopped walking. How was she supposed to make a choice like that? She knew that she had to, though. "Can I have some time to think about it?"
"Of course. For now, why don't you join me for dinner?"
Leslie agreed and followed Jareth to the dining room. At the table was another Fae male, also with dark hair and blue eyes. Unlike Sean, however, he had a beard.
"Jareth, why didn't you tell me we'd have such enchanting company?" he asked.
"She's a dreamer, Micheil. Turn off the charm." Jareth led Leslie to her seat. "Micheil, meet Leslie. As I said, she's a newly awakened dreamer, so behave. Leslie, this is Micheil. He's an old and somewhat annoying friend who likes to pop in unexpectedly."
"Sometimes those are the best kind," Leslie said, thinking back to her old friends before she'd taken her dreams. "Sometimes, they tend to show up just when they're needed."
"And Jareth definitely needs me," Micheil said. "He just doesn't know it."
Jareth reclined in his seat, a glass of wine in his hands. "Now what do I need you for?"
"To help you convince a certain young mortal woman that the two of you belong together."
Leslie perked up. "You mean the story in the book is true? Because I agree. Jareth and Sarah totally belong together."
Jareth set the goblet down with a sigh. "Yes, but she rejected me, remember?"
"But she had to think about her brother first, my friend," Micheil said.
"And she was still really young. Sometimes, when you're young, you don't know what you want," Leslie added, placing various pastries upon her plate. Yes, Micheil's eyes held a flame in them, and yes, fire could be dangerous to play with, but if Jareth trusted him enough to call him a friend, then why shouldn't she team up with him in this instance?
"You seemed sure of what you wanted when you were younger," Jareth reminded her.
"That reminds me, how long have I been dreaming? Was it in real time? And how am I still alive if it was?"
"Oh, it was very much in real time. So, you've been dreaming for…six years, now. As for how you're still alive, the magic kept you alive. The Labyrinth knows what you need."
"You mean I've been in a coma for six years, kept alive by machines? I'm surprised my family hasn't pulled the plug, yet." Leslie suddenly wasn't very hungry.
"I could arrange for them to do so, if that's what you want. You could stay here forever. I would make sure you had a place to stay and a way of making a living," Jareth offered.
Leslie glanced at him, and then at Micheil, who didn't seem unhappy with the prospect. It was another reason for her to wake up from her coma. She couldn't risk another relationship right now. "No. I'm grateful, Jareth, but I want to wake up. I can't hurt my family like that. And I want to keep my memories. If I don't remember what happened, I'm likely to make the same mistakes all over again."
Micheil looked sad, but Jareth simply nodded, all business. "So be it. It is a bit late, and what I'm about to do will require quite a bit of magic. I must be well rested for it. I'll do it in the morning. Meanwhile, I'll have a guest room set up for you."