Young Writers Society

Alex York:

I was alone at the square. Everyone had slowly left. Nobody asked me to come with them, so I just stood there, not saying anything, as the other questers slowly trickled out and disappeared. So I stood in the square, just standing, not moving, just thinking. It was strange. How had we all managed to converge at the same spot, at the same time, just to say hi and leave? It wasn't right, something was out of place. And the fact that a clockwork just announced who they were and ran away with one of the questers, or I thought they were a quester. For all I know, everyone that was there was a clock. But something seemed strange, something I couldn't put my finger on. So I stood in the square, thinking. And then it hit me. The brother and sister. That didn't happen with questers. One of them would've taken the blame, and the other would be there to take their place if they failed. Or, that was what the Time Master had told me.

"You may choose someone to take your place if you fail, if you die," his words echoed in my head. I had chosen my friend, and when I told him, he seemed surprised. "Most people elect family, you know, brothers, sisters, mothers," but I insisted on my friend. And how the strange man had shimmered, I may not have been seeing things after all. Either way, I had to find out.

I began to run in the direction they had left, screaming "HEY! WAIT!" I probably looked like a loony, the way I was dressed, screaming to someone who wasn't there. The chances of me finding them were slim to none, but I had to get some answers. So I ran.

Jareth

Althea, when they were finally far enough from the group of other travelers, let go of his hand and stood in the middle of the street. He turned, finding her looking at him as if he suddenly grew horns and pointy tail.
"What is it? Are you afraid of something again?"
"Are you mad?"
"I'm not. It would have happened anyway. Can we go home now?"
"Someone is following us. One of the Questers." Her voice turned quieter. "I am afraid, Jareth. I've never been a Clock in action before."
Right, he thought to himself. It was the first task Althea was to do, and though he's busy too, he'll have to make sure she does it right. It was normal for Clocks to have their first duty done around Althea's 'age'. But if they asked him, she wasn't ready for it - she was a child, and she needed protection herself. And they both served the same Master, so Jareth knew he'll have to take over her duties sooner or later.

"Hey." A Quester with the twenty-first-century haircut. And clothes. Jareth wondered why they couldn't have been given the benefit of changing automatically.
"Hey", Althea answered politely, half hiding behind Jareth.
"I caught you", the guy said. "I'm Alex, I don't know if you got my name before.. Could I talk to you?"
Jareth frowned, but nodded, turning to his little Clock the next moment.
"Althea. Go home and wait for me. I believe I won't be too long."
As expected, she wasn't happy with it.
"But.."
"No discussion this time. Home. Now."
She gave another one of her looks to Alex, before turning around and leaving. Jareth waited for her to disappear around the corner before paying attention to the Quester again.
"Come", he said, pointing to a tavern across the street. "We shouldn't talk in the street."

He noticed that girl again as they entered. The girl with wavy hair and eyes of spring, that resembled so much... What part of "don't think about it" you didn't manage to tell yourself?, he asked himself, forcing his eyes to move from her. Him and Alex took the most shaded place in the tavern, little table in a corner, from which he could barely see the girl, the woman she talked to and the baby she held. He was pretty sure he recognizes the baby too.
He ordered tea. Alex chose coffee and got himself a strange look from the waitress.

"You should adapt", Jareth said. "This is not your home anymore."
"I know", he replied, "it's not my first year either."
"You should change the way you dress. Choosing a slightly different form of your name in introductions may also help."
"I don't recall hearing your name." Alex didn't sound so friendly anymore.
"Jareth."
"Well that's very fitting to the era."
Jareth smiled at the sarcasm.
"I don't need to change it. What I need to do here does not include much interaction with people." Shouldn't have included, at least. He started to like the guy, reading from his eyes his plan to ask a lot of questions. Jareth wondered how much will he be able to bend the truth.
"So, Jareth what?"
"Just Jareth."
"And your sister?"
"Althea."
"So you're both Questers?"
"We're not really siblings. We met and hold on to each other."
Alex seemed a bit shaken, and Jareth was smiling from the inside. This was starting to be amusing.
"That wasn't my question", the Quester said slowly.
Jareth took a sip of his tea as the waitress brought their drinks.
"Fine then. I'm not a Quester. What will you do now?"
Alex looked relieved now.
"So are you.. A Clock... Person..?"
Jareth leaned forward, with a smile floating on his lips again, and stared in Alex's eyes.
"What would you say", he asked, "if I said I'm a Time Master disguised as a human?"
Jareth knew this guy had a secret. A secret and a wish. He smiled again, recalling how someone once told him he'd make an excellent devil. Than he remembered who's said it, and turned serious again.
"I don't know", Alex said finally. "But you're not a Time Master, right?"
"No." Jareth decided to ease him. "I'm just a Clock person."
"And Althea?"
Jareth's eyes narrowed.
"Leave Althea alone."
"Wow, sorry." For a moment, there was silence. "So, are you a good guy?"
"That depends on one's point of view." Jareth got up from the table, leaving money for the drinks and a nice tip next to his empty cup. "I won't tell you who it is you're looking for. But I will tell you, this place is not a bad spot to start if a traveler wants to.. Enjoy himself. They have rooms, too. Good night."
*

Radius

I could pratically see the confusion. With a sigh I gestured for her to sit down on a pile of what looked like sacks of grain or something.

"You," I pointed to the guy, he looked up at me with a strange expression. "What's your name?"

"Demetheus."

"Deme, okay. How long have you been questing?"

"Three years, this is my fourth."

I gave a sympathetic smile and patted him on the shoulder.

"God, sorry dude. I know how that feels. This is my fifth year."

Memories of Benedict flashed through my head and I quickly pushed them down. Right now he was probably going about his regular life, back to his abusive father and the stupid townsfolk. My stomach clenched and I let out a shaky breath. It was still too early to think about him. I shook my head and ran a hand through my hair. Centi creeped up to my cheek and I put a hand over her, but not before she shot around to the right of my neck.

"Fine," I mumbled, "do what you want. Anyway, Gill."

She turned her attention to me and I grinned.

"You're new, I'm guessing. And it seems as if we have the same quest, more or less. You have to find what doesn't belong and I return something of importance to somebody during this time who ends up famous, I guess. I don't know what, and I don't know who. It takes me at least half a year to even figure out who I'm supposed to be searching for, another half year to even figure out what I'm supposed to be getting, and by that time..."

I trailed off and shook the negative thoughts away.

"Anyway, I think we all should work together. I mean, Gill quest is pretty much parallel with mine, we're both searching. Deme, I don't know what yours is, but it must be a real hell to keep you Questing for so long. I think you could use the help. I sat down against the wall, pulled a piece off of my loaf of bread before tossing it to Gill.

"I'm going to need a newspaper."

I ran over all of the possible things I could use as a resource. Books, newspapers... Nothing had worked my other years, but I guess it was pretty obvious why. Just looking at my quest you could tell it was not something that could be done with research. The way to find a child prodigy is to talk to a child.

I'm not good with children.

"Give the art guy an art quest," I muttered to myself. "That sounds like a genius idea to me, if it didn't involve actually talking to people."

"What did you say?" asked the guy.

"Nothing," I mumbled. "I still don't know your name."

"Radius," he answered with a smile.

"You know, our quests are kind of similar," I blurted, not sure if I was suppose to be telling people what my quest was, but Radius and Gill hadn't exploded or been taken away by a Time Master. "They both involve famous people."

"You want to borrow my newspaper?" Radius asked me.

I shook my head. "No, I actually have to make somebody famous."

Radius smiled sympathetically at me. "That's rough."

"Yeah," I muttered. I had to find some place where children were, quickly. It would only be the easy part of what I had to do.

Surprisingly enough, I managed to catch them. When I reached the two of them, they were just walking. "Hey," I said, and they both turned around. "I caught you. I'm Alex, I don't know if you got my name before. Could I talk to you?" The man nodded, and I felt relieved. But before we could talk, he sent the girl home, that upset me a little bit. I figured I'd get more out of her, by the way she just accused that quester Radius earlier in front of everyone. She gave me one last look before she trudged away.

"We shouldn't talk in the street." The man said as he mentioned to a tavern that was located across the street. We walked inside and sat at a corner table. The waitress asked what we wanted, and I ordered coffee out of habit. I guess they don't drink that here, because she looked at me like I was crazy. The waitress walked away, and then the man spoke. "You should adapt", he said. "This is not your home anymore." As if I didn't know that.

"It's not my first year either," I said. I didn't need to hear him say what I already knew, that's not why I came here.

"You should change the way you dress. Choosing a slightly different form of your name in introductions may also help." Still, telling me stuff I knew, now I was getting mad.

"I don't recall hearing your name," maybe he'd actually give me some information, god forbid.

"Jareth."

"Well that's very fitting to the era," it felt nice to be able to point a finger at him for once. He smiled before replying.

"I don't need to change it. What I need to do here does not include much interaction with people." Now that was strange. Who has a quest that doesn't involve people? Mine certainly does. Just to change the topic, I asked him about his last name.

"So, Jareth what?"

"Just Jareth."

"And your sister?"

"Althea."

"So you're both Questers?" This was things finally started being worth it.

"We're not really siblings. We met and hold on to each other." He changed the topic. He just ignored me downright. He was avoiding something. I had to be more careful with my questions.

"That wasn't my question." The waitress came over, and he waited until she was gone to speak again.

"Fine then. I'm not a Quester. What will you do now?" Still, just giving me the minimum then changing the subject.

"So are you.. A Clock... Person..?" Finally, some answers. That glow earlier, that must have actually been real. Jareth leaned across the table, and stared me directly in the eyes, with an evil smile.

"What would you say", he asked, "if I said I'm a Time Master disguised as a human?" I tensed up, suddenly rethinking my choice to speak with this guy. He was hiding something. I really had to choose my words carefully, as I realized how dangerous this guy was.

"I don't know", I said. "But you're not a Time Master, right?" He couldn't be. There was only one Time Master, right? Maybe he could change forms? The questions piled in my head.

"No," he said. "I'm just a Clock person."

Without thinking, I said, ""And Althea?"

He stared at me, I knew I'd touched a nerve there. "Leave Althea alone."

"Sorry," now I was just kissing up. Quickly changing the topic, I said, "So, are you a good guy?"

Jareth threw some money on the table to pay for the drinks, with some I perceived as a tip. "That depends on one's point of view. I won't tell you who it is you're looking for. But I will tell you, this place is not a bad spot to start if a traveler wants to.. Enjoy himself. They have rooms, too. Good night." And he was gone. He knew my quest! How? Did he know everyone's? The questions piled in my head, but I knew they would never be answered. I pocketed the tip he left and walked into the street. He was gone. And with a sigh, I walked away.

Katherine Bryce
I followed her around a corner and into an empty alley. She had changed her clothes to something far more comfortable, but not nearly as pretty. Seriously, I had to stop it with these dresses. If I ever got back I would be unable to wear normal clothes. Anyway, I concluded that she must be a Clock.

"Hello there Katherine, failed once more on your quest have you?"

"Who are you? And how do you know me?" I asked, trying very hard not to punch her in the face. The Time Master had given me an impossible quest, and I had never gotten even close to finishing it. How the hell was I supposed to find someone who could be of any age, look like anyone, behave like anyone.. For all I knew that child could be anyone in London.

"Ah, I am your guide, I've been sent to point you in the direction you must go." I tried not to laugh. Really? Had the Time Master finally realized that after making no progress in six years I needed some serious help?

"So your here to help, but that doesn't explain who you are," I said. I was trying to act cool. As cool as I could, at least.

"I am Aria, one of the most powerful Clockworks under the Time Master's command. I am to slay all but two questers, and guide two questers to there goal. You Katherine, will not see my wrath, and one other shall not either."

"Oh," I said, a smile playing in the corner of my mouth. "So you're going to tell me where and who the child is?" I said hopefully. Of course she wasn't going to tell me that, but any clue she might give me was more than I had ever had before. I still wasn't sure how I was supposed to get rid of him/her, but I'd figure that out eventually.

Valérie

She saw the two guys entering the tavern. The one in strange clothes, who may have came with the circus, and that other one. The one who was looking at her before. What were they doing together, was this guy some sort of their manager? Was he observing her because he wanted to make her a part of the circus group? She doubted it somehow.

"Customers?" She asked Beth, showing the direction with her eyes. Beth shook her head.
"I've never seen them here, before. Strange people are in town again."
Valérie frowned.
"Again?"
"It was the same some years ago. Not same people, though. But they seemed out of place too. Especially one of them.. He told me all kinds of stories."
"What, you think some of them may be true?" Valérie smiled, and Beth's expression turned somehow softer.
"I don't. But they were nice to hear. This year, I think you showed up first, a week and something ago."
Valérie froze.
"Please, Beth. I thought we agreed not to talk about that. How do you know so much anyway?"
"One of the benefits of the profession," Beth smiled a crooked smile. "I know London, my dear. I see things, I hear things, I don't talk about thing. And here I am, still, sitting here and talking about strange people who come and go."
Valérie considered it for a while, as the two guys disappeared from her sight.
"So, have you ever seen that man with long hair before?"
"The one who's never heard of colors?" Beth grinned. "How comes you ask me that?"
Valérie shrugged.
"I saw him a couple of times." Why do I feel like blushing!?
"Why, you like him, don't you."
"No..."
"He arrived shortly after you, along with a little girl. They don't look similar enough to me, to be brother and sister, so that's either his daughter - which makes him too old for you - or he's into some fishy business. Are you going already?"
Valérie got up, carefully holding little Bertie in one hand as she took out money for the tea with the other. Beth smiled at her, thanking her, but Valérie still thought that Beth isn't owing her anything - it was the other way around, no matter for how many teas Valérie payed.

Walking home through the park, talking to Bertie and trying to make him stop chewing his toy, she didn't pay attention to where she was going. Until she ran into a man.
It was him again, almost as if they managed to follow each other. Like in the stories, she thought, but felt far from romantic. It was dark, night will fall in less than an hour, that part of the park was deserted and without any lights. Only thing she could see was one bench next to a tree, and the guy was still standing too close. She wished she listened to Ms Neal when she told her not to go through the park in the evenings.

"Sorry", she muttered, just now remembering to apologize for bumping into him. He seemed surprised for a moment.
"It was my fault", he said. "I wasn't paying attention. Are you alright?"
She nodded, avoiding eye contact. Why did he have to be so creepy?
"Um.. I was just going home. I should hurry. They are waiting for me." She knew how transparent she was, and hoped at least that he won't hurt her while she has a baby by her side. Though, if it was one of the oldest kids, they could defend each other... "Please let me go."
"I'm not holding you, am I?" He smiled for a second. Indeed, his hands were safe behind his back. He observed the little boy for a moment, and he stared back at the man's eyes. "What's his name?"
"Bertie. Herbert, that is. I'm Valérie." Why, why did I tell him that!? He looked at her for a long moment, not blinking nor moving as if he suddenly turned into a statue.
"Jareth", he said then, silently, and Valérie wondered if it was possible that he really turned paler than he already was. "Pleased to meet you."
"You too, sir" she replied politely. And he moved aside.
"I shall not hold you back any longer. Take care, miss Valérie."
*

Jareth

He stayed and watched as she left the park, not moving and barely breathing. He knew who she was. No.. He knew who she will be. In another year, in another place, when she'll tell him she's already seen him before. This time, he was the one with memories.
Time played games with him, and he wondered if it was Their way to allow him to correct the mistakes he's made.

*

Alex York:

And I was alone in the street. It was dark, and I was alone, with no place to go. Jareth was right. I stuck out like a sore thumb. Nobody would house a strange man with a strange accent in strange clothes. I looked too suspicious. So I was on the street for tonight. Great. I slowly trudged away from the tavern, looking for some place I could rest. Someplace safe. I was walking through alleys, but there was nowhere. Eventually, I just gave up. I laid down in some random alley and just went to sleep.



I was awaked by a sharp pain in my side. I winced as I opened my eyes. Boom. It felt like I was being kicked. My eyes shot open from the pain. I looked up to find out I was being kicked. I tried to rise, but I just got shoved to the ground. Didn't people have better things to do at night? I was still groggy, and didn't fully asses the situation. But then I felt cold metal pushing on my throat, and it hit me. I was being robbed. That stunk for the robber, unless he wanted Roman currency from 1500 years ago.

"Give me your money, freak show," I heard my assailant say. I couldn't get a good look at his face, it was too dark.

"Look pal, it's late, maybe in the morning," I said jokingly.

"I'm serious pal, I've killed before. Now, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way."

"Alright, alright," I said, I pretended to be fishing around in my pocket for some spare change.

"Hurry up already, before I make you," he was trying to sound tough, "just remember who has the knife here." And that was my chance. I grabbed a coin from my pocket, and I threw it at him, hard. I heard a noise that was most likely the coin bouncing off his head. I grabbed his arm and yanked it from my neck. He dropped the knife in surprise and I picked it up. I then continued to put him in a full nelson, all while holding his knife to his throat. This all went down in around 10 seconds.

And then for good measures I threw in, "Just remember who has the knife here." I felt that rush, and had that wild grin that I got only from the thrill of fighting. I pushed the knife against his throat, enough so he could feel it, but not enough so that it drew blood. "I'll be keeping this knife, if you don't mind. And your clothes too, because I think we both agree I don't fit in with these. Oh, and don't forget your money." I released him, he gave me his outer garments, which weren't more than simple rags, and some money, and I set him free. He ran like a gazelle being chased by a cheetah. I chuckled, and changed into my new clothes. Smiling, I headed back to the same tavern from earlier, headed Jareth's advice, and ordered a room for one night.

Jareth

The world will be burning.
Fire and lightning, and screams, ashes falling instead of rain over the city of lost souls. No one was moving, no one was even talking - the screams and the rush were unbearable. Bridges are falling, houses are turning to dust, even people are turning to dust.. It will be hard to breathe, and the Questers..
All the Clocks are gone "Don't you understand?" The world is alone now.
The war has started - war that may never finish, or is it over already? Bodies lay on the streets, and they change, everything changes. The other one is doubting, she will want to carry on and it would be so easy, but they couldn't have possibly let her do it, could they?
I'm next. If they die, I'm next, I'll become...
It's wrong. The world is wrong. The time is wrong.

The girl's hand was again warmer than his as she squeezed his fingers. He looked at her, pulled from his strange vision. When did she get so big? Wasn't she smaller? Or will be... Wasn't she laying down, not moving...?
"Jareth?"
He blinked a couple of times, observing the place around him. They stood in the square, the same one where the Quester did his tricks the day before. Was it the day before?
"Althea", he muttered. "What's the date?"
She told him - it was two days ago that the one-man-circus took place. What happened with my day?
"Jareth, are you alright? You seem lost." Althea was serious, looking at him with those big eyes of hers, and he didn't know what to tell her. He always had visions, he could always tell the possibilities of every action anyone was taking.. But it was never like this, never so confusing and mixed together. What did all those things even mean? Althea pulled his hand again. "Jareth. You're making me worried."
"I'm fine. I just lost track of time."
Too late, he remembered that was the worst thing he could say, and Althea's eyes filled with tears.
"You're loosing time?" She squeaked. "How long? Why didn't you tell me? Don't you know what it means? I don't want to be left alone!"
He put his finger to her mouth, hushing her. Of course he knew what it meant, he taught her that. That's how it starts, for every Clock when he or she gets close to the last days of existing. The closest to death they have, and it starts with missing hours. Jareth knew a lot about it - but he also knew he wasn't just one of the Clocks. He knew he wasn't dying, because he knew he couldn't really die. There was only one reason for him to stop being a Clock, and that would mean that the dimension of the Time Masters is facing even worse future than he ever imagined.
"I'm fine", he said to Althea, with a little smile on his lips. She didn't seem convinced, but he knew she won't ask any more questions. "Come. Let's find that Quester Alex again, shall we?"
Althea blushed.
"Um, should I go home again?"
"No," Jareth held on to her hand when she tried to release it. "You should meet him. After all, I'm just a watcher."

*

Aria

"Find the man with a child, my battles shall reveal to you the child of your quest." I said.

She looked at me with a raised eyebrow, taking a step forward, "I'm sorry, but I must be leaving now, there is one other quester that requires my attention." I said finally.

"Hey wait!" To late, I disappear into a portal as if I was never there, this time I was in the same era, just different place and time. I look up at the house, Valarie was not here at this present time, time to go find her. It was only a short walk before she came around the corner, I smiled, as I began walking backwards, and then towards her house. Soon I'm at the door, I past though it with a portal, making it look like the door was not even there. But soon, Valarie comes in a rush, possibly because of me looking like a ghost to her.

"Hello Valarie, I am Aria, your guide." I said.

"Guide? For what?" She asked.

"For your quest silly, normally we Clockwork's cannot guide you on your quest, but you've been placed under normally unachievable circumstances, and thus, I have been sent to guide you on your quest." I said.

Quinn,

I stare at the spot where the subway entrance used to be. I'd lost track of the time, and so it was happening again. The jump. Well, I thought bitterly, at least I'd managed to get what I had come to this time for. I patted the pocket of my jerkin and felt the two lumps there. Of all my two years of searching, I had only these to show for it. The world has dissolved into swirls of color and dust and then reforms. A cobbled street, narrow buildings packed closely together. A profusion of top hats. So, about one and a half centuries earlier than when I just was. Cressida quorks from my shoulder and takes off into the sooty sky. I'm standing at the side of a street that opens onto a decent-sized square. The square is full of people of all ages, and children are yelling happily about a circus. I allow myself a small smile. Children will be children, no matter what the era they are from. My smile immediately fades when I notice the others. I can't exactly explain how I know, but I do. Other Questers, and possible Clocks. People who have interacted with the TM and are not in their home times. I've always been good at spotting this, possibly because of the nature of my Quest. I lounge about at the street corner, watching a Quester, clearly from the future, although a different one from mine, pretend to be a magician for the crowd. The others notice and converge on him: the tall, vaguely ominous-looking man and his young charge, two other guys and two girls as well. I watch them interact, but do not join in. Cressida returns to my shoulder, a scrawny mouse in her beak. Then, another Clock rushes past me into the square. She doesn't even notice me. I raise my eyebrows. Clocks, revealing themselves? What is this? I have no idea. When the group disperses, I follow the first Clock and the young girl, and one of the other guys, to a tavern. I observe them through a window from across the street. They talk for a few minutes, before the Clock leaves, and the other man goes upstairs, having secured himself a room. I quickly cross the street, check that my blades are secure in their sheathes, shoo Cressida to the roof, and open the door to the tavern. The place is pretty empty. I head to the bar.

"A pint," I say, "And a room, if possible."

The woman behind the bar nods, but I can tell she is slightly put off by my attire. Of course. Women in this era don't wear pants and shirts like these. Nor do they cut their hair short. I sigh.

"You from abroad?" The woman asks, pointedly.

"You could say that," I say, taking a drink from the tankard she places in front of me. I drink it down, and then head up to my room, which I believe is right next to the other man's. I'll have to talk with him, come morning.

Katherine Bryce
Find the man with a child, my battles shall reveal to you the child of your quest.

I repeated it in my head, over and over again, but I still wasn't happy. Okay, I now knew that the child I was searching for really was a child, and he/she was apparently with a man. The child's father? The last part meant that I would probably have to wait. Great. I had been waiting for six years already.

I looked up, and realized I was standing in front of a.. Tavern? Oh, whiskey. I hadn't had proper whiskey in years. Six years. Could a woman of this time really order whiskey? Probably not, and definitely not if she didn't have any money.

Then I saw him. I couldn't help but smile when I spotted Mr. Greendale again. I hurried to catch up to him. "Mr. Greendale!"

He turned around, seemingly startled, but then he smiled. "Ms. Bryce. I thought I'd never see you again."

"So did I, but it seems like fate wants us to be together."

He laughed heartily. Poor guy, had obviously fallen head over heels for me, if he actually thought that cheesy comment was funny. "Am I too brash if I ask you to have dinner with me tonight?"

"Oh, not at all.. But if it's okay with you, I'd rather have a drink. What about a drink now, and lunch tomorrow?"

He seemed surprised. Yes, I probably wasn't behaving like a proper lady of this age should, but he seemed to appreciate it. "Yes, why not. There's a tavern right here, but I know about a much finer tavern near.."

"This will be fine," I said with a smile that failed to hide my excitement. Irish whiskey, for the first time in six years.

"If you say so, Ms. Bryce." He held out his arm and I took it.

"Please, call me Katherine."

"Only if you call me Thomas." I laughed. Oh, poor poor Thomas. So gullible and generous.

We walked into the smoky tavern, and I at once spotted a bottle behind the bar that I actually recognized. Bingo. "Thomas, could you order me some Irish whiskey? But no expensive brand, I don't want you to spend all your money on me."

He smiled like a kid who was up to something, and I knew I was getting the best the house had to offer. I wonder if he would mind if I sat here all night, drinking? Previous experiences had taught me that people actually didn't mind, as long as they themselves were more pissed than me.

Thomas came over with our drinks. There was more in the glass that he handed me than the one he took himself. Great. Maybe I could get him to pay for a room. For myself, of course. A gentleman like him wouldn't want to impose on a lady's honor now, would he?

Demetheus

I spend the night in an old tree, knobby with cracking bark. I feel in stabbing me in the back every time I move. After a while my back becomes numb and I fall into a sleep that is broken too often.

The sun barely rose when I slid out of the tree, legs cramped and back sore. I sighed and rubbed sleep out of my eyes. It's too early to meet up with Radius and Gill again, who I left after talking about our quests for a while. I stretched and began to walk back into town, which I left to find a place to sleep for the night.

The sun turned the sky pale pink and orange with the promise of a new day, which is clouded considerable by the quest. Where to find the child? Where to begin?

My stomach rumbled, reminding me that I have more pressing concerns a the moment. Shops had just started opening, meaning it was too early for food. Instead, I began to wander the streets trying to map out a more accurate picture of London.

A paper flew through the air, dancing on the wind with a skirt of ink before landing on the ground. I picked it up, read the words and smiled for the first time since my last quest.

Valérie

The strange young woman, dressed in a way no one from this time should be dressed, appeared in the Wells' house as if there was no door to stop her, though Valérie was sure she's locked them behind her. All of the children were sleeping, and their parents were away again, and she knew no one else was there to let the woman in.

"Hello Valarie," she said, "I am Aria, your guide."
You're pronouncing my name wrong. It's French, not English. Something told Valérie not to say the thought out loud.
"Guide?" She asked therefore. "For what?"
Woman called Aria tried to look friendly - Valérie at least thought so.
"For your quest silly, normally we Clockworks cannot guide you on your quest, but you've been placed under normally unachievable circumstances, and thus, I have been sent to guide you on your quest." Aria said.

What?

Valérie knew what she was talking about - she remembered very well the voice she heard about a week ago, when all of her past turned to mist and all of her memories disappeared. She didn't know what Clockworks should be, though, and she didn't like the sound of normally unachievable circumstances. What she needed to do maybe wasn't easy - she couldn't tell, as she didn't know if there was anyone like her she could compare to - but she didn't really care much about it anyway. Why going back to the past you know nothing about, if you can see other times and places?

"How did you get in?" Valérie asked, and Aria seemed a bit surprised.
"I used my powers, of course." Valérie frowned, and Aria continued. "I came here to offer you my help, you know. This kind of attitude is not what I should be getting from you now."

Valérie slowly nodded. There was something in her, some strange feeling of radiant strength, very similar to what that man, Jareth, had.. Though while he seemed like a kind of person who'd tie you up and torture you slowly, Aria seemed more like someone who'd kill you in a moment, getting the job done and moving on to the next target. Valérie wasn't sure which of the two she disliked more. With Aria, there wasn't the feeling of strange dumbness and those fragments of unknown memories - she could think more clear with her than with Jareth - yet she didn't feel like she could really trust her, either, while with Jareth she could hardly even care what she says.
"You should leave," she said, as little Annie started crying. Valérie knew it will wake up the others if she doesn't go and calm her down, and she didn't like the idea of children meeting Aria.
"I should leave? Don't you want to know what to do, where to go?"
Valérie clutched her teeth, giving her one of her most convincing stubborn looks.
"If you don't, I will call the police." She knew it was a stupid thing to say, as this girl obviously had some kind of powers, but it was also the only thing she could have said. Aria seemed to be considering it for a while, almost as if she was curious about a fight with them, but she only smiled a dark smile.
"Fine," she said finally, and Valérie felt relieved. "We will see each other again."

She left with those words, passing through the door as if there was nothing but thin air. Valérie's heart was pounding, and she didn't even notice how hard it was to breathe until she tried to calm herself.
Then she left to the Annie's room, hoping she'll manage to look cheerful enough to make the child stop crying.
*

Alex York:

I awoke to the sunshine coming through the window, instead of a kick to the gut, which was good. Groggily, I pulled the covers off of my body and rose from the bed. The bed wasn’t much more than a pile of springs, but it was better than the stone ground. I took a minute to stretch and wake up a little more. I glanced out of the window into the street below. People were bustling here and there in their victorian clothes. What a beautiful sight. That reminded me. I walked across the room to my clothes and pulled my camera out of my pants pocket. I walked to the window and snapped a picture. That was one of the good parts of being on the quests for so long. The photography. My wife would have loved to be here. Oh, why did I have to bring her up? I felt tears well up in my eyes. I had been away from her for three years. Was time still moving for her? Had I missed the birth of my son? I sat down on the bed and began to cry silently. This quest didn’t help at all. This quest was sick. I didn’t know how long I just sat there. Eventually I rose. I wiped the tears from my eyes and went downstairs. I took a seat at the bar, and the waitress came over.

“Good morning, Mister...” Then I remembered I never used my name when I had ordered the room.

“A—,” I remembered what Jareth had told me. “Harrison. Harrison Vallee.”

“Ah, well good morning my Vallee. Not to seem intruding, but that is a funny accent you have. You are not from around here, are you?” It was true, I sounded nothing like them.

“Good question. I actually am from America. I am stationed with the Navy here for the year.” That sounded like a good lie.

“Ah, now that makes sense. What would you like to eat?" I looked down at my watch. 12:30. Wow. It was late, I must have been really tired.

"I'll just have a beer and some na—" and then I remembered. No nachos. I frowned, I wanted some nachos. "Whatever you would recommend. I'm not sure about the food over here." Another close one. This was hard, even after three years.

"Very well," she gave me a strange look as she went back into the kitchen. Two more people came into the bar. A woman and a man. The girl looked very familiar. I'd seen her before somewhere.... I didn't have time to dwell on it before I felt a tap on the shoulder. I turned around to see a young girl with short brown hair, smiling at me.

"Mind if I take a seat?" she seemed happy, and I didn't care.

"Sure," I pulled out the nearest stool and she sat down. "Want anything to drink?"

"Just a water is fine," she said.

"Come on, my treat." this happened when I came into money. I wanted to buy everyone something. "Waitress," the waitress came out of the kitchen. "Can we get this girl a beer please?" The waitress nodded and went back into the kitchen. "So, what is it you wanted to talk about? You don't just tap people on the shoulder if you aren't going to say something." The waitress brought out the beers and set them down, and we started talking.