Chapter 3 – Within You
The goblin trio wheeled Sarah into the courtyard of the goblin castle. The gardens located there were quite beautiful; the flowers changed every few moments, reflecting the changes of the labyrinth itself. Unlike the yellow-tinged maze, the gardens were bright and cheerful. Gragar sent his cronies off to their homes. He reached up and gently removed the blindfold from Sarah's eyes. He left her wrists and ankles bound, however.
"Thank you," Sarah breathed, at the unexpected treatment from her captor.
"You're welcome," Gragar stated. "King Jareth will be here shortly to. . . er, discuss things." With that, the dwarf hurried away, toward the castle, to announce her arrival to his ruler.
Jareth, of course, already knew of her arrival. But he played the part of the indifferent monarch, and suppressed a grin at the return of his rival. When Gragar entered the room, his mask of indifference was already firmly in place.
Sarah examined her surroundings, the best she could still being bound to the cart. She noticed the changing flowers, and some small fairies, hovering over them. Remembering her last experience in the land, she shied away when they flew too near to her. So far, her impressions of the goblin kingdom were much different than they had been at first. Of course, she had been a child of only 16, and the price of not running through the labyrinth was too high for her to feel anything but resentment toward the land, the labyrinth, and the mysterious monarch who watched over them both.
Now, the land seemed to have a calming effect. There were beautiful parts to the landscape, and Sarah wondered if there were beautiful aspects of the goblin king and his subjects as well. Looking up, she saw that the sun reached a bit lower than its peak. She judged the time to be about 1 or 2 in the afternoon. As she continued to examine her surroundings, Sarah finally noticed something watching her.
A white barn owl, perched upon a tree branch, watched her carefully with wide eyes. Searching her memory, Sarah tried to remember why the bird was so familiar. Wings, flapping, feathers, her bedroom window. . . of course! The bird was actually the goblin king. Why don't you change into the intimidating figure that you are? Sarah thought. I'm not afraid. As if hearing her request, the owl opened its wings and took flight. In a shower of glitter, feathers and fabric, the animal transformed into the goblin king himself.
"As you wish, Sarah." The monarch looked into Sarah's eyes, smirking at her obvious shock. His eyes flashed, and she couldn't read whether he was angry or just trying to intimidate her. With Jareth, it could be either; or both. Feeling herself at the mercy of her adversary, she supposed she had better keep her chin up and humbly ask for mercy.
"Mercy you seek," Jareth answered her thoughts, again shocking her. "Yes, Sarah, I can read your thoughts. You can hide nothing from me." He laughed, an empty, cold sound that contrasted with the bright gardens. "I have been merciful toward you in the past. And what did it gain me? A kingdom in shambles. When a young girl defeats a mighty king, it makes it difficult to restore order. But, as the years went by, I did restore it. I am, again, feared and loved by all my subjects. But you," and this word he spat in her direction, "YOU, who twisted my existence to meet your every whim, escaped unscathed, and in fact better for the experience." He had taken to pacing in front of her now. Where once there had been fear in Sarah's heart at the mere presence of the man, now something new was blossoming. She watched the spurned monarch as he walked back in forth in front of her, blonde hair whipping around him, apparently affected by his mood.
"I'm sorry," Sarah said softly. "I never meant to destroy your kingdom. If it's any comfort. . ."
"Sorry," Jareth interrupted. "Sorry! As if one word fixes the past ten years. I've been immersed in misery for over ten years! While you sit, surrounded by your playthings, and friends. . ."
"I'm homeless!" Sarah shouted, voicing an interruption of her own. "My father died, Karen kicked me out of the house, my apartment burned down, and I lost my job. I'm forced to wander the streets. I think I've more than paid for however I've wronged you." Her retort caused Jareth to pause for a moment, but then he spoke again.
"Yes, but has your heart broken?" A brief silence occurred between them before the king started to speak again. "I've been generous, Sarah. Everything you've ever asked of me, I've given. Yet I sense that you are here to ask something of me once again. Speak, and tell me what it is you ask. His eyes flashed in her direction, challenging her to come up with something that he couldn't give.
As he gazed at her, she realized something that she hadn't before. The reason he intimidated her, the fear that she felt, the need to return to him; they were all signs that she had ignored before. She was in love with him. The realization hit her as suddenly as a crystal breaking. Her eyes met his; his angry, tormented gaze, filled with animosity toward this girl who had once defeated him. She loved him. And he hated her.
Remembering that he could read her thoughts, she quickly brought her mind back to the task at hand. She would have to rely on the goblin king's love of control and competitive nature in order to gain his mercy. Carefully picking her words, she brought her eyes up to Jareth's.
"I have no place to ask for anything," Sarah began, keeping her voice calm, "but if I do not ask you for mercy, I will die. My life in the aboveground, as I have suggested, is forfeit. I will starve on the streets or freeze to death if I remain there. Therefore I have a proposition." At the mention of a deal, Jareth's left eyebrow raised with interest. Swallowing a lump of apprehension that had formed in her throat, Sarah continued. "In return for a meager existence here," she explained, leaving a pause between her thoughts, "I will work. You pick the context; I will work for my 'room and board,' as it were. If I have to scrub the labyrinth from top to bottom, I will do it. Please." It was this last, pleading word that caught Jareth's breath in his throat. Even before he spoke, he knew that he could not refuse anything she asked. He was her slave, no matter what his façade.
Bringing a hand to his forehead, he massaged away an invisible headache. He sighed and visibly pondered the situation. For a moment, he turned away from her, and Sarah thought that all was lost. Then he coughed, and finally spoke.
"Very well," he answered. "I will devise a suitable situation and inform you of it tomorrow morning." Sarah couldn't help smiling up at him.
"Thank you, your highness," she answered humbly.
"You will remain in the castle tonight," Jareth continued. He scowled at her smile. "In the morning, your permanent situation will be explained." Without another word, he turned and transformed back into his owl form. Spreading his wings, he flew up and away from her. Sarah struggled against her bindings. He couldn't have released her? It seemed that she'd be spending the night in one place, if did not return before nightfall.
Half an hour later, Gragar appeared.
"It's you!" Sarah exclaimed. Scowling, the goblin nodded.
"Aye, 'tis me. I've orders to release you from these bindings, miss, and lead you to the guest quarters in the castle."
"Alright," Sarah answered. "I'm Sarah," she continued. "What's your name?"
"Gragar," the dwarf answered. "Head dwarf in the service of the King's Army. I've served his majesty for over 380 years," he continued proudly.
"Impressive," Sarah stated, trying to hide a smile. Her bindings untied, she jumped down from the cart, stretching the stiffness from her body. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out the apple that she had saved before, and started to eat it. "Well, Gragar, lead the way!"
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Hopefully, I've stayed in character. It's easier to make Jareth angry and bitter than to make Sarah a changed, docile person. Don't worry, her temper will flare up soon enough! For once, I have this story plotted out from beginning to end; it just needs some flesh. Let me know what you think!
Also, for everyone who read this far, a little treat. I've found a website that has an old script of Labyrinth! The site is here: . A lot of it has changed; I think you'll like it!
Stardust Dreamer- Thank you! Yes, the turn of events will certainly hurt Sarah's pride. Hopefully though, she's grown up enough that it won't hurt her too much! (The story is writing itself right now, I'm just going along with whatever my fingers are typing. J )
Theblackswan- Thank you! I will do my best. J
Draegon-fire & Amber3 - Hmm, perhaps he was responsible for it without realizing? Haha, yes, although is Sarah ever happy with the way life goes? ;-)
Bloodlust Night- Thank you! Glad you like it. ;-) I'll try to not piss off Sarah too much! Lol…
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