erinm_4600
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Fic: Light to Dark
Title: Light to Dark
Author: Erin (erinm_4600)
Characters, Pairing: Leigh, Cain, Glitch, Raw and DG
Rating: PG
Summary: Leigh gets lost in the castle and Cain comes to her rescue
Warning: post-series, post- Sleeping Beauty by a few annuals and prior to Dark to Light by about two weeks
Disclaimer: The original characters belong to L. Frank Baum and their respective actors. The current characters belong to Sci-Fi, the movie folks and their respective actors. The OCs are mine.
Sleeping Beauty | Light to Dark | Dark to Light, Part I | Dark to Light, Part II | First Date | Found | It's Just a Book... | Wake-up Call | Birthday Present
Leigh knew she wasn't supposed to be climbing on the furniture - it wasn't very princess-y, is what Mommy and Uncle Glitch always said. But Mommy and Uncle Glitch were always showing her the unprincess-y things, so it was just confusing.
Leigh liked to roll on the couch. Not just any couch, but the big red one, in the library with the picture of the cow that wasn't a cow. She would start at one end and roll, head over feet, to the other end. She never rolled back, though; Leigh always crawled back and rolled again.
That particular afternoon, Leigh had rolled a few times and landed, sprawled out at the end of the couch, staring up at the ceiling. Her foot rested on the arm and she wondered if she could roll off the end. Currently, she started on the first cushion, went into the roll on the middle and ended on the third. If she started the roll on the first, maybe she could roll twice on the couch.
She tried one, slowing herself on the second as she reached the arm. If she didn't, she'd probably crack her head on the floor. Maybe if she started the roll from the arm... Yes, she could roll onto the first cushion, roll on the second and start a roll on the third. She'd have to plant her feet or catch the arm as she went over the other arm, though.
Giving it a try, Leigh rolled, rolled and rolled again. It worked perfectly. She walked back to the other end of the couch and set herself up for a second run. She was just starting the third roll when the clock chimed and startled her, enough that she missed the arm and went right over, momentum taking her straight to the wall.
Planting her hands, Leigh slammed against the panel and fell back. Something about that wasn't right. Looking at the wall, Leigh noticed it had moved. Pushing up, Leigh moved to the panel and pulled it toward her. The panel was a door, leading into black. Leigh stuck her head in to see if she could see anything, and heard a noise.
"Hello?" she called out, trying not to sound afraid. Leigh climbed in, just a bit more, to see if she could hear the sound again. "Hello?" she said again. Nothing.
A second later, the door swung shut and she caught it just as the latch clicked.
Bathed in complete darkness, Leigh banged on the panel and felt, blindly, for a handle. As she heard the sound again, Leigh held her breath and turned. Closing her eyes, she took a few deep breaths and told herself to be brave like Mommy and Daddy.
Leigh opened her eyes and could see light - not much - ahead. Only, she wasn't sure how far ahead. Reaching out to either side, Leigh crawled right until she felt solid wall, then pushed herself up slowly, a hand out to find a low ceiling. With slow steps, Leigh followed the wall, one hand above her head and one skimming the wall, in the direction of the sound and the light.
When the sound not only got louder, but also was voices, Leigh jumped and turned to look behind her. Taking two steps, now backward, Leigh turned back and was immediately face-down and hurting. Pushing herself up, Leigh felt something rough and sharp. What she couldn't see were some boards, and a slight incline, as well as now-scraped hands, knees and a torn dress, which had caught the boards and pulled her down.
Leigh wasn't going to cry - she was brave - but she was also scared. She heard the voices again - someone was laughing - and she needed to find a way out. Using her fingertips, Leigh followed the wall again and finally found the light. There still wasn't much, but she could see dirt in front of her shoe. Glancing up, Leigh could see small points of light going up, but she didn't know where they were coming from.
"Hello?" she yelled, her voice echoing off the walls she knew were there, but couldn't quite see.
---
Raw looked up and toward the wall, which caused Cain to look at Raw. Raw cocked his head slightly and turned his eyes to Cain.
"Leigh is afraid," he said simply. Cain straightened as Raw stood up and moved to the end of the table. They'd been in the dining room since lunch, because it was quiet and there was plenty of room to spread out.
Cain followed Raw to the back of the dining room and frowned when Raw opened the dumbwaiter door and stuck his head in. Cain raised an eyebrow and worried about his friend until he heard Leigh's voice.
"Hello?" they heard. Cain pulled Raw away and looked into the hole. He could see the top of the box, one floor down, on the kitchen level.
"Leigh?" he called down, feeling a little foolish with his head in the dumbwaiter shaft.
"Daddy!" the sound echoed up the shaft, even causing Cain to turn and look up.
"Where are you?" he called.
"Down," Raw stated quietly.
"It's dark," Leigh replied.
"Stay put, kiddo. I'll be right back," Cain shouted. Pulling back, he looked at Raw. "I'm going to the kitchen. Call this thing up." He moved along the table and turned back. "And don't tell Deeg." Raw nodded.
Cain ran down the hallway and saw Glitch as he reached the stairs. "Glitch, come with me," he barked, not even slowing down. At the bottom of the stairs, Cain took off for the kitchen and didn't even pay attention to the staff. He pulled the door to the dumbwaiter open and stuck his head in again. "Leigh?"
"Daddy!" Leigh called again. She could see a lot more light above, and a body. Glitch stuck his head in over Cain's and looked down.
"How'd she get down there?"
"I have no idea," Cain said, much more calmly than he thought possible. Cain pulled back into the kitchen and glanced around. He pointed to a basket of apples in the corner and Glitch nodded.
"We need a light," he said as Glitch passed an apple. "Leigh, I'm dropping something so stand back. When you hear it land, you yell."
"Okay," they heard. Cain and Glitch nodded together and Cain dropped the apple. They were on three when Leigh yelled. Glitch did some quick calculations in his head and nodded.
"Eighteen feet, at least." Cain glanced at the room again.
"We need rope." Glitch nodded and took off. "And a light!" Cain called after him. Raw appeared a second later and rejoined Cain.
"Rope and a light," Glitch announced from the doorway. Raw frowned as Glitch lit the lantern - there wasn't much light coming from the small flame, but there wasn't time to find more oil. Cain tied the lantern to one end and he and Glitch lowered it down the shaft.
"Get the light, kiddo." Leigh watched as the lantern dropped toward her and she reached for it, but it was just too high.
"It's too high!" she called and the lantern dropped another few inches. "Got it!" she called again. Glitch and Cain looked at the soft glow of the light and gave each other a look. Eighteen feet was a long way down.
And it was more like twenty-two.
"Untie it, kiddo," Cain called again. Leigh tried to untie the rope, but it was hard with scraped hands. Once she got the lantern free, Leigh pulled on the rope once.
"Okay." Cain nodded to Glitch to hold the rope and he swung a leg into the hole.
"What are you doing?" Glitch asked in shock.
"I'm not leaving her down there with a dying light and an apple, Glitch," Cain huffed.
"Of course not," Glitch grumbled, "but let us tie the rope to something sturdier than me, thanks." Cain breathed a laugh and waited for Glitch to secure the rope. He and Raw had every intention of holding it tight, of course.
Cain scaled the rope slowly, watching the light below, until he could see Leigh and the ground. He let go early, dropping down and turning to kneel in front of Leigh. He held her tight for nearly a whole minute and then pushed her back. "Start talkin'."
"I was in the lib'ary and I found a door and it closed and I followed the sound and I fell and then I got here and-"
"Okay," Cain said pulling her into another hug. "You're okay, right?" he asked, pushing her back again. Leigh held out her hands and, in the fading light, Cain winced.
"Don't tell you mother," he said quietly and tore the already-torn piece of Leigh's dress off, then halved it.
As he was wrapping the fabric around her palms, Glitch yelled down: "Are you there, Cain?"
"Yeah," Cain hollered back and pressed a light kiss to Leigh's bandaged palm. "Which library were you in, Leeloo?" he asked her.
"The one with the not-a-cow," Leigh replied. By her tone, Cain knew she was expecting to be in trouble.
"Glitch," Cain called up as he stood. "The library with the ox painting."
"Yeah?" Glitch asked.
"Secret door?" Glitch frowned.
"Really?" he shouted down.
"Apparently," Cain replied.
"On our way." Cain nodded and looked back to Leigh.
"All right, kiddo," he said, hands on his hips, "what do you say we get out of here?" Leigh nodded and he put a hand on her back as he reached for the lantern. He hoped the light would hold out.
When they reached the pile of lumber, Cain could no longer walk standing up, so he gave the lantern to Leigh, kicked the offending boards aside and let her lead. They made it about five more feet when the light finally died.
---
Glitch and Raw were searching the library for a secret door when DG popped her head in. "Guys," she said with a grin. "Have you seen my kid? Or my husband?" Raw and Glitch looked at each other and then all three turned at the sound of a thump.
Raw moved toward the sound and grumbled slightly as he stared at the wall. There was another thump and he leaned down and began pressing on the panel as Glitch and DG moved next to him. There was a click and the door popped open, letting them see the top of Leigh's head. Raw reached down to help Leigh out, and Glitch held out a hand for Cain. DG saw her daughter, covered in dirt, and dropped down next to her.
"What happened?" she asked, pushing Leigh's stray hair from her face.
"I'm sorry," Leigh said, tears finally starting to fall. Cain knelt beside her and pulled her toward him.
"You're okay, kiddo. Next time, don't go into the dark tunnel, okay?"
"Yes, sir," she mumbled into his shirt. DG pulled Leigh away from him and untied one of the scraps around her hand.
"Oh, that's gotta sting," she frowned, remembering the sting of Solarcane when she was Leigh's age. "Come on, kid. Let's get you cleaned up." She picked Leigh up and nodded to the guys, who all looked back at the secret door.
Author: Erin (erinm_4600)
Characters, Pairing: Leigh, Cain, Glitch, Raw and DG
Rating: PG
Summary: Leigh gets lost in the castle and Cain comes to her rescue
Warning: post-series, post- Sleeping Beauty by a few annuals and prior to Dark to Light by about two weeks
Disclaimer: The original characters belong to L. Frank Baum and their respective actors. The current characters belong to Sci-Fi, the movie folks and their respective actors. The OCs are mine.
Sleeping Beauty | Light to Dark | Dark to Light, Part I | Dark to Light, Part II | First Date | Found | It's Just a Book... | Wake-up Call | Birthday Present
Leigh knew she wasn't supposed to be climbing on the furniture - it wasn't very princess-y, is what Mommy and Uncle Glitch always said. But Mommy and Uncle Glitch were always showing her the unprincess-y things, so it was just confusing.
Leigh liked to roll on the couch. Not just any couch, but the big red one, in the library with the picture of the cow that wasn't a cow. She would start at one end and roll, head over feet, to the other end. She never rolled back, though; Leigh always crawled back and rolled again.
That particular afternoon, Leigh had rolled a few times and landed, sprawled out at the end of the couch, staring up at the ceiling. Her foot rested on the arm and she wondered if she could roll off the end. Currently, she started on the first cushion, went into the roll on the middle and ended on the third. If she started the roll on the first, maybe she could roll twice on the couch.
She tried one, slowing herself on the second as she reached the arm. If she didn't, she'd probably crack her head on the floor. Maybe if she started the roll from the arm... Yes, she could roll onto the first cushion, roll on the second and start a roll on the third. She'd have to plant her feet or catch the arm as she went over the other arm, though.
Giving it a try, Leigh rolled, rolled and rolled again. It worked perfectly. She walked back to the other end of the couch and set herself up for a second run. She was just starting the third roll when the clock chimed and startled her, enough that she missed the arm and went right over, momentum taking her straight to the wall.
Planting her hands, Leigh slammed against the panel and fell back. Something about that wasn't right. Looking at the wall, Leigh noticed it had moved. Pushing up, Leigh moved to the panel and pulled it toward her. The panel was a door, leading into black. Leigh stuck her head in to see if she could see anything, and heard a noise.
"Hello?" she called out, trying not to sound afraid. Leigh climbed in, just a bit more, to see if she could hear the sound again. "Hello?" she said again. Nothing.
A second later, the door swung shut and she caught it just as the latch clicked.
Bathed in complete darkness, Leigh banged on the panel and felt, blindly, for a handle. As she heard the sound again, Leigh held her breath and turned. Closing her eyes, she took a few deep breaths and told herself to be brave like Mommy and Daddy.
Leigh opened her eyes and could see light - not much - ahead. Only, she wasn't sure how far ahead. Reaching out to either side, Leigh crawled right until she felt solid wall, then pushed herself up slowly, a hand out to find a low ceiling. With slow steps, Leigh followed the wall, one hand above her head and one skimming the wall, in the direction of the sound and the light.
When the sound not only got louder, but also was voices, Leigh jumped and turned to look behind her. Taking two steps, now backward, Leigh turned back and was immediately face-down and hurting. Pushing herself up, Leigh felt something rough and sharp. What she couldn't see were some boards, and a slight incline, as well as now-scraped hands, knees and a torn dress, which had caught the boards and pulled her down.
Leigh wasn't going to cry - she was brave - but she was also scared. She heard the voices again - someone was laughing - and she needed to find a way out. Using her fingertips, Leigh followed the wall again and finally found the light. There still wasn't much, but she could see dirt in front of her shoe. Glancing up, Leigh could see small points of light going up, but she didn't know where they were coming from.
"Hello?" she yelled, her voice echoing off the walls she knew were there, but couldn't quite see.
---
Raw looked up and toward the wall, which caused Cain to look at Raw. Raw cocked his head slightly and turned his eyes to Cain.
"Leigh is afraid," he said simply. Cain straightened as Raw stood up and moved to the end of the table. They'd been in the dining room since lunch, because it was quiet and there was plenty of room to spread out.
Cain followed Raw to the back of the dining room and frowned when Raw opened the dumbwaiter door and stuck his head in. Cain raised an eyebrow and worried about his friend until he heard Leigh's voice.
"Hello?" they heard. Cain pulled Raw away and looked into the hole. He could see the top of the box, one floor down, on the kitchen level.
"Leigh?" he called down, feeling a little foolish with his head in the dumbwaiter shaft.
"Daddy!" the sound echoed up the shaft, even causing Cain to turn and look up.
"Where are you?" he called.
"Down," Raw stated quietly.
"It's dark," Leigh replied.
"Stay put, kiddo. I'll be right back," Cain shouted. Pulling back, he looked at Raw. "I'm going to the kitchen. Call this thing up." He moved along the table and turned back. "And don't tell Deeg." Raw nodded.
Cain ran down the hallway and saw Glitch as he reached the stairs. "Glitch, come with me," he barked, not even slowing down. At the bottom of the stairs, Cain took off for the kitchen and didn't even pay attention to the staff. He pulled the door to the dumbwaiter open and stuck his head in again. "Leigh?"
"Daddy!" Leigh called again. She could see a lot more light above, and a body. Glitch stuck his head in over Cain's and looked down.
"How'd she get down there?"
"I have no idea," Cain said, much more calmly than he thought possible. Cain pulled back into the kitchen and glanced around. He pointed to a basket of apples in the corner and Glitch nodded.
"We need a light," he said as Glitch passed an apple. "Leigh, I'm dropping something so stand back. When you hear it land, you yell."
"Okay," they heard. Cain and Glitch nodded together and Cain dropped the apple. They were on three when Leigh yelled. Glitch did some quick calculations in his head and nodded.
"Eighteen feet, at least." Cain glanced at the room again.
"We need rope." Glitch nodded and took off. "And a light!" Cain called after him. Raw appeared a second later and rejoined Cain.
"Rope and a light," Glitch announced from the doorway. Raw frowned as Glitch lit the lantern - there wasn't much light coming from the small flame, but there wasn't time to find more oil. Cain tied the lantern to one end and he and Glitch lowered it down the shaft.
"Get the light, kiddo." Leigh watched as the lantern dropped toward her and she reached for it, but it was just too high.
"It's too high!" she called and the lantern dropped another few inches. "Got it!" she called again. Glitch and Cain looked at the soft glow of the light and gave each other a look. Eighteen feet was a long way down.
And it was more like twenty-two.
"Untie it, kiddo," Cain called again. Leigh tried to untie the rope, but it was hard with scraped hands. Once she got the lantern free, Leigh pulled on the rope once.
"Okay." Cain nodded to Glitch to hold the rope and he swung a leg into the hole.
"What are you doing?" Glitch asked in shock.
"I'm not leaving her down there with a dying light and an apple, Glitch," Cain huffed.
"Of course not," Glitch grumbled, "but let us tie the rope to something sturdier than me, thanks." Cain breathed a laugh and waited for Glitch to secure the rope. He and Raw had every intention of holding it tight, of course.
Cain scaled the rope slowly, watching the light below, until he could see Leigh and the ground. He let go early, dropping down and turning to kneel in front of Leigh. He held her tight for nearly a whole minute and then pushed her back. "Start talkin'."
"I was in the lib'ary and I found a door and it closed and I followed the sound and I fell and then I got here and-"
"Okay," Cain said pulling her into another hug. "You're okay, right?" he asked, pushing her back again. Leigh held out her hands and, in the fading light, Cain winced.
"Don't tell you mother," he said quietly and tore the already-torn piece of Leigh's dress off, then halved it.
As he was wrapping the fabric around her palms, Glitch yelled down: "Are you there, Cain?"
"Yeah," Cain hollered back and pressed a light kiss to Leigh's bandaged palm. "Which library were you in, Leeloo?" he asked her.
"The one with the not-a-cow," Leigh replied. By her tone, Cain knew she was expecting to be in trouble.
"Glitch," Cain called up as he stood. "The library with the ox painting."
"Yeah?" Glitch asked.
"Secret door?" Glitch frowned.
"Really?" he shouted down.
"Apparently," Cain replied.
"On our way." Cain nodded and looked back to Leigh.
"All right, kiddo," he said, hands on his hips, "what do you say we get out of here?" Leigh nodded and he put a hand on her back as he reached for the lantern. He hoped the light would hold out.
When they reached the pile of lumber, Cain could no longer walk standing up, so he gave the lantern to Leigh, kicked the offending boards aside and let her lead. They made it about five more feet when the light finally died.
---
Glitch and Raw were searching the library for a secret door when DG popped her head in. "Guys," she said with a grin. "Have you seen my kid? Or my husband?" Raw and Glitch looked at each other and then all three turned at the sound of a thump.
Raw moved toward the sound and grumbled slightly as he stared at the wall. There was another thump and he leaned down and began pressing on the panel as Glitch and DG moved next to him. There was a click and the door popped open, letting them see the top of Leigh's head. Raw reached down to help Leigh out, and Glitch held out a hand for Cain. DG saw her daughter, covered in dirt, and dropped down next to her.
"What happened?" she asked, pushing Leigh's stray hair from her face.
"I'm sorry," Leigh said, tears finally starting to fall. Cain knelt beside her and pulled her toward him.
"You're okay, kiddo. Next time, don't go into the dark tunnel, okay?"
"Yes, sir," she mumbled into his shirt. DG pulled Leigh away from him and untied one of the scraps around her hand.
"Oh, that's gotta sting," she frowned, remembering the sting of Solarcane when she was Leigh's age. "Come on, kid. Let's get you cleaned up." She picked Leigh up and nodded to the guys, who all looked back at the secret door.