A/N: R & R Please! If you have questions, shoot me a PM :3

'Had fallen in love with the girl...'

'Say your right words... and we'll take the child away...'

"Toby! Can you please put whatever you're doing down and come into the Kitchen! We have a guest on her way!"

The words blurred as his eyes refocused from the darkened room in his mind back to his bedroom, the small red book slipped from his fingers and falling onto the carpet with a quiet thud. His eyes darted around him, first to his watch to check the time then to his bedside unit where, within the realm of his sock drawer, the glass ball with a snatch of striped material had been stuffed so no one else could find it. He was home. Where he was meant to be. And... It was nearly 11... no one ever came over with such short notice. The boy dragged his hand down his face in a tired groan before yawning, standing from his bed finally as he heard his mother clattering around in the room below him. What a... boring book. He glanced at it as he stepped over it towards his door, ignoring the chill that ran down his spin as he sped up and hurtled down the stairs before his mother truly lost her rag at him. His feet hit the wood of the hallway and he slowed again, his hand sliding down the last of the bannister and falling limply to his side. What kind of old man 'fell in love' with a teenage girl? It was so weird! Plus, duhhh, goblins didn't exist! And they definitely didn't steal children. If they did there was no way Rory would still be around to taunt him in class for they would have gotten rid of him. Special Rory, with his stupid shoes and the stupid way he talked and all the teacher's loved him... It wasn't fair.

"Oh Toby, wipe that scowl off your face! The wind will change and you'll be stuck like that, just you watch." Karen tutted, waving the dishes towel at him as she dried the last of the previous night's dinner plates and put them back inside the cabinet they had come from.

He waited until her back was turned to stick his tongue out at her then slid into the closest chair at the table and paused. There was no food in front of him. Nor was there any on the counters. Confusion set in as he sat there, eyes following his mom as she busied around the room with more tuts and sighs and quiet phrases to herself, but she never strayed anywhere near the stove.

"...Where's breakfast? Why isn't there any breakfast out?" He asked petulantly, slumping as she finally turned round to look at him looking slightly exasperated.

"I told you- we have a guest on the way! And she'll be here for breakfast... well, brunch at this rate- not that it should be a problem considering how long it takes you to get up in the morning. You haven't even showered!" She admonished, moving to stand with her hands on her hips while one continually lifted to gesture the towel at him. "Speaking of, I had to phone your school this morning to excuse you as you missed your alarm! Sometimes I despair, Toby. I don't know what's gotten into you, I really don't!"

He rolled his eyes, staring at his knees under the well polished table as he waited out her rant and yawned again. Why he had to be there when the guest turned up he didn't know. It wasn't like they were coming to see him. His friends would be at school for a few hours yet... and judging by his mom's expression he was going to be forced to endure said guest until they left again without his gameboy. His scowled deepened.

She was such a nag! It wasn't fai-

A car door slammed outside the front of the house effectively cutting his thoughts short as his eyes rose back to his mother's glumly. Doom was imminent. He could feel his freedom leaving him like a Friday night curry.

"Well? Go and answer the door like a good boy, Toby! I'll fetch your father. Lord knows he'll still be in the lounge with his paper."

His feet dragged as he left his seat behind, grumbling under his breath. It was probably just Mrs Hutch from round the corner who'd lost her cat Tibby the other week. She'd forced him to go and find him to 'make himself useful' as he'd walked past her house with his friends, standing there in her cabbage green housecoat and unruly hair as if her very life depended on it. Sarah had just laughed down the phone at him when he'd brought it up in his best suffering voice and assured him that he had probably helped her out more than he thought. Then she'd disappeared off to go do Uni stuff and he'd went back to his games.

Surprisingly, they hadn't had their phone call this week as Toby had forgotten it was his turn to phone her, and it was only now as he faced death-by-boredom that he remembered. It was all because of that blonde guy with the pointy ears turning up in his dreams, scaring him half to death.

'Read the book, Toby.'

The clock in the hallway suddenly chimed quarter past 11, the sound ringing out in the otherwise mostly silent house. There hadn't been much sound in the home since Sarah had packed up and left a few years ago and nothing had come to fill the hole she had left. Footsteps hurried towards the front door as Toby was urged along as if by an invisible force and suddenly it swung open before his hand could get to the handle.

"SARAH!"

The raven haired woman grinned as she dropped her suitcase in the doorway, throwing her arms around her brother tightly. Her hugs had been like that as far back as he could remember, as if she was scared he would be taken away, but as he thought that a small laugh rang out from her and she pulled back to ruffle his hair. Green eyes took in the familiar decor of the hallway and the stairway as they left his face, and she stooped to pick up her trunk again as she moved further into the house to let Toby shut the door.

"Isn't it a school day, Tobe?" She asked cheekily, gesturing for him to go in front of her as she pushed her hair out of her face.

The smells were just as familiar as they filled her nose, feet carrying her past the stairs that used to be her intended path when she lived here until she got to the lounge. Leaning her head round the wood of the open door, she grinned again as she saw her Dad in the process of standing up.

"Hey Dad!"

His head shot up with a snap, eyes slightly wide in surprise before they creased in a smile and he nodded at her.

"Morning, Sarah darling. Wasn't expecting you in this neck of the woods for a while yet. Everything alright?" Robert asked lightly, setting his reading glasses atop his paper.

Toby loitered behind them for a moment, chewing the inside of his gum with a frown. Sarah seemed to freeze for a moment before she nodded enthusiastically, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Mhmm! Just felt a little homesick was all, and I had a short break to use so I thought I'd come see you. Sorry for just turning up- I phoned Karen when I was leaving and she said it was fine..." Her fingers knotted against themselves unconsciously but over her shoulder Toby saw their Dad smile sympathetically and nod yet again. Tapping the door lightly, Sarah turned, her brows jumping at him as she passed en route to the kitchen. He followed nearly on her heels then split to retake his seat, missing the glance the two women shared over his head. Food was coming, that was what was important.

"Ah, Sarah dear. Just leave that there," Karen finally said, waving a hand dismissively at the suitcase the younger woman was pulling along, "You can put it up in your room after breakfast. I hope your journey went well; you're earlier than I thought you would be."

Sarah shot a sideways look at her brother in shock as her hand slowly left the handle of her trunk, questioning what was going on as Karen was usually so nitpicky about things being left around the place. He merely shrugged and reached for the jug of orange juice now sitting in the centre of the table and she was left to take her own seat as the sounds of breakfast began to fill the kitchen.

"It was fine, there was just less traffic that usual." Was her only offered response, but the underlying edge went unnoticed as Karen busied herself and Toby immersed his face in his glass.

Robert soon appeared as the bacon hit the pan and took his own seat at the head of the table, resting his hands upon it as soon as he settled, levelling a look at Toby. The boy choked slightly mid-chug of his juice and put down his glass a little sheepishly, but the older man had already turned back to his daughter. Toby took the short reprieve to wipe his lip on his shirt and stared at his knees again.

"How is the semester going? The last time you were here you were raving about some sort of upset at the University over an art project or such. Was that resolved?"

Eggs soon followed the bacon, and the sound of the wooden spatula scrambling them against the iron pan seemed to drill right through Sarah's mind, scattering her thoughts. Maybe such a long drive on such little sleep had been a bad idea. She stifled a yawn in her sleeve.

"Oh, that. It was an 'artifact' the archaeology department found on their most recent field trip or something. But as it has no historical significance to our college nor any historical significance at all really, I asked for it to be removed so we could have room for something that actually meant something. Instead they relocated it to the fourth floor where my new dormitory for the year is. And they won't move it again." Sarah's features took on a slightly haughty edge, but no sooner had it been there than the expression immediately shifted to one of blank pleasantry.

Toby tuned out. Apparently boredom was still imminent even around his sister. The conversation continued as he diverted his gaze out of the window with a heavy sigh, his thoughts wondering back to the book lying on the floor upstairs and the weird dreams he'd been having. No more cheetos before bed was his newest personal rule- quite possibly his only rule besides the fact that friends and games came before anything else like homework or girls- but he still couldn't shake the feeling of unease in him.

Where had the glass ball with the fabric inside it come from? Why had his room smelled of earth and stone when he woke up? Why had a man in trousers that were so tight it made him wince yelled at him for dreaming and for having a sister called Sarah?

Was he a man? Toby wasn't even sure. He'd been wearing make up and heeled boots for a start. And he had like... the pointiest ears he had ever seen which couldn't be normal. And fangs. Maybe he was a vampire!

Toby jumped as a bird suddenly landed on the kitchen windowsill, apparently peering in through the glass at his Dad and Sarah. The conversation halted as he looked at it, then when he looked to the side it was to see his Dad looking at it in disbelief and Sarah with a face like she'd been slapped.

Karen gave a hoot of rage. "Blasted birds! I just polished those sills and that glass an hour ago! Argh- What is a hawk doing out here anyway?!"

Robert stood, walking over the the window whilst making shooing motions with his hands. The bird merely looked at him in what could only be conveyed as a condescending manner until he then leaned forward to swing the window outwards to dislodge it. It eventually screeched and flew off a few meters to perch in a tree, and took to glaring at him balefully from up there instead.

Toby sniggered, earning him a disapproving look from Karen, but Robert merely dusted his hands off and retook his seat. Sarah seemed to shake herself out of whatever had come over her and smiled a little weakly as the plates were brought to the table, keeping her gaze mostly averted.

No one spoke as they ate other than to ask for the salt or some form of sauce, though they each glanced towards the window every few minutes until Karen finally pulled the viols over it in a huff. Then they just focused on their food until it was finished. Robert excused himself to go to his study for 'work related' things and Karen cleared the table for the washing up. Toby took the opportunity to grab Sarah's trunk and began hauling it towards the stairs so he couldn't be roped into the dishes, evoking a laugh from his sister as she traipsed after him finally after assurances that her step mother didn't need any help. But as she faced the stairs, a feeling of dread seemed to pool in her stomach, and her steps almost slowed to a halt. The feeling of the gloved hand around her throat crept up on her and her own hand lifted to the milky skin as if to ward it off.

It was just a dream. Just a dream. It wasn't real.

She ran up the stairs.

A few hours later found Sarah stretched out on her bed, watching Toby mess around with the things she'd left behind when she'd shot off for University. The game Aliannah had given her to give Toby still sat in her trunk with her socks, all thought of it gone from her mind as a small smile played about her face. Lancelot was tucked under her arm as her brother opened her wardrobe and started making fun off all of her dress up stuff hanging in there like he did every time she came home. Somehow it never grew old, even as he retold the same jibes as before. Her eyes alighted on each item in turn as he hauled them out, giggling as he held up a purple dress against himself with a horrified expression before discarding it, but then they skipped over the next one as if scalded.

"Hey, just leave that one. I don't know why I even still have it." She called over to him, fingers pulling lightly at the bear's fur.

The look she got was one of pure 12-year-old sass, but he listened to her, dropping the sleeve of the off white/pale green dress to focus on something else. The hair ribbons slid slightly off the hanger into view but she refused to look at them as a sour taste filled her mouth. Instead she decided to focus on the teddy she held and the Gameboy she had 'confiscated' till it passed, keeping an ear out for Toby's antics so she could make the appropriate noises in the right places. The light coming in from the window threw all of the other stuffed animals into relief as well as the odd items lining her shelves but she refused to look at them too. Or the looming piece of furniture to her left with a dust throw still on it like it had been for the past 7 years which seemed to drink the light rather than reflect it back into the room. Downstairs she could hear Karen clattering about with the duster and almost rolled her eyes before she heard her Dad say something that made her laugh, then she smiled. 10 years ago she hadn't appreciated that sound, it had nearly driven her spare. It made her incredulous to think back on now. Her Dad making Karen happy had not only angered her, it had made her want to runaway from home. And now it was one of the best sounds in her life.

The girl was pulled from her reverie with the clinking of hangers and a loud derisive snort from Toby that quickly changed into something akin to recognition. That, quite frankly, baffled her as she hadn't worn anything from the closet in nearly a decade, so she sat up in a fluid movement to see what he had gotten his hands on. Her legs crossed in front of her, Lancelot falling into her lap, and her heart turned to ice as a familiar gold waistcoat was held up before her face still sitting over the cream shirt she'd always paired it with. Pulling in a steadying breath, she forced herself to grin and shrug at his expression, but he didn't smile back.

"I remember you wearing this, but you said you haven't worn this stuff since you were a kid." Toby said accusingly, staring at the clothing in question.

She sighed, rubbing her face in a tired manner. "Because I haven't, Toby. I was 14 or something last time I wore that. You weren't even able to walk yet."

He shook his head. "Then how do I remember it?"

Narrowing her eyes at her, he pressed his nose to the fabric and inhaled deeply, expression turning suspicious and finally she burst out laughing at him.

"Toby! What on earth are you doing? Just put it back already!"

"I know that smell. It's like... like..."

"Like a park? I took you to the park in it, okay? You threw up on me, it was horrifying, so once it was washed I never wore it again. Happy?" She finally threw at him, hands thrown out to the sides placatingly. They slowly dropped back to her knees and she shook her head at him as if it was him making a big deal of it all. As if her heart hadn't started pounding enthusiastically like a mariachi band had taken up residence in her chest.

He gave in after a moment, giving a half hearted nod as he turned away to put it back on the rack, then paused. 'It smells like my room smelled. There was no grass. No trees. Just... stone. And... laughter. And someone shouting...'

He turned around quickly and tossed it at her, grinning at her mischievously. "It's huge! Go try it on, I bet it still fits- plus if it's been in there as long as you say, you can't still be scared of a little baby sick." He challenged, brows lifting at her as he folded his arms.

Sarah scowled. "It's not going to fit."

"Try it."

"No."

"Try it!"

"No!"

"Why are you being such a big baby? If it doesn't fit then it doesn't fit, but at least try! C'mon Sarah, it'll be funny!"

She glared at him, then looked down at herself. Then lifted her head in looking smug. "It won't fit over my jumper shirt. I can't."

Toby looked at her for a moment, then down at the shirt she held, then looked back at her defiantly. "Then put on the shirt too. There's no way you're too big for that as well. Mom says you were wearing a jumper from your 15th birthday the last time you were here, so you can't be."

"You sound like one of my friends. Y'know, like a girl? Usually girls are the ones into dress up Toby."

He just stood there looking defiantly back at her as he held her gaze, then she groaned and made a shooing motion at him.

"Fine, fine. I'll try them on. But not while you're in here, so out. I'll call on you when I'm changed if it works." She muttered darkly, tossing the pieces to the side along with Lancelot. Brothers were insufferable sometimes.

He all but skipped out with a muffled 'Yessss!' and shut the door behind him, leaving her alone in the silence of what was once her realm. It almost all seemed to come crashing down on her as she finally stood from the bed, removing the waistcoat and shirt from their hanger. What had once been her world. Part of her was sure she had tossed the garments out before she left along with a few other things... yet here they were. Her heartbeat thudded against her rib cage as she stripped off her layers from the slightly chilly morning and her fingers lifted the shirt towards her.

'Give me the child...'

Her arm slid into the first sleeve, the feeling all too familiar as she forced a swallow past the lump in her throat. Her hand caught slightly at the cuff but then glided past it. Her other arm followed suit into it's own sleeve and she pulled it up over her shoulder's, freeing her hair as the collar came to rest around her neck.

'Thirteen hours...'

The buttons were a bit stiff from disuse but she eventually fought them into place, frustrated at the fact that the shirt still very much fit her. The waistcoat was snatched up in irritation and thrown over too, left open just like before as she stomped over to her door and flung it open.

"Toby?"

What greeted her was silence. Toby was nowhere to be seen, gone from where he'd taken up station outside her door. Downstairs, Karen and Robert were making no noise either, so the quiet seemed to deepen as she stood in the doorway of her room. Outside, the sun had disappeared behind thundery looking clouds and the wind got picked up a little to rattle around the outside of the old house, making it's interior seem that bit more gloomy with the lack of lights. Directly in front of her across the landing, Toby's room sat in darkness, his curtains still unopened from when he'd gotten up that morning.

"...Toby...?"

The clock chimed, sending an icy shiver down her spine, but she forced herself to ignore it as she crept forward.

'I wish the Goblins would take you away...'

"Toby...?!"

She came to his doorway, her hand curling around the wood of the frame, peering into the darkness as if expecting to see something small... fast...

"BOO!"

A scream left her as she whirled round, eyes wide in fear, only to see Toby on the floor behind her in fits of giggles. Anger quickly replaced the fear and she bent down to smack his shoulder with a small yell of frustration then she stepped over him towards the stairs.

"You are such an ass!"

The boy wiped at his eyes as tears of mirth spilled down his face, moving slowly after her as he continued to laugh.

"You should have seen your face, sis. It was hilarious."

She stuck her tongue out at him and peered out the hallway window as her hand rested on the banister, scowl still in evidence until it molded into confusion. "...Where's the car?"

"Oh, Mum and Dad went out for a bit. Apparently Dad has this super important meeting with some guy that he needs Mum to go with him to, so it's just us. They told me to tell you that it might be just us for dinner but they left money for pizza." He looked out over her shoulder and shrugged, running down the stairs as he called over his shoulder, "Told you they would still fit! You look cool!"

Rolling her eyes, she started down the stairs then paused. Walking backwards back up to the landing, her eyes traveled back to what was once Karen and her Dad's room, the room that was now Toby's. The darkness seemed to call to her, egging her on as she began to walk towards it, and yet again she found herself poised at the entry not a moment later. Everything had changed, besides the large french windows that Toby always kept covered with his curtains. The four poster was now downstairs in the expansion Robert had commissioned to be built as soon as Toby had begun to walk, where Karen and his bedroom was now situated. Pressing a hand to her forehead, she let out a laugh at how ridiculous she had just been and turned to leave, halting yet again as something caught her eye from the floor.

The red leather, golden embossed book that had caused it all.

But what was it doing... in here?

Sarah turned on her heel, taking the stairs two at a time in her haste to confront her brother. Behind her, unnoticed yet again, a glowing rectangle of light lit up her room from beneath its dust cover... then faded to let the dark rush back in to claim the space it had taken.

"Wanna go to the park? I bet Merlin would love it-"

"Why was this on your floor, Toby? Were you in my room again?"

The adolescent's eyes dropped to the book and he looked ceiling-ward, groaning as he walked away from her. "Oh, that thing. It is so boring! I don't get how you liked it so much."

Sarah slid it into her back pocket on reflex, her shirt falling to cover it as her hands threw up in front of her. "Not the point! Answer me- or am I going to have to speak to Dad about getting a lock put on my room to stop you taking things out of it?" She snapped, folding her arms this time as she stood with her hip slightly to the side.

He shot her a puzzled look, Gameboy in his hand going ignored as he chanced a look around them. "You left the stuff in there because Mom wouldn't put it out, not because you still wanted it. What's the big deal?"

"Because it's junk! Stupid junk I'll probably have to put out myself, as Karen won't. You've never been bothered by any of it before, so why now? What's got you reading "The Labyrinth"? You've never liked fairytales!"

Toby's lip stuck a bit as he jutted his chin out defiantly, refusing to meet her eye. "Felt like it. That's the story you used to read to me, I wanted to know what the story was as you never finished it. Mum said it gave you nightmares." He looked at her back pocket where the outline of the book was shown under her shirt then finally looked at her. "Don't see why, Jareth isn't scary. Just weird. He 'fell in love' with a teenage-"

"Don't say his name!"

His mouth dropped open in shock as she all but shouted at him, then shut quickly as he stepped away from her. "Why not? Why are you yelling- you never yell at me, Sarah. What's so bad about this boring book?"

Sarah spun away from him, stalking towards the front door for Merlin's lead before remembering he didn't need one. He never had. Forcing herself to remain calm, she walked back into the room and came to a stop in front of him with a helpless look. "I'm sorry, okay? It's been a stressful day and I haven't slept much this week due to exams. That book... It was an unhealthy obsession that spiraled out of control due to my overactive imagination. I don't like talking about it."

The clock chimed again, tolling four o'clock, and she looked over her shoulder quickly before turning back to him. "Let's... let's just go walk Merlin, okay? When we get back, if you're so interested, we'll talk about the book and order pizza. Fair?"

The boy shrugged, pulling his jumper from the back of the settee where he'd hidden it from his Mother's cleaning. "Can we talk about it while we're out, then play games when we get back? I want to know who Jareth is."

Her stomach gave a sickening lurch, but she nodded. "... Fine. We can talk about J.. about Jareth and everything else at the park. I have a game from Ali to give you when we get back anyway."

"Aw sweet!" Toby sat on the edge of the couch to pull on his shoes, accidentally knocking the newspaper onto the floor. "...Oops. Hey look, apparently there's been an unusual spike in the amount of weird birds around here. Owls and everything... hey, do you think that's why that hawk was there during breakfast?"

Sarah scoffed, heading towards the garage. "Who knows, it's just a bird."

"I guess. It's not like they're people!"

Merlin all but bodily knocked her over as she opened the door to the garage and she laughed, leading the 15 year old dog back through the house as she did her best to ignore Toby's statement. The walk to the park was uneventful, owl and hawk-less, though she subconsciously kept an eye out for either just in case as Toby ran in front with the dog. Catching her reflection as they passed a line of parked cars, she barely restrained the urge to go back to the house and change as she realised she'd forgotten to take the waistcoat and such off before heading out. Oh what larks, to have siblings like Toby. She felt about his age, again. Hell, she almost looked about his age again. Karen and her Dad were going to have a field day when they got back and saw her.

A puff of glitter fell as she walked across the street into the park, but before it hit the asphalt it contorted and grew until it became pair of yellowed, bulging eyes sat under one of the cars, fixed to her retreating back. Then with a wheezing laugh, the goblin scurried off back the way the pair and dog come with a few others appearing to join it.