A/N: Hey, if you have any questions leave a review and I'll try to answer them! :)

I only own the characters you don't see on TV.

Emily POV

That foster home lasted four months. I would punch anybody who would pick on Sam and Katie at school. Sometimes Sam would get in a fight before I heard about it. Either way, we both ended up in the principles office. Our foster parents got tired of us getting suspended.

I remember the conversation I had had with the social worker after that place. I was in her office pacing back and forth, trying to process what she had told me. "what do you mean you might have to separate us?"

"Not many families are willing to take three children, let alone when two of them are constantly getting suspended form school!"

"I told them I'd protect them, and that's what I was doing! I couldn't let them get hurt!"

"You didn't have to beat the other kids up for it!"

I looked at her, "Yes I did! They were stealing Kate's lunch money! They tried to lock Sam into a locker! What if they had gotten hurt!"

"You can't protect them from everything Emily!"

I started pacing again, "Yes I can! As long as I am there, I can protect them. I can't do that from a different home, from a different school!"

"Emily, just please sit down and talk to me about this. Let me explain some things to you."

I went and sat, but glared at her with my arms across my chest, "No."

"Emily, you may not have a choice. There's a foster family willing to take Sam and Kate right now. I could even put them in there if I wanted to. But I know they trust you and whatever decisions you make. I need your blessing on this."

I shook my head, "NO! We stay together!"

She softened her voice, "With this family, you wouldn't need to protect them. There'd be nothing to protect them from."

I paused, but then shook my head. "We stay together."

We were currently leaving our second foster home. It turns out the father of that home liked little boys. I caught him sneaking into Sam's room one night. That made me glad I slept in the hallway outside their rooms. The night after that I had Sam sleep in my room with Katie. Katie fussed because she liked her own room. When he tried to get into the bed, I broke his nose. Presently I was sitting on the front steps of his house, holding a bag of frozen peas to my eye. Katie was sitting on the opposite end of the stairs, glaring at me occasionally. Sam was sitting on the other side of me, watching me. "You didn't have to do that."

I removed the bag of peas, and looked at him; well with my good eye I looked at him, with the other I squinted at him. I gave him a cross-eyed face and he laughed, "Yes I did. It's my job to protect you, no matter the cost." I lightly elbowed his side and he smiled.

He leaned around me to look at Kate, "You don't have to be such a grouch."

"Hmph."

I smiled, and tapped her shoe with my foot. "Bug, what's wrong?"

That was one of Katie's nicknames when she was little. I had started calling her that lately whenever I needed her to smile. I saw a corner of her mouth twitch up, but she turned away from us. "I don't want to leave."

I slid closer to her, "Katie, look at me." When she turned around I continued, "What that man was about to do to Sam was not okay. In fact, it's more illegal than what dad used to do. I had to protect him. Do you remember what I said to you the first night after we left home?" She nodded. I continued, "Even if you don't want me to, I will always protect you, no matter the cost. Got it?"

She nodded and slid closer toward me. I put my arm around her, and put the bag of peas up to my eye again. Another cop car pulled up, but I recognized the man who got out of it this time. I let him come to us; I was too tired to play this game, "Frank."

He stopped at the bottom of the stairs, "Lee." That was his nickname for me. "I was at Joe's baseball game."

"How was he doing?"

"Pretty good. That boy's got a hell of an arm on him."

"Good." I looked Frank in the eye, "Our foster father was about to rape Sam last night. It was the second time he's snuck into Sam's room at night. The only reason he stopped the first time was because I caught him."

He took a deep breath and pointed to my eye, "How'd that happen?"

Sam spoke up, "That's my fault."

I cut him off, "No it wasn't. I slept in Sam's room last night to stop our foster father. He tried to get into bed next to me. He started to lift up my shirt, so I punched him. He fought back. That's when his wife came in."

Frank nodded to his side. I got up and walked with him, "Lee, you've only got three more years in the system."

"Two."

He turned to look at me, "What?"

"I'm sixteen."

We stopped, "When?"

I looked to the ground, I didn't need the extra attention, "A month and a half ago. Right before we got into this home."

Frank leaned down to my level, "Well Happy Birthday Lee." I nodded my head in thanks, "You look a lot healthier than when we first met. You've grown a lot." I nodded again. I had grown three inches in the three months since we left home. He lifted my chin up to look him in the eye, "I'll do my best to make sure this next place lasts longer than the last two combined."

"You only have to make it last until I turn eighteen. Then I'll file for custody for the two of them."

"I'll do my best." With that we walked back towards Sam and Katie.

"Want a piggy back ride Kate?" She nodded, and I leaned down for her to get on.

Frank let me walk around for a bit so Katie could have some fun. Finally we got in the back of his car and he drove us to the social services building.

The next home we were placed in wasn't much better. The mom hit me this time. I'd get in fights at school just to cover up the bruises. Frank stopped by my school one day before I had the chance to et into a fight, and he saw. He had us pulled from that home immediately.

He was driving us to the social services building when I pulled off my jacket, and pulled out my sharpie. I looked at my siblings, "Ok, who wants to write this one?" Sam grabbed the marker from me, and took the coat. I stretched the lining so you could see the other names, and he wrote the name of this past foster home. Three names, three families. I'd let Katie write the name of the next family on the jacket.

I looked at Frank in the mirror, "Don't make me add too many more."

He nodded, "I'll see what I can do."

I shook my head, "That won't be enough this time." We had pulled up to the building. I let Sam and Kate run ahead, they already knew the way to our social worker's desk. I lagged behind with Frank. I sighed, "You only nee to focus on those two. Get them placed together, in a good home, and I can take care of myself. What if I'm not there to protect Sam next time? What if someone goes after Katie?"

We had arrived at the desk by this point so he didn't say anything. He knew I didn't want Sam and Kate to know I was willing to leave them alone. Our social worker looked at me, "I'm going to have to put you three in a group home for a month or two." Before I could interrupt she added, "You will all three be together until I can find you a new home."

I nodded, "Will we have to go to a new school?"

"For the time being, no. But we're going to look at placing you three upstate. There seems to be more families up there wiling to take more than one child." I knew that meant we might get separated.

"Okay." I didn't see Frank again until I was almost eighteen.