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Late Monday night at the Gruffudd home, after father and son have gone to bed, Rhys is awakened by a skritch at his window. Alicia is sitting outside, looking in and scratching at the glass with a claw to get his attention.

Rhys rubs his eyes as he is awakened by the insistent scratching sound. Looking around, he notices Alicia at the window. He gets up and opens it, unashamedly naked.

"Alicia? Is something wrong?"

As soon as the window is open enough, Alicia slithers through into the room. She's dressed in close-fitting but flexible clothing, all in black. A pair of googles rest on her neck; her eyes are bare and bright.

The words are barely out of Rhys's mouth before Alicia closes in and gives him a deep soulful kiss.

Coming back up for air, she grins impishly, "I wanted to see you."

Rhys relaxes into her embrace and returns her kiss.


"Well, cachiad. I don't think I've ever been woken up for quite so pleasant a reason before. Thank you." He leads her by the hand back to his bed, where he sits down and pats the matress next to him for her to do the same. "It's good to see you again, too, but is that the only reason you came?"

Alicia ignores the question at first, looking at him with a smile. She asks, "What does 'cachiad' mean?" pronouncing the word with a strong Spanish lilt.

"Shit. I was just saying 'Well, shit.' I learned a long time ago to swear in Welsh. It makes it harder to get in trouble," he says with a wicked grin of his own.

Alicia giggles. "Sometime I will teach you our cusswords. We Latinos are very inventive when it comes to swearing."

She moves forward to kneel and sit on the floor next to Rhys, leaning her head against his legs.

"I wanted to see you," she repeats. "I wanted to be with you."

He reaches down and strokes her head. "And here you are." He just rubs her head for a moment before asking "Do you want me to turn the light on?"

Alicia shakes her head slowly, partly in answer and partly in pleased response to his touch.

In a hopeful voice, she says softly, "Can I stay? For a bit?"

"Sure. Want me to join you down there?"

Alicia smiles and shakes her head.

She stands and takes a step away from the bed. Her clothes fall from her body as if she had just walked out of them.

The faint moonlight reflecting on her tawny skin, she stands, not provocatively. There is no seduction in her poise, only an honest plea for closeness.

She murmurs, "There's enough space on your bed, right?"

Rhys slides back, making room. "Sure is." The covers are rumpled from his interrupted sleep, and he pulls them back for her. "Over or under?"

Alicia lowers her head demurely.

"However you wish."

"It's warmer under." He slips under the covers himself, holding them up for her.

Slowly, she joins him in the bed, slipping under and fitting herself to his body, back to front, spooning.

A small sigh of contentment escapes her lips. As the warmth of Rhys's body presses against hers, a slow rumble vibrates in her chest. She's purring.

Rhys slips his arm under hers and around her abdomen while he presses his face into the back of her neck. She can feel his breath, hot against her skin, slow and regular.

"That's nice," he murmurs into her neck. "I didn't know you could purr."

Rhys can hear the contented smile in Alicia's voice as she answers sleepily, "Never had a reason to before."

"Happy to oblige," he responds, kissing her lightly on the back of the neck. The hand on her stomach rubs lightly up and down, stroking - almost petting - her.

"Mmmm..." Alicia slowly squirms in blissful comfort as she drifts into satisfied slumber.

Curious - and curiously unsatisfied - but familiar enough with women's strange ways, even at his young age, Rhys also drifts off to sleep with Alicia in his arms.

{For all you grammar nazis - you know who you are! - yes, I am in fact trying to come up with new and interesting ways to form run-on sentences...  :P }

In the morning, Rhys once again wakes up alone, the fading warmth on the bed and the slightly open window the only signs of Alicia having been there.