Hello! How are you all?

I did say I'd be back in February and here I am!

Really sorry for the long wait, it just took me a very long time to get back into this fic and I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint.

Enjoy!

If you have ever lain awake for hours after midnight waiting for the numbness of sleep to take you than you will agree that there are few things harder than willing oneself to achieve sweet unconsciousness. Lying in his bed with one arm resting above his head, Tyki Mikk was currently facing this particular problem. After leaving the party early, the full extent of the journey from the Noah Estate to the Kamelot Manor hit him. Fatigued and sore from the days' travel, he thought that sleep would be the best solution.

Sighing Tyki dropped his arm to rub at his eyes which even though heavy from exhaustion, sleep was proving to be a futile pursuit. How many hours he had been lying there, motionless Tyki was unsure, from the movement of the moon he would hazard a guess that it was not too many hours till dawn. Without even the energy to toss and turn in hope of a more promising position Tyki simply closed his eye hoping that they might decide to remain closed of their own volition for what little remained of the night.

No such luck. Soft lashed lids cracked open on to the sight of dark silhouettes moving idly above him. Tyki had left the curtains undrawn and the ripple of cloud forms moving in and out of the moonlight filtering on to his bedroom ceiling; soft charcoal across silvery blue. This was a habit that he picked up as a boy and had never managed to shake off. The night was a colourful place and there were just so many different shades of grey that only existed in the silent hours between midnight and dawn. It was soothing.

Right now, however Tyki was far from soothed. Irritation set in behind the initial tiredness, why was he unable to sleep? Tyki began to list the possible explanations for his problem. One: the pillow was too soft and there were too many of them on the bed; two, the room was too large; And three, everything was much too quiet. There were no sounds of wild life outside the window or people inside, only the sounds that old mansions make when they think that nobody is listening. From this side of the mansion, even the sound of the sea was lost. Truth be told, it had been a number of years since he last lay in this bed, perhaps the unfamiliarity was making it difficult for his body to relax.

Tyki released the breath he had not even realised he was holding, rubbed his eyes with the flat of his palms and decided to give up on sleep. It was too much hard work. Instead the man dragged himself into a sitting position and leant back against the solid headboard. He might as well do something productive like read seeing as how he now had excess time on his hands. But that would involve leaving the warmth of his sheets to light a lamp, find a book and then settle back into the bed. Far too much hard work involved for this time of night.

A muffled sound and tugging of the sheet pulled Tyki out of his stubborn indecision, head snapping in the direction of the sound and a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. Lying on the other side of his bed was another body clearly enjoying the restfulness of sleep that he so coveted at this moment. The other was sleeping on her side, back turned towards him blissfully ignorant.

Charcoal light played about her upper body as it rose and fell in time to slow breathing. Brows furrowed as Tyki moved closer cautiously, if he was awake and unable to sleep he could do with some company. Tyki raised a hand to brush the long strands of hair away from the woman's face, stopping at the soft feel. Curling a lock loosely around his finger he ran his hand down the length of it careful not to tug un-gently. The hair ended at the woman's waist where Tyki allowed the strands to fall away and kept his hand hovering over well-formed hips.

Suddenly the need to rouse the sleeping figure did not seem as urgent, instead Tyki wanted to bask in the peaceful calm surrounding her. He had spent so long trying to find sleep he could not find it in himself to begrudge this woman hers. The woman shifted again causing the sheet to slip off her shoulder. Tyki held his breath as he waited for her to settle down, letting it out in a low whistle when the shuffling had subsided. Before he could stop himself, his hand was raised once again this time to feel the exposed glowing skin. Skin soft enough to match the hair, I wonder?

The contact of cool fingertips and the warm downy skin changed his touch from an explorative gesture to a caress. A woman in a green dress sitting in the shadows of a large windowsill filled his mind's eye. He recalled the many different shades of smiles and expressions she had sported earlier. The ease with which she had mocked him and the fragility she had shown when she spoke of her grandfather; all of that now cast aside. Her face smoothed out and bearing no expression other than neutrality of sleep-induced peace. It made Tyki happy to know that it was even possible for her to bear such an expression.

Tyki laid the flat of his hand fully on her shoulder, memorising the quality and shape of her skin as he trailed a path along from shoulder to elbow to forearm, finally meeting the hand that was fisted under her chin. Prying open the fine boned fingers Tyki interlocked his own with hers. Initiating an intimate touch that Tyki would never have shared with another woman, especially if she was awake to witness it. Moving with careful deliberateness, Tyki lay down pulling her closer to him as he did so. The warmth of her body promised a cure to his insomnia; or so he told himself.

Most women who visited his bed insisted on sharing a pillow, and though he humoured them while conscious Tyki would always deposit them to their own side of the bed as soon as he was able. This moment right now, pressed closely to the slumbering woman was probably the first time Tyki had ever willingly allowed such a situation.

Mentally, he rebuked himself for the show of sentimentality while at the same time relished the scent of orange blossom fragranced hair. Deciding that he couldn't fall any further in his own eyes Tyki took full advantage of his current situation. With his left hand he gently cupped the back of her head, lifting it slightly off the pillow and with the other he swept up her hair and wrapped his hand around her shoulders as he rolled over on to his back. The woman rolled with him until her head rested between his neck and shoulder and arm loosely draped over his chest.

Tyki considered the feeling of being so close to another person, never before had the weight of another leaning over him seemed so comfortable. He tilted her chin up, examining her face and stroking a downy soft cheek. The darkness of night stole most her colour, replacing it with muted tones of grey and blue. But Tyki knew that in any other light the hair flowing over his pillows would burn a magnificent red and under those eye lids were emeralds.

Chuckling to no-one but an empty room Tyki wrapped one arm around his sleeping partner and tucked the other behind his own head. For the first time Tyki felt content. Certainly this was a feeling he could become used to quite easily. Lulled by the slow rhythm of breathing and enveloped in soothing warmth Tyki's sleep deprived eyes finally closed.

In the first grey light of dawn, a red haired woman stirred from sleep. The night had not been kind to her and she could not stay in this bed any longer than was required of her. Waking up to another body so close was too uncomfortable for her liking. It was too constricted under these sheets; too heavy under the weight of an arm wrapped around her waist; and far too hot was the breath on the back of her neck.

The last of her tolerance was eaten away by the sensation of a face nuzzling her shoulder and familiar, unwelcome lips grazing against her skin. Before the arm around her could even attempt tightening its hold she grabbed it and none-too gently threw it off her, freeing herself from its hold. Now cleared of that shackle she pulled herself up and out of the confines of the large bed.

"That wasn't very nice, Lavi. I'm cold now."

Lavi looked over her shoulder to acknowledge the source of the sleepy grumbling with a cold green stare, communicating her intense dislike of the man who only smiled and closed his own golden eyes once more.

"Mm… such a passionate face this morning…"

Lavi ignored the voice behind her and moved off to get dressed, doing her best to disregard the various aches around her body. She paused in front of the mirror to examine the extent of the damage. Fresh bruises bloomed all over, painting her every colour from sickly yellow to dark purple. Patches of red were scattered across her body, arms, chest and neck, marks of ownership, little reminders that she was no longer her own.

She winced as she ran her hand over the dark impression of fingers around her upper left arm. A souvenir from the first time she had tried to fight off the man's advances. It was slow to heal and Lavi entertained the dark thought that it would probably stay there for as long as she was bound to him. Closing her eye on the violent reflection Lavi started to dress.

Stiffness had set into her muscles, but Lavi did her best not to give any of it away as she pulled on a pair of long white pants and a loose purple shirt. It was hard to suppress the pained gasps as she stretched her arms but Lavi had resolved that she would never let him see that the bruises affected her deeper than skin level.

Lavi gathered herself as best she could, stilling the storm of anger, hate and disgust that raged through her being. The best option now was too maintain a cool, objective outlook, remember why she was doing this.

"It's still too early. You should come back to bed, it really is too cold…"

From her angle in front of the full length, free standing mirror, Lavi could see the reflection of the dark haired, golden eyed man as he laid spread out on her bed. Sheril Kamelot was staring up at the high ceiling completely at ease. Lavi could tell from the sound of his tone that he spoke mostly for his own benefit, he liked the sound of his own voice.

Lavi could feel the bile rise in her throat at his suggestion; disgust was not a word strong enough to describe what she felt towards this man.

"I'm sorry, should I come over and kiss you good morning?"

Sheril appeared to be completely unaffected by the sarcasm soaked offer as he simply shifted to lie on his side and smiled up at the red haired woman lecherously as his eyes scaled her body.

"Not a bad idea at all Lavi."

"Don't make me sick." She returned her attention to the mirror. The quicker she could make herself even marginally presentable the quicker she could escape Sheril's presence and go about her day. "If want someone to keep you warm, why don't you go back to your wife."

Behind her Sheril hugged her pillow, making a show of breathing in her scent. At the sight Lavi tightened her grip over the handle of her hair brush; it was all she could do to not throw it at him. Had she decided to throw it, Sheril would have found himself in quite a bit of danger, for even though she was one eyed, years of practice meant that depth perception was not a problem for her.

"She's not as fun as you my dear. Tricia's such a sickly little thing, not a lot of spirit." Sheril had the audacity to wink at her before he rolled back over on to his back, making himself at home in her bed. He absently stroked his chest and Lavi followed the movement of his long fingers as they glided idly over his chest.

"Enjoying the view?" Sheril caught her eye, lip curled into a predatory smirk, "Lavi you don't need to be so far away."

Lavi looked away quickly, brushed through her hair angrily and whipped it into a knob at the base of her neck. A hat would be enough to conceal her brightly coloured hair, but for the sake of security she grabbed a few extra pins to fasten it in place after visiting the washroom. Carefully she pulled out a thick lock of hair and combed it flat over her useless, right eye.

"I told you last night; in the Manor call me 'Lovely' if you have to call me anything at all." Lavi grabbed a scarf she could use to cover up the livid marks on her neck, muttering to herself as she moved towards the door. "And would it kill you not to leave marks that a nightmare to hide."

Sheril sat up on his elbows, "The deal was I could do whatever I liked with you –"

"I know what the conditions are!" Lavi cut him off loudly, for the first time letting some of her anger through. Mentally slapping herself for the outburst. One hand on the door knob she schooled her face into a neutral expression, but a definite of pleading prevailed in her voice. "You already have my body… just let me keep my name. In this mansion, in this room let me be 'Lovely'."

For a full minute the two maintained eye contact waging an unspoken battle. An odd look flashed behind Sheril's eyes as if he understood the reason for the woman clinging so desperately to her name. A short nod, almost imperceptible was the only indication of his acquiescence in the matter.

Letting out a relieved breath, Lavi turned to leave.

"Breakfast."

"What?"

"Breakfast. You are to attend breakfast with the family each morning."

The declaration shocked Lavi; attending breakfast would bring her face to face with both his wife and daughter. The guilt of the role she was playing already more than she could handle, but being forced to socialise with the women to whom her very presence was an insult would be too much. Unable to think of a way out she gaped. Sheril continued to talk, rationalising his order.

"It makes sense for you to join the family when you think about it. I introduced you last night as my ward so it would look suspicious if you were to disappear suddenly."

"I still don't even understand why you made me go last night…" Lavi let go off the door knob and crossed her arms over her chest.

"A flower kept in a box will wither." Sheril replied.

Lavi snorted flowers died at the end of the season regardless of where they were kept. What do men think a woman is? Creatures that were only to be looked at for a moment, picked up and thrown away at their ease… Flowers, butterflies…

"… You are a different creature from those other mindless butterflies…"

The words warmed Lavi for an instant, than she remembered the motive behind them. Men really are all the same.

Inspiration hit her: Tyki.

Sheril made no secret of the fact that he was incredibly possessive of her. Last night after the party he had made it clear that she was to avoid any situation where she would be alone with another man, and in particular his brother whenever she was 'Lovely'. A condition she went along with because she had no interest in the liars and crooks that were the nobility.

"Your brother will be there. I thought I wasn't supposed to attract anymore of his attention. How can I do that if you're thrusting me into his view?" Feeling triumphant that she had one the argument Lavi thought it was safe to leave until she saw the look on Sheril's face. Eye's narrowed and his face twisted in malicious delight. She understood now that this was the price of her name.

"Well, well, breakfast will be interesting after all." Golden eyes flashed dangerously in the morning sun. "Of course if you don't like these conditions, you are free to leave at any time."

Unconsciously Lavi rubbed her left arm where the hand shaped bruise seemed heavier than usual. She remembered just why she was here, and why she should be careful around Lord Kamelot.

From the large wardrobe Lavi collected clothes more suitable to wear to breakfast. The walk brought her too close to the bed than she would have liked, determinedly she pointedly ignored Sheril's stare.

"A scarf or a handkerchief around the neck should work nicely." He suggested helpfully as Lavi searched through a draw to find something to cover up the unsightly marks around her neck.

"If you were more careful I wouldn't have this problem."

"You'll learn to live with it. It is for a good cause after all."

Lavi sighed at this, "Does it not bother you that you expect me to 'learn to live with it' rather than learn love your touch?"

"Makes no difference to me what lesson you learn, as long as you keep your end of the contract." Sheril spoke indifferently. The Lord of the Manor had made himself at home in the middle of Lavi's bed both hands tucked behind his head, the very picture of serenity.

Lavi finally reached the door without interruption, behind her calm rhythmic breathing told her that Kamelot was drifting back into an all-too-easy snooze on her bed. Anger and disgust raged through her in equal measures, at the man wrapped in her sheets and at herself. What would her grandfather think of her is he knew that she had bargained with the devil and lost?

Slamming the heavy dark wood door behind her, Lavi rationalised that although this was an event that occurred more often than she liked, at least it was not her every morning.

For Tyki rest was a short lived experience as too soon the light of day teased his eyes open once more. Stubbornly he threw an arm over his eyes to block the intrusion and quietly cursed under his breath. Broken sleep had done nothing more than further exhaust him. Needless to say, Tyki felt cheated by the sun and its self-important shining.

Tyki stretched out in the large bed to relieve some of the tension in his muscles and was surprised by the disappointment that rang through him as his hand met only cool bedding and empty space. A glance to the right confirmed the solitary status of the bed. Tyki could not explain the distinct feeling that there should have been someone there; someone with flame red hair and sleepy green eyes to murmur a sweet 'good morning'.

As it was the room was too quiet, the silence too heavy for one person to wake up to alone. Abruptly, Tyki shook the foolish thought from his head it was far too early in the morning to be getting sentimental. It wouldn't do to waste time on a woman he had only met for a few minutes the night before. The residual image was just an extension of whatever dream he had had before waking. Tyki rubbed his eyes hard as if to erase the image from his mind as well as the sleep from his eyes. Broken sleep always led to the worst dreams.

Unfortunately for him, the sensations left behind from his dream could not be forgotten quite as easily and lingered as if he was still experiencing them now. The slight pressure of another body pressed closely to him; the warmth of shared body heat; the tickle of gentle puffs of breath against the bare skin of his chest.

Orange blossom.

The soft citrus of orange blossom scented hair pleasantly filled his nose. The sweet aroma did more to soothe his aches than stretching had done. Tyki allowed himself to admit that he was acting stupid… But at least there was no one else around to see him act like this. Most likely the woman he had met last night, Lovely, would not be featuring in his life again. The fact that she was unmarried and her whole demeanour drew Tyki to the conclusion that she must be a courtesan, new to the job and probably regretful.

He took a moment to consider that. While Tyki had more than his fair share of women in the past, they were always women who chose to be with him. There was no need to pressure or pay for his pleasure. The thought of stooping to that level sickened him, and that was mostly what sickened him about his brother, who seemed to make no such distinction.

A courtesan was only a whore in more civilised society. If this was the case with Lovely than he was better off steering clear of her. From the last night it looked as if Sheril had already staked his claim on her anyway.

Even as he made up his mind a small part of him, the part that hung onto the dream rejected the decision. The thought of throwing Lovely into the same category as a scarlet woman did not sit right with him. She had seemed so much… more. After all it had been a long time since Tyki had found himself on the receiving end of rejection. A broad grin spread across his face, yes Lovely was indeed a different breed of woman.

Too bad she would be forgotten soon enough.

Finally leaving the warmth of his bed, Tyki sat up and looked about the room. The curtains were only half drawn and through the window he could see that the Sun was not very far over the horizon. It must not be more than an hour since dawn. The room was mostly empty, filled only with a large wardrobe and drawer set of matching wood and two armchairs by the fire place.

It bothered him slightly that the furniture had a polished, well cared for look. Even if he had given up ownership of this room when he first left ten years ago, but it irked him to think that others had been moving around his room. Tyki made a mental note to tell Sheril to alert the servants to stay out of his room now that he was back; he could take care of his own room maintenance.

In any case he had not planned to be here long, only returning to his childhood home at the behest of the Earl.

There were still some hours to go before he would be expected at breakfast with the family, so Tyki dressed simply in a trousers and a shirt, grabbed fresh clothing and headed towards the door. There was more than enough time to enjoy a relaxing bath and refresh himself. The door clicked shut behind him softly, and Tyki took a small silver key from his pocket to lock the door.

Tyki walked through the quiet passages of the manner, the sound of his footsteps resounding as hollow as he felt inside. These passages were far too familiar but held none of the security nostalgia was supposed to bring. He came to a stop in front of a plain wooden door and realised that he standing in front of the men's washroom in the servant's quarters'.

Laughing to himself lowly, Tyki went in.

There is a different form of memory that lives in sleeping parts of the heart and remembered only through the unconscious acts of the body. As a boy he had always set himself apart from his family, and his feet often trod the hallways belonging to the help. Maybe there were still few here in the Manor who would remember the habits of his childhood and smile just as he did now.

Thanks for reading!

I promise the next update will not take so long!