What is it? Could it be... an update?!

Sorry I fell off the wagon for so long guys, my passion led me elsewhere, and I wasn't entirely certain how I wanted it to end, I ended up procrastinating. A lot.

But! I figured out a bunch of stuff, and in light of a new deadline to finish this story brought upon by the real world- (Read my profile if you want the details.) I am bound and determined to get this story done by the end of the year. It WILL be finished. I promise you that.

Anyhoo, here's the next chapter.

Sarah sat in front of the portal, hand on the stone, frowning.

This portal was different from the others. It had three rings of stone around it, for example, And the lettering on the stone was far, far more extensive.

Absently she placed a finger on a swirling vine, and frowned.

"Well?" Savid snapped.

"I'm thinking." Satah replied calmly. She summoned a crystal in her other hand, and began meditating.

Immediately, she felt as if she had been pitched head first into a river again.

Each layer had a gate and each gate had the commands it needed to keep going, but this one was the master gate, the command board, and it had the instructions on the nitty gritty on how each gate was supposed to operate, connecting each one through a thread of power from the crystal room generated by the crystal room itself and it traveled from electron to electron like electricity, sending commands by the pulses and wasn't that not unlike the ones and zeros Toby was so adamant about in his coding and each portal gathered the energy from each layer and centered it around the portal so you could only move through the layers through the portal and the energy was sent through the stones but if it was at an angle than the energy would have to too andifsomethingbrokeitwouldactivat-

She jerked her hand back. She blinked, couldn't see, and blinked some more, but it was a few seconds before she could pull herself out of her head to really see in front of her. The tan stone mocked her in its simplicity. Something so plain could not exist when there was such complexity in the world.

"Well?"

"I'm thinking." Sarah replied, a touch of annoyance this time. Despite the sharpness of her tone, it remained close and still to her.

She placed her hand on the stone and, very carefully, began to skim the surface.

Even that was nearly overwhelming. Yes, theoretically "opening the portals" was a simple request but Sarah rather felt as if someone had asked her to repair a nuclear bomb by "switching a wire". The power holding up this system was old, brimming with energy and very very delicate. If she tried to messing with it and set something off- well, Sarah didn't really want to think of what would happen.

She suspected truly comprehending the amount of work here would take her months, even years, and she didn't have that kind of time.

She pushed off the ground and stood, crossing her arms. "This is beyond me."

Savid scowled, his face blurring before settling into the perfect picture of disgust. "You are Truth. Cannot you not divine the answer?"

"I can only get answers I can comprehend." She replied. "The future? Sure. Go in a specific direction to find somebody? Fine. Figure out if someone can control time? No problem. Mess with what is basically computer programming? No."

"You can gaze into the depths of time, garner impossible information and conceive a plan to trick a host of Hope, yet you cannot solve this?"

Sarah shook her head. "Nope. I mean, if I studied it for four or five years, maybe. But my family is not going to last that long. So." She shrugged. "We both know without their lives on the line I wouldn't be doing a thing for you."

Savid growled, his face blurring again. "I suppose I could move your family to the second layer until you are finished."

"And spend the next five years of my life trying to not become a Wraith? I think not." Sarah set her hands on her hips. "Let me think"

She tapped her finger against the crystal in hand and settled a little more comfortably into the peace in her head. Carefully, she went over all she had learned since coming to Jareth all those weeks ago.

The Underground was comprised of five layers, first containing goblins, the second monstrous creatures, the third formerly worms, taken over by wraiths. The fourth level was entirely wraiths. The fifth held the souls of the dead. Each portal confined egress to that circle alone, effectively trapping each on their own layer. Each portal had its own coding, almost like a computer's coding.

Perhaps she could ask for Toby? He was in several college level courses on coding already, and he might be able to help her puzzle out what was going on.

But she'd always been able to easily grasp the concepts he'd excitedly explained to her, especially with the help of her crystal. This was far more complex. Still, he might be able to help.

But was he in any state to help? He'd been here a month, perhaps, maybe more. She couldn't depend on him being entirely mentally sound.

Jareth might be able to help, he was far older than her. He knew more about the crystals. Maybe even Savid, loath she was to ask his help.

She held out her hand. Savid stared at it. Sarah realized she hadn't explained anything to him. There was a stubborn, spitful child inside her that refused to explain, to expose her own mistake, and she stretched her hand out farther, staring at him intently.

Slowly, Savid put his hand on hers. It was cold. Sarah waited until his ghost followed and knelt, touching the ring of the stone. She dived head first in the current of information on purpose.

It was stupid. What she really needed was for Savid to understand the portals. She ought to have made it as easy as possible for him. Truth still sung like a song in her head, and it said that, and she knew it, but she didn't care. She was angry. She was angry at Savid, for taking her family, for wanting to take over all the layers, even hers like some cartoon villian on a tv. She was angry that he'd been so respectful of her right up until she couldn't do what he wanted her to, and she was also angry with herself, for not being able to understand the portal. For not being able to save her family.

Let Savid understand what she was trying to do, let him bear the full brunt and feel the overwhelming tide of information. It was the only thing she'd dare do to hurt him.

They were in the middle of some sequence explaining how the electrons were effected by the power the crystal made when Savid jerked his hand out of hers.

Sarah took her hand off the stone and blinked and blinked and blinked until she could see him laying in an undignified heap on the stone, his long braid of hair tangled among his limbs, his chest a blur as he panted. His whole body fuzzed, like a picture that couldn't stay in focus, only it was only him. Sarah realized he was shaking.

Jareth sat in the corner, watching them both, his eyes narrowed, and calculating. Two Wraith floated on either side of him, but he didn't seem to be too affected by them. He met Sarah's eyes, and she smirked cruelly.

"Think you can help any?" Sarah said scathingly, to the both of them.

Savid swore in a serious of words that Sarah didn't understand, but got the picture of. There was no help coming from him. For all his pomp, he was useless here.

Jareth raised his head, his eyes calculating. Sarah pushed herself to her feet and walked over to him, she glanced warily at both Wraiths, but they didn't move. She yanked off Jareth's gag.

"Got something to say?" She said, colder than she needed to be, but she didn't dare allow herself to be warmer.

Jareth spat, working his mouth before jutting his head to the portal, eyes sparkling. "If that is the Labyrinth-" he said, "-then the Labyrinth must understand the portals. Perhaps you could ask it."

Sarah pursed her lips, she wound the gag around her hand, and unwound it, her mouth twisting. "With your help?" She questioned sharply.

"With my help." Jareth said smoothly.

"You'll not get your amulet." Savid snapped from his place on the floor. He'd managed to sit up, a little, and had pooled his braid to the back. "It is mine, now."

"My connection to the Labyrinth is complete, with, or without the amulet." Jareth said tiredly. Likely he had learned that the hard way. "Let me help."

Savid seemed to pause at that, and he glared at Jareth. "Why would you help?"

Jareth laughed, his cackle echoed around the room, skipping and dancing off the walls, mocking Sarah and Savid both. Sarah winced. It was loud, in a room that seemed to have no echo before him. "I have no love for the Labyrinth." Jareth snapped. "Truth alone will free me from being its slave. Besides-" he looked up at Sarah, and he grinned a grin of sharp teeth. "-there is so very little I would not do for my love."

Savid snorted, but he waved a hand. "Untie him, let him assist."

The Wraiths bent over, and continued to bend, their torso's stretched down and down until they were longer then their legs until they could reach the ropes.

Jareth stood, when they were finished, rubbing his wrists. Already the bruises from the ropes were fading. "Do you remember the humming you felt at the heart of the Labyrinth?" He asked Sarah.

Sarah thought back to the dark tunnel under the Escher room. She remembered placing her hands on the yellow stone and feeling the hum of life from a being farther larger and more powerful than she would ever be.

"Yes." She said.

Jareth held out his hand, with no further explanation.

Sarah snorted, but followed his lead. His hands, even now, were warm.

He guided Sarah to the center of the room, and knelt, tugging her to the ground with him. He set her palms on the simple floor and covered them with his own slim hands.

"Concentrate." He said simply, and closed his eyes.

Sarah breathed out. She pulled forward the memory of feeling the Labyrinth hum beneath her fingertips and searched for that feeling beneath her fingertips.

She probed furiously with her mind, waving wildly in the dark, catching only air and air again, but the Labyrinth had to be there somewhere, she just wasn't searching deep enough she-

Her mind smacks against something. Darkness rushes her vision. The floor vanishes and she is falling, falling falling. The darkness writhes, it is alive and it claws at her, presses at her eyes, her ears, her mouth.

Pain spikes through her head again and again, a migraine that nearly knocks her unconscious and a feeling of being ripped limb from limb again and again and again-

And then, something huge and vast and powerful cups Sarah, picking her up in something that might be hands, or paws or arms or something. And it screams, cracking every bone in her body and shattering what sanity she has-

HEAL ME HEAL ME HEAL ME HEAL ME

She cannot breathe. The darkness is too strong. She cannot think. The Labyrinth is too loud. She only knows there is something she must that she does not understand. She takes her confusion and throws it at the beast, screaming it as loud as she can in the hopes that it will hear her-

Straight backed and proud. Glimmering in her Truth, lighting the way forward. Draped in fabrics and a amulet of silver horns on her chest, beautiful so beautiful, a crown woven in with dark hair, a queen, and an upturned nose and sparkling green eyes, beautiful and wise and the Labyrinth loved her and she loved it. Time raced on and on and it changed, everything changed the souls the creatures the family and they split and connected again and again, never the same, never one and whole, each crack cracking the Labyrinth, but there was always beautiful and wise, constant and comforting, and she was there to heal and to comfort. But then betrayed, betrayed and It was chopped into pieces and why? Connected only by the thinnest of threads to feel the pain of each individual layer, and it was alone, alone for so long without a queen, lonely without her company, lost without her comfort and forever in pain and alone and lonely and unable to do what it had been commanded to do for the Maker had commanded it and why why why why why. Pain, alone, hurt hurt why did she leave unless- unless-

The Labyrinth throws Sarah away, and she suddenly sat in the room made of crystal, gasping and crying. Her hands trembled like an out of tune engine. Her tears tricked over salty cheeks.

Something cold had nestled in her heart, the root to a thousand needles in her skin pulling and pulling and pulling. Her eyes squeezed and she crumbled to the stone, wishing she could sleep until it was over. However long that would take.

But what would be the price?

A warm hand clasped her shoulder. "Sarah?" Jareth said quietly. "Sarah, what did you see?"

"Truth." Savid said sharply, he was standing tall and foolish again. "What did you do? Have you news?"

Sarah said nothing. She set one palm against the earth, and then the other and pushed off the ground with trembling arms and stood. She swayed a little, and struggled to see the portal through watery eyes.

She rubbed them with the edge of her threadbare sleeve and summoned a crystal and threw it. Her aim was True and it fell into the small hole at the center of the portal. Then she smashed her crystal into the center. The shards glimmered and sparkled in the blue light of the crystal room and melted into the cracks, transforming into a shimmering pool.

"What are you-"

Jareth caught her wrist, his hand as strong as steel. "Sarah, no!" He nearly shouted.

She punched him again, her fist still tight around her crystal ball. Jareth's head smacked back, and her knuckled were red, but she felt nothing. Nothing could compare to the pain she had just felt.

Jareth's hand loosened, and she wrenched her wrist out of his. She turned and ran.

"Sarah-!"

"Truth-"

Sarah dived into the fifth layer.

May, 1993

The crowd milled around Sarah, a sea of black cloaks, square hats and well dressed family members. She stood on the very edge of the curb, watching another sea of cars stream around a parking lot.

Jessica stood next to her, cigarette in hand. She flicked some ashes, watching each car drive by critically.

Sarah, who had traveled through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered, who talked with goblins and beasts of all kinds on the regular, had thought there wasn't a stranger feeling in the world than watching Jessica get out of her car and realizing Sarah had grown two inches taller than her. It made her feel grown up in a way that even getting her diploma hadn't.

"He's taking a while, huh?" Jessica remarked.

Sarah shrugged. "Karen called me from a gas station. They were late getting started because Toby threw a tantrum. Edith threw up. And they got a flat tire."

Jessica winced. "Damn. Just a slew of bad luck all around, huh?"

"That's just the way it is sometimes." Sarah brushed the tassel out of her face for the umpteenth time. "Dad would never miss it on purpose."

"Of course he wouldn't." Jessica took a drag from her cigarette.

A nervous, huge voice spoke behind him. "Hey, uh, Sarah?"

They both turned.

Brian was a six foot five inch brick who's genetics, and father, had tried to make him a football player. Unfortunately for both, he'd rebelled and gone the book route instead.

He grasped his diploma like he was ready to run a sprint across forty years and smiled. "I really liked your speech. It- it was really inspiring. I know you're not- interested but I'd like to stay friends. You know? I'll miss you."

Sarah smiled a little. "Me too." She held out her hand. His took it, nearly coating her entire hand. They shook. "I'll miss studying with you." She admitted. "You're the best at helping me memorize stuff."

He grinned wide. "Yeah, well, I doubt I would have made honors without you. My old man never would have let me live it down if I hadn't."

"Don't bother with his opinion." Sarah said automatically. "You should decide what you do with your life."

"Well, sure. But-" he chuckled. "It's nice to be able to rub it in his face."

"I get that." Sarah admitted.

Someone shouted over the hubbub. Brian glanced over his shoulder and sighed. "Speak of the devil…"

"I'll call you in a week or two." Sarah promised. "You'll be staying at your apartment for another few months, right?"

"Right." He waved, just a little awkwardly. "Later."

"Later."

He turned around, not quite disappearing in the crowd, he was too tall for that, but sort of blending in.

"Who's that?" Jessica asked, dropping her cigarette to the steps and crushing it beneath the toe of her pumps.

"Brian. We dated for a year and a half."

Jessica's eyes practically bugged out of her face. Sarah's mouth tightened and she just barely managed to hold back a groan.

Jessica took a step back and raised her hands, looking like a prima donna on a stage. "Whoa, whoa, hold on? You went serious with him? You?"

"Well. Sort of." Sarah brushed her robes for pockets to stick her hands in until she remembered they didn't have any. "We met at a study group and when everyone else left away we just… didn't. It was convenient, you know? He made me look short, I helped him not look so intimidating. We started hanging out outside of school. I went to his parents' place for Christmas. He came to mine for New Years. We sort of just fell into it." She shrugged.

Jessica frowned, and raised an eyebrow. "What ended it?"

Sarah closed her eyes and hissed, banishing the image of Brian on one knee, a sparkling family ring in his hand. "When I realized that was about as serious as I wanted to go."

"Heartbreaker." Jessica said affectionately.

Sarah grimaced. It was too close for comfort. Brian had cried. And he'd been mad. Sarah hadn't blamed him. She'd named him her boyfriend, because she hadn't known what else to call him. Talked casually of buying a house together. Splurged on romantic dinners for him because she had money to spare and he didn't. Stayed up countless night together cramming. He'd even mentioned kids a couple times.

He missed so many days of school in the following months of their break up Sarah had actually driven across town to his apartment to give him a pep talk. Turned out he'd really needed it. His grandma had died just a week after they'd broken up. Because life was unfair like that a lot. But that was just the way it was.

She rubbed her left hand anxiously, as if feeling for a ring even now she half felt she wanted to accept. Sir Didymus had been furious with her, and even Hoggle had been confused. Just the night before she'd been chatting about how much she appreciated him, and how awesome he was, and how thoughtful. It was just… when she saw him kneeling in front of her, something inside of her screamed to run. This wasn't for her, it said. It would never be for her. It would only end in heartbreak for both of them.

Brian had cried, but she'd cried too, that night. She was almost sure she would have been happy with him. And she'd missed him, walked around like a shell of herself for weeks. But she didn't dare take it back.

"What's your plans? You know, after college?"Jessica asked.

"Got a job offer at the company I interned at. I'll start there. Get some experience in. Maybe stay, maybe not. Not sure yet." Sarah glanced at Jessica. "You?"

"Me? This is your graduation sweetie, not mine."

Sarah gave her a look.

Jessica laughed and relented. "Okay. Okay. Our, well, Ivan and I's business is doing really well. We're thinking of starting a scholarship."

"Really?" Sarah grinned. "That's awesome. What made you consider it?"

"I want to give back." Jessica's eyes misted and she sighed. "I never would have been able to afford college without your dad's help. And there were a lot of kids in the same spot where I grew up. I mean," she chuckled, "no way in hell I'm ever having a kid, so this is how we're going to spread our legacy."

Sarah crossed her arms. "Strange words for a former Nanny."

"And I thanked God each and every day I got to go home and have some peace and quiet. You could talk a comedians ear off when you were little, you know? I wanted stuff you in a closet sometimes and let you chatter about books to those half goat men you read about."

Sarah waved to a friend as they drove by, grinning. "I could never tell."

"Course not. You were too cute for that."

Sarah laughed, but she sobered pretty quickly. "I'd be willing to help the scholarship, I've got a fair amount left of what my mom gave me."

"Keep it." Jessica said. "Buy a boat, or something. Splurge. Treat yourself. We got it covered."

"Eh." Sarah gripped her diploma tighter and sighed. "Luxury's overrated. Besides, I'm not having any kids either."

Jessica gave Sarah a quick side eye, then nodded slowly. "Alright. Fair enough. I'll call you for the details. Just promise me one thing."

"What's that?"

"Keep ten grand or so for yourself for emergencies."

"Sarah!" A shrill voice screeched over the low lull of the crowd.

Sarah searched through the crowd until a familiar rusty car crawled through the traffic. Toby's head poked out the window, and he held out a candy bar triumphantly. "I got candy!"

"And you got a diploma, but obviously the candy's more important." Jessica muttered wryly. Sarah choked back a laugh and raised her hand, waving a thumbs up to share in his celebration.

Toby grinned, he was missing one of his bottom teeth. He was promptly pulled back into the car.

It pulled up to a stop in front the two of them, and Dad leaned out of the passenger window. Karen beside him in the drivers seat, dressed to the nines in a dress suit and huge earrings. She smiled brilliantly, if a little wearily.

Behind them, Toby sat, practically vibrating in his seat. Edith was sound asleep in her car seat, oblivious to the world.

"We missed the whole ceremony, huh?" Robert said, his face tight with frustration and annoyance.

"It's okay." Sarah stepped off the curb to kiss his cheek. "I'll recite my speech for you both over dinner. I was hoping to go to a place called 'The Learned Cafe'"

Her dad's face twisted in confusion. "A coffee shop?"

"It's near campus, and really popular." She smiled brightly. "Wouldn't feel right finishing off anywhere else. They're even staying open late for us."

A pink notebook with a blue pen was shoved under her nose. "Write down the address, we'll find it." Karen said.

Toby poked his head between the seats, his blue eyes sparkling up at her. "Can I ride with you, Sarah? I don't need a car seat anymore so it'll be super easy."

She shrugged, scribbling down the address and a few landmarks to watch for. "If mom and dad say it's okay."

"That would be nice." Robert admitted a little tightly.

Toby whooped and kicked the door open, running into Sarah, nearly knocking her over as he wrapped his arms around her. Sarah hurriedly patted his back. "One second." She ripped off one sheet and handed it to Jessica. "There's the address for you." She handed the pad back to Karen. "And one for you." She then knelt and reached down to pick up Toby and squeezed him until he gasped for breath, giggling. "And one for you." She said affectionately, dropping him back to the pavement.

"See you at the Cafe." Karen said, and she waved goodbye before entering the crawl of cars again.

Toby, having noticed Jessica when Sarah handed her the paper, didn't bother to say goodbye. He stared up at her.

Jessica smiled and held out her hand. "I'm Jessica, Sarah's old babysitter."

Toby reached out and shook her hand. "You smell like smoke." He noted.

"That's because I smoke."

Toby tugged his arm back and folded his arms over his chest. "My school says that smoking is really bad for you. It causes cancer and liver failure and-"

"What else are you learning in school?" Sarah said, pulling him up off the parking lot and onto the curb.

"There's a computer club at the library." Toby said excitedly. "The librarian is teaching us how to code."

"Pretty cool." Sarah nodded to Jessica. "See you at the Cafe?"

Jessica nodded. "Good luck." She grinned.

Sarah shrugged and glanced both ways before tugging Toby across the parking lot towards her car, Toby chatting the whole way, only pausing to take another bite of his candy.

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