Chapter 2 When the Princes met Lyle

Leroy banged the door. "How in the world do I get in?" he banged again, the door won't open, he tried pulling he tried pushing-nothing worked.

"Easy, with that, the Labyrinth won't be kind to you if you're not with her." Lyle appeared on top of the wall. She slides down and looks Leroy over. "Football?" she takes note of his muscles, and the fact he was PJ's.

"Yeah, now how do I get in?" he crossed his arms and glared at her. Lyle twirled in her purple dress and rested against one of the doors. "You have to ask the right question." Lyle giggled. "That's the only plausible phrase to ask!"

"Wow party popper, what got in your pants tonight!" she opened the door showing him the path going from left to right ending. "Or what didn't?" she asked herself in a mutter before ignoring thee uselessness of the topic. "Thanks I guess," said Leroy but Lyle was gone before he could look at her again.

"But which way?"

Asleep, Jareth dreamed of his past once more, a small smile on his lips as he crossed his legs in the lap. These thoughts did not haunt him as he remembered he adored seeing his mother and father in his head reminding him. In this dream, Jareth, about eighteen now, almost six feet tall and Arrow, who was sixteen, about five' six'' were walking the woods when they spotted a purple fabric hanging low on a thorn branch. In fae ages they still were too young, too rowdy, to take on full responsibility of the kingdom.

"What is that?" Arrow pointed to the purple thing even though his eyes were further in the woods that were off the path.

"It's fabric Arrow" Jareth shrugged and was about to continue on the path towards a village full of fine youthful girls awaiting his presence.

"No I mean, look" Arrow grabbed his arm and pulled him off the path. "Arrow, we are going to ruin these clothes and the ladies won't look at us!" Jareth pouted as he was pulled into the wild grass.

"We are barely adults, big brother, what would father say?" Arrow asked Jareth.

"That we're being goblin rulers. I know he would be on my side. Mother now mother would not like this…" he waves is hands in front of himself to show how ruffled his clothes were getting because of his brother forcing him into this.
"The clothes maybe she won't, but the way you act, certainly not." The younger of the two said barely looking at him.

"Why not? Father says I can be just like her at times. I see that as I good thing. Why should we look around here just because someone tore their clothes?"

"Because somebody is here, Jareth" Arrow moved the bush out of the way to revel a girl with dark hair and fair skin, lips parted in a light gasp.

"I can see that" again he looked at his little brother, not wanting to do work. But of course Arrow was crossing over to the helpless wingless faey. Which to him was a little of a strange sight to see. His mother had wings; large transparent moss colored wings, the girls he charmed had pastel colored ones. This one looked as if she would have purple ones, but certainly did not.

"Then help me!" Arrow was already at her side pulling her up off the ground. "Is she a faey?"

"I don't think so Jareth, if she is her scars of her losing her wings are hidden. So she could have lost them a while ago. But will you help me?"

"Of course" they lifted her up and carried her together to the village. Soon the faes were crowding around them as and no one knew who she was so after the rush through the town the boys took her to the castle. Arrow had a small chance being kind of course to see if he felt any sort of scaring on the girl's back. But he felt none and told Jareth, who was very confused by this. Jareth knew of three types of creatures excluding animal like ones that could speak in the realm of the Underground.

He knew of faes; females who were faes with wings and males who had no use for them. Jareth also knew of goblins, the creatures that played tricks on him and he played tricks on them. Of course the theses types were annoying and well when it came to know of his duty towards them-keeping them alive-he had no care for them, unlike Arrow who was kind to them. Finally Jareth knew of humans, creatures who believed of his kind and wished themselves or others away to get away from troubles only to get into more. That was it so what was this girl he was carrying, he wanted to know because she intrigued his half brother so much.

She was still out cold when they arrived.

"Mother!" they called out entering their home. Diana appeared before them her hair in a bun, dressed in an ivory gown. Her wings were out as they were always when she transported but the closed slightly before reopening widely in shock when she saw the girl in the boys' arms.

The girl woke up on a cot, in the doctor wing of the castle. Arrow was sitting next to her as he reviewed the doctor's report. The girl had no wings-not even closed, no scaring of losing her wings in a fight-no evidence of a fight other then the scratches from her fall into the side woods.

"What is she?"

"I'd say human, but they can't live for long down here-she's been raised here, she's eaten plenty of peaches her time here."

"What does that have to do with this?"

"Young Prince the Peach is the fruit of the fae, it would give a human the abilities of one without having the look or grace of one."

"Oh, so you believe she was human?"

"I have no answer for that" the doctor left to inform the others of the royal family of the strange girl's awakening.

She had woken from her daze, her purple colored eyes looking directly out the window. He sat beside her just looking at her back as it shifted-he was trying his hardest to find minimal scaring or something that called her a fae of the womanly kind. The doctor had told him she of course is a she, she was born without wings but he blood is defiantly of fae. She turned and sat up staring at him in confusion. 'Where am I?" she asked quietly.

"The Castle at the center of the goblin city." Arrow replied.

"Okay so I didn't faint on my way here that's good-did I meet the king and queen because I certainly don't recall that."

"My dear…"

"It's Lyle-like the Lilac-without the ac"

"Lyle I and my brother found you at the side of the road"

"oh…"

"My father would like to know by you-how you got there"

"When?"

"It can be now if that is alright."

"Okay- I got to talk to him anyway…"

It wasn't long after that when Lyle stood in front of King Kalen and Queen Diana. She fidgeted a little with her blouse and the itch on her back returned. Now of course the King and Queen would not know all their people-and a chance at meeting one came when a human came in contact with one.

"Hello" she said looking at their feet-she didn't want to look directly at them in. "Child, I'm not as cruel as I am told to be" King Kalen said to her. "She has no wings" said the queen, "Are you farie? Are you an eleven, or brownie?"

"My people are like yours majesties; we are the ones you accepted…but not many of us gain wings. My parents are both fae and human-mother had once had wings but they did not last as far as my father had told me. I was asked to come here and ask to work in the castle…I am well at serving, raised on producing…."

"Enough child, are you human or not."

"Raised under fae food, taught as a child of the fae, I am not from above ground and nor do I wish to go to the above world." She replied to the king.

"Well I got one thing to say" said Jareth appearing behind her. She turned her head to look at him before bowing it once more.

"Arrow likes her; I like her just enough I already am forming plans for runners with her" Jareth laughed a gleam in his eye.

"You may stay-keep the goblins company if you so like. But please stay on the ground floor and within castle grounds. Anywhere else and I will send you back to the vineyard."

"Yes your majesty"

Jareth sat on the edge of a window seal looking out on the goblin city and far beyond that the court of his people. He held a crystal in his hand as he thought of plans to go back into town and enjoy the faes that flocked him. He felt no bad feelings for the new arrival, but it was strange. She belonged but did not belong. The girl in the fae purple clothing could not be a fae but he could smell the peaches.

The life and magic giving food to a mere girl that had come to work in his castle. He was confused. Jareth shifted in his sleep wondering why he even dreamt of the purple clothed girl and what she had experienced.