A/N: I'm back from my self-imposed exile everyone. A huge thanks to all the reviews, favourites and follows; they really, really helped when I was feeling down, and I hope I can keep making you proud. I have tumblr, where I may use to post behind the scenes tidbits, relevant music or answers to questions, as well as twitter. My handle for both is "theroonco".

There was a deathly silence in the room for a moment as the words echoed in Anna's head. When she found the ability to talk, her voice was shaky. "I had a sister?"

"Yes." Peter had calmed down somewhat and spoke with a level voice.

"Describe her."

"Let's see..." His tongue followed his eyes from left to right as he cast his mind back. "Well, as I said, she was older than you. She was blonde and, um, that's it." He gave Anna a sheepish grin that enraged her.

"That's it?! That's all you can tell me? That she was older than me and had blonde hair? What about her name?"

Peter held his hands up defensively. "I swear that's all I know! I only saw her," here he wriggled his fingers desperately, "a few times, alright? And nearly all those times she was too busy lugging you around!"

Anna blinked at the man as she processed the information. "What do you mean?"

"The only times I saw her, she'd be carrying or trying to feed you, alright? And she was so darn protective," he chuckled, "she'd cart you into one of your bedrooms at the first sign of trouble. A shame that she seemed frightened by pretty much anything."

The sound of his laughter only served to aggravate the girl further. "Are you kidding me? You can poke fun at my sister yet you can't tell me her name? You were being paid more than Kai for crying out loud! How can you not know your boss' daughter's name?!" She privately smiled as Peter's smirk left his face.

"She had her own staff." He said simply. "A few maids that kept her in her room except for the few times she snuck off to find you. As for not knowing her name," He shrugged, "both your parents are fond of keeping secrets."

"If she had her own staff, give me their names." Anna's mind raced. If her father had wanted to keep his eldest daughter a secret, he would have had to pay those maids an extraordinary amount of money. As such, it would be quite likely that their names would have been among those she'd picked out during her research.

"I'm not good with names, but I remember... Nala, I think it was. And Kiara? I actually spoke with those two."

Anna frowned. "They weren't in the ledgers from back then."

"Use your head girl! Isn't it obvious they were being paid separately?"

Anna huffed. Coming off of the adrenaline rush, if the shock could be called that, she asked the question that had formed in her mind almost immediately after her first one, yet had been too frightening to ask. "You - you said I had an older sister," she began, her voice shaking again, "what - why did you say had? What happened to her? She's not... you know?" Dead?

Peter rubbed his hands over his eyes and took a deep breath before he spoke, clearly having understood her last sentence. "I wouldn't put anything past the man, but I don't know. One day she just... disappeared, along with her staff, a year before I... left. All the records your parents had on any of them went missing as well. Now, please go. If anyone sees that I've been talking to you..." He gave her a worried look.

Anna stood and got as far as the door before some more questions took shape. She turned back. "Did you tell anyone else all this? Is that why you lost your job?"

Peter outright guffawed before patting his breast pocket. "No, no. I left your father's employment over something much more mundane. You read the old ledgers didn't you?" Anna nodded. "Your father didn't approve of my handwriting."

Anna rolled her eyes and asked her final question. "Why don't I remember any of this? I know I was two at the time, but surely not having a sister all of a sudden would be a big deal, right?"

Peter was getting impatient, but maintained a calm tone. "I obviously don't know much about you now, but you were always a bit slow as a child. Now you really should leave."

Anna rolled her eyes again as she backed outside. "I get enough of that from therapy, thank you very much. And you're just being paranoid."

Peter placed a hand on the door.

"And you're just being naive."

The whole ordeal was just so bizarre. So she had a sister? That made sense in a strange sort of way, as Peter's description matched the figure from her dream, but where was she now? Why did she have to go? Was she even alive?!

Anna shook her head before the idea could grow further and looked up. She was seated at the dinner table alongside her parents. She bit her lip as she looked up at them, still as tense as the day after her father had uttered the words that had sparked the whole affair. It was that memory that encouraged her to seize the initiative.

"I know I have a sister."

It was as if time stopped for a fraction of a second. Both her mother and father froze in the middle of chewing their food or scooping up another mouthful respectively, before resuming as if nothing had happened. Anna waited for a few seconds for either of them to respond, but they didn't.

"I know you heard that."

This time, her father swallowed the contents of his mouth before turning to her, speaking with an emotionless voice. "What was that?"

"Don't play dumb."

"I really have no idea what you're talking about."

"I know I used to have a sister but she left when she was two. I know she had her own staff and you got rid of them when you got rid of her. So what happened, huh? What did you do to her?!" Anna slammed her hand on the table. "Tell me!"

Her father wiped a few drops of soup from his lips before fixing her with a hard stare. "And who could have told you all this, I wonder?" He began, scanning her face. "Someone who's been working here for quite some time, of course. However, it must be someone who wasn't at risk of losing their job or their money if their role became known, correct? So it must have been someone who used to work here." Anna tried to keep her face still, but her widening eyes betrayed her. "Kai told me you've been locked up in that room of yours all day. I'm sure that if I were to check my study, I'd find the old ledgers out of order? Of course, your little excursion this evening wasn't much longer than an hour, maybe two, accounting for my lack of focus on what you get up to, so I highly doubt you would have visited each and every one of those former employees. Now, for all your flaws, you have a decent head on your shoulders, so I'd say you prioritized the better paid ones, hmm? And taking their personalities and addresses into account..." Agdar leaned back in his chair for a moment, closing his eyes before chuckling. "How much did you pay Livingstone?"

Anna gasped and her father looked back at her. "I applaud you for taking the initiative though Anna. I sincerely do. In fact, this works out nicely for both of us."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Remember the little accident you had last week? Well, I think the best way to make amends is to help me in another business venture, wouldn't you agree? Next week, a friend of mine will be hosting a fundraiser for one of his smaller businesses. I was supposed to attend, but it isn't really to my taste, so I want you to go in my stead."

"Agdar." Anna's mother had finally joined the conversation, her voice soft. "Are you sure that's fair? She doesn't need to be a part of that."

Agdar brushed the complaint aside. "Relax. The girl needs to learn a bit of business eventually, even if she doesn't choose to follow in my footsteps."

Anna watched Ithun leave the room before responding. "And what does this have to do with my sister?"

Agdar gave her a roguish grin. "Don't I do everything for a reason?"

Anna simply stared. You sure do dad. When you signed me up to learn water polo you kept telling me off for not holding the other kids' heads underwater. When you wanted me to learn karate you really just wanted me to learn to hit below the belt. So yeah, you do. You're always trying to teach me "a bit of business".

Anna almost missed what her father said next. "And once the big lug finishes pontificating, you can ask him about your sister." Anna's jaw dropped and he smirked. "As I highly doubt you'll refuse the best offer I'll be making you, I'll start with the arrangements now." He left her to her thoughts, already bringing out his phone for the necessary calls.

True to his word, Agdar refused to even acknowledge the subject all week, telling Anna to wait or simply ignoring her numerous questions altogether. Her mother wasn't any better, shrugging her off, even when the girl begged her to shed some light on the situation. Two things hurt Anna most during that time: one, that she hadn't been given the opportunity to find Peter and apologize for betraying him or to see if his fears had been well founded, and second, for whatever reason, her parents wouldn't even deign to give her her sister's name.

It was the longest week of Anna's life, but it eventually passed, leaving her seated in the living room of her home in an expensive, yet conservative green dress, fidgeting and hyperventilating, desperate to regain some control over herself before she embarked on what could be the most significant trip of her life. It was almost a relief when the appointed hour arrived, followed a few minutes later by the ring of the bell. Anna walked over to the lobby with shaking legs but was beaten to the door by her father, who welcomed two burly men in with a wide smile. She observed them from where she stood, before they could notice her. Both men were huge, muscles evident even in their black suits. They appeared to be brothers, with short, ginger hair. One had chosen to grow sideburns reaching down to his mouth, while the other had a scar running down the left side of his forehead and onto his cheek. She took another deep breath and stepped forward.

Her father turned and smiled warmly at her. The nerve! "There you are Anna. These men will be serving as your escorts today. You won't be going too far, but I've asked these men to keep you safe. Is that alright?" Anna just nodded. "Fabulous. Now, if you men would be kind enough to ready the car, thank you," the men walked back out as Agdar turned to his daughter, "I hope you have a nice time Anna." He gave her a hug, but Anna refused to reciprocate. He chuckled. "At least say goodbye to your mother." He pointed to Ithun, who was standing on the lowest step of the staircase. Anna couldn't trust herself to speak, so simply waved before following her "bodyguards" to their car.

The ride was uncomfortable to say the least. Not because the car was cramped or stuffy (it was the exact opposite of both), but because the lack of conversation and the darkened windows that she wasn't allowed to lower only served to highlight the fact that Anna simply had no idea where she was being taken, her father having told her that he wanted "to keep it a surprise". She had raised the issue with the men, arguing that the set up was not unlike a kidnapping, only for Sideburns, as she chose to call him, to snark that, unlike a kidnapping, she could jump out at any time. Anna snorted and leaned back in her seat, eyes shut. As if I'd back out after coming this far.

She didn't gain any information upon arriving either. She had been taken to what looked to be a giant theater. Security was rampant everywhere, people being stopped, seemingly at random, left right and center, although Anna's group received no such trouble. Her thugs efficiently bundled her into what she assumed was a VIP seating area, empty apart from a few individuals absorbed in deep conversation. Unable to join in and ask questions of her own (partly due to the imposing figures of her escorts), Anna could only eye her watch and wait for the show to start, fighting back her panic.

At the stroke of the hour, the lights dimmed. Anna leaned forward with anticipation. A spotlight illuminated the stage as a screen descended, before a hidden projector shone a backdrop of leaves onto it. Anna cast her eyes down from her vantage point at the larger crowd - the "regulars" - assorted below before looking back at the stage as a man strode forth. He was a giant, easily the tallest man Anna had ever seen, and also quite plump. He was dressed in a green shirt and orange trousers with a simple green cap, all matching the background. He had a wispy moustache that led into two humongous sideburns, far thicker than those belonging to Sideburns himself, seated under a wide nose.

The man bounced on the balls of his feet for a few moments, waiting for the few lingering conversations in the hall to cease (Anna's eyes couldn't help but be drawn to his immense bulk as he did so). When the audience fell silent, he beamed at those below him, then cast his gaze up at the VIP seating areas. "Welcome all!" He began. "It's lovely to be here again, yes? Have we been keeping ourselves busy?" Laughter echoed throughout the room. Anna wrinkled her nose. This guy is way too proud of himself. And that exaggerated accent is already getting on my nerves.

The man really did pontificate, as her father put it. He did nothing but gossip for five minutes and the people in her seating area in turn did nothing but laugh at his horrible jokes or murmur their agreements of whatever ideologies he spouted. Finally, he held his hands out to silence yet another round of applause. "I fear I am getting off topic yet again. Let me make amends or you'll be going away with bad feelings!" He clapped his hands and the leaves behind him gave way to the first slide of the presentation he was about to give. "My name is Winston Oak! And I welcome you to celebrate yet another anniversary..." He clapped his hands again and the screen changed to another slide.

If this man knew where her sister was, Anna realised, it was because her father had handed her over to him. All her life she'd thought the phrase to be nothing more than an exaggeration or cliche, but when Oak finished his sentence...

...it truly felt as though her heart had stopped.

A/N: I like to think Anna's theme tune changes at this point. You can find the link in my profile page, just as before.