A MONTH BEFORE IN LONDON
Ever since her journey through the Labyrinth, Sarah had felt like a big part of her was missing and Sarah being who she was - independent, stubborn and never one to sit idle by when she could act instead - did whatever she could to fill that gap.
One of the many things Sarah had learned on her journey was that Toby wasn't nearly as bad as she at first had made him out to be. In fact, he was actually a lovely little brother. Annoying at times, certainly, but then he would do something endearing and she would immediately forget why he irritated her. All in all, she had come to love the little bugger these last few years in a way she never had imagined she could, when he was brought home from the hospital as a baby. The two of them grew close because of what they (or rather, Sarah) had gone through.
She had also discovered many new things about herself on her journey.
She found that she had thrived in the labyrinth fighting against untold dangers, surviving unnumbered hardships, finding her way through the twisted labyrinth, manipulating and befriending mythical creatures, conquering the Goblin King and all the while flirting with danger and destiny.
She had felt adrenaline and courage course through her veins. She had never felt as alive.
She then realized that she needed danger and hardship in her life. The boring monotonousness of everyday existence was driving her nuts and by the time she graduated from high school it simply got too much. To get a little change in scenery she applied to a university in England.
It was her friend, Lauren, whom she had met at indoor climbing and had gone bungee jumping with once or twice, who had mentioned a game show that needed adventurous contestants.
Sarah remembered looking skeptically at Lauren and being about to demand to be told more about it before she enrolled, but when Lauren had challenged her courage, Sarah's temper flared and she didn't hesitate in calling the TV-station.
Two days later an application form came by post for both Sarah and Lauren.
2 months passed before Sarah got a call from the TV station. She was chosen to go on the program. Lauren wasn't. Sarah was excited with being elected, but she wasn't thrilled by the fact that Lauren and millions of other people would watch her make a fool of herself on national television, as she undoubtedly would.
She was scheduled to arrive at the TV station the day before the show was to be shot, in order to meet with the other contestants beforehand.
Sarah was confident, but slightly apprehensive, when she was led into a meeting room in the station's office in Mayfair.
It was a well-lit, but small room that Sarah entered. Four of the other contestants were already present and sitting at an oval table. The male secretary, Simon, who had shown her to the room, led her to a chair beside a man in his thirties, and left the room subsequently.
"Hello, I'm Sarah Williams," Sarah introduced herself to her neighbor with an outstretched hand. The blond haired man smiled friendly to her and shook her hand. "I'm Tom. Watson. This is Jessica," he pointed at a red haired girl with small, brown eyes, who was a couple of years younger than Sarah. Jessica waved enthusiastically at the sight of another young, female contestant. Tom rolled his eyes and continued. "That is John," a dark haired man with crooked teeth, "and that is Kate," a plump, brown haired woman, who looked to be about Karen's age.
The door opened once more and a handsome young man with raven hair was led in and seated himself next to Sarah. He winked at her and introduced himself as Peter. Sarah smiled charmingly back at him. When the group introduction was repeated once more, Simon sat down on the chair at the end of table and began to inform them of what was to come in the morning.
"You will be driven to the set by the station's cars, where you will meet the host of the program. Then the shooting will commence and the games begin," Simon smiled at them all. "Your objective is to gather as many crystals as you can. If you fail to get out of the game rooms in time, you are locked in and sent back to the beginning. Kate is the captain of your team and John is the vice-captain. That means that all decisions are taken by Kate, but if she's locked in – then John is captain. If John also gets locked in, then a new captain is chosen by the host. Got it?" Everybody nodded.
"But who is this host-guy? Isn't it that bald guy from The Rocky Horror Picture Show?" Jessica blurted excited. John rolled his eyes. "What? He's famous!" Jessica defended herself.
"To answer your question," Simon answered. "No, we've had a change of host recently. But don't worry. The new host knows what he's doing." Simon smiled again. "Well, alright. I'll see you all tomorrow at the set. Have a nice day." And he left. The soon-to-be team parted amiably and Peter walked Sarah home to her dorm.
THE FOLLOWING DAY
Sarah was the last of the six contestants to cross the threshold to the set. She bumped her chin into Peter's back when he stopped abruptly. Sarah rubbed her chin and peeked over Peter's shoulder in order to get a glimpse of what had made him halt. "You have got to be kidding!" Sarah whispered disbelievingly.
The set was decorated in a way that clearly resembled a large fairytale garden. When she noticed the authentic-looking exotic flowers, she couldn't help but think of her friend Hoggle. She suddenly felt very uneasy.
"Isn't the set amazing, Sarah? Look at the walls! And that lake! It almost feels like being in a fairytale! I bet we're sharing set with that new fantasy movie they're making." Peter said amazed. The other contestants 'oooh'ed and 'aaah'ed appreciatively and Jessica squealed. Sarah swallowed thickly and answered Peter by nodding and trying to smile reassuringly at him.
"Ah! There you are!" Simon stood 30 yards away and shouted at them. "Come over here! I have someone you should meet." Peter, Tom, Kate and John walked ahead, but Sarah was manhandled by Jessica and they lagged behind. "Sarah, look how everything sparkles!" Jessica exclaimed which made Sarah look more closely around. Everything did sparkle. The walls, the ceiling, the floor even the water in the lake. Sarah felt very apprehensive now and wondered briefly at what point of her life she had gone completely insane. "I'm really not that keen on things that sparkle."
As they greeted the grey haired man, Simon had wanted them to meet; Sarah asked him whether he was the host. The man's belly shook with laughter. "Bless you child! No, I am Edward Kensington, the show's producer. Pleased to meet you," he said and studied her in a curious way. Sarah looked at him searchingly, but he quickly turned his attention back to Simon.
"Peter?" Sarah asked quietly. "Do you get the feeling that they are hiding who the host is from us, too?" Peter chuckled. "I suppose they are, but don't you think it's because they want to surprise us. Who knows, it might be someone famous!" Sarah calmed a bit and felt a lot better as she hit his arm playfully. "You begin to sound like Jessica," she teased. Peter laughed loudly. "At least I am not-" He was interrupted by everyone going silent. He turned away from Sarah, to look at the man who approached.
"Well, well, well, what have we here?"
(A/N): Dun dun duunn.
I have tweeked the rules slightly - in "The Crystal Maze", when you are locked in you can be bought out by sacrificing one of your crystals. You can't do that in my version. If you are locked in the team just has to continue.
The previous host mentioned is of course the awesome Richard O'Brien (famous for "Rocky Horror"). If you are interested in the original game show I would suggest watching some episodes on youtube. They're great!
