The white owl stood on
the branch of the nearby tree, unnoticed, looking intently
at the beautiful young woman and her friends through the opened
window. He knew they were celebrating the girl's triumph...
and his defeat. But did they not know that they were celebrating
his death, as dead he would be without her? In that moment,
a soft wind blew, bringing the whispers of her sweet laughter
to his ears... a sound he knew she would never share with
him. Forcing himself to calm down, the owl tilted his head
and remained there, just watching. Ten minutes later, not
being able to stand the happy scene taking place before him;
he beat his wings and flew away, leaving a part of himself
behind... his broken heart.
The owl continued his lonely flight, never looking back,
until he reached his destination... the castle beyond the
Goblin City... and the Labyrinth... His kingdom...
In order to avoid the goblins -and their stupid questions-
Jareth entered directly into his private chamber and recovered
his human form. With a sigh, he changed into more comfortable
clothes and lay on his bed, unbidden tears falling from his
eyes. Why did all turn out wrong? Why did she reject him?
He had done everything... for her. Did she not know how much
he cared for her? He abruptly sat and blinked in surprise.
It was true! He never told her, but she should have known
... and now it was too late. Why--
*No* he thought annoyed with himself, turning his
hands into fists. * No more questions, no more... Sarah...
I am the Goblin King... and I have lost... her.*
Grief-stricken and exhausted by all the magic he had used,
he leaned back and closed his eyes. "Sarah," he
whispered, before completely falling asleep.
******
Inside her room, after all her labyrinth's friends were gone,
Sarah's good mood vanished and she seemed to wilt. She walked
towards the window and looked outside, but the beautiful night
brought no comfort to her heart. She bowed her head; she
could still see the look of disappointment and loss within
his eyes... when she had whispered those words... just before
the time was over.
"You have no power over me," she softly repeated,
raising her gaze to the stars again.
Yes, she had rejected him, but what else was she supposed
to do? Sacrifice her little brother? Surrender... to him?
At the thought, Sarah smiled sadly. He would never know how
close she had been to do such a thing, but he made the wrong
offer. He offered her her dreams... but did he not know that
his love was all that she ever wanted? She shook her head,
everything was over now... and they had parted in such a cold
way... *If only we could have another chance...*
With a sigh, Sarah closed the curtains and turned. Tired,
she grabbed her nightgown and went to the bathroom. She really
needed a warm shower.
Twenty minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom and was
about to go to bed, when a box placed over her desk called
her attention. She picked it up and slightly smiled, it was
Hoggle's parting gift. When he had given it to her, he had
urged her not to open it until she was alone. With the party,
she had forgotten about it... until now. Curious, she opened
the box and her jaw fell open at its delicate, glowing content:
a crystal sphere. She carefully took it and, to her surprise,
a piece of paper fell to the floor. She picked it up and
read it:
Dear Sarah,
If the feeling is true,
the spirit will break the chains of the
flesh
and two lonely souls will join
for a short time again.
However, if the right words are spoken
the souls will be together until the end.
Your friend,
Hoggle (*)
After reading the note, she just remained there, thinking.
*What did Hoggle mean with this?* she thought and distractedly
turned her head and saw her shadow on a wall, it was so ethereal,
like a spirit... She stiffened and opened her eyes wide.
"Of course!" she exclaimed. *Thank you, my friend!*
she thought, *Now I know what to do.*
Taking Hoggle's gift with her, she laid on her bed and, closing
her eyes, she focused her mind and her heart on him. "Jareth,"
she whispered tenderly, tightly holding the sphere between
her hands...
******
In the middle of the night, with his heart beating like a
drum, Jareth abruptly woke up, but did not open his eyes.
Startled, he realized he was not alone, someone was lying
by his side... someone with a very soft skin... someone who
smelled like roses. For an odd reason, he did not want move.
He just wanted to feel that body pressed against his.
Suddenly, a cold, delicate hand stroked his cheek.
*What!*
Quickly, he opened his eyes and holding that slender hand,
he turned his head to see its owner... and could not say a
word. It was Sarah! His Sarah! She was like a vision, with
her naked body illuminated by the dim moonlight and her eyes
meeting his own.
His mind told him that she was just a dream, but her touch
was so incredibly real...
"Sarah... how..."
He could not finish as she placed a finger over his lips.
"Please, don’t speak," she said sweetly, resting
her head on his chest.
Unable to stop himself, he gently ran his hand through her
silky, black hair. "Am... I... dreaming? He managed
to ask with a trembling voice.
Sarah chuckled and met his eyes again. "No, Jareth,
we are dreaming," she answered in a low voice.
"If only this moment could last for ever," he said,
softly stroking her face.
She smiled. "Just say the right words."
"The right words?" he repeated, puzzled.
She nodded. "I don’t have the power to make it happen,
only you can do it. I--"
She abruptly stopped and to Jareth's alarm, she began to
fade. "NO!" he exclaimed.
"I don’t have enough strength, please, don’t let me
go. Say the words..." She could speak no longer, she
was exhausted.
Panicked, he tried to hold her, but his arms went right through
her. Now, Sarah was just a shadow. He tried to use his magic,
but it did not work. "Please, do not leave me,"
he begged, raising his hand to touch her, but before he could
reach her, she just disappeared, her sad gaze being the last
echo of her presence.
"I LOVE YOU," he yelled, rising from the bed.
"I love you, Sarah," he repeated in a whisper.
Desperate beyond belief, he realized he had lost her again.
"NO!" he screamed, grabbing a pillow and angrily
throwing it away. "I will not be defeated this time.
I will make it happen..."
Without losing time, he disappeared...
...In the next second, Jareth materialized in Sarah's room
and his heart shrunk when he saw her crying on her bed. Silently,
he approached and knelt next to her. Startled, he noticed
the glowing sphere on the floor and picked it up. Only then
he knew the incredible effort Sarah had done, risking her
life. Deeply worried, he shook his head. *I will not
let you go,* he thought tenderly, raising his hand to
her pale face...
******
Sarah's spirit abruptly returned to her now cold and frozen
body. She did not know what had happened, she only knew that
she was in her room again.
*I must go back* she thought, determined.
Taking a deep breath, she tried to concentrate again, but
as exhausted as she was, her hands released the crystal sphere.
It fell to the floor. *NO!* she thought and gathering
her last remaining energy, she rolled on her side and extended
her arm to pick up the ball... but it was useless. Completely
drained now, she collapsed on her bed and, closing her eyes,
she burst into tears. She had been so close...
Suddenly, someone gently swept her tears away. Slowly, she
opened her eyes and blinked in disbelief. Jareth was knelt
on the floor, his loving gaze fixed upon her.
"Am I... dreaming?" she asked after a moment in
an almost inaudible voice.
He smiled, knowing he had asked the same question before,
and shook his head. "I am real," he said, and leaning
forward, he kissed her. "I love you," he whispered.
"Just the words... I wanted... to hear," she managed
to say.
He nodded and took his hand to her head. "Did no one
told you not to play with magic, little one? You could have
been hurt," he said softly, stroking her hair, unable
to hide the concern in his voice.
She slightly smiled. "And did no one told you not to
kidnap baby brothers?" she teased.
He looked at her with a raised eyebrow and rose from the
floor. Then, he carefully lifted her in his arms.
"What are you doing?" she asked, surprised.
"I will take you home with me," he said tenderly.
"Tomorrow we will come back and talk with your family,
but tonight... you are mine," he said and seeing the
strange look she gave him, he cleared his throat. "If
you agreed," he quickly added.
She grinned. "Yes, but now I cannot..."
"I know," he gently interrupted her. "I just
want to hold you while you sleep."
In spite of her weakness, she blushed in a deep red and shyly
she leaned her head on his chest.
"Yes," he whispered, while a sparkling swirl began
to form at his feet. "We are going home, beloved."
The swirl wrapped them and they disappeared... to be together...
until the end.
FIN
(*): Please note that Hoggle
is not a poet. He is just a goblin ;)
Disclaimer: Labyrinth Universe and Characters are from Jim
Henson. No copyright infringement is intended. The idea is
mine.
