Title: Together - unfinished

Fandom: labyrinth

Series: Volume II in the Kings of the Underground (sequel to Beauty)

Rating: who knows yet

Disclaimer: I do not own da labyrinth, any of its characters or places or whatever...I don't own Jim Henson, either, but I'll do my best to do him justice...characters like Katia, Dyllian, and Xeran, however, are mine and I'd appreciate it if they weren't used in other people's fic just yet... I've got plans and want to make sure everything runs smoothly, :)

Summary: Jim Henson begins his rule of the Underground and has to pick up the pieces of what Jareth left behind

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Part 1

            It's intriguing how united a group of total strangers can feel when brought about with a common cause. They had no reason to trust me, no reason to respect me. I doubt that Jareth ever told me about them, even though I brought them notoriety in another realm, but then everyone knows that part of the story already. For all they knew I could have done it to him, I was the only person in the room with Jareth when he breathed his last. But for whatever reason, they trusted me, they banded with me. When I announced that his Majesty had fallen, bunches of goblins rushed to the castle, brought forth a makeshift cart and helped me to take his body to a peaceful section of the labyrinth. Those who could without dismembering themselves brought axes and cut wood from the forest to build the funeral pyre, and

the firies themselves lit it.

            And how they came to the funeral...I had never dreamt there were so many inhabitants in this strange world I had been brought to. Hundreds, thousands more than were in the movie...how Jareth had aquired them all I did not know and wasn't sure that I wanted to. But they all came...goblins and their domesicated dragons, faeries and gnomes, the door guardians, the wise man and his hat, Ludo and Hoggle, Didymus and Ambrosius, the firies, even species that I doubted even Brian Froud would have believed existed. Strange sentient plants, even living stones that had no outer features save their hard exterior and mossy covering wandered to mourn their king. It seemed the entire labyrinth gathered in that one spot, bringing flowers and heavy hearts, for however they felt about the man, they had their existence because of him.

            His body took much longer than any human to dissolve into ashes...maybe the sheer length of his existence had hardened his body, maybe it was a Fae trait, maybe there was still some magic left in Jareth. For all I knew, maybe he was looking down on us and giving that special smirk of a smile that was his, one final trick on us all to make sure we didn't forget him.

            But he burned, and no owl existed in the labyrinth from that day on.

            The ashes were respectfully buried in different locations in each part of the labyrinth...a bit in an oubliette, a bit in the hedge maze, a bit in the city, a bit here and there, each with a special plaque and a peach tree marking the area's sacredness. He was the labyrinth, it was only fit that he should be a part of it still.

            It had been a long day, so as the all-night mourning continued within the city, I retired to his, to my castle, Didymus at my side. He was one of the brightest inhabitants that I had encountered, so I had informally adopted himas my advisor until I got things under control.

            The castle was so quiet without the goblins...it practically echoed with each drop of water leaking between the stones, each breath I took.

            "They'll be back, your Highness...when tomorrow comes, they will be your subjects."

            "But why?" I asked, falling into the throne, though both my feet stayed on the floor. "They don't know me, I haven't done anything to win their trust...why would they come to me?"

            "Because, sire, you are their king," Didymus replied with all the innocence of a child. "What other reason is there?"

            At that point a deep realization hit me...it was a deep comfort hearing that statement, but there was also a deep fear there as well. They would follow me blindly, despite my inexperience, despite everything. And for no other reason than that I was now king.

            "How will I know what to do?" I asked, tiredly.

            "Jareth long ago neglected the kingdom...there isn't much /to/ do..." Didymus replied, his ears twitching up, a gesture that I would later recognize as he trying to be helpful. But now, that only made things worse. Taking my leave of him, I went upstairs, somehow instinctively knowing where to go. Moments later I found myself looking at the room that I was sure inspired M.C. Escher in some dream, though it seemed not as incredible, not as imposing now that Jareth's presence wasn't there to make it shine.

            Not feeling any sense of vertigo, I walked inside the door and began pacing over the stairs, my mind lost in thought, a set of deep-seeded fears rising in me. I had sold my life, sold my soul, for something that I had no idea what to do with. I had totally lost my family, my friends, my work, my life because I became infatuated with this magical fairy tale...but there was no book to tell me what to do now that the fairy prince was gone. Nothing to go by, this wasn't some story that I could write a happily ever ending for...it was real life now, and I had to make it work.

            I felt so alone...without even thinking I conjured a crystal and looked into it, and immediately saw my dreams. My children, my wife, my colleagues and friends, all gathered together at my own funeral...

Things were just as I had wanted...no black, a jazz band, and somewhat happy faces. I began to wonder if Jareth was looking down at the celebration in the city. Why, why had I done it? Was it power that I wanted, was it the glory of ruling a land? Not really...it was just that it seemed too good to pass up, too good of an experience, though at the moment my entire body ached, and not just because of what my soul was going through.

            A throbbing pain, as if light and heat pulsed through every nerve, every cell of my body. I couldn't see straight, couldn't breathe in rhythm, could barely even think of what to do. Somehow I stumbled to the door and into the hallway. With my hand upon the wall, I felt until I got to the master bedroom, and fell into a large plush chair. My chest felt tight, my body ached everywhere, and my vision began to blur. The symptoms were much worse than my fatal illness, and I had no idea what to do, how

to combat it. Jareth had never told me immortals could fall sick. In the back of my mind I mused at the irony that the underground might end up burying two kings in a single night.

            I don't know how long I lay there, watching the painful rise and fall of my chest. If there was written documentation of other cases of this, I couldn't raise the strength to conjur a crystal or make it to the castle library to find out; I didn't even have the strength to call out to one of my newly-acquired

minions. All I could do was feel the stabbing through my fingertips, my legs, my chest, my temples and eyes, even my hair burned with it. It was as if my entire being was sensitized to the point of overload.

            "Yer Majesty?" I nearly jumped out of my skin at the disturbance, so concentrated on the physical pain was I. Weakly I was able to turn my head and smiled slightly at the dwarf's presence. "Are you needin' some sort of help?"

            "Hoggle...how did you know?" I whispered, closing my eyes for a few seconds before opening them, hoping my vision would be clear. It wasn't.

            "The name ain't Hoggle...that's only what Jareth called me, and I still have a little power left in me, before I got turned into...this," he spat indignantly, glaring at me from his large eyes.

            "Oh? And what could you do to help..." I whimpered as the pulsing became deeper, more deliberate, as if my blood could vibrate as it traveled through my veins.

            "Well...I do know something that could take away the pain..." At that point I was too delirious to even wonder why I was in such a state, I needed relief and fast. "I suppose I could give it to ya, fer..."

            "For what? What do you want?" I gasped, my head back on the mountain of pillows, my chest heaving, and perspiration streaming down my forehead.

            "Well, you could always make me yer advisor..."

            Despite my situation, I had to smile. As if the dwarf still had mind-reading abilities that he had had from his past form, he glared.

            "I still have me knowledge about the ways of magic, and you don't have nothin!" he ranted, hands on hips defiantly.

            "Hoggle, I'm letting Didymus fill the position now...but if you can prove that you really do have what you say you do... I'll have to think about it," I managed. In pain I might be, but I had learned from Jareth's tale not to rush into anything. He seemed to stare at me emotionless for a moment, his eyes flashing some deep feeling that might only be felt by those in his situation, for I couldn't tell what it was. It was as if he was reassessing the whole thing, and I wondered if he was going to leave the room now, and leave me in my agony.

            "Fair enough," he grumbled, reaching to his belt and pulling free a small pouch. My eyes feverishly tried to follow his movements as he produced a glass of water and began pouring something into the cup from the pouch, what I couldn't tell because his broad back was blocking most of the view, though I noticed him glancing over his shoulder from time to time, and the clink of a stirring stick against the glass filled my ears above the dull roaring that had invaded my hearing some time before. "Here now," he finally said, waddling over to the bedside and pressing the glass into my hand. "This'll help you get through it," he added helpfully, smiling in that characteristic way of his that showed that he was sucking up.

            "What is it?" I wondered, even though I wanted nothing more than to down the entire contents of the glass now.

            "Don't worry about it...you've got yer crystals, I have me own methods,

though they're not as powerful," he added,

and again there was that strange emotion in the eyes. "Be sure to drink

all of it or else it won't work," he added before

dimming one of the lamps in the room and taking leave. "G'night...yer

Majesty," he added, almost

reluctantly.

            I turned my eyes to the glass, but my vision still was not very good and the room had darkened past the point of clear sight. I swished the contents of the glass a bit, and sniffed at it as well. A slightly sweet, tangy scent filled my entire airway, and for some reason I thought I should know what it was. But just breathing it in produced a sudden, momentary sense of stillness, of rightness, of perfection, that without wondering any further, without caring, I put the glass to my lips and downed its contents. A sweet, too-sweet taste, along with something that bit at the senses...

            And then the pulsing roared to a stop, and for a moment I thought I would come flat up against the brick wall and be ended, but instead, everything slowed down completely...the blood in my body

began to flow easily, the air was coming in evenly again, the pain was slowly fading away, as if I was drifting on a cloud and had just been through an icy patch and was now coming into the warm sunshine. My vision began to clear ever-so-slightly, and I focused on the dim wick of the lamp.

            I began to feel warm and good...and slowly things began to slow even further...but it was nice, very nice indeed, even deeper than the calm that codine or alcohol could inflict on a soul. It seemed I was drifting out of myself, and the dull flame in the lamp began to glow, to fill the whole room, and all I could feel was suffocating warmth and all I could see was a broad glow of yellow light. I suddenly didn't feel the need to breathe regularly...if I needed it, surely the air would come to me. My muscles began to loosen, to relax totally, and it was very nice, in deed. I wasn't much of a fan of relaxation, never really had been, but at that moment, it seemed right to just surrender...

            /Yes,/ a low voice cajoled in my mind. /Give in for once, go where you were meant to go, just ease yourself into how good it feels.../ And I slowly began to not care about the Underground, or the promises I had made to Jareth, or that this was what I had wanted, that I had nothing to go back to, or any of it at all...it was time to give in to this overpowering urge to let things go.

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part 2

            I don't know how long I stayed like that, but I know I didn't sleep. I merely drifted deeper and deeper into this catatonic state, right at the edge of consciousness. And I began to see faces forming in the light, faces of those that I had left behind and of those that had left me behind years ago. Richard Hunt was there, and Don Sahlin, and they were talking and laughing and joking just as they had in life. "We were wondering how long it would take you to get here!" Richard laughed and I had to smile.

            "Always the workaholic, eh Jim?" Don agreed, but before I could answer, there was Jane and Brian and Cheryl, and John, and Heather.

            "Why did you leave us so soon? Good thing we found you!" Brian was saying, and I was so intent on hugging them all that I didn't realize the improbability of the situation. /Just a very nice afterlife,/ I thought /or a damn good dream./ Whatever it was, I was intent on staying there forever, with my friends and family, and talking and just being together in peace.

            I looked up and saw a tree branch by a window, but it couldn't have been because we weren't inside, we were drifting in a cloudy forest, the fog was rolling in. But there was the window, and the

tree branch, wet with the night dew, and sitting on it wasn't an owl, there were no more owls, but a raven. I should have been afraid, after all, ravens meant death...

            "But you are dead, Dad!" Cheryl was saying, laughing about it and I smiled, wondering why I began to feel a little afraid...

            "But you're with us, this is where you belong!" Jane was saying, grabbing my arm gently. I nodded, turned back towards the reunion that was taking place, but there was that raven again...

            "Don't look at it, look at us!" John was saying, and Jane's fingers began to dig roughly into my arm, almost painfully, and the warmth began to rob me of air, and I couldn't breathe and couldn't think for the life of me, couldn't really see where we were and what was that damn raven doing there...

            "DON'T LOOK AT IT!" Don suddenly bellowed, his tone menacing and his eyes firey. I knew then that this wasn't him, it wasn't right, he was never that rough but gentle, always gentle, and so were the others that were there, only now they weren't...all of a sudden their arms seemed to converge on me,

holding me down, /got to keep him here, keep him away/ and I was fighting but they wouldn't let go!

            The raven then, growing larger and his wings spreading as he dove at them, his course cawing almost attractive to my ears. His claws tore their arms away, hard enough to rip human flesh, only

instead when they touched those that I loved, the images turned to colored dust, like when one works with chalk and rubs the drawing hard enough to smear the images. Everything blurred together as he tore at them, and even then the colors seemed to want to envelop me, to not give me up, even though I was sure I didn't belong there yet...I began to panic, to try to get more air, to try to open my eyes or wake up or something, but I was surely trapped...

            "AWAKE!!!!!!!" the raven blared, his voice overpowering my ears, those huge feathered midnight wings wrapping around me as his talons rushed toward the building puddle of colors that had once been my family and friends. At the slightest touch from him they suddenly blew away, and the air itself seemed to rip apart, and I was falling at breakneck speed...

            /God, this can't happen, I have a kingdom to rule, I promised Jareth!/ I thought frantically, and the raven seemed to understand and approve, and suddenly I was awake and in the bedroom again.

            /Only a dream,/ I thought to myself, and my eyelids began to droop closed...

            /Wake up, WAKE UP!/ a loud, somewhat obnoxious, though very beautiful voice yelled into my mind. I did my best, though it wasn't fast enough for the voice because I could feel the source of it get closer, and the owner began to use very intricate curse words in order to motivate me.

            "Fuckfuckfuck...finally got someone who'll *do* something about the fuckin' Underground,

and what does he do but go off in a fuckin' dream fog...." the male voice muttered and I gasped as a cold wind rushed into the room and two hands began to shake at my shoulders roughly. "Come on, come on, wake the fuck up! I never put up with this crap from Jareth, so I won't put up with it from you, new or not! Come on, wake the fuck UP!" he practically snarled, and the next thing I realized I was being hauled up by the front of my shirt and smacked lightly across the face, but still my limbs were sluggish to obey my mental orders.

            /The glass.../ I thought tiredly, because I couldn't even begin to move my lips. I was shifted in the being's arms momentarily as he picked up the object and looked into it, then muttered another string of obscenities, all of which were completely unfamiliar to me and were probably native to this realm.

            "Unbelievable...unfuckinbelievable..." he growled, dropping me back onto the bed. "Well, your Highness, looks like you've just become acquainted with Yllium...bad news is it can kill one who isn't used to it, and you've had a particularly large dose..." he explained, and I felt the bed dip beside me under his weight. "You can't let your subconscious drift off, now...if you do you're lost...we're going to

have to wake you up a little at a time," he added to himself, and I briefly wondered just how this was going to be accomplished.

            I shouldn't have dared to wonder, because the next instant I felt myself being hauled onto something's back.

            /Hang on, now, oh wait, gotta wake up your arms before you can do that,/ the strange voice said, laughing to itself, and before I could become halfway oriented the bottom dropped out of my stomach.

            Wind. I could feel wind and dampness and the chill tore at my skin mercilessly. It was completely

aggravating and at first I tried to treat it as if it were a dream or a minor nuisance, something I could sleep through, and I made no attempt to open my eyes.

            /None of that, Highness!/ the laugh came again, and suddenly I was falling straight down, and despite the total slumber my body had been in, I could feel myself screaming in terror as the bottom

dropped out of me, as I plummeted faster and faster, then slammed back onto whatever it was that I was riding. Such stimulation seemed to convince my eyes that they needed to open, and they did, and immediately shut.

            Swallowing, I dared to open my eyes again, and found that I was climbing straight up in the sky, about as fast as I had plummeted. I tried to cling to my mount, tried to beg it to stop but my voice couldn't come out of my mouth because of the altitude, and my limbs were still unresponsive. As if to take my mind off of the constant climb I glanced down and nearly fainted when I saw the walls of the

labyrinth being reduced to only a linear outline as we rose up and up, higher and higher until suddenly I wasn't riding anymore, but falling again.

            I screamed, though my voice was knocked out of me by the strength of the wind that now tore at me again, it was so strong that it caught my entire body momentarily before letting me drop. The outline of the labyrinth began to get ever-larger now as I rushed towards it, and I had never felt so terrified and invigorated in any part of my mortal life as I did now, at this moment. A part of me did want to laugh at it

all, at how strange the land looked from this angle, and at how the wind toyed with my body as if I was nothing more than a kite, but most of me wanted only to be safe on land.

            /But you cannot die, Highness, you're immortal now!/ the voice laughed as I was roughly deposited back on my ride, which thankfully stayed at a reasonable height.

            "Yes, but I don't want to find out how much I can live through right away," I muttered, shaking my head and clinging to the neck of my mount for dear life, breathing in relief as I saw that my body responded instantly now, and I was only faintly groggy. The voice laughed at that.

            /Shall we explore the night then?/ and I realized that the voice was coming from what I was sitting on. I had noticed before the faint feel of soft downy plumage under my fingertips and sure enough, I was riding on an enormous bird, a raven, to be precise. The eyes flashed as mine widened in fascination.

            /Could you have made a puppet like me, Highness, when you were human?/ it teased as it launched into a roll, laughing at my gasps and squawking slightly as I pulled a bit too roughly on the feathers.

            "Who, who are you?" I managed when he came out of the roll and began to glide among the stars and the brilliant moon.

            /A friend...someone who's sincere in wanting to help you,"/he replied simply, before his voice went wistful. /I always did love the moon here in the underground...always full and silver.../ he murmured thoughtfully before we dropped lower in the sky. /Look at them all, mourning over that bastard.../ he clucked fondly, and there was no malice in his tone, but one of sadness, as well. /Wouldn't Jareth be surprised to see them all,/ he added before turning direction swiftly and heading back towards the castle.

/I trust you're awake enough now/ he added as he began to pick up speed, nearing the master bedroom's window.

            "We'll never fit!" I gasped, my arms digging into his neck.

            /Surely *you* know that things are never what they seem here!/ he chuckled, and suddenly we were in the bedroom. I had no idea how it happened, whether I had shrunk or the raven had gotten

larger in order to carry me, but one minute we were flying through the sky and the next I was standing in my bedroom, the bird it's natural size on the windowsill. /Do you mind? I like this form but it's much easier to talk to other immortals in my true shape,/ he said amiably, and in a silent explosion of magic the feathers faded to reveal a man.

            The descriptions I had read about this particular immortal in Jareth's accounts didn't do him justice. He was lean, catlike, muscle waiting to be used, and a little shorter than me, himself. Those eyes that Jareth had described as aqua-grey, like a stormy sea, but how much that description left out!

It didn't mention the flecks of silver and gold in the iris, the faint way the color turned from blue to grey

to green in different lights. Jareth had said nothing about the *emotion* that bubbled there, about the laughter that seemed to radiate from just the eyes alone.

             Upon seeing the new King of the Underground's expression, the visitor graced me with one of his trademark grins, the broad kind that practically beamed with energy, forming dimples at either end

of his mouth. Jareth had been right, the years had been most good to him, even for an immortal he was a vision. Chin-length reddish-blond hair fairly shimmered in the candlelight, even more so when he looked at it and the flame grew considerably from the dull glow it had been. Yes, there was power

here...great power coursing with his blood, with his breath.

            But for all his power he looked as casual as I had ever felt on a set. One hand rested gracefully at his hip, the other was resting at his side. One hip thrust out slightly, feet a bit apart...he looked every bit the picture of regalness mixed with impishness that Jareth had tried to depict in his book. Even his clothes went completely against the picture of regalness that Jareth had tried to paint him in in his last paragraphs that described him at his wedding. Leather pants dyed to a silver hue clung to his hips and legs, slate grey heeled boots adorned his feet.His upper portion was covered by a shining satin silver waistcoat, the neckline plummeting to the middle of his breast bone, and the hem elegantly scraping the

floor behind him. It would have been hard to take him seriously if he wasn't so real, wasn't so in the moment, and looking straight at me with a mixture of respect, possibility, and elation that I had never seen before. His dress and attitude far more belonged on a rock superstar from the seventies or eighties, when materialism was the thing for an image. Yet, it also seemed to suit him completely.

            He grinned as he caught that thought, and went to the closest chair and took a seat, although he didn't merely /walk/ but glided, sauntered, flowed to it. I was curious about this individual, maybe even a little intimidated, and very eager to hear what he had to say. That amiable grin not fading for a moment, he gestured for me to take a seat in the armchair across from him, and I did, but not without mentally

comparing the awkward mortalness of my movements to the beautiful fae flow of his.

            "Don't let it bother you, you'll be fine, or at least you can't sink much lower than Jareth in the end," he added ruefully. "What a bastard...he deserved so much better, but he did it to himself with all those dark thoughts," the immortal pondered, momentarily drifting out of himself before realizing again where he was. His voice had such a roughness to it, but also a smoothness, a honey in the tone that put back into place any rattled nerves or ruffled feathers that the rough words could cause. It was practically impossible not to like him. Again, the beaming smile. "Say that once you get to know me, man," he laughed, shaking his head. "I don't know how I've been able to remain head of my kingdom for so long, after some of the shit I've pulled," he added fondly, before again snapping back into reality. "But I'm not here cause of me, of course," he said, looking straight into my eyes and I had to lean back slightly at the impact of that gaze. Pity the poor girl that was not aware of him and got too close. "I'm here to get you started and to make sure another ruler of the Underground doesn't screw up," he stated bluntly, though his honeyed accent quickly took away the harshness of the words. "But forgive me," he interrupted his own train of thought, standing abruptly and bowing smoothly, the regal leader suddenly emerging to the surface. "I have as of yet to introduce myself...I am King Dyllian Ranyx, Ruler of the Mountain Country to the North, and it is a great pleasure to make your acquaintance and be at your service, your Majesty,

King James Henson, Second Ruler of the Underground."

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Part 3

            I was slightly caught off guard as this new side of the infamous character from Jareth's past...I had expected many things when I had read about him, but this show of politeness was not particularly one of them.

            "My reputation preceeds me, I see," he laughed as he once again took his seat. "You'll find I'm a bit more refined now than I was when all that happened...in a few matters, anyway," Dyllian said, the mischevious gleam in his eye letting me know that he wasn't *totally* reformed.

            "I'm flattered by your visit and very much grateful," I said slowly, my mind not forgetting what had almost happened to me earlier that evening. "But what brings you here?"

            A sharp bark of a laugh. "The long and the short of it is you're gonna need help...the peoples around here aren't as understanding as they were in the old days...now *that* was when you could really get away with some shit," he laughed, shaking his head slightly. "But now...there's certain things you're gonna have to know...you need someone to teach you a little about magic, at least, and I don't care how simple Jareth made it sound, it's going to take more to survive ruling this kingdom."

            "I figured," I said wryly, raising an eyebrow at the empty glass on the table.

            "Yeah," he agreed softly, his expression sobering momentarily. "You'll have to watch Ujiah...never forget what he used to be...he may look harmless now, but...I just don't know...I never did trust him," he murmured, his eyes narrowing briefly. "Who knows what he's wanting or planning. He was smart...the peach tree has gone through so many different generations of blossoms that the Yllium content of them is fairly weak anymore...he gave you the straight stuff, which is ten times stronger than

the fruit."

            "Great...anyone else I need to worry about?"

            His brows touched in a gesture of deep thought. "Not particularly...the most you'll have trouble with is that a faction of traditional Fae have strong views against mortals...we’ve had a few come to our realm and be accepted, but a kingdom ruled by a formal mortal is practically unheard of. I’ll tell you now that I respect you...I’ve watched you from time to time, but if you can pull this off, it’ll be the most amazing thing you’ve ever done,” he said somberly and I nodded, the seriousness of such a statement from the likes of him fully sinking in. This was going to be a challenge. “But, you do have some support; my kingdom at least, and Xeran has pledged his knowledge to help you with your magic, and there are

probably others. You can’t underestimate the beings in your kingdom, either...that was the big mistake Jareth made. Goblins or no goblins, hideous or not, each being of life in this kingdom has value...that’s

something I wish he would’ve learned and he never did,” the Fae king sighed, leaning back into his chair. “But that all can wait until tomorrow, when you greet your entire kingdom for the first time. Now, Jim

Henson,” he said, looking at me with a sharp eye, “we have to make you a king.”

            “What?” I asked, a little taken aback as he leapt to his feet and strode purposefully to the wardrobe at the other side of the chambers.

            “Well, you don’t expect to wear that to your coronation tomorrow, do you?” he asked, his eyes flicking over my attire and one eyebrow raising up elegantly. I followed his gaze down to my clothes and had to smile. I suppose the pair of jeans and work shirt I was accustomed to wearing in my mortal life weren’t exactly up to standard here.

            “Fair enough,” I sighed. “But no tights, and nothing like...well, like *that*” I sighed, nodding to Dyllian’s royal attire. A huge grin answered that comment and he nodded, raising one hand and pointing his fingers towards the doors of the wardrobe. At once the air inside the piece of furniture began to sizzle with energy, and strange silver sparks popped out of the cracks in the wood, building in intensity until Dyllian grabbed both door handles and flung them open, revealing a new sparkling selection of clothes more favorable to a ruler.

            “Something like this, perhaps?” he asked, holding up a low-cut blouse and leggings of a clinging material.

            “Maybe that’s suitable for someone young, but-”

            “Hey, there, man, I’m at least nine hundred years older than you, so don’t be pulling age on me!” he interrupted, throwing the outfit across the room into a reject pile. After a half an hour of quarrelling and negotiating, I stood before the floor-length wooden mirror that was in the room, silently admiring what the enchanting fabric and the magic of this realm had done to me. My skin was paler, though not vampiric, but had more of an irridescent glow to it. My hair was as it was when I had made the transition, but it was a glowing cast of silver, not so weak-looking as it had been before. And my eyes practically burned with their blueness...not a bad change at all, really. And the clothes were suitable, though I had

kept my earthly outfit, if only for the memories. Now, now I was dressed in a tunic of emerald green and deep brown trousers, over which I wore a gleaming silver robe that reached the floor. I looked something like an old sage, a philosopher, or even a goblin king. My beard had been trimmed a bit and my longish hair was now pulled back into a ponytail that rested at the nape of my neck, and I looked to Dyllian who nodded in approval.

            That is, he was either nodding in approval or trying to distract me as he neared with a mysterious wooden box.

            “What is it?” I asked, stepping away instinctively.

            “Oh, come on, it’ll be the perfect finishing touches...” he soothed as he opened the lid and I flashed him a glare.

            “I am NOT wearing make up, king or no king!”

            “But it’s tradition! What, you want to look like a mortal?”

            “That’s what I am, aren’t I?”

            “That’s what you /were/ your Majesty...besides, it’s tradition, even I wear it!” he argued, and it was then that I noticed the light coating of rouge on his cheeks, the kohl lines around the eyes, and a hint of gloss on his lips.

            “No.”

            “King James-”

            “No, and will you stop calling me that? My name is Jim!” I sighed, rolling my eyes at his expression.

            “Well, maybe I’ll call you that, but you should at least get used to your subjects calling you by your proper name,” he said primly and my eyebrows went up as I looked at him.

            “*You’re* telling *me* what’s proper?”

            “Life’s a bitch,” he said, shrugging as he set the box down and went to the dresser. “But you have to wear this...it’s the only thing we have left of Jareth, and it can at least symbolize your stature or somethin like that,” he said, picking up the amulet that I knew so well. Nodding, I took it from him, it was slightly heavier than I thought, and draped it around my neck, smiling slightly as the metal sparkled in the candlelight. It was then that I noticed a similar amulet round Dyllian’s neck, only his was two circles linked together. “Jareth’s thing was to go down in time, to live forever...kind of ironic if you think of it, and my kingdom’s based on the fact that nothing is accomplished alone,” he explained, again seeming more knowledgeable than his appearance and attitude showed.

            “You said the coronation’s tomorrow? Already?” I asked.

            “Can’t let them mourn for too long...they’re going to need direction. You need to realize that a lot of the goblins are children...they have the minds of children, they need guidance...the original fifty or so of Jareth’s followers that were transformed will be easy to distinguish in comparison...can be downright vile sometimes because they remember what it was like. Ludo and the firies were all kids that Jareth turned into creatures before he decided to become ‘the goblin king.’ Ludo was about two and the firies were the destructive little monsters that were just learning not to play with matches,” he sighed, smiling slightly.

            “*Children?* They’re all children?”

            “Well, not all, but a good amount...mostly...”

            “The garbage ladies?”

            “A group of sisters who had incredibly rich parents who bought them all they wanted.”

            “The door guardians?”

            “Two seven-year-olds that hated geography and direction.”

            “The worm?” I asked, the whole thing getting more and more incredible.

            “Nah, he’s just a worm, man.”

            I blinked before continuing my previous train of thought. “So...could I turn them all back, let them go home?”

            He sighed, his whole body deflating with the effort of it, and shook his head sadly. “Even my most powerful magic isn’t that strong...once upon a time, yes, it was reversible...I was waiting for Jareth to ask me to undo it all, to show that he had changed...but he didn’t, not enough. So, in his disappearance, any traces to counteract the original curse have vanished. What’s done is done,” he murmured ruefully.

            “Even the original fifty?”

            “Yes, and even if it wasn’t I would never change them back...they’re as dangerous as Ujiah when they want to be...remember that,” he told me, his eyes waiting until I looked into them before he went on. "Don't go by Jareth's example...this is your land now, you were picked because you were the only one interested...can you imagine that? The only one who had enough sense to realize what could be done with a place like this...and now it's up to you to keep that promise, and turn this place around. Even

if things can't be the way they were, they can at least be *better*," he said, staring at me unflinchingly.

            "I agree," I murmured, not dropping his gaze at all.

            "Good," was all he said before he left, promising that tomorrow would be a day of tours, the coronation, and not one that I would forget for a long, long time.

***********************

part 4

            Eyes watching me...not the sharp mismatched gaze of the former king, or the electric sheen of Dyllian's, but someone that I couldn't make out...wide and dull brown, hardened by life and disappointment, resentment and anger dwelled there, as well as pride. But who did they belong to?

They stared right at me, bore deep into my soul, my heart, my mind, and they were not happy that I was there, and there was nothing I could do but watch and listen in my vulnerable state. Whether I was meant to see or it was merely a coincidence, I wasn't sure, but they made no move that they knew I was there.

            /How could he have survived...how is this possible? No mortal rules this realm,/ a soft, indistinguishable voice hissed, the sound just scraping along his subconscious.

            /Patience...he has no experience...knows nothing of magic. Give it time, and he'll be gone easily enough,/ a soft whisper answered, the source unseen or unfelt. /Sooner or later, he'll be easily disposed of, and I can return to where I can reign, and you can climb to your rightful place./

            Something deep inside of me realized what this meant and that they were speaking of me, and part of me became very afraid, but I couldn't break the barrier of natural sleep, could not transcend the dream world to focus on who these voices belonged to, or what the future could hold...Trapped in slumber, all I could do was wait until morning and hoped I remembered the experience.

            Morning came quickly and the night's experience was on the very edge of my mind, pushed there by more important matters at the moment. I was waken by rough hands and shouts of "Yer Majesty, yer Majesty, time to wake up!!!!!" Startled, and a little annoyed, I opened my eyes to see two small goblins standing in the room, looking at me with overflowing curiosity.

            "What the..." I mumbled, drowsily, sitting up among the sea of pillows and pile of comforters and blankets - Jareth definitely had lived in elegance.

            "You've gotta get up!" one goblin, a female dressed simply in a ragged dress and apron and with a small nose and stringy hair insisted, backing up slightly.

            "Yeah, we brought you breakfast, but it's prob'ly not what you want," the other, a male dressed in mismatched armor said, pointing to a tray on the bedside table and heading for the door quickly.

            "Wait a minute, why are you running for the door?" I asked, completely confused.

            "Cause you're gonna throw a shoe or somethin' at us, that's what Jareth always did!" the girl said somberly, pausing almost momentarily, as if she couldn't believe I had no idea.

            "Ain't that what ya do when yer king?" the male asked, his face also a mask of disbelief.

            "No!" I laughed, and beckoned them closer, and they did, albeit slowly and cautiously. "That may have been Jareth's way, but it isn't mine...Now what are your names?"

            "Uh...it's been so long that someone's asked I don't remember!" the boy said, looking at the female for help, but she couldn't offer any, she was just as confused.

            "Jareth always called us You Brats," she added, trying to be helpful, and I sighed. I respected Jareth, but agree with his methods I did not.

            "Well that won't do at all...hmmm, what can we call you," I murmured, looking at them thoughtfully. I didn't want to give them completely human names, because it would seem to degrade them somehow...I looked into the boy's deep black eyes, and the girl's delicate blue ones. How anyone,

especially their leader, could consider them ugly or a monstrosity was beyond me. "How about I call you Obsidian," I said, pointing to the boy, "And you, Crystaline," I said, pointing to the girl and smiling, quite

proud of myself. Their eyes widened in horror.

            "Oh, no, yer Majesty! We can't take such names!"

            "Why not?"

            "Be-because...we're ugly," Crystalline sniffled, looking up at me with her large eyes. "Jareth showed us once, and we are...we don't deserve such pretty names," she explained and I couldn't take the large crocodile tears that brimmed over her eyes and dribbled onto her greenish skin.

            "Now stop that!" I commanded softly, grabbing both of them and pulling them up on the bed, much to their surprise.

            "We'll ruin it!" Obsidian protested, struggling to get away, but his strength was no match for mine.

            "I want you to know that Jareth was wrong...about many things...it's all right to miss him, but things are going to be different now, they're going to be better," I told them, and they looked at me, uncomprehending.

            "How?" Crystaline asked, breathily considering the possibilities. "Are you...are you gonna change us back?" she whispered, her whole face one big hopeful expression.

            "Yeah, are we gonna go back to our families?" Obsidian asked, his expression echoing Crystaline's.

            "No..." I sighed as their faces fell. "Even I don't have that power....no one does anymore...but we'll make the best of the situation, all right?" I comforted them, pulling them into a hug and they gasped in shock.

            "What are ya doing!?" Obsidian yiped, and I laughed.

            "It's called hugging and it won't hurt you...now let's see if we can do something about your clothes," I murmured, looking down at them thoughtfully.

            "These are the best we had..." Crystaline said, cringing slightly, waiting for a verbal bashing.

            "I know, but let's see if we can do something about that," I murmured, closing my eyes and twisting my hand sharply, bringing a crystal out of nowhere. Both goblin's eyes became as wide as saucers as they watched the glistening orb, completely entranced. Smiling, I rolled it over my fingers, letting it dance over my palms and the backs of both hands, chuckling as their eyes tracked the crystal everywhere it went. When it suddenly burst, they gasped, and squealed as they looked down at where the sparkling fragments had fallen on them. They're garments were transformed into colorful clothes that human children would love, not to mention goblin children. I had to smile at the sight of Obsidian staring in disbelief at the chocolate brown tunic and knickers that he was now wearing, and Crystaline's joyful smile as she hopped off the bed and twirled round the room, giggling at the way her lavendar dress billowed out.

            "Oh, thank you, Majesty!" she gushed, and Obsidian nodded his agreement, too awed to get a word out. After a few moments of exclaiming over their new clothes the children, for how could I see them as anything but, hurried over to the tray and slid it on my lap.

            "It's not very royal," Obsidian murmured sheepishly and I did my best not to let my face show my slight horror at the sight of something lumpy and tan on a plate. True, I had lived through incidents like this with my own children, but that had been some time ago and I was a bit out of practice.

            "Well thank you...that was very sweet of you to think of me...but right now I have a mission for you two," I said slowly, winging it the entire way.

            "/Us/?" they both breathed at once, their eyes getting so huge it was almost funny. I nodded and leaned in close to them.

            "I need you to get all the goblins in the city to the castle...they all need new clothes for the ceremony today..."

            "New clothes for /everybody!?/ " they screeched in astonishment and delight. I nodded and they practically jumped up and down with excitement.

            "Then call me when everyone's gathered in front of the castle so I can give them to them," I added and they agreed and ran off in a flash. Chuckling, I took the opportunity to morph the thoughtful breakfast my young servants had brought me into something just a bit more tolerable. Quite pleased with myself, I began to take in a leisurely breakfast, and nearly choked as a bright flash suddenly appeared at the foot of my bed.

            "Touching thought....but it's going to take more than a new wardrobe to make a kingdom," Dyllian said without preamble, striding to the curtains and throwing them open. "Not everyone will be so easily swayed...and you have other Fae to worry about, too...Most'll be harmless, just blowin' steam, but a few...I dunno man, I'm feelin edgey bout today..." I nodded my agreement, trying to remember the exact cause of my edginess, something about the middle of the night... My reverie was broken by Dyllian's voice. "Hey man, your public awaits..." he murmured, nodding to the city below. I arrived at his side to look out onto the new Underground morning, a most impressive sight if there ever was one. But what was even more amazing, was the enormous amount of goblins congregated at the foot of the castle,

looking up expectantly, hopefully even. Not one to deprive expressions like that, I silently smiled and let a crystal form on my fingertips and float down to the waiting mass below, growing in size as it decreased it's elevation, until the curve of it just brushed the heads of the waiting goblins, popping into the familiar burst of color and ethereal magic. Mass oohs and aahs were breathed as they looked at their new clothes, clean, sparkling, crisp fabric on their bodies, something that I doubted many remembered or even dared to hope for anymore. I smiled faintly at their excited whisperings to each other, and the applause that quickly rose through the air as they turned their heads towards my window.

            "And I expect you all to come to my coronation this afternoon!!" I called out on impulse, grinning at the joyfull response, wondering if any of them had ever been to such an event.

            And then, looking towards the edges of the throng of gathered beings, along the shadows that played over the walls, I realized what a horrible mistake I had just made. My vision, now enhanced by my powers, picked out narrowed eyes that belonged to darker, jealous hearts, hearts that were in the bodies of misformed goblins, bodies that were not their original ones. And besides those hearts with all their raw emotions, there were the well-formed brains that were capable of plotting, of being conniving, of seeking to overthrow and even destroy.

            And I had just given them an open invitation to do their worst.

            I looked in horror to Dyllian, who nodded, his own eyes trained on the shadows that I knew belonged to goblins that weren't the comical, gentle, naive ones of my film, or that composed most of the Underground. These were the ones that haunted children's dreams, that could eat human flesh and wake up the next morning and not feel a thing, that could slash and tear until they had their own way. And what made me even colder was the thought that they had once been Fae, something which I equated to my former mortal status and reason.

            "They'd have come, anyway...you cannot stop them, I'm afraid," a soft, matured voice said from behind us, and I whirled at the new presence, tensing at the sight of a male Fae. He was reasonably tall, with slate gray hair and eyes that knew too much. "A direct confrontation won't be able to be avoided...." he added, and Dyllian nodded in agreement.

            "King James, Xeran, one of the greatest mystrls of this day and age," Dyllian murmured, his tone and demeanor one of surprising respect, and I remembed from the former goblin king's journals that Dyllian owed much to this man.

            "An honor...and I'd like to thank you ahead of time for agreeing to help me with my magic...I know I have a lot to learn still," I told him, and he gave an understanding smile as he came forward, his eyes trained on the city.

            "Think nothing of it until you have to deal with what I teach you," he said softly, and it was only then that I began to realize how deeply Jareth's betrayal had affected him.

            I wanted so badly to earn his respect, to show him that I meant what I had agreed to, that I wasn't merely trying to escape death, or do the seemingly impossible. "I won't let you down...I won't let the Underground down, or Jareth-"

            "Jareth," he whispered sadly. "He had so much potential, so much talent, and he was squandered away so easily by fame and egotism....how can I know that you won't make the same mistake, or a worse one?" he asked, turning his steely gaze back to me. You may mean what you say now, but how can I know that you won't drive your kingdom and others even deeper into ruin than my former student did?"

            I was speechless for a moment, and glancing to the only other soul in the room only showed me the tension even more. Dyllian's eyes were trained on Xeran, obviously communicating via thought, though what, I either couldn't tell, or couldn't bring myself to find out. "Because..." I stated softly, interrupting their silent argument. "Things aren't always what they seem, are they? Look at him...would you have thought that he'd be the one to survive, to be successful in magic and his kingdom, while Jareth, who did have so much potential, spiraled into ruin? You can't tell, so don't pretend to know the future."

            He blinked at me, his eyes flashing briefly before his barely-ruffled composure was restored. "I agreed to help you to try to make up for past mistakes...that is all...I don't want them to gain the upper hand again, or things will most definitely get worse," he added, nodding to those in the shadows.

            "Understood," I agreed, before he turned and left the room, determined to wait downstairs until I was more presentable.

            "He's never been the same since Jareth dumped him for Ujiah's teachings..." Dyllian commented, shaking his head. "He lost his best and only student at the time that day, and his heart..."

            That was news to my mind. "They were lovers?" I stammered, trying to think back to the journal to remember such a notation. His half smile told me that I would find none.

            "Occassionally...when Jareth was tired of dealing with Katya he'd turn to Xeran ...Neither one would ever confess it, it would've caused too much of a scandal too early on in Jareth's career, but, it's there all the same. He only agreed to train me so that I could stop Jareth's power-hungry climb before Ujiah had him do something really stupid, like declare war on his parents' kingdom...By that time I was ready to show Jareth a thing or two, and put the curse on him. But even that never really helped him

recover...he took his death pretty hard...he'll help out until this is over, though," he added, and for the first time I caught how big the "this" was. I was now a part of an ongoing saga, my own labyrinth of

intrigue and love and hate...that's why Jareth had handed me the crown...because I was the one who would keep a full mind on the kingdom, and not all the hurt feelings flying round.

            "Dyllian?" Both of us turned at the new voice, and I had to do a double take as my eyes looked upon the newcomer. Dyllian immediately went to her, took her by the hands with a tenderness that his outer brashness completely hid, and brought the young woman over to me. She was exquisite...jet black hair and deep chocolate eyes that were wide and inquisitive. I didn't know what I had expected, but she bore only the slightest resemblence to Jennifer Connelly, and I had to remind myself that this wasn't the same girl that I had worked with, this was the real thing, and she was older now. Immortality worked on her; like me she didn't have the entire glow that her Fae husband had, but she looked more wondrous

than any mortal woman could. As her attention was drawn to me, she gave me a warm smile that I returned.

            "Jim, I'd like for you to meet my wife, Sarah..." Dyllian said, grinning broadly.

            "An honor to finally meet the real woman," I managed, holding my hand out to her. She started to accept it, but her eyes hit upon my medallion and she quickly withdrew her hand.

            "It's all right...I keep telling you he's gone," her husband quietly reminded her, and she nodded, as if lost in the past corridors that she had once been prisoner of.

            “He’s never truly gone,” she whispered, licking her lips nervously as she continued to stare at the amulet. “He’s always here...in memories, in thoughts...in magic...” Her words were barely audible, but I caught them still the same, brushing them off as the anxiousness Jareth had described that she had when she was around him when he was still living.

            “Sarah, all of that’s over now...We’re going to have a new king, a good king, who can keep his subjects in mind, and the Underground will grow to be the place of beauty that I once knew,” Dyllian told her, and she mutely nodded, eyes still stuck on the amulet.

            “Yes...I’m sorry, where are my manners...It’s a pleasure to meet you, King James,” she said, smiling prettily as she offered her hand. I bowed over it, giving her a smile of my own.

            “Please, it’s Jim...no matter what your husband says,” I added, rolling my eyes at Dyllian’s expression and ignoring his mutterings of me being difficult. Sarah chuckled as Dyllian and I continued to throw insults at each other as I dressed and then descended the stairs to the throne room Xerian waited inside, staring distastefully at a few goblins who were chasing chickens around the room and causing general mayhem. As we entered he cast a glance over at me, and nodded half-approvingly at my purple tunic and trousers over black hose.

            “Well, at least you look like a king, somewhat anyway,” he sighed quietly, ignoring Dyllian’s glare.

            “I should, I bathed,” I joked, causing the other royal figure in the room to burst into loud guffaws, Sarah tried to cover her chuckles with coughs, and even Xeran had to work hard to fight the tugging corners of his lips.

            “Yes, well, we have a coronation to get to,” he finally said, strutting towards the castle gardens, a massive outdoor area where the event was to take place. I had to admit that I was surprised to see how many inhabitants of the labyrinth had already gathered, along with certain influential Fae that looked like this was the last place they wanted to be.

            “You must prepare for that sort of reaction everywhere you go...Jareth made things very hard on you, I’m afraid...you’ll have to prove yourself and the kingdom worthy to them, which will not be an easy task,” Xeran murmured in my ear and I nodded, my muscles involuntarily tensing under their scrutinizing glances. Otherwise, the garden was absolutely breathtaking, hundreds of blossoms and bows covering every branch and bower. I murmured my astonishment, especially at the hundreds of crystals suspended in midair tastefully around the crowds of people, and Sarah blushed.

            “She was the genius behind the decor,” Dyllian explained, kissing his wife fondly on the lips, which made her blush even more.

            “Then I thank you for a job most well done,” I replied, giving her a fond smile. She reminded me a bit of my wife and daughters, I had to admit, and provided that missing link with another former mortal that I lacked otherwise in this strange new world.

            “It was the least I could do, after all,” she replied. For the first time I noticed how she clung to Dyllian’s side, and how the other Fae seemed to try to ignore her. I suddenly realized just how far I still had to go.