(AN: Hi all! I'm so sorry about how long it's been since I updated this story but all I can say is that it wasn't my fault, the Internet decided that our house was no longer worthy to grace its presence, so I've been stuck without it for about a three months. It works now!

Due to my rather extensive time since posting I have decided to give you all a longer-than-usual chapter, lucky you!
Sit back and enjoy my written desires.)

Chapter 10:
"Sarah, what is this?" Karen held the envelope for her to see the midnight blue seal, broken. The expensive parchment creased slightly upon its opening. Karen's brow rose expectantly as she waited for an answer from her stepdaughter. Sarah felt a sudden anger flood her system at the opened invitation.

"Karen, where did you find that?"

"Answer the question, Sarah." Sarah stared at her stonily before ignoring her and removing her school shoes. All the effort she had put into getting along with the woman had practically been broken by this one simple gesture of invasion to her privacy.

"I'm assuming you already know what it is, seeing as you've opened it," she stated dryly. "I haven't had the time to actually have a look through but from what I was told it was an invitation to a social event for the Winter Solstice." She snatched it from Karen's grasp and made her way through the house.

"Sarah, I'm not done with you!" She turned back to face her stepmother, already halfway up the stairs to her room. "Look, I'm sorry. I found it in the living room without an address as to who it was for. I opened it and saw the invite. I'm sorry, but curiosity did kill the cat," she explained hastily, detecting the source of her stepdaughter's anger. "Forgiven?" she asked, hope leaking through.

Sarah's face softened some before nodding and retreating to her room, leaving Karen to stand and look after her. She heard the sound of wood meeting wood and the soft click of the lock before turning away from the now empty stairs. Sighing, her shoulders sagged as regret came to her.

Turning away from the stairs she searched for any imperfections within the living arrangements before retreating to the kitchen to prepare the meal for the night. She would have to tell Robert about the little spat to prepare him for the possible sour mood that could greet them both at the dinner table tonight. Karen sighed again and prepared the meal in silence while awaiting the arrival of her husband.

Sarah fell heavily into her vanity seat and glared at her reflection, trying in vain to push back the tears of hurt and frustration. She wasn't sure why she was feeling like this but she was already sick of it. She looked on in faint disgust as the tears threatened to spill over. Angry fingers pushed away the offending tears and went on to clear her nose. She didn't feel like crying at the moment, she wanted the reassurance of her friends and that meant that she needed to clean herself up before she called. Wouldn't want them to worry over nothing, she thought affectionately. Her mind went back to sulking, Bloody hormones, bloody magic, bloody Jareth.

That thought stopped her short.

Am I really angry at him? She shook he head at the notion. No, she wasn't angry with him. She calmed down and looked into her now tired eyes and observed the faintly dark circles that had formed underneath them. Frustration crept back on her at the thought of the day's events.

She was an idiot, stupid and quick tempered. An opening of potential social interaction with those of her age group, those of her species, and she fled. Like a child she had turned away when she couldn't handle the situation. She sighed and brought a hand to the bridge of her nose as the other arm crossed her mid-drift. Why couldn't she handle things without making a situation for herself? She could have at least heard Harry out, yet instead she'd ignored him and trudged home to feel sorry for herself.

The sight of the invitation in her stepmother's grasp had set her blood to boil from action of habit. She sighed again, she shouldn't have acted like that to Karen. She didn't deserve her pent up frustrations brought out on her, she had been trying. Sarah promised herself to have the issue absolved later, maybe after dinner though. The fact still remained that she had opened an envelope that hadn't been addressed to her. Though, to be fair, she couldn't have known whom it was addressed to.

Sarah shook her head in indecision and her eyes landed on the offending envelope.

She frowned.

Reaching forward, she plucked the expensive looking parcel from the wooden top and brought it to her face. She hadn't yet had a chance to actually read the invitation for herself, with all that had gone on during the weekend, she wasn't surprised that she had actually forgotten about it.

Hesitating slightly she brought her fingers to the opening and carefully peeled back the flap to the sight of creamy parchment beneath. She deftly removed the heavy parchment from the envelope's embrace and read its contents.

You are cordially invited to attend the celebrations of the Winter Solstice
Celebrations shall take place at the High Court of the High King Ainmire

Attendance is obligatory
All royalty is to attend

Humble wishes to thee

Sarah raised an eyebrow at the strange notation. She turned the page over but there was nothing else there, no other details but for those five short sentences. She turned it back over and let her finger trace the black ink and follow the scripture.

Her brow crinkled in thought, perhaps Hoggle would know something about it, he was the one to hand it to her after all, though not in person.

She set the confusing invite to the side and folded her arms as she leaned toward her mirror. She turned her head towards her door to listen intently for footsteps but heard none so looked back to her reflection.

"Hoggle," she called softly. "Hoggle, I need you." Nothing happened.

She called again but still nothing happened, not even a shimmer of his leathered face. Her brow furrowed softly in confusion. "Sir Dydimus?" she asked uncertainly. She waited on bated breath and let out a relieved sigh when the form of her knight came to her. Her nose wrinkled in acknowledged memory at the sight of the Bog and she smiled ruefully at the fury head now turned upwards in her direction.

"My lady! What a pleasant surprise! Doth thy wish to confide in me? Is everything all right?"

"Of course," she laughed lightly," nothing is wrong Dydimus, at least not with me anyway."

"My lady?" he cocked his head in inquiry.

"It's just that I've tried calling for Hoggle, but he doesn't seem to be responding. He always lets me know if he can talk when I call but today," she shrugged, "nothing happened."

She smiled fondly as his eyebrows drew themselves down and a tiny, gloved fist came to his snout in thought.

"Hmm, me thinks it may have something to do with Brother Hoggle's visit to the castle."

"The castle? What's he doing there?" she asked in trepidation and intrigue.

"I cannot be certain, my lady. Sir Hoggle and I were merely discussing our differences in our perception of the Bog," she smiled at his wording, "when the summons came. I am certain that he would have responded to you if he had left his majesty's presence."

Sarah brought her thumb to her teeth and chewed thoughtfully as her eyes turned upwards in contemplation.

"So, I can't talk to him while he's in the castle, then?" she murmured.

"I'm afraid not, my lady," he replied solemnly. She smiled again at his serious tone and waved a hand in front of her face dismissively.

"No worries. I just had something I wanted to ask, it can wait 'til later." She cocked her head to the side and observed the way the Bog's sludge bubbled at a particular area off to the side, and found herself thinking that she was grateful that only images and sounds ever came to her through the mirror. She shudder involuntarily at the mere memory of the scent that had assaulted her nose.

She shook the thought from her mind and turned to Dydimus with a bright smile. "So, how have you been?"

Jareth pinched the bridge of his nose. This conversation wasn't going anywhere. So far all he had gotten out of the dwarf was that he had been visited by the Labyrinth some time ago. He had been given the invitation and instructions to deliver said invitation to Sarah. After having obtained this information he had been trying to understand the incoherent ramblings of the gardener ever since but was having no such luck.

"Hedgeworths!"

"Hoggle!" he corrected vehemently. Jareth narrowed his eyes at the tone but said nothing. He knew the dwarf would cower without him having to waste his energies. And, as expected, Hoggle grew anxious where he stood, again he fiddled with the plastic beads wrapped around his wrist. Jareth's smirk returned and he stood from his throne. Hoggle took a step back and gulped audibly. Snickers scattered throughout the stone chamber once more as the goblins watched on with anticipation.

"So my dear Hoggle, what is your justification for not coming to me with this knowledge of the Labyrinth? Surely you must have been cautious as to why the Labyrinth would seek you out. Why not come to your king with this? What have you to hide?" Hoggle remained frozen to the spot as Jareth advanced on him, his neck craning so that he could look into his monarch's face and his mouth agape with silent explanations. He swallowed the new lump in his throat and tried to explain with a different perspective.

"I can understands yer concerns for Sarah," he stuttered. "But-but-b-"

"But nothing! You should have come to me about this," Jareth hissed. He narrowed his eyes at the stammering dwarf before him but remained standing, his riding crop beating a fast rhythm against his right boot while his left hand squeaked with the protests of leather. "If anything happens within the Labyrinth or the Underground itself that concerns Sarah you will come to me. Do you understand?"

Hoggle nodded hurriedly with wide eyes. Jareth sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose once more. "Get out of my sight," he said softly. The dwarf gave one last nod before scampering to the doors and disappearing down the stairs. Jareth turned back to his throne, his cape swishing heavily and sat down. The goblins remained silent for a time, unsure as to what they were to do. Why didn't I threaten the little scab with the Bog? I have to think of some other form of punishment for this.

In agitation he conjured a crystal and threw it against the far wall where it shattered with the force and caused a commotion of bodies to retreat. The goblins had sense enough to know when their king needed time alone, so, without another thought, they all dispersed from the throne room as quietly as they could. The result of which were several screeches as bodies tumbled from the heavily occupied room. Chickens clucked indignantly as careless feet descended upon them as they all retreated from the stampede. The one pig that had been led into the room was now being ushered rather speedily out the door.

Jareth watched all this with hooded eyes as a faint headache started up at the sounds. He sighed and closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose he tried to reign in his emotions. The Labyrinth had a lot to confess to. Not only had it marked Sarah without his authorization but it had also gone to his subjects without his knowledge to release an invite to the Winter Solstice celebrations. Did it not understand the seriousness of its actions?

Although he himself had planned on asking Sarah he had not been planning on doing it so soon. He was still slightly stunned that she had accepted everything so well, not that he was complaining but there was still the concern of her condition and whether Cole had already gone to the High King about Sarah. He sighed again and slumped into his throne, the purple draping rustling slightly with the movement, and he tried in vain to push the headache back.

Cole paced his study. The thoughts of previous days still lingered in the forefront of his mind. The ever cocky Goblin King had gone too far this time. Giving those powers to a mortal, true enough she had defeated his puzzle but that didn't give him the right to do such a thing. There were rules and standards for this sort of situation and the so called King of the Goblins had been pushing far enough as it was. Cole stopped his pacing, his face set in determination, he had had enough thinking on the matter and it was clear to him that the Goblin King needed to be dealt with. He wrenched the heavy door open and walked the long corridors of the castle towards the king's study.

The High King's castle was immense in size, the stone carved with care and precision. Cole did always love the grandeur of the place. Long corridors that didn't change on you, the route was always the same when you came back to it. Though the walls had ears it wasn't literal in this castle. True enough, gossiping was a popular past time for the staff and nobles whom frequented the inner sanctum of the grand structure. This castle was solid, practical and predictable, unlike that of a certain Goblin King's.

Cole thought over the information that he had collected with his short time at the Goblin Castle. He definite in the fact that his king needed to know of the matter and that he would be able to deal with it accordingly. His thoughts brought him to the beautiful mortal, he wouldn't deny that she was indeed beautiful but what concerned him most was her age. She may have been mature in some aspects but even through the transformation he could tell that she was nothing but a child, a woman child at the most. What could that troublesome king have been thinking? One could not simply do such things, there were rules and regulations and traditions.

He would have to contact other council members and courtiers about this, though not until he had discussed the matter with his king, it would not do to spread such a tale without the king knowing of it first.

His musings were halted as he came to a heavy door, the dark wood thick and burnt with curling patterns, copper infused in with the linings and a sturdy handle. To either side a guardsman was posted both tale and built for a fight and both looking rather uninterested with the few people passing through the hall.

He straightened himself and put a tone of conviction in his voice.

"I request an audience with the High King." The one to the left raised one dark eyebrow and turned to his counterpart.

"State your purpose in seeking an audience with the High King," h addressed, though his voice was dull with one who was rather bored of their position. The dark eyes looked upon the Healer with indifference.

"I have a grievance with the king concerning the monarch of the Goblin Kingdom," Cole announced. The two exchanged a glance before one turned to the door. He knocked a soft beat against the wood and was soon facing a small pudgy man.

"Healer Cole wishes an audience with the High King concerning matters of the Goblin King," he explained. The stout fellow eyed him a moment before turning back to the room. Moments later the door opened again and Cole was signalled through.

"The High King will see you now." Cole nodded his thanks to the guards and stepped through the threshold of the king's study. He followed the steps of the short man closely and was led to an immense desk carved from the best of woods. The contents of papers, ink, quills and various other objects were scattered evenly along the large top. Sitting behind the desk sat the High King of the Fairies himself. Going over a parchment of order for celebrations with quill in hand, his dark hair cut to allow free reign of his face. Slight curls fell against the nape of his neck. He looked up to show his questioning hazel eyes. His square jaw set itself when he looked to the source of his disturbance.

Ainmire set his quill down and gave full attention to his healer as Cole bowed in respect to his rank. He waved away the unwanted attendee and motioned for Cole to take a seat before him. Cole nodded in understanding and soon settled himself into the comfortable seat that sat diagonally to the king's desk. His seat was not noticeable compared to the high back, almost throne like chair that was occupied by the High King.

"Healer Cole, I hear you have a grievance for my ears. What is it you wish to relay to me?"

"Your Majesty, I come to you with the heavy heart of knowledge concerning the Goblin King."

"What is it that he has done now?" Ainmire sighed. He brought an elbow to the desk to rest his head upon his palm. He was used to Cole and the other neurotic nobles coming to him with complaints of the monarch of the Goblin Kingdom. In truth Ainmire didn't much pay attention to such things, he was too busy in running his own judgments. Though Jareth may act out of turn every now and again he was never a nuisance. Ainmire often found himself relying on him to actually do something for the others to complain about so he himself could be distracted from his work for a time.

"My King, the Goblin King has gone too far this time. He must be dealt with! The lenience in which you grant him has clouded his judgments and I believe he should come to terms of his act-" Ainmire held a hand for silence.

"I'll repeat. What is it that he has done now?" Cole looked to his king with heavy eyes.

"He has bestowed powers to mortal, your majesty. She is weak and her state unstable. He is turning her Fae and from what I've heard it was not by choice."

"When was it you had an appearance in the Goblin Castle?" Ainmire asked with actual intrigue. Cole bowed his head with slight worry.

"Forgive me, your highness. I had not come to you with this as soon as I should have. When I found out about this it was but two days before," he explained. Ainmire nodded and relaxed into his chair.

"Thank you for seeing me about this Healer. I will be sure to see what I can about these affairs." He stood from his chair and motioned for Cole to do also. "I want you to write out all of your understanding on the matter and be sure to deliver them to my page. For now you are to return to your duties." Cole bowed once more to his king and made for the exit. Ainmire stared after him for a time before retaking his seat with a sigh. "What is it you've gotten yourself into now, nephew?"

Jareth's lip twitched slightly as he lay in bed that night. Now that he had used the connection that he had already established with Sarah he could feel when she was having her little 'insights'. Tonight he would not invade her privacy, for it seemed that the images were not as emotionally stressing as previous ones. He wandered, then, of why she was so reluctant to tell him such things. Perhaps it had something to do with keeping up the appearance of self-independence.

She seemed to hold a constant act around others, always aiming to please those she could when need be. He had seen firsthand the results of such skills and the drawbacks that came with. She was more relaxed and open when about him, likewise he too was more open with her, but when her father had returned that one evening she had put walls up that were hard to work around.

These skills were being put into great practice at the moment. Her exhaustion varied each passing day but she was always more tired than she let on. This in turn wasted her energies and resulted in further damage. These things would be seen to soon enough, he thought.

He had set things in order for tomorrow so that he could once again venture Above without any consequences on his part. Though he could not ignore his duties he wanted to check on her progress thus far. He would see her again during her time at school and establish a time schedule for them both so that she knew when to expect him. He needed to get her cooperation in coming Underground for a time, she would have to arrange some kind of excuse for her guardians at some time. He had already sent word to the one other Fae healer he could both think of and trust and he needed Sarah to be present for him.

Jareth sighed and allowed his eyes to drift along the structure and design of his room before closing them against the soft glow of the moon. He would need to be well rested for tomorrow. Duties would have to be seen to readily so that he could leave at the appropriate time to see her during her break at her schooling. He couldn't risk the disturbance of family and even if she was to meet up with the disrespectful adolescences again, most likely not to her complete cooperation, he wouldn't need to worry about their reactions.

He saw a brief flash of startling green eyes full of emotion before he rolled over to his back with a content sigh on his lips and letting sleep claim him, a final heave of weariness came from his chest before he relaxed into the silk sheets. The darkness soon became impossible to escape and he was in the sea of unremembered dreams within the intake of a few breathes.

Sarah's eyes flew open to the sound of her alarm. She peered from between the folds of her covers to see the red digital numbers glowing back at her with a pleasant 06:30. She let out a huff and quickly slammed her palm over the snooze button before dragging herself out of the bed. The little sleep she had managed to have was once again filled with visions of her past. Last night had shown her a vision of her mother. She didn't understand what her mother had to do with anything, but then she didn't understand the reasons for any of the visions that plagued her during her sleep.

She quickly dressed herself for the day and headed to the kitchen. As expected there was no one up at this hour and that was exactly what she needed. She fixed her school bag and left it in the living room before she made her way to the pantry and set out several cereal boxes with bowls and spoons along the table. She went about setting up jams and butter before retrieving the bread. She extricated the milk from the fridge along with Toby's food for the day and soon set about putting together a light snack for her parents.

Robert and Karen came down the stairs at quarter past seven to the smell of toast and brewed coffee. Robert took in a grateful breath and procured his usual place at the table where the morning's paper was already awaiting him. He smoothed out his suit pants before unfolding the paper and obscuring his face from others. Karen rolled her eyes at the all too familiar sight and sat beside him.

"Thank you for preparing breakfast, dear," she thanked. Sarah nodded absently and continued on the sandwich she was making herself. When she had finished she left the kitchen to come back with a newly waken Toby in her arms. She seated him in his high chair and was soon spoon feeding him.

"Sarah," Karen started.

"Hmm?" She turned her head to face her stepmother, absently wiping her brother's cheek with a damp face washer.

"Tomorrow I need to stay behind for work, I won't be gone for too long but would you mind picking Toby up for me?" Sarah smiled softly and nodded her consent. Karen relaxed in her spot and took a bite from her jam covered toast. It seemed Sarah had either forgiven her for her snooping or was just ignoring the event to focus on her task, despite the assurance of last night during dinner Karen still felt slight trepidation.

Toby finished the remainder of is food and sat silently in his chair while his sister went about arranging the snacks she had made for them and handing them over to their respected assignments. Karen smiled gently, finishing her breakfast and stood from her seat to put the dishes aside the sink. Robert had yet to finish his coffee but was contented in munching a buttered slice of toast.

Sarah sat down in her seat and pulled a bowl towards herself. Once selecting her cereal choice she emptied a descent amount into her bowl and poured the milk. She was chewing through her third spoonful when her father shifted in his seat.

"Sarah?" She looked to her father as he stared at her with concern from behind his paper. Once he was sure he held her attention he gazed back at the paper's content before continuing. "Have you seen Merlin?" She stared a moment before realising her mouth was open and shut it.

"Merlin?"

"Yeas Merlin, your dog."

"Oh, uh he's uh-"

"Where is he?"

"You're not going to like it..." Robert sighed and put the paper down on the table top.

"Where is he?" She stared down at her slowly dissolving cereal with a furrowed brow before replying.

"He's staying at Jareth's," she said carefully. Robert blinked and pursed his lips.

"I see," he drew out, his head nodding slowly with the words. Sarah's shoulders slumped as she let out a sigh. "Actually I don't. Why is Merlin staying with that boy?"

"Daddy, Jareth isn't a 'boy'." He huffed and reached for his paper.

"Could've fooled me..." he grumbled, then unfolded the paper only to shut it again with haste. "Why is Merlin staying with Jareth?"

"Robert, stop prying into their relationship," Karen called over her shoulder.

"What relationship?" he retorted with slight tension.

"I recall him saying something about courting and such..."

"Courting," he snorted. "Does anyone do that anymore?" He turned his attentions back to his uncomfortable daughter. "What were we discussing?"

"Dogs and relationships," she supplied. She quickly scooped another spoon of cereal into her mouth as an excuse for distraction of talk, ignoring the amused look she was sent from her stepmother. Her father nodded and looked down at the folded paper in his hands.

"Dogs, yes well...be sure to have Merlin back sometime soon, ok? I don't think Jareth and his family would appreciate having to look after a dog for so long." Sarah stopped mid-chew to nod and then continued her mastication. She was just getting relaxed when he spoke up again. "And about this relationship thing..." Sarah deliberately slowed her chewing and swallowed before turning to face her father.

"I really care about him, Daddy. He's asked to court me and I haven't given him an answer but the next time I do see him he will get it."

"And that answer will be?" Karen prompted. She took her seat once more and turned her attention to Sarah with curiosity.

"Yes," she said confidently. Finished with her meal she rose from her chair and rinsed out the bowl before turning to retrieve her bag from the living room. "I'm headed off to school. See you after, love you."

"Love you too, sweetie!" Karen called.

"Have a good day, dear," Robert called after her, his brow creased with confusion and thought.

Sarah closed the door behind her and took a moment to compose herself. She had said it, she had actually admitted to having feelings for Jareth and to accepting his offer of courtship. The soft smile that graced her lips did not leave her face on her short walk to school. The school was only a short distance away from her house, even shorter so when she cut through her park. She did so with little hesitation, the summer breeze was pleasant and the sun was still softly shinning.

She arrived at school some twenty minutes later. The bell had yet to signal student arrival so she resorted to sitting under the shade of a tree. She opened her diary to check the schedule of the day and let her thoughts wander. She had admitted to her father and stepmother that she cared for Jareth but she hadn't told them that she loved him. But she wasn't sure of that either, she hadn't ever been in love before and so couldn't use that as a basis for what she felt. She would have to tread carefully and seek information for another time. She wanted to ask him how he could be so sure of himself in terms of his feelings for her but surely that could wait for another time.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the blazing of the school siren to signal the entrance of students. Sarah picked herself up and readjusted her bag on her back as she walked to one of the many entrance points of the school facilities. The drizzle of students accompanied her on her way to the lockers and continued as more of the student body arrived for the days lessons. She let herself relax at the thought of Art for her first subject and let the soft smile return.

The first half of the day consisted of lessons that distracted her from further thoughts of confusing emotions. It seemed that last night's dream or visions, she wasn't sure as to which they were as of yet, had not drained her of any energy as the previous nights had. It seemed logical, in a way. Last night had only displayed short visions of her mother, where as previously the visions had shown her the ballroom from her run and other experiences. Those had brought strong feelings out in her and rendered her exhausted the day after. Last night had actually been the first vision that hadn't consisted of anything to do with the Labyrinth.

She soon found herself reaching into her locker to retrieve her made out lunch. The usual babble of voices crowded her from each side as she walked out of the building and made her way to the oval that was parked along the school. The further she retreated from the mass the fewer voices reached her ears. The day had cooled down a bit, the sun was still hot but the breeze was cooler and a relief to heated skin.

She took her usual spot on the school grounds underneath the shade of the trees. Lunch was always spent under these trees, ever since her arrival at the school. She loved the way she could watch the habits of both the student body and the nature about her. Birds frequented the trees above her and students wandered the grassy plain further towards the school. Her spot was secluded but that was why she liked it. Today, though, it seemed that Tom and his friends were not yet done with their pestering.

She let a small smile paint her lips and tried not to turn away from the approaching figures. Tom waved to her with a warm smile and took a seat to her immediate left while his left was occupied by Amy. The rest soon followed example and they had soon formed a circle of bodies. Tom turned with a bright smile to face her.

"How ya been, sunshine, haven't seen you all day."

"We only have one subject together," she reminded, trying to keep a polite tone to her voice. She really didn't feel like trying to keep her act up at the moment. But it seemed that today was a day to test the waters as a hush came about the group and Harry leaned towards her.

"Look, Sarah, I wanted to try and apologize," he started. His face was soft but also serious and so rendered the group silent as they witnessed the admission.

However, before he could get any more of his pre-thought apology out they were visited by one very hostile looking owl. Harry's mouth snapped shut as he stared wide eyed at the predatory bird with no hidden fear. Jareth swooped close and landed gracefully on Sarah's shoulder. He wobbled slightly as he adjusted his position and kept his claws carefully from piercing her skin. Sitting to her right was Nathan who edged away slightly at his arrival.

Sarah smiled innocently and took a bite from her sandwich. She raised her eyebrows expectantly at Harry who still had yet to take his eyes off the barn owl situated on her right shoulder. She cocked her head to one side and gave him a smirk that held a close resemblance to Jareth's own, her false bravado actually giving her confidence.

"You were saying?"

"Uh, yeah," he cleared his throat, "I wanted to say sorry for yesterday. Probably wasn't the best way to act...first impressions and all."

"I see," she replied softly. He took a deep breath and met her eyes.

"I'm sorry. I acted stupidly and felt like crap afterwards. Can you forgive an idiot for being himself?" His eyes darted back to the owl that had yet to take his unnerving eyes from his face. "I really am sorry," he repeated softly.

"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day. Harry put into submission," Amy grinned. The tension that had formed in the group eased up as they laughed in credit to the statement.

"Start over?" Harry offered his hand with a hopeful smile. He tried his best to keep eye contact and ignore the avian suitor burrowing holes into his skull. Sarah nodded with slight hesitation and closed the gap to shake hands. She relaxed in her spot and listened to the small chatter that started up. She turned her head slightly to give acknowledgement to the owl perched on her shoulder.

"Back in the good books, you majesty, was the apology to your standards?" Jareth twittered into her ear but made no other move to acknowledge the question. She nodded with the slightest motion and continued to eat her lunch and listened in on the conversations taking place. The group had a total of three different topics being discussed throughout them. Nakita herself was taking part in two, giving equal attention to both and following the different directions well.

Sarah marveled at how they could discuss the things they did so freely with one another. It wasn't difficult to see that they each cared for one another on some level. Brandon and Tom were actually fairly close and joked easily with Dick and Harry. Amy kept from talking but would listen with great attention and add single sentences when she saw fit and Nathan was similar in that aspect.

She absentmindedly started stroking the soft feathers that tickled her neck and relaxed further when pressure was pushed into her palm. Glancing down, she smiled softly at the openly affectionate gesture. She was brought out of her observations when she felt eyes on her and turned her head to see that most of the group had stopped to look at her.

(AN: Ha! Thought I'd forgotten about the dog hadn't you?
Ainmire is pronounced as ahn-meer , Irish Gaelic for 'great lord'.

Again, I'm so sorry about the wait and I'm afraid that I'm going to have to tell you that I won't be able to upload again for another month or so- not my fault!
Until next time, your ever faithful personal devil awaits.)