Jareth made to lunge for Dawn as she fell away into the fissure in the ground that led to the mortal world, but the earth of the Labyrinth wound up around his legs to hold him in place. He fought desperately by any means possible--both physical, mental, and magical--to free himself, to reach Dawn and save her, but he could not. By the time the Labyrinth finally released him, the crack in the ground was closed up and Dawn was gone.

The Goblin King fell on the spot where his beloved had stood only a short while ago, roaring wordlessly in fury; it made Emilie grow pale just to listen to the pure rage in his voice, to see it in every line of his body.

"You took her from me!" He bellowed at the face in the water.

"SHE... HAS... BEEN... PAYMENT..."

"No! No, I will not stand for this! I know where she has gone, I will go to her, I will--" Jareth shot to his feet, and stood as if expecting something to happen.

Nothing did.

The Goblin King was suddenly, eerily calm. Turning to the face in the water, he spoke in a light voice that completely belayed the deadness in his eyes. "So you took my power from me; all of my magic. Now I can not reach her."

"NOW... YOU... CAN... HELP... NO ONE..." The voice replied unsympathetically.

"I'm stuck in the Labyrinth now," Jareth went on musingly, as if commenting about the state of the weather. Tears welled up in Emilie's eyes at the look on his face, in his eyes. "I am confined to the land of the Fae."

"KING... IN... NAME... ONLY..."

"You only need me to oversee what goes on within you, now, don't you, Labyrinth? You held the power all along..."

"RULES... HOLD... POWER..."

Jareth suddenly froze. "Rules... Rules! Of course, there is almost always a loophole. I just have to find it..."

Whirling around, he snapped at Emilie and Raman. "Come! We are going to my castle, and we are going to research every law and every rule that has ever been made in the Labyrinth, or the entire land of the Fae for that matter, until we find proof that I can indeed get Dawn back!"

Reaching the door to her small home, looking down at the small patch of earth beside the step, Dawn felt tears form in her eyes once more as she knelt down on the small step to caress the petals of the flower with her fingertips.

"Jareth.." Dawn whispered as she brought her knees to her chest, leaning back against the door frame as she thought about everything that had transpired over the past several hours. The more she thought of the events, the more Dawn began to realize she would never see the man she loved nor her dearest friends again.

"No.. That cannot be.. There must be away..." Dawn whispered to herself as she stood and looked back the way she had come, "Perhaps.. the factory.. Yes, the factory, there must be a way to Jareth, Raman, and Emilie there.. There must be.."

Backtracking her steps, Dawn blindly ran through her tears down the streets in an attempt to reach the factory quickly, stumbling and falling every so often on her journey.

Reaching her destination, Dawn burst through the doors and called for Jareth, Hathion, and the others, her voice ringing with desperation as she ran through the factory. However, as she passed the Manager's Office, Dawn noticed something very strange upon the door. Replacing Mr. Lewton's nameplate was a nameplate with the name 'Mr. Fifleni'.

Stopping before it, Dawn's fingertips ran across the nameplate gently, slowly, as if caressing the engraved letters. "Mr. Lewton... What have I done to you," Dawn whispered as she beat her fist on the door and slid to the floor, her shock wearing off as the intensity and awareness of the situation hit her like a bomb explosion, causing her emotions and sanity to run haywire with guilt.

Mr. Lewton had vanished because of her recklessness in the Labyrinth and her selfishness in wishing him away. Raman was heartbroken because of her carelessness in falling for Jareth and disregarding his feelings for her.

Jareth... What could be said for what she had done to Jareth? She had been stupid in her trust of the fish not to eat her, hoping to find a way to convince it to help them across the water; and in doing so, nearly got herself killed and caused Jareth to disregard the rules of the Labyrinth and infuriate the Labyrinth itself.

Now, after sacrificing herself to the Labyrinth to save Jareth, Dawn was back in a world where she was hated and had no friends of her own; a world without Emilie, Raman, Hathion, and most of all.. a world without Jareth.

"Wait!" Emilie heard the word escape her lips before she could catch it back, and was rewarded by a furious kind of impatience in Jareth's eyes.

"What?" He snapped at her.

She quailed beneath his gaze, and Raman snapped back at him. "Do not speak to her in such a manner! She is not at fault."

Jareth's eyes transformed from infuriated to weary, and he rubbed them tiredly. "Yes, yes, of course... Forgive me, Emilie, but--"

"I understand, Jareth," she interrupted, smiling at him hesitantly before the smile faded. "It is only... Dawn had someone she was running the Labyrinth for, did she not? Who was it, and what is to become of them now that..." The pale-haired girl trailed off, and Jareth groaned.

"Lewton! I had forgotten all about the wretch." As if from long-formed habit, he raised a hand--and the factory manager was suddenly standing before them, looking very alarmed.

Jareth also looked surprised. "But I thought that my magic..." He glanced at the face in the water that had since dissipated due to its purpose being fulfilled. "Of course. Not all of my magic, that would hinder my ability to run the Labyrinth. Just my ability to transport between worlds..."

He frowned, then barked at Lewton, "You, Lewton! You have no choice, you must stay in the world of the Fae for the rest of your life, for your existence has already been forgotten and replaced in the mortal world. You do, however, have a choice in where you live the rest of your days. Where is it to be? Be quick with your answer."

The factory manager paled from Jareth's harsh words. "I... I... I..." He stammered.

"The land of the 'Wisps? Good choice. You'll wander aimlessly for the rest of your miserable days, living on what you can find from the land, always seeking shelter and companionship and never finding it due to the 'Wisps always confusing and misleading you. Have a nice life."

The Goblin King snapped his fingers once, and Lewton vanished with a cry. Emilie stared at Jareth; she had never seen him act in such a way.

"Was that... you didn't even give him a choice after all?" She whispered.

He shook his head. "The scumbag knew what he was doing when he profited from the misery of others, including Dawn. Now he will know what hopelessness, hunger and homelessness feel like, first-hand. And serve him right."

"Ms. Murloh? Ms. Murloh wake up," a far-away voice called.

Slowly blinking her eyes, Dawn realized with a blush that she had cried herself to sleep in the factory. Sitting up, Dawn rubbed the sleep from her puffy eyes and cheeks as she looked around, disoriented.

"Ms. Murloh, what on earth happened to you?" the voice inquired as Dawn looked up into his eyes; eyes that were a deep, chocolate brown with shimmering gold flecks accenting them.

Looking over her appearance, Dawn blushed a deeper crimson as she realized how torn, dirty, and bloody her over all appearance was. "I-I-I..."

What could she say? She couldn't tell him the truth.. So what could she tell him? Dawn was not accustomed to lying, making this a very difficult situation to be in.

The man crouching before her took her silence and pausing as temporary disorientation and amnesia, "Come, let us get you home. You cannot very well work like this, now can you?"

"W-Work? May I ask who you are?" Dawn inquired as the man slowly helped her to her feet, her body shaking as everything rushed to her head and the lack of eating or drinking anything for over twenty-four hours hitting her hard.

"Ms. Murloh, my name is Mr. Fifleni.. Do not you remember me? Your Manager?" the man inquired, worry written in his features, "Ms. Murloh, do you know where you are right now?"

"The factory," Dawn nodded as she massaged her temple, "Please, forgive me. Do not trouble yourself, Mr. Fifleni, I will be alright in just a few moments. I will quickly go home and change before returning, please do not fire me," Dawn whispered as her family now entered her thoughts.

"No, of course not, your job will be here for you when you return. You look as if you've been through a war, are you sure you are alright?" Mr. Fifleni inquired softly.

"Yes, yes, I am alright, thank you for your concern, and thank you for your kindness. I truly appreciate it," Dawn managed to say softly with a curtsy before stumbling out of the factory and quickly making her way home, taking the long route as to not run into her sisters going into work.

When she reached her home, Dawn was thankful her family was already out of the house. Seeing them that evening and explaining where she was would have been torture enough. But for them to see her like this? Dawn had no story prepared, she was not ready to answer questions of last night.

As Dawn washed the grime, soot, and blood from her body and dress after stripping down to her undergarments, tears fell from Dawn's eyes and into the water as her thoughts roamed back to the Labyrinth and it's inhabitants.

Were they safe?
Were they alright?
Was the Labyrinth still furious with Jareth?
Was Jareth searching for her?
Did Jareth still even want her after the trouble she caused?

Only time would tell. For surely, if he still wanted her and loved her, he would make contact, would he not?

Changing into a new dress, one cream colored with a brown bodice, Dawn hung her wet dress out to dry before running a comb through her hair and heading back to the factory, doing her best to force the memories from her mind so that she could work quickly and efficiently, hoping not to lose any money or her family.

There would be plenty of time to think of everything that evening after work, so Dawn hoped and wished.

"Come now," Jareth proclaimed imperiously, his eyes filled with vigor and purpose. "We will go to my castle and look up the law books in the library. Surely there must be something--"

"Um..." Emilie's voice was barely audible.

"What is it now?" The Goblin King could not disguise his impatience, earning him a glare from Raman.

"I..." The girl stammered. "I... I can not read. I never learned how... My father..."

"...Was a goblin," Jareth finished for her, nodding in sudden understanding. "Of course, I did not think about that. Well, there are other ways for you to assist me and Raman, I am sure... You, I assume, can read?" He shot at the fairy guard.

"I can read in the archaic and modern languages of the fairies, as well as the universal speech of Fae," Raman answered.

"Good," Jareth pronounced. "You can read in two languages, I can read in seven. Together we are sure to cover much ground. Emilie?"

"Yes?" She asked, still blushing from her prior admittance. She felt so... ignorant, now, compared to Raman and Jareth, who were obviously much more educated than she was.

"How would you like to be tutored? I am sure that Hathion would be willing to--"

"Oh, but," Emilie interrupted earnestly, her eyes shining with hope. "Would you not need Hathion to assist you in researching the laws of Fae?"

Jareth waved a hand dismissively. "Call me a selfish king, would you, hoarding all the education for myself? No, you are a subject of mine who is actually interested in being educated and learned, and who would I be then if I withheld that opportunity from you? We'll go and see how Hathion likes that idea right now, shall we?"

He snapped his fingers, and he, Emilie and Raman were in the castle. In the East Dining Room. With Lunessa.

Jareth quickly hid a groan; he had forgotten all about the princess. "Princess," he spoke up smoothly, a mask of light politeness quickly covering up his features, "forgive my sudden departure. May I introduce Emilie of the Forest and Raman of the Fairies? Emilie, Raman, this is Her Highness Lunessa."

"It is a pleasure to meet all of you," Lunessa said warmly as she gave each a small nod in acknowledgment before curtsying deeply before Jareth, "Is everything alright, Your Majesty? I did not realize you had a runner in your Labyrinth, nor did I realize you were in love with said runner. I can see you are not wishing for my company at this time, but if you ever need me, for anything, please do not hesitate to call upon me," Lunessa said with a warm smile before placing a kiss upon Jareth's cheek.

"I will return to my father this evening, you have been kind in your generosity for accepting me into your Castle. Forgive me for taking away some of the limited time you had with the young.. human.. you are in love with, I wish I could make it up to you," Lunessa said with another curtsy, feeling as if the situation was partially her fault for visiting; for if she hadn't been here to distract Jareth, the incident with Dawn and the Fae Fish may not have happened.

"I wish you luck in finding a way to bring her back to you," Lunessa added softly in parting before transporting to her own Kingdom, her luggage following moments later.

Shortly after Lunessa left, Hathion entered with the procession of platters. Looking around, Hathion sighed as he put two and two together, "So that is what the ruckus was about.. What has happened to the Lady Dawn?" Hathion inquired hesitantly as he neared the group, almost afraid of the answer he was to receive.

-

As her work day nearly came to a close, Dawn was called into Mr. Fifleni's office.

'This cannot be good..' Dawn thought miserably to herself, assuming that he wished to not only speak to her of this morning, but to also inquire as to why she had been so jumpy and distant all day. Her work had been done, of course, but as she worked she had always been looking around the room and under tables.

What she could not tell him was why. Everywhere she looked, she thought of the day Jareth and come for her; the Goblins she had seen who had helped her with her work, Mr. Lewton's toupee, the moment she first saw him..

Dawn couldn't help but hope, no.. wish, that she could see a sign that all of it was real and that it truly did happen to her. A blur of a goblin, a gust of air - anything. The only thing that gave proof, if you could even call it proof, were the flowers by her doorstep. But could that really prove the Fae world existed? That Jareth existed outside of her book?

Sitting down before Mr. Fifleni, Dawn tried to think of an excuse for her behavior as he spoke, surprising her with his words.

"Dawn, I mean.. Ms. Murloh, is everything alright? At home, I mean. You seem so strange today.. And this morning you were here looking as if you were beaten. Please, you must know you can come to me if you are in trouble," Mr. Fifleni said with warm smile, his Italian accent seeping through in his voice.

"Mr. Fifleni, I hardly know you, but thank you for your kindness. I assure you, I am right as rain and you have nothing to fear. My work will not be affected," Dawn answered softly with a blush.

"Yes, I suppose that should be all that matters.. But I-"

"Mr. Fifleni, I am sorry if this sounds rude, but I must be going; my sisters need me," Dawn whispered softly as she stood and curtsied, "Thank you for inquiring of me, but I assure you I am alright."

"Yes, of course. Have a good night, Ms. Murloh," Mr. Fifleni said with a warm smile as he stood out of respect for a young woman as Dawn exited the office to join her sisters on the walk home from work.

"What is that girl thinking..." Mr. Fifleni whispered to himself, "How can she not know me?"

"Dawn--" Raman began.

"A huge fish--" Emilie cried at the same time.

They both looked at each other, then began to explain what had happened to Dawn between the two of them. Jareth stood by, looking more and more impatient; when they finished, he immediately strode to the door.

"And that is what happened," he threw over his shoulder at Hathion. "Now, I have a new job for you, Hathion. Take Emilie here and begin instructing her in letters and numbers; she's completely ignorant about both of them. Meanwhile, Raman and I will be going down to the library and researching the laws of Fae. Raman, are you well enough to fly yet?"

The fairy guard fluttered his wings hesitantly, then sighed in frustration. "No," he replied. "I fear that it will take some more time before I am able to fly and use my magic again."

"Then I trust you have no vocal objection to riding on my shoulder, do you?" For a split second, the old smirk was back on Jareth's face. But then it was gone.

Raman shook his head, and Emilie deposited him upon Jareth's shoulder before turning to Hathion. "Um," she murmured. "Where are you going to be tutoring me? I mean, if that is all right with you."

"Yes, of course milady," Hathion said with a warm smile and a flourishing bow, trying to keep calm over the situation as his thoughts roamed to what her Majesty the Queen must be going through at this moment in time.

"Come, this food should not go to waste, surely you are hungry? Shall eat while I teach you your letters? The letters are the easy part," Hathion said with a wink as he offered her his arm to lead her to the table as the goblins went about serving two plates side by side.

"Since the library will be in use by his Majesty and the fairy Raman, we shall be using the Dining Hall as a temporary classroom, if you have no objections?"

"Terran, please fetch me some parchment, a quill, and a bottle of ink, will you?"

"Yes, Lord Hathion," the goblin answered quickly before scurrying off to the offices, only to arrive moments later with said items and placing them on the table before holding the chair out for Emilie.

"Thank you, Terran," Hathion said warmly as he led Emilie to the table.

-


"Dawn? Why did Alessandro call you into his office?" Ariena inquired with her hands clasped behind her back as they walked down the people filled street.

"Is Sandro mad at you Dawnie?" Mary inquired as she skipped between Dawn and Ariena, their fingers laced together.

"Alessandro?" Dawn inquired softly, confusion in not only her tone, but also in her features.

"Alessandro Fifleni? The man you've been working for for six years and have been seeing the past four months? Dawn, are you alright?" Ariena inquired softly as she looked up at Dawn, worry coating her eyes.

"Yes, yes.. I am alright.. Forgive me," Dawn managed to whisper as she began massaging her forehead and temples, "Alessandro.. No, no, he is not angry with me. He just wished to make sure I was alright, is all. Forgive me for worrying all of you," Dawn said with a warm smile to try and assure her sister that everything was alright, despite the fact that it wasn't.

'Alessandro Fifleni?
A man I have been seeing for four whole months?
That cannot be... I have only just met the man.. And I love Jareth.. How can I be seeing this man?'

Dawn's thoughts roamed as a tear rolled down her cheek. It was as if Jareth had been erased from her world and Alessandro Fifleni had come to replace him.

Did this mean she would never see Jareth or the others again?
Was Dawn truly disconnected from the Fae world for life?

As the days went on and the weeks rolled by, it seemed that Dawn's life now consisted of work, her family, being courted by Alessandro Fifleni, and telling her sisters the story of her time in the Labyrinth. During this story was the only time Dawn was able to believe, for just a moment, that her memories truly did occur and were not just a concoction created by her imagination and wishful dreaming.

By day, Dawn was bright and cheery, a facade put on for her family to keep them for worrying. But by night, when everyone was asleep, Dawn was by her window, looking up at the stars above, tears falling from her eyes as she wondered what life would have been like with Jareth.

However, these dreams were kept secret from everyone but Dawn herself. In the world she now lived in, Dawn was forced to live a life she did not want, but could not get out of; a world in which Dawn must pretend to love a man she did not remotely love in order to live the life the Labyrinth created for her and not be called insane.

For if she were to be named insane, she would be left on the streets with no family. After losing Jareth and the others, Dawn couldn't bare the thought of losing her family as well, even if it meant giving up her happiness.

For what could she do? Dawn had no options that she could see; options that she spent hours of every day trying to find since the day the Labyrinth took her from Jareth. Every time she came close to an idea, her mind ached painfully and the idea vanished into thin air.

After months of such a life, what was Dawn to do? Though despite the circumstances looking dim, and her future grim, Dawn did not give up hope that one day Jareth would find a way to bring them together once more. If it were possible, Jareth would find it.

As Emilie sat down to dinner and her first lesson in letters, Jareth and Raman threw themselves whole-heartedly into researching every single law in Fae that had ever been passed and that was still in existence. It was tiring work for all, but Emilie was the only one who gleaned any satisfaction from her learning--Jareth and Raman came up dry for loopholes time and time again.

A month passed and Emilie could spell out basic words and put them together into small sentences. Jareth and Raman had gone through an entire bookshelf of Fae laws and found nothing that could help them get Dawn back into the world of the Fae.

Two months later, Emilie had learned to count and write down up to one hundred and was doing addition and subtraction. The two Fae men were still at a loss for any loopholes in the laws that could help them, or any law or lack thereof that would be of any aid.

They put up strong, hopeful, cheerful faces for the sake of Emilie, but they knew that they were not completely fooling her. And they were not; they could see it in her eyes, in the way she spoke to them. In the way she would come down to the library when they were still working away into the night, bringing them hot tea or a snack to keep their strength up, murmuring encouraging words.

Months had passed since the encounter with the monstrous fish. There had been only one traveler through the Labyrinth in that time, and he had won, mainly due to Jareth's lack of caring, of the Goblin King's devotion to his study of the laws, of thinking of anything possible that could reunite him with Dawn.

Perhaps he would have given up hope by now. Perhaps he would have lived a life of misery and longing until the day he died. But there was one thing that could connect him with Dawn, if not in the way that he so desperately wished for.

His crystal ball. He could look into it, see Dawn's face. See her with her family, smiling and laughing with them, or hard at work in the textile factory, or being escorted home by the new manager. Jareth himself had had no choice in who replaced Lewton as the factory manager; he had the feeling that this was only another way that the Labyrinth had thought of to torture him in his separation from his beloved Dawn. He knew that it was when he saw the look in the new manager's eyes whenever he looked at Dawn, in the way he spoke to her, in the way his mannerisms changed subtly whenever she was around.

Jareth had never met the man, never spoken a word to him in both of their lives, but already he hated him. He made doubts rise up within the Goblin King's heart, doubts that he should never have had to have.

'What if she forgets me?'

'What if she stops loving me?'

'What if she grows tired of waiting and leaves me behind?'

And yet every night, he saw Dawn in the crystal, gazing out of the window with tears in her eyes. And he knew, he knew even though he could not speak to her, could not reach out to her, could not kiss or touch her, that the tears were for him, and they gave him strength to continue on in his research of Fae law.

It had been almost a year since Dawn had left the Labyrinth and last had any contact from the world of Fae. During this year, Dawn had not grown to love Jareth any less, nor had her longing for him waned.

However, during this time, Alessandro Fifleni had fallen passionately in love with Dawn and had tried to kiss her multiple times, each try accompanied by a polite refusal, saying she was not ready to show such affection, allowing him only to kiss her cheek or her hand if he insisted.

On the eve of the '1 year, four month anniversary' together, precisely one year after Dawn returned from the Labyrinth, Alessandro proposed.

Though Dawn was shocked, her family was thrilled, leaving Dawn unsure of what to do. She did not love him, but should she marry him for her family's sake? For sanity's sake? Could she start a family with this man, and truly be happy? Never. But Dawn couldn't help but question Jareth.

Could it be Jareth had found someone new?
Was Jareth unable to ever send for her?
Would she forever be forced to long for a life that was never to be?
Was she to forever love a man who did not care for her?

The night of the proposal, Dawn looked at the ring Alessandro had left with her as it glistened in the moonlight, a ring left in hopes it would entice Dawn to consider his proposal and what he was offering her; despite knowing she did not love him as he loved her.

Looking up into the stars, Dawn sighed as she slipped through her window onto the street below. Picking the nearby flower, Dawn twirled it between her fingers as she whispered softly one word and one word only as she walked. "Jareth..."

-

"Emilie, what are we to do?" Hathion whispered as they looked into the library, seeing Raman and Jareth slaving over yet another stack of books, "Jareth has been searching for a year now.. Surely if there was a way to bring her Majesty the Queen back, they would have found it by now."

Over the past year, as Hathion tutored Emilie, the two had grown some-what close due to all of their time spent with one another. During this time, Hathion had begun to see the young human differently, more romantically. After four or five months together in such a manor, Hathion realized what it was about Emilie that made him look so differently at her than other women in the Fae Kingdom: She was bright, eager to learn, passionate, and kind, and that was what had started Hathion's love for Emilie.

It was small, a budding flower to say the least, but it was present ever since the day Hathion saw Emilie in the gardens. She was beautiful in the sunlight, yet that was not what had drawn him to her. She looked as if she were reading, and that gave him a sense of pride for he had taught her the letters, the words, everything that made up the book, and she had learned it quickly and willingly. She was intelligent, and that drew him to her.

It was as if something inside him clicked all of a sudden on that bright afternoon in the Castle Gardens, something quite unexplainable, something Hathion could only interpret as a romantic inclination.

However, as far as he knew, she still loved Raman, and he respected that. Hathion knew his place and that was as her friend and tutor, not as her lover. Though despite knowing this, Hathion continued to fall in love with her unknowingly at first, for he tried his best to remain as simply a close friend. But now, standing beside her, Hathion could not deny the budding affection growing within his heart towards the human girl beside him.

Hathion sighed as he watched the two men in the library toss another book aside in frustration, unconsciously taking Emilie's hand in his as he whispered, "If only there was a way to help them.. but they have been through these books a thousand times.. His Majesty must be heartbroken.. Only being able to see his Queen through a crystal, not being able to hold her, kiss her, comfort her.. Being forced to watch another man court her.. I could not bare seeing such a scene before me day after day..."

Emilie glanced down in surprise at Hathion's hand around hers, but she did not pull away; quite the opposite. She closed her own fingers gently around the elf's.

"I could not bear such a sight, either," she murmured, looking on as Jareth buried his face in his hands, as Raman turned the page of a book written by fairies in the ancient fairy script, an expression of deep concentration on his face.

"I hope I will never have to," the pale-haired girl added, daring to look up at Hathion at last. Would he be able to read the hidden message in her words, in her eyes?

'I hope I will never have to watch you with another, as Jareth must with Dawn.'

For Emilie had fallen in love with Hathion the elf. At first, in those initial days in the castle, her heart had still been Raman's. She had been attracted to everything about him--his serious ways, his somber gaze, his willingness to work long hours into the night. Hathion had just been a friend, a tutor, nothing more. But as she had spent more time with the elf, talking more and more of casual things, not just numbers and letters and words and equations, she realized that there was a person behind his studious, polite exterior. A person she could connect with, a person she felt realized that she herself was a person, as well.

And it was then that she realized that her attraction for Raman had ever only been that--attraction. Never love, never serious. They were friends, but never anything more. Hathion, however... Emilie could see herself with Hathion. She could picture it, and imagine that it was not so far away. Being beside him, eating with him, reading with him, asking him for help on an equation... it all felt RIGHT somehow. It fit. They fit.

Or so she hoped. But if Hathion had ever had the slightest romantic thought towards her, he was hiding such things very well. Except for now. Was he holding her hand out of support, or... was it something more?

Emilie smiled at him, reaching up to brush a stray lock of hair out of his eyes. "Please, do not look so sad. We will see Dawn again. We will talk with her again." In a stronger, more determined voice, she continued, "Now, let me see a smile. We are going to get through this, are we not? Smile for Dawn, she would want you to."

'Smile for me. I want you to.'

It was then that Jareth looked around at them standing in the doorway to the library. "So you want to see Dawn?" He asked wearily. "You want to see how she is doing?"

Emilie jumped; she had not realized that the Goblin King knew they were there, although now that she did it did not surprise her. "Um, yes, Jareth."

He conjured up one of his crystal balls, held it out to the girl and the elf. "Look for yourself." There was a definite bitter tone in his voice, one that instantly had Emilie on edge. Taking the ball, she held it up so that both she and Hathion could see into it.

"...She is with another man?" Emilie exclaimed. "...She is letting him kiss her! But why? Doesn't she--"

"She still loves me," Jareth told her in a weary voice. "But I am not sure for how much longer."

Hathion's face became grim, "The Labyrinth's punishment is severe indeed.. I did not know it could be so cruel to it's King.."

Looking at Emilie, Hathion forced a warm smile, trying to smile for her as she had asked, wanting to convey to her that he too felt as she did, a part of him lighting up with hope that she felt as strongly as he did and it wasn't just his imagination playing tricks upon him.

"Do not worry, I know the Lady Dawn; I have seen her when other men tried to court her from around her home. Her look now is the same as it was when the others tried courting her simply because they were of age and she were of age and they wanted to start a family with anyone who was willing. She does not love this human the Labyrinth has created, she still loves his Majesty as he loves her.. She must.." Hathion whispered as if his words had another meaning to them; as if they were saying 'Do you love me as I love you? Have you truly stopped loving Raman? A time I have only dreamed of ever coming?'

"Your Majesty," Hathion added aloud to his King as he forced his gaze to leave Emilie's eyes, his hand giving hers a tender squeeze as if to convey 'You need never fear that I will put you through this, there is no one I would rather love than you.'.

"Cannot the Queen hear you in the crystal? Cannot she hear you like she did when she was in the factory a year ago? Surely the Fae food she consumed in the Human World is still in affect if you are still able to see her in the crystals," Hathion suggested softly, still amazed that the Labyrinth had not taken that privilege away; though not completely surprised after seeing Dawn with that human doting upon her.

-

"Dawn, how could you? How can you keep putting it off like this?" Ariena demanded with a huff, "If it were me I would snap him up!"

"Ariena, please, do not push your sister so!" Dawn's mother insisted as she served dinner.

"But Mother, he has been courting her for a year and ten months! How can she not accept him?" Ariena continued as she glared at Dawn, "We could use the extra support!"

"Ariena," Dawn's father warned as he helped his wife serve the dinner.

"Forgive me, Father, I just do not see what is taking her so long in accepting Alessandro. He is even Italian for Heaven's sake!"

All the while her family had been talking around her, Dawn had remained looking out at the setting sun. Standing from her seat beside the window, Dawn took the ring and walked outside without another word.

"Dawn! Dawn, where are you going?" her mother called as she hurried to the door, "Dinner is just about ready."

"I shall not be long, Mother, I simply wish to go for a small walk. I will be home shortly, I promise," Dawn called softly, unsure if her mother even heard her.

"Very well, but hurry back," Dawn's mother said with a shake of the head before going back inside and closing the door behind her.

Taking the back streets, streets she knew well, Dawn looked at the ring before her. It had been a year and a half since she had last heard from Jareth.

Could it be he had moved on?
Could it be he did not love her as he said?
Could it be she was not as important as he led her to believe?
Could it be she was easily replaced?

Dawn had spent a year and a half crying over a man who possibly did not love her and did not want her now that she nearly cost him everything.

"I do not blame you, Jareth, if you do never wish to see me again for what I had nearly cost you.. I just wish I could see you one last time and know for certain," Dawn whispered to herself as she leaned back against the wall beside her, the small diamond ring glistening in the sunlight, "Perhaps then this decision would not be so difficult to make.. Perhaps then I could let you go and try and love the man the Labyrinth sent to me when I returned to the Human World, despite not wishing to.."

"I can only see her, not speak to her," Jareth told Hathion, the same haggard look upon his face and in his eyes. "It is the smallest comfort and strongest torture that the Labyrinth gives me."

On an impulse, Emilie approached the Goblin King and threw her arms around him in an embrace meant to be strengthening, comforting. Over the year that had passed, she had come to look upon him as a sort of uncle, the father-figure that she had never had. He in his turn doted on her (in his own way) when he was not occupied with laws and watching Dawn. When she was tired or feeling down, he had her favorite dishes cooked for dinners; when she learned new ways of piecing together sentences and ever more difficult equations, he praised her as if she had built a house by hand. The bond between them was important to Emilie; and, she hoped, to him.

"Do not despair, Jareth," she told him, half-gently, half-urgently. "We are with you in this, we all love Dawn, and we all want you and her to be happy together." Her eyes filled with tears of emotion. "If only there was something we could do other than this; something, anything...! Whatever it took..."

The Goblin King returned her embrace, but his face was musing, deep in thought. "Anything," he murmured, as if to himself. "Whatever it took..."

His eyes suddenly widened; it was like joy and hope had returned to him for the first time in a year. And yet the light in his face died out as abruptly as it had come.

"No," he muttered, releasing Emilie from his arms. "No, I could not ask that."

"Ask what, Jareth?" Emilie asked eagerly, spurred on by the expression she had seen, if only briefly, on his face. "Ask what?"

"What is it?" Raman asked sharply. "Have you thought of something?"

Jareth glanced at him. "I have, Raman, but... It would cost us all much. I could not ask Hathion and Emilie--"

The Goblin King abruptly shut his mouth, but it was too late.

"Ask us what?" The girl demanded again. "Ask us what, Jareth? You must know that you can ask us anything--what is it?"

"Your Majesty, if we may be of assistance, please do not hesitate so! If you have a way of saving our Queen then we will do anything in our power to help you return her to us. We all love and miss her, your Highness.. Do not leave us in such suspense as to formulate a plan and then not speak of it for fear it is too much for us to handle," Hathion nearly pleaded to his King, part of him wanting to help Queen Dawn, part of him wanting to help King Jareth in finding his love, but most of him hoping to bring joy back to his Royals in any way that he could.

-

Looking up at the darkening sky, Dawn sighed as she closed her eyes and rested her head back against the wall, the ring now upon her her right middle finger.

What was she to do?
Should she place it upon her left ring finger?
Should she return it to Alessandro?
Should she keep waiting for a man she had not seen nor heard from since she left the Labyrinth?
Should she stop waiting for him, and accept Alessandro?

Dawn sighed as she opened her eyes and looked down at the ring.

"Jareth..."

If he could have found a way, surely he would have by now. It had been a year and a half already.

Perhaps her fears were correct and Jareth did in fact move on and forget her.
Perhaps Jareth did not love her as much as he said.
Perhaps Jareth found someone new, someone more worthy of his love than she.

Whatever happened, Dawn knew she must give him up for surely that is what he had done with her.

Taking the ring from her middle finger, Dawn held it between her fingers, tears rolling down her cheeks as she began to slip the ring onto her left ring finger.

"You would do anything, would you?" Jareth asked, reaching out to place a hand firmly on Hathion's shoulder. "If I were to ask you to be king in my place, with Emilie as queen beside you, would you still say such a thing?"

Emilie let out a gasp of shock. "King? Me? What do you--"

"Oh, come now, Emilie," the Goblin King told her with a hint of his old impatience. "Do you think me both blind and deaf to how you look at each other, speak to each other, act around each other as a whole? You are in love, Emilie and Hathion, and only the whole world can tell. Am I not right, Raman?" He added over his shoulder to the fairy who sat upon the table, surrounded by books.

In answer, Raman, long since healed of his strain from a year ago, flew up to hover at face-height with Hathion and Emilie. "Jareth is right," he told the two. "And it is only you two who have not realized that your feelings for each other are reciprocated. Tell him, Emilie," he spoke suddenly, but not harshly, to the human girl. "Tell Hathion how you feel."

Emilie blushed crimson, gazing at Hathion with all the strength that she possessed. "It... it's true, Hathion," she told him, nearly a whisper. "I... I do love you. I have for a long time, now. I... You are my tutor, and my friend, Hathion, but... but I have been wishing that you might someday be much more than that."

"Hathion, you feel the same way, I know," Jareth spoke up, putting an arm around Emilie's shoulders. "I also know that you are still burning with curiosity about my previous statement. Well, let me satisfy you now." His eyes sparked with energy and vigor that he had not possessed for a year.

"If I were to abdicate the throne, the Labyrinth would no longer have a hold over me, no more reason to keep up with my punishment, for then I would only be a normal Fae, in no position of great power. But the Labyrinth can not survive without a ruler, and the Labyrinth MUST survive if order in the Fae realms is to be maintained. Hathion, I am thinking that you would make an excellent ruler in my stead, along with Emilie here, once you two were wed... Yes, you want to be wed, do you not? But kingship carries with it great rigors and demands--I should know. I love Dawn, and I want her back--"

Here Jareth's energy seemed to flag a bit. "--but I would be unworthy of her if I did not think of others before myself. Hathion, Emilie, the choice must be entirely up to you. Would you assume leadership of the Labyrinth and all who dwell within it, just for me to be able to reunite with Dawn?"

Hathion, still taken aback by not only Jareth and Raman's words, but by Emilie's as well.

"I have loved you, Emilie, for quite some time. I feared you were still in love with another, so I did not voice any affection and did all I could to keep it from you, as hard as that has been."

Taking her hand in his, Hathion caress her cheek with his other hand as he spoke softly, love thick in his tone after months of not being able to be released, "If Emilie will have me as her husband, I would love nothing more than to marry her and rule with her by my side. It is an honor, your Majesty, to have such trust from you.

"I promise you your Majesty, I will not let you down and you will forever be the true King of the Labyrinth in my eyes," Hathion added with a warm smile at Jareth, his eyes a tad glossy from hearing that Emilie loved him and from the honor that Jareth had bestowed upon him at that moment.

-

The ring on her finger, Dawn slid to the ground as tears flowed from her eyes. Burying her face in her knees, Dawn pulled her knees close to her.

"What am I doing.." Dawn whispered as the circle upon her finger became more and more apparent, her heart aching more and more as she cried.

Was she doing the right thing?
Of course she was. He left her. He didn't love her. He never sent for her, never came for her, never spoke to her. That meant the obvious and she was a fool for not seeing it sooner.
Jareth had found a woman more worthy of his love and more worthy of the title of Queen of the Labyrinth.
What could she have been thinking? Was she truly that naive as to believe it were possible? Especially after what she had done before she was sent back?

"How could I have been so stupid.." Dawn whispered as the bottom of her fist pounded into the wall behind her in frustration.

Emilie smiled, and it was full of joy and light. "I would have you for my husband, Hathion, and very gladly at that. I..." She could not speak, she was so overwhelmed with emotion.

A grin broke out over Jareth's face as he quickly embraced the elf. "Hathion, I know you are no fool, and you have been with me for so many years that you know all about how the Labyrinth and ruling works... Yes, Hathion, I don't think that I could have made a better choice!"

Pulling away, Jareth pulled out a crystal ball, held it aloft and proclaimed, "I, Jareth, King of the Goblins, son of Oberon, the High King of Fae, do hereby proclaim Emilie, daughter of Gorbesk, and Hathion, son of Nimrun, lawfully wedded wife and husband. I also do hereby abdicate my throne and rule over the Labyrinth and pass it on to Hathion, vassal of the Elves, son of Nimrun."

The Goblin King Emeritus then THREW the crystal ball at Hathion; it grew until it completely encased him, then sank down until it fit his form, then absorbed into his skin.

Standing back, Jareth spoke with a grin. "There, that will do until you can have a flashier marriage for all of Fae to see; but you are as bound together in wedlock now as the stars are to the night. King Hathion, I believe there is a favor that you owe me now: transportation to the side of a certain human girl in the mortal world."

Emilie blinked.

"That is it?" She asked. "That is all there is to it?"

Jareth turned to her, obviously impatient to be gone. "Yes, that really is all there is to it. Only normally, court protocol and procedure requires the ceremonious permission of the High King and ceremonial coronation at the court and all that... But really, is any of this 'normal' at all? By the time anyone finds out to raise a stink about it, I will be long gone and it will all be too late anyway."

He winked.

Hathion looked at Emilie, a wide grin on his face as he placed a kiss upon her hand, love filling his eyes as he turned her face towards his and placed a small, tender kiss upon her lips. "I love you, Queen Emilie," Hathion whispered against her lips before placing another kiss upon them.

Turning back to Jareth, Hathion smiled as he hugged Jareth, "Give Queen Dawn my best, King Jareth."

Stepping back, Hathion smiled at Jareth and added with a teasing wink, "My Lord, along with being beside the woman you love, I will give you another gift. The human world is harsh, as you know, and in this period you must have money, as you also know.

"To make an easy adjustment for not only you, but for Dawn as well, I will create a fabric company that you will be president of, who does close work with Dawn's clothing factory. You may name it whatever you like when you enter the human world, my King, no one will question otherwise.

"With it will come a vast fortune that will last you and, God willing, your descendants for many a generation," Hathion added with a warm smile as he shook Jareth's hand, "Good luck, my King, we will visit as often as we can and keep you up to date with what is going on within your Labyrinth."

Slipping his arm around his wife's waist, a term he was growing more and more fond of as he thought about who it was meant for, Hathion smiled at Jareth and granted his request without further ado.

And in moments, he was standing before Dawn, who was still crying upon the ground by the wall in the backstreets, the ring upon her left hand ring finger glistening in the starlight.

There she was. After over a year of sleepless nights and watching from afar and always wishing and never being fulfilled, there she was. Dawn Murloh, the woman he loved. And now he was no more than a man who was finally able to be with her.

"Dawn," Jareth murmured. Dropping to one knee in front of her, he raised a hand to dry her face. "Might I be so vain as to think that those tears might be for me?"

He wanted to touch her, kiss her, hold her in his arms and never let go. But he also knew that his sudden appearance like this must be a great shock for her, and the last thing he wanted at this moment was for her to shrink or flee from him.

"Dawn." He savored her name upon his lips, knowing that she could finally hear him speak. "Dawn, I love you. With my crystal, I have been able to see you, but never speak to you. I have been tirelessly researching every day of this miserable year for a way to get back to you. And now that I am here with you at last, Dawn, I want you to know. I want you to always know. I love you.

"I know that man was sent to torture me, and torture me his presence did, especially when he was around you. And yet I know that you were tortured, as well, and that I am to blame... I could not get to you sooner, Dawn, and I wish with every fiber of my being that I could have. But I am here now, Dawn, and I want to tell you that I still love you and there is no one else but you for me. Dawn, tell me, please tell me that you love me back."

Lifting her left hand in his, Jareth whispered, "Tell me that I can take this off and throw it away."

Dawn sat motionless, her eyes wide, her voice gone.

Was this a dream? But if felt so... real. His hand, his caress, his words.. It all felt so real...
Could it be that he was finally here at last? When all hope seemed lost?
What if it was a trick.. What if he was being selfish and only appeared now when she had made her decision simply because he wanted to keep stringing her along so he had a human to play with when he wasn't happy with his Fae wife?

But Jareth wouldn't do that to her, couldn't do that to her.. Could he?
It seemed by now, Dawn did not care one bit. She only cared that Jareth was here, proclaiming his love to her in the flesh. To her, this was real; nothing but he could convince her otherwise.

Finding her voice at last, Dawn whispered softly as her fingertips brushed against his face, "J-Jareth? Is it really you?"

"For a year and a half.. I have wished, dreamed, even yearned for this moment," Dawn whispered through her tears, "A year and a half I have been kept waiting, doubts rising everywhere, barely able to keep my hope alive that you still loved me, that a Fae woman had not taken you from me.

"Why did it take you so long? Why now, when all hope seemed lost, do you choose to come to me? Why did not you come sooner?"

Shaking her head, Dawn continued without allowing him to speak, "No, the why does not matter anymore. All that matters is that you are here, with me; that you are able to hold me as I have dreamed; kiss me as I have longed for; love me as I have always wished," Dawn whispered as she threw her arms around Jareth's neck, knocking him backwards onto the ground as she placed a long, tender kiss upon his lips; a kiss conveying all of her love for him as the tears fell from her eyes.

After taking off the ring, Dawn set it upon the ground beside them as she placed another kiss upon his lips.

"As for Alessandro's ring, how could I ever dream of keeping it now that you have returned to me? Jareth, I love you and only you, this I swear to you. My heart has always belonged to, and always will belong to, Jareth, the Goblin King.

"But no, you may not throw the ring away. I must return it to Alessandro. It must have cost him a great deal.. I could not bare him losing so much money," Dawn added with a blush, "It is horrible enough to think of what I have done to Mr. Lewton and his family.. I could not bare causing Alessandro to hurt on my account as well."

"But let us not talk of Alessandro nor Mr. Lewton right now," Dawn added with a warm smile, "I only wish to think of you right now.. I have missed you dearly, Jareth," Dawn whispered as she buried her face in his hair and neck, one hand clutching his long, straw colored hair while the other clutched his shirt, "I love you so so much, Jareth.. Forgive me for nearly accepting Alessandro's proposal.."

-

Allowing the crystal to float in the air before them, Hathion couldn't help but smile. "Perfect timing, would you not say my Queen? Do you think his Majesty will be able to settle things in the human world without any magic to guide him in his efforts - relying only on himself, his beloved, and what we are able to do to help them from here?" Hathion inquired with an almost teasing smile, part of him wondering just what they had all gotten themselves into when they outwitted the Labyrinth while the other part of him was euphoric not only for his own good fortune, but for his King and Queen's as well.

"I forgive you a thousand times over," Jareth murmured as he wrapped his arms around Dawn tightly, resting his cheek against her hair. "There was and never will be another woman, Dawn, that can compare to you in my eyes. This I promise you. As for why I have taken so long to get back to you..."

He pulled away so that he could look into her face, into her eyes. And he told her everything. His anguish after she had been taken back to the mortal world. His desperation in scouring the library for books of Fae law. How Raman had assisted him long into the night, for nights on end. How Emilie and Hathion had been a source of comfort to him, and their growing love for each other a pleasure rather than a dreadful reminder.

And he told her, finally, of how he had found a way to get around the rules of the Labryinth by no longer being subject to them.

"I am no longer the Goblin King, Dawn," he told her, still with his arms around her. It was night, the streets were dark, there was nobody about to see them; and frankly, he wouldn't give a damn if there was. "I am just... Jareth. Hathion took up the rule that I once held only minutes ago, with Emilie as his wife and queen--I made sure to wed them before I abdicated, of course. But the point is that now, I can be with you. I can be here with you forever, Dawn. By wedding you in your world I will become mortal, just as you are, and thus even more closely bound to you than before.

"Hathion--His Majesty, should I say now?--assured me that as a gesture of friendship and loyalty, he would make sure that we were provided for the rest of our days. I am now the owner of a rather large and profitable clothing company... I believe I shall name it 'Stronghart's'. That will be my surname in this world, and I believe it fits me quite well. It fits us."

He winked at her.

"That is how I became acquainted with you--I saw you working in the factory one day when I went there for a business call to Fifleni, and I couldn't get you out of my head, you with your dark hair and bright eyes. I stole every chance I could to talk with you when you were walking to and from work. And you made me fall ever more head over heels for you with your kindness, your passion for life, your ability to love... And you, in your turn, became quite crazy about me, for whatever reasons you choose (though I hope they are good ones). That is the story we shall tell your parents when I come calling, asking for your hand...

"That is, if you still wish to marry me after all that I have put you through?" The Goblin King Emeritus' expression was grave and somber, but he could not hide the laughing spark in his eye.

---

Emilie smiled back at Hathion as she looked into the crystal. "It would have been even better timing had we been able to get him there before she put on the ring... But all is now right, and that is all that matters. After that year..."

She sighed before putting her smile back on. "I do not believe you are giving Jareth the credit he deserves, husband," she told him with a mirthful smile. "Look at his perseverance with studying the law so much for so long, for running a kingdom for even longer than that. No," she continued, leaning her head against Hathion's shoulder. "I think that he will do just fine. It is we, as new rulers of the Labyrinth, who will most likely have our work cut out for us."

"Of course I wish to marry you, mio amore," Dawn smiled as his hair slipped through her fingers slowly, only to wrap loosely around her fingers once more as her fingertips toyed lightly with the strands.

"Ti amo con tutta l'anima," Dawn added as she tenderly caressed his cheek with her fingertips, not realizing she had spoken bits of Italian, a language she had not spoken to Jareth in their entire time together.

"How could you ever believe otherwise," Dawn whispered before leaning into him and placing a tender kiss upon his lips.

"You and you alone will be the man I love and wish to marry, Jareth, the only man I could ever be happy with, mortal or King," Dawn continued to murmur against his lips as she placed light kisses upon them, missing the feel of his lips against hers a thousand times more than she believed possible at first.

"But are you sure you wish to give up everything.. for someone like me?" Dawn inquired softly, her fears rising up once more, "Jareth.. I.. After all that I have caused you.. I cannot ask you to give up life your for me.. Jareth.. it is not fair to you to be forced into a mortal life.. on account of someone like me.."

"And Hathion and Emilie ruling the Labyrinth as husband and wife?" Dawn inquired only seconds later as the news finally clicked, "Though I am very glad she and Hathion finally told each other after so long of not knowing the others' feelings, it still surprises me that it was Hathion who Emilie grew to love."

"But what of Raman? Oh dear.. What shall become of Raman? Jareth.. Be honest, how is Raman?" Dawn whispered as she caressed Jareth's cheek, her eyes full of fear and sorrow for the small Fae she had grown to love dearly as a friend over the course of her journey through the Labyrinth over a year ago, "Does he fair well? And what of the Timeless one? I have broken my promise to her.. I promised I would return to her and visit her to keep her company once I had finished the Labyrinth, win or lose. Now I shall never see any of them again..."

-

"I do believe you are right, my dear Emilie," Hathion admitted with a small smile, "We do have our work cut out for us."

No sooner had Hathion spoken, did chimes begin to ring around them, signaling something that had been wished away. Hathion, dressed in his normal stately garb that he generally wore, placed a tender kiss upon his wife's lips before he caressed her cheek with his fingertips, "It seems our work has already begun. I will be back soon," Hathion promised with another kiss.

Taking her to an aside, Hathion added in a low whisper, hardly audible, "Emilie, I believe Raman may be having a tough time.. Perhaps help him with returning the books and speak with him? I can only imagine how he must feel right now."

Jareth frowned at her doubting words, pulled away from her slightly. "Dawn," he proclaimed firmly, "tu sei una stella. La mia stella! Il mio cuore è per voi--non posso vivere senza voi. Voglio passare il resto della mia vita con te...

"...And that is the end of it," he finished, smoothly transferring languages without even stopping to blink. "I refuse to hear another word of doubt pass your lips, all right, mio amore? I want to marry you, you want to marry me. I don't really see a problem with that here, do you?" He raised an eyebrow at her, smirking his old smirk.

His eyebrow remained raised at her next remark about Hathion and Emilie. "Ah, you caught on to her attraction to Raman, did you? I myself am rather glad that she turned to Hathion--I don't think that Raman would really be the right kind of man for her." A hint of his uncle-y affection for the pale-haired girl showed on his face. "Although that does not matter now, as she is wedded and happy.

"Raman and I have actually become quite good friends, if you can believe that." He grinned. "Maybe more like close business associates, in his case. But on better terms than we used to be, nonetheless. I am assuming that he will go back to his position as bodyguard to the Fairy Queen--I already had to go speak with her and ask for an extension of his time away from her, as it was." He rubbed his forehead from the memory. "That was an ordeal, convincing her without letting on the true reason for his extended stay at my castle. However, now that we are together again... Dawn, you know that he wants for you to be happy," Jareth added suddenly, looking into her eyes as he gripped her shoulders. "I hope you will not be offended or any such thing, but I believe that he has grown used to the idea of us being married. He will be invited to our wedding, of course... I don't exactly know how that would work out, but he shall be there nonetheless.

"Oh, and the Timeless One? If you wish, you can speak to Hathion about her being alone like that. I'm sure he'd be willing to do something about it. And you know, you are not confined to the human world now, Dawn, since I am no longer king. You are free to go there as long as Hathion and Emilie are willing to transport you. Emilie is a human, but she has been promoted to... pseudo-Fae, I suppose? due to her marriage with Hathion, who is now king with all the powers I once possessed. So she can transport you too." He grinned at Dawn. "Just in case you were wondering."

---

Emilie nodded, turning to Raman with a smile. "Raman, let me help you put those books away. Especially the ones that Jareth got out." She picked up several large tomes that Jareth had been poring over and replaced them on shelves. As she put the books back, she glanced at the fairy.

"Raman... You are going back to the castle of the fairies now, are you not? I know that Jareth got that extension of stay for you."

She sighed slightly. "I wish you did not have to go... I have grown so used to you being around. You have been such a good friend to me."

Raman nodded as he picked up his own fairy-sized books and put them back. "I am afraid that I have to return, Emilie, even though I have enjoyed being with you and the other two, as well. I have my job to do and my queen to look after, my own people to live amongst. You understand, do you not?"

Emilie nodded. "I do, Raman. But you will come visit us, will you not? And we can come visit you?"

A small smile appeared on the fairy's face. "As often as possible."

Dawn placed a tender kiss upon Jareth's forehead as a warm smile filled her lips, her dark hair falling over her shoulder and brushing against Jareth.

"Do I sense a bit of pride and affection for our dear friends, mio amore?" Dawn teased lightly as her nose gently brushed against his, "And I would very very much like to see them again - all of them. But what of you? Will not you come with me? And I have no way of speaking to Hathion or Emilie," Dawn added with a sad sigh.

"And I would very much wish them all at our wedding," Dawn added with a happier smile and she placed a long, tender kiss upon his lips, "For to see them just once, would bring me more happiness than I could describe."

"I love you, Jareth Stronghart," Dawn murmured softly against his lips between kisses.
"Ernamente," she promised as her grasp tightened in his hair.

Resting her forehead against his after a few more kisses, Dawn whispered softly as her heart raced in her chest from his lips against hers, "Jareth.. What are we to do with Alessandro? How will I explain my allowing him to court me, if you were to be courting me at the same time?"

Though Dawn was truly happy to be in the arms of the man she loved and had longed for for so long, Dawn could not help but worry of those who became involved due to her recklessness in the Labyrinth. Alessandro had been kind to her, even if she did not love him. The young Italian girl felt terrible for having to hurt him after so long for he truly did love her as he said, and knowing that made everything so much harder.

Jareth smiled from both her question and the kisses. "Tell him the truth, precious. Your heart was in conflict for the longest time, and that you were indeed inclined to accept his offer of marriage, but in the end you realized that you could not make him happy as he deserved. For would he not soon realize that you do not love him as he loves you? And who could be truly happy with that knowledge?"

The Goblin King Emeritus shook his head at the thought. "You may leave that part out of your declination, of course," he added.

"Of course I would come with you," he continued. "Don't you think that I'd want to see them again, too? And who says that you are not able to speak with them--I wouldn't hesitate in saying that they are watching us right now and can hear our every word." He winked at her unabashedly.

"Hathion," he spoke in a care-free tone of voice, "why don't you come down to this world and visit with Dawn? Bring Emilie and Raman with you."

A few moments later, there was indeed Emilie and Raman standing (and hovering) there, but no Hathion.

"Dawn!" Emilie cried, rushing to give the dark-haired girl a hug. "Dawn, I am so happy to see you. And I am so happy for you! Oh, no, I think I am going to cry..." And indeed there were tears welling up within the young woman's eyes.

Raman also flew up to Dawn and put a hand out to touch her cheek. "Hathion is not here, Jareth," he told the blonde-haired man. "He got called away by the chimes."

Jareth grimaced. "Ah, yes, well... There is no helping it then. He will not be available for the next thirteen hours." Glancing at Dawn, he added, "I trust that it will not kill you to wait that long, precious?"

'Especially with me around,' he seemed to be saying.