Chapter Two – Someone True

What was going on?
One moment Jennifer was lying in her warm bed, the next she felt the bed vanish from beneath her. Her eyes flew open but she couldn't see anything at all, everything around her was black. Then she seemed to be flying forwards in the blackness. For a few seconds it felt almost exhilarating, but suddenly she was falling straight down. She began to scream but the fall was very quick and soon she landed on a hard stone floor. She cried out as she struck the ground painfully on her side. Clutching her arm she rolled onto her back, closed her eyes and took several deep breaths.

She opened her eyes and quickly she checked herself for any injuries but luckily there was nothing broken. But her right arm was aching from landing on it. There would probably be a bruise there soon.
When she saw her surroundings she gasped out in surprise. "What is this place?" she said quietly. Slowly she sat up she found that she was lying in the centre on some sort of hedge maze. Next to her was a big sundial, straight ahead of her was a massive chair that looked like it was made up of big stone carved books. And scattered round the area were a few stone soldier statues and stone pots.

Jennifer looked around wondering which way to go. There were a lot of directions leading off into the hedge maze. She walked over to each of the entrances but she found no clues as to where they would lead. She sighed and stared up at the dark sky but to her surprise she saw no stars. There was a bright full moon that lit up everything around her, but there were no stars at all in the night sky.

Walking back over to the centre by the sundial, Jennifer started to wonder if she was dreaming. She closed her eyes and pinched her left arm. But opening her eyes again she found that she was still standing where she was.
She did not know what to do so Jennifer went over to the stone chair and climbed up onto it. It was wide enough that she brought her legs up and hugged them close to her chest. Then she turned herself around o that her whole side was resting against the back of the chair. She stared to shiver in the cold night air both from cold and from the fear of what was going to happen next.

Jen didn't know how long she sat there. For her mind was filled with confusions as to how she'd transported miraculously to this mysterious place. She knew that this was definitely not a dream because she kept pinching herself but found she was still awake. She rested her cheek against the top of the cold stone and wondered if whether she should try and sleep but it seemed impossible, as the stone was not warm or comfortable enough. All the same she closed her eyes and quietly whispered "Please, I wish someone would help me." Tears stared dripping down her cheeks.

A few minutes later Jennifer was still on the stone chair and hadn't moved. Her tears had stopped and eyes were still shut but she hadn't gone to sleep. She was almost on the brink of crying again. She had never been so alone in all her life.

Suddenly there was a sound that made her sit up and open her eyes. By now it had become darker and she couldn't see a thing. Then the sound came again, this time it came from the right and seemed to be heading to the far side of the clearing. It was a rustling sort of sound like a cloak being dragged over leaves. She stood up from the chair and stared straight ahead into the darkness, but she couldn't see anything. "Is there…someone there?" she asked. She took a few brave steps forward, then right in front of her a flame came to life in a torch stand and made her jump. Now the whole place around her was lit up and she could see again.

"Sarah"
Jennifer gasped again and whirled round towards whoever had spoken and her eyes widened in surprise.

The man who stood before her was unlike any man she had ever seen before. He tall and seemed to have a very lean figure. He was wearing a long black cloak, a black leather armour-like chest plate with a metal amulet that rested against it. He was also wearing a pair of black pants which showed off his lean legs. And a pair of black boots.
His hair was the sort of wild style that rock and roll players sported and his face looked so handsome and angelic.
Jennifer then realized who this man looked like. He resembled the blue statue that she had found earlier in the ottoman. For a few seconds she was speechless and couldn't find her voice.

He'd said "Sarah". But how on earth did he know her mother's name. "Sarah?" she echoed. His expression which had at first looked expectant now looked somewhat confused. "You're not Sarah, are you?" he asked, Jennifer shook her head. His confusion now turned to disappointment and he lowered his gaze to the ground. "Do you mean Sarah Williams?" Jennifer asked. "Yes. For a second there I thought she had come back" his voice filled with a hint of sorrow. Jen couldn't understand why all this seemed to upset him so.
After a beat of silence he asked "Do you know Sarah?" Jen nodded "Yes…She's my mother." His head snapped up and now he looked completely dumbstruck. "Your…Mother?" The next words he spoke were more to himself. "She had a child with…" Once again he lowered his gaze.
So he knew her mother but didn't know her. This whole thing was all so confusing. She wanted answers.

Taking a step towards him she said "But who are you? And what is this place?" she gestured to their surroundings. He looked at her again and his sad look faded away. "Forgive me, my dear girl. I am Jareth, The Goblin King. This this is "The Labyrinth" Jennifer's mouth fell open the moment he said "The Labyrinth". For she remembered that within the lines she'd read from the book it mentioned "The king of the goblins."
Did this mean she had been transported into the book itself? No, that could not be. Something like that was impossible. She looked back at Jareth who was also taking a few steps closer to her. She held her ground somehow feeling braver that she had been before.

"What is your name?" he asked looking into her eyes. "Jennifer" she replied. Looking into his eyes which she now could see were strangely mismatched. One pale blue and the other greenish brown with a slightly dilated pupil. "Jennifer, what a lovely name." he said holding out a black gloved hand towards her. Hesitantly Jennifer took his hand to shake it but instead he brought her fingers to his lips.

Jennifer was so taken aback by this courtly gesture that she was silent for few moments. Jareth kept hold of her hand seemed to be looking deeply into her. Jennifer finally found her voice again. "Er…thanks. Look, when you said this was the Labyrinth. Do you mean the Labyrinth from the storybook?" She asked. "The Labyrinth does appear in a book my dear. But this place and everything and everyone in it, is as real as you and I." Jennifer could hardly believe what he had just said. Fantasy worlds did exist. This was something that she had always dreamed of.

She wanted to know more but there were more important questions she wanted answers to. "So, how do you know my mother?" He gave a small smile and finally released her hand. Slowly Jareth made his way to the centre of the clearing "Oh, that's a long story. I must say, I'm surprised that you don't know."

A cold breeze blew through the clearing and Jennifer wrapped her arms around herself. She was only wearing her pyjamas and socks and they weren't much protection against the cold. "Come" Jareth held out his hand "I'll take you back to my castle and I'll tell you everything. You'll catch your death if we stay out here at this hour for much longer" For some reason Jennifer felt unsure about going off with this strange man whom she had only just met. Despite his warm greeting there was something about him that almost seemed almost sinister.
He seemed to sense her fear and still offered her his hand "It's alright Jennifer, there's nothing to be afraid of. I won't let anything harm you." His voice sounded so genuine that it was enough to convince her to believe him. Slowly she stepped forwards and took his hand. Smiling warmly at her he gently pulled her closer to him "You might want to hold on tight" he wrapped his arm round her as he said this. Hesitantly Jennifer wrapped her arms round him. God! He was so skinny. "That's right. Oh, and might be best that you close your eyes" Jennifer obeyed, and the second that she did the ground beneath her feet seemed to jolt violently and she would have fell, had Jareth not been holding her.

As suddenly as it started everything was still again. Jareth patted her back. "It's ok, you can look now." She opened her eyes and a wave of dizziness almost made her fall. Luckily Jareth was still holding her and he caught her before she could fall. "Don't worry, I've got you." Jennifer pressed her hand to her head. "It will pass in a minute sweetheart. Just take some deep breaths." Again she obeyed him and it did seem to help her.

When she felt steady again Jareth let her go and stepped back. To her surprise she found herself now in a stone chamber of what must have been a castle. The room was lit by flame torches attached to the walls, the windows were arched shaped and in the centre of the room against the wall was a stone throne which had stone steps leading up to it. Jennifer looked round in awe and Jareth stood his ground letting her take it all in.

She turned to face him "How did we get here?" she asked. "Magical transportation. Saves time don't you think?" Jennifer couldn't hold back a smile. "Magical? Really?" He nodded smiling "Yes that was real magic. You felt dizzy just now because your human body is not used to the effects."
Jennifer couldn't think of what to say next. So Jareth came over and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you sit down my dear and I will tell you the story about me and your mother." Ok Jen thought. That sounded like a good plan.

He walked her over to the throne and she sat down. There were no cushions on the throne so it wasn't very comfortable but she decided not to complain. Also because it was completely made of stone it was quite cold when she sat down on it and she shuddered a bit from the chill. Jareth must have guessed how she was feeling because he removed his long black cloak and gently wrapped it round her "Thanks" she said taking hold of the edges and pulling it tighter round her. It was already warm which helped a lot.
She now saw that he was wearing a black Poet shirt which was slightly open at the top, a metal amulet which hung from round his neck and was shining against his chest. And she now also saw that the black pants on his legs, in her opinion were a bit too tight. It was hard to keep her eyes off his crotch.

The goblin king walked over to the nearest stone arch window and rested his wrist against the edge. Jennifer shifted "How is it that you became king?" She asked suddenly. "I mean…you're human. How could a human become King of The Goblins?" Jareth shook his head still staring out of the window. "I'm not a human, Jennifer. I am Fae. An immortal." The name wasn't foreign to Jennifer. She had read stories about the Fae in quite a few fairytale books.

"For thousands of years I have ruled the Goblin Kingdom and the goblin people have lived their carefree lives and doing whatever they wanted. Except that thousands of years is a very long time if you think about it. You humans live your lives and some of you wish you can live forever. But it's harder than you think. So to keep myself entertained I used my magic and watched humans on earth. I even visited earth taking a whole different form so as to stay inconspicuous. I saw many people living different lives and it was by that that I discovered your mother. Sarah Williams."

Jennifer relaxed back against the throne listening intently.
"I watched her for about three years and never looked at anyone else. Mainly because I felt sorry for her. At the time she was a poor lonely girl whose parents had separated. And she hated her life with her father and stepmother. Especially after they had a child of their own" This wasn't news to Jennifer "Uncle Toby" She said to herself "Yes" Said Jareth. "What annoyed her the most was that they mostly thought about their baby and themselves. Sarah felt she was being denied the chance of living her own life. And it hurt me so much to see her pain.

So one night when an angry storm was overhead I saw that she was on the brink of her breaking point and decided to help her. So I chose to make so she could be a part of the fairytale she loved most of all. The one she'd never stopped reading and acting out. "The Labyrinth". She wished for her baby brother to be taken, so I granted her wish. However, she instantly regretted her decision and begged me to return him. But I knew that if I did that it wouldn't be right. Because Sarah at the time didn't see or know the inner strength she had in her. So I presented her with a challenge to test her determination, intelligence, resourcefulness, and bravery. I told her she had thirteen hours in which to solve my Labyrinth, before her baby brother would become one of us forever."

Again, Jennifer thought of the book she had read earlier and how much this story matched the written words of the book. Almost as if it had been some kind of destiny for her mother.
The Goblin King turned his eyes back to Jen.

"Sarah performed the challenge even better than I'd expected she would. And as she put it, she faced "dangers untold and hardships unnumbered." But what she did not know was that I had actually put an enchantment on the Labyrinth so that she would come to no harm. So every time she came within inches of danger something appeared or was already there to help her." Jareth stopped and turned his gaze to stare outside "If she had come to any harm…" he closed his eyes and shook his head "…I would never have forgiven myself"

Jen was starting to understand things. "Was there more than one reason why you did all this?" she asked. Jareth glanced at her once then back outside to look up at the moon. "Yes Jennifer. There was more than one reason why I did all this. From the moment I had first laid eyes on her while she was still so young I first felt sympathy and pity for her. But as she got older, I fell deeply in love with her."
It was just as Jennifer had guessed. To have done so much for one girl, the only reason for it all had to be true love.

"I adored her passion for fantasy and fairytales. The way that a girl her age desired to be a part of my own kind of world. Unlike most of the other girls of your time who desire other things."
He was right. Girls her age these days were more into things like make up, fashion, music, cinema and dating. It was hardly ever you came across girls who dreamed of fairytale worlds, mystical creatures and magic.

"You loved my mother? Did she know?" He shook his head and turned round to face her again. "I never told her. I assumed she knew, because she said so herself when she spoke the opening lines of the book before I took her brother. I kept up my act as the sinister king but I thought that when she reached the end of her quest she would come to realize my feelings to her.
But for some reason she made no indication that she returned my feelings. So I decided to put her to another test. I slipped her an enchanted peach. One bite and she would forget all her worries and be in a world of her deepest dreams. That which created a magical ball within one of my crystal balls. I was there myself among the festivities. That was when I came to see that I was somehow a part of her dreams. I still had doubts about the matter, so after she laid eyes on me I vanished. I did that to see whether it would bother her and it did. She searched for me throughout ballroom. And that really touched me because if she didn't feel something for me she would have ignored me. So I reappeared before her once again and led her into a dance. It was truly the most enthralling moment of my life." He suddenly seemed so lost in the moment that he stopped talking and a look of complete ecstasy crossed his face.

Jennifer was so enchanted by his story. She hoped that one day she could meet a boy who would do the same to her. Make her feel like a princess and loved her so deeply. "So what happened?" She asked. His look of ecstasy faded away.

"She broke free of the dream trance. You see, the only way to break the spell is to remember the outside world. Because within the dream bubbles you only see your deepest dreams and strongest desires. Once you remember the outside world and all your troubles, you break the spell. That's what she did. I hoped that if she did remember she would realize all that I had done for her and remain with me in the dream world. But no, she broke free from my touch and shattered the bubble. But it was more like she had shattered my heart.

And when she shattered the bubble and left the dream world she had no memory of anything. Not even of me or her brother. I decided to leave her be, because with no memories she would not be hurrying to my castle. So I would wait until the clock would strike and find her. Once I did I would bring her to the castle, restore her memory and try to make an agreement with her. But somehow she did regain her memories and with her friends she entered into the city. I was worried because it was too soon and I didn't want it to end so quickly. So I sent out the entire goblin army…"

Jen sat up quickly in the throne shocked. "Don't panic Jennifer dear. I gave them strict orders just to hold her back and not to harm her in any way." Jennifer relaxed again. But by now her eyelids were beginning to feel heavy.
"The army did help kill me some time. Eventually Sarah made it to my castle and came to face me. I tried first to make her see all that I had done, but her brother was in the room too and she was more interested in getting to him than listening to me.

In the end I took him out of the picture and made it so she had to look me in the eye and listen. Though by then I was quite exhausted from all that she had put me through. So I revealed all I had generously done for her by her own request. Take her brother, put her in her own fairytale, made myself the frightening villain in her tale, reorder time and turn the world upside down. Unfortunately she was blind and deaf to all of my feelings and words. And spoke the final words of the book which meant I had to fulfil the final ending the way the book said and return her and her brother home."

By now Jennifer was nearly falling asleep but she was trying to fight it because she wanted to hear more. "What did you do then?" she managed to keep the sleepiness out of her voice.
"I looked in on her from time to time, because I could never get her out of my mind. And it turned out that the adventure had made her see the inner strength she'd had in her. She studied hard in school and continued to perform. But what hurt me more than anything was to watch was when she tried to win the affections of other boys. None of them could have provided her with the love and happiness I could have given her. She then met your father. I watched their courtship despite that every moment was painful for me to witness. When she accepted his hand in marriage I felt as if a dagger had been ran through my heart. I stopped watching her after they got married because I couldn't stand the pain any longer."

He closed his eyes and rubbed them to fight back the moisture that was fighting to escape. "Despite all that and the fact that it has been many years. Somehow in all that time, I have never stopped loving Sarah Williams." After a short pause he said. "Tell me dear, did she never give any implications that she once been in love with anyone else other than your father?"

When Jennifer didn't answer him he turned round and saw that she had fallen asleep on his throne. One glance at the clock and he realized how late it was. By this time she would have been fast asleep. He walked over to her and decided it was best to take her to where she would have a more comfortable night sleep. His throne was definitely not the best place. He reached forwards and picked her up, cradling her up into his arms. She didn't wake as he lifted her up, just slept on with her head rested against his shoulder and breathing quietly.

In the next second he'd vanished them from the throne room and reappeared in his bed chamber. The chamber itself was huge. The walls and the floor were all stone and the ground had a couple of rugs draped over them. There were a few tall windows which were dark at present.
The goblin king carried the sleeping girl over to his bed which was so long and so wide that five men could have slept side by side at the head. He walked over to the right side and with a gentle flick of his finger the bed covers were pulled back by magic. He gently laid Jennifer down onto the soft mattress, took his cloak from round her and tucked her in. She stirred slightly but slept on.

For a long while he just stood there and stared down at her. He still found it hard to believe that this girl was Sarah's daughter. She was just like her mother in so many ways. Not just in looks, she had the same good spirit, curiosity, bravery and innocence.

The king finally decided that he would go to sleep himself. He told himself that when dawn came he would dig into the mystery of how Jennifer had ended up here in the underground. He changed out of his dark clothes and into a more comfortable pair of pants and a loose poet shirt. He went back over to Jennifer who was still sleeping peacefully. The king could not resist and reached forward to give her hair a loving stroke.

He walked round to the other side of the bed and climbed in. He waved his hand and all the lighted torches went out. The only light came from the moon which shone bright through the windows. For a long while he lay with his eyes open and finally he turned on his side and watched Jennifer as she slept. She looked so much younger now so vulnerable and helpless. He felt a strong desire to protect her and keep her safe. Almost just like when he had first started watching Sarah. But nothing would happen to her while she was with him. He was more powerful than anything within the Labyrinth. He kept watching her until he finally fell asleep himself.

A few hours later Jennifer opened her eyes and realized that she was lying in a warm bed. Oh no! Had it all been a dream after all. Her heart started to sink but her eyes finally adjusted to the dark and she saw that she was not in her room. In the moonlight she could see that she was in a large chamber that could only be in a castle. She instantly relaxed.

The bed she was in was so much larger than her own. She glanced round and she realized that she was not alone. On the other side of the large bed lay the Goblin King. She sat up slightly blinking her sleepy eyes. He was lying flat on his back with his wild hair all over his pillow. He looked so peaceful especially in the white shirt he had changed into. Unlike the dark clothes he had been wearing earlier. In the moonlight she could see that his smooth skin was almost glowing.
She didn't feel uncomfortable being in the same bed with him. She felt a kind of safe and secure feeling, similar to the one a child would feel if they were sleeping beside a parent. Jennifer had done this a couple of times with her mother after her Dad had run out on them. Half because she wanted to comfort her mother and because she wanted to be close to her and not alone.

She contemplated why Jareth gave her this same safe feeling now. It was probably because of the connection he felt to her mother. And just the fact that he had done so much and wanted to provide for her. She could tell that he must have wanted to do the same for her. Even though they had only just met each other, Jennifer felt very protected around him. And there was this other feeling that was so strange. She felt as if she belonged here and that something was binding her to this strange place and somehow she didn't want to leave. So odd that she felt something like this.

She yawned quietly and before she could change her mind she slowly shuffled closer to Jareth until she was rested up against his right arm and her forehead against his shoulder. Smiling contentedly to herself she settled back down to sleep again.

Author's Notes

Hi guys! Thanks so much for your support by following this story and giving good reviews. That makes me feel so good about my work and that it all worth it. I've been quite busy lately because me and my family are in the midst of moving house.
But just as I said in my other stories I never forget about any of my works. I always plan in my mind how the stories turn out and the longer it takes, the better the stories could turn out.

Anyway, Please keep leaving me your reviews of support. And enjoy reading.

Review Responses

alexc1209 - Yes you were correct, she did end up in the Underground. Lovely to know you find this all exciting.
CuriousEttie - There you go, here some more for you. Hope you like it.
Child of Dreams - (Sighs Happily)
foxchick1 - Hope this was soon enough for you.