Author Note: I give you the conclusion to my first Labyrinth fanfiction, All's Fair in Love and War. Please Read and Review. As usual...I own nothing.

Chapter 14 Vow

The door to Nicholas' chamber creaked open again moments later. Sarah looked expectantly as the velvet clad woman slipped stealthily through the small crack. They both held their breath until the door was securely locked behind the newcomer. Then Sarah spoke.

"Did he buy it?"

Tatiana grimaced in disgust. "Oh, yeah. He bought it alright."

Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. It hadn't been for nothing like she feared it would be. What she didn't understand was Tatiana's reaction. It had been her idea after all…

Literally minutes before Nicholas had come in to pay Sarah a little visit, Tatiana had been there to explain herself to her young, livid friend. It hadn't been easy for her to do, however. While attempting to offer an explanation, Tatiana had to dodge whatever projectiles Sarah's furious hands could find…

"Sarah…Sarah, if you would just listen to me for one bloody minute—would you quit throwing those books?!"

"No!"

"Sarah, just listen to me please!" pleaded Tatiana, dodging the mantel clock Sarah just threw.

"Why should I believe a word you say to me? Huh?"

"Please, Sarah! I was only playing a part. Nicholas and Maximus needed to believe that I was siding with them on this one. As soon as I knew what those two were planning I knew it was the only way! In a game like this and players as powerful as them, the only hope we'd have at winning is by stealth. To attempt to defeat them with an outright attack would constitute as insanity! It was the only way I could save my baby brother. Please, believe me."

Sarah stopped chucking objects at Tatiana, only because there was nothing left to throw. Yet her anger had not ebbed. "So what? So you just stood by and watched as your brother's world came crumbling down and as I was sexually exploited in front of the entire Fae court?!"

"Actually, it was only about half the Fae court," Tatiana replied sheepishly.

"Oh, that's so comforting, Tatiana." Sarah's tone was marred by heavy sarcasm.

"You're right! Okay? You're right. I could have at least stopped that. But I didn't want to risk exposure. Forgive me for wanting to save Jareth."

"You couldn't have mentioned any of this to me?" Sarah asked, her anger receding marginally.

"Well frankly, Sarah, I wasn't sure what your opinion of Jareth was. Up until tonight your attitude towards him has always been hot and cold." She had a point. Sarah sighed in defeat.

"Fine. I believe you. What are we going to do now?"

"Well, it's going to be your turn to play the part, Sarah. Nicholas will be here in a few minutes."

"What do I do?" Sarah asked in a panic.

"Considering his attitude towards you, I'd say you're going to have to feign attraction to him." Sarah looked torn between terror and disgust. "Relax. It will be fine. I can't be with you during this little charade but I will return as soon as he is gone. Okay?"

With that Tatiana disappeared, leaving Sarah befuddled and terrified.

"I shouldn't have let you do that, Sarah," Tatiana sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose much like her younger brother.

"Why not? I mean it fooled him didn't it? Wasn't that the point?"

"Yes, but at what cost to you? I was a fool and didn't realize just how far Nicholas could have—would have taken things. You're very lucky he stopped when he did."

Sarah's face flushed. "I'd rather not think about it. Can we please drop it?"

"Fine," Tatiana said with a wave of her hand. One moment Sarah was garbed in an elegant ball gown and the next she was in her street clothes, her hair smoothed out of their elaborate curls and jewels and pulled back simply with a small barrette. "There. You'll be able to find Jareth faster when you're not restricted by that showy gown.

"You're not coming with me?" asked Sarah, picking up on Tatiana's subtle tone.

"I'm afraid I can't. I still have my part to play." A little line of worry creased between Sarah's brows. "Fear not, Sarah. I have someone who will meet up with you to help you find him."

"Who?"

"A friend of yours," she answered with a smile.

Sarah smiled in return. Three guesses who it could be. "Where exactly are they keeping him, anyways? The Bog? An oubliette?"

"No, Sarah. They've taken him to a place of temporary holding: the dungeons underneath the castle."

"But why would they—"

"Listen, Sarah. Maximus is not fool enough to lock Jareth in an oubliette of his own design and as horrible as smelling like the Bog for all eternity would be that would mean he could still walk away from the experience. Sarah, Maximus intends to kill Jareth. And he means to do it himself which means we haven't much time."

Sarah blanched but collected herself quickly. "How do I even find him?" she asked.

"There is a passage not far from here. Only a select few people know about it, all of whom are loyal to Jareth. Keep left at all times while you're on it. It will lead you directly to the sect he's being held at."

"What about guards?"

"Nicholas has guards at every main entrance. But you won't even pass them. The dungeons are like a magic vacuum so the only way anyone would be able to escape would be pure brute force and since Jareth isn't exactly the brawniest Fae in the Underground, they're not too worried. But that means it's up to you."

Sarah's face turned exasperated. "Hello! I'm not exactly Wonder Woman here," she said, flexing her arms to make her point.

"Calm down. I have a key to help you out. It will unlock anything you need it to." Tatiana tossed a key with a mini crystal like Jareth's dangling from it. "Do not under any circumstances loose that key, Sarah. It's Jareth's lifeline."

"Got it," she replied, tucking it away safely.

Tatiana opened the door and peered around it for a few seconds. "Okay, the coast is clear. Hurry!"

The two of them scurried out of the chamber and turned the corner into another hall. Along the walls there were a series of doors with knockers in the shapes of various creatures on them. Tatiana led her about a third of the way down the hall and stopped at the door with the knocking ring going through the beast's nostrils. Instead of rapping on the door with it, she tugged down. To Sarah's amazement the door began to sink into the floor like a car window being rolled down. Tatiana grinned briefly at Sarah.

"You need to get going…before it's too late," she said.

"Right," Sarah replied.

"Your friend will meet you about halfway. He'll lead you out again when you've found Jareth. Remember what I said about keeping left," Tatiana advised.

"Piece of cake," Sarah said, trying to sound confident.

Without warning Tatiana swept Sarah into a tight, protective embrace. "If anyone can do this, it's you, Sarah." Then just as abruptly, she let go and pushed Sarah through the opening. The door closed automatically behind her.

Darkness.

It took a few moments for Sarah's eyes to adjust to what little light she had to go by, but soon enough she was stumbling along the uneven path, her hand on the left wall to alert her of turns. Several times she wondered if she was too late and if she were, how would she know? But the mere thought of being too late scared her half to death and forced her to move at a run down the dark path with a single name on her mind, lips, and heart: Jareth.

Finally, she saw a light up ahead, about thirty yards away. She hurried towards the flickering light and recognized the silhouette of the creature waiting for her.

"Hoggle!" she cried with relief. The dwarf and the girl hugged for a moment. Then Sarah asked, "Where's Ludo and Didymus?"

"Jareth's sister helped them escape the Labyrinth along with some other creatures. She says it's not safe for us to be here. But then she told me the craziest thing, Sarah. She said that you wanted to go save Jareth." Hoggle began to laugh.

"Yep, that's the plan."

Hoggle stopped.

"But, Sarah, you hate Jareth. Why would you wanna go do a thing like that?"

"I don't hate him, Hoggle. I can't explain it. I just…I just…" Love him.

Hoggle seemed to understand what she couldn't say. "Alright, alright. Let's get goin'," he grumbled. Sarah may have had a change of heart but Hoggle sure wasn't joining the Goblin King fan club anytime soon.

It was helpful having Hoggle's lantern but they moved much slower than Sarah would have liked. Neither spoke as the journeyed on—Hoggle because he was being cautious, Sarah because she was too anxious.

At last, they reached the tunnel's end.

"Jareth's cell is two to the right, in the corner," Hoggle whispered. "I'll wait for you right here."

"Thanks, Hoggle. You're a lifesaver."

"Sure thing, Sarah."

Sarah crept as quietly as she could into the dungeon. She was surprised at how deserted it was even though she had been warned that it would be. A lone figure could be seen, just off to her right, chained in a cell in the far corner. Her heart skipped a beat and her feet took off running in his direction. Jareth.

The Goblin King was seated on the dirty stone floor, his wrists hung from shackles on either side of his head which was bent down as if in defeat. But at the sound of Sarah's footsteps he looked up, his shaggy hair falling in his eyes. Sarah stopped just outside his cell door to retrieve the key and unlock it. As soon as she heard the tumblers click she flung the door open and rushed to his side. Her arms wound around his waist as tears of relief ran wordlessly down her cheeks.

Jareth looked down at Sarah still clutching on to him for dear life. He wished desperately to hold her in return, to look into her big, green eyes and let her know everything would be alright. As if she read his mind, she looked up. She took the key again and fit it into his shackles which released his arms which he in turn wrapped around her. For a moment they stayed like this, holding one another. After another moment, Sarah pulled away so she could see his face.

She put her hands on either side of his face. His upper lip looked swollen and bruised and he had a nasty cut on his forehead but otherwise he seemed to be fine. Ever so gently, she brushed his hair out of his eyes so she could see them more clearly. Jareth took a hand and brushed away the fresh tears that were trickling down her cheeks. Sarah caught the hand in both of hers and examined it. Slowly, she peeled off the glove covering it and looked at his bare hand.

His fingers were long and thin, agile some might say. His hand was warm to her cold fingers. Slowly she raised his palm to her lips where she placed the lightest of kisses on it.

"Sarah," Jareth murmured softly, stroking her cheek with his other hand. "Why are you here?" he asked gently for he was in just as much disbelief as Hoggle was that she was there.

Sarah looked back at him and snapped out of her moment. "Oh, my God. We gotta get you out of here," she said.

"We?" he asked as she helped him to his feet.

"Hoggle and I," she answered, taking his hand and leading him out of his cell. She didn't miss his wince of pain as he walked. "Are you alright?"

"My ankle seems to be the problem. I'd fix it myself but we'd have to get out of this dungeon first."

"Oh, let me help you," she said, taking his arm and placing it over her shoulder to support his weight.

He grinned to himself. What's a little white lie? Jareth thought.

Together they hobbled towards the tunnel's entrance where Hoggle was waiting for them. "Well, took you long enough. We gotta go."

"Wait. Jareth's ankle," said Sarah.

"Oh, right," muttered Jareth. He conjured a crystal and pressed it to the side of his ankle. It disappeared instantly. "All better," he said with mock cheer. Hoggle rolled his eyes. "Well, lead the way, Higgle."

"It's Hoggle," the dwarf muttered as he headed back up the path. Behind him Jareth reached out and took Sarah's hand in his. She smiled up at him and he gave her hand a little squeeze.

As the trio walked, Hoggle in the lead with Jareth and Sarah hand in hand behind him, anxiety seemed to slowly lift. Sarah was beginning to believe that they were going to make it. Of course, that's when things would go horribly wrong.

One moment Sarah was on cloud nine and the next, she found herself surrounded by Nicholas' henchmen and Nicholas himself was blocking their only exit.

"Well, well, well. Where exactly do you three think you're going?" he asked them, his voice colder than ice.

"How did you—" Sarah began.

"Find you?" Nicholas finished. "Oh, I have my ways, darling Sarah, I have my ways. The point, however, is not how I found you but rather that you're not getting away. Oh, but don't worry, my dear. I'll put in a good word for you…it'll only cost you a kiss." He laughed cruelly and snapped his fingers. The trio was instantly bound, their hands clasped in resilient manacles in front of them. Their feet were clamped in similar shackles around the ankles. Instead of a dramatic dragging off, Nicholas simply snapped his fingers again and they were gone.

They reappeared in the throne room moments later. Jareth's brows furrowed in disgust. Nicholas had been redecorating. Banners the bore the emblem of Maximus were draped from the walls and statues of the Fae King and Queen could be seen every twenty or so feet. Sarah wasn't concentrating on that, however. On the opposite side of the room was Tatiana. Like them she was bound and gagged; her face betrayed the amount of pain she was in. She must have been caught in her deceit.

Nicholas paid no attention to his captives but instead focused his eyes expectantly on the clock on the far wall. It was one minute to thirteen o'clock. "Any second now," he murmured to himself. As soon as he spoke the words, the air in the throne room seemed to change in pressure and temperature. Through the windows Sarah could see a bolt of lightning strike the ground with an earth shattering crack. A gust of wind filled the room and knocked the air out of the occupants' lungs as the light of the wall torches extinguished. Out of the corner of her eye, Sarah saw Hoggle tremble like a chihuahua in a snow bank. She, however, was far from trembling at the feet of any tyrant. No, her spitfire spirit was flaring with a burning intensity inside her. She pitied the fool dumb enough to cross her at that moment.

A rumbling chime echoed through the room. Suddenly there was a new presence, one that demanded fear from anyone and everyone in sight. This was Maximus, High King of the Underground.

Tatiana's description of her older brother did not disappoint Sarah. He and Jareth could have been twins, their resemblance was so uncanny. Just like the Goblin King his eyes were mismatched, brown and blue. His hair had the same platinum sheen and hung in a wild disarray just passed his shoulders. And if Sarah thought that Jareth had a rather flamboyant taste in fashion, it was nothing compared to the gaudy ensemble Maximus was wearing. His collar was high about his neck, his cape billowed violently in the wind, his pants were (if it were at all possible) tighter than his younger brother's ever were, and the neckline of his shirt plunged below his navel, revealing his pale torso which was much burlier than Jareth's. Around his neck hung a crest of extraordinary size. In the center of the crest was a clear, black crystal surrounded by what looked like an abstract artist's rendition of the sun's rays. He gazed around the room with more than a hint of malice in his eyes.

Okay. Sarah was afraid.

"Hmph. This place is a bigger dump than I expected," the king muttered as he strutted about the room. "Really, who decorated this place anyways? Goblins?" His laugh was cold and spiteful. Maximus turned his attention to his little brother. "Awe, don't be so angry Jareth. I'm doing you a favor. Now you won't have to deal with the stress of ruling a band of morons all day. In fact, you won't have any stress at all when I through with you. I think you'll find yourself quite unfeeling." He threw his head back and laughed again at the sight of Jareth struggling against his bindings in anger.

Maximus' eyes flickered away from his brother to the shaking dwarf on his left. "Honestly, even those whom you have under your employment are lax, brother. I would have thought even you would have higher standards than this poor excuse for a creature. But then again, you do rule goblins…" He kicked Hoggle so that he whimpered in pain and crumpled to the floor.

Sarah cried out in outrage and drew the Fae King's attention away from her friend. "Well, hello beautiful. I'll give you credit on this one, Jareth. She is a pretty, little thing…for a human." Sarah struggled against the unbreakable bonds that secured her in a fit of fury. Maximus grinned wickedly at her. "Feisty aren't you? I take it you're the little harlot who thought she could enchant my moronic brother and fool my son, aren't you? Well, you can take comfort in the fact that you succeeded in one of those activities," he sneered, "but my son is not as big a fool as you deluded yourself to believe. Still," he said thoughtfully, "I do see the allure. So young, so naïve, so…innocent." He purred the last word only inches from her face.

She spat in his face.

Rage boiled in Maximus' blood. Nobody disrespected him like that. Nobody. He swung his hand through the air and met Sarah's cheek with a loud, hollow slap. She gasped, bewildered by the pain the slowly spread across her face.

"Anyone else care to test my patience?"

The Fae King looked around the vast hall, daring someone else to defy him. He was met with opposition in the eyes of his sister. Pure, unadulterated hatred seethed through her toward the man who was so determined to dismantle everything their parents had worked so hard to build. Maximus' answering glare would have sent chills down a polar bear's spine but he said nothing to his decidedly traitorous sister. He was confident in her fate. Which reminded him why he was there…

"I didn't think so," he said as if he had never stopped speaking. "And now for the main event. You will all have the honor of witness the destruction of Jareth, the 'great' Goblin King." Sarah's eyes widened in horror. She felt so utterly powerless…

During all this time, Nicholas had been sitting idly in Jareth's throne, grinning as his uncle's end rapidly came into view. No longer was his loathing borrowed hatred from his father but his own all consuming hatred for his uncle. Soon—he was sure—it would be all over for Jareth and Nicholas would reap the benefits.

"Any last words, Jareth?" sneered Maximus as he removed Jareth's bonds. He was going for the dramatic. Let his weakling brother try to fight back. He was convinced Jareth didn't have a prayer.

Jareth's mind was for once in the same place as his brother's. He looked from his sister to Sarah and lingered on her face. What was going to happen to them when it was over for him? He knew he didn't have enough strength in him to save them all. But maybe…

"Not exactly," Jareth said coolly. "However…" He twisted his wrist and a crystal appeared in his hand. A tiny smile played on the corners of his mouth.

Maximus' eyes tightened in suspicion. "What the bloody hell is that?" He knew exactly what it was. What he meant to ask was 'what the bloody hell do you think you're doing?' but that would have given away the sudden fear he was feeling. Had he underestimated how much strength Jareth still possessed? He had been counting on a dramatic but easy victory.

"It's a crystal. Nothing more," Jareth replied nonchalantly. "But if you turn it this way and look into it…well, I'll let Sarah show you."

Sarah stared at him in confusion. But Jareth didn't give her time to try to decipher what he meant. As soon as the words had left his lips the crystal was in the air and was now falling to the ground. Without thinking, Sarah lunged forward to catch it before it hit the floor. She fell to her knees yet still her clasped arms stretched out to seize the crystal. She held her breath as her fingers curled around the smooth, round surface. For about half a second she wondered what she was supposed to do now that she had the crystal in her hands. But she found she didn't have to do anything. It was taking care of everything.

The crystal began to glow in her hands. The light radiating from it was so intense that cracks began to form on its exterior. It shattered.

A jerking sensation gripped Sarah just below her navel, knocking the wind out of her. Enraged cries from Maximus and Nicholas filled the air as the stone floor beneath them began to shake violently. The walls were crumbling before their eyes. Tatiana must have registered what was happening because her face was calculating, waiting. Jareth was on his hands and knees, gasping for air as if he had just run a marathon.

It seemed to Sarah as if the colors of her surroundings were running. The sharp lines of the room were becoming fuzzy. The room, her enemies…her friends, were fading. Sarah struggled to cling to consciousness but to no avail. The last thing that Sarah saw was Jareth's mismatched eyes staring into hers as her world slowly went black.

Sarah woke up what felt like days later in a small bedroom that was vaguely familiar. Her bedroom. Not a stony chamber with a luxurious bed but a modest bedroom with a twin sized bed. She blinked the sleep away from her eyes, trying to make sense of the images still floating around in her mind.

What happened? Sarah wondered. Where's Jareth?

"Sarah, we're home. Are you there, sweetheart?" called a voice from downstairs. That's when reality sunk in.

No, no, no, no! I was asleep the whole time? That was all just some crazy dream? No! It felt so real. It had to be real. Even I couldn't make that stuff up. Oh, God! It's not fair!

Sarah beat her fists into her pillow and screamed in frustration. There was a soft knock on her door and then her father strode in. "You alright, Sarah?"

Sarah looked up at her dad and composed her face. "Yeah, Dad. I'm fine. Just had a really weird dream."

"Oh. Did you ever end up making plans with your friends?" he asked without really looking at her.

"No. I wasn't really in the mood to hang out with anyone. Besides, Jenny had a date so…" she trailed off.

"I see. What happened to your cheek?" her father asked, really taking a look at his daughter for the first time since he and Irene went out earlier.

"My cheek?" she asked, confused. She lightly touched her cheekbone with her fingers and was shocked to find it was tender. She crossed the room and examined it in the mirror. A bruise was forming across her face with a vague impression of a man's hand. "Oh!"

"Sarah?" Now her father was concerned.

Sarah turned back to face her dad. Her features were arranged in a calm, assuring expression. "I tripped on the stairs and hit my cheek against the banister. I guess I didn't think it was going to bruise," she lied smoothly. In truth she felt it was a lousy lie but her father didn't seem to suspect her fib.

"Do you want some ice or pain killers?" he asked, his brows furrowing out of anxiety.

"I'm fine, Dad. Really. I'll take care of it later." She smiled with false warmth while her thoughts were calculating. Her father nodded and left her to her speculations.

Sarah stared at herself in the mirror. On the one hand, she had read about people who've had such intense dreams that their bodies have actually been physically affected—cat scratches or inexplicable marks on their skin. But this wasn't the conclusion she wanted. She wanted to know that it had all happened. That it was not just an overactive imagination at work again. She had to believe that he was still out there somewhere.

She glared around the room, searching for some shred of evidence to this conclusion. At first she found nothing. Her eyes glanced over everything and nothing seemed out of place in the perfectly ordinary room. But then as she glanced at her bed something caught her eye. A trick of the light, she thought. But she went over regardless to examine it, to confirm her thoughts.

She knelt down beside her bed and picked up the tiny object. She turned it over and over in her hand, struggling to believe her eyes. It was a key. A very special key. One that had a tiny crystal orb hanging from the key's head.

"It was real!" she whispered in hushed fervor. She had returned to the Underground. It wasn't a dream. She had seen Hoggle, Ludo, and Didymus. She had seen the labyrinth's winding walls and had stood in the castle beyond the Goblin City again. She had cowered in the presence of a man who was no mere mortal and had the power to grant dreams and steal hearts. It had all happened. Her heart swelled with hope.

Just as soon as the hope rose, it was squashed.

If all the good things had happened then that must have meant the bad things did too. The key in her hand was proof of that. But then what had happened to everyone? The cruel King Maximus and his deceitful son, Nicholas? All her friends? Tatiana? And most importantly…Jareth? What happened to them?

Sarah thought of a way that she could find out, though, it seemed even to her to be a stretch if all of that had truly happened. She shut her eyes and squeezed the key in her hand. Her lips moved almost soundlessly. No human ears would have been able to hear her plea. But a skilled lip-reader could have told you exactly what she said even though it would have made no sense to them or anyone else. They would have said that she wished the Goblin King would take her away…right now.

Sarah's eyes fluttered open. She gazed around her room searching, waiting. The minutes passed and still nothing happened. She hung her head. Disappointment washed over her but she wasn't surprised. The fact that no one came confirmed any doubt left. Disappointment was replaced by worry.

She crossed the room in three, long strides over to her window. She opened it and peered out into the night. She searched the skies, the roofs, the tree tops ardently until the cool night air sent chills through her body. She nodded to herself. This she suspected too. But still, she wished.

"Goblin King," she whispered, "I know you're out there somewhere. I promise you, I will find a way back to you again. If it's the last thing I do, I swear it. I will find you. This is my solemn vow."

I want to say thank you to everyone who has stuck with me through this story. Sorry about the cliff hanger. I promise that I will resolve this in the sequel. This just seemed like a good place for me to break. I also want to dedicate this story to Wonderhell who convinced me to write this in the first place. Thanks girlie!! That's all for me for a while. Please keep an eye out for Fair Is Foul and Foul Is Fair!

love,

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