Heir of the Labyrinth

Chapter 31: New Love and Fangs

It was one of those still afternoons in the Labyrinth, where the air felt thick with magic and the shadows seemed to stretch just a little longer than usual. Jareth Junior—J.J, Jager or just Junior to most—was wandering through the forested edge of the Labyrinth, trying to escape the usual goblin chaos. He'd had enough of their bickering over whose rock was bigger and the endless pranks they played on each other. Today, he just wanted some peace.

Kicking a stray stone down the path, he felt a strange sensation building in his chest—a tingling, almost like the magic that hummed in his father's crystal orbs, but deeper, more primal. It was subtle at first, just a warm thrum under his skin. He figured he might be coming down with something. -"Maybe I just have a cold" he muttered. But as he kept walking, the sensation grew stronger, pulling at him. His heart started to race, his breath quickened. J.J. clutched his chest, eyes wide with confusion. He'd never felt anything like this before.

Before he could process the strange feeling, a ripple of energy surged through his body. His bones felt like they were shifting—stretching, changing. Panic flooded his mind as he stumbled into the dense trees, out of sight from the Labyrinth's main paths. His hands felt hot, like fire was crawling beneath his skin, and when he looked down, they weren't his hands anymore. They were...paws.

-"Whoa—wait, what?!" J.J. gasped, stumbling backward into the bushes. His voice came out low, almost a growl. He glanced around frantically, looking for a reflection, anything to confirm what was happening to him. But he didn't need a mirror to know. His senses had sharpened, the world around him suddenly alive with new scents—earth, leaves, animals. He could hear the smallest rustle of a mouse in the underbrush, the flutter of a distant bird's wings or the soft giggles of the fairies.

A deep breath shuddered through him, and as he stumbled toward a small pond nearby, he caught his reflection in the water. Staring back at him wasn't his usual sharp-featured face but the piercing nearly glowing yellow eyes of a large black wolf.

His mouth dropped open, though it didn't feel like a mouth anymore—it felt like a muzzle. His long fur, inky black as midnight, shimmered in the light. He moved, and the reflection moved with him, confirming the impossible truth.

J.J. blinked, shaking his head. -"This... is AWESOME!!" he growled, and though the voice sounded rougher, wilder, it was still very much like him.

He spent the next hour racing through the trees, reveling in the speed, the power that coursed through his legs as he bounded over roots and rocks. He felt free in a way he'd never known, as though the Labyrinth itself opened up to him in a new way. The world was alive beneath his paws, and he was a part of it in ways he hadn't imagined.

His mind was still spinning with questions, though. (How) was this happening? He knew his father, Jareth the Goblin King, had an immense magical repertoire, but he'd never shown signs of shape-shifting. Had his father's imagination done this? Was this something hidden deep in his own powers?

As Junior tore through the woods, he skidded to a halt when he realized he wasn't alone. There, just ahead, perched on a low branch, was the unmistakable figure of his father in a shape of an owl. Jareth, regal as ever, looked down at him with an amused expression, his mismatched big round eyes glittering in the late afternoon light.

-"Well, well, well," Jareth said, his voice smooth as silk. -"It seems you've made a rather... interesting discovery, Junior." Jareth jumped off the branch and turned into his usual form.

Junior tilted his head, tail swishing behind him. He wasn't sure how to respond, or even if he could respond in this form. He took a cautious step forward, his ears pricking up. Jareth approached, his boots crunching softly against the leaves. He crouched in front of J.J., an unreadable look on his face. -"I was wondering when this would happen."