Chapter Three.

He awoke to warm light shining down on him, and a chill that seemed to draw all of the strength from him. Shivering slightly, Harlock tried to pull the covers even tighter around himself; gritting his teeth when the move put far too much pressure on his wounded arm, and succeeded in waking him up all the way. He almost jumped out of his skin when a hand gently brushed against his brow, yet felt some relief when he saw that it was only Marian.

"You...stayed up...?" Harlock started to ask, yet felt only more confusion when she put a finger to his lips to quiet him.

"Yeah." Marian said, answering the half-spoken question, and noticing the almost guilty expression that appeared on the pirate's scarred features.

"I apologize...Didn't mean...to worry you." Harlock managed, tiredly.

"Don't worry about it. Just rest. We'll talk about this later, okay?" Marian reassured, as she replaced the cold compress on his brow with a cooler one. He nodded only slightly in response, then glanced at the bedroom window. Warm, early-autumn sunlight was filtering in through the glass and curtains.

"Earth's sun...I never thought I'd actually miss it..." Harlock quietly mused aloud, the sadness in his voice prompting Marian's curiosity to return to the forefront.

"Have you been on the run for very long?" Marian heard herself ask. The space pirate could only nod in answer to the question.

"It...isn't easy. Not by a long shot. In order to remain free...you must make...sacrifices. The warmth of earth's sun...was one of many my crew and I had to be willing to make." Harlock murmured; unaware that his words were causing a few tears of sympathy to well in Marian's eyes.

"Then think of it this way...In this time, no one knows who you are, or that you're even here, in my home. You can rest as long as you want, and enjoy the sun's warmth while you're at it. There's no one here to stop you." Marian gently encouraged, as she opened the window to prove her point.

"I hope she's right about this...Until it is time for me to return, I just want the chance to rest, without having some half-wit bounty hunter come after me." Harlock mused, then sighed; his thoughts once again returning to his friends and crew. They were probably worried sick about him, by now...He had no right to be thinking such selfish thoughts. And yet, the breeze coming in through the bedroom window had an almost a peaceful effect on the world-weary pirate's mind; and, before he knew it, he was sound asleep, once again.

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As the morning and afternoon wore on, Marian found herself deviating even more from her usual routine. As much as she tried to distract herself from Harlock's room with her daily chores, she often caught herself glancing in its' direction. With a final sigh of exasperation, she gave in to her desire to sit at his side and watch over him.

"What the hell am I doing? I don't even know him that well, and I'm acting like a nervous wife or something! I need to get a grip!" Marian irritably mused, as she took her seat next to the bed again. No sooner had she done so, he uttered a soft groan.

"Harlock?" Marian said, concernedly; thinking that she had disturbed him in some way. He didn't respond, yet instead seemed to sink even further into what seemed to be a nightmare. An expression of anxiety was appearing on his scarred features, and his breathing was coming in harsh, uneven gasps.

"What's going on? What is he dreaming about that has him so afraid?" Marian wondered, jumping slightly when he started muttering something under his breath.

"N-no...Surrounded...They've got her surrounded...M-must get there..." Harlock mumbled, incoherently, tossing his head slightly on the pillow; making strands of dark brown hair fall across the sweat-soaked, over-warm skin of his face.

"Who? Who's surrounded?" Marian heard herself ask, her heart in her throat as she did so.

"Must try...She's depending on me...G-got to...protect her..." Harlock gasped; starting somewhat at the feel of her hand brushing the hair off of his face, then uttering a sudden cry of agony.

"Harlock! What's wrong?.! Answer me! Please!" Marian yelped, feeling more than just a little afraid when he abruptly pressed one hand over the right side of his face; trapping her left hand there as he did so.

"MAYA!!!" Harlock cried, bolting upright in the bed, and gasping when the pain in his chest and shoulder threatened to knock him out again.

"Whoa! Hang in there!" Marian said, as she attempted to steady him. She could almost hear his heart thundering in his chest, and the shaky breaths escaping from between his lips.

"M-marian?" Harlock whispered, from between shudders, as she helped him lie back down.

"You were having a nightmare." Marian stated; inwardly berating herself for stating the painfully obvious.

"It...it felt so real...Almost as though I were reliving it all over again..." Harlock murmured, allowing Marian to gently brush the tangled strands of hair off of his face, and put a fresh compress on his brow.

"I know. Some dreams can feel that way...but that's all it was. Just a dream." Marian soothed; her heart aching when she saw what could have been tears in his remaining eye.

"It was a dream...and a memory...of the event that changed my life forever...and influenced my decision to leave the earth behind...I wonder how long it will continue to haunt me?" Harlock softly asked, as he turned his gaze to the ceiling of the room; his guilt and self-loathing easily seen by the woman beside him.

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The next morning found Marian sitting at the ill man's side, once again. Over and over again, his guilt-ridden words echoed in her brain.

"How long will it continue to haunt me?" Harlock had asked, mournfully; and she'd had no answer to offer him. All she could do was remain by his side, and offer what comfort she could...even though she felt it was inadequate.

"Just what can you say to someone who has lost someone so dear to him, and then had his own world turn against him?" Marian wondered, grimly; watching as Kiyu trotted into the room, approached Harlock's bedside, and nudged his hand with her nose. A slight smile touched her lips when she saw his hand twitch a little bit, then move to gently scratch the dog's ears.

"Good morning." Marian said, gently, as the pirate's eye fluttered open and slowly focused on her.

"Good morning...I take it you sat up all night with me again?" Harlock asked, his voice soft and a little weak. Marian nodded.

"I have." Marian replied, then added, "I couldn't sleep, knowing that your fever was that high."

"Thank you." Harlock murmured, seeming truly grateful for her care, so far.

"Think nothing of it. At least now your fever seems to have broken, so you can probably get out of bed today, if you feel like it. Just take it slow, okay?" Marian asked.

"I will keep that in mind." Harlock replied, as he carefully sat up, and as an unusual expression crossed his face.

"Something you want to add?" Marian asked, curious as to why the pirate seemed to have an abashed and even (dare she say it?) embarrassed look in his eye.

"I want to take a shower, but my spare clothing is in my quarters on board the Arcadia." Harlock replied, with a slight sigh. He looked up and gave her an arched eyebrow when she snickered at his discomfiture.

"I've never heard of a pirate who was that concerned about his personal hygiene." Marian teased; laughing softly when his expression deadpanned.

"There you go with your stereotypes again..." Harlock muttered; shaking his head slightly in exasperation as he said that. As Marian left the room to go and find him some spare clothes (courtesy of her ex-boyfriend's remaining belongings), she could hear him mumbling softly to himself in German, undoubtedly about the stereotypes she kept comparing him to, and how odd she seemed, compared to some of the other women he'd met in his own time.

Author's Note!

Hope this didn't seem like a whole lot of rambling! (I just wrote what came to mind, and it seems to make sense...). Again, it wasn't very exciting, but I'm trying to go a bit slower with this fic, storywise, so when the action does pick up, it won't 'knock the wind' out of anybody, lol. (I still need to figure out how to get him back to his own time...Any ideas, minna?) Hope this chapter was 'okay'!

Gemini14