Disclaimer: Nothing from "The Labyrinth" or "Choices" belong to me. I am simply doing a Fan-fiction. No money will be earned with this.
Enjoy! :)
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Chapter 2- Old Friends
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"AHHHHHH!" Sarah jerked awake, adrenaline rushing through her veins as she thrashed against her attacker until….she realized that she was alone in her room. Sunlight streamed gently onto the bed's comforter and the carpet, illuminating the dust motes with a golden glow. Everything looked peaceful and serene. A new day. A new life.
The heck? What a messed-up dream. She rubbed her forehead, confused. A cool breeze swept along Sarah's tanktop, dancing along her bare shoulders and a shiver worked it's way through her body. Looking around the room at all her belongings, her eyes suddenly focused on the open window; the source of her discomfort. What if...
Pain made her flinch as she gently probed her neck, feeling the fresh bruises there. Oh no. She looked at her knuckles. They had some dark painful splotches too.
"What the-?!" This can't be happening. No, no, no... She began to tremble.
Her phone was on the night stand, as usual. She picked it up…only to discover that it was somehow dead.
"Crap...", she gnawed on her bottom lip and sat there for a while. Confused. Wondering. 30 minutes passed by, and she was no closer to the answer of what happened than she was before. And nothing had jumped out from under the bed to grab her yet, so...
Sighing, she eventually got up and tossed her dead phone into her school bag. She turned to the mess known as her closet and started to get ready for school. Today was the first day of Sarah's 'Senior-hood'. I need to look good for my adoring fans. Ha. Not.
15 minutes plus a shower later, and she was looking decent.
Grabbing her schoolbag and binder, she hurried down the stairs taking two at a time. Her thudding feet made a faint echo throughout the house. Usually, it was awesome having the place to herself with all the freedom that it offered. But after last night? The house felt empty. And not in a good way. She snagged a banana and headed outside, quickly.
Buttery sunshine filtered through the trees and onto her face as she stepped out onto the white wrap-around porch. Morning birds chirped and whirred with joyful abandon in the treetops. She let out a sigh of relief, before casting a nervous glance towards the woods bordering the edge of their yard.
Jareth...It'd been a long time since she'd allowed herself to think his name. His REAL name. Dan couldn't have seen him, could he? That was all just make-believe, right?
As she stood on her porch, pondering again the events of last night, a friendly and familiar voice called out from the yard next door…
"Morning neighbor!" A man with bushy red hair, and a matching red bushy beard, smiled and waved.
"Oh, hey Mark. What's up?" She nodded to him, forcing herself to smile.
"Just coming back from a walk. Hey, Merlin, look who it is!" He glanced over behind him. A blur of grey and white fur crashed out of the bushes that separated the two yards, looking around excitedly. He bound over to Sarah, trying to wave his non-existent tail and just ended up shaking his entire butt.
She felt her face light up in a bright effortless smile and just like that…her nervousness and fear evaporated like the morning dew, "Hey boy!"
Merlin, in Sarah's estimation, was basically the best dog ever. Mark got him as a puppy about 5 years ago and he had wandered over into Sarah's yard during his first week in his new home. She thought he had been a stray and so she had begged Karen and her dad to keep him. It was only 3 days later, after they both got hopelessly attached to each other, that they found out that he was the neighbor's. Mark had been looking all over for him. Karen was relieved that they had to give the dog back, disliking dogs for their general lack of hygiene. But the "bond had been forged" and Mark even had to start calling him by 'Merlin' because he wouldn't respond to any other name. He had been a good sport about it though, even joking with Sarah about having "co-ownership" of the dog.
Merlin yipped and tried to sit on her feet, leaning his back against her legs as he grinned upwards, playfully.
He flopped down on his back when she began to scratch his belly and wiggled happily.
"Yeah, it was getting mangy and in his eyes. Had to get him shaved." Mark remarked, sticking his hands into his jeans and leaning casually against a piece of their fence. "Your parents around? I didn't see them out and about this morning."
"Yeah, they're overseas dealing with my great-aunt's estate or whatever. They'll be back in a couple weeks." Sarah shrugged.
When invited to go to Ireland, she had turned it down. Aunt O'Connelly weirded her out. She always was talking about their family history and the meaning of being a Connelly. It was fascinating….until you've heard it a million times. Plus, Sarah wasn't going to pass up the chance to stay home alone for a couple of weeks. It was a teenager's dream come true. After last night though….she was having second thoughts.
Mark looked taken aback, "Hell, that's a long time for a kid to be by themselves, 'specially in a big house like that."
She felt a twinge of annoyance, even though she had just gotten the scare of her life last night. I'm not a 'kid'.
"Don't worry, I can take care of myself. I can tie my shoes, and I even know how to make Mac 'n Cheese without burning the house down!" She grinned impishly at Mark, still rubbing Merlin's belly. He looked like he was going to pass out on her porch from happiness.
Mark let out a large laugh and held up his hands chuckling, "Alright, Alright! You kids grow up so fast these days, sheesh!"
Suddenly, cocking his head, he took a few steps towards the house and crouched down beside a small pile of loose dirt. "Huh, wonder what this is…" He picked something out of the pile and held it up…a glossy black stone.
He looked to Sarah, "This yours?"
Sarah stopped euthanizing Merlin with her hands and stepped off the wooden porch. He put the stone in her hand and she examined it. The stone was smooth, like black glass. A strange white rune was etched into it and it glittered menacingly, like onyx.
"Weird…I wonder where this came from?" She murmured. The stone was surprisingly light in her hand and she moved her thumb along it's smooth texture, tracing the indented white lines of the rune. Her aunt would probably do a double back-flip to see something like this. Looked like something she'd have around that old smelly mansion of hers.
"Beats me. Looks like a paperweight or sumthin." Mark nodded and dusted off his hands. "Welp! I'll let you get to school. Just let me know if you need anything, alright? My door's always open."
Sarah looked up at Mark and smiled gratefully, "Will do. Thanks Mark!"
He had no idea how much she appreciated having someone nearby in case of emergency. But how could she tell Mark what happened? The ripe old age of 18 was a difficult age. You're caught in the space between being technically an adult, according to law, while at the same time depending on the adults around you for a lot of things. It was very important to her to have the acknowledgement that she was capable of independence. So instead of taking him up on the offer, she remained calm so he wouldn't think she was some little kid without her parents.
Mark, oblivious to the thoughts going through her head, whistled for Merlin. Merlin jumped up to follow him. Once they were out of sight, Sarah looked down at the stone in her hand again.
If what happened last night was real, this might be a clue. Better keep this safe somewhere.
And with that thought, she pocketed the rock and headed over to her dad's shed...which was unfortunately right near the edge of the forest. She kept her eyes on the trees as she tried to open the shed door. It took a couple of tries. The door's rusted hinges screeched loudly with every shove.
Jeez when was the last time someone was in here? She flipped the light switch on so she could see what she was dealing with. Cobwebs tickled her face as she made her way over to the empty worktable and set the stone carefully on top of it's dusty surface. She stood there, looking at the stone thoughtfully, as well as the rest of the space. What IS this stone? It can't have been placed there by accident. Could it be...His?
She turned and left the shed quickly, needing to get to school on time. She stepped back into the yard, screeching the door behind her.
A few minutes later, and Sarah found herself trudging along the black asphalt road running along the edge of the woods. The sunbeams that filtered through the trees changed the plants and vegetation into varying shades of emerald green. Sarah felt her fears abate for a moment. She'd always loved the woods, even though she kept her distance. The walk to school and back was the only 'woodsy' activity she really did anymore. Gorgeous tall trees towered on both sides of the road, creating the illusion of a giant twisting corridor, like a Labyrinth. The song from the musical 'Into the Woods' came to her mind and she hummed softly, staring at her moving feet….
The way is clear, the light is good, I have no fear nor no one should. The woods are just trees, the trees are just wood….
The roar of a car engine interrupted her musical thoughts, approaching from behind.
Stepping to the side, Sarah glanced back and saw a black vintage Camaro. She looked at the driver and pretty blue eyes locked with her green ones. Huh, that guy looks familiar… She instantly became wary. What if it's another one of them in disguise? He even LOOKS like Jareth a little! Blonde hair to his shoulders, blue eyes, leather jacket…
He's definitely not bad looking, Sarah admitted to herself.
The car slowed to a stop and she watched suspiciously as the guy leaned out through the open window and asked, "Hey, do I know you from somewhere?"
Sarah halted, surprised, "Uh, I was wondering the same thing actually… Do you go to Westchester High?"
He smirked, "Not anymore. Left that hellhole behind a couple of years ago."
"Oh! Well…lucky you!" She tried to play it cool, but could't help but shift her feet. He used to be a highschool student? I know I've seen him before...
"Hang in there. You'll be out before you know it." He looked her up and down, before meeting her eyes and grinning, "Let me guess…Senior?"
"Yeah, that's right." She allowed herself to smile. Definitely not bad looking. She played with her hair without realizing it, and then suddenly realized it, and immediately stopped herself.
"Cool. Well, I better get to work. Catch you later!" He smiled appreciatively at Sarah. He stepped on the gas and the car started to pull away.
"Oh! I never got your…."
But he was already too far away to hear, disappearing around the bend in the road.
"…name." Sarah narrowed her eyes. If that was one of Jareth's minions, he had been a hell of an actor. He didn't even ask me if I wanted a ride. I would have turned it down, of course, but still...
Shrugging, Sarah continued her way down the winding forest road.
A thin crowd of students trickled across the yard at the school, as Sarah arrived, waving and calling out to friends as they converged on the front doors. The mysterious dude in the Camaro was right, Sarah would be out of high school before she knew it. Sarah felt herself grin, drinking in the energy of the new school year. Finally, she was a Senior, and it felt good to be on top. No more awkward Freshman, Sophomore, or Junior years... Soon I'll be packing all my belongings into my "graduation present", kissing Toby good-bye, and watching this town disappear in the rear-view mirror.
Squeezing through the loud, crowded hall, she found a familiar girl standing at the locker next to hers.
"Oh! Hey MJ!" Sarah said, surprised.
The Gothic girl glanced over at Sarah, bored, then looked back to her locker, "Sup."
Her cocoa-colored skin was sporting a dark black lipstick and thick eye-liner, which were meticulously done. Her dreadlocks were dyed maroon with a couple of dyed blonde ones, some decked out with silver dread-rings. She wore a black shirt with a red skull on it, and black fishnets for sleeves. On her ears, she had a large silver moon with a little silver skull dangling from one side, while her other ear sported a simple silver stud. Sarah wondered briefly if her neck was unevenly stronger on one side because of the constant weight on only one of her earlobes….
"You're staring, Williams." MJ didn't even look in Sarah's direction.
Sarah was startled out of analyzing MJ's outfit choices, and turned to her locker, "Sorry." she mumbled, embarrassed. As a former drama club enthusiast, Sarah thought it was cool that MJ didn't care what people thought of the way she dressed. Thinking back to when she played on stage, Sarah had used to wish she could wear her stage props to class for fun.
Sarah plugged her cellphone into the portable battery she had brought from home with her. The light blinked and it started charging. She turned to MJ and tried to strike up conversation, "That hasn't always been your locker, has it? I've never seen you using it before."
"Got reassigned." MJ kicked the locker shut and swung her bag over her shoulder before turning to completely face Sarah. Her black lips turned down into a frown, "Why? Are there going to be any problems?" She glared.
"Oh! No, of course not. It'll be nice having you here." Sarah tried to smile reassuringly at her and said, "I really like your fishnets."
MJ did't say anything, just stared at her for a moment. Then her heavy eye-lined gaze slid behind Sarah and she calmly said, "Oh look, it's Emily."
Following MJ's gaze, Sarah turned and saw a plump girl, nervously clutching a textbook to her chest.
"Um...hi, guys." Emily said.
Her clothes were what you'd call the exact opposite of MJ's. She had a bow-tie barrette in her curly light-brown hair, given to her by her mom in the 3rd grade before she'd passed away. She completed the look, wearing a polka dot shirt with a peter-pan collar, and then a green cotton blazer over that. Some people wanted to stay 3rd grader-cute forever, Sarah guessed.
"Hi Emily." Sarah nodded at her, smiling. "It's been a while. How was your summer?"
"Oh, it was good. I just got done doing a Coding Camp for video games up in Connecticut!" her hesitant face brightened up a bit.
Emily was deceiving. You would never guess by looking at her that she liked to create video games since she looked more like a preschool teacher. She was a technology genius, and a wiz at the computer. Video games at her house were an awesome way to spend a Friday night.
"That's awesome! Let me know if you ever need a play-tester!" Sarah grinned, closing her locker.
Emily glanced around furtively, lowering her voice. "There's, um, there's actually something I wanted to talk to you about…" Her chubby cheeks were red.
"Sure, what's up?" Sarah watched her, curiously. She seems more nervous than usual.
"I got some really weird texts last night. Did you…?" Emily trailed off, looking over Sarah's shoulder.
Again, Sarah was forced to turn, as she followed Emily's gaze to see a beautiful girl strutting down the hallway in their direction, chatting loudly with two friends.
Ugh. Britney.
MJ seemed to be thinking the same thing and she muttered, "Oh boy. Just when you think high school might not be the necrotic-sucking chest-wound that you remember…"
Britney was wearing her short cheer-leading outfit, and was enjoying the obvious attention the student body was giving her for it. Her lackeys, Cody and Jocelyn, hung on to every word as the three walked together.
"Oh my god, look, I've been ghosting this guy for, like two solid weeks, and he just asked me out for coffee….again!" She scoffed loudly, aware of everyone listening to her.
Cody laughed next to Britney, "Yikes. Desperate is not a good look."
"Maybe he's just not scared of ghosts? You could try clowns instead. Clowns are gross" Jocelyn said, flipping her brown hair over her shoulder. Jocelyn should have been a blonde…
Britney looked over at Jocelyn, annoyed at her friend's idiocy as well it would seem, "That's not…Joss, do you even know what ghosting mean—"
"H-hi, Britney!" Emily peeped up hopefully, not seeming to be able to help herself. MJ and Sarah shared a quick glance. Here we go again…
The group stopped in their tracks, and Britney turned to give Emily an appraising look. "Wow, Emily, great sweater. I didn't know 'Baby Barn' had a quadruple-XL section." She smirked.
Emily looked like she wanted to shrink and die, "I…I just wanted to say hello…"
Britney's smirk turned into a scowl, "And I want a red Ferrari for my birthday, but I'll settle for not having to listen to your whiny voice anymore."
Sarah felt herself bristle. Who does she think she is? "Right, because basing your fashion sense on whatever the wannabe models on Pictogram are wearing is waaaay cooler." Sarah wasn't impressed by Emily's clothing choices herself, to be honest, but Emily's value wasn't based on what she wore.
Britney's attention turned to her and her scowl darkened, "News flash, Sarah: no one asked you."
Sarah raised her eyebrows and, like Emily, couldn't seem to help herself, "Didn't hear anyone asking for your opinion either. How about you take your unsolicited fashion advice to someone who cares?"
"You so do not want to piss me off Williams." She glowered.
Sarah rolls her eyes, "Britney, this gets old. Will you grow up?"
Emily looked down at the floor, hiding a small smile.
Jocelyn tried to come in for the rescue, "Oh yeah? Well—"
MJ cut her off, "Shhhh…witty comebacks aren't your strong suit, 'track-and-field Barbie'."
"Cross Country." Jocelyn huffed.
MJ rolled her eyes, "I know. I used the wrong one on purpose to piss you off. Try to keep up."
Sarah looked at MJ with admiration.
Cody decided to speak up then, "How about you go haunt some other hallway, freak?", he said, referring to MJ.
He took a step forward in order to put the three girls in his huge shadow. Sarah felt a tremor of loathing. Cody was a jerk. 100% a bully. And enormous. Once, he had asked her out in 6th grade, but she had just seen him picking on a mentally retarded kid the day before. Sarah told him that she wanted absolutely nothing to do with him. And from then on he began including her in his "bully routine" as well.
MJ gave Cody a long, ponderous look…then reached up to pluck a stray blonde hair from his shoulder, "You know, I keep meaning to try out this new curse I found on the internet. If you feel a burning sensation in your eyeballs, that's normal."
Cody mouth dropped open, "The hell…"
Not waiting for a response, MJ waggled her fingers and stalked her way down the hallway, "Later guys."
"Later…" Sarah called after her, disappointed that she was leaving them alone with these jerks.
"Bye MJ." Emily also stared wide eyed after the direction MJ took.
"Ewww, Cody! What's going to happen to your eyeballs?" Jocelyn freaked out, looking at Cody's face as if it was going to melt any minute. Cody scowled.
Britney rolled her eyes, "Chill, Jocelyn. That weirdo just reads too many vampire novels. With any luck she'll flunk out and go live in a dirty old shack like 'Pritch the Witch'."
"Yeah! She is just like 'Pritch the Witch'! We should call her, uh….'MJ the Witch'! Haahahahahahahahaha!" Jocelyn clutched her stomach, laughing at her strange joke.
Sarah turned to Emily with her eyebrows raised, not sure if she could handle such stimulating company.
Both Cody and Britney were staring at Jocelyn too, perhaps thinking the same thing. "…Wow. Good one, Joss." Cody deadpanned.
Sarah shook her head, stuffing a notebook in her book bag, "Well, as lovely as all this has been, we should probably go—"
"Oh. My. God. Is that a hickey?" Jocelyn laughed, shocked.
She reached up, poking the fresh bruises on the side of Sarah's neck. Sarah couldn't help but flinch in pain.
"Ow! Get off!" She yelled indignantly. I'm about to lose my cool here.
"Yeah right," Cody laughed, but his eyes narrowed, "Like anyone would want to chew on this social reject…"
"For your information, I got it from your mom!" Sarah grit out at him, furious.
"What!? I thought Cody's mom was in Aspen this week?" Jocelyn asked, surprised. She wasn't being sarcastic. Oh for the love of….
Cody's face turned a purple shade, "You should watch what you say, Sarah. That mouth of yours tends to get you in trouble."
Just as Sarah was about to push him over the edge with another 'your mom' comeback, Britney stepped in, "Whatever. Fascinating as this convo is, I need to go get ready for the pep rally."
She grimaced at Sarah, before jerking her head to the side and strutting away. The others followed. But not without Cody first giving Sarah a shoulder-check as he walked by, knocking her hard against a locker.
"Ow!"
"Hey!" Emily cried, shocked.
"We'll catch up later, Sarah." Cody called cheerfully back over his shoulder.
Wincing, she rubbed her shoulder where it slammed against the locker, glaring after the bullies. Gosh dang, don't I have enough bruises for one day?
"This school year's already off to a great start, huh?" Sarah glanced over at Emily with a smirk, who's still standing there with her mouth open.
"Should we report them to the office, or…?"
Sarah, chuckled bitterly, as she hefted her school bag onto her shoulder and responded, "Sure, millionth time's a charm, right? Maybe this time they'll actually get in trouble."
Emily smiled ruefully as the two of them joined the crowd of students shuffling towards the gym…
Music blared over the gym speakers, and the newly polished wood floors gleamed. A rush of panic hit Sarah as she was jostled every-which-way by the crowd, her mind flashing back to the night before.
"Sarah? Are you ok?" Emily snapped her out of her thoughts, staring at her. Sarah wondered what her face looked like.
"Y-yeah, just, uh, kinda crowded in here. You see anywhere to sit?" Sarah glanced around, looking from the shiny wooden basketball floors to the shiny wooden bleachers.
"Not really…" Emily glanced around too, "Looks like there's a couple of seats up there next to…Oh, never mind. That's MJ's spot."
Sarah looked up to where Emily's indicating.
In the top row of the bleachers, MJ sat scribbling in a worn sketchbook. As Sarah watched, a couple of freshmen moved to sit beside her…
"HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS…" She bared her teeth at them, hissing like a cobra.
The freshmen tripped over themselves, scrambling to get away from her. It made Sarah want to laugh a little. She knew MJ wasn't a witch like everyone said she was. Mary-Jane Adams just knew what she liked and she didn't care if other people liked it or not. When they all hung out together as kids, she was more or less the same way. Then, as she grew older, she shut herself away from everyone.
MJ glared after freshmen for a while…then noticed Sarah watching her. Her face became a radiant smile, and she nodded to the empty seat beside her. Sarah blinked at her sudden transformation.
"Is…is she inviting me to sit beside her?" She asked Emily, dumbfounded.
"I…I think she is!" Emily was just as dumbfounded as Sarah was.
A sudden thought came to her. Maybe I could talk to MJ about the dream I had last night? She knows about all kinds of supernatural stuff…plus it'd be nice to tell someone who'd actually believe me. We haven't caught up in ages. She looked at Emily apologetically, but Emily waved her away.
"You go ahead…MJ kinda…um…scares me a little." Emily ducked her head shyly.
"You sure?" Sarah didn't want to leave her alone.
"Yeah, I think I see a spot next to Mr. Cooper." She nodded over to where the teachers sat, "Oh! And thanks for your help earlier Sarah." She looked up at her, grateful.
Sarah nodded, "Anytime. See you later.", and she began her long trek up the mountain of bleachers.
She climbed to the top of the bleachers and sidled her way over to MJ's corner. She pointed to the empty spot right next to MJ, "Hey, anyone sitting here?"
"Just my ghost friend, but he's incorporeal so it doesn't really count." She deadpanned, watching her reaction.
Sarah laughed, until she realized that MJ wasn't laughing too.
"What." MJ asked, deadpanning.
"Uhh, nothing." Sarah raised her eyebrows innocently, not sure how to react, "Sorry, I just can't tell if you're messing with me."
"It's all part of my mystique."
She looked at the bench and then back at MJ's expressionless face. Sit right next to MJ? Or leave space for the ghost? She chose to sit next to MJ.
"Bold move, sitting in someone's lap before you're even introduced." MJ smiled at her then, a twinkle in her eye.
She passed the test it would seem.
"Maybe the ghost and I can grab a coffee later." Sarah joked back with a grin.
The two of them sat together for a few minutes in silence. MJ scribbled in her sketchbook.
MJ broke the silence first, "So are you going to tell me what you're so freaked out about? Or are you having fun dismembering that poor bench?"
"Huh?" Sarah looked down, realizing she'd been picking splinters off the edge of the bleachers. She sighed, "I do want to talk about it. It's just…it's kind of a weird story." Her eyebrows pinched together as she contemplated how to bring up what happened.
"Sarah. Look at me. Weird is my middle name."
"Really?" She asked her hopefully, wanting to make sure that she could actually get this off her chest without judgement.
"Well, no, it's actually Dolores. But if you tell anyone that, I will go to your house and hide eyeballs in your food." Her lips turned up at the side, but besides that she looked dead serious.
Sarah smiled dubiously, "Where would you even get—"
"Next time you go to pour a bowl of cereal? Bloop! Eyeballs."
Sarah laughed, she couldn't help it. Her laughter made a few people turn to look at her. MJ was so weird. She made Sarah feel…normal.
"Duly noted." Sarah calmed down, then sighed and furrowed her eyebrows, "So…what would you say if I told you that last night I saw some kind of…demon?"
"Depends. What'd this demon look like?"
"Well… he looked like Dan, at least at first."
"Woah! Plot twist! Keep going." She excitedly gave Sarah her full attention.
"Once I figured out it wasn't actually Dan, it attacked me." Sarah swallowed, remembering him lunging for her before slamming her onto the floor to keep her from running. Now that she thought about it, her back ached a little too. "Then I put my necklace on him, and it melted his face to reveal…a handsome man with strange markings around his eyes."
"Double plot twist! Markings around the eyes?" MJ tapped her pencil against her black lips, looking thoughtful, "That's strange. Handsome? Could it have been a 'fae'?"
"Uh, I don't know? Iron burned him, so I guess so?" Sarah pondered. Her aunt always talked about fae, but that was just Ireland for you. "The weirdest thing is that I woke up the next morning and he, or it, was gone. Why would he just attack me and then leave?" Sarah finished, feeling so confused.
MJ smirked and leaned towards her conspiratorially, "Full disclosure? My knowledge of the fae is like sixty percent Wikipedia and forty percent this dude named 'MagicStan75' who I met on a warlock forum." MJ's smirk widened at Sarah's dubious expression. "Maybe whatever power allowed him access to you was only temporary? Maybe it wasn't his mission to harm you? Or maybe it was all a dream?"
Sarah shuddered, reaching up to feel her neck, "Definitely not a dream. Dreams don't leave bruises."
"They can actually. There are beings who can enter or even effect your dreams. One of those could probably use your dreams to hurt you." She stated, thinking aloud, "You could also be under a curse or something. I've read a lot about cursed dreams."
Umm, remind me again why she studies about cursed dreams? Sarah thought about what she said for a moment, and then, "I let him in through my window, so maybe that gave him power… maybe that was my mistake?" She pondered aloud. MJ raised her eyebrows at her as if that was a no-brainer.
"What? It was 3 in the morning and nothing makes sense to me that early!" She protested defensively.
"Maybe you just ate some bad meatloaf." MJ smirked.
Sarah snorted and rolled her eyes, smiling. "Mac and Cheese, actually."
MJ chuckled, and Sarah looked over at her, "Thanks MJ. I really needed to talk to someone but I didn't think anyone would believe me."
"Hmmm. Jury's still out on me believing you. You could be making this all up to screw with me." She gave Sarah an appraising look.
"Do…people do that to you?!" Sarah asked, surprised.
MJ flashed her teeth at her, relaxing, "They try, but my 'Kung Fu' is strong."
"Well," Sarah smiled, "then thanks for listening to me without immediately dismissing me." Sarah felts as if a huge weight had been lifted from off her shoulders and she sighed, feeling calmer, "It helps a lot."
"Cool. Glad to help." Then MJ sat up straighter, "Okay. I think I'm done now."
"Uh, done with…?"
"Being nice. See, I've got this whole 'bitter misanthrope' thing going on. If people see us being all friendly, they might think it's ok to talk to me."
Sarah chuckled, "Can't have that."
"No. Indeed we can't. I would literally die." MJ smirked.
Sarah picked up her stuff and started edging towards the stairs.
"Hey, Sarah." She called.
"Yeah?"
"You're not as big a tool as most people." She nodded at her.
"Coming from you, MJ, that means a lot." Sarah grinned.
"Yes. Yes, it does." MJ turned back towards her sketchbook, ending the conversation.
Sarah made her way down the bleachers as they continued to fill, looking for any place she could squeeze in…
Finally, she spot one empty seat…next to a familiar figure with long greasy hair and a dirty beanie on his head, slouching in the second row…
Taylor Cunningham.
Aww, crap. Anywhere but there! She quickly turned around, desperately scanning the crowd for another open seat, any seat but that one. But there weren't any. She had talked with MJ for too long. Sarah considered trying to sneak back out the gym doors, until someone shouted at her from a few rows up.
"Hey Sarah! Sit your stupid a** down, unless you wanna watch from the garbage can!" Cody glared at her threateningly.
"I…" She looked around, desperate. Maybe the garbage can would be better?
"Um, Hellooo!? You're blocking our view. And there's a spot right there!" Jocelyn snarled, pointing to the spot next to Taylor.
Wincing, Sarah turned back around to see Taylor looking right at her.
"Um, hey, Taylor. Do you mind if...?" She was worried how he'd respond.
"Knock yourself out." He said, uncaring. Sarah wondered for a brief second if he meant literally, until he scooted over. She squeezed in beside him.
She tried to strike up conversation to avoid feeling awkward, "So…uh, what's been up with you? We haven't really talked since…" She trailed off, not sure how to finish that sentence.
"Yeah…I know." He ended the discussion there.
They sat, neither of them saying another word. Down on the floor of the gym, a tall handsome guy with glasses walked up to the podium and grabbed the microphone.
"How you doin' Westchester Hiiiigh!?" He bellowed, grinning. He raised a hand in the air.
The students roared in response! The bleachers rumbled and shook as the crowd pounded their feet on the wood.
"Woah…" Sarah said aloud, surprised, "When did Luke get so…" Hot? "…Popular?"
"Shortly after hitting six feet and discovering hair gel, which was shortly before getting elected as student body president.", Taylor sighed. He seemed bored with the whole thing. He leaned back and kicked his legs out as much as he could. He finished his bored look by folding his arms.
Luke waved to the cheering crowd, flashing a movie star smile. "Welcome back, everyone! For anyone who doesn't know me already, I'm Luke Thomas, your student body president. I know everyone is a little salty that summer is over—"
Sarah scoffed a little on the inside. When did the expression 'salty' become a thing?
"—but trust me…this is going to be one school year that you'll never forget. And on that note, let's kick this pep rally off, Westchester Wolf-style!"
At Luke's signal, several cheerleaders jumped up from the bleachers, bouncing and waving their pom-poms in the air.
One of the girls shone brighter than the rest. "You can do better than that!" She yelled, beaming at the crowd, "Let's hear it!" The crowd cheered louder.
"Looks like Stacy's doing pretty well too…" Sarah said to Taylor. They watched their old friend as she pulled off an effortless roundoff into a backflip, drawing thunderous applause from the rally. One by one the cheerleaders tumbled across the gym, showing different moves.
"Woah! That's incredible!" Sarah could't help but get involved and started cheering with the rest of the student body.
"Yay. Go team." Taylor said, unimpressed.
Beaming, Stacey looked back at the rest of the cheer squad, her smile suddenly fading as she locked eyes with Britney. Britney glowered at her, fuming.
With a sad look on her face, Stacey turned… and suddenly tripped over her own feet, sprawling!
"Ahhh!" She cried as she fell, smashing her face into the ground in a way that looked painful.
"Oooooh!" The crowd all groaned together.
"Stacey!" Sarah jumped to her feet, and descended the two rows, hurrying to help her up.
"Are you okay?" She asked her, confused, "What happened?"
"Nothing…" Stacey looked at Sarah sadly, "I'm just a klutz I guess."
Sarah stared at her, sensing something off, "You think you're a klutz? Stace…you just did a freaking backflip!" Sarah beamed at her, brushing off the imaginary dirt off her uniform.
Stacey looked at her with something akin to gratitude, "I—"
"Hahahahahaha! Did you see that?! She was all like, 'Ahhhhhhhh' WHAM!" Jocelyn's obnoxious voice called out from the bleachers. Sarah grit her teeth.
"Please tell me the school news-nerds got that on video." Cody crowed like an immature teenager. Oh wait… he is.
Blushing, Stacey rejoined the rest of the cheer squad. Sarah went back up to her spot and sat down as, at the other end of the gym, Britney stepped forward with a smug smile.
"Check this out…" She yelled to the crowd.
Britney took three running steps, then flew into a no-handed cartwheel. The crowd roared as she sticks the landing. Now it was Sarah's turn to be unimpressed. She leaned back and unconsciously copied Taylor's exact stance as she crossed her arms with a scowl.
"Ugh! Why do people like her so much? They've got to know how horrible she is." She asked no one in particular.
Taylor scoffed and rolled his eyes, "And? She's hot and she can do flips. We can't compete with that."
They both glowered together at the scene identically, looking almost like brother and sister, and Luke finally took the spotlight once more. He grinned from the podium and the cheerleaders returned to take their seats, "Well, now that the cheer squad is done totally blowing our minds…let's give it up for the Westchester Wolves basketball team!"
More applause sounded as a group of guys in basketball jerseys form up in front of the podium, howling like wolves.
"Huh." Taylor said to himself, and Sarah glanced over at him, "Sean made the team this year." She looked back and sure enough, there was Sean, howling with the rest of the team.
"Wow! Good for him! I can't wait to see him play!", she said, excited.
Sean was the only Asian in the School of Westchester, New York and he had tried for the past 3 years of highschool to get onto the basketball team. He never made the cut. It looked like his hard work was finally paying off though. It was his life-long dream to be a basketball player. Strange dream for an Asian, but a dream isn't limited to color or race. He looks like he's gained a lot of muscle!
"Make sure you don't pass to the Asian! He can't see anything!" Both Taylor and Sarah flinched as Cody's voice broke through the general applause.
Sean's head snapped in the direction of Cody's voice, his face twisting with anger. "Hey! Why don't you come down here and—"
He took one step towards the bleachers, but stopped himself as Luke called the team captain, Ben, up to the podium, "Thanks Luke. What's up Westchester High?" Ben smiles as everyone whoops and stomps in response.
"We've got our first game coming up in a couple of days, so you guys had better be here to watch us crush it! Not gonna lie, we've got a couple of rookies on our team this year, but I'm not gonna let that stop-"
The shouting and applause paused as the gym lights suddenly began to flicker.
"Huh?" Ben looked confused.
More flickering.
A tendril of cold fear slipped from Sarah's heart, down into her stomach. Oh no. Flickering lights…?
Luke's voice called out over the speakers, drowning out the nervous chatter of the students.
"Everyone stay seated! We don't want anyone to fall from the—kkkkkssssshhhhhhkkkkkkkkkkkkk!"
A burst of static cut him off, and the music stuttered, fading in and out as if it was a radio on the wrong station. The lights flickered eerily some more.
With a loud BANG!, the gym doors were blown open by a frigid gust of wind.
The lights flickered more rapidly, and Sarah nearly jumps out of her seat as Taylor suddenly grabbed hold of her arm.
"Gaah! What are you-" She screeched, panicking.
"Shut up! Do you hear that?!" He stared at her, wide-eyed.
"Hear what?!" Sarah played dumb. This isn't happening. It's another dream! I'm dreaming! I don't want to hear any-
"Shhhhh!" Taylor hissed at her, scowling.
They both listened. And she did hear it…Just barely on the edge of her perception, airy whispers and quiet giggles.
Goblins?!
"No…..Not here…." She whimpered, terrified.
Sarah looked around, picking out the faces of her former friends…
Sean's face reflected his shock. Luke looked about ready to faint. Stacey's mouth hung open and her eyes were as wide as saucers. MJ looks like she really did see a ghost. And Emily's eyes were tearing up, "N-no way…" Emily whimpered before covering her face.
The music sputtered and died as the lights shut off completely, a few of the students screamed dramatically, but Sarah could still hear the voice. A voice that was all at once horribly alien…and horribly familiar. It came only in pieces though, as if the frequency was off on a radio station...
"My friends...long...time...", the British voice chuckled. The sound raised goosebumps over Sarah's entire body from head to toe. "I look for...finish...what started... rules by...dear Sarah...apply…"
Her breathed start coming in shuddering gasps.
"Everyone…plays…together…"
And then it was gone.
The lights came back to normal, and the speaker system functioned again. The only signs that 'All is not what it seems...' were the 7 students with their faces ashtray white, and the blown open doors that were still gently banging in the cool breeze.
"He's back." Taylor breathed. He and Sarah looked at each other with unconcealed terror...
.
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Super long chapter, this. Sorry about that. Character development can get tedious, and whenever I'm reading a story I always want to be drawn in by the action, not the seemingly pointless details. So, if anyone gets annoyed by the character development… I understand your pain, lol. Let me know how to improve! Sometimes I feel like it lags and pulls at the story, but at the same time it feels like an unnecessary evil because if I kill off any of the characters, I want you to be able to FEEL something instead of it just being a lifeless, black and white character. You know? AND DON'T WORRY! That blond guy in the black Camaro is NOT Jareth in disguise. Not every handsome blonde-haired man is Jareth you guys, sheesh! Lol. But Sarah DOES know him from somewhere...
FUN FACT: Connelly is generally considered to be an Anglicized form of the Old Gaelic O'Conghaile. It means "fierce as a hound." The name consists of the Gaelic prefix "O" indicating "male descendant of," plus the personal byname Conghaile. Con, comes from a word meaning "hound," and gal, means "valor."
Connelly was originally an Irish clan from Galway on the western coast of Ireland. Connelly families also settled in County Cork in the southwest, County Meath just north of Dublin, and County Monaghan on the border of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
So, I decided to use Jennifer Connelly's real name for Sarah's ancestors. Pretty cool, eh? Jessica's last name, Cunningham, will have an interesting meaning as well.
As always, please leave a review! Reviews mean the world to me!