A/N: Wanted to try something a little different with this one… It didn't turn out exactly how I saw it, but it's pretty freaking cute anyway…

You've Got A Prayer In Memphis

Colton danced around the kitchen in excitement, spinning around until he got dizzy and crashed into the fridge. He'd been waiting for this for a long time and now that the day was finally here, he could hardly contain himself. In truth he'd only been waiting two days, but it seemed to him an eternity.

"Mama, what time is it?"

"It's five o'clock."

"When is Isa comin'?"

"In half an hour."

"How long is that?"

"One episode of Veggie Tales."

"Oh mama, that's forever!" he wailed hugging her legs. "You call Austin, tell her to come fast, okay?"

"No bud, you just be patient, okay? Why don't you go get some blankets out of the closet so daddy can build you that fort?"

"Okay mama!"

He ran into the hallway and threw the closet open, pulling a stack of blankets off the lower shelf. He struggled to get it all into his bedroom, grunting with every step until he dropped it in the middle of the floor. Sighing he glanced over into the crib where Ben was just waking up.

"Hey brother. Know what? Isa's gonna sleep over tonight. We gonna play and play and play. But you can't because you is too little. Plus she's my best friend and not yours. But that's okay, you can play with mama and daddy tonight. Oh, and we get popcorn. Daddy said so."

Ben just looked at him through the crib bars, blinking slowly before giving his big brother a smile.

"You have stinky britches, brother," Colton said, shaking his head and running into the other room. "Mama, Ben is smellin'."

"You know, you used to stink too," Lindsay said, crossing the room and lifting Ben out of his crib.

"Nu-uh, mama. That's a story and we don't tell stories."

"That is not a story mister. All babies stink at some point."

He just shook his head, not believing her. There was no way he could ever have smelled like that.

"Is it time yet?"

"No, not yet."

"But I wanna see Isa!"

"Colton, I know you do, but you have to be patient. It's not going to be forever, I promise. She'll be here really soon, but if you keep up this attitude, I'm going to have to call Austin and tell her not to come."

His nose started to sting and he knew tears were coming so he blinked them back quickly. The thought of Isa not coming over after all was enough to make his stomach upset.

"Okay mama," he said quietly.

"But if you're patient just a little bit longer you'll get to see the surprise."

"A surprise? Really?"

"Yep."

"Is it a good one?" he asked, climbing up on the side of the crib so he could see her better.

"I think so. You'll like it."

"Will I love it?"

"There's a very strong possibility."

He wasn't quite sure what that meant, but she was smiling so he smiled too.

"Mama, what is for dinner?"

"Why do you always ask that question?" she chuckled, lifting Ben into her arms and kissing his cheek.

"Dunno," he shrugged, watching the smile that spread across her face as Ben gurgled at her. Sometimes Colton did feel a little left out. Because Ben was so cute and he couldn't do anything, so mama and daddy had to pay a lot of attention to the baby. But he himself was a big boy. He could feed himself and change his clothes, brush his teeth and put his own shoes on. He cleaned his own room and made his own bed and didn't even cry when he fell down. He didn't cry in the nighttime, even when he had bad dreams, and he certainly never spit up or made messes in his pants. But it still seemed that everyone liked Ben better.

There was a knock on the door and then it squeaked open and he jumped off the crib, bounding out into the other room to see his best friend.

"Isa, Isa, Isa!"

"Hi Colt!" she shouted, dropping her bag on the ground and throwing her arms around him.

"Mama said she got a surprise! And daddy said we could have a fort, and popcorn and even a movie too!"

"Oh yay!" Isa cheered. "Let's go play."

"Okay. Wanna play Legos?" he asked as they went into the bedroom, leaving their mothers in the kitchen.

"Okay. I make a monster."

He grinned and pulled down the bucket of Legos, lifting the lid off and dumping them on the floor. They set to work on their own creations, not saying much of anything to each other as the pieces snapped together.

"Isabeth, I'm leaving," Austin said, crouching down in front of her.

"Mm'kay," Isa replied with a nod.

"Do I get a hug?"

"I'm buildin', mommy."

"Just a fast hug? Because I won't see you until tomorrow."

"Okay," Isa sighed, abandoning her project for a moment and hugging her mom.

"I love you baby girl. I'll come and pick you up after breakfast."

"Uh-huh."

"You be a good girl and listen to your aunt Lindsay."

"Uh-huh."

"Have fun, okay?"

"Okay, mommy. Bye," she said, wriggling out of Austin's arms. She could never understand why grown-ups spent so long saying goodbye.

"Bye baby."

"Bye Austin," Colton said, giving her a wave. She stooped down and kissed the top of his head and he grinned.

"Bye bud."

They waited until she left and then looked at each other and giggled, ready for their sleepover party to begin.

"Please, daddy?" Colton said, grabbing onto Adam's hand.

"Yeah, please?" Isa said, jutting her bottom lip out and blinking several times. It was a face she used on her daddy and she knew it would work with Adam too. He looked at both of them and sighed, standing up from the couch.

"Alright, let's go make a fort."

They whooped and hollered and ran into the bedroom, dancing around in excitement. They'd been waiting for this fort all night long and now that it was almost time for bed, it had been looking like they wouldn't get it. But now it was happening, and as Colton had assured, Adam made the best forts in the world. They watched him work, handing him blankets and rubber bands, which he attached to kitchen table chairs. Soon the fort began to take shape and they stood there giggling, waiting until they could go inside.

"Alright, it's done, but don't go in yet," Adam said, crawling out from the blankets.

"Why not daddy?"

"Because mama got something for your fort and I need to go get it."

Colton nodded and took Isa's hands while they spun in a circle around the room.

"We gots a fort, Isa."

"Yep! It big."

"Yep. We put a elephant in'nere?"

Isa giggled and nodded then started to jump up and down.

"See how up I go?" she asked.

"Uh-huh. I not go that up. See?"

He jumped a few times, but not nearly as high as Isa. She giggled.

"We get a jumpoline, 'kay?"

"What's that?"

"A jumpoline," she repeated, stressing the word. "Grama got one. I jump on it."

"Oh," he said, as if he suddenly recognized what she was talking about.

Adam came back into the room, hiding something in his hands and crawled back into the fort.

"What is it, daddy?"

"A surprise. Give me just a minute, okay?"

Colton sighed and looked at Isa who sighed too. Why couldn't grown ups ever just hurry the heck up?

"Are you two ready to go to sleep?" Lindsay asked from the doorway.

"But we wanna play," Colton said, fighting a yawn.

"Yeah, play."

"I know, but it's getting late. And you want to get up and have breakfast in the morning, right?"

"Cereal?" Isa asked hopefully.

"If you want cereal, then cereal you shall have."

"Gots Fruit Loops?"

"I think we do."

Isa grinned and hugged Lindsay's legs while Adam climbed out of the fort.

"Alright kids, it's ready."

Squealing, they clambered into the fort, surprised at the plastic glow in the dark stars that were stuck to the inside.

"Wow, lookit, Isa! It's nighttime!"

"Cool! We outside!"

They giggled and climbed into their sleeping bags, staring up at the stars while Lindsay crawled in to kiss them goodnight.

"Okay, no playing in here. It's time for sleep."

"Oh, okay mama," Colton said, giving a long-suffering sigh. "Ben goin' to sleep too?"

"Yeah, I'll put him to sleep in a little bit, so you guys are gonna have to be quiet, okay?"

"Okay. Shh."

She smiled and leaned over to kiss him.

"Goodnight baby."

"Night mama. Love you."

"I love you too."

Isa slid her thumb into her mouth, missing her mommy for just a second before Lindsay scooted over and snuggled her.

"Goodnight, my girl."

"A'night Indy," she said softly. She could say Lindsay's name just fine, but she preferred Indy. It's what she'd always said anyway. It made no sense to her to change it now.

Lindsay smoothed Isa's hair back from her face and kissed her cheek.

"I love you."

"I love you," Isa replied, reaching out and touching the locket Lindsay wore around her neck. She opened it carefully and smiled. "It's Colt and Ben."

"Yes, it is."

Isa nodded and held on for another snuggle before Lindsay crawled out of the fort. Colton turned on his side and looked over at Isa with a grin.

"Know what?"

"What?"

He smiled and reached into his pillow case, pulling out a handful of gummy bears.

"I stealed them," he whispered, offering a few to her. "Mama don't know."

Isa's eyes grew wide at his rebellion. He never, ever did anything wrong. But that didn't mean she wasn't going to enjoy the spoils of his escapade.

They laid there for a while, giggling and eating gummy bears, trying to stay quiet so they wouldn't get caught. About the time they finished, Lindsay came back into the room to put Ben in his crib. They were quiet, not moving a muscle and hoping she wouldn't check on them. She didn't and soon she left the room and closed the door partway behind her.

"Now what?" Isa whispered loudly, sitting up in her sleeping bag.

"Mama and daddy is watchin' the show. Come on."

She followed him out of the fort and into the dark kitchen, gripping his hand tightly and wanting to giggle. They stood in the doorway of the kitchen where they could see the screen and the last few minutes of the TV show playing.

"Look, thems dancin'," Colton whispered, pointing at the characters as Walking in Memphis floated over the air.

"Daddy dances with mommy," Isa said.

"My daddy dances with my mama too. A lot."

"We could dance too?"

"Yeah!"

They giggled and stumbled around in a circle, a slight imitation of what they had seen their parents do. Toes were stepped on but it didn't matter so much.

"Isa wanna know what?"

"What?"

"You is my favorite friend."

"I are?"

"Yep."

"Okay."

The episode ended and they scrambled back into their fort, not wanting to get caught out of bed. Isa yawned and stuck her thumb in her mouth, then reached over and gently pulled one of Colton's curls, smiling when it sprung back into place.

"Night, Sweet Thing."

"A'night, Colt."

He wasn't sure exactly what had woken him up and he blinked a few times, trying to remember why he was sleeping on the floor.

"Colt?"

"Isa?"

"Where my mommy?" she whimpered.

"You at my home, 'member? We sleepin' in the fort."

"I want my mommy," she said, rubbing her eyes. He crawled over and gave her a hug.

"It okay. She comin' in the mornin'."

"No, now!"

"You not go home, Isa, you sleep here today."

"I want my mommy."

"Here, you cuddle Mo," he said, handing her his beloved monkey. "He make it better."

"Mommy," she sniffled, taking the stuffed animal and tucking it under her head.

"I go get my mama for you, 'kay?"

"Scary out there?"

"Nah, I a big boy," he assured, climbing out of the fort. "Be back fast."

Isa laid there quietly, sniffling and thinking of her mommy and daddy, and wishing she could go and get in bed with them. She'd lay down right between them and they would kiss her cheeks and she would laugh and close her eyes, pretending to be asleep while they talked. She never knew what it was about, but she loved her mommy's voice and her daddy's strong arms and the sound of their laughter.

"Here, I bringed mama," Colton reported as he returned. "I gonna sleep again."

He settled back down and was asleep as quickly as he had woken.

"Hey sweetie pie, what's the matter?" Lindsay asked, laying down and brushing her fingers through Isa's hair.

"I want my mommy," she confessed, around the thumb that had slid into her mouth.

"I know."

"I sad."

"I'm sorry Isa. If I cuddle you for a while will that make you feel better?"

"Yes."

"Alright."

"Indy?"

"Yeah?"

"Mommy sings to me."

"She does?"

"Uh-huh. I not sad."

"It makes you feel better, huh?"

"Yes. You can sing to me?"

"What should I sing?"

"A song."

"Hmm."

She was quiet for a moment and Isa looked up at her, barely able to see her just by the light from the glowing stars. She cleared her throat gently, singing the first song that came to mind.

"Put on my blue suede shoes
And I boarded the plane
Touched down in the land of the Delta Blues
In the middle of the pouring rain
W.C. Handy - won't you look down over me
Yeah I got a first class ticket
But I'm as blue as a girl can be

Then I'm walking in Memphis
Walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale
Walking in Memphis
But do I really feel the way I feel"

Isa could feel herself getting tired and she cuddled closer, feeling that if she couldn't have her mommy, Lindsay was the next best thing. She yawned and smiled, letting her eyes drop closed as the song ended, suddenly feeling warm and safe and calm.

"Isa, wake up!" Colton said, shaking her shoulder. "Time to see the mornin'."

She sat up and rubbed her eyes, yawning a couple times before she said anything.

"I hungry."

"Yeah. We wake up mama and daddy. Come on."

She followed him out of the room, tiptoeing just like he was towards Lindsay and Adam's bedroom. He touched his finger to his lips and she nodded, watching as he climbed over the footboard and onto the bed. He motioned for her to join him and she managed to get up there after a few false starts.

"It's wake up time!" he hollered, jumping up and down a few times. "Let's go, get outta here folks!"

Isa giggled and jumped with him.

"We hungry!" she added, raising her arms in the air to get her point across.

"Make food!"

Lindsay and Adam chuckled at their antics then looked at each other for a second before each pulling a giggling child into their laps.

"They gonna tickle!" Colton warned as Adam's had came down on his belly.

"Oh no!" Isa cried, laughing uncontrollably as Lindsay tickled her sides. It went on for several more minutes until the kids managed to wiggle away, cheeks red and eyes bright.

"Alright, who wants waffles?" Adam asked.

"Me, me! Isa, say me, me too!"

"Me, me too!" she giggled as Adam scooped them both up off the bed.

"Well then let's go. Do we want chocolate chips in our waffles?"

"Yes!" they agreed, nodding happily.

"Why don't you two go and get dressed and then we'll eat," Lindsay suggested, stretching a little. She'd fallen asleep for about an hour on the floor with Isa, and her muscles weren't going to let her forget it.

"I pick?" Colton asked, hoping she would let him pick his own clothes. He really wanted to wear his Thomas the Tank Engine shirt.

"Yeah, you can pick. Isa, do you need help?"

"Yes."

She followed them into the bedroom, peeking in on Ben who was still sleeping soundly.

"I need socks," Colton said, opening all his dresser drawers. "Then undies, and pants and shirt and comb my hair."

Isa pulled her clothes out of her backpack and Lindsay helped her change quickly as it was a little chilly in the room.

"Should we get your hair out of your face so you don't get syrup in it?"

Isa nodded and Lindsay pulled her hair back into a ponytail, securing it with the hair tie she had around her wrist.

"Isa, you is a girl," Colton noted, wrinkling his nose.

"Yeah."

He stared at her for a second. He'd always known she was a girl, but as she stood before him with her hair all pretty and her shirt all pink it occurred to him that if she was a girl that meant she couldn't be a boy.

"You a boy," she said. "Daddy say boys is bad but you okay."

"Oh. We go eat now, right mama?"

"Yeah, let's go eat."

"Mama, put on the dance song please," Colton said, climbing down from the table.

"Which dance song?"

"Life's a dance."

She chuckled and found the song on her iPod, setting it to play. Isa giggled as she watched Colton dance around the room, knowing that he was a bad dancer, but not knowing quite how to tell him that.

"Life's a dance you learn as you go," he shouted. "A'time ya lead, a'time ya follow."

"Don't worry 'bout what you don't know," Adam added.

"Life's a dance you learn as you go!" Colton finished, taking Isa's hand. "C'mon Sweet Thing, you dance too!"

Pretty soon they were all laughing and dancing around the kitchen, bumping into each other and not caring that they were a little too loud for a Saturday morning. Isa and Colton mostly just jumped around, while Ben watched them from his spot in Lindsay's arms.

After a little while, the front door swung open and Isa squealed in delight.

"Mine!" she shrieked, running right past Austin and wrapping Sarah in a hug.

"Sissy!" Sarah greeted, just as happy to see her big sister.

"Hi Sarah," Colton said, waving at her. She gave him a shy smile and waved back.

"Lookit what we make," Isa said, reaching up and grabbing a roll of butcher paper off the counter. She unrolled it on the floor and crouched down seriously. "I lay down and Unca Adam drawed me. Then I color. Colt do one too."

"Yeah, see mine?" he said, retrieving his own paper. He'd giggled the whole time, so his tracing didn't look as nice as Isa's, but he had normal colored hair while hers was purple.

"Wow, looks like you guys had fun," Austin said.

"Yep. We have gummy bears at night-night."

"Shh, Isa, we wasn't apposed to tell!" Colton admonished, looking over at Lindsay.

"You had gummy bears in bed?" she asked, her hand on her hip. "Colton."

"I only taked some."

She sighed heavily and shook her head.

"We'll talk about this later."

He looked up at her and winced, knowing he was going to get in trouble for what he had done.

"We'd better go," Austin said, taking Isa's bag off the couch. "Gotta see the grandparents today."

"Unca Louie!" Isa and Sarah cheered. Austin shook her head and smiled.

"Isa, say bye to Colton."

"Bye-bye Colt," she said as they hugged. "I love you."

"I love you, Isa."

"You my favorite friend too."

He smiled and gave her a nod and a wave as they headed out the door. Even when they got really old like mama and daddy, he was sure they would still be each other's favorites.