Disclaimer – sigh. I do not own anything related to the Labyrinth (though I wish I do) but I do own all original characters.

Rated T for language

J-lea sighed.

It had been two weeks since her adventure in the Labyrinth. Since she had said those words.

'You have no power over me'

She had never regretted anything more in her life but was too stubborn to call for him. J-lea looked in her mirror, at the scar down her left temple. She had been lucky enough to hide it from her mother until a couple of days after her trip, but it would always remind her of what she had thrown away.

#Flashback#

J-lea parked her car outside before she walked into the house and took her shoes off. Walking into the kitchen to get a drink, J-lea saw her mother sitting at the table.

"J-lea, Eric and I are going out for dinner tonight. Make Elektra hers," said Miranda. J-lea glanced back at her as she answered.

"Yea, okay"

"What happened to your face?" asked her mother sharply. J-lea inwardly winced as she kept a straight face.

"A gang started a fight with me as I was coming out of college" she lied smoothly.

"Oh" said Miranda, not caring in the least about her daughter's safety. As she was about to walk out the door she asked, "Did you win?"

"Yes" J-lea responded.

"Pity"

J-lea just rolled her eyes.

#End Flashback#

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"J-lea?" asked Elektra as she waved a hand in front of her sister's face. J-lea stepped back, startled.

"Elektra?" J-lea shook her head, "Yea, what is it?"

"I was wondering if you would read Labyrinth to me again" said the teen. J-lea hesitated before answering.

"Sure"

The two of them got settled so that they were both lying on J-lea's bed and J-lea was reading the Labyrinth aloud to Elektra.

The two of them were so into the story that they did not hear their parent's get back, nor Eric come up the stairs.

J-lea was startled out of reading when her door opened to admit the broad figure of Eric. J-lea's eyes widened slightly when she noticed Eric glance at the red book in her hands.

"I thought I told you not to talk any of that crap to my daughter!" Eric shouted.

"Daddy, I-" Elektra started but J-lea cut her off.

"Don't, Elektra. Go to your room," said the eighteen year old. Seeing that Elektra was going to protest, J-lea added firmly, "Now!"

Elektra hurried out of the room.

"How dare you order my daughter around!" said Eric, shaking with rage. J-lea didn't say anything. She just raised her head slightly, showing him that she would take anything he threw at her, head on.

Within five second, Eric had crossed the room and had punched J-lea, sending her to the floor. He started kicking her repeatedly in the ribs. J-lea was sure she heard one of them crack but she couldn't focus properly. Eric pulled J-lea up by the back of her t-shirt before punching her in the face again, breaking her nose. J-lea flew backward as he had let go as he punched her.

Eric stood there for a minute glaring hatefully at her while looking thoughtful. J-lea didn't like the expression and used the time to get up. Eric noticed this and brought her back to her knees with a hard punch to the stomach. J-lea refused to cry out so she bit her lip instead, causing it to bleed from the pressure.

"I'm going to do something I should have done a long time ago" Eric sneered before he walked out of the room. J-lea struggled to her feet. Then, she heard the distinct noise of a pistol being loaded. J-lea's eyes widened and she ran out of her room and to the stairs. However, Eric reached her and smacked her over the face with the gun. Miranda heard the noise and came out of the kitchen. What she saw shocked her.

J-lea was at the bottom of the stairs, bloody and shakily standing and Eric, her beloved husband was standing at the top of the stairs with a gun pointed at the teen.

J-lea started running as soon as she was up. She heard a gunshot but kept running as it had missed her. She ran out of the door and leaped out onto the street and kept on running. She couldn't get into her car as she had left her keys in her hurried escape.

J-lea heard a gunshot and felt a burning pain in her back. She fell down on the floor and shouted,

"JARETH!" hoping that he would hear her call.

The street lamps suddenly all went off and the wind picked up like a hurricane.

J-lea turned over in time to see a barn owl swoop down and transform into the Goblin King. He had positioned himself in front of her so that he was protecting her from Eric.

"Come any closer and I swear you will regret it" Jareth threatened hatefully at the man who had made J-lea's life hell.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" shouted Eric as he brandished the gun at Jareth.

"Your worst nightmare!" Jareth growled before he threw a crystal at Eric, which made him disappear.

Jareth turned around and bent down to scoop J-lea into his arms, careful to watch her injuries.

"Jareth", J-lea coughed weakly, "I'm sorry"

"Sshhh" hushed the king before he transported them back to the Underground.

Jareth's worried face was the last thing J-lea saw before she fell to the darkness.

Short again, I know. Sorry about that. I'm trying to get the negative stuff out of the way. It is, unfortunately, imperative to the story line and needed to be done.

Please review.