Journey On
Chapter Ten: Dance With the Devil
Story Summary: The story of Emily and JJ, from the very beginning.
Chapter Summary: The Jareau's are in very deep trouble, David especially. The Prentiss' are still fighting, and Emily's has to be hospitalized if she keeps panicking and ripping out her stitches.
Warnings: Domestic abuse, mentions of attempted suicide, mentions of rape, blah blah… all previous warnings are the same.
Spoilers: Demonology, 4.17 and Risky Business, 5.13.
A/N: Jackie's in serious trouble, and Emily's going to be moved, and this is not going to be a happy chapter so brace yourselves. Not a fun chapter.
XxX
Location: Rome, Italy.
Date: September 1, 1982. 0900 hours.
Emily Prentiss remained silent, staring straight ahead, her face stoic. Only if one tried, you would notice tears glimmering in her eyes. Her posture was perfect, if rigid. The Ambassador had not let her say goodbye, only quietly signed the discharge paperwork and left. Emily had fought her, both mentally and physically. Snarling, growling, shouting, nothing worked. She had been sedated.
Emily had written a note, she had been prepared for something like this. She slid it out from under her pillow and left in on it, before she had been sedated. And now, half a day later, she was in Rome, about to enter her newest school. She knew she would be stared at, after all, she and… JJ were kidnapped for the better part of a year, but she had been kidnapped for two. She had seen the newspapers, read the articles, remembered the things Jones had done.
Her mother was walking into the school, two boys following her out.
"Emily, meet Matthew Benton and John Cooley, they'll show you around the school, and around Rome if you so wish."
She nodded, not really caring. Her thoughts were still surrounding the little blonde girl she had left back in the States. She didn't care if her father continued beating her to hell and back, she would live, if only to see that girl again. Snapping back to the present, she politely nodded at the two older boys. Matthew was fourteen, John was sixteen as she found out later, walking into the school. It had a bit of a prison feel to it, and she had a very unpleasant feeling that some unpleasant memories would be triggered.
XxX
Location: East Allegheny, Pennsylvania.
Date: August 31, 1982. 2100 hours.
She had been openly crying for the last four hours. She had gone to check on Emily after she made sure that Jackie would've been okay after her… what was the word? Sui… suicide? Suicide attempt. She knew it had been coming, she'd seen her sister's arms, her forever haunted eyes. She thought it was her fault. If she'd still been around, then daddy wouldn't have hurt her as much. Jackie had always been fragile. Back to the point…
So she'd gone to check on Emily, but she found the nurses cleaning up, and one of the nurses had asked her if her name was JJ. She had nodded, and accepted the letter, and had asked what was going on. She had been told what had happened.
"Ambassador Prentiss personally requested discharge papers." The nurse caught sight of JJ's quivering lower lip. "JJ, Emily didn't want to leave, but the Ambassador insisted. Don't blame Emily for it, okay, JJ? Maybe she explains herself in the letter."
JJ stared at the folded sheet of paper in her hands, finally taking note of the still perfect handwriting. She sniffed quietly, and the nurse took her the bathroom to get some privacy.
She opened the letter, and she read slowly, careful not to miss anything.
Dear JJ.
You've been my best friend for the last year, even under those circumstances. I thank you for you friendship and company, mandatory or not. You were my light, my angel, my driving force. Without you, I think, I would've given up. I am determined to see you again, hopefully under better circumstances.
I understand J, that you are under a lot of pressure right now, with your sister hospitalized too, and your father… well, being your father. I know you are strong enough to take it JJ. I know you can. So be strong, if not for yourself, for me, because I can't bear to even imagine you hurting. So take my advice J. When the nightmares come, remember there are better things, happier things in life than where you are right now. And when you are surrounded by darkness, know that the light is at the end of the tunnel and that you will get there. There's a quote I want you to know, I think it's something like this…
"When things are bad, we take comfort in the thought that they could always be worse. And when they are, we find hope in the thought that things are so bad they have to get better."
Make something good of yourself J. Be strong, proud, and confident. Don't get stuck in that little town of yours. (Let's face it, it is a small town.) Don't let your home life get you down. Wear your game face, don't let people see you hurt because they'll take advantage of it. But if you ever need to vent, send me a letter. Next to you, or a hundred thousand miles away, I'll be there for you.
Jennifer Jareau, you are one of a kind. I thank you for your compassion, quiet strength and especially your love. I'll miss you, and I will see you again.
Love,
Em.
ps. All future letters should be sent to Rome, Italy, to Emily Prentiss in the US Embassy. I'll get it.
Here, Jennifer broke down, her cries echoing softly in the empty bathroom. Tears made soft plops on the tiles of the floor as JJ tried to reign in her emotions and put on her game face, as Emily had put it. She harshly wiped away her falling tears.
"I'll do it," she whispered, hoping like crazy that wherever Emily was, she heard it. Slipping quietly, she padded quietly to her sister's room, making sure that Jackie's heart monitor was still bleeping. It was something she had to hear and to see to reassure herself that her sister was still here. That her sister wasn't in a coffin curried six feet under somewhere.
She retreated back into the waiting room, where her parents were waiting to take her home. But they were talking to the social services people, she thought, so did that mean she wasn't going home? Or were they going to arrest her daddy?
"David Jareau, you are under arrest for multiple counts of domestic abuse and sexual abuse. You have the right to remain silent…"
Yes, her dad was going back to jail, for good. The three strikes thing she overheard Agent Hotchner and Agent Rossi talking about. But sexual abuse? He was molesting, raping, Jackie? Because if he was… her blood boiled to even consider it.
He was going to pay.
A/N: Sorry for the shorter chapter, I've been as busy as crap. Thanks to mindspsychoaddict and xGoldenThroatSharpayx for reviewing! I appreciate the feedback! Next chapter skips ahead three years. Emily will be fifteen and JJ eleven. (dundundundun…) So, review and enjoy! Not necessarily in that order though…
Toodles!
~S12