A/N:

Hello my faithful readers,

I am back with another story that popped into my head today. As a sibling loss survivor, I know how far too often our journey is not talked about and how far too little we see it in writing or media. I also know how child loss is often minimized and pushed away from people's thoughts. So my thoughts strayed to how would our characters deal with this? I hope you will travel this journey with me as we approach these heavy subjects and get a conversation going.

HEMORRHAGE

Chapter 1 - Fall

RING

RING

RING

"Hello…"

"You need to come to the hospital, bring everybody, and prepare for the worst."

phone clatters*

dial tone*

3 Days Earlier:

The joyous sound of children playing rang through the air. It was a bright clear day out with not a cloud in sight. The warmth was a welcome reprieve after days of rain and cold. The air was crisp and clean with the smell of damp earth wafting around. Children of many colors filled the yard like little flowers, though they moved, unlike flowers, with laughter bubbling from their lips.

Eros enjoyed playing with his younger siblings. His many responsibilities had kept him busy the past week and the constant rain had left him depleted of energy at the end of the day. Today was beautiful though and he couldn't deny them when they asked him to go outside with them.

Aphrodite watched her children play from the window as she washed that morning's breakfast dishes. It was rare for her to be home of a morning but she was glad to be so she could enjoy the laughter that floated through the open window with the breeze. What was even rarer though were the hands that held her hips in their strong grip.

The calloused hands snaked around her waist and held her to a broad chest. Ares had arrived home to her and the children last night and they had all been ecstatic to see him. He was kept away with wars for long periods of time, missing these precious moments with their families.

"Watch me, Eros!" A voice called out into the air. Philia was running and Eros turned just in time to see her feet slide in the unexpected muddy spot causing her to tumble down a hill, her scream dying as she landed on her head.

Aphrodite felt her heart stutter to a stop in her chest as it all went down in a matter of seconds and she cried out her daughter's name. Ares was out the door quickly with Aphrodite hot on his heels. He didn't stop for anything as he charged towards his daughter.

The sight of her crumpled body tore at his psyche more than any dead soldiers on the battlefield. He would never forgive himself if she was injured or worse. He skidded to a halt and dropped to his knees beside her picking her up and cradling her to his chest.

"Daddy?" If his heart could explode it would have at that moment, she was alive.

"Are you injured anywhere ily?" He asked holding her to him, his hands shaking as his fear coursed through him; the only thing that could frighten him was his children. He could feel Aphrodite and Eros beside him and the other children standing apprehensively off in the distance, but he only had eyes for the girl he held in his arms.

"I'm fine, got my head though, and tore my dress, do you think it can be fixed daddy?" Her sweet voice was music to his ears as he let off a chuckle.

"Yes my darling, I'm sure it can be fixed. Let's go take a look at you in the house shall we?" She pouted but agreed and they set off toward the flower-draped door, her steady breaths calming his and stilling his shaking. The kitchen was modern with a long table set with several chairs.

They had all occupied those chairs just a couple of hours ago for breakfast. Now Ares set Philia carefully in one of the chairs so he could check over her injuries. There was a small cut, a growing bump on her head, and several bruises littering her body, but he found no other injuries.

Eros handed him a first aid kit without question and Ares couldn't be more thankful to his eldest son. He did a great job looking after all of his siblings on top of his duties as a god. He knew it was hard for the kids to be separated from both parents for long periods of time, but Eros was a wonderful brother and would one day make an amazing father.

He also knew his son favored a human by the name of Psyche, and while Ares would have preferred a goddess daughter-in-law, Psyche was who made Eros happy and he would do anything to make his children happy.

Which meant he was delighted to lie to his own father Zeus, to protect the girl who held his son's heart. Ares quickly set about bandaging Philia's head and took the bag of ice that Aphrodite handed him, laying it on the bump.

"Hold that on your head and you and your siblings go watch some tv and relax for a bit." Philia nodded and slid off the chair, Ares catching her as her balance seemed to be off. He righted her making sure she was standing ok before he released her. "Are you ok?" She looked up at him confusion swimming in her eyes.

"I must have misjudged the distance, I am a little dizzy." Ares, Aphrodite, and Eros shared a concerned look. Ares looked to his stepdaughter Agape who was standing by the living room door where the other children had disappeared to, with a change of clothes in hand for her sister.

She watched the scene with worry in her eyes. Agape may have been Poseidon's by blood, but she was still a daughter to him no matter what. He held out his hand to her and she made her way over placing her smaller hand in his larger one.

"Everything will be ok. Can you take your sister in with you to watch some tv and keep an eye on her for me?" Agape nodded her approval placing her hands on Philia's shoulders and leading her to the living room. He could hear the tv playing what sounded like a cartoon.

Ares sat heavily at the table his worry settling over him like a blanket of lead. Aphrodite took ahold of his left hand as Eros took his right. His worst fear, they knew, was losing a child. His mother had miscarried when he was younger and he had watched as she had sunk into a deep depression and lashed out in violent anger her heart heavy with grief.

His father hadn't shown in front of him beyond anger. It had stormed for weeks lightning cracking across the sky at all hours of the day. That loss had torn his parents apart and further ruined their marriage. They had never been truly happy, of course, but until that point that had at least tolerated each other with friendliness.

He couldn't think like that though. Philia only had a bump on the head and a few bruises. She was a tough kid and would be fine in a few days. He squeezed the hands holding his and blew out a shaky breath. Everything would be ok, they were all together and that was what mattered.

If only he had had the foresight to know how wrong he was...

A/N: What did you all think of this first chapter? Do you have: thoughts, opinions, feedback, criticisms, etc.? Leave them in the comments below and drop me a kudos if you enjoyed this chapter. This will be a multi-chapter so if you want to continue reading and not lose the story make sure you hit that follow button.

Until next time my faithful readers,

With love,

Faithy