Also, in case you haven't noticed, this is an AU. Many things have been changed such as Zirconia doesn't know what the Amazon Trio is since he didn't create them. He doesn't have that little ball of magic that can turn them into humans as he did in the anime.

OOC here. I change things to suit myself.

Enjoy.

RINGMASTER

Chapter 10: Remembrance

Hawk's Eye-

Two hands gripped Hawk's Eye's shoulders and he was ripped away from the traitor Hoggle and tossed him backwards. Hawk's Eye managed to flip himself with relative ease and landed on his feet with his torch in his hand, ready to fight.

Jareth was standing between Hawk's Eye and Hoggle, glaring. "He's mine." Jareth said, quietly. "You aren't allowed to hurt him." Though he spoke quietly, there was no mistaking the menace in his voice. Hawk's Eye wondered how Tiger's Eye could have forgotten the Goblin King for even a moment. The man looked the same as he always had, terrifying. It was even worse now that the king's attention was focused solely on Hawk's Eye. He'd only once before been in that situation and then Jareth hadn't been glaring at him like death itself.

Hawk's Eye was an adult now and he had responsibilities. He couldn't afford to be afraid of Jareth or anyone else. Fear was weakness. "Then you get your creature away from MY Ringmaster!" He stood then and hoped that neither Jareth nor the senshi could see his shaking knees. This would be a very bad time for them to decide to attack.

Unfortunately, Jareth didn't take too kindly to mention of Ringmaster. His nostrils flared and his narrow shoulders stiffened. "You incompetent fool!" Jareth hissed. "You dare bring up her name to my face?"

"You're the one who let that thing get so close to her!" Hawk's Eye jabbed his finger at Hoggle, now struggling to his feet with the help of another little creature that looked rather like a fox or a small dog all dressed up.

"You absurd little popinjay!" Jareth spit the words out. "Arrogant brat! You let her die and then throw her in my face? You accuse my dwarf of the crime?" He raised a hand, menacingly.

Hawk's Eye flinched back from the impending attack, but he didn't back down. "I won't let you endanger her again!"

"What are you babbling about, boy?"

"Her," He looked at Sarah and saw that she was just confused. Her eyes were wide and she held tightly to a little boy on her lap. "Ringmaster."

Jareth snorted. "Sarah is not Ringmaster."

"She is!"

"Sarah looks nothing like Ringmaster." Jareth seemed oblivious to the fact that behind him Fish Eye and Tiger's Eye were creeping out from where they'd been hiding behind the trees. Fish was intent on Sarah, trying to get closer even though Sarah was being held by one of Jareth's creatures. Why Jareth would be harboring the murderer Hoggle, Hawk's Eye had no idea. He wasn't about to leave Sarah in the hands on a man who would support those who killed Ringmaster. Sarah was in grave danger every moment she was with them.

"Whether you believe or not makes no difference. She's ours!" Hawk's Eye said.

"Sarah is mine!"

"Do I get any say in this?" Sarah didn't look at all happy and was scowling at both of them. "First off, I don't belong to either of you." Her eyes went to Hawk's Eye. "I don't even know you! What's all this stuff about a Ringmaster?" She stopped when Toby threw his arms around her neck and wailed,

"Sissy is mine!"

"You have every say in this, Ringmaster." Fish Eey stepped into Sarah's view. "We'll do anything you ask, but we can't let you be endangered again." He bowed deeply, respectfully, with one arm crossover over his chest and the other held out at his side as he bent his legs to half-kneel before her. It was graceful and no one would have expected any less from Fish Eye.

Sarah looked shocked, but shook her head. "I think you have the wrong person."

"I don't believe so." Fish Eye rose from his bow. "Forgive us for intruding, Ringmaster, but we had no choice." His eyes shifted to the cowering Hoggle. "That think murdered you and we will protect you from it."

That didn't do much good for Sarah's mood and her small mouth puckered in distaste. "Hoggle's my best friend. He wouldn't hurt me."

Fish Eye shrugged. "Many centuries ago that dwarf took the life of our Ringmatster. We believe you are her reincarnation. Again, forgive us for this shock. I realize you likely have no memories of who you were before but that doesn't matter." He bowed again, this time low enough to end up on his knees. He didn't try to get up and looked up at Sarah. "I am Fish Eye. That one," He pointed over his shoulder to where Hawk's Eye was still trying to concentrate on Jareth. "Is Hawk's Eye. Tiger's Eye is…around. He'll come out once he knows he won't have to guard from attack. You've already met him, anyway."

Sarah's eyes widened. "That blonde boy? The one that attacked me?"

Hawk's Eye flinched at that and wished he hadn't. Jareth had seen it and smirked at the reaction. It really wasn't a good first impression. On the up-side, Sarah didn't seem actually angry. In fact, she looked more frustrated than angry. She threw her hands up. "I really don't need this!" She burst out. "It's been a very long day. Look, I'm really sorry about your Ringmaster, but…"

"We must believe in you!" Fish Eye interrupted, quickly. Desperately. "We'll do anything you ask, Ringmaster." Fish Eye shocked everyone but Hawk's Eye and Tiger's Eye by pressing his forehead to the ground in front of Sarah in supplication. "We'll die for you. We'll kill for you. Anything you wish, we'll grant. Absolutely anything. Please, we need you. Don't send us away." He didn't lift his face from the dirt, but he sounded like he might be crying. It wouldn't have surprised Hawk's Eye. They'd all always been emotional.

Jareth found the little speech amusing and laughed. "So, you'll put your future's in the hands of a seventeen year old human girl? Do you have any actual proof that Sarah is, in fact, the reincarnated Ringmaster?"

Hawk's Eye had an overwhelming urge to go to Fish Eye and kneel before Sarah, also. He wanted to beg and plead, convince her to trust them. What then, Hawk's Eye really didn't know. They'd think of something. "Logic has never had a place in Circus."

"This isn't Circus, this is Earth. Why do you believe she is Ringmaster?"

"She looks like Ringmaster."

"She looks nothing like Ring." Jareth countered, coldly.

Sarah-

"Look, everyone just calm down!" Sarah had to shout to get everyone attention. The tension was overwhelming. What on Earth was all this about and why was Jareth getting so agitated? She didn't want to deal with this. Magical girls fighting monsters, Jareth popping up telling her that her Toby wasn't human anymore, now these people. Worst of all was all that nonsense about Hoggle having killed her. That wasn't just impossible, it was silly. She just wanted a nap. At least Toby was safely in her lap, looking irritably at the newest strangers. He wasn't afraid and Sarah was glad. He was like a security blanket and Sarah felt that so long as he was safe, she could deal with what was going on.

Everyone, more or less, fell silent. Jareth was still fuming about something and Sarah marveled. She hadn't thought anything could get under his skin like the pink haired boy had. Pretty obviously, he had history with this Ringmaster the pink haired boy, Hawk's Eye, mistook Sarah for.

Running a hand through her hair, Sarah looked at the pink haired man and frankly thought that he looked like he could have stepped right out of the Labyrinth. His bright pink hair stood almost straight up, but that could be explained with hair gel and dye. She was more amazed that anyone would walk around in such an outfit. He wore high heeled shoes and a skirt. Instead of a shirt, he wore what looked like a length of white fabric just wrapped around his chest and over one shoulder. The gloves were an interesting touch. The blue haired…person, was different, but just as outlandish. His feminine appearance was the least odd thing about him. Aside from their hair, their clothes were unbelievable. Fish Eye had some kind of bubbly jumpsuit and his hands were claws. When Sarah looked closer, she saw that he even had scales like his namesake up just passed his wrists.

"We have to be suspicious, Sarah. We can't take this lightly." Now what was her name? Minako. One of the two blondes, the one who wore her hair loose. Before, when Sarah had thought they were nothing but good Samaritan school girls, she'd barely noticed Minako. How could she have missed that one? Must have been because Rei had been the one taking charge. Right at that moment, Minako gave off the impression that she was the one running the show. "Hawk's Eye and his companions are our enemies. They fight for the Dead Moon Circus." Her face was filled with something very close to hate. "They've attacked dozens of people hunting for something without any regard to the safety of those innocent people. They aren't good people."

Hawk's Eye snorted and flapped his hand at her, dismissively. "The past is the past. It's really none of your business, anyway."

"Yes." Fish Eye agreed, turning to look at the senshi. "Why should we care what you think?" Though he'd spoken so sweetly to Sarah, Fish Eye evidently had a bit of steel in him.

Hoggle-

The pain was terrible but Hoggle was almost able to ignore it. After all, pain never lasted long. The moment he went home, it would vanish. What bothered him more was how many people were around. It was too unpredictable and too much of a chance that Sarah might get hurt. He couldn't stand that. Worse, though, if Jareth was injured it would be very bad for everyone in Labyrinth. While Jareth confronted Tiger's Eye, Hoggle wished he had the courage to yell at his king. 'Shut up and get out of here!' Jareth understood all that he was responsible for, that all of his people depended on him. How could he take such stupid risks?

It was that Hoggle liked Jareth, exactly. He knew first hand that Jareth was manipulative and underhanded. He knew Jareth was petty, demanding, and selfish. The king was like a spoiled child who threw a tantrum every time he couldn't have the toys he wanted. But, above all else, Hoggle understood that Jareth was king and that, as king, Jareth couldn't put his life in danger. That was why, always before, when he went to rescue a child, he would go secretly at night and when the child was alone. In and out, quick as lightening. Now, for the first time that Hoggle knew about, Jareth was putting every life in Labyrinth at risk by appearing before not only humans, but magical humans and the powerful Remless' of the Circus. As powerful as Jareth was within Labyrinth, the most he could do on Earth was parlor tricks and snide remarks. The worst part of it was that the Remless' knew it.

Of course, Didymus didn't realize the danger and was nodding at Jareth's every word with a grin on his face.

"What the Hell are you so happy about?" Hoggle demanded in a hushed voice. Much as he'd grown to like the little knight over the past couple of years, he never failed to get on Hoggle's nerves.

"His majesty shows great courage in defense of our lady." Didymus said as if he were pointing out something obvious. "He will nary let these upstarts get too close and fill her head with strange notions."

"What strange notions?" Hoggle pressed his hand a little harder against the wound on his shoulder, but that only made the throbbing worse. He was starting to feel oddly light headed and leaned against Ludo's side for support.

"That she has forgotten a life before this one." Didymus scoffed at the idea. "What other life could there be?" Of course Didymus didn't understand the concept of reincarnation. He'd been younger than Hoggle when Jareth had taken him and he'd been turned into whatever it was that he was. Did he even remember life before Labyrinth? Didymus probably didn't realize that his whole existence was sort of like reincarnation.

Hoggle wasn't sure, but he was sure that Jareth was right. Sarah looked NOTHING like Ringmaster. Hoggle didn't answer Didymus, he knew that any answer he gave would go right over Didymus' head. Instead, he nudged Ludo. When the ogre looked down at him with a puzzled groan, Hoggle said, "Let me talk to Sarah."

Ludo nodded, making all the shaggy hair on his head shake, and obligingly shifted Sarah down a little so Hoggle wouldn't have to yell up at her. No one, what with all the arguing that was going on, had noticed the move. Sarah still looked awful and Hoggle wished he knew of a way to help her. He really couldn't remember much from his life as a human, let alone any ways to heal. In Labyrinth, no one ever really got hurt and if they did the wounds were healed almost instantly without any intervention.

"What's up?" Sarah asked when she noticed Hoggle wanted to talk to her. "Are you alright? Your shoulder…?"

"I'm alright, missy. What they says," He looked at the still kneeling Fish Eye and Hawk's Eye, who looked ready to attack anyone who pushed him just a little bit more. "It's kinda true. I been to that Circus place they're from. Used to be a job I had. Done it fer Jareth. Their Ringmaster did die. Real sudden like. She was like Jareth, sort of. Powerful, if ya know what I mean. Took care of the people 'n other stuff."

Sasrah's eye, the one that wasn't still swollen, widened. "You know about all this?"

"Some. They's call the Amazon Trio. Were kinda like second in command fer Ringmaster. When she died, we lost contact with the Circus, like it just disappeared. Ringmaster, she was a good lady. Smart as a whip. Liked her, too." He looked back at the two strangers and rubbed his throat where Hawk's Eye had tried to throttle him. He could still feel the Amazon's talons where they'd dug into his neck. "I wouldn't have hurt her. Not fer me life."

"Liar!" Fish Eye snapped. "We saw you!" Now on his hands and knees, his claws digging into the earth, Fish Eye looked like he would launch himself at Hoggle. "You thought you could get away with it. You even managed to convinced your idiot king, but we saw you sneaking away, you cowardly mushroom. Hawk's Eye should have wrung your fat neck!" When Fish Eye's lips parted Hoggle could see the sharp fangs in Fish Eye's mouth, making him step back.

Fish Eye's anger made Hoggle cower away, but Didymus took offense, again. His sword was in his hand and he was snarling, viciously. Ludo's deep groaning was turning quickly into a growl and he slowly stood up. "No touch!" He bellowed, still cradling Sarah and Toby. "No hurt!" Standing, Ludo towered over everyone and attention was brought back to them.

"Ludo!" Sarah cried out, clutching onto Toby to keep him from falling, but that boy didn't look at all afraid and even laughed when Ludo took an uneasy step towards Fish Eye and both Toby and Sarah rocked in his arms. "Ludo! Calm down!"

Ludo didn't listen and Hoggle thought that the ogre might be unable to hear her, he was getting so agitated. Normally, Ludo lived alone in the garden maze of Labyrinth. It was a relatively easy life with very few reasons for stress. There was no one who could threaten him and he was, in all honesty, too stupid to be afraid of anything. Surrounded by all these strange people who kept yelling was agitating Ludo and that could be dangerous for everyone. Sarah frowned at Fish Eye and then up at Hawk's Eye when Lduo settled down, though he didn't sit again. "Stop it. This isn't helping. You might not care what anyone else thinks, but you do care what I think, don't you?"

"How do I know you're telling the truth?" Sarah looked at Jareth. "This whole thing about the Ringmaster is true, isn't it?"

Jareth nodded sharply. "She was a real person, but she died long ago. Hoggle had nothing to do with her murder!"

"Oh, I suppose it was another short, ugly dwarf we saw running from her body, was it?" Hawk's Eye asked, snidely. He turned to Sarah, but didn't get close enough to get in Ludo's striking range. "We're sorry about attacking you before, but we didn't know who you were. If you don't trust us, I can understand, but at least give us a chance. We've abandoned Zirconia, our former master, for you. We haven't attacked anyone but that little thing." He glanced at Hoggle, hatefully. "If we wanted to, we could kill Jareth. He's got no real power in this world, only a few little illusions. I can tell you what happened, Ringmaster. It's a long story."

"I have time."

Jareth snorted, derisively and moved closer to Ludo where he started petting Ludo's arm. "You have no way to know that he's telling the truth, Sarah."

"I don't trust you, either, but I can't think of why anyone would be lying." Sarah bit her lip and looked around at all the people before she put her head down on the top of Toby's head. "Why would they want me to believe I'm a reincarnated Ringmaster? Jareth, can't you do anything for Hoggle?"

Hoggle wished she hadn't drawn attention to him even though Jareth didn't look angry when he glanced around Ludo at Hoggle. "Yes." He pulled a crystal from the air and blew on, setting it floating through the air like a bubble. There were soft ohhhs and ahhhs from several of the watching magical girls, but the Circus people didn't look at all impressed. Why should they? No doubt they'd seen just as impressive things in their own world. "Hold still, Hogwart."

"It's Hoggle." But Hoggle did as he was told and stood very still until the bubble landed on his shoulder and burst. There was a moment of pain as the cold seeped into the wound, but the pain then faded and left nothing but a coolness. The wound was sealed and Hoggle could move his arm without pain. It was useful magic, but Hawk's Eye was right. Jareth had less power than the Circus people. If they were to fight, Jareth was going to be at an extreme disadvantage.

"Thank you." Sarah said it very quietly and didn't look happy about saying it. Who could blame her after all the trouble Jareth had put her to? "Well, why would they lie about it?"

Jareth then had the strangest reaction. He turned away from Sarah and looked up at the sky. "They've made a mistake. A somewhat logical mistake, I'll grant, but a mistake nonetheless. Ringmaster had a way to get into Labyrinth, just as I had a way to get into the Circus. It was sort of a treaty between our two masters. Now, tell me what's going on, Hawk's Eye."

Jareth pulled another crystal out and tossed it up in the air like a ball until it was right at eye level for Sarah. "Everything Hawk's Eye says that is true will be reflected here. It only shows truth."

Finding her eyes drawn to the crystal Jareth had conjured, Sarah watched it as she listened to Hawk's Eye's story.

"I loved performing and when it all ended, I think a part of myself died. It was one of the most important things in my life. The most important part of my life was being a companion to Ringmaster. Don't give me that look, sailor brat. She was my mother and nothing more. Ringmaster was lonely and wished for a child that could be hers alone. The Circus allowed her wish, her dream and gave her the ability to create me. Fish Eye and Tiger's Eye came later."

As he spoke the images he spoke about appeared in the crystal, just as Jareth had said they would. She saw herself, though slightly different. She looked older, maybe thirty or so. Though her hair was still black, it was cut so short that it was only an inch or so long and spiked. It was definitely her face and her eyes. Sarah saw her older self holding a baby bird and smiling down at it. She kissed the bird delicately before she held her hands out away from her and a soft glow engulfed both the bird and it floated out of her hands. When the glow faded away, there was a small, naked child with a tuft of pink hair where it had been. There was a blur in the crystal before it refocused to see a slightly older pink haired child watching two more animals, a large fish and a tiger cub, being similarly transformed.

"The night Ringmaster died we were performing. It was to be a private performance for the Moon Kingdome's Royal family. You look surprised, Sailor Moon. You shouldn't be. We were famous back then. Everyone wanted us. We were in high demand with royalty and the common people alike. Even people from other solar systems requested our performances. We never selected, either. We went wherever we were wanted, even to your own doomsday weapon, Saturn. We went to her lonely world and gave a show just for that poor child, so desperate for affection."

Sarah saw a smiling little girl with dark hair sitting alone in the stadium surrounding the area that must have been under a big top. When a clown with two faces hopped up to her and handed the little girl a bouquet of flowers. As soon as the girl took the flowers, they exploded in a puff of petals that showered down around her and left the little girl holding a balloon giraffe. She laughed wildly and hugged the balloon as if it were the greatest gift she'd ever gotten.

"Our schedule put us at the heart of the Silver Millennium Empire the night Ringmaster was murdered. It's always inconvenient to perform in front of royalty. They always insist on security measures and the Moon Queen Serenity was no different. She had her only daughter, the princess, escorted to Circus by her guards. Yes, I remember all your predecessors. I remember watching them die. Don't look so shocked. A lot of people watched the Silver Millennium fall and did nothing. Your people weren't universally loved, you know."

The queen and princess, both clad in simple, yet elegant, white gowns, walked in stately grace towards Circus. It was on the Moon and that confused Sarah. It wasn't the wasteland of airless nothing she always thought of the Moon as being. The moon in Jareth's crystal was lush and green with tall buildings and full of life. Hawk's Eye told the story and Jareth's crystal said that what he was saying was true. It must be true. Unless, of course, they were both lying, but what reason could they have? Flanking the queen and the young princess were the guards Hawk's Eye had spoken of and they were, very obviously, the same girls that were standing in front of Sarah right at that moment. Rei, Ami, Makoto, and Minako. Usagi was, most certainly, the princess. But where were the two other girls, Haruka and Michiru? Though they dressed like the others, it seemed that they hadn't been part of the princess' guard.

Sarah glanced at the girls and found that they were staring at Jareth's crystal with even more fascination than she was. They were all open-mouthed with awe and couldn't take their eyes from the crystal. That, more than anything, made Sarah smile at Hawk's Eye and Fish Eye. If they were enemies, they would take this opportunity to attack the girls, yet they did nothing. Whatever else they were up to, she was sure that they weren't evil.

"For that opening night, we'd prepared for weeks. Everything was perfect from the clowns to the acrobats to the musicians. Ringmaster was so proud of all of us. She gave us new costumes for that night, new jewelry. The night before the performance she sang for us. Everyone listened, sitting at her feet. Such a beautiful voice. Restful. The song was something about love and stars. I don't really remember."

Sarah saw herself, or her double, singing in front of dozens of people. It couldn't be her. She couldn't sing to save her life and the woman singing had a wonderful voice, just like Hawk's Eye said. Her voice was good enough to keep the people around her enraptured and staring up at her with adoring faces. Sarah envied her doppelganger. To be so loved by so many people…she'd always wanted to be loved. It was different, though. They didn't just love her. The looks on their faces was more like worship and Sarah wasn't at all comfortable with that. She didn't want to be worshiped, like some kind of goddess. She just wanted people to see her and appreciate her like no one had ever done before. In her whole life the only person Sarah could think of who actually loved her was Toby. It wasn't as if he'd had a lot of choice. She was the only reliable person in his life and a child loved who was kind to them. She was sure that if his parents were just a little more affectionate, he wouldn't care for her at all. To be worshiped, though…that was entirely too much.

The Ringmaster was dressed in a suit that looked strangely tame compared to the exotic and sometimes erotic outfits worn by the people watching her. Her double wore simple black trousers and a black jacket with tails. Her hands were covered with white gloves that matched the white dress shirt under the jacket. A tuxedo. Sarah had always been a very feminine girl, she'd never pictured herself wearing a tuxedo. Looking at herself now, Sarah thought that maybe she'd give it a try, one day. Her double didn't look half-bad. The suit was even tailored properly and it didn't look like she was wearing a man's suit.

"Jareth came to visit that night."

Fish Eye glared at Jareth when Hawk's Eye mentioned his name, but Jareth was too lost in his own thoughts to pay her any attention. He wasn't looking at the crystal. In fact, he seemed to be staring off into the distance as if whatever he was looking at was of great interest. He looked odd. Like he wasn't really there.

Looking back at the crystal, Sarah saw that Jareth had appeared in the scene, standing behind the Ringmaster. No one seemed to think it was odd that he was there and he wasn't doing anything but standing in the background, watching Ringmaster with a smile.

"How long ago did this happen?" Sarah asked, curiously. Just how old was Jareth?

Hawk's Eye puzzled over the question. "Time really isn't an issue in Circus." He said slowly. "But this," He pointed at the crystal. "Is at the time of the Silver Millennium. Ask them, they'd know better." He pointed at the girls.

Ami answered in awe. "More than a thousand years ago. The war which ended the rein was Queen Serenity was approximately one thousand years ago, so this was some time before that. Considering that we can't judged the lifespan of Queen Serenity or the Circus people, there's no way of knowing." She turned those harp eyes to Jareth who still didn't look overly happy. "Unless you'd care to tell us."

Jareth, now the center of attention, stiffened and looked down hi long nose at her. "Where I come from is very similar to their Circus. Time is irrelevant."

So Sarah wasn't going to get an answer other than Jareth was more than a thousand years old. He looked pretty good for his age. The image in the crystal had frozen at Hawk's Eyes last words, showing Sarah with her mouth open and Jareth smiling at her from behind. 'No. That's not really me. I can't start thinking like that. She just looks a bit like me.'

When Hawk's Eye spoke, the image started moving again, like someone had pushed play on a movie. "Jareth used to be a regular visitor, back then. There was a sort of peace treaty between Circus and Labyrinth. They didn't have any others with like power. No one in Circus could match Ringmaster, she was far above all of us. I guess she was just lonely. Something was worked out and she was allowed to visit Labyrinth for a short time and Jareth was allowed entry into Circus."

Sarah saw what Hawk's Eye knew about that whole arrangement, which wasn't much. The crystal showed a doorway opening and the Ringmaster stepping through after saying goodbye to her people. It was all silent. Jareth either couldn't make a crystal with audio or he didn't want to hear. It wasn't an ordinary doorway, but like a curtain hung in mid-air. A few moments passed before Ringmaster pushed the curtain aside from behind and stepped back through.

"They were in love. Everyone knew it. We were happy for them. Sometimes Jareth would send his messenger to us through the doorway." He shot a poisonous look at Hoggle. "Ringmaster liked him. She was very fond of him and trusted him. Until he killed her."

Hoggle, once again, burst out, "I ain't killed no one!"

Fish Eye slashed at Hoggle with a clawed hard, only just missing him. "Lie!"

While all this was going on, Jareth seemed to be getting more and more tense but whatever he had to say about the whole situation was sealed behind his lips. He didn't seem inclined to talk.

"Sissy," Toby tugged on the front of Sarah's shirt to get her attention and then pointed at the crystal. "What's going on?"

How on Earth could she explain all of it? "I'm not sure. They think I'm someone, but Jareth doesn't think so."

"Are they going to hurt you again?" Toby pointed at the senshi.

"No, I don't think so." Sarah hoped she could be sure of that. They weren't on the offensive anymore, and that was good, but she'd heard stories about the Sailor Senshi since coming to Japan and from what she'd heard they all had magical powers. She'd read newspaper reports that claimed all sorts of things, even powers that were easily capable of destroying whole buildings. They weren't doing anything, though. Other than the first attack which had been more of a warning to help the little girl Jareth had taken, they hadn't done anything to hurt anyone.

Hawk's Eye started speaking again once Hoggle had retreated away from the fierce Fish Eye and taken refuge behind Ludo. "Jareth left before the performance." The scene in the crystal shifted to show what must have been just before the performance. There was a brightly lit arena and the same group of people they'd seen earlier, who looked so like the girls in the sailor fukas right in front of Sarah, sitting in the tiered seats around the great ring in the center. Even to Sarah, they looked like bodyguards. They surrounded the princess and queen on all sides and had taken great care to look around as they'd entered, as if they were taking note of the surroundings and all the possible dangers. Even with their precautions, they all jumped when a young man with long wavy blonde hair fell out of the air and landed on the seats just in front of him.

"I've seen him!" Sarah exclaimed. She'd never forget him. He was the one who'd looked into her. "Tiger's Eye? You said that was his name?"

Fish Eye nodded. "He's the youngest so he got the little jobs. He was supposed to disarm any potential threat." True to Fish Eye's words, in the crystal Tiger's Eye was holding out his hand to the girls and they grudgingly handed over weapons that Sarah wouldn't have guess that they'd carry. "Magic wasn't an issue. Circus can just nullify any magic that comes within it's territory. Physical weapons, like knives or swords are still a danger." The crystal image showed Tiger's Eye taking a long dagger from the girl who looked like Ami and a rather short sword from a sour looking Minako double. "Once everyone was unarmed, we could begin the show."

"What a show it was, too!" Hawk's Eye exclaimed. "We were in best form that night." The Circus dimmed as it looked like all the lights were extinguished. Music began to play and then the Ringmaster appeared.

Sarah wished she could hear what the Ringmaster was saying. Did Sarah sound like her? Was all this reincarnation stuff even possible? She found herself wanting it to be true. Who wouldn't want to find out that they were some sort of lost goddess with strange powers?

In the great ring, the Ringmaster held her hands aloof and said something that Sarah couldn't hear.

"Ladies of honored repute," Hawk's Eye intoned, speaking exactly in time with the Ringmaster's moving mouth. "We thank you for joining us this night as we open our home to the people of your world." He remembered every word she'd spoken the night she'd died. It was both amazing and tragic. "Be at ease and let yourselves forget reality. Forget your cares and forget the troubles that plague your lives. Tonight, for just a few hours, see your dreams come to life." She bowed, like Sarah had just seen both Hawk's Eye and Fish Eye bow to her. It was odd to see the Ringmaster's face looking so joyful but hearing Hawk's Eye's sad voice. "Let the show begin!"

Sarah watched the show until, all at once, the image began to degrade. It wobbled then broke into tiny pieces.

"He's lost his concentration." Jareth commented. "Can't keep his mind straight when it comes to the end of the story. She died that night." He strode towards Sarah and held his arm up to brush his fingertips against the surface of the Crystal. Sarah didn't dare to touch it for fear that it would break.

The crystal flared to life suddenly with a flash of light. A quick glance at Hawk's Eye showed Sarah a look of fierceness and anger. He didn't say a word, but glared at Jareth. The crystal showed Sarah another scene. It looked like the performance was still going on, but the scene was from Hawk's Eye's point of view and seemed much more vivid than before. The colors were brighter than they should have been and the shadows were darker. It wasn't as real as the first images Sarah had seen, yet it was more real at the same time. Dreamlike described it pretty well. It wasn't a story, anymore. This was like watching a person's memories.

From Hawk's Eye's point of view Sarah saw it all and she listened to Hawk's Eye's narration.

He rushed to Ringmaster's side where she stood just out of sight of the audience. Hawk's Eye didn't bother looking at the performers, but touched Ringmaster's shoulder. She turned and smiled at him. "She was happy to see me. I was to go on next and she wanted to see what I had planned. I'd something new to add to my act and I'd kept it a surprise. I told her she shouldn't worry about that now. Hoggle was at the back gate and injured, but he wouldn't come in." Again, the image changed and showed, from Hawk's Eye's point of view, Hoggle.

"It's not me!" Hoggle shouted, desperately as the crystal showed him.

If it wasn't him, it was a remarkable resemblance. There was no one else who could look so much like Hoggle and it frightened Sarah to see him like that. Hoggle was on the ground when Hawk's Eye had found him just outside the Circus. Hoggle was covered in blood and clutching at his arm, as if he'd been wounded. He mouthed words at Hawk's Eye and it looked as if he were looking right at Sarah.

Hawk's Eye went on. "He begged me to find Ringmaster and bring her to him. He said something was wrong in Labyrinth. Jareth was in danger. I didn't think there was anything to be worried about. We all knew Hoggle and he was badly injured. If I didn't tell Ringmaster, she'd have been angry with me. Now I wished I'd risked her anger. She went out to meet him and asked me to announce the acts in her place. Of course I did it and she ran back to where I'd left Hoggle. No one even knew anything was wrong until the lights went out." The crystal went dark and Sarah could only barely make out the shadows of people running around. "Everyone sort of panicked, that had never happened before. The princess' guards thought we were under attack, but when we all went outside we found Ringmaster."

Sarah had never imagined seeing herself dead. She'd always thought that when her time came, she wouldn't have to worry about seeing her own corpse. It was more than a little nerve wracking to see herself face down on the ground with a hole in her back. It wasn't just a tiny hole, but a hole the size of a fist. The hole was big enough that Sarah could see the ground through Ringmaster's back. There was blood everywhere.

Toby screamed and flattened himself against Sarah. At once, Jareth jerked his hand and the crystal burst. "It's gone, Toby." Jareth said, putting a hand on Toby's arm. "That wasn't Sarah. It was someone from long ago. It wasn't your sissy."

It didn't comfort Toby much, but he lurched forward into Jareth's arms and sobbed on his shoulder. "Don't do that!" Toby shouted at Jareth. "Don't show bad things!"

"I won't."

Rei-

It was heart wrenching. Like a disastrous love story. Rei just adored love stories. She liked reading about all the passion and the happy ending. There was always a happy ending. No love story she'd ever read ended with one of the lovers dying. No love story involved little children screaming in terror. No love story ever cursed a person in love to live on with the pain of their lover's death for the rest of eternity. Eternity was a very long time.

As tough as she was, Rei was a romantic at heart, like many girls. The whole things had Usagi nearly in tears as it was. 'Not safe.' Rei thought. If Usagi went soft now and they found out this was just some elaborate trap (as unlikely as that was at this point) they'd be in great danger. Rei decided to steer the conversation back to Hawk's Eye and away from Jareth and Sarah who were trying to comfort the crying child.

"If we accept that that's all true," Rei stepped forward and got Hawk's Eye's attention, though Fish Eye was still focused on Hoggle. "Then where's Zirconia come into all this? What's all this about searching though people's dreams?"

"They're looking for Pegasus." It was Jareth who spoke, not even looking at them. "More correctly, they're looking for Helios, the Elysian priest."

Fish Eye stopped glaring at Hoggle when Jareth said that and both he and Hawk's Eye looked more than a little surprised. "What are you talking about? Pegasus is a horse with wings and a golden horn. Zirconia wants the golden horn."

Jareth shrugged. "Believe what you like. Your current master…"

"No!" Hawk's Eye interrupted. "We've left the Circus. Ringmaster is our master again. Sarah is our master."

"As you like. Zirconia, then, hunts for the golden crystal for his mistress, Nehelenia. It's the typical villain story. She wants to conquer and destroy."

"How do you know all this?" Ami asked.

"Because I do." He went back to rubbing Toby's back.

If he could be any more arrogant, Rei would eat her shoes! How anyone could stand to live around him, she had no idea. Everything about him just screamed that he knew how much power he had and that he wasn't even vaguely concerned with anyone around him. Yet, from what Hawk's Eye had said, Jareth was almost powerless on Earth. He was vulnerable and putting himself in terrible danger from anyone who would want to kill him. "And Zirconia and this Nehelenia?"

"I don't know about Nehelenia." Hawk's Eye admitted. "But Zirconia just showed up. None of us can use the Circus, we're apart of it and it needs an outsider. Ringmaster was an outsider before she came to Circus. She came from a world like Earth, but it was far from here. Circus needed a Ringmaster and she became it. It can't function without a Ringmaster and the old one was tired and wanted to die."

Rei noticed, out of the corner of her eye, that Ami turned her head slightly to the side. It was a sign that she was thinking. Something in what Hawk's Eye had just said caught her attention.

"Zirconia showed up at the Circus and just kind of took charge."

Makoto burst out, "And you let him? Didn't you think it was odd?" She was being unusually quiet during all this, but Rei guessed that it was because there wasn't any actual fighting. Makoto was at her best during a fight and, not for the first time, it seemed that their enemies didn't want to be enemies, anymore. They were at least being civil and that was a good start.

"You don't understand." Fish Eye snapped, tossing his hair over his shoulder. "We need a master. We're not human and the Remless' need a master even more than we do. The Circus can't even move without a master. The moon queen managed to get us off the Moon, but after that we were just stuck floating around in space. Zirconia was the first outsider to appear and he's at least given us direction. You don't know how many people died during that time between Ringmaster and Zirconia. Circus needs to absorb energy in order to survive. It normally devours energy from the dreams of the people who come to see our acts, that's why we put on performances in the first place, to lure in the people. No one was ever hurt, so don't look so damned shocked! They never even knew Circus was feeding off them."

Rei felt a blind wash of fury roll over her. Her former self had been in the circus, the crystal had proven that. That meant that the Circus had been feeding off not only her, but all her friends and Usagi! She couldn't help the lapse in temper when she shouted, "Never hurt them! That thing you serve, that leech, was sucking off people's energy and you don't think there was any harm done!"

"No one's ever complained. What do you expect us to do, let it starve? We'd have all died with it."

Rei took a deep breath and tried to at least look calm. The explanation didn't appease her much, but there wasn't anything that could be done about it at this time. Besides, it hadn't really been her or Usagi or any of their friends who'd been affected by the Circus. It had been their past selves, entirely different people. "Fine. So, we all accept you're on the side of good now, do we?" She couldn't help it if she was naturally suspicious.

"Don't care what you think." Fish Eye turned away, back to Sarah who was still held by the massive, orange furred monster. Fish Eye pulled a small jar out of a pouch on a belt around his waist. "This is a healing ointment, Ringmaster. Please, let me heal your wounds. It would be very quick and you need to be healthy. An attack won't take long."

Why did it seem like the world was conspiring to give Rei a heart attack? "Attack!"

Usagi took her hand and squeezed it. "Don't worry." Her voice was a whisper, something Rei rarely heard. "We'll protect your granpa."

But if they attacked now, they'd keep coming back trying to get her and Rei just knew her granpa would be killed in a battle. What would he say if he just happened to walk out of the house right then and there and he saw her like this? What would he think if he saw monsters in the front yard? She couldn't believe that he'd hate her or do anything to deliberately hurt her. No, she had too much faith in his love to think that. However, he would be afraid. He'd be afraid of her and Rei didn't think she could bear that. "It's not good enough." Rei said, though she squeezed Usagi's hand back. "They shouldn't be here. They're expecting a battle and they came right here." Wasn't it a rule somewhere that you don't involve family in war? It should be a rule.

"Hey, Ami," Makoto nudged Ami in the arm and pointed up. "What's that?"

Not to far above them was another bubble, much like the one Jareth had conjured except that this one was tinged deep red. Ami opened her mouth to say something, but she didn't have time. The bubble exploded in a wave of terrible light that blinded everyone for a moment. Rei heard people cry out and, next to her, Usagi gasped. Rei managed to turn her body to shield Usagi from whatever the light was and put a hand on the top of Usagi's head, pressing her down.

Fish Eye yelled and there was a appalling sound that Rei could only guess was from the orange monster Sarah had been sitting with. Sarah yelped and started screaming for Toby. Then, as quickly as it had come, the light vanished. Rei couldn't see a thing. She blinked and there was just darkness. She could feel the people around her, their emotions were tangible, brushing against her skin. Fear and anger were the most forceful emotions, grating against her like sandpaper. The feelings she was getting from Jareth were the least pleasant of them all. Sarah was angry and terrified for her brother, but inside Jareth there was something deeper that added fury to his own.

"Ummm…Rei?" Usagi said, sounding embarrassed. "You can let me go, now. If Mamo-chan saw us like this…"

Rei realized she was still holding Usagi and that Usagi's face was pressed firmly into her breast. She let Usagi go and blinked again. She rubbed at her eyes until she could see and pain shot through her head. "Are your eyes alright?"

"Yeah, fine, I think. Thanks, Rei."

Rei didn't need thanks. Of course she'd done it. Usagi was her princess and she would serve until the day she died. She'd do anything for Usagi.

Sarah-

Toby was gone. Sarah didn't have to see to know that. Someone had snatched him out of her arms as quick as lightening. A moment later she could see again and, from the furious look on Jareth's face, it wasn't Jareth who'd taken Toby this time. Everyone was rubbing at their faces, trying to get their eyes to work properly again.

"Jareth? Where…where's Toby?"

Jareth glowered and sucked in a deep breath through his nose. "I'll find him."

"Please." She looked sharply at Hawk's Eye who was by Fish Eye's side, helping his friend to stand. Sarah liked them. She had no reason to, but she liked them. All logic told her not to trust them, they could be the ones behind Toby's abduction. But Jareth's crystal declared the truth in Hawk's Eye's story and Jareth hadn't lied to her before, not really. He had no reason to lie, now. They'd come alone to her and hadn't tried to hurt her. They'd answered any question she'd asked and put themselves right in the middle of all their enemies, if what she understood about the situation was right. Sarah believed she could trust them and, besides that, she had no other choice. "You know more about what's going on than anyone else. Where's my brother?"

Fish Eye and Hawk's Eye exchanged nervous looks. "They aren't part of Circus, they aren't Remless'. They aren't like us, either." Fish Eye said. "The Amazon Quartet. They'll have taken him back to Circus. Back to Zirconia."

To be continued…