#elite four derek

[b3crew]

ANIME BOSTON 2023 | Christine Cabanos Interview | B3 - Boston Bastard Brigade

B3, Enchanting Sorcery Productions, and Anime-Zing Radio get squid ink by the barrel full in a special Anime Boston 2023 interview with voice actress Christine Cabanos. Hear about her first role ever voicing in the anime K-On!, playing crazy characters, and travel blogs & side hustles.

Click here to listen!

[pathologicalreid]

let’s do some quick criminal minds math

derek morgan was born in 1973

assuming he finished high school the same year he turned 18 in 1991 and then did a four year bachelor’s degree, he graduated from college in 1995 (if he graduated in four years) BUT he has a summer birthday, so it’s possible he turned 19 right after graduation and finished college in 1996, but let’s go with the former

THEN (and i never see anyone talk about this) derek morgan has a juris doctor degree (a three year degree) from northwestern (shown in “profiler, profiled”) so, he finished law school in 1998!!

presumably, he did not take the bar because it’s never mentioned in the show that he was a practicing attorney

so, we’re in the summer of 1998, he has a law degree, at which point he decides to become a cop with CPD (insanely odd decision)

in “…and back”, he tells emily he’s been on the team for seven years. that episode aired in 2009 so we can say he joined the BAU in 2002.

this gives derek morgan from 1998-2002 to work as a cop for the chicago police department, work on a bomb squad, complete the five month FBI training at quantico, and work his way through the ranks to get to the BAU, which is, in the show, intended to be an elite branch of the bureau!!!!

i’m not sure whether or not i should be impressed with him or displeased with the writers for just being like “okay sure he can do that too”

[nothingunrealistic]

review roundup: billions 7x08 “the owl”

what a waste of my time! what did reviewers think?

New York Times: ‘Billions’ Season 7, Episode 8 Recap: Going Nuclear

Mike Prince is trying to do the right thing. A man for whom his wife, Andy, cares deeply has had a mountain-climbing accident in the Himalayas. He is injured and alone, in the path of a storm, running out of food and stranded on the Chinese side of the mountains. Mike has the resources to arrange a successful extraction, even under these physically and politically dangerous conditions. To rescue the man means risking an international incident and potentially ending his presidential campaign. Not to rescue him means the man will die, and Andy will lose someone who is more to her than a friend.

fascinated by the vagueness of the description of andy’s relationship to derek here.

In this secluded environment — clearly modeled after the Bohemian Grove, right down to the choice of its avian mascot — the nearly all-male elite can mix, mingle, urinate in the open air, go streaking through the snow, participate in tests of strength with offensive names and generally enjoy the rights and privileges of being right and privileged.

get their asses!

Known to friends and foes alike as “Fourth,” Pike is there to decide which of these self-conceptualized common-sense mavericks deserves his backing. He gets his answer in the most horrifying sequence this show has seen since Bobby Axelrod paid a doctor to let a patient die.

i can imagine there were more horrifying sequences, but i can’t think of any right now. (though who knows what the last four episodes might hold? we already know a fresh angle on the printer throwing scene is in there…)

Watching this room full of rich men discuss the incineration of millions as if they’re swapping fantasy football strategies is repulsive; there’s no other way to put it. It’s everything wrong with how decisions are made in this country, as wealthy people in no danger of facing consequences for their actions debate idly which lives are and aren’t worthless when stacked against the overriding importance of their own comfort and ambitions.

i love it when sean goes off like this. it’s a breath of fresh air next to sarene’s “prince is trump, no further questions your honor” analysis and kyle’s “i don’t think michael prince is a dangerous fascist” t-shirt.

Chuck’s quest to stop Prince from reaching the White House — like the parallel sabotage campaign led by Wendy, Wags and Taylor — is predicated on the idea that no man this free of self-doubt belongs anywhere near power, let alone the kind of power present in the nuclear football.

TAYLOR MENTIONED.jpg

Chuck leaves, visibly shaken. If self-styled guardians of the soul of the nation like Fourth don’t understand that they’re selling that soul by backing Prince, what hope does he have? Which raises another question: Is “Billions” the most chilling show on television right now? And I’m not talking about the wintry setting of this week’s episode. Like virtually every episode since Prince’s presidential ambitions became clear, ��The Owl” casts an unflinching eye on the danger posed to American democracy by megalomaniacal strongmen, by the ultra-rich, and especially by the people who are both. In a sense, this is covered ground for the show. Chuck already took on billionaire overreach when he battled Bobby Axelrod for five seasons. His conflicts with the pointedly unnamed presidential administration in power in the show’s universe from 2017 to 2021, represented by odious officials like Attorney General Jock Jeffcoat and Todd Krakow, made a clear argument that authoritarianism, corruption and reactionary politics are correlated phenomena. But since Axe never got directly involved in politics, and since the former president was never depicted as an on-screen character, “Billions” has never had such an opportunity to explore all these issues up close by embodying them in one man. And in an episode that depicts the threat he presents in the starkest, most existential terms imaginable, it’s worth noting what that one man actually does.

📣📣📣

To its credit, “Billions” has long presented sexual fetishism and kink not as a source of comedy (OK, not only as a source of comedy), let alone as a marker of deep psychological dysfunction. It has always been presented more as just a part of the sex lives of countless basically normal people (OK, normal by “Billions” standards). It picks up this torch again in a subplot involving Wags’s discovery that he has a certain scatological fetish that initially sends his wife, Chelz (Caroline Day), fleeing from the room. (“Stop saying words out of your mouth!” she stammers in one of the best lines of the night.) When Wendy explains to Chelz that the fetish represents Wags’s desire to be loved unconditionally, despite even the most repugnant parts of himself, Chelz is into it — but for Wags, the explanation kills the mood, like a magician revealing how the trick is done. And I call shenanigans! Figuring out why you’re into the weird stuff you’re into makes it more fun, not less.

a few counterpoints:

from 4x02 onward, billions kind of has treated chuck’s masochism as a marker of psychological dysfunction (overton window speech notwithstanding) and his loss of interest in it over the past two seasons as a sign of positive personal growth.

how much credit does billions deserve for portraying kink positively in the sex lives of certain characters if simultaneously it’s shitting on certain other characters for having (or even wanting) sex lives at all?

are we sure wags and chelz are married? i think that would come up if it had happened. (i know the audio description for this episode refers to her as his wife, but it’s been wrong before.)

in wags’s case, i can believe that having his kink explained would cause him to lose interest. remember how he promised wendy he wasn’t seeing dr. mayer by saying “i prefer those depths unplunged”? this man does NOT want to know himself.

Vulture: Billions Recap: Pissing in the Wind

another four-star rating. who is making you do this, sarene?

“The Owl” is the last, what I would call, “casual” episode. Its minimal plotlines set the stage for the chaos that will ensue over the final four episodes. That’s not a spoiler: remember that we’re still owed three more Axe episodes. And Axe + Billions = chaos.

it can be a spoiler if i bring the plot summaries of the last four episodes into it! but yes, i agree, we’re finally at the stage where things really get wild, even if there wasn’t a proper midseason turning point. watch out for those tempo changes, man, ‘cause when we go into the second bridge last third of the season, this shit takes off.

Before Prince can start communing with nature and the political elite, though, he must solve a problem for his wife, Andy. Apparently, a “friend” of hers was climbing a mountain on the Nepal/China border before tackling Mount Everest, and now he’s injured and trapped on the Chinese side. Oh, and he’s more than just a “friend.”

again with the vagueness! won’t anyone be forthright and say that andy fucked this guy? or at the very least that she slept with him?

As soon as Fourth talks about listening to “new voices” who can lead the country to even more greatness and he dismisses Governor Dunlop’s viewpoints on nuclear weapons usage as “sensible,” it’s game over. Prince almost doesn’t even need to say out loud that he would, without hesitation, bomb a hostile country with plans to launch an attack. But he does. Because Mike Prince feels fine with the end of the world as we know it. In his mind, that’s a better decision than leading with hesitation, which he claims would be Governor Dunlop’s approach. While most gasp in horror, Fourth is impressed, calling Prince’s viewpoint “a nuance few are brave enough to voice” and the embodiment of America’s core value, “strength of nation.” This is how the 2016 election happened, folks…

*long and loud sigh*

From where Fourth stands, Chuck is small potatoes, and Mike Prince is the man who can Make America Great Again.

*longer and louder sigh*

People sure do weird things when they’re given a lot of power. And in case you really weren’t sure that Mike Prince is the latest Billions character to sell his soul to the devil, the episode’s final images should clear things right up. The Owl retreat concludes with the male attendees, wearing dark, hooded cloaks (better dark than white, I guess) and carrying torches, setting a giant wooded owl statue aflame to the haunting tune of Bob Dylan’s “Blind Willie McTell.” Good grief, this country is bizarre.

can you please not jump on the “WOAH THEY WERE TOTALLY DOING A SATANIC ILLUMINATI RITUAL TO MOLOCH AT THE END THERE” train? i’ve already seen enough of that on twitter.

I deliberately refuse to discuss the Wags-Chels subplot for two reasons: (1) It felt like a leftover storyline from another season that the writers wanted to squeeze in before Billions concluded. (2) I. Hate. That. Baby. Shower. Game. With. Every. Fiber. Of. My. Being.

this is how i first found out that that was a real baby shower game. i hate it here. and yes, it felt like something that belonged into an earlier season, when neither wendy nor wags had anything better to do — such as, say, working on that plan to topple their would-be authoritarian boss when he happened to be three hundred miles away for two days — than analyzing wags’s new weird kink.

Fan Fun with Damian Lewis (Damianista): Billions on Showtime, Season 7 Episode 8: The Owl

damianista did not do a recap of this episode.

Entertainment Weekly: Billions recap: Into the woods

It's only when Michael Prince (Corey Stoll) decides he needs to attend the retreat that Chuck thinks twice about going.

incorrect! chuck goes because he knows dunlop and fourth will be there and wants to encourage him to endorse her rather than prince, but he has no idea prince will be attending until he arrives and sees prince there.

Complicating all of this, Andy (Piper Perabo) needs a favor. A friend of hers has disappeared while mountain climbing, and they can't use a beacon to coordinate a rescue because the man took an alternate route and crossed into China. Doing so would alert the Chinese government and he'd be held hostage. So Andy asks for Prince to coordinate a private, secret rescue using his connections. Prince does so despite the fact that if they get caught, his campaign is over, and despite his complicated feelings about the man being rescued, who's one of Andy's romantic connections in their open marriage.

“one of andy’s romantic connections” is the most explicit anyone’s gotten so far! congratulations!

All of this represents a shift in Prince's persona. He's becoming harsher, more cynical, and completely focused on his need for power. He's finally turning into the man everyone's been worried about.

he’s BEEN that man, kyle. that’s the point.

Fan Fun with Damian Lewis (Gingersnap): The Unbeatable, Unstoppable, Unparalleled MVPs from Billions Season 7 Episode 8, “The Owl”

Gingersnap Supreme Sleazeball Swerdlow Sayings in a Scene…AGAIN – He’s back! Slimeball doc is back, this time wearing a prison-orange, head-to-toe, Karl Kani tracksuit to The Owl’s winter conclave. […] And it doesn’t stop there – the Doc simulates ghastly hip thrusts when groaning the word “uh!” as he names off kinky sexual acts like postillionage and croissant (too many urban dictionary definitions to count),

maybe you would have found the right urban dictionary definition if you’d looked up cuissade, which is what he actually said and was spelled clearly in the captions. (and neither of those things are particularly kinky unless you’re incredibly straight.)

Benedict Arnold Citation– Griffin Dunne, who played George Pike, IV aka “Fourth” in this episode. Dunne also played Dr. Alcon Parfit in Succession. Only traitors act in both Billions and Succession and I find it deplorable when one is defecting across enemy lines, but he wasn’t the first defector.

🙄🙄🙄

Damianista […] Greatest Entrance – Governor Nancy Dunlop The badass Montana governor shows up at The Owl with these words to the old, rich, white men that I am talking about above. “Hey boys! Are you cold? Some of you seem cold. I saw a few of you answering the call in the trees back there. They were definitely cold.”

yes, of course. what could be greater and more badass than walking up to a group of people and going “haha small penis.”

Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship – Wendy and Andy While their relationship did not start off on the right foot, it seems Wendy and Andy bond over Andy’s grief when it is not the Tiger Team but the Chinese officials who are able to reach Derek first! I think Andy deep down knows why the best rescue team in the world has not been able to do it and I suspect she may join the opposition against Prince presidency in the weeks to come!

what do you mean “deep down.” she knows why the team couldn’t get derek out and she said it out loud to prince’s face.

Lady Trader […] The “Don’t Put All Your Eggs in One Basket” Award: Did Mike Prince really just pull all of his money, both personal and the funds, out of every international investment? What a very foolish and short-sighted thing to so. The losses his would take would be tremendous, not to mention how he would move the markets on certain investments, and would never be able to get “market prices.” What a moron.

[midsommar imdb parents guide “a man is constantly seen vaping” tumblr post voice] oh if that’s all

The “Vision I Never Want to See” Award: The thought of those old, wrinkly men playing naked Twister just brought up my breakfast! Gross!

disrespectful to old men who fuck each other. apologize now.

Fan Fun with Damian Lewis (Lady Trader): From the Trader’s Desk

lady trader also did not do a recap of this episode.

[elen-000]

BLEACH: Ichigo Kurosaki’s Journey from Ordinary to Extraordinary

Bleach, an iconic anime series based on Tite Kubo’s manga, captivated audiences from October 2004 to March 2012 with its 366 episodes. Produced by Pierrot and directed by Noriyuki Abe, the series follows Ichigo Kurosaki, a high school student who inherits the role of a Soul Reaper from Rukia Kuchiki. His mission? Defend humans from evil spirits and guide souls to the afterlife.

Plot Overview:

Ichigo's life takes a dramatic turn when he gains Soul Reaper powers from Rukia. Initially reluctant, he soon embraces his role, uncovering hidden powers in his friends and confronting major threats. Rukia’s arrest leads Ichigo to the Soul Society, where he discovers Sōsuke Aizen’s sinister plans involving the Hōgyoku—a powerful substance capable of transforming Hollows into hybrid beings with Soul Reaper abilities.

As Aizen’s ambitions threaten both the Soul Society and the human world, Ichigo and his friends battle the Espadas, a group of elite Arrancars. After intense confrontations and sacrifices, Ichigo’s powers are restored, leading to epic battles against new enemies like Kugo Ginjo and his Fullbringers.

Anime-exclusive arcs add additional layers to the story, featuring unique antagonists like the Bount and the Zanpakutō spirits, expanding the Bleach universe.

Voice Acting:

In the English adaptation, Johnny Yong Bosch (Ichigo) initially struggled with character names but grew into the role, especially during intense scenes. Stephanie Sheh (Orihime) and Derek Stephen Prince (Uryū) brought their characters to life with distinct voices and personalities, balancing humor with depth.

Production Insights:

Director Noriyuki Abe and a talented team of writers and animators brought Kubo’s world to life, while composer Shirō Sagisu’s music, featured in four soundtracks, set the tone for the series. The anime evolved from a 4:3 to a 16:9 widescreen format, reflecting its growth and development.

Legacy and Reception:

Bleach has left a lasting impact with its complex characters, gripping storylines, and action-packed sequences. The anime was a hit in Japan and internationally, with a strong fanbase and critical acclaim. It continues to resonate with audiences through the sequel series Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, which revisits the manga’s final arc with a new set of episodes starting from October 2022.

Beyond the Anime:

Bleach expanded into films, live-action adaptations, and even stage musicals, highlighting its enduring popularity. The live-action film, directed by Shinsuke Sato, was released in Japan in 2018, and the rock musicals added another dimension to the Bleach experience.

[bikerpoliticalreport]

Steve Bannon Weighs In On Trump’s Possible 2024 Running Mate

Former President Donald Trump has yet to announce a running mate for his 2024 campaign but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t settled on someone. Previous reporting claimed that the 45th president would likely choose a female running mate and several names have been mentioned.

   Former White House Steve Bannon shared some interesting information about former President Donald Trump’s potential 2024 running mate. During an episode on the “War Room” podcast, Bannon revealed one interesting name.

   “By the way, I just want to make an aside before I bring Derek Harvey in. When I did Q-and-A and I did about an hour of Q-and-A, they had a little technical problem. But I did Q-and-A, which I think people were here. I want to make sure people understand this,” Bannon said.

   “Somebody asked about Robert F. Kennedy and the great speech at Hillsdale, his opening speech and what did I think about his prospects. And I said, “Look, I’m a Kari Lake person, but if Kari Lake becomes governor, as she should if this court case, or if not, she runs for the Senate. If she’s not available to be Trump’s VP that Bobby Kennedy would be, I think, an excellent choice for President Trump to consider. There was a standing ovation and this was a very hardcore MAGA war room posse crowd,” he added.

   Bannon thinks 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. could be Trump’s running mate.

   “I think that that is a signal to the political elites in this country that something very different is going on. And I thought it was quite extraordinary. Robert Kennedy Jr. has huge support for the American populist movement. Look for the GOP elites to start their attacks on Bobby any day now,” Bannon continued.

   Trump’s team recently shared some interesting insight into his potential running mate.

   Trump insiders spoke to the Daily Caller and said the 45th president is likely to pick a vice presidential candidate that is “loyal,” has “charisma,” and is “ideologically aligned” with him.

   “No candidates have publicly announced their intent to be Trump’s VP, but the former president has indicated that a lot of people’ are ‘auditioning’ behind the scenes. Trump insiders told the Caller that although there haven’t been any formal discussions to narrow down the pool, there are a set of characteristics that will likely be considered,” the Daily Caller reported.

   “We do know one thing about Trump, is that he puts a lot of weight on how well you present yourself. That really matters to him, so I suspect that will matter for his VP choice,” a GOP consultant close to Trump told the Caller, adding that the person needs to be “TV ready.”

   “Loyalty. That’s the necessary characteristic of anyone who wants to be VP. President Trump and the movement was dragged down by disloyalty in the White House,” a source close to Trump said.

 While the insiders did not name anyone specifically in the interview, they did at least share some insight into the type of person he would be interested in.

   A recent Politico report stated that an unnamed Trump adviser said the 45th president is likely to choose a running mate “from three general lanes of candidates: women, conservatives of color, or a trusted adviser.”

   “Once you get past those two issues — loyalty and Trump going more with his gut — Trump has a lot of leeway in who he would pick,” said Tony Fabrizio, Trump’s lead pollster in 2016 and 2020.

   “He’s not necessarily looking to balance the ticket geographically, but what he can do is pick to balance gender, race, ethnicity — a lot of different lanes there. It could be everything from a Tim Scott in South Carolina to an Asian American in California or somebody Hispanic in Texas. There are so many choices and paths. And there’s lots of time to go,” he added.

   According to a report from the Washington Examiner, these four Republican women could be high on Trump’s shortlist: South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and former Arizona journalist Kari Lake.

   The Washington Examiner reported:

   Sanders, the youngest governor in the United States and the longest-tenured press secretary in the Trump White House flew up political draft boards after she delivered what Trump supporters agree was an “exceptionally strong” response to Biden’s State of the Union on Feb. 7.

   Noem was elected as South Dakota’s first female governor in 2018 after spending more than a decade in the House of Representatives and has made a name for herself as a leading Republican lawmaker in the so-called “culture wars.”

   Stefanik, the current chairwoman of the House GOP conference, was elected as a centrist Republican in 2015 but, after serving on the president’s defense team during his first impeachment, has shifted increasingly to the right. She frequently touts her strong ties to Trump and even endorsed his 2024 run days before he announced his candidacy.

   Lake is perhaps the strangest potential pick and one many current and former Trump advisers hope he avoids. The former Phoenix-area news anchor lost her Trump-endorsed 2022 gubernatorial bid against Democrat Katie Hobbs, but she only further endeared herself to the former president by repeatedly claiming that widespread fraud occurred in the 2020 election.

   One name not mentioned in the Washinton Examiner report is Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia. Her name has been floated in the media recently.

[senatushq]

NAME. Ephraim Briggs AGE & BIRTH DATE. 27 & April 20th, 1996 GENDER & PRONOUNS. Male & He/Him SPECIES. Human AFFILIATION. The Eye OCCUPATION. Overseer, Military Division FACE CLAIM. Derek Theler

BIOGRAPHY

( tw: violence, death, child soldier ) Left outside a fire station in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, Ephraim was barely two years old as he sat outside the building with his younger brother cradled in his arms: too small to carry him. He didn’t remember much of what happened before. Just a woman crying, her hand in his as she told him to sit still and not go anywhere before she placed a baby in the toddler’s arms. Her features were obscured by the light, a blank canvas that could have been anyone. “Be good,” she told him, “be strong,” she said, “be brave.” Lights followed, a lot of questions, that night he slept in the back of a car as a man and a woman talked about things he didn’t understand. The car seat they placed his brother faced to the rear, he didn’t have a name yet, Ephraim wondered then what he should call him. 

The foster family that took Ephraim and his brother Rawlins in was kind enough, the house was big and the family was large but there was always room enough for them both and food to go around. They shared a room on the upper floor with a window that faced out into the water, at night Ephraim would watch boats pass by in the dark and wonder if his mother was on one of them. His foster parents weren’t sour in any way, they were good people, they cared a lot and they were more than fair. But in his mind Ephraim imagined his mother to be on their way to come get them, she’d pull up on one of those boats that Ephraim saw shifting through the night, hop the fence and take them away.

It was early one morning when they came, there were always visitors in the house, social workers taking the other kids to see their parents in supervised visitations. They never came for Ephraim and Rawlins though, but today was different. Rawlins had just turned four, Ephraim was six, and from Breaux Bridge to Lafayette the young boys were driven and brought to a lab. There were doctors there, checkups is what the pair were told, routine and nothing major. Ephraim didn’t know where they came from or why, in later years he’d be told that it had something to do with genetics and bloodlines. The father that Ephraim never knew and that Rawlins wasn’t related to. 

Once a week the social workers would come and take them to the facility in Lafayette, the big shiny building made of glass and steel made Ephraim feel important somehow. Every other kid went to the doctor’s office maybe once or twice a year back in Breaux Bridge, but Ephraim and Rawlins were special - and the doctors there with the strange symbols on their name badges treated them as much. An eye, that’s what Ephraim always remembered seeing, and by the time Rawlins turned eight they never went back to the foster home. A few of their possessions were packed up one night, unique enough and strong enough and special enough, they were going to stay in Lafayette. Ephraim had friends at the home, kids he’d miss, but it was a revolving door and everyone there was either a permanent fixture and much older, or a recent transplant. 

The Eye, Lafayette headquarters became a training ground. Whatever education Ephraim was supposed to obtain in public school was filtered through a military eye as he and his younger brother were taught strategy and how to effectively hunt, track, and kill supernatural creatures. The lab was another constant, when not in the classroom or in the training rooms their bodies were constantly being monitored, their blood tested, and serums that had passed rigorous testing were pumped into them. Stronger, faster, smarter, it wasn’t enough to be the best they had to be elite. Conditioned to hate the creatures that they hunted, pitted against the caged monsters that were feral and monstrous, death, he discovered, came easy to him. He was good at it. Ephraim grew in size and stature, one year rolled into another, then another, and another. Rawlins at his side was ever-present in the bunk above him, someone to shelter and protect. The little brother he’d been watching over for years. 

At fourteen they came for Rawlins, took him while Ephraim and the others were sleeping. He awoke to the sounds of struggle and when he jumped from his bed he was restrained, Rawlins screamed and the others stirred, the two brothers reached for one another - their fingertips a breath apart, then something blunt struck the back of Ephraim’s head and he was out cold. 

They told him that Rawlins’ test came back. Supernatural, they told him. Which meant there was something wrong with him, that eventually he’d turn on them all and that was something that couldn’t be stopped. It didn’t make sense to him, maybe if he’d been younger he could have bitten it off and swallowed it whole, but at fourteen he’d been with the Eye for six years - they were his whole world, but Rawlins was a part of that. He was one of them. Ephraim argued and he was corrected for it. Bitter and jaded he let the notion that his brother was gone sink in further and deeper, Rawlins was dead to him. He and his fellows were sent out into Louisiana, where the vampire population sprawled over the countryside and permeated most of the cities, and that was where the junior hunters took to training. 

Practical experience was nothing like what they did in the facility, a beast that could be shocked and put back in its cage was nothing compared to a den of a vampires’ sireline. A clutch of Pluto or Venus who could disappear in a burst of mist or flies. Vermin, all of them. The dogma trickled down that Rawlins was like these savage creatures - they visited the homes of those whose lives had been torn apart by witches or lycans or vampires. Fey who lured children into the Otherworld and transformed them into beasts. This was his brother, this was what Ephraim was hunting now. Half the battle was saving people before they could not be saved, injecting those bitten by lycans with an antidote to prevent them from turning, shooting up thralls with an antivenom to keep them from throwing themselves on their sire’s grave. 

They were helping humanity, healing the world, and when they came back busted, broken, and on death’s door, the Eye had blood waiting for them. They called it the usefulness of the captive, vampire blood was a resource that could be renewed into eternity - the answer to so many of humanity’s diseases lived in their curse. Time and time again Ephraim was pumped into it, he grew and got older, his status went from junior to senior to adept. Twenty-one and by then his regular rotations had begun, Ephraim wasn’t a student anymore, he taught his own classes, he took his own patrols, he went on his own missions, and he had his own guard duty. A responsibility, like so many others, that Ephraim took seriously. Protecting one of the blood bags had been one of his responsibilities, what he didn’t realise was that the guard before him thought it would be funny to haze Ephraim - to loosen the creature’s bonds just enough, and to lessen the sedation so that when Ephraim got too close, the vampire’s fangs were burrowed into his chest. Pain followed swiftly by euphoria was what ripped through Ephraim, he didn’t pull away and he didn’t stop the creature. The vampire took from him and took from him before Ephraim pulled away - weakened but unable to deny how much he’d enjoyed his flirtation with the dark. 

If anyone saw the wound then there would have been questions, so Ephraim took the creature’s blood again, tethered themselves together, closed his jacket, and quietly looked forward to the nights where he’d be put on guard rotation again. 

In the years that followed Ephraim rose through the ranks, stronger and faster. Resolved and cold. When they came to him and said there was something inside him, something they could use, Ephraim didn’t fight it. They planned to make him overseer now, young and ambitious, Rome was the bane of the Eye’s existence, the jewel of modern innovation and supernatural destruction. Big things were happening in Italy, that’s what everyone always said. To the lab once again, but this wasn’t like every other day, twenty years they’d been poking at him and prodding at him. Enhancing him as society innovated and built upon itself. Cybernetics, robotics, and now magic. The very idea invoked memories of his brother, the one who’d been dragged away screaming before he could turn into one of those beasts, but the improvements came with a position. 

Fire power, they called it. Buried fey ancestry, and when he arrived in Rome Ephraim vowed to leave ashes in his wake. 

PERSONALITY

+ resolved, hardworking, serious – blunt, dismissive, vicious

PLAYED BY SHANE. EST. He/Him.

[hutz224]

World Masters Cross Country Championships preview part 3

With statistical assistance from Scott Lawrence

There are now just five days until runners and fans converge upon Bathurst for the World Cross Country Championships. My previews have focussed on the Masters 6k races because the 2k relay teams largely remain a mystery to me. But a few enquiries have revealed some interesting pairings. In the 40+ division, it has been confirmed that Ben Bruce and April Lund (USA) will run as a team and they should clean up. Steve Dinneen and Anna Kasapis are the strongest Aussie pairing, followed by Nathan Crowley and Nicole Joseph. These four runners are all from Victoria and I'm not aware of any teams from other States that might challenge them.

(L to R) Dinneen, Kasapis, Crowley, Joseph

In the 50+ category, Steve Moneghetti has thrown the cat among the pigeons by dropping down from his 60+ age group to team up with Krishna Stanton. A clever move from the master of Masters! But I fancy the chances of Victorian duo, John Meagher and Julie Norney, who have an age advantage over this all-star pair. In a remarkable coincidence, Krishna and Julie ran identical times in their most recent parkruns (18:56), so will Mona have the speed over 2k to beat his younger rival? I am going out on a limb and tipping an upset by the younger team. Ant Rickards and Bev Thomas (also Vic) are the likely third team on the podium. Krishna's presence should at least prevent a Victorian sweep of the medals.

(L to R top) Moneghetti, Stanton, Meagher

(L to R bottom) Norney, Rickards, Thomas

Now we return to the 6k individual cross country and the top 60+ and 65+ prospects. There are only three overseas M60 entries and it's a shame that most of the best runners in this age group appear to have preferred to enter the World Indoor Track Championships in Poland next month. Nonetheless, the field remains of high quality. Mona, fresh from his 5000m world track record, is the hottest of red-hot favourites. In an ominous sign for his rivals, when asked recently about the upcoming race, Mona simply volunteered: "I like cross country", four words carrying a very clear message to his rivals, among whom will be Bruce Graham (ACT), the winner of numerous Masters track titles over many years, and Derek Froude, a two time Olympian for New Zealand but now representing the USA. Craig Downie (Tas) is another elite runner, with recent times of 10:08/17:47 for 3000m/parkrun to his name. Gary Mayor (Qld) ran 17:35 for 5000m last year and so is also a chance for a medal.

(L to R) Graham, Froude, Downie, Mayor

The W60 field is not nearly as strong and has no foreign runners, so is a de facto Australian Championships. Victoria Gunn (Tas), or Vicky to her friends, ran 21:06 and scored an age grading over 90% at the Launceston parkrun last year, which probably makes her (what else?) a gun runner. Robyn Basman (NSW) has a similar 5000m time from 2022. Anne Lord (Vic) is a four-time Australian World Cross Country representative. The other runners have little or no form on the board, so there could easily be a surprise win here from someone sneaking under my radar.

(L to R) Gunn, Basman

How good it would have been to see the two outstanding M65 runners in the world going head to head in Bathurst? But alas, it's not to be, as NSW's own Keith Bateman and Scotland's Alistair Walker are both skipping the event, unfortunately. This leaves Allan Long (formerly NT, now Vic) as the clear favourite. Ian Calder (NZ) and Peter Hutton (NSW) are experienced Masters competitors and should both be in the mix. In the W65 age group, Rosemary Roediger (NSW) has a strong claim with recent parkrun times just beyond 21 minutes and consistent 90%+ age gradings, but New Zealander Christine Adamson will be close by. Great Britain and Northern Ireland's Margaret Phillips boasts an impressive 441 parkruns to date, but she cannot match the speed of Rosemary or Christine. Helen Stanley (Vic) is another respected Masters competitor. Calder and Adamson will be a chance to win the 60+ 2k relay if they team up, although the younger pair of Downie and Gunn could conceivably take the gold medals back with them to Tasmania.

(L to R) Calder, Hutton, Adamson, Stanley

I hope that you are enjoying these event previews. The final episode in these series will look at the 70+, 75+ and 80+ divisions, where the race distance drops to 4k. Until then, keep on running!

[cyoc49]

Table of Contents

Full Length Stories:

HIMBO Magazine: The New Hire (Preppy, Nerd)- Barry Allen is interviewing for a social media position with a gay fashion magazine, but the boss thinks he’d be perfect for the accounting department with just a few changes.

HIMBO Magazine: Changing Departments (Corporate Drone)- Derek Hale, a cocky & homophobic model doing a photo shoot for HIMBO gets on the boss’ wrong side and pays the price.

Auto Pilot (Preppy)- A slacker college student receives a strange button that makes life a lot easier for him.

Golly, Archie! (Preppy, 1950s)- Archie Andrews and Jughead Jones are sent back to the 50′s by their biggest opponent in Riverdale.

HIMBO Magazine: Talent Scouting (Preppy, Subservient)- A beachside slacker receives a strange “Help Wanted” email that slowly pushes him into the corporate world he dreads.

A Good Man is Easy to Make (Preppy, Nerd, Well Behaved)- On my way home from work, I help three vandals do better.

Short Stories:

Mr. Grey’s Newest Boy (Suit)- A prototype for my later suit stories. Jim Halpert is surprised when a man approaches him with an offer he’s unable to refuse.

Preppy God Father (Preppy)- A fashionable fairy transforms two deadbeat men into their best selves.

Preppy God Father, pt. II (Preppy)- Two more stories of men reaching their brightest potential, with a few new twists along the way.

Preppy God Father, pt. III (Preppy) - Preppy God Father is back with three new cases of men in need of a life upgrade.

Shopping for a Few New Wide Receivers (Preppy, Subservient)- Four of the top quarterbacks in the NFL are perfectly suited to serve as my new house boys.

Model Student (Nerd)- A disruptive student comes into class late, and the teacher decides to make an example of him.

Just Add Starch (Preppy)- As it turns out, starch isn’t just good for straightening out clothes.

New Uniform (Suit, Subservient) - One of my readers receives a dress code perfect for a daddy’s boy.

Put Some Clothes On! (Preppy, Subservient) - While on a walk I encounter a cocky young man wearing next to nothing, and can’t help but to berate him.

Reblogs:

The Interviews (Suit, Old Fashioned)- Three recent college graduates receive intense vetting during their interviews with the elite Carmichael Corporation, but come out all the better for it.

Keeping Up With Old Friends (Redux) (Preppy, Old Fashioned)- A college student meets his former lab partner several times, and is surprised to find him more and more genteel each time. What surprises him even more is when he’s offered the opportunity to head down the same path.

Re-Education (Preppy)- A nonconformist college student received special induction to fit in better at his new university.

Prep the Halls (Preppy)- A young twink is excited to spend Christmas in a cabin with his boyfriend, but is concerned when his boyfriend returns from his office meeting looking a bit different.

Top of Your Class (Nerd)- You ask to become a smart nerd to help write an essay for class. The controller gives you what you asked for and more.

The 43rd Annual Fettig High School Career Fair: Jackson (Preppy, Pilot) - A young troublemaker attempts to vandalize a private jet during a school visit, but when he’s caught he faces some unexpected consequences.

[wheredidhiseyebrowsgo]

Hello! Just wondering if you have any Pokémon au fics? Preferably m/m, with stiles as one part of the pairing. If you can’t find any, then maybe an update of your favorite tag/trope!

I choose...these fics! That's literally all I know about pokemon. But there is a tag for it! Before my time, I guess. (don't forget, you have to open it in a browser not the app)

Phantom Feelings by cherryblossombomb

(1/1 I 1,721 I General I Sterek)

Stiles did not get why people deemed it appropriate to battle in Pokémon Tower.

I Caught You by Sakuraiai

(1/1 I 1,831 I Not Rated I Sterek)

Pokemon trainer Stiles is new to hunting and catching pokemon. But he heard there is a rare and powerful pokemon in Beacon Hill's forest, and he's eager to find it. He just didn't expect to find Derek.

Sterek, I choose you! by Truee

(1/1 I 1,900 I Teen I Sterek)

Derek goes to challenge the champion after he beats the elite four, and boy is he in for a shock.

Capture you by Fox_Pause

(1/1 I 2,137 I General I Sterek)

Stiles almost gets himself killed playing Pokemon GO.

Luckily, Derek is there to save him.

Legends by CelestialVoid 

(1/1 I 2,412 I General I Sterek)

Derek runs a Pokémon Clinic with his sister and Stile is the apprentice at the local Gym, training to take over his father’s place as Gym Leader.

Coffee For Pika-Two by AsagiStilinski

(1/1 I 4,250 I Teen I Sterek)

Stiles decided long ago that being a Pokemon trainer wasn't for him, instead he prefers to keep Pokemon as pets and has stared a business in selling a specially crafted Poketreat, too bad the business is going about as well as selling umbrellas on a sunny day...

But maybe, just maybe, meeting a certain stranger on a train will change that...

[fangirls-just-want-to-have-fun]

My Thoughts That No One Asked For on Dancing With The Stars season 31 ep. 10: Semi-Finals!

okay listen call me paranoid but tell me why they put clips of Trevor and Daniel when they said double elimination I am in FEAR (update: I am distraught)

Okay but Daniel and Britt look so good 🥺 

Aww Witney’s double dubs sweatshirt that’s so cute

Okay but like?? The lighting for Witney and Wayne’s dance?? ELITE

Okay nines for Wayne that’s not bad

WITNEY’S PREGNANT OMG GOOD FOR HER

LET’S GO DANIEL AND BRITT 🙌🏻 

“I feel like I’m in the cool club!” Daniel Durant you are the love of my life

Oh my god I’m so ready for this

Daniel’s frame looks so good omg 😍

THAT WAS SO GOOD OMG IM CRYING

“I think everyone here has fallen in love with you.” Bruno speaking for the people as always 

Carrie Ann really just called them out for being soulmates in front of the whole audience 😳 👀

I’m thinking two tens and two nines

“You guys are a beautiful couple.” Alfonso speaking for the people as always 

EIGHT??? NOT EVEN ALL NINES?? BRO NO LEN GODDAMNIT

AyYO that little shangela solo moment??? EVERYTHING 

I’m gonna say this RIGHT now, I would be COMPLETELY fine with shangela winning she slays 

“Well I need four tonight.” I FUCKING LOVE HER

Oh my god Daniel is one point below Wayne and Shangela I’m gonna cry

Is it bad for me to hope other couples don’t do well

WHY IS CHARLI SO GOOD GODDAMNIT

I will not let Charli and mark make me cry I will not let Charli and mark make me cry I will not - *cries*

Yeah I’m not gonna lie usually I think the judges kind of uptalk Charli but godDAMN I gotta agree with them this time because that was FANTASTIC 

CHARLI D’AMELIO WHY ARE YOU SO GOOD YOU ABSOLUTELY DESERVED THAT PERFECT SCORE BUT WHY ARE YOU SO GOOD

Is it mean of me to hope that Trevor and Emma don’t do well so that they’re lower on the scoreboard? I think that’s mean. Sorry Trevor 🤟

Oh lord Emma my love being eliminated over a cha cha the last three seasons 😭 honey… my love… (update: and the Emma Slater Cha-Cha Curse prevails)

Please why does Trevor never have a shirt on lmfao (I mean shit if I looked like that I’d probably wear less clothes too but like) 

THEIR LITTLE NODS TO EACH OTHER AT THE END 😍 

Derek is so positive all the time I love him so much

BRUNO HOLDING ONTO THE SHIRT LMFAO sir you are SO real

The troupe 🥰 

OOF listen I know what I said but those eights still hurt 🥺 

Look I really want to feel bad for Gabby and her breakup but the bachelor/bachelorette is the bane of my existence so yeah

UGH CAN GABBY STOP BEING SUCH A GOOD DANCER FUCK 🤬

I do appreciate the constant shoutouts to the musicians and the singers this season

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again but every time Gabby claps for herself I like her 5% less

Okay I feel so bad for Daniel and Britt cause the judges are talking about how absolutely STUNNING Charli and Gabby’s waltzes were and idk man I just feel so bad for my team 🥺 

I’m sorry but why are we pretending that Gabby’s gonna be affected by the double elimination at ALL we all know she’s getting a perfect score

godDAMNIT

Daniel and Britt are in fifth I’m - 😭

THIS IS LEN’S LAST SEASON WHAT????? IM SORRY??? WHO WAS GONNA TELL ME  

WHY AM I CRYING OVER LEN GOODMAN

Mark with his victory fists up I - 😂 

Praying for Britt and Daniel in this second round 🙏🏻 

Girl not me forgetting that Wayne could sing lmfao 😅 

DAMNIT their dance is REALLY good so far 

“I disagree with the MEN sitting to the LEFT of me!!” Carrie Ann Inaba you are so real

Wayne and Whitney’s friendship >>>>>>

The way Daniel looks at Britt 🥺😭

Daniel and Britt dancing to one of Gabe’s favorite songs I LOVE THEM 🤟✨💕

Daniel + Britt + Gabe = the perfect team 🤟😭

Oh the dance hasn’t even started yet and I know this one is gonna GET ME

Samba is the HARDEST DANCE?? Okay they SLAYED that

Okay this one HAS to be all nines

Once again, Daniel and Britt’s matching necklaces have me 😭 

OKAY THEY GOT REALLY GOOD COMMENTS PRAYING FOR THEIR SCORES RN 🙏🏻 

Ngl it’s so nice to see Koko getting to be the fabtastic pro we know she is 🥰 

If anyone looked at me the way Britt Stewart looks at Daniel Durant, I swear 😅😚

TWO EIGHTS?? NO 😖 I am in so much fear for my team rn oh my god

Gabe getting an interview 🥺🤟

GodDAMN shangela never misses

Oh god Tyra stop reminding me about the double elimination 😭 

Look not to be a conspiracy theorist but if both Daniel and Trevor go home tonight after those clips in the intro I’m calling conspiracy (update: I’m calling conspiracy)

Once again, WHY are we acting like Charli’s going to be affected by the double elimination in ANY way (update: obviously I was right)

MARK’S GUITAR CAMEO YES

Jesus FUCK Mark and Charli are so good SHIT dude

My girl Charli looks DEAD on her feet is my she OKAY??

Charli and Mark’s weird like older cousin/younger cousin-esque relationship >>>>>>

“I wanted to dedicate this dance to you.” Okay Tremma shippers I didn’t get it before but shit I get it now

Jesus Christ once again: WHY ARE WE PRETENDING LIKE GABBY IS GOING TO BE AFFECTED BY THE ELIMINATION WE KNOW SHE’S GONNA GET A PERFECT SCORE (update: ONCE AGAIN I WAS CORRECT WE ALL KNEW THIS)

Ugh she’s so good I hate it

Bruno ripping his shirt off oh my GOD

Two perfect scores for the bachelorette I hate it here

Daniel and Britt are in the bottom two on the leaderboard I’m praying the votes get them through 😭 

Okay yeah Charli and Gabby got through what a surprise

Oh god that means Daniel and Shangela are in the bottom two and they’re definitely gonna save Shangela 😭 

Trevor and Emma I’ll miss you both so much 😭 

I’m actually fucking sobbing rn Daniel and Britt I’ll miss you guys infinitely

I’m so upset rn but I will say I think it’s adorable how Shangela and Daniel kinda like became cute little besties over the course of this season even after all the times they’ve been pitted against each other 💕🥺

Um yo is it just me or did anyone else think that Trevor was straight up about to like confess his love for Emma like?? hello?? what was that look??  😳👀

Yeah that was cute but it’s kinda FUCKED that they straight up just shoved Daniel, Britt, and Gabe to the side like didn’t even TRY to talk to them 🤨

I’m especially mad about that because that’s really coming RIGHT after Daniel was talking about how much this competition meant to him, then they just blow him right off like wtf

Anyways obviously I’m upset because of Daniel and Britt (and now because of how Daniel was just kinda brushed off there at the end?? wtf??) but yeah I’ll be voting for Shangela and Charli from now on!! Go ladies go ladies go!

[b3crew]

ANIME BOSTON 2023 | Dante Basco Podcast Interview | B3 - Boston Bastard Brigade

B3, Enchanting Sorcery Productions, and Anime Herald give thanks to the Fire Nation in this Anime Boston 2023 interview with actor Dante Basco. Hear his stories about working on the films But I'm a Cheerleader and Hook, and the importance of Asian representation in American pop culture media. Plus, he shares his experience with...competitive Monopoly?!

Click here to listen!

[sleepysera]

2.25.22 Headlines

WORLD NEWS

Russia: Ukraine’s capital under threat as Russia presses invasion (AP)

“Russian troops bore down on Ukraine’s capital Friday, with gunfire and explosions resonating ever closer to the government quarter, in an invasion of a democratic country that has fueled fears of wider war in Europe and triggered worldwide efforts to make Russia stop. With reports of hundreds of casualties from the warfare — including shelling that sliced through a Kyiv apartment building and pummeled bridges and schools — there also were growing signs that Vladimir Putin’s Russia may be seeking to overthrow Ukraine’s government. It would be his boldest effort yet to redraw the world map and revive Moscow’s Cold War-era influence.”

Ukraine: Kyiv residents given guns as Russian forces approach (BBC)

“The city's mayor, the former heavyweight boxing champion Vitali Klitschko, says five blasts have been reported across the capital, with some explosions heard near a power station in the north of the city. "The emergency services are [responding]. We're finding out the details," Klitschko said. "The situation now - without exaggeration - is threatening for Kyiv," he added. The night, he said, would be "very difficult".”

European Union: Assets of Putin, Lavrov, frozen (AP)

“Latvia’s foreign minister says the European Union has agreed to freeze the assets of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov along with other sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine. The move indicates that Western powers are moving toward unprecedented measures to force Putin to stop the brutal invasion of Russia’s neighbor and from unleashing a major war in Europe.”

US NEWS

US Supreme Court: Biden taps Ketanji Brown Jackson for Supreme Court (AP)

“President Joe Biden on Friday will nominate federal appeals court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, the White House said, making her the first Black woman selected to serve on a court that once declared her race unworthy of citizenship and endorsed segregation. In Jackson, Biden delivers on a campaign promise to make the historic appointment and to further diversify a court that was made up entirely of white men for almost two centuries. He has chosen an attorney who would be the high court’s first former public defender, though she also possesses the elite legal background of other justices.”

Gay Rights: Florida House approves bill prohibiting schools from discussing sexual orientation and gender identity in K-3 classrooms (CNN)

“Florida moved one step closer on Thursday to banning teachers from discussing sexual orientation and gender identity in classrooms for young students, with the state's GOP-led House of Representatives approving a controversial bill that's facing intense opposition from LGBTQ advocates and the White House. HB 1557, titled the Parental Rights in Education bill, was passed by Florida's House by a vote of 69-47.”

George Floyd: 3 former Minneapolis police officers found guilty of violating Floyd’s rights (CNN)

“Former Minneapolis police officers Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane were found guilty of violating George Floyd's civil rights by a federal jury in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Thursday. The 12 jurors -- four men and eight women -- found Lane, Kueng and Thao guilty of depriving Floyd of his civil rights by showing deliberate indifference to his medical needs as former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd for more than 9 minutes on May 25, 2020, ultimately killing him.”

[robins-egg-bindery]

The Fixer in Wonderland by ebjameston

Stiles picks at a stray thread that his fingers find in the dark. “You didn’t see his face, Scott. He was looking at me like I was the answer to every question he’d ever had, like everything was going to be perfect and sunshine and unicorns from now on. First time Derek’s told anyone ever how he feels.”

“And you yelled at him," Scott says.

“And I yelled at him,” Stiles agrees, burying his face in the pillow. “Although, to be fair, four years ago he left me standing in a hallway with my pants around my ankles while a reporter taped the whole thing.”

fic by @ebjameston 192 pages / 49,873 words

Title Font: Gotham Body Fonts: Adobe Caslon Pro, Permanent Marker, FELL Great Primer, Special Elite, Eurostile, Times New Roman, Kirana Script, Sun Valley, Dark Twenty, Please Write Me A Song Volume One | Volume Two | Volume Three | Boxed Set Read more on the process below the cut!

Volume two! This is the one where the paper ripped; it's pretty bad, but it's on the back cover and it didn't go all the way through. It's on my copy and not the author's, so I'm being extra lazy and not...fixing....it...it's fine. Look, maybe when it starts breaking down I'll revisit...but I'm tired!

Switched up the colors on this one; I'm keeping a consistent theme through the whole series (check out the boxed set to see how they all line up!) Small typographic error in this one where an incorrect font was used on two lines, but I'm probably the only one who will ever notice.

[lunas-criminally-writing]

little black dress chapter one

beta: @ssahctchner

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

chapter one: take care of yourself too

summary of chapter: it was maggie’s first case with the bau - not only as an agent but as a trail run unit chief. she knew the pressure was on her - to solve the case. she does whatever it takes to try to solve it - that is until she becomes faint - from lack of eating and sleep. spencer urges emily to take maggie - to get some food. he wanted to make sure maggie took care of herself - trusting emily to help maggie understand what he had been trying to teach her since they met. the importances of taking care of yourself - above all else.

warnings for the chapter: cannon violence, brief mentions of an eating disorder, and maggie not taking care of herself properly - due to stress placed on her.

🖤🖤🖤🖤

straightening out her black dress with her right hand and her go bag in her left - maggie hotchner stepped out of the elevator alongside her father. keeping her pace matched with his - she followed him to the bullpen - it was her first day as a member of the elite team of the fbi - the bau. she had not been to the office in a long time - she had wished it had been under different circumstances - but nonetheless she was there. as the two hotchners walked they were stopped by derek looking between them before he spoke to aaron. maggie watched the two interact with her head slightly tilted to the side - behavior that mimicked that of a puppy before meeting eyes with derek holding out her right hand.

“i am the one you have to fill in on the flight. i am maggie hotchner - aaron’s daughter - erin strauss put me on the case with you guys. i hope we can get along”

derek looked at maggie briefly unsure how to feel about not having the unit chief on the case - but having a new agent latter it being hotch’s daughter - was where he drew the line. he decided to play along taking maggie’s hand giving it a firm shake - noticing the young hotchner wore a similar expression that hotch normally wore.

“derek morgan - come on we have a killer to catch”

maggie looked at her father once before moving from his side - following behind derek struggling slightly to keep up with the male’s stride. once at the airstrip a smile appeared on her face - just slightly at the sight of her best friend - spencer reid.

“hey spence - it's been a while hasn't it?”

spencer picked his head up from his gaze at the case file in his hand - a smile written on his face.

“god m&m - look at you. it has been far too long.”

maggie moved and wrapped her arms around her best friend - squeezing tightly. tucking her face into his shoulder - hiding the smile she now wore.

“hard to believe i am finally here - strauss finally decided to pull me out of the woodwork.”

upon hearing the section chief clear her throat - the best friends pulled apart from their hug - smiles fading from their faces. erin looked between the two shaking her head - she was hoping that this would not cloud maggie’s judgement. erin had high hopes for the young hotchner - hopes to finally get rid of her father.

“lets get to milwaukee - shall we?”

the five boarded the jet - erin had chosen a seat on the opposite side of the jet away from the four agents - keeping an eye on them.

maggie grimaced as the plane took off - grabbing spencer’s hand being she sat at his side - despite being a frequent flyer - she hated flying. she watched the other two agents who were looking at her curiously.

“what? i don't like flying”

jj forced a nod before looking over maggie to erin - making a small face of discomfort. she knew this case was a test for the agents left with the bau meaning - spencer, derek and herself.

“from here - she almost looks human.”

spencer looked over at jj - moving hair out of his face when maggie finally let go of his hand. he was worried not only about hotch - but emily too. his face read it all.

“has anyone heard from emily”

maggie looked at her fellow agents as they chatted before - strauss came over to their table. the section chief made her uncomfortable - being she kept maggie on the wire about joining the bau - it was not only until her father was on suspension that she got the call. maggie turned her attention toward the briefing on the case - making a few comments here and there until the plane landed. once off the plane maggie heard erin call her over. she allowed herself to return to her emotionless static before going to the section chief.

“yes ma’am?”

erin eyed maggie with her eyebrow moving up in curiosity - taking note of the similarities between the unit chief that was her father.

“agent hotchner - i assume you know why you are here”

maggie forced herself to nod - hiding her micro expressions well. her eyes flickered away before back to her conversation - crossing her arms over chest - a habit she picked up from aaron.

“that i do ma’am. my father told me on the way today that he was transferring out of the bau. mother told me that i would be his perfect replacement - since we are practically the same person. with all due respect ma’am i don’t feel comfortable hiding the fact - that you want me to replace my father - to my team. they need to be able to trust me.”

erin watched maggie as she spoke - nodding as she made a good point - the team needed to be able to trust her much like they had with aaron.

“i agree with you - about needing them to trust you - but now is not the time. you and your team have a killer to catch. i am just here to supervise”

maggie let out a forced laugh - covering her mouth. it was the first bit of emotion she showed toward the section chief. her lips moved to an uncomfortable smile - as she looked at the other members of the team eying them - as if she was profiling them.

“i better get back to my team then ma’am”

erin watched maggie stalk away from her to the vehicle the team would be using - before maggie got into the passenger seat next to derek who was going to drive.

the ride to the crime scene was rather quiet as maggie felt all eyes on her - profilers what do you expect? she kept her eyes forward at the road calculating how this was gonna go down in her head, it could go one of two ways - either the team accepted her and became the new unit chief or - the case goes badly and strauss strips away her dream once more. once at the crime scene - maggie got out of the car and led the team.

“you - the fbi”

maggie’s eyes flicker to the one who spoke - profiling him before she was able to catch herself. it was hard to turn it off.

“maggie hotchner, derek morgan, spencer reid, jennifer jareua, and section chief strauss.

the detective looked at her cautiously - probably thinking what they all did about her - she is way too young to be an agent much like they did with spencer.

“vic wolnski, milwaukee pd.”

maggie glanced over at spencer as he spoke to the detective before erin’s voice broke her away from her thoughts.

“what can you tell us?”

vic talked about what was going on with the latest victim and the team - including maggie - made points. maggie’s eyes flickered over to jj as she pulled erin aside after erin criticized the detective. the brunette watched the interaction for a moment before directing her attention back to the scene in front of her. taking it all in - profiling what she could about the scene. breaking from her thoughts once more as she watched derek walk away from the scene - causing her personal cell to ping gently in the pocket of her dress. she knew better than to check the message - but her curiosity got the better of her. it was a message from her mother telling her she better do what she is supposed to do - for their family's sake. as much as maggie hated her mother - haley hotchner - she knew she was right.

once at the precinct - maggie followed vic - her stride matching with derek who was at her side. her mind spun with the words from erin and haley - making her forget why she was doing this in the first place. god she felt so helpless - it was pissing her off.

the team continued to decide the case getting nowhere - it had been like that for a while. jj realized that they could be looking at this the wrong way - changing the direction of the case. with this new direction - strauss had them deliver their profile of a troubled kid to the schools in the district. they had got some hits that fit their profile - still too much for the four agents to comb through in 12 hours. maggie laid her head on the table with a sigh. she had been awake for days - worry eating her alive. her head peeked up hearing her best friend alerting her to the presence of someone familiar.

“look who’s here”

maggie rubbed her tired eyes as she looked up - meeting eyes with both her father and an unfamiliar female who she guessed was emily prentiss. her heart skipped a beat as her eyes looking at the dark haired female that stood in front of her. maggie pushed herself up from the chair she was sitting in before smoothing down her black dress - it was a little bit different than the one she had on when she went into the office. she had changed because in her tired state - she was a klutz that spilled her coffee on herself. her dress was a little shorter - resting just above her knee - showing off her tanned legs paired with her black combat boots. she moved forward around the table - holding her hand out to emily.

“maggie hotchner - you must be emily prentiss - i have heard so much about you.”

emily’s eyes glanced at maggie looking her up and down. her breathing was caught in her throat - maggie made her question everything. her hand held maggie’s shaking it - trying to ignore the feeling of electricity she felt.

“you are right - i am emily prentiss. it is nice to finally meet you maggie.”

maggie also felt the electricity running up and down her arm - before she dropped her hand at her side. her heart was struggling to return to its normal beat as she moved back to her seat - to grab her coffee while taking a sip. from behind her coffee cup she looked at her father sighing gently. she knew this was going to be difficult - working with her father was always hard.

“lets get started”

the six of them worked mostly in silence - only making small comments here and there. maggie was wedged between emily and spencer with her father sitting opposite of her. she worked tirelessly, she was struggling to stay awake - the coffee was no longer doing anything for her. she had almost dozed off if it was not for her father’s voice.

“maggie - you should try to get some sleep”

maggie shook her head before standing up - moving to the coffee pot pouring herself another cup - she had to prove herself to strauss and her father.

“i will be fine - we are close - i know it. we have to be”

as time passed - they had an hour before the body was dumped - still little progress. only progress being they had eliminated some of the kids - none fitting what they looked for. they were too late as they got a call. a new body was found.

with the seven of them - they had to take two cars. maggie opted to drive one and her father the other. sitting in the driver seat she waited to see who would be joining her vehicle - not really in the mood to make the decision for them - but was excited to see spencer and emily walking toward her. emily got into the passenger seat - patting maggie on the shoulder - trying to give her comfort - whilst spencer climbed into the back seat. once the three were situated maggie pulled out of her parking spot following behind aaron and the officer leading the way. she had turned on her siren as winced as it blared in her ears - she was far too tired. she met spencer’s eyes for a moment, sighing.

“strauss wants me to replace my dad - as the unit chief. she thinks it is the best way to keep the team under control - to keep me under control.”

spencer made a face at the words of his best friend before he watched emily place a hand on maggie’s. maggie’s hand was squeezing the wheel so tightly - her knuckles were whitening. emily had touched her hand in such a calming fashion that her grip loosened.

“so that is why strauss has been so hard on you. you are capable of doing this unit chief job - if you truly want it but you have to be doing it for yourself - not for her. you will lose yourself if you don't.”

maggie felt a sigh escape her lips as she glanced over at emily briefly - she was getting far too emotional for her normal emotionless exterior. she could not force up her filter - even if she tried.

“i want to be just like him - doing great things - i just can't be him. my father is so good at this that it kills me. my mother is forcing me into this position - using my little brother - to get me to comply. strauss is threatening my almost nonexistent career - on this case. i can't fail - not when i fought to get this far.”

emily felt bad for the little hotchner sitting next to her - in the little black dress. her heart yearned to hold her once they arrived at the crime scene - but she just couldn't.

“you don't need to be like hotch to be good at this job - you don't need to put up this front with the team. we need you - to be you - to be able to lead us. yes, you can be a lot like him but you need to be yourself - not an empty shell. you have a great ability to lead - i have seen it thus far. you are pushing yourself too hard. when was the last time you slept - or even ate?”

maggie listened intently to emily’s words - unintentionally tightening her grip on the steering wheel again. she tried opening her mouth to speak but no words came out - she looked to her best friend in the backseat - through the rearview mirror. he was looking down at his watch - face lost in thought.

“m&m - she is right. this whole case you have been pushing yourself way too hard. i have not seen you eat something other than a few handfuls of m&ms - you had stowed away in your go bag. you look like you have not slept in days. hotch noticed it - we all noticed it. this case is your first - making this all consuming for you. you can't lead us - if you have not taken care of yourself first. emily - when we get back to the station - i need you to help me make sure she eats something - some real food. i can handle strauss and hotch - she needs to step away for a moment.”

emily nodded once toward the genius - knowing full heartedly that he had profiled the situation. he could read them both well - he saw their crushes. she also knew that - he was worried about maggie - his best friend. she remembered hearing all about maggie from him - it was part of the reason she loved maggie already.

“i will take good care of her reid - i promise.”

maggie sucked in a deep breath - she was going to be alone with emily. she did not know how to feel about the situation - it caused her to worry. she forced her attention on the road - until they arrived at the scene.

the three got out of the car and met with the others. maggie hung towards the back taking in the scene - trying to profile it. it was different than the other one they had been to - she glanced up meeting eyes with derek - who jogged over to her

“hey puppy”

maggie blinked confused - before subconsciously tilting her head to the side - like a puppy. she knew derek used nicknames for people but for some reason - her mind could not process hers.

“puppy?”

derek chuckled slightly - before scratching the back of his head. he questioned the nickname he had chosen for the younger hotchner - he needed someone though.

“yea sorry - your head tilt reminds me of a puppy. calling you hotchner or even maggie did not seem - fitting. i can call you one of those if puppy makes you uncomfortable. i just wanted to give you a nickname - make you feel a part of the team.”

a small smile tugged at the edge of maggie’s lip - now that she understood the nickname. her heart warmed at the fact that derek wanted to make her feel like she was a part of the team - even if it was just for a little bit. she trusted him enough - just like spencer and emily - to show a small bit of emotion.

“no need to change it - i like it. the head tilt is something i do subconsciously - normally when i am processing things. i touched by the fact that you wanted to give me a nickname. anything with the scene to point us in the right direction?”

derek smiled at maggie - glad she liked her nickname. he gave a small nod before letting her know what they found out. he knew that something was up - just by the way maggie had been acting since hotch arrived - the hotchners had bumped heads a lot trying to lead the team. maybe he had read too much into it - but he figured that maggie was supposed to be hotch’s replacement if his transfer happened.

“are you okay though - puppy?”

maggie felt her head shake before she could stop it - she was too tired to fight it. the movement made her dizzy - causing her to grip derek’s arm tightly - in her little hand - for support.

“no”

derek watched maggie carefully - and worriedly. he had placed his hand over hers - trying to steady her. his eyes glanced over to spencer and emily - hoping they knew what was going on. he had a feeling that he knew what was going on - it had to do with maggie’s lack of eating. he did not know why she had not eaten with the rest of the team when they had ordered food - maybe it had to do with why she was so small.

when spencer’s eyes met derek’s worried gaze - he nudged emily gently. his heart hurt seeing his best friend like this - he was the only one that knew about it. maggie had a habit of not eating - to the point it would cause her to black out - eating made her sick. he knew at point he was going to have to explain what he knew to not only emily - but hotch as well. today was not that day.

“you need to take her to get that food - now. i will handle things from this end. please take care of my best friend.”

emily listened to spencer’s whispered words before nodding at him. she knew if that situation had been different - spencer would be taking maggie to get food but she knew the team needed their residential genius.

“i will take good care of her. we will be back - in time to catch this bastard.”

spencer nodded as he watched emily walked over to maggie - taking her from derek. he took a deep breath as emily got maggie in the car. he met eyes with derek again - mentally noting another he would have to tell about maggie - since he saw how worried derek was for their new possible unit chief.

maggie grumbled under her breath as she watched emily buckle her in the passenger seat of the suv. she hated being treated like a child - even when it was needed. she was far too tired to fight emily - her mind was way too fuzzy to care. she watched emily walk over the driver's side before the older woman got into the seat. maggie allowed her gaze to stay on emily - a little too long to be considered professional - but long enough to show her crush. again - too tired to care - she reached and touched emily’s hand - wanting to feel the electricity again.

“is it too soon to consider this a date - em?”

emily looked over at the little hotchner next to her - who seemed to be fighting to stay awake. she held her hand - as she pulled away from the crime scene - heading to the closest diner. when she looked back at maggie - she was already asleep. a small smile found its way to emily’s lips.

“not too soon sweetheart - not too soon at all”

maggie was asleep but still heard emily’s words before she finally allowed herself to rest. she only woke up - once at the diner - acting like she had not heard emily’s words - but deep down she knew. she knew the feelings she had for emily were mutual - emily loved her too.

[petitemistletoe]

Dangerous Woman

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Reader

Warnings: smutty! It’s a criminal minds fic so there is talk of murder, but nothing too graphic 

A/N: My first full on criminal minds fic! Hope you all enjoy. I promise I’m going to try to be better with tag lists so please let me know if you want to be added! Also this was inspired by Dangerous Woman by Ariana Grande  Word Count: 3,941

Tag List: @221bshrlocked​

*not my gif*

Spencer only saw you four times but it was enough to get those two words that best described you tattooed on his body. 

The first time he ever saw you was when he was on a case in Seattle. It wasn’t an easy one, none of them really were, but this one was especially tough. Ten days without leads and the most influential men in Seattle were continuing to disappear. Spencer could feel the case going cold in his fingers, but to be fair it was already pretty frigid when the BAU arrived on the scene. Hotch had been pretty adamant about not taking the case, but the police chief, Chief Martin Thompson, announced to the press that the BAU were already on the case and forced Hotch’s hand. In just two months, nine men of Seattle’s elite were gone-not dead, maybe-but missing. There were no bodies and no trace of them after they were reported missing. Aside from their high socioeconomic status, there were few things that connected the victims: some were CEOs, some top surgeons, some high powered lawyers, and one was even an art curator. They ran in relatively different circles and lead different lives. The entire team was frustrated but Spencer had never been blocked like this before. He felt stupid. 

“Okay, we should all go to the hotel and get some sleep. It’s clear that we aren’t going to make any progress tonight.” Hotch said, dropping the file on the table and exhaling sharply. 

“What? It’s only…damn how is it already 11:45?” Chief Thomspon cursed, checking his watch.

“Chief Thompson, can I speak to you in your office?” Hotch asked. Thompson nodded, confused. Hotch gestured for Spencer to join him. 

“Spencer, do you have any ideas?” Hotch asked. Spencer looked at shoes and shook his head. 

“What’s going on?” Chief Thompson asked.

“With a case like this…with so many days without leads…we’re needed elsewhere Chief.”

“Elsewhere? You’re needed here!” 

“The case is going cold.” Spencer shrugged. 

“How can it be cold? We have fresh fucking bodies all over the place. That’s piping hot!” Chief Thompson spat. 

“Calm down. We’ll stay until the end of the week. But if we don’t have any leads then we will leave you with the profile.” Hotch stormed out of the room. Spencer followed him, seriously frustrated that he couldn’t crack this. He felt like he was searching for a tiny piece of string that would unravel everything. He just needed to find that piece of string. 

After a restless night, Spencer woke up and entered the police station with an idea, he bound into the conference room where his coworkers were set up and said, 

“What if we reinterview family members in the area? I know the deputies did that already but we may be able to find something they missed. Only four of the victims have family in Seattle.”

“It couldn’t hurt, Hotch,” Derek said with a small shrug. 

“Alright, call Garcia and if she finds anything about the families’ properties.” Hotch ordered. 

“Babygirl, I need property info on-” Derek gestured for Reid to list the names of those specific victims. 

“Charles Langford, Michael Donowitz, Johnathan Moon, and William Hartford.”

“Okay…I’ll have you know that Seattle’s elite are more penthouse in the city and beach house people instead of sprawling mansions so right now it doesn’t look like anyone has room to murder…” “Look deeper Garcia, try to find hidden properties: warehouses, garages, guest houses, storage units.” Prentiss listed off. 

“Okay, uh, William Hartford owned a high-class apartment building that overlooks Elliot Bay and the Space Needle. Each apartment goes for ten to fifteen thousand a month and was generating a crazy amount of money for about four years. Then, about ten months ago William bought every tenant out of their lease and he and his wife lived in the empty apartment building.”

“A giant apartment building for the two of them?” Rossi asked, “That’s a lot of space for two people. Does the wife still live there, Garcia?”

“Yes she does. William’s twenty five year old was the sole beneficiary of everything. Looks like she takes out about $3000 in cash every month. She doesn’t have any family.”

“Twenty five? How old was William?” JJ asked, sifting through the victim reports. 

“William was forty two.” Spencer added.

“Oh, a little age gap then.” Morgan teased, “how long were they married?”

“Seven years.” Garcia confirmed. 

“So they get married as soon as she turns eighteen.” Prentiss said. 

“$3000 a month is enough to take without arousing suspicion.” Rossi posited. 

“Let’s bring her in.” Hotch said, glancing back at the board with the images of the victims. 

It felt like the entire city went silent when you entered the police station. You looked like a character from a dark, twisted romance. Your hair cascaded elegantly down your back and you were wearing a dark dress that flowed around you. There was a delicate string of pearls wrapped tightly around your neck. Upon further inspection, Spencer realized that you were not wearing pearls, but you were actually wearing a string of diamonds. Spencer had never seen diamonds that large, but you didn’t have to have a jeweler’s scope to see that they were real and ridiculously expensive. You were wearing large black sunglasses and a pair of glossy black heels that made your legs look impossibly long. Your driver was holding a black umbrella over your head to shield you from the rain. You looked like the angel of death: beautiful and lethal. You entered the station and the awestruck deputies point you in the direction of the interrogation rooms. You took a seat in one of the rooms and looked around.

“Who’s going in?” Rossi asked, looking at the group. 

“What if we send in Reid and Hotch? She’s probably used to dealing with alpha males and females.” Prentiss asked. Hotch looked at Spencer, who nodded and together entered the interrogation room. 

“Hello Mrs. Hartford, my name is Dr. Spencer Reid and this is Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner. We’d like to ask a few questions about your husband’s disappearance.” Spencer said, taking a seat across from you at the table. Hotch stalked around the room, but your eyes were trained on Spencer. 

“Ask away,” you said with a small wave of your hand. Your voice was delightfully deep and confident. Spencer had to resist the urge to shiver. 

“Why are you dressed in all black?” Hotch asked harshly. He tried to catch you off guard, but you acted like he had politely asked you if you would like a cup of tea.

“I’m in mourning.” You said simply. 

“Why? Your husband is missing, we have no confirmation that he’s dead.” Hotch said. You shrugged, 

“I know the statistics. If he’s missing for more than 24 hours then he’s probably dead. And he has been missing for two months.”

“Why did your husband buy all of your tenants out of their leases?” Spencer asked. You raised a delicate eyebrow,

“I told William that I wanted a house in the suburbs, a place to raise a family. But he loved the city. There are no houses in the city-nothing that would be suitable for our living-so he made the building our home.” You folded one hand over the other, showcasing your ostentatious wedding ring. Spencer knew that the ring alone could’ve bought them a new jet. “Why do you need all that room now that you’re alone?” Hotch barked. 

“Who says I’m alone?” You laughed lightly. 

“You aren’t?” Hotch pressed. 

“No. I have plenty of friends to keep me company.” You responded. 

“Why do you take out $3000 a month in cash, every month since you have been married? Assuming you haven’t spent it, that would be $252,000.” Spencer asked. 

“William always taught me to keep a fair amount of cash on me in case of emergencies. I find that I often end up giving it to the homeless of Seattle. I have a bleeding heart, I suppose.” 

“Really? You expect us to believe that?” Hotch snapped.

“Are you accusing me of something? If you are I suggest you do it now because I have dinner reservations and I just noticed that my nails could use a touch up.” You said, giving Hotch and Spencer a polite smile. Hotch stormed out of the room, fed up with your polite boredom. 

“Uh, no, Mrs. Hartford. Thank you for stopping by. We’ll contact you if we have any other questions.” 

“Thank you, Dr. Reid.” You stuck out your hand for Spencer to shake. He stared at it for a second and the familiar words came tumbling out of him, 

“Shaking hands is actually a very effective way to transmit germs. It’s actually safer to kiss.” 

“If you wanted to kiss me, Dr. Reid, you should’ve just said so.” You said, pressing a light kiss to Spencer’s cheek. He watched you leave, your driver holding the umbrella over your head as you made your way through the rain to your car. Spencer thought for a moment and bound after you. 

“Mrs. Hartford!” He called, getting wetter by the minute. The rain was coming down harder than ever. 

“Yes Dr. Reid?” You turned, looking at him with casual inquiry.

“What is that perfume you’re wearing? It’s…very unique.”

“Chanel No. 5.” You said with a small smile. Spencer stood in the rain and watched you leave. When he re-entered the conference room, he was sopping wet.

“What was that about?” Prentiss asked. The wheels were turning rapidly in Spencer’s mind, preventing him from answering for a few moments. 

“That’s a dangerous woman.” Morgan muttered. 

“I had to ask Mrs. Hartford what perfume she was wearing.” Spencer said. 

“What?” JJ asked. 

“She said it was Chanel No. 5. Doesn’t Strauss wear Chanel No. 5?”

“That’s weird that you know that.” Rossi said, making a face. 

“He’s right, she does. Haley used to wear that. That scent is burned in my mind.” Hotch backed him up.

“Right. Well Mrs. Hartford smells like Chanel No. 5 and sodium hydroxide.”

“Sodium hy-the chemicals used to dissolve bodies.” JJ said, realization written all over her face. 

“How long would it take to dissolve the bodies?”

“3 hours. That’s why we can’t find any bodies. And sodium hydroxide isn’t all that expensive.” Spencer explained. 

The second time Spencer ever saw you, it was when Derek Morgan brought you into the station in handcuffs. You had taken his breath away that time too. You were wearing a short white long-sleeved dress with your necklace and ring. You were wearing a pair of white heels and your hair was up in a sleek ponytail. You had that same casual boredom plastered on your face, as if you were making small talk with an acquaintance, not walking to be interrogated before spending the rest of your life in prison. They already caught you in the act but they needed the full confession and the DA was pushing for the death penalty. They wanted as much information as they could get from you. Spencer walked into the interrogation room where you were sitting in your white dress, handcuffed. 

“Hi, Mrs. Hartford.” Spencer said, sitting down in front of you. 

“Hello Dr. Reid. How are you doing today?” You asked, politely. 

“Uh…well, thank you. We know, obviously, that you killed Oliver Watts and began to dissolve him in acid. We know that you must’ve done the same to the others. Can you tell me about them.”

You gave Spencer a cagey smile, one of the most genuine thing Spencer had seen from you. 

“Like that,” you said, making a drinking gesture. 

“Poison? Cyanide?” He asked. You nodded. 

“Like that. All American Psycho type,” you said, miming a chainsaw.

“You cut them up into pieces with a chainsaw?” Spencer clarified. You nodded again.

“Like that.” You said, miming dumping a liquid in a bowl. 

“The sodium hydroxide?”

“Like that,” You said with a nod, dropping something. 

“You dropped the pieces in the sodium hydroxide.”

“And I’d do it again.” You grinned. Spencer got up to leave, satisfied that he had gotten his confession. Something about you was memorizing and horrific. Your stoic boredom got under Spencer’s skin more than he would like to admit. Spencer was at the door when you called to him, 

“Dr. Reid, I have a small question,”

“Yes, Mrs. Hartford?”

“How much is my bail?”

“About four million dollars.”

“Great. Tell the officers it will posted immediately. My nails seem to have chipped again.” You said, locking eyes with Spencer. He stared at you for a long time-longer than he would like to admit-before he coughed and excused himself from the room. 

Sure enough, before the team could even gather their things and leave the station, you were be escorted out by your driver, your wrists uncuffed. 

“Thank you for your help,” Chief Thompson said, shaking Hotch’s hand, “I’m glad we found her. She is a dangerous woman.”

Even after returning to Virginia, he couldn’t get you out of his mind. He tried to stop thinking about you by throwing himself into his work. They had another case in Florida that resolved itself quite nicely and once again he was home, lying in his bed, thinking about you. The next day was a paperwork day and he excused himself to Hotch’s office. Hotch had been on the phone when Spencer knocked, but Spencer didn’t stop by Hotch’s office often, so Hotch hung up the call and motioned for Spencer to enter and take a seat. 

“Reid,” Hotch began, “are you alright?”

“Have you heard anything about the Hartford case?”

“The Hartford Case?” Hotch furrowed his brow, “Why are you wondering about that case?”

“Uh…it’s just been on my mind recently.” Spencer stared at his feet. 

“Last I heard, Hartford was facing death penalty. The state is rushing with this one, so her days are numbered.”

“Thanks,” Spencer stood and began to walk to the door, “Oh. I’m going to take a few days off.”

“Alright,” Hotch nodded, “Reid.”

“Yes Hotch?”

“Hartford has a lot of power and influence. She’s on house arrest until her date in the chamber. She can only stay in the one original penthouse-not the entire place anymore.” 

“Thanks Hotch.” Spencer nodded. He was on a plane for Seattle that evening. He paced outside of your apartment for an hour. He decided to leave and was walking to the elevator when you opened the door.

“Reach 10,000 steps yet?” You asked. You were wearing a silk robe that clung to your body. Spencer could see the soft contours of your breasts and stomach. 

“Hi.” He said, swallowing hard. 

“Would you like to come in? I’m not supposed to have guests but I doubt an FBI agent would be against the rules.” You said, opening the door wide. Spencer nodded and entered your apartment. There was a plush leather couch that Spencer sat on while you shut the door and glided to the bar. 

“Would you like a drink?” 

“No. No! I should go.” Spencer stood up and made his way to the door. 

“Dr. Reid?” You called. Spencer turned and watched you drop your robe. The only thing you had on was your diamond necklace. He ran to you, grabbing your face and kissing you hard. Your hands snaked around to the front of his body and you ripped open his shirt, the buttons flying everywhere. His hands were on your ass, cupping the supple flesh and kneading it roughly. You worked on his belt, pulling it swiftly out of the belt loops and then working on his pants. He was naked within minutes. He began to reach down to stroke himself when you grasped his wrist and brought his hand to the apex of your thighs. His hand was covered in your wetness and he gasped into your mouth. With your hand over his, he stroked himself with his now lubricated hand. 

“Do you want to fuck me, Dr. Reid?” You whispered huskily. 

“Yes.” He was breathing heavily. He was needy. Desperate. 

“Hold on.” You left his embrace and you thought he would topple over like a house of cards. You walked over to the window and threw open the curtains. The room was illuminated by the lights of the city. Spencer could see the space needle not far in the distance. You pressed your back against the cool glass. 

“Now, Dr. Reid, you know my time is very precious.” You said as you beckoned him over. He didn’t need to be told twice. He raced to you, sliding in to you easy. He was exceptionally vocal, moaning and panting in your ear. 

“Like that. Like that. Like that.” You repeated, Spencer reaching a part of you that no one had ever reached before. His long fingers stumbled to your clit, rubbing it as quickly as he could. You tightened around him as you came, him coming quickly after with a strangled moan. 

“You’re a dangerous woman.” He whispered so softly, unsure if you even heard it. 

He didn’t stay long in your apartment after that. He didn’t even stay in Seattle that night, he was on the plane and back in Virginia as the first ray of Sun broke over the horizon.

The last time he saw you was also the last time he was ever in Seattle. He didn’t tell the team he would be there and hoped they would never find out-they thought he was in Vegas visiting his mom. He was in that hot little room, staring through the glass and waiting for you to come out. Then you did. He didn’t know how you were still the most beautiful person he had ever seen. Your hair was natural and you were wearing a standard prison uniform. The guards led you to the hospital bed and you reclined gracefully. 

“Any final words?” One of the guards asked as the other brought the small silver tray with two syringes. You locked eyes with Spencer and gave him a smile. 

“Like that.” You whispered before the syringes were inserted into your arm. After a few moments, your neck lulled back. Spencer felt very uncomfortable. It didn’t seem right to see your neck bare, empty and clear without your necklace. Spencer stayed long in that room, after everyone left. Someone came to clean the area and looked at Spencer before muttered, 

“Glad that Hartford’s dead. What a dangerous woman.”

Before he returned to Virginia, he spent a few hours walking around Seattle, trying to clear his head. The sky broke and rain began to pour. Spencer dipped into a shop to avoid the downpour. 

“Can I help you?” A girl at the front desk asked. 

“What is this?” Spencer asked. 

“Um, a tattoo shop. Would you like a tattoo?”

“Yes.” Spencer nodded. He was taken to a shop and he asked for it in a place no one would see. 

“What do you want to get?” The tattoo artist asked. 

“Dangerous woman.” 

[gravelyhumerus]

Criminal Minds College AU - Chapter Seventeen

Fandom: Criminal Minds

Title: “I may just take your breath away”

Relationship: Jemily

Summary:

Exams, pizza, board games... what more could a girl ask for?

Slow-burn Jemily college AU where they live across the hall and despite all odds, the universe pushes them together. AKA they’re silly gay babies who pine after each other for months.

Read it on AO3

Tumblr:  One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, (bonus scene), Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty

 “That was a lot of chess,” Emily complained, nearly chugging her latte as she and Spencer left the coffee shop. 

She pulled her beanie onto her head and braced herself for the snow as the taller boy held the door open for her. Emily almost slipped on the slushy tile floor on her way out but managed to keep her balance. 

“Fifteen of the multiple-choice questions to be precise,” Spencer replied. The salted sidewalk crunched under their feet as they made their way across campus. 

“I’m so glad it’s finally over,” she admitted. “I think I’ve had enough philosophy to last me a lifetime.” 

“I’m enrolled in ‘Minds and Machines’ next semester,” he said. “I think I might try and get a double minor this time around.”

“What’s the goal? Three PhDs by the time you’re 24?” Emily quipped. 

He was well on his way, having completed his engineering degree before she managed to graduate high school. He was 17, only two years younger than her, but somehow seemed like a kid. A kid with more education crammed into his brain than she could ever master in her life.

“Something like that,” he replied with a smile. His hair was getting long and he had tied it back during the exam. With last names starting with P and R, they were seated near each other in the large exam hall, and she glanced over at him as he fussed with his hair. 

They stopped at the red light, watching as the cars and busses wooshed past them, sending the slush flying into the snowbanks. It had been a fairly sunny day, but bitterly cold. Now, the sun was setting and the campus was bathed in a warm golden glow. The snow had fallen the night before, leaving fluffy white snow covering their campus. 

Emily had spent most of the day holed up in the library with Spencer, with him quizzing her on fallacies and philosophers. With his eidetic memory, he only really needed to read the material once. Earlier in the semester, she did feel useful when it came to editing each other’s essays. He always got bogged down with detail, word vomiting everything he knew, and she helped him with his structure and argumentation. 

More studying awaited her back in her room. She rubbed at the back of her neck as she thought about the upcoming evening spent hunched over her desk studying criminal justice, a subject that left her questioning her degree half the time as she was forced to learn about the muddled ethics of justice. 

That week, she had survived on minimal sleep, eating mostly bagels and coffee to sustain her. Her body was protesting with each step, and she had suffered from a constant tension headache for as long as she remembered. At least her college had that golden retriever walk around at the library yesterday, she thought to herself, sarcastically. Animal therapy definitely relieved all her stress. As if petting a dog for five minutes would fix the anxiety of finals season. 

Two more exams, she reminded herself. You’ll make it. 

Despite this mantra, Emily was conflicted. While finals were killing her, the end of the semester also meant winter break. Emily would be forced to go “home” for the holidays. For most college students, that meant going back to their respective towns and being surrounded by their loved ones. Emily, on the other hand, didn’t have anywhere she called home. Last winter break, her mom had at least been in DC, and Emily was able to catch up with some of her international school friends who were in the city. This time, her mom was stationed in London, and Emily knew she’d be roped back into her old life. She didn’t know anyone there and knew most of her break would be spent alone. 

The last place she had called home was Rome, and now that was tarnished by her complicated past with that city. 

Emily was good at being alone. Being an only child of a workaholic single mom meant she learned to keep her own company. She read a lot. She got good at running away, escaping her nannies, and skirting security in order to roam free. She’d be fine. 

The problem was that Emily had gotten used to this. She rarely spent a moment alone these days. Whether it was walking to class with Spencer, or Hotch, or Derek, getting lunch with the team, surprise coffee dates with Penelope and spending almost every evening with her girlfriend, she hadn’t been left alone in ages. She didn’t miss it. 

Their residence building had a warm yellow light shining out of the windows and a soft red brick facade. In the summer, ivy grew up the south facing side but in the winter, the ledges were covered in snow and the stone steps were slippery. She trudged forward, excited for the warm embrace of the dorm. 

Spencer had other plans. He reached into the garish yellow plastic newspaper box that was stationed next to their doorway and retrieved this week’s newspaper. 

“Come on Reid,” Emily said. “Just subscribe to the newsletter or something like the rest of us.”

He held up the cover to her in surprise. Usually it reported the news of a recent sports victory, or a change of policy announced by the administrators, or even a fun event held on campus. Sometimes there was even a dramatic protest or an important speaker coming to campus. But this week, the headline surprised her. In large font printed across the page read: “Multiple student politicians fired amid financial scandal.” 

“That sounds bad,” Emily said. It did seem way more dramatic on newsprint than on a website, so maybe Spencer was onto something with his affinity for the printed word. 

Grabbing a copy for herself, she then walked inside to escape the cold. Warm air greeted them as they entered their residence hall, and both students kicked the snow off their boots before trudging up the stairs. They read as they walked, but the route to their rooms was already muscle memory, so neither worried about stumbling on their way. 

Normally, Emily wouldn’t willingly touch this sort of student politics with a ten foot pole. Sure, she was involved with the Criminology council, but there was a difference between the kind of person interested in petitioning for better accessibility to faculty events or running a bake sale, and the kind of students to embezzle thousands of student dollars like what the current student government executive seemed to be accused of doing. 

She quickly ran her eyes down the page, the contents jogging a memory from Halloween, of Hotch and JJ discussing the early stirrings of said scandal. 

“You know,” Spencer said, “I’m surprised they got a lot of this information, it’s notoriously difficult to file FOIAs for student governments, as they’re technically private corporations. So the fact that they got these files means that this is a much bigger scandal than one might assume.”

Corruption, bribery, embezzlement, nepotism. All words that jogged memories of hiding in the corner of political fundraisers, overhearing the worst of politics from too-drunk elites sipping on their wine and munching on charcuterie. 

“I hate politics,” Emily said, stuffing her copy of the paper into her bag. 

“I find it interesting. It’s basically a microcosm of our current political climate. In fact, I have subscribed to the print edition of fifteen student papers in the region,” Spencer said, “I like to keep informed on the coverage of student issues, and compare them to our own.”

“Why?!” Emily said with a laugh. “You know you can just look them up online.”

Spencer gave her a withering look, and she should have known better than asking about his aversion to tech. He loathed having to use his computer, as the LCD screens apparently gave him a headache. Penelope even gave him a pair of blue light glasses to attempt to alleviate the issue.

Then, he began to speak, at length, about the dying printed news industry and why print copies were better for understanding than screens et cetera. She made sure to nod and hum at appropriate points, but her mind kept wandering. 

She wondered if her girlfriend was in her room. Emily missed her any time they were apart and she yearned to hold her in her arms once again. But she shouldn’t. She needed to work. She had too much to do. Her grades had slipped, slightly, this semester. Everyone warned her about how college would be harder than high school, but no one ever warned her how much the expectations were raised in second year. 

Two more exams. She clutched her coffee tighter. She’d rather do anything else besides study at this point. Her body was exhausted, her mind frazzled. She wondered if she could even manage to get through a chapter of revision before conking out on her desk. 

As she said goodbye to Spencer and struggled with her keys that were tangled up in their corresponding university-branded lanyard, JJ’s door opened.  

“Hey girlfriend,” JJ greeted her, sounding way too much like a straight girl greeting her platonic friend for Emily’s taste. She gave her a pass because it sounded cute in her voice. 

“JJ!” Emily said, somehow surprised to see her despite the fact that she lived right across the hall. Her girlfriend was dressed in sweatpants and an oversized sweater, with her straight hair tucked behind her ears and her face bare of make up. Her face was lit up with a smile, and Emily rushed towards her, planting a soft kiss on her lips.

“Hi JJ,” Spencer said as Emily and JJ kissed. 

When they pulled apart, JJ gave Spencer a smile as a greeting and asked them how their exam went. 

Spencer babbled about their Logic exams for a minute or two, as Emily basked in JJ’s presence. She grabbed onto her hand and found that it was so much hotter than her own and wasn’t sure if she held on tight because she was cold, or if she had missed her girlfriend. 

“I’m just glad it’s over,” Emily said. “I never want to hear about fallacies again.”

Spencer seemed to want to say something, but fell silent at Emily’s tired expression. 

“Wanna come in for a bit?” JJ whispered in Emily’s ear. Apparently she said so a touch too loud because Spencer replied instead. 

“Sure!” he said, and then walked into JJ and Penelope’s room. 

“I should really study,” Emily tried to argue, but a single glance into JJ’s deep, blue eyes had Emily melting. 

JJ’s room was much messier than Emily had last seen it. Both desks showed clear markers of the ongoing exams, with papers and books piled high. In addition to this was an assortment of pillows strewn all over the floor.

“You guys are back early!” JJ said, after checking her watch, “I thought it was a two hour exam?”

“I finished in an hour,” Spencer said, “and Emily only needed an extra half hour on top of my time.”

Damn straight, Emily thought, feeling somewhat competitive with the boy-genius despite herself. 

She really should study, but the prospect of seeing her girlfriend outweighed the desire to sit hunched over a textbook for another evening. 

Emily and Spencer kicked off their boots, placing them neatly on the mat by the door before peeling their jackets off and hanging them on the back of her door. Emily wasn’t sure if she liked winter. Whenever her mother was stationed in the Middle East she yearned for snow, but now that she was experiencing the Nor’easter for the first time, the desert sounded like a good time. 

“Well there goes my plan,” JJ said, blowing her hair out of her face with a puff of air.

Spencer flopped onto Penelope’s neatly-made bed, collapsing into the assortment of pink pillows while carefully keeping his take-away cup upright. Emily sat down next to JJ on her bed.

“Your plan?” Emily asked. 

“Yeah,” JJ said, sounding a bit shy. “I had this whole plan to make up a blanket fort here for you, and I would surprise you with it when you walked in.’”

JJ gestured with her hands at the mess. Blankets and pillows were strewn about, and a bundle of fairy lights were laying in the middle of the floor. 

“Then you came back early,” JJ concluded. “Spence, I thought you’d keep her occupied longer!”

“You didn’t tell me that,” he replied. Spencer looked quizzically at her, shrugged, then took another sip of his coffee.

“I just wanted us to have a cute date night,” JJ admitted. “I know you’re so stressed, and you deserve a break.” 

Emily grabbed her girlfriend’s moving hands and held them in her own. She felt overwhelmed. JJ was so… thoughtful. Caring. Attentive. So many things that were absolutely foreign to Emily. No one had ever tried to impress her like this. 

“It’s okay,” Emily said. “We don’t need anything special to have a cute date night. You’re cute enough.”

JJ gave Emily a goofy smile in response. 

“Okay,” JJ said. “If you say so.”

“You’re building a blanket fort?” Spencer asked. “I actually have some experience with blanket fort architecture.”

“You do?” JJ asked, raising her eyebrows skeptically.

“Of course,” he replied, seeming almost offended that she questioned him. “It sparked my interest in engineering. I wanted to overcome the problem of chair-tippage when it came to building the structure, so I devised a system of counter-weights that I found increased the structural integrity by 53%. My mom always told me that I could be an architect, but I thought the sciences better suited my intellect.”

“Oh?” Emily asked, genuinely interested. How would someone measure the structural integrity of a blanket fort? 

“Actually, I have some blueprints. Let me grab them,” he said, standing up and making a move for the door. 

“Of course you have blueprints,” JJ laughed. 

“I should probably go feed Gideon, anyway. I’ll be right back!” Spencer  said. Before closing the door behind him.

“Gideon?” Emily asked. 

“His fish,” JJ said, “the one he won at the fair. It’s named after his professor, I think.”

She shrugged. The kid was weird, they tended to just accept that. 

“I guess Spencer’s joining us on date night,” JJ said. “Sorry. I know you’re stressed and probably want to be studying, but I thought we’d order pizza and just have one night off. Just us. And Spencer.”

JJ planted a firm kiss on Emily’s lips, leaving her dazed and blushing. 

“Relaxing sounds perfect,” Emily said, pulling her girlfriend closer to her. “I can’t believe it’s already exams. This semester has flown by. Soon it’ll be winter break, and I won’t get to see you.”

“I can’t imagine you not being right across the hall,” JJ said. “Who will give me kisses when I want them?”

JJ kissed Emily, sucking on Emily’s bottom lip slightly before pulling apart to look at her. 

“I know you’re joking, but I hope you’re not kissing anybody else, no matter the circumstances.”

With that established, Emily pounced on her girlfriend, pushing her onto her bed and kissing her deeply. She intertwined her fingers in the blonde locks that were splayed out in a golden halo and breathed in deep, taking in the warm scent of the lilac candle that burnt on her night side table. 

All her worries melted away at JJ’s touch. Emily’s brain was filled with the feeling of JJ’s lips on hers, with her lithe form beneath her. Exams, student politics and thoughts of home were wiped away, and her stress faded into background noise. 

JJ’s pliant form writhed under Emily’s, her hands sneaking below Emily’s sweater and dancing over her back. They deepened the kiss until they were making out like teenagers in JJ’s dorm with the door still open a crack. 

This was how Spencer, accompanied by Derek, found them when they pushed open the door with blanket fort blueprints and bags of potato chips in hand. 

Spencer made a surprised noise, which made Emily aware of his return. She jumped up and pulled apart from JJ with a dark red blush gracing her cheeks. 

“Woah there ladies,” Derek said with a laugh. “Keep it in your pants!”

“Guys! I was gone for five minutes!” Spencer whined. 

Emily stood up awkwardly, stuffing her hands in her pockets as she watched JJ sit up and pat her hair down in a huff.

“Sorry,” Emily grumbled, not really meaning it. She would never be sorry for kissing JJ, but she was sorry for the awkwardness

“Pretty boy dragged me down the hall,” Derek said in explanation. He had Spencer’s rolled-up fort plans in his hand, and lightly smacked Emily’s head with it, making a comedic thwap noise as it made contact. “Hope you weren’t in the middle of something?”

“Only JJ’s legs,” Emily quipped to everyone’s surprise, even her own. JJ hit her jokingly and blushed. 

“Hey!” Derek laughed, “Let’s keep this PG!”

“You called?” The voice of Penelope Garcia—PG if you will—rang out from the hallway, and within seconds JJ’s room was filled with just about all their friends standing around in a slightly awkward silence: JJ, Emily, Spencer and Derek were joined by Penelope with Hotch in tow. 

The latter two of them had grown closer recently and walked into the room with white shopping bags with the walrus logo printed on the side, looking like they had just returned from out in the cold. Penelope and Hotch going thrifting together, that’s new! Emily thought to herself and decided to file the observation for later. The image of Hotch watching Penelope’s customary fashion show was enough to make her laugh under her breath. 

“We’re building a blanket fort,” Spencer announced, changing the subject to the task at hand. “Are you guys helping?”

“Oh you know I will, boy genius,” Penelope said with an excited smile. 

Emily looked over to her girlfriend. So much for date night.

———

Without much questioning about why they were building a blanket fort, the team got to work. In college, sometimes things just happened. Impromptu blanket forts were par the course. In their defense, any excuse to not spend the evening burying their heads in textbooks was a welcome reprieve. 

It started with just a few blankets draped in the space between JJ and Penelope’s beds, but with Spencer’s instruction, a verifiable architectural marvel began to take shape. 

While Emily knew that Penelope would be all gung ho for this sort of project, it was certainly amusing to see Hotch in his khakis and dress shirt crawling around on the floor like a child with the rest of them, tying off blankets and very seriously maneuvering the different parts of the structure. 

Sheets were draped here and there, tied together to form ceilings and walls. Two chairs stolen from the common room, loaded with backpacks on the seat for support acted as the entrance to the fort. 

While it was crawling space only, Emily had to note that there was a sense of awe when you emerged into the open space of the main fort-area. It was surprisingly big, fitting all six of them with ease. The key to the whole design was a curtain rod Hotch had stolen from the boys shower that lifted the roof up. 

The design was strangely reminiscent of Baroque architecture, which she was sure was due to Spencer’s designs. This was a fact that Emily kept to herself. She always tried to rein in the ‘I lived abroad’ conversation points so her childhood could remain under minimal scrutiny.

Emily’s exhaustion transformed into excitement as she relished the time hanging out with her friends. Music played from Penelope’s computer as they worked, they began to work as a cohesive group, each member doing their share. It was nice to do something besides sit at her desk and obsess over memorizing facts and statistics, or figuring out the proper argumentation for an essay on a subject. Making sure that a bunch of blankets didn’t crash onto them was treated with the utmost seriousness, and the whole group was focused with intense concentration at their own tasks. 

Spencer did, in fact, have literal sketches of blanket forts in his notebooks, but the details of which were fairly incomprehensible to her. While she believed that he did the math, his chicken scratch was just about indecipherable, and his drawing was little more than a few shapes on a page. Despite this, it was laid out on the centre of the dorm-room floor for them to reference. 

At one point, as Emily stood on JJ’s wheely chair, she feared that the fort had all come crashing down as she lost her balance and grabbed at the blankets to stop her fall before tumbling onto Derek with a yelp. 

“Sorry,” she muttered as she climbed back onto her feet and fought off the blanket that had wrapped her in a shroud. 

She flinched as she realized she had ruined it all, a pit forming in her stomach. She looked at her friends in concern, but instead of yelling at her for her mistake, or shunning her for ruining it for the rest of them, they smiled at her and helped her up.

“It’s okay!” Spencer said cheerfully. “I know exactly how to reinforce that wall.”

“You okay, Emily?” Hotch asked, righting the wheely chair as JJ fretted over her. 

“I’m good,” she answered, still confused as to why they weren’t mad at her. 

Instead of making a big deal over the set back, they went back to work. Soon, the fort filled out and it returned to its former glory. Arguably, better than it was because they had draped fairy lights throughout the inside, making the space glow with a warm orange light. 

Inside was filled with pillows and big enough for all of them to sit comfortably so it was a comfy lounge space. It was cozy and warm, the antithesis of the bitterly cold night air outside. 

“You know what?” Hotch said. “This is a damned good fort, Reid.” 

The group muttered in consensus. They all had piled into the space, and as the excitement wore off, Emily was wondering what happened next. What does one do in a blanket fort? She had vague memories of building one in her room, but she had just sat inside and read a book. 

“I hear the RA’s storage room has a ton of board games,” Penelope said. “They pull them out for socials and stuff.”

“That’s all well and good, but we’re not asking Strauss to let us in,” Derek argued. “I still think she thinks we were responsible for that fire alarm last week. She’s been giving me the evil eye ever since.”

“Who said we had to tell her?” Emily said. “We could just… borrow… them…”

“I mean, they are for us to use, anyway.” JJ’s eyes had a mischievous look in them as she looked at Emily.

“That is true,” Hotch said, the scowl that was usually a fixture on his face turning to a smirk. 

“That’s stealing, guys,” Spencer warned, as if they didn’t already know that. 

“We’ll give them back,” Emily said with a shrug. “Come on!”

Penelope led the way to a dark wooden door on the main floor, it was labelled simply “Storage,” but the computer science student assured them that it was where the RA’s stored all of their supplies.

“It’s locked,” Penelope huffed.

“Do you have a bobby pin?” Emily asked her in a hushed voice. She wouldn’t have gotten this far if she hadn’t learned how to pick simple door locks. She had trouble with deadbolts but a simple latch she could probably do within a couple of minutes.

The blonde pulled a hot pink bobby pin out of her perfectly curled hair. Emily snapped it into two, bending one end into a longer L-shape. Sticking that into the bottom of the lock and holding it in place, she used the other side to feel for the pins that held the lock in place. 

Emily could feel all eyes on her as she confidently knelt in front of the doorknob, the group keeping watch for her as she worked. No one questioned how or why Emily knew how to do this. She had her reasons. 

This definitely broke all sorts of residence rules and if they got caught, they knew they’d get into shit, but no one seemed to care that much. They just wouldn’t get caught. 

After a couple minutes, Emily’s hands began to sweat. What if she couldn’t do this anymore? She tried to centre herself. She had made it through infinitely more stressful situations in the past. It was the eyes of her friends on her that made her nervous. She was finally accepted by a group, and she desperately didn’t want to let them down. 

Then, it clicked, and she was able to turn the brass knob easily. Emily made a noise of excitement, got to her feet and yanked the door open. 

Instead of an empty storage closet, on the other side of the door was Erin Strauss, their RA, in a passionate embrace with David Rossi. Her shirt was unbuttoned and he was in the middle of sucking on her neck. 

“Dave?!” Hotch called out, startling the couple. 

Both groups stood stock-still, neither knowing what to say. While Emily had hid the bobby pins, she wasn’t sure who was in more trouble, them for breaking into the room or their RA for using the space for unofficial purposes. 

The room was small and cramped, with a pile of poster board mostly obscuring the one small window that lit the space. Strauss had been hoisted onto the desk, her legs straddling the other student. Emily could see a shelf filled with the board games stacked on the left side of the room, but they seemed unimportant at the moment. While Emily had known about their illicit love affair, she had never expected to see it in action. 

“Hey guys,” Rossi said after a moment, his unwavering confidence carrying on to this moment as he pulled apart from Strauss, who was furiously buttoning up her shirt and trying to sort herself out. 

“What are you all doing in here?” she demanded, standing up and putting her hands on her hips. “This room’s meant for RA’s only.”

“Well,” Emily said, startled by her own audacity, “Dave isn’t an RA so…”

“We just came for some board games,” JJ said in her most diplomatic voice, despite clearly wanting to laugh at the situation, “then we’ll be off.”

“Take them and go,” the RA said in a strangled voice, her face beet-red and as she avoided eye contact like it was the plague. 

Clearly not as embarrassed as Strauss, Rossi simply smirked, collected a few board games into his arms off of the shelf, then deposited them into Emily’s arms. 

Realizing that given the circumstances, they couldn’t be picky with their choices, the stunned group thanked him then scurried away, back upstairs with their loot. The silence remained until they made it back to their floor, where they all burst into laughter.

“What on earth was that?!” Derek exclaimed. 

“Rossi and Strauss,” Spencer muttered. 

Emily and JJ made eye contact, remembering all those weeks ago when they had caught their friend emerging from the RA’s room down the hall in the middle of the night. They had known that Rossi and Strauss had hooked up that night, but had no idea that it was a whole relationship.

“I see it,” Hotch commented. “I mean, I don’t know your RA too well, but Rossi likes a woman with authority.”

Derek and Emily fake-gagged in an exaggerated manner at the comment. 

“I think I need to bleach my eyeballs after that display,” Emily muttered. 

“Ooo-kay!” JJ said, pointedly changing the subject. “It seems like we have most of the pieces to Clue… I think we could manage a game of that. We also have Scrabble, Yahtzee and Snakes and Ladders. Uh… also a pack of cards.”

“At least it’s not chess,” Emily said, thinking about her seemingly endless exam that afternoon. 

“Agreed,” Spencer said. 

“We do not have chess, no,” JJ said with a quizzical laugh. 

———

After ordering a couple of pizzas to the dorm, they all settled in to play a board game. After a few minutes of debate, they decided to play Clue (or Cluedo as Emily continuously referred to it as). The board was laid out: it was vintage, with a teal and yellow colour scheme and some scuffs and rips showing its age. In their blanket fort, they were seated in a circle, all secretly looking at their Clue cards.

“Can I be Professor Plum?” Spencer asked before they had even gotten the pieces out of the box. 

“Of course pretty boy,” Derek said, “I’ll take Mr. Green.”

“My sculpted god of thunder looks excellent in green,” Penelope flirted, choosing the white piece for herself. 

“Did you know that in the original version of Clue, Mr Green was a Reverend, but they changed his name for American audience because they believed that the American public would object to a parson as a murder suspect?”

“Good thing you’re on our trivia team, Reid,” Hotch replied.  

Emily was Miss Scarlet, of course, and was seated right next to JJ, who had chosen to portray Mrs. Peacock. Hotch claimed the remaining piece: Colonel Mustard.

Emily loved board games. Her nanny in France, who was a kindly elderly woman that Emily only knew as “Madame,” would play with her each Sunday after church. She has hazy memories from that time, but the warm glow of sunlight streaming into their Parisian apartment as she learned how to play Cluedo. Emily would always try to cheat, but knew better than to try to do so with her immensely observant girlfriend seated to her left, JJ’s hand resting casually on Emily’s thigh.

She looked at her cards and grinned. She had been dealt her own character, she noted, as Miss Scarlet’s name was printed in bold on the top of her first card. It felt weirdly validating to know that she herself was innocent. Also in her hands were the cards for the candlestick and pistol, as well as the observatory. She marked these off of her card and tried to gauge her opponents' reactions. 

JJ was checking her phone with her cards face down, tracking the pizza’s arrival. Spencer was sprawled back, his long legs taking up way more room than was necessary, jotting down notes on some scrap paper. Presumably some statistics and probability for the possibilities of the cards that were sealed in the envelope in the centre of the board. Penelope smiled over at Derek and flirtatiously tried to sneak a peek at his hand. 

After the initial rounds being dedicated to moving around the board, Emily finally made it into her first room: the lounge. There, she decided on her first suggestion.

“I suggest,” Emily said, in her most dramatic, formal voice, which was particularly suited to the role of Miss Scarlet, “that Mrs. Peacock committed this heinous crime in the Lounge with-” she hurriedly grabbed the candlestick, “the candlestick!”

She knew that it wasn’t the correct weapon, but using it would narrow it down to someone ruling out either JJ’s character or the lounge as the scene of the crime. 

“Moi?!” JJ said, sounding almost offended at the accusation. “Your own girlfriend?!”

Emily grinned evilly at her, but internally she felt giddy. It was the first time she heard JJ use that word in front of their friends. JJ moved her piece into the Lounge. The others chuckled lightly at their antics.

“You have no alibi for the crime, Mrs. Peacock,” Emily said, “and I am merely making a suggestion.”

JJ glared at her, but said nothing. Emily turned to Derek, who was seated at her left. 

“What do I do?” Derek asked, looking around the room, slightly confused. 

“Do you have any of those cards?” Hotch asked. 

“Yeah-” Derek said, moving to show his hand. 

“No!” Penelope stopped him. “Just show one of your cards to Emily if you can prove her suggestion was wrong.”

He made an “o” with his mouth and sneakily showed Emily the Lounge card. Emily noted that, and that it was Derek’s card. Mrs. Peacock had yet to be proven innocent, and Emily gave JJ a suspicious glance. 

She loved this game. 

As the game progressed, Emily noted a few things about her opponents. A part of Emily was profiling her friends subconsciously, reading each of their strategies like a book. 

Penelope always seemed to luck out on her dice rolls, covering a lot of terrain and gathering information like it was a cup of tea. But, she seemed to take it personally when someone accused Mrs. White of having killed Mr. Boddy and gasped every time someone made that suggestion. 

Hotch seemed to take the game very seriously, and was at it like he was an actual police officer solving crime. But, it didn’t seem that he completely understood all of the rules, and definitely hadn’t played before, so he spent most of his turn grumbling as he skimmed the rule pamphlet. 

Spencer, on the other hand, had memorized the rules, common strategies and probabilities of the different outcomes, so Hotch often looked over to him nervously as the boy wrote longhand equations in the notebook that he pulled out of his bag for the very occasion. 

Derek also had never played before, and regularly made ‘accusations’ rather than ‘suggestions’ when he entered a room, frustrating Spencer to no end. But, Derek was smart and seemed to be picking it up as he went along. That was until he made the same suggestion twice in a row, both times making Hotch show him the exact same card. He asked Reid endless questions about specific rules, and more than once he made the boy double check in the rule book when Derek tried to make a rather unorthodox move. 

JJ seemed to be the only one genuinely trying to have fun. She munched on the Cheetos that she stored in the bottom drawer of her night stand, and made conversation. Her strategy seemed to be exclusively focused on playing the game like it was the 1985 feature film Clue, playing the role of Mrs. Peacock with a fake accent and treating it like an actual murder-filled dinner party.

After a solid twenty minutes of gameplay, the pizza arrived. With minimal grumbling from Hotch, who was apparently on a roll, they took a break to eat. 

“Did you see this?” Spencer said with his mouth full, lifting up the copy of the newspaper that he had grabbed earlier.

“Don’t get me started,” JJ grumbled and took a sip of her pop. 

“What happened?” Hotch asked, the conversation piquing his interest. 

Spencer explained—with the assistance of JJ who apparently knew one of the people involved through soccer—the entire scandal. Apparently, last year there had been very little interest in the leadership roles, so the President of the student government had simply waltzed into his role. He then hired all of his friends, his girlfriend, his roommate, and together they embezzled thousands of dollars of student funds. 

“I can’t believe they’re getting away with this,” JJ muttered. “Is there no oversight?”

“It’s always the same,” Emily replied. “Who’s going to oversee them? The college? They’re corrupt too.”

“This sucks,” Derek said. “Wish someone good would run for government, for once.”

Emily shook her head in frustration. It all just reminded her of her childhood. Embezzlement, corruption and nepotism all were casual topics discussed over family dinner in her home. She had higher hopes for students her own age, would they not break the cycle? Or was it just a microcosm of the outside world? 

“You should run Mr. Lawyer Man,” Penelope teased Hotch. “You could take any of these clowns.”

Hotch raised an eyebrow at her and went back to his pizza, brushing her off. Emily smiled at him. Penelope was right, he might actually do a good job if he set his mind to it. 

The people that surrounded her now were nothing like her mother’s friends—or the kids she had been forced to hang out with when she was younger—they were genuinely kind, supportive, and seemed to like Emily for Emily. When she told them she was an ambassador’s daughter, they had been more concerned with the cool places that she had been able to travel to than whatever power she had. At college, Emily finally exhaled fully, slowly relaxing more and more into herself. 

But, the topic of politics always set her on edge, especially since the semester was ending soon. Her mother had already begun to leave her voicemails about the galas, fundraisers and events that she was required to attend over Christmas break. She pushed thoughts of the future aside and focused on the warmth that surrounded her. With some music playing softly (a song that JJ liked by Vampire Weekend), the softness of blankets under her, and JJ leaning on her slightly as she ate her dinner, Emily felt at peace. She knew she could handle winter break, because she knew that these friends would be here when she came back. 

After years of leaving a school midway through the year only to show up to some new boarding school or international school each time her mom was reassigned, Emily never had a chance to put down roots. But, with each bite of pizza, Emily felt herself becoming even more firmly rooted. Not to this place, but to these people as their lives became more entwined. 

Once dinner was over, the game continued, and thoughts of politics left their minds. By then, Emily narrowed it down to the weapon (the candlestick), two rooms (the kitchen and the billiard room) and she was pretty sure that it was Colonel Mustard that had committed the crime. 

She had a decision to make: walk all the way from the study to the billiard room, or risk being wrong by making an accusation. She was pretty sure both Hotch and Reid were on the right track, as the younger boy’s scribbling in his notebook had gotten even more intense and the older boy was beginning to look around suspiciously, as if the others were trying to read his notes. 

She had pretty much ruled out Penelope, JJ and Derek as competitors, as the trio spent most of the time talking, and genuinely trying to have fun. Emily, Reid and Hotch were all way too into it, but Emily was competitive and this was her game. She wasn’t going to lose to Hotch, no way. Reid winning she could blame on his boy-genius nature, but Emily decided that Hotch was going down. 

The two boys seemed to have come to the same conclusion, all eyeing each other across the board, the tension palatable between them as their competition became heated. 

She nervously tried to move to the billiards room, deciding to play it safe. Better safe than disqualified. But, as soon as she made that decision, she regretted it as Spencer straightened up on his turn and said: “I’d like to make my accusation.”

“Write it down,” JJ prompted, as per the rules. He jotted it down in his paper. 

Then, with bated breath, they watched as he grabbed the envelope out of the centre of the board, and read the cards. His face fell when he saw one of the cards, so he must have been wrong. He placed them back into their envelope and back onto the board. 

“No dice?” Emily asked. 

He shook his head. 

“Statistically speaking that should have been right,” he grumbled. “My math was wrong.”

“Boy genius isn’t a good detective, huh?” Penelope mused. 

A few turns went by, with Derek, Penelope, and JJ moving around the board or making suggestions. 

Emily rolled the dice, making one square from a room. She sighed. She’d make a suggestion next round. 

On Hotch’s next turn, he made an accusation, which he wrote down on a pink sticky note that Penelope had handed out when the game started. He checked the envelope. 

Emily held her breath. She was sure he had it and that the game was over. She should just call it quits now. She went to bite her nails out of stress, but stopped herself, they were starting to get long and she wanted them to look nice. 

A moment passed as Hotch compared his cards. After he saw the third card in the envelope, his expression revealed that was also wrong. 

Boys, Emily thought. Always so overconfident. 

She made a suggestion instead of risking it: “Miss Scarlet—er myself I guess— in the Billiards Room with the pistol.” 

It was a gamble. If she was right, and the people who knew she had her own card and the pistol caught on, they would also know that it was the Billiard Room, because no one would be able to disprove her theory. If she was wrong, someone would have the card for that room, and she would know that the crime occured in the Kitchen. 

The second seemed to be true, as Derek showed her his card with a small illustrated image of the Billiard Room on it. She was right. She knew what it was. But, she would have to wait until her next turn. She was going to win. 

But, it was she who was overconfident, because as she was too busy preemptively celebrating her win, Derek casually made his accusation. 

“Hey I’m right!” he exclaimed, holding up the cards and his own hot pink sticky note. 

In his semi-cursive scrawl read: “Colonel Mustard, Candlestick, Kitchen.” These guesses matched the cards hidden in the envelope, and Emily’s own deduction that she planned to make on her own turn. 

“You guys really thought I hadn’t played this game before?” Derek laughed. “I’ve got two sisters, board games were everything.”

“Were you hustling us, Morgan?” Spencer demanded. 

He smirked. 

“Should’ve put money on the outcome,” Derek said with a laugh. “I’d be rich.” 

Emily threw her cards onto the table in defeat. JJ shot her an empathetic look, and Emily tried to stuff her frustration down to pat her friend on the back for the surprising win. He deserved it.

———

After the game concluded and the pizza had been completely eaten, the group parted ways, heading to bed, or for more midnight snacks or to finish up some studying, leaving JJ and Emily alone and to start? a game of Scrabble. 

The board was ancient, and quite a few letters were missing, but with music droning on JJ’s laptop, and the soft fairy lights overhead, neither girl minded too much. 

Emily looked at her letters:  O, B, S, O, T, B, W and thought hard, rearranging the wooden pieces to try and formulate a word. After a long day of academia, and investing so heavily into the game of Clue, she probably had only one or two working brain cells and both were telling her to play the word ‘boobs.’  

Her eyes flicked to her girlfriend, who looked absolutely gorgeous in the warm light. Her blonde hair almost glowed, and she had an adorable expression on her face. Emily couldn’t help but glance lower, thinking about the real world examples of her Scrabble word.  

She played the word with a cheeky grin. 

“‘Boobs,’ Emily?” JJ scolded. “Really?”

She sounded angry, but there was a hint of a smile tugging at her cheeks and Emily could tell the girl found it funny. 

“I can’t help it,” Emily said. “I haven’t thought of much else since last weekend.”

She raised and lowered her eyebrows in an exaggerated manner, making JJ laugh and kick her lightly in protest. 

JJ then played the word ‘throw,’ using the ‘o’ from ‘boobs’ to form her word, earning her thirteen points. 

“I don’t think you can throw boobs, babe,” Emily said. “They’re usually attached.”

JJ rolled her eyes. 

Emily made it her mission to find the funniest words possible, working extra hard (and missing out on some good points) in an effort to make JJ laugh. ‘Armpit,’ ‘meaty,’ ‘hoagie,’ ‘urine,’ ‘joint’ and her piece de resistance: ‘boner.’ All while JJ was playing incredibly normal, and often strategic words like ‘axis,’ ‘snow,’ ‘vain,’ ‘snag’ and ‘writings,’ hitting multiple double- and triple word scores on the way. 

“This is fun,” Emily said, sneaking a handful of JJ’s Cheetos out of the family-sized bag next to the blonde, while she was distracted by playing her turn. 

“I don’t understand how you’re winning,” JJ muttered. 

Emily shrugged, “Guess I’m just a genius.”

“Reid? Is that you?” JJ joked. “Why are you disguised as my girlfriend?” 

“Would Reid do this?” Emily said, leaning over toward her girlfriend and pressing kisses all over her face until she fell back. Then Emily straddled her, their lips meeting in a passionate embrace that left both girls panting. 

“I would hope not!” JJ exclaimed with a laugh, making a face at the thought. 

They laughed and went back to making out, with Emily careful not to disturb the game pieces. JJ sucked onto Emily’s bottom lip, making her weak in the knees and she struggled to support herself over JJ’s shorter frame at the motion. 

“We should-” Emily tried to say between kisses, “finish the game.”

JJ kept deepening the kiss, going so far as to grab onto Emily’s butt to hold her in place on top of her.

“You’re trying to distract me,” Emily chided, “because I’m winning! I see right through your plot.” 

She sat up and went back to her tiles before playing another funny word: ‘suck’ for twenty points. JJ grumbled,fiddling with her own tiles, as Emily collected a few out of the bag. 

Emily was preening as she rearranged her own tiles and didn’t notice as JJ put down her word. When she went to play her next word (‘zap’) and only then did she see what word JJ played. 

‘Love.’ 

It was there. Clear as day. Written vertically and connected to the word ‘snow,’ it was unmistakable. Emily looked at it for a long moment, trying to figure out what it could possibly mean that her girlfriend very intentionally played such a loaded word. Was it the only word that fit? Did she only mean that she loved the snow? Was she also reading into it? 

Emily looked up, making eye contact with JJ. The blonde blushed and looked away, nervously fiddling with the necklace around her neck. Emily smiled faintly at the warmth that flooded through her, but alongside that, was the sharp pang of anxiety. Was she supposed to acknowledge that? Would that make it weird? 

‘Zap’ didn’t feel appropriate when her girlfriend may or may not have confessed her love for her. 

She played it anyway, deciding that making a big deal of it would just complicate matters. Besides, did she love JJ? She didn’t know. It was all so new. She liked JJ a lot. She definitely like-liked her in the traditional sense of the world. But Emily had never been in love before. She’d loved people before, Matthew for one, and her mother in a way, and she loved Derek like a brother. But being in love was a whole ‘nother ball game. 

JJ won the game after playing ‘equinox’ for twenty two points near the end, beating any lead Emily had gained from her silly words. JJ deserved it in the end, as the blonde would sit and stare at her letters until they formed the most complex words that Emily had never even heard of. Emily’s eyes drooped and she was barely able to create three letter words by the end, while JJ was still surprising her with her vocabulary. 

Emily shook JJ’s hand to congratulate her for the win. JJ grinned and kissed her. 

Then, they looked around and realized two things: it was past one in the morning and Penelope hadn’t come back to the room yet and that all of the blankets that JJ owned were currently being used in the blanket fort. 

“Can we sleep in my bed, tonight?” Emily asked. “I’ll help you clean up in the morning.” 

JJ nodded but was in the middle of texting Penelope, wondering where on earth her roommate had wandered off to. Within a minute she got back to JJ saying: with derek! will explain tmrw!! 😘 🧚‍♀️ 😳

JJ showed Emily the message and both girls giggled. Emily saw that coming, but didn’t realize it would be a game of Clue that finally sealed the deal.

Exhausted but happy and relaxed after the game night, Emily and JJ tumbled into Emily’s bed and cuddled up together. Between JJ and Emily, the word ‘love’ was left unsaid that night, but Emily fell asleep that night feeling a new warmth in her chest.