Labyrinth Fan Fiction ❯ Heard About A Place Today ❯ Even down looks up ( Chapter 12 )
[ A - All Readers ]
By: Stef hanee 
Non Anime: Labyrinth Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Fantasy / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 02.25.2007 | Updated On: 02.25.2007 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 349 | Status: Completed
Non Anime: Labyrinth Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Fantasy / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 02.25.2007 | Updated On: 02.25.2007 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 349 | Status: Completed
Chapter Twelve: Even Down Looks Up
The Escher room consisted of stairways that were in every direction: upside down, right side up and sideways. It was called this because it was similar to a painting by the artist M.C Escher.
"Wicked," Stephanie breathed as she looked around the room.
"Yeah! This is cool," Chantal said as she looked up then down. As Chantal looked down, she noticed several archways. "Which way do we go? And how are we to know which way is the way out?" She asked her friend.
"We'll have to try and basically guess. And where is Jareth?" Stephanie asked mostly to herself.
"You would think that since we got to the castle he would send us home but nooooo..." Chantal said.
"Maybe he got tired of people saying the words, the 'cliché' final confrontation and decided to let them find their own way back," Stephanie said as she got closer to the ledge of the platform that they were standing on. She looked down as Chantal came beside her.
A few feet across the room, below them, stood black doors. It had strange carvings amongst carved vines. There were no door handles but there was a crystal between the connections where the two doors were sealed. "That must be the way out," Stephanie pointed out.
"Well what are we waiting for?" Chantal said. She turned around to find a way down, heading towards a flight of stairs that led down to an archway.
Stephanie was about to follow her friend but the sound of footsteps stopped her. The footsteps were slow as though the owner of them was taking their time. Chantal had also stopped halfway down the stairs. The footsteps had stopped. Chantal looked around the room. She shrugged to her friend. Stephanie came closer to the ledge and peered down.
There stood Jareth, upside down looking up—or in this case down at Stephanie. Gravity apparently was not a rule in this room for his clothes and hair stayed in place as though he was right side up. His arms were folded across his chest.
Chantal looked at Jareth. "Ah, the wonderful Goblin King here to torment us again."
Jareth ignored Chantal's comment and turned to Stephanie. "You're quite right Stephanie," he said, his voice calm. "That is what you must reach to get yourselves home." he walked closer towards the ledge. "If you make it that is," he added with a smile revealing his fangs.
"How long do we have left?" Stephanie asked.
"You have time left," he said obviously not telling.
"Then we do have time to make it," Chantal said.
The Goblin King raised an eyebrow. "I said, 'If'."
Chantal glared at the Goblin King. "But we made it to the castle. Why make us play this little game of yours anymore?" Chantal asked growing impatient.
Stephanie looked at the amused Goblin King who still had a smile on his face. Chantal without getting an answer, stormed away down the flight of stairs. Jareth tilted his head to one side. "Steph?" Chantal questioned and turned around, she had passed through the archway that had been to her left.
"Yeah, I'm coming..." she heard her friend say. Chantal bent down to tighten her shoelaces.
Stephanie glanced at the Goblin King once more; there was a moment of silence when his face went expressionless. Then Stephanie turned around, her hair swinging. She descended the same flight of stairs that her friend had taken. Stephanie went through the archway but Chantal wasn't there. "Chantal?" Stephanie said, thinking that her friend had thought that she was right behind her and continued through the Escher room.
"Steph!" She heard Chantal's voice above her. Stephanie looked up; Chantal was on another platform across the room. "Did you take the wrong way?"
Stephanie shook her head. "No, I haven't. There wasn't any other way."
"Figures," Chantal said rolling her eyes, wondering who could have changed things around. Serek squeaked in agreement.
"Well, maybe we could meet up at the doors," Stephanie suggested.
"'Tay!" Chantal sighed. "But I still don't like the idea of being separated again, especially in this room."
"Don't worry, I'll figure out something if we can't meet up when one of us does reach the doors."
Chantal nodded. "'Tay, See you then," and she went down a flight of stairs, trying to find a way towards the doors. Stephanie on the other hand, had to go up a flight of stairs and pass through an archway before going down. Time passed as the two girls tried to decipher their way when suddenly Stephanie stopped in her tracks. She realized that she had been humming the song "Within You" that Jareth had sang to Sarah years before. She smiled continued her way towards the archway to her left.
O O O
Chantal was not smiling; in fact, she was getting frustrated because the room didn't make any sense. "Actually nothing in this place makes sense!" she said aloud.
She came into view with the doors again and stood there trying to figure how to get there. There were steps leading right to the doors but they were upside-down. "Damn!" Chantal said. In addition, there were no archways near the doors to get there. But there was a platform close by; they could reach the platform with the doors if they're able to jump to it.
Chantal smiled, grabbed Serek and twirled around. "All we have to do is find a way to that platform! Chan you're a genius!" she said aloud to herself. Chantal picked up her pace and hurried to climb up a flight of stairs.
O O O
Her footsteps echoed off the walls, ceilings and floors when Stephanie realized that she could not see the doors. She even knelt at a ledge to see if the doors were underneath her. Her hair fell over the side as she searched.
"I'm way too far, I wonder if this room is changing..." she said as she stood up.
"The room does change," a deep voice said behind her. Jareth started walking towards Stephanie, he was upside down. He stopped halfway on the steps, his head inclined with hers. "But I am not the one who changes it," he said with a shake of his head. With a small smile, he sat down on the steps. "Really Stephanie," he said making a crystal appear in his right hand and soon began juggling it. "Do you seriously think that I'm that much of a villain?"
Stephanie looked away from his gaze; it was as though he had read her thoughts about accusing him.
"I merely delay the people who try to reach the castle in search of the ones they've wished away. However, I do not change the Labyrinth or the 'Escher' room to win. I believe it is the person who travels through who makes it difficult, without ever knowing it." He caught the crystal in his right hand and looked into the depth of it. "Only the people with true determination can make it through, not the people who just wanted to pass through my Labyrinth to be like Sarah." He threw the crystal into the abyss of the Escher room with a tired sigh. The crystal clinked against stone but didn't break; it bounced onto the floors, walls and steps, and then disappeared. The Goblin King was about to say something else as he stood up.
"Steph!" Chantal yelled from an archway. Stephanie turned around to see her friend walk over to her with a grin on her face.
"Chantal!" Stephanie said smiling. "Did you make it?" Thinking that was the reason why her friend was grinning.
"No, but I found you," Chantal said. "I heard something clinking by where I was and I heard voices so I followed the voices. Anyway, I think I've found a way how to get close to the doors."
"Wicked! Show me!" Stephanie said. Chantal quickly turned around, heading towards the archway where she had come from. Stephanie turned around; Jareth of course, was gone.
There was a pause before Stephanie followed her friend through the archway. "See? If we go down, pass through there, maybe there's a way up. And once if we're up, we might be able to reach the platform with the doors."
"All right," Stephanie said, understanding Chantal's plan. The two girls descended the stairs, through the archway. "Now what?" Stephanie asked.
Chantal looked up. "That way," she pointed as they went up.
They passed through an archway, ascended, passed under another archway, went down and up flights of stairs, turned left into an archway. The two girls had reached the platform beside the one that held the exit.
The Escher room consisted of stairways that were in every direction: upside down, right side up and sideways. It was called this because it was similar to a painting by the artist M.C Escher.
"Wicked," Stephanie breathed as she looked around the room.
"Yeah! This is cool," Chantal said as she looked up then down. As Chantal looked down, she noticed several archways. "Which way do we go? And how are we to know which way is the way out?" She asked her friend.
"We'll have to try and basically guess. And where is Jareth?" Stephanie asked mostly to herself.
"You would think that since we got to the castle he would send us home but nooooo..." Chantal said.
"Maybe he got tired of people saying the words, the 'cliché' final confrontation and decided to let them find their own way back," Stephanie said as she got closer to the ledge of the platform that they were standing on. She looked down as Chantal came beside her.
A few feet across the room, below them, stood black doors. It had strange carvings amongst carved vines. There were no door handles but there was a crystal between the connections where the two doors were sealed. "That must be the way out," Stephanie pointed out.
"Well what are we waiting for?" Chantal said. She turned around to find a way down, heading towards a flight of stairs that led down to an archway.
Stephanie was about to follow her friend but the sound of footsteps stopped her. The footsteps were slow as though the owner of them was taking their time. Chantal had also stopped halfway down the stairs. The footsteps had stopped. Chantal looked around the room. She shrugged to her friend. Stephanie came closer to the ledge and peered down.
There stood Jareth, upside down looking up—or in this case down at Stephanie. Gravity apparently was not a rule in this room for his clothes and hair stayed in place as though he was right side up. His arms were folded across his chest.
Chantal looked at Jareth. "Ah, the wonderful Goblin King here to torment us again."
Jareth ignored Chantal's comment and turned to Stephanie. "You're quite right Stephanie," he said, his voice calm. "That is what you must reach to get yourselves home." he walked closer towards the ledge. "If you make it that is," he added with a smile revealing his fangs.
"How long do we have left?" Stephanie asked.
"You have time left," he said obviously not telling.
"Then we do have time to make it," Chantal said.
The Goblin King raised an eyebrow. "I said, 'If'."
Chantal glared at the Goblin King. "But we made it to the castle. Why make us play this little game of yours anymore?" Chantal asked growing impatient.
Stephanie looked at the amused Goblin King who still had a smile on his face. Chantal without getting an answer, stormed away down the flight of stairs. Jareth tilted his head to one side. "Steph?" Chantal questioned and turned around, she had passed through the archway that had been to her left.
"Yeah, I'm coming..." she heard her friend say. Chantal bent down to tighten her shoelaces.
Stephanie glanced at the Goblin King once more; there was a moment of silence when his face went expressionless. Then Stephanie turned around, her hair swinging. She descended the same flight of stairs that her friend had taken. Stephanie went through the archway but Chantal wasn't there. "Chantal?" Stephanie said, thinking that her friend had thought that she was right behind her and continued through the Escher room.
"Steph!" She heard Chantal's voice above her. Stephanie looked up; Chantal was on another platform across the room. "Did you take the wrong way?"
Stephanie shook her head. "No, I haven't. There wasn't any other way."
"Figures," Chantal said rolling her eyes, wondering who could have changed things around. Serek squeaked in agreement.
"Well, maybe we could meet up at the doors," Stephanie suggested.
"'Tay!" Chantal sighed. "But I still don't like the idea of being separated again, especially in this room."
"Don't worry, I'll figure out something if we can't meet up when one of us does reach the doors."
Chantal nodded. "'Tay, See you then," and she went down a flight of stairs, trying to find a way towards the doors. Stephanie on the other hand, had to go up a flight of stairs and pass through an archway before going down. Time passed as the two girls tried to decipher their way when suddenly Stephanie stopped in her tracks. She realized that she had been humming the song "Within You" that Jareth had sang to Sarah years before. She smiled continued her way towards the archway to her left.
O O O
Chantal was not smiling; in fact, she was getting frustrated because the room didn't make any sense. "Actually nothing in this place makes sense!" she said aloud.
She came into view with the doors again and stood there trying to figure how to get there. There were steps leading right to the doors but they were upside-down. "Damn!" Chantal said. In addition, there were no archways near the doors to get there. But there was a platform close by; they could reach the platform with the doors if they're able to jump to it.
Chantal smiled, grabbed Serek and twirled around. "All we have to do is find a way to that platform! Chan you're a genius!" she said aloud to herself. Chantal picked up her pace and hurried to climb up a flight of stairs.
O O O
Her footsteps echoed off the walls, ceilings and floors when Stephanie realized that she could not see the doors. She even knelt at a ledge to see if the doors were underneath her. Her hair fell over the side as she searched.
"I'm way too far, I wonder if this room is changing..." she said as she stood up.
"The room does change," a deep voice said behind her. Jareth started walking towards Stephanie, he was upside down. He stopped halfway on the steps, his head inclined with hers. "But I am not the one who changes it," he said with a shake of his head. With a small smile, he sat down on the steps. "Really Stephanie," he said making a crystal appear in his right hand and soon began juggling it. "Do you seriously think that I'm that much of a villain?"
Stephanie looked away from his gaze; it was as though he had read her thoughts about accusing him.
"I merely delay the people who try to reach the castle in search of the ones they've wished away. However, I do not change the Labyrinth or the 'Escher' room to win. I believe it is the person who travels through who makes it difficult, without ever knowing it." He caught the crystal in his right hand and looked into the depth of it. "Only the people with true determination can make it through, not the people who just wanted to pass through my Labyrinth to be like Sarah." He threw the crystal into the abyss of the Escher room with a tired sigh. The crystal clinked against stone but didn't break; it bounced onto the floors, walls and steps, and then disappeared. The Goblin King was about to say something else as he stood up.
"Steph!" Chantal yelled from an archway. Stephanie turned around to see her friend walk over to her with a grin on her face.
"Chantal!" Stephanie said smiling. "Did you make it?" Thinking that was the reason why her friend was grinning.
"No, but I found you," Chantal said. "I heard something clinking by where I was and I heard voices so I followed the voices. Anyway, I think I've found a way how to get close to the doors."
"Wicked! Show me!" Stephanie said. Chantal quickly turned around, heading towards the archway where she had come from. Stephanie turned around; Jareth of course, was gone.
There was a pause before Stephanie followed her friend through the archway. "See? If we go down, pass through there, maybe there's a way up. And once if we're up, we might be able to reach the platform with the doors."
"All right," Stephanie said, understanding Chantal's plan. The two girls descended the stairs, through the archway. "Now what?" Stephanie asked.
Chantal looked up. "That way," she pointed as they went up.
They passed through an archway, ascended, passed under another archway, went down and up flights of stairs, turned left into an archway. The two girls had reached the platform beside the one that held the exit.