#Forensic Interview | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

caffeinewitchcraft · 4 months ago

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Nadezh' Interview

Summary: After Nadezh previous identity as the Firebreather, notorious Supervillain, was revealed, she thought she’d lose everything. She’s never been so happy to be wrong.

You can read Nadezh' first story (HERE)

--------------------------.

It’s decided that Nadezh will work in the finance department of Hero Force. She hates to leave her civilian job and her coworkers seeing the success of her budget fully bloom, but the other option is wearing the power suppressors 24/7, and their power frequency vibrates through her engagement ring in a way that reminds her of a bee buzzing, and she won’t take the ring off so.

The interview is a formality but they make her do it anyway. She prepares for it over the course of seven days, making Gannon rehearse every hypothetical question with her until the last minute.

Until the last minute meaning on the drive to Hero Force for the interview.

“There is a discrepancy in the packaging budget,” Gannon reads. He’s used to her driving and doesn’t flinch when she merges too quickly, and a chorus of Chicago drivers chastise her loudly. “There is a flat rate for three different sizes of package. According to the average order value and average product mix, packaging should be $3.5k—Nadezh, Hero Force doesn’t have a commerce division, I don’t think this is necessary.”

Nadezh knows the rest of this question. What steps would you take to reconcile actual and planned? “Of course, there’s the option to conduct a forensic audit, however—”

“We do have a forensic finance department,” Gannon concedes, “but that’s not—”

“—first would be to observe the whole packaging process. While there is a flat rate for all three package sizes that doesn’t mean all orders are being packaged for efficiency—”

Gannon reaches for her knee, thinks better of it, considering her foot on the gas pedal, and diverts to her shoulder. He squeezes, and all of the tension in her back magically eases. “Babe. You’re already overqualified. You’re going to do great.”

They’ve already had this argument, so Nadezh doesn’t say Overqualified? It’s amazing they’re even letting me into a Hero Force building, I could be the President and I still wouldn’t be qualified considering my past. Instead, she says, “Right. Right, thanks. You’re right. Right.”

“Right,” Gannon says seriously.

“Right,” she says and takes the next exit.

“Riiiiiiight.”

By the time they pull into the parking garage, Nadezh is laughing at the increasingly bizarre ways Gannon says the word right. The word barely has meaning anymore, and she’s fairly certain that if anyone else heard Hero Zone sounding so goat-like, they’d send him to psych for an evaluation.

Nadezh gets out of the car first, hurrying before he can say anything else that will set her off.

“Go save the day,” she says. Her face hurts from smiling. She tosses him the keys over the roof of the car after she closes the door. “I can get the train back.”

Gannon rounds the bumper and presses them back into her hand. He kisses her forehead. “No public transport from HQ.”

She blinks, the spot his lips touched tingling. “Is that a rule?”

“Our house rule,” Gannon says. He smiles reassuringly at her. “Just a precaution. I know too many people who get made getting followed out of HQ.”

Gannon always explains himself even though she never asks. Her heart is racing at our house rules. They have house rules. They’re engaged. They’re going to get married. She lifts her chin for a kiss. “I love you.”

“Love you.” He kisses her.

Kissing Gannon is the closest she feels to her powers these days. The warmth that runs through her, the heat in her cheeks, the pounding of her heart – actually she takes it back. It’s not like her power at all. It’s better than her power.

“Break it up!” a man calls from across the parking garage.

Electricity shoots through Nadezh. She didn’t hear him come up behind her. She tries to pull away from Gannon, to turn and protect them, but his hands on her shoulders stop her. Her brain catches up a moment later. Gannon is relaxed, warm brown eyes still happy. The voice is familiar.

“It’s not goodbye yet,” another voice says grumpily. This time Nadezh recognizes the speaker. When her tension eases, Gannon lifts his hands long enough for her to turn and greet Flare. He drapes his arms over Nadezh’s shoulders. Flare’s eye twitches. “There’s, like, a whole elevator ride to go.”

“There’s cameras in the elevator,” Gannon says.

Nadezh still doesn’t know what to make of Gannon’s Hero team. Omit – the leader of the team – is decent. Fast, sound decisions on the field, always knows when to retreat, which is important when your team is made of B and C-rank heroes. His power – to eliminate an object from the enemy’s perception during battle – makes her uneasy. Despite his openness with her, she can’t erase the suspicion that he’s using his powers on her from her mind.

She likes Flare. The woman is bright and bubbly, almost six inches shorter than Nadezh, with all the energy of a hummingbird. Though she’s stationed on Gannon’s team, she’s in high demand across the city. There aren’t many fliers out there, and although her dragonfly wings aren’t exactly subtle, she’s fast enough and strong enough to conduct recon across Lake Michigan. Flare keeps Gannon safe when he’s out saving the world. Nobody sneaks up on them with her around.

Mostly.

“Us singles are feeling left out,” Omit says and tries to drape an arm over Flare’s shoulders.

Flare flits away. “Interview today?” she asks Nadezh.

“Right,” Nadezh says.

Gannon’s burst of surprised laughter lasts all the way to Nadezh’s floor where he waves goodbye breathlessly.

Even with his mask obstructing the crow’s feet she loves, Nadezh savors the memory of his joy all the way to her interview.

----.

Agent Briston isn’t like any other agent Nadezh has ever seen. He’s in his sixties, round, bald, and wearing a sweater vest under his regulation suit jacket. She thinks there’s a reason agents like him are kept out of sight. He looks like an easy target—no. She doesn’t think about people as targets anymore. She means that he looks like the grandfather in a commercial about watches, the one who takes the vintage watch off of his own wrist to wrap it around the grandson’s with an air of gravity.

“This interview isn’t a guarantee, despite your…recommendations,” Agent Briston says the moment Nadezh sits down. His desk has nothing but a computer, a notepad, and a pen. Somehow the harried look on his face makes it seem cluttered with paper. “We don’t have the budget for many staff. We need to be selective.”

Nadezh resists the urge to pull at the Hero Force regulation mask on her face or the power suppressors around her wrists. Part of her agreement with Foresight was that she’d wear the cuffs whenever Gannon wasn’t with her. The blue glow feels ostentatious, and she hopes Agent Briston won’t turn her down based on them. “Understood, sir.”

“Briston,” Agent Briston says. He pinches the bridge of his nose. “Only the heroes call me sir. My staff calls me Briston.”

Nadezh nods. “I’m Nadezh Mel—”

“No last names, Nadezh,” Briston says. He pulls his glasses from a desk drawer and puts them on. He squints at his computer. “Now. Tell me. Do you have accounting experience?”

“Yes, si—Briston.”

Briston’s thick white eyebrows raise and he abandons his computer to focus back on Nadezh. He seems skeptical. “Really?”

“I created the office budget for my last company,” Nadezh says. She has a better way to say this, she rehearsed this with Gannon— “My plan allowed for the purchase of new chairs and a copier.”

Briston stares at her. “You really have accounting experience.”

Did he not hear her? Or did she answer incorrectly? “I-I was also part of the team that allocated reinvestment funds—”

“Foresight’s recruits never have accounting experience.”

“—and payroll for over 500 employees—”

“Payroll!” Briston looks up at the ceiling. “She does payroll!”

“I—I’m sorry?” she says. She can’t read his tone. Is he disappointed or being sarcastic? She scrambles for her next interview answer. “I have a bachelor’s in accounting from Illinois State, but I plan to complete my master’s in the next five years—”

Briston makes a sound she’s only ever heard from frightened raccoons. “You’re hired,” Briston declares. He reaches over the desk to shake her hand. “I’ll draw up a counteroffer before noon.”

Confused, Nadezh shakes his hand. His grip is surprisingly strong. “Sir? The terms of my employment should already be in my file.” Foresight had made it clear she’d be starting at the bottom level of the pay scale.

“We aren’t paying my new director that,” Briston says. “We’ll start double that and see what they counter offer.”

“They? Aren’t you in charge of salary approvals?” Nadezh asks. Then, as his words sink in, “Director?!”

Briston beams at her. “Experience, a degree, and common sense! We’ll settle for 30% higher than the initial offer with a condition for an additional 10% at the next performance review.”

“Director,” Nadezh says. When Briston doesn’t answer, ignoring her in favor of typing feverishly, Nadesh says with surety, “You’re joking.”

Briston hums and doesn’t answer her.

“Right?”

----.

Briston isn’t joking.

Gannon takes a dazed Nadezh out for dinner and drinks to celebrate. The private room he reserves is in the back of a Japanese restaurant run by a former Superhero. There are flowers on the table, candles strategically placed around the room, soundproofing on the walls, and a chilled bottle of Nadezh's favorite white wine waiting. She processes all of this distantly. She makes Gannon read her employment contract between bites of sushi. Bemused, he dutifully announces her employed status and starting salary whenever she asks.

“Guess I shouldn’t have listened to the rumors about the department head,” Gannon says. Rather than surprised, his voice carries an element of relief. “You’re barely taking a salary cut with this.”

“Cut? This is a ten percent raise,” Nadezh hisses. She stares at her green tea. “Does Foresight know?” A jolt of sick fear floods with her. “I didn’t make Briston give me a raise, I swear!”

“Nadezh, of course you didn’t,” Gannon says. He reaches across the table to nudge at her clenched hands. Automatically, she unfurls them to reveal half-moon indents from her nails. He slides his palm against hers. “You deserve this.”

“But Foresight might think—”

“He won’t.” Gannon picks up his chopsticks with his left hand, content to let his right keep holding hers so that her dominant hand is free. He’s clumsier with them and frowns as he chases salmon roe around his plate. “Briston has almost unilateral say in the finance department. Nobody can sway him. He’s known for being short-tempered, cheap, and stubborn. I’m sure Foresight will just be grateful he finally hired someone.”

Nadezh narrows her eyes. “You said you didn’t know the person interviewing me.”

“Oops?” Gannon finally catches the salmon roe under a bite of rice and pops it in his mouth. He chews innocently. “Did I?”

“Fess up.”

“It’s not like I know a lot. People say Briston fires more than he hires.” Gannon’s eyes shift to the side. “Aaaand that he can be heard yelling whenever it’s time to calculate overtime expenses. Or whenever the armory submits their expense report. Or when the audit team comes back with city damage claims. Or when—”

Nadezh drops her head into her free hand, letting her long black hair hide her for a moment. She forgot that Hero Force accountants dealt with destroyed skyscrapers and medical leave for when you got your arms ripped off in a fight, not copiers and desk chairs. “You didn’t think to mention any of this before the interview?!”

“You were freaked out enough.” Gannon pauses in the way he does when he’s about to say what he’s really thinking so Nadezh doesn’t interrupt. She waits as he chews until he finally says, “I’m glad he bumped your salary. I was starting to feel guilty.”

Nadezh’s hand spasms around Gannon’s. “Guilty?”

“Yeah,” Gannon says. His smile didn’t reach his eyes. “I argued against making you leave your job. Said it made Hero Force the sort of organization everyone always accuses us of being. Overreaching and, well…cruel.”

“You didn’t tell me about that either.” Had he been thinking that this whole time? While she made him practice interview questions with her? Did he think she was forcing herself? The thought of Gannon feeling even a tenth of the gnawing guilt that lives inside her makes her want to throw up. Nadezh shakes her head and leans across the table. She’s glad for the private room and how it allows her to show him how his words affect her. “Babe, you don’t have anything—"

“I know how hard you worked for that job,” Gannon interrupts. He licks his lips. Now it’s his turn to stare at his tea. “Please, just…listen.”

Nadezh would do anything Gannon asked. She squeezes his hand again and fights the words bubbling up her throat like lava.

“We haven’t really talked since that day,” Gannon says. He’s a Hero; he makes himself look into her eyes. “I haven’t really talked. I’ve been afraid to. I know your past isn’t…isn’t good. I do. And I know that you don’t want to forget about it or pretend it doesn’t exist.”

She wants to, but she can’t. Like hunger and emptiness, she doesn’t think Gannon will ever understand the weight she carries from the harm she’s done. The screams she’d once reveled in now haunt her in ways she could never have guessed. But he’s talking to her, so she doesn’t explain. She listens.

“I feel like I’ve been making you give up everything for me,” Gannon confesses in a rush. He speaks faster as her eyes widen, like if he makes his sentences a big enough river, she won’t be able to dam it up. “Your first civilian job, your past, and your freedom to do whatever you want to do – because you could do anything, you really could – and even your powers.” He rubs his thumb over the underside of her wrist where the power suppressors sit during working hours. His face crumples. “Every morning, I will have to take you to put them on. It’s…I hate it. It feels like I’m abandoning you, or like I’m part of your punishment, or like I’m not being the partner you deserve.”

She starts, half rising from her seat. “Gannon! How could you—?”

His grip is strong on her hand, and he gestures for her to sit with a quick jerk of his chin. His eyes close tight. “Please, Nadezh.”

She quiets.

It takes him a long time to start speaking again. He remains quiet until he’s able to look her in the eyes again. “You…that day. The day you saved my and my team’s life.”

The day she thought her fairytale had come to an end. Even now, the memory of his blank eyes as she revealed the red and gold costume of the Firebreather, one of the world’s most notorious and deadly supervillains, follows her. The cold wind whipping across the ship’s deck, the pillars of ice gleaming in the sun, his team haltingly asking her if she was going to take over the boat…and his eyes. The pain that ripped through her when she realized she would lose him was worse than anything she’d ever experienced. It had made her realize that she’d been a shell for years until she met him, that she’d been nothing until he showed her a world where she could be someone. In that moment, she’d known that she’d wasted his time on a dead end. That their dream to get married would never be the same if it happened at all and she had robbed him in her greed.

But he remembers it as the day she saved his life rather than dooming his future.

“I became a hero to save people,” Gannon says. His lips thin. “How did I put it? That day at the diner? To share the relief of having the day saved.” His face twists in a way she can’t understand. “You must have thought I was so naïve.”

“No,” she says simply.

He raises their hands so he can kiss the back of hers. “Thank you. I think I was naïve. Being a hero seemed simple, looking at the world that way, like everyone wanted to be saved and, in turn, wanted to one day go on to save someone else. Every moment of salvation would get repaid. Good things would always happen to good people.”

Well, when he put it like that.

Gannon continues, “But when I saw you standing there, dressed as the Firebreather, being saved was…different. It was all different.” He swallows hard. “For the first time, I realized saving the day wasn’t so simple. You had to reveal your identity to do it. You had to put your freedom and everything you worked for on the sidelines. Even us. You were ready to do it even if it meant we never got the chance to be married. I could tell that you weren’t going to let that stop you. You were going to save the day. Instead of being relieved, I felt afraid.”

A small noise of protest builds in Nadezh’s throat. “Afraid of me?”

“No!” Gannon’s eyes widen and he leans over the table. “No, never. Never, Nadezh. Even when that last fireball singed the toes of my boots, I didn’t flinch for a moment. I knew you would never hurt me.”

Nadezh’s laugh is watery. “So that’s why you threw out those boots.”

“Regulation is closed toe,” Gannon says gravely. He plays with her fingers. “I was afraid because I realized there was a cost that I wasn’t willing to pay, but you were.”

“I couldn’t let you die,” Nadezh says.

“I know.” Gannon clears his throat and adjusts his grip on her hand so that he can feel her pulse against his thumb. “I know. I’m not saying that’s wrong. Just…it was hard, wasn’t it?” His brown eyes search hers. “You knew before you even left the apartment to find me that you were going to lose everything.”

“But I didn’t,” Nadezh points out.

“But that’s what you thought.”

She can’t deny that.

“Saving the day is easy when it’s just a job,” Gannon says. “That day, I realized that I’d never really been a hero. It was a job, an important one, but not one that was going to take anything I wasn’t willing to give. That same job was the reason I let myself just stand there as Hero Force took you into custody. Like a coward. I hate myself for that moment.” His voice is raw with the admission. His free hand curls into a fist. “I should have run with you then.”

Nadezh barks a disbelieving laugh. It’s inappropriate, but the idea of Hero Zone, the most honorable hero in Chicago, running away with a supervillain is ridiculous. She hides her incredulity. “That’s—”

“I’m serious, Nadezh.” Gannon’s eyes burn through her, gaze unflinching. Her pulse jumps under his thumb. “I still think that. We could run now. Settle down somewhere and be civilians. Never show up on Hero Force radar again. Like Bonnie and Clyde hiding out from the law.”

“That’s not funny.” Try as she might, Nadezh can’t find any trace of humor on Gannon’s face. Her eyes dart around the room. When she can’t find any cameras, she leans forward and hisses, “Don’t even joke about that. You love being a hero.”

“I love being with you,” Gannon says. This time when he smiles the mole under his eye disappears with the force of it. “I told you, all I want is to marry you. No job will ever be worth more than that. So…” His smile wavers for a moment before he fixes it in place. “What do you say? Will you run away with me?”

Fuck. Her mind leaps ahead. They could get a place in the mountains. She knows how much Gannon misses his hometown on the East Coast. His family has long since disappeared from those ridges and valleys, but she can see him there, facing the sun with his arms held over his head in triumph. A field sprawled out below him blooms with green and a house sits just beyond that with a gently smoking chimney. Could she belong there too? With him?

Gannon mistakes her silence. “You wouldn’t have to wear the power suppressors ever again or worry about Briston yelling or what Hero Force will make you do. It could be just you and me like we always imagined. Together.”

Is he pleading with her? Begging her to say yes?

There will always be a part of her that wants to. The greedy and selfish part that wants to keep him all to herself, like the doll in her childhood that unraveled at the seams after only a month. The part of her that could hide him away is familiar. Too familiar.

“No.”

Gannon’s face falls. “No?”

“Not because I don’t want us,” she assures. Somehow, she feels lighter. Is this what’s been sitting silently between them this whole time? She could laugh. “I do. But I think you’re misunderstanding something. You’re not the reason why I’m cooperating with Hero Force.” She thinks over her words and then rephrases. “You’re not the only reason.”

“I’m not?” Gannon backtracks. “I mean, it’s not a problem if I’m not, but I thought…well. I thought given what you said in the interrogation room…”

“You will always be the love of my life,” Nadezh says. She finds the words as she says them. She’s had a lot of time to think about this – Gannon is not the first one to think what it’d be like to run away. “That will never change. It’s just…” Private room, she reminds herself. No one will be able to hear. She confesses, “I want to change. I don’t want to be the Firebreather anymore.”

“You’re not!”

Keep him, no one can stop you, power suppressors barely work once we really get up to temperature—Nadezh stops those thoughts firmly in their tracks. “There are parts of me that still are. I was afraid when I revealed who I was, but since then look how far I’ve come. You know all of me and you’re still here.” She lets her wonder and hope leak into her voice. Some mornings she wakes up to him by her side and can’t fathom how the universe let someone with hands as stained as hers have something so good. “I have a job. I have a way to give back for all the harm I caused. I…I think confronting my past has given me a chance to grow like I haven’t done before. A year ago, I couldn’t even accept the proposal from the man I love more than life itself. Now? I know that I can walk into work every day and have those power suppressors put on me by Hero Force -not you - and I can hold my head high.”

“Not me? Nadezh, I’m your containment,” Gannon says. His expression is tortured in the candlelight. “You say it’s Hero Force, but it’s me. I’m the one holding you back. Foresight said that Firebreather was sufficiently contained by my side, he awarded me custody—”

“Are you feeling guilty over that?” Nadezh’s mouth drops open. “Gannon, seriously?”

“I feel like I’m choosing to be your captor over being your fiancé,” Gannon says.

“Just like how you knew I would never hurt you, I know you would never hurt me. I wouldn’t even have to use my powers. I know the second I didn’t want to put those cuffs on, you wouldn’t.”

“I’m still—”

“No.” Nadezh won’t allow any room for confusion here. “Gannon. Stop. I am the one choosing to do this. That day I gave you a choice, remember? I said that you could walk away and I would be—” fine is a strong word “—I would understand. I was going to keep the memory of us agreeing to get married and let you walk away.”

There’s gravel in Gannon’s voice. He reaches across the table to capture her other hand. “I would never change my mind.”

“I believe you.” He was patient with her, waiting for her to believe it. She holds his hands back. “I believe you. So here’s what I’m asking. You gave me a choice just now. Stay or run away. Please believe me when I say I want to stay.”

“Even if it means I have to be your captor?” he asks, anguished.

She nearly snaps at the question. Isn’t he listening to what she’s saying? His tone stills her. She studies him. His eyes are teary, and she can feel his hands tremble in hers. “This really bothers you.”

He nods wordlessly.

She tries to put herself in his shoes. She imagines that he’s working as a henchman who used to be a hero. She imagines putting cuffs on him before work every day, knowing that he’d be helpless if the Villain ever decided to turn on him—She winces. “Maybe we can ask Omit to put on the cuffs instead?”

“I…we could try that,” Gannon says after a long moment. He breathes in through his nose. Out through his mouth. In through his nose. Then, “I really ruined this celebration dinner, huh?”

She snorts. Both of their eyes are red and swollen despite neither of them crying. “This is about how most of my celebration dinners have gone. Better, actually. Nobody is screaming and nothing’s on fire.”

“Yet,” Gannon says.

“See? There’s still hope.” They’ve been talking for so long that her wine is warm. She grimaces as she swallows. “Hey, captor? I think it’s time you took me to a secondary location.”

“That’s not funny.” Despite his words, Gannon’s lips twitch as he stands and pushes in his chair. “I’m really upset about that.”

Nadezh follows him to the door. She caresses his shoulder, ostensibly checking him for dust, but really needing the contact. “Should I comfort you?”

Gannon drops back to put his arm around her shoulders. “Hmmm, keep talking.”

“I think I have Stockholm syndrome—”

“I change my mind. No more talking.”

Nadezh laughs. “Riiiight.”

It’s not perfect. Nadezh knows that the conversation isn’t over. There’s a guardedness in Gannon she’s never seen before when talking about Hero Force. He doesn’t believe her, not yet. But that’s okay.

She’ll be around to convince him.

(Except for 9am-5pm Monday through Friday. She somehow doesn’t think Briston would take kindly to a hero responsible for flooding the docks every other week hanging around the office.)

----

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#my writing #my superpower #nadezh and gannon #heterosexual romance #fantasy writing #original writing #superheroes #third person #long post

969 notes · View notes

reiding-writing · 2 months ago

Note

Heyyyy, I think it would be soo cool if you could write a scenario where cold!reader actually works a case like idk but yk the typical talking w witnesses or family members.

I also would loveee to know what her interrogation style is like, morgen was always pretty aggressive and Hotch was always so straightforward etc. so I would love to know how she interrogates suspects.

Have a nice one, ly and ur work sm !! ^_^

THE REID TECHNIQUE. /spencer reid/

you volunteer to interview a middle-aged woman suspected of kidnapping a little girl.

cold!reader 4.2k series masterlist. main masterlist.

a/n | had this one in the works for a few weeks after learning about the reid technique in my forensic psych lecture ✊

The clock above the whiteboard marks every second with an unforgiving tick. It's been twelve hours since the child, eight years old, brown hair in braids, green jacket, was last seen.

You know too well how thin the margins are.

“Local PD has brought in a suspect. Margaret Ellery. Lives four streets over from the family. No hard evidence yet, just circumstantial.” Hotch discards his phone in his pocket.

You push off the table, the movement casual, but inside something sharp and certain slices through the haze. Margaret Ellery. The name means nothing to the others yet, just another possibility. To you, it burns.

“They've got CCTV placing her car near the park at the estimated time of abduction,” Emily says, flicking through images on her tablet. “No witnesses saw the actual snatch, but...” She hesitates. “It’s something,”

“Something," you echo, voice flat.

You can feel Spencer’s gaze flick towards you from his desk. You don’t look at him. If you do, he’ll see it—the thing coiling under your skin, the certainty you can’t explain.

You know it was her.

The others begin discussing who should lead the interview, voices overlapping—Emily suggesting herself, Morgan arguing the woman might respond better to a softer touch—and for a moment, you let them talk.

Then, calmly, you speak.

“I’ll do it.”

The words drop like stones into the room.

The conversation stalls. Morgan frowns, one eyebrow lifting. Hotch studies you, impassive. Spencer’s pencil stills in his hand.

You don’t volunteer for interrogations. Everyone knows it. You only step in when everything else has failed—the nuclear option. The last resort.

You have built your reputation on results, not likability. You dismantle people, piece by piece, until there's nothing left but the truth. It's not pretty. It's not kind. It's necessary.

But this time, without waiting for anyone to fail, you want it.

Hotch’s mouth tightens into a line. He doesn’t like it, but he also knows better than to argue when you make that face—the one you wear now, cold and still, like a weapon waiting to be drawn.

“Are you certain?” he asks.

You nod once. Precise. Final.

“She’s guilty,” you say. Not a question. Not a theory. A statement of fact.

“How do you know?” Emily asks, cautious.

You flick your gaze to her, then away again. You don't explain things like this. You never have. You just know.

Hotch’s brow furrows. “You’re sure?”

You nod once. Crisp. Certain.

“I can get her to talk.”

He hesitates. You don’t blame him. It’s not just that they’re worried about the woman cracking under your methods, it’s that they’re worried you will push too hard, dig too deep, and leave something broken beyond repair—something in her, something in yourself.

But there’s no time for cautious sensibilities. There’s a child missing. The longer they dither, the colder the trail gets.

Hotch considers for a beat longer, then relents with a sharp nod. “On your lead.”

Morgan shifts his weight, clearly cautious. “I’ll second,”

“No.”

Hotch exhales slowly, measuring you with a look that’s half reluctant approval, half silent warning. “You know the protocol.”

You incline your head with a sigh of exasperation. You know it backwards.

“I work better alone,” you say calmly, before he can open his mouth to suggest otherwise.

That’s non-negotiable. You’ve explained it a thousand times—too many cooks spoil the broth. Too many variables ruin the interrogation. One misplaced glance, one ill-timed question, one unspoken judgement radiating off a team member— it can destroy hours of work.

No one interrupts you when you’re working. No one even breathes too loudly.

Hotch nods once. Reluctant but resigned.

“Room Three,” he says. “She’s waiting.”

You turn sharply on your heel, the heels of your boots clicking lightly against the floor, and make your way down the corridor without looking back.

Behind you, the team watches you go in silence.

Spencer’s gaze lingers the longest.

He understands. Not completely—no one ever could—but enough.

Enough to know that once you step into that room, you’ll become something else. Something sharper. Harder. Merciless in your precision.

And God help the woman on the other side of the glass.

—

You pause outside the interrogation room, hand resting lightly on the door handle. Through the one-way glass, you see her: hunched, fidgeting, a picture of nervous innocence.

She’s shorter than you expected. Plumper. Her hands twist nervously at the hem of her cardigan.

She looks like someone’s kindly aunt. To the untrained eye, she might seem harmless. Sad, even.

You don’t let it fool you.

You close your eyes for a moment. Centre yourself.

This is not about rage. Rage clouds the senses. This is about control. Subtlety. Precision.

When you open your eyes again, you’re a blank slate.

The woman jumps slightly at your entrance. Good. She’s on edge already. You file the information away for later use.

You close the door with a soft click and cross to the chair opposite her, sitting down with a deliberate, unhurried grace. You say nothing for a long moment, simply studying her, letting the silence stretch taut between you.

She fidgets again, clearing her throat. Her eyes flicker up to meet yours and then away, unable to hold your gaze.

You watch her, utterly still.

Already, you can see the cracks beginning to form.

You offer a thin, perfunctory smile.

“Good afternoon,” you introduce yourself, voice low and even. “I’m going to ask you a few questions, alright?”

She licks her lips nervously. “I already told the others— I didn’t do anything,”

You tilt your head slightly. Not a challenge, not an agreement. Just an acknowledgement.

“Of course,” you say smoothly. “We’ll go over everything again. Just to be thorough.”

You slide a thin manilla file onto the table between you. The movement is calm, almost lazy.

In reality, every microexpression, every twitch of her fingers, every catch in her breath — you’re cataloguing all of it.

You see guilt. Not the guilt of a wrongfully accused woman, but the heavy, aching guilt of someone who knows precisely what they’ve done and is terrified of the consequences.

You suppress the flicker of satisfaction that rises in your chest.

This will be easier than you thought.

You fold your hands neatly on the table.

“Let’s begin.”

You watch her closely, noting the way her shoulders stiffen under your gaze. She’s nervous.

“I’d first like to briefly remind you that you don’t have to answer any question that you’re uncomfortable with, and you have the right to an attorney if you require one,” You keep your tone measured, almost conversational, as you begin. “This interview is being recorded, and can be submitted as evidence if needed in court,”

Margret’s response is nothing more than a brief nod, and you quickly move on.

“We’ve spoken to several people who know you, Margaret,” you say, glancing briefly at the file in front of you for show, though you don’t need to. You know the contents backwards already. “Your neighbours speak highly of you. Friendly. Involved. Always ready to lend a hand.”

She swallows, nodding a little. As if being agreeable will somehow absolve her.

You continue, letting the words come slowly, giving them weight.

“You knew the Hartleys quite well?”

She shifts uncomfortably in her seat, hands twisting harder in the hem of her cardigan. “We… we live near each other, yes. I used to babysit for them sometimes, when Claire was first back at work,”

You incline your head, as if pleased by the admission. You knew that information already of course, but the fact that she’s supplying the truth to you early is a good sign.

“And you’ve stayed in touch since then?”

Her mouth twists slightly. “Not really. They… they got busy. New friends. Things change,”

You let the silence settle for a beat, as if considering that. Then you lean forward, just slightly, enough that the space between you shrinks.

“The thing is,” you say, voice still calm, almost gentle, “we have several witnesses who say they saw your car near Westwood Park yesterday afternoon.”

You watch her stiffen, the flicker of fear crossing her face before she can mask it. You press on, smooth and relentless.

“That’s the park where Elsie Hartley was last seen.”

Her mouth opens, then closes again. She shakes her head, a tight, jerky movement.

“I must have been passing through. I had errands— the shops—”

You raise an eyebrow, unimpressed. “At four-thirty in the afternoon?”

She falters. You don’t need to press the point yet. Just plant the seed. Let it fester.

You sit back again, steepling your fingers lightly.

“We’re not here to attack you, Margaret,” you say, voice dropping slightly. Softer. Sympathetic. “We just want to understand what happened.”

Her eyes dart to the door briefly. You catch the movement, file it away. Already thinking of escape.

You won’t allow it.

“Things happen to people,” you continue, letting your voice thicken just slightly with understanding. “Painful things. Things that change how we see the world.”

You see the way she flinches, barely perceptible. A tiny tell, but enough.

Good. She’s listening now. Feeling now.

“Tell me about your daughter,” you say quietly.

Her face crumples before she can stop it, a raw flash of grief, there and gone.

She tries to cover it up, sitting up straighter, forcing a small, brittle smile.

“She… passed away. A long time ago.”

You nod slowly. “Nine years.”

Her hands clench into fists in her lap.

You lean in again, lowering your voice further.

“Grief can… distort things,” you murmur. “It can make you see injustice where there is none. It can make you desperate to fix something, to make up for what you lost.”

Her breathing has quickened. You see the pulse hammering at her throat.

“Sometimes,” you continue, “it makes people do things they never thought themselves capable of. Good people. Kind people. People who were simply… overwhelmed by sadness.”

She’s trembling now. Just slightly. You act as though you don’t notice.

“You saw Elsie playing in the park,” you say softly. “Maybe you thought her parents didn’t appreciate her enough. Maybe you thought you could give her the love your own daughter never got to fully experience.”

Tears are brimming in her eyes now, but she’s fighting them. Fighting herself.

She shakes her head weakly. “I didn’t— I wouldn’t—”

You don’t argue. You don’t contradict her.

You simply sit back, offering a small, understanding nod.

“Of course you didn’t mean for things to get so complicated. You just wanted to make things right.”

The denial is there, trembling on her lips, but you ignore it.

You pivot neatly, seamlessly, back to the facts.

“You said you were running errands,” you say, as if returning to a mundane detail. “Tell me about that. Which shops?”

She stares at you, panic flickering behind her eyes. She wasn't ready for the shift. That’s the point.

“I— I went to 7-Eleven. And then… the pharmacy. I had a prescription,”

You scribble something meaningless onto your pad, nodding slowly.

“The pharmacy?” you echo. “Do you have the receipt?”

She freezes.

“No,” she says after a moment. “I must have thrown it away,”

You don’t react. You just jot down another line.

“Which 7-Eleven?” you ask, tone still mild.

She blinks. “The one on Briar Lane,”

You hum thoughtfully, making another note. She’s lying. You know it. And she knows you know it.

You give her another moment to stew in her own fear before steering the conversation back.

“Funny thing, Margaret,” you say, lightly conversational, “we pulled CCTV from Briar Lane yesterday. The store, the pharmacy, the petrol station.”

You look up, meeting her eyes directly for the first time since you sat down.

“You’re not on any of it.”

The colour drains from her face.

You don’t press. Not yet. Let her feel the walls closing in. Let her suffocate on the inevitability of it.

She shifts in her seat, wringing her hands.

“I must have got the times wrong,” she mutters weakly.

“Of course,” you say smoothly. “It’s easy to get confused. Especially when you’re upset.”

She clings to the lifeline you’ve thrown her, nodding desperately.

“Yes. Yes, I was… distracted,”

You offer her a small, almost pitying smile.

“I understand, Margaret. Truly. No one’s here to judge you.”

Another beat of silence. You watch her, patient and unblinking.

“I can see how hard this is for you,” you say after a moment, voice softening again. “Reliving yesterday. Remembering what happened.”

Her mouth trembles. She presses her lips together tightly, like a child trying not to cry.

“I didn’t… I didn’t take her,” she says, almost whispering.

You nod thoughtfully, as if weighing her words.

“Of course,” you say again. Calm. Unthreatening.

Then, without warning, you steer the conversation right back to the beginning.

“Tell me again what you were doing between three and five yesterday afternoon.”

Her face crumples. She wasn’t ready for the cycle to start again.

But you are tireless. Patient. Merciless.

That’s the thing about interrogations — it’s not the dramatic threats or slammed fists on the table that break people. It’s the relentlessness. The subtle erosion of certainty, the slow dismantling of lies.

She tries again.

“I was at home, actually. I remembered— after the pharmacy I went home. I didn’t feel well.”

“Hmm,” you hum noncommittally. “Your neighbour said they saw your car leave around two, and you didn’t return until gone six.”

You tilt your head, watching her carefully.

“They must be mistaken,” she says quickly, too quickly.

You don’t argue. You just let the inconsistency hang there between you, a slow, toxic drip of doubt.

The denials come more frequently now, growing more desperate with each cycle.

“I wasn’t near the park.”

“I don’t even know where she disappeared from.”

“I just… I was having a bad day.”

You let each one slide past you without reaction, without resistance.

Each time she throws out a denial, you seamlessly redirect — not forcefully, not aggressively, but subtly, like water flowing around a stone.

Back to the CCTV.

Back to the witnesses.

Back to her tangled, faltering story.

You give her a moment to stew in her latest denial. Watch the way she clutches at the hem of her cardigan like it’s a lifeline. Her breathing is shallow now, you can almost hear it hitching every few seconds.

She’s trying to believe her own lies. Trying to build walls faster than you can knock them down.

You lean back slightly in your chair, as if relaxing, as if you have all the time in the world. Then you let your voice slip into a more analytical register.

“Let’s review what we know,” you say, tapping your pen lightly against the table.

The soft sound makes her flinch. Good.

“Your neighbour saw your car leave at two o’clock sharp. CCTV from Briar Lane shows you were not at the pharmacy or the store, as you claimed. In fact—” you pause, leafing slowly through the papers on your clipboard, letting the moment stretch, “—your car was picked up again. Not in Briar Lane. But parked a block from Westwood Park.”

You place a printed image on the table between you: the grainy still of a pale blue Volvo estate. Her car. The timestamp in the corner reads 4:14 p.m.

Margaret pales visibly, staring at it.

“That’s not me,” she whispers, voice breaking.

You arch a brow, slow and sceptical.

“Registration plates don’t lie.”

She opens her mouth. Closes it. Her eyes are wild now, darting across the table, as if searching for some unseen escape hatch.

You press the advantage mercilessly, but with a surgeon’s precision.

“You told us you were at home,” you say calmly. “Yet your vehicle was a block away from the site of a child’s abduction.”

You let the words hang heavily in the air. They don’t need dressing up. They’re lethal enough.

“I just— I just parked for a bit. I wasn’t feeling well—”

You shake your head, slow and deliberate.

“No pharmacy visit. No store. No proof of you being anywhere else.”

You place another sheet on the table, another CCTV still, this time capturing her figure, blurred but unmistakeable, moving across the park entrance at 4:20 p.m.

“Witnesses place you in the vicinity. Cameras place you there. Your alibi doesn’t hold.”

Her lips tremble. You can see the walls crumbling now, piece by piece.

You don’t drive the knife in yet.

Instead, you shift your posture — lean forward, just slightly, closing the space between you by mere inches.

Subtle, calculated.

Not enough to threaten. Just enough to pull her attention inward, to focus it entirely on you.

You keep your gaze steady, non-threatening but utterly unwavering.

Your body language speaks louder than your words. I am your only way out of this.

Margaret's eyes flicker between your face and the photographs, her breath hitching audibly now.

You watch as the fight starts to bleed out of her.

Still, you’re careful. She’s fragile now. One wrong move and she’ll retreat into full panic, barricade herself behind the last reserves of her denial.

You soften your expression by degrees. Let the razor edge dull into something gentler. More… understanding.

Margaret sniffs loudly, wiping at her eyes with trembling fingers. Her composure is breaking apart under the sheer, relentless weight of the truth pressing down on her.

“I just—” she chokes. “I didn’t— I didn’t plan anything—”

You allow a small, almost imperceptible nod. Not agreement. Just… acceptance.

You lower your voice, pitch it softer.

“I know, Margaret,” you say quietly. “I believe you. You were overwhelmed. You weren’t thinking straight. You saw a little girl alone, vulnerable—”

“She was sitting by herself!” Margaret blurts suddenly, anguished. “Just swinging on those stupid swings— and no one— no one was watching—!”

The confession hangs there, raw and shaking.

You don’t react. Don’t let the triumph show. You simply soften further, offering a small, almost maternal tilt of your head.

“You wanted to keep her safe,” you murmur. “Like any mother would.”

Margaret’s face crumples. Tears spill over at last, fat and helpless.

You fold your hands neatly on the table. Stay calm. Stay steady. Be the lighthouse in her storm.

—

“She’s using phased psychological reinforcement,” Spencer says quietly, almost in awe. Like you’ve never quite been so alluring.

Emily glances at him. “In English, please?”

Spencer shifts slightly, tapping his fingers against the glass in a subtle rhythm.

“She’s employing the Reid Technique,” he explains. “It has nine stages that are worked through in order to achieve a state of psychological comfort that elicits more honesty from the suspect,”

“The Reid technique?” Emily raised an eyebrow.

“It’s uh, named after John Reid, he was a police officer in Chicago during the 1950s. It revolutionised formal interviewing, although it’s actually very difficult to implement in practice, because if the suspect catches on then they’re likely to shut down,”

He nods towards you, still composed, still relentless inside the room.

“She’s between stage four and stage five right now— Addressing why the suspect hasn’t confessed, and using mirroring tactics to keep the suspect engaged,”

Morgan hums low under his breath, arms crossed tightly over his chest. “Sounds scientific,” he goads.

—

Margaret hiccups through her tears, twisting the sleeves of her cardigan into knots.

“I didn’t—” she whispers again.

You make no move to comfort her. You don’t offer tissues. You don't even shift your posture.

You simply remain present. Solid. Reassuring by your very stillness. In her shattered mind, you are the only constant left. Exactly where you want her.

You let the silence stretch just long enough for Margaret to drown in it, her sobs the only sound filling the sterile room.

Then, softly, so gently it’s almost a caress, you push the conversation where it needs to go.

“Margaret,” you say, voice low but firm, threading compassion through every syllable, “I’m not here to judge you.”

She drags her tear-reddened eyes up to meet yours, desperate and wide.

You offer the smallest of smiles. Not kind. Not cruel. Just human.

“You loved your daughter, right?”

Her face crumples. She gives a broken little nod, a whimper catching in her throat.

You lower your voice even further, until it's barely above a whisper. “And now there's this... ache. This emptiness. It’s unbearable, isn’t it?”

She presses her sleeve to her mouth, trying to smother another sob.

You let the moment hang there, let her sit in the shared understanding you’ve carefully, ruthlessly constructed.

“Were you trying to cause trouble, Margaret?” you ask, tilting your head ever so slightly, as if puzzled. “Or were you simply trying to give that little girl the love you never got to finish giving your daughter?”

It’s everything.

It’s everything she’s been trying to make sense of for the last twelve hours.

And you’ve handed it to her, neatly gift-wrapped, an explanation she can live with.

Her face crumples entirely.

“I didn’t mean to hurt anyone,” she wails, folding in on herself. “I just— I just saw her— all alone— they weren’t even watching her! She was just sitting there, swinging by herself, and I thought—”

She breaks off, hiccupping on a sob.

You remain silent, giving her the space to pour it out.

“I thought— she deserves better. Someone who’d see her. Someone who’d love her properly. I could— I could do that. I could give her what she needed.”

Tears stream down her face now, unchecked.

“She’s happy with me,” Margaret insists desperately, as if trying to convince herself as much as you. “She’s smiling. She’s laughing. I’ve never— I’ve never seen her laugh like that. Not once when she was with them.”

You allow yourself a single, careful breath.

But you’re not finished yet.

You shift your tone again, turning almost maternal, gentle and firm.

“Margaret,” you say, leaning in just a fraction, letting her feel the sincerity. “I believe you care for her. I do.”

It’s not a lie. Margaret does care. In her own warped, desperate way. “But she’s scared. She misses her family. She needs to come home.”

Margaret sobs harder, hands shaking so badly she nearly knocks the water cup off the table.

“Help me bring her home safely, Margaret. Please.”

For a long, fragile moment, she just cries.

And then, brokenly, she nods.

“She’s—” she mumbles through the tears. “12A, Eversham Court… I made up the spare room for her, I got her toys and clothes—”

She’s rambling now, stumbling over herself to spill every detail she can think of.

You don’t interrupt.

Outside the room, you know Hotch will already be sending officers to the location, moving fast but discreetly.

Time still matters. Every second counts.

Everything has been recorded. Every word, every sob, every admission captured, preserved, incontrovertible.

You stand slowly, gathering the papers with smooth efficiency.

As you move towards the door, Margaret’s voice breaks behind you, small and shuddering.

“I didn’t mean to hurt her,” she says again, voice thick with tears. “Tell them that. Please. Tell them I just wanted to love her—”

You pause, hand on the doorframe, and glance back over your shoulder.

Your face gives away nothing.

“I’ll tell them,” you say simply.

It’s not a promise. Not really. But it’s enough.

The door opens with a quiet click. Uniformed officers step inside, moving with trained efficiency.

Margaret doesn’t fight. She’s too broken to resist. She sobs helplessly as they read her her rights, the words barely cutting through her cries of apology. “I’m sorry,” she gasps as they cuff her. “I’m so sorry—”

You watch silently for a moment as they lead her away.

She’s still crying. Still apologising to no one in particular.

You feel no satisfaction. No triumph. Just the faint, hollow weight of inevitability.

You step back into the corridor, letting the door swing shut behind you.

The others are waiting. Hotch nods once at you, brisk and approving. Emily looks grim but relieved. Morgan mutters something under his breath that sounds like "damn," but you don’t linger on it.

Your gaze flicks automatically to Spencer.

He’s watching you the way he always does after you work. Not with fear, not with pity, but with something quieter. Something sharper.

Admiration. And something almost akin to academic attraction.

“Seven minutes, twenty two seconds,”

You don’t smile. You don’t say a word. You simply walk past him, your boots clicking steadily down the hall.

New record.

#cold!reader ᝰ.ᐟ #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid #criminal minds #criminal minds x reader #mgg #spencer reid fluff #criminal minds fluff #spencer reid angst #criminal minds angst

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goorgeousz · 2 months ago

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work boundaries | aaron hotchner

after hours au

work boundaries | aaron hotchner

after hours au

pairing: aaron hotchner x female reader

summary: after sleeping with a random man you met at a bar and later finding out he was your unit chief, you have a very awkward meeting. pt 1 here.

content/tw: awkward conversation, bau!reader, sexual tension, bold!reader, reader is a flirt, use pf y/n (once)

word count: 0.8k

a/n: hey guys, thank you so much for all the feedbacks on my first post! You made me so happy I wanted to give you something. I’m so excited for this series, prepare for hotch to be longing #bringbackmanwhoyearns

I hope you enjoy it :)

after hours masterlist

main masterlist

“Close the door on your way out, Garcia” Hotch, your unit chief — and the guy you spent last night with — said, an invitation for her to leave implied.

She nodded, understanding immediately and leaving his office, but not before winking excitedly at you.

“Agent…”

That’s when you started talking.

“Listen, I know what you’re going to say. What happened between us was crazy. Batshit. I had no idea you were THE A. Hotchner. I mean, I knew your name was Aaron Hotchner, obviously, just that the name I associated with you was just Hotchner. And last night you introduced yourself as Aaron, and besides some BAU interviews here and there, I’ve never given you a proper look. I’ve been on an undercover mission for the past two years and I couldn’t have any contact with police enforcement, as you probably read on my file…” your voice trailed off when you saw the confused look on his face “You weren’t going to talk about that… were you?”

He sighed “Let’s sit.” You followed his lead, sitting across from him at his desk. He sighed — again — and intertwined his fingers. “I think it goes without saying that what happened last night has to stay between us. We crossed every possible professional boundary, with me being your direct superior, and I have no intention whatsoever of ever letting it happen again…”

“Wait” you interrupted “You don’t need to dump me” “I’m not dumping you.”

“Well it sure seems like it.”

“I’m just establishing work boundaries.”

“Unnecessarily. It’s not like I’m begging you to sleep with me again. I’m not.”

“I never said you were.” “The way you said it sounded like last night only happened because you let it. I let it happen too.” he frowned.

“So you want me to blame you?”

“No. I’m saying that we both wanted it and we both let it happen…”

“Agent,” he interrupted, “There’s no need for us to argue over this. We’re on the same page, it was a mistake that won’t happen again.” he arched an eyebrow “Right?”

“Exactly.”

“Perfect.”

“And we won’t tell anyone, obviously. I don’t need the team to think my boss is playing favorites with me just because we had crazy good sex.”

“YL/N” he scolded, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Sorry… Just trying to break the awkwardness.”

“Please, don’t.”

“Ok, sorry again.” he just nodded, deciding not to address it.

“Not that that’s cleared out.” he gave you a pointed look, silently warning you to not bring it up again “You have a really impressive resume.”

You had to bite your tongue to stop yourself from asking if he was flirting with you – as a joke, of course.

“Thank you, sir.” – great, now even being respectful sounded pornographic.

“Are you familiar with what we do here in the B.A.U?” “Yes. It was always a plan to join the team. That’s why I chose forensic psychology.” you shrugged, finally becoming more comfortable.

“I believe you’re going to be a great addition to this team.” you smiled “Now let’s get you to meet them.”

—

“Ok, now let’s address the elephant in the room.” Morgan said, sitting on the edge of his desk.

Later, after Hotch introduced you to the rest of the team, he gave you a tour of the building, showing you how everything works. While you were at it, Morgan, Penelope, JJ, Emily, Rossi and Reid sat together at the bullpen, mugs in hand and ready to debrief your arrival.

“Yes, please.” Emily yelped, spinning around on her chair to face the rest.

“What do you mean?” Reid asked, glancing up from his paperwork.

“Really? Little IQ 187 didn’t notice something weird between hotch and her?” JJ pointed at your new desk, across from Emily's.

“A lot of tension, indeed” Rossi chimed in quietly, not wanting to gossip about his friend.

“Sexual tension. A L-O-T” Emily spelled it out, dramatizing.

“Oh, that.” Spencer said “I don’t think it can be called elephant in the room. It’s pretty obvious. Quite literally written on their faces.” they all laughed.

“Do you think they’ve met before?” JJ asked, to anyone in particular.

“Oh, for sure. When I was there, it felt like something was wrong.” Garcia said.

“What exactly? Give us something, babygirl”

“I can’t point my finger at it. Something about the way he looked at her. Or it was her… I don’t know, you’re the profiler!”

“We’ll have to wait.” Rossi reflected.

“Ugh, my least favorite thing to do.” Garcia groaned.

The group suspiciously dissipated as soon as you and Hotch stepped into the room.

With a pointed look, he left you to settle on your desk and returned to his own office – closed door and all.

You could do this – you thought to yourself finally sitting down, the memories of him still too fresh on your mind and on your aching legs. But you were going to forget it.

Eventually.

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naccfi · 1 year ago

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What Are Best Practices When Forensically Interviewing A Child?

When it comes to forensic interviews of children, the stakes are high, and the process requires a delicate touch. Certified forensic interviewers, armed with specialized training, play a pivotal role in extracting accurate information while safeguarding the well-being of the child involved.

Building Trust through Certified Expertise

Certified forensic interviewers bring a unique skill set to the table, emphasizing the establishment of trust and rapport with the child. Their training equips them to create a supportive environment, ensuring that the child feels safe and comfortable throughout the interview.

Age-Appropriate Communication

One key aspect of forensic interview training is mastering age-appropriate communication. A certified forensic interviewer tailors their language to the child's developmental stage, steering clear of jargon and employing open-ended questions to encourage the child to express themselves freely.

Recognizing Developmental Factors

Understanding the developmental nuances of children is crucial in forensic interviews. Certified professionals adapt their techniques based on the child's cognitive abilities, recognizing limitations in memory, attention span, and comprehension of abstract concepts.

Neutral Settings for Unbiased Accounts

Certified forensic interviewers prioritize conducting interviews in neutral settings. This strategic choice helps eliminate potential distractions or intimidation factors, allowing the child to share information without undue influence.

Involving Trained Professionals

Forensic interviews of children should exclusively be conducted by certified professionals with specialized training in child forensic interviewing techniques. These experts are attuned to the impact of leading questions and employ non-intrusive techniques to extract reliable information.

Non-Intrusive Techniques for Authentic Accounts

A hallmark of certified forensic interviewers is their mastery of non-intrusive techniques. Steering clear of suggestive methods, they use open-ended questions to elicit authentic accounts from the child, avoiding any potential contamination of the information.

Documenting the Process

Certified forensic interviewers understand the importance of meticulous documentation. Every detail, from the context to the child's responses, is documented thoroughly. This comprehensive record becomes invaluable for legal purposes, ensuring the accuracy and reliability of the information gathered.

Emotional Support in the Interview Environment

Certified professionals prioritize creating a supportive environment during forensic interviews. Recognizing the potential emotional impact on the child, they allow the presence of a support person, such as a caregiver, to provide emotional reassurance throughout the process.

Continuous Training and Professional Development

The field of forensic interviews of children is dynamic, and certified forensic interviewers are committed to continuous training and professional development. Staying abreast of the latest research and best practices ensures they are equipped with the most effective techniques.

In conclusion, the art of forensic interviews of children is a specialized field where certified forensic interviewers play a crucial role. Through their unique skills, these professionals prioritize the child's well-being, employ age-appropriate techniques, and stay at the forefront of best practices, unlocking the secrets while maintaining the integrity of the process.

#children #education #Forensic Interview #high school

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augustjoy · 4 months ago

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Come bother me, baby.

Based on the following post: Inspo you are the bane of young Aaron's existence - back when he was just an agent under Gideon and Rossi. A pain in his ass…so when you transfer to avoid your feelings for him, he begs you to come back. Okay listen, I know that Hotch didn’t really work under Rossi in the beginning, as Rossi had already left…but we’re all gonna pretend for the sake of this fic. Also – Haley just never existed in this, and that’s ok.

Aaron Hotchner x BAU! Fem Reader

Fluff

Word count: 4164

REQUESTS ARE OPEN - not edited - please be kind. Requests are open and feedback is welcome if it's constructive!

Warnings: My blog is 18+, minors DNI, female reader, she/her pronouns, age gap (Hotch is 28 and reader is 25), some explicit language, canon typical violence, mentions of case details, reader has experienced the loss of her parents, mention of holidays, mention of food/eating. Mention of reader being a mom, inaccurate timelines, let me know if I missed anything!!!

I do not consent to having my work translated or reposted to any other site. That being said I do not own the characters portrayed in this story.

July 1993

The year was 1993, Jason Gideon and David Rossi were just granted permission to hire two agents to expand the team. They agreed that they would each pick an agent, that way there’d be no room to argue. They interviewed a total of 17 potential candidates, 13 of those were interviewed by Rossi and the other 4 by Gideon.

Aaron Hotchner had been the 7th file in Rossi’s stack, it was an impressive resume, one that was filled with cases he’d worked as a prosecutor, and then a number of cases he’d worked as a profiler in the Seattle Field office. He now was here in Quantico, Virginia, hoping to gain a spot on the BAU. To Rossi, Aaron had stood out amongst the others, he’d sat through all 13 interviews, and nobody could match the passion for this position like Aaron had. It had been an easy choice.

You had been the 2nd file in Gedeon’s stack, and honestly he’d been let down by his first candidate…so when you walked in, more than qualified for this position, he excused the other two candidates. He didn’t feel the need to interview them, his gut told him you were the right choice. Your file had been padded with your numerous degrees varying from bachelor's degrees in psychology and criminology, to a master’s degree in forensic psychology, ending with a PhD in psychology. For the last year you’d been working in the Phoenix field office as a profiler. And while you didn’t have a ton of field experience, Gideon had been thoroughly impressed with your tenacity and overall enthusiasm for the profession.

September 1993

Things had started off okay…mostly. Aaron definitely treated you like you were a child, though you were only three years younger than him. While you’d spent a lot of time expanding your knowledge of this field, Aaron had worked as a prosecutor immediately after his completion of law school. You weren’t sure why he thought he was so much better than you…you were a doctor after all.

It had started in the most dismissive way possible. You’d accidentally spilled your coffee at the round table, it had spread fast, covering his copy of the latest case file. You apologized immediately, offered him your copy while you went to print another. He shook his head at you, muttering something along the lines of you being young and unprofessional.

You had thought about going to Gideon to complain but ultimately decided against it. It would only make him see you as more of a child. So, you’d worked your ass off to prove yourself, you needed to show him that you were an asset to the BAU and not a liability.

May 1994

“I think this unsub is female.” You stated confidently.

“Are you insane?” Aaron scoffed.

“Before you completely dismiss me Hotch, hear me out.”

“Don’t call me that.” He hissed.

You had to physically wipe the smirk from your face before explaining your theory to the team. You’d pointed out how meticulous everything had been, how much care had gone into the murders and the disposals.

“If we really break everything down, it’s all done with so much care. The bodies haven’t just been dumped, they’ve been cleaned, redressed, and neatly placed in beautiful locations. The field of flowers, the hillside, by the art installation at the park.” You’d gestured to the photos pinned on the corkboard.

Looking around you could see the impressed look Gideon was wearing, it was bordering smug as he turned his gaze over to Rossi with a nod. Rossi couldn’t do anything other than shrug – you’d made a good point, who was he to question your expertise. But then there was Aaron…he was looking around in disbelief, nobody was even going to question it?

Aaron was pissed that you had been right. Three days after that briefing, you taken Helena Murphy into custody. She had lost her siblings in a car accident when she was in her teens, and a recent fender bender had been her trigger. She’d been taking the lives of young people who had resembled her siblings and laid them to rest somewhere beautiful…unlike the highway guardrail that had ultimately taken her family from her all those years ago.

Gideon and Rossi both gave you kudos for narrowing down the profile the way you had. The police officers at the Milwaukee PD had congratulated you and subsequently thanked you for your hard work. Aaron wouldn’t even look at you.

Needless to say, the flight home was tense.

August 1994

“Ugh it is soooo hot!” You whined, fanning yourself with a loose manila folder.

“Would you stop that?” Aaron asked.

“Stop what?” You feigned innocence.

“Bothering me! Your fanning is blowing all my papers around, just cut it out.” He huffed.

“Sure, thing Hotch.” You offered a sickly-sweet smile.

“Don’t call me that!” He shook his head and continued his report.

You stood from your desk and removed your blazer, showing off the fitted tank top you’d been wearing underneath. You made your way up to the kitchenette to retrieve some ice water and the ice pack from your lunchbox. At this point, you’d do anything to cool off.

You sat back down at your desk, sipping the water and crunching on the ice, while shifting the icepack from your chest to your neck. Aaron was so distracted by your constant moving that he had to speak up again. But as his gaze landed on you, he was rendered speechless…only for a moment, but it was enough time for him to notice the way the condensation from the icepack had dripped down your chest and when you slid it back to your neck, he could see the effect the could had on your breasts. His throat went dry.

“Stop messing around, it’s distracting.” He ordered.

“You’re no fun Hotch.”

“Would you just stop bothering me? You’re doing it on purpose now.” He sighed.

“Oh, fine.” You conceded.

November 1994

You made your way into the FBI building, hanging on one arm is your go bag, packed and ready to go. On the other arm is your purse, struggling to stay up on your shoulder as you held onto a basket filled with baked goods.

“Happy Holidays Jim!” You greeted, handing him a loaf of pumpkin bread.

“Thanks doll, you too! Did you get called in?” Jim, the head of security, asked.

“No, not yet anyway. I just figured I’d stop by.” You shrugged.

“You weren’t celebrating?” He questioned.

“Oh, um no, not this year.”

“Well doll, thanks for the pumpkin bread. Happy thanksgiving.” Jim smiled.

You made your way around, passing out different backed goods to people you saw every day, Maureen the receptionist, Mike from IT, and Sandra who was the director’s assistant. You’d even gone as far as bringing something for the BAU team members in the event that you did get called in.

Speaking of…

Gideon rushed into the bullpen of the sixth floor, in his haste he nearly missed the slight step down into the main section of the floor where your and Aaron’s desks sat. He was ferociously pressing the buttons on his pager – surely sending a page to the team informing them of the newest case.

Your suspicions were confirmed when yours beeped from your desk, drawing yours and Gideon’s attention.

“Jesus, I didn’t realize you were here. What are you doing here already?” Gideon asked.

“No reason to celebrate…I thought I could make myself useful here.” You shrugged and offered Gideon a container of gingersnaps.

“Thanks kid. Can you go get the files from Anderson?” Gideon requested.

“Of course, sir.”

Aaron arrived next; shock evident on his face when he saw you coming back from retrieving the files. He was about to make a snarky comment about you being here so early when Rossi came in behind him and clapped him on the shoulder.

The four of you were on the plane heading to Oklahoma, you were seated next to Gideon, going over the file, passing theories back and forth. Aaron was sat next to Rossi, stewing in a feeling the bordered annoyance.

“I can feel the steam blowing out of your ears.” Rossi teased.

“Sorry I just don’t get it…she got there so fast. She just – she just bothers me.” Aaron huffed.

“She was already there kid, she was at the BAU before Gideon even got there, he told me.” Rossi explained.

“What do you mean she was already there? Why would she have been at the office already?”

“I assume to keep herself busy. She lost her parents when she was in college, so she doesn’t really have anyone to celebrate the holidays with. She brought everyone at the office treats.” Rossi smiled, popping another bite of his banana nut muffin into his mouth.

“I didn’t know. That’s uh-that’s…” Aaron didn’t quite know what to say.

“Check your bag Hotch.” Rossi smiled and went back to his file.

Placed neatly in the outer pocket of Aaron’s bag was a cellophane bag containing snickerdoodles, his favorite. A red ribbon tied the bag closed and attached to it was a small note…

Sorry for bothering you all the time. Hopefully these can make up for a little bit of it.

Aaron took a bit of one of the cookies., rolling his eyes because, of course, they were perfect. He couldn’t help but feel bothered by your inability to be bad at something.

February 1995

You hated valentine’s day, it had always been a sore spot, all your friends swooning over the overpriced chocolate and roses that their boyfriends would get them. Not you though, you hadn’t received a valentine since freshman year of high school when Mathew Smith taped a rose to your locker. Matt had been nice and all, but he was looking for something…unserious.

You got yourself dressed and dragged yourself to the BAU. Everyone was so chipper as you entered the building, greeting you…but you met the majority of them with a scowl. Stepping off the elevator and going over to your desk, surprise overcoming you as you’re met with peonies and a pack of razzles. You moved them around, trying to find the note, coming across a yellow sticky note.

I thought these could be repayment for the pens you got me for Christmas. -Hotch

You smiled at the signature, he’d hated when you called him Hotch, you’d been the first to do so and he was annoyed at how unprofessional it had initially seemed, he’d tell you not to call him that and claim you bothered him on purpose, but as Rossi and Gideon joined in with the nickname, he slowly grew to like you…it!

Aaron sat at his desk, plopping into his chair with a sigh. Your gaze lifted to meet his, a timid smile gracing your features.

“Hotch”

“Don’t bother me today.”

“Thank you.” You smiled.

“Don’t mention it.”

May 1995

May and June had become your least favorite months of the year. After losing your parents, you thought Christmas would be hard, and it was…but you’d found friends in school who would celebrate with you.

It was Mother’s Day and Father’s Day that killed you. People didn’t invite their orphaned friend over to celebrate those holidays with their family because…well because that’s weird.

These two months brought with them the painful reminder that your parents were gone.

Truthfully, you’d been glad to get the page letting you know that a case came in, it would have been a welcomed distraction…if it hadn’t been in your hometown.

Aaron could see how tense you were. He was trying to profile you, figure out what had you so worked up. He knew this time of year had to be difficult for you, seeing as Rossi told him you lost your mom. But he could tell there was something deeper, rooted within you.

It took some time, but after sitting back and observing, he figured it out. A few different officers knew you by name and were on a first-name basis with you. You’d been extremely familiar with the layout of the city, not needing directions to the location you’d gone to earlier. This must be your hometown.

“Alright guys, nice job today. So, we are flying out first thing tomorrow. Enjoy the rest of your evening.” Rossi said.

You were slow to pack up, gathering your things, chatting with a few of the officers before heading out of the precinct. You didn’t really know what to do, you didn’t want to go back to the hotel, but you also didn’t want to go around town. You had too many memories here, it was too hard to go around and picture all the times you had with your parents around here.

“Hey, you want to go for a drive with me?” Aaron asked

You couldn’t even mask the shock as it etched its way across your features.

“Sure.”

At first you had no idea where Aaron was heading, the drive feeling unfamiliar…but then all at once you’d figured it out. He was driving to Blue Grove Cemetery.

“What the hell are you doing? Why are we here?” You questioned, anxiety lacing your words.

“Look, I can’t imagine how hard it must be to go through May and June, now that they’re gone. I thought it might be nice for you to see them before we head back tomorrow.” Aaron explained.

So many feelings were running through you. Initially anger, why would he blindside you like this. But then that morphed into panic, you didn’t want Hotch to see this side of you, the weak and vulnerable side. But lastly was this weird warmth…it was slow moving like molasses, sticking to every part of your body.

Aaron parked and let you control the pace. He waited to move until you reached for the handle on the door, slowly exiting the SUV. You stood there, still, unmoving, unsure if you could do this. Aaron grabbed a bag out of the back seat before walking around to meet you where you stood.

“I’m sorry, I – I don’t…”

“Hey,” Aaron placed his hand on your shoulder gently. “Take your time.”

You nodded at him gratefully.

Eventually you began to move, leading Aaron through the cemetery. You’d passed headstone after headstone until you came to a stop at their gravesite, resting just below a beautiful tree, offering just enough shade to allow you respite from the heat.

Aaron laid out a small blanket, letting you sit first, hesitating for a beat.

“You can sit…please.” You asked, more than told.

Aaron sat next to you silently. He pulled the bag in front of the two of you, removing its contents, a sandwich cut in half, a bag of kettle chips (your favorite) and lastly two diet cokes. As you watched him, you smiled, you may bother him once in a while…okay all the time…but he cared. Whether he’d admit it or not.

The two of you sat there, eating, enjoying the cool breeze that the afternoon offered. After some time had passed, you found yourself telling Aaron about your parents. How your mom loved to bake, and she would tell you that food brought people together. You told him how your dad did everything himself, he never called in a specialist for everything.

Aaron chimed in with how you’d clearly taken after them and it made you an incredible profiler…and there it was again, that warm feeling.

You’d recognized it… it was the same feeling that bloomed within you on valentine’s day, and before that, on Christmas. You’d bought hotch these really fancy fountain pens he’d mentioned in passing and he got you a coat, a nice warm one, since you didn’t seem to own one.

This warm, sticky, sweet feeling was rearing its ugly head…and you were pretty sure it was called love.

July 1995

That warm feeling had burrowed its way deep into your core and you were freaking out. You’d been doing everything you could to act normal around Hotch, you were worried you’d been failing miserably.

“I think your agent has a crush on my agent…” Rossi said to Gideon, peaking out the window of his office.

“That’s interesting, because I am pretty sure your agent has feelings for my agent.” Gideon challenged.

“Do you think they’ll figure it out?”

“Not any time soon.”

You flicked a paper football over your screen onto Hotch’s desk. He glanced up at you, only his gaze didn’t hold its usual annoyance, instead there was something that mirrored amusement written there.

“Are you trying to bother me some more?” Aaron asked.

“Um, yes. That’s my job; to bother you…didn’t you get the memo?” You teased.

“I must have missed that one.” He let out a breathy chuckle.

You went back to your report, working diligently. All of two minutes passed before the paper football knocked against your hand as it landed on your desk. You laughed and shook your head gently, there was that stupid feeling again.

October 1995

Your knuckles rapped gently against Gideon’s office door. You were shaking, your stomach twisted at the thought of what you were about to do. It had taken you a little while to figure out the best option…knowing that it wouldn’t be professional to continue working with Hotch with these feelings you had for him.

You’d looked at all the openings here at Quantico, trying to figure out which position would best suit you. Ultimately, counterterrorism was looking for someone with a background in psychology, so it just made sense. Which brings you to now, you were about to go into Gideon’s office and request the transfer.

“Come in.”

“Hey Gideon, I uh…I need to talk to you about something.” You stumbled a bit.

“Go ahead.” He gestured to the chair opposite him.

You sat, taking a steadying breath. “I’m requesting a transfer. To counterterrorism.”

“No.”

“Gideon, you-”

“No.” He began. “I am not going to sign a transfer request for you, especially not to counterterrorism, you have exceptional skills, and we need them here.”

“Gideon, I have to transfer. I feel – I have…” You trailed off as your eyes found Aaron beyond the window in the bullpen. “I can’t work with him, not when I feel like this.”

Gideon took a deep breath, looking at you and taking in the longing gaze you wore. He didn’t fully understand what thoughts were running through your head, but if this is what you felt you needed to do, he wasn’t going to stop you. You were a very strong and capable agent…he trusted your judgement.

“How much longer do we have you here at the BAU?” He asked waving for you to hand him the paper.

“Two weeks.” You sighed. “I’m sorry Gideon.”

“Don’t apologize. You’re smart and you need to do what is best for you.”

November 1995

“Alright guys we have a case, round table in five.” Rossi called out into the bullpen.

You gathered your things, knowing you wouldn’t be travelling with them for this case. You figured you’d sit through the round table, offer a few theories and then let them go on their way. Aaron watched you slowly grabbing a legal pad and your signature pink pen, he chuckled grabbing his own paper and one of the fountain pens from the set you bought him.

“Before we begin I just want to say that I am so proud of how you have grown and flourished with this team, and while it is a huge loss for the BAU, counterterrorism is lucky to have you.” Gideon stated, looking at you.

“What? You-you’re transferring?” Aaron asked incredulously.

“Yes.”

“When…when are you leaving?” He asked.

“Today is my last day.” Your gaze shifted to your lap.

“We can talk about this later, let’s go over the facts of the case.” Gideon demanded.

Through the entire briefing Aaron’s eyes were burning into you. He couldn’t focus on the fact of this case because he was completely hung up on the fact that yours wouldn’t be the face across from him anymore…you weren’t going to be there to flick paper footballs at him, or to hum songs all day, to crunch annoyingly on baby carrots. Who was going to bother him if you were gone?

After you finished going over the case, you couldn’t help the sting behind your eyes, slowly realizing that this was it, your time at the BAU was done. But you held your head up high and steeled yourself. You offered Gideon a handshake, Rossi pulled you into a tight hug, and Aaron…well he brushed by you with a curt nod.

Aaron was miserable throughout the entirety of the two weeks they were away on this case. He was moping, and it wasn’t going unnoticed. Rossi and Gideon shared a knowing look, thankful that he was finally figuring it out.

They hadn’t quite expected it to take him so long to do something about it.

December 1995

The bullpen was so quiet without you. Aaron felt uneasy; he was the only one in the center of the floor now that you were gone. His file going long forgotten as he sat back and thought about things for a bit…

When he first saw you, you’d entered the elevator at the same time for your interviews, you’d offered a quiet thank to him for holding the elevator for you and he couldn’t deny then how cute you were. But then you’d both been hired on as profilers and he knew he wouldn’t be allowed to think that anymore, so he shoved the feeling down.

Then you spilled your coffee all over the table, effectively ruining his file, but you’d cursed, burning your hand as you quickly tried to clean it up. He wanted nothing more than to hold you and tell you it would be okay, so he fled.

It was so many things after that, your intelligence and the passion you had for profiling. Your baking, always noting people’s favorites and bringing them sweets, just to see them smile. The way you listened, remembering something he’d brought up in passing and gone out of your way to order his favorite pens.

Oh shit. He was in love with you. He’d fallen in love with you and had been too stupid to realize it.

Aaron moved with a purpose, rushing through the FBI building, making his way up the two flights of stairs it took to get to counterterrorism. He burst through the door, drawing attention to himself, his eyes frantically scanning the room in search of you.

He moved forward, noticing you across the room. He reached you in a few long strides, stopping just before you.

“Hotch…what are you doing here?” You looked around, blushing profusely.

“Sweetheart, you need to come back to the BAU.”

“I can’t…Aaron I-”

“I know that I have given you no reason to believe this, but I love you sweetheart. I need you to come back to the BAU, come back and bother me, baby.”

“No.” You shook your head in disbelief.

“Well yes.”

“Aaron, no.”

“Yes! Come bother me, baby. Bother me for the rest of my life.” Aaron begged. His hands reaching forward to cup your face.

“Okay” You gasped.

Aaron pulled you into a kiss, the agents surrounding you erupting in cheers for the both of you.

Bonus scene – May 2016

“Happy Mother’s Day sweetheart.”

“Happy Mother's Day mom!”

“Thank you guys!” You smiled, feeling nothing but joy looking to those who surrounded you.

Before you was your incredible husband and your three children, two sons and a daughter. They had gotten up early to make breakfast for you before they headed off to school. There had been a bouquet of peonies, cards, and a pack of razzles.

“Jack, are you okay to get Zoey to school today? We got called in pretty early.” You asked.

“Yeah mom! I have practice though, so Jason and Zoey might have to hang out a while.”

“Don’t worry about that bud, Will offered to pick them up when he picks up Michael.” Aaron patted Jack on the shoulder.

“Alright kids, we will see you later, be safe and please text me when you get to school!” You called, heading out the door with Aaron hot on your tail.

Aaron and you made your way into the BAU hand-in-hand. You glanced around at this team you built together, and you couldn’t be happier. Aaron made his way toward his office, noticing you’d stopped and before he could say anything, Dave clapped him on the back.

“Leave her be. She’s admiring this family you’ve built together.”

You looked over to where Aaron and Dave stood, offering a bright smile. You then made your way down to the floor, greeting Emily, JJ, Derek, Spencer and Penelope.

Taglist: @bernelflo@pastelpinkflowerlife@just-moondust

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orangeblossomsintheair · 6 months ago

Text

DON’T BE A STRANGER | CS55

summary : faceless driver + secretly royalty carlos sainz w leclerc!reader

wc : 2k

an : ring ding ding ding- its me again >:)) what an amazing week this has been on the website, thxx everyone. i mostly just wrote this so the idea could stop bludgeoning me

The faceless driver of Ferrari steps onto the paddock like a rumor, all sharp lines and shadows, the prickle of something not quite real. They call him Sainz, only Sainz, as if a single name could hold the weight of everything unknown.

His helmet never comes off.

Never.

Not on the podium, not in interviews, not in moments of victory or failure.

A flawless red shell.

And the rumors?

They twist through the paddock like smoke from an invisible fire, impossible to pin down but inescapable all the same. Louder than the engines sometimes, they cling to the corners of conversations, the edges of glances, until the air is thick with questions no one can answer.

After all, the motorsports world is small, excruciatingly tight-knit, and talent doesn’t spring from nowhere. It has roots. And roots, as everyone in the paddock knows, have a way of surfacing when you dig deep enough.

Surely, he belongs to someone.

People don’t just rise to the pinnacle of Formula 1 without a trail to follow, without whispers of their origin. There are always breadcrumbs: the karting academy, the private sponsors, the family connections that weave a web so tight it’s impossible to escape.

And yet, with Sainz, the web feels intentionally erased.

Which is why the theories have grown, wild and unruly, feeding on the silence Ferrari so fiercely maintains.

Some say he’s royalty.

“Think about it,” one engineer murmured late one evening over drinks at the hospitality tent. “It makes sense. Why else would Ferrari go to such lengths to protect him? Royals love their secrets.”

“Royals?” The mechanic across from him snorted into his beer. “You’ve been reading too many tabloids. Royals don’t hide. They thrive on attention.”

“Not if they’ve got something to lose.”

“Like what? A throne?”

The first engineer leaned back, voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. “Why not? Formula 1’s full of money, right? What’s the difference between a billionaire’s kid and a prince? Nothing. Except one of them has a crown.”

The argument has traction, though. The idea that Sainz is an heir to a European throne, Spanish, most likely, has fueled countless debates, forums, and conspiracy threads.

“Think about it,” fans say online, dissecting every detail like forensic scientists. “A prince could afford the best. He’d have access to elite training, connections, and anonymity if he wanted it. He’d be untouchable.”

And yet, skeptics roll their eyes at the notion. “If he were a prince,” they argue, “you think Ferrari wouldn’t plaster that all over their marketing? A royal in the red? They’d be printing posters and selling merch faster than the car hits 200 miles an hour.”

It’s a fair point. Ferrari doesn’t just protect Sainz, they shield him, encase him in layers of secrecy that feel deliberate, almost sacred.

Why? That’s the question that eats at everyone.

They defend him like he’s the crown jewel of Maranello, and when it comes to Ferrari, you don’t defend just anyone like that. The Scuderia doesn’t go to bat for drivers like they go to bat for Sainz.

Why would Ferrari, a team known for its relentless media machine, its flair for drama, its love of spectacle, choose to keep someone like Sainz hidden?

Why fight tooth and nail to keep his helmet on, even when the FIA itself came knocking?

The fight with the FIA was the turning point.

It started with whispers, rumblings that the governing body was “concerned” about Sainz’s anonymity. Drivers, after all, are public figures. Fans deserve transparency, or so the FIA claimed. There were rumors of mandatory press appearances without helmets, of new regulations aimed squarely at pulling Sainz into the light.

Ferrari’s response was swift, brutal, and uncompromising.

“The helmet stays on,” Luca, Ferrari’s head of PR, told the press during a heated exchange after qualifying in Monaco. His tone brooked no argument. “His performance speaks for itself. His identity is irrelevant.”

When pressed further, Luca leaned into the microphone, his voice like steel. “We protect our drivers. Always. If you have a problem with that, take it up with the board in Maranello.”

Behind closed doors, it was said that Ferrari’s lawyers were already drafting lawsuits before the FIA even made their first official statement. Confidential documents circulated among team principals hinted at Ferrari’s threat to pull out of the championship entirely if Sainz’s privacy was breached.

“They’d never leave,” Toto Wolff scoffed during a press conference. “Ferrari is Formula 1.”

But the threat worked.

The FIA backed down, releasing a carefully worded statement about “respecting driver boundaries” and “valuing individual choices.” And just like that, Sainz’s helmet remained firmly in place, untouchable once more.

It was the kind of move that convinced everyone that Sainz wasn’t just another driver. Ferrari doesn’t go to war for nobodies. They don’t risk their reputation, their legacy, for just anyone.

“He must be someone important,” a junior driver muttered once, staring at Sainz’s car as it glided into the garage. “You don’t get that kind of protection unless you’re…”

“Unless you’re what?”

The driver hesitated, then shook his head. “Never mind.”

But here’s the thing: it’s never enough.

The rumors spread, and with them, the obsession. The more they try to pin him down, the more he slips through their fingers. It’s the perfect magic trick. Sainz isn’t just a driver.

He’s a myth, an idea, a story unfolding with every lap.

He is both the question and the answer.

—-

The paddock is a sensory overload: cameras flashing, fans yelling, mechanics rushing around like their lives depend on it. The heat and humidity press down on you like a second skin.

You weave through the chaos, dodging a camera crew and a gaggle of reporters, the noise too loud, the air too thick.

All you want is a quiet place to breathe.

You pull your phone out and fire off a quick text to Charles. Where are you?

The reply comes almost instantly. Driver’s room. Come here.

Relief washes over you.

Finally, somewhere away from all this madness.

You know the layout of the Ferrari paddock well enough to navigate without issue, your access pass swinging from your neck giving you clearance to move unbothered.

You round a corner and spot a door, slightly ajar, with a sign you swear reads “Leclerc.” Close enough. Without thinking, you push it open and step inside.

It’s quieter in here, the noise from outside muffled by thick walls. You let out a breath, already feeling the tension in your shoulders begin to ease. But as you glance around, something feels… off.

This isn’t Charles’s room.

The walls are too clean, the floor too pristine. There’s no sign of your brother’s clutter: no jacket thrown over a chair, no half-finished water bottle on the counter. Instead, everything is painfully organized, the space clinical in its perfection. And the overwhelming Ferrari red, too much of it, everywhere, makes your stomach twist.

Before you can retreat, you hear footsteps. Sharp. Purposeful. Coming right toward you.

Your pulse spikes. You freeze, too startled to even turn around. When the figure emerges, it’s not Charles, or a mechanic, or anyone you recognize.

It’s a man. Tall, broad-shouldered, and moving with a kind of quiet intensity that instantly sets you on edge. He’s already pulling a balaclava over his head, but not quickly enough, you catch a glimpse of his sharp jawline, his piercing dark eyes. He stops when he sees you, his body going rigid like a predator caught off guard.

His voice slices through the silence, sharp and low. “Who the fuck are you?”

You flinch, your throat dry as you scramble to explain. “I- uh- this is-”

“What the fuck are you doing here?” he snaps, cutting you off. His accent is Spanish, his tone icy. “How did you even get in?”

Your brain short-circuits. The balaclava, his tense posture, the way he’s blocking the door—it all screams danger.

Your fingers move before your brain catches up, fumbling for your phone.

“I- uh- just stay right there!” you stammer, raising the phone like it’s a shield. “I’m recording this! You’re not gonna- uh- get away with- whatever you’re doing!”

The man’s eyes narrow. For a moment, he just stares at you, like he can’t believe what he’s seeing. Then, with terrifying speed, he lunges forward and snatches the phone out of your hand.

“Are you serious?” he growls, holding your phone up like it’s a toy. His voice drips with disdain. “You barge into my space, and now you’re trying to record me? Do you even know who I am?”

“No! Do you know who I am?” you snap back, panic making your voice louder than you intended. “You’re the creep in my brother’s driver room! I should be suing you!”

He pauses, his head tilting slightly, confusion flashing across his face. “Your brother?”

“Yes, my brother!” you shout, emboldened by your growing irritation. “Charles Leclerc? Ring a bell?”

His eyes flicker with something you can’t quite place- amusement? Annoyance?

“Leclerc,” he repeats, almost like he’s tasting the name.

“Yes! And he’s going to be so pissed when he finds out- ”

“This isn’t his room.”

His words are slow, deliberate, and laced with sarcasm. They hit you like a bucket of cold water.

You blink, your bravado evaporating. “What?”

He gestures lazily toward the door. “The name on the sign. Read it.”

Your stomach churns as you turn to look. There, in bold letters, is a name that definitely isn’t “Leclerc.”

Sainz.

“Oh my god,” you whisper, the realization crashing down on you.

“Anything else you want to accuse me of?”

You stammer out a garbled apology, your face burning with embarrassment. “I- uh- thought- I mean- oh god, I’m so sorry- ”

“You thought,” Sainz interrupts, his voice flat, “so now I’m the creep in your brother’s room? Really?”

Your tongue feels like lead. Every molecule of bravery evaporates under the weight of his piercing stare. “I didn’t- I mean, I-”

He sighs, glancing at the phone in his hand. “Did you take any photos?”

“What?” you squeak.

“Photos.” His tone sharpens, patience wearing thin. “Did you take any?”

“No!” you exclaim, horrified by the implication. “Why would I-”

“Because if you did,” he cuts you off, leaning in slightly, “I’ll sue you.”

You take an involuntary step back. “Sue me? For what?”

“For trespassing,” he replies coolly. “For invading my privacy. For whatever the hell I decide to call it. Take your pick.”

“I didn’t even know this was your room!” you blurt out, frustration bubbling over. “I wasn’t trying to invade anything! And you’re the one wearing a balaclava like some kind of-”

“Like some kind of what?” he challenges, his eyes narrowing.

“Like some kind of criminal!” you fire back, your voice rising in pitch.

For a moment, the tension hangs thick in the air. His lips twitch, almost like he’s trying not to laugh, but his gaze stays icy.

“I wear this because I’m a driver,” he says slowly, like he’s explaining it to a child. “Not because I’m robbing a bank.”

You press your lips together, mortified and furious at the same time. “Look,” you say, holding out your hand for your phone, “this was a mistake. I didn’t mean to walk in here, and I didn’t take any photos. Can I just have my phone back so I can leave?”

He studies you for a moment, his expression unreadable, before finally handing it over. “If I find out you lied,” he warns, “I will sue.”

“Noted,” you mutter, clutching your phone like it’s your lifeline.

You spin on your heel, desperate to escape this nightmare, but his voice stops you just as you reach the door.

“And maybe next time,” he calls after you, “learn how to read a sign.”

You don’t turn back. You can’t. Your face is burning, your heart is racing, and the humiliation is seared into your memory forever.

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astrxthesiai · 3 months ago

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💃 - dancing 🌷- taking care of plants/pets 🍛 - cooking //Any muse. (but if can't choose, then Mira or/and Miyuki

Note: I think I'll choose three girls for this one. Amaha, Mira, and Miyuki. Amaha is my Lads mc. The other two have Lads verses where they work for Onychinus.

Amaha Hoshimiya (Lads mc)

Dancing

Amaha looked up while sitting on the couch. “Hm? Dancing?” she repeated the question, before thinking. “I do dance, but I prefer not to let many people know. Sometimes you just want to sit in a nightclub drinking and watching other people dance. Your thoughts are overridden by the music and the people talking.” She looked down at the surface of the table.

“I enjoy dancing, mostly in my room by myself when I need time alone. I would not say I’m a professional dancer, but I believe I can follow the beat and study the choreography of the original song. I’m more into singing and playing an instrument. When it comes to dancing with another person, I get nervous that I will step on their foot.”

She blushed. “Grinding while dancing with a partner…” Her blush deepened. “I have before, but I need a few drinks beforehand.” She admitted.

Taking Care of Plants/Pets

Amaha thought. “I’m much better at taking care of pets than plants. I volunteered at a veterinary hospital before I applied for the Hunter Association. At one time I wanted to be a veterinarian or a zoologist, but I don’t think I’m smart enough for that. I heard the curriculum is very tough for both majors though.”

Amaha blushes. “I’m not much of a green thumb, but the succulents Josephine bought me before I left to become a Hunter have thrived. I bought some aloe vera to make my own salves for burns. Josephine knew some recipes.”

“As for getting flowers?” Amaha thought for a moment. “When I was very into this demon hunter game, I wanted blue roses. So Josephine dyed some white roses and I kept them in my room. I was disappointed they weren’t sapphire, but she explained the process for dying the roses.”

She thinks for a moment. “I like the symbolism for flowers, and I’m not sure which flower is my favorite. Though I do find myself getting lavender when I have trouble sleeping. I do like to collect various flowers from flower viewing. Perhaps make potpourri or press it into my journal. Currently, I like gladiolus flowers. I think it fits what I’m going through right now. It’s a symbol of victory and strength. Lately, I’ve been getting white gladioli for myself.”

The battles she will face will only get more grueling.

Cooking

“I used to cook a lot, but I don’t have much time anymore for baking. I really like those games that let you cook or craft items for certain attributes in combat. I wish that was the case in real life. However, it is not.”

Amaha cooks Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Italian cuisine. She is not fond of German cuisine.

Miranda “Mira” Ravenheart

Dancing

Mira looked up from studying a few photographs at her desk. “Dancing is not really my thing, but I am well-versed in various styles including vintage. I autopsied some dancers before to study the effects their styles of dances had on their bodies. Absolutely fascinating, but I won’t get into the gory details. I will say it relieves stress, but I prefer other methods. I will say singing is one of them.”

In Japanese dub, she would have a voice like FictionJunction’s Keiko’s.

Taking Care of Plants/Pets

Mira thought for a moment, as she placed photos in a scanner. “I don’t think I have the time for a pet with how busy my schedule is. I think I prefer feeding the crows and ravens in the cemetery nearby periodically. As for flowers, I prefer black flowers and herbs for possible healing salves and antiseptics. You’ll be surprised with how much we need it here in the n-109 zone.”

Cooking

“I cook, but I’m not a chef. It’s to survive, but I do like putting garnishes. I’m from the West, so I prefer Western cuisines like Mediterranean, French, and Italian. Nerissa comes over sometimes to cook gourmet food, but she is busy getting intel for us. For the East, I prefer Thai and Vietnamese cuisines.”

Miyuki Mochizuki

Dancing

Miyuki glanced towards the interviewer. “I dance, but mostly it’s to mourn and celebrate the lives of those who lived under the ocean’s surface. I’m no siren or apsaras, however, but a water dragon is supposed to be a guardian for them.” She looked down, sadly. “I miss their various cultures terribly.” She looked at the sky and up at the full moon over the shoreline. Her cybernetic cat nuzzled against her legs to comfort her. “Otherwise, I’m busy here in the n-109 zone.”

Taking Care of Plants/Pets

“You’re still here aren’t you?” Miyuki raised a brow at the interviewer. “You sure are persistent.” She sighs as she sits on a nearby boulder. Her cyborg cat jumped into her lap. “Alright, I like flowers and pets. I like collecting strays and buying the occasional bouquet for myself. I quite like hibiscus and other tropical plants. However, I’m very busy, so they wilt early before I get the chance to enjoy them. For pets, they are very good about reminding me to water the catnip.” She smiles as she pets her cat.

Cooking

“Cooking is more ‘Rissa's than mine. I’ll just set everything on fire even though it’s not my Evol,” Miyuki says with a smile. “But I prefer Eastern cuisine to Western cuisine. I could go for some hotpot right about now, but it’s in Linkon. However, I don’t feel like risking my neck tonight.”

She stood up as she drew out her swords, her eyes glowing. “Can you please leave now? You’re really cutting in on my alone time.”

Watching the interviewer run away from her. Miyuki huffed and stared back at the horizon. The wind picked up.

“The Boss can wait,” she said to her cat as she sheathed her swords. Miyuki sat back down.

#⇢✶interview with the resonator 《amaha’s answers》#⇢✶about the resonator《amaha’s headcanons》#⇢✶the shining star resonator 《amaha hoshimiya》#⇢✶the resonating star 《amaha’s main verse》#⇢✶queen of ravens and crows 《miranda’s headcanons》#⇢✶the queen in a game of chess 《miranda’s answers》#⇢✶about the raven queen 《Miranda Ravenheart》#⇢✶rogue forensic pathologist: the morrigan 《Miranda’s au l&ds》#⇢✶about the small dragon 《miyuki’s headcanons》#⇢✶ interview with the sea king tamer《miyuki’s answers》#⇢✶ with the resentment of a sea dragon《miyuki crimson》#⇢✶ the reincarnated water dragon《miyuki’s au l&ds》#long post cw #long post is long #viciousbite #thank you o 3 o /

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thedensworld · 8 months ago

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Why Women Kill | K. Mg

Genre: Mistery, Smut (18+)

Summary: your husband of 2 years was found dead while you were away. Kim Mingyu, the detective, try to help you find the truth.

The maid immediately dialed emergency services when she found her master lying lifeless in the dining room. Meanwhile, you, the wife of the house, were in your hometown when the devastating news broke. As soon as you stepped foot in the house, you were met with the sight of police officers investigating the scene. The circumstances of your husband’s death had led them to suspect foul play—potential murder.

A tall man introduced himself as Detective Kim, accompanied by Detective Hong. They both approached you as you stood at the entrance, your luggage still in hand. The devastation on your face was unmistakable, a combination of the long flight from abroad and the shocking news had clearly shaken you.

"I'm so sorry for what has happened to your husband, but we need your full cooperation during the investigation," Detective Hong said gently, before outlining the procedures that would follow in light of your husband's sudden death. His voice was professional yet compassionate, understanding the weight of the tragedy you were facing.

"Please, let us drive you to the place where you'll be staying," Detective Hong offered. "It’s the least we can do for you right now."

"I'm afraid it would be an inconvenience..." you started to protest, your voice weak, but Detective Hong insisted.

The three of you made your way toward the car. Detective Kim took your luggage, his silent demeanor revealing a quiet respect. As you walked, Detective Hong engaged you in conversation, asking about your husband.

"I'm sorry," Detective Hong suddenly said, glancing at his phone. "Mr. Choi needs to see me right away. Mingyu, is it alright to drive alone?"

"Of course," Detective Kim replied politely, opening the car door for you. "Please, Mrs. Moon."

As you settled into the passenger seat, Detective Hong, whose full name was Hong Jisoo, tapped Detective Kim on the shoulder. "Mingyu, I trust you with this. You’re a skilled profiler—I hope you pick up on anything during the drive."

"I’ll do my best, hyung," Mingyu replied with a determined nod.

Later that night, Mingyu and Jisoo reconvened at the police station to discuss the case. Moon Junhui, a renowned celebrity chef, was now the subject of a murder investigation.

"The forensic results should be in by tomorrow," Jisoo informed the team. "It’s hard not to feel for Mrs. Moon. She was on vacation in her hometown, and now she comes back to find her husband might’ve been murdered."

"During our conversation, she seemed like a devoted wife," Jisoo continued, his gaze flicking toward Mingyu. "She sacrificed a lot after settling down with Moon Junhui. Did you notice anything suspicious about her while driving her to the hotel?"

Mingyu leaned back, thoughtful. "Just like you said, hyung—she seemed lost, devastated even. But I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. Still, I don’t want to jump to conclusions until we get the forensic results."

The next day, the results came in. Moon Junhui had died from arsenic poisoning, found in his system. The investigation kicked into high gear, and police began interviewing those closest to the victim, including Jung Seyeon, the maid who had found him.

"What was your relationship with the victim?" Detective Kim asked Seyeon as she sat across from him in the station.

"I work for him. I’ve been his maid for about a year now."

"And what happened on the day you found him?"

"My shift starts at 6 AM, and I usually stay until the next morning. Mrs. Moon wasn’t in town, and Mr. Moon is typically at his restaurant until 10 PM. But when I went to check the kitchen, I found him lying on the floor and immediately called emergency services."

Mingyu scribbled down notes. "You mentioned your shift starts at 6, but you called emergency at 5. Why did you arrive an hour early?"

Seyeon nodded quickly. "Mr. Moon asked me to come early that day to get groceries to stock the fridge."

"Your husband was found dead after drinking a cup of coffee he supposedly made himself. He was estimated to have died around 3 AM, but wasn't discovered until 5. Can you tell me anything about your husband’s habits that might help us?"

You took a deep breath, your voice trembling as you tried to keep your composure. "I—I’m not sure why he was home so early. He’s usually at the restaurant late into the night. I’m usually home alone."

"But he did—he does love coffee. He couldn’t go a day without it."

"Is it common for him to drink coffee around that time?" Jisoo asked, his tone gentle but probing.

You shook your head. "No, not at all. He’s normally at work. But I always made his coffee in the mornings."

"What time would that be?" Jisoo pressed.

"Jun’s an early riser. He usually had his coffee around 7 AM, before his morning workout."

You hesitated, then added, "He also preferred his coffee made with bottled water, never tap."

Both Jisoo and Mingyu’s attention sharpened at that. It was a small detail, but potentially significant. The tap water—or the bottle—could be a key to unraveling this mystery.

Who would have thought that a maid, secretly having an affair with her employer, could murdered him out of jealousy toward his wife? The case involving the popular couple—Moon Junhui, the celebrity chef, and Ji Y/N, a former actress—shocked the nation. The story immediately went viral, flooding the internet with comments as netizens discussed the tragic events that had unfolded.

The police had finally unraveled the tangled web of deception. They revealed to the public that a woman with the initials JSY—Jung Seyeon, the maid—had laced one of the water bottles in Jun's fridge with arsenic. The poison had originally been intended for his wife, but fate had intervened, and Jun himself drank from the bottle instead. When Jung Seyeon was apprehended, the footage of her resisting arrest and furiously denying the charges went viral, fueling the public's fascination with the case. The world watched in disbelief as the truth unfolded, and messages of sympathy poured in for you—the true victim in the entire ordeal.

Now, you sat across from Detectives Jisoo and Mingyu, the weight of revelation hanging heavy in the air between you. Jisoo had just asked about the state of your relationship with Jun in the months leading up to his death.

"I don’t think I should talk about this, especially since the investigation is officially over," you said softly, your voice tinged with exhaustion.

Jisoo shook his head gently. "I understand, and I don’t mean to press. But you did mention earlier… you said you couldn’t get pregnant? And that your relationship shifted after that?"

Your gaze fell to the floor, the pain of the past months bubbling up inside. "I don’t want this to be public knowledge. He was… someone I used to love, even though he cheated on me in the end. I can’t deny that, for a long time, he was a husband I loved." Your voice cracked with emotion.

Jisoo looked at you, sympathy in his eyes, before he nodded slowly. "I understand. We’re very thankful for your cooperation. Please, if there’s anything you need during this time, don’t hesitate to reach out."

With that, Jisoo and Mingyu quietly excused themselves, leaving the hotel room and giving you the privacy you so desperately needed.

As they walked down the hallway, Jisoo let out a long breath. "She’s an amazing woman," he murmured, the weight of everything they had learned settling on him. "I just don’t understand why Jun would cheat on her."

Mingyu nodded in agreement. "It’s a tragedy. But at least the truth is finally out."

"Yeah," Jisoo replied, "at least now she can start to heal."

Meeting you again felt like a miracle. The once-hopeful theater student you had been had blossomed into one of the top actresses in the country. Your face was everywhere—on billboards, magazine covers, and in TV commercials. You were known not only for your beauty but for your incredible acting talent. Mingyu couldn’t help but feel proud as he watched you move effortlessly through the crowd at the college reunion for the photography club. He had been there during your early struggles, and seeing you now made him realize how far you’d come.

After mingling with old friends, you finally made your way over to him. “Hey, how are you?” you asked, your voice soft yet familiar.

Mingyu smiled, his heart skipping a beat. “I’m great. You look amazing today.”

You smiled back, a gentle warmth in your eyes. “Thank you. How’s your work, Mr. Detective?” you teased, your playful tone bringing back memories of the past. Mingyu chuckled softly, feeling a rush of nostalgia.

“How do you know?” he asked, biting his inner cheek to stop himself from grinning too widely.

“I saw your promotion in the newspaper. Congratulations,” you replied.

Mingyu’s heart skipped again. You had still been keeping tabs on him, even after all these years. “Thank you,” he said. “I watched your last movie in the cinema. You were incredible.”

You laughed lightly. “That was two years ago. I haven’t been in anything since then.”

Mingyu nodded, recalling how you had become more elusive since your marriage to celebrity chef Moon Junhui. You had once been everywhere, but now you rarely appeared on TV or in public.

Despite the years and the changes in your lives, the conversation flowed easily, as if no time had passed. By the end of the night, you and Mingyu had exchanged contact information, rekindling a connection that had been dormant for years. This time, it was different—friendlier, warmer, but without the romantic tension that had once existed between you.

In the following days, Mingyu would occasionally send you pictures he found of you during work, little snapshots of your past. In return, you’d send him amusing messages or pictures from your quiet days at home.

One night, Mingyu saw five missed calls from you, all while he had been buried in work. Concern immediately washed over him as he dialed your number, and you picked up almost instantly.

"Hey, sorry… I was working earlier. You never call this late," he began, but his voice faltered when he heard something unusual—your sobbing.

"What's wrong? What happened?" he asked, alarmed by the silence that followed.

“Can you come? I’m so scared,” you whispered, your voice trembling with fear. Mingyu didn’t hesitate. He asked for your location, and you told him you were in a hotel, far from home—almost an hour away. Without wasting another second, he grabbed his keys and left.

When he arrived at the hotel and knocked on your door, nothing could have prepared him for the sight before him. Your hair was disheveled, your eyes were red and swollen from crying, and there was a small cut on the corner of your lip. Mingyu's heart dropped.

He gently pushed you back into the room, his eyes scanning your body. Bruises covered your arms, your neck, and one side of your cheek.

“Did he do this to you?” Mingyu asked softly, kneeling before you as you sat on the edge of the bed, his eyes filled with concern.

You nodded slowly, fresh tears slipping down your cheeks as a sob broke free. Mingyu wrapped you in his arms, holding you tenderly. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered, his heart breaking for you.

He had always admired your strength. You were passionate, driven, a force to be reckoned with. But now, seeing you like this—shaken, broken, after your husband’s abuse—something inside him snapped. He couldn't stand to see you treated this way.

“Does he do this to you a lot?” Mingyu asked gently, afraid of the answer.

“No,” you whispered, shaking your head. “This is the first time… but he’s been verbally harassing me for a while.”

Mingyu's eyes trailed over the bruises, fury boiling inside him. The thought of your husband doing this made him clench his fists. How could anyone hurt you like this?

“We had a fight,” you continued, voice barely audible. “I haven’t been able to get pregnant… and I was angry too, but he—” Your voice cracked, and you broke down, the weight of it all crashing over you.

“You’re safe now,” Mingyu said softly, pulling you into his embrace again. “I’m here. It’s going to be okay.”

From that night onward, Mingyu became your rock. He was your confidante, someone you could trust during the darkest moments of your marriage. He supported you as you navigated the abuse and waited for the right moment to free yourself from your toxic husband.

And finally, that moment came—when you discovered the ultimate betrayal. He had been cheating on you with the maid you hired just months ago.

“They slept together while I was in the same house as them,” you said bitterly, your voice full of pain. “Every night.”

Hearing this, Mingyu’s protective instinct only grew stronger. You deserved better, and he vowed to stand by you until you found your way out of the nightmare your marriage had become.

However, the past never truly left either of you. Despite the years and distance, there was still a powerful connection between you and Mingyu—one that neither of you could ignore. The comfort, warmth, and undeniable attraction remained, sparking once again whenever you were together. It felt like you had been transported back to your university days, when everything between you was new and exciting.

Originally, the plan was simple: expose the truth about your husband. But the abuse had escalated, and the maid, to your disbelief, had begun dropping subtle hints about her secret affair with Jun, almost as if she wanted you to know. It was sickening, and you found yourself thinking that they deserved each other—a match made in hell.

“He could have killed you eventually,” Mingyu muttered, pressing gentle kisses to the bruises your husband had left behind. Each touch was a mixture of tenderness and suppressed rage.

“I won’t let that happen,” Mingyu whispered, though he knew the reality all too well. If you divorced Jun, the public would likely turn on you—the former actress with a scandal attached, while Jun, the beloved celebrity chef, would play the victim. The world loved him too much to see the truth.

That’s when the plan took shape. Together, you and Mingyu devised a way to make them pay. Using the maid’s background in chemical engineering, and Jun’s obsessive perfectionism and need for control, the pieces began to fall into place. The plan was as meticulous as Jun himself—just as he liked things.

“We’ll be fine. Trust me,” Mingyu reassured you, his voice low but full of conviction. He leaned in closer, his lips barely brushing yours before closing the gap, sealing your pact with a kiss that was both comforting and charged with a passion that had never really faded.

You knew what had to be done. This wasn’t just about revenge—it was about survival, about reclaiming the power that Jun had stripped from you piece by piece. And with Mingyu by your side, you felt like you could finally take it back.

“Did you use water from the bottle?” Jun’s voice was low but scrutinizing as he looked at the steaming cup of coffee you placed in front of him. His eyes narrowed slightly, the way they always did when he suspected something was off, as if he was already preparing to find fault.

You nodded, offering nothing more. There was no need to over-explain; you’d already learned that. A year of being with Jun had taught you to anticipate his every need, his every request. You had become attuned to the meticulous nature of his preferences, the way he expected perfection in even the smallest details.

Jun lifted the cup to his lips, his expression unreadable. You watched as he took a slow sip, his sharp palate immediately distinguishing between the coffee made with tap water and the bottled water he’d insisted on after one too many complaints. When he set the cup down, he didn’t say anything, just gave a slight nod of approval before turning his attention back to his tablet.

It had been months in the making, this habit you built, subtly weaving it into his life. First, it was the coffee. Then it was his food. Every dish prepared to his demanding taste, all of it crafted to make him dependent on that bottled water, his palate too sensitive to accept anything less. It was the perfect setup.

As you walked out of the room, your mind flickered back to Mingyu’s advice. “Start with something small,” he had said. “Make him dependent on it, and when the time comes, we’ll use it against him.”

You didn’t know it then, but that was the beginning.

“That woman should handle the groceries from now on,” Mingyu’s voice had been calm but purposeful when he suggested it. He was sitting across from you at a small café, his hand reaching out to touch yours. “Since she’s his girlfriend, she’ll be careless. She won’t put in the same effort you do.”

The idea was brilliant. You had already seen how Seyeon was beginning to infiltrate your life, little by little, her presence creeping into spaces where she didn’t belong. Letting her handle the groceries would be one more way to let her sink deeper into the affair.

The next phase of the plan was more complicated. It required emotional manipulation—a confrontation that would spark tension and lead to what Mingyu called “the perfect motive.”

One evening, after Jun returned from work, you sat him down. The air between you was cold, detached, as if the love that once filled your home had long since evaporated.

“We need to talk,” you said, your voice steady.

Jun glanced at you, sensing the seriousness in your tone. “What’s this about?” he asked, suspicion already creeping into his expression.

“I think we should divorce,” you said plainly, watching for his reaction.

Jun’s face contorted, a mix of disbelief and anger flashing in his eyes. “Divorce? What are you talking about?”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” you continued, keeping your voice level. “I know about you and Seyeon. I’ve known for a while.”

The silence that followed was deafening. Jun’s hands clenched, his jaw tightening. You could feel the rage building beneath his composed exterior.

“If you leave her, I won’t say a word about it to the media,” you added, throwing down the ultimatum that would push him over the edge. “But if you don’t—”

The threat hung in the air like a blade. And just as you had expected, the storm followed soon after. That very night, you heard Jun and Seyeon arguing in hushed but heated whispers, thinking you were asleep. You found your dresses shredded, your things broken, and Seyeon’s jealous tantrums began surfacing in ways that made it clear she knew her days were numbered.

The moment had finally come when Mingyu handed you the small vial containing the colorless, tasteless powder. “Here, put this in his water,” he said quietly, his eyes holding yours in a steady, unwavering gaze.

You stared at the vial in your hand, feeling its weight—not just the physical weight but the weight of what it symbolized. This was it. The culmination of everything you and Mingyu had planned, carefully, methodically, over the last few months. You felt a slight tremor in your hand, not from fear but from the adrenaline rushing through you.

“I don’t know,” you whispered, your voice betraying a sliver of doubt. “What if something goes wrong? What if we get caught?”

Mingyu reached out, gently taking your hand in his. “Nothing will go wrong,” he said softly, his voice soothing. “Seyeon’s been doing the grocery shopping, right? She hasn’t been restocking the fridge properly. The water bottles will run low, and when Jun reaches for one, it’ll be this one.”

You swallowed hard, trying to suppress the anxiety bubbling up inside you. Mingyu had thought of everything, hadn’t he? He’d been so meticulous, so careful, just like Jun. And now, he was asking you to trust him with something so dangerous, so final.

“I’ll handle everything,” Mingyu reassured you, his fingers brushing over yours, calming your nerves. “If anything happens, I’ll make sure the investigation leads straight to her. She’s been careless, reckless. We’ll plant the arsenic in her things. No one will suspect you.”

This was it. The moment you had been waiting for, months in the making. Everything was going according to plan.

And just as Mingyu had promised, everything unfolded perfectly. The investigation led straight to Seyeon. The arsenic was found in her apartment, carefully planted in a way that left no doubt in the minds of the police. The media frenzy that followed was everything you had expected—and more. Seyeon’s public fall from grace was swift and brutal. The perfect crime, and no one suspected a thing.

“We’ll be fine, love,” Mingyu whispered one final time, pulling you into his arms as the chaos unfolded around you. You had trusted him, and in the end, he had been right. You were free.

“How was your mother?” Mingyu’s deep voice broke the comfortable silence as he watched you from the couch. You were standing in front of the mirror, slowly smoothing lotion onto your skin, your body illuminated by the soft glow of the bedside lamp. Mingyu leaned back, his gaze following the gentle movements of your hands, admiring the peacefulness in the room. After everything the two of you had been through, moments like this felt sacred—quiet, intimate, and free from the chaos that had once consumed your life.

You glanced at him through the mirror, offering a soft smile. “She’s doing fine. But she’s getting older, and I’ve been thinking about asking her to move in with me. She’s so stubborn, though. She won’t leave the countryside. She’s always been attached to that place.”

Mingyu smiled, enjoying the way your voice softened when you spoke about your mother. It was something he admired about you—the way you cared so deeply for the people you loved. “It’s understandable. She’s probably got a lifetime of memories there. But, maybe one day she’ll change her mind,” he said, standing up and walking toward you.

His hand rested gently on your shoulder as he spoke. “How did she react to everything with Jun?” Mingyu asked, referring to the fallout from your former husband’s scandal, his voice cautious but curious.

“She was shocked,” you admitted, turning slightly to look at him. “But not entirely surprised. She’s always known something wasn’t right between Jun and me. I think what worried her the most was me suddenly staying with her for a month and then leaving again. She probably sensed something was going on beneath the surface.”

Mingyu chuckled softly, his eyes warm with understanding. “She’s your mom. She knows you better than anyone else.”

He reached for the lotion bottle, squeezing some into his palms. Without a word, he gently began to rub it into your shoulders, his strong hands massaging the tension from your muscles. His touch was firm but soothing, easing away the weight of everything you had carried over the past few months. His reflection in the mirror locked eyes with yours, and there was something grounding in his presence—something that made you feel safe.

“How are you feeling?” Mingyu asked, his voice low, almost a whisper, as his hands continued to glide over your skin, working their way down your back.

You tilted your head slightly, pausing to think before responding. “I feel... relieved, but also worried. It’s strange. I thought I’d feel only relief after everything, but there’s this part of me that’s still anxious, like something could go wrong.”

Mingyu’s hands paused for a moment, then he leaned down, pressing a soft kiss on the top of your head. “That’s normal,” he whispered against your hair. “You’ve just come out of a toxic relationship, and it’s going to take time to fully feel like yourself again. But you’re free now, and I’m here. You don’t have to carry that weight alone anymore.”

You smiled at his words, a warmth spreading through your chest. His reassurance was exactly what you needed, a reminder that you were no longer trapped, no longer alone. “Thank you, Mingyu,” you said quietly, your voice filled with gratitude.

He turned you toward him, his hands moving to cup your face as he leaned in, his lips brushing softly against yours. “Anything for you,” he whispered, sealing his promise with a tender kiss.

The kiss deepened, turning heated as Mingyu's hand trailed from the nape of your neck down to your waist, gently yet possessively pushing you against the wall. His fingers explored every contour of your body, mapping out your curves, while your hand slipped into his hair, massaging his scalp. A soft moan escaped his lips, the pleasure from your touch sending shivers through him.

His hand slid under your pajama top, his palm pressing against the bare skin of your back before moving upward, cupping your breast perfectly in his hand. He massaged it with slow, deliberate strokes, while his other hand trailed lower, squeezing your ass firmly.

“I want to make you feel so good,” he whispered, his breath hot against your ear before his lips traveled down to your neck. His tongue painted your skin like a canvas, leaving wet trails as he marked you with kisses.

With a firm grip, he lifted your thigh to his waist, thrusting his hips against your core, letting you feel how hard you had made him.

“I need you…” you whispered, hands tugging at the hem of his shirt. Mingyu didn’t hesitate. He pulled you down to the floor, urgency in his movements as he unbuttoned his pants. You helped him peel his shirt off, both of you shedding layers like you couldn’t get close enough.

His lips found your breast, his mouth latching onto your nipple, sucking and teasing it as if his life depended on it. Meanwhile, his hand slipped under the waistband of your pants, slowly dragging them down just enough to let his fingers explore. He groaned softly as his fingers brushed over your warm, wet core, teasing you with playful strokes before finally slipping one finger inside.

“Mingyu…” His name left your lips in a breathless plea, the sound making his smirk grow wider.

“What is it, baby?” he asked, his voice deep with lust.

“Please… I want you,” you murmured, feeling the need building with every slow, tantalizing movement of his fingers.

“Not yet, baby…” he shushed you, his finger moving faster, his other hand steadying your body against the intensity.

“Ah… fuck…” you moaned, your body arching as he added another finger, filling you even more. His movements quickened, relentless, as he pumped his fingers inside you, the wet sounds filling the room.

“Can you hear that? That’s you, so wet… just for me,” he rasped, his voice low and husky.

Your breath hitched as he slipped a third finger inside, the stretch making your head spin as your body tightened in response. The pooling heat in your belly grew unbearable.

“Mingyu… I can’t, it’s too much—”

“Cum for me, baby… I can feel it,” he urged, his fingers moving faster, harder, as if he were chasing your release himself.

Your body obeyed, the tension snapping as you hit your climax, gasping as waves of pleasure crashed over you. “I’m cumming…” you barely managed to say, your voice breaking as your orgasm rippled through you, leaving you breathless.

Mingyu smirked in satisfaction, watching you squirt against his fingers. He lowered you to the floor, giving you no time to recover as he kneeled between your legs, his mouth instantly finding your wetness. His tongue swirled against your sensitive core, drawing out every last drop of pleasure as you let out a desperate whine, your legs trembling beneath his touch.

His tongue worked you expertly, tasting every inch of you, the sound of your moans driving him crazy. He could listen to you like this forever, and he knew he’d never tire of making you feel this crazy.

"Too much…" you managed to whisper through your hitched breath. Mingyu stood from his position, effortlessly lifting you into his arms and carrying you to the bed. As he laid you down gently, he pulled off his boxers, freeing his cock, which was swollen and slick with precum, the tip flushed red—an undeniable sign of how badly he wanted you. But tonight wasn’t about his desires; it was about making you forget all your worries, about making you feel cherished.

His lips captured yours again as he hovered over you, gently laying you down on the bed. His hands moved up to your breasts, teasing them, thumbs circling your sensitive nipples, while his kisses trailed down your neck.

"I'm going to treat you so good, baby. You're my princess… Cum for me again, yeah?" he murmured, his voice low and tender as he gazed into your eyes. Then, without hesitation, he lowered himself between your legs again, his lips finding your core once more.

"Please, Mingyu… it's too much…" you whimpered, the overwhelming pleasure making your body tremble. Mingyu only hummed in response, the vibration from his voice sending another jolt of pleasure straight to your belly, making you moan louder.

His tongue worked you with expert precision, every flick and swirl pushing you closer to the edge. It felt like you were floating, everything around you fading away as pleasure consumed you. You could see flashes of white behind your eyelids, the sensation so intense you could barely breathe.

Sensing how far gone you were, Mingyu playfully pinched your thigh, grounding you in the moment just as your second orgasm began building. Your body jerked in response, and you gasped, arching against him.

"I'm close…" you whispered, the words barely making it past your lips.

"Yes, baby, cum for me," Mingyu urged, his deep voice almost a command. "I’ve got you."

Your body convulsed as your orgasm crashed over you, more powerful than the first. You cried out, hands tangling in Mingyu's hair, pushing him closer to your core as he licked you through your release. His tongue didn’t relent, driving you further into ecstasy as your body quivered and your mind spun from the intensity.

When you finally came down from the high, breathless and trembling, Mingyu lifted his head, his lips glistening with your essence. His warm smile filled you with a sense of peace. Climbing back up your body, he kissed you deeply, letting you taste yourself on his tongue, the intimacy of the moment leaving you breathless once more.

"I love you," Mingyu murmured against your lips, his voice soft but filled with passion. He kissed you again, slower this time, as if savoring every second. "You’re everything to me."

The warmth in your chest spread, a feeling of deep love and connection wrapping around you. Mingyu wasn’t just making love to your body; he was worshipping every part of you, showing you just how addicted he was—to you, to the way your body responding his every touch. He was all yours tonight, and he would remind you of that over and over again.

"You want me, baby? Think you can handle me?" Mingyu asked, his voice low and teasing as his gaze trailed down your body. Desperation laced your nod, your breaths coming quicker as you clenched around nothing, your body betraying just how much you needed him. Mingyu smirked at the sight, loving how your body was begging for him just as much as he wanted you.

"Are you sure you can take me?" he murmured again, his tip barely grazing your entrance, rubbing teasingly against your slick folds. Your lips parted in a soft whimper, eyes pleading as you muttered a quiet beg.

"Well, since you asked so nicely…"

Mingyu slowly, deliberately, slid his cock into you, the stretch sending a wave of pleasure through your body. Your walls welcomed him with a tight warmth, like he belonged there, and Mingyu whimpered softly near your ear as he pushed deeper, still amazed at how tight you felt around him, even after all this time.

"Oh my—just like the first time…" he groaned, his voice thick with need.

"You're so big," you breathed out, making his cock twitch inside you. Mingyu hissed through his teeth, half-warning you to stop saying things like that, his control hanging by a thread.

"You feel so amazing… you have no idea," he muttered, burying himself fully inside you, both of you moaning at the sensation. It felt perfect, as if everything about this moment—about you two—was exactly right.

"Move, baby… you can move," you urged him, your voice barely a whisper, but Mingyu heard it loud and clear. He began to thrust, slowly at first, then picking up the pace as you adjusted to the delicious fullness.

"Did he fuck you good?" Mingyu asked, his tone darkening as he picked up speed, the jealousy biting at him. He needed to know, needed to hear it from you—needed the reassurance that no one else could make you feel the way he did. Not Jun, not anyone.

You shook your head, desperation and pleasure etched into your expression as your breathing grew more ragged. Mingyu could feel your walls tightening around him as he angled his hips, hitting the spot that made you see stars.

"Only you," you gasped out, barely able to form the words as he continued to thrust, hitting that perfect spot again and again. "Only you can do this to me…"

Mingyu groaned deeply at your confession, pulling your face toward his for a sloppy, heated kiss. His lips claimed yours, your moans mingling as he lifted your leg, folding you in half to get deeper, hitting places you didn’t even know existed.

His pace quickened, every thrust sending shocks of pleasure through your body. His fingers found your clit, circling it in sync with his movements, pushing you further toward the edge. You couldn’t stop your hands from clawing at his back, your nails leaving marks, but the pain only heightened Mingyu's pleasure.

"I'm close," you gasped, the pressure in your belly building to an unbearable peak. Mingyu's arms slid beneath your head, pulling you closer, craving the skin-to-skin contact as he chased both of your releases. His moans mixed with yours as he felt your walls clamp down around him, your orgasm washing over you, pulling him deeper into his own.

Your body shook as he thrust through your high, and despite the overstimulation, he kept going, desperate to find his own release. His thrusts grew sloppier, more erratic, until finally, with a groan, he buried himself inside you, ropes of hot cum filling you as he reached his climax.

He dropped his head onto your shoulder, panting as he continued to ride out the last waves of pleasure, even as your body trembled through another small, overstimulated orgasm.

When the intensity finally subsided, Mingyu flipped you both over, letting you rest on top of his chest as your breathing slowly returned to normal. He gently stroked your back, grounding you as you recovered.

"Let's rest for five minutes… then I'll ride you," you whispered, voice still thick with exhaustion, but the promise in your words sent a spark through Mingyu.

His ears pearked at your words, and like an eager puppy, he grinned widely. The thought of you riding him filling him with anticipation. Finally, after everything, you are his— completely and utterly his. And he couldn't wait for more.

"Tell me something I don't know," Hong Jisoo stated, his voice slurred as he and Mingyu sat across from each other, four empty bottles of soju scattered on the table between them.

Mingyu didn’t falter, continuing to grill the meat in front of him, though he knew where this conversation was heading. Jisoo's drunken state had loosened his tongue, and now he was asking about something they both knew all too well.

"I saw you with Mrs. Moon. Or should I call her Y/N?" Jisoo’s brow raised, his words no longer filtered by sobriety.

Mingyu glanced at him, a brief silence hanging in the air before he sighed. "Since when?" Jisoo prodded, his curiosity piqued.

"We've known each other since college," Mingyu finally admitted, flipping the meat on the grill with a practiced hand.

Jisoo nodded, leaning forward. "So why did you pretend like you didn’t know her during the investigation?" he asked, a hint of accusation lacing his words.

"It was... awkward," Mingyu confessed, his hand absently scratching the back of his neck. "We used to date for a long time. She got married, and then her husband died... tragically."

Jisoo’s expression softened slightly as Mingyu continued. "You know the case. Jun treated her horribly, and honestly... my feelings for her were too strong. I couldn’t just ignore it. Once the investigation was over, I reached out to her because I wanted to support her."

Jisoo nodded again, slowly digesting the explanation. He was a man who valued logic, and Mingyu’s reasoning made sense to him in his inebriated state. "So, you two are dating again? I heard she announced her retirement."

"Yeah," Mingyu replied with a nod. "We started seeing each other again. She retired and decided to move in with her mother. It’s been good for her."

Jisoo sighed deeply, slumping forward on the table. "I was her fan, you know. She was a great actress!" he slurred, nearly knocking over the grill as he lost his balance.

Mingyu quickly reached out, steadying Jisoo before he burned himself. "Yeah," Mingyu agreed quietly, glancing down at the sizzling meat. "She really was."

As Jisoo drifted into a drunken stupor, Mingyu couldn’t help but reflect. You were a great actress. And somewhere along the way, you’d taught him to be one too, hiding secrets behind composed smiles and well-practiced lies.

614 notes · View notes

megalony · 1 month ago

Text

Taking It Personal

This is a new Elliot Stabler imagine, I hope you will all enjoy it. Please let me know what you think.

Taglist: @justagirlthatlovedtoread @musicistheway @avada-kedavra-bitch-187 @luula @missdreamofendless @bradleybeachbabe @woderfulkawaii @amberpanda99 @daggersquadphantom @marvel-and-chicago-fan @angryknightstatesmantrash @minjix @lyje @kmc1989 @itsmytimetoodream @noonenuts @hiireadstuff @ashie-babie @jayyeahthatsme @sp1ritssz @dumb-fawkin-bitch @oliverstarksbae @gimatida @heart-35 @supernaturalstilinski @kyky9103 @gay4hotmilfs @itshamleth @chaoticnosleepinfluencer @gs29 @wh0reforsmutstuff @mel-vaz @natashamea18 @chrisevansdaughter @alexandra848484 @deena-beena-weena @targaryenluvs @kpoplover-19 @marvelmenarebeautiful @gillybear17

@zoeybennett @mrspeacem1nusone @zephyrmonkey @estella-novella @eleventhdoctorsangel @kniselle @senjoritanana @shauna-carsley @dottierose @cfdhouse51 @darkfemme1 @rainechase45 @lolalolsstuff @jupiter1700 @ashdoctor @an-aliens-ghost @lunaroserites @houseoftwistedspirits @callsignwidow @winterreader-nowwriter @reneinii @bellsbomb @western-pyro @itsgigikay @harry-satellite @midsummereve1993 @babyqueen17 @buckyyyismahhlife @sammiejane22 @mrsyixingunicorn10 @op-81-lvr-reblogs @talicat713 @niamhmbt @strawberry-canyon @bieberhoodforever @911fangirlie @hollandxxmix @jasmineee05 @creat1venat1onn @devilslittlehelper @darlingcharling-blog @bear8585 @nickie-amore @elliott-calls @person-005 @mbioooo0000 @amara-mars @shypy92 @nikfigueiredo @sabsthedoll

@elizaelaine

Main Masterlist

Summary: A suspect Elliot is investigating starts taking an interest in Elliot's wife, following her around to try and intimidate them. And Elliot doesn't like it.

Enjoy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When (Y/n) walked into the squad room, she was almost relieved when she saw that her husband's desk was empty.

It would be a lot easier to come here and do what she needed to do without being distracted by Elliot or indeed causing him a distraction when he was on the job. (Y/n) could come in, have a chat and leave without disrrupting her husband's work or that of his team.

Her hand tightened around her bag on her shoulder and she tried to block out the noises of the constant footsteps banging around, the slamming of drawers, the loud phone calls annd the clinking of cups and cultlery as people ate their dinners.

She danced her eyes around the busy station, thankful that no one seemed to have noticed her or paid any attention to her. Most of the squad knew that (Y/n) wouldn't be a victim or a witness coming in to give a statement or get advice. She was down here often enough to bring them results from the forensic lab where she worked and when she swung by to see Elliot or drop something off for him.

She bypassed the coffee station near the stairs and walked past Elliot's vacant desk which still held half a cup of stone cold coffee, long forgotten. And she lifted her head when she heard a door creak open to find Captain Cragen stood in the doorway to his office.

He had a calm smile on his features and he was clearly looking in her direction. It must have been clear that she needed some kind of help.

"Hi, are you looking for Elliot?" The Captain glanced his eyes around the squad room as if he was half expecting Elliot to waltz in and spot his wife straight away. But he knew Elliot and Olivia had gone out to do another interview with a victim and he wasn't sure when they would be back to the precinct.

"Um, I- I wanted to speak to you, if you have a minute." (Y/n) tried her best to smile and she tried not to fidget too much and give away the fact that she was nervous.

She didn't often have cause to come and speak to the Captain, she wasn't one of his officers under his command and forensics usually led her to the squad, not straight to Cragen. He heard the forensics through the grape vine rather than straight from the professional who noted them down.

And (Y/n) couldn't think of any other time where she had come down here specifically to see Cragen. Clearly he was having trouble recalling such a time too because a look of surprise flooded his face. But his eyes were kind nevertheless and he nodded, beckoning her in.

"Sure, come in the office." Whatever she wanted to talk about, he figured she wouldn't want to talk and broadcast it to the entire station.

(Y/n) followed him back into his office and nudged the door closed behind her. She smiled gratefully when he motioned to the chair opposite his desk and once she sat down, he did the same. She watched him rest his elbows on the desk so he was leant forward towards her and his hands clasped together as a look of concern flooded his eyes.

"Is everything okay?"

She suddenly had a great urge to laugh because part of her was telling herself that she shouldn't be here. She shouldn't be bothering the Captain when she knew he was a busy person and she certainly didn't want to cause issues for Elliot at work. But if she didn't talk to someone and something happened, it would only be her own fault.

With her bag on the floor by her feet, she began to drag her hands up and down her thighs in a vain attempt to calm down when her nerves were starting to go haywire again.

"I didn't know who to go to, a-and I don't want to worry Elliot, I might even be overreacting,"

"(Y/n), whatever it is, I'm sure you're not overreacting and I'm sure I can help in some way."

Chances were that she wasn't overreacting and (Y/n) knew that, but she still felt uneasy and a bit silly for being here. And she knew she should be talking to Elliot about this, but she didn't want to panic him. He was a worrier and always so protective over his family which was an amazing trait in him, but rather than worrying him (Y/n) thought talking to Cragen might help.

"I thought I was being paranoid, but someone's been following me." She couldn't look up as she spoke, she couldn't meet his eyes in case he smiled or laughed or thought she was being silly.

But (Y/n) knew she was seeing this person a lot more than a mere coincidence. He was almost everywhere she went and she never saw him veer off in a different direction or meet up with someone or do something ordinary. He just seemed to hang around wherever she was and walk behind her and go along the same streets as (Y/n) did like he was on a mission to watch every move she made. It wasn't normal.

She saw the way Cragen took a deep breath and nodded like he was trying to mull it over and think of the best way to approach this. He straightened up in his chair but kept his hands clasped in front of him as he finally spoke.

"Do you know who it is?"

(Y/n) rolled her lips together and shook her head. "I don't know him… but he knows my name- at least, he knows my last name."

Cragen's expression changed and his demanour changed almost immediately. His hands unravelled and pressed down into the desk as he looked away for a moment.

Now he knew why she had come to talk to him.

If this person was stalking her and he knew her last name, chances were it was someone Elliot knew. This could be someone trying to intimidate Elliot or a perp trying to get back at him and if that was the case then Cragen needed to know who it was and make sure it stopped. They didn't need someone with a vendetta against Elliot trying to harm his family and causing problems.

And (Y/n) knew that she couldn't keep this to herself, especially if it was someone involved with the team or under their watch. If she didn't tell anyone and something happened then she would have herself to blame.

(Y/n) reached her hand out to card her fingers through her hair, doing her best to try and remain calm and prevent herself from slipping into panic. She was safe here. She was in a precinct full of police and she knew he wouldn't have followed her here, that would have been too dangerous. At least for the time being she could calm down and being here for as long as possible might discourage him if he had indeed followed her here as well.

"I caught him following me the other day, so I waited at a crowded bus stop. When he passed me, he smiled and said Mrs Stabler. It's been over a week now and I wouldn't have bothered you, but- but he was outside the lab building when I left yesterday."

She watched Cragen's expression change and his fingers began to drum on the desk.

This person knew where she worked, and he knew her name. It seemed likely to infer that he was following her because she was married to Elliot. (Y/n) worked in forensics, no one knew what kind of work she did and no person charged with a crime would know who specifically ran tests on them. This had to be either some creep who was trying to get close to her or someone trying to get back at Elliot.

(Y/n) had almost cried when she came out of work yesterday and realised that same man she had been spotting nearby all week was stood outside. He had been slouched against the wall with his arms folded over his chest. He looked like he had been waiting there a while but his face lit up when he had seen (Y/n) leave. He had clearly been watching out for her.

As if a light bulb had gone off above her head, (Y/n) reached down and rummaged through her bag by her feet. When she found what she was looking for, she held it out towards Cragen until he took it from her.

He tried his best to steel his expression, but that tiny flicker of recognition on his face and the dilation in his pupils was enough of a giveaway that he recognised the photo. He knew the man (Y/n) had snapped a photo of yesterday when she saw him. She wasn't taking any chances, if he was following her to work she needed a picture to show to someone to find out what he was doing and what he wanted.

"Do you know him? Is he a suspect?" (Y/n) leaned closer, letting eagerness wash over her as she tried to get him to tell her who it was. Why he was following her. What this was all about.

"You leave this with me, (Y/n). I'll put a stop to it I promise, but if you see him anywhere near you just come back and tell me."

(Y/n) felt a great urge to sit and demand she be told who it was, but in the great scheme of things, maybe it was better if she didn't get involved. Knowing who he was wouldn't make it any easier and that wouldn't help (Y/n) if she decided to go and tell him to stop what he was doing.

It would be easier for (Y/n) to try and keep out of this situation and hope that Cragen- and the team- could put a stop to this before it got out of hand.

"Thank you." (Y/n) smiled gratefully and looped her bag on her shoulder. She could go home feeling a bit more at ease, knowing that this might just get under control now and that she shouldn't be followed around for much longer.

She took two steps out of Cragen's office before she paused, rooted to the spot when she looked ahead of her.

Elliot was at his desk.

He had come back in the short time that she had been talking to Cragen. Elliot was just shrugging off his jacket which he slipped over the back of his desk chair. And he began to unbutton his sleeves and roll them up to his elbows, but surprise flooded his face when he glanced ahead of him and realised his wife was here.

He didn't know she would be stopping by, although he couldn't fathom why she would be here to talk to Cragen of all people.

A dazed, confused sort of smile appeared on Elliot's face and one hand moved to his hip while he watched (Y/n) thank Cragen before she aimed towards Elliot. The closer she got, the more Elliot realised she looked a bit uneasy. Her fingers were itching around the handle on her shoulder, her eyes kept flitting from one side to the other and she was biting down on her lower lip so much that she was starting to draw blood.

When she got within reach, Elliot stretched an arm out and clamped his hand down on her hip. His thumb began to glide over her hip and he tilted his head to kiss her temple while his other hand cupped the back of her neck.

"Hey baby, everything okay?"

(Y/n) managed a smile at his words and she leaned forward into his chest, reaching out to hold onto his biceps as she nodded against him. "Yeah, yeah just work."

Elliot could feel his smile starting to fade. He wasn't so sure (Y/n) was here for work, she had never come to see Cragen before about anything to do with her work. And he knew each different expression and twitch and mannerism about her, he knew she was nervous right now.

And when he looked ahead of him and noticed Cragen was standing in the doorway to his office with his hands in his trouser pockets and his eyes focused solely on Elliot, he felt a cold shiver run down his spine. Something was wrong here.

"Elliot, in here."

(Y/n) felt the way Elliot's chest tensed when he breathed deeply and his arms tightened around her for a few seconds like he was debating going against Cragen's invite into his office. But he seemed to think better of it when he sighed into (Y/n)'s temple and gave her hip a squeeze.

He muttered "Don't go anywhere," against (Y/n)'s temple which he kissed longingly before he unravelled from her and weaved around her.

He shared a quick glance with Olivia who was on her way to the coffee machine but she rose a brow when she saw Cragen's expression. Had Elliot done something wrong? Had he pissed the Captain off at some point? What had he been speaking to (Y/n) about?

Elliot's hands flexed at his sides as he headed into the office where he was used to being scolded for something or being given bad news. He was never invited into the Captain's office for a good reason. Even when he was being told they had someone assigned to a case from a different unit or when they were getting more help for a case or new information. Nothing was ever good when he came in here.

But he tried his best to look calm and remain as professional as possible. He closed the door behind him without needing to be told, and he fidgeted from foot to foot as he stood at the side of the desk. He never sat down when he came in here.

"Something wrong Cap?" His expression remained stoic but he held his breath when Cragen looked down for a moment like he was trying to find the right words to say.

Cragen put his hands in his pockets and stood behind his desk, not bothering to sit down this time because this wasn't a formal kind of chat and he had a feeling Elliot wasn't going to take this news well.

"The Watson case, as if now you're no longer assigned to it. Munch will take over from you, focus on your other cases."

Surprise flooded Elliot's face and for a moment, the briefest hint of a smile pulled at his lips before he shook his head and moved his hands to his hips. What had he done to warrant this? Why was he being removed from the case when he hadn't done anything wrong? They weren't even at the trial stage of this case yet, they had so much work left to do.

"Excuse me?"

"You're off."

This time Elliot did laugh and he turned away from his Captain, moving one hand to rub at his freshly shaven jaw before he shook his head and turned right back to face him.

That wasn't fair. This was his case. Elliot knew these victims, he had a good relationship with them and they trusted him. How unfair would it be to make them have to trust someone else and get used to answering questions with Munch and having him prep them for trial rather than with Elliot who had been there since the first attack.

It made no sense to take him off the case now at such a crucial point when nothing had gone wrong thus far, and no complaints had been put in against Elliot.

"Why? I know the victims, you think Aleisha's gonna trust someone else to get her through an arrest and a trial? This is my case, we have Watson one inch from an arrest-"

He could feel his anger rising inside of him like he was boiling over and his hands clenched into fists at his sides as his agitation grew.

"And Watson is following your wife." Reaching out, Cragen grabbed the picture from his desk and thrust it out towards Elliot. "He's taking it personal. Now if we have to arrest him for stalking and then you're the arresting officer for these rapes he's going to say you're targeting him. You're off the case Elliot, for your family's sake."

All of the rage bubbling up inside of Elliot simmered down immediately like he had been doused in cold water.

His hands started to tremble as he looked down at the picture in his hands, staring at the scrunched up features of Arthur Watson, their prime suspect for three rapes and assault.

(Y/n) had taken his picture. He had been following her around for long enough that she had taken a picture and come to talk to Cragen about it. She was worrying, and yet she hadn't told Elliot about this.

And there was nothing he could do. He couldn't be the one to go and talk to Watson about this because it would be seen as inappropriate. He couldn't stay on the case because if he did then Watson would continue to get angry and riled up at him and he would try and continue to follow (Y/n). He might become brazen and try to talk to her or even go as far as to hurt her and try to make her another one of his victims.

Elliot had to revert back to some of his other cases or desk duty until this case was over and done with. He couldn't arrest or interview Watson, he couldn't go near him or do anything in case they had to press charges against him for what he was trying to do to (Y/n). And the charges would only stand if there was no impropriety on Elliot's part.

He barely felt himself shaking his head before he turned and swung the door open and burst out into the squad room. The photo in his hand clenched tight into his fist and his eyes set on his wife who was perched on his desk with her hands tangled nervously in front of her.

Trepidation flooded (Y/n)'s veins when she watched Elliot aiming her way with an expression like thunder and lightening rolled into one.

She was about to slide off the desk where she had been sat chatting to Olivia at her own desk but (Y/n) didn't get chance when Elliot bolstered over to her. He stood directly in front of her, nudging her knees until he could worm his way in between them.

(Y/n) dragged her eyes up and down his frame, nervously watching for any signs that he was angry with her because it was clear he had been told what had happened and that he knew the person stalking her.

Her nerves ignited and her heart jumped when Elliot's hand curled around her thigh while his other hand held out the scrunched photo she had taken which was now littered in creases. Showing just how harshly Elliot had scrunched it into his palm.

"How long has he been following you?"

(Y/n) didn't bother looking at the photo and she was glad when Elliot went to put it down on the desk beside her. Clearly neither of them wanted to look at that creep and give him the time of day.

"A week or so." She bit down on her lip when she watched Elliot sigh and hang his head forward as both hands moved to grip her thighs like he was using her to hold himself up.

She felt like she couldn't breathe when his head angled up and she felt his lips against the side of her neck.

"You should have told me. Has he talked to you, tried anything at all-"

"No, no, I swear. He- he just follows me, calling me Mrs Stabler… is he one of your perps?" (Y/n) didn't want Elliot to worry or think something bad had happened. This was why she had gone to Cragen, she didn't want to panic Elliot.

"Yeah, well not anymore. Cragen took me off the case so we can warn him to stay away from you. But if you see him again you have to tell me."

(Y/n) found herself nodding before Elliot even finished speaking, but her jaw went slack and her stomach fuelled with adrenaline when one of Elliot's hands moved from her thigh. She could scarcely breathe when he grazed his fingers along her chin and tilted her head back so she was looking up at him. They were so close that their noses were touching and his lips were close enough to touch.

"Promise me."

"I promise."

***

"There you go." Reaching out, (Y/n) gently handed over the pale blue watering can that was barely the size of both her hands held together.

She held out the watering can that was shaped like an elephant and watched as Jack carefully took it from her and proceeded to turn around and begin watering the plants. They didn't have many plants and flowers in the front garden, but they had enough to make it look homely and speckled with colour.

Jack's favourites were the white roses beside the front door, but he had already watered those, so now he was aiming for the daffodils.

Seeing that he was happy and focused, (Y/n) turned and moved across to the other side of the garden to water the few pansies they had growing beside the fence. It was nice that the sun was coming out and that they could come out into the garden and do a little work now. The back garden would be next where they had a few more flowers and little trees growing.

(Y/n) began to hum to herself and nodded her head along to the song playing in her mind and she almost drifted off into her own world. Right until she heard Jack trotting over to her.

The four year old tugged on her sleeve and started to lean against her leg like he thought she was a leaning post.

"Mummy, who's that?"

"Hm?" (Y/n) took a moment to look around, wondering who on Earth Jack had spotted out in the street that looked empty to her.

She knew Elliot wouldn't have come outside, he didn't like gardening and he was fixing something upstairs anyway. It always took him a while to do DIY, he liked to think he was an expert, but he wasn't the greatest at fixing things. That never stopped him though.

She scanned around for a second while her hand moved down to ruffle Jack's hair. But once she looked to the left, she realised who he had spotted.

"No one. He's not a friend, honey, finish watering the plants then we can go inside."

She gave him a little nudge to edge him back towards the daffodils he was watering. They needed to finish up and head inside and hope that Watson would walk past. He couldn't be here and he knew it.

Olivia and Cragen had told him that he couldn't be following (Y/n) or Elliot around and that if he went near them again, he would be arrested and a restraining order would be put in place. Not to mention he would soon be taken to trial as he was the main suspect in the case that had now been handed over to Munch.

Bending forward, (Y/n) watered the last of the plants before she moved and set her own watering can down in front of the bay window. Her hands moved to plant down on her hips and she narrowed her eyes as she stared ahead at Watson.

He had gotten closer. He was now leaning against the fence rather than hanging back a few feet away or slowly walking down the street. He was standing right in front of their home. This had to be some kind of intimidation. Maybe he thought hanging around and trying to frighten them would somehow get Elliot to try and make his charges disappear.

Well intimidation wasn't going to work, it was only going to rile them both up and make a stronger case against Watson. He was digging his own grave here.

When he continued to stare at her, (Y/n) sighed and took a few daring steps closer to the fence. She stayed a good foot away so he couldn't try and reach out for her, not that she thought he would. Every time he had followed her, he had never tried to grab her or hit her or make a move. All he did was greet her in passing and then follow her like a shadow.

But this was different. He had come to their house, he was here purposely either to frighten them or to try and talk or hurt them. This wasn't a coincidence and he couldn't be doing this.

"What do you want?" The tone of her voice gave away that she was in no mood to mess around or play games. He had to either say what he had come for or disappear.

A sickening grin spread across his features as he stepped forward until he was leaning against the front gate with both hands curled around the fence posts in front of him. He inclined forward until he was practically leering over the gate, causing (Y/n) to take a step back.

But when she saw his hand reach over and try to undo the lock on the gate, she reached out and slapped his hand away.

No way was he trying to come inside their garden or get into their home. They had kids here. Jack was here and the twins were upstairs, Watson wasn't getting anywhere near them.

"You shouldn't be here. Leave." Her words seemed to have no effect as if Watson was deaf and he simply stared at her with that horrid grin and his hands tapping against the fence.

Taking another step back, (Y/n) turned around and quickly moved over towards Jack who had finished watering the plants now. He was stood with his head angled to one side, confusion written across his face and fear sparking in his eyes.

"Inside, now. Go get your dad please."

It was clear that Jack didn't understand what was going on but he didn't need to be told twice. He scuttled up the path and through the front door, scanning near the living room before he remembered his dad had been trying to fix something upstairs.

He trotted up the stairs, panic gnawing at his chest as he hurried and turned at the top of the stairs, flinging himself around the banister where he almost collided with the step ladders.

There was Elliot, stood on the top step with a screwdriver clasped between his lips and the light fitting in his hand that he was trying to screw back in place now that he had fixed the dodgy wire.

Elliot snapped his head down, his brows furrowing when he felt the steps shudder and he looked to see Jack stood there, too afraid to try and climb up one step. His hands reached out and he grabbed onto Elliot's leg, giving his trousers a sharp tug to gain his attention.

"Careful bud, what's up?" He took the screwdriver from between his lips and began screwing the fitting back in place, although he kept glancing down to see what his boy was doing and what he wanted.

"Mummy said to get you… someone at the front gate."

A frown etched onto Elliot's features and he strained his arms a bit higher to get the last screw held in place. Once the screw began turning, Elliot looked down at Jack, who he now noticed looked panicked as he continued to cling to Elliot's trouser leg.

"Who is it?"

Jack shrugged and looked up at Elliot with those big round eyes full of panic. "Don't know, strange man."

Reaching his hand up, Elliot bashed the light covering back in place over the screws before he clambered down from the steps. He leaned down and slid his hands beneath Jack's arms, scooping him up from the floor in one swift motion and he held him against his chest as he turned towards the stairs.

"Okay, I'll see who it is, you go watch tv for me." Once he was downstairs, Elliot gently set Jack down to his feet and nudged him towards the living room. He didn't want him staying outside and watching in case it was who Elliot thought it was that had turned up.

God, he hoped not.

He could see the uncertainty in Jack's eyes, but once Elliot nodded at him and gave him a gentle nudge in the right direction, the four year old trudged into the living room.

Elliot barely got over the threshold of the front door before his blood ran cold when he looked dead ahead of him.

It was exactly who he thought it would be on their front. Watson. The man that had been warned to stay away or bear the consequences. The man that should be locked inside a prison cell by now if he didn't get such low bail. Either he had followed them home one day or he had a source to find out such information. Elliot knew it wouldn't be hard to find his address, he saw perps find out more secured information on a regular basis at work.

But the fact that he was bold enough to come here showed how unhinged Watson was and how intimidated he felt by Elliot to try and frighten his family like this.

Shudders crawled throughout (Y/n)'s skin when she watched Watson try and open the gate again. The moment he undid the lock and tried to push the gate forward, (Y/n) stepped closer and slammed it shut.

A small wave of satisfaction rolled through her when Watson hissed as the wooden gate slammed into his hand and bashed against his fingers.

"Move it or lose it." (Y/n) hissed as she gave the gate another whack to indicate that if he tried stepping onto their property, he would get hurt one way or another.

"You think you frighten me?"

No. No, (Y/n) didn't think she was intimidating enough to frighten an unhinged assailant like Watson, but she hoped that Elliot just might be.

She gasped when Watson suddenly reached out and clamped his hand down around her wrist tight enough to dig his nails into her skin. She could feel her fingertips going numb and shooting pains radiated through her wrist when he roughly twisted it to one side and yanked on her arm, pulling her against the fence.

But his touch wasn't on her for long before a familiar hand settled on her shoulder and a certain chest merged against her back.

She felt Elliot curving around her like a blanket, his chest pressing down against her while his right arm moved around her so he could reach out and grab Watson. He yanked on his hand until he had no choice but to let go of (Y/n) and once she was released, she felt Elliot swiftly turning her to the side so she was behind him.

Her hand moved to his shoulder despite the ache radiating through her wrist but Elliot turned to look at her over his shoulder. "Go inside."

She didn't want to. It didn't seem like such a good idea to leave Elliot out here with someone he could quite happily beat to a pulp. But she didn't want Jack coming out here and seeing a fight or thinking someone was going to get hurt.

Her hand squeezed Elliot's shoulder before she retreated to the doorway, not bothering to close the door because she wanted to keep an eye on them and what either of them might do next.

Once she was inside, Elliot finally let go of Watson, thrusting his arm back at him and giving him a shove off of the gate.

But he surprised Watson with his next move. Elliot opened the gate. He let it swing wide open like an invitation, and he took a step to the side so there was a clear gap for Watson to walk into the garden.

It would have seemed like a friendly invitation if it weren't for the way that Elliot looked right now. Stood there with broad, tense shoulders that were straining against his shirt, and hands that were now clenched into fists at his sides. His eyes were narrowed and his lips were tightly pressed together, showing how his jaw was clicking and shifting from side to side like he was desperately trying to hold back his rage.

"Come on." Elliot almost spat as his lips curved into an open-mouthed grin and he waved his hand to motion for Watson to walk onto the path. But the other man frowned, looking between the path and Elliot like he was expecting some kind of boobytrap to appear.

"Take another step. Go on, step over the threshold." Elliot began to tap his fingers against his hip as he goaded Watson to move, but it was clear he was confusing and starting to worry him.

He wasn't fighting back like Watson clearly wanted. He wasn't shouting or raging or trying to hit him or push him away from his home. he wasn't threatening to call the police or go and get his gun to wave in Watson's face to make him back away. All the enraged reactions Watson was trying to goad out of him weren't happening, and it was confusing.

Watson narrowed his eyes and looked Elliot up and down as if he suspected he was going to suddenly lash out and hit him out of the blue, but Elliot didn't move.

"Step onto my property, because then I have cause to detain you and use force to get you away from my family."

Once again, Elliot pointed to the path before his hands started to flex and twitch like he was starting to find it hard to remain calm and in control. And his smile was starting to slip into a menacing glare.

He wanted Watson to move onto his property because then Elliot had all the rights and reasonings he needed. He would be able to hit Watson- within reason- and he could detain him, pin him down, call for back up and get them to arrest him for trespassing with menacing intentions.

If Watson just took one more step then Elliot had every right he needed because he would be defending his family and stopping someone from damaging or entering his property without invitation.

His words seemed to sober up Watson because his expression changed into a grimace with his upper lip curled in distaste and he took a step back as if to ensure that he wasn't too close to the threshold. He wanted to annoy and intimidate Elliot and (Y/n), he wanted to frighten them, not be threatened and detained.

"You've frightened my kid and harrassed my wife. Now I suggest you walk away before I change my mind and call my Captain to come down here and arrest you. What'll it be?"

Elliot almost hoped that Watson would try and hit him or make a break for it by running through the garden to get to the house. He was itching for an opportunity to hit him, to throw him to the ground and call for back up to come and get him arrested.

But Watson turned around and backed off. He clearly realised that he wasn't going to get away with anything today and his chances were much better if he left.

He did reach out and slam his heel into the fence, causing vibrations to shudder through the fence right down to Elliot, but he didn't care.

Elliot stayed right where he was, watching with his hands on his hips as Watson disappeared down the street and finally turned the corner, out of sight. He stayed there for another minute or so, just to make sure that the creep wouldn't turn the corner again and come rushing back for another round.

A grunt left Elliot's lips and he slammed the gate shut and clicked the lock back into place so no one else would try and invite themselves onto their property. He rolled his neck from side to side and huffed as he aimed back towards the house.

He was still going to have to call Cragen and tell him that Watson had been by the house, that he knew where they lived.

The sooner Watson went to trial and got sentenced, the better it would be for all of them. Especially Elliot's family.

#imagine #elliot stabler imagine #elliot x reader #elliot imagine #elliot stabler #law and order x reader #law and order imagine #law and order #law and order svu

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mistymisfit · 2 months ago

Text

Red hood's witness protection services

summary: Reader works for a private forensic investigation firm but when it gets bought by Penguin she turns to Red Hood for help

wc: 5.1k

a/n: decided to scrap the smutty part last minute so if it feels weird that's why

warnings: forensic psychologist! reader, fem!reader, mentions of death, guns, violence, etc. making out and implied sex (aka a badly cut to black scene), mentions of a plan b. Unedited as per usual lol

You found yourself in a dangerous situation; your boss' new boss was none other than Penguin, another one of Gotham's infamous crime lords. And you wanted nothing more but to leave, this is not what you signed up for. It was not your fault that he decided to buy the organization you were working for. There was an implicit "no one gets to quit and walk away with their life" rule since you handled sensitive information and someone in your office already got killed. Essentially, you and the very reduced number of co-workers handled every investigation and background check he needed done. The air was tense in the office, it wasn't a private forensic investigation firm that mostly worked with law firms or the occasional rich family. Now he used you to find information on anyone he suspected or even tell him if his own people were betraying him. It was sick. You used to handle interviews, given you had a natural talent to read people, and years of studies in profiling.

It was a relief when you finally got a hold of someone who could help you in your situation, Red Hood. Or rather, he got a hold of you first, he needed information which you were more than happy to talk. Cops weren't going to be of much help since he had some on his payroll, and you'd likely end up dead before getting to make a statement. So in Gotham, your next best option-- or let's be honest, the best-- was a vigilante who was dead set on screwing the man who's making your life a living hell. The worst part was giving him information in a way that couldn't be specifically traced back to you, like where to find his accountant. You did notice he hired a new one two days after you told Hood about him, and couldn't bear the thought of being the reason he was dead.

You had fallen into some sense of partnership, maybe even friendship, with the masked vigilante and former crime lord himself. Maybe it was the, probably empty, promises that he'd stop that more people get hurt, or that once he's done with Cobblepot, you'd be able to move away and disappear completely. The fact you could tell that he was around your age, even if you had never seen his face, how he always treated you with respect and seemed to genuinely care about your safety made you develop some type of affection towards him. At that moment, he was the only reassuring thing in your life.

But you were foolish to think you could balance working for Penguin and being Red Hood's informant without anyone finding out, until you walked in your shared office. You go quiet at the scene; you drop the disposable coffee tray so both your hands can cover your mouth even if no noise could come out of it. Tears are fast to cloud your vision as you watch the bodies of all of your coworkers lying there. All of them killed with a clean single head shot, some fell at their desk, blood dripping from the paperwork to the carpeted floor. Your boss was on the floor of her separated office, the glass wall that divided her space was broken by the bullets. You were saved by pure chance, just because it was your turn to do the coffee run. A choked sob escapes in the dead quiet, and only when you hear steps do you realize that whoever did this might still be there. You think about running out the door, but what would you after? you needed something to use as leverage. You decide to grab the external hard drive from your boss' desk and make a run for it. It has everything, from emails to transcripts of interviews, crime scene analysis, and even contact and financial information of at least a dozen of Gotham's richest and more of Penguin's people. You bite your lip, holding back the need to puke when you see the body on the floor, her death seemed to be more brutal than the rest. Peeling your eyes off the gruesome scene, you kneel to the safe, trying to remember the combination amid all the fear and trying to hurry. 57, 89, 23, you let out a sigh of relief when you got it right on the first try. Your boss had only mentioned it once, that she needed you to empty it in case anything went wrong. She only confided the password in you a week after Cobblepot showed up.

The first thing you see is money, probably to hide the more valuable things behind. You are shocked to find a revolver inside too but take it with you, just in case. Not that you knew how to use it. Finally, the hard drive was well hidden under a necklace in a jewelry box. You throw everything inside your purse and close the safe before leaving and don't look back as you run as fast as your legs allow you into the street. You make it to five streets before you catch a cab and go home. Not your safest option, but your judgment was very disturbed given the circumstances. Once inside the car, you frantically search for your phone to call him. He picks up after the first ring, he always does, no matter how busy he might be.

"Hey, uhm, something happened" You try to keep it vague since the driver was listening "Can you meet me at my place?"

"Are you okay? What happened?"

"Yes, uhm..." You sniff before continuing: "I got fired"

"I see, are you alone?"

"No, can you hurry?" He knows something must've shaken you pretty badly to call him crying like this. You've never cried in front of him before, he's almost too shocked to react.

The driver only gives you a sympathetic look in the rear view mirror, and you're grateful he's not chatty. Jason is in your apartment before you even get there, and you can tell he's worried too by the way his words lost their usual cool. Normally, he's sharp, calculating, and even witty when he's in a good mood, but today he's spitting question after question. And he's even holding your shoulders tightly, he's never done that before. You barely brushed arms or hands once or twice, you figured he liked his space or didn't like being touched.

"They are dead," Is all you could manage to say between sobs "it's my fault"

"You didn't pull the trigger, you didn't give the order to kill them" He tries to reason with you, to make you pull it together. Partially because he needs it to work his case, partially because --and he wouldn't admit it out loud-- he's fond of you.

"Might as well have, they're dead because what I did" You ramble "Just like that accountant I told you. He suspected all of us so he-"

"We have no way of knowing that, Cobblepot gets rid of his employees after a while" He tries grounding you "like that guy, I got to him and he was already dead"

"Really?"

"Yes, why don't you tell me what you saw?" You start shaking your head no, and his grip tightens, forcing you to look up at him. "You've analyzed crime scenes before, I need you to do it now"

"I don't do that, I just do profiles and interviews and shit" You argue, even though you've worked long enough to know how to do it."I've only read crime scene reports"

"Get a grip" He demands. His tone is too serious, that combined with how it feels like he's lifting your feet off the ground with no effort are enough reasons to knock the fight out of you.

"Three people, at least two of them professionals" You sniff, remembering the horrifying scene. You recognized the wound as soon as you saw it, and from their positions, you knew they were quick and ambushed them. That's why some of them were still sitting on their desks, and only one fell on the floor, who likely got up and failed to run away. "they- they used silencers,"

"What about the third person?"

"They used a different gun," tears start to fall down your eyes again, remembering how your boss' face was unrecognizable. "They shot my boss, I think she was the last one, and she was shot from much closer"

"Anything else?"

"God, her face, it was-" When your eyes drift off and find the spots of blood on your cuff, he can tell there's another episode of being unable to speak and choking on your own tears. He knows the feeling all too well. "What if they are after me next?"

"It's okay, I'll keep you safe" He pulls you against his chest. Despite the surprise, you accept the hug, pressing your cheek against his leather jacket as you decide to trust his promise. "I told you I protect my people"

You're lucky he can't see how flustered that made you, or the wave of confusion that comes after that. How can you be feeling like this in this moment? You just nod in response.

"There's one more thing, I emptied the safe and took a hard drive with me"

"Which has?" He encourages you to go on.

"Everything, every case, email, picture, anything we ever worked with"

"Good girl," He whispers, and again, your heart is doing somersaults and cartwheels inside your chest. Is he even aware of what he's doing? You're too vulnerable for this right now. "I have to get you out of here before they realize they missed someone and lost that drive"

"What? No" You lift your head off his chest, pushing him away to get some distance. He mourned the loss of your warmth for a split second before he argued back.

"Yes, you said they were pros, do you really think they're not looking for you already?" He sounds exasperated, as if he couldn't afford to waste the time it'd take to convince you. The way your lip trembles and tears start streaming down your face once more makes him feel like the biggest asshole. Jason's been called every possible insult, but can't tell why this hurts way more. "Sorry, I'm a jerk"

"No, you're right" You wipe your tears, this was not the moment to act impulsively. Besides, if there was someone who knew how to handle situations like this, it'd be him.

"You'll stay with me until this dies down," His hand reaches your wrist and drags you a step closer to him. If you didn't know any better, you'd think he was dying to hold your hand. You found yourself nodding along as he spoke: "I'll take care of everything"

"Okay"

"I need your phone, and your wallet" He requests, and you were opening your mouth to ask why when he tells you the reason "and help me make a mess, it needs to look like you were taken from home"

"But my friends, and my family, they have to know-" Your eyes move slowly to the purse where the things he asked for were.

"You can't tell anyone, it's too dangerous" He's deadly serious, it's starting to scare you. Yeah, you understood that this was the type of thing that'd put someone under witness protection, but couldn't you at least tell your mom you weren't dead? "Understood?"

You agree, putting all your trust in him. He cracks the screen of your phone and you wince, you were lucky you had made backups recently. You reluctantly help him make your apartment look like someone was looking for something. Your coffee table is knocked over, every single drawer in your kitchen is opened, and some plates and glasses are broken too. Your clothes were scattered all over your room, and even some of your decorative pillows were torn to pieces. Though you'd never admit trashing your apartment would feel so satisfying. It all helped when a few days later a friend filed a missing person report and your apartment was now a crime scene under investigation throwing off both the GCPD and Penguin's people. You don't know if trusting him this much was even more reckless than staying in your apartment on your own, but you'd make peace with it over time.

You'd admit you were a horrible guest for the first week. Once you found out the drive was encrypted and neither of you could access it, it dawned on you how you may need to stay for longer than you initially thought. The guilt of being saved only because you lost a game of rock paper scissors and you had to go buy coffee, and how people who know you must be worried and can do nothing to let them know you're alive and okay without risking their safety too, all weigh on you. So for that first week, you barely left your room, he understood and didn't invade your space. However, you would wake up sometimes to a glass of water on your nightstand, or he'd knock on your door to leave you something to eat, which you'd only take a few bites of. One night, he even held your hair while you threw up over the toilet. Brought you a glass of water and let you sob on his chest while rubbing your back for as long as you needed. Once the initial depression wore down, then came the second stage of dealing with a problem, doing absolutely everything you can to avoid it.

But you'd get a lot of time to make up for it now that you were off the grid and not allowed to leave his place. Not that you minded, it was a big apartment; actually, he told you it was two apartments which he bought and remodeled into one. Lucky for you, since that meant you had your own room and bathroom. You didn't take Red Hood for an interior decorator, but the place was surprisingly cozy, despite the concerning amount of weapons he had hanging on the walls. He had a brown leather couch—easiest material to wipe blood off, he'd say— and a huge unorganized bookshelf. One afternoon, you took it upon yourself to put the books in alphabetical order by the name of their author. If his eyes weren't hidden under a mask, you'd think he was tearing up by the way he had to clear his throat to thank you. Speaking of his eyes, he took the helmet off when you arrived, you instantly looked away to protect his identity—which he found adorable. When he told you it was okay, and you turned to see he wore another mask under the helmet you scoffed and called him paranoid. Only to hide that what you really thought was "Oh great, of course he's hot"

His kitchen was big, you could happily dance around as you cooked or baked, which you picked up as a hobby. You also found out he had an impressive vinyl collection, so you always listened to that. He even bought some records you liked considering he cut off your access to the internet entirely and that was your only way to listen to music. You understood why, but it didn't mean you weren't bored out of your mind. But however bored you were, it didn't erase the fact that for the first time in what felt like forever, you felt like yourself again.

He had been trying to be as nice to you as you were to him. Coming back home to home cooked meals was something he hadn't experienced in years, so more often than not, he'd grab a big bite nearly to the point of choking to not cry in front of you. You always talked to him, and always listened to what he had to say. His words never fell on deaf ears with you. He'd even dare to say you were making him happy, so he allowed himself to linger when you got too close. Maybe he dared to touch your waist as he moved behind you. Let you put your feet up on his legs as you both read in silence on the couch, remembering the first time you did it without thinking and quickly apologized as you cuddled back to your side. Then, feeling the warmth on his cheeks when he grabbed your ankles and put them back on his lap without looking at you in the eye, too embarrassed to admit he liked it. Isn't this what he always wanted? Someone to come home to?

Your routines were adjusted to each other, and you worked together as perfectly as all the little pieces of a watch. He bought you books of whatever you were interested in, came back home carrying whatever extensive list of groceries you gave him, and mostly did anything you asked him.

"Red?" You ask, moving closer to him on the couch.

"Yes?" He tries to hide behind the book he's reading, your sudden closeness making him blush. Tries even harder to avoid looking at you knowing it'd make it even worse.

"Talk to me," now he does give you a little side eye unsure of how to act "c'mon, I'm bored, ask me something"

He sighs putting his book down, and hopes you don't realize it's to calm his nerves down. Where did his personal space go? And why doesn't he mind that it's absolutely thrown out the window? You look up at him waiting for him to say something, anything, it feels a bit... loving? It certainly did not help that you were so pretty, and you made it more difficult by being so kind to him. He needs to break eye contact for that, he can't go around thinking like this.

"What's the weirdest case you've had?" It's all he can come up with on the spot.

"Well most of my cases were boring, but—" He feels like a jerk, his eyes get distracted so easily. Looking at your lips moving as you speak, how your arm rests on the back of the couch, they even lay on the tank top you're wearing for half a second before he reprimands himself. He's lucky he kept his domino mask so you wouldn't notice where his eyes wandered to. "turns out the lady just had early signs of dementia and they couldn't sue her, what about you?"

"I'm the chosen one of a secret cult in the Himalayan mountains" He blurts out, then regrets not telling you something more "normal". Whatever his parameter for normal is.

"You—" You laugh nervously "you're kidding me, right?"

"I've got magic swords to prove it"

"And you let me talk about some boring civil lawsuit?" You gasp, putting your hand on his chest to shove him lightly. He gets the urge to put his hand on top of yours so you'd stay there. "I'm so boring"

"It's not— you're not boring, I like hearing you talk about your job"

"You're just being nice" He wants to kiss off the pout on your face so badly.

"When have I ever been nice?" Jason thinks maybe a sassy answer can fix it.

"All the time," He feels your tone shift, now more soft than playful. Maybe you can't tell where his eyes lay, but he can definitely tell where yours do, and that makes him stop his attempts to mask how much he wants to kiss you. "you're always good to me"

You are so close, and you smell good, and your skin looks soft; he bets you'd feel just as soft under his fingertips if he had the guts to reach out. But do you even want him to? Maybe you were just this caring and tender with him because you had no other choice, just because he's protecting you. And as he gets stuck on thinking the million reasons why you wouldn't want him to kiss you—and ignoring the clearly obvious signs that you do like him—his phone starts ringing on the coffee table. Jason takes a few seconds to consider if he should just let it ring before he speaks.

"I should get that" You just nod and give him space to get up.

He answers the call with an unusual "hey", instead of an angry "what do you want?" like he normally does when getting a call from a sibling. Tim wanted a favor, some info on who knows who, who was involved in a case he had not the slightest will to pay attention to. How could he? When he felt so stupid, he should've gone for it. Or maybe he shouldn't have, cause what if you were not flirting with him and he ended up looking like an asshole and making things awkward? He runs his fingers through his hair, pushing it back while going back and forth in his room. Only half listening to the voice on the phone.

He ends the conversation with a "yeah, whatever, just text me the guy's details and I'll see what I can do". He gets dressed in his Red Hood gear after hanging up, deciding to leave early tonight to go for a ride to clear his head. His heart shrinks when you only reply with a distracted "see ya" while doing the dishes when he tells you he's leaving. Not that he would know that you feel bad for cornering the guy on his couch, in his own home. Or that you screamed into your pillow as soon as he left.

The ride does little to ease his worries as he spends most of the time thinking about you, when did you stop being just an informant? He knew better than getting this close to you, but it never helped that since the moment you met, you treated him like a normal human being, not like he's a bomb waiting to go off like his family does. And he thinks that maybe they're right about him, that he is bad and rotten, and all those things they think about him. That he ruins everything he touches, and it's his fault you're in this situation.

It didn't help either that you were easy on the eye, from your office wear to walking around in sweatpants, to the few times he saw you in casual wear when meeting him. There has always been something about you that lured him in, maybe that is why his mind was so quick to think that the safest option was to keep you with him, because he wanted to spend more time with you. Perhaps that's why he feels extra guilty about anything that happens to you, in his eyes, you're his responsibility. But he can't have you, not when he could so easily ruin everything. So if he has to take a cold shower every time your foot presses higher up his thigh, then so be it.

That's why he worries when he comes home one day earlier than usual, calling out your name while taking off his helmet, but the music is too loud, and he gets no answer. He starts to panic when he finally spots you in the kitchen with your head inside the oven, he drops everything—his guns—in his hands and rushes to you. His mind moving faster than his body thinking about every bad thing he could think of, was it something he did? was it something he didn't? You only feel two large hands grabbing your hips and pulling you out, you let out a confused "huh?" as he sighs in relief. He sits down on the floor next to you trying to calm down as you just stared at him with furrowed brows.

"Fuck, sweetheart," He nervously pushes his hair back, and you don't miss the way his hand is lightly shaking, "you scared the shit out of me"

"Wait, you— you thought I pulled a Sylvia Plath?" He just nods, leaning back against the fridge.

"Hey, I was just cleaning the oven," You explain while taking off the rubber gloves to hold his face. "Breathe with me"

You take a deep breath, counting to four when you inhale, keeping it in for another 4 seconds, and taking the same time when you exhale. It takes him a couple of minutes before he settles down and stops feeling the lump on his throat or that his heart is trying to force its way out of his ribcage.

"I'm sorry for scaring you, won't happen again" You smile.

"Why are you smiling? This isn't funny" He wants to sound offended, but you know there's some playfulness in his tone.

"I think it's cute you had a panic attack 'cause you thought I died" To that Jason just rolls his eyes. You may be the one teasing him, but your hands haven't stopped touching him, and it's not like you were keeping your distance from him.

"What were you even thinking? Cleaning at this hour?" You just shrug in response. It's not like you had to be up early tomorrow, or any other for that matter.

There are a few silent seconds as you both stare at each other, your eyes subtly drifting down to his lips. And he just leans forward without really thinking it through. There's been a million times where he wanted to do this, but now that he thought he lost you, even if it was for a few seconds, he's coming to terms with the fact that he can't hold it in any longer. You only hum and give in. Finally! He's making a move. You want to smile, maybe giggle a bit too, but he's kissing you with such a strong desire that you can't do it.

"Sorry, I shouldn't—"

"Why would you stop?" You sigh, almost exasperated, before tightly grabbing his leather jacket to pull him close again.

He chuckles as you straddle him, maybe he should've kissed you sooner. You're sure you've never wanted someone as badly before. You could reason it was due to a lot of factors: first, he was hot. Second, he made you feel safe; third, he was the nicest guy you've met in years, and fourth, he had no problem with you living basically rent-free with him—even seemed to like it. And now he's kissing you like his life depends on it. It's desperate, messy and hurried, like he can't get enough of you. His hands pull up your shirt, and you raise your arms to help him.

"I just have to warn you," He's out of breath, and his voice barely above a whisper: "I'm incredibly touch starved"

"Yeah, me too"

You can't be bothered to make any remarks or teasing comments, and apparently neither can he as he takes his jacket off. He folds it and uses it as a make-shift pillow to rest your head on when he rolls you over to be on top of you. The movement was swift, and he put his hand on the small of your back to make sure you didn't get hurt in the process. You could only hope he'd understand your kisses as the thanks you mean them to be. Your fingers cling around Kevlar clothing and pull it up until you get rid of it. Soon enough, your pants are out of the way too, and he takes a second to admire the view.

"You have such a crush on me" You tease with a playful smirk when you catch him staring.

"Yeah, the biggest" He scoffs, lowering back down to kiss his way down from your collarbone to your hips. He stops for a brief second, weighting his options and what he's doing. Then, once he's made up his mind, he whispers his name against your thigh.

"Jason?" You question

"Yeah, that's my name," He replies, looking up at you again.

"Okay, Jay" Your lips tug up in a smile, and he can't help but do the same.

"Should we-" He hesitates "Should we do this somewhere else?"

"Floor is clean, if that's what you're worried about"

"I know, but your back... and your head, I don't want to hurt you"

"Hurt me?" You gasp, teasing him, "What are you gonna do to me?"

You laugh at the redness that paints his entire face, and he sits up pulling himself away from you. But you don't want him to feel bad over a joke, so you get up too and kiss his cheek, telling him you're just messing with him and that you could go to your room if he wanted. He gives you a shy nod, as if his head wasn't between your thighs a second ago. You lead him to your bedroom, and in between kisses and sighs, you can feel how desperate his touch was, like he couldn't get enough of you. You are surprised at how soft he is, the way he keeps on kissing you, the way his hands hold you. And it becomes obvious how needy both of you were when you remember that pregnancy is a real thing and birth control methods exist.

"Fuck-" He groans "I'm sorry, I'll buy you a plan B."

"It's fine, don´t apologize" You tease him as if you wouldn´t have begged him to finish inside if he didn't.

"Do you need anything else?"

"Maybe a book about Stockholm syndrome" Your joke is met with a sigh and his teeth grazing your skin playfully threatening to bite your shoulder.

You playfully shove him off, laughing as you tell him to stop and that's when he notices the little notebook on your nightstand. He reaches an arm over you to get it, your eyes following his movement but too distracted with how his bicep looks so bite-able to notice what he's doing. Until he asks: "What's this?"

"My journal, don't touch it" You try to pry it out of his hand, but he extends his arm to leave it just out of your reach. "It's personal"

"Oh, it's personal?" While he fakes a pout with a mocking voice, you manage to wiggle out from under him and take your journal back.

"Wait, I actually have to write about this" You open a random blank page and pretend to write as you say: "dear diary, today I finally slept with him. It was fun and he had a huge d-"

"Okay, enough, it's personal" He laughs, cutting you off.

You giggle. Yeah, he definitely should've kissed you sooner

#i have more ideas so I might write more parts to this if there's any interest #aka i had planned a part where reader uses her skills/knowledge to help jason #w: jason #jason todd x reader #jason todd fluff #jason todd x reader fluff #red hood x reader #jason todd imagine #jason todd x you #red hood x you #okay enough tagging

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tec-a0l · 2 months ago

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26 years

it’s been 26 years since the massacre at CHS, and because there’s so much misinformation surrounding it, i’ve decided to make a list of the most common myths to debunk them.

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“eric was the leader, dylan was a follower”

this narrative is pushed by many different sources (most notably by dave cullen), however it’s blatantly false. both dylan and eric were equally responsible for planning and following through with the massacre.

if anything, it could be argued that eric was more of a follower, as dylan wrote about committing a massacre nearly a year before eric did, and several of their friends stated that eric actually tended to follow/copy dylan in more innocuous ways. this, however is also somewhat farcical, as they made the choice to do this together, and should both be held equally as accountable.

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“eric shot dylan”

this goes hand-in-hand with the “leader/follower” myth, however based on all the publicly available forensic, ballistic, and coronary/post-mortem information, dylan undoubtedly took his own life.

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“they picked 4/20 because it’s h*tler’s birthday”

the intended date was 4/19, as they were inspired by the 1995 oklahoma city b*mbing done on the same date, however they weren’t prepared enough when the day came and they had to postpone.

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“there were 15 victims”

yes, 15 people died that day, but only 13 of them were victims—you cannot be the victim of a massacre that you, yourself perpetrated. while it’s true that d&e were victims of an unsupportive society and intense bullying, they chose to carry out the massacre, which means they were not victims of their own violence.

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“rachel & cassie were killed for believing in god”

rachel scott & cassie bernall’s martyrdom is probably one of the most prevailing myths about the massacre, but it is very much untrue. for rachel, she had no interactions with d&e on the day, as they shot her from a distance. for cassie, while she did have an interaction with eric, it was only him taunting her before taking her life—no conversation took place.

d&e did, however, ask valeen schnurr if she believed in god—to which she answered something along the lines of “no…yes, because my parents believe,” according to schnurr herself and other survivors from the library—but she wasn’t killed because of it.

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“d&e were members of the trench coat mafia”

while they did wear trench coats/dusters, neither dylan nor eric properly associated with the TCM. a couple of their other friends did, but not d&e themselves.

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“dave cullen’s book is an accurate account of the events”

this could not be further from the truth—dave cullen’s book is filled with misinformation, distorted evidence, and flat out lies. this includes the very real story of how the now-late anne marie-hochhalter—whom he never even interviewed, instead going off of random news reports—was injured. she had spoken out about it in an article, stating:

“I was injured at [CHS], and Dave Cullen's book is inaccurate and sensationalized...It felt kind of violating, to be honest,” Hochhalter says of the experience of reading Cullen's book. “He got the part about how I was injured completely wrong. I couldn't bear to read the whole thing.”

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there’s no doubt hundreds of other myths surrounding the massacre, but these are the main ones that come to mind first.

it’s important for us to remember that this was a very real event that had very real impacts on people—it’s easy to fall into the trap of disconnecting d&e from the destruction they caused, viewing them more as fictional characters you just see on your screen, but that’s far from the case.

i hope cassie, cory, daniel, danny, dave, isaiah, john, kelly, kyle, lauren, matthew, rachel, and steven all rest in peace, they were taken far too soon.

for dylan and eric, i hope their friends and families can remember the good times they had with them, and the rest of us can learn from this case and not go down the same dark path they did.

my love is with the families of all those effected by this tragedy, we owe it to them to do our best in making the world a kinder, more understanding place and taking whatever steps we can to stop more shootings from happening.

be kind to yourselves, and be kind to others.

#tec thoughtz #debunking myths #tc article #nbk info #chs #the 13 #valeen schnurr #anne marie hochhalter #tcc tumblr #tccblr #eric columbine #dylan columbine #eric and dylan #tcc columbine #true cringe community #teeceecee

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gold-onthe-inside · 5 months ago

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hamelin

who? spencer reid (s6/7) x mayor!reader summary: spencer's the first person you think to call when the kidnapper attacks your home. content warnings: animal gore, kissing (no smut) word count: 3.5k (a lot of stuff goes down, okay) a/n: part two to diplomat, ending is open ended (i couldn't decide what happens next and this fic is long enough already)

It’s late when you get back home from city hall, briefings from that day and agendas for tomorrow tucked under your arm and fumbling for your keys and finally unlocking your front door. You moved to switch the light on, dumping your folder and keys on the top of a cabinet and closed the door. There’s a relief that comes with closing the door, the version of you that is so carefully made up for the public eye shedding away.

You took off your heels, turning around to set them on the centre table in the lobby of the mayoral residence, when you let out a strangled scream — dozens of slain rats pooled in front of the staircase, your heart beating frenetically. Your heels clattered to the floor, shaky hands moving to call the first person that came to mind as you retreat back to your car, leaving your door open. Pick up, pick up, pick up—”

“Hello?”

“Someone’s broken in, there’s-there’s rats and blood everywhere,” you gush instantly, switching the cell phone between hands and tearing your car door open and slamming it behind you before locking yourself in.

"Can you stay where you are? I'm coming now- stay there-" he said, as he stood up abruptly, grabbing his coat and his satchel. "Prentiss-" He called out. "Can you come with me? I have to check on someone."

Meanwhile, you fumble quickly through your glove compartment, finding the handgun you carried, slotting the magazine in place and cocking it before sliding back in your seat, starting to wonder if you should’ve just called the chief of police instead. As the minutes tick by, you curse yourself for what you’ve done. You can imagine the questions that’ll get asked when this is over — why was he the first person you called? Why wasn’t the chief of police involved? More importantly, if you couldn’t keep yourself safe, how were you supposed to keep your city safe?

The tap on your window scares you, raising your gun into Spencer’s face at the shotgun window, and you let out a soft breath of relief, switching the safety on and releasing the magazine before putting it all back in your glove compartment. Agent Morgan stepped out of your house, along with Agent Hotchner, and as you get out of your car, Agent Prentiss holds the door open for you, closing it behind you.

“Are you okay?” she asked and you nodded, trying to maintain some semblance of professionalism.

“I’ll be better once we find out who did this.” You looked back at your house, trying to ignore the sympathetic look Emily was giving you. You feel numb as Aaron explains the process to you, and you might as well be a child for all the power you wield — that forensics will need to take over the scene before they can do any actual profiling, that they need to do a cognitive interview.

“I'll need to speak with my office,” you manage to get out in as mature a voice as you can, considering. It's not like you haven't gotten death and assault threats before, what female politician didn't? But something about this felt different, it felt real.

Emily's grown up in your world, in the world of appearances and stiff backs and false smiles, so she convinces Aaron to take you back to city hall, let you get a handle on things before doing an interview.

Spencer watched you the entire time from the rear mirror of the car, the way you slipped into business mode on the drive to City Hall. It was all so foreign to him, the way you soldiered through this. He remembered a time when seeing a dead pigeon had made you tremble and he’d had to hold you in your arms and tell you everything was alright. It was a far cry from what he was seeing now, and for a moment, he even felt a slight disconnect.

He felt completely out of place from your life, watching you approve clothes for a press conference, your secretary directing hair and make-up to your office, listening to a speechwriter read out your statement for you and making amendments without a single tell that any of this was getting to you. At least, not until Mandy arrived.

“So, we’ll do the first one outside City Hall,” she began immediately, right behind you as you waved away the make-up artist, standing up to pay attention to your campaign manager. “Once the residence is cleared by the police, we’ll do a second one there. We also have a response prepared for a potential recall—”

“Recall?” you demanded, turning to look at Mandy. “We’re in the middle of the campaign.”

“They’re saying that public trust is gonna drop 13% by the end of tomorrow’s news cycle,” Mandy said, widening her arms helplessly. “Perry’s changed his entire campaign to be tougher on crime,” she said, looking at her clipboard, oblivious to the anxiety that was starting to overwhelm you as your hands fidget at your side — anxiety that Spencer was all too familiar with.

“Mandy, I think- I think she needs a minute-“ he spoke up, moving a little closer to you, but keeping his words gentle, not touching you. “I don’t think we need to overload her with all of this right now-“ his gaze flickered to yours, giving you an encouraging nod.

“We’ll deal with a potential recall after tonight’s conference,” you said, finding your centre of gravity in Spencer’s eyes. “I have a statement to revise.” Your speechwriter left the sheet on your desk with a sheepish smile before walking out, your stylists packing up to leave, and Mandy half-glaring at Spencer for obstructing her job twice now before leaving. The door clicked shut and you let out a breath of relief, sagging against your desk to pick up your cue cards while Spencer stepped forward, plucking them out of your hands. “Spence,” you protested but it melted under his look.

“You haven’t taken a minute to process what happened,” Spencer said, his voice gentle but insistent.

“I don’t have the time—”

“Then make the time,” Spencer said firmly, interrupting you swiftly and you pursed your lips at him. That hadn’t changed. “Your home was broken into and your floor was covered in dead rats, and you’re gonna go on like nothing happened?”

“This isn’t about me,” you replied patiently. “This is about the city needing to feel safe—”

“The city isn’t safe, and you telling them otherwise is… It’s patronising and it’s belittling their intelligence,” Spencer retorted and it was unfair because he was right.

“I can’t believe I’m taking political advice from a STEM major,” you muttered, moving to sit behind your desk and pull out a fresh sheet of paper.

“I can’t believe I’m giving it,” he pointed out, and he stepped around to the front of your desk, placing a hand atop yours, and sitting himself directly in front of you, forcing eye contact. “What do you need?” He looked at you, and he gave your hand a gentle squeeze.

"Twenty minutes to write a new speech and a lot of coffee," you said.

“I’ve got you,” he said, and disappeared around the corner, reappearing a minute later with a pot of coffee and two mugs, and he poured one for you and one for him, setting it on the desk, just like old times. It was hard to concentrate with the smell of the coffee and Spencer’s cologne right in front of you, and you took a quick sip before setting the cup down and writing your speech.

You soldiered through your speech, putting on your best face, and Spencer pulled you away from Mandy who was trying to get you to take this threat of a recall seriously, setting you up in a secure hotel room instead. “You really don’t have to do this,” you said, sitting cross-legged by the foot of the bed as Spencer checked the windows were locked.

“We need to make sure you’re safe. If you go back home, there’s a stronger likelihood that he’ll come after you this time,” Spencer said, closing the curtains over the windows. “He’ll think you aren’t taking him seriously.”

“I don’t understand how he could just break in,” you said, rubbing your face tiredly, and Spencer pulled up a chair in front of you to sit down, face to face when you look up.

“Morgan and Rossi are looking into it, we’ll get you answers,” he assured you, pressing his hand to your knee and you sighed.

“What are the chances that this is connected to the missing kids?” you asked and Spencer frowned, retracting his hand.

“The working hypothesis was that a disgruntled parent might have done it, but leaving that many rats behind—” Just the mention of the creatures seemed to cause you pain, a wince crossing your expression at the memory of it. “—doesn’t seem plausible for just any parent to pull off. Was there anyone specifically angry at you?”

You chewed your bottom lip, shaking your head. “Not enough to do this. I was expecting getting tomatoes thrown at me or something.”

Spencer frowned. “Tomatoes is oddly specific,” he noted and you shrugged.

“I had these parents corner me after a council meeting, asking me why I was more focused on county fairs than looking for their kids,” you said, looking down at your hands and picking at your thumbnail. “I write policies and draft budgets. I can’t find a mass abductor, and people expect me to put more pressure on the police force as if they’re not doing everything they can. We can’t just close off an entire district forever. And the protocol says that after the first 24 hours…”

“For a regular child abduction,” Spencer told you. “This is different. He hijacked a school bus and abducted over 30 kids. It’s unprecedented, there’s no protocol for this.”

You swallowed before you looked at him, your expression cloudy and downcast. “I’m gonna lose my job,” you whispered, tears rimming your eyes and Spencer’s hands cupped your cheeks, thumbing the tears away like they had ten years ago.

“Hey, no, you’re not,” he insisted softly. “Noone’s done more for this city than you have.”

“Like that matters,” you muttered, wanting to cry some more but his hands were so warm and comforting that you just closed your eyes. “All Perry has to do is promise to deliver. I’m the one who has to actually do the work, and no matter what I do, I get criticized for it.”

“Well, then, they’re idiots,” Spencer said matter-of-factly. “You don’t wanna be a mayor of a town of idiots, do you?” he asked and you snorted gently, laughing as he shifted to sit next to you, and he felt you curl into him, so he rubs your arm, following his instincts.

“Thank you for being here,” you murmured into his chest, his woollen sweater vest warm against your cheek, your fingers playing with the hem of it.

“There’s nothing to thank me for,” he replied, pressing a kiss to your hair, his hand on your arm stilling. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”

“Sap,” you muttered, making him smile a little, one you can feel as he presses his lips to your hair. “You could’ve called,” you murmured, still playing with his sweater.

“I didn’t think I was allowed to,” he replied quietly. “You were so mad that night.”

“Ten years ago,” you reminded him, pulling away to look at him. “You thought I was gonna be mad at you forever?”

Spencer looked at his hands, long spindly fingers meant to lace through yours. “I didn’t have any evidence to believe otherwise.” He looked at you with those glassy hazel eyes that made you melt. “I screwed up,” he murmured. “But I was so afraid you’d look at me like everyone else.”

“Spence,” you whispered, shifting closer, knee pressing against his thigh. “There is more to a person’s character than their reputation, or their qualifications.” You cupped his face the way you used to, his cheek slightly rougher than before, and the briefest thought flickered across your mind — does he still kiss like he used to? You swatted it away, focusing on the conversation at hand. “There is so much more to you than your PhD.”

“PhDs,” he corrected quietly, and you snorted quietly.

“You got more of them?”

“Math, engineering, chemistry.”

“Does that make you Dr. Dr. Dr. Reid?” you asked and Spencer shook his head, your hand dropping to his lap.

“That’s not how it works.”

“Well, how else will people know you’re a multi-PhD holder?” you asked, teasing.

“Shut up,” he muttered, kissing you, his hands sweeping up to cup your face, holding your jaw like it belonged to him. You were wrong. He doesn’t kiss like he used to. Not tentative or hesitant, but confident and breath-stealing, each move precise and purposeful as he took pauses in just the right places to make you needier, smiling as you chased his lips greedily. His fingers threaded into your hair, like he still remembered how to drive you insane, still holding your face close to his as he pulled away for breath, feeling yours fan over his lips. “I wanted to do that all day,” he whispered, nudging his nose against yours.

“I…” You had no words, opening your eyes to look at him, your head all cloudy and dazed and Spencer wanted to laugh, hands dropping to his lap. You, who had an argument for everything, the debate captain who always won, who had a retort armed at all times, had been struck speechless.

“Need a minute?” he asked, smirking and you wanted to hit him. You definitely wanted to kiss him. His smirk dropped as he saw concern flit across your face. “What is it?” he asked, starting to panic just a little. “Did I… No, I should’ve asked first—”

You shook your head. “No, well, I mean, yes, you could’ve asked first but that’s not…” You dropped your gaze, stopping yourself from taking his hand. “You’re leaving,” you said quietly and he frowned. “Once you find this guy… I won’t see you again,” you said matter-of-factly, blinking away the sting in your eyes.

“I… I can visit,” he offered lamely and you looked up, tilting your head at him.

“You won’t,” you said quietly. “And you shouldn’t. This part of your life ended ten years ago.”

“I don’t want it to,” he whispered.

“If your team hadn’t been called in to find these kids,” you asked softly, “would you have ever thought about me again?”

“Don’t say that,” Spencer insisted, taking your hand in his. I still love you, he thought. “We’re gonna find these kids, and this guy who’s harassing you, and… And we can figure this out too.”

Wishful thinking, you thought, but his hand felt so warm in yours, his heart on his sleeve, bleeding in front of you. You can’t dash his hopes, even though a part of you thinks he’ll be better off that way. “Okay,” you said instead, and his phone buzzed, forcing him to pull it out of his pocket and step away to answer Morgan. You can hear bits and pieces from Spencer’s side.

“Yeah, she’s with me… I already asked her, she doesn’t know… I can ask, yeah. If it is him, I’d rather stay here, make sure she’s safe… If there’s the slimmest chance that he comes here instead, I’m not taking the risk, Morgan.”

You rubbed your wrist, waiting for him to return. “Do you know a Perry Williams?” he asked, showing you a picture of the man, his voice on FBI mode and it creeped you out.

“Should I?” you asked, frowning.

“He used to be a pest controller, did work all over town, and he was at the school when it burned down four years ago,” Spencer said, slipping his hands in his pockets. “Right around where your first term started.”

You shook your head, frowning, not remembering the name or the face. “No, I don’t. But one of my first acts as mayor was to award the firefighters at the school,” you said. “I… I can’t remember their names either.”

Spencer said nothing, calling someone else instead, leaving you to twiddle your thumbs. “Garcia, can you look into firefighters associated with the school fire?” he asked and you were starting to feel restless, watching him work instead. “Huh,” he said, his expression puzzled. You watched him put the phone away again and turn to you. “Apparently, the firefighter you awarded implied to the press that the reason the fire got so bad was because of Williams, saying that the pesticide chemicals made the fire worse. When Williams recovered from his burns, that firefighter became his first victim.”

“What?” you asked. “Wh-How?”

“You don’t want to know,” Spencer said and you stood up to face him.

“Don’t tell me what I want or what I can’t handle, just tell me the truth,” you retorted firmly and he let out a breath.

“He was beaten to death in his own home and then set on fire,” Spencer said, watching you process that.

“Jesus Christ,” you muttered, running a hand through your hair.

“The records also said,” Spencer continued, slowly this time, measuring your reaction, “that he tried to get a meeting with you multiple times but he was denied.”

You stared at him. “So he kidnapped an entire schoolbus of kids?” you demanded. “Are you kidding me? Who does that?”

“It was multiple stressors piling on,” he said patiently. “He was recovering from his burns for the better part of a year, he lost his job, plus the separation from his wife, add that the city’s hero blames him for the fire, and the fact that he’s going unheard… so he did a drastic thing.”

“So now what?” you asked.

“The team’s checking his place, and any other locations he might go to, and hopefully, we’ll find him before morning.”

“Great,” you muttered, sitting back on the foot of the bed, hands grasping the edge, and Spencer knelt in front of you, placing a warm hand on your knee.

“We will find him,” he assured you. “Believe it or not, we’re very good at what we do.”

“Yeah, I know,” you murmured, tucking hair behind your ear, and looking down at him. A moment passed like that, just both of you looking at each other, different in so many ways, and in so many ways, still the same. Spencer wet his lips, getting up eventually.

“You should get some sleep,” he said and you frowned.

“Just me?”

“Well, I need to be up, in case anything changes,” he said and you narrowed your eyes at him.

“Or maybe you just want an excuse to watch me sleep,” you retorted, making him blush.

“What? No, I-I don’t want— I mean, I don’t—” He’s cut off by your little laugh and his attempt at a scowl came out more as a pout as he moved to sit beside you. “You’re mean,” he mumbled and you laced your fingers into his, raising it to kiss his knuckles, then pressing your interlocked hands to your chest.

You can’t sleep and he’s not supposed to, so you end up curled into his side, hand in hand, while he tells you what the last ten years have been like — about being recruited and abandoned by Gideon, meeting Derek who would become arguably his best friend (you narrowed your eyes at that, a flare of jealousy that he kisses away, reminding you of your place in his heart), and stories about cases. By 2am, he’s telling you all about Riley and how his dad had helped cover up the murder of his killer, all to protect his mom from having witnessed it, and you’re hanging onto every word, until his phone buzzes with a text.

Derek: We got him. Kids are all accounted for. Tell your girl.

“They found the kids,” Spencer said first, knowing that would bring you more relief than just telling you that they found Williams. He’s right, too, noticing how your eyes close and you take a deep, calm breath.

“Thank God,” you murmured.

“They’ve got Williams in custody too. You could probably go home in the morning,” Spencer continued, watching you nod, the tight coil in your chest unravelling.

“And you?” you asked, looking up at him, memorising his face now.

“What about me?” he asked, quirking an eyebrow, noting the huff that leaves your nose.

“When do you have to leave?”

“Under normal circumstances? We make sure the PD and the DA have enough to prosecute. Sometimes they don’t have enough evidence, so we stick around for a confession, but otherwise, we leave when the jet’s available.”

You nodded stiffly, lips pressed together. “This isn’t normal circumstances, though,” Spencer continued and you glanced at him.

“It’s not?”

He looked at you with a kind of fondness that you’ve only ever associated with him. “Normal circumstances don’t include you.”

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