To say that Vivian Mayson is excited would be an understatement as she rushes through her home to make sure preparations are nearly finished. Her father will be home just in time for Christmas after more than a year of being gone and Vivian is determined to make the General proud of his eldest child.

As she comes back into her room to fix her dress the letter still neatly folded on her vanity catches her eye. She smiles as she picks it up and rereads the neat handwriting, running her fingers gently over the dried ink.

My dearest Vivian,

I am writing to let you know that I will begin the journey back to our home for Christmas only. By the time you receive this letter, and if all things go well, I should be home in only three days. There's been talk around the camp about spies and such like, so I don't want you to offer any stranger lodgings for yours and little McKenzie's safety.

With love,

General Grant L. Mayson

He'll be back by late evening, just in time for a nice dinner of all his favorite foods that she has helped to cook herself. McKenzie, on the other hand, is more interested in running about outside and ruining her pretty dresses than greeting a man she can scarcely remember. She's four now, insisting that she's practically a grown up, but Vivian still worries her sister will forget her manners. She's spent too much time around soldiers and men in general, picking up their habits far quicker than table etiquette.

This far from anything, their home seems almost unaffected by the war except for a few troops marching by and asking for a bit of food to tide them over. One of the men, a civilian, had meant to stay for a few days to regain his strength and has been here for nearly seven months now. Vivian knows she should make Flynn leave, but he's handsome and so good with little McKenzie, and just last night had asked if he could court her. Of course, he'll have to ask her father first and Vivian hopes that the General will give her this one thing when she asks for so little.

"Viv," Flynn calls, walking up the stairs and stopping just outside her door. His long hair sticks to his face in places, mostly out of the tie he'd put it in this morning. He's been working hard, and his cheeks are flushed. "Margaret said dinner's nearly finished and asked me to come get ya before I cleaned myself up." Laughing a little, Vivian nods and brushes the loose strands behind the tall man's ear.

"Alright, hurry up and get clean and put on somethin' nice. My father should be home tonight and he likes things perfect."

"No one's perfect."

"Hmm, you're pretty close sometimes." He smiles, blue eyes glittering with what she believes is love. He leans down to kiss her lightly on the lips, sighing when he takes a step back. "One day we'll be married, and we won't have to worry about my father and what he thinks is perfect." Flynn smiles again, entering the room across the hall to get cleaned up. Vivian lifts the skirt of her dress slightly, careful not to show skin, making her way downstairs and into the kitchen to help McKenzie set the table.

Three hours later finds the General walking into his sitting room for the first time in what feels like ages, grinning as his girls stand to embrace him. "Aw, my girls," Grant chuckles, hugging them back and giving Margaret a nod. When Grant's happy green eyes land on Flynn they darken and narrow into a fierce glare. "Who is this man and why is he in my house?" Vivian shrinks back, shoving McKenzie behind Margaret in case their father grows too angry.

"This is Flynn, he's been helping us for nearly a year now," Vivian tells him quietly, head bowed. "He's a good man and... And..."

"And what, Vivian?" Flynn steps forward, looking too confident for Grant's liking.

"I think what your daughter's trying to say is that I wish to court her, Sir," he says in a cool voice, lightly touching Vivian's arm with the tips of his fingers to see if she's okay. "I think you're scaring the little one." Grant grinds his teeth in anger, knowing this man could be dangerous and that his eldest daughter can't see the bad in anybody until they prove it. "Perhaps we should talk about this tomorrow, General, your family is tired and I'm sure you are too after riding for so long."

"You can be sure we'll talk about this," the General snarls, storming up the stairs to his private study for some much needed quiet.

"I look forward to it, Sir."

"Maybe I should go check on him," Vivian murmurs worriedly. Flynn shakes his head, taking her arm and leading her up the stairs to her room.

"No, you need your rest as well. I'm sure we'll be having some excitement soon enough." Flynn kisses her again for a little longer than usual, his mind thinking of what he will be able to have soon.

A loud bang makes Vivian jerk awake with a start, looking around blindly for a book of matches. She finally finds some and lights the oil lamp on her bedside table before glancing around for the source of the noise. Her room is empty, but she can still hear sounds somewhere in the house. Hesitantly, she leaves her bed and starts across the room to the door, but it slams open before she makes it there to reveal the grinning faces of two men.

"Who are you," Vivian demands, sounding just as scared as she feels. There's a tremor in her voice and she hates herself for it. She has to be strong, dammit. She was raised to be better than some quiet church mouse.

"They're my brothers." She looks past the two men, finding Flynn staring at her calmly. He walks past the two men and over to her, stopping a couple feet away to admire her. "She's mine, don't hurt the little girl, and shut the door behind you." The two men agree readily enough, leaving Flynn alone with Vivian. Flynn's eyes have gone hard as diamond chips as he takes her in, transformed into some creature from her nightmares rather than the man she loves. "Oh, don't look so shocked, Viv. I had this planned since before I even met ya." Vivian slaps him then, hard enough to make his head turn. Chuckling, Flynn catches her wrist before she can hit him again and pulls her flush against him.

"Let me go, you disgusting little worm!" She struggles viciously against him, raking her nails over whatever skin she can reach until he's pushed her onto the bed. "Let me go! Get off of me, you bastard!" He crawls over her and pins her wrists to the bed, grin revealing too many teeth.

"Been waitin' a long time for this..."