Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't Sue. Do Review/

A/N: Hello once again. Thanks so much for all the reviews; carmensandiego, Ryanne, S. Nicolai, girldevil, saccharine, lackeysa and anne. You guys are great. Please keep them coming and I'll try my best to update this a.s.a.p. Oh, and if you were reading 'I'm With You' I've finally posted up another chapter. Well on with the show (story). R&R and Enjoy!! - Bex

'You know that children are growing up when they start asking questions that have answers.'- John J. Plomp

~*~*~*~*~

Vaughn sat on the comfortable couch in the living room, watching the twins thoughtfully. It had been three weeks now since they and their mother had walked back into his life. Though to apart of him it felt like an eternity. Like seven years.

In that time, he and Sydney had somehow met a sort of mutual understanding. Her walls were still up and his suspicion and distrust still flowed through him, but they no longer fought every time they were together. Weiss and him also requested to escort the twins and Tatiana on day trips around L.A. And it was one of those trips that they'd just got back from.

He watched fondly as Katia lay on her stomach, humming a self-composed tune as she wrote on some paper. Her brother lay beside her, drawing carefully with a graphite pencil, the fluid movement of his hand seemed to belong someone who out numbered his years. Even though Vaughn knew Alec didn't trust them, Vaughn had begun to grow attached to both of them. Both of them possessed the same magnetism as their mother and he was helpless drawn to it. Something apart of him screamed not to do.

Katia paused for a moment and looked up at the agent on the couch, a question forming on her young lips.

"Uncle Mike?"

A smile touched his lips at the name she'd begun to call him.

"Yes Katia?" He gently urged her to continue.

"When is mama coming back?"

The smile fell away at the question she'd asked a hundred times. At knowing that he would be forced to give her the same answer he dreaded.

"Soon, honey, soon," He lied, feeling sick with himself.

"But you said that las...." She began to protest, but her carer cut across.

"Katia," Tatiana warned.

Katia held her tongue, looking back down at the paper in front of her. Vaughn could still see the pain and longing in her face. The same things that always plagued her hopeful eyes. Something he'd lived with for the past seven years. A foolish part of him wished for their sakes that their mother had never fallen out with Irina, that way they would still be with Sydney.

"You know why we're here don't you Mr. Vaughn?" Alec asked simply, unnerving Vaughn by the way he seemed to be able to read minds.

"No," He replied, only half lying. Sydney still hadn't told him the whole story yet.

"It was because grandma threatened to kill mama. It was because they kept fighting. We ran after she hit mama. I saw her. We were watching on the landing. And she told mama that she would kill her if she didn't obey. Just like she had killed dad," His voice grew louder and angrier at the memory.

He stood up suddenly, his drawings flying everywhere, his eyes burning with anger.

"I hate her," He screamed. "I hate her for taking dad away. For making us come here and mama not being allowed to stay with us. I hate her. I HATE HER!"

Vaughn was taken back by his rage. By the way he openly expressed his emotions, unlike his father. Katia stood up and grasped her brother's hand tightly. The action caused him to look at her, and she mumbled something soothingly in Russian. And if by magic, his loathing melted away, and he squeezed her hand back. Katia turned her calm eyes, still mixed with the pain of missing her mother, at Vaughn.

"You're going to see mama right?" She asked timidly.

"Yes," He nodded.

"We've got a present for her."

She nodded at her brother, who picked up his drawings and she handed them to Vaughn along with the poem she'd written.

"I'll give them to her," He promised. "I better be going."

"Ok Uncle Mike. Bye."

She gave him a brief hug and kiss, then repeated her actions.

"The second ones are for mama," She informed him.

"Ok," He smiled.

"Bye Mr. Vaughn," Alec muttered and wandered off.

Tatiana handed him his coat and smiled warmly at him.

"Are you or Mr Weiss going to come and take us out tomorrow?" She asked hopingly.

"One of us will," He replied, returning his smile.

She nodded, "Good, good. See you soon Mr. Vaughn."

"Goodbye Tatiana. And I've told you before to call me Michael and Weiss, Eric."

"Ok. Goodbye Michael."

He gave her one last smile as she shut the door securely behind him. Then he began his journey, out of the cosy safe house and back to less comfortable glass cell.

~*~*~*~*~

Vaughn walked in to find Sydney doing some yoga exercises. He might have imagined it, but he could have sworn that a ghostly smile had appeared on her lips when she saw him. What ever it was had disappeared as quickly as it had come, for she now wore her perfect mask again. A mask she only took off for her children.

"Agent Vaughn," She greeted in an even voice.

"I've brought these for you," He stated, opening her cell door just long enough to slide the sheets in.

She curiously picked them up and scanned the top one. A proud smile managed to break through her mask and light up her face.

"My, my. Katia is becoming a very talented poet indeed," She commented lovingly. "Did you read it?"

"Yes I did. You're right she's very talented," He agreed, watching her in fascination about the way her children changed her.

"And Alec too. He's a marvellous artist," She declared, studying the pictures carefully.

She then looked up from the drawings to meet Vaughn's eyes.

"You took them to ou- the pier," She stated more then asked.

He just nodded sharply, "Yes."

She looked away, her expression unreadable again.

"Their father was an excellent artist as well you know," She began, apart of her warning her not to continue.

Vaughn said nothing. His features were expressionless, eyes fixed on her.

"He wasn't as evil as you all though," She pointed out as if she needed to explain. "He loved me and our children more then anything in the world. He was such a good father. So kind and gentle with them. He had such a good sense of humour as well," She paused smiling at the memory. The smile disappeared and she held Vaughn's blank gaze. "I loved him as well."

The cell became dead silent. They continued to hold each other's gaze, till it became too awkward for both of them. They looked away and Sydney took it upon herself to steer to safer grounds.

"Has my information helped you?"

"Yes."

"Are you any closer to catching Irina?" Sydney asked, a hint of nervousness in her voice.

"A bit," Vaughn took a breath, not completely wanting to say the next thing. "Because you've been cooperating so well, Kendall has agreed that you'll be allowed to see your children once a week."

She gave him a real smile. No smugness, no cockiness, teasing or taunting to it. Just a genuine smile of thanks.

"Thank you," She replied honestly.

'Don't think I'm doing it for you,' He snapped silently. 'I'm doing it for Katia and Alec. Because I know what it's like to be without a parent. I care nothing about you.'

'Liar,' a voice whispered.

He paused for a moment as he considered how to ask his next question.

"Why did you and your mother fall out?"

She let a small sigh escape and avoided his eye.

"Was it over Sark's death?" He questioned.

Her head snapped back to stare at him intensely. Even though her look was unreadable, he had a feeling that she was trying to work out how much he knew.

"Yes, that was part of it," She replied after a moment, "But my children were the main reason. Sark was right when he told me that we were very similar. Russia had it's own 'Project Christmas' as well, mainly using orphans. He was one of them. We both agreed that our children would lead normal lives, lives we never had, away from this world. My mother wanted them to be trained, but we refused. She sent Sark on a mission, which she knew was suicide. She killed him."

Pain desperately tried to seep through her mask. Pain and hatred. She cut herself off, looking away for a moment to lock her emotions away again, then held his gaze again.

"My children mean everything to me. They kept apart of the person I used to be alive. I never wanted them to judge me and be ashamed of me. I never wanted to force them into this awful life, like I was. People who disobey Irina Derevko are just corpses walking around on borrowed time," She stated darkly. "But I'm willing to risk it. I'm willing to risk anything for my children. They are my life, Agent Vaughn. I don't know how I would cope without them."

~*~*~*~*~

Something was wrong. Tatiana didn't know what it was, but a sixth sense was tingling down her spine, warning her that something wasn't right. She tried to remember which agent was on watch tonight. Pete Walker she remembered after a moment. She liked him because last time he'd brought her some gorgeous rich hot chocolate and muffins. Every agent usually let her know that they were there the second they arrived. But no one had yet.

Tatiana twisted a strand of hair around her finger nervously. Why hadn't they informed her that they'd arrived? Were they here yet? She was just about to tap on the one-way mirror, when she heard something. A low hissing noise.

'Gas,' Her head screamed.

She grabbed a handkerchief from her pocket and covered her mouth with it. Her heart was pounding in her ears as she sprinted into the twins' bedroom.

"Alec! Katia! Wake up!" She screamed urgently through the material.

The twins' eyes shot open, but slowly began to droop again as the gas took effect. She handed them both a piece of material and told them to cover their mouths with it.

"Get under the bed and stay there. Don't make a sound ok," She ordered, trying her best to calm her panicked voice.

Katia's face was flooded with fear and she began to shake violently. Alec grabbed her hand tightly and nodded in confirmation that they understood. He acted as her strength, pulling her under the bed with him, wrapping an arm around her for protection and comfort.

More gas filled the room now, flooding in through the air vents. Tatiana couldn't think straight. Everything was spinning, one thought mixing into the next. Her head swam as she desperately tried to fight the intoxicating gas. A battle she was quickly loosing. Slowly, her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she drowned in the darkness.

A/N: What do you think? Want to know what happens next? Then you'll just have to leave a review and wait to find out :o)