Disclaimer: Even on my 200th story, I still don't get to own even a smidgen of Criminal Minds!
A/N:Right, I'm sorry for no update last night, I had no internet all day yesterday! As for mistakes in this, I haven't done a proper read through purely because I am exhausted after today and just want to update for you guys and then crash!
So I hope you enjoy... Don't think I'm out of tricks just yet ;)
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Fate's Monster -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
JJ was just about aware of the hum of machines around her as she woke up and it was broad daylight outside. She closed her eyes against the brightness, but flung them open the moment someone's hand touched hers.
"I see they patched you up," Hotch told her as she came to look at him. He couldn't withhold the smile he felt as he finally caught her eyes.
JJ smiled through the pain for a moment as she looked around, "Sure doesn't feel like it." She looked at him with dead seriousness as her eyes watered, "I thought they'd killed you, Aaron. I saw you laying there and you weren't moving. I couldn't do anything."
Reaching up, Hotch cupped her face, "It was close, but we're here and alive. We're going to get through this."
"How are the others?" JJ asked worriedly as she pushed herself up. "I mean, Derek wasn't doing great, but Pen, what he made her go through," JJ paused as Hotch got up and sat on the bed so he could push her back down to the pillows. "He was horrible to her."
"It's still early days with, Penelope, but Derek's doing fine," Hotch told her calmly and saw her go to question him. "She had a few head contusions where the back of her head must have hit the floor a couple of times and between malnutrition and bleeding from various wounds, her body's responding slowly. The stab wounds pushed her body over the edge apparently."
"She is going to be okay though?" She asked Hotch regardless. She was hoping that he could promise her something more than 'it still early days'.
Hotch smiled, "She's been waking up on and off, but it's not enough to see what damage has occurred. I say that Penelope lasted long enough at the hands of that bastard, so I think she'll survive this part of it."
"Good," JJ whispered as she remembered seeing Penelope receive a back handed slap to tell her, her job was over. "He was so cruel to her, Aaron. He taunted her with what he was doing to me all the time."
"Morgan said as much too," Hotch sympathised in a low, remorseful tone.
"What else did he say?" JJ asked quickly. "I mean, Andrew said he had nearly killed Penelope at least once and if he had it his way then he'd make sure me and her would die together. I saw the bruise around her neck; it didn't take a genius to work out that he had tried to strangle her."
"I think it can wait until you're more up to it," Hotch calmed her gently. "She's busted up pretty badly, but this is Penelope, we all have faith in her to bounce back."
"Plus she has Derek back," JJ told him a smile. "You were right, as always," She told him, "He fought for her and looked after her the best he could in there." She watched him smile at her, "I was so scared when you weren't there." JJ felt her eyes water at that admittance, "I saw Dave and Reid and even Emily, but you were nowhere to be seen so I thought the worse. Then Dave caught me and told me we had to get to the hospital where you would be waiting."
"I heard you put up a fight," Hotch joked with her.
"I needed to know that Derek and Penelope were safe," JJ told him softly and smiled. "I never quite understood Penelope's reason for calling Derek her noir hero, but when he came out of that building with her in his arms, covered in blood and sweat and looking so exhausted and ready to collapse I knew why. Especially when he never let her go, even though he was exhausted, he never made her feel unsafe. He just got her help before he collapsed."
"Should I be jealous?" Hotch quipped quickly and she laughed. "I heard he saved the day."
"Not before getting stabbed though," JJ pointed out solemnly.
Hotch leaned in, "I've told you once, I'll tell you again, we're all going to be just fine." He then stole a kiss just to seal the promise to her. "You and me, Derek and Penelope, Dave and Emily even Reid, we're all going to make it through this like a family."
"I know," JJ finalised as she allowed herself to realise they were home and safe now.
"Now you're a little more awake I can get Will to bring Henry by later," Hotch told her with a smile. "For now, I'm getting a nurse to come give you some more pain meds."
Hotch watched her close her eyes and leaned down to kiss her gently before walking from her room for a moment.
Interesting would be what the atmosphere would be like when Will turned up and discovered that JJ had finally moved on.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Fate's Monster -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
"I need to see her," Derek said as he sat more alert on the new day. He had had no other option yesterday but to sleep it away against his will, but now he was awake he was agitated and moody. "I can't just sit here."
"Derek you have to," His mom chided him as he tried to form an escape. "You're in no fit state," She reminded him again.
"Listen to your mom, Morgan," Emily jumped in to help.
Derek put his hands to his head, ignorant of the pull it was placing on his sore and cut wrists from the chains. "I just need to see her; I need to know she's okay."
"She's not awake yet," Emily pointed out to him. "Not properly anyway."
"Well then, isn't that worrying?" Derek asked with tone full of sheer frustration.
Emily shook her head as she sat up, "The doctor isn't worried about that Derek, not with the amount of blood and fluid loss from her body. Her body's in shock, so it's just up to Penelope to recover." She smiled at her friend and colleague, "When she wakes up she'll be fighting to get here to you."
"But until then I'm stuck here when I should be there, with her," Derek told Emily and felt useless all over again - This time for a totally different reason.
Emily, taking the decision upon herself, stood up. "I'm going to go let Reid leave her, and I'm sticking around," Emily told him confidently. "I'll make sure that any change, however minuscule, is reported back to you Morgan."
"Not good enough," Derek huffed and winced as the pain in his chest played up.
"Tough, Buddy," Emily told him as she crossed his arms over his chest, "You're just going to have to suck it up and take it like a man." She smirked and looked to his mom, "If you have any issues remind him I'm not afraid to use force."
"I thought you were going to Penelope?" Derek asked with a cocked brow.
Emily putting her hands up, "Count me as gone." Emily replied and left him alone with his family.
The moment she was gone, Derek pushed the sheet down enough that he could pull the horrible hospital gown up. He wanted to know the real damage, not what the doctor had told them.
"What are you doing?" Fran asked her son intently.
Derek looked up from his body to his mom, "If I'm this bad, how bad is Penelope going to be?" He asked seemingly lost. "I want to know what damage that bastard did to her!"
"Derek," Sarah stepped in to calm her baby brother, "I know he hurt you both, and neither of us three can even begin to understand the unimaginable things you had to experience and witness, but you need to be strong for her now and for you."
Desiree got up to move closer, "We've seen her, and she had woken up slightly, and she asked about you, but until she's more awake there is no point you sitting in there worrying yourself sick. You need to heal and rest too, Derek."
"She needs me," He said as his mind became flooded with memories of what had occurred and how she had told him she loved and why she had said no to Lynch. He remembered seeing her bleeding out whilst he remained chained to the wall and the same helpless feeling rose in him all over. "She loves me; she's going to expect me there."
"There's a time to be her hero later," Fran commented as she leaned in closer too as though to show Derek his family were here to aid the new process.
Feeling his baby sister's arms around him, Derek broke down. He needed Penelope like none other and the separation was conducting so much anxiety in him that he was more than a broken man now.
After all, when you had her blood on your hands and had to be her hero, the whole world became your enemy.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Fate's Monster -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
"What was that about in there?" Derek bellowed at her, "My public humiliation or just some fucking game for those girls to witness or a way to make men jealous for you to get some?"
"It wasn't about those girls, or you, or about any men around," Penelope told him, "None of them matter."
"Well no, it's not like you want any other man," Derek told her venomously. "You had two great guys in your life. Both might I remind you would do anything for you, and both of them you treated like crap and both of them walked away from you."
"You're still here," Penelope told Derek, trying to believe that Derek would always here.
"Well guess what, Penelope? Watch me walk away too," Derek said and pushed her away from him, "For good."
Penelope's eyes flew open, it was dark out and she was just aware of the hospital life that continued on the outside of her hospital room. Closing her eyes she let her heart revel in the pain that that night had flooded her system with. She couldn't stop the tears because it seemed that now they had started they couldn't stop.
There was a part of her that believed that now they weren't in hell, Derek would revert to not talking to her. He loved her! He had said so, but right here, right now, in this hospital room she felt like the loneliest person alive.
"Penelope," Emily's voice burst into her head.
Looking up, Penelope saw her friend and smiled, "I should've known you'd be here." She swallowed dryly as she came away of her new predicament.
"Of course I would be!" Emily chirped back at her, "I would have hoped you would have woken up long before now though."
"What do you mean?" Penelope asked as she brought her hand up to her head as everything in her body came alive.
"We got you out yesterday morning, it's now coming up 9 in the evening," Emily said and reached in to shift some of the tears on Penelope's face out of the way. "You all made it though," She breezed with a smile, "JJ's possibly going home in the morning and Derek, he's being a proper grumpy bear not being allowed in here."
"Is he okay?" Penelope asked in alarm and tried to sit up exacerbating her wounds, "I need to get to him."
Emily pushed her friend back down, "Derek is just fine – believe me," She scoffed with a slight eye roll. "Pen, you can't go to him, your body sustained a lot of trauma, you need to rest up." Emily watched the emotions wash through Penelope's eyes and she felt her heart flutter and her reserve drop. "You're going to be okay," Emily told Penelope, more to remind herself than Penelope. "We're going to be here every step of the way."
Penelope nodded and bit her lip, she wanted Derek or JJ right now, she needed someone that had been on the receiving end of Andrew. Looking up to Emily, Penelope weakly reached up to move her fringe out of the way, "What happened?" She questioned and her hand dropped heavily back down to the mattress.
"Hotch got admitted after JJ's house was blown up, me and Reid were outside when someone targeted us, I told Reid to come and alert Rossi and I made a beeline for the van. I walked into their plan and played them at their own game," Emily returned with a smug grin. "Dave's ready to kill me, but I saved you guys even when we thought it was too late."
"You're an idiot when you wanna be you know that?" Penelope asked as she felt the painless sleep beginning to take over her body. She wanted to fight it, but she could feel the calm it was offering and the peace it was flushing into her system.
She was only aware of Emily getting off of the bed and talking to someone as she finally fell off of the cusp of consciousness and got lost in the bliss of darkness.
When Penelope woke up again she was completely alone. The unfamiliarity of the room did nothing to heed her heavy breathing, nor did it help her make sense of anything. As her mind came back to remind her that she was in the hospital, she felt stricken by something.
"Game time!" Came the evil whisper of Andrew in her ear and she looked and saw nothing, but as she did the same evil voice came in her other year, "I'm back, Penelope!"
It was in that moment that she sat up and ripped all the tubing away from her body. In a frenzied panic she needed an escape. However painful it was, however long it took she wasn't sticking around for Andrew to get her again.
As she stumbled passed a room, she saw Derek asleep in the bed. She stood by the window a little out of the way. She was aware of his mom and sisters and she was well aware of a jealous throb that rose within her. None of her family would be here like that - the fact she had woken up alone had proven that. This entire predicament had caught her unaware at how lonely she was in this world now.
Hearing her name, Penelope assumed Andrew was closing in on her and memories of how she ended up in this place came full throttle at her. She could feel her body wasn't up for this stress, nor was it ready for this type of stamina to aid an escape. The familiar throb in her joints told her that standing was a bad idea – again! – but she needed to get free. She went for the stairs and rushed out of sight, the voice carrying her name getting closer and closer.
Getting to the bottom of the first set of stairs, Penelope sank down in the stairwell and sobbed. She could master one flight of stairs, let another God knew how many. She was trapped and all she could do was hope that someone knew Andrew was after her. As she heard the door open, she curled up to protect herself except the voice that was here with her now wasn't Andrew, it was softer and more caring.
"Penelope," Came the voice once more and Rossi watched as Penelope's head flew up and stared at him. "Penelope, it's me Dave."
It was now Penelope was aware of her heart thrashing in her chest and every ounce of pain and lack of energy came back and she broke entirely. "Did you get him? He was here," Penelope sobbed painfully as Rossi crouched down with her. "H-he was coming back for me."
"Kitten," He started softly, "he's gone. Derek killed him. He's never coming back for you." Watching her nod, Rossi looked over his shoulder to look at Reid, "Go notify the nurses I'll be bringing her back up in a moment."
"Dave?" Penelope asked as Reid rushed away.
"What's up, Bella?" Rossi asked back as he tried to help her stand up.
"Please don't leave me," She whispered helplessly. In her mind, Andrew was coming back for her and if she couldn't have Derek then she wanted to latch onto the next best thing and Rossi was like a protective father, he would protect her.
Rossi smiled at her, "Wasn't my intention in the first place, but Hotch needed an update. I didn't think you'd have the energy to do this."
"I don't," Penelope admitted as she realised she had hardly no energy to make it back. She had no idea how she made it here, but now she was here she was not only a wreck, but she couldn't move through sheer fear, pain and exhaustion.
"Work with me, Penelope, and we'll have you back in bed in a minute," Rossi guided her and helped her stand up. He then allowed himself to take most of her weight and helped her up the stairs. He encouraged her as he took most of the energy needed and he scolded her lovingly to make her laugh a little, but he knew her body was still weak.
As they neared her room, Penelope felt a wave of unease come over her. One moment she thought she was going to make it and then the next her legs buckled and she was falling to the ground only just aware of Rossi catching her midst decent.
Rossi released a breath as Penelope's eyes opened again and he realised she had pushed her body to its limit's and now she was paying. He looked around and called for help as he realised he could push her to stand on her own accord, and he didn't want to cause her more harm than she had already caused by carrying her.
Emily having seen the commotion, rushed out of Derek's room, "What happened?"
"I think it was a panic attack," Dave said as Emily came towards him and Penelope's unconscious form. He looked as nurses came towards him. "She didn't have the energy for this," He said as he was pushed away and stood up. "She thought he was here, Em."
As they watched Penelope be taken back to her room, they followed, nerves buzzing in them again. It had been a long week, and it just seemed to be getting longer.
When they were declined access initially, Rossi sat down outside Penelope's room frustrated and tired, "This is going to be a long road to recovery, and if it's this bad now, what's it going to be like when we're get them all home?"
"You know you wanted our family back together?" Emily asked quietly and looked the man she loved as he looked at her.
"Yeah," He said, his worry still marring his face heavily.
Pointing to Derek rushing from his room towards them she looked at him and smiled, "We have a family back. We'll get through this." Emily promised him as she placed her hand on the opposite side of her face and drew it close enough to kiss his cheek. "Now c'mon," She said as she stood up and put her hand out to him, "I think Penelope and Derek need us for the moment."
Taking Emily's hand, Rossi finally realised that their plan might have failed, but their new plan might just have been made easier.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Fate's Monster -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
