![canstockphoto19242520.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/internutter/23swnUiHWr1pNEXX9YsYqYLZzJtJZad9vDaYtp4HzxnHrX5jJnD38ipotUyrUEEa7GBfU.jpg)

> A sleepy human child care provider is trying their damndest to stay awake while watching over a mixed nursery of kids, Havenworlder and Deathworlder, but they have another hour before the malfunctioning door is finally fixed and the parents can come in and collect the kids. - Anon Guest

One more Deregger colony had gone down in flames, as Deregger colonies were wont to do. Their installations would not be wasted, but they _did_ have to be upgraded. People were still moving in pot plants for the air, but they still needed somewhere to keep the kids during shift hours.

Educator Merf was not meant to be monitoring forty disparate children at once. There was supposed to be a team. It was also supposed to be knockoff time. They were supposed to be having dinner and a decent sleep, right now. Alas, the damned Deregger door had jammed shut _just_ after Educator Vans had stepped out to see what was taking Educator Lees so darn long with the food.

At least the class philodendron was helping with the idea that they had fresh air. The only other green in this entire space was astroturf. Which was _shedding_.

If Merf had to say, "We don't put floor things _in our mouths_," one more _flakking_ time...

Still, singing and dancing helped keep them from doing that. Priority would have to go towards removal of the old, decaying astroturf and replacing it with something much, much healthier. Like Phraalian spongecork tiles.

Once upon a time, in pre-Shattering Earth, singular educators had had to monitor classes like this. Overcrowded, overtime, and under-rested. Merf was suffering from a lack of sleep because _this_ station's noises were very far from reassuring. They had woken up twice to their sleep niche snapping shut into lifepod mode, and once by the grinding gears as it _failed_ to snap shut.

It was a safety sensor error every time, but Merf was planning to sleep in their livesuit henceforth. At least until decent Alliance tech could supplant the dodgy Deregger stuff.

The truly alarming part was that the current childcare facility was the safest space on the station.

Lon patted Merf's hand, waking them up again. "Mx Merf? You need a nap."

"I do," Merf yawned, "But I have to keep watch on you all until the doors can open."

"We could play Simple Says?"

Ugh, they didn't have the energy for that. "Maybe you could run the game? Nothing troublesome. Nothing dangerous..." Coffee would have been great, but Merf had enough sleep issues as it was. Coffee this close to rest period would make everything worse. They yawned. "Maybe read-around time? We have lots of books..."

"I'll pick one that makes the tinies take a nap," Lon added a conspiratorial wink.

Four more hours of read-around, and the door finally ground open, spilling anxious parentals into the space.

Merf was _very_ pleased to learn that they had earned a day off.

[Image <a href="https://www.canstockphoto.com">(c) Can Stock Photo / severija</a>]

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