"Well is there anything wrong with being nervous?"

Is this girl an idiot or something? No idiot is not the right word to use. This girl is -- his thoughts broke off when he saw the red lash marks on her back. Rhys traced his fingers on the scar. "Does it still hurt?"

He already did is best to treat it but since some are old scars, it seems to have left a permanent mark instead. Rhys brushed his lips there and Lyn sighed in content.

"Not so much." Lyn trailed off. "Say Rhys, why did you bring me here?"

"I want to relax. Do you not believe me?"

"Well I do but…"

Rhys turned her around so she faced him. For a moment all he did was stare at her. For a seventeen year old girl what is with this body of hers? How come she looks like this? It is a good thing that n.o.body other than him has seen her like this way. 

Lyn wrapped her arms around his neck and he ran his hands through her back. "Do you hate this?"

"You know I don"t. I am just worried how chaotic things will be in the short time we leave. Right now there is so many things happening."

He knew what she was trying to say. Now is not the time to be taking a relaxing trip like this. But this is exactly why he is doing it now. Maybe it was just his imagination but recently Lyn seemed a lot more stressed. Sure her ident.i.ty as the Second Princess being revealed would lead to some drastic changes. But Rhys did not expect it to have such a bad effect on her.

"I am happy." Lyn trailed off. "You see since I realized I could no longer hold my feelings back for you, I decided I wanted to learn more about you."

"Learn more about me?" Rhys repeated puzzled.

She mentioned something like this when they first started to get along. He recalled it very well since it was during their training sessions. Now that he thought it through, that was the only time he could get close to Lyn without Kazuya around. How the times have changed. A few months back Rhys did not think something like this was possible.

His thoughts broke off when Lyn kissed him softly.

"It"s okay for me to treasure this moment, right?"

......

Rhys eyes shot open as he rose from the bed drenched in sweat. 

The images from a distant past replayed in his mind. The distant past and the future. 

"It is my business. I love you. If Kazuya wants to go ahead and be a b.a.s.t.a.r.d then you can come to me. Come back to my side."

Perhaps he had been to straight forward. Certainly he had every intention of becoming serious again, especially after he spoke about it with the others. They"ve all given him their support despite also having feelings for her. He can"t mess up. Even so, it will become a problem if she ever does recall it. The past, from their past lives. He placed his hand on the mark on his chest, scars that cannot heal huh? But this mark isn"t a scar, it acts as a reminder of the past. 

"Ever since I was younger I wondered why. Always wondered why there was a wall between myself and lither people."

No matter how much he tried, he could not form deep connections with anybody. Even his parents built a wall between themselves and him. No, he knew, That  he was the one building the wall around them. 

Ever since he was younger he had always recalled it, memories. Memories not from this time period but from a hundred - two hundred years ago. Memories from the distant past. 

At first he had brushed it off as his mere imagination, yet when Rhys found a familiar looking brush amongst his belongings. It hit him straight away. What a pain, his soul can"t reincarnate into a more peaceful situation huh?

Although he had fully regained his memories on the matter. It didn"t mean he could start searching for the girl who lingered in his memories. Although he made a promise with that person and even tied their fates together, even though it was connecting strongly with another person. He honestly wasn"t sure whether or not he should bother with it. After all, this is the present. 

This is the present and they are living completely different lives now then back then. However when he crossed paths with her the first time. Atsuro had been able to see it, the thread that connected them together. " Ah so it"s this girl". When he realised it was her, he didn"t know what to make out of it. But that single smile she showed him that day…

The that she did not fear to get close to him. The fact that she could get close to him like she did was already amazing in itself. Not once did she fear him and maybe that was why he became so attached to her. 

Casting a spell in stigma so he could follow her all the way here. The reason why he did it was so he would be able to protect her. Protect her and ensure that the past doesn"t repeat itself. So that she wouldn"t die in such a manner ever again.

But this situation really is laughable huh? Not only did he fall for her again. But the shadow predicting her death still hasn"t gone away. Although Kazuya did something to stop it from spreading. It doesn"t mean her illness doesn"t show up once in awhile. 

Rhys pulled out a few sheets of paper and a brush, as he sat down on the window ledge. She really does seem more frail than before,why is that? Is it because she"s been overworking herself? 

Before he brought her here, Rhys requested a copy of Lyn"s schedule. The first thing that came to mind was the word sleep. When did the girl last fall asleep? Amid their little make out session in the bathroom Lyn fell asleep, so he helped finish was.h.i.+ng her before returning her to the room. 

His gaze fell on the girl still asleep on the bed and sighed. Taking her out and ensuring she relaxes before the upcoming storm huh? Will anything change even if he does something like this?