AN: Dear lovely readers, thank you for the encouragement I have received with this crossover fic. I am going to do my darndest to get this completed by this Halloween...but don't hold me to it. The amazing Greenchimes was able to edit it, and I am ever grateful to her. It was updated with her corrections on 10.24.21.
Chapter 4: Lest History Repeat Itself
One moment, a hazy light showed through the wide open door of the kitchen, grains of sand slowly moving onto the linoleum floor from the other world by a gentle breeze bringing warm air into the room. But the instant the door to the Labyrinth closed, there was no sand, no hint of air movement, just the sound of seagulls calling from the bay outside the wide open door, the hum of the refrigerator, and the tick of a clock which hung from the wall.
And one whispered word from a distraught sister: "Toby."
Sarah's word broke the stupor everyone had been momentarily trapped within after the shock of what had just happened.
"Sarah, who was that man? Where did they take Toby?" Dani asked in a panic.
"That man said you'd wished Toby away and got him back." Allison said, turning toward Sarah. "Toby said goblins were real all along, but I never really believed it. They are real. The Goblin King is real. And he knows you. How?"
Sarah was hesitant, her brain trying to simultaneously think about how to get into the Labyrinth to save her brother without having to make a wish, and also worry how to tell the story of her encounter with the Goblin King; preferably without having to confess that she had once been selfish enough to wish away her brother. Her mind battling against itself caused her to remain silent.
"Sarah, come on! Don't freeze up now, we need to know what's going on so we can help your brother." Allison grabbed Sarah's arm, shaking her. "Toby said you saved him from the goblins. Why? How had they taken him in the first place?"
"Toby told me." Dani said, her voice slightly accusing, "She wished him away. But she didn't mean it and ran some maze to get him back."
"Sarah?" Allison asked.
"Yes, alright. I wished him away and the Goblin King made me run the Labyrinth to get Toby back, just like he's making that witch do for her sisters."
"So how do we get there?" Dani asked.
Sarah shook her head, "I don't know how without making a wish."
Dani shrugged. "Well, then let's…"
"No!" Sarah, Allison and Max shouted at the same time.
"We can't," Sarah continued, "If we wished someone away, then we have to run the maze and I don't think I could do it a second time. I don't want to tempt fate."
"Well, can't you call that frizzy-haired king back? He's gotta let us get Toby!" Dani whined.
"You heard him, Dani. There are rules to these sorts of things." Max answered, but then he looked at Sarah, saying gently, "He didn't look at you like an enemy. I know that look between the two of you. He likes you, and you like him."
Sarah avoided looking at Max and shook her head in denial.
"Damn it, he called you 'his Sarah.' You mean something to him!" Max insisted.
Sarah couldn't help the blush that creeped over her features as she turned away. Now was not the time to mention the Goblin King had made her an offer which she had rejected. She doubted he still wanted her. "It doesn't matter."
"Yes, it does. It's a good thing. It means he will do everything he can to make sure Toby's safe. It's what I'd do for Allison if I wanted to get in her good graces: by protecting something she loved." Max answered.
"What do we do now?" Dani asked.
"You said on the way here that Toby read from the witch's Book, that it said he was 'Fae touched.' Maybe it knows more." Allison said to Sarah.
"If anything, we need to start to prepare for the chance that Sarah Sanderson does get her sisters back and they come back here." Max said in all seriousness, "We need to make sure those witches turn back into dust for good."
Allison nodded in agreement, "Alright, then back to the book we go."
Sarah shook her car keys, "I'll drive."
"Dani, you stay here." Max started.
"No way! You weren't here when the witches first got here. They were after ME, Max! Mom and Dad won't be back for hours. What if that witch beats the Labyrinth and they come back? I don't want to be alone. Let me stay with you. Please?" Dani begged.
And as usual, Dani got her way.
There had only been two times in his young life that Toby had felt a pain in his wrist; the first was from falling off his bike when his Dad let go after taking off the training wheels. The second was this very moment, being unwillingly pulled along by the witch who had kidnapped him. Toby tried to keep up with the woman's longer stride. Though she looked to be the frailest of the Sanderson sisters, she was quite strong.
Yet, she was a tad absent-minded. As they approached the stone wall that surrounded the Labyrinth, the witch unexpectedly let him go. It was so surprising and sudden; one moment she was pulling him along so quickly he could barely keep pace with her, the next he found himself stumbling to the ground as she flung her arm out and moved away from him.
Toby raised his head off the dusty ground to find the blonde witch jumping and twirling around. She kept reaching out her hands as if trying to catch something. Every which way she turned, he could hear her say, "Come here! Slow down! Hold still!" Then, after a moment she shouted out with glee, "I have thee! I caught a fairy! Thou art real!"
And sure enough, Toby noticed the fluttering wings of other tiny flying creatures zipping in and out of the bushes lining the stone wall. Just as it amazed her, he too was astonished to find fairies really existed.
Toby was startled when the witch suddenly called out, "Ouch! How dare thee bite me, thou wretched winged beast?!" She then held up the tiny being by its wings, its tiny arms and legs wriggling around trying to set itself free. She then brought it close to her sinister face to look it in the eyes, "How wouldst thou like me to bite thee?"
She made a snapping motion with her teeth, causing Toby to cry out in fear for the poor creature, "Don't!"
The witch turned her head towards him in shock, as though she had forgotten she had brought him along. She briefly looked back at the fairy before flinging it away. She then grumbled, "They have no magic, anyway."
She then approached Toby and yanked him up by the arm, taking hold of his wrist again.
"Come, child. I have seen where we must enter."
"My name is Toby" The boy said, finding it insulting to be called a child all the time. "It's not like I don't already know I am a kid."
"Toby. Toooo-beeee. Toby!" The witch plays around saying his name on her tongue a few times.
The moment the witch breached the outer walls of the Labyrinth with no assistance, Toby knew this journey wouldn't be the same as his sister had described. There was no need for a dwarf to guide the way. And apparently no need for a tea-drinking worm either, as the witch easily led him through the camouflaged passage of stone that seemed as though it should be a solid wall.
As they went through the last of the stone path, the witch plucked something off the wall, sniffed it, then put it in her mouth. Upon closer inspection, Toby saw it had been a piece off a cluster of multi-eyed lichen. Toby actually heard a little squeak from the creature as she consumed it.
"That's disgusting." Toby blanched.
She grabbed another and held it out for him. "They're delicious, and I haven't eaten in three hundred...and one years." She cocked her head as she contemplated the exact details, "Except for one spider last All Hallows Eve. 'Twas only a morsel, and I need to keep up my strength." She then grinned mischievously at him, and bared her teeth. "Of course, I could just eat thee."
"No!" Toby shouted and tried to pull out of her reach. "You heard what the Goblin King said. You can't hurt me or he'll hurt you."
The witch pouted, "I suppose thou art right. Let us continue."
Once the walls of stone had transitioned into manicured leaves of hedge bushes, the witch abruptly stopped again, stomping her foot in frustration, "The magical path has gone. I can no longer see the way. What to do, what to do."
The witch's inconsistent mood swings irked Toby. Sometimes she seemed almost likeable, other times she was terrifyingly wicked. He didn't want to do anything to set her off, so he remained quiet. Though her hand still grasped his arm, he wondered if she did forget he was there as she sometimes talked to herself. She mumbled and muttered so much that he stopped listening, that is until she jerked on his arm and repeated herself.
"Thy sister traversed this maze; where shall we turn next?" She asked, her blue eyes boring into his.
"I don't know, I wasn't with her. I was the one wished away. Plus, I was only a baby then." Toby defended. "If it wasn't for my sister telling me what happened, I wouldn't know this place even existed."
The witch huffed and tugged him to move, "Useless child. We must keep going."
Toby had no choice but to follow her further into the unpredictable maze.
The proverb 'patience is a virtue' was overused and overrated. How strong could one's patience be when one has been waiting centuries? The Book had waited long enough.
For five hundred years it had been in this wretched, magicless world. It had been stolen from its wizard by a wicked woman, Drusella the Terrible. How it hated being removed from its magic-filled world and taken to a realm that had little magic. Drusella used the knowledge of the Book to conjure power, to make the minuscule amount of magic she possessed on her own more powerful. From her womb came four precious children, two who were satisfactory in their use of magic, one of whom turned her back on all things magical, and one who grew to be more powerful than her mother. Oh, how the book adored Winifred. She was the one bright light to its existence in this magic-starved world. Once Drusella had been disposed of by those who deemed magic to be evil, and with a little help from the Book, Winifred Sanderson became the sole wielder of the Book's knowledge. As much as her bumbling siblings attempted to read from its spells, the tome only allowed its beloved to stare upon its pages. But then, she was hanged and it remained unread for centuries.
It was tired of being dormant.
There was a glimmer of hope as the Book had arranged the resurrection of its beloved Daughter of Darkness, Winifred, and her tolerable sisters; by giving them the curse to speak before their last breaths were forced from their constricted throats. But they had been wasted breaths. Although they returned on All Hallows Eve three hundred years to the day of their demise, it was merely for one day. Its beloved Winifred was bested by children and turned to dust.
So the Book looked within itself to create a means to return its beloved witch to life by finding those who had touched magic from its own world. It felt the magic radiate off the lovely raven-haired maiden the moment she stepped within the walls of the cottage months ago. It was curious to know how one born of this world had been so touched by the magic of its realm. Many times it attempted to catch her eye, to get her attention and have her read of its pages, if anything so she could cast a spell to send it home. But if she did notice, she paid it no mind.
But then, nearly one year after losing its Winifred, a boy touched with the magic of the goblins appeared with the dark-haired young woman. This child could help it get the witch, and her sisters, back. When it heard the child recite the incantation, a great joy swelled within its soul. Its cherished witch, and her sisters, did return. And yet, they could not be fully reunited.
The girl who had been stained by the magic of the Underground must have known that iron was a bane to the existence of things born of magic. She and her white witch cousin entrapped the Book in a metal case, making it impossible for Winifred to possess it upon her resurrection. And in her anger, Winifred left the book behind to enact some sort of revenge. The Book could do nothing but flip open its pages, willing its magic to be a beacon to lead the witch back to it.
So again, the Book awaited in its glass and metal prison, waiting for the moment when it could enact its magic again.
In all his years of being summoned above to offer wayward wishers the chance to win back those they cast aside through mere words, Jareth, the Goblin King, had only returned to one home; that of the Williams siblings. And it had been a return of his own choosing, no wish or summons involved. Yet, they never knew he was there. At first, flying Above to watch them, hidden in his avian form, was a means to sate his curiosity, to better grasp why he had allowed himself to be affected by that Wisher's innocent eyes. It was baffling, this distraction he had for her. He couldn't keep his mind off how that slip of a girl had bested him, yet he wasn't angered. He was intrigued by Sarah Williams.
He should have been full of contempt: for her selfishness in wishing away her half-sibling. Yet, he found in the end he felt compassion for her. She genuinely had just been caught up in the moment of telling young Toby a story. It had been a story she told her brother when she was frustrated, feeling that her life was unfair. Her brother had been the scapegoat to all she was experiencing. The abandonment by her mother, the pressures to find a compatible life companion by her stepmother, the choices of her father that led to his new marriage. To be honest, had Jareth had the same circumstances in his life as a youth, he was sure he would have behaved even more indignantly than she.
Sarah never knew of his visits; he rather thought avoiding contact was the prudent choice. But he did want to better understand her; this girl who didn't mean her wish, yet believed in her words so much that it still happened. A girl who desired magic and the fantastical, yet chose to be responsible and leave her desires behind for the sake of doing the right thing. Though, she wasn't a girl any more.
In her quest to comply with the accepted norms of her world, Sarah left her childhood home in pursuit of higher education. Because of this, Jareth hadn't seen Sarah since she moved away. With her no longer around for him to observe, Jareth became emboldened and sought out news of her directly from her brother. He figured that if the companions she had made in her journey through his Labyrinth could visit through the mirror in Sarah's room, then why couldn't he? Yet her brother could not accurately tell him where she'd gone; such was the knowledge of children. They only knew what they were told. All Toby knew was that Sarah was now residing with 'Aunt Paullette and Cousin Allison,' whoever they were. And he knew that Sarah's education consisted of the study of past events and the tales told by the cultures of her world.
At the time a wish is made, the magic of the Labyrinth mentally sent its monarch foreknowledge of the situation. He was fully expecting to confront the Sanderson witch who had made the wish for her sisters to be taken by his goblins. When he appeared before the witch, seeing his Sarah standing in the room had completely caught him off guard. She was radiant, her features a bit sharper with age than when he'd last seen her. Her green eyes flared when he said he was pleased to see her, but then they quickly shadowed with concern for the brother she dearly cherished.
Jareth blamed himself for what happened next. He merely wanted his Sarah to know he admired her ability to best his Labyrinth, so he bragged about her achievement. The witch exploited the situation and attempted to force Sarah's hand. That Sarah didn't hesitate in agreeing to help the witch so her brother could go free was commendable, but it was against the rules of magic. Rules even he could not break.
His heart twisted at hearing his name fall from Sarah's lips in a plea, one he could not answer.
He wasn't lying when he said there was nothing he could do to separate Toby from the witch's clutches. First, it was the Labyrinth, not he, who had set the rules into motion when a human was wished away and he was powerless to defy it. And second, there was unstable magical power radiating from the witch that he wasn't willing to test. Should he have attempted to take Toby from her, he feared the boy, and anyone else in the room without magic, would be harmed in the process. For the moment, he had to let the witch take the boy. As he had explained, the rules allowed for the wisher to take that which they possessed into the Labyrinth with them, and the witch held Toby tightly in her grasp. However much he hated that, he had no choice but to allow it; one thing Jareth could do was let the witch know that there would be dire consequences should the boy be harmed. It pleased him that the witch cringed from his heated gaze; it showed she took his threat to heart.
Duty bound, the pull of the Labyrinth's magic led him to return to his castle to continue his responsibility with the wish; to nanny those who had been wished away.
He couldn't remember there being such chaos with any other wished-aways. There was a cacophony of noise and a whirlwind of activity when he stepped into his throne room. Then again, typically most wished-aways were not magical witches stuck in the bodies of prepubescent children.
Juvenile Mary Sanderson was sulking on the throne, sobbing as she clutched a black chicken to her chest. Young Winifred Sanderson was attempting to demand that the goblins give back the necklace they had taken from around her neck and were playing a spirited game of 'finders keepers' with her. To them, it was merely a game; for her, it was war. She would fling out sparks of magic from her fingers and was frustrated when the goblins weren't injured by it. When an unfortunate goblin got close enough for the young witch to snatch, she held it in one hand and reached back with her still rather long nails to inflict scratches upon it.
"That's enough, Winifred." Jareth's voice bellowed through the room as he demanded she stop her actions before she could harm his subject.
Winnie dropped the goblin in surprise at hearing the command, and the small creature scurried away. The young witch huffed in frustration at losing her prey and turned to find who had interrupted her fun. Seeing the Goblin King, she shot off her magic at him, then screeched when it did nothing, "I do not have to listen to thee. Why dost my magic not work here?"
He grinned slyly at her frustration. "It does, but yours is rather weak, thus rendering you powerless."
Winifred's face turned red as she shrieked, "My magic isn't weak! How dare thou speak such untruths! I am the most powerful witch in all Salem."
Jareth sighed and stepped closer to her. "Be that as it may, you are not in Salem but in a world with more magic than you can fathom possessing."
"You mean, the Other Side? This is the Other Side?" She calmed and looked around, amazed.
"It is a place of many titles, but yes, I suppose that is one of them. The goblins call it the Underground. I call it home." Jareth mused.
"How did we get here? What spell didst thou cast?"
"There was no spell, but a wish. One made by your youngest sister because you would not listen to her." He crouched down to be eye to eye with her, "Are you listening now?"
Winifred rolled her eyes, "How could I listen to my sister with her not here? Where is my Sister Sarah?"
"Oh, but she is here," He produced a crystal in his gloved hand, bringing it to her eyes so she could view her questing sibling within.
The redhead witch snatched the sphere from him and turned it, inspecting it every-which-way as she spoke in awe, "I hath n'er seen such strong magic. How dost one produce such a clear and steadfast vision bauble?"
"Like this," Jareth grinned as he created another crystal with the flick of his wrist.
A gasp escaped Winifred, "No spells, no potions. Thou just conjured by a thought from thy brain?"
"Quite so." Jareth affirmed.
"Oh, good sir, I beseech thee. Teach me thy ways, for I hath n'er seen such things."
The king straightened and stepped back. "You, dear Winifred, will not be here long enough to learn anything, and I will not be here, at least not for more than twelve hours. It depends on your sister's progress, really. I have places I must be, and you are the least of my concerns right now."
"No, I beg you, I must know how to wield such magic." She tried to follow him, but goblins, or the mess of rubbish strewn around the floor, tripped her, slowing her down from catching him. When he was just about to reach the door to leave, a shrill screech erupted from her tiny mouth, "I demand thou stop!"
The bolt of energy that was released from her small hand struck him in the left shoulder; it stung but caused no damage. He abruptly turned towards her, "You dare strike a king? You dare command me? Perhaps I shall let your sister fail to retrieve you. You see these creatures, these goblins which surround you. Should your sister fail in retrieving you, this is what you shall become. Is that what you want?"
Winifred's eyes enlarged three sizes and she abruptly shut her mouth. She then shook her head vigorously.
Jareth hummed, then said, "I thought not. Now, be a good little girl and you make sure you and your humble sister remain out of trouble while I'm gone."
She nodded her head and turned back towards the goblins. She composed herself, straightened her posture, and went to sit with her saddened sister. Mary scootched over to make room for Winifred to sit beside her on the throne. He then watched as Winifred started making twisting motions with one hand, trying to will a crystal sphere into existence.
Once he felt he had everything at hand, Jareth found himself venturing back to the home from which the new wish had been made. He wanted to return to his Sarah, and vow that he would do everything in his power to return the brother who truly had been stolen from her this time 'round. Yet, when he arrived, the house was vacant.
A sense of dread came over him; he had only been gone mere moments to set the Sanderson witch on her quest and ensure that her de-aged siblings weren't overpowering his goblins. Although they had been made children, their devious minds were mostly still in place, giving them the ability to still use the magic they possessed. He left the beast Ludo in charge of guarding the mini-witches; as the beast had just enough magic of his own that he could render their magic ineffectual against him. Jareth then turned to the task of getting back to Sarah Williams before she did anything rash to help save her brother.
Having no knowledge of where to begin to look for her, as this house had no hint of it being her residence, he was at a loss. He had no way of contacting her, but perhaps his gardener did.
He formed a crystal and spoke into it. "Hoggle, your presence is required."
That's all the warning he gave before smashing the crystal on the ground, leaving in the wake of the shattered shards a bewildered dwarf. Hoggle wobbled a bit on his feet before steadying himself and taking in his surroundings.
"Where are we?"
"In the Above. Young Tobias Williams has been taken into the Labyrinth."
"No, I don'ts believe it. Sarah would never wish away her brother again." Hoggle wagged an accusing finger at the king
"Who said anything about a wish?" Jareth scoffed, "What were my exact words?"
Hoggle paused and rethought what had been said. "That the boy had been taken to the Labyrinth. Who did it then?"
"A witch." Jareth growled. "But knowing Sarah, she's most likely going to do anything she can, short of making a wish, to return to the Labyrinth to save her brother. I need to ensure she doesn't do anything rash. Do you know how I can reach her?"
Hoggle looked wide-eyed at his sovereign as he shook his head, looking around the room. "No, your majesty. We's only seen her through her mirror at her home. And this ain't it."
Jareth hummed in the back of his throat as he frowned. This was not good. He was thrown out of his thoughts when Hoggle pointed to something outside the house.
"What's that?" The dwarf asked, indicating a golden shaft of light emanating from within a forest in the distance.
"Magic." Jareth answered, his voice lowering even further as he said, "Specifically, Underground magic. We must go."
And before he could blink, Hoggle found himself again transported magically, this time to the edge of a rustic cottage. Being closer to the visible glow of power, the pull of the magic was palpable.
"Ha-How is this possible?" Hoggle asked, in wonder.
"I'm going to find out." Jareth said as he took measured steps toward the abode.
Sarah, Allison, Max, and Dani hesitantly surrounded the glass case which held the sinister tome of the Sanderson Sisters. And within, the Book watched them back. After a moment, Sarah nodded to herself and reached into the pocket of her jeans. Still having the keys to the case in her pocket from earlier that day, she reached to unlock and release the Book.
"Don't open that case!" A strong, feminine voice shouted from behind them.
They each jumped at hearing the voice, surprised to find Paulette standing in the doorway of her office.
"Mom, what are you doing here?" Allison asked in surprise.
"I could ask you kids the same thing. Are you trying to steal from the museum?"
"Aunt Paulette, we can explain," Sarah started.
"No," the woman's shoulders dropped as she sighed, "I need to explain something to you. Come on, all of you, into my office. I don't want that...thing hearing us."
Shocked eyes glanced to each other as the four of them moved to cram into Paulette's office. After shutting the door behind them, Allison's mother took a seat at her desk. All eyes were on her, waiting to hear what she had to say.
"Have you ever had a secret you had to keep, but could tell only a few people who might understand? What I'm about to tell you is a secret, and it must remain only with us, or to Allison's children, should any come." Her eyes darted between her daughter and Max. Both of them squirmed. "That book, do you know what it is?"
They all nod their heads, but it is Dani who says, "It is the book the witches use to do magic."
Paulette nodded. Then she said, "Have you ever heard of Elijah Bailey?"
Allison nodded her head, "He's the founder of the church of Salem. His son Jacob became the first mayor. He's who our high school is named after."
"They are your forefathers, Allison. We lost the surname Bailey a few generations ago when there were no male heirs, but each of their descendants were tasked with a very important mission; to not let anyone read from that Book." Paulette raised her hand to point towards the object on the other side of the door.
"What?" Four voices echoed.
"You know the story of the disappearance of Thackery Binx when he went in search of his sister?" Paulette asked.
"Yeah, we knew him." Dani answered excitedly.
Max and Allison's eyes widened and looked towards Dani, willing her to not say anything else.
Paulette didn't seem to take the meaning of the girls words and continued her tale, "Thackery was Elijah's dearest friend, and when young Emily Binx was found dead and Thackery missing, Elijah blamed himself for not going with Thackery to face the witches who had murdered the girl. He was also wracked with guilt when he failed at holding the witches' evil tome at their hanging. It was in his hands when a flash of lightning caused him to drop the book and the witches were able to read a curse that would cause their return from death. In his guilt, he took the black flame candle and the Book and hid them in an iron chest. He bought this cottage and forbade anyone from ever setting foot within. He tasked his children to keep the items hidden, lest history repeat itself and the witches return. They were bound by oath to ensure that the witches could not return as their curse proclaimed. But over time, belief in magic and curses became merely tall tales and legends. But the family kept passing the story and the chest to the next generation. Until it reached my father, who saw this place as a means for profit. Having been untouched for generations, it was like a time capsule into pre-colonial life. He passed the museum on to me, with the Book and Black Flame Candle on display for all to see. He gave me a journal to read of the legend. I took it as a mere story. I was a fool for not believing it." Paulette sighed, then looked at her daughter. "I never told you the book and candle needed guarding. You lit it last year, didn't you?"
"Technically, it was me." Max said, then quickly stated, "But we stopped them. We defeated the Sanderson witches."
"And yet," Paulette said pointedly, "they returned today somehow."
"How do you know that?" Sarah asked, confused as they had said nothing to the effect.
"I had two surveillance cameras installed, one facing the entrance, and one in this office since the money safe is in here. An alert was set off that someone had entered this room. I knew you were coming here with Toby today," Paulette looked to Sarah, "So I didn't think anything of it when the front door alerted. But then it alerted me to this room, so I watched the surveillance tape. I was very happy when I did not see you intruding where you aren't allowed, but very concerned by the three very upset women I heard talking about taking revenge on my daughter and her boyfriend. So, since I know the two of you were at the cafe, it makes me wonder how the witches came back this time."
"That would be because my brother was tricked by the Book into reading a spell." Sarah intervened.
"So, where are the witches now?" Paulette asked. "What's the plan to defeat them?"
"They aren't where we can go." Allison said hesitantly.
"Why not? Where are they?"
"They're in a different world. And hopefully, they'll be trapped there forever." Max said.
"A different world, then why were you plotting how to defeat them again?" Paulette asked.
"Because, we have to go there to save Toby. He's been kidnapped!" Dani said with urgency.
"Kidnapped! How?" Paulette looked to her niece by marriage for an answer.
"Because one of the witches read from this," Dani said, plopping the red, leatherbound book upon the desk, "And made a wish for the goblins to take her sisters away to their world."
"Dani, where did you get that?" Sarah asked.
"Toby brought it over. Before you got there, one of the witches read it. That's how she knew to make the wish." Dani explained.
Sarah snarled under her breath, "The little cretin. He took it out of my bag."
"So what does wishing have to do with Toby?" Paulette asked, trying to keep the focus on rescuing her nephew.
"The witch who made the wish took him." Dani interjected.
"When someone is wished away to the goblins, their king allows for the wisher to retrieve the person they wished away if they regret the wish. He gives them thirteen hours to solve the maze that encompasses his kingdom, and if they win, they get the person back." Sarah explained quickly, hoping that no one mentions to her step-aunt that she herself had made the wish.
More calmly, Allison explained, "When the Goblin King came and offered the choice for the witch to have greater magic or save her sisters, she chose her sisters over power. But as leverage to make sure her sisters aren't turned into goblins, she grabbed Toby."
"How could taking Toby be leverage? Wouldn't that mean Toby would have to matter to this Goblin King? How does this magical being from another world know a seven year old boy on Earth?"
"Because Sarah wished him away." Dani explained, her tone showing that conclusion should have been obvious.
"But obviously I saved him and got him back." Sarah interjected. "That was nearly six years ago, anyway."
Paulette narrowed her eyes, but did not comment on it, moving on. "Why were you trying to access the witch's book? Why not just make a wish to get Toby back?"
"Sarah won't let us make a wish either because one of us could get trapped there forever." Dani added.
"Thus why we were wanting access to the book." Allison started, "To see if there is some spell in it that would open a portal or something to get to the Labyrinth."
Paulette takes a deep breath, "If I hadn't seen those witches fly out the front door on brooms in the surveillance tapes, I wouldn't believe any of this, even with the stories passed down through our family. But now that I know it is true, it is my duty to keep that book from being read."
"But Mom!" "Aunt Paulette!" The young women shout simultaneously.
"Shush." Paulette closed her eyes a moment before grounding herself, "However, I do understand that to get to a magical world, magical means are needed. So, I don't see that I have another choice than to let you open the book."
"Then, let's do this. Time is ticking." Max said while rising.
The five of them stood staring at the Book within the glass case, the page still open to the spell Toby cast. Paulette held the key to the case in her hand, hesitant to actually open it. Then she reached forward her hand to place the key in the lock.
"I wouldn't do that, if I were you." An accented baritone voice said from the doorway.
AN2: If you would like to leave me encouragement or criticism, please leave a comment! I'm wondering if I am doing this crossover justice.