Chapter 3: Birthday's are Always Full of Surprises

Another three weeks went by like it was nothing. The team had a few cases that took them away from the office. They went as far away as Oregon, but nothing lasted more than two days. Every time Emily left, Charlie would worry, especially as it got closer to her birthday. But Emily made her daughter a promise. She promised that she would be there for the party, no excuses, no work. It was a promise she intended to keep. There was no way she was letting her down. She promised she wouldn't, so she wouldn't. It was really as simple as that.

She got off work early that Friday, spouting some excuse about a doctor's appointment. In reality, she wanted to pick up Charlie and take her to pick out a special birthday outfit and some cool toys to finish off the goody bags. She knew it would make the little girl happy to have any extra time with her mom, and Emily would take whatever extra time she could get.

She waited patiently in the school lobby for the uniform clad ball of energy to come bolting out like she usually did. And when it happened, when her little girl came running out just as she pictured, she couldn't stop the smile from taking over every inch of her face; a face that was equally matched her daughter's. Charlie ran into her mother's arms not hesitating to return the hug when her mother scooped her up and squeezed her.

"How was school?"

"All my friends are excited for my birthday tomorrow. None of us can wait."

"Does that mean you want to go shopping with me so we can get you a special birthday outfit for tomorrow?" Charlie let out a tiny squeal and deepened her smile.

"You don't have to go to work?" Her eyes were pleading for Emily to say no. She wanted her mom to stay with her, especially on her birthday.

"Nope, the next few days are all us. I promised I'd be here for your birthday. And mommy's not a liar right?"

"No, lying's bad. That's what you tell me." That was a little hypocritical, she knew, given the nature of her current state of affairs. The lies were really piling up.

"Does that mean you want to go with me?"

"Duh…" Smiling, Emily put the petite girl down and held her hand out. Charlie willingly and happily entangled her own hand with her mother's and together they left for the store.

The rest of the night was spent in mother daughter bliss. Together they picked out the most adorable outfit, matching shoes and all. They bought the finishing touches to the goody bags and spent the rest of the night putting all the kid's toys and treats into the bags and going over last minute details for a special five year old's very special day. That night it took some work to get the girl to bed. She was restless from the excitement the following day promised to provide, but Emily simply told her that the faster she got to bed then the faster morning would come. That seemed to do the trick and within minutes of cuddling in her mother's arms, she was fast asleep having promising dreams of all the fun she was going to have at her party. Emily joined her an hour or two later, doing her best not to think about the possibility of JJ staying at the party.

She had decided, after a week of mulling it over, that she was going to bring JJ into her confidence whether she showed there or not. But if she did come to the party, she'd have to deal with it right then and there. There wouldn't be any more mulling it over or putting it off. JJ would want answers. Emily just didn't want anything to ruin the day. She wouldn't let it or anything make it any less special. Her baby was turning five in the morning and that only happened once. So she was going to make it the best birthday she could, no exceptions. Nothing was going to change that.

The next morning, Emily woke up a little earlier than she normally would on a Saturday, a non working Saturday. But for Emily, normal was six or seven depending on which case nightmares were filling her head the night before, but that day she got up at five. She had a few surprises up her sleeve. First she had to get everything ready for the day. She had to put all the party favors and party supplies into a box so she could easily take them out to the car once they left. The next thing she did was get her daughter's outfit out along with everything else she'd need for the day. Next up was Emily's clothes. She had to be quiet doing that. She didn't want to wake Charlie when she went into her room. She left them on the dresser by her bathroom for after her shower. Bur before she could do that, she wanted to wrap her daughter's gift. She planned on doing it as soon as she got it, but little Charlie was a snoop and, while it was small enough to hide, if she didn't wrap it until last minute, she could hide it in plain sight, and Charlie would be none the wiser.

Around eight, once she was showered and dressed, the gifts were wrapped, and the things were packed, Emily finished making her daughter's favorite breakfast. French toast with fresh strawberries and extra whipped cream was much like a delicacy to Charlie. Emily didn't let her have it all the time, but for special occasions and when she had the time to actually cook it, she'd do her best to make it for Charlie. As soon as it was finished and plated, Emily made her way upstairs and onto the bed, lying right next to Charlie.

Sweeping her fingers over the delicate ivory skin of her daughter's face, Emily said, "Wake up big girl." Charlie just stirred. "Charlie Bear, it's time to get up." She wearily opened her eyes and saw Emily starring back at her with a big grin on her face.

"Mommy I'm five today."

"Happy birthday my big girl." Emily responded with an enormous hug and a bunch of kisses. "Why don't you get up and come down to the kitchen? I made breakfast…"

"My favorite?" She questioned with wide, animated eyes. She knew what birthdays meant.

"Of course. Now hurry up, because after breakfast we're going to get you dressed and then mommy's going to take you somewhere."

"Where mommy?" She asked as she jumped out of the bed.

"It's a surprise." Following her lead, Emily stood from the bed. "So go eat, and I'll be right down." She watched as the ecstatic bright eyed girl became an instant morning person and ran from the room dressed in her favorite purple polka dot pajamas. Then she made the bed and pt Charlie's gift in her purse. It was going to be a good day. She'd make sure of that.

About an hour later, breakfast was eaten and the dishes were done. Emily took Charlie into her room and dressed her in her new purple and black plaid skirt with thick black stockings and the rest of the new clothes she picked out. Most of it was purple. She liked purple, purple and black. Emily liked that about her. She liked things a little dark, just like her mother. She just hoped Charlie wouldn't turn into a similar version of her own teenaged self. She didn't know if she could handle her daughter being fifteen and pregnant. It was bad enough that she went through it. But she wasn't going to stress herself out about that yet. It scared her enough already that Charlie had her fearless streak that bordered on recklessness. It didn't come out very often, but when it did, it usually required a hospital visit for stitches or an X-ray. Again, a later date…There was time before she made herself go grey, or greyer.

"Charlie, are you ready?" Emily called from the bottom of the stairs. Immediately, the sounds of rushing tiny steps echoed in the stairwell.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!" She yelled when she jumped over the last few steps causing Emily's heart to stop for just a moment as she waited to see the safe landing. "I'm ready."

"Ok. Help mommy out and carry my purse."

"Ok." She replied snatching the purse from the table and running to the door. Emily followed her out carrying the box of things for the party and locking the door behind them.

After settling Charlie into her booster seat and securing the box in the trunk, the Prentiss women hit the open road. Charlie watched the scenery pass by with curious eyes. She knew it wasn't time to go to the aquarium yet. So where were they going? She was anxious and lasted all of five minutes before asking the inevitable, and probably most dreaded, car ride question.

"Are we there yet?"

"Almost, just five more minutes." To a five year old, those five minutes seemed excruciatingly long.

"Mommy that's Henry's house." Charlie pointed to the house they just passed. They were in a quaint neighborhood, a family type place. She knew that was where the LaMontagne-Jareau household was, but that wasn't a factor in her decision making.

"Yeah, it is." Their destination was a few streets over. It was just far enough away that they wouldn't run into JJ every day, but still close enough that once she tells JJ all about Charlie, they were within walking distance of each other.

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise. You'll see." Charlie let out a defeated sigh and leaned back into her seat as the car drove on. "We're here." Emily said as she pulled into the driveway of a beautiful grey stone house.

"Whose house is this?" Her curious nature had her looking all around.

"It's our house silly." She said turning to face her daughter in the back seat. "You said you wanted a big yard and your own playground." There was more to be said, but Charlie's eyes went wide and her body perked up.

"I got my own playground!" She squealed.

"Why don't we go find out for ourselves?" That was all she needed to unbuckle herself from the seat and rush to the door. Knowing that was going to happen, Emily turned off the child safety locks once they pulled in. Emily followed suit and rushed after her, the two of them undoing the gate and running to the backyard.

"It's just like the park! No. it's better because it's all mine!" She yelled upon seeing the jungle gym and swings. "Can I play?"

"No sorry. Not right now." Emily saw the pout forming and the puppy dog eyes making an appearance. She was a sucker for those, but she wouldn't give in. "You don't want to get dirty before your party. Do you?"

"No." Emily hated the sad tone to her voice, but she knew what would cheer her up.

"The house isn't finished yet, but your room is. Do you want to see it?" She perked up again.

"Please!" Emily took her hand and guided them into the house, up the stairs, and through the hall to the newly finished room.

"Go ahead, go in." She didn't have to say that twice. The door swung open and Charlie jumped for joy. It was painted a light purple with star decals and her name in black wooden letters hanging on the wall. Against the wall was her, as she'd call it, "big girl bed," accompanied with the softest comforter Emily could find. There was a desk for drawing and homework and a toy chest too; everything a five year old could want or need was in that room, hers for the taking. The only thing missing was Charlie's wardrobe, but Emily didn't want to pack that up until they were ready to move in indefinitely. And at the time, Charlie's room was the only one finished. Everything was painted, but the new furniture wouldn't arrive for a few more days. She decided to keep the apartment for a little while, just in case, so she bought mostly new furnishings for their new home. But once it arrived, Emily would finish packing most of their stuff and get them settled. "What do you think? Do you like it?"

"I love it mommy! Thank you!" The thanks was accompanied with a big hug and an even bigger smile. The joy and smile all seemed so contagious.

Emily was happy that Charlie liked everything. The truth was that Emily was working on this surprise for a while. They were both tired of living in an apartment and having to go to the park just to play outside. So whether it was Charlie's birthday or not, Emily was planning on buying the house. She actually bought it a few months prior. The timing of the remodeling and painting to be finished just worked out in her favor. It took some time to find the right house too. She wanted it to be close to both Charlie's school and her job. She lucked out finding the house she did. None of the others she looked at met her criteria. So she was a little closer to JJ than she planned, especially while Charlie was still a secret, but she was planning on telling her eventually. And then, since Charlie's party forced her hand, the timing, once again, worked in her favor.

"I have one more surprise before we go to your party."

"What is it?" Emily walked over to the bed and sat down, patting the open space directly in front of her signaling for Charlie to join her.

"Come sit." Being the obedient girl she was, Charlie joined her mother on the bed and looked to her mother for answers. The day seemed filled with more and more surprises. She didn't know what to do with it all.

"Can you tell me what it is now?"

"Well," Emily pulled a small wrapped box from her purse and handed it to Charlie, "here."

"Can I open it?"

"It's your present, for your birthday. Open it." Charlie didn't waste any time ripping off the paper, although, much like her mother, she did it as neatly as possible. They were both a little obsessive compulsive when it came to order. It was just another thing they had in common. Once the box was open, Emily heard an exaggerated gasp leave her daughter's lips.

"Mommy it's beautiful."

"Well, you're a big girl now and I thought you should have some big girl jewelry. And this one is very special."

"It is?"

"Mommy goes away a lot for work. And when I do, I miss you so much that it hurts."

"I miss you too, all the time."

"Well, I bought this necklace for you," she pulled the necklace dangling from her own neck out from behind her blouse, "and it's the same one my grandfather bought for me when I was just a little girl. That way, we're always with each other." Emily opened the locket to reveal a picture of the two of them smiling at each other. "Look."

"That's you and that's me." Her small hand reached up to the pictures, her finger delicately pointing to their faces in the frame.

"Yes it is. That way when I'm gone and you miss me or I miss you, all we have to do is look inside the locket and we won't be as sad anymore because we'll know we always have each other." Charlie looked from her mother to the necklace in awe. She really felt like a big kid and she loved having the same necklace as her mother, especially one that meant so much. "Do you want me to put it on you?" She just nodded and Emily slipped the necklace around the tiny neck. "How's that?"

"I like it a lot mommy."

"I'm glad. Now when I'm away I could look at the picture and know that my beautiful little Charlie Bear is waiting for me to come home."

"And I can have mommy with me all the time, even at school." That last part touched Emily the most. She missed her mommy when she was away, but she also missed her when they were separated by mere minutes and roads. But now they'd always have each other right there with them, hanging around their necks encased in a white gold heart with their name's engraved on the back.

"Yes you can." Emily said as she pulled Charlie into her lap and hugged her tight. "Are you ready to go to your party now?"

"Yes." They were back on the road within minutes and headed to their final destination for the day. It took a good twenty minutes to get there. She felt bad about making all the other parents drive so far out of town, but, in her defense, she offered to carpool all the kids. Between her car and Sarah's there would have been plenty of room. But the parents were all willing to drop the kids off and pick them up after. She talked to everyone but JJ. She listed Sarah's number on Henry's invitation. With the exception of JJ, they all said they wouldn't be staying. She, on the other hand, said that schedule permitting, she would join in on the festivities. Since she got the RSVP, Emily had been trying to come up with how to explain things. Somehow, the words just escaped her, and she really had no idea what to say. Winging it seemed like as good an idea as any. There didn't seem to be any right thing to say and the whole truth just wasn't permitted.

When they arrived they were still a bit early. Mike was there to greet them at the gates. "Emily." He called as he walked up to the duo. "I haven't seen you in a while."

"I know it has been too long, but I do appreciate you doing all of this for me and Charlie."They exchanged a friendly hug and a peck on the cheek.

"Of course, we've always helped each other out in college and after. Why should that change now?" Emily nodded, a small smile on her face. "And you." He bent down to Charlie's level. "You're so big."

"I'm five today."

"You are?" He feigned surprise. "Then happy birthday to you."

"Thank you Mr. Mike."

"You're welcome Miss Charlie." Emily caught up with Mike for a little while. They had a few minutes before people started to arrive. They hadn't seen much of each other over the years, but they kept in touch via random phone calls and monthly emails. Every now and then they'd meet up for coffee or dinner, but that was the extent of it. However, they both knew that if either needed anything they could turn to the other for help. They were each other's only real friend during college. They relied on each other more often than not. That wasn't an easy bond to break.

Sarah was the first to arrive, Grant and Jill each carrying a gift for Charlie. Once they started arriving, there was a steady stream of people coming. Each guest wished Charlie a happy birthday and then the parents left after getting times for pick up from Emily. JJ and Henry were the last to arrive. When she saw them walk over from the parking lot, she knew it was then or never, but she wanted to talk to JJ before the party actually started. She figured she owed JJ that much.

"Charlie honey." She tried to get her attention. "Mommy will be right back. You stay with Sarah and Mike. Ok?"

"Ok." She responded before turning back to her friends. Emily practically ran over to JJ, stopping short when she saw Henry running over to the group of kids.

"Emily!" He called. She could see that JJ, knowing that Henry was safe and almost with the other kids, turned around for a minute.

"Hi Henry."

"I'm here for my friend's birthday."

"I know. I think I see them all over there. Why don't you go catch up to them while I go talk to your mom?"

"Ok." That was all he said before sprinting the rest of the way to the group. And seeing JJ start to make her way toward Henry, Emily did a sprint of her own coming up behind her friend as she was just getting off the phone, probably talking to Will.

"JJ, I'm glad I caught you." Emily said nearly out of breath, startling JJ.

"Emily what are you doing here? Do we have a case? I didn't hear the call waiting. Did Hotch send you to find me? That's a little excessive. Even for him." Emily tried to interrupt the blonde's questioning, but she really couldn't get a word in edgewise.

"No, there's no case. I just…" Still couldn't get a word in edgewise. JJ cut her off.

"If there's no case then why…" It was at that moment that Charlie ran up to the pair. She ran right up to Emily and threw herself into her mother's arms.

"Mommy! All my friends are here!" She was so excited and Emily, although upset she didn't get the chance to at least begin to explain things to JJ first, couldn't resist smiling back. JJ mouthed "mommy?" even though Emily couldn't see it. It was more of an internal question. That was when the giddy girl finally saw that her mother was with someone and turned to face the other woman. "Oh, hi Miss Jareau. Are you staying with Henry? It's allowed you know."

"Hi Charlie. Happy birthday. And yes, I was thinking about staying," she looked directly to Emily, "but now I've decided to definitely stay." She wanted answers. Emily could see that; anyone could. And while JJ wasn't sure about staying, her reasons for hanging around just got more solid.

"Good, I'm glad." Emily added before placing Charlie down on the ground. "Charlie, you remember me telling you about my friend JJ right?"

"You work with JJ at the FBI. You said she's your bestest friend, her and Penelope."

"Well, this is JJ." Emily pointed to JJ as Charlie shook her head. She knew that woman and her name wasn't JJ.

"No mommy. That's Henry's mom Miss Jareau."

"She is, but I call her JJ." She looked back over to her friend. "JJ, this is my daughter Charlotte Prentiss." There was absolutely no missing the look of shock on JJ's face. She wasn't expecting that when she woke up that morning. It did, however, explain some of Emily's odd behavior since she brought up the girl that stood before them.

"Can I call you JJ too?" She asked with big eyes. "If that's what mommy calls you, can I call you that too?"

"Of course you can."

"Cool. JJ." There was no reason to say the name. She just wanted to say it out loud. She was finally meeting one of her mommy's work friends. To her the day just kept getting better and better. But she couldn't register the slight hint of awkwardness in the air.

"Charlie Bear, go back with your friends and tell Sarah and Mike that mommy will be right there."

"Ok. I'm glad you're staying JJ."

"Me too Charlie." Nothing was said until the little girl was way out of earshot. JJ just turned to Emily and asked, "Mommy?"

"I tried to tell you before. I wanted to tell you."

"Then why didn't you? You had almost five years to tell me. Does anyone else know?" There was a little bit of anger in her voice, as to be expected, but it was more like she was trying to understand.

"No, just you." She wanted to say more, and she was going to say more, but the conversation was interrupted before it even began. It would have to be put off yet again. Only that time it wasn't entirely Emily's own procrastination causing the delay.

"Emily, are you ready?" Mike asked. "The IMAX is about to start. We have about ten minutes to get in and get seats."

"Ok, we're coming." As Mike walked away she turned back to JJ. "That's Mike."

"Boyfriend?"

"Friend from college. He runs this place when he's not travelling the world studying the different marine life."

"So you have a daughter." She stated, quickly drawing the conversation back to the point.

"I have a daughter, and I'm sure you have a ton of questions. And I want to answer them all, but not here, not now. I don't want anything to ruin this day for her. She has been talking about it nonstop for the past month."

"Henry too." JJ understood. Kids were kids.

"So let's show them a good time and I promise I'll explain later."

"You better."

The women joined the rest of the group, and they all made their way to the theatre. JJ watched Emily interact with Charlie. She knew there was always something so maternal about her. Charlie was why. She watched as the movie began and Charlie cuddled in the chair with Emily, her head resting against the crook of her mother's neck. Henry took the seat next to them and JJ was next to him. The rest of the kids were scattered in between Mike and Sarah.

When the movie was over, the group traveled around through the different exhibits, Mike acting as their tour guide explaining away the various creatures and their habitats. All of the kids seemed to be having fun; the adults too. But Emily could feel JJ's eyes on her, watching her like she was looking for the answers to be written on her skin. Emily ignored it, putting her compartmentalization skills to good use and enjoyed the rest of the day. After being ushered to the private room, Mike brought in some of the smaller beings. Charlie and Henry were particularly fond of the turtle, trying to coerce it out of its shell. Then of course there was food and cake and then presents, a few games too. Before they knew it, it was late and the party was over.

"Does the party have to end? I want to stay with the turtle." Charlie innocently stated.

"I'm sorry. The turtle has to stay here and we have to go home. But, you can hand out the goody bags we made."

"Fine." She said as Emily passed her a few of the bags at a time. Once they were all handed out she came back to Emily. "What now mommy?"

"Well, all of your friends' parents are here. So go say goodbye and remember to thank them." Reluctant to actually end the party, she stalled before doing as told. But she did it anyway. Meanwhile, Sarah came up to Emily and told her that she had fun and that the kids loved the party. Then, after a few parting words and a hug from Charlie, Sarah took Jill and Grant and left. Emily looked around and saw that JJ was still there talking with Henry. Emily needed to talk to her. And she needed to do it as soon as possible.

Charlie ran back to her mother after thanking all her friends for attending. "Are we going to the new house now or back to the old one?"

"We're staying at the old house for the rest of the week, but hopefully it'll be all ready by next weekend."

"Ok. Can Henry come over? He can help me play with all my new toys."

"Sweetie, not today. But tomorrow's pizza day. Why don't you ask Henry and JJ if they'd like to come over and join us?"

"Can I?" The excitement was back in her voice.

"Yeah, go do it." A few minutes later, Emily was packing up all of the presents when JJ walked up to her.

"Pizza night huh?" Stopping what she was doing, Emily turned around.

"Every other Sunday we make homemade dough and put on whatever toppings we want. It can get a little messy, but she enjoys it."

"Henry had fun today. And he's excited to come over and see his Emily and his Charlie tomorrow."

"His Charlie?"

"And his Emily." She added. There was an awkward silence. Emily didn't know what to say and JJ didn't know what to ask. On top of that, JJ didn't want to ruin a good day, and it was such a good day. She just decided to hold her questions for one more day. "So what time should we be there tomorrow?"

"Does one work for you? That way the kids could play for a little while, and uh, we can talk."

"One works. We'll see you then."

"I'm happy you came JJ."

"I am too. We'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye JJ."

"Bye Em." JJ walked away calling for Henry on the way out. "Let's go Henry."

"Bye Charlie. Bye Emily." He yelled back as he grabbed his mother's hand and exited the building. After finishing up with everything and thanking Mike for all he did, Charlie and Emily too ventured home.

Just a few hours later, Charlie was coming down from the day's adrenaline rush and sugar high, changing into pajamas after her bath. Emily too was showered and in a pair of satin pajamas. The two settled in Charlie's room to watch a favorite movie of theirs. They were real suckers for Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh. The rest of the gang wasn't so bad either. Who could deny Eeyore?

Even at the end of the movie, Charlie was fighting sleep. She was definitely tired; there was no denying that, but she wanted the excitement of the day to continue on. Emily couldn't blame her for that, but it was getting late, and she knew just how to relax her. She slowly began rubbing gentle circles on Charlie's back as she spoke to her. "Did you have a good day today?" Her words were soothing, quiet, and gentle.

"Mmhmm." The mumbling was a clear sign that sleep was starting to take over. "Thank you for my party."

"I'm glad you had fun." Emily, careful not to shift the bed too much, got up from the mattress and placed a kiss on her daughter's cheek. "Go to sleep Charlie Bear. I love you."

"I love you too mommy." She quietly escaped the room, carefully switching off the light and leaving the door ajar. She was exhausted. It was an eventful day and the following day promised to follow the pattern. Emily wasn't ready for bed though. She spent another two hours packing up the contents of her room, at least what she wouldn't need for the rest of their stay there. About three boxes later it was after midnight and she was ready to dive under her covers and snuggle deep into her bed. It was a long day, an almost perfect day, and she was happy to share that with her daughter. She just wished Charlie's father could've been there to share the day with them. But it was her fault he wasn't when he so easily could've been.

So here's chapter three. Someone from the team finally knows. The next chapter deals with how Charlie came to be and there's a lot of JJ/Prentiss interaction. All will be revealed in due time.

Again, I apologize for any spelling or grammatical errors. Infallibility happens.

Opinions are much appreciated; feedback, input, whatever. Constructive criticism also welcomed. I hope you enjoy. Until next time…

In case I don't update before the first, Happy New Year! I hope 2012 brings good things to everyone.