King of Dreams, Owner of None
by Bunniko
AN:?Well, here's chapter three! Hope someone reviews. : Have pity on a poor injured foreigner in Japan! I got hit by a car and broke my foot on Thursday, so I'll have plenty more time to write. Anywho, another chapter with oblique references to me and my friends. So again, there's some stuff I own. I own: Trixie/Jeannie, Melinda, Deborah, and other things as they appear. I do not own: Texas (bummer), England (yay!), the Labyrinth (sniffle), Jareth, Sarah, etc. To my real life friends: See if you can find yourself. Did I write you in? lol
Please Note: This chapter is also set around time of the movie, though the last one only got up to establishing the existence of Sarah's stepmother.
Note 2: Updated, corrected, slightly edited 8-12-02
TANOSHINDE! (Or in English, 'Enjoy!')
Chapter Three - Seeds of Distrust
Jareth watched the tears rolling down his Sarah's face. He no longer felt the slightest oddness at thinking of her as his. Instead, a protective desire bubbled up inside him as he watched her. He twirled the crystal, bringing the problem into focus. Karen stood there, eyes full of cold fury, a mask of icy rage hardening her face. Jareth thought her extremely plain at the best of times, but now, she was even more repulsive to him. In her hand dangled three or four sheets of purple paper.
Sarah was so angry she was shaking. Karen was holding out a letter from her best friend. It was clear the evil woman had read the letter. Her eyes spilled hot tears against her will. She hated this woman with so much energy she had almost none left to think with. Only the fact that she never used bad language kept her from swearing at this creature that had gained power over her by usurping her father's heart. Her eyes were red, puffy and attempting to direct hateful looks in Karen's direction.
Robert Williams was sitting at his desk, his head in his hands. He didn't know what to say. Ever since she had become pregnant, he had grown extremely wary of upsetting his new wife. He distinctly remembered how Sarah's mother had been when she'd been pregnant. So very moody, easily upset, and so very difficult to appease, as he remembered it. He was afraid of going through all that again. He hated confrontation, but he was torn within himself. He didn't want to hurt his daughter, but he didn't want to hurt his wife, either. What was a man supposed to do?
Her step-mother began screeching. "Robert, I have tried, but this is the reward I get. Sarah writes to all of creation describing me in such villainous terms! How can you be so placid about this?"
Sarah whirled to face him, "What right does she have to read letters from my friends? Why shouldn't I be allowed to talk to someone who understands how I feel? She went in my room, Dad! She violated my privacy!"
Finally, Robert raised his head. "Darling, please, let's all just leave Sarah's room alone." Sarah covered a winning smirk with one hand. But Robert wasn't through. "And Sarah, hon, let's try to keep our letters on a more positive note." Sarah was stunned. Her stepmother smiled coldly. Sarah, tears suddenly dried by a new onslaught of anger, gave her a heated glare, then turned and left the room, slamming the door behind her. Robert put his head back down.
When Sarah got to her room, her mind was whirling. She thought about flinging herself on her bed and sobbing her heart out, but her mind took a suspicious turn. Frantically, she pulled out the shoe box that held her letters from Trix. Sure enough, it was obvious that they had been rifled through. Over three years of communication, all private and previously untouched, now corrupted by hateful hands. Sarah couldn't help but shudder. She pulled out her diary, one of those cheap kinds with a flimsy lock on it. The only key hung round her neck, but now she thought more clearly. This lock wasn't safe. No doubt anything could pick it. Testing her theory with a hairpin, she was proved right in less than twenty seconds.
Quickly, she stuffed her letters and her diary into her bag. Then, rummaging in her closet, she found an old stuffed teddy she called Lancelot. Because he was a bit raggedy, she had taken him down from the shelf of toys. Now she put him back in the place of honor. Hopefully, that would hide the floppy clown toy's absence. She tucked the clown into her bag as well. Then crawling into bed, she slept with the bag tightly held in her arms.
The next morning, Sarah left the house early, skipping breakfast. She visited an older friend of hers. Explaining everything that had happened, her friend was persuaded to open a post office box for her. She wrote a long letter to Trix the next day, telling her all about her stepmother's latest invasion and her new contact address. Trix understood, and from that day on, Sarah always checked her mailbox before heading to the park. The next thing she did was use what was left of her allowance to buy a combination lock that she could attach to her diary. Then, heading to the park, she opened up the floppy clown and placed the letters inside, then stitched him back up. Upon returning home, she buried the clown toy in the back of her closet, behind her sweaters and winter slacks.
Then she moved on to a wholesale overhaul of her room. She reprioritized everything and made everything have concrete locations. That way she could tell if her room had been invaded at a glance. In doing so, she re-found The Labyrinth. A strange feeling hummed through her when she touched it, but it made her nervous. She filed it away with her other books, and it sat there until Toby's birth.
When Toby entered the world, Sarah discovered the Labyrinth. Not just the book.
When Sarah returned home, having defeated the only man who had ever understood her, and having rescued the child she bitterly resented yet deeply loved, she became aware of several things. The first was that she 15. It was time to put away the childish toys and, with them, childish behavior. She didn't have to give up her dreaming, just her babyish, bratty ways.
The second was that her closest friend, though she was a world away, had a copy of the book. She should warn her!
The third was more of an acceptance. She accepted that her mom wasn't the most perfect mother and that her stepmother wasn't a horrid beast. She resolved to try to make peace. Especially, she thought with a slightly cruel smile, since it would likely throw her stepmother for a loop.
For the first time, Sarah wrote Trixie a deliciously long letter from her own room. She was flush from her victory in the Labyrinth and felt invincible. She was unaware of the owl that had checked in on her.
by Bunniko
AN:?Well, here's chapter three! Hope someone reviews. : Have pity on a poor injured foreigner in Japan! I got hit by a car and broke my foot on Thursday, so I'll have plenty more time to write. Anywho, another chapter with oblique references to me and my friends. So again, there's some stuff I own. I own: Trixie/Jeannie, Melinda, Deborah, and other things as they appear. I do not own: Texas (bummer), England (yay!), the Labyrinth (sniffle), Jareth, Sarah, etc. To my real life friends: See if you can find yourself. Did I write you in? lol
Please Note: This chapter is also set around time of the movie, though the last one only got up to establishing the existence of Sarah's stepmother.
Note 2: Updated, corrected, slightly edited 8-12-02
TANOSHINDE! (Or in English, 'Enjoy!')
Chapter Three - Seeds of Distrust
Jareth watched the tears rolling down his Sarah's face. He no longer felt the slightest oddness at thinking of her as his. Instead, a protective desire bubbled up inside him as he watched her. He twirled the crystal, bringing the problem into focus. Karen stood there, eyes full of cold fury, a mask of icy rage hardening her face. Jareth thought her extremely plain at the best of times, but now, she was even more repulsive to him. In her hand dangled three or four sheets of purple paper.
Sarah was so angry she was shaking. Karen was holding out a letter from her best friend. It was clear the evil woman had read the letter. Her eyes spilled hot tears against her will. She hated this woman with so much energy she had almost none left to think with. Only the fact that she never used bad language kept her from swearing at this creature that had gained power over her by usurping her father's heart. Her eyes were red, puffy and attempting to direct hateful looks in Karen's direction.
Robert Williams was sitting at his desk, his head in his hands. He didn't know what to say. Ever since she had become pregnant, he had grown extremely wary of upsetting his new wife. He distinctly remembered how Sarah's mother had been when she'd been pregnant. So very moody, easily upset, and so very difficult to appease, as he remembered it. He was afraid of going through all that again. He hated confrontation, but he was torn within himself. He didn't want to hurt his daughter, but he didn't want to hurt his wife, either. What was a man supposed to do?
Her step-mother began screeching. "Robert, I have tried, but this is the reward I get. Sarah writes to all of creation describing me in such villainous terms! How can you be so placid about this?"
Sarah whirled to face him, "What right does she have to read letters from my friends? Why shouldn't I be allowed to talk to someone who understands how I feel? She went in my room, Dad! She violated my privacy!"
Finally, Robert raised his head. "Darling, please, let's all just leave Sarah's room alone." Sarah covered a winning smirk with one hand. But Robert wasn't through. "And Sarah, hon, let's try to keep our letters on a more positive note." Sarah was stunned. Her stepmother smiled coldly. Sarah, tears suddenly dried by a new onslaught of anger, gave her a heated glare, then turned and left the room, slamming the door behind her. Robert put his head back down.
When Sarah got to her room, her mind was whirling. She thought about flinging herself on her bed and sobbing her heart out, but her mind took a suspicious turn. Frantically, she pulled out the shoe box that held her letters from Trix. Sure enough, it was obvious that they had been rifled through. Over three years of communication, all private and previously untouched, now corrupted by hateful hands. Sarah couldn't help but shudder. She pulled out her diary, one of those cheap kinds with a flimsy lock on it. The only key hung round her neck, but now she thought more clearly. This lock wasn't safe. No doubt anything could pick it. Testing her theory with a hairpin, she was proved right in less than twenty seconds.
Quickly, she stuffed her letters and her diary into her bag. Then, rummaging in her closet, she found an old stuffed teddy she called Lancelot. Because he was a bit raggedy, she had taken him down from the shelf of toys. Now she put him back in the place of honor. Hopefully, that would hide the floppy clown toy's absence. She tucked the clown into her bag as well. Then crawling into bed, she slept with the bag tightly held in her arms.
The next morning, Sarah left the house early, skipping breakfast. She visited an older friend of hers. Explaining everything that had happened, her friend was persuaded to open a post office box for her. She wrote a long letter to Trix the next day, telling her all about her stepmother's latest invasion and her new contact address. Trix understood, and from that day on, Sarah always checked her mailbox before heading to the park. The next thing she did was use what was left of her allowance to buy a combination lock that she could attach to her diary. Then, heading to the park, she opened up the floppy clown and placed the letters inside, then stitched him back up. Upon returning home, she buried the clown toy in the back of her closet, behind her sweaters and winter slacks.
Then she moved on to a wholesale overhaul of her room. She reprioritized everything and made everything have concrete locations. That way she could tell if her room had been invaded at a glance. In doing so, she re-found The Labyrinth. A strange feeling hummed through her when she touched it, but it made her nervous. She filed it away with her other books, and it sat there until Toby's birth.
When Toby entered the world, Sarah discovered the Labyrinth. Not just the book.
When Sarah returned home, having defeated the only man who had ever understood her, and having rescued the child she bitterly resented yet deeply loved, she became aware of several things. The first was that she 15. It was time to put away the childish toys and, with them, childish behavior. She didn't have to give up her dreaming, just her babyish, bratty ways.
The second was that her closest friend, though she was a world away, had a copy of the book. She should warn her!
The third was more of an acceptance. She accepted that her mom wasn't the most perfect mother and that her stepmother wasn't a horrid beast. She resolved to try to make peace. Especially, she thought with a slightly cruel smile, since it would likely throw her stepmother for a loop.
For the first time, Sarah wrote Trixie a deliciously long letter from her own room. She was flush from her victory in the Labyrinth and felt invincible. She was unaware of the owl that had checked in on her.