Wishful Thinking

Seeming

"Toby," Sarah whispered again, gazing down at the empty cradle with Stephanie.

Sir Didymus was looking from their faces to the cradle. He lifted the blanket and the pillow, searching beneath them, and shook his head. "An exceptionally small knight is Sir Tobias. I cannot even see him.

"He's gone," Sarah said.

"Jareth took him," Stephanie said, narrowing her eyes slightly.

The vulture made a dry cackling noise.

Sarah and Stephanie knew that Jareth would not have abandoned the castle. He had to be here somewhere, and so had Toby. The sole exit for the chamber, apart from the way they had come, was a flight of stairs to one side of the throne. She could not see where it led because the passage turned a corner, but a lovely glowing light was emanating from it. "That's the only way he could have gone," Sarah said.

Stephanie nodded in agreement. The glowing light seemed like an invitation to follow.

They ran toward it, taking care to avoid stepping on the half-gnawed chicken bones, rotting tomatoes, squashed pears, and other garbage that littered the floor. Sir Didymus, Hoggle, and Ludo ran after them.

"No," Sarah said, when she and Stephanie reached the first stair. She turned around and told her friends, "We... Stephanie and I have to face him alone."

Stephanie was a little surprised by this, but it seemed right once she'd said it. This was their quest. They started it. They had to be the ones to finish it.

Sir Didymus, already rehearsing his lunge and parry as he ran, was disconcerted. "Why?" he asked.

"Because..." It was a good question. "Because that's the way it's done," Sarah replied.

"Who says?" Hoggle asked.

"They all do," Sarah told him. "The stories, all of them."

"And what say you, Lady Stephanie?" Sir Didymus asked.

"I can't believe I'm saying this," Stephanie answered, wishing they didn't have to break up the team, "but I agree with Sarah. That's how it's done."

The three of them regarded her and Stephanie for some time. Seeing the disappointment on their faces, Sarah felt wretched. Stephanie felt bad about it too. But they knew that they were right.

At length, Sir Didymus said, slowly, "Well if that is the way 'tis done, then that is how thou must needs do it." He raised his staff and squinted along it. "But shouldst thou have need of us..."

"Yes," Hoggle added, "if you need us..."

"I'll call," Sarah promised. "Thank you. All of you."

"Thanks for everything," Stephanie added.

The sisters smiled, awkward with gratitude.

Then they turned and ran up the stairs together, toward the glowing light.

It was a long staircase and turned through several angles. They were both puffing by the time they reached the top and emerged onto a stone platform. What they saw took their breath away.

Above, below, or around them—which, they could not tell— was a vast stone hall, with so many staircases, balconies, windows, and doorways at different heights and odd angles to each other that they had no idea what was up or down, near or far, inside or out, backward or forward. Planes reversed themselves as you watched them, receding corners suddenly jutted out, rising steps inverted themselves floors became ceilings, and walls turned into precipices. In this room, it seemed that the law of gravity had been repealed, and perspective had seven dimensions. It was like something M.C. Escher might make. If there had been water, it would have seemed to flow uphill. They felt sick and giddy, and had to cling to a pillar to remain upright.