Labyrinth Fan Fiction ❯ Project: Underground ❯ Not again! ( Chapter 6 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]
Chapter Six: Not Again!!



"Do you always have to sneak up on people like that?" Chantal asked the Goblin King.

"Yes. It's a hobby of mine to sneak up on people. Especially you," He replied sarcastically.

Chantal groaned and rolled her eyes. "I'm glad I'm not stuck alone with you. I might go crazy."

"Okay Chantal. Let's go," Stephanie said as she grabbed her friend's arm and pulled her down the trail.

"Ack!" Chantal managed.

Serek crawled over to Stephanie's other shoulder, wrapping his tail around her neck. Stephanie gave the little purple dragon another pat and continued on her way down the trail. Chantal followed not too far behind, and behind her, Jareth.

As the group walked down the path, they could hear faint sounds of the Fireys in the distance. Stephanie giggled and began to hum the Fireys' song.

Jareth stopped dead in his tracks and stared at the back of Stephanie's head. He then let out a loud half sigh, half groan.

Chantal turned her head around and looked at the Goblin King. When she saw who he was looking at, she stopped. "Um...Steph!"

"Hmm??" her friend said stopping and turning around. Chantal pointed back at the Goblin King, but didn't say anything.

Stephanie looked at Jareth. "What??"

"Please do not encourage them. They will only slow us down," he told her.

"Sorry, but it's catchy," she said apologizing.

Jareth nodded. "Let's just keep going."

The group continued on their way through the forest. They could still hear the Fireys in the distance, but none of them came very close to them. Stephanie held back her urge to hum the "Chilly Down" song of the Fireys. As they walked, the forest around them slowly started to disappear, leading them into an open area.

Stephanie continued to walk down the path, when she suddenly felt a hand on her arm, holding her back.

"Careful," Jareth said. Stephanie looked up at him confused.

Jareth bent down to pick up a rock and tossed it in front of her. Instead of landing on the dry ground, it disappeared.

"Oubliettes." Jareth told her.

"Oh, what fun!" Chantal said coming up to them. "One question! How do you propose we get around this?"

"Very, very carefully," Jareth replied.

"That's it? That is your genius plan?" Chantal asked seriously. She pulled off her pack and pulled out a water bottle. She unscrewed the cap and took a drink.

Jareth turned around and walked over to a tree, picking up a dead, arm length branch from the ground.

"Oh I get it!! Poke our way across," Stephanie said.

Jareth walked over to an area where he thought an oubliette would be and tapped the ground. "We can find where it is safe to walk if the tip of the stick doesn't disappear."

Jareth tapped the ground in another spot and saw that it was solid. He took a step forward. The girls followed only a few steps behind him. It was a slow moving process, but they made their way across the field of oubliettes.

Chantal shaded her eyes and looked around Jareth into the distance. She sighed. "We still have a ways to go."

Serek squeaked and unwrapped his tail from Stephanie and climbed up onto her head.

Stephanie looked up at Serek. "Don't mess up my hair too much, Bob."

Jareth continued to lead the way, poking to find solid ground to stand on. As the minutes ticked by, they slowly worked their way to the other side.

"We are almost there," Jareth told them.

"Really??" Stephanie said as she tried to look around Jareth and Chantal. She placed a foot to the side a little to get a better view from the taller people in front of her.

Behind her, Chantal heard Serek squeak. She turned around and saw Serek trying to stay afloat in the air, but no sign of Stephanie.

"Steph? STEPH? She's gone!" Chantal said, starting to panic.

Jareth turned around.

"Bloody hell," he cursed, with the stick he poked the ground behind Chantal.

It was solid.

"The oubliette has closed over. We cannot get her back from here," Jareth said.

"What?" Chantal said as her eyes grew wide. She dropped to the ground and started pounding the ground. "STEPH! Where are you Steph?"

O O O O O O O O O


Stephanie screamed as she slid down the tunnel of the oubliette. Her scream echoed off the dark tunnel's walls. At the end of the tunnel, she hit a bump and tumbled over, landing on her stomach.

"Owww. That hurt," she said, not moving. She laid there for a while, trying to catch her breath.

She slowly lifted her head and looked around. It was just light enough to see where she was. Her eyes grew wide as she recalled what just happened.

"Pasta Vazoo!! Not again!!"