*AnimeRANDOMNESS is leaning against the door to her room, trying to keep all the raging fans outside* WAAAAAAAH! Why did all of you think I killed off Jareth?! I didn't kill him off! He still has an hour to live! *an axe chops through her door, just as the crowd starts chanting for her blood*

Angry Mob *clutching Sareth pictures* : KILL THE MURDERER! KILL THE CLIFFHANGER-WRITER! OFF WITH HER HEAD!

NOOOOOOOOO! *tosses fanfiction at the crowd* Here! Read this chapter! JUST DON'T HURT ME!!! And, if it isn't too much to ask, could you maybe review…?

*a chainsaw slices through the wood an inch above her head*

OK, IT'S OPTIONAL! IT'S OPTIONAL!!!

In the middle of the Goblin City, in the basement of a small house by the well, there was a goblin bed with a sleeping stone goblin inside of it. It was under this that Leija had hidden herself. The gnome girl had been unwilling to leave her lord's side, especially when danger was drawing near, but there was nothing she could do to help; Leija had no weapon, no spells, and little strength, and she knew she would end up putting them in further danger if they had to protect her as well as themselves. So she had obeyed Jareth's command, and hidden in the house. But she had been at the window, silently watching over her comrades.

She had seen her lord use his last spell to save the girl he loved, and crumple to the ground. She had seen the trolls capture Hoggle and Turnok, and drag them and the Goblin King inside the castle.

Now, she hid under the bed, her small body wracked in silent sobs. Jareth…he had been so kind to her, so protective. He had treated her like they had been siblings from birth. And now her brother, her lord, her friend, was at the mercy of his most hated enemy, and she could do nothing.

Leija cringed as a pair of armored hooves rumbled past her hiding spot. Goblins would have given up trying to find her long ago, but the trolls were relentless. They wouldn't give up until they found her. Another set of troll feet walked over and stood beside the bed, sniffing. The gnome girl held her breath.

Suddenly, a yell shattered the quiet. The trolls let out surprised growls, and ran to the other side of the room, where the sound of metal striking against metal echoed. There was a howl, and a loud thud; a troll had been defeated.

"Come at me, knave!" An unfamiliar voice shouted, "Taste defeat at my paw!"

A few moments later, another crash came, followed by a victorious whoop. Leija let out a small sigh of relief. Within seconds, a fox-like head forced itself into the small crevice.

"Fair maiden!" He cried, sounding astonished, "Why art thou under the bed? That is no place for a lady!"

He extended a paw, which Leija gratefully took, and pulled herself out, dusting the cobwebs from her dress. The fox-liked head belonged to a fox-like body, clothed in a rather ill-fitting suit of goblin armor, and wielding a fencing sword.

"I was hiding from those trolls," She said, a bit taken aback by her rescuer, "You saved my life!"

"Twas a pleasure, mi'lady!" He responded, bowing with a flourish, "Chivalry runs in the blood of all knights!"

Leija blinked in surprise, and suddenly remembered something that Hoggle had said about one of his friends. A fox-knight. She slowly asked, "Is your name…Sir Didymus by any chance?"

Edorin's icy glare sent shivers down the spine of his general, who stood fearfully before him.

"You haven't found that gnome yet?" He asked, dragging his nails over the throne's stone armrest.

"Not yet, my Lord. But we will. My men are combing the city for her," his subordinate hastily assured.

"And the mortal…?"

The troll flinched, and answered slowly,

"My men…they said that she disappeared…in a flash of light."

Rage flared in the Troll Lord's unnaturally blue eyes. He rose to his feet and waved his hand, sending a large pillar into the air. The troll's red eyes widened. Without a word, the Troll Lord flicked his wrist, and the enormous structure crashed to the ground, crushing his subordinate beneath it.

Edorin turned his gaze to the horrified guards standing at the door.

"You," He said coldly, pointing to one, "Go tell the Lieutenant; send out all but the most essential guards. The gnome must be apprehended before she gets back into the Labyrinth."

He motioned to the broken pillar, where the dead troll was already evaporating into black smoke.

"And get this…mess…cleaned up. The captain outlived his usefulness. Do not make the same mistake."

The pair saluted him stiffly, and all but sprinted into the hall to carry out his orders. Edorin waited until the door closed before he turned his attention to his prisoner.

Jareth was chained to the ceiling, dangling from his shackles. He lifted his head weakly as the Troll Lord approached. His mismatched eyes stared defiantly back at his adversary's piercing blue ones.

"I see you are awake," Edorin said, noticing with some satisfaction the anger on his face, "You are handling the irony of being held prisoner in your old throne room rather well, it seems."

"I'd be handling it a lot better," The Goblin King said, hatred lacing his voice, "If my magic wasn't hanging round your throat."

A smirk played on the Troll Lord's lips as he fingered the glowing ruby pendant he wore.

"You noticed. How perceptive. I don't care for jewelry, but I had to seal your power into something, and I thought it appropriate."

"It doesn't suit you at all," Jareth sneered, shifting against his bonds, "Something simple and ugly would fit you better. Like, say, a dog collar."

Edorin frowned deeply.

"So you're insolent even while you are dying…"

Jareth's eyes flew open in shock.

"How did you…?!"

He was interrupted by the Troll Lord, who had grabbed his jaw and twisted it upward, making him grit his teeth in pain.

"The mortal girl," The raven-haired Fae said icily, digging his nails into Jareth's skin, "You used your last spell on her. Where did you send her?"

"Far…beyond…your reach," He choked out.

Edorin regarded him for a few moments, and let go, making the Goblin King gasp and cough.

"You sent her back to the Aboveground, didn't you?" The Troll Lord said in disgust, "To have wasted the last of your magic – your very life blood – to rescue that human! Your obsession has made you take leave of your senses."

"It was worth it," Jareth breathed, closing his eyes, "You could never understand."

Edorin's face remained emotionless. But his malicious eyes flashed in fury, enraged by what he saw as an insult. He reached up and seized his rebellious captive's left arm, squeezing his wounded flesh just hard enough to get him to cry out.

"Your arrogance grows tiring, Jareth," He hissed into his ear, "It would serve you well if I killed you right now. But nothing would be gained from it."

The Troll Lord relinquished his grasp. Regaining his usually indifferent composure, he returned to the throne.

"As it happens," He said, "I have resigned to let nature take its course. I am exceedingly interested to see what becomes of a Fae who loses his magic. No doubt the process has already begun."

In truth, it had. Jareth could already feel his strength steadily ebbing away, like sand in an hourglass. The only thing that kept him on his feet was the shackles that bound him. The dull throbbing in his chest was spreading; with each moment that passed, it was becoming more and more painful to breathe.

Sarah…

The Goblin King closed his eyes. He would still die alone, but at least she would live. And that was all that mattered.

Sarah sat against her the wall of her bedroom, staring blankly ahead. She didn't understand. She didn't understand at all.

She remembered what he had said, their last words the first time. He had promised her everything she had ever wanted, if only she would stay. She had thought it was all a lie. Another Labyrinth trick. But it hadn't been.

"You meant it," The girl whispered, another tear running down her cheek.

You have no power over me.

It must have sounded so heartless, those words. So cruel. Even as much as he had put her through, she hadn't meant to hurt him. She just wanted her brother back. So when the Muse had said that Jareth's heart had been broken…

It was me, Sarah realized, I was the one who had broken it. I'm the reason his powers were stolen. I'm the reason he is going to die.

"It's my fault. It's all my fault!" She cried, burying her face in her knees once more.

Memories began to flood her thoughts. Their dance together in her Masquerade dream. When Jareth had caught her hand, and told her not to let go. The pain on his face when he had said that she could have acted like it was a hard decision. His kind smile when he handed her the peach. The way his eyes had stared deeply into her own, ever searching for a sign that his affection was shared...

I can't let him die.

The thought suddenly cleared her mind, forcing back all the guilt and sorrow. She couldn't, not when she had finally learned the truth. Not when she had finally realized how much he truly meant to her.

Sarah looked down at herself. Was this how she really was? That when the chips were down, she just curled up in a corner and cried? That was the old Sarah; the self-centered, complaining, weak Sarah. But she wasn't like that anymore. Her friends needed her. The Labyrinth needed her.

And she was not going to sit there and do nothing.

Sarah pulled herself to her feet, angrily rubbing the tears from her eyes. I can't let him die, she repeated to herself. I can't. I won't.

"There has to be a way," The girl murmured, furrowing her brow, "Just like the openings in the Labyrinth. I just have to find it."

She again placed her hands on her mirror, sliding them over its cool surface. No, the portal was still shut.

But it had been open before. And if it could be closed, reason led that it could be re-opened.

Maybe I can force my way through, Sarah thought, pressing harder against the glass, Like kicking down a door.

So the girl pressed as hard as she could against the mirror. She put all her weight against it and shoved and shoved until she was afraid the mirror would start to crack. But it still remained solid.

"Open, damn you!" Sarah cried out in frustration. She rammed the bottom of her fist against it.

She could have sworn a faint, barely discernible ripple traveled over the mirror. But when she blinked, the mirror remained still and firm.

"Did…did I do that?" Sarah asked her reflection.

Had she actually willed the mirror to move? Resting a palm on the glass's surface, she concentrated.

Open, She thought desperately, Open, open, open…

There it was again. Another ripple, this time a tiny bit larger. She was making it move. But how? She was just a regular human. She didn't have any magic.

Did she?

The Muse's words floated back across her memory.

Magic comes from the heart, and a strong heart is a dangerous thing, indeed.

"A strong heart," the girl whispered in awe, placing her other hand over her chest. Yes, that was one thing she did have. Ludo, Didymus, Hoggle...even Leija and Turnok…they had helped her grow, helped her become brave. But Jareth had done the most; he had loved her, loved her so much he was willing to die for her.

And now, knowing that they needed her…that he needed her…her heart surged with a strength she had never before known.

She wasn't going to let some piece of glass stand in her way.

Sarah glared fiercely into the mirror, and began to speak the words that had given her so much power before.

"Through dangers untold," She said firmly, her voice swelling with authority, "And trials unnumbered, I have fought my way here…for my will is as strong as yours, and my kingdom is great…"

Another ripple troubled the surface of the glass. The girl stared intently into the hazel eyes looking back at her, addressing not her reflection, but the frightened, selfish girl she had been.

"…YOU HAVE NO POWER OVER ME!" She shouted.

The mirror swelled and burst, as if it were not glass at all, but a broken dam. Magic flooded over her, pouring over her senses, washing away her bedroom completely. The next thing she knew, she was flying in the sea of swirling magic. The green electricity of before began to hiss and crackle on her arms, searing her skin. Edorin's barrier spell was still there.

Sarah closed her eyes, trying to ignore the shocks, choosing instead to focus on the castle. She didn't have time to land anywhere else. To have a chance at saving Jareth, she had to emerge in the castle.

Invisible obstacles were smashing against her, trying to block her from proceeding. But she didn't care. She let them hit her, forcing her way through the painful assault. Just after the worst of the battering hit, the girl felt her feet strike something hard. She opened her eyes.

She was standing in a cavernous room filled with pillars and tapestries, and immediately recognized it as the entrance hall of the castle. Sarah took a deep breath, clenched her hands into fists, and began to run.

She only had thirty-eight minutes.

I'm coming, Jareth…please hold on.