Disclaimer: See chapter 1. Corindel is GF's own creation. Reviews are welcomed, flames are not.
Chapter 3: The Rainbow Connection
A lone prisoner sat shackled to the wall in a dank, musty prison cell. His clothing hung in rags and tatters on a gaunt and ravaged body, but despite the misery apparent in his slumped frame, his thoughts were centered on one small boy. ' Harry. Where are you? Are you safe'?
A flash of intense light made him cover his eyes with a forearm. When it dimmed he lowered his arm to see a tall man with mismatched eyes and feathery silver hair standing before him. This odd apparition was wearing grey spandex, a black leather waist coat and knee high boots.
" Wh...who..?"
" Sirius Black? I have a proposition for you."
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Jareth stared coldly down at the pain wracked shell of a man before him. He struggled to control his disgust at the cruelty of the Wizarding World that bound this innocent human. A sneer twisted his lips. Magic? And they can't, or won't, use it to find the truth? Pulling a crystal out from nowhere and began rolling it around his fingers and wrist as he waited for the gaunt man before him to speak.
"Wh. . . what kind of proposition?"
The Goblin King smirked. How easy it is to manipulate humans. "Simple. Does the name Harry Potter mean anything to you?" Jareth watched closely as his words slowly sank into the prisoner's pain-fogged mind.
"Harry?" Dawning realization brought some small intelligence to his eyes. "You know where he's at? Tell me!" Snarling, Black lunged at Fae before him.
Jareth, playing with his crystal, shrugged eloquently as he sidestepped the man's desperate action. "Perhaps. And if I choose to take you to him, you must willingly accept my rules in all matters concerning him. So are you in or out?"
Sirius stared at the cold, unyielding set of Jareth's face. He hesitated for a heartbeat. Then with a whispered promise, "I'm in."
Jareth chuckled and tossed the crystal into the air. Sirius watched in awe as it disappeared in a shower of shimmering dust along with the heavily spelled chains that bound him.
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Sarah stood in front of a vine covered two-story Tudor cottage, shaking her head. Trust the Fae to be so stereotypical in their ideas of hide-aways. The boys were running in the yard, exploring the many nooks and crannies while their mother surveyed their new home.
A hand rested on her shoulder as she turned to look up at Corindel. "He'll be here shortly. Let's get you and the boys settled," said the tall blonde. He was, she noted, almost as just as handsome as his cousin/uncle, Jareth but then Sarah was severely prejudiced. She thought Jareth was more handsome and definitely sexier. She had, on occassions, called both men "Toliken wet dreams" just because they were too handsome and sexy for any woman's peace of mind.
Inside the cottage proved to be just as picture perfect as the outside. The public areas were on the ground floor, with the bedrooms and bath upstairs. One large room had a set of bunk beds for the twins and a single bed for Garion. Sarah's bedroom was roomy, with an office area for her writing and a small balcony with double doors that overlooked the gardens off it.
One room of the extra rooms puzzled Sarah. She knew that one of the elven nannies would be staying with her. She couldn't possibly handled three wild boys by herself, so it had been decided that a nanny would come, but it still left that one room to puzzle over.
"Who?" She looked up at Corindel, who smiled.
"When Harry was Wished Away, he made a wish of his own as well. He wanted to save his godfather, Sirius Black. The poor man was sent to Wizard Prison for a crime he didn't commit and was the only true father figure the boy ever had in that time frame. Due to the rather strange conditions of the wish, Cousin agreed."
Sarah sighed. "And He's agreeable to having a strange man living here with us?" She questioned, doubt evident in her voice.
Corindel smiled. "You know my cousin too well, Sarah. He'll place conditions and a geas on the poor human that even the most powerful wizard can't break. Sirius Black is to be a tutor to the boys in all things educational and nothing more."
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Indeed, Sirius Black found himself in the heart of the Labyrinth. Jareth smirked as he watched the human struggle to regain his composure. Jareth had give the poor wizard Harry's memories, from the time he had arrived on the Dursley's doorstep up to age 11 then skipping to when Dudley had wished him away. Sirius also learned that in the other timeline, he had spent all of Harry's growing up years in prison with only Dementors for company, not realizing that Jareth had omitted certain scenes.
Sirius went from groaning in pain to snarling in anger. Dumbledore was a complete idiot! He could understand the reasoning behind sending Harry to his blood relatives. However, he was convinced that the aged wizard had no clue of the life Harry had lived under their so called tender mercy.
"So let me get this straight. I'm to be Harry's and your sons' tutor until Harry goes to Hogwarts at age 11," Sirius rasped, still struggling to understand through a haze of exhaustion and shock. "I'm not to have any contact with anyone from the Ministry of Magic or any one from the Order unless cleared by you. Right so far?"
Jareth gave a slight nod.
"What about magic? My wand was snapped."
Jareth pulled out a wand that looked somewhat familiar, turning it casually in his hands as he spoke. "Fae magic is different from your magic, we do not need such tools. However, my sons will have a well rounded education in all worlds, human, wizard and Fae," he paused for emphasis, "if they are to be my heirs."
"And Harry?"
"Garion," Jareth raised an eyebrow regally, "is my son in all things except blood. He deserves this second chance and I won't let anything or anyone interfere."
Sirius heard the threat implied in the Goblin King's words and nodded.
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Thanks all for your reviews. LadyA: Yes, Sirius will be playing a part in this story as you can see with this chapter.
Until next time -- GF and The Frau