Disclaimer: I do not own anything Criminal Minds related. Characters are merely borrowed and will be put back later. ;)

Fair and Foul

Chapter Eight- Dawn Troubles

"Her lips on his could tell him better than all her stumbling words."

Margaret Mitchell

It was only when the earliest stroke of sunshine sparked through the window that she woke up. Her right hand was stretched across his torso, her head resting near his collarbone, their legs still tangled together on the couch. His arms were still wrapped around her delicately, almost as though he could, and would, protect her as she slept. She had no idea how they had settled into this embrace- but she was content to stay there.

She wasn't sure what would happen next; but she wasn't going to regret that she had finally given in to her feelings either. She gently repositioned her head so that she could see his face- and his warm brown eyes were looking down at her. He had woken before she had.

For a second or two, nothing was said. Only the twitter of the birds outside could be heard as they both assessed the situation, their eyes locked together in a trance of non-repentance. Neither, she realised for the first time, regretted what had happened.

And still, neither of them spoke. She still felt slightly woozy, those cursed butterflies still dancing in her stomach. Unwittingly, she smiled at the entire idea- and she was instantly comforted when he smiled back. She would never get sick of that smile. All lines disappeared from his face, all weariness worn away, to be replaced by a younger looking and even more handsome Aaron Hotchner.

Absentmindedly, she again did what she had done just hours before, and ran her hand along his arm- or at least, the part of it she could reach without straining herself. She put her head back down, resting against his chest, not wanting to move in case this all disappeared. She was most surprised when the arm she had been stroking detached itself from her body and reached for her hand. He laced their fingers together as they lay there, still smiling- unaware that he was doing so- and feeling happier than he had in a long time.

He played with her hand for a few seconds more before carefully putting it on his chest, above his heart. He kept his hand over hers for a second and she was caught up in the beat of his heart almost instantly. And finally, one of them spoke.

"Emily..." he said, voice hoarse and choppy from the few hours sleep he had had, and the emotional talking that had gone before it.

"Mmm.." she intoned, eyes closed and still sleepy. The sunlight was streaming through the window, lighting her features with warmth and the iridescent colours of a cleanliness that comes only after a big storm.

It would have been painful to drag her to his mouth so he could kiss her- which was what he truly wanted- and the last thing he wanted was to cause her more pain. He took his other hand from her back, where it had rested near her shoulder all night, and locked his fingers into her hair, gently massaging her neck as she dozed softly. He was more than willing to show her that- for him, at least- the streak of desire from the night before wasn't going to go away easily. He didn't have to wait very long for her to confirm her similarly strong feelings to him.

She moved her hand from his heart to his neck and gently pulled her body up, moving her head until she could look right into his eyes. She pressed her nose into his cheek and, running her fingers through his hair she closed her eyes and found his mouth. She ever so gently nibbled on his lower lip before kissing him properly, her hair tumbling over to tickle his face.

Last night's kisses had been half frantic- effortless but shockingly passionate. Today they were romantic and heavy, laced with the weightier, more meaningful and intimate feelings of two people who had finally found each other exactly when they were needed most.

His hands were wandering to her waist and back up, touching and holding her back through his familiar feeling shirt. Every now and again, they stopped, breathing softly, just to look, half disbelievingly, at each other.

She was approaching a state of breathlessness, her tongue caught in a strong barrage of kisses and warmth- when the phone rang, the tone shrilly echoing through the room. She pulled away from him when she heard it, but he didn't move at all. He just looked up into her eyes and then reached his hands to her face, pulling her back down toward him. She smiled widely and didn't fight him off. The phone kept ringing but they ignored it, focused only on each other as the world woke up outside.

Cautiously, carefully, trying not to damage anyone, he moved her onto her side. He found himself a few moments later looking across at her, her face turned sideways to avoid the thin stream of sunlight floating into the room.

She was stunning. He had always known that she was a beautiful woman, but he had tried to deny his feelings for so long that the rush of affection he now felt was almost new to him again. He lowered himself toward her and when he was close enough, he pressed his nose against hers in a moment of silent contentment. When she turned her head to face him again, he caught her in a breathtaking kiss. It was warm and caring, emotion and honour pouring from his every action. She loved the feeling of his lips pressed against hers and just as her fingers found his hair, the phone rang again.

"Ugh...," Emily sighed whiningly, disgusted at the interruption. Aaron looked at her and half chuckled before struggling out of their embrace to pick up the phone. It took him a few seconds but he got there just in time.

"Aaron Hotcher," he stated on picking up the phone.

Emily rolled onto her back while he was gone. Her stomach was sore this morning- no doubt from the awful treatment she had given it before she arrived at Aaron's house the night before. She had taken no painkillers since the day previous and it was coming back to haunt her- and fast.

"I understand. I'll be there as soon as I can." He hung up the phone, sighed loudly and padded back to where she lay on the couch. He wanted to tell her what the call was about, but he could read pain on her face as she lay there and an instant look of concern washed over his face- followed by one of mild scolding.

"You never took another painkiller, did you?" he questioned.

"Nn... No." She said, cramped over on the couch to avoid the pain getting worse. Why it had suddenly gotten so bad she couldn't tell. "Aaron... help me up." She said, sounding both weakened and determined.

"No way. I'll help you lie out properly and we'll make sure nothing's wrong."

She was too sore to argue with him, so she said nothing to that, but her expression twisted and Aaron knew he had to help her. He walked to her side and gently moved her from her cramped position, turning on her back. It hurt her like hell, and he was getting worried that something serious had happened.

"Emily, I have to check to make sure that it's alright. It will only take a minute, just hang on."

She said nothing, eyes tight shut and knuckles white at her sides. He felt nervous about this; it shouldn't be that sore, and she wasn't exactly the victim type either- so she wasn't exaggerating. The shirt he had given her the night previous was a long one- she had tied the long sections across the front in a knot- a knot he didn't have time to undo, not when there was something wrong.

"Emily... I'm sorry, I have to start from the top. I'm sorry.."

She didn't care, she just nodded, trying to keep her breathing normal and strong, deliberately breathing in through her nose and out of her mouth. He carefully undid the first closed button of the shirt, moving as quickly as he could to the next despite his shaking hands. He ignored the plain white satin bra he revealed piece by piece, but his fingers were shaking so badly that the task was taking too long. She was clearly in too much pain for this to be something a painkiller would solve and his hands wouldn't speed up.

Finally, he reached the edge of the bandage. He knew that the wound ran across her stomach and part of her side. He pulled the shirt as far to the side as he could, revealing the bandage in its entirety- soaked with fresh blood.

"Aaron..." she whispered as he took his hand away, "What.. Oh God..."

"It's fine. Honestly, it's fine. I'm going to call an ambulance, you'll be fine. Just hang on a few minutes more, okay?"

He reached for her hand and squeezed it, reaching the cordless handset he had set down on the coffee table a few seconds before. Dialling 911 with bloody fingers, he asked for an ambulance and gave his address. The woman on the end of the phone kept him talking to her- he sounded completely distraught- and he kept passing assurances to Emily. Just before he hung up, he heard the sirens in the distance and he hoped that they would be there soon.

He leaned over and, still clasping her hand tightly, he kissed her cheek. "Emily.. They're almost here, and they're going to... they're going to...they'll help."

Her breathing was shallow and ragged but she squeezed his hand quite strongly. He kissed her again, half frantically, on the lips- determined to keep her with him since she wasn't talking. She did kiss him back, a miserable tear falling down her cheek.

As he was reaching his peak frustration point, the sirens stopped abruptly- right outside the door. He left her to run to it, pulling it open quickly and leading the paramedics to her. They kneeled next to her, asked him questions about her condition and when she had sustained the injury- all of which he answered calmly while holding her hand and stroking her fingers. Eventually- though it really only took about a minute, it just felt like eternity- they lifted her onto a stretcher and moved to carry her out of the house.

He automatically moved with them, determined to be there with her, but they stopped him.

"Sir, you'll have to follow us. There isn't enough room and we need as much space as we can get," he was calmly informed.

He nodded and watched them leave, feeling useless and anxious.

***

Ten minutes later, he was on his way to the hospital. He had found her bag and brought it with him- her cell, keys and credentials were in there, he knew she would want them eventually. He had managed to change into his usual suit trousers and shirt, though he had left his jacket and his tie behind, his shirtsleeves rolled up- his typical giveaway sign of dissatisfaction and stress.

He sped along the road, listening to nothing but his heart pounding in his chest. He couldn't know what was wrong with her, but worst case scenarios inevitably came to mind. He drove on, relentless in his pursuit of the ambulance to the nearest hospital.

***

By the time he arrived, he was on the phone, calling members of the team to let them know- Rossi was first, Reid and Morgan next. By the time he got to JJ, both she and Garcia knew and so his short calls drew them together within an hour.

He was sitting, silent and empty, inside the room where she lay asleep, holding her hand- and running his other hand through his hair every now and again- when they arrived. Rossi Morgan and JJ crowded inside, Reid and Garcia departing to get coffee.

Rossi wasn't the only one who noticed the state Hotch was in- Morgan shot JJ a slightly concerned look and all three of them noticed the fact that their boss's fingers were comfortably laced together with Emily's.

"How did you find out about this?" Rossi asked him, unaware that she had spent the night at Hotch's house, but perfectly in the knowledge that Hotch had long had a thing for Emily.

"She came over to talk to me about what happened at work yesterday, with Strauss. We... she..." He struggled to explain what had happened. He didn't particularly want to, so he skipped that part instead. "She felt sore. She was on the verge of passing out so I checked the wound and it didn't look good. I called the ambulance....I..."

"Hotch... you look awful. The doctor told us she'll be fine. It was an infection- a pretty big one, but they gave her some antibiotics. She's going to be fine."

"I know. I just... it's just so...." He couldn't continue- not without coming undone, which was the last thing he wanted.

"Aaron...." Emily's fragile voice sounded from the bed next to him. He snapped around to see her opening her eyes slowly and tiredly. "Emily, I'm here. What do you need? Can I get you something?" he said quickly. She didn't respond quickly though, and it took her time to continue, "You're- you're doing that thing again... blaming yourself."

Rossi smiled to himself, turned and shooed Morgan and JJ out under the pretence of getting coffee with Reid and Garcia. Aaron was left sitting there next to her, exhausted, out of sorts and weary. He kissed her hand tenderly and stood up, pressing his lips against her forehead. "Get some rest. You need it," he said softly, pushing her hair back from her face.

He turned to see Rossi standing at the door, watching. Hotch walked past him and Rossi simply smiled at his retreating back before following him, questioning him immediately- albeit not about Emily Prentiss and the closeness between them.

"Care to tell us about what happened yesterday? You ran out of the BAU and Emily disappeared within seconds after her interrogation. We're all wondering and we've got time to hear the story now. Tell us what Strauss has up her sleeve."

Hotch nodded. "Fine, I'll tell you. But I need coffee first." The words were barely out of his mouth when Garcia handed him a cup. "Tell us everything," Morgan said, "because Strauss looked damn happy yesterday, and that's not good."

***

"So wait, Hotch. You're telling me that you're under investigation, Emily's set to take your place, she doesn't want to and so if you're fired, she'll quit?" Morgan asked, incredulous.

"Yeah."

"And you got a call this morning from Strauss to say she's finished her investigation?" Reid finished the summary with a wince.

"Yeah."

"Do you think it's good news or bad?" Rossi asked, brow furrowed and thinking deeply.

"Bad. She didn't take any witness statements, did she?" Hotch intoned. They all shook their heads sadly. "Then it's bad," he said. "She just needs the smallest misdemeanour to pin on me. And she'll find it- phoning the Vatican was out of line that time, I never reported some things that I probably should have, there've been some complaints... It will be only too easy for her to get rid of me; I've given her enough ammo."

JJ was left shaking her head as he stood up to leave for the trip to the BAU.

"Take care of her," he murmured- and they all knew who he meant, "I have to go face Strauss. I'll be back as soon as possible."

And then he was gone, leaving Morgan, JJ, Garcia Rossi and Reid astounded and confused. Their boss was set to be fired- and the woman they had all come to care about and treat as a sister would walk away from the politics that ran the FBI. They remembered the last time it had happened- it threw the team for a loop and destroyed their continuity and consistency. They had not been able to solve that case without help- none of them wanted to contemplate the possible failure of the BAU if they were both to leave.

"If Hotch and Emily are both gone, it's a death knell for us," Morgan said quietly. Nobody disagreed.