#emily x aaron

[emilyprentiss-ily]

A new shade of red

tw: severe self harm, implied suicide, so much crying (be careful reading this<3)

summary: the team find emily and aaron’s daughter at her worst

wc: 2k

chapter: one | two

Emily couldn’t stop thinking about all the teams’ voices overlapping, their tones absolutely terrified as they panicked. In just a few short minutes, all their lives would be changed forever. Emily’s life as a mom would change, Aaron’s life as a dad would change. Their usual worries would be something else entirely.

“Hey, has anyone seen Lola?” Emily asked, her heart slightly racing as she looked at her team and her husband at the table, the volume in the room fading as they looked at Emily.

“I think she said she was going to the bathroom.” JJ answered, noticing Emily’s slightly wide eyes as she stood in front of them. The dark haired woman turned around, rushing down the hall to the bathroom, leaving the team looking at each other with frowns, confusion making it hard to resume talking about what they were just seconds ago.

JJ stood up, giving the team a small smile as she, too, walked down the hall, seeing Emily knocking rapidly on the bathroom door.

“Lola?” Four more knocks. Nothing. “Honey, you’ve been in there for a long time now.” JJ just watched as Emily breathed heavily, not being able to stand completely still. “Lola?” Two more knocks. Nothing.

Emily turned around, looking at JJ with a frown, her hands on her waist as she bit her lower lip. JJ looked at her with soft, slightly wide eyes. Emily exhaled. “JJ, I…” It sounded like she swallowed a cry. “I need you to get Aaron here.” JJ heard the desperation in her friend’s voice and she nodded, hurrying to get him.

Emily stayed there, continuing to knock, telling herself that her thoughts were wrong. That this wasn’t really happening.

After moments, that felt far too long, her husband was by her side, asking if she was okay.

“I’m fine, I just… you need to get in there.” Emily tried to open the door, mentally telling herself that maybe it would magically open. Aaron looked at his wife, seeing her eyes shining with slight tears. Her voice was laced with concern and her breaths were short. “Aaron, right now. Open the door. I don’t care how you do it, just get it open.” Her words were hurried and she got a glance of JJ fidgeting with her fingers, her eyes unsure.

Aaron grabbed the handle, crashing the side of his body to the door over and over again. It felt like forever until the door finally opened and Aaron was not at all nearly prepared for the sight he was exposed to. There she was, his 15 year old daughter, blood covering her whole arm, her clothes and the floor. He opened his mouth in a silent gasp as he rushed to her side, horrified by how pale she was.

Emily and JJ caught sight of the situation and their hearts hurt as they saw Aaron try to talk Lola back to consciousness. Emily covered her mouth, tears burning in her eyes the second her palm touched her skin. JJ was right behind her, tears watering in her eyes too as she fumbled to get her phone from her pocket. The seconds felt too many as her shaky hands failed her.

“One of you has to call an ambulance, right now.” Aaron called out, cupping his hands over Lola’s arm, trying desperately to stop the bleeding.

“I am. I am.” JJ’s voice trembled and she let out a relieved breath when she finally grabbed her phone, dialing 911. She grabbed Emily who had began depending on the wall as to not fall. Emily’s knees were weak and her body felt heavy as she felt an arm around her waist, pulling her away from the scene. Away from the image that was going to haunt her for years to come.

“How long, JJ?” The blonde heard Aaron ask.

“I don’t know. I’m trying to find out.” She inhaled, trying her best to comfort Emily who was seconds away from collapsing.

“Get me a first aid kit.” JJ didn’t know what to do. Her arm was beginning to hurt from trying to hold up Emily and her heart hurt as she couldn’t stop thinking about what was happening just a wall away. She couldn’t hear what the woman on the phone way saying, not clearly. She felt her lips move but she didn’t hear herself. She heard something that sounded like they were going to be there as fast as they could. JJ heard herself mutter a ‘thank you’ as she looked around for a first aid kit. She searched high up, seeing the green box she was looking for on a shelf. She reached up, her breaths uneven.

As soon as Aaron got a hold of the box, he immediately got to work, bandaging up his daughter’s arm, his chest hurting as he looked at his little girl, her face pale and head heavy.

“Lola, honey. I need you to look at me.” He said, slightly panicking as the blood seeped through the bandage. “Lola. Look at me.” His brown eyes met Lola’s dark ones. “Good. Keep looking at me.” He nodded, glancing at JJ who was barely visible behind the doorway. “JJ, get Rossi in here. You need to take care of Emily right now.” Aaron shouted, not sure if JJ even heard him through Emily’s sobs. There was no answer, but moments later, he heard hurrying footsteps and then David talking to the operator on JJ’s phone. Aaron exhaled, keeping light pressure on the bandage.

Without the phone in hand, JJ could finally keep her focus on Emily who was completely destroyed. In the corner of her eye, she saw Spencer rush in.

When Emily tried to go into the bathroom, JJ gripped her even tighter, keeping her away from the nightmare that was happening.

“No, no, no. Emily. Emily.” JJ softly spoke, her voice trembling as she lead the brunette out to the hall.

Emily leaned against the wall, hyperventilating as she slid down to the ground. JJ was right beside her, usually comforting words coming from her lips as her throat began to close up. They didn’t help much now. “Emily.” Her sobs were too loud. JJ placed her hands on Emily’s cheeks, caressing as she tried to initiate eye contact. “Emily, breathe. Emily. Emily. Look at me.” Emily looked up, her eyes carrying a certain heartbreak JJ had never seen before. Her feelings were overwhelming. “It’s going to be okay.” JJ nodded, Emily looked down, taking a short breath. “Look at me. Breathe.” Emily looked up again, her brown eyes staying on JJ’s blue ones.

“She looked like she was dead, JJ.” Emily was hysterical. The sentence made the blonde’s heart hurt.

“No, no, no. She’s not. She’s not dead. She’s not.” Emily just continued sobbing, placing her own hands over JJ’s.

“I can’t lose her. I ca—“ A sharp breath. “I can’t lose her, JJ. She’s my Lola. She’s my—“

“You won’t. They’re all helping her right now and an ambulance is coming. You will not lose her.” JJ heard her name being shouted and she panicked, not knowing what to focus on.

She quickly ran to the bathroom again, seeing Spencer in the doorway, looking at the scene with wide eyes. Quickly, she took a hold of his arms, looking into his eyes as she told him to go to Emily. He nodded, running out to the hall.

JJ exhaled as she rushed into the bathroom, seeing Lola’ scared eyes. JJ knew what the teenager needed.

Kneeling down, JJ placed her hands on Lola’s cheeks, looking into her misty eyes. The blonde tried her best to ignore just how much blood Lola was losing.

“Stay awake, Lola.” JJ chanted when she saw how Lola’s eyes began to slowly flutter closed. “Look at me. Stay awake.” JJ felt Lola grip her arm, blood smearing on her pale skin. There wasn’t much more they could do than internally pray that Lola was going to be okay.

Aaron had bandaged her arm and was keeping pressure on it. David had finished talking to the operator and now all they had to wait. It was the longest 10 minutes of her life. The longest 10 minutes of all their lives.

JJ’s eyes widened when Lola’s eyes closed completely. She lightly slapped her cheeks, chanting over and over again that she had to stay awake.

“No, no, no.” Her heart picked up speed for the thousandth time that night. “Lola. Lola. Lola. Open your eyes. Lola.” JJ teared up, she had never felt so hopeless and useless in her life. “Look at me.” The teenager suddenly opened her eyes, and JJ nodded in encouragement, never stopped looking into her eyes.

Lola’s vision was blurry when she opened her eyes. Her head was pounding and her ears were ringing. It took a while for her to realize who was in front of her. Her eyes finally focused after a while, seeing JJ looking at her with tears in her eyes. She felt the blonde’s hands on her cheeks, caressing lovingly, but Lola also felt how much they were trembling. Using all the little strength she had left, Lola weakly grabbed JJ’s hand, wanting her soft skin to be the last thing she felt, instead of her own blood, before she died.

A few beats and everything went black.

Now, as Emily sat in the hospital with the entire team there, no one speaking, she could not shake the thoughts of having to prepare to come home without her daughter. Having to tell Jack that his little sister had killed herself. She wouldn’t ever survive that. None of them would.

Emily closed her eyes, trying to get the thoughts to go away. She exhaled, gently squeezing JJ’s hand. The blonde hadn’t left Emily’s side since they arrived at the hospital.

Sitting in the waiting room was almost, selfishly, as bad as seeing her daughter on the floor. All the quiet, all the time to think about how long her daughter had been doing this. Emily didn’t miss the faint scars on her arms from what seemed like months prior to this. She didn’t know how they had missed it. Didn’t understand how Lola was in so much pain and they hadn’t seen it.

Emily felt a gentle squeeze back, but this time, it meant something more than comfort. Emily looked up, seeing a doctor walking towards her. She held her breath, putting her free hand where JJ and her were already holding hands, looking at the doctor with expectant eyes.

“Emily, is it?” Emily nodded, seeing Aaron come back from the bathroom. He hurried to Emily’s side when he saw the doctor. “We’ve moved your daughter to a ward.” The woman started. Aaron sat down next to his wife, Emily placing her head on his shoulder as they listened to the doctor, her hands still holding JJ’s tightly. “She’s just come out of surgery. She’ll need to be reviewed by psychiatry tomorrow morning.”

“Is she going to be okay, then?” Aaron asked, his voice hoarse and exhausted. Emily felt the way he sounded.

“We’ll know more tomorrow.” The doctor gave a comforting smile. “Do you want to see her?” Emily and Aaron both immediately nodded. Emily turned to JJ, giving her a small smile before she let go of her hand, feeling a small bit of emptiness at the loss of contact. Aaron placed his arm around Emily’s waist, both of them slightly shaking with nervousness as they followed the doctor down door after door.

Tears burned in Emily’s time again when she saw her daughter on the hospital bed. Seeing Lola so small and vulnerable, with a bandage covering her arm, made Emily quietly gasp. She was afraid she would never stop crying.

Aaron didn’t know what to feel. He didn’t know what to do. He was mad at himself for not noticing just how much his own daughter was suffering. He was sad for not noticing how much his own daughter was suffering. At the same time, he felt numb. The feeling of his daughter’s blood in his hands made him feel so many overwhelming feelings, but he felt numb at the same time.

Two chairs were placed next to the bed and the parents hesitantly sat down, looking at their daughter who was asleep. Emily grabbed her hand, caressing it and saw how many scars Lola had on her arms. Emily quietly whimpered and felt Aaron take Lola’s hand as well. She looked at him. The love of her life, and saw how much he was hurting too. She placed her free hand on his cheek, caressing it as a tear rolled down his cheek. Her thumb delicately brushed it away. She wanted to say something. But she didn’t know what. What are you supposed to say when your daughter slits her wrists?

“She’ll be okay.” Emily ended up saying. She wanted to take it back the second she began the sentence. Aaron said nothing, he just looked down at their hands. “Aaron, honey? Are you listening to me?” Her voice was gentle. “She’s going to be okay.” She didn’t know why she said it again. Aaron nodded, a slight, obviously unsure nod. “Honey… look at me.” He did and when he raised his head, Emily saw how much Aaron wanted to cry. Let it out. Emily prayed that he wouldn’t keep this in until he eventually broke.

Aaron stared at what could’ve been Emily’s face, but she was too good of a profiler to see that his eyes were resting at a spot just past her ear. Silence for a moment and Emily was afraid that she was going to have to beg him to talk.

“…I should have noticed.” The words came so unexpectedly that Emily barely registered what he said. She blinked.

“Aaron…” Emily cooed

“We’re profilers.” He scoffed, his shiny gaze slipping back to their hands. “We’re parents. I missed it.”

“We all did.” Emily spoke. It was true. It was most likely hopeful ignorance, denial. They had all noticed that something was off but they hadn’t given her more than invitations to talk. Aaron, at least, didn’t want to believe that it was anything too serious. He didn’t like to think of his children in pain, and he’d prefer to manipulate himself than to try and fix it. The guilt made him feel nauseous.

“I thought that after Reid, I would notice things like this. Notice if people weren’t okay and be able to keep a close eye on things.”

“She hid it well.” Emily spoke, voice unsure. The words were for her own benefit as well.

“Did she?” Aaron asked, his voice cracking in the slightest way as he looked up at his wife, seeing her hesitant facial expression. Emily didn’t know what to say, so she swallowed the thick feeling in her throat, looking at her daughter again.

Hours went by and the parents fell asleep. Emily was still holding her daughter’s hand, leaning her head on her husband’s shoulder. Aaron kept a hand around her as he leaned his head on hers.

Lola heard soft snores coming from somewhere. It took a moment for her eyes to relax at the harsh light that shone from the ceiling. She swallowed, her throat dry and sore. As soon as she noticed her parents, she felt claustrophobic in her body. She couldn’t quite move. She could wiggle her toes slightly and after a beat, she recognized her mother’s hand in her own. Mustering up strength, she squeezed slightly. The way her mother immediately woke up made Lola feel guilty.

“…Hi, baby.” Emily smiled, leaning closer to kiss Lola’s hand. Aaron also woke up when he heard Emily’s voice, looking at his daughter with so much sadness.

Lola looked at her parents for a moment before she turned her head as much as she could the other way, her feelings and memories catching up to her and she began to cry. Her face contorted into the most heartbreaking frown that made Emily’s heart hurt. She leaned closer, cooing.

“Hey…” She whispered, squeezing Lola’s hand tighter. “Hey, honey.” When Lola began quietly sobbing, Emily hushed her. Aaron placed his hand over Emily’s.

“I’m so sorry.” Lola whimpered, her chest hurting at all her family’s faces. The way JJ looked at her before she had passed out made its way to her mind.

“No, Lola. Don’t apologize.” Aaron spoke, voice gentle as he too, leaned closer.

“I’m so sorry.” Lola continued, feeling so utterly humiliated and embarrassed. She felt guilty for scaring everyone, and she did it all for nothing. It didn’t even work. She was still here. Still alive and with even more feelings of sadness.

“Sweetheart, listen to me.” Emily spoke. Lola turned her head, looking at her parents who seemed to do everything not to break down. “You have nothing to be sorry for. It is not your fault that you’re hurting, okay?” Lola still felt guilty, but she nodded, not wanting her parents to worry anymore. Although, she doubted they would ever stop worrying. They would never trust her to be alone again. She closed her eyes, wanting the ground to just swallow her whole. “We are here for you. Me, your dad, the entire team too. We love you so much, baby.” Lola swallowed her sobs, wanting to ask a question.

“Are you mad at me?” She whispered, her voice trembling. “Is the team mad at me?”

“No, no, no.” Emily shook her head, the concerned frown on her face that she so often had.

“No one is mad at you.” Aaron spoke. “No one. We’re worried, honey. We all love you and we care about you.”

“I’m sorry.” Lola spoke, she couldn’t ever apologize enough for hurting everyone like she did. Emily shook her head, her eyes soft.

“You have nothing to be sorry for.”

[magic32piper]

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐄𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐝𝐞

[kllingdaddy]

ok so i know these are from grandfathered BUT imagine she's hotchniss's daughter. i said what i said

[thesunwillshineonusagain757]

So I got late to the party again. Yeah I entered into a criminal minds rabbit hole. And I have to say Hotchniss is pretty hot, maybe I’m just showing my daddy and mommy issues but yeah… He is so in love with her it’s so clear and I’m in season 2 !

[nightingalewolfie]

Ahh there so cute I'm happy with how this one came out ^^

[hahahawhatalife]

Calling all Hotchniss Fanfic Writers and Readers: PLEASE HELP ME!

I made an absolute blunder and accidentally unliked a fanfic I was reading on Tumblr then refreshed my page (it might also be on FF or A03).

The premise is basically that Prentiss finds it really attractive when Hotch shouts (which she is SO real for because same). I think it starts with them interviewing a suspect together and goes from there but that's all I can remember 😭

Does anyone know the name of this fic and have a link to it?

Thanks so much in advance! ❤️

(I'm starting to gaslight myself into thinking it was all a dream but I KNOW I'm not creative enough to have come up with something as a good as I remember the fic being)

UPDATE: Thanks to @ssaemprts we've found it! 'To give to you' by Sarmaren! ✨️

[jiisbons]

wherever i go, you bring me home

pairing: hotchniss

summary: emily calls for aaron in her sleep, bringing out feelings he can't ignore.

word count: 1k-2k

He's always been a light sleeper.

He doesn't get much sleep anyway, but when he does he can still hear the world around him, most of his senses still wide awake. He'd be lucky if he got more than three hours of good sleep.

So when a light knock sounds on the door of his hotel room, his eyes immediately blink open to the darkness. His brows furrow in confusion as he shoves the covers off of him and sits up, the soles of his bare feet hitting the soft carpet.

He crosses the room and opens the door to a sleepy JJ, her blonde hair frazzled and her eyelids droopy. One of his eyebrows quirks. "JJ?"

She runs a hand through her messy hair. "Emily has been calling for you in her sleep."

Emily? He frowns. "Why?"

JJ shrugs. "I don't know, but she's keeping me awake, so I decided to just come here and tell you.

He's beyond confused. Why would Emily be calling for him out of all people?

"Okay," he says slowly, "would you like to switch rooms?"

She expels a sigh of relief. "Yes, please. I love Em, but she's driving me crazy."

Aaron nods. "Okay. You can take my room."

"Thanks." JJ slips inside, sending him a grateful smile. He nods again and starts down the hallway for Emily's room, his stomach twisting. What is he supposed to do? Get in bed with her? Wake her up and tell her that she's been calling his name? Maybe she's having a nightmare and needs someone to comfort her, but if that's the case he's certainly not the right person for the job. He can barely comfort Jack when he's upset.

He gently creaks the door open, his eyes finding Emily curled up on the bed, murmuring softly to herself in the dark. He feels his chest clench at the sight. She looks so innocent, so cute, for lack of a better word. He quickly reprimands himself for even thinking such a thing about his subordinate.

Without knowing what else to do, he quietly slips into her bed, careful not to wake her or get too close. He can hear her murmurs clearly now. She snuggles deeper into the blanket, softly repeating his name over and over again like a mantra.

"Hotch." She shifts a little, as if seeking for him. "Aaron," she mumbles.

A weird feeling pools in the pit of his stomach as she continues to say his name in her sleep. She's never called him Aaron before, no one really does, it's always just been Hotch. But hearing his first name on her lips makes his insides fill with warmth.

Slowly, carefully, he slips beneath the blankets and positions his head on a pillow, watching her with soft eyes. He's always cared about her a little more than the others, even though she hasn't been on the team as long as everyone else. There's just something about her that makes him want to protect her from the world.

"Aaron," she whimpers again, and this time it's as if she knows he's here with her because she shifts closer to him, her small hands grasping at the air for him.

He knows he shouldn't, knows he should still remain professional in this situation, but his emotions take over and he allows her hand to find him. She immediately scoots into his body, her mind still in a deep sleep, her hands curling into fists as they rest against his chest.

Without him realizing, a soft smile graces his lips as she cuddles into him. He likes this. Likes the way she feels against him. Likes someone asking for him, wanting him to be close to them.

But he especially likes that it's her. And in the morning he'll view it as a problem, when he sneaks out of her room and switches with JJ again, but for now, as he watches her serene face, he can't bring himself to care.

XxX

It happens again a few weeks later on the jet.

They're returning to Quantico from a case that's pushed them all into exhaustion, and Emily has already fallen asleep in the seat next to him. None of the others are to the point of succumbing to sleep yet, but Aaron doubts they'd sleep anyway with what Emily is mumbling.

"Aaron." It's barely audible, but Aaron hears it perfectly.

Reid quickly perks up from his seat across from her. "Did she just say Aaron?"

Everyone's eyes are on him now. He feels the heat of their stares, the questions brewing in their eyes, and he wishes Emily would suddenly wake up and explain to them all why she's been murmuring his name in her sleep.

Because truthfully, he can't think of a damn reason why.

"Aaron," she sighs, curling into her seat. Aaron shuts his eyes, willing everyone around him to disappear.

Morgan sits up, his headphones locked around his neck. "Okay, I'm very confused right now. Why is she calling for boss?"

"Usually when a person is calling for someone in their sleep, it means they feel that person in their safe place," Reid informs them all casually.

Before anyone can reply to that, the jet comes to a halt and the entry door opens. They all scramble to their feet, but Emily remains asleep, unaware of anything around her.

Aaron sighs and goes to wake her. "Prentiss. Prentiss, it's time to go."

She groans softly, eyes refusing to open. "Want Aaron," she mumbles.

The same weird feeling from before creeps in on him, but he quickly pushes it away before he can analyze it. "I'm here," he tells her. "We have to get off the jet now."

Her eyes slowly flutter open, but he can tell she's still half asleep. He chuckles at her confused look before he can stop himself and helps her out of her seat.

"I'm sleepy," she tells him as they exit the jet, looking like a child who's been waken up too early.

"I know you are," he responds gently. "Do you want me to take you home?"

He has no idea where the offer came from. It just left his mouth before he could even think. But she smiles up at him and suddenly he becomes glad he asked.

XxX

They're in his car, and the urge to ask her about it is strong, but he doesn't know how to approach the subject without embarrassing her. She doesn't have a clue that she's been calling for him every time she's asleep. Maybe it would be better if he just left it alone.

But curiosity gnaws at him and he can't hold himself back any longer.

Clearing his throat, he says, "Prentiss?"

Her head turns away from the window to face him. "Hm?"

He decides to dive straight in. "When we were on the jet, you were kind of...talking in your sleep."

Her eyes widen in horror. "Oh, God. What was I saying? Did I say something bad?"

"It wasn't anything bad," he assures her. "And it wasn't really talking in sentences. You were just saying something over and over. Well, calling for someone, I should say."

She bites her lower lip, then releases it. "Who was I calling for?"

He keeps his eyes on the road, his fingers tightening on the wheel. "Me."

Silence fills the car and he wishes he would've just kept quiet. He opens his mouth to apologize, but she beats him to it.

"I'm sorry," she says, shifting in her seat anxiously. "I didn't know I was doing that. I didn't mean to, I swear. Please don't fire me."

A laugh escapes him without meaning to and she stares at him in confusion. "I'm sorry," he rushes to correct his behavior, shaking his head. "I don't mean to laugh. I just...why would I fire you for that?"

"Because it's unprofessional?" Her brown eyes are still wide, like doe-eyes, and he clenches the steering wheel even tighter to steady himself.

"It's fine, Prentiss. Really. I just thought I should let you know in case the team brings it up tomorrow."

Her eyes are nearly bulging out of their sockets now. "The team heard?"

"Well, it was on the jet, so yes, they heard."

"Oh, God."

"They'll most likely forget about it in a few days," he tries to reassure her. "They'll find something else to obsess over. It's fine. I promise."

She doesn't reply, but she gifts him with a small smile, a smile that makes him feel things he knows he shouldn't. Emily is his subordinate, a friend only. He shouldn't be wondering what it would be like to kiss her plump lips or take her hand in his. He definitely shouldn't want to offer to come inside with her, to help her sleep because now he knows she won't be able to sleep without him.

He shouldn't want anything with her. But he does.

He reaches her place and parks the car, his ass rooted to the seat. He isn't going to get out. He's going to watch her walk inside and force himself to forget about everything that's happened.

But she doesn't get out yet. Instead she looks at him, bites her lip, then smiles shyly. "Would you like to come inside?"

He tries to ignore the pounding of his heart inside his chest. "That would be unprofessional, wouldn't it?"

"It's not unprofessional to make my boss some coffee for the road."

"I'm not a big fan of coffee," he rasps, eyes darting from hers to her lips.

"What are you a fan of, then?"

The word goes unsaid.

"Tea," he says eventually, still lost in the beauty that were her eyes. "I'll take some tea, if you have it."

"I have tea." She slips out of the car, not waiting for him to follow, but he does because he's either an idiot or the smartest person alive.

And when he walks in behind her, he can't help but think this may be the start of something beautiful.

[emilycm]

guys this is so so random but pls tell me someone knows the fics i’m thinking of because i’ve been trying to find them for the longest time!!!

one where emily and hotch (they’re not dating) were godparents to jj’s second kid and then something happens to jj and will and they have to take in both kids

emily was raising declan, declan and jack became friends and it brought em and hotch closer together

both are get together fics and i seriously think abt them all the time but i can’t find the links so pls lmk if you know of them!!!!

[meet-me-in-the-pouringrain]

The Phoenix And The Rocket

Chapter 2

Chapter 1 Here.

Thank you all for the love on the first chapter <3 makes me excited to write. Hoping for weekly updates as I finish 2nd year Uni off but we’ll see. Atm I think there is roughly 8 chapters so very short and sweet but I have a habit of extending things so we’ll see!

Emily Prentiss, at the insistent of her therapist, signs up for a trauma ‘dumping’ site. She never expected that her Dump would connect her back to her old boss and the man she’s been in love with for over ten years.

Also the man she’s absolutely furious at for leaving.

As always : Credit goes to @lonelychicagos for the prompt :)

Edit : Since publishing I have been made aware that the term ‘Trauma Bonding’ is actually an abuse tactic and doesn’t mean ‘bonding over shared trauma’. Would like to make it clear that was a very strong mistake on my part and I apologise deeply for any offence.

Chapter 2

It was week and a case later that Emily realised her laptop had a notification sitting on it, a reply lie in waiting 20 minutes after her initial contact. Feeling guilty but overpowered by intrigue, the woman settled down on the jet, the laptop balancing on her knee and excitement in her chest.

Her seat partner, the insufferable David Rossi, eyes her with sneaky, glinting eyes. "Something you wanna share with the class, Prentiss?" He goades, smirking.

Emily glances up, scowling, as the rest of the team all turned attention onto her. "Excuse me?" She frowns.

"Oh she avoided the question" Tara pipes up.

"Now she's rolling her eyes" Spencer joins in. "That implies that she's hiding something"

Memories of Spencer and herself teasing Morgan a lifetime ago took Emily by surprise. Her jaw clenched and her laptop shut.

"I want everyone's paperwork on my desk on Thursday" She snaps, irritated to high heaven. Her eyes rolled again at the sound of Luke's childish indignation and JJ's proclamation of "I'm innocent!." Briefly, she wondered how the hell Hotch coped. Her irritation flared up at the thought of that man. Her anger at his abandonment still ever present.

Logically,  She knew she had no right to be pissed especially after two years. There was an argument for the fact that she had abandoned this team twice. And she has a habit of walking away when she doesn't get her way, a fact that both Strauss and Barnes had to find out the hard way.

But she was so angry. She had a comfortable life in London, a boyfriend that was nice enough and a job she enjoyed and that paid well, yet she packed it all up in a moments notice for him.

And she didn't even get a fucking thank you.

No, he just thrust all this responsibility on her shoulders and left, expecting her to pick up the pieces.

He expected her to soothe Penelope's anguish at losing another family member, be Dave's drinking buddy again, be Spencer's parental figure that no one addresses, be JJ's sister, and control two practical strangers in Tara and Luke.

God, he was a bastard.

Emily muses over that all on the drive home, fingers tight on the steering wheel, from the jet. Thankfully, the case drew to a close on a Friday giving her leeway to leave. She's still seething as she enters her apartment and re-boots her laptop.

'Meow'

"Hey Serg" Emily mumbles, pouring a generous glass of red wine.

The feline trots out of his hiding spot, happily. Emily and Penelope share custody of the pet now, He had recognised her during a girls night at Penelope's and threw a hissy fit as much as a cat could and had refused to leave her side. She physically melted and her friend gave her permission to take her cat back.

As it turns out, her little shit was a huge shit for other people.

But Emily couldn't do that to her so now they trade off whenever there's a case and she has to leave town.

"Pen drop you off, buddy?" She smirks, stroking his head. The cat purrs happily at her attention, making her laugh. He jumps to her lap before she can place the laptop on her so she awkwardly types with one hand. She loads up her conversation, cringing at the date left below RocketRacoon's sentences, and sighs. The poor man was probably waiting on her reply for ages before giving up.

Sergio suddenly freaks and hisses at the laptop, batting the screen angrily.

"Woah!" She exclaims, moving him away. He hisses again, eyes narrow, before hauling off with a feral screech. She stares after him as he bounces up on his scratching post. "Freak" Emily states at him, confused. She shakes her head and takes a gulp of liquid courage before typing again.

On the other side of the country, in Lakewood, Colorado, Aaron Hotchner slams down a cardboard box. His forehead was slick with sweat and his chest heaves with heavy breathes.

"You know, You could help" He mutters absentmindedly to his son. Jack sat playing video games in the living room tv.

"I could" Jack nodded. "I don't wanna though."

"Max"

"...."

"Max!"

"....."

"JACK"

"Yes dad?"

Jack turns, an expression on his face that mirrors his fathers. Since they got the word that Scratch was gone, Jack had reverted back from Max Hortenal. He refused to answer to his false name from his father, only reluctantly accepting it from school and friends. It was hard on Aaron to accept this change, habitually calling him Max.

Aaron glares at his son, jaw clenched. "Go and get the bait from the truck please." He orders authoritatively.

They'd just come back from a fishing expedition. In his retirement, Aaron had picked up Golfing, Running and Fishing as hobbies.

He loves the mundanity but sometimes he finds himself imagining he's chasing after an UNSUB while running. Or fishing out evidence to help a case rather than a sea bass he lets go after a picture.

The golfing is just fun.

Jack comes back in, gingerly gripping the bucket of worms in his hands. "Here." He snaps, holding it out. With an eyeroll, his father takes the bait and deposits it in the garage. "By the way, your laptop just pinged." Jack tells him, closing down his game. "I'm gonna go shower."

Aaron nods, wishes him a goodnight because he knows Jack will conk out straight afterwards, and heads towards the device. He figured after two days of no reply from Phoenix that he wasn't going to get one, chalking it up to intimidation and so he was confused as to what notification he had received. He grabs his glasses from his pocket, resenting that time certainly wasn’t on his side, and settles them on his face as he squints at the screen.

Surely by now his trauma dump would have been buried by others; He even saw Katie Jacob’s at one point when he checked for Phoenix’s question. He wished the girl well before blocking her so she didn’t question him anymore.

So imagine his surprise when the message was indeed Phoenix, apologising for the late reply.

PhoenixPren : So sorry! I didn’t see this reply, I travel a lot for work and was out of town!

Aaron breaths out a sigh, raising his eyebrows in acknowledgement.

RocketRacoon: I’ve been there, it’s okay.

Emily smiles and quirks an eyebrow of her own at the fast reply. With a purse of her lips, she types again.

PhoenixPren : You travel for work too?

RocketRacoon : Used too, Retired now.

PhoenixPren : Ah. Lucky. I gotta pay the bills somehow.

Aaron lets out a tiny laugh while Emily cringes at herself.

PhoenixPren : Anyway, you said you’re up for questions? Is that still on the table or have I ruined my chances?

“Fucks sake Emily, you’re not flirting with him.” Emily scolds herself, putting down her wine. Sergio mewls angrily at her as she speaks, still pissed at the laptop for some reason. “Weirdo” She insults her cat, swinging her legs to rest on her couch.

Aaron thinks about it for a moment, casting his mind to the day he’s had. He pulled Jack out of school, his son having a bad day the day before, and whisked him off to go fishing. At first, Jack seemed to hate life because he was forced out on a canoe in the lake but soon found himself laughing and enjoying time with his dad. He had forgotten about the day before entirely as he watched Aaron fight with a Bass and nearly go overboard. Aaron enjoyed it too, getting his son out without the worry that there was a serial killer lurking around the corner, ready to finish was Foyet started all those years ago.

He shrugs as he types.

RocketRacoon : Sure, Why not? What would you like to know?

Emily grins in excitement before it fades and she swallows, typing out what she wanted the answer to for weeks.

PhoenixPren : I guess there’s just one question really. How do you do it?

Aaron breathes out again, pulling back from his computer. He frowns and clicks on her profile, finding no story to tell. The only information he can see is that the person he was speaking to was a woman in her early 50’s. She had actually wrote ‘fuck off’ in the age section but then imputed in the ‘fun fact’ section that she went and saw Siouxie and The Banshees for her 18th birthday in 1987, placing her in her early 50s.

Phoenix had a story, one that she wasn’t willing to share. If he had to profile her (and boy was he almost giddy at the opportunity) he’d guess she was coerced into the website like himself, and searching for courage to write her own story.

RocketRacoon : One day at a Time. There’s high points and low points, you’ll have Good days and Bad days.

Emily blinked as the advice came through.

“You’re gonna go weeks, months even” Hotch tells her softly as she sits across from him on the plane. It was only those two, he duped her into entering early. Just to check on her. “Feeling fine and then you’re going to have a bad day. “ He stared at her with such intensity that she almost finds herself being pulled in. “Just let me know when you do.”

Shaking her head out of that memory, Emily blinks back water and sighs.

It takes her a while to type out the response, so long in fact that Aaron begins to exit the conversation, deciding that he’s in a good enough mood to read a few tales of the site. Phoenix catches him last second though.

PhoenixPren : Thank you.

He sighs again, reading the little two words over a few times.

RocketRacoon : You seem like you need more than advice

Emily tilts her head now, scrunching her face up.

PhoenixPren: Excuse me.

RocketRacoon : Sorry for the bluntness. Most people are on this site as a form of therapy- to share stories and make connections. I checked out your profile, What’s your story?

He didn’t know where that boldness comes from but something in his gut told him to keep that conversation going. Should Spencer be here, he’d probably rattle off a factoid about natural instincts. He grew nervous when Phoenix didn’t reply, or the little typing bubble didn’t pop up and was about to apologise again when she simply sent a shrugging emote.

PhoenixPren: Too much to tell, sorry Rocky.

RocketRacoon : RockET and mine wasn’t? I’m always here to talk if you need, Phoenix.

Emily licks her lips and picks up her wine again.

PhoenixPren : Does this mean we are TraumaBuddies now?

Aaron smirks, shrugging as if Phoenix could see him.

RocketRacoon : If you would like that. I’m very intrigued by you.

Emily swigs the last of her wine.

PhoenixPren : Buckle Up, Rocky. You’re in for a ride.

Word count :1834

Tag list : @lonelychicagos @84hotpockets @serqueljisbon @loriprentiss @velvetblackness

If you would like to be added or removed from the tag list just shoot me a dm!

[carolinemorrison]

I'm working on something that I think will make lots of my Designated Survivor readers happy.

[cjbolan]

ship bingo: Emily x Aaron and/or Emily x Shona (Emily Windsnap)

Yay 2 asks! I used to ship Emily x Aaron. Especially in Book 4. But after that, seeing how Emily keeps...

picking fights with Aaron because she misjudged his innocent gestures

questioning her relationship with him

jumping to the worst conclusions about him

ogling other boys and comparing how handsome they are to Aaron, WHILE she's still dating Aaron!

...they're really better off as just friends. Nearly all the problems in their relationship are Emily's fault, and Aaron is always the better person. Honestly Aaron deserves someone better. I'm just glad Emily and Aaron eventually broke up. Maybe Liz Kessler was building up to that.

I honestly think Emily x Shona would be a much better couple! Their "friendship" is much more reciprocal. They're both constantly changing and learning how to be better friends to each other. For being "friends" for only a year, they act like they've known each other for years. With they way they share all their innermost thoughts and secrets. And how they always miss each other. And GOOD GOSH the lesbian subtext between these two...

Emily/Shona’s extremely close female friendship despite having other female friends 

The repeated rainbow motifs (Rainbow Rocks, Jake’s rainbow jewelry )

The Rainbow Rocks being a secret meeting spot both for forbidden interspecies couples, and for their forbidden interspecies friendship 

Emily’s and Shona’s short-lived hetero romances. Only their close "friendship" stays constant throughout the entire series. 

Emily’s recurring nightmares of being treated like a freak if people discover her secret (that she can become a mermaid just like Shona) 

Emily keeping her friendship with Shona a secret throughout Book 1

Their "special place" is the same place where Emily's parents fell in love

They visit all the same places that Emily's parents used to visit together

Shona making that "no adventures" rule to keep Emily all to herself

Emily and Shona envy each other for seeming happier with a boy instead

Emily is much more remorseful about fighting with Shona than with Aaron

All the long gazes between Emily and Shona

Shona sometimes blushing when she's with Emily

The author Liz Kessler is lesbian, so less likely the above points are all just coincidence

(BONUS: if Emily Windsnap ever does get adapted onscreen, I’d love to see it draw parallels between Emily/Shona’s forbidden friendship and Mary P./Jake’s forbidden romance. )

BASED ON THIS MEME TEMPLATE

[aubreyprc]

no wedding, one funeral

Summary - It’s their wedding day. It’s supposed to be the happiest day of their life. Unfortunately her past finds out just in time to make sure it doesn’t happen.

word count - 2.7k

it’s short and it’s sad and i would say i’m sorry but we know it’s a lie. it also could have been a lot worse, but i’m easing myself back into summer 2021 mode and this is the best i could do lol. love u besties<3

The night before

He’s smirking at her as he leans against the door, watching as she grumbles to herself as she packs an overnight bag. She turns to face him with squinted eyes at his chuckle and he can’t help but smile at her.

“This is so stupid.” she says, zipping the bag up.

“Yet you’re doing it,” he comments with a grin and she throws the pillow at him, a sarcastic smile on her face as he jumps from it.

“Have you ever tried to say no to Penelope?” she asks, “it’s like kicking a puppy.”

“It’s just one night,” he says, walking to her and she turns to face him, “you heard her. It’s back luck for the bride and groom to be together the night before.” he smirks, trapping her into his arms by her waist and she smiles, hooking her arms behind his neck.

“Mhmm,” she hums, “what will you be doing with your last night of freedom?” she says, tilting her head and he laughs.

“That’s what it is, huh?” he asks with a smile, “you want one final night of unmarried bliss?”

“Of course,” she plays along, “marriage seems so boring.”

“Our marriage will be the most boring of them all.” he smirks, before kissing her softly, his heart still, even almost three years later, jumping at the feel of her smile.

“So boring.” she whispers, kissing him again.

She groans at the heavy knocks on the door, pulling away completely and grabbing her bag.

They can hear Jacks excited shouts as Penelope walks through the door, the two of them more excited about the upcoming wedding than the actual couple.

“Come on love birds!” Penelope shouts, “We have dinner reservations!”

“That’s my que.” Emily says, and he smiles, latching their hands together.

“See you tomorrow, Mrs Hotchner.” he smirks, and she chuckles before she kisses him, her hand on his cheek softly.

“See you tomorrow, Mr Prentiss.” she teases, tapping his cheek as she smirks at him.

“I can’t wait to be boring with you forever.” he whispers close to her lips, and she smiles, her eyes full of love.

“Me too.” she smiles.

“You have three seconds or I’m coming in! And I’ve seen it all with the two of you!” Penelope shouts, causing Aaron to cringe internally at the memory.

“I love you.” Emily says to him and he nods, kissing her just one last time.

“I love you too,” he smiles, “Now go.” he says, pushing her away playfully.

She laughs, walking backwards out of the door. He follows her out, stopping next to Jack as the little boy jumps excitedly on the couch.

“I’ll see you tomorrow buddy.” Emily smiles, ruffling his chair as he smiles up at her.

“Wedding day!” he shouts and the three adults laugh.

“Wedding day!” Penelope shouts. “This is so exciting.” she squeals, pushing Emily out of the door. He can still hear the blonde woman even after the door is shut and their half way down the steps of their porch. Jack waves at Emily from the window as they drive off, and once the car is gone he turns to his dad.

“Can I try my suit on again?” he grins, happiness beaming off him and Aaron laughs.

“Not today buddy,” he says, “but you can help by getting me the box from the table.” he says and Jack jumps down of the couch, runs into the kitchen and grabs it.

“What is it?” the boy asks.

“A present for Emily for tomorrow,” he smiles, “Do you want to grab the drawing you and Jess made for us?”

“Yes.” he says suspiciously, “but you’re not allowed to look until after tomorrow!” he shouts as he walks into his bedroom.

Aaron chuckles to himself as he heads into the master bedroom, smiling with complete happiness, eager for tomorrow and the rest of his life.

He smiles as he looks at the wedding bands, the two of them resting in the palm of his hand, and he can’t help the joy that beams in his heart knowing the bands will rest forever on their fingers, they’re future one he can not wait for.

He crumpled up the paper in his hands, smiling as he turned on his heels. He’d waited so long to find her, he just couldn’t believe he’d found her at the perfect moment.

Aaron doesn’t get chance to see her at all that morning, everyone rushing around as they prepare last minute things.

He doesn’t see her until she’s walking down the aisle. A smile on her face as she looks at him, and he could cry. Thinks he would cry if he wasn’t so captivated by how beautiful she looked. The long white dress fitting in all the right places.

She winks at Jack when she reaches the top, the little boy giggles as he tries (and fails) to wink back.

“You look beautiful.” Aaron whispers to her and she smiles.

“Are we all ready?” the man says and everyone takes their seat.

They don’t use their own vows, the two of them deciding they didn’t need them. That their love is their own, and that was enough.

He smiles as he says I Do, the love in his eyes almost blinding as he looks at her.

She opens her mouth to say the two simple, but important words when the doors swing open, and they look in that direction.

“Hey stranger,” the thick Irish accent says, his eyes on nothing and nobody except Emily, moving closer with every step, and when her hands drop from his hold, Aaron turns to her. “Didn’t anyone tell you it’s rude to marry a man while engaged to another?” he asks her.

There’s no time for her to speak, no time for anyone to even register what was happening, and by the time anyone even saw the gun they were too late, the bullet already flying towards her.

He fires the gun into his own head before anyone can grab him. Everything happening to quick for anything to be done about it.

It was already over before anyone realised it started.

Jack stands in shock, Emily’s blood covering his white shirt at the impact of the bullet. Morgan grabs him and follows the rest of the team towards the exit, Dave on the phone to 911 as he heads out, the place completely empty apart from Aaron, Emily, and the guy with the gun.

The guy no one apart from her recognises.

“You’re okay,” Aaron whispers to her, watching in agony as her white dress turns a heartbreaking shade of red. “Just stay with me. Just stay with me.” he says, running a hand over her cheek and into her hair. His mind is running wild about the man’s final comment before he shot, but there isn’t time for him to think about it. The woman he loves is bleeding to death in his arms on their wedding day.

“Aaron—” she tries, “I—” but she can’t, she’s in too much pain, she can’t really breathe and she’s so tired. But she has to tell him. He has to know.

“Shh,” he says with a smile, “tell me later.” he nods, tears falling down his cheeks but he smiles at her.

She swallows, tries to force herself to speak, to use her last bit of strength to tell him the truth, about Ian. The man now laying dead not four inches from her.

But it’s too late, blood pours out of her too quickly, there isn’t enough time, and she slips away, her final thoughts on how he’ll never know the truth, about how he’ll never have answers. He’ll never have a why. Her final hope is that he doesn’t go looking for one.

“Em?” he whispers as her eyes fall closed, tears running down her cheek. “Emily?” he says, shaking his head. He looks down at his hand, raw red with her blood and he can’t accept it.

“Emily, baby, wake up.” he pleads, his hand on her cheek. “please.” he cries, before dropping his head, pulling her body closer into his as he holds her for the final time.

It could have been hours, it could have been minutes, he doesn’t know. He doesn’t care. But suddenly Dave is leaning by his side, a sad look in his eyes as he places a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s time,” he whispers, “you have to let her go.”

“I—” Aaron tries but there’s nothing to say.

“I know,” the other man replies, slowly pulling him away from Emily. He can’t even look, he won’t, he can’t have this image of her in his brain.

Aaron slowly stands as he releases her body, watching as she is carefully picked up, and wheeled away from him, and he almost drops to the floor and screams when he releases he’ll never see her again. That this was it.

“Let’s go, okay?” Dave says gently, slowly walking the man out of the building. The red on his once white shirt screaming at him.

Jack screams and runs to him almost instantly, and Aaron snaps from his trance to pick him up, holding the crying boy in his arms.

“Is Emmy gone?” he whispers, the name he’d not used since he could say Emily falling from his mouth, the name laced with sadness and grief.

“Yeah,” Aaron answers quietly. “She’s gone, buddy.” he rubs a hand over the boys back, holding back his own tears as he comforts his son as best as he can.

Two mother figures dead.

One in the same house.

One right in front of him.

The team watch with their own tears as Dave and Jessica lead them out and into a car.

“Who was that?” JJ asks them as the dead man is wheeled in front of them.

“I have no idea.” Morgan says, “He seemed to know Emily though. And she knew him.”

“Engaged?” Penelope says to no one in particular, as she remembers the strangers words.

The team don’t move for a long while, far too many unanswered questions surrounding them.

They bury her on what would have been her and Aaron one month anniversary. It’s a hot day, the sun shining down on all of them as her coffin is lowered into the ground.

There are five people here who he doesn’t know. All stood off in the corner, and he wonders if they knew the man who shot her. If they know why she was killed. He wonders if they can give him the answers he needs.

He goes to them when everyone starts to separate, and all eyes go to the tall man who stands in the middle of them as Aaron gets closer.

“Im sorry,” Aaron says, “Did you know Emily?”

“We did. A long time ago.” The man says in a British accent, and it catches him by surprise. “Clyde.” he says, holding his hand out.

“Aaron.” he says, taking it, his eyes looking at him with suspicion.

“How did you know her?” he questions, and their eyes dart to the floor.

“It was a long time ago,” he says, “we were just here to pay our respects.”

“Did you know the man who killed her?” he asks, “Do you know why she was killed? Shot. On our wedding day?”

“Aaron,” Clyde says sadly, “I’m really sorry for your loss. But we were just old friends.” he lies, and the lie tastes bitter on his tongue. But he has no choice. It’s classified, even though Ian is dead, his organisation is not. And then can not risk anymore lives.

“The man who killed her,” Aaron starts, not believing a word out of Clydes mouth. “He mentioned that they were engaged.. but Emily never mentioned anything about that. Never even talked about a serious relationship. She would have told me if she was engaged once, unless there was a reason she couldn’t.” he says, and Clyde swallows.

“Aaron,” the woman says, and he looks at her. “Emily meant a lot to all of us, and if we could give you the answers you wanted, we would. But we can’t. She is—” she stops, taking a shaky breath before continuing. “She was so important to me. To all of us. But there isn’t an answer here. Not with us.” she lies.

Aaron remains silent, holding back his own tears as he inhales.

“I’ve never heard a thing about either of you.” he tells them, “she never said a word about any of you. Couldn’t have been that important.” he says and he knows it’s rude, knows he’ll feel bad about it when all this is over but right now he’s angry, he’s heartbroken and he’s confused. And the group in front of him are lying to his face. So he simply walks off, heads back to his team and they all head to the wake.

“We should have told him.” Tsia says, “Ian’s dead. We’re not in danger.”

“When I get proof he didn’t assign someone else to hunt us down, I’ll tell him all he needs to know. But right now, its safer to keep it classified.” Clyde says, as they watch the grieving family drive away.

Dave sits next to Aaron as he stares at his glass. He doesn’t speak, allows Aaron to start the conversation.

“She had a whole secret life.” he starts, “five random people at her funeral, and they knew her, a random man comes to our wedding and shoots her after talking about being engaged—”

“Maybe she had a bad relationship before she moved here—”

“If it was that, she would have told me about it by now. I know that.” he says, shaking his head. “It’s more than that…” he trails off.

“You need to grieve. You need to get through this. And Jack. And then when you’re ready, I’ll help you do whatever it is you need to do—”

“I need answers.” he interrupts. “I need to know why the woman I love is dead.”

“Sometimes the answers don’t help.” he says gently. “Sometimes it better to accept it. To grieve, to move on.”

“A random man walked into our wedding and killed her. A group of strangers who talked about how Emily was important to them showed up at her funeral.” he says, looking at Dave. “She died… She was killed because of something, because of…” he stops, releasing a shaky breath, “I don’t need to accept it, Dave. I need to understand it.”

“And I’ll help. We all will.” he tells him. “But right now we all need to grieve.”

Aaron nods, taking a sip of his drink as Jack walks over, the sadness on his face enough to make him sick.

“I miss Emily.” he whispers as he climbs into his dads arms, and Aaron wraps them around him.

“Me too,” he whispers.

He sits on their (his now, he supposes) bed. His opening hand holding the two rings that feel heavier now than they ever had before, the two rings holding a future in them that they will never have.

He thinks back to how hard she tried to tell him something in his final moments, he wonders what it would have been.

A secret life?

A bad past relationship?

He can’t help but think back to the man’s final words, engaged running around in circles in his mind.

Who was he? Was she really engaged? How long ago was this?

He lays down, staring at the ceiling as tears roll down his cheek, the scent of her overwhelming as his head rests in her pillow.

He falls asleep wondering if he ever even knew her at all, or if everything they had together was a lie.

fin

[savageelizabeth]

Adan Canto with his son Roman.

[preciousprentiss]

Prompts of Hotchniss - Chapter 16

Prompt: Person A and Person B finally get married.

My beautiful bride.

Running her thumb over the writing on the front of the envelope she was holding while sat on the edge of the bed in her hotel room, Emily worried her bottom lip with her teeth in an attempt to keep herself from crying and ruining her mascara. She had already cried four times that morning, leaving Pen to have to clean her up and apply another coat every time, and the technical analyst told her that she would kill her if she had to do it again. 

She tried to blame her emotions solely on her raging hormones, but she hadn’t been fooling anyone and she knew it. She was an emotional wreck because after four years, four incredible years with him, she was marrying her soulmate.

In just under three hours, Emily Prentiss would no longer exist and she would be known henceforth as Emily Hotchner.

Just the thought of that was enough to give her butterflies.

She was reminded of the envelope in her hand when one of the boys kicked and pulled her from her thoughts, a sigh leaving her as she rubbed her bump through her dress to calm him. Her mom, Pen and JJ had taken Soph to the park across the street so she could have some time to herself and read Aaron’s letter without any distractions. It was a cute little thing they decided to do weeks ago since the two of them were sticking to tradition and keeping from seeing one another until Dave walked her down the aisle.

She wrote the soppiest stuff in hers, but she knew he did the exact same thing.

Deciding she should probably start reading before the girls got back, she took a breath and opened the envelope before unfolding the letter and grinning like an idiot as she began to read.

-

I knew this was going to happen.

This is literally my third time trying to write this stupid letter and I know what I want to say, but no idea how to write it down and so I think I’m just going to wing it like I did the proposal because that went well enough. I mean, I wouldn’t be writing this right now if it hadn’t gone to plan. 

All right, here goes.

You have no idea how obsessed with you I am. How much I love you. 

You can stop shaking your head at a piece of paper, Em, because I know I’m right. 

Yeah, I tell you I love you all the time and I buy you stuff to remind you of that on occasion, but I’ve never actually told you just how much I love you because there isn’t a word suitable enough to describe it. Like you, the love I have for you is so unique and just impossible to define. I’ve loved before, you know that and I won’t pretend I haven’t, but the love I have for you is entirely different to that.

I remember waking up with you after our first night together and not believing it because I thought I dreamt the whole thing. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed lying there with you in my arms while you slept, but I honestly believed it was a feeling that would pass the more you stayed at my place. Well - and you are so gonna love me for admitting this, I know you are - I was totally wrong. It’s been four years and you being there is still the first thing that makes me smile every day.

Not only do I love lying there with you and watching you sleep because you do that adorable little nose scrunch thing (I can call you adorable because you can’t punch me, but you’ll probably get around to it later anyway) but also because I get to feel the boys move since both of them are early risers like me. Em, I mean it, I have no idea how you sleep through all that kicking. I thought Soph was a kicker when you were pregnant with her, but she was nothing compared to them.

Speaking of our kids, the four of them are just another reason why I can’t wait to marry you. I want to prove to them that I’m serious about you and I don’t want anyone but you. When we first got together, Jack worried we would get bored in time and break up and he would have to get used to having somebody else in his life. It hurt me to hear him say it, but it made me see he needed me to prove to him I was crazy about you and you wouldn’t be going anywhere. Us having Soph was the first step, but I think it took us getting engaged for him to be sure.

I know Soph won’t remember anything about today, but it’s still important to me that she’s there to hear us say our vows. I promise I’m not going to just say mine and forget about them in a couple days. I’m going to remind you of them all the time and I’m going to make sure I take every opportunity to kiss and hold you, no matter if the kids are there or not, because you really need to know how I feel.

I love you, honey.

Not just today. Always. 

This letter is getting stupidly long, so I think I’m gonna leave it here because the longer it takes you to read it the longer it’ll take for you to walk down the aisle and I’m enough of a nervous wreck as it is. I don’t need your tardiness making it any worse.

I’m so excited to see you walk down the aisle. You’re going to look so gorgeous.

I’ll see you later, Mrs Hotchner-to-be.

Aaron.

-

Folding the letter back up with trembling hands and pushing it back inside the envelope, she put it down on the bed and stared at the ceiling in an attempt to keep the tears in her eyes from falling. Up until now, she thought she couldn’t love that man more than she already did. She thought it was impossible, but he’d just gone and proved her wrong. That letter of his was the most beautiful, heartfelt thing she had ever read and she was in no doubt of his love for her.

He was always complaining to her and others that he didn’t have much of a way with words, but he was wrong and she would kill him if he dared say that again.

She was just starting to pull herself together when she heard a gentle knock on the door. Expecting it to be the girls back from the park, she got up from the bed and walked across the room before opening it to see Dave standing there. “Oh, wow...” She breathed as she looked him up and down, admiring the suit he had on before looking him in the eye and noticing he was blinking back tears. “No! No, you can’t cry. If you cry then I’ll cry and then my mascara will go everywhere and Pen will kill me. I’ve been a mess all morning, so please keep it together.”

Taking her face in his hands beneath her veil, he stepped closer to her and gave her a kiss on the forehead before drawing back again and brushing his thumbs against her cheeks. “You have never looked more beautiful.” He told her quietly.

“Not helping, Dave...” She teased. “You coming in? The girls took Soph out.”

“Sure,” He nodded before letting his hands fall from her face so he could follow her into the suite. “How are you feeling?”

“Nervous,” She admitted. “I could do with some Dutch courage, to be honest.”

He smirked. “And how are my beautiful little nipotis doing?”

“I was a bit worried because they hadn’t been moving around as much as usual, so Aaron called my OB and she managed to squeeze me in,” She said. “She told me everything is fine with both of them, they just haven’t got that much space in there now and so their movements are limited. It also doesn’t help that Rowan is such a chunk and Ryder is so tiny because Rowan’s taking up the room there is and Ryder is a little squashed. Not much longer though, thankfully. Two months.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa...” He held a hand up while she sat. “Rowan and Ryder?”

She laughed at that. “Aaron and I were flipping through a book of baby names to get a little inspiration the other night and Jack found us. When we told him what we were doing, he asked if he and Soph could pick the names and we thought it was a good idea. We sat them down and even though it was a risk, we promised we would go with the names they picked out. Because he’s older, we let Jack go first and he chose Ryder because it means ‘mountain warrior’ and he thought it sounded super cool. Aaron and I love it too because he’s so small but so strong. It was just luck that Sophia picked out the name Rowan really.”

“You excited? It must feel more real now.” He sat down in the chair opposite her.

“The two of them are all I can think about at the minute,” She told him, running a hand across her bump, her gaze falling to the proof of her babies for a second before she looked at him again. “My OB says Ryder has put on weight since the 4D scan and she’s pleased with his progress, so it’s seeming much less likely they’ll have to be delivered early and spend some time in the NICU. He’ll still be smaller than Rowan at birth, but it shouldn’t take him too long to catch up with him. Knowing all that has changed a lot, so Aaron and I did some shopping and we found Moses baskets for them. They’re already up in the bedroom.”

He chuckled. “He’s not stopped going on about the three of you all morning.”

“Is he doing okay?”

“Yeah, he is. Nervous, obviously, but I have never seen him so happy before.”

“That’s a relief. Not changed his mind yet then.” She joked.

“That man wouldn’t change his mind if you beat him with a brick.” He scoffed.

“Don’t give me ideas, Dave,” She smirked at him. “That might end up being my go-to if he winds me up while we’re away.”

He snorted with laughter at that, but her phone beeped before he had chance to say anything else and she got up from the bed to walk over to the dressing table. “Mom says the cars are outside. Soph’s legs are hurting, so they’re gonna head to the house because they don’t want to drag her up here just to take her back down again. I’m glad of that though, she’ll get to spend some time with the boys before the ceremony and that should keep her quiet,” She glanced at him before responding to her mother, turning her phone off and putting it in her clutch bag. “I guess we should take that as our cue to get going too.”

“Let’s wait ten minutes,” He told her. “Be fashionably late. Make the man sweat.”

“That’s so cruel,” She feigned shock. “I like it.”

“So, ten minutes?” He raised an eyebrow at her.

“Ten minutes,” She nodded. “Ten minutes...”

----------

She barely had time to drink her water and put the glass on the side before the music she and Aaron picked for her to walk down the aisle to - the instrumental version of Songbird by Fleetwood Mac - started playing, her heart racing as she walked over to Dave before taking his arm with a trembling breath. “You good? You can take a minute if you like, he knows you’re here so no need to worry.” She heard him whisper while he brought his free hand up to give hers a stroke.

“I’m okay,” She assured him. “Well, I will be once I’m down there with him.”

“In other words, you want me to just shut up and start walking.” He translated.

“Yeah, pretty much,” She beamed. “Thank you for filling in for my dad. You don’t know how much I love you for it.”

“And I love you,” He kissed her on the cheek. “Now, let’s get you down there before Hotch sweats through his shirt.”

The two of them shared a smile before she tightened her hold of his arm, her other hand tightening its hold of her bouquet of flowers as she allowed him to lead her through the French doors that opened out into the back garden. Before she had even made it off the patio, the guests had risen from their seats and turned to watch her walk down the aisle. She was grateful to them all for coming, of course, and she managed to give the odd person a smile when she caught their eye, but her main focus was on the handsome man waiting for her under the wedding arch. He had told everyone that he wasn’t going to cry at the wedding, but she could definitely see tears rolling down his cheeks.

She would tease him about it when they were on their honeymoon, but for the time being she would simply enjoy it.

It took less time than she had thought it would to make it down the aisle and join Aaron beneath the arch, and once she had dropped Rossi’s arm and handed her bouquet of flowers to Garcia she turned to face him with a soft smile. “Is it too early to kiss the bride?” He teased, moving her veil out of her face with his fingers. “You look so beautiful.”

“You don’t look too bad yourself,” She reached up to brush the tears from his cheeks. “You ready for this?”

“Definitely,” He nodded. “You?”

“More than ready…” She assured him, taking his hands in her own. “Let’s get married.”

The two of them turned to Richard, the officiant, then and the smile he gave them told them he was ready to begin. “Dear friends and family,” He addressed the guests. “We are gathered here today to witness and celebrate the union of Aaron and Emily. In the years that they have been together, the love they have for each other has grown, turning them into the couple standing before you. Now, they are ready to spend the rest of their lives as husband and wife. A true marriage starts well before the wedding day, and the efforts of marriage continue long after the ceremony. A brief moment in time and the stroke of a pen are all that is needed to create the legal bond of marriage, but it takes an entire lifetime of three things – love, commitment and compromise – to make marriage durable and everlasting.”

He cleared his throat before continuing. “Emily and Aaron are here today to marry each other. No one else’s will can create such a union. It is their words, their intentions, their vision, that must define and shape their marriage. So, I call upon them both now to state their promise before this group: the pledges that will bind them together.” He fell silent once he’d said his piece and handed the microphone to Emily, clasping his hands as he stepped back slightly.

“Here you are.” Garcia whispered as she handed a folded-up piece of paper to her.

“Thanks,” Emily smiled before dropping Aaron’s hand in order to unfold it, the look on his face causing her heart to race when she took his hand again and squeezed it before looking at the words she’d written. “Aaron, I’m so proud that today I become your wife. I love you. I love the way you act like an idiot to make me laugh whenever I’m having a bad day. I love how you have to push my hair back when it’s in my face and I love how you take the opportunity to kiss me whenever we’re at a stoplight on our way into work,” She couldn’t help but laugh when he chuckled quietly.

“Today, I want to make promises to you that I promise I’ll always keep. I promise to never stop holding your hand, I promise to give you the same love and support that I give to our children, I promise to stand by your side when you face the world and listen when you have something to say and I promise to grow alongside you but never grow up. More than any of that though, I promise to love, respect, protect and trust you, and give you the best of myself, for I know that together we’ll build a life far better than either of us could imagine building alone,” She paused for just a second as tears blurred her vision. “Today seems like it’s the start of a new journey for the both of us, but I already belong to you. Falling for you wasn’t falling at all, it was just walking into your life and knowing I was home.”

Looking him in the eye again once she had finished reading her vows to him, she took a step closer to him and ran her thumb across his knuckles as she watched a tear roll down his cheek. The two of them looked at one another in complete silence for a time, nothing else mattering but them, before he reached for the microphone and cleared his throat. “There’s no way I’m going to top that, but let’s see how this goes,” He chuckled, making her and the guests laugh. “Em, I love you without knowing how, or when or from where. I love you straightforwardly, without any pride or complexities. Loving what I know of you and trusting what I don’t yet. Home, in my opinion at least, is wherever you and our kids are. I love you not for what you are, but what you are when I’m with you and that’ll never change.”

Even though there was a lump in her throat and she was fighting back tears, she still managed a quiet: “I love you.”

“And I love you,” He ran the back of his hand down her cheek, brushing his thumb against her hair. “So much.”

When Richard moved closer to the two of them once again, Aaron handed him back the microphone before slipping both hands into his bride’s again and smoothing his thumbs across the back of her palms as they both took a deep breath. “I think the fact that I can’t see a single dry eye says more than I ever could about those vows,” Richard said as he looked out at the wave of guests for a second. “Now, it’s time to move on to the declaration of intent. Do you, Aaron, take Emily to be your lawfully wedded wife, to share your life openly, standing beside her in sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, in hardship and in ease, to cherish and love forever more?” He inquired, looking at him.

“I do.” Aaron replied without hesitation, nothing but love for the beautiful woman standing before him in his eyes.

“And do you, Emily, take Aaron to be your lawfully wedded husband, to share your life openly, standing beside him in sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, in hardship and in ease, to cherish and love forever more?” He asked.

“I do, I definitely do.” Emily nodded, not caring in the slightest that her impatience was showing through.

“That’s excellent,” He smiled. “Now the rings, please.”

Aaron and Emily both turned their heads in order to watch Jack walk towards them with their rings on a pillow, their pride in him evident on their faces when he came to stand beside them and held the pillow up a little. “Now, Aaron,” Richard continued. “Please take the ring you have selected for Emily. As you place it on her finger, repeat after me” He watched silently as he took the diamond ring from the pillow and eased it onto her finger. “Emily, I give you this ring as proof of my love. I ask you to wear it as a sign to the world that you are my wife. With this ring, I thee wed.”

Once Aaron had repeated what he had said and settled the ring neatly at the base of her finger, he turned to Emily. “And Emily, please take the ring you have selected for Aaron. As you place it on his finger, repeat after me,” He told her before watching her take the other ring from the pillow and gently place it on Aaron’s finger. “Aaron, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love. I ask you to wear it as a sign that you are my husband. With this ring, I thee wed.”

Emily repeated his words perfectly as she slid the ring down his finger, and Richard smiled as he watched them take each other’s hands again. “In so much as the two of you have consented together in matrimony, and have witnessed the same before this company, by authority vested in me by the State of Virginia, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Aaron, you may kiss your bride!” He announced, stepping back when Aaron pulled Emily into a soft, deep kiss.

Wrapping her arms tight around his waist as the guests clapped and cheered, Emily couldn’t help but smile against her husband’s lips as she felt him pull her closer to him with the hand pressed into the small of her back. “Well, Mr. Hotchner,” She murmured between kisses, grasping the back of his shirt in both hands. “You’re stuck with me now.”

“Am I? Good,” He smirked. “Because that’s all I’ve ever wanted…”

----------

From where he was standing in the corner of the garden with a can of beer in hand, Aaron smiled as he watched his girls pose together for a picture. All the pictures that the two of them had been serious about having taken with the kids, the wedding and the maternity ones, had been taken hours ago and so they were only messing around, but he knew that that was one picture he was going to keep so that he could have it on his desk at work. Emily and Sophia were standing together in the shade of the huge oak tree, his wife with one hand on her back and the other running down their little girl’s cheek as her lips were pressed to her bump and her tiny hands were cradling it at either side.

It was such a natural and beautiful picture of the two of them, one he knew would always make him smile no matter the day he was having at work, and he couldn’t wait for it to be developed. Once the picture had been taken, Sophia took a step back from her mother and giggled before Emily cupped her cheek in her hand and she nuzzled instantly into her palm, the love he had for the two of them deepening as he watched the little scene unfold. His wife was the most natural mother he had ever seen, she truly was. Her mother had barely been around when she had been little, meaning that she’d had no example to follow when Sophia had arrived, but she needn’t have been worried about it.

Like he had known she would, she had found her own way and she had astounded him with the little things she had done when they had brought their daughter home for the first time. She had been a multitasker, able to hold her in one arm while doing laundry or pouring Jack a bowl of cereal at the same time, she had known exactly how to settle her whenever she had cried, she had known which lullabies had comforted her the most and he had been so proud. Things were going to be a little different this time around though, he knew that. Unlike their sister, the boys would be delivered via C-section and he knew that it would be weeks if not months before Emily would be back to normal.

He was going to have to pull his weight big time, getting up with the boys in the night along with making sure Jack got to school in time in the mornings and Sophia was kept entertained throughout the day. It wasn’t going to be an easy task and he was going to be permanently exhausted, but the thought of such things didn’t bother him all that much. For the past seven months, his wife had been eating for three and sharing her body with two crazy little boys who kicked her all night and played with her bladder all day. She hadn’t had a moment’s peace since she had found out she was expecting them, so he was looking forward to taking them off her hands for a while so she could sleep.

Besides, how much trouble could two newborns actually be?

Jack and Sophia had both been a breeze.

“Dada!” His sweet little girl’s voice pulled him from his thoughts and he set down his beer the second he caught her toddling towards him, warmth pooling in his chest as he got down to her level and opened his arms to her. She ran the last couple of steps, eager to get to him, and buried her face in his chest when he caught her in one of his bear hugs, her peals of laughter only making him love her more as he tickled her sides while getting back to his feet. He perched her on his hip once he was upright again and kissed her chubby cheek, lingering for a moment longer than necessary to breathe in her scent before pulling back to watch his wife walk towards them as she rubbed her bump.

“You might have to be the one to take her to the park for the foreseeable,” She puffed. “I can’t keep up with her.”

He chuckled, wrapping an arm around her waist once she had reached him and drawing her close with a kiss to her temple. “Does this mean that my days are going to be spent fetching you chips and soda while you sit on the couch watching Doctor Phil? Don’t get me wrong, I loved doing that when you were pregnant with this little one, but if you could just let me know what I’m in for then I’d appreciate it.” He teased, amusement in his eyes as he looked at her.

“Mmm…that sounds nice,” She smirked. “My ankles are a bit swollen as well, so you could massage my feet for me.”

“Who do you think you are? FLOTUS?” He asked.

“Please…?” She pouted, cuddling closer to him.

He feigned a sigh of exasperation. “Fine. I guess I am partly responsible for your swollen ankles and mad cravings.”

“I am so in love with you,” She laughed, nudging her nose against his. “You mean absolutely everything to me.”

“And you mean just as much to me.” He smiled.

He leaned in to steal a kiss from her, but a soccer ball hitting him in the leg prompted him to pull away from her at the last moment and he turned with a frown before sighing as he watched Jack approach them with a sheepish look on his face. “You and I have been over this, buddy. You shouldn’t be kicking your ball around Emmy or your sister.”

“Sorry, daddy, I was supposed to kick it to Henry but it went the wrong way.” Jack explained, playing with his hands.

“Sounds like you need a little more practice,” Aaron told him, hoping the smile on his face would tell him he was no longer upset. “How about a little one-on-one when Emmy and I get back from our trip? I’ll give you some pointers.”

Jack’s eyes lit up. “You mean it? Really?”

“Really,” Aaron nodded. “Why don’t you leave the ball for the time being though and take Sophia to get some cake?”

“Cake! Cake!” Sophia squealed, clapping her hands together with glee before her father set her down on the grass.

“Emmy, I’m sorry about the ball. Can I have some cake as well? Please?” Jack asked with hope in his eyes.

Emily sighed. “Sweetheart, it was an accident. You were only playing. Of course, you’re allowed to have some cake.”

“Thank you! You’re the best mom ever!” He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a hug before taking Sophia’s hand in his and hurrying to the desserts table with her, Emily watching them go with tears of happiness in her eyes.

“Did you, um…” She stumbled over her words as she glanced up at her husband. “Did you hear what he just said?”

“I did.” He brushed a dark curl back behind her ear.

“He probably doesn’t even realise he said it,” She shrugged. “I shouldn’t get too excited.”

“Don’t think of it like that. Think of it as a step forward,” He shook his head. “It proves he sees you as a mom, Em.”

She smiled to herself. “He’s not mine, I know, but I love him just as much as I love Soph and the boys.”

“I know you do,” He rested his chin on her head, casting his gaze over at their beautiful children. “I know you do…”

----------

Running the back of his hand down the side of her face as he held her in his arms that night, Aaron felt nothing but relief when he felt Emily settle against him and heard the slightest change in her breathing. She was actually asleep. It had taken hours to get to this point and he had to admit that, for the first time in quite a while, he was genuinely annoyed with her. All afternoon, she had been dancing and chatting away to everyone as though she had been fine, but the fact of the matter was that she had been far from it. Her back had been in two and her feet had been killing her, but he hadn’t known a thing about it until she had burst into tears once the final few guests had headed home.

When he had been holding her on the couch and massaging her back in an attempt to help ease the pain a little, he had asked her why she hadn’t told him sooner and all she’d said was that she didn’t know. He adored her. He loved her more than she would ever know, but there was one thing he couldn’t stand about her and it was how she would keep him in the dark about things if she thought there was the slightest chance of it hurting him. He needed her to start opening up to him about things, but he also understood why that was such a challenge for her. She had never had someone to talk to about her issues before. No one had cared. No one had listened and she’d grown used to it.

She was the bravest woman he knew, but her past had damaged her severely and it would take time for her to heal.

When he had helped her upstairs after she had sat with a hot-water bottle pressed to her back for a good half hour, their wedding night had been the furthest thing from his mind and he’d been relieved that it been the furthest from hers as well. It would have killed him to push her away if she had made advances, but he would have forced himself to do it because it wouldn’t have been right. To do that to her in the state she had been in would have been selfish. He would have seen it as taking advantage of her and that was one thing he never wanted to do. He cared about her far too much. “You are an absolute idiot sometimes, Emily Hotchner,” He sighed into her fringe. “But I still love you.”

Despite his frustration, he smiled when she stirred in her sleep a couple of minutes later and murmured something incoherent before brushing her hair out of her face and settling down again once she’d cuddled up to him. She was something else, his wife. She was so unique, so different to any woman he had ever met, and there was no one way to define her which was one of the things he loved her most for. When he had been saying his vows earlier on, he’d told her that he loved everything he already knew about her and that he trusted everything that he had yet to learn and he’d meant it. There were so many layers to her, it would take forever to peel them all back, but he would do it.

He would eventually learn everything there was to know about her.

And he would surely love her all the more because of it.

[petit97]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Criminal Minds (US TV) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Aaron Hotchner/Emily Prentiss Characters: Aaron Hotchner, Emily Prentiss, Jack Hotchner Additional Tags: Short One Shot Summary:

Jack is sick, Emily and Hotch take care of him.

[nightingalewolfie]

It was gonna be emily and hotch but I felt bad for forgetting Penelope >:| so I put her in this pic to

And hotch needs more hugs so drew him with them aswel I'll be posting the colored version soon

I'm not used to drawing the girls but this looks allot better than the last time I drew them ^^