idyllicb

[idyllicb]

a lil update !!

working on chapter four guys i promise !! life has been hectic and im just now getting back to my norm lol ! but i am planning the new post and its a good one (the big game & revelations)

i’m skipping profiler profiled just cause it’s about morgan (and not spence or parker) BUT i’m still gonna talk about these big episodes just not in crazy detail. look out for a new chapter soon and thank u for being patient 🥹🥹 i just started at a new job and training has been CRAZY (a good crazy tho!)

[idyllicb]

depths of dreams - three

summary: parker and spence have a few moments, not great ones tho. unsub is a gross man and a teenage boy goes through it fr

warnings: regular criminal minds talk, attempted suicide please be cautious !!

words: 9.4k

T.S. Eliot wrote, “Between the idea and the reality, between the motion and the act, falls the shadow.”

“WE’RE HERE TRYING TO PROTECT YOU.” Parker was hoping her eyes conveyed the same truth that her words did, she watched the working lady in front of her roll her eyes. Emily and Derek made their way over to where the younger agent stood, the three had been interviewing anyone on the streets who would talk to them. 

“A lot of Johns from the hill stop by on their way to work.” The brunette talking to Parker spoke up finally and the agent nodded for her to continue. 

“Isn’t it funny that the same politicians cryin’ about cleanin’ up the hill are the ones dropping fifty bucks on us before they go make a speech on TV?” The blonde that Derek was interviewing laughed after she finished, Emily unfolded a paper to show the other prostitutes that she hadn’t been interviewing.

“Do you recognize him at all ladies?” 

“I don’t know his name or anything. He just hangs around and pretends like he’s not watching us.” Parker watched the girl she interviewed shrug her shoulders. “He’s just a horny kid, you know?”

“So you three didn’t see him talking to any of the girls out here?” Derek questioned from behind his two team members, seeming to be looking over the crime scene again. The black-haired girl shook her head before she answered,

“Just thought he gets his kick comin’ out here and watching us then goes home to take care of business himself.” The blonde girl stood up straight at her friend's words.

“Is he the one doing this?” Parker didn’t want to scare them so easily so she smiled softly at the three girls huddled together in the alley.

“We don’t know, but someone is. Please be careful out there alright?” They all nodded at her before the brunette replied.

“We don’t stick around when the sun sets. Plus we only work the high-end blocks.” Both female agents nodded in their direction before the three girls turned to leave Emily called out,

“Just watch out for each other, okay?” They all nodded at the agents before disappearing. The three also turned to walk to their SUV. 

“The one couldn’t have been older than nineteen, that poor girl.” Parker shut the door as she climbed in, smoothing down her pants. She stretched her fingers out as Morgan started the car,

“I’m sure they’ll be fine. They’ve got each other, let's just do our job and get the guy.” Emily said as she turned to look at Parker as she cracked her knuckles, the brunette just nodded toward her friend in the passenger seat. 

As the three made their way back to the academy building, Parker was immediately whisked away for another trip. They had wanted to check out a suspect that Penelope had come up with. She walked the short distance back to the parked SUVs and went for the back seat door handle when she heard her teammate. 

“Passenger seat is yours if you want it.” Spencer was quick to say as Gideon made his way over and unlocked the car. She smiled at the young Doctor and moved to open the passenger door,

“Thanks! I’m alright with the back though. I don’t mind plus I’m shorter than everyone else so it usually works out better for me to be in the back.” Parker buckled her seat and Gideon silently turned the key in the ignition watching the two interact. Spencer smiled in her direction and messed with the buttons on his coat before answering. 

“It’s alright, this SUV's headroom has a three-inch space capacity for the average height, which means I can technically sit comfortably anywhere in here even being six foot one. You, on the other hand, would definitely have more room in the car since you’re about five foot three.” Parker scoffed and watched Gideon drive through nice-looking neighborhoods.

“Five foot four, Doctor Reid, on a good day.” Spencer laughed quietly and the two left it at that. After a few minutes of driving around to get to the right apartment building, Gideon parked the car and the three got out. The older agent led them to the right door and Parker knocked at the door, after two seconds they heard a woman reply. Parker stood in front of the two agents and they quietly waited for the door to open.

“Hi ma’am, we’re with the FBI. I’m Jason Gideon and this is Dr. Reid and Agent Moore.” Gideon waited a moment before continuing, “We’re looking for your son Nathan.” 

“Why?” She was quick to jump to her son's aid and defend him.

“We just want to ask him some questions,” Parker replied easily, the suspect's mother crossed her arms at her statement.

“Not until you explain what’s going on.” Parker heard music playing somewhere in the background of the apartment, Spencer responded before either of the agents could.

“Your son came to talk to me this morning about a murder case.”

“A murder case? Why would my son know anything about that?” Her arms flailed around her before recrossing over her chest. Parker could see movement behind her and she tried to take a peek.

“No, Mom, it’s true.” Nathan started and he made eye contact before looking behind her at Spencer. “I did talk to him. Could we talk alone maybe?” Parker looked at the young boy pleading with them and his mother silently nodded, Gideon pushed past her and she stepped into the apartment with Spencer right behind her. She shut the door and watched Gideon take the mother into another room, Parker followed Spencer as he walked into what she assumed was Nathan’s room. The young agents stood awkwardly in the teenager's room, loud music surrounding them. Nathan was quick to press a button and Parker watched him move around her and Spencer. “I knew if you were really good, you’d find me.” 

“You wanted to get caught? Is that why you were waiting for me?” Spencer stuttered through his words as he gawked at the kid. Parker let her eyes drift to everything in the room, she listened to them speak as she looked for anything that might tell her something. “Can you specify what ‘getting caught’ means?” Spencer asked after eyeing an opened laptop. Parker tore her eyes away from the decor on his walls and made eye contact with Nathan again. 

“Wait, hey!” The young kid reached out and Parker stepped in between the teen and her coworker. 

“Stay right there Nathan. Don’t make this harder, alright?” He backed away from her and she watched his body tense up the longer Spencer looked at the laptop.

“It’s a story, like a graphic novel. It’s true crime.” Nathan started fidgeting with his hands waiting for either agent to respond.

“About killing prostitutes.” Spencer stood back to his full height and Parker glanced up at him making eye contact. The two turned to look at the teenager in sync. 

“Jack the Ripper, it’s a famous case. It’s just a retelling of those.” He rushed out and Parker sighed through her nose.

“Nathan, this isn’t a game.”

“I know.” The teen crossed his arms briefly before letting them fall back to his sides. 

“You knew specific details about a murder that hasn’t been publicized,” Spencer questioned and Parker saw tears start to form in his eyes.

“I didn’t kill her though.” Before either agent could ask another question, Nathan continued. “I really wanted to though.” The teenager’s body started shaking slightly at his words and Parker could feel his eyes travel over her body before looking back at the Doctor. She tried to fight off a shiver.

THE THREE AGENTS WERE QUICK TO BRING NATHAN HARRIS back to Quantico with them, placing him in an interrogation room until they were ready to fully question him. Spencer had specifically asked for it to just be him and Parker in the room with him. 

“Nathan, if you didn’t kill her, how do you know the details of the murder?” Parker questioned quickly, she sat next to Spencer, their elbows just slightly touching. 

“I saw the body. It was before school started, and she was dressed in red.” Nathan took a second to compose himself, inhaling through his nose and exhaling through his mouth. “It looked like she was stabbed a lot, and her hair was cut.” 

“Where’d you find her?” Spencer heard Parker's question, and Nathan could barely hold eye contact with the female agent.

“An alley off of ‘K’ street. The prostitutes take men down there all the time for sex, I see them do it.” Parker looked towards her coworker and Spencer took a second before he asked the teenager another question.

“What were you doing down there?” Nathan seemed nervous in front of the two agents.

“I just end up there sometimes, I’m not really sure why.” He sighed quietly before continuing. “I- I stay out all night and just go back in the morning, if mom’s already at work then I don’t even go home either.” Parker eyed the young boy carefully, he was definitely dealing with things but she couldn’t see him murdering women twice his size. He was far too awkward to even go out of his way and seek them out for his own benefit, the interviews she conducted earlier that morning confirmed that. 

“Why didn’t you call the police when you found the body?” Spencer was met with a shrug and it was Parker’s turn to sigh. 

“Nathan, the prostitutes I talked to this morning said you liked to watch them... Is that true?” Parker watched his shoulders tense up before he sat back against the chair again. 

“I never touched them, ever.” The teen was quick to rush out. The female agent in the room got up from her seat and moved to lean against the table closer to Nathan. 

“Do you fantasize about having sex with them?” Parker leaned down and felt Spencer watching her every move. “Do you dream about them?” 

“No. I told you I just think about killing them.” Nathan briefly met Parker’s glare before he turned his head back to the direction of the table. “Look, after your lecture, I saw you at the metro a few times and I thought maybe you could help me.” Parker let her arms cross at his words and she glanced to gauge Spencer's reaction.

“How?” Spencer answered and the female agent saw Nathan’s left leg start bouncing against the floor, the sound of his shoe hitting the tile taking over the room.

“I saw that body, and it excited me. I was scared. It scared me.” Parker continued to look at the body language of the kid in front of her, watching any and all subtle changes. The room was silent for a moment, no one moving and the only thing that could be heard was Nathan’s foot. 

“Do you think you killed the prostitutes and you just don’t want to admit it yourself?” Parker asked quietly, 

“No.” The female agent stood up straight and let her hands fall to the edge of the table.

“Then why’d you run away from me at the metro?” Spencer asked as Nathan lifted his head to glare at him.

“I don’t know, I thought you would say that I was crazy and no way to stop what I was feeling.” Parker saw Spencer clench his jaw and she nodded at her teammate, getting up herself and holding the door open for him. They were met by Nathan’s mom and Gideon chatting at a small table just outside the interrogation room.

“Ms. Harris, we’d like to let the juvenile authorities hold Nathan overnight so we can conduct a psychological evaluation.” Parker clasped her hands together and saw Nathan’s mother deflate at her statement.

“I can’t believe this is happening.” Her hands tightened around the water bottle she was holding and she turned around to face the older agent.

“Right now it’s just an evaluation, although I’d consider getting a lawyer for your son,” Gideon stated nonchalantly.

“I don’t know what he said, but the Nathan I know is a sweet boy. My son would never hurt anyone.” She turned back around to face the younger agents and Spencer nodded before answering.

“I believe you.”

“Do we have your permission?” Gideon questioned from his spot and Emily appeared behind him after a quick nod came from Nathan’s mom.

“I’ll show you where to sign the paperwork.” Spencer led the mother away and Emily cleared her throat from behind the two agents.

“The juvenile authorities are ready and waiting for Nathan Harris.” She pushed some hair behind her ear and Gideon responded before Parker could,

“He’s still in the interrogation room.” Gideon gave a quick nod and left the two female agents. 

“Do you think he’s our unsub?” Emily asked and Parker just shrugged, she really couldn’t tell just yet.

“I’m not sure, the kid definitely has stuff going on but what kid doesn’t? The question is did he actually act on his fantasy of killing them? He says he didn’t do anything and I want to believe him, I think Reid does though.” Parker tore her eyes away from her friend and looked at the busy bullpen, people rushing around all around them. “He’s a smart kid, but the sexual-sadist profile says they have the ability to mimic honesty and sincerity.” Emily watched Parker walk away and join the team near her desk. The raven-haired agent turned on her heels and headed into the room that Nathan occupied. She left the door open behind her, and the teen looked her way at the sound of the door opening.

“The police are here for you.” Emily walked out of the room with her hand around his bicep to guide him, she closed the door behind them as they walked out and Nathan was quick to call out for her coworker,

“Dr. Reid, I know I don’t deserve any favors, but can you promise me that you’ll tell me the truth, no matter what my psych eval says.” Spencer moved to stand closer to the two and nodded, “My mom said promises don’t count unless you say them out loud.” The three agents behind Spencer watched the interaction silently.

“I promise.” Nathan gave the smallest smile to the Doctor and Derek scoffed the second they walked away.

“You know he might’ve killed two women,” Derek said out loud as he crossed his arms over his chest. Spencer turned around to meet Parker’s eyes before looking away. “It’s not our job to hold his hand through this.” Derek finished and the brunette saw Penelope nod along with his statement. Parker felt bad for the kid but she also couldn’t completely say he was innocent either, before she could respond Spencer beat her to it. 

“It’s like with my mom. I used to think that if I could understand every little thing there is to know about schizophrenia, then I’d be able to fix it somehow.” Parker noticed his sad tone, the air in the room grew cold with his words. Schizophrenia was a big illness to deal with and Spencer seemed young, she couldn’t help but wonder how he dealt with something so paralyzing. She didn’t know what to say to his statement but she did know she wanted to know more about Spencer Reid. Derek and Penelope both smiled sadly in the Doctor’s direction,

“I’m sorry Spencer I-” Parker was interrupted when Hotch appeared out of nowhere,

“I need everybody in the conference room, if Nathan Harris isn’t our unsub, we still need a working profile.” He rushed out quickly and the four agents were quick to follow after him. They sat around the round table and JJ pulled pictures up the screen behind her before speaking.

“D.C. police sent us some photos of the first victim.” JJ placed the remote down and let Hotch take over at the front of the room. 

“We know this is the first victim because he held his urges in check for three months after this body turned up. When he couldn’t control them anymore, he sent a message to the cops.” Hotch pressed some buttons on the remote and flashes of pictures popped up, one after the other. Dead prostitutes who had been carved up and their hair had been poorly cut. “We know ‘help’ and hesitation marks mean he was ambivalent about the kill, what we don’t know is why he chops the hair.” Hotch finished and handed the remote back to JJ.

“He didn’t take it with him, so we know it’s not a trophy,” Derek said out loud and everyone agreed, Gideon stood from his spot before he spoke.

“It’s most likely a way to minimize their power, rob them of their feminity,” Gideon said to his team. 

Spencer nodded before quickly adding,  “That fits with him killing early in the morning. It’s the time of day when prostitutes have the least power sexually, as opposed to nighttime when he might view them as being on the hunt.” Parker watched Emily twirl a pen between her fingers, the agent pointed her pen around the room before she said something.

“I know we’re just spitballing here guys, but this profile points to Nathan Harris.” She was met with a sigh from the Unit Chief. As soon as she said it she regretted it. The words tumbled out of her mouth before she could stop herself. 

“We’re not talking about Nathan right now,” Hotch started to explain but was cut off by Derek.

“But she’s right, he’s an adolescent kid—probably intimidated sexually.” Hotch shook his head in his direction. “Listen I don’t care how many times he says he didn’t do it.” Hotch made eye contact with Derek, but the other agent just glared right back. “He knew a lot about the last victim, even admitted to getting off when he knew she was dead.” Parker couldn’t help but agree with both sides, they were compelling arguments. Yes, they needed an actual profile in case the unsub wasn’t Nathan, but said profile was pointing to the teenager. 

“We’ve got Nathan Harris, it doesn’t do us any good to continue to talk about him now. If it's him, then we won’t have to worry about a new body turning up. I want us to stay on top of this before it takes on a life of its own. We have to be sure.” Derek finally gave in and agreed after Hotch finished.

Gideon broke the silence, “Alright, we know our unsub is a sexual sadist.”

“Stabbing the victims is symbolism, probably means he’s impotent,” Parker stated before glancing toward Emily and saw her playing with the pen again. “The only way our guy can get off is by killing.” 

The Doctor cut in before she could say anything more, “Considering the cutting of their hair and killing in the early morning both stem from feeling powerless, there’s a chance his pathology is more than just sexual.”  

“What do you mean?” The blonde liaison asked the team of profilers.

Spencer spoke up. “This is D.C. Power is the most important commodity.” JJ nodded in thanks to her friend and Spencer threaded his fingers together before he spoke again. “Maybe this guy feels impotent in his professional life as well. The question is, why these women?” 

“The simple answer is because he has access. Remember what the girls told us this morning, the politicians are the ones on the streets trying to get off. What if it’s just some entitled politician who can’t get it up anymore and is taking it out on them?” Parker’s question made the team go quiet as they all thought about it, “Where are the major hubs for prostitution?” The brunette turned towards JJ and saw the liaison pull up a map on the screen,

“D.C. has three, near Florida Avenue, Logan Circle, and McPherson Square - which is where all the victims were found.”

“Okay, so he works in or around Capitol Hill,” Parker concluded and saw Hotch get up from his seat and gather his belongings. 

“Parker and I can get back out on the street in the morning and see if any of these women know someone who fits that description,” Emily said while grabbing her own things and everyone else did the same. 

“Good, it’s late. Let’s go home.” No one argued with that and began to leave the conference room.

“Hotch? Shouldn’t we get word out to the papers? It’s not too late to make the morning edition.” JJ questioned after turning the TV off, Hotch shook his head and followed the rest of the team out of the room, 

“Not yet.” 

Parker couldn’t hear the rest of the conversation but she was quick to catch up with Emily and Derek heading for the elevators. Derek pushed the call button and from the corner of her eye, Parker could see Penelope try and run in her heels. 

“Wait up!” The blonde yelled across the hall and Derek laughed at her until she smacked his arm, “Thought you guys were gonna leave without me.” The blonde pouted at her friends and Emily joined in with the laughter. Parker felt someone behind her and turned to see Spencer walking up to them, she was met with a smile that she couldn’t help but return. The elevator doors opened and the five piled in, Parker pushed the ground floor button and she felt someone wrap an arm around her own, “Are you guys all busy tonight? We should go have dinner or drinks!” The blonde tugged on her arm and Parker saw Derek also receiving the same treatment on Penelope’s other side. 

“I was going to call my mom before it got too late,” the Doctor rushed out.

“I have a cat and cold pizza in my fridge waiting on me, sorry!” Parker felt bad but she was tired and also didn’t want to intrude on the team's dynamics.

“I already have plans sorry, Garcia.” Emily finally said Penelope groaned as she looked over to Derek,

“Please tell me you don’t have plans.” Derek shook his head and the blonde squeezed Parker’s arm.

“No plans, but just dinner, sugar. Last time you and I went drinking it didn’t end well.” She gave another groan but smiled nonetheless, the other three in the elevator laughed quietly at the pair. The doors opened and Parker had to lift her arm out of Penelope’s grip, they slowly made their way out of the building and walked to their respective cars. 

“Goodnight guys! See you bright and early to catch a bad guy!” Penelope said with a wave to everyone, Derek and Spencer following behind the blonde. Emily and Parker waved back but continued walking to their cars,

“Have a good night, Emily! Oh, and drive safe!” The brunette unlocked her car and saw her friend smile.

“You too, see you tomorrow.” Emily ducked into her car and Parker did the same. She couldn’t wait to eat and hopefully fall asleep at a decent time.

PARKER COULDN’T WAIT TO LEAVE the crime scene, a young girl was brutally murdered the night before and words had been carved on her abdomen. 

“She was 16 years old,” Emily told the two agents behind her, the team had been called out early as a body was found early that morning. Parker recognized her from the day before. Her fists balled by her sides at the thought of the young girl dying alone in the streets. Emily and Parker had been out all morning trying to interview more girls about their new profile, mostly coming up empty-handed. They briefly met up with the boys after getting a call to meet at the scene. 

“He’s getting angry, he blames the police for not stopping his impulses,” Derek told the team, still looking over the crime scene for anything they were missing. 

“He’s certainly not cooling off between kills anymore either.” Spencer chimed in from his spot farther away from the body. Derek squatted near the body, his eyes never straying away from the lacerations that covered the young girl. 

“Which means we could be looking at a whole lot of bodies,” Derek sighed through his nose before standing upright again.

“Meanwhile in two days, Congresswoman Styers is gonna stand at the Capitol and declare DC crime-free.” Hotch sounded agitated and everyone knew it, except Emily.

“What did she want with you the other day anyway?” Emily pushed Hotch and he was quick to glare at the female agent. 

“It was a private conversation, Prentiss.” 

“Right, of course, sorry.” The busy streets of D.C. filled Parker’s ears as she waited for someone to say something, she cleared her throat before speaking. 

“Guess we can rule out Nathan Harris being our unsub though,” Parker placed her hands in her blazer pockets, and she let her eyes drift over to where the Doctor stood, and she found him already looking at her. 

“Should we call Gideon and tell him not to go through with the psych eval then?” Emily asked a question that made Spencer tear his eyes away from the shorter agent and shake his head at Emily’s words.

“No, let them go through with it. He wants to understand what's happening to him,” he paused shortly, “he deserves to know.” Parker nodded along with his words and the five left shortly after. Parker rode quietly in the back seat with Hotch and Spencer and she listened to the two agents talk the entire ride back to Quantico. Emily and Derek took the other SUV and once the five had entered the bullpen, Hotch had asked to see Emily privately. Parker saw Spencer head to Gideon’s office and moved to follow him before a hand stopped her.

“Where you goin’, sweetheart?” Derek’s voice reached Parker’s ears, she smiled at the pet name but let her arm fall from his grip.

“I have a name, Morgan… It’s Parker just in case you forgot,” she teased. Morgan suddenly smiled ear-to-ear and the female agent let herself smile at his playfulness. 

“Oh I know Parker, you’re just easier to read than your friend Prentiss.” Derek pointed toward Hotch’s office, “What do you think that’s about?” He questioned quietly, and Parker just shrugged.

“I’m not sure, maybe she’ll tell us later?” Derek nodded but the two agents sat in silence as they saw Emily leave Hotch’s office angrily. “I’ll catch up with you later alright?” Parker didn’t wait to hear a response and left to run after Emily. She found her haphazardly pushing the elevator button, but from a distance, it looked like she was slamming her hand against the call button panel. “Emily? You alright?” Her raven-haired friend gasped and slowly turned around, Parker saw the way Emily’s fingers trembled slightly, but she was quick to compose herself. 

“Hi, sorry. Yes, I’m fine just stepping out to get some good coffee. I can’t stand the blend they have in our pot right now.” Emily forced a laugh and Parker just nodded, pushing the two into the elevator. Neither agent said anything while they slowly went down to the first floor, the doors peeled open with a ding. 

“What did he say? Was it about earlier?” Parker grabbed Emily’s arm and walked them in a direction where a coffee cart was located. She let her friend's arm go when she realized she was still holding on and Emily cleared her throat.

“Yeah, he wanted to ask me why I questioned him in front of everyone. Then asked if I was only in the BAU to start some political war.” Emily rushed out and while Parker felt angry with Hotch for questioning Emily’s abilities and trust, she also felt bad that Emily was the only one being questioned. She was also new to the team and yet everyone seemed to just accept her or not even talk about it, Emily was being treated differently. 

“I’m so sorry,” Parker excused herself to order two coffees. Emily watched quietly. “I don’t even have the words, I mean on one hand ‘questioning me in front of everyone?’ You were asking a question about a meeting he had, you weren’t trying to undermine him in any way. Secondly, starting some political war would be an absolute disaster for everyone and I don’t think of you as someone who would go out of your way to make life harder.” Parker hadn’t even taken a sip of her hot latte and she watched Emily smile back at her, the sky beginning to darken behind them. “It’s dumb of him to even question your trust or ability to put work first. Women are being killed on the streets and Hotch is more worried about you asking him a question in front of the team.” Parker finally sighed out through her nose and took a long sip of her drink, Emily watched her friend in awe. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say that much in one sitting Parker.” A blush made its way across her cheeks, the latte nor crisp air doing nothing for her as she tried to hide it. “But thank you, I appreciate it. I’m not trying to start anything nor do I have the energy to deal with people questioning me or my abilities but I’m glad you see as I do. I like Hotch he seems like a great boss but I don’t need him looking over his shoulder every time I ask a question.” Parker nodded and held the door open for her friend as they made their way back to their floor in the building. The small getaway was not long enough and the brunette listened to her friend rant a bit longer until they reached the glass doors. 

“Alrighty, this will definitely be continuing later, but for now we do unfortunately have to go back to work.” Emily groaned and Parker just laughed at her as she dramatically sat in her chair. The two continued to work on files that lined their desks, as they awaited orders from their boss. Gideon pushed his office door open and let it shut behind him as he hastily climbed down the small set of stairs,

“Moore with me, another body just turned up.” Parker shot up and grabbed her blazer sitting on the back of her chair. Even as Gideon told her what the police found, Parker couldn’t help but worry this had something to do with Nathan going home. 

“THIS KILL WAS FAST AND MESSY.” Parker was on the ground examining the stab wounds, this certainly wasn’t the first unsub—the kill was quick but chaotic. The poor girl would’ve never seen it coming. Not to mention the fact that this victim didn’t look like the others. Derek and Spencer had just arrived and Gideon was filling them in on what the police had told him.

“There’s no cut hair, no message carved. Plus-” Derek motioned his hands around them, “he killed at night.”

“None of it matches with our unsub’s signature.” Parker brushed the dirt from the sidewalk off her pants and stood up straight, locking eyes with Spencer. The female agent could tell he was just as worried as she was.

“Excuse me, agents” The four turned their heads at the approaching officer and he stopped just before Spencer, “They found the boy you’re looking for.” Spencer moved before asking and Morgan motioned for Parker to follow the Doctor, the other two agents staying with the body. They followed the officer and walked into a church Nathan had been spotted at. The teen looked defeated as he turned around and made eye contact with both profilers. “He said he’s been here for at least four hours.” Parker nodded in thanks and let Spencer walk away to talk to Nathan. She stayed back but lingered close enough so she could still hear their conversation. 

“Got a lot of people worried,” Spencer sat close to him in the isle, she watched both of their bodies react. Nathan was quick to let out a small apology before Spencer continued, “You told that policeman you’ve been here for four hours?” He was met with a nod,

“I snuck out and just started walking. It was like I couldn’t control it, so I came here to try and fight it.” Nathan seemed nervous, but not nervous because he had just stabbed someone. 

“Did anybody see you when you got here, and did anyone come in while you were here?” Spencer quickly questioned but was met with a scoff. 

“It doesn’t matter anyway.”

“It does matter Nathan.” Spencer turned his body to face the teens and he cleared his throat before continuing, “A woman was stabbed tonight, and nobody saw you.” Nathan hardly moved from his position and Parker could tell he was shutting down. “I’m gonna have to bring you in as a suspect.” The teen’s head lifted and Parker slowly walked over. She watched Nathan eye her up again and she glanced to see Spencer already staring at her.

“Are you going to cuff me?” Nathan asked as Parker’s hands reached around her belt plucking the metal handcuffs next to her gun, she placed them in her coworker's hand. The two stood and Parker moved to give them room to leave the isle. The female agent watched Spencer wrap the cuffs around Nathan’s wrists. “Do you want to know what I’ve been doing here all night?” Parker heard Spencer acknowledge Nathan’s statement and she watched the teen twist his arms around in the cuffs. “I’ve been thinking about the future. How the only way to save people is for me to kill myself.” Parker’s breath caught in her throat and she tore her eyes away from Nathan to look at Spencer. He hadn’t said anything back and just moved to place a hand on the teen’s back, the two agents walked together to let the downtown police take him in. 

“YOU REALLY THINK HE KILLED THE LAST WOMAN?” JJ caught up with the four as they walked back into the building, Gideon tore his jacket off, and together the five agents made their way into the conference room. 

“It’s possible,” Parker heard Spencer say in front of her, and she could hear the tone change in his voice. “Nathan’s evolving. I mean this last kill felt like a devolution. It was sloppy and angry.” They sat down in the swivel chairs and Parker interrupted before they moved on,

“And Nathan is smart and directed, he’s used to achieving. If and when he decides to kill it’ll be well thought out and efficient.” Parker added her own thoughts, Spencer was staring at her again, she didn’t want to believe this was Nathan’s doing. 

“So where does that leave us?” JJ questioned the group and Gideon pushed the door open before answering,

“We go back to the profile.” They gathered and sat quickly, JJ took her position near the TV and clicked through images when she needed to. 

“Alright so first victim, he gets a taste for killing. By the second he’s already asked the police to stop him. By the third, he feels like they’ve failed him.” Hotch is quick to look over the files in front of him as he speaks, his eyes never straying from the case folder. “He’s already devolving, our latest victim had no ritual or message. It was just a brutal murder.” Spencer cleaned his glasses with a small cloth and turned to look at Gideon as he spoke up.

“It’s true that he’s devolving, but this fourth victim definitely had a message.” Parker couldn’t help but agree with Spencer’s statement.

“Right, because you don’t just dump a body across from the Capitol building on accident.” Emily jumped in and everyone nodded in agreement.

Hotch cleared his throat, “Especially not when a Congresswoman is about to proclaim an all time low for crime rates in the DC area,” He added after looking up from his pile of folders in front of him on the table.

“Wait… That press conference wasn’t released yet. Only someone on the inside would have that information.” Parker tapped her fingers against the table and looked toward Gideon who motioned for her to go on, “We profiled the unsub would feel limited in his job.” 

“What’s more powerless than being a player on the Washington stage?” Spencer placed his glasses back on his face as he spoke, and Parker nodded at him.

“Exactly, if he felt like he did his part to clear the prostitutes off the street, but was never heard, he might have felt so deeply betrayed that he literally took out his frustrations and carved up those women.” Everyone looked at Parker as she tried to think of a more detailed and accurate profile. Derek took a sip of whatever was in his cup before he spoke up, 

“So our profile was right. We were just wrong about who the message was for.” Derek voice cuts through the room.

Gideon sighs a little before seeming to shake himself out of it. “We need a list of everyone who advocated for this bill.” 

Hotch nodded and looked toward Emily and Parker. “When you two went back to talk to the prostitutes, did our profile ring any bells with them?” The two female agents shook their heads.

Emily answered, “A few of them described what sounded like the same man, but when we showed mug shots, we got nothing.” 

Hotch nodded and was quiet for two seconds before he formulated a plan.

“Let’s go back to them then, we’re going to need their help.” Everyone packed up their things while JJ grabbed all of their folders, ready to file them away. 

“What is it Hotch, what are you thinking?” Derek placed his cup on the table and crossed his arms over his chest.

“I need to get a message to Congresswoman Steyer.” The Unit Chief glanced to the petite blonde, “How quickly can you put together a press conference?” JJ just shrugged, 

“How fast do you need it?”

PARKER SAT AT THE ROUND TABLE, watching the prostitutes converse quietly waiting for Hotch to join them. She tapped her fingers softly against the chair and watched Spencer awkwardly stand in the corner of the room.

“That was fast, all things considered, JJ is quick.” Emily nodded along with her and the two looked towards Spencer as he cleared his throat.

“She’s good at her job, we can rely on her a lot.” His voice grabbed everyone's attention, and the two agents smiled in return. Parker stood with Emily and the room was eerily quiet when Hotch suddenly came in. 

“These women described sharing similar experiences with the same man. We showed them police mug shot photos, but no one could identify him.” The Congressman eyed the Unit Chief and glanced at everyone in the room before answering. 

The Congressman didn’t seemed phased in the slightest. “Did you think you could shock me with this sideshow?”

“Sideshow?” The blonde prostitute questioned with a scoff.

“Lady, enough of the men you work with pay us for pleasure and be with them every day.” Another chimed in. 

“My apologies ladies.” Her apology was met with silence and Parker didn’t find herself believing the older woman. Emily glanced towards the prostitutes and offered a reassuring smile,

“Could you please tell the Congresswoman who it is we are looking for?”

“He’s tall. Bald. He has sad eyes.” The girl with curly hair answered first.

“He was always wearing a turtleneck with this long, dark coat, he looked like a detective or something.” The blonde spoke up again and the other two nodded at her statement.

“He hung around for months just watching before he finally made a move, even then he only wanted to watch.” Parker cast glances at everyone in the room and waited for anyone to speak up again.

“Did he ever offer more than the normal, ask you to do things you didn’t want to do?”  One of the prostitute's head shot up at Parker’s words.

“He offered me two hundred for me and another girl to mess with each other, but then started screaming at us. Telling us we were low women, we were dirty, and how he was gonna fix it one day.” Hotch motioned for Spencer to come closer with the folder he was holding, the other agents watching in anticipation.

“Does this sound like anyone you know?” Spencer questioned opening the folder, Hotch watched quietly. The Congresswoman shook her head and Spencer brought his attention to the paper in front of him. “ I’m going to read a list of groups that lobbied on your behalf.”

“Keep in mind the description you just heard, tell us if anyone associated with these groups could be the man we’re looking for,” Hotch stated and nodded for Spencer to continue once the older woman nodded.

“The Crime Policy Institute, The Center for Safety, Citizens’ Brigade, Decency Watch, The-”

“Oh my God.” A shocked angry look made its way onto her face and the four agents waited for her to continue. “Decency Watch, the man who runs it, it’s him.”

Spence scanned the paper and found a name in seconds, “Ronald Weems.” More silence filled the room as they waited for anyone to speak up.

“Do you know him?” Parker spoke softly and the Congresswoman made direct eye contact before answering.

“Yes, but not well. He’s a nobody.”

“But does he fit the description?” Parker watched her nod and waited for a moment before sitting back down. She watched Hotch excuse himself and the Congresswoman. 

“Now what?” One of the prostitutes asked after another moment of silence.

“Now you girls go home and we catch this guy.”

THE TEAM DECIDED TO SPLIT UP TO COVER MORE GROUND, the two oldest agents going to the Weem’s household to try and and find the Unsub before it was too late. The four younger agents all went straight to the streets; searching for any clues and asking anyone who would listen. They’d been searching for what felt like hours, Gideon and Hotch even joining the rest of the team when they came up empty. 

“You’re sure you haven’t seen this man before?” Parker watched for any microexpressions the young female might give away, Spencer a few feet away also asking another prostitute the same question. 

“I’m sure I have no clue who that weirdo is.” The woman walked away briskly to catch up with a group of other workers father away. Parker watched and waited till Spencer was done asking his questions, he caught up with Parker once the woman caught up with a second group. 

“Anyhting?” Spencer’s expression gave nothing away while she waited for his answer, he placed his hands in his pockets before answering,

“Nothing, what about you?” Spencer seemed on edge while they walked away from the alley they were in, his shoulders were tense and he voice wavered like he was nervous. Parker shook her head and sighed once they were met with the busy street again. Spencer gave her a tight lipped smile and stopped at the edge of the curb once a car pulled up next to them.

“Did you two find anything?” Gideon seemed just as annoyed and anxious as the younger agent. His fingers tapping on the wheel as well as the abrupt stop gave him away. 

“Nothing,” Spencer could barely get out before Gideon was speeding away. The young Doctor spun on his heels and gave Parker another sad smile, the two started walking together along the sidewalk in hopes to find anything. “You prefer Parker not Moore right?” Spencer kept his eyes on the people roaming the street as he asked the question.

“Yes! Moore feels weird, like it’s for my parents but it's more personal to be called by your first name. Especially with people I’ll be spending time with a lot.” Parker watched a real smile take over his features when she glanced over at him. 

“That’s good to know Parker, and I feel the same, even though most people call me Reid.”

“It’s our line of work too, most people prefer last names or just don’t care enough to correct someone. I’m not old enough to be there just yet.” Parker let a small laugh out and Spencer let his eyes roam over the smaller female. 

“Yeah me either, I prefer Dr. Reid in professional settings, but when it’s the team Spencer’s just fine.” His hands stayed in his pockets as they moved in the busy area.

Screaming broke the two apart and the agents looked frantically around trying to find the source till they saw Derek run past them a few feet away. Parker took after him and hoped Spencer would follow, the screaming turned into pleas for help by the time they reached the scene. A few people had gathered around and were trying to break apart two people, a bald man forcefully holding a girl by the waist. Derek moved faster than anyone else and he grabbed Ronald Weems by the abdomen, somewhat tackling him to the ground. Emily and Hotch were right behind him and had their guns out ready to use them if needed. Parker stopped infront of the prostitute and helped her off the ground, Spencer right behind them. 

“You’re okay, we got him! He can’t hurt you or anyone else anymore,” Parker tried soothing the weeping woman in her arms, her cries only getting louder when backup showed up. Police and other field agents filled the area quickly, Hotch put handcuffs on the Unsub and the officers put him in the cop car. Gideon and Hotch rounded the team up and they quietly made their way back to the office.

PENELOPE MADE HER WAY TO SPENCER’S DESK and stopped in her tracks abruptly, Parker looked up from her own desk right next to his. Parker hardly had time to ask a question before Penelope took a side step and revealed Nathan Harris behind her. 

“Hi Dr. Reid.” The smaller boy raised a hand to wave, Spencer immediately standing from his desk chair. Penelope gave the two agents a small smile as she walked away.

“I heard they were releasing you today.” Spencer was hard to read as he conversed with the younger teen. Parker spun in her chair giving the two some privacy as they conversed, Nathan looked at her once before looking back at Spencer. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there.” The younger teen gave him a small smile and shrugged his shoulders.

“It’s alright.”

“Where’s your mom?” Spencer glanced around the room but Nathan shook his head a few times.

“Oh, she had to go back to work. I told her I wanted to see you before I went home.” The young Doctor stood there awkwardly before Nathan spook up again, “Were you there when they caught him?”

“Yeah, I was.” Parker heard Nathan clear his throat,

“Did he say how long he knew what he was?”

“No, I hardly spoke to him.” Parker listened to Spencer answer quickly, Nathan was quiet for a few moments before he spoke up again. 

“Do you think it’d be possible to maybe talk to him?”

Spencer shook his head, “I’m sorry, no. But you’re not him. Listen Nathan, who we are, it’s constantly changing, evolving even.” Spencer spoke with his hands as he started rambling, “I’m a lot older than you and I’m still changing. This job-this job changed me a lot.” The young Doctor took a beat before continuing, “You’ve changed me.” Parker could hear the lighter inflection he used when talking to Nathan, the younger teen laughed at Spencer’s statement. “You sought me out to try and understand how not to harm people. You wanted to understand what you were feeling. That’s far more important than doing nothing or acting on those impulses.”

“You know my mom wants me to go to a hospital for a little bit.” Nathan let a long sigh out as he shifted on his feet.

“That’s not a bad idea.” 

“Once they lock me up, they’ll never let me out.” Spencer shook his head at Nathan’s words,

“You don’t know that.” The young Doctor sounded sad, his voice uneven and shaky.

“Whatever, I guess we’ll see. I just came to say goodbye.” Parker turned her chair around slightly to watch the two, she saw Nathan lower his head to look at his shoes before Spencer responded.

“When are you supposed to go in?” Nathan snapped his head back up and his gaze caught Parker’s before looking back at Spencer.

“Tomorrow, tonight’s my last night of freedom. I just wanted to say thank you for caring.” The young Doctor nodded his head and shook Nathan’s awaiting hand. Spencer let go first and the two agents watched the younger boy walk out the glass doors.

“He’s gonna be okay, he’s getting the help he needs. It’s just a matter of time and patience.” Parker shut her monitor off and watched Spencer sit down at his desk finally. She grabbed a book off her desk and put it in her purse before standing and stretching her arms,

“You think so?” Spencer looked defeated as he slouched in his chair, the plastic squeaking when he leaned back. Parker nodded once after finding her car keys in her bag.

“I do.” She bounced on her feet watching the young Doctor swivel back and forth in his chair, “Do you need a ride? I know the others take you home when they can, and I don’t have any plans so I can totally drive you if you want.” Parker rushed out clutching her purse, she watched Spencer stop spinning in his chair.

“Honestly I might not be the best company right now, and don’t you have a cat?” Spencer started messing with his tie as he responded, Parker smiled at his question.

“He’ll be okay by himself for a bit longer. Honestly think he prefers being alone.” The two agents laughed softly before Parker motioned for him to get up, “Come on, let me give you a ride home. I don’t mind at all.” The young Doctor let out a sigh before getting up and grabbing his own belongings. 

The two agents made their way through the Quantico building, comfortable silence filling the space as they made their way through the parking garage. 

“This is me,” Parker hit the unlock button on her keys as they reached her car. 

“Thanks by the way for this, I appreciate-” A phone ringing stopped Spencer from talking, he reached into his pants pocket and quickly answered it. Parker threw her bag in the back seat while he took the call, she shut the back door and saw a look of horror cross her teammate's face.

“Spencer?”

“Oh, God. Okay, I’m calling an ambulance.” He shut the phone just as fast as he answered it, and frantically opened the passenger door open. “Parker, I need you to drive, now please.” The brunette slammed her door shut as she simultaneously turned the car on.

“Spencer, what’s going on? Where am I going?” Parker reversed as quickly and safely as she could in the parking garage, Spencer’s hands shook as he pulled his seatbelt on.

“I need you to drive to the motel on Fairbanks Street, just turn left at this light and it’ll be down the road.” Spencer watched Parker take the left-hand turn at the light, her hands gripping the steering wheel and eyes never straying from the road. “It’s Nathan, he’s in trouble.” Parker’s breath caught in her throat as she tore her eyes away from the road to look at Spencer.

“He’s what? He just left.”

“I don’t know, I just know there’s a lot of blood and he’s in trouble.” Parker was quiet as they pulled into the old-looking motel, she scrambled to find a parking spot and turned the car off as soon as she could after parking in a spot. Spencer sprinted out of the car and Parker followed right behind him, not even locking the car as they ran towards the room. 

Parker stopped in the middle of the room as she finally processed what she was seeing, Spencer dropping to his knees in front of Nathan’s body. The young teen was in a pile of his own blood, the dark liquid seeping into the brown carpet underneath him. There was a woman in the corner of the room hiding from what was in front of her, Parker finally moved and fell to her own knees next to Spencer who was clutching Nathan’s wrists. 

“He just started cutting himself, I don’t—I didn’t do anything!” The woman’s voice wavered as more blood left his body, Parker immediately placed her own hands over Spencer’s, the red liquid making their hands glide together. The smell of iron filled the room as the agents looked at each other. Spencer took his second hand away and let Parker hold one wrist while he put pressure on the other. 

“We need something to stop the bleeding! I need a belt, a shirt, anything!” Spencer yelled and Parker flinched from being so close but nodded towards the woman. 

“You, help us, please! Find a towel or anything to tie around him!” Parker tried to keep her voice level but her fingers slipped as she spoke, the floor was a deep black color underneath them now. The woman jumped from her spot in the corner and ran in a circle before finding a small cloth on the table and handing it to Spencer.

“More, we need more! Anything to tie around and constrict the blood flow.” Spencer’s head was frantically looking around the room before he reached over and pulled a sheet from the motel bed. Parker leaned into Spencer to help him grab the sheet, her heart pounding in her chest. With one free hand, the two agents tied a makeshift tourniquet for Nathan, the white sheets turning red as soon as they brushed his skin. The woman brought more towels from the bathroom and Parker grabbed them as fast as she could, placing them underneath his wrists to keep them elevated as well as placing more pressure on the actual wounds.

 “Where are the paramedics?” Spencer’s hair was falling in front of his face, Parker watched as he flicked his head to try and move it. She could hear the annoyance in his voice, her own frustration making her tighten her hold on Nathan’s wrist. 

“Stop please, don’t,” Nathan whispered, Parker almost didn’t catch it but Spencer vigorously shook his head in response.

“No, no, no. Nathan, paramedics are on the way. You’re gonna be fine!” The young Doctor looked in Parker’s direction again, his eyes hardening as they finally heard sirens coming from outside. 

“Just keep holding pressure, they’ll be here soon.” Parker didn’t know if she was saying it to calm herself or the Doctor. The blood was starting to hit Parker’s pants as the paramedics finally rushed in through the door. Her hands were wet and red as she leaned back after an EMT put their hands over hers. 

“I’m not letting you die here, Nathan.” Spencer hadn’t moved after the paramedics came in, his hands shaking as he pressed down harder. 

“Sir, we’ve got it from here.” The paramedics placed a hand on Reid’s shoulder, but even then he still didn’t budge. 

“Spencer…” Parker saw a police officer escort the prostitute out of the room, more officers filing in right after. The young Doctor finally looked up at her, his eyes glazed over. “Spencer,” Parker spoke louder, her voice finally reaching him, his hold slowly released from Nathan’s wrist and the paramedic took over immediately. Spencer stood up from his spot and blindly reached down to help Parker to her feet. The brunette’s grip faltered but Spencer tightened his hold on her hand. Their hands seamlessly slipped together from the blood, his grip on her hand steadying both of them. 

“Between the desire and the spasm, between the potency and the existence, between the essence and the descent, falls the shadow.” T.S. Elliot

series masterlist | next chapter

[idyllicb]

me when i lie.... ANYWAYS new chapter is out now !!!

finishing up chapter three of dod today !! hopefully posting in a bit 😼😼

[idyllicb]

finishing up chapter three of dod today !! hopefully posting in a bit 😼😼

[idyllicb]

depths of dreams - two

summary: Parker and Emily take on their first case with the team, anthrax is involved and Hotch breaks protocol!

warnings: regular criminal minds talk, nothing crazy lol

words: 5.7k

an: chapter two yippe !

“A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer.” - Bruce Lee

PARKER NEARLY GOT A SPEEDING TICKET when she got a phone call to come in early. It was her first official day and getting called in early made her anxiety spike. Having only gotten a few hours of sleep the night before she rushed to get there. She assumed this would happen sometimes, criminals don’t usually care about the time of day when committing nefarious things. Parker pushed through the glass doors and saw Emily climbing the stairs to the conference room behind two blonde women. The young agent ignored the glances she got from the other two women as she placed her purse and go bag down at her desk and rushed after her friend.

“Hey, Parker! Long time no see,” Emily held the door open fully so more members of the BAU could file in. Parker smiled at the taller agent and let a laugh escape her lips. She was glad that Emily was there, having that one familiar face calming the storm of anxiety beginning to brew inside her.

“Seems like just yesterday we were staking out Hotch’s office.” The raven-haired nodded towards her and they turned to see the only other two blonde women watching them. “I am so sorry! We met briefly yesterday, right?” Parker’s hand flailed around her as she rushed out more apologies to the other Agents. Emily followed behind the younger girl, and they both extended their hands. “Parker Moore and this is-”

“Emily Prentiss, it’s nice to meet you both.” Emily flashed a smile and the other Agents shook hands before switching to the other. 

“You’re fine! We should’ve introduced ourselves first, this is Jennifer Jareau, our media liaison but everyone calls her JJ. I’m Penelope Garcia, a full-time tech analyst and part-time superhero. Call me if you need anything, seriously!” The taller blonde pointed between the two and JJ laughed and smiled at her enthusiasm. “It feels so good to finally have more girls on the team!”

“Agreed, it never hurts to have more female representation, especially in the bureau.” JJ wrapped an arm around Penelope in a familiar hug and the four women all agreed and laughed together. They walked over and sat at the round table together, waiting for more people. 

“Hey, I heard some laughing in here, you having fun without me?” A voice broke through the silence, two male agents filing in together. 

“Oh don’t worry handsome, just some girl talk.” Penelope smiled toward one of the agents and he chuckled at her response. He walked near the table and Parker stood alongside Emily,

“Emily Prentiss.” The two agents smiled at each other and shook hands. 

“Parker Moore,” Parker’s hand felt small against his and she glanced behind the one agent to lock eyes with the taller one. 

“Derek Morgan and this is Dr. Spencer Reid behind me.” Derek motioned behind him and Spencer waved at the two agents. “He’s not a fan of handshakes, sorry ladies.” Emily chuckled and waved her hand in front of her to say it was alright. Parker smiled in Spencer’s direction and he gave her one back, he gripped his bag closer to his chest. They continued to stare at each other before someone cleared their throat, like clockwork they sat at the round table. The five engaged in brief conversations about anything, but the room grew quiet as Hotch and Gideon entered.

“I’m assuming we all introduced ourselves to Agents Moore and Prentiss?” Hotch placed some files on the table for JJ to sort and everyone nodded in agreement. “We’re acquainted, good. We can all formally chat later. What’ve we got?”

“The DEA raided what they thought was a hardened meth lab right here in northern Virginia but that wasn’t exactly what they found.” JJ stood as she presented the case to the team, she pressed a button on the remote and a picture appeared on the screen. 

“That could be a dispersal device for a chemical weapon,” Derek paused as they all observed the device shown to them. “That’s sophisticated.” Spencer and JJ both nodded their heads in agreement. 

“As of right now, Homeland Security is thinking of Al Qaeda. They have developed similar devices in these terms of sophistication.” JJ sighed through her nose, Parker watched Spencer look away from the TV and turn to look at herself and Emily.

“They’ve developed some as simple as soda bottles and paint cans too.” Spencer used his hands when he spoke, and Emily crossed her hands over her lap and spoke to the team. “They’re called Al Ikhteraa, the literal translation being ‘the invention’.” The young doctor smiled and nodded his head in agreement with her. Parker’s hands felt clammy as she cleared her throat. 

“Do we know what the chemical or biological agent is yet?” Hotch seemed to be writing some notes down and Parker wondered if she should be doing the same. JJ shook her head to answer and continued the presentation after moving to the other side of the screen.

“The cell members bailed out through a tunnel. The DEA recovered a nextel two-way and managed to intercept a message.” JJ placed a piece of paper in front of the team, it was quickly snatched from the middle of the table as Emily read it over. “That’s not the transcript it-”

“No this is in Arabic,” Emily paused for a second before continuing with a translation. “Our friends surprised us and eloped. We can no longer wait for the wedding as planned. We can deliver our gift at the next crescent.” Everyone stared in awe at the female agent and a small blush broke out on her face. Parker and Penelope both smiled at her and she tapped the pen she was holding against the table twice before speaking again. “I lived in several Middle Eastern countries growing up.” The silence was loud and Gideon seemed to tear his eyes away to glance back at the paper. 

“Next crescent?”

“Muslims sometimes use a lunar calendar, I’d have to look it up-” Emily seemed deep in thought and Penelope was fast away at typing.

“Next crescent moon is in two days,” Penelope chimed in only looking up briefly from her laptop. Emily nodded her thanks to the other woman, shaking her head slightly to move the hair out of her face.

“That means whatever they’re attacking is happening in less than forty-eight hours.” Gideon grabbed the paper from Emily’s hand. 

“Everything we found is linked to this man, Jind Allah,” JJ pressed a button on the remote and a headshot photo appeared on the screen. 

“His name means soldier of God, literally.” Silence fell over the group.

Derek cleared his throat, “That’s pretty poor operational security for a sophisticated plot,” as he said it he leaned back in his chair. Parker could hear someone’s foot bouncing against the floor.

“Two months ago, Jind Allah was captured fleeing the country using a forged Pakistani passport via Richmond International Airport. He’s been held as a ghost detainee in Guantanamo Bay ever since.” JJ stated at her team as she finished her presentation.

“So he doesn’t exist, technically.” Penelope was still typing away as she spoke, Gideon shook his head in response. 

“Soldier of God isn’t a name.” Gideon’s tone was monotone and he played with the pen in his own hand. 

“No, it’s most likely a name taken on for the Jihad, meaning struggle.” Emily’s hands moved with her as she spoke about the man being detained. “Extremists claim it’s a Holy War.”

“But the words ‘holy’ and ‘war’ never appear together in the Qu’ran.” Spencer fidgeted with his hands in his seat. Parker felt inadequate, feeling out of place amongst all the people talking about the case. Despite the fact that everyone else was also just being introduced to the case. She felt so behind. Parker almost didn’t catch the rest of the conversation because she was so wrapped up in her own thoughts. 

“Do we know his real name?” Hotch spoke up finally and JJ was quick to answer. 

“CIA interrogators have got nothing out of the guy,” she paused as she placed the remote on the table.

“So they need us to break him,” Gideon stated out loud. Understanding finally dawned on the group.

“We do know from past intercepts that he’s a recruiter. He came to this country to assemble the omega cell. A sleeper cell with an unknown mission.” Parker pressed her hands together and she tilted her head as she thought of something,

“So we have exactly forty-eight hours to do what the CIA hasn’t been able to accomplish in two months?” Parker finally spoke up, fighting the flush trying to work itself onto her features as the teams’ eyes settled on her.

“We could be looking at the first attack on our own soil since 9/11.” Gideon sighed through his nose and everyone closed their files. 

“Right, so we have no time to lose,” Hotch stood and everyone followed right behind him. Parker walked towards her desk and watched Emily grab her go bag and place it on her desk. Gideon approached the two and made eye contact with Emily before speaking,

“Car leaves in four minutes.” He walked away and Parker watched as the older man gave her and Emily another one of the professional polite smiles that seemed to plague this team. Parker’s chest felt tight.

“I think he hates me. Did you see his body language, this was very obviously not his idea.” Emily’s shoulders dropped and she eyed Parker sitting at her desk across from her. 

“Oh come on, he just met you. I’m sure it was Hotch’s idea to throw you in, you know? You know Arabic, that’ll definitely be helpful.” Parker watched Emily’s reaction and the taller agent let her eyes shut but still nodded her head. She didn’t want to say that she was feeling the same way. They both couldn’t be feeling that way though, one of them had to remain positive.

“I guess, but still! He doesn’t like me, that much you can’t prove.” Parker grabbed her phone and moved to leave and follow Derek as he got up from his own desk. 

“So make him, you’re a good profiler, show him he’s wrong to doubt you.” Derek shot them a friendly grin as he held the door. Emily smiled in appreciation at the younger agent now walking away from her. Parker grabbed her bag and walked in the same direction as Gideon did to leave for Guantanamo. Parker rushed to catch up with Derek but caught him as he reached the elevator, Hotch not far behind. 

“The three of us are headed to the house while Prentiss, Reid, and Gideon will be flying to Guantanamo Bay.” Hotch pressed the ground floor button and the second the doors opened they hopped in the car to head straight to the raided house. 

“BOBBIE RYAN, DEA TEAM, WE RAN THIS RAID.” 

“Aaron Hotchner.” The unit chief shook hands with the woman, and Derek right after.

“Derek Morgan and this is Parker Moore.” Parker was still placing her second glove on but reached with her other to greet the DEA team person. Derek pointed towards the covered windows before speaking again, “these must have slowed you down some.” 

“Enough for them to get out through the tunnel.” Bobbie motioned for the three agents to follow her as she moved through the house. 

“They must have done escape drills,” Hotch said aloud. Parker could practically feel Hotch make his mental notes as he prepared himself to be first to enter the room that held the dispersal device. She took a deep breath and stepped right behind him. 

“Hey, Morgan!” A DEA officer placed a hand on Derek’s back and he smiled at the other man.

“Hey Kenny, it’s been a hot minute man.” Parker moved around Hotch, Derek immediately going back to work mode after saying hello. “Are we good in here?” 

Kenny answered quickly, “Yeah all good, everything has been rendered safe.” Parker crouched in front of the device and fixed her glasses before trying to look at the smaller details on the device. 

“They guys sure weren’t messing around.” Derek agreed with Parker’s statement and leaned over her to inspect some of the things lying on the table before looking over at Hotch. 

“Hotch, these tubes surround what would’ve been the explosive charge. Plus, this cylinder right here would be what holds whatever bio or chem agent they plan on dispersing.” Parker stood up at his words and glanced over at the two members of the DEA. 

“That’s a pleasant thought.” Parker could tell through his words and body language that Kenny was nervous. She could relate.

“Yeah, tell me about it.” Derek placed his hands on the table, trying to examine everything on the table before Bobbie motioned for them all to leave the room. Derek led them to some of the rooms in the house, Hotch eyed the contents of the room silently. “These look like a four-man cell.” Parker walked to what she assumed was a closet and sifted through some of the clothing.

“They assimilated themselves into the community.” Hotch stood behind her as she spoke, looking for anything to give them some clues. 

“Just like any other suburban gangster wannabes rolling up at a mall.” Derek shuffled through the clutter on the floor and Bobbie eyed the three agents before clearing her throat,

“Who do you guys think we’re dealing with?” Parker wandered to another corner of the room before she heard Hotch speak.

“Most likely Middle Eastern males in their early twenties.”

“And judging by that device in the other room, they’re looking at specific targets. Anything from military installations, government buildings, etcetera.” Parker let a sigh escape her at her own words, Derek started leaving the room and the Unit Chief motioned for the female agent to follow. 

“You’d think if these guys were fundamentalists there would be Qu’ran or some prayer mats in the house.” Derek talked with his hands as he went through more of the belongings lying around the house. 

“No, we didn’t find any of that here,” Bobbie responded before placing her hands on her hips as she watched the team look for anything and everything. 

“There must be one other location that we’re missing.” Hotch moved some bedding to look under the cot in one corner of the room, Parker did the same and found an opened box. 

“Guys,” Derek was quick to stand behind Parker as she looked over the printed words on the sheets. “This looks like a list of chemicals.” Derek sighed and the younger agent placed the papers in her teammate's hand as he whipped his phone out. 

“I’m gonna check with Garcia.” Derek dialed the tech’s number and not three seconds later she picked up, he was quick to greet her. “I’m going to read off a list of chemicals to you, are you ready?” Hotch and Parker stood quietly while they waited patiently, Derek listed off the names of each chemical and Parker racked her brain trying to think of what they could be trying to make. “You’re sure? Okay all right thank you, sweetness.” Parker smiled at the pet name, their friendship becoming completely evident to her. 

“What’d she say?” Hotch moved closer to Derek as he awaited a response. 

“Garcia said this looked like the perfect list to weaponize anthrax.” Parker’s eyes widened at his words and Hotch let out a frustrated sigh. The female agent wrapped her arms around herself at the thought. Weaponizing a chemical or biological agent was a big enough threat, and now with anthrax being thrown into the mix, it made Parker want to find the men willing to go to these extremes even faster. They couldn’t wait another forty-five hours. 

After what seemed like hours the three members of the BAU left after coming up empty-handed, Hotch drove in silence back to the academy building before his phone started ringing, he pulled it from his pocket and placed it on speaker. 

“Yeah, JJ?” 

“Hey, we think we may have just found the cell’s secondary location. It looks like a construction site in Annandale, Virginia. Looks to me like they may have another device ready to arm.” Parker looked out the window from the backseat at JJ’s words, maybe finding the location now was a good thing and they could disarm the device before anything happened. 

“I’ll get Agent Ryan to organize another raid, and please notify the others.” JJ agreed and was quick to hang up leaving the three agents to sit the rest of the ride in silence. 

Arriving in just under twenty minutes, the three agents quickly put on their vests and left their car behind as they met up with the DEA Agents. Parker fidgeted with her vest, trying not to feel too out of place but reveling in the comfort that the vest provided.

“You nervous?” Derek was adjusting his last strap and Parker laughed in his direction.

“You kiddin’? This is the best part of the job, plus this isn’t too different from what I did in CID.” She joked and was rewarded with a quick laugh from him. Together the two walked to where Hotch was talking to Agent Ryan. 

“You were raiding locations looking for devices to spread anthrax?” Derek’s tone was light and he smirked at the younger agent.

“Okay… Maybe not exactly but I’ve done my fair share of raiding locations with other narcotics involved. Does that count?” Parker felt some of the anxiety leave her chest about joining the team when Derek threw his head back with laughter. She now felt somewhat accepted. 

“I’ll count it just this once, Moore.” Derek lifted his elbow into her side and she smiled back at him. Before she could correct him, they approached their Unit Chief and the two agents stopped messing with one another. 

“Hey, guys, we want silence. No comms at all.” Kenny, Derek’s friend from before, had his own tactical gear on matching with Agent Ryan. 

“Let’s be careful. We don’t know what to expect walking in here alright? You three ready?” Agent Ryan was quick to say as she handed the BAU team gas masks given the severity of the situation.  

“Let’s do it.” Derek placed the mask over his head and soon followed the DEA team along with his own team up the stairs and over the gate that led to the secondary location. Parker’s glasses felt tight against her face but she continued walking behind the DEA agents and ignored her comfort. They entered the building with flashlights and cleared the room as fast as they could. Parker gripped her gun tighter as she followed a DEA agent, her flashlight flickering to each corner. One last clear was sounded off and she saw Hotch take off his mask.

“This place is clean. We missed them again.” Parker readjusted her glasses, scratching at her cheek just slightly, the defeat written all over her face. Hotch pulled his phone out and dialed a number. 

“Hey, you’ve got Gideon, Prentiss, and me.” Spencer’s voice broke through the small device in Hotch’s hand.

“It’s Hotch, we’re at the second cell location. I’ve got no cell members, no lab, and no dispersal devices. We’re looking now for escape tunnels, but I’m not hopeful.”

“Call us if you do, thanks for the update,” Gideon spoke and then there was silence again. Spencer hung up right after. Parker walked to a corner of the room inspecting some paperwork that littered the floor when a phone started ringing. Hotch picked up but didn’t put it on speaker,

“What’s wrong?” Hotch couldn’t ask anything more before he went into a panic. “Everybody out now! It’s a trap, out now!” Parker was quick to jump to her feet and felt a hand grasp her arm as she rushed to leave through the one doorway with everyone else. She could see Derek’s profile to her right and Hotch behind her as they ran farther away from the small building. Her heart was racing in her chest and before she could turn around and ask Hotch anything, the building exploded.

It was deafening. It was bright.

 Parker clutched her ears at the sound and she could feel the heat on her back as they continued running away, Derek’s hand not letting go the entire time. When the team finally got far enough away they turned to look at the damage and all that could be seen was the wild flames. The building was no longer recognizable and Parker could only assume the fire burned everything inside the building to ashes the second it detonated. Someone was quick to call firefighters and they arrived within minutes. The ringing had subsided but a headache was starting to form behind Parker’s eyes, she rubbed at her temples with her eyes shut. She could hear someone saying something about a loss. It was minutes before she realized that they were talking about a person.

“You alright Parker?” She heard him before she saw him, Derek coming to rest a hand on her shoulder. 

“Yep, have never had to run away from an imploding building so that’s a first.” She forced a laugh, the sound catching in her throat. He just squeezed her shoulder in response. Parker’s pant pocket started vibrating and she groaned as she pulled it out. A random number flashed across the screen and she pushed her free hand into her pocket before answering. 

“Parker speaking,” the brunette shut her eyes again to try and stop the throbbing in her head but opened them as soon as she heard the voice speaking. 

“It’s Penelope Garcia! Sorry, we saw the explosion on the TV, I needed to check in with one of you. Are you all okay?” Parker let a smile take over her features as she heard the genuine concern in the tech’s voice, and she nodded in response forgetting she was on the phone. 

“Yes sorry, the team is okay. How’d you get my number, Garcia?” Derek’s head lifted in interest as he heard his friend's name, he gave a look of confusion to the younger agent, and she waved him off. 

“I may have gone snooping around before you came in today, nothing gets past me Parker, nothing! I’ve got Emily’s number too don’t worry.” Parker sighed and stood up, needing to stretch her legs after sitting. “Is everything alright?”

Parker tensed up but answered the blonde as neutrality as possible, “I think we lost a SWAT agent and I just got a very poorly timed headache, but we’re okay..” She heard a sharp inhale on the other side of the phone and a small sniffle. “I’ll let Morgan know you called, thanks for checking in Garcia.” Parker started walking over to where her team was, Penelope’s smile could be heard through the phone. 

“Good, and thank you for answering pretty girl, travel safe!” Parker let the other agent hang up and she slid her phone back into a pocket, picking up her pace before stopping in front of her team and a few DEA members. 

“Sorry about that,” Hotch’s arms were crossed over his chest and he looked back over towards the burned building. Derek rubbed at the back of his neck and Parker bounced on her feet. 

“Yeah, me too.” Agent Ryan glanced over to the covered body being hauled into the back of an ambulance. 

“The chatter was a set-up, they knew we’d be listening.” Hotch watched the DEA member's face for a reaction.

“They led us straight here,” Parker responded to Hotch’s statement. 

“Just tell me where to look next.” Agent Ryan’s voice was hard and cold, but her eyes held tears that threatened to fall. 

Hotch placed a comforting hand over her shoulder, “Nothing for now, not yet.” Agent Ryan nodded and swiped at a few tears that had escaped. 

THE THREE BAU AGENTS STAYED ON THE SCENE as long as they could, offering their assistance and anything that was needed. At first light, they seemed to have caught a break. Derek thanked whoever was on the other end of the phone and wrote something down on what looked like a receipt, he shut his phone and placed it back in his pocket.

“We got a lead.” Hotch turned his head before looking back at the road with two hands on the wheel. 

“Did you get a name?” the Unit Chief questioned, Derek handed him the old receipt with a nod.

“Plus an address.” Parker thanked Penelope for working her magic in her head, and Hotch was quick to drive to the address they had been given. The female agent wished she brought sunglasses with her or something to keep the brightness of the sun at bay - she held her hand up to shield her eyes as they stepped out of the car. She rolled her eyes walking behind both Derek and Hotch who had sunglasses on. 

“How does a terrorist cell exist right here in Mayberry?” The trio walked up to a smaller squad of FBI agents who seemed to be chatting quietly. 

“The infrared scan showed no one inside. We’re doing a soft entry in case it’s a trap.” Hotch nodded toward the team leader and let them work while they waited outside. After breaking the door in, it took the agents all of three minutes to clear the house, their team leader approached Hotch and tore off his mask. “We have five deceased males, and what looks to be a makeshift lab. All five were shot in the head execution style.”

“Any anthrax on the scene?” Parker questioned, still squinting at the sky. 

“Just residue. We did however find tags from four new backpacks.” He excused himself to talk to his own team and Hotch led both Derek and Parker away from the house. 

“Backpacks? That means they’re already on the move.” Derek walked a bit faster as they needed to figure out where they were attacking, now. Hotch nodded but added,

“We’re too late.” Hotch started the car and Parker quickly buckled. They made their way back to the academy to regroup. They needed a plan to get ahead of this to try and prevent catastrophic damage. 

“THERE’S A GRAND OPENING AT THE USA MALL TODAY.” JJ came from down the hall and Hotch and Agent Ryan pushed the glass doors open, Derek and Parker not far behind. Penelope had set up some fake video for the other members in Guantanamo and tricked the unsub to get an idea about the location, it seemed to have worked. “It’s the third largest in the country, and it’s in McLean, Virginia.” Hotch was quick to thank JJ, before rushing to get in the elevator. 

“Let’s move.” Hotch and the others were quick to get in their cars and get to the mall as quickly as possible. They pulled their vests on before entering the car, Parker watched the trees rush past them in the SUV. She glanced over at her boss and then looked at Derek, something was off. Before she could ask, Derek beat her to it. 

“Hotch, what’s wrong, you look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Parker watched Hotch’s knuckles tighten on the steering wheel.

“It’s nothing…” The team leader tailed off, pausing for just a moment. “It’s just that Haley’s supposed to take Jack to the new mall to have some pictures taken…” Hotch kept his eyes on the road but both agents felt their boss accelerate in speed. The words unsaid seemed to hang in the air.

“Hotch that’s your wife and son. Call them.” Derek’s voice was stern and he stared down the driver, Hotch answered with distaste in tone. 

“It’s a breach of security, I can’t.” Parker felt her stomach drop at his words, sometimes rules were meant to be broken. She had just become part of the team but she could tell how much family meant to Hotch. 

“With all due respect Sir, I think that it’d be okay to just call her. That’s your family,” her voice shook slightly as she spoke. “You should call them.” Derek looked back at the younger agent with a small grateful smile, Hotch’s grip hadn’t faltered from the wheel. She just wanted him to know that it would be okay, but didn’t know how to say what she wanted.

“See Parker gets it. That’s Haley and Jack we’re talking about. You lose them, you lose everything. Call her.” Hotch didn’t need to be told for a third time he glanced at Derek before he reached into his pocket and pulled his phone out, tearing his earpiece out he placed the phone against his ear. After a few beats of silence, he tore the phone away from his ear.

“She’s not answering.” Hotch dropped his phone into his lap and was quick to place his second hand back on the wheel, not tearing his gaze away from the road. Parker felt her stomach flip. The car was barely parked when they got to the mall before the trio was rushing out of the vehicle. Derek ran towards a van parked here when they pulled up. “Moore with me. Morgan we’re going to go find the security office.” Derek nodded in his direction before raising his gun to check out the inside of the van. Parker pulled her gun out along with the flashlight and followed behind Hotch, the two quietly making their way through one of the mall's hallways. 

“Hello, we’re FBI and need security access,” Parker and Hotch flashed their badges in the security officer's face. Hotch used his other hand to motion towards the screens in front of them. 

“Are these all the security cameras in the building?” Hotch asked trying to look at all of them, Parker walked closer to them as she heard the security officer say yes, she eyed the ones with the most people in the frame first, trying to take in the vast amount of information that was being presented to her. Her eyes caught a glimpse of a few people walking and holding backpacks in a more quiet part of the mall.

“Hotch, that one,” she pointed at one screen on the right. “Looks like our guys, they’ve got backpacks.” Hotch grabbed his mic connected to his sleeve and spoke out to Derek. 

“Morgan, we’ve got at least four guys on the east end of the roof, they’re carrying backpacks.” The urgency was not lost in the other agent’s voice.

“Is there anything on that side of the roof? Like a way to get in the mall or anything?” Parker felt hot with the vest on and the LED lights above her. 

“No, nothing like that, there’s just air vents.” 

Parker felt her stomach drop for the second time, she raised her own sleeve to her mouth to convey the new information as she was getting it. “Morgan they’re using the air vents.” 

Hotch sighed and the two watched through the screens as Morgan and SWAT got onto the roof, after they went out of sight all they could do was hope. After what seemed like forever, they got the all-clear. All four men were shot and killed, one of them falling through a window and landing in the mall. Considering their day it was a big win in her book. 

        Parker smiled as she caught a glimpse of Derek waving at them through the cameras. They left the building and let DEA deal with the backpacks filled with anthrax on the roof, after finishing up at the scene the trio headed back to Quantico. Parker could see the nerves leave Hotch as they pulled up next to another black SUV. Derek shut his door and walked over to Spencer, messing with him the second he got out of the car. Parker slipped into step with Emily and the two were quietly conversing about their respective days when Hotch called both their names stopping everyone in their tracks. 

“Good work today, both of you.” Gideon pulled his go back from the trunk and offered a smile towards the female field agents. The two older agents were quick to engage in private conversation, and Parker felt relieved that the case had come to a close. Derek and Spencer were farther ahead of them but the two women watched, silently laughing at the pair as Derek gave his friend a hard time. 

“So how was it, did you show Gideon that he was wrong to ever doubt you?” Parker asked with a smile on her face and Emily could only snicker at her friend as they walked closer to the building. 

“I think so? I mean I feel like I was a big help. But I also don’t want to sit here and just inflate my ego either. Gideon asked to play chess on the plane so there’s that.” Parker breathed in through her nose and eyed Emily carefully, they stepped inside the building and waited a few seconds for the elevator to take them where they wanted to go. 

“That’s something I’ll tell you that. I couldn’t tell you the last time I played chess… I wanna say it was high school, I’d be a lost cause.” Emily laughed in her direction when they stepped out of the elevator. Morgan was holding the glass doors open for everyone that led to the bullpen. Emily made her way over to the coffee machine,

“Anyone want any? Should I put on a new pot?” The agent heard a chorus of yes’s so she placed the glass pot back under the brew, with new grounds in place to steep. Parker and the rest of the BAU set their minds to finishing up the paperwork before heading home–the young agent stole glances at her new coworkers, hoping to make some new friends as this new journey begins for her. 

 “Some lessons can’t be taught. They simply have to be learned.” - Jodi Picoult

series masterlist | next chapter

[idyllicb]

depths of dreams - masterlist

A new addition to the BAU team, Parker Moore must navigate what it means to be a profiler while also balancing all the other things life has to offer. Dream analysis, romance, and other nefarious things ensue.

chapter one

chapter two

chapter three

chapter four

chapter five

chapter six

chapter seven

chapter eight

chapter nine

chapter ten

cross-posted on ao3 here !

playlist can be found here !

* this is an au that’s based on criminal minds s2-15, however i am not writing every single episode! i will be focusing more on spencer’s episodes and/or entirely new ones that i’ve written for parker.

DISCLAIMER, i do not own Criminal Minds or any of the characters/plot created by jeff davis. however, everything else was created by me, including parker moore.

[idyllicb]

depths of dreams - one

summary: Parker and Emily join the team after a rough start with the Unit Chief.

warnings: regular criminal minds talk, nothing too crazy

words: 2.9k

an: new fic ?? this has been in the drafts for so long that I fear it may finally be time to let her shine ! hoping for somewhat continuous updates but we shall see... this is also cross-posted on ao3 !

 “What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?”

– Vincent Van Gogh

PARKER FELT HER HEART HAMMER IN HER CHEST, the box of her belongings felt heavy in her hands. She silently cursed the world for letting the Virginia traffic be so terrible. She had less than ten minutes to be in the Unit Chief’s office before she was officially late for her first day, Parker thanked herself for not wearing heels. 

The young agent had been told to pursue the team opening in the BAU after her supervisor mentioned it. She loved working for the Criminal Investigative Division– but she wanted a challenge, something new. Parker has started some consultant work on the side and has been a big help in some cases that needed an extra push to be solved. Her professors called it dream analysis, she was actively studying someone’s dreams to find hidden meanings or secrets. Parker liked to think of it as her specialty and was often called in on cases with kids and young adults. She gave cognitive interviews to victims who underwent some sort of trauma and used her skills to unlock memories that were hidden just beneath the surface. Parker liked to think she made the right decision going into the FBI at the age of twenty-three but she was tired of the repetition. Solving the same violent crimes and narcotics trafficking was becoming her least favorite thing to do and she loved being a part of the bureau. When her boss told her about the job with the BAU team, she immediately jumped at the opening and applied, she got the job within days. 

Parker stepped out of the very slow-moving elevator and a smile made its way to her face at the sight of the crest of the glass doors in front of her. She balanced the box between her chest and one of her hands, the other slid across the cool metal handle as she pushed the door open. She tried to slow her racing heart as all the other agents in the room turned to look at her. Parker moved with ease through the room, she had asked directions from one of the academy officers on the first floor. She gripped the box tighter at the sight of the closed office door. The brunette pushed her legs up the small set of stairs and cringed at the thought of interrupting something important. She lifted an empty hand to knock softly against the wood and heard a voice answer in return, 

“Come in,” Parker twisted the knob in her hand and moved inside the room. 

“I am so incredibly sorry I’m late! Parker Moore and I promise I will never be late again sir.” The young woman moved to place her box of personal items on his desk before extending her hand out to greet her new boss, he reached over his desk and accepted it with a strong grip. 

“Aaron Hotchner and no worries, I was just greeting Agent Prentiss.” The Unit Chief pointed to the other person in the room that Parker barely even saw when entering his office. 

“Emily Prentiss, nice to meet you!” a small laugh made its way out of the raven-haired woman and Parker shook her hand meeting her eyes with a big smile.

“Parker Moore, like you just heard, but it’s so nice to meet you.” Emily nodded and let her hand fall back to her side before glancing back to Hotchner. Parker saw a box in front of Emily and looked at her with confusion written all over her face before hearing Hotchner speak.

“Now, how can I help both of you?” A small polite smile made its way to the man's face, matching the one on Agent Prentiss’. Parker tilted her head and glanced back to Emily. She noticed that it didn’t quite meet his eyes, noticed that it felt more like a professional courtesy than anything truly personal.

“It’s my first day-” Parker started but stopped as she heard the same thing come out of the other agent's mouth. Emily now eyed Parker and she felt her throat go dry, why would two new people be starting the same day? Neither woman moved as Hotchner glanced between the two, eyes glazing with caution.

“Sorry?” His own confusion was present and the three were all left speechless as they stared at one another. Emily moved first, reaching into her own box and pulling out a piece of paper. Parker soon followed and went to grab her own transfer paper.

“I’m supposed to start today, here at the BAU,” Emily smiled and straightened her posture and Hotchner glanced at the shorter girl. Practically willing her to pull the matching transfer paper.

Parker did, producing the paper for him to see. “I am too, here’s the paperwork.” Parker let him grab the sheet from her and watched as the Unit Chief glanced at both transfer papers like they insulted him.

“There must have been a mistake, I’m sorry. I never approved of any transfers.” He looked up to see both of their reactions before looking over the official paperwork again. “There’s definitely been a mistake.”

“I don’t think so, Sir-” Emily started but was interrupted when a voice broke through the awkward tension in the room. 

“Excuse me, we’re getting started.” A petite blonde woman peeked into the office and Hotchner sent a nod in her direction.

“Thank you, I’ll be right there.” The blonde left and the three were left alone again. Hotchner handed their paperwork back to the rightful owner and sighed through his nose. “I never approved of either of these transfers, I’m sorry Agent Prentiss and Agent Moore.” Both women had defeated looks on their faces and before either of them could get another word in he spoke again, “I’m sorry for the confusion, you both have been misinformed. Now if you’ll excuse me-” Hotchner moved to leave and Emily moved from her spot but Parker hadn’t budged. “It was good seeing you again Prentiss, have a great day Agents.” Before either of them could utter a response he was out the door. Parker shook off the feeling in her chest and grabbed her own box, Emily right behind her. They stood together in the doorway of Hotchner’s office and heard his conversation with an older man walking out of an office. 

“Gideon, you didn’t approve of any transfers did you?” Parker’s eyes widened at the name and she felt her shoulders tense at the thought of Gideon’s career. The two men looked over towards the other two still in Hotchner’s office. 

“No, I would have discussed it with you first.” Parker felt Emily deflate next to her as they started walking away.

“That’s what I thought. Anyways they both had the paperwork to join the team, who would’ve gone over us and transferred two agents?” The two continued chatting as they got farther from the two women who were straining to hear them. 

“Well, that’s not a good sign.” Emily let her shoulders sag, a more relaxed posture taking over.

“That’s one way to put it,” Parker wasn’t sure what to do with this information, had she not been officially transferred? Was this some joke from her coworkers or her own boss? That didn’t explain it happening to Agent Prentiss either, there had to be something else going on. 

“Well I’m not going to wait around for them to get back from a case, you want to grab a coffee? I could make a phone call and get some intel on this case to see when they get back.” Emily locked eyes with the shorter Agent, and Parker lit up the tiniest bit. 

“I’d love that, my supervisor knows Agent Hotchner so I could try him to see if he can tell us what’s going on too.” Emily smiled at her and nodded for them to leave, “This isn’t going to interrupt anything, is it? I don’t wanna intrude if you have plans!” Parker rushed to get out as they made their way through the bullpen. 

“These were my only plans, Moore, no worries here.” Emily hit the elevator button with her elbow and Parker saw a smile break out on the other Agent’s face. 

“Please Parker is fine, anything else makes me feel old - but same here.” They both stepped into the elevator.

“Oh my God you must be at least five-no, ten years younger than me! Look at you, you are not old!” Emily started laughing when a blush broke out on Parker’s face, “Where’d you go to school Parker? I want to guess Columbia or Brown!” Parker hit the ground floor button after waiting to see if anyone would join them. 

“Dartmouth,” Parker began and saw Emily smile next to her ��with a bachelor in cognitive science and linguistics.” Emily laughed next to her and scoffed as they finally reached their destination. 

“Do I even wanna know what your minor was?” 

“International studies, but I was close to picking art history.” Parker watched as Emily threw her head back in a laugh.

“Now I’m embarrassed about my own college degree.” Parker felt a frown make an appearance as they walked out the front door to the academy. 

“No! I’m sure it’s impressive, let me guess over coffee! Don’t sell yourself short Prentiss.” The taller agent sighed but still held a smile on her face, 

“As long as you’re buying.” Parker nodded enthusiastically and as the two took their belongings to their cars, they continued chatting about anything and everything.

“I’m just saying there’s nothing wrong with majoring in criminology! It’s a fantastic degree program, and linguistics is great, but I may be biased.” Parker sipped her hot latte as Emily stirred some sugar into her own coffee. 

“Fair I guess but still, you’re twenty-seven and have quite the academic background to you already. You said you worked in CID right? That can be some tough stuff sometimes.” Emily brought her cup to her lips and took a small sip, the steam still rising off the hot liquid. Parker let out a hum of agreement before continuing, 

“Yeah, Criminal Investigative Division, nothing special to it. It’s practically the easiest job to get in the FBI. Plus I’m involved in some consultant work for dream analysis on the side.” She started reaching for her latte and Emily just stared at her with wide eyes. 

“Parker, you joined the FBI barely four years ago, I’d say you’re on the right track.” Emily locked eyes with the younger girl, eyeing her carefully. For the second time Parker blushed at Emily’s words and she just nodded in response, a small smile could be seen on both Agent's faces. “Hey listen, Parker, I’m sure everything will turn out okay, alright? Give me your phone number, and I’ll let you know when I hear anything.” The brunette slid her phone from her pocket and Emily put her contact information in, Parker heard a small ding go off in her new friend’s bag. They finished up their coffees and headed home after talking for two more hours. Parker was quick to lock the door to her apartment, placing her purse on the counter. She was topping off her cat's bowl with new food when she heard her phone go off later that night. 

My guy says they’ll be back in 2-3 days, I’ll let you know when I get more info.

She quickly replied, Sounds good! My boss said he got news of my transfer being approved by someone higher. Maybe the Director or someone else went over Hotchner?

Emily didn’t reply for a few minutes but it didn’t do anything to her confusion about this whole thing. 

Yeah, who knows, I don’t personally know the Director so guess we’ll have to wait and see.

A second text followed barely three seconds later, 

Get some sleep, try not to think about it all. I’ll let you know anything when I do. 

Parker didn’t feel the need to reply but responded with a quick text about how she should do the same. Both agents could hardly sleep that night but they tried their hardest to keep the BAU out of their heads for the rest of the night.

EMILY’S GUY WAS IN FACT WRONG and the BAU hadn’t come back to Virginia for four days. They spent three of those days working on a case that was brought in, together, hoping to formulate a plan to tell the Unit Chief they were the right people for the job. The two non-official members of the unit made their way into Hotchner’s office and awaited his return. 

“You don’t think he’ll find it weird that we’re just sitting and waiting for him in his office?” Parker paced the small room and Emily watched her preparing the file with newfound confidence,

“We’re all agents it’s fine. Would you please come sit down, you’re gonna stress yourself out.” Parker cracked her fingers and took a seat next to the raven-haired woman. 

“I’m not stressed, I’m worried.” 

“Yes, I can see that. Come here and let’s go over what we know about his unsub again for the mini profile, he should be here any minute.” Emily glanced between the office blinds and the door, her eyesight never straying too long from the folder in her lap. The heavy door was finally pushed open and Parker looked up, locking eyes with the Unit Chief. 

“Please tell me you haven’t been waiting here for the last four days.” His tone was monotone and both women could see the tired look in his eyes. 

“We heard you were flying in tonight,” Parker said quickly and could see Emily nodding beside her.

“Heard? Who would’ve told you that?” His guard was up and they could both tell, Emily stood up reaching over to hand the folder to him, and the younger agent watched his reaction. Hotchner looked between the pair and gripped the folder a bit tighter,

“This was dropped off today,” Emily rushed out.

“Listen, Agents, I appreciate your interest in this field, both of you. You’ve both got great credentials. But profiling is a specialty, not something you can just pick up in the span of a few days.” He walked around his desk, seeming to look between the women and the clutter.

Emily placed her hands together and spoke with confidence “The I-80 killer? Killing in Indiana,”

“Yes, I read it on the plane,” Hotchner interrupted.

“We know they’re not blitz attacks, he’s organized-” Parker started her part in the profile and saw the Unit Chief look at them differently. “He’s a white male in his early thirties, and he’s a smooth talker.” Parker glanced at Emily to finish it off.

“He’s killed eleven victims so far and yet he’s still able to convince educated women to get in his car fully knowing there’s a serial killer out there.”

“How would you advise police?” Hotchner crossed his arms waiting for them to respond.

“A stakeout out at the ranch house, or at the nightclub where a very popular ladies night happens every Thursday.” Emily walked around the small coffee table separating them and stood next to Hotchner.

“We looked closer at the victims and eight out of eleven of them were reported missing on a Friday morning. Meaning something gets this creep going on Thursday nights.” Parker finished and stepped closer to Agent Hotchner, the two women standing their ground. He looked between them not knowing if they had anything else to add to the profile, but Emily broke the silence. 

“This isn’t just us going out on a whirl Agent Hotchner. We put in the work and put together a profile that fits this unsub. We don’t know what happened with the paperwork, and I know I can’t speak for Agent Moore because her parents aren’t ambassadors and maybe you think my parents pulled strings. I can tell you right now that they didn’t and we both deserve a chance, the opportunity to be a part of this unit. Let us show you how we can help the team.” Emily’s voice wavered as Parker watched in awe as her new friend stood proud and tall next to the older Agent. Hotchner took his eyes off Parker’s friend and stared at her for a few seconds before speaking, 

“I will not promise anything, I still want to look into this.” He paused and Parker swallowed down her nerves, 

“Understood.” The brunette spoke first but Emily agreed with a simple nod.

“However, we do brief new cases every morning at ten. Talk to facilities management about new desks.” Parker could see the smile form on Emily’s face, she was sure her face held a similar one. Both women turned to grab their belongs left on Hotchner’s couch and as Parker held the door open for her and her friend she heard her reply,

“You won’t be sorry, thank you, Agent Hotchner.” His head turned down he pushed some files around on his desk.

“Hotch is fine,” the Unit Chief started but when he saw Parker start to close the door he cleared his throat. “Agent Moore?” The younger woman pushed the door open and stood straighter,

“Yes, sir?”

“Try not to be late tomorrow.” His voice lifted the slightest and the girl knew he was joking with her but with a promise to her new boss that she wouldn’t be late, she closed the door behind her.

“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide you’re not going to stay where you are.”

— J.P. morgan

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CRIMINAL MINDS

depths of dreams - spencer reid au

HOUSE OF THE DRAGON

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