Jareth had long contemplated returning to the Labyrinth, and Sarah's presence now gave him the strength to do so. Ever since Sarah had defeated the Labyrinth, it had been a place of contradictions for Jareth. It was the place where he had tested her, where she had fought against him and won. When Sarah looked at him now with an almost worried look, he knew that he could not simply return to the past. He had changed, and the Labyrinth was no longer just a place of power games. It no longer felt oppressive. Quite the opposite.
"Are you sure you're ready to go into the Labyrinth with me?" Jareth asked with a mischievous smile as they stood in front of the entrance.
Sarah nodded, and together they entered the winding corridors. Jareth felt as if he could finally breathe again.
"I've avoided the labyrinth for a long time," Jareth said quietly as they passed through the entrance together. "But now... with you by my side, it feels different."
Sarah looked around, a familiar tingling sensation running through her. "It feels kind of... strange," she murmured.
Jareth looked at her questioningly. "What do you mean?" he asked with a slight smile.
Sarah looked thoughtfully into the distance. "It feels like home, but also so foreign," she answered after a while.
Jareth smiled and led her gently through the winding corridors. Their conversations had a new depth, a connection that Sarah didn't quite understand yet. These corridors and corners were so familiar and yet foreign to both of them. Too much time had simply passed since Sarah had been here.
Suddenly they heard voices that seemed infinitely familiar to Sarah. They turned a corner and saw where the voices were coming from. There, under a shady tree, they sat: Hoggle, the small, always somewhat grumpy goblin, Sir Didymus, the fox terrier with his unshakable courage, and Ludo, the gentle giant.
Hoggle turned around as if he had noticed that they were being watched and opened his eyes wide.
"Sarah!" he called, and now Ludo and Sir Didymus turned to them too. "You're back!"
"SARAH... LUDO... FRIENDS!" grumbled Ludo, overjoyed to see his friend again.
"Oh Sarah, fair maiden. How lovely to see you again," said Sir Didymus and bowed.
All three were extremely happy to see their friend from back then and hugged her all at the same time. Sarah didn't know what to do with her arms and gently patted each of them on the back.
Jareth stood leaning against a wall and watched the reunion with great joy in his heart. Back then he hadn't liked Sarah's friends, but now that he was a different person, he liked that the friends were together again.
Hoggle looked over at Jareth and his expression changed.
"Jareth, you're here too," the goblin remarked with displeasure in his voice.
Jareth looked down at him. "That is indeed true, Higgle." He laughed.
"My name is Hoggle!" he shouted, earning another laugh from Jareth.
"I know that. I'm just teasing you. Since Sarah has been here, I've been a different man." Jareth looked at Sarah, who let Ludo pull her into a huge hug.
"LUDO HAPPY!" shouted Ludo and didn't want to let go of Sarah.
Sir Didymus stood next to him and tried to poke him in the leg with his small spear to make him finally let go of her. Sarah laughed so much that she got hiccups.
The day passed with lots of laughter, cheerful conversations and familiar moments. It was as if time had been turned back and they were revelling in their shared past, but with a whole new perspective. Jareth, although quiet and a little off to the side, looked at her joy and felt a strange pull in his chest. It was as if the memories of old times were coming to life.
In the evening, as dusk was approaching, Jareth carefully took Sarah's hand. She flinched back briefly. Jareth looked at her with a gentle look.
"Sarah. Come, I want to show you something." With these words, he took her hand again and led her out of the labyrinth, around the castle to a hidden part of his lands. It was a private area that only Jareth was allowed to enter.
A beautiful garden where the colours of the flowers glowed in the soft light of the lanterns. Here he had prepared a picnic for them, accompanied by soft music and a moment in which the rest of the world could disappear.
"I hope you like it. I wanted this day to be perfect for you," Jareth said with a smile and a slight nervousness in his voice. Sarah could see the seriousness in his eyes.
"It's only a picnic, but I thought it would be the perfect end to this day."
Sarah felt a warmth flood through her. "This is beautiful."
Jareth sat down next to her and looked at her with a look that said more than a thousand words. It was as if time stood still. Jareth and Sarah had time to really get to know each other for the first time. Jareth's heart was pounding in his chest the whole time, and Sarah still had some doubts. However, she could feel these slowly crumbling.
"Did I really misjudge him so much?" she thought as she watched him put some more salad on his plate. "He's so gentle and almost empathetic. This can't all be part of a plan of his. It feels so real. So honest."
Jareth came back to Sarah and saw her looking at him, lost in thought. He sat down and touched her shoulder lightly.
"Sarah. What are you thinking about?" he asked her, looking at her curiously.
Sarah flinched. She had been so deep in thought that his touch had truly frightened her. She had to take a deep breath to calm her heart again.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you," Jareth apologized with a playful smile.
Sarah looked at his face. He looked good. His two different eyes beamed at her like she had never seen before. His face was just perfect. Sarah scolded herself for thinking that. 'You're still sceptical, Sarah!' she thought. "But he's acting so different. I'm confused."
"Sarah?" Jareth could see that something was happening inside her and that she was lost in her thoughts again. He moved a little closer to her and carefully put his arm around her. Sarah was startled again and looked at Jareth.
"I'm still very confused, Jareth," she admitted.
He nodded and tucked a tangled strand of hair behind her ear with his other hand. Sarah trembled.
"I believe you, Sarah. You don't know what to think, do you?" Jareth tilted his head and looked deep into her eyes.
Sarah returned his gaze and just nodded.
"That's perfectly fine. But I told you everything. Everything that's going on inside me, what's bothering me and what you need to know. I hope that it helps to dispel your doubts about me. Because I notice that there's something else inside you too. But maybe that's just wishful thinking." He looked thoughtfully at the moon, which was high up in the sky.
Suddenly Sarah let out a loud burp. "Oh my God. I'm so sorry," she said, covering her mouth.
Jareth couldn't help himself and burst into loud laughter. After he had calmed down again, he said: "Well, Sarah, something like that from such a delicate person? I wouldn't have expected that." He was still giggling. "And it's okay. You don't have to apologize for it. You must have eaten a little too much and well, eh?"
Sarah held her stomach. "Yes. Quite a lot. I'm so full that I'm suddenly incredibly tired." She yawned.
Jareth leaned against a tree trunk. "Come here, Sarah." He motioned for her to lean against him. But Sarah hesitated.
"I won't bite." Jareth held out his hand to her and she hesitantly put hers in it. Jareth pulled her towards him and hugged her.
"Sleep well, Sarah. I'll just carry you to your room later."
After his words, Sarah closed her eyes and fell into his embrace. Jareth stroked her hair and blew a gentle kiss on her forehead.
"Sleep well, my love," he said and leaned his head against the tree trunk. He closed his eyes too and they both fell asleep.
