Emily's hands shook as she approached the podium, her heart thundering in her chest like a young filly trying to take home the Kentucky Derby trophy. She just needed to get this out, she needed to tell the judge to keep Reece in jail for as long as possible. Just one more hurdle to jump and it would all be over, she'd be free of all of this. Emily swallowed and her eyes briefly drifted to Reece, who was sitting at the defense table, looking far less cocky than he had the previous few days. His eyes burned into hers though, radiating hurt and sadness, but Emily looked away.

She cleared her throat and looked up at the judge. "Your honor," she greeted, nearly cringing at how loud her voice sounded in the painfully quiet courtroom. "I've been told by friends that I don't trust easily. I was raised by a career politician and moved around the world on what was practically a biannual basis, so I never really learned how to trust people. Then I began a career in intelligence and as you can imagine, I adapted easily to the constant state of paranoia and inability to trust anyone. I didn't really learn to trust until I began to work with my team at the FBI, and even still it didn't come naturally, it still doesn't. But I came to trust Reece. I believed that he loved me and that felt really good for a while. Then he started to tell me that I was worthless and damaged, and I believed him, so when he hit me, I figured that I deserved it. That he was just angry and frustrated, and it wasn't a big deal. And I've had far worse, so the physical pain wasn't anything that I couldn't handle. It got worse and kept getting worse, and I began to feel...broken. I didn't recognize myself anymore, and I still loved him and I hated myself for that. So, when I finally did leave him, I came to to D.C., because I knew my family could make me feel like myself again." Emily paused for a moment, and took a deep breath, swallowing down her emotion and collecting herself.

When she spoke again, she spoke of the events that occurred in D.C., the text stalking, the failure of a date, and ultimately the burning. She described in detail the pain, the fear, and the months of intensive medical care that followed. She talked about finally achieving a full range of motion after physical therapy. "And you'd think this nightmare would end there, but it hasn't," she said. "There are consequences that even I'm still learning...As you're aware, I've been seeing Agent Morgan, my former partner from when I was with the Bureau. He's a good man, one of the best I've ever met. But I still tense up every time he touches me, and it takes me a minute to relax. He's aware of that and tries not to take offense. But what I haven't told him, what I haven't been able to bring myself to tell him, because I know how much it will hurt him, is that whenever his hands move near me, especially quick motions, it takes every ounce of self-control I have not to back away. Because I'm stilling waiting for that hand to hit me, or grab my arm and twist it, and push me against a wall. And that's ridiculous, because Derek would never do that, not to me, not to any woman, and I know that, but I'm still always waiting. Waiting for the moment it all turns ugly, for the morning when I wake up and don't recognize him anymore. And I'm afraid that I'll always be waiting for that moment, for that hand to come down on me. So, even if you give him the maximum, even if he actually serves the whole sentence, it will still only be a fraction of mine. I will have scars for the rest of my life, as constant reminders of what he put me through, and I can only hope that the nightmares that leave me barely able to breathe with the sound of my own voice shrieking in agony still echoing in my head don't last the rest of my life. And I can only hope for the day I'm no longer waiting, waiting for the day Derek reaches out to me and instinct doesn't tell me to back away."

Emily swallowed and without looking at anyone, she hurried back to her seat. Derek got up and walked to the podium. She watched him swallow and opened his mouth, but nothing came out. For a full minute, he stood silent. When he opened his mouth again and inhaled, the breath shook all the way down to his chest. "Excuse me," he said, his voice cracking.

He walked back to where they all sat, and gestured a startled JJ to go up instead. When Derek didn't reach for her hand, Emily reached for his and after a moment of hesitation, he took it. She could tell that he was still trying to keep himself together, though whether he wanted to cry or scream or jump over the defense table and beat Reece into a fine puree, she wasn't sure. Probably all of the above.

JJ hadn't planned to speak, but she walked up and began to speak, finding her story after a few minutes of rambling. She spoke of how Reece's actions had hurt their whole family. How it pained them, and upset their kids when they saw Aunt Emily on the news and didn't really understand why her boyfriend hurt her. She spoke passionately, her voice cracking now and again, as she asked the judge to put Reece away and allow their family time to heal.

After she finished, it was Rossi's turn. He spoke of their little family as well, but then detoured to discussing the abuse cases he'd seen during his career. He talked of the damage domestic violence caused and the strength and courage a person needed to walk away from it all. And he talked about Emily. His voice was calm and soothing in that way David Rossi had, as he spoke plainly and in a manner that allowed for no argument. This was the way it was, he wasn't embellishing or using hyperbole, he didn't need to, because every word was true. "Emily's sense of compassion always extended far beyond the victims and their families to people that most would look at with disdain or disgust. And many of those injuries that Ms. Fisher listed on cross resulted, because Emily has a very long history of putting herself in harm's way to protect others, including myself and every person in that row of people." He gestured to their row, where their BAU family sat, determined to show their support. "And now it's Emily's turn to be shown compassion and to be protected by this court."

He gave her a squeeze on her shoulder as he shuffled back to his seat. Then Reece got up to speak. He spoke of how much he loved Emily, how he never meant to hurt her and how his setting her on fire was just a moment of insanity from his grief at losing her. "So I beg you, your honor, to show me compassion and mercy when you consider sentencing."

And that was it, the hearing was over. The judge recessed the court for lunch, stating that he'd have a decision after lunch, banged his gavel and disappeared back to his chambers. They all stood and looked at each other, Emily still joined to Derek by the hand. Reid spoke first. "There's a luncheonette a few blocks away from here."

There were nods and murmurs of agreement, except for Emily who was staring into space and Morgan who was staring at her. "You're not hungry?" He asked.

She turned to him. "Not really up to eating."

"Me neither. Walk?" She nodded her head and Derek turned to the rest of the group. "We're not really up for eating, so we're going for a walk. We'll meet you all back here later."

Then the walked out of the courthouse hand in hand and with no particular direction in mind. When they got to a park, with kids running around laughing and yelling, they stopped and sat together on a bench. After a few minutes of silently watching the children play, Emily inhaled. "Derek, what I said in court-"

"No, it's okay, you don't have to explain. You don't have to talk, just sit and relax before we have to go back in there, okay?" He was looking at her with his beautiful brown eyes filled with compassion and love, so she nodded.

"Thank you." Then she slid closer to him and let her head rest on his shoulder. Morgan released her hand, moving his arm behind her, so he could curl it around her, neither of them saying anything as she tensed at the movement and touch. Neither spoke when she finally began to relax or when he took his other hand and intertwined their fingers together. They just sat, enjoying the sunshine and high-pitched kid voices floating through the air.

But it was over too soon. And they marched back to the courthouse, once again hand in hand, and both tried to be calm, to pretend the judge's decision didn't matter. But their hands clenched tightly together showed that they'd already failed.

They got back to the courthouse before the team, but only by minutes. JJ slid in beside her, taking Emily's other hand, and Garcia sat by Derek, the rest filling in on either side. Then the judge called the court to session, and Emily's stomach flipped over.

"Mr. Walters," the judge began, Reece and Fisher still standing and both focused intently on the judge. "I've been on the bench for twenty years and was a defense attorney for another ten years before that. It's rare for me to experience revulsion these days, but congratulations, you've accomplished that. Now, I can't base my sentencing decision solely on that factor, instead I've chosen to base it on your actions. Mr. Walters, you've shown no signs of remorse for the pain and distress you've cause Ms. Prentiss. You pursued her across an ocean. You tried to kill her." He picked up a stack of photographs, tossing them down roughly as he spoke. "And before you tried to kill her, you did all this. You battered her emotionally, you physically abused her, and sexually assaulted her, then chased her to the US so you could drag her back to London to continue your torment. You taunted her via email, you harassed her via text and stalked her around the city. It is these actions on which I have based my sentencing recommendation, and I feel confident that my recommendation is appropriate. Mr. Walters, I am sentencing you to the maximum for each count of the indictment, to be served consecutively at Hazelton Penitentiary in West Virginia. That's 30 years and 180 days, Mr. Walters; though you will be eligible for parole after serving 15 years. Court dismissed." He slammed the gavel and once again disappeared back to his chambers.

Everyone was suddenly standing up, hugging each other and practically bubbling with joy. Emily felt numb. She looked toward Reece, seeing only flashes of him between moving bodies. He looked furious as the court security officers cuffed him and hauled him off, back to the DC jail to await transport to his new home for at least the next fifteen years. When Emily finally pushed herself up, she was slightly shaky, her body uncertain as to how to process everything now that it was all over, how to process the knowledge that she was actually safe. That Reece couldn't hurt her anymore. Her stomach turned violently once again.

JJ smiled and went to hug her, but she held up a hand. "I..." she struggled to swallow back her nausea. "I think..." she tried again and failed. "Oh god," she said, slapping a hand over her mouth and rushing out of the courtroom.

She landed hard on her knees in the bathroom stall seconds before her stomach lurched and sent her last meal up out of her mouth. Emily heaved twice more before her body allowed her a reprieve. She sat back as a hand rested on her back, tears flooding down her cheeks. She heard footsteps behind them and the rush of water, before a damp paper towel was passed to her. Emily wiped at her mouth and face, but it did little to help as her stomach twisted again and she sat up, vomiting into the toilet again. Her head pounded, her throat burned, and the flood continued pouring from her eyes, but she couldn't seem to make it stop. She'd get a minute reprieve, before another round of vomiting started. It must have gone on for ten minutes, by which point she'd already emptied her stomach and was wracked with painful dry-heaving, before it finally stopped.

Emily didn't move for an additional five minutes. Another damp paper towel was passed her way and the bathroom door opened briefly and closed with the distant sounds of voices. Garcia. She couldn't make out what she said though. Emily didn't realize that JJ was sitting on the floor with her until the blonde passed her a water bottle. Emily rinsed out her mouth, spitting the liquid into the toilet before taking a tiny sip that she swallowed. Two more tiny sips followed before she concluded that she'd had all her miserable stomach could handle, then she passed the bottle back to JJ. Garcia was standing just outside the stall, watching her warily.

"I'm okay," she said, her voice scratchy, as she pushed herself off the floor. JJ got up as well, and the two blondes stood to the side as Emily made her way to the sink. She washed her hands and used another paper towel to wipe off the smeared and streaky eye make-up. She looked pale, her eyes red and swollen, and she felt shaky.

"Take all the time you need," JJ said.

Emily looked around, noting the empty stalls and silent door. "Did you guys commandeer the ladies room?"

They both grinned. Garcia said, "The guys are guarding the door for us."

After a minute, Emily felt well enough to leave the bathroom, at least she felt like she could walk out and not immediately start heaving all over the marble floors of the courthouse.

Morgan, Rossi, Reid, Hotch and Will were all waiting for them outside the door, all five trying to be appear like they weren't as worried as they clearly were. Emily walked right over to Derek and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his neck and just letting the feel of him holding her sooth her. She spoke softly. "I'm sorry if I still smell like vomit."

Derek chuckled. "Don't worry, I don't smell anything...do you still feel sick?"

She sighed. "Yes."

"Alright, why don't we go back to my place so you can lay down for a while?"

Emily nodded but was reluctant to pry herself away from him. She did after a minute, but stayed close to him.

Rossi eyed her. "You think you'll be up to a celebratory dinner later?"

She nodded again. "I think so."

After some chatting about times and plans, they all headed out of the basement exit of the courthouse and into the connected building that housed the DA's office. They used the backdoor exit of the DA's office and managed to avoid the eager press waiting for Emily on the courthouse steps.

Emily nibbled on the toast that Derek had sat in front of her and sipped the ginger tea. It was all slow small bites and tiny sips as she tested her stomach's ability to hold the food. She still felt queasy, but she felt the worst was over. The court had purged Reece from her life and her stomach had purged the bastard and all the related stress from her body. It was almost strange to think that for at least fifteen years, she didn't need to think about him, not once. He was going to be locked up for at least fifteen years.

Derek sat at the table, not saying anything, just waiting in case she needed something else. She reached for his hand as she sipped her tea, and he took it, bringing it up to his mouth and pressing his lips to the back of her palm. "I'm sorry I didn't speak at the sentencing, like I said I would."

Emily put her tea down, frowning. "It's fine, Derek. Don't worry about that."

He shook his head. "I just didn't think I'd be able to hold it together if I tried to speak."

She squeezed the hand that was still joined with hers. "It's not an issue, Derek. Please don't stress about it."

Derek nodded, then looked her straight in the eyes, his swimming with pain. "I hate that you're afraid that I'll hurt you."

Emily put her tea down and turned her chair to face him, her knees rubbing against his thighs. Still holding his hand with one of hers, she rested the other against his cheek. "I'm not afraid of you. I know you won't hurt me, not in any way. I know that in my head, I know that in my heart, but there is this messed-up, irrational part of me that just assumes that any relationship I have will end in disaster, because frankly, my track record offers a tremendous amount of supporting evidence. And there is a messed-up, irrational part of me that is still living with Reece and assumes that every hand is going to hurt me and that every touch is painful. And it would be that way with any guy; in fact it would probably be far worse with any other guy." She paused for a moment. "With you, I'm not as scared."

"I'm glad for that," he said, his voice soft and heavy with emotion.

"But it will probably still take a while for that messed-up, irrational part of me to heal and go away. Can you live with that?" She asked.

"Of course, I can," he said, and pulled her against his body. She felt his lips press against the side of her head.

"Good," she said, her eyes pricking with tears, "because I think I'm in love with you."

Derek suddenly pulled away, his wide, surprised eyes searching hers. She stared at him anxiously as his eyes grew wet as well, then his mouth was suddenly pressing into hers and he was pulling her onto his lap. She clung to him, kissing him back, tensing only for seconds when his hands began to run up and down her back. Then he broke the kiss and pulled away, leaving her feeling slightly dazed. He ran a hand through her hair as he stared at her and said, his voice cracking, "I love you too."

Emily moved off his lap then, and held out her hand. "Lay down with me?"

Derek took her hand and they went upstairs to his bedroom, where Emily stripped down to her panties before grabbing a t-shirt from his dresser drawer and climbing into the bed. Derek was quick to follow, discarding everything but his boxers and sliding in behind her, wrapping his body around hers, and wrapping his arm around her waist.

They laid in silence for several minutes, though neither slept. Emily broke it. "Derek?"

"Yeah?" He pressed his lips to the back of her neck.

"I want a family."

"Kids?"

"Yeah."

"How many?"

"I don't know. Two? I don't want an only child, I want them to be able to support each other."

After he'd been silent for a couple minutes, Emily spoke again "Do you want...?"

He sighed and Emily's stomach ached with it and her eyes began to burn. She felt Derek tightened his arm around her and press his lips into the back of her neck again. "I like the idea of kids, the idea of being a father..."

"But?"

"It scares me," he said. She rested her hand over his, trying to comfort him. She didn't ask what scared him, she already knew he was thinking about every missing, broken and dead child they'd encountered at work and maybe even more so, what it was like to grow up without a father.

He suddenly released her hand and her heart began to beat faster and she tried not to feel like she was losing him. His hand slowly slid the few inches to her lower abdomen and came to rest right over her uterus. It stayed there as he nuzzled against the back of her neck, and then he spoke again, his lips barely inches from her ear. "But with you, I'm not as scared."

The tears built in her eyes and her voice was breathy when she spoke. "I'm glad for that."

"You should rest now," he said, "we've got to celebrate tonight."

And this story is done. Thank you all so much for following along and being patient with updating issues, and thank you all very much for the reviews, alerts, favorites and profiler's choice awards nominations! And thank you Lizzabet for the prompt!