A/N: Before you delve into this story, I have some confessions to make.
Firstly, this is not my usual fare. I am assuring you now, this is probably (and possibly thankfully) the only piece you will ever see from me that has a theme like this one. I'm actually quite nervous about posting this here.
Secondly, should you be brave enough to forge ahead, please understand that the scenario that follows comes from the mind of my 17-year-old self, the date was 3/31/98. A brief history behind the story and what I've done to it will follow at the end.
~*O*~
Disclaimer: All things Labyrinth are not mine.
~*O*~
He held the glowing crystal before her, mesmerizing her with it, drawing her deeper into his snare. She was powerless to resist as she gazed at the crystal with spellbound eyes, hypnotized by the undulating swirl of luminous light and pulsating shadows, falling into the vortex that spiraled within. Soon she became lost within herself, her weakened psyche succumbing to the languorous haze of his dark temptation. She heard his mocking laughter echo from somewhere far away as her thoughts became scattered and chaotic, frantic as they screamed a warning against the crucial sound of a clock chiming…and everywhere she turned within her mind she saw those beautiful, glorious, captivating eyes. She shook her head as her world seemed to spin, the vertigo making her nauseous until she finally collapsed in surrender.
~*O*~
She awakened in a darkened chamber, immersed in the downy softness of a huge bed with pale satin sheets and dark velvet covers. Swags of sheer silk arrayed in sumptuous layers of crimson and ebony draped from the canopy and coiled around thick mahogany posts. Beyond the bed, ensconced in the stone wall, stood a large, ornately carved fireplace, a crackling fire burned in the hearth, cavorting with the shadows in subtle hues of golden light. A solitary chair sat angled before the fire, cushioned and high-backed, the polished richness of its lavishly carved wood frame gleamed brightly against the flames. Heavy curtains in voluptuous crimson hung from a ceiling high window, a stream of pale moonlight pooling on the floor from the parted center, calling to her.
Pushing the coverlet back, she slipped down out of the bed, her bare feet sinking into a thick, soft rug. She wore a simple silk chemise, gathered at the collar and flowing in airy folds to her ankles. Her dark hair was unbound, cascading around her shoulders and down to her waist in a fall of soft waves. Stepping to the window, she pulled back the curtains until she stood in the silvery light of the full moon. A brilliant pearl of radiant light, it floated in the fathomless depths of the heavens amidst a scattering of scintillating stars. There was something about the moon tonight, something…different. She felt as though she shared a kinship with it. A lonely type of familiarity that made her feel as if they were one. She leaned forward, placing her hands on the sill, as if she could will herself into the night. So intent was she in her study of the moon that the slight whisper of sound behind her made her whirl in sudden alarm.
He was leaning against a bedpost with his arms crossed, smirking in his usual fashion as he watched every move she made with a calculating stare. He was dressed in black leather with a wine-colored, crushed velvet waistcoat, the open cut of his white shirt revealing a golden emblem against a pale chest. The flickering light of the flames danced against his lithe form, casting his features in lambent shadows. He possessed a bearing that was both intimidating and provocative, exuding an aura of seductive charisma that imbued his presence with dark promise. She felt the pull, a longing filled with such deep desire that she knew she would be unable to resist it for long. Recognizing her fate, even as she denied it, she swallowed against the rising tide of temptation, watching him warily.
~*O*~
He observed the way she spun around, her growing sense of panic palpable in the brief moment of time it took for his presence to be discerned. Her sable hair surrounded her body in a dark cloud, the gleam of the pale moon giving her an ethereal quality as it encompassed her in a silver nimbus of radiant light. Her emerald eyes shone, dark pools of shattered innocence and mislaid trust. She watched him cautiously, but he did not miss the tightening of her throat as she felt the irresistible wave of wanton desire that coursed through her unbidden. She reminded him of a lost and frightened deer, a creature that understood the trap had been sprung, but was unsure yet what it meant; a creature that still possessed the barest sliver of hope for escape.
He smiled slowly, the tips of his pointed teeth becoming evident only then. Seemingly from the air, he pulled a perfect, round, iridescent crystal, noting with amusement how her eyes followed its twirling movement in rapt awareness. He moved toward her, subtly driving her away from the open window as she backed away with every step he took, a futile attempt to keep distance between them. Within moments she had backed herself against a darkened wall, and her eyes widened as he closed the distance. He could see the wild fluttering of the pulse in her throat as she turned her head away from him, closing her eyes against the compulsion of the crystal that spun so effortlessly in his hands.
"Why have you brought me here?" she asked in a low whisper.
The crystal came to rest in a gloved palm as he leaned near, tracing a finger along the soft skin of her jaw and down the smooth expanse of her neck in a tantalizing caress. She shivered under his touch, suddenly turning emerald orbs of liquid fire against his cool countenance. The corners of his mouth turned up ever so slightly as he saw the uncertainty there in her jeweled visage, but also an underlying desire to yield to the aching sensations of the primal emotions he was evoking within her. He spoke in a husky whisper that matched her own.
"Dear, sweet, Sarah, look into the crystal, and tell me…do you not remember?"
~*O*~
She had no choice, once he set the crystal spinning in the palm of his hand, it was again commanding her attention. She tried hard to resist but she was unable to deny its allure as an incandescent glow spilled forth from within, imprisoning her in its enthralling vision. She heard his laughter once more as her mind was suddenly whisked away. She found herself back in a ballroom of masked dancers, but in this place the colors were darkly decadent. Where the ambience had once been rich in gilded promises and crystalline dreams, it now revealed sinful opulence and aberrant passions.
A sudden memory, something vaguely familiar about this situation, and then it scattered like breath before the wind, leaving her with an aura of intense apprehension that was amplified by the dissonant waltz that thrummed through the atmosphere. She began to look around, trying to see the faces of the dancers, but they were nothing more than a masked blur, amorphous and indistinct. Still she searched, the focus of her desire unclear in the mass of shadowy figures until she saw him, watching her with an expression that made heat flare like a dawning sun in the core of her soul.
This time he waited for her to come to him, and taking her hand in his, he whirled her around the ballroom floor in time to a maddening beat. He had her pivoting, turning, and spinning until the spun starlight of her dress whirled around her in a silken shroud, prey caught in the threads of a glittering web. Nearly senseless, he spun her into his arms, holding her close, drowning her in his enchantment, whispering things to her in a voice composed of dark velvet and sensual silk, asking her a question.
She tried to look away from him, a vain attempt to ground herself and clear her mind as she found herself breathless from the intensity in his gaze. Then he was holding a crystal before her and she focused on it as all around her the ballroom became a repetitious blur. The sound of a clock chiming reverberated against her skull and she shook her head to try and clear the fog seeping into her mind. Feeling her rationality slipping, she cried out an answer, and then with a suddenness that left her reeling, she was looking out from crystal walls.
"Now do you understand, Sarah?" His voice was darkly sensuous against her ear, pressing her against the wall before grasping her by the wrist and spinning her back into the moonlight with subtle grace. He held the crystal out to her, the image of herself trapped within making her breath catch. "Within this crystal, I hold your soul. You bound yourself to this life and to me, and so now it will be, forevermore."
Before she could reply he had pulled her flush against him, looking down into her emerald eyes with wicked carnality. She knew what he saw there, the shadow of intense desire coupled with the exhilarating thrill of fear. She felt her resistance crumble in the wake of a terrible flood as she gave in to the temptation that set her blood seething in a scorching inferno. Her breathing picked up, and as she tilted her head to look into his eyes, she saw the predatory gleam of victory, but underlying that was a burning sense of need that was engulfing her sanity in waves of delicious sensation.
He gave her a feral smile as he dropped the crystal. It exploded, shattering into thousands of sparkling shards.
~*O*~
She awakened on the floor, disoriented and confused. Sitting in the shallow light of the pale moon, she understood the perpetual kinship she shared with it now. She stood up slowly, her bare feet whispering across the cool stone floor to the chair that sat in front of a still burning fire. Seating herself, she stared into the flames for a long while, watching them leap and dance with a freedom she realized she no longer possessed. A vision grew within the burning embers as she watched, and she was seeing herself with him, their future written in blood. What was this she felt for him now? Fear? Resentment? Betrayal. And yet, there was more to it than that. There was…acceptance.
Yes, she was his now, as surely as if he'd shackled her with manacles and thrown away the key. Only it was far crueler than that. Shackles suggested the possibility of escape, and from this prison there would be no such luxury. Only Death had the power to release her from this lamentable existence. The endless night, this timeless castle, both would be her home now; would be for eternities to come. He had asked—and she had accepted. Ah, but she had been intoxicated with his presence, his silver-tongued words, his bewitching eyes. Pressed for time against the damnable chiming of a gilded clock, she had desired to hold onto eternity, unaware of the consequences, and now…
She'd let reality slip away and her penance was to have that eternity be lived in darkness, sustained by a surging current of scarlet that bound her to the dark threads of fate. She would have her revenge for this; she was not as powerless as he seemed to think she was. She had been naïve, yes, but she was learning fast. Her lips twisted into a cruel smile as she recalled the need in his eyes as she looked up at him, already she could feel her power over him grow. She would nurture that emotion, fan it into a raging torrent of passion that would consume his very essence. There would come a night when she would have her vengeance, and he may well regret his deception in bringing her to his side. Hold her soul? Indeed. But she knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that she held his heart, and therein lay her sanctuary.
She laughed quietly to herself, an oddly insane sound, her small, pointed teeth gleaming with blood red intensity in the ruddy light of the dying flames.
~*O*~
A/N Continued: I found this piece in a printed journal I had kept from my writing class in high school under the title "Noctis." I was a bit stunned to see it there, and found myself intrigued that I ever attempted something like this, but looking back, I suppose it wasn't so far-fetched for that period in my life. As it sits, 90% of the original sentences are still intact within what you have read now. Most of my revision in terms of the original were attempts to smooth out transitions and clean up redundancies, though I'm not entirely certain I was completely successful there. The original story was 1,056 words, I expanded it by 931. Do you ever have those moments in time where you look back at yourself and just think…wow…? It was a strange world that I lived in, my imagination.
Thoughts are appreciated, but please be kind. I only wanted to share some of my Labyrinthine past with you as we head into a new year.
Crystalline Dreams,
~*~ Sheyrina, Labyrinthian Dragon