Seed half sat half lay on the couch in the simply furnished room. There were a couple of bookshelves, a desk, two chairs and the couch in the room; it was the office of Anne Lawson. She was the psychologist he was seeing; a tall, blue-eyed woman who seemed to be a bit calculating and who didn't show her feelings, but she knew all about her specialty.

He had been answering her random questions for half an hour now, and was getting bored. Of course, the woman was directing the conversation to his dreams. He always felt uncomfortable when talking about them, but he knew that it was unavoidable.

"So," the brunette said and leaned forward a little. "You had another dream?"

"As if you'd care," the red-haired man replied dryly.

"Don't start that again," she warned. "You know quite well that I do. If I didn't, there would be no use for you being here. Now, tell me."

Seed closed his eyes and tried to ignore a little voice in his mind that told him to get out of here. "Does it matter? They are all the same. Just read your notes. It was Culgan again, and all that. No, it wasn't a... sexual dream this time, if you were wondering. Not that you would mind if it had been, being a total pervert."

The psychologist gave him a dark glare. "Didn't know I was one. Just tell."

"Fine. There was a battle. That mage group of the State army had attacked my troops, and I was trying to get them together. I was on a hill, and Culgan came there. His men had been attacked, too, and... Anyway, we talked shortly, and then he gave me a kiss and rode away. A little later we were in the fight again... And I saw that damned mage group attacking Culgan's troops, and he fell from his horse because of that. I cried out his name, and..."

"And?"

The redhead sighed. "And Jay woke me up. Any questions?"

The woman shifted her position a little. "Actually, yes. What did you do after that?"

"Went to sit in the living room and fell asleep on the couch, I believe. I barely recall doing so. Anyway, Cynthia's cat was sleeping on my lap when Jay got up and came to ask what I was doing."

"Hmm." She wrote something in her notebook.

The wine-brown-eyed man glared at her. "You know, I hate when you do that. Say 'Hmm' and make those little notes of yours."

The psychologist gave him a half-smile. "You've said that before. And I've told you why I make notes; it's easier for me to remember later what we've been talking about."

"Yeah, right."

"Seed, you're here for a reason. You have problems, and I'm trying to help you with them. You don't have to be so hostile towards me. You've been seeing me for over nine months now, and every single time you're here you glare at me like that and try to think of a way to accuse me of planning evil things or something like that. How about you stop it?"

Seed bit his lip, trying to calm down. He felt like jumping up from the couch and strangling the brunette, but he knew better. Besides, the woman was right.

He sighed and closed his eyes. "Okay, I'll try. Anything else?"

"Maybe. Seed, I suggest we get you a time to a psychiatrist. It might..."

"Ha." He opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling for a while. "I've told you already. I saw one back in Gregminster, and it didn't help. He couldn't say what's wrong. Neither can you. I'm just weird, and that's all there is. Now, was that all?"

"Well, yes. Time's up. Remember, same time next week. And if anything happens and you feel like talking, you know the number. Call my secretary, she'll arrange an appointment."

He looked at her and shrugged. "I won't forget. And that's not gonna happen, but thanks anyway."

"Why don't you drop that attitude and try trusting me for a change? You can just call me if you feel depressed, or had one of those dreams, or... Well, if you want to talk." She gave him a mildly worried glance, while he got up and walked to the door.

"Right, understood. See ya."

"Seed?"

The redhead turned around. "What?"

Ms. Lawson smiled kindly. "Good luck in the new job."

Seed sat in the small cafe he always used to hang around. He was trying to read a newspaper, but he was actually too tired to concentrate on it. He glanced at the clock; it was almost half past five. He still had about an hour to spend here, and then he would have to go.

The place where he would be working was some law firm. It didn't matter, as long as he would get paid. He had been there once when he was interviewed, but he hadn't really seen the place. It was a tall building; that was all he could remember.

He glanced at his half-eaten sandwich, and decided to buy another one for the night. He had some food with him already, but another sandwich wouldn't hurt. He bought one, then returned to his table and tried to read again.

Half an hour passed quickly. He glanced through the newspaper, not really seeing anything interesting. Finally, he put the paper down.

Ah, might just as well go for a little walk, he thought. I'll probably have to sit for the better part of the night, and try to stay awake, so some fresh air might be nice.

He got up and took the newspaper back to the small basket where the papers were kept, nodded to the cafe owner and headed out.

Two hours later he was at Daviaux, Caswell & Associates. After walking around the city for about an hour, he had walked over to his new work place and waited until 7 PM.

He had just been given a quick tour of the ground floor and the basement of the 16-floor office building, and the middle-aged man who had been showing him around, Mr. Phelps, had explained him how things were done. Phelps was the head of security.

"Well, that's all, Mr. Radford. It'll be 9 PM soon, so..."

"Better go change my clothes?" the younger man asked.

"Yes. There's a uniform waiting for you. Oh, before I forget - your partner is called Frank. He'll be in the basement in the control room, while you take care of the entrance hall. Remember, if you have to get up from your seat, be it any reason, press that green button on the right. And remember to keep an eye on it - if there's a light, it means Frank is not in his seat. If it takes too long and he doesn't come back, check from the cameras. If you still can't find him, give an alarm and go see where he is."

Seed smirked. "Understood, Sir."

"Anyway, go get changed. We'll probably see each other from time to time, especially if I'm overworking, like today. Well. Good luck. Don't fall asleep at work." The security chief grinned before leaving.

"I won't."

The redhead watched him go, then headed for the personnel area to get his new uniform on.

The job was somewhat boring, but Seed decided that he could take it. Nothing really happened in the late hours; the security cameras only showed empty rooms, the few exceptions being a couple of offices where some fanatic lawyers worked through the night and the computer room where one of the administrators was configuring something. And of course, the basement security control room where the other guard was. Frank was okay; he was old enough to be Seed's father, but he was nice and had a good sense of humor. Seed had talked with him briefly before their shift had started.

It was almost 4 AM, and nothing had happened.

One more hour, then I can go home and sleep... if I am able to. Well, Jay isn't there to nag about it, so who cares.

He picked up one of the magazines Frank had given him. He glanced at the monitors again, but there was no change.

Half an hour later, he was halfway through the magazine when someone rang the doorbell. He looked at the monitor that showed the view from the camera just outside the front door. There was someone; the redhead could see it was a man in a dark trench coat. The man had used his ID card already, and the computer confirmed that it was someone from the law office. Seed shrugged and pushed a button to open the door. The large glass doors slid open and the man entered.

Lawyers... Weird guys. Who the heck would want to come to work this early in the morning?

He concentrated on the magazine again, not paying much attention to the man who walked across the entrance hall towards the elevator. But something caught his attention - the man had a fine silver hair. The man stopped to wait for the elevator to come up from the basement, and the young security guard could see his face clearly when he entered the elevator and turned to choose the floor he wanted to go to. Seed almost dropped the magazine.

W-was that...?

Seed blinked and shook his head as the elevator doors closed. The man had looked like someone in his dreams - and not just anyone. That man had looked exactly like Culgan.

No... Couldn't be. I'm imagining things. That was just a random guy with gray hair.

He checked from the security cameras - the man went up to 12th floor and into the library there. But through the cameras, Seed couldn't get another good look at him.

The hell with it. My brain is just fried after this ordeal - I've stayed up all night. I'll get used to this soon enough. Right now, I need sleep.

He didn't have to wait too long before his replacement - a dark-haired man called Marco - arrived. Seed went to change clothes and left the building after chatting a few minutes with Frank. The bus stop was a couple of blocks away, and he only had to wait ten minutes before the bus that would take him home arrived. When he finally got home, he was tired enough to fall asleep the very second he got to bed.

But in the back of his mind, he wondered if he had been imagining things after all.

He had had dinner with his sister. That hadn't been too bad, but as usual, she had wanted to know everything about his personal life. And as always, he didn't have anything new to tell.

"Life... What's that?" He asked himself, smiling coldly. He didn't much care for normal life, and he was quite satisfied with what he had. All he had was work. Maybe he hoped to change that sometime, but he really had no reason to change it right now.

He walked through the streets. It was late, but there were still people around. He almost regretted not accepting his sister's offer to take him home in her car, but then shook his head. He preferred walking.

It took him half an hour to reach the building where his apartment was. His home was a spacious, big apartment on the third floor of the fairly new building. The neighborhood was close to the city by the lake, providing a nice view from the windows. The area was very peaceful. That was mostly because of the local security companies that kept a close eye on the houses.

He walked up the stairs. There was an elevator in the building, but he almost never used it. At work, he usually had to take the elevator, as his office was on the 10th floor, but at home he liked walking up and down the stairs.

He took his keys and opened the door. A quick glance around the apartment told him that it had been cleaned today. He had a part-time maid, hired by his employer. The maid fully cleaned his apartment weekly and checked it at least three times a week. He didn't mind having someone looking after the place, as he never really spent time home.

Just as he was putting his coat away, the phone rang. Calmly, he picked it up before it had finished ringing the second time. "Yes?"

"Ah, got home already," said Lina's voice. "I was about to leave a message to your answering machine, but too bad, you're there."

Culgan smiled a bit. "Bad? What is it?"

"Just wanted to let you know that the Rockaxe office sent those files you wanted, and they arrived after you left. And no, you're so not going back to work tonight to look at those. You have plenty of time for that tomorrow. Just get a good night's sleep now, or else."

"Or else? That sounds threatening. All right; thank you, Lina. I promise I won't go to work tonight."

The woman laughed softly. "Won't go to work. But you are planning on working anyway there at home. I told you to go to bed. And I said now."

"Yes ma'am. Right now. Very well then; good night."

"Don't try, Culgan. Whatever I say, you will work anyway. Ah well. The only way to get you to bed is to come over there and tie you up, so can't be helped."

"Indeed. Good night, Lina."

"See sweet dreams of your redhead, Culgan." She hung up before he could reply. He laughed, shaking his head as he put the phone down.

I'd hate to tell you, but you're right once again, Lina.

He smiled to himself, putting his clothes away. Then he went to the kitchen, got himself a glass of wine and sat on the couch. He took some folders that he had brought with him from work and started reading through the papers.

He saw a few of his men fall, obviously hit by a spell. He looked around quickly to find the source of the magic. The mercenaries his men were attacking weren't mages, so it had to be someone else.

His gaze stopped shortly behind him as he saw Seed standing farther away, staring at him and trying to yell something. He couldn't hear what, but the way the redhead was acting made him cautious. And then he saw where the mage was - and the only thing he could do was to shout to his men to watch out. Then he fell from the saddle.

He lay on the ground, knowing that the spell that had been meant to kill him had barely missed. He opened his eyes and could see the mage standing nearby, apparently unaware of the fact that he was still alive.

Slowly, he raised his right hand, readying a spell from his Thunder rune. Then, when the mage least expected it, he launched the attack. He heard the mage screaming angrily from pain before escaping through some teleportation spell.

Then he could hear another voice, calling his name.

"Culgan! Culgan..." The redhead ran to him and knelt beside him, taking his hand to his own. "Culgan...?"

"Hmm? Why do you sound so worried?"

Seed stared at him for a moment then raised his hand and tried to slap him, but he captured the younger man's hand before the blow hit him. "Careful, dear. You don't want to slap me while wearing those gloves."

The redhead glared at him, then sighed. "Screw you. You didn't have to scare me like that, you know. I thought you..."

He sat up and touched the younger man's face gently. "I'm sorry. But thanks for the warning. I didn't have enough time to fully evade, but at least I'm still alive."

Around them, the battle was calming down. A few Highland soldiers stopped to ask if they were okay, then continued to take care of the wounded.

He smiled a bit, looking at Seed's wine-brown eyes. "You could help me up, you know. My back hurts..."

The redhead grinned, then stood up, dragging him with him. "Hurts? Aw. You'd better show that to the doctor when we get back to the camp. It would be a pity if you weren't feeling okay tonight..."

"Only if you promise to show that hand of yours. It may not be bleeding anymore, but it could still..."

"Alright, you're the boss. A deal. And tonight, you will make it up for scaring me. Got it?"

"It's a promise."

He gave his lover a warm smile, then drew him closer for a quick kiss.

Culgan woke up as the folder from his lap dropped to the floor, making a low sound. He sighed and closed his eyes again, not wanting to wake up yet.

"See sweet dreams of your redhead, indeed," he mumbled to himself, opening his eyes reluctantly. The clock on his VCR told him that it was 3.40 AM. He wasn't sure how long he had slept, but he knew he couldn't sleep anymore.

One of those nights again...

He smiled tiredly as he got up from the couch and went to his bedroom. The bed looked comfortable, but he wasn't going to bother. He knew what it would be like if he had tried to sleep more - it would be just trying. He would lay awake until the sun rose, unable to sleep.

"Time to go to work, then," the silver-haired man told his bed. He got clean clothes from his wardrobe, organized them on the bed and took off his clothes. Then he headed for the bathroom for a quick shower.

After the shower he dried himself, got the clean clothes on and picked up some files from his desk. Then he took the folders he had been reading earlier and grabbed his car keys on the way out.

The traffic was silent this early in the morning, so he had no trouble driving to the city and finding a parking place near the office. Daviaux, Caswell & Associates had their own parking garage, but at this hour it was easy to find a place for his car outside. He would ask Lina to take care of the car later. Right now, he wanted some breakfast.

Across the street from the law office was a cafe that was open 24 hours a day. Culgan liked the food - it was simple and very good. He had eaten breakfast there since he had moved to the town, and knew the owner quite well.

Jeffrey, the owner, greeted him as he walked in. There were only a few customers in the cafe this early, and the silver-haired man recognized one of them as one of his colleagues. He nodded to the man, then looked at the cafe owner.

"Morning, Jeff. Don't you ever sleep?"

Jeffrey was older than he was, almost 40. He had bought the cafe around the time Culgan had started working at the law firm. And they had one thing in common; Jeffrey was gay, too. But unlike the silver-haired man, he had had a permanent relationship for years now.

"Good morning to you too, Culgan. And I told you about four years ago that I'll start sleeping when you lawyers start sleeping. So. The usual?"

"Yes. A cup of coffee and some breakfast that I can take with me to work."

He sat down by the counter and waited for a couple of minutes. The older man soon brought him a big cup filled with fresh coffee and sat down at the other side of the counter. "You look tired. Had fun last night?"

Culgan laughed, almost spilling his coffee. "No. I was working. Sorry."

The other man smiled. "You should go out more. Get a lover or something."

"No thank you. I've told you that it wouldn't feel right."

"Ah, yes. You'd be cheating on your red-headed dream lover, right?"

The silver-haired man smiled back, but didn't have to think of an answer as Jeffrey's partner - and lover - a young man called Adrian emerged from the kitchen.

"Here's some food for our workaholic lawyer. Don't forget to eat it, too."

Culgan shook his head, still smiling. "Sometimes, you two are worse than Lina. Well, thank you. Put it on my bill."

"As always," Jeff replied. "Well, see you around. Or if not you, I'm sure your pretty secretary will stop by to get you some food."

"She probably will. Later, then." He drank the rest of his coffee, took the food and left. He crossed the road without even bothering to check for traffic, as there barely was any.

At the front door of Daviaux, Caswell & Associates he stopped to use his ID card. At this early hour, the doors weren't open, so he also had to ring the doorbell and then wait for a moment for the guard to confirm his identity and open the doors. When the doors opened, he walked into the building, crossing the hall deep in thought.

Lina said something about those files I wanted from Rockaxe... They're probably in my office. I'll get them later. Right now, I have to go to prepare the case for court. It's in two days, anyway, so...

He stopped to wait for the elevator, then entered and pressed the button for 12th floor. When he got there, he went straight to the library where his laptop was waiting.