Raman suppressed a sigh of mingled disgust and frustration as the Timeless One, NOT the human girl, broke down in tears.

"Oh," gasped the giant hourglass in between heaving sobs. "Thank you! Thank you... You don't know how much your promise means to me! Oh, do forgive me, this is so embarrassing...!"

If the hourglass had had arms, she would have been searching around for a handkerchief. As it was, she simply stood there on the spot and snuffled until she was composed enough to speak without her voice shaking.

"All right then, you'll be on a hurry to be on your way, won't you? Oh, you're such a DEAR, thank you, thank you..."

The Timeless One smiled radiantly at Dawn; her already beautiful face was made breathtakingly gorgeous by the joy that illuminated it.

Then the giant hourglass began to SINK.

Slowly, with much grinding and groaning of stone against stone and metal against stone, the Timeless One revolved and sank and revolved while sinking, until there was nothing left except a large hole in the ground.

"Well, you mustn't stay around HERE any longer, not on my account!" Came the Timeless One's merry voice from somewhere below the human and the fairy. "Just take the steps, my dear, they'll lead you to the next part."

Raman flew down to the hole and saw that there were indeed several steps leading down into the ground, then a tunnel just tall enough for a human to walk through. The tunnel was dark, and there was no way that the human girl could see, except perhaps to feel her way along the walls.

The fairy bodyguard had a solution to that little problem, but as always, he decided to withhold it until he saw what the human would do.