Title: To Walk In Her Shoes (With Her Feet)
Author: Aisuru
Email: aisuru_chan@yahoo.com
URL: N/A
Rating: PG
Summary: Response to Princess Destiny's one-hour challenge #40; Chapter 1a was written in one hour, although the challenge was not met in that portion. All subsequent part-chapters were also written in one hour or less to keep with the challenge. In Jareth's Underground, there is power in the spoken word, and when Jareth makes a careless wish, the Labyrinth grants his request. Jareth finds himself walking the torturous paths of his own Labyrinth in Sarah's fifteen-year-old mortal body. His powers are intact, but somewhat limited by the sentient Labyrinth. Sarah, meanwhile, finds herself back in the underground, but this time she is lounging on Jareth's stone throne, holding a two-year-old Toby in her lap, surrounded by rambunctious goblins, and trapped in Jareth's body! Will this granted wish lead to a possibly destructive reordering of Aboveground time, or is it simply a chance for a loving villain and a cruel heroine to see each other through new eyes? Not a comedy.
Chapters: 1a/?
Status: Incomplete
Year of Completion: N/A
Chapter 1a
The breeze rustled the barn owl's feathers as he perched upon the railing of his mortal's balcony. And that was what she was -- his mortal. True, she had rejected him, denying his love as a diversionary tactic and viewing all that he had done for her through a lens of suspicion, but she was still his. She would always he his, for he had created himself and his realm for the sole purpose of being hers.
The sylph in owl form watched his mortal through the glass of her windows as she slept. Years before she had attracted him with her vivid imagination and her intense desire to be a part of something beyond the realm of mortals. He had chosen her then and ever since had dedicated himself to her service. He had watched her carefully, both in owl form and in the insubstantial state that was most natural to him, determining the best form within which to reach her, waiting for the ideal situation to make himself known. Then, a year ago in mortal time, he had found his chance and taken it.
His mortal had become enthralled with an old play about a girl who had captured the attention and love of an immortal being. In this particular story, the immortal was a Goblin King, and because he loved the girl he had given her the power to wish beings away into his realm. His mortal had, of course, embellished the tale in her mind, pretending that the Goblin King's love was romantic in nature, and that he had given her the power to wish away her half-brother, who she was often forced to baby-sit. The sylph watched the play of her thoughts, listened carefully to her sleeping dreams, and by the time she said the words, calling the goblins to take the child away, he had been ready.
His form had been chosen, a blending of a plastic figurine of an elven royal, complete with staff and crystal sphere, and the photographs of the handsome actor that had co-starred in films with his mortal's birth mother. It felt unusual to be in a solid form and not be avian, but he had fashioned the body with the greatest of care and purpose. The silky, untamed hair of the palest hues, the mysterious, mismatched eyes of blue and gray, and the fair perfection of his skin recollected her expectations of the appearance of a Tuatha de Danaan. The rest was designed to be the epitome of his mortal's combined curiosity and fear of the male form, and the flashy costume, with its chest-baring shirts and skin-tight trousers, drew attention to those parts that held his mortal's most secret interest. In this form he could be more to her than an unseen spirit or an unusually tame owl; he could be her lover, her partner in the exploration of things new to them both. In this form she could love him in return.
The realm had also been crafted by the time she called upon him. It was a realm that mixed her expectations of a fantasy realm with the things she had surrounded herself with in her mortal life. An imposing gothic castle of stone was vital to this realm, for in his mortal's mind only such a structure could be home for a powerful immortal. She understood nothing of the freedom that accompanied being without form or structures of stone, but he wished to serve her, so he created such a castle. It had winding dark hallways, mysterious locked doors, magic mirrors, and a room containing nothing but twisting stairways, a room whose design he had taken from a framed poster on the wall of her room. It also had a large throne room and a stone throne on a dais, as she had imagined, although he doubted she had imagined how uncomfortable such a throne could be.
The imposing gothic castle of stone stood proudly in the center of a winding maze, called the Labyrinth, that had been fashioned after a wooden game that sat upon her shelf. Often he had watched in spirit form as she traced her fingers through the winding wooden paths meant for marbles; often he had listened to her thoughts as she wondered what it would be like to truly be in such a place, full of dead ends and dark pits that could swallow you up and draw you into the space below the game, the space filled with only emptiness. She had imagined such a Labyrinth would be sentient, changing its paths to confuse its travelers, harboring unexpected dangers, but with its powers tempered by a controlling force that could manipulate it at will. He had created it to her specifications, sentient and magical, but under his control.
A Goblin King must have goblins, so he had designed these creatures as she had imagined them in a sleeping dream -- furry and mischievous -- instead of fashioning them after the true goblins, which were truly gruesome, evil, and cruel. He was glad for this, as he had no desire to surround himself with true goblins, although he would have done such if it had been her expectation. These goblins in her sleeping dream were unintelligent and obeyed their king more because of threats than innate loyalty. They also were messy, noisy, and had free reign of the throne room, although they lived in their own city, which shared with the castle the space at the center of the Labyrinth.
He also created the Labyrinth's creatures from her expectations, using her playthings as his blueprints for their forms. Plush toys, figurines, and even an ornamental bookend were used in his designs. Some creatures had a true purpose, such as a pair of talking doorknockers that guarded the entrance to the dark forest, a necessary addition to a fantasy realm, and the helping hands, which would act as a safety net if his mortal were to fall into one of the pits that littered the Labyrinth, mimicking the pits in her game. Other creatures would have no purpose until his mortal or the sentient Labyrinth gave them purpose, but his mortal was an imaginative mortal, and would no doubt assign them their purposes early in the game.
***
Author's Notes: I would like to thank Little Magpie for her wonderful analysis of the movie Labyrinth and especially of the character Jareth. I have integrated her analysis into my story shamelessly! Also, I have written more than I have posted, so when I have at least 10 reviews, I will post the next chapter. Please, let it be tonight! I am so excited about this idea!
Author: Aisuru
Email: aisuru_chan@yahoo.com
URL: N/A
Rating: PG
Summary: Response to Princess Destiny's one-hour challenge #40; Chapter 1a was written in one hour, although the challenge was not met in that portion. All subsequent part-chapters were also written in one hour or less to keep with the challenge. In Jareth's Underground, there is power in the spoken word, and when Jareth makes a careless wish, the Labyrinth grants his request. Jareth finds himself walking the torturous paths of his own Labyrinth in Sarah's fifteen-year-old mortal body. His powers are intact, but somewhat limited by the sentient Labyrinth. Sarah, meanwhile, finds herself back in the underground, but this time she is lounging on Jareth's stone throne, holding a two-year-old Toby in her lap, surrounded by rambunctious goblins, and trapped in Jareth's body! Will this granted wish lead to a possibly destructive reordering of Aboveground time, or is it simply a chance for a loving villain and a cruel heroine to see each other through new eyes? Not a comedy.
Chapters: 1a/?
Status: Incomplete
Year of Completion: N/A
Chapter 1a
The breeze rustled the barn owl's feathers as he perched upon the railing of his mortal's balcony. And that was what she was -- his mortal. True, she had rejected him, denying his love as a diversionary tactic and viewing all that he had done for her through a lens of suspicion, but she was still his. She would always he his, for he had created himself and his realm for the sole purpose of being hers.
The sylph in owl form watched his mortal through the glass of her windows as she slept. Years before she had attracted him with her vivid imagination and her intense desire to be a part of something beyond the realm of mortals. He had chosen her then and ever since had dedicated himself to her service. He had watched her carefully, both in owl form and in the insubstantial state that was most natural to him, determining the best form within which to reach her, waiting for the ideal situation to make himself known. Then, a year ago in mortal time, he had found his chance and taken it.
His mortal had become enthralled with an old play about a girl who had captured the attention and love of an immortal being. In this particular story, the immortal was a Goblin King, and because he loved the girl he had given her the power to wish beings away into his realm. His mortal had, of course, embellished the tale in her mind, pretending that the Goblin King's love was romantic in nature, and that he had given her the power to wish away her half-brother, who she was often forced to baby-sit. The sylph watched the play of her thoughts, listened carefully to her sleeping dreams, and by the time she said the words, calling the goblins to take the child away, he had been ready.
His form had been chosen, a blending of a plastic figurine of an elven royal, complete with staff and crystal sphere, and the photographs of the handsome actor that had co-starred in films with his mortal's birth mother. It felt unusual to be in a solid form and not be avian, but he had fashioned the body with the greatest of care and purpose. The silky, untamed hair of the palest hues, the mysterious, mismatched eyes of blue and gray, and the fair perfection of his skin recollected her expectations of the appearance of a Tuatha de Danaan. The rest was designed to be the epitome of his mortal's combined curiosity and fear of the male form, and the flashy costume, with its chest-baring shirts and skin-tight trousers, drew attention to those parts that held his mortal's most secret interest. In this form he could be more to her than an unseen spirit or an unusually tame owl; he could be her lover, her partner in the exploration of things new to them both. In this form she could love him in return.
The realm had also been crafted by the time she called upon him. It was a realm that mixed her expectations of a fantasy realm with the things she had surrounded herself with in her mortal life. An imposing gothic castle of stone was vital to this realm, for in his mortal's mind only such a structure could be home for a powerful immortal. She understood nothing of the freedom that accompanied being without form or structures of stone, but he wished to serve her, so he created such a castle. It had winding dark hallways, mysterious locked doors, magic mirrors, and a room containing nothing but twisting stairways, a room whose design he had taken from a framed poster on the wall of her room. It also had a large throne room and a stone throne on a dais, as she had imagined, although he doubted she had imagined how uncomfortable such a throne could be.
The imposing gothic castle of stone stood proudly in the center of a winding maze, called the Labyrinth, that had been fashioned after a wooden game that sat upon her shelf. Often he had watched in spirit form as she traced her fingers through the winding wooden paths meant for marbles; often he had listened to her thoughts as she wondered what it would be like to truly be in such a place, full of dead ends and dark pits that could swallow you up and draw you into the space below the game, the space filled with only emptiness. She had imagined such a Labyrinth would be sentient, changing its paths to confuse its travelers, harboring unexpected dangers, but with its powers tempered by a controlling force that could manipulate it at will. He had created it to her specifications, sentient and magical, but under his control.
A Goblin King must have goblins, so he had designed these creatures as she had imagined them in a sleeping dream -- furry and mischievous -- instead of fashioning them after the true goblins, which were truly gruesome, evil, and cruel. He was glad for this, as he had no desire to surround himself with true goblins, although he would have done such if it had been her expectation. These goblins in her sleeping dream were unintelligent and obeyed their king more because of threats than innate loyalty. They also were messy, noisy, and had free reign of the throne room, although they lived in their own city, which shared with the castle the space at the center of the Labyrinth.
He also created the Labyrinth's creatures from her expectations, using her playthings as his blueprints for their forms. Plush toys, figurines, and even an ornamental bookend were used in his designs. Some creatures had a true purpose, such as a pair of talking doorknockers that guarded the entrance to the dark forest, a necessary addition to a fantasy realm, and the helping hands, which would act as a safety net if his mortal were to fall into one of the pits that littered the Labyrinth, mimicking the pits in her game. Other creatures would have no purpose until his mortal or the sentient Labyrinth gave them purpose, but his mortal was an imaginative mortal, and would no doubt assign them their purposes early in the game.
***
Author's Notes: I would like to thank Little Magpie for her wonderful analysis of the movie Labyrinth and especially of the character Jareth. I have integrated her analysis into my story shamelessly! Also, I have written more than I have posted, so when I have at least 10 reviews, I will post the next chapter. Please, let it be tonight! I am so excited about this idea!