Disclaimer: If I owned the Labyrinth, do you really think that I would be posting a sequel here? Nay, I would be making millions of dollars and I would own Dumbo – the dvd. However, I do own the OC's presently present here, and they do not like to be used without permission. But a little birdie once told me that it is better to ask for forgiveness than permission…… But that isn't the case here, bucko! So hand's off!

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Labyrinth: The Dream Never Ends

By: Eriksleadinglady

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Chapter 1: The world is neither fair nor unfair

Green hedges. They were everywhere, but that's where they always were. They blinded her vision as she tried to look for a way out. Just some way out. But there was no way out; there never was.

She kept on running, but could find no end to her trouble. Everywhere she turned, there was just another pathway, another green hedge, another losing battle. She felt her knees growing weak from all her running, her sprinting. Would it never end?

Even her friends, all the creatures she met while in the Labyrinth, were not here to help her. Even when she called them, they did not come. Didn't they tell her to call whenever she needed them? Well she did call many times and some help they were, never showing up.

As Sarah rounded another corner, she only saw more tremendous green hedges. She wanted to scream at the Labyrinth with all her might, but she knew that it would not help; it never did. Besides, giving in to her anger, or rather just giving up in general, would only please the Goblin King – and that was the last thing she wanted to do. No matter how much she hated being here, no matter how much she hated running around this place, she would never give the Goblin King what he wanted – her losing.

She rounded yet another corner, and another, going left, left again, but then she ran into a dead end. Crying out in desperation, Sarah spun around and ran back to where she came from. This time, she took a right instead and kept going down. Taking another right, she continued sprinting down the long corridors. She could feel her legs losing strength, her breath beginning to catch in her throat, her heart pounding as though it would burst right out of her chest. But Sarah knew that she had to continue on to whatever fate awaited her; she would not give up. So she kept going down the same path until she came upon a left turn. Taking the turn, she then found another right. However, none of the paths that she had chosen led her anywhere; she was still completely lost.

But wait… she stopped for a moment to stare into the distance, her breath coming in short gasps. Sarah paused, placing her hands on her knees for a moment, and then she stood up straight once more. Raising a hand to her eyes as a shield, she attempted to see the sparkle again. There it was! It appeared to be a mix of silver and gold, sparkling in the sun and calling to her. Keeping her eye on the shining object, Sarah began to run toward it before it disappeared.

She knew that the Labyrinth loved to play tricks on people, making them come to something they thought was good, when it was rather something to hurt them on their quest. Sarah shook her head. She didn't care right now, about all the trickery, the magic. This thing… whatever it was… was the only thing she had seen that was not green. Perhaps it was something bad – horrible even – but still, it was different. Perhaps that was what she needed: a change.

At last, after all her running, she had finally reached the shining object. It was not what she had expected at all. It wasn't actually an object that would normally be glinting in the sun. It was a tiny tree, possibly a little aspen, but Sarah wasn't sure. The bark was the color of mirroring silver, allowing Sarah to view her torn, messed appearance – dirt caked on her face and hair, her shirt and pants torn with dirt on them, and a tiny gash on her left knee. Although her appearance was rather grudge-like, Sarah could care less about it. This tree was too captivating for her to care for anything else. On the tree, the tear-shaped leaves were a golden hue, matching the sun, as well as reflecting its light.

Sarah cocked her head. The tree was so small, reaching only up to her knee. However, the tree looked to be full-grown, and it seemed so peaceful and calm, like it had no care in the world. Slowly, Sarah reached out her hand to touch the amazing little tree, moving inch by inch, her eyes getting wider as she got closer to the bark. She did so until finally her fingertips touched the silvery wonder.

Immediately upon impact, Sarah withdrew her hand for the bark was extremely hot, a burning temperature. Sarah's eyes narrowed at the tree, wondering what it did, what its purpose was.

Suddenly, the ground beneath her feet began to rumble violently. Sarah had to lean on the hedge around her in order to keep her balance. Then, in front of her, the silver tree began to grow bigger and bigger, still keeping its same shape, but just growing so large that it now quadrupled Sarah in size. She stared up at it in awe, wondering why it had done such a thing.

When the trembling had finally subsided, Sarah carefully approached the tree, walking around it and checking it out from every angle. From what she could tell, the tree was exactly the same as it had been before, but it had somehow just enlarged.

With a sudden jolt, the trees branches flailed around, taking on a life of their own. They flung around in wild arcs and circles, one branch, knocking Sarah to the ground. The sky turned a bloody red as lightning struck in the distance and thunder rumbled the sky. Sarah watched in horror as the trees branches kept on swinging in all directions. Then the branches took on a new task and began slapping the ground where Sarah was laying. Sarah rolled from side to side in order to avoid getting squashed like a bug. The trees color then began to swirl and from the middle a black spot formed, spreading outward in a spiral until finally it had engulfed the entire tree, making it look like a shadow.

It continued to squirm and shake, and Sarah eyes it suspiciously, wary of what it would do next. From the center, the exact saem place where the black spot had formed, an entire face popped out from the inside – like the tree had given birth to the face. The large red eyes swirled about, coming into focus, until it looked straight at Sarah. The entire face was grotesque: the eyes matched the skies, the mouth held sharp, dagger-like teeth, and the nose… well the nose was missing and in its place was a red, triangular hole. After looking over Sarah, the mouth let out a terrible roar that made all the creatures within the forest tremble with fear.

Slowly, Sarah backed up in the dust, but had to stop when she ran into the hedge behind her. Seeing her move away, the tree ripped up its roots with a pull and gained two legs. Then it advanced upon Sarah like she was its prey.

Sarah was paralyzed with fear of the unstoppable monster before her. She was trapped, and she had no idea what to do. There was no one to help her, no one to come and save her from her terrible fate. Except…

As the tree began to close in on her, taking large strides, Sarah did the only thing that she knew would help her. She called for him.

"Jareth!" she yelled somewhat quietly at first.

"Jareth!" even louder.

Then with one last breath she screamed it.

"JARETH!!!"

Sarah awoke in her bed, sitting straight up, looking around her room for any sign of danger. When she saw none, she sighed and laid back down in her bed, closing her eyes and rubbing her temples. This was the fifth time she had had the same dream, but this time, she finally made it to the end. She always woke up right when the tree transformed. Never had she been cornered like that before. And never, never, before had she called his name. She knew just how dangerous that could be.

Just as she was about to fall back sleep, she heard the voice that she had been dreaded this whole time.

"You called?"

Sarah's eyes immediately flew open as she looked over to where the voice had come from. Then she saw him: the Goblin King, Jareth. Sarah screamed in shock at the new presence, and for a moment forgot where she was and mistakenly tumbled out of her bed. She fell onto the floor with a little "thump" in a heap of sheets and blankets. Afterwards, she felt quite embarrassed for what had happened, even more so because it had happened in front of him. She stayed on the floor for some time, not wanting to face the Goblin King. She had actually never wanted to face the King ever again, but that had not turned out the way she had wanted either.

She then heard footsteps walking around her bed, and her breath caught in her throat as she saw his boots stop right in front of her. She watched him as he bent down to her level and cocked his head to the side, his eyes dancing with amusement.

"Liking the floor, I see?" he mocked.

Sarah's eyes narrowed as she tossed the covers off of her and rose to her feet to face him. Once she had stood, Jareth did also, never taking his eyes off of her.

"Yes, I'm fine," she replied sarcastically, puffing her chest out in defiance. "Thanks for asking."

"Oh good," Jareth taunted with a smirk lighting his face. "I thought you had died on me."

"Wouldn't that be convenient," she mumbled as she began to replace the covers onto the bed.

"Nice pajamas," Jareth remarked as his eyes wandered over Sarah's somewhat exposed body. For a split second, Sarah looked into his eyes, which were dark and consuming. There was an underlying presence in that challenging look he was giving her, but Sarah couldn't quite place it; after all, no one had looked at her in that way before. Jareth was holding her gaze, unblinking, but Sarah quickly glanced away, the long look making her feel uncomfortable. Also, she remembered that she was only wearing short shorts and a spaghetti strap top, making it seem as though Jareth had X-ray vision and was looking right through her.

Turning away from Jareth, she attempted to cover herself up by wrapping her arms around her abdomen, but it didn't help at all. She turned around and faced Jareth, who was now standing there looking entertained, his former look of interest now gone.

"Could I maybe get changed?" she asked, although she probably already knew the answer.

"I don't know," he said as he approached her smoothly. "You look like quite the temptress in those… clothes."

That was the end of the rope for Sarah.

"Okay, I am changing," she said quickly as she went to her closet to find some suitable, modest clothes.

"Oh good, a show," mocked Jareth as he took a seat on her bed and crossed his legs, a smile on his face. Although he didn't quite act it, Sarah was sure that he actually wanted one.

However, Sarah didn't even respond, but just went into the adjacent bathroom and locked the door behind her while she changed. The whole time she was in there, which was about five minutes, she prayed and prayed that he would be gone by the time she got out. She was not really in the mood to face the oh-so-famous Goblin King, since it was just 4 o'clock in the morning, and besides, she had not seen him in nearly four years. Why would she want to start now?

Gathering all her courage and wits, Sarah – now dressed in comfortable athletic pants a white tee – finally stepped out of the bathroom. However, she was not surprised when she still saw Jareth sitting on her bed.

"Why are you here?" she asked as she stood in front of him, arms crossed over her chest.

"You called me here," was his simple response.

"No, no I didn't," argued Sarah.

Jareth smiled that arrogant smile of his. "You were never good at lying."

Sarah sighed her annoyance. "Okay so I called you in my dream... or rather, nightmare," she added grimly. "But that doesn't count!"

Jareth gave her a pout as he rose to his feet. "But dreams are the most real thing, Sarah. They reveal what the subconscious mind wants. And obviously," he continued as he stood behind her, only inches away from her back, "that was me."

Sarah felt his hot breath on the back of her neck, and, fearing what she might do, instantly moved away from him. "Just because you're here does not mean that this is about you."

"But isn't it?" came his reply, eyes gleaming with newfound interest.

"No. I had I nightmare."

Jareth placed a hand to chest. "Why, Sarah, I am truly honored that you would think of me in your time of need."

"Well, I was in your Labyrinth," she continued. "So who else would I call?"

Jareth thought about this for a moment. "Hoggle? Sir Didymus? Ludo? I don't know, just throwing out some names."

Sarah paused for a second, taking in deep breaths to calm herself. It was true that her previous friends didn't help her anymore; they never did. She had always wondered about this, actually, but even thinking about it brought tears to her eyes, for she missed them often. Pushing back tears threatening to pour down her face, she prepared herself for the hollow answers. Sarah looked him straight in the eye and said, "They didn't come."

Then Jareth broke out into a fit of laughter, causing Sarah to draw back in confusion. "This is too good!" he said in between laughs. "They were your friends, and they didn't come to help you? Oh my!" More insane laughter. "And I, your sworn villain, am standing right in front you at your beck and call?" And still more laughter. "Oh dear! Are you not important enough for them to come and help you? Do they loathe you so much after what you had done, that they discontinued all connections?" And still, through all his mockery, the Goblin King still stood there laughing.

Sarah could picture Jareth holding him, her kid brother. She watched as he held him close as he faded away into the distance, leaving her without him. She felt her heart rise up into her throat… no, not again. She couldn't lose him again…

"He's mine," a whispering, all-too familiar voice said.

"Shut up!" cried Sarah as she pushed his chest, trying to make him just stop the laughter. But when he didn't, she continued to push him. "Shut up shut up shut up!" she screamed at him, punching his chest, until he finally grabbed her wrists forcefully.

"Sarah," he said when she still continued to try and beat at him, saying shut up whenever she could. "Sarah," he repeated. Still, she did not stop. "Sarah!" he yelled.

This finally got her attention and she stopped attacking him, her wrists still in his bruising grip.

Sarah felt like she was on the verge of tears, but she wouldn't dare cry. Not in front of him; never in front of him. She could feel his eyes boring into hers, and she couldn't help but look away, breaking the connection first.

When Jareth finally let go of her wrists, she slowly backed away from him and sat down on the bed, hands shaking slightly. More than what he said had brought on her current state; it was just that he had reminded her of… Toby. She felt herself break even more when she thought of him. Not only that, but Jareth did mention her friends who she had not talked to in four years, and the pain of that hurt as well. But not as much as Toby.

"What happened?" Jareth asked; his voice slated with concern – a trait usually not shown by the Goblin King.

Sarah sniffed. "What do you care?"

"You life is my business, Sarah. You belong to me," he replied simply.

She laughed, a horrible, cracking sound. "I am my own."

"You change the subject. Why?"

"There was no subject to change from," she replied as she turned her body away from him.

"You won't talk about it because it hurts. But you don't want it to hurt." A pause. "I can make that pain go away, Sarah."

"No one can make this pain go away," she whispered quietly as she finally turned her head and looked at him.

Jareth reached out his hand to her. "Come with me, Sarah. Come to my Labyrinth. Only there will your troubles cease to exist."

Sarah stared at his hand for a moment, unsure of what to do. She knew that Jareth was probably lying, and that this was just one of his ploys to get her to come away with him. But what if it wasn't? Her mind asked. What if he really can help?

This life that she was living, where she kept herself in a hollow shell, was not pleasing enough. She felt like she was going crazy here, where everyone looked at her like she was an insane person. Sarah didn't have any friends, she never talked to her family anymore, and a love life? She couldn't possibly have less of one! And now, here he was, the Goblin King of her dreams, offering her everything that she could ever have wanted in order to escape a life that she felt wasn't even worth living.

Sarah sighed. She really didn't want to give in to him, really, she didn't, but some offers you just can't refuse.

Slowly she reached out her hand to him, watching as his eyes danced with mischief. Some part of her screamed to stop, to not accept this Goblin King's offers, but she didn't listen. She was sick of this world, of its pain, of its disappointments. She may find troubles and obstacles in the Labyrinth, but at least she would have some help. At least she would not be alone.

Then in an instant, she had grabbed his hand, accepting all of his offers, accepting to come into his world once more. Suddenly, she felt her mind begin to swirl, and she was afraid that if it didn't stop soon, she might faint. But as soon as it had all begun, it ended. Just as quick as a blink of an eye, she was back in the land of dreams, standing in his castle again, just like four years ago.

It took a moment for everything to settle in, but once it did, she realized that she was still holding his hand. Immediately she let go and took a couple of steps back, not wanting to get too close.

Jareth turned around and faced her. "You're afraid."

Sarah's brow furrowed. "I am not scared, mind you. You are not the villain that you think you are. I may have been frightened before, but I was just a child then. Besides, the last time I was here, I was defeating you, in case you forgot."

Jareth smirked. "That's not what I was talking about, Sarah."

"Well then what – "

But Jareth had already turned away from her and had begun walking the other way. "Come this way, my pet. I'll show you to your room."

Sarah only shook her head absentmindedly. Fine, if he didn't want to say, then I won't push it.

But in the back of her mind, she was wondering what he had been talking about. If not her fear of the Labyrinth, then what?

She began to follow him down the corridor, looking this way and that. No matter how many times she saw the castle, it's wonder and beauty never ceased to amaze her. The castle was enormous on the inside, many rooms lining its walls, with many twisting pathways to boot. From the outside, however, it looked the same size as any normal castle would – tall, stone walls, rooks to each side, and an iron barred gate – but just like everything else in this world, that look of normality was deceiving.

As Sarah was glancing at the many doors that she passed, one in particular caught her eye, and she stopped to stare at it. It was a golden lined door, with tear-shaped leaves engraved on the trim, as well as swirling vines in the white door. Slowly she brought her hand up to the door and felt its trim, thinking that it reminded her of something, but she couldn't quite place a finger on it.

…bloody red…

…formed a grotesque face….

…limbs swinging wildly….

…twigs clawing and scratching at her face….

Sarah shuddered. She remembered it then, her dream. The tree, well, the nice tree at least, had its leaves carved into this gold, its braches placed onto the door. In all honesty, this peaked her curiosity even more, wondering what was behind this door and if it really would reveal any of her questions of the tree.

Just as she was about to open the door, however, a hand grasped her shoulder and pulled her away. Then she looked straight in Jareth's mismatched eyes, which were swirling with anger… or was that fear?

"Do not ever enter that room," he told her harshly. "You will not like what you find."

"I won't? How would you know?" she responded, rolling her eyes.

He shrugged. "I am just assuming that you don't want to get killed."

"That room… it kills people?"

"Not just people, Sarah. But Goblins and anything else stupid enough to enter it." He paused. "I am the only one who has ever survived entering into that room, and I barely even did that."

"But if this realm, this Labyrinth, is all yours, then why would that room almost kill you?"

"Some powers cannot be controlled," he said simply as he turned away from her and began to once more walk down the hallway.

"Come along now, love," he called back. "Your room awaits."

Giving one last glance back at the door, Sarah grudgingly continued onwards after Jareth, still wanting to enter that forbidden room. For some reason, whenever someone told her not to do something, Sarah wanted to do just the opposite. But she found this only to be normal, assuming that everyone did that, and that everyone else had the same amount of curiosity that she did. Also, she wondered if that room was just another one of the Goblin King's tricks in order to scare her. After all, wasn't that his game? To play on her fear?