Niles blinked, startled, and found himself alone in bed. He sat up and tried to remember the dream that had woke him. He jumped up, hearing the horrible noise again, coming from the en suite. "Bloody hell, it wasn't a dream," he said, fishing for his glasses on the nightstand. He knocked them to the floor. "Damnit!"

A moment later, Niles stood in the doorway of the en suite, looking at a blurry Daphne on the floor next to the toilet. "Oh Darling, are you all right?"

"Yeah, bloody fabulous, thanks."

Niles was stunned. "Daphne, I -- a-are you crying?" Niles knelt down as Daphne put trembling arms round his neck. He stifled a dry heave as he caught a whiff of her breath. "Shhhh, shhhh, it's okay My Love. You just ate too many oysters." He helped her to stand up, supporting her as he took a face cloth from the basket and wet it with tepid water. "There, there," he said, gently wiping her face. "What can I do for you?"

"I don't know," she said, like a pitiful child.

"Shall I help you to bed and get some fizzy water? Maybe some Saltine crackers?"

She looked at him, furrowing her brow. "What I really want is fish and chips. With lots of vinegar and mushy peas," she said.

"Are you delirious?" Niles asked.

"You know, the best chippy in Manchester is this little hole in the wall near where my Uncle Trevor lives. It was the best thing about going to see him. Mind you, the rudest people worked in there. Always the same owner and someone different doing the cooking. We always thought it was a requirement to work there, being unfriendly. Simon applied and got turned down, and we said it was because --"

"Darling?"

"Well, anyway, I would do anything for a spot of fish and chips from that place."

Niles had helped her back to bed and was settling in himself as she finished her story. He smiled at her, squinting slightly.

"Where are your glasses?"

"Oh, I knocked them off the nightstand. I'll find them in the morning. How's your tummy now?"

"Much better now, thanks to you." Daphne laid her head on Niles's chest, draping an arm over his middle.

"Me? What did I do?"

Daphne mumbled incoherently and then snored softly. Niles chuckled as he stroked her hair, kissing the top of her head. "I love you too," he whispered.

"Hi Daddy," said David, as Niles entered the Montana.

"Hello, Monster!" Niles lifted his squealing son high into the air. "I am so happy to see you!"

"How was work?" asked the three year old.

Niles grinned, stifling laughter. "Well, you know, patients, support groups, phone calls, the usual."

"Yeah, usal," David nodded in agreement.

Niles kissed his cheek and set him down on the sofa. "Whatever you're cooking smells amazing," he shouted toward the kitchen. "I've got a lovely bottle of Zinfandel that I thought would go nicely with the rest of that chocolate cake." He lowered his voice as he approached the kitchen door. "Maybe I can eat it off y-- Ronnie?"

"Is that any way to talk to your own mother, Niles?"

"Uhh... I..."

Ronnie laughed and kissed his bright red cheek. "Your dad's on that fishing trip, so I came by to see Daphne and David, and Daphne seemed so tired and out of sorts, so I told her to go lie down and let me handle dinner."

"Oh, I better go check on her. Has David been--"

"Just perfect. He's at the funniest age now. We have the best conversations!"

Niles beamed. "He is perfect, isn't he?"

Niles found his wife sleeping peacefully in their bed. He removed his coat, tie, and shoes, and slid in next to her. As he brushed her hair away from her face, her eyes fluttered open. "Hi," she whispered. He leant forward to kiss her nose. "Hi," he smiled warmly.

Daphne sat up. "What time is it?"

"Just after six, when I usually get home on a Thursday."

"Good God, I've been asleep for nearly three hours!"

"Well, you deserved it, Darling. David hasn't been sleeping all that well lately. Must be another growth spurt--"

"But I never do this. I can always cope with it. And all I feel like doing now is going back to sleep."

"You know, the other night when we thought you had food poisoning, maybe you were coming down with something."

"But I've been fine up until now. What's wrong with me?"

Niles pulled her into him, wrapping his arms around her as she found comfort in the smell of his chest. "I wouldn't worry about it Darling. You do usually cope well with sleep deprivation, but it always catches up with you at some point, and this is just that point."

"All right, I won't worry... Thank you, Dr Crane," she said huskily, as she slid a hand into his shirt and rubbed his chest in a circular motion.

Niles closed his eyes and sighed happily. "Are you... regaining your strength?"

"Mm-hmmm." Daphne began unbuttoning Niles's shirt.

"Uh, you do know we... um... we have a guest... downstairs," said Niles, fighting all his body's natural reactions.

"Oh, I'll be quick." She unzipped his trousers and began unbuckling his belt.

Niles couldn't hold back anymore. "Well, if it's a quick one..." He took her face in his hands and pulled it up to his, kissing her deeply as he lifted her shirt to remove it.