Thanks for the reviews! Final chapter…managed to get it done with a late night!

As the team heads home, each of them approach Hotch to make sure he's doing better, and Rossi's feeling a little smug.

The plane is quiet, everyone absorbing the effects of yet another horrific case and a close call on a team-member's life.

Morgan is slouched down in his seat, eyes closed, bobbing his head gently to the music as he tries to lose himself in the familiar beat of his favourite artists.

Reid is curled up on one end of the plane's sofa, reading through a several hundred page book that he knows won't last the flight; but it is an interesting read and it keeps him distracted.

JJ is still bleary-eyed after her early-morning wake-up call and is furiously clinging to a freshly made cup of coffee as she breathes in the bitter aroma.

Prentiss is gazing absentmindedly out of the window, trying to think of anything but the little girl they found in Keating's van; the monster may be dead, but that must surely be of small comfort to the girl's parents.

Rossi is sitting on the opposite side of the plane to Aaron, having decided to give him a little space (as much as you can on a small plane) and let some of their earlier conversation sink in.

Hotch, dressed in a shirt but foregoing his usual tie and jacket, is sitting still and staring out of the window, right arm in a sling and resting comfortably on his chest.

Dave had given him a lot to think about, although he still can't quite believe that the team seriously thought he was headed for a nervous breakdown…sorry…a major depressive episode. In one way he is horrified that he has caused such undue concern from the members of his team, but then it is also nice to know that his team care as much for him as he does for them; being the boss does not always win you many favours.

Are the failures he has spent so much time thinking on really not his fault?

His family…he knows Dave is right in that he gave it his all; he gave 100% to the job when he was at work and 100% to his family when he was at home.

Maybe his marriage has fallen apart; he certainly knows that he has lost the woman he loves, but that doesn't mean he has to lose his son too. He has never physically hurt Hayley and has tried to never hurt her emotionally either; he has done all he could without abandoning his job and his team, to keep his marriage going…he could have done no more.

If Hayley doesn't want to see him anymore…well then that's something he'll have to learn to live with, but he will not and cannot live without his son in his life.

He catches Reid out of the corner of his eyes before the young man sits down opposite him with a sigh. "Is everything alright?"

"I've finished my book," Reid states simply.

Hotch smiles, "There's a surprise! Anything worth reading?"

It is Reid's turn to smile then; he leans forward and starts chatting away animatedly about the history of the Peloponnesian Wars. He can see that his boss, tired and slightly doped up on pain-killers, isn't following all of his rapid-fire statistics and interesting facts but he is clearly understanding enough to ask the odd question.

He is beyond glad to see Hotch smile, a rare sight but always a welcome one. Reid knows he owes a lot to his boss, who risked his job by hiding Reid's drug problem from their superiors, who patiently taught him the things books couldn't teach, and who stayed when Gideon had left.

He had been anxious that Hotch too might leave and is now happy to see signs that he will seemingly grace the BAU with his presence for years to come. He doesn't know what was said between Hotch and Rossi, but whatever it was has clearly helped; he makes a mental note not to listen to the Foundation Trilogy when riding with Rossi for a while.

Reid gives another happy, reassured grin to his boss and excuses himself for a little nap on the sofa.

Hotch smiles to himself while Reid returns to his seat on the sofa. Spencer is almost always the smartest kid in the room, and despite his many mature character traits, he is still just a kid in so many ways. Despite the horrors they face and the things Reid himself has experienced there is still an endearing innocence about the young doctor that Aaron would hate to see destroyed.

He enjoys teaching Spencer, and while he knows he will never replace Jason as Reid's mentor he hopes that the young agent still feels as though Aaron has something to teach and is a more than willing teacher.

He is about to stare back out of the window when Emily Prentiss sits down looking more worn than Aaron has ever seen her. "Is everything alright?" he asks quietly, knowing that privacy is next to impossible on such a small plane but hoping that the illusion of it may well help one of his more reticent agents open up about what is clearly troubling her.

"This case…I mean…it's not one of the worst but still. I'm finding it hard to…to process it all. I can't get the image of that poor little girl out of my head." She is a little worried about what her boss might say to this, knowing that the BAU needs focused agents who are able to detach themselves from the situation.

She looks up to Hotch, aspires to be an agent just like him; he is cool, calm and collected…he is competent, smart, dedicated…one of the best at what they do. She feels like she is beginning to earn her place on his team (because it is his team no matter what Strauss may think) and hopes that she is gaining his trust. With that in mind she continues; "Normally I have no problem compartmentalising these things but this one…I don't know."

To hear Emily stop and start is slightly shocking for Hotch; even when Emily is upset she is always very clear in her emotions and the way she vocalises them. "It's nothing to be ashamed of Emily; we've had several consecutive very distressing cases."

Rossi hears this from his corner of the plane and smiles to himself, amused by the symmetry of the conversation.

"Prentiss," Hotch continues. "You once told me that you needed to know that you could be human; here is the evidence of that. Just give yourself some time, and if you want a couple of days off work, leave the paperwork on my desk once we get back and I'll sort it all out for you."

"No, that's ok; I think work will help but thanks anyway Hotch;" she then smiles at him, eyes twinkling and whispers as though she is about to reveal some great conspiracy, "sometimes this whole being human thing sucks!"

She hears a quiet chuckle from her boss as she makes her way back to her seat. She has long since learnt that Hotch is a serious man, rarely smiling or joking, but she also knows that despite his own claims of having no sense of humour, he most certainly does, and a dry one at that. His smile had completely disappeared over the past couple of months and his intensity had dramatically increased. To see his eyes sparkle with mirth is a more than welcome sight, especially since it means Morgan owes her twenty bucks!

Hotch watches Prentiss sit down and stare out of the window with a smile on her face, seemingly in a lighter mood than before. He knows that she will need some time to get over this case, but she is a strong woman and a highly capable agent, and he has every confidence in her.

She is slowly becoming comfortable inside the BAU, particularly now that the mess with Strauss is over and dealt with. He enjoys working with her; she is able to cope with his sarcasm and his moods, and she stands up to him when she thinks the situation warrants it, during the foster-child case in Denver for instance. She will grow into one hell of an agent and he is glad he has the chance to teach her and to ensure her ambitions are well within her reach without being corrupted by the ambitions of others, like Strauss.

His thoughts are once again interrupted when another body lands itself in the seat opposite.

"Everything alright JJ?"

JJ is quiet, paler than usual and has dark bags under her eyes. She had seen Hotch smiling during his previous conversations; she could do with a bit of a smile herself. "Mmm" she mumbles, "Just a little tired I guess."

"I've got a lot of extra pills lying around; a couple of my pain-killers will give you a good sleep I guarantee it." Aaron offers with a smile which JJ gratefully returns; Hotch always knows what she needs and she greatly appreciates it.

"Just tell me we get to go home once we sign in back at Quantico and I'll manage" she asks hopefully. She is used to her boss pushing everyone out of the door while he remains behind, finishing up the hours of bureaucracy that seem to drown every department in the FBI. She sometimes feels guilty that she never returns the favour, but more often than not she is staying late too; JJ is just as much of a workaholic as her boss is.

She likes those nights; while they spend most of their time in their own offices seeing to their own work, they often meet up at the coffee machine and spend several minutes talking casually over a Danish pastry and a strong coffee; it is often at times like that when Hotch's humour shines through and it always helps lift JJ's spirits enough to get her through her paperwork. She likes the idea that she gets to see a rarely seen side to the complicated senior agent in the privacy of those small hours.

Aaron smiles at her candid response, "I'll make sure Strauss knows you're all off limits for the rest of the day; we all worked overtime on this case and even if it was a relatively short one, it was a messy one!" He sees JJ's gentle nod.

He has a great deal of respect for his media liaison; she handles her job with great dignity and sensitivity. JJ is stuck on the front lines; while she faces the UnSubs with the rest of the team, she also has to face the ravaging pack of wolves that is the media; she faces the exhausted cops at their wits end searching desperately for answers and she spends more time with the distraught family and friends than most of the team.

She does all this and rarely does anyone know when things are getting to her. In many ways he sees JJ as the younger sister he never had; she has his propensity to overwork, dedication beating exhaustion almost every time. She is often silent about her own internal struggles over the horrors of their work, and when she does vocalise them it is always with a quiet dignity…never exaggerating or asking for attention. Her quiet presence has got him through many a long night of paperwork in the dark of the BAU offices.

"If she tries anything I can always tell her we have no viable cases to work, me she might believe," she winks cheekily at her boss, alluding to the well-known fact that Strauss is not Hotch's biggest fan. She returns to her seat, her heart a little lighter.

Hotch smiles as he watches her go; JJ isn't as fragile as she looks…she'll be ok.

He spends almost ten minutes waiting for Morgan to come over. He isn't stupid, he knows what they're doing; this is their own not-quite-so-discreet way of reaffirming in their own minds that their boss is indeed ok. Unlike the outward plane journey, Hotch finds he isn't at all annoyed by this extra attention; it is quite flattering to know they are so concerned about him and if he can comfort them in return…well, that is an excellent bonus!

Morgan sits opposite his boss and passes an assessing gaze over his mentor.

He has to admit that while he doesn't much like Rossi the guy has definitely helped their boss somehow; dammit…he should never have made a bet against him…now he owes Emily twenty bucks!

Despite the sling on his arm, Morgan thinks his boss looks healthier than he has done in a long time; there is a quiet humour in his eyes that had been missing as of late and his entire posture is relaxed…maybe he should cut Rossi some slack...or maybe he should add Hotch's pills to the BAU water cooler.

"You can stop profiling me Morgan…I'm fine!" Hotch states quietly, trying to avoid prying ears. "But I do want to apologise for making you all worry; it's been a rough couple of months with the separation and everything, I'll admit, but I'm ok…really."

Morgan smiles, silently agreeing with Garcia's common 'I hate profilers!' phrase.

He looks Hotch straight in the eyes, "Good, cos we need you and we don't want another Unit Chief!" and Derek could not mean that more. Hotch might not be the kind of guy he wants to go bar-hopping with, but for a boss there is no-one he'd rather have at his back.

Hotch laughs quietly at Morgan's candour; you can always rely on him to give it you straight, a bit like Rossi in that respect; he knows that the feelings of animosity Derek has towards Dave will fade with time, and hopes that once he knows Rossi well enough he will learn to trust him, as Derek desperately needs to trust others to watch his six.

Hotch knows that Morgan respects him, and he likes that the younger agent often looks to him as his mentor; he only hopes that he will never let him down.

"We should be landing soon so I'm gonna head back to my seat" he pauses, "Hotch…you really ok man?"

Aaron gives a perfunctory nod of his head, "I'm really ok."

Morgan returns his nod and heads back to his seat, discreetly dropping a twenty into Emily's open and waiting hand with a quiet glare at her victorious smile over her successful wager.

Aaron leans back in his seat and is rubbing at his eyes when he feels someone else sit opposite him; he opens his eyes blearily and raises an eyebrow at Rossi who has Aaron's next dosage in his open palm. For a second, Hotch thinks about refusing them just to see what his friend will do, but he figures that after all Dave has done for him he could at least co-operate. He dry swallows them and pretends not to notice Dave's look of surprise at his compliance.

"When we get back" Dave begins, "you'll leave the bi-annual reviews to another day. We'll go to yours and pack a bag…you'll be staying with me for a couple of days. Mudgie could use the company and you will need help squeezing toothpaste onto your toothbrush for a couple of weeks."

Aaron glowers at Dave over the reminder that he was going to be semi-dependent on someone else until he could move his arm with more freedom than his current injury allowed for. He receives no response except for a quick, smug grin. He knows without question that he'll kill his friend before allowing him to do anything so demeaning like squeezing his toothpaste or cutting up his food; he is not an invalid, he is merely temporarily incapacitated.

He leans back in his seat and eyes Rossi carefully; "I don't need you to babysit me Dave!" He hears a snicker that he is sure is coming from Morgan; 'just you wait' he thinks t himself, 'I'll get my revenge.'

Dave pins Hotch with a look, "I think you misunderstood…you will pack a bag and you will stay with me for a couple of days! You think I want to be left with this bunch of miscreants for any longer than necessary because you don't understand the meaning of 'taking it easy,'" Rossi jokingly points his thumb over his shoulder at the rest of the team.

While JJ and Prentiss looks suitably insulted, Morgan looks positively incensed at the idea of being stuck with Rossi in charge and Aaron has to try his hardest not to release a snicker of his own.

He settles for glowering at Rossi, knowing the older man will not take 'no' for an answer. He gives a brief nod in acknowledgement of Rossi's plans and slowly looks up to meet his friend's eyes. "I don't think I've thanked you yet…so thanks!" he confesses quietly. "Even though you're a pushy old man with a shit-eating grin I seriously want to wipe off your face from time to time, I know you're trying to help and I appreciate it," he smiles back.

"I'm the 'old man' am I? Funny…and here I thought you were the one everyone was going to for some good old grandfatherly advice."

This time the sniggering of the team is not quite so well contained, even Reid awakens from his nap in time to eavesdrop on this particular part of the conversation.

Rossi is smirking yet again.

Aaron simply rolls his eyes and utters, "Don't say another word Dave!"

Rossi throws both his hands in the air, palms open in a surrendering motion that Hotch isn't buying, the grin never leaving his face.

Aaron feels a familiar mantra coming back to him…'I will get off this plane, I will get off this plane, I will get off this plane…I will not kill Rossi and hide the body, I will not kill Rossi and hide the body, I will not kill Rossi and hide the body…I will get off this plane…I hope…!'

The journey back to the BAU is quick and quiet, the smiles have yet to leave the teams' faces and Hotch is still sending frequent glares in the direction of a still smug Rossi.

The six of them step off the lift and head into the heart of the BAU, eager to finish up as quickly as they can and head to the comfort that only their own beds can offer.

There is a small squeal and a blurry image of flying pinks, yellows and electric blues as Garcia runs to greet the team.

"Hello my chocolate Adonis," she says happily before thumping Morgan on the arm.

"Ow…what was that for?" Morgan questions with the look of a kicked puppy, unused to getting anything other than love from his Baby Girl.

"I have heard nothing from you since I gave you that sicko's address!" Penelope huffs. "Mobile phones work both ways, Derek!"

She turns to take in the rest of her team. Rossi is smirking at Derek's slightly cowered posture as the younger man gently rubs his arm. JJ is looking tired and slightly dishevelled while Emily gives her a brief smile that doesn't quite reach her eyes.

"This one was a tough one, huh?" she asks knowingly before turning her eyes towards her Boss-man…who was wearing a sling?

Garcia places her hands on her hips, narrows her eyes and speaks in a soft but dangerous tone as her gaze sweeps over the rest of the team: "why did no-one tell me one of my shining knights got hurt?" her quiet anger making her question all the more fierce.

Hotch, who frequently found his technical analyst to be the scariest mother-hen of them all, looks at the rest of his team feeling beyond horrified of the possible consequences of their gross oversight: "You didn't tell Garcia?"

END

There you go…finished!

A big thanks to all my reviewers, especially my regulars, Brummie10, Ecda, nexis44, RuByMoOn17, Thn0715 and jeanniean - your kind words of support have really helped me to write this story. Hope the ending doesn't let you down.