I pushed my glasses up my face and scowled. Cor's promise from last night echoed in my head.

"I'm going to make your valentine's day special. I promise." And then he sealed it with a kiss.

But Cor hadn't come to work today. Clarus and Jett has no idea where he was. Crowe, Nyx and Libertus hadn't heard anything from him.

"He probably forgot, realized he forgot and now he's trying to hide from me." I mumbled to myself. I sighed and went back to filing out my paperwork. I heard my door creek open. I looked up and saw Regis enter.

"Go ahead and go home, Dawn. You need the rest." He said after staring at me for a second. I sighed.

"Normally I'd argue with you, but I'm too tired to do so." I said. He chuckled and patted me on the back as I walked out the door.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Dawn." He said.

"Same to you." I said and went home.

I immediately noticed Cor's car in my driveway when I pulled up next to it. I stepped out of my car and walked in to my house.

I stared at the scene before me.

Cor had moved my couch out of the middle of the room and against the wall, my coffee table was also pushed to the side and had candles lit on it. A large picnic blanket had been laid out on the floor in their place. The TV had nature scenery with soft music playing. Sounded like violins.

On the blanket were plates of food, a bucket of ice with two bottles of wine in it, and Cor.

Cor was dressed in black dress pants and a black button-up shirt. And he had the top three buttons unbuttoned, showing his chest.

I stared at him in the soft light.

"Happy Valentine's day, Dawn." He said. I blinked.

"Is this where you've been all day?" I asked. He shook his head.

"I had to buy the ingredients for dinner, so I spent most of the morning in the market." He said. I chuckled and set aside my bag and hung up my jacket, kicking off my boots. I joined Cor on the blanket.

"I'm sorry this isn't a proper picnic. I didn't think you'd enjoy sitting in snow." He said.

"You thought right. This is very sweet of you, Cor." I said as I sat beside him. He wrapped his arm around me and fed me the food he had made.

Cor's true calling in life may be to be a chef. The food he made was magnificent.

I cuddled up against him. He leaned over and pressed a soft kiss against my cheek. I quickly turned my head and stole a kiss from his lips. He chuckled at me and pecked a kiss on my lips.

"I love you." He whispered in my ear. I smiled and looked up at him.

"I love you." I said. He smiled and I rested my head on his shoulder.

The rest of the night gets hazy in my memory from there. I know we drank a lot. And I remember unbuttoning Cor's shirt all the way. He has a lot of scars on his chest. And I remember kissing him. A lot.

After that, nothing. We had to have drank too much, but I remember waking up the next morning, wrapped in his arms, completely naked.

He was still sleeping peacefully in my bed. I smiled and leaned over and gently kissed his cheek. I got up and grabbed my shorts and tank top I always wore on my days off and would have lazy days around the house.

I showered. I yelped when the soap suddenly stung my thigh. I looked at my thigh and noticed deep purple marks that looked a lot like Cor's hands on my thighs as well as deep scars that probably came from his finger nails. I smiled and laughed.

So he had gotten rough with me last night. Guessing by how sore I now realized my legs were, it must have felt amazing.

I finished washing up, then stepped out of the shower and dried myself, then dressed myself. I hung the towel to dry and I stepped out of the bathroom. Cor was up and making breakfast for the two of us. I noticed my living room was back to the organized way it was before. He had to have done that while I was in the shower.

I walked in to the kitchen. He was standing at the stove, watching the eggs. He had his pants on, but his shirt was off. He seemed focused.

I walked up behind him and wrapped my arms around him.

"Good morning." I hummed to him. He nodded.

"Something wrong, babe?" I asked.

"...Just trying to remember last night." He said. I smiled up at him. I rose to my toes and kissed his cheek.

"Don't worry about it. I enjoyed it." I said. He sighed.

"I don't like having gaps in my memory, Dawn. Especially with you." He said.

"What does that mean?" I asked. He turned and looked down at me.

"I mean I want to remember every moment I spend with you." He said. I smiled up at him again.

"You really are sweet, ya know?" I asked. He shrugged and pulled the food off the heat, dividing it on two plates for us.

"All I can remember is you taking off my shirt, but after that, nothing." He said. I snorted.

"Wow, Cor. Who knew you were such a light weight?" I laughed. He sighed.

"I gather that we made love, I just need to know if I remembered..." he trailed off. I shrugged.

"Don't worry about it too much, Cor. We're both responsible adults here." I said.

"One of us is a responsible adult. The other still retreats to her thuggish nature." He said.

"Got me there." I shrugged and dug in to my eggs.

"But in all seriousness, what happens happens and all we can do is take responsibility for our actions and learn to live with it." I said. Cor took my hand in his.

"When did you grow up?" He asked me. I stroked his thumb with mine.

"When I realized I wasn't a kid anymore and realized that there are people depending on me." I said. He raised my hand and kissed my wrist. I smiled at him and pulled his hand to my lips and kissed his fingers.

"I love you, Cor Leonis." I said. He leaned over and kissed me.

"I love you, Dawn Caramella." He said. I smiled softly at him.

—

"Alright, what's going on that's got you so happy?" I asked Regis as I dug in to my lunch a few weeks later.

"Did something have to happen to make me happy and want to enjoy lunch with my friend?" He asked with a bright smile.

"Did you break something of mine?" I asked. He laughed.

"No, none of your possessions are broken, Dawn." He said. I stared at him.

"Grace is pregnant." He said with a bright smile. I felt a grin break across my face.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Two months today, she told me this morning." He said happily.

"Congrats, Reg! Can't wait to meet the little Prince or Princess." I said with a smile. Regis smiled happily.

"Neither can I. I can't believe it, Dawn. I'm going to be a father." He said.

"Just remember to keep a balance." I said. He looked at me curiously.

"You gotta remember that you're still the King, Reg. Don't let your duties as father eclipse those of being King, but don't use your duties as King to neglect your kid. Find a balance between being King and father and keep that balance." I said. Regis nodded.

"I know." He said. I smiled at him.

"Hey, Reg?" I said. He looked up at me again.

"For the record, I think you'll be a good father." I said. He smiled at me.

"Thank you, Dawn." He said. I smiled at him.

—

"What?!" I asked.

"I went and checked it out myself, Dawn. They're gone." Cid said.

"Vic... Val... you just had to live on the boarder of Niflheim, didn't you?" I whispered. I closed my eyes.

Just last year, I had gotten a text from Val saying that she had given birth to a daughter. Now, Cid was standing in front of Cor, Regis and I, holding a baby girl and telling us that Victor and Valencia were dead.

"The man that brought the child to you... what did he look like?" Regis asked. Cid shook his head.

"It was my boy that saw him. Not me. He just came to me, holding the little thing and said a funny lookin' man told him that Victor Schwartz was dead." Cid said.

"Damn." I said.

"The child will grow here. She'll be raised in the palace. Victor trusted the workings of his family power to both Dawn and myself. When she is the proper age, we will teach her to use her power." Regis said.

"We don't even know her name, Reggie." Cid said.

"Alice." I said.

"What?" Cor asked.

"Valencia told me when the baby was born. Her name is Alice Schwartz." I said, looking at the text messages in my phone of the last time I texted Val.

"Very well. Alice will be raised here. Dawn and I will train her in her abilities when she's of age." Regis said. I nodded.

—

The next morning, Cor, Nyx, and I set out to the mountain home that Valencia and Victor lived in. We were about a two hour drive when we had to stop for the night.

"Dawn. Are you alright? I know you and Valencia were close." Cor said.

"I'm fine." I said. I felt his arms wrap around me as I watched the daemons from the window.

"Don't bottle your emotions, Dawn." He said. I sighed.

"I just want to get them home. Then I can cry." I said. Cor kissed my cheek.

"Come on. Let's get our rest. We have a long day tomorrow." He said. I sighed and grabbed his hand before he pulled away.

"Dawn?" He asked.

"Promise me something?" I asked. He said nothing.

"Don't ever leave me behind." I said lowly. He wrapped his arms around me and held me close.

"Never." He promised and kissed my cheek. We went to bed after that.

—

I stood to the side, unable to watch as Cor and Nyx loaded the bodies in to the truck. This was so much harder than I thought.

"Dawn." Cor called.

"Yeah, I'm... I'm coming." I said and walked over. I grabbed the zipper of the body bag and started to pull it up. I froze when I saw Val's eyes staring back at me. Her face was frozen in determination. There was also a mix of sadness and fear on her face and in her eyes. I closed my eyes and looked away.

"Sorry, Val." I whispered and zipped up the bag. I felt tears rise. A hand was placed on my shoulder.

"Stay strong, Dawn. We'll find who did it." Nyx said.

"We already know who did it, Nyx. I just want to know how many there were and why Victor couldn't handle it." I said. I turned and walked in to the house. I examined the house. There were scraps and burns in the wood along with the blood splatters.

My eyebrows pulled together at a few markings spread about the wood work.

"Hold on a damn minute here..." I murmured and looked around. I stood by the marks and tried to imagine the fight that went on.

"Holy hell.... But that can't be. The only one that can use that kind of magic is... but he was... this can't be right... Fuck, I've got to report to Reg on this." I sighed. I pinched my nose.

"Damn it." I groaned.

"Everything alright, Dawn?" Cor asked.

"Just hand me the camera." I said. He handed the camera to me.

"Something wrong?" He asked.

"Something the Reg and I need to talk about." I said.

"Dawn." Cor said.

"Look, Cor, when Victor left, he shared a secret with Regis and I and he asked it stay between us." I said.

"Can you give me some sort of clue as to what it is?" He asked.

"Yeah. Vic left a message for Reg and I." I said and took the pictures I needed.

"A message? Saying what?" Cor asked.

"That's why Reg needs to see this. So we can figure it out." I said. I stared at the entire room.

--

"Something else happened other than a murder. Obviously Victor fought back, but if it was simple Magiteks, Vic would have easily been able to take them on and he and Val wouldn't have been killed. No, something else was here. Something Vic and Val couldn't take on. Whatever it was made these marks. Or Victor forced it to make these marks. Victor knew I'd come to the scene. He knew that I'd look." I said, showing Regis the pictures.

"I see. These marks..." Regis said.

"That's what caught my attention. Victor knew he was going to die. He made last second shifts to make these marks in this specific order to tell us what happened." I said.

"And this?" Regis asked.

"The message." I said. I pulled the picture he pointed to forward.

"This was the spot Victor Schwartz drew his last breath. He wrote in the only material he could while his attacker's back was turned. Considering the message isn't smudged, the attacker never looked back." I said.

"What does it say?" Regis asked.

"Kanzler. It's the language of Victor's family. German." I said.

"What does it mean?" Regis asked. I froze.

"That I don't know." I said.

"Do you know anyone that might be able to translate?" Regis asked.

"You're not going to like my answer." I said.

"Dawn." He said. I sighed.

"Yes, but..." I said. He gave me a look.

"You're going to have to let him out of jail if you want him to cooperate." I said.

"You're kidding."

"Nein." I said. Regis sighed.

"Can you talk to him?" He asked.

"You really think he'll want to talk to the girl that he practically raised and then stabbed him in the back and threw him in a cell?" I asked. Regis sighed.

"You're the only one that knows how." Regis asked. I closed my eyes.

"Wire me in through Crowe and we'll see." I said.

--

"So... That brat needs my help but she can't face me?" Boar asked, staring at Crowe. I stared at him through the one sided glass.

"Don't know who you're talking about, but I do know that you should be concerned about me." Crowe said. Boar chuckled and stood up. He walked up to the glass and stared through.

"She's in there, isn't she? And her boy toy is with her. Rarely see her with out him these days." He said. He was staring directly at me. Even though he couldn't see me, he knew it.

"Dawn." Cor said. I shook my head at him. Anything I said, Crowe would hear and repeat it to Boar.

"Sit your ass down." I said.

"Sit your ass down." Crowe repeated with my same irritation.

"She's feeding you lines." He said.

"The only thing she's feeding me is my favorite meal at the burger joint if I win this bet." She said. I rolled my eyes.

"Excuse me?" Boar asked.

"She's still the same girl you threw in the ring, Boar. She's a fighter. A gambling woman. Though, she's got to be the smartest gambler I met. She looks at the odds, weighs her option, makes her move. I've seen her walk away, but I've never seen her lose." Crowe said. Boar stared through a little longer, then turned to Crowe.

"Who do you think taught her that? She was a champion for a reason." He said sitting.

"She still is. Just in a new way." Crowe said.

"Crowe, you're getting him to work with us, not feed my ego." I said. Boar plopped back down in his seat.

"Yes, I'm sure that boy toy of hers makes her quite a beast." He said. I rolled my eyes.

"What, you want Cor to punch you the way She punched him when they met?" Crowe asked. Boar's smirk dropped.

"I told you she's the same." Crowe said.

"What do you want?" Boar asked.

"Sprechen Sie Deutsch? Nein?" I said. Crowe repeated.

"I don't translate... Not for free." Boar said.

"Granted." Crowe said. Boar leaned forward.

"Oh?" Boar said.

"King Regis has agreed to release you from prison, give you back your home and give you back the money made." I said. Crowe froze.

"Tell him, Crowe." I said. She raised her hand.

"Don't talk to me. Tell him. I have the details worked out. Just tell him, Crowe." I said. She sighed and repeated the message. Boar began to laugh.

"Bull shit." He said.

"Crowe, turn and look at the glass and tell Cor to bring the papers in." I said. Crowe turned. She was scowling.

"Bring in the papers, Cor." Crowe said. I handed Cor the papers in my hand. He took them and walked in.

"You ride that brat every day? Or just the days you don't work the next morning?" Boar snapped. Cor glared at him.

"Wait until after we get the translation. Then you can punch him." I said. Crowe repeated what I said to Cor.

"You're a sassy one, lady. I'll give ya that. I bet the brat is yelling at you through that wire. She'd rather hit me herself than watch him do it." Boar said.

"He's not wrong." I said. Crowe sighed and handed the papers to Boar. He read over them.

"One translation and that's it?" Boar asked.

"That's the terms. Don't demand anything else. I really want that burger." Crowe said. I rolled my eyes.

"Fine. Let me see the word." Boar said. Cor places the picture on the table.

"Damn. What the hell happened?" Boar asked.

"A murder. The victim tried giving us a message in a language you speak. Translate and you're out." Crowe said. He stared at the word.

"Kanzler. Easy. It means Chancellor." Boar said.

"Chancellor?" Crowe asked.

"Honest. Swear to Bahamut." He said. Crowe ran her hand through her hair.

"He's telling the truth." I said.

"A moment, sir." Crowe said. She stepped out. Cor stood in the room and glared at Boar. Crowe came in to the same room as me.

"Just need Duratos's signature." She said. I nodded and took the papers and handed the papers to Duratos.

"I still can't fathom that man raising you." Duratos sighed.

"You were with Reg that night, Titus. Sign." I said. He sighed and signed the paper.

"Get him the hell out. And let Cor give him a good smack." Duratos said.

"You're too sweet to me." I said. Crowe returned to the room Boar and Cor were in.

"The papers are signed. I'll show you too your belongings and off the grounds." She said.

"Too damn easy." He said. He stopped as Crowe lead him out. He looked at Cor.

"She always on top?" Boar asked. I scowled with disgust.

"I would never hit you if Dawn was watching." Cor said. Boar grinned.

Then Cor punched him in the jaw and knocked him on the ground. I smiled. After Boar peeled himself off the ground and left, I took off my headset and stepped out to where Cor waited.

"Thanks, babe." I said. He pulled me in to a hug.

"I love you too much to let him speak about you like that." He said. I kissed him.

"You're too good to me." I said.