Sweet Possibilities

Author's Disclaimer: I don't own Labyrinth. This drabble is inspired by art title "My Neighbor Ludo" by kiyomi-chan16. It was done for Freaky Friday Ficlet Fun (4f), so here's some fluff. I hope you enjoy it!

--JS--

Chapter 29: Beware of the Quiet Ones

"I think we're just waiting for Ludo now," said Sarah as all gathered near the Bog of Eternal Stench.

Normally, the bog was the most foul-smelling, least-liked thing in existence, but today was different: it was raining.

When rain came from tricking down slowly, it was as though a fresh spring breeze had merrily run through the ghastly bog, lightening the scent so that it was almost tolerable. The light pitter-patter of the drizzling rain was soothing to Sarah's ears, even if she couldn't quite ignore the bog's dreadful scent.

The smell was still bad by Ludo's definition, but everyone else noticed a marked difference. Sarah hadn't believed it until Hoggle persisted and convinced her to go on a fairy hunting mission with him, Sir Didymus, and Ludo one afternoon. Suddenly, she understood why Hoggle only went there when it rained, hunting for the fairies that somehow thrived in that rancid place.

Probably because Hoggle wasn't there to spray them all.

"I'll find my brother!" insisted Sir Didymus, rushing off with his noble steed out of the bog.

Ten minutes later, neither of them had appeared, so Hoggle looked at a patient Sarah and Toby. It was Sarah's sixth time going fairy hunting, and Toby's second. Both looked excited with their bright rain gear.

Hoggle sighed. "It looks like they's got lost. I'll save them. Don't move," he demanded before wandering off in the direction of Ludo's home on the edge of the forest.

"Okay!" agreed Sarah, picking up Toby from her backpack to press him against her chest while they waited. "Toby is easy to occupy here."

Hoggle was soon out of sight, and Sarah was moving Toby up and down as fast as her arms could with a blue umbrella in hand. Toby gurgled before saying nonsense words. Sarah kept hoping he would say his first word soon.

She wasn't there very long before she felt a slight breeze, and she assumed that it was just the wind from all her times there before. She was wrong.

"Hello, Sarah. Enjoying my Labyrinth again, are we?" asked Jareth, appearing out of nowhere.

"You! Jareth. Stay away from Toby," cried Sarah, clutching the little boy in red and white stripes and pointing accusingly at Jareth. "You have no power over me."

"And yet, you've come back to my Labyrinth how many times in the last year, Precious? Do tell," said Jareth, smiling big enough to show his canines.

"I don't kn- it doesn't matter because I want to spend time with my friends," snarled Sarah, making Toby start to whimper.

As soon as she heard Toby, her attention was lost, and Jareth was put out at losing it. However, the love and attention she showed Toby as she made funny faces and spoke tenderly to him was the best reward Jareth could ask for as he approached them.

When Toby still didn't quiet down, Jareth cleared his throat, making Sarah jump at his closeness. He chuckled at seeing her wide eyes of panic before he leaned in.

His face was scant inches from hers when he whispered, "I love small children. If I promise to give him back to you, will you let me hold him long enough to calm him down?"

She blinked before blushing as she realized just what he had been saying. His closeness awakened something in her now, but there was no time to explore it when Toby was fussy. All the same, he was still questioning her abilities to take care of Toby. It would not do.

Pulling away, she she said primly, "I've got it-"

Toby's louder cries said otherwise. Huffing, Sarah prayed that she wasn't making a terrible decision and reluctantly handed Toby to Jareth. "If you so much as try anything with him, I'll-"

"Destroy my city again? No thank you," said Jareth, trying to put her at ease before he focused on Toby. "Aren't you still such a lively chap? Wouldn't you like to be renamed Jareth?"

"No!" cried Toby proudly, grinning with missing teeth as Sarah laughed heartily and Jareth frowned.

He narrowed his eyes at the silly boy who refused his name and honors. "Well, that was unexpected and rude-"

"It's a family trait. You'll get used it. You can hand him back to me. Thank you, Jareth," said Sarah more softly at the end. "You'll have to try again later when he can actually understand you. But congrats, he said his first word because of you. I'm so proud of him."

She looked fondly at Toby as she took him back. As Toby was transferred, Jareth and Sarah's hands touched for the briefest of moments, and Sarah realized that Jareth wasn't wearing gloves. Odd. It didn't matter at that point; it had already happened. It sent a jolt of awareness through her, just like his closeness did, in a way all the boys in her school had never been able to achieve. Their eyes met at that slight touch, and Jareth gave her a half-smile that did weird things to her stomach. She had always tried to ignore those feelings after the Labyrinth, and she had done a decent job as she came to the Labyrinth more often. The problem was that it only took one visit from the one who inspired them to make her wonder what this new feeling was.

"Just remember, I won't always hold a squirming baby for you, and I don't enjoy flippant teenagers. Amusing one of those will cost you. Perhaps this yellow raincoat?" drawled Jareth, pointing to her favorite coat and its matching boots.

"No!" cried Toby again, looking happier than ever.

Sarah grinned. Jareth scowled before changing tactics.

"Say Jareth," encouraged the fae as he made eye contact with Toby. "Jareth."

"Harebut!" cried Toby, throwing his hands up joyfully as Sarah laughed hysterically.

Jareth coughed uncomfortably until a large puddle of rainwater mixed with bog water was splashed onto him, making him turn around in fury.

"Ludo sorry!" cried the gentle giant as he tried to wipe off the bog water from Jareth. He only managed to spread it over more places on his king instead, making Jareth huff in annoyance.

"Never mind. He'll say my name yet. That's a promise," said Jareth before he faded from view to remove the infected clothing. "Harebut. Sheesh."

"Now he knows how I's feels," muttered Hoggle as he approached, shaking his head. "That was a good one."

"Brother Hoggle, we're stuck!" mourned Sir Didymus, making Hoggle run back to help.

Ludo opened his black umbrella and smiled at Sarah. Soon, she was smiling as well, and they smiled contentedly together in the rain, waiting for their friends before they could go on more adventures together. Ludo was glad to have his friends; Sarah was glad that Jareth had been foiled yet again.

Another part of her smiled for a different reason: she would see Jareth again. He had promised, after all.

--JS--

Author's notes: Thanks for reading! For a while now, I've been having technical difficulties with FFN as a site. Despite contacting them, I've gotten no answer, so I can't PM anyone about reviews until it's fixed. Many apologies. It bugs me a lot.

BexyLexi: Thanks so much for taking the time to read the other one-shots as well! I really appreciate it; it made my day to see them. I'm glad you liked the endings, and a little dark/creepy Jareth now and then never hurts. I love soulmate AUs so much, so doing something with music seemed perfect for these two.

Guest: thanks so much for understanding! I love me some Reylo, too. Trying to post all of it on here will be interesting.

SVJohnson8721: thank you so much! I always imagine them being competitive. Ooh yes I have seen Psych! It has been so long since I watched it, but loved it. Which dynamic are you thinking of?