In response to guest reviewer sofia - no, I did not intentionally copy that from the book, but thank you for pointing that out! To be honest, it was awhile ago when I wrote that chapter, and it's possible that I subconsciously copied the line, but to my knowledge that was merely part of my writing style and original. I'm very sorry if that bothered you, and let me know in the reviews if any of you would like for me to change it. I don't believe that it's a huge issue, but copying can be offensive to some people, so yes, let me know. I hope that didn't detract from your opinion of the story, and would appreciate it if your next review (if there is one) included some feedback on my writing as well. Thanks!

Kate

"Milligan!" she cried, rushing over to her father. He received her rambunctious embrace with the expertise of one accustomed to Kate Wetherall hugs (bracing himself and taking a deep breath before she crushed him with the bare strength of her arms), then pulled away, ruffling up Reynie's hair.

"What happened? What's going on?" Sticky asked breathlessly. "Who are you?"

The blond woman was hanging back, watching the scene unfold. She was also, Kate observed, staring at Milligan a great deal. This bothered her slightly.

To the side, Mr. Benedict and Constance were having a joyful reunion as Constance tripped over her words trying to fill him in on everything. "Shh," he finally said, placing a hand on her head. "Give yourself time to breathe." In fact, she was so very excitable that this exchange was followed by an hour-long bout of hiccups.

Everyone was chatting hurriedly, quite avoidant of the dire nature of the situation, which left S.Q. to ask the obvious question. Rubbing his neck self-consciously - no one was throwing their arms around him - he tapped Milligan gingerly on the arm and said, "How are we getting out?"

This sobered them all up instantly. "Goodness gracious, S.Q., why didn't you say something earlier?" asked Kate. "How are we getting out?"

"Why, through the vent, I assumed," said Reynie.

Milligan and Harper exchanged a sharp look and a flurry of nods and random hand gestures. Kate scowled and cleared her throat. They both turned towards her at once and quieted.

"Where does it lead?" asked Constance. S.Q. had picked her up again and she was looking very smug and comfortable indeed. "I mean, is it - hiccup - safe?"

"Well, when we came here, the hall was empty, but there's no promising that it'll be empty if we try to go back that way, and I don't know if we could get you all outside in time," Harper explained. "I don't know, Milligan, what do you think?"

He struggled with himself for a moment, then sighed, "Kate, I know you're raring to go, but you realize how serious this situation is, right?"

Kate was bobbing up and down on her feet, glancing anxiously up at the vent and back at her father imploringly. "Can I at least go take a look and then give you the all clear? I'll come back if there's a problem."

Mr. Benedict and Milligan murmured to each other for a moment, and then the latter said, "Okay. You can go as long as Harper accompanies you."

Kate, who'd jumped up, groaned. "Harper? Why?" She looked at the woman in distaste.

"Because, Kate," Milligan said warningly, "you are still underage by a great deal and have a rather hot head sometimes. You are impulsive, which is a good thing, but can sometimes put you at a disadvantage in the 'good judgment' department."

"Right," Kate said grumpily. "Okay, then."

Harper gave a weak smile. "I'll boost you up."

"Good luck," whispered Reynie, squeezing Kate's hand. "I'll be here."

"Thanks," she said somewhat distractedly, as she was already clambering up and gripping onto the edge of the opening. Nimbly, she slipped inside and disappeared in under five seconds.

"I'm impressed," Harper commented. Kate made a muffled comment which no one could quite pick out - probably a good thing. "Okay, Kate? Will you pull me up?"

"Hold on." There was a fumbling, and then the rope dropped down from the ceiling. Harper seized it and nimbly joined the girl. "So who are you, really?" Kate asked a bit rudely, slipping through the vent.

"I told you, I'm Harper."

"Don't think I don't notice you staring at my dad," commented Kate. Her tone was light, but vaguely threatening.

"I - what?"

"Oh, never mind," she snapped. "Come on, then."

Realizing abruptly that, for once in her life, she was not the person waiting impatiently for everybody else to catch up, Harper scurried through the passageway and halted obediently at Kate's outstretched hand. "Do you see anyone?"

"No, but I can't be sure." Kate struggled for a moment to extract something from her pocket. Unfortunately, her arm was at too awkward an angle to do so, and, gritting her teeth, she asked painfully, "Do you happen to have a telescope on you?"

"What? Oh, yeah, of course!"

"Thank you." Kate grabbed it from Harper and stuck her head out, assessing the situation. The hallway was empty from what she could see, and without another word she began scooting backwards, accidentally kicking the woman's nose in the process. "Sorry," she said curtly, and then a wave of guilt subsumed her. What had gotten into her?

It was just that she felt as if she'd only just gotten her father back, and she didn't want anybody else to come in and mess up their dynamic. Though she would never admit it to herself, she was scared - for a multitude of primarily valid reasons. For one, she didn't want to die here, and was determined to make the Ten Men pay for what they'd done. Secondly, this business with Reynie was frightening in an altogether different way. Her fear of Harper was similar: the appearance of this new woman was uncomfortable on a deep emotional level. If she lost either Reynie's friendship or her father's focus, she didn't know what to do. Like many of us, the prospect of change simply was not a welcome one to her.

Resolving to be kinder, she asked courteously, "Do you want to tell the others it's safe?"

"Sure," said Harper as Kate pulled out the rope as they neared the entrance.

"Cool," Kate said, smiling briefly, and for a moment everything was just peachy.

That is, until they descended from the ceiling and found McCracken smirking at them amongst the children - including Cleo - Mr. Benedict, Milligan, and S.Q., all of whom were gagged, handcuffed, and unconscious.

Author's note (cont'd):

StarburstAwesomeness, I have yet to hear from you in regards to your oneshot, so PM me if you are still interested. agirlgleek144, I've lost track at this point of if I'm using your suggestions from awhile back, but I've decided to write you a oneshot anyway, for being patient and wonderful, if you're interested!