Disclaimer: I do not own 'Criminal Minds' or its characters. I'm merely borrowing the team for a few adventures and will return them unharmed ;)
A/N: set somewhere after "200", at least slightly AU and eventually Jemily.
I got that prompt from one of my dearest friends and I hope I can do her fabulous idea justice.
This story is dedicated to said friend.
V,
writing this story is only a small THANK YOU when you really deserve so much more. Thank you for listening to all my rants, for understanding, for caring, for being the incredible rock you are to me and most of all - for keeping me sane when I feel so close to madness.
You are the best friend one could ask for and I hope you know how much our very special friendship means to me.
Much love,
N.
CHEETOBREATH
Prolog
by Nocona
She grabbed the backpack that sat ready in her closet, her phone, passport and coat and stormed out of her room.
Her footsteps echoed through the empty hallway and for a second she cursed her heavy boots, but she had no time to change them, she had a plane to catch after all.
Not to mention that someone would recognize her absence any minute now, in case it hadn't happened already, so she had to move quickly.
Luckily the cab she had called was already waiting when she left the building. She pulled the hood of her sweater over her head and got in quickly, instructing the driver to bring her to the airport as fast as he could.
She had barely managed to catch the flight, but now that the plane was in the air and no one could stop her anymore she took a first deep breath.
She was aware that she should try to sleep, but that was easier said than done under the circumstances. She was worried sick about the two people she called family because she knew that something had to be wrong ever since she had received that message.
A message that held nothing, but one word.
She had known what to do right away, she had followed the protocol that had gotten instilled in her years ago and that was why she was on a plane from Switzerland to Virginia now.
She only prayed she would make it in time.
She had fallen asleep eventually, worn out from the adrenalin rush, and she had only woken up during the landing process.
She sat in a cab again now, headed straight to Quantico to speak to someone she had heard so much about without ever meeting them.
She knew that neither would they expect her, nor know her, but she trusted that the letter she carried would be enough to get the help she needed.
She only stared at the building for a second once she got out of the cab and went inside, determined to lose no time.
Of course it took a while to get through the security check and it dawned on her that she probably should have decided on a different outfit because her gothic look always made people suspicious. Since it couldn't be changed now she gave the security guy her best smile and explained that she needed to see the team of the BAU immediately and that it was a chase of emergency.
She got a few funny looks, but in the end she was handed a visitor pass and let through and she hopped onto the elevator, following the instructions she had received from the man that had checked her and her backpack.
When the elevator doors opened and she stepped out she almost bumped into a tall, black man who mustered her curiously. That had to be Derek Morgan.
She remembered his face from a picture she had once seen.
"Hey kid...are you lost?"
So he really was this caring guy she had imagined him to be. She shook her head, "Nope. Not lost at all. I need to talk to Jennifer Jareau."
"Oh well...she won't come in today. Her son is sick. But maybe I can help you?" he suggested with a smile, but it didn't work on her. She felt like crying.
She needed to talk to JJ and she had to talk to her now. She didn't have till tomorrow, they didn't have till tomorrow.
"No. I need to talk to Jennifer Jareau. I'm not allowed to talk to anyone else. It's urgent, really."
She almost begged and he seemed to grow more and more concerned, "Alright, kid. Let's go find my boss, maybe he can help."
She nodded and followed him into what looked like a conference room where she let herself fall into a chair, exhausted from the whole situation.
Derek left, but returned only a minute later, together with a man that introduced himself as Aaron Hotchner. It was only then that Derek formally introduced himself as well and she rolled her eyes, "My name is Avery and I really need to talk to Jennifer Jareau. It's a matter of life and death."
Hotch tried to get her to talk, but of course she was smarter than to reveal anything and so he did call JJ in the end, who promised to be there within thirty minutes.
She kept sitting in the conference room in silence while she waited.
JJ had made it in twenty and she was even more beautiful than she had thought she would be. The photographs she had seen really didn't do her justice.
The blonde seemed to be confused as to why her presence had been demanded by a girl she didn't know, but she led her into an office anyway and closed the door behind her.
They sat down at the opposite sides of the desk, seizing each other up. JJ clearly was at a loss, but she knew exactly whom she was dealing with.
The friendly and seemingly harmless blonde was the only person to be trusted and from what she had heard Jennifer Jareau was anything, but harmless. She was a weapon hiding behind an empathetic smile and a force to be reckoned with.
"So, Avery...what can I do for you?"
She didn't answer, but pulled the letter from her backpack and put it on the table, "My name is Avery Draucourt. And I need your help to save my mom."
"What happened to your mother?" JJ asked, her smile gone and replaced by a worried expression.
"I have no idea. I got the text with the code word. Mom always said if the day ever came she'd send that message and I had to come here and give you this letter."
JJ's confusion seemed to grow, but she took the letter, about to open it, "Your mother told you to come here if she ever sent a specific message?"
Avery nodded, "Yes. She said it means she's in trouble or more like I wouldn't be safe anymore and I should come here and talk to you as fast as I could. You'd know what to do."
"Where did you come from?"
"Switzerland."
JJ's eyes went wide, "Switzerland?! I don't know anyone in Switzerland."
Avery shrugged, "While that might be true I'm pretty sure you know my mom."
"Who is your mother then?"
It was an innocent question, but Avery knew as soon as she answered it nothing would ever be the same again.
She took a deep breath and met JJ's expecting blue eyes, "My mother's name is Emily Prentiss."