Neither of them went to the dungeon that night. Though Claude wanted to see Esmeralda in the worst way, he didn't dare go after Dawn told him not to. Dawn was quiet the rest of the night…that had him considerably worried. She was never quiet.

She was awake before the sun came up and so was he. They nearly scared the crap out of each other when they collided in a hallway.

"MMPH!" Dawn yelped, her voice muffled by Claude's hand. Realizing it was him, she stopped struggling and he let go of her.

"You guys really ought to consider better lighting," she mumbled, one hand over her pounding heart.

"What's your excuse tonight?" he asked her.

"Force of habit," she answered, "I got used to the baby waking me up at four thirty."

She studied him carefully. Though she couldn't see his face and only a little of his silhouette from the burning torch a few feet away, she knew.

"You're already dressed."

"Yes."

"Come on."

They went into the kitchen. He noticed that Dawn was carrying a rectangular-shaped pouch that had a green and white stamp on the front.

"What's that?"

"Coffee. You guys won't have it around for a while yet, but I figured this would be our little secret."

She opened the bag. Claude wasn't sure what he expected to see, but the contents looked an awful lot like dirt to him.

"Coffee is made from a special type of bean," she explained, "they grind it up and then brew it. In my place, they also filter it to keep the grounds out of the actual drink. Since we don't have any filter paper, I guess we'll have to make do with what we have."

"So…it's like tea?"

"Sort of."

Dawn had to start the water boiling. In order to do that, they had to build the fire up in the stove. She looked around the kitchen and saw a clean cloth that was just big enough to work.

"Watch this," she told him, feeling like she was pretty clever. She poured some of the grounds into the middle of the rag and tied it tightly into a bundle. Being sure that the knot wouldn't come loose, she tossed it into the boiling water. The smell of coffee began to fill the kitchen. Claude wasn't sure if he liked it or not. It was awfully strong…

"Okay…here's your first lesson in coffee. Coffee with nothing in it is called 'black coffee' or in my case 'I can't drink this stuff'. I always add milk and sugar to mine. You know how hot tea has a tendency to warm you up when you're cold? Coffee has a very interesting effect on people. It makes you less tired. You'll feel more awake…you might even feel a little hyper since this is your first time. It's supposed to do that…just like ginger helps colds and lavender helps calm people down."

She poured some milk into her cup and also tossed in a few heaping teaspoons of sugar. It wasn't good for her, but she had yet to be a confirmed diabetic from this habit. The pan had been sitting off of the fire for a few minutes now, so the coffee was hot but not boiling. Using another mug, she dipped it out of the pan and dumped it into the cup with the milk. After a vigorous stir, she tasted the mixture.

"Ah…there we go. Want some?"

The flavor was unusual, but not unpleasant. He wasn't sure he could have drank it without the milk and sugar. After Claude took a big drink, Dawn retrieved another mug for him. When the cook came in, she was about to chastise Dawn for the mess, but she shut up when she saw Claude. No one would dare tell the archdeacon where he could and couldn't go. Just the same, Dawn refilled her cup, Claude refilled his, and they left the kitchen.

The sanctuary was empty and dark. It was cold there, but they were warm from the caffeine and they would be able to talk there.

"Please tell me what's going to happen," Claude begged.

"I can't."

"Please…I feel as though my soul is going to rip into two…"

"I want to," Dawn admitted, "but every time I try, I just can't seem to get it out. I guess you won't know until it happens."

"Can you tell me whether it's good or bad?"

She tried, but no sound came out.

"I guess not," she sighed, "sorry…"

He shrugged.

"Thank you…even if you can't tell me. You've already done much more than anyone could ever ask."

She knew he was hurting, but he wouldn't be for much longer, hopefully.

"Let's go upstairs," she suggested, "it's cold up there, too, but we can watch the sunrise."

It sounded trivial and childish in her mind, but he rose when she did. If he thought her idea was silly, he didn't say so. It took them another few minutes to get up the stairs. They had to stop several times and drink or risk the coffee sloshing over the sides of the cups. It was still very hot, so that wouldn't have been any fun.

They sat side by side on Dawn's bed. The sky had just started to lighten and there was a red streak in the east.

"The place where I used to live when I first moved out on my own faced the east," she told him, "the first thing I used to do was open the blinds and the sun would come pouring in. It was a nice way to wake up."

"The university?"

She turned, surprised he remembered her saying something about it.

"Yeah…those were the days," she said with a small laugh, "nothing to do but eat, sleep, go to class, and stay out late. I didn't have to pay for anything then—my parents took the bill. Unfortunately, the economy in our country took a nosedive and I couldn't get a job once I graduated. My parents insisted that I not work while I was in school so that I would study more. I'm beginning to think we all made a big mistake because they wouldn't hire me without work experience. Where I come from, women don't depend on men for support. We do all kinds of jobs and it's up to us whether we can make it or not."

"That's…different…"

"I know it sounds a little weird," Dawn said, her gaze on the horizon, "there's customs here that I don't entirely get, too. Like that one that says married women can't show their hair—I guess it would keep a guy from hitting on a married woman, but still…"

Claude had to stifle a laugh. The way she said it amused him.

"There they come," she commented as people began to gather down below, "it won't be much longer now."

Cold fear began to make his stomach churn. He cringed inwardly, feeling somewhat sick.

"Easy…" she whispered, "take a breath. Good. Take another one."

He hurried down the stairs, Dawn and Squishie hot on his heels.

"Where are you going?" she demanded.

"I am supposed to ask her if she has prayed for forgiveness."

He was amazed that he was even still so coherent. Dawn saw his hands shaking and wondered if it was the fear or the coffee.

"Are you all right, sir? You seem…jumpy," Joseph commented to Claude. The procession readied itself to go outside. Esmeralda was already there. Joseph turned to Dawn.

"Get back in the bell tower! We have enough to deal with as it is!" he snarled.

Dawn wanted to punch him, but she refrained from doing it. Instead, she stuck her tongue out at him. Squishie turned her butt to him. Deciding that her dog was probably smarter than she was, Dawn turned as well and they went back up the stairs.

She went onto the ledge to watch. Quasimodo was getting antsy and seemed to not notice her. That was okay; she decided not to interfere. If he was thinking what she thought he was thinking, then the whole matter would be over soon enough.

"Sorry about your speech impediment this morning," Shadow said, "I thought it best if Claude didn't know."

Dawn turned to look at him.

"Where did you come from? I didn't hear the door open or close," she commented.

"With all that noise coming from down there, I'm amazed you can hear anything," Shadow commented, "I see you decided to watch from up here."

"Yeah…he is going to do it, isn't he? I mean…"

"There he goes," Shadow said, gesturing to Quasimodo. He had secured a rope around something and was scaling down the side of the cathedral like a mountain climber would scale a cliff.

"Thank goodness," Dawn sighed, "I was worried about Claude."

"By the way, young lady," Shadow said, "we need to have a talk."

Dawn raised an eyebrow.

"I can smell the coffee on Claude's breath. You gave him some of it, didn't you?"

"Yes. I didn't know that was against the law," Dawn responded.

"Be careful. As I said before, some of those items are better left unshared. I don't think the coffee can hurt too much, but no electronics, got it? Aside from the guitar, of course, because they've all already seen it."

Dawn nodded.

"Fine. I won't let anyone else drink the coffee," she sighed.

Quasimodo fought off the guards and seized Esmeralda.

"SANCTUARY!" he yelled, reaching the steps. She heard him run up the stairs.

"SANCTUARY!"

He held Esmeralda's unconscious form above his head. The crowd burst into cheers.

"Way to go, Quasi!" Dawn praised him. He lay the unconscious Esmeralda on the bed in the other room.

"Will she be all right?" Quasimodo asked.

Dawn pressed a finger against the pulse point in her neck.

"I think so," she said, "she's just passed out. I don't blame her—the excitement could have been a little bit much for me, too."

"Where is my master?" Quasimodo asked.

Dawn frowned.

"That's a good question. Shadow, where is he?"

"You'll find him when he's ready for you to find him."

"Will you stop talking in riddles and just tell me for a change?"

"You will find him on the dock by the river after the sun has completely set," Shadow said, deciding to humor just a little bit, "that's all you get and only because you've been so patient."

He turned to leave, but Dawn grabbed his sleeve.

"Oh, no you don't! You always leave! You stay here with us for a while!"

"I would," Shadow said with a smile, "but I have business to attend to elsewhere."

He dislodged her hand gently and started towards the door.

"I'll be back sometime tonight," he assured her, "you're getting along fine without me."

"But-"

He was gone again. When she chased him down the stairs, she discovered that he had completely disappeared.

"Ooookay…maybe I had a little too much coffee this morning," she lamented, "I could have sworn he was just right there…"

Squishie jumped on Esmeralda and whined, impatiently digging at her.

"Squish! Stop that! You let her alone," Dawn scolded her. She picked the dog up and got the distinct feeling that she was worried about Esmeralda.

"She'll wake up, Squish, don't panic."

Dawn kissed the top of her head and hugged her.

"See that ball over there? I'm going to get it…" she teased. She put Squishie down and advanced towards the ball. Squishie growled and tried to get to it first, but Dawn was too quick. She threw the ball across the room and Squishie scrambled after it. Quasimodo laughed and clapped his hands together. Squishie chased the ball down and carried it back in her mouth. Dawn had to wrestle it away from her, but she got it loose and threw it again. After Squishie brought it back the second time, Dawn tossed the ball to Quasimodo.

"Think fast!"

Squishie didn't like that. Laughing like a child, Quasimodo threw it back. Squishie ran between them, getting frustrated. After a while, they got her so mad that she was shaking. The next time Dawn threw it, Squishie sprang up and snatched it right of the air.

Quasimodo let out a shriek of childlike delight and applauded the little dog. Indignant at Dawn for always taking the ball away from her, she huffed and dropped the ball by Quasimodo.

The sun was nearly down when the poor little dog got exhausted and lay down. Dawn decided it was time to go find Claude.