Psyche covered his head with his pillow in an effort to block out his parents' argument. Daddy was doing most of the yelling, while Mommy seemed to be the one causing the whole thing to drag out. This type of thing seemed to happen a lot lately, and it upset Psyche greatly.

He loved his parents, but absolutely hated their fights. He missed the times when Mommy and Daddy would show how much they loved each other. Be it simple embracing or the look in their eyes that Psyche noticed whenever they looked at each other. Of course, there had been little quarrels every-now-and-then, but they were never too big. But now...

Maybe he could do something. Maybe he could walk right out there and tell his parents to stop fighting and be happy again. He could - no...should do something to bring back the good times. Feeling newly confident, Psyche sat up in his bed and got out of it as quietly as possible. Hibiya was sleeping across the room, and didn't like to be awoken early. He was able to open the door and slip into the hallway easily, and minded his elder brothers' room as he silently walked towards his parents' bedroom.

The door was open, and he peeked around the corner to look inside. Daddy was standing while Mommy sat on the bed with his legs crossed. Mommy didn't usually lose his cool, but Psyche could see that he was irritated as plain as day. That alone disturbed the seven-year-old.

He bit his lip as he gradually began edging to where he could be seen. The claws of anxiety scraped at his belly, and something told him to run as fast as possible back to his bed. But his parents where depending on him now, whether they knew it or not.

The instant that his stepped into full view, Mommy's eyes flashed and he told Daddy to 'be quiet', calling him a protozoan (whatever that was). Daddy turned and seemed almost...ashamed? Was that even the appropriate word for the look in his father's eyes?

"Psyche, you're supposed to be asleep right now," Mommy said calmly, putting his hands on his hips.

"I know, Mommy. But you guys were fighting, and..." the boy trailed off, losing the confidence he had had only minutes ago.

Daddy sighed, and came to crouch before Psyche, "We weren't fighting, Psyche. Mommy and Daddy were just having a conversation that got too loud, that's all."

"Oh, don't lie to him, Shizu-chan. He already knows," Mommy scolded, but not in the way that he did to Psyche and his brothers.

"You shouldn't fight, it's bad," Psyche said, "You should cuddle and love each other and be happy. Like in the movies and stuff."

"Psyche, life isn't a movie. Lots of parents argue; millions, all over the world," Mommy said using his hands to emphasize.

Daddy suddenly looked upset again, and stood up to face Mommy, "So you're gonna make him think that fighting is normal?!"

"Better than being ignorant to the world, ne?"

"That's the kind of crap that messes kids up! No normal parent tells their child things like that!"

"Ah, so you're implying that you're normal then? As of when I last checked, not many people have your beastly strength."

"Why does it always come back to that with you?!"

Psyche rushed to get between his parents, and held his arms out to stop them, "Stop it! You're doing it again, you're fighting!"

Tears were starting to fill up his vision, and within seconds he was crying. Psyche didn't protest when his "mother" picked him up and held him. If the circumstances were different, Psyche would have been estatic, since Mommy didn't do such as often as he once did. But he just buried his face into the thin fabric of Mommy's shirt and cried. Nothing was making sense to him anymore, and he just wanted his family to be happy again. Why was that so hard to get?

His sobs blocked out his parents' conversation, at least they were quieter now. But they seemed more somber, in a way. As of now, Psyche couldn't care less as to what they were talking about. He was too wrapped up in his own misery to care.

Psyche wasn't sure of how long he cried, or how long Mommy held him to his chest, but he found himself drifting into sleep. Sounds became muffled, but he was consciously aware of other voices joining. Likely one of his siblings, or possibly all of them. He couldn't be bothered to open his eyes as his "mother" began walking, and he felt himself being set into his bed a few moments later. A hand wiped away the drying tears on his chilled face, and he could swear he heard Tsugaru's whispering. Despite all this, Psyche's mind just replayed the last minutes over and over. It wouldn't be a surprise if he had a nightmare or two.

The last bits of consciousness were draining from him when he heard Mommy utter a few words, though he didn't catch it all.

"-can't keep doing this."

Whatever that meant, Psyche was sure to find out soon enough.