#6 – The campfire

''I'm so happy that you've managed to join us this year,'' Mary said, helping Anna put their tent up. The Crawley family was having their annual camping weekend by the lake at Downton estate, and they were really glad that Anna was able to join them.

''Me, too. I've missed this place.'' Anna stood up and looked around her. It was a sunny Friday afternoon, and she really hoped the weather would stay that way through the whole weekend.

''We've had some really good times, haven't we?'' she giggled, remembering all the fun the two of them had shared during summer holidays over the years.

''We certainly have,'' Mary grinned back.

''They're here!'' Cora's voice got the girls' attention in time for them to see Robert's Land Rover approaching the campsite.

''So, can I expect that you'll be sneaking into Matthew's tent tonight?'' Anna whispered to her best friend, as they walked toward the rest of the family.

''What do you think?'' Mary bit the inside of her cheek. It had taken her forever to convince Robert to let Matthew join them. They had been dating for almost a year now, but her Papa was still having trouble with the idea of his little girl dating, even though Mary was almost 23. After a long talk with Cora, he had finally given in and allowed the young man to accompany them, but under one condition - he had to sleep in his own tent, while Mary would share one with Anna.

''Just make sure that you're back in our tent before dawn.'' Anna laughed, but her face blanched suddenly when she heard a very familiar voice. Looking up, she could see John pulling some camping equipment out of the Land Rover, talking to Cora as he unloaded the boot.

''Mary!'' she hissed, freezing in place while tugging her friend's hand.

''What? What's wrong?''

''What is he doing here?'' Anna nodded in John's direction.

''He's here to spend the weekend with us...?'' Mary smiled coyly, very much aware of Anna's little crush. She had introduced John to Anna about a year ago, and had noticed pretty quickly that her friend had been more than smitten with her father's best mate.

''Why didn't you tell me he'd be here?!'' Anna felt a wave of panic. John Bates was everything she had ever looked for in a man - handsome, charming, funny, kind. But he was also, unfortunately, married, so she knew that she didn't have a chance with him. They were just friends, maybe not even that - maybe just acquaintances - but she hadn't been able to stop thinking about him for the last few months.

''Because I knew a certain best friend of mine would think of an excuse not to come, if she knew that John would be here,'' Mary smirked. ''Oh, come on, Anna - we both know that you like him.''

''Shut up, Mary!'' Anna groaned, looking around, afraid that someone might have heard them. ''He's married!''

''If you want to call that a marriage.'' Mary shrugged her shoulders, knowing that John and Vera's marriage had been over even before it had started, and that he'd be far better off making a fresh start.

''Just promise me that you won't say a word to him about it, OK?!''

''I'll try…'' she grinned.

''I'm serious, Mary! One word and I'll tell Robert about you sleeping in Matthew's tent!''

''You wouldn't dare!'' Mary's smile faded, though, when she saw that Anna wasn't bluffing. ''All right, all right, I won't say a thing. But I still think that you should try to spend some more time with your Mr. Bates this weekend.''

''He is not my Mr. Bates!''

''But I'll bet that you want him to be!''

''Mary!'' Anna smacked her playfully, and was about to say more when John finally approached them.

''Hello,'' he greeted them sweetly, trying not to show his nerves. He had almost forgotten how to breathe when he had seen that Anna was there, too. Robert hadn't mentioned anything about it to him, and when he saw her, he was really glad that Vera had decided to stay home.

John knew that Vera wasn't keen on him spending time with Anna. She had even thrown a fit when she had found out he had had a coffee with Anna in town a couple of times, even though it had been completely innocent. All they had done was talk about books and similar topics, although both had secretly enjoyed each other's company very much.

''Hi, Uncle John,'' Mary said, giving him a hug. ''No charming Mrs. Bates with you today?''

''No.'' John shook his head and quickly turned his attention to Anna, not wanting to talk about his dreadful wife, especially when she was around.

''Hi,'' he said somewhat awkwardly, sensing Mary's eyes boring into him.

''Hello,'' Anna managed to reply, feeling a warmth rise up inside of her. Oh, get yourself together! she scolded herself, all the while knowing that she could not help the way she felt. He was just so...attractive!

''Mary, can you give me a hand with something, please?'' Matthew called.

''Coming!'' she replied, and hurried over to him before Anna had a chance to stop her, leaving her alone with John.

''Why didn't you say that you were coming?'' Anna asked, trying to mask the awkwardness she felt.

''I didn't know till today,'' he said, smiling. ''Robert asked me this morning, and I really had no reason to say no, even though it was such short notice.''

''And Vera?''

''Oh, you know her. She hates anything even the slightest bit related to nature. That's the reason we've been living in that small flat, and not in my mother's cottage.''

''You have a cottage? I didn't know that.'' Anna smiled and started to walk alongside him toward the middle of the campsite, where Robert was already busy trying to build a campfire.

''You didn't?'' He couldn't help noticing the way her beautiful eyes were shining.

''No!''

''Well, I do have a cottage. It's located at the edge of Downton Village, and has the biggest, greenest back garden! I love that house so much…'' He smiled, distracted for a moment by his many happy memories of the years he'd lived there.

''But Vera doesn't like it, so...'' Stop talking about your stupid wife, you fool! he berated himself. ''Would you like to…I mean, I could show it to you some time…you know, if you want me to…'' he stammered.

''Sure! I've love to see it!'' she exclaimed, a little too enthusiastically. Little did she know that the cottage John was talking about taking her to see would one day become their own home.

''All right!'' John beamed. He had only known her for a year, but for some reason he never felt more himself than when he was in her company. ''Are you free on Monday after work...maybe at 4:00?''

''Sure, Monday at 4:00 is good.''

''OK, then.''

''It's a date!'' The words left her mouth before she could stop herself.

''Yes…'' he chuckled, noticing her blushing. ''…it's a date.''

John and Anna stood silently, each lost in thought, neither knowing what to say next.

''John, I can't do this!'' Robert's frustrated voice cut into their moment. They turned to him and realized that he apparently had no idea how to build a fire.

''I'm coming!'' John called to his friend, laughing.

''I need to go and save Robert from himself,'' he whispered to Anna, glancing at his best mate who was staring at pieces of wood, unsure of what to do with them.

''Sure, go on. We can talk more later.''

xXx

After the fire was finally built, they all gathered around. While roasting sausages on sticks, they spent the evening talking about anything and everything, and they all laughed when Robert almost set himself on fire, having rested his leg a little too close to the flame. Before they knew it, it was late and time to say good night.

While cleaning and putting the fire out, Anna noticed John walking nervously up and down the nearby pier. He was talking on his phone, and by his agitated expression and the way his hands were flailing, she knew that he was upset and guessed that he was talking to Vera. She had hoped that they might be able to spend some more time together after the Crawleys retired to their tents, but she didn't want to disturb him. In the end, she joined Mary in their tent, without even saying good night to him.

''Are you OK?'' Mary asked, when Anna finally made herself comfortable in her sleeping bag next to her.

''Sure, I'm just a little chilly,'' she replied. It was going to be a cold night, she thought to herself, pulling the edge of the sleeping bag over her nose.

''So, why don't you ask John to warm you up, hmm?'' Mary teased.

''Maaary!'' Anna nudged her in the ribs, and laughed. ''Why are you still here anyway? I thought you'd be spending the night with Matthew.''

''I will. I just need to wait for Papa to fall asleep," she explained, grinning. "And knowing him, I'll be on my way in just a few minutes.''

''Mary?'' Anna whispered into the dark, a few moments later.

''What?''

''Is…is John all right? I mean, why is he still with Vera, if their marriage is dead, as you say it is?''

''I don't know.'' Mary turned onto her side and looked at her friend. ''But I think it has something to do with him being too good and honourable a man. They've been together since secondary school, and John is the kind of guy who always puts everybody else's needs before his own, whether they deserve it or not.''

''I hate her,'' Anna finally whispered, so softly that she wasn't sure whether she'd actually said it out loud. She felt so angry at Vera. She had only met her a couple of times, but it had been enough for her to know that the woman was a nasty piece of work. It broke her heart to think of a sweet, thoughtful, caring person like John being tied to someone who seemed so selfish and incapable of kindness.

''Welcome to the club,'' Mary said. She looked at her phone to check the time. ''All right, I'm going now!'' she whispered in excitement. ''Wish me luck!''

''Good luck!'' Anna smiled, waiting for Mary to zip the tent back up behind her, before making herself comfortable again. Thinking about John, as she had each night for the last couple of months, she slowly drifted off to sleep.

xXx

It was some time past one in the morning when Anna woke up. Her legs were icy, and she could feel her body shivering. It was freezing! Lighting a small lantern, she looked around the tent in hopes of finding an extra blanket, but she didn't see one. If there had been an extra, Mary must have taken it with her, when she had slipped off to Matthew's tent.

''Fantastic,'' Anna whispered, trying to figure out what to do next. She hadn't been expecting it to be so bloody cold, so the only nightwear she had packed was her thin summer pyjamas. She pulled the sleeping bag a little closer, trying to get warm.

''To hell with it!'' she finally exclaimed, standing up, determined to wake Mary and get that extra blanket back. Clutching the sleeping bag around her, she slowly made her way toward Matthew and Mary's tent, only to hear the rustle of fabric and soft giggles from inside.

''Oh, for god's sake, Mary!'' she muttered under her breath. What was she supposed to do now!?

Looking around the camp, she could heard loud snoring coming out of Robert and Cora's tent, and she didn't have the heart to wake up Edith and Sybil. In the end, the only person she knew she could ask for help was John, whose small tent was on the other side of the campfire. She really didn't want to disturb him, and she tried to think of reasons not to ask him, but in the end her freezing legs won out. As quietly as she was able, she approached his tent and called his name softly.

''John? ...John?''

''Anna?'' he asked, confused, not really sure whether he was hearing her real voice or just dreaming of her calling for him, as he seemed to have done with alarming frequency in recent months.

''Yes, it's me.''

''What's going on?'' he asked, unzipping his tent. ''Is everything all right?!'' Suddenly he noticed that she was shaking. ''My god, you're freezing! Come here!'' And before she knew it, he was pulling her inside of his tent.

''No…yes…ummm...I mean, do you by any chance have an extra blanket? Mary took ours and…well, I was going to try to get it back, but she and Matthew are a little...busy...at the moment.'' She giggled in embarrassment, then stopped and stared at him. His lower body was still tucked into the sleeping bag, but he was wearing a simple V-neck t-shirt, and just seeing a tiny bit of his chest hair poking out of the collar made her feel a little warm.

''Oh.'' He laughed, as she sat down next to him. ''I do hope that Robert doesn't find out about that,'' he joked, while looking for something to help warm her up.

''Ye-…yes…me, too,'' she stuttered, her teeth chattering in the cold.

He felt so powerless, looking at her freezing, with no blanket that he could lend her. At that moment, he had an idea.

''Anna?''

''What?'' She looked up hopefully, but saw that he was empty-handed. ''You don't have a blanket, either?'' she moaned, disappointed. How would she survive the night in these temperatures!?

''No, no blanket, but…I have an idea,'' he said carefully, hoping that she wouldn't be offended by it.

''I'll take it!''

''But you don't even know what it is,'' he chuckled.

''Will it make me warmer?''

''Yes, but…''

''Sold!'' she smiled at him, still shivering.

''OK, then.'' He smiled tentatively, before slowly unzipping his sleeping bag and pulling it open. He knew that he was walking on thin ice here, but he couldn't think of any other way he could help her.

''Oh…'' Anna softly gasped, when she finally understood what he was suggesting. Was he really offering to warm her with his own body heat? ''Ummm…''

''You don't have to, if you feel uncomfortable…'' he said, giving her a chance to turn him down, but secretly hoping that she wouldn't.

''No, no.'' She shook her head. Uncomfortable?! If he only knew the truth! ''We are friends, and friends help each other, don't they?''

''They do. And I promise that I'll behave like a gentleman,'' he smiled, trying to lighten the mood, and it helped. In the next moment she removed her sleeping bag from her shoulders and slipped in next to him, instantly feeling the warmth of his body against hers.

''Good god!'' John jumped in surprise, when her cold feet came in contact with his.

''Sorry.'' She giggled softly, trying to make herself comfortable without touching him too much.

''Is this all right?'' she asked, when she finally stopped moving. She was lying on her side, facing him, and had no idea where to rest her hands.

''Almost. May I?'' he asked, gently slipping one hand around her waist and pulling her closer, so that he could zip upthe sleeping bag. This resulted in Anna's body being fully pressed against his, which should have felt strange, but for some reason it didn't. It felt nice…more than nice. It felt wonderful, and he had to do his best not to think about how close she was. Her breasts were pressed against his chest, her legs tangled between his. It was almost too much for him to handle.

''Better?'' He looked down and smiled nervously.

''Ummm...yes, thank you,'' she managed to reply, unable to think of what else to say, still overwhelmed at having him so close to her. The lack of space forced her to rest her head on his chest, and she could not believe how good he smelled. My god, how in the world was she going to survive this night?! she thought to herself, not aware that he was asking himself the very same question. His nose was buried in her soft golden hair, and he was trying to somehow prevent his body from responding to her close proximity. He was searching for something to say, when she beat him to it.

''Good night, John.''

''Good night, Anna,'' he replied softly, smiling to himself. They lay in complete silence for a couple of minutes, neither of them having any idea what more they could say. Gradually he felt her breathing become slow and steady against his chest.

Tightening his arms around her, he gently brought her even closer and drifted off to sleep with a smile…a joyful, contented look that stayed on his face all night, but quickly vanished when Robert caught them sound asleep and still bundled together, nose-to-nose, the next morning.

BETA: ANNAMBATES! :) - she is the BEST!

hello! thanks for reading! if you have some time, please review! :D **