Hello, everyone.
Happy Easter and April Fools Day.
Here is my sequel to Anastasia.
Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds. Criminal Minds belongs to the creator, Jeff Davis, CBS, etc. I don't own any of the original characters, although I'm not going to lie, I wish I did. I'm not going to lie again, I'm über nervous about creating this sequel, but you gave me the confidence and encouragement. I'll try and get to my other stories when I can; of course, there's the occasional writer's block, school full-time—finals will come up soon, part-time job, etc.
Enjoy and I look forward to hearing from you all.
Please enjoy and please do review, too; constructive criticism and new ideas are always appreciated.
Previously from "Anastasia…"
"We got ourselves a case. And it's quite a big one…Geneviève Jeannette François aka G.J. François…"
"…Her husband: Nicolas Arthur Edwin Johannes Reinhardt. He's been sending threatening notes and letters to her, saying she will regret leaving him, she will pay for taking the children with her. And the children…Ovid…Tiberius…Mario…and…Anthony…"
"…Ms. G.J. François is pregnant with their fifth child and she's afraid he'll come after her family, too, not just the children…"
"You are going find him, right? You don't know that man. You don't know him at all. He will…"
"Agents and officers will be driving by periodically, along with the extra security." JJ assured her.
"And I'll be able to see my sons again, right?"
"Yes, ma'am. Call us if you need anything, okay?"
"You know, if anything were to happen to me, I just want to leave this world knowing that my children are loved and all I want for them to know that they would be with people who will love them...make them feel safe…and protected…"
"We got her!"
"Please…help my baby…It's a girl..." She gave them a braving smile as she showed them her newborn child.
"She's perfect." Reid complimented. "What's her name?"
"Anastasia…uh…Anastasia Nicole…Mathilde…." She let out a quiet painful cry. "…uh…Diana…"
"Please…don't leave me…"
"I'm not leaving you, ma'am…"
Grabbing a hold of his arm, "I need to tell you something…Promise me that she will be looked after and surrounded by people who will make her feel valued, loved, safe, protected…ah…"
"Ma'am…"
"…I don't want her to think that she entered this world thinking she was not loved and abandoned. I want her to know she came into this world knowing she was loved and wanted more than anything else in this world. Please! Promise me!" The pleading in the tone of her voice, even her tears, was real.
Taking a deep breath himself. "I promise."
"Oh, god!"
"Prentiss! We just found the rest of the family…"
"…And her four sons…"
"…She never made it off the table."
"…I would like to foster her."
"You've been granted emergency temporary custody of Anastasia."
"Which one of you is Dr. Spencer Reid?"
"I am, ma'am."
"She's all yours."
"I'm…going to adopt her."
Morgan almost choked on his hot chocolate. "You are?"
"Yes. Yes, I am."
"Congratulations, doctor. And especially to you, Anastasia Nicole Mathilde Diana…Reid."
"Anastasia Nicole Mathilde Diana Reid. Your name is now Anastasia Nicole Mathilde Diana Reid."
"To Anastasia!"
"Anastasia!"
"Come on, princess," Reid whispered to a sleepy Anastasia, kissing her head and forehead numerous times as he was putting her in her crib. "It's time for bed. Oh, here we go. Shh-shh-shh. Oh, good night, my sweet, little, growing Anastasia."
Reid could not help but sigh at Anastasia. The way she looked like a peaceful angel in her little pink bunny pajama set, sleeping without a care in the world. "I can't believe it's been a year, two weeks and five days since the courts placed you in my custody. I look back at what has happened during the past year…"
"…You're liking this, aren't you? [...] Come on, let me put this hooded towel on you, so you don't get cold, okay? There you go. Look at you, you're all clean and cozy now."
Reid grabs Anastasia from JJ's arms and starts rocking, calming her down. "Oh. Hey-hey-hey, Anastasia. It's okay. It's okay. I know. I know. I'm here now. I'm here now. Everything's going to be okay."
"Hey, Anastasia. […] Did you know that tummy time can not only help you get big and strong and develop motor skills, prevents the back of your head from developing positional plagiocephaly?"
"Gitchee gitchee goo. […] Da-da, da-da.".
"Did she…?" A stunned Tara asked.
"Just call Reid…? An astound Rossi asked.
"Da-da. Da-da." Anastasia taps Reid's nose.
Reid tried to talk; his mouth was moving, opening and closing, but he couldn't actually get the words out. He almost felt like crying when he felt his eyes were watering. Finally, he just simply unbuckles her and brought him into his arms, holding her close to him. "She said her first words to me." He whispered. "You said your first words to me." He allowed a tear to fall.
"Aww, Anastasia. You did it! Yay!" Reid chuckled as he just witnessed another historic milestone in her development: her first crawl. In no time soon, she'll be taking her first steps, use the toilet on her own, sleep in her own bed. Not understanding before, he now knew how JJ, Simmons, and Morgan felt. He began to have all these thoughts and feelings he either never knew or felt in a long time; giving him a headrush.
…He almost felt like crying as he heard Anastasia cry on the other line. "Aw, Anastasia. Don't cry. D-don't cry. I'll be home as soon as I can. Okay? Now, I gotta go. Bye. Love you." He started to develop another lump in his throat as well as a single tear. Instead, he forced himself to swallow the lump, wipe away his tear and quickly hung up.
…Straightway, he dropped his bags, keys, and coat on the floor—something he would never really do but did and needed it, he made a run towards Anastasia's room and finds her peacefully sleeping in her crib. He watched her for a few more seconds before planting a kiss on her forehead and moves a piece of her hair away from her face.
"I'm home, Anastasia," He whispered. "I told you I would be home. And I meant what I said before. I love you."
…"Based on the symptoms and the diagnostics and chest X-ray we ran, Anastasia has RSV."
"Respiratory syncytial virus?" The doctor nods his head.
…Reid had spent the entire day with Anastasia opening presents, consuming milk and cookies, or milk and baby food in Anastasia's case; they watched classic Christmas specials and read Christmas-theme books…
…"Of course, doctor, but we recommend a quick and loving good-bye."
"Oh! Well…okay." He gently placed Anastasia on the floor since she still couldn't walk yet and gave her kisses on her forehead, cheeks, and head. "I love you."
"It's always harder on the parents than the children."
"Now, you'll tell me." Just one last kiss on her head. "Have fun, Anastasia. Love you."
…"You're tired, huh? Well, it's time for you to go to bed anyway. And besides, it's a very special day tomorrow: your birthday. Yeah!"
…"One day," Reid said with tears in his eyes and some ran down. "You were in this world…in your mother's arms…for that one whole day…before I first held you. Your brothers never got the chance to hold you or meet you. And I know you'll never get the chance to know any of them. But you got me and everyone in this room. We got your back. And I will forever hold on to you, no matter how old you are. One day, you'll understand that." He kisses her forehead and hugs her. "I love you.
"Spencer, my dear." Her blue eyes soon motioned towards the half-sleepy Anastasia. "A…baby. Baby, you never told me you had a baby. That means I'm a grandmother." She had tears in her eyes, her voice was breaking. "I have a grandchild."
"Oh, Spencer, dear. She's so beautiful." She squats down to get a better look at her. "And so tiny and young. Hi, dearie. I'm your Great-Aunt Ethel."
"It seems like just yesterday…your mother braved a smile…knowing you came into this world under unfortunate situations…and yet she wanted you to know you came into this world knowing you were loved more than anything…protected…valued…treasured…wanted…and that's what I'm going to keep doing…no matter what…no matter what…"
"...And a year, three weeks and two days later, I end up adopting you. I know you will never get the chance to know your mother Geneviève, your four brothers Ovid, Tiberius, Mario, and Anthony, or the rest of your family, but I will tell you about them one day, but until the moment I do…I think they would want you to have a good, happy, joyful and safe life; you deserve it."
He starts to hum to her before singing her favorite song as he caresses her, "If you smile/Through your fears and sorrow…/Smile and maybe tomorrow…/You'll find…that life…is still worthwhile/If you…just…smile…"