Jareth materialized back in his solar, his mind whirling in a storm of random thoughts. He was ripped from his chaotic musing when he heard the guffaw.

Damn… I forgot we were dicing tonight…

The owner of the guffaw was Randel. His Lord Martial, Commander of his Army, and adopted brother. Joining him in his merriment was his other adopted brother and High Councilor, Garthan. Both men were standing near the round table in the corner of the room, clearly in the middle of setting up their game.

In all his Kingdom, Jareth didn't think he could find two men who were such polar opposites as Garthan and Randel were. Garthan was tall, taller even than Jareth, with long platinum hair and ice blue eyes. He had dark brows and angular features which gave his visage a harshness that belied his generous heart.

Randel on the other hand had short, messy dark hair and sported a goatee. He was broader in the shoulders than Garthan, and a few inches shorter. His amber eyes practically glowed with humor as Jareth came closer. "Oh…" he sputtered with a laugh. "Oh, nice. All you need is a whip and-"

"Do NOT finish that sentence, Randel," growled Jareth. His friend was clearly unimpressed with that warning and laughed harder.

Garthan, who was snickering almost as loudly as Randel was, looked him up and down with a raised brow. "Well… it's not too bad. It's sort of like the leather armor we used to wear… long ago… that cape, though…"

"Come on, Jareth," said Randel, still laughing. "Sweep it around and say 'I am Dracula!' just once… I dare you."

"Shut up, you cretin!" Jareth snarled as he ripped the cape off his shoulders. He threw it on the chair with a grunt of disgust. He moved directly to the liquor cabinet and poured himself a large portion of brandy. Quaffing it quickly, so quickly that it made him cough, he turned to look back at his Councilors.

Randel was struggling to keep his lips pressed together, the laughter he was suppressing making them twitch upwards. Garthan, although not openly laughing, had a bright sparkle of humor in his ice blue eyes as he continued to take in Jareth's outfit. His gaze flicked over Jareth's hair, noting the makeup on his face and the glitter that was falling off him like snow.

"I have to ask," said Garthan, his voice trembling with a stifled laugh. "Why the glitter? And why do you look like you've been hit by lightning?"

"Damned if I know," murmured Jareth. "You know the Labyrinth alters my appearance in accordance with the wisher's expectations. I have no idea what the hell Sarah was thinking when she dreamed this up."

"It could be worse," said Randel with a grin. "At least this time you're pretty close to your natural appearance… aside from age. And… makeup."

"Wait a minute… Sarah?" said Garthan with a slight frown. "Since when do you know their names?"

"I always know their names," said Jareth. "The Labyrinth tells me… wait… no… that's not true in this case. I know her name because she was supposed to be a wished-away. Not a wisher."

Before either man could question him further, he heard soft footsteps coming into the solar. He turned, cringing as he saw Garthan's wife making her way across the room with a tray of finger foods. She stopped short at the sight of him, her eyes widening, her mouth dropping open.

"Don't…" said Jareth, almost pleadingly. "Lily… I beg you…"

Quickly getting control over her expression, Lily continued her trek towards him. "I see that we have a Runner," she said smoothly as she set the tray on the table. She turned to give her husband and Randel a slight glare, "All right, you two have had your fun. Be nice."

"Sorry, love," said Garthan as he kissed her.

Jareth was grateful for Lily's intervention. She'd been part of their little 'family' for the last hundred years, and even though she was centuries younger than the three men around her, she exuded something of a maternal influence over them. She was a lovely lady, easily one of the most beautiful women in Jareth's Kingdom. Her long, golden hair fell in a heavy curtain to her hips, her eyes were the color of faceted topaz, and currently narrowed at her husband.

She turned back to face Jareth. "What were you saying about the wisher?"

With a sigh, Jareth sat in one of the chairs that ringed the table. The others quickly found their seats as well. "She… the wisher… she wasn't supposed to be a wisher. She was supposed to be a wished-away."

Lily frowned, "I don't understand. How could she use the book and the words if she wasn't a potential wisher?"

Jareth shook his head in bewilderment, "I don't know. I marked her about ten or eleven years ago when the Labyrinth led me to her mother. I thought she'd make a fine addition to the Kingdom. But… her mother never made the wish. She left the family, sometime around Sarah's tenth year."

Garthan leaned forward, "Then how did she make the wish?"

Reaching over to grasp a handful of fried cheese sticks, Jareth popped two of them in his mouth, chewing and swallowing quickly. "She still had the book. At the time, I thought maybe it was because she would wish herself away."

"Wait… they can do that?" asked Randel.

"Yes," answered Jareth. "It's happened a few times. When they wish themselves away, they are given the option of running the Labyrinth if they want to return Above. So far, none of them have. They all choose to stay. I then transform them, either to Fae or Othánas, depending on where they would fit best. They go on to their new lives, with new memories."

"I should think that there was an age limit on that," said Garthan. "We've had young wishers before, but… most wished aways are almost exclusively young ones. Makes the transition easier. You say you marked her around ten years ago? So that makes her… what?"

"Fifteen," murmured Jareth. "She's fifteen."

Randel whistled in wonder, before inquiring, "I would have thought that was too old to wish herself away."

Jareth shrugged, "I did too, honestly. But the Ughlánas I set to guarding her all swore that she was close to making the wish. Her home life hadn't improved much after her mother left, so…"

"Jareth," said Lily with a hint of sternness in her voice. "There's something you're not telling us."

He couldn't look at her. He couldn't look at any of them, his confusion was so overwhelming. "She's… my heart-bonded… my future mate." he whispered.

The silence around the table was deafening. "Are you certain?" asked Garthan.

"Yes," said Jareth. With a frown, he conjured a crystal. After staring at it for a moment, the crystal swirled with color, coalescing into an image. He handed the crystal to Garthan. He watched as his High Councilor gazed into the crystal, the tiny image of Sarah visible to all around the table. "It happened today, when I was looking in on her in my owl form. She spoke to me… and I felt the bond take hold."

"She's… human," said Randel as he observed the image in the crystal. "Not that it matters all that much. But… I admit, I'm surprised at it. I always thought our Queen would be another Othánas." He laughed shortly, "Well, that will put a kink in the tails of the Fae. They've been trying to get you to marry one of them for the last two hundred years. I can't imagine they'll be too happy to see you married to a human."

"Married… for the love of the Fates, Randel, she's only fifteen," said Jareth in exasperation. "She won't be fit for marriage for at least another three or four Aboveground years. Fifty years here in the Underground."

"Well, yes of course… but it works either way," Randel responded. "If she goes back Above after her Run, you only have to wait another three years or so to court her. The location is a pain in the ass, but still doable. If she stays, you have the next fifty years to get to know her before bonding."

At this, Jareth snorted. He took the crystal out of Garthan's fingers and gazed into it. She was at the entrance of the Labyrinth, but she couldn't see the gates. He could see her puzzled expression. Shaking his head in frustration, he rose from his seat.

"Jareth?" asked Lily. "What's wrong? I would have thought you'd be happy…"

He looked at all three of them mournfully, "I think you're all missing the elephant in the room. Yes, she's a human. Humans and Othánas are genetically compatible. Her species is not an issue. She's young, yes. If she returns Above, she can be courted all the sooner. But she's also a Runner. A wisher. She wished her baby brother away to us." He shook his head, his eyes reflecting a mix of exasperation and despair. "I have dealt with wishers for almost eight hundred years. They are selfish, thoughtless beasts who have no care for the children they have charge of. They mistreat them, neglect them, sometimes even do violence to them. And I see the results of it. Regularly." His hand tightened on the crystal as he gave a bitter laugh. "That's your future Queen, Randel. Someone so selfish that she would wish her own flesh and blood away."

With that, he stalked out of the room, leaving his friends gaping in his wake.


Author's Notes:

It should be remembered… what kind of people Jareth interacts with regularly when it comes to wishers. You can't really blame him for being taken aback by the fact that his future wife wished away her own brother.

Recall that back in 'Imitation Game', Sarah was transported to a special room, where Jareth monitors the Runners. The Labyrinth told her that he gives them his complete attention and monitors them closely, because he didn't want anyone to take her title of 'Champion' from her. This is something he started after her Run, which is why he's wandering the castle during the movie and not ensconced in the little chamber. He hadn't set it up yet.