AN: Hey guys! I am having a blast writing this, but I would love to hear from you! As promised, here is this weeks installment. Now that Jolene is awake the chapters will alternate POV, so odd chapters will be Derek's POV and even chapters will be Jolene's POV unless otherwise marked. They might overlap time wise as well, but not too much I promise. :)

"What's on your mind Hot Stuff?" Penelope's voice brought Derek back to the real world. They were at her apartment with a bucket of popcorn between them and a movie on TV.

"Nothing why?" Derek tried to play off the fact that all he could think about was Jolene. What was going to happen to her now that she was awake? There was a serial killer out looking for her and she couldn't stay in the hospital forever.

"Derek. I've known you for how long now? You can't hide things from me." Penelope put her hand on his arm comfortingly. "What is it?"

"What's going to happen to her now? Is she going into witness protection? She can't go back to a shelter, that's what put her here in the first place."

"It's a sad day in the world when a girl can't go to the one place that's created for her protection when she has no one in the world and no where else to go to. I guess she can stay with me if she wants."

"Baby Girl you live in a one bedroom apartment. I worry about you enough on a day to day basis, I don't need you attracting serial killers to yourself." He grabbed her hand and squeezed it.

"Well then what are you suggesting? Clearly you already have something in mind."

"Well, Michelle moved out a few months ago so my house is basically empty. I was thinking about getting a roommate anyway. It's too lonely at home."

"How come you didn't say anything hotness? Maybe I'd be looking to move." Penelope gave him a playful shove.

"Sweetness please, if we spend anymore time together we're going to forget how to actually flirt with other people." Derek felt an involuntary smile spread across his face at the sound of Penelope's laugh.

"Well then I guess we would just have to get married then."

Derek rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the movie that already almost half over. Suddenly the screen went black and Derek turned to look quizzically at Penelope.

"Let's be honest you weren't pay any attention, and you look exhausted. Go home baby boy. Get some sleep."

Derek stood up and stretched. He gave Penelope a hug and headed to the door.

"Well, at least one think is for sure," Penelope said as she showed Derek out, "if Hotch approves this then at least you'll save gas traveling to and from the hospital."

"While true, it won't make my 'not personally invested' argument any stronger." Derek laughed as he headed back home, excited for what the next day would bring for the first time in a long time.

"Hey Hotch, do you have a second?" Derek went straight to his boss' door as soon as he got in the next morning with a cup of coffee in hand.

"Sure thing Morgan, what's on your mind?" Hotch asked without looking up from his paperwork.

"It's about last night." Derek sat the cup of coffee down on Hotch's desk causing him to first look at the coffee and then up at Derek. "I'm sorry. I haven't been myself since Michelle left and I guess you were right and I was focusing on this girl to try and out run my own issues. But I was also trying to let her know someone would be here for her when she woke up. You know just as well as I do that this job doesn't end when we walk out those doors at the end of the day. At the end of this case she's still going to need a friend and I'd like to be there for her."

"I know Derek. There are still plenty of past victims that I still check in on. Why didn't you just tell me last night?"

"You caught me off guard. I didn't want you to think that I couldn't handle it. I can."

"I trust that you can as well, so why bring it up this morning?"

"Well, I was thinking… she's awake now, and has a serial killer threatening her. While she's in the hospital its not too much of an issue, we can have it set so that we are the only visitors she is allowed. But she can't stay in the hospital forever; once they clear her they're going to release her. She obviously can't go back to a shelter and she has no where else to go so…"

"So you thought we could put her with you since you now have an empty room?"

"Well… yes. What better police protection is there than living in a gated community with a FBI defense instructor?"

"You make many valid points, but we have to let her decide. I'm also going to give her the option to stay with Prentiss. It's nothing against you; we just have to take into account what she went through. She might not want to stay with a man. She might be more comfortable staying with another woman. Even though you've gone to see her and you feel like you know her, she was in a coma and you are both complete strangers to her."

"I understand." Derek tried to keep the disappointment out of his voice. Hotchner was right; he just didn't want to admit it. The thought of Jolene not wanting to stay with him never even crossed his mind, and he felt almost selfish because of it.

"Good. Round room in fifteen for a update meeting on this case." Derek turned and walked toward the door. "Oh and Morgan?"

"Yeah Hotch?" He stopped with his hand on the door handle and turned to look at Hotchner.

"Thanks for the coffee."

There was little talk at the round table this morning as Hotchner stood up at the front to update everyone on Jolene's condition. This case was wearing on the team because they just couldn't figure out this unsub the way that they were usually able to.

"Alright guys I've got some good news this morning, our victim Jolene Abigail is awake. We haven't been able to talk to her yet, but I want to send JJ and Morgan over there to try and talk with her. Ask her easy questions, and try not to push too much. We don't want her to close up on us and we don't know the full extent of her physiological damage yet. Prentiss, I want you and Reid to go check out two new fires that happened over the past week in North Carolina. They look like they might be our guy, but there were no bodies found at the scenes. Find out if they're related to this case or not."

"Why would he keep starting fires yet stop killing?" Prentiss asked with her brow furrowed.

"It could be that he has it set in his mind that Jolene will be his next kill, so he won't kill until he can get his hands on her. But while that is true, he still needs the release of setting fires to keep him going." Derek offered.

"It's more probable that they're either not related at all or the start of a copycat." Reid countered.

"Either way, that's where I want you two. Good luck today everyone."

"All things considering, she's in pretty good shape." Jolene's doctor updated JJ and Derek as they were on the way to see her. "She's going to have some PTSD which might present itself in the form of nightmares and flashbacks, avoidance, hypervigilance, or anything along those lines. She's on a constant mild sedative, and an anti-anxiety medication. She's very, very shaken and I'm not sure you're going to get anything out of her. We're going to keep her here for another day or two to make sure she adjusts well to the medication, but then she'll be free to go."

"Thank you doctor. We'll make sure we take it easy on her." JJ put her hand on Derek's arm to stop him before they walked down the hallway where Jolene's room was. "Derek wait. Maybe we shouldn't go in together. With as scared as they say she is, it might make her shut down."

"So what were you thinking?"

"Let me go first. Stand in the hallway but stay out of sight. Then if she won't talk to me, maybe she'll talk to you. I just don't want her to feel like we're ganging up on her."

"Okay."

Derek was reluctant to let JJ go first, but he knew that she was right. All he wanted was to see her again, to make sure that she was okay. He had spent every night of the last month with her, and even though she had no idea who she was he felt as though he was as close to her as he was to Penelope. He watched JJ walk into her room and then began to pace the end of the hallway. He clenched and unclenched his fists at his side as he kept an eye on the clock. After 20 minutes, JJ walked out and walked over to Derek shaking her head.

"She told me general information like her name, birthdate and social security number, but as soon as I asked anything about the incident she closed up. Do you want to try?"

"Yeah, I'll go in. Go on and head down the cafeteria and get some breakfast. I'll call you when I'm finished."

Derek walked into the hospital room that he had grown so familiar with. However, rather than Jolene lying motionless on the bed she was sitting in the furthest corner from the door with her knees pulled up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them. She had her face resting on the tops of her knees like she was trying her best to hide from the world. After what she had been through, he wouldn't have been surprised if that's exactly what she was trying to do. His heart ached to comfort her like she had unknowingly been doing for him.

"Hey honey, it's me again. Agent-"

"Agent Morgan. I remember you." She looked up as she cut him off, and he thought he saw her eyes light up at the sight of him.

It's just me, imagining things. I need to get a grip, Derek thought to himself with a small shake of his head.

"Is it okay if I come talk to you? Maybe ask you a few questions?" Derek made no attempts to move closer to her. He was going to take things at her pace, and let her invite him to come to her.

"I don't see how many answer matters. You'll ask them anyway eventually. Might as well get it over with now." She nodded at him to sit at the foot of the bed.

"My partner tells me that you didn't want to answer anything."

Derek made sure to keep his voice gentle, and he was resisting every urge to reach out to the poor broken woman in front of him. He wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms and tell her that everything was going to be okay, that he wouldn't let anything happen to her ever again. I would do the same thing for JJ or Garcia, he validated to himself. It was all part of being a good friend. Nothing more.

"That's not a question."

"You're right it's not."

Derek took a moment and just studied her face. Her eyes were haunted, but bright. Her hair was thicker than when he first saw her, and her skin wasn't so pale. She wasn't covered in bruises or bandages any longer, but she did a have few fresh pink scars running across her face and arms. Her eyes were a deeper blue than he imagined they would be based on her uploaded pictures, and they were no longer innocent. Derek closed his eyes and shook his head as another pair of eyes popped into his mind.

"Did you come and visit me while I was… in a coma?" Jolene's question caught him off guard, and she spit out the last part of it like it left a bad taste in her mouth.

"How did you know? Did the nurses tell you?"

"No. Your voice… it's… familiar. I couldn't understand what you were saying, but I could tell that you were there."

"I was here every day. I wanted you to know that you weren't alone. That you had a friend here."

"Thank you." Jolene let her legs slide straight next to him on the bed but kept her arms around her shoulders, comforting herself. "I really appreciate it."

"Did they tell you what happened?" Derek resisted the urge to put his hand on her leg; he didn't want to scare her.

"They didn't have too. I remembered most of what happened when I woke up." She shook her head as if to clear it and a small smile spread across her face as she let out a soft, sad laugh. "I punched you."

"Yeah, you did." Derek couldn't help but laugh as well. "I thought you were dead."

"I thought I was dead."

"I'm glad that you're not." Derek very calmly reached out and touched her leg. She tensed, but she didn't pull away. "Can you tell me about what happened?" Jolene looked at him with fear in her eyes. She bit her lip as if it was going to keep her tears from falling. "It's okay sweetheart, I'm right here."

"I don't remember much, but then again I try not to think about it."

"If you can help us we can get this man and put him away so he can't do this to anyone else ever again." Jolene took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"He kept me tied to a bed. I was naked most of the time. He gave me a glass of water every day, and some food every other day." Derek noticed that she had begun to tremble beneath his hand. "Every time he came in the room he would hit me at least once."

Tears began to fall from her face and she squeezed her eyes closed even more, as if trying to shut something out. Suddenly she started to whimper. Derek had been where she was enough to know she was having a flashback.

"No! Don't please." Jolene sobbed, her eyes shooting open. "Don't hurt me!" Derek noticed that her eyes were glazed over and he knew that she was seeing things that weren't really there. She curled into a ball once more, her face frozen in fear.

"Jolene, Jolene listen to me." Derek gently grabbed her by the shoulders. "Jolene you're in the hospital. It's over Jolene. You're safe now." Jolene's head snapped in Derek's direction, and he watched her eyes begin to clear. "You're safe now." He repeated gently. She let out a sob and fell into his arms, seeking comfort and protection.

"His eyes," she mumbled into his chest, "all I can remember, all I ever saw were his eyes."