Warning: Adult content contained in this chapter. Parental Discretion is advised.

Chapter 21

Primal Instincts

"Who's a good fishy?" Anna asked her tiny friend as she brought the fishbowl into the living room of Seto's apartment. Seto gave her a strange look as she placed him on the coffee table. "There we go, isn't it nicer in here?"

"He's a fish, he doesn't care which room he's in." Seto complained.

"Googie likes being around people. He finds it stimulating."

"If I had known you were going to call it Googie I wouldn't have gotten you a fish."

"What's wrong with Googie? It's a good name."

Seto just rolled his eyes at her.

"Oh, hey! I almost forgot. I can't make it over here tomorrow afternoon. My uncle called me this morning and ordered me to do one of his errands."

"So you can't make it tomorrow, what's the big deal? You're here everyday anyways."

"That's because I have to come over and feed Googie, considering someone won't let me take him to my apartment."

"The fish stays here. It's my ransom in exchange for your test data on that watch."

"Okay, fine." Anna was still bummed out. "But tomorrow is Thursday. I've been over here every single Thursday since we met; I can't break a tradition like that."

Seto knew that face she made. How did he become such a soft touch? And truthfully, the idea of a day going by without seeing her was disappointing to him as well. That was part of the reason he made sure she had to come by everyday to feed her fish. "Is this errand going to take long? Perhaps I could meet you somewhere and we can have dinner."

Anna thought about it for a second. Did she really want him to know what her Uncle had planned for her? The better question was, did she really want to go a whole day without seeing him? She had to admit she was becoming addicted to his company. "Sure, why not? I should be done before seven; it's only a few photos. And there is this great Thai place across the street." Anna wrote down the address on a piece of paper for him. "Met me there at seven? I'll tell the doorman to let you in."

Seto nodded in agreement.

The next day Seto made his way across town to the address provided by Anna. It was one of those studio apartments that had been converted into a business space. He walked through the door and up the stairs. These kinds of places don't have elevators. At the top of the stairs he was met with a massive man with a clipboard standing like a wall in front of the entrance.

"Hey buddy, you lost?" The mountainous man grumbled.

"I'm meeting someone."

"What's your name?"

"Why should I tell you?"

"I gotta check you out. There's a list see. And if you're not on the list, you don't get in."

Seto begrudged having to tell this bouncer anything, but he thought it best not to cause a stir. "Kaiba."

The man looked down his list then stepped aside. He gestured with his head telling Seto that he was permitted in.

Considering all the security Seto wondered what Anna could be up to. She said it was only a few photos. Why would her photography hobby be under such strict guard? As he entered he could see that there was a photo session in process. He didn't see Anna directly so he wandered cautiously behind the cameras trying not to interfere while he searched for her. She had to be in amongst the photographers, or at least that is what logic told him. He couldn't find her anywhere. He must have the right place; Anna put his name on the list. He stood off the set and out of the lights waiting for her to find him. He took the opportunity to study the situation before him. He saw the photographers snapping shots, the lighting professionals constantly adjusting the brightness of the scene, the make-up ladies gossiping, and the scantly clad model in the lime light. That's when he recognized the model. Anna? She was right in front of him the whole time. He almost tripped over his own feet when he saw what she was wearing. It was a modified schoolgirl uniform with a very, very short skirt and a cropped top that showed off her belly and cleavage. To complete the schoolgirl image she had her hair done up in braids and round glasses on the tip of her nose. She was posing on, over, and around a computer. Each photo showed off one or more aspects of her body. And by the way she was playing and smiling, Seto could tell she was enjoying every minute of it. Seto knew she was beautiful, he had always thought that. But at this moment she was the most alluring and sexy woman he had ever seen. The entire display was extremely erotic, even more so than his experience with her in the car. Seto had always prided himself on being a high minded individual, and as such he never succumb to his primitive wants and desires. But he had no control here. He may be a businessman, a millionaire, and even a genius, but above all of that, he was still a man. A man confronted by the greatest of temptations. At this point he wanted nothing more than to take her in his arms, press her body against his, taste her lips, touch her flesh, and take her to his bed.

The photographer called a rap to the session and everyone began scurrying around turning off lights and putting away things. Seto stepped back into the shadows; he didn't want Anna to see him. He had to compose himself, regain his calm demeanor.

Anna stepped off the set and spoke briefly with a few people. She looked down at her watch and noticed the time. It was well past seven. She scanned the crowd looking for Seto and she spotted him, much to his dismay. He thought it best come out of his hiding place before she realized he was hiding. They approached each other and Anna gave him a smile and an apology.

"I'm sorry, I'm late. I thought we'd be done by now."

"What is all of this about?" Seto said in a stern voice.

"It's really complicated." Anna suddenly got very self-conscious and tried to pull her skirt down to cover more of her body. "How about I explain it all at dinner? Give me a few minutes to get changed." And she rushed off to a dressing room.

Seto found an empty seat in a corner, out of the way of the mad dash of people moving and packing things. He had to get a grip on himself. He had always been so calculating, he planned everything in his life, but Anna was the one wild card he couldn't control. He didn't know if that excited or frightened him. For the moment he had to worry with controlling himself.

It was at least ten minutes before Anna re-emerged, this time in normal attire that he was used to. He was also back to the surly self that she was accustomed to. They went downstairs to the street level. Anna knew she would have a lot of explaining to do and she was attempting to figure out in her head how she was going to tell him. A quick beep from her wrist caught both of their attention. Seto looked on as she pressed the buttons on her watch and her blood sugar levels were displayed.

"Cripes! I knew those hot spot lights would do me in. I've got to go to the car and get my insulin; I used up what I had in my bag."

"I still can't believe they gave you a license." Seto teased.

"I told you I was a good driver, I don't know why you didn't believe me." She gave him an evil grin.

"Where are you parked?"

"In the parking garage over there. But there is no need for us both to go. Why don't you go to the restaurant and get us a table. I'll be right back."

Seto crossed the street to the restaurant and Anna proceeded to the parking garage. It was getting dark, but there was still plenty of light to see. She headed up the stairs to the level she remembered parking on. She thought to herself how creepy a place like that was at night. Lots of nooks where someone could hide, how everything echoed, and the dim florescent lights. And she could have sworn she was being followed. Those footsteps you think you hear, but when you stop to listen they aren't there anymore. What was she doing? This was crazy! She was freaking herself out. She had seen way too many horror movies with Yugi. From now on they were only going to see sappy romantic films. She even giggled at herself for thinking such foolishness.

She finally reached the car, but before she could put them in the door she heard a noise right behind her. She dropped the keys when someone grabbed her and threw her back against the car. She tried to scream but the man covered her mouth with his hand. She instinctively started pushing and punching him trying to get free from his grip. He got tired of her attack and pulled a gun from his belt and held it her head. Anna didn't need any instructions to know that if she didn't stop she would be shot.

"If you scream I'll blow your brains out." Said the assailant in a deep rough voice.

Anna gave a quick nod to let him know she understood. He slipped his hand off of her mouth and down her neck.

"What do you want? She said between quick jagged breaths.

"That's the question, isn't it?" He looked her up and down. "I'm going to get a lot out of you, but I'll start with this!" His hand pulled at her shirt. The force of it caused the buttons to pop off and her shirt tore at the shoulder.

Anna panicked, "No!" She tried pushing him away again and when that failed she left scratch marks across his face. She no longer cared if he killed her, anything was better than what he had intended to do.

He yelped when she scratched him. And he vented his anger by hitting the side of her face with the butt of the gun. The impact threw her face forward to the ground. It took a second for her eyes to refocus and when they did she realized that the blood on the floor was hers. Only one thing came into her mind, the greatest primal instinct, 'Run!' She pulled herself onto all fours and tried her best to scurry away, but he easily caught her. He flipped her over and stratled her stomach so she couldn't get away. Anna screamed for help and the man closed his hand in around her throat to stop the sound.

"Now why did you have to go and do that? We could have had some fun together. But now I'm going to have to kill you."

Anna kicked, punched, scratched, clawed, anything she could do to cause some injury to him, but he seemed unaffected. The more she protested, the more he tightened his grip.

"I'll do you a favor. I'll make it quick and almost painless." He held the gun up and cocked back the hammer of the revolver. Anna knew this was the end.

A flying circle kick connected with the assailant's head causing him to lose balance and fall off of her. The gun flew out of his hand and slid under a nearby car. Anna seized the opportunity and fled from the man. The man didn't stay down long, and when he got on his feet he was fuming with anger.

"You just made a huge mistake!" The man yelled at his attacker.

Anna, still reeling from the blow to her face, leaned on a car and scanned the scene. The man was ready to square off against her rescuer.

"Run, Anna! Get out of here!"

"Seto, no! He'll kill you!"

The man stood a full head taller than Seto and was a mass of muscle. Anna feared that Seto was no match for this guy.

"Oh, how cute! You've come to save your girlfriend." He took a swing, but Seto was too fast. He dodged his fist and landed a blow on the man's stomach. Seto recoiled his hand in pain. Hitting him was like punching a brick wall. The man retaliated by throwing another punch. This time Seto was not fast enough to avoid it. It made contact with his head. It was immediately followed by another to Seto's stomach. Seto crumpled over in pain, he felt like a truck had hit him. Then another hit to Seto's head. That made him fall to the floor. Seto couldn't take much more, he was already bleeding and his chest felt like it would implode. He looked up at his attacker just in time to see Anna jump him from behind. 'Damn her! She never does what I tell her to do.' But in this case he was grateful.

Anna leapt onto his back and wrapped her arm around his throat. She wasn't strong enough to choke him, but she was hoping that her body weight might be enough pressure to cause the same effect. He stumbled around trying to grab her. He was able to reach over his shoulder and nab her. He flung her over his head. She landed several feet away with a great 'thud'.

"Don't you dare touch her!" Seto yelled.

Anna had given Seto enough time to recover and get back on his feet. The attacker re-approached him and Seto tried to hit him with a flying leg kick. This time it didn't work, Seto's reaction times were slowed and the man was able to catch his leg in mid-air. He twisted it and sent Seto back to the ground again. The man got down on his knees and using one hand put a chokehold on Seto. Seto couldn't believe the strength this guy had.

"Couldn't have minded your own business, could you? Had to be the hero. I only got paid for her, but you I'll do for free."

Seto could feel his life slip away as the man squeezed his throat. Without oxygen he started to loose consciousness. His eyesight grew blurry and he couldn't hear anything. Through his fuzzy sight he noticed the attacker looked distracted. Something in front of him. He was saying something, but Seto couldn't make it out. Suddenly the man's grip went weak and he fell over. Seto gasped deep breaths and choked. He dragged himself up to see the man lying on the ground, blood oozing from his chest. He turned, and there was Anna standing with a gun in her hand. She was petrified, she couldn't move she just stared at the horrible thing she had done.

Seto crawled to her and in a raspy voice called to her, "Anna."

Anna unceremoniously dropped to her knees, still staring forward. He reached her and knelt down between her and the man. He was deliberately cutting off her view.

"Anna, put down the gun." He said it in the gentlest voice he could muster.

She dropped it by her side and Seto slid it a few feet away from them.

"I told him to stop," Anna whispered. "I warned him. He wouldn't listen. He was going to kill you."

"You did the right thing." Seto saw her torn shirt so he took off his jacket and placed it around her shoulders.

Anna flung her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. She began sobbing uncontrollably. Seto knew he should comfort her, he wanted to comfort her, but he wasn't accustomed to it. He didn't know what to do. He tentatively wrapped his arms around her. It began as the gentlest of touches, but it grew stronger, and eventually he was holder her as tight as he could. He needed her just as much as she needed him.

It was hours before they were able to make it back to Seto's apartment. They had to deal with the police reports, quick once-overs by the paramedics, and bribes and threats to keep their names out of the papers.

Anna came into the living room wearing her pajamas and wrapped in a blanket.

"Feeling better?" Seto asked. He was sitting on the couch doctoring his bloody knuckles with peroxide and gauze.

She gave a muffled sound of acceptance. She wasn't sure if she was ready to talk about what happened yet. Anna passed behind him on the couch and stopped.

"You're bleeding." She touched a spot on his head.

Seto winced in pain. Anna inspected the wound and gestured for Seto to hand her the supplies he was using so she might fix it.

"It's pretty deep; it might leave a scar."

"It doesn't matter, it won't be seen." He was right, no one would see it because it was right at his hairline and his long bangs would cover it.

"Are you going to hide it, like you do this one?" Anna ran her a finger across the old scar on his forehead. She had seen it before when she nursed him back to health, but she never got up the nerve to ask him about it. "What is it?"

Seto was hesitant to answer. He spent most of his life trying to forget. And yet, he felt compelled to tell her. She was the only one who could really understand.

"I got that the day my parents died." He paused to collect his thoughts. "It was a car accident. A drunk driver hit us head on. They died on impact; Mokuba and I survived because we were in the back seat. Mokuba was only a baby, I'm thankful that he doesn't remember. But I do. How fair is that? My parents die and I walk away with a scratch."

"So you hide the scar because it reminds you of the crash?"

Seto gave her a quick nod.

"Don't think of it like that. Don't let it drag you down. Let it be something wonderful. From now on every time you look at it I want you to think of your parents. Not about when they died, but how they lived. All those happy memories you have. That's how they would want you to remember them, not in death, but in life." Anna finished patching up Seto's head. "And when you look at this scar, I don't want you to remember this horrible day. I want you to remember how brave and courageous you were, and how you saved a young lady's life."

"That one's yours. I'll think of you."

Seto couldn't see the tiny smile that formed on her face, but he felt the sweet little kiss she placed on his wound.

She joined him on the couch. She just stared into the distance. She didn't want to think she just wanted to start crying again. Above all she was exhausted and wanted to sleep, but she knew she wouldn't be that fortunate.

"How did you know?" Anna didn't even look at him when she asked.

"I just knew. Strangest thing, really. I was walking into the restaurant and I stopped. It was like something was calling me, telling me I had to find you. So I left. It sounds absurd, but I can't explain it otherwise."

"It's not absurd. I'm glad you did." She turned to him now. "Thank you Seto. Thank you for saving my life."

"And you saved mine."

"If you hadn't come along..." Tears welled up in her eyes again and then a full on flood of them flowed down her cheeks when she realized... "He was going to rape me. Oh god!"

She was shaking and sobbing. Seto reached out and embraced her. He stroked her hair and gently rocked her in his arms. "It's all right. You're safe here. I won't let anyone hurt you." He was amazed at how it became so easy for him do this. He was so tentative before, but now it was like second nature.

"You're my best friend Seto." Anna said between sniffles. "You're the only one I've ever had."

All he could do was hold her tighter.

That night Seto dreamed. It wasn't like the re-occuring nightmare he had a child, this was completely different. It was vivid and real, like he was really there. He could feel the heat of the desert sun, the arid wind as it blew, and the texture of sand beneath his feet. He traveled across a wasteland, a desert void of life. Then through the winding streets of a village up to a palace. The guards opened the gates and allowed him to pass through. Into a courtyard, up stairs, into a plush garden. As he passed by a pond his reflection caught his eye. He stopped and gazed upon his image in the water. He was dressed in blue and gold robes and a matching headdress. He looked weary and dehydrated. Then there appeared in the water another reflection. He looked up to see her face. Anna stood before him in white linen accented with gold and jewels, and upon her head was a crown with snake and vulture heads.

"Have you found what you were looking for?" She asked.

Seto jolted awake. His dream was so intense. So real. He had never experienced anything like it. A soft moan and a slight motion caught his attention. He realized that Anna was lying next to him. She had one arm around him and her head rested on his chest. The blanket that she had used that night covered them both. They must have fallen asleep on the couch. He watched her as she slept. How her hair fell over her face in light strands. The way she breathed in unison with the rising and falling of his chest. Her hand slid up his body and came to rest in the center of his chest, right above his heart. He cautiously reached over and touched her hand. His course hands against her tender fingers. She nuzzled her face deeper into his chest. He was afraid he had woke her, he didn't want her to wake up, he wanted her to stay exactly where she was. It amazed him that after such a horrific experience that he could be happy. Right then at that moment, he was happier than he had been for a very long time.

"I've found exactly what I was looking for." Seto said to Anna in the tiniest of whispers.

It was still dark, and it wasn't long before he faded back off to sleep again. The morning sunlight woke him. He reached over to find Anna but she was gone. The only reminder of the encounter was the blanket she left to keep him warm. He sat up and searched the room, hoping to find her. He feared she had snuck out early like she always did. He didn't want her to leave, not today. He got to his feet and checked her room, it was empty. Wandering back into the main area he was lured to the kitchen by a familiar scent and slight noises. That's where he found Anna. She saw him as he entered, so she placed a cup on the counter and poured him some coffee.

"Cream, no sugar, right?"

He took the cup from her. "No lectures about how coffee is bad for me?"

"I think you earned it."

In the morning light Anna's wounds were more evident. She had a huge black and red bruise on the side of her face and a busted lip. There were marks around her neck that outlined the man's hand as he tried to strangle her. Her eyes were sad and they had lost their luster. He knew the wounds went deeper than her skin. She was mentally and emotionally beaten.

On the other side of the counter Anna was thinking the same thing about Seto. She could clearly see the bruises on his face and neck and his black eye. She knew there were probably many more on his chest and stomach that she couldn't see. But through all of it, his eyes sparkled. There was more life in them than she had ever seen. He actually looked...happy.

"I was going to leave." Anna started. "But I just couldn't go back to my apartment. I didn't want to be alone."

"You can stay here was long as you like." He reached out across the counter and took her hand in his.

Anna's mind was panicking. 'No, you can't let him get attached. This isn't right. You have to tell him.' But she couldn't make her hand move.

"I'm..." Anna began to tell him the truth but was startled and cut off when Mokuba entered the kitchen. She quickly withdrew her hand from Seto's and looked away from him.

Mokuba stood there in his pajamas rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He couldn't believe the condition of the two people in front of him.

"What happened to you two?"