Emily arrived back home and heaved out a sigh. The amount of bullshit she had to hear coming out of Douglas Bailey's mouth.

"Excellent idea, Prentiss, but that is going over the budget", "Are you sure the BAU is suited for this case? Sounds a lot like DT", "Huh, well, I don't know what the brass will think about this. They'll probably think it's a bad idea, but I will hold them off as best as I can, if you wish".

She counted the painfully long hours until she came home to her wife and kids. It was probably late, and the boys must be fast asleep by now, but at least she would see JJ up by now.

"You're home. I heard from Tara that Bailey's reconsidering opening the case," JJ said, moving behind Emily to help remove her jacket.

"It's a start, but he's still not convinced. He believes there's some sort of political agenda from the network with the way the unsubs are communicating. What about you guys? Did you find anything?"

"It's a start on our end, too. We narrowed down most of the kill kits in Maryland and a couple on the west coast. We only got one kit down, several others to go." JJ frowned. "But by the time we got there, our suspect was found dead."

"The same as the first two?" Emily noted, seeing her nod. "I'm sorry about the jet, too. It would be a lot easier to have it with you for the investigation."

"Don't worry about it, we can figure that out in time. It's probably better and more likely if we track down the kits around here than having all of them right now." JJ took her hand, quietly leading her to their bedroom.

When they reached their room, she assisted Emily out of the rest of her clothes before the older woman went to the bathroom to get ready for bed. Once Emily had finished, JJ offered for her to lay on the bed, flat on her stomach. As Emily exhaled, she felt the weight of JJ's body over hers and thumbs pressing deeply into her shoulder blades.

"This feels nice," Emily mumbled into the pillow beneath her. Laying her arms out eagle-like across the mattress, she began to let the tension of the day wear off and JJ's hands work on her back.

JJ smiled. "Figured you needed this, and I said I'd make it up to you after work."

"As much as I'd like that, I feel like my brain's shutting off for the night."

"Me, too." JJ's hands slid down her lower back and she pushed her palms hard, hearing her bones pop and making Emily yelp.

"Hey, be careful back there," she joked, twisting around to see her. "I'm not getting any younger, you know?"

"Shush you," JJ let out a small laugh, but eased her movements. One finger trailed up and down Emily's spine as she placed a light kiss on her shoulder. Emily's lips curled into a lazy but affectionate smile. JJ's hands stopped and she turned Emily's body over to face her. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Sighing, Emily held JJ close, so that the other woman was curled into her chest, and placed a kiss on the top of her head. Her eyes grew even heavier than when she came from work, and the two stayed in each other's arms, allowing sleep to take over them.

JJ heard soft humming on her way to the kitchen and smiled. Emily was still at home. When she checked her sons' rooms, both boys were still asleep. She decided to leave them be for a few minutes and see her wife.

As she reached the kitchen, Emily's back was facing her.

Emily donned loose-fitting apparel, and her hair was up in a bun. A pair of gray sweatpants, an oversized worn-out Georgetown sweater, and an item that Emily didn't take from her wife, her white fuzzy house slippers. She looked comfortable and at ease, a sight that JJ was happy to see again. Not wanting to linger in her spot any longer, JJ quietly approached her from behind without saying a word.

Emily poured some batter inside the waffle maker and closed it, hearing it sizzle. As she was waiting patiently for the waffles and the bacon in the pan to be finished, a pair of arms slid around Emily's waist and she turned her head to see her wonderful wife.

"Hi," she smiled.

"Hi. Whatcha making?"

"Waffles, bacon, and eggs. Nothing too crazy."

JJ hummed and rested her head on Emily's shoulder. She took a blueberry from the bowl of sliced fruits Emily had sitting on the counter and ate it.

"Hey! I was going to use that."

"Sorry. Got hungry." JJ quickly kissed her cheek and hugged her from behind. "You need help?"

"Nope, I got this. If anything, you could make coffee and hot chocolate."

"Yes, ma'am." With that, JJ kissed her cheek again and quickly swiped a strawberry from the bowl before walking out of the kitchen.

"JJ!"

The other woman laughed and Emily shook her head. When the food was ready, Emily brought the plates and utensils out, and put everything on there. For a minute, she let herself get lost in thought. If she was being honest with herself, it felt nice to just get up early to make breakfast for her boys and wife.

The idea of domesticity was something that Emily had thought about in the past, though not too often, but it had lingered for some time. A wave of doubt washed over Emily when she thought she would never be able to settle down and have kids of her own. EIther she wasn't good enough to be a mother, or she could be one but never see her kid again because of her job.

That was until she and JJ received their little bundle of joy, Henry. Seeing something so small and precious in her arms once JJ asked Emily to hold him in the hospital, it made her heart clench. From the moment she saw Henry, she knew she had to protect him with every fiber of her being. Then, along came Michael years later after she and JJ agreed to try for another baby. She was in just as much awe of Michael as she was with their first son, and he eventually became Emily's mini-me, despite inheriting much of JJ's physical attributes. From that point on, her family was her motivation to come home from the dangers and stress of her job.

JJ came back in with Henry and Michael this time, and she got all the mugs out to fill them with coffee and hot chocolate.

"Breakfast is ready," Emily announced, setting the table and placing their breakfast on top. "Good morning, boys." Each responded with a yawn and a small greeting in return.

JJ glanced over her shoulder to see their sons already sat at the table. She smiled when she caught Emily ruffling Michael's hair, and he patted it back down with a "Mama!" Then, Emily wondered why Michael had a mullet for a haircut.

"I wanted to try it," he answered. "Mom let me, she said it was okay."

Emily looked at her wife, who didn't see what's wrong with it. "I thought he looks cool in it, plus, how could I say no to that face?"

"Oh yeah, because bringing the staple hairstyle of the 80s back was a good idea,'" she said sarcastically.

"Believe it or not, the twentieth century is making a comeback, babe." Emily cringed at that statement, as her own teenage years came flooding back with a vengeance.

"You don't like it?"

"No, buddy, I love it." Emily kissed the top of his head before smoothing his hair down.

JJ came over with their mugs, a devilish smirk playing on her lips. "You know, your mama used to have this thing in high school-"

"JJ…" Emily shot her a glare.

"What did she do?"

JJ jutted her bottom lip out and tilted her head in a plea. Emily sighed. She hated admitting defeat, but when it came to any blonde in this family, she had no choice but to let her guard down. JJ finally grinned in victory. "She used to be a goth the same time mullets were around."

"A goth?" Michael wondered. "What's that mean?"

"It means your mama wore black clothes and lipstick, white makeup, and had wild, messy hair."

"Like a vampire?"

"No, not like a vampire," Emily said.

"Something like that," JJ shrugged before pulling out her phone. Emily's eyes nearly popped out of her head once she realized what JJ was about to do. She was about to stop her until she caught a glimpse of her teenage self on her wife's screen, muttering a foreign curse word. JJ showed it to Michael, watching his face morph into confusion, and look back and forth between Emily and the phone.

"No way! Can I dress like that?"

Oh no. Emily shook her head. That was too soon for him. And for her. "Sorry, Michael. I don't wear those anymore. Besides, I like this look on you a lot better. It makes you look like a rockstar."

Michael wore an adorable frown he got from his blonde mother before nodding in acceptance. He was more happy that Emily liked his haircut, anyway.

"So, Henry," Emily began to change the subject. "Your birthday's coming up next week. Do you have anything in mind for what you want to do?"

Henry shrugged, cutting a piece of his waffle. "I'm down with whatever."

"How about here at home?" JJ suggested. "We can invite everyone here, and have a party in the backyard."

Emily nodded towards Henry. "Are you good with that, Henry?"

"Sure."

"Maybe you could invite some of your friends from school," JJ added.

"Ooh, like Kaylen," Michael teased in an almost sing-song tone.

Henry's cheeks began to warm from the mention of her name. "Shut up, Mikey."

"Hey, Henry, don't say that," Emily chided.

"I didn't- he started it!" he cried out in defense. "Mama, help me."

JJ stayed quiet, glancing back and forth between her wife and sons, and biting back her laughter while Emily did her best to come to a resolution. "Alright. Mikey, let your brother be. Henry, you can invite whoever you want, and your mom and I will work on the party and make a guest list on our end, okay?"

Michael let up and obeyed his mom, talking under his breath about Henry, but Emily quickly caught it.

"Michael…"

"Okay, mama."

"She really does seem nice, though," JJ said to her wife.

"Mom," Henry whined.

"Agent Jennifer Jareau, that means you, too," Emily raised an eyebrow at her. At that warning, Henry and Michael couldn't help but snicker.

"Fine," JJ grumbled. "Let's listen to your mama, boys. Can we do that?"

The two sons agreed before JJ turned to her wife, throwing a bright smile at her. "We got this."

We're all in this together.

Emily reciprocated, holding her to the promise.