They had a small private ceremony. It made Blackheart uneasy to be inside the church, but he didn't say a word. Dawn's dress was simple and she wore no veil. The baby was asleep in her carrier through most of the day. Under the circumstances, she asked that Treasure be baptized, too.

Blackheart watched as the baby was dipped under the water. She yawned and stretched in the pastor's arms. The pastor was a kind man whose hair had just started to turn gray. It had once been black. He had kind dark eyes and his presence put Blackheart more at ease.

He didn't press, didn't ask Dawn why her dark eyes were troubled though she was happy as well. Dawn gently dried Treasure off and redressed her. For the baptism, the infant was put in a simple white gown. Now, she wore a pink party dress with a flowered headband. She seemed unusually placid the entire time.

A very tangible voice spoke inside Blackheart's head: listen to your heart.

Moments later, he emerged from the water himself. Dawn watched, misty-eyed. A shape had appeared in the shadows of an unlit hallway of the church. The presence there was kind, she knew.

And her smile warmed.

They didn't say a word to each other on the way home, but his hand clasped in hers told her that he was risking his neck for her…his soul quite literally.

Then, Treasure began to cry.

Dawn lifted the baby out of her carrier.

"What is it?" she murmured, "What's the matter, baby?"

Blackheart stared at his daughter. Though her DNA didn't include his, he thought of her as his.

"That was some stunt you pulled," a dark voice commented, "getting married and baptized in the same day."

Dawn was silent. Her face paled and she clutched Treasure close to her chest.

"I expected you to learn a lesson or two," Mephisto remarked, "but I never expected you to go native. Maybe putting that soul in you worked a little too well."

Dawn staggered backward away from the very presence of Hell. Blackheart stood between them. Squishie barked noisily and growled.

"Leave them alone. They're innocent," Blackheart said firmly.

"Yes. So they are…you've done a good job playing house. Now it's time to come home."

The three of them vanished in a wisp of smoke. The confused dog sat down on the sidewalk. Pointing her muzzle skyward, she howled up to the clear blue field above her.

…..

They reappeared in what Dawn could only guess was Hell. Some things did not surprise her, such as the flames or pits of lava. Some things did surprise her such as the creatures walking around and the areas of snow and cold. What frightened her the most was the fact that her baby was in this place.

She held onto a wailing Treasure more tightly, unwilling to let her guard down for even a moment. Blackheart stared at his father with a fury that was unmatched.

"It's just like I expected," Mephisto remarked, "the prodigal son doesn't want to come home. Let's just take that burden off, then."

"No!" Dawn gasped as Mephisto's hand plunged into Blackheart's chest. A swirling ball of colors appeared in Mephisto's hand. Blackheart stared blankly at it before he passed out.

"And now, my dear, we have work to do."

The swirling ball of color was encased in an ancient-looking ornate glass bottle and shoved into the pouch on Mephisto's belt.

"Cooperate with me and I'll give him back his soul. If you don't cooperate with me, I'll destroy it. Really tick me off and you lose your baby as well. Understand?"

Dawn swallowed hard. Despite the heat of this place, she was sweating coldly.

"Well?" he pressed.

Dawn managed a nod. She knelt next to the unconscious Blackheart and kissed his cheek.

"He'll be fine," Mephisto said dismissively, "just a little different."

He snapped his fingers. Two armored guards appeared.

"Take him to his room and lock the door."

They obeyed quickly.

He snapped his fingers a second time. A woman appeared in a shower of red sparks. Though her upper body was distinctly human, the lower half was that of a bird. Two scarlet red wings fluttered behind her back. She stared blankly at Dawn with inhumanly bright blue eyes. Her long black hair floated around her as if some unfelt wind billowed through it.

"Take extra good care of that baby," Mephisto demanded, "if anything happens to the kid…well, you already know."

"Yes, Master."

With an effortlessness that alarmed Dawn, she wrestled the baby out of Dawn's arms. Dawn fought, but an unseen force threw her backwards. She cried out in protest as her squalling infant howled in equal displeasure.

"You don't need the distractions of motherhood," Mephisto said coolly, "this will all be over with soon, anyway. Come with me."

Dusting the ashes off of her once beautiful dress, Dawn scowled and stalked after him.

"What do you want me for? I'm just human. Treasure is just human," she demanded.

"You're mistaken. Did your parents not tell you anything?"

"What do you mean?" Dawn was confused.

"You're a Siren, girl. Why do you think everyone was so enchanted with your voice?"

"I'm a WHAT?"

"You're a Siren. You know, Greek Mythology. Beautiful women with voices that could hypnotize."

Dawn laughed incredulously.

"That's hilarious. But really…"

"You've never shifted forms, have you?"

He paused and placed one hand over her head. Dawn shrank back from his touch, but his hand landed on her forehead anyway. She yelped as a jolt rippled through her body. The back of her dress tore as two golden wings flowed out of her back. Her shoes slipped off of her feet when they became talons. She shuddered as her skin went from being soft and pink to hard, gold, and metallic like metal.

"Now, sing," Mephisto demanded.

Dawn hummed a note. The voice that came out of her mouth was…different. It had an almost mystical quality to it and it seemed to fill the air around them. Within seconds, they were surrounded by all sorts of scary, demonic-looking creatures.

"See?" he asked triumphantly. Dawn shuddered and shrank away from them.

"They'll do whatever we say as long as they have Siren song to follow. And you will give them the commands that I tell you to give them."

Dawn stared at him, open-mouthed.

"Ever hear of poltergeists? Malicious haunting? We're going to get every last one of them and build an army. From there…from there, well, we've got plenty of options."

…..

It wasn't easy to escape yet again, but he had no soul, therefore he had no qualms about jumping the guards. He'd pretended that he was still unconscious when they came in. Appearing in a burst of flames back on the earth's surface, he looked around. It was nighttime in the city.

Never had he felt so alone.

He felt confused and disoriented. He felt blank on the inside. He was trying desperately to hold onto his memories, for the memories were all he had left. The feelings were no longer there.

Blackheart recognized a familiar figure nearby. His strength seemed to wane considerably with each step, but he had to get help. He fell in a heap at the man's feet and stared into his former enemy's eyes.

"Help…please…he got…her…"