#griven

Cracking the door open she peered into the bundle of blankets, dark brows pulled together at the unmoving fur-ball. Sarah knelt down to ensure the Spriggan was still breathing. Sarah extended a careful hand, just barely brushing her fingertips against the coarse fur. The Spriggan reacted with a small noise and curled further into itself.

She gathered the first blanket from the pile and tucked it under her arm. Sarah grabbed her keys from the hook, “Alright Gwen, I’ll be back in a little while.” 

Dr. Zakar’s words rang like a bell in the back of her mind, how he’d told her she already had everything she needed to conquer her fears. Even if Sarah didn’t have all the answers now, she’d gain them in time. The Labyrinth only had power over her if she let it. She returned Toby’s message with a promise that she’d be on her way soon. 

A strange sort of confidence took hold of her because Sarah did have options to turn to. The Fiery and the Spriggan both came from the Underground, so it stood to reason at least one of them could answer her. 

Climbing into her car, she set the Spriggan in the passenger floorboard. Not wanting to put it in the seat out of worry the sunlight may irritate it. While driving Sarah’s thoughts started to wander again, a twinge of anxiety set in at the thought of returning to her childhood home. Her departure from it at eighteen hadn’t exactly happened on good terms, Irene had begged her to stay, and Toby did nothing but cry in her father’s arms. When Sarah put her focus back in reality her breath caught in her throat.

All of the buildings vanished, as did the cars, and people on the sidewalks. For a split second the road had transformed into a narrow passage of the Labyrinth. Stone walls closed her in, even the pavement spawned dirt clouds the further she drove. A loud horn tore at her eardrums and Sarah shut her eyes. Her foot slammed on the brake as tires screeching mixed with the horn.

When Sarah opened her eyes again the passage was gone, her car sat a little over the line white line of a traffic light. The car she would have collided into continued its turn while the driver spewed some profanity out the window. Sarah diverged from her original route to pull over into a gas station parking lot. She put the car in park and slammed her back into the driver seat, trying to calm her panicked breathing as she hid her face in her hands.

Sarah wanted to blame...whatever just happened. On lack of sleep but she knew better. She’d felt the change from smooth pavement to dirt road, confident that if she got out to check her car, she’d find residue on her wheels. Not feeling safe to drive the rest of the way, Sarah called an uber. Keeping the Spriggan bundled in the blanket to masquerade it like a baby. Hoping it wouldn’t draw too much of the driver’s attention.

The usual, calm sense of coming home didn’t resonate with Sarah as the familiar white paint and tan roof came into view. Instead she had to swallow her nerves and prepare herself all over again. 

“You and the little one have a good night, miss,” he nodded as she exited the car.

She managed a kind smile, “thanks, you too.”

Sarah just reached the second step when Toby opened the door, an elated expression lit up around half a pastry stuffed in his mouth. The pastry an indication that Layla was also in the house.

“Is that the fairy? Can I see can I see-” He eagerly bounced on his feet.

“Careful, Toby. There’s a wound on its side,” she gently pushed past him to get to the kitchen. “Let me get it settled first.”

He followed at her heel like a lost puppy, trying to catch a glimpse of the fairy.

Layla looked up from the kitchen table, math books, papers, and other school supplies littered the table. The redhead wasn’t an uncommon visitor in the Williams house. She often tutored Toby in school, and sometimes even babysat Toby when Sarah was unable.

“Sarah- I know I slipped up. I’m so, so sorry Toby found out about th-”

“It’s alright Layla,” She waved it off and set the blanket bundle down. “It was bound to happen.”

Toby wedged between the two women, “Guys listen! I was talking to Daegmund, to see if he knew this fairy, and he does. He didn’t come here to find the Goblin King, YOUR fairy did Sarah.”

“Daegmund...is that the Fiery?” Sarah looked around for the creature in question.

Her brother nodded while rummaging through the pastry box Layla brought.

“He’s upstairs,” Layla pointed up towards Toby’s room. “We uh, kind of managed to keep him docile with music.”

Sarah put her hands on her hips, “so they know each other. Think he can figure out why this little guy hasn’t woken up yet?” 

Not wanting to move the Spriggan again, the trio made their way upstairs. Toby had taken up residence in Sarah’s old room shortly after she’d moved away. Irene had done away with the wallpaper and painted the room a dark blue, a chestnut bed with a grey comforter sat where her vanity used to be. A matching dresser to the left of the window with hanging shelves over it. 

“Where’s the Fiery?” Sarah inquired over the jazz playing from a speaker.

“Here here, watch this,” Toby knelt down and held out a pastry he’d taken from the box, shaking it a bit as he called to the creature, “Daeg I brought food.”

First a rainbow tail swished out from the right side of the bed, wagging side to side in a blur. Next a beak from the foot of the bed. Slowly, the full head of the Fiery. Bright eyes blinked twice as the bushy head tilted left. One pointed ear slipped past the cover.

Sarah found it odd just how docile this Fiery seemed to be compared to the ones she’d encountered. All the creature seemed to care for was food and music. Even more curious, he listened to Toby. He crawled out from under the bed and crouched in front of Toby, taking the offered treat gleefully.

“See? He’s harmless,” Toby searched for praise as he beamed up at Sarah.

“Great job keeping him in check with mom and dad in the house,” She gave him an encouraging smile, then she addressed the Fiery directly. “Can you come with us?”

“Aye, startin’ ta get little tired a dis room,” Daegmund chattered, taking off his head to throw it between his hands.

“Oh my g-” Layla gasped and sharply blocked her sight from the Fiery. 

Unlike the Williams siblings, she wasn’t used to that kind of behavior.

Daegmund followed the trio downstairs, while not so gracefully descending the stairs, since he tripped over his tail halfway down. In the kitchen, his first target was the pastry box. After he’d eaten his fill, Sarah managed to get him to focus. Layla took to holding the Spriggan- who they learned was named Girven, while the three talked about the Labyrinth.

“So let me get this straight,” Sarah ran a hand through her hair. “The labyrinth is breaking, and because of that creatures from the Underground are slipping through the cracks. So Girven came here to round up everyone who escaped?”

The Fiery did a gesture mixed between a nod and a shoulder roll, “Eh sometin like dat.”

“What about the goblin king?” Layla inquired from the table. “Where is he in all of this?”

“Kingsy went poof-” Daegmund mimed an explosion. “Ain’t nobody seen ‘em since da first crack in tha walls.”

Toby was next to ask a question, “is it breaking because he’s gone?”

The line of questioning seemed to lose the Fiery’s interest, since he went to raid the cupboards in search of more food. Sarah looked at the Spriggan, wondering if there was a way to wake it up. Something told her she’d get more concrete answers from it opposed to Daegmund. 

“We have to figure out how to wake up Girven,” Toby declared. “If it came here to find the goblin king, then he can fix everything!”

Sarah groaned.

“What do we do?”

A sick feeling rose in the back of her throat.

“Daeg, can you do something to help? There has to be something we can do!”

“Toby stop it!” 

Sarah couldn’t take the pressure building up in her chest, “I don’t want to do this anymore! I’m done, I don’t want to hear about the Labyrinth anymore! I don’t care that it’s broken, I don’t care that Jareth is missing. I. Don’t. Care. I wanted out of this damn house to get away from the Labyrinth! If it’s broken let the stupid thing break, it’s not our responsibility to fix it!”

Heavy tension hung in the air as stunned silence took hold of her brother. Who she hadn’t raised her voice to since he was a baby, those same never-ending tear filled eyes looked at her now. Even Layla couldn’t have predicted such a reaction from her friend.

Instant regret soured her tongue, because the words hadn't meant to come out so harsh. It wasn't right to take her frustration, stress, and lack of sleep out on Toby. Whatever passion Sarah had for the Labyrinth had morphed to resentment, something she didn't want her brother to experience. Because he didn't know the true horrors of what the rest of the world regarded as just a story.

“Sarah,” Layla looked between the siblings, unsure of what to do. “Toby- hey-” 

Tears stung Toby’s eyes, hurt, and heartbreak in them. They screamed an ever burning question of how could she yell at him?

He screwed his eyes shut, screaming at the top of his lungs, “I wish the Goblins would take you away right now!” 

Without another word, too wounded to lash out again, he grabbed Daegmund's forearm and rushed upstairs. His bedroom door slammed hard enough to rattle the house.

The heavy weight in the room remained long after Toby left. Nothing changed. No goblins emerged from every crevice of the room. No barn owl barging at the window. 

For some reason that stung more.

“Sarah,” Layla's calm voice broke through the quiet. “Honey listen, you haven't been sleeping. Toby doesn’t...he knows you didn’t mean any of it. Let me take you home, I can look after Toby and Girven. It’s gonna be okay, let's just get you home, okay?” 

Ashamed of her outburst, Sarah wanted to go upstairs and apologize. Except she knew Toby wouldn’t accept it nor listen to her with the wounds she dealt still fresh. Layla was right. The best thing Sarah could do for Toby now was give him space. Though reluctant, she agreed to return home.

Rather than trouble Layla with having to drive Sarah home, she decided to get an uber to the gas station where she left her car. Sarah needed the isolation period to collect herself and stave off the wave of oncoming self-loathing. Sarah dried her eyes in between red lights, ready to be home buried in her bed, and everything that transpired in the Williams house completely forgotten.

Sarah shoved her apartment key into the lock, swallowing the last of her tears so she could at least greet Gwendolyn with some enthusiasm.

Except when she opened the door, her dog wasn’t there waiting.

“Gwen?” Sarah called for her, whistling as she crouched down, patting her knees. “Here girl, I’m home.”

A growl drew her attention to the living room. The pitbull was stiff as a board, her head lowered, like she was ready to pounce on something. Her full focus on the half open curtains over the windows. Quiet but quick steps pulled her to the kitchen to arm herself before approaching whatever Gwendolyn had cornered. The first thing she could get to was a rolling pin.

Gwen growled again, lower, and more aggressive. 

A gloved hand slipped out from behind the curtain, curling around the edge before jerking it aside. All the color drained from her face, the rolling pin fell from her hand as the mismatched eyes of the Goblin King stared her down.

A smirk curled on his lips, “Hello, Sarah.”

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