Disclaimer: In part one.

AN: I can only hope that you, my faithful readers will forgive the delay. I am really sorry. All I can say is stress got the better of me and I decided to listen. I believe things are now regulating, so updates will hopefully be more consistent at every couple of days. Enjoy and please feel free to let me know what you're thinking. Harlie

December 22, 2010

Temporary Morgan residence, Toronto, Canada

Penelope could barely see straight by the time Superintendent Moore dropped her off at Derek's mom's rented house. She'd run into him while making a brief visit to the constable who'd also been shot by Gomes on that fateful evening. Now both he and Derek were on the mend and all Penelope could think of was a hot shower and sleep.

Using the key Momma Morgan had provided to her, Penelope unlocked the door to the two-storey townhouse and shuffled in. In deference to it not being her own house, she slipped off her shoes, leaving them by the front door, and carried her purse with her as she made for the stairs. It was as her hand touched the railing that reality intruded into her semi consciousness.

She blinked several times and even gave herself a little pinch before accepting what she was seeing was indeed real and not some mirage. The railing was covered in garland and a Christmas stairway runner with little elves adorning it led the way up the stairs. Shifting to the right and taking a few steps, she came to the top of the stairs leading to the basement and found more garland and snowflakes hanging from the drop ceiling. Moving with a speed she didn't think her tired body had the energy for, Penelope pivoted and climbed the stairs up to the next level.

She was mindful of the decorations and forewent actually holding the banister. By the fifth step up, she had a fairly clear view of the living room, kitchen and dining room. Every available surface had been decorated. A Christmas tree stood proudly in front of the patio door; across from that and through a set of French doors, she could see the dining room table set with Christmas dishes atop Christmas linens, the doorways to the kitchen and dining room sported mistletoe. As her eyes scanned their way along the opposite wall of the living room, they saw the fireplace.

Nine stockings hung from individual hooks from the mantle. Each hook was an initial, but each stocking was embroidered with a name. Fran, followed by Sarah and Travis, their children Simon and Teresa, and then Derek and Baby Girl hanging from a P hook…it was the only one already stuffed to overflowing.

Tiredness forgotten, Penelope dropped her purse and keys on the closest flat surface, and made her way over to the fireplace. She slid her hand along from the end where Desiree and Garrett's stockings were to come to her own. Uncertain, she began to look for a way to unhook it when a voice startled her.

"You'd be better off to take some out first and then try. Mom had to work magic to get everything Derek's collected over the years in there. The rest of us had to settle for making you a pile beside your gifts under the tree," Sarah remarked, as she came to stand beside Penelope.

"This is all from Derek?"

"Every last one," Sarah confirmed. "My brother hasn't stopped going on about you since you met. Finally, about four years ago, Mom had told him to bring you home with him for the holidays, but a case had come up and he'd never made it. He'd sent the gifts and stocking stuffers ahead of time and Mom had already made you the hook and stocking like she'd done for the rest of us, and so it began. Each year, he sends your stocking stuffers, but you haven't been there to receive them."

"He'd never said anything." Penelope took out a few of the looser gifts from the top and handed them to Sarah.

"So we'd gathered, but I know he'd had it all planned for you to be with us this year for sure. He'd even called Mom the night before he was shot and told her to make sure your stocking was out with everything in it." Sarah placed the gifts she'd been holding on a side table.

"He didn't-" Penelope began to say.

"Tell you," Sarah interrupted. "I think he had planned to go caveman and kidnap you, because Agent Prentiss had mentioned your go bag was supposed to mysteriously go missing on the way to the jet, and you two were supposed to catch a flight to Chicago from here as soon as the case was done."

Penelope was too overwhelmed to speak. With shaking hands, she took down the stocking, hook and all, and dropped into the closest chair with her remaining bounty. Sarah placed the ones from the side table in her lap as well, and then slipped away into the kitchen without saying anything more. It took Penelope several seconds to pull all the wrapped items out of the sock-like sack. She was pleased to find they all had tags on them identifying what year they had been added. Slipping onto the carpeted floor, she grouped them around her, putting the lone small square box with a 2010 tag on top of the emptied stocking to her left.

By the time Sarah rejoined her with cups of hot chocolate laced with Bailey's® Irish Mint Cream, Penelope had an impressive collection of wild pens and funky hair adornments tagged 2007, a chunky necklace with an eye pendent she was almost positive was Austrian crystal, a pair of flying saucer dangling earrings, as well as a pair of bowling ball stud ones, all tagged 2008, and a very intricate white, yellow and rose gold eternity ring accompanied by a silver pendent that spelled out Forever which were tagged 2009.

"Not hard to tell what year you went from being just a friend to being the love of my brother's life," Sarah said, before taking a healthy gulp of her cocoa.

"It's not like that. We're just friends. Best friends," Penelope replied, fingering the letters of the pendent.

"Mmm-hmm…Travis is my best friend, too. It's why we have two children together and number three will hopefully be here by next Christmas," Sarah paused, took another sip of her drink, and then said, "If I were you, I'd wait until my brother gets here from the hospital to open that last stocking stuffer. The size and shape are suspicious to me."

Penelope glanced at the little box sitting innocently on the floor on its woolen cushion. "You don't think…"

"I do. Now, I think you'd best gather your gifts and head to bed. I'll clean up down here and make dinner while you rest," Sarah said, tossing a saucy wink at Penelope, before she disappeared once again into the kitchen.

"It couldn't be," Penelope whispered, as she picked up the remaining unopened present and tapped on it. Not much of a sound was made, it was too hard to squeeze and it didn't rattle when shaken. With Sarah's allusion floating unfettered through her thoughts, Penelope slipped it back into the stocking and re-hung it beside Derek's. She started to slip the eternity ring onto the third finger of her right hand, but paused to try it on the third finger of the left instead. The cool metal felt odd at first, however it warmed quickly and brought with it a sense of rightness.

Gathering the rest of the presents, Penelope called, "Good night", to Sarah, retrieved her purse and keys, before heading up to the room Fran had told her was waiting for her.

A long shower later, she slipped into the Chicago PD t-shirt she'd relieved Derek of some years before and a pair of pajama pants, before laying down. She laid there staring at the ring on her left hand until she fell asleep and dreamt-for the first time in a long time-of a future with her Hot Stuff not restricted to being only his best friend.

TBC…