"Finally, you listen to me after all of these years," she said and began to twirl about the Mirror while humming an old tune. Then she stopped and held out her ghostly hand. "Baron, would you dance with me?"

With a brief sadness, The Baron took her hand. As they twirled about the room, around the mirror, and repeating steps, he wondered if this was truly necessary, or if she was just wishing to torment him longer.

Nick watched as the Grey Lady and the Baron danced together. Everything they were doing here was out of desperation, and he wondered if they were going to be successful with their efforts. For the good of Hogwarts, he hoped so.

As she and the Baron danced together around the mirror, the Grey Lady continued to hum a tune, her voice becoming slightly louder with each revolution around the mirror. "Come, Sir Nicholas. Dance with us."

Nick joined the Grey Lady and the Baron in the dance, beginning to twirl around the room with them in a circle. Soon the Friar would join in and the pattern would be complete.

"You're a wonderful dancer, Sir Nick," the Grey Lady complimented him and then saw the brooding figure of her long lost love staring at them.

The Baron watched Nick and the Lady swirl around the mirror and felt a pang of jealousy. A wonderful dancer? He'd show her who was the better dancer. With one swift movement her joined back in the dance, cutting Nick out of the picture, and began swirling around the room once again with his Lady.

"Oh, ho ho!" squealed the Fat Friar in sheer delight and clapped his ghostly hands together like a child. "My turn, my turn!" He cut in and gazed up at a surprised Grey Lady. "When did you get so tall, m'lady?"

A large, fat man shoved the Baron away from his Lady and danced away with her. If he had a heart, it would surely be boiling over with jealousy.

Floating over to the dancing duo, he body checked the Friar out of the way and took his place once again, dancing around the mirror with the beautiful Ravenclaw ghost. 'I must get her out of here before one of the others cut in again.' With that thought he slowly began to steer their dancing towards the door.

"You flatter me!" she smiled and patted the Friar's head just as the Baron shoved the religious man away from her. He floated backwards through the wall and Sir Nick followed after him. Helena's attention was now on her long lost love. "Baron, we've always danced well together, haven't we?" she asked him tenderly as he waltzed them out of the room and out of sight.

A tinctured head poked out of the wall and so did two pudgy hands. "Oopsie daisy!" A loud pop was heard and the hidden door was unsealed. Whatever spell that had the room blocked had been lifted and the Fat Friar vanished once more.

Jake wandered along to the portrait and pressed his ear against it. Nothing. At first, when he placed his hand on the handle, Jake was convinced it wouldn't budge, and was surprised when it opened.

There was an eerie feeling in the room now. It was cold... spooky. Jake eyed the mirror as he entered, shutting the portrait behind him. He stepped closer, remembering how he was so determined not to look into it last time.

Glancing away, Jake couldn't help but see the recognisable face of a man, holding the hand of a 4-year-old boy, both behind Jake. Breathing quickly, he checked to see if anyone was there, but nothing.

"Trick of the light," Jake murmured, going back to sit next to the mirror and wait, wait for... something.

She was panting when she slid in front of the dragon portrait again. She was scared she wouldn't find it again. And now she was all alone and could stand in front of that mirror till she grew old. She reached out and turned the handle and scrambled inside and she stopped dead when she saw Jake. She groaned. "Oh Jake what are you here," She asked softly.

Jake looked up when he heard Paris. "Erm..." he replied. What was he doing there? "I just wanted to come back, and... wait..."

Truth be told, there was something deep inside of Jake that made him want to see, but now he was just confused. He'd looked, and he hadn't understood. Unless he was right, of course, and he hadn't seen anyone.

"Why? What are you doing here...?"

She looked at Jake as he looked scared that she had found him in that room. She wanted to be alone in there, she wanted to look into that mirror as long as she could and without someone walking in on her and ruining her moment.

She straightened up and pushed her short red and blond hair of out her face and she caught her breathe. "I was just coming...I heard that Myrtle...Don't ask me..." She didn't want to tell him that she wanted to come back and look in the mirror. She sighed, "I wanted to be alone in here and look in the mirror." She told him.

"Fine..." Jake nodded, hugging his legs and propping his chin on top of his knees. "Make sure you close the portrait," he added, not getting the hint that Paris wanted to be alone.

Jake stared across the room for a moment, trying to think of who that man could have been. The first thought that came to his mind was that it was his Dad, but Jake didn't exactly obsess over meeting him. And who in Hengist of Woodcroft's name was the kid.

"Trick of the light," Jake muttered again. Of course, he really knew that if he'd look, he'd see some massive creature that would be able to do his bidding and squish those who hated him.

Or so he thought.

Jake looked up at Paris. "Do you think we can have desires, that we don't actually know we have?"

She looked at him. She wasn't going anywhere, she wanted to be alone in the room and she was waiting for him to leave, but it looked like he wasn't. She sighed and walked over to him and sat down beside him. She laid her head on his shoulder and he sat staring into space. They were both quiet for a minute as they both lost themselves in their thoughts. "Sure we can Jake. Sometimes we aren't honest with ourselves and we have desires that we don't want to admit. Or desires we don't know enough about ourselves to know that we want yet." She said softly.

"Oh..." Jake replied, chewing on his lip. "That makes sense..." but it suuuuhhhcks.

Jake closed his eyes a little, thinking for a moment, about home. He hadn't thought about home much recently, hadn't wanted to, but now here he was.

"Life can be pretty unfair at times, huh?" he asked, half lost in thought. Wow... heavy, man.

She snuggled up closer to him. He seemed to need her right now and she wanted to be there for him. He wasn't his usually bouncy self. She didn't know what to say to him. Her life had never been hard. She had two wonderful parents who loved her socks off. She had all the money she could even spend. She had 6 brothers and sisters who she loved to death and they always had tons of fun together, she wouldn't trade her life for anything in the world. "Yeah it can be. My dad was homeless for a few years before he met my mothers." She told him honestly. She'd never told anyone that before. "It doesn't always have to stay hard though Jake." She sat up and looked at him. "Do you want to talk about it?" She asked softly.

Jake listened to Paris, closing his eyes. That stupid mirror, turning him into this. Pshhhh... he'd have to find the person that took his sugar supply too.

Jake shrugged. "It's just..." Jake thought for a second. He hadn't really told many people this. Well, he sorta had, but not the whole story. "People... have always told me I'm weird, not normal... and I know I'm not..." Jake explained. It sounded stupid out loud. "And that is just a tiny part of my problems. There's the fact that since I was 9 years old, I didn't even leave my house, and stopped going to school, because they couldn't handle me. I have never met my dad, and my mum avoided being around me for the last year..."

Jake glanced at Paris. "And before this summer, I never had friends. Ever... I probably could explain the main deal, but it would be kind of fruitless, plus, it's hard to put into words..."

Jake stared ahead for a moment, contemplating things.

Theo was not looking for anything in particular. Maybe he was secretly looking for Lyra, or a new friend. He frowned as he glanced upon a potrait of a dragon. It looked well cool. He had never seen a real dragon before. He stood looking at it, smiling happily. When he noticed it had a handle. Portraits didn't usually have handles. Did they?

He pulled on the handle and the portrait opened. Even odder. He went "inside". Now he was freaked out. He saw a giant mirror and at its base two people.

"Hello. Where am I?" he asked.

Jake looked up as the portrait opening shook him out of his reverie. "Hi..." he replied. "You are... here..."

Okaaaaaaay... now he sounded like a talking map at a tourist attraction or something. Jake jerked his head towards the mirror.

"Take a gander."

Theo giggled. "I know I am here," he kept giggling. He sat down next to Jacob. He frowned, "What does gander mean?" He played with the dirt awkwardly. He felt a bit stupid. Well very stupid.

Jake smiled. "It's slang, I think," he replied. "It means 'Take a look'.... in the mirror..." Jake shifted a little awkwardly. "I use phrases like that alot."

Theo looked at Jacob. "Erm its just a mirror isn't it?" he frowned. He knew what he looked like. An 8 year old, in little peoples clothes. "I have a mirror at home."