Did you know that because Dave is a FBI agent, he should know all the laws pertaining to child custody? I didn't know that but apparently it's true... at least that's what a reviewer on another board told me. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, favorited and alerted. That makes for warm fuzzies inside.

The day Dave returned to work wasn't easy on him or his daughter. They were used to spending all their time together and didn't like being apart, especially Skylar. Dave had explained everything to her but she still didn't like it.

He was standing the kitchen that morning drinking coffee while Mrs. Nichols made breakfast when Skylar stumbled sleepily into the kitchen. She sat at the table and laid her head down.

"Well, look who's up," he smiled. "Are you awake?" She sat up and shook her head. "I didn't think you'd be up before I left."

"I'm not sure she is," Mrs. Nichols smiled as she set the plates on the table. She poured a glass of juice then set it in front of the little girl.

Dave sat down next to her. "Do you remember what we talked about yesterday?" he asked. She crossed her arms and scowled as she nodded. "I know, I know," he said. "You want me to stay home but I have to go back to work some time." She sighed and nodded again. "Someone has to catch the bad guys."

"How much notice do you usually get when you go out of town?" Mrs. Nichols asked.

"Depends on the case," he said. "Sometimes, we leave right away, sometimes it's the next morning. I will call and give you as much notice as I can." He glanced at his watch. "Let's finish breakfast then it'll be time for me to leave."

Dave was standing in the break area of the BAU holding a cup of coffee and staring at his phone when JJ walked in to refill her mug. "Expecting a call?" she asked as she poured the coffee.

"Trying to decide to make one," he said.

"Separation anxiety?" she asked with a small smile. His head jerked up.

His mouth opened and closed before he spoke. "I was going to ask you how you knew but I guess I really don't have to," he chuckled.

"I recognize the signs," she said. "The difference is I couldn't call Henry."

"Yeah, well," he said. "My daughter can't talk on the phone, either."

"Why don't you set up video calling?"

Dave and JJ turned around to face the speaker behind them. Penelope was standing there with her mug. She had caught the tail end of the conversation.

"Video calling?" Dave asked.

"Sure," Penelope said. "Set it up between your laptop and Skylar's computer. It goes over your internet connection like when you guys are in the field and call me. That way. you can see each other wherever you are. When she's older and she can read and spell a lot better, you can use a cellphone as well."

"You can set it up?" Dave asked.

"In about five minutes with my eyes closed," Penelope said.

"Can you do it tonight?" Dave asked. "You can have dinner with us afterwards."

"Works for me,"

The woman sitting across from Dave didn't look old enough to be out of high school much less a teacher in the Arlington public school system. The woman who had called to set up the appointment had told him she was an excellent teacher and tutor.

"Did they explain my daughter's special needs to you?" he asked.

"Yes, sir, they did," the woman, a Ms. Henderson, said. "I'll admit it will make things a little more challenging. Since she doesn't talk, I'll have to develop different ways of teaching her to read and write but we'll get there. Math, science and the other subjects shouldn't be as much of a problem."

"My job takes me out of town frequently," he said. "You'll be dealing with my housekeeper when that happens. She'll let me know what's going on.

"Can Skylar read anything?" Ms. Henderson asked. "Does she know her alphabet?"

"We've been working on that," he said. "She can write the alphabet and rearrange flashcards in the right order. She can spell basic colors. She can write simple words, cat, dog, sky, Mudgie..."

"Mudgie?"

"Our dog," he explained. "Basic shapes, simple addition."

"It's a good start," she nodded. "During the summer, I'll meet with her twice a week. Once the new school year starts, we'll put her in online classes and I'll tutor her once a week. Hopefully, by the next year, she'll be ready to attend fourth grade in person."

"They have online classes for third grade?" he asked.

"Some kids do better outside the normal class settings," she explained.

The Sunday after Dave returned to work, he and Skylar dressed nicely and headed into D.C. Dave wouldn't tell her where they were going and she was a little curious. She became even more curious when they pulled into the parking lot of a very ornate building. She gave him a confused look but he just smiled. He opened they door and they walked inside. He motioned for her to be quiet as they sat down in the back.

A few minutes later, music started to play and the other people got up and began to leave. Dave waited until most of the people were gone before taking Skylar's hand, getting up and moving toward the front. They were almost there when he dropped her hand and told her to wait there while he continued forward.

"You know, you could really use my tailor's advice on your wardrobe choices," he said to the man standing behind the altar with his back to him.

The man turned around and smiled. "Davey," the man said. He came around the altar and they embraced. "It's been weeks, my friend."

"Yes, it has," Dave said.

"When you called, you said you wanted me to meet the new female in your life," the priest said. "Are you getting married again?"

"Not that kind of female," Dave chuckled. He turned around and motioned for Skylar to join him. "Jimmy, I'd like you to meet my daughter Skyler," he said as he took her hand again. "Skylar, this is Father Jim Davidson. He and I grew up together."

Jimmy looked at Dave for a moment before turning to Skylar. "It is a pleasure to meet you, young lady," he said. He extended his hand and they shook. She gave him a shy smile.

"She doesn't talk," Dave said. Jimmy looked at him. "I'll explain later."

"Well, I'm sure you talk enough for the both of you," Jimmy smiled.

"Why does everybody say that?" Dave asked.

"Because they know you?" Jimmy said. That made Skylar giggle. "See? Even your daughter agrees with me," he said. Skylar nodded.

"No respect whatsoever," Dave harumphed.

"You said something about lunch?" Jimmy said.

"I'm beginning to rethink that," Dave said.

"Come on back while I get changed," Jimmy said and they headed for the vestry. Suddenly, he stopped and turned back around. "Before we go, Dave, would you mind?" he asked.

Dave looked at his daughter and smiled. "No," he said. "We could use all the help we can get."

Jimmy knelt in front of Skylar. "Do you know what a priest does?" he asked her. She shook her head. "Well, he does a lot of different things but one of the things he does is ask God for blessings. Now, your father said it was okay but I'm going to ask you. Is it okay if I ask God to bless you?" She looked at him for a moment then nodded. "Thank you," he said and began the blessing.

It was the Tuesday after the lunch with Father Jimmy that the team caught a case that took them out of town. It was in Fargo, North Dakota, a serial killer was preying on mentally challenged people. The team knew from the start it was going to get very ugly, uglier than a lot of their cases.

Dave called Mrs. Nichols to let her and Skylar know he was leaving on a case. Skylar wasn't happy about it but Mrs. Nichols reminded her of what her father had told her. He and the others caught the bad people who where hurting other people and sometimes that meant he had to leave to do it. He told her he would be careful and always do his best to come home.

Skylar was sitting in front of her computer that evening when it beeped at her. She quickly pressed the buttons Aunt Penelope had shown and her father was smiling at her.

"It worked," he chuckled. She smiled and nodded. "You okay?" he asked. She shrugged then pointed at him. "Better now that I'm talking to you," he said. "Have you been good for Mrs. Nichols today?" She gave him a 'duh' look. "Of course. You're always good." She put on her best innocent expression. "Uh huh," he chuckled. A piece of wadded up paper hit him in the head and she giggled. "That was your Uncle Aaron," he said, glaring off-screen. "Everyone says hello."

They talked for a few more minutes. "It's time for you to go to bed," he finally said. She held up a finger then picked up a construction paper sign she'd made earlier that said 'I miss you'. It had flowers all over it. "I miss you, too," he said. She held up another sign that said 'I love you' covered with hearts. "Ti ama, mia bella," he said quietly. She gave him another smile and closed the connection. Dave sighed and leaned back in his chair.

"Everything all right?" Hotch asked.

"Yeah, it's good," he answered. "Just..."

"This is the first time you haven't slept under the same roof since you got custody," Hotch nodded. "Believe me, I understand. The first time we left after... Jack came to live with me, it took everything I had not to call Jessica every fifteen minutes."

"Does it get easier?" Dave asked.

"Yes and no," Hotch said. "You'll probably always hate leaving her. The anxiety will lessen with each trip. It won't go away completely because you'll always worry about what's going on when you're not there but you get used to it. I'm not sure if that's a good thing but you do."

Dave hoped his friend was right. If he wasn't, this feeling in the pit of his stomach was going to give him an ulcer before it was all over.

TBC...