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Chapter Text

Sarah watched the snow falling behind the window. The flakes swirled in a hypnotic ballet and despite the chimney fire burning in the room just behind her, she couldn't help shivering. Tightening the shawl she wore around her shoulders, she wiped the condensation that had accumulated on the window and left her vantage point to return to the chair she had left, the book she was reading lying abandoned on the coffee table next to it. Her parents' library had always been her favorite room in the house.

With its high ceilings and all the oak woodwork, the Williams library was a place that was both refined and comfortable. The huge blue silk carpet on the parquet floor muffled most footsteps and gave the room an elegant touch. Framed by two terrestrial and celestial globes that her father had brought back from one of his trips, the imposing dark marble fireplace created a warmth throughout the room that made long winter evenings almost bearable.

In their display cases made of glass and wood, books covered the walls and dealt with the most diverse subjects : medicine, history and geography but also agriculture, astrology or even mythology. There were only the horrible plant moldings and that awful mythological fresco on the ceiling that spoiled the warm atmosphere of the room a little. Robert, Sarah's father, was very fond of it, but fortunately, her mother-in-law, Irene, had promised Sarah that as soon as the good weather returned, a beautiful starry sky would replace the loves of Zeus.

Looking at the time on the gilt copper enameled wooden wall clock, Sarah sighed and went to put the book she was reading in its place on the shelf. Normally, the carefully bound scarlet book should have captured her attention but it was not a usual time.

The rest of the year, Sarah could walk past the mirrors of the house without shaking, see her reflection in the windows without blinking, walk in a room plunged in darkness without startling at the slightest scratch.

The rest of the year, she didn't sleep with a light in her bedroom and a paper cutter under her pillow.

The rest of the year, she could almost think it had all been a dream.

But when the days started to shorten, when the wind became cold and howling, when the mist invaded the streets at night, when Christmas was approaching…

It’s been ten years now but for Sarah it was like it was yesterday.

“Miss Sarah ?”

Sarah turned around. One of the servants was standing in the doorway. Lost in thought, Sarah hadn't heard the door open.

“Miss, they're waiting for you downstairs.”

“Thank you Marie, I'm going down immediately.”

Marie nodded and closed the door behind her.

Sarah took a deep breath and adjusted her long gloves. Her black hair raised in a bun held in place by a golden net, she wore a Greek-style dress in sumptuous dark green silk. The fitted bodice highlighted her waist and if the dress was rather low-cut in keeping with the fashion of these days, the long pearl gray cashmere shawl she wore covered her chest just as well.

Knowing that she could no longer back off, Sarah left the library and went down into the large parlor. About twenty people were in the room, chatting about politics and gossip in the shade of the huge red and golden Christmas tree that the family had finished decorating the day before. The dinner was supposed to be a family meal, but Hans, the fiancé of her half-sister Cecilia, couldn't help but invite some of his wealthy friends. Sarah lingered for a moment at the top of the stairs, watching them. Chatting in small groups while the servants moved around the room to serve them refreshments and small appetizers, the guests were all great city notables accompanied by their wives and children, dressed in their best assets and waiting for dinner to start.

Raising her skirt, Sarah discreetly went down the stairs and was about to go sit aside when she heard someone calling her.

“Sarah here you are !”

Turning her head, she saw Robert beckoning her to join them. Irene was standing beside him as were Toby, Cecilia and of course Hans.

Too late to run away now Sarah.

Ignoring the sarcastic voice in her head, she walked over to them.

“My daughter”, said her father, taking her in his arms to kiss her on the forehead. “Look at yourself, you are resplendent !”

Irene smiled at her playfully.

“Robert is right, after this evening, I will have to warn Jesper that he will have to face a real invasion of suitors.”

“Don't worry Sarah”, Toby adds with a falsely serious face. “With the wooden saber that Dad promised me for Christmas, I would be there to help Jesper defend your honor.”

Robert and Irene laughed and even Sarah couldn't help but smile. Her mother-in-law might tease her about it, but Sarah knew that the day a suitor would show up at the door, Irene would welcome him with open arms. When Albert started courting her two years ago, Irene was so enthusiastic that Robert couldn't help but point out that she was already supposed to be married and happily married. Of course, Albert had the imagination of a sparrow and the intelligence that went with it, but that didn't stop Irene from hoping.

"Your parents are right Sarah," Hans said in a smooth voice. “You are more and more beautiful with each passing year.”

Stiffening, Sarah settled for responding to his compliment with a tense smile. Tall, blond and attractive, Hans was the very promising mayor of Hamelin just like his father and his grandfather before him. He was also the fiancé of her half-sister Cecilia for several months now and everyone adored him : her parents, her half-sister and even Toby, who was usually rather reserved with strangers, liked him very much. Sarah was more skeptical : she didn't like the way he looked at Mr. Schwarzwald's daughter sometimes, or the way he was a little too close to her when he spoke to her. But Cecilia loved her and Sarah couldn't say anything because it was Cecilia.

After the death of his first wife, Sarah’s mother, Robert didn’t want to remarry and it took several years to recover. The fact that she died with her lover in attendance didn’t help the matter. But when he met Irene at a ball given by Hans’s father, it was love at first sight and a year later, they were married. Irene was also a widow and from her previous marriage, she had Cecilia, older than Sarah, who had come to live with them when her mother remarried.

At first, Sarah had been delighted to have a sister to play secret games with but she quickly became disillusioned. Petite, blonde, with big azure eyes, a porcelain skin and cute as a button, Cecilia had quickly made Sarah realize that she was just a patch of mud on her elegant dresses. Even though Irene and Roberts had tried to ease the tensions between the two children, Sarah had struggled to get used to her new family and when Toby was born, she had the impression that her father had no more place for her in his new life. However, after the "incident", she and Toby had become very close and in the process, she also got closer to Irene, regarding her as a second mother. But Cecilia had remained Cecilia and once adults, the two young women had continued to keep their distance.

“Well, wouldn't it be my favorite niece in this dress worthy of Titania ?”

“Uncle Drosselmeyer !” exclaimed Toby with a big smile. “You came !”

Turning around, Sarah found herself face to face with a tall, thin, salt-pepper-haired man dressed soberly but tastefully. She smiled and hugged him.

“Uncle Drosselmeyer, I'm so glad to see you !”

And she was. Besides her father and Toby, Drosselmeyer was the person she was closest to in the family : he was the one who supported her when her mother died, the one who helped her cope with the coldness and pettiness of Cecilia, the one who had helped her when she believed that all was lost and what he created with a few pieces of wood… Real works of art.

“Me too my little one, me too.”

After greeting the rest of the family and congratulating Irene on the splendor of the Christmas decorations, he turned to Sarah again, eyes bright.

“Would this beautiful girl please accompany the old man that I am to the tree ? I thought I saw one of my old friends there.”

Sarah laughs.

“Come on uncle, you're not that old. Would you like me to ask the widow Jenkins what’s her opinion ?”

Irene laughed and Toby almost choked on a toast he had just swallowed.

“Oh cruel cruel child. All the more reason for you to accompany me, you wouldn't want to leave me alone facing her, would you ?”

Shaking her head with a smile, Sarah took the arm he held out for her and accompanied him to a group of old gentlemen who were very happy to hear all the gossip that Drosselmeyer brought to them.

Half an hour later, a crystal tinkle was heard and someone asked for silence.

Standing straight, Hans stepped into the center of the room, Cecilia regal on her arm in her burgundy silk dress.

“Ah I see the peacock has not changed much”, muttered Drosselmeyer.

Sarah stifled her laughter with a fit of cough.

“My friends, it is a real pleasure to be here with you this evening. Thank you for accepting the invitation of my esteemed future father-in-law despite the snow that threatened to engulf us all this evening.”

Some polite laughter burst out. Sarah rolled her eyes.

“I will spare you a long speech but I just wanted to take advantage of this evening to announce that Cecilia and I have finally set a date for our wedding. In a month, my sweet Cecilia will make me the happiest of men.”

He leaned in to kiss her and applause was heard from all sides. Beside a Cecilia beaming with happiness, Hans spoke again.

“If I had known ten years ago that I would stand there in front of you, beaming with happiness ... But this dark era is now behind us and it is now towards the future we must turned. (He raised his glass.) To happiness and the future !”

The guests followed suit.

“To happiness and the future !”

Conversations resumed, the guests hastened to personally congratulate the young couple and soon it was time to go into the dining room for the meal. But when Uncle Drosselmeyer and Sarah followed the other guests, they both carefully avoided looking towards the fireplace, where a magnificent silver nutcracker with pale blond hair and unusual eyes sat on the mantle.

Chapter Text

For Sarah, the dinner seemed endless. Decorated with fir branches and red and golden apples, the dining table was sumptuous. With the candles that served as much as ornaments as a light source and the large fireplace where a good fire crackled, the room had become a warm and festive place … And Hans couldn’t help but point out that at least ten times.

Once everyone was seated, the meal began. It was first the starters with consommé à la neige de Florence, oyster soup, Tschy and poached eggs à la Rossini. Sitting between Toby and Uncle Drosselmeyer, Sarah pretended not to see Toby's plate disappear under the table or the chops full of soup of Merlin, their dog.

Then came the time for the first dish : paupiette of sole, turbot à l’amiral and a puff pastry filled with foie gras. Sarah heard Uncle Drosselmeyer mumble something about a belt that was too tight and she smiled but it was short-lived.

“Are you ok Sarah” Toby asked next to her. “You suddenly turn so pale !”

She offered him a reassuring smile.

“All is well, I got dizzy but it passed.”

Patting on her hand, Toby nodded and returned to his plate but Uncle Drosselmeyer didn’t seem convinced and gave her a questioning look. She nodded to reassure him. With so many people around, she couldn't really tell him that she was almost sure she had seen a goblin appear behind Hans' shoulder. Especially since it was no longer there and she herself was no longer sure of what she had seen. Maybe it was a interplay of light and shadow or the wine playing tricks on her ?

She had almost convinced herself she imagined the whole thing when the second course started with the duck confit, the partridges à la Souvarov and the goose stuffed with chestnuts. She and Toby were debating the striking resemblance between the goose and their former tutor when one of the guests, Mrs. Rosenberg yelped. The conversation sounds faded and everyone turned to her. She pointed her finger at the dish in front of her.

“There !”

Her neighbor, an old gentleman with a prominent mustache, leaned forward, the monocle riveted on the goose which was the object of all eyes.

“What is it dear ?”

Frowning, Mrs Rosenberg also leaned forward.

“But I could have sworn ... (She let out an embarrassed little laugh.) My god, I'm sorry I really thought I saw something moving behind the poultry.”

Sarah slowly put her fork down before slipping her hands under the table to keep them from shaking.

“Perhaps it was a rat ?” ventured a guest.

Irene glared at him.

“Certainly not !”

While he apologized profusely and Irene mentally wiped him out of all her next dinners, the conversations started again, the incident quickly forgotten except for Sarah who had lost her appetite.

Uncle Drosselmeyer leaned toward her.

“Maybe it's just a coincidence Sarah, so don't worry so much !”

Sarah gave him a skeptical look.

“Do you really mean that ?”

He looked at her knowingly.

“No but tormenting yourself at the slightest noise is useless. I have clearly seen the way your gaze blurs and the dark circles under your eyes that bloom each winter.

Sarah sighed and played with her food.

“I can’t help it. Sometimes I feel like they're all around me. What if one day they take him back ? And if they found a way to ...”

He cut her off.

“My dear child, they will not take him back. In his current form, they know that their king is much safer here than in his kingdom.”

“But …”

"And they can't restore him to his original shape" he continued. “Have a little faith in me Sarah.”

Sarah didn’t want to hurt her uncle’s feelings but she wasn’t convinced by his reasoning. After all, when we talked about goblins and especially "him", anything was possible. However, she nodded to reassure him and began to finish her plate.

After the entremets, the servants brought the desserts and everyone gasped in admiration in front of the pyramid of almond profiteroles surrounded by mince pie with dried fruits and spices and marrons glacés. Sarah had just finished her marrons glacés when Irene got up and out after exchanging a look with her husband. Sarah almost choked when she saw her coming back with the nutcracker.

He was tall, almost the size of an infant and finely decorated in silver and white tones. All wooden, someone had painted on him large white boots, a cloudy gray stocking and a top of the same color. His hair was light blonde and his strangely two-tone eyes seemed to follow you. His originality resulted in the delicate silver crown that he wore and which had not been painted on his forehead but created from scratch and the long cape made of silver feathers he wore.

“I have a surprise for you !”

The few children present, including Toby, cried out their joy when a servant brought a large bowl filled with nuts, almonds and hazelnuts which she placed on a small table out of the way. Entrusting the nutcracker to Toby, who was probably the oldest child in the group, Irene returned to the table with a smile.

“What a magnificent object” exclaimed one of the guests. “And very original ! Where is it from ?”

Sarah shifted her chair to keep an eye on the nutcracker.

"Irene found it last year in my brother's studio" said Robert while taking a sip of wine.

Irene laughs.

“It’s more like it found me! The box that contained it almost knocked me out while I was looking for one of my gloves that I had forgotten the day before when Drosselmeyer showed us his latest achievements.”

"At first, Uncle Drosselmeyer refused to sell it saying it was not finished" added Cecilia with a sly smile . “But mom was able to convince him that such an object deserved a special place and not to be relegated to the bottom of an old dusty workshop.”

Sarah refrained from raising her eyes to heaven. The truth was that Cecilia had stolen it while Uncle Drosselmeyer didn’t pay attention and put it under the Christmas tree, claiming that it was a gift from her. They hadn't realized the trick until too late and Irene had been so delighted with the gift that Drosselmeyer couldn’t do anything. The next day, Sarah threw Cecilia's beautiful sapphire necklace into the river flowing next to Hamelin. Petty maybe but she felt better afterwards.

As the guests congratulated Uncle Drosselmeyer on his talent and the digestives started to be served, Mrs. Rosenberg noisily addressed her neighbor at the table.

“Isn't that the bell we hear?”

At her words, the conversations gradually faded and when the heavy bell ringing outside could be heard clearly, the atmosphere in the room suddenly darkened. Robert gestured to Reginald, the butler, who quickly disappeared without a word. Leaving the nutcracker on the ground, Toby came back to Sarah who hugged him.

The bell hadn't sounded like this in the middle of the night for years.

For exactly ten years.

Chapter Text

Eugenie Shultz was a child, barely 5 years old, tall like three apples and with curly blond hair. She had a soft spot for jumping in puddles, chocolate candy and ghost stories. Mr. and Mrs. Shultz had noticed her disappearance late this evening when one of the servants had wanted to recover a pair of scissors she thought she had forgotten in Eugenie's room. She had found the room empty, the bed intact as if no one had slept there, and Monsieur Grenouille, Eugenie's favorite toy, leaning on the sill of the wide open window. The servant's cries had woken up the whole house and research had been immediately undertaken. The house and its surroundings had been combed by the Shultz and all their servants, soon helped by their neighbors who had heard the noise. In vain, Eugenie remained missing and the alert had finally been raised.

When the Williams guests heard the news, the evening was quickly cut short. Nobody dared to say it out loud but everyone was thinking about it.

It had started again.

He had returned.

Holding their children by the hand, hugging the babies in their arms, caressing the toddlers' hair with a trembling hand, the different guests left one by one until there were only the Williams, uncle Drosselmeyer and Hans left.

Robert and Hans exchanged a dark look.

“Darling ?” asked Irene.

Robert walked to her and took her hands.

“I have to go Irene, I'm sorry. They're going to need everyone at the City Hall.”

Irene smiled at him but Sarah could see that her hands were shaking.

“Of course, I understand Robert. Hopefully this poor little ...”

She left her sentence hanging and Robert leaned over to kiss her on the forehead.

“We will do our best, I promise. Make sure the servants check that all the doors and windows are locked. (He paused.) Maybe it would be best if you all sleep together in the same room ? At least for this night ?”

Sarah saw Cecilia frown.

“It is out of question that I sleep under these conditions ! It's ridiculous, I'm no longer a child and I prefer my own room thank you very much !”

Frowning, Robert turned to her but Hans spoke first.

“This is not a suggestion,” he said in an icy voice, grabbing her by the arm. “You will sleep with the others.”

Eyes wide open, Sarah stared at Hans in surprise. It was the first time she ever heard Hans raising his voice against Cecilia. Her face blushing, she opened her mouth to protest, but when she saw Hans's expression, she pulled herself together.

"Okay," she mumbled, looking down.

Resuming his affable look, Hans kissed her gently on the mouth before whispering something in her ear that seemed to soften Cecilia. Behind Hans, Sarah saw Toby make a face and she winked at him. Toby stifled a giggle.

"Gentlemen," said Uncle Drosselmeyer. “You can leave without cause for concern. Even if I am no longer a young man, I will be in the room next door, my door open, ready to use my cane at the slightest suspicious noise. (He smiles.) My insomnia will finally serve a noble cause.”

Irene looked relieved, and after Robert warmly thanked him, Hans and he accepted from Jesper a lantern and set off on foot in the dark night. Stepping out, Sarah watched them walking away, the snow quickly making their silhouettes disappear on the horizon. Behind her, she could hear the worried whispers of the servants, Irene's attempts to reassure them but it was as if a leaden weight had fallen on the house.

“Sarah,” called Irene. “Come inside, would you ? You're going to catch a cold.”

Nodding, Sarah was about to go back inside when she saw something behind the gate in the distance. She narrowed her eyes but didn't move. With the snow, she had trouble seeing, but she could have sworn that someone ...

“Sarah ?”

Irene put her hand on her shoulder and Sarah turned around.

“Are you well ?”

I don’t know anymore.

“Of course,” Sarah lied with a smile.

Irene took her in her arms.

“Don't worry, I'm sure everything will be fine.”

Sarah nodded but said nothing. Behind Irene, she could see the servants all around Toby : Jesper touched his shoulder, Uncle Drosselmeyer ruffled his hair, a servant gave him a treat. Even Cecilia didn’t move away from him. Instinctively, they never took their eyes off him, as if they were afraid that he would evaporate if they blinked.

As if it hadn’t happened before.

Releasing her, Irene stroked her cheek before returning to Toby and the others. Taking a last look outside, Sarah closed the door and went upstairs with the others to get ready to go to bed. Once in her nightgown, she took advantage of the commotion of the servants who had to refurbish her parents' room to slip away and go find Uncle Drosselmeyer.

She found him in the kitchen on the ground floor talking to the cook while two commis were busy not far from them. They all turned to face her when she entered the room.

“What is happening ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer smiled at her but she could see the worry lines on his forehead.

“I was looking with Madame Gisèle if we could not take more precaution with our current problem.”

He pulled away and Sarah saw that the two commis had started collecting different plants on the table behind him.

Sarah approached and took a branch decorated with small red fruits.

“Rowan ?”

Madame Gisèle nodded, rubbing her hands.

“And we also have fresh gorse flowers, dried St. John's wort and bread of course.”

"And I sent little Rolf to get a bag of coarse salt from the cellar," added Uncle Drosselmeyer in a perky voice.

Sarah sighed but she couldn't help smiling at his satisfied look. Uncle Drosselmeyer had never been the type to leave things to chance and if many would have found a rifle or saber more reassuring, Sarah knew that if it were him, mortal weapons would be useless. If she was not convinced about the rest, she at least knew that the rowan worked well.

Very well even.

“Do you need help ?” asked Sarah.

Everything to postpone the moment when she should go to bed ... When she would find herself alone with her thoughts.

Uncle Drosselmeyer nodded, easily guessing her dilemma.

“Yes gladly Sarah.”

Without wasting time, they shared the different tasks. While Madame Gisèle was laying slices of bread on all the sills of the windows, Uncle Drosselmeyer was busy putting gorse flowers with one of the commis while Sarah and the other commis were attaching rowan branches everywhere. After learning what they were doing, Jesper had proposed with two servants to fill small handkerchiefs with coarse salt before distributing them to the whole household.

Beginning in the dining room, Sarah approached the large windows and drew back the curtains. Taking a branch of rowan, she tied it with a rope so that it blocked the two panels of the first window. She repeated the same pattern over and over until each window was adorned with its own rowan branch.

Going to the next room, she froze. Someone had left all the windows in the room wide open and the lamps and the fireplace were extinguished. Sarah frowned. It was not normal, especially with the disappearance of Eugenie. Advancing quietly, Sarah approached the windows to close them when suddenly she tripped over something. The branches of rowan slipped from her grasp but she barely saved herself by grabbing a chair. Cursing in a low voice, she turned around and looked down at the floor to find what had almost brought her down. Once her eyes had adjusted to the darkness, she saw a shape on the ground and ... Her blood froze and as in a dream, she lowered herself to pick up the nutcracker. He was strangely warm to the touch and in the semi-darkness, he almost looked ... Alive ?

No !

She dropped him on the floor and stepped back a few steps. He should have been stored in his locked box, out of sight in the library. She had seen with her own eyes a servant taking him after the little girl was announced missing. There was no way she would have left him there, especially on the floor ...

For a moment, she was tempted to pick him up and throw him in the nearest fireplace, but she did not move.

Because it could kill him.

Because it could release him.

Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to go back to the nutcracker to pick him up again. Sarah was more than aware of her vulnerability, alone in the room in a satin nightgown with him ... A shiver ran up her spine and she clenched her teeth.

Never again !

Raising her chin, she looked around until her gaze fell on an object that had been left abandoned not far from the big tree.

For the first time in a long time, a mischievous smile appeared on her lips and a few minutes later, the nutcracker was lying in a pretty pram with a little nightcap and a soft pale pink blanket.

"There," she whispered, leaning over him. “You have no power over me. Never !”

For a moment, it seemed to her that the nutcracker was going to answer her or stand up to take revenge for the humiliation he suffered.

A nervous laugh escaped from her.

But no, the nutcracker remained a prisoner of his wooden body and Sarah resumed her task, a small smile on her lips.

She didn’t see anyone.

Neither the small shapes hidden behind the ornaments of the fir tree, watching her.

Nor the silhouette of the man behind the window, smiling.

Chapter Text

Sarah couldn't sleep. Lying on the makeshift bed that the servants had installed in her parents' room, she could hear Toby snoring and Cecilia turning in her bed. If their relationship had not been what it was, she would probably have joined her in her bed to reassure her, but in this case ...

She continued to stare into the darkness, eyes wide open until Toby's snoring died down and Cecilia stopped. She held in one hand the sachet of coarse salt that Jesper had given to her and in the other a branch of rowan sharpen into a point that Uncle Drosselmeyer had slipped into her hand before she joined the others upstairs.

Ten years had passed.

Ten long years and yet it’s like it was yesterday.

Before going to bed, Uncle Drosselmeyer had tried to reassure her by telling her that he had locked the nutcracker in his crate. Sarah smiled and thanked him, but she was not reassured.

She had heard the servants talking to each other. No glittering powder was found on the floor of the Shultz's house, in Eugenie's room, or elsewhere. No crystal orb had been found on the edge of the window or in her bed.

But that didn't mean anything.

It was him.

It had to be him ...

Sarah sighed and turned in her bed to face the window.

What if it wasn't him ? What if there was a new Goblin King in the Underground ? She wasn't sure it was possible as He was still alive, but the thought of another goblin king made her stomach tied in knots .

Frowning, she turned the other way.

If there was a second goblin king, she didn't want to meet him. Once was enough thank you !

Immersed in hypotheses and speculations, Sarah ends up falling asleep without realizing it.

But deep in the night, in her most intimate dreams, memories awaited her.

Rushing down the street, Sarah felt like she had lost her mind.

It was not possible.

It was not real.

Hugging Toby a little tighter, she turned right and continued to run. She ignored the puzzled looks of the few passers-by whom she saw. She ignored the tears that ran down her cheeks. She ignored the cold wind rushing through her nightgown. She ignored Toby who was too silent. She ignored her fatigue and fear to focus on her goal.

She couldn't fail.

Not now.

Not after defeating him.

All her childhood, she had been lulled by legends around the terrible king of goblins. For centuries, the ancients had told by the fireside how he kidnapped unwise children, unwanted children, disobedient children. Everyone knew that one wish was enough, one little wish and the child disappeared, abducted by horrible goblins who took him to the depths of the earth.

But in Hamelin and in the neighboring villages, it was not a legend. There was always someone who knew a family ... fractured. A family that had toys but no children. A family of which one of its members had a strange look, lost in the distance. A family watched by passersby with a mixture of fear and pity. Because everyone knew that once the wish was made, it was too late. Unless the person wanted to challenge Him ... But those who came back from Underground were never the same again and it was useless anyway. No one ever passed the test.

No one until Sarah.

You have no power over me !

Sarah stumbled, but quickly recovered, and two blocks away, she eventually slowed down in front of a small shop whose window was filled with delicate wooden toys painted in bright colors and automates each more sophisticated than the other. Sarah took a deep breath and, with a shaky hand, pushed open the front door. A chime rang and Sarah started.

“Just a minute, I'm coming.”

Ignoring her uncle's muffled voice, Sarah sank deeper into the bowels of the store until she reached a small door ajar. Pushing it with her foot, she crossed the threshold and came face to face with Uncle Drosselmeyer.

Eyes wide, he froze.

“Sarah what ...”

Trembling, she interrupted him.

“I need help.”

Uncle Drosselmeyer frowned.

“Sarah but what happened to you ? You're frozen ! And your clothes? (He saw Toby in her arms.) Who is this ...”

He stopped suddenly and his face lost all color.

“Toby ? (Slowly, he reached out to Sarah and gently took the baby from her.) My god Toby but ...”

He looked up, horrified.

Sarah burst into tears.

“I'm sorry, so sorry ! I didn’t want to do it ! I was selfish, so selfish and now he's coming for us ! He will never leave us alone ! We must help !”

Rocking Toby, who had started to whine upon hearing his sister's panicked voice, Uncle Drosselmeyer looked at her without understanding.

“He will be back ?”

Sweet and golden promises floating in the air

Promises of love and eternal life ...

Accompanied by an icy look and a predatory smile.

Wiping her tears with her sleeve, she sniffed and looked up.

“I couldn't let him do it. (She took a deep breath.) Uncle, I beat the goblin king.”

Sarah woke up with a start, disoriented. It had been a while since she had dreamed of her return to the surface with Toby, unlike the Underground which regularly haunted her dreams just like her master.

Turning the other way, she took a deep breath before freezing, her heart racing. There were like sounds of ...

Tap tap tap.

Short of breath, she forced herself to stand still and listen carefully. The minutes passed slowly but Sarah couldn't hear anything. Yet ... She could have sworn that she was not alone, that there was someone else in the room apart from her family.

Standing slowly, she held the branch of rowan firmly in her hand and slipped out of her makeshift bed.

Tap tap tap.

She turned around suddenly and let out a little cry of fear. Someone was standing in front of the window, someone tall, threatening and who should never have been there.

“Good evening dear champion of the Labyrinth.”

Chapter Text

For a moment, Sarah thought she was still asleep, that it was just a nightmare. Or worse, that she was awake and he had freed himself. But it was not his voice, and the icy wind rushing through the open window in front of her was very real. It wasn’t him, but at this point Sarah would have preferred to confront him rather than the threatening stranger who had invited himself into the room.

Her heart pounding, she slowly moved away from her bed, without sudden gesture, to come and place herself between him and the rest of her family. The stranger never took his eyes off her. He was tall, taller than her father, with an angular face, short dark tousled hair and eyes ... Sarah inhaled suddenly and he began to walk forward, smiling. His eyes were completely black and his teeth seemed sharper than those of a normal human. He wore clothes that looked more like rags than clothes but strangely, his head was adorned with an elegant twisted crown made of black metal that seemed to absorb light. He also held in his left hand a sort of long crooked scepter made of greyish wood and obsidian stone that reached his shoulder.

“Who are you ?” she asked in a trembling voice.

Instead of answering her, he continued to walk towards her with a hopping gait that made Sarah want to throw something in his face before running away. But she couldn't leave her family helpless. Despite the cold and the noise, no one in the room had woken up. Worse, when Sarah had screamed, her voice had sounded loud enough to alert a servant or at least Uncle Drosselmeyer in the next room. However, no one had come and, seeing the stranger's smug smile, Sarah feared she know why. Once again she found herself alone in the face of danger. A shiver ran through her, followed by a wave of anger.

I survived the Labyrinth and Him ! It is out of the question that I let this ... This rat take my power from me !

As the stranger walked around the bed to approach her, she straightened up and, looking him straight in the eye, tightened her grip on the branch of rowan before lifting it up in front of her in a defensive gesture. The stranger's eyes began to glow briefly but he stopped out of reach of the rowan and Sarah forced herself to not back away. She bitterly regretted not having her little package of coarse salt, but she heard it fall to the ground when she got up and she didn't dare to stoop down to pick it up. A t least she had her rowan branch left and seeing the stranger’s reaction, it looked effective.

“You're not welcome here,” she said in a loud, clear voice. “Get out of here !”

The stranger tilted his head to the side.

“You're much smaller than I imagined.”

Shivering with cold, Sarah remained silent.

“And your skin … your so white skin. (He leaned in and took a deep breath.) I bet it is so soft and sweet.”

Suppressing a shudder of disgust, Sarah tightened her grip on the rowan branch and glanced towards the door.

“No no no,” sang the stranger, stepping back. “There's no point in trying to run away, I'm not here to ... (He stopped suddenly and pretended to think.) I'm not here tonight to kill you.”

He seemed particularly pleased with the wording of his sentence and Sarah wondered if he would come ba ck another night to kill her.

“Then why are you here ?”

He bowed down before standing up with a smile.

“I am the Mausekönig and I am here to help you my dearest champion of the Labyrinth.”

Sarah frowned. The mouse king ? That could explain the crown and the eyes… But she had never heard of a mouse king and thinking of her last contact with a monarch, his royal status didn’t reassure her at all.

“Your help for what ?”

He spread his arms.

“Well to get rid of the former king once and for all !”

Sarah turned pale but remained silent. No one knew about the Goblin king, no one except her uncle ! But he said ...

“The former king ?“

The Mausekönig smiled at her.

“The Underground sovereign, the master of the Labyrinth, the dark lord of dreams, the guardian of the lost children. (He paused slightly and a red flash passed in his eyes.) The former king who was beaten at his own game by an ordinary girl (Staring at her without blinking, he continued whispering.) Not so little now isn't it ?”

Making a face she thought was threatening, Sarah raised the branch higher and the Mausekönig sneered.

“It will not be necessary, I know that your ... Will is as strong as mine.”

A labyrinth of stones and tricks

Such a cruel look.

Himself dressed all in white.

The branch she was holding trembled slightly.

"The king is no longer there, but he is still there," said the Mausekönig, watching her reaction. “The Labyrinth is less powerful and it badly needs a new master. But he also knows that his former master will eventually return ... Unless someone stops him.”

Her arm was starting to hurt and she couldn't stop the slight tremors that were shaking her but Sarah felt that if she let go of the branch, something horrible would happen. She didn’t trust the Mausekönig and with her vulnerable family behind her, she could not afford it. What if he was lying ? What if he was there to help him escape ?

What if he told the truth but she opened the door to a monster even worse than the previous one ?

What if the goblins killed him or her family to avenge his death ?

In the Labyrinth, Sarah had a goal, a mission, and there were rules she knew by heart. But here in her room in the darkest hour of the night with a king with sharp teeth who looked at her maliciously ...

"I don't know where he is," lied Sarah. “Now go away !”

The Mausekönig shook his head.

"Liar liar," he said with a smile. “I know that you have the king and that you protect him …”

“I'm not protecting him !” cried Sarah, offended.

The Mausekönig's smile widens.

“So let me help you,” he whispered as he approached her, gently moving aside the branch of the mountain ash with his scepter. “And you can go back to your little dresses and your marrons glacés.”

Sarah opened her mouth to answer when someone appeared between her and the Mausekönig.

“Stop there scoundrel !” cried Sir Didymus, a sword pointed straight at the Mausekönig's chest. “This young lady is under my protection !”

Eyes wide open, Sarah stared at him without understand. Didymus, her dear friend Didymus, always there to defend her ! She hadn't seen him in ten years and almost forgot about him but he was still the same ... Well looking closer, she noticed that he was taller and perhaps more threatening than in her memory. In fact, he seemed ready to gut the Mausekönig whose mouth had twisted in an angry grin.

"The one-eyed little poodle," he spat. “I should have expected you would be here.”

Didymus pushed Sarah behind him and took a threatening step.

“Your insults will get you nowhere ! Leave before I cut your poor rat carcass into slices !”

His eyes lighted briefly and for a moment Sarah thought he was going to attack but he recovered and met her gaze.

“It looked like I have to leave,” he said making a mocking curtsy. “But I will come back and my sweet sweet Sarah, if you don't want your adorable little brother to end up devoured, I advise you to give me what I want …”

Inspired by a look she had seen Cecilia use so many times, Sarah raised an eyebrow in a regal manner but said nothing.

The Mausekönig showed his teeth and suddenly the room darkened. A second later, he was gone.

Sarah heaved a sigh of relief and her legs sagging, she fell on her bed.

“Sarah are you okay ?” asked Didymus while putting away his sword.

He went to sit next to her and yelped when Sarah threw herself into his arms.

“Oh Didymus thank you thank you so very much. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't arrived !”

Visibly uncomfortable, he patted her back gently.

“It's nothing my dear, really.”

Stepping back, Sarah looked at him.

“What's going on Didymus ? How did you know I was in danger ?”

Didymus sighed.

“The goblins warned me that they could no longer move around the household and that the mirrors in this room were closed to them. (He shrugged.) I immediately understood the danger.”

Sarah was relieved to be confirmed that the measures they had taken had worked except that ...

“Who is the Mausekönig ? How can I keep him from coming back ?”

Didymus shook his head sadly.

“I don't know, he doesn't come from the Underground even if he and his subjects have been roaming along the border of the Labyrinth for several years now. (He looked Sarah right in the eye.) I only know of one way to keep him from coming back ...”

He didn’t elaborate but Sarah understood what he didn’t say.

Either she found a way to get rid of the Mausekönig on her own or she will have to call on Him.

Chapter Text

After Didymus left, Sarah hadn't slept much. What Didymus had said echoed in her head as did the threats from the Mausekönig. She couldn't afford to make the slightest misstep. As the sun has barely risen, Sarah didn't wait for the others to get up and slipped out of the bedroom on tiptoe. She was exhausted but more determined than ever.

Sarah didn't know whether or not He was responsible for the little girl's disappearance or whether the Mausekönig was one of his new tricks to manipulate her or escape, but He was her prisoner, not the Mausekönig's. If he wanted Him that much, he was going to have to do better than threats in the middle of the night.
And, Sarah was preparing a little surprise for him.

After all, it wasn't the first time that she got rid of a king.

She was standing motionless at the edge of the pond at the back of her father's property. It was pitch black but the sky was clear and the moon's rays cast a wan light over the place. Each rustle in the bushes, each crackle of branches took a sinister meaning. There was no wind, only snow that had been falling gently for a few minutes already, but yet it seemed to Sarah that the trees were whispering between them. Or maybe it wasn't the trees whispering ...

Sarah slowly approached the pond to observe her reflection in the water. The girl ... No, the woman staring back at her seemed almost ch imerical. She was wearing a long black dress with short puffed sleeves that she had borrowed from her mother-in-law. She had left the corset and the gloves in her wardrobe, both being too big for her. She had thought about styling her hair with a fancy updo and sleek curls like she had seen Irene do so many times, but she finally decided to keep her face bare and her hair down. The time for vanities was over.

When the church struck the stroke of midnight, a supernatural silence fell over the garden. Nature itself seemed to be holding its breath. Suddenly Sarah knew she was not alone. She stiffened but did not turn around.

“Did you think it would be so easy Precious ?”

She shuddered at hearing his voice, the same caressing and a bit mocking voice. Taking a deep breath, she spun around. There he was, dressed like the dark king he was : a regal costume, elegant and refined but close to the body and which left little or nothing to the imagination. Dressed all in black like this, his face and especially his inhuman eyes which had so fascinated Sarah stood out all the more in the half-light, just like the delicate silver crown of volutes and dreams that he wore on his forehead as well as the long cloak made of silver feathers on his shoulders.

Sarah suddenly realized that as she watched him, he looked frozen, as if time itself had stood still. She straightened up to meet his gaze and seeing his expression, Sarah took a step back. Her gesture seemed to pull him out of his torpor and his lips turned into a smile almost… Hungry.

"Oh precious", he whispered, approaching slowly. “Indeed, you will always surprise me.”

For a moment, Sarah saw herself turning on her heel and running off to her father's house, to the light, to the heat and to the security. But the time when her father could sort out all her little ailments were over and she had to take responsibility. Above all, watching him come towards her like a hunting predator, she knew that running was in vain. He might let her touch the doorknob of the house, but he would never let her turn her back on him like that.

So Sarah swallowed her fears, folded her arms, and held her gaze until he was only inches from her.

“So many possibilities”, he breathed, leaning towards her.

Watching her reactions intently, he put his hand on her bare arm before slowly moving up her arm to her shoulder. He stroked her hair before pulling it aside so that he could access her neck which he brushed with the tips of his fingers before following the path of her jugular vein to her chin which he took delicately between his fingers, giving her plenty of time to pull out if she wanted to. Sarah was shaking but she didn't move. His hands were completely covered by gloves as soft as silk but as cold as ice. His two-colored eyes stared at her, hypnotic, inhuman in their coldness, but there was also something terribly human about the hunger she saw there.

Sensing that she wouldn't last any longer, Sarah stood on tip-toe, closed her eyes, and kissed him. The kiss only lasted an instant but Sarah knew she would never forget her lips, sweet and strangely warm. When she opened her eyes again, she saw that the Goblin King looked petrified, the expression on his face reflecting confusion and perhaps also… wonder ?

Confused, Sarah took a step back but it was as if a spell had been broken. Before her eyes, the Goblin King turned back into the monster she had faced before : his gaze was triumphant, his smile cruel and he grabbed her by the arm to pull her towards him.

“Oh precious, you shouldn't have ...”

But he didn't have time to finish his sentence. He let go of Sarah abruptly and she took the opportunity to put a certain distance between her and the king. But he paid her no attention, too busy touching his lips and then his face. He snapped off his gloves before lifting his hands up to look at them in horror.

“How …”

He slowly turned his head towards Sarah, who was standing straight without taking her eyes off him.

If she had to be honest with herself, she had not been entirely convinced by the solution proposed by Uncle Drosselmeyer. But she had been desperate and her uncle had never disappointed her so far so she had helped him prepare the ointment in her workshop, a mixture of beeswax, small starry white flowers and bluish powder. It was a recipe he had discovered on one of his trips in the North, where fjords were haunted and bright nights lasted for months. It was harmless to humans but to the little people …

So, on the way home, Sarah had hatched a plan, a plan which was far from infallible but which, if it succeeded, could ensured the safety of all the inhabitants of Hamelin. And when she had finished preparing to face him, she had carefully coated her lips with the magic ointment. Her uncle had been very clear : the ointment would only be effective if it came into contact with the king's bare skin …

And against all odds, it had worked.

“You have no power over me”, she said in a loud, clear voice. “Neither on my city. It’s over and now we’ll be safe from you !”

She expected him to be furious, even for him to try to kill her but the Goblin King looked at her silently and then a smile slowly crept across his face, a smile full of pride which frightened Sarah more than anything she had seen tonight. But before she had a chance to say or do anything, the terrifying Goblin King began to change before her astonished eyes. His skin so white began to turn brown, his limbs to stiffen, his features to freeze ... Loud crackles echoed in the night like gunshots and little by little, He began to shrink and shrink ...

Until in place of the creature that terrified Sarah so much, only a harmless nutcracker remains.

In the Williams household, everyone was still sleeping. After washing and dressing in warm clothes, Sarah left to check if her father was back home but a servant confirmed that it was not the case. Knowing that she wouldn't be able to get a chance like that anytime soon, Sarah thanked the servant and hurried down to the kitchen. There, the servants were already scrambling to make the food even though there was still some tension in the air.

When she saw her, Madame Gisèle looked worried.

"Miss Sarah," she said, walking towards her. “It is still early ! Is there a problem ?”

Sarah shook her head and reassured her with a smile.

“Not at all, I just came to collect some salt.”

A maid next to her started to open her mouth, but the cook motioned for her to be quiet before indicating to Sarah a large bag on the side.

“Go on miss, you can help yourself.”

Sarah thanked her and began to fill her coat pockets with coarse salt. She also picked up several rowan branches that someone had left beside the bag. After the events of that night, Sarah did not want to take unnecessary risks.

As she got ready to leave the kitchen, Sarah turned to face Madame Gisele.

“Have you heard anything about the missing child ?”

Madame Gisèle shook her head in distress.

“No news, I'm afraid, miss. The mayor's butler came by this morning to tell us that the research was continuing and (She gave her a pointed look.) that we had to keep being careful.”

Ignoring the thinly disguised warning, Sarah thanked her once again before leaving the kitchen. She went straight upstairs and made her way to the attic where she knew Uncle Drosselmeyer had stored the wooden crate He was in. It didn't take long for her to find the pretty, ornate rowan wood crate among the large, dusty crates filled with old clothes, ancient toys and nostalgia.

Yet Sarah hesitated for a moment before taking the box. Years of waiting for something to happen, years of dreading winters and murmurs late at night and today ...

She shook her head and bent down to pick up the box. She had no choice, the Goblin King was no longer safe here and after what happened yesterday, someone had to do something.

And that someone was her.

After making sure she had everything she needed, Sarah hurried out of the house. Outside, the day had barely risen and the air still carried the humidity and coolness of the night. There was hardly anyone in the streets of Hamelin, and the few locals Sarah passed looked nervous and walked briskly.

As she passed the church square, a man stopped her, one of the baker's apprentices who regularly came to deliver bread to the Williams'.

"Miss", he said. “Have you heard the news ?”

“What news ?”

He leaned towards her.

"Little Shultz has still not been found”, he announced to her with an air of importance. “But they found some clues.”

Sarah frowned.

“Clues ?”

The apprentice nodded.

“The men allegedly discovered footprints and one of the ribbons the little one wore in her hair in the forest.”

Confused, Sarah shook her head.

“But we never found a clue before !”

The apprentice nodded.

“Maybe it's not Him ... But I would have liked it better.”

Sarah stared at him as if he had lost his mind.

“Excuse me ?”

The apprentice blushed slightly.

“Well, with Him, we knew what to expect at least ...”

Disturbed, Sarah paid him goodbye absently and resumed her journey, hugging the box hard against her chest. Something was wrong with this disappearance. She knew it couldn't be the Goblin King but even if he was involved, he never left any clue before. He didn't need it, everyone knew what a disappearance meant. But if it wasn't him, then who ?

Deep in thought, Sarah kept walking and finally left the village. A few snowflakes started to fall and Sarah picked up her pace. The road she followed was hardly used : it was isolated, muddy, sinuous, and skirted a part of the forest where the nights seemed longer and the trees more alive. Sarah scrupulously kept her eyes on the path beneath her feet, ignoring the whispers that escaped from the forest. A few minutes later, she finally arrived at the entrance to the old Hamelin cemetery.

Set in a clearing on the edge of the forest, Hamelin cemetery was a special place. People passing through thought it had been abandoned, but in reality it had still been in operation for several centuries now. It was just that the forest had claimed it and the village priest had long ago decided that it was easier to live with the forest than against the forest. So he had abandoned the idea of a stone enclosure around the cemetery and a funeral church. He was content to ensure the smooth running of the funeral ceremonies there and above all, he ignored the lights which were visible from the church steeple on certain nights.

Careful not to trip over the dark roots of the trees, Sarah plunged a little deeper into the cemetery. The damp ground sagged beneath her feet, and she had to turn back several times to avoid the mossy gravestones that seemed to lean more toward each other over the years. With the surrounding cold, most of the statues and burial monuments that were not covered with moss and lichen were white with frost. Everything was silent and with the shadow of the tall trees surrounding it, it almost seemed like night. Yet Sarah was not afraid. The cemetery and the forest had never worried her : she had spent too much time there when Oma Adelheid had passed away, watching the squirrels bickering and the rain falling. Heading towards the back of the cemetery where the oldest graves were to be found, she stopped in front of the large family funeral chapel, an imposing dark stone burial monument.

She pushed the gate, which opened with a sinister creak before entering. Inside it was cold and humid and the only source of light was from a small skylight above the door. But Sarah didn't need the light to find her way there and she went straight to her grandmother's stone sarcophagus. Putting the box containing the nutcracker on the floor, she took off her gloves and pushed the lid of the sarcophagus with all her might to reveal an opening just large enough for the nutcracker.
Checking that no one was there, she wiped her hands on her coat before picking up the box from the floor to open it. Inside, the nutcracker was still there, but in the half-light of the vault, he seemed to be sparkling slightly.

Sarah took it and held it straight in front of her.

“This is your new home until this matter is settled. Don't worry, you won't be alone. Oma will be there to watch you.”

Around her, the shadows suddenly grew darker and Sarah felt like the temperature had suddenly dropped. Before she changed her mind, Sarah got up on her tiptoes and placed the nutcracker in the sarcophagus next to her grandmother's skeleton. She added the rowan branches inside but after hesitating, she decided to keep the salt with her. Then it took about ten minutes for her to put the heavy sarcophagus lid back on and when she was done, Sarah was dripping with sweat. Out of breath, she picked up the empty crate and her gloves and after checking that everything was in place, she left the chapel. But as she was about to step through the front door, she heard a rustling sound behind her. Heart pounding, she turned and saw that vines had started to grow on the sarcophagus to form like a protective cocoon around it … Or a plant prison.

Sarah smiled and tilted her head slightly in the direction of the plants, whispering thanks before leaving. Outside snow was falling more and more and Sarah hurried out of the cemetery. The rest of her family must be awake by now and even though Madame Gisele must have informed them that Sarah had left early this morning, she didn't want to delay too long and risk worrying them.

She had almost reached the entrance of the village when she saw in the distance a man who seemed to come from the valley. Despite the cold and the snow, he walked without hurrying, whistling a catchy tune. Sarah didn’t recognize him and she was almost sure it wasn’t someone from the village : she wouldn’t have forgotten such colorful clothes. With his lilac and garish yellow coat, red and white striped breeches, crimson hat and green boots soiled with road mud, he looked ridiculous but something about him made Sarah slow down to observe him more carefully. He was carrying a large canvas bag on his back and when he arrived near her, she saw that he was barely older than her and that he had a gracious, though ordinary face.

“Excuse me”, he said, lifting his hat. “Could you help me ?”

Sarah nodded silently.

“Could you tell me if I am on the right road to Hamelin ?”

“You are almost there”, Sarah replied, showing him the village in front of her. “This is Hamelin.”

The stranger rubbed his hands.

“Perfect, thank you miss.”

Nodding, Sarah was about to leave him when he called out to her.

“Miss, do you live there by chance ?”

“Yes”, she replied. “Now, if you'll excuse me, I ...”

He cut her off.

“I heard that the village has been in some trouble recently ... is that true ?”

Sarah stiffened.

“Why do you want to know ?”

The stranger shrugged his shoulders casually.

"News travels fast", he said nonchalantly. “And I think I could be able to help you !”

Sarah looked at him suspiciously.

“Really ?”

The stranger nodded vigorously.

“Yes, I have some experience with missing children.”

Sarah raised an eyebrow but said nothing. She tried not to judge people too quickly but something about this stranger made her uncomfortable.
Perhaps it was the recent events that made her paranoid.

Or maybe it was the way he looked so excited that a child had gone missing.

"Maybe you've heard of me before", the stranger continued, ignoring the disapproval on Sarah's face. “My name is Pierre. (He held out his hand to her. Pierre the Pied Piper.”

Chapter Text

After she explained to the piper how to find the mayor's house, Sarah hurried back home. The sun was already high in the sky and she knew she was late. This was confirmed when Reginald the butler opened the door for her before she had even time to touch the handle.

“Miss Sarah !” he exclaimed with a relieved look. “There you are ! Everyone was very worried !”

Sarah winced.

“I'm sorry, I needed to… get some fresh air to clear my mind ?”

Reginald regarded her with open skepticism, but before he had time to question her, Irene appeared behind him.

"My god Sarah," she cried, pushing Reginald aside to hug her. “Where have you been ? Your father and I were so worried !”

“Dad is home ?” she asked her once she let her go.

Irene pushed her inside as Reginald closed the door behind her.

"He has just come back," Irene replied. “But don't try to…” (She paused when she saw Sarah's outfit.) “What are you doing with this case ? What about your coat ? It's covered in dust and cobwebs !”

Sarah put on a remorseful expression.

"I went to Uncle Drosselmeyer's workshop to retrieve the box," she lied, praying that Irene would attribute the blush on her face to the cold. “He needed it and you know the state of his workshop ...”

Helping her remove her coat, Irene shook her head before taking the box from her.

“Yes of course but all the same, at the present moment ...”

Sarah touched her arm.

"I'm not a child anymore," she said in a small voice. “I don't risk anything.”

Irene smiles at her.

“Yes of course, you're right, it's just ... It's fine, come with me. Your father will be happy to see you before he leaves again.”

Handing the coat to Reginald, she led her to the living room where the whole family had gathered. Like the rest of the house, the room was decorated with mistletoe and ivy garlands but also small holly wreaths decorated with pine cones and berries. Someone had also created small ornaments of woven straw and garlands of exotic spices and dried citrus fruits, the scent of which filled the room. Yet the atmosphere around the living room table was far from festive.

“Sarah !” Toby cried, getting up from the table before running to throw himself into her arms. “You came back !”

Sarah hugged him.

“I'm sorry I left without saying anything. I had something urgent to do and I didn't want to wake you up.”

Her father who had also risen from the table when she entered stepped forward.

“What was so urgent that you got out on your own at dawn ?" Robert asked, frowning.

Sarah opened her mouth to answer but Irene beat her to it .

“Apparently, your brother needed this case right away.”

Uncle Drosselmeyer, who was drinking a cup of coffee, almost choked on it .

“Really ?” Robert asked, turning to him. “I thought you didn't know where she went ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer took his time putting down his cup and wiping his lips.

"I forgot I asked Sarah to do this little favor for me yesterday," he said, standing up to take the box from Irene's hand. “My memory is not what it used to be I'm afraid ...”

Taking advantage of the fact that everyone was turning their backs on her, Sarah articulated a silent "I'm sorry" to h im .

“What's in it ?” Toby asked, curious.

Uncle Drosselmeyer patted the lid with his fingertips.

“A few things that might help us, but I won't say more for now.”

Robert rubbed his forehead.

“Well fine ... Since everyone is here, let's not waste time. We have arranged with Hans and the others to meet here around noon and I will just have time to go freshen up and sleep an hour before they are here.”

“Have you found more about the little girl ?” Sarah asked.

Robert shook his head, annoyed.

“No, only traces in the forest behind the Shultz house and ...”

“And what else ?” Sarah asked.

Robert massaged his temples.

“Nothing, it's just that it's strange to find traces when before, there had never been anything. I wonder …”

“What daddy ?” Toby asked.

Pulling himself together , Robert smiled at h im , stroking h im hair.

“Nothing, it's nothing.”

But Sarah knew what her father was thinking. The Goblin King had never left a clue before so if it wasn't him, who was it? After all these years of peace, was there a new monster in Hamelin playing a cruel new game with them?

“Go and rest my darling,” said Irene, taking him by the shoulders. “You are exhausted. I'll come get you when Hans and the others get back.”

Robert nodded with a tired and worried smile and after kissing Sarah and Toby each on the forehead, he followed Irene out of the room.

Back to the table, Toby picked up the painted wooden saber he had dropped beside his chair when Sarah arrived.

"I wish Dad let me participate to the research ," he sighed, picking some caramelized almonds from the bowl. “I'm sure with my new saber, I could cut any enemy to pieces !”

Sarah rolled her eyes as she went to sit next to him.

“Of course ! Evil creatures just have to beware !

Toby stuck his tongue out at him as Uncle Drosselmeyer handed h er a mug of hot chocolate.

“So do you slept well ?”

Sarah gave him a sidelong glance.

“It was a ... strange night. Didn't you hear anything last night ?”

Too busy playing with his saber and the little sugar figures that should have been used as decoration, Toby just shook his head but Uncle Drosselmeyer narrowed his eyes.

“I didn't hear anything, why?”

Glancing over Toby's side to verify that he was too busy playing, Sarah leaned over to Uncle Drosselmeyer.

"I had an unusual visitor last night" she whispered before quickly recounting the Mausek ö nig's visit and threats.

H er Uncle's face turned pale.

“Oh Sarah, first the Goblin King, now this creature… I'm afraid this is all getting too dangerous for you. Maybe you should leave for a while, leave Hamelin ?”

Sarah shook her head.

“And leave you at his mercy ? It’s out of the question, we have to fight !”

Uncle Drosselmeyer rubbed his beard.

“Is that why you sneaked out of the house this morning ? What did you do with the nutcracker ?

Sarah took a sip of hot chocolate.

“I put him in a secure place far away. The house is no longer safe for him.” (She sighs.) “I don't know why the Mausekönig wants him or what he wants to do to him but I think it has to do with the Labyrinth. He spoke about it like it was alive. He said that the Goblin King was its master or at least the former master. But he also said that the Labyrinth knew its old master will come back … He can't come back like that, can he ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer patted her arm to reassure her.

“No, he can't. For that, he would have to break the spell in the manner of ancient tales.”

Sarah froz e.

“What do you mean ?”

“Only a sincere kiss could deliver him from his present condition.”

A freezing night in the garden.

Soft and strangely hot lips.

B lushing slightly, Sarah finished drinking her hot chocolate to give herself time to put her thoughts in order.

“Right, she said finally. “Maybe the Mausekönig wants something that is in the Labyrinth and maybe he needs the Goblin King for it ?

Uncle Drosselmeyer looked at her over his glasses.

“Maybe you should give him the nutcracker for him to leave you alone. Trade him in for his help in finding the little Shultz ?”

Sarah snorted disdainfully.

“I do not negotiate with kings, I only turn them into trinkets ! Besides, I'm not convinced by the disappearance of the child ... Maybe he's the one responsible ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer sighed.

“Perhaps ...”

A fter checking that Toby was still playing, Sarah put down her cup and folded her arms.

“Do you think we could stop him like we did with the Goblin King ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer's forehead creased.

“I'm sorry, we can't. I've been out of Larvikite powder for years but I can check my travel diaries, there might be a way to ...”

He paused when he heard footsteps and conservation coming their way.

A second later, the living room door opened and Hans entered followed by Irene. It was the first time Sarah had seen him like this, dressed soberly and his features marked by stress and fatigue. "Sir, Sarah, Toby," he said, greeting them in turn before going to the end of the table. “What a night eh ?”

Irene hurried over to pour him a cup of coffee.

“Robert will not be long in getting down, as for Cecilia … Well she's still asleep but I can go get her if you want ?”

Hans accepted the cup of coffee with relief.

“It won't be necessary, I'll see her tonight. For now, I'm waiting for the other members of the city council. If you do not mind …”

Irene nodded.

“Don't worry, as soon as they're here I'll send them to you. Toby, stop playing with your saber and come help me at the office instead. I need a second pair of hands !”

Grumbling, Toby nevertheless got up to follow Irene out of the room without letting go of his sword.

“Any news from the little one ?” asked Uncle Drosselmeyer.

Hans poured himself a new cup of coffee.

“None but ...”

His answer was interrupted by the arrival of Reginald who had a strange expression on his face.

“I apologize for disturbing you miss and gentlemen, but there is a … visitor who would like to see you.”

Hans frowned.

“A visitor ? Wh at does he want ?”

Reginald pursed his lips.

“He didn't say it sir, but if you w ant , I can send him away ?”

Hans straightened up.

“It won't be necessary, bring him to me.”

Reginald nodded and reappeared a few minutes later with a familiar figure on his heels.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen," the piper exclaimed, approaching Hans, his hand extended enthusiastically.

With his eyes riveted on his colorful clothes, Hans ignored his outstretched hand and regarded him condescendingly.

"Ah, my apologies for interrupting your lunch," the piper continued undeterred. “But I was told I could find you here ...”

Having guessed that he was neither important nor rich, Hans cut a slice of Stollen while dutifully ignoring him. For a moment, Sarah saw an expression of resentment and contempt passed on the piper 's face before he turned to Sarah and Uncle Drosselmeyer, an almost genuine smile on his face.

"Miss," he exclaimed, lifting his bright red hat briefly. “What a pleasure to see you again ! A ll my thanks again for guiding me this far, I don't know what I would have done without you !”

Sarah tilted her head slightly.

“It's nothing. Let me introduce you to Mr Drosselmeyer, my uncle and you apparently already know our mayor Mr Lehmann.”

The piper bows in an exaggerated manner .

“Nice to meet you gentlemen. Again, I apologize for bothering you like this, but maybe you could give me a moment of your time ? I know it is precious at the moment but maybe miss ...”

Sarah sighed.

“Sarah, my name is Sarah Williams.”

The piper smiles widely.

“ Maybe Miss Sarah Williams told you about me ?”

Hans and Uncle Drosselmeyer both turned toward her.

“Sarah ?” Hans asked. “Do you know this person ?”

Seeing hope shining in the piper 's eyes, Sarah resigned herself.

"I met Pierre on the way to Hamelin this morning," Sarah explained. “He's a piper and apparently an… expert on missing children ?”

“What do you mean ?” Hans asked suddenly interested.

Pulling on his jacket which clashed hideously with its complexion, Pierre assumed a deceptively modest air.

“I ha d indeed the opportunity on several occasions to bring my modest contribution to a number of cases of missing children.”

Hans raised an eyebrow.

“ And ?”

Pierre gave him a honeyed smile.

“Thanks to me, the children were all found safe and sound as soon as possible.”

"For a fee, I guess," Uncle Drosselmeyer remarked casually.

Pierre shrugged his shoulders.

“Nothing extravagant when you consider the results.”

Sarah doubted that h is "results" ever existed, but she remained silent. She knew Hans well enough to recognize what the expression on his face meant. But before he had a chance to say anything, Sarah's dad walked into the room. He looked just as tired as ever, and seeing Pierre, he froze, mouth agape. Behind him, Sarah saw Toby open his eyes wide when he saw Pierre's outfit.

“What …”

Sarah opened her mouth to answer but Hans beat her on it .

“Robert, this is ... Pierre, who was about to leave us.” (He raised an eyebrow in h is direction.) “ I think you know the way out ?”

Losing his smile, Pierre turned to ward him.

“But …”

Hans cut him off.

“No doubt your offer is ... tempting but the city council of which Mr. Williams and I are part has things well in hand.”

Taking advantage of the fact that his father was focused on Hans, Toby had crept into the room, his sword still in hand. Guessing what he was going to do, Sarah pulled him back just before he had time to prick Pierre's scarlet hat with the tip of his saber.

“But Sarah !” Toby protested. “ His very existence is a crime !”

Hearing h is words, Pierre stiffened but when he turned back to Toby and Sarah, he still had the same affable look on his face.

“My boy,” he whispered so that only Sarah and Toby could hear him. “You should be careful with what you say. Words have powers.”

He had barely finished speaking when Sarah got up to come and stand between Toby and him .

"You should also be careful sir," she said softly, looking him straight in the eye. “Hamelin is a small isolated village and the forest is big … It wouldn’t be good for you to get lost on the way back, right ?”

All smiles, the flute player nodded briefly in h er directio n as if to concede victory to h er before turning to ward the other people in the room who were looking at him with varying degrees of distrust .

“Miss it was a pleasure. Gentlemen, if you change your mind, I'll be at the Three Owls.”

And after a last bow, he left the room.

Once the door closed behind him, Robert walked over to Hans.

“What a strange character … What did he want ?”

Hans's mouth twitched in a contemptuous pout.

“Apparently, he intended to help us find little Eugenie in return for payment of course ! What a vulture !”

Robert frowned.

"I'll send a letter to some of my acquaintances in neighboring towns this evening," Hans announced, standing up. “Under the current circumstances, it is safer to know who you are dealing with.”

Reginald walked into the living roo m .

“Gentlemen, I apologize, but the members of the city council have arrived. Madame has installed them in the library.”

“Thank you Reginald,” said Robert. “We will join them immediately.”

As soon as they left the room with Toby on their heels, Uncle Drosselmeyer turned to ward Sarah.

“For my part, I will consult my notebooks to try to find a way to counter this Mausekönig or at least protect ourselves from him . However ...”

“However ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer frowned.

“Can you describe little Shultz to me ?”

Sarah scratched her head.

“Small, blonde with curly hair and she has blue eyes I think ? Why ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer crossed his arms.

“It's been over thirteen hours since she disappeared and yet you still remember her. Everyone remembers Eugenie. Everyone is looking for her .”

Sarah froze, her mouth parted.

She knew the rules better than anyone : she had lived all her life in Hamelin, she knew the families who had "lost" one of their members, she had met people who had lost against Him and yet ...

She had forgotten what it meant to solve the Labyrinth.

She had forgotten the rules that everyone had to obey.

Even the king.

Especially the king.

Chapter Text

In her bed, Sarah tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

The events of the day were turning in her head and despite her fatigue, she couldn't help but rehash them over and over again.

As the hours went by, Uncle Drosselmeyer and Sarah had not been the only ones to realize that Eugenie had not been erased from memories like any child abducted by the Goblins. This only added to the tension, and Sarah had heard Eugenie's parents screaming and crying more than once coming from her father's library. It was clearly more reassuring for them to have their child taken by Goblins than just missing.

The search to find Eugenie continued until nightfall, mobilizing almost all of Hamelin's inhabitants capable of participating in the hunt and even people from neighboring hamlets joined in the search. Sarah had helped the servants prepare hot drinks and food to help those mobilized, but after dark, there was still no trace of the child.

For the second night in a row, the Williams family were all sleeping in the same room except for Cecilia. The latter had had a fit and, after the cries and tears, Sarah's parents had decided to let her sleep alone in her own room. Toby had remarked out loud that she was far too old and pretentious to interest the Goblins anyway, which upset Cecilia who had gone to lock herself noisily in her room. As for Sarah, she had thought that she was not sure that she would run the Labyrinth to save Cecilia with the same determination and that if it was the Mausekönig who kidnapped her … well, good luck to him !

With a smile on her face, Sarah had almost dozed off when she suddenly heard a strange noise. She stiffened, motionless in her bed, straining her ears to verify that she hadn't been dreaming. She had almost managed to convince herself that her imagination was playing tricks on her when suddenly the noise rang out again. It was like the squeal of a small animal, an injured animal, in pain.

Sitting up slowly, Sarah fumbled around in the dark to find her rowan branch and her bag of coarse salt before slipping out of her bed silently. Everyone in the room was sleeping soundly and Sarah took the opportunity to sneak out of the room barefoot. Once in the hallway, she quietly closed the door behind her and waited, still, on the lookout.

Squeak !

She suddenly turned her head to the right. The noise was coming from there ! Without wasting a moment, she tiptoed up the hall, fingers clenched around her rowan branch. Her heartbeat quickened when she reached her bedroom door. The latter was ajar and, when it should have been plunged into darkness, a gleam escaped through the crack of the door.

Taking a deep breath, Sarah moved silently closer and, pushing open the door with her foot, slipped inside, the rowan branch held up in front of her. But what she saw on entering stopped her dead in her tracks.

A small hook-nosed, tousled gray-haired creature sat in the center of Sarah's bedroom, just at the foot of her large four-poster bed. He was no bigger than a doll and downright ugly with his yellowish-brown skin, big bulging eyes and mismatched clothes. The one Sarah recognized as a goblin stood erect, and in his violently shaking hands he held a large lighted candle at arm's length like a sword. He waved it from side to side without stopping, while throwing startled glances all around him.

Taken aback, Sarah took a step forward and then she suddenly froze. She had just understood why the goblin was so scared.

Almost blending in with the darkness of the room, he was surrounded by a dozen mice. Except Sarah had never seen mice like this. They looked like they had been cut from the darkness. Their red eyes gleamed ominously, their teeth seemed sharp as knives and especially it was the way they circled the terrified goblin that confused Sarah. They dove forward to bite and scratch him before pulling away just as quickly and each time the poor goblin couldn't help but yelp. It was like they were playing with him, like a cat with… a mouse.

Sarah didn't think that one day she could feel sorry for a goblin but yet ...

Her nose wrinkled, she walked quickly over to the mice and before they had a chance to react, she poured some of her bag of coarse salt over them. Strident squeals rang out before they scatter in all directions. Sarah took advantage of the confusion to grab the goblin by the arm. The latter dropped the candle in surprise before starting to struggle while uttering shrill cries.

"Hush," Sarah told him dryly before placing him on her shoulder. “Don't make me regret helping you !”

Hearing her words, the goblin froze and looked at her with wide, amazed eyes. But before he had a chance to do anything, the mice were back, more numerous than before. Sarah took a step forward, but it was too late. The mice surrounded them, forming a tide of darkness around them. The clicking of their claws on the parquet floor echoed in the empty room, and their glowing eyes in the dark didn't seem to leave Sarah.

Spinning around, Sarah searched for a way to get to safety but saw nothing that could help her. Mice were blocking her access to the bed and to the patio door leading to the balcony. Hearing the sound of a door closing, she turned and saw that the door she had entered was now closed.

Sarah inhaled sharply and kept a firm grip on the rowan branch. She might have been trapped, but she sure wasn't going to let it go without a fight.

Suddenly Sarah felt the goblin on her shoulder move slowly to hide under her hair.

“What ...” she started, feeling him snuggle up to her neck, shaking.

Stiffening, she spun slowly on herself to come face to face with the Mausekönig.

"Well well," he whispered, stepping closer to her. “We meet again, my sweet Sarah.”

Squinting, Sarah raised her hand to throw the rest of her salt packet in his face but she barely had time to blink that he grabbed her by the wrist.

She tried to pull away but he yanked her towards him.

“No no no,” the Mausekönig sang, bringing his face closer to her. “Did you think it would be so easy this time ?”

Without taking his black eyes off Sarah, he began to squeeze her wrist harder and harder until Sarah let out a small cry and was forced to drop the bag of salt on the floor. Ignoring the stabbing pain in her wrist, Sarah attempted to strike him with the rowan branch, but the Mausekönig easily parried her attack with his scepter before grabbing her other wrist. In an instant, the rowan branch had joined the bag of salt on the ground and she found herself trapped in the Mausekönig hands. A grim smile on his face, he pulled Sarah close to him while holding both her wrists together with one hand.

“So what are you going to do now ?”

Sarah suddenly realized that she was alone, dressed in a simple white cotton nightgown that came down to her knees, barefoot, in a dark room in the middle of the night with a creature who had amply demonstrated that he was not someone to be trust and another who was currently hidden under her hair, paralyzed with fear.

“Let me go !” she shout, trying to pull away again.

But the more Sarah struggled, the more the Mausekönig tightened his grip on her wrists until the pain forced Sarah to stop. She couldn't hold back the tears that began to flow silently down her cheeks and, to her horror, her pain seemed to fascinate the Mausekönig. Slowly, without taking his eyes off her, he leaned forward, his breath brushing Sarah's face. She turned her head, but that didn't stop the Mausekönig from licking the tears that had started to dry on her cheek with his cold rasping tongue.

Sarah couldn't help but shudder in disgust.

“So sweet,” the Mausekönig whispered, rubbing his cheek against hers. “So delicious ...”

Standing still, Sarah was silent, her head turned to the side.

“Sarah Sarah,” he said, straightening up. “I thought you understood that we were on the same side and yet ... I see you are protecting the vermin !”

Slowly, Sarah turned her head in his direction and raised an eyebrow.

“Funny you talk about vermin.”

A flash of red flashed in his eyes and he raised his twisted scepter in her direction. For a moment Sarah thought he was going to hit her with it, but at the last moment he smiled and used his staff to force her to lift her head.

“You do not know …”

But before he could finish his sentence, a thud began to be heard in the room. The mice started to squeal and everyone froze. The noise grew louder and louder, like the sound of an approaching thunderstorm or a herd of ruminants running or ...

Recognizing the noise, Sarah began to smile. The psyche mirror in her room suddenly emitted a light that blinded them all. Sarah closed her eyes and she heard a loud crash and then crackles and shrill squeals. She let out a little cry as she felt the mice paws on her bare feet. Taking advantage of the confusion, Sarah again tried to extricate herself from the Mausekönig hands when suddenly he released her and she lost her balance. She had barely hit the ground with her knees that the noise just as suddenly disappeared.

Confused, she opened her eyes and looked around her. The Mausekönig and her mice were gone and instead there were rocks of all sizes more or less round arranged in a circle around her as if to… protect her ?

Sarah turned to the mirror and she had just enough time to see a large, familiar orange figure waving at her before the mirror turned back into a mirror. Sarah knelt on the floor still shaking for a moment before the goblin she had rescued brought her out of her torpor. She felt him lift her hair to move over her shoulder before jumping to the ground and land awkwardly in front of her. He looked at the stones around them, hissed between his teeth before turning to Sarah to give her a toothless smile that was a little hesitant.

“Thank you,” he mumbled.

Sarah blinked and opened her mouth to answer him when she saw that his arm was bleeding.

“Are you… Are you hurt ?”

The goblin looked at his arm in astonishment before looking at her and nodding. They stared at each other for a moment before Sarah recovered. Not believing it herself, she shook her head and stood up.

"Don't move," she told him sternly.

She walked over to her dresser to retrieve a white handkerchief from one of her drawers and then she stepped to the patio door. She opened it and hurried over to collect some snow from the balcony railing. Once back inside, she crouched down and motioned for the goblin to approach. Obviously suspicious, the latter hesitated for a moment before approaching and holding out his arm reluctantly.

Careful not to hurt him, Sarah took his arm and applied the snow to his wound gently. The goblin let out a little cry of surprise but under Sarah's imperious gaze, he didn't move. She proceeded to clean the blood with the snow and then the handkerchief before using it as a makeshift bandage.

"There you go," she said once the knot was firmly tied.

The goblin stared at the bandage in amazement before looking up at her.

“Thank you my lady.”

Sarah remained squatting.

“What's your name ?”

“Skib,” the goblin replied in a small voice.

Sarah smiles at him.

“Alright Skib, what can you tell me about the Mausekönig ? What does he want ?”

Skib lowered his eyes.

“Since the king ... is gone, mice are everywhere. They cannot enter the Labyrinth because the Labyrinth is still protecting us but they attack anyone who ventures outside ...”

“And what were you doing outside ?”

Skib bit his lip.

“I just wanted to eat a caramel. Caramel is so good !”

There was so much hope in his eyes that Sarah couldn't help but smile. She got up again to go rummage in her dresser and came back to him with a large caramel wrapped in a shiny foil.

“Here, it is for having being so brave. But next time, be more careful !”

Without taking his eyes off the caramel, Skib nodded enthusiastically and quickly took the caramel from her hands. After stammering confused thanks, he hurried over to the mirror only to disappear in the blink of an eye.

Running her hand through her hair, Sarah stood up and dusted her nightgown before meeting her gaze in the mirror. It was strange, most of her life she had been afraid of goblins, of mirrors and of noises in the night. But today, for the first time, she hadn't been afraid of goblins and she had even saved one !

It was as if the boundaries that she had always believed to be very clear and defined between the Good and the Evil were now much more ... blurred.

After getting back into her bed silently, Sarah fell asleep almost immediately and dreamed of sharp-toothed mice and an angry nutcracker.

She was awakened in the morning by the alarmed cries of the servants : a second child had disappeared during the night.

Chapter Text

Little Georg was only four years old and he was already a terror in the village. Rather small for his age and with the face of an angel that had allowed him many times to escape the worst penalties, he was second to none when it came to inventing and carrying out a wide variety of pranks. From earthworms in Mr. Fromm's top hat and poor Mrs. Strauss's ink-covered cat to the rancid butter on the church pews before mass, Georg drove his parents, his two big brothers, their neighbors and all the unfortunate victims who had one day had the misfortune to cross his path mad.

But he was still a little boy, their little boy and when his parents noticed his disappearance, his mother's screams woke the whole household as well as the neighbors who then sounded the alarm. The scenario of her disappearance oddly resembled Eugenie's : a bed well made as if no one had slept there, a window wide open, and small prints of bare feet in the snow on the windowsill. But there was one noticeable difference that soon circled the village: as with all Hamelin families, Georg had slept in the bedroom with his parents and two brothers and no one had heard a thing.
It was this last detail that was on everyone's lips this morning.

At the Williams, the morning had passed in a flurry of visitors. Hamelin notables arrived one after another, their faces pale and their features tired. They had all been taken to the library for the extraordinary meeting Roberts and Hans had decided to summon. Even Uncle Drosselmeyer had been invited to participate. According to the servants who supplied all the notables with hot drinks and food, fear was palpable in the room. Some notables even spoke of abandoning Hamelin, of moving away from this cursed place. The atmosphere in the house was heavy and stifling, filled with worried whispers and startles at the slightest noise.

By early afternoon, as soon as the opportunity presented itself, Sarah had slipped away under the pretext of ordering various groceries from the grocery store. Toby had tried to go with him to escape the paranoia, but a look from Irene and he left grumbling to go back to the living room. Privately, Sarah had vowed to bring him some sweets to console him.

Once outside and after walking away from the house a bit, Sarah took a deep breath and started to walk briskly. The cool air reddened her face and her breath was getting shorter but it did her good. She needed to walk, needed fresh air to clear her mind and think. From what the little goblin blurted out yesterday, the Labyrinth was more than a place. Sarah had already had this feeling when she took on the King of the Goblins' challenge : the Labyrinth was like no other place. It looked almost… conscious and above all powerful. Very powerful. But if the Labyrinth was important and could influence its surroundings, it was only in the Underground now that the King of the Goblins was gone. So neither Jareth nor the Labyrinth could be responsible for the missing children, and after seeing Skib, Sarah didn't think the goblins would be able to do it, at least not without their king.

But the Mausekönig … Thinking of him, Sarah shivered and pulled her coat tightly around her. She could still feel his tongue on her cheek and his eyes ... There was no doubt that he was dangerous and Sarah really hoped that he wasn't the culprit for she didn't want to imagine the two children between his claws. But he and his mice were the most logical suspects ... Except that she didn't see how kidnapping children could help him recover the Nutcracker or even take control of the Labyrinth ? And above all, she didn't know how she was going to be able to stop him …

Sarah was so deep in thought that it took her a while to realize that in addition to the sound of the wind blowing and whistling between the houses, she could also hear the swarming murmurs of a crowd. Frowning, she slowed down and changed her course to follow the noise of the voices. Her footsteps led her to the main square in front of the church and, once there, she stopped dead in awe. All the inhabitants of Hamelin seemed to have gathered here. In the freezing cold, huddled together, their eyes were all on something in the church square. Strange music rose through the air, like the chirping of a little bird at daybreak.

Curious, Sarah slipped between the people, muttering a whispered apology to those she was pushing before giving up when she realized that they all seemed mesmerized by what they were seeing.
Sarah understood why when she reached the front row.

Pierre, the Pied Piper from yesterday, was crouching on the floor. He always wore ridiculously colorful clothes, but today he had put on a faded black coat with light green stains and his boots were a gaudy, frankly ugly pink. But that wasn't what caught people's attention. In his hands he had a flute that could not be more ordinary except for its golden color. This is where the noise came from. For a second it was the chirping of a bird, but by the time she got to the first row the sound had become like the sound of rain falling on the cobblestones.

The expression on Pierre's face as he played, his eyes closed, his expression frozen in such bliss… It was like he was having an amazing experience that the rest of the world could only imagine. Sarah could have been amazed by such talent if it hadn't been for the mice.

At Pierre's feet stood six mice. Their furs were white, their eyes black and they looked quite ordinary, but Sarah couldn't help but stiffen at the sight of the rodents. They stood on their hind legs, swaying from side to side to the sound of the flute, as if hypnotized. Suddenly the melody changed to become more danceable and the mice started to move. Straightening up, they began to waltz as if they were princes and princesses at a grand reception.

Barely a minute later, the music changed again to mimic the ringing of jingle bells and immediately the mice began to spin and make pirouettes that startled those closest to them. Nervous chuckles escaped from the crowd. Sarah looked around. Normally, this kind of show would have attracted a curious crowd who might have found the show fun and entertaining. But today, as the threat of the King of the Goblins hovered over the village, the crowd was less curious than oscillating between fascination and fear …

As she returned her attention to the mice, the melody changed again and suddenly Pierre's eyes opened to meet Sarah's. His lips twitched and twisted into a big smile as the tune began to mimic the pearly laughter of children. Exclamations of amazement shook the crowd. Sarah didn't even look at what the rats were doing now. Holding Pierre's gaze for a moment, she voluntarily turned her back on him before going back through the crowd. Sarah could feel his gaze on her back and she quickened her pace to get away as quickly as possible from the Pied Piper whose strange melody seemed to follow her. If she concentrated, she thought she could almost recognize Toby's laughter …

Suddenly, as she had almost escaped the crowd, Sarah stumbled. She would have fallen if someone hadn't caught her by the arm.

“Are you well miss ?” asked the young woman who helped her to stand up.

Sarah gave her an awkward smile.

“Yes … Thank you, I'm fine” she stammered.

The young woman smiled back at her, and for a moment her teeth seemed sharper than those of a normal human being. But the impression disappeared almost immediately and the young woman briefly squeezed Sarah's arm before letting go.

"You should be careful where you step," she pointed out, her eyes shining so brightly that it made Sarah take a step back.

Her gaze … Looking her straight in the eyes, Sarah began to feel dizzy and she realized that she would have been unable to describe the color of her eyes…

Sarah shook her head.

“What ...”

But raising her head, Sarah realized that the young woman had disappeared. A shiver ran through her, but even as she looked around, there was no sign of the stranger. Taking one last look behind her, Sarah continued to walk away from the square, not wanting to linger any longer than necessary near Pierre and his mice.

After this strange encounter, it took a while for her to calm down and sort her thoughts. She wandered aimlessly for a moment in the alleys of Hamelin, admiring the silk ribbons, the large wreaths of plants and the wooden trinkets that decorated the various mansions and storefronts she passed by. Since she didn't want to come home too early, she also made a detour to the village grocery store to buy some braedeles for Toby and, after a moment of hesitation, she also picked up some caramels for Skib. If someone would have told her a year ago that she would buy caramels for goblins ... But if there was something that Sarah now knew without a single doubt, it was that her biggest problem was no longer the goblins.

After exchanging a few pleasantries with the grocer behind the counter, Sarah plunged her hands into her pockets to search for some coins when her fingers made contact with a smooth, cold surface. Surprised, she froze before cautiously fumbling for the object that looked a lot like ... Abruptly, Sarah withdrew her hand from her pocket as if it had burned her.

“Are you well miss ?” asked Mr. Krämer when he saw that Sarah had turned quite pale.

Sarah handed him the money with a shaking hand before taking her purchases.

“Yes, thank you” she replied with a weak smile.

Mr. Krämer didn't look convinced, but Sarah slipped away before he had a chance to question her more. She felt like the ground had given way beneath her feet. Heart pounding, she quickly strode away from the grocery store into a small alleyway before stopping to empty the contents of her pockets.

A white handkerchief, a partly crushed candy, one of Toby's little tin soldiers, a small silver coin … But no trace of what Sarah would have sworn to be one of His crystal balls. But it was impossible, she hadn't seen one in years, not since He had been transformed …

Leaning her forehead against the cold stones of the wall in front of her, Sarah took a deep breath and closed her eyes. First the missing children, then the Mausekönig, then this Pierre who seemed far from harmless and finally the woman with strange eyes ... Sarah did not know what to think but she had the terrible impression of having landed in the middle of a game of chess where she was just a pawn who ignored the real stakes.

Sarah didn't know for exactly how long she had stayed leaning against the wall in the cold. But when she began to feel the temperatures drop and the smell of night creeping into the air she was breathing, she straightened up and walked back home, pretending not to hear the shadows whispering behind her.

When she got home, she learned that no children had been found nor any decisions taken by the town's notables. The idea of calling on the Duke's army had been raised but a number of notables were reluctant to the idea. In villages like Hamelin, where forests were near and ancient, shadows darker than elsewhere and old legends very much alive, the presence of goblins did not raise eyebrows. But in big cities where myths and superstitions had long been forgotten, how to get them to understand the urgency of the situation without passing as crazy ?

As Sarah had returned particularly pale and silent from the grocery store, Irene gave her permission to miss the dinner where her father had invited several notables to go and rest upstairs in peace. Except Sarah wasn't comfortable sleeping, not after what had happened, not after the last few nights. So she went to the library to find a book that would help her put off going to bed.

Snuggled up in her father's favorite chair, Sarah almost reached halfway through Ars Amatoria before eventually succumbing to fatigue.

Except she had barely closed her eyes when she felt a warm breath on her neck and heard a voice she thought she would never hear again.

“Good evening precious.”

Chapter Text

He sensed the exact moment she gave in to sleep. Even Her will was not strong enough to resist the call of the dreams and for him who had waited for this moment for so long, it was almost too easy to walk through the horn door.

And so, for the first time in ages, the Goblin King walked among mortals.

Clad in moon-colored robes, the eminently male creature strode fluidly through the imposing library, his cloak of night and stars billowing behind him. His long hair was almost like the feathers of an owl and it framed features of painful beauty.

His eyes, reminiscent of both a cold winter sky and an immense summer plain, rested on the sleeping young woman. As a child who already promised a lot, her beauty had far exceeded anything Jareth could have imagined. Her porcelain skin contrasted with her long dark hair. Her luscious mouth made a sleepy pout and her long lashes hid what Jareth knew to be a pair of green eyes a man could easily drown in.

A smile tugged at his lips, revealing white teeth that were way too sharp.

Who would have thought that something looking so vulnerable could topple his reign with such ease?

But if he was being honest with himself, he should have guessed that this was no ordinary naysayer, not when he met that gaze where all that passion burned …

He leaned over the girl, his breath caressing her skin. A sweet, almost intoxicating smell invaded his senses, threatening to shatter his concentration and the precious control he had over himself. But as he tried to regain control of his impulses, the young woman's eyebrows furrowed and he saw her eyelashes flutter.

He straightened up without moving away from his prey.

“Good evening precious”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

For a moment, Sarah thought she was dreaming. Or rather having a nightmare. Because it couldn't be, it couldn't be him, he couldn't be there …

“Sarah Sarah” she heard him say mockingly from close to her. “I knew you to be braver ...”

Sarah stiffened but it was obvious he knew she was awake. So, taking her courage in both hands, Sarah opened her eyes to meet the inhuman gaze of the one who had haunted so many of her nights. It seemed like they sat for an eternity staring into each other's eyes before Sarah pulled herself together.

She straightened up and her eyes narrowed when she saw that he didn't back away. His face was so close …

“How ?” Sarah asked, breaking the silence, trying to ignore the tremors in her voice.

"How what Sarah ?" he whispered in a dangerously melodious voice without taking his eyes off her.

"How can you be here ? How is it possible ?”

A slow smile formed on his lips.

"Did you really think it would be this easy ?" He moved even closer to her and Sarah flinched. "Did you really think you could beat me?"

Refusing to be intimidated, Sarah raised her head.

“You have no ...” she began furiously.

But she stopped short when Jareth put a finger to her lips. Surprised by the warmth that emanated from this simple contact, Sarah was taken aback.

"I wouldn't do that for you," Jareth said, cocking his head to the side.

Recovering, she pushed his hand away and glared at him.

"Oh yes, and why ?"

Jareth's smile disappeared and suddenly it seemed to Sarah that the temperature had dropped all around them. Before she had a chance to do anything, Jareth had grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her towards him. She tried to pull away but his grip was iron and his gaze … Although he had terrified her before, it was nothing compared to the look on his face. At that moment, fear shot through her and she felt her heartbeat quicken.

Something must have appeared on her face as the Goblin King's gaze softened but he didn't release her.

“You are right to be afraid, precious,” he whispered darkly. “Because a little bird told me that I wasn't your only late-night visitor.”

I bet it is so soft and sweet.

Sarah stiffened at the memory but under the predatory gaze of the Goblin King, she frowned before pushing him away. Taking advantage of the fact that he was letting her (because she knew full well that he could have easily stopped her), she got up to get away from him and began to pace in the library.

"How do you know ? And how do you know him ? Who is that … creature ? What does he want ?”

Without answering her, the Goblin King sat down in the chair she had just left, and seeing him sitting there, Sarah paused for a moment and thought bitterly that she would never be able to sit in this armchair again without thinking of him. Even there, he still looked ... Royal. He should have looked less dangerous in that familiar setting but Sarah wasn't fooled for a second : he seemed relaxed like that but his inhuman eyes never left her and the shadows seemed ever darker around him.

Right, o ne megalomaniac king at the same time !

Refocusing her thoughts, she crossed her arms and looked down at him.

“So ?”

A dark glint crossed his gaze.

"Did you really think your actions would have no consequences ?" he said in a soft voice. “That you would deprive me of my power and that ... What ? Would you have an happily ever after and have many children ?

Hearing his mocking tone, Sarah felt herself blushing but she clenched her fists.

"And you, what did you think ?" she replied. “That I'd let you kidnap all those children without reacting and that ... What ? Would you have an happily ever after in t he Underground with all those children ?”

As soon as she said those words, she regretted it but it was too late. In a blink of an eye, Jareth was in front of her. She took a step back but bumped into the bookcase behind her and, before she could find another way to escape, she found herself trapped between the wooden shelves and the firm body of a mad Goblin King.

"Sarah Sarah, I see some things never change !" he hissed. “Poor poor inhabitants of Hamelin, their children are disappearing and all because of the horrible Goblin King ! It was so easy to forget who wished they were gone ... Isn't it precious ? Oh if only my brothe r didn't exist !”

He leaned toward her, his breath brushing her neck.

" I wish the Goblin King would come and take h im away from me …”

Dropping his sentence, he suddenly bit her ear. Letting out a small cry, Sarah pressed herself a little more against the shelf, her heart pounding.

"Precious Sarah," he breathed, clearly reveling in her reaction. “In another village, in another time, I probably wouldn't even have heard your wish, but Hamelin made a deal with me. They let me take a child every year at the winter solstice and I left them alone. (He rubbed his cheek against hers.) I didn't even take the kids they thought were important, only the most dream-hungry ones ... And what could be more dream-hungry than a child who knew their dreams would never come true ?”

Despite herself, Sarah was fascinated by his words but huddled against him like this, she had … Difficulty concentrating.

"But of course mortals can't be trusted, can they precious ? Their promises are as hollow as a troll's skull and when they stopped honoring their end of the bargain, well I stopped honoring mine. Can you blame me ?”

Jareth straightened up and Sarah met his gaze. A long silence seemed to stretch between them as her gaze locked on his.

“He was my little brother,” Sarah finally whispered. “And I was just a kid.”

Jareth smirked which, for a moment, made him awfully … Human ?

"And I've been punished enough for that, don't you think ?"

Sarah opened her mouth then closed it before making her decision.

"Ye s " she finally whispered.

Their faces were so close that their breath mingled. The expression on Jareth's face changed and …

"Sarah ?"

With a start, Sarah sat up abruptly and the book she was holding slipped from her fingers. Above her, Uncle Drosselmeyer stood, looking worried.

“Are you alright ?”

Disoriented, Sarah sat up and rubbed her hand over her face.

“I ... Yes, I think I dozed off that's all.”

Uncle Drosselmeyer patted h er on the shoulders.

"Understandable," he said softly. “But you should go back to your bed, tomorrow is going to be a long day.”

Sarah nodded with a smile, but as she got up to go back to her room, her blood froze when she saw a tiny white feather fall from her clothes.

Chapter Text

The Möllers had taken every precaution regarding Ralf. They hadn't taken their eyes off him since the disappearance of the first two children, taking him everywhere with them, sleeping in the same room as him, even posting someone in the room when he was taking his nap. But if they had been careful, they had not been worried.

Not really.

After all, Ralf was only five months old and had not yet a single tooth. Everyone knew that the Goblin King only took children who had already had their first baby teeth.

And yet …

When Sarah came downstairs the next day, her skin pale and her eyes darkened from tossing and turning all night, the first thing she heard was the horrified whispers of the busy servants. The Goblin King no longer followed the rules and little Ralf had paid the price. Asleep between his two parents, he had disappeared without a sound in the dark of the night, his little Schnuller still wet lying in his place on the cold mattress.

Sarah hadn't needed to meet Uncle Drosselmeyer's worried gaze to know that this time was different. The Möllers were an old influential family, loved by everyone in the village. They weren't going to sit idly by, not anymore. But what changed the game were the rules that had been broken.

Even though everyone was afraid of the Goblin King, there was something reassuring about his rules. Those rules that even someone like the Goblin King had to follow, those rules that made him more real to mortal eyes ... They showed that there were limits to his power.

But if he didn't respect them anymore, then who was to say if tomorrow he wouldn't decide to go after adults ? Old people ? Anyone ? And who then could stop him ... If only he could be stopped !
It was more or less this speech that Hans held a few hours later before the assembly of notables, all gathered in the great room of the Town Hall. And his speech immediately triggered thunderous applause and shouts of approval from the men in the room. Hearing Hans' arguments from her hiding place, Sarah closed her eyes, her throat tight.

Normally she shouldn't have been there, crouching in the dark, her ear pressed against the half-open door in one of the passages usually reserved for servants. Not after her last night visit.
After all, it was always in the dark that the Goblin King appeared.

But when her father left shortly after breakfast, explaining that Hans had called an extraordinary council at the Town Hall, she couldn't help but follow him. She had had a bad feeling and it had come true when she finally found a discreet place to listen to Hans spout his nonsense and play with the fears of the inhabitants of Hamelin.

Unfortunately, Hans did not stop there.

"We have to do something !" he thundered in a loud voice that echoed throughout the room.

"Yes but what ?" someone exclaimed. "We can't do anything while the Goblin King still has our children !"

"We're not going to wait for another one to disappear !" another voice retorted.

"Surely you wouldn't say that if it was your child who was among the missing," someone else exclaimed angrily.

Sarah couldn't make out what they were saying among the shouting when Hans spoke.

"Calm down my friends, calm down ! If I called you today, it's because I think I've found a solution to all our problems."

Silence fell in the room. In the dark, Sarah froze before leaning forward a little more to listen. She heard someone walking, their shoes clicking on the stone floor accompanied by murmurs …Of surprise ?

Hans spoke again.

"Some of you will probably recognize him thanks to his ... performance in the town these last few days, but for the others, may I present to you Herr Pfeiffer. Before making any decision, I ask you my friends to listen to what he has to tell us.

No one said a word and Sarah wondered who the mysterious Herr Pfeiffer was to trigger so little enthusiasm.

What if he could actually do something against Jareth ... Or the Mausekönig.

But she was quickly disenchanted when she recognized the voice of the Pied Piper.

"Meine Herren," Pierre greeted them in a honeyed voice. "I know you have little time to lose in the face of the urgency of the situation, so I will be brief. I can help you. I have experience of this kind of situation, of predators who attack good people, people of your quality. And they rely on the fact that you have no one to turn to. But not today, today you have someone and …"

Robert, Sarah's father, interrupted him.

“Excuse me, but as you said, we have no time to waste. What do you offer ?"

Probably sensing that the situation was slipping away from him, it was Hans who answered him.

"Herr Pfeiffer suggests that we identify the threat and find a solution to get rid of it permanently.

“I think we can all agree that the threat has already been clearly identified,” someone said in a mocking tone.

"How does he plan to do that?" someone else asked.

"With this," replied Pierre this time.

Curious to see what he was talking about, Sarah pushed the door a little further, praying that no squeak would give her away. Her hiding place was not the ideal place to spy on them as she could only see Hans and Pierre from behind, but she had a perfect view of the flute which Pierre reverently held in his hands.

With the hall lights reflecting on it, its golden color seemed even brighter than before, giving it an almost unearthly appearance. Without the slightest embellishment, it seemed harmless, but Sarah remembered its effect all too well.

"With this ... Pipe ?" someone exclaimed with more than blatant skepticism.

Sarah saw Pierre shake his head.

"It is not just any instrument, it was entrusted to me by ... A very high authority and in my experienced hands, it allows evil to be brought to light."

Sarah didn't know what the flute was actually doing but one thing was for sure, it certainly wasn't the evil that it was revealing.

"And you propose to do this out of Christian charity ?" asked Robert casually.

Pierre shrugged.

“To keep carrying out correctly my missions, I am afraid that it will take some cold hard coins from you. But compared to harmony and peace for eternity in your good town of Hamelin …“

Sarah heard the mutterings of the notables growing louder but even though she was unable to hear what they were saying, the few faces she could see were unmistakable : they were clearly not convinced by Pierre and his spiel.

“My friends,” Hans said. “Before we make our decision, how about a little display of his talent ?“

There were a few murmurs of assent and the few men still standing sat back down, looking impatient.

Under their attentive but skeptical eyes, Pierre lifted the flute to his mouth and began to play. At first, the melody he played was normal, a little heady tune without anything exceptional but little by little, something insinuated itself in the air, magic between the notes … Toxic and bewitching.

Trusting her instincts, Sarah covered her ears but didn't take her eyes off the scene. She had to bite her lip until it bled to avoid reacting when she saw something dark crossing the large table followed by a host of other equally disturbing shadows. This was not the case of the many notables present who pushed back their chairs hastily to get away from the creatures who had climbed on the table.

Pushing the door open a little more, Sarah squinted before taking a sharp breath when she saw that it was black rats that had come across the table to Pierre, big black rats that seemed hypnotized by Pierre and his flute.

What is …

Suddenly, the music became faster, more strident. Sarah realized she had stopped covering her ears but it was too late and the rats … The rats began to squeal louder and louder in a real cacophony of shrill sounds until an acute note pierces the air.

The rats then began to move and in the space of a second, they had thrown themselves on each other. Nauseated, Sarah closed her eyes and covered her ears again to drown out the squeaks and wet crackles.

When she found the courage to open them again, the rats were all gone ... except for one. Sarah bit back a cry as she realized it had been torn apart by its companions, its body a shapeless heap on the wood of the table.

“What’s the meaning of this ?“ exclaimed Robert in a horrified voice.

Pale as a sheet, Hans began to stammer unintelligible excuses while motioning for Pierre to leave when he spoke.

"You wanted the proof, here it is," he proclaimed before stepping forward to take something from the table.

Sarah could not see what he was showing to others, but the reaction of the notables was more than telling.

"What is that ? What does it mean ?"

“This, meine Herren, is the emblem of the Mausekönig."

Sarah jerked her head up sharply.

Did he say Mausekönig ?

Surprised murmurs rose all around the table. No one had imagined that anyone other than the Goblin King was responsible ! After all, it had always been him ! And imagine that another monster was prowling in the dark …

"Who is he ?" Hans asked. "What does he want from us ?"

“He is a dangerous creature,” replied Pierre. "Very dangerous, born from the darkest bowels of the earth, he is particularly fond of children … But you are lucky meine Herren because he does not kill them … And you are twice lucky in fact because I have already dealt with him and I know how to keep Hamelin safe forever …"

He left his sentence hanging.

"Well," said an impatient notable. "How can you do this ?"

"As I've already told you," replied Pierre in a falsely apologetic tone. "My help has a price."

"How much ?" asked Sarah's father.

“A thousand gold crowns before I can do anything."

Outraged exclamations resounded throughout the room and several notables threatened to get up to leave the room this instant.

Pierre knocked twice on the table.

“Herren Herren, calm down. I understand your hesitations and your doubts but … Think of your children."

The voices volume dropped drastically and Sarah clenched her fists, dying to come into the room to make him swallow his swagger. Because she had perfectly heard the satisfaction in his voice, his pleasure at the idea of holding such power over them.

Because if Jareth and the Mausekönig were monsters, so was he. He was just hiding behind a facade of humanity.

“Perhaps we could go somewhere else more private to discuss this further,” Robert suggested.

But a voice intervened.

"All right," Mr. Möller cut him off. “We are going to pay.“

Silence followed his statement.

"We'll pay," he repeated. "All we want is for you to bring our children back to us."

Overwhelmed with emotion, his voice cracked and Sarah saw his neighbour gently place a hand on his shoulder as the others turned away from him. The expression on Sarah's father's face clearly showed his disagreement, but there was also pity and compassion in his eyes and Sarah knew at this instant that Pierre had won.

“Well, I think we're ready to make our decision,” Hans said. "Does anyone object to hiring Herr Pfeiffer for the good of the community and the people of Hamelin ?"

No one raised any objections.

"Well then …"

"I propose to start with a payment of five hundred gold crowns beforehand," Robert interjected, looking Pierre straight in the eye. "And to pay the rest only once the children have been found safe and sound."

There was a moment of hesitation before the majority of notables gave their assent.

"That’s understable," Pierre answered in a voice that barely concealed his displeasure.

"Since all is settled, let's not waste time. What do you need ?" Hans asked.

"First of all," answered Pierre. "I need a very specific object that will help me greatly in my quest to defeat the Mausekönig."

He took a piece of paper from his ugly jacket before passing it to Hans.

The latter frowned.

"What is that ? It looks like a crown but I have never seen one like this … Is that real silver ? And those are ... I think we call that arabesques right ?"

At his words, Sarah's heart raced and she jerked back.

It’s not possible …

Lost in thought, she didn't see the pair of eyes behind her watching her unblinkingly in the darkness.

Nor the sharp teeth eager to pierce her soft, sweet flesh.

Chapter Text

Absorbed by what was unfolding before her eyes, Sarah didn't realize she was in danger until it was too late. No sooner had she felt the hot breath on her neck than a sharp pain pierced her. Before she had time to scream or even turn around, she felt someone grab her by the wrists and pull her violently forward.

A moan escaped her as the ground gave way beneath her feet and she plunged into the darkness. A thunderous cry of rage sounded behind her, something tried to hold her back by grabbing her hair but in vain. In the blink of an eye, Sarah disappeared into the shadows of the passage, leaving behind only drops of blood, a lock of hair and a terribly furious king.

First it was the cold that snapped Sarah out of unconsciousness, then a stabbing pain in her neck. Before she had even finished opening her eyes, Sarah abruptly jerked her head up before putting her hand to her neck. Her skin was sticky and when she pulled her hand away, she saw that it was covered in blood. Something had bitten her … Something or someone. She could still feel his breath against her vulnerable neck …

Shivering, Sarah frantically wiped the blood off her hands on her clothes before pulling herself together. She slowly stood up and looked around, her throat tight. She was in the cemetery, lying on a grave close to the funeral chapel where she had left Jareth.

And around her …

Her eyes widened, her breath hitched and she spun around.

All around her, the ground was covered with a fine layer of immaculate, fluffy feathers. But that wasn't the worst part : the feathers had been arranged in such a way as to form a pair of folded wings ... As if it was surrounding her ... protecting her ?

Suddenly, she felt very hot and then very cold. Taking a deep breath, she clenched her fists before slowly turning towards the chapel. It was still covered with vines, but what Sarah hadn't seen until then was that they now had silvery thorns and ruby-red flowers, some of whose petals had fallen into the snow, giving the impression that they were bleeding.

Eyes narrowed, Sarah strode closer.

"Don't even bother thinking about it !" Sarah shouted in its direction.

The plants began to quiver slightly, and for a moment she felt like soft, warm lips on her neck. She jumped and twirled around, but no one was there.

Still, she could have sworn she heard someone …

“Precious,” Jareth whispered in her ear.

Sarah jumped, but before she could turn, arms had wrapped around her and were pulling her against a hard, warm body that she had the unpleasant intuition to know. Really panicked now, Sarah began to struggle in earnest, kicking at random to try to free herself.

No no no no.

But quickly, she realized she was helpless. Even though she could feel the body holding her, feel the arms that held her still, her feet only encountered emptiness.

Stifling a cry of anger, she stopped struggling and, gasping for breath, she waited motionless.

"Are you done with your tantrum precious ?" Jareth breathed.

Sarah stiffened but she didn't answer. She could almost feel his satisfaction that he had her at his mercy.

“Sarah Sarah,” he said, hugging her a little tighter before sighing. “I thought we were past all that.”

Sarah tried to ignore the feelings his closeness was triggering in her to focus on her anger.

"How did you manage to escape from the chapel ?" Sarah asked hoarsely.

In answer to her question, she felt him snuggle closer to her.

"What will you give me if I answer you?" he breathed.

Sarah turned her head without answering him and his laugh burst through the air, crystalline and somewhat unreal.

Sarah froze.

"You didn't escape from the chapel, did you?"

Jareth didn't respond immediately, but there wasn't a hint of amusement in his voice when he finally spoke again.

“Sarah, you have to free me.”

Thanks my God.

“No,” she retorted.

This time, Sarah perfectly heard the annoyance in his sigh.

“Sarah, be reasonable. You need me. There are forces at play beyond you ... What will happen next time if I am unable to reach you ? Who will come to save you ?

Sarah sniffled.

"I am fully capable of saving myself, thank you very much !"

Jareth rubbed his cheek against hers.

“Stubborn,” he purred. “I had almost forgotten that about you.”

Sarah opened her mouth to retort something when suddenly he bit her ear. Letting out a small cry, she jumped but before she could do anything, Jareth was standing in front of her, a sardonic smile on his face.

“Alright,” he said, tilting his head slightly. “Keep fooling yourself by imagining that you have the situation under control …”

Suddenly her face was inches from his. Drowning in what she saw in his eyes, Sarah stopped breathing. A slight smile tugged his lips before he leaned into her ear.

“But remember, I do not bite ... Well, not too much.

Before she could reply, his lips were against her skin, warm and soft, exactly where she had been bitten. A shiver shook her but a moment later she saw Jareth's body dissipate like a dream.

Heart pounding, she spun around, but the graveyard was empty.

And when she put her hand to her neck, she felt that her wound was completely gone.

Shaken by what had happened at the City Hall and then at the cemetery, Sarah was relieved to see no one on her way home. She even managed to slip through the house to her bedroom without meeting any servant who would have noticed the bloodstains on her clothes and the pallor of her skin.

Because despite the assurance with which she had rejected Jareth, Sarah felt that the situation was beyond her. It hurt to recognize it but if Jareth hadn't been there ... She suppressed a shudder of fear and disgust. She could still perfectly feel the fangs piercing her flesh.

Passing a trembling hand through her hair, she finished getting dressed before going to hide her bloody clothes in the back of her closet. She would have to find the right moment to get rid of them.

After taking a last look in the mirror to check that nothing showed her feelings, she left her room but as she was thinking of heading to the kitchen to see if she could beg for a cup of hot chocolate and sweets from the cook, loud voices drew her towards the living room.

Frowning when she recognized Cecilia's voice above the others, she entered the living room .

“What’s going on ?” she asked.

The whole family was gathered in the living room as well as a large part of the servants, Hans and unfortunately Pierre. But before anyone had a chance to answer her, Cecilia walked up to Sarah with a determined step.

“Where is it ?” she asked, hands on her hips.

Sarah raised her eyebrows.

"Where is what ?"

Cecilia rolled her eyes.

“The Nutcracker of course !”

Her heart skipped a beat but Sarah forced herself not to let it show.

"The Nutcracker ?" she repeated in a flat voice.

Uncle Drosselmeyer intervened at this point.

“That nutcracker Cecilia is talking about is the one I … gave your mom last year for Christmas, you remember ? Your mom brought it to the kids on New Year's Eve to use.”

Sarah nodded slowly.

"And why are you looking for him ? What is happening ?"

Robert handed her a sheet and Sarah recognized the drawing she had glimpsed from her hiding place at City Hall.

She swallowed.

“What is this ?”

His father was about to answer her when Cecilia beat him to it.

"Don't you recognize this crown ? I recognized it immediately ! It's the exact same one Mom's Nutcracker wears !”

Sarah pretended to stare at the paper carefully as she could feel the panic rising within her.

"Maybe … So what?"

"So it looks like this might be the key to finding the missing children," her father replied.

Sarah grimaced.

“How so ?”

"Apparently," Uncle Drosselmeyer told her while giving her a knowing look. “The city council has hired Pierre here present to find the children and get rid of the threat hanging over the village. But for that he needs the crown of my old nutcracker.”

Damn, Sarah didn't think they'd connect that damn drawing to the Nutcracker crown. She didn't know what it was yet, but one thing was sure : the crown was definitely not the key to finding the missing children.

Pierre on the other hand who stood back without saying anything but observing the slightest of her reactions …

“You are too modest”, intervened the latter with a honeyed tone. “It's a real work of art ... I'd be curious to know where you got the inspiration to make it.”

Uncle Drosselmeyer just smiled in response.

“So ?” resumed Hans.

“So what ?” replied Sarah annoyed.

Hans narrowed his eyes.

"Have you seen the Nutcracker Sarah ? Because a servant thinks she remembers that you had it in your possession the day after Christmas Eve.”

Her blood froze in her veins.

“She must be wrong,” Sarah replied with a strained smile. “The last time I saw it, the children were playing with it and then, with the turn the evening took …”

Sarah let her sentence hang and the memory of the evening seemed to calm Hans. He had turned away from her when Pierre intervened.

"Are you sure ?" he asked her in an insidious voice.

Sarah stiffened.

"Of course I'm sure, why would I lie?"

Something passed in Pierre's eyes but he remained silent.

However, Sarah could feel his gaze on her as she pretended to join the rest of the household in finding the Nutcracker.

Chapter Text

The Nutcracker with its famous crown quickly became the object of all research. The family and relatives present as well as the servants were all called upon to find the famous Nutcracker.

The house was meticulously explored from the cellar to the attic and not a room was spared, nor a cupboard opened or sheets turned over. Then, noticing that the Nutcracker was not there, the children present at the evening were questioned, then it was the turn of the servants and then the guests.

Sarah had to undergo a particularly unpleasant interrogation with Pierre whose insidious questions made her uncomfortable and Hans whose tone had taken an increasingly hostile turn as the questions continued. She had begun to stammer and lose track of her answers when her father burst into the room to announce that a child thought he remembered seeing a servant taking the Nutcracker to the kitchen. Taking advantage of the distraction that this new information had caused, Sarah quickly slipped away to take refuge in her room, all too aware of Pierre's inquisitive gaze who followed her every move.

As night began to fall, the search turned into a real hunt in Hamelin. The memories of the last evening where the Nutcracker had been seen having become blurred and contradictory over the course of the questions, it had been more or less understood that the Nutcracker had disappeared but could not have been taken very far.

All the inhabitants were therefore in the streets, torches and lanterns in hand, searching and researching every corner of the village. Each house was searched carefully, each hiding place was examined closely. Even the church had not been spared, to the great dismay of the priest who had given up trying to prevent the crowd with muddy feet from crowding into his church. But fortunately for Sarah, no one had dared to venture to the cemetery. Consciously or not, the locals knew that disturbing the dead there was not a good idea, especially when winter reigned supreme over the forest and made every shadow darker and more menacing.

When it started to get late and the cold became biting, the search concluded and everyone returned home, their bodies tired but their minds heated. Sarah could feel their anger swirling in the air like a swarm of flies and the look Pierre had given her before leaving with the others made her know that it was far from over.

The evening meal had been a grim affair at Williams' table. Sarah had learned that Uncle Drosselmeyer had been cornered by several notables who had questioned him more specifically about the Nutcracker and its origin. Did he create it ? Why had he chosen to create it here ? Had he ever created objects like this here or elsewhere ? Had this created similar problems before ?

With her stomach growing more and more knotted, Sarah had hardly eaten while listening to Uncle Drosselmeyer's words and her father's attempts at comfort. She remembered the looks that had been given to her all day, the whispers that had followed her through the streets of Hamelin. Her family was popular and well-liked, but Sarah was rather lonely and had difficulty forming even merely friendly relationships outside of her immediate family circle. It had never bothered her, but with the current atmosphere in the village, Sarah regretted not having one or two friends who could have come to her defense.

When Sarah finally went to bed, she realized she couldn't sit back and wait for things to get worse again. She was going to have to take matters into her own hands and that meant finding the children herself. Unfortunately, it hurt her to admit it but for that, she needed the help of the King of Goblins. But she had to be very careful if she didn't want to trade one evil for another.

So, when everyone had gone to bed and the household was fast asleep, Sarah slipped out of her room and crept over to her father's study. She needed time to think about how she should phrase her request. She sat at his desk, turned on the small lamp that cast a warm glow in the room, and began to scribble her ideas on a sheet of paper. Nothing should be left to chance because if she didn't know what the Mausekönig could do to her, that was not the case for the King of the Goblins. So Sarah spent the whole night working and reworking her goals, how she was going to formulate them and what she absolutely should avoid doing or saying.

The night was beginning to clear and slowly give way to the blue-tinted dawn when she was finally satisfied with what she had produced. Stretching to her full length, she stifled a groan as she felt the aches torturing her entire body, then she got up, turned off the light and crept back to her room, unaware that a white owl had been watching her all night long outside the window and that, in the darkness of a corner of the office, a mouse had done the same.

Less than an hour later, she had finished getting ready and, after leaving a note to prevent her family from worrying, she went out through the twilight of the morning through the servants' door. It had started snowing overnight and it was still snowing as Sarah took her first steps outside into the freezing cold. With the snowflakes swirling in the cold morning air, one could hardly see anything. Everything was covered in a thick white coat and Sarah's footprints were almost immediately erased as she made her way out of the village.

Despite the difficulty in moving quickly with the snow blinding her, its presence reassured her because she was almost certain that no one would be able to follow her in this weather. It took her longer than usual to reach the cemetery, but when she arrived at its gate, frozen and feverish, she hesitated for a moment on the entrance step.

After that, there would be no turning back, but she no longer had a choice. She had to find the children before the village was irreparably fractured.

In the cemetery, the snow continued to fall but more gently, almost delicately, as if it too was afraid of disturbing the peace of those who rested here. When Sarah reached the funeral chapel, she froze. The vines with silver thorns and scarlet flowers were still there, but in front of the chapel there was now a throne.

Her heart pounding, Sarah approached it cautiously.

This throne was much more elaborate than the one he had in his kingdom. It was a true work of art formed of sparkling ice and pastel snow, a high-backed chair on which were perched two strikingly realistic owls and two armrests whose shapes seemed to wind like roots between which there were small forest animals and goblins with mischievous eyes hiding.

Once in front of it, Sarah frowned. On the throne seat, there was a single, tiny, white, fluffy, almost sheer feather that seemed to taunt her. Despite herself, she reached out to touch it but the moment her fingers came into contact with it, she suddenly felt a presence behind her.

She turned around and found herself face to face with Jareth. A little cry of surprise escaped her and she took a step back reflexively. Losing her balance, she toppled over the throne, but before she could get up again, Jareth had already stepped forward and, with both hands placed on either side of her on the armrests, he leaned over her, towering over her.

“Precious, sitting on a throne looking terrified suits you so well.”

Sarah blushed but refused to be intimidated.

“Or are you just jealous because it’s been too long since you’ve seen a real throne hm ?

As soon as she had said these words, she regretted it, but it was too late. A predatory smile appeared on Jareth's face and he brought his face closer to hers, his breath mingling with hers.

He smelled of night and dreams and magic and Sarah couldn't help but raise her face to his.

“Well, well, we’re full of thorns this morning, aren’t we precious ? Was the night short ? You might be less quick to attack if your nocturnal activities left you more ... languorous in the morning.”

Sarah's face turned crimson but she had to bite her tongue to avoid saying something that would probably land her in trouble up to her neck.

She took a deep breath instead.

“I didn't come here to exchange barbs with you, I want to know what's going on here. I want to know who the Mausekönig really is and what he wants. I want to know where the missing children are.”

Jareth leaned back a little and looked closely at Sarah's face.

“For what ? What good would it do you to know everything ?”

“Because I need to know if I can trust you enough to end the spell that's keeping you here.”

For a moment, it was as if time itself held its breath and Jareth slowly drew back before crouching before the throne, like a knight before his queen. Her heart pounding, Sarah stood looking at him without saying anything. He should have looked less intimidating like this but he didn't.

“The Mausekönig,” Jareth began without taking his eyes off her. “He has always been a rival, a creature of chaos and blood who lives by his own rules. He lives in a kingdom similar to mine but, unlike me, he has always been focused on conquest, draining of resources and life first the neighboring kingdoms and then, over the centuries, those much further away. He has always coveted the Underground but he has never been powerful enough to be able to claim it ... That is, until the throne was left vacant.”

Or rather until Sarah transformed him into a nutcracker and left him to rot in a small box among the old and forgotten things. Sarah tried not to feel guilty about what she had done but she couldn't help but think back to the little goblin she had saved whose only crime had been wanting to eat a caramel. She hadn't had a choice at the time and if she had to do it again, she would probably do the same thing but that didn't take away the consequences that she hadn't necessarily thought about.

Jareth watched her reaction as if fascinated.

“So many emotions,” he murmured, touching Sarah’s cheek with his fingertips.

She tried to stop herself from shivering.

It's just the cold, Sarah thought motionlessly. Nothing but the cold.

“Is that why he’s chasing me ?” she asked in a trembling voice.

Jareth's smile turned cold and this time, she couldn't hold back a tremor.

“The fact that you are ... you must not be entirely unrelated to the fact that he is pursuing you but you are right, he must have eventually learned who was really responsible for my ... absence and that is why he is here. As long as I am not dead, the Labyrinth will remain inaccessible to him.”

Sarah sighed.

“And the children ? He’s the one responsible, right ? What good does it do for him to take them away ?”

Jareth tilted his head to the side.

“He’s probably doing it for you, my sweet Sarah. To force your cooperation.” (Suddenly, he grabbed her hands and pulled her towards him.) “Whatever happens, you must not make a deal with him Sarah. He has no allies, only instruments that he takes pleasure to grind.”

Wide-eyed, Sarah nodded slightly.

“So precious,” he asked, gently stroking the inside of her wrists where he could feel her pulse quicken. “What do you decide ? Have you learned enough to trust me ?”

With her eyes staring into the familiar two-tone gaze that had haunted her nights and days for so many years, Sarah felt like she was standing on the edge of a bottomless abyss, just before she jumped.

But if she had many faults, cowardice was not one of them and it was without blinking that she acquiesced.

At the same time, in the depths of the Underground, the flowers in the gardens of the Labyrinth so sensitive to the moods of its master bloom for the first time in years.

Chapter Text

If Sarah had agreed to free Jareth from his enchantment, that didn't mean she trusted him completely. Yes, she knew she needed help, badly and desperately needed help. That explained why she was preparing to free him from his prison of wood and magic when she had sworn never to do so no matter what.
But she had not imagined that one day, she would cross paths with an even more dangerous creature.
Still, being desperate didn't make her stupid. She couldn't forget who she had in front of her. She couldn't risk making a wrong move and trading one dangerous creature of magic and darkness for another.

So that's why, despite the minutes ticking by like grains of sand in an hourglass, Sarah refused to move until the King of the Goblins had accepted all her requests without the slightest exception. Despite the fact that the sun had already risen, the sky was dark, its light drowned out by thick snowflakes swirling around them. Sarah couldn't stop blinking, trying to dislodge the flakes that kept clinging to her eyelashes. She could have decided to take shelter in the mausoleum or even somewhere in the village but she did not want to take the risk of leaving the cemetery before having resolved this question.

So, ignoring the cold that crept up her body, she sat on the frozen throne while Jareth perched on top of a tomb, looking more like his feathered avatar than ever.

“Sarah Sarah,” he said, suddenly jumping to stand on the ground in front of her with predatory grace. “Couldn't we postpone our little negotiation until later ? We wouldn’t want you to catch a cold, would we ?”

His voice was even and his tone flirtatious, but as he approached her to tower over her, Sarah could see the glint in his eyes that showed he was growing impatient.

He brought his face closer to hers and Sarah held back a shiver that must have been linked to the cold.

Obviously.

To hide her reaction, she crossed her arms and raised an imperious eyebrow.

“I will not move from here until you give me your word as king that you will help me find all the children of Hamelin safe and sound and that you promise to never harm the inhabitants past, present and future of Hamelin and …”

Jareth cut her off by leaning forward, his breath mingling with hers.

“And in exchange, you will free me from this cursed nutcracker,” he whispered, looking straight into her eyes and maybe her soul. “And finally, I will help you get rid of the Mausekonig, I know.”

Sarah tried not to blink.

“I'm glad to know that I'm not speaking for nothing.”

His dry tone brought a smile to Jareth and Sarah's heart skipped a beat. To hide her confusion, she continued.

“So ?”

His gaze lingering on the red of her cheeks, Jareth tilted his head to the side.

“So what ?”

Sarah let out a small growl and made to stand up when Jareth stopped her by placing his hand on hers.

Sarah froze and looked up at him.

“Precious calm down,” he said, rubbing his nose against hers. “Is it the cold that makes you so ... prickly ?”

For a moment, Sarah stayed frozen, the world fading around her to leave only the feeling of his cold nose against hers. The gesture was strangely affectionate and far more disarming than anything he had done to her before.

“Precious ? he whispered, turning his head just enough so that his lips were only millimeters from her ear.

“I want your promise,” she repeated in a strangled voice.

A sigh escaped him and this time, Sarah couldn't stop a shiver from passing through her. Jareth pulled back just enough so his face was facing hers. Out of the corner of her eye, Sarah saw something sparkle. She tensed but before she had time to do anything, a glass dagger appeared in his hand and Jareth cut himself in one fluid motion at the wrist, just above his glove, without letting go of Sarah's hand. She tried to free herself but he tightened his grip on her and as his blood came into contact with her skin, a most solemn expression appeared on his face and it was without taking his eyes off her that he spoke.

“I swear by the blood of my ancestors and by the land of my magic that the moment you put an end to my punishment I will help you by all means to find all the children of Hamelin safe and sound, eliminate the threat posed by the Mausekonig and I will no longer attack the Hamelin inhabitants, whether they are from the past, present or future.”

He lifted Sarah's hand to his mouth and, with his eyes locked on hers, he concluded his promise by gently kissing the blood from Sarah's bare skin. She jumped at the contact of his lips against her skin, the sensation almost drowning out the distant sound of bells that made her sit up abruptly.

“You have your promise,” Jareth whispered, his lips caressing her skin with each word. “It's up to you to fulfill your end of the bargain now, dear Sarah.”

Looking into his eyes, she seemed to see eternity stretching into the horizon. What she was going to do here had the potential to turn everything upside down. It was going to change everything but it was too late to back out now.

If Sarah was completely honest with herself, it was already too late by the time she first met the two-toned gaze of the Goblin King.

“Understood,” replied Sarah.

Jareth sat up, a smile on his face, and he opened his mouth, probably to say something stupid that would make Sarah want to change her mind and run away. So, instead of explaining to him what she had to do to free him from the spell, she stopped procrastinating and took advantage of the opportunity.

She sat up, closed her eyes and leaned in to kiss him.

The moment her lips made contact with his, it was as if Jareth had turned into a pillar of salt. Her heart racing, she kept her eyes closed and, against his still lips, she whispered the formula she had memorized and burned into her years ago when she had to ask Uncle Drosselmeyer for help. In reality, the words had little importance. It was the contact and the intention that counted and that's why Sarah preferred to keep her eyes closed.

She didn't want to take the risk of letting herself be distracted ... Even more than she was currently.

Jareth still hadn't moved when Sarah felt the magic take effect. There was a dull crack, then a smell of smoke and cinnamon that filled the air before disappearing almost immediately.

As Jareth still didn't react, Sarah, who was starting to feel uncomfortable, decided it was time to end the kiss. It wasn't her first kiss but usually, if they weren't great, at least they didn't make her feel like she was kissing ... A wooden toy.

“It's done, you're ...” Sarah began, leaning back slightly in the throne.

But she didn't have time to finish her sentence as Jareth had reacted and what a reaction ! Sarah had just time to notice that his clothes had changed to take on the color of a stormy sky when he pulled on her hand and kissed her.

And this time, Sarah's thoughts were scattered at his reaction. The kiss immediately became deep, teasing and sensual at the same time. He sucked and bit her lower lip and Sarah let out a moan that made her blush. In response, he produced a delicious purr and ran his fingers through her hair to pull her closer to him.

Sarah was pretty sure it was a bad idea but she couldn't remember why. The snow continued to fall around them but she no longer felt cold, especially when she felt his hand slide from her hair to her chest.

Breaking the kiss despite Sarah's murmurs of protest, Jareth nuzzled his head against her neck and said her name so softly it felt like she had imagined it. But she didn't have time to wonder about this sudden fervor because his body slid against hers and Jareth kissed her again, his kiss gaining even more intensity, plunging Sarah into a whirlwind of sensations. His body became warm and malleable under his but Sarah couldn't help but bite his lip in turn which didn't displease Jareth. He let out a growl and redoubled his fervor.

She realized she was hugging him when Jareth broke the kiss again and leaned back slightly. Sarah was going to protest but he let his warm lips run along her neck. She shivered as she felt his warm, wet mouth tease and nibble, but she suppressed another moan as his hot, hard body slid against hers, his lips following the curve of her neck, the crook of her shoulder, and finally the curvature of her breasts.

For a moment, Sarah froze as her foggy brain finally realized that she was no longer wearing a coat or dress, only her underwear, a plain white shirt that fell to her knees. She didn't even feel the cold on her skin and as she was about to stand up to try to put her thoughts in order, Jareth brushed his lips against the reddened skin of her bare breasts and her questions died in a breath.

She began to tremble slightly as his feather-soft hair brushed against her skin and Jareth descended even lower.
She stiffened for a moment before freezing when he slid to her feet, kneeling in front of her while she still sat on the throne, her body feverish and her heart beating wildly.

“My precious Sarah,” he whispered, crouching in front of her, his eyes burning. “You can not imagine …”

He left his sentence hanging and Sarah had the impression that he had lost his train of thought by the way his eyes devoured her. Somewhere inside her, there was a certain satisfaction knowing that she wasn't the only prisoner of this madness. She was about to say something when, without taking his eyes off her, he began to remove his gloves with calculated slowness, one by one, with his teeth.

A gentle warmth filled Sarah's body and she was pretty sure her cheeks must be crimson. Jareth smiled with a satisfied air and, once the gloves were removed, slowly, as if he wanted to give her time to stop him, his hands moved up along her ankles then from her calves to her knees which he gently moved aside.

Sarah took a sharp breath and he paused but she did nothing to stop him. She may have lost her mind, but in the series of bad decisions she had made in recent years, this was probably not the worst.

Nor the last.

Seeing that she wasn't going to say anything, he leaned between her legs and Sarah closed her eyes. The visual was too intense but she quickly realized her mistake when every sensation seemed to increase tenfold once her eyes closed. His hot breath between her legs made her shiver and she couldn't suppress a moan when his wet, rough tongue caressed her most intimate part. The feeling of his hair against her inner thighs was irresistible and she began to pant.

Without stopping, he lifted her legs to put them on his shoulders and she felt his body slide onto the throne but Jareth held her in place and suddenly Sarah's world was nothing but moist heat, shivers of pleasure and barely muffled moans. A wave of sensations rose within her and she dug her fingers into his hair to pull him closer or for something else, she didn't really know.

Suddenly he bit her and her body arched, her mouth opening in a silent scream.

Body languid and mind clouded, it took Sarah a moment to come to her senses and it took her even longer to realize that while she was still on the throne, her trembling legs were now resting on the cold ground and she was now alone in the cemetery, without a coat and without a dress.

And she finally remembered why kissing the Goblin King was a terrible idea.

Chapter Text

For a moment, Sarah simply remained petrified, sitting on the throne without really feeling the cold that was beginning to creep into her. She hoped very much that this was all just a nightmare, that she would wake up very quickly in her bed and that the cold was only due to the fireplace in her room that had gone out in her sleep.

Except that, even if Sarah was used to seeing creatures that seemed to come straight out of a fairy tale, she was not the type to delude herself. Especially not when it concerned her own life and her mistakes. In fact, she was so furious that she could have cried.

But tears of rage only, she thought as she wiped away one of the traitorous tears that escaped her.

She couldn’t believe she’d forgotten the rule that had governed most of her adult life, the golden rule she’d promised herself she’d never forget.

Never, ever trust the Goblin King.

Fists clenched, she took a deep breath to try to calm herself. She couldn’t let her rage overwhelm her. She’d been in worse situations before, and she couldn’t afford to lose her nerve here and now, not when the Mausekönig was still lurking and she was now alone and defenseless. Anyone else might have thought that the Mausekönig would leave her alone now that Jareth was out there and he didn’t need her anymore to find him. Maybe they’d even find a way to kill each other, eliminating all her problems in one fell swoop.

But Sarah wasn’t that naïve, and her luck lately hadn’t been what she’d hoped for. So swallowing her fury with some difficulty, she began to slip out of the throne, wincing as she felt the cold against the bare skin of her still-trembling legs. She had barely taken a step forward when the throne behind her vanished into thin air and Sarah found herself alone among the gloomy tombs, wearing nothing but a wrinkled white shirt that was far too light.

At least I still have my shoes, Sarah thought before a bitter laugh escaped her.

Rubbing her arms in a vain attempt to warm herself, she bit her lip as she looked around. Sarah didn’t know exactly how much time had passed, but given the clear sky, she doubted she could make it home in this outfit, at least not without running into someone from the village who would definitely notice her. And what excuse was she going to come up with for her clothes, or rather her lack of clothes ?

Why am I in my nightgown in the middle of the street ? Oh, nothing unusual, I just had a furious desire to go for a walk at dawn all alone in my underwear in the cold.

Right.

Imagining herself finishing off a certain nutcracker with an axe before burning him in the first fireplace she came across, Sarah ignored the cold that bit her limbs and went back up the path among the graves. The cold air burned her lungs when she breathed and even as she reached the cemetery gate, still ajar, she pretended not to think about the fact that she no longer felt her frozen fingers and that her face was nothing more than a mask of ice. Only her anger at Jareth and her own stubbornness gave her the strength to continue moving forward.

Another girl might have blamed herself for letting the Goblin King seduce her, but for once, Sarah could thank her half-sister and her very modern vision that she had constantly hammered into the whole household about what a young woman could do. Sarah couldn't claim to have much experience in the matter and she’d probably be blushing even more thinking about what had happened if she wasn't so cold, but according to Cecilia's gossip, women did this kind of thing all the time.

Well, maybe not in Hamelin, but in the city, yes.

And probably not in a cemetery, she thought as she crossed the cemetery boundary. Or with the Goblin King, but it's the same principle, right ?

Moving forward very carefully to avoid slipping on the frozen ground, a sigh escaped her when she saw the first snowflakes begin to fall. Sarah gritted her teeth and continued to move forward. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to get back on track if she stopped, even for a second. But the few light flakes floating in the air quickly turned into a swirling white tide that turned the path she knew so well into a shapeless, indistinct mass.

Trying not to let panic overwhelm her, Sarah looked down and, keeping her gaze fixed on the path that was now barely visible beneath her feet, she continued to move forward, one step at a time. As long as she continued to feel the dirt path beneath her feet, everything would be fine. But if not …

As time seemed to stretch and lose all meaning and Sarah continued her slow, painful walk, fear slowly began to creep into her. She should never have come all the way to the cemetery to confront Jareth. It was a mistake, just as not having established a clear timeline when she had negotiated with him. She had focused on the safety of the missing children when she should have made sure that nothing was open to interpretation, not when he should help her or the names of the children he should make sure to save.

And now she had nothing and the children would never return home.

Sarah hadn’t even realized she had fallen until the pain in her knees snapped her out of her daze. Blinking to clear her vision, she looked up and a sob escaped her as she realized she had made it to the entrance of Hamelin. She was so close to being able to go back inside and be warm and safe … Her thoughts numb from the cold and damp, Sarah didn’t know if she would have the strength to get up. Ironically, the snowstorm would allow her to go back in completely unnoticed, but she still had to make it to the house.

Drawing on her last strength, Sarah struggled to her feet and, once standing on her two feet, frozen and trembling, she continued on her way, walking much slower than before while trying not to let herself be carried away by the cold that threatened to engulf her whole.

As she caught herself for the umpteenth time to avoid slipping and losing her balance, she stopped for a moment, short of breath and her body numb with cold and fatigue. She wasn’t sure she would be able to go any further. In fact, she wasn’t sure where she was in Hamelin. In the glow of the streetlights and in the middle of all this whirlwind of white, all the streets seemed to have become the same and the cold … In fact, Sarah didn’t really feel the cold anymore and while this thought should have worried her, she had trouble collecting her thoughts.

Just as she began to feel her body sway, a gust of wind blew a familiar door through the storm. For a second, Sarah felt electrified. She could recognize its dark wood and silver knocker with its star-shaped and mysterious tools moldings. It was her Uncle Drosselmeyer’s workshop, and she knew he always left a key in a small wooden trapdoor hidden in the corner of the door for those times he forgot them.

Suddenly invigorated by the idea of ​​a place so close by with a stove and a place to take shelter, Sarah pulled herself together and, drawing on her last strength, she staggered toward the door until her frozen fingers made contact with the icy wood of the door. Sarah wasted several precious minutes trying to open the trapdoor that was jammed because of the cold but when she managed it, she hurried to open the door to slip inside before sliding down to the floor.

A small cry of relief and pain escaped her when she felt the warmth of the room begin to creep under her skin. She had feared the prospect of all the effort she would have had to make to go and light the stove but her Uncle had already done it and it was on this comforting idea that she finally let herself lose consciousness on the floor in front of the workshop door, exhausted but finally safe.

Or at least that's what she thought but Sarah would probably have done everything to stay conscious if she had known that it was not her Uncle who had lit the stove and that she was not alone in the workshop.