{insert usual disclaimer: Just took Jareth outta his box to play with him awhile...he's no worse for wear...uh, well, sorry about the sprained ankle<eg>} and all the rest of the stuff in this lil weaving © copyright 1998 to Me.

"Just a Wish"
by
*Dreamspinner*
Chapter 3/3

Alan glared at the stone facing him in absolute hatred, imagining it to be that foppish creature-thing and willing it to crumble, die, or whatever. The wall had swung closed behind him and now he found himself trapped...at least for the moment. He huffed indignantly as he kicked the wall with apparent relish. Quickly, it occurred to him to look up...and he smiled to himself in smug satisfaction. With apparent ease, he found the disturbingly small hand and foot holds as he scaled the stone wall, saying softly to himself while trying not to totally crack up and lose his rather precarious footing, "I am VENGEANCE! I am the NIGHT! I...AM...BATMAN! Mwahahahah!" He scaled the wall and dropped down softly upon his sneakered feet as he entered another part of the ever-changing maze, the watchful eyes of the Goblin King carefully planning more adventures for the boy...ones just long enough to keep him out of the way. Jareth smiled. 13 hours indeed...he was certain to make sure there were NO clocks in there and had swiped Alan's titanium wrist watch before they had entered his realm. 13 hours can seem like an eternity...or could be an eternity.... Jareth pulled off his leather gloves and stared at his palms. Both bore the red tatto-like images of the great Spiral, a constant reminder of the oath he had sworn...and they twinged from time to time- especially when he chose poorly. He clenched his naked fists and uttered a soft oath, "I shall do well by you, little queen...I shall...but the boy might be more of a problem that I had ever anticipated. Such gifts he has! One would wonder if he has faerie blood, much diluted of course, but it is there none the less. As it is within you..." Jareth sighed as he pulled on the leather gloves and contemplated what he should do next. If the Lady found out from the wrong person what his plans were...Goddess, he hated to think of those beautiful twilight eyes glaring at him in accusation.

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

Fiona walked silently in the garden under the watchful eyes of her unseen attendants. Misha had insisted that she needed some fresh air and had suggested a walk in the gardens after she had a wondrous soak in the exquisitely carved rose quartz tub. Tub? Ah, it was a small pool really...and she stripped down to her shimmering shift with apparent relish. She had loved the bath...it was so nice and comforting. A few faeries splashed and played in the water beside her, and she watched their frolicking with mild amusement. She was surprised by the new number of attendants who were now surrounding her, but she said nothing. With a weary sigh, she had watched the Misha and a plethora of faerie attendants look through the stunning array of gowns to find one which suited her and the occasion. How Fiona wished for a tunic and leggins...and Misha had been quite adamant(indignant!) about her never wearing anything of the sort. The other faerie maidens giggled good naturedly behind their hands- as they found Jareth's taste in women's clothing to be more foppish and frilly than was reasonable. After a heated discussion(where Fiona's hair had come down from Misha's painstakingly elaborate creation), they settled upon a soft flowing gossamer silk under-dress in pale pale blue with an exquisitely embroidered overdress of peacock blue/green/gold studded with tiny diamonds in the many shades of blue upon the neckline, sleeves, bodice and hem- representations of the cosmos swirled in their never-ending dance, twinkling as Fiona moved...the silk dress shimmered like a peacock's feather, and was pleasantly light as well as wondrously smooth to the touch. There were lovely soft ballet type dancing slippers to match, with crescent moons embroidered upon the top as well as a fair sprinkling of tiny diamonds. Misha had partially caught up Fiona's wayward lavender scented tresses in an intricately engraved circlet of platinum set with tiny twinkling diamonds in many shades of blue. After Misha gave her final approval, the poor child had all but flown from her chambers to be out in the light of the gloriously full moon. The other Faeries she had tried to touch earlier had found her and were playing in her lavender scented hair while singing wondrous songs to her, all the while weaving fresh blossoms throughout her vibrant tresses. Their patient and loving attentions only added to the beauty of her ensemble- her lovely starlit dress shimmered and swirled about her frail dancer's body like a lover's caress. Fiona smiled absently as she took in the garden's undeniable beauty. She moved gracefully in her dreamstate, her feet barely seemed to touch the earth, and not even a blossom upon the petal strewn path was bruised by her light footfalls. One of the garden faeries in particular spent his time whispering mysteries into Fiona's perfect but now delicately pointed ears...mysteries about the whys of her abductment, who was involved, and what possible routs she could take in her own defense. She listened to all of this intently, easily catching the faerie's disgust with the whole sordid matter, but appeared to be off in some other world to anyone who happened to gaze upon her. She finally reached up for the faerie in open invitation to land upon her fingers, and smiled at him as he drifted down to perch there, his marvelously opalescent wings fluttering slowly as he carefully seated himself in her open palm. He was ever so handsome; his golden circlet rested upon his regal brow as his beautiful sea green eyes bespoke his goodness of heart as well as his sense of strong honor, which pleased her greatly. His skin shone with a pearlescent hue, which only added to the dreamstate Fiona thought she was in. She did not know why or how...but only knew that he and his kin could be trusted, which made her feel not quite as lost as the babe in the woods she really was.

"Have you eaten?" he asked seriously, his deeply musical voice magical in its perfect pitch, tone, and melody. This shook her out of her reverie and she sighed. How could she even think of eating now? She shuddered slightly in the softly scented breeze- the breeze smelled as wildly exotic as a Sultan's garden, and she vaguely tried to identify which herbs and flowers she was familiar with. The Faerie looked up at her, his face betraying strong emotion as he watched her consciousness drift away from him once more. With a determined smile, he patted her hand, efficiently calling her attention back to him, her eyes clearing only for a moment as she tried to remember the question he had asked.

"No...I do not feel like eating...I have not for some time now." she said softly. The Faerie looked at her with worry plain in his beautiful sea green eyes. He flew up to touch her cheek softly, then darted to take her sleeve in hand to pull her toward the marvelous fruit trees in the garden. She felt the world shift and gasped, reaching out to steady herself. He stroked her fingers, but silently urged her onward as if this was of some great importance. He ignored all of the many tempting varieties of fruit, save one located in the center of a circle of glorious trees of its kind- trees which bore both flower and fruit- and this magnificent tree bore golden apples which glimmered in the pale moonlight.

"Eat of this, Brightest Star. It will heal you. I can offer you naught better than this. And you so need a healing...," his deeply musical and compassionate voice trailed off as he pulled her sleeve upward and towards an exquisite apple which glimmered like a small sun. His strength was amazing for such a small creature, but she lost this shimmering thought as soon as her eyes captured the vision of loveliness before her. Entranced, she reached for the apple, and it came away from the tree with a delicious sigh.

"I am dreaming even while I am supposedly awake. I am caught somewhere in-between. How can I eat something of such great beauty?" she murmured. Gran had always warned her not to eat anything of faerie bounty, but now it did not seem so important, for it felt to be the right thing to do, and she always knew to follow her instincts. The Faerie calmed her with gentle murmurs of her name woven exquisitely within the gentle song he was softly singing.

Fiona smiled up at the tree as she gracefully curtsied, saying, "Thank you for your gifts to me." and was rewarded by a wonderfully soft whirling of gentle mindtouchs from the tree...it bade her sit beneath it and freely enjoy of its bounty. The faerie had caught his breath at the exchange, and then smiled in deep pleasure. The tree's promise that it would watch over her and a cool breeze from the north added to her amused contentment. She gracefully sat down, apple blossoms floating in the air about her, caressing her skin wherever they happened to touch her. She sighed in sweet innocent ecstasy as those silky petals caressed her exposed flesh as she leaned back against the welcoming tree, her heart at peace for once in what seemed to be a very long time. The Faerie lord watched in silence as Fiona delicately bit into the apple, her face so tranquil as she swallowed the abundant nectar the fruit provided. It was so blissfully sweet...and she felt the warmth of it moving through her body like a lover's caress. It was so like the sweet meade she loved...so like it that she savored every drop- swirling the juices about her tongue to catch all the wonderfully indescribable feelings and memories it brought to her. Her smooth alabaster skin regained the delicate pink blush upon her cheeks even as her lips blushed a lovely shade of crimson. Her twilight eyes, cleared now of dreamstuff, avidly took in her surroundings with great excitement. The faerie noble watched her and smiled. She was going to be well and he was most glad of it. Deciding to reveal himself for who he really was, he shifted into his normally elven-sized self to sit beside Fiona, who made a faint cry of amusement at this newest and unexpected incarnation. He was taller than she, and so lovely to gaze upon. His wings shimmered into nonexistence, but once in awhile she could make out a faint sparkling in the space behind him where his wings should be. She almost forgot the apple she was holding while she studied him intently, blushing ever so delicately when he noticed her innocent contemplation of him. He smiled and cupped her hand to bring the apple to her lips and bade her to eat a bit more, but only if she wanted. She smiled and did as he bade her, allowing the soft, tender mind caress of the tree to wash away all the pain in her heart as well as the left over injuries due to the tragic accident...

*No, dearest childling, do not dwell on the past,* the tree was quick to remind her, *All that is over and done now. Live for the future.* Fiona sent sleepy thankful thoughts to the tree, which reached out its awareness to hold her tenderly in its embrace. She sighed in true contentment, leaning her head upon the shoulder of the man now seated beside her. He stroked her hair and hummed a lovely lullaby, and she felt herself slipping into a deeply healing slumber. It all just felt so right...she could not explain it...

"What are you called, King of the Faeries?" she asked him so softly.

"Ah...Truesight. I should have guessed. You may call me whatever you wish." he replied, his smile warm and his voice sounding very pleased, "Name me, My lovely one. Name me and make me yours."

She closed her eyes and concentrated- but a name came to the forefront of her consciousness like an arrow shot from a marksman's bow.

She whispered, "Liam." The Faerie King smiled at her remarkably correct choice of a name for him. 'Protection...' he thought, 'yes, indeed. More so than you will ever know, dear one.' He had sensed her almost call him Conor...and sadly traced the sweet softness of her cheek with his fingertips. Her eyelids flickered open and she smiled at him...such a smile she had...like the dawn. He slipped his arms about her and added his own considerable powers to that of the tree...and together they wiped away all of the bindings Jareth had placed upon her, but the protections they left, as well as adding a few of their own. She would not be constrained again. Her choices would truly be her own as they should be.

Misha smiled from her perch in the branches of another tree. This was well done- very well done. Poor childling...it was about time. She had sensed King Liam's presence in the gardens, but could only hope he would take such an interest in her charge. He had even swept Fiona through the portal between his realm to his own to provide her with the Golden Apples of Tir Na Og...the apples which would never grow here....very well done indeed. ****

After what seemed to be a sweet eternity, Fiona roused herself and felt the arms about her tighten for just but a breath of time before letting her go with great reluctance. Liam smiled at her, his Silvery-green hair alive in the moonlight as he shifted to allow her complete freedom of movement. How she longed to run her fingers through his hair! But her natural shyness asserted itself and she merely blushed and looked up at him through the fine veil of her red-gold lashes. He carefully reached up to move a stray lock of her vibrant tresses from her face, allowing his fingertips to trace her cheek as he did so. Suddenly, with a boldness she never knew she possessed, she cupped his hand with her own while he gently cradled her cheek.

With a regretful sigh, she finally asked him, "Are you involved in this contest as well? I will only wed for love...no matter what stakes or claims Jareth makes. I am not going to be a pawn in this, Liam...no..I will not." her demeanor had changed as suddenly as a summer storm blows in upon the horizon, her eyes blazing fierceness worthy of a valkyrie. Fire...her element...Dragon's Daughter...of the earth and sky to bind them all...Liam shook his head to clear it of the ancient snippets of prophecy, riddle and bard craft which flooded into his mind as he watched her.

Liam nodded seriously as he gave his affirmative reply to her question, then took her by the chin to force her to meet his eyes, "There is more resting upon this than you know. Our land...our land..." his voice became sad and slightly tense as he tried to tell her what she needed to know without scaring her, "The land is...not well, M'lady...." Fiona gazed at him in confusion, and he smiled, "You have not felt it yet, then? Well, I promise you shall know it when you see it. You will know what you must do when the time arrives. The magic constrains us all to a certain degree...and it is imperative that you come to KNOW this on your own. That is the only way."

"If that is the way, then that is the way I shall do it...but you must know I was taken- stolen from my own world as a part of something else. I do not know how I shall fit into this tapestry..." she frowned at the ground as she traced a spiral in the soft dirt with her fingertip. Liam almost gasped, but managed to barely keep his composure at her choice of images.....the crescent moon cupped the Moonmother's abundance ever watchful around the spiraling circle...her fingertips traced the spiral, following it to it's center and back out again in a gracefully repetitious motion. Amused, she continued drawing, blissfully unaware that Liam was growing ever more agitated until he finally startled her by placing his hand over hers as he uttered a strangled whisper, "Enough. Please." She glanced at him, uncomprehending the sudden change in him. His tight smile and reverent gaze confused her even further, and she gazed at him in wide-eyed alarm.

Slowly, he seemed to relax, and caressed the hand he still held, "Do not worry. There is time enough for the knowing later. Calmly now, little fawn. I did not mean to upset you with my own concerns." She wordlessly nodded, but her expression was still one of concern. He laughed lightly and conjured a small rose for her, which she took and breathed deep of its sweet scent. A slight scuffing upon the path made them aware that someone else was approaching, and with an amazingly quick surge of motion, Liam quickly pulled her back through the portal so that they were calmly seated upon a garden bench by the time Jareth rounded the corner. Her being slightly out of breath only served to cement the facade that they had stopped touring the gardens for her to rest.

Jareth gazed mildly at the two, but secretly fumed at the obvious meddling someone had done to his little Oisin. All of his bindings were gone from her, and he was not pleased.

"My little Oisin...how do you fare? You look radiant...positively radiant. One would think you had been somewhere else...ah, but how could that be, hmmm?" Jareth gazed at her then shifted his awareness to the Faerie King. Sparks seemed to fly between the two as a mental conversation heated the air around them, making Fiona very uncomfortable. She favored him with a faint smile, but her eyes were bright and keen. The faeries who were tending Fiona rushed forward to pull upon Jareth's hair to annoy him. He uttered a mild curse as he swatted at the darned creatures, fully about to blast a few into cinders- but he caught Fiona's shocked expression at his behavior and stopped mid swat. This only amused the faeries, who took great glee in the fact that he could do nothing to them at this moment. They returned to the safety of the shadows behind Fiona and their King- some taking up residence in her hair.

"You are positively crawling with faeries, child! King Liam, I ask that you restrain your subjects." Jareth ordered.

Liam picked up one of Fiona's many curling tresses, savoring the sweet scent (~she smells like spring~, he thought wistfully) and kissed it before replying, "She does not seem to mind them." Fiona hid her smile behind her hands and tried not to laugh when the look of utter indignant outrage flashed across Jareth's pale features before he could control it.