Hey! I am so sorry for the long gap, but occasionally my mind just goes on strike when it comes to these stories.

Just a couple of things, 1st up thanks to Imaganista and Anonymous for reviewing. Secondly I've written [and more importantly completed] a story for Nicky, Ricky, Dicky and Dawn, if any of you feel like checking it out, please do. It's called 'The Unquadable'

Anyway let's get on, see chapter 1 for the disclaimer.

"Doc! Dreamy!" Sleepy called again sounding a bit more irritated this time.

"Yeah, cool it, Sleep!" Doc snapped. "We're comin' as soon as we clear all this stuff up."

"What stuff?"

Doc sighed before leaning on the chair. "The plates, the cutlery, the crusts that Sneezy and Happy refused to eat, the art stuff on the sideboard, and the glitter everywhere…shall I go on?"

"Point taken just make it quick, for god's sake."

Doc didn't respond to his only older brother and instead started picked up the art supplies. "I'll get these, you get the plates and cutlery."

It took Dreamy a moment to realise he was talking to him. "Yep. Got it." As he watched his immediate older brother start doing things he mentally sighed. Ninety percent of the time it was brilliant having a brother like Doc, especially with them being so close in age. He was always available to help with homework and do fun things with like building models and doing experiments and that kind of thing. And he was quite a good listener, and he was very patient…

"Dreamy! Don't just stand there staring into space! Get moving!"

Dreamy sighed out loud this time as he picked the plates up, rattling them a little to make sure his brother heard him. Then there were days like today when he could cheerfully throttle him.

Stepping into the kitchen the unfortunate happened, he cleverly managed to trip over his own two feet and the plates went on the floor. The bottom two smashed, though the rest were fine.

As Dreamy lay on the floor a little in shock Doc appeared behind him. "Oh for god's sake Dreams! Can you not do anything right!?"

With that a surge of anger bubbled up inside Dreamy's chest. "I'm fine thanks for asking!" He spat out.

Before Doc could say anything Sleepy was on the scene with Sneezy and Happy a few feet behind him. "What's going on?"

"Dreamy broke the plates!"

"Doc's being an idiot!" The two said together.

Sleepy blinked, took a deep breath and surveyed the scene. Then he said calmly. "Right, Happy take Sneezy and go back into the living room."

When the two youngest had gone the oldest looked straight at Dreamy. "Are you alright Dreamy?"

"Yeah."

"Sure? No cuts, bruises anything?"

"No."

Sleepy paused, looking at him quickly to make sure there was nothing obvious. "You've not broken anything?"

"He said he was fine." Doc said, sharply, only to shrink back when his only older brother turned a piercing eye on him.

Sleepy nodded. "Okay, Doc, make yourself useful and start picking up pieces and stuff. Do me a favour and try not to cut yourself, that's the last thing we need. Dreamy, a word?"

The dwarf in question picked himself of the floor and dusted himself down before throwing a scornful glare at Doc.

"Dreamy."

"Comin'" He muttered following Sleepy out the kitchen.

Sleepy meanwhile was mentally debating exactly how to express his feelings at this precise moment in time. Next thing he knew he heard himself saying: "Why is that ninety nine point nine-nine-nine percent of the time you two get along fine, but the ONE time I'm left in charge for more than an hour you decide to nearly kill each other!?"

Dreamy shuffled his feet. "It weren't that bad..."

"You know what I mean! Why, Dreams, why? Why now for flip's sake!?"

"Because he's choosing today to be irritating and downright unreasonable!"

"Right." Sleepy took a deep breath. "Tell me calmly what happened from the start, please."

So with that Dreamy explained what had happened since lunch, with the level of embellishment which might be expected from a twelve year old.

When he'd finished Sleepy nodded. "Right. Okay." He put his hand on his forehead feeling a headache coming on. "Okay."

"So what are you gonna do?"

"Huh?"

Dreamy rolled his eyes. "About Mr Grumpy-pants in there." He nodded towards the kitchen.

"I'll have a word with him." Sleepy told the floor.

"When?"

"Now."

"Great." Dreamy moved towards the kitchen door and immediately Sleepy put his hand out.

"Whoa, not with you there."

His younger brother glared before stepping back and folding his arms. "Well, what am I meant to do then?"

"Go in the living room and look after Happy and Sneezy." Sleepy ordered.

When his middle brother had left the room Sleepy sighed, ran his hand across his forehead before looking at the door. This was going to go well. Never the less it had to be done. With that final thought Sleepy went into the kitchen.

He had to admit he was impressed, in the short space of under two minutes Doc had picked up the stuff of the floor thrown the crusts and the shards and things away, stacked the plates by the side and was currently washing them. Knowing how to deal with his brother by now Sleepy simply asked. "What do you want me to do?"

"Check the floor. I got all the obvious bits up but I might have missed some."

Nodding Sleepy immediately started examining said floor, when he finished he leaned against the sideboard and waited. Two minutes later Doc put the last plate to the side and then paused. He let out a juddering sigh before asking quietly. "Does Dreamy hate me?"

His older brother didn't even hesitate. "No. Is he extremely frustrated with you at the moment? Yes. Hate you? Definitely not."

Another pause and then. "I shouldn't have snapped at him."

"No you shouldn't."

"He can't help falling over."

"He can't." There was another pause and Sleepy seized the moment. "What is up with you today?" No response. "C'mon something's obviously wrong." Still no response. Clutching at straws the oldest said. "You're not being bullied again are you?"

"No definitely not." Doc was quick to assure him.

"Well what is it then?"

Another pause and just at the point Sleepy was ready to punch him, his immediate younger brother told him. "I can't help feeling I'm not doing enough."

The oldest scrunched his nose up. "What?"

"I'm thirteen now."

"I know, I was there on your birthday. You defeated us all at bowling."

Doc smiled at the memory before carrying on. "But since then I've been kinda thinking I need to do more about helping people. I thought seeing as mum and dad were out I could start doing more, but all I've done is annoy Dreamy."

"You don't need to do loads, Doc. You do enough. You help out with the younger ones homework, which is a massive task in itself. You look after the little ones when I nod of…"

"Dreamy helps."

"Even so, it's still good. You…" Sleepy racked his mind. "You do your room. You do your fair share of chores. You do lots. We all do, it's part of the parcel of being a large family, you can't not help really."

Doc looked at the floor before saying slowly. "Yeah I suppose…"

"Look, just remember." Sleepy hauled himself of the side and put a comforting hand on Doc's shoulder. "Turning thirteen isn't the be all and all. Yes, you're a teenager but no ones expecting you to suddenly become super competent and start doing everything yourself. Even mum and dad can't do everything by themselves. I'll give you an example, Dad told me this morning that if he wasn't back in time I could give Sneezy his Flonase. Two things wrong with that, one Mum should be back by then and secondly, and more importantly, he explicitly said I can't give Sneezy his meds till I'm sixteen, so…"

Doc gave a laugh. "Do you reckon he's getting our birthdays mixed up?"

"Wouldn't surprise me. There are six of us, I can't keep it straight. All I know is once every couple of months Mum will go, 'Have you got a present for x?' and I'm like, 'Huh?'."

They shared a laugh and Sleepy walked his brother towards to the door. "Just remember, Doc, you ever have any issues or stuff come to me. I am, after all, the fountain of all knowledge."

Doc gave an impish grin. "Really? So I could ask you…"

"Don't even go there." Sleepy said, he'd forgotten who he was talking to. And with that the brothers left the kitchen.