Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds

The team stood around, Penelope was finally asleep after much hesitation and now Derek was looking around her things to see if there were any signs that she was self harming or nearing that part of the problem. He failed to show up with anything until he got into the bathroom. There in the window sill was pot after pot; he gathered them all up feeling disappointed with himself and went into the kitchen.

'Look at these.' He said and put them all down. 'They're all mostly for anxiety and there's a few sedatives there.'

'None of these are to treat PSTD.' Reid said looking them over. 'Dated 3 months back.' He said and picked it up. 'This one's dated the day she had her EVAL.' Reid said, they all remembered that day; the stress of not having her at work had left them that day. 'She isn't being treated for PSTD directly.'

'So there's nothing helping the problem.'

'No it's all hindering them.'

'So what do we do?'

'I know what I want to.' Derek said and went to the corner, he grabbed a box, put it on the couch and then opened it, pulling out all the photo's and mementos that she'd just hidden away. He pulled the photos of the team and looked at each of them. 'I think we need to make this place like it used to be.'

Rossi just wordlessly went and grabbed another box, Reid and Hotch followed and grabbed the last remaining boxes. Then JJ and Emily just got stuck in with pulling bits and pieces out of the boxes and setting them back into their rightful places. All of them just worked quietly, knowing that there was no real door to Penelope's room, just a wall of hanging beads to separate the rooms.

When they were on the last box, a muffling was heard, as they listened in they realised it was muffling, it was crying, a slight name calling and struggled breathing. Derek acknowledged what the noise was first and shot into the bedroom, Penelope's closed eyes were streaming with tears and her chest heaved with strangled breathing, her lips murmured his name. He gently climbed on the bed and ran a hand around her face.

'Pen... its Derek; I need you to wake up for me Baby Girl.' He soothed and she shot up and pushed herself against the headboard, her hand on her chest where the bullet entered, she looked from him with wide scared eyes and then looked at the team and felt exposed. Derek sensed it and caught her just as she crumpled. 'I've got you.'

'Don't let me go.' She said as she just sobbed into his chest.

'Not until you're ready.' He said and sat with her curled into her side, him resting against the headboard, facing the others now. Slowly one by one they all sat around on the bed, Penelope's crying didn't seem to seize for them, it continued. In Derek's arms Penelope found the comfort she needed and with each new dip she didn't feel so alone and so much like she'd lost. She didn't know how long she was there but she was opening her eyes, she must've fallen asleep in Derek's arms, Emily and JJ were curled upon the bed with them and Hotch, Rossi and Reid were strewn around the floor.

She tried to pull herself out of Derek's grasp but she felt him tighten. 'You're not going anywhere, we need to talk.'

'Why didn't you go home?'

'We're needed here, you slept well.' She nodded and managed to free herself enough to wipe the sleep from her eyes before. 'Why didn't you just show us the prescription meds you were on?'

'There wasn't a point, they helped until I needed another dose, they numbed me, numbed everything about that night but over the months they just didn't help at all so I started with the sedatives but the nightmares got worse so I stopped and the nightmares just continued.'

'Didn't you think of going to see someone?'

'I didn't realise I needed to until Kevin told me to the other day, sad thing is, is that even with him around I was still calling out for you in my dreams.'

'He told you that?'

'One of the reasons he broke it off with me.' She said and looked down at her hands. 'I've really screwed this up haven't I?' She asked and looked at Emily and JJ. 'I mean, you're my family and I just didn't do what you're supposed to do with families and in the end I lost.'

'But if you'd lost would we all be here right now?' Derek asked her and looked down at her. 'We could've easily have left you down on those steps but we couldn't because Baby Girl, we love you, always have, we just got annoyed and felt neglected that you'd just drop us from your life like you did.'

'I honestly don't know why I did, it wasn't a conscious effort.'

'Hotch thinks you're suffering post traumatic stress.' Derek confided in her then. 'Reid's pretty convinced too, and P, you are showing a lot of the signs.'

'But it was months ago.'

'Doesn't matter, it doesn't have to happen directly after, something triggered it and then everything came to ahead, and I'm guessing Kevin leaving opened your eyes and made it worse, hence the drinking and the cleaning.'

'I just want that stain gone.'

'Maybe you need to move, get a fresh start.' She nodded at him and he pulled her close. 'You don't have to stay here, nothing's tying you here, but you know it's going to be a constant reminder for you.'

'I guess my heads not really been where it's suppose to be lately.' She wiped her face with her hands, and just took his hand in hers. 'I needed this... thank you.'

'I want you back to normal Baby Girl, we have lost time to make up for and I want what we both want, I want you as mine Baby Girl, but not until you're better and I want you to be comfortable.'

'Can I just stay here forever?'

Derek shot her a look. 'I don't think so.'

'It's just feels perfect right now, with them here, and you here and for once I feel like Battle didn't win, that I really did survive him.'

'That's because you did baby, you continued to breathe long after he stopped and you need to remember that if you ever need help then you only have to ask for it.'

'I think I get that now.'

'Good... can you make me a promise?' She nodded to him. 'Ask us for help, even if its just a teeny tiny problem, ask us, let us in, that's what we're here for.'

'Okay.' She said and sucked in a breath. 'Will you help me get help to get over this? I want my old life back, my life before Battle, my life before our argument.'

'Of course I can.' He said and kissed her temple. 'Can you see why I reacted like I did now?' He asked and saw that she was slowly putting the pieces together. 'It's because I was jealous, you were going on a date and it wasn't with me. It hurt me and I had no right to be hurt, you didn't know how I felt. Does that prove to you how much I love you?'

'I think so.' She said and looked up at him, her eyes holding a different sparkle to them.

'How about after this?' He said and kissed her, and as he slowly pulled away he saw her eyes still closed and her mouth curled into a simple pleased smile. 'I love you, just remember that okay?'

'Forever.' She said and looked down as Reid slowly sat up. 'Morning kid genius.'

'Penelope?'

'Yeah sugar?'

Reid smiled, sleepily but happily. 'How you feeling today?'

'No mega hangover that I thought I'd have but I'm after some help.'

'Can I offer any help?'

'You're the number one to help me before the others can.'

'Hey, kid, help me get these guys up and we'll get the ball rolling. We need to get our oracle of all things known and unknown back.' Penelope let a giggle slip from her lips at that and Derek looked at her shocked, her face was as shocked as he felt. 'Laugh much lately?'

'I guess not.' Penelope shrugged. 'It felt good.'

'That's promising.' Derek said and then shifted to the end of bed. 'Wakey wakey guys!' He yelled out and they all woke up, their attention not going to the source of the wakeup call but going to Penelope, who smiled timidly.

'Morning my little heroes.' She said quietly and they all sat up, they knew that their friend was slowly getting back to them.