The stare between them lengthened and stretched. If it had been another person, self-consciousness and embarrassment would have long since parted their eyes. Between the girl and the owl though, understanding grew.

At last she slipped from her small makeshift desk to sit on the ground. She reached her hand out towards the owl and it, in turn, stepped cautiously towards her. Sarah gasped as it came within reach of her hand. Soon her fingers were gliding over its feathers, from its neck to its tail.

"It must be you..." she whispered. "My owl."

Even as she stroked its feathers their eyes did not part. Sarah felt as if were revealing things to her, stories, songs, dreams and memories, only they were hazy and half-formed.

"I wish..."

The Owls glance seemed to sharpen at the words. Sarah could feel something shift within the vibrations of its body as she stroked it.

"I wish...you could talk to me." she breathed.

Her fingertips slid down the feathers then her hand jumped back...Skin.

The eyes, still fixed on her, shifted from owl eyes, to a pair of mismatched human eyes, blue and brown.

The feathers were floating away now, on a soft breeze, which drifted through the barn, and the Owl was gone. Only a man lay on the ground before her.

Sarah did not panic until she heard the car pull into the driveway.

"Damn, Toby!" she cried. "I forgot."

Her parents were headed for an anniversary cruise to the Bahamas and Sarah had agreed to watch Toby for the week and a half they'd be gone. She gotten the spare bedroom ready yesterday morning but now there was a man laying it.

She'd half carried him there herself the night before. He had been so weak, barely breathing or speaking though he managed to say "no" when she'd asked if she should call a doctor. "My hand." he'd rasped, extending his palm towards her and she'd taken it. She'd sat by his bedside the whole night, hand in hand with him, watching him breath. She had only gotten up to get him some water when her family arrived the next morning.

Her brother was struggling to carry his own bags up to the house.

"How do you like our little man?" said her father as he hugged her. "He'll probably clear brush and chop trees for you while he'd here.

Her stepmother had already made it to the door and was holding it open for Toby. Sarah felt her head swimming from the sleepless night. The family was moving too quickly. She needed to stop them.

"Wait...wait Toby. Leave your bags in the study. You have to sleep on the couch. There is...water damage in the spare bedroom."

"Water damage? Let me take a look at it. "

"No, Dad. I've got someone coming to take a look. You and Karen need to get to the airport."

Karen came down from the front step after letting Toby in. She hugged Sarah. "Thanks dear...otherwise your father might cancel the trip so he could do some remodeling for you."

"Hey, I resemble that remark." laughed her dad.

Sarah hurried them into the car and gave a quick wave before dashing back into the house. The door to the spare bedroom was closed and Toby lay out on the rug playing with some little video game system.

He looked up at her. "Can I see the water damage? What's water damage? Did your house flood?"

All night she had been content to hold the man's hand, her mind undisturbed by the logic and questions, which now flooded in. She sat down on the sofa and began piecing a story together in her mind.

"Toby, do you remember how weird Mom and Dad were when I brought Michael home?"

"Huh, what? Oh, that guy?" His eyes drifted back towards his video game.

"Well my boyfriend got...sick last night so I let him stay in the spare bedroom...but Mom and Dad might freak if they knew I had a new boyfriend."

Toby mumbled something in response. His eyes were now glued to his game. Apparently water damage and video games were more interesting than his sister's love life. At least he wouldn't ask too many questions.

Sarah went into the kitchen and filled the glass of water she'd taken out earlier. Then she poured cereal and milk into another bowl and carried it all back into the spare bedroom. The man was still lying beneath the blankets, but his eyes were open now. He turned his head slowly towards her and smiled.

"Water..." Sarah mumbled. She felt awkward and strange now that the illogic of the situation had grown in her mind. She had ten thousand questions, but if she asked them she felt as if some spell might break.

Sarah watched as the man pulled himself up to a sitting position. The blanket slipped down around his waist to reveal a pale, thin and weak body. Sarah flicked her eyes away from this body to his face. Mismatched eyes, sharp thin features and chin length wolf grey hair met her gaze.

He drank the water slowly as Sarah sat beside him. She handed him the cereal bowl and he starred at the contents and then began swirling his spoon around the bowl without lifting it.

"I've got eggs and toast if you want." The awkward mundaness of breakfast hung between them for a moment.

"No, this is...this is wonderful." He then began eating rapidly and was soon slurping the left over milk right out of the bowl. "Is there more?"

Sarah brought him eggs toast and two more bowls of cereal before he was finished. She had bought a little extra food for Toby's visit, but if the man kept eating at this rate she knew she'd have to go shopping again. He needed clothing to. He'd been remarkable free of it when he'd appeared in the barn. She wondered why it hadn't bothered her till now.

She left him again to wash up the dishes and check on Toby. He had finished his video game and was poking about the fireplace. Her parents didn't have one so her's fascinated Toby. He looked up at her as she entered.

"Sarah, Can we walk over to those old rusty tractors today?"

Sarah paused. Toby had stayed with her before, and ordinarily they would walk all over place, exploring the farm country and the little wooded areas between properties. She'd tell Toby stories about things they would find along the way, like the "Tale of the Haunted Tractors." Now, however her mind was unsettled, and she felt unsure.

"Why don't you run around nearby and I'll come out in a bit."

Toby grinned and then raced out the door, letting the screen door slam shut. Sarah went to her closet.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

An old Fun Run t-shirt and a bath towel were the only things she had that fit him. The T-shirt was one of those jumbo-sized freebies that Sarah could never wear in public, but was useful as a work shirt for messy projects. The towel was a cheery pink and green floral pattern. The man looked ridiculous in them but he didn't seem to mind. The breakfast seemed to have given him his strength back and he'd managed to wobble his way to the bathroom.

"What is he? What's happening? Why do I know him? What should I do?" Her mind ran in circles, racing to find logic and a plan. She wasn't a worrier by nature. She tended to accept things as they came, but she felt a strong sense of urgency gnawing at her. It wasn't until Toby popped back into the house that her wild horse of a mind snapped back into focus.

"Aren't you ever coming out?"

"In a minute."

"But it's been over an hour. Come on sis..."

"It hasn't been an hour. Its..." She stopped and looked at the clock. He was right. It was well over an hour and the man was still inside the bathroom. Sarah went over to its door.

"Are you alright?" she called but there was no answer. She knocked and knocked but still nothing. Finally she opened the door to see him, lying facedown on the floor.