A/N 'Ello, mates! This is my FIRST Criminal Minds fic, so I have no idea how this is gonna turn out. This is for MeGkAtHeRiNe's prompt, and in gratitude for the amazing story she wrote for MY prompt. So, MeGkAtHeRiNe, this one's for you!
Disclaimer: If I owned Criminal Minds, Jennifer Love Hewitt wouldn't be joining in Season 10. I don't hate her (GHOST WHISPERER!) but I just DON'T want her to join my babies. Plus, if I owned Criminal Minds, WHY would I be calling them my babies?
Emily, using her key, entered the Hotchner household nervously. She had no idea what to expect.
When Unit Chief Aaron Hotchner had approached her desk this morning and asked - well, to be honest, half-ordered, in true Hotch fashion - her to come to his house at 6:00 sharp that evening, using her key, she had been surprised. It wasn't as if she had never been to his house before, it was just that he himself had never invited her over - it was usually Jack.
Speaking of which, she couldn't see Jack anywhere - usually he would rush to greet Miss Em'ly, throwing his arms around her knees (that was about as far as he could reach), telling all about his day, describing each part in detail, talking at a mile a minute. But she couldn't even hear his feet pounding down the stairs, or his voice yelling to welcome her. All was silent. It was...eerie.
"Jack?" she called. "Hotch?"
Silence.
She put her hand on her hip, ready to unholster her gun if needed, and proceeded with caution to the living room.
"Jack?" she called louder, a little more frantically. "Hotch?"
When, suddenly...
"SURPRISE!" Jack and Hotch yelled, jumping out from behind the couch. Emily screamed and fired a shot at nowhere in particular. It ended up mercilessly slaughtering an innocent couch cushion.
Jack was wielding what seemed like a large card, which he promptly dropped and ran to hide behind his father's legs. He peeked out, and when he saw it was Emily, he grinned and ran to throw his arms around her knees, exclaiming, "Miss Em'ly!"
Emily, overcoming her initial shock and quickly holstering her gun, leaned down and grinned at him. "Hey, buddy! What's all this for?" She questioned, looking around and noticing for the first time that the living room was lavishly decked out in streamers, and a large banner that read, "YAY YOU SURVIVED THE BAD MAN!"
She looked up at Hotch, who was looking at anything but her, and asked, "Hotch? Care to explain?"
"Well," he replied, finally looking at her, "The banner seems pretty self-explanatory..."
"Oh, is it?" she rolled her eyes and chuckled. She crouched down so she was level with Jack, and asked, "Hey, Captain Jack! What's all this for?"
Jack looked up at her, and smiled a gap-toothed smile. "Daddy said you came out of the hospital today. He said that you had 'suffered many in-injer-" He screwed up his face in concentration. "In-joo-reese! Right Daddy?" He looked up at his father for confirmation.
Hotch smiled - a rare occurence in itself - a little sadly, and ruffled his son's hair. "That's right, bud."
Emily's heart warmed. She had come out of the hospital today, one of her longest stays, as she had managed to get shot in the stomach and arm, break her right leg, fracture a rib or two and, as the metaphorical cherry on top, gotten a concussion, but she hadn't thought she would be greeted back this enthusiastically. But then again, this was Jack.
"So you planned this little homecoming celebration for me, did you?" she inquired, addressing Jack.
"Well, Daddy helped a lot too. He was really sad when you were in the hospital, and when we started planning, he got a lot happier," Jack explained with all the logic and matter-of-fact of a seven-year-old.
"Is that so?" She looked up at Hotch, trying not to laugh at the brilliant blush featuring prominently on his neck, cheeks and ears. He seemed incredibly interested in the carpet at the moment, so she returned her attention to Jack. "Well, what have you got planned for tonight?"
Jack answered promptly,"Lots! First we're going to bake a cake, then Daddy'll make dinner while I show you all my new toys! Don't worry, you can play with them too," he assured due to the mock puzzled countenance Emily had on her face. "Then we'll eat dinner and dessert, and then-" he paused, taking a deep breath, because he had said that all nonstop,"We're going to watch a movie that you get to pick!" he finished, sounding super-excited.
"Wow, sounds like a lot! Better get going!" Emily exclaimed.
**HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISSHOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!**
As they lay on the couch watching Frozen, Jack rested his head in Emily's lap. He most definitely was not asleep, though Oh, he was planning something terrible. Deep in his seven-year-old brain, a malicious plan was festering, and at the moment that Kristoff and Anna kissed (ew), he acted upon it.
"ATTACK!" Jack cried, his hands reaching for Emily's tummy and tickling her mercilessly.
The reaction was immediate. Emily jerked, and started wriggling helplessly under the young boy's attack. "Aaron!" she cried, in her surprise forgetting herself and calling him by his first name. "HELP!"
Aaron froze, shocked.
Emily didn't understand why he wasn't rushing to her aid, so she decided to fight with fire.
Aiming for Jack's belly, she started tickling him back. Jack immediately stopped assaulting her and instead wriggled and squirmed, much like Emily had been doing a few moments previously.
"DADDY!" Jack cried, flailing his arms and legs about. "HEEEEELLLLP!"
Aaron came to his senses and, with a mischievous glint in his dark eyes that Emily had never seen before, dived upon the pair and began tickling both.
"Nooo! Whose side are you on?" Emily and Jack both yelled.
Aaron shrugged. "Every man - and woman -" he added hastily, seeing Emily's reproachful glance," - for themselves."
Emily and Jack looked at each other. Both then looked back at Aaron with a worrisome look in their eyes.
His eyes widened. He opened his mouth, but they pounced before he could say another word.
**HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!HOTCHNISS!**
Emily, Aaron, and Jack lay on the couch, exhausted. Jack was on the verge of sleep, and he had cuddled up to Emily's shoulder. Emily's head was lying on Aaron's shoulder, and her eyes were drooping shut.
Aaron, who was nodding off himself, jerked awake and looked down, realizing that he had become a human pillow, and chuckled.
The rumbling of his chest caused Emily's eyelids to flutter open. She twisted her neck up to see Aaron's smiling(!) face, then looked down to see Jack practically sleeping in her lap. She smiled.
Aaron held up a finger. "Wait. Just one more thing." He pulled out a blanket, a quilt actually, that his relatives had sent him for Christmas, and wrapped it around the three of them.
"Now it's perfect," he said, and Emily grinned. He loved her smile, it lit up her eyes, and her full red lips...
"Aaron?" Emily was waving her hand in front of his face.
He blinked, then smiled down at her. "You seem to be calling me Aaron a lot this evening."
"Well you seem to be smiling a lot this evening," she shot back.
"I have a valid reason," he countered.
"Do I need one?"
He considered. "Good point, but I am your boss."
She smirked. "Then since when did I become 'Emily'?"
"Touché."
"Aaron?"
"Yes?"
Emily craned her neck and kissed his cheek. "Thanks. For everything."
A muffled voice came indignantly from the blanket."Hey, don't forget me!"
Emily and Aaron both laughed. She reached down and ruffled his hair. "Yes, buddy, thanks to you too."
No response. Jack was asleep.
Aaron turned to Emily, but her eyes were drooping shut. Moving slowly so he wouldn't wake her, he reached over and turned off the lamp. Kissing her forehead, he whispered, "Good night."
A/N Phew! I feel so accomplished! Also, this is my first Criminal Minds fic, so don't hate too much...feel free to criticize, though.
Well MeGkAtHeRiNe, hope I didn't screw this one up too badly...
Toodles!