A/N: At last its here. Y'all can thank Mandy for that. As always please R&R
and a major, huge, mammoth thank you to all my loyal readers and especially
the ones who review!
Disclaimer: Don't own Labyrinth, etc, etc...
Hunter gasped and touched a hand to his chest as if there was a physical pain there. In away there almost was. Kara was in pain. A deep down, soul hurt and it was his fault.
It will fade, he told himself sternly. Feeding from her was the worst possible thing you could have done. Something wrenched inside him again and he balled some of the material of his shirt in his fist, wondering if he would die the moment she walked through the door and left him or if it would be slower than that? He was burning for her, aching to have her back and he didn't know how he would get through each and every day missing her.
Jareth came forward and placed a hand on his shoulder.
Hunter looked up, eyes narrowed. The last thing he wanted now was sympathy.
"Why are you doing this to yourself?" Jareth almost nonchalantly.
"It will fade," he hissed. "She doesn't need the life I will give her."
"And she needs the pain she feels right now?" Jareth asked arching an eyebrow coldly. "Don't start pulling the broody Anne Rice I'm-a-vampire-and- can-never-know-love bullshit with me."
Hunter almost smiled. "It's just blood." He didn't sound like he had convinced himself.
"It's deeper than that and you know it," Jareth stated, resisting the urge to personally knock some sense into Hunter. "And if you let her go I will personally toss you head first into the Bog of Eternal Stench," he added quietly.
The violet flecks in Hunters eyes began to grow, bleeding in to the blue and staining them with purple fire. "What right have you to interfere," he hissed.
Jareth smirked slightly, "Besides the fact that I'm King here and these are my lands so I can pretty much do what I want?"
"Yes," Hunter muttered, "besides that."
"Because," Jareth said, visibly softening, "I know love when I see it, and you, of all people, should realise she's as much in love with you as you are with her. I'm not even bonded to the girl and I can see it."
Hunter regarded Jareth through narrowed eyes, clearly hesitating. "You on the other hand can *feel it*, so tell me is it really worth letting her walk away?"
"No," Hunter whispered. He was loosing his heart and feeling every centaury long second of the process.
"Then go," Jareth said firmly.
Hunter straightened and looked at the doors of the throne room, then back at Jareth.
"Now!"
Hunter ran, pausing just long enough at the door to set Susan gently down on the floor.
"Well it's about damn time," the little mouse said. Jareth began laughing.
"You know I honestly thought they'd figure it out before now," he told Susan.
Susan shook her head. "He's too stubborn and she has no idea what happened to her."
Jareth smirked, "Should be fun when she finds out."
Kara was crouched against the wall, trying desperately to stem the flow of tears and make the pain go away, or at least ignore it enough to keep walking. It was hard. It shouldn't be this hard. She swiped at the tears, feeling like she couldn't breathe.
He doesn't want me, she screamed at herself, and I will crawl to that door if I have to but I will not lie here in a pathetic little heap feeling sorry for myself! Well that was the theory anyway; actually putting it into practice was proving far more difficult.
He doesn't want me, she reminded herself.
"That isn't true," he said softly behind her.
She sniffled, then hiccupped, then cursed herself for being so pathetic. Hunter look at her huddled on the floor and realised he had done it to her. It was his fault she hurt so much and that was worse than anything he had been put through so far. He dropped down behind her, pulling her back into his arms and half onto his lap. He rocked her gently, wiping the tears away with his thumb. ~It's not true~ he repeated telepathically.
~How do you keep doing that?~ she asked. ~More to the point how do I keep doing it?~
~Remember the forest?~ his lips took over from his fingers and she sighed, the tears already slowing, becoming less. She was safe here. It was safe and good and right.
~yes?~
His lips closed over hers, he couldn't help it and one of the advantages of telepathic communication was that it wasn't hindered by the action. ~When I drank from you it...forged a bond between us.~
She started, jerking in his arms. ~you mean all of this...the way I'm feeling...it was just because...~
~shhh...no. It just heightened our awareness of it. If I hadn't fed from you, you would have walked away. We both would have and we would have been able to get on with our lives. I'm sorry.~
~For what?~
~For not being able to live without you. I love you.~
Her hands clutched his shirt and she broke their kiss. She looked up at him, staring into his eyes for a long time. So long a time that Hunter began to fear what she would say when she did speak.
"I love you too," she whispered.
"Stay with me?" he pleaded quietly. Her fingers touched his cheek, traced the line of his jaw. "How could I leave?"
His mouth found hers again and this time only the need for air pushed them apart.
"Should we tell Jareth," Kara asked, smiling. The ache inside her was already fading, leaving nothing more than a memory in its wake.
"Which part?" Hunter asked mischievously, "That you're going to marry me or that we are going to name our first son after him? This is, after all, all his fault."
Kara laughed, and then pretended to consider what he had said. "Both," she said after a moment. "Let's tell him both."
Grinning Hunter stood, lifting Kara to her feet as he did so. "Are you sure?"
"I have honestly never been as sure of anything in my life as I am of you," she answered him honestly.
They linked arms and walked back to the throne room. Grinning like high school lovers as they stumbled through the doors, too intent on each other to notice where their feet went. The laughed and simultaneously turned to Jareth.
He looked at them and said, "Damn!"
"What?" asked Hunter raising an eyebrow.
"Susan won they bet," Jareth answered.
"Yey, go me!" squeaked Susan.
"What bet?" Hunter asked suspiciously.
"How long it would take both of you to come back here," Susan answered. "Jareth thought it would take you much longer."
"Oh, really," was all Hunter said, grinning at Jareth.
"Well?" Jareth demanded.
"We're getting married," Kara said, sounding as if she didn't quite believe her good luck.
"Aha!" Jareth exclaimed. "I win that bet!"
"Darn," Susan pouted
"I'll get someone to saddle the horses then," Jareth said.
"Why?" asked Kara.
"So you can ride off into the sunset of course," he smirked at her, then he left.
Kara and Hunter smiled at each other.
"So, is this happy ever after?" Kara asked.
"I certainly hope not," Hunter said still grinning, "where would be the fun in that?"
Disclaimer: Don't own Labyrinth, etc, etc...
Hunter gasped and touched a hand to his chest as if there was a physical pain there. In away there almost was. Kara was in pain. A deep down, soul hurt and it was his fault.
It will fade, he told himself sternly. Feeding from her was the worst possible thing you could have done. Something wrenched inside him again and he balled some of the material of his shirt in his fist, wondering if he would die the moment she walked through the door and left him or if it would be slower than that? He was burning for her, aching to have her back and he didn't know how he would get through each and every day missing her.
Jareth came forward and placed a hand on his shoulder.
Hunter looked up, eyes narrowed. The last thing he wanted now was sympathy.
"Why are you doing this to yourself?" Jareth almost nonchalantly.
"It will fade," he hissed. "She doesn't need the life I will give her."
"And she needs the pain she feels right now?" Jareth asked arching an eyebrow coldly. "Don't start pulling the broody Anne Rice I'm-a-vampire-and- can-never-know-love bullshit with me."
Hunter almost smiled. "It's just blood." He didn't sound like he had convinced himself.
"It's deeper than that and you know it," Jareth stated, resisting the urge to personally knock some sense into Hunter. "And if you let her go I will personally toss you head first into the Bog of Eternal Stench," he added quietly.
The violet flecks in Hunters eyes began to grow, bleeding in to the blue and staining them with purple fire. "What right have you to interfere," he hissed.
Jareth smirked slightly, "Besides the fact that I'm King here and these are my lands so I can pretty much do what I want?"
"Yes," Hunter muttered, "besides that."
"Because," Jareth said, visibly softening, "I know love when I see it, and you, of all people, should realise she's as much in love with you as you are with her. I'm not even bonded to the girl and I can see it."
Hunter regarded Jareth through narrowed eyes, clearly hesitating. "You on the other hand can *feel it*, so tell me is it really worth letting her walk away?"
"No," Hunter whispered. He was loosing his heart and feeling every centaury long second of the process.
"Then go," Jareth said firmly.
Hunter straightened and looked at the doors of the throne room, then back at Jareth.
"Now!"
Hunter ran, pausing just long enough at the door to set Susan gently down on the floor.
"Well it's about damn time," the little mouse said. Jareth began laughing.
"You know I honestly thought they'd figure it out before now," he told Susan.
Susan shook her head. "He's too stubborn and she has no idea what happened to her."
Jareth smirked, "Should be fun when she finds out."
Kara was crouched against the wall, trying desperately to stem the flow of tears and make the pain go away, or at least ignore it enough to keep walking. It was hard. It shouldn't be this hard. She swiped at the tears, feeling like she couldn't breathe.
He doesn't want me, she screamed at herself, and I will crawl to that door if I have to but I will not lie here in a pathetic little heap feeling sorry for myself! Well that was the theory anyway; actually putting it into practice was proving far more difficult.
He doesn't want me, she reminded herself.
"That isn't true," he said softly behind her.
She sniffled, then hiccupped, then cursed herself for being so pathetic. Hunter look at her huddled on the floor and realised he had done it to her. It was his fault she hurt so much and that was worse than anything he had been put through so far. He dropped down behind her, pulling her back into his arms and half onto his lap. He rocked her gently, wiping the tears away with his thumb. ~It's not true~ he repeated telepathically.
~How do you keep doing that?~ she asked. ~More to the point how do I keep doing it?~
~Remember the forest?~ his lips took over from his fingers and she sighed, the tears already slowing, becoming less. She was safe here. It was safe and good and right.
~yes?~
His lips closed over hers, he couldn't help it and one of the advantages of telepathic communication was that it wasn't hindered by the action. ~When I drank from you it...forged a bond between us.~
She started, jerking in his arms. ~you mean all of this...the way I'm feeling...it was just because...~
~shhh...no. It just heightened our awareness of it. If I hadn't fed from you, you would have walked away. We both would have and we would have been able to get on with our lives. I'm sorry.~
~For what?~
~For not being able to live without you. I love you.~
Her hands clutched his shirt and she broke their kiss. She looked up at him, staring into his eyes for a long time. So long a time that Hunter began to fear what she would say when she did speak.
"I love you too," she whispered.
"Stay with me?" he pleaded quietly. Her fingers touched his cheek, traced the line of his jaw. "How could I leave?"
His mouth found hers again and this time only the need for air pushed them apart.
"Should we tell Jareth," Kara asked, smiling. The ache inside her was already fading, leaving nothing more than a memory in its wake.
"Which part?" Hunter asked mischievously, "That you're going to marry me or that we are going to name our first son after him? This is, after all, all his fault."
Kara laughed, and then pretended to consider what he had said. "Both," she said after a moment. "Let's tell him both."
Grinning Hunter stood, lifting Kara to her feet as he did so. "Are you sure?"
"I have honestly never been as sure of anything in my life as I am of you," she answered him honestly.
They linked arms and walked back to the throne room. Grinning like high school lovers as they stumbled through the doors, too intent on each other to notice where their feet went. The laughed and simultaneously turned to Jareth.
He looked at them and said, "Damn!"
"What?" asked Hunter raising an eyebrow.
"Susan won they bet," Jareth answered.
"Yey, go me!" squeaked Susan.
"What bet?" Hunter asked suspiciously.
"How long it would take both of you to come back here," Susan answered. "Jareth thought it would take you much longer."
"Oh, really," was all Hunter said, grinning at Jareth.
"Well?" Jareth demanded.
"We're getting married," Kara said, sounding as if she didn't quite believe her good luck.
"Aha!" Jareth exclaimed. "I win that bet!"
"Darn," Susan pouted
"I'll get someone to saddle the horses then," Jareth said.
"Why?" asked Kara.
"So you can ride off into the sunset of course," he smirked at her, then he left.
Kara and Hunter smiled at each other.
"So, is this happy ever after?" Kara asked.
"I certainly hope not," Hunter said still grinning, "where would be the fun in that?"