Chapter 68
Jamison fixed Hotch with a serious look. "We had the platform moved back a bit, but if you're still too close to everyone we can have it moved back even more."
Hotch shook his head. "It's fine. I've grown accustomed to the sound," he told him knowing he was talking about how the shifter's hearts had bothered him when there were too many of them around him.
Jamison nodded. "Good."
James stepped up onto the platform with a Polynesian woman by his side, and Hotch stood up as the man smiled at him and stuck his hand out. "I wanted to thank you, again, for saving me, Mana'akua."
The man's neck had healed some, but he still looked like he should be in bed resting not at a luau. "You're welcome. How are you doing?" he asked after he shook the man's hand.
James nodded. "I'll be back to my old self in no time. Agents Hotchner and Rossi, I'd like you to meet my wife, Alani."
Rossi shook her hand first. "Always a pleasure meeting a beautiful woman."
She laughed as she shook her head and then turned to Hotch who then stuck out his hand, but she ignored that and moved in and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you, Mana'akua, for saving my pilikua."
Hotch blushed as he nodded. "You're welcome."
Once the couple moved to sit on the other side of Rossi, Hotch sat back down, but then immediately got back up as more people came towards the platform. After several minutes of Jamison and Nora introducing Hotch and Rossi to most of the family, Hotch finally excused himself and made his way over to the team. They were all discussing what they were going to do with their free day, but JJ quickly turned and hugged Hotch. "We were so worried about you," she whispered into his neck.
When he pulled away, he could see the moisture in her eyes. "I know, and I'm sorry for scaring you all so much, but I'm alright." Morgan and Reid's looks told him that they weren't sure to believe him or not, so he sighed. "I promise."
That brought a smile to Reid's face but Morgan fixed him with a deadly look. "The next time you're going to do something that crazy, you've got to give me more of a heads up besides 'be ready'," he insisted.
Hotch smirked. "If I actually have time to truly think what I'm doing, deal." He turned to JJ and gestured to her arm. "How are you doing?"
She shrugged. "It was a clean break, and it doesn't really hurt."
"But it's going to start itching within a couple days," Morgan drew out with a smile.
Garcia slapped his arm. "Stop picking on her or you will find yourself alone tomorrow!"
Morgan looked shocked and then held up his hands. "Alright, alright! I'll stop."
Hotch shook his head at them. "So how did the case. . ."
"Nope," Morgan started as he shook his head. "We will have plenty of time on the jet ride home to fill you in. We are not ruining this wonderful party by discussing business."
Reid nodded enthusiastically. "I, for one, am going to start sampling the wonderful Hawaiian delicacies," he offered and then started towards the tables of food.
"Oh, me, too," Garcia called out and moved to catch up with him.
"Save some for me, Baby Girl," Morgan yelled and then moved after them.
JJ and Mack looked at Hotch, and he smiled. "You better go with them. You probably won't get another chance like this any time soon," he offered as he motioned towards the food, and that's all the urging they needed. He chuckled as he watched them.
"You are going to sample the fares, too, aren't you, Mana'akua?"
Hotch turned to see Heather.
"Or don't you eat stuff like this?"
He smiled. "I can and yes I will, but it all looks and sells so great, I don't know where to start."
She giggled and grabbed his hand. "Come on. I'll show you where to start," she offered and then pulled him in the opposite direction of the team.
Hotch frowned, but he didn't argue, and when he got close enough to the long table she was leading him to, his mouth watered.
Heather noticed the look on his face and giggled again. "I know you like sweets, so. . ." she started and then waved a hand down the dessert table laden with pies, pastries, cakes, fruit, and drinks.
"Wow," Hotch exclaimed as his eyes swept over the length of the table.
She giggled again and reached for an icing topped puff. "Here, try the Chantilly Huapia Puffs. They're my favorite," she explained and held one out to him and then grabbed another for herself and took a bite.
Hotch put the whole puff in his mouth and a moan escaped him as he chewed. Once he swallowed it down, he looked at Heather and his smile revealed his dimples. "That was amazing. I can see why it's your favorite."
She nodded. "Mom says they're too sweet, but that's why I like them."
Hotch chuckled. "Me, too."
Heather smiled as she took another bite and then waved at the massive tray of puffs. "You better get them while they're here. Once most people are done with their dinner, most of this table will disappear. And the only things that will be left are untouched for a reason."
Hotch reached out and took another puff. "You don't have to tell me twice."
She giggled. "The Kona cake," she started as she pointed at a chocolate cake with beige icing, "is really good, too, but so is Guava cake and Lilikoi Chiffon Pie. Those are the sweetest pure Hawaiian desserts. If you want to something even rarer, though," she continued and picked up a glazed cookie. "Kuku makes these and while I have no idea where the recipe came from, they are a favorite of the whole family, and I've loved them since as far back as I can remember."
Hotch smiled at the young girl and then looked around. "I guess I need a plate, huh?"
She laughed. "You may need two."
When Hotch showed back up at the table with a plate filled with dessert, Nora, who had taken her husband's seat, shook her head. "It's a good thing that I know you get real nourishment from other things or I'd be lecturing you about how sweets should only be consumed after the meal."
Hotch's cheeks turned a dark red. "Heather is the one who told me to grab them before they disappear," he told her as he sat the plate down. "And I do plan on sampling some of the other stuff."
Rossi showed up with a plate piled so high that Hotch couldn't begin to tell where one dish began and one ended.
Nora smiled widely. "Now that's what I expected to see."
Rossi saw Hotch's plate and laughed. "I can't believe he doesn't have two."
Hotch snorted. "You look like you needed two plates."
Rossi smiled as he sat down, put a napkin in his lap, and pulled his plate closer. "And this is just my first."
Nora laughed and Jamison showed up with a plate for himself and one for his wife. As he surveyed the agents' plates he shook his head. "Worse than one of the keiki."
Hotch frowned and Nora laughed. "Children," she translated for him.
Hotch shrugged. "When desserts look that good, I want to make sure I get some of them," he explained and then went towards the tables that held the real food and they all laughed at him.
XXX
When everyone was done eating, the children cleared everyone's plates and such away and everyone went back to partying. When Hotch pushed his seat back to get up, Jamison leaned around his wife and fixed him with a look to stop him. "You're not done yet, Mana'akua."
Hotch frowned as he looked at him and then glanced at Rossi, and he shrugged. Taking a deep breath, Hotch went to pull his chair back in, but Jamison shook his head and signaled to the right. Four young men came and grabbed the ends of the table to take it away.
"Hey," Rossi yelled and grabbed his drink before they could leave with it which caused Nora to laugh.
"What's going on now?" Hotch asked them.
"It's not a real luau without a ceremonial dance," Nora explained as some of the Schewel family got up from their tables and moved to the open area right in front of Hotch and them.
The men manned different types of drums and within a few moments, the women started dancing.
James leaned forward to see around Rossi. "This is an ancient form of Hula called Kahiko. Most outsiders don't get to see this version."
Hotch smiled as he watched the dance and then noticed his team; they were all mesmerized. He turned to Nora. "It's beautiful. I wish my family was here to see it."
She put a gentle hand on his arm. "You should bring them here."
He chuckled. "I might be able to do that one day."
"Because you will always be welcomed here, Aaron, always," she emphasized. He gave her another smile and turned to watch the dance some more, but she pulled on his arm to get his attention back. "Even after Jamie and I are long gone, even after Heather's generation is long gone, you will still be welcomed on the Schewel Plantation, Mana'akua. The story of the compassionate vampire and how he saved this family will be told for the rest of time. They will all know who you are, and you will always be welcomed here with open arms like ohana."
Hotch felt his chest warm. He knew what that word meant from watching 'Lilo and Stich' with Joey so many times, and the sincerity in her eyes made a lump form in his throat. "Thank you," was all he could get out.
She smiled and pat his arm and then went backing to watching the hula.
XXX
After the hula and some impressive flame twirling, things settled down some, and right when Hotch was trying to think of what to say to excuse himself so he could cut out, a young boy walked up to him. Hotch gave him a grin. "Hello."
The boy's nervous eyes looked towards Jamison and he nodded encouragement, so the boy took a deep breath and held out something in both of his hands. "For Mana'akua, in tribute," the boy said as he bowed his head.
Hotch frowned, so Rossi leaned in close to him. "You better take whatever it is before the poor boy's arms go numb," he whispered.
"Thank you," Hotch offered as he put out his hands. He didn't know what else to say.
The boy smiled widely and placed a small glass bottle in Hotch's hands and then scampered away before Hotch could say anything else.
Hotch brought the bottle closer to examine it and his eyes widened. At first, he'd thought the glass was red, but as he moved the object around in his hands, he realized the glass was clear and there was a red liquid inside it; he knew what is was, too. He turned to Nora and Jamison. "Why did he give me this?"
Jamison chuckled. "Same reason they are," he told him as he gestured the other children who had gathered at the end of the platform.
Hotch looked at the five children who all looked younger than Joey and shook his head.
"If you don't take them, they will be severely disappointed," Nora told him as she waved the children forward.
Rossi chuckled knowing that Hotch would never do anything to make him seem like an ungrateful guest let alone anything that would ever disappoint a child.
"Shut up, Dave," Hotch whispered and then forced a smile for the little girl who had come up to him. "Thank you," he told her, and giggled as she turned red and then moved off to the side.
Once they were done, Hotch had six matching bottles and after about ten minutes, when he saw Jamison get up and head off the platform, he excused himself and followed the Schewel family patriarch.
As Jamison poured himself a glass of pineapple wine, Hotch made sure no one else was within earshot and approached the old man. "Why would you all give me blood?"
Jamison shrugged. "It was he least we could do."
Hotch sighed. "I have plenty. I don't need you all giving me any."
Jamison frowned. "How do you have any shifter blood?"
Hotch's brows shot up. "It's shifter blood?"
The man laughed. "It couldn't be anything else coming from us."
Hotch rubbed the back of his neck. After a second, he swallowed as he cringed. "Then that means that you all. . ." Horror overtook his features. "It's not those kids' is it?"
Jamison immediately started shaking his head. "No! We wouldn't let them contribute to them." He took a deep breath. "We all gave a little, but we wouldn't let the young ones. They wanted to be a part of it, though, so Nora suggested that they be the ones to give it to you."
Hotch settled but he sighed. "But you all didn't have to do that. I was only doing my job, just like the rest of the team. It's what we do," Hotch tried.
The old man huffed. "Going after a killer, sure, but helping Heather, saving Helen and the kids, saving James. . ." He put a strong hand on Hotch's shoulder and locked eyes with him. "You did those things, Mana'akua."
Hotch took a deep breath. To know that they had all given up some of their own blood for him was almost too much to fathom. "But you all already paid me back for those things by healing me. I wouldn't be standing here if it wasn't for you and your family. You don't owe me anything."
Jamison held his chin up. "You would have healed eventually, all we did was help with the process, so they can't be compared." When Hotch opened his mouth to argue again, Jamison's hand tightened. "My son, my granddaughter-in-law, my great grandkids wouldn't have been here for this celebration tonight! And that doesn't include who else those damn hunters would have killed. There's no comparing what you have done to what we have done." He took a calming breath. "Shifter blood is a rare gift, and you will accept it without another word, or I'll tell the whole family that you don't want it."
Hotch's eyes grew wide. He could only imagine how badly that would offend them.
The shocked look that crossed Hotch's face made the old man laugh. "I thought you'd see it my way."
Hotch wilted. "Alright."
He grabbed Hotch's arm and tugged him back towards the main table. "And even if you don't want to ever use it to shift, you should still keep it just in case someone gets hurt."
Hotch stopped and looked at him. "What do you mean?"
Jamison smiled. "What do I mean about shifting or what do I mean about someone getting hurt?"
"Both."
He took a drink of his wine and motioned for Hotch to keep going. "Drinking one bottle would probably give you about thirty minutes of shifting time."
Hotch studied the man. "But how can I do that when I wouldn't have any clue about how to change shapes."
Jamison frowned. "Do you not know how to shift into your wolf form?"
Hotch's eyes immediately scanned the area to make sure none of his team were close enough to hear them. "Yes," he answered in a whisper.
Jamison nodded. "Drinking our blood is the same thing essentially. All you have to do is think about whatever shape you want to be and it'll happen. Just keep track of the time."
Hotch's eyes darted around as he considered his words. "So I could actually turn into a bird and fly."
Jamison laughed as he nodded. "Yes, and it might seem awkward at first, but you'll get the hang of it pretty quickly." He inhaled through his nose as he studied Hotch for a second. "I may be off with the time, though, so be very careful the first time you do it. In fact, you may not want to try a bird that first time."
"Meaning?"
"With as powerful as you are, it could either last longer or shorter, and I'd hate to see you flying and then shift back while you're in the air."
Hotch winced with that thought and then looked at him. "Can anyone shift if they drink it?"
"No. Only those beings with the ability to shift their own forms can do it."
Hotch mentally sighed. He had hoped that he could let someone else experience it. "So what did you mean about it helping someone who was hurt?"
Jamison put his arm around him and started them moving again. "It has very powerful healing properties, and that works on anyone," he told him as he pointed at Rossi and Mack laughing with Jimmy by the bonfire. "While it wouldn't allow them to heal as quickly as you or me, it would be a hundred times quicker than what they can do on their own; and if the wound was severe, it could mean the difference between life and death for them."
Hotch's eyes drifted over his team, his friends, and then looked back to the old man. "I don't know what to say."
Jamison pat him on the back. "You don't have to say anything, Mana'auka. I just hope it helps you some day as much as you have helped us."
