Author's Note:
Dear Readers,
Before y'all kill me for not updating Dying Breath and King of the Merfolk, I'm working on those. Trust me. Just, give me some time. I've been going through some things lately and haven't really be able to work with them. But, I'm trying. So, bear with me!
This is a story I've co-authored with a friend of mine (her username is carlysullivan9). We've written the entire thing and are just editing the final touches. Don't worry, I'll actually keep up on this one! But, please enjoy this extremely AU Labyrinth fanfic.
sarahandmarquis
.
.
Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN JARETH OR THE MOVIE LABYRINTH. My friend and I just own this idea. This very cool idea for those of you with doubts!
.
.
"I knew I should have gotten fuel before I left." Jareth muttered as he crawled, almost completely unscratched, from the wreckage of his small ship. It laid in a self-made hole in the middle of some kind of park, locked in the dark of night with only one full moon shining dangerously close to the surface.
"Where am I...?" He brushed off his clothes off and turned around in circles, trying to place the planet on which he found himself stranded, communication devices smashed in the landing. Returning his gaze to the ship, he used his elegant calf-high boot to kick at a twisted bit of metal before groaning.
"At least a month's work. At least." Groaning frustratedly, he tossed a crystal at his ship, forming a protective seal around it as well as concealing it from those with harmful intentions. With his battered black cloak fluttering behind him, he set off down a path. "If I am fortunate, the life on this planet shall be intelligent."
Once away from the shelter of the trees and bushes of the park, a cold wind howled through the empty streets running through a rundown section of town. Jareth tugged his cloak tighter around him, warding off the cold of the planet and muttered under his breath, "What some people will call home."
As he hurried down the path, he saw a girl approaching him, her well-worn cloak wrapped tightly around her. An inhabitant! By her appearance, one resembling himself, he eliminated all but four of the planets in the solar neighborhood. Once she had walked within a few yards of him, he addressed her in his native tongue, commonly used as a trade language among the planets.
The girl, a pretty redhead with blue eyes, eyed his suspiciously and muttered something under her breath before taking a step back from him.
"Come again?" She asked, brushing a lock of hair from her face and revealing smudge marks over her cheeks and forehead with a dab on her chin. Bags hung under her eyes and her nose was crooked, having broken and healed wrong at some point in her life.
"Forgive me, Miss. I merely wished to inquire where I am." He shifted his language into perfect English, pleased with limiting his new 'home' down to two possible options. Running a hand through his untamed mullet, he smiled at her, revealing slightly crooked teeth. She responded with a half-smile and shrugged.
"Downtown Austin." She answered. "You new around here or somethin'?"
"You could say that." He replied after a short pause. His lessons in geography had been exceptionally thorough but, now he regretted forgetting details that didn't apply to his home planet. "Where might...Austin be?"
The girl scrunched her eyebrows and shifted from one foot to another.
"...In Texas." She replied slowly as if she was speaking to a toddler. "Yeah, you definitely ain't from 'round here."
"A state in America..." He muttered to himself, bits and pieces of his education surfacing from the depths of his mind. "Earth! Excellent."
"No!" She stated sarcastically. "We're on Jupiter."
"Jupiter cannot support life. I've been there. Nothing to build a civilization on." Frowning, he ran his hand through his hair again, mind running the possibilities and problems facing him. His realm had never bothered to contact Earth after a few attempts previously that had ended up with them praised as everything from aliens to gods but, there was a slim possibility that he could make sufficient contact to fix his ship. Perhaps even this girl, whoever she might be could help him.
"Forgive me, I have failed to introduce myself. I am Jareth Mirren." He swept a bow to her and gave her a kind smile despite her odd expression proving to him that she considered him beyond crazy.
"Carlisa. My friends call me Carly. If I had any friends..." She mumbled the last bit to herself but his keen ears caught them carried on the wind.
"Miss Carlisa, it is a pleasure to meet you. Do you know a place I could stay the night? A hotel perhaps? Your planet is dreadfully cold right now and I doubt anything will be able to be solved before morning."
"Carly." She corrected him softly while hugging herself around her middle, several torn places on the shoulders of her shirt widening and revealings bits of skin, ravaged by the cold and wind. "The nearest hotel is two blocks down on the right. Can't miss it and the rooms are cheap."
"Excellent." He turned to leave but stopped and looked back at her. Her clothing bore the signs of a long time without repair. Tears had been patched and repatched; the wind tugged at the fraying edges; and the thickest part of her shirt was held together by strings.. "Forgive me, if I am being rude. But, do you have a coat? You look like you're freezing."
"I'm fine." She replied quickly as she tugged her thin coat, covered in patches, tighter around her. Shooing him with a wave of her hand, she said, "Go on now. Get."
Though more than willing to find the warm hotel she had recommended, he refused to leave this helpful girl to freeze out in the cold of her own world. Pausing in place, he created a crystal in his hands and tossed it to her, the shining ball of magic changing into a light but warm coat mid-arc before it landed in her hands.
"Good night, Miss Carlisa." He bowed to her, his blue-streaked blond hair falling in front of his mismatched eyes, and continued down the path, intent on finding the hotel she had recommended.
"Carly." She said once more to his disappearing form before she looked down at the beautiful garment. With a sigh, she slid it on and buttoned it up. "I have no idea how he did it, but he ain't gettin' it back." She said to herself as she began walking down the street, looking for a place to spend the night herself.
Turning into the park, she glanced over the benches, the idea of sleeping on the cold iron miserable, but, there wasn't anything else to sleep on. Resigning herself to her fate, she curled up on the most sheltered bench and happened to look up.
A small ship lay in the middle of a burned hole in the park. About the size of a small house, the ship appeared to have crashed.
"Well lookie here." She said, leaving the cold bench and approaching the ship. "I have slept in worse spots." She mumbled as she walked up to the craft and climbed inside, glancing around the futuristic interior. "It's actually kinda nice though. The wind is blocked and it's still warm." She said before finding a nice corner and curling up in a tight ball and drifting off to sleep.
.
.
At dawn, Carly woke immediately from her slumber at the sound of footsteps.
"So sorry." She mumbled her apology quickly and scrambled to her feet. Without realizing who it was before her, she climbed out of the craft and began to walk away, refusing to look back. That was embarrassing.
"Wait!" The familiar voice from last night called out to her, stopping her in her tracks. She turned to face him before he continued, confusion in his mismatched blue eyes overshadowed, now she noticed in the light, reverse arched eyebrows. "How did you get in? I put a protection shield around it. No one was supposed to be able to get through."
"What do you mean?" She asked as she began to walk back up to him. "It ain't protected or anythin'. I just climbed right on in."
"Look." He gestured with a wave of his hand towards the ship and a soft, oscillating sphere of glass became visible around it. "My protection shields never fail. I want to know how you got in." She raised her hands in defense, eyeing the odd sphere out of one eye.
"Look, Hun. I don't know how I got through your 'shield'. I'm sorry that I did." She lowered her hands. "It won't happen again."
"It's not a problem. Just be careful in future not to touch any buttons. She may have crash landed but some are still functional." I would prefer not to completely destroy a city on my first visit.
"Okay." She said with a nod. "I'll be going then."
"Wait!" He called, hesitating a moment as an idea sprang suddenly into his mind. For a month, he would be stranded without means of communication with his kingdom. Having an aide would prove invaluable. After all, she seems bright enough and appreciates hygiene. "I have a proposition for you. I think it will benefit us both."
"And what might that be?" She asked as she stuffed her hands in her pockets and eyed him suspiciously.
"I need an assistant while I am here on earth. This ship must be fixed and fixed soon if I am to return home and I can only do so much with these." He waved a crystal around across his hands. "If you can help me about the city, you may sleep here and I shall provide more acceptable accommodations within. Is this acceptable?"
Carly thought for a moment before shrugging. Why not help the nut-job?
"I've got nothing better to do." She replied.
"Excellent." He smiled once more. "Now, come with me. I haven't had time to assess the damage and that must be done before someone finds us." He remarked, crawling under a piece of fallen debres into the ship's control room. Once inside, he began to examine various control panels, covered with little black, unlabeled buttons..
"If you're hungry, there should be something in the cupboards in the kitchen." He pointed towards the tail of the ship. "Just through that door. Be careful though, when opening them. Who knows what state they are in after the crash."
She nodded before walking from the control room into the kitchen.
"Why do you have to be so tall." She whispered to herself as she stood on her toes to open the cabinet. She pulled out a few items and turned them over, examining the oddly colored things in matching square containers. "Well, as long as it doesn't kill me." She shrugged as she opened a container and walked back into the control room, snacking on the chunks of some kind of meat.
"It shouldn't." He remarked. "I generally don't try to poison myself and I don't believe humans are at risk. Though, if you start to feel ill, do not hesitate to let me know." Pausing his inspection, he pulled a pad of paper and pen from one of the drawers and began to scribble down the parts required for replacement.
She nodded and continued to snack, leaning back against an inner wall.
"Whatever this is, I love it." She looked up at him sharply, "But so help me if you say I'm eating brains or something."
"You're not." He chuckled. "Do you know of a good mechanic that can be trusted to keep a secret? I would prefer my presence to be kept among the fewest people possible." He peered over the edge of the note pad, pausing his writing, watching her close the container and nod.
"I know a guy." She said as she pushed herself off the wall. "He'll keeps his mouth shut. He owes me a favor anyway."
"Sounds perfect. Do you think it's late enough to speak with him now? I understand that humans like to sleep late." Carly glanced up and judged the time from the sun shining through a gaping hole in the roof where one of the panels had fallen.
"Yeah, he should be up by now. Come on." She said with a movement of her head and crawled out of the opening, leaving the container of food on the nearest flat surface. After carefully tucking away his notebook and disposing of the abandoned food, Jareth followed her out the ship.
"Wait a moment." He created another crystal and tossed it at the injure ship. Moments later, it shimmered and disappeared from sight, leaving a gaping hole in the middle of the park. The action earned him a suspicious glance from Carly.
"How are you able to do that?"
"It's called magic, Miss Carlisa. If you wish, I can explain it to you over lunch after we speak with the mechanic?" Jareth offered, aware he would have to trust her with a great deal of knowledge for her to ever be useful to him. If she fails to be worthy, I'll be gone before her betrayal could do any damage.
"Carly." She corrected him quietly. "I don't believe in that sorta stuff, but alright." She said as she began to lead him down the street to the mechanic.
"Humans haven't changed a bit, I see." He remarked, following the girl down the street. "Still hanging on to the poorly informed logic. I would have thought in the past two millennia, something might have changed."
"Forgive me, but you're human yourself, ya know." Carly remarked as she glanced up at him while walking. Jareth stopped in his tracks and spun to face her, mismatched blue eyes flaming with offense.
"I am not human." He snapped, scowling at her. "I am a humanoid, as you refer to those who resemble you, but not a human." He frowned once more at her and continued raised her hands in defense and shook her head, not challenging him.
"Whatever you say."
He nodded sharply, still scowling.
"How close are we to the mechanic's shop?"
"Just another block." Carly said as she pointed to the sign that read 'Grant's Mechanics.' Jareth nodded and the pair continued down the busy streets to the doorway, only drawing small amounts of attention from the those around them. As they entered the pungent-smelling shop, the little bell rang and a gruff sort of man in oily overalls and sleeveless gray shirt turned to face them from behind the counter covered in greasy dust.
"What's up, Grant?" Carly asked with a smile on her lips. "Busy day?" The man gave a small grunt and wiped his hands on a dirty oil rag.
"Nothin' I can't handle." Jareth allowed that moment's conversation between the two before injecting himself.
"Good morning. I was wondering if you would be willing to repair a shuttle of sorts for me."
"Boss, I can fix anythin' and everythin'." Grant said with a nod of his head.
"He's the best there is." Carly said in agreement.
"Wonderful. And, if supplied with enough money, can you keep it completely secret?"
"Ask the little lady beside you." Grant said as he pointed with a black-caked fingernail towards Carly. "She knows I can keep a secret."
"I shall accept her word for it as she did tell me earlier." Jareth removed the notebook and tore out the piece of paper containing the list of repairs. "I'm afraid most of these will require parts you do not have but I will pay for ordering them."
Grant took the list and examined it closely.
"I'll have to order in nearly all of this list, but I do have a few pieces on hand now."'
"And how long will it take?" Jareth asked, leaning on the counter. Grant shrugged before making a few quick notes on the paper and doing a quick arithmetic problem.
"Close to a month." He spoke as he handed the paper to him.
"That's what I thought." He ran some brief calculations in his head and nodded. "I can stay around for that long. It might be tricky, but I can. I would like to order those you do not currently have on hand. Find those you have and, this afternoon, we will come back for them."
"I'll get to work right now, Bossman." He said as he walked over to his computer to order the pieces, waving goodbye to them from the swivel stool.
"Excellent. Miss Carlisa, shall we go to lunch?" Jareth turned away from the mechanic and gave her a kind smile.
"Carly. Let's go." She spoke as she grabbed his arm and waved her free hand at Grant. "See ya later!" He returned the wave as the pair left the shop and paused in the shade of the overhang, a bustling city living its life in the speeding cars and people rushing hither and yon before them, talking and texting without paying any attention to those around them.
"Where shall we eat? I'm not familiar with your fare."
"Do you like chicken?" Carly asked as she released his arm.
"Yes, I believe I do. I had it once, a long time ago."
"Good. Because there is a Wendy's right across the street. And they have the best chicken nuggets." Carly said as she pointed to a corner shop with patrons continually coming and going.
"Sounds delicious." He said, despite having not the slightest idea what the restaurant she named was.
"Let's get a move on then, Bowie." She said as she looked both ways on the busy street before yanking him into the middle of traffic and zig-zagged him through the zipping cars. When they reached the other side, she continued, "You do look a lot like him. Y'all could pass as brothers."
"Who is 'Bowie'?" Jareth asked, attempting to catch his breath from the dash across the busy street. "Is he someone you know?"
"He's a singer." She said with a smile, appearing amused at his attempts to gasp for breath. "I wish I knew him personally."
"Is he a good singer?" He asked while they walked the short distance down the busy street into the busy little restaurant.
"He's amazing." Carly said as she glanced at him and found a place for them at the end of the quickly moving line. "You would like him."
"Perhaps while we are here, we will see him." He offered, hoping to cheer her up with the offer. The man obviously meant a lot to her. "I should like to meet the person who looks just like me."
She giggled softly.
"That would be funny." When they reached the front of the line, she looked up at him and asked, "What would you like?"
After glancing through the menu he then turned to her.
"What would you suggest?"
"Chicken nuggets are my favorite thing to get."
"Then chicken nuggets it shall be." He decided and glanced around while he waited for her to give their order to the exhausted and unobservant cashier. While he didn't give Jareth a second glance, several people in the line to order mumbled under their breath, questioning his chosen attire and hairstyle. Apparently, high-heeled boots, skin-tight pants, and a leather jacket with a frilled white undershirt were not part of the latest styles of Earth. Such a pity.
Once Carly finished ordering, she looked up towards Jareth.
"I hope you're payin'."
"But, of course." He declared and reached into a hidden pocket in his leather jacket. Creating a small crystal that would remain unseen by the employee, he made the exact payment required and handed the bills and coins over to the cashier, who looked up long enough to give him a sideways glance before ignoring him again.
"Thank ya." She smiled. "I'll wait for the food. You go get us a seat."
"Of course." He left the counter and found a small table for two tucked into a corner, under a hanging fake plant. Several minutes later, an employee called Carly's name and handed her the tray. She carefully walked over to the table, mindful of the drinks. "I got you tea. You should like it."
"Ah, thank you." He said as he took the tea and glanced at the nuggets and fries. "An interesting looking meal to be sure." Taking a bite of one, he nodded. "Very good."
"Glad you like it." She smiled as she dug into her own meal.
Peeling off his gloves, he began to eat his meal before he took a sip of the tea and nodding approvingly. "Very sweet. I like it."
"It's my favorite drink." She smiled as she took a sip of her own. "I would drink it everyday if I could."
"Why don't you?" He asked after taking another sip and nibbling on a fry.
"'Cause I'm homeless and don't have a penny to my name."
"I suppose I should have guessed considering you choose to sleep in an alien ship instead of returning to your home, wherever that might have been." Jareth remarked and she shrugged in response.
"It ain't that bad. As long as it ain't cold at night, I sleep pretty well."
"But, I can't imagine it's very safe." Jareth chided, aware that the streets on any city on any planet weren't safe at night including the Goblin city itself.
"No. It's nowhere near safe, but it's all I got."
"You'll be perfectly safe within the ship. No one with ill intentions can enter the barrarior. You may sleep easy." He assured her.
"Thanks, Mr. Mirren." She replied with a smirk, mocking him.
"You're welcome, Miss Carlisa." He copied her, instantly spreading a frown over her face.
"It's Carly." She groaned. "Just five little letters. Two syllables."
"You said, when we met, that Carly was the name for your friends. Am I to that point?"
"I give up!" She said over dramatically and dropped her head down to the table, mumbling, "You win."
"Eat, Miss Carlisa. Perhaps in time we may call each 'friend'. I have a month here after all." Her gestures prompted pleasant laughter from him and she couldn't resist the urge to laugh with him.
"Very well, Mr. Mirren." She said as she finished eating, stuffing the used napkins and containers into one for ease of disposal.
"Tell me about yourself." He said, curious about this young woman who would be sharing a place inside his space ship for the duration of his sojourn. After inhaling his last chicken nugget, he continued to verbally explain his reasons, "I know practically nothing about you and we're going to be together for a while."
"What's there to know?" She asked as she sipped on her drink, waiting for him to finish his french fries. "I have no friends and I'm homeless."
"Oh, surely there must be something interesting about you. I don't believe you're completely boring." Jareth insisted, glancing up at him and studying her face.
"Sorry to disappoint then." She shrugged, breaking his gaze to stare down at the table and her cup of sweet tea. "What you see is what you get."
"I've seen worse."
"I'm going to take that as a compliment." She said, standing up and throwing her trash away in the bin next to their seats. Quickly downing the last several french fries, Jareth followed suit, keeping only his ice tea because he hadn't finished it yet.
"As it was intended."
"Then, I thank you very much." Smiling, she looked up at him then the clock behind him. "We should probably go."
"Probably. We'll pick up the parts and hopefully begin repairs. I can't hang around here forever." He remarked before leading them from the restaurant, careful to only cross the busy roads when the signals allowed them to, refusing to 'enjoy' that 'pleasure' of being dragged across the road again. His over-cautiousness amused his helper but he ignored it as they made their way through the busy streets back towards the mechanic's shop. As they entered the shop, Carly called into the back,
"Found all the parts back there in storage?" Appearing from behind the screeching metal doors, Grant grunted and nodded, heaving a box onto the counter.
"Yep. Here ya go. Be careful, it's heavy." Flipping open the flaps, Jareth skimmed the parts and nodded approvingly at the contents. Some will require repurposing but I can manage that easily enough.
"Thank you. How much do I owe you for these?"
"Just $50."
Sticking his hand into his jacket pocket, Jareth created a crystal and turned it into the exact amount of cash required by the mechanic.
"Here you are. We'll be back tomorrow to check on the ordered parts."
"See ya then, Bossman." Grant nodded his head in Jareth's direction before stuffing the cash away in a overall pocket and disappearing back into the back of the building.
"To the ship?" Carly asked as they left the shop, the box tucked under Jareth's arm.
"Yes. And, I'll need an extra pair of hands to help out. If you're willing?"
"What else do I live for?" She retorted with a small laugh.
"Yourself, I would hope." He commented, taking her hand in his free hand and leading them back down the streets to the city park. Pleased to find it empty at the moment, he revealed the ship as they approached.
"I was trying to make a joke, Mr. Mirren."
"And, I succeeded in ruining it." He smirked at her, shooting her a wink before climbing into the ship and setting the box down on one of the tables still upright. Rolling her eyes, she climbed in after him.
"Indeed you did." He smirked once more before laying out the different pieces and looking each over over carefully. Sorting them into several piles based on their uses and the amount of repurposing required, he called her to stand beside him.
"Alright, Bossman, give me a job to do." Carly said with her hands on her hips, joining him at the table and staring down at the pieces, unable to make heads or tails of his plans.
"Go to that closet and get the tool chest." He ordered. She nodded and opened the door, jumping back as boxes and random supplies tumbled down, freed from their retrains by the crash. She pushed everything out of her way and dragged out the large tool chest, pulling it to sit beside him.
After a nod of thanks to her, he opened the chest and sorted through the various gadgets before selecting a couple of them.
"Follow me." He grabbed one of the new parts, ready to be installed, and headed to the nose of the ship.
"Aye Sir."