Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to the TV series, Criminal Minds.

Who We Are
Part 12

By N. J. Borba

Emily placed a mug of ginger tea on the side table in her bedroom, close to where her sister was cuddled under a mound of blankets. The larger bedroom had become Anna's since the night they'd returned from Kansas three weeks ago. Emily remained standing by the bed and regarded her sister as Anna struggled to sit up, not wanting any help. Dr. Kirkland, who Emily and her mother had researched extensively before bringing him aboard, had Anna on a new chemotherapy drug combo that was more aggressive than her previous doctor had been using. It seemed to be working, but pretty much kept her constantly tired and weak as a newborn kitten.

A framed photo sat on the table beside Anna's tea. Emily smiled as she looked at the shot of Michelle on her first day of school, uniform pressed, backpack slung over her arms and lunch sack in hand. She'd never had many personal photos in her place before. Now there were framed memories from Thanksgiving, Christmas, Sea World and Michelle's first day of school. It certainly made her place feel more like a home.

"Remember the look on Michelle's face when she caught us watching her go into the classroom?" Emily grinned as she sat down on the bed, patting her sister's legs.

"How could I forget. In fact, I do not think anyone at St. Ann's Academy will ever forget," Anna chuckled softly. "Not after you tried to make a quick getaway only to run into a garbage can that made a loud clatter, which echoed through the whole school," she recalled.

"Well, I can tell you're never going to let me forget that," Emily laughed too, glad for the chance to do so.

The older sister's laughter died down a bit. "Is Michelle asleep?" she asked, reaching for the hot tea.

"Finally," Emily replied. "She asked to watch Finding Nemo tonight. I don't know how she can watch one film so many times, but since it's not a school night I agreed. We even had popcorn," Emily felt kind of bad her sister hadn't been there to join them. "You were still resting when I put her to bed. I didn't want her to bother you."

Anna nodded. "That's okay. I will probably drink this tea and be asleep again within a half hour. And you should be going out tonight; it is Friday. Isn't that when couples go out on dates? I believe I saw that in some movie we watched last week. It is not too late to call Derek. I will be here for Michelle if she needs anything."

"Nah, it's okay. We didn't have any plans," Emily brushed off the suggestion.

"What's wrong?" Anna asked.

"Nothing," Emily's head shook a little as she focused on the floor. "Derek understands about everything, he knows I need to be here for you and Michelle. It's probably a good thing, actually. I'm sure if we start spending too much time together I'll figure out a way to screw up our relationship."

The older woman frowned as she blew on her tea several times before taking a cautious sip. She turned her eyes back to her sister and sighed in disappointment. "That man loves you a great deal, Emily. Even I can see that. He is not going to be so easily frightened away by your, well… whatever it is you think is wrong with you. And you've wasted enough time already. Please do not waste any more. Life is far too precious to be wasted."

"It's just…" Emily fiddled with the crocheted afghan covering her sister and found something hiding in the folds. She pulled the black cell phone free. "You've been keeping this pretty close for someone who doesn't like technology very much."

Anna blushed as she reached for the phone and placed it on the table. "I never claimed not to like technology. It just takes some getting used to," she pointed out. "And you are avoiding talking about Derek," Anna observed.

"And who are you avoiding talking about?" Emily challenged. "Is his name David?" She watched her sister avoid eye contact, kind of the same way she had been doing earlier. "Come on now, I took all of your teasing about me and Derek. And I happen to know that Rossi was trying to call you all day on New Years. He's the one who contacted mom and dad, and then he drove all the way over here to check on the place. I think he was really worried about you."

"That was the arrangement," Anna stated. "David and other members of your team agreed to check in on Michelle and me if you were ever out of town."

"Right…" the younger woman wasn't buying that line for a second, but she let it go. "I'll see you in the morning," she patted Anna's legs again as she stood.

"You will have a cake for Michelle tomorrow, won't you?" Anna called after her.

Emily stopped in the open doorway and turned back to stare at her sister, confused by the request. "Why does she need cake? It's Saturday, there's no school, and we still have extra Oreos in the pantry for her lunches."

"But tomorrow is January twenty-second," Anna replied, looking to her sister for some spark of recognition. "It's her birthday."

All the air whooshed from Emily's lungs as she leaned heavily against the doorframe and sighed. "Oh, Anna," she ran her hands though her hair. "I can't believe I didn't remember. I saw her birth certificate months ago when you filled it out, but…" Emily felt awful about forgetting her own niece's birthday. "You know what, it doesn't matter." She stood up straighter. "I'll get a cake, and presents and balloons, and…"

"Hold on," Anna stopped her. "We never had big birthday celebrations. All she cares about is the chocolate cake. I make one for her every year. I thought I had mentioned this before, but with everything going on perhaps I forgot."

She could see the weariness in Anna's eyes and knew her sister wasn't up to making a cake. "Chocolate cake… I can do that," Emily crossed the room and kissed her sister's cheek. "Don't worry about it, I will handle everything." She rushed from the room before Anna could say anything more and hurried down the stairs into her kitchen. Emily stood there for a moment, glancing around the room as she bit her bottom lip. "How the hell do you make a chocolate cake?" she whispered to herself.

xxx

When she heard the soft knock on her door at a quarter after ten, Emily instantly opened the door to him. "Thank God," she grabbed his hand and guided him to her kitchen where a plethora of ingredients were lined up on the counter. There was flour, cocoa, sugar, raisins, oatmeal and nearly everything else that had been inside her pantry a half hour ago. "I completely forgot that Michelle's birthday is tomorrow and I need to make a chocolate cake."

Derek looked at her like she was crazy. "And you called me?"

Emily's shoulders sagged. "Well, I know nothing about baking a cake. I failed at pancakes."

"And I got half the Chicago fire department called to our place one year while trying to bake holiday cookies," Morgan bested her. "My sisters still tease me about it every chance they get." He watched her chest deflate and felt bad for the lack of help he was offering. "Okay," he shrugged out of his leather jacket and tossed it across the room onto her sofa. "You've got a mix, right? How hard can it be?"

Her eyes rolled. "You can't be serious. Do you honestly think Anna ever baked a cake from a mix?"

"Well, you're not Anna," he replied. It was obviously the wrong thing to say as Derek watched her level of enthusiasm drop off. Morgan stepped toward her and kissed her forehead. "I'm sorry. That wasn't helpful," he admitted, prying his cell phone from the clip at his belt as he broke away from her. "I may not know how to bake, but I am related to one of the best bakers in the world."

An hour later it looked like a nuclear blast had hit Emily's kitchen. The two of them were seated on the linoleum floor, their backs against a bank of cabinets as they faced the oven. Emily had her head resting against Morgan's shoulder, her eyes closed. "I hope your mother's cake is good," she sleepily mumbled.

"Mama doesn't make anything bad," Derek confidently replied just seconds before the small egg timer on her stove dinged.

She turned to him. "Now what?"

"Uh, we take it out and do that toothpick test mama mentioned," he explained, standing up so he could grab the hot-pad off the counter and open the oven. Morgan carefully removed the rectangular cake pan and sat it atop the stove. Just a quick look at the cake told him there was something very wrong, but he persisted and tried to poke a toothpick through the middle.

"It didn't rise," Emily noticed as she watched his toothpick break off. She pressed her fingers against it. "And it's hard as a rock," she groaned, her head rolling to one side and then back in defeat. "I don't get it, I followed the recipe; your mother's recipe," she threw her hands up.

Derek couldn't help chuckle. "It's not a huge deal, Em. We can still buy a cake in the morning, but right now I think we're both too tired to…"

"No. It is a big deal. I have to make Michelle a cake. I completely forgot it was even her birthday. Plus it's her last single digit birthday and Anna can't make the cake this year. This is really important to me," Emily conveyed to him.

He took a deep breath and let it out, sensing that she was more worried it might be Michelle's last birthday with her mother. Derek grabbed the recipe he'd written down on a series of florescent green post-it notes. He leaned his flour-dusted black jeans against the counter and began. "Okay, let's go through this item by item. You remembered to add the flour?"

Emily pointed to a white paper bag on the counter. "Yes."

"Cocoa?"

Again her finger pointed out the item in question. "Check."

"Baking powder?" he asked.

She picked up a small yellow box and waved it in his face. "Got it."

Morgan was about to list the fourth ingredient when he noticed what was written on the box she was still holding. He took it from her and turned it around so she could see the words. "What does this say?"

"Baking powder."

"No," his head shook. "Read the box, Emily."

Her tired eyes blinked several times as she tried to focus. "Baking soda," she read. "Oh, soda… is there a difference?"

The recipe post-its were placed back on the counter as Derek nodded. "Yeah, I think there's a big difference." He tried hard not to laugh again, but soft chuckles escaped nonetheless. Seeing the annoyed look on her face made him sober up pretty quick and he wrapped his arms around her. "Well, at least I think we've finally uncovered the problem," he whispered, placing soft kisses against her lips. "It seems you suffer from a rare form of baking dyslexia. That would also explain your pancakes."

"Very funny," she pouted, escaping from his embrace to stare at the recipe. "So, do you think if I use baking powder in the next one it will actually bake right?"

"Only one way to find out," he replied, handing her a bowl and the carton of eggs. "Start cracking."

xxx

Her steamy dream about being with Derek in the park ended far too abruptly as Emily slowly came awake. Eyes opened to narrow slits, Emily realized she was still lying on the sofa in her living room where she'd planned to take a quick nap before regrouping to make some frosting. When her eyes fully opened she realized Morgan was knelling beside her. He smiled down at her and stole a kiss. "Good morning, sleeping beauty. You'll be happy to know that the cake is all done."

"You frosted it?" her voice croaked, still partially sleep laden.

He nodded affirmation. "After you fell asleep I went out to an all night grocery store and bought some chocolate frosting in a canister thingy. I figured after cake number two miraculously came out of the oven looking like the real deal, it would be best not to press our luck with homemade frosting."

She was disappointed for a brief second and then came to her senses. "You're probably right. I should know when to throw in the towel."

Another smile perched on his lips as he ran a hand along her cheek. "You should go back to sleep, I didn't mean to wake you. I just wanted to kiss you goodbye before I headed out again," he said. "I'm going home to sleep. Then I'll perform a few other necessary tasks for the birthday surprises I have in mind before I return."

Emily took little note of his talk about surprises, still lost in her dream memories. "You could sleep here," she suggested. "With me," her left hand patted the sofa.

Morgan had already contemplated that option. "But then I'm afraid I'll never want to get up."

"Oh, I'm pretty sure I could get you up," her eyes narrowed seductively as a jolt of desire shot through her body.

Heat pooled in his stomach and threatened to travel lower. "This is certainly not territory we've covered yet," Derek replied with a bit of difficulty.

"And why is that?" Emily questioned.

His forehead dipped to rest against hers. "Because I tend to rush things in my life, from work to relationships," Morgan said. "But I really don't want to be in a rush about this. I really don't want to screw this up, because I care about you a great deal and I don't want to lose you."

"I said something similar to Anna last night, about my fear of messing this up," she revealed. "And I know I told you in San Diego that I was worried about letting myself love someone, but I realize now how silly that is, because there's love in friendship," Emily bravely stated. "I think I've loved you for a long time without even realizing it. Then you came over last night to help me bake a cake, and I can't really think of anything sexier or more loving than that."

Without another word he kicked off his shoes and climbed in behind her on the sofa. It was snug, but that only reinforced the even closer relationship they'd just established. "Who knew all I had to do was help you bake a cake to find out your true feelings for me," he spoke softly in a somewhat joking manner. But his words turned serious as he whispered a few more softly into her ear. "I love you, too, Emily."

xxx

She'd fallen asleep again, warm and loved, but had woken alone and a bit chilled due to a lack of Derek's arms around her. Emily sat up and then got to her feet, wondering if the night had all been one long dream. But as soon as she noticed the frosted cake on her kitchen counter she smiled, knowing it had been very real. There was even a large candle atop the cake in the waxy shape of a number 9. Emily was touched by his thoughtfulness.

After a hot shower and some clean clothes, Emily ventured to the main bedroom to check on her sister. The bed was empty and she could hear the shower running in the bathroom. Emily knocked on the door and then pushed it open a crack when she got no response. "Anna?" she called out across the foggy room. "Are you all right in there?" There'd been very few days the past month that her sister hadn't needed help with even the most basic tasks, such as showering.

"Fine," the older woman replied. "I feel good this morning, and I'm using the seat you got for me. You do not have to worry so much."

"Do you need any help?" Emily asked, unable to let go of her concern.

"Yes, actually," Anna spoke in a dead-serious tone. "Perhaps you could wash my hair for me."

That finally broke down Emily's barrier. "Ha ha," she chuckled dryly. "My sister, the cancer comedian," Emily shook her head, though she was happy that Anna seemed to be in much brighter spirits after her New Years breakdown. "Well, I did want to ask you if it was okay for Derek to stop by today. I know you said you don't do big birthdays, but he helped me make the cake last night and apparently he has some surprise for Michelle."

"Of course Derek is welcome," Anna replied. "You do not even need to ask. Besides, we are only guests here."

Emily rolled her eyes even though Anna couldn't see her. "Please, you stopped being a guest here the day you waxed my mini-blinds."

"Dusted," Anna corrected her sister. "Wax is what you put on the kitchen floor."

"Right, whatever…" Emily responded as she began to pull the bathroom door shut. "Don't hesitate to holler if you really do need some help," she said. Half-way through the bedroom, Emily ran into Michelle. Her arms went around the girl's pajama-clad shoulders. "Happy Birthday, chaton," she greeted.

Michelle smiled, still loving that term of endearment from her aunt. "I was just downstairs and I saw the cake mommy made me and I wanted to thank her," her words expelled in a rush of excitement. "I thought she'd be too sick to make one this year."

"Your mom would never forget something so important," Emily replied, deciding not to mention that she'd been the one to make it. It wasn't a very important fact in the grand scheme of things. And it made Michelle happy to know her mother had done it. "She's still in the shower, so why don't you get cleaned up and then I will make a special pancake breakfast for your birthday."

"Um, that's okay… you don't have to. We can just have cereal," Michelle offered.

She noticed the wary look on the girl's face. "Hey, have a little faith. I promise they'll be a lot better this time."

xxx

After Michelle's favorable review of her pancakes, Emily was feeling pretty good about the potential of the girl's birthday cake. But it was one o'clock in the afternoon and she hadn't heard from Derek. Emily was a little worried, but she knew he always kept his word and he'd promised to be back. Only seconds after that final thought probed her brain, there was a knock at the door that caused Emily's stomach to flop in anticipation of seeing him again after the seminal night they'd spent together.

She was slightly disappointed to find JJ, Will and Henry instead. But seeing their smiling faces and the small gift bag in JJ's left hand made Emily's mood brighten again, because she was pretty certain she knew exactly who was behind their visit. "We heard a young lady was having a special birthday," JJ said as her friend showed them all inside to the living room.

"How did you know, did Derek call you?" Emily hunted for an answer to her suspicion.

The liaison shook her head. "Nope, Garcia," she replied while helping Henry out of his winter coat. "Although, she did mention it was Morgan who contacted her."

Emily nodded, confirmation on her side. Michelle bounded down the stairs and lit up to see their company. She immediately headed toward Henry, wanting to show him her birthday cake. Anna slowly made her way down the stairs and was greeted by a helpful Will at the halfway mark, who guided her to the sofa. Emily was touched by the way her friends had all welcomed her sister and niece into their lives; so much so that they were showing up on their Saturday off to celebrate a birthday. Rossi arrived second, heading straight to the sofa to chat will Anna. Garcia and Kevin showed up after that, followed closely by Reid and then Hotch and Jack.

By the sixth knock at her door, Emily was certain to find Derek. Instead she came face-to-face with her mother. "Derek called you, too?"

"Agent Morgan?" her mother asked, somewhat confused by the greeting her daughter had given. "No," Elizabeth's head shook. "Why would he call us? We came to drop of Michelle's birthday gift. Your father is bringing it up; it's rather heavy so our cab driver is helping him with it."

"You knew it was Michelle's birthday today?" Emily asked with a note of surprise.

Elizabeth moved past her daughter who had failed to welcome her inside. "Of course I knew," she replied. "I've had it written on my calendar for months, ever since I saw it on the birth certificate I helped Anna file for Michelle." The ambassador looked around to see all the people inside her daughter's place. "I didn't know you were having a party, though."

In her mother's eyes, Emily could see that she was hurt by the idea of not being invited to the gathering. "Actually, I didn't know either. This party is all Derek's doing," she explained, hoping to smooth over any bruised egos. Thankfully her niece was much better at calming potentially volatile situations, and she only needed a smile and a hug to do so.

"Hi, grandma," Michelle wrapped her arms around the older woman.

The door, which Emily had left half-open, swung in to reveal Joseph Prentiss and the cab driver. They each carried one end of a heavy looking package and then sat it down on the floor near the kitchen counter. After the cab driver had been paid and left, Michelle went straight for her grandfather and hugged him as well. "Hi, grandpa," she cheerily greeted.

"Happy birthday, peanut," Joseph returned the gesture.

Emily watched her father with the girl and wondered if he'd ever interacted with her that way. She imagined he had from the things he'd told her about the night Anna had been kidnapped; how he'd wanted to stay behind to watch them, to read to them and tend her crying fit. It wasn't the first time Emily allowed herself to think about the kind of family life they might have had if Anna had never been taken. If her parents dreams for their family had never been squashed.

"What is this huge box?" Emily finally asked, noticing the gift they'd brought. "You do realize we live in a smaller place than you," she eyed her parents.

"We got the smallest one we could find without it being a…" Elizabeth looked down at her granddaughter. "I suppose you should open it before I reveal what it is."

Michelle carefully peeled away the tape on one end of the package and Emily shook her head. "Just rip it open, kiddo," she encouraged.

The child smiled as she finally made a large gash in the wrapping paper, which revealed half the box in one motion. She stared at the pictures and words on the box for a moment before finding her voice. "Is it really an aquarium?" she looked from one grandparent to the next and back to the box. "Can I get fish to put in it?

"Of course you can," Elizabeth replied. "I thought maybe I could pick you up after school on Monday and take you to the pet store so we can pick out the kind of fish you'd like," she suggested.

"Mommy, did you see?" Michelle asked, calling to her mother across the room.

Anna grinned while nodding. "Yes, I did. And what do you say to your grandparents?" she prompted the child.

"Thank you," Michelle gave them each another hug. "Thank you so much," she said again before returning to her gift and removing the last bits of paper. She looked to her aunt with questioning eyes. "Can I keep it down here in the living room so we can all see the fish?"

"If that's what you'd like, sure," Emily happily agreed.

"I can't wait to show Derek," the girl said as she tore open the top of the box. "Maybe he can help put the stand together for me."

"Did I hear someone mention my name?" Morgan called out from down the hall. He stood with the door partially closed and grinned when Michelle and Emily looked his way. "There seems to have been another birthday present left out here in the hall, so I thought I should bring it in," he announced as the door was fully pushed open.

Michelle's eyes grew wide as she squealed with delight, watching him wheel a purple bicycle down the entry hall toward her. "Is that really for me?" She met him halfway and ran her hand appreciatively along the white handle bars. Then she swung one leg over and got up on the bike to try it out.

Derek hunched down as he held the bicycle steady for her. "I know it's not as special as the one your dad fixed up for you, but it's the best I could do."

"This one's special, too, Derek. Because you gave it to me," she flashed him the biggest smile she could. "Thank you, I love it. Can we go riding right now?"

His right hand patted her head. "I think we might want to wait until the weather clears up a little," he chuckled, pleased by her happy response to the gift.

"But I like riding in the puddles," Michelle said. "Don't you?"

He nodded, grinning even wider as he recalled their first ride together. "Well," he bent down a little more and whispered for her ears only. "Maybe we can bundle up later and ride through the puddles," Derek suggested, watching her nod vigorously. His next words were spoken a little louder, so Emily and the others could hear. "But first I think we should all have some cake."

Michelle agreed and the chocolate cake was a huge hit, gaining rave reviews. But, as the day came to an end and Emily walked her final guest to the door, Derek couldn't help asking why everyone had believed Anna to be the cake baker. Emily simply shrugged in response. "It made Michelle happy to think that her mom had baked it. It's really not a big deal."

Derek smiled as he rested an arm against the wall beside her and leaned in to steal a kiss. "It is a big deal, because you're a good person, Emily."

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Yeah," he replied with a soft chuckle. "You make the people around you feel good," Morgan repeated words she'd said to him years ago while working a case.

Emily recalled the same exchange, realizing how big a part of her life he'd become over the years. He'd become a pillar of strength for her, a grounding force. It didn't feel like a dependent relationship, though, but rather one built on mutual trust, admiration and definitely attraction. It felt safe and familiar to her. "Well, come Monday afternoon I'm going to have an even better gift for Michelle than a cake," she told him.

"Really?" Derek was intrigued. "What's that?"

Her head moved from side to side. "I can't tell you yet. It's a secret."

"I should go, then," he kissed her again before making a move to open the door.

Emily grabbed the doorknob first, blocking his exit. "Why do you have to leave?" she asked. "Is it because of what we both said this morning? Are you having doubts about us?" She barely took a breath before posing another question. "Or is it just the Anna and Michelle thing you're worried about?" Emily watched his eyes iris open a little wider and guessed that might be it. She pulled him closer, pressing her body against his. "I can be quiet," she whispered, heart thumping.

"But I'd rather you weren't," he replied, fingertips brushing the flesh of her wrist that was still holding the doorknob. "I meant every word I said this morning, Emily. I love you," Morgan sealed those words with a soft kiss to her lips. "I just really want you alone when I make love to you for the first time. I want it to be special."

She was both touched and amused by his sentiment. "You sure you're a guy?" Emily teased.

"Positive," he whispered, abandoning the doorknob struggle for a moment as both his hands went to her waist. His kiss that time was hungrier, probing the warm, sweet interior of her mouth. Derek pulled away reluctantly, leaving both of them breathless. "I'll prove it to you. Soon," his words were a serious promise, though a difficult one not to follow through with at that very moment. He placed one last kiss against her forehead before slipping out the door.

xxx

On Monday afternoon Emily sat in Dr. McCleary's office, surrounded by familiar mahogany wood as she ate up more time off from work. In four months she'd used nearly a year's worth of personal leave. But Emily fidgeted in her seat, feeling much the same as she had while waiting for word on whether or not Anna was her sister, nervous and excited. The news that day had been good, and Emily hoped for a repeat performance as her parent's old friend entered the cozy office.

"I wanted to thank you again for doing this so quickly," Emily spoke as he sat. "Anna's worried about the whole thing, but from all that I've read the newer process of stem cell removal is a pretty banal procedure for the donor. And I'd be willing to go through it a hundred times for her."

The man smiled softly at her words. "You're a good sister, Emily." An unmistakable sigh escaped his lips as he fingered the file in front of him. "I just wish I had better news for you," he finally said. "I'm afraid your tissue type isn't a match for Anna."

Her head shook imperceptibly as she tried to swallow those words. Emily felt her gift to Michelle slip from her grasp. She was meant to save Anna, to be the one to banish her nasty disease into oblivion. Instead, that opportunity had just been slashed from existence like a knife to the gut. After a moment of disparaging thoughts, she refused to accept that fate. "I don't understand. Everything that I've read states that a sibling has the highest rate of being a possible match," Emily recalled.

"Those statistics hold true," Dr. McCleary acknowledged. "Of course that's more the case of full siblings, siblings who share the same mother and father," he added.

Emily pressed her lips together tightly as her head turned somewhat to one side in confusion. "I'm not sure why you're telling me this. I sat here with Anna and our parents when you confirmed she was their daughter, and my sister. So, we are full siblings, right? Unless you made a mistake." Somehow Emily doubted that was true, but she was utterly confused by his behavior.

His eyes widened worriedly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… I thought maybe you knew."

"Didn't mean to what?" Emily asked shortly, tired of feeling like he was giving her the run around. "Thought I knew what?"

"I did confirm Anna as the biological child of Elizabeth and Joseph Prentiss," he spoke in a clinical manner, as if he hadn't been a family friend for years. "However, when I tested your blood for the HLA typing I noticed something odd. I went over the tests several times thinking I'd made a mistake, but I also crossed them with your parents DNA samples and confirmed what I was seeing in the tests."

"Odd?" Emily focused on that one word more than the others for some reason. "What are you trying to say? Is there something wrong with me?"

"No," he sighed again. "I'm saying that genetically speaking, it's not possible for Joseph Prentiss to be your father."

To Be Continued…