unedited!

THIRTY THREE. FOYET

DAISY'S MIND WAS WHIRRING AS SHE PACED BACK AND FORTH IN THE POLICE STATION. She'd refused a seat, not wanting to be pandered to (despite literally having been shot in the arm less than two hours ago). She was doing remarkably well for someone in her situation, but she attributed that to the painkillers and determination that coursed through her veins. She knew something still didn't fit, and as the clocked ticked on, the feeling of what it was blossomed in her stomach. 

"Why is he so focused on Foyet?" Hotch asked from the table, surrounded by a dozen other officers and agents. He'd been one of the first to offer up his seat to the injured agent, and he hadn't been too thrilled when she insisted that she was okay to stand. It stressed him out, seeing her wandering around in a sling and shirt from the lost and found. She didn't want to go back to the hotel to get a change of clothes, instead settling on that said I <3 NY and a pair of loose cargo shorts. "What's so special about him?"

"He was his only surviving victim," JJ shrugged tiredly, running her hands through her freshly chopped hair. She was just as exhausted as everybody else, wanting the case to be over and done with before more people got hurt. "The only one he couldn't defeat."

"But he's not a threat. Defeating him would be no great accomplishment," Hotch insisted, trying to ignore how Daisy was shuffling through the pictures scattered around the room, mostly focusing on Foyet's dead girlfriend's body. "There's something there that we're missing."

"How old was Amanda again?" Daisy asked, her question more directed at Spencer, since he was the most likely to remember. Attention was drawn to her, many of the law enforcers feeling guilty for sitting down while the gunshot survivor skipped around them trying to solve the murder. 

"Nineteen."

"Pretty young for a twenty-eight year old," she commented, her eyes trained on the pictures of Amanda's mutilated body. She thought about the Reaper's victimology - young women in a relationship. "It's not illegal, but she was still a teenager."

"What do we know about her?" JJ asked, starting to pick up on what Daisy was thinking. 

"A freshman. She came here from Michigan to go to school," Emily read the deceased woman's file, her nails tapping against the cardboard. "Foyet was a teacher's assistant in one of Amanda's courses."

"Michigan," Hotch repeated, his brows knitting together in deep thought. "Where the Reaper had Shaunessy post the personal ad."

"That can't be a coincidence," Daisy walked back over to the table, hovering behind him. Her good hand rested on the back of his seat for stability, and Hotch subconsciously tensed up a little. "He said she was the love of his life, that he was gonna propose. They couldn't have been together that long if she'd just arrived from Michigan."

"They only met when the class started," Derek continued, their eyes meeting briefly. Daisy pursed her lips and looked away, anger bubbling in her chest. They hadn't spoken since the house; he was mad because she had put herself in danger, as if that wasn't her job. She didn't plan on backing down because she knew he'd have done the same, and he knew it too. However, they cared about each other enough to know the anger wasn't going to last. 

"How long had she been in the class?" Hotch inquired, looking over at Emily. He and the rest of the team had tried to ignore the tension the best they could, instead focusing on the more important matter, but they knew that one or both of the agents would explode sooner or later. 

"Four weeks," Emily scoffed in response. 

JJ's eyes narrowed in confusion. "So it was either love at first sight or...what?" 

"Foyet was lying?" Derek glanced at Hotch. 

Daisy leaned forward and picked up the picture of Foyet in the hospital. His wounds were messy but still somehow in the right places. He hadn't gone deep enough to puncture anything, but he'd lost enough blood that he had to be in the hospital for a month or so. 

Hotch noticed what she was looking at, and hummed softly. "He's a twenty-eight year old teacher's assistant in freshman classes."

"That gives him plenty of access to young girls," Rossi added as Hotch picked up the phone and dialled Penelope's number. Daisy chewed on the bottom of her lip, hoping her gut feeling was wrong. 

"Garcia?" Hotch put the phone on speaker. "I want you to look up in Boston city records: Kevin Baskin, Miles Holden, and William Parker. Try the Department of Education."

"Well played, sir," Penelope chimed over the line. "So they all work for the Department of Education, they're all substitute teachers, and they all teach computer science."

"High school?" Daisy asked. "And college classes on the side?" 

"Right on the money, baby," Penelope confirmed, before she paused. "Oops. Scratch that. They're not all working for the Department of Education."

"They're not?" Hotch leaned forward in his chair, as if to hear her better. 

"No. William Parker was fired for alleged inappropriate behaviour with his female students." Penelope corrected herself, and Daisy's eyes widened as everything finally fell into place. 

Foyet was suspicious, that much had been obvious since she first heard about him. But, she couldn't exactly pin him for being slightly 'off'. But now, they had enough to confirm her questions. 

George Foyet was the Boston Reaper. 

Hotch came to this conclusion at the same time, his head snapping up to look at his team. His eyes were wide, and his jaw was set. He was angry he hadn't seen it earlier. "Colson, the journalist, went to see Foyet. Garcia, I need you to locate Roy Colson's cell phone. George Foyet is the Reaper."

"Oh, God, okay," Penelope stumbled over her words, though the distant tapping in the backgrounds signalled that she was onto it. "Triangulating now. I got it; twenty-six-thirty-three South Budlong."

"That must be an address he didn't give us," Daisy stepped back as officers scrambled out of their chairs to get ready to leave. She put the image back on the table, and walked over to her things. She knew she couldn't come, but she also knew that she couldn't sit back and wait for the team to return.

"Hell no," Morgan shook his head, not even looking back to know what she was doing. He knew her well enough to assume she'd want to tag along, and he wasn't having any of it. "You're just being stupid now."

"Like you can talk," she muttered under her breath. He turned around and glared at her with angered eyes. She looked up from her bag and returned it without hesitation. She wasn't going to tolerate his hero complex, the same way he wasn't going to tolerate hers. 

The tension was high, and everyone in the room knew that it was because of the love they had for each other. The two friends would risk their lives without a second thought, but the fact that both had been in danger meant their worrying had turned into anger. 

The rest of the BAU, however, was not having any of it. 

"You two can argue about this later," Rossi called over his shoulder as he grabbed his vest, handing them out to the others. 

"Alvarez, stay here with JJ and start packing up," Hotch said, looking over at Daisy with a firm expression. She met his eyes, wanting to protest but knowing he was right. She was in no position to say that she could be out in the field, as much as she wanted to be. 

So, she pursed her lips and nodded once, watching as the team filed out to catch Foyet. 

★☆

Daisy knew she didn't have much of a choice in avoiding Derek when he blocked her way to the main section of the jet. He stood in front of her, his hands deep in his pockets and his expression almost unreadable. Almost. 

"We need to talk," he said softly, trying not to draw attention but knowing the team were going to figure everything out anyway. He leaned against the frame connecting to refreshment area, making sure Daisy had no way to escape the conversation. 

Daisy averted her eyes. She didn't know what she was supposed to say. 

"Daisy, you know how much I love you," Derek began, his expression now far more gentle than it had been previously. "And I know you know that I would've done the same thing you did. But that doesn't change the fact that it was reckless. He could've gotten you somewhere worse, and you could be dead right now. I can't lose anyone else, alright?"

Daisy exhaled quietly, and finally looked up at him. His eyes nearly killed her, they were wide and apologetic. "I should have waited for backup. But, I don't regret what I did. It's part of the job, and the job is dangerous. But, I can't lose anyone either."

A small silence fell over the two stubborn agents. Derek sighed, taking her chin between his thumb and index finger. "We're never gonna agree on this, are we?"

Daisy managed a smile. "Never."

Derek chuckled, and kissed her forehead, before stepping out of her way. Daisy latched her good arm around his torso as they walked over to the couch. He glanced down at her, squeezing her a little. "You never said I love you too."

Daisy rolled her eyes, though she felt lighter knowing that there was no more bad blood. "I love you too."

Derek leaned in, his eyebrow raised. "What was that? You gotta speak a little louder for me to hear you, baby."

"I said I love you too," Daisy smacked his chest and fell back onto the seat, kicking her legs up. She looked up at him with a grin. "Now, be a dear and get me a shot something strong?"

"How does a glass water sound?"

"Perfect," Daisy closed her eyes. "You're a gem, Derek Morgan."

★☆

"Oh, my darling," Penelope filled Daisy's candy jar to the brim, her worry having soared through the roof while the team had been away.  "Are you okay? Do you need anything? Shouldn't you be at home right now?"

Daisy opened a lollipop and put it in her mouth, smiling at the tech analyst. "I'm fine, Garcia. Besides, your company is the greatest gift of all."

Penelope grinned, pushing herself up to sit on Daisy's desk as JJ ran in to turn the television on. "Guys, look."

The BAU turned their attention to the screen, where the news station was displaying the mugshot of George Foyet. "Foyet, now known as the Boston Reaper, escaped from the prison hospital. He is yet to surface, but the police are doing everything in their power to find him and apprehend him once more."

"Shit," Daisy muttered, getting to her feet and running to Hotch's office, where he and Rossi were sharing a drink. Both agents straightened up at the sight of the freaked out woman. 

"What's wrong?" Hotch asked quickly, concern washing over him at the sight. 

Daisy's hand gripped the doorframe. "Foyet escaped."

★☆

brotp! brotp! brotp? maybe? who knows, not me

um 

hm hope you enjoyed 

ugh wait I just remembered that Foyet escapes at the end of the episode 

now I gotta write it in

might do it after I have a shower