Author Note:

I hope you guys are enjoying this so far! Please leave any thoughts, requests, suggestions or heaping flattery/praise in a review ;)

I had a tonne of fun writing this chapter.

Aside from Abigail, none of these characters are mine.


"So you know how to load the gun and operate the safety?"

Hotch handed the loaded gun to Abigail.

"Yes Hotch. I'm not that hopeless."

Being in the firing range made her uncomfortable and she could feel herself getting defensive.

"OK, show me your stance."

Abigail sighed, squared her feet and shoulders, locked her knees and raised the gun towards the target.

"OK, the problem with a small base of support, locked legs and parallel feet, is your balance. You're small, not as strong as male agents, and more vulnerable to being knocked off balance by either a suspect or the gun recoil."

Abigail adjusted her feet and looked back at Hotch, resisting the urge to take exception to the 'not as strong as a male agent' remark.

"Like this?"

"Better, but now look at your arms. The way your body is twisted leaves your left shoulder exposed, even if you're wearing a vest. Move your feet a little closer together, and move your shoulder slightly."

Abigail felt Hotch's hand land on her shoulder and gently move it forwards. She felt the warmth of his hand through the thin cotton of her blouse and her heart sped up.

"Good, now put on your earmuffs."

Abigail's heart sped up again, but for a very different reason. She put on her ear protection, lifted her gun again, and readied her stance.

"Ok, whenever you're ready."

Abigail took a deep breath and fired. Even though she'd fired a gun before, the recoil still shocked her, the force propagating through her forearms and up to her shoulders, and the sound flooding her body with adrenaline. Hotch removed his glasses and earmuffs and looked at Abigail.

"Are you alright?"

Abigail took a deep breath and steadied her voice.

"I'm fine."

She looked at the target. There was a bullet hole just above the silhouette's left shoulder.

"I missed."

"It's OK, try it again."

The anxiety she felt had been worsened by the rush of adrenaline and she was losing patience, both with herself and the whole learning-to-fire-a-gun endeavor.

"Hotch, I'm not good at this. Rossi did say that technically I don't have to carry a gun and you agreed."

Abigail was becoming frustrated and tense. Why did she need to be good at firing a gun if she wasn't going to be carrying one in the first place? The flaw in Hotch's logic was getting to her.

"You don't have to carry one, but you should know how to use one, just incase."

"Incase what? Incase I'm in a life-or-death situation and I just happen to stumble across a gun? Incase it's just me and an un-sub and he decides to toss me a firearm to make it a fair fight?"

Hotch looked at her for a moment and Abigail prepared to be reprimanded for her sarcasm.

"Maybe if you tried firing off the gun instead of your mouth you'd be better at it by now."

He kept a straight face but his tone was more teasing than harsh and Abigail smiled.

"Put your earmuffs back on, and try again."

It was a firm instruction, not a suggestion or a request.

"Fine."

Abigail sighed, put on her earmuffs, and lifted the gun again. Hotch took a step towards her and held up his arm as though he was going to touch her.

"May I?"

Abigail nodded and Hotch stepped behind her, gently laying his arms over hers. He was conscious of maintaining distance and made sure there was space between his body and hers. He looked over her shoulder and prompted her to raise her arms upwards.

"Here, raise your arms slightly."

He softened his voice, aware of how close to her he was.

Abigail felt his breath on her neck. Focus, she told herself.

"Like this?"

"Exactly. Look at your target, not the gun."

Hotch shifted to his right slightly, running his right hand further down Abigail's arm towards her hand.

Abigail knew he wouldn't quite be able to reach her hand so took a small step back, closing the small amount of space Hotch had been careful to leave between them.

Hotch felt Abigail's back press into his chest and the curve of her hip press into his. He was momentarily stunned, a small voice telling him to pull away, but he didn't. Instead he relaxed into her body, moulding his shoulder and arm around hers. He felt her hair brush against his cheek and as he took a breath in he smelled either her perfume or shampoo - something fresh and sweet.

"OK, make sure you have a good line of sight."

Abigail tried to concentrate. She knew that Hotch didn't regard her as anything other than a colleague. Even now, as his chest was pressed against her back and she could smell his cologne, his voice was unwavering and completely professional. Despite all that, she still found her heart beating a little faster, and her breathing a little shallower.

"Remember, focus on your target and squeeze the trigger."

He nudged her index finger with his, prompting her to pull the trigger. Abigail fired the gun, the force pushing her body a little more firmly into Hotch's, just for a moment.

As she lowered the gun she expected Hotch to immediately step back, but he didn't. He lowered his arm with hers and left his body next to hers. He lingered for a moment before stepping away.

"Nice work."

Abigail hadn't even really assessed her performance. As the target was brought forward she saw that the bullet had penetrated the shape right through the centre of the forehead.

Hotch was still standing close to Abigail when a deep voice emerged from the firing-range entry way.

"Are you a crack shot yet?"

The agents spun around quickly to see Rossi standing behind them, smirking. Abigail smiled at him, taking off her eyewear and putting down the gun.

"Take a look Dave, I think I'm ready for SWAT."

Rossi laughed and looked at the target.

"Wow, Aaron you must be a good teacher."

"Come on Dave, don't give him all the credit. It's easy to teach when you're working with such raw talent," Abigail joked, starting to gather her things.

"I'll see you two later, I have some paper work to do."

As Abigail left, Rossi turned to Hotch and smirked.

"So, I take it that was a more… enjoyable experience than coaching Agent Reid?"

Hotch refused to take the bait.

"She won't need a whistle."

"Uh-huh."

"Don't you have work to do? A book to write? A royalty cheque to cash?"

The agents walked out of the firing range, exchanging banter as they left.