It was now February in the town of South Park. Violet hated, dreaded, and absolutely loathed February more than any other time of the year. It was not, however, for the clichéd hate of Valentine's Day or bitter jealousy of all those who shared the day with someone special. She hated February for stealing her parents.

Valentine's Day had come and gone and the day had gone as expected. She spent that day watching with a bit of amusement as girls gushed over flowers and chocolates. Some even carried around obnoxious balloons that kept bouncing off heads in the hallways. One thing she most certainly loved though was even without a boyfriend all these years, she still got free chocolate one way or another. A definite benefit to home economics was they spent the day making their own sweets, and then feasting. At lunch, she even got a laugh out of watching Cartman eat himself sick with chocolate that his mommy had bought him of course.

The laughs were over now and she was now spending a lonely weekend missing her parents and for the first time in awhile, crying her eyes out. She was grateful her aunt and uncle had decided to take a weekend getaway as their own romantic gifts to each other. It meant she could be alone with her thoughts. She usually didn't give them much cause to worry, but if she stayed in her room too long her aunt had the habit of checking up on her and offering a snack. Violet sometimes worried she'd one day be caught crying and have to explain to them she wasn't okay like they had always thought. They'd even praised her on a few occasions at how proud they were of her, how proud her parents would be, but if only they knew. After awhile she decided she might feel better if she went out on the roof like she always did. The news had mentioned chances of heavy snow so she grabbed some of her warmer clothes.

The cold air felt good against her flushed face and soothed her stinging eyes. A sigh escaped her as she stared at cloudy sky. Were they up there watching over her right now? When she was a little kid, she used to imagine the angels used the clouds when they wanted to see someone. They'd hide behind them so they could see down to Earth, but no one could see them. It was a silly idea, but she still wondered if they could see her. Was she making them proud? Even when she was a pathetic mess like now? It only made her cry again.

"If you can hear me mom, dad, I love you so much. I miss you and I just hope you can forgive me for being like this." Violet cried as she remembered the day she heard the news, the funeral, and even as she remembered all her favorite memories because there would never be any more. She cried until it started to snow but she wanted to stay out in the cold longer, even though her face was freezing from the tears and her hands and feet were going numb. She only put up her hood and moved into a crouch to keep the snow and wind out of her face.

"Violet!"

She shrieked as Mysterion was suddenly at her side and shaking her. A part of her wondered if he'd be showing up but a part of her didn't want him to so she could go on wallowing in her sorrow and just avoiding the world. She tried to stifle her sobs as she looked at his shadowed face through blurry vision and snow but was afraid to speak knowing her voice would fail her.

"Don't you know there's supposed to be a blizzard?" She shook her head. "I was worried you might decide to do this of all nights and I was right." Swiftly he picked he picked her up and had her back in her warm room before she had time to think. He set her down on her bed, then grabbed a few blankets, and wrapped them around her hunched, shivering shoulders. He took off one of his gloves and held a bare hand against her face with the same serious and slightly alarmed face he'd worn this whole time.

"Do you have any idea how cold you are? I hope you don't get sick from this." Her mind felt so jumbled it was hard to process reality again. How long had she been out there? She placed her hands against her face and realized how cold she really was. His hand just now seemed like fire compared to her icy skin. She rubbed her blankets against her eyes to wipe away the tears and focused on breathing to calm herself while wondering where he'd gone, then heard him returning up the stairs to her room.

"Here, drink this." She looked up to see Mysterion offering her a cup of hot chocolate as he sat next to her on the bed. She carefully took the mug and felt better with each warm sip. It impressed her that he managed to find and make it for her so quickly. For a while, they were quiet until she drank the last drop and rested the empty cup on her nightstand. With a heavy sigh, she finally turned to face her savior.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry. Now will you tell me what's wrong?" She looked down, lacking the confidence to keep eye contact.

"To put it simply, I miss my parents."

"Any particular reason you miss them tonight?" She nodded.

"It was around this time that they died. It always makes me relive it in my mind." Mysterion reached over and held her hand.

"It must be hard for you then. I still remember the day you told me about their accident. I noticed your aunt and uncle aren't home since the car is gone, so would you like me to stay with you."

"Oh right. They won't be back until tomorrow. I guess it might help if I'm not all alone."

"Are you always alone on the anniversary?"

"Well, not always, but it can't be helped that it's near Valentine's Day. They never mention it but they always act extra sweet right after for my birthday." She smiled bitterly at how cruel timing could be. Mysterion noticed and looked on with a sad expression though it was unseen as she stared off elsewhere.

"Your parents died right before your birthday?" He whispered and she sighed.

"Yes they did, about a week before it actually. I don't like making a big deal of my birthday because of it so I never tell anyone unless they bring it up."

"Now I'm the one who's sorry. If I had known I would have been here sooner." She shook her head.

"You're here now. That's all that matters. Thanks for staying with me" She leaned her head against his shoulder and he released her hand to wrap his arm around her. Both were quiet and Violet found herself quite grateful to be comforted. The late hour was catching up as her eyes felt heavy and she struggled to keep them open.

"You're always listening to me, but you know if you ever need me I'll listen to you too, right?" He found himself frowning at her words, though she didn't see.

"I know you would, but I don't want you to know about my true identity, at least not yet." Violet could feel the last of her energy draining away, her hazy mind wondering what time it was and closed her eyes as she spoke.

"I'm sure I'll love the real you too."

Mysterion felt her weight shift slightly, realizing she was falling asleep and watched her peaceful face. He hoped beyond anything that her words would be true. Though he didn't want to admit it, he was falling for her, but would she ever fall for his real self? Would her little superhero crush fall apart if she knew that behind the mask it was only Kenny McCormick? The poorest and most pathetic kid in town? Every day he spent with her at school was amazing. He loved making her laugh and the cute shy looks she always had on her face. At the same time, he felt incredibly guilty because he'd been keeping his identity a secret when she'd spilled her heart to him. It was easy to joke with her as Kenny, but he felt more confident as Mysterion. Could she ever love him for his other side?

A.N.: Such a sad chapter! But one I liked since it brings them a little closer together and shows that both of them are struggling with their own problems. Eventually I'll get to some more Kenny angst. In the next chapter he's going to do something sweet for Violet's birthday so please look forward to it! ^_~