A/N: HALLELUJAH! The final chapter of this series is finally up. I APOLOGIZE a RIDICULOUS amount. I ended up traveling out of the country several more times and for WAY longer than was originally planned. I am finally back in the states and got some time to finish this story! Hope you all enjoy. I wrote part of this chapter extremely fast, so I apologize for the latter half of it! Enough of my rambling. Read on to find out what happens.

Chapter 17

About an hour later Hotch met Jessica, Garcia, Jack, Henry, and Penny in the hallway. He could tell by the look on the seven year old boy's face that he was frightened and worried. The dark haired man walked up to him, squatting down in front of the boy.

"Henry do you want to see your mom?" he asked the blonde boy

Light brown eyes met Hotch's slightly darker ones as he nodded enthusiastically.

"Okay but Henry I have to tell you that they are sleeping and are hurt pretty bad so you are going to have to be careful"

"Okay" he responded

Hotch nodded before standing back up and looking at the two blonde women who stood before him.

"Don't worry. We will be back in a bit"

Then he turned and began to walk down the hall Henry beside him. Before they even rounded the corner to the elevator the seven year old had slipped his hand into Hotch's much larger one. The dark haired man looked down and squeezed the little boy's hand gently.

Once they got outside the ICU Hotch stopped, looking down at Henry once again.

"Buddy I need you to understand that your moms are going to be hooked up to a bunch of machines, okay. And they have lots of cuts and bruises"

The blonde seven year old simply nodded as he replied, "Okay"

As the dark haired agent looked down at Henry his heart nearly broke. All he could see when he looked at the child was JJ. His smile, his nose, his hair, it was all Jennifer Jareau. The only thing that set the boy apart from his mother was his light brown eyes.

"Let's go Uncle Aaron" Henry stated as he began to pull at Hotch's arm

"Okay I'm coming" the dark haired man replied as he pushed open the doors to ICU and led the seven year old into the hall.

Immediately they were stopped by a nurse and a doctor telling Hotch he couldn't bring Henry inside. The agent explained who he was and that JJ and Emily's doctors had both okayed it. As soon as his name tumbled off of his lips both the doctor and the nurse apologized telling him they didn't realize who he was. Hotch gave a small smile and nod, knowing that everyone in both ICU's had heard about what happened and knew who they all were.

The agent felt Henry grip his hand tighter as they made their way around a short corner, passing other patient's rooms who were hooked up to machines. Hotch steered Henry to JJ's room first, coming to a stop in her doorway.

"Grandpa Dave" Henry said when he saw Rossi sitting in the chair next to his mom's bed

The older man turned in his chair to find Hotch standing there holding Henry's hand. He smiled when he saw the blonde seven year old before he opened his arms. Henry let go of Hotch's hand and slowly walked over to the older man who wrapped his arms around the little boy.

"Hey kiddo" he replied as he kissed the side of Henry's head

As Rossi released his hold on the boy, he kept both of the small hands in his larger ones as he looked down, noticing that both of Henry's wrists had been wrapped in bandages. He looked back up into the light brown eyes of the seven year old and couldn't help but smile.

"Nice outfit kid" the older man said with a smile as he looked at Henry

Henry smiled slightly as he looked down at his charcoal striped shorts and black t-shirt, topped off with his gray Velcro strap van shoes.

"Mama Em got me these clothes and Mommy got me the shoes" he stated

Rossi watched as the smile faded from the seven year olds face. He let go of the boy's hands and gently turned him towards JJ's bed. Henry still stood with Rossi, leaning back against the older man, as he stared at his mother, taking in her appearance and the wires attached to her.

"She's sleeping?" he questioned quietly

Rossi nodded, "Yes but don't worry you won't wake her up if your too loud. But I know she wants to hear your voice"

Henry finally stepped away from Rossi as he moved closer to the bed. Then before either man could stop him he had climbed quickly up onto his mother's bed. Both agents stepped closer, afraid of what might happen next, but what transpired melted both of their hearts.

Henry carefully crawled up the bed, sitting next to his mother on his knees. He then took his hand and reached out to her face, carefully touching the bruising and bandage on the left side. Then he leaned forward and kissed her gently on the lips.

"I love you mommy" he told her, "You need to wake up so we can go back home. I don't like sleeping in that big house without you… Aunt Penny's there, but it's not the same"

Rossi turned his attention from Henry to look back at Hotch who had tears forming in his eyes. They stood there and watched Henry talk to his mother for awhile before he just sat on the bed staring down at her. Henry stayed with JJ for another half hour before he turned and looked at Hotch.

"Can I see Mama Em now?" he asked

"Of course" the dark haired agent answered

Rossi stepped forward and helped Henry off of the bed so that he didn't jump off and cause the bed to move. The seven year old then walked up to Hotch and looked at him questioningly. The dark haired agent smiled and nodded to the doorway, leading the boy out of JJ's room and down the hall just a ways to Emily's.

As Hotch walked Henry into Emily's room, they found they were the only ones there to see her at this time.

Henry stared at his brunette mother, noticing immediately her leg propped up on a pillow and tightly wrapped in bandages. He then noticed her left hand which was braced and wrapped in bandages as well. His eyes were wide as he continued to stare, before he finally noticed the tubes coming out of her mouth.

"What's that thing" he asked pointing towards the machine that the tubes were connected to

Hotch looked at the machine, desperately wanting to think of something to tell Henry, other than what it really was. When the dark haired agent remained silent for too long the seven year old spoke up again.

"Uncle Aaron?" he said questioningly as he looked up at the older man

Hotch took a deep breath before looking down at Henry, "That is there to help her breathe"

Henry's eyes grew wider before he asked, "She can't breathe?"

"She can…She just needed a little help"

"Will it help if I talk to her?" he asked looking back up at Hotch

"Yeah buddy, I think it will" he told him

Henry nodded as he let go of the older man's hand. He turned towards Emily's bed and slowly walked up to it. He stared at the bed and at Emily before turning back to Hotch.

"Will you help me get up there?"

Hotch nodded as he moved towards the seven year old, scooping him up easily and sitting him gently on the edge of the bed.

"Be careful" Hotch told Henry before he took a step back

The blonde boy carefully shifted himself on the bed before slowly crawling up next to Emily's right side. Then he mirrored what he done in JJ's room. He leaned all of his weight on his knees as he carefully leaned forward, stretching his right hand out and gently touching Emily's face, where some of her bruises were. Then he moved his hand to her neck, where the very prominent handprint bruises were.

Hotch watched Henry carefully as the boy leaned forward once again, leaning down and placing a kiss gently on Emily's lips.

"I love you mama" he told her as he sat back up, "I'm sorry you're hurt"

Hotch watched as Henry continued to talk to Emily quietly. A few moments later Rossi pulled Hotch out of the room to talk to him. In the middle of the conversation Rossi caught movement out of the corner of his eye and turned to the glass window looking into Emily's room. When he did Hotch also turned and what they saw melted both of the grown men's hearts.

Henry was lying down, situating himself next to Emily's right side. They watched as the blonde seven year old carefully positioned himself next to the brunette. He turned, laying on his left side so that his body was facing Emily's before carefully picking up his mothers right hand and holding between his own two hands. Then he let his forehead carefully lean again Emily's right upper arm.

"Hotch they have to-" Rossi began

"I know Dave. I know" the team leader stated, cutting off what he already knew the older man was going to say

It didn't take long for the seven year old to fall asleep next to Emily and neither man had the heart to wake him or try to move him, especially since Hotch was somewhat aware of the rough night and morning the boy had had. They let Henry remain where he was as Rossi watched over the two while Hotch took his turn sitting with JJ.

A couple hours later Hotch left JJ's room to go check on Henry. When he got to Emily's room he saw the seven year old still sleeping soundly next to his brunette mother, while Rossi was snoozing in the chair next to the bed. Standing just inside the room was Garcia, tears streaming down her face.

"Garcia" Hotch questioned quietly as he stepped up behind her

She turned her head slightly to look at Hotch before she wiped her eyes. There was a moment of silence before Garcia spoke.

"Jessica and I were just wondering what was taking so long. She took Penny home to take a nap, so I thought I would come up and see what was going on…And I found…this" she said motioning with her hands at the scene before her

Hotch nodded, "Sorry. I should have let you know what was going on. He fell asleep and neither of us had the heart to wake him"

Garcia nodded, "It's fine…he needs the sleep…He…I…I don't think he slept well last night"

Hotch nodded before stepping up next to the blonde and wrapping an arm around her shoulders, "They're going to be okay Penelope"

She nodded as she let her head rest on his shoulder for a moment. Their moment was interrupted by both Hotch and Garcia's phones buzzing. They both stepped apart, pulling out their phones and reading their text messages.

"Oh my God" the blonde uttered before looking back up at Hotch who had just read his text and looked up meeting the blonde's wide brown eyes

"Let's go" he stated as he ushered her towards the door

"What about-" she began but was cut off

"They'll be fine. I'll come back and get Dave in a minute" he told her as he practically pushed her out of the ICU

The two adults quickly got into the elevator and headed down to the pediatric ward. Once there they made their way quickly to the pediatric ICU. Hotch burst through the doors and down the hall, where they found Kevin standing outside of Ethan's room.

"Kevin?" Hotch questioned as he and Garcia approached the male analyst

"The doctors are in there" he replied as he turned towards the eleven year old boy's room

Hotch and Garcia both walked over to the window looking into the brunette boy's room, but they could not see the child due to him being surrounded by doctors and nurses. The team leader turned from the window to ask Kevin some further questions when Garcia suddenly gasped as she continued to look through the window. Hotch turned back around to find that the doctors and nurses were stepping away from the bed. Hotch swallowed the lump in his throat before slowly smiling when he saw small dark eyes staring back at him from inside the room. The team leader closed his eyes, relieved that Ethan seemed to be okay and awake.

The three adults were met by the doctor as he came out of the room.

"How is he?" Garcia asked before anyone else could

The doctor smiled at the blonde woman, "He seems to be doing pretty well considering everything he has been through"

"So he's okay?" questioned Hotch as he turned his attention to the doctor

"Well as far as I can tell medical wise, he's healing quite nicely. He's in quite a bit of pain from the surgical sight and has a massive headache, but both of those are to be expected"

"Did you bring him out of his unconsciousness?" the team leader asked, knowing that the doctor didn't want the eleven year old waking up too soon

The doctor shook his head, "Unfortunately I did not. He apparently began to wake up about half an hour ago. Your friend here called for a nurse and by the time I made it in there he was struggling to wake himself entirely up and was mumbling for his mother, I believe"

"But he's going to be okay even though he woke sooner than you wanted him to?" Hotch asked

"I believe so. Like I said I've checked him over and he remembers his name, date of birth, and the year. Feel free to ask him more questions, but he is going to be tired. I gave him some more pain medication so he won't be awake much longer. Otherwise, like I said before, his wounds are looking good. He just needs to relax and rest so that his body can finish healing"

"Thank you doctor" Hotch said with a nod, "Is it okay if we all go in?"

The doctor nodded, "Yes I think we can make an exception. I'm hoping that since he seems to be doing so well that by tomorrow we can move him out of ICU into a regular room"

"Really?" Garcia questioned, a hint of excitement in her voice

He nodded, "And maybe we can even get him and his brother in the same room"

Hotch nodded at the doctor again as he reached his hand out to shake, "That would be really good. Thanks again"

"Of course" the doctor responded as he shook Hotch's hand

The doctor then turned to walk away, leaving the three adults standing outside of Ethan's room staring at the brunette boy through the window. Hotch took a deep breath before turning and walking through the doorway into the room.

"Hey buddy" the team leader said with a small smile as he walked up next to the bed

"Hey" Ethan replied hoarsely

Before Hotch could say anything else Garcia came barreling into the room, "Oh my mini E. How are you? It's so good to see your beautiful, mysterious, dark eyes. I love you so, so much"

Ethan couldn't help but smile at the bubbly blonde he had come to love so much over the years, which he considered an aunt.

"I just want to hug you so much right now" she said

"Garcia calm down" Hotch told her with a slight smile himself

"It's okay Uncle Aaron" said Ethan, "I wouldn't mind a hug"

Garcia smiled widely at the affectionate eleven year old, "Really? I don't want to hurt you"

"As long as you hug me carefully I'll be okay" he told the blonde analyst with a smile

She nodded before bending over the bed, hugging him the best that she could in his current position. She sighed as she felt his little arms wrap around her neck hugging her back. When she pulled away she saw him wince slightly but he forced that emotion away quickly before anyone would notice.

"How are you feeling champ?" Kevin asked as he stood at the end of the bed

"My head hurts…and my left side and a couple other things, but I'm okay"

"Jack was here to see you the other day. I snuck him back here" Hotch told the boy as he placed his hand over Ethan's right one

"I know" the boy replied as he looked at everyone's faces, before smiling and adding, "I could hear you all when you were talking to me"

"Really?" Garcia asked

"Mmmhmm" he answered with a slight nod

There was a moment of silence before Ethan looked up seriously at Hotch, "Where are my mom's?"

"They're here…a couple floors up…in the ICU" he told the eleven year old

Ethan bit his bottom lip before he asked the next question, "Are they…gonna die?"

"Ethan both of your moms are hurt pretty badly. But the doctors are very hopeful"

"So you don't know" he replied as he stared up at the dark haired man

"Ethan I'm not going to lie and tell you that they are going to be okay, because I'm not sure. At this point I don't think anyone is making any final decisions. But they are hurt pretty badly. And it's pretty much up to them as to whether or not they are going to pull through" he told the boy truthfully

Ethan nodded as he continued to chew on his bottom lip before he let his tongue dart to the corner of his lips and then trace along his bottom lip. Much in the same way Emily would. Hotch smiled as he watched the young boy who looked so much like his mother.

"Can I see them?" he finally asked, looking back up at Hotch

"Not right now. Like I said they are in ICU. No one under fourteen is allowed back there. But maybe if you get moved to a regular room tomorrow we can have a discussion with your doctor, and theirs, to see if we could make an exception"

"Really?" Ethan questioned hopefully

Hotch nodded, "Yes, BUT I'm not making any promises, so don't get your hopes up"

The boy nodded again as his eyes began to get heavy. Hotch noticed so he gave Ethan's hand a light squeeze.

"We will let you get some rest" he told the youngster

Ethan opened his eyes back up quickly, "Wait. What about Declan and Henry? Are they okay? Where-"

"Slow down son. Henry is actually doing okay. He was the least hurt out of all of you. He was released yesterday and he's here visiting right now"

"D?"

"Declan is actually right down the hall from you. He just woke up last night. He's hurt pretty bad, but he's doing good considering"

"Can I see him?" Ethan asked with sad eyes

"I'll let him know you're awake and maybe Rossi can bring him in here, okay" Hotch told him

Ethan nodded as he began to chew on his lip again. Hotch watched him closely, knowing there was something else on the eleven year olds mind.

"Ethan?" Hotch said in a questioning voice

Dark brown eyes finally turned meeting Hotch's lighter brown ones and the dark haired man could see the worry in the young boy's eyes.

"What is it?" Hotch asked as he looked at Ethan with concern

"Is he…dead?" the boy asked quietly as he tensed up

It took Hotch a moment to fully comprehend what Ethan had asked, but once he had he nodded his head, "Yes…they all are"

Ethan sighed as he began to relax somewhat back into his bed. Hotch turned and nodded at Garcia and Kevin, motioning towards the door. Both adults nodded, understanding the leader wanted some time alone with the eleven year old.

"Hey little E, I'm going to go check on some of the others, but I will be back very soon. You rest up and get better, okay" Garcia said, slightly choked up, as she stepped closer to the bed, bending over and placing a kiss on Ethan's cheek

"I love you Ethan Prentiss" she said as she stood back up

"I love you too Aunt Pen" he told her sincerely

She smiled one last time at him before turning and following Kevin out of the room. Hotch then turned his attention back on the brunette boy lying in the bed. He smiled slightly at him before he spoke.

"Are you sure your feeling okay?" the dark haired agent asked again, knowing he was a lot like Emily when it came to pain, he would hide it as long as he could

"I'm fine Uncle Aaron" he answered slightly annoyed

"Ethan I know you're hurting and confused. And you probably just want to erase the last week of your life. But I want you to know, if you need to talk, I'm here, okay" he told his son's best friend

Ethan nodded but didn't say anything.

"Is there anything you want to talk about right now?" he asked the young brunette

Ethan merely shook his head and closed his eyes as he said, "I'm kinda tired. Can I just go to sleep?"

"Of course" responded the older man, "I'll just sit here until you fall asleep"

Ethan opened his eyes, turning to look at the dark haired man, "I'll be fine"

"Okay" Hotch replied, "But I'm still staying until you fall asleep"

Ethan sighed but knew there was no reason to argue because he wasn't going to win. Instead he gave in, closing his eyes, and allowed the pain medication to take effect.

Not thirty minutes later Hotch heard Ethan whimpering. As he looked over at the young brunette he saw his legs moving and his arms begin to flail slightly. The dark haired man got up and stepped closer to the bed. He could see Ethan's eyelids fluttering and knew that the boy was having a nightmare. Hotch reached over and took Ethan's hand in his own as he began talking to him in a calm, gentle voice.

"Ethan, it's okay buddy, wake up…you're dreaming"

The youngster continued to flail and whimper so Hotch began to shake Ethan slightly, "Ethan"

The eleven year old's eyes flew open, looking up at Hotch with a terrified look on his face, his breathing heavy and ragged.

"It's okay. You're okay" the older man told Ethan as he patted his arm reassuringly

Ethan closed his eyes trying to level out his breathing.

"You want to talk about it?" Hotch asked the young boy

Ethan shook his head and kept his eyes closed as he said, "I just want to go back to sleep"

"Okay" the older man relented as he watched Ethan fall back asleep

Later that afternoon after Henry had woken up, Hotch had taken him down to the cafeteria to eat some lunch before he was going to take him back up to see his brothers.

While they were eating lunch Rossi made his way into Ethan's room. He saw the young boy with his eyes closed so he pulled the chair closer to the bed. He stood next to Ethan's bed for a moment before taking the boy's small hand in his own.

"I'm glad you're going to be okay kid" he said

Ethan opened his eyes when he heard Rossi's voice. He stared up at the older man who had become a grandfather figure in his life.

He smiled up at the older man who hadn't realized he had opened his eyes yet, "Hi Grandpa Dave"

Rossi's eyes darted back to the eleven year old, who had a smirk on his face. The older man couldn't help but smile down at the young brunette who looked so much like his mother.

Then he wiped the smile off of his face as he turned serious, "What have I told you about calling me that?"

Ethan smiled widely as he continued to look at the older man, "That you love it when I call you that"

Rossi's seriousness faded, "You heard me talking to you didn't you?"

"Uh huh" the boy answered still smiling

"Well then I guess you know the truth…Let's just not make a habit out of it" he told the youngster as he began to smile also

"Deal" replied Ethan

The two looked at each other for a moment before Rossi leaned over, scooping Ethan carefully into his arms.

"I'm so, so glad you are going to be okay" he told Ethan

The eleven year old wrapped his arms around the older man's neck, hugging him back.

"I love you kiddo"

"Love you too Grandpa Dave" Ethan told him with a giggle

Rossi let out a small laugh as well before he carefully laid the eleven year old back onto his bed.

"Hotch is going to bring Henry up as soon as they get done eating" he told Ethan

The young brunette nodded, "I really want to see him…and Dec"

"You boys are going to be okay" Rossi told him as he squeezed Ethan's hand gently

"I think we will all be better when mom wakes up…both of them" he stated as he looked down

Rossi moved his hand to Ethan's face, placing his finger under the boy's chin gently, "Listen to me Ethan, your moms are both very strong women. They are going to give up without a fight"

"I know" he replied

Rossi nodded as he moved his hand and sat down in the chair beside the bed, "Want me to read some comics to you?"

"Sure" Ethan answered, his smile and slightly upbeat manner no longer there

Rossi sat back in his chair as he pulled out one of the comics that Jack had given him to read to Ethan. He opened the comic and began to read to the young brunette.

A little while later Hotch came through the door hand in hand with Henry. Rossi turned when he saw the smile on Ethan's face and spotted the two people coming through. Henry's light brown eyes lit up and a smile crossed his face when he spotted Ethan sitting up slightly in bed.

"Ethan!" the seven year old shouted as he released Hotch's hand and took off running towards his brothers bed

Rossi caught the overly excited blonde before he jumped onto the bed. Instead lifting him and setting him carefully on the bed next to his brunette brother.

"H, are you okay?" Ethan asked as he stared at his little brother

"Uh huh, you?"

"I'll be okay" he told the younger boy with a smile

"Can I give you a hug? Or will it hurt you?" the blonde seven year old asked

"I'll take a hug" the eleven year old told him

Henry leaned forward carefully, wrapping his arms around Ethan's neck. Ethan, in turn, wrapped his arms around his little brother's waist, hugging him tightly.

Just as they were pulling apart Hotch came back through the doorway, this time pushing Declan in a wheelchair.

"Dec" Ethan said with a slight smile

"Declan!" Henry shouted as he jumped off the bed to make his way towards his oldest brother

This time it was Hotch who caught the young boy, "Hold it there buddy. Declan is hurt a little worst than Ethan. See his hand and shoulder are hurt real bad and his side is hurt pretty bad too, so you need to be careful"

Hotch placed Henry back on the floor and the seven year old made his way slowly to stand in front of his sixteen year old brother.

"Hey H" the blonde teenager said with a smile

"Hi D…are you okay?" he asked sincerely

"I will be. What about you?"

"I'm okay" he stated

"Good" Declan replied as he stared as his little blonde headed brother

Henry stared at Declan's bruised face before turning his eyes to the teenager's hand. Declan noticed and immediately spoke up.

"Are you gonna give me a hug Henry or what?"

"I don't wanna hurt you" the seven year old replied as he lifted his eyes to meet his brothers

"I'll take a gentle hug from this side" the teenager told the seven year old as he motioned to his left side

Henry made his way to the left side of Declan's wheelchair and wrapped his arms carefully around his big brother's neck. Declan winced slightly but ignored it as he wrapped his left arm tightly around the little boy's back.

As they pulled apart Declan looked over at Ethan, who he noticed was watching him carefully.

"Hey E" Declan said as he looked at his younger brother

"Hey…You okay?" the brunette asked as he continued to stare at his brother

"Yeah. What about you? How's your head?" the teenager asked

"It'll be okay" he answered

Declan nodded before turning back to Hotch, "Could…we, umm…could we have a few minutes…alone?"

Hotch looked from the blonde teenager to the other two boys before looking at Rossi and nodding, "Sure. We will just be right outside"

"Kay" Declan responded as he watched the two older men walk out of the room

Once he knew they were out of the room he turned to Henry, "Hey H will you push me a little closer to Ethan?"

The blonde seven year old tilted his head to the side as he stared at his big brother with a questioning look. Declan only smiled as he noticed the hesitation in his baby brother's light brown eyes.

"It's okay Henry, just push me carefully up to the bed" he told the little boy

"Okay" the seven year old said with a shrug of his shoulders before pushing his big brother carefully up to the side of Ethan's bed

Henry then moved around to the foot of Ethan's bed and carefully climbed up onto it. He crawled up the side until he was even with Ethan's thighs. He turned his body so that he could sit on his bottom with his feet dangling off the side of the bed.

"Guys tell me the truth" Declan said as he looked from one brother to the other, "Are you really okay?"

"Are you?" Ethan questioned back

The teenager tilted his head to the side as he looked at his brunette brother with concern in his eyes.

"Ethan I know you must still be scared. I am too. I've bet you've had nightmares also…I have. I just want you guys to know I'm here if you want to talk about it…especially since Mama Em and Mama J can't talk to us right now…And I know it would be easier to talk to each other rather than anyone else…no matter how much we love them and they love us"

Ethan sighed as he looked down at his lap. Before he could respond he heard Henry's voice.

"Mommies are hurt really bad" he stated, sadness evident in his voice

Ethan's head shot up as he looked at his little brother who was staring at Declan, "Henry did you see them?"

The little blonde nodded slowly, "Yeah. I saw them today. They both have bruises all over…Mama Em has a lot of band aids"

Ethan looked from Henry to Declan, "Have you seen them too?"

Blue eyes met brown as the teenager answered, "Yes…Don't worry E, they are both fighters, we all know that"

"Declan tell me the truth. How bad are they hurt?" the eleven year asked, wanting his brother to be honest

The teenager looked from Ethan to Henry before turning back to the brunette, "Mama was stabbed in the leg and the hand. Those are the bandages H is talking about…and she has some tubes in her mouth to help her breathe-"

"She's not breathing by herself?" he questioned with wide eyes, the alarm noticeable in his voice

"No Ethan, she is, they just want to make sure she keeps breathing on her own. It's just to monitor her to make sure her breathing remains steady. She has some broken ribs and that makes breathing harder" he told him quickly

Ethan nodded slowly but Declan could see that he was still worried. There was silence for a few minutes before Ethan spoke.

"What about Mama J?"

"She's got a lot of bruises…and she was shot in the side, but that injury is okay" he said quickly when he noticed Ethan's eyes grow wide again

"So she's gonna be okay?"

Declan was quiet for a moment before answering the question, "She hurt her head again…so they are keeping her asleep for now"

Ethan looked at Declan, knowing the teenager was trying to minimize JJ's head injury in front of Henry, so the brunette just nodded.

"Henry you weren't hurt were you?" Ethan asked his little brother

He shook his head no.

"Just my wrists and my ankles a little" he said as he held up his wrists which were still wrapped in bandages

"From the tape?" Declan questioned

"Yeah"

The teenager then looked down at the seven year old's ankles and could see the circular bruising around them, although they weren't nearly as bad as his wrists.

"I'm glad you guys are okay…I'm sorry" Declan said sadly as he hung his head

"For what?" Ethan questioned

"For not being able to protect you better…for you know…having such a horrible family…It's my fault all this happened" he said still looking at the floor

"It's not your fault Declan" Henry told his oldest brother, "Why do you think our family is so bad?" he then asked, not fully understanding what Declan meant

"H, I wasn't always part of this family, remember?" he asked the seven year old

Before the little blonde could answer Ethan jumped in, "You did everything you could to protect us D…and that wasn't even your responsibility"

"But-"

"Declan our moms did everything they could too…and in case you forgot I'm related to that horrible family too…It's just as much my fault"

"No it's not Ethan. If your mom never would have found out that I was Ian's son she wouldn't have had to do what she did"

"No matter what D, she didn't have to do it, but that's who she is"

"I know that. But if she never would have known the truth he might not have come after her five years ago and then Patrick wouldn't have tried to get revenge now"

"He still would have come because she had me, and in case you forgot I'm his son too. He would have still tried to take me away"

"Maybe"

"Are you saying I'm not as important as you" Ethan practically shouted

Henry began to get nervous as he listened to his brothers argue and begin to yell at one another. They barely ever did that and if they did it was because one of them did something really bad. He and Ethan would fight like that sometimes, but mostly it was out of fun but neither of his older brothers got angry very often.

The seven year old felt the tears brimming in his eyes but couldn't bring himself to say anything. He didn't have to wait very long, though, because Hotch and Rossi came flying into the room a few moments later.

"What is going on in here" Hotch practically shouted over Ethan and Declan

Both boys stopped talking but continued to glare at each other. The team leader looked from one to the other and could see the pain on both boy's faces from their exertion.

"I think that's enough visiting for today" he said as he grabbed the back of Declan's wheelchair and spun the chair around to face the doorway

Hotch looked over at Ethan expecting him to say goodbye or see ya later to his older brother, but he got nothing. The team leader raised his eyebrow as he looked at Rossi, who just shrugged his shoulders. The dark haired agent then continued to push Declan out the door and back down to his own room.

Rossi walked up to the bed and could still see the fear in Henry's light brown eyes, "Hey little man, why don't you come with me? I'll take you back to Garcia and she will take you home for awhile"

"I don't want to go home" he told the older man

"I know sport, but everyone here is about to take a nap, okay"

"Can I see Uncle Derek and Uncle Spence first?" he asked hopefully as he began to sniffle

Rossi smiled at the blonde little boy and nodded, "Okay let's go see if we can find them"

The older man held his arms out and Henry did the same. Rossi picked him up off of the bed and carefully set him down on the floor, keeping one of the little hands in his own larger one. Then he turned to Ethan who was breathing heavily, obviously trying to control his pain. But he could also see the sadness in the dark eyes of the little boy he loved so much.

"Do you need some more pain medication?" Rossi asked the eleven year old

Ethan just shook his head but didn't answer.

"Well I'm going to stop at the nurses' station on the way out anyways. And then I will be back in a little bit so that we can talk" he told the brunette

This time Ethan looked at the older man, but all Rossi could see was hurt and anger, "I don't want to talk"

"Kid, there are a lot of things we don't always want, but sometimes need" he replied before turning to walk out of the room

"I want to see my mom's" Ethan said as Rossi was walking away

The older man turned slightly still holding onto Henry's hand, "You and I are going to talk first. Then we will see about getting you in to see your mothers"

"Please Uncle Dave…I want to…I have to see them…Everyone else has got to…I have to see for myself…Please" he begged as a tear slid down his cheek

Rossi sighed and felt his own emotions getting the best of him. He wasn't used to seeing this family so broken, especially Ethan, who was usually so fun and carefree. The fact that he wasn't joking anymore about calling him grandpa and that he had just begged to see his mother's was evidence enough that Rossi needed to talk to him and take him to see Emily and JJ.

"Okay" Rossi replied, his voice cracking as he tried to maintain composure

As Rossi turned to lead Henry out of the room, he stopped, dropped the seven year old's hand, and turned, walking back over to Ethan. The brunette startled at first because the older man came towards him so quickly. Ethan's flinch did not go unnoticed by Rossi, either, and that just broke the man's heart even more. When he got to Ethan's bed he grabbed the eleven year old's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. Then he leaned over and said,

"No matter what Ethan Prentiss I love you" before placing a kiss on the uninjured side of the brunette's head

Then he let go of the boys hand and turned, heading back to the doorway, taking Henry's hand in his once again, and walking out of the room. As soon as he left the room Ethan turned his head away from the door and let a few more tears run down his face.

Meanwhile Hotch helped Declan get back in bed and tried to get the teenager to open up and tell him what was going on, but the blonde just ignored the older man. The team leader sighed as he stared at the stubborn teenager. Declan then turned his blue eyes to Hotch's brown.

"Can you see if I can have more pain meds? My shoulder is really hurting"

"Sure" replied Hotch as he turned to head out to the nurses station

He found Rossi standing there already talking to one of the nurses, he assumed for the same reason.

"Ethan need some meds?" he asked as he stepped up to the station area

Rossi turned towards Hotch's voice and nodded.

Hotch nodded in return, "Declan too"

"Mmm" Rossi mused

Wanting to change the subject the older man turned back towards Hotch.

"I'm going to take Henry to see Morgan and Reid for a bit. Then I'm going to come back and talk to Ethan…if he's not passed out"

The team leader nodded, "I'm pretty sure both of them will be out in about half an hour"

"Probably. But I can wait" the older man said

Hotch nodded, "Okay well, Henry, I'll come and get you in a bit. Maybe me, you, and Jack can go out for dinner"

The seven year old looked up at the dark haired man and shrugged slowly, "I'm not hungry"

The leader looked down at the blonde, "I know buddy, not right now, in a little bit, okay"

Henry just nodded before Rossi turned him and led him out of the pediatric ICU in search of Morgan, Reid, and Garcia.

When the older man got to Morgan and Reid's joint room he smiled to himself as he heard the two arguing about something. He pushed open the door and saw Morgan sitting up in bed, a snack tray in front of him. Reid was still laying down, though the head of his bed was tilted at about a forty five degree angle.

"Uncle Derek! Uncle Spence!" Henry shouted as he entered the room with Rossi

"Hey little man" Morgan said with a smile as he saw the little blonde boy enter the room with Rossi

Reid turned towards the small blonde as well and also planted a smile on his face, "Hey Henry"

Henry ran around Reid's bed so that he could stand between the two.

"Careful Henry they are both hurt" Rossi told the seven year old in a gentle tone

The little boy stopped suddenly as he looked from Reid to Morgan.

"Everyone's hurt" the little blonde stated sadly, as tears welled up in his eyes again

"Hey, Henry, we are going to be okay" Morgan said, looking at the little boy

"Yeah we are going to be fine" Reid reiterated

When Henry still didn't say anything Morgan leaned forward on his bed.

"Come 'ere little man" he said motioning with his uninjured right arm

Henry hesitated before moving towards the dark agent's bed. He placed both of his hands palm down on the bed next to Morgan's waist before looking at the dark man again. Morgan nodded so Henry carefully jumped as he wiggled his way onto the bed with a little help from dark agent.

Morgan looked at Henry who sat next to his thighs, cross legged. He noticed the bandages around his wrists and his heart broke a little bit.

"How are your wrists feeling H?" the dark skinned man asked

Henry looked up into dark eyes and shrugged, "It hurts a little, especially when I move them too much"

"Sorry little man"

"It's okay. Everyone else is hurt more bad than me" he stated

Everyone in the room was silent for a moment before Morgan spoke up again. He looked at Henry's outfit and smiled.

"Well you sure look handsome today little man. I can guess that Aunt Penelope did not pick out your clothes" he told the boy with a smile

"Nope. I did" he replied sadly as he looked down at his shorts

"Hey, why the sad face. I like your outfit" the dark skinned man said sincerely

"Mama Em picked it out" Henry said before adding, "And mommy picked out my shoes"

Everyone sucked in a breath as the seven year old mentioned his mothers. Morgan swallowed the lump in his throat, willing himself to control his emotions.

"H look at me" he told the little blonde boy

Slowly Henry's eyes moved up as he looked into dark brown ones.

"Your moms are two of the strongest women I know…two of the strongest people I know. I believe that they are going to be alright. What do you think?"

Henry just shrugged his shoulders.

"Well I think you should pray for them…and I think they would want you to still smile and have fun. They wouldn't want you to be sad all the time"

"But I am sad" the seven year old stated matter of factly

Morgan's face showed the concern and hurt for the little boy, because he was sad also.

"Come here" he said opening his good arm for the boy

Henry's eyes grew wide, "I don't want to hurt you"

Morgan shook his head, "You won't. Just don't lean on this side of my shoulder" he said motioning to his left side

Hesitantly Henry got to his knees and scooted closer to the dark skinned man. When he got close enough Morgan wrapped his right arm around the little boy and pulled him towards his chest. Henry carefully wrapped his arms around the man's neck, careful to not squeeze to tight. The seven year old loved how safe he felt in all of these people's arms, but it still didn't compare to the hugs from his mothers.

"It's gonna be alright, H. Why don't you go home and get some rest, because I know you're probably tired"

As Henry pulled out of the embrace ready to object Morgan beat him to it, "You can always come back later, but for now, you need to rest. Besides me and Reid here are about to take a nap anyways"

The little boy sighed but nodded his head, "Okay"

"That's my man" Morgan told him proudly

The dark skinned man then leaned forward just enough so that he could brush some of the soft blonde hair away from the boy's forehead before placing a kiss there.

"I love you little man" he told the seven year old sincerely

"Love you too Uncle Derek"

Reid had been paying close attention to the entire exchange when he finally spoke up.

"Hey do I not get any love over here?" he questioned

Henry smiled as he slid off of Morgan's bed and walked the couple of feet to Reid's bed. He placed his hands on the mattress and could feel the pain in his wrists. He pulled his hands back quickly. Rossi noticed so he made his away around the bed and picked the boy up. He held him close to Reid so that the seven year old could lean forward and place a kiss on the young agent's cheek.

"I love you Uncle Spence" he told the young genius

Reid smiled as he told his godson, "I love you too Henry"

Rossi then placed the seven year old back on the ground. The older man said his goodbyes to the two agents so that they could get some rest before heading out of the room with Henry.

Later that day Rossi finally convinced a nurse to help Ethan into a wheelchair so he could take the young boy down to see his mothers. Once the brunette was situated in the wheelchair Rossi pushed him out of ICU and down the hall to the elevators. They got off and made their way through another set of ICU doors. When they were just inside, Rossi stopped the wheelchair and walked around to stand in front of Ethan.

Kneeling down in front of the young Prentiss boy the older man looked intently at Ethan, "Are you sure you're up for this kid?"

"Yes Uncle Dave. I want to see them. I have too" he answered

Rossi nodded before standing up and pushing Ethan's chair down the hall to Emily's room. He wheeled the eleven year old up next to her bed before stopping. Then he stepped closer to the bed to lean down and place a kiss to the brunette woman's forehead.

"Morning beautiful" he said as he stood back up, "I brought someone to visit you"

Rossi turned to look at Ethan who appeared to have an almost shell shock look on his face.

"Ethan? Are you okay?" the older man asked

The eleven year was silent for a moment before he finally responded, "What? Yeah…just"

"I know" Rossi said with a nod as he placed a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder

Ethan leaned forward, reaching out his right hand when he hissed out in pain. The movement sent a sharp pain up the left side of his rib cage from where his ribs were bruised and his surgical sight was.

"Ethan" Rossi said in a nervous tone as he reached quickly for the brunette boy

"It's…okay" he told the older man as he finally caught his breath, "I just…forgot about my…ribs for a sec…and my stitches"

Rossi nodded as he squeezed the boy's shoulder again, forgetting for a moment that he had to have surgery to repair his spleen.

"Could you help me sit on the bed?"

Rossi sent a look to Ethan that said no, but the boy pressed further, "Please…I want to give her a kiss, and hold her hand…Please?"

Rossi stared into the sad brown eyes of the eleven year old and he couldn't bring himself to tell the kid no.

"Oh for heavens sake" the older man said, which earned him a slight smile from the young boy

Rossi looked around quickly to make sure no nurses were around before he hooked an arm carefully under Ethan's armpits and then looping his other arm under the boy's knees and lifting him gently up out of the wheelchair. He took a step forward before turning and setting Ethan gently onto Emily's bed so that he could sit with his legs dangling off.

Ethan sat rim rod straight for a moment as his ribs yelled at him for the position they were put in. He made a mental note not to swing his legs and to sit as still as possible to avoid the most pain. He then reached his right hand forward enough to take his mother's right hand in his.

"Hi Mama" he said as he began talking to her

Rossi wanted to give the two some time alone but he didn't want to risk the chance of leaving Ethan alone in his condition. The older man tried to ignore what Ethan was saying, but eventually gave in as he listened to the eleven year old talk to his mother, begging her to be okay and to wake up. Rossi let a stray tear run down his cheek as he continued to listen until Ethan finally called Rossi over.

"I think I'm finished. I mean I don't want to leave but I want to go see Mama J and I'm getting kinda tired" he told the older man

"Okay" Rossi replied as he moved to scoop Ethan up

As he did Ethan pulled away, "Wait…will you help me get closer?"

Rossi looked at the eleven year old with a questioning look, so Ethan said, "I want to give her a kiss"

"Ah..okay" the older man responded as he scooped Ethan up and turned so that the boy could lean down slightly.

The eleven year old leaned forward enough and placed a gentle kiss on his mother's cheek before saying, "I love you mom"

Rossi put Ethan back in the wheelchair and wheeled him just down the hall to JJ's room. Rossi ended up moving the boy again so that he could actually see and touch JJ. Once again Rossi listened as Ethan spoke to his blonde mother, keeping his hand tightly grasped to JJ's. When he was finished Rossi picked him up and moved him so that the brunette boy could place a kiss on JJ's cheek.

"I love you mom" he told her before the older man turned away from the bed

Rossi then placed Ethan gently back in the wheelchair before taking him back to his room and having a nurse help him back into bed. He was given some more pain medication before he slipped back into sleep. A little while later a nurse came in to check on Ethan's stitches. Rossi glanced over her shoulder as she moved his hospital gown enough to examine his surgical sight. The older man sighed as he saw about a three inch line of stitches, at a slight angle, that started just below his pec area and went down across the top part of his rib cage area. The nurse finished cleaning the area before leaving the room once again.

Over the next two days all of the agents, minus Reid who wasn't allowed to leave his bed, would rotate sitting with the two women. Emily still hadn't woken up and the doctors were giving JJ the extra couple of days before they brought her out of the medically induced coma.

All of the BAU family had now been able to go home, shower, change, and even sleep for awhile before coming back up and taking their turns keeping watch. Henry still had nightmares every now and then and still moped around, not acting like himself, but otherwise he seemed to be doing okay. Declan and Ethan had both been moved to a regular room on the pediatric floor, which gave Jack and Henry the chance to visit with them longer. However Declan and Ethan still wouldn't speak to each other unless absolutely necessary and neither of the boys would talk to anyone about what happened between them. Even Henry, who was there when his two older brothers got into the fight, wouldn't say what had happened, partly because he didn't understand it all. What he did know was that they were really upset with each other.

Reid was able to sit up in bed more and the doctors said his injuries, especially his lungs, were looking really good. And if everything remained that way that he could possibly be released the next week.

Morgan was being released sometime today, with strict orders to not overly exert himself. They recommended him having someone in his house with him which the dark skinned agent began to argue about. But before he could get very far Rossi spoke up.

"Don't worry doctor, he will be staying with me until he is better"

Morgan looked at the older man in shock, "Rossi I am perfectly capable of-"

"Save it kid. Until you are able to use that arm you are going to be staying with me. Got it" he told Morgan in an authoritative voice

"But I-"

Rossi glared at the younger man, who finally sighed and gave up arguing, mainly because he didn't have all the strength needed to continue an argument and because he was pretty sure with everything that had happened he wasn't going to win the argument anyway.

Once they got Morgan's paperwork all filled out and he was officially discharged Rossi was going to go ahead and take him back to his house. However, Hotch came and found them, telling the other two men that the doctors were going to try to bring JJ out of the coma. So the two men followed Hotch to the waiting room where they were told the doctors would come update them as soon as they knew how she was doing.

Morgan had refused the wheelchair when he realized he was going to be staying in the hospital a while longer to wait on news about his friend. The nurse wasn't happy but she couldn't force him to use it.

When the three men entered the waiting room they found Garcia and Kevin already seated in chairs, waiting impatiently. There were also a few other people meandering around the waiting room as well. Morgan took a seat next to Garcia, while Hotch and Rossi remained standing so that they could pace the room.

Jessica was at the Jareau-Prentiss house with Jack, Henry, and Penny so that the kids could all rest, while the adults took care of things at the hospital.

As they sat around the waiting room everyone was thinking about what a long week it had been. It had now been eleven days since Morgan was shot, and Emily, JJ, and the kids were kidnapped. It had been exactly seven days since the Jareau-Prentiss family had been admitted to the hospital and although no one would say it, everyone was thinking about how Emily should have woken up days ago, but was still unconscious.

About an hour later JJ's doctor came into the waiting room and motioned for the adults to follow him into the hallway away from the other families that were awaiting news on their loved ones. Everyone crowded together as the doctor prepared to tell them the status of their blonde friend.

"We've taken her off all of the sedatives that she has been on. We've been slowly weaning her off for the past few days, but she is now off of all of them. However, the chances of her waking up today are very small, so there really is no need for all of you to wait around all day. It's going to take awhile for her body to adjust to not being on any of the sedatives so she might not wake up until tomorrow" he informed the adults who were all huddled together

"But there's still a possibility" Hotch questioned, watching the behavior of the doctor

"There's always a possibility, Agent" he responded

"But she seems to be doing alright?" Garcia asked as she stared at the doctor

"Yes" he said with a nod "Her vitals are strong and she has been responding well to the decrease in medication over the last few days. Hopefully when she wakes up she will be doing well enough to be transferred to a regular room"

"We can go see her now?" this time it was Rossi who asked the question

The doctor again nodded, "Yes, but still only two at a time"

The group nodded in understanding before Hotch extended his hand to the doctor, "Thank you doctor"

The young man nodded as he shook Hotch's hand before he turned and walked back down the hallway away from the group of agents.

Hotch stepped forward, turning to face the group, "Well?"

Rossi turned looking at the people around him, "How about if Morgan and I sit with her first. Then I will take him home and get him settled"

"Rossi I'm a grown man I don't need you to get me 'settled'" the dark man stated, slightly agitated

The older man raised an eyebrow at the younger agent, which elicited another comment from Morgan, "And it's not my home, it's your house"

Rossi gave a slight nod, "True. But it will be your house too for the next few weeks"

Morgan sighed but only said, "Let's just go see JJ" as he began to walk away from the group.

The agents watched the darker man pause for a moment, most likely attempting to block out a stab of pain that he encountered while trying to walk away from them too fast.

"He's so damn stubborn" Rossi stated with a shake of his head

"Oh please. Almost all of you are stubborn" Garcia huffed out

Hotch let out a slight smile at the truth of the blonde's statement. Then he watched Rossi follow Morgan down the hallway.

"Okay I think I'm going to spend some time with Jack and the other two kids. What do you two say? Want to join me?" the leader asked as he looked from Kevin to Garcia

"You don't have to ask me twice" Garcia answered as she took a step forward and looped her arm through Hotch's before jerking him back towards Kevin so she could loop her other arm through his, before leading the two men to the hospital exit.

A couple of hours later, after Rossi had taken Morgan to his house to get him settled in, Garcia and Hotch were both sitting with JJ. As Hotch shifted in his chair he caught movement out of the corner of his eye that came from the bed. He quickly turned his eyesight directly to the bed to find JJ moving her head back and forth slowly just as a moan came from her mouth.

Garcia jumped out of her chair as she moved to stand next to the bed, leaning over her blonde friend. Hotch stood up and moved closer to the bed as well as he slipped his hand around JJ's squeezing it slightly.

"JJ" he said gently, "It's okay JJ, open your eyes"

"Come on gumdrop. You heard the boss man" Garcia added

The blonde slowly opened her eyes, her eyelids fluttering as her eyes attempted to adjust to the light in the room. Her blue eyes opened to meet those of Hotch's brown ones, before slowly turning towards Garcia's.

Hotch and Garcia both had huge smiles on their faces as they stared down at their friend.

"Oh Jayje I was so freakin scared" the bubbly blonde stated as she bent down and placed kiss on her friends cheek

JJ closed her eyes for a second before opening them, licking her lips, and swallowing. Then she looked at Garcia with tears in her eyes.

"Sorry" JJ squeaked out hoarsely

"Oh sweetie you have nothing to be sorry about. It's me who's sorry…for everything" the blonde analyst replied

JJ nodded slightly as she closed her eyes again. Then she opened them and turned towards Hotch, who was still gripping her hand, and staring down at her the worry evident on his face.

"You had us all worried" he told her

The tears began to build up in the blonde's eyes again before she questioned in a rough, hoarse voice, "Em?"

"She's just down the hall" Hotch told her

The blonde let out a sigh of relief as she closed her eyes and gave another slight nod. Then she opened her eyes, "The…boys?"

Hotch nodded, "Declan and Ethan are sharing a room on the pediatric floor. They are both pretty banged up, but the doctors say they should be okay. And Henry is at the house with Jack and Penny"

The blonde let out another sigh of relief as a couple of tears managed to escape and run down her cheeks.

"They are…all going to…be okay?" JJ asked again

Hotch gave a slight nod, "Declan was shot in the shoulder-"

"Protecting…Emily" JJ said cutting into the conversation

"Water" she requested as she tried to sit up, but immediately regretting her actions

"Easy gumdrop. You were shot also" Garcia said as she tried to calm her friend while Hotch poured a glass of water

Hotch then tilted her bed up enough that she could drink the water without spilling it all over herself. Once JJ finished the glass of water she took another deep breath before turning back to Hotch.

"How bad is his shoulder?" she asked, her voice clearing up tremendously

"They had to surgically remove the bullet and he has a long recovery ahead of him, but the doctors are optimistic" he told her

JJ nodded sadly before Hotch spoke up again, "You said he was shot protecting Emily?"

JJ nodded again, "Chloe was going to shoot her…Emily was trying to protect me and in turn she got shot in the arm…Then…Chloe aimed the gun right at…right at Emily's chest…if…if Declan hadn't jumped in front of the gun…she'd…Emily would…she would have been killed"

Garcia sat down on the bed next to her friend, wrapping her arm around the small blonde's shoulders as JJ let a few more tears escape. JJ finally looked back over at her boss who had a sad look on his face.

"How's Ethan and Henry?" she asked wanting to know all that she could

"Henry's fine physically. He has some bruises and cuts around his wrists and ankles from the duct tape, but other than that and the tazer marks he's okay"

"He was tazered too?" JJ asked with an almost horrified look

The team leader merely nodded, "I guess you know then that the other two were tazered?"

The blonde nodded slowly, "They tazered Ethan and Declan right in front of us. We couldn't do anything"

"Well he's going to be just fine. Probably much better now that he will get to see that you are awake and okay"

"Ethan?" JJ questioned

"He's got a nasty head injury, but he has been doing well since he woke up. His looks worse than it is because they still have his entire head bandaged up, but the doctors said they should be removing that and just placing some bandages across the actual wound"

"He was bleeding pretty badly the last time I saw him…How many stitches?" she asked

"Eighteen staples on his head" Hotch answered "And about 12 stitches across his ribs"

JJ flinched slightly at his answer, "Wait. His ribs?"

Hotch nodded, "He had to have his spleen surgically repaired but he is doing well and the doctors assured me that he will be just fine and that it should heal nicely"

JJ just shook her head letting the silence encompass the room for a few minutes.

"How's Emily…medically?" the blonde finally asked

Garcia slowly removed her arm from her friends shoulders so that she could reach down and take one of JJ's hands in her own. JJ looked from Garcia to Hotch when neither of them spoke up.

"How is she?" JJ asked again, this time more forcefully

"She still hasn't woken up"

JJ's eyes grew wide, "How long has it been since you guys found us?"

"A week"

"A whole week?" she asked wanting clarification

Hotch nodded, "You and Emily were the only two who hadn't woken up yet. But you were in a medical coma and they didn't pull you completely out of it until earlier today"

JJ had shock written all over her face as she stared at her boss, "Is Emily..is she in a coma too?"

Hotch shook his head, "The doctors said no, but-"

"But what Hotch?" JJ said, the anger evident in her voice

"They don't know why she hasn't woken up" he told the blonde as he looked at her, the worry evident on his strong features

"They had to hook her up to a ventilator a few days ago because she stopped breathing-"

"Oh my God" the blonde stated as she began breathing heavier, her heart rate increasing and causing the monitor to beep loudly

"JJ calm down…They think everything was caused because her body is fighting an infection" Hotch told her as he grabbed her other hand

A doctor and a nurse came rushing into the room at that time and pushed Garcia and Hotch out of the way to examine JJ. Once they explained what had happened, the doctor nodded, before checking the blonde over one more time just to be sure her vitals and everything was okay. The doctor then explained to the blonde about all of her injuries to make sure she understood what she was facing.

Once the doctor left, JJ was still tilted up in bed and she turned to look at Hotch again.

"What caused the infection?" she asked

"JJ"

"Damn it Hotch. Tell me or I am getting myself out of this bed. I will find a way to get to her room and find out for myself"

There was not a doubt in the team leaders mind that the blonde would do exactly that.

"Whatever she was stabbed in the hand with, was rusted they think, and her body has been trying to fight off an infection. They think that's why she stopped breathing. But she has been breathing on her own. They just still have her hooked up to the machine until she wakes up, just to be safe"

"A screwdriver" the blonde said quietly

"What?" Hotch questioned, not sure he heard her correctly

"Doyle stabbed her through the hand with a rusty screwdriver…to…to make sure she wouldn't move" JJ answered as she looked away from both of her friends

"Son of a bitch" stated Hotch as he tried to control his anger

"So they don't know why she hasn't woken up?" the blonde asked, changing the subject

Hotch shook his head, "No they don't"

"So she wasn't shot?" JJ asked after a moment of silence

"In the arm and the top of her shoulder"

"But not anywhere else?" the blonde asked again

Hotch's face narrowed in confusion as he shook his head, "No. Why?"

"Before I passed out…she was fighting Doyle…They rolled out of my sight and I heard…I heard a gunshot and then…nothing"

Hotch shook his head as he gripped her shoulder comfortingly, "No. She shot him"

JJ nodded as more tears slid down her face. They were a silent for a couple more minutes before the blonde agent turned to her boss.

"Is there any way I could see Declan and Ethan tonight?" she asked, nearly begged

"I'll see what I can do" he told her as he bent down and kissed her forehead before turning and walking out of the room

As soon as Hotch was out of sight Garcia threw her arms around her friend and pulled her in carefully for a hug. JJ clung to her best friend as she began to cry, letting more tears out.

"Gumdrop I don't think I have ever been so scared before and I am so glad you and the munchkins are going to be alright. Now all we need is our raven haired beauty to wake up and our family will be back to normal" she told the blonde as she kissed her on the cheek

"I love you so much Jennifer Jareau. Do you know that?" she said as she pulled away from the blonde slightly

JJ nodded as she wiped away some of the tears, "I know…I love you too Garcia"

About twenty minutes later Hotch came back into the room, pushing Ethan in wheelchair. The young brunette's face immediately lit up when he saw his blonde mother sitting up in bed, her blue eyes looking back at him.

"MOM" he said excitedly a smile across his face

"Hey baby" JJ said, smiling back at him

Her smile began to fade when she realized he was in a wheelchair. She looked up at Hotch and was about to say something, but he noticed and cut her off.

"It's hospital protocol for him to be in a wheelchair, especially with his head injury" he told her

JJ nodded as she bit her bottom lip as she stared at her brunette son who still had a bandage wrapped all the way around his head. As Hotch wheeled him up next to the bed, she began to notice the bruising on his face and arms from someone grabbing him and her heart broke.

Before Hotch could stop the young boy he had already pushed himself out of the chair and tried to climb up on the bed. However, the brunette immediately felt a burning pain in his ribs as he moved too quickly. He grabbed his ribs in pain and his knees almost hit the ground, but Hotch caught him before he did, scooping him up into his arms.

"Oh my God. What happened? What's wrong?" JJ asked as she leaned forward, her ribs screaming in pain as well as she did

Ethan was still trying to catch his breath, his eyes shut tight as he fought off the pain he was feeling.

"It's okay JJ. He has some bruised and fractured ribs. He just forgot and moved to fast" the team leader told her as held Ethan like a baby in his arms

"He has fractured ribs?" she asked sadly

"Just one. The others are bruised" Hotch answered

Ethan finally opened his eyes to find Hotch staring directly down at him, "You okay?"

The boy nodded slowly, "I think so"

"Maybe next time wait for someone to help you" he told the youngster in a loving, yet fatherly, tone

Ethan nodded before asking, "Can I sit with mom? Please?"

Hotch looked from Ethan to JJ, "I don't think I really have a choice in this matter"

The team leader took a step closer to the bed and carefully turned Ethan to sit him on the bed next to JJ. Hotch and Garcia watched as Ethan and JJ both ignored the pain in their ribs and leaned towards each other. JJ wrapped her arms around the eleven year old and pulled him gently towards her. He reciprocated as he wrapped his arms around her waist carefully. He buried his head in the crook of her neck, inhaling her scent and immediately feeling safer than he had in days.

"I love you so much Ethan" she told him, her voice cracking

"I love you too mommy" he replied, his voice slightly muffled by his face still being buried in her neck

Hotch was fighting back the tears while Garcia let a few escape freely down her cheeks.

As the mother and son pulled apart JJ reached up touching the bandage around Ethan's head carefully, "How's your head?"

"It's okay" he answered

JJ smiled slightly, "Why do I feel like you are just saying that to make me feel better"

Ethan shrugged his shoulders before asking, "Can I lay with you for awhile?"

JJ smiled at him and nodded, "Of course"

Hotch moved forward again as he helped shift Ethan so that he was leaning against the head of the bed just like JJ. The dark haired agent smiled as he saw Ethan shift closer to JJ, leaning his head into her shoulder. He and Garcia watched as JJ lifted her arm and wrapped it around the young brunette's shoulders pulling him closer and allowing him to turn his head to rest on her chest. She placed a soft kiss to the top of his head before letting her eyes close for a moment.

"We are going to give you guys a few minutes" Hotch said as he motioned towards Garcia, "And I'll bring Declan with me when I come back"

JJ opened her eyes and nodded at her boss before closing them again as she held onto Ethan.

About fifteen minutes later Hotch returned, and as he said, he brought Declan, pushing him through the door to JJ's room.

Ethan had fallen asleep against his blonde mother, but JJ was still awake and smiled brightly at her teenage son. As soon as Declan saw her his eyes lit up as well.

"Mom" he said with a smile

"Declan" she said returning the enthusiasm

Hotch wheeled the teenager to the other side of the bed, before locking the brakes. Declan then stood up out of the wheelchair and took a final step towards the bed. He bent over as she leaned forward slightly, he wrapping his left around her neck as she wrapped her right arm around his waist.

"I love you mom" he told her sincerely

"I love you too Dec" she replied

As they pulled apart he turned to sit carefully on the bed next to her before leaning forward and kissing her on the cheek and allowing her to do the same. Then JJ reach out with her right hand and brushed some of his wavy hair away from his forehead.

"I'm so sorry Declan…You're shoulder…I-"

The teenager cut her off before she could continue, "It's not your fault. And I would do again in a heartbeat…I'm the one who's sorry"

JJ watched as Declan dropped his eyes slightly to look at the bed. The blonde agent immediately moved her hand to his chin, lifting his head so that blue eyes met blue.

"You listen to me Declan Prentiss" she told him in a serious tone, "NONE of this is your fault. Do you hear me?"

The teenager bit his lower lip as he looked into his mother's blue eyes as he fought back the tears that wanted to fall, but he slowly nodded in understanding.

Hotch left Declan and JJ alone for awhile so that they could spend some time together. He made his way out to where he could call Rossi and Morgan to let them know that JJ was awake. Then he called Jessica and filled her in. They both agreed that she should bring Henry up to see JJ, thinking it would settle his nerves quite a bit.

When the dark haired man made it back JJ's room he noticed the exhaustion across Declan's face. He looked at JJ who nodded her head.

"Declan" Hotch said as he walked up beside the teenager

The blonde looked up at Hotch and nodded, "I know. I need to go back to my room and rest"

The team leader nodded, "Don't worry I will bring you back first thing in the morning"

The teenager nodded before turning back to his blonde mother, "I'm really glad you're okay"

The sincerity in the sixteen year old's voice brought the blonde woman to tears. She fought back her emotions as her eyes filled up with.

"And I'm glad you are okay Declan Prentiss. I. Love. You" she told him

He nodded, "I know. I love you too"

Hotch then took control of the wheelchair as he pushed the teenager back to his room.

While JJ waited for her boss to return she turned her attention to the eleven year old brunette lying next to her. She reached up and brushed her knuckles down his cheek relishing in the fact that he and the other boys were going to be okay. How they lucked out in surviving she would never understand. But she would always be thankful. She leaned over enough to press a kiss to Ethan's cheekbone. He began to stir and slowly opened his eyes.

"Sorry E, I didn't mean to wake you up" she told him

"It's okay" he replied with a yawn

She smiled down at the kind hearted boy and stared at him with a certain intensity. Ethan noticed and he cocked his head to the side slightly.

"Mom?" he questioned

"I just love you so much Ethan. You know that, right?"

He stared back with just as much intensity, before nodding his head, "I know. I love you too"

JJ nodded as her lips formed a thin line as she struggled to hold the tears at bay. She bent over slightly to press another kiss to the tip of his nose.

"It's okay if you want to cry mama J. I'm still scared mom isn't going to wake up." He confessed

JJ sighed as she pulled him tighter against her, as gently as she could, "Oh baby, your mom is the strongest woman I have ever known. She isn't going to give up without a fight."

Ethan didn't answer for fear that he would begin to cry as well. Instead he simply nodded his head.

"And the tears that I'm attempting to hold back are actually tears of joy, because I am so happy that all of you boys are going to be okay. I don't know what I would do if I lost any of you"

Ethan didn't say anything; he merely snuggled closer to his blonde mother, wanting to be as physically close to her as he could.

A few minutes later Hotch came back through the door and couldn't help but smile at the sight before him. Ethan was completely snuggled into JJ and she was holding onto him as if she might never be able to hold him again. He could see the tears running down the blonde woman's face and he fought hard to control his own emotions. JJ finally noticed him and cleared her throat.

"Hey Hotch"

"Hey guys" he said walking up to the bed, "I thought I would come take Ethan back to his room for awhile so that he can rest"

"I don't wanna go" the eleven year old stated as he clung tightly to JJ

"It's okay E, I promise you can come back. But you need to go rest in your own bed for awhile" JJ told him

"No" he replied

Hotch and JJ looked at each other, knowing Ethan didn't normally act like this.

"Hey buddy" Hotch began, "Jessica is bringing Henry and Penny up here so that they can see JJ, but the nurses aren't going to let that many people in here with you and I still here. So what do you say you go rest for awhile in your room and later if you want to come to see JJ I'll bring you back"

Ethan thought for a moment before answering, "You promise?"

"Promise" Hotch told him

Ethan nodded before leaning up slightly to press a kiss to JJ's cheek, "I'll be back mom"

"I look forward to it E" she replied

He smiled slightly as Hotch helped him back into his wheelchair before taking him back to the room he was sharing with Declan.

Garcia was sitting with Emily, while Hotch waited outside the ICU for Jessica and the kids. About half an hour later she showed up with Henry, Jack, and Penny. He saw them coming down the hall and both Henry and Jack were smiling.

"Mommy woke up?" Henry asked as he ran up to Hotch

The dark haired man nodded his head as he squatted down to the seven year old's level, "Yes but she's still pretty sore so you are going to have to be careful around her"

Henry nodded in understanding. Hotch then stood back up and reached out for the blonde toddler. Jessica handed her over to her brother in law smiling as he kissed Penny on the cheek causing her to giggle.

"Mama" she said as she stared at Hotch

"Yes sweetie, we are going to see your mama" he told her smiling as she clapped her hands together

Then he turned and looked at his own son, "Jack I'm going to take these two back first. Then if JJ is still up for it, I'll let you and your aunt go back there for a little bit, okay?"

Jack frowned slightly but nodded in understanding.

Hotch noticed his son's change in demeanor, shifting Penny to his right arm, he reached his left arm out and lifted Jack's chin with his left hand.

"Hey JJ loves you and I can pretty much guarantee that when she finds out you're here too she will definitely want to see you"

"Really?" the ten year old questioned

Hotch nodded, "Definitely"

Jack smiled widely before nodding his head, "Okay"

Hotch patted his ten year old son on the head before turning and heading towards the ICU doors. After going through them he reached down with his left hand and took hold of Henry's room as he led the seven year old to his mother's room.

As soon as Hotch got to the doorway Henry had dropped his hand, "MOM"

JJ's eyes darted to the doorway as she saw her seven year old smiling and running towards her and she smiled in return. She smiled even bigger as she took in his outfit. He was wearing almost knee length dark blue shorts with faint black/red/gray large plaid print across them, a red t-shirt with a gray shaka symbol on it and the word quicksilver written across it, along with his gray Velcro Vans shoes. As soon as Henry got to her bed he stopped and looked at his mom.

"Can I come up?"

"Yes baby boy" she told him as she watched him carefully climb up on her bed

He smiled as he looked at his mother.

"Are you going to get into these arms?" she asked with a smile

He smiled even wider as he threw himself forward as carefully as he could, leaning on his knees and wrapping his arms around her neck. JJ wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him close as she hugged him tightly. She let a few tears run down her cheeks as she continued to hug her son, kissing his head before reaching up with her hand and running her fingers through his silky blonde hair.

"I love you so much Henry" she told him as she rocked him gently without causing herself too much pain

"I love you too mommy" he told her as he squeezed her neck slightly tighter

When they finally pulled apart JJ stared into her son's light brown eyes, smiling again.

"Are you okay baby?" she asked as she ran a hand through his hair again

He nodded, "I just miss you. I want you to come home"

"Oh baby, I want to come home too, but I think it might be a couple more days before that happens"

The seven year old sighed before looking back up at his mother's bruised face, "Are you gonna be okay?"

JJ's face softened at her son's concern as she nodded and forced a closed lip smile, "Yeah sport, I'm gonna be okay"

"Good" he nodded as he continued to sit on his knees

JJ took that moment to look over at Hotch who was still holding Penny. The toddler noticed her mother and immediately reached her arms out towards JJ.

"Mama" she said excitedly

"Hi baby girl" JJ replied as she reached her arms out for her daughter

Hotch walked up to the bed and carefully set Penny on JJ's lap. He watched as the toddler leaned forward into JJ's chest. The blonde woman let a few more tears slide down her cheek as she wrapped her arms around her daughter, cuddling her close to her and kissing the top of her blonde head. The team leader smiled when Penny looked up at her mother and JJ requested a kiss. The toddler puckered her lips and JJ kissed them before hugging her tight to her chest again. Then she reached over with one hand and pulled Henry down next to her. The seven year old complied as he lay next to his mother, while his sister sat on her lap.

Hotch stepped out of the room to give the family some privacy for a few minutes. While he was out in the hall JJ looked down at her son lying next to her.

"I like your outfit H" she told him

He looked up at her with a sad smile, "You and mama Em picked it out for me…I weared the other outfit too"

JJ held onto Penny with one hand as she stroked her other hand through her son's hair, "Baby what's wrong?"

He was silent for a minute as he chewed on the inside of his mouth. Then without looking up at his mother he said, "I'm scared"

"What are you scared of?" JJ asked as she looked intently at her seven year old

"Is mama gonna die?" he asked still not looking at his mother

JJ closed her eyes trying to keep composure. Then she kissed her son's forehead.

"Henry look at me" she told him gently

Slowly the blonde boy lifted his head so that light brown eyes met blue.

"It's okay if you want to cry, you know that right?" she asked the little boy

He nodded as he continued to look at his mother.

"Okay. Well I can't tell you what's going to happen to Mama Em. What I do know is that she's very strong and she won't give up without a fight"

The seven year old immediately started crying, "She got hurted coz of me…She was fighting trying to save me"

JJ was at a loss as her son began to cry and talk about what had happened while they had been held captive. She looked over her son's head and saw Hotch turn to look through the window into the room. She waved to him to get him to come into the room. He immediately came into the room.

"What's wrong?" he asked concerned

"Will you take Penny for a minute" she asked as she motioned towards the toddler who was still sitting on her lap

Hotch nodded as he scooped up the blonde little girl who began to cry for her mama. JJ's heart broke as she listened to both of her children cry, but she knew at this time that Henry needed her more. Hotch began to bounce the toddler and reassure her that it was okay as he walked out of the room and down the hall. JJ assumed he was taking her out of the ICU so she didn't disturb any of the other patients.

JJ then turned all of her attention to her son as she pulled him close with both of her arms.

"Baby nothing that happened was your fault" she told him as she kissed the top of his head

"Uh huh" he said as he began to hiccup

"Henry why do you think it was your fault?" she asked him as she continued to hold him

"The bad man…hiccup…saids things…hiccup…to her about…me…hiccup…and he grabbed me…hiccup…real hard" the seven year old said as he sniffled, reaching up to wipe at his nose with the back of his hand

"He held a gun…hiccup…to my head…twoed times…hiccup…and Mama Em…fighted him" he told his mother as he sniffled some more

JJ couldn't control her own tears as she listened to her son recount some of the events that she did not witness and her heart broke. It broke for her son who had to go through what he did and it broke for Emily who she knew, without a doubt, would gladly of died for Henry in order to save him. She ran her fingers through her son's hair and kissed his head several times as she held him close.

"Oh baby…I love you so much" she told him as he continued to hiccup and sniffle, "But none of this is your fault. Emily was just doing what she would have done for any of us. That's part of who she is. She protects everyone she loves, no matter what"

"But she's hurted" he pointed out again

"I know she is sweetie, but that's not because of you. I promise. The only people who are to blame are the bad people" she told him as she kissed him again

He still wasn't completely convinced, but hearing his mom tell him it wasn't his fault made him feel a little better. They snuggled a while longer before Hotch and Garcia came back into the room.

"Hey sorry to interrupt but it's almost dinner time" he said as he walked closer to the bed, "And I have another little boy who was really hoping to see you for a minute"

JJ looked at Hotch questioningly before she smiled, "Jack?"

He nodded with a small smile, "But if you don't feel up to it-"

"Stop right there Hotch. Of course I want to see Jack. Send him in" she told her boss

"Hey buddy after I bring Jack in here what do you say I take you guys to get some pizza" the dark haired man asked

The little boy shrugged his shoulders. Garcia looked sadly at her godson.

"Hey Henry, what do you say we go wait with Penny while Jack comes in here to see your mom" Garcia suggested

The seven year old looked up at his mother, as if asking for permission. She nodded her head, kissing his forehead again.

"Go on baby. I'll see you tomorrow" she told him

He leaned up and kissed her on the lips, "I love you mommy"

"I love you too sweetie" she replied with a smile

Henry reluctantly got off the bed, taking his godmothers hand and walking with her and Hotch out of the ICU. In the hall Garcia took Penny from Jessica so that she and Jack could go in and see JJ.

As Hotch, Jessica, and Jack walked into JJ's room, Jack's face immediately lit up.

"Aunt Jen" he said enthusiastically

"Hey champ" she responded with a smile as she saw the ten year old

He climbed carefully up on the bed beside her and sat dangling his feet off the side shyly.

"Can I get a hug?" she asked as she stared at the caramel haired boy

"I don't want to hurt you" he told her nervously

"Don't worry. A hug will only make me feel better" she assured him

He smiled as he leaned towards her allowing her arms to wrap around him lovingly as his arms circled her waist carefully. He sighed when she kissed the top of his head in a motherly way as he continued to lay his head on her chest. Hotch also smiled at the sight before him, thankful that JJ and Emily both treated Jack like one of their own.

They pulled away after a minute and he looked seriously into blue eyes before saying, "I'm glad you're okay Aunt JJ"

She smiled lovingly at the boy, "Thanks Jack…I love you"

He smiled, "I love you too"

He leaned forward and kissed her gently on the cheek and in return she reached up and ruffled his short hair, causing him to giggle.

"I'm glad you're okay too JJ" Jessica told the other blonde woman

"Thank you" JJ replied, "And thank you for helping out…taking care of Penny and-"

Jessica held up a hand to silence the agent, "Please. It's no problem. You all have been so good to Jack…and me…over the years. There's no way I wouldn't help out"

JJ smiled and nodded at the woman.

"Okay, well we need to let JJ rest for now so that she can get better faster" Hotch said, mainly speaking to his son

"I'll see you tomorrow" JJ said questioningly to Jack

"Duh" he answered with a smile

She rolled her eyes at the ten year old before leaning forward and placing one last kiss on his forehead. Then she watched as he slid off of the bed and followed his aunt out of the room. Hotch watched them before turning back to JJ and walking up to her.

"I'll be back after I go have dinner with them" he told the blonde woman

"Hotch I'll be fine" she told him slightly annoyed

"I'll be the judge of that" he told her

She rolled her eyes at her boss but was thankful that he was as protective as he was.

"Get some rest" he told her before bending over and kissing the top of her head

She nodded as she lay back against her bed, watching him head down the hallway. Then she closed her eyes and prayed that Emily would wake up soon and that she would be okay.

JJ felt as though she barely had her eyes closed for a few minutes when she felt someone touch her forehead. Her eyes flew open and she found herself looking up into the eyes of David Rossi. She sighed as she tried to gain control of her breathing.

"Hey kid" he said with a smile

She returned the smile as she stared up at the older man. It was then that she also felt someone holding her hand on her other side. She turned her head and saw Derek Morgan staring at her, the sadness evident across his face.

"Derek" she said quietly before clearing her voice

"Hey blondie" he said with a smile

JJ stared at her friend a little longer before she squeezed his hand back and smiled at him, "You're okay"

He tilted his head to the side as he looked at her intensely, "Yeah. A little gunshot isn't going to stop me"

She smiled, before frowning and shaking her head slightly, "They told us you were dead"

"Well they were wrong…although apparently I came pretty close" he confessed

"Reid?" she asked turning her head back towards Rossi, who was still standing on the other side of her bed

"He's going to be okay. He and Morgan have been sharing a room" the older man told the blonde woman

She raised an eyebrow as she turned her attention back to Morgan, "Really?"

The dark agent let out a small laugh, the first laugh in over a week, as he smiled at his friend.

"True story" he told her

"I feel horrible…I didn't even ask about you guys earlier" JJ confessed, a tear slipping down her cheek

"Hey" Morgan said as he reached up and brushed the tear away, "You had a lot on your mind. I don't fault you for that. Your family is the most important thing"

JJ looked directly into Morgan's dark eyes, "You are family Morgan"

"Thanks blondie, but that's not quite what I meant" he replied with a small smile

"I know exactly what you meant. And I know what I meant. You are part of our family Derek…You, Rossi, Reid, Garcia, Hotch…all of you guys. You and the kids…you're all we have"

Morgan stood up from his chair and leaned forward placing a kiss on the blonde woman's forehead.

"Well I for one, could not ask for a better group of kids to call family" Rossi stated

"Oh really?" Morgan questioned

"Well most of the time" Rossi added with a smile, getting both Morgan and JJ to smile

"We won't stay too long sweetheart. We just heard you were awake and wanted to come see for ourselves" Rossi told the blonde

"Where were you guys?" she asked

Rossi smiled bigger this time but before he could answer Morgan replied quickly, "In hell"

JJ looked questioningly between the two men as Rossi glared in a slightly fun way at the dark agent.

"Watch it kid or you'll be out on the street"

"Really?" Morgan asked hopefully

The two men then both released a small smile before they filled the blonde in on what had transpired and that Derek was staying with Rossi until he could manage more things on his own. They left a short time later, allowing JJ to once again succumb to sleep.

Later that night Hotch was snoozing in the chair next to JJ's bed while she slept. He had kept his word and had come back that evening after taking Henry and Jack out for dinner. Just down the hall Rossi was snoozing in the chair next to Emily's bed, choosing to stay the night with her. Garcia had offered to stay at his mansion with Morgan, while Kevin had gone back to his place to attempt a good night of sleep. This left Jessica at the Jareau-Prentiss house with Jack, Henry, and Penny.

At about 4am Rossi woke up to a moaning sound. As he began to get his bearings, he remembered he was in Emily's room, at the hospital. He quickly sat up, moving his eyes to the brunette in the bed, who was stirring in her sleep.

"Hey sweetheart" Rossi said as he stood up and took her uninjured right hand in his own, "Come on kid, open those eyes"

A few seconds later Emily's eyes slowly fluttered open and brown eyes connected with brown. Rossi couldn't help but smile, "Hey sweetie"

The brunette blinked again as she began to moan, squeezing Rossi's hand, before letting go and motioning towards her throat. He nodded as he reached down and pressed the call button.

"It's okay kid, we'll get the doctor in here and hopefully get that tube removed" he told her as he reached up and brushed a stray piece of hair out of her face.

She stared intently at him, asking a silent question. He nodded slightly before taking a guess at what she was asking, "You stopped breathing on us the other night, so they inserted the tube to help you breathe"

She nodded slightly before closing her eyes again as they waited for the nurse to come in. Once the nurse entered the room and saw the brunette woman was awake, she immediately turned and left to find a doctor. She and a doctor returned some ten minutes later.

"Well Agent Prentiss, you can be assured that you gave all of us, as well as your family here, quite a scare" the doctor told her as he began to do a quick examination of her.

Once he was sure she was okay he briefed her on how he was going to get the tube out of her throat.

"I recommend you hold your friend's hand here" the doctor told her as he nodded towards Rossi, before leaning down and whispering, loud enough for everyone to hear, "Although he has been leading everyone here to believe that he is your father"

The older agent stepped closer and clasped Emily's hand in his own, as she stared up at him with shocked, yet loving eyes. He smiled down at her, "Squeeze as tightly as you want kiddo"

A minute later the tube was removed and Emily's throat was on fire.

"Water" she croaked out hoarsely

The nurse immediately held a cup with a straw in it so that the brunette woman could take a sip. The first couple of sips she coughed uncontrollably until her body was finally able to adjust to taking in water the proper way again.

"Okay so it looks like your body is healing quite nicely Agent Prentiss. However, no talking unless it is absolutely necessary. Your throat is going to be very sore the next few days. And no getting up and going to the bathroom by yourself. Understood?" the doctor informed her

Emily looked at him questioningly before Rossi shook his head and answered for her, "She understands"

The brunette then turned and glared at the older agent, to the best of her ability considering her injuries, causing him to smile. The doctor then began to fill in the brunette woman on all of her injuries as she fought to stay awake, the next round of pain killers already kicking in.

Once the doctor left Rossi bent over and placed a gentle kiss to Emily's forehead. Her eyes flew back open as she stared up at the older man. He saw the brief flash of fear across her face before the Prentiss mask came back up. Before he could say anything she spoke up.

"Boys?" she questioned as she swallowed thickly

"Emily you aren't supposed to be talking" he told her sternly

She glared at him again, "The boys?"

He took a deep breath before smiling, "They are okay-"

Before he could elaborate she was already spitting out her next question, "Jen?"

"Calm down Emily. She is fine also" he told her sincerely

"Promise?" she asked

"First of all Emily, I wouldn't lie to you, especially about this. Second of all, I promise you everyone is okay" he told her sincerely as she continued to struggle to stay awake, "JJ and the boys are okay. All three of them, and-"

Emily's eyes flew open and she again cut Rossi off as she struggled to sit up, regretting it immediately as she froze in bed, her face squished up in pain, her whole body now rigid from the pain she had just caused herself.

Rossi immediately laid a comforting hand on her uninjured arm, "Emily calm down. Easy sweetheart"

She took a couple of deep breaths before beginning to relax. Opening her eyes she looked up at Rossi, "Henry…is okay?" she asked swallowing the pain in her throat

Confusion spread across the older man's features as he stared down at the woman he thought of as a daughter, "Yes. Henry is okay. He's the least injured out of the three of them"

Emily couldn't stop the tears that began to slide down her cheeks. Henry was okay. She smiled slightly as she closed her eyes and bit her bottom lip.

Rossi watched the brunette and he knew there was a lot still left unexplained, "Emily? Are you alright?"

She kept her eyes closed for a moment while she nodded. When she opened them she looked up at her friend, "Can I…see…him?"

"Henry?"

She nodded.

"You can in the morning sweetheart. But it's 430 in the morning right now. Why don't you try to get some rest?" he told her

"Promise? In…morning?" she questioned as he eyes began to close again

"I promise kid. You can see everyone. Maybe even Reid can make his way in here" he told her as he squeezed her hand

"Reid?" she questioned

"Yeah. He's still in the hospital, but should be released fairly soon. And your buddy, Morgan, don't even get me started on him. He's at least at home driving Garcia and Kevin crazy now"

"They're…okay?" she questioned as more tears began to fall

The older man looked at her with concern as he squeezed her hand reassuringly, "Yeah sweetheart. Everyone is okay. I promise. Try to get some rest and you can see for yourself first thing in the morning"

He watched her carefully as she let a few more tears stray down her cheeks before finally succumbing to sleep.

"What did they tell you kiddo? You wouldn't have reacted that way unless you thought they were dead or going to die" he said out loud to himself

He continued to stare at the brunette, noting that most of the swelling from all of the bruises on her face had gone down a considerable amount over the week. Her left eye was no longer swollen enough to keep it closed. However, most of the bruising had now turned to yellow and green discolorations across her face and neck area. The handprint bruises were still there on her neck, just not as prominent as they had been. The teeth marks on the right side of her neck were still there, now also a yellow and greenish color, and abrasions from where Doyle's teeth had pierced the skin, were still rather prominent. Rossi closed his eyes, squeezing Emily's hand a little tighter before letting a couple of tears run down his cheeks.

The older man took a moment to regain himself before stepping out of Emily's room and walking down to JJ's, where he found Hotch asleep in the chair next to the blonde's bed.

"Aaron" Rossi said just loud enough for the team leader to hear

The dark haired man startled and quickly sat up in the chair, "What is it?" he asked sleepily as he looked around, his eyes finally landing on the older man

"Sorry Aaron, didn't mean to startle you" he apologized

Hotch rubbed his eyes before shaking his head and standing up quickly, "It's okay. What is it? Emily?"

Rossi held up his hands, "Slow down Aaron. She's fine. Actually she's awake-"

"Really?" Hotch replied enthusiastically

Rossi tilted his head to the side, "Well she was awake. She's asleep now. The doctors took the tube out and told her not to talk for the next few days, but of course being Emily"

Hotch nodded with a slight smile, "Of course"

The older man nodded, "Yep, she couldn't stop asking questions. And Aaron, there are a lot of questions still left unanswered, and as much as I want the answers, at the same time, I don't"

Hotch nodded, "I know"

The two men stared at one another for a moment before looking over at the sleeping blonde. Rossi sighed before speaking again.

"Emily wants to see Henry as soon as she wakes up in the morning. I have a feeling Doyle told her that he had done something to him, as well as Reid and Morgan, because when I mentioned them specifically she started crying and asked if I was telling the truth"

Hotch raised an eyebrow at the older man, receiving just a nod from the older man.

"And I'm sure she will want to see the other two boys, as well as this blonde beauty as soon as she makes sure Henry is okay…and possibly Morgan and Reid"

"Right. So I should probably go ahead and call Jessica to let her know" Hotch stated

Rossi shrugged, "Well it is almost 5am and I'm sure Henry isn't sleeping well"

Hotch also shrugged before pulling out his phone and stepping out of JJ's room, walking down the hall and exiting the ICU so that he could call his sister in law.

Once he finally had her calmed down and had reassured her that everyone was fine he was able to fill her in on what had transpired and what Emily's wishes were. She assured Hotch she would have all of the kids up there by 7am. He tried to convince her that was too early, but it was a lost cause. Jessica told him there was no more arguing and that she would at least have Henry up there by 7, telling her brother in law she would call Garcia and have her come over and stay with the other two kids until they were awake. They finished their conversation and the team leader made his way back into JJ's room, finding Rossi now sitting in his chair.

The older man turned when he heard his friend's footsteps, "Verdict?"

"Jessica will be here by 7 with Henry"

"Of course she will"

Hotch nodded as Rossi got up and came to stand next to him, "I tried to convince her to wait until later but she refused"

"I'm sure you didn't try too terribly hard"

"No. And to be honest I was hoping she would be forceful about coming up as early as possible, because if I know Emily she's going to wake up as soon as the nurses go in for their 6am check"

Rossi nodded, "I agree"

They stood in silence a moment longer before Rossi walked up to JJ and kissed her lightly on the forehead. Then he turned and made his way back to Emily's room.

Just as Hotch had predicted when the nurses came in to check on Emily, her eyes flew open and it took her a moment to remember where she was. Rossi was by her side in an instant and holding her hand. Once the nurse left Emily looked at the older man.

"Henry?" she questioned

He smiled down at the brunette woman, "He should be here by 7, it's only 615 right now. Why don't you try to sleep some more?"

She shook her head slowly, "Hurts…and no…medicine…til after…I see…H"

"I think you are by far one of the most stubborn women I have ever been blessed in knowing" he told her a bit sarcastically

"Smart…ass" she croaked out

This caused him to smile even wider, "I love you kid. I hope you know that. I was so scared when you were missing-"

Emily squeezed his hand, turning to look him in the eyes, "Love…you…too"

He nodded, keeping his tears from falling, before clearing his throat and looking at her, "Will you at least humor me and pretend to rest until Henry gets here? I promise I will let you know the minute he gets here"

She looked at the older man but just shook her head, causing him to sigh.

"Well then can I at least read to you?" he asked her

She attempted to raise an eyebrow at him, but immediately regretted it, with the pain that slight movement caused.

"Easy there kiddo" Rossi told her as he walked over to the tray table and pulled off a comic book he had carried with him from Ethan's room.

"How about this Batman comic?" he asked her with a smile

She returned the best smile she could muster without causing herself too much pain. The older man nodded as he sat down in the chair beside her bed and began to read to her as they waited for Henry.

Just before 7am Emily opened her eyes when there was a commotion outside of her room. Rossi stood up and walked towards the door. He smiled as he saw a blonde headed boy in a pair of black and grey plaid shorts and a matching black t-shirt with a skateboard on it, and his grey Velcro vans, running down the hallway towards him as Jessica and a few nurses shouted at the seven year old to slow down.

Henry slid to a stop in front of Rossi, slightly out of breath. He looked up at the older man with a questioning look as he flung his long blonde hair out of his face.

"Mama Em?" he questioned

Rossi smiled down at the little boy who looked a little bit nervous before stepping out of the doorway, revealing the room of his brunette mother who was awake and had her bed tilted up to a sitting position.

Henry stood in the doorway nervously as he looked at his mother staring back at him, the sadness evident across her face.

"Mama?" he questioned sadly

"Henry" she said quietly

Emily smiled slightly at him, as she held open her good arm towards him.

"Come here baby boy" she told him hoarsely

He bit his bottom lip before running towards her bed and leaping up on it before anyone could stop him. Rossi, Jessica, and by this time, Hotch, were all standing in the doorway watching the scene unfold in front of them.

They all noticed the pain that crossed Emily's face, but she never once let Henry see it. When he made it up onto the bed he threw his arms around his brunette mother's neck holding on tight. Emily didn't hesitate as she wrapped her one good arm around him, before slowly getting her injured arm moved to wrap around him also, pulling him impossibly closer. All three adults flinched at the pain she must have been feeling as she pulled the seven year old onto her lap, his arms still tight around her neck, tears streaming down both of their faces.

"I love…you so…much…H" she told him as she kissed his cheek several times

"I love you too Mama" he replied, squeezing her tighter

Emily let the tears flow freely down her face as she held her youngest little boy. The little boy that she thought, quite possibly, had been killed by Doyle, or even sold into a child sex ring. Henry also let the tears run down his face as he buried his head into the neck of his mother.

"I missed you Mama" he mumbled into the side of her neck

Emily smiled widely as she tugged him slightly back so that she could look at his face and into his light brown eyes.

Henry cocked his head to the side as he stared into the dark eyes of his mother and saw the tears running down her face.

"Don't cry Mama. I'm okay" he told her before reaching both of his hands forward and wiping the tears gently from her cheeks, causing her to smile again

"I know baby…I just…missed you too…so, so…much" she told him as she cleared her scratchy throat, "And I was…so worried"

"Don't worry anymore Mama. We're all okay" he told her with a smile

They stared into each other's eyes for a moment longer before Henry spoke up, "I love you Mama. I'm glad you're awake"

"Me too…sport…And I love you too…so much" she responded before leaning forward slightly to kiss him on the nose

The blonde boy giggled before leaning forward and pressing a kiss to his mother's lips before wrapping his arms around her neck once more.

"Can I lay with you?" he asked softly

"Of course baby" she answered as she leaned carefully back into the bed, "How about over…on my good side"

Henry released the hold on his mother briefly to move over to her right side. Emily lifted her right arm and he snuggled down into her side, laying on his left side and draping his left arm across her stomach. She then wrapped her right arm around him tightly, turning her head to place one more kiss on the top of his head.

The three adults were still standing in the doorway, when Jessica finally broke the silence, "Well I think I will just leave him here with you guys. I'm going to head back to the house so that Penelope and I can at least tag team"

Hotch nodded at his sister in law as she turned to leave. Then he turned back to Rossi, "JJ is going to kill me when she finds out Emily woke up last night and we didn't wake her up"

"Well then I guess she will be killing both us" the older man replied

Hotch gave a slight nod, "I am going to go see if she's awake yet"

Rossi nodded as Hotch turned to head back down the hall to the blonde woman's room.

Sure enough when Hotch returned to JJ's room, the blonde woman was awake and had her bed tilted up slightly.

"Hey Hotch" she said as he walked into her room

He smiled slightly, "Hey. How are you feeling this morning?"

"Okay, considering. Have you seen the boys yet?"

"Well" he tilted his head to the side as he moved to stand next to the blonde's bed

"Hotch?" she questioned

"I've seen Henry and he seems happy"

JJ gave him a questioning look, "Henry? But it's only 730 in the morning. Is he up here?"

The dark haired man nodded, "Jessica brought him up here first thing. Special request…from your wife"

JJ's face went from questioning to relief, as her mouth slowly opened in surprise, before she smiled slowly, "She's awake?"

Hotch also smiled as he nodded, "Yes and she seems to be doing okay, well besides the pain. But she requested to see Henry first thing. The two of them are in her room snuggled up together in bed. I'm pretty sure they are both out like a light by now"

JJ continued to smile before looking up at Hotch, "Does she know that Reid and Morgan are okay? They told us that-"

"JJ calm down" the dark haired man told her as her heart monitor began to beep loudly, "She knows everyone is okay, although being Emily, I'm sure she won't completely believe it until she can see for herself"

The blonde slowly began to relax as she leaned back into the bed. She was lost in thought for a moment, a smile on her face, before the smile faded and she looked back up at Hotch.

"Do Ethan and Declan know that she's awake?"

The team leader shook his head, "No and honestly I don't think anyone has been in there yet this morning"

She nodded before continuing, "When did she wake up?"

"Ummm…around 4 or so this morning" he answered hesitantly

"WHAT?" the blonde shouted as she leaned forward in the bed, before immediately regretting it and falling back into the bed, grabbing her screaming ribs as she did

"Easy Jayje" he said as he reached for her

She began to control her breathing, taking one last deep breath before opening her eyes and staring at her boss, "She woke up…last night…and you didn't …think about waking me?"

Hotch could hear not only the anger in her voice, but the hurt as well, and he immediately felt bad, "I'm sorry JJ, at the time I thought it was best. She wasn't awake for very long and she was in a lot of pain so they gave her extra pain meds. Plus I didn't want to wake you. You were sleeping so well"

JJ let a few tears escape before she replied, "Hotch…you know I would have wanted to been waken up…no matter what…I would have woken you up if our roles were reversed"

Again the leader regretted the decision he had made last night to let her continue to sleep. He sighed heavily as he reached for her hand, squeezing it lightly, "You're right. I'm sorry JJ. Truly I am. Please forgive me"

JJ looked into her boss' sad eyes and smiled at him, "You know I'm a forgiving person Aaron Hotchner. And I know you have all been playing musical chairs in all of our rooms for the last week and we can never repay you for that. You have no idea how much it means to us…to me-"

Hotch held up his free hand to stop her, "JJ stop. We're family and that's what families do"

The blonde smiled lovingly at him as she nodded and lightly squeezed his hand back, "Well thank you anyway"

Hotch nodded and before he could say anything else JJ spoke up again.

"Will you please find a way for me to go see my wife now" she ordered more so than asked

He smiled and shrugged, "I'll try, but I highly doubt they are going to let you go anywhere in your condition"

"We'll see about that" she replied as she watched him go in search of a nurse

While Hotch was dealing with the nurses and doctors in regards to JJ seeing Emily, Rossi was watching Emily and Henry nap. He decided it was safe enough to go tell the other two boys their mother was awake, and also stop by Reid's room to fill him in on the news.

He was just leaving Emily's room, when he heard someone shout.

"Hey old man, just when the hell were you planning on telling us that Emily was awake?" Morgan shouted as he hobbled down the hallway

"Morgan maybe you should-" Kevin tried to intervene

"Stay out of this" the dark skinned agent shouted to the technical analyst

"Morgan calm down" Rossi told the younger agent as he held his hands up

"I don't want to calm down. You didn't think it was important to let me know that my best friend was finally awake?" he questioned angrily

Rossi tilted his head to the side and shook it lightly, "No not at 4 in the morning I didn't. What could you possibly have done at that hour? I was going to call you first thing this morning. That's actually what I was going to do on my way to tell the boys and Reid"

Morgan swallowed and took a deep breath and closed his eyes, feeling the pain in his shoulder and chest intensify after his little rant.

He slowly opened his eyes and stared at the older man who he knew loved Emily very much.

"I'm sorry Rossi. I just…I don't really have an excuse" he confessed as he hung his head, disappointed in himself

"Hey kid" Rossi said stepping up to Morgan

The younger man raised his head to look at the older man.

"It's okay. I get it. I do. We are all on edge and we were all worried. And we all love her. We love that whole family and it's been a rough couple of weeks. But more importantly I get it. You were worried about your best friend. I can't fault you for that, okay."

Morgan nodded as he listened to the older man.

"Just don't forget, you aren't the only one who loves her, okay. We all love her…very much" he reminded the younger man

Morgan nodded again, "I know Rossi"

The older man nodded before speaking again.

"Well now that you are here, I'm sure you want to see for yourself that she is okay"

"Hell yeah" he answered

Rossi smiled as he motioned for Morgan to follow him, "Just be quiet, she and Henry fell asleep not too long ago"

Morgan nodded in understanding as he stopped just inside Emily's room. His heart immediately broke as he saw his best friend lying in the bed, Henry snuggled into her right side, his little arm draped over her stomach, and her arm wrapped protectively around him. He fought back the tears, swallowing the lump in his throat.

Rossi placed a comforting hand on his uninjured shoulder, "She's okay Derek"

All he could do was nod, afraid if he said anything he would break down.

"Why don't you sit here with them for awhile. I'm going to go let Reid and the boys know the good news"

Again Morgan just nodded.

Once Rossi left the room, Kevin followed after him, leaving Morgan alone with Emily and Henry. He finally got up the courage to step inside the room, moving as quietly as possible towards the bed. He stood next to his best friend's bed and watched as she and Henry seemed to be sleeping peacefully. He smiled as he looked at both of them, before a few tears escaped and ran down his cheek. He bit his bottom lip as he moved to sit down. But before he did he heard a slight mumble. He turned back towards the bed and saw Emily's lips moving. Morgan reached out and placed his right hand on Emily comfortingly.

"Dave?" she questioned groggily before opening her eyes

"No princess, it's just me" he said as he cleared his throat, trying to sound strong

"Derek?"

"Yeah baby, it's me" he answered giving her a smile

As her eyes finally connected to his, he saw the relief cross her bruised and battered face, before she finally smiled to her best ability.

"Hey hot stuff" she said continuing to smile

"Hey there yourself beautiful"

"Psshhh, I don't know what Emily you are looking at, but I can assure you I am anything but beautiful right now" she replied

He glared at her and was about to speak but she spoke up again before he could.

"So…Morgan…How was your week?"

He let out a light smile and chuckle, before turning serious again.

"Emily" he said, waiting for her to look at him. When she finally did his eyes were full of tears again, "I want you to listen to me. You are beautiful. Do you hear me?"

"Derek I'm pretty sure I'm not right now" she said slightly annoyed

"No. Emily. You are. You are so unbelievably beautiful right now. Do you want to know why? Because you are laying there, holding your son, and I can see how much you love him. It's written all over you. You have to be in an ungodly amount of pain right now, but you are still holding onto him and letting him hold onto you as if you both might never see each other again. And you are so beautiful right now because you are awake and talking to me. You're alive. I'm getting to look into the beautiful, dark, mysterious eyes of my best friend. My best friend who I was afraid I might never get to have a conversation with again, joke with again...hug again" he said, the tears now freely falling down his cheeks

Emily carefully removed her arm from around Henry and moved her hand towards her best friend's, the tears falling down her face as well. Morgan took her hand in his and held it tightly and she reciprocated.

"I'm sorry Emily" he said as the tears continued to fall

Now she was confused.

"Sorry for what Derek? None of this was your fault. I should be apologizing to you. It's my fault you got hurt"

Morgan just shook his head, "But I should have been there to help find you. Maybe if-"

"Stop" she told him sternly

They both looked at each other before she spoke again, "Don't apologize for things you have no control over. None of this was your fault and there was nothing you could have done. Do you hear me?"

It took a moment before he nodded, "I just"

"I know Derek" she replied squeezing his hand again

Morgan looked up at his friend with tear filled eyes, "I was scared Emily. I…I don't think I've ever been that scared…I love you so much Em"

The brunette let a few more tears fall from her own eyes before responding, "I love you too Derek Morgan"

They smiled at each other before he stood up and kissed her gently on the forehead. He continued to hold her hand as he carefully sat back down.

"How badly were you hurt?" she finally asked

"Just shot in the chest, but I'm going to be fine" he reassured her

"Your arm's in a sling"

He nodded, "Yeah they want me to keep this side immobile so that I don't pop any stitches"

This time she nodded. They sat in comfortable silence for awhile before Emily finally asked the burning questions.

"How bad are my other two boys?"

"Ethan's got a pretty nasty head injury. But he's been awake and talking, so he should be fine. Declan's worst injury was his shoulder"

"He was shot protecting me Derek" Emily confessed sadly, "No kid should have to take a bullet for their mother"

He squeezed her hand again gently, "Hey, he doesn't regret it, believe me. And I'm pretty sure if he had to do it over again, he wouldn't do anything different"

"I know, that's what bothers me"

"Doesn't surprise me. You would be the same way. Can't imagine where he gets it from"

"How bad is his shoulder? Will he still be able to play sports?"

Morgan nodded, "He has a long road ahead, but the doctor is confident that since he's young and healthy that he should recovery well. And I already promised him that we could do our therapy together"

Emily smiled at her friend, "Thanks Derek"

"Always princess"

"Jen?"

"She's got some broken ribs, cuts and bruises, and another nasty head injury, but she's been doing well since she woke up and the doctors think she's going to make a nice recovery. "

"Her gunshot wound?"

"Is healing nicely. It was the last thing the doctors were worried about"

Emily nodded as she closed her eyes.

"Why don't you sleep princess"

"I'm not tired" she mumbled as she began to succumb to sleep once again

Morgan smiled at his friend, as he scooted his chair closer to her bed, never letting go of her hand. He kept holding it as he began to drift off to sleep as well.

When Rossi came back to Emily's room some 30 minutes later he couldn't help but smile as he walked into the room. Morgan was slumped down uncomfortably in the chair beside Emily's bed, asleep, his hand holding Emily's. And the brunette was asleep, her hand holding Morgan's, with Henry still asleep snuggled into her side.

He had told both boys, who wanted to come see for themselves as soon as the nurses would let them. Reid had also said he had had enough of the bed rest and he wanted to come see everyone for himself. Rossi had cleared both boys coming down to Emily's room as soon as they had eaten breakfast and taken their meds. As for Reid, it was up to the doctor's discretion once he arrived at work for the day.

The older man walked further into the room and as he got closer he saw Henry start to stir. The little boy began to mumble and moan in his sleep. Rossi hurried to his side, knowing he was going to start swinging in his sleep soon. He got to his side and began to wake the boy, before he could do any damage.

"Henry, wake up buddy, it's Grandpa Dave" he said in a soothing tone to the little blonde

Henry's eyes flew open as he nearly rolled off the bed as he tried to take in his surroundings. Rossi scooped him up before he could fall.

"It's okay kid. I got you. You're alright" he reassured the seven year old

Henry wrapped his arms around the older man, hugging him tight. Then he turned in Rossi's arms to look back at the bed.

"It wasn't a dream" Henry stated

"No kid, it wasn't"

"Mama's gonna be okay" he said with a hint of a smile

Rossi smiled at the boy who looked so much like his blonde mother, "Yes she's going to be okay"

"Uncle D is here" the boy finally pointed out

"He sure is. He wanted to see that your mom was okay too. But since they are both sleeping, why don't we go see your other mommy?"

Henry looked at his brunette mother and then at his dark skinned uncle, waging a war in his head. Rossi could see the child wasn't sure about leaving his mama so he spoke up again.

"Don't worry Henry. Uncle Derek won't let anything happen to your mama. He will be here with her for awhile. And I will come right back in here after I take you to see your other mommy. And I'm pretty sure she would love a good morning hug and kiss from her little man"

Henry smiled and nodded so Rossi turned to leave but the seven year old squirmed in his arms until the older man put him down. Then the little blonde ran back over to his brunette mother and careful lifted himself onto the bed to plant a soft kiss on her cheek.

"I'll be back mama. Love you" he told her quietly

Rossi smiled as the turned and came back towards him, taking the older man's hand in his own as the left Emily's room and headed for JJ's.

While Rossi was down the hall with JJ, Hotch, and Henry, Emily woke up from her nap and saw Derek still asleep in the chair beside her bed, their hands linked together. She smiled sweetly at her best friend, glad he was okay. As she became more aware of her surroundings she noticed Henry wasn't asleep next to her. The brunette immediately dropped Derek's hand as she began to scan the room.

"Henry?" she questioned out loud

Morgan woke up to the sound of Emily's frightened voice. He jerked up in his chair as he blinked his eyes, "Emily?"

By this time Emily's heart monitor was beeping like crazy. The brunette struggled to sit up and look around the room as she continued to search the room for the blonde boy, hoping and praying, she hadn't dreamt him up.

As she moved too quickly she felt pain throughout her entire body and immediately fell back onto the bed, that movement causing her pain also.

"Son of a bitch" she said through gritted teeth

"Emily calm down" Morgan said as he stood next to her bed, "What's wrong?"

"Henry…Where is he?" she questioned as tears started to fall from her eyes again, "Please tell me he's alright…that I didn't dream him up?"

"Calm down baby. He's fine. " Morgan tried to reassure her

Nurses came rushing into the room at that time as they pushed him aside to get to Emily.

"Morgan, please" she begged him through gritted teeth as she tried to ignore the pain

"What did you do to her?" one of the nurses asked Morgan

"Nothing. She woke up and her son was gone" he answered as he tried to explain

Rossi heard the commotion down the hall and immediately left JJ's room, running down the hall, followed closely by Hotch as they entered Emily's room.

"What's wrong?" Rossi asked

"What happened?" Hotch asked at the same time

"Where's Henry?" Morgan asked as he turned towards the two men

"He's with JJ" the older man answered, "He was having a nightmare so I woke him up. I was afraid he would hurt Emily while he was dreaming. Then when he was awake I suggested we go see JJ"

"Damn it Rossi" Morgan practically shouted

"What happened Morgan?" asked Hotch as he looked away from the nurses working on Emily and connected eyes with the dark skinned man

"She woke up and Henry wasn't here. She just freaked out" he told them

One of the nurses finally ushered all three men out of the room.

"Look she needs as much rest as possible and the least amount of stress possible. She just worked herself into a frenzy and popped a lot of her stitches. We've given her a big dose of pain pills to knock her out. I suggest if you can fix this before she is completely out that would be best" she told all of them in a serious tone

"I'm sorry. I didn't even think about her waking up and Henry not being there" Rossi apologized as he looked over Morgan towards the bed where the nurses were restitching the site Emily had pulled loose.

"I'll go get Henry so that Emily can see he is okay" Hotch said as he turned and headed down the hall

As he entered JJ's room, both blondes looked at him with almost identical terrified faces.

"Hotch?" JJ questioned

"She's okay. She just had a panic attack. She woke up and someone wasn't there. She will be fine. I'm just going to take him down there so that she can see he really is okay."

JJ nodded as she looked from Hotch to Henry. Then Hotch stepped up to the bed and looked at the little boy.

"Hey little man, will you come with me to see Emily for a minute? She just wants to make sure you are okay. Then she's going to go back to sleep for awhile"

Henry nodded, "Okay"

Before Hotch was going to take him JJ took Henry's hand, "Hey, H, will you do me a favor?"

The little boy nodded.

"Will you give Mama Em a kiss on the cheek for me?" she asked him

He nodded enthusiastically before leaning forward and kissing his blonde mother on the cheek.

Then the seven year old climbed off his mother's bed and followed Hotch down the hall to his other mother's room. As he entered the room Henry walked in behind him. Rossi and Morgan were standing off to the side as the last nurse finished up. When she was done, she glared at the three men before leaving the room.

Emily saw her friends standing there and she could also feel the pain meds beginning to work. As she looked at Hotch she saw Henry step out from behind him. Relief immediately spread across her face.

"H, you're okay" she stated as she looked at the blonde boy

"Ya mama" he answered as he walked up to her bed

He pulled the chair close to her bed before standing up on it and leaning his hands on her bed.

"I'm sorry if you got scared coz I wasn't here" he apologized

"Henry you don't have anything to apologize for. I just wanted to make sure I hadn't been dreaming" she told him as she covered his little hand with her own.

As she covered his hand she finally noticed the light bruising around his wrists from where he had been restrained and her heart began to break all over again.

"Don't be sad mama. I'm okay." He told her with a smile

She looked back up, into his light brown eyes and couldn't help but smile, "I love you sport"

"I love you too" he told her seriously

She nodded as she began to close her eyes.

"Get some sleep mama" he told her as he leaned forward and kissed her cheek, "That's from me and mommy"

She opened her eyes back up and smiled at the loving seven year old, "Thanks H"

The little boy, thinking she was asleep, stepped back down from the chair and walked back over to Hotch.

"I want to go see mommy again"

The brunette man nodded as he took the seven year old's hand and led him back down the hall to JJ's room.

Meanwhile Rossi and Morgan stood next to each other as they looked at their friend and colleague. Not a minute later Emily opened her eyes and looked at both men.

"I don't want him coming to see me anymore" she told them in a tired voice

"Emily-" Rossi began as both men stepped closer to her bed

"No Dave. I'm serious. He's too young to be in here anyways. I think it would be better if he stayed away. Besides I'll be released in no time"

"Em-"

"No. Derek. I'm not changing my mind" she said forcefully

Both men looked at each other, but remained silent.

"Now will someone please let me see for myself that my other two boys, my wife, and Reid are all okay?" she questioned in a forceful tone

Rossi bowed out of the room, in search of the boys, while Morgan remained in his friend's room.

"Emily I don't think they are going to let Reid or JJ leave their rooms. And they are most certainly not going to let you go anywhere"

"Well someone better figure out a way for me to see for myself that they are both okay. I just want to talk to them" she told her friend

He nodded, "I know Em"

As Morgan thought about it he got an idea. He pulled out his phone and told Emily he would be back in a minute. He walked out of ICU and called Garcia, filling her in on his request. When he returned to Emily's room fifteen minutes later she had her eyes closed and he thought she might be asleep.

"I'm awake Derek" she said as she opened her eyes to look at her friend

"How did you know it was me?" he asked with a smile

She just looked at him and he nodded his head, "Okay then. Well do you want to talk about what happened earlier?"

"No" she answered sharply

"Emily"

"I said no Morgan, so just drop it" she told him angrily, feeling her body fighting to stay awake

Before he could say anything else, Hotch came through the doorway pushing Ethan in a wheelchair.

"MAMA" Ethan said in a loud, excited voice, immediately regretting it afterwards as he held his side in pain

"Ethan" Emily said with a sad smile as she looked at her eleven year old son, his head wrapped in bandages, along with some bruising around his chin and cheek that was slowly fading away. She could also see two marks across his jaw and neck, which she denoted came from a tazer.

The brunette woman grabbed the remote to her bed and tilted herself up to a point that she could just feel pain. Hotch pushed the young boy's chair up next to his mother's bed.

"Why are you in a wheelchair?" she asked before looking up at Hotch, "Why is he in a wheelchair?"

"I'm okay mama" Ethan told her

"He's okay. It's just hospital protocol, especially with a head injury" Hotch reassured her

"Yeah see, look mom" Ethan said as he moved his feet slightly

Relief flooded Emily's features again as she saw for herself that her son could move his legs. Hotch then bent down and lifted Ethan out of the wheelchair, placing him on the bed next to his mother.

Ethan carefully leaned towards his mother and wrapped his arms gently around her neck, rolling to his left side as he did. Emily sighed as she wrapped her right arm around him pulling him against her, biting back the pain as she did. She felt him squeeze her neck tighter and bury his face in the crook of her neck as she held him tighter.

"I love you E" she told him as she rubbed her hand up and down his back

"I love you too mama" he said as he mumbled into her neck

She smiled as she held him close, "I'm so glad you're okay. You are okay, right, handsome?"

She pulled him away from her at that moment to look into matching eyes. As he leaned back he looked into his mothers eyes and could see her fear, which is not something he was used to.

"I'm fine mama. Promise" he told her

She tilted her head to the side to look at him, "How many stitches do you have?"

He bit his bottom lip nervously as he looked away from her. Emily took her right hand and tilted his chin up so that he had to look her in the eyes, "E?"

"Eighteen staples in my head" he answered

He watched as his mother gasped and her face showed nothing but sadness.

"But I'm gonna have some pretty cool scars" he told her with a smile

"You have more than just those staples, don't you?" she asked

He nodded as he slowly lifted up his pajama top (Garcia had brought him and Declan some actual pajamas to wear soon after they were moved out of ICU) revealing the stitches across his lower chest and ribs.

"Twelve stitches here" he told her

Emily tried to control her emotions as her good hand moved to her son's chest. She held back the tears as she traced a gentle hand beside the three inch line of stitches that started just below his left pec area and went down across the top part of his rib cage, where she also noticed some faded bruising.

"What happened?" she asked, hearing her own voice crack and cursing herself when she noticed it

"They said my spleen was damaged so they had to go in and surgically repair it" he told her, "It's okay though. I promise"

She nodded as she let a couple of tears fall. The eleven year old noticed and reached his left hand up to gently wipe away a tear.

"I'm okay mama. We all are. Promise. I'm just glad you're awake" he told her with a smile before leaning forward and kissing her gently on the lips. Then he wrapped his arms around her neck again and hugged her tight.

Emily wrapped her good arm around her son again and squeezed tightly, but not tight enough to hurt him. She felt him shift, as he laid on his side, moving his hands from around her neck. He kept his face buried in her neck, thankful to be back in the safety of his mother's arms. He reached his left hand slightly behind him to lace his fingers with his mothers.

Hotch and Morgan stood in the doorway watching mother and son. Morgan looked from his friend and her son, over to Hotch.

"She's not okay Hotch" Morgan told his boss sadly

The dark haired man nodded, "I know Morgan. But for now, let's just get them healed enough to get them out of the hospital. I've interacted with all of them now, and none of them are okay"

Morgan nodded as he looked away from his boss and back over to his friend.

About thirty minutes later a nurse came into Emily's room, scolding the two men who were standing there. Ranting about how bad it was for not only Emily, but Ethan, that they were snuggled up in bed with all of their injuries. Hotch and Morgan both looked at one another, this nurse had no idea what this family had been through the last week and a half.

Hotch finally assured the nurse he would get Ethan back to his room promptly. Once she had left the room, Hotch approached the bed carefully.

"Ethan" he said quietly

When the boy didn't stir, he said Emily's name, "Emily"

He said both of their names one more time and Emily jerked awake, her eyes wide.

"What? What is it?" she questioned in a frightened tone

"Nothing. It's okay" Hotch reassured her, "I just need to take Ethan back to his room to rest. The nurses aren't very happy about him being in here"

"Oh" she said sadly as she turned her head towards her sleeping son, snuggled into her side

"Don't worry, he can come back and see you again later" the leader assured her

Emily shook her head slowly, "No, he needs to get better. And he doesn't need to be in the ICU"

"Emily"

"Hotch. Please. Just take him back to his room" she told her boss

"Okay" the leader said, giving in sadly

"Ethan, wake up buddy" he said as he shook the eleven year old lightly

"NOOO" Ethan shouted as he jerked away from Hotch's touch, "Don't touch me" he shouted again, his eyes still closed

"Ethan, baby, it's okay. Open your eyes" Emily told him soothingly

He struggled a moment longer before his eyes opened and he took in his surroundings. His eyes finally landed on his mothers and he sighed.

"Sorry" he apologized

"Hey you have to nothing to apologize for little man. Do you hear me?" she said to him

"Yeah it's my fault buddy. I was just trying to wake you up and I startled you" Hotch confessed as he finally stepped closer to the bed again

Ethan turned towards Hotch and could see the worry etched across the man's face, "I'm sorry Uncle Aaron"

"It's okay bud. Like your mom said, you don't have anything to apologize for" he also told the eleven year old

The brunette boy nodded slowly as he looked down at the covers on the bed.

Hotch looked at the boy again and his heart broke, this was his son's best friend. His colleague and friend's son who was so broken and fragile. The normally upbeat and carefree kid without a worry in the world. The team leader shook his head before speaking again.

"Ethan I need to take you back to your room to rest for awhile, okay? The nurses weren't too happy with you being in here" he told the boy

"But I don't want to go" he replied

"I know. But your mom is going to go back to sleep soon anyways. And Declan still needs the chance to come see her"

Ethan clenched his jaw at the mention of his brother, but kept his opinion to himself.

"Fine" he said, obviously annoyed

"I love you little prince" Emily said to her son as he slowly leaned forward

"I love you too mama" he told her, before leaning towards her and planting a kiss on her cheek

Hotch then lifted the boy up and put him back in his chair before taking him back to his room.

Morgan didn't even attempt to start a conversation with Emily this time. Instead he stood by the doorway watching his friend carefully. About twenty minutes later Hotch came back through the door pushing Declan in a wheelchair.

"Mom?" the blonde teenager questioned, seeing that his brunette mother's eyes were closed

At hearing the sound of that voice, Emily's eyes opened and she turned her head towards the doorway. She smiled when she saw her blonde teenage son in a wheelchair, his right arm in a sling. As she looked more closely at him, she could see the sadness in his normally bright blue eyes.

"Declan" she said with a warm smile

He smiled back as Hotch pushed him up next to the bed. The teenager immediately stood up out of the chair and reached for his mother's uninjured hand with his left hand, grasping hers tightly. Then he bent forward and kissed her on the cheek, allowing her a moment to do the same to him. As he pulled back he looked at the bed before looking back at her. She smiled as she released his hand for a moment and patted the bed.

"Sit down" she told him

"Are you sure? I don't want to hurt you" he said in a worried tone

"You won't" she assured him as she patted the bed again

He nodded as he carefully sat down on the bed so that he could face her.

"I love you Dec" she told him sincerely as she locked her brown eyes onto his blue

"I love you too mom" he replied, "I'm so sorry-"

She held up her right hand, stopping him, "Don't…Don't apologize for something that's not your fault"

"But-"

"But nothing" she told him as she shook her head, "NONE of this is YOUR fault. Do you hear me?"

Declan broke eye contact with Emily at that point as he looked away, concentrating on a spot on the floor.

"Declan" she said as she reached her hand forward and ran her fingers through his thick, curly blonde hair

He finally turned back towards her, tears in his eyes, and her heart broke.

"Listen to me Declan" she told him as she grabbed his hand and held it tight, "No matter what you might think, trust me, when I say, that none of this…Nothing that happened is your fault. And there is nothing you could have done"

He just looked at her as a few tears escaped, running down his face. She released his hand to reach up and brush the tears away.

"And I should be apologizing to you. You never should have gotten shot because of me" she told the sixteen year old as she brushed her thumb across his cheek

Declan reached up and took her hand in his again, squeezing it tightly, before saying, "Mom if I had to go back and do it over again, I would still take that bullet for you. I love you. I am who I am because of you. I don't regret it, okay."

"But a kid should never have to do that. A parent is supposed to protect the kid" she told him sadly

"You did protect us" he reassured her, "I guess I'm just lucky I got to repay you" he said with a smile

Emily forced a smile onto her face, but inside she was breaking. Her family, everyone in the world that she cared about, had been injured because of her past. Her best friends, who were also her family, were injured and had nearly been killed, because of her.

"Mom?" Declan questioned as he squeezed her hand again, noticing she had zoned out

"Sorry D, just tired. Pain meds are really kicking my butt" she told him with a slight smile

He returned the smile, "Tell me about it"

"Is it just your shoulder that's hurt?" she asked him, studying his response

"My wrist is broken…and a couple of fingers" he admitted as he let go of her hand to move his sling just enough so that she could see the brace his right wrist was in, "But at least it's all the same hand"

Emily nodded before reaching up and tracing just under the teenager's right eye, studying the fading bruising around it and his cheek. Then she stared at the left side of his face where you could just barely make out the fading bruising in the shape of a footprint.

"Oh Dec" she said sadly as she dropped her hand

The teenager immediately grabbed her hand again and squeezed it, "I'm okay mom. I promise. And my bruises are nothing compared to you and moms"

Emily looked up at the teenager at the mention of JJ, "You've seen JJ?"

He nodded, "Yeah and she's doing okay. I promise"

Emily nodded with a slight smile as she began to close her eyes, the pain meds really beginning to get to her. Declan smiled sadly at his brunette mother before giving her hand one last squeeze.

"I love you mama" he whispered as he leaned forward, "I'll let you rest"

He kissed her on the cheek and she opened her eyes enough to squeeze his hand back, "Love you too handsome"

He smiled at her reply before he watched her eyes close again. Then he got off of the bed and sat back down in the wheelchair allowing Hotch to take him back to his room for his own nap.

Later in the day Garcia showed up with Jack and Penny in tow and a special surprise for Emily, Reid, and JJ. Rossi agreed to sit in the waiting room with Jack while Hotch and Garcia took Penny back to see Emily and JJ. Meanwhile Kevin made his way to Reid's room with one of the special gifts.

Hotch held the blonde toddler in his arms as Garcia burst into Emily's hospital room, "Oh my brunette beauty. I'm so glad you're okay. I was so freakin scared"

Emily smiled at her exuberant friend who was immediately by her side, squeezing her hand tightly before pressing a kiss to the brunette's cheek, "I missed you so much. Don't you ever do that to me again. If you weren't so bruised I would hit you. I love you so much"

"I love you too Garcia" Emily told her sincerely, squeezing the blonde's hand in return

"MAMA" Penny exclaimed happily as she clapped her hands, while being held by Hotch

Emily smiled as she turned her attention to the toddler, "Hi baby girl"

"Hi mama" she said with a wave before holding both her hands out towards her brunette mother

Hotch moved forward and carefully passed the toddler to Garcia who was now sitting on the edge of Emily's bed. However, Emily and Penny weren't in agreement with her being stuck in the blonde analysts lap. Before the little girl was even fully situated in Garcia's lap she flung herself forward at the same time as Emily reached forward with her right arm.

The toddler cooed and giggled as she lay against her mother's chest. Emily let a couple of tears fall as she held her daughter close with her good arm, bending her head to place a kiss to the top of the silky blonde hair.

"I love you sweet girl" Emily told the little girl who was lying against her chest

"Hi Mama" the toddler replied

After about a minute the little girl was suddenly bored and pushed off of Emily attempting to bounce on the brunettes lap. Emily's face immediately contorted into pain and Garcia grabbed the toddler quickly, lifting the little girl into her arms.

"Oh sweetie, you can't do that, mama is hurt" Garcia told the little blonde, even though she knew the little girl didn't fully comprehend what she was saying

Emily was biting back the pain, her eyes shut as she struggled to even out her breathing.

"Prentiss do you want me to get a nurse so you can have some more pain meds?" Hotch asked, now standing next to her bed

The brunette slowly shook her head no. Taking a deep breath she slowly opened her eyes back up looking at her two friends who had worried looks on their faces.

"I'm okay" she told them

Neither one was buying it, but they chose to ignore it and move on to the next subject.

"I talked to the nurses and doctors" Hotch said, looking at the woman lying in the hospital bed, "None of them want you, Reid, or JJ moving around right now-"

"But Ho-"

"Let me finish" he said cutting her off

She opened her mouth to say something again when Garcia spoke up, "Just listen to him miss stubborn pants"

Both brunettes turned their attention at the analyst for her choice of words. She shrugged her shoulders as she held onto Penny, "What? She is stubborn"

Hotch merely returned the shrug with one of his own and added a slight nod to it and Emily didn't disagree.

"As I was saying" Hotch said, speaking up again, "Garcia came up with an idea for you to see for yourself that Reid and JJ are alright. And they can see that you are alright"

With that the analyst passed Penny to Hotch, who smiled as he took the little girl into his arms. Garcia then stood up off of the bed and dug around in her purse, pulling out an ipad. She turned it on before moving and sitting next to Emily carefully. Then she pulled up the video chat and found Reid and JJ already waiting.

"I know it's not the same thing sugar, but it's the best we could do with what we have" Garcia said as she turned to look at Emily

The brunette turned to look at her friend and smiled slightly, "Thanks Pen"

The analyst nodded with a smile before pressing the button and allowing the videos to come up, with their other friends on them.

"Jen? Reid?" Emily said to the screen

JJ and Reid both looked directly at the brunette through the ipad. JJ smiled and spoke up first,

"Emily? Baby, are you okay?" she asked, tears in her eyes

Emily could only nod as she squeaked out a "Yes"

"Really? Cause you don't look so good Emily" Reid said as he looked through the screen

Emily smiled as JJ scolded him through the video chat.

"I'm okay handsome. Or I will be. And I'm already better, now that I have seen for myself that you both are okay. You are both okay, right?" she asked

She watched as her wife and friend both nodded.

"I wish I could see you in person Em" JJ confessed

"I know. Me too. But this is better than nothing" the brunette responded

JJ nodded as a few tears finally fell down her face.

Emily let a stray tear escape her eyes as well, "I wish I could wrap my arms around you and tell you everything was going to be okay"

JJ nodded, "Me too baby"

"I would say I want someone to wrap their arms around me too, but I'm not really a hugger" Reid said, trying to break the tension

Emily and JJ both cracked a smile and a bit of giggle, before it caused both too much pain.

"Oh Spence, you know we have basically broken you of your fear of hugs" JJ said

"Actually, Haphephobia, the fear of-" Reid began

"Being touched. Also known as aphephobia, thixophobia, or-" Emily joined in

"Okay. Well obviously the minds of our nerds are still entirely intact" Garcia said, effectively cutting off both Emily and Reid

"But just so you know, Emily, I'm really glad you're back with us. I mean, we were happy when Reid woke up and started spouting statistics, but there was really no one for him to compete with. At least now you guys can talk nerd to each other" Hotch said joining the conversation

Emily and Reid smiled at each other, while JJ just rolled her eyes at the antics of her team and her family.

Soon all three agent's were starting to feel their pain meds kick in for the afternoon. They said their goodbyes over the video before everyone signed off.

"Okay little one say bye bye to mama so she can sleep" Garcia told Penny, who was still in Hotch's arms

"Mama" she repeated with a wave, "Bye"

Emily smiled, "Bye baby girl"

Hotch leaned down with the toddler, "You want to give your mama a kiss"

Penny clapped her hands before puckering her lips and leaning towards her brunette mother. Emily smiled as she leaned forward slightly, kissing her daughter on the lips.

"I love you munchkin" she told the girl before Hotch handed her off to Garcia and the two blondes left the room

"Emily I hate to ask this, but Jack doesn't believe me. Would be alright-"

"Bring him in Hotch. But just for a minute" she told him

The leader nodded before turning and leaving the room in search of his son. He returned a few minutes later with the nearly eleven year old beside him.

"Aunt Em" the caramel haired boy said excitedly as he ran up next to the bed

"Hey JT. You helping take care of that wild toddler?" Emily asked the boy with a smile

He nodded as he stared sadly at her, "I'm sorry you're hurt"

"Hey kiddo, I'm going to be alright. We all are" she reassured him as she reached for his hand

Jack took it willingly as he squeezed the brunette hand in return.

"I love you Jack. You know that right?" she said sincerely

He nodded as his brown eyes met her even darker ones, "I love you too Emily"

She nodded with a smile before giving him a slight tug, "Then come give me a kiss before I fall asleep again"

He smiled as he moved forward and carefully stood on his toes to place a soft kiss on her cheek, to which she fully returned.

"Alright Jack, time to go. Emily needs to rest" Hotch told his son from the doorway

"Okay" he answered

"I'll see ya later Aunt Em" he told her as he turned away

"Sure thing cutie"

Jack giggled at Emily's response, before turning and giving her one last wave, "I'm glad you're okay"

"Thanks buddy…Will you do me a favor and keep an eye on Ethan when he gets out of here. I'm sure he's going to get to go home before me" she asked, knowing how close the two boys were

She was worried about her eleven year old, mostly because he could hide his emotions fairly well, especially to ease other people's concern.

"Always" he replied with a smile as he followed his dad out of her room

She laid back against the bed, smiling at Jack's answer. The two boys liked to repeat things, and interactions, they saw between her and Morgan, and it always entertained the two adult agents. Soon they picked up on the phrase that she and Morgan shared, in sticky situations, or just to let the other know they were there. So when Jack answered, 'Always', she knew he meant it. Just like when Morgan said it to her and vice versa.

The next day Declan and Ethan both had their stitches and staples removed before being released from the hospital. Rossi told both boys that they would be moving to his place for awhile as well until everyone was back on their feet again. Jessica and Garcia packed up some clothes for the two boys, along with some clothes for Henry and Penny, deciding to move everyone over to the Rossi mansion. JJ was told she could probably discharge from the hospital within the next couple of days, but Reid and Emily needed to stay a bit longer to be monitored for safety reasons.

When Ethan and Declan arrived at Rossi's house, the older man took in both of their appearances. Declan still had his arm in a sling and it would most likely stay that way for another week or so just to be safe. Ethan now just had one long bandage across his head where his stitches had been, just to keep it protected for a little while longer. But it was at this time that Rossi noticed that the nurses or doctor must have cut some of his hair to get to the entire wound. Part of his bangs and the side of his head were cut at an odd angle. Rossi ushered the two boys inside, followed by Hotch. The older man then lead them up the stairs, turning to the left and entering the first bedroom on the right.

"This will be you guys' room for now and Henry will probably be in here also. I know you probably don't really want to share a room with each other, but I thought you could use the support from one another"

"Do we have to share a room?" Ethan asked as he looked up at the older man

Rossi stared down at the eleven year old before looking at Declan, knowing there was something going on between the two, but thinking it would be best if they shared a room.

"Yes. You do" he answered, "I had these three twin beds put in here so that I could put you three boys in here. I will be at the other end of the hall and Morgan will be right across from you guys"

"Where's Penny going to be?" Declan asked as he sat down on one of the beds

"I'm putting her in the room closest to mine"

"What about our moms?" Ethan asked as he continued to stand next to the older man

"They are going to be downstairs with Reid once they are all released from the hospital, because none of them are going to be able to go up and down stairs for awhile. Well JJ might be able to get up here, we will see."

The small brunette nodded before looking at the setup of the beds. Declan had taken the bed against the wall right next to the door which left the other two beds positioned against the far wall under the window.

"Garcia should be here in a little while with some clothes for you and Declan and then we are all going to sit down and have a decent dinner, Italian style" he told the two boys

Morgan walked into the bedroom at that time and smiled, "Hey guys, I'm so glad you are here. I'm about to go bored out of my mind"

Both boys smiled slightly and Morgan's smile faded, "Hey I know it's not the Jareau-Prentiss household but it ain't that bad and the rooms are huge"

"Yeah. It's pretty great. Thanks for taking care of us Uncle Dave" Declan said as he looked at the older man

"It's no problem kid. That's what families do for each other. Now I'll let the two of you get settled, but I'll be downstairs if you need anything" he told them before leaving the room

Morgan continued to stand in the bedroom with the two boys before saying, "Well you guys lucked out. You have the bathroom right here" he said walking through the room to a closed door

The dark skinned agent opened the door revealing a large bathroom with another door on the other side, which he opened, revealing another bedroom. The two boys had followed him and were now standing in the other bedroom, which held what appeared to be a queen size bed.

"Do you think Jack will get to come later?" Ethan said as the three of them turned to go back into their bedroom

"I'm sure that he will be here for dinner tonight E" Morgan said as he gripped the eleven year old's shoulder slightly

The brunette nodded before sitting down on one of the beds under the window. Morgan sighed and was just about to walk out of the bedroom when there was a commotion down stairs. Ethan and Declan both smiled slightly recognizing the voices. They made their way out of the bedroom and down the stairs.

"Ethan! Declan!" Henry shouted as he ran towards his brothers, wrapping his arms around his blonde brother's waist first, before pulling away and reaching for Ethan.

"Guess what H. We get to share a room with Dec until we are all better" the brunette boy told his little brother trying to sound enthusiastic

"Really? Cool!" the seven year old exclaimed excitedly

A few seconds later Jessica walked through the open front door with Penny in her arms, Jack running behind her, and Garcia following behind him.

"Jack!" Ethan shouted excitedly

"Hey Ethan" the caramel boy shouted back in a voice just as excited, as he practically pushed his Aunt out of the way to get to his friend

All of the adults were standing around watching as the two boys flung their arms around each other.

"I missed you E, I'm glad you're okay" Jack told the brunette

"Me too" Ethan replied as he hugged his friend slightly tighter

As they released each other Penny had spotted her brothers and started squealing, reaching for Declan first.

"D" she shouted

The teenager reached out his left arm allowing the toddler to enter his embrace. She wrapped her arms around his neck and squealed again as she said 'D' over and over again.

"Hey pretty girl what about me?" Ethan asked as he gave his baby sister a pouty face

Penny giggled and then reached for her brunette brother as she shouted, "E"

Ethan reached for the blonde toddler as she threw herself towards him. She patted his chest several times as she giggled and the eleven year old smiled brightly.

"Okay baby girl I think that's enough excitement for your brothers right now" Garcia said as she reached out to take Penny from Ethan

"Can I get a kiss first Penny?" Ethan asked

The toddler puckered her lips before Ethan gave her a kiss, making a smacking sound as he did to make her laugh.

Garcia smiled at the interaction before she took the toddler from the brunette boy.

"What about me P? Do I get a kiss?" Declan asked as he tickled his baby sister in her side

She giggled but turned and puckered her lips. Declan kissed her before moving slightly and making blowing noises next to her ear causing her to laugh even louder.

"Alright let's move this party inside" Jessica said, still standing in the doorway to Rossi's house

Everyone moved inside and slowly made their way to the kitchen where Rossi and Hotch were gathering items for the dinner they were going to have in a couple of hours.

"Hi dad" Jack said happily as they walked up

"Hey champ" Hotch replied with a smile

Everyone sat around talking for awhile and later they all ate dinner together. By the time dinner was finished the group could see the toll it was taking on Ethan, Declan, and Morgan. They were all trying to fight it, but Hotch and Rossi finally spoke up and ordered everyone to get ready for bed.

Ethan and Jack both begged Hotch to stay the night, so the team leader finally relented and Rossi helped get them set up in the room adjacent to the boy's. Once everyone was settled Declan and Ethan took turns taking a real shower for the first time since the whole ordeal had happened. Hotch helped get Declan's wrist wrapped up to keep it dry while he showered. Then once he got out the lead agent helped bandage Declan's shoulder back up so that the risk of an infection would stay down, before helping the teenager get into a button up pajama top.

Once Ethan got out of the shower, Hotch helped him bandage his incision site across his chest and ribs, as well as his head. He then helped the boys get into bed. Rossi walked into the bedroom with some glasses of water and pain medication for Declan and Ethan. After the two boys took their allotted doses, Henry came into the room, looking especially tired as well as he climbed into the bed next to Ethan's.

"Uncle Aaron can Jack sleep in here too?" Ethan asked as the lead agent tucked him in

"Please dad" Jack said from the doorway of the bedroom and bathroom

"Okay" Hotch replied with a shrug

Jack immediately smiled and raced over to Ethan's bed as he jumped on top of it before snuggling down under the covers with his best friend.

"Jack I don't think there's enough room in there for both of you" Hotch said

"Sure there is" Ethan answered

"I don't want you to accidently hit Ethan while he's sleeping"

"I won't dad" Jack replied

"I give up" Hotch said as he threw his hands in the air, looking over at Rossi

"Well they have been without each other for a few weeks now" Rossi pointed out

"I know" said Hotch as he leaned over to turn out the bedside lamp

"NO" all three Prentiss-Jareau boys shouted at the same time

Hotch looked from one boy to the other, "Okay. I'll leave it on"

He could see the relief on all three boy's faces when he turned and walked away from the lamp. Hotch stepped out of the bedroom leaving the door cracked slightly. He stood in the hallway with Rossi for a moment as they shook their heads.

"Tonight should be interesting" stated Hotch

Theo older man nodded, "At least they have each other"

"I don't know if that's good or bad at this point"

"True. Well I guess we will see how it goes"

This time Hotch nodded before saying, "Well shall we go downstairs and see the others out?"

"I suppose so"

The two men turned and walked down the hall before joining the other adults downstairs for awhile longer before everyone went their separate ways.

Later that night Declan woke up in a cold sweat. The teenager jerked up in bed, his heart racing, drenched in sweat, and breathing heavily. His blue eyes scanned the room as he finally remembered he was at Rossi's house. He looked over at his brothers and saw Henry sitting up in bed, awake.

"H…you okay?" he said quietly across the room

The seven year old turned towards his older brother and he slowly shrugged his shoulders.

"What's wrong?" the teenager asked

Henry shrugged again, "Can't sleep"

"Me neither" Declan replied, "Wanna talk about it?"

The little blonde shook his head.

"Okay. Want me to tell you a story?"

"About what?" the younger boy asked

"Hmmm….what about how our moms fell in love? You like that one right?" the older blonde asked

Henry nodded with a smile.

"Okay then" the teenager said also with a smile before he began to tell the story about how their two mothers fell in love, accompanied of course in a fairy tale land where everyone lives happily ever after.

Declan looked over at his baby brother about half way through the story and noticed he had fallen back asleep. The teenager then shifted around in his own bed trying to get comfortable even though his shoulder was hurting him immensely.

Meanwhile Ethan had been lying awake listening to Declan tell the story about his mothers. He didn't want anyone to know that he hadn't fallen asleep yet even though he was extremely tired. He was afraid to fall asleep because he knew the nightmares would come. He began to shift around in his bed, trying his best not to wake Jack, but to no avail.

"Ethan?" Jack questioned sleepily

"Go back to sleep Jack" Ethan said quietly

"What's wrong?" his friend asked as he began to wake up a little more

"Nothing"

"Did you have a bad dream?" Jack asked, not giving in

"No"

"E"

Both boys were silent for a moment as Ethan debated whether or not to tell Jack what was wrong.

"Ethan you can tell me. I can keep a secret" Jack said, finally speaking up as he rolled onto his side to face his friend

Ethan was facing Jack and slowly brown eyes met brown.

"I'm afraid to go to sleep because of bad dreams" the older brunette finally admitted

The caramel haired boy looked sadly at his best friend, "Well I'll be right here and I promise to protect you if you have a bad dream. I won't let anything happen to you"

The two boys stared at each other for awhile before Ethan replied, "I don't want anyone to know though"

"I won't tell. And I'll wake you up before anyone finds out. But you don't have to be scared E, I'll be right here" Jack told his best friend as he placed a comforting hand on Ethan's shoulder

"Thanks Jack"

"Always"

Ethan slowly let his eyes close and Jack left his hand on his friends shoulder as he watched him finally succumb to sleep. A little while later Jack fell back asleep also, his hand never leaving his friend.

The next morning Hotch walked into the boy's bedroom and found Henry asleep curled up next to Declan in the teenager's bed. He then looked over at Jack and Ethan and couldn't help but smile, yet feel saddened at the same time, at the sight before him. The two boys were both sprawled on their stomachs, Ethan facing the wall and Jack facing Ethan. To top it off Jack had his right arm thrown across Ethan's back, obviously in an attempt to help the Prentiss boy feel safe.

The dark haired man then snuck out of the bedroom. As he was closing the door to the bedroom he turned and came face to face with Morgan.

"How are the boys?" the dark agent asked

"Well they've doubled up in bed and I'm pretty sure I heard a couple of them have nightmares in the middle of the night, but when I got to the door I could hear some of them talking. I don't think they really want us to know that they are still having them"

Morgan nodded, "Yeah I thought I heard something in the middle of the night, but when I listened more intently it sounded like Declan telling a story"

Hotch nodded, "I heard that too"

Morgan was about to follow Hotch down the hall, but first he stopped and peeked in on the boys himself. When he turned back to the dark haired man he smiled slightly.

"You know that would be a cute picture of Ethan and Jack, also of Declan and Henry, if it was under different circumstances" the dark skinned man stated

Hotch nodded again, "I thought the same thing"

Morgan then followed Hotch down the hall. As they got to the staircase they heard a slight cry from the bedroom next to Rossi's, which is where Penny was.

"I'll get her" Hotch told Morgan as he motioned for the other man to go ahead and head downstairs

The dark haired man then opened the bedroom door and found the blonde toddler standing up in her crib, her stuffed raccoon held tightly to her chest. When she saw Hotch she smiled and held her arms out to him.

Hotch smiled at the little blonde as he reached to pick her up, placing a kiss on her forehead as he lifted her into his arms.

"Hey angel, what do you say we get you changed and then get you some breakfast" he said talking to the girl as he laid her on the changing table to get her cleaned up

"Mama?" she questioned as she looked up at him with big blue eyes

He sighed as he looked down at the small toddler, "Your mama's are still gone angel, but you get to spend some quality time with all your uncles, and your Grandpa Dave"

"I heard that Aaron"

Hotch turned towards the doorway to find Rossi standing there dressed in jeans and white button up shirt.

"Well, come on Dave, could you ask for a more beautiful granddaughter?"

Rossi shook his head, "Nope I don't think I could"

The older man walked towards them just as Hotch finished changing her. Penny squealed when she saw the older man before throwing her arms up towards him.

"I just can't say no to you little heartbreaker" Rossi said as he scooped the little blonde up into his arms and kissing her cheek

Penny giggled before rubbing her cheek with her hand and turning away from him.

"Oh I see how it is" he said with a smile

Hotch grinned at the two as he said, "Well Dave not all women like the facial hair"

"Haha, very funny Aaron" Rossi said sarcastically as the two men made their way out of the bedroom and down the stairs for some breakfast.

The next couple of days went by fairly fast. Hotch and Rossi got the downstairs bed made up for Emily, planning on putting her there when she was released. Then they got another bed made up in the living area just outside that bedroom, where they would put Reid. They figured JJ would most likely insist on being upstairs in the bedroom adjacent to the boys, even though they didn't think she should be going up and down the stairs quite yet. But they decided even if she needed to stay downstairs the first few nights they could set up another bed in the living area next to Reid's. As much as the two women would probably fight it, they both knew they wouldn't be able to share a bed for awhile due to their injuries, specifically Emily's.

JJ was finally released from the hospital and she spent the first couple of nights in the bedroom downstairs. Jack refused to leave Ethan's side, so he and Hotch stayed at the house at night as well. The boys were all waking up more often with nightmares, but Rossi, Hotch, and Morgan would all come to their rescue.

Finally at the end of the week Emily was released and a few days after that Reid was finally released. The men got Emily set up in the downstairs bedroom and the first couple of nights she was there JJ slept in the bed in the living room, just outside her wife's room, just in case she needed anything. The boys were extremely happy that both of their mothers were home and careful hugs were exchanged all around. However, everyone noticed the way Emily distanced herself, not only from JJ and the team, but also the kids.

When Reid arrived, JJ did insist on being upstairs closer to the boys. She knew Emily was distancing herself but she also knew the boys needed her. The first night she slept in the room adjacent to the boys, was also the first night that Hotch and Jack didn't stay the night, so she figured Ethan might come and join her sometime during the night. However, the next morning she didn't have anyone else in bed with her, so she got up and snuck inside the boys' room. She found Declan asleep in his bed, but when she looked over at the other two, she saw Ethan asleep on his back with Henry curled into his side, the blonde's head on Ethan's shoulder, and his little arm thrown across his brother's chest.

JJ sighed as she looked at her boys. Their family was so broken now, on a level that she didn't know they would ever overcome. She closed her eyes and said a silent prayer that they would all make it through this tragedy and still be able to be one solid family.

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed it. Sorry if it seems rushed towards the end. My advice to all is to not stop a story and try to finish it nearly 6 months later. Your mind doesn't remember everything you had planned for it, lol. Anyways I will be doing a follow up story at some point, but no idea when that will happen.