As We Stumble Along

by ChasingFireflies1999

Musical Theatre Major, Auben Brown, has not been the luckiest person lately. Failing classes, being dumped and cheated on, feeling she doesn't have a purpose, etc. Her only escape, as cheesy as it sounds, is a fantasy book she discovered called "The Labyrinth." Things may turn around for her with the chance of nailing a big audition. But what if a pesky owl gets in her way?

1. Chapter 1

(I do not own Labyrinth or any of it's characters. Auben, Laurel, and Mr. Grabowski belong to me)

(I also do not own the song 'As We Stumble Along' from 'The Drowsy Chaperone')

Knock! knock! knock!

"Auben!"

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Auben, c'mon! It's time to wake up!"

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Ughhhhh…" A lump of fabric moaned from the messy bed in the corner of the room. The lump sat up to reveal a mop of auburn locks. A freckled face could be barely seen under the thick pixie cut. The girl's pale hand dragged through her hair and down her face as she grimaced at the light shining brightly in her green eyes from the window.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Auben! Seriously, get your lazy ass outta bed!"

"Ugh, just 5 more minutes, Lala!" Auben hollered back, flopping on the bed and pulling the covers back over her plump form. Her bedroom door opened to reveal her roommate, Laurel, looking frazzled and holding a full laundry hamper under arm. The raven haired girl stomped over to Auben, pulling the covers off of her and the entire bed. Auben whined in response.

"Dude," Laurel reasoned, "It's 5:00 in the afternoon and you have an audition at 6:30." Laurel hurried out of the room, "C'mon, shake a leg!"

Auben swept her feet over the bed and stood, dusting off her oversized stage combat workshop tee-shirt. She heaved a heavy sigh as she shuffled her pig slippered toes into the kitchen. Laurel was at the couch, folding the laundry as she watched television. Laurel looked over her shoulder to glance at her sleepy roommate.

"You usually don't sleep in this late," she said, "What's up with that?"

"I don't know, man." Auben shrugged, "My sleep schedule is just really messed up, I guess." The freckle faced woman looked through the cabinet for the last cup of ramen. Grabbing it, she poured water into the cup and stuck it in the cheap microwave.

"Let me guess," Laurel sighed, "you were up all night reading that book again, weren't you?"

"Maybe," Auben chuckled, a guilty smirk spread across her face. "Hey, at least it's an actual book and not fanfiction this time."

Laurel laughed. "What's it called again?"

"The Labyrinth." Auben mused as she pulled the ramen out of the microwave, "A tale of a girl who is must run a strange and magical labyrinth in order to save her baby brother from the terrible Goblin King." Auben plopped on the couch, quickly stuffing her face.

"Hm," Laurel hummed, "Sounds interesting."

"Damn straight," Auben agreed enthusiastically, "It's extremely cheesy, but it's probably the best book I've read in my life! I can't put it down." The auburn haired girl happily slurped her ramen eyes never leaving the tv. "Y'know," Auben nudged her friend, "You can borrow it when I'm done reading it, if you want."

Laurel hummed, "It's tempting, but I'll pass."

"Suit yourself," Auben shrugged, standing and exiting to her room to dress.

Searching through her messy closet, the short woman changed into a forest green tank with a hooded denim vest jacket, skinny jeans, and black converse. She looked in the mirror and tousled her auburn pixie cut to her prefered style. Finally pleased with her appearance, she opened her door to leave. Something red caught her peripheral vision, causing her to stop. She turned to see the book she loved so.

"Bring it with you," a voice in the back of her head whispered, "You never know…"

Auben furrowed her brows, thinking. Deciding 'why the heck not', she grabbed the little novel and quickly shoved it into her bag.

"You never know…"

She stepped into the living room to see Laurel still folding laundry.

"Okay, Lala," Auben started, "I'm going to go to the park and relax a bit before the audition. I'll see you later!"

"Bye, Aubs!"

And with that, Auben left.

~Scene Change: The Campus Park~

~Auben~

I sat on a old wooden park bench under a large tree, giving me plenty of shade from the harsh Texas sun. My eyes were glued to my audition song's sheet music, humming as I read along.

"...and the best that we can do

Is hope a blue bird~

Will sing his song~

As we stumble along~

….sigh."

I breathed slowly to try and calm my pre-audition nerves. Sure, I was confident in my vocals thanks to my voice teacher, but I couldn't help but worry. Landing a role in this show would mean the world to me. Plus, it would determine how the rest of the semester looks like. Either I get in and end up having fun rehearsals with good friends after classes everyday, or I have nothing but school work to do and not be able to hang out with any of my friends because they will all get cast, and I become a loner. Ah, the joys of a Musical Theatre major…

I put the sheet music down to admire my surroundings. The sky above was a beautiful blue, not a cloud to be seen. A student rode past on his bicycle. Across from me, there was a table with a group of students huddled around it, probably discussing classwork or personal interests. And just behind me, a dog and it's owners played a game of tug of war with the owners' picnic blanket. I snorted at the comedic sight.

"Aw," I laughed, "Poor guy…"

I was curious about what time it was so I dug through my bag to look my phone. I felt a leather texture brush against my fingers.

"Huh?"

I grabbed the object and brought it out of the bag. It revealed to be the Labyrinth.

"Oh yeah," I mumbled, "I forgot I brought this with me."

I dragged my thumb across the bottom corner of the book, the pages flipping rapidly back into place. I was tempted to read a bit more of the book.

"Should I?" I wondered. "Eh, I guess a few pages couldn't hurt."

Flipping the novel open to the page I was previously on and began to read.

"As Sarah and her companions ventured passed the Bog of Eternal Stench , the traveling friends began to grow tired.

'Ludo hungry!' Ludo groaned. Sarah patted the gentle beast on the back, consoling him.

'We're all hungry, Ludo.' she soothed, 'We'll try to find some food soon.' Sir Didymus called back to Sarah,

'Tally Ho, my lady! We are almost to the castle!'

Meanwhile, Hoggle, who had been very quiet, held the poisoned peach in his hands. He pondered whether to obey his King's orders and give it to Sarah, or to throw the peach away in order to save his new friend. Being the coward he was, he had no choice.

'Uh, Sarah?' Hoggle said, sadness in his gruff voice, 'I, uh, wanted to give you this.'

Sarah looked down at the peach Hoggle presented.

"Oh, thank you, Hoggle!' she exclaimed, happy to have something to eat. She took a big greedy bite out of the sweet fruit. Within a few chews, the young girl felt something was wrong as she suddenly became very drowsy.

'Hoggle, what have you done?'

The dwarf felt shame in betraying his friend as he mumbled.

'Damn you, Jareth!'-"

"Hoo!"

"Ah!" I jumped, nearly throwing the book to the ground. I clutched my chest, trying to calm down. I looked around for the source of the loud noise. Nothing I could see.

"What on earth…?"

"Hoo!"

My head shot up towards the tree I sat near. And right there, sitting on the branch closest to the bench I sat on, was an owl. A white barn owl with brown speckles on his wings. "What the hell?" I thought, "What's a nocturnal animal doing out here at this time of day? And in Texas, no less?!"

I stared at the owl in wonder. It was beautiful. It seemed to stared back at me, even though that's completely impossible.

"Hoo!" The owl hooted at me again, almost like it was saying hello. Humoring this thought, I decided to greet the creature.

"Hey, little dude," I said carefully and sweetly. The bird ruffled its feathers and looked the other way. I laughed at the owl's action, amused that I was so close to a wild animal. I usually don't have a good reputation with mother nature. We don't get along very well.

"Well," I said, smiling, "Aren't you a handsome fella."

As soon as I said this, The owl flew down on the bench next to me. I grinned like an idiot at how cool this was. "Holy shit, this is so cool! A living breathing animal is this close to me!"

I moved slowly to get my phone from my bag for my phone to take a picture.

"I hope you don't mind if I take a photo of you, handsome."

I felt my phone and brought it out. As I turned on the screen, I saw the time.

"6:20?!" I cried, "Shit! Auditions are in 10 MINUTES!"

I scrambled and grabbed my bag as I sprinted for dear life to the Fine Arts building. Unfortunately, I didn't notice the abandoned sheet music left alone with a mysterious barn owl.

~Scene Change: Fine Arts Building, Practice Room #606~

"I'm here!" I burst through the doors, out of breath and sweaty due to the running. The director's eyes narrowed at me frustration.

"Miss Brown," he drawled in a thick Texas accent, "You're late."

"Yes." My eyes darted around the room, too embarassed to make eye contact, "Yessir, I'm so sorry, Mr. Grabowski. I-I was caught up at the park, I was practicing but I didn't see the time and-"

"Miss Brown," Mr. Grabowski put his hand up to stop me, "It's fine. I'm not happy that you're late. But since you haven't been late for an audition before, I'm going to let it slide this one time. But if you ever want to get cast in one of my shows again, this cannot happen a second time. Am I clear?"

I sighed in relief, "Crystal, sir."

"Good," he nodded, "Please give me your headshot and show resume."

"Yes, sir." I reached into my bag and gave him the papers he needed. I then walked over to the accompanist to give him my audition sheet music. I reached in my bag and only felt the leathery book. Oh no… I reached my hand deeper inside the bag, getting a bit more panicked. No sheet music. Shit.

"Uhm," I smiled, my cheeks flushing in embarrassment, "I, uh, haha, seemed to have misplaced my sheet music."

I glanced at Mr. Grabowski, silently begging him to tell me what to do. The man just rolled his eyes, "I guess you can just look up a karaoke track on youtube. You cannot sing it acapella." He wrote down some notes, most likely about my irresponsibleness.

"Yes sir," I sighed.

"Slate, please," Mr. Grabowski stated.

"Oh yeah," I cleared my throat. "My name is Auben Brown, and I will be singing 'As We Stumble Along' from 'The Drowsy Chaperone'." I nodded at the accompanist, cueing him to press play.

"As we stumble along~

On life's funny journey.

As we stumble along~

Into the blue~"

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Mr. Grabowski smiling and bopping his head to the beat. He's enjoying it, thank God!

"We look here, and we look there

Seeking answers anywhere

Never sure of where to turn or what to do~"

I started to relax, smiling and getting into character as I sang.

"Still we bumble our way~

Through life's crazy labyrinth~"

Yes! My confidence is back! I was going to nail this audition if it was the last thing I do. I really let go as I belted out the next few notes.

"Barely knowing left from right

Or right from wrong~

And the best that we can do~

Is hope a bl-Owl?!"

Just then, the owl from the park was perched on the windowsill behind the director's table. And it was holding my sheet music in it's freaking beek! "What the hell?!" I wondered, with my jaw hanging open in shock.

"Miss Brown," Mr. Grabowski interrupted my thoughts, "I am rather familiar with The Drowsy Chaperone, and I believe that the proper words are 'And the best that we can do is hope a blue bird will sing his song as we stumble along'."

"Oh, uh, yes sir, I know. But, there's an owl in the window right behind you and it has my sheet music!"

Mr. Grabowski looked at me like I had completely gone insane.

"No, sir, look! It's right behind you!"

"Uh-huh."

I tossed my hands up towards the window, exasperated. "I'm not even kidding right now, Just look!"

"Now, Miss Brown, I understand you being late, but lying to my face?"

I shook my head, getting more frustrated by the second. "Sir, I could not be more serious right now! Just turn around and you will see an owl with freaking music in. its. Beek!"

Mr. Grabowski looked taken completely aback at the attitude I accidentally exposed. But he turned around anyway to humor me. Just before he did though, the barn owl flew away with my music. Mr. Grabowski saw no owl. Just an empty window.

"Are you FUCKING KIDDING ME?!"

I immediately slapped my hand over my mouth. Mr. Grabowski spun around with the most offended expression on his aged face.

"I-I'm so so sorry sir," I stuttered. My voice trembled with regret, "C-can I please start over?"

"No m'ame. You may not," He pointed to the door, "Please leave, and take your headshot, resume, and imaginary owls some place else."

I said nothing. I did as he asked and walked my way home.

~Scene Change: Outside, Close to the Dorm Building~

I was so embarrassed. My face was flushed in self anger and sadness. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. "No," I scolded myself, "It's unprofessional to cry about a bad audition."

"Is it unprofessional to feel like you want to die?" another voice in my head said, bitterly. This day can't get any worse.

CRASH!

"Aaaand now it's raining… how convenient…. And cliche."

I heaved a sigh and decided to wait to vent until I got to the dorm. Laurel's a good listener.

"I'm home, Lala!" I called. I stepped into the dorm, only to be greeted with silence. "That's weird," I thought, "She should be home."

"Laurel?" Nothing. I checked to see if she was in her room or the bathroom. No Laurel. I took out my phone and dialed her number. I waited patiently as it rang.

"Ha ha ha ha! No-no shut up, Auben's calling me," Laurel slurred on the other line. Loud music was playing in the background.

"Hello? Laurel, you there?"

"Heyyy, Aubeeeen~!" the black haired girl drawled, giggling.

"Where are you?" I asked.

"I'm at the Karaoke Bar and totally shit faced!" she exclaimed.

"Yeah, I can tell." I furrowed my brows in confusion. Why was she there? She usually tells me when she goes somewhere. And we always go to the Karaoke Bare together.

"Why didn't you tell me you were going?"

"Pffffttt, I dunno Aubs, I just forgot," she cackled in my ear, "Oh sHIT! CRANK THAT UP! THAT'S MY FUCKIN' SOOOONG! I gotta go Aubs, There's a group of guys singing Bowie songs! Bye~!" She hung up.

I slugged to my room, tossing my bag on the floor. I flopped face first on my bed and screamed curses in my pillow. I sat back up wiping tears from my eyes. Why was I so over emotional? It's just some dumb audition, a wasted roommate/best friend who's not here to comfort me, a stupid book that made me late and a STUPID OWL who STOLE my MUSIC!

Anger having complete control over me, I stood and took the damn book from my bag. I opened it, gripping the pages, ready to rip them out. When, suddenly…

Tap Tap Tap!

My head whipped to the window. And there, in the pouring rain, was that damned barn owl. I stomped up to the window, seething with rage.

"Go away!" I screamed at the bird. The owl just blinked and tapped on the window again. "What do you want?! You already ruined my chances of getting into the best musical of the year. Mr. Grabowski will never cast me in a show ever again. Not only that, but my best friend is out having the time of her freaking life without me!"

CRASH!

The thunder grew louder as my rage grew stronger. "Oh but that's not all," I continued to rant, "Not just today has been shit! This entire year has been shit! I'm failing math and science, my boyfriend that I've had for two years cheated and broke up with me last month, and I've never even done anything with my college life so far! All I do it sit around and eat ramen all day!"

CRASH!

"Sometimes I just wish I could disappear…"

CRASH!

"I …. I wish…"

CRASH!

"I wish the goblins would come and take me away!"

CRASH!

"Right NOW!"

~Blackout~

(A/n: Thank you for reading my first fanfiction on this website! I hope you enjoy. I promise the story will pick up in the next chapter. Please don't be afraid to comment on what you like or dislike. I am always open for constructive criticism. Thanks again y'all!)