AN: So I just realized that I hadn't updated this in over a month! I'm so sorry guys! It's been a little hard to write this and I had a slight case of writer's block in regards to this story. But I do hope that you like this update after having to wait for it for so long. PLZ R&R!

I would like to give a shout out to Karen LaManna for helping me to get back to writing this. Your review of my other story, Dreaming Of Home, was very appreciated. When I read it first thing this morning, it made me want to sit in front of my computer and not get up until I had at least a chapter written. Thankfully the baby I watch during the week slept a bit today so I was able to do just that. Thank you for the encouragement girl! I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Disclaimer: See first chapter.

Chapter 14

Derek slowly awoke as he felt movement next to him and a heavy weight on his chest. He looked next to him and saw Penelope slowly sitting up as she tried to untangle herself from Mason. He looked down and saw Liam fast asleep on his chest as Clooney came in and jumped onto the bed with all of them.

"Where's Bella?" he asked Penelope as they all slowly sat up.

"Bathroom," she yawned. "She wants to show her brothers the park down the street today. I said we could go after breakfast. Take a picnic and invite the others."

"Sounds good to me," he smiled at her.

"What's for breakfast?" Bella came out of their bathroom.

"I'm not even sure if Dave and Sarah and Des went grocery shopping," Derek told them. "We may just end up having toast."

"I think I saw some cereal last night," Penelope told him as they all started downstairs and into the kitchen.

Penelope got all the kids settled at the table as Derek searched the pantry for some cereal. He brought back several bowls and spoons and juggled the gallon of milk as well as several boxes of cereal.

"Ok who wants what?" he asked them.

"Captain Crunch!" Mason announced.

"I want that too," Bella said.

"How about you Liam?" Derek looked at him and he shrugged.

"I'd go with Lucky Charms," Penelope told him as she made up a bottle for Sophia. "The more sugar it has, the better."

"Got it," Derek poured them their cereal and milk and placed the bowls in front of them as Penelope sat down with them and started feeding Sophia her bottle.

After they were all done eating, Derek and Penelope cleaned up the kitchen as Bella took her brothers to watch some morning cartoons with her. Clooney ran all around them, still getting used to all the new additions in the house. Penelope started packing up the diaper bag and a small back pack for the boys as Derek searched the house for the stroller that he knew the girls had bought for them in Chicago. After not finding it anywhere inside the house, he took out his phone and dialed a number.

"I didn't expect to hear from you so soon," Fran greeted him. "How's it going?"

"We were going to take them all to the park in a little bit."

"Good idea,"

"Can you ask Dave where they put the stroller? We can't find it in the house."

"Just a moment," he heard her put the phone down and have a whispered conversation before she came back on the line. "Check the garage. You should find the wagon in there as well."

"Thanks," he walked through the kitchen. "Do you guys want to meet us up at the park in a little bit?"

"Are you sure? What about your family time?"

"Pen wanted to invite you," he told her as he walked into the garage and spotted the stroller. "Give us a couple hours for our family time before you show up though. And call and invite the others."

"I'm on it," she assured him and he hung up the phone as Penelope came back downstairs with the kids' bags.

"Did you find it?"

"It's in the garage along with the wagon," he told her. "The boys can ride in the wagon and I guess Bella will have to walk."

"It's not that long of a walk from what I remember."

"Maybe about a mile," he told her. "All right guys! Time to get dressed!"

"Where are we going?" Mason asked.

"Bella wants to show you the park where she plays," Penelope smiled at him.

"Yay!" they all went upstairs to try to find them all something to wear.

A little while later, they were all walking through town on their way to the park. Derek was pushing the stroller where Sophia lay fast asleep, Bella was pulling her brothers in the wagon, and Penelope was walking in between them. They were walking slowly as Derek pointed out the businesses that Penelope wouldn't recognize and her favorite spots from before.

"Something wrong?" Derek looked over at her when he realized that she was being very quiet.

"Everyone is staring," she mumbled and Derek looked around and did indeed see everyone around them watching them and whispering.

"It might not be just because of you," he told her. "I have had a not-so-good reputation these last few years."

"But still-"

"In a few weeks, your story will be old news and they'll all move on to gossiping about something else."

"If you say so," she sighed as they came up to Penelope's favorite coffee shop.

"Can we stop and get smoothies?" Bella asked. "They're always so nice in there. They always told me stories about you mommy whenever Nana or Nono took me in there."

"Sure, let's go in." Penelope smiled at her and glanced over at Derek. "Same owner then?"

"Michelle still runs it," he told her as they parked the wagon and stroller by the bike rack and got all the kids out.

"Penelope!" she was immediately wrapped tightly in a pair of arms before she was let go. "Sorry, I should've warned you I was doing that."

"It's ok," she smiled at her. "I'm glad that some things didn't change. It's good to see you Michelle."

"You have no idea how much you were missed around here. I'm pretty sure our sales took a dive when you weren't here to get your coffee as much as you were."

"I was not that bad,"

"Yes you were," Derek spoke up.

"Derek," Michelle turned to him, smiling as he rocked the small bundle in his arms. "I heard about the kids."

"They're ours," Derek stated firmly. "Mine and Penelope's."

"Good for you,"

"This is Mason and Liam," Bella spoke up as she held both of their hands. "My new brothers."

"I bet the house is crowded now," Michelle smiled at her.

"I like it," Bella said. "It was too quiet before."

"Bella wanted to get a smoothie," Derek told Michelle.

"Would you boys like a smoothie too?" they slowly nodded. "Well we have peach and strawberry."

"Peach," Mason said softly.

"Stwawbewwy," Liam said.

"Bella, take them over to Sean at the counter," Michelle told her. "He'll hook you guys up."

"Stay where we can see you!" Derek called after them.

"And what's this little ones name?" Michelle took a peek under the blanket.

"This is Sophia," Derek smiled. "The spitting image of her mother."

"You're looking a lot better now," Michelle looked at him.

"Don't worry, she knows all about it." Derek told her. "We had a very long and very loud conversation in the hospital."

"Well hopefully, you'll stay on the right track."

"Hotch is making sure that we both do," Penelope told her. "Our next couple of months will be jam-packed."

"It will be good for you both in the long run," Michelle assured them.

"We know,"

"You guys ready to head to the park?" Derek saw Bella walking to them with her brothers. "How are the smoothies?"

"Yummy!" Mason said.

"I hope to see you all soon." Michelle told them.

"As long as you have the coffee, I'll be here every day." Penelope told her.

"It starts getting slow around ten every morning," Michelle told them. "Just in case you don't want to deal with all these stares."

"Thanks for the heads up," Penelope smiled as she followed her family out.

They got the boys back in the wagon and Derek got Sophia secured back in the stroller and they all started walking again. Soon they were walking towards the entrance to the park.

"It's different from what I remember," Penelope said.

"They made a lot of improvements the last couple of years," Derek told her as they parked the stroller and wagon under the shade of a nearby tree.

"Can we go play now?" Bella asked.

"Go have fun," Derek smiled at her. "Just be careful with your brothers."

"Ok," the three of them ran towards the castle playground.

Penelope and Derek set up the blankets under the tree and set the snacks and drinks out for the kids. Derek made sure that Sophia was still sleeping before sitting down on one of the blankets, leaning back against the tree.

"Go," he told Penelope and she looked at him.

"What?"

"Go and play with the kids," he told her. "I can handle everyone here."

"This is worse than the coffee shop," she said softly.

"Ignore them. Go and have fun out in the open with our kids."

"All right," she slowly walked towards where the three of them were taking turns going down the tunnel slide.

"There you are," JJ and Reid came up with Henry.

"Hey," Derek smiled back at them.

"Everyone else just got here too," Reid told him. "They're still unloading."

"How's she doing?" JJ saw Penelope pushing Liam on the swings.

"She's overwhelmed," Derek sighed. "People kept staring at her and the kids the whole way here."

"I think we should help her," JJ looked at Henry. "What do you think?"

"Jack!" Henry called to him when he saw him heading towards them. "Come on. We have to help Aunt Pen."

"Why?" he looked puzzled.

"People are being mean to her."

"On it," Jack got a look that they all recognized from whenever he was being protective of someone.

"Be nice!" Hotch called as Emily and JJ followed the boys. "How bad was the staring?"

"It didn't bother me," Derek told him as he spotted his mom and sisters following behind Dave as they approached them. "But she's just so anxious to get back to normal. So me and Bella were showing her around town on the way here. We stopped at the coffee shop and talked to Michelle though."

"How'd she react?" Fran asked.

"Like they were old friends," Derek smiled.

"They are," Dave commented. "I remember those two could gab for hours."

"It was the first time all morning that she seemed like she was getting back to her old self."

"She is," Desiree assured her brother. "Just remember, baby steps."

"I know," Derek sighed as he saw Dave and Hotch share a look. "What's going on? Do you need to tell me something? Is this about Brody and Daniel?"

"No, they're still under strict surveillance in their jail cells," Hotch assured him.

"This is about something else entirely," Dave told him.

"What?" Derek looked between them.

"Well after we all left last night, I decided to check into who might have tipped off the media." Hotch started. "So I called Anderson, who like Dave, knows pretty much everything that goes on at the bureau. He had some interesting information."

"What'd he say?"

"Well Penelope's hunches were correct," Dave told him.

"What do you mean?"

"Seems Lynch was asking around when our flight would be getting in," Hotch told him. "Anderson and everyone else in the BAU refused to tell him. But he kept asking until someone eventually told him."

"But what did he gain from informing the media?" Derek asked. "He knows that it hurts her too."

"We don't know what goes on in his head," Dave told him. "He's been put on a two-week suspension because of it though. And I'd say that he should be getting our little gift soon."

"You actually did that?" Derek smiled.

"It was your wife's idea," Dave shot back. "I got to tell you, if he keeps up whatever he's planning-Well let's just say that I was walking funny after reading the note that she included. If she ever follows through-"

"I told you," Derek smiled. "She's getting back to her old self."

Penelope smiled as Bella took her hand and led her all around the playground showing her everything that she liked to do. She spotted Jack pushing Liam on the swings as Henry showed Mason how to do the monkey bars.

"I like doing this," Bella pointed.

"The climbing wall?"

"Uh-huh," Bella nodded. "I can climb all the way to the top."

"It's not too high or scary for you?"

"Nope," Bella shook her head. "I fell the first time I did it. But it's a soft landing."

"I guess it is," Penelope smiled as Bella went back to climbing up the castle structure to go down the slide again.

"How are you doing?" JJ asked Penelope as she joined her and Emily again.

"Good," she smiled at them. "Just trying to get back into my family again."

"It'll take some time."

"I know, but some people aren't helping." Penelope saw some parents looking in their direction.

"Excuse me," Emily started off the bench they were all sitting on.

"Don't-" Penelope started.

"You can't stop her at this point," JJ told her. "Besides, we protect each other."

Emily marched over to the see-saw as she saw a group of women in a huddle whispering as they looked over at Penelope.

"Excuse me, busy bodies," she interrupted them. "We would appreciate it if you didn't gawk at my friend or her kids."

"Excuse me?" the one who she assumed was the leader faced her.

"She is trying to live her life again," Emily continued. "And they don't need people like you looking down on them as they go about their business."

"How could she think of them as her children?" one asked. "Their father is a monster. She should just give them away."

"Their father is right over there," Emily pointed to where Derek was watching the scene unfold with everyone else. "You don't give up your family, no matter how they came to be."

"Should we intervene?" Reid asked.

"Are you crazy?" Derek looked at him.

"She protects her family," Hotch smiled. "Is it wrong of me to want her to take a swing at one of them?"

"No," Fran and Dave commented.

"I feel sorry for those kids," the woman spat at Emily. "Their mother is a slut and their father is a drunk."

"Their mother was forced to do things that she didn't want to do and their father lost his way," Emily clarified. "They are the luckiest kids in the world. They have two parents who will be working their hardest to get back on track to provide a warm and loving environment for them. Parents who will protect them no matter what the cost."

"That's enough honey," Aaron appeared behind her with Reid and Dave. "I think you need to calm down with the girls. We got this."

"Fine," Emily grumbled. "But if she bothers us again-"

"I will look the other way," he smiled at her as she walked off in a huff.

"You hens had better clear out," Dave told them. "And don't even think about doing or saying anything to that amazingly strong woman or her even more amazingly strong kids."

"This is a public park,"

"Which means that it's open to the public," Reid interrupted. "Anyone should be free to come here and spend time with their families. Not be judged by some rumors you may have heard around town."

"You can come back another day, when I hope you'll be more understanding to our friend," Dave said. "For now, your day has just been ruined."

"You can't make us leave," the woman stated.

"Local PD can," Hotch took out his phone. "I'm sure they wouldn't mind doing this after all the times that the FBI have helped them out through the years. And once they hear that their favorite technical analyst, who just returned from a horrific ordeal, is being targeted by a bunch of bored and lonely housewives who have nothing better to do than pass judgment on others when they don't even know the story-"

"We'll go," the group of woman rounded up all their kids and left the park.

"Thank you," another mother approached them. "If your friend hadn't intervened, I probably would have slugged them all myself. I think the only reason they come here is to gossip about the other parents."

"Yeah, we've seen them here before." Reid said.

"If I'm not being too forward," she handed Dave a business card. "She needs someone in this town on her side. If she wants to chat, I know a thing or two about what she's going through."

"Do you mind me asking how?"

"I was sexually assaulted a few years ago," she informed them. "It helps to have someone unbiased, outside of your inner circle, to talk to."

"I'll make sure she gets this." Dave assured her.

"For the record, I hope that family beats the odds."

"If anyone can, it's those two." Dave stated as he saw that Derek had joined the rest of his family with Sophia cradled protectively in his arms.

AN: So what'd you all think? I hope you liked this very delayed update. I'm going to try to work on the next chapter the next couple of days. PLZ R&R!