Okay, guys, I'm pretty excited about this story because this is one that's going to be multi-chaptered and not just a oneshot! It's set to take place after Lauren (I know, another fic centered around the Doyle arc… I just can't help it! Haha). A brief summary that will hopefully ease any confusion: This is set ten years after Prentiss faked her death. Doyle is still in hiding after all those years, and Emily is using a fake identity. When I write her, I will still refer to her as Emily, but when she interacts with anyone she will be referred to by her new identity which is stated in this chapter. Also, as you will see later on, Hotch and Prentiss are already in an established relationship (sorry if you guys expect a… well… 'bang up' smut scene or something, though. But hopefully I will not disappoint you! I want to see how this idea/chapter goes over before I post anymore, so if you like it, love it, hate it, want to burn it- please let me know!

Emily Prentiss awoke earlier than normal on this March 7th morning. It was barely 5am. She got out of bed and threw on a robe that hung on the doorknob on the door to her bathroom. She quietly opened one of the sliding glass doors at the far end of the bedroom. Her apartment was small and not exactly her idea of an ideal home, but she could afford it. Though the place she called home was far from perfect, she had to admit she loved the small patio outside her bedroom. She often came out here to think. The view from the patio was breathtaking, especially early in the morning.

She sat down in the chair, running her fingers through her hair, thinking about the past. It was something she tried not to do. She tried to forget everything, forget her past and who she used to be. Every time she thought she might be close to forgetting March 7th would roll around again and everything would come flooding back to her.

She let herself be Emily Prentiss again for just an hour or so every March 7th. She closed her eyes, thinking about her time in the warehouse with Ian Doyle. He'd held a gun to her head. She was prepared to die, but she hadn't. She came so close, in fact, she coded in the ambulance. She'd thought that was the end for her. She was terrified, but if it would keep her team, her friends, her family safe, she would do whatever it took.

But she had not died. She woke up in the hospital, hooked up to more machines than she could count, and everything hurt. She half expected to find someone she was familiar with next to her, but that wasn't the case. No one was there except her and a nurse. She knew immediately what had been done even if no one explained it to her. She knew someone, most likely Hotch, had told everyone she was dead. Emily Prentiss, as far as anyone knew, was dead. And it was all to protect her.

How was it that she had set her mind to protect the team, and in turn, they were now protecting her? She didn't understand it, and she wasn't exactly sure she wanted to. What was she supposed to do? Who did the people in the hospital think she was? Where would she go now? Her mind flooded with questions, and as if the nurse could read her mind, she handed Emily an envelope. The nurse told her to read it and discard it immediately afterward.

The letter told her what she already knew. JJ and Hotch had decided the best thing for everyone, was to fake the death of Supervisory Special Agent Emily Prentiss. Her identity as of right now was on a need-to-know basis. Emily herself wasn't completely aware of her identity. As soon as she was able to travel, she was given strict instructions to board a plane using the passport the hospital was keeping for her. She would go to France and she would be met there by someone who would explain what to do after that.

Emily put her head in her hands, and began to cry. It wasn't often she allowed the emotions to overtake her like this, especially not the emotions concerning Emily Prentiss, because she wasn't Emily Prentiss anymore. She was Marie Blanchard, a department store clerk in Paris, France.

She was so absorbed in her own thoughts, she hadn't heard the small footsteps approaching.

"Mama?" she heard a little voice say. Immediately, she stopped crying. She wiped her eyes quickly and turned to look at the source of the small voice: her nine year old daughter, Gabrielle.

"Hey, honey. What are you doing up so early?" She asked, hoping she was off the hook, but Gabrielle ignored her mother's question.

"Were you crying?" she asked, her eyes filled with worry.

"I'm okay, ma chere," she said, using one of Gabrielle's favorite French terms of endearment. Emily made sure Gabrielle was fluent in both French and English, so a lot of the time the two languages were used interchangeably.

"But I saw you, you looked upset," Gabrielle pressed on. Emily held her breath. There was no way she would tell Gabrielle the truth, at least not while she was still so young and innocent.

She slowly exhaled, and pulled Gabrielle close to her.

"I'm okay. I was just… thinking about a friend of mine. She… ah, died. Before you were born. And I just miss her." She said, not wanting to lie but not knowing what else to say, either. She figured for now, this was the simplest, least harmful explanation she could give Gabrielle.

"But you're okay?"

"I'm okay," Emily confirmed, smiling. It never failed to amaze her how much better Gabrielle could make her feel.

"Okay," Gabrielle said, slowly sitting in her mother's lap. The young girl leaned back into Emily as Emily wrapped her arms around Gabrielle's middle. The two of them sat there just like that for awhile. Neither one of them said a word.

Gabrielle was nine years old. She would be ten in December. She had dark hair, dark eyes, and for the most part she looked exactly like a miniature Emily. Except for her smile. Gabrielle had her father's smile, and Emily loved seeing it as it was the only thing she had left of him. Emily was also rather amazed at how much of his personality Gabrielle had even though she had never met him. She was compassionate and always cared about those around her. She was tough and strong willed. She could get emotional, but Emily was the only person who ever saw it.

"What do we say we get you back to bed, hmm? It's still early and you need your sleep," Emily told the young girl. It was Sunday, after all. It was the one day a week she didn't have work that she and Gabrielle could spend the whole day together, and they usually liked to sleep in.

"Will you stay with me Mama? And can we stay in your bed?" Gabrielle asked, looking up at Emily.

"Of course," Emily said, confirming both questions as she slid Gabrielle off her lap as the two went back inside to Emily's room, where Gabrielle happily hopped up on the bed. Emily got up on the bed beside her daughter, smiling when Gabrielle instantly snuggled closer to her. Emily ran her fingers through Gabrielle's hair as she softly sang a French lullaby to the young girl, whose eyes were already beginning to close. Emily was thankful that even though Gabrielle was older now, she still had not outgrown Sunday mornings like this. Especially this particular Sunday morning.

One she was sure Gabrielle had drifted back to sleep, Emily closed her eyes and thought back to ten or so years ago. She'd just gotten off the plane in Paris and had just seated herself outside at a café, awaiting the next set of instructions…

It was cold. Emily was dressed for warmth but she wasn't feeling it. She waited patiently, not exactly sure who she'd be seeing in a matter of moments. She held a newspaper in her hands, acting as if she was reading it, but in reality she was just thinking. She didn't think about what had been, she didn't think about the past. She started thinking about jobs, places to live, and how to keep herself safe. She didn't know how long it would last, but she knew she had to keep running. She had escaped Doyle twice now, and she never wanted to face him again.

Suddenly, the chair in front of her was pulled out, and a familiar body graced it with her presence.

JJ. Emily thought. She dare not say her name aloud, instead she gave her a brief smile.

JJ took a plain envelope from her bag. "Passports from three different countries, and a bank account for each one to keep you comfortable," she said. She handed the envelope to Emily.

"Thank you," Emily said sincerely. She wished she could say more, but she couldn't for fear of being watched.

JJ nodded slightly. "Good luck," she responded. Emily quickly got up from the table, she knew if she stayed any longer she would start crying. She had to forget Emily Prentiss.

She went to the hotel she had a room rented for the night under the name Natasha Clarice. Tonight, she would decide which of the three identities JJ had given her she would use first, and she would start over.

Her plans were interrupted as soon as she reached her room. The door was slightly ajar, and she knew she had not left it that way. She pushed the door open and prepared for a fight. Before she could do anything, she heard a familiar deep voice.

"It's me, it's okay," Aaron Hotchner said softly. Immediately, Emily's body relaxed immediately.

"You're here," she breathed.

"I couldn't let you leave without telling you goodbye," his voice barely above a whisper.

Emily quickly made her way over to him and walked right into his open arms. She blinked back tears and focused on taking in the moment. She closed her eyes and took in his memorable scent. He ran her hands up and down her back, and she balled the fabric of his shirt into her hands as she held onto him for dear life.

They stood there like that for a few minutes, neither of them wanting to start the conversation, because they knew it could possibly be the last one they had in person for a long time. So the chose to avoid it as long as they could. Of course, it was inevitable and Emily decided to break the silence. She broke out of Hotch's ever so wonderful embrace and sat on the bed, motioning for him to come sit by her. He did so and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in as close as he could.

"You're taking a big risk by being here," she said simply. It was true. With Doyle out on the loose, who knew who he was watching?

"I know, I know. JJ wanted to kill me. But I just… I had to see you, Em," he said seriously.

"I'm so glad you did come, though," she said, her voice cracking. 'I'm going to be a total girl here for a minute, but when… when I woke up in that hospital all by myself, I was so terrified. I was worried about the team, about you. And then I just… I knew what happened and I was even more scared. And now that you're here and God knows when I'm going to see you again… I'm just. I'm scared, Aaron," she said quickly, before the sobs began to rack her body. She had been trying to stay strong for so long, and she was tired of it.

Hotch gently rubbed her back and hugged her. "I know… I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. If there was any other way, I swear we would have done it. But JJ and I talked over every option and… this was the only one that has a hope of us all being together again," he told her, brushing her messy black hair out of her face when they pulled away from the hug.

"You're right…" she said. "I just… God, this sucks," she said bluntly. In normal circumstances, Hotch would have laughed about her wording. Instead, he kissed her passionately. She kissed him back with just as much passion. Emily moved back to the top of the bed, leaning against the pillows. Hotch was practically on top of her, and they both new things were about to go farther than they should.

"Em," Hotch said in between kissing. "I don't think you're supposed to partake in any… um… strenuous activities, just yet."

"I don't care, Aaron. I want you… no. I need you one more time," she said, toying with the button on his nicely fit jeans.

"Jesus," Emily breathed later on. "That was… wow," was all she knew how to say.

"I love you, Emily. I've always loved you," he said, placing a kiss to her temple.

"I love you too," she told him. Hotch reluctantly got up from his very comfortable spot on the bed and collected all his clothing. Once he was dressed, he said: "I wish I didn't have to leave you like this. I want to stay, I swear. But I-"

"Go, Aaron." she told him firmly. "You've probably already been here too long. But let's promise each other something, okay?"

"Anything,"

"We can't go looking for Doyle. Okay? Swear to me you won't. Let him come to you, or me, or whoever he wants to come after. Going after him will surely get somebody killed- for real this time," she said.

Hotch sighed. As much as he wanted to go look for Doyle, to go catch him so Emily could return home again, he knew she was right.

"I promise," he said.

"Okay," she said.

"Okay," he confirmed, squeezing her hand in his. "Remember, I love you," he said, letting go of her hand and walking to the door backwards, so he could still look at her. He reached behind him to turn the doorknob, but before the door opened, Emily leaned up to kiss him just one last time.

"And I love you," she confirmed. And then he was gone. Just like that, she wasn't Emily Prentiss anymore. She was dead. She had to pick a new identity now.

That's just what she did, too. She picked an identity from the three JJ had given her. She decided her plan would be to stick with the same one until she felt too comfortable or that she was getting too close with the people around her.

She hadn't even got to switch to another identity before she found out she was pregnant. That's when everything changed, yet again, for Emily.