A/N: All I can say for this chapter is YAY!

Morgan had finally gotten his way. He was out with the SES volunteers, in the freezing air of the outback night, a flashlight clutched tightly in one hand as he scoured the earth before him.

Constant chatter over the radio reminded him he was not alone. He was starting to understand why the SES had been reluctant to allow him to join them; the Australian Outback was unforgiving for sure.

Up above them, the SES search and rescue helicopter buzzed in loud circles, sweeping the land with the spotlight, searching for any signs that JJ was nearby.

They had got word that earlier during the day, the three remaining members of the team had cracked one of their suspects, and that suspect was now confirmed as one of the ringleaders of the child trafficking ring. All they needed was a final piece of concrete proof, and they would have one leader behind bars and part of the operation shut down. The case would move back to the United States, where local authorities could help round up the remaining divisions.

The grass crunched under his feet as he moved forward towards a cluster of dead trees and prickly bushes. Pushing it aside with his boot, he was about to walk away when he caught sight of something in the edge of the light from the torch.

Blood in the sand. Something that looked suspiciously like stomach contents. And a tiny scrap of fabric, so small he would have missed it had he not originally noticed the blood.

"Guys, I've got blood, vomit, and a scrap of fabric that looks like the shirt JJ was wearing. We have to be close," he said into the radio clipped to his jacket.

Quickening his pace as the others chimed in to say they'd heard his update, he kept his eyes peeled and his torch aloft. They were so close. JJ was somewhere nearby, in the darkness of the night, they just had to find her.

The helicopter swooped overhead, turning to Morgan's right. He watched momentarily as the spotlight landed on a thick area of trees, the only healthy looking vegetation around.

He kept moving, sweeping his torch from left to right as he did. About fifty yards from where he'd found the blood, his radio crackled to life.

"We can see something! The large patch of trees at the junction between the fields! Near Mussared Road, Agent Morgan, I think you're the closest, head towards the spot!"

His heart leapt as he grabbed his radio. "On my way!"

He took off at a run towards the spotlight, leaping over a low chicken wire fence and all out sprinting towards the trees. He could hear some of the SES volunteers running around him, their feet pounding into the earth as they all converged towards the cluster of trees.

Skidding across the road, which was nothing more than a dirt track, Morgan hurdled over the ditch at the edge of the road. He could now see what the spotlight had landed on. Something was half concealed beneath a wiry bunch of bushes at the edge of the treeline, and that something looked suspiciously like a person.

"JJ!" he yelled, tripping over his own feet in his haste and coming crashing to a halt inside the spotlight. He never even stopped, only crawled the last few feet to the person crumpled on the ground.

When he rolled them onto their back, he could have cried tears of absolute relief to find that it was JJ's face he was looking into.

"JJ, girl, come on, open your eyes for me," he said in disbelief as he leaned down near her mouth. It was weak and raspy, but he could definitely hear her breathing.

"She's alive!" he yelled as the volunteers finally caught up to him. "JJ, it's Morgan, you're gonna be ok. We found you"

"Napier to Merredin, we've found Agent Jareau alive, but she needs medical attention urgently. We need road transport to Merredin Airfield and an RFDS pickup," Steve said, walking away from the bustle of the group as Morgan pulled his jacket off and wrapped it around JJ's severely sunburnt shoulders.

"Morgan?" came her barely audible voice as he straightened up.

Morgan broke into a smile, brushing her hair off her face. "Hey blondie, we found you. You're gonna be fine, we're gonna get you home"

"Water," JJ croaked, reaching blindly out for something in front of her.

"Here," one of the younger volunteers said, handing Morgan a full water bottle. Morgan immediately slid an arm beneath JJ's shoulders, helping her sit up a little so she could have a drink. She was clearly parched; she gulped down half the bottle before most of them could blink.

Seconds after Morgan took it away from her mouth, everything she had just drank came straight back up, soaking her jeans and splattering onto the ground as a few of the volunteers scrambled back out of the way.

"Better out than in sometimes," Morgan said gently, rubbing her back as she was sick yet again. "We'll get you better, JJ, you're going to be ok"

But seeing how frail she looked after only three days in the outback, Morgan wasn't so sure.

"Napier to Merredin, we've found Agent Jareau alive, but she needs medical attention urgently. We need road transport to Merredin Airfield and an RFDS pickup"

Hotch had never leapt out of a chair faster in his life. JJ was alive. She was alive. He had known she was strong enough to survive, yet every ounce of his being had started convincing him that she had perished in the harsh conditions.

"She's alive!" Garcia shrieked happily, throwing her arms around her boss before leaping back in shock. "Oh my goodness, Hotch, I'm sorry!"

"What's your position?" Rob replied immediately.

"Outskirts of a farm on Mussared Road, about 3 kilometres from Great Eastern. We're almost 10 kilometres straight line distance from the crash site"

"What's RFDS?" Hotch asked quietly after Rob had agreed to send a pickup.

"Royal Flying Doctor Service. Your agent is probably in quite a bad way if he's requested them straight away. The RFDS will pick her up from the airfield here and fly her back to Perth for medical treatment," Rob explained.

"Can we meet them at the airfield?" Hotch answered.

Rob nodded.

"Absolutely. I'll take you as soon as I get word they're on their way"

The light of the ambulance had revealed the deep redness of JJ's skin, and the blisters that had begun to form. Morgan had been taken aback at how bad she looked, yet filled with relief to know she was simply alive. They had ascertained on the journey that she was severely dehydrated and her body was starting to shut down. One more day would have most definitely killed her. As well as that, she had a nasty looking infected scorpion bite on the back of her neck, and the obvious signs of a waterborne disease. It had taken some persistence, but the paramedic had managed to get it out of JJ that she had drunk from a small stagnant puddle out of desperation.

They had arrived at the airfield to a waiting aircraft and their colleagues. Hotch and Garcia had immediately rushed over to see their friend the moment the ambulance had come to a stop.

"I'm so glad you're alright," Hotch murmured, leaning down to give JJ a gentle hug. "I'm calling Will as soon as you're in the air, ok?"

JJ nodded, unable to speak due to the parched skin of her throat. She turned slightly, smiling at Garcia who was looking at her with teary eyes.

"I'm gonna come find you, and you better be up and about," she said through a choked voice, giving JJ a one armed hug and kissing her cheek.

"Alright, we need to move. Agent Hotchner, I will have her doctor inform you as soon as she arrives at the hospital," the RFDS officer said as they started taking JJ over to the plane.

Hotch and Garcia could only watch as JJ was loaded into the plane, Morgan climbing in behind her. They knew she was in a bad way, and it wasn't a very good way to end the last few days.

"She's gonna be ok, right?" Garcia asked softly as they watched the plane taxi out to the airstrip.

"She's Jennifer Jareau," Hotch said with a smile. "She's going to be fine"