I am so sorry for the delay in posting. I had this whole chapter written out months ago and then my computer died in a blaze of glory (literally- it was very impressive) and I couldn't bear to rewrite it so I waited until I could salvage it from my old hard drive. Fear not I will update lots to make up for this!

While I was waiting, I wrote something for the season 9 finale called "Angels and Demons" and I'm really proud of it so please look it up! It has lots of Reid and Marley fluff.

I know I don't deserve it but please please please review! Idril x

29. Marley's Day

"In a child's eyes, a mother is a goddess. She can be glorious or terrible, benevolent or filled with wrath, but she commands love either way. I am convinced that this is the greatest power in the universe." ― N.K. Jemisin

Marley

"You know Capybara's are the largest rodent in the world."

"Really? Wouldn't want one in my kitchen." I offered around a mouthful of ice cream. We were sat watching some documentary on a British Zoo as we sat curled up on Spencer's sofa. His arms were around me, his fingers running up and down my arm. It had been six months since I'd been released from my stint in yet another hospital ward and things were slowly getting better. I could stand the journey to Spence's apartment now. Usually we curled up in a companionable silence but today he had barely stopped for breath.

I hadn't been sleeping too well, well that was my excuse for it taking me two hours to realise I was being distracted. For someone who worked with the FBI, Spence wasn't particularly good at lying to me. Something I was grateful for. He'd been edgy since he picked me up, talking constantly about facts and statistics, switching between topics seemingly at random, and his hand was slick with sweat. Deciding to pull him up on it I asked if we could go back to Aaron's, I'd left my bag behind. Spencer froze and began babbling even more incoherently than before. I tried, with little success, to hide my smirk.

"What's going on, Spence?" I smiled even wider at the look on his face, which had paled and he began talking about the invention of the internet. "I'll get it out of you!" I lunged at him, straddling his body and began a tickle torture. He yelped, his body jerking under my hands as he squealed. I giggled, enjoying being evil. He eventually managed to grab both of my hands in his and stopped me in my tracks.

"It's something good, okay? Aaron and Jack want to do something nice for you." I nodded, grinning, I liked being spoiled. And it was nice getting to the stage where I could enjoy it.

"How long until we're summoned back?"

"A couple of hours?" I smiled, leaning down to kiss him. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me closer. I leaned down again, letting him kiss me gently, caressing my hair and nuzzling me close. I enjoyed the closeness, it had taken us a little time to return to this closeness after everything that had happened but now we were solid. I loved the way Spence kept control of himself, he kept his hands to my waist or hair until I said anything. I kept stopping him before we got too far, something inside stopped me. I was scared, scared that anything I did now wouldn't match up to before. That first, and only, time I'd been with Spencer had been… perfect. That was that was the only way to describe it. And what if it could never have that again. It was better to live with the possibility.

Spence didn't mind. He never did. He settled for kissing on the sofa and eating popcorn while we watched some TV movie. Spencer's phone buzzed twenty minutes before the end, he didn't even let me find out whether the truth was revealed as he was shuttling me out the door.

"Seriously what is this?" I asked for the umpteenth time while Spencer just shook his head, keeping his eyes firmly on the road. I knew Spencer preferred the subway but I still didn't feel particularly comfortable in crowds so he drove us back to Aaron's apartment and parked in his usual spot besides Aaron's car. I had to stop myself from running through the entryway to find out what Aaron and Jack had up their sleeve.

"Close your eyes," Spence gave a wicked grin when we finally reached Aaron's front door. I rolled my eyes but complied, secretly excited that they'd gone to all this trouble for me. He put his hands over my eyes and began guiding me to the door. I felt the rush of cold air against my cheeks as the door opened, accompanied by Jack's giggles.

"Ready Jack?" Spence asked. I kept blinking behind Spencer's hands, trying to get a glimpse through the gap in his hands.

"Ready!" My little boy finally screamed and Spencer released my eyes.

"Happy Marley's day!" Jack screamed and it took me a second to work out what was going on. The house had been decorated for a party, with a handmade "Marley" banner, balloons, cake and presents.

"Happy what? You guys know it's not my birthday, right?" I asked as I leaned down to hug Jack who was excitedly letting off a stream of "do you like it?"s that were getting progressively louder. "It's great Jack."

"It's not for your birthday, silly. It's your special day. Daddy has a day and Mommy has a day but you don't. So now you do!" I looked up at Aaron, catching his eye and he smiled back. It took me a second to speak and when I did it came out as a squeak.

"Thank you darling," I hugged him tight, biting down on my bottom lip to stop myself from crying. Jack's first Mother's day without Haley had gone about as well as we'd expected, and yet here he was, creating my very own day.

"Do you want to open your presents?" He asked, bouncing up and down in excitement.

"I get presents too? I'm such a lucky girl." He sped off to retrieve them for me while I pulled myself to my feet, struggling to see Aaron through glassy eyes. "How…?"

"The day after Mother's day he came home from school and said that you did everything a parent did but you didn't have a day, so the three men in your life put our heads together and made you your very own day." I didn't get a chance to reply as Jack came bounding back with a small stack of presents in his little arms. I sat back on the floor, Jack in my lap and allowed him to pass me the presents "in the correct order." He first gave me a small rectangular package wrapped in ballerina paper. I pulled at the corners, careful not to tear the paper, although from the anxious shifting in my lap Jack wanted me to hurry up. I finally got to a velvet jewellery box.

"I picked it myself!" Jack yelled and I kissed his head before opening up the box to find a gold charm bracelet with four charms; a dog in a kennel, a heart, a crown, and a flower.

"It's beautiful!" I ran my finger over each charm in turn, feeling the cold metal against my skin. Spencer leaned forward and helped me fasten it on.

"I made you a card too!" Jack produced a handmade card with a family of stick figures. Me, Jack and Aaron. Inside, in his sprawled writing he'd written Deer Marley, Thanks for being the bestest Nanny in the whole world. Jack!

"Thank you Jack! It's the best card I've ever had." He beamed at my praise.

"Next one!" Jack yelled and passed me a bigger package. I opened this one with more enthusiasm to find a black and red satchel nestled between folds of tissue paper.

"For when you go back to college." Aaron explained. I'd spoken to my college advisors and was going back at the start of the new term, and would hopefully do enough classes to catch up. It wasn't something I was looking forward to, so many people, being away from Jack and Spencer, but I had to. I wasn't giving up on my dream, so it was nice that I could take something from them with me.

"It's great, Aaron."

"And finally, something from me." Spencer added as Jack passed me the final package. It was a book, I could tell by the shape. I ripped it open to find a copy of the joke book I'd given him when we met. There was a slight bump under the cover and I opened it to find a key between the pages alongside an inscription. My Darling Marley, I hope every day is this special. I love you always, Spencer.

"It's perfect." I leaned up and kissed him, the familiar give of his soft skin nearly sent me into tears.

"I thought it was about time you got your own key." I kept hold of the back of his neck, enjoying the closeness. "Sorry I didn't get you a card. Clinton's really let me down on this one."

"Well, I've been well and truly spoilt. Do we get food now?" What can I say, I'd been eyeing the cake since we'd walked in the door.

"Yes," Aaron sighed and Jack and I cheered in union. I'd spent too long around the boy, I'd passed on my food obsessions to him. Spencer went to get plates with Jack trailing him like an overgrown puppy.

"When are you going to break it to him that you pay me to be nice to him?" I joked.

"When he's fifty?"

"Seems reasonable.

"Seriously, Marley, you deserve this."

"Thanks Aaron." I leaned my head on his shoulder briefly before being heralded over to the food.

Spencer stayed over. He often did, Aaron couldn't really complain when I couldn't stay at Spencer's. We went to bed relatively early, curling up together with the TV playing in the background and the lights turned down low. I turned round in Spence's arms so I could kiss him, feeling happier than I had since, well since then.

"Today's been perfect. Thank you."

"I didn't do anything, really, it was all Jack and Aaron." He mumbled but I cut off any more complaints with another kiss, pulling myself so I was lying on top of him.

"Marls," he mumbled, pushing me away slightly so he could stare in my eyes.

"It's okay, I'm ready." He smiled, hesitantly putting one hand on the side of my face so he could kiss me. His touch was tender, soft, giving me the chance to pull back. Instead I kissed him back harder, putting my heart and soul in it.

"I love you." He promised me and I agreed.

"Marley." I jumped at Aaron's voice. I had been a million miles away, curled up with Spencer in that dark bedroom. I could remember waking up the next morning feeling better than I had since Halloween night. I could hear Jack's laugh from the living room where Aaron was playing him, and Spencer's deep breathing beside me. I'd wriggled round in his embrace, to see his peaceful face. I'd placed my lips against the side of his mouth before lying down in the crook of his neck. I could have stayed there forever.

"Do you remember the first ever Marley's day?" He snorted before taking a seat beside me on the window seat overlooking the back garden. The sun was starting to rise, casting a pale pink glow over the swing set.

"How could I forget, I think that was the first secret Jack ever managed to keep. He was so excited. Just think, this year you can have a Marley and a Mother's day." I rubbed my hand over my stomach, I still hadn't told Jack that there was going to be another child in the family.

"That was one of the best days of my life."

"It was the first time you properly smiled for months, the day after it was like you were walking on a cloud."

"Yeah," I shrugged noncommittally, hoping he didn't notice my crimson face.

"Of course I think your night with Spencer helped." I let out a shriek and laughed, showing off his mock evil side. "I'm a profiler! Plus you guys were a little nois-"

"Ok! Ok! You made your point. God I can't look at you right now." He laughed again while I tried to stop myself laughing.

"You're pregnant! I do know where babies come from."

"Yes, but there's a difference between knowing that I've had sex in general and listening in the other room!"

"I didn't want to listen!" We laughed together at the memory, it really did seem a thousand miles away. A shared dream.

"Shouldn't you be getting ready?" I asked and he sighed before heading for the shower. I pulled myself up to, deciding to drag Jack out of bed while I was getting the Hotchner men to do things they didn't want to. We'd managed to get Jack back into his own bed with a nightlight. He was curled up on his side, with Rooster squashed under his chest and one arm dangling down towards the floor. Keeping an eye out for discarded toys I headed for his bed. As quietly as possible I sat on the edge of his bed and stroked his dirty blond hair off his face, he looked to peaceful to wake up. We hadn't told him yet that I was having a baby. That for all intents and purposes he was going to be a big brother. I glanced round his room, we'd made it pretty nice if I say so myself. We'd got some Avengers wall stickers and stuck them all over his walls; he loved them. His favourite- Captain America- was above his bed. His toys were piled along one wall along with a desk for doing his homework. On the other wall a closet was half shut as his clothes fought to escape. I really needed to talk about hanging them up. The dawn light was streaming through the bottom of the curtain, the light nearly touching Jack's arm.

"Jack, Jack, baby it's time to get up." I shook his free arm and he let out a groan, trying to bury himself in the duvet. "You're not a teenager yet, so no grouching! If you get up now we'll have time to try out the new waffle maker."

He grumbled something I took for a yes so I left him to pull himself together and headed downstairs, needing a drink, although coffee was off the cards. Lucky I wasn't quite as addicted to the stuff as my husband was. Instead I settled for a glass of water and a cracker to settle my stomach. As I finished the first trimester my morning sickness was, thankfully, wearing off, although I still felt like crap most mornings.

"I'm ready for waffles!" Jack announced loudly as he raced into the kitchen.

"Well then, I guess the only question is chocolate sauce or toffee?"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

There was a bookshop was on my way back from Jack's school, and since I had no job I decided to run in. I headed for the section for "parents to be," the selection was vast, vaster than I'd thought it would be. I mean how many different ways could you describe pregnancy? I was about to find out. I flipped through a few, regretting landing on the full page colour picture of labour in one, before deciding to just choose the bestseller recommendation. I took it to the checkout, feeling slightly embarrassed, the way you felt when you brought tampons from a male cashier. Although, if he was judging me he wasn't obvious. I shoved the book into my bag and headed out into the sunshine.

I knew I had to tell Jack about the baby, and soon, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. To add more confusion into his life. Aaron was letting me take the lead on this one but I knew he was going to start pushing soon.

Today. I decided. No matter what happened I would sit him down after school and tell him everything.

God Spence I wish you were here.