Note: Yeah, two parts this time. Why? Certainly not because I forgot to post this part earlier. ;-) Really, that's not it. I just wanted to move us closer to the main plot. Some of my favorite parts are coming up, and I can't wait for you guys to read them.

Part Three

Sarah started to hum a haunting Irish ballad as she walked towards her locker. With a mental eye roll, she stopped herself mid-note and switched to "Hit me Baby, One More Time". It was a lot harder to hum but it was definitely a step in the right direction.

She was drawing more than a few curious looks as she meandered through the corridors. This was partly due to her habit of always moving to the rhythm of whatever she was humming, which produced a graceful floating walk when she was humming the slow melodic tunes she usually favoured.

The effect when she was humming the music of Brittany Spears was different. It created much the same appearance as playing a game of vertical Twister using imaginary dots and a broken spinning wheel with the hand stuck on "Legs and hips: gyrate wildly."

The other curious looks could be attributed to her change in style. High schools are rigid communities and Sarah had previously belonged to the "Arts" crowd. As such, she was contractually obligated to dress in frills, spend a lot of her time talking about books and poetry and sign up for every play and dramatic reading going.

Today she walked right past the Theatre notice board without even looking at the leaflet advertising the auditions opening that day. She ignored the waves of her friends from the Drama Group and walked briskly past, feeling a slight twinge as she watched their smiles turn to puzzled frowns.

They'll get over it. They wouldn't like the "new" me, anyway. Hmm... I wonder if it's too late to join the Science Club?

Some people might say, "Aren't you over-reacting a little bit here, Sarah? Sure, you've had a traumatic experience but do you really want to change your whole life because of it? Why can't you just put it behind you?"

To which Sarah would respond in an alarmed tone, "Who are you? How do you know about the Labyrinth?" If those points had been explained to her satisfaction she might actually address the original questions. Or then again, maybe not.

"No! Yes! Go away, I don't want to have anything to do with anyone who knows about the Labyrinth!" At this point, she would have backed far enough away to make a dash for the door. The last you'd see of her would be a flannel blur disappearing over the horizon. And thus would end what could have been an illuminating conversation.

Nobody at the school knew about the Labyrinth, so they were forced to content themselves with stares and whispers.

Still humming and doing the strangely syncopated Walk of Ostentatious Conformity (Sounds like a dance, doesn't it? It's not going to catch on. Trust me.) Sarah made it to her first class. Smiling to herself, she plunged into algebra.

*****

To the great shock of everyone, Jareth wasn't watching Sarah. He hadn't even set eyes on her since that morning.

All things considered, this was probably for the best. If Jareth had seen her wandering jerkily down the corridors he wouldn't have been able to control himself. He would have appeared in the hallway, shaken the life out of Sarah and stuffed her into something dripping with sequins. Romantic music would have come out of nowhere. There would have been dancing. And singing. And more dancing.

Fine, it might not sound that bad. But she would probably have been late for her class. And it would definitely have put a serious crimp in Jareth's Plan A.

There are only three ways for someone to get into the Labyrinth.

1) You can be wished away by someone who knows the right words and has serious problems with thinking before they speak. (Avoid this. Your life will then be dependent on the abilities of another person against Jareth. And he cheats like crazy.)

2) You can be taken away if you ask nicely and Jareth happens to be listening and is in one of his playful moods. (Not recommended. He tends to forget about bringing people who do this back to Earth.)

3) You can sneak in through the back door, located in the meat freezer of a kosher deli in Newark. Take a right at Charles street, go through the entrance beside the Baskin Robbins, it's the door hidden behind the sliced meat case. (Recommended. It puts you in the Firey Forest but it's the only way that gives you the option of leaving.)

Nobody really wanted to wish Sarah away except for Jareth and it didn't work for him. It would be difficult, not to say impossible, to lure her to a meat freezer in Newark.

That left option number two. Sarah was going to ask him to take her away. Back to the Labyrinth, back to her home. One way or the other.

With a half smile on his face Jareth stood back and looked at the newly redesigned Labyrinth. It was a thing of beauty. It would almost be a shame if he never had to use it, if Sarah just fell into his arms and begged him to take her back. If she... No. No, it wouldn't be a shame.

Summoning a crystal, he checked on his pre...um...target? Fine. Prey it is. Unflattering, but accurate. Sarah was gleefully sketching sine curves, her hair falling forward like a dark wing over her face. Jareth ran his finger across the smooth surface as if to brush the strands from her eyes, savouring these last few moments of her contentment.

He vanished.

Let the games begin.

Let's have a moment of silence for Sarah's contentment.

_______

Man, I was *in* Newark last year. Why didn't I go? What was I thinking? It's exactly these kinds of missed opportunities that are going to haunt me when I'm older.