The last note dripped away with the coming of day, and the goblins all crept away to their little bunks and beds, carrying impromptu posters and reminders of their new Princes, their night Princes, hail and huzzah. The King of the Realm gave them a suite and the four of them stood about in it, hardly daring to speak, three sets of eyes staring at one brown one blue, their friend and lead vocalist, wondering what had just happened exactly. They knew, they did not know, they guessed, their dreams blown through the stuff of sounds and strung out to dry in the dawn. Toby licked his lips.

"I..." It would not sound right, in words. The music of before had honestly explained quite a bit, but not exactly. So Jonah said,

"So the way I see it, we're in this magic realm and that guy on the throne, he's like, the King of Dreams, and we're now his official court musicians and you..." Jonah blinked, "you're really his son?"

"Um. No, not... exactly." Toby said, shifting a bit on his feet and gazing out of the window of the room, over the goblin city. Day looked dead on the red stones, sandstone, carnelian and porophry and red marble. Their suite was carved of the stuff, and decorated with little gilt chairs and settees and thick heavy fabrics embroidered with scenes of demons pulling down maidens and dragons and knights in hoardes, and also tricking mankind into giving them their babies and gold. The air smelled of cinnamon and sulphur, and was warm as the outside of the oven that Gretl pushed the witch into, just before Hansel could be baked into a pie, "though the magic realm part... yeah, I think so. Um... do you mind?"

Jade looked at Michigan, who shook her head. "Not so much, nah."

Jade touched the glowing crystals hovering atop a golden stand, spilling soft moon-like light through the room and softening the glare of the goblin-day, "Is this all real?"

"Yeah." said Toby, "I'm pretty sure it is. I mean, that's the guy I told you about, the Goblin King from my dream, but I don't think we're any of this going to wake up. And that's fine with me coz I chose it, but you guys..." He swallowed, "I wanted to ask, you know, properly, in case..."

"You did already," said Jade, eyes glinting serious through her chunky cat-glasses, "At least, I think so. That's what that song promised, didn't it?"

Toby nodded.

"Then what do we do now?" Michigan frowned a little, "in terms of the practical. This may all be magic, but I'm not sure I want to sing songs in a goblin court forever, even if the little guys are so terribly sweet about liking our music."

"Word," said Jonah, catching one blue eye with his two blue eyes. That wasn't all the song promised, "what else is there, Prince Toby?"

"A quest, of course," he said without thinking, "Prince Jonah. And a labyrinth outside of these walls, and a lesson, because there always must be something learned at the end of the night. Planes of Unpercieved Reality. Something like that. And songs to be found along the way. That's what I think, anyway." Mostly. There was the nagging feeling in the back of his skull however, a scratching, a do-not-forget-me. This was Jareth, of course, and no mistake. But the Princes seemed enthusiastic about his idea.

"A quest through and out, instead of down and in," mused Jade, "since I'm betting the city is the heart of it all."

"Maybe," said Toby, who really didn't know.

"We'll find out, though." Jonah grinned and winked.

"We will." Toby said.