Chapter Two


Jareth sat tapping his fingers along the armrest of the chair, waiting for Mackery and Gavin to arrive. Sarah was sitting deep in conversation with King Jiggle, and every once in a while she'd let out one of her bell-like laughs. He turned to watch her, amazed as always at her simplistic beauty. He loved the way her eyes flashed, whether she was laughing like now, or when she was angry. And the way her hair fell down her back in a smooth, raven cascade. Even when it was plaited, as it was now, it appeared to have a life of its own, following her movements exactly.

She turned towards him, seemingly sensing his gaze, and gave a coy little smile. He grinned back at her and she shook her head and turned back to speak with Jiggle. Jareth sighed and continued his impatient tapping. Well really, where were they? It was rude to be so late....

Anna, Gavin, Myst and Mackery all walked in at that moment, in that order. Anna and Myst then moved to one side as Gavin and Mackery presented themselves before Jiggle. The old king smiled at them and motioned for them to take a seat, including Anna and Myst in his wave. They all sank gracefully into various chairs. Jareth gave the fairy and the unicorn a menacing frown, asking with his eyes where that goofy werewolf was. Anna merely gave him a stern glare in response, and Myst smiled that annoying, knowing smile of his.

"Jareth, please do pay attention. I suppose meetings of this sort are beneath your notice, but try to put yourself on a level with the rest of us for once," Jiggle said, an amused smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

Jareth flushed and sent one more glare at the two who had known him since childhood, before respectfullly inclining his head towards the elder king.

"As I was saying, I have found the location where my son Jigglian was last in this realm. It is near a doorway 'between'. "

Jareth frowned. Those doorways were dangerous, and one never knew where one would end up. They always led to different dimensions everytime they opened up. If the young prince had been taken through there two-thousand years ago, there was no telling where he was now. It would be next to impossible to find him, or to discover exactly which dimension he had gone to. Unless..."You have...given up your powers for this?" Jareth asked incredulously.

Jiggle smiled again, an old, tired smile. "I had to Jareth...I had to find my son. And this was the only way. Everyone is gone now, except for me. Only I have no heir to take my throne." He held up a small twig with a fork in it. "This will open the correct doorway...but only if all of you are willing to go along. If any of you have doubts as to whether you belong on this quest, please speak up now...your hesitance will disturb the harmonics of power."

Jareth glanced at Anna out of the corner of his eye, but she didn't so much as bat an eyelash. So she was resigned to go then. He then watched the old king as he beamed at them all, his tired face brightening for a single moment. Then, Jiggle sighed, and sat back down, handing the twig to Anna.

"As the one with the least amount of magic," the dwarf king whispered softly, "So as to cause the least amount of hinderency you understand." Then he closed his eyes.

*******************

Harry would normally be smiling as he boarded the Hogwarts Express, but today he couldn't quite manage it. It was true he had been able to get all his supplies in time, and had even finagled a ride from his uncle to King's Cross, but when he had stepped onto Platform Nine and Three Quarters, his heart had sunk. Everyone seemed to be avoiding him, not meeting his eyes, and giving him a wide bearth as he walked past. It was almost as if he didn't exist.

With a sigh, he settled back into an empty compartment and closed his eyes. Was it going to be this bad at Hogwarts? Or worse?

He must have fallen asleep, because the next thing he knew, he felt something slimy and wet running up his face. He opened his eyes and slapped his hand on his cheek, and found himself staring into a pair of pale eyes set within a furry, snouted face. For a moment he was disoriented and then he quickly reached over and gave his godfather a hug.

"Glad to see you awake, Harry," said a familiar voice. Harry looked over at the tired features of Professor Lupin.

"Hello Professor," Harry greeted warmly. It was wonderful to have such a welcoming presence, especially in light of his recent experience. "Are you going to be teaching again?"

Lupin hesitated a moment before nodding. "Yes...Dumbledore doesn't want to risk any more incidents like last year."

Harry swallowed and looked out the window. "No, I guess not."

Sirius climbed up onto the seat beside him and laid his great shaggy head in his lap. Harry unconsciously scratched him behind the ears, still keeping his gaze towards the bustling platform outside. Lupin opened his mouth as if to say something, but shut it again when five voices rang out simultaneously.

"Harry!"

Harry, Sirius and Lupin all turned towards the doorway to find the four Weasley children remaining at Hogwarts and Hermione gazing at them in wonder. Ginny was the first to break the awkard silence that fell.

"Mum said Dumbledore said he put a spell of invisibility on you...you know just in case...." but the girl didn't finish her sentence, either unable or unwilling to.

Harry blinked at her in response, and then around at the beaming faces of the others, and felt a rush of relief wash through him. So he _hadn't_ existed out there, since no one could see him. But...then, how could the muggles...

"It's a bit like the spells on Hogwarts, except geared towards people who have magic," Hermione explained, "So that, until Professor Lupin and S...snuffles here got to you, no one except them and muggles could see you."

"Oh," was all Harry could manage in response. Still, he didn't feel quite as bad as he had at first. His friends didn't hate him at all.

"And, Harry," Lupin added, "I suppose you notice that you haven't had any parcels until you recieved your school letter? That was because Dumbledore didn't want to take any chances whatsoever. I actually kept Hedwig penned up when she came with that letter for me...but she got free somehow."

Harry started a moment, and the remembered that Sirius had been staying with Lupin, and that only Ron and Hermione knew the secret so far. He gave a slight smile and nodded. "Yeah, Hedwig's pretty clever."

"Right," said George suddenly, "Now that all the serious stuff is done with..." The train whistle blew its last warning, cutting him off for a moment. "As I was saying, lets get down to the fun!"

Hermione gave him a stern glance, and looked over at Harry in concern. But Harry wasn't at all opposed to the idea. It would at least take his mind off the nightmares, and memories of last year. And it was almost guaranteed that you would have fun while playing with the Weasley twins.

As the train began its forward motion, to thread its way to Hogsmeade station, Harry smiled his first genuine smile in over three months. Perhaps this year wasn't going to be as bad as it had been looking to be at first.