I meant to have this up a few days ago, but my laptop was being really hard to get along with! I think I fixed whatever was wrong with it though! This chapter is just a little, light filler before the funeral chapter which will be next. To everyone that's favorite or followed, thank you so much! To those of you that review, and especially those that review every single chapter, you are appreciated so much, your words really make me want to write this to the absolute best of my ability!

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The following day had been all about formalities and legal mumbo jumbo that Emily honestly didn't understand. Elizabeth had left mostly everything to Emily, and a few things to George in her will. They'd planned the funeral for the next day, and had sent out invites to all of Elizabeth's political contacts.

Truthfully, Emily wished it could just be her, George, Hotch, and Jack at the funeral. She didn't want to have to accept condolences from people she either didn't know, or hadn't seen since she was a child. She didn't want to experience something so personal and final with people that probably didn't even care about her mother one way or the other.

However, when someone of Elizabeth Prentiss' caliber passes, it's going to make a splash in the political community. Emily was truly amazed no one had learned about Elizabeth's illness until now. She was glad, though, because she knew that was something Elizabeth had feared.

It was after five in the afternoon when everything had finally been taken care of. Emily sighed and rested her head on the table in the dining room, feeling completely drained after nearly eight straight hours of sorting out Elizabeth's affairs.

She looked up when she heard the light thud of something being sat on the table.

"Figured you'd need this as much as I do," George said quietly as he poured two glasses of Emily's favorite red wine.

Emily sent him a weak smile, accepting the glass he handed out to her and taking a tiny sip.

"Do you think she'd be okay with this?" Emily asked.

"We did what she wanted, but I think no matter how we decided to handle this she would have been alright with it." George offered.

"I mean, does she really want all these self-centered politicians at her funeral? I don't." Emily admitted bitterly, swirling the liquid in her glass.

"I don't either, Em. But I do think she wants this, it's a closure for her and for everyone she ran in political circles with. I know a lot of them are really narcissistic and very career-driven, but you do learn to make lifelong friends just like with any job." The older man said gently.

Emily nodded as she took another sip. She knew he was right, and she knew even if they'd gone completely against Elizabeth's final wishes that Elizabeth would have been okay with their arrangements.

It's no secret that Emily's had questioned her faith and stance on religion for about as long as she had been alive. She still didn't know what she believed most days, but she did like the idea that death wasn't truly final. That those that pass can still experience life with their loved ones, just in a different time a place. She liked to think that when her time came, she'd get to see her mother again.

Because thinking about it any other way was enough to send Emily into a panic attack. If it wasn't so terrifying, she might find it funny. She never in a million years thought she would be so affected by her mother's death. But then again, it wasn't like she often thought about this day ever happening.

She and George sat in a comfortable silence, both enjoying the time to wind down after a day of constant dismal conversation about Elizabeth's funeral, burial, and ordering the grave marker...it had been rough.

They'd each had about two glasses of wine when the doorbell rang. Emily audibly groaned.

"I hope it's a Girl Scout," Emily muttered to herself as she rose from the giant dining room table and headed for the front door. "At this point I would buy every cookie she offered." She heard George chuckle slightly from the dining room.

They'd used the dining room to spread all the necessary documents out where they could get to them. The table was big enough to comfortably seat around 25 people, so it had been plenty big enough to get all the formalities taken care of without shuffling what felt like a million pieces of paper around all day.

She opened the door and blinked several times. She was definitely not expecting the entire team to be standing there, smiling warmly with their arms full of stuff.

"Um," Emily said, stubbed. "Hi?" It wasn't supposed to sound like a question, but it did. She blinked again, wondering what the heck they were doing there. But her thoughts were interrupted when two little pairs of arms wrapped themselves tightly around her waist.

She looked down and was met with Jack and Henry's smiling faces.

"Hi, Emily!" They greeted in unison.

"Hi, yourselves!" Emily greeted them with a hug, eliciting as much enthusiasm as she could muster. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough to appease the boys. She guided them inside and showed them the sitting room with the giant couch. George was already in there waiting, a knowing look in his eyes. Emily knew right then without even asking that the older man had orchestrated this little get-together. Jack and Henry were happy to wait in the room with George while the adults stayed in the main part of the house for a few minutes. Emily sent him a thankful smile as she retreated the few feet away back to her friends.

"A little birdie told us that today has been long and boring and tiring," Garcia chirped as she all but pranced into the house. "So we've brought stuff to make this day just a little brighter." The blonde beamed as she went into the kitchen to set her giant tin of something down. Emily wanted to ask what it was, but she couldn't seem to find words. Before she could say anything else, Garcia had her arms tightly around Emily. She didn't say anything, but she did hang onto Emily just a bit longer than she normally would have and gently ran her palm down the length of Emily's hair affectionately. It made Emily smile, not a full smile, but a genuine one, as Garcia let her go.

The rest of the team had followed Garcia in, setting things down in the sitting room and food items in the kitchen while Garcia practically attack-hugged their friend.

"I'm really glad to see you all," Emily managed finally, as she looked around the room at all the people. "But I don't really feel like playing hostess right now..."

"Uh-uh, Princess." Morgan interjected as he pulled her close to her. "You don't have to do anything but appreciate our presence." He told her quietly as he felt her hug him back, almost as tightly as she had when she had returned from Paris.

She pulled back and looked at him with glassy eyes. She wondered how she'd gotten so lucky to have such amazing friends.

Emily smiled softly at him, taking his hand in hers and squeezing it gently, letting him know silently that she appreciated him. She couldn't say anything because she knew she would start to cry.

She shook her head and glanced toward the kitchen, noticing the once clean counter tops were now all completely covered in containers of food.

"That's enough food for three dozen people." Emily commented.

"Half of that is probably reserved for Morgan." Reid joked as he hugged Emily close. "Make sure not to eat anything he may have claimed, he'll yell at you." Reid whispered, and Emily almost laughed.

"Man, that was one time! And you know good and well I don't play around with hibachi shrimp, pretty boy." Morgan replied as he sent a mock-glare the genius' way.

"Besides the food, we also brought some fun stuff!" Alex said warmly as she took her turn hugging the brunette. They'd all formed a line to get their turn, though Emily had been too bewildered to notice.

"Reid and I brought Scrabble, there's a few other games that Jack and Henry insisted we bring, too. Morgan threw in some really terrible action movies. JJ brought Bridesmaids, and I threw in some of my personal favorite nerdy movies that aren't in English that Rossi told me you would love."

"Thanks," Emily said sincerely, smiling a little bit brighter than she had in the past couple of days. "That really means a lot." Alex smiled back as she moved away to let the next person greet Emily.

"Will cooked 'southern comfort food' practically all day," JJ joked as she tightly embraced her friend, stepping back so Will could hug her too.

"It might not make everything better, but it sure does ease the pain." Will drawled.

"Thank you." Emily said as they both rushed away with apologetic smiles, Henry had decided to try and jump from the couch to the coffee table to the floor.

"You know I brought wine. And something a little stronger." Rossi winked as he embraced Emily. She wasn't used to everyone being so affectionate like this, but she had to admit she definitely didn't hate it.

The last person to greet Emily was Hotch. They didn't even speak; he just hugged her as close to him as he possibly could. She reciprocated by hugging him just as closely, as if she could somehow disappear from the world if she could just hug him tight enough.

They stayed that way for a few minutes, only focusing on each other, as if for the moment they were the only two people in the whole world. When they finally pulled away, Hotch tenderly took Emily's face in his hand and wordlessly communicated with her. Are you okay? The look he gave her said. She just sent him a reassuring nod. He smiled and let it be, because he knew when she was really okay and when she wasn't. She wasn't herself right now, and he knew she wouldn't be for quite some time. But the look she had given him let him know that she was alright with what was going on, and for now that was enough.

Honestly, when the team first showed up, Emily didn't want them to stay. She wanted to ask them all to please go home and she was sorry but she would talk to them soon. But then she saw how excited Jack and Henry were, and how much stuff they'd all been able to compile. She saw the eagerness in their eyes to—if even for a moment—ease her pain. She knew she couldn't turn the away, and now that they were all here, she was glad that they were. Normally she hated surprises, but this one was greatly welcomed.

XxxxX

It was nearly 10o'clock at night, and everyone was still at the Prentiss residence. The team had actually gotten Emily to eat a little bit of the food they'd all brought. There really was way too much for the small crowd, but they all insisted that she and George keep it after tonight. Emily had played a game of Scrabble with Reid and Alex. It had been a close game all the way to the end, but Alex had been the reigning champion.

Jack and Henry had corralled everyone to take turns playing Apples to Apples, a fun children's game that all the adults enjoyed as well. Each round, one person served as "the judge." A green card was placed in the middle of the group with an adjective, and everyone had five red cards with various nouns on them, ranging from normal to completely random. The "judge" picked the funniest red card answer. The winner was determined by who had the most red cards by the end of the game. Reid had won the majority of rounds, but Jack and Henry had their own fair share of wins as well. The two boys absolutely loved it, and Emily had even managed to chuckle a bit during their many games.

Currently, the group had all put on a movie, one that was deemed appropriate for Jack and Henry, and were just enjoying each other's company. Jack and Henry were sitting on either side of Emily, sleeping up against her. They'd both been told what had happened, and Jack obviously felt a personal connection to Emily and had been protective over her all evening. Henry didn't quite grasp the concept of death, thankfully, but he knew that Emily was sad, so he too, had been right by her side all night long. Not only had it been absolutely adorable, but Emily could honestly admit that it had been a special sort of comfort that no one else could have given her. They genuinely believed that their mere presence would be enough to make everything better, and for a moment, it did.

Emily must have dozed off for a minute of two herself, because the next thing she knew the soft rustling of people moving around had jostled her awake. However, she wasn't awake enough to want to open her eyes.

"Oh look how cute they are!" She heard Garcia whisper. "Someone please hand me a phone before one of them moves."

Emily had wanted to protest, but she didn't. After someone, she wasn't quite sure who, had taken the picture she finally opened her eyes and looked around. Everyone was busy gathering their things and putting away the leftover food. Except for Hotch, he was sitting next to Jack quietly, just staring at her.

"What?" Emily asked sleepily, wondering if maybe she had something on her face.

"Nothing," Hotch shrugged. "You just look comfy."

"They do make great little miniature heaters." Emily managed a light smile, amazed at how much better she was feeling despite her stressful day.

Eventually, everyone dispersed. JJ had finally come to claim Henry and get him home to his own bed, and the only people left in the room were Emily, George, Hotch, and a still sleeping Jack.

George retired to his own room a few moments later, leaving just the three of them together on the couch, Jack snugly sandwiched in between his father and Emily.

Hotch and Emily talked quietly over him, neither one wanting to wake the boy up, but neither really wanting this moment to end, either.

Just before 11, Hotch made a move to pick Jack up and take him home, but Emily grabbed Hotch's arm before he could.

"You could stay," She whispered, her voice barely audible. "There's plenty of space. You could both have your own room." She told him, her voice still quiet. She hadn't met his eyes yet, afraid of what he might be thinking. They hadn't planned on staying the night, so she knew they didn't have anything with them. But she was sure she could find everything they might need for one night.

She didn't want to be alone tonight.

Even if Hotch was in the room next to hers, or down the hall, or even downstairs on the couch. She wouldn't really feel alone if he was here.

He had become her best friend recently. They'd always had a close friendship, but then Doyle happened, and then after that she just felt like she was drowning for so long. She'd moved to London, hoping a change of pace might help. It did, a bit. But then she ached for her family. She'd never find friends as good as the BAU, and being away from the made her realize that.

Hotch had been there for her so much over the past few months, he had become the one person she couldn't hide from. She couldn't compartmentalize around him, because he could read her better than anyone else. He'd always had a way of knowing when she wasn't alright, but never pressuring her into talking. He'd just known. It was crazy, and Emily couldn't quite explain it. But she could tell the same thing for him, too. She didn't know what It meant, but she knew that she couldn't get through tonight without him.

Being with the team had been so nice, but with everyone gone, she would be left to her thoughts. She didn't want that, and she'd never been one to admit that until now.

Hotch met her gaze, sending her a warm smile. She could swear that smile could stop time or cure illness, or something wonderful like that.

"We'd be happy to stay." He told her.

"Yeah?" Emily couldn't help but smile a little back at him.

He nodded. "We'll just get up early and go home to get ready in the morning."

The whole team was planning on coming to the funeral, set for tomorrow at 2o'clock in the afternoon.

Truthfully, Hotch had expected Emily to want some overnight company. But he wasn't going to impose, and he wasn't expecting Emily to ask him. He was so glad she had, because otherwise he would be spending the night worrying about her. Not that she couldn't take care of herself, that was never in question. He just wasn't fond of the idea of her being all alone all night. George was there, of course. But he knew Emily wouldn't seek comfort from him, because she wouldn't want him to worry about her.

He was happy to spend a night in a guest room if it meant giving Emily peace of mind.

Emily was relieved that he'd said yes, because otherwise she would have mentally kicked herself for the rest of her life, probably. She rose from the couch and picked Jack up with her, though Hotch had tried to tell her not to. She carried the boy slowly up the stairs, he was a bit heavier than she was expecting, but nothing she couldn't handle. She took him to the guest room right beside her bedroom and tucked him in, carefully taking off his red and blue sneakers before pulling the blankets up over him and gently kissing his forehead. She left the room as Hotch bid Jack a quiet goodnight, waiting for him just outside.

"There's another room just across the hall, or, if you wanted you could stay with Jack. You don't have to, of course. I was just thinking you might want to just in case he wakes up and doesn't know where he is. Not that you don't know how Jack would feel, I'm sure you know a lot better than I do-" He cut off her rambling by carefully taking both her hands in his own.

"It's okay Emily, you've thought of everything. I probably will go sleep in the same room as Jack though, since he won't remember falling asleep here." He said.

Emily nodded, feeling her cheeks redden slightly. She wished she didn't ramble when she was nervous. She didn't even know why she was so nervous. It wasn't like they'd never stayed the night together before, she told herself.

"Well, I'll be right next door if you need anything. There's extra toothbrushes and stuff in the bathroom at the end of the hall, if you need one." Emily informed him. "It's kind of a giant house so if you get lost or something I won't laugh."

Hotch chuckled at her, admiring how adorable she was when she was nervous. "It's okay, thanks for letting us crash here." Hotch smiled.

She bit her lip and smiled hesitantly.

Hotch could sense she wasn't telling him something, and he'd bet he knew just what that something was.

"The room you put Jack in has a pretty big bed. I'm sure we could all fit if you wanted to share." Hotch offered.

Emily looked at him, her eyes glossed with tears. How did he always know what she was thinking? Sometimes it freaked her out.

She coughed, buying herself time before she had to speak. "You don't think that's weird? Jack won't think it's weird?" Emily managed.

Hotch shook his head. "You really don't look like you want to be alone tonight. Jack will understand that, some nights he still wants to crawl in bed with me, even after so many years." He informed her.

Emily nodded and lead him back into the room they'd just vacated. Very slowly, they crawled into bed with Jack. Hotch insisted Emily sleep in the middle, hoping that if she felt secure between two people she really cared about; it would help her to sleep, even if one of those people wasn't even ten years old yet.

Once they were both settled, Jack seemed to sense their presence and gravitated toward Emily, cuddling her in his sleep. She smiled down at him, knowing he wouldn't enjoy this so much in the very near future. Though she'd been planning on a long night of lying awake staring at her ceiling, she managed to fall asleep rather quickly as she lay between her two favorite people, knowing that no matter what, she wasn't alone.

XxxX

Just a quick little A/N, I'm not sure how popular the kid's card game Apples to Apples that I mentioned here is, but it's a big hit among the kids in my family. It's kind of hard to explain so I hope I explained it well! It's sort of like Cards Against Humanity, if you've played that. But it's MUCH tamer and definitely not as offensive, haha! It's so much fun though and I hope I explained it well enough :p