"Sky's Eclipse"
Chapter 26
By Aiijuin
*Disclaimer: I don't own anything Jim Henson or Labyrinth. Gröeg was originally designed by Brian Froud and catalogued by Terry Jones in Brian Froud's "The Goblins of the Labyrinth". This fanfiction is rated M for some harsh language and adult situations. Gavin King is Jareth, the Goblin King, for those who have jumped into the middle of the story. The names: Torok, the Troll King and Eunice St. Clair are characters borrowed from the 1986 movie Troll, but are not used in context with the movie inside my fanfiction in any way.
Anyway, I began full-time fall college this week, and my comic "Sarah's Grand Re-Entry" on DeviantArt takes priority, but as promised, I will update this story when I can.
In this part of the story, I introduce the Leanan-Sidhe [Lan-awn-shee'] taken from Brian Froud and Alan Lee's book, "Fairies".
Chapter 26: And Hardships Unnumbered
Raquel was exhausted. Being very pregnant, and walking with fifty extra pounds of hair was not an easy feat for her. She had been trapped in the tower for so long, that her legs no longer could condone physical exertion, such as walking through rough terrain for hours upon hours. It wouldn't make a difference anyway. There were five hours left for Sarah and things were looking, literally, Grimm. The Wood seemed to go on forever.
Raquel sat down under a tall, hickory tree. Hansel flopped down next to her. He was also burdened by similar problems, no thanks to the Old Hag. With Gretel still unconscious and slung over his shoulder, Gavin was exhausted as well. He wasn't sure how Sarah kept up the pace she did.
…And even in a long gown and slippers, he added to his thoughts.
It took Sarah a moment to realize that her band of travelers had fallen behind. This was the second time in the last hour that Raquel and Hansel had gone on a 'walking-strike'. Raquel was already carrying the Troll King's child, so she had little more to fear from him. Hansel was never a prey of the Troll King to begin with, so with the disappearance of the Witch, he was just grateful to escape with his life. His concerns strayed towards the health of his sister, however, as he recurrently checked to see if she was still breathing. Much to his delight, Gretel continued to stay alive.
Sarah walked back towards the group and sat without complaint. She wanted to force them onward, but knew they were utterly beyond their limitations of human capacity. The sun was setting in the west. At least, Sarah assumed the sun had set in the west within the Underground. She only knew that she had been following the sun's position since sunrise, at which time her quest through Grimm's Wood had begun. She remembered what the Troll King had said about the Goblin Kingdom abutting the Troll Kingdom. She had hoped that her knowledge of 'Sunrise is East and Sunset is West' would serve her well.
Sarah hoped that by traveling, in what she assumed to be south, that she would eventually reach Jareth's lands. She wasn't so sure Raquel, Hansel, Gretel, and Gavin would fare well against Jareth, but she knew Jareth better than Torok.
Did she know Jareth better than Torok? Sarah pondered.
Sarah blinked and reassured herself that she knew him well enough.
Anyway, she knew that even if she lacked proper acquaintance with Jareth, he had still been missing for the entire eight years she resided in the Goblin Kingdom. It would be highly unlikely that he's returned yet. Still, she wished for his help, right now.
You're in real trouble if Jareth hasn't returned, Sarah. Her voice nagged within her head. Sarah blew a strand of hair away from her eyes as she ignored the voice. Her lovely, silk, pink gown was completely ruined at this point. She was drenched in sweat, stained with blood and grime, and most of the hem of her gown was torn from the briars of the Wood. Sarah was about to lean her head on Gavin, when she thought she heard a rustle coming from within the Wood. It sounded like an animal.
Sarah sat up at attention. The others were too tired to take notice.
Sarah squinted towards a group of shrubs that lay thirty meters away from her. The movement had stopped behind here. Sarah's eyes searched the darkness of the closely nettled branches.
Suddenly, she saw them.
Two, looming, obsidian black eyes were staring back at her from inside the bush. Sarah gasped, and Gavin turned to ask her what the matter was, but it was too late. The beast, knowing Sarah had spotted it, lunged out with a fiercesome roar.
It was a gigantic black wolf!
Sarah screamed, "Oh, SHIT!"
She jumped to the side and rose to her feet as fast as she could manage. She didn't look back, but could feel the breath of the wolf directly behind her. Sarah ran faster than she had ever run had in her entire life. The branches and briars of the Wood snagged at her loose hair and scratched her face. She ignored the warm feeling of blood trickle down her right cheek. Sarah burst through a gathering of tiny fairies and was completely undaunted by their presence. Sarah felt the soft fur of the ravenous dog brush against her exposed ankles. Its teeth made a chomping sound next to her leg, and ripped a gaping hole in her gown. The wolf growled in frustration and shook its head in a frenzy, with the material of pink silk still hanging from its mouth.
Sarah was about to switch direction, when a tree root tripped her and she came crashing down to the ground, while snapping her ankle in the process. The wolf ran beyond her for a moment, before realizing Sarah had fallen. Immediately it turned on its hind legs and sprung back at her. Sarah's eyes opened wide as she tried to stand, but her ankle was broken, and couldn't support her weight any longer on the left leg. She flopped back down to the ground with a startled cry. The wolf jumped atop of her, and she held up her hands to keep its massive jaws from closing on her face.
Sarah was losing the battle, and things looked bad. The condensation from the wolf's hot breath puffed against her nose. Everything was hopeless, when Sarah heard a woman's voice from above her head.
"Bad, Bad! Stop it! That's not the way to greet an honored guest!"
The massive black hound backed away from Sarah with a disgruntled huff. A redheaded woman, wearing a long red cape and hood, stood over Sarah's head. She flashed a cold smile of pure white teeth. She helped Sarah sit up and said, "There, there, my Dear. I'm terribly sorry about my puppy. I'm afraid he gets a bit wily around guests. Don't you, Bad?"
The wolf chased its tail for a second and yapped like an innocent pup. It wagged its tail at the red-riding hooded woman. Sarah tried to move her leg, but a jolt of pain shot up the broken ankle. Wincing, she clutched her calf. Her ankle was already starting to swell up and turn bright red. Sarah stifled back the tears of pain. It was nearly unbearable. She exhaled deeply, while trying to gain control of her emotions. Her mind was reeling and she was out of breath from her wildly fast sprint.
The redheaded woman placed her hand against her chest and introduced herself, "My name is Rose Red."
Sarah, who was still confused and in pain, tried to introduce herself, but nothing that came from her mouth made much sense. She continued to catch her breath and stammered, "I-I-I… Sarah Red… I mean, ankle…ow."
Rose Red interrupted Sarah with a laugh, "I know exactly who you are, Sarah Williams."
Sarah blinked, "You've heard of m-me?"
Rose Red sneered, "Of course! Everybody has heard of the infamous, mortal girl who defeated the Great Goblin King. And, I'd like to partake in some of that infamy, if you don't mind."
Sarah was unsure of what 'Red' was referring to, but the red-riding hooded woman was laying Sarah flat on her back upon the bracken covered ground and shushing her in a soothing manner. Rose Red glided her long, pale fingers against Sarah's cheek in an endearing manner. Slowly, like a creeping spider, the woman sat atop Sarah in a very awkward and semi-compromising position. Rose Red smoothed her hands across Sarah's neck and face, as she began to move her lips towards Sarah's jugular vein. Rose Red whispered to Sarah, "I'll be sure and send my regards to Jareth, when the Troll King has finished what I begin here today."
The scent of Rose Red was enchanting and sweet. It placed Sarah in a delirium and she could no longer think.
Just like roses, Sarah thought.
Sarah was feeling her ankle pain less and less as the redheaded beauty began to bite down on Sarah's neck and was indulging in her blood.
While Sarah was beginning to phase out of consciousness, she whispered in a daze, "Vampire?"
Red stopped drinking for a second and chuckled, "Silly human. I'm one of the Leanan-Sidhe, the blood fairies from the Isle of Man."
Sarah nodded as best as she could manage and answered softly before blacking out, "figures…"