Summary: Sarah discovers her family's secrets, and must now deal with the aftermath of the Labyrinth, and her family's desire to marry her off now that she's come of age.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth. All characters associated with the movie belong to Jim Henson and whoever else has rights to them, and I make no money off of this.
Special thanks: To all of the readers who have been keeping with me so far. I do appreciate the feedback as it definitely keeps me going in my writing. So thank you all for your encouragement, and kind words.

Chapter 2

It was the night of restless souls when the veils between worlds was thin that the Goblin King rode forth on the back of his phooka steed and paid visit to the land above Sidhe Finnachaidh where the humans gathered for celebration. The Goblin King was a merry maker who, with great generosity, graced the lowly humans with the magnificent sound of his harp. The honor of the gesture was lost on the humans as the sound of the harp would enchant even the strongest of will to sleep. Enraged at their lack of respect the Goblin Kind struck out at the ungrateful wretches, bathing them with the flames of his breath. As the rays of dawn drew golden across the land he declared that he would return the next year to see that they would be ready to appreciate the gift he offered.

And so he returned the next Samhain and once again brought the joyous sound of his music to the mass of ignorant mortals who gathered above his land. Once more they succumbed to the wondrous magick of his harp. Once more he bathed them in the flames of his breath in retribution for their lack of respect. As the rays of dawn drew golden across the land did the King of Goblins once more declare his intent to return the next year to grace them with the glory of his songs.

Thus it went, for nigh on three and twenty years the Goblin King ascended to the mortal plain and attempted to share his joy with the humans, and for an equal time they insulted his efforts. Finally the Fianna, quite fearful of the wrath of the faery king they begged the help of a hero to save them from his fiery breath. The hero pledged his strength to the defeat of the wicked bard but in exchange for his effort they would make him their lord and would swear their fealty to him. The warrior was fair of hair, and graced with the wisdom imparted by the Salmon of Knowledge which he had tasted while in training under the druid called Finnegas. Within the crowd of worshippers gathered in revel on the Hill of Tara did the hero wait patiently for the arrival of the Goblin King on his phooka steed.

Finally did the time arrive when the Goblin King made his appearance and graced the mortals with the wondrous joy of his music. As it had for years past, the music set the ungrateful mortals to sleep and the poor King of Goblins would find still no appreciation for his efforts. Unknowing that amongst the revelers was the hero of the humans who had stayed awake with a spear pressed against his forehead hid beneath his cloak, the Goblin King grew angry. When the Goblin King lashed out with his fiery breath did the human Fionn Mac Cumhaill rush to his feet, and flinging aside the cloak did he impale the poor Goblin King upon his spear. Falling back the Goblin King grabbed the mane of his phooka and his loyal subject did drag his dying body back to the Underground.

Solemn were the days in which the King of Goblins lay on his death bed, fighting the poison of the evil Fionn's spear. His son stayed at his bedside, tending him, and hearing his final wishes, as they both knew the king would not make it. The king asked that his land be divided with the most of it going to his subjects but with his son ruling the family holdings that had been in the line long before the land's magick had chosen him to be the King of Goblins.

His son brooded on ways to seek revenge for his loss, observing closely his now sworn enemy, the Fionn Mac Cumhaill. It was while doing so that he one day noticed the daughter of the pale king of the above dwellers who had murdered his father. Watching the girl he came to admire her fiery spirit and an idea began to build in his mind. The girl was a beauty to be sure with long black locks and spitting green eyes, her peach soft skin was graced with the faintest of blushes and she was much admired by several of the men of her tribe. Fionn Mac Cumhaill had plans to marry her off, but such a beauty was wasted on the mortal men who sought her favor.

And as lightening strikes, the son of Aillén Mac Midhna came to his plan, at once righteous and appropriate. He would demand her hand in compensation for his father's death, and the warrior king Fionn would know that his beloved daughter had birthed the heirs of his enemy or the fae lord would ask to lead the armies of the goblins in a war against her clan. Knowing that her family would not withstand the rage of the grieving goblin army, which vastly outnumbered the Fianna, did Cainche Mac Cumhaill agree to become the bride of Lord Caellum Díneartach Mac Aillen.

It was not only his blood family that desired revenge for the loss of Aillén Mac Midhna. While he lay dying the magick of the land itself cried out in grief and pushed itself up from the very soil in an attempt to reach its king, and the Goblin King did reach back to the land with his own magick, answering the call with the last of his strength. With his final breath Aillén Mac Midhna poured his magick back into the land that it would have strength to hold its own until it was able to find a ruler that would take his place, for as much as he loved his son he knew the boy's heart was not with the Goblin Kingdom and he knew the land's magick would not have him as its new leader even had he desired the position.

Many felt the surge of magick pour out from the territory that was now unclaimed and many wanted this power for their own. Since there was no one on the throne many decided that perhaps they would have the chance to claim it. When a Goblin King was not immediately revealed, for all believed that the goblins chose the King, several fae attempted to sway the creatures that they might claim the land, but the goblins steadfastly refused the bribes and threats laid down. When the rebuffed fae moved with armies on the walls of the now unruled land they were met with fierce opposition from the goblins who declared they would only submit to the land's choice of their new king as that was the way it was done. Land that had once been filled with rolling green hills and seas of green forest turned into dust and stone. Carefully tended gardens became overrun with wild plants and pleasant forests became grim and foreboding in the wake of the lord's death.

Years passed and the goblins themselves began to change, no longer silly carefree creatures they grew to be dark and shifty things with malicious tricks that they turned against humans and even other fae. And the stones grew and became twisting and twining hallways of ever changing paths of danger to the fae who sought to conquer the kingdom. The newly risen Labyrinth allowed the goblins to guard its walls and the pathways, as there were none among the fae who were going to reside in power over them, not even the King Oberon or the Queen Titania were deemed worthy of the position. The magick of the land and that of King Aillén of the Goblins entwined into a single strand of magick, the love and grief and disappointment in both the Underground and Aboveground turning itself inward, tighter and tighter until the power compressed into a physical form. A blinding light shot up from the center of the Labyrinth, a backlash of energy sweeping over the whole of the faery. Upon the fading of the light all of the Underground discovered that there in heart of the Labyrinth was now a castle. And confused were the fae for quite suddenly did the sound of celebration ring out from the land of Goblins as it had not for several years now.

At last there was a new Goblin King.

##

"Lord Mac Aillén is here to see you sire."

Jareth stared around at his throne room, taking in the horde of insensible subjects littering the room. His goblins were sprawled all about the place, several groaning in the wake of their party. Ale was spilled across the floors and the chickens were taking up space again. The throne room was normally better kept than this but last night another baby had been claimed by the Labyrinth and such days were always held as cause for celebration within the goblin kingdom. Jareth tapped his riding crop against his boot heel, and glowered at his Guard Captain, one of the few standing goblins in his whole palace no doubt.

"See him to my study and have a servant send up a tray of wine, if you can find any servant that is. Tell him I will be with him shortly."

"As you will, Your Majesty."

Last night had been the first baby to be wished away since… her. It was rare anymore for a baby to wished away from the mortal realm as so few of the humans even knew of the old stories and even fewer gave them any credence. The boy who had wished away his own son had gotten less than halfway through the Labyrinth before he had given up in favor of the dreams he was offered. The child wasn't abused as so many children were but he could never have been loved as he deserved by the family he had been born to, both parents were just children themselves.

A crystal formed and rolled across Jareth's knuckles until with a flick of his wrist it rest upon the tips of his fingers. The child was being tended in the nursery, sleeping peacefully in the wake of the previous night's excitement. Jareth felt his face soften slightly at the sight. Always he'd had a weakness for the children who came to live amongst the land of the goblins. He shook the crystal to clear its image and tossed the ball into the air even as he surged to his feet. In place of the grey breeches and white poet shirt he now wore a suit of black breeches with a black jacket much like his favored brown one. The cape trailing behind him was a deep midnight blue. It as not his Goblin armor but it was perhaps the closest thing to, and he was quite certain that Caellum would understand his meaning without him having to say a word.

A shower of glitter and he appeared in his study facing the son of his predecessor.

"Lord Mac Aillén. Such a surprise to see you here so soon after our last meeting."

Jareth tipped his head and poured a glass of wine for his guest and himself, silently sending up thanks that his guard captain was able to rouse a servant. He could have conjured wine up with magick but truly nothing conjured could hold up against the goblin made wine, and he wanted nothing that would put him on a lesser footing for this meeting. He gestured for the other man to take a seat, and the fae lord did so with an unselfconscious grace that made Jareth want to bare his teeth. He was not accustomed to those who come to his land on business to seem so unconcerned with encountering his ire. He had been known to send even the fae into the Bog of Stench should they anger him unduly.

"Doubtless it is," deep blue eyes laughed at him over the rim of his glass. The older man was dressed in a clothes designed for the Above; a grey suit with a crisp white shirt, and flat shoes that polished to a shine. "Yet I thought it best to drop in and visit with you now as I have just recently met the girl, and had chance to think on what I have learned of her."

"You've finally met your grand daughter?" Jareth asked sharply. The Goblin King hadn't been able to keep track of the girl. Only in owl form was he able to watch her and in the wake of repairing the damage caused by her presence he had not had enough time to spare to returning above ground physically to indulge his hobby of keeping track of the Williams children.

"Aye, and her brother as well. Strange little fellow if you ask me. Quite sharp for his age but easy enough to keep entertained. I think he rather likes me." Caellum stretched out his legs in front of him and cross his ankles as he settled in more comfortably. He twirled the wine in his glass and held it beneath his lips for a second before taking a savoring sip. Goblin wine was the best in all of the Underworld and a primary source of outside income, though truthfully the economy of the Goblin lands required very little supplementation as the magic provided most of his peoples' needs.

"What makes you think that?"

"He kept asking me to say, 'They're after me lucky charms.' I never did find out what that one was about, since my Sarah changed the subject before I could ask. But the conversation got on the subject of leprechauns. I ended up telling him the story of the human that captured Lúí the Lephrechaun and the way he saved his gold from being claimed by the greedy human who tried to steal it. Certainly they both seemed entertained."

Jareth's lips twitched at the other man's story and he decided that he would send a goblin to play with the little boy that day.

"Sounds like you are settling right in with ingratiating yourself with the family. It shouldn't be too long before you manage to get her Underground. Do you know how you'll agree to get her to come with you?"

"It's not that far that I've gotten. It needs to be soon. Already I've seen that she's been getting headaches and dizzy spells when she does casual summoning. It's not even sure of it I am that she knows what she's doing when she calls her power, but the headaches… those are a matter of concern."

"Headaches already? She could die if they get too strong," Jareth snapped.

"Are you thinking I don't know that?" Caellum snapped right back. Jareth leaned back in his chair with his eyes closed, determined that he would not give into the urge to start breaking stuff until the older man was gone.

"You need to get her here soon. Have you given any thought to my proposal?"

"Surely I have," the dark haired fae took a deep breath and blew it out. "I've decided that I am going to offer her hand in marriage to Conlaoch."

There was a beat of disbelieving silence.

"You plan to offer her to Conlaoch?"