A/N: Ok, this is my first fic, so be gentle, but R/R
pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease!
Chapter 1:
Sunlight filtered through the thick, mottled glass of the tiny corner shop, catching on bits of dust that were stirred from their place by inquisitive hands. There was little other light within, making the place feel even more mysterious and ancient than it was. That was part of what Sarah loved about the place. It had a feeling of magic about it, a feeling that she had found in desperately short supply in the three years since she had left the labyrinth. When she had first stumbled across the tiny antique shop, she had felt that it was there just for her. But no, others, if only a few, visited the shop on occasion, mostly older folks, some simple, some mysterious. It was a wonder the place drew any profit, with so few patrons. It certainly saved on labor, for each time Sarah came in, the same little old lady sat behind the desk, her wrinkled face gathering itself up into a kind smile to greet her.
The little old lady (Mrs. Ezra) had told her, as had many others, including her overbearing stepmother, that a girl of seventeen in this day and age belonged at the mall with friends or at the movies with a boy. She would simply shake her head and smile, quietly changing the subject. The truth was, she didn't want distractions like noisy girlfriends or demanding boys. She wanted nothing more than to lose herself, if only for a little while, in her memories of her magical adventure through the Labyrinth. She often felt as though if she allowed herself to be too distracted, her dreams would die, and all of her hopes with them.
Today, however, something was off in her little haven. She noticed it when she had walked in and found that Mrs. Ezra was not in her usual place behind the desk. While this should not have struck her as out of the ordinary, it somehow did. There was a charge in the air, a tingling thickness that was almost tangible. She let her hands wander distractedly over various pieces of sculpture, admiring their detail with her fingertips. She was startled from her musing by a noise behind her. She jumped and whirled about in search of the source.
A dark-eyed woman had issued from the curtain that led to the back room and was making her way towards the front counter. Sarah watched her for a moment as she glided gracefully across the room, seeming not to notice her. There was something strange about her that she couldn't put her finger on. Though she appeared to be no older than 25 or 30, something in her manner gave her the air of one much older. She carried herself majestically, elegantly, but with a keen edge about her, as though she could see past the moment and just a step ahead. She was blatantly out of place in the dusty little shop.
After a moment the woman looked up from a stack of papers on her desk and smiled. "Can I help you, Love?" Her voice was melodious, flowing with a thick English accent, and it brought Sarah out of her musings.
"Begging your pardon, ma'am, but I've never seen anyone running the shop but Mrs. Ezra."
The woman's brow furrowed as a sigh escaped her. "I am sorry, Dearest, I hate to bear bad news, but Mrs. Ezra passed last Tuesday. Natural causes, but she led a good, rich life, and she knew it was her time." The lady smiled ruefully at Sarah's look of surprised sadness. "Don't worry, Love, she died with a smile on her face, with all her family about her."
Sarah sighed and nodded. It was good to know. She had not known Mrs. Ezra personally, but they had established an understanding, and she mourned her loss.
"In any case," the woman continued, "I'll be running the shop until a new shopkeeper can be found. Oh!" she exclaimed, her hand flying to her chest, "how rude of me! I am Ani." she seemed to fumble for her words for a moment ".er.Nikki, Nikki Faette. I own this shop." She held out her hand.
Sarah smiled and took it, shaking once before releasing. "It's good to meet you ma'am. I'm Sarah Williams."
"Please, Dear, none of that, its-its Nikki, nothing more. Please," she smiled warmly, lighting up her oval face, "go on looking around, I certainly didn't mean to interrupt you." Sarah nodded and turned back to her wanderings. She happened upon a glass case in a nook of the shop full of various kinds of jewelry. Her eyes moved over each exquisite piece, feasting on them like a babe in a candy shop. Fantastic bracelets, rings adorned with every imaginable type of precious stone, necklets and chains of gold and silver.her eyes rested on a singular piece for one unthinking moment, and she almost passed it by, but of a sudden, recognition snagged her mind and she felt herself reel from surprise.
It was much plainer than the rest of the pieces, with no inlaid jewels or the like, and that alone set it apart. But there was no mistaking it. It was smaller and more delicate, more feminine, she thought, but still the same silver gleam, the three points, the sleek curves that spoke of elegant power.she had never imagined something could be so alluring.Yes, it was the very same style as the one Jareth wore upon his bare chest. More feminine, but equal to it just the same.
Her hand traced the glass that separated her from it. For a moment she didn't think or feel, she just remembered. It felt like fate and she wanted it. She imagined it was terribly expensive, but perhaps they could work out a payment plan of sorts. "Umm.Nikki?" Nikki looked up from her paper work and smiled.
"What can I do for you, Love?"
"I was just wondering how much one of these pieces costs," she replied quietly. She looked back at the pendant. It was far plainer than the other pieces, so perhaps it would be less expensive. She just had to have it. Nikki approached and followed Sarah's gaze to where the pendant lay upon the black velvet of the case amid the gaudier pieces.
As Sarah watched, Nikki went from her normal cream color to a papery white, then a fiery red rising from her neck to her cheeks. "Oh.I, err, that is.well, my goodness! How did that get there?" She laughed nervously. "I am sorry darling, that piece isn't for sale, its part of my private collection. In all the fuss, I must have put it in with the other pieces." She smiled, a bit of pride in her stance as she looked at it. Finally she unlocked the case with a key that hung around her neck. Pulling it out, she admired it in her hand. "It's one of a kind, you know."
This caught Sarah's attention. "Begging your pardon, Nikki, but are you sure?" Nikki gave her a look that she couldn't decipher, but she hurried on, not wanting to offend her, but needing answers of her own. "You see, I have seen the style once before.I-"
"I highly doubt that," Nikki stated quickly. She seemed guarded now and Sarah decided to change the subject.a bit.
"So where did it come from?" She asked, knowing full well where it must have come from.
"Oh, no where near here, believe me!" she smiled. "But like I said, this piece is rather important to me, and it's not for sale."
As she turned away, carrying the amulet protectively by her chest, Sarah took a deep breath and ran out on a limb. "Well, its just that I once met a man who wore that very same kind of amulet, and he was, well, definitely not from anywhere around here either.in fact," she gulped air, ready to either be laughed at or thrown out of the store, "In fact, he was actually from another world."
Nikki halted in her tracks, as though turned to stone, before turning slowly back to Sarah. As she came about, a stray beam of light from the mottled windows caught her eyes as they met Sarah's, and she couldn't help but gasp. Two separate eyes, two separate colors. She had seen such eyes before, but those had been full of challenge and longing, not surprise and fear.
Silence reigned for a moment that seemed to stop time. It was finally broken as a nearby grandfather clock struck the hour. Nikki jumped.
"My, oh my, so late, I had better be closing up shop now, Dear, do come back sometime, you seem like such a nice girl, its been nice meeting you," All the while she was herding Sarah towards the door, ".well we'll be seeing you, good afternoon."
With a click, the door was closed and locked and Sarah found herself standing outside the little shop, her head in a whirl. Shaking her self soundly, she forced herself to shove off and head towards home.she had a lot of thinking to do.
A/N: I know its kinda a slow start, but it will get better, so please, review!!!! thanks
Chapter 1:
Sunlight filtered through the thick, mottled glass of the tiny corner shop, catching on bits of dust that were stirred from their place by inquisitive hands. There was little other light within, making the place feel even more mysterious and ancient than it was. That was part of what Sarah loved about the place. It had a feeling of magic about it, a feeling that she had found in desperately short supply in the three years since she had left the labyrinth. When she had first stumbled across the tiny antique shop, she had felt that it was there just for her. But no, others, if only a few, visited the shop on occasion, mostly older folks, some simple, some mysterious. It was a wonder the place drew any profit, with so few patrons. It certainly saved on labor, for each time Sarah came in, the same little old lady sat behind the desk, her wrinkled face gathering itself up into a kind smile to greet her.
The little old lady (Mrs. Ezra) had told her, as had many others, including her overbearing stepmother, that a girl of seventeen in this day and age belonged at the mall with friends or at the movies with a boy. She would simply shake her head and smile, quietly changing the subject. The truth was, she didn't want distractions like noisy girlfriends or demanding boys. She wanted nothing more than to lose herself, if only for a little while, in her memories of her magical adventure through the Labyrinth. She often felt as though if she allowed herself to be too distracted, her dreams would die, and all of her hopes with them.
Today, however, something was off in her little haven. She noticed it when she had walked in and found that Mrs. Ezra was not in her usual place behind the desk. While this should not have struck her as out of the ordinary, it somehow did. There was a charge in the air, a tingling thickness that was almost tangible. She let her hands wander distractedly over various pieces of sculpture, admiring their detail with her fingertips. She was startled from her musing by a noise behind her. She jumped and whirled about in search of the source.
A dark-eyed woman had issued from the curtain that led to the back room and was making her way towards the front counter. Sarah watched her for a moment as she glided gracefully across the room, seeming not to notice her. There was something strange about her that she couldn't put her finger on. Though she appeared to be no older than 25 or 30, something in her manner gave her the air of one much older. She carried herself majestically, elegantly, but with a keen edge about her, as though she could see past the moment and just a step ahead. She was blatantly out of place in the dusty little shop.
After a moment the woman looked up from a stack of papers on her desk and smiled. "Can I help you, Love?" Her voice was melodious, flowing with a thick English accent, and it brought Sarah out of her musings.
"Begging your pardon, ma'am, but I've never seen anyone running the shop but Mrs. Ezra."
The woman's brow furrowed as a sigh escaped her. "I am sorry, Dearest, I hate to bear bad news, but Mrs. Ezra passed last Tuesday. Natural causes, but she led a good, rich life, and she knew it was her time." The lady smiled ruefully at Sarah's look of surprised sadness. "Don't worry, Love, she died with a smile on her face, with all her family about her."
Sarah sighed and nodded. It was good to know. She had not known Mrs. Ezra personally, but they had established an understanding, and she mourned her loss.
"In any case," the woman continued, "I'll be running the shop until a new shopkeeper can be found. Oh!" she exclaimed, her hand flying to her chest, "how rude of me! I am Ani." she seemed to fumble for her words for a moment ".er.Nikki, Nikki Faette. I own this shop." She held out her hand.
Sarah smiled and took it, shaking once before releasing. "It's good to meet you ma'am. I'm Sarah Williams."
"Please, Dear, none of that, its-its Nikki, nothing more. Please," she smiled warmly, lighting up her oval face, "go on looking around, I certainly didn't mean to interrupt you." Sarah nodded and turned back to her wanderings. She happened upon a glass case in a nook of the shop full of various kinds of jewelry. Her eyes moved over each exquisite piece, feasting on them like a babe in a candy shop. Fantastic bracelets, rings adorned with every imaginable type of precious stone, necklets and chains of gold and silver.her eyes rested on a singular piece for one unthinking moment, and she almost passed it by, but of a sudden, recognition snagged her mind and she felt herself reel from surprise.
It was much plainer than the rest of the pieces, with no inlaid jewels or the like, and that alone set it apart. But there was no mistaking it. It was smaller and more delicate, more feminine, she thought, but still the same silver gleam, the three points, the sleek curves that spoke of elegant power.she had never imagined something could be so alluring.Yes, it was the very same style as the one Jareth wore upon his bare chest. More feminine, but equal to it just the same.
Her hand traced the glass that separated her from it. For a moment she didn't think or feel, she just remembered. It felt like fate and she wanted it. She imagined it was terribly expensive, but perhaps they could work out a payment plan of sorts. "Umm.Nikki?" Nikki looked up from her paper work and smiled.
"What can I do for you, Love?"
"I was just wondering how much one of these pieces costs," she replied quietly. She looked back at the pendant. It was far plainer than the other pieces, so perhaps it would be less expensive. She just had to have it. Nikki approached and followed Sarah's gaze to where the pendant lay upon the black velvet of the case amid the gaudier pieces.
As Sarah watched, Nikki went from her normal cream color to a papery white, then a fiery red rising from her neck to her cheeks. "Oh.I, err, that is.well, my goodness! How did that get there?" She laughed nervously. "I am sorry darling, that piece isn't for sale, its part of my private collection. In all the fuss, I must have put it in with the other pieces." She smiled, a bit of pride in her stance as she looked at it. Finally she unlocked the case with a key that hung around her neck. Pulling it out, she admired it in her hand. "It's one of a kind, you know."
This caught Sarah's attention. "Begging your pardon, Nikki, but are you sure?" Nikki gave her a look that she couldn't decipher, but she hurried on, not wanting to offend her, but needing answers of her own. "You see, I have seen the style once before.I-"
"I highly doubt that," Nikki stated quickly. She seemed guarded now and Sarah decided to change the subject.a bit.
"So where did it come from?" She asked, knowing full well where it must have come from.
"Oh, no where near here, believe me!" she smiled. "But like I said, this piece is rather important to me, and it's not for sale."
As she turned away, carrying the amulet protectively by her chest, Sarah took a deep breath and ran out on a limb. "Well, its just that I once met a man who wore that very same kind of amulet, and he was, well, definitely not from anywhere around here either.in fact," she gulped air, ready to either be laughed at or thrown out of the store, "In fact, he was actually from another world."
Nikki halted in her tracks, as though turned to stone, before turning slowly back to Sarah. As she came about, a stray beam of light from the mottled windows caught her eyes as they met Sarah's, and she couldn't help but gasp. Two separate eyes, two separate colors. She had seen such eyes before, but those had been full of challenge and longing, not surprise and fear.
Silence reigned for a moment that seemed to stop time. It was finally broken as a nearby grandfather clock struck the hour. Nikki jumped.
"My, oh my, so late, I had better be closing up shop now, Dear, do come back sometime, you seem like such a nice girl, its been nice meeting you," All the while she was herding Sarah towards the door, ".well we'll be seeing you, good afternoon."
With a click, the door was closed and locked and Sarah found herself standing outside the little shop, her head in a whirl. Shaking her self soundly, she forced herself to shove off and head towards home.she had a lot of thinking to do.
A/N: I know its kinda a slow start, but it will get better, so please, review!!!! thanks