A/N- Omigod! I haven't updated in so long...This is just pathetic-even for me. I am so sorry to anyone whose actually been following this story. My life's gotten really busy lately and I just didn't have the time and I was exhausted so I didn't update. Sorry once more. I will try to get the next chapter up by the end of this week but no guarantees. Anyway, we're back to Janine's pov here so enjoy! Don't forget to Review!

Chapter Three

"Have you ever been in love? It makes you so vulnerable. It opens your chest and it opens up your heart and it means that someone can get inside you and mess you up."-Neil Gaiman

A chirp. A tweet. A bird perches on the bare branch in the middle of winter. Another flies down next to him, his old nestmate. They have not left each other's sides since flight, too afraid of large world that awaits them. His voice rises, she joins his chorus. Together they sing.

The window next to them slams shut. Lord Slevesky would like to sleep; the chirping of birds has awoken him too early. One floor below him, Janine Hathaway stares at a computer screen. She has not slept all night.

They've found the princess. She had only stared at him blankly when the guardian had informed her. Why did another spoiled runaway brat matter to her? The only missing person she cared about was nowhere to be seen; Rose had been very skilled at hiding herself from prying eyes.

Then the guardian had told her the news had brought her to her knees. They had found her daughter with the princess. Suddenly, she couldn't know enough. The guardian revealed that the retrieval mission had been scheduled for this morning. She had been at the computer since, waiting for the news. Her computer pinged, the screensaver going light. Within seconds, Janine had opened the email and greedily read the words in contained. When she finished she leaned back in her chair and just laughed. Rosemarie was alright.

Then a new problem struck Janine. What was she going to say to her daughter? Rose knew better than what she had shown, or at least Janine had thought so. Then again, she mused cynically, it wasn't like she knew. Janine knew perfectly well that she had neglected Rose for much of her young life. She had no delusions about the fact that Rose was more than just resentful about it. However, if Janine wanted to be fair, she had turned her back on Rose for these past few years as well. Her petty actions were fueled by her wounded pride, underserving anger for Rose's retaliation.

Janine knew it was her fault. In the beginning, she hadn't been willing to try or remember what she and Abe had shared. She'd left Rose behind for her blissful silence and Rose had never forgotten it. Now it was too late to mend what she had lost, too late to apologize to her daughter.

Rose would no longer believe anything from her mother, would no longer trust her. But Janine was sorrier than Rose would ever know and she couldn't do anything about it. So Janine chose the only response she knew Rose would accept.

She turned to the computer, typed and clicked send. Miles away, in an empty dorm room, a lonely girl opened an email, unable to see the emotion behind it. She read it then stormed off in a bitter rage. Her mother had proven once again that she really couldn't give a damn about Rose.

The computer monitor blared, the message lit up by the bright tiny screen.

I'm glad you're back. What you did was unacceptable.

A chirp. A tweet. A spring melody. The little fledgling has grown up, and he and his nest mate are growing farther apart. She has found another bird to keep her company. He has yet to try. He begins his morning routine, full of unexplainable hope. Above him, another bird joins in, matching his tune. Together they sing.

Her step is lighter, her eyes are eager. It is the subtle signs that betray the heart. She has yet to realize, but her heart has made the fall. Someway, somehow, her ice armor has cracked and he has wormed his way in. She doesn't understand why her knees go weak around him and her breath is stolen. But she is slowly beginning to comprehend.

Lissa talks of her boyfriend and Rose listens, feeling the foreign emotions the whole time through the bond. She compares the symptoms, the strange impulses he induces. The way she can't form a single coherent thought around him only solidifies her theory. Rosemarie Hathaway, the ice queen, has fallen in love.

Alarm bells mask the sound of angel's chorus. Rose is furious with herself. She should know better, her heart should have known better. The breach is registered; the backup security kicks while Rose works on rebuilding her walls with fragile excuses.

Come on, Rosemarie. He's your freaking teacher. He'll never want you like that. Love only means pain and pain is bad. Her futile excuses allowed her a few moments of peace before her head lost the battle. When it comes time for flight or fight, the heart is always the first to turn traitor.

That night, a lonely girl wages war in the solitude of her bedroom, but her defenses have crumbled. Janine's actions have left open wounds that refuse to close, still as raw as the day they were formed.

Across the campus, an empty man fights a battle of his own. Experience has warned him against loving but has not shielded him from his heart. Yet, something in him calls to her, recognizes her soul as his.

After all, one drowning man can recognize the signs of another who is going under.