Sorry about *another* day off. *tries to find motivation, heads off to check under bed, falls asleep*

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Anne swallowed hard a couple times, then leaned over and untied her shoes. It felt slightly odd for this to be the first thing she did after Ace walked out. It was as if she were making sure that she wasn't going to go out after her, but that wasn't her reason. Her feet just hurt. She sighed a little as she slid her feet out, wiggling her toes as she tried to regain her composure. Ace could hardly have been crueler, and she knew that had been her intention. The girl was full of so much hurt, and she held the pain so close. Anne could understand her very well, having done the exact same thing for so many years. She wasn't so foolish as to believe that just because Ace was a plant that she would be much smarter when it came to matters of the heart.

Just look at her. She had done the same thing Ace was doing now until she was sixty. Hardly fair to expect a four year old to be more mature then she had been just a couple years ago. Anne ran her fingers through her hair but kept looking at her feet. She just hoped that she could pass on what she had learned, and that Ace would believe her, and that it wouldn't take the child as long as it had taken her.

Knives quietly walked over and sat down by her, but she didn't turn and look at him. Instead, she leaned against him, laying her head on his shoulder. He slipped his arm around her and held her close. Once again, Anne wondered how she could have left him behind, could have pretended that she could live without him near. The past few years seemed drained, colorless in contrast to how she felt when he was around. Anne sighed and breathed deep of the scent that she had missed. For a moment she wished that everything was right in the world, that they could just be a couple without any cares, spending time in each other's company just for the sheer joy of it.

"She's still young," he said after a moment. Anne stopped fantasizing about leaving responsibility behind and returned to the thorny problem of Ace.

"I know," she said softly. "Just because she looks all grown up doesn't mean that she's had enough experience with life to know…" Anne stopped, fumbling for the words she wanted. "To know how to deal with people, how easy it is to hurt, how hard it is to heal the breach that hasty words and actions can create, to know that other people can screw up and it has nothing to do with trying to hurt her." She sighed again and snuggled closer. "She hasn't experienced enough of life yet. Intelligence is good, but it can never take the place of experience."

Knives said nothing in response, but held her a little tighter and dropped a kiss on her forehead. They sat there silently, taking comfort in just being close to each other until Anne made to move away. At Knives' hurt look, she explained that she needed to use the restroom.

After she finished, she flung herself face down across the bed. The sound her body made as she hit the mattress brought a small smile to her face. It was her bed, and felt like her bed, and was smooshy like her bed, and was big like her bed, and those were all good things. She grabbed her pillow, was glad that it was her pillow, and buried her face in it, breathing deep of the scent and wistfully wishing for the bliss of sleep. She wanted to forget the look on Ace's face, that mingled look of betrayal and hate. She peeked up over the edge of her pillow and saw Ace's pack still sitting messily in the corner of the room. She hoped the girl wasn't going to go do anything rash, that she would be back soon. She knew the child just needed some time to think, and some space to do it in, but she selfishly hoped that the time would be short and the space would be near. She wanted Ace back, wanted to be part of the entire family, and not just pieces. She wanted everyone to be happy, so she could selfishly enjoy her happiness without feeling guilty. Then she buried her head in her pillow again and sighed.

Knives came into the room and sat down by her. His hands were placed lightly on either side of her neck, and he began to massage away the tension that lingered there. She began to purr as his hands moved lower, working at the stress that had accumulated in the muscles of her back. He reached a troublesome knot, and she gasped.

"Did that hurt?" he asked, taking his hands away.

"Do. Not. Stop," she demanded, and to help his efforts she stripped off her top. "Just keep that up until I pass out, please."

He chuckled, then rubbed his hands briskly together and set the warmed fingers to the knot. She sighed in pleasure.

Knives shifted his weight, sitting more and more on the bed as he brought his weight to bear on the massage. He kept trying to elicit more of those small sounds she made when he managed to get rid of a tight spot. He couldn't quite define the noise. They were something between a gasp and a chuckle and a sigh.

Finally, he ended up straddling her rear as he rolled his hands up and down her back, easing away the last of the tension, working the muscles back into their proper places. Then he leaned down with a smile, moved her hair out of the way and began to kiss the nape of her neck.

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(Insert your favorite hentai here, 'cause I'm not going to. =Þ)