Disclaimer: I don't own any of them unfortunately.

AN: First of all, a big thank you to all those who reviewed my last chapter. Secondly, my apologies for the huge delay in posting this chapter. I hadn't forgotten about this story, just lost a bit of momentum with it. Hopefully this chapter is worth the wait and someone is still reading. Enjoy :o)

Chapter 45

The time between the meeting with Mrs LaMontagne and the court case seemed to race past. Both Emily and JJ had found themselves struggling to focus on work more and more as the date drew closer.

"Em?" JJ rolled over onto her side to face the brunette as they lay in bed. "You awake?"

"Yeah, can't sleep."

"Why?"

Emily turned so she was mirroring the blonde. She leant her head in one of her hands and looked at the other woman. "Just can't stop thinking. I had started to allow myself to think of a future with you and Henry and then all this happened." She sighed. "I just worry sometimes that no matter what we do, it's never going to be enough because…because you're with me." Emily's voice had dropped to a whisper as she finished sharing her thoughts.

JJ was shocked to hear Emily's confession. "Why would being with you affect it Em?"

"It's not exactly the picture perfect family lifestyle is it? I'm scared that a judge is not going to be able to get past the fact that you are with me." A single tear slipped out from Emily's eye. Before it could get very far in its trail down her cheek, JJ had reached over and brushed it away with her thumb. "I just wonder sometimes if you'd have been better without me."

"Emily nothing could be further from the truth. You are the one who got me through everything that has happened. Without you then she'd have a real claim as I'd be in no state to look after Henry. You are the best thing to happen to me Em. You would have given your life for me and Henry. I'd never be better off without you."

Emily was quiet for a moment, thinking about everything JJ had said and everything they had to come. "Thank you."

"Come here." JJ opened her arms and the brunette gladly slid over the bed towards her. JJ wrapped her arms around the body now nestled up against her and placed a kiss on her head. "We're going to win."

JJ and Emily were waiting to be called into the court. Emily was alternating between checking her watch and tapping her foot on the floor. She stopped when she felt JJ's hand rest against her leg. Looking over to meet blue eyes she smiled. "Sorry."

JJ smiled back. Before she had a chance to say anything, she heard her name being called. "Here we go."

JJ and Emily followed their lawyer into the small courtroom. They took their seats at one table and glanced over seeing Mrs LaMontagne already seated at the other. As the judge entered they all stood and mentally prepared themselves for what was to come.

"Miss Jareau, what is your job title?"

"Media liaison and communications director for the behavioural analysis unit of the FBI."

"Could you tell me what your job entails?"

"I assess the different cases that are sent to the BAU and identify the cases that require the attendance of the team. I am also responsible for issuing statements to the press and organising press conferences and liaising with the local police departments to ensure cohesive working."

"So you are office based?"

JJ knew exactly where this line of questioning was going. "Partly but I am also required to be present in the field with the team."

"So this takes you away from home. How often would you say you are away from home?"

"When a case requires our attendance then I will be away."

"Yes, but how often is that? Once a month? Once a fortnight? Once a week? More often?"

"On average once every two to three weeks. The rest of the time I…"

"Thank you." He cut her off. "Now focusing on Henry's care. Who has looked after him when you are away from home?"

"We have a nanny employed who looks after him whenever needed."

"Has that always been the case?"

"No."

"What happened before?"

"Henry's father used to look after him."

"And after Mr LaMontagne's untimely death, what happened then?"

JJ could feel her anger at anyone suggesting Will's death was untimely. She was about to make a comment about that when she saw Emily's face and caught the slight shake of her head. Taking a breath to calm herself she spoke evenly. "Henry's godmother looked after him and he went to the FBI day care."

"Henry's godmother…Is this Penelope Garcia?"

"Yes."

"Do you always let your son be cared for by those with a criminal record?"

"Objection. Your honour, there is no criminal record in existence for Penelope Garcia."

"Sustained."

The lawyer paused for a moment considering the next line of questioning. "What is your living arrangement?"

"Henry and I live with my partner."

"And your partner is…?"

"Emily Prentiss."

"And how long have you known Miss Prentiss?"

"3 years."

"Were you having an affair with Miss Prentiss while with Mr LaMontagne?"

"No." JJ's voice held an edge of anger to it.

"So this relationship started after your separation from Mr LaMontagne?"

"Yes."

"And yet you already live together. Do you not think that is very fast?"

"No. I have known Emily for three years and she has been my best friend for that long. Somewhere along the line our feelings developed into more than just friendship. It's not like we were strangers before we started dating."

"Have you considered the effect of your lifestyle on Henry?"

"Yes."

"So you admit that you consider your lifestyle choice has a potentially adverse effect on your son?"

"No."

"But why would you consider its effect if you didn't think it might have a detrimental affect on him?"

"I…We…" JJ glanced across to Emily. She met the brunette's gaze and drew upon her for strength. Taking a deep breath she continued. "The world is not perfect. There are people who will always harbour some form of prejudice. Whether it is homophobia or racism or sexism or any other form of hatred. Of course I considered what Henry could face in his life. Just like I considered the effect having a serial killer for a father would have."

JJ had finally been released from the stand after a couple of hours of questioning from both lawyers. She returned to the table feeling exhausted from everything she had been made to recount. She knew that she had done all she could and now had to rely on the others and the judge to ensure she kept her son.

"Miss Garcia…Could you tell us how you came to get your job as technical analyst with the FBI?"

Garcia frowned slightly. "They offered me a job after I came to their attention."

"How did you come to their attention?"

"I hacked the FBI mainframe."

Garcia had stepped down and felt like she had let JJ and Emily down. Her criminal record should have been sealed and yet they had somehow found out about it and used it to make her seem unsuitable as a carer for Henry.

"State your name and job title for the record please."

"Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner, unit chief for the behavioural analysis unit of the FBI based in Quantico."

"You have submitted a statement to the court regarding the character of Agent Jareau is that correct?"

"It is."

"Could you read the statement to us."

Hotch lifted the document and began to read. "I have worked with Jennifer Jareau for six years. She joined the BAU as soon as she left the academy. She had proven herself to be outstanding during her time there and as such earned a place in the most sought after team in the FBI. In the six years that she has worked with the FBI, she had proven herself to be an outstanding agent and never once faltered in her post." Hotch paused. "For those outside of the team it is hard to grasp the dynamic of the team. It is far more than a team, it is a family. As such, you get to know the people in your team very well on a personal level in addition to the professional role. As a friend JJ is loyal and supportive. She is the heart of our family. The one we all rely upon to maintain the emotional connection in every case we face. We also rely on her in that same role within our team. She has been there to support her best friend through being shot. She has been a guide to Reid in helping him understand the emotions he was unfamiliar with. She holds our very dysfunctional family together. If she can support and help individuals such as ourselves through the things we have been force to face, then there is no doubt in my mind that she will support and guide Henry through whatever challenges lie ahead in his life. There is no question about her priorities about her family. I know that if it came to a choice between her career or her family, she would not repeat my mistakes. She would pick her family every time."

"She didn't pick her family. She turned her back on my son. She destroyed him and then killed him." Mrs LaMontagne screamed as she rose to her feet, no longer controlling her anger.

"Sit down Mrs LaMontagne or you will be held in contempt. Agent Hotchner please disregard any comments made."

"Your honour, if it pleases you I would like to respond. I worked on this case and can offer my professional opinion as an FBI profiler."

"You may continue."

Hotch nodded before continuing. "Will LaMontagne was not turned into a serial killer by Agent Jareau. Every woman he murdered was a successful professional who had left her family for her job. He was not a killer as the result of a psychotic break. This was a behaviour that had been developing since he was a child. The most influential time in the development of the human psyche is childhood. It is when we learn how to interact with others, what these feelings we experience are and what we associate with them. We form associations between behaviours and feelings at this formative time. The women he targeted were not representations of Agent Jareau. It was only after we had identified Will as the unsub that we understood the deeper links the victims had. They were all representative of his mother. This manifested itself either in a physical manner or in their personalities. He viewed his mother spending so much time at work during his childhood years as a form of abandonment. He resented her for that reason."

"I always told him I loved him. He knew he was loved."

"Yes. He heard those words from you and associated love with abandonment and the feelings of anger it created within him. He acted out as a child in an attempt to get attention from his mother. Yet the only attention he received was in the form of punishment for his behaviour. This further reinforced his association of pain with love."

"He only killed after her." She pointed at JJ.

"He only began killing after he lost the stabilising factor in his life, his father. Once his father died, he lost the only means of controlling what he felt. That was when he started to devolve into the killer he became. Agent Jareau was not to blame, you were."

Mrs LaMontagne sat very quietly for a moment. Hotch was dismissed from the stand. The judge declared a recess to give all parties a chance to regain control of their emotions. As they all stood to allow the judge to leave, something snapped in Mrs LaMontagne. She turned and launched herself across the gap between the tables at JJ.

"You bitch! You murdered my son!" Before she got hold of JJ, Emily had stepped across in front of the blonde. She grabbed the older woman's arm and twisted it bringing her down against the table and holding her in place. The bailiffs took the woman away while she was still screaming obscenities at JJ.

Following the recess, everyone bar Mrs LaMontagne were back in the court room. The judge looked over at the two women sitting at the table. He noticed how Emily had rested her hand over JJ's on the desk.

"In light of the evidence that I have heard and the behaviour I have witnessed, unless there are objections from either side, I am ready to deliver my judgement." Seeing neither lawyer object to this he continued. "Miss Jareau, it is clear to me that you are held in very high regard by your team who through everyone's admission are like a family. It is obvious that you have the support of a partner who will put your welfare above her own in any situation as she proved today. I have no doubt in my mind that the home you have created for your son is one that is filled with love and support. It is also clear that you understand, perhaps more than most, the attitudes he may face in his life but you will support him through these challenges. I am certain that with Henry growing up in your care, he will develop into a very well rounded and happy young man. As such, I award full custody to Jennifer Jareau. In light of today's events I am also attaching a restraining order against Mrs LaMontagne that states she may have no contact with either yourself or your family and she is not to come within 50 miles of you."

As JJ sat on the couch, she watched Emily play with Henry. She couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face at the carefree expression the brunette had as she tickled the baby. "Em?" Seeing the brown eyes turn to hers she continued. "Is it over now?"

Emily turned back to Henry and blew a raspberry on his stomach before picking him up and moving to sit on the couch beside the blonde. "It is."

JJ smiled as a tear slid down her cheek. Emily reached out to brush the tear away. "What's wrong Jay?"

"You remember the line Will always put in the notes? I never could give the right answer to a simple question…Is love enough?" Seeing the brunette nod she continued. "I have the answer now…It is. With you it is more than enough."

Emily smiled and leant in to place a kiss on the blonde's lips, knowing that despite everything that had happened love had been enough for them to get through it. Now they had their present and the future as a family to look forward to.

AN: Ok, I think I'm going to end this one here. I hope that you enjoyed it. Huge thanks to anyone who reviewed or PM'd me as I wrote this one. Every comment was greatly appreciated and made sure I didn't stop writing.