Mom! Dad!

I can hear Aeryn groan and I'm tempted to do the same thing. We both know what this is about- we've been through it several times already tonight. Do you want to go this time, or should I? I ask her, rubbing at my eyes.

Maybe if we both go, she'll get the idea, Aeryn says. That's the cue for both of us to groggily drag ourselves out of bed.

When we get to Rose's room, she's sitting up in bed, hugging her covers. What is it? I ask her.

I heard something growling at me, Rose says.

I can see Aeryn roll her eyes just before she leaves the room. Wow. She must have really had it up to there. There's no monster under your bed, I say, going over to sit next to my daughter.

Watch your feet, she warns, carefully leaning forward to make sure nothing reaches out to bite my toes.

No problem, I say, too tired to actually move my feet. If the is hungry, I'm too tired right now to notice it snacking on my toes.

She knows there's no monster. As antisocial as Rose is with the other children in the colony, she's known for scaring them all with stories of monsters and bad guys. Basically all the things she's been faking being scared of lately. Let me tell you, this girl is fearless when it comes to the bad guys. Problem is, I'm not sure whether she's acting out because of everything she's seen in her life so far and it's some deep-rooted psychological problem that's going to rear its ugly head in twenty years, or if she just doesn't want to go to bed.

It's clear what Aeryn's thinking when she walks back into the room a second later, carrying a pulse rifle. If there's a monster under the bed, it won't be there for long, she says. Aeryn drops to the floor, looking under the bed, and emerges after a moment. Scared it away. Go to sleep.

I'm trying to hide my smile, but Rose just looks annoyed. You heard your mother, I say. Now it's time both of us have decided that this little episode is over. For now. Aeryn and I both kiss her good night for the third time. Maybe the fourth time by now.

I close the door slightly, turning off the light, and we walk back to our room together. She never slept through the night as a baby, why should she do it now? I grumble, crawling back into bed.

And you want another one? Aeryn counters. We can't sleep through the night now.

I know, I know. Fine, she's an only child. I'm good with that.

Aeryn lays next to me and I wrap my arms around her, pulling her close. We should be able to get a good arn's sleep before the monster shows up again, I say.

Enough talking, she says, yawning.

No problem.

The next thing I hear is the voice of my six-year-old. What a shock. I open my eyes, and she's standing next to the bed, shaking my shoulder to wake me up. I'm up, I'm up. What's wrong now? I mumble, blinking.

I had a bad dream, Rose says.

You mean you actually went to sleep? Aeryn asks with a groan.

Can I sleep with you guys? she asks, ignoring her. (If she even heard her.)

She knows neither one of us will tell her no, so I let her crawl over me to get under the covers with us. Do you promise to go to sleep? Aeryn asks her. She sounds as exhausted as I feel.

Uh huh, says Rose, pulling more of the blankets onto herself.

All right, now do so. Good night.

Night, Mom. Night, Dad.

Night, sweetie, I tell her, and close my eyes. I hope this means I'm actually going to stay asleep this time.

No such luck. Duh. This time it's because of a hand landing across my face. I want to groan, but that's not going to happen. If I make any noise, I know it'll wake Rose up, and I am not playing this game again.

Gently, and very slowly, I lift Rose's arm from my face, placing it at her side. I sit up just enough to make sure that Aeryn's still asleep. She is. Good. She needs it.

I stay there for a moment, looking at my wife and daughter. The house is almost never quiet. Rose always has to be doing something, and she usually has to be telling us all about it at the same time. And we can't tell her we'll talk about it later- we have to watch her every second. Otherwise she wanders off on her own and gets in trouble, and I get to calm Aeryn down.

And no, Aeryn wasn't quite this protective before we got here. On Moya, Zhaan was there in case something happened, and she knew enough about Rose's biology to know what to do for her. On the colony, we're always on the lookout for Peacekeepers, just in case they manage to track us down. And when Rose gets sick, we have to be very careful that the doctor doesn't stumble across the fact that she's not a hundred percent Sebacean. I can see why Aeryn worries and I can't blame her. I worry, too. I just let her do most of it.

I can see Rose move her little hand across her face,and she looks at me, not expecting to see me awake. I say quietly.

Rose says, taking on the same volume I'm using. I had another bad dream.

Do you want to talk about it? I ask her.

Uh uh. I'd rather go outside. Can I go outside?

I glance out the window, even though I know what time it is. It's the middle of the night, Rosie. You're not going outside.

she asks. This isn't the first time she's asked to go out when it's still dark out. According to her, there are less people to deal with then. (Yes, I'm aware she's got issues.) Then she pulls out the big guns- her Little Lost Puppy Dog Face.

I tell her. I'm not caving to the little lost puppy dog face. Aeryn will be so proud.

But I don't wanna go back to sleep, Rose whines, a little louder.

Sh, don't wake up your mom, I say, glancing over at Aeryn. Did I say you had to go to sleep yet?

So I can stay up? She likes this idea.

As long as you stay up right here.

Even in the dim light from the window, I can see her pouting a little. You're no fun.

I have to smile, and I hope she doesn't see that. The last thing I want her thinking is that I encourage this. So are you going to tell me about this dream? I ask.

I already told you. Nope, she says, shaking her head.

I know she's not going to sleep again till she's not thinking about the dreams anymore. We've been through this before, too. (Several times, actually. I'm blaming this on her too-vivid imagination. I would never stifle that imagination, but it'd be nice to get some sleep for once.) Was I in it? I ask.



What about your mom?

Uh uh.

You're going to make me ask you about every single person we know, huh? I say with a smile.

I know she's smiling. She loves to tease, can you tell?

I could always tickle it out of you, I threaten, moving like I'm going to tickle her.

Rose doesn't budge. And then you'll wake up Mom and I won't be in trouble, you will, she counters. The girl is good- she knows how cause and effect works. Why do you want me to tell you?

Because it's better to talk about things than keep all the bad or scary feelings to yourself, I say. Okay, I know I'm sounding like my dad now. I don't know if they have shrinks in the Uncharted Territories, but if you ever ask me to pay your therapist bill, I'm gonna say I told you so.

I don't remember the dream anymore, she says.

Really? Or are you just trying to get me to shut up?

No. I don't remember. You talk too much, Rose tells me. You made me forget.

I love this kid.

I know, I know, go to sleep, Rose says, rolling over.

Good girl.

It takes a minute, but I can tell when Rose goes back to sleep. Okay, good. And with that done, I can at least sleep for a couple arns before daylight. I close my eyes, and wouldn't you know it, half an hour later, I'm still awake. I'm tired, and my eyes like being closed, but I'm no closer to getting any sleep than I was when the monster first showed up. Frell. And she does this all the time, too.

She asleep? Aeryn mumbles from across the bed.

I tell her.

Why aren't you asleep? she asks, and I see her roll over to face me, very slowly, like any sudden movement will put us right back at square one with Rose.

Same reason you aren't, I tell her. Think she'll ever end up sleeping through the night?

Aeryn says. It sounds like she's come to a concrete decision about this. I wish I could see her face so I could tell whether she's joking. Never. It's a habit now. She'll be an insomniac for the rest of her life.

Wonderful. Great thought to put in my head. Thank you so much, Aeryn. "Okay," I say. Sighing, I get out of bed and get ready to start the day way too early. Again. "Your turn to deal with her. I'm making breakfast."

"You do that," Aeryn says, not budging from her current position. She's going back to sleep. I know she is.

Lucky her.