In the study, Hades worked at his desk while Than slept on the couch. His eyelids drooped a little and occasionally the words changed into other words and sometimes he looked down and realized instead of a proper sentence, he’d written something about cows, but Hades stayed where he was. It didn’t need to get done that night, but that night, Hades needed to do it. Spring had just started, and if Hades went to bed, he’d have to get ready. Then he'd have to walk up the stairs. Then he'd have to walk into his empty room. And he wouldn't have to say a single thing. And he could take up the entire bed if he wanted to. And the covers would stay on his legs the entire time. It would be easy to sleep because the room would be completely silent except for the sound of his own breathing. Hades hated going to bed. He'd much rather work.
His head had started to nod without agreeing to anything, when he heard the yelling. In the back of his mind, Hades realized he didn’t remember the last fifteen minutes, but this was swept away in a fraction of a second by a flood of panic. That voice was the voice Hades had tucked in. Hades leapt up and raced past Than and up the stairs to Melinoe’s room.
She tossed and turned and shouted in her sleep. Hades didn’t know what to do. Children needed sleep. They needed a certain amount of hours every single night. She was so little, and so she needed more. She was supposed to sleep. She wasn’t supposed to have nightmares. She wasn’t supposed to be distressed. Hades tried so hard to make sure there wasn't anything that would make her distressed.
He could wake her up, but if he did, she wouldn’t be sleeping. He could leave her so that she at least got the sleep, but then she’d still be having nightmares. She was an Underworld princess. Ever since she’d learned to walk, she’d shadowed him like a ghost. She wasn’t scared of the shades. She wasn’t scared of death. She wasn’t scared of monsters or Hades’ less savory subjects. This dream was scaring her. Hades stomach sank. He couldn’t leave her anyway. She needed sleep, but he couldn’t leave her. Maybe a better father could weigh the pros and cons, and walk away if the sleep hours were more important, but Hades wasn’t there yet. He’d been trapped in dark he didn’t want for too long once.
He stood in the doorway trying to come up with a workable strategy, when his indecision resulted in the decision being made. She'd woken up on her own. Hades navigated around the toys on the floor and sat down by her on the bed. He reached over and gently shook her knee. “Mel?” he asked softly. Hades looked for a response.