fh_adventures | Outside the Labyrinth

Outside the Labyrinth

It seemed the time for research and planning was through. In Jareth's address to the island, he gave them twenty-four hours to traverse a Labyrinth that seemed to change on a whim in order to take back the friends that he had stolen.

Team Distraction was entering first. Anyone with as much power as this Jareth seemed to would probably have some nasty surprises in store. They'd go in ahead of the second group to spring as many traps as they could while the other team ghosted in and headed directly to the castle.

Well, that was the plan, anyway. Let's see how long things went as smoothly as our would-be heroes would like.

[For the members of Team Distraction, please! If you want to RP out how the teams were formed and decided, there is a place to do so here! ~~Wait for OCD or the biting fairies will get you~~ OCD ready to go!]

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"No, no," the Junk Lady said. "Perfectly reasonable. You wouldn't believe the things I find. Come in, Dearie. You shouldn't stand there all day. Sit and read some to me. When's the last time you read it, hmm?"

The Junk Lady was now tugging Scully further into the store. Scully should stay. Scully should stay just as long as she liked, and read the book. Maybe read it over again, once she had.

"How did you-- I lost this in a move, how did you get this?" Scully demanded, following her, and sitting down. "This is my copy. My dad wrote this to me, he gave it to me for my birthday..."

She opened it again, staring, and unable to process it, reading the first lines by reflex. "Call me Ishamael. Some years ago-- never mind how long precisely-- having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on shore, I thought I would sail around a little, and see the watery part of the world...."

It was like she could hear her father's voice again, saying those words aloud.

"Oh, now isn't that a pretty book," the Junk Lady said, appreciatively. "I bet you've missed that a great deal, haven't you? I'll make tea, Dearie. I'll put the tea on while you read for us both. I can't wait to hear what's to come next."

She was so friendly like that. Especially when it meant she could distract travelers from getting where they were headed.

"Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up the rear of every funeral I meet.... then I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can."

Dana closed the cover for a moment, taking a deep breath with the memories. "This-- would you mind, would you sell this, do you think?" She clutched the book with both hands, knuckles almost white.

"Oh, you can keep it, Dearie," the Junk Lady said generously. "So many more where that came from. Did you see how many books I have? Yes, yes. Lots of treasure. Read more and I'll find them for you. Every bit as precious as that one."

(SORRY was pulled away, am back!)

"Really?" Scully asked, thrilled. "If you're sure--"

She was happy, and distracted, and opened the book again, even though she felt like she was forgetting something...

"If they but knew it, almost all men in their degree, some time or other, cherish very nearly the same feelings towards the ocean as me..."

[np, is busy night!]

"What a lovely book," the Junk Lady cooed as she puttered around in what must have been her kitchen. "You must have missed it so very much. Yes. Lots of treasure, here. There are more books, dearie. You should look around you. Look at all the treasures I have! Can you imagine it all?"

She had the tea-kettle on now, and was happy to hear the rest of the story. As long as Scully wanted to keep reading.

Dana closed the book, blinking, and looking around. Many, many other books-- she'd always loved books. She could see a book by Jane Austen there, an edition of Shakespeare up higher, a Black's Medical Dictionary that looked quite old....

"I should be going," she said reluctantly. "We're supposed to be..." What?

"Many more treasures," the Junk Lady said, holding out a purple and green yarn object. "So many things. You can't leave, Dearie. There are so many treasures here for you. Don't you want this? Look how pretty it is."

She was pushing it into Scully's hands while digging for more treasure. "More where that came from. Much more."

Scully stared at it, and her breath caught. "This is Melissa's god's-eye. She had it in her window." So many things of Melissa's got packed away so quickly after her death.

She could spend all day here, finding things. All the things she'd lost.

Something about that didn't sound right inside her head, and Scully frowned.

"Keep it," the Junk Lady said, pressing it into Scully's hands. "Keep all of it. Yes, yes. You can't walk away from these treasures. There's so much here. Isn't there, Dearie? Look, look. Everything you could ever want is here."

Not everything, insists the cold hard rational voice of her self in her head, and Dana takes a step back, regretful. Magic. You can't trust it. What if she did find the kind of thing she wanted to see here?

"No. No, I have to go. Thank you so much, but we're on a rescue mission. And I've already spent too much time here."

"Leave?" The Junk Lady stared at Scully again, appalled by the suggestion. "You can't leave! How can you leave all of this treasure! More where this came from! Don't you miss it? All of it is here, right here! You can't go with out it!"

"I have to," Scully said, insistent, and put down the god's-eye with a pang. She didn't let go of the book yet. Couldn't, just yet. "I couldn't carry it all with me anyway. Although I appreciate the thought." And she strode determinedly for the door.

"No!" the Junk Lady shouted, all her pleasantness gone. "You can't leave! Ungrateful! Unappreciative! How dare you turn your back on your treasures! No leaving! No one leaves!"

Scully turned, jaw set, and held up the book. "Is it a gift, or isn't it?" She thought of what her father would say, and put it down, eyes narrowing. "Please. Enjoy reading it. I have the important parts memorized, anyway."

--Because one did survive the wreck.

"Then go!" the Junk Lady screeched. "Get out! Filthy! Ungrateful! Who wants you! Can't appreciate treasure! Get out!"

The random objects she was hurling towards Scully's head may or may not be treasure. Scully probably didn't want to stick around to find out.

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Outside the Labyrinth

Re: Welcome to the Junk Lady's abode

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Re: Welcome to the Junk Lady's abode