Liberty crept slowly downstairs, as she heard her brother leave, and tried to sneak into the living room. She had no idea whether anyone was there or not, so it was best to stay cautious just in case. She'd seen the feather that her brother had found – being Con, he had to show off the precious find to somebody – and had decided to take a closer look once her brother was out.

She spotted it on the counter, edging towards it ever so slowly, afraid someone might see her. It truly was very pretty, she thought. The boy she'd seen had feathers like that. All shiny and dark and there were a couple which were pure white.

As her hand hovered over the feather, Jacob walked in and gave a yelp of surprise, before she screamed in equal shock. He edged towards her, snatching the feather before she could.

"Liberty? Why were you trying to steal this?" He couldn't pretend that it wasn't awkward talking to her, but he was curious. She didn't give him a reply, but hared upstairs, heart beating very fast.

He heard her door slam and the quiet click as she locked her door. This surprised him, as Liberty hardly ever did, seeing as no one really went in her room aside from her. He trudged upstairs, stopping and sitting on the landing.

He didn't really think it was fair of Con to leave him here with Liberty. He hadn't even told Liberty from the looks of things that Jacob was still here. It suddenly occurred to him that if he wasn't here that Con still would have gone out, effectively leaving Liberty alone until their parents got here.

He turned the feather over in his hands, marvelling at it. It was a deep black that suddenly became white down towards the tip. It looked amazing. He jumped suddenly, feeling eyes staring at him. He turned around, and saw Liberty peeking at him from behind her door. He smiled, trying not to make her jump.

"You can come and have a look. It's amazing, right?" She tentatively stepped out on to the landing, and came to sit beside Jacob with a rustle of lacy skirts.

He passed it to her, and she bent her head over it. "Oh…" She examined it, and a spark of interest flared in the green eyes as she traced a finger over the feather, and a small smile wisped across her face,

"Give it back now, though. Your brother might be cross otherwise." He opened a hand and the feather was placed delicately, and Liberty properly smiled.

"Thank you, Jacob." She darted back inside her room and left the door unlocked this time. He slowly walked down the stairs, unnerved by the surreal situation he was in. Placing the feather back on the counter he sat back on the sofa and ten minutes later Con walked in.

"Hey, I expect you've got to jet, right?" He grinned and Jacob nodded, noticing Con didn't apologise for leaving him with Liberty, or ask how Liberty was.

"You shouldn't leave her on her own…" His voice trailed off when he noticed Con glaring at him.

"It's fine, she's okay with it. Anyway, it's none of your business." Jacob nodded, heading for the door, and once through headed to the alley behind the house. He saw that Liberty was at the window like he had expected, and waved to her. She smiled, and waved back, before he turned around and headed for home.

He got in and his mother was waiting for him. "Hello, Jacob." Her tone was a little frosty, but he just smiled in greeting and headed for his room. His sanctuary where he definitely wouldn't be dragged into his friend's personal matters. Where his mother and father might actually leave him alone, and where he might be able to ring his aunt in peace.

…

Mallory had just got her daughter to fall asleep when the phone rang again. It was Jacob's number, and she picked it up immediately, hoping he hadn't been attacked by anything thanks to this stupid friend of his.

"What's up, Jacob?" He started talking and she slapped a hand over her eyes.

"Jacob… Wait, Jacob… Now listen to me. You've got the sight, and you know it's not good to get into anything supernatural."

Another explanation followed. Mallory frowned.

"He left his little sister home all by herself? Oh, you were there. But… I see." Her maternal instincts flared and she felt anger rise. How dare this boy leave his sister all alone?

She almost choked when Jacob explained to her how he was mean to her just because Jacob was there, and how he had told Jacob not to get involved.

"You said their parents work?" Yes, Jacob said they did. Apparently the father was a lawyer, and the mother worked in an art gallery. So the poor little girl must be left alone with her brother on a weekend, and now it was the summer holidays. Which meant that the parents would be working and this girl would be given six weeks of hell at the hands of this Con.

She reassured her nephew, telling him that he just probably could be nice to this girl if he wanted to help her, stay friends with Con if he wanted to, to watch out for goblins and made him promise to practice his fencing. She was only at the end of the telephone line if she was needed, she told him.

She went into the nursery and looked down at her sleeping daughter.

"They are the giddy limit. It's a whole family of Jareds who always get into trouble… and now I can't help, thanks to you, Lena. I need to look after you."

She sighed, leaning down to tuck the blanket more securely around the oblivious baby, and made sure she was okay before going and sitting in the other room.

….

Liberty locked the door when she heard her brother coming upstairs. He was stamping, which meant he was angry with her or someone else.

"You stupid brat! Did you tell him I'd left you alone?" he yelled through the door, pounding a fist against it. She trembled.

"No! I didn't do anything!" she called back, her voice shaking slightly. She raced to the window to look into the alley and smiled slightly when her eyes landed on the spot where Jacob had waved. He was nice, Jacob. Her eyes then travelled to the place where her bird boy had been. She made the sound that had called him quietly and heard her brother's footsteps walking away. She let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding, and looked down to see the boy, watching her. She waved at him and he waved back uncertainly. She leaned over and smiled. He tried to copy her, head on one side, pulling his lips up into a grin.

She called out to him. "Hello?" It startled him, and he ran off again. She tipped her own head on one side, slightly upset that he'd left, but amazed. This boy was…

A bird. He must be. He didn't seem to know any English, but he looked fairly human unless you looked at the wing.

But, she mused, he only had one wing and one arm. Her brow furrowed as she considered the thought that it might be painful for him, and searched worriedly with her eyes for any sign of him. No, not a single sign that he had been there.

Her brother banged on the door. "Hey, Mom and Dad are home!" She opened the door and followed him downstairs, to where their parents were waiting.

"Hey honey! Your father picked me up on his way home!" Her mother hugged her and she gave a slight smile. "How was your day?"

She smiled, thinking of Jacob Grace and her secret bird boy. "It was fantastic."