Title: A Changing Family
Author: dustytiger aka trista
Rating: T
Disclaimer: I don't own anything, I am just borrowing them and will return them unharmed.
Summary: JJ and Garcia think about the past few years of their lives during a snowstorm.
Note: I haven't really written femslash before, it's pretty much rated T for upidy people who have no pride. This was written for a challenge on the Chit Chat on Author's Forum. You should check it out it's loads of fun, and has great challenges. The pairing JJ/Garcia and items fries, pearls, and New York. This is where my brain went. I hope it works. Thank you for MScott6575 and Jen for helping with the title. Sorry it took so long it took forever to think up a title.

Garcia got up from her bed slowly, wearing a long flowing silk nightgown which showed off her swollen belly. She made her way into the kitchen to get a cup of tea. She rubbed her belly as she looked outside at the storm that was brewing, and felt a pang of guilt. She then absently began to play with the string of pearls which she never took off her neck with her free hand. She was starting to feel guilty about sending her partner out to get fries in that weather. It was probably dangerous driving in the snow that was starting to get heavier. Even as she worried about her partner being safe in the storm, she couldn't help think about the fries she would be bringing.

Garcia was sipping her tea when she heard the door opening. She smiled glad to hear her partner was home. She was relieved, that the younger woman was home safely. But she was also happy that her snack had arrived Garcia had never realised how consuming a craving could be. She had always laughed it off when her friends had been pregnant, but it was always on the back of her mind until she got what she was thinking about. JJ came over and gently touched Garcia's belly then she gave her the fries she had just bought.

"I got gravy on the side this time," JJ laughed, remembering the second trip out the last time Garcia had been craving fries.

"Mmm, thank you," Garcia said already shoving fries in her mouth.

"Did Henry wake up?"

"No, so far he's stayed asleep."

Since Will had been killed almost two years ago there were many nights where the little boy, now aged six would wake up with nightmares about something happening to his mother. They had been getting better since Garcia had moved in, but JJ still worried about the little boy. The nightmares more recently involved the new baby being more important than him. The two women tried to explain that the baby would need extra care when she first came home, but that didn't mean either of his mothers loved him any less. He seemed to understand, and the nightmares had become less frequent.

Both women had talked for hours about how having a child of their own would affect their son before they even began to examine their options. They had both agreed that they would treat any children they had the same, even if the woman who carried the baby would have a different bond with each child. They had even gone so far as to sign a promise to always treat all their kids the same. The two women curled up on the couch together, as Garcia munched on her snack, and JJ put her hands on her lover's belly feeling their baby kicking. She thought it was fascinating, yet strange to be on the other side of a pregnancy. There were times she still found it hard to believe she was actually married to the quirky tech analyst. She began to think back to the time where everything started to change between them.

JJ was in her office looking through mountains of case files. She knew it was getting late, but she didn't feel the need to go home. Henry was spending a week with his grandparents. She knew that the past three months had been hard on her son, having lost his father and he needed to be spoiled a little bit, to get his mind off of all the sadness. Her sweet little boy was having nightmares almost every night and she hoped being away from everything would help him. She took another file, not wanting to go to her lonely townhouse. There were too many memories there, but she hadn't wanted to uproot her son, he had already been through so much.

She looked at the file, and dropped it almost immediately. She was starting to find it more difficult to do her job when there were cases involving vehicles. Normally they weren't BAU cases, but they would still end up on her desk. She pinched the bridge of her nose, as the memories of the day she got the call that Henry and Will had been involved in a car wreck. They had been hit by a drunk driver. When she had arrived at the hospital after a frenzied trip from New York she was told that Will hadn't made it and Henry was resting. Her whole life had changed in a second. Any time anything to do with car crashes came across her desk it would shake her to her core.

JJ didn't hear the knock on her office door. She was surprised when she was greeted by Garcia. Who was moving files out of her reach. JJ went to take the files back but Garcia kept them from her. Garcia was smiling but not her usual smile. She wanted to help her friend but she didn't want to upset her, knowing her wounds were still fresh.

"You, Pretty Lady, are working too hard," Garcia told her friend. "You're little guy free, you should be out painting the town red."

"I should be, but I'm just not interested in dating. No one is like Will."

"I didn't say that, and I can dig that. How about just a girl's night then? I miss seeing that beaming smile of yours. Besides I don't want you all alone, kay?"

"All right, you're a good friend. Is Emily coming?"

"Negative, sweetheart, she has to go to one of her mother's shi-shi poo-poo charity things tonight."

"Who did she manage to con into going with her tonight?"

"Tonight the lovely embassador's daughter will be escorted by Doctor Reid."

"Poor Spence."

"Poor Spence? More like poor Emily, just think of all of the statistics he'll come up with in a room full of politicians."

JJ nodded and the two women said "they're screwed" at the same time which got both women laughing. JJ realised she hadn't laughed like that in a long time. It felt good to be able to feel so happy again. The two women ended up having a great girl's night without their other friend.

"What are you thinking about?" Garcia's voice came, taking JJ from her day dream.

"Just thinking about the first time we went out after Will," JJ replied.

"That was a good night. Lotsa fun was had."

"And a bit of debauchery."

"You needed it, Babe."

"I guess I did, but I still never thought it would end up like this."

"Me either, but I know I'm happy that it did."

Garcia yawned. "Me too."

"It's been a long day, let's get some sleep."

"All right."

JJ and Garcia went down the hallway to their bedroom, her mind still drifting back to when they were first starting to explore their relationship. She never thought she would see the day that she would be preparing for the day Garcia was bringing their daughter in the world. Both women were glad that it had gone that way as they laid down together.

It had not taken JJ long to discover that she felt best when she was in the company of her co-worker, and best friend. But neither woman really thought that what they were feeling would blossom into anything but a great friendship. When Kevin Lynch broke up with Garcia over her friendship with the media liaison both women had to take stock of the situation and for the first they admitted that they might look at women for more than friendship.

For the first three months of their changing relationship they decided to keep it to themselves, neither woman sure if what they had was something real, or just a way to heal their broken hearts. It was Henry asking JJ why Aunt P was at their house so much, and where she was sleeping that made Garcia start to see the situation differently. She loved Henry like he was her own son, and she hated that the women could not give him a straight answer. She arranged for Reid to watch Henry overnight so she could plan something special for JJ. Garcia began to drift off and began to dream about the day that they decided they were happiest together.

Garcia had been running around all day getting everything together for when her lover returned home. The last case they had worked had been brutal and all the two women wanted was to shut themselves out from the world. Garcia had dinner in the oven, and had lit candles all over the house, and waited in the dining room for JJ to retuned home.

When JJ arrived, she was surprised to find her townhouse so quiet and dark when she got home that night. She knew that Garcia had been planning something, but she hadn't expected her to find a sitter for Henry and do something so romantic. She smiled seeing there were candles lit in the dining room. Garcia came out of the kitchen in an old fashioned dress, wearing an apron.

"Penelope!" JJ laughed. "What's this all about?"

"I just wanted to do something special for you, and I felt a little old timey when I thought it up, so I went with it," she explained.

"Where's Henry?"

"He's spending the night at his Uncle Spencer's."

"Should we really trust Spence with him?"

"Despite what they both say I know Emily will be there to help him if he gets in trouble, but he's great with Henry. Besides we haven't had an evening alone since we- well you were there."

JJ blushed. "Yes, you're right, we haven't. I still think that the candle light and costume might e a little much."

"Sweetheart, I do everything a little much."

JJ nodded then stood up and kissed her lover softly. Garcia wrapped her arms around the petite woman's waist pulling her close. The only thing that stopped the two women was when something in the kitchen buzzed. Garcia dutifully ran into the kitchen and pulled a roast out of the oven. She then placed it on the table. The two women sat and enjoyed their dinner, complete with vegetables and wine. The women then moved into the living room. Garcia took JJ's hand and brushed a piece of hair from in front of her face. JJ's eyes slipped shut for a moment, loving the tenderness they shared.

"You know you mean a lot to me right?" Garcia asked.

"Of course, Penelope, I love you," JJ whispered.

"That still takes my breath away Jayje. I love you too, but there's so much more to it than that." Garcia ran her hand through JJ's long blonde hair. "I want you to know that I think what we have together is something amazing, and I always want you to be a part of my life. I know it's too early for us to decide to up and run off to a state that would allow us to be married, but we can do something that will show us how we feel about each other."

"I'd like that, what do you have in mind?"

Garcia reached into a bag and took out to matching boxes. She handed one to JJ who opened it. She was surprised by what she saw inside, a string of white pearls. Garcia smiled and opened the second box to reveal a matching necklace. JJ leaned in and kissed Garcia softly.

"Let me put this on for you, before we go any farther," Garcia offered.

"Thank you," JJ whispered.

JJ moved her hair off of her neck and Garcia put the necklace around her neck. When it was secure JJ took the other piece of jewellery and put it around her lover's neck. Neither woman had taken the matching pearls off since that day. It had always been their way of showing their commitment to one another, and even if they were married one day they would still wear their pearls with pride.

Garcia was awoken from her dream by the feeling of kicking in her rib cage. She gasped and sat up in the bed, holding her side. She tried to lay down and get comfortable but it wasn't easy. Especially when she realised that woman next to her had also woken up. JJ flicked on the light quickly and too Garcia's hand.

"Are you okay?" JJ asked, her blue eyes wide with worry.

"I'm fine, Jayje, go back to sleep," Garcia tried to reassure her.

"What happened?"

"She's just kicking my ribs again."

"Henry always liked to use my bladder as his own personal soccer ball."

"It's nice to have someone who's been through the same thing by your side." Garcia then laughed. "I think she has the hiccups."

JJ placed her hands on Garcia's hand belly and the two women laughed. "I miss feeling Henry moving around."

"Do you want another baby?"

"I don't know."

"I'm willing to wait to marry you until we know all of our family will be with us to celebrate with us. Even if that means waiting until we have another baby."

"Are you sure?"

Garcia ran her hand along her lover's face. "Yes, I'm sure. I know we are committed to each other, and I don't need a piece of paper from one of a select few states, or a different country to tell me that we have a bond that is deeper than anything I've had before with a man."

"That means a lot. I do want another baby, Penelope."

"All right, then before we get married we'll have another baby."

"I wonder if Spence will agree to help us again."

The two of them laughed. "I think Emily might want him to make a baby the traditional way first."

"I agree, but I want our daughter to be two before we have another baby, or at least out of diapers."

"All right, that's fair enough. We'll wait for a second baby, and hopefully we can watch Emily go through her own pregnancy before that happens."

"I want that for her, she deserves to be a mommy."

The two women were just starting to relax again when they heard the door to their room squeak open. Standing there in flannel fire trunk pajamas rubbing his eyes.

"Mommy I had a bad dream," he whispered. "Can I sleep in your room?"

"Sure thing, angel, hop in," JJ told him. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

"It was about Daddy again." He got into the bed.

JJ hugged her son close to her, and kissed his forehead. "You miss him don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. I love Penelope and I wanna be a big brother but I still miss my dad."

"You're allowed to miss your dad Henry," Garica assured the littleboy. "You always miss the people you love even if you have new people to love."

"Really?" Henry asked.

"I love Penelope and we are happy now, but I still miss your dad, and she understand that."

"Really?"

"Yes, really," both the women assured him.

Henry curled up closer to his mother, and she began to gently smooth his hair. He accepted is new family, and couldn't wait to tell his little siter all about their unique family but he still missed his father a lot. He began to relax being close to his mother, glad that everything hadn't changed since the accident and he could still sleep in his parents' room after he had a nightmare.

The End

Notes: I really liked this challenge a lot. I used all three prompts pearls, fries, New York. I hope the title works it was so hard to think up. Thank you in advance for any reviews, and such. I love you all. Still working on another epic it'll be worth the wait I promise.