A/N: Thank you to everyone who takes the time to give my story a read, this is my first Labyrinth fanfiction, and I was nervous as all get out about posting it. There isn't going to a set schedule for me to upload the chapters as I have work and real-life issues to deal with.
A CRAZY RIDDLE FROM THE 2-HEADED GUARDS (hopefully it doesn't lead to certain death) for BexyLexi for the follow of the story! I was absolutely blown away to get that notification in my email!
[In reply about Chapter 21 from Guest 2021 on June 23rd, 2021: Hmmm, the stakes? I wonder…Thanks for the review.]
Please leave a review if you have time, I would love the feedback. And without further ado…
I do not own anything except any OC characters that I choose to add into the story. Thank you.
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XXII.
Hoggle's face immediately filled with concern. "A King's Tournament, 'ere? Whatcha go an' do a thing like dat for?"
"I haven't quite figured that out yet. But when I do, I'll let you know." She answered, not wanting to tell him that if everything didn't go according to plan as Jareth called it, then there would be disaster. Sarah looked back up at Hoggle and gave him a soft smile. "But enough about me, how are Sir Didymus and Ludo?" She asked.
Hoggle sighed, knowing that there was probably more to it than what Sarah was choosing to tell him, but he didn't push. "They are good. The fox an' I still play chess as much as we are able ta meet up. My job 'ere and his adventures keep us both busy." He replied.
Sarah was about to speak again when Jareth's voice interrupted. "Sarah, let Hogshead get back to his work, there is more of the garden that I want to show you." He said, standing up slowly.
Sarah nodded, almost afraid to question whether he was ready to be moving around already. Though it seemed that he stopped sweating and didn't have a tense facial expression. She hugged Hoggle one more time before she stood up.
"Take care of yerself, girlie. Ya hear me?" Hoggle asked.
"I will. Hopefully, we can spend more time together later, maybe before the tournament starts." Sarah replied before walking back over to Jareth, who had extended his arm.
Sarah intertwined her arm with his and as he led them through the opening opposite of the one Hoggle had entered from. Sarah marveled at the number of flowers that covered the ground. The only room to walk was along the handmade stone path. She took a side glance at Jareth as they walked and as she did so, Sarah noticed that Jareth was glancing at her also. When their eyes met, she shifted her gaze away quickly.
Jareth chuckled softly and gave Sarah's arm a gentle squeeze.
Sarah returned his squeeze with a soft squeeze of her own on his arm. As she surveyed the garden, she noticed that in the new section that they had ventured into, there was a strangely familiar statue of a woman in the corner, near the hedges. The stone path veered towards the statue and Jareth let Sarah lead them to it. Sarah noticed that the woman was young, maybe in her teens, and the stone that the woman was etched out of looked fairly spotless, as though it was cleaned regularly. Sarah released her arm from Jareth's and reached out her hand to touch the statue. As Sarah studied the woman, let her gaze travel down and noticed that the woman was wearing a loose-fitting shirt of some kind with a vest, that melded into a pair of pants that looked awfully like jeans. When her gaze reached the base of the statue, there was a plaque that gleamed in the mid-morning sun. As Sarah read it, her eyes went wide, and she gasped.
For the Champion of the Labyrinth
For Your Kingdom is as Great
Sarah's Garden.
Sarah pulled her hand back as though she had been burned and her gaze flew up to Jareth's, who was giving her a sheepish look.
"As you can now gather, the runner who the Labyrinth chose to make a tribute garden for, is you, Sarah." He gave her a half-smile as he spoke, "You must have impressed the Labyrinth, for they are not easily enthralled." Jareth finished.
"But why?! I didn't do anything special. I just wanted my brother back." Sarah said, still flabbergasted at the statue.
"It seems to the Labyrinth that you are special to them. To best it and I is not so simple a feat." He remarked, "If it were that simple, there would be more champions. But there are not. You, Sarah, are the only one in the whole of my 2,000 years as King, that have beaten both myself and the Labyrinth." Jareth finished; his half-smile having melted into a grin.
Sarah wasn't sure what to make of the garden, the statue and weird fascination that the Labyrinth had with herself.
Jareth offered his arm to Sarah again. "Come. There is more to show you if you like?" He asked.
Sarah nodded and wrapped her arm back around Jareth's. "I guess that would be okay." She replied, as she let Jareth lead her through the next opening. As they passed through the archway, Sarah gasped again as her eyes were met with a wonderous sight. This area was almost like that last two, but twice as large. And Sarah realized why. In the middle of the hedge walls and flower patches was a huge gazebo, with winding and twisting rose vines covering the lattice work of branches along the walls and roof. It was made out of some type of tree that seemed to have grown directly out of the ground and shaped itself.
Jareth released Sarah's arm as she started walking towards it. He hoped that she would love this place as it was also his favorite place in the garden.
As Sarah entered through the archway of the gazebo, she noticed that there was plenty of room to move around. She also noticed that to the back of the gazebo, near a curved opening that let the viewer look out onto the garden, had a roughhewn table and chairs that seemed to be made out of the same treelike wood that grew straight out of the ground like the rest of the structure. The chairs were placed at a reasonable distance from the table and when Sarah sat in one of them, she noticed that she was close enough to be able to eat or drink comfortably if she were to have a meal out here.
Jareth leaned against the archway of the gazebo as he watched Sarah's expressions as she took in the beauty of the whole place. She was just as picturesque as the garden itself, was what he thought as he stared at her longingly.
Sarah ran her hands softly along the edges of the table and could somehow feel that the whole place was alive. Sarah looked up at Jareth and was perplexed at the look in his eyes. "Are you alright? Do you need to rest again?" She asked, concerned.
Jareth stood up straighter as Sarah's voice pulled him back to reality, "I am well." He said, flashing her a smile. "I assume that you are pleased with the garden?" He asked.
Sarah smiled back, "I'm glad you took the time to show it to me. It will definitely be my new favorite spot to visit while I'm here." She replied.
Jareth gestured a hand to encompass the area, "You may frequent as much as you like, since it is your namesake, after all." He said, his smile morphing into a smirk.
Sarah laughed, it sounded hearty, but gentle at the same time. She hadn't laughed like that in a long time.
Jareth's heart warmed at the sound of Sarah's laughter, and he didn't want her to stop. His smirk melted into a wide grin, and began to laugh himself, since her laughter was so infectious.
As their laughter started to diminish, from where Sarah was sitting, she noticed a familiar face walking hurriedly up the stone path towards them in the gazebo. It was one of the male servants that was in the dining room last night.
Jareth followed Sarah's gaze as he heard the steps behind him as his face changed into a more serious, kingly expression.
The man stopped in front of Jareth and leaned over to take a breath, and Jareth could tell that he had been running. "Your Majesty…" The man tried to say.
"Take a breath, Nathaniel." Jareth replied, crossing his arms.
The man took a few more deep breaths before he stood back up, standing straight as he could. He had short blonde hair and brown eyes. His clothes were the greenish brown shirt and pants outfit that Sarah had seen the night before during dinner, but without the apron. "Your Majesty, I'm here to inform you that the council has requested your presence for an impromptu meeting." He said, as calm as he could while still out of breath.
Jareth tensed and asked tersely, "Now?"
Nathaniel nodded, his facial expression tense, almost afraid.
Jareth groaned and sighed deeply. "Fine." He turned to Sarah, "I apologize, but Kingly duties call, will you be alright for a time? I can send Hedgewart to come keep you company?" He offered.
Sarah shook her head, "It's Hoggle. And I will be okay. I'm going to stay here to enjoy the fresh air for a while. Anything is better than being stuck in that room." She replied, giving him a soft smile.
Jareth nodded, "But should you need me?" He asked.
Sarah gave him a knowing look, "I'll call." She replied.
Jareth gave Sarah a short bow, which Nathaniel mirrored, although his was a tad lower than Jareth's, out of respect. Jareth then gestured to Nathaniel who turned, and they both made their way back towards the opening that Nathaniel had come through.
Sarah turned back towards the window-like opening and stared out at the garden. It was relaxing, the fragrance of the flowers that rode the soft, billowing breeze that drifted through while ruffling her hair, Sarah was at peace here. She placed her head on her arms and let her thoughts drift as she watched the breeze ripple through the flowers, making them dance.