Chapter 10 Queen Cata-Who?
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Labyrinth.
Caroline grabbed her mother's car keys from the kitchen table. "Caroline?" her mother called to her, seeing her daughter running off angrily out the front door. "I'm
going to my apartment. I'll be back in a hour." she murmured, leaving her mother confused in the living room. She felt a bit bad for giving her mother attitude, but
Jareth had gotten under her skin. Caroline hated how easily he could make her angry. As she drove to her apartment her mind couldn't help but wonder. Her mind
drifted back to the flashback she had experienced in her mother's backyard the night before. Was that really her? Was that Jareth? Why were they together. Catalina
looked so much like her... "No, it couldn't be." Caroline whispered, shaking her head, shaking away the thoughts. As she pulled into the drive way of their apartment
complex she let out a small sigh. "Even if that dream was true it seems too far fetched. I can't imagine ever being with... I mean Jareth has clearly got a thing for aunt
Sarah." she murmured, tucking a long strand of dirty blonde hair behind her ear. "What does any of this mean?" Jareth knew something, but he hadn't volunteered any
information yet. Caroline walked into her apartment complex stopping at the entrance way. She hadn't been inside her apartment since her and Julie had been attacked.
She took a deep breath before stepping inside, looking around carefully before committing to entering the apartment. Caroline walked up the steps in her apartment to
her bedroom. It felt so strange for her to be back home after having faced the shadow creatures twice. She pushed her bedroom door open to find no one on the other
side. Caroline breathed a sigh of relief as she entered her room. "Thank the lord." she breathed, plopping down on her bed. It felt good to be back home again. She had
been sleeping on the floor for the past few days as she watched over Jareth. "Caroline." a voice called out. Caroline jumped up in her bed. She quickly spun her head
around looking for the person who called her name. Her eyes landed on her mirrored dresser, the hand-me-down dresser that came from her aunt Sarah. The dresser
began to flicker a smokey gray color. Caroline jumped out of her bed, making her way to her door. "Wait!" the voice cried. "It's Gog. Master Jareth's adviser." She frowned
but remained still, standing by the doorway ready to bolt if any shadow creature appeared. The smoke began to clear and a greenish skinned goblin appeared. "Oh, it's
you." Caroline said, folding her arms across her chest. "I suppose you're looking for your Goblin King." she rolled her eyes. "Well he's not here." Gog shook his head.
"Caroline, I'm here to see you." he said plainly. "Me?" Caroline shook her head. "What do you want with me?" Gog gestured for her to come closer. "I'm assuming
you've been experiencing some... odd, dare a say flash backs lately?" he asked. Her eyebrows raised. "How could he know about her daydream?" she thought, nodding
her head slowly to answer his question. "I had thought Lady Sarah was the one, but it has become clear now... after I read through the prophecies again the Fae-Lume
granted me a vision." Gog explained. "Before you left the king and I read over the prophecy again and it mentioned a girl born with the blood of a victor. We had always
thought it was meant to be Sarah but..." He held up his hand conjuring a cloud of green smoke in his hand. The smoke floated out from the mirror over to Caroline.
"The Fae-Lume is a tricky ancient book. It is vague with it's wording, but every once in awhile it will grant visions." Gog gestured to the cloud of smoke. "This is what it
showed to me. A possible outcome of the future of the queen who shall save us." Caroline stumbled back away from the green smoke floating towards her but she
couldn't escape the fog that circled around her head. As soon as the smoke made contact with her eyes she fell into another flashback state like she had the night
before. The flashback featured Caroline dressed finely in golden plated armor. She was standing over a man... the king from her first flashback. There were many shadow
figures laying on the ground around them lifeless in the dark fog covered battle ground. "No, Catalina!" he pleaded. She held a sword over her head before plunging it
into the man's chest. As she plunged the sword into the man's chest. Caroline fell back onto the bed. "No." she whispered. "I can't. That isn't me. You've got the wrong
girl." she stammered. Gog shook his head. "There is no mistake. You are the one. The one to lead us in the war against Lazarus and his Cleaners." Caroline shook her
head again. "I can't lead anyone. I struggle with basic math how am I supposed to concur anything!" she cried out. Gog sighed slightly. "You are Queen Catalina. Queen
of all 12 dimensions. Though you are reincarnated your magic has followed you into this life." Gog explained, nodding his head slightly. "Re-reincarnated?" she covered
her hand over her mouth. "So you're telling me I'm some reincarnated fairy queen?" This was all to much for Caroline, but it made sense in someways. All of the things
that had happened to her in the past week the bursts of light, the cleaners being after her and then the memory of Lazarus, Jareth and herself. Gog nodded. "Exactly!"
he exclaimed. Caroline grimaced. "Then why was Jareth in my memory?" she finally asked. Gog's eyes widened. "Master Jareth was in your memory?" Caroline nodded
slowly. "I had a memory last night. Lazarus and The Cleaners where there and... Jareth." she said slowly. She felt silly admitting it out loud to someone else. "I was
married to Lazarus... and Jareth was my lover." she whispered. Gog opened his mouth to speak but no words came out. "Did- did that book say anything about Jareth
and I?" she asked. Gog slowly shook his head, shock apparent on his face. "I don't know of any information of king Jareth being reincarnated. Are you sure it was he?"
Caroline sat down on the end of her bed. "Yes, it looked exactly like him." A worried look came over Gog's face. "Uh, not to worry. I don't think he is aware of this yet. I
think it best we keep this between you and I. Thank you my queen." he said hurriedly before smoke began to cloud the mirror. "Wait!" Caroline cried, standing up
quickly. "He doesn't have his powers anymore!" she cried. The smoke began to cloud the mirror again as Gog disappeared from her view.
Jareth had found his way to Caroline's apartment. He was a bit angry with her himself, but he wasn't going to let her leave him like she had. "Caroline!" he yelled,
knocking on the apartment door. She was still in her bedroom, staring at the mirror, wishing Gog would come back to explain more. When she heard Jareth's voice call
out to her she frowned. "How did he find me?" she mumbled as she walked downstairs. "Caroline!" Jareth continued to knock, calling out her name. Caroline swung
open the door just as he was about to knock again. "What do you want?" she snapped, glaring at him. Jareth rolled his eyes slightly. "I wanted to say that I'm sorry."
Caroline's eyes widened in shock by what he had just said. "Did.. Did you just apologize to me?" Jareth smirked. "Yes, and don't make me repeat myself." Caroline rolled
her eyes. "Coming from you I suppose that's as good of an apology I'm going to get." she murmured. Jareth chuckled slightly before pushing her softly to the side,
taking a step inside her apartment. "It wasn't your fault I lost my magic. It's been dwindling since Sarah left." Jareth continued on inside Caroline's apartment making
his way toward her living room. "For some reason I could sense you were in trouble. The connection was most likely formed by me being present in your dreams so
frequently over the last couple of years." She frowned at the mention of her aunt thinking back to the night before when he had mistaken her for Sarah. "What an odd
taste in furniture you have." Jareth remarked as he ran a thin finger down a her bright yellow recliner. "It's actually Julie's." Caroline stepped over into the living room.
"Julie?" Jareth asked. "My friend who I live with.. and who was attacked by The Cleaners." she stated. "Well I suppose they were after me all along." Caroline sighed.
Jareth nodded slowly as he turned to her. "Before you... left the underground." he stopped, remembering her painful words that wished her away from him. "I was going
to show you something." he explained. "I fear I have not the strength nor the magic to show you now." Caroline frowned at his words. She couldn't help but feel
responsible for his loss of magic. "I'm sorry." she whispered, hanging her head down. Jareth was surprised by her apology. He sighed lightly before stepping closer to her,
placing a gloved hand under her clean, raising her head slowly up to meet his gaze. "I came here of my own freewill. I knew the costs. I knew you needed help. I don't
understand fully how I knew but I did." he said softly. Caroline's heart leaped from her chest at his touch. She was afraid to look him directly in the eyes, but she did
unwillingly. "I don't want anything to happen to you." he whispered. She could feel her stomach dropping into her feet. Her heart was racing and she was breathless.
"Besides you're the only hope to save my world." Caroline frowned at his words. She pulled her chin away from his hand. "I'm not some reincarnated queen!"she
snapped. "I can't be." Caroline walked over to the stairs. "How? How did you know about the prophecy? I hadn't told you yet?" Jareth was flabbergasted. "Gog. He told
me." Jareth frowned, walking over to the stairs beside her. "You spoke to Gog?" Caroline nodded. "Just before you came he contacted me through my dresser mirror."
she stated, starting up the steps. Jareth's eyes lit up, golden flicks gleaming. "The mirror might be my way back to the underground. Show me." he said, following her
up the staircase.