A groggy Sarah left her hotel room that morning with a sliver of hope at a somewhat normal day. Sadly, that little piece of hope died as soon as the tired young woman closed the door behind her.

She sighed as the sound of laughter and talking appeared to her left. All she wanted was a morning of peace after a restless night. The nightmares had continued repeatedly throughout the night; all of them about the same thing, the field. What was it about that place that had her so on edge? Were these nightmares a warning to stay away from them, or was it trying to tell her she needs to go there?

The sounds of laughter broke Sarah out of her brooding and confused thoughts. She turned with a wary expression and saw the old couple rambunctiously leaving their hotel room. The old woman spotted Sarah, and hastily waved at her.

"Good morning, dear!" Cara called. The old woman smiled brightly, leaving Sarah to wonder how it was possible to have this much energy in the morning. Especially without coffee.

"Morning," Sarah waved.

Earl, Cara's husband, stood off to the side, staring at Sarah with a guarded and reserved expression. He seemed less cheery to see her than he had before. His demeanor was suddenly serious, but Sarah shrugged this off as just his strange personality. Maybe he was not as extroverted as his wife, or perhaps, Sarah decided, he was not much of an early bird. That was something Sarah could understand wholeheartedly.

"We were just heading off to the cafe for breakfast, would you like to join us?" Cara shuffled forward, her hands busy as she pulled a heavy winter coat over herself. Earl still stayed silent.

"Um, yeah. I was just going down there, too." Sarah agreed. She couldn't see why not, perhaps a morning chat would take her mind off of a few things, or maybe she would get some questions answered.

Cara nodded, her red lipstick creating a dark contrast against her gleaming white teeth. "Good, we'll just-"

"Actually, dear." Earl interrupted his wife with a warning look, " I have a change in plans. Remember what we were talking about doing earlier?" He raised his eyebrows at her in an inquiring manner. The old man now standing in an authoritative and commanding posture in front of his wife.

Sarah was almost as taken aback as the older woman. The way he placed a hand on Cara's shoulder. The way he stood between them protectively. It was as if he was expecting one of them to pounce. He eyed Sarah cautiously, like one would to a feral animal, and his posture was tense.

Cara laughed lightheartedly and waved him off, "Oh, Earl, you weren't actually serious, were you?"

"I did mean it," the old man's eyes met Sarah's, "We will not be eating in the cafe this morning."

Sarah simply shook her head and smiled. She was not the kind of person to intrude on someone else's plans, neither did she want to include herself in the beginnings of an argument. "That's okay, I was just going to get a coffee anyways…" She trailed off.

"Oh Earl, always making things difficult." Cara almost pouted, but then seemed to think better of it. Her eyes giving her husband a challenging look, and for a second it seemed as if they were having a silent argument. Their eyes glared at each other's in a way that made Sarah uncomfortable. After a few seconds, the old woman huffed and broke eye contact with her husband, she turned to walk down the hall with only a single side glance at Earl. As she passed Sarah she leaned over and- much to the consternation of her husband- she muttered with just enough volume to reach the old man's ears, "We'll talk later." The old woman's eyes sparkled as she winked mischievously at Sarah. Sarah could only give her a small smile, not wanting to be very acknowledged by the angry husband. Earl narrowed his eyes at his wife, but then seemed to give up as if he had decided it was not worth arguing over.

Cara waved kindly at Sarah, and then continued to cheerily walk down the hall without looking back once. Her curls bouncing as she strolled down the hallway stairs.

Earl remained standing in the same place, studying Sarah. She looked back at him awkwardly, debating whether to just wave and walk away or say something nice.

Kill people with kindness, or however the saying went.

Although, before she could say anything, Earl began to follow Cara, leaving Sarah with a domineering look and only one warning:

"Stay away from my wife."

Sarah shuddered at the memory as she sat in the cafe with her daily dose of coffee in-hand. She tried desperately to remember if she had said anything insulting to him. Her mind was drawing a blank. In fact, Sarah realized, she had not said hardly a single word to Earl the entire vacation. For some reason he was never around when Cara and her had their chats. So what had upset him so badly?

Oh well, she sighed. She was not going to be living here, so it didn't quite matter what Earl thought of her. Sarah did not want to spend her once in a lifetime vacation sour because of some dramatic old man. At the moment she had only one purpose here in Ireland, finding magic. She still did not know how one would find magic, but determined she was.

Maybe she already had a lead.

It was something about that place, that field. She could have sworn that the second she had accidentally stumbled upon it, she had felt her body tremble in recognition. It was familiar, yet so unknown and mysterious. Something that felt so unreachable and far away from her little jejune world. She wanted whatever it was, but it was terrifying at the same time. Hence why she had cautiously stayed on the outside perimeter of the field.

Sarah wanted to go back there.

Just to satisfy her curiosity. She wanted to see if it was indeed something worth questioning. The feeling of danger mixed with wonder and excitement had never been this strong except when she had landed in the Labyrinth at the young age of fourteen. The difference was, then she had to journey through the menacing twisted stone walls and bushy hedges. Now, she did not have to put herself in such unsafe situations, but she simply wanted to. It was the risk she felt she had to take to gain back magic in her life, and if her nightmare was anything to go off of, curiosity definitely killed the cat.

"But satisfaction brought it back…" Sarah laughed quietly to herself with a self-amused smirk painted on her full lips.

She shook her head and sipped her coffee, swallowing her smile along with the bitter taste of her drink.

However, that did bring forward a serious question; was it safe to have magic back in her life? If one believed in fate, then they would say that it was meant to be for her to experience magic, but if one did not, then they might warn her to stay away from it. She was not born of that world, making magic not quite agreeable with her fragile mortal mind and body.

How she wished it was.

There were dangers for humans when it came to magic. She knew that. Her nightmare last night had been proof enough, and it had humbled her hasty search. Sarah had to be more careful and cautious. No more rushing head first into things. Acting on impulse would only get her in trouble, and hope and faith will only get one so far. It had gotten her through the labyrinth, but what if she rashly made a choice that could very well end her life?

Sarah closed her eyes, shutting out that thought. She was getting way ahead of herself.

She gathered her stuff up, gulping down the last remaining drops of the no longer steaming coffee. Not quite sure what to do with her spare time, Sarah headed up to her room. Perhaps she would grab a book to read, or maybe she would venture out around town. She shrugged, deciding to grab a satchel, and quickly placed one of her favorite books in it, then she grabbed a pocket full of money and returned to the lobby. Sarah gave a friendly wave to the working staff, and headed out of the large ornate castle doors, preparing herself for a full day.


"Hey, dad?"

"Sarah!"

"Hey, how's it going?" Sarah smiled into the cheap prepaid cell phone she had just purchased at a supermarket. She was not going to risk those roaming fees.

"Great, it's all good here… How are you, honey? Being safe?" Concern laced his voice. He was always a protective father, making sure she obeyed her curfew and made her check in on him when exploring the small town she had called her home. There was a point in time when she had thought he cared little for her. Her brother had been a handful, making her father seem quite aloof when it came to her. If she had told him she was going out, he would simply nod his head and continue smothering his favorite child- or that was at least what she had believed then.

However, life had been stressful then. A new wife, a one year old son, adjusting to a job promotion and a teenaged daughter that was spoiled and ungrateful in every way. Sarah understood now that it was not so much that she was in the way, but it was that he was overwhelmed. A lack of communication had damaged the relationship. Sometimes plans were forgotten until the very moment before and it would leave either Sarah or her parents disgruntled, often both.

"I'm doing good, dad. I'm being safe and I'm having fun." Sarah tried to assure him.

"Good, that's good," she could practically hear him smile into the phone, "And how is Ireland?"

"Oh, gosh… It's," Sarah paused and looked around at the scenery, she stood in front of a supermarket in a small town, but her memory of the castle and the forests had her falling in love all over again,"It's beautiful. It's so lush and gorgeous. The people are so nice-"

"-That's great," He stopped mid-sentence and Sarah could hear a young voice repeating some mantra in the background. Her heartbeat sped up excitedly. She heard her father sigh into the phone before he reluctantly said, "Do you want to talk to Toby?"

"Yeah, put him on."

The phone made a few odd noises. Rustling as her father handed the phone to her six-year-old brother, and heavy breathing as the clumsy little boy held the phone too close to his mouth with his chubby fingers.

"Hi Sarah." The young voice said, and she could tell he was trying to contain his excitement and sound 'grown up'. He was only six and desperately wanted to grow up, much like her in her teenage years. Yet, she had also not wanted to let go of her childhood. It was a confusing conflict she had faced, wanting to be treated like an adult, but never wanted to grow up. Toby was much of the same way; she just hoped he wouldn't become as spoiled as she had.

"Hey, Toby! How's it going?" Sarah beamed, though her brother would never see how brightly she smiled.

After she had ran the labyrinth, things had gotten better. She was still the same person, and she still had those days where she felt like pulling her hair out and yelling at everyone. The difference was, she had less of those days and more days spent caring and being thankful for everyone. Sarah had felt tremendous guilt after running the labyrinth, and her family had noticed there was something off. Though she never breathed a word about the magical world she had briefly visited, she did admit she was feeling ashamed for the way she treated her family. She had taken her family for granted, and running through the labyrinth made her realize just how much. So she tried harder at being a better person, and every day it became easier, then soon it became gratifying to see someone smile. Especially seeing her little brother smile.

"I'm good. I drew a picture of you at school today." He declared proudly into the phone, "My teacher thought it was cool that you're in Ireland."

"Awe, that's sweet." Sarah's smile grew, "I miss you, Tobes."

"I miss you too - oh, here's daddy again." Toby blurted, and once again the only sounds audible to her ears was muttering and rustling in the receiver. She shook her head, amused at the attention span of the little boy. Sarah tossed a lock of hair over her shoulder and held her jacket closer to her body, as she waited for her father to pick up the phone.

It was getting quite cold in Ireland, Sarah briefly noticed. Clouds hung overhead, swelling up quickly with water. Sadly, it seemed she would not be enjoying the sun much longer on her trip. Perhaps she would have to go out exploring again before the weather got too bad. At least it was not snowing yet.

"Hey, honey." Her father's deep voice finally said.

"Hey, dad. Where'd Toby run off to so fast?" She teased.

"His cartoon took a commercial break and now it's back on." He nonchalantly replied.

"Makes sense."

"Karen says hello, and she wants you to be safe." Her father informed her.

"Tell her I said hello, too." Sarah smiled again. The relationship with her step-mother had greatly increased after the labyrinth. Karen had become some sort of best friend to her, though they both had disagreements occasionally, but her step-mother made it known that she was always going to support Sarah, and she stuck true to her word. When Sarah had been disappointed at her high school prom, Karen had been there to ensure her that there were better things to look forward to in life. When their dog Merlin had passed away, Karen had been the first one to give Sarah a reassuring hug. Truth be told, she had replaced the empty spot Sarah's mother had left in her life, and Sarah finally allowed herself to admit it.

"Well, dad. I'm going to let you go now. Don't want to run up the bill." Sarah said.

"Alright, I love you." He said, and sounded reluctant to let her go. She cracked a small smile at that. She had always been a Daddy's Girl.

"Love you, too." Sarah said, and they both hung up the phones.


Sarah returned to the castle after doing a little bit of shopping for souvenirs. She was standing outside when tiny droplets of water fell from the sky. Her hand reached up to feel the sudden pressure on her head, and she noticed her hair was slightly damp. As she pulled her hand away, the wind picked up and the rain started to fall harder.

"Don't worry, dear! I've got you."

Sarah spun around on her heels to see Cara making her way up to her with a big umbrella. The old woman walked quickly up to Sarah, holding her jacket closed with one hand and holding the umbrella in another. Cara looked at her with a large smile on her face. She seemed to be very glad that she had caught Sarah at the right time, and without the interference of her pesky husband.

"Thank you." Sarah greeted the old woman as they automatically huddled together.

Cara shook her head, "Oh, don't thank me."

"Okay, well," Sarah paused and searched for the right words, "I appreciate the gesture, then."

"That's more like it," The old woman teased.

They were silent for a minute as they slowly walked towards the front doors of the castle. Earl was nowhere to be found, and it seemed like every step they took was slow and lingering. Perhaps, Sarah decided, she should ask why he had acted so… distant. When she had first arrived here he had greeted her with a hug, what had caused him to change so much?

"Is your husband…" Sarah shook her head, not sure how to word such a question, "Does he not like me, or something?"

"Oh," Cara waved a hand, scoffing, "Ignore him, he's just a grumpy old man."

"But… I feel like he doesn't want me to hang out with you. Did I say something?" Sarah asked, her green eyes big and studying the old woman, waiting for an answer that would have her nodding her head in agreement. She would like to know what she did wrong, so she could right it. However, the answer she was given was not as clear as she would have liked.

"It's not that he doesn't like you. He just doesn't like me talking to you." Cara casually corrected.

Sarah frowned. That was not something that she could really fix or apologize for. "Why doesn't he like us talking?" She cocked her head to the side.

"Why, because of the things we talk about." Cara answered with a haughty voice.

Sarah's scowl became a look of confusion, "And what do we talk about?"

"Oh, you know. That little fairy story I told you." Cara shrugged as if it was no big deal.

Sarah knew for certain, however, that Earl had not been there when they had talked. In fact, Cara seemed to shoo him away every time they talked. "How does he know about that?" Sarah asked as they reached the castle doors.

Cara shook out the umbrella and closed it. Then she turned to Sarah with a thoughtful expression on her face, "I suppose it's because I tell the same story to everyone of your kind." The old woman then continued to shake off her wet jacket and fluff her damp hair, though Sarah stood frozen on spot.

"My kind?" Sarah questioned. What was that supposed to mean?

Cara stopped her movements as if she had made some sort of fatal error, then after a moment of silence she shook her head and laughed lightly. "Oh, you know, your personality. I tell everyone those stories if it seems that they like that kind of stuff, and you do, don't you?" Cara smiled sweetly and opened the front door for the both of them.

"Yes, I suppose I do…" Sarah said, stepping into the warm room.

"He thinks that it will… Oh, how did he put it?" Cara scowled in thought, "Ah, yes, 'Poison your mind.' He's a little dramatic at times…" The old woman rolled her eyes as if she was way above it.

"Well, I don't really know him that well." Sarah gave her a nervous smile, not wanting to say anything that would come back to haunt her. Even if she thought Earl's earlier words had been quite rude and uncalled for.

Cara gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. Finally getting their bearings together, and standing in the lobby, they both said a quick goodbye and Cara scurried off before her dear husband could spot them chatting.

Sarah, on the other hand, was left standing there a little confused. While Cara had answered her questions, it still did not make much sense to her. If she had not said anything that would have insulted the man, then why would he have acted so rude to her? Maybe she should ask him.

A roar of thunder outside jolted her thoughts and made Sarah jump.

Perhaps she should wait for the storm to pass?


This was just a little filler chapter, but I think things will pick up more next chapter!

Kellyn1604: Glad you're excited! I'm looking forward to Jareth's and Sarah's reunion just as much as you are! Hah.

DarkEnigma322: Hmmmm, can she trust her, or does she have bad intentions...? I can't give anything away. :P Thank you for reading! You'll have to find out... ;)

Thank you Guest and Kieira! Your reviews keep me writing! They give me more incentive to work harder on my stories. :)) So thank YOU.

Lylabeth 1: I'm glad you caught on with that little thanking part. My friend who checks my chapters before I post them didn't catch on, so I was a little worried. Then again, she doesn't quite pay attention to Folklore and alike stuff. Cara was kind of a whim of mine, but as I write more I come up with more to write about on her. Also, on the crows, no I haven't read/watched the Game of Thrones, but I have tons of friends that recommend it to me. I might check it out sometime. Thank you for another one of your inspiring reviews, because of them I have actually started researching more into this stuff. Everything I was writing about before was just stuff that I've heard or seen before, but now I'm getting more ideas.

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Thank you for your reviews! They really do make my day!

Disclaimer: I do not own the labyrinth. :/