Chapter I.
Dawn had just broken when Sarah entered her garden and knelt on the soft grass under the sheltering shade of the trees. This had been a gift to her from Jareth on the day, many years ago, that she had agreed to be his queen. It was her sanctuary, her private place, and no one, not even her husband, could enter without her permission.
Now she reclined, soaking up the first rays of the sun, stretching lazily as they warmed her body. She never failed to find peace here, away from the glorious insanity that was Jareth's realm. The garden was green and shaded, with brilliant patches of color where she had planted flowers, and waving fern fronds where she had not. At its center stood a fountain, carved of marble and pearl, made in the image of the claws that was Jareth's royal sigil and which adorned his necklace.
Behind her Sarah heard the soft fluttering of feathers, and when she turned her head she saw two birds, an owl and a hawk, land on the branches of a tree that stood at the entrance to her garden. They hooked their claws in and sat quietly, awaiting her consent to their presence. She beckoned and they swooped down, their wings barely stirring the leaves of the trees they flew past.
They transformed in midair, and in a twinkling her husband and son stood before her. Jareth had not aged a day since she had met him; Sarah doubted he ever would. Griffith was only a boy, all wide-eyed innocence and inexhaustible energy. He had his mother's darker coloring, but every time she looked at him Sarah saw something not entirely human in the curve of his lips, in the angle of his nose, in the way he always seemed to be listening to music she could never quite hear.
Griffith knelt beside her and she held him close. Looking up at Jareth, she asked, "Is it time?"
"I'm afraid it is."
Sarah smiled at her son and ruffled his hair. "Well then, I guess I'd better play at being Queen for a few hours," she said. Jareth helped her to her feet and they walked hand-in-hand through the garden, Griffith following behind. As they neared the entrance, Sarah glanced behind her at the tranquil calm of her haven. With a sigh, she turned her head and followed her husband through.
Griffith squirmed awkwardly in his stiff clothes, and then tugged at the choker at his neck. His father's guests filed in, one by one, each gaudier and prouder than the last. They were all of the Spirit World, immortals and the Ageless, who had ruled the world long before his mother's people tamed fire. Many of them were insanely arrogant, and when they spared him a fleeting look Griffith always got the impression that they viewed him with something approaching distaste.
He hated these silly functions – they were nothing but an excuse to dress up, or so his mother said. He looked up at his mother, who sat regally on the throne next to his father. She looked splendid in her gown of dark green, but was no more comfortable than he. The days when she would have relished the thought of such pageantry were long over. Sarah never bothered with sitting in that big chair or wearing a crown – she claimed it gave her headaches – and much preferred mucking about in her garden with dirt all over her hands and her pants rolled up to her knees. Only the King seemed at ease on the throne, but even he looked terribly bored.
The heralds loudly announced the arrival of more royalty, and Jareth restrained a yawn. He had just begun to stare into space when his wife tugged him on his sleeve and caught his attention.
"I think Griffith is going to fall asleep," Sarah whispered to him. Looking over her shoulder, he smiled when he saw his son's eyes droop. Obviously the boy found these formalities no more exciting than he did.
"Perhaps we ought to send him outside with some of the other children," Jareth murmured back. Several of their guests had brought along their own young ones, many of whom were of age with Griffith. It might do them all some good to get out of the royal hall and into the fresh air. He wished he could just transform into an owl and escape but as a king he knew his duties.
"Good idea." Sarah favored him with a conspiratorial smile and turned to speak to their son. "Griffith," she said loudly, "why don't you greet some of the younger guests?"
"Hmmm?" Griffith perked up when he heard his name.
"Yes, excellent idea!" crowed a green-skinned fellow who was a king of the elf folk. "I'm sure the other young ones would appreciate being escorted by Prince Griffith. A great honor, yes, an honor." His eyes sparkled merrily. Elves were always merry, they couldn't help it.
"I would be happy to," said Griffith, and then stood to walk down into the crowd. The King and Queen were filled with pride as they watched him go; he was a credit to the kingdom. His new companions were a motley group from every corner of the globe, of every imaginable form and filled with magic and fancy. He greeted the small group of young princes and princesses formally, only a bit uncomfortable now. They responded in kind, but as soon as they were out of earshot of the adults the prim and proper façade dropped and their true personalities asserted themselves.
"What are you, anyway?" a centaur prince asked Griffith as he gave him a good long look from his toes to the top of his head.
"Lycidas!" cried an elf princess, aghast at his bad manners.
"What?" replied the centaur, whose name seemed to be Lycidas. He poked Griffith once in the chest. "It's just a question. My father told me that your father was a Fae who was cast down by the other Fae for being evil. But you don't look Fae and neither does your mother."
Griffith was too astonished by the centaur's insolence to speak, but a young girl with the body of a human and the head of a cat replied for him. "That's because he's only a half-blood," she said imperiously, "his mother is a human. My father says the Fae are notorious for loving humans. He says they don't care anything for the purity of their blood, like my people do." She flipped her hair over her shoulder with a self-satisfied air.
Lycidas laughed at her – neighed, rather – and stomped his hooves with mirth. "Oh yeah, your people care so much for their bloodlines they marry brother to sister!" He slapped Griffith on the back playfully. "At least you're not inbred like the Egyptian over there," he said, and Griffith wasn't sure if he was supposed to be flattered or insulted. The Egyptian princess hissed at him angrily, but Lycidas only laughed harder.
"Hush, all of you," a softly accented voice spoke from above, and they craned their heads upwards to see a slender female form glide down towards them. "Were you all raised in barns?" she asked as she approached them. "You certainly act like mindless beasts. Prince Griffith is our host, not an object of curiosity. We should all be thankful that he has borne your foolish drivel so patiently instead of giving you the thorough tongue-lashing you deserve."
He flushed a bit but finally got his bearings. "Thank you…."
"I am Long Liling," she said amiably, nodding her head in a respectful bow. Griffith bowed in return, and then shot a withering glare in the general direction of Lycidas and the Egyptian princess. They both looked properly chastened. She flew down to him and he could hardly keep from staring at the fascinating way her body seemed to ripple with every move.
"I apologize for these fools," she said. Long Liling was truly a curiosity. She was a Chinese dragon spirit, but a youth and therefore not allowed to participate in the ceremonies. Her elders had sent her to be with the other children, and so she had joined Griffith and his band. The dragon spirits could take human forms, but Liling was inexperienced and when she transformed she still retained some of her true form's aspects – her skin was patterned with scales and she glided through the air as though swimming through water. Her people were usually reclusive, and rarely attended formal banquets even with other Immortals.
Lycidas and the others decided that Griffith hadn't been that interesting anyway, and returned to teasing and gossiping like children. He spared them barely a glance but continued talking to the dragon princess. For some reason he didn't quite understand, he wanted to be near her and would have been content to talk with her forever. Liling had been kind to him for no reason other than because she was a kind person and he found that wonderful.
"Would you like to see the Labyrinth?" he asked, surprising himself. The Labyrinth was forbidden to guests and he had never invited anyone there before. To his delight, however, her great eyes grew wide and sparkled like perfect rubies.
"The Labyrinth?" Liling repeated breathlessly. "Really? I've heard it is incredible! My mother says it has no end, it just keeps twisting on and on…" She sounded like a little girl overwhelmed by a new gift.
"The Labyrinth is as endless as you want it to be," said Griffith, taking her hand. "Come, I'll show you. My father's magic is illusion and dreams, and your secret desires give the Labyrinth shape." He began to lead Liling out of the ballroom, carefully skirting any adults who might've stopped them. Peering above the crowd he saw his parents busy speaking to several monarchs, not paying much mind to their wayward offspring. A strange and wild bravery drove him on, and he and the dragon princess slipped out unnoticed.
"So the Labyrinth is whatever you believe it to be?" Liling asked him in a hush whisper as he led her down the endless flights of twisting stairs. The din of the party faded behind them with each step.
"Exactly," Griffith replied, thinking how clever she was. "It has no power but what you give it. Conquer yourself and you conquer the Labyrinth. It's harder than it sounds though! My mother is the only mortal who ever solved it." He was rather proud of the Labyrinth; no one else in all the spirit realm had its equal. His father had created it during the long lonely years of his exile and it was matchless.
They exited the staircase and walked out across a terrace. Suddenly Liling drew up short, pulling Griffith to a stop. He turned wondering eyes to her and she pointed at the wall ahead of them.
"It's a dead end," she said, with a hint of disappointment in her voice. "We can go no farther."
"Oh, surely you have more imagination than that," Griffith replied with an impish grin. "Things are not what they seem." With that he pulled her forward and they disappeared into the wall.
Inside the party, Sarah fanned herself. Some of the guests pressed against her and the air grew hot. Noticing her discomfort Jareth discreetly summoned a gust of wind to cool the room and she smiled gratefully at him in return.
"So you escaped the Labyrinth when you were only a girl?" The speaker, a gnome princess who came to Sarah's knee, peered up at her curiously. The Immortals never could believe a mere human could have solved Jareth's maze, and she found herself retelling her story every time they had a ball just to confirm it personally.
"Yes, I did," said Sarah. There was a twinge inside her and she realized something was wrong, something was missing. She began scanning the crowd, hoping to see whatever it was that was causing this feeling.
The gnome wrinkled her face. "But how did the King ever steal you back?"
"He didn't steal me back. I chose to return."
This reply seemed to astonish the gnome princess, who stood gaping at her as she tried to digest this information. Almost entirely ignoring her, Sarah continued staring through the throng. "I returned, and we married," she continued absentmindedly. "Griffith was born… Griffith!" Understanding filled her. Turning from her guest, she began pushing her way through the crowd to her husband.
"Jareth!" she cried, grabbing his sleeve. "Griffith's missing!"
He blinked in dismay. "Missing? He's probably just playing with some of his friends. Where would he be?"
"I think he's in the Labyrinth," Sarah said quickly, though even she could not have said how she knew this. "Something's wrong, I feel it. We have to find him."
"Liling!" A dragon floated down from the ceiling and transformed into a handsome Chinese man. "Perchance have your majesties seen my youngest daughter? She was right there a moment ago, speaking with your son…"
"Oh, no." Sarah fixed her gaze on Jareth and he saw the depth of her alarm. "We have to find them. There's something terribly wrong – I don't know what it is but there's something evil in the Labyrinth."
