I know, I know, I haven't updated for over a month and I'm so sorry guys. A funny thing happened: I had the story for this chapter all planned out but when I started writing it, I realize that it wasn't relevant to the title, so I decided to start over from zero and my mind went blank. As it turned out, I had no idea what to write for Smile. Then, after struggling for a couple a weeks, I came up with a story, but I still had to deal with writers' block. You see, I knew exactly what I wanted to write but I couldn't find the words to express my ideas. The good news is that I did it! Finally!

I tried to compensate the late update with an overdose of cuteness. Hope it works. Hades may be a bit OOC though. Anyway, here's the new chapter.

SMILE

Hades and Maria di Angelo were slowly dancing to the sound of music in the living room of Maria's house. The Lord of the Underworld was wrapping Maria's shoulders with his right arm, while his free hand held hers, which rested on his chest.

"Nico is growing fast", he said quietly, "the last time I saw him he could barely stand; now he runs around the house and we have to chase after him."

"Yes", Maria agreed. "He has your smile", she told him, staring into his eyes.

Hades frowned a little. "For his sake, I hope not."

"Why not? Your smile is endearing, my love."

"Love clearly blinds you", Hades replied.

Maria laughed heartily and buried her head on his chest. "I mean it", she murmured.

"I think he's too young to determine whether his smile resembles mine or yours."

The Italian woman shook her head. "He already looks a lot like you, trust me. Especially when he smiles."

"Really? I haven't noticed."

Hades thought about that as they continued to dance together in a comfortable silence. Why hadn't he noticed Nico's smile before? His one-year-old son had always been a cheerful little kid, thus, it couldn't be attributed to the boy's lack of mirth. Every time he visited Maria and the children, Nico was always playing around happily. Then, the truth hit the god. The reason why he hadn't seen Nico smile became clear; it was because the child never smiled at him. It concerned him. Was his son scared of him? Perhaps he was too stern to come across as an affectionate father, and that created a barrier between him and his children.

"Am I intimidating?" Hades asked the woman he was holding in his arms.

Maria looked up at him, surprised by the question. "Intimidating? No, not in my opinion. You are the kindest person I have ever met."

"Then why does it seem as if the children are scared of me?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Nico never smiles around me. I fear that he may be afraid of me", Hades confessed.

"He's not afraid of you. You're his papa. He knows that", Maria said, caressing his cheek.

Hades pulled Maria closer to him, embracing her tightly, and allowed himself to simply enjoy the company of the woman he loved, momentarily forgetting his worries.

The next morning, Hades returned to Maria's house again. She went to wake the children up while he waited for them at the breakfast table. He'd decided to spend that whole day with them. Time with the di Angelo family was precious to him, and he wasn't going to waste a single minute of it.

Maria descended the staircase holding a sleepy Nico in her arms, with Bianca trailing behind her mother. They all joined the god of the Dead to have breakfast like a happy little family.

"What are your plans for this beautiful Saturday morning?" Hades asked Maria, after sipping a cup of coffee.

"Oh, just stay at home. The children usually prefer to stay at home on Saturdays to play with their toys."

"There's a beautiful sunshine today. It's perfect to take a walk outside."

Maria smile brightly at him. "I'd love to, but you know how Nico detests the sunlight."

"Right."

Once breakfast was over, they all moved to the living room, where Maria kept the children's toys in a small cupboard. She opened it and brought out a couple of dolls, which she gave to Bianca, and then handed several toy cars to Nico. Meanwhile, Hades sat on the sofa to read the newspaper as he usually did. Maria went to sit by the god's side, leaving the children to play on the carpeted floor.

Hades couldn't help but observe Nico. Yesterday's conversation with Maria still echoed in his head. And he hadn't missed how Nico had barely made eye contact with him during breakfast, which unsettled him.

Watching Nico play with his little toy cars reminded Hades of a present he gave his son for his first birthday, and that now remained forgotten in the backyard. It seemed odd to the god that such a thing could be considered a toy nowadays, but it was immensely popular between children, or so the salesman told him, and he figured his son would like it.

"What about that little steel wagon I bought him?" the Lord of the Underworld questioned Maria.

"The Radio Flyer Wagon?"

"Yes. Does he ever play with it?"

"Only to carry his toys to the park. He doesn't want to ride in it", Maria answered.

"Why?"

Maria shrugged. "He cries every time I attempt to put him on it."

"It was rather expensive", Hades muttered.

"Says the Lord of riches!" Maria exclaimed, slapping his arm playfully.

"I won't be for long if Charon keeps pestering me with pay raises", he complained.

After lunch, Maria and Bianca went upstairs to take a nap, leaving the god of the Dead alone with Nico. The boy was too much energetic, which wasn't strange considering that he was a demigod, and he only slept at night. To the god, this was an excellent opportunity to bond with his son.

Parenthood had always been difficult for him; despite his best efforts, most of his children ended up hating him. Also, he knew what kind of life awaited this child; one full of trials. Pain was inevitable for his sons and daughters. It would be a real tragedy if, in addition to that, Nico distrusted his own father. Therefore, in order to gain his son's trust, the Lord of the Underworld decided to do the only thing he could: to play with him.

He sat in a chair across the boy, who was still in the living room playing with his toy cars on the floor.

"May I play with you?" Hades asked him.

Nico eyed his father warily; he looked at his toys, then at Hades, then at his toys again. Finally, the boy handed one of his little cars to the god and continued playing, without paying any attention to his father, who was left alone holding a toy car. Hades felt really stupid.

The Lord of the Dead looked out the window; sunlight had receded somewhat, but the day was still warm and sunny. He thought that perhaps his son would enjoy playing outside. He knew that, as a child of the Underworld, Nico liked darkness better, but that didn't mean he should be deprived of the sun and nature. He himself, the King of the Underworld, missed the sun sometimes. On the other hand, he recalled how in ancient times, children used to play outside, in the vast lands, as if the mountains and the hills were their playground, and maybe, he was just an old god feeling nostalgia, but children playing in small rooms didn't seem natural to him.

"Let's go to the park", he suggested to the boy.

Nico hesitated for a bit, but at last, he headed to the backyard. Hades wondered why and was about to follow him when the boy came back dragging his Radio Flyer Wagon. He began to fill the wagon with his toy cars, which were scattered on the floor, just as Maria told him that Nico did every time they went to the park. A moment later, they left the house.

Hades tried to grab Nico's hand but the boy jerked his hand away from his father's grasp. Probably because his own hands were too cold, Hades realized, but that didn't make the god feel any better.

Once in the park, all Nico did was to walk around with his wagon full of toys. Apparently, pulling the wagon was Nico's favorite game. Hades was content with just stepping by his side. It meant that the child trusted him enough to not steer clear of him. During their walk, the Lord of the Underworld spotted a few monsters that had come attracted by the boy's scent, no doubt, but they all fled when he glared at them.

About one hour later, the sky clouded and a distant thunder rumbled. Hades looked up and saw that a storm was forming on the horizon. He cursed inwardly. He could swear his brother was doing this on purpose. They needed to go back to Maria's place.

The god of the Dead bent to pick Nico up but the child started to cry, so he lowered him again. He needed to get Nico away from this place. He didn't want to expose his son to Zeus' watchful eye for longer than necessary.

"Nico, let's go home" Hades said, offering his hand to the boy.

The boy shook his head and kept walking.

"Nico, we must go home. Mamma must be worried about you", the god insisted.

Nico ignored his father and hastened his steps.

Hades placed a hand on Nico's shoulders to stop him. "Look", he said, kneeling down in front of the boy, "we need to go home. It is late and it is going to rain", the god explained, doing his best to make the child understand.

However, like a little rebel, Nico sat down on the ground and began to empty his Radio Flyer Wagon to play with his toys. Frustrated, Hades lifted his son up and put him on the wagon. Nico cried again, harder this time, but the god disregarded the cries, pulling the handle and carrying Nico on the little wagon. It was the only way to get him away from the park as soon as possible, since he couldn't exactly shadow-travel in front of all these people.

After a few minutes, Nico stopped crying. Hades glanced back and to his surprise, the child was smiling. He beamed at his son and Nico started giggling. The boy was enjoying his ride. Warmth spread across Hades' chest. The experience of playing with a small child was new to him, but greatly rewarding. He almost wished he could be a normal, human father, so he could do this every afternoon.

Father and son arrived home really happy. Maria would probably yell at him for not telling her that he would take Nico out, but Hades didn't care. He was just so glad that he had the chance to bond with his son and he could tell that Nico felt the same.

At night, when Maria told the children it was time to go to bed, Nico ran up to Hades and hugged his leg. He gazed down at his son and the boy offered him a heartwarming smile, the first one directed exclusively at him.

Thanks everyone for giving me ideas for Silence. Your suggestions have been really helpful :)

Review please!

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