The Fathers of My Son

by cmguysgirl

There was a reason Erin Strauss favored her son. He was a living reminder of the man she loved and lost. She loves her daughters also, but their father never held as special a place in her heart. She'd been blessed to get a second change with him, but there was a time when her son and memories were all she would ever have of David Rossi.

1. Chapter 1 The Pre-story

The Fathers of My Son

A/N: Visit You Give Me Fever, A Rossi/Strauss Forum forum/You-Give-Me-Fever/120042/

Feel free to post your own story prompts/ideas at the forum.

Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds or I would definitely be better off financially especially as I would create a Men of the BAU calendar. The show belongs to the people who actually make money off of it and it is a good thing to as I could never come up with the great plots they do or the sexy naughtiness that is Morgan and Garcia's bread and butter. I make no money off of this and have no money so suing me would just give you custody of all my other bills. If the owners of the show want to pay them, well I am all for it.

This was the first Criminal Minds Fan Fic I wrote. It wasn't the first CM story I posted though, My Brother's Keeper was as it came together in one sitting. When this ideal came to me, what you will see posted as part two was actually written first. Part one was actually written second but I decided to put the logical beginning first and not do it as it was written. This is posted as a story prompt on my forum, You give me fever and although I have written this as my version of the prompt (okay it is a detailed prompt but feel free to take the ideal and make it your own, changing the details where you see fit. It would be nice if you do give a shout out to the forum as the place where you found the prompt, as that might lead to others discovering the forum and more stories about our favorite ship Rossi/Strauss. I love to read fan fic and am not as gifted as a lot of writers who can see an ideal and whip up a story or stories quickly so creating the forum was my way of hopefully helping us get more glimpses into the lives of our favorite couple (as the show certainly isn't giving us anything this season. That one scene at the end of the Season Premier and nothing since. Come on, what is up with that. Hopefully they will give us something soon, although from the synopsis that have been released so far, there is nothing Strauss/Rossi related in the next few episodes either. Viva the world of fan fic, where at least we can fill in the blanks the show leaves in the lives of our duo.

Let's just say this story concept stems from the Episode where Hotch profiled Strauss and her son, I believe it was her middle child (but I never mind AU if someone wants to make him the oldest or youngest) looks a lot like Rossi (As an aside, I saw a pic of the actresses real son and I wonder if he posed for the pic).

Well in my story ideal, Strauss did indeed get pregnant by Rossi and had his baby and Named him after Rossi, specifically Anthony David Rossi. She and husband were divorced at the time she and Rossi were involved but it didn't work out and she went back to her husband for her child's (children's) sake and after she remarried her ex husband she found out she was carrying David's child. She told Rossi of course and he respected her decision.

I haven't gotten that far in the fic to have written down that he stays in the child's life but I know he does as the original ideal that came to my mind (that hasn't made it on paper yet) was set a few years after he returned to the BAU and no one knows about her son being his or that the real reason he left in the first place is that he couldn't stand any longer to see her day in and day out and know that she belonged to another man, and not him. That is also why he didn't come back, until her found out she had divorced her husband).

Hotch of course saw it, how much the little boy in the pictures in her office, looked like the senior profiler, that was the unspoken undercurrent between Strauss and Hotch during that scene and why she asked how he knew she favored her son, but Hotch being the gentleman that he is and friend to Rossi (or his brother if this decides to set itself in my AU, My Brother's Keeper), chose to not directly address the question (I am not sure if Hotch knows for sure or not, as I don't think Rossi has ever mentioned to him or anyone else that the child is his son, even though Hotch is his best friend).

This story tells the reason that Rossi left the BAU not long after the child was born. And if you watch the show, as much as they seem to be in each others hip pockets, and hang out, they don't necessarily know everything about the other's personal live or homes, but like I said in the original ideal, Strauss is now and has been for a few years, divorced from her husband. I actually didn't envision the reason why they divorced in my original concept but when I started writing the first part, the reason, for the first divorce, just came out on paper (As I wrote this part, they told me the reason for the second and final divorce).

I hoped these characters would start talking to me (and not long after I wrote this line they did and the story started to flow from their own lips) as that is the best way for a story to be written, when the characters just appear in your head and start talking and it is like you have a movie in your head and can actually see, experience, feel what they are telling you in their own words and all you have to do is just copy down what you have witnessed.

End of the Pre-story.

Now click the drop down box to go to Part One

CMGUYSGIRL