Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Labyrinth. All other characters and the storyline are mine.

Chapter 25

By late evening on the third day, Serina finally woke. The first thing she was aware of was the fact that her shoulders itched something abominably and she was unable to move. Just turning her head to the side, sent white hot pain searing through her body. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she forced her eyes open and found Jareth bending over her, his eyes apprehensive.

"Lie still, kitten." he whispered gently as his hands touched her hair and shoulders.

"What happened? What am I doing in bed?" Her voice was rough, as if she had not used it in ages.

Jareth sighed and sat gingerly on the bed beside her. "You foolish woman. You've been here for almost a week now," he chided. "What possessed you to fight a minotaur? You could have died!"

"Minotaur?" Her brow furrowed in confusion for a moment. "Oh, it's not like I haven't fought one before."She started to sit up, but hissed in sudden pain. "What in the…"

"Your back was badly wounded. Kelgar had to stitch it closed since it was too deep to heal with magic"

"Baphomet…" she whispered, the memory coming back full force.

"What?"

"Baphomet. Demon lord of the minotaurs."

Jareth's eyes widened in horror, "That creature you fought was a demon lord? Do you have a death wish, woman?"

She snorted, only to wince as pain rolled through her again. "You really have to ask that, your Majesty?" He imitated a fish for a moment then furiously snapped his mouth shut with a very audible snap.

"I had hoped that we could start over, my Lady." He said after several minutes of silence, his voice devoid of all emotion as he stood up.

"Jareth…"

"No. I understand, Serina. I hurt you terribly when I made you leave. You'll never know how sorry I am for that." He turned to leave.

"Jareth, stop!" She barked angrily, ignoring her pain. He stopped, staring straight ahead. Serina could feel the tension coiled within him, even though he was several feet away. "You understand nothing. Yes, you hurt me. It broke my heart when you force me to leave. When Ralir came to me that day, I wanted nothing more than to turn him away even though the kingdom was in danger." She waited till he turned to look at her again, his tension apparent.

"Then why didn't you?"

"I couldn't. Even with all you took from me, everything you done. I still cared."

"And now?"

She swallowed, knowing that she was about to lay everything out in the open. "I still care. About the kingdom and about you." A flicker of hope flared in his eyes and she felt like crap for what she had to say next. "Jareth, I don't know what to say to you, or even what you want from me. I don't quite understand what I feel for you other than I feel drawn to you. But despite all of that, I simply can't take the chance that you'll do this to me again. I'm sorry, but as soon as I heal I want to leave."

Jareth's shoulders dropped as he turned away. Without another word, he left.

oooooooooooooooooooo

"You're not leaving that bed until Kelgar says you can!" Jareth growled angrily.

Serina snarled furiously, "You aren't the one who's spent the past four weeks stuck in bed with nothing to do, Jareth!" He opened his mouth to respond, but snapped it shut when a soft knock sounded on the doors.

"Your Majesty, Lady Serina." Kelgar pushed the door open and glared balefully at the woman sitting up in the bed. "You, young lady, are one of the worst patients I have ever had."

Jareth laughed when Serina flushed and cast her eyes down. It was amusing to say the least that the great warrior woman was actually embarrassed over her behavior. "My apologies Kelgar. I am unused to being inactive like this."

"No matter. Show me your back so I can check the stitches. I swear, I don't know who is worse, you or Jareth." Kelgar tsked as Serina maneuvered herself onto her stomach, easing the gown down and waited for Kelgar to push her hair aside. She couldn't help but laugh at Jareth when he looked up at the healer with wide eyes. Kelgar chose to ignore him, "Well, my Lady, the redness is gone now." He touched the wound gently, "Does that hurt any at all?"

"No, it just itches abhorrently."

"Yes, yes. The stitches will do that as you know." He helped her roll over and sit up, pulling her dress back up to cover her in the process. "Alright My Lady, I think we can let you out of bed for a while. But if I catch you trying do anything more strenuous than reading a book or taking a walk then you'll be staying in bed longer."
"As you wish," the woman grumbled testily. Jareth laughed and Serina shot him a filthy.

"Your Majesty, if I find those stitches have ripped, I'll be after the both of you!" Kelgar informed them forcefully before leaving.

Jareth waited until Serina was ready, and then transported them down to the garden. He smirked slightly at the nasty glare she gave him when he turned to look at her. Her skin was slightly paler since she'd been confined to her bed, but the forest green blouse, topped with a silver bodice made her glow. She would always be fiery and he enjoyed that; it made life entertaining.

"I don't need you hovering over me, your Majesty. Nothing you do will change my mind." He winced mentally at her words. She was not making this easy at all, but then he expected her to fight him. She always had, though if she got her way, they would never fight again.

"I will not let you go, kitten."

"Stop calling me that!" She turned to face him and jabbed a finger in his chest. "Don't go calling me kitten as if nothing happened. I don't live here anymore, and I'm not part of your court now."

"You'll always be my kitten." He reached out and wrapped a strand of loose hair around his fingers. Serina reached up and caught his hand, stopping him as she stared him in the eyes with determination.

"No, you lost your kitten when you threw her away. The kitten is gone forever." Her words pained him to no end and he felt as if she had just ripped into him with her swords. "The day you cast me aside was the day you gave up all rights to me."

"I don't believe you."

"Believe what you want! Throwing me away like that proved you cared nothing for me at all. Damn it, don't you know I would have done anything for you?" Serina turned and walked away before he could see her pain, leaving him standing there alone. He watched her go, unable to stop her.

oooooooooooooooooooo

Serina ran into the Labyrinth; she needed to leave for a while, to get away from him so she could think. She sat down on one of the stone benches and stared up into the sky as she thought about the life she had left behind four months ago.She rose and walked over to the fountain that sat in one corner of the hidden garden. Seating herself on the marbled edge, she closed her eyes and trailed a hand through the cool water. Tear slid down her cheeks.

"Serina?" a soft voice called out, breaking through her sorrow. Serina quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and glanced up to find Lisae standing a few feet away. When Serina barely responded to her, Lisae came closer, "Are you alright dear? What's wrong?"

"I'm fine. There's nothing wrong," Serina sighed heavily, trying to avoid having to look at her friend. "I was just thinking of the past."

"Ah." The woman sat down beside her and gave her a hug. "What brought on this trip of memories Serina?"

"Jareth and I were arguing again."

"That in itself isn't all that unusual dear. The two of you have always fought constantly."

"I know."

Lisae watched as Serina got up and began pacing. "There's something else to it as well isn't there?"

"He won't allow me to leave."

"Then why leave at all?" Serina opened her mouth to respond, but Lisae stopped her. "I know you're still upset with him and everything, Serina. But if he wants you to stay, then why not stay? This is your home!"

"No, it was my home. It's not anymore; not if he…" her voice trailed off for a moment. "I won't take the chance that he'll hurt me again."

"You love him don't you? That's why you're so distraught over this, isn't it?" Lisae whispered as the idea suddenly hit her.

"I…" Serina stared at Lisae with panicked eyes.

"It's alright, dear." Lisae assured her gently.

She stood and dusted off her dark blue pants and straightened the matching bodice. "I think I'm going to go for a walk. I'll return to the castle in a little while."

"Take your time my friend. I know you have a lot to think about. In the mean time, I'm going to go irritate Jareth." They exchanged faint smiles as Lisae vanished, knowing that if she kept Jareth occupied then Serina would be free to wander the Labyrinth and think without being disturbed.

oooooooooooooooooooo

"Hello, dear brother." Lisae chirped as she swept into the study to find Jareth sitting at his desk, lost in thought.

"To what do I owe this visit?" He didn't bother looking up, his voice was bleak. Lisae sighed and crossed the room to sit on the edge of the desk.

"I had thought to come visit Serina, but she's not exactly in the mood to chat so I thought I'd pop in and see what's up with you." She smirked inwardly when Jareth's eyes flew to her face at the woman's mention.

"Where is she?"

"Taking a walk. She wants to be alone for a while."

"Is she alright?"

Lisae mulled over the best way to answer Jareth's question. "She'll be alright." I hope. "Just wanted time to think. So… how's the ball coming along?" Jareth sat up and pushed a sheath of papers towards his sister before slumping back in his chair again. Lisae flipped through the papers, "Will you be escorting Serina?"

"Yes."

"Does she know?"
"No."

Lisae watched him carefully as she chose her next words, "Don't do this, Jareth. You need to let her go."

Jareth jerked upright, "What?"

"She needs her freedom."

He sat there in stunned silence, gapping at her. "I can't lose her again."

"Do you love her?" His sister's question caught him off guard and he stared at her. "We talked a little before I came here and she told me that you were trying to force her to stay." Lisae stood up and glared at him. "This was her home and you made her leave. Did you really think she would come back willingly?" Jareth rose to his feet and started pacing.

"Then why don't you talk to her about it? When I found her, she was sitting at the fountain crying. Crying! How many times has she cried since she's been here? You ask why she won't have anything to do with this kingdom anymore. I'll tell you why! She doesn't want to be hurt again, which is exactly what you are doing!" Lisae had moved to stand in front of her brother, angrily jabbing her finger into his chest as she pushed him backwards. "Don't you think it was hard enough on her in the first place? She trusted you and you betrayed her. How would you feel if it had been the other way around? If you want to destroy her, then do it without breaking her heart again!"

"I don't want to destroy her, Lisae! I never wanted to hurt her at all!"

"Oh really? Then what do you call yourself doing?" She threw her hands in the air and turned on her heel when he just stared at her in confusion. "Forget it! Forget I asked! Apparently you don't even know!" She stormed towards the door, her skirts snapping with each step.

"I want her to be happy, Lisae." His voice was thick with emotion and he cursed himself for it.

Lisae stopped a few feet from the door, her voice soft, "Do you think keeping her here by force will make her happy? Keep her here by force and you'll destroy her love for you. I hope you'll be happy knowing that you've broken the one woman who would have died willingly for you." With that, Lisae left, slamming the door behind her.

Jareth sighed, dropping into the nearest chair and wiping a hand over his face. With a grunt he pulled a crystal from the air and asked to see Serina. The crystal swirled for a moment then showed the warrior curled up on a bench somewhere. He watched for a moment, noting the tear tracks on her face. He rose with a sigh and moved towards the window; wondering exactly what he was doing. Or going to do.

oooooooooooooooooooo

Serina avoided Jareth as much as possible for the next week, taking her meals in her chambers when she could. She continued to improve daily as her shoulder finished healing and she took long walks through the Labyrinth. She knew Jareth was watching her as she went through the days, glad that he was leaving her alone; yet also depressed by it.

There was a ball set for the end of the month, which passed quickly, so Serina had to undergo the harassment of having a new gown designed despite her protests that she would not be attending. The seamstresses brought piles of various materials before her and the woman groaned at the sea of fabric. This was not something she enjoyed at all and seriously considered hiding herself in an oubliette until after the ball was over. She wouldn't though, as Lisae had begged her to go. That was the only thing Serina looked forward to, knowing that Lisae would be there.