Disclaimer: I own only what I make up. This story is inspired by some scenes in the Hamelin episode.


"Though my soul may be set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light. I have loved the stars too truly to be fearful of the night." —Sarah Williams


After spending her entire adult life in the FBI, Jennifer Alexandra Jareau LaMontagne was no longer the shy girl she had been while growing up in East Allegheny, Pennsylvania. She was older. She was wiser. She was stronger. Overall, JJ was much better than she had been, back then. She was proud of herself on this account.

JJ was also proud of her family. For all the horrors and terrors of the world, she had also seen the wonders and the beauties, too. Like the three people she got to come home to at night. Will, her partner in crime and in life, and Henry and Michael, their joys. Their miracles. She would never have enough words to describe how dearly she loved her husband and her children. JJ was an FBI agent, yes, but she was a wife and mother first. Always.

JJ loved her life, and everything and everyone in it.


But ever since her mother had come for a visit and they'd had their heart-to-heart chat, it was as if a fog had been lifted from her eyes. Hearing Sandy say, "I'm proud of you," had also helped. That, and the road trip to get lobster. JJ was now seeing life in a new way. She loved it.

So did Will. The change in his wife had already inspired him to want to be a better person, too. He had loved JJ from the first day they met, and he would keep loving her until the day he died. That love would remain every day in between. He and JJ had been through more than most people could fathom, but neither of them would change a day about how they had gotten to where they were in the present.

To that end, it wasn't long after Sandy's visit that he and JJ sat down to examine their lives. Everything was perfect.

Henry was remarkably bright, and even in the gifted program at school. He excelled in everything he did. Michael, meanwhile, was constantly on the move and obsessed with anything related to soccer. His biggest recent success was that he now knew how to kick a soccer ball in a straight line without tripping over his feet. He was also a sucker for cuddling whenever an opportunity arose. But at least once a day, he and Henry could be found looking at books together, enjoying each other's company.

The LaMontagne brothers were perfect in their parents' eyes.

But JJ would be remiss to leave Will or herself out of the list of achievers in the family. Both had been promoted at work. He was now a sergeant, and she was officially Emily's partner. Both were in leadership roles. Both were the happiest they'd ever been at their jobs.

The lives of the LaMontagnes were perfect.

But both JJ and Will felt like something was missing. Or… someone.

After a long discussion, they decided to try for one last baby. To round things out. If it didn't work, it didn't work, but they were choosing to remain positive. They were hoping for the last puzzle piece that would make their family whole.

And trying was always fun.

Yes, everything was perfect for JJ. How did she know that one conversation was going to turn it all upside down?


Emily sat at her desk. Different case files were open on it because she and JJ were about to discuss the last legs of paperwork in regard to the team's most recent case, concerning a long distance serial killer in California. Her tablet was also on with its kickstand open and keyboard at the ready—she had been reading a report while she waited for her partner to come join her from the bullpen. But she couldn't focus.

Coincidentally, it was because of JJ.

Something was off-kilter about her. This was her first day back after being knocked out of commission (strep throat from Henry, as well as a double ear infection, courtesy of Michael), but JJ was just... different. Emily couldn't figure it out, and that bothered her. Some profiler she was.

Understandably, Emily practically jumped out her skin when she heard an incoming Skype call on her tablet. Her surprise quickly grew to confusion when she was presented with a picture of her best friend's husband. She knew immediately that this was going to be a long day.

But she was very fast to answer him.

"Will, is everything okay? Are you hurt?"

The man spoke with zero preamble. "We're friends, right? And not just because you treat me, JJ, and the boys like your own blood?"

She was immediately visited by the memory of saving her friend from blowing up. They had been bonded for life after that.

"I should hope so." Emily finally said. "Is there something you need help with? Just say the word, and I've got your back."

"Good," approved Will. "I was just given a case that's right up the BAU's alley."

Emily sat up straighter. "What is it?"

"It's a big thing, but my CO gave me the go-ahead to invite in whomever I want. Your team was my first thought."

"Thank you. I take it that you're approaching me before JJ because I'm the team leader?"

Curiously, Will grew nervous. "I also don't want her to kick my butt."

Emily just grew more perplexed than ever. "What the h—"

She was interrupted by JJ finally arriving and closing the door behind her. "Em, who are you talking to?"

"Your husband."

"What?"

JJ dashed across the room, and around to Emily's side of the desk. Worry filled her. Will never called Emily while they were at work.

"Babe, what's wrong?" she asked him.

"I'm fine." Will said soothingly. "I was just telling Emily that we have a case here at MPD that we could really use the team's help on."

"He even invited us in already." Emily told JJ. "The only thing is, Will hasn't told me what the case is."

JJ backed up a smidge, now that she knew her husband wasn't hurt. It was time to put her game face on.

"What do you have?" she pressed.

Will took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. It was only going to get worse and weirder from here.

"We were handed The Yarn Children case."

JJ and Emily both stared—neither of them had been expecting that. But who would?

Recently, there had been a curious number of 'incidents' where small children were being abducted from crowded places. Nobody had any idea who was behind it.

Some children were brought back within twenty-four hours, each of them with an identifying marker—a length of yarn tied around the left wrist. They were always dropped off at a place to legally surrender a child, meaning that someone up the long ladder had a conscience. The biggest hurdle was that each of the returned children were too traumatized to want to talk about what they'd been through. And none of their parents were willing to risk further damage. That was understandable.

The darker side was that there were still a small handful of missing children who had yet to be located at all. There were only cold clues there.

The BAU and the MPD were aware of the quiet disaster, but had been sidelined because of procedural and jurisdiction issues. What had happened to change things?

JJ broke the silence. "How did you get this case? Everything's been happening over in Chevy Chase, Friendship Heights, Wakefield, and Tenleytown. Your HQ is in Capitold Hill."

"You're both going to want to sit down."

His tone sound foreboding, so JJ and Emily wasted no time in sitting side-by-side on the sofa in the far corner of the room. They looked to the tablet screen when they were situated.

Will spoke directly to Emily. "We got this case—and the clues, notes, and information—handed to us about an hour ago because… one of the Yarn Children showed up here."

"What? Really?"

"Oh, yes."

"Where is this child?"

Will moved his own tablet back to reveal a toddler girl cuddled up to him. She was fast asleep and covering her face with one hand, like she was trying to protect herself. Something had happened to her. Something bad.

JJ's heart did a funny flip as she took in the sight of this child. "What color is her yarn?"

"Purple, and it's on her left wrist." Will reported. "I'd show you, but she's got her while arm tucked between her body and mine. You know how kids do that."

Henry and Michael both practiced this move when in a deep sleep. JJ had seen it many times.

Emily chimed in, "I'm not discounting that this little girl has a connection to what's been happening in West D.C., but I'm just going to put the reminder on the table that every kid who has been returned has has yellow yarn, on the righthand wrist."

She knew these details because they'd crossed her desk when she and JJ had examined the case file before ultimately turning it away. Will had been informed because the case had been dumped in his lap.

"That's right, but her yarn is purple because I think she's along the lines of a chosen one." Will turned to JJ now. "You with us?"

She nodded to show her husband that she was paying attention. "Yes. Why?"

"I know who this kid is."

JJ's 'funny feeling' increased. "Who?"

"Cher, this is Olivia."

Just hearing this name caused JJ's heart to take an express elevator to the floor. This was not happening.

She held a hand over her heart. "But this means—"

Will nodded. "Yep."

"And with her here, they'll turn up."

"Two for two."

JJ willed herself not to vomit. Staying present was more important than ever. Plus, Emily was looking from one LaMontagne to the other, utterly perplexed.

"Who brought her in?" she wanted to know.

Will grew a little squirrelly. "If I had a Bible handy, I'd swear on it—your mother brought Olivia in."

"What?!" JJ squawked.

"It's true. Sandy is here, JJ." Will confirmed. "She hasn't said why she's even in D.C., but she said that she had an errand just down the block, so she decided to surprise me."

JJ rubbed her temples. "And what? My mom 'bumped' into Olivia on the way in?"

"Yes."

"Does she know who Olivia's mother is?"

"No."

The panic surged through JJ all over again. "We both know that my mom is her own kind of sleuth, but she will figure out the truth about Olivia. Things would go haywire if they completely came to a head."

Will winced—the next piece of information was another part if why he had contacted Emily first. He needed a witness to the emotion that his words were about to invoke in his wife.

"Batten down the hatches," was all he could say.

JJ's panic turned to anger, to rage, to confusion.

"William Isaac Jesse!" she barked. "You can't be serious!"

Will had the decency to look sheepish. "I am, cher, and I'm sorry. I really am."

JJ heard him, but simply moved to the floor to block him out completely. Was this real?

Emily looked to Will yet again. "What just happened?"

"Calm her down and call me back." Will said patiently. "It's okay. She'll tell you what's up."

"Alright, Will. I trust you."

They signed off, and Emily set the tablet aside.

Her life had never been quiet since the first day she'd met JJ. She truly was the sister that she had waited an entire lifetime for. Everything about their bond was why they were in the most active lead positions of the Behavioral Analysis Unit. Nobody could ever dispute that.

Yet, both JJ and Will had some kind of earth-shattering secret shared between them. Emily didn't even feel excluded. If anything, she had never felt more confused in her life. After over ten years of close friendship, watching her best friend become completely unglued because of one Skype call was new.

It was uncharted territory.

JJ was curled up in a ball on the floor now. It sounded like she was practicing some breathing exercises.

Emily spoke gently to her. "Jayje, do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head and gave a muffled, "No."

"Well, you need to breathe." Emily sat a box of tissues from her desk in front of her friend. "And I imagine that you want to wipe your face."

JJ was completely quiet a beat, thinking it over. The longer she laid on the floor, the longer Emily had no idea about this particular closet skeleton of hers. It was fair. Emily didn't deserve to be dragged into the mess. She deserved to keep her life separate from all this.

But that plan had been shot clean out of the water by Olivia's appearance in D.C., and by Will's call. Now the whole team was going to know in an hour.

And… if she and Will had actually been successful at making their sons a playmate, JJ owed it to the kid to get things as under control as she could.

She finally came to the conclusion that sitting up wouldn't be such a bad idea.

"There you go." Emily rubbed JJ's back as she moved into a sitting position. "Take these now."

She moved the tissues closer. What had she gotten herself into?

Emily didn't speak again until JJ was cleaned up, and breathing without feeling like she was going to burst into tears.

"What was all that about?" Emily continued to rub JJ's back. "I've seen you through all kinds of things, physically and emotionally, but I don't think I've ever seen you fall apart like that before."

JJ sighed. "Because you haven't."

"Then who could have that much power over your emotions?"

Emily recalled the emotional struggle that JJ had once had about her torturer, Tivan Iskari, but much like the man in question, that whole ordeal had been done and over with for a few years. Closure had been won. JJ had moved on.

What could possibly be left?

JJ looked her best friend square in the eyes. "Em, do you really want to know?"

"I do." she said honestly.

"You really want to know who could do all of that to me?"

Emily nodded. "Yes, please. Who?"

"My father."