"Seriously, Aaron? You actually believe that you can offer me a good enough reason for running into a burning building without backup? No fire or rescue service in sight? You put your life in jeopardy in a manner that you would find unacceptable for any other member of your team, and you think there's a way to explain that to me?"

Leaning his head against the backrest with his eyes still closed, Hotch took solace in the fact that this wasn't a face to face conversation. It was easier for him to evade his friend's points of contention when there was a little distance between them. Even after all the years, even though he was now Dave's supervisor, the man still had a way of making him feel like a disobedient child and his current state of mind wouldn't easily accept that.

"I know it wasn't an ideal situation," he began softly, before a muttered Italian curse cut him off.

"Not ideal? No, Aaron. It most certainly wasn't ideal. You could have been killed. That's as far from ideal as you can get!"

The volume and sharpness of Rossi's tone caused the unit chief's jaw to tighten.

"I had it under control," Hotch ground out in a cool, tight voice.

"Che roba! You ran into an inferno. In a building ready to blow! That's not something you can have any control over."

The force of Aaron exhalation carried across the phone.

"Dave, I can't do this right now."

"Not over the phone, you can't. I'll expect you at my door in a hour, no more."

"Not tonight," the unit chief informed his friend with an air of authority. "I'll see you at the office tomorrow morning. We can talk more then."

Rossi was struck silent for a moment. He couldn't recall the last time his protege had simply refused an order.

"Aaron, what's going on?" he finally inquired in a calm tone tinted with concern. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I just can't leave Jack right now. I have a pizza on the way, and I need to get him fed. Maybe once I get him to bed, I can give you a call back, but I really think this should wait until tomorrow."

"Is something wrong with Jack?"

"No. Why would you even think ..."

"I'm coming over," the older man declared. "I'll pick up a real pizza. When whatever you ordered gets there, I want you to toss that damn cardboard crap in the trash. It'll take me about twenty minutes, but I'll be there with some good food, and we'll talk things out."

"Dave, there's no reason..."

"Yes, there is. Now, get off the damn phone and go see to your son. Uncle Dave will be there soon."

As the phone went dead in his hand, Hotch leaned his head back and groaned.

"Daddy! Daddy, the pizza is here!" Jack called as the sound of the bell sent him racing towards the door.

Pressing the heels of his hands against his eyes, Aaron exhaled slowly then raked his fingers through the hair along his temples.

"Not quite," he mumbled to himself. "The cardboard crap is here. The pizza won't make it for another twenty minutes, which give me exactly no time to plan my defense. Could this evening get any worse?"

Making his way to the door, his spirit received a much needed boost in the form of his son's excitement as he accepted the cardboard box from the delivery man.

"Yay! Pizza!"

Smiling, Aaron ruffled his little man's hair.

"Go put it in the kitchen. I'll be there in a minute to get you a plate. Don't you dare start without me."

"I won't, Daddy," Jack promised before vanishing with his prize.

Watching him go, Hotch allowed the child's happiness to lift his mood a little further. Maybe, depending on how well he could handle Dave's inquiry, the night might not be quite as bad as he feared.

Turning back to the delivery man, Aaron was immediately put back on his guard. The young man avoided making eye contact, and shuffled with a substantial amount of nervous energy as he clutched the bill tightly.

"Is everything okay?" the profiler asked, not sure he really wanted to hear the answer.

"Um. Not really, Mr. Hotchner." The teenager forced himself to meet the intimidating man's eyes, as he handed over the invoice. "There was a problem with your credit card. Do you have another one we can try to run, or would you like to pay cash?"

"No, I reside in Virginia. I don't know anyone in Barrow, Alaska, nor have I ever been there. Why in the world would I purchase six cases of whiskey in Barrow? Do you think I'm throwing a frat party for a flock of penguins?"

Rossi watched Hotch angrily pacing in the living room from his vantage point at the kitchen table. He wasn't entirely sure what had happened, but from what he could piece together, it appeared that Aaron's identity, or at least his primary credit card information had been stolen. He couldn't begin to figure out how many times he had suggested that his friend employ one of those security services, but the Unit Chief of the BAU had it all under control. ...Sure he did.

"A waddle? Really? Well, yes. Actually I have heard them called a colony, and I am aware that there are no penguins in Alaska." The dark haired man scrubbed a hand over his face. "Look, I really don't care to be educated about penguins right now. I just want to make sure my bank card gets credited for these bogus charges."

"Sounds like your dad has had quite a night," Dave remarked while Jack helped himself to another slice of authentic handcrafted cheese pizza.

The little boy nodded before placing the pizza on his plate and eyeing David carefully.

"Uncle Dave, is Daddy in trouble?"

"No, Jack. He's having some trouble with his credit card. That happens sometimes, kiddo. The bank will get it worked out. Don't worry about it."

"That's not what I mean. I ..." The youngster paused and dropped his focus on the cheesy goodness laying on the plate. "I heard you yell at Daddy on the phone."

"Ah. That." Rossi's mind whirled as he tested the weight of his words before carefully choosing what to say. "Your dad works really hard to get the bad guys. You know that, right?"

Jack nodded, eyes gleaming with pride.

"Like Captain America."

"Yeah. Just like Captain America," Dave agreed with a grin. "But sometimes he gets a little too focused on catching the bad guy on his own, and forgets that he has a team working with him."

"The Avengers."

"That's right." Rossi ruffled the littlest Hotchner's hair as he chuckled to himself, before releasing a sigh. "Sometimes, against better sense, Captain America goes off on his own. He's too hard headed to listen to Iron Man or Thor, and won't take their advice even though he knows that they're only looking out for his safety. Your dad had a moment like that. He got lucky, which is great, but you can't rely entirely on luck. I think your dad needs a little reminder about why we work together."

"Because a team of heroes is stronger than a single hero," the boy said without the slightest hesitation.

"They sure are. That's because each one has their own special power, but also because they have each others backs. The last thing they want is for one of their members to get hurt because he was being careless. Not only would they be worried about him until he was back on his feet, but being down a man makes it much more difficult for them to protect the universe. Can't have things like that happen, now can we?"

The little one shook his head.

"So, you see, your daddy and I just need to clear some things up. He has to remember the reason he's part of a team, and he needs to rely on us as much as he expects us to rely on him."

Brown eyes, the mirror of Hotch's, carefully studied Rossi for several silent seconds before the child made a final request.

"Don't make him sad, Uncle Dave. Please."

The senior agent drew a soft breath before clearing his throat.

"I don't want to see him sad either, kiddo. While I can't promise that he won't be upset by what I have to say, I will promise to make him feel better after I've said it. Will that work for you?"

Jack was still considering the offer when the sound of a cell phone being dropped on the coffee table came from the next room. Aaron covered his face with his hands and took several slow deep breaths before mentally declaring himself relaxed enough to rejoin his son and Rossi in the kitchen.

"Got it cleared up?" Rossi asked as Hotch entered the room.

"Not quite, but the bank is on it. They should be able to unravel this mess in a day or two."

"How did a couple of cases of booze clear out your card? What sort of high end sh..stuff did they buy? "

"I don't know, but they didn't get around to tapping out my bank account. The fraud company froze it when they saw the charge. They figured there was something wrong, which I appreciate, but the bank won't unfreeze it and grant me access until they finish their preliminary investigation."

"Great," Rossi sarcastically muttered.

"Yeah," Hotch agreed as he lowered his head in an attempt to hide his seething frustration from his son.

"Anything I can do to help?"

"No," he answered as he glanced back up at his friend and shot him an appreciative smile. "We're fine, but thanks for the offer. It means a lot."

"You always know where I am if you need me."

The unit chief nodded before crouching down besides his little boy.

"Have you had enough to eat?" he asked, eyeing the untouched slice of pizza.

Jack nodded.

"Then how about thanking Uncle Dave for dinner before you go brush your teeth and get ready for bed?"

"Thank you, Uncle Dave," the tyke said as he slipped out of his chair and clambered into Rossi's lap. Wrapping his arms around the man, he hugged him tight then whispered in his ear. "That works."

Dave returned the hug as he chuckled softly to himself.

"It was my pleasure, kiddo." Placing a light kiss on top of Jack's head, Rossi spoke softly into the mop of light brown hair so only the child would hear. "Sweet dreams, patatino, and don't you worry. The Captain is safe with me."

The little one nodded against the Italian's chest before allowing himself to be gently placed back on his feet.

"There's coffee. Help yourself. Let me get this little monkey to bed, and I'll be right back," Hotch said while placing a guiding hand on his son's back to steer him towards the hall.

"Take your time," Rossi answered with a nod. "Good night, Jack."

"Night, Uncle Dave."

A short time later, Hotch returned to the kitchen to find everything cleaned and a cup of coffee sitting at his spot at the table.

"You didn't have to do that."

David shrugged.

"I wanted to."

The Italian took a sip from his own mug while studying the younger man from across the rim. After giving Aaron enough time to get comfortable, he quietly inquired, "So, you want to tell me what's going on?"

Closing his eyes, the unit chief shook his head.

"I can't do this tonight. I'm sorry, Dave. I really can't. You can ream me out tomorrow, but tonight I can't even think about formulating a defense. Please, I'm begging you, don't kick me when I'm down."

"Have I ever done that?"

The younger man gazed over at his mentor and held his gaze for several seconds before glancing down.

"No," he answered honestly. "But you don't know what I've been through."

"The simplest solution to that is disclosure. Let me in, Aaron. You know I haven't said a word about your stunt since I arrived. That wasn't what I was asking about. I want to know what's going on with Jack? He was unusually quiet, and if you weren't willing to leave him with Jessica for a couple of hours, something must be up. I mean, I know I'm scary as hell when you fuck up, but I don't see you using your son as a shield. Obviously whatever is going on has something to do directly with him and it's eating you alive."

Exhaling harshly, Hotch gazed into the dark liquid swirling in his mug as he spoke.

"There was a little incident this afternoon. Jack got into some trouble and ..." Aaron sucked in a breath and swallowed hard before looking up at his old friend. "I had to physically correct him."

"You spanked Jack?"

The man nodded.

"You better have a damn good reason for that," he stated with more than a slight threatening tone to his voice.

"He stole a toy from one of the shops downtown."

"And you spanked him for that?" Rossi asked as he surveyed his protege through narrowed eyes.

Hotch tipped his head and gazed at the Italian with palpable astonishment.

"You wouldn't have?"

"This isn't about what I would do. It's about your reaction and that seems a bit extreme for you."

Aaron averted his eyes and inhaled deeply to help maintain what level of calm he could obtain before focusing back on the man sitting across the table.

"I was in control at all times, Dave."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," he responded immediately, setting the elder man at ease. "This was extremely difficult for me, but I had to do it. This isn't the first time Jack has had a problem with sticky fingers. The last time was when he took something of Jessica's. I sat him down and gave him a stern lecture. During that scolding, I made a promise that I didn't think I would have to back up, but I was sadly mistaken."

"You promised to warm his tail in the future if he continued to help himself to things that weren't his," the senior profiler surmised.

"Exactly," Hotch verified before ranking a hand through his hair as his breath departed in a whispered sigh. "Belive me, that was the last thing I wanted to do, but I had managed to back myself into a corner with that threat."

"It was a promise, Aaron, not a threat."

"It was a threat. I threatened my son with physical pain, and then followed through. I know that I didn't do any physical harm to him. Not really. We're talking a few swats to let him know I meant business. Nothing more than that, but what if he continues to challenge me? What if I have to do it again? I don't want to scare him, Dave, and God knows I don't want to hurt him."

The pain in Hotch's eyes shown through in a way that words could never do justice.

"That little boy isn't scared of you. If anything, he's scared for you. Do you know what he asked me while you were on the phone? He asked me not to make you sad. He's worried about you, son."

"I know he is. He and I were having our discussion when you called," Hotch said with a shake of his head. "You need to stick to calling my cell when you get the urge to chew my ass out."

"Duly noted."

"Jack doesn't like the idea of me being on your bad side. He doesn't know how to handle it."

"I doubt he wants you to be on anyone's bad side. He respects you, Aaron. You're his hero and he wants everyone else to recognize that. Captain America isn't supposed to get into trouble with other members of his team. We know it happens, but that's not the way it works in Jack's world. You're everything to that little one, which plays a big part in why I won't allow you to get away with pulling dumbass stunts. He needs you to be around to help him grow up into a fine young man. How is that going to happen if your luck runs out when you're taking one of these unnecessary risks?"

"I thought we weren't going to discuss my folly until tomorrow."

"Glad to hear you finally admit to it being a folly, and don't worry, we're not. I'm just making the most of this opportunity."

Hotch huffed softly, but didn't seemed incline to argue so Dave continued in a calm, quiet voice.

"Aaron, the way you decide to raise Jack is entirely up to you. I can offer some advice here and there, but you and your son are the ones who have to live with each and every decision you make. Now, for my money, I think you handled this milestone rather well. I'm not surprised that you're having doubts. That's normal. I'm sure as hell not surprised that you're frightened..."

The profiler's head shot up and he stared at his mentor, an argument swirling in the depths of his rich, dark eyes, but Rossi's raised hand kept him quiet.

"You are frightened. You're frightened that you're going to push your son away. You're scared that you're going to inadvertently hurt him, and damage your relationship." David took a breath and silently released it. "Everyone, and I do mean everyone, who finds themself in a disciplinary role feels the same way, kid. We're not born with some sort of failsafe. We're almost guaranteed to make mistakes along the way, but you have to trust Jack to know the difference between a blunder and true hostility. He'll recover from your errors because you will find a way to make those up to him. Plus, they'll teach him an extremely important lesson."

"What's that?"

"That no one is perfect. That even his idol can be fallible. Right now, he's trying to live up to the superhero. You can do no wrong in that child's eyes. That's a lot to emulate, don't you think?"

Hotch turned his harsh glare onto his innocent cup of coffee with an intensity that would make cream curdle.

"I'm not close to being perfect."

"You think that's news to me?" Rossi replied with a chuckle. "If I'm not mistaken, I'm the one who gets the privilege of pointing out your screw ups."

"Very vigorously," Hotch agreed.

"If you weren't so damn hard headed out there on the job."

The unit chief exhaled softly, never taking his eyes off his mug.

"I didn't have the luxury of waiting for backup," he softly admitted. "I know it was a risky move, but if I hadn't go into that building. If James Morris had died in that explosion..."

As a hand grasped his shoulder, the profiler quieted. Swallowing his explanation, he bravely faced Rossi with his head held high.

"Tomorrow," the elder said with conviction. "We'll discuss it tomorrow."

"What if I want to discuss it now?"

"You don't," David informed the younger man. "You're a profiler, Aaron. You know where this is coming from, as well as I do, and it has absolutely nothing to do with your recklessness on that case."

Pulling back ever so slightly, Hotch tilted his head as he focus on his mentor intensified.

"Feeling a sense of guilt is understandable, but you haven't done anything wrong with Jack. You need to make peace with this on your own."

"What if I can't?"

The Italian studied his protege for a few moments, then pushed back from the table. Standing, he carried his coffee cup to the sink before turning back to the still sitting younger man.

"You will," he finally said, while leaning against the counter. "Give yourself some time. Things will look better in the morning after you and Jack have had a good night's sleep. If I'm wrong, we can talk about it some more tomorrow before work. "

Hotch appeared to wilt at the dismissive words, but the unit chief nodded in understanding.

"So our...talk..will be at work?"

Dave smirked at the subtle hitch in the younger man's voice.

"We'll see how you're doing in the morning and then I'll make a decision."

With a mild scowl, Hotch nodded again before pushing his mug away and leaning back in his chair with a defeated sigh.

"Look, kid. Don't think I'm just going to let this go, because it ain't gonna happen. You know that."

"You do realize that I'm your boss, Dave. I make the decisions for the team, and I'm perfectly capable of making them for myself."

"Hm."

Rossi remained relaxed as he weighed his boss' words.

"We'll talk about it tomorrow, Aaron," he finally said as he pushed away from the counter and closed the distance between them. Placing a hand on his friend's shoulder, he patted him gently. "I'm going to head out. Get some sleep, but do me a favor. Before you drift off, consider how you would deal with Morgan if the two of you had switched places. How would you feel if you rolled up on the scene that he did and found out that he had nearly been killed because he disregarded protocol?"

"Protocol? Since when were you a stickler?"

"Team protocol," Dave answered with a shrug. "Just think about it, kid, and give me your take on it tomorrow. For now, I'll just see myself out and wish you a good night."

"I don't see it being very good," Hotch glumly replied.

"It can be if you make peace with yourself. At the heart of the matter, you know you did right by Jack. As far as your other little issue goes, you already know the right thing to do. Embrace that and you'll be sailing on calm waters in no time."

With a final pat to Aaron's back, Dave slipped out of the kitchen. Moments later the unit chief heard the door open and shut, before silence enveloped his home.

Frozen in place by troubling thoughts, Hotch found himself trying to pinpoint the exact moment where the day had gone so wrong. It had started out so well, but the ending could definitely use some work.

"Daddy?"

Sucking in a breath, the man turned to find the light of his life hugging the kitchen's doorframe.

"I thought you were supposed to be in bed," he said with raised brows, but no true rebuke.

"I can't sleep."

Motioning his son over, Hotch scooped Jack up, set him on his lap, and cuddled him close.

"Is something bothering you?"

The youngest Hotchner shrugged.

"No monsters under the bed, right?"

The little one shook his head. "No monsters."

"Then what's keeping the Sandman at bay?"

Again, his son shrugged while burrowing closer into Hotch's chest.

Repressing a sigh, Aaron brushed away the tussled brown fringe that fell across Jack's eyes, and earned the automatic response of having the boy look at him.

"If you tell me what's wrong, I might be able to help," he offered, but the child simply lowered his gaze in response.

Softly inhaling, the profiler glanced at the ceiling and wondered why his well honed skills would fail him now.

Finally, drawing a conclusion, he tipped Jack's head back up to meet his eyes.

"You're no longer in trouble," he stated with conviction.

The little boy quickly looked away.

"Jack?"

"Is Uncle Dave mad at you?"

"No," Hotch answered with a furrowed brow. "Did he say that he was?"

Jack shook his head.

"I've already told you that there are times that Uncle Dave feels the need to point out my mistakes. That doesn't mean that he's mad at me. He trying to be helpful."

"Because you won't listen to Iron Man or Thor."

Aaron's brows shot up to disappear in his hairline.

"I don't?"

"Uncle Dave says you don't."

"I always try to, but there are moments where I don't have time to discuss what needs to be done. When someone is in danger, I have to act first to save them. That's something even Uncle Dave has done, but has conveniently forgotten about."

"Not listening can be right?"

The question was simple, but it caused the agent to freeze for a moment. Situations involving various members of his team flashed through his mind. Actions that had placed each one in danger and landed every one of his agents in hot water with him. Actions very much like his own.

Consider how you would deal with Morgan if the two of you had switched places. How would you feel if you rolled up on the scene that he did and found out that he had nearly been killed because he disregarded protocol?

With Rossi's words echoing, Hotch shook his head.

"You should always listen to the people who care about you. They'll try their best to look out for you."

"Uncle Dave cares about you."

"He does, and I'll try to do a better job of listening to him from now on. How does that sound?"

Jack answered with a smile as he hugged his father's neck.

"Alright, buddy. Now that we have that settled, let's get you back to bed," the man said as he extracted himself from his chair with his little boy in his arms. "And I'll be right behind you. If I'm going to be eating crow tomorrow, I'm going to need to sleep tonight."

"Crow? Yuck."

"You have no idea, Jack. It's really yucky, and Uncle Dave sure knows how to serve it up."

AN: Hotch and Rossi have been bothering me. They're cutting into my Jasper time so I just had to do something for them. I didn't want Aaron to cave like that, but Jack has a way of making his dad see reason.

I apologize for any eye bleed. I was trying to proof read this on my lunch hour, but everyone I work with felt the need to come talk to me...mostly about Game of Thrones...

Yes, I swear I will be pulling Jasper back over that cliff before I have Rossi settle up with Hotch, but I won't keep any of y'all waiting too long.