I am moved by the sweet reviews that everyone felt such strong reactions to Jareth. As a musician and writer, nothing makes me feel better than to hear "you made me feel emotions. You captured this particular feeling very well." thank you again!

A week had passed by. Sarah told her parents that she was just playing dress up with the dress that she had on, and they just accepted it. It made sense, after all. She was just playing with Toby.

Everything seemed not quite there. It was similar to when she had gone to college and came back to her home. It was the same yet very different. Not because of the home itself, but because she had been changed.

The three weeks that she had been gone Underground changed her more than the three years she had been away in college.

Toby was kinder to her and not as chaotic as he was before. He went to bed when she asked him to and played all sorts of games with her.

The day before she was to leave for college, Toby asked her something.

"Sarah?" He asked when she was giving him ice cream. "Do you believe in magic?"

Sarah paused a bit at the question. "Yeah, I do."

Toby leaned forward. "Why are you sad, Sarah?"

Sarah was taken aback by the question. "I'm not sad. I'm here with you."

That last part was true, she was happy to be back with her family. Joy filled her entire being at spending quality time with each of them. She tried to never take them for granted just as she had learned when she was 16, but her recent time away had made her even more careful about spending time with the people that she loved.

Toby hummed. "I don't know, Sar. You have a sad love in your eyes."

Sarah froze. "Toby, what did you say?"

"I said that you have a sad love. I heard it in a song once."

Sarah stood up, massaging her forehead.

That was the first lyric of the song he had sang for her in the crystal dream. "How do you know that song?"

Toby shrugged. "I think I had a dream. I remember goblins and a man with funny hair."

"And what else do you remember?" Sarah looked at him carefully.

Toby shrugged. "I remember the phrase 'Dance, Magic Dance' but I can't remember anything else."

Okay, that wasn't helpful to her.

"Sar?" Toby scooped more of his ice cream in his mouth. "You look like you're sad like when your boyfriends stopped dating you. Except more sad. Did a boy stop dating you?"

Sarah was amazed at how intuitive her brother was. How he was able to read her so well. "You know, you are nosy." She poked his nose.

"Nuh uh!" He giggled. "I just know. Are you sad?"

Sarah thought about Jareth again. It seemed that no matter how much she wanted to not think about him, he always seemed to pop up in her mind. "A little, yeah."

She fluffed his hair. "Toby, I have a question for you. About boys."

"Ask away!" He said, the perfect impression of their father.

"Let's say that there's this guy." Sarah wrung her hands. "And that he was kind of mean before. But then became nice. And he kept an important secret from me."

"Like if he ate your snacks?" Toby's eyes were wide.

Sarah shrugged. "No, but yeah, something like that. Let's say that he feels bad and tells the truth later, after he ate the snacks. What should I do?"

Toby thought about it for a moment. "Well, stealing isn't nice."

Sarah laughed. "Yes, that's true."

"But, did he tell the truth before or after you found out?"

Sarah tilted her head. "Before, I suppose."

"So maybe he should be forgiven?" Toby said. "You forgive me when I do things."

"That's different than a relationship when you need trust." Sarah mumbled.

"I don't know, Sarah." Toby shrugged. "I'm only six."

Sarah snorted while she laughed. "Oh Tobes."

Toby grinned. "Yeah, but maybe you already know. I know that you always feel good when you make the right choice with boys."

Sarah didn't get any answers from him, but she did feel more confident. "Thanks, buddy. You may be only six, but you are wise beyond your years."

Sarah could hardly pay attention in class.

"Oh, I can't believe that I'm going berserk over a guy!" She threw her notebook on the desk in frustration.

But it wasn't just any guy. It was Jareth, the Goblin King. Jareth, who had shaped the person she had grown into back when she was sixteen. Jareth, the man who got along with her the best and was kind to her even at his worst.

Everything about her felt wrong. Everything felt painful. Like she was barely holding up fractured parts of herself because she had a missing piece.

She had brought the crystal with her, but had not looked at it at all. She was too scared to. To frightened to see what would be in it.

One day, after a particularly terrible pop quiz, she made a rash decision. Two weeks into the term, and she dropped out of all her classes.

Sarah Williams never made a rash decision since she was sixteen because she knew how important it was to mean something before taking action when you could. With this, she couldn't just stand back. She was failing her classes this early and wasn't going to do well anyway. She needed to get out of here. She needed to go somewhere that will allow her mind to process what it needed to process.

Hoggle WAS right: once you get to the center of the labyrinth, you'll never get out again. Physically she could, but a part of her would always stay.

With her friends. With Jareth.

"Where are you going? Sarah!" Anita, her roommate asked her. "Sarah, please talk to me!"

Sarah, suitcase in hand and some cash sighed. "I'm taking this quarter off. I can't deal with the stuff in my head. I'm going to see my Mom."