51A/N: Hey Fanfic world I'm back with not another drabble but a real story this time. My muse has been working over time and...
"Does this mean I can take a break" Elizabeth looks hopeful.
I glare, "You even think to try it and I swear I will have Jareth bog you! He has been waiting to get together with Sarah for a while and now he has the chance."
Elizabeth sweatdrops at the threat. "One more chapter coming up boss." I smirk and pat her head. "Good girl."
Anyway I don't own the labyrinth or any characters associate with it. The only character I own so far is Maya. She's mine so hands off! ;p Well enjoy the story and please don't forget to review.
Chapter one: An Attempt and a New Friend
"So have you had any more flights of fancy Sarah?"
Sarah's piercing green eyes regarded the women with icy disdain. It had been three years since her dream about her favorite story 'the Labyrinth' and it had been almost 2 years since her stepmother had forced her to start seeing this shrink.
"If I had, would I tell you, is the question." She asked turning her gaze to the window as she tuned out what her stepmother was saying about her to the shrink.
Of course she had flights of 'fancy'. Her dreams ran rampant with goblins, dancing, and a handsome Goblin king that sang such beautiful songs...
Oh the songs that were sung. She remembered them well from her dreams and had started singing them to Toby. He was especially fond of the one about the goblin babe. She smiled a little at how much she and her little brother had connected. He was so insistent about having her retell her dream to him night after night.
She bit back a growl of irritation that had risen to her throat. That was what landed her in shrink city. Toby had started insisting that her story was real and her stepmother had forbidden her from even talking to him. She grimaced as she remembered the one time she broke that rule.
*Flashback*
"Toby you need to eat!" Karen cried out in frustration as she tried to coax him to take a bite of pizza.
"NO! I"M NOT HUNGRY!" He screamed as he flung the slice at her.
Sarah hated to see him so upset but there was nothing she could do. Her stepmother had forbidden her to even speak to Toby and had even gone so far as to throw out all of her toys, fairytale books, and costumes while she was at school. That was four days ago and Toby had refuse to eat since.
She watched as Toby looked at her with his big blue eyes. He looked so pale that her heart lurched inside her chest. She knew that he was starving and she had to do something!
"Toby..." She whispered.
Karen glared at her mouthing 'shut up'. Her father sighed in exasperation as he straightened his tie getting ready to go to a conference in England.
"Sarah, do what you have to, just get him to eat! This is ridiculous! I have to leave or I'm going to miss my plane."
Looking from Karen to her father, she watched as he grabbed his suitcase and walked out to the awaiting taxi, then back to Toby.
"Toby... You like the goblins I told you about right?" She held her breath and waited for the rebuke that she was sure was coming. She was not disappointed.
Toby nodded his head as Karen let out a shriek of rage as she hurled a plate against the wall.
"Were you not told that you were forbidden to speak of goblins in this house? Have you so little respect for me that you cannot follow this one rule! Toby already believes that they are real and I don't need your help to get MY son to eat. I am his MOTHER and he will eat his dinner if I have to stay up all night to do get him to do IT! You, young lady need to stop living in that fantasy world of yours and come back to reality!"
Sarah glared at her as she made to defend herself. "Daddy just said as he left, to do what I had to, to get Toby to eat. He likes Goblins, and if pretending to be one gets him to eat I don't see what the big deal is!" She yelled.
Karen made a move toward her and Sarah rushed to put the table between them. "That's it! Starting tomorrow you are going to see a therapist because you need help!"
*end flashback*
That was the beginning of her troubles with Karen. When her father's plane crashed and his will was read, Karen was outraged to find that he had heard their shouting match that night and had made a quick stop to his lawyer's office to make a few changes in his will. In his will he stated that if she saw fit to talk that way to his daughter and treat her like that in front of his son, then he refused to will her anything. So that is what she got...nothing. Not the house, the car, or his 800,000-dollar life insurance. Everything went to Sarah and that Sarah was to be executor of his estate.
Her father had stated in his will that he trusted her completely and knew that she would do right by Toby. He, of course, was right; Sarah had immediately set up a trust fund for Toby which hewould get once he turned 18. Karen was so furious that after that she was never allowed alone with Toby, she wasn't allowed to sing anything, and she wasn't allowed to even speak to him.
Sarah smiled gently when she thought of Toby.
For being only 5 Toby was smart enough to realize what was going on and rebelled against Karen at every turn. He refused to do anything for Karen and often snuck into Sarah's bedroom after Karen was fast asleep. He would fall asleep in her arms as she whispered of the goblin city, of her imaginary friends: Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus, and of course the dashing fey king who sang to her, taunted her, and of how much he and his labyrinth had taught her about herself. She knew that a dream, though it may have been, had marked her... It changed her for the better. It had made her stronger of will, mind, and spirit. It also had made her more cautious and cunning.
"Sarah...Sarah...SARAH!"
"You see! This is what I have to deal with! She never listens and she constantly has her head in the clouds!"
Sarah was thrust from her thoughts as the therapist shout and Karen's piercing voice were sent ringing through her ears. She sighed.
"We are done here." She said as her icy glare travel from one woman to the other sending shivers down both of their spines. Sarah had noticed the shivers and smirked with a note of satisfaction in her eyes.
If it weren't for Toby, she wouldn't have anything to do with that woman and would have kicked her to the curb long ago. Hopefully soon, she would be able to if she and her lawyers had anything to say about it. That thought caused her smirk to spread into a grin.
She stood up and walked out the door nodding politely to the secretary as she passed. Not wanting to wait until the end of her session or for Karen, she got into her car and headed home without her.
"Toby I'm home!"
"MAMA!"
Sarah smiled at down at the blonde five-year old bundle of energy that attached himself to her. Her heart swelling at the sight of his smiling little face. His pale blonde locks reminding her of another blonde that held a place in her heart as well. Even if he wasn't real.
"Sarah your home early... A half an hour early, if I'm not mistaken."
"Hey Maya, was he good for you?" She asked glancing at the ebony haired women who she had tricked Karen into hiring to watch Toby when Karen was out; Maya was also her informant in the way of an undercover live in-house keeper. Karen had laid out clear rules when it came to Toby that Maya only followed when Karen was home. She was helping with her plan to finally evict Karen for good from they're lives.
As she gazed down at the pair of luminescent blue eyes she realized what Toby had called her. Kneeling down she grabbed Toby by the chin and made sure he understood what she was about to say.
"Toby I need you to listen very carefully to what I say next, okay?" Toby nodded his face fell serious. "Good. Now you know very well that if Karen heard you calling me mama that she would take you far away from me and we wouldn't be able to see each other again, right?" He nodded again looking terrified at the very thought. She gave him a hug before gently pushing him away and into Maya's arms.
She looked into the older woman's sad amber eyes as they both nodded in understanding of the rolls they had to play. Maya would protect him she knew. That was one of the reason Sarah had hired her. She was a 5th degree black belt and had saved Sarah from being raped and killed as she had walked home from school 3 months ago. She remembered like it was yesterday.
*flashback*
Sarah was thinking over what her lawyer had told her about what she needed to do to go through with her plans. She had to be careful about choosing the right person for the job since she couldn't be with Toby 24-7. She had school to think about. Her graduation was coming up and as Valedictorian, she was supposed to give a speech.
She knew that Karen would not be there, much to her eternal relief but how to get Toby there without the witch noticing... yes that was one of the things that she had to think about.
Sarah stopped for a moment sighing. As she gazed up at the clouds she couldn't help but think that life was not fair. Her lips twitched at the phrase. Shaking her head she let out a small chuckle as she whispered softly. "Well at least I now have basis for comparison."
Turning back to her thoughts she began walking again never realizing that her feet were taking her to her favorite spot in the large park she loved so much.
Suddenly, realizing that there was grass, not concrete, beneath her feet, she looked up and around. Laughing when she became aware of where her feet had taken her, she twirled in a circle until she was breathless and dizzy then fell back upon the soft grass. She felt relaxed and actually peaceful for the first time since her father passed. This spot always had a way of melting her worries and stress away. Closing her eyes, she listened to the wind as it whispered through the trees.
"Well, well, well, look what we have here boys. A little girl all alone. What a fortunate turn of events... Now no one will hear her scream. Grab her!"
Sarah's eyes flew open just as she was roughly grabbed. Kicking and twisting, she felt terror racing though her body as she was forced down. A hand grabbed her hair and yanked hard as she tried to scream, only to have a gag roughly shoved into her mouth. She glared at the men before her. Defiance shone in her eyes as she held back the terror that she felt inside.
Before her, stood two men with masks on. They were tall, one heavier than the other. She fought down the bile that rose in her throat. Struggling even fiercer, she tried to get away from the one that was behind her, only to have him squeeze her until she couldn't breath.
"You sure she's the one we are supposed to kill? I'd hate to kill the wrong girl and not have that lady pay us. After all, ten thousand is a lot of money," growled the man holding her from behind.
She gasped in shock at the man's word. There was only one woman who hated her enough to have her killed. She glared. If Karen thought she was getting the money, she was wrong. Sarah had set it up so if anything happened to her all her money would go to Toby when he turned 21. She watched as the thin man in front of her dug in his pock and pulled out a picture and held it alongside her face.
"Oh yeah, she's the one. You know though, I think we should have a little fun first."
She struggled again, harder this time, fear coursing through her veins as the thin one grabbed her breast and squeezed hard. With tears in her eyes, she kicked out planting both feet on the man's chest. The sudden momentum and force caused her to fall back against the man holding her.
With a shout of surprise the man stumbled back, releasing her. She gasped and took off running, literally for her life. She tore off the gag and out of the grove, only to slam into a soft surface causing both the other person and her to fall back. As she glanced up at the person she had run into, she found she couldn't move. She knew she was staring, but the woman in front of her was stunning. She wasn't bi or anything, but she never had seen someone so beautiful out side of the movies.
The woman was about her height with ridiculous long ebony hair that curled around her face in waves and was pulled into a high pony-tail. Her skin seemed to glow a soft gold and her eyes glowed a dark amber. With curves in all to right places and cupid shaped lips, she was simply...
"Get them!"
A shout from behind her caused Sarah to snap out of her awe, and the urgency of the situation returned. Glancing back at the women in front of her, she saw that the she had already gotten up as was offering her hand with a dazed sort of smile.
"I'm Maya, I take it that those men are not friends of yours?" Maya nodded to the men running toward them. Taking her hand quickly, Sarah was hauled to her feet with a surprising show of strength.
"No, and we have to hurry, we can't let them get us, they mean to kill me!" She gasped in a rush.
She stared as the woman just cocked her head to the side, her locks kissing the ground and smirked. "Really?" she purred.
Sarah watched in horror as the men caught up with them and went to grab Maya. Maya grinned mischievously as the man reached for her. She quickly, and gracefully, leapt up and roundhouse kicked him, catching him dead in the head. As the man was flung violently to the ground, the thin man gave a yell. He pulled a knife and rushed at the woman. Before Sarah could utter a warning, Maya grabbed her long hair and neatly sidestepped the lunge. Wrapping her hair around the man's neck, she gave a sharp jerk and Sarah cringed at the sharp snap that could be heard.
Sarah watched as the woman... Maya, quickly let go to and whipped around to counter the last assailant's blow, grabbing for the fat man's throat and, with her nails, tearing it, literally, out. Blood seemed to fly everywhere, Sarah took one last look around before the world went black.
"Is she alright."
"Yes, she just fainted, that's all."
Sarah eyes fluttered open and she took a look around. She was laying on a bed, and there staring at her was the woman from before and an officer with bright red hair and sea green eyes.
"So your awake. How do you feel?" The woman asked softly.
Sarah shot up as the attack came back to her. She backed away from the woman and trembled. "You, you... You killed them!" She whispered.
She watched as Maya, she remembered the woman's name now, calmly took a sip from her tea-cup and sighed. When Maya looked up, Sarah could see hurt shimmering in her eyes.
"Yes I did. I needed to protect you. That's why I was there." The police officer put a hand on Maya's shoulder as if to offer comfort.
Sarah thought back on what happened and realized that Maya hadn't been surprised by the attack. Then it hit her, what the woman had said.
"You knew, didn't you!" Sarah accused, voice bubbling into a choked laugh. "You knew I was there and you knew that those guys were going to kill me. Didn't YOU!?"
"Enough! She saved your life you ungrateful little..."
"Malachite, that's enough!" Maya interrupted, her eyes flashing a warning that made the irate officer back down and glance quickly away.
Sarah watched as Maya's gaze softened and she patted his hand. "She has every right to know, Malachite. I need her to know, it's the only way I can help her."
*End of Flashback*
Toby went to play with Maya and Sarah decided to head to hers. She had homework to do.
As Sarah walked to her room, she mulled through the past. It was then she learned that Maya didn't dream like most did. When she dreamed she saw the future. Maya had seen her in one of those dreams and had come to her rescue. At first she didn't want to believe her, but Maya had proven it. She told Sarah that in part of the dream Sarah had asked her to do something very important for her. When she told Sarah that her answer was yes, she would watch over Toby, and be her informant, Sarah literally fell off the bed, but since that day Maya had been her best friend.
Sarah smiled at that. She only had one best friend. Everyone wanted to be her friend at school only for her money, but Maya risked herself to save her and didn't ask anything from her. It had been easy for Maya to trick Karen into hiring her as Toby's live in baby sitter. She really was wonderful. In fact, since that day, Maya had started to teach her a martial art called Isshin-Ryu. It was a pretty aggressive, yet defensive, martial art.
She was getting to be good at it too. At least according to Maya. Her training was not the easiest and she was still at the beginning level, but she had just learned her third kata and she was excited about that. Maya practiced with her everyday. She told Sarah that soon she would be ready for the fourth soon. It was called Dachi, if she remembered right. Still, as long as she was getting better. Since the day of the attack, she worked hard to make sure that she was never so defenseless ever again.
Getting to her room, she locked the door. With Maya here she didn't have to worry about Toby, but she knew that her little stunt today was not going to make Karen happy. She just didn't feel like listening to her bullshit. Especially since in two days, she would be free from Karen's presence and Toby would be her son for real. Humming to herself she retrieved her diary from up underneath her bed. Sitting at her desk, she stared at the book. It was her guilty pleasure. Sometimes she would forget things that happened in her first dream. It all seemed so real, but as time went on, it would faded until all she could remember was her goblin king. That's when she would go back through and reread it. She didn't want to forget him or her friends, so she would write letters to him. She knew that he would never get them, but it was a way to keep him close in her mind and heart so she wouldn't feel so alone.
Opening the book she excitedly began to write...
Dear Jareth,
A:N Well, that's the end of the first chapter I hope you all liked it. If you did then please be kind enough to review. If you didn't like it then that's fine and please feel free to still review and tell me your thoughts. A big shout goes out to StraightJacketSuperModel for being my beta and being a great friend. ^_^ Well take care until the next time.