Author's Note: Life is insane.
But I love this OC so this story shall live. Sorry for the wait!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth.
Chapter 9: It Begins.
She felt as if she were an insect under a microscope, immensely insignificant and small, yet being examined as if she were something mysterious and fascinating. Her shoulders hunched inwards the longer she stood under his scrutiny, feeling tinier and tinier by the moment. Ducking her head, she shuffled her feet, wishing he would say something, do something.
His two toned eyes never wavered, but eventually his lips quirked. "Well, well. This is certainly turning into an interesting day." Striding forward to the mouse of a girl, he slipped a finger under her chin to lift her gaze to his own. "Why do you wish to run?"
Her brows scrunched together in confusion. "Why wouldn't I?"
He released her chin, flicking his wrist to reveal a perfect crystal sphere balanced perfectly between his fingers. "I could grant you a wish, your greatest desires…" Magic began to swirl in the sphere, showing glittering smoke of a kaleidoscope of colors. But after a few moments of nothing happening, Jareth began to frown, staring at the sphere in frustration. "What is happening? Why won't your desires show…"
Then, a tiny, musical laugh broke him from his staring contest with his sphere. The mouse of a girl held a quiet laugh, but it flowed like crystal waters over his ears. A soft smile, one which suited her face rested on her lips, and paired with her pale blue eyes, he somehow believed it to make her look even more Fae like. Though he was growing to suspect that she did not carry an ounce of malicious intent in her small frame, unlike normal Fae.
"Sorry, sir," she replied warmly, eyes twinkling in delight. "But you cannot offer me my desires if you have already given them to me."
"Oh?" Throwing the sphere in the air with a flick of the wrist, he stared at her curiously. "I have granted you no wish: pray tell, what was this desire I supposedly fulfilled?"
Her gaze fell to the ground again, though he could still see the edges of her soft smile on her freckled face. "Look around you, sir." She lifted her gaze only to glance around, holding her arms out. "All this fantasy and wonder, things I only dreamed of and read about in fairytales."
She spun with her arms outstretched, tilting her head back and letting her musical laughter flow out again, only brighter and more carefree.
"You proved my imagination true, Goblin King," she continued, finally halting her spinning to lock eyes with him, the first bit of true confidence he had seen from her. "How can I ask for more than this?"
He could not help the slow smile in return, amused at the woman child. She had already proved herself more mature than Sarah had been during her run in the Labyrinth, but this girl still seemed to have some childlike innocence left.
He began to stride towards her, gesturing as he spoke. "If this fantasy, the Underground, is what you have desired, what you dreamed of…" Stopping just in front of her, he leaned down to eye level with the shorter girl. "Why do you wish to leave?"
"Because I don't belong here." Her answer was firm, stated as if it were the most obvious answer in the world. "And if I were to stay here, well then, wouldn't fantasy become my new normal?" Shaking her head, she ended with a strong declaration. "I would rather leave with my memories of this place. So, Goblin King, I wish to run the Labyrinth."
A long sigh escaped his lips. "Pity. You seemed interesting. I could have made you a Fae in my court." Stepping back, he began walking down the hill, gesturing for her to follow, which she did, her short legs struggling to keep up with his long and easy strides. "You shall have 13 hours to navigate my Labyrinth and reach the castle at the Labyrinth's heart. Achieve this, and you shall have your freedom."
With a flick of the wrist, what appeared to be a Coo-coo clock appeared from thin air. He halted abruptly and spun to the girl, causing her to skid to a stop. "Know this, girl. I have been kind to you thus far, but from the moment this clock starts, the kindness shall be forgotten. You shall be my enemy, and I will not hold back due to you being a child."
Her face stayed locked on the ground, her hands clasped tightly together in front of her. "I am not a fool, Goblin King," she replied quietly, slowly lifting her gaze to meet his. "I know enough to understand what's at stake, and to know what I will be facing." With a shaky smile, her head tilting slightly, she declared with as much gusto as she could muster, "I hope to prove you a worthy opponent!"
A sinister smirk appeared on his face, and as he began to chuckle darkly, all of her courage she had mustered quickly fell from her face. "Very well. You have 13 hours girl." The clock hands came to life, and with a dramatic flick of his cape, the Fae disappeared in a swirl of smoke, his voice fading into the air. "Hurry to the castle, girl."
And as he disappeared, Alice collapsed to her knees, dread filling her stomach at what faced her in the Labyrinth below.
"What the hell kind of rabbit hole did you fall into..."