Disclaimer: Weell, it's time for chapta 6, and I hope you like it! By the way, I still own nothing, so you can't have it!

Author: Yes, thank you, Disclaimer! Now, here is chapter 6, and I want to thank all of my loyal readers! (you know who you are.) And I want to thank everyone for making this fic the most popular of all of my ickle ficcies! (Puts on a party hat and throws confetti into the air) Have some cake!

Disclaimer: You know that they won't get your cake. Why do you keep trying to send food and drink items through to your readers? It never works.

Author: I can try, dammit!

"Sarah? Is that you?"

Sarah turned around as a very relieved-looking Jason ran up to her. "Sarah! I've been looking all over for you! Where have you been?" Jason looked over at Gabriel. "Who are you?"

"This is Gabriel," Sarah said to Jason, wishing that it was less obvious Gabriel had been living in a less than civilized area for the past year and a half. "I've been over at his house. Sorry I didn't tell you," she said quickly.

"I was worried about you. No one knew where you were," Jason said. "I was about to call 911!"

"Gosh, sorry, mom," Gabriel muttered. Sarah shot him a look to silence him. Jason seemed so relieved by Sarah's return that he did not question where exactly Gabriel lived or how now he seemed to have no where to stay. He led Sarah and Gabriel back to the house without a second thought.

* * * * *

Jaelithe looked down at the house below him. There was only one light on; the light in Jason's room. Jaelithe jumped down gracefully onto the roof like an overgrown bat, peering over the edge into Sarah's window. Then he transformed himself into a black owl and alighted on her window sill.

She turned, and murmured something in her sleep. The owl blinked its large golden eyes and hooted softly. Then it turned back into a boy who sat calmly on the window sill, as though there was nothing amiss. But inside Jaelithe's mind was a battle of wills. * * * * *

"Sarah."

"I said go away!" she shouted. "You've haunted me enough!"

"But Sarah," he said. "I do so love walking into your dreams, seeing the way your mind works. Haven't made any progress on that little mystery, have we?"

"Shut up!" she yelled. "if you're not going to tell me who Jareth is, you can at least stop taunting me with it!"

"Oh, but Sarah," he said. "That's half the fun!"

"Why can't you leave me alone, anyway?" she demanded. "Has it got something to do with me, or Jareth, or what?"

"Take your second guess."

"Jareth?"

"Good girl."

"Then why bother dragging me into it? If it's his problem, take it up with him!" Sarah was angry now. She was angry at Jaelithe, for being there, herself, for ruining the Labyrinth, even Jareth, for caring so much about her. She had thought after her first time in the Labyrinth, that it would be no more than a memory once she had left. But now, it nearly consumed her thoughts. "Leave me out of it!" she shouted at Jaelithe.

"Oh, but my dear Sarah," Jaelithe said. "It's all about you. You're the reason he left the Labyrinth, and the reason he can't go back now. You're also the only one who can save the Labyrinth, and make him go back. And I certainly can't leave you alone, because he hates it so much when you suffer. Do you know where he is? No, you don't. His every waking thought is because of you, and you had forgotten him until only a week ago. Feeling guilty yet? You ought to be."

"I ought to beat you to a pulp!" Sarah growled. Jaelithe only laughed.

"It's so adorable when you lose your temper," he told her.

"You have no idea," she said truthfully.

"Oh? Let's see, then."

Instantly, everything that had ever made Sarah angry whirled before her eyes. Her memories and dreams all pushed against her, drowning her, suffocating her. She kicked out at them, beat them with her fists, but dreams feel no pain. They closed in all around her, and she felt as though she couldn't breathe. "Jareth!" she shouted, demonic laughter filling her ears.

"Jareth! JAAAARRREEEEEETTTHHHHH!"

* * * * *

"Sarah! Wake up!"

Sarah awoke once again to stare up into Jason's face. "I had no idea," she said, not feeling the words leave her mouth. "I had no idea he could-"

"Sarah, are you alright? What are you talking about?"

Sarah steadied her breathing and calmed down. Jason looked at her, his face etched with worry lines. Sarah reminded herself that Jason would not understand. He would probably send her to a psychiatric ward. She took a deep breath and reminded herself that she was in the real world.

But what was real? Many people would say that the Labyrinth wasn't real, yet it was. Or perhaps it wasn't. Perhaps it was really a fragment of her imagination, held up by her dreams. Yet she had been there. Been there, and felt, and seen, and heard, and even smelt and tasted that world. How could it be unreal? How could this be real?

"Sarah?" Jason ventured.

Sarah smiled up at him. "It's nothing. Jason," she said. "I'm sorry I woke you up again. I'll try to be better next time."

"It is not nothing," Jason insisted. "Can't you tell me what's wrong?"

Sarah looked at him for a long time. Finally, she said, "No, I can't Jason. This is my problem, and I can't drag you into it. It would be better if you weren't involved. For both of us." "But Sarah," Jason said. "I care about what happens to you. I want to know what's bothering you so much. I'm sure I could help you if you'd only tell me what was wrong. Don't you trust me?"

Sarah sighed. "Of course I trust you, Jason," she said. "But sometimes we have to do things alone."

"But why?" he asked. Sarah remembered when she had been asked the same question. She gave Jason the same answer she had given to Hoggle and Ludo and Dydimus those years ago.

"Because that's the way it's done," she said.

A black owl unfurled its wings and glided off as the dawn approached.

* * * * *

"Sounds like it's her problem, then," Doxie Lee said. She and Jason were sitting at the student bar, and Jason had just finished telling her about the scene that morning. "You can't force her to share her problems if she wants to handle it herself. If they turn out to be too much for her, trust me, you'll know."

"But it's turning into my problem," he said. "It's driving me absolutely crazy. I keep having these times when it's like I almost remember something, but I can't quite remember it. Do you know what I mean?" Doxie Lee nodded. "I keep feeling as though her dreams have something to do with it. Why would she not want to tell me?"

"Well, maybe it's because it feels weird," Doxie Lee said.

'What?"

"Yeah, I mean she's weird, dreams are weird, you're weird, it feels weird talking about stuff that's weird, especially when the people involved are weird, and let's face it, you guys are just plain weird."

Jason blinked. "You must have said weird about seven times," he said. "Besides, I don't think that's the problem. Do you think that she doesn't trust me or something?"

Doxie Lee shook her head. "I don't think that's it. She trusts you with an awful lot. It probably has something to do with her past, or people she knows in other places. She probably thinks it's too complicated for you. Give her time, she'll come around. I wouldn't worry."

"But in the meantime, what should I do?" he asked.

Doxie Lee smiled at him. "Try spending time with me," she said. Before Jason could do anything about it, Doxie Lee was kissing him.

He pushed her away viciously. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" he demanded.

"Oh, don't pretend you didn't like it," she said in a tone sweet enough to cause cavities. Jason glared at her with a fury she had never seen before.

"I care nothing for you," he said. "If you ever touch me again, fool, I will make sure that it is the last thing you ever touch!" Without another word, he strode out of the room, into the dusky air.

"At least," he said bitterly. "The foolish girl got me into my head again. I have to find that vermin Jaelithe-"

Jareth took off at a run down the side streets, heading back toward the house, knowing that his rival would appear as Sarah slept.

Author: Well, there you go, and let me know what you think! I hope it wasn't too bad. In the meantime, I'll try to solve the greenhouse effect and find out why they put Braille on ATMs, when blind people can't tell the difference between the bills? (Runs off to eat cake)