Anna woke with a jolt. It was still dark, but she couldn't figure out what woke her. She froze and tried to listen. An arm snaked around her and she froze with terror. She tried to scream but in her frightened state couldn't. She felt herself be pulled back into a hard chest and heard herself squeak, instead of the scream she meant to come out.
"It's okay, Anna, it's just me, Seiji," he said as he rested his cheek on the back of her head. She felt herself relax but her heart still raced in her chest. She took in a deep breath and calmed herself.
"Seiji, you scared the shit out of me. That so wasn't right. I thought you were Adrik coming to kidnap me again," Anna whispered harshly.
"I'm sorry, I didn't think about it that way," Seiji replied, "I mean for me it was months ago, but for you it probably feels like yesterday. I couldn't imagine what you went through. I should have never sent you away, I'm sorry."
Anna sighed, "Yeah, I still get nightmares from it. It doesn't help that I have a hard enough time sleeping with the baby moving in there, but having nightmares of Adrik on top of that makes me look like a zombie most of the day. Even Shin will tell me to go take a nap. I have to say though, that I hope you never have to know what it feels like. I wouldn't wish it on anyone. To have no control over your own body is a nightmare of the worst kind. It's like in those horror movies where you yell at the screen for the person to run and they still go into the room, only you are the person you're yelling at, and you can't stop yourself."
"Damn, that must have been so hard," Seiji said holding her tighter. He breathed in the flowery scent of her shampoo. Anna felt wrapped in warmth. She knew she should send him back to his room, but the warmth felt so nice.
"You don't even know how hard it was. I tried to hide myself so I wouldn't have to know what was going on. Do you know how hard it is to hide in your own mind? I had to block it out. I honestly don't want to know what he did to me. I would like to forget what I did remember," Anna replied. Her eyes drooped as the warmth made her sleepy. It was like she was wrapped in a warm safe cocoon.
When she opened her eyes again the sun was shining and the warm arms were gone. She almost wondered if it had been a dream. It was the best sleep she had in a while. Anna wondered if it would be weird for her to ask Shin to sleep in the bed with her. It seemed that having someone she trusted in bed with her helped her to get the sleep she needed. It kept the nightmare at bay. The one she had every night about someone sneaking in through the shadows, with hair as black as night and eyes a deep dark purple. She shivered at the thought of him and her hand automatically rubbed her belly as if to protect the life inside. Suddenly she felt cold again and shivered some more. Anna got up and ran a nice warm shower. It took a few minutes to thaw that coldness that crept over her. She always felt cold when she thought of Adrik. When the shivering finally stopped she washed herself and got out. She put on the maternity jeans that were loose on her because she was smaller than Sayoko, but she couldn't complain. It was nice of Sayoko to share. Then she threw on a shirt and a large sweatshirt of Shin's.
It was a particularly cold morning and the sweatshirt was the only thing she could fit into. Anna felt bad for stretching it out but Shin would always say that it was better to keep her warm. She smiled warmly at the thought of his smile. Shin was always very kind. She stepped out of the guest room and headed for the stairs. Kara came up just as Anna was about to go down. Anna was startled but recovered and gave her a warm smile.
"Good morning, Kara," Anna said cheerfully.
"Whore," Kara replied disdainfully and gave Anna a sneer, "I hear you don't even know who the father is."
Kara brushed past her and went to her room without another glance. Anna stood there feeling shocked that anyone would say such mean things. She almost wondered if that was where Seiji got his meanness from. She felt as though Kara's words were a poison that rubbed off on those around her. Anna refused to be sucked in to the name-calling hatred that surrounded Kara. Then she looked at Kara's door with sadness. She realized that Kara must be unhappy with her marriage, more than Seiji was. At least Seiji tried to make her happy, but she did nothing for Seiji but suck all the happiness and life out of him. It was sad to see how his life outside of the warriors really was. Seiji must be happy to have the friends that he does. No wonder why he was so defensive when they first met. He just wanted to protect his friends, because they were probably the closest thing to happiness he had.
Anna turned and walked down the stairs. Shin was in the kitchen cooking and Anna smiled at him as she walked in. Shin poured her a cup of tea. Anna preferred coffee but Shin insisted she have tea because it was better for the child. He even made it for her every morning so she couldn't sneak in coffee. Anna took the tea with a sigh, she dropped her head as if she was chastised and plopped down at the kitchen table.
"What's that look about?" Seiji asked with a smile. Anna didn't realize he was at the table before.
"She wants coffee," Shin said with a shrug.
"I miss my coffee," Anna added with a pout as she put sugar and milk into the tea. Seiji laughed and shook his head.
"You guys are like an old married couple," Seiji said. Shin smiled and turned back to what was cooking on the stove. Anna watched him and grabbed Seiji's cup, taking a sip of the black coffee. Anna frowned and put it back before Shin could turn around again. Seiji's eyes widened at her. She smiled and then let the hot bitter liquid slide down her throat. She pointed to the sugar and milk and then at his cup. Seiji grabbed his cup and shook his head. She watched as he smugly sipped his coffee. Her shoulders slumped as she looked back at her tea.
"Oh, stop sulking, Anna, you know it's better for the baby," Shin said pointing a spatula at her. Anna sighed and sipped her tea. He turned back to the eggs and sausage cooking on the stove.
"You are so bad," Seiji whispered shaking his head. Anna glared at him and sipped her tea, it just wasn't the same. She narrowed her eyes at Seiji. What a jerk? Couldn't even let her sneak coffee? His smile widened at her narrowed eyes. He was enjoying torturing her too much. Kara emerged as Shin finished making breakfast. She sat as far away from Seiji and Anna as possible. Instead she sat close to Shin, whom she smiled and flirted with. Anna ignored her and gulped down her food quickly. Kara's presence churned her stomach and she just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible. Shin watched her curiously. She finished her breakfast and excused herself. Anna was able to snag a book from the library and hide outside for a while. She found a nice quiet spot under a willow tree. Seiji came out and trained. Anna had a clear view of him as her sliced through the air. She turned back to her book and read a few more pages before Shin came out and sat next to her.
"Seiji's pretty good with a sword," Shin said.
"Yeah," Anna muttered not taking her eyes off the book.
"Why were you in such a rush this morning?" Shin asked, "Are you mad at me? I'm just trying to look out for you, Anna."
"It's not you, Shin," Anna said glancing over at him, "It's his wife, Kara. She just rubs me the wrong way, if you know what I mean."
"Yeah, I don't feel very comfortable around her either. She's always flirting and rubbing on me. I hate it, especially since she isn't discreet. She all out flirts in front of him, and I'm one of his best friends. She knows it, too. You should see her around Ryo. He never comes to visit Seiji anymore because she is literally all over him. She has even tried sneaking into his room. That was the last straw for Ryo," Shin replied, "It's not like we even give her reason to flirt."
"She probably just does it to bother Seiji," Anna replied going back to her book. Shin leaned back against the tree, putting his hands behind his head. Seiji finished his training and sat down with them. He sat on the soft grass and started polishing the sword.
"So, Rowen will probably get here this afternoon," Shin said. Seiji nodded and continued rubbing the cloth over the sword.
"Kara seems lovely," Anna said sarcastically, "I can see why you are madly in love with her."
Shin laughed and Seiji frowned.
"Anna…," Seiji said.
"I know, you want me to be nice, but it's hard to be nice to someone so mean," she said turning the page on her book.
"I really don't care about her. It's just that I would rather you not say anything to her face," Seiji said, his pale eyes focusing on the sword, "You know what I mean?"
Anna laughed, "How sweet. You don't care if I bad mouth her as long as it doesn't get you into trouble."
Shin chuckled and a small smile formed on Seiji's lips. Anna found herself gazing at his lips and wondering what it would be like to kiss them when she wasn't drugged. Would they still be as soft and sweet? Or would they be hard and abrasive like his personality? She glanced up and saw that he was watching her. Anna quickly looked back at the page she was reading. Her hormones were way out of control. She didn't have any feelings for Seiji, did she? No, she refused to care about the cold abrasive warrior. It's not like she would ever be able to anyway, because he belonged to another woman. She glanced back up and saw him still watching her sadly. He looked back down and continued to polish the metal of the sword.
That afternoon Touma and Mia showed up. It was obvious by the way they constantly looked at each other that they were in love. Anna smiled, but felt a pang of jealousy. She wished that she had someone to love like that, mostly wishing that she had some help in raising the child growing within her. Anna had never been a recluse but she found herself going off alone. It was easier than having to watch Touma and Mia hold hands, Kara sneer, and Seiji grumble. Anna got the feeling that Seiji was having a hard time. That was why Touma and Shin came. It was easy to see that Seiji longed for a happier marriage, but he would never disappoint his family by leaving Kara. Touma and Shin tried to convince him to do something he liked, so that he would have something to look forward to. Unfortunately that happened to be racing cars. Anna's uncle and Aunt used to race, and they taught her about cars but she chose to not help, knowing how dangerous it was. Anna went to bed early so that Mia wouldn't feel like she had to keep her company. Mia was happy and Anna started this trip happy, but didn't feel as happy anymore. She closed her eyes and tried to clear her thoughts.
Once again the dream came back. The shadows rolled around her, making her feel like she was going to drown. She rolled around but was trapped in the shadows as evil laughter came from the darkness.
"Anna," a voice called. She tried to find the person calling, but it was dark in the shadows. Somehow she knew the person was an ally. She tossed and turned trying to find the voice. Adrik never called her by her name, and that was how she knew. Adrik called her princess all the time.
"Anna, are you okay?" came the voice again. The shadows fell away as Anna opened her eyes. She turned and saw Seiji standing by the bed, his bare chest pale in the moonlight. The glow of the moon made his hair look like a halo. He looked angelic as he slid into the bed beside her. He wrapped his warm arms around her and held her close, while gently running a hand over her short hair.
"I'm sorry, did I wake you?" Anna asked, "It was the dream again."
"It's okay, I couldn't sleep anyway," Seiji whispered. He squeezed her tighter. Anna felt him shudder and let out a shaky breath. She pulled back and looked up into his watery eyes.
"What's wrong?" she asked brushing his hair out of his face so she could see the small scar and both of his eyes. She grazed her fingers softly over his cheek, and he leaned into her hand.
"Nothing," he whispered as an errant tear fell down his cheek.
"Something's wrong, Seiji. It's not nothing," Anna replied furrowing her brows.
"It's just that…," he started and took a deep breath. Anna waited patiently for him to find the words.
"I guess, I'm jealous, you know? I wish I had love, like everyone else gets a chance at, like Touma and Mia. I wish Kara would touch me the way you do. She's so cold and avoids me at all cost. Grandfather has been getting on me about children, but how can you have children with someone who refuses to go near you?" Seiji asked, "We've been married for a while and everyone is expecting her to get pregnant, but I can't even stand to be around her. It's like… it's like…"
"It's like she sucks the life and warmth right out of you," Anna put in and Seiji nodded. Anna brushed the tear off his cheek and kissed it gently, before pulling him against her. Seiji just really needed a hug right now. She could tell that this kind of contact is what he needed most. He needed to feel loved and cared about. Even though she knew he would go back to being his bristly self in the morning. Seiji gently caressed her extended belly before wrapping his arm around her waist. Anna held him until his breathing became slow and methodical. Anna found the sound soothing as her eyes drooped.
