Chapter 14- Epilogue

AN: Thanks for joining me on this journey. This story was so fun to write. Another one is coming down the pipe soon...because there's always a new situation to put our favorite pair in! Love, Kricket

"Aiden! Down the stairs and on that bus, pronto!" Penelope Morgan called upstairs to her youngest foster son. He was a first grader, with the most horrible tendencies to drag his feet in the morning. Penelope, who wasn't much of a morning person, couldn't afford to lose any more time than she already had.

"Coming!" he yelled back, and she heard the toilet flush. A moment later, a flash of yellow came darting down the stairs, far too quickly to have washed his hands...

Aiden was slender, but much less so since he came to live with Pen and Derek two months ago. He came to them a brooding, unhappy little boy who rarely smiled. Now, his smile was a staple in the Morgan house, along with the smiles of his other two foster siblings.

"Did you wash your hands, baby?" she asked, kissing the top of his head as he gave her a hug.

He looked up at her guiltily, and then turned and ran into the kitchen, past Derek, who narrowly missed spilling his coffee.

"Damn, that boy is fast!" D remarked, taking a sip of his piping brew.

"Language, Morgan," Penelope said, but in a teasing tone.

"Mom, have you seen my homework?" a redheaded girl with braces asked, crawling along the floor.

"It's over here, Britta," Derek said, pointed to the kitchen table.

Britta was twelve and had lived with them for two years, right after they were married. She was extremely intelligent and highly absentminded...and had a crush on Uncle Spencer Reid two blocks long.

"Thanks, Daddy," she said, standing and hugging Derek fiercely. Britta was definitely her father's girl. Derek spoiled her—spoiled all the kids—positively rotten.

"My turn!" Aiden said, rushing in to hug Derek quickly, before running out the front door with his lunch.

Penelope watched as Derek's eyes watered in spite of himself. Aiden had been horribly abused by his mother's boyfriend and hadn't hugged Derek since he'd arrived. Derek had learned to approach slowly with Britta and with Marcus, their other foster son, that he had to earn trust before he earned hugs.

"Derek, I have practice after school," Marcus called, tying his shoes. "Don't forget!"

The kids chose to call them different things. Derek and Penelope had both said it was fine to call them Mom, Dad, or by their names. Whatever the children were more comfortable with was fine with them. Britta had started by calling them Derek and Penelope, but she'd changed over to Dad and Mom shortly after. Marcus sometimes called them by both intermittently. Aiden called Penelope "Mom," but Derek by his given name.

"I didn't," Derek said with utmost sincerity to his ten year old son. "What kind of coach would I be if I forgot lacrosse practice?"

That always made Penelope giggle. Out of all the sports, lacrosse was one Derek knew nothing about. He'd been so excited when he'd heard Marcus was into sports, and had actually groaned audibly when he'd heard it was lacrosse. Still, he'd offered to coach, and did his best, like he'd taught his team members to do.

Nevertheless, his team was awful, but they loved him anyway.

"'Kay," Marcus said, giving a quick hug. "Goodbye, Dad."

"Bye, son," he said.

Marcus stopped and gave Penelope a hug, as did Britta, before she darted out the door, and all three children of the Morgan home were out the door.

"Whew!" Pen said, heaving a sigh of relief. "Now to get us out the door..."

Derek gave her a wolfish grin as he walked over and pulled her into his arms. "Maybe not so quick..."

"Hmmm...Hotch will not be happy with us," she said, leaning her head back so he could kiss her neck.

"He understands that we need a break once in awhile for some lovin'. We have three kids," he replied, and then laughed. "That's enough for any man to understand!"

She tensed in his arms a little bit. "Enough, like that's all you want? You don't want more kids?"

"No, not that, honey," he said. "More would be fine. I mean, we just fostered Aiden, and—"

"Derek, I'm pregnant," she interrupted, looking up into his eyes, her eyes full of hope and joy.

For the first time since she'd known him, the first time in eight years, he was speechless. It made her a little nervous.

"D, I know you said a long time ago you didn't need a baby, and I know you have been fine with older kids, and—"

Derek interrupted her this time by kissing her. A long moment later, he lifted his lips and murmured, "I'm ecstatic, sweetheart. I can barely believe it."

"Believe it," she answered, nodding. "Seven months from now, we will have a crying baby to add to the brood."

"Let's celebrate," he said, scooping her up in his arms and taking the stairs two at a time.

She giggled. He was right; Hotch would most likely understand this reason, too!