Chapter Two
Basis for Comparison
When Sarah awoke, she was stretched out on a large feather bed. Sun streamed through the stone windows to her right. Groggily she remembered the happenings of the night before, and jumped up to look around her. To her relief, Jareth was nowhere in sight.
The sudden and entirely unexpected departure had taken Sarah completely off guard. She had been tipsy from the alcohol and spoke rashly. What she had murmured was only meant to be a silly wish, not reality. Though as she thought of his eyes, she calmed slightly as her body tensed. Carefully she wondered whether she was dreaming again. Risking cliché, she pinched her arm and felt quite noticeable pain. But had she not also felt pain when the misleading little fairy had bitten her finger? Perhaps she had not imagined the pain, or managed to pinch herself in her sleep.
She slipped from the high bed and noticed a tall wardrobe, the doors opened slightly. Inside were seven dresses and a few other outfits.
She wondered how she could go home and where she would go, but realized that she needed to be clothed in something more than silk pajamas if she were to find an escape. A full cream skirt, cream peasant shirt, and black leather bodice appealed to her and she put them on quickly. The laces to the bodice were in front and not too difficult to manage. She also found black suede boots in the bottom of the wardrobe. Her skirt came to mid calf, and the with the addition of a forest green hip scarf, she looked rather like a gypsy. She figured that the scarf could come in handy if it got chilly later in the day. She had no idea what the weather was like in the Underground, but figured it had to be similar to earth because all the outfits seemed summery.
Sarah looked around the room and through a door she located a large bathroom. She washed her face and brushed her hair, leaving it flowing down her back. There was a jewelry box on the counter, but she left it unopened because she intended to leave soon.
She opened another door into a library and from there found a long hallway that she assumed led to the rest of the castle. To her left, the hall ended within fifty feet. The other direction went on for a long distance and then turned, so she followed that path.
She walked for nearly a minute when something short and gray came shooting toward her with a large pile of white linens. It nearly crashed into her as it hurried along, but dropped all it carried when it stopped abruptly.
"I'm so sorry miss, I was only trying to hurry," a female goblin said hastily and began to gather up a cloth which had flown to one side.
"Oh no, I'm sorry I was in your way. Let me help," Sarah bent and helped collect a sheet, folding it back neatly and handing it to the goblin. "Could you tell me where to find the king?" she felt awkward asking for Jareth so formally.
"Oh yes miss, but I wouldn't be disturbing him now. He is always very busy and wishes not to be bothered unless it is important. Would you like me to give him a message when he is available?"
Sarah felt she should speak to Jareth immediately, no matter how busy he claimed to be. However, she wouldn't mind exploring a bit and thought it best to speak to him when he was not distracted.
"Well, alright. Can you tell him that I want to go home? I didn't mean to wish myself here in the first place," she elaborated, more for her own benefit than the goblin's. "I can't stay here and I don't really want to anyway." The more she thought about it, the more she missed her home and her former life. But somehow she felt guilty wanting to undo her wish.
"I will tell him soon, miss. What is your name?"
"Sarah," she bent to gather another sheet and the goblin squeaked in shock.
"You are Sarah? Oh no miss, please, I can get that," she quickly took the sheet from her hands and scrambled to gather the rest from the floor, "If I had know it was you, I would have sent you directly to His Majesty."
"I'm sorry, but why?"
"King Jareth has ordered that his guest be treated with all the respect due-" She squeaked again and began to hurry down the hall with her eyes cast to the ground.
"Wait, what do you mean? Where is he?"
"Oh, my apologies Miss Sarah. I will show you to him," the goblin abandon the sheets to the floor once more and scurried in the other direction.
"Slow down! What is your name?"
"My name? But Miss Sarah, I am only a humble servant. You may call me what you like."
"I would like to know your name, you are the only person in the castle that I know," Sarah was weary of the excitable attitude of the little goblin.
"My friends call me Sharon, Miss Sarah," she gave a quick curtsey and continued her fast pace.
"You may call me Sarah, if you like. There is no need to be formal."
"Oh but I should not, it is not becoming for someone of your status," Sarah was entirely confused now.
"My status? What, a kidnapped girl? What makes me deserve respect?" A tight sensation in her stomach stopped her as they drew close to the tall doors of the throne room.
"Here you are, Miss. Anytime you need me, just call my name and I will be there for you," with that she curtsied very low and ran off in the direction they had come.
Sarah tried to stop her, but gave up as she sped away around the corner. She turned to face the doors and mustered all her strength to open them. She knew what to do, she needed to go home and end this silly game. She reached for the handle, but drew her hand back quickly. It would be embarrassing if she interrupted some sort of meeting. Again she stretched out her hand, but instead shifted her weight back and forth.
"Come on Sarah," she whispered quietly to herself, "what are you worried about being embarrassed for anyway? Just keep a determined mindset. Ready, now open it!"
The door creaked loudly and Sarah slipped into the room, pushing the door shut behind her. Turning quickly, she saw Jareth sitting sideways in his throne tossing a crystal back and forth fluidly. As the door shut, he looked up and smiled devilishly.
"Good morning, Sarah. I see you managed to find something suitable to wear. I must say, you have a," he paused, "good taste in fashion." Sarah burned bright red when she remembered her thin silk pajamas from the evening before.
"Goblin King, I want to return home. Now." she straightened her back and attempted to sound forceful. She had eluded the baby-snatcher before and would do it again.
"I'm afraid you cannot leave, Sarah. I was kind enough to grant you your last wish, not to mention the whole experience with your brother." Jareth smiled to himself, as if laughing at some joke only he understood.
"You stole him from me. You said yourself that words do not matter, but you are selectively listening to a few of them. Ironically, the ones spoken with the least amount of meaning."
"Dear Sarah, you realize don't you that you spoke the words on the night I took your brother with more passion than anything else you had ever said before in your life?"
"Well, I was upset. But last night," he cut her off with one gloved hand.
"But last night you spoke with even more passion," he grinned again and swung his legs to the floor.
Sarah stammered, "But I- No, I was lonely, and, and-" and drunk she added to herself.
Jareth rose and took a step toward her, "And now? Why would you wish to be here, Sarah?"
She struggled not to storm out of the room as he advanced closer to her.
"I'm not sure."
"Oh really? That's interesting."
"How is it interesting?" Sarah was infuriated by his calm and suave demeanor.
"You seem to change your mind very quickly. Very indecisive."
"Well, sometimes we say things we don't mean."
"Yes, very true, dear Sarah. And I know it most of all."
"I'm sure you would, having so many helpless sisters or brothers or mothers falling into your Labyrinth."
At this he laughed deep within his throat. "Few have regretted their decisions, and those that have realized in the end that what they did was best," he paced around Sarah, a little too close for comfort. "all those children were abused or neglected. Maybe the mother was too young or impoverished to raise a child properly. Here I can offer them a home, a loving family,"
"Yeah, you turn them into your goblin slaves! Do you really call that a family?"
"I do not turn them into slaves. An unfortunate side affect is the inevitable transformation into a goblin. It happens rather quickly, usually nothing happens within the first thirteen hours though."
"But you enslave them."
"I do no such thing; I have offered many of them jobs in my castle but most are adopted into families," he turned to face Sarah, his hands clasped behind his back. Sarah felt better believing his claim, but suddenly realized that she had been there for close to thirteen hours.
"What will happen to me if I stay here? Am I to become one of your subjects as well?"
Jareth laughed again, his head tilted back slightly. His long pale neck stirred some inner sense, making Sarah step backward. "No my dear. Only those wished away by their families or friends face that little confusion. You are an unusual case. I don't think anyone has wished themselves back to me." He laughed at Sarah's indignant expression. "Also, as humans mature they take longer to transform into a goblin."
Sarah took a steadying breath, "I want to go home."
Jareth looked to the floor, a strange, sad smile on his face. Sarah tried to see him better. He sighed deeply and twisted his wrist. A crystal appeared and hovered between them. An image of Toby playing in the front yard swirled in the sphere.
"If you take this crystal, I will take Toby instead of you, I will never visit you again, and you will forget the labyrinth completely."
"But that's unfair!"
"Sarah, when will you learn that this expression of yours really has no meaning unless you have some sort of a basis for comparison?" he shook his head and smiled playfully. It was a gesture Sarah found quite degrading.
She scoffed, "But Toby has nothing to do with this time. He had no part in my wish, so why take him?"
He placed a hand on his hip and cocked his head to one side with a grin, reminding her very much of her first encounter with the Goblin King, "Ah, but what else can you offer to trade? Perhaps you have a better suggestion?"
"What do you want?" she probed cautiously.
"Truthfully, I want a companion. It can be lonely in the Underground. I believe you understand the feeling," the crystal changed to reveal her image from last night, crying on the balcony in Spain. "When you called for me, I thought perhaps this was an opportunity to solve our problem."
Sarah was startled. She had not expected this. She thought about her dreams. As if hearing her thoughts, Jareth continued, "I won't visit your dreams, you will not remember me any more if you take this crystal."
Surprise lifted her voice, "Were you actually there? In those dreams?"
"Yes. I visited you every night in your dreams," he would not look up from the floor.
Sarah asked the one thing on her mind, "Why?"
"Take it or leave it. If you do not accept the crystal, you will have to accept living here. There are no other options, as I must have a replacement if you leave," Sarah recoiled. "Make your choice wisely."
Sarah thought for a minute. She thought back to the balcony, to the crystal he had given her, the resulting vision.
"Goblin King, what was the crystal you gave me last night?"
"I gave you something I had offered to you eight years ago."
She thought about his words from before. Something intangible in a sphere. A literal gift of an insubstantial vision. "My dreams? But why?"
"You needed it more this time."
"I don't understand, what was in it?"
"Only you know that. I do not choose your dreams. That is something you alone can do."
Sarah stumbled again. If she chose that vision, then what did it mean? The blank, almost depressed look on Jareth's down-turned face clearly revealed that he had no idea what she had dreamt. She eyed the crystal, a moment frozen in time. If she took that, would she be denying her own dreams? What would happen to Toby? After another minute, she turned and ran from the room.
Jareth looked up as she ran and noticed the crystal still floating there. He gazed at Sarah's image and watched as it slowly faded and the crystal disappeared.
Sarah ran to her room, not even stopping as she passed Sharon in the hall. Tears were streaming down her face and she found it incredibly difficult to breathe. As soon as she reached her room, she locked the door and flopped onto the couch in the library. She began to sob uncontrollably, afraid of her predicament. If she had taken the crystal, none of this would have mattered. She would not remember the Labyrinth or Jareth or any of her adventures and therefore could not miss it. But she could not turn Toby back over to the monster.
An hour passed, but Sarah remained strewn across the couch in tears. The conflicting emotions sent spasms of pain through her back. Her face felt sore and puffy from the burst of emotion, but she had begun to calm down.
Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Sarah wiped her eyes but imagined it would be impossible to hide the evidence of her outburst.
"Miss Sarah?"
"You can come in, Sharon," Sarah sat up and smoothed her skirt.
"I thought you might like some tea- is everything all right?"
Sarah thought she might brush it off, she was tired of thinking of her predicament, but talking to her might help ease her burden. "No, Jareth will not let me go home. Well, he will, but only if I choose to forget the Labyrinth and everything that happened here. I was here once before," she added for Sharon's benefit.
"Oh yes, everyone knows about you. You defeated the Goblin King."
"I won my brother back. He deserved to be beaten, he is a horrible man."
"Yes you won your brother, but master Jareth suffered more than just a loss. After you left, master Jareth became very ill. He did not leave his bedroom for nearly three months. After that, he was never quite the same. No one was allowed to talk to him at night, he barely ate, and he remained in his room for days at a time."
Sarah fidgeted and adjusted her skirt, offering a place on the sofa for Sharon. She sat next to her timidly. She handed Sarah a cup of sweet mint and honey tea.
"We were worried that he was dying. It was like that for three years. He would not speak to anyone for a long time. We are still not sure why, but I think that he missed you."
"Missed me? But why?"
"Who knows, but I think it would not be hard for him to become enamored with someone of your talents, especially after solving the labyrinth."
Sarah set the cup down on a table and blinked. Sharon quietly excused herself and slipped from the room. Sarah sat in bewilderment for a time, then decided that she needed a nap and went back to the bedroom.
A white nightgown hung in the wardrobe and she changed into it quickly, attempting to shut out all her thoughts. She failed, but was so exhausted that she drifted to sleep almost as quickly as she slid between the cool, soft sheets.
When Sarah's eyes flicked open, the light shining through the window was soft and orange, as if the sun were beginning to descend. She sat up in confusion, feeling that she could not have slept more than a minute. However, the grandfather clock in the library was striking six. Not a single dream had pressed her mind, and it occurred to her that since she had arrived she had not dreamt at all.
There was a quiet knock on the door and Sarah answered it in person. Sharon was standing in the hallway with a fresh bouquet of white roses and lilacs.
"Good afternoon, Miss Sarah. I brought you these from the garden," she came in and placed the vase on the small table where the tea things were. She began to replace them on the tray. "Also, I came to inform you that dinner is served at eight. Master Jareth has invited you to dine with him," she glanced to Sarah, who still stood in place by the door, recalling the past day.
"Am I required to attend?" she finally asked.
"No, he told me that your dinner may be served in here tonight if you would rather. Shall I tell him you will remain in your room?"
Sarah shook her head slowly, "It's alright, I will go to dinner."
"Wonderful! I shall inform him of your choice," she began to exit with the tray.
"Wait!" Sarah stopped her just as she reached the door. "I don't know what to wear," she glanced at the wardrobe in the other room, remembering the fancy dresses. "Is it a formal event?"
"I'm not sure what you mean by formal, let me draw you a bath and I will lay out a dress for you to wear for dinner."
"Thank you. I appreciate that."
Sharon set the tray back on the table and scurried into the bathroom. Sarah heard the sound of running water and walked into the room. Sharon showed her how to work the enormous tub and pointed out some bath salts and soaps. She closed the door behind her as she left to find an outfit.
The water steamed and hissed as it poured from a silver spout. She stripped off the flowing white nightgown and climbed into the bath. It was about four feet deep with a bench to sit upon while bathing. Sarah selected a small bottle of bubbles that were a lovely shade of purple. As she suspected, they smelled like the lilacs in the bouquet. The tub filled unusually fast and she turned off the water. It felt nice to close her eyes and relax in the bath.
She stayed on her back like this for several moments, then sat up and opened her eyes. She was startled when she gazed into what she thought was a crystal, but realized that it was only a large bubble. Sarah wondered if Jareth ever spied on her with his crystals and suddenly felt very subconscious. She sank lower under the thick layer of bubbles, feeling somewhat disturbed at the thought.
Why had Jareth withdrawn after she had left the Underground? Surely his inflated ego had been burst and so he obsessed over revenge. She could only imagine that he had become spiteful because she had outsmarted him. Why would he be attracted to her?
Sarah rubbed her wrinkling hands and let the water drain from the bath after she had washed her hair. She grabbed a towel from the pile next to the tub and dried herself off, reveling in the soft sensation on her smooth legs. She noticed then that her hair had not grown a bit on her legs or armpits, leaving them as smooth as if they were freshly shaved. She assumed it was something about magic and began to powder herself with a rose scent.
Just outside the door, Sharon had left a chair with an outfit waiting for Sarah. A corset that tightened of its own will to fit her went over a comfortable white petticoat. Sarah examined the gown, taking in its blue-purple satin and lovely cream lace. The bodice appeared fairly low cut, but she couldn't help but admire the intricate lace that covered the whole of the bodice and trimmed the sleeves and hem. She smiled and went back to the bathroom to style her hair and put on makeup before attempting the large dress.
Sarah found that her hair had already dried miraculously, and was now hanging in a loose wave down her back. She twisted it up and pinned it securely. A bit of shimmering eye shadow that looked like fairy dust added a perfect accent to her eyes. Pink berry lip color completed the look. Sarah slipped on the dress and stood to admire the affect.
What it lacked was proper jewelry, but Sarah did not want to seem too comfortable so resisted peeking into the jewelry box. She then heard a knock on the door, and hastily smudged a bit of eyeliner beneath her eyes so as to appear slightly disheveled and upset. She grinned and hurried to the door to greet Sharon.
She swung the door open and smiled down to Sharon's height but instead found herself looking at the tight black pants of the Goblin King. She immediately rose her eyes to his and dropped her smile.
"Hello Sarah. I came to escort you to dinner," he offered his arm, which she took hesitantly, attempting to appear nonchalant.
"Thank you, Goblin King. How thoughtful," her voice dripped with sarcasm.
He laughed smoothly, "No need for formalities. You may call me Jareth," she caught his smirk from the corner of her eye.
"Well then, Jareth, I am grateful that you would stoop low enough to escort a prisoner to dinner," she realized how bratty she sounded, but felt much better trying to be defiant.
He reacted as she had hoped, his arm stiffening and his stride lengthening, "You are not a prisoner, Sarah. I offered you the chance to leave. You made the choice to remain."
"But you told me you would take Toby back. Toby is not even a part of this wish, so why bring him into it? It's unfair to both of us."
"I'm still not sure on what you base your opinion, but if I let you leave, I need a replacement. You wished yourself away, and so I am generously offering you a bargaining tool that you ordinarily would not be given."
"How is that generous? You have no concept of generosity. I cannot give you my brother. He did not ever wish himself away, it was my silly mistake. I didn't mean what I wished; not now, not then."
"Sarah, understand this: You made your decision. I offered you an alternative but you did not take it. Have you changed your mind?"
"No, I-"
"Then you cannot complain. My offer still stands, but I suggest you mean what you say before you wish for anything else," he steered her around a corner with more force than necessary, pressing his hand hard against her spine.
"You're hurting me," Sarah said between clenched teeth.
"So are you."
Dinner was a silent affair. Sarah refused to start any topics of conversation and Jareth was still irritated. They ate little and once they were finished, Sarah was unsure what to do. She glared at Jareth, who glared back at her.
Again the dilated eye seemed to scan her very soul, which made her feel uncomfortable. She suddenly felt memories of her past playing through her mind, distracting her. Several from her childhood passed in quick succession and she closed her eyes tightly, trying to think of something else. She did not understand why she was having theses flashbacks, then focused on Jareth's eye again.
"Are your reading my mind?"
"Probing. I cannot read minds."
"Is there a difference? And why are you probing my mind? It is very disconcerting," she said irritably.
"I'm sorry. Probing is a way of searching memories, things that happened. Reading minds is like hearing your thoughts or memories of thoughts. Very few people can do that."
Sarah was glad that he could not search her thoughts. It would be very uncomfortable. Her memories stopped rushing through her mind, but focused on beating the labyrinth. Very clearly, she saw in her mind's eye the multidimensional room, falling through it as it broke apart, landing and seeing Jareth, he begins to speak.
Sarah closed her eyes tightly and turned her face away from Jareth. He laughed and the memory faded.
"I have studied that memory so many times. I wondered how you had done it and what I might have done to prevent you from beating me at my own game," he plucked at the tablecloth absent mindedly.
Sarah scowled and folded her arms. Of course, that was why she had those dreams. He was trying to figure out how she had solved the labyrinth. "Really? How very much like you to invade someone else's mind to serve your own needs."
Jareth looked up at her and frowned in confusion, "I beg your pardon?"
Sarah gave him a terse smile and set her napkin next to her plate of barely touched food. She felt very hungry, but also very ill. She stood up quickly and felt extremely faint, but could not sit back down.
"I beg your pardon, but I do not feel well and shall have to leave you to do whatever nonsense you fill your time with. Good evening, Goblin King," with this, she turned and began to storm toward the door. The longer she spent with Jareth, the more infuriated she became. However, as she approached the great double doors, she started to sway and lose her vision. If she could make it to the door, she could sit down outside without damaging her pride. As her mind clouded over, she wondered if she was becoming more like him; mood swings and inflated ego.
She passed through the doors and looked for a bench or a chair, but found none. The thought occurred to her that Jareth was purposely clouding her mind. Her body slumped against the wall and she fell hard onto her knees, blacking out as she fell sideways.