Cor lies next to me in bed. I was now eight months along. The baby was due in late October. Cor's hand rubbed soothing circles on my stomach. I was a little worried. The baby hadn't been very active recently.

"Dawn?" Cor asked.

"Mmh?" I hummed tiredly.

"After the baby is born... marry me." He said. I was wide awake now.

"What?" I asked.

"Marry me, Dawn. I love you, and I love our baby. I'll move in the house with you. You can stay home until the baby is old enough to go to day care. After that, we can alternate days on who picks them up from daycare and school." He said. I smiled as he spoke, his eyes on my stomach.

"Cor." I called gently. He raised his head and his blue eyes stared in to mine.

"Yes." I said. He blinked.

"...Yes..?" He breathed.

"Yes, I'll marry you!" I said. He leaned over and kissed me.

"I love you, Dawn." He said.

"And I you." I said.

"Dawn... what will we name the baby?" He asked. I shrugged.

"I was thinking of just waiting to see what the baby looks like and give them their name based off of their looks. Though, I know I want to give the baby my father's name." I said.

"Brook?" He asked.

"Argentum." I said.

"Any particular reason?" He asked.

"I may have never known him, but from what I've been told... my father would have loved me, had he lived. I want to commemorate him by giving our baby his last name since I took my mother's name. Are you okay with that?" I asked. He nodded.

"Yeah. I'm alright with that, Dawn." He said. He stroked my stomach again and to my relief, the baby kicked his hand.

"I wonder who you'll be." He hummed to the baby. The baby kicked his hand again. I rolled over and cuddled in to Cor, closing my eyes and letting myself fall asleep.

—

Cor rose to go to work early morning the next month. I woke as he did. He leaned over and kissed my cheek.

"Call me if you need anything." He whispered to me. I nodded and burrowed in to my pillow. He bent over and kissed my stomach.

"Be good for your mother, little one." He said and left for work. I closed my eyes and went back to sleep.

About an hour later, my eyes snapped open as I felt pain shoot through my body. I sat up and pushed on my glasses and looked down. My heartbeat sped up.

My water had broke.

"Oh, gods... you couldn't have waited for daddy to come home, could you?" I asked. Pain shot through my body again.

"Ow! Okay! Okay! I'll give him a call and we'll head to the hospital!" I gasped. I rubbed my stomach, trying to soothe the coming baby and grabbed my phone as I slid my slippers on, dialing Cor.

"Dawn? What is it darling?" He asked.

"My water broke." I said. I heard him drop something.

"Cor, I'm going in to labor right now. I'm on my way to the hospital." I said as I climbed in to my car.

"Shit. I'll be right there, honey. I'll meet you at the hospital." He said. I could hear him running.

"Okay. Please hurry, Cor. This little one is planning on coming in to the world fighting." I said and hung up. I parked and checked in to the hospital. I was rushed in to the maternity ward.

Before Cor even got there, the baby decided it was time to come in to the world. White hot pain seared my mid and lower sections and I screamed out in pain. I don't know how long it was, but a nurse finally came running in.

"Miss Caramella, Cor Leonis is here-"

"Get him in here now!" I screamed. She ran back out and I don't know how much longer it was before she was back with him. I felt his arms wrap around me and I grabbed his hand.

"Cor... this child.. AH!... definitely takes after their parents... AAAH!" I screamed in pain. He squeezed my hand gently.

"It's okay, Dawn. Soon we'll be holding our baby." He said and kissed my sweat soaked forehead. I let out a scream of agony and cried for it to be over.

Everything hurt. I was envelopled in searing pain. I thought I was dying. It hurt far worse than anything I'd ever experienced in my entire life.

I held on to Cor with all the strength in my body as I tried to push the baby out. I sobbed in to Cor's shoulder in pain. He kept saying encouraging words to me.

I don't know how long I was in labor. I just know when the baby was finally born.

"It's a boy!" The nurse said over his cries.

"A... boy... a son..." I panted.

"We have a son." Cor laughed lightly. He leaned over and kissed me gently.

"You did great, honey." He said. I leaned against his shoulder.

The baby was put in to my arms, still crying his little lungs out.

"Shhh, shhh... hush, little one. You're okay. Mama's here." I said to my son. I hugged the little angel tight, yet gently.

"Look at him, Cor... he's beautiful." I cried. Cor sat beside me and gently stroked our son's cheek. The little baby's eyes opened and my heart leapt in my chest.

"He has your eyes." I cried. Cor smiled and kissed my cheek.

"I'm sorry, Miss Caramella, Mr. Leonis. Your baby is very sick. We have to take him to a special nursery ward to ensure that he will be able to survive and heal properly." The nurse said. My heart stopped. She gently took my baby from my arms and took him to the special ward.

"Will my son be okay?" I asked wth a shaking voice.

"You have nothing to worry about. We have state of the art equipment. He'll be a healthy baby boy and back in your arms by tomorrow afternoon." She said.

"Right. We'll decide on a name when we get him back and can really look at him." I said. Cor nodded.

"What name will we put on his crib for now? Leonis or Caramella?" Another nurse asked.

"Argentum." I said. They nodded and did so with out question.

"October 25th. Our little baby boy was born." I sighed softly. Cor kissed me softly.

"I love you, Dawn. With all my heart." Cor said. I leaned in to him and kissed his jaw.

"I love you, too, Cor. With all my heart." I said.

"I'm going to head back to work now. I'll come back and see you and the baby in the morning. I love you." He said and kissed me again.

"I love you, too, honey." I said. He gave me one last kiss and returned to work.

I was moved to another room close to the special nursery ward where my baby waited. I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

I was woken hours later by the sound of an alert going off. Immediately, I went back in to work mode.

"Stop him! He's stealing babies!" A nurse cried out as I entered the hall way. I saw a man in a black cloak walk out of the nursery ward holding babies in his arms.

My heart stopped. My son was in his arms.

"Let them go!" I screamed.

I was still too weak from child birth to summon my katana or my pistol.

I ran at the man, reverting to my BAR fighter instincts. Unfortunately, the hospital gown gave away that I was a patient and not a guard at the moment.

With out waisting a second, the man kicked me in the gut and I fell, gasping for air. I tasted blood in my mouth.

"No!" I screamed as the man ran off. A few moments later, arms were around me.

"Dawn, what happened?" Cor's voice filled my ears. I grabbed my lover's arms.

"Cor, you have to stop him." I cried.

"Dawn?"

"He took the baby!" I cried. Cor's eyes widened and his face was frozen in shock.

"I couldn't stop him... Cor... bring our son home." I said, tears rolling down my cheeks.

"I will, Dawn. I'll be back with him before you know it. I promise." He said and kissed me. Nurses helped me back to my bed as Cor ran out of the hospital. I clasped my hands together and began to pray.

—

It was weeks later when I was released from the hospital. Cor and Regis stood in the lobby. I ran to Cor when I saw him. He caught me and I could tell by the look on his face.

"Cor.." I said with a shaking voice. Tears built in his eyes as he looked at me. I clung to the hope that maybe my baby was in the hospital.

"Dawn... I'm... I'm so sorry... there were too many Magiteks... by the time I got through them all... he was already gone..." he said.

My entire body locked.

"No..." I whimpered.

"He was too sick. Even if he made it through the frozen tundra of Niflheim... I'm sorry... Dawn... I'm so sorry." Cor said.

My legs gave out and I was on my knees. I couldn't stop crying. I pressed my hands to my face to hide the tears and muffle my sobs.

"Please... oh gods... please... Titan, Shiva, Leviathan, Ramuh, Ifrit, Bahamut, anyone that can hear me please... please let this be a nightmare! Please bring my son back to me!" I prayed.

But no matter how hard I prayed. No matter how hard I wished. No matter how hard I cried. This was the bitter reality.

My baby was gone.