22
"Jareth? You wanted to see me?"
Jareth looked up from his throne, and then moved his legs off the arm of the chair and stood up.
"I did," Jareth said quietly, and Trinity could see, from the look on his face, that something was bothering him.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Trinity asked worriedly, moving to him and wrapping her arms around him.
"Leont discovered something frightening while working in the library," Jareth sighed, resting his head on her shoulder. "Vorian has a difficult choice to make, my darling, and I think Evelyn needs to know about it. He would never tell her, because he would never want to put pressure on her. The time is fast approaching when Vorian will have to decide which world he wants to remain in…forever. He cannot keep going back and forth between the Underground and your world. It hurts him every time he does that because of the way his power works. He can either stay here forever, and keep all of his powers, or he can go to your world and become completely human."
"That's awful!" Trinity gasped. "Jareth, what is he going to do?"
"He doesn't yet know," Jareth said unhappily. "We heard the news this morning, and I haven't seen him since, though I have a good idea of where he is."
"I will tell Evelyn," Trinity smiled sadly. "Vorian will not be the only one making a huge decision. Evelyn needs to come to a decision with herself. It's high time she figured out where her heart truly lies."
"I don't want to lose him, Trinity," Jareth frowned, tightening his arms around the young woman. "I lost him once for years. I almost ordered him to stay here."
"But he loves Evelyn and will do anything for her," Trinity said. "Why don't we both go talk to him?"
"Speak to Evelyn first," Jareth said, letting out a long sigh. "If she doesn't love him enough, then I'm going to force him to stay here."
"You can't force him to do anything."
"I can try," Jareth said and then kissed Trinity on the forehead. "Such complications, my love."
"Jareth, none of this is your responsibility. Vorian is an adult and he's smart. He'll make the right choices," Trinity smiled and then slipped out of his arms. "I'll go talk to Evelyn."
"Do your best to find how she truly feels," Jareth said tiredly and plopped onto his throne. "And pray that Vorian will make the right choice, or that she will."
XxXxX
Trinity found Evelyn sitting on her bed in their large room. The older woman was brushing her long hair out and appeared to be deep in thought. She immediately became concerned, however, when Trinity approached her and then sat down on the floor in front of her and put her hands on Evelyn's knees.
"Ev, I have some news," Trinity spoke gently, trying to smile. "It concerns Vorian."
"What about him?" Evelyn asked, putting her brush down and studying Trinity's face carefully.
"He has a huge decision to make that will effect his life forever. Leont was going through some books in the library and learned that Vorian can't keep crossing the path between our two worlds. It weakens him immensely, so that each time he tries to use his power, it hurts him. At some point in time, very soon, I'm afraid, Vorian will have to make the choice to either stay in the Labyrinth forever, never to return to our world, or to stay in our world and lose all of his power."
"He would become human?" Evelyn asked, color draining out of her face.
"Yes. Vorian doesn't know what to do because he's torn," Trinity said gently, getting up and sitting on the bed next to Evelyn. "He loves you, Evelyn. I think he loves you enough to lose all of his power. But would you return his love, or would it be a lost cause for him to return to our world?"
"I…I don't know," Evelyn said, standing up and beginning to pace. "Something's happening to me, Trinity, that I can't explain. I don't know if it would be best for Vorian to stay here or not. I don't want him to lose his powers because of me. I've seen how much he loves the ocean and how much its creatures love him. To take that away from him would be like…murdering who he actually is."
"What do you mean 'something's happening to you?' I don't understand," Trinity said softly.
"I think I'm out of my mind, or going insane," Evelyn said uncertainly, shaking her head. "If you had seen what went on in the cavern behind the waterfall, you wouldn't have recognized me."
"What happened?" Trinity asked, immediately interested.
"I…I tried to…to kiss Vorian," Evelyn choked, her cheeks turning fiery red. "This feeling came over me, like I needed him desperately and touching him would appease that need. I was so ashamed after that, but he treated me the same as he always does, with respect and decency. But every time he looked at me, Trin, I was ready to throw myself into his arms, to lose myself with him."
"Evelyn, do you really love Vorian?" Trinity asked, grinning in spite of herself.
"Yes," Evelyn said quietly. "I do. I feel torn in half when I'm separated from him. I feel like there's an immense hole in my heart that I can't fill."
"That's all I needed to know," Trinity said, standing up and moving towards the door.
"Wait!" Evelyn exclaimed, reaching out and taking hold of her friend's arm. "I don't want him giving up everything for me. Please, don't let him do that. True love is selfless and giving, and I don't want him to lose his place here because of me. I want him to be happy and content with his life, and I'm afraid he would lose that if he loses his power."
"Ev, he would do anything for you," Trinity said gently, wrapping her arms around her friend. "I think he would die without you. He has had that emptiness in his heart, that emptiness for you, for such a long time that I think he'd just curl up and die if the two of you were separated for the rest of your lives."
"Don't let him make his decision because of me," Evelyn said firmly, her eyes determined.
"Every one of his decisions he makes because of his love for you," Trinity smiled and then left.
XxXxX
Trinity returned to Jareth and they discussed her conversation with Evelyn. Jareth then put his hand on Trinity's shoulder and transported them to a place that Evelyn had seen once, a long time ago, in a dream.
Trinity and Jareth arrived at a rocky shore, great black boulders rising up out of black sand. They immediately spotted Vorian, sitting on one of the boulders, dressed in black breeches and an open poet shirt. His eyes were closed and he appeared to be listening.
"Come," Jareth whispered to Trinity and then led her towards the water prince.
As they neared the man, they heard a faint tune playing on the wind.
"It's the ocean. It's speaking," Jareth said, and then came to a stand next to Vorian. "Vorian."
Vorian opened his eyes and looked over at Jareth and Trinity. He stood up, stretched his arms, and then smiled slightly.
"What brings you both here?" he asked, turning to look at the endless ocean.
"I will come right to the point, Vorian," Jareth said coolly. "I want you to stay here."
"But Evelyn loves you," Trinity added. "She said so herself."
"My friends," Vorian chuckled. "Your concern for me is flattering. I have already come to a conclusion."
"And what is that?" Jareth asked, tensing.
"If Evelyn doesn't want me, when the time comes to choose which world I will take, then I will remain in the Labyrinth and I will never step into her life again. If she does love me and wants to spend the rest of her life with me, then I will return to her world. I know that I would lose all of my powers," Vorian said, holding up his hand to stop Jareth from speaking. "And I know that I would only live a short while in comparison to life here in the Underground. But I would gladly give a thousand years just to spend one day with her in my arms, both of us completely satisfied."
"Do we know when you will have to make that final choice?" Trinity asked, gripping Jareth's hand tightly.
"No," Jareth said numbly, shaking his head. "It could happen at any time."
"Jareth, don't be upset for me," Vorian smiled, putting his hand on his friend's shoulder. "This is what I want. Were you in my place, my dear friend, except with Trinity instead of Evelyn, you would make the same choice, would you not?"
"I could, of course, force her to stay in the Underground, and the problem would be solved," Jareth said firmly.
"But she wouldn't be as happy as she could be," Trinity said gently. "She loves her family, and they love her. No. She needs to stay in her world."
"Vorian, I want you to stay here," Jareth said, eyes boring into Vorian's. "You are my dearest friend. But I also want what is best for you. If Evelyn didn't want you and you were to stay here, would you still be happy?"
"I don't believe so," Vorian smiled sadly. "I think my heart would break into a million pieces."
"Then why would you stay out of her world?"
"It's simple," Trinity said helpfully. "If Evelyn doesn't want Vorian, then he will be more upset if he's with her and watches her continue her life without him. It would be easier for him if he stayed here, far away from her. Then he'd only have memories that would plague him, not her actually being there in front of him. Imagine what would happen if Evelyn fell in love with someone else and was married?"
Vorian groaned, as if in answer to Trinity's last sentence.
"Please, consider your choice carefully," Jareth said, reaching out and hugging Vorian. "I don't want to lose you, but I fear, if Evelyn leaves and you stay here, I will have lost you anyway."
"I'll make a wise decision, Goblin King," Vorian said, squeezing his eyes shut tightly as he embraced his friend. "Now, don't you have last minute preparations to make for that celebration tonight?"
"You will come and dance, won't you?" Trinity asked as Jareth led her away from Vorian.
"If Evelyn will dance, then I will also," Vorian said with a bow. "I shall see you there."
XxXxX
"Ow! Ow! Freaking ow! That freaking hurts Cristain!"
"Get used to it," Jareth's sister said as she mercilessly tightened Trinity's corset.
"You know, Cristain, the reason they stopped wearing these things in my world is because they caused permanent damage," Trinity snapped. "Women wore them so often and so tight that their ribcages collapsed and they needed the corset boning to keep them alive."
"Yours is not nearly so tight as some of the ones I've seen in my lifetime, and you're only wearing it this tight for the one night," Cristain quipped. "And stop saying the word 'freaking'. It's unladylike."
"You don't even know what it means," the king's fiancé muttered. "When I'm queen, the first thing I'm doing is making these things illegal. Then I'm throwing you into the Bog of Eternal Stench. I only have to get your toe in it and you'll be Lady Stench forever, and I will sit there and laugh, because I will be able to breathe."
"Yes, I'm sure you will have loads of fun," Jareth's sister sighed, then stood back, admiring her work. "Alright," she said finally, "Put your dress on. You're nearly ready."
Evelyn sighed. Trinity and Cristain had been going on more or less in this fashion for the entire hour they had been dressing in Trinity's room. Evelyn had endured her corset silently, but hers was more comfortable than Trinity complained hers to be. She suspected that Cristain had pulled tighter when Trinity complained.
The green-eyed woman had been thinking about the decision she and Vorian were going to have to make soon, and what decision she wanted him to make. Obviously she would have to stay in the human world. She would miss Trinity for sure, but Evelyn's family needed her. She wouldn't be able to live in the Underground.
"You know what, Cristain…" Trinity threatened from across the room, as she walked to her closet to pull on her dress. She closed the door behind her, and there was a pause as she struggled into the blue and silver garment. Then Evelyn and Cristain heard Trinity scream.
Evelyn looked to Cristain, alarmed, but the Fae lady just shrugged.
"There's a mirror on the inside of the door," she said, just as Trinity burst out of the closet.
"I look freaking amazing!" the smaller human cried, running to Jareth's sister and throwing her arms around her. "Oh my gosh, thank you sooo much!"
Evelyn grinned. "You're welcome."
Trinity gasped and ran to Evelyn, and threw her arms around her. "And thank you sooo much for doing my hair! It's gorgeous! You look gorgeous too!"
All three women laughed.
XxXxX
The ball was gorgeous. The great hall was decorated tastefully in pale blues and silvers, and no one wore masks. The whole place seemed very open, and very much alive. There was something in the air that spoke of true happiness, even elation.
Jareth and Trinity stood on a balcony before they made their grand entrance, watching the people below them. No one was dancing, but everyone shared the same excitement.
"Look, Jareth!" Trinity said excitedly, pointing. "Clairena came!"
"Indeed," he said, smiling. He and Trinity had rescued the young Lady Clairena from the clutches of the evil Raiv many years ago. Since then she had grown up some, and was now the human world equivalent of fourteen or fifteen. "But look who's with her."
Trinity looked a little closer, and gasped with pleasure, grasping Jareth's arm. "Wilburus! Aww, how sweet!"
The young red-haired boy was talking and laughing with Clairena nervously, a blush on his face telling Trinity and Jareth all they needed about his feelings for Clairena.
"But isn't she a little old for him?" Trinity asked.
Jareth looked at her, raising an eyebrow. "He's older than he looks. In fact, he's a few years older than she is. You didn't notice?"
His fiancé blinked. "Really? He looked like, twelve."
Jareth laughed softly, squeezing Trinity's hand.
She turned back to watch the blooming child romance before her. "How sweet. And they are so cute together. She is just gorgeous."
Jareth hadn't looked away from his fiancé, and now reached out to take her face in his hand. "You, my dear, are more than gorgeous. I think the proper term here is…infinitely beautiful."
"Yeah, Cristain had fun," the girl said, shrugging. "This dress really doesn't match my ring…" and she held out the ring with its red rubies and black diamonds to emphasize her point. "But I guess it's okay…"
Jareth grinned, and took her left hand and kissed his mother's ring that now rested on her finger. "My Trinity," he said, "You are one of a kind."
"I know," Trinity said, closing her eyes as he moved his lips to hers. "That's why you're marrying me."
And then they were kissing; sweetly, passionately, holding each other tightly.
When they broke the kiss, Trinity was breathing unevenly. Jareth was concerned, but when he asked what was wrong, Trinity just shook her head.
"Your sister put me in a torture device called a corset that she strictly informed me is not to come off until after the ball," the human said darkly. "Come on, it's time for our grand entrance."
XxXxX
Evelyn avoided Vorian at the ball, afraid that she wasn't supposed to know of the big decision that he was to make. She still wasn't sure what she wanted. Her feelings were torn, as were his. She wanted to be with him, but she didn't want him putting aside his entire world for her.
Jareth and Trinity were introduced into the ballroom, and Evelyn watched with smiling eyes as her friend and the Goblin King stepped onto the dance floor and began the dancing. They seemed so happy, and they looked so beautiful together. Evelyn absolutely admired the way her friend looked. Trinity looked completely like a queen, entirely beautiful and fully convincing.
"I do believe it would be appropriate to dance this song," a voice spoke from behind Evelyn, and she turned to look up at Vorian. She was amazed by his appearance. He wasn't at all dressed spectacularly, but he always managed to impress her more when he was simple. He wore a dark blue poet shirt, open at the chest, which enhanced the color in his eyes beautifully. He wore black breeches, accompanied by knee high black boots. His dark hair was swept out of his face, and there was a mysterious blue and green glitter dancing about his eyes.
"You look…wonderful," Evelyn breathed, not even noticing as he took her in his arms.
"And you look stunning," Vorian smiled, scanning her body with his eyes in a way that wasn't at all suggestive.
Evelyn was dressed in a dark green silk dress, which draped elegantly off her shoulders. Her long hair was down, resting softly and glamorously against her shoulders and back.
"You think so?" Evelyn blushed, looking down as he swept her along the dance floor.
He didn't answer, and she looked up into his face to see that his eyes were boring deeply into hers, burning straight into her soul. She wanted to find something to say, but no words would come to her. She gazed into his eyes, admiring the strength and power there. She shivered when his hands moved slowly to her wrists, his left hand moving up her side to find her wrist and hold it gently. He took her hands and moved them to the back of his neck, wrapping her arms gently around him before he moved his hands to the small of her back.
There was so much Evelyn wanted to say. She found it difficult to speak, however, and she shook her head, lost, when he pulled her closer to him so that their bodies were touching.
"What is it you want to say, Evelyn?" Vorian whispered, moving his lips to her ear.
"I…I don't know," she blushed, finding, strangely, that she was very comfortable being held so close to him.
"Speak your mind, darling. I know something is troubling you," Vorian smiled, tilting her chin up to look at him.
"I…I don't want you to come back to my world. Trinity told me about the choice you have to make, and I don't want you to choose me," she stammered, tears forming in her eyes.
Vorian's face tightened, and he closed his eyes and rested his head on her shoulder. He buried his face in her hair, stroking the back of her head with one hand.
"I would die without you," he spoke, his voice barely a whisper.
"But you need your power. When the time comes to decide, please, Vorian, for your sake, stay here in the Labyrinth," Evelyn said, tears streaming slowly from her eyes as Vorian moved his head.
"Is that what you truly want? You want me to leave you in your world and never come back?" he asked, his face centimeters away from hers.
"No, no that isn't what I want, but that's what is right. Perhaps I should leave you now," Evelyn said, beginning to draw back. "I'm only hurting you more by being so close."
A song began to play throughout the room, drifting like a haunting melody across the dancers.
"Waterfalls and rivers
Are powerful life-givers.
The ocean and sea
Hold magic for me.
But nothing like my love
No, nothing like the woman
The sprite, the water-nymph
The magic of a spring
Is nothing to my love.
Streams and springs
Are beautiful things.
A lake so serene
I think eyes of green.
But nothing like my love
No, nothing like the woman
The sprite, the water-nymph
The magic of a spring
Is nothing to my love."
"That's our song," Vorian whispered, nuzzling his cheek against hers. "If you must stop dancing with me, then at least finish our dancing with this song."
Evelyn nodded and let him hold her.
XxXxX
"How I would hate to be him right now," Trinity spoke, glancing to the side as she and Jareth swept past Evelyn and Vorian. "He has to be in so much turmoil."
"But you would never know it," Jareth smiled, turning his head to acknowledge the couple. "Vorian is a master at disguising his emotions."
"Do you think he'll do what she says and stay in the Labyrinth?" Trinity asked.
"My love, I do not know what he'll do. I've never seen him so intense. I do know that Vorian is a man of great loyalty, but he is also a man of extreme honor. He is helplessly in love with Evelyn, as I am with you. If he were to be torn away from her, I truly believe he would die, and it wouldn't take long. I don't know what he is going to do. We must simply trust that he will make the right choice."
"But they look perfect together! Look at them!" Trinity declared, watching as Vorian and Evelyn continued to hold on to each other, even after their song had ended. "Why can't they see that they were meant to be together? What is holding them back?"
"Selflessness and true love," Jareth smiled. "Do not fear for them, Trinity. Please, my love, just enjoy the evening. Don't be troubled with matters concerning Vorian. He'll prove himself wise time and time again."
"I wish she would open up more," Trinity sighed, turning her eyes back to Jareth's. "Evelyn must be struggling as well."
"Don't worry about it. They are both perfectly capable of making their own decisions," Jareth smiled, kissing her gently on the cheek. "My darling Trinity, if you keep worrying about those two and don't give any attention to me, I shall have to make you."
"Oh will you?" Trinity grinned, a rebellious glint in her eye. "And how shall you succeed in doing that?"
"Just like so," Jareth said, and then leaned down and touched her mouth with his own.
Trinity's eyes fluttered closed as he deepened the kiss, and when he finally pulled away to give her air, she giggled, her cheeks fiery red.
"Okay, so you know how to get attention," she stuttered.
"Tonight the only two beings you should be concerned with are Jareth and Trinity, the King of the Underground and his queen-to-be. The people are enjoying watching you, Trinity. I do believe they love you already, just as I do. You shall make a terrific queen."
"Do you really think so?" Trinity asked, smiling up at him.
"I believe it with my whole heart," Jareth smiled gently, resting his forehead on hers.
a/n: ooh the drama and suspense! sorry this was so late in coming. anyways, Code Green and I are cooking up a third part in this series, since this installment is coming to a close. how sad.