I'm so sorry that this is late, there's a reason for that though (aside from major writers block and the Easter holiday...and 4 pieces of coursework (also this chapter is slightly more AU than the others so watch out))...

Guys, this is it. After 25 chapters, over 70 reviews, 21+ favs, ~50 follows and over 10,000 views, this is it.

When I started this story back in April 2017 I never thought that it would turn out to be this long, and I never thought I would have this many supporters. So a massive thank you to everyone who has read, fav'd, followed and reviewed – you are the reason that this story exists, you are the reason it has gone on this long.

So again, thank you and please enjoy the last chapter. :)

Spencer Reid – Age 34 – 35
Athena Reid – Age 18 – 19
Thomas Reid – Age 11 – 12
Daniel Reid – Age 8 – 9
Benjamin Reid – Age 8 – 9
Samuel Reid – Age 6 – 7
Kayla Reid – Age 2 – 3

Location – Washington, D.C.

Luke Alvez joining the team should have been just like all the other times they had a new member, but for some reason, it wasn't.

Despite Garcia's frosty reception of Luke, Spencer found that he was actually a really decent guy. So much so that when, 20 minutes after meeting him, Athena called to complain that the shop was out of half the groceries that they needed, he didn't move completely away and talk in private (aka in secret) like he usually did. Instead, he only turned away, his voice low enough that the surrounding people couldn't hear him but loud enough that Luke could. If Luke was on this team he didn't need to be told what was going on, he could easily work out just who Spencer was on the phone too.

But even though it was his decision to reveal this, and Luke was by far the easiest one to tell so far, he was still anxious. When the called ended with a "Don't forget to do your homework." Spencer shuffled the small distance back to Luke but refused to meet his gaze.

"So you have kids huh?" came his voice, traces of curiosity lacing the words.

"Yeah" he sighed, looking up and smiling before continuing, "Five actually, 1 girl, 4 boys."

"Wow, bills must be expensive." And like that all the tension drained out of him, the immediate acceptance being such a relief that Spencer laughed out his next words.

"You have no idea."

The joking atmosphere lasted only for a few seconds before Luke took on a slightly concerned and worried attitude, the kind that was so rarely directed at him and made him realise that he had made a good choice in trusting Luke.

"Does, you know, the rest of the team know? I don't wanna reveal it by accident if they don't know."

Looking around and seeing that they were still stood in the middle of the hallway Spencer pulled Luke to the side, out of the way. He kept his voice low, as to not attract attention.

"Most know, only JJ doesn't." A quick glance around showed the all clear. Looking back up, he saw the question in Luke's mind and answered before he could even ask it. "It's a long story."

If he was being honest with himself, this wasn't a good idea. He should have just left his mother where she was, where she could get the help she needed. But no, he took her out of the trial and brought her back home; well, he brought her back to D.C., he found an amazing nursing home just a short drive from his apartment. That way, if he had a little bit of time, she wasn't too far away and if the kids wanted to go see her on their own they could. Initially he wanted to take her in himself, but it was too risky and not fair to anyone – least of all the kids.

But, in the end, everyone was happy and that's all that he could ask for.

Saturday morning started off like every other Saturday that Spencer was home. Wake up at 6, get dressed and go food shopping before the kids woke up. This Saturday, however, was slightly different. Driving back from the store, Spencer was caught in traffic, the cause? Car accident. Even though he was down the street, he could see the flashing lights of the police and the ambulances and made a silent prayer that everyone was alright. He was tried, cold and wanted to get back home to make breakfast and so, as he drove by he didn't give the scene too much as his attention. He left his work -brain at work and trusted that the police had everything in hand.

By the time he got home, Athena and Thomas were already up, the former dressed and the latter still in PJs. Placing the shopping bags on the kitchen table, he started packing the unneeded things away and setting everything else on the kitchen counter, ready to be used. Like every quite Saturday, breakfast was whatever the kids wanted. Usually, especially on school days, it was just toast or cereal and Spencer was never really home enough on the weekends to do full cooked meals. So, in a way, it was a little treat for them.

The smell of cooking bacon woke the rest of the house and halfway through making the pancakes, all but Tom had found their way to the table.

Cooking the last plate of eggs, he was about to get Athena to go and get Tom when he walked through the doorway.

Sliding into his seat, he grabbed a fork full of bacon and started rambling "Did you see the car accident?"

Placing the eggs on the table, Spencer slid into his own seat before speaking "Yeah, I did on my way back. How do you know about it?"

"Someone from school saw the whole thing. Apparently there were three people in the car, only the kid survived though. I think her name was Kayla. Jimmy says that the police think it was a hit but the guys got the wrong car."

With that abrupt ending, Thomas started shovelling food into his mouth and the table took on the normal chatter.

It was only when he looked around for the salt that he saw that something was wrong. Athena had stopped eating, she was gripping her knife and fork so hard that he could see her hands shaking and the metal fork had started to slowly bend under the pressure. It took him far too many seconds to realise what, exactly, was wrong.

The car accident.

It was almost like history repeating itself.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. The word repeating in his head over and over again. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Why didn't he just listen to the doctors, why didn't he listen to Athena, why did he think that he could solve this?

Why did this have to happen?

What was he going to do?

What was going to happen to the kids?

How was he going to survive prison?

"Don't worry. Pretty much every member of the team stepped in to make sure that they weren't put with another family."

Pulling his gaze from the bland wall, Spencer turned to the brightly coloured woman behind the glass "What?"

"Well, I took Athena in. Rossi took Sammy and Ben. Emily's looking after Thomas. Daniel's living with Alvez and Tara took Kayla in." Garcia said, checking the names of her fingers and staring off into the distance "Which, by the way mister, you didn't tell us she was that cute!"

"I-, thank you." He breathed in a sigh of release.

"No problem sweet checks, you just keep strong. We're going to get you out and back home soon."

Being in prison made him think about a lot of things; it gave him an opportunity to step back, look at his actions and think about what he would do differently.

Over the years Spencer has made himself a lot of promises, but the one he made when he got arrested was the biggest. He promised himself that when he got out, and was proven innocent, he wouldn't take that for granted. He promised himself that as much as he loved his family at the BAU, his kids were more important and deserved more of his time. He promised himself that he would no longer risk his life. He promised himself that it was time to get on with his life.

Sat in that cell, staring at the concrete wall, Spencer Reid promised himself that when he got out he would leave the BAU and focus more on his family.

After he got released though, that promise flew from his mind. He was too focused on Cat, too wrapped up with what she had planned and he was drowning in anger because of it – he almost killed her.

The most painful thing was that she was right; he wanted to be the father of that child. He wanted more kids, he wanted a bigger family. It was something he had always wanted but never thought he could get – not after what happened to him and his parents.

When the case was solved and everything calmed down he thought back to his promise, about looking after his family; maybe even adding a few more additions.

After all, he was going to need help raising six kids.

Well, that's it guys! Again, thank you for sticking with me all this time and please let me know what you think of the ending; or anything else really :) :). Bye!