Michiru woke up to the sound of a baby crying. She forced herself up from the bed and walked out of the bedroom, still half asleep. Once she reached the baby's room, she lit the small lamp on top of the drawer and walked to the crib.
"Shh, it's all right. Mama's here," she whispered as she lifted the baby from her crib. She glanced at the clock on the wall. She had gotten only a few hours of sleep since she had last gotten up.
"Let's get you something to eat," Michiru said. The baby was still crying, though much more quietly than before.
"Mama?"
A small voice from the door made Michiru turn around. Hotaru was standing by the door, rubbing her eyes.
"Go back to bed, sweetie," Michiru said quietly.
"Why are you here?" Hotaru asked. She walked over to her mother and leaned her head against Michiru's leg.
"Asami's just hungry. You should really go to bed," Michiru sighed. Hotaru shook her head.
"I can't. There are monsters under my bed," the girl explained. Michiru felt the baby getting restless in her arms. Just then, Haruka appeared to the door.
"What's going on here?" she asked with a yawn.
"I was just going to feed Asami. Could you take Hotaru back to bed?" Michiru asked. Hotaru walked over to Haruka and took her hand.
"The monsters are back, papa," she explained. Haruka nodded and glanced at Michiru.
"I'll get rid of them. Let's go," she said and let Hotaru lead her to the bedroom at the other end of the hallway. The small girl climbed on her bed and Haruka tucked her in.
"The monsters are under my bed," Hotaru explained. Haruka nodded and took a blue spray bottle from the nightstand. The bottle had MONSTER REPELLENT written on it in big, bulky letters, though it only contained regular water.
"Let's see… Here?" Haruka asked and sprayed some water under the bed.
"Yeah. And by my feet too," Hotaru said and pointed at the foot of the bed. Haruka sprayed again and set the bottle back down.
"There you go. Goodnight, princess," Haruka said and placed a quick kiss on Hotaru's forehead. She waited until the girl had closed her eyes before sneaking out of the room quietly. She made her way back to Asami's room, where Michiru had finished feeding the baby.
"Sleep well," Haruka heard Michiru whispering before kissing the baby's cheek. Michiru put the baby gently back down into the crib. She turned around and nearly jumped as she saw Haruka.
"You're back," she said with a smile.
"Yeah. The monsters were really tough tonight," Haruka whispered and switched off the light as Michiru walked over to her. They made their way to their bedroom. Once they settled down into the comfortable sheets, it didn't take long before they were both back asleep. They needed all the sleep they could get, since in a few hours their children would be needing them again.