A/N: I have friends in Sydney and have spent several vacations visiting the land down under. I am very familiar with the Aussie dialect, but am in no way an expert. Please forgive this American if I get the lingo wrong! I promise to give it the good ole 1, 2 try.

Family Matters

Synopsys: Franky's little sister spends the night at their home. Fridget fluff.

Rating: PG

Tiny feet padded across the hardwood floor of the darkened hallway, a beloved teddy bear in tow dragging haphazardly as it dangled from its owner's right hand. Quietly, the little girl shuffled carefully towards the bedroom door that had been left slightly ajar. Crossing the threshold, she let out a sigh of relief as she saw a familiar lump on one side of the bed.

"Franky?" The tiny brunette whispered from the doorway, hoping that she wouldn't disturb the other person sleeping in the bed.

When she received no response, she tip-toed forward towards the taller brunette, small fingers lightly poking at the quietly snoring lump.

"Franky?" The young girl whispered again, hoping it would be enough to wake the slumbering woman.

"Tess?" The brunette turned from her 'big spoon' position and sat up, flipping the bedside lamp onto its lowest illumination setting. "You alright? Why aren't you sleeping?"

"I had a bad dream." Tess crawled up into the bed on Franky's side, wanting to be closer to her beloved big sister.

"Oh yeah? Did Mr. Brownie wake you up from it?" The brunette inquired, gesturing at the well-loved teddy encircled in its owner's tiny arms.

Tess nodded 'yes'. "He told me to come here to see you…"

"Baby?" Bridget stirred, eyes slowly fluttering open to find two brunettes sitting in her bed. She smiled, propping herself up to better assess the situation. "What's going on?"

"Seems that Tess here had a bad dream."

"Oh, no. Do we have to check the wardrobe for monsters?" Bridget leaned forward to lightly tickle the child's sides, finally causing her to smile. "How about under the bed?"

"No. Gidget!" Tess shook her head as she giggled, swatting away at the blonde's fingers. "Mr. Brownie told them all to go away."

"Well that's good." Bridget smiled, brushing the hair out of the young girl's sleepy eyes. "I'm glad he was there to protect you."

"Tess," Franky interjected, hoping to get the little one back to sleep as it was still the middle of the night. "Would you like some water? Do you want me to bring you back to bed?"

The little girl vehemently shook her head 'no' then meekly asked, "Can I stay here with you?"

Franky glanced across to the blonde quietly asking, "Is that okay?"

Bridget smiled and nodded. How could she deny the dual set of puppy eyes sat staring back at her? Doyle women were truly her undoing.

"Ok, bubba," Franky declared as she turned the sheets over from her side of the bed. "Come on in!"

"No," Tess simply disagreed pulling the sheets down from between the pair of women, comfortably settling in nestled protectively between the blonde and the brunette. "I want to sleep here."

"Okay…" Franky smirked as her heart melted, noticing how Tess had turned onto her side cuddling closely to the smaller woman. "You can stay there tonight."

"Sleep well, darling." Bridget leaned back re-situating herself on the bed. Her toned arms reached down, pulling the sheets up to cover the tiny girl next to her. "Franky and I will be right here if you need us."

Franky grinned from ear to ear at the sight. She turned towards the bedside lamp, flicking it into the 'off' position, casting the master bedroom once again into a comfortable darkness. The brunette shifted downwards, laying sideways in bed facing her lover and her little sister who was sandwiched between them.

The pair watched contently as the littlest Doyle's breathing became rhythmic, her body slipping right back into a comfortable slumber.

"She adores you, Gidge." Franky smiled, breaking the silence in the near-darkness. The moonlight through the window casting light shadows across the bedroom wall.

"Must be a Doyle family trait." Bridget smiled lovingly.

"Can you blame us? You're amazing… The best thing that's ever happened to me". Franky sighed and paused, her pensive eyes alerting the blonde that there were other matters weighing on her mind.

"Penny for your thoughts?" The blonde shifted in bed, repositioning so that her face was inches away from her lover's.

"She's just such a little angel." Franky smiled as she gently brushed a stray lock from her sister's cheek. "Kind of makes we want one of our own."

"You've never spoken about children before…"

"I know… It's just… Before Tess came into our lives I never thought I had it in me to, you know, be a mum. To be responsible for another person's life. That's heavy shit…"

Bridget eyed her lover disapprovingly, reminding her of the presence of innocent ears.

"Sorry…" Franky whispered, lightly cringing at her misstep. "Heavy, 'stuff'. Stuff that I don't necessarily know much about or have experience with. But look at her…. She's perfect. And I can't help but wonder what it would be like to have a little you running around this place. I mean… I would say a little me as well but we already know what that's like with this one running around."

Bridget chuckled at her partner's attempt to lighten the mood with her humor. "We'd have to get a bigger bed… If Tess stays the night and both her and our little girl want to crawl into bed, it'll be a bit crowded for four."

"Our little girl?" Franky smiled in feigned disbelief, her free arm circling around both her sister and the love of her life.

"Yes, baby." Bridget nodded, eyes filled with affection. "Our little girl."