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Hope checked the clock, pacing back and forth in the hallway. She folded her arms, huffing dramatically before turning back to Noah.
“The girl is late again.” She curled her lip, and Noah threw his hands up.
“I’m sure she just got caught in the rain. She’ll be here soon.”
“Our reservation is in fifteen minutes !”
Just then, they heard the door unlock. Hope rushed to the door.
“Absolutely not, he’s dripping wet.” Hope pointed a long, perfectly manicured finger at the sopping wet dog who looked more like a mop at this point.
“Oh, come on! It’s raining!”
“He can stay in the garage.”
Sarah jutted her lower lip out but sent her dog off to the garage anyway.
“You’re late.”
“I’m sorry!”
“Noah and I only get to go out so rarely and--”
“You go out every weekend!” Sarah protested, and Hope bristled.
“We only ask you to look after Toby if you’re available.”
“You never bother asking.”
“Well, I assume you would tell me if you had a date!” Hope turned to Noah, who was just adjusting his tie in the mirror. “I’d like it if you had a date, at your age, you should have plenty of dates.”
“Whatever.”
Sarah stormed to her room and slammed the door dramatically.
“Noah, would you talk to her?” Hope frowned, and he sighed, moving to knock on the door.
“Sarah, can I talk to you?” He called.
“There’s nothing to talk about!” She shot back, seated at her vanity. She slammed a tube of lipstick onto the table.
“Listen, we fed Toby and put him to bed. We have to leave now, but we’ll be back at midnight!”
“He practically broke down the door to talk to me.” She sighed to herself, staring in the mirror.
The sound of mechanical crying drifted into her room, and she muttered under her breath. “Ugh.” She groaned, launching herself out of her room and crossing to Toby’s room. She pulled the child out of the crib, rocking him in her arms.
“Oh, what is it? What do you want?” She demanded. “Do you want a story? Fine. I’ll tell you a story.
“Once upon a time there was a beautiful girl.” She wrinkled her nose as she tried to decide how to describe Hope and Noah. “Her evil roommates always made her stay home with their weird baby. The baby was spoiled and she was basically a slave to her roommates.
“Little did they know, the king of the goblins had fallen in love with her, and he’d given her certain powers. She called upon the goblins for help one night when she had had enough of the baby’s incessant wailing.”
In the closet, goblins hid, shushing each other.
“Shh, listen!” Kassam whispered to a blue haired goblin.
“‘If you say the words, we can make him disappear to the goblin city.’ The goblins told her, but she knew they would whisk him away to the castle and turn him into a goblin.
“So she suffered in silence, until one night, when she could stand it no more.”
The baby let out a deep, mechanical wail, and she huffed softly.
“Alright, alright, that’s enough. You can knock it off now.” She tucked him back into the crib. “I’ll say the words.” She threatened, before catching herself, shaking her head. “Oh, no, I mustn’t.”
The goblins rustled excitedly in the closet, huddling closer together.
“I wish…” She breathed in, her hand tracing the wall.
“Listen.” Kassam whispered harshly.
“She’s going to say it.” Lucas breathed.
“Say huh?” Felix asked.
“Shut up!” Graham exclaimed, before clapping his hand over his mouth.
“Just listen!” Kassam hissed. “She’s going to say the words.”
“Oh, goblin king, goblin king, take this child of mine far from me!” Sarah exclaimed.
“Awwww.” The goblins groaned in unison.
“That’s not it.” Lucas grumbled.
“It didn’t even start with ‘I wish’! What the hell was that?” Graham growled.
“Oh, Toby, knock it off already!” Sarah whimpered. “I wish I did know what the right words are.”
“I wish the goblins would come and take you away right now! Easy!” Graham huffed.
“I wish…I wish!”
“Did she say it?” Felix asked, only to get shushed by the other goblins.
Sarah moved to the light switch, sighing to herself and shaking her head.
“Oh, I wish the goblins would come and take you away.” She paused for a moment, before switching the light out and continuing. “Right now.”
She sat at her vanity, before a peculiar sound caught her attention. The sound of silence.
“Toby?” She called nervously, moving back to his room. When the light didn’t switch on, she felt panic bubbling up in her throat.
“Toby?” She crept to the crib, pulling the blanket aside. He was gone. Oh, shit.
She heard a rapping on the window and turned to see a big white owl flapping against it, until it suddenly opened wide and he flew in, followed by a shower of glitter and a wave of synthesizer music.
As the music crested, the owl turned into a man dressed in a gorgeous, glittery suit, with a codpiece that left exactly nothing to the imagination. His long, blond hair was styled into a feathery mullet, and he looked every bit of the Goblin King. As he walked toward her in slow, measured steps, she took smaller steps backwards, away from him.
“Go on, back to your room.” He spoke in a light Swedish accent. “I have freed you.”
“Don’t you know how much trouble I’ll be in?” She took a step toward him when he stopped. There was something intoxicating about his presence, something magical, and he held out a crystal ball.
“I brought you something.” He turned the crystal, and it showed beautiful scenes. “It will show you all of your wildest dreams. But it’s not for a girl who takes care of a wailing child.”
“Look, it’s not that I don’t appreciate this, uh…” She hesitated, shaking her head. “But I need him back.”
“He’s there.” Goblin King Henrik pointed out the window. Sarah followed his finger with her gaze. “In my castle.”
“What?” She turned around, and realized they’d been transported to the gates of a labyrinth. “Oh, that doesn’t look that far.” She squinted at the castle which seemed to hover above the horizon.
“Oh, much farther than it looks.” Henrik was already beginning to fade away. “And time is short. You’ve got…” He peered at a pocket watch. “Thirteen hours to solve it. If you don’t, Toby will be mine, forever.” He cackled, and Sarah felt a chill run down her spine.
She turned and shrugged, walking along the wall of the labyrinth. She bumped into a dwarf, who grimaced up at her.
“Oh! I’m so sorry.” She reached down to help him up, but he shrugged her off.
“Oh, it’s you.” He groaned, and she frowned.
“I’m sorry?” She perked a brow. “Could you tell me where the uh, door to this thing is? I’m kind of in a hurry.”
“That sucks for you.” The dwarf shrugged, and sprayed a fairy out of the air.
“Wow, you’re horrible.”
“Nope, I’m Bobby.” He gave her a half smile before trudging off. He paused and looked at her over his shoulder. “Well, are you coming?”
She jogged after him hastily. “Yeah!”
He stopped in front of a wide open gate, gesturing toward it a la Vanna White.
“You’re really going in there, huh?”
“I have to.”
“Have to. Puh.” Bobby blew a raspberry.
“Yes, I have to.” She turned and looked both ways. “Which, uh, which way would you go?”
“I wouldn’t.” He shrugged.
“Thanks, very helpful, Bogwart.”
“It’s Bobby .” He grumbled, before turning and walking out. The doors slammed shut behind him, and Sarah jumped. She took a breath to try and compose herself before walking. She wasn’t finding any corners, any openings, just a long, long, corridor. She started running, desperately, before sliding to the ground.
“Allo!”
A little worm poked his head out between the bricks.
“Did you just say hello?”
“Nah, I said ‘Allo,’ but that’s close enough, innit?” Jakub blinked up at her. She sighed in frustration.
“I can’t figure this labyrinth thing out.” She groaned, and he looked around.
“Maybe you’re just not looking at it right. Why don’t you come on inside, have a cup of tea, unwind?”
“Not looking at it right?” She mused, studying the bricks.
“Yeah, sure, there’s an opening right there!”
“No, there’s not!” She frowned at him, and he rolled his eyes.
“It’s not what it seems. Look harder.”
She squinted and tried again, and exclaimed in joy when she found an opening. “Hey! Thank you!” She cried, but stopped and poked her head around the corner when he called after her.
“Well, don’t go that way! Never go that way!”
“Oh, good shout!” She turned and ran off the other way.
“She woulda gone straight to that bloody castle if she’d gone that way.” Jakub stressed out to himself.
Sarah jumped when she found herself in front of a door with two guards, dressed up as King and Queen playing cards. Only their heads were visible, and she found it strange that they didn’t seem to have bodies. Whatever, this place was just weird.
“Not fair, is it?” One of them called out to her.
“Huh? I didn’t say anything.”
“Oh.” They each stood in front of a door, and she approached them cautiously.
Elisa and Marisol were in front of the left door, while Elijah and Carl were on the right.
“The only way out of here is to try one of these doors,” Carl said, and she sighed.
“One of these doors leads to the castle, and the other leads to…” Marisol started.
“Certain death.” Elisa finished for her.
“Well, which is it?” Sarah demanded, and Elijah laughed.
“Good luck, they don’t know anything.” He pointed to Carl and Marisol, who were on the bottom.
“One of us always lies.” Elisa smiled.
“And the other always tells the truth.”
“Oh, I don’t have time for this.” Sarah pushed Elijah and Carl out of the way. “Bon voyage!” She called as she took a few steps forward. “Hey! I might have--OHHH!” She cried out as she fell through the trap door. She was stopped by a bunch of hands coming out of the wall.
“Oh, hell no. Just drop me.” She demanded, and they all laughed.
“She chose down!”
“She chose down?”
“I don’t care if it was wrong! Stop touching me!” She cried, and found herself in a dark, cobweb-filled cavern. “Oh, shit.” She breathed.
Henrik watched the crystal, a furrow in his brow.
“She’s made it to the oubliette.”
“Isn’t that what you wanted?” Felix asked, and Henrik waved his hand sharply.
“The dwarf will lead her back to the beginning. This will all be over soon.” He smiled confidently, as the goblins cheered all around him.
The sound of a shoe scraping against stone echoed in the chamber, and Sarah sat up.
“Who’s there?” She hissed, as the scratch and swish of a match lighting reached her ears and Bobby came into focus. “Oh. It’s you. ”
“Oh, I’m happy to see you, too.” Bobby retorted. “I knew you were gonna get yourself into trouble soon as I met you. And sure enough, here you are, in an oubliette. Labyrinth is full of them.”
“Huh, that’s news to me.”
“Please, you don’t even know what an oubliette is, do you?”
“And you do?”
“Of course I do.” Bobby leaned in, the light from the candle in his hand flickering against his eyes. “It’s a place you put somebody when you want to forget about them.”
“Why are you helping me?”
“Oh, who says I am?”
“I’ll tell you what.” Sarah toyed with a bracelet clinging to her wrist. “If you help me, I’ll give you this.” She showed it to him, and his eyes widened.
“Or, I could show you to the beginning of the labyrinth, and you could give that to me.”
“No!” She protested, and he looked around, dropping his voice.
“Alright, I’ll help you get halfway there. That’s it.”
“Oh! Thank you, Bobble!”
“It’s Bobby!”
“Yeah, whatever, let’s go!”
As they walk through a cave, a crystal rolls past them.
“Oh, no.” Bobby groans, as it clinks against a strange creature.
“Well, well, what have we here?” The voice of an old crone rang out.
“N-nothing!” Bobby stammered.
“Nothing? Nothing?” The creature swiftly transformed into Goblin King Henrik. “Really? It doesn’t look like nothing.” He approached Bobby.
‘ “Hello, Bradwing.”
“Bogwart.” Sarah corrected him.
“ Bobby. ” Bobby threw up his hands in complete exasperation.
“Right. Bobby, could it be that you’re helping this girl?”
“Yeah, boss, I’m helping her to the front entrance!” He told him smoothly.
“Oh, because from where I stand, it looked as though you were helping her to the castle. ”
“N-no, of course I wasn’t, your majesty. It was simply a prank.” He nodded. “I told her I was helping her, but really, I lied.”
“Oh, right, then. Very good. Do carry on.” He paused, leaning closer to Bobby. “But if I suspect for one second that you are betraying me, I will have you suspended head first in the bog of eternal stench.”
“No!” Bobby protested, but Henrik just smiled and disappeared in a cloud of light blue smoke, glitter, and synthesizers.
“What’s so bad about the bog of eternal stench?” Sarah asked, and Bobby grimaced so hard his body trembled.
“It smells awful.”
“Is that all it does?”
“It doesn’t need to do anything else. You can never get rid of the stench once you’ve absorbed it.” He shuddered again. “I can’t bear thinking about it. It’s disgusting.”
“If you say so.”
Suddenly, they’re interrupted by a roar. Sarah stops in her tracks and turns toward the sound. “Come on, we’ve got to go check that out!”
“No way, you are on your own!”
“What? Bobby, you coward!” Sarah called after him as he trotted away hastily. She threw her hands up. “I can do this myself.”
She practically tiptoed toward the noise, peering around a hedge to find several goblins, clad in armor and helmets, poking at a giant beast hanging from rafters by his feet.
“RAAAGHH!” He shouted as they kept harassing him.
“God, wish I had something to throw.” She muttered under her breath. She turned to see a rock at her feet. Perfect.
With a deep breath and a silent prayer, she tossed the rock. It was a lucky shot, it hit a helmet, turned it, and ricocheted to hit another helmet. The beast roared again, and another rock appeared out of nowhere.
She made the shot again, and soon, the area was cleared but for her and the great beast.
He gnashed his teeth and swung his horns at her, and she chided him.
“Hey! I’m trying to help you.” She protested, and he stilled, assessing her with kind eyes.
“Friend?”
“Yes, I’m your friend. Sarah.” She smiled sweetly.
“Gary.” He nodded awkwardly, and she looked up at his feet.
“Gary, I’m gonna get you down. Just hang tight--oh.” She clapped a hand over her mouth, but he didn’t seem to notice. He just looked happy for the help.
He landed on his head with a thump, and she gasped. “Oh, god, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to!”
He jumped to his feet, brushing the dust off of his fur. He shrugged and shook his head to indicate that he was fine.
“You wouldn’t happen to know the way to the castle, would you, Gary?”
“No.” He told her sadly, shaking his head.
“Ah, well, we’ll find it, somehow.” She sighed, and they walked until they ended up in a forest. Gary made a nervous sound, and she looked up at him. “Oh, are you scared?” He nodded slowly, and she took his hand. “Aw, imagine, a big thing like you being scared.” She squeezed his hand and they continued walking.
Suddenly, Gary fell through the forest floor, and when Sarah turned to see that he was gone, she called out. “Gary? Gary, Gary where are you? Oh, dammit. Bobby! Bobby, help!” She called.
The sound reached the dwarf’s ears and he turned. “Oh, Sarah, I’m on my way!” He started off, only to be cut off by the Goblin King Henrik.
“Going somewhere, Bobstart?”
“Bobby.” The dwarf corrected under his breath. “Well, see, uh, the little lady gave me the slip, and I just heard her calling--”
“And you’ll be taking her back to the beginning, like I asked you?”
“Of course, your majesty.” Bobby bowed at Henrik’s feet, looking up cautiously.
“Grand. It would be foolish of you to defy me, after all.” Henrik smiled wryly, flicking a crystal to and fro in his hand lazily until it became a peach. “Here, a gift for Sarah, direct from me. She could use the nourishment, it has been a long day.” He leaned in. “Oh, and if she ever kisses you, I’ll make you a prince.”
“A...a prince?”
“Of the bog of eternal stench!” Henrik laughed heartily, before he turned and walked until he was disappearing in a cloud of glitter. Bobby fell back on his heels and sighed, before hearing Sarah call out again.
“I’m coming.” He breathed, and ran toward her voice.
“Bobby! You came back!” Sarah cried, kneeling to throw her arms around his neck. She leaned in to kiss his cheek and he protested.
“No, no, don’t do that--AGH!” Her lips connected and the floor dropped out as they went sliding down, down, until--
“Ugh, what is that smell?” Sarah groaned, and Bobby huffed in exasperation.
“You shouldn’t have kissed me! What were you thinking?” He scowled at her, clinging to a stone post.
“Where are we, Bobby?”
“Where the hell do you think, Sarah? The bog of eternal stench! Agh!” He grunted, before losing his footing.
She caught him, bracing herself against the wall as she pulled him back to safety. She saw Gary below them and called to him.
“Gary!”
“Sarah!” He practically plucked them off of the wall they were clinging to, and set them down.
They found a bridge, but as soon as they approached it, a small creature riding a fluffy dog ran out in front of them.
“You shall not cross!” Arjun cried, pointing a small spear at them.
“I’m sorry?” Sarah stepped forward, and he charged her. Gary picked him up by the spear, and he flailed furiously, before latching onto Gary’s back and raining furious fists upon him.
“He’s scrappy, isn’t he?” Bobby mused.
“Excuse me!” Sarah called, and Arjun paused, appraising her. “We need to cross to get through to the castle!” She folded her arms.
“None shall pass without my permission!” He huffed, and Sarah tilted her head.
“Well...may we have your permission, Sir…”
“Arjun.”
“Sir Arjun?”
“Why, yes, my lady, you may.” He grinned as Gary set him down. Sarah eyed the bridge skeptically. “That bridge has held up for a hundred years!” Arjun exclaimed proudly.
Sarah took a cautious step, before continuing on. As she hit the middle, it began to crack and crumble beneath her.
“Oh, no!” Bobby cried out, and she leaped up and caught hold of a branch that luckily happened to be dangling above. She clung to it, clearly struggling, as Gary began to howl.
“Sir Beast, is now truly the best time for this?” Arjun demanded. “Our fair maiden is in dire need of our assistance!”
A giant stone came rolling down the path, settling perfectly beneath Sarah’s feet.
“Wait, you can summon the very rocks?” Arjun asked Gary, who nodded and shrugged.
“Sure. Rocks are friends.”
“Arjun, are you coming with us?” Sarah asked, and he nodded. “Of course I am! Let me call my noble steed.” He whistled, and the dog cowered from behind the bridge. “Oh, come on, it’s alright.” His dog ran to him, and he nodded as he jumped into the saddle.
They escaped the bog of eternal stench and continued on into the forest for a while before deciding they were hungry and needed a break.
“Uh, Sarah.” Bobby struggled with his words. He was frightened of what the peach might do to Sarah, but if Henrik found out he hadn’t given it to her, he’d be in a world of hurt. There was no way Sarah’s reaction would ever be worse than what the Goblin King (Henrik) might do to him.
“Yes, Bobby?”
“I uh...I got something for you.” He handed her the peach, and she took it gratefully.
“Oh, wow, thank you! That’s amazing!” She grinned, taking a large bite of it. “Wait, this tastes...off...Bobby, what have you done?” Her eyes fogged over and she slid to the ground, slumping over.
“Damn you, Henrik.” He muttered, shaking his fist at the sky. “Oh, and damn me too.” He slinked off, shaking his head as he left Arjun and Gary behind.
Sarah found herself in a ballroom, surrounded by gloriously dressed people all wearing goblin-like masks. She wouldn’t have noticed her cream colored, puffy sleeved ball gown if she hadn’t caught a glimpse of herself in the reflective walls. She couldn’t recognize anyone, she could barely recognize herself. She was caught in the crowd of laughing, masked people, bounced back and forth until she turned around and caught sight of him.
Goblin King Henrik. He was dressed in a dark, glittery suit, and he even had glitter in his beautiful blond mullet. Her mouth hung open as she locked eyes with him from across the room, and all she could think about was getting to him. She needed to be near him. She had never needed anything more in her entire life.
She pushed through the crowd, and he smiled and laughed gently, teasing her by ducking behind someone, or dancing with someone else right behind her, turning only once she’d passed him by.
She felt her frustration grow, as she pushed more aggressively. Occasionally she’d hear a “Hey!” or an “Excuse me!” But she didn’t care. She needed to get to the Goblin King.
Finally, she found herself in Henrik’s arms, and he smoothly danced with her across the room, a thin lipped smile on his face as he appraised her. She stared at him in awe, clinging to his sleeves nervously as he twirled her around the room.
Suddenly, something shifted, and she knew she needed to find a way out. None of this was real, she must have found her way into a crystal, somehow. Maybe that peach? She pulled out of his arms and ran to the edge of the room, and finding no viable escape, picked up a chair. There were protests, but none as loud as the screams when she flung the chair against the wall.
With a rush of air, she found herself suspended in freefall until her world went dark.
She came to in a pile of junk, rubbing her head. “Where am I?” She mumbled to no one in particular, sitting up slowly, and checking to make sure all of her limbs were still in place. Nothing seemed out of order, but she couldn’t for the life of her remember what she was doing.
“And why am I in a landfill?” She asked the open air, frowning as she clambered to her feet. She straightened her clothes and trudged through the trash. When she looked down, she saw a vaguely familiar book. The Labyrinth.
She picked it up and read from it. “Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered, I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the goblin city, to take back the child that you have stolen.”
And just like that, it clicked, and she remembered why she was even there.
“Toby!” She cried, fighting her way through the garbage until she realized she was in a hole in the forest floor. She could hear Gary and Arjun calling out to her.
“Sarah?”
“My lady?”
“I’m here!” She crawled out of the hole, breathing heavily. “Come on, we’ve got to go!” She took Gary’s furry hand in hers and they ran, until they were stopped by a giant wall monster. Bobby appeared atop the wall, and he cracked his tiny knuckles.
“I’ve got this.” He jumped on its head and twisted, ripping it wide open to reveal a goblin, Jo, piloting the giant thing. He shoved her out and took over. “What the--how am I supposed to work this thing?” He grumbled, before pushing as many buttons as he could. “Oh, fu--” He jumped out and slid down the side, landing on Gary.
“Look, Sarah, I’m sorry about the peach, but I don’t care what you think of me, I only did what I--”
“I forgive you.” She smiled.
“You...you do?”
“Of course. We’re all friends. Right, Gary?”
“Friend.” Gary rumbled, and she grinned.
“Come on. We’ve got to go.”
After dodging cannonballs and other attacks, they finally found themselves in the main room of the castle, which was deserted. Sarah checked the time.
Three minutes.
Her eyes locked onto a staircase, and she started toward it.
“Come on!” Bobby motioned the others, and Sarah turned, shaking her head.
“No, I’ve got to do this alone.”
“Why is that?” Arjun asked.
“That’s the way it’s done.” She replied.
“Well, if that’s the case, then you must go alone.” Arjun nodded.
“Of course.” Bobby hesitated, before leaning slightly forward. “Hey, uh, Sarah?”
“Yes, Bobby?”
“Should you need us, all you have to do is call.”
She nodded resolutely. “I’ll call. Thank you.” She turned and ran up the stairs. She found herself in a room with many different staircases and doorways. She ran up and down stairs until she saw him, just in front of her.
Goblin King Henrik.
He turned and gave her a wry smile before leaping off of the platform and onto the stairs below. Though her focus was on him, she suddenly spotted Toby on a staircase far below her.
“Toby!” She cried out, and as Henrik made his way back toward her, she jumped down a few levels, trying to reach the baby. He appeared in a doorway above her, and she sprinted up the stairs, desperate to reach him.
She found herself directly above him, and she jumped. She fell and fell, and as the room began to fall apart around her, she wondered just what kind of a world she was in. She hit the bottom and caught her breath, face to face with Henrik all of a sudden.
“Give me the child, Henrik.” She demanded, and he narrowed his eyes, straightening his body to its full height.
“Sarah, be careful.” He stepped closer to her. “I have been generous so far, but I can be cruel.”
“What in the hell have you done that’s generous? Please enlighten me.”
“Everything! I have done all of this for you!” He gestured at the room. “I rearranged time, I freed you from your obligation to take care of this child.”
“Through dangers untold, and hardships unnumbered, I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the goblin city. My will is as strong as yours, and my king…”
“Sarah, listen to me! You can have anything you want, I will give you the world!”
“...and my kingdom is as great…”
“I’m hardly asking you for anything.” Henrik pleaded. Sarah frowned, trying to call forth the memory of what line was next.
“Dammit, I can never remember this line.” She muttered.
“Do as I say, Sarah, and I will be your slave.” Henrik begged, and her eyes lit up as she remembered the line, finally.
“You have no power over me.” As soon as she says it, the clock strikes the 13th hour with a resounding chime. Henrik sighed as he fell backwards, completely depleted of his powers. He threw the crystal in the air, and as it fell, it broke open with a satisfying pop. Sarah found herself transported back to her room, and as soon as she hit the bed, she leapt out of it to run to Toby’s room.
He was sound asleep in the crib, even if his snoring sounded mechanical and almost demonic, she was relieved. She’d done it!
“Sarah! We’re home!” She heard Noah call as the front door opened. “Are you home?”
“Yes, yes, I’m here!” She called back, heading back to her room. She sat down in front of her vanity mirror wearily, picking up a tube of lipstick absentmindedly.
Gary appeared in the mirror. “Goodbye, Sarah,” He said sadly, and she turned around, but he wasn’t there.
“Remember, should you need us…” Bobby appeared when she turned back around. “Just call.”
“Oh, I do need you!” She replied.
“You--you do?”
“Yes, of course! Sometimes, for no reason at all, I need you. All of you!”
“Well, why didn’t you say so?” He grinned, and when she turned around, her room was filled with all of the creatures she’d met in the labyrinth.
“Amazing!” She grinned, sandwiching herself in a hug between Gary and Bobby.
As they partied well into the night, a solitary white owl flew gracefully away from her house, and surrounded by all of her newfound friends, Sarah felt peace and an overwhelming sense of relief and joy. She truly had faced the biggest struggle of her life, and she had succeeded.