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Melinoë sighed tiredly and threw her blanket next to the pillows lying on the soft carpet. Phrinos only croaked in annoyance at the appearance of the piece of fabric, but didn't run off to his bed in the corner of the room. After surveying everything, the girl nodded contentedly and slowly lay down on her improvised sleeping spot.
This was one of the days she was staying overnight in her father's house. She had spoken with the local residents, helped her mother in the garden, and even tried to help her father with paperwork, but unfortunately, she wasn't very good at it. Her poor handwriting and simple lack of knowledge about how to properly prepare the documents needed for Hades and her brother hindered her too much. But otherwise, she was actively helping everyone.
By the end of the day, the young witch was dead tired, so she went to her room. And, of course, out of her strange habit, she decided to sleep on the floor rather than on the bed. Few knew about this: Chronos — because Melinoë had asked his advice about her strange feelings, and Zagreus — for even though his sister hadn't told him anything, he had understood one day when he saw the pillows and blanket on the floor. After that, surprisingly, the carpet had become very soft, like a cloud. It still wasn't comparable to the huge bed in her room, but it was something.
Hades's daughter had already closed her eyes and hugged Phrinos, preparing to fall asleep, when suddenly someone knocked on the door. She frowned in annoyance, slowly opening her eyes, and looked at the door. If the girl remembered correctly, she had definitely told her brother that he shouldn't knock on her door while she was sleeping. She didn't want to look disheveled in front of him again, and moreover, she wanted to get a good night's rest before starting a new work day. Did he want to ask again for help with establishing a connection with Chronos?
The young witch sighed heavily and sat up slowly, already preparing to go open the door for Zagreus, when she suddenly heard the knocker's voice.
"Melinoë… May I come in?"
A quiet female voice sounded, and Melinoë quickly jumped to her feet, startling her pet. It was Persephone! She was standing right outside the door to her daughter's room! The knock came again.
"Melinoë… Are you in there?"
"Yes… Yes, sorry, I'm here! I'll open it now!"
The girl replied, quickly throwing the pillows and blanket onto the bed. Carefully picking up the frog, she moved it to its bed, which seemed to confuse her pet. Apparently, he didn't understand why his mistress sometimes insisted on being hugged while sleeping and then, after much persuasion, would put him in his bed.
Approaching the door, Melinoë nervously adjusted her hair so it wouldn't be too curly and smoothed her white sleeping chiton. Clearing her throat, she slowly opened the door, behind which, as expected, stood Persephone.
Seeing her daughter, the woman smiled warmly, folding her hands on her stomach.
"Melinoë, I'm sorry to disturb you. I didn't think you'd already fallen asleep."
"Oh… It's fine… M-mother. I wasn't sleeping, honestly, so you didn't wake me up."
Replied Hades's daughter, smiling awkwardly. The woman nodded, and her gaze became slightly concerned.
"Zagreus told me you haven't been sleeping well lately. I came to check on that and, if possible, to help you."
"I…"
The young witch hesitated slightly. She slowly shifted her gaze from her room to her mother, who was patiently waiting for an answer. After a few minutes, the girl nodded uncertainly, moving away from the door.
"Yes… I would be glad if you helped me with this."
She muttered. Her mother's smile widened, and she slowly entered her daughter's room, first instinctively fixing her hair. Melinoë grew embarrassed by this gesture and tried to examine her hairstyle with her eyes. Had she not combed it well with her hands?
"Don't worry, your father sometimes suffers from insomnia too, even despite Hypnos's powers, so I know how to help you."
Said Persephone, approaching the cabinet filled with various scrolls and examining it with interest. The girl embarrassedly lay down on the bed, covering herself with the blanket.
"Does that happen to him often?"
"Only during times of great stress."
Replied her mother, approaching the edge of her daughter's bed and slowly sitting down on it. The young witch sighed sadly, resting her head on the pillow.
"So, often now."
She muttered. The woman just smiled sadly at this, carefully adjusting Melinoë's blanket.
"Don't worry. We'll handle this small problem ourselves. For now, you should close your eyes."
Replied Persephone, slowly stroking her daughter's blanket. They were silent for a while, as the girl clenched and unclenched the edge of the fabric. All the while, her mother stared strangely directly at the blanket.
"This is so unusual. I remember you being so tiny. You were small even in my arms, and now, it's as if not even a week has passed…"
Spring muttered quietly, continuing to stroke the girl's blanket. She quickly looked away, exhaling slightly nervously. Her mother, absorbed in her thoughts, seemed not to notice.
"Oh, and how calm you were as an infant. You so rarely cried. I was even afraid that the Moirai, even despite Nyx's pleas, had fulfilled their curse in some other way."
"I'm sorry…"
Suddenly, the young witch replied equally quietly, still looking somewhere to the side. The woman blinked in surprise, looking at her daughter in confusion.
"What?"
"Please, I'm sorry about the portrait…"
Said Melinoë, looking guiltily at her mother.
"I'm sorry that I… That I insisted on Nyx and Hecate being in the portrait. Zagreus told me why they weren't in the last family portrait, and I… Still insisted on their presence… That was too selfish of me."
She spoke, then fell silent. Persephone was silent for a while, processing everything that had been said, then smiled somewhat tiredly, placing her hand on top of her daughter's hand.
"Melinoë. My dear, I don't mind that you and your brother invited people dear to you. Nyx and Hecate have done a lot for you, and for me. On the contrary, it was improper that Nyx, and later Hecate, weren't in the family portraits."
After this, she sighed heavily, placing one hand on her cheek.
"I know that everyone in this place treats me… Too gently. After all, despite my love for your father, our meeting didn't happen in the most… Proper way. Besides, this place was far from the home I was used to."
The woman carefully chose her words, looking somewhere to the side.
"And I know that everyone in this place tried to make my stay here comfortable and pleasant."
Spring slowly shook her head, then looked at her interlocutor again with a sad expression.
"Yes, when your brother… Fell under the power of the Moirai, I was devastated. It was my fault that I decided to run away from the problems, abandoning everyone here."
"No, it's—!"
Melinoë tried to object, but Persephone lightly squeezed her hand, hinting. The girl fell silent again, listening attentively.
"I had already experienced the death of loved ones, and I knew the consequences of my actions, but I still decided to run away from the problems, abandoning everyone. Some of the blame still lies on my shoulders. And it is very generous of everyone to make concessions so that I could accept the situation with your brother and even with you, but…"
She tilted her head to the side, looking into her daughter's eyes.
"Melinoë, I am a goddess. I have already lived many years and have seen many terrible things. I don't need special treatment just because I couldn't be there for my children. As a mother, what matters most to me is your well-being and health. And who exactly was with you throughout your life — that no longer matters."
Here the woman slowly shifted her gaze to the young witch's ghostly hand and pursed her lips. Melinoë also looked at her hand, then quickly hid it under the blanket and placed her healthy hand on her mother's hand, smiling encouragingly.
"It's okay. The hand still works, and everything works perfectly!"
"Melinoë… Your mentor told me what happened to your hand."
The girl grew embarrassed, looking away. Spring slowly and carefully pulled out her daughter's hand, examining it with a sad gaze.
"Oh, dear… I… Your father and I will figure something out. Your mentor said it's impossible, but maybe… There's a chance."
"Mother, I…"
The young witch wanted to say something, but couldn't help yawning slowly. Noticing this, Persephone smiled warmly.
"Apparently, I managed to tire you out with my dialogue. I think you'll fall asleep very quickly now. Besides, Hades asked Hypnos to strengthen his power a bit so it works better in this house. Now I…"
She said, already preparing to get up from the bed and let go of Melinoë's hand, when she unexpectedly held on tighter and, after a moment's hesitation, embarrassedly placed her hand on her own head.
"No, could you… Stay? I… I fall asleep very easily when someone is nearby."
She said quietly, blushing slightly and moving over a bit to make space for her interlocutor. The woman blinked in surprise.
"Really?"
"Yes. My mentor very often slept near me so I wouldn't run away, so… Now I fall asleep more easily when someone is nearby."
Spring just smiled again at this and, carefully lying down in the offered space, hugged her daughter.
"Alright, if it makes it easier for you."
She said, slowly stroking the girl's head. She, closing her eyes, snuggled up to her mother, ignoring the overly soft bed.
"They've been gone too long."
Said Hades, quickening his pace to reach the room faster. Zagreus just rolled his eyes at this, continuing to run after him.
"She said she'd talk to Melinoë, but she's still not back."
"Maybe the conversation ran long? She is staying overnight, there's no rush."
The young man waved dismissively, continuing to run after his father. He only frowned more deeply.
"She's been gone for several hours. And if she wanted to talk with your sister for a long time, she probably would have let me know."
"Yes, because it's so logical to inform you about every step and hypothetical situation."
Zagreus rolled his eyes, chuckling. Hades just clicked his tongue at this.
"Hecate said that at this time, Melinoë is usually already awake. So why isn't she in the main hall with Persephone?"
"Hecate said she USUALLY wakes up at this time. Not always, but most of the time. And besides, at the Crossroads, as my sister said, there are strict rules and no special treatment for gods or unusual beings. Maybe she woke up that way because of another rule she had to follow?"
Hades's son countered, crossing his arms over his chest. The God of the Underworld stopped in front of his daughter's room, frowning.
"Still, it's worth checking on them."
"Do you really distrust our new housemate that much, even despite Melinoë's spell?"
The young man raised one eyebrow, causing the man to flinch. He was silent for a while, then, sighing, quietly knocked on the door. They stood for several minutes, waiting for an answer, but none came.
"Looks like they've already gone to the main hall or the garden. Or maybe they're sleeping or…"
Zagreus sighed, but his father, already taking hold of the doorknob, slowly and quietly opened it. The son looked at him disapprovingly, but still peered into his sister's room.
On the girl's bed lay she and Persephone. Melinoë had her face pressed to her mother's neck and was snoring softly. Her hair was slightly disheveled from sleep, but her mother was slowly and carefully running her fingers through it, smiling warmly. She was hugging her daughter, pulling her closer.
Noticing her husband and son, Spring put her finger to her lips, shushing them softly. Understanding the signal, Zagreus and Hades quickly left the room, closing the door quietly. The young man chuckled softly, seeing his father's embarrassment.
"As you can see, they're both safe and not trapped. Unless you consider sleep a trap."
The man looked at his son disapprovingly and, muttering something quietly, walked back toward the main hall. Zagreus, smiling contentedly, followed him.
"So, today one deity learned that, as it turns out, not everyone has to report everything to him. And that sometimes you have to trust former enemies. That's probably one of the most valuable lessons you've learned in your entire life."
Said the young man, putting his hands behind his head. Hades, squinting, looked at his son, crossing his arms over his chest.
"You know, it's good that you reminded me about my father. Recently he told me that you deliberately broke one of the halls, hoping he would restore it with his power."
"Oh, oops…"