"Wayne!" Stacey cried, jumping to her feet. Instinctively, Hoggle tried to back away, but Wayne quickly held up his hand.
"Wait," he beseeched, entering the room completely. "It's okay. You don't have to hide. It's just that…it's been a very long time since I've seen an actual dwarf. I never thought I'd ever see one in person again."
"A...again?" Hoggle gaped, immediately catching on to Wayne's words.
"Yes, again," Wayne confirmed, smiling kindly at Hoggle. "Tell me, you're from the Underground, aren't you?"
"Wayne?" Stacey's jaw dropped. "You know about the Underground?"
"I do," Wayne nodded. "I've known about the Underground for years. Ever since I was young."
"But how?"
"I told you a long time ago, Stacey," Wayne explained. "You remember how I had a younger brother once? I told you that I lost him, but…maybe it's time I told you how I lost him. I was twelve when it happened. Our father was off at work, and our mother had going out shopping for a few hours. So I was left in charge of looking after my little brother. But while our mother was out, my brother ended up breaking one of my favorite records. Even then, I knew it was just an accident, but…I wasn't in a good mood that day. I can't really remember why, though. It was too long ago. But when I saw the broken record…I supposed I just snapped. And…I said something I've regretted ever since."
"You said the words, didn't you?" Hoggle concluded, instantly realizing what Wayne was telling them. "You wished the goblins would take him away…"
"Right now," Wayne nodded sadly. "Yes, that's exactly what I'd said."
"That's what happened to Sarah and Toby, two years before they first moved here," Stacey remembered. "Sarah told me that she'd said those same words when she was babysitting Toby when he was still a baby, and wouldn't stop crying."
"Seeing as how Toby's still around," Wayne stated, "It's clear Sarah was able to save him. I…I wasn't as fortunate. In the end, I was forced to return home without him, burdened with the impossible task of figuring out how to explain to my parents that their youngest son was gone forever, knowing that no one would believe what really happened.
"When my brother disappeared, it tore my family apart. And…knowing that I was responsible for us loosing him was more that I could bear. So when I became old enough, I left my hometown for good and moved here to Kent, wanting to start over and get away from all those memories."
"Wayne, I'm so sorry," Stacey whispered.
"What's done is done," Wayne sighed heavily. "Dwelling on things that cannot be changed won't bring my brother back. Right now, the important thing is what is happening today. Seeing as how you have a dwarf from the Underground here in this room, I take it that that's where you've been all this time. Hasn't it, Stacey?"
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you, Wayne," Stacey bowed her head. "I didn't want to keep things from you. I just didn't know how to explain."
"I know," Wayne nodded in understanding. "It is almost impossible to explain to anyone who hasn't seen proof of the Underground's existence first hand. I am not mad at you for not telling me about this. After all, there was no way you could have known I already knew about that world. But…that doesn't explain why this dwarf has came into this world."
"My name is Hoggle," Hoggle introduced himself. "And my friends and I have come here so we could come up with a plan to save the Underground."
"There's this thing called the Agnostic," Stacey took over for Hoggle. "It's destroying the entire Underground. We returned to this world to try and figure out how to stop it. There's only a few of us left. Everyone else has already become victims of the Agnostic. If we can't stop it soon, the Underground will die."
For a long moment, Wayne was absolutely quiet, seemingly studying Stacey and Hoggle's faces. Finally he spoke.
"Stacey, why don't you go downstairs for a bit? See if we can make a dinner reservation over at Pufferbelly's for three."
"We're going out to eat?" Stacey asked.
"Yes, I think that would be nice, don't you? After all, it is almost dinnertime, and it's clear the three of us have a lot to talk about. It just makes sense to have the three of us talk over dinner."
"Yeah, I guess you're right," Stacey agreed. But instead of going off to make the reservation, she cautiously glanced between Hoggle and Wayne, seemingly unsure about leaving them alone together. Noticing this, Wayne chuckled lightly.
"Oh, don't worry about Hoggle, Stacey," he said with a smile. "I was just thinking he'll need a change of clothes. After all, his current attire isn't something you normally see on a daily basis, and it might lead to quite a few unwelcome stares, at best. Since he and I are the same height, I'm sure some of mine will fit him."
"Okay," Stacey nodded. Pausing only one second longer to give Hoggle a supportive smile, she turned and climbed down the ladder.
"Well, then," Wayne turned to Hoggle with a warm smile. "It was Hoggle, was it?"
"Yes, Mr. Faber," Hoggle nodded.
"Oh, none of that," Wayne held back a laugh. "You're obviously a very good friend of Stacey's, so you're free to call me Wayne. I was just wondering if you'd be kind enough to fill me in on what Stacey's been doing for the past few years while we find you something to wear tonight."
"Um…yes, I can do that," Hoggle replied.
During the hours between dinner and Toby's bedtime, Sarah sat in her room watching a report on the news. Toby, Sir Didymus and Theseus were perched on Sarah's bed, and like Sarah, their concern was etched on their faces as they listened to what had been occurring all over the world. From the sound of it, a great number of cities had been greatly affected by floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, landslides and volcanic eruptions, and all within the past week.
"All these disasters," Sarah spoke softly. "And they all seem to be happening at once. It's like…it's the end of the world or something."
"What's happening, Sarah?" Toby asked, the fear evident in his voice.
"I don't know, Toby," Sarah replied, reaching out to gently rub Toby's back in hopes of calming him.
"I do wonder," Sir Didymus thought out loud. "When I was a young squire, my mother and father would tell me about how the Underground was connected to this world. It was an old legend that many parents in the Underground told their children."
"What was the legend?"
"It was said, my lady, that the Underground was born out of the imaginations of those who lived in your world, when humans first began telling stories. For that reason, the Underground drew strength from this world. In return, the Underground provided the people of this world with what they needed to come up with new ideas, and new stories. It was an eternal cycle, in which neither world could exist without the other."
"And…that would mean," Sarah spoke slowly, realizing what Sir Didymus was saying, "that if one world is in danger, both worlds would be affected. And because the Agnostic's destroying the Underground, our world is being threatened as well."
"That is how it would appear to be," Sir Didymus nodded grimly.
Before anything else could be said, there was a knock at the door, which opened immediately afterward, giving Sir Didymus and Theseus barely enough time to pretend to be stuffed toys again.
"Toby," Irene announced, poking her head though the door. "Bedtime. Let's go."
"Aw, Momma," Toby whined, reluctantly sliding off Sarah's bed. "I'm not tired."
"Don't argue with me," Irene instructed. "Come on."
"Night, Sarah," Toby mumbled, trudging out of the room.
Once Irene had closed the door again, Sarah turned back to Theseus and Sir Didymus.
"Well, then," she stated with conviction. "If these disasters are tied to the Agnostic attacking the Underground, the situation is even worse than we thought. It's a good thing we're meeting with Stacey, Hoggle and Daedalus tomorrow in the park. As long as the Agnostic is loose in the Underground, neither of our worlds are safe. We have to beat it. To save the Underground, and this world as well."
AN: Well, that was the final quiet chapter of this story. The next chapter will begin the buildup to the climax. Hope everyone enjoys it.
Also, the restaurant Wayne mentions in this chapter was a real place in Kent, Ohio. It was a former train depot that was turned into an eatery. Unfortunately, it appears to have been permanently closed down recently. But, since this story takes place around 1990, I figure the place was still open at the time.