Man, I've been slacking lately on these chapters. Woops.

I'll try to work harder on getting them out sooner, it's just difficult because I work during the week, and I get tired (plus my computer being a piece of crap). :(

Thank you so much to those who support my story and take the time to read it! Means the world to me.

I was kind of tired while writing this chapter, so it might seem a little sloppy...hope you enjoy anyway. XD

"GO!"

In a blink of an eye, Dawn and Ignis had jumped from the starting line, creating more and more distance from the crowd which each passing second. Dawn had felt the rush of adrenaline as she went; the cheering and anticipation made her heart beat five times faster than normal. Already she felt somewhat lightheaded.

To her dismay, Ignis was already ahead of her. Not by much, but enough to cause concern.

He wasn't going to hold back, and she prefered it that way.

"Hiya!" Dawn again tapped her feet on the sides of her bird, urging it to catch up to her rival. The Chocobo responded to her command, taking slightly wider steps as it struggled to gain more speed.

They succeeded after a few precious seconds, now side by side with the other racer. At the moment, all that Dawn could hear was the Chocobo's feet hitting the ground and the whistling wind rushing in her ears. She briefly looked over at the brunette, seeing his sharp and focused face.

"I won't let ya' win, Iggy! Count on it!" She shouted to him with a devilish grin as they ran at the same pace.

Ignis took a second to return the look, a grin also appearing on his face. "I shall count...as in, count the minutes it will take for you to catch up!" With that, he tapped on his Chocobo, gaining the lead once again.

"Sneaky little-"

Noctis and Prompto were either making themselves out to be the best riders around, or they were lying about Ignis's skill with a Chocobo; he was no joke when it came to racing. However, Dawn wasn't going to give up so easily...beginner's luck is certainly a thing that exists.

She decided to wait it out for a while, let the brunette's bird get tired, and then steal the show by pushing for a strong finish. Her bird certainly wasn't going to last long if she kept pushing it like this.

Clammy hands relaxed on the rope a little as the Chocobo kept a steady pace down the track. Ignis was now about 10 feet ahead of her. Did he give his bird some sort of coffee or something while no one was looking? This level of stamina and speed couldn't be normal.

Panic started to surface as the brown, spiky hair went around the corner and got further and further away. Maybe waiting it out would make her fall too far behind. Of course, she only learned how to ride mere minutes ago, but she still wanted to give the boys a run for their money. She wanted to prove that being a beginner didn't mean that losing was a certain fact.

In all honesty, she sort of expected for Ignis to go easy on her, being the gentleman that he is. It would have been easier just to let her win and have the glory, but she was glad that he did otherwise. If she really were to win against him, it needed to be real.

Even if she did lose, it would be perfectly fine. She was having a lot of fun, which was something she enjoyed so much. Stuff like this was one of the things she would miss the most...

The redhead's grin slowly disappeared as the thought crept in her mind once more; never again would she race Ignis and joke around with the boys...this was it. Stupid vision...

"Giving up, are you?"

A familiar voice broke into her thoughts, instantly bringing her back. "You kidding? Never!" She responded as the Chocobo was urged on again.

Only this time, the bird was pushed a little too far.

As they began turning on the corner, the Chocobo tried to respond to Dawn's command, but ended up going too fast, resulting in the yellow bird tripping on itself and losing its balance. It was just as the redhead feared.

The fiery woman's yell filled the air as she plummeted to the rocky dirt along with her companion. Her grip on the rope was now completely gone, replaced by nothing but emptiness.

Ignis, realizing what was happening, skidded to a halt. "DAWN!" He called after her.

The last thing Dawn remembered was seeing the ground meet with her face; the feeling of a heavy weight being thrown into her side enveloping her.

It felt like hours before anything came into view again. The redhead groaned as her body ached, a figure in front of her suddenly becoming more and more clear: a face.

"Uuughhh..." Was all she managed to say at the moment.

The figure moved a little, now aware of her waking. "Dawn...are you alright?" It said.

As vision became more clear, she recognized who it was immediately. "I-Ignis?" She groaned.

"Yes, it's me. You fell off your Chocobo...are you hurt?" His face was now fully visable, hovering above hers.

Dawn's cheeks involunarily turned the color of her hair; Ignis was only a few inches away from her.

"U-um...I...uh..." She stuttered. "I'm okay, I think..." Her temperature went up about 30 degrees, her cheeks were beet red, and now stuttering was in the equation. She was absolutely not okay.

The brunette looked to the side for a second, giving Dawn a moment of relief. "Luckily, the Chocobo fled not long after it fell...you shouldn't have any serious injuries."

"Yeah...I'm just aching a lot, that's all."

Ignis turned back to her. "Are you certain? Can you move?"

"Well...uh...not really." In truth, her body was still in shock, preventing any sort of major movement at the time.

"Don't worry, I'll get you back to the post." Gently, he slid his hand underneath the woman, lifting her torso up from the ground. It was then that she noticed that both Chocobos were gone.

Ignoring the need to jump at his touch, she mentioned towards the finish line. "What about the race? You would have won by now."

The brunette stopped, only succeeding in making the woman sit up. His hand rested on her back as he spoke. "I don't care about the race,"

Then, his cheeks also went slightly pink. "I care about you."

Dawn stared at Ignis. Her mind sat there, processing what he just said to her, along with what exactly was happening at the time. The words kept disappearing as soon as they got to her mouth...how in the hell was she suppose to respond to that?

Emotions began stirring in the woman's heart, even worse than before. However, one emotion stuck out from all the rest: Happiness.

Maybe Ignis really did feel the same way she did...missing her, wanting to protect her...caring about her. These emotions had to be pushed down because of the vision, but now...they were too strong to contain. Dawn was on the brink, and she just couldn't hold it back anymore. Hearing those words from him meant the world to her, and it brought her a happiness she had never known before.

Finally, after days and days of torture from locking away her heart, she had given in. The gate was now unlocked, and her feelings ran free.

Everything came together at that point into one final conclusion: asking him to stay, crying upon the thought of never seeing him again, leaving in order to protect him, getting warm and nervous every time he gets within a foot of her...it was pretty clear at this point exactly how she felt about Ignis.

She gave him a warm smile and a small chuckle. "You wanna know something, Iggy?" She said.

The brunette tilted his head a little in confusion. "Hm?"

Gathering up her strength, Dawn put her hand on his shoulder gently.

"...I care about you, too."

Ignis's cheeks now flared up to a red as he stared back into her eyes.

They just sat there for what seemed like an hour, looking at each other. Neither one knew exactly what to say to the other, words becoming scarce.

Then suddenly, a tear rolled down Dawn's cheek as her caring smile slowly faded away. The feelings that were kept inside her heart for a while were now rushing in full force, including the ones of sorrow over the need to leave. Now that she realized her feelings for Ignis, it hurt around ten times worse. This was something she had been wanting for so long, the one thing that had kept her going all these years was the hope of finding something like this...the reason she was alive.

But she couldn't have it.

Things were now dangerously close to the vision. Ignis's death could be any second now...and it was all because of her.

If she hadn't decided to go with him, this would never have happened. She was the one who decided to push her luck, being so weak as to keep giving into what she wanted. If she didn't accept the race with him, then maybe she would have never discovered her true feelings...and the pain wouldn't be so great.

She was weak...no matter how determined she was at making sure the vision didn't come true, it was still happening. Maybe...maybe Zafirah was right. The vision was going to come true, one way or another...and Dawn was powerless to stop it.

The one she cared for so much was going to die...and it was all her fault.

The brunette gave a small gasp as he saw the tear roll down her face. "...what's wrong?" He said with gentle concern.

It was no use. Dawn at that moment just...fell apart. This nearly happened a few times now, wanting to just collapse and let everything out. Now it was actually happening; She started to sob openly.

"I-Ignis...I'm...I'm so sorry." She said in slight quivers, the tears now gushing out of her eyes as if a dam had been opened up.

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion and worry. "About what? You've done nothing wrong..."

"Y-yes I...have. I-I've ruined your...life."

Suddenly, his hand met with her now wet cheek, his thumb gently brushing away a tear. "Don't say that...you haven't ruined my life at all. Please...don't cry."

His voice was so soothing...like it was the only thing she wanted to hear at the moment.

"You caring about me makes me feel like I can do anything." He said. "You could never ruin my life, Dawn...you only make it brighter."

The crying redhead looked up to meet his gaze, his hand still on her cheek. "B-but-" She started.

"Look at me. There is nothing you can do to make me feel any different. I promise."

The shock from being crushed by the bird was nearly gone now, her body now having a little more control. Her hand met with his, fingers slightly grabbing hold. The brunette still stared at her, only now with more of a caring expression.

"That makes me...so happy. I...I'm trying so hard...to make your life better. But I...I feel like I make it...worse." She gripped his hand slightly tighter.

Ignis smiled a warm smile. "You don't have to try so hard. You only need to be with me. That is enough." His smile slowly turned back into a frown. "But...I know you don't want to be with me. You're going to leave again, aren't you?"

Dawn slightly shifted uncomfortably. "Ignis...I want to stay, but..." She also frowned. "...I can't."

"Why not? Are you saying there is a way back to your home planet?"

"No, there isn't..."

"Then why?"

"I...there's..." She tried to explain without exposing all of the details, but the words just wouldn't come. How could she explain?

The brunette's hand left her cheek, causing it to feel cold. "I want the truth. All of it. There's still things you aren't telling me, and I'd like to know." He sighed. "Please. You can trust me."

The redhead closed her eyes. She was planning to have this kind of talk after showing him her powers... "Iggy, I'll explain everything a little later, okay? At nightfall."

Iggy's face crinkled up slightly, clearly wondering why it needed to be later. After a minute, he nodded. "Very well. For now...we should return to the post. Everyone must be wondering where we are." He slid his free hand behind the redhead's knees. "I'll carry you there."

"W-what? why?" She said in surprise, feeling the warmth return to her face.

"You need to rest. Moving will only make things worse."

Of course, Dawn didn't really object at all. Being close to Ignis like this was one of the best things in the world. She moved her hand further across his back, reaching the bottom of his neck. "Well...alright." She said quietly.

The brunette grunted as he lifted both himself and the woman in his arms, though it seemed he didn't have much difficulty carrying her. He was pretty damn strong for looking so skinny. He gave a small scoff as he felt her fingers play with the hair on his neck.

"You're enjoying this." He said.

Dawn sniffled, having stopped crying a little while ago. Her overwhelming sorrow had finally passed, and she felt back to normal once more. Well...mostly.

"What can I say?" She said in a playful tone. "It's not everyday that a handsome man carries you around."

"Handsome? My, you certainly are trying to flatter me." He laughed. "Fine, fine. I'll whip up something special for you tonight, how about that?"

The fiery woman didn't even realize how sleepy she already felt. Crying a lot, getting crushed by a large bird, and being in the arms of the man you cared deeply for takes a lot out of you.

"I'd like that." She responded after a moment.

They were about halfway to where they started when Dawn's eyelids began to feel heavy. The whole senario was so relaxing, despite the raging river of emotions she still had inside. She cuddled up to the warmth and touch, never wanting to leave. The amazing scent of the man carrying her overpowered the air.

Without even knowing it, her fiery red head slowly fell against Ignis's shoulder, her eyelids weighing about a thousand pounds. This was the kind of rest she needed for a while: Completely calm and at peace with the current moment, close to him.

The team's advisor only glanced at her for a few seconds, unfazed by the unfamiliar touch.

He grinned a little, his world getting brighter and brighter as he felt her there. Sure, his brothers brought him kinship, but Dawn brought something else...something special. A thing he's never experienced before. Nothing has really distracted him from his duty or made him so unfocused like this...

He thought back to what she had said not too long ago:

"I care about you, too."

He wondered what exactly she meant by that. The way he meant those words could be different from the way she meant them completely. Maybe this was all one big misunderstanding...again.

Little did he know, however, that she meant those words strongly.

She was in love with him.

We finally see some sparks fly. Ooooooohhhh! XD

Again, kind of sloppy, but still okay, I think. Can't wait to write what's next.