Disclaimer: I own nothing and profit none.

A/N: I've joined National Novel Writing Month! And this is my attempt. So, you've been warned. My goal is to post a 2,000 word chapter a day, every day, until I hit the 50,000 word goal. As such, the quality may be - alarming, but hopefully it will give me a good writing workout! Of course, as I'm also trying to write an original work with the same guidelines, I might just implode sometime around Week 2.

For those of you anxiously awaiting the next chapter of Aftermath, I promise it will not be forgotten. If this works out like I hope, then I'll be inspired to write more and get that next chapter out without a hideously long wait. Again.

One last thing - is anyone else out there doing NaNoWriMo? You really should! And then we should all form a support group, 'cause this might kill us.

OH, one last, last thing. (I promise that made sense.) This is Will/Helen/Declan, like it says on the bottle, and takes place in the same universe as my previous fic Tea Service, but that's about where the similarity ends. As you could probably tell from the rating. It's going to be a slow buildup to a solid relationship and while the rating might go up, this story is going to be a lot more plot focused. Which won't be too hard considering the lack of, well, plot to Tea Service.

That's it! Read, enjoy, join NaNoWriMo with me, or just root that I'll make it! (Or that I'll implode. Not gonna deny that'd be kinda cool.)

Current total word count: 2,322

"From now on, we make our own rules." - Magnus

In retrospect, Will could pinpoint any number of 'starting points.' When Magnus brought him into the Sanctuary, when Declan took over for Watson, most certainly when he came up with an - unusual - method of distracting two workaholic perfectionists*, and hundreds of events small and large that had shaped them for the present. Hell, maybe it all began when his mother was killed or Magnus had injected herself with the Source blood.

When the dominoes truly began to fall though, Will had decided after much careful consideration, was much later. After Magnus performed her best Evil Knievel impression and Declan was left in charge of the surface, with Will trying his best to be in both places at once as the newly appointed liaison. Months later, when Will's responsibilities and Abby's continued work with SCIU and the reality of dating someone you never really see set it, the balanced life that Will still desperately sought began to tilt out of all recognition.

Really, it all started with a phone call.

"Abby? No, this is fine," Will unloaded an armful of books onto his no-longer painfully neat Underground Desk. So named to set it apart from it's counterpart in London. And the one in New York. He really needed a better system of keeping things straight. "I could definitely use a research break about now," he tried a laugh to make sure she knew that he was kidding. "No, really, it's fine, I have time." Okay, not the moment for humor, got it. Moving on. "What's up?"

Will wasn't dumb, although sometimes a bit slow in the relationship department, he knew what was coming the moment Abby sighed and the words 'I thought we needed to talk' entered the conversation. A fleeting desire to pretend that an emergency had just cropped up passed as he set himself down heavily in his Underground Chair. It would merely be postponing the inevitable.

Instead, he listened, muttering hums of agreement and the occasional soft note of resigned rebuttal as Abby talked. Clearly, she had been contemplating this for some time. If he wanted, Will mused, he could probably play Breakup Bingo with her obviously rehearsed speech. We don't see each other much, check. We're drifting apart, check. We're moving in different directions, check. I don't want to hurt you, I think this would be better for both of us, I hope we can still be friends, check, check, check. And the final reason, her voice turning hesitant for the first time as she offered the 'I've kind of met someone' card. Bingo.

Abby swept on past the revelation, no doubt to try out new platitudes, but Will cut in at last. He didn't really want to hear how it wasn't that serious - yet - or how to become one of her 'friends' to call went the world went belly-up again. "You're right," he acknowledged. "I guess I didn't realize that long-distance wasn't working out." A few more reassurances got him off the phone with a confused Abby who had been expecting a bit more discussion and a lot less understanding Will.

If he'd had time to think about it, this probably wouldn't have come as a surprise. They rarely saw each other and even their once-dedicated phoning schedule had diminished of late. If he had time to think about it now, Will knew as he resolutely buried himself in the self-propagating piles of his desk, what would hurt wasn't the lackluster breakup, but the end of a dream. a picket fence, a baby, a family that he could trust, and love, and come home to every night. He'd lost that yet again and was left with old books and paperwork once more.

At least there was always paperwork.

A few hours later had Will once more fondly contemplating paperwork. So it was boring, repetitive, and he often wound up with inky hands because, truly, no writing implement worked willingly with those who were left handed. Everything had negatives. Paperwork, however, had never stranded him in a part of the Hollow Earth Sanctuary that he was beginning to suspect he had never seen before.

Upon his first arrival, Magnus had gifted him with a map of the actually quite awe-inspiring reaches of the new Sanctuary. That had kept him from getting too lost up until the point that it was eaten. While Will was grateful that the map was the only thing he lost, it made getting from Point A to Point B without detouring through Points C, D, and E a bit difficult. Currently, he was pretty certain that he'd managed to find Point V.

"Can anyone hear me?" he asked loudly, half hoping that there was no one in earshot. Admitting that he had gotten lost in his own home, yet again, was embarrassing. The lack of response to his call was equally a relief and a problem.

Sitting down on a nearby rock, Will assessed his options. He was in one of the caverns-cum-outbuildings, that much he knew. He was even pretty certain that it was one on the north side of the complex. So, not completely lost. Option One was that he could keep wandering around until he stumbled upon something he recognized or someone to point him in the right direction. Of course, he'd already been trying that option out for the better part of the last hour and it was wearing a little thin. So, Option Two: getting help.

With a sigh, Will dug his cell phone out of his pocket and gazed at it morosely. The first week after losing the map, he'd wandered out without his cell phone completely convinced that he could find his way around with no problems. Three hours later he stumbled back into his office and never again left without a phone, walkie, or GPS unit. This place was ridiculously big.

What was surprising was that no one else seemed to have this problem. Okay, so the abnormals who wandered about maybe had some sort of extra perception that could lead them through labyrinths, but there were a handful of humans down here as well. How the hell did they manage? Will suspected it was some form of initiation. 'When find the pterodactyl on the first try you can, one of us you will be.'

So far, he might pass the test in the next decade.

Abby, of course, had suggested that he just get a new map. Will could never make her understand that it wasn't really just about getting from one place to another in a timely manner. A person shouldn't need a map in their own home.

Why was he thinking about Abby?

Before he could wander further into the madness of that thought, he hit the first speed dial and waited for the line to pickup. That it would was of no doubt. When the ringing stopped, Will spoke before he even heard 'hello.'

"Seriously, have you given my striped floors idea any consideration? Hospitals do it all the time. Or at least some emergency exit signs?"

"Ah. I suppose this answers my question of why you missed our meeting," Magnus clearly wasn't even trying to hide her amusement. In a playfully aggrieved tone, she continued, "Where are you this time?"

"If I knew that, it would be half the battle," he muttered, trying not to let his grin seep into his tone. "Um, to the north, the part inside the caverns. I think."

"What do you see?"

"Our old reporter-killing friend and an air elemental."

"That combination would put you in the eastern cavern area, Will."

"Well, I got the cavern part right," he glared at the air elemental. It was there, it shared the blame.

"Put the Blatella asahjenai sapien on your left and take right turns until you reach the atrium. I'll meet you there."

"I can find my way back from the atrium," he protested. "Honest. I've wound up there so many times I think I know it better than my office."

"Hm." From the background noises ghosting over the connection, Will suspected she was already en route and he was fighting a losing battle. Oh well, half the fun was in sparring with her anyway. "That better not be a hint that your files are stacking up once more."

"I'm completely caught up," he defended with the injured notes of the virtuous. "Just finished this afternoon. Shortly before my unplanned hike."

"Where were you trying to get to, anyway?" curiosity finally compelled her to ask.

"The atrium, actually," Will admitted in defeat. He was so getting an escort now. "I could have sworn that the path I took led there. They don't move, so they?" he asked in sudden suspicion. "Like the staircases at Hogwarts?" Magnus had liked those books and who knew what she could have developed with a century of planning.

"No, Will," she spoke with exaggerated patience. "The corridors do not move. You simply have no lead in your nose."

"I," he paused to make sure that he had indeed heard that last bit right. Yes, his mind could come up with no other translation. "What?"

"Have you never heard that saying?" Magnus sounded only mildly surprised. After awhile, Will suspected, she had just become accustomed to no one understanding her references. "There used to be a belief that one's ability to navigate was dependent upon a certain amount of lead in the system. Specifically the nose. Similar to a compass. I believe that the phrase 'being led by one's nose' originated around the same thought. I could be wrong about that, however. I honestly haven't spent a great deal of time researching it."

"So, it was basically a confusing way of telling me that I have no navigational abilities?" Will concluded.

"I wouldn't say none," she temporized.

"That sounded convincing," he mocked.

"You are remembering to take right turns, aren't you?" Magnus changed the subject.

"Very subtle," quickly Will glanced behind himself. All signs pointed to, "yes, of course I am."

"Also convincing," she sounded just a little too smug. Sometimes it was inconvenient to have someone who knew him that well around.

"Hey, this is looking familiar." Will definitely remembered having seen that painting in the past. At some point. He quickened his footsteps and sped around one more corner to see the atrium beckoning through the open doors ahead. "Found the atrium!"

"I'm by the rose garden," was her only statement before she ended the call. Would a little celebrating have been too much to ask?

A few more minutes of the winding garden paths and he could see her bent head leaning over the yellow roses. Stepping through the low gate, he crossed to her side, smiling when she looked up at his approaching footsteps with a grin.

"The weary wanderer returns," Magnus said as solemnly as could be managed with her dimple appearing.

"Stripes. Think about it," he responded, moving past her to collapse on a bench. She eyed him contemplatively before moving to take a seat next to him, but didn't bring up the topic of another map, much to his relief.

"If we added stripes, we would also have to add other guides for those residents who can't see the same spectrum," she said reasonably, "or aren't even guided by sight at all. You'll become accustomed to the layout eventually."

"Would that be before or after I wander into the night never to be seen again?"

"Henry wants to add a GPS tracker," before Will could point out that it could be a useful addition to the labyrinth, she continued, "to you. Just in case we go a few days without seeing you, we can make sure that you aren't wandering in circles."

"He is not chipping me," Will stated flatly, a hard task when Magnus gave in to her laughter. "I'm not a pet."

"You will figure it out," Magnus returned to Serious-Mode after a few more chuckles, bumping his shoulder with her own. "You've just not had as long to adjust as the rest of us. Not when you spend half your time on the surface. I'm surprised you're still here, actually," curiosity bled into her tone. "I thought you were leaving tonight so that you could detour by Old City on your way to New York."

"No need," all levity left him abruptly. Will shrugged, uncertain why the dissolution of he and Abby was choosing now to hit him. Stupid delayed reactions. "I'll just head out tomorrow for New York."

"I see," Magnus spoke quietly after a moment. "I am sorry, Will."

"Don't be," he attempted a quick grin over at her before returning his gaze to his fingertips. "It happens. We just... weren't meant to be. Heading different directions," Will winced as Abby's phrasing hit open air.

"Still," her hand gripped his forearm for a moment, thumb rubbing over his skin in sympathy. "It's never easy."

"No," he agreed, patting her hand before it let go. "It's not. But I'll be fine."

"I know," Magnus said firmly. "Provided we don't lose you for days, that is."

He was relieved by the return to banter. "No chipping," Will stated firmly. "That's where I draw the line."

With a laugh, Magnus stood and reached out a hand to help him to his feet. "You'll be the one to convince Henry of that, then," she challenged. "I believe it's become his 'pet' project."

"Ow, with the puns," he poked her arm. "How can one woman have such a terrible sense of humor?"

"And yet you always laugh," she mused as they turned in the direction of the main building.

"I wouldn't want to hurt your feelings," he said sincerely. "Then I'd never get a pay raise."

As Magnus formed her retaliation, Will pushed Abby and all such thoughts away firmly. For now, he was just going to appreciate what he did still have.

* Previously chronicled in Tea Service.