Disclaimer: Insert pun here.
Pain. Fear. Rough hands. Men leering at me. Everything melted together, and there was no escape. Two sets of hands held me still, while another approached me with a red-hot branding iron. I tried to fight, to run, but I could not. I would be raped and he was not there to save me. The man pressed the iron into my arm, and I screamed.
XxX
Briseis woke with a start, sitting up slightly. Her breathing was labored, a thin layer of sweat covering her. Instinctively her hand went to her arm, but it was unmarked. He had been in time; he had not let them hurt her.
A strong hand pulled her back down, holding her against his chest. "You were whimpering in your sleep," Achilles said softly, tracing a fingertip along her jaw.
"I'm sorry I woke you," Her voice trembled, breaking in places.
"What's wrong?" He asked, and there was a distant anger in his eyes that suggested that he already knew.
"Just...just a dream," She still sounded shaky, but here, in his arms, the nightmare was already fading.
"What about?" He probed further.
She smiled, trying to reassure him that she was all right. "Bad memories, best left forgotten."
"Anything I can do to help?"
A wicked glint flashed in her eyes, and she pressed a hip into his. "Remind me that it isn't real."
He chuckled, rolling so he was above her, "Whatever the lady wants."
XxX
She lay nestle against his chest, his arms wrapped around her waist, and sighed happily.
"Do you have these dreams often?" he asked gently.
"Sometimes I dream about the later part of that night," she replied with a sly smile. Hoping he would take the bait and leave her nightmares alone.
He did not. His expression did not lighten, and he waited.
Briseis conceded. "This is the first time I've dreamt about them."
He was not fooled, "But?"
"I've had nightmares about the attack on the beach," she confessed, "a few times."
Achilles tilted her chin up, and kissed her gently. He looked… almost guilty. "I'm sorry I've caused you nightmares."
She shook her head. "You're the one who chases them away."