Disclaimer: I don t own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.
Jareth leisurely paced his throne room, his eye fixed intensely upon the figure that was visible within the crystal ball he held. He watched as Sarah's daughter ran through the Labyrinth, moving as swiftly as she was able, unharmed and without complication. She was frightened to be certain, every movement she made, every expression told him so. Though she did not know where to turn or what to do she had surprisingly found her way easily through the many twist and curves; almost as if she had been there before.
With a soft sigh he watched her gain more ground, coming closer and closer to where he stood within the castle. Moving slowly he took a seat, making the crystal he held vanish with a simple twist of his wrist. Crossing his legs he waited for her to arrive, opting not to toy with her as he had her mother. He could not explain why he did not, he had brought her into the Underworld, but something in him was lost. It had been years since his defeat by Sarah. Even though it was well over twenty years ago he still felt the effects of it daily, saw the reminders, and relived the horror in many waking nightmares. Of course he told no one and continued on in his own way, but in some ways he was no longer himself, in some ways he was more of his namesake than even he realized.
She ran as fast as she could, up stairs, down pathways. She climbed and looked for signs of the castle as she made her way deeper into the Labyrinth. She had read the book as a child, several times over after finding it among some old boxes. Her mother had allowed her to do so but eventually the book disappeared. She had never been told how to get through the Labyrinth of course but somehow she knew, somehow she made the right turn and when she was lost the way was found easily. She could not recall her mother saying it was easy, in fact her mother had had help and had said it was hard. Stopping to catch her breath briefly she looked around. She needed to choose a direction but it was the fact that she felt as if she were being watched that made her stop and look for someone. The feeling she got was not a bad one, in fact it was almost like a parents eyes upon her, not those of an enemy. Clearing her throat she stood a little straighter, wondering if someone were truly there.
"Hello? Is anyone there...?" Feeling the ground beneath her start to shake and seeing the wall before her start to grow taller she started moving again. In her right mind she would never move this quickly, of her own accord, anywhere. It was almost as if she were being driven by someone or something. She wanted to find her way quickly but running the whole time was not her most favored choice of speeds. The Labyrinth itself was alive. She knew and had felt it from the moment of her arrival. In some respects she wondered if it was the one driving her, helping her find her way. That would be contrary to what its purpose was of course so dwelling on such a notion was silly. She had a feeling she was simply moving the right way as it changed and avoiding its traps by going the way it blocked in another fashion. Picking up speed again she came within view of the castle, now atop the hill outside its gates. It was quiet within the city and looked vacant, dinner time probably. The gates were not open and she remembered her mother s tail of the large guardian. She needed a way in or around, she could not fight such a thing on her own. Moving down the hill at a slide, the dirt and loose rocks aiding her decent she came to a stop slowly. As if her mother had been here only a few moments before she found that the guardian lay in ruins. In fact as she passed through the gates the city looked much the same as her mother had described it to her. There were rocks everywhere and pieces of armor and cannon balls. There were holes in walls and collapsed houses. AS she passed the many dwellings she saw no one, where had all the goblins gone?
Coming to the bridge that lead into the castle she turned and looked around, having a much better view of the Labyrinth from where she now stood. What was going on, surely things would have been repaired by now? The goblins she thought would still be in charge of helping hide and defend their king from intruders but there was no sign of them. Something was wrong in this place and as she ran towards the castle she thought about her first moments with Jareth.
She had been asleep, her window open to let the cool night air in. He appeared at first as an owl, landing upon her window sill, hooting her awake. She had rolled over and jumped for in a moment the owl she saw melded into the form of a man, sitting comfortably upon the ledge of her open window.
"Who, who are you?" She had sat up, pulling her covers around her, backing against the wall. He had watched her like a cat, holding her spell bound. When he moved it was straight towards her, onto the bed, reaching out with a crystal ball in hand.
"Why I am the Goblin King, sent to take you away..." She glanced into the ball and in a moment found herself standing outside the Labyrinth, next to the clock, the castle in view, the gates locked. "You have thirteen hours my dear to solve the Labyrinth, if not you shall stay here forever."
"But...wait!" He had walked away and vanished. That was all she had seen of him since her arrival, the fading form of his backside.
Shaking her head she ran into the keep of his castle, not stopping as she made her way across despite the possibility of an ambush. She headed for what she hoped was the throne room. He had held her captive long enough, taken her away, made her run his Labyrinth, she was ready to go home and he would know it soon enough.
Even without his crystal ball he could feel her approach and just as suddenly as she had mounted the hill any bypassed the gate with his last look into that ball moment before, she was throwing open the doors to his thrown room, anger and weariness in her every feature.
"Ah, so you have arrived at last my dear. I was beginning to wonder if you would make it through in time." He smirked at her, relaxing more comfortably in his uncomfortable stone chair. Even though it was padded he could still feel the cold, hard surface through the layers of material.
"What the hell were you thinking? I'm not my mother! I did not wish anyone away!" His smirk diminished as she yelled at him, berating him as if he were no more than a child. He stood, straightening himself, filling the room with his presence. Despite his annoyance at her lack of kind he controlled himself, making his voice sound amused.
"My dear you speak of me as if I am the devil himself. I am no such a person, though I can come close." He raised his brows quickly with a soft smirk, watching her closely. "And besides it was your friends who wished you away not me." His annoyance slipped through with his last few words and he was rather annoyed that she would take her anger out on him when he only did as he always had, or so she thought anyway. He moved nearer, stalking around her like a very large cat, or perhaps in his case a peacock. She watched him as he watched her and followed his movements with her eyes and head. When she spoke she was calmer but the anger still laced her speech.
"I don't care who wished me away. I never wanted to be here in the first place!" She turned to face him abruptly as he moved around behind her. "And I know you know that. You knew it when you brought me here! I called after you for almost any hour on that hill, telling you as much and I know you heard me." She was beyond mad, she was furious but Jareth just watched her with a smirk upon his face.
"Never wanted to be here, well, well that is a notion. Very few who come here wish to be here but they come none the less for one reason or another. Though I must say that most are not nearly as ignorant as you by the time they get to me, they have usually learned a thing or two. Perhaps my dear I should send you back out there, hmm? I think there is still much for you to discover within my world."
She gaped at him, unable to believe what she was hearing. He honestly wanted to send her back out into that maze, where she knew no one, had nothing and was forced to run to outrun the changing Labyrinth itself. She shook her head, fear creeping into her mind, afraid he would do it.
Jareth's smirk only broadened as he read her mind without her knowing he was. "Are you afraid of returning to my Labyrinth? You're mother wasn't nearly as sorry as you." His voice trembled with sensuality and cruelty in that moment, even he could tell. It tasted almost sweat to him if tones could be considered so. Her mother had hurt him, deeply. He had offered her the world for only her freedom and even that he would not have taken completely. As he gazed at the girl before him only a glare greeted him, but then she spoke, control trembling in every syllable. He could not tell if she was going to cry or lash out at him again.
"No. I do not want to return to YOUR Labyrinth. I want to go home. NOW!" She was strong willed and determined, of that he was certain, but she lacked true courage and sprit, the two things Sarah had.
"All right... He said slowly, watching a smile cross her face as she relaxed in relief of his statement. She thought she had won and would be sent home. "but..." He grinned as she went ridged, her eyes narrowing. "only if...you can guess why you were brought here..." He watched as her anger turned to pure bewilderment. He chuckled a little more heartily than he shouldn't have but did so all the same.
"Why are you laughing! I don't understand. What do you mean? How could I know why I was brought here? My mother s book was- I lost it when we moved. I haven t seen it since I packed." Her mother s book, he laughed harder. The foolish girl actually thought it was the only copy, the only thing that could inform someone. He was tickled about the whole situation. Other books existed, the same in fact, but also oral tales. He stepped back from her, bracing himself against the side of his throne. Once his fit subsided he straightened again, becoming more serious as the clock chimed behind them. This made her turn around. "Answer me, how could I know such a thing?"
"I'm afraid I cannot help you there. You should know though that your mother s book may have disappeared but it is not the only copy and she is not the only one to know the tale or the words." He knew she could figure everything out on her own without the book or anything else but she needed time and it was something she did not have much of. If she thought to long she would be his, for all time. He pushed the thought aside though and smirked, quiet cruelly. "You only have an hour left, I suggest you use it wisely, think very hard." With a chuckle he disappeared in a flash of glitter and light.
She stood there for a few moments, dumfounded. She felt foolish, thinking her mothers book was the only copy but she had never seen it elsewhere and who on earth would believe the tale anyway if they'd never been to the Labyrinth before. It was like a dream, perhaps it was. Her mother had told her that it was very dream like, even more so once she returned home. A dream, if only it were so, if it were perhaps she could enjoy herself but she knew it was quiet real. He was real and very much alive, testing and tricking her, making her play his game. She knew he played to win, to keep her here forever if he could. Her end though was far less, merely to go home. While she thought of home she thought back to seeing him there in the window. She had thought he was a dream, his features masked in shadow, his eyes bright and even though the light had been dim his features were handsome. She had thought her waking dream real, that she had found at last the one who would make her feel whole and wanted. Most boys ignored her, opting instead for the more made up girls who prized fashion and gossip over a good book and comfortable clothes, girls who showed off instead of being themselves. Sighing she moved to a large arched window. It was covered with dirt and debris. Brushing it off, she made a disgusted face, wiping her hand on her jeans once she was done. "Disgusting." She muttered aloud to no one but herself.
Leaning back against the side of the deep inset window she looked out, watching the Labyrinth move before her. Who had wished her away and why? She had only a couple good friends, very close ones but none of them would have reason to send her away. Heck none of them even knew the tale by her knowledge. Who else in the small town would know and for that matter even implement such a far fetched idea. Glancing at the clock she looked quickly away, ten minutes had passed; her time was slowly slipping away from her. Reaching out she started to trace names into the dirt that covered the wall, crossing them off as she found reasons why they would not send her away or know the tail. All the while she never noticed that Jareth still watched her, invisible in the shadows, tracking her every move.
"My lord?" He looked sharply to his right, a small girl standing before him.
"What is it?" The girl did not seem to mind his curt words or even that he glared. She was clad in a simple pale blue gown; her blonde hair braided back, green eyes bright with laughter.
"Would you like some refreshment while you wait? You have not eaten since yesterday noon."
"No I am fine, leave us. I will call if I have need of anything." The girl nodded and disappeared, leaving no trace of herself in the room. His attention went back to the other who inhabited the space, Sarah's daughter. She was intelligent that he knew but she was also foolish and quick tongued, often speaking before thinking. She had a lot to learn, that was clear to him, perhaps his choice had been wrong but there was no going back. He would not make himself appear the fool in any regard; his kingdom was already weak enough.
His kingdom, he looked out the window watching the Labyrinth, it had changed over the years, twisted and dark in many more ways now. It had gained new traps, tricks, and creatures, much of the beauty it had had in certain pockets were gone for visitors. Those remaining were solely for him. He knew it changed because he changed, because he let things go in his defeat but he had no intention of changing back. The old ways gave him little pleasure, few things did anymore. Sarah had destroyed him and in turn destroyed his world. He was brought from his mind as a voice uttered his name.
"..Jareth..." He shook his head looking at the girl but she did not speak. "Jareth..." He looked out the window and knew instantly who called. "..my king...
"What do you want? Are you not content to live as you always have?" He moved to the other window, standing before it, gazing out.
"..return the girl, you have broken the rule, she cannot stay here, you cannot keep that which is not yours...consequences..."
"I care not...I want the girl. She will be mine, even if it breaks the rules. I am king am I not? This is my domain, I make the rules now..."
"...no...the rules are -" But the voice disappeared as another took its place.
"Jareth... She uttered his name a bare whisper and his attention was brought back to the present. He smirked, so she was ready.
She had no idea why she had said his name but it had slipped out, a bare whisper, a notion, an idea. The truth was that no one she knew or who knew her would have sent her away, only one option remained, no one had. If that were true he had taken her away without cause. She had to find out. Almost as if he had been waiting he appeared before.
"You called my dear?" She looked up at him.
"Yes. I have thought about things and have realized that you lied to me. No one wished me away. You-" He cut her off by placing his fingers to her lips softly.
"Now, now, do not rush to conclusions my dear." But she jerked away from his touch, standing; her body only a small distance from his own. She could feel his body heat radiating into her own cold figure, the stone having sapped away much of her heat for its own.
"I'm not. It s clear to me that you lied, that no one wished me away. You brought me here on your own." He chuckled and smiled but it was not a happy smile. She had figured it out much sooner than he would have liked. He would have preferred keeping her in the dark.
"Yes...I did." He watched her closely, could see her mind work, and even hear some of her thoughts. Her anger did not surprise him, her mother had been quick to anger and frustrate at the slightest of annoyances. He was not surprised that her daughter was the same. "But it matters not, you still have not discerned why you were brought here and that my dear is what you must tell me, regardless of who sent you away."
"You cannot send me away only bring me, do not try and twist this around to make it not your fault. You stole me and brought me here of your own will. Why! What in the world possessed you? I am not some child who was wished away by a sibling or even a daughter or son who had an angry parent. I am not one of your game pieces and I'm not going to play this game of he said, she said with you. Now tell me why. You cannot keep me here over such a deal, only you know why you brought me here, there is nothing I have done to merit it. It is unfair and wrong."
"My dear what in life is fair. Besides I-" but he stopped suddenly, cut short by someone calling him. "I must go now but I will return. We will continue this conversation then." As he disappeared the clock on the wall stopped ticking, stuck at 12:52. She glared at it and huffed, collapsing down in the seat she had held before. She would be stuck waiting, mulling over the possible reasons in her mind. What would possess him to bring her here of his own volition. It wasn't right.
Chapter revised and updated 7/21/11. Please enjoy the changes and please review! The rest of the chapters will follow in due time.