After getting back, and trying to sleep for another few hours, safe in the knowledge that she hadn't even left the plane yet, Tony had gotten the kids up. He'd left Oscar to colour in his room while he prepared Alaigha her first bottle.

"Papa?" Oscar's small timid voice barely reached his ears from the lounge doorway. He turned to face his son, whose blanket was tightly grasped in his hand.

"What's up Bud?" Oscar took one step toward him.

"Ima gone?" Tony smiled sadly at him.

"Yeah, your mom's gone, but guess what, we're gonna have pizza tonight! How's that sound?" Tony tried to sound as enthusiastic as possible. The little boy shook his head.

"Ima wouldn't like that. Pizza's not good for us, I heard-ed her." Tony looked around him dramatically.

"But your Ima's not here and what she doesn't know can't hurt her." He chuckled but Oscar wasn't playing. He stamped his foot as his face contorted into the three year old equivalent of Ziva's death glare.

"No! I want Ima to cook! She cooks nicer-er than you!" With that he ran up the stairs and Tony winced as her heard his bedroom door slam.

"Looks like it's just you and me then Princess." Tony sighed gently as he tried to manoeuvre the bottle into his youngest's mouth. She promptly started to cry as she covered her face with her hands. Tony sighed and let his head drop onto the back of the couch. "Oh, this is gonna be fun. Please come home soon Sweetheart."

Several hours later, Tony sat on the floor, desperately trying to get Alaigha to stop crying long enough to take her bottle while talking to Oscar through his door, trying to persuade him to come out. It wasn't working and he was so close to joining both of his children and just cry along with them. He took out his cell, balanced a screaming Leia on his lap and phoned the one person he thought would settle the children faster than anyone else.

"Abby!" He cried down the phone the moment she picked up.

"Oh my God Tony, what's wrong? I mean aside from the obvious. How can I help?" She babbled as she heard him sob down the line.

"Zi's gone. Oscar won't talk to me; he's been locked in his room for hours sobbing his heart out. Leia won't take her bottle. She hates me Abs. She cries every time I go near her and she hasn't eaten since last night. I just don't know what to do." He heard rustling down the line before the tell tale sound of an engine starting.

"I'll be right over. Give me ten minutes." Tony sighed as he put his cell on the floor and tried once more to make his distraught daughter drink. Her cries increased in volume until Tony finally took the hint and put the bottle down.

"Okay, okay. If Miss Princess Leia doesn't want to take her bottle, she doesn't have to, how's that? Hmm?" He gathered her close and started to rock her gently against his shoulder. "Oh, oh, oh." He shushed gently before grimacing as something warm and wet trickled down his back just as the door bell rang. "Great. Cheers Princess. Come on, let's go greet your Auntie Abby and let her deal with a sick-y crying baby and her scared cranky big brother while daddy goes and changes his shirt." He walked down the stairs carefully before opening the door. "Hey, Abby." He greeted tiredly. "Can you, umm, take her and clean her up while I go get changed?" Abby laughed and shook her head before taking the screaming baby.

"Oh baby girl, what's all that noise about huh?" The moment she was in Abby's arms, Alaigha's cries stopped and she looked up at her aunt with interest. "Well now Miss Leia that's better isn't it?" Tony looked on at the pair wistfully with more than a hint of envy. "You really didn't want to cooperate did you little one? Daddy, go get changed. Me and Leia will go get cleaned up and then we'll go see to that big brother of yours huh?" The little girl gurgled, a smile playing in her eyes. Tony ran up the stairs to change his top while Abby followed him up before heading into the nursery for baby wipes and to get Alaigha changed.

Once the baby was dressed in a nice clean baby pink all-in-one and lying peacefully in her arms, Abby knocked on Oscar's door.

"Oscar? It's Auntie Abby. Can I come in Honey?" The door opened slowly to reveal a very tearful three year old, clasping his blanket. "You wanna hug Pumpkin?" He nodded slowly and Abby sank to her knees in his doorway and wrapped her spare arm securely around him. "I know you're upset and frightened and just not very happy right now, but please don't take it out on your dad; he's trying the best he can. And he's hurting too." She felt him nod against her. "Okay?" He pulled back from her. "What's up?"

"I want Ima." He hiccupped. "I want her home." Abby felt tears well in her eyes but she blinked them back.

"I know Sweetheart. We all do. But she has to go off and save the world right now, she'll be home as soon as she can." Oscar tilted his head to the side.

"Like Superman?" Abby giggled.

"Yeah, just like Superman." She rose gently before sitting in his rocking chair and pulling him onto her lap next to his sister. "Oscar? Listen to me okay? Your Ima is brilliant okay? No one's saying anything different, but your daddy's pretty cool too. You three are gonna have an amazing time and then, when your mommy gets home, you can tell her all about it. How does that sound?" She stroked his cheek gently as his thumb found its way to his mouth.

"Leia not happy?" He asked around the digit. Abby smiled gently at the baby who was watching her brother intently, her chocolate eyes as wide as they would go.

"She's missing your mom too and she's not too keen on having to have a bottle. You're gonna have to be a brilliant big brother and help your dad out with her. Can you do that little man? Can you be your daddy's big brave helper?" He nodded against her chest. "Good boy." She placed a kiss to both of their heads before softly humming a lullaby and rocking them back and forth. Tony watched from the doorway, on the verge of tears, wishing his wife were here to see this.