The family is the test of freedom; because the family is the only thing that the free man makes for himself and by himself."

—Gilbert K. Chesterton

"Did you mean what you said?" Dave asked, from across the breakfast table. His laptop sat in front of him. He clicked through various travel options, Erin couldn't fly and he didn't want to leave the kids… he never thought he would be the guy looking for family friendly honeymoon options.

"Which part?" Erin asked, looking up from her phone. She knew he was completely against getting married in their pjs, so she was on the hunt for a decent venue.

"Are you sure you want to get married today?" He asked.

"Well, I've emailed three different venues in the last hour asking if they can accommodate us today."

He grinned, "That sounds pretty serious. You should know.…" He paused, he didn't know how to phrase it without hurting her feelings.

"What?" She arched her brow at him. "Just say it."

He stood up and went around to the other side of the table. He pulled up the chair beside her and sat down. "You should know…" He picked up her hand that rested on the wooden tabletop. "Last night, you were hellbent to walk out." He said flatly. "As much as I would hate it, I can't make you stay with me if you're not happy…"

"I am happy…" She said.

"Are you?" He asked sharply. "You weren't happy last night."

"Don't do that…" Erin said, "You know that was just a bad day."

"Erin," He said sternly, "I won't get divorced for a fourth time. If you're not ready to get married, you need to come clean before we take the vows. Don't force yourself into this if you're not completely sure."

"David-"

He shook his head, "I want us to get married because we love each other, but that's not going to change if we don't get married right now."

She took a sip of coffee to buy herself time. She was in trouble, he knew her too well….

"Don't do it for the kids," he continued gently. "Don't do it because you think the twins need their father, they'll have me. You're kids will have me, no matter what."

She sighed heavily, he was so eager. So loving...so patient...how could she turn him down? She came close last night, but she knew she would never leave him, that much she knew for certain. She loved him too much to leave him alone in his big empty house.

"I love you," she said, squeezing his hand, she focused on the way their fingers interlaced against the table. "I can't see my life without you. Does that count for anything?"

He breathed a sigh of relief, "Does that mean we're getting married?"

She nodded. "I don't see why not. I've emailed the country club, the botanical gardens and the Reagan Room. Barring that, there's the VFW hall or our backyard."

"I like our odds of not getting married at the VFW…" Dave said, "What do you want to do for the honeymoon?"

She shot him a questioning look, "We get one of those? We're a little past the whole, 'honeymoon baby,' cliche."

"Just because we put the cart before the horse, doesn't mean we don't deserve to have a nice time." He said, scrolling through the options in Virginia and D.C.

She nodded, "I like the way you think. I'm thinking…" She held her chin in thought, "couples massages," she mused.

"That's a forgone conclusion." He reached across the table and grabbed his laptop. Then clicked the mouse on the laptop, "what else?"

She got up from the table and pushed her chair back in. Then came up behind him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "We both know this is going to turn into a working honeymoon…we might as well get the Presidential suite at The Hilton."

Dave snorted, "like hell it will. We're leaving the briefcases at home."

"You just got your creds back and I have a meeting with Andy on Monday."

"So, we will honeymoon tonight and tomorrow." He said, "Just tell me what you want to do."

She kissed his cheek, "As long as we're together."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Mom, this is crazy." Paige said, staring her mother down. Erin stood in the full length mirror, criticizing her own appearance.

"Paige!" Erin said, turning away from the mirror, "I thought you would be the most excited. Did you even open the letter Dave wrote?"

"I'm not talking about the wedding-" Paige said, "I'm talking about the guest list." Paige paused.. When her mother didn't acknowledge the severity of the situation, she continued. "No one we know has responded to the Facebook invite." She shrugged, "Literally, the ONLY people showing up to this thing,are people you work with." Paige held up her phone to prove her point, "isn't this weird to you?"

"No." Erin shook her head, "when I married your dad, it was me and him in a courthouse. It doesn't matter who shows up and who doesn't."

"Okay-" Paige's response was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Can we come in?" J.J. asked, with Penelope at her heels. Both dressed to the nines, ready for a wedding.

"Of course," Erin said.

"We brought DRESSES!" Penelope gushed, draping an armload of fabric on the bed. "We left the guy's their suits on the way here."

"Penelope!" Erin gasped, turning away from the full length mirror, "where did you find this?" She asked, running her hand over the fabric of a gold wedding gown.

Penelope beamed with pride, "once I had your measurements, it wasn't hard. I found a woman with an etsy shop, she gave me full rein of her stock."

"They don't call her the fairy godmother for nothing," J.J. quipped.

"Well done, Penelope." Erin said, "I'm impressed. "I wanted to do this in yoga pants, in the living room."

"I never turn down a fashion show!" Penelope turned her attention to Paige and found two midnight blue knee length dresses from the pile. "Take these, you and Mackenzie go try these on."

"Going," Paige said playfully and hustled out of the room.

"Have you seen David?" Erin asked, while Penelope took it upon herself to help Erin with her hair.

J.J. smiled, "He's itching to get started," she said, and started unpacking the jewelry from her case.

"How in the world did you throw this whole ceremony together so fast?" Penelope asked, awestruck. "I saw a full band setting up downstairs."

"Between me, Dave and my 17 year old, we're incredibly efficient." Erin said with pride. "Or, we got incredibly lucky and a lot of people cancelled their appointments, or worst case scenario, Dave threw his weight around and wrote a giant check."

"Either way," J.J. said, "who cares? You guys earned it."

"Let's try this dress," Penelope said, checking her watch. "Rossi will kill us if we make the bride late for her own wedding."

"You're stunning!" J.J. said, adjusting the lace sleeves of Erin's dress.

"I had my doubts," Erin admitted, taking in the look. The champagne colored gown was beautiful but she didn't love it. "It's a little tight," she admitted, wincing as Penelope deftly fastened the buttons up her back.

"Not to worry," Penelope said cheerfully, "I always have a back up plan."

"Let's try it." Erin said, sudden warmth and appreciation flowed through her. "Thank you both, for all of your help today."

"I wouldn't miss this for the world," J.J. admitted and squeezed Erin's hand.

"And I'm all about the love story." Penelope said softly, "Fear not, your prince charming is on the other end of the aisle."

J.J. took the gold sequined dress from the foot of the bed, "this one has a lot of stretch." She assured Erin. It had a sweetheart neckline, short sleeves and a glittering train trailed the floor.

"How mad do you think Dave would be, if I showed up in yoga pants?" Erin Penelope pushed the dress down towards her feet.

"Hey," J.J. held her hands up, "It's your wedding, if he asks, nothing fits."

"We got your back, Boss." Penelope said.

"Okay," Penelope smoothly pulled the zipper on the back of Erin's dress, "J.J. jack her up!" Penelope ordered gleefully, "I'll go check on the girls." She grabbed the two navy colored bridesmaid dresses and her makeup kit and hurried down the hall of the historic manor.

"So.." J.J. said heavily, "how are you feeling?"

Erin took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, to calm her nerves. She used to think that marrying David was the natural next step, now she knew she truly wanted to marry him. "I'm ready…"

"Good thing," J.J. grinned, "I think your chances of being stood up are slim. When I left him, he was helping your son tie fix his tie. It was all I could do to convince him that you weren't ready to see him yet."

"We rode here together, I think we could skirt tradition-"

"Where's the surprise in that?" J.J. fixed the veil on Erin's head.

"Do you think it's going to rain?" Erin asked, turning away from the mirror to look out the window. The October sun beamed brightly over the garden, where the ceremony would take place. It was late in the afternoon, the sun was high in the sky without a cloud in sight. Still, Erin couldn't shake the feeling that she, David and half of Quantico, were going to be soaked to the skin.

"The forecast is clear," J.J. said, shaking her head. "Don't think about the weather." Erin didn't need to get overwhelmed, " Come over here and hold out your hand."

Erin's face lifted in surprise, "What's this?"

"Something old and borrowed," J.J. shrugged. "Will's aunt gave this to him after he proposed to me," she explained handing Erin a strand of pearls. "The clasp is broken, but you can hold them around your bouquet."

"Agent Jareau," Erin tried to object, her pearls were too personal, but J.J. shook her head.

"Don't question me, Chief Strauss." J.J. said; repeating the first direct order, Erin had ever given her on their first case together in Milwaukee.

Erin blinked back tears of gratitude and nodded, "yes, Ma'am."

"Penelope would murder me in cold blood if I let you mess up your makeup." J.J, said, passing Erin a tissue.

"I did it, besides, you're her best friend."

"There's a hierarchy with Penelope, you're pregnant and a new god child to spoil trumps 7 years of friendship." J.J. said seriously.

Erin laughed, "well...then I can't have your demise on my hands."

"Are you guys ready yet?"

Erin rolled her eyes, "you weren't kidding when you said he was chomping at the bit."

J.J. nodded, but stayed quiet.

Erin went to the door.

Dave's impatient tone filled the room, "Are you going to leave me hanging?"

"You wish," Erin countered. "I didn't spend the last three hours getting ready, just to leave you at the altar."

"You know…" Dave paused to weigh his words carefully, "we did spend all morning together."

"No," Erin cut him off, "David Rossi, you keep yourself on the other side of that door."

"Okay," He put his hand up on the solid oak door, he couldn't help wishing it wasn't so solid. "I'll see you on the other side."

She pressed her hand against the door, wishing it would melt. "I'll be the one in...Wh-" she looked down at her ensemble, "gold."

"One more thing," J.J. said eagerly, "Penelope made this for you." She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "Every new bride needs a garter."

J.J. held out her hand, revealing a beautiful navy blue and gold lacy garter.

Erin laughed at the irony of the situation. "Garters are for the honeymoon, I can't even see my feet."

"I've been there," J.J. commiserated, when she was pregnant with Henry, Will talked her into accompanying him to a charity event thrown by the police department, by the end of the night he had to literally cut her out of her dress. Erin was a strong woman, and J.J. hoped Rossi appreciated her. "Can I help?"

"Sure, we can leave the garter here." Erin said, sitting down Honestly, the situation couldn't get any weirder.

"Eh." J.J. dropped one shoulder, "I'm already here."J.J. slid the garter in place and helped her with her shoes.

"Thanks," Erin huffed, getting to her feet took more effort than she anticipated.

"Are you ready?" J.J. asked, pulling the veil over Erin's face and handing her the bridal bouquet of cream and burgundy roses.

Erin nodded and opened the door.

"Well, it's about time." Derek grinned, standing at the door, holding out his arm. "Rossi asked me to make sure you made it."

Erin laughed, "Don't worry, Agent Morgan, I think he's learned his lesson."

Dave stood at the altar, underneath the massive oak tree. The warm afternoon sun shone brightly, over him and a gentle breeze kept the air cool; but it didn't stop the anxious sweat forming on his forehead. The smell of fresh cut flowers filled the air, but he was too anxious to notice. He fiddled with his cufflinks, nervously. Ignoring the sound of the babbling fountain nearby.

"Have you seen her?" He asked, his throat felt thick with nerves.

"Derek was meeting them in the hallway," Hotch answered. "She's on her way."

"Yeah," Dave bit out, "that's what they keep telling me."

"Dave," Hotch smiled at his friend's pain, "You two rode here together."

"Erin knows how to call a cab. Need I remind you of what happened yesterday," Dave said glibly.

"Do you think I should go stand by the window of the Bride's Room?" Hotch offered.

"What good would that do me? You would help her escape."

"Not true. I wouldn't stop her. I might ask her what she was thinking, marrying a cheap, old guy like you." Hotch teased.

Dave felt himself relax, "Sit and spin, Hotchner, sit and spin," Rossi laughed, as the audience began filing in. He smiled watching Jessica lead Jack to a seat, with Will and Henry filing in behind them.

Will made a beeline for the altar. "Are you nervous?" He asked, clapping Dave on the arm.

"Only if she doesn't come back down." Dave said, moping his forehead with a handkerchief and tugging at his blue bow tie.

"Pretty sure that was my line not too long ago."

"It worked for you."

"It'll work for you too," Will assured him as he led Henry to the second row of chairs.

The guest list was small, with coworkers from the FBI taking up most of the chairs. Some were invited, others only came to see for themselves that David Rossi was, in fact, marrying the BAU Section Chief. To them, it seemed unbelievable and they had to see it for themselves.

"Well, I'll be…" Sam Cooper whistled slowly. "I didn't think this would happen."

"Did we invite you?" Dave asked, furrowing his brow.

"Blame Penelope," Sam shrugged offhandedly. "She..uhh.." He shoved his hands in his pockets, "didn't want you getting married to an empty room. I was told there was a bar and catering."

"That's why I'm here!" Matt Simmons held up his hand cheerfully.

"Matt!" Dave stepped away from the altar to shake the other man's hand.

"Don't worry," Matt said, "the rest of my team is parking their cars-"

"Jack's here too?" Dave asked, surprised "And Kristy?"

"Everyone is here." Matt assured him, "we saw the invite on facebook and couldn't miss it." Matt glanced around the garden, "Not a bad spread for 12 hours notice…."

"Tell me about it," Will said, "if the FBI doesn't work out for you, 'short notice wedding planner,' would make a good retirement plan."

The music started, cutting off Dave's response. "Oh shit!" He panicked slightly and hurried back to the altar.

"Shut up, Aaron." Dave stage-whispered, watching Hotch laugh behind his hand.

"Bridezilla-" Hotch threw back, equally quiet as the chairs filled with people. By the end of the first song, there was standing-room only.

The DJ in the corner started up, 'As Time Goes by' began to play as Derek escorted Penelope down the aisle. Penelope wore a burgundy cocktail dress and gold heels, Derek's tie matched her shoes.

J.J. and Reid came next, J.J's dress matched Penelope's. A blue rosebud was pinned to Reid's lapel. Together, they walked slowly and reverently, down the aisle. Behind them Paige started her walk toward the altar. Dave watched his step-daughter glide down the white runner, with his heart in his throat. Who's idea was it to put rose petals on a thin piece of material where women in heels would be walking? He shook off the thought, he'd been married three times and so far, no one had been hurt during the ceremony. Paige paused at the altar, beaming at him. He really didn't want to mess this up.

Mackenzie came next, with Mudgie plodding along at her side, the rings tied to a pillow strapped to his back and a bow tie on his collar.

"After All by Peter Cetera,' played, gently setting the tone for the occasion.

Paul escorted his mother down the aisle, Dave saw the audience turn from the altar to gawk at Erin, Dave couldn't take his eyes off of her. To him, she was a goddess wrapped in gold. The sunlight reflected off the sequins on her dress, she was truly stunning. Her hair was curled and swept off her neck, a bouquet of roses clutched in her hands, the veil flowed elegantly behind her.

He threw a cheeky wink in her direction, she saw it and winked back. The audience disappeared in a fog behind her and it was just the two of every step she took towards him, she thought of how much she and David had been through. From their first time together over a decade ago, after Carolyn left him and their relationship now. Even after the fight yesterday, she couldn't picture her life without him beside her. Now, she had the opportunity to say that out loud. She swallowed slightly, catching David's wink...She couldn't hold it off any longer. Their family was complete, in every way but legally.

"This is how it feels, Hotch." Dave whispered, his voice was hoarse with emotion.

"What?" Hotch asked from beside him.

"To hit the lottery. I didn't even know I had the ticket." Dave took a step forward and reached for Erin.