Erik wasn't used to having so many people care about him...
Whether he wanted it or not, it seemed that he'd been immediately accepted as part of the BAU family, simply because of his proximity to Emily. It was an odd feeling – one that would take some getting used to.
He was starting to realize, though – as one by one, Emily's friends had filtered in to meet the new baby – just how difficult it was going to be for Emily to say goodbye to everyone, now that she had the choice.
Hotch had held the baby and tried to pretend like he wasn't smiling. When he congratulated Erik, his eyes held begrudging respect – for Emily's sake, more than anything else – but there was no mistaking the hint of almost paternal distrust on her behalf.
Rossi, on the other hand, was boisterous in his greeting, clapping Erik on the back and passing him a cigar with an unspoken invitation to join him outside and smoke together. He bounced Isadora in his arms like a proud grandfather she wouldn't otherwise have. Erik could see why Emily spoke so highly of him.
Reid had come with a small library of books for the baby and, while Emily had read to her, Reid had talked Erik's ear off about the X gene and the research on how it was passed down and the statistics of whether or not Isadora would be a mutant. It was endearing, in way...not unlike Charles.
Garcia visited often and always came bearing gifts until Emily practically begged her to stop (she'd refused citing her right as 'Fairy Godmother'). It was immediately clear just how much she loved the baby, almost as if she were her own, and part of Erik softened with the knowledge that his daughter would never ever be alone...even if Garcia's particular brand of overt affection made him slightly uncomfortable.
Morgan visited often as well, but was more laidback in his adoration of the baby, though it was clear he loved her just as much. It was clear, though, from the way he couldn't quite meet Emily's eyes, that there was still so much left unsaid between them. Erik knew that Derek had been one of Emily's closest friends and he could tell just how much it cut her that she'd broken the trust between them. Much as he might want to fix it, though, he knew this was something she had to do for herself.
The day JJ visited, Emily was on the verge of a breakdown. Isadora had gone on what the nurses were calling a 'nursing strike' and no matter how many times she was assured otherwise, Emily had it firmly entrenched in her brain that she was failing as a mother. Nothing Erik said or did would convince her of her parenting abilities.
When JJ showed up, Emily was in tears, desperately trying to convince the baby to take her breast and, even though she was clearly hungry, Isadora was resolutely refusing.
Emily looked up at JJ with tears in her eyes and begged, "What am I doing wrong?"
"Nothing," JJ assured her. "This is just something babies do..."
"Really?" Emily asked, sniffling and blinking back tears. Even though Erik had said the same thing, it appeared she was only going to believe it coming from JJ's mouth.
She nodded. "Henry went on a nursing strike at six months – he got really congested and couldn't breathe while he was eating," she explained. "But we got through it and you will too."
"I feel like a terrible mother," she said, breath coming in hiccups. "I can't even feed my own kid – this is exactly what I was afraid of!"
JJ sat on the edge of the bed so she was at Emily's eye level, offering her a comforting smile as she brushed her hair away from her face. "I'm going to help you, okay? And even if you have to bottle feed her, it doesn't mean you've failed. She's going to be just fine."
Emily nodded, gave her a watery smile.
With JJ's gentle guidance, Emily had managed to get the baby to eat and, tuckered out by all the crying, mother and daughter almost immediately fell asleep as soon as the feeding was over. JJ gently eased Isadora out of Emily's arms and placed her in the bassinet, smiling fondly.
"I thought I'd be enough..." Erik said, almost apropos of nothing. When JJ looked at him with a brow raised, he seemed as surprised at his words as she was. In spite of himself, he continued on, explaining, "I thought that we could do it on our own. That we'd go back to Genosha and be this happy little family by ourselves, that we didn't need anyone else to support us because we had each other."
JJ's smile was compassionate. "It's never the way you think it's going to be... Being a new parent is hard and I don't know that I could have done it alone. It really does take a village."
Erik seemed to think on that for a long time.
As if reading his mind, she offered, "She's scared to do this alone because she's never had anyone rely on her before, never wanted anyone to depend on her because she doesn't trust herself. She trusts you, though, that much I'm sure of. And if you think you can be her sole support in this, you can tell her that and she'll believe you. But you need to be certain of it."
"I..." he stammered, suddenly unsure.
"We all care about Emily and we all want what's best for her and the baby and you, believe it or not. We want to be there for you and help you through this because it's not going to be easy and you'll both make mistakes and you'll fight over the smallest things...but Isadora will still need you and you'll still need each other. And, whether you want to or not, sometimes you're going to need help. It's up to you whether you accept it..."