A heartfelt thank-you to all my readers and reviewers-you make my day. To answer a question re: who would be the big brother, remember that while Spencer is the size of a 4 year old and talks like a 2 or 3 year old, he is actually 6, almost 7 . Speaking of age, I need to make a change on Jack. I earlier had Hotch say Jack had just turned 3. Actually, Jack has just turned 5. Sorry for the mistake. My bad.

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or the cannon characters, and am not making any profit from this story. Warning: Kleenex alert.

Chapter 9

Around 7:00, Spencer woke to the clattering sound of the meal cart out in the hall and the insistent call of his bladder. He looked quickly around the room, then met his guardian's eyes with a look of distress. "Eh-run, day no have bucket. Spencer need bucket!" pleaded the boy, as he shifted very uncomfortably in his bed.

Stifling a smile, Hotch explained "Do you remember before the basement? Did your Mommy teach you how to use something called a toilet? There is one in that little room over there. You need help right now because of your cast, so can I take you in there and help you?"

After a few more minutes of acute discomfort, the child gave an embarrassed looking nod. Reaching down, Aaron unplugged the IV pole then picked him up and headed for the bathroom, IV pole in tow. Once there, he helped the boy navigate his clothing and explained how to aim properly. Red-faced, the child followed instructions and allowed himself a slight smile at success. Hotch showed him how to flush and wash his hands, then carried him back to bed. "Good job Buddy" Aaron praised. "Just tell me or the Uncle watching you for me whenever you need to go use the toilet, OK? You just say 'I need to use the bathroom'. Can you say that for me?"

"Need to use da bafroom" Spencer repeated, shyly looking down. He then looked up to his protector, worry in his amber eyes. "Unca Dave an Unca Derek safe? No hit? No bite? No hurt Spencer?"

"You are safe with them Spencer. They won't hurt you in any way. They will protect you from anybody that tries to hurt you. I promise, all of your Aunts and Uncles love you almost as much as I do, and we will keep you safe from bad people." promised the young father.

"Eh-run love Spencer? Why? Spencer dirty, Spencer bad….all mans say so. Say Spencer good only for open him's legs." the boy sadly stated, looking honestly confused. "Is ok…Eh-run just come, not know. Is ok for not want now. Daddy no want-him sell. Why would Eh-run want bad, dirty boy?"

Fighting tears, Aaron gathered the child into his arms, unable to speak for a moment. "Spencer, you are not dirty, you are not bad. You are a sweet, precious child who has been abused. Those bad men lied to you. I promise to always only tell you the truth, OK? You can trust me. No adult has the right to do the things that were done to you. It was wrong for them to hurt you, and your father had no right to sell you. He broke the law and he will go to prison forever. The men who hurt you will go to prison too, because what they did was wrong. They are the bad dirty ones, not you. I love you because when you were cold and thirsty you gave your blanket and tried to give your water to the lady under the floor, and because the first thought you had when you were free of that collar was to set her free. That tells me what kind of person you really are, a good and compassionate person, and someone like you deserves to be loved. I love you, and I want you to be my son!"

Spencer pulled away and gazed into Aaron's dark eyes, seeing nothing but sincerity in them. Dare he trust this man who was offering his heart's desire? What he wanted more than anything was to be loved, to have someone to love. He had been able to accept him as "Daddy" easily enough-there had been no expectations there, based on prior experience. But trust? That was something else entirely. But, this man HAD already protected him, and had rescued him 3 different times from ones who had hurt him. He had given him water, and the jacket off his back. Had given him safety. And now he was offering love…Spencer found his eyes filling with tears as he made his decision. For better or worse, he would allow himself to trust this man, this rescuer who offered to love him, who protected him and made him feel safe.

Hotch watched the struggle to trust wage in the child's eyes, and knew the decision was made an instant before the boy launched himself into Aarons arms, sobbing "Really say Spencer not bad, not dirty? Really want Spencer fo-ever? Will be good boy, pwomise to be good boy fo-ever for Eh-run!"

"Yes, I want you forever" reassured Hotch, tears streaming down his cheeks. "I know you're a good boy, just forget what those men said. They were lies. I will always tell you the truth, and you can always tell me the truth. I promise nothing you tell me will make me stop loving you, ok?"

"OK. Can Spencer call Eh-run Daddy? 'Cause not legal yet?" the child queried, wiping his eyes with his open palms.

Surprised the boy understood the concept, obviously having overheard and comprehended his conversation with the doctor the previous day, Aaron responded "I would like it very much if you call me Daddy. I will always tell you the truth, so yes-I am not legally your daddy yet, but I am already your legal guardian and will do all the paperwork today to start adopting you. Do you understand adoption?"

"Does it mean 'cause real Mommy sick an Daddy in jail so Judge say Eh-run is Spencer's daddy?" the boy asked, looking serious.

To say Hotch was floored by Spencer's obvious level of understanding, given that he had been taken at 3 and kept in a basement for 3 ½ years, would be an understatement. "Yes, that's right. You knew your Mommy was sick?" he asked the boy.

"Uh-huh. Her was sick before man come. Sometimes her not know Spencer, sometimes her hold Spencer and read stories, and sometimes show how to read and write and draw. Miss Mommy, but Spencer scared when her no know him." he responded.

"And how do you know about what judges can do and what legal means?" Hotch couldn't help himself from asking.

"Oh, cause bad daddy a lawyer an he talkeded to Mommy about work. An once him have book from work an Spencer read it." The child replied.

Remembering the boy's claim of counting over 5,000 and Morgan's offhand comment that the schoolbooks under the bed had been written and drawn in, presumably by Spencer, with correct looking answers, coupled with his apparent understanding of legal topics….Aaron was definitely getting this boy tested!