A/N: Sorry for the delay!

Albany South Mental Health facility

Stanley Dent placed a hand against the bars of his room window. He could only get a finger to touch the glass, leaving the faintest hint of a print on the glass. Two days had passed since he helped Hotch and Prentiss escape his parents. After, Stanley was taken to the police station, asked what felt to him like a million questions, and then sent here.

No one had told him where his parents were. Stanley missed Mary- Anne and Daniel dearly and questioned where they were hourly to the nurses. Unfortunately, the man received the same answer a lot of people had been telling him as of late: don't worry about it.

Not seeing his parents wasn't the worse thing for Stanley because he had something to look forward to- Hotch and Prentiss' visit. The visit that Prentiss had promised right before both agents had been rescued. Stanley had plans set for the visit already- they would talk about being prince and princess, the world, and maybe even about what had happened at the Dents' home.

A nurse suddenly opened the door to the small patient room and called to Stanley, "Hey! Do you want to go sit outside?"

"No, I have to look nice. Aaron and Emily are going to visit me soon," Stanley answered. If he had been allowed a mirror, he would be checking his appearance at that moment. The nurse cocked her head in confusion. "Who told you that, sweetie?" she asked.

"They did- the princess promised me right before I helped them." The man quieted when the nurse didn't share his enthusiasm. She pointed around the room and stated, "Mr. Dent, Agent Hotchner and Agent Prentiss aren't coming to see you."

"No, but they promised! It's supposed to go just like in the story!"

"What story?" the nurse had now stepped away from Stanley, alert for any escalating behavior.

"Mamma told me a story of how the prince and princess visit all the brave people that helped them! She told me this every day since I was a boy- they promised me!"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Dent, but they aren't coming. Also the story your mother told you isn't real. It was only a fairy tale." The nurse stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her. She then walked away, trying her hardest to ignore the screams of disappoint coming from Stanley Dent's room.

Three days later- Greenbaugh Medical Center

"So how's Arkansas?" Prentiss asked JJ, whom she was speaking on the phone to. While Prentiss was still in Albany with Hotch, the team was now on a case involving serial stabbings in Little Rock. For the new couple, the past week had flown by. Instead of focusing on the kidnapping, they had spent the days talking with each other, learning little facts here and there about each other that they hadn't known while Hotch healed. The couple hadn't done anything intimate; Prentiss knew she had to wait until Hotch was ready, especially as he struggled through the aftermath of the rape.

"It's probably not as great as Albany must be," JJ answered, "So you and Hotch fly home today?"

Prentiss laughed and looked over to Hotch, who was filling out discharge papers on his bed. " Yes, we head home. Some of the doctors think that it's a little early, but…..it's Aaron."

"Hmm, Aaron. So I can assume that you and Hotch are together?"

"You can assume right, missy." Hotch stepped out of the hospital room, causing Prentiss to say, "I have to go, Jay. He's ready to check out."

"Oh, come on. You can't just end it like that!"

"Sorry. Bye." Prentiss hung up and turned to her boyfriend. Hotch was still covered in cuts, but also had more liveliness and color back in him. He was also on crutches, something that he would be stuck with for seven weeks, much to the agent's dismay. Everything seemed to be returning back to normal for him…except for the nightmares. Every night, Hotch would wake up sweating or panting and there was little Prentiss could do that could comfort him.

"Ready to go?" she asked him. Hotch nodded and handed her his bag. "I'm ready when you are, Emily."

"Ha-ha. Come on." They started walking towards the elevators. Prentiss picked up on how quiet Hotch was and asked, "Everything ok?"

"I'm alright."

"I'm not going to let this slide just so you know." Hotch stopped in his tracks and weakly smiled at her. She grinned back, adding, " You can't pull the boss act on me anymore, Aaron."

"Oh darn," he chuckled softly as the elevator doors opened. Both stepped inside, Prentiss keeping a tight eye on Hotch. Once the doors closed and they descended, Prentiss said softly, "We'll be ok, you know."

"I know." Through Prentiss' eyes, his answer was too quiet. She gently laced her fingers between his. The Unit Chief didn't look up from the spot he was staring at on the floor.

"I just thought a quote that reminds us of our situation," Prentiss stated, "the author Hans Christian Anderson stated that 'life itself is the most wonderful fairytale of all.' It's more about the Dents- I think they were so caught up in creating their own perfect little fairy tale that they forgot about….real life."

Hotch only responded by stepping out of the elevator when the doors opened onto the ground floor. Prentiss followed him out and continued, " Just don't forget that this will get better. Within a few weeks, months, you'll be running the team and," she grabbed his hand, "being my prince again, my real life prince."

Hotch hesitated before turning to face Prentiss. With only having one arm on his crutch, Hotch used the other hand to pull Prentiss into a passionate kiss. By then, his expression had softened. "Thank you," he told her, " I think that this is the part of the story where you're supposed to say-"

Prentiss pressed her body against Hotch and finished, "And they all lived happily ever after."

The End