Reviews: Always!
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Chapter 4: Anything But Ordinary
As Sarah cringed in the bushes waiting for the axe to hit her, she felt arms come around her and draw her out and up. She could still hear the goblins and the creature fighting, but they seemed to be farther away. She kept her eyes glues shut and allowed the hands to stand her on her feet. She was being held to a powerful chest and she could smell incense. It was Jareth. She felt the strong pull of magic take over her body. Opening one eye she spied a courtyard, and a tree. They were no longer in the corridor.
Sarah opened her other eye and glanced around. It was a quiet spot, one for contemplation. There was a single door with a window on her left. The rest of the Labyrinth most likely reigned behind them.
She realized she was still being held to Jareth's chest, so she backed up slightly and stared at the tree. Not wanting to give him an inch.
"Thank you for saving me." She said, and crossed her arms.
Jareth placed his hand under her chin and turned her face towards him. God she was stubborn. But so beautiful. Her eyes were a deep chestnut brown. They drew him in. He wanted to stay in her eyes for ever.
He mentally shook himself. She still didnt trust him. But there was time for that.
"Your most welcome my dear. Glad to be of service." He mock bowed to her. "It is my pleasure to help damsels in distress. Ludo was not a part of your challenge. He broke out of my Oubliette. He is a very dangerous creature."
"Much like yourself i'd imagine."
"Touche."
He began to disapear at this, "Well i will leave you alone now. I do hope your enjoying my Labyrinth." With that he was gone.
"Its a barrel of laughs." She muttered and sat down on the ground. It had been 6 hours since she'd entered this insane asylum. She'd be damned if she didnt take a little break.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Jareth appeared in his library and sat down in one of the arm chairs. He went through the scene in the hedgemaze in his head. When he had arrived he stood back for a second to watch. His goblins were having a hell of a time capturing Ludo. He would have to execute the poor creature. There was nothing left to be done.
When he saw Ludo throw the axe he knew he had to step in. Noone had ever been killed in the Labyrinth, and he didnt want to start that trend with Sarah. He immediately threw a crystal at the axe and it appeared right back in its owners hand. His goblins had succesfully encompassed Ludo with the net and were dragging him, kicking and wailing down the corridor. He walked up to Sarah and picked her up out of the bush. She looked fine. Just shook up.
Now he was back here. With his books. There wasnt much text on memory loss caused by a journey through the Labyrinth. There was a short blurb on the winners. Saying its up to them to retain thier experience and to learn from it. But since only a small number of people had won, there wasnt much research.
Jareth supposed that Sarah had repressed her memories. She being too young to understand everything that had happened, and just wanted to forget the whole experience. At this Jareth slammed his fist down on the chair arm. 'Damn her. Damn her for forgetting me. Noone forgets the Goblin King! He'd make her pay. He'd make her love him one way or another.'
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Sarah was pacing. She didnt know what was going on with her lately. She felt...something...for Jareth. But she didnt know what. It was like she knew him from somewhere. But where? She looked up at the castle. It was still a ways off, but she could see most of it over the wall. It was huge. Her ears picked up something on the winds. It was singing. The voice was wonderful, obviously well practiced. The song sounded sad.
"Who are you now?
are you still the same or did you change somehow?
what do you do at this very moment
when i think of you
and when i'm looking back
how we were young and stupid
do you remember that?"
'I wonder who he's singing to. He has a wonderful voice.' Visions filled her head again. She was in a tunne talking to Jareth, he was jugging crystals. Then it switched to a machine shasing her and a dwarf, who looked like the one from the fountain. 'Am i going crazy! I've never been in a tunnel!' Her own voice sounded in her head, calling out a name. "Hoggle!"
"No matter how i fight it
cant deny it
just cant let you go
i still need you
i still care about you
the wayward things we've said and done
i still feel you like i'm right beside you
but still no word from you."
The scene changed to a ballroom. Magnificently dressed people danced around to a song. She was searching for someone. The someone singing the song. It was Jareth. They were dancing. 'What's wrong with me!' her head screamed as she covered her ears with her hands. Trying to block out the song. But it penetrated to her very soul.
"Now look at me
instead of moving on i refuse to see
that i keep coming back
yeah i'm stuck in a moment
that wasnt meant to last
i've tried to fight it
cant deny it
you dont even know
that i still need you
i still care about you
the wayward things we've said and done
i still feel you like i'm right beside you
but still no word from you
I wish i could find you
just like you found me
then i would never let you go..."
The song ended softly and Sarah drew her hands away from her ears. She had been here before. But why? Why was she dancing with Jareth? And how did she know the dwarf from the statue? These were questions that were best left unanswered for the moment. The memories seemed to be coming back slowly. Maybe Jareth knew. He was in her visions. Lord only knew when she'd see him again. It was best to keep going.
She walked up to the door and crossed her arms. The window was in the shape of a rectangle. From far away there appeared to be something flying across it. She stepped up near the door and realized there were scenes flying across it.
A desert looking maze with pyramid styled walls and sand, a thriving bright forest with huge trees lining the pathway, a snow covered maze with little igloos and snow capped walls, and city scene with huge wooden houses and cats running around on a paved street.
'I must have to choose one to go forward. The city one looks like it could be the goblin city. I'll try for that.'
She put her hand out and watched as the scenes flew by. when she thought she had the pattern timed out she touched the window. The scenes came to a stop. She had chosen the forest.
"Oh hell. Thats not the one i chose. CHEATER!"
The window began to grow, stretching out the forest scene until it engulfed the entire door. The road connected with the tiles she was standing on and the trees grew till she could see them over the wall.
Sarah stuck her head through the doorway. Everything seemed to be legit. The forest was really there. She walked the rest of the way inand as she passed through the door became just a wall. She was stuck in the forest.
"Lets hope i made the right decision." 'Sarah stop talking to yourself!' She walked through the trees slowly. It was much cooler here. Only patches of light could be seen. The trees were engulfing. She shivered slightly and ran her hands up and down her arms to keep warm. She could hear birds whistling, and animals scampering around in the underbrush. It seemed like a perfectly normal forest.
Until she heard the screeches. She'd been walking for some time now. It was pretty much a straight road. A few curves but nothing serious. She'd lost track of the wall a ways back. The trees and shrubbery were overgrown, sticking out into the pathway. She'd been zoning in and out of her surroundings as she walked. Thats when she heard the screeches coming from up ahead.
'I keep walking head on into trouble, i think i'll skirt around this one.' She climbed over the bush to her right and started cutting through the forest. Staying close enough that she could see which way the road went but far enough out that she could duck down without being seen. Five creatures came out of the other side of the forest. Heading on to the path. They were bright orange and yellow. They were carying something. Something that was strugling with them.
Sarah decided to follow them discreetly. She watched thier progress and silently treaded through the brush. She came upon a clearing in the woods, filled with other red and orange creatures. They looked like cats but they walked on thier hind legs like humans. They had long fingers and toes. She watched as they placed the creature they were holding onto a stone slab and tied it down with twine. It was a rabbit.
'The poor thing, what are they going to do to it?' Sarah continued to watch in horror as they each grabbed a hot metal poker out of the fire and at the same time sawed off the rabbits arms, legs and head. Sarah sucked in a breath and turned away, she was going to be sick. She turned back around and saw the cats string up the limbs and hung them from the trees where, she hadnt noticed before, other limbs were hanging. Sarah was on the verge of screaming. She began to back up when she heard a snap a few feat away from her. It was another rabbit. She saw it scamper away into the brush.
"You stupid animal!" She hissed and looked back to the clearing. The cats were gone.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>