Chapter One

A clock on the wall chimed the hour. It was twelve o'clock; the bewitching time of night when the impossible was made possible and the world was silent.

Mariya the goblin had been trying to get her children to bed for quite some time now. And finally she had managed to get them all into their cots, but they were still wide awake.

"Please mama, tell us a story!" Her five children cried in unison.

The old goblin fought to keep the smile from her lips as she sighed loudly, "I will . . . If you promise me you'll go to sleep the second I'm done."

They all promised and settled in for the story.

"What will it be tonight?" Mariya asked.

"Tell us about King Jareth!" One begged from within her place in her small bundle of blankets.

"Oh, but that is a sad story indeed." Mariya said with a frown. "Don't you want to hear a story with a happy ending?"

"Come on Alta." One of her two sons prompted, using the word for 'mother' in the Old Goblinish language.

"Very well then," Mariya sat down on the edge of the nearest bed and stared off into space for several moments before she began.

"The King wasn't always like this you know."

The old goblin woman looked at each of her children in turn before she continued. "Yes, when Jareth was still a prince he was different. He used to speak to his people with kind words of encouragement. He used to teach us with such an acute patience that he could become allies with anyone.

"He trusted us and in return we trusted him. There was a special connection between Jareth and his subjects: love." She said smiling at the memory of the happier time.

"Jareth was the ideal king from the start. . . I remember at Jareth's coronation, when he was being crowned, I thought I would burst with pride." Mariya admitted. "And for the first hundred years of his reign the Goblin City prospered and was at peace.

We got along with our brother and sister kingdoms; that of the Fae, the Trolls, and the Dwarves. For they all loved Jareth. This was very rare indeed, for he was a tender in years. But they could see that he treated all his subjects fairly and respected everyone, despite their station or origins."

Wistful tears fell from Mariya's eyes as she remembered the best days of her life.

"Don't cry mama," Her youngest daughter, Canna said reaching up with her small hand to wipe her mother's tears away. The small rough fingers were a godsend to the goblin and she kissed her daughter's palm lovingly.

"I'm sorry dearest," she apologized. "It's just that I cherish the memories so." She took a deep breath and continued the story with some difficultly.

"As you might have assumed from the very beginning, everything changed." She choked out fighting back more tears.

"When our King was 351 years of age he met Lillian. Jareth lost his heart to her upon their first meeting.

Now the beautiful woman was from the Aboveground, but by some trick of nature she looked like a Fae, with her lovely green eyes and dark hair. But she was not only fair in looks, but personality as well." Mariya recalled.

"Could she sing mama?" One of her daughters asked timidly. Mariya smiled at the question.

It was a well-known fact, that singing was one of the greatest natural gifts that could be given in the Underground. If one could sing, one had the ability to do anything.

"Her voice was like running water, my sweet," Mariya answered. "Lillian could charm the most hostile person by singing, much like our good King Jareth."

"Did they get married?" Canna inquired, giggling at the idea. But Mariya instantly shook her head.

"Jareth wooed her and won her and they were to be married. . . But it was not meant to be.

On Lillian's last day in the upper world she was murdered. Jareth tried to heal her but he was too late to save her. Her wound was too deep. She died a painful death held in the arms of her beloved."

The room was still; none of the children said a word, for what could they possibly say to such a thing. Mariya had to stop again for it was hard for her to bring speech to the wretched story.

"Lillian's death nearly killed Jareth, he lost his love for life . . . He became a hard-hearted ruler and stopped caring about his people. Poor Jareth made a vow that he would avenge Lillian and with that revenge he completely outlawed love from his heart.

The King tracked down the man who had killed his precious Lillian and he made him suffer for what he had done. He tortured the man until he was quite mad and then he killed him. Within doing this Jareth truly became a tyrant."

"Is that why King Jareth cut off contact with the Aboveground?" One of her children whispered.

Mariya nodded, "Jareth hated the Upper world for what they had taken from him. So he created the Labyrinth and forbid all contact with humans. He even outlawed certain genres of music from the kingdom because they reminded him of his beloved Lillian.

Yes, Jareth cut off everything from the human realm, save the children. I was there in the Royal Court when he first created the Wishing System." The old goblin woman explained.

"The Wishing System was made so that children could be saved from the horrors of the Aboveground. Jareth made it so that whenever someone said the special phrase, "I wish the Goblin's would come take you away, right now." They would be brought to our kingdom for safekeeping and sooner rather than later their memories would be wiped."

Her oldest child, Marshus, shifted in his bed. "He turned them into Goblins, like us."

Mariya nodded at her eldest son, a smile overcoming her lips that only a moment before had been turned down. Marshus was very smart for a Goblin and he tended to learn faster than most. Any day now he would be starting his apprenticeship under his mother any day now, and Mariya was extremely proud of him.

"Tell us about the pretty Lady!" Canna her youngest interrupted, as she wiggled underneath her covers with excitement.

"I'm getting there," Mariya encouraged patiently.

"With time the other kingdoms stopped their trade with us and we were thrown into The Great Famine. Which we still suffer from to this day." She added.

"Most of us lost hope in Jareth and I would've have to, if I hadn't raised him like my own son."

"You were King Jareth's nanny weren't you Alta?" Canna asked eyes wide.

"That I was child; that I was. And even now I am his personal servant." She smiled at Marshus. "In about a fortnight your brother will be helping me with my duties."

Marshus blushed a dark green that made his skin look almost black as his brother and sisters oohed and awed over the new information. The young goblin had wanted to keep it a secret, but apparently his mother had other plans. Marshus was brought out of his thoughts, when his mother's voice continued.

"For 648 years there wasn't a trace of the King we had known. Until. . ." She took a loud breath for a dramatic affect. "Jareth found the Lady Sarah!"

All her children cheered as their mother mentioned the Great Lady.

"Our King was intrigued by her and he watched over her. For four whole years he merely watched.

He watched her turn from a little girl to a beautiful youth and slowly he began to break his vow and once more he found love.

Jareth wanted her to love him back; he wanted her to know he existed, so he gave her a gift. The book called, 'The Labyrinth.' It was a beautiful story that spoke his name and told their story. It was the perfect bait to get her to call him out to the Aboveground.

Then came the day when Sarah asked him to take her baby brother in a fit of anger, and Jareth obliged. But because of his feelings for her he gave her a chance no other human had ever been given. 'You have 13 hours in which to solve the Labyrinth before your brother becomes one of us forever. But if you can solve it, I'll give him back to you.'" Mariya quoted Jareth doing a pretty convincing impression.

Lady Sarah went through the Labyrinth as you know, and made many allies and did many things that made the Goblin Kingdom a better place as a whole. She made it into the city and got to the castle against all odds. And in the end, she confronted King Jareth.

Jareth had assumed he would be able to win the battle for her heart without any effort. But Sarah was the stronger than he had comprehended, for she didn't care about Jareth, therefore her mind wasn't burdened with her feelings for him. So when she said, 'You have no power over me.' She truly meant it. And by not caring she defeated our King."

The goblin children once more cheered, "Don't be so quick to cheer my chuvlas." Mariya warned. "While Sarah is absent, Jareth's rage and sorrow affect us all. If Sarah does not return and heal Jareth's heart eventually he will kill the kingdom with his emotions." The children stopped cheering and looked at their mother; worry filling every pair of muddy colored eyes.

"Not to worry though," Mariya instantly comforted. "We have many years yet before that happens and Jareth will not let his kingdom fall."

It was the end of the story and the old goblin woman stood and kissed all of her children goodnight. "Goodnight my children, sleep well." Mariya cooed as she blew out the candles that lit the small room.

Quietly she closed the door behind her and started towards the Royal Chambers. The old goblin woman had to check on Jareth one last time before she could call it a night and retire to bed.

Mariya walked past the kitchens and dining hall and through many lovely rooms filled with priceless objects. But none of the items truly caught her eye for she had seen them hundreds of times in her long life as a servant in the castle. She walked up a huge flight of stairs and down a corridor decorated complete in different shades of red and purple. And at the very center of the hall stood two very large ebony doors that Mariya knew all too well. The female goblin knocked gently and waited politely to be invited in.

"Come in," a sharp voice snapped from within.

Mariya opened the doors and peered in cautiously.

Jareth the Goblin King stood gazing into his mirror, his torso topless, exposing his muscular body. He wore his tight gray pants and no shoes, and as always, he was breathtaking.

He looked up to see who had interrupted him and was about to yell when he realize it was his old nurse. "Oh, Mariya . . . What is it?"

"I'm sorry to interrupt you milord, but I was about to turn in and I wondered if you needed anything?"

Giving her a tired smile he replied, "If I needed anything I would've called you."

His usually bright eyes were blood shot from lack of sleep and this worried Mariya.

"Please Jareth, won't you sleep?" She asked him gingerly.

"No Mariya. Is there anything else?"

"No sire," Mariya said sadly.

"Then please get out," He said tiredly.

Mariya curtsied deeply to her king before turning and exiting his chambers.

Jareth watched her leave and closed his eyes wishing more than anything that he could sleep. But the truth was, he couldn't.

The Goblin King's dreams tormented him to the brink of insanity. All he saw when he closed his eyes was his Sarah.

"Your eyes can be so cruel." he whispered a tear sliding down his cheek as he turned back to his full length mirror.

But when Jareth looked into the mirror he didn't see his own reflection. In the mirror he saw his beloved Sarah.

She was currently asleep a small snore escaping her with each breath she took, making her even more endearing to the King.

As Jareth watched her sleep he gently caressed the mirror surface, leaning his head against it. "I will find you Sarah," he vowed in a broken whisper. "I will find you."

Author's Note:

I've decided to begin to rewrite this story, because I started it a couple of years back. I'm surprised at how many mistakes I found. How were you guys able to read this without being blinded? XD

Anyway thanks for the continued support. Hopefully I'll be able to post chapter 16 soon.

~Lyn Harkeran