"Dad will you tell her!" Tegan yelled at the top of her lungs. "She keeps going into my bag and taking my stuff!"

"Honey she's barely a year old." Danny said lifting Peri up into his arms. "I doubt she's deliberately trying to annoy you."

"She keeps pulling out my homework and trying to draw on it! Last time I didn't notice and Mrs Fisher shouted at me and I had to stay in at break." Tegan raged.

"Well maybe you shouldn't leave your school bag lying around."

"You always take her side." Tegan pouted.

Danny sighed. "She's a baby love, You know I love you all the same but she can't defend herself."

"If you loved me you wouldn't have felt the need to go and have another one!" Tegan fumed stomping up the stairs.

Danny just continued to rock Peri back and forth used to all the mood swings in his house now. "You're big sister doesn't mean that, Leela said the same thing about Tegan and look at them now. Best of friends."

"I'll have you know I meant every word I said." Leela chimed in from her place on the sofa. "I would have preferred a dog."

"And I'll tell you the same thing I told you then, Leela your sister is not getting swapped for a dog." Danny smiled.

"A Dog!" Tegan yelled coming back down the stairs. "Did you just call me a dog!"

"No." Leela replied calmly flicking through her magazine. "I said I would have preferred a dog."

"Really! Well anything would be better than having you as a sister!"

"Oh that's right go in a little strop cause you're not centre of attention any more." Leela said distastefully.

Tegan screamed. "Like I've ever been centre of attention with you around."

"So I dreamed that year when you where in hospital and mum and dad where at your beck and call did I?" Leela snorted. "Didn't think so!"

"I had cancer you selfish cow!"

"That's enough!" Sam roared coming through the door. "What's all the racket about? I could hear you half way down the road!"

As soon as the words left her mouth Sam knew she had made a mistake. Both the girls and Danny decided to take that as a declaration to tell their version of events louder that the rest.

"All right!" She roared again. "I get it you all hate each other. Just give me my one uncorrupted child please."

Sam smiled stretching her arms out and taking Peri from Danny. "Hello Peri Winkle."

"Ew." Tegan muttered.

"Right what's going on here." Sam asked before quickly amending seeing as they where all going to talk over each other again. "I was asking your dad."

"Tegan is annoyed that Peri keeps trying to play with her stuff and thinks we love Peri more than her."

Sam softened a bit at his words. "Oh honey, We love Peri just as much as we love you and Leela."

"Doesn't seem like it." Tegan muttered.

"You're dad and I love you and Leela very much." Sam said hugging Tegan close to her. "Just as much as we love Peri. If anything you're my favourite."

"Nice mum." Leela said.

"Well the other two are complete daddy's girls."

Danny joined in with the hug holding Peri, sandwiching the four of them together. "I have to be the luckiest man alive to be surrounded by four beautiful girls for the rest of my life."

"Yeah right." Tegan muttered trying to stop the smile growing on her face. "I have no doubt you love me but sometimes I wish we spend more time together."

"Me too." Sam said mournfully. "But between my job and running after you lot I don't really have a lot of free time."

"We could do something together if you want." Danny said. "Maybe go to the cinema tonight? It's Friday so we're all off tomorrow."

"What about Peri?" Sam asked.

"I'll watch her." Leela said causing everyone's attention to turn to her. "You both deserve a night off. Take Teeg's to the cinema then get something to eat."

"I don't know." Sam said doubtfully. "Why don't you join us I can ask Holly next door to babysit."

"I've got a bit of a headache nothing major just fancy a quiet night."

"Are you sure love?" Danny asked worriedly.

"Yeah, go, enjoy yourselves. You never go out."

Danny turned to Sam. "She's right, it has been a while since we've done anything together."

"So a date night?" Sam asked doubtfully. "With our daughter."

"It will be brilliant mum." Tegan said enthusiastically. "Please say yes!"

Sam rolled her eyes heaving out a sigh. "Go on then."

"Yes!" Tegan yelled over excitedly.

"Are you sure you're going to be OK?" Sam asked fretfully. "I can still ask Mrs White to come help out if you want."

Sam, Tegan and Danny where all dressed ready for their night out, the only thing holding them back was Sam.

"I'll be fine, now hand her over." Leela said holding out her arms for Peri.

Sam reluctantly handed her over, kissing her forehead as she did so. "She hasn't had her supper yet and she'll need a bath but-"

"Make sure to feed her first because she always falls asleep after the bath, I know."

"Good." Sam nodded turning to leave before quickly spinning around again. "And you've got all of our numbers, I even wrote down the number of the cinema and what we're seeing if there is an emergency."

"Can you just get her out of here please dad." Leela smiled bouncing Peri on her hip.

"Come on Sam, she knows what she's doing. Tegan's getting anxious." Danny said gently pulling Sam to the door.

"Bye! Have fun!"

"I'll phone after the film to see if everything's alright." Leela heard her mum yell as she got dragged away.

"Just you and me now Pez." Leela smiled kissing her head. "What are we going to do?"

Peri continued to stuff her hands in her mouth completely ignoring Leela.

"See if anyone had told me 2 years ago that I would voluntarily stay in on a Friday night I would I would have laughed at them. I used to actually have a social life before you. None of my so-called friends what to know me now." Leela said her smile dimming a bit at the memory's. "I wouldn't trade you for the world though."

It was the first time she had been left alone with Peri. To start with her parents, mostly her mother hadn't left her alone with Peri afraid that it would stir up some maternal instinct. A longing to be Peri's mother what they hadn't realised was Leela had always felt that way, that No matter who was raising Peri or what other people thought she would still be her daughter. No matter what.

As time went on they started easing up a little around her. Trusting her to babysit while her dad when for a shower an her mum was at work or vise versa but never for an extended amount of time like this. She was equal amounts excited and terrified.

"You've been fed and changed why are you crying!" Leela said frustrated. The night had gone so well up until bed time Peri hadn't cried once now she couldn't seem to stop.

"Look it's you're bear you love him." She said desperately waving the teddy at Peri to no avail if anything she cried harder. "Peri you need to tell me what's wrong! I cannot help you unless you tell me what's wrong!" Leela said near tears lifting Peri out of the cot.

Peri seemed to calm down once she was in Leela's arms. Letting out little sniffles instead of full on sobbing like before.

"You miss mum and dad don't you." Leela said. She knew it was stupid to feel jealous but she couldn't help it. Peri missed her parents and it just hurt so much that it wasn't her. She wasn't good enough.

She laid down on her parents bed with Peri curled up on her chest.

"I used to sneak into mum and dad's bed all the time as a kid. They would always give me a row for it in the morning but I still done it. I used to get so scared by the reflection of that stupid tree in the garden that I would be too scared to sleep." Leela said stroking Peri's back softly.

"Dad tried to tell me that it was just a shadow, that it couldn't hurt me but I didn't listen. One night there was this really big storm, I woke up and ran through to their room but they weren't there. I don't think I had ever been so scared before, I just went and lay in the middle of their bed and cried. The babysitter found me there the next morning I had cried myself to sleep. It turns out that mum had went into labour that night after putting me to bed and her and dad we're at the hospital with Tegan."

Leela lay in the bed for hours just stroking Peri's head long after she'd fallen asleep but couldn't find it in her to move.

"Leela?"

"Hey." Leela whispered turning to look at her mother's bewildered face.

"What's going on?"

"Peri wouldn't stop crying, She missed you." Sam's face softened at the statement. "When she wasn't going to sleep I figured she might feel better surrounded by your scent."

"Like you where." Sam smiled coming over and sitting on the bed. "You always used to take one of dad's used t-shirts to bed with you."

"I read it a book once that baby's find the scent of their parents soothing."

"You should have called us."

"You deserved a night off."

"A mother never has a night off." Sam laughed. "Even when she's not with her children she's still thinking about them."

Leela smiled at her mother knowing how true that was.