Hotch's Niece | Criminal Minds

Terrify

After the team group hug, Hotch announced that he wanted everyone to try to enjoy the rest of the night, and then we'd set to work on the case in the morning. Despite the fear I still feel in my very soul, I'm glad for the time with the people I care so much about.

And I know I am safe for the time being. Derek is incredible in hand to hand, AND he's been training JJ, so those two are completely badass. Hotch kicks ass, constantly, everybody knows that. Rossi might be up there in age but he's certainly still got it, and rumor has it(according to JJ) Emily has even beaten Morgan in a sparring match. Will's incredible, he has to be to keep up with a woman like JJ. Spencer and Garcia... well, they'd certainly give it their all, win or lose, and that makes me love them even more than I already did.

Above all that, I'm a black belt, so it's not like I can't or wouldn't protect myself. Especially if I were in danger at home, where I have Jack to protect, or out with the team, who I know I couldn't possibly allow any harm to come to, not if I can do something to prevent it. I should be fine... and for right now, I just want to have fun with my team.

"Avery, come play with Henry!" JJ calls, smiling as she bounces her baby on her hip. I giggle and make my way over to the blonde, who is standing in between Spencer, who literally can't keep his eyes off his adorable godson(God, he loves that little boy so much) and Hotch, who is almost cracking a smile, watching Emily play with Jack(they're so gonna get married)(Hotch and Em, not Jack and Emily).

Henry coos at me and allows me to pull him into my arms, away from his adoring mother. I sway softly side to side as he sits comfy on my hip. Looking up, I see Spencer gazing at me with a loving look, and I smile at him. I'm almost scared of how quickly I'm falling for this amazing dork.

The rest of the night passes far too quickly, and before I know it, I'm carrying a sleeping Jack out to the car and buckling him into his carseat. I turn to head back into the house to grab my jacket and tell Hotch I'm ready to go, when I see Morgan and Hotch having a serious discussion on the doorstep. I approach quietly, and since they're very wrapped up in whatever they're doing, they don't see me coming and I catch some of the conversation before they figure out they're being watched.

"Hotch, you know it's the right thing to do." Morgan says.

Hotch shakes his head. "Avery will be perfectly safe in my house."

"Hotch, your house is mostly windows, and in the case of something happening, your first priority will always be Jack. You know that. And from that call, it doesn't sound like you and Jack are in any danger. So it makes the most sense to have her stay somewhere with one entrance and someone whose only concern is keeping her safe. I'd say my place or Emily's would work best, preferably mine. Emily's doesn't have a guest room, and the couch is in front of a wall of windows."

I step on a wobbly stone on the walkway, which clinks, and they see me walking up before Hotch can reply. All of the worry drops from Morgan's face and he breaks into a grin. "Hey, Peanut!" I scowl at the nickname and he laughs.

"Don't do that, Morgan, I heard what you were talking about. Some of it, anyways."

Morgan sighs. "Yeah, I know you did. Your uncle and I were just discussing where the safest place is for you right now, given the circumstances."

I feel fear bubble in my stomach. If the great, extremely well trained Derek Morgan was afraid for my safety, I definitely should be too.

Regardless, I shake it off. I can't have members of the team looking at me like I'm some small child in need of protecting. "I think I'll be okay at home with Hotch. Thank you for caring though." I say, and Derek nods.

"You have your phone, right?" He asks. I roll my eyes and nod at him. Of course I have my phone, I'm still a teenager. He giggles, realizing the stupidity of his question. "Ok, well, before you go to bed, make sure my number is easy for you to get to, just in case. And I only live 7 minutes away from Hotch's house, so I'll be right there if you need me."

I thank Derek and hug him. We say goodnight and he heads out to his car. Hotch heads to the car. "I'm just gonna go thank JJ, I'll be right out." I tell him, and he nods. Slipping back into the house, I find Emily, Rossi, Garcia, Will and Spencer sitting on the couch, each with a beer in their hand(except Rossi, who has a half-empty scotch glass).

"Hey, guys, where's JJ?" I ask.

"Henry cried, she's putting him back down now." Will says. Spencer stands up and wordlessly leads me into the kitchen.

I have some idea of what he's going to say, and so I wait for him to speak before I do. There's a long pause before he says anything.

"I am terrified." Spencer whispers, voice cracking. I nod. There's obviously more that he wants to say, and so I let him take all the time he needs before he speaks. "I am so, so scared that something is going to happen to you. And I know you'll tell me that you'll be fine, that you can handle yourself, but that doesn't stop me from wanting to lock you in a room somewhere safe until we catch this guy. Granted, I know Hotch is probably going to try, but you'll never let that happen."

"I know you're scared, Spencer. I'd be lying if I told you I wasn't scared too. I am. But I can't take this lying down. We'll catch this guy, and I'll be okay. Plus, I've got you, and Derek, Hotch and Rossi. There are plenty of big strong men around." I joke, trying to make him smile.

Spencer chuckles. "Well, you know that JJ could beat any of us in a fight, and she and Emily together could probably take down the entire FBI agency if they put their minds to it."

I laugh. "Maybe, but I think they might need Garcia to hack into the computers."

We laugh again, and then it grows quiet. "You'll be careful, right?" Spencer asks. I nod.

"Yeah, Spence, I'll be fine. And I'll call you right away if I'm not."

Spencer smiles again. "You know, before you, JJ was the only person in the whole world to call me Spence."

I giggle and roll my eyes. "Did you date her too?"

Spencer grows quiet here and shrugs, looking at the floor.

My jaw drops and I bust out laughing. "You and JJ?" I exclaim. Spencer turns bright red.

"No, nononono, nothing like that! I took her out on one date like... a WEEK after meeting her! And it wasn't my idea. Now SHHH, there are people on the team that still don't know that happened, and I'd like to keep it that way." Spencer looks like a tomato.

I wipe away the tears of laughter and try to calm my breathing.

"Alright, Spencer, well, I'm gonna go home now. I'll see you tomorrow." I push up onto my tiptoes and press a quick kiss to his lips.

When I head back out into the living room, JJ is back.

"Hey, JJ! I just wanted to say thanks for inviting us all over tonight." I tell her.

JJ smiles at me, and stands from her place on Will's lap to come and hug me. Everyone gets up at this point, in fact, and hugs me.

We chat for thirty seconds or so and then I wave goodbye and am out the door.

Exhausted, I fall asleep on the way home.

I wake just briefly as I am being placed into my bed, by Uncle Hotch. I groan, and he chuckles softly. "Go back to bed, sweetheart."

Hotch checks that my windows are securely locked and then exits. Before I know it, I've slipped back into a dream world.

Okay, guys, this chapter was pretty much just Avery x Spencer fluff, team fluff and overprotective Hotch/Morgan. I promise though, next chapter is gonna be a big one.