Chapter 14

What Dreams May Come

Anna arrived early on Monday, she was curious to see how Seto faired over the weekend with his cold. She stopped first at the secretary's desk.

"So how is he?" She asked.

"I can't say." She smiled politely at Anna.

"You don't know, or you can't say?" Anna inquired.

"Mr. Kaiba doesn't like for people to talk about him outside of business."

"He isn't doing well, is he?"

"I think it would be best if you went to see for yourself." The secretary made a head jester to the door encouraging Anna to go in.

Anna gave a quick knock and entered the room. Kaiba was at his desk and it was obvious that his cold was worse. He was coughing now, it had found its way into his chest. And he hadn't gotten any sleep as apparent by the dark circles under his eyes. Anna wished that she hadn't gone to the beach, she should have been here taking care of him. He was her friend, and he had no one else to look after him.

"You look like crap." Anna announced.

"You're too kind;" he answered in a raspy voice.

Anna walked up to him and placed the back of her hand on his forehead to check his temperature. "You're burning up."

He brushed her hand away, "I'm fine."

"No, you are not. What do you think you are doing?"

"I'm trying to work, and you're interrupting me."

"Work? You can't even concentrate. Look, you wrote this same line three times." Anna pointed to the screen on his laptop. "You should be in bed."

"I've got...too much to do." Seto's head was hurting, making it impossible for him to stay focused.

"It can wait. You should be in bed and I'm going to take you there kicking and screaming if I have to." Anna was determined and stood her ground.

Seto tried to ignore her barking and went back to typing what he could.

Anna slammed his laptop shut, almost catching his fingers in it, and she made sure to get right in his face. "Unlike everyone else in this building, I'm not afraid of you. Now get off your butt and MOVE!"

Seto was too weak to argue, and deep down he knew she was right. He tried to get up from the chair and stumbled. Anna caught him by the arm and helped steady him. She walked him out of the office and down the hall to the elevators. As they passed the secretary's desk she asked her to cancel all of his appointments for the next few days. The lady just smiled at her, she knew Anna had it all under control. Seto was so discombobulated, that he couldn't even concentrate enough to use his electronic key to open the door to the apartment. Anna had to do it for him. She took him down to his room, by now she knew which one it was. She peeled off his white jacket and threw it on a chair in the room. She then made him sit on the bed and she proceeded to unbuckle and remove his boots.

She went over to the dresser and asked, "Which drawer are your pajamas in?" She didn't want to go riffling through his things, although she would if she had to.

"Bottom." Seto said in a muffled tone as he rubbed his face.

Anna pulled out a pair of pants and a white undershirt she found in the bottom drawer. Returning to the bed she undid the straps that lined the arms of his shirt and pulled the garment up and over his head. She knew he was skinny and lanky but what she didn't realize until that moment was that it was all muscle. 'Geez, he's hot!' Anna thought, and she mentally scolded herself for thinking that. She managed to get him into the undershirt without much trouble; he wasn't in any condition to fight her.

Next Anna threw the pants on the bed beside him. "The rest is up to you. I'll be back in five minutes and if you're not changed, I will do it for you."

"Is that an offer?" He may have been sick, but he still had his wits about him.

"That is a threat," and she closed the door behind her.

She wandered down the hall and into the kitchen. The cook, whom Anna had met several times, was there. Anna began inquiring how the past few days went. Was he taking anything for his cold? Had Seto eaten much? Was Mokuba sick too? She got a little bit of information from her, but not much. She seemed to be as tight-lipped as Seto's Secretary. She couldn't blame them though. I'm sure their jobs would be at stake if Seto found out that they had been leaking information concerning his private life.

Anna gave him enough time and re-entered the room with a bowl of ice water, a washcloth, and hot tea. Seto had changed himself was trying to pull down the covers with little success. Anna set her items down on the side table and tucked him in. As soon as he lay down he went into a coughing fit, so Anna had to position a bunch of pillows behind his back to elevate him into a sitting position. He looked absolutely miserable. Anna scooted him over a little and sat on the edge of the bed next to him. Dipping the washcloth in the cold water, she pressed it against his forehead and face.

Anna wanted to relax him so she did the one thing she knew best. "This bed is huge;" She was referring to the over sized bed he was resting on. "Where you expecting company? The Green Bat Packers, perhaps?"

If Seto had the energy he might have laughed instead he just said the truth. "I like the room."

Seto marveled at how gentle and kind she was. No one had treated him like this since his mother died. He didn't realize how much he missed it.

For some time she blotted his face and wiped his brow, and eventually he faded off to sleep. When dapping his forehead she had noticed a scar that he kept hidden under his long bangs. She wondered what bad memory accompanied that scar that he would want to hide it. But that was a conversation for another day. She placed the washcloth in the bowl and stood up. Suddenly his hand reached out and grabbed hers. The motion of her getting off the bed must have woke him. She stopped and looked. He was drowsy and half-conscious. "Don't go." He pleaded.

She placed her other hand on top of his. "I'm not going anywhere," She replied in a sweet soft voice. "Get some sleep."

He watched as she went into the bathroom with the bowl. He could hear the water running as she rinsed out the washcloth and refilled the bowl with cool water. Anna couldn't help but notice how big the bathroom was. Double sinks, separate walk in shower and bathtub with water jets. He really went all out. But then again, he had these rooms designed to his liking. She exited the bathroom and returned the bowl to its original place on the nightstand. She then proceeded to collect the discarded clothes that were on the floor and chair. She hung up his jacket and threw the rest of the items in a laundry basket in the closet. His closet was also another wonder to her. It was a walk-in closet with more clothes than she had ever seen. Definitely more clothes than she owned, and she was a clothes hound. He didn't have as many shoes though. All she could think was how much fun it would be to shop with him. When she emerged from the closet he was still watching her. She thought perhaps Seto was afraid that she would leave if he closed his eyes. Anna went over and opened a sliding panel in the wall to reveal a stereo system.

"How did you know that was there?" Seto asked in a meek voice.

"Because that is where I would have put it," she said with a smile.

Glancing through the CDs he had on hand, she didn't find anything she liked. So she went to her bag and pulled one out of her CD player and put it in the sound system. She then returned to the bed and checked his temperature again.

"I think you should see a doctor."

"I don't like doctors." He said with a cough. He seemed to have trouble breathing deeply.

"Your chest hurting?" She placed her hand in the middle of his chest to feel his breathing.

Her touch sent a chill through him. What was this effect she had on him?

"I'll make you a deal. I won't send for anyone tonight, but if you're not better by morning, I'm calling a doctor. Now get some sleep." That same hand that had just felt his chest now brushed away the hair from his eyes and touched his cheek. She got up and repositioned herself on the chair in the room.

Seto fell in and out of sleep. Every time he opened his eyes she was still there. Still sitting in that chair. Finally convinced she wasn't going to leave, he was able to fall into a deep sleep. He hadn't slept like this since they were in the orphanage, before they came to live with Kaiba. And just like when he was a child, he dreamt. And it was same dream that he had as a child. It would haunt him almost every night; he could never understand what it meant. It only stopped when he stopped sleeping. And yet here it was again. It always started the same.

He was being escorted down a long corridor. On either side columns that seemed like giant trees. Into a great room where he was forced to his knees. But he isn't alone. There is a man seated on the steps above and a woman. She is bound and on the floor only a few feet from him. He can't make out her face, even as child he couldn't see her face. Who was she? She was crying and shaking. What happened to her? The seated man was angry, he yelled at her. The words he spoke were clearer than they were before. He shouted something about betrayal and greed. The man approached and struck her. He then tore away her necklace and threw it to the floor, shattering it into hundreds of pieces. That made Seto angry, he struggled against his captors, but could not break free. The man came nearer to Seto. So close, yet he still couldn't see the details of his face.

"And you," the man said. "You were my friend. I trusted you. You have done me the greatest injustice. And I will make you suffer the worst pain imaginable." He turned toward the woman and waved his hand. "Take her away, she will be executed at dawn."

"No!" Seto cried. "You can't, she's innocent!" He once again battled his captors, but was only able to free one of his arms. The woman glanced back at him while the guards drug her away. Although he couldn't see her face he could feel her eyes upon him. Deep brown eyes. He reached with his free hand, trying to find her, to touch her as she was drifting away into the darkness.

His hands stretched out and caught onto something. He held on tight, hoping that it wouldn't disappear. A slight scream woke him out of his dream, and he found himself face to face with Anna. He was gripping both of her arms, and she was wide-eyed and trembling. His sudden and unexpected move had frightened her. Realizing what he had done, he gently let her go, and she stopped shaking.

"Bad dream?" Anna asked quietly.

Seto just nodded, sweat was pouring from his brow.

"You were tossing and turning like crazy." She once again applied the cool washcloth his face. "It must have been a very bad dream."

Seto didn't answer. He was in a daze.

"Mokuba has come by at least a hundred times to see you." Anna was hoping to cheer him up, but he still didn't respond.

The morning light was peeking through the slits in the curtains. Anna had drawn them so Seto might be able to sleep.

"Do you feel up to eating something?"

Seto shook his head. He tried to breathe deeply and caused himself to cough uncontrollably. He crumbled over from the pain in his chest. Anna placed the washcloth over his mouth and gave hard rubs to his back trying to lessen the pain. After a few minutes Seto collapsed back onto the pillows taking short erratic breaths. She made sure he was all right before she left the room. The cook was just coming in the front door as Anna came into the living room. Seto's secretary, Mrs. Wong, followed her in.

"Oh, Ms. Sung." Mrs. Wong called to her. They approached each other and Mrs. Wong started handing Anna papers. "These are some progress reports. I know how Mr. Kaiba likes to keep apprised of what's going on. And here are his messages and the daily stock quotes."

"I don't know how much he'll be able to get done. But I'm sure he'll appreciate it."

"We are so glad you're here," Mrs. Wong smiled. "He wouldn't listen to us, but you, he trusts."

That comment would have made Anna happy if she weren't so concerned. "Mrs. Wong would you be so kind as to call Mr. Kaiba's personal physician and have him come here immediately."

"Yes, Ms. Sung, I'll do that at once."

"Thank you." Anna turned around to go back to the bedroom.

"Is it really that bad?" Mrs. Wong called after her.

Anna looked down at the blood soaked washcloth in her hand. "Yes, I'm afraid it is."

Anna paced in front of Seto's bedroom for what she thought was hours. In reality the doctor had only been in there twenty minutes. Finally the doctor emerged, closing the door behind him.

"So?"

"He's very sick. It's a good thing you called for me."

"What can I do?"

"Well, the nurse is putting in an I.V. and we'll be providing him fluids and a sedative. I'm prescribing a course of treatment and medication. It should help, but make sure he takes the full run."

"I can do that."

"I also suggest that you keep his little brother away, he doesn't need to catch this." Anna nodded in agreement. "And you. I want you to stay away too. With your condition you can't afford to be exposed."

"I'm already exposed."

"All right, then I'm going to give you a prescription. If you see any bad reactions when you combine it with your insulin, stop the medicine immediately and call me."

"Can I go in now?"

"Sure."

Anna opened the door and headed to the bed. The nurse had finished putting in the I.V. and was busy arranging the tubes and hanging bags.

"Are you feeling any better?" She asked Seto. He was too groggy to answer.

"The sedative should be taking affect, he probably can't hear you," The nurse explained. "There will be a nurse on call and someone will be by every couple of hours to check the I.V. You don't have to stay if you don't want to."

"I'm staying."

Everyone eventually left and Anna was once again alone with Seto. She could tell he was fighting the sedative. Fighting sleep. What was he trying to escape? Was his dream that bad? And what about it frightened him so? She retook her seat on the bed and pressed her hand to his cheek.

She whispered softly to him. "It's okay to sleep. I won't let anything happen to you."

Her touch calmed him.

Seto eyes peeked open as he regained consciousness. He looked for Anna and found her sitting in his chair, like always, but this time she was dressed in his bathrobe. She had let her hair down to dry. He had never seen her with her hair down before. It had always been tied up or pulled back. He liked it down. The way it framed her face and the funny way she twisted it in her fingers. She was reading by the low light of a table lamp and sniffling.

"Did you catch my cold?" Seto said in a raspy voice.

Anna looked up and smiled. "Hey you." She put down her book and went to sit on the bed. "Feeling better?"

He nodded and blinked the sleep out of his eyes.

"You look better."

"This looks familiar." Seto reached out with a shaky hand and touched the collar of the robe.

"Oh, this. Sorry, I didn't have anything else to wear while my clothes are in the wash. If I had known that I was going to be here a week I would have packed some clothes."

"A week?"

"The doctor took the I.V. out yesterday, he said you were doing good. You should be up and running by Monday."

"I'm so far behind already."

"Actually..." Anna smiled slyly. "You haven't missed anything. Mokuba been running things for you, and he's been doing a darn fine job."

"Mokuba?"

"He asked my opinion on a couple of things, but otherwise he's been running it all on his own."

Seto was a little astounded.

"How about something to eat? Do you feel up to it?"

"I'm starved."

"Good!"

Anna served him some broth she made in the kitchen. He didn't eat it all, but Anna wasn't complaining. After the meal Seto collapsed back onto the pillows again. He was getting dizzy and disorientated. He moaned as he rubbed his head.

"Headache?" Anna asked as she was gathering up discarded dishes.

"I feel like my head is going to explode."

"Maybe I can do something about that." She sat on the bed and started rubbing and massaging his face. "This is actually a method that masseurs use to unblock sinuses and loosen congestion."

"Really?" Seto couldn't have cared less, it felt good.

"It's that or a Vulcan mind meld." She made small circles around his temples and applied deep pressure above and below his eyes. "Ah, now I know all your computer passwords." She grinned and followed that with fake evil laughter.

"Is this another hobby, or a profession?" Seto teased.

"You'll know when I send you a bill."

Anna only had to stick around for a couple more days. She knew Seto was on the path to recovery when she caught him out of bed and typing on his laptop. She didn't really want to leave, nor did Seto, but she had to get back to her apartment and her life. Yugi was probably wondering what happened to her.