A/N: I'm writing this quickly before school because I wanted to get another chapter posted, and pleased to say there's some fluff!! Taking a welcome break from angst-world lol.

Song of the Chapter: Keep Breathing – Ingrid Michealson. Some of you who watch Grey's Anatomy might know this song from the season 3 finale.

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Fin laid the children in their beds gently, pleased when they didn't wake.

"Goodnight Ms. Grace Casey. 'Night, Ms. Gabriela Joy." He paused.

"I think we're going to be okay."

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SIX MONTHS LATER:

It had now been six months since Elliot and Olivia had died and the kids had come to live with the squad. In those six months, they had battled loss, grief, and the hole that their deaths had left, but also taken on a life of surrogate parenthood, a life they had all come to love.

About 3 ½ months ago, they had started transferring all 3 children together to the different houses. The children adjusted much better than the group had anticipated. They looked forward to visiting new houses every time they were told it was time to go. The only problem they encountered, save for the usual toddler tantrums, was sometimes, the twins would get so worked up that they would throw themselves on the floor, kicking and screaming that they wanted Mommy and Daddy, and not allow any of the squad to touch them. During these times, they found it was better to let them cry themselves out then talk to them again about how mommy and daddy still loved them, but they lived with angels now.

The first day of daycare was hard for all members of the squad. They had become very attached to the children, and were very scared to leave them. That first day, the four of them sat watching the clock all day, jumped up the minute it hit 5:00, and bolted to the daycare to pick their kids up. Other than that, they were settling into the new routine quite well. All of them could now look after all three kids on their own, so they shifted off houses every 3 weeks easily.

Oliver was now six months old, growing so rapidly that the squad could not believe it. He recognized his sisters, Casey, Fin, Munch, Melinda, Cragen, and George Huang, who occasionally babysat him or came to visit. When he saw someone he knew, he cooed loudly and held his arms up insistently to be picked up. His brown eyes hadn't changed since birth, and he had a downy covering of brown hair on his head. He had started to look so much like Elliot around the face, but his eyes were replicas of Olivia's eyes.



Today was Grace and Gabriela's second birthday, and the squad was taking them to their favourite place, the beach. The twins were "water babies", they loved to swim on every occasion they could. They had been so excited, they had barely gotten any sleep the night before at Cragen's.

Cragen was roused from sleep by 2 weights suddenly flinging themselves at his bed.

"Grandpa! Grandpa! Today our birthday! Birthday, birthday, birthday!! GO TO BEACH! GET UP, GRANDPA!!" the twins shouted happily as they pounced on his bed, clearly too excited to go back to bed.

Cragen opened his bleary, sleep clogged eyes, and peered at the clock beside his bed, which read 5:17 AM.

Sighing, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and embraced his grandchildren, running like eager puppies around his legs.

"Alright, Grandpa's little angels, let's go get up your brother and have some breakfast. You guys are staying with Uncle Munch tonight, so we have to get you ready too."

The twins ran to Oliver's room, where he still slept. Leaning over his crib, Gabriela shouted "Wake up, buttwer!! It our birthday! We go to beach! We go to Uncle Munchie's tonight!"

Startled awake by the loud noise, Oliver began to wail. Sighing, Cragen picked him up and rocked him until he quieted. "Gabriela Joy, how many times has Grandpa told you..."

"Don't shout, Oliver just a baby. Sorry Grandpa. Sorry Oliver." Gabriela filled in with a heart-melting smile, leaning over and giving Oliver a kiss.

"Alright." Cragen smiled. "Let's get you guys ready."

They arrived at the beach around noon to have lunch. Casey had made sure to pack healthy lunches for the children, even on their birthdays. After lunch though, Munch and Fin sneaked the twins off to the side, and gave them each a chocolate bar as a special birthday treat.

"Don't tell Aunt Casey!" they warned laughingly.

They quickly changed the twins into their bathing suits with their arm floaties, and Oliver into his little bathing suit. The twins could barely contain themselves as Casey made sure the arm floaties were on tight.

"Now SWIM!! Come, Aunt Casey! We swim!!" the twins rushed at the water, so fast that Casey could barely keep up with them. Fin took Oliver out of his carrier and carried him gently into the water. Oliver held tighter to Fin but didn't cry as they waded deeper and deeper into the water.



For the next few hours, they took turns playing with each child in the water. About an hour after they arrived, Oliver started to get fussy, so Fin came out briefly and handed him off to Cragen, who retrieved the bottle he'd brought and sat in the shade, feeding him. As he ate, Oliver's little eyes started to close, so Cragen placed him in his baby carrier for his nap. He wasn't worried about Oliver waking up with all the noise, Oliver could sleep through anything. Taking advantage of the baby sleeping, Cragen left for his turn with the twins, while Casey sat beside Oliver and read.

"FUN FUN FUN, Grandpa!!" Gabriela shouted as she ran her tiny hand through the water and doused him with a wave. Her enthusiasm was contagious, and soon they were all chasing the twins around the shallow water, laughing when they fell in.

After the cake had been eaten (and the subsequent sugar rush had worn off) and the enormous pile of presents had been opened (it turned out all of the gang had tried to buy just one, but as Casey put it "There were so many things that they would love, and who are we to deprive them of that?"), the party quieted down and the guests started to leave, kissing the kids on their way out.

"OK, bath time!" Munch called, walking into the living room after putting the baby down. Looking down though, he found two little girls who were struggling to keep their eyes open. Smiling, he picked one up in each arm and carried them to their beds. They were asleep the moment they hit the pillow.

And as Munch walked down the hall, he realized that however crazy it may be looking after 3 children, he wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.