I own nothing, nor do I plan making money off of this.
The only character that I do own is Scrub...oh, and I own the plot, so fingers off, please!
Sarah stared, unblinking, at the statue in her hands. It had been tucked away in that box for nigh on seven years. However, the likeness was still able to make her heart beat just a bit faster. She turned it over and over before she finally set it down and picked up the book. Flipping through the pages, she noticed that they were bit yellowed with age. She paused at a particular page and stared at the words that were revealed to her.
"Give me the child." Begged the princess, her finery tattered and dirty from her expedition through the Labyrinth. Her hair was matted and her eyes wild with worry as she searched around the timeless space for her brother. The Goblin King stood before her, his arms crossed proudly over his chest.
"Princess Sarah, I've been generous up until now, but I can be cruel." He warned, his voice cold as ice.
Her eyes narrowed and her jaw was set grimly. "Generous? What have you done that's generous?"
"Everything!" He barked sharply and circled her like a predator sizing up his prey.
She slammed the book shut, unable to read any farther. She'd packed these things up for a reason; to help shut the memory of the Labyrinth away. For years, her strategy had worked and worked well. She'd never even given a thought to Jar...no...The Goblin King..after she came out of her treke unscathed. Toby, of course, had been too young to remember his time in the castle beyond the Goblin City, so she'd never needed to worry about how it had affected him.
Toby. His ninth birthday was coming up soon, two days from now, in fact and she still didn't have a gift. Internally cursing herself, she repeatedly twirled a piece of her long, brown hair around her finger. Suddenly, she was struck with a brilliant idea. Shoving the items back into the box, she re-taped the top and bounded over to her 'crafts' drawer and fetched a roll of green wrapping paper. Working quickly, she folded and taped and, to finish the look, glued a blue bow to the top of the package. "There." She said in satisfaction. "I can get rid of you without actually getting rid of you."
"Oh, Sarah, surely you don't hate it that much?" An entirely too familar voice said from somewhere behind her. She spun around to find him leaning against the window. He looked almost exactly as he had all those years ago. His shirt was opened and showed off the cresent medallion he always wore, the sleeves billowing gracefully and his pants still left nothing to the imagination. The scent of leather permeated the room like a perfume. His hair was still wild, but streaks were colored blue like they had been in the Ball Room. His eyes, one a bright green and the other a stormy blue, were locked on her.
Sarah glared back. "Good afternoon, Goblin King. May I ask why in the hell you're back?" She hissed between clenched teeth. "You shouldn't be back. I beat you. I won!"
Jareth chuckled. "Language, Sarah, language." He straightened his posture, humor glittering brightly in his eyes. He took a step in her direction and she instinctively recoiled a bit. He stopped and cocked his head, was that hurt she saw? Whatever it was, it was gone quickly and he continued to get closer. "You needn't fear, Sarah." He assured her in a low tone. "I haven't come to exact my revenge."
"W-why are you here, then?" She asked again, hating the fearful stutter.
He held out a hand and placed it gently on her shoulder. "To help you." He said gently.
"What?"
He smiled and slid his hand slowly down her arm. It took all her might not to shudder at his touch. "Perhaps I should explain..." He mused, leading her by the hand and sitting down on the bed with her. Even after they had sat down, he kept her hand in both of his, and the gloves were cold on the skin of her palm. "I'm sure you've heard many times that things are not what they seem in my world."
"Many times." She confirmed, remembering the lovable, blue worm.
"Yes, well, your quest wasn't exactly what it seemed, either." He looked at her steadily. "It was more of a..test..a pop-quiz if you will. To determine your abilities."
"My abilities." She echoed flatly, lowering her gaze.
"Yes." He replied with a smile. "Your ability to resist temptation, to stand by your friends, to do the right thing no matter what the situation is. Your willingness to go the extra lengths for those that you love."
"Oh." She said, slightly disappointed. "I was hoping it was something in the manner of super-strength or X-Ray vision." He laughed heartily at that and she smiled weakly at the rich sound. "So why test me?"
He stopped and wiped his eyes. "You're needed in Underland."
"I thought it was called the Underground?" She asked, confused.
His eyes twinkled. "My half is, yes. However, the half that my sister rules is called Underland."
"You have a sister?"
"Yes, and, if everything goes according to plan, you will be meeting her shortly." They kept their conversation for a while, turning it from why Jareth had returned to discussing the happenings in the Underground while she'd been away. He asked her similar questions, mostly about Toby and her 'wicked' stepmother. For hours they talked and Sarah slowly became used to and comfortable with Jareth's presence. He didn't act at all like he had when she was running the Labyrinth, the cold, aloof demeanor was gone, replaced by something warm and friendly. Oh, he was still proud and smug, she wouldn't have believed it was him if he wasn't, but it was less noticable and not as annoying as before.
Downstairs, Scrub was preparing dinner to 'Lick it up' complete with the suggestive tongue movements. She, like her fave singer Gene Simons, had an extreamly long tongue and she loved to imitate him. After the song was through, she decided to check on the pasta that was on the stove. However, she didn't do this in the typical way. She got a fork and hooked a noodle, then flung it upwards onto the wooden cabinet where it stuck. She grinned and turned off the stove and poured the noodles into the strainer she had waiting in the sink, then she rinsed the extra starch off with a bit of warm water. She opened the fridge and took out the sauce and tipped the contents into the pot along with the noodles and stirred them together.
Scrub smiled and ran out of the kitchen and up the stairs, taking them two at a time. She stopped in front of the door and knocked hard. "Sarah?" She heard gasps and hasty movements around the room. Then hesitant footsteps made their way to the door and Sarah cracked it open, peering out at her friend with a nervous expression. She immediatly became suspicious and attempted to see past her friend and into the room, but Sarah blocked her view. "I just came up to tell you dinner is ready, but..is there someone in your room?"
"No, don't be silly!" Sarah said way too quickly.
Scrub smirked. "Then you won't mind me coming in, then?" She asked as she forced her way in. She made a point of looking under the bed and behind the curtains and doors. She spied the closet door, the only place left to search.
"Don't go in there!" Blurted Sarah, grabbing her arm.
"Why not? I'm only checking for monsters in your closet, Sarah. Can't have any of those, can we?" She said sweetly as she jerked open the door.
The Goblin King regarded Scrub with a smirk. "Good evening." He greeted with a slight bow.
"Yohla, how goes it?" She returned with a bow of her own. Jareth sent a confused look at Sarah who quickly elaborated.
"She said hi."
"Oh, and might I know the young lady's name?" He inquired, inclining his head in Scrub's direction.
"I'm Martha, but everybody just calls me Scrub." She said brightly.
"Would it be rude of me to ask why?"
"I'm short." She replied bluntly. And she was. He looked her over, she couldn't have been taller than four feet, ten inches. She was also dressed strangely, her hair was short and bleached blonde at the tips in random places and in it was a lavender bow. She wore a black tutu overtop of black tights and a purple blouse that matched her purple, fuzzy socks. She smiled excitedly at him and glanced from him to Sarah. "Well, I'm sure there's enough food downstairs for all three of us. Are you two hungry?" They both nodded eagerly. "Sweetness." She chirped and skipped back down the stairs while they followed.
Scrub procured a plate and cup for Jareth and, while they ate, they two of them filled her in on the conversation. And as soon as she realized she was entertaining royalty, she jumped up from her seat and did an admittedly very bad, albeit enthusiastic victory dance that ended in a guitar solo. She punched the air and yelled happily. "Take that, Jessica Wilfong! You may have met Dolly Pardon, but I'm having dinner with a KING!" This made her launch into another victory dance. "Uh-huh, uh-huh!"
Jareth and Sarah observed this show with amused tolerance. He leaned over to whisper in her ear. "Is she always like this?" He asked, chuckling.
"As long as I've known her, yes...weird and lovin' it." She said with a grin.
"What astounded me is how well she took the news." He said, surprise still linguring in his voice.
Sarah took a sip of her drink. "Well, she's always believed in that sort of thing. Its right up there with ghosts in her book."
By this time, Scrub had finished her dances and had re-claimed her chair. She placed her head ontop of her folded hands and asked expectedly of Sarah. "So, when are we going?"
"We?" Sarah choked on her Coke so badly that Jareth felt it necessary to pat her on the back a few times. "What do you mean 'we'?"
Scrub shot her a disapproving look."Surely you don't think I'm gonna let you go on a mind-blowingly amazing adventure without me, do you?"
Sarah was sorely tempted, she would love to have someone she was familiar with and (completely) trusted going with her through this...whatever it was.. "It could be very dangerous..I don't want you to get hurt." She said apprehensively. Jareth reached under the table and gently squeezed her hand.
Scrub made a dismissive swipe with one hand. "Pshh. Honeybuns, danger is my middle name!" She lept up onto her chair and started beating her chest for effect, then a thoughtful look crossed her face and she stopped. "Well, actually, its Diana, but that's close enough."
Sarah sighed and set down her drink. "Fine." Scrub was overjoyed and practically crowed as she took the dishes to the sink and quickly rinsed them, then placed them into the dishwasher.
Jareth scooted his chair from the table and made his way to the front door. When he opened it, the lawn, which should have been there, was gone. In its place was the stone walls of a castle...his castle."Ladies?" He made a gesture, signalling that they should go before him.
"This is so fludging awesome!" Breathed Scrub as she stepped though the doorway into the Underground, her grin stretching from ear to ear.
