February

Dear Sabrina,

Happy 17th Birthday!

I hope you are well and safe.

Perhaps I might see you sooner rather than later.

"Knock, knock."

Sabrina looked up suddenly and saw Puck just walk into her room like he owned the place. Sabrina quickly hid the short letter behind her back and tried to look as casual as she could although she was still blushing and feeling confused.

It's not every day you get a big bunch of red roses and find a letter hidden in the middle of them from an anonymous person. The letter was only small with large, thick and elegant writing; it was cute but weird and embarrassed Sabrina.

"Come in, why don't you?" Sabrina said uncrossing her legs and lying on the back of her bed head while trying to sneakily stuff the letter underneath her pillows.

"What's been cracka lackin'?" Puck plonked himself onto her bed in front of her.

"Um… not much, we just had dinner like fifteen minutes ago," Sabrina shrugged uncomfortably, tucking a couple of strands of hair that had fallen out of her bun behind her ear.

"Got something to hide, eh, Grimm?" Puck said, lifting his head to look at her and raising his eyebrows.

"No," Sabrina lied quickly and in a high voice.

"Uh huh, sure. You are the crappiest liar known to man. I saw you put something behind your back," Puck accused while frowning at her suspiciously.

Sabrina looked away, chewing her lip and avoiding his gaze.

"Spit it out already, or I will-"

"You will what?" Sabrina snapped, cutting him off.

She had to divert the conversation to some other topic; she didn't want to talk about the letter or the roses- which he still hadn't noticed (thank God) - that were sitting in a vase on her dressing table.

"What are you doing in here anyway?" She asked harsher then she was supposed to.

"To give you your birthday present from me and BJ. Ready, Wingman?" Puck called out, sitting up on the bed.

"Yes, Lieutenant Trickster," A little voice sang out from outside her doorway.

Sabrina sat up. "What the-"

"Shhhhhhhh… Close your eyes and shut up," Puck cupped one hand over her mouth and the other one over her eyes.

Sabrina didn't trust them one bit; knowing Puck, he would probably be setting up something that would upset her. She just mentally prayed that there weren't any spiders involved.

She could handle anything but spiders.

After lots of noises and hustling and bustling from BJ and after lots of loud instructions from Puck, who was still holding his hands over her eyes and mouth, Sabrina was seriously trying to concoct some sort of plan to peek.

It was killing her.

Ever since she began thinking about spiders, she was becoming to get nervous and edgy.

"Relax, Grimm! You're as bloody tense as a brick. OK, turn it on BJ. Now… hit the lights!"

Sabrina heard the flick of the light switch being turned off.

"OK, Grimm. Open."

Sabrina opened her eyes and found herself surrounded in darkness; as it was dark outside and also now in her bedroom, thanks to BJ.

She looked at BJ who was holding a touch and shining its light on something. Sabrina couldn't quite make out what it was, so naturally she leaned closer towards her little brother.

Sabrina screamed as she scrambled in the opposite direction and tumbled off her bed in fright.

"What the hell are they?" She said a couple of octaves higher and pointing at the big, glass cookie jar in front of her in disgust, ignoring Puck and BJ who were laughing at her reaction.

They were insects about the size of a golf ball but each was in the shape of a wasp; however, they were white, almost transparent with big black eyes. There were five of them with clear, translucent wings attached to their back.

"What did I say they were again, BJ?" Puck gasped, breathless from laughing so hard and clutching onto Sabrina's shoulder- who had managed to stand up- for support.

"Umm… something that starting with a C and a V, I think… oh I don't know…"

"Oh that's right! You were close BJ. They're called candentis vesparum. I know they look like weird, glow-in-the-dark wasps that are on steroids. But they're obviously quite… different; they are actually nocturnal and-"

"What does that mean?" BJ asked, while tapping on the glass jar and inspecting their glow.

"Sleep in the day and are awake at night," Puck explained before Sabrina could get a word in to answer BJ. She was actually surprised and impressed that Puck had become the dictionary for once.

"Anyway, I discovered them in my room when I moved in here. I first saw them when I once explored my whole room during the night," Puck said, trying to push Sabrina back towards the bed and closer towards the foul insects.

Sabrina didn't care if they were the most harmless insects in the whole world; she wasn't going anywhere near them.

"Vesparums won't bite. Completely harmless," Puck said, reading her mind.

"Thanks Puck and BJ but-" Sabrina started, thinking about how she was going to tell them that she didn't really want the bugs without hurting their feelings. Well BJ's feelings, to be more specific as she suspected that Puck did this to get a reaction.

"Wait! We haven't finished, have we BJ?" Puck said walking over to the little boy and taking the torch from him and flicking it off; engulfing them into complete darkness.

"What is hap-" Sabrina began only to be shushed by both Puck and BJ.

"Just look, Grimm. No questions."

So she did.

At first she wasn't sure what was happening inside the jar.

Then she realised that the five, ugly vesparums gradually became an indescribable luminous white light which turned into five separate colours; soft lavender, light teal, pale lime, soft indigo and a glimmering blue- grey.

Sabrina gasped. They were so beautiful.

"See. I told you to look," Puck's soft voice whispered next to her ear, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

"They're amazing…" Sabrina whispered back.

"I know, I thought you would like them. They change colours by how hot or cold their surrounding temperature is. They only glow when it is completely dark. Remember when you first came here? You and Marshmallow were so transfixed on my minions, ha, you thought they were fireflies!"

"Yeah I do. Well, they were cute until they bloody bit us!" Sabrina said, surprised that he remembered that far back, as she made an estimated guess at where Puck was and punched at him, lightly.

"Hey! C'mon, it wasn't my fault," Puck lied, innocently.

"Sure," Sabrina replied sarcastically then looked to where she thought BJ's face was. "BJ, can you turn the light back on for me?"

"OK, hold this," BJ responded holding out the jar towards her.

"Eww… no…" Sabrina shook her head.

"What the brave and fearless Grimm can't handle these little, harmless bugs?" Puck teased while he grabbed the jar from BJ.

The room suddenly lit up again and the glow from the vesparums disappeared almost immediately, back to their ugly state.

"Wow, someone is loved."

Sabrina turned around to see Puck had finally noticed the roses.

"Who gave you them?"

"I don't know," Sabrina said, shrugging.

"They're huge!" Sabrina heard BJ say, but she wasn't concentrating on him.

"You're telling lies again, Grimm, aren't you," Puck didn't question this though; he stated it which made Sabrina feel nervous and she couldn't give herself a good reason as to why that was.

"Nope," Sabrina lied- again, "Thanks guys for the gift, I love it! It's time to get out of my room now, bye!" She took the jar of insects out of BJ's hands and placed them next to the flowers.

BJ left, kissing Sabrina goodnight as he went, but Puck didn't move, he just stood looking at her suspiciously.

"What?"

"I can't help but stare at your ugly face," Puck shrugged.

"OK. Move! Leave already!"

"Wait… those weeds… they have something to do with that thing you hid before… don't they?" Puck said poking at the roses.

"No!"

"As I said before Grimm, you are the c-r-a-p-p-i-e-s-t liar ever to walk this planet. I will find out you know," Puck said as he walked out of the room.

Sabrina rolled her eyes, pretending that what he said didn't bother her.

But it did.

Sabrina looked up at the white diamonds up in the black sky. This was one of her favourite things about living in Ferryport Landing; the stars. There were millions of them; all dancing together. Back in New York it would be just a black sky with not a star in sight because of the light pollution but here it was the opposite.

She lowered herself down on the roof tiles, wrapped in a large, thick blanket with her pyjamas on underneath.

The cold air breathed shallowly on her only exposed body part- her face and it made her shiver slightly.

She just thought about everything that happened that day.

From waking up to Daphne and Elvis jumping on her bed, Puck picking her up, her mom and dad visiting, receiving a car from her parents, driving her dad for the first time, receiving flowers from an anonymous person, finding a letter to her from her anonymous sender, and finally, receiving the glow in the dark insects from her brother and Puck.

It had been a fun if not eventful day; she couldn't have asked for a better birthday actually.

However, she just couldn't help thinking about that note she had been given. She couldn't understand.

What did it mean by, 'perhaps I might see you sooner rather than later'?

That sentence just full on freaked Sabrina out. She didn't know who it was or could be or anything.

She assumed that she must had already been acquainted with them and talked to them before. Maybe she was connected with them through the time of the war. Back then, she was sometimes in charge of a group of Everafters when needed so maybe they were a part of a group that she had led.

She groaned out loud in frustration.

She had never dealt with anything like this before. Receiving a banquet of roses from anonymous on her birthday was majorly weird and freaky.

She didn't have any friends, even though there are a few Everafters who are her age, physically, in Ferryport Landing. She didn't make any friends in Charming's Army during war because that wasn't her prime focus then.

She also hadn't had any guys show much interest in her- well she had seen some guys check her out before but somehow they never went that step further to ask her out or even introduce themselves.

Maybe it wasn't a love interest, maybe it was just a family friend… like Snow White! But Snow White sending her red roses? That would be highly unlikely of her.

Actually, the more Sabrina thought about it the more certain she became that it wasn't Snow.

Suddenly, she heard a noise coming from her left. She quickly sat up and looked to where it was coming from.

A window was being pushed up and much to Sabrina's surprise, her mom step out of it and onto the roof.

Veronica noticed at the same time that Sabrina was sitting there all snuggled up in a blanket.

"Hey mom, what are you doing here?" Sabrina asked. As far as Sabrina knew, no one came out there on the roof of a night time except for her.

"I could ask you the same thing," her mom said with raised eyebrows, sitting down next to her.

"Oh, I just like to get away from everyone and think," Sabrina answered simply.

"What do you think about?"

Sabrina shrugged, "nothing really. Your turn."

"Sorry?" Her mom said confused.

"Why are you out here?" Sabrina lying back down.

"I used to come out here all the time when I was pregnant with you and I would do the exact same thing- just think. I also loved looking at the stars. Amazing, aren't they? You wouldn't see all of these at night in New York. I always miss these when I'm home."

Veronica lay down next to Sabrina, searching the sparkling sky.

Sabrina nodded in agreement and understanding.

They were both lapsed into comfortable silence, thinking.

In the distance Sabrina could hear the Hudson River flowing quietly and the trees rustling in the soft but chilling breeze.

"Are you cold? Do you want some of my blanket?" Sabrina offered noticing her mother shivering ever so slightly.

Veronica nodded and Sabrina rearranged her blanket so it was covering the both of them while they were lying down.

"Thanks sweetie."

"No problem."

They both fell into silence again.

Sabrina and her mom were close but probably not as close as what her mom was with Daphne. They had that confident, happy and girly personality while Sabrina was more realistic, tom boyish and reserved; like her dad.

"So what has been happening in the city that never sleeps?" Sabrina asked curiously.

"Nothing much, really. The Golden Egg is practically empty now that the majority of the New York Everafters are still stuck here. So there haven't been many problems in the world of Everafters in New York. However, Titania is driving me absolutely insane."

"Why?"

"I don't know what it is but just something about her makes me really annoyed. I can't put my finger on it. She didn't use to annoy me before your father and I were put under that spell but now…" Veronica exhaled loudly while Sabrina smiled feeling amused.

Next to Granny, her mom was probably one of the most patient and caring people she had ever met, so seeing her feel this frustrated about someone was odd and amusing.

"Don't worry Mom. I think she makes everyone feel that way," Sabrina said reassuringly.

"I know," her mom smiled, "So what's been happening with you? Any boys on the scene, lately?"

"Mom!"

"What?"

"There has been no one! Even if there was, I still wouldn't have told you anything anyway."

"Why not? You did come out of my groin; I have a right to know."

"Mom! Stop!" Sabrina cried from embarrassment.

Her mom laughed, reaching out and placing her hand lightly on top of her daughter's head and smoothed her hair down.

"I'm only kidding, Sabrina."

"Oh ok, so I didn't come out of your groin, now?"

"Nope, you're adopted."

They both laughed, this time.

"I hope you had a good day, darling," her mom said seriously now.

"I did and thanks again for getting me the car. I really, really love it," Sabrina said trying to express as much gratitude and appreciation as possible.

"That's alright. You deserve it after all you have been through these past years. It's our way of apologising and congratulating you."

"It couldn't have been helped though; everything that had happened," Sabrina responded quietly.

"If I was more careful and protective of you and your brother and sister, and your dad, it could have been prevented," Veronica said her voice full of regret and sadness. Sabrina gave her an empathetic look, she understood what her mother felt like because she blamed herself like that as well.

"I don't think so. Oz still would have betrayed us and he would have hurt you and Dad, somehow. Mirror would have still gone through with all of his plans. But it's over now and everyone is safe and that's all that matters," Sabrina said, trying to make her mom feel better.

Sabrina looked over at her mom, who was staring back at her.

"What?"

"How did my daughter become so wise and mature?" Veronica questioned; her voice full of amazement.

"It's a talent," Sabrina said smiling.

"Well, I think it's time for you to think about bed."

Sabrina rolled her eyes.

"Yep, just thought about it," Sabrina said hoping that her mom would drop the subject and let her stay up.

"Sabrina…"

"OK, OK. I'm going," Sabrina surrendered, sitting up, "Do you want the blanket?"

"Nah, I should be getting to bed too," Veronica said standing up and pushing the blanket away and towards Sabrina.

"OK, goodnight Mom," Sabrina stood up as well.

"Goodnight Love. Happy Birthday," She said as she kissed her daughter on the head.

Oh my! My most sincere apologies! I have just been so busy and I am just so so so so so so sorry. Please forgive me! I hope you enjoy this chapter, I have edited it so much so it could be perfect enough for you guys!

My thanks to KrissM3, Arithmetic13, Lovelylamb1999, Layla Wolffe, creamychocpudding786 and Alison237Gleek! For the fabulous reviews! Really appreciate them!

Counting the Days xxx