CLOSE ENOUGH | ETHAN

A long day had lead to a longer night, which is how Melanie ended up in one of the sitting rooms on the second floor. The book she had been reading was discarded on the floor beside her and had been for quite some time. For a moment, she had considered texting or calling someone to come hang out, but who would even be awake this early in the morning? It was almost 3 a.m.. The insomnia attack that kept her from sleeping was still running rampant, letting her know that no rest would find her here tonight.

Sighing, she sat back up on the couch she had been occupying and reached for the book again. It was boring, something that would have put a normal person to sleep. It just wasn't helping her right now. Maybe something to drink or walking around... she thought to herself, trying to find something to do to make the hours go by faster. Before she could a noise in the hallway alerted her to another presence. Who would be up in the House of Hades at this time of night?


@ethan

Sleep was a luxury Ethan couldn't afford. He was too busy researching something or wooing some innocent girl. Tonight, however, he had almost been able to fall asleep when he had a feeling he shouldn't just yet. He left his room, walking around the House of Hades until he came upon Mel on the second floor. Needless to say she looked distressed, and it seemed she was reading one of his books on scientific space theory. One of the most boring books ever, people said.

He walked over to her and smiled gently, "Hey Mel... you okay, sis?" he asked, moving to sit on the floor beside her chair.


@accaila

Ethan's presence in the room made her relax slightly, even though she wasn't calm enough to go to sleep. "I almost want to tell you it's classified." She started, slipping in to the floor beside her older brother. Ethan had been the one she took to the quickest after moving to the island. A big brother was just what the doctor ordered after loosing Damien, though she'd never admit that. "At this point though, I'm not sure if that even matters."

How do you tell your brother all the things that had happened recently? About Braxton and Octavia and everything in between? Her life was a mess and her mind just wouldn't let her sleep.

Ethan laughed at her little 'Intelligence Agent' joke. Classified or not, he would try to help any way he could. He knew it wasn't anything 'official' though. This seemed personal. He could often tell with people. but with Mel it was almost like he had a sixth sense. He hadn't realized how much he needed a sister until he had come to Concordia... it kind of made him feel like he actually had a purpose.

Ethan nodded, trying to show that he understood even if he had no idea what she was talking about. He leaned forward, crossing his hands together in front of him. "Well, it sounds like you're at a point where you need to talk about it, I'd say. I'm here to listen," he offered.

Melanie sighed before pulling her legs up towards her chest and wrapping her arms around them. "If I knew where to start, I'd tell you. It's just so messed up right now that I don't know what to say anymore." She wished she could blame work, or grief, or even the depression that sometimes came from being on the island too long. It wasn't that she didn't miss her brothers when she wasn't here, but the island was a tomb for her. If she stayed, she was almost certain she wouldn't make it some times.

Melanies change of position, and her words, made it clear that something was going on. Still, even know she didn't know where to start, he knew that he had to get her to talk. It would make her feel better in the long run. So, he decided to guide her a little. "Okay, okay. Let's start with work. What's happening there?" he asked, incredibly patient and gentle.

Melanie rolled her eyes at the mention of work. "Monster attacks are up, good leads are down. I've lost two agents this month in accidents that shouldn't have happened." That was rough, but it was still every day business for them. It would slow her down for a minute or two, but not like this. "I'm not sure what's going on with them. We haven't seen a Titan or and Egyptian in weeks." Should she be telling this to Ethan? No. Was she going to anyways? Yes.

He listened as she explained how work was going, and it didn't sound good at all. He was often conflicted when he spoke with others about things... considering he was always on the look out for a good story. Still, he knew that this wasn't an official interview and it would be unethical to use whatever she said as a lead. Still, his brain twitched. "Okay, so that's all in a days work... it doesn't seem like anything new. I mean, except the fact that the Bast kids are MIA... maybe they're gathering their forces?" he guessed.

"That's what I'm afraid of. But for what? There have been no indicators that they know where we are. Everything we have points them towards New York or Canada." Not that it wasn't funny, but it was still stupid. Most of them were the children of heat or sunlight. Why the hell would they move somewhere that cold? Not to mention, Olympus wasn't a safe haven for them. New York was almost as dangerous as walking in to Egypt and expecting not to get caught.

Ethan shook his head, "that doesn't make any sense. Maybe they're trying to throw you guys off by moving somewhere cold..." well, that was enough work talk for now, right? Ethan shrugged, "well, you guys will figure it out. Next topic... Alex?" he started, deciding he'd try that path next.

Melanie shuddered slightly at the mention of her, well their, younger brother. "Alex is complicated. I'm not sure what to think. One minute he's dead, the next he shows up in the middle of a battlefield. What was father thinking, keeping that a secret?" She couldn't quite decide what to think about Hades' role in all of it. If she hadn't hated the God before, she definitely did now. "Has Alex said anything to you yet? He finally got around to telling me the whole story, but it's beyond insane. Sometimes it makes me think that I'm going crazy and that all of this is just in my head." Wishful thinking? Yes, yes it was. It would be easier to be crazy.

Ethan never understood why people were able to come back to life. Dead people were supposed to stay dead... but if the monsters were allowed to come back, then why not the demi-gods? Why not the heroes? Why not Zane? He felt his throat close up a little at the thought. no. They were talking about Alex.

At her question about whether or not Alex had mentioned anything to him, Ethan shook his head. "Alex hasn't told me the entire story yet. To be honest, I'm not sure if I want him too. It's perfect material for a great article. I think the temptation would be too strong," he only half joked as he said this. "I'm sure that has thrown you for a loop though," he added.

" I don't really think he would care. Hell, he'd probably think it was funny." That, and she knew that Alex was going to need guidance soon. Right now he was adjusting, but it wasn't going to be a smooth process. Mel herself wasn't going to be able to help him much. She was five steps from a breakdown herself. "Aimery is great, but they really are too close to the same age. He needs an older brother. Hades knows that I' m not any used to him right now." With the thought, she found her voice wavering. No, he didn't just need an older brother. He needed Zane, but that couldn't happen now. They hadn't even gotten a chance to meet each other, not that she knew of.

Ethan raised an eyebrow as she said Alex might find an article to by amusing. He was definitely going to ask himi about that now. As she mentioned him needing an older brother, Ethans thoughts flew straight to Zane, which made his heart hurt. "I could.. try," he said, not an ounce of confidence in his words. Ethan never really felt responsible, but now he was the oldest in the house and it was his job to be an adult... right? He had no idea if he was ready for that. "He'll be okay, don't worry about it. I'll teach him everything I know," he winked, chuckling a little. "Only the good stuff."

Melanie smiled slightly at his words, though her heart was breaking at the implications in his tone. Ethan was used to being the younger sibling. She and Zane, they had been the oldest for a while. Sure, Ethan was older than her technically, but still. It wasn't by much, and at camp...she was the oldest Hades kid there that she was aware of. It wasn't fair of her to ask him to step in to a role that she should be more than prepared to fill.

"Ethan..." She started. Melanie hadn't actually spoken to anyone about Zane, not at length. Everything was too fresh, too new. Part of her hoped that if she stayed quiet about it long enough, that he would just walk through the door and everything would be alright. In her line of work, she couldn't afford to be that impractical, but this is Zane they were talking about. Her indestructible older brother, leader of the Roman forces. He couldn't be gone. It just wasn't possible.

"I'm not sure what to do anymore. It just doesn't make sense." Even she wasn't quite sure what she was talking about. The list of things that she could have meant was growing longer by the minute, causing her a massive migraine in addition to the already apparent heartache. Scooting closer to Ethan, she did something uncharacteristic that she had only ever done to Dante in recent memory. Closing her eyes, she laid her head against her brother's shoulder, and simply breathed for a moment, trying to make the chaos in her mind quiet enough to function a little while longer.