She sat, and the couch was as comfortable and familiar as she remembered. They'd spent so much time on this couch, together, waiting for news of his missing friends, his arms around her, one hand pressed warm and flat over the bump that had been Telos, kicking against his palm. Just like when she'd been pregnant, she had to readjust herself a bit first, though this time it was only a case of letting Telos' bag slip off her shoulder to sit on the floor, and settling Telos on her lap.
Melpomene looked up at Alan, but perhaps she did not look up as far as she had once? He seemed smaller, standing in front of her now, that he did in her memory. "I have so much that I need to tell you," she said, stroking Telos' back as he leaned into her, still a little sleepy from the feed she'd given him in the car, and perhaps the warmth. "Are you home alone?" She couldn't hide the wariness that crept into her voice as she asked it; she didn't know what she'd do if Will Scarlett stepped out of that bedroom door.