A/N: There's a lot of German in this chapter. I'm using an online translator, so there will probably be mistakes, apologies right now for them. I tried to check them by putting them the other way and that seems to have cut down on it. If you see anything that majorly needs to be fixed, please PM me and tell me what the correction should be. Again, translations are at the bottom of this page.
Chapter 21
Other than the daily visit of John, the week was blissfully uneventful. Dawn and Klaus always ended up in one bedroom or the other instead of sleeping separately. Ann teased them, but only friendly ribbing. They really didn't mind.
Dawn's appetite had increased tremendously and she always seemed to be munching on something. Klaus got a taste of what things were going to be like; Dawn had frequent mood swings, food cravings, various little aches all over, and she had to use the latrine a lot. Klaus rubbed her shoulders for her and tried to be understanding of the mood swings (it helped that he would tell himself that she'd never be as bad as Lady Van Tassel).
They all spent a lot of time together. As the sixth day drew to a close, Klaus found himself more prone to "fits of the sullens" as Ann put it: he himself would become quite moody and had to make an effort not to take it out on the girls. He'd snapped at Dawn for something and cringed immediately afterward. Instead of being angry or crying, however, Dawn came closer.
"What's the matter?" she asked.
"I don't want to leave you," he responded, surprising himself with his honesty.
She wrapped her arms around him, drawing him closer.
"It won't be for long," she told him, "I promise."
In her heart, she hoped it would be quickly. If she had to wait another two years for the lunar eclipse, she would go crazy.
Klaus drew in a deep breath. Both of them had changed drastically since they'd entered this relationship. Dawn had once been very apathetic to people's needs and careless about life in general. Now, she would bend over backwards to help someone. He'd been fierce, cold-hearted, and constantly angry, not giving a damn whether people lived or died here. If he killed them, all the better. Now, he was seeing things through Dawn's eyes and he'd developed an appreciation for things he'd neglected for so long.
"Have some faith," Dawn whispered, "if God intended for us to be together, it's going to happen. And I would say it's in our favor right now."
She suddenly jumped backwards, a surprised look on her face.
"What happened?" Klaus asked, worried he'd somehow hurt her.
"The baby! It's moving!" Dawn exclaimed. She grabbed his hand and placed it against her belly, which was now starting to show. Klaus felt a tiny movement under the fabric of her dress and her skin. Then, it was a bigger one. Warmth showed in Klaus's face that Dawn had never seen before.
"What's going on?" Ann asked, having slid down the banister.
"My baby's moving!" Dawn exclaimed. Ann poked at Dawn's stomach until she saw it flutter a little.
Now, it was going to be twice as hard for him to leave. Klaus was feeling very frustrated at his situation. He was lounging on Dawn's bed. He'd been behind Dawn, his legs on either side of her, his back resting against a pile of pillows. It had been nice to leave his armor off for a week. Dawn's back rested against Klaus's stomach and chest, her head falling back on his shoulder. She was fast asleep. Klaus carefully turned the oil lamp off, extinguishing the small flame. He gently rubbed Dawn's stomach in slow circles. A twitch responded.
Hello in there, he thought, I wonder if you know who I am. I wonder if you know that in the last year, I have received the greatest gifts any man could have. I cannot wait to meet you.
Another twitch.
Klaus looked out the window at the stars. A cloud passed over the moon, making it almost appear as though God himself had winked at him.
Klaus sighed, resting his cheek against the top of Dawn's head. He couldn't make up for all of the terrible things he'd done, but he could start over.
Mein Gott, verzeihen Sie mir bitte. Ich weiß nicht, ob ich die Dinge wettmachen kann, habe ich getan. Obwohl es scheint, dass ich meinen Rücken auf Ihnen gedreht habe, Sie haben mich nicht vergessen. Helfen Sie bitte Dawn, und ich finde unseren Platz in der Welt, ein Platz, unser eigenes zu nennen. Lassen Sie bitte unser Kind gesund sein und lassen Sie bitte alles richtig sein. Lassen Sie mich bitte noch einmal versuchen, ein besserer Mann zu sein. Ich liebe diese Frau mehr als alles, und sie hat mir Liebe gezeigt, dass ich nie gehabt habe. Ich weiß Liebe wieder, einschließlich Ihrig.
He began to run out of thoughts. Awkwardly, Klaus closed the prayer.
Amen.
He opened his eyes again. The fireflies had come out and were blinking their yellow-green light everywhere. One of them fluttered in onto the open windowsill and flashed. Klaus watched it, unmoving. It landed on Dawn's belly and stayed there for a moment, flashing. Another one, larger, flashed as it landed on the windowsill. The two of them flew off together.
At least she is here now, Klaus thought. He gently kissed the top of Dawn's hair and allowed himself to sink into sleep.
The next morning was sunny despite the darkness in Klaus's insides. He wasn't in a good mood at all and didn't eat very much at breakfast. When Ann pressed him to talk, she got only an icy stare. Dawn didn't say anything. Instead, she kept hold of his hand, giving it a squeeze now and then or hugging him.
Daredevil wasn't in the mood to leave, either. He resisted as Klaus tried to put his saddle and bridle back on him.
1."Stehen Sie noch!" Klaus snapped. Daredevil's ears were back and he made a huffing sound.
"Ich will nicht auch abreisen!" 2. Klaus's voice was loud and harsh. Dawn stayed in the doorway of the barn, not letting on she was there. Tears filled her eyes.
"Let's not fight," Klaus told his best friend, "we are in this together. Please, don't make it harder than it has to be."
Daredevil lowered his head so that Klaus could put his bridle and reins on.
"They already know of our relationship, but there will be others to visit them today. We cannot be seen."
Dawn assumed that Daredevil used thought transference to talk to Klaus. She wiped her tears away, standing on trembling knees.
Daredevil's ears came forward again. Klaus stroked his nose for a little while, his eyes closing and a discontented sigh coming from deep within.
"Come."
Daredevil followed Klaus out of the stable without Klaus even holding onto the reins. He noticed Dawn's tearstained face and felt the darkness inside well up almost uncontrollably. She wasn't crying anymore, but he didn't like to know she'd been crying at all.
She rested her head against his shoulder as he pulled her into a tight embrace.
"It's not like we won't see each other again," Dawn said, more to herself than to him, "I'll be back in the woods getting the herbs Katrina asked for in a couple of days."
She was being brave for him.
Wordlessly, he kissed her with one hand behind her back and the other over her swelling stomach. The sound of a carriage got their attention.
Dawn watched as Klaus and Daredevil took off. She had a funny feeling that something was going to happen, but she shrugged it away.
"I knew it!"
Dawn's eyes widened with shock and her heart began to pound. Her breath became so short that her chest hurt. Her legs turned to jello as she turned around to face a very irate-looking John.
Translations:
1. "Stay still!"
2. "I don't want to leave either!"
Klaus's prayer in English: (is probably not exact, apologies ahead): My God, please forgive me. I do not know if I can make up for the things I have done. Although it seems that I have turned my back on you, you have not forgotten me. Please help Dawn and I find our place in the world, a place to call our own. Please let our child be healthy and please let everything right. Please let me try once more to be a better man. I love this woman more than everything else and she has shown me love that I have never had. I know love again, including Yours. Amen.
A/N: Yes, a cliffhanger. Shame upon me! evil laugh I had this part of the story written long before the rest of it.