Sarah had been welcomed back to theater rehearsals with enthusiasm. She hadn't known the cast for very long, but they seemed to be a good group of people who had hugged her tightly and grasped her hands warmly.

Still, no welcome could have prepared for seeing Brad again. She hadn't been gone that long. The dire situation had certainly caused time to pass slowly, but she really hadn't been away from her boyfriend for a lengthy amount of time.

To him, the week had seemed like months.

After her first rehearsal back on Tuesday, Brad picked her up. He had restrained himself from going directly into the theater and waited for her to approach his car—at least, that's how he had been planned in his head; he couldn't wait. As soon as his girlfriend exited the theater, he ran to her, scooping her up into a bear hug and burying his face in her neck.

Sarah was shocked. She did her best to return the hug, but he held her so tightly she dangled in midair with her feet floating inches above the ground.

"Sarah, I was so scared. There wasn't anything I could do. My parents said you almost died."

Sarah hadn't realized the boy had cared for her so. She would've swore he was close to tears. She was moved.

"Almost, but I didn't," she reassured. "I'm here now."

He released her and kissed her hard, wrapping her in his arms and pressing her to his body.

"Any tighter and we'll become the same person," she joked when he released the kiss. He set his chin on top of her head.

Sarah closed her eyes and soaked in the feeling of being held. The warmth of his body radiated through their clothes, and his cologne smelled like fresh pine. Sarah felt safe. Nothing else in the world mattered.

"I can't believe I finally get to see you again and I have to leave," he remarked despondently. Brad was going with his parents to England for three months in order to visit his older brother and uncle.

"I wish you were staying. But at least you get to bring me a cool present," she joked.

"Nah, I'm saving all the keepsakes for myself," he teased back.

The pair strolled over to a bench adjacent to the sidewalk and sat in comfortable silence. Sarah basked in the simplicity of the moment. She figured this was how relationships should be—uncomplicated.

After a few enforced days of bed-rest—days on which she would've gladly rested anyhow, enforced or not—Sarah was happy to enjoy the warm, early June air. Her head rested easily on Brad's right shoulder, and she occasionally stole a quick glance up to draw constellations in his faint freckles with her eyes.

Sarah felt aware of the world around her: the hardness of the bench under her thighs, the whispering rustle of the leaves of nearby trees, the earthy smell of the freshly mown grass. When she had defeated the Labyrinth, Sarah hadn't ever really felt in mortal danger—though that near-plunge into the Bog of Eternal Stench wasn't exactly safe, she reconsidered.

Either way, her body's rejection of becoming a changling was the first time in her life she had looked death in the face. She regarded everything around her with new appreciation, whether it was a nearby crying baby or a frantically buzzing bee.

Jareth hadn't visited her since his apology. Uncharacteristic, Sarah thought, though she was glad. She sighed inwardly, knowing it probably meant he was planning something else, but she was glad for the respite. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to think of nothing, to not worry or dread.

"What if...what if he had taken me?" a thought asked, crossing her mind and catching her off guard; she had never even considered that as an option.

And for a brief moment, Sarah felt a sense of peace and belonging as she pictured herself once more with Ludo, Hoggle, and Sir Didymus and Ambrosias...perhaps sitting together on a grassy knoll in the forest, Hoggle piping away on his panflute...

And then, a foreboding sense of dread moved in as she pictured the Goblin Castle. The Goblins were so dear, but she would be trapped.

Trapped with him.

Sarah lifted her head from the shoulder upon which it rested as mixed emotions flooded her mind. Fear. Mistrust. Perhaps love?

Sarah physically shook her head, trying to shake the feelings off. There should be no love. Right? Stealing a child to trap a teenager—another child—was insane, right? Evil.

Yet she couldn't fully commit to this conclusion, even as she lied to herself.

Brad rose, guiding her by the hand. They walked in serene silence, occasionally commenting on a summer blossom or a cute dog. This was nice, thought Sarah,

This was normal.

But Sarah was no ordinary girl. No ordinary girl who takes care of a screaming baby...

Brad drove Sarah to Andrea's shop and flat. The kiss goodbye was as different from the kiss hello as a kiss could be. It was soft and gentle, and it was long and slow; they savored the final moment together as long as they could.

"Don't get a parking ticket," joked Sarah, breaking away.

"It'd be worth it," he replied stealing one more kiss before she climbed out of the car.

The shop door was flung open and Sarah was pulled into a hug before she could even knock.

"Oh, Sarah, I'm so glad you're alright!" cried Andrea.

"Me too, Andrea, me too," said a tired Sarah. Experiencing so many people's relief of her safety in one day was a lot to take on. A never-ending reality check. A constant reminder of what had been done to her.

Sarah gave the condensed version of the story as an aromatic tea brewed.

"It's just..." Sarah stopped, finishing her story and gratefully accepting a mug of tea, "it's just...so personal. It's my body, my very being. The fact that he could change me without my consent at all makes me feel..."

"Icky?"

"Icky." Sarah sighed and snuggled deeper into the museum couch.

"Sarah, dear," said Andrea, gently cupping the girl's cheeks in her hands, "you will still be you no matter what. No matter what happens to you and your body, you'll still be Sarah, whether Fae or human. Whatever he does to you, remember that he can't take anything away from you. To be human is more than just genetics. He can never take your good heart and your endless courage."

Sarah fought back tears and felt a little tension release from her shoulders.

"Thank you, Andrea. That means a lot to me. And besides, he seems to be gone."

"For now," said the wise one peering over her glasses.

"Ya, for now." Sarah was at an impasse. There wasn't anything more she could actively do to deter Jareth. She could only know what to expect while also preparing for the unexpected. She had to trust her strength. Her will.

"Where did he go?!" cried a little green goblin in the throne room, its permanently befuddled goblin face contorted even deeper into confusion.

"I dunno," replied a red goblin with large, black, insectian eyes.

"He left so, so fast! I've never seen his eyes get so big!" giggled a feathery female creature.

"There's never an emergency big enough to make him flinch. It's always, 'sigh,'" the first goblin mimicked, giving a dramatic, kingly huff and rolling his eyes as hard as he could. In his best Jareth voice, he mocked, "'Must we today?' Then 'Poof! Glitter! Gone."

The gaggle of goblins burst into raucous laughter and didn't inquire again as to why their apathetic monarch would disappear in a whirlwind.

Where have I been for three years? It's a long story…. But I'm back! More details later.