Chapter 6: Acceptance

A/N: I wanna thank Meowser Clancy, oliviahotchner and the guest (sorry I don't know what else to call you) who reviewed this story, here is the end, it's placed after 'It takes a Village' I hope you'll like it :)

Months passed since the last time she had been in D.C. but here she was again. Andy had gotten a call from Hotch while she was undercover that he needed to talk to her, and her boss took the liberty of setting up her vacations to D.C. without asking her. She really hated it, but she also knew that she wanted to talk. It's been months since she talked to Hotch as well, last time they did he was still in the depression stage stubbornly refusing to move on. Something was holding him back and she was so curious to find out what. Over the days she managed to move on as well, she realized that staying in the past and wondering what could have changed if she did this and didn't do that, if she was there and not on the other place, if she was faster and not slower, if she was this and not that.

It was slowly swallowing whole and she couldn't go on like that. She parked her rental in front of Hotch's apartment, it looked empty but his car was there so she got out of the car and walked the familiar path to his door. Standing in front of the oak door she swallowed trying to normal her breathing. Hotch opened the door welcoming her to a mostly empty apartment.

"Come in" he told her, she walked in hesitantly and followed him to a couple of chairs that stood in the dining room "There aren't many furniture left." He said sitting down on a chair uncomfortably,

"You're moving?" Ashley had to admit that she was shocked, he was hell bent on not changing anything in the apartment since Emily died. "Yeah, how long have you been undercover?"

"Two months, deep cover." She answered looking around the empty room.

"Seven months ago… I made a decision… one that affected everyone, you too. but I had to, if I wanted to keep my family safe I had to lie to all of you and… and I had to step on all of my believes. Emily had lost a lot of blood after her fight with Doyle but the doctors managed to stabilize her, JJ and I gathered out recourses and we got her to Bethesda under alias till she was well enough to fly, we got her out of the country and JJ managed to give her multiple other identities… no one could know where she was, or even if she was alive. I had to lie to everyone, I'm not proud of this but I had to do it, for Emily and… and my daughter, that little innocent baby who got stuck into grown up's mess. It would be a shame for her to have survived this whole ordeal only to have her die later on. I couldn't do it. I had to keep my wife and daughter alive." Ashley looked at him, his face changing slowly, from stoic to overwhelmed.

"Emily is alive?" she asked, the tears rose in her throat "Yes, Ashley I'm really sorry for lying to you."

"Can I see her?" Ashley tried to ignore Hotch's apologies, she tried to shut them out as if she could avoid them.

"Yeah sure, she's at our new home. I can drive you." He got up and offered her his hand.

"No it's fine I'll drive, I have my rental with me." He nodded and walked out of the apartment holding the door open for her to pass.

Ashley got in the car and followed his navy blue sedan away from Arlington, on the drive to Dale City, the almost thirty minute drive gave her time to think over what she learned and try and process it. She found herself unable to be angry at Hotch, in her great surprise, in the end yes, he did lie, he lied to her and deceived her, but while she spent seven months thinking that she had lost a great friend, mentor and almost mother figure he spent seven months not knowing if he'll ever meet his daughter, or if he'll ever see his wife again. Also the feelings she saw him going through right in front of her eyes were true, painfully true. He broke down in front of her very own eyes and that couldn't have been easy.

He parked his car in front of a two stories house, a small yard in front and back of the house with soft green grass and pink and red roses around the fence. It looked homey and peaceful. Getting out of the car she saw him standing on the driveway going from leg to leg uncomfortably "Hotch before we go in I need to tell you something." He stopped in his tracks and looked at her in the eyes, "I don't blame you for not telling me. Yes it was tough and yes it would have saved me a whole lot of pain if I knew the truth but I lost a friend, you lost your family and it's not fair to blame you for not wanting to risk losing them for good."

"Thank you. I'm really sorry though." He said with voice deep with emotions.

"You're welcome."

They walked in the house side by side and she waited till Hotch opened the door. On the inside of the house the first thing she noticed was the warm colors in the living room and the oak staircase on her left. Emily walked out of the kitchen and froze on her spot her smile freezing plastered on her face. She was holding a pink bundle in her arms and although she looked exhausted, Ashley can't remember when was the last time she saw her that happy.

"Ashley." The younger woman walked closer smiling "Hotch explained everything. No need to apologize or anything." Emily smiled warmly to the woman and led her back to the pig brown couch back in the living room.

"I'll go check Jack." Hotch said and disappeared upstairs. Emily sat down next to her holding the baby close in her chest.

"You wanna hold her?" she asked, shocking Ashley "Sure." Emily passed the baby carefully in her arms "She is small." Ashley remarked "Well she was born five weeks early and we just got released from hospital few days ago." Ashley nodded not looking up from the pink faced baby.

"What's her name?"

"Alexandra Ashley Hotchner."

A/N: Thanks again for the support on this story, this is the end! I hope you liked it, as always let me know what you think!