Name: The Heroine

Summary: "Above All, be the heroine of your life, not the victim" - Nora Ephron. 4 times Emily Prentiss rescued herself from Ian Doyle and 1 time she didn't - a series of AU one shots.

Author: FreeWrite

Disclaimer: I don't own CM or any associated characters, I'm just having a little play.

AN: This didn't start as a 5 things... it actually started as just a one shot AU from "Lauren" which branched out as I wrote it. Each story is self contained and ranges from 200 to 6000 words. Yes I am aware that there are some minor canonical inconsistencies, particularly with Emily's age. This is not a mistake, but a choice. For those who don't catch it Italics are flash backs, bold is text messaging.

Feedback is welcome, flames will be used to warm my cold and bitter soul.

WARNING: This story contains non-graphic rape and mentions of torture. If this is not your cup of hot beverage please stop reading now.

SEVEN

They watched as she crossed the road at a low run. Without hesitation she tossed something through an open window and crouched down protecting her ears, seconds later there was a flash and smoke billowed out. She moved with an unexpected confidence and handled the automatic weapon as though it was part of her. None of the team had ever seen this side of Emily Prentiss, Rossi realised quickly that they weren't watching their friend and co-worker. They were watching Lauren Reynolds, arms dealer.

They found the secret she was really protecting and with that the warehouse, but they were too late. They missed them by maybe an hour.

Blood and hair proved he had held Emily there but where Ian had taken her after that they didn't know.

Weeks turned into months and though the odd sighting of Doyle was reported no solid leads were found. They had no idea where he was holding Emily or if she was even alive.

They might never know.

At first no one paid attention to the slim brunette walking slowly along the outskirts of Halifax North Carolina. It wasn't until they got close enough to see past the curtain of dirty black hair that they noticed the bruised cheek, left eye nearly swollen shut, split lip, dried blood in streaks down her arms and the mid-autumn sunlight reflecting off the glock in her hand.

He was shopping with his family when he felt a hand weakly grip his bicep. Turning he came face to face with the woman, her glock was raised and pointed at his forehead. She studied his features intently before confusion crossed her battered face, their eyes met and he could see the doubt and fear as some type of realisation set in.

"You're not Hotch" she lowered the gun and walked away.

All he would be able to tell the police is that she went north. They found no sign of her.

6 days later another man told the same story to the Stony Creek Virginia Sheriff.

Then Petersburg, Ashland and Bowling Green.

The resemblance the men shared was not lost as the various departments tried to track the woman, they were all over 6 ft., dark hair and dark eyes. She was never violent and she never said anything except those same three words "you're not Hotch". None of the men knew what she meant or who she was looking for and none of the men could recall seeing her before.

Finally 10 days after the sighting in Bowling Green one of the Fredricksburg police recognised her as she approached a man in a diner. It didn't go the way they hoped, they ended up in a standoff when the woman barricaded herself in the kitchen with the diners staff.

When they finally got an open line she made one demand "Get Aaron Hotchner".

When Chief Strauss received the call she listened intently taking notes before asking for the files to be sent for her eyes only.

10 minutes later she was looking at the crime scene photos taken by the Rocky Mount PD a week earlier. A truck had been abandoned north of the city, highway patrol had searched the truck to try find out who the driver was only to discover his decomposing body in the back. The man had been in what appeared to be a viscous fight before being choked to death, ME estimated he'd been dead for over 2 weeks.

It wasn't the only thing they found. The sleeper section had been converted into a prison and based on the forensic evidence someone had been held against their will. The local police had found prints, hair and multiple different types of bodily fluids. The results of the DNA and fingerprints had been flagged months before for her immediate notification.

Ian Doyle was dead and for the first time in 7 months they had a solid lead on the whereabouts of Emily Prentiss.

The Fredricksburg Police did not want to call in the Fed's. As far as they were concerned they could handle one crazy woman without help.

Then they realised that while this woman had been caught on many different security camera's they didn't have a clear shot of her face. She seemed to have an uncanny knack for keeping her face hidden. They didn't have a name, or anyway to identify where she actually came from. She had refused all their attempts to communicate beyond wanting to speak with Aaron Hotchner.

She wasn't frantically pacing the diner or threatening anyone. There was no yelling or manic muttering about escape. She had quietly herded her hostages into the kitchen directing them to what seemed to be random places before wedging herself in a protected corner. The police quickly realised that from her position she could only be approached from the front. The placement of the 5 hostages had been incredibly precise as no matter what angle they looked from they couldn't get a clear shot at her.

They knew she had been first spotted in North Carolina and had covered at least 150 miles on foot. The final straw was when one of their rookies pointed out the resemblance each of the men who had submitted reports had to Agent Aaron Hotchner of the FBI that the Chief gave in a called the Bureau.

Chief Strauss was contemplating Ian Doyle's autopsy report when the call came in for help in Fredricksburg.

Once again she asked for the file to be sent to her, she skimmed the details and called David Rossi to her office.

"I just received a request for help from the Fredricksburg PD with a hostage situation. 4 hours ago a woman walked into a diner and took 5 people hostage. The local police tried to negotiate, she's made a single demand and has refused all other attempts to communicate."

Rossi's eyebrow rose slightly "What does she want?"

"Aaron Hotchner."

At that moment Hotch was seated in an interview room in Oregon state prison waiting to meet with a serial rapist his team had caught the year before.

When he received Strauss' call he would leave before the interview even started.

Erin handed over both files and watched as Dave quickly thumbed through them. She knew the moment he came across the composite sketches of the woman as his breath hitched in his throat. Meeting his eyes she uttered "Go". When her office door closed behind him she placed a call to the Director.

On his way down to the bullpen Rossi quickly decided not to show the others the sketches of the woman. They didn't need the distraction and they didn't need the false hope.

The 30 minute drive felt interminably long to Rossi, he gave them the basics. Told them what Strauss had told him without showing them the sketches. Morgan was the first to throw out the stalker theory which was rebutted quickly by JJ's observation around the woman's physical condition. Possibly a former victim that Hotch had saved. As expected Reid rattled off the stats around both stalkers and re-victimisation while Blake remained quiet on the subject. She wasn't yet comfortable enough with the team to interrupt the rapid fire back and forth without waiting for everyone else to drop into silence. Rossi knew none of them would get close without seeing the sketches and knowing about Doyle's death.

He had his own theories, Emily Prentiss was a professional at compartmentalisation but 7 months as a captive of Ian Doyle would have stripped her defenses and sense of self piece by piece and brought everything she locked away to the surface. Even if only sub-consciously Rossi knew she would be looking for somewhere safe to heal and put herself back together. Hotch was their leader, he would rally the rest of the team into a solid wall of protection around her. Rossi wouldn't be surprised if Emily was relying solely on instinct, get to Hotch, Hotch would bring the team and the team would protect her.

He shivered slightly in the cool October breeze as they stepped out of the car, the glares they received from the local PD were easily ignored. There had been no change in the situation. The woman still refused to speak with them.

"It's strange though" the police chief scratched his head "she's left them pretty much alone, hasn't made a single threatening move in hours. She's allowed them water and bathroom breaks as well. To be honest I'm not sure she'd notice if they just up and walked out."

"Any luck on an ID yet?" Morgan asked

"None, we've tracked her back to Halifax but nothing before that." he handed over the copies of the various police reports.

"Get me a line" Rossi stated and turned his back on the rest of the team not wanting to see their faces when they got to the sketches.

He could just see one of the male hostages pick up the ringing phone.

"Is this Hotch?" a trembling but unfamiliar voice came over the line.

"Tell her Hotch is in Oregon and you're speaking with Supervisory Special Agent David Rossi of the FBI. Can you tell me who are you speaking for?"

He waited as the information was relayed, if he was right then he would be asked to prove who he was. If he was wrong the phone call would be terminated from inside the diner.

He heard a muffled voice in the background speaking too softly for him to hear.

"She said Rossi would know about Rome."

Rossi felt as though someone had punched him right in the solar plexus. He could feel the rest of the team's gaze burning through him, reaching to the file in front of him he pulled out the report from Rocky Mount he'd held back and handed them to Morgan. With the team kept busy he gathered his courage and spoke.

"Can you put the phone on speaker?" he asked

Receiving an affirmative he counted to 10 before starting to speak.

"You were 15 when your Mom was posted there. You did what you thought you had to for acceptance. When it all fell apart Matthew found you a Doctor and was with you every step of the way, he held your hand and told you to keep your head held high. You told me he saved your life and made you feel worthy of love and friendship." JJ stepped up next to him "but that's when his anger and questioning of the church started, combined with the drug abuse you weren't surprised when his parents thought he was possessed."

He could hear Morgan trying to condense 4 years undercover, 4 years in the BAU and 7 months missing into a few short sentences. On the other end of the line he could hear quiet breathing.

"Emily…" Rossi knew all the right buttons to push. While unofficially the team didn't actively profile each other they all knew what to say to get to each other, Emily's pressure points would be right on the surface and ready to push "let everyone else come out so I can take you home."

JJ gently tapped his forearm before holding her hand out for the phone. He held up his hand to stop her.

"Emily?"

His eyes were glued to the front doors of the diner. After 30 seconds of silence he heard a quiet "go" then footsteps moving quickly across the tiled floor. Muting the phone he called over his shoulder "Hostages are being released". Moments later 5 people could be seen rushing towards the doors. The locals surged forward and guided them off to the waiting paramedics.

"Emily, I'm going to put JJ on the line then I'm coming in."

Muting the phone he turned to JJ "Talk to her about something the two of you did together. Girls nights, case discussion, gossip, anything to keep her focused on us and the fact that she's safe with us."

"Em its JJ… do you remember the time a guy tried to pick you up by pretending to be an agent?"

Rossi turned to the police chief "Morgan gave you the basics?"

"Yeah, she's a Fed who went missing last March while tracking an arms dealer."

"Good, I'm going in there. When I bring her out do not rush her or crowd her. Make sure the paramedics know the only hospital they will be taking her to is Bethesda and either myself or our Unit Chief will be riding with her." he turned to Morgan "Update Strauss and get an ETA on Hotch. If I can't get her out of there straight away then we'll either be waiting for Hotch or sedating her" he walked over to the paramedics muttering under his breath "or both".

Having overheard the muttering the chief looked questioningly at Morgan "Think about the stubbornest member of your command and then triple it" The Chief looked skeptical "Prentiss once spent 36 hours straight lying in underbrush in Maine when a suspect returned unexpectedly. We couldn't get in and she couldn't get out. 36 hours without food, water or sleep and at the end she took out the unsub, did the debrief, comforted a traumatised child all while proclaiming loudly that she was fine. It wasn't until everything calmed down that she passed out right at my feet. She's stubborn to the point that they call it 'getting your Prentiss on' back at Quantico."

Rossi was approaching the front doors to the diner, JJ was still telling stories about various girls' nights the two of them had been on with Garcia, Reid and Blake were simply standing there watching it all. He knew the others would have all come to the same conclusion as he had about Emily's state of mind and unless they seriously disagreed with his course of action they would leave him to continue talking her down from this precipice.

Rossi didn't hesitate at the doors, pushing them open he strode through confident in the knowledge that Emily wouldn't shoot him on sight.

As the doors clicked closed behind him he slowed his pace slightly listening to the diner around him. JJs voice still echoed through the phone "she held up the smallest bag and said that one was for Kevin…"

His footsteps echoed quietly as he made his way to the rear of the diner and into the kitchen. At first glance she was nowhere to be seen but he'd been expecting that. With a second sweep his gaze landed on a pair of bare feet sticking out from the other side of the heavy duty fridge, caked with mud and blood it gave him a snap insight into her overall physical condition. With slow and sure steps he continued towards her

"…never did tell me exactly what you got up to that night in Vegas"

He kept his eyes trained on her, cataloguing every mark that was revealed with his steps until she was fully in view, he'd seen her battered and bruised in the past, defiant in the face of men who tried to beat her down and no matter how bad it was she always pulled herself back up. Occasionally she even accepted a helping hand from the team.

I can take it

Her eyes were open, staring straight at him but there was a dullness he had seen on too many people. Victims that he's never sure if they saved just in time or just too damn late.

"Hey kiddo"

In the background JJ's rambling trailed off as they both waited for Emily to respond. When she didn't he continued on.

"You're not looking too good" her eyes snapped up to meet his and there was a brief flicker of irritation so he continued speaking "that's ok though, we'll get you a shower and some clean clothes and you'll be good as new" they both knew it was a lie but at that moment it was one he was willing to tell and she was willing to believe.

"Rossi?" she squinted through her good eye.

"Yeah kid?"

"I'm tired"

"Well, considering you just about walked the length of Virginia that's not surprising." he gestured the spot beside her "May I?".

She considered his request, sub-consciously Emily knew it shouldn't be this hard to make a decision on whether a friend could sit down next to her or not but it was getting harder to focus on anything. Rossi was blurry around the edges and his voice had taken on a strange echoing quality. Making decisions was getting harder and harder, the words blood loss and dehydration flittered across her mind but she couldn't even work out exactly what they meant.

The question Rossi asked had wandered just out of her reach so she simply nodded and hoped that was the correct response, it must have been because a sad smile graced his face as he slid down to sit next to her.

"Rossi?" Emily let her head loll to rest on his shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"Have you ever heard the phrase dubious consent?" Shuffling slightly he slipped his left arm around her shoulder and pulled her close so her ear rested on his heart. His concern jumped up another notch, the heat emanating from her entirely too thin body was way too high.

"I have and every time someone has said it to me I tell them the exact same thing. There's no such thing, sex is either consensual or non-consensual. If there's anything even remotely dubious about the consent then it's not valid" he felt her start to relax.

"I was recruited straight out of the academy for JTF-12, I'd topped my class in undercover and infiltration. That combined with my looks and language skills they figured I could slip into Doyle's inner circle easier than a man. I spent nearly 2 years building up Lauren Reynolds reputation, making sure her name was already being whispered about before making a play for Doyle and he fell right for it."

Rossi could hear her speech starting to slur and her body was leaning heavier into his.

Maybe he wouldn't have to sedate her after all.

"The first time I fucked him I felt so dirty... like I'd sold my body for a gun but after a while it got easier. I always wondered..." her voice trailed off.

"Did Lauren's consent mean Emily had given hers as well?" David asked quietly.

She either wouldn't or couldn't answer so the room dropped into silence until Derek's voice came quietly in his ear piece.

"I just spoke to Hotch, he's on the jet now but he said not to wait for him. Just sedate her and get her to Bethesda, he'll meet us there."

"Tsia called it dubious consent. Consent was given but not meant" she slurred. "I knew going in..."

Looking down Rossi could see her eyes had drifted shut but her face and shoulders still had the tension of wakefulness. How many times had they done this for each other after a bad case? They all had days where they couldn't relax until they were surrounded and protected by the rest of the team.

"You're safe now princess" he whispered in her ear "I'm not moving from your side, Hotch is on his way, Derek, JJ and Reid are guarding the doors. You can sleep now."

Ever so slowly over the next 10 minutes, her breathing evened out into a regular rhythm and some of the pain and fear receded from her face. Once Rossi was sure she was completely out he gently removed the glock from her lap, flicked the safety on, ejected the clip and slid it into his pocket.

"JJ, can you please bring one of the paramedics in. Move slowly and quietly, she's asleep but not sedated." He whispered through the comm. Given how much trust she was placing in him he was hesitant to do anything to breach it. Now that she was relaxed and disarmed there shouldn't be any reason for her to be medicated beyond pain management.

Except...

They would need to strap her down for the ambulance trip to Bethesda which would no doubt result in panic on Emily's part if she woke up in transit. The scarring on her wrists and ankles attested to months of being restrained and based on the crime scene report she had been kept in a moving vehicle.

They would definitely be sedating her for the ambulance ride.

Hotch didn't fiddle, tap, wriggle, squirm or pace. He was reserved by nature but at this moment it was taking all of his considerable self-control to remain still.

Regular updates had been coming through from the team, but it wasn't the same as being there in person.

10 minutes before Reid had confirmed that Emily was sedated and on her way to Bethesda with Dave accompanying her in the ambulance, and JJ and himself following behind them. Morgan had stayed behind with Blake to finish the clean-up.

Strauss had organised for additional agents to meet them at Bethesda for security. She had been thoughtful enough to make sure they were all agents Emily knew well enough to identify on sight. She was also politically savvy enough to know Ambassador Prentiss would be incredibly unhappy if the FBI lost her daughter again. The Ambassador had made things very uncomfortable for the higher ups when it got out that Jeremy Wolff had sold out the rest of the team.

Which reminded him... Hotch picked up his phone and quickly sent a text to Clyde Easter.

Doyle dead. E alive - en route Bethesda, will send update soon

Hotch knew that man felt responsible for Wolff's betrayal and had spent the last 7 months tracking down every single person Wolff had worked with to warn them. He also knew that Easter would be getting on the first flight he could to Washington.

Looking down at his watch, Hotch let out a quiet breath.

2 more hours until they landed.

Rossi stood quietly in the corner of the room watching the Doctors intently as they assessed Emily. As promised he stood silently and allowed them to work without interruptions, he listened closely jotting down questions to ask the attending physician about her condition and treatment. At first the scars and bruises peppering her arms and legs weren't visible but then as one of the nurses started to wash the blood and dirt off the surface damage was evident. He refused to flinch away as her clothes were cut off her body to reveal an emaciated wreak of once had been a fit and healthy body, nor did he let himself cry when they found the infection site and it's cause. There would be time for that later. Glancing down at his watch he was surprised to find that 4 hours had passed by as the medical team started the long process of putting his friend back together.

"Agent Rossi?" One of the nurses approached him.

"Yeah"

"We're taking her up for an MRI on her knee, we're worried about the amount of damage we saw on the x-ray and we're also going to check her skull just to be sure the x-ray didn't miss anything, we've let radiology know you'll be escorting Agent Prentiss. After that's done we'll get her settled into a private room and her Doctor will talk to you about everything."

"Thank you" Rossi smiled tightly "is someone able to update the rest of the team?"

"Agent Hotchner?"

Hotch's head shot up at the sound of his name being called. Standing at the same time as the rest of the team he stepped forward and identified himself.

"Agent Rossi asked me to let you know Agent Prentiss is currently stable and up in radiology, we should have her settled into a room within the hour. Someone will come and get you then."

Hotch nodded his thanks to the Nurse and turned to relay the information back to the rest of the team.

Alex Blake stood back from the rest of the team and watched. She wondered if they knew the chances of Emily ever being fit for duty again were slim. She'd seen many strong women and men never recover from an experience like this. Allowing her gaze to flit over the rest of the team she assessed them one at a time.

Hotch was already prepared for the worst, Morgan and JJ we're hopeful but pragmatic. Reid and Garcia still believed their friend would come out of this intact.

Hotch hadn't moved from his seat in between the bed and the door since sending the rest of the team home earlier the previous evening. Rossi of course had promptly sat down on the other side of the bed and refused to move stating he had made a promise. He knew though the others had left the room they would still be in the hospital. It wouldn't surprise him to find them standing guard outside the room.

The Doctor had given them a run down on her condition and as Hotch catalogued her injuries in his mind a vivid image of how each of them had been inflicted flashed through his mind.

A knee that had been dislocated enough times that her ACL, MCL and Meniscus had all been torn to shreds. An orthopedic surgeon was being consulted but the attending stated he wouldn't be surprised if she never regained full use of her knee even with a complete replacement.

Seven separate four leaf clovers had been branded into her chest and back. 1 for each year Doyle spent in prison.

The bottom of her feet were in shreds from walking as far as she did without shoes.

She was hovering right at the edge of clinical starvation. According to the Doctor she most likely hadn't been starved during her time with Doyle but they didn't think she had eaten since escaping.

Sometime in the 3 weeks between escaping and arriving in Fredricksburg she'd had a miscarriage. A small piece of placenta had been retained which was what caused the infection her body was in no condition to fight. They would do their best to help her along but the Doctor wasn't sure if she had enough fight left in her to get past this. Hotch couldn't banish the image of her alone, bleeding and in pain.

With the sedation wearing off both Hotch and Rossi knew that her waking would be traumatic for all involved. If they could keep enough control to stop the medical staff from either sedating or restraining her that would be a win.

Out of the corner of his eye, Hotch caught a movement in the doorway. He turned his head in time to see Elizabeth Prentiss step through.

The Ambassador didn't say anything merely watched her daughter for a few moments before turning her gaze to Hotch, their eyes met, she nodded once and then turned and walked away.

Hotch wouldn't be surprised if The Ambassador didn't see Emily again for months.

On the other side of the room Dave shook his head sadly. It would be up to them to get Emily through this.