Life Without the Sunlight

Chapter Fourteen

Jareth sat up and wondered if he'd slept. He was refreshed as he'd never felt before, calm, well. Then he wondered if he was still sleeping and thus the bridge that he stood on was part of a dream.

A small bridge, little long enough to cross a stream, poked out over a field of Labyrinth roses on wood stilts. Rippling blush pink blossoms went on past the horizon and, as with the other regions, met with no opposition to the east or west. Labyrinth roses were special in that they did not grow in tangled bushes as Aboveground. Here they were as wildflowers, single heavy heads in a nest of spiked leaves, bending to and fro. Instead of disease or bog stench or cigarettes, his kingdom smelled of spring. At his back was the clay wall of the Labyrinth proper, its warm stone providing nooks and crannies for the roses to climb.

A breeze played with the ruffles of his white shirt. His cane had returned and shimmered in his hand, the slightest haze of a rainbow about its silver head.

"A fresh start, is it?" he said, touching his amulet. It warmed in response.

The oak door where the bridge met the wall opened and Sarah came through. She shut it behind her, fingers tracing the emblem of the Labyrinth on its surface and the central door knob in the shape of a rose, wrought from silver and detailed in gold. A smile played about her lips when she saw the flowers towering up to the sky

Toby sat on her hip with his chubby digits twisted into her waistcoat. Jareth wondered if she remembered a thing. Ah, yes, she did. He saw the exhaustion, relief, the hesitancy that it was over. He felt it too. She kept rubbing the fourth finger of her left hand with her thumb where a ring of shiny, corded skin remained.

Jareth stroked his finger down Toby's cheek. The babe gurgled and nestled into his sister and drooled on her shirt. She smiled, cupping the back of his head.

"What happened to Hoggle?" she asked.

"Up here." The dwarf sat atop the ramparts, feet swinging, a splodge of red among pink on the sapphire sky. Sarah waved. He nodded back a full head of hair. He crossed muscular arms, scowled his chiselled face, complete with a bushy black beard. The dwarf was nearly unrecognisable except he said, "Blimmin' Labyrinth's given me another gate to keep."

"A gate?"

Hoggle pointed at the bridge. "Leads out to wherever you want to go, that does. And it lets creatures in too if they mean no harm, from what I can see."

"Really?" she asked Jareth.

"It would seem the Labyrinth is no longer a leper colony."

"Does this mean . . ." The girl trailed off. Jareth couldn't help but smirk.

"Why, Sarah, would you so like to visit us again?"

She shrugged. "As long as it doesn't involve snakes and clocks, it wouldn't be so bad." And, to his astonishment, she smacked him on the arm with a hand healed of its cut. "And I have to make sure you're not letting this place go to ruin again."

Hoggle laughed deep and resonant glee. Jareth silenced him with a look. To her, he said, "You could stay for a while longer if you liked. As a thank you."

She shook her head. "Toby needs to go home." She blinked rapidly, holding tears at bay. "And I want to see Dad."

He took her hand and pressed a kiss upon the burn of her ring finger. "Until next time, Sarah, saviour of the Labyrinth."

She rose on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek. "Be seeing you. Bye, Hoggle!"

With a wave, and hitching Toby higher, she strode over the slats of the bridge. Her black hair swung on her waistcoat. Jareth spied the Labyrinth emblem sewn into the fabric's design, and then she disappeared.

Smiling, Jareth swung his cane and set it down with both hands. Free of disease and squalor, he could reign as he had always wanted to. It was time to be the true Goblin King at last.

"Prepare for guests, Hoggle!"

"It's Hog . . . Oh. Wait, what guests?"

But the Goblin King had vanished and reappeared in a refurbished throne room and Hoggle grumbled. "Guests, yeah, right, as if we would ever –"

"–Would you look at that, my dear, it is a path to the Labyrinth."

TOWRTA: *o* It's done! I'm going to miss it, really I am. I loved this story. Jareth and Sarah have been so much fun to write, though obviously I never would have done so if it hadn't been for David and Jennifer's brilliant portrayal of them. And this is mostly thanks to a friend of mine, dear Holly-Dolly, who gave me the first go-ahead by saying she wanted to know more about the shadow realm. I'm glad I could finally write a story you enjoyed, you picky darling you.

And thank you to all my readers on and AO3! Thanks for trying out a fic written by an unknown author - to Guest2019, I'll miss your commentary ;)

If you loiter around you may find other stories of mine come up. If not, it's been fun :)

TOWRTA

God Bless