Nothing Left

By: CreativeImagination

Chapter Two

The Lion, a Wish and His Wardrobe

Seeing Karen tapping her foot impatiently as she was, Sarah had to admit, she was feeling quiet childish.

"We've been waiting for twenty minutes," she snapped.

"So whatcha mad for?" Sarah asked "I could've taken my time." She achieved a disapproving glare as she scuttled inside but at this point she didn't care.

"Go put your dress on," Karen ordered and Sarah went as slowly as possible up to her room. Little had changed, though it wasn't as childish as it once had been. She had a normal bed, hunter green comforter, and slight sweeping (almost see-though) curtains that Hoggle had liked. She had a library of books, and stacks upon stacks of writings she'd done. Over the years, Sarah found that she loved reading, but she loved to write more. Sometimes she'd stay awake for days on end, just so she could write up to a certain part, then lose interest in it and write like crazy so she could get to a climax, then the ending. Some 'books' were more than six hundred pages. She found the pink menus curled up on her bed. It looked as if it was plotting something, ready to leap from the bed like a giant dog and attack her. Slowly, she stripped her clothes and forced herself to put on the dress from hell.

"Well," she muttered looking in the mirror "don't I look like a giant wad of double bubble?" She laughed to herself, because, in fact it WAS comical. A knock came to the door and Karen came in.

"Don't you look precious!" she squealed and embraced Sarah with a hug that could have been mistaken for a death grip. Precious, hideous… same thing, right? she though to herself. Nick must have been color blind as well because he said he defiantly liked it and was going out to buy a tux that exact color. "Don't you want to stay for dinner?" Karen asked "we're having split-pea soup."

"No thanks Mrs. W," he smiled "I got things to do. But, I'll come by to see you later, dearest of mine, alright?" He didn't wait for an answer and kissed her on the lips. Karen bumped Sarah so she'd press harder against Nick, and Sarah (out of horror) pulled away. They both left and Sarah laid on her bed.

"Ok," she sighed "I can't do this." She finally took that terrible dress off and sat down at her laptop. She clicked AIM. Nobody on… "Figures." She typed for a long time and finally a knock came to her door. "Hum?"

"Hello, my love," Nick plopped in on her bed and she almost screamed in annoyance. He told her about his (amazingly dull) day and seemed to be flipping through one of her books.

"Can I ask you something?" she asked finally.

"I guess," he muttered, a little engrossed with all the big words.

"Do you believe that love is just another word for lust?" she asked turning around and looking at him "that it has nothing to do with genuinely caring about someone?"

"Give me an example," he said and put the book down.

"Like," she paused "do you believe that love is holding someone's hair back while they hurl at three in the morning. Having to give up a Saturday so you can go to something extremely tedious so they'll be happy. Taking someone as they are and not trying to change them… or sex?" Nick seemed to think for a moment (halleluiah let the angels sing!).

"Nothing wrong with sex," he shrugged "and there's always room for a little change." He paused "not in me of course, you love me the way I am. You, well, we can tweak a few things. And throw up, ewww." Sarah sighed. "What?"

"Nothing," she whispered.

"No what?" he asked "did you not like my answer?"

"Why do you have to be so dull?" she asked bluntly, not able to contain herself any longer. "Why is it that you want to marry ME. There are thousands of other girls out there, itching to be with you." And you HAD to pick the only one that doesn't want you, didn't you, she thought coldly.

"I don't know," he shrugged "why do you believe in all this crap?" He waved his arm around the room "fairies and goblins and gnomes. They're not real you know… "

"Have you ever seen one?" she asked and he shook his head "then how do you know?" He paused a moment, apparently confused again.

"What would make you happy?" he asked "if I was a dreamer like you? This," he waved the orange-red bound leather book in the air "this is a bunch of trash. Goblins and labyrinths, HA." He paused and flipped through it "I'll prove its not real, look." He cleared his throat "I wish the goblin king would take you away," he said simply and stopped. Sarah let out a sigh of relief, he didn't finish the words. "oh," he paused "right now." A burst of glitter later and he was standing in her room.

"Good job," she muttered. Jareth turned and looked at her, a sheer smile coated his face. "Hello Goblin King," she sighed. He cocked a single eyebrow at a peculiar position, the small smile on his face seemed to grow larger. Jareth looked just as she remembered, except his hair was a little bit longer, it seemed. He looked very much like a lion with his hair poofing out like it was. And his canine like teeth, and mixed eyes didn't make him look any less tame. Nor did his clothes. His wardrobe was… very, exotic.

"Sarah?" Nick's voice was shaky but Jareth saw new prey and took a step towards him.

"I assume you haven't a clue to whom you happen to be gazing on," Jareth said coldly and Nick shook his head like a child who was getting yelled at. "I am the Goblin King. You, my fine lad, have just wished away Sarah, to me. So, here's how it works. You can either try and get her back, or I can take her away and you'll never have to worry about her again." Nick paused a moment.

"Well…"

"Can I object?" Sarah asked and they both looked at her. "I'm sorry but," she paused "I don't know if it's a good idea for him to try and solve a jigsaw puzzle, let alone the Labyrinth." Jareth smirked and Nick apparently didn't understand the humor in it. "I'm sorry but, I don't have much faith in being saved by someone with the IQ of a garden snail."

"Wait a second!" Nick snapped "I wished you away, so I get to try and solve the Labyrinth." He paused a moment "what's a labyrinth?"

"Oh crackers," Sarah sighed and slapped herself in the forehead. "Ok, go ahead and try, I don't see many other options popping up anyways." She grabbed her notebook and tossed it in her orange (almost hippie looking) bag she'd gotten at EarthBound, a pencil, a granola bar and a small box of Band-Aids. She was going to hand it to Nick when Jareth spoke.

"What about you?" Jareth asked motioning a gloved hand in her direction "care to try it again?" She paused a moment and looked at him, a little confused.

"You'd let me do that?" she asked "I thought there was rules. I thought-"

"Do you want to or would you rather him go through it?" Jareth snapped and Sarah pulled the bag over her shoulder.

"Alright," she nodded "I'll try it again." Everything faded, turning black and (though it seemed to take forever) gradually filtered back into the Labyrinth. It was like she'd remembered it, dusty and very, very orange.

"I don't need to tell you the rules again, do I?" Jareth asked and she shook her head. "Be forewarned, it isn't the same as last time AND its more dangerous."

"Thanks," she said simply and he looked at her funny "what?"

"Thanks?" he asked.

"Well," she shrugged but he looked as if he expected an explanation "can I not be polite?" She mentally socked herself, be polite? This was Jareth, kidnapping, goblin kicking, bog threatening Jareth! And she was telling him thank you?

"I don't know," he mused "try."