The wood in the fireplace crackled and the flames softly glowed in their otherwise dark living room. There was a faint smell of pine in the air from the Christmas tree in the corner of the room. Tomorrow that tree would be lit up and they would celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with family and friends, and share in the joy of that magical time of year with their children. But for tonight it was just the two of them. Fran had taken the kids overnight at her house, and Derek and Emily were celebrating their wedding anniversary.

Though they'd talked about going out to a nice dinner together, when the day finally came, they ended up wanting nothing more than time in their home. They'd eaten their take-out meal in front of the fireplace and reminisced about their lives and where things were headed. Derek had spent the past few weeks filling out paperwork and filing forms and gutting the house he'd bought. The first week in January, he'd be meeting the teens Julia Spencer had selected to participate in his project, and he couldn't contain his hopefulness and excitement. Emily thought leaving the BAU had been the best decision he could have made; it was the hopefulness and energy around moving forward into something new that had kept him in a good space of mind and allowed him to heal even more. It had been two weeks since his last nightmare.

And neither had felt like they lost anything vital; their time with the members of the BAU had become even more precious and personal and family-like. Without Derek's participation in the team to hold them together, they'd found stronger, deeper connections rather than fading apart. They were family, and they weren't going to let each other go.

That night, unencumbered by the need to stay quiet, they'd gone a bit crazy on the floor in front of the fireplace. And now Emily was laying on top of Derek, her head on his chest, looking at the dancing flames, while they both tried to catch their breath and slow their frantically beating hearts. Derek had his head resting on one arm while his other hand was busy running his fingers gently through Emily's hair.

Emily spoke quietly:

"So I wander and wander along,
And forever before me gleams
The shining city of song,
In the beautiful land of dreams.

But when I would enter the gate
Of that golden atmosphere,
It is gone, and I wonder and wait
For the vision to reappear."

"Hmm?" asked Derek lazily.

Emily slithered her body forward and raised herself to face him. "It's a poem called Fata Morgana. I used to think about it when I'd dream of you and not be able to touch you. You're my shining city of song, and you're here, and I can't believe how far we've come and where we are now. Who's the poet?"

He looked at her and shrugged his shoulders. "Emily, I'm still so sorry for leaving."

She gave him a quick, soft kiss. "I fully understand the need to leave in order to heal, so stop it. That wasn't why I told you that. I wanted to know that you're my beacon and my heart can barely contain itself every time I see you and actually get to touch you. That's all. I'm the person who actually attained what that poem was striving for. And now you've done it; you said you're sorry."

Derek grinned at that and rolled her over so he was on top of her. The kiss he gave her in penance for his apology left her breathless and ready for more and she could feel him getting hard against her.

"That's pretty impressive, Derek," she said with a wicked grin.

He smiled back at her,

"O sweet illusions of Song,
That tempt me everywhere."

Then he bent his head to whisper in her ear, "Henry Wadsworth Longfellow."

Emily laughed. "You knew who wrote that poem the whole time! And here I thought I finally won a round."

Derek laughed as well. "I had to let you think you could win some of the time."

They had their Christmas Eve with the team, and Judy and Michelle Stone and their families, and Fran. Emily's favorite moment was when Rossi showed up at their door in a full Santa costume. Though the older kids all knew, Caleb didn't, and the kids and adults played along. Caleb looked like he had won the lottery. He kept shouting at everyone, "Santa is in my house!"

Derek never batted an eye the whole evening, which was a better gift than anything tangible Emily could have imagined. He was right there in the moment, laughing and enjoying himself. The look of discomfort or worry didn't cross his face at all.

At one point Rossi, still dressed as Santa, put an arm around Emily's waist and gave her a friendly squeeze. "I don't know how you did it, and I know it's half Morgan, but still, you brought him out of a darkness few people can climb out of. I may just need to write my next book about you two."

Emily turned to look at him, at a loss for words for a moment. Finally she settled on, "I think it takes remarkable people to do what we've done and lived through what we've seen. It wasn't just me. It was all of us being remarkable for him, and him being remarkable for himself."

Rossi laughed, "That will be the first line in my book."

The next morning the kids were up early, and there wasn't the usual haul of wrapped presents. They got a few, small things each. The big gift came in small packages: The next morning they were all getting on a flight, Fran included, and hitting the Bahamas for a few days, followed by a few days in Orlando.

Serena was overjoyed just at the idea of a long family trip; it wasn't something they'd ever been able to indulge in before because of Derek's work. Caleb kept looking at the travel guide. "Mickey? We will see Mickey?" he asked over and over.

Emily didn't really have words to describe that trip. They were relaxed, they were happy, they enjoyed every moment. They didn't care about long lines, no one complained or whined once; they all had a perspective on life, even Caleb: Being together was joyful no matter what extraneous things the universe threw at them.

On New Year's Eve, they watched the fireworks at Disney World. Serena leaned slightly against Emily and Derek's thighs, holding Fran's hand. Caleb was on Derek's shoulders. Derek squeezed Emily's hand. "Is it totally weird that I'm standing here thinking this is the most magnificent thing ever?"

Emily smiled, "I've been on the verge of tears since we landed in the Bahamas. We're together, you haven't even looked at your phone, and you haven't really stopped smiling once. No, it's not weird."

Derek grinned, "Is it weird that this is our last night here and I'm pissed I didn't get Goofy's autograph?"

Emily fell apart in laughter, "OK, that's weird."

On January 3rd, Emily once again joined Derek, at his request. It wasn't that he needed the support to do what he was doing, he just wanted to share it with her.

Emily surveyed the teens in the small meeting room where Derek was going to talk to them about their new jobs. They were rough around the edges, they were longing for a strong human connection, and they were perfect for what Derek wanted to accomplish. None of them were violent offenders. They were kids who managed to live by committing smaller crimes: petty theft, small robberies and prostitution. There were three boys and two girls in the group, all eighteen and getting ready to age out of Julia Spencer's program in a few months. They needed a push to make it on the other side.

After introducing himself and his background and what they were going to do, Derek laid out the rules: Though their group home gave them one chance, Derek did not: fail a drug test once and you're out. He expected an improvement in grades. His goal was to get them to be able to graduate by June, with some life skills that would give them an opportunity to work while they attained higher goals. He wanted to get to know them, he was there for them, but he was no bullshit.

And then he did something that stunned Emily. He said, "I grew up in a moderately rough area of Chicago. My dad was a police officer and was shot and killed when I was a kid, right in front of me. When I was a teenager, I was molested by an adult I trusted. I persevered, and I want to show you that you can, too. A few months ago, I was hurt in the line of duty and I decided I was done with the FBI; I wanted to give something back to the world, not in catching criminals, but in giving wonderful human beings like you hope. Twenty people signed up to participate in this program. You were the lucky five. Remember that."

Derek spent his mornings working at the house on his own, getting projects prepared for the teens in the afternoon. That first week, Derek came home from work practically levitating. He loved every moment of what he was doing, and was eager to share with the whole family at dinner. In all honesty, Emily had never seen him happier over a several-day span. He was happy that the teens were learning skills - they were starting with the electrical work - but he was more happy that they were talking to him, and that he was relating to the group. He truly was giving them hope, and in turn they were giving him optimism.

One of the young men, Julian, stood out most in his mind. Julian had been arrested for the second time a year before for prostitution - he was selling his body for drugs. But he was a smart kid; he'd just never had anyone to rely on before. On Wednesday of that first week, Derek came home with tears in his eyes and said, "He gave me a fist bump and thanked me for making him believe again that people could be good."

There were no words for the wave of energy their entire house was riding on Derek's joy and happiness.

Emily switched her work schedule a bit again because she had to see it. She asked Judy to keep Caleb a bit later on Mondays and asked Will to pick up Henry and Serena from school, since it was Will's day off. Emily joined Derek in his work that Monday and picked up on the vibe. The two girls in the program particularly related to her, couldn't believe she was an ex-FBI agent and used to carry a gun. They were intrigued by her work with women and children victims of crimes. They all talked while they worked. Though there was some swearing and slightly edgier verbiage, they were all focused on the work and learning. They were good kids at heart, they just needed help remembering that, and none of them wanted to fail and be kicked out of the program with Derek.

The first report from Julia came the Wednesday of the second week, after eight days in the program. None of the teens had missed a homework assignment, their drug tests were clear, and she couldn't be happier. That Thursday at dinner, Serena asked Derek if she could go with him to the house on Saturday. Derek looked at Emily, who shrugged her shoulders in affirmation. They were both looking forward to how Serena's magic could work in that situation.