Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds.
A/N: Shout out to criminalmindsrocks, Daisyangel, Fashionista7, fishtrek for reviewing chapter 23.
This chapter starts over two weeks later on June 23rd of 2007. Stephanie no longer has stitches, Spencer and Maeve have driven Violet, Arthur, and Stephanie home while Maeve's parents flew back to Washington DC with a bunch of Stephanie's belongings a week after Spencer found out about his half-sister.
Stephanie who was still healing from having surgery to fix the internal bleeding she dealt with in her abdomen while her broken arm now sported a pink cast slowly got out of her brother's seven-seater SUV when her eyes went wide at the Tudor style house her big brother, sister-in-law, her niece, her nephew, and her sister-in-law's parents lived in together, "This house is huge," said Stephanie.
"It is, but it made sense to buy a seven-bedroom house outright instead of moving when your brother and I are ready for another baby," said Maeve.
"Especially since you told me that you wanted four children while you wanted your parents to move in with us," said Spencer.
Maeve looked at her sister-in-law "Why don't Spencer and I give you a tour of your new home before you choose which bedroom you want."
"Who's going to take care of Violet and Arthur?" asked Stephanie.
"Knowing my parents, they're going to take Violet and Arthur from me since it's been a week since they saw their grandchildren," said Maeve just as Joe and Mary came out of the house.
"Please give Joe and me our grandchildren," said Mary.
Spencer laughed, "It seems like my profiling skills are running off on you, Maeve."
Maeve smiled, "We've been together for a year and a month already, so your profiling skills would have already rubbed off on me, but I'll stick to being a geneticist."
After giving Stephanie a tour of the entire house, Stephanie looked at her brother and sister-in-law as they stood in the loft area that was between the two guest bedrooms on the third level of their four-level house, "Would you two be upset if I choose one of the two bedrooms up here so the other two bedrooms on the floor you two, Violet, and Arthur sleep on can go to my future nieces and nephews?" asked Stephanie.
Maeve shook her head, "Not at all."
"Which bedroom do you want?" asked Spencer.
Stephanie pointed at the bedroom that was the closest to the stairs, "That one because I already love the queen-sized canopy bed, the dresser with the built-in mirror, and desk that's already in that bedroom."
Maeve smiled as she realized that her sister chose the 20'10" x 10'10" bedroom, "All that furniture is brand new, so we'll just buy you brand sheets, bedding, and curtains to go with the lavender paint you picked out. You can just sleep in the other bedroom until Spencer and my father are done painting your bedroom."
"OK," said Stephanie before thinking about the rules her mother once gave her, "Will I have chores to do and rules to follow here?" asked Stephanie.
"Yes," said Spencer.
"First thing tomorrow morning, we'll be getting you a cell phone so we can contact you when you're not home," said Maeve.
"Mom was going to take me to buy a cell phone before the semi-truck hit us, so I'm glad that I'll finally get a cell phone," said Stephanie.
"You're forbidden to enter my home office unless I give you permission while you're not allowed to touch any case files or my Glock that will always be locked in its safe," said Spencer.
"I was already planning to never open any files or touch your guns," said Stephanie.
"My mother and I will be compiling a list of household chores for you to complete daily while we'll need your help to occasionally babysit Violet and Arthur," said Maeve.
Stephanie nodded, "I already figured that I'll have chores to complete while there would be times for me to babysit my niece and nephew."
"Unless you are in school or asleep, you always have to answer your cell phone," said Spencer.
"I understand," said Stephanie.
"If you're going anywhere other than school, you need to let Spencer and me know," said Maeve.
Stephanie nodded, "I promise."
"If you're going to hang out with your friends on a school night, you have to finish your homework first and allow Maeve, my in-laws, or me to look over it before you're allowed to hang out with your friends while you'll have an 8:30 P.M. curfew," said Spencer.
"OK," said Stephanie.
"If your grades start to slip; you're not allowed to hang out with friends, watch TV, or use the internet unless it's for school until your grades improve," said Maeve.
"Your internet usage will always be monitored while my team's technical analyst will make sure to block certain websites that aren't age-appropriate for you," said Spencer.
"Mom always monitored my internet usage since she wanted me to stay away from chat rooms," said Stephanie.
Spencer thought about learning that his half-sister loves tap dancing and playing the piano, "As soon as you're injuries are all healed up, we'll find a dance studio for you to do tap dancing at, a piano teacher for piano lessons, while we'll find someone to give you self-defense training."
"Why do I have to learn how to fight?" asked Stephanie.
"Due to my job, I rather have it that you're able to physically defend yourself until my unit chief decides that you're old enough to learn how to shoot a gun," said Spencer.
"Will Violet and Arthur eventually take self-defense classes and learn how to shoot a gun?" asked Stephanie.
"When they're old enough," said Spencer.
Maeve nodded, "When I met Spencer I started going to a women's' self-defense class until I got pregnant with Violet and Arthur."
"Will you be returning soon?" asked Stephanie.
Maeve nodded, "As soon as I get the all-clear, I'll be returning."
"Any other rules?" asked Stephanie.
"When Violet and Arthur start talking, please watch your language so Violet and Arthur don't swear," said Maeve.
"I promise," said Stephanie."
"If you are asked to do anything by Maeve, my in-laws, my teammates, or me please do it," said Spencer before giving his sister a stern look, "When you start bringing friends over, you can't have any boys except for me, your nephew Arthur, my unit chief's son Jack in your room."
Stephanie raised her eyes at her brother, "Why are you allowed in my room?" asked Stephanie.
"I'll never enter your bedroom without your permission, but if you get sick and have to stay in bed there will be times that I might be the one to bring you medicine, something to drink, snacks, and meals," said Spencer.
"Good point," said Stephanie before looking at her brother, "Any other rules?" asked Stephanie.
Spencer thought about Randall Gardner and Frank who attacked Elle and Sarah Jacobs in Elle's and Gideon's former or current homes, "Aside from never letting anyone you don't know into our house, all entrances will be locked while the security system will be armed 24/7 since serial killers have broken into past and present teammates's homes already," said Spencer.
"I understand. Anything else?" asked Stephanie.
"That's all for now, but we'll make changes about your curfew when you're older," said Maeve.
"Most of the rules you gave me were the ones my mom had for me, but I understand that you two are giving me some stricter rules because of your job, Spencer," said Stephanie.
Spencer nodded, "Exactly."
Maeve looked at her husband, "Why don't I take Stephanie to various stores to find sheets, bedding, and curtains to go with the lavender paint that my father picked up while you and my father start moving furniture to the middle of the room."
"We should probably see if Gerald wants to help out," said Spencer.
"Who's Gerald?" asked Stephanie.
"He's our 38-year-old next-door neighbor who took in Zoey with his wife and kids until my parents came home last week. He told Spencer and me that he's willing to help out with moving furniture around when we got back," said Maeve.
"How old are his kids?" asked Stephanie.
"He has a 12-year-old daughter named Holly, a 10-year-old son named Dustin, and a seven-year-old daughter named Rebecca and they go to Georgetown Day School," said Spencer.
"Does Holly know about me yet?" asked Stephanie.
"I told Holly about you when I dropped off Zoey. She has high-functioning autism too and she can't wait to introduce you to her and her friends when you're ready to meet her," said Maeve.
"Hopefully I can go to Georgetown Day School if I get along with Holly," said Stephanie.
"Speaking of Georgetown Day School, I already sent an application and they want to meet you next week Wednesday," said Spencer.
"OK," said Stephanie.
Maeve looked at Stephanie, "Let's get going so we can have your bedding picked out before dinner time."
"Let's go," said Stephanie as she followed her sister-in-law downstairs.
15 minutes later Spencer's and Maeve's neighbor Gerald was over helping Spencer and Joe prepare Stephanie's new bedroom for painting by moving all of the bedroom furniture to the middle of the room and covered the furniture and floors up with tarp that Joe bought before they started removing everything from the bedroom walls including outlet covers and light switch covers so they could start washing the walls so Spencer, Maeve, Joe, and Stephanie could start painting primer on the walls after dinner was eaten.
A few weeks later on July 3rd, Stephanie was thinking about how she spent the past week and a half helping her brother get her bedroom decorated to her liking, going to grief counseling, getting accepted to start the seventh-grade at Georgetown Day School in August and how she quickly made friends with her 12-year-old next-door neighbor Holly who was planning on introducing her to her friends and classmates Erica and Ramona who were also mildly autistic like her and Holly after the 4th of July, "What's going on today?" asked Stephanie.
"Violet and Arthur have their eight-week check-up a day early today while I'm having my belated post-natal appointment with my gynecologist Dr. Marks," said Maeve.
"And you have grief counseling with Dr. Lucinda Moss a half-hour into Maeve's doctor appointment before you have a follow-up on your injuries with your new primary physician Dr. Katrina Bennett," said Spencer.
"Is she a pediatric doctor or an adult doctor? I started seeing an adult doctor when I turned 12," said Stephanie.
"She's my primary physician. I would have taken you to see my primary doctor, but since Spencer is related to you biologically he needs to take you to your first appointment with her before I can take you to any doctor appointment," said Maeve.
"OK," said Stephanie.
Maeve looked at her sister-in-law, "After Violet and Arthur are done with their checkups, would you like to accompany my mother and me to the grocery store so we're ready for our 4th of July cookout tomorrow?" asked Maeve.
Stephanie nodded, "I'd like to."
An hour later Maeve had just left the house with Violet and Arthur when Stephanie came downstairs to find her brother gathering all of her medical records for her physical with her new primary doctor, "Spencer?" asked Stephanie.
Spencer looked up at his sister who had a nervous look on her face, "Is everything OK?" asked Spencer.
"I found blood in my underwear while I just wiped up blood. Do you think that I'm dealing with a complication from the accident, Spencer?" asked Stephanie.
Spencer's eyes went wide when he remembered that his 12-year-old half-sister had yet to have her first period causing him to realize why his sister was a bit moody for a few days, "Even though you were home-schooled by your mother, did you ever learn about getting your period?" asked Spencer.
Stephanie's eyes went wide when she realized that she just got her first period, "My mom gave me the talk about getting my period, but I don't have any pads yet."
Spencer started to blush, "Why don't I grab what you some pads from Maeve's cabinet in the master bathroom, and Maeve can take you shopping for pads later."
A few seconds later Spencer and Stephanie were heading upstairs where he grabbed four pads for his sister and while Stephanie was changing her underwear and stuck a pad into her underwear, Spencer sent Maeve a text telling her that Stephanie got her first period and he took four pads out of their bathroom to get Stephanie through the next couple of hours.
A few hours later Spencer and Stephanie entered their house only to find Maeve trying to calm down a screaming Violet "I take it that Violet isn't happy about getting her hepatitis B, DTap, Haemophilus influenza type b, rotavirus vaccinations today?" asked Spencer as he rushed over to his wife and took his eight-week-old daughter while Stephanie headed upstairs to change her pad.
Maeve nodded, "She and Arthur both screamed as soon as the first needle was injected into them."
Spencer looked down at his daughter who was now beginning to settle down, "Even though you're too young to understand what I'm about to tell you, but five months ago I developed a fear of needles when a bad man took me away for a few days and poked me with a needle over eight times, flower. I can't handle seeing a needle be put in anyone right now because I would most likely have a flashback to the times that bad man gave me those shots. Hopefully, someday I'll be able to handle being there when I have to be the parent to take you and your twin brother to a doctor appointment that involves getting a vaccination so I can comfort you."
Violet stopped crying and gave her father a real smile.
"I see that someone is feeling much better now because she's smiling at me," said Spencer before looking at his wife, "Where's Arthur? How did he handle getting his vaccinations?" asked Spencer.
"He's asleep in his bassinet right now. Arthur was able to calm down in five minutes," said Maeve.
Spencer sighed, "I'm sorry that I got out of attending Violet's and Arthur's two-month checkup because of Stephanie having two appointments today."
"Please don't apologize. There are going to be times that we'll have to divide and conquer on our children's' and your sister's appointments," said Maeve before resting a hand on her husband's arm, "And I'm not mad at you for not wanting to watch Violet and Arthur get their vaccinations since you wanted to prevent yourself from having a flashback to Hankel drugging you."
"Thank you for understanding," said Spencer.
Maeve decided to change the topic, "Violet and Arthur are developing right on schedule. Aside from them both growing an inch and a half, Violet now weighs 11 pounds while Arthur weighs 12 pounds."
"Good," said Spencer before thinking about Maeve ending up having to postpone her six-week post-natal appointment by two weeks so she, Violet, and Arthur can be in Portland with him and Stephanie, "Now how are you doing?" asked Spencer.
"Physically or emotionally?" asked Maeve.
"Both," said Spencer.
"Aside from the emotional trauma of watching Violet and Arthur get their vaccinations and Dr. Jacobs being murdered a month ago, I'm grateful that I haven't dealt with any baby blues or postpartum depression since Violet and Arthur were born and finding out about your half-sister," said Maeve.
"What about physically?" asked Spencer.
Maeve smiled, "I'm now allowed to use the pool that is included with this house while my parents are going to be taking Violet and Arthur to their room tonight so we can celebrate me getting the all-clear tonight."
"Are you sure that you're ready? You gave birth to twins eight-weeks ago, so I won't mind waiting a few more weeks," said Spencer.
"I'm ready since I'm all healed up from giving birth. I went back on birth control until I'm ready for us to try for another baby," said Maeve before looking at the direction her half-sister went, "How's Stephanie doing?" asked Maeve.
"She continued opening up to her therapist while all the injuries except for her broken arm have healed up," said Spencer.
"Good," said Maeve before thinking about the text message she received from her husband, "It must have been hard for her to get her first period today while you were the one here to help her get what she needs."
"She was calm since she was told what to expect when she was in the fifth grade and I gave her four pads while I already knew that Stephanie had yet to have her first period from her medical records," said Spencer.
"Speaking of shopping, do you believe that you can manage Violet and Arthur for a bit longer?" asked Maeve.
"Why?" asked Spencer.
"Before Stephanie, my mother, and I go grocery shopping: my mother and I are going to take Stephanie on an outing of her choice to celebrate getting her first period," said Maeve.
Spencer nodded, "I can manage Violet and Arthur since your father will be here."
Later on, that night Spencer and Maeve were making love for the first time since a few weeks before Violet's and Arthur's births while Violet and Arthur were with their maternal grandparents in Joe and Mary's bedroom two floors down while Stephanie was having her first sleepover at her new friend's Holly's house.
The next evening Spencer was rocking two-month-old Violet who ended up staying up an hour later than her twin brother to sleep when he heard a voice through Violet's and Arthur's bedroom door.
"After seeing you interact with Violet and Arthur in person or through pictures and videos, I hope you know that fatherhood looks good on you," said Hotch quietly.
Spencer turned around and realized that Hotch must have placed Jack into the playpen that was placed in one of the two empty bedrooms as he spoke quietly, "My mom, Maeve, and Aunt Erin all said the same thing."
"Are you ready to return to work tomorrow?" asked Hotch.
Spencer nodded, "Maeve and I have started a routine with Violet, Arthur, and Stephanie even though Stephanie doesn't start the seventh-grade until the middle of next month."
"Is Stephanie OK with you going back to work?" asked Hotch.
Spencer nodded, "Stephanie doesn't want me to take more time off because of her while Maeve won't go back to work until the day after Labor Day when the twins are four-months-old so she can make sure that Stephanie has adjusted to attending Georgetown Day School with her new friend and next-door neighbor Holly."
"Stephanie got into Georgetown Day School?" asked Hotch.
Spencer nodded, "She did."
"That's good," said Hotch.
"What's even surprising is that Georgetown Day School insisted that I also start the application to have Violet and Arthur attend preschool there during the 2010-2011 school year," said Spencer.
"Did you do it?" asked Hotch.
"Even though the twins just turned two-months-old today, Maeve and I completed the applications so we don't have to worry about a waiting list," said Spencer.
"If Violet and Arthur turn out to be geniuses like you, you won't have to worry about a waiting list since any private school will take in Violet, Arthur, and any other children you and Maeve have together," said Hotch.
Spencer looked down at Violet and saw that his daughter was asleep causing him to kiss his daughter's forehead and whispered, "Goodnight, flower. Daddy loves you, flower."
"She's asleep?" asked Hotch.
Spencer nodded, "Want to kiss your goddaughter before I put her in her crib?" whispered Spencer.
Hotch nodded, "Yes."
After Hotch kissed his goddaughter, Spencer gently placed his daughter into the crib she was now sharing with Arthur.
Two hours later Spencer, Maeve, Stephanie, Mary, Joe, Haley, Emily, Morgan, Garcia, Elle, Elle's boyfriend Devin were having a good view of the 4th of July fireworks show from Spencer's and Maeve's backyard while Garcia, Emily, and Morgan were debating if JJ was really spending the 4th of July with her mother or JJ was using her mother as a cover to spend the 4th of July in New Orleans with Detective LaMontagne Jr. due to JJ turning down the invitation to finally meet Stephanie during Spencer's and Maeve's 4th of July barbecue while Gideon chose to stay at his cabin.
A/N: The ending I came up with was the best one I could think of, but Spencer returns to work in the next chapter.
I was a 12-year-old sixth grader when my mom gave me a basic Nokia cell phone since I was taking the city bus to the library on my own.
When it comes to having Spencer develop a fear of needles in this story, I use to be afraid of getting shots and blood-work done until I was diagnosed with a bleeding disorder called Von Willebrand's Disease when I was 15-years-old. Getting diagnosed with a bleeding disorder caused me to get over my fear of needles since a lot of lab work was done to diagnose me while the first treatment was an IV to see if I would respond to the replacement factor called Desmopressin. I have received either Desmopressin or Humate P through IV eight times while I had a total of four surgeries to try to make life with a bleeding disorder easier for me and IVs were required during surgery.