Sick

Emily sighed as she saw JJ blink slowly as if to clear her head. She moved slowly towards the obviously sick woman, noting the beads of sweat beginning to form on her hairline, her cheeks flushed even though she was shivering. "Do you want me to call Reid and Tara back here to finish this up?"

Emily's voice sounded distant to JJ's ears, her oncoming illness creating a fog in her mind. JJ took a deep breath and swallowed hesitantly before plastering a small smile upon her face.

"No, I should be able to keep my stomach contents down for another 30 minutes, right?" They both winced internally at the doubt thinly lacing JJ's voice at the question. Although it was rhetorical, Emily still felt the need to answer.

"Oh, I don't know...after eating Chinese food? I'd say you'd be lucky to last another 15." JJ chuckled, and groaned as it caused a flurry of sensations in her stomach. She hadn't felt this sick in a while, not since Henry had caught something at school a few months ago, and in turn he had given it to JJ. Her mind was cloudy once more as she began to stand, the 'I'm fine Emily' dying on her lips as her dizziness took over. Emily moved with lightning speed and caught JJ in her arms as she stumbled, cradling the feverish woman's head to her chest, germs be damned.

"Jennifer, we can handle it if you need to rest. Don't let your health suffer because of your stubbornness, please." Emily whispered the last word into JJ's temple, and JJ's resolve was almost broken. Almost. But one look into Emily's soft brown eyes and JJ was gone. Laying her head back down on Emily's chest JJ gave a subtle, almost imperceptible nod and Emily sat them back down, bringing her phone out and laying a soft kiss to JJ's temple. JJ's mind began to wander, Emily's orderly and concise voice growing distant once more.

She thought back to their first meeting; how soft and genteel Emily had looked, her eyes young and bright. Had she been a fully trained profiler then, she would have picked up on the flickers of pain that happened routinely in her eyes. How her wide smile just failed to reach those eyes as they shook hands, a brief giving of names before a case whirled them away.

They had watched each other grow mentally and emotionally, with JJ knocking Emily's walls down and opening compartments Emily thought were well sealed. In return, Emily had been a rock to lean on when a case became too much and a light-hearted relief in the field with her humour. They had supported each other through life and death, travelled around the world in a heartbeat in order to save each other from the monsters that had resurfaced in each other's lives. Not to mention what happened in Paris.

Emily had supported JJ through her divorce, being a sounding board for JJ's concerns regarding Henry and Michael. Will and JJ had ended on better terms than most, both recognising that they had simply fallen out of love and into routine. They each wanted the other to be happy, and were mature enough to recognise that they would potentially find it if they let each other go. JJ in return had supported Emily through her breakup with Andrew, their schedules and commitments simply becoming too straining on the relationship. There was no bad blood between them, but it had still stung. Emily had helped JJ through her confusion over hearing Will had found someone else; why didn't she feel jealous or upset? Emily had suggested that she was supportive because while she loved him, she just wasn't in love anymore. And she was right. It felt right, Will dating the doctor that had patched him up more than once, the doctor returning his affection just as frequently.

It felt as right as when JJ had leaned over and kissed Emily for the first time. The nervousness that had thrummed through her body at that point had remained unmatched. Their gazes matched and the entirety of their life together seemed to flash before them; the fleeting glances, the unspoken declarations, the other relationships in a subconscious refusal to give in to each other...it all added up, all condensed into this final moment. The world had tilted back on its axis when their lips had met, and an unspoken question coursed through the both of them as they held each other close; what the hell had taken them so long?

"Don't worry about her, just finish up the interview and get back here as fast as possible. I'll call Garcia and see if she's found anything else on Rogers that we can use to narrow down his victim pool. Okay, thanks Tara." Emily's voice quieted down at the end of her sentence when she felt JJ flinch in slight discomfort at the noise, the illness really starting to get to her as she sweat through her shirt.

Here they were, JJ cradled in Emily's strong yet gentle hold as she looked through case files, trying to narrow down the geographic profile and awaiting the return of Reid and Tara. Emily's spare hand absentmindedly stroked the inside of JJ's left wrist, the invisible "blackbird" tattoo resting there in soft cursive, the depths of the message only known to the too, as well as the tattoo's existence itself. Emily shifted so JJ was lying down more, her head resting on Emily's thighs, and JJ sighed serenely.

She was sick, but nothing made her soul heal quicker than Emily.