I have never been to a jail, visited anyone in jail, and don't know a single thing about the rules and regulations to get into jail. I highly doubt this situation would go down at all, so please just suspend your disbelief. I should have the next chapter up sometime late tomorrow night or early sunday morning. Hope you enjoy:)

Rachel sat as still as she could, the Wizard of Oz resting in her lap, and the phone clutched in her hands. The curly haired little girl hadn't moved in almost thirty-five minutes. An eternity to an impatient seven year old. Rachel's eyes were glued to the phone, willing it ring. Instead, the walkie-talkie on her bedside table cracked to life.

"Scarecrow? Scarecrow are you there? Over."

Rachel reluctantly rolled over and grabbed it, pressing the button, but keeping the phone in her other hand. "Yeah Jack, I'm here."

"No! The code names remember! And you have to say over at the end. Over." Jack reminded her.

"Sorry, yeah, Tin man, I'm here, over."

"Guess what? Over."

"What?"

"You forgot over again. Over."

Rachel groaned. "What? Over."

"My daddy called. Over."

Rachel pouted. If Mr. Hotch had called Jack, then Emily should have called her. It wasn't fair. "So what?" She said angrily. "Over." She remembered to add.

"So what!" Jack exclaimed. He couldn't understand why Rachel wasn't as excited as he was at this news. "So, he said that they have gotten almost all the clues to get the bad guy! They were gonna go get him and make him go to jail tonight! They win again!" Jack cheered loudly as he danced on his bed a little. Rachel looked longingly at the silent phone in her hand. "They might be home later tonight or tomorrow when we get done with school! How cool is that? Over."

"Really cool." Rachel mumbled unenthusiastically. Jack frowned. His best friend should be much more excited about this.

"You forgot over. Over." He chastised again.

"Jack, we're best friends right?" Rachel asked shyly.

"Tin man!" He yelled. "And say over, but yes we're best friends. Over."

"Tin man." Rachel said with a huff. "Can...well best friends help each other no matter what right? Over."

Jack smiled. "Of course they do! Over."

"Well...do you wanna help me with something tomorrow? Over." Rachel asked at almost a whisper. She didn't like asking people for things, but she didn't think she could do this by herself. Plus, Jack wasn't people, he was Jack.

"Sure, after school when Daddy, Aunt JJ and Aunt Emily get home?" He asked.

"You forgot over." Rachel said with a smirk. "And no, before that. Over."

"Before that we have school. Over." Jack said confused.

"I know, I'm taking a hookey day. I need to go on a trip, do you want to come? Over."

"A hookey day? Like skip school? That's not allowed! Over."

"We don't have to tell anyone. Over."

"I don't...I don't get it Rachel." Jack admitted.

Rachel sighed. She ignored all the stupid walkie-talkie rules. Emily hadn't called her and this was important. "I need to see my dad and ask him a question. I'm going tomorrow if you want to come with me."

"But Rachel, we're seven the jail is a long ways away, how are you going to get there by yourself?"

Rachel smiled. Maybe she was incompetent so far in school, but she knew things other kids didn't. Rachel knew how to take a bus places. She knew how to hit strangers who bothered her, she knew how to sneak away from grown ups, she knew how to sneak into places without grown ups seeing her. This was the easiest part. "We take the bus. I already looked on the maps and I know which bus we have to take and how long it will take us. If we go to school, then we sneak away after your Aunt Jessica drops you off, we get on the bus and ride to the jail, then we tell the warden we need to speak to Frankie Gallagher and then I ask my dad my question, we get on another bus and we're back at school by the time we get picked up. Easy! Over!"

Jack was apprehensive. Rachel did sound like she knew what she was talking about, but he had a feeling that his daddy wouldn't like her plan very much. On the other hand, Jack had to do a presentation tomorrow and he didn't really like talking in front of the class; plus, he had never been to a jail before, or on a bus by himself.

"Okay Scarecrow, what is the plan? Over." He asked excitedly.

Rachel beamed and began explaining everything they would need. By the time the phone finally did ring, the two of them had everything set for the next day. "Hello?" Rachel answered softly. "Prentiss residence."

"Hi sweetie, sorry I called a little late, but we've had a breakthrough and I don't think I'm going to be able to read to you tonight. But good news, we should be home tomorrow!" Emily said, trying to cheer Rachel up.

"Fine, goodnight. Don't get hurt again." Rachel said sourly.

"Wait, Rach...I love you, and JJ wants to say goodnight too." Emily said quickly. Rachel huffed, but kept the phone to her ear and waited.

"Hey baby!" JJ said happily. "Are you excited? We'll be home tomorrow when you get home from school!"

"Cool, see you then." Rachel said as she hung the phone up.

JJ held the phone away from her ear, catching Emily's watchful eye, she didn't allow herself to show that it hurt. There was a reason Emily wasn't calling to read a chapter of Wizard of Oz – something she had tried to do all six days they had been gone – they were donning their kevlar vests and heading out to the unsub's house right now.

"We'll be home tomorrow." Emily reassured her wife – and herself.

Rachel held her breath and counted to ten, then she sprinted across the courtyard and down the street. It was still cold, but spring was going to be arriving soon. Rachel hugged her coat a little closer and slowed to a quick walk. Luckily, Jack's school was close to hers, only a couple of blocks away. Rachel had found a map and memorized it until she knew every street name and lots of different markers in case she got lost. She had to read maps a lot when her dad left her alone and she got a lot of practice finding her way by herself.

Fourteen minutes later, Rachel walked into the front courtyard of Jack's school. "Pssst." Someone whispered. "Psst. Scarecrow!"

Rachel turned around and grinned at the sight of Jack hiding in a bush. "Come on!" She said, pulling him up. "We're gonna miss the bus!" The two seven year olds ran ahead, their backpacks still slung over their shoulders. Rachel had packed two bananas and two granola bars so they didn't get hungry on the bus. As the bus pulled up at the stop, Jack froze. Rachel reached over and took his hand, smiling and pulling him forward. She dropped two dollars into the slot and walked back to the seats without a word to the driver. She had learned that if you act like you know what you're doing, and like you have a the right to be there, people will assume that you do. Rachel pushed Jack in by the window and took the aisle seat, still holding onto his hand. "Its an adventure Tin man." She whispered. "It'll be fun."

The drive to the jail took almost an hour. The two of them grew bored very quickly so they began to play games to pass the time. Cat's cradle, I Spy, and a game they invented where they pointed to a random person and had to make up a story about them. Rachel liked that one best. When it came to be their turn to get off, Rachel pulled the chord and grabbed Jack, pushing him up and off of the bus quickly. The driver started to say something, but Rachel pushed Jack ahead and they two of them ran ahead and out of his sight.

"Now what?" Jack asked as he looked around nervously.

"We go in, through those gate things." Rachel said. She grabbed Jack's hand and pulled him along, walking confidently up to the man standing at the entrance. She stood up on her toes and tried to see over the counter. "Hello sir, my name is Rachel Gallagher and I would like to visit my father please." She said with a smile. The man looked a little taken aback. He glanced around above them, looking for an adult.

"Are you with anyone?" He asked.

"Oh yeah!" Rachel said happily. "This is my friend Jack."

"No, like an adult."

"Well, if you let me in, I'll be with my dad." Rachel said as if the man should know that already.

"Kid I can't...is you're mom here?"

"My mother killed herself when she was four. I live with my foster parents. His dad is an FBI agent and you need to let us in right now or he will come and arrest you." Rachel said with a glare. Jack's eyebrows shot up in shock and Rachel kicked him. He yelped. But quickly tried to look like Rachel knew what she was talking about. He nodded.

"Umm...do your foster parents know you're here?" He asked skeptically.

Rachel grinned. She had planned for this. Rachel had spent the entire night practicing her writing after she hung up with Emily and JJ. She dug into her backpack and produced a piece of paper happily. "This is a note from my foster dad, he doesn't have very good handwriting. He was gonna come, but he got called into work on an emergency. He's a doctor and he has to save people." She said seriously. Rachel and he father had gotten very good at lying over the years.

The man read the note, a look of suspicion still on his face, but he sighed. "Do you have some form of id?" He asked. Rachel dug around her backpack and found the photo id that her private school issued and handed it to the man. He glanced at it with a frown and turned to make a phone call. Jack bit his lip and looked at Rachel, worried that they might be getting arrested for skipping school and trying to break into a jail. Rachel kicked him again. "Okay, apparently you are this Gallagher guy's kid, so you can go in, but he can't and you're supposed to have adult supervision."

"Okay, that's fine can Jack come inside though?"

"Yes."

The two of them followed the man inside and it finally hit Rachel that she was terrified. Her front of confidence and 'having an adventure' was all pretty much bullshit. Jack seemed to pick up on this change in her demeanor and instantly slipped his hand into hers. Rachel was too grateful to kick him.

The two of them walked in silence, hand in hand through the cold dark walls. All of the adults looked bored and upset and Rachel didn't like any of them. She gripped Jack's hand tighter as a woman took their bags and patted them down. "He has to wait here." She said as she pointed to Jack. "David will be in there with you the whole time." The woman pointed to a guard who gave Rachel a small smile and a wave. That didn't make Rachel feel much better, she had seen her father hurt people way bigger than him, but she walked forward with her head held high anyway.

The room was small. And big. Rachel hated it.

She shot a glance at David The Guard and took a seat at the empty chair near the corner. She looked through the glass wall and saw her father, handcuffed, walking into the room. Rachel stopped breathing.

"You gotta talk through the phone." David explained to her.

Rachel picked it up and brought it to her ear as she watched her father do the same. "Hi." He said with a frown.

"Hi." Rachel whispered.

"How come you're here? I'm not your dad anymore those two women got my rights taken away." He said with a sneer.

"I...I just wanted to ask you something please sir." Rachel was sure to call him 'sir' and mind her manners. Being impolite had always made Frankie angry.

"What?" He asked harshly. Rachel felt like she was going to throw up and she wanted JJ. Right now. This had been a bad idea.

"I...I was just wondering if...is, maybe..."

"Spit it out kid!" Frankie yelled in frustration. Rachel began to tear up and did everything she could to stop it. Frankie hated it when she cried. It always made him twice as angry. He groaned and banged the phone against the wall. "Fucking hell." He said. A guard glanced over at them and looked like he was going to step in.

Rachel tried again. "I...can I please...I mean may, may I please just ask if..."

"Rachel! What the fuck is it!" Frankie yelled. Rachel leaned back in her seat, unable to stop herself from crying anymore. The next thing she knew, strong arms were around her and lifting her up into the air. Rachel began kicking and screaming for help and begging Frankie to leave her alone.

"Sweetie, is me." Emily's voice cooed. Rachel stopped fighting instantly and clung to Emily tightly. "Its okay, I've got you. I've got you." She said hugging her tightly.

"LISTEN YOU FUCKER!" JJ screamed as she banged the glass wall with her hand. Frankie jumped back in surprise and David The Guard moved forward to try to pull the blonde away. "IF YOU EVER TRY TO CONTACT HER AGAIN, YOU WILL WISH YOU WERE DEAD. DO YOU FUCKING UNDERSTAND ME?"

"Jen..." Emily said, pulling gently on her wife's arm.

"Listen lady, she came and talked to me, I was doing her a favor." Frankie insisted angrily. "I don't want her. I never wanted her."

Rachel gripped Emily tightly at the words and the tears began flowing much harder. JJ bent down and picked up the telephone, dropping her voice to a whisper that Rachel couldn't hear. "Do not ever speak to her again. I promise you, you will regret it." JJ warned. She hung up the phone calmly and led Emily and Rachel out of the room. The three of them walked silently, Emily carrying a still crying Rachel who refused to let go. As they made it to the entrance, they met Hotch and Jack. Rachel didn't pay any attention as JJ and Emily apologized again and they all went outside to their cars. Hotch pulled Jack along after he gave Rachel a small apologetic wave. Apparently, Jack had called his dad and told them where they were. He felt horrible about it.

When Emily tried to put Rachel in the car seat, she screamed and clung to her neck, beginning to cry all over again.

"Okay, okay." Emily said softly, holding her tightly and rubbing her back. "You're okay Rach."

"I'll drive, get in back with her." JJ said cooly. Emily shot her a small glare and climbed in carefully, buckling herself and Rachel in as best she could. JJ pulled out and the three of them remained silent the entire drive home. When they entered the apartment, it was empty. Apparently, Mary and Andrew had gone to a hotel to give them women some space, promising to be back to say goodbye tomorrow. Emily carried Rachel inside as JJ walked to the kitchen and stood, clenching her teeth, her hands on her hips, and her foot tapping in anger. "I'm going to change." She said tightly. Emily nodded and rubbed Rachel's back again as JJ walked upstairs.

The blonde was so angry she was shaking. She knew that if she didn't get away from Rachel right now, she would explode and terrify the girl. Her anger wasn't directed at Rachel – not really – it was at Frankie, and the situation in general. The fact they had been gone so long, how frustrating their latest case had been, and that Frankie had hurt Rachel, again. If she was honest with herself, she was angry at Rachel too. The girl had lied to her grandparents, skipped school, taken herself to a jail to visit a serial killer, lied yet again and brought Jack along with her.

JJ ripped her blouse off and threw it on the bed, shivering a little as the cold air hit her bare stomach. She pulled on a t-shirt, a sweater and some yoga pants before pulling her hair up and sighing. JJ pinched the bridge of her nose and counted to ten, then walked out of her room and downstairs.

Emily and Rachel were sitting on the couch, Rachel still hadn't calmed down and from the look on Emily's face, she had yet to be able to talk to her. JJ nodded and sat down next to her wife. The three of them sat silently for a moment, letting Rachel calm herself down. Once she seemed to have cried as much as she could, she shyly lifted her head up from Emily's neck. JJ gave her a small smile. "Hi sweetie." She said softly.

Rachel desperately wanted to crawl over and have JJ hug her, but she was afraid the blonde was mad at her. "I'm sorry." She whispered to both of them.

JJ shared a look with Emily and her face softened even more than it already had. "We know, so are we." She said motioning for Rachel to come to her. The little girl hesitated just a moment before connecting her eyes to JJ's. All she saw was love, no anger, no fear, Rachel climbed over and hugged JJ tightly.

"I'm sorry." She whispered again.

"Rach, why didn't you ask us? Why did you lie and go see him?" Emily asked gently.

"I just needed to ask him something, I'm sorry."

"What did you need to ask?"

"Nothing. Its not important." Rachel said quickly. Emily and JJ shared a look over Rachel's head. They wanted to know, but tonight didn't seem like the time to press the issue.

"Rach, can you please do us a favor?" JJ asked. Rachel looked up at JJ, then Emily and nodded. "Don't ever do something like that again. Ask us. You can't go off on your own. We can't take care of you if you don't let us."

"I know. I'm really sorry. Tell Mr. Hotch it was my fault. I made Jack come." Rachel insisted quickly. She wasn't very scared of Mr. Hotch anymore, but she was afraid that he might be mad at Jack and it was all her fault.

"Rachel, you didn't force him, he came on his own accord." Emily said.

"What's a chord?" Rachel asked.

"Accord." Emily corrected her. "It means, he went willingly, he knew he could get in trouble and he went anyway; but Hotch knows it was your idea."

"Is he is trouble?"

"I think so, I think he is grounded this weekend." Emily said with a nod. Rachel's eyes widened.

"Am I in trouble?"

Emily shot a glance at her wife and caught the smirk on the blonde's face. "Yes." JJ insisted. Rachel whipped her head back to her. "You most definitely are in trouble." She said. Before Rachel could imagine the things awaiting her, JJ quickly explained. "You're also grounded this weekend. No tv, no computer games, no library, no park. And on monday, you are getting picked up and taken to the BAU once school is over. There, you will sit quietly and do your homework until Emily and I get out of work. That will continue all week long."

"A whole week!" Rachel exclaimed.

"It could be longer." JJ said seriously. Rachel nodded and cast her eyes downward in shame. JJ wrapped her arms around the girl and kissed the top of her head. "We love you." She whispered.

For the first time, Rachel believed her.