Chapter Seven - Time is an illusion!
******
That afternoon, Arian decided to take the dwarf's advice and after a mumbled apology,
she agreed to give her lessons another go. At least she would be able to stand her
ground better if she did know magic. Apart from her theory lessons she also learned
about the inner workings of the Labyrinth, its long and complicated history and
general politics. All of which were deadly boring. However she did not stop her other
activities and would secretly continue her writing at night by the light of a greasy
candle. Her sleeping patterns became erratic and she rarely ate anything. This made
her complexion (which was already pale) a deathly white, her cheeks sallow, and her
eyes dark and tunnel like.
******
A month passed and Arian's progress was becoming evident and it seemed as though
she was ready to proceed to the practical side of things. However, Jareth was worried
about how she was neglecting her health. That evening he used a crystal to spy on her
(not something he was altogether proud of) and found the scene that unfolded fairly
disturbing. She had fallen asleep at her desk in her old schoolroom surrounded by
towers of ancient volumes, her body was twisted and disturbed and a black sticky
liquid flowed like blood from where she had knocked over the inkwell.
******
The next day a goblin servant woke Arian up and informed her that she was to take
her lesson in the Central Campanile that morning.
"Oh great!" she groaned sarcastically "Stairs! Lots and lots of stairs. No rest for the
wicked."
"I wouldn't know, my Lady." said the goblin.
"It's a figure of speech. You know when you use a particular phrase to describe an
object or a situation..." the goblin just looked at her stupidly "Oh! Never mind!"
She made her way to the Escher room. It was probably the most erratic room in the
castle so it helped to wonder around randomly until it decided to show itself.
Eventually she noticed a familiar doorway and trudged through it. There it was again.
Just as she's remembered it from the first time. Christ! It made her feel queasy. It was
probably best to just concentrate on going in one direction and not pay attention to the
confusing jumble all around her. She later came to the conclusion that this didn't work
and she was thoroughly lost. Her worst nightmare had come true and that sick feeling
in her stomach just wouldn't go away. She leaned against a wall and closed her eyes,
one thing she was sure of was that the world did not spin as fast at it was doing now.
"Good morning, Arian." she heard her father's voice say suddenly. Why did he insist
on sneaking up on her? She looked around but was surprise to find there was no one
there.
"Look up." the voice commanded.
Arian groaned, she didn't have to look to know what was going on "You're upside
down aren't you?" she said nervously.
"I'm not. You are!" and that very moment Arian felt her weight shift to her upper body
and her footing suddenly felt dangerously unstable. Before she knew it she had fallen
in a heap onto what she had thought was the ceiling and was faced with a pair of black
riding boots.
"Ow!" she whined and rubbed her arm where a bruise was quickly forming.
"You need to stay focused." said Jareth "Don't let yourself get fooled into obeying the
laws of physics."
"Well, you weren't exactly helping by saying I was upside down."
"You didn't have to believe me, child. Although your trust is very flattering, you
should know by now that I'm not that reliable."
"So, is there a reason for us being here or did you just want to confuse me?" said
Arian exasperated with the whole thing.
******
They arrived on the jagged roof of the Campanile. The sprawling mass of the
Labyrinth stretched out below them like a patterned green carpet. A sight that never
ceased to fill Arian with wonder.
"Beautiful, isn't it." said Jareth proudly "But can you tell me how it works?"
Arian thought about this for a moment. She had watched the place work for over
twelve years and had still only just come to understand its complexities.
"Take your time, Arian. It's an important question."
Time! That was a huge factor in the Labyrinth perhaps it was a clue. Suddenly a
thought struck her and she smiled triumphantly. "It's a giant clock!" she exclaimed
happily "The sun rises at the Northern gate, then progresses around the outer edge
passing each of the thirteen main gates every hour. The labyrinth must run like
clockwork and its all powered by the magical field at its centre like a giant battery or
winding mechanism."
"How did you know that?" asked Jareth looking genuinely surprised.
"Educated guess. Can I go now?" she said impatiently.
******
The next few months were purely practical and Arian would go to the Training
Ground every morning. Sometimes she wouldn't leave until late in the evening. Her
father insisted on making her practise for hours until she got things right, which she
never did. Months of magical training and all she could manage were a few blue
sparks. She didn't mind that much any more, it was quite nice to have an intellectual
equal around even if the lessons were exhausting. Two months had already passed and
they were still working on a simple fire spell. Arian's task was to light a candle
magically and put it out again.
"Try it again." Jareth ordered irritably. Arian waved her hand in the specified way but
nothing happened. "You're not even trying!" another wave, a few blue sparks
decorated Arian's fingertips, but still no flame. "For God's sake girl, concentrate!" he
shouted. Arian's eyes burned with anger and with one colossal effort, she flung her
arm out and a small fire ball appeared from nowhere. Momentarily her star pendant
turned a burning white.
"Better." Jareth exclaimed, patting out the small fire on his shirt sleeve "But next time
focus on what you're aiming for!"
"I was." Arian growled angrily.
"I don't understand. You were doing so well on the theory."
"Well, sometimes people are good at some things but not at others."
"Perhaps you need a bit of help to started." Jareth said encouragingly and held out a
crystal for her. Reluctantly, Arian took it but as soon as the thing was in the palm of
her hand her pendant flashed white again and the flawless depths of the crystal turned
cloudier and cloudier until it was finally an opaque black sphere. A massive crack
appeared down one side, followed by another and another. The fragments crumbled
together until there was nothing left but a pile of black dust. Both teacher and pupil
looked at the remains with confusion.
"I'm sorry!" cried Arian. "I told you I was useless."
"It doesn't matter, it's late." said Jareth "You may leave now." with a wave of his hand
she had disappeared. He watched the remains of the crystal that lay scattered on the
ground. That had never happened before. That pendant he had found her with had
something to do with it but he wasn't sure what. Whatever it was, it was not good!
******
That afternoon, Arian decided to take the dwarf's advice and after a mumbled apology,
she agreed to give her lessons another go. At least she would be able to stand her
ground better if she did know magic. Apart from her theory lessons she also learned
about the inner workings of the Labyrinth, its long and complicated history and
general politics. All of which were deadly boring. However she did not stop her other
activities and would secretly continue her writing at night by the light of a greasy
candle. Her sleeping patterns became erratic and she rarely ate anything. This made
her complexion (which was already pale) a deathly white, her cheeks sallow, and her
eyes dark and tunnel like.
******
A month passed and Arian's progress was becoming evident and it seemed as though
she was ready to proceed to the practical side of things. However, Jareth was worried
about how she was neglecting her health. That evening he used a crystal to spy on her
(not something he was altogether proud of) and found the scene that unfolded fairly
disturbing. She had fallen asleep at her desk in her old schoolroom surrounded by
towers of ancient volumes, her body was twisted and disturbed and a black sticky
liquid flowed like blood from where she had knocked over the inkwell.
******
The next day a goblin servant woke Arian up and informed her that she was to take
her lesson in the Central Campanile that morning.
"Oh great!" she groaned sarcastically "Stairs! Lots and lots of stairs. No rest for the
wicked."
"I wouldn't know, my Lady." said the goblin.
"It's a figure of speech. You know when you use a particular phrase to describe an
object or a situation..." the goblin just looked at her stupidly "Oh! Never mind!"
She made her way to the Escher room. It was probably the most erratic room in the
castle so it helped to wonder around randomly until it decided to show itself.
Eventually she noticed a familiar doorway and trudged through it. There it was again.
Just as she's remembered it from the first time. Christ! It made her feel queasy. It was
probably best to just concentrate on going in one direction and not pay attention to the
confusing jumble all around her. She later came to the conclusion that this didn't work
and she was thoroughly lost. Her worst nightmare had come true and that sick feeling
in her stomach just wouldn't go away. She leaned against a wall and closed her eyes,
one thing she was sure of was that the world did not spin as fast at it was doing now.
"Good morning, Arian." she heard her father's voice say suddenly. Why did he insist
on sneaking up on her? She looked around but was surprise to find there was no one
there.
"Look up." the voice commanded.
Arian groaned, she didn't have to look to know what was going on "You're upside
down aren't you?" she said nervously.
"I'm not. You are!" and that very moment Arian felt her weight shift to her upper body
and her footing suddenly felt dangerously unstable. Before she knew it she had fallen
in a heap onto what she had thought was the ceiling and was faced with a pair of black
riding boots.
"Ow!" she whined and rubbed her arm where a bruise was quickly forming.
"You need to stay focused." said Jareth "Don't let yourself get fooled into obeying the
laws of physics."
"Well, you weren't exactly helping by saying I was upside down."
"You didn't have to believe me, child. Although your trust is very flattering, you
should know by now that I'm not that reliable."
"So, is there a reason for us being here or did you just want to confuse me?" said
Arian exasperated with the whole thing.
******
They arrived on the jagged roof of the Campanile. The sprawling mass of the
Labyrinth stretched out below them like a patterned green carpet. A sight that never
ceased to fill Arian with wonder.
"Beautiful, isn't it." said Jareth proudly "But can you tell me how it works?"
Arian thought about this for a moment. She had watched the place work for over
twelve years and had still only just come to understand its complexities.
"Take your time, Arian. It's an important question."
Time! That was a huge factor in the Labyrinth perhaps it was a clue. Suddenly a
thought struck her and she smiled triumphantly. "It's a giant clock!" she exclaimed
happily "The sun rises at the Northern gate, then progresses around the outer edge
passing each of the thirteen main gates every hour. The labyrinth must run like
clockwork and its all powered by the magical field at its centre like a giant battery or
winding mechanism."
"How did you know that?" asked Jareth looking genuinely surprised.
"Educated guess. Can I go now?" she said impatiently.
******
The next few months were purely practical and Arian would go to the Training
Ground every morning. Sometimes she wouldn't leave until late in the evening. Her
father insisted on making her practise for hours until she got things right, which she
never did. Months of magical training and all she could manage were a few blue
sparks. She didn't mind that much any more, it was quite nice to have an intellectual
equal around even if the lessons were exhausting. Two months had already passed and
they were still working on a simple fire spell. Arian's task was to light a candle
magically and put it out again.
"Try it again." Jareth ordered irritably. Arian waved her hand in the specified way but
nothing happened. "You're not even trying!" another wave, a few blue sparks
decorated Arian's fingertips, but still no flame. "For God's sake girl, concentrate!" he
shouted. Arian's eyes burned with anger and with one colossal effort, she flung her
arm out and a small fire ball appeared from nowhere. Momentarily her star pendant
turned a burning white.
"Better." Jareth exclaimed, patting out the small fire on his shirt sleeve "But next time
focus on what you're aiming for!"
"I was." Arian growled angrily.
"I don't understand. You were doing so well on the theory."
"Well, sometimes people are good at some things but not at others."
"Perhaps you need a bit of help to started." Jareth said encouragingly and held out a
crystal for her. Reluctantly, Arian took it but as soon as the thing was in the palm of
her hand her pendant flashed white again and the flawless depths of the crystal turned
cloudier and cloudier until it was finally an opaque black sphere. A massive crack
appeared down one side, followed by another and another. The fragments crumbled
together until there was nothing left but a pile of black dust. Both teacher and pupil
looked at the remains with confusion.
"I'm sorry!" cried Arian. "I told you I was useless."
"It doesn't matter, it's late." said Jareth "You may leave now." with a wave of his hand
she had disappeared. He watched the remains of the crystal that lay scattered on the
ground. That had never happened before. That pendant he had found her with had
something to do with it but he wasn't sure what. Whatever it was, it was not good!