Disclaimer: Hotch does not belong to me, I'm just playing with him. He and the rest of the CM crew belong to… well, I suppose that would be the network. In any case, people who are not me.
Title: Not My Name
Character(s): Hotch
Word Count: 300
Summary: But that's not my real name
Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner. That mouthful is my title, not my name. Or, rather, part of it is technically my name – but no one says it in parts. It all blends together until the agent that I have become is indistinguishable from the person I always was. SpecialAgentHotchner. The majority of the world says it and believes that it is all I am. But that's not my real name.
To the team, I am Hotch – the stern figurehead of the department, the man perpetually in a suit and tie, but someone who might occasionally surprise them with dry wit or a passionate outburst. The leader of the pack, as it were – the one they can turn to when they've reached the end of their tether and don't know what to do.
To Haley, I was Aaron – once husband, lover, and friend. Then ex-husband, ex-lover – but still a friend, or so I let myself believe. The father of her child. The man she loved, despite the demands of my job, the job that SpecialAgentHotchner did and allowed to consume what might be the best thing he (I? we?) ever had.
To Jack, I am Daddy – superman and a hug, all rolled into one. Saturday morning pancakes and Sunday morning comics, ice cream in the park and trick or treating. Just the two of us now, trying to find a way through.
Those are my names. They have meaning, they have history. SpecialAgentHotchner is just a title, just a façade. It is a result of my job, not the other way around. It's just another piece of equipment, like my gun, my badge, my bulletproof vest. It's a weapon for getting cooperation and information, and for demanding respect. Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner is my title – but it's not my name.
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