A wail broke the peace of the palace.
Twin groans sounded from the room just down the hall from the nursery.
"Please, Zeus, no..." Alexander moaned, "I just got to sleep..."
"Why are you complaining?" his bed companion asked quietly, "I haven't slept in weeks..."
It was true. The weeks leading up to Darko's birth had been nearly sleepless for Hephaestion, and now that the little prince was in the mortal world with them, he had demanded every moment of his mother's time. Not that Hephaestion complained. He saw the sleepless nights as a small price to pay to have every available moment with his child.
"Fine, I'll get him. Twenty drachmae that he wants you instead of me."
"How dare you place a bet on our son's comfort!" Hephaestion sat up so quickly that he felt momentarily faint.
Alexander realized his mistake right away, "You're right. I'm sorry."
Hephaestion snarled; a lioness ready to defend her cub, "That's no excuse! Go, before he screams himself hoarse."
Alexander knew when he was dismissed, and left the room promptly.
"Hey, Little Man, why can't you let Momma and Father get some sleep, hm?"
Darko whimpered in answer, and a smell told Alexander that he had dirtied his cloth.
"Oh I see. I know, a soiled diaper is not pleasant, is it? No. There. Lay still," the babe did as he was told, exhausted by the late night awakening.
In fact, Darko was fast asleep even before Alexander had pinned the cloth. Once he was sure his son was comfortable, Alexander bent down over the crib's edge and kissed his son's soft forehead.
"Sweet dreams, my precious gift," he whispered. He stood at the cribside for a moment just enjoying his son. Then he quietly left the nursery, leaving the door ajar.
"What was it?" Hephaestion half awoke once more as he got under the bedcovers.
"Dirtied cloth, do not fret, Love. Everything is right with the world," and for the first time in his life, Alexander believed it as he watched his beloved fall asleep in his arms before dropping off to sleep once more himself.