In the wee hours of the morning, Sam woke up
to discover that she was laying on a hard, cold stone floor.
Why couldn’t it have been just another dream?
she pleaded to no one in particular. Why couldn’t I have just
woken up safe and warm in my nice British
bed? Why am I here? But this time, there was nobody near
to
answer her thoughts. She was utterly
alone in the dark and the cold. Better get moving.
Sam lay on the floor until her eyes adjusted
to the darkness and then made her way to the barely discernable
exit across the room. It was a dangerous
journey filled with steep, winding stairs and narrow passages that
suddenly ended, but Sam finally found her
way to the castle’s main entrance as false dawn spread acoss the sky
in shades of pink and gray. She looked
at the large wooden doors in front of her and wondered how she was
going to get out. Sam wanted to find
her way out of the Labyrinth--just the opposite of her mother’s journey,
she mused.
“Say,” a voice interrupted from near the gate, “aren’t you the Lady Samona?”
Sam tensed, wondering just what Jareth had
been telling these goblins of his. Lady Samona? What bullshit!
It was time to set the record straight.
“Nope, I’m just plain ol’ Sam. Now, how about opening this door for me, please?”
“Oh. Okay, then. No problem. Be just a minute.”
Sam was relieved that the goblin hadn’t questioned
her further. She really didn’t like to lie, especially to those
who were only doing their jobs.
The door swung open with a rusty squeak and
Sam went through it, just managing to restrain herself from
looking back at Jareth’s castle. Before
her was the chaotic mass of the Goblin city. Little stone buildings
in an
array of shapes and colors pointed to the
sky like bony fingers in the pre-dawn light. Sam shuddered, both
at
the thought and the early morning dampness.
She was clothed only in a pair of close-fitted tan chinos and pale
pink linen blouse with short sleeves.
Her white leather oxfords and belt did much for her simple outfit, but
nothing to lessen the chill. I am
dressed for a British June afternoon of sightseeing, not for tramping about
a
Goblin City at sunrise, Sam thought
acerbically.
Nonetheless, she made her way through the city
with only a few curious glances directed her way. It seemed
that goblins liked the morning even less than
she did, because she didn’t see many besides the gateman until the
sun was well above the horizon. By then,
however, Sam was at the edge of the Goblin City, waiting patiently
for a young dwarf in a blue leather jacket
to open the gate for her.
“Are you really going out there?” he enquired with a touch of doubt.
“I am” Sam affirmed without hesitation.
“I want to go home, and to do that I have to find a way out of this
Labyrinth.”
“Well, good luck, miss. But if you need
any help, just look for my father. He knows this Labyrinth better
than Jareth himself. His name is Hoggle.
I’m Hoddle, by the way.”
“Thank you, and goodbye, Hoddle.” Sam
smiled and waved. Then she turned and walked through the gate
and into the sprawling Labyrinth.
**********************
Jareth stared into the crystal balancing on
his black-gloved fingertips and smiled. He hoped that the Labyrinth
and it’s creatures would help Sam heal.
He’d let her spend the night in his empty one-room tower so she could
be alone, but he had worried that she might
catch a cold and become sick. It seems that her resistance is
quite
strong. Both to illness and to me!
he thought humorously. But, she was on her own now. He would
only
interfere if she asked it of him.
“Stewart,” he said to the goblin at the door, “tell that dwarf Hoggle to watch her.”
“Yes, milord,” he acknowledged then vanished before Jareth could blink again.
Jareth paced the length of his study, hands
clasped tightly behind his back. He thought about how well and how
little he knew Samona. He had known
her mother well, and had been great friends with her towards the end of
her time on Earth. When she died, Jareth
had been tempted to bring Samona back to the Labyrinth where she
belonged, but Sarah had absolutely forbidden
it. She wanted her daughter to make her own way in the world.
And if the time came when Samona could no
longer stand her native land, then and only then could Jareth
intervene. And that time had come.
Samona may not accept it, or even know it yet, but she no longer
belonged in the mundane world. Her powers
and imagination had long outgrown those of most other humans.
Not to mention what tragedy, violence and
alcohol had done to her mind and body over the years. No, Jareth
did not regret his decision to bring Samona
home, he only regretted the promise that had left her to suffer for so
long on Earth. But she was his now,
and he would never let her go.
*************************