Clarence the Worm was sitting on the small ledge outside of his home, enjoying the new day. Judging from the clear skies above, it was fixing to be a lovely one.
The Labyrinth was on alert. They had a Runner, and from the sounds of it, the Runner was going to go right past him. He made an internal bet with himself, that this time the Runner wouldn't even see him.
The denizens of the Labyrinth had roles to play in every Run. Some to help, some to hinder. It depended on the Runner, really. They all had a level of autonomy when it came to their interaction with them. Clarence had seen all kinds of Runners over the centuries. Most of them were unpleasant sorts, some even downright evil. While the usual residents of the Labyrinth were forbidden to harm (or allow to be harmed) one of the Runners, the same restriction was not true of the Labyrinth itself. While not a frequent occurrence, there had been a time or two when the screams of a particularly evil Runner had rung out over the maze. The sound usually brought a grim smile to the faces of the residents.
He saw the Runner in the distance, actually running… right toward him. A girl, in her adolescent years. Pretty she was, with black hair flying behind her as her feet pounded the cobblestones. Judging from the way she was breathing, Clarence figured that she was just about out of energy.
He was right, she stopped a little ways away from him, her frustration bubbling over. This, he'd seen before. But what he wasn't prepared for was the heartbreak on her face as she collapsed next to him, tears falling from her eyes.
She was genuinely upset… afraid, even… and not for herself. This one actually cared about the child she'd wished away.
He hadn't meant to, but he ended up calling out a greeting to her. The look of puzzlement and wonder on her face as she focused on him was rather priceless. He passed a few moments in chitchat with her, rather amazed at how polite and kind she was.
The Labyrinth had a habit of giving its residents some internal clues as to the person they were dealing with during a Run. Given what the Labyrinth was showing him, Clarence knew that this one was special. Different. No doubt about it, she was afraid for her brother. And for some reason, she thought that if she failed, it would mean death.
Well… that was true, for some Runners… but only the horrible ones. The worst thing this girl would have to face was being brought back to the start.
The longer he spoke with her, the more her spirit shined out. This girl was almost magical… she glowed with something that Clarence just couldn't put his finger on. She did grab his attention when she mentioned that there weren't any openings. He chuckled, pointing out the one directly across from where she was sitting.
She rose, approaching the wall with hesitant caution. "That's just a wall… there's no way through…"
"Things are not always what they seem in this place," he said, a lilt of laughter in his voice. "So, you can't take anything for granted."
He saw her expression flicker as she regarded the wall before her. Then, with tiny steps and with her hands outstretched before her, she moved forward. As he'd promised, she stepped through the optical illusion and into the next passageway.
Her delight was quite obvious, and with a smile that seemed brighter than the morning sunlight, she started to walk down the left passage. Belatedly, Clarence realized that she had somehow instinctively found one of the small service entrances through the Labyrinth. And sure enough, she started to go through the passage that would take her directly to the castle. Thinking quickly, he called out to her, warning her to never go that way. She thanked him, her smile warm and cheerful as she moved down the right side passage.
"If she'd have kept on going down that way," he muttered to himself while shaking his head. "She'd have gone straight to the castle."
"And you would have had a bit of explaining to do," said a tiny voice behind him. He turned, seeing his lovely wife coming through the entrance of their little home, a mischievous smile on her face.
"Yeah, a bit," he answered with a grin. "Can't imagine the King being too happy if I gave out a clue that big. But then again… he never actually said that I couldn't."
"I was surprised that you gave a clue at all," she returned. "How many runners have we seen in all these years? And few of them even bother to look at us. You didn't even wait for her to spot you… you got her attention directly."
He shrugged a bit sheepishly, "Well… she's a nice one. Got some heart to her. I figured it couldn't hurt to give her a little boost."
"Well, come along love… the tea is ready."
With one last look toward the passageway, Clarence followed his wife inside.
The vibrations came first… a faint, rhythmic tremor through the stone. The pixies stirred in their burrows, their eyes gleaming in anticipation as they pressed tiny ears to the walls and floors. The sound of a lone set of footsteps filtered down, muffled and distant, but unmistakable.
"A Runner," whispered Fispip, his voice barely audible over the faint chime of a bell somewhere deeper in the tunnels. His oversized eyes gleamed as he turned to the others. "Fresh legs on the tiles."
At once, the small chamber filled with activity. Pixies emerged from hidden crevices and tunnels, their spindly limbs quick as they gathered tools and prepared ropes. A handful carried glowing orbs of bioluminescent fungi, casting eerie light across the uneven walls of their underground domain.
"Where is she now?" asked Grizzlewump, the eldest pixie, his voice like a gravelly wind.
Fispip tilted his head, closing his eyes to feel the rhythm of the Runner's movements. "She's near the archway in the Northern Passage."
Grizzlewump nodded, his wrinkled face curling into a mischievous grin. "Good. Let's make her journey memorable."
The pixies scurried through their maze-like tunnels, their chatter a chorus of whispers and giggles. As they approached their destination, the team slowed, spreading out beneath the passageway where the human girl had stopped. Fispip squinted through a thin crack in the stone above, catching a glimpse of her.
"She's marking the floor," he whispered, watching as the Runner crouched and drew an arrow with her lipstick. The vibrant red mark gleamed in the dim light of the Labyrinth above, bold and defiant.
"Clever," muttered Grizzlewump, leaning on a jagged staff made of twisted wire. "But not clever enough."
Author's Notes:
I had looked up The Worm on Google, and found a Wiki page that said his name was William, but I liked the name Clarence. I don't recall the worm's name being said in the movie either, so… Clarence it is.
And… when I watched the movie, it didn't look like the little creatures that were turning the tiles Sarah had marked were Goblins. They looked more like pixies to me, so that's what I went with.