(CW- Drug use/abuse)

It was around seven in the afternoon. Emily was in the kitchen cooking dinner while Dani was upstairs in her room. She hasn't left her room since the argument. Emily wanted the situation to calm down so she decided to talk to Dani until dinner.

Emily had so many things in her head that wouldn't let her think straight. She was confused about everything.

Why didn't Dani want to tell her the reason she got into a fight with both girls? It had to be more than what she told her and Emily knew that. She just wants to understand to help her.

She also wants to know where the pills came from. She knows Daniela wouldn't take those things and the girl made it clear. She didn't want anything to do with drugs because it took away the one person she loved the most.

Emily hated the fact that she brought out her mother like that. It was a low blow and she knows it. The girl wouldn't talk about her mom very often and when she did, she never mentioned her substance abuse. Emily knows she messed up and wants to clear things up.

She finished cooking, so she turned off the stove and washed her hands. Emily headed upstairs to Dani's room. She knocked on the door and not surprisingly, Dani didn't answer. Emily took a deep breath and opened the door, preparing herself mentally for another discussion.

She went inside and saw Dani on top of her bed with a book in hand. Emily recognized the book titled Pedro Páramo, with a white wolf on the cover. It was a book that Daniela borrowed from Spencer when she was in the office not too long ago.

"Hey, I wanted to tell you that dinner is ready," Emily said while leaning against the wall.

Daniela looks up from her book, acknowledging Emily's presence. "I'm not hungry. You can eat without me," she said and kept on reading.

Emily walks towards Dani, sitting on the side of her bed. "I see that you are almost done with the book," she said, wanting to spark up a conversation.

The girl nods and turns to the next page, avoiding looking up at Emily. "I think Juan was better off not knowing who his father was. It is crazy the stuff he did," she commented about the book.

"Spence knew that you would like the book."

"Mhm," the teen simply replied. She runs her fingers through her hair as she continued reading. Emily noticed that her knuckles were slightly bruised, most likely from punching in the fight.

"Your knuckles look bruised. Did the nurse give you anything for that?" she asked.

Dani stopped reading and looked at her knuckles. They did look red and she had a little discomfort once in a while though she didn't mind. "Just ice."

Emily looks at her and sighs. She knows the girl wasn't on talking terms with her but she just wanted the truth. "Dan, we need to talk about what happened."

"Can we not do this now," Dani said, closing her book.

"'Dani, I just want to know the truth. I can help you if-" she is interrupted by her phone buzzing. She quickly pulls out her phone and reads a message sent by Garcia. They have a new case in Pennsylvania. Emily sighs and places her phone down.

"New case?" Dani asked with a brow raised though she knew the answer.

"Yes. we have to head out to Pennsylvania," Emily replied. "That doesn't matter right now. What matters right now is our conversation about what happened at school and about what I said earlier."

Dani stands up and places her bool on top of her desk, making sure she doesn't lose the page.

"It doesn't matter. You have a case that you have to go to," the teen wanted to avoid Emily as much as she could.

Even though she didn't want to admit it, Emily's words did get to her. She has heard the phrase sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me many times before but the agent's words felt like a knife stabbing through her chest.

She walks to her closet and takes out a towel. "Ima take a shower. Anything you want to tell me before you leave?"

Emily looks at Dani and sighs. She knows the teen wants to avoid talking with her. Emily wanted to know what happened at school to clear things up but she didn't want to push the teen into talking.

The agent hoped that once she came back from the case, Dani would open and tell her what happened.

Emily stands up and walks up to Dani.

"Since you are suspended it means that you are grounded. No going out or anything of that sort," Emily said looking at Dani. Dani gives her a small nod. "As always, I will be in touch with you to see that everything is okay."

"Alright, I will get going," Dani said, walking out of her room.

"Dani, don't forget that I love you no matter what," said Emily with an honest tone.

Dani turns around and looks at Emily. "Good luck, agent," she says in a low volume. She leaves and heads into the bathroom.

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Multiple murders in a small and rural town in Elton, PA. Three males and two females were found in various dumpsites around the area. Bodies were left in garbage cans, displaying the bodies that were covered in holes with nothing else but a metal pole next to all victims.

The BAU team is in the Jet, gathering all information before they land. They are all gathered around Emily's phone, listening to Garcia explaining the case.

"All five victims are around the same age. A range from thirty to early forties. They all have different jobs and family structures. I tried to see if they knew each other but nothing popped up," Garcia said. on the line.

"Well, we can see that our unsub chooses both male and female victims, so he doesn't choose his victims based on gender," Rossi said while looking at his tablet. "He doesn't have any racial preference either."

"Well, he does have the same M.O for all five victims. Blunt force trauma to the head and then appears to drill the victims in various parts of the body. Mostly in the abdominal area," stated Reid.

"It looks like they were drilled with a large object, maybe a jackhammer. I just wonder if he drilled them before or after post mortem?"

"And those poles. It has to mean something," Luke said while looking down at his tablet. "It can't just be a coincidence that there were poles in every dumpsite."

The team all nodded in agreement.

"Alright, Tara, JJ, and Luke, you will head off to the latest crime scene. Reid and Matt will check out all five autopsies. Rossi and I will set up the station," said Emily.

"I also want to know if those poles are the same type. It has to mean something to the unsub. Once we know what those poles are for, I want Garcia to check out where they sell it in the area, "The team agreed and all took a seat, waiting to arrive.

Emily sat at the back of the jet wondering what Dani was doing. Daniela was grounded but she knows that the word grounded does not mix well with a teenager.

But what really was clouding her thoughts was the question of why Dani got into a fight. She knows the girl didn't get in a fight only because a person was talking bad about her. She knows Dani better than that.

She has her feelings made of steel, hardly ever broken. She wouldn't care about what a person says about her, it just doesn't reflect her profile. Emily knows it was something way more serious but she doesn't know what it was.

"Hey there," said Rossi while taking a seat across from Emily. "What has you so caught up in your thoughts?"

Emily looks up and meets Rossi's eyes. "Nothing, I was just thinking about the case."

"Are you seriously trying to lie to a profiler with years of experience under his belt?" Rossi asked with a brow raised. Emily lets out a small chuckle. She knew that lying to Rossi was impossible. He was a profiler and he had known her for a long time. There was no fooling David Rossi. "I've seen you with that face before, Emily. That is the face of a worried mother."

Emily lets out a sigh of defeat. "Is it that obvious?" she asked.

"It is," Rossi said while nodding. "Is there anything going on between you and Dani?"

"It's just that we got in an argument earlier in the day about her getting into a fight at school," Emily said. She rubbed her face lightly. "It... didn't end so well."

"An argument with a teenage girl," said Rossi. "I don't think those things ever end well."

"No, I don't think they ever do," Emily said with a small smile. "It's just that the argument got really heated and... I said something that I wasn't supposed to say," the agent said. She rested her head on her arm.

"What exactly did you say?" Rossi said while touching his beard.

"Her folder had a bag of Molly inside of it," she paused, glancing at the small window next to her. "I asked her if she did not learn anything from her mother's mistakes with drug abuse ." she looks down, regretting every word she said.

"I see," Rossi said, nodding slowly. "I understand why that didn't end well. The topic of Dani's mother is very sensitive to talk to her in general. It's not very wise to bring her up like that."

"I know," said the brunette. "I said it without thinking. I tried to fix amends afterward but she just pushed me back. Honestly, I don't blame her."

"She just needs time to cool off," Rossi said. "I'm sure she knows you didn't mean to say that."

"God, I just feel like a total jerk," Emily told him. She normally wouldn't talk about her personal life with anyone, especially her problems but with Rossi it was different. She trusted him and knew that he always had good advice. "I can't believe I screwed up this badly."

"Parenting can be a very difficult job from time to time. You screw up but that is just part of growth," said the older agent.

Though he is a father, he never had the chance to raise Joy. Part of him wishes he had but he knows that he was a different person back then. Either way, Joy grew up to be a wonderful woman.

He doesn't say it from personal experience but from others that have taught him.

"Don't worry, Emily. You are not the first or last parent to mess up. At the end of the day, you and Dani will be just fine."

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Dani got out of the shower feeling more relaxed. She changed into some boxing shorts and an oversized long-sleeved shirt. After drying and combing her hair, Daniela headed out to the living room.

It was quiet, with nothing but the noise of the running refrigerator in the kitchen. A normal scene when Emily would leave for a case. Dani turned on the tv, going through the channels but didn't find anything interesting to watch so she just put on the local news.

The news was talking about the weather, robberies, and some other stuff that Dani wasn't paying attention to. She just had on the tv for background noise.

She was thinking about what Emily said earlier. About her not learning about her mother's mistakes. If only she had known what it was like, Dani thought to herself.

Yes, Emily did know her past because of police reports but she didn't live through it as Dani did. Dani remembers vividly living with her mother and watching her health deteriorate because of all the drugs she would take. She out of all people knew all the negative effects of drugs.

4 Years Ago

Dani arrived back home from school. She was supposed to go back to her foster home but she knew that no one would notice her arriving a few hours late. She just wanted to see her mother again.

She was only allowed to see her twice a month with outside supervision. It wasn't enough for Daniela. She wanted to be with her mom as much as she could.

She loved her and hated the fact that she was taken away from her. It wasn't fair in the girl's eyes. She didn't believe her social worker when he told her that it was for the best for her to live in a more 'suitable' home.

She preferred living with her mother than to a random person's home. She wanted to be with her mom because she loved her and worried about her.

For now, the girl was very excited to tell her mother that she got the highest score on her English test. The teacher complimented her and said that it was one of the highest scores she had ever seen. Daniela wanted to make her mom proud and was eager to tell her.

She unlocked the front door of the apartment and opened it. She hears her mother talking to a man. A voice that Dani hated to hear. She steps into the small living room and sees her mother talking to a tall, rather skinny man with a bald cut.

The man was one of the many dealers inside the town who would distribute drugs. The man looks at Dani and gives her a cold smile.

"Hey there kid," he said with a grin. "I see you came back from school already."

"Yep," Dani said with a small nod. "What are you doing here?"

"I just came to give your ma a package, that's all," he said while grabbing his bag and Daniela knew exactly what he meant.

"Ima go now. See you ladies, later," he walks past Dani and leaves through the front door.

Dani looks at her mother, who was standing beside the window. She was a tall and thin woman, with her skin complexion of the same tone as Dani's, though her face looked pale and tired.

Her hair was crisp black, tied up in a bun. She looked tired but once she saw Daniela in the apartment, she smiled at her, happy that the girl is home.

"Ma, you told me that you were going to quit that stuff," Dani said, disappointment in the girl's eyes.

"I know, mi Amor," her mother said, walking up to her. "It's just a little. I promise you that it's not a lot." She places her hand on Dani's shoulder. "Why don't you go sit down while I prepare you something to eat, okay?"

Dani nods and sits down, waiting for her mother to finish preparing her meal. When she was done, her mother handed her a plate of chicken with beans. Her mother sits across from Dani with a plate in front of her. They both chatted for a bit while eating.

Her mother was kind and loving towards the girl. She treated her well and offered her dessert. She was the perfect mother that Daniela could ever ask for. It was just her addiction that drained out her will.

Dani finished her food and looked up at her mother who had barely touched her plate. She noticed her body start to shake and her forehead sweaty. Dani knew what those signs meant. It meant that her mother needed another fix.

"Dani, you go to your room and watch tv. I need to... clean up the living room," her mother said while standing up. She picked up both plates and placed them in the dishwasher.

"Ma, we could watch tv together. I can put up a movie if you want," Dani said. She didn't want to leave her mother alone, especially if she knows that her mother wanted to use it again.

"No, that's okay. You go ahead in your room," her mother replied with a shaky voice. Her body was visibly trembling. "I am just tired. I just need to relax," she said while scratching her arm.

Dani stands up and looks at her mother. "Please ma, don't use that stuff," Dani pleaded. "It's not good for you. Por favor, no lo uses."

"Dan, just go to your room, hun," her mother said. She didn't want her daughter to witness her injecting herself poison. An action that she couldn't help herself with. An action that she had a burning impulse to do. "Don't worry about me. I will be fine," she said, giving her a weak smile.

Dani hesitantly walked into her room. She locked her door and stared at her mirror. She felt sad and incompetent.

How could she help her mother quit? What would her brother do? She felt useless due to her not helping her mother. She has tried different ways to help her mother but it never worked.

Dani sat down on the floor and covered her face. She was crying in a silent manner. She felt like a coward but didn't know what else to do so she let her tears silently roll down her face.

About half an hour passed by and Dani got out of her room. She walked towards the living room and saw her mother lying on the couch, presumably unconscious.

Dani's heart skipped a beat. She quickly ran to her mother and touched her wrist, trying to find a pulse. She sighed in relief when she felt a pulse from her mother's wrist.

Daniela slowly backed up, looking at the woman. She was lying down on the couch with her head resting against her arm. Her long, dark hair was tied up in a messy bun. Dani let out a sad sigh when she saw her mother's arm. She saw that her arm had a red bruise due to her tying a band around it. She saw a pinch where she injected herself with the needle.

The girl looked at the coffee table which had the used needle on it. She hated needles with all her heart. They are the main instrument that causes her mother to be like this. Dani went to her room and got a blanket to cover her mother.

She went back to the living room where her mother was sleeping. She walked up towards the pale and skinny woman. Dani covered her and turned around when out of nowhere she heard her mother gasp for air.

Daniela looked at her and saw her mother violently shaking from head to toe. She had foam in her mouth and her eyes rolled back. It was like a scene from a horror movie.

Dani ran towards her mother but didn't know what to do. "Please mommy, don't go," she said with tears in her eyes.

She grabbed a phone that was near the couch and dialed 911. Her hand was frantically shaking while holding the phone. She knew that she had to call quickly or her mother would die. Every second counted and she felt that it took forever for someone to pick up. An operator answered and asked what the emergency was.

"Please help," Dani said with a shaky voice, hardly being able to say her words. "My mom overdosed. She is dying."

Present Time

Daniela snaps back from her memories with tears in her eyes. She didn't like crying so she quickly wiped her tears away. She hated how her brain vividly remembers the worst moments of her life.

That memory was one of the many she has from her mother overdosing. The memories that bring back the feelings of sadness, anger, and frustration against herself. Daniela wished she could have done more to help her mom.

That was the one thing that Dani really hated about herself. The fact that she failed in protecting her mother. Her failure has cost her a life.

The girl thought to herself, what does Emily know about her mother anyways? She never saw her or has met her in person. She didn't know anything from her except for what is written in police reports. Daniela frowned.

Emily has no right to judge her mom. It's true, her mother has committed a lot of mistakes but that does not give Emily the right to judge her. She didn't know how her mother was suffering.

She didn't know anything at all.

Dani let out a sigh of frustration. Frustration towards herself and towards Emily. She thought Emily trusted her in doing the right thing.

Why would Emily assume those pills were hers? Didn't Dani prove herself better? Maybe the teen overestimated her good acts.

Or maybe everyone else was right. What if Daniela had the same destiny as her mother? What if no matter how hard she tries she will eventually fall down in that never-ending void of addiction? It was just a matter of time before she does.

These thoughts clouded the girl's mind for the rest of the night.