Blaine tossed and turned as much as he could in the small space he had beside of Kurt, whose lashes were resting on his cheeks and quivering as he dreamed. He couldnt shut his eyes even for a wink, too bothered by his own loneliness. He wanted to be held by someone, and he got this urgent need for closeness, as his older brother had once told him when hed run into his room with tears rolling down his cheeks and his arms held up, from the long hours that his parents had abandoned him in his crib, or on the floor, or on the couch, walking by him but not noticing as he cried for someone to look at him. Coop had tried to fix the problem as best he could by spending more time at home, but he was twelve years older than Blaine and had his own life to worry about.

He was usually always bothered by his aloneness but tried to ignore it, but he went into fits over it when he was reminded of all the things in his life that he didnt have that other children did. And the arrival of Elizabeth had only worsened his neediness, as much as she had tried to help him, because he thought of his own mom, who hadnt looked at him for five full minutes since the day hed been born. He suddenly wanted Kurt to wake up and snuggle with him, but he didnt want to disturb his peacefulness just because he was selfish over the attention hed never gotten as a baby.

Needing something to keep his mind off his pathetic self-pity, Blaine smacked his dry lips and considered how good a glass of water sounded. He could spend a few minutes in the kitchen, slowly sipping his water, and by the time he got back to bed, maybe hed be exhausted enough to just pass out. Struggling over to the edge of the bed, he slid from under the blankets and thumped the floor with his feet. He wandered out of the room with one look back at Kurt, who tightened his tiny ball when he lost the warmth of Blaine, and went up the stairs, taking them two at a time. He stumbled a few times and fell to his hands and knees, but at least the new bruises on his palms and legs were distractions from his headache.

He crept through the house like a mouse, tiptoeing so the creaky floor didnt make as much noise under his feet. He felt rather mousey, sneaking around in hopes of not getting seen and, after that, smacked, just looking for something to do with his meaningless life before he was chased out of wherever he was. Padding out to the living room, Blaine bit his bottom lip at the sight of a girl standing by the fireplace with a mug in her hands. She looked worried, one arm crossed over her stomach. Her brows were ruffled. "I just dont understand." She whispered to who Blaine thought was herself, but then Burt came into his vision and wrapped one arm around her. "How could anyone treat that sweet boy in such a mean way?"

The crazy girl named Laurice was stretched out on the couch, one arm dangling over the edge and her head lolling over the arm of it. She snorted and kicked, distracting Burt for a second as he gave her a screwed up look before he turned to his wife. "I dont think they do bad things to him, Elizabeth. They just... leave him alone a lot. I told you... its nothing you need to worry about. Hes a healthy boy."

Elizabeth dropped her head into her hands, and a low sob escaped her, "Its not the same, Burt. You know what I asked of you when I left for France... I asked you to spend every moment with Kurt. I wanted you to play with him and make him laugh. Burt, there is something wrong with what they do to him. He doesnt speak... Ive only heard his voice a few times. Hes scared to death of everyone except Kurt. You should see the way he looks at me! Whatever they do to him, its not right."

Burt blew out heavily, almost unable to argue with her anymore. He looked exhausted, heavy bags under his eyes. "Elizabeth, theres nothing you can do to change the way they parent their kids. But you know the Andersons... they have that older boy, Cooper. Hes done just fine for himself. Blaine will be okay. Just give it time."

Whirling around, Elizabeth clenched her fists and shook her head at him. Her facial expression quickly became sorrowful again, and she bowed her head, "This boy is different, Burt. Different than any boy Ive met. Hes like Kurt... in a funny way. Just like him. Oh, Burt, you just dont understand. Little boys like them cant be picked on. They need to be treasured and loved... its what makes them happy."

From behind Blaine, someone patted his shoulder, and he whipped around with a gasp. A pair of puffy, blue eyes blinked at him, and then a pair of tiny fists rubbed them. A quiet yawn escaped from Kurts pink lips. His gasp must have been louder than he thought because he heard soft footsteps and panicked, looking around for somewhere to hide himself.

Hed been caught once before when he was out and about after he should have been asleep, but a sore butt had quickly taught him to stay put at night, even if he had the excuse that he was thirsty or that he was going to wet the bed if he didnt get to the bathroom soon. His dad believed that a full night of sleep was the only way to get good work done. It was a shame that he didnt know that Blaine didnt sleep very much, even when he was in his bed. He wondered if that was one of the reasons his dad resented him, because hed never gotten good work done because he was dreary eyed and slumped from tiredness every day.

When he didnt find anywhere to disappear, he shot his eyes over to Kurt, who wasnt frantically searching for a plant to duck behind or a magazine or two to cover himself with. Instead, he was holding his hands up, his wide eyes on the gentle woman who was kneeling by them. She reached out for them, "Lets see, two sleepy children out of bed. Was it the bed bugs, Kurt? They bit you out of a sweet dream, didnt they?"

Kurt bobbed his head a few times, curling up against Elizabeth when she scooped him up. He yawned again, then tucked himself into her dress and went back to sleep. Holding her hand out for Blaine, she encouraged him with a sweet smile, "Its okay. I wont let the creepy monsters under the bed get you." When Blaine took a step closer to her, she picked him up in her other arm and carried them over to Burts recliner, where she sat down. He smacked his lips again, his tongue so swollen that it touched the roof of his mouth. "Are you thirsty? Burt, would you make this sweetheart a glass of warm milk? It always helps an upset belly."

Smoothing Blaines hair, she pressed him against her chest, where he heard her heart beating. He realized that hed never heard his moms heartbeat. He looked up at her kind face, a weepy smile twitching at her mouth and her eyes glowing with tears. He thought she was very beautiful. "You have sad eyes. No child should." She touched the skin under his eye, and he blinked at her. "Will you tell me what makes you happy?"

Blaine suddenly felt like Cinderella, instead of like a mouse, being held by a loving fairy godmother who gave him a sweet prince to care for him. Flicking his eyes to Kurt, Blaine almost heard the smile in her voice. "Kurt makes you happy? He makes me happy, too. Lets see... do you think we have anything in common?" She pressed one of her fingers to another as if counting something, "Well, Kurt is one thing. Mm... you know what I like? Making gingerbread houses on Christmas! I could never eat the gingerbread men because I felt so sorry for them, so I took up making houses for them. Kurt likes putting the decorations on them. Maybe we could make a gingerbread house... if youd like that."

Nodding his head, Blaine looked at her hand as she counted off two fingers. "Thats two things! You could call us twins, huh? I think we have more in common than my real twin and I do!" She smirked at her sister, who was almost hanging off the couch. "Let me think... oh! I love stories, too, especially with a happily ever after." When Blaine smiled at the thought of his stories, her grin widened, "You know one of my favorite things? Sitting in a garden full of pretty flowers and feeding the birds. I adore a bright day with lots of sunshine... and maybe a little sprinkle of rain... because after the gloomy weather is gone, theres always a beautiful rainbow in the sky."

Blaine thought about him and Kurt playing outside on a day like that, splashing through the tiny puddles like frogs, counting the clouds in the sky, rolling through the bright flowers. When Elizabeth gasped again, he looked up at her, "Oh! How could I forget one of the most special things to me? Music! You know, as amazing as Broadway is, theres nothing quite as wonderful as singing lullabies to sleepy children. I love seeing their tiny noses wrinkle with yawns, and their lids droop over their eyes, and their chins nod up and down. What lullaby is your favorite?" Blaine tilted his head at her and gave her a pitiful look, and she frowned, "Did your mom never sing lullabies to you? Lets see, then... a very special lullaby for you. Oh, I know! This is one of Kurts very favorites. Maybe it will be yours." Holding him close to her heart, she stroked his hair again and hummed, "Baby mine, dont you cry. Baby mine, dry your eyes." She wiped underneath his eyes, making him blink a few times. "Rest your head close to my heart. Never to part, baby of mine."

He felt her throat vibrate with each melodic word, soft and sweet on his ears. "Little one, when you play, dont you mind what they say. Let your eyes sparkle and shine. Never a tear, baby of mine." She smiled when his head dropped about an inch, and she pressed a kiss to his hair, "If they knew sweet, little you, theyd end up loving you, too. All those same people who scold you, what theyd give just for the right to hold you." Blaine tucked his head under her chin, making her laugh, "From your head down to your toes, youre so sweet, goodness knows. Youre so precious to me. Cute as can be, baby of mine."

Blaine hated that he fell for her trap, but he felt himself drifting in and out. Woozily trying to keep himself awake so he could lug himself back to bed, he gave up when he heard her soft voice in his ear, "Goodnight, little one. Sleep tight. I wont let you go." Yawning against his own will, Blaine dropped his head to Kurts stomach, feeling the slow rise and fall under his cheek. Before he could fight it off, he fell asleep in Elizabeths arms, but he wasnt scared, because for the first time in weeks he didnt have a nightmare.

Blaine knelt by his babies bed after hed tucked them into it, and he reached up to flip on their baby mobile, watching the tiny ducks chase each other around and around to the sound of a quiet song. The mobile let off a soft light that made a small area around it glow, highlighting the two bundles under the blanket, one of them still and the other squirming. He looked down at their little faces, Hunters stuck in a yawn, while Archer gazed up at him with huge eyes. "Goodnight, my little ones. Daddy loves you very much." He bent to kiss their foreheads, feeling his husbands hand come to his shoulder.

Reaching up to cover Kurts fingers with his own, Blaine turned to him and smiled at his gentle face. He also nuzzled the two babies and gave them wishes to have sweet dreams, but Archer wasnt settled. He wriggled a little and batted at Blaine when he made a move to stand up, "Daddy." He said in a very raspy voice, worn out because of his sleepiness. Blaine stayed by his side, putting one of his hands on Archers chest to calm him. "Where did my teddy go? The crazy guy took him! Hes gonna feed him to his cat!"

Blaine looked over his shoulder at the toys scattered on the floor, from a baby doll to a stuffed dog, and finally over to their teddy bear. Bending down to grab him, he brushed dust off of him and handed him to Archer, who gnawed on his ear until it was damp. Blaine took the teddy bear out of his mouth and laid him beside of Archer, watching him nervously wring his hands in the fur. "Honey... whats wrong? Archer, tell Daddy whats the matter."

Archer pulled the blankets up to his nose, his eyes becoming very big, "What if the crazy guy feeds me to his cat while Im sleeping? I dont want to be eaten!" Tears popped up in the corners of his eyes, and he kicked at nothing, trying to protect himself from something that wasnt there.

Hunter leaned over to hug Archer, but he kept sniffling and rubbing his wet eyes with two tiny fists. Looking back at Kurt, who had his fingertips pressed to his lips, Blaine blew out heavily and turned back to Archer. "My poor baby." He slid his arms under Archers thighs and back, pulling him to his chest. He patted his bottom as he tried his best to comfort him, "No one is going to eat you. Youre too sweet to hurt. My love, the Mad Hatter isnt mean... hes just crazy, but not mean."

"But why is he mad?" Archer peeked out from underneath the blanket that he was still holding very tightly. "Did I make him mad?"

Kurt smiled at their worrying son, and he sat down beside of Blaine. Smoothing a fallen curl off Archers nose, he murmured, "The Mad Hatter went mad over hats and tea, my darling. Hes absolutely crazy over the two. If hes mad at anything, itd be mustard. Isnt that silly?"

The blankets lowered, revealing a wrinkled nose, "Well, I dont blame him! Mustard is yucky!" He stuck his tongue out, and Hunter laughed at him.

Giggling behind his fingertips, Kurt picked up the teddy bear and gave him to Archer, who tucked him against his chest and hugged him tightly. "And you must know that the Cheshire cat is the happiest cat! Hes always smiling. Hes not so spooky, is he?"

Archer shook his head and burrowed into his pillow, making Blaine smile as he bent for another kiss, "Honey, if you ever feel scared, just think of the things that make you happiest. But youre my strong boy. Nothing scares you, does it?" Another shake of the head answered him, and Blaine let go of Archer. "A man would have to be heartless to try to scare you, wouldnt he? Close your eyes, my sweetheart. Nothing is going to hurt you."

When Blaine got to his feet and stretched, Archer panicked, reaching up for him again, "Daddy, will you sleep with me and Hunter tonight? Im not scared! I just like having things that make me happy!" That made Blaines mouth curve, and he climbed onto the bed beside of Archer. Kurt crawled under the blankets and held Hunter close to him.

Keeping Archer against his chest, Blaine glanced down into his big, blue eyes. His stomach twisted and warmed up at the sight of his baby, who he never wanted to be afraid. "Baby mine, dont you cry. Baby mine, dry your eyes."He mumbled to Archer, who stared at him as if he was fascinated."Rest your head close to my heart. Never to part, baby of mine."

He dried Archers leaky eyes with his sleeve, "Little one, when you play, dont you mind what they say. Let your eyes sparkle and shine. Never a tear, baby of mine." He didnt know where the song had come from, but he felt the lyrics deep in his heart, a reminder of something good. If only he could remember what it was that made him love this song so much. Maybe it was just because he felt like Dumbo, the little elephant who had come from nothing and turned himself into something."If they knew sweet, little you, theyd end up loving you, too. All those same people who scold you, what theyd give just for the right to hold you."Blaines voice got very quiet, and he pressed one more kiss to Archers pudgy cheek that had softened with tiredness. "From your head down to your toes, youre so sweet, goodness knows. Youre so precious to me. Cute as can be, baby of mine."

Archer fell asleep after hed finished the song, and Blaine felt himself fading, too, into a dream he never wanted to end.