Bright flashes of light along with the echoes of heavy rain filled the small bed chamber. The room's sole occupant laid awake with wide eyes. Storms like this one rarely occurred, which Shu was glad of. Although, they could be a lot less scary! Another flash lit up the room followed by a loud crash of thunder. The boy pulled his blanket closer to his face. There wasn't much he was afraid of, but storms were his biggest fear.

Having enough of being alone, Shu jumped out of bed and ran to his parents' connected room. Usually, he went to his mother for situations like this. She always knew how to calm him no matter the circumstance. Except, Mana was currently at one of the temples so that left his father. Atem was on his back with the crook of his arm covering his eyes. Maybe the lightning was bothering him too? Shu was about to climb in next to him but stopped. He knew his father wouldn't mind him sleeping with him, the problem was that he slept like a rock. It was always so hard to wake him up! Knowing that his efforts would be futile, Shu tried to wake him anyway.

"Daddy? Daddy?" He asked poking his father's arm. Atem didn't even stir in the slightest.

Defeated, the boy turned back to his room. Why was he acting like this anyway? He was the Prince of Kemet! He shouldn't be scared of some silly storm! The next thunderclap quickly zapped the courage right out of him. It was so loud that it felt like the entire room shook!

"Daddy!" Shu cried making a running leap for his father.

Atem let out a loud "oof!" when Shu landed right in the middle of his stomach. He bolted up right to find his son in his arms.

"What's wrong, Shu?" He asked alarmed. Was there an intruder?! Scanning the dark room, he couldn't see or feel any danger. Another flash lit up the room making the Pharaoh take notice of his son's trembling. Ah, that had to be it.

"Are you afraid of the storm?" Atem asked pretty confident in the answer. He knew how much his son hated storms.

Shu nodded with tears in his eyes. Atem smiled while pulling him closer into a hug. Poor boy, there was no telling how long he had been awake. Thunder rumbled again giving the Pharaoh an idea.

"You don't have to be afraid, Little One. Do want you to know why?"

Shu wiped the tears from his eyes. "Why, Daddy?"

"Do you remember Slifer? The big red dragon I can summon?"

The boy thought for a moment. He definitely remembered the dragon even though he had only seen him once. To be honest, he was kind of mean looking. On top of that he was huge! He was even bigger than the palace!

Holding Shu, the Pharaoh stood up and walked over to the doorway that went outside. It wasn't raining as hard as it had been but it was still lightning like crazy. Atem took out his Summoning Cartouche and whispered something that the boy couldn't quite catch. Lightning flashed again revealing a form hidden within the clouds. Shu looked closer and clutched tighter to his father in amazement. It was Slifer! The dragon appeared by soaring through the clouds all the while leaving a trail of lightning behind him. He would vanish into one cloud bank then appear from another a great distance away. It seemed as if he was enjoying showing off for the Prince.

"You see him? Slifer loves storms. I believe it's his roar that causes the thunder."

As if on cue, the dragon let out a roar that sounded just like a boom of thunder. Shu watched him curiously as he disappeared into another cloud. His fear had now been replaced with interest.

"Remember, Slifer will always be here to protect you. He may look scary but he's a good dragon."

The Pharaoh said smiling as he watched his partner soar through the sky. The dragon roared announcing his departure before disappearing into the night taking the storm with him.

"Where did he go? Will he come back?" Shu asked excitedly.

Atem shook his head. "He went back to his home in the heavens."

Shu yawned loudly and wiped at his eyes. He didn't want to go to sleep yet! He wanted to hear more about Slifer! Atem chuckled at his son.

"Are you getting sleepy?"

The Prince shook his head but yawned again. He just couldn't stay awake! Atem walked back to the bed and laid down with him. The Pharaoh yawned also. Summoning his God of the King seemed to take more out of him than usual. Although, it was true that he hadn't summoned him in a long time. Oh well, maybe tomorrow he could tell Shu more about Slifer and summon him again. Looking down, he smiled. Shu was already fast asleep in his arms. Atem kissed the top of his son's head before drifting off himself.

"Sleep well, Little One."