Just a short(er) story for this mother's day! Can you guess who Prince David and Prince Robert are named after? ;) Also, I didn't realize how many times I'm gong to be using twins in my fics. I guess I've been watching too many telenovelas!
As always, I don't own Labyrinth and not making money off of this and yada yada. Enjoy!
"Papa?"
Prince David knocked tentatively and peaked in. The man in question set down the book in his hand and beckoned the young boy in, a smile on his face. David smiled, seeing his father in casual attire, his signature grey breeches and white poet's shirt with frills and a small corset to keep it in place.
Jareth sat on the couch and picked up the little boy to sit on his lap. He was one of two children he and Sarah were blessed with, two twins named David and Robert Junior (known as Robby) who are now six years old. One after David Bowie and the other after Sarah's father.
"My boy, you are so big now! Soon you'll get bigger than me!" He tickled his son, David laughing in delight and kissed Jareth's cheek, loving the way his father's hair tickled his face. Then, just like Sarah, he sat back seriously and pretended that his father didn't just make him break out of his serious facial expression.
"Papa, Robby and I are on a secret mission. And we need your help!" He threw his hands up dramatically and pretended to faint.
Jareth smirked at this show, no doubt Sarah would have told him that his son got it from him. "And pray tell, what is this secret mission that you need my help with? You seem to be doing whatever it is fine enough with your sneaking around the castle today. Too much, and the goblins will start to catch on and tell your mother."
David shook his head, his sandy blonde hair and blue eyes looking more serious now. "I'm serious! Mother's Day will be here soon, and we made cards at school for Momma. But Robby and I want to plan something special."
Jareth groaned inwardly where his son couldn't see. He was dreading Mother's Day. His parents and Sarah's parents wanted to have a gathering at THEIR castle and Sarah felt pressured to say yes. Jareth loved all his parents and in laws, but having them all in the same place was a disaster as they would always fight each other. At least they didn't fight him or Sarah and were putty in David and Robby's hands.
"I see." He stroked his chin for dramatic effect. "So what is your great plan and how do I come into this? Speaking of Robby, what is he doing now?"
"Oh!" David clapped his hand on his mouth. "I forgot to tell you! Robby is with Mommy right now distracting her with questions about flowers while I'm talking to you, so we gotta make it quick!"
He pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and Jareth grinned at the little drawings all over.
"Now what does that word say?" Jareth asked, knowing that David loved the attention. David would normally be excited to tell him everything, but instead, he waved his hand impatiently. "Papa! Momma may come in any minute! We need to focus on our plan."
Jareth chuckled. "Alright! Now what is the plan?"
"The plan is this." David pointed to one side of the paper. "We will want to have a ballet show for Momma! But we need to make tutus and pick the right song. We need to make it a surprise so she doesn't know. After lunch or dinner, you can take her to see us dancing, but we need time to get dressed after dinner. Can you help us?"
Jareth threw a leg over the armchair, cocking his head to the side. After a moment, he had the perfect idea. "I know something perfect for your show!"
He whispered this to David, and the boy squealed. "I love it Papa! Thank you!"
He kissed his cheek. "Of course son. Anything for you two and your mother."
And he meant it.
"Since when have you been interested in flowers, Robby?" Sarah asked suspiciously. "And where is David? You two are always together."
Prince Robby tried to not his secret slip. He supposed it would be better for David to be asking about flowers since he actually liked flowers. Why didn't he show his mother the new stamp collection he was starting with his Uncle Toby or something he actually liked? He was so frustrated, he could kick a goblin.
"I just think they're pretty." He shrugged. "What's your favorite flower?"
Sarah wiped the sweat from her brow and took his small hand. "Come! I'll show you."
She lead them to a peach tree, the blossoms growing and smelling sweet. Robby picked one of the blossoms. "These are pretty."
"Yes, they are." Sarah's mouth twitched to a smile. Once Jareth found out these were favorite flower, he never let her forget it. He planted peach blossoms, one for each of them to represent their love for each other. Every year, they would make desserts from the peaches in these trees.
"Why did you marry Papa?" Robby blurted. He was supposed to be distracting her, but he was also just genuinely curious. Sarah so loved those bright blue eyes Jareth gifted both their sons, the way he looked at his mother so thoughtfully when he said that was just so sweet.
"Because I love him." Sarah kissed his nose and pulled him for a one arm embrace as she was sweaty and covered in dirty.
"Ew, your dirty." Robby squirmed.
Sarah rolled her eyes. "You are SO like your father." Even as she said that, she couldn't help but think about her loving husband and his silly quirks.
"Sorry honey, I just love you soooo much!" She chased after him, green eyes sparkling and full of excitement, chasing after the younger twin. Once she caught him, she transported them to the library where she knew her husband would be.
Jareth and David both screamed in surprise when Sarah and Robby appeared in the room, right in the middle of their "secret meeting" for their "secret mission."
Jareth laughed at the sight of them rolling around, both now had dirt on their bodies, thanks to Sarah.
"Gotcha!" Sarah laughed. She kissed her son, who squirmed out of her arms and ran over to his father, who laughed at the slightly grumpy look Robby was giving his mother.
"Hello Precious." Jareth put David aside and wrapped his arms around his gorgeous wife, giving her a deep kiss.
"GROSS!" The twins gagged. "We're leaving now! Bye!" And off they went, probably to continue their secret mission.
"Bleh, you're dirty." Jareth said when he pulled away from her, wiping dirt off his body.
Sarah rolled her eyes. "Like father, like son. You and your need to look fashionable and perfect. Robby said the exact same thing to me when we were outside today."
"Did he? Well, lucky for you, David doesn't care about being clean. A nice balance, isn't it?"
Jareth ran a gloveless hand through her hair, finding a peach blossom hiding inside. Smiling he held it out in front of your face. "Precious, you've been playing with Robby by the peach trees?"
Sarah held his hand, the one with the small blossom. She looked at him, full of quiet emotion. "Robby asked me why I married you. I think as much as they pretend it's gross when we kiss, they are curious and love how we are a happy couple. It's so sweet." She leaned into Jareth, who no longer protested about her dirtiness.
They kissed again, fully in love and happy. Jareth laid his head in the crook of her neck, breathing in her scent and smiled at the light peachy smell that came from her working in the earth.
He reluctantly pulled her away from him, earning a confused look from his wife. "Sarah, as you know, my parents and all your parents want to have a Mother's Day get together."
Sarah groaned. "And they want to do it here, I know. Ugh why can't they just not come all at once? The contention they all cause and backstabbing is annoying! Not to mention that my mom wants to bring Jeremy again."
Jareth knew how Sarah still wasn't fond of her mother's boyfriend. Her mother honestly told her when she was 18 that she and Jeremy had an affair before she talked to Robert about separating, thinking that Sarah would understand. Sarah didn't speak to her for a few years, and finally, thanks to Jareth, she finally tried to amend her relationship with her mother. She still would not forget that Jeremy left his own wife and children and how both of them should've done the right thing and ended their previous relationships first. Soon after that, to stay relevant, her mother tipped off the press about her affair and Sarah got swept up in the controversy. Lucky for her, Jareth came to her rescue and had goblins taking care of her so stalkers wouldn't hurt her.
Even so, she loved her mother and Linda was good to her after she became an adult. She doted on her grandsons and Sarah mostly got along and was kind to Jeremy, trying to heal and get over old wounds.
Jareth wrapped his arms around her and sighed. "I know, I know. But she and Jeremy are good to the boys. If you don't want her or everyone else to come, then just say so."
"No no." Sarah shook her head. "If I do that, then we can't invite your parents or my dad and Karen. My mom would definitely find out somehow and would be hurt if we don't spend mother's day with her."
Funny enough, Sarah had a much better relationship with Karen than with her mother. Karen had been there for her when Linda wasn't and would advocate for Sarah's schooling and her privacy better than her mother ever could. Plus, it was how the Labyrinth made her grow up that helped too.
As for Jareth's parents, they were finally, finally happy to see their son settle down. They weren't pleased to hear that he accidentally ran the Labyrinth and became the king a long time ago (Jareth was barely an adult when that happened), and he kept himself secluded for years until he met Sarah. After their initial meeting and Sarah setting him straight on how it wasn't fair to her that he would profess love to her when she barely knew him, they took a chance and eventually married. His mother, Julia, was quite fond of Sarah for tempering her dramatic son and his father, Adrian, felt the same way. In fact, sometimes Jareth wondered if his parents loved her more than they loved him.
The problem was that all of them argued to death when all 6 were around. Linda would make comments to Karen about being a stay at home mother and "arm candy" for her politician husband, telling Robert that he was a terrible father for making Sarah babysit Toby, and argue with Jareth's parents about how she could do what she wanted when it came to how she lived her lavish and sometimes dangerous lifestyle (a celebrity life was how she liked it).
Karen would tell Linda that just because she gave birth to Sarah doesn't mean that she could just drag Sarah into her famous people drama. She got along better with Jareth's parents than Linda, but she was nosy and would tell his parents how to interact with the twins which would make them rightfully annoyed at her. Robert was also nosy but not obvious like Karen, but he would back her up a lot which annoyed everyone.
Jareth's parents were the most mellow out of all of them. They didn't like picking fights, but Jareth got his temperament partly from his mother taking things really personally. His father was dramatic as well, though not as much as Jareth himself. When Karen would tell her what to do, Julia would snap back and tell her to mind her own business. If Linda tried to tell Adrian that nothing was wrong with her leaving Sarah for several years and never talked to her then telling the girl what to do, he'd go with "Nothing, nothing, tra lala?"
At least Toby would be there. He always loved to play with his nephews, and at 18 years old now, he was their crazy cool uncle that Jareth and Sarah were so grateful to have. Honestly, each of the parents were so good to them all and adored them, but to have all three pairs in the same room at the same time? A disaster.
"Jareth, all six haven't been in the same room sinceā¦" Sarah trailed off.
Jareth sighed. "Yes, since our wedding. Why they want to come NOW for Mother's Day is beyond me. I was hoping I could take you somewhere special."
Sarah kissed the curve of his neck. "We can do that another time. You are sweet, my love."
They shared another kiss, not knowing that their sons were up their secret mission. Not even Jareth knew what they were going to do until a few days later.
"Hi Grammy!" Robby yelled into the phone, while David was trying to grab it from him to greet his grandmother as well. "Grammy, I'm here with Robby too!"
Karen chuckled. She loved these two sweet boys and enjoyed being their grandmother. "Hello boys! I hope you two aren't terrorizing your parents too much."
"Nah." David shook his head. "Can we talk to Uncle Toby? We are on a secret mission."
Karen hmmed, debating on whether she should give it to Toby or not. "Well, I don't know boys, your uncle is getting a few things ready for his senior prom tomorrow. Maybe for a few minutes. You'll be there to take pictures with him, won't you? Don't forget to remind your parents!"
"DOES HE HAVE A GIRLFRIEND?" Robby yelled, gasping. "WE NEED TO HELP HIM THEN!"
"No, just a friend. He's all good, Robby, I'm sure he would appreciate any dating advice though. Oh, speaking of your uncle, he's coming right now!"
They squealed as Toby grabbed the phone. The boy smiled at his adorable nephews, running his hand through his curly hair, which made Karen gave him a look that told him that she was going to cut it off as soon as she could.
"Well how are my two monkey nephews?"
"I miss you!" Robby blurted. "Why don't you come and live with us here?" He whined a little, earning an eye roll from David, who was more keen on trying to talk to him about their secret mission.
Toby laughed. "I miss you too! Come tomorrow and you can meet my friend!"
"Yeah. You mean girlfriend." David teased. "Uncle Toby has a girlfriend!" He said in a singsong voice.
Toby sighed. "You two are just as bad as your parents. No need for a paternity test, your infuriatingness is just as bad as Jareth's and no wonder he and Sarah married, him and his dramatic magical glitter personality. Anyways, Grammy said you guys called for a secret mission?"
"OH YEAH!" David said. "So, we want to plan the best Mother's Day present for momma and we need you and Papa to help."
Toby groaned inwardly. Not about helping them, but remembering that he and his parents were going to have to be in the same room as Linda, Jeremy, and Jareth's parents. They were okay with Jareth's parents and okay with Linda and Jeremy but for some reason all three couples made it hell for everyone.
Still, any way to help his nephews and his sister was good to him. Which reminded him that he needed to give something to his own mother too.
"What's the plan?" Toby asked. "Please don't tell me you want to try to dye her hair again."
Sarah's hair was bright neon green for a week and Toby and Jareth decided that they would just let the boys do magic under supervision, especially since they were so young.
"No silly!" Robert laughed. "We want to put on a ballet show! But we need costumes."
"Oh, I can help with that! What do you need?"
"Well," David started counting. "We need a tutu, a stage, a way to get dressed without momma knowing, and we need to learn how to dance. The show is for mommy but we can do it for Grammy, Grandma, and Nana." (Jareth's mother went by grandma and nana was Linda).
"Hmm. Well, we can certainly do that. But I think the dancing will be your father's specialty, he's a good dancer. Why don't you get Hoggle to help set the stage? I can design it and I can make the tutus if you want. Any color preferences?"
Toby was a costume and set designer for his drama club, and was quite talented, if he does say so himself.
"I want a black tutu with sparkles, please." David requested. Toby smiled, the boy was just like his father when it came to glitter.
"I want a lime green one please. That's it." Robby told him. No glitter, more like his mother (as Sarah liked a little glitter sometimes).
"Got it. I'll get those done by mother's day, which is what, next week?" He checked his calendar. "Yeah, that works. Tomorrow, we can get measurements really quickly while your mom isn't looking. What do you want the set to look like? I can bring props and such with your dad's help transporting them."
"We want it to just be pretty." Robby said confidently. David snarled and grabbed the phone. "No Uncle Toby! I wanted to tell a story with dancing!"
Toby shook his head. Dealing with six year olds was a trial sometimes and he wondered how Sarah and Jareth did it with the horde of goblins that they had to rule. "Okay, how about this, I'll do a nice set with stars and trees or something. That's pretty enough and you can do any story that way if you want. Does that sound good?"
Both boys paused for a moment. Then, Robby spoke again. "Okay, that sounds good. Thank you for helping us with our secret mission!"
"My pleasure. I can't wait to see you big boys! Tell your mother and father I said hi!"
"Bye Uncle Toby!"
Hoggle hummed, getting tea and cookies ready for Sir Didymus and Ludo.
Imagine his surprise when a swirl of glitter appeared in his humble home.
"What are yas doin 'ere?" He yelled at Jareth. "Now yous got glitter all over me house!"
Jareth didn't respond, save for a quick swish of the wrist and all the glitter was gone. "Hello, Hedgewart."
"HOGGLE!" He yelled. Though he was less scared of Jareth, the king never ceased to annoy him.
Jareth adjusted his gloves, ignoring his outburst. "Hoghead, I need your help. The two princes want to plan a surprise for Sarah for Mother's Day."
At this, Hoggle brightened up. As much as a brat Jareth can be, and as annoying as he was, he knew that he and Sarah were a good match. And, he loved the two boys as his own.
"What d'ya need my help for?" He asked. In his giddy mood, he offered Jareth some tea and cookies. "Didymus and Ludo are coming later for tea. Want some?"
Jareth nodded. "Thank you. If you weren't stationed outside of the labyrinth, I may have hired you as a cook." He nibbled the cookie. "Actually, would it be alright if I could join you today for tea? Don't tell Sarah we met today for the surprise unless she asks. If she does, make something up."
Hoggle shrugged. "Sure thing, Yer Majesty."
Sir Didymus and Ludo looked surprised at Jareth joining them, but they bowed respectfully.
He told them of the boy's ballet plan and how he will teach them a few things, not too much as they were still young and whatever they would do is cute anyways.
"So, my parents and all of Sarah's parents plus Linda's boyfriend will be here." He groaned, his crazy hair shaking from him running his fingers through it. The three friends looked annoyed at this too. Their parents spelled disaster together. It was a wonder they didn't all start world war three.
"The boys need time to get dressed right after lunch or dinner, whatever the hell we decide to do. I need you three to make a distraction somehow. Claim there's a runner or something, I don't know. Enough for 30 minutes. Or maybe just two of you, and oh, the boys were planning on telling Toby to help with the plan as well."
Sir Didymus spoke. "Sire, if I may, I think Sir Hoggle should help thee with the sets and getting the boys ready. Sir Ludo and I could make a scene of the Bog, maybe getting a few goblins to act up here and there."
"Ludo help Didymus." The gentle beast said, eating a few more cookies.
"Good idea." Jareth sipped on his tea. "And Hoggle, this is quite good. Would you be willing to make this tea for us that day if we decide on lunch?"
The three friends shared yet another smile. After Jareth being lonely and temperamental for so long, having Sarah really calmed him down and he was so much more sweet and polite to everyone.
"Sure thing, Sire."
Jareth set his tea down. "I must go, before my wife suspects me of doing something. Thank you for helping me and the boys."
