With a speed that both surprised and somewhat scared Isolde, Greed stood up and scooped Isolde up into his arms like a baby.

Isolde cried out in alarm. "No! Put me down!" she yelled before Greed pressed his lips to hers again to silence her as he carried her out behind the bar, up a flight of stairs, down a short corridor and into his room. He put her down on as he entered the room, turning to lock the door behind him with a bar at the very top of the doorframe.

While his back was turned, Isolde ran to hide, but the large bed in the middle of the room was the only thing that could afford her some cover, she quickly calculated that although she could fit underneath, Greed would not, and he wouldn't be able to reach her if she was in the middle. On silent bare feet, she ran and dove behind the bed. But when she attempted to wriggle under it, she was confronted by an intense and irrational fear of the small, cramped space. No! Isolde wailed internally. The only place to hide and I'm a fucking claustrophobic!

"You okay, down there?" Isolde's eyes snapped up to see Greed, shirt- and shoe-less, leaning casually against the wall, looking down at her with a mildly amused expression. She sprang to her feet, in a defensive stance. "Can't fit?" he asked, his eyes sparkling with unshed mirth.

"Just found out I'm claustrophobic," Isolde replied shortly. She backed away sharply as Greed pushed himself off the wall.

"Unlucky," Greed sympathised. He grinned a shark-like grin advancing as Isolde backed up against the wall. She made an attempt to dive across the bed, but Greed caught her by the waist and pinned her to it instead. "Tell you what," he started grabbing her wrists as Isolde's hands sprang up to claw at his face. "You give me one kiss, then if you don't want any more, I'll let you go."

Isolde was naturally suspicious. "Promise?" she asked, her suspicion clear as a bell. In reply, Greed climbed off her, went to the door and pushed the latch up so the door could open.

"Promise," he replied as he walked back over to the now-standing Isolde. He might be a lot of bad things, mainly greedy, but he wasn't a liar. Plus he was certain that once she let herself enjoy it, she'd be his. He wrapped one arm around her waist and stroked a few stray strands of hair out of her face with his free hand. "What do you say?"

"Fine," Isolde hissed through clenched teeth. "One kiss." She turned her face up to his.

"But you have to mean it," Greed said, placing a finger on her lips.

"What do you mean, 'mean it'?" she asked, moving her head so his finger wasn't on her lips. She was getting angry and just wanted it over and done with.

"Kiss me like you want it," he said softly. "Like you mean it. If you don't, well…" he held her a little tighter, "we'll do it my way…"

This time Isolde didn't glare at him defiantly, instead her true fear shone through her eyes. Greed almost relented when he realised that her brave front wasn't playing hard to get, she was just trying not to let on how scared she was. He didn't know how to handle women when they were scared. Most women fell for him fairly quickly, and were all too ready when he decided he wanted to do something about it, even when they played hard to get. Well, I can't back down now, he thought to himself. Can I? He didn't know. He'd never been in this position before.

"Okay," Isolde's tiny voice broke through his thoughts. She lifted her chin and softly pressed her lips to his, wrapping one hand around the back of his neck. As Greed lent into her kiss, she softly deepened it, her small tongue slipping between his lips and jagged teeth to caress his. She tried to keep the kiss soft and tentative but needy, hoping it would suffice. She nibbled on his lower lip for a little before returning her tongue to his. Greed pulled her closer, the arm around her waist almost lifting her off her feet and the other hand went up to her hair, quickly stealing the black rose pin and pocketing it before weaving into the hair at the back of her head, holding her to him as he kissed her back, hungrily, but trying to be gentle himself.

Damn, this girl can kiss! He thought to himself. Maybe she does want it…

Greed lifted her up so only her toes were skimming along the wooden floor, and carried her to the bed, his lips not breaking contact with hers, trying to be careful and gentle with her. As he moved to lay her beneath him, she broke the kiss.

"You said you'd let me go!" she started struggling as she cried this out in alarm.

"I did, didn't I?" Greed agreed, standing up, one knee still on the bed. He extended a hand to Isolde and helped her up. "I'll take you to your room." Greed was quietly disappointed that she didn't want him. He'd hoped that if he was gentle enough, she'd give in. He opened the door back out to the corridor for her. He went to put his hand on the small of her back, but she flinched away. Greed himself flinched inwardly at the rejection. He wasn't used to it at all. He usually got what he wanted, when he wanted it, how he wanted it.

The room he had Marta make up for her was only two doors down from Greed's, and he showed her inside, flicking on the light switch. It was pretty much bare except for a heavy-looking wooden bed with a thick mattress, two fluffy looking pillows and thick blankets, and a large wooden wardrobe and set of drawers to one side.

"It's not the Ritz," he acknowledged. "But it's comfy. And you've got a bathroom through there."

Isolde didn't reply.

"Hey," he started gently, putting his hands on Isolde's shoulders and looking her in the eye. "I'm not going to apologise for what happened, coz that's not my way. I'm a greedy bastard, and when I want something, I take it, but I won't do that to you again, unless you want me to. I'm not what you'd call a good person, but I'm not a liar; you can trust me when I say something, okay?"

"Okay," Isolde mumbled quietly. "It's not like I have a choice, or anywhere else to go."

Greed sighed. "Goodnight, Isolde," he said softly, giving her a quick, gentle kiss on the forehead before turning and leaving.

Once Greed had left, and she heard his door click shut, Isolde walked over to the bathroom door, which was towards Greed's room. She calculated that the door between their rooms must be a linen cupboard, as there was no door from her bathroom to the corridor. She quickly checked the walls for any peep-holes, and was satisfied when she didn't find any. She walked back out to her room, and sat on the bed. Her knees drawn up under her chin as she thought.

Although she was shaken from what had just happened with Greed, she realised that if he really wanted to, he could have quite easily forced her. He had quite bare-facedly admitted that he wasn't a good person, but he'd also released her, like he promised, so maybe there was truth to what he said about not being a liar. For some stupid reason, she felt compelled to give that grabby bastard a second chance. Why? She asked herself, as she took off her bra, stockings and the skirt, folding them up and placing them on the floor by the bed. With a confusing mess of thoughts tumbling around her empty-feeling mind, Isolde climbed in under the covers and went to sleep, to dream of strange music.