Disclaimer: I don't own Chasing Liberty or Mandy Moore and am making no money off of this whatsoever, so please don't sue me.

Summary: What if Ben somehow managed to get into the white house to see Anna and she made him a deal?

A/N: Thank you to my reviewers, or should I say reviewer, and for enjoyment I present Chapter 2!

Chapter 2 The Deal

          Ben stared glumly through wrought iron bars that made up the fence around the white house.  How could he get in to see Anna?  He certainly didn't have an appointment and probably couldn't have gotten one even if he'd tried.  He looked around and noted that there was security on every corner so sneaking in would be out of the question.  Suddenly he had an idea. 

          He walked up to the guard booth and knocked on the glass.  A chubby man looked up from reading his newspaper and eating a bagel.  He waddled over to the glass.  "Can I help you?" he asked.

          "Yes," said Ben, a grin spreading over his face, "I believe you can.

          Anna sighed deeply as a knock came at the door of her room.  It was probably her mother making sure she was alright, or her father making sure she was still there, for about the tenth time that day.  She rolled her eyes and got up to answer the door.  "Mom I told you I'm fine"- she started before she realized who stood in front of her.  "Ben!" she squealed giving him a big hug and inviting him into her room.  "What are you doing here?"

          "I came to see you actually," he said, a smile playing across his lips. 

          "How did you get in?" Anna asked staring at him intently trying to determine if she was dreaming. 

          "Working for the CIA does have its advantages you know," he said slyly. 

          Anna looked at him hard for a moment, but finally all she said was, "Was there a specific reason you came?"

          This was the part Ben had been dreading.  He knew it would be uncomfortable, but this was way past that and almost to the point of downright embarrassing, which in all fairness it should have been.  He cleared his throat as he struggled for the right words.  "I came because, well, because I wanted to apologize."  He looked up hopefully only to come face to face with Anna's stoic yet expectant stare.  "And," he continued, "to beg your forgiveness." 

          He managed to raise his head to meet her gaze and found her, to his surprise, to be laughing.  "Ok," she answered.

          "What?" Now he was Ben was really confused.  After all that all she could say was ok?  What was going on here?

          "Relax," she gave him a reassuring smile.  "I haven't even been out once since the thing with you in Europe.  My parents owe it to me to let me have a little freedom, but for real this time.  Just be here to pick me up at eight tomorrow night.  Oh, but there is one catch, you owe me, too.  So when we go out tomorrow I have total control over where we go, what we do, and how long we stay.  Got it?"  Ben nodded in shock.  He had expected screaming and crying and raw human emotion, but certainly not this.  Still in a daze he turned around and walked out. 

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          The next morning Anna left her room for the first time in several days.  She walked down to breakfast with a bit of a spring in her step so it was evident that she was up to something.  "Good morning, Mom," she said hugging her mother.  "Hi Daddy," she said cheerfully as she kissed him on the cheek.  He parents stared at her with blank faces as if to say, who are you and what have you done with our daughter, which in a sense was more accurate than they knew.  She was a completely different person today than yesterday, and she was a completely different person yesterday than three weeks ago.  She plopped down in the armchair by the table and grinned like a child at Christmas.  Ok, cards on the table, something was definitely up, the only question was, what. 

          Anna took a deep breath and began to speak, "Ok you guys, the truth is I want to go out," she paused waiting for the chorus of objections that would surely follow her statement.  When they did not she continued, "I want to go alone, with no escorts, no CIA agents on every street corner watching every move I make.  I know I haven't exactly been the model child lately, but I deserve this, especially after all I've been through lately, no thanks to you, no offense."  She looked up waiting for the berating to start, but it didn't. 

          President Foster sighed but said, "Who when where?"  Anna gaped for a moment before answering, and even that she did carefully. 

          "I want to go with Ben, you know Agent Caulder, I think we'll leave around eight tonight and be home by no late than eight tomorrow night.  I'm not sure where we're going yet, but wherever it is I promised we'll be safe and very careful.  Plus I'm with a CIA dude, what could happen?  Ok don't answer that, but still.  I know how crazy this all sounds, but I need some real freedom, and what better place to have it than in my home city, where I know where I'm going and what I'm doing and who I'm with.  Come on, for once, just trust me, please."

          To the shock of all who were present, President Foster answered, "Yes."