Keeping Her Safe

Playing Mummy.

Light scattered through the room, and Hotch groggily pulled himself out of bed. Everything smelt like rhubarb and rose, like it was embedded into the house and permeated every surface. Between the smell and strange bed, he was stuck, confused for a moment. Until he recalled the night before.

His watch sat on the small table beside the bed, and he realised that it was ten in the morning. They were meant to leave in an hour, so he fished through his bag, and just his luck, he was down to his last outfit as shirts and underwear had been left unwashed.

After dressing, and reapplying hair gel, Hotch brushed his teeth and then left it in the cup where her electronic one was. It had been an automatic response, and he didn't think much of it as he then turned and left.

With his bag over his shoulder, Hotch marched downstairs and heard a racket play out in the kitchen. 'Shit,' she swore before scooping everything up and carefully placing the cutlery back into the assigned dividers.

'Vilein,' Hotch called, but she didn't respond.

Hair had been washed and left curly once again as she bustled around the kitchen. Seemingly reorganising it. He repeated her name a few times, but no response came, and so he walked over to her and gently tapped her shoulder.

As something coarse touched Sera's upper arm, she turned, holding two small knives that had been sharpened to a dangerous point as she prepared to defend herself. Two hands came up, in an attempt to defend himself, but she successfully avoided his grasp, and in the end, the knives grazed the front of his suit before she stopped herself.

'Agent Hotchner,' she sighed out as relief settled into her bones. 

Glancing up, peering through her glasses, Sera saw Hotch's lips move, but he kept licking his lips and distorting the movements. 'I can't hear you. My ears aren't in,' she explained.

Having forgotten the knives pressed up to Hotch's suit, Sera turned and put them away before reaching into her pocket and pushing the hearing aids in, a loud squeak rang for a second until they comfortably sat in her ear. 'Can you hear now?' He asked.

'Yes. What's wrong?' Sera asked, wondering why he looked so concerned.

'The director has asked to see me for a meeting earlier. We never agreed on who was doing what paperwork and I won't be around until after lunch,' Hotch explained.

'I told you that I would do it. You got some done on the jet, and I am halfway through my interrogation paperwork, so it'll take a day or two max,' Sera offered.

Hotch shook his head and prepared for another fight. 'You already do more paperwork than I do. I'll send over some reviews and you can do the expense forms. The director likes yours more than mine,' he explained.

Nodding, Sera agreed. The compliance startled Hotch, but he didn't want to pick a fight where there wasn't going to be one.

As he turned around, getting ready to push his shoes on since it was practically eleven, an open letter caught his attention. He didn't want to snoop, but it seemed to be a booked appointment for a doctor who specialised in hearing.

She saw his eyes pull to the letter for a second, and he was going to have to find out eventually. Or not. There was a chance it wouldn't work anyway, so she would wait to discuss the meaning of the letter with him.

'Did the director tell you why he wanted to see you?' Sera asked. She had her suspicions, but nothing could be proven yet. However, when Hotch's mouth twisted, she felt a little more sure that she had guessed what it was about. 'Me?' She asked, and Hotch reluctantly nodded.

'It's probably nothing,' Hotch reassured.

'It's probably because while you were meant to be sleeping last night you requested my psych eval,' Sera remarked. Hotch's face became blank as he fought not to react. 'I found out because I've already booked my evaluation and they wanted to confirm that I needed two,' she explained.