A/N: I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. Thank you for the reviews of the last chapter - my head was a complete scramble at the time and I didn't get the chance to reply individually but I appreciate every one. Enjoy the next chapter and I'm planning on updating more frequently until this one is finished. :)

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Henry clung anxiously to his godmother's hand as she led him through the maze of corridors in the hospital. He'd had a restless night, upset to have been separated from his parents so unexpectedly, and not really understanding what was going on.

"Are you OK?" she asked, as he stepped behind her legs when a group of doctors and nurses rushed down the corridor in response to an alarm.

He nodded, biting his lip, and looking entirely unconvincing. Garcia couldn't help but smile - it was uncanny how like his parents the boy could be.

"How about I carry you until we find your mom?" she suggested. "You can pretend to be a little monkey!"

The trace of a smile appeared on his face, and she lifted him up so that he was balanced on her hip and his arms were looped around her neck. He was a little too big to be held in that way, but he didn't care.

"Where's Momma and Daddy?" he mumbled, pressing his face close to Garcia's neck.

"We'll find them soon," she responded cheerfully.

"It smells funny," he remarked, still keeping his voice low so that only his godmother could hear. It was clear he really didn't like the hospital.

Garcia tightened her hold a little, hoping he'd relax when he saw his parents. It broke her heart to see him upset.

"Excuse me," Garcia said, catching the attention of nurse. "Could you tell me where I can find Detective William LaMontagne?" she asked.

"Are you family?" the nurse asked, scrutinising the blonde woman and small child as she spoke.

"Yes," Garcia replied, with a hint of indignation. "And this is his son." She rubbed Henry's back, sensing that the nurse was making him more uncomfortable.

The nurse directed them to the correct room, softening slightly as she watched the boy. The ICU was no place for a child.

They saw JJ before they found the room. It seemed she had stepped out to find them.

"Henry!" she beamed, as the boy jumped from Garcia's arms and rushed towards her. "I thought you'd got lost!" she exclaimed, crouching down to give him a proper hug. Not being able to pick up her son was another difficulty of her advancing pregnancy.

"Sorry we're late," Garcia responded. "This place is a maze!"

"That's OK - Will's sleeping anyway," JJ informed her friend, with a slight sigh. He'd been unable to keep his eyes open for more than a few minutes at a time, and while his drowsiness and weakness only made her more concerned, she knew he had to rest.

"Can I see Daddy?" Henry asked, gazing directly at his mother with wide, tired eyes. It was clear to her that he hadn't slept nearly enough the previous night and he'd been crying.

"He's sleeping just now," she explained gently, running a hand through his hair.

"I won't wake him up," Henry insisted. "I'll be quiet."

JJ felt the all to familiar sting in her eyes. She wondered when she'd manage to go more than ten minutes without crying.

"Just for a minute," she agreed, taking hold of his hand and standing up.

"I'll meet you in the cafeteria," Penelope suggested, giving the family some privacy.

JJ nodded and gave her a grateful smile. She didn't know how she'd have got through the night without her friends.

/
/

Henry's eagerness to see his father faltered as JJ opened the door to Will's room. He hesitated in the doorway, staring at the wires and tubes and monitors which surrounded the bed.

"It's OK, Henry," she assured him, placing her hands on his shoulders and encouraging him to step inside.

Slowly, he shuffled forward, careful not to stray away from his mother. Together they approached the bed, where Henry frowned at the cast on his dad's leg and the tube feeding into the back of his hand.

"It's OK," JJ repeated. "Daddy broke his leg so the doctors put on a cast to keep it nice and still while it heals," she explained.

"Like when you hurt your arm?" he asked quietly, turning his head to face her.

"Just like that," she nodded. "And that tube is giving him medicine."

"So it doesn't hurt?"

"So that it doesn't hurt," she confirmed, feeling a flutter of pride at how well Henry was handling the situation.

"When can he come home?"

JJ's heart sunk at his hopeful expression. It was the internal damage which was going to keep Will in the hospital and that wasn't so easy to explain to a six year old.

"It might not be for a while," she told him.

Henry frowned, before returning to watching his sleeping father, and absent-mindedly playing with the edge of the bed sheets.

"Why don't you give Daddy a kiss and then we'll get you a treat in the cafeteria?" she suggested.

Henry nodded in agreement, before cautiously stepping to the head of the bed. He leaned over, kissing Will's cheek.

"Get better, Daddy," he said, in an exaggerated whisper, which caused JJ to smile despite the fact that every other thought was threatening to reduce her to a sobbing wreck all over again.

/
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Henry had brightened slightly by the time they reached the cafeteria. JJ wondered if the ICU had been too much for him, but she also knew that seeing Will for himself would put his mind at ease. And, perhaps rather selfishly, she'd wanted Henry with her.

It was Henry who first spotted Garcia amongst the busy clusters of tables. Emily and Spencer were also seated at the table and he dragged JJ towards them.

"Have you guys not got somewhere better to be?" JJ smiled, taking a seat and instantly realising just how tired she felt. Her manner was just a little too cheerful to be convincing but her friends let it slide.

"I just can't get enough of hospital coffee," Emily quipped with a grin, as Garcia squeezed JJ's hand and Henry climbed onto Spencer's lap.

"I thought you were going to get back to Rossi's for a shower and to sleep," JJ reminded the brunette.

"I'm not tired," she shrugged. "And I shower quickly."

JJ raised her eyebrows, not believing Emily for a second, despite her friend's impressive poker face.

"Thank you," she replied, appreciating their company.

"Now, Henry, I think I saw some cake over there," Garcia announced with a grin, glancing towards the food counter. "Why don't you and Spencer go and investigate?"

Henry turned towards JJ looking for approval, and when she nodded, jumped down from Spencer's knee. Spencer stood up and let the boy lead the way. If they got some juice from the vending machines and went for a walk in the gardens outside as well, that would give JJ some much needed time with her girlfriends.

As soon as Henry was out of earshot, Garcia turned to directly face the emotionally drained blonde.

"So, what are we dealing with?" she asked, suddenly turning completely serious.

"We?" JJ questioned.

Penelope smiled kindly and Emily shook her head.

"You didn't really think you'd be doing this on your own, did you?" she responded, giving JJ a look of disbelief.

"I..." JJ began to speak but found she had nothing to say.

"How's Will?" Emily continued.

JJ found that question easier to face now than she would have without her friends being close at hand.

"The break in his leg is bad but he shouldn't need any more surgery," she began. "The blast caused injury to his lungs - that's what caused his left lung to collapse. He also broke a few ribs so he'll need to have his breathing monitored closely." She stopped, trying to recall all the details the doctor had provided, but for someone who normally did a job which required attention to detail, she was struggling to remember all the information. "His spleen was bleeding when he came in as well, but they managed to repair it. They need to watch out for any other blast injuries that could present in the next couple of days."

She was surprised that she was maintaining such good control of her emotions. Maybe she'd reached some sort of limit for the amount of tears a human body could produce in a twenty four hour period.

Emily and Garcia listened quietly, nodding in understanding and occasionally squeezing her hand or touching her arm in reassurance.

"How long is he likely to be in the hospital?" Emily asked.

JJ shrugged.

"Weeks," she responded giving her best estimate. "But it all depends on... On whether there are further complications." The lump in her throat seemed to re-form at the thought, and her friends blurred beyond her watery eyes. So much for the end of the tears.

"You and Henry need to go home and sleep," Emily instructed firmly, as JJ's demeanour confirmed that the woman was completely exhausted.

JJ opened her mouth to protest but Emily cut her off.

"I'll stay here and I'll call you if he so much as sneezes. But you need to take care of yourself and your children." She knew it was a low blow to guilt trip her with Henry and the baby, but it was necessary.

"And I'll take you home," Garcia added, jumping in before JJ could respond.

"Are you sure?" JJ asked, after a long pause. She hated being such a burden but she knew she couldn't go on sleeping in the chair beside Will's bed and she needed some proper food and a shower.

"Absolutely," Emily replied, letting out a relieved breath. She was truly thankful that, despite everything, JJ was still thinking straight when it came to her own health. The blonde was a lot tougher than she looked.

/
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"Does that feel better?" Penelope asked, when JJ appeared in the kitchen, with her damp hair wrapped in a towel, and clothed in sweatpants and one of Will's T-shirts.

She nodded, sitting down at the table and rubbing her tired, puffy eyes.

"What are you cooking?" she asked, watching Garcia stir a pot and also noting that something was in the oven.

"Rossi sent supplies," she replied. "There's lasagne in the oven, but Henry didn't seem to want it so I'm making some plain pasta too."

"He's just being difficult," JJ sighed, hoping this wasn't the start of Henry acting up. It would be understandable but she couldn't deal with that as well.

"Today, he's allowed," Penelope responded. "He's been really brave - just like his mom," she added, with an understanding smile.

"Where is he?" she asked.

"Watching cartoons. I hope that's OK." Whenever she'd taken care of Henry before, she'd had clear directions from his parents on what he could or couldn't do or eat. Since JJ received the call from the hospital she'd just been guessing.

"That's fine," JJ smiled. "Thank you for all of this."

Penelope simply returned her smile as the timer sounded on the oven.

"Ready for some food?" she enquired, though she wasn't really giving JJ an option.

"I'm really not very hungry," JJ mumbled, as Garcia brought the dish out of the oven.

"But you're going to try and eat something because you and the bump are in desperate need of some calories?" She raised her eyebrows and attempted to look stern, but she didn't quite have the force of Hotch or Emily.

JJ's face broke into a weak smile at her friend's expression and she nodded.

"Good girl," Penelope grinned before calling Henry to the table.

By the time Hotch called to check in on JJ, she'd eaten enough lasagne to stop Penelope frowning, and had fallen asleep on her and Will's bed, with one hand resting on her stomach and the other on Henry's back.

"She'll be fine," Garcia told her boss, draping a comforter over her sleeping friend and godson. "They all will."