"What did he say to you?" Morpheus asked Charlie, as soon as she sat back down on his bed.

"He told me to get you. He's ready to talk to you in his office now." She responded. Morpheus rolled his eyes.
"I didn't mean that. I meant what was he telling you that I wasn't allowed to hear?" He asked, to which Charlie had the perfect answer to. She repeated the exact words Hypnos told her to say in case Morpheus would ask her that.

"He tested my subconscious, since for some reason, I found your guys' house again. So he had me do some things while he put me to sleep. He needed no distractions, so he didn't want you in the office too." She shrugged and looked away from him, in the hope that he bought it. Charlie had never been a good liar, but Morpheus didn't know that. Unlike her mother, who always noticed that Charlie wasn't telling the truth. Because when Charlie lied, she could not look into anybody's eyes and often acted more nonchalant about it than necessary.

"And you didn't feel the undeniable urge to come to me?" Morpheus' eyebrows rose. That was really odd to him. Charlie shrugged once more.
"I guess not." Was her short reply. Morpheus looked at her. But her eyes seemed to avoid his. Very odd indeed, Morpheus thought. But he let it slip as he had better things to discuss with her.

"I have not found a case like yours. But I have found one somewhat familiar. It's a reach, but important nonetheless." His words caught Charlie's attention and she looked at him.
"You have?" She asked and Morpheus nodded before standing up to take a seat on the bed as well. His previous- in his opinion inappropriate thoughts about Miss Denver were forgotten. Or at least in that moment, he found his discovery more important.

"Here." He leaned closer, showing her the two pages in the eighth book he read. Charlie glanced at them.
"I have never seen anything quite like it. My husband had opened his eyes and was lacking his pupils. Instead, his eyes were bright red." Charlie read aloud, still weirded out that she could read and translate ancient Greek.
"This is a diary entry about a woman, whose husband had been cursed by a demon called Färo. It says that the husband had tried to steal from him, but got caught. Färo took his soul bit by bit. He first started by letting him forget about certain things, such as his wife's name." Morpheus sighed, looking into Charlie's eyes now.

"She describes how he was close to not even remembering his own name before he stopped talking completely. That was the next stage. Then came the sleepwalking and then-" He gulped, not knowing how to phrase it.
"What?" Charlie asked, her heart pounding like crazy.
"Morpheus, what came then?" She demanded an answer after watching him struggle to form his sentence.

"Well, he never woke up. It was gone. His soul was gone and his body- according to the wife, remained alive. She doesn't specify what she means by alive, but it's probably not the type of alive you would like to be." He eventually explained. Charlie gulped. Was that going to happen to her too?
"But he was cursed by a demon, right? You're not a demon." She tried to find an excuse for as to why that wouldn't happen to her.

"I'm most certainly not. It is what confuses me too. But we cannot ignore the similarities of his symptoms and yours. Other than the sudden memory loss, you have the exact same issues." Morpheus explained, making her gulp once more as she looked down at her trembling hands. Telling him about her memory loss now would maybe not be the best idea. But how was she going to live if he didn't know how to cure her without the senate?

"I guess." Charlie only shrugged and Morpheus took that as a sign to stop talking about it. He figured she was uncomfortable and scared and maybe sad. Heck, he couldn't even imagine what he would feel like if he were in her shoes. He was really thankful that he wasn't, yet that didn't make him feel any better. She was in this position because of him. Morpheus shook his head and stood back up.

"I must go and see what my father thinks of this. You can- you can read some more if you feel like it." He said, turning to walk out of his room.
"Morpheus?" Her voice stopped him. She sounded so vulnerable and scared. He turned around to see those exact emotions in her eyes as they looked up at him.

"If that's the case, how much time do you think I have?" She panicked now. Charlie was afraid her time was running out. Maybe she didn't have enough time to change Morpheus' mind now.

"I cannot tell you. The diary entries sadly didn't come with a date each. It could be hours, days-" He stopped when her eyes kept getting bigger.
"But don't worry. Once we're in Ailavu, you will be practically healed. We will depart tomorrow. Darian will take care of the plane tickets and everything." Morpheus finished and felt free to go as soon as she nodded and looked away.

But despite his rather nonchalant answer, he too was scared shitless. If anything happened to Miss Denver, he could never ever forgive himself. He brought that curse upon her and he would be the one getting rid of it. He was very determined, but intimidated by what was to come. He hadn't told her yet, but Miss Denver had no clue how much harder it was going to get.

But for now, Morpheus focused on seeing his father and discussing a plan. Even though he knew Hypnos didn't want him to go to the senate, he had to find out if his father knew more than he had told him. After all, he was the Uvalion of Sleep. There was more to it than just dreams and nightmares.

"Ah, son. I have been expecting you. Come, take a seat." Hypnos was already sitting in his chair as he watched Morpheus come in.
"What have you said to Miss Denver?" Was the first question. The elder one of the two men in the room blinked.

"Well, aren't you curious as to where I've been the past couple of hours?" Hypnos was slightly offended.
"If your answer includes as to why the office was inaccessible for me, yes. If not, then I have far more important matters to discuss with you. We do not have much time." Came his rushed response.
"Go on then." Hypnos urged with a gesture of his hand to follow along his order.

"Fine. I am afraid Miss Denver does not have more time. I have found an old diary entry about a human having similiar symptoms to Miss Denver's. Only that he ends up not waking up from his sleep one day. I am certain if worse comes to worst, Miss Denver might follow suit. I need you to help us. Call your contacts and have a meeting regarding her case. Maybe there is someone that knows more about it." Morpheus begged his father, who had a bad gut feeling about their situation.

"You know I cannot hold a meeting this fast. I understand that Miss Denver is high priority to you right now, but can we just talk about your other clients? Doctor Fauth has called again, saying her patient needs our help. He's-"
"I can't believe you, father. This is a matter of live or death. If Miss Denver-"

"Miss Denver this, Miss Denver that. Morpheus, we have responsibilities. We have to look after everyone. Not just Miss Denver. If you leave now, there are children here waiting for you for Helios knows how long. You cannot neglect your duties. I am telling you once and for all, let this nonsense be and focus on your job. Miss Denver has told me herself that she does not think she cannot handle her sleepwalking on her own. So why don't you just trust me here?" Hypnos was still not done trying to talk sense into his son. He wasn't even lying either, Morpheus had a bunch of children waiting for him to bring them dreams.

"Because there is more to it than just sleepwalking, father. I just told you that the man was in a coma for the rest of his life, just wandering around like a soulless corpse. Only difference is that his eyes shone bright red, instead of being pitch black." Morpheus stood up in anger as he finished his first sentence. He could not understand his father and he was losing his patience with him. It seemed to all just be a game to him.

"I know you are concerned and you feel responsible for what she is currently going through. But I assure you, she will be fine." Hypnos had no idea how he made his words sound so promising, when in reality, he was also concerned. Charlotte Denver's case was one of a kind and he knew that sleep was a crucial part of living. It was just as important as eating and breathing and what not. But he wasn't going to just let her down. He was already organizing a meeting behind Morpheus' back.

One that might help in case Morpheus resisted Miss Denver's charm. Which right now, Hypnos was really glad he had a plan B. There was only so much a human woman could do when it came to seducing. Aside from that, he also knew that his contacts could help him. Some of them have wandered on this earth for billions of years, shedding and changing bodies each century. They had to find another solution than going to the senate. One that included curing Miss Denver and keeping Morpheus at home.

"You are being difficult. Very difficult and I don't know why. I know I have caused her dismay, and maybe you are disappointed in me. That might be why you're acting the way you are lately. But nevertheless, I am going to help her. With you or without you." Morpheus turned to leave.
"Son-" Hypnos stood up as well.

"No. I have asked you a couple of times now. I have listened to your pathetic excuses. And I have decided to exclude you from my plan. I am not a child anymore, you cannot punish me for not listening to you. And if you try, I will move out and you will never see me again. And I will still go on with my plan." Morpheus interrupted with a stern voice. He meant business and wanted his father to know that.
"Son-"

"Good bye, father. Miss Denver and I will depart tomorrow. That is all you need to know." With that, he closed the door after himself and went to the lounge as he called out for Darian.

The old, gray and balding man stood in front of him a millisecond later. Normally Morpheus would not give Darian orders directly. His father was the master of their house, so Darian was usually only to be addressed by Hypnos. But Morpheus had long ago found out that Darian's kind- Ares that had the Might to multiply, were meant for a household with more than one master. So if he wanted to, Morpheus could even take him with them. But he figured he wouldn't be necessary. He was also kind of looking forward to be alone with Miss Denver again.

"Get two plane tickets to Silverthorne in Ailavu. Make it first class and prepare my suitcase." He ordered and Darian silently nodded. He couldn't speak- no Are could. So to make sure they don't ever speak of any secrets concerning their superiors.

"Go now." Morpheus said and watched his butler leave.
"I will take care of the rest myself." He finished, talking to none other than himself. Since his father was being stubborn and difficult, he was carrying a big weight on his shoulders.

He knew where to find the senate. But he would've appreciated advice on how to handle the burdens surrounding a meeting with them. His father had been there once, and he remembered his long story about different traps along the route to the senate's estate. But it didn't matter.

He just had to remember what was at stake and that was enough for him not to already give up hope.

A/N: Darian is not the same as the butler in the prologue. He spoke, but Darian can't. It's not really important, but I had a feeling a few people would wonder.