Sarah slowly opened her eyes. As usual, her bedroom was before her. She sighed. Her room was empty and disappointingly empty. After that dream, she had half expected to see Hoggle beside her bed. She knew that she could always call them, her friends from the Goblin Kingdom, if she needed them, but sometimes she wished that they needed her.

With an expansive stretch of her arms, Sarah pushed off her coverlet and climbed out of bed. It was Saturday and she had no reason to be up so early, but as long as she was awake, she might as well get up.

Ignoring the owl who seemed to perpetually perch outside of her window watching her these days, Sarah pulled her nightshirt over her head and set about putting on a pair of jeans and a comfortable top. As she dressed, she hummed softly to herself a song she knew she had heard somewhere but could never place or get entirely out of her head.

After a quick trip to the bathroom, she returned to her room to grab a pair of sneakers. She hesitated a moment, but then reached out to open the drawer of her vanity and remove a slim red volume. She hadn't read the little book since that night, but after such a vivid dream of the labyrinth she was in the mood to read it again.

Sarah skipped down the stairs with the book tucked under her arm and collected a granola bar from the kitchen to take with her.

"I'm going outside for a while," she hollered as she reached for the front door.

"Ok," called her father from the direction of the den. "Have fun!"

Once she was outside, Sarah settled herself among the roots at the base of a large tree and opened both the granola bar and the book. She didn't notice the owl that spread its wings above her to fly off.