"I will not be inconvenienced again," said Llynton in a falsely deep tone, mocking Villdon. He ran through the pitch black corridor at lightening speed, and was back in the turret in a few minutes. Irritated, he gave a deep sigh when he saw his reflection in the mirror. He smiled at himself and turned to the side, puffing out his chest - "Lord Llynton, Mi'Lady, How do you do?" he said in an overly regal voice. He laughed at himself, then set to work.

He lit the torch in the room and hung it beside the door. The velvet pouch that Villdon had given him was filled with fine black powder that shimmered in the fire light, and he carefully poured it in a large circle around the mirror, leaving him enough space to sit within it.
He sat before the mirror cross-legged, his eyes closed and his breathing slowed. Then patiently, quietly, he began to chant:

"If Lightness be the lock,
Then Darkness be the key
I call thee, spirits of the shadows,
to open it for me"

The black dust began to sparkle, sending black shadows around the room. The chant continued.

***

Villdon smiled darkly at Sarah. "Please don't hurt me," she said, taking a few steps back. The candlelight flickered over his features casting mysterious shadows on his face.

"Why would I do that?" he smiled, his words seemed strangely sincere.

"Because you're evil," Sarah replied, her voice hushed and frightened.

"I simply wanted to show you something Sarah, you don't need to fear me." He slowly stepped towards the centre of the circle, where he stopped. He held his hand out, and in it appeared a red rose. The perfectly formed petals were half opened, and speckled with dew. He smiled warmly; she walked cautiously to him.

"It's beautiful," she sighed, wondering how someone like Villdon was capable of producing such an object.

"Beauty only exists in the eye of the beholder, as does evil," he replied. She was now standing before him, the rose in between them. He released the stem, and the flower floated in the air before her.

"A rose?" she asked, wondering why he was giving her this gift.

"A temptation," he corrected

"But it's so pure," she said, not understanding Villdon's reply.

"It's deceitful, Sarah, and is not what it seems." He slowly began to walk and stood behind her, gazing at the rose over her shoulder. "What does it say to you?"

"Love." She replied.

"Lust."

"Innocence."

"Desire." He spoke the word into her ear and startled her

"Why are you doing this?" She asked, turning to stare into his eyes.

"To make you realise that everything can be evil - everything is evil, and that's why there's nothing wrong with it."

"Of course there is!"

"No there isn't, don't you see? Evil is defined by moralists, who live in fear of their dark side, suppressing its temptation by convincing themselves that it's bad. Evil is possessed by those who dare to embrace the temptation within them, and set themselves free." He took Sarah's chin in his hand and gently pointed her face towards the rose. "Something that seems innocent and pure always has a dark side. You shouldn't hide from it, you should embrace it."

"But I don't want to be evil!"

"You are already, so why hide it like this rose? It gives off illusions of love and innocence, but the thing that really attracts you to it is lust and desire - the dark undertones are more interesting, more passionate, and that is what draws you to it. The same darkness runs through your veins, Sarah, you can feel it... and it's calling you."

The rose glowed brightly - red light resonating from it's petals and warming Sarah's cheeks. It was beautiful, but there was a deeper, more mysterious quality to it - Villdon was right. "It is tempting," she admitted.

"And yet," he took the flower and offered it to her, "it is still a rose."

Surely it wouldn't hurt to just hold it for a while, thought Sarah - just to smell it. After a few moments, she gave into the temptation and took the rose from Villdon. A sharp thorn dug into her finger and she instantly dropped it to the floor, grasping her finger as bright red drops of blood began to seep from the wound. Villdon's slender hands covered hers, the intimacy took her by surprise and she flinched. He smiled and held her wounded finger before her. "Embrace the darkness within you, and make the pain go away," he said.

She felt strange, her senses heightened, and power rushing through her veins.

"Just believe that the pain is gone, and so it shall be..." said Villdon, still grasping her hands. Sarah looked at her finger, spilling drops of blood on the floor. She closed her eyes and held her breath, picturing her finger to be healed. A warmth resonated through her body, rushing to her finger; she opened her eyes to see the blood disappearing and the cut fading - then there was nothing.

"I did it," Sarah said, unable to believe her eyes.

"Embrace the darkness Sarah," said Villdon, "and you never need to fear anyone again. No one shall ever control you but yourself."

As she looked back into his eyes, she smiled. His offer was tempting - she would not need to rely on Jareth and his powers any longer. No longer would she be an outsider, people would give her the respect she deserved. The darkness that Villdon spoke of was alluring, she had felt its power, long enough to realise that she wanted more. His eyes were intoxicating. His whole manner seemed completely transformed. She had feared him - he was powerful, but now she viewed him in a different light... just like the rose, Villdon's darker qualities were more interesting, attractive even.

If there was any reason to resist the temptation, she couldn't remember it. Villdon swept his arm around her waist, and entangled his other hand in her flowing hair. He pulled to her him and kissed her violently. Sarah returned his kiss - there should be something wrong with this, she thought, but the little voice of hesitation was silenced by the ache she felt for Villdon. She pulled him closer to her to deepen the kiss, her body pressing against him. Jareth had never made her feel this way - he was sweet and affectionate, whereas Villdon was threatening - She felt helpless in his arms, though empowered at the same time. She remembered the morning when Jareth rode off to battle - his kiss was tender, innocent and filled with love. Villdon's kiss was a complete contrast: passionate, thrilling, and overrun with desire and lust.

She arched into him, his hand caressing the small of her back. Suddenly, she screamed out in pain as visions flashed before her - she was still laying on the forest floor, clutching her wound in agony. She heard Epona's voice echoing through her mind: 'you must control your dark thoughts, and not be tempted by evil'. The vision went as quickly as it came, and she found herself back in the black room, still in Villdon's arms. The lust and desire that she had felt moments before had vanished, she looked up at him and felt only fear. His features were darker than before, their menacing, threatening nature was stronger, and she was no longer mesmerised by it.

"Let me go," she commanded, shakily.

"Let me go!" she pushed Villdon with all her strength and he stumbled back, staring at her angrily, his brow furred.

"The darkness is within you Sarah, it will never go away," he said.

"I know," she shouted, "But so are love and innocence - you make them out to be some kind of disease in need of a cure, but you're wrong - with the good comes the bad, the bad with the good. The sun sets, but it always rises again: darkness and light co-exist, and to allow one to rule the other would upset the balance. I don't need the dark side to give me power, as I have all the power I need - I will not succumb to temptation, and I shall fight it with every living breath."

Villdon stood erect, scowling at her sudden outburst. She was scared of him, but held her head defiantly. She didn't need to shy away in fear any longer. As she stared at Villdon, he and the room began to fade away, the dark veil dissolving to reveal the forest beneath.

She stood there, back in her blood soaked dress, clutching her side. The pain returned slowly, though had been reduced to a dull ache. She was trying to work out the surreal events that had just occurred. Had she really come so close to temptation? One thing was for sure, she would never cope with another confrontation - first the wolf, then Jareth, then Villdon... she hobbled forward, not thinking that far ahead, but just taking one unsteady step at a time.

After only a few steps, she stopped in her tracks. She heard a strange sound behind her, it was like water flowing with thousands of tiny bells caught up in the stream. She turned to behold the most beautiful, majestic thing she had ever seen... it was a huge stone fountain, though the water that flowed was glowing brightly, and seemed to have rays of coloured light woven into it. And so tumbled the blues and pinks, the greens and the yellows... tiny beads of rainbow light drifted into the air as each one hit the pool.

"The fountain..." she said distantly, trying to comprehend the brilliance before her.

"Hello Sarah," said a young man's voice, it's bearer walking from the trees. He wore a long baggy cream shirt outside cropped brown trousers, his lower legs and feet were bare. His short brown hair flopped lazily onto his handsome features. He reminded Sarah of a medieval squire, informally attired as though overcome with the desire to run through the trees and play in fields.

"Are you..."

"The Guardian," he finished, catching her surprised look as he spoke. "You thought I'd be older? Everyone does," he smiled. "Do you think I'd spend eternity in a frail old body, complete with flowing white beard and a magician's hat?"

Sarah laughed, then instinctively bit her lip. She was in awe of him, the most powerful immortal, the creator of magic. Yet he didn't seem to possess the pomp and splendour that she expected of him, and he stood there with a broad, friendly smile on his face.

"Where did you come from... I mean, you, this fountain, none of this was here a minute ago." Sarah smiled, embarrassed at her loss for words.

"It's been here all the time, you just weren't ready to see it." Was his reply.

"And I'm ready to see it now?" she asked.

"Yes," he replied with a smile, "you're ready."

"Please, you must help me..." she began, "Jareth and Kardallen are..."

"Shhh," interrupted The Guardian, a finger on his lips. "I know."

He walked towards her, beckoning her to take his hand. As she did, he led her towards the fountain. "Sarah, I cannot leave the Crossworld, I am needed here. Therefore, I charge you to do my bidding: stop Villdon, at all costs. Save the one you love."

"But me? Alone? I could never..."

"Sarah, stop, you have proved yourself worthy of my gift. Immortal magic is to be yours, and you can use it in a way that Villdon could never do."

"But he's so powerful," she said, fear in her voice.

"Yes, but you are pure of heart. It will not be easy, Sarah, but if you show the courage that I know you have, you can achieve great things."

He helped Sarah onto the fountain's ledge, "I believe in you Sarah, have the kindness to share my faith." With these words, he motioned her into the fountain. She turned to look at him, and returned his smile. The water didn't wet her... it was as though it was liquid light, warm to the touch, tingling on her skin. The rainbow mist surrounded her, the light enclosing her in a spinning hurricane of colour. The dull ache at her side was the first to disappear - the warmth ran through her, leaving her feeling energised and full of life. Her dress was replaced with closely fitted cream trousers with a burgundy stripe down the outer seams. Her cream leather boots stretched above her ankles, their heel was high yet sturdy. Her elegant cream shirt was closely fitted, the long, slender sleeves finished with burgundy embroidery. She wore cream and burgundy gloves. Her hair, once matted and bedraggled morphed into smooth flowing locks with a teasing wave at the front and ends.

"Believe," she heard the Guardian say from all around her. With a bright flash of light, Sarah was standing on the forest floor in the middle of a clearing. The fountain and the Guardian were gone. As she looked around her, she had the oddest feeling - her senses were heightened, the leaves loudly crashed into one another with the slightest movement, she could taste the air - it was barky and smelled so fresh. Her eyes moved incredibly quickly - it was as though she could look at everything at once.

"I must get back to the castle," she said aloud. At that moment she heard hinges creak behind her - she swung around at lightening speed and saw a wooden door like the one that had first brought her into this place. "Thankyou," she said to the air, hoping the Guardian was listening as she jumped into the blue mist beyond the frame.

As the door closed behind her, the Guardian smiled. He had been listening, though he did not need to be thanked for opening the door, as it was not he who had done it...