Siegfried Kircheis lay still in bed, not wanting to wake the man who slept beside him. The morning light was grey outside their windows, and he could hear a light rain that suggested the day would be gloomy. A soft roll of thunder met his ear. It'd be a good day to just lie here under the covers, private, safe, and together.

He and Reinhard were both in pajamas as usual. In this dim light, Siegfried thought Reinhard looked ten years old again, just like when they had first spent the night together as boys. Those had been such good years, the happiest ones he, Reinhard, and Annerose had ever known.

Annerose. As always, Siegfried smiled at the thought of her. For Reinhard she was mother, sister, and feminine ideal. Siegfried had to agree to her being the ideal woman, but she was also his friend, and that kept his perceptions of her a little more down to earth.

Why, then, did he and Reinhard share a bed?

Because he and Annerose could not?

There was another rumble of thunder and lightning flashed outside. The sound of the rain became louder. Beside Siegfried, Reinhard opened his eyes and blinked. "Storm?" he asked softly.

"Sounds like it."

Reinhard nodded and wriggled closer to Siegfried until his head was on the redhead's shoulder. Siegfried put his arm around him. Their relationship was a strange one, much more than friends, not quite lovers. Siegfried often wondered if Emperor Rudolph would have thrown them out of the army or not. Reinhard seemed to have no such concerns. He was the one who always initiated their physical tenderness, because he was the one who seemed to need it more.

Reinhard's slim hand rested lightly on Siegfried's chest. "I can feel your heart beating."

"I thought you were asleep."

"No. Just lying here thinking."

"About what?"

Reinhard nestled closer in to Siegfried. "How nice it is to have the world locked out, and to be alone here with you, my other self."

"I was thinking much the same thing, while you were asleep."

Another thunderclap sounded outside. Reinhard raised his head. "The storm is getting closer. Do you think it will last all day?"

"I'm not a meteorologist." He grinned at his friend. "You're not scared, are you?"

"Not any more, but remember when we were little, and I was?"

"I think you outgrew that soon after. Annerose sat with us under the dining room table and told you that the thunder couldn't get in under the tablecloth. She served us milk and cookies and we played with our toy cars with her."

The thought of Annerose being with them now, warm under the covers of the bed, was one Siegfried banished from his mind quickly. It was too pleasant a thought.

Reinhard raised his hand from Siegfried's chest to run his fingers through his red hair. "If only she were free. We could be…" his voice trailed off and Siegfried knew he must be censoring the image that was really in his mind, "We could be sitting around the breakfast table right now, all three of us."

"Are you hungry?"

"Not yet. In a little while. I'm just so comfortable right now."

Siegfried held him. "I live to protect you." And the lady Annerose he added silently.

"Don't ever leave me," Reinhard pleaded.

"I will do my best," Siegfried told him. "There's always the chance in war that—"

Reinhard covered Siegfried's mouth with his hand. "Don't say it."

Siegfried kissed Reinhard's fingers and lifted them away. "Then I won't. As long as I live and breathe, I'm yours."

Reinhard smiled widely, then laid his arm across Siegfried's chest. The two rested like that for a long while, and Siegfried began to fall asleep again. So this is what marriage is like, he thought before correcting himself to , no, this IS marriage.

Siegfried felt Reinhard brush his lips against his own, then drifted off.