A/N: Prompted by anon on Tumblr: Anna has her first period after being reunited with John. She's embarrassed, but he comforts her.

Disclaimer: Downton Abbey does not belong to me.

That Little Problem

In all of their married bliss, it had never even occurred to Anna that her period would come around again. During those first two weeks together in their cottage, when everything had been so new and exciting, when she and John had used every opportunity that came their way to make love, it had never once crossed her mind that the routine that they'd settled into would have to change so soon.

But this morning, she'd gone into their little bathroom and had been reminded her most harshly of the realities of life. She'd sighed in despair at the sight of the red, and had acknowledged that, for a few days, things would have to change.

That was easier said than done.

In the kitchen, John sidled up beside her, wrapping his arms around her waist, dropping his mouth to kiss the sensitive skin on the back of her neck.

"Good morning," he growled against her, voice muffled. His hand dropped lower.

She pulled away from him on the pretence of watching the pan of eggs that she'd put to boil.

"Good morning," she replied as cheerfully as she could.

John raised an eyebrow. "Don't I get a kiss this morning?"

She forced a smile and ventured closer. "Of course you do."

She leaned up to kiss him and he kept her in place with his arms around her waist, his tongue darting against her lower lip. She couldn't resist letting him deepen it, hearing him groan in the back of his throat as he swept his tongue along her teeth.

"You know," he said huskily, when they'd parted, "I'm more than willing to forego breakfast. There's something else that I'd like to sample right now."

She fixed him with a stare, feeling her heart begin to beat more sickeningly in her chest. "Well, I'm afraid that I'm terribly hungry, Mr. Bates. I seem to recall that I never did get to finish my dinner last night."

"I don't recall hearing you complain," he murmured with a rather proud grin.

She rolled her eyes at him, unable to prevent the smile crossing her face. "Go and sit down. I'll bring breakfast in a moment."

She breathed a sigh of relief when he didn't pursue his seduction further. That was one hurdle down.

Just a few more days to go.

It was easy enough to avoid any situations at work, because they both knew the importance of keeping up standards under the eagle eyes of the rest of the staff. However, it was a whole different story when they climbed into bed that night.

"I'm tired," Anna complained quietly when she felt John's lips begin to trail down her clothed spine.

"That's all right," he told her. "Just lie back and I'll do all the work."

"I mean it," she warned weakly, and she felt the curve of his lips against her back. He twisted his body and moved to hover above her, eyes twinkling in the darkness.

"Are you sure you can't be tempted into changing your mind?" he asked her playfully. One hand began to trail across her stomach, making her insides flutter.

"Quite sure," she said as firmly as she could.

"Positive?" His fingers threatened to dig into her sides – he knew she was ticklish there. For a brief moment, she panicked. If he started to tickle her in jest and then got her undergarments down, he'd know the whole, unsavoury truth –

"John, stop it!" she snapped, harsher than she'd intended. But it did the trick. John pulled his hand away at once, sitting back on his haunches, looking both hurt and confused. At once she felt a stab of guilt at his expression.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"It's all right," he replied, though she could tell that he was still stung.

"I just…I just don't feel up to it tonight," she told him, blushing.

"Anna, you don't have to explain yourself to me," he said. "I shouldn't have pushed you. It's my fault."

Her stomach dropped at his last words, and she sat up, peering through the darkness at his face. "No, it's not. Don't be silly. I do want to. I just can't."

"What? What do you mean?" He lifted his gaze to hers searchingly, looking nonplussed. For a moment, she floundered.

"I can't really say," she said. "But trust me when I say it's not your fault."

His hand came up to cup her cheek gently. "Anna, you can tell me anything. You do know that, don't you?"

"Of course I do," she said at once. "It's just…it's a little delicate."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Now I'm more intrigued than ever. Come here."

She went willingly, shivering as his hands came up to stroke her back comfortingly.

"Please, Anna," he breathed. "Tell me what's wrong."

She sighed heavily, then looked into his eyes. "It's terribly embarrassing."

"You're being very cryptic."

She rolled her eyes. "Not really. It's just…I've started."

"…Started?"

She shifted uncomfortably. "Yes. You know. My period."

She felt John's chuckle and averted her eyes back to his face to find him grinning in relief.

"Is that all?" he asked her.

"Believe me, it's quite enough."

He shook his head. "I thought that you were finally realising just what an old man you'd married."

Her breath caught in her throat, and she was compelled to kiss him firmly.

"That will never happen," she told him resolutely. "Never."

"You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that."

"But this situation does mean that we can't make love for a few days."

"When I was in prison," he told her, "making love wasn't the thing that I wanted the most. It was just to be with you. We can't make love for a few days now, and that's completely fine. I'm more than content with just lying here with you in my arms."

"You really mean that?" she asked.

"You really need to ask?" he countered. "Of course I do, Anna. In any case, it'll give us a chance to have more than a couple of hours sleep every night."

She smirked at him, before wriggling onto her side. He followed her at once, sweeping her up in his arms, his breath blowing gently against the back of her neck.

John was right, she thought, as she allowed her eyes to drift closed, comforted by his warmth, there certainly was something absolutely perfect about simply lying there in his arms.