Status: DEAD
AU Name: Neverwhere
Note: closed AU

Ah, this is one my my favorites.

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman is set in London, where extraordinary things are ordinary--if you happen to be able to see it. You see, the city people see everyday isn't the whole picture. There is London Below, set in the sewers and the tunnels, the Underground and the forgotten places where lost things live on. Into this confusing underworld Richard Mayhew is dragged with his impulsive act of chivalry for a mysterious girl from Down Below. All of a sudden, he finds himself invisible to the Upworlders, and the only thing he can do to get back Above is to help find an angel.

I was reading and about two-thirds of the way through I saw this:

"I fought in the sewers beneath New York with the great blind white alligator-king. He was thirty feet long, fat from sewage and fierce in battle."

And I thought, well, well, well. Isn't that interesting?

What if the Seven were a part of the New York Below community? What services would they provide? How would they get together? What would keep them together in the anarchic society of Neverwhere?

The cast:

BUCK Wilmington - came Below when a Velvet (one of the vampire persuasion) seduced him. He was in Central Park at the time and was released from her thrall because she had broken the law of neutrality.

CHRIS Larabee - maintains the status of the Four Corners Neutral Territory in Central Park.

EZRA Standish - the mysterious Southerner is known for having a foot Above and Below and can provide many special items...for a fee.

JD Dunne - came Below when he fell through the cracks in the system after his mother died. He is a ratspeaker and hears about everything that goes on Below.

JOSIAH Sanchez - one of the strange mutations that appear Below, he closely resembles a lion. His fearsome features belie his gentle nature and he spends his time helping newcomers adjust to life Below.

NATHAN Jackson - worked at a free clinic in Manhattan until he had treated one too many Downworlders and he became part of Below. He takes up practice in Four Corners.

VIN Tanner - he chased a bounty all the way Below and realized he couldn't get out. Now he is known as Tracker and is the best person to talk to if you need to find something.

The setting:

Four Corners Neutral Territory - after twenty years of war between the factions Below (Upper East versus Upper West, Lower West allied with Lower East to wipe out the Alphabetas and so on) Lord Travis succeeded in putting together an alliance that ended all conflict. In a bid to cement the peace, he established the Four Corners Neutral Territory, modelled after the Open Market, and assigned his most trusted Lieutenant Chris Larabee to oversee its neutrality.

The Open Market - the only other truly safe ground in New York Below, it is held on the Great Lawn of Central Park every two weeks. Those Below come to buy and sell their goods and services.

The story:

I never got beyond the rough outline of this story, but here's what I came up with.

Nathan has recently been dragged below. Josiah picks him up and offers to teach him the ropes. At first frightened by the giant, Nathan and Josiah soon become friends. Josiah brings Nathan to the Open Market to help him find employment.

Meanwhile, Vin is supposed to meet Ezra to talk about locating some special item (I haven't decided what). He is about to enter the dining stall of Inez when he sees a commotion. Some Alphabeta gangmembers are harassing Nathan because he treated the leader of a rival gang (this is what actually brought Nathan Below). Vin knows that Larabee, the peaceforcer of Four Corners, is exactly four stalls away and together they turn over the errant Alphabetas to the Open Market authorities. I'm not sure where Josiah went, but he wasn't there to protect Nathan just then.

They enter the dining stall to find Ezra waiting with drinks. They talk, Ezra asks Vin to locate the eyes of the alligator-king who was killed by Hunter several years ago.

I haven't quite figured out how the others decide to join in, but in the end they do. JD turns out to be the one with the information on where the alligator-king's eyes went. They get the eyes, Ezra heads Above to sell them, everyone promises to meet again, something like that.

The open endedness of my vision is what killed this fic idea. ::sigh:: Well, that and the fact that I don't know enough about New York City to Neverwhere-ize it. The book had fantastic interpretations of ordinary London sights, and to make this AU fly I'd need to inject a similar amount of NYC through the looking glass.

Still, someday...