Through the maze

In his thrown room, Jareth sat eating and contemplating his next move.
‘Sarah can be so stubborn. Even if I win it won’t be so easy to make her marry me.’ As he ate, his thoughts took him to different place. To be precise, the park when he first saw Sarah. She was such a young, slender and pretty thing as she immersed herself in her acting. Even then this slip of a girl interested him with her fascination of fantasy and the surreal, especially when she didn’t cower or scream when he entered her brother’s bedroom 5 years ago, right after she had wished Toby away. She was, quite possibly the only person he could stand for all eternity. She hadn’t cowered before his temper, and wasn’t afraid to say what she thought of him. It was quite refreshing when you rule a mass of pathetic goblins.

Now, how to convince her to marry him when she didn’t even seem to trust him. He gazed out the window and when his eyes fell on the peach tree in the garden and it hit him.
‘Brilliant. Lets see what Sarah does and then I’ll know exactly how deep her trust for me runs.’ With a quick hand motion he pulled a peach from thin air. “I hope you are ready, my darling Sarah”, and then he was gone.
*******


Five hours was enough all right, enough to make Sarah good and mad.
“Who the hell does he think he is??? He thinks he can just poof back into my life and force me into marrying him? Arrogant jerk! Ugh, wait till I get my hands on him….

She looked at her watch. Damn, barely six hours were left. Sarah was about to scream for Jareth to come and “poof” her out of the oubliette when said person appeared right behind her.

“Miss me?” he asked in her ear. Sarah shivered. ‘That tickles.’ He wrapped his arms around her and she frowned. ‘Great, he’s going to make this difficult.’

“No, now let me go.” He was kissing down her neck and Sarah was finding it increasingly difficult to concentrate.

He mumbled against her neck, “Now why would I want to do a thing like that?”

‘What had she been trying to say? Something about marriage….and Jareth….OH!’
Sarah wiggled out of Jareth’s grasp. “I’m going to beat your Labyrinth Jareth, and you said you would get me out of here in 5 hours, and the time is up.” Her voice sounded breathy, and she couldn’t believe he could distract her so easily.

Jareth crossed his arms and waved a hand indifferently. “One way or another Sarah, you’ll realize that you were meant to be my queen.”

All Sarah could do was stare and finally she said, “Get me out of here, Jareth.”

“Fine, but won’t you take the gift I brought you, I’m sure you must be hungry after all this time in the oubliette.” Jareth pulled the peach out of a pocket in his jacket and tossed it to her.

Sarah looked at it and turned it over in her hands before looking at him in disbelief. “Do you honestly think I’ll fall for this trick again?”

“No, unlike the peach Hoghead gave you, this one doesn’t cause sleep or hallucination.” he said amusedly.

Sarah looked at it uneasily and Jareth smirked as she said, “I might eat it later."
'As in like, a million years later.' She put it in her purse, a small beaded bag she had carried for the opening night of her play. It was pointless to carry a purse in Labyrinth, but it had been her grandmother's and it had too much sentimental value, so she slung it across her chest and kept it safe.
Suddenly she had a mental picture of herself talking to Jareth in front of the Labyrinth saying "I know your forcing me to marry you if I don’t get through this thing, but could you watch my purse for me, pretty please?"

Jareth didn't know what was so amusing, but he took her hand and they vanished.
******

Jareth left a disappointed Sarah in the hedge maze. ‘He didn't kiss me goodbye....GAH! What do I care, I'm just trying to get out of here.

‘Right?’
She stopped and looked at her surroundings, and none of it looked familiar. The beautiful shrubbery that lined the path and formed the walls was dead. A gust blew through and dried leaves went everywhere.
Sarah shivered, ‘maybe this isn’t the best way.’ Turning around, she found a wall formed by the dead, twisted branches of the flora. ‘Damn, only one way now.’ The path soon ended at a door wedged in the bushes. Sarah couldn’t see where it led to, but upon further inspection she found an inscription along the edges of the door.

It read “Through this door lies the hall of mirrors that reflect the hearts deepest fears. The traveler will find his chosen destination lying at the end.”

‘Sounds like a cheesy funhouse.’ she thought dryly. ‘But the last line…. does that means it will take me to the castle?’ And without a second thought she opened the door and stepped in.
**********

Worry clutched Jareth’s chest as he watched Sarah step inside, and then all went black and the crystal showed no more.