It was almost dawn and the old goblin was nearing the end of his story. He poked at the remaining embers of the fire and began the last chapter...    "It was not long after sunrise when Derrin and the goblin army returned to the Labyrinth. After a short scuffle, they rounded up Villdon's small gathering of soldiers. Sarah slept for days...  her ordeal had rendered her exhausted, the poor child. She is now recovered though, and is as sprightly as ever. Mischievous too, thanks to her new found powers. As may be presumed, the conflict between Jareth and Kardallen was soon resolved...  Jareth has 'given' The Planes to Kardallen in view of his help and loyalty when it was needed most. There was an obvious argument from Kardallen that this was a poor reward, in view of those lands being rightfully his anyway, though his words were in jest. While Sarah slept, they would often sit talking and laughing, late into the night. Now that Lady Sarah has recovered, all three are merry, as firm a trio of friends as ever I saw. As I understand it, Kardallen's sword and Jareth's crown have been returned to their rightful owners. I do not think, though, that they shall abstain from their tricks for long - each of them secretly enjoyed the mischief that went on for all those years, and I do not think that we shall be safe from Kardallen's boyish pranks and misbehaviour for long...    "When Sarah awoke, she had many questions about her powers. Jareth has since taken it upon himself to be her mentor - he teaches her to hone her powers and to understand them better. Although she had managed to defeat Villdon, there are still many levels to her power that she does not understand, though in time, she will."    The old goblin looked up at the sky, then looked at me, smiling. "It is almost dawn, a time when dreamers should awake." I smiled, and looked to the floor. "The alley behind you brought you into this world, and it shall take you out again." I slowly stood to my feet.    "Thank you," I said, earnestly.    "One needs someone to tell a story to, you know, to be a 'storyteller'. A story is not a story without an audience." he replied. I returned his warm smile, turned, and walked towards the alley.    As I stood at its entrance, I turned round for one last look at the Castle, and saw Sarah standing on a large balcony with ornate glass doors. She turned to look behind her, and I saw Jareth walk over to the ledge. He stood behind Sarah, his arms around her waist, and the two gazed out to the horizon, waiting for the sunrise. The breeze was gentle, and their hair danced in unison upon it. The sun rose, and cast its rays over their contented features, and Sarah turned away from the horizon to look into his eyes. He closed his eyes and leaned in to kiss her, though all he met was air. He opened his eyes to see that he was alone and smiled quietly to himself, relaxing his frame. As the sunbeams reached the glass doors, they cast off a brilliant light. When it had faded, I could see that Jareth was gone too. I smiled, turned my back and walked down the alley.    "I shall see you soon, my dear," said the old goblin over my shoulder. I turned to him and smiled, for I knew he told the truth.                                                         ~~~~~~~~                                                         THE END                                                         ~~~~~~~~