#singing bird box

[lebn]

Enfermé dans son écrin, le serin amuse et divertit les bonnes sociétés aristocratiques d'Europe du 19ème siècle, en sifflant une mélodie qu'on lui a appris à répéter à l'infini. Nichoir à oiseaux chanteurs du XIXe siècle, fabriqué en Suisse par les Frères Rochat.

🇺🇸 “Locked in its case, the canary amuses and entertains the good aristocratic societies of Europe in the 19th century, by whistling a melody that it has been taught to repeat endlessly.”

19th century singing bird box, made in Switzerland by Frères Rochat.

[birbmonster]

Could you draw uhhhhhhh

Peckidna?

Struggled with it at first but it turned out alright

[starlit-eudemonia]

Recently, I was learning abt birds came across the fact that most birds have a syrinx as their voice box responsible for vocal production. This can allow them to harmonize w/ themselves. I think that would be really cool if Mhin has that ability in both their human and monster form?

And they just- have the ability to speak in two different pitches at the same time and they kind of just resonate it as one voice when speaking. Also, when out of control their voice box is more distorted or harmonized? Just a thought.

[shirleyjacksonesque]

dramatic dyke lounging in bed '23 + the setup i made in order to take the pictures

[gayberdnird]

Me when i frist learned i was neurodivergent: oh but i dont really get masking, i dont think i mask lol

Me today at home, after going on my meds for the first time in months, having been in a class setting for almost 6 hours and a work setting another 4: vocally stimming so hard and consistently i annoyed myself

[aeide-thea]

can't tell if brahms wiegenlied actually That Soothing or if the way it just. immediately reliably unknots my entire body is because of baby memories

[sleepingnexttoagrave]

i can’t trust in much, but when i play a song on repeat - at least i know what’s coming.

[loptrlab]

Mechanical Nature

[elainemorisi]

I love not having pets. I get to seriously consider purchasing teal leather armchairs as birthday presents to myself

[chuulyssa]

──── FINDING A SECRET OF THEIRS

pairing ⸺ gojo, geto, toji, sukuna, nanami x reader

cw ⸺ fluff

𝙂𝙊𝙅𝙊

the room is uncharacteristically quiet. after checking into the hotel you were assigned to with gojo, you’re sifting through your luggage in a corner of the room. as you get up to keep your clothes in a closet, a faint, almost imperceptible humming catches your ear. you instantly think the place is haunted, but then you turn towards gojo, who’s lounging on the couch with his blindfold pushed up, seemingly lost in thought.

he’s humming a soft, soothing tune, and you’re surprised. it sounded like a lullaby. but where would he have learned one? was it when he took in megumi? you blink. “are you... humming a lullaby?”

“hm?” he freezes mid-hum, and his lips quirk into a teasing grin as if nothing happened at all. “whoops, caught me,” he says, sitting up. “what, were you so absolutely captivated by my beautiful voice that you forgot to unpack your skincare stuff?”

“already done,” you smile and shake your head. “i’m just surprised you can sing. what are you singing though?”

for a little moment, his expression is neutral, and you can’t tell what he’s thinking. then he scratches the back of his head and looks away. “it’s nothing… just something my mom used to sing to me when i was small. i… uh… don’t remember the words.”

you tilt your head at him; he really is quite adorable. you keep your folded clothes on your bed and move to sit beside him, nudging him softly. “must’ve been nice if you still remember that. though i think you would’ve been quite a naughty child.”

he chuckles, pouting at you. “nope! wrong! i was the cutest one. too bad you missed it.”

“well, you’ll just have to show me then.”

“show what?”

“give me a baby that looks just like you.”

“you’re on.”

𝙂𝙀𝙏𝙊

the quiet of his quarters is broken by the sound of a drawer sliding open. you’ve been helping geto sort through some old belongings when you find a small, dusty old photograph tucked away. you immediately shift the socks covering it and brush some of the dust off. it was a picture of him with two young girls, both of them giggling at the camera. geto’s arms were wrapped around them, and they were feeding him what looked like a lollipop.

“sugu?” “hmm?” he hummed back, turning to you.

“look what i found!” you ask, holding the delicate paper up to him. “are these the sisters you were talking about that day?”

geto’s eyes soften the moment he sees it. he takes the photo from your hands, his thumb brushing over the girls’ faces in the picture. “yeah. mimiko and nanako. can’t believe you remembered that.”

“i’ve seen how fondly you talk about them,” you sit beside him and murmur. “and you all look so happy together.”

“we were,” he says quietly. “i’d take them out for sweets whenever i was free — before… you know…”

“before you joined jujutsu high?”

“before… yeah,” he sighs, before smiling a small smile when he looks at the picture again. “they always fought over the last piece of taiyaki.”

“and who would win?”

he chuckles softly. “i let them think they did. ate the scraps myself. but it was nothing, i liked seeing them do their little victory dance.”

there’s a faraway look in his eyes now, as if he’s thinking of something distant, trying to recall a lost memory. you hesitate a little, but eventually place a hand on his arm. “can we visit them anytime soon?”

“don’t know if i can face them after not seeing them for so long,” he glances up at you, nodding. “but i want them to meet you. they’d love you.”

𝙏𝙊𝙅𝙄

you’re rummaging through toji’s toolbox looking for spare toffees (he usually hid them there away from little megumi) when your hand pokes something hard. you wince and look into the box to check what it was. you take the object out, it’s a small, intricately carved wooden bird. your lips curve into a grin and you pick it up, running your fingers over the smooth surface.

you run to the kitchen to show him your finding.

“what’s this?” you ask, holding it up to your eye level.

toji looks over his shoulders from the dishes he was washing. “just something i made. where did you find it?”

“in the toolbox! but, you made this?” you look at him, impressed.

“i can do stuff, you know,” he says gruffly, turning back to his dishes.

“yeah but… it’s so pretty. do you have others as well?”

“yea, used to make lots of those as toys for the brat. he likes the cat.”

“there’s a CAT?”

“uh huh,” he said. “don’t go spreading this around though. got a reputation to keep.”

“if you make me stuff too, sure!”

“alright alright keep your hair on,” he smiled a little. “thanks though. would’ve forgotten about that if you didn’t come here. not many people bother to notice stuff like that you know.”

𝙎𝙐𝙆𝙐𝙉𝘼

you hear it before you see it — the quiet clink of metal and the soft scrape of stone. wandering into sukuna’s private quarters is fun until you get lost amidst all the bones and skeletons. you wonder how he keeps the room smelling great despite all the garbage he owns. turning to another door hoping to see something familiar, you stop short. there he is, something familiar.

sukuna is kneeling in front of a small bonsai tree, delicately trimming its branches with precise movements, as if he was a professional.

“what the hell?” you blurt out before you can stop yourself.

sukuna glances at you, clearly annoyed. “what? what does it look like?” he snaps, as if embarrassed to have been caught this way.

“you… like plants?” the idea of the king of curses fussing over a little bonsai is almost laughable.

he snorts, setting down his shears. “keeps my hands steady. and it's a better company than most, especially the mortals i’ve come to associate with as of late.”

“if by ‘mortals’ you mean me then i’ve already told you to stop calling me that.” you step closer to get a better look at the miniature tree. “it’s so pretty, i didn’t know you had a soft side.”

“don’t,” he warns. after a beat though, he adds reluctantly. “takes patience to do this, woman. it’s just to… uh… help me train in combat.”

“mhm.”

“yes.”

“suuuuuuureeee.”

“now step out of this room. you may not interrupt my alone time with nature.”

𝙉𝘼𝙉𝘼𝙈𝙄

it’s a slow day at the office, and you’re sitting in a chair in front of nanami’s desk with him opposite you, drowned in paperwork. you flip through the books on his desk when you notice one particularly well-worn copy. what could that be? you pull it out, only to realize it’s a poetry collection.

“you read poetry?” you ask as he sets his pen down to give you his complete attention

he glances at the book in your hands. “occasionally.”

you skim through the pages. there are lots and lots of lines about love and romance. you giggle a bit, feeling giddy. he blinks at you before adding, “it helps me think.”

“think about what?”

“about you.”

you smile hard. “read it to me?” you hold out the book to him, eyes shining in excitement.

he raises an eyebrow but takes the book, then recites in a low voice:

“I love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and the soul.”

you tilt your head in confusion, though your smile cannot be discreet at all. “what does it mean?”

“it talks about when you love someone completely.”

“completely?”

“precisely. quite like how i love you.”

© chuulyssa 2024 - do not copy, plagiarize or repost my works on any platforms. do not translate.

[bumpscosity]

every fucking post I make that even remotely is related to star tours becomes an infodumping ground for that ride what the hell

[birbmonster]

Send me msm asks!

Ok so I already mentioned it in a response to someone’s reblog, but… I’d like it if y’all sent me some msm asks…

-About my worldbuilding (everything in my older lore posts is outdated btw) or OC lore

-Suggestions of monsters to draw! (Not doing Celestials just yet- I have bigger plans for them)

[andybrawler]

Cardy singing in front of two new birds!

[shotgunbunny]

─ ⋅ ─ ✩ ─ ⋅ ⋅ ─𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞─ ⋅ ⋅ ─ ✩ ─ ⋅ ─

WC:9K Dividers are by @f-loqweres

[70s!Dark!Corrupt!Cop!Leon x 70s!Innocent!Neighbour!Reader.}

[warnings!!! This fic is for 18+ only! Not proofread.]

[This can be applied with any version of Leon too!]

[Contains: Violence/Smut/degradation/praise/spiked condoms/baby trapping/ oral(f receiving)/manipulation/corrupt cop/yandere Leon/non con somno/panty sniffing/jerking off to you while you're asleep]

You lived at home with your parents and your older sister still, not because you had to, but because you wanted to. Life was sweet and happy in this household, a happy family of sorts if you didn't look too closely at your mother's drinking and your father's health issues and PTSD. It was simple, it was sweet and you never felt like the world could harm you. And it definitely helped that your neighbour across the street was a hunk of a man. His constant brooding atmosphere would make you squeeze your plush thighs together.

But today was special, today was your first day on the job as a waitress at the nearby café down the road that you adorned. They served the best strawberry milkshakes there and would always give you extra cream and a stripy red straw, so applying for the job there was a no-brainer. You smile brightly as you wake up, the birds singing to you in the trees on the street. You push back your soft pink bedsheets and slip out of bed before walking down the stairs, dressed in your cream white pyjamas that consisted of shorts that had pink bows and a vest that had a bow in the middle.

You walk into a kitchen and pull a bowl out of the cupboard and then head to the pantry and pull out a box of cereal. You turn around and bump into your sister, you smile even brighter as you gaze at her. "Good morning!" you chirp, only to be met by her grunt. She was never a morning person, and you could only assume it was because she was up all night on the phone talking to her boyfriend. You giggle to yourself at the imaginary idea of her fingering and twirling the phone cord around her finger as she kicks her feet and babbles to her boyfriend.

You head to the counter and pour your cereal before manoeuvring past your sister and putting the box back in the pantry. You skip to the fridge and get the milk out and pour it, and then put the milk back. It seemed mundane as any other day, but you were buzzing with excitement of finally working and wearing your cute uniform that was provided. You were excited to serve friends and strangers and

give them the best milkshake and fries ever! Or at least serve it to them with a sweet smile. You dig into your cereal and beam brightly when your dad walks in, he ruffles your hair before sitting across you at the table. He sits down with a huff and pulls his newspaper put. "You excited, kiddo? First day of being an official adult." Your lips curve into a much bigger smile, and you nod excitedly at him

Before continuing to eat eagerly. You were in your 20s, but that never took away from your wonder and naivety of the world. ’S going to be awesome dad! Even the sun is shining, so that's proof it's going to be amazing!" You manage to squeak out with a mouth full of cereal. You slurp the milk and then quickly head to the sink to wash it up.

You skip up the stairs before kissing your mums cheek as you skip past her, you open your door and quickly shower. You dry your hair and sit at your vanity, You giggle and style your hair, bringing it into pigtails and tying two pink bows around it. You apply some mascara and lip gloss. Your eyes looking bigger and softer and your lips shining, adding even more to your charming smile. You pull your

white lace bra and panties on. Your good luck set, whenever you wore them something good would happen. You pull on your frilly ankle socks on, and jump up.

You make your bed up before you forget and open your closet and pull your uniform on before putting it on. It was a cute white flowy skirt with pink polka dot hearts on it, all matched with a pink gingham strap top. Your breasts were hugged nicely

By the top and the skirt only just went to your thighs. It was a little revealing, so you pulled on your pink shorts on underneath. You pull your cute white shoes on and complete the look with pink

heart shaped glasses. You grab your bag which had your purse and open your window and then skip down the stairs, waving your family goodbye before you go outside.

As you step outside, the door closing behind you, the sun shines down on you, making your glow as bright as your smile. You skip down to the café, not noticing the eyes on you from across the road. Leon was absolutely entranced by you, you were a vision to behold, something he wished to hold. He was dressed in his tight black top and his police pants. He lets out a soft laugh as he watches you go, the sun seeming to shine even brighter to him today. He hops into his police car and heads out to his job today, turning the radio as he drives, humming softly to a Led Zepplin song.

It was 4pm now, and your shift had been extraordinary. All your friends stopped by, and you even managed to sneak an extra cherry into each of their milkshakes and got to chat with them before continuing to serve other customers. They adored you, your look, your smile, and how sweet and talkative you were. It was magical the effect you had on others, how you drew them in with your every word like a cute pink magnet that they all couldn't help grin back just as wide. You had even made new friends, some of the girls were so sweet that you couldn't help but get along with them. Complimenting how breath-taking they looked, and they returned the compliment which led you to sparking up conversations with until they eventually had to leave.

You had two hours left on your shift, so now you were happily sweeping the baby blue chequered tiled floor, you moved your hips slowly to the music that was playing softly from the jukebox in the corner, it was a soft sway, and you couldn't help but indulge yourself in being swept away in the groove and the lull of your feet. You hum along happily, dazed in your own world of sweet treats and delights, when the doorbells chimes and snaps you out of your moment. You snap your gaze to the door and your eyes go as wide as a cherry pie. There stood in all his magnificent glory was your neighbour, the most loved cop in the town, Leon. You blink a few times before a smile pulls at your glossed lips, and you wave at him.

He chuckles, and the deep rumble sends shocks to between your thighs, "Well, well, well, if it isn't the sugar fairy that lives across from me." He says, pronouncing every syllable so easily that the sound nearly knocked you off your feet. You chuckle shyly in response, "Mr. Kennedy, I’m surprised you even knew who I was!" You say before you can hold yourself back. You blush at your idiocy, how could you ask such a dumb question. Of course, he knew who you were, you were his neighbour, and you would often share a wave or a nod when you saw each other in the morning when getting the mail. He chuckles again, "How could I ever forget my favourite sunflower. I heard from your father it's your first day, How's it goin' honey?" He coos to you, and your eyes go starstruck at the pet names before you snap out of your admiration, and you grin widely at him. "Oh, it's going wonderful, Mr, Kennedy!" You chirp excitedly at him.

You wave your small hand at him, ushering him closes. He takes a step towards you and bends down so he can hear, assuming you were going to gossip or tell him a secret. "Go on, honey. Tell me," He says expectantly. You lean up on your tiptoes and cover his ear with your hand, "I managed to give all your friends extra Cherries for their milkshakes! But don't tell Mr. Wesker, he might get mad!" You whisper sweetly, your charm oozing off you. Trapping Leon in a state of desire and affection at how adorable you were.

"Say doll, if I ordered one, would you manage to sneak an extra one in for me? I've had a hard day keeping the streets safe and you." He coos down at you again. You nod quickly, and he laughs at your eager actions. He stands up to his full height of 6'4 and smiles down softly at you as he towers over you. "Of course, Mr. Kennedy! Thank you for keeping everyone safe, including me!" Leon's heart swells at your compassion. "Doll, call me Leon." He says in a gentle command. "Okay, Leon!" You chirp his name out, loving how it sounded and tasted in your mouth. "What kind of Milkshake do you want?" You ask, tilting your head curiously at him. "Hmmmm, what do you suggest, Doll? What's as sweet as you?" He asks, keeping his blue eyes locked on your pretty face. "Well... I'd suggest maybe a chocolate sundae or even the caramel drizzle! But you can't go wrong with a strawberry milkshake!" You babble to him.

He absorbs every word, listening intently, but he can't help but wonder how you taste. Your kisses have to be sugary sweet and your pussy would definitely be as pretty as your glossed lips, so maybe it would taste of pure delight. He stopped his thoughts and coughed, he angled his body away and adjusting his half hard cock for a moment before grinning down at your innocent face.

"I'll take a strawberry milkshake. With an extra cherry." He says smugly as he winks down at you. He moves his large frame to sit in one of the booths, and a few seconds later your angelic form appears holding a milkshake. You place it on the table in front of him and reach into your cute little apron pocket and pull out a cherry. Leon gently takes it from your hand before he smirks at you. "Seems like I've just taken your cherry, doll." He says, his eyes darkening at the innuendo. You nod, clueless to the interaction. He laughs, "Doll, Just so you know. Your cherry is mine. And mine only. So don't give out any more, or I'll have to arrest them. Understand, doll?" you gaze at him, looking deep into his blue eyes. The usually bright and sweet baby blues were now dark like a vast ocean. Reckless, strong and unpredictable. You could tell he was serious, but you didn't understand why he was acting like this over...cherries.

You shake it off and smile confused at him but nod, "I mean it, doll. The cherry between your legs is mine." He says darkly. Giving you a serious look. A warning. You blush but nod, finally understanding his innuendo. "C-can I ask why?" You stutter out. He snickered, "Because doll, I have my eye on you. I'm gonna court you. I've seen you gazing at me from your window. Your curious little eyes eating me up. Bet I was a delicious little meal for you to rub to, huh?" You turn red and pull away whimpering in embarrassment at being found out, Leon's big hands wrap around your dainty wrist, and he pulls you back.

"Ah-ah-ah, no doll. Nothing to be embarrassed about. I did the same," He reassures, but still you remain distant from him and lets out a sigh. "'M sorry, doll, I didn't mean to tease. Please sit down, share my milkshake with me? I promise no more teasing, I'll go slow baby. Promise." You gaze at him shyly but sit across from him. He grins like the cat got the cream and offers you the straw, you happily accept. You pause for a moment and stare at him, only to find his eyes already trained on you.

You cough and wipe your lips, "So um- are you sure? That you want to court me? You're kind of a wanted bachelor, you're the cool rich cop that everyone wants. I mean, I've heard through the grapevine how everyone wants you. You're smart, strong, You have a car, a house, a good pay, and handsome. You're charismatic. So why?" You ask him, your eyes big and round, desperately searching his face for answers with desperate puppy dog eyes. "Because doll, you're perfect for me. I'm a broody guy, I need my sunshine. Need you to sweeten my bitter taste. Look at you, you're my sugar fairy and Goddamn, I want cavities." He asserts. He was firm on you. You giggle and bite your lip, "Okay." You say, submitting to his command unknowingly.

He smirks. "Good girl. I'll drive you home after your shift." You cough out some of your milkshake, your eyes wides. "But my shift ends in-" Leon cuts you off, "An hour and a half. I know you finish at 6, doll. I made it happen." You blink at him and gaze at him confused, "What?" You mutter, Leon scans your face before huffing, "Well, doll. You seemed bored with staying at home all the time, so I pulled some strings. Got this job opening, made sure you git it, But I didn't want you working 'til 8. Can't have that, honey. You come home at 6 to make dinner and wind down." Your brows furrow, but before you can speak, Leon interrupts you, "I want you, doll. I want you to be my wife. But I don't want to trap you, so I thought you'd like this job. Do you not like it?" You quickly shake your head, "No! I-I want it. I just- 'S a bit controlling?" You murmur. Leon chortles, "Don't you want someone in charge? Someone who helps guide you?" He coos and you gaze down thinking about it. It was nice, having someone guide you. But not like a parent, rather like someone trying to help you so you didn't have to think so hard about the things that confused you in life.

You nod at him, "I guess you're-" Leon cuts you off again, "No guessing, fairy." You nod, "You're right." You say firmly and Leon beams, his pearly whites being revealed like a predator who caught his prey. "Good. My little Bambi. Go on, go back to work, I'll be doing some police paperwork while I wait, okay?" You stand up and brush down your apron. "Okay." You nod. He pulls you to him as he's sat down. He taps his cheek with a cheeky look in his eyes, and you lean down and kiss his cheek. Leaving a lip glossed stain on his cheek. "Good Bambi." And with that praise, you bounce back to work even happier. Your good luck underwear really paid off.

You and Leon had now been dating for 3 months, and it was all magical, He'd pick you up every day after work, he kept some of your makeup and other small charms in the passenger seat storage area of his police car. It wasn't a typical police car, he had an undercover Red Chevy. You knew it made the girls crazy, but Leon was absolutely stuck on you. His eyes would always be on you in any room, and it boosted your ego beyond belief. You had shared stolen kisses and every single one took your breath away, but lately Leon had become more handsy, it was welcome, but you were shy, you were a virgin, and you knew Leon wasn't. You didn't want to disappoint him when he had so much experience. Regardless of this, he was still keen on you.

Nearly everyday he would cross the street and knock at your door, He'd greet your parents and give your mother flowers and would talk to your father about his arrests and everything. He fit perfectly into your family, He was pulling the strings perfectly after months of studying you and your family, he was finally starting to act. He had been in your room, staying over for a night. He teased you about the view you had of his house, and how you would probably hump pillows in thoughts of him soaking your pretty white frilly pillow cases over the mere thoughts of him. And when you fell asleep that night cuddled up in his arms in hour princess bed, he snuck away for a moment and pulled out your panties from the day from the hamper. He groans quietly as he helps the soft panties in his hand.

His cock stirred as he brought the panties to his face and took a deep breath in, smelling your underwear. He quietly unzipped his pants and pulled out his throbbing cock, it was aching with need over the idea of your virgin cunt squeezing his cock as he's deep inside your heat. His hand wrapped around his dick, pulling the foreskin back and rubbing the tip. He moves closer to the bed, where you were fast asleep. He begins to slowly move his hand with a tight grip, trying to resemble how tight you would be. He licks the panties against his face, his eyes rolling back at the musky taste, the scent invading his head, and his eyes darken. He begins to fist his cock eagerly before pausing and smirking. He moves and straddles your sleeping form on the bed.

There was no chance of you waking up, after all, he had drugged your drink before bed with sleeping pills he had swiped from someone he had arrested that day. He groans softly as he goes harder. Soft 'plaps' echo in your cute little bedroom as Leon's cock gets even harder at what he's doing. He gazes down at you, sniffing your panties intensely. "Just you wait- gonna fuck your tight little baby cunt so good. Gonna make you cry on my cock, show you how good a real man can make you instead of your stupid fuckin' pillows." He growls as he moves his hand even faster he hunches over you, a hand over your head while his other hand holds your cute frilly panties against his face.

"Fuck baby, gonna fuck you dumber than you are. Gonna make sure you get knocked up too. Then your parents will have to let you marry me. A shotgun wedding, but it's gonna be fuckin' perfect. God, just know your cunt is perfect, look at how pretty you are, Just know it's divine. Gonna ruin it too." He hisses his vile words down at your peaceful form. He could feel his climax mounting, and he can't help but lean down and let his cock graze your little pouty lips. His eyelids flutter and his ass and thighs tense as he cums hard. He paints your face. He pants and gazes down at your groaning at the beautiful sight.

He comes down and moves off the bed. He cleans his cock with your panties and throw them back into the hamper. He gets a towel and cleans your face. He returns into bed next to you and smirks. He kisses your forehead and falls asleep happy, and you were none the wiser.

Tonight, you were finally going to sleep at Leon's. You had showered, shaved and were now sat on your bed putting talcum powder on your legs to make them even smoother. It wasn't that you were insecure. It's just you wanted it to be perfect. You wanted to impress Leon, wanted your first time to be one from fairy tales. You brush your hair and stray some perfume that smelled of vanilla, strawberries and cherries. You look through your underwear and bite your lip, your brows furrow as you run your hands over the lacy garment before finally deciding on the classic white lace lingerie.

You gaze at yourself in the mirror and race your hands to your flushed cheeks. You were blushing so much, you needed to cool and calm down. You puff your cheeks out and pull on your frilly ankle socks and then your cute bloomer shorts, topped with an oversized pink sweater that Leon had bought when you went shopping uptown. You sigh at the memory, how the warm air ran through your hair, how big Leon's hand was compared to yours. You brush your hair one more time and then gaze at your reflection one last time. It was a cute and comfortable outfit, and most importantly easy to take off. You hear a knock at the door and your heart races.

You skip downstairs and open the door, Your big eyes gazing up at Leon through your lashes. Leon's heart swells at the sight of you, "Bambi, you look perfect." He breathes out. You giggle, some of your nerves calmed down. "I haven't got my shoes on, so you'll have to wai-" A squeal leaves your lips as Leon picks you up, holding you bridal style. Leon chuckles at the thought that crosses his mind at how he's carrying you. Soon you really would be his bride, and he'd carry you over the threshold just like this, except you were gonna be round with his child.

He steps into your house still holding you, he pops his head into the living room and beams his charming smile at your family. "I'll take care of her and bring her back tomorrow after work. Don't worry, her uniform is already packed and ready." Your dad nods his head proudly at Leon, and Leon returns the gesture. He then turns and walks to his house across the road, carrying you like a prized possession which you are. Leon opens his door and places your door. Your sock clad feet touching the hard dark would, you venture further, admiring the dark rustic aesthetic which Leon had around his house.

Leon kicks his shoes off and closes the door, you turn and tilt your head. Leon mirrors your actions, "What is it, Bambi?" you poke his chest, "You lied to my dad. I don't have work tomorrow." Leon throws his head back, snickering. "Bambi, baby, y'know I've lied to your dad more than you know. But I want as much time with you as possible." You smile at him, the rest of your mind drifting over his first words. You gaze up at him shyly, and he can sense your nerves, he took a step closer. His figure looms over you, but his hands are gentle as he rubs your arms. "There's no rush, baby. We can take this at our pace, okay?" He murmurs sweetly.

When he doesn't get a response, he tilts your chin up, gazing down at you, his blue eyes scanning your face. "Words, Bambi." He commands softly. You gulp down all your fears, "Okay," You whisper. A smile cracks on his lips, "How about...we cook dinner? Or I let you cook, show me how good of a wife in training you are?" Your eyes lighten up, and you skip to the kitchen. This was a test for you, but you didn't know. Leon wanted to see how good of a home-maker you were, you were eager to please and serve which already made Leon swoon, but you also had his heart and if you asked he would serve it to you on a silver platter sprinkled in sugar with a side of strawberry ice cream.

After cooking a lovely dinner and eating it with Leon, you were left full and happy. Leon had thrown so many compliments your way that had made you blush and squirm, you could no longer contain the blush on your cheeks. Every few moments when you were both eating, Leon would let out a groan of pure delight. His sharp eyes stuck to your faces, adoring the cute blush on your cheeks and the effect that he was having on you. You were going to be the perfect wife if this was only one of the dishes you could make, it was delightful and pure heaven for his taste buds.

But even if you weren't good at cooking, Leon would have still married you and still have eaten everything you made. How could he not, you served him his meal with the brightest smile and the most innocent eyes that craved his attention and his praise. He smiles softly at you after finishing his dinner, he watches as you stand up and collect the plates and bring them to the sink. His brows furrow, a small wrinkle of confusion settling between his brows. "Bambi baby, what are you doing?" He asks curiously as he approaches you from behind. He wraps his strong arms around your waist and resting his head on your shoulder, his hulking figure draped on you like a blanket.

You hum softly at the domestic actions you're both sharing. You clean the dishes in the sink, "'M just washing up. 'S best to be on top of it all! Trust me! One time, I didn't wash up for like 6 days - and wow! When I finally did wash up, it was like I was in a restaurant back washing up! There were soooo many dishes!" Leon melts at your babbles, you had him in the palm of your hands. He may have planned everything, but he hadn't planned how much he would truly love you. Of course, he knew he'd love you, he just didn't expect it to be this strong. He was at your beck and call, and if you wished for him to cook instead he would, if you wanted anything it was certain that he would get it for you. Do it for you. How could he ever not love you when you were so perfect.

Leon tugs at your hips after you've finished washing up and drying your hands with a towel. You giggle, "Bambi baby, c'mere." He mutters in a deep rumble. You allow yourself to be pulled away y him, He turns your hips gently so you were facing him. His eyes peer down at you, affection and adoration gleaming in them. You feel your heart racing and his big, rough, calloused hand cups your soft cheek, and he leans down slowly, pausing just as his lips graze yours. His breath his your lips and you whine, he sniggers at your whine, "Oh what's wrong baby, you want a kiss?" He teases and your hands clutch at his top, your hands scrunching the fabric at his chest. "You want it, baby, you gotta ask." He asserts. Your big, doe like eyes stare up into his dangerous ocean eyes, "Please? Can I have a kiss? Want you, want tonight to be perfect." Leon turns to a puddle, his thumb rubbing your cheek.

"If you're here, Bambi, everything is already perfect." He mutters firmly before he presses his lips to yours. You sigh happily and begin to move your lips against his. Slowly, softly and sweetly. It felt perfect, Leon's strong frame holding you so gently as you kiss. Leon takes it a step further and pinches your hip, making you gasp, and he eagerly shoves his tongue into your mouth. His tongue licks against yours and the explores your mouth, you can't help but moan at his casual dominance in a kiss and Leon eagerly swallows your moans. He breaks away, a line of spit connects you, shining in the kitchen light. Leon wipes it away from your lips, and you mewl up at him. He smirks. "Do you want more Bambi? Do you want me to finally take your cherry, hmm?" You blush again and nod before you remember his command. "Y-yes." Your heart races as you watch Leon's lips tug up into a large grin.

"Good girl." He coos at you, remembering his command. He turns your hips in the direction of the stairs and pats your ass. "Go on, baby, I'll meet you upstairs." He mutters into your ear before kissing the shell of it. You eagerly skip up the stairs, and Leon takes a deep breath in the kitchen. He adjusts his half hard cock and pulls out his box of condoms in the kitchen drawer. He pulls one out and stabs a few tiny holes through it. His plan was going into motion, and he was going to knock you up. Tonight.

You gaze at his bedroom, admiring how sleek and moody it was. The bed was a king-sized with a dark wooden frame, with navy blue sheets on the bed with matching pillows. On the dark wooden floor were deep fluffy red carpets, a black dresser and wardrobe. It seemed so…empty but full at the same time. You take a shy step further into the bedroom and gaze around, you see the en suite bathroom joined to his bedroom and glance around the room looking for a scrap of a personal item rather than his police attire and life that was on the dresser table. Leon's footsteps are heard padding up the stairs before he appears behind you, His arms wrapped around your waist and cranes his head down to kiss and nip at your neck. You sigh and sink into him. You let out a squeak at the feeling of his teeth scraping against your pulse point, he presses a soft kiss against it before he sucks and sinks his teeth into it, leaving a hickey into his wake. He smirks as he sees you panting hard. He turns you again, your body weak and easily to move compared to his strength and determination.

His hands play with the hem of your pink sweater, "'S cute baby, always looks so damn cute. Now, I'm gonna see what's mine. Can't believe you've been hiding my little treat under pink fabric, teasing me all the time." He mutters as he pulls the sweater up, and you raise your arms obediently. He pulls the sweater fully off you and throws it on the floor. "Fuck." He hisses out as he gazes at your lingerie clad torso. "Sit on the bed. Now." He demands, and your pussy feels a wave of delight wash over it at his dominance. You sit down on the bed and watch as this mountain of a man fall to his knees in front of you. He pulls your cute little socks off before trailing his hands up your legs, his hands feeling the smoothness of them as he slides them up to your thighs. He tugs at your bloomer shorts, "Lift your hips up Bambi baby." He mutters and you do as he says. He quickly tugs the pants from your hips, and you can sit back on the bed as he pulls the bloomers fully off.

He gazes up at you with wonder, his eyes devouring you as you sit in your white lace lingerie. It clings to your body like a second skin, the thong sitting comfortably on your hips your breasts were cupped by the lace, making them seem even more beautiful and erotic to Leon's needy and lustful eyes. Leon kisses from your ankle and all the way up to your thighs. He spreads your legs, and you lay down on the bed, biting your lips as you blush. His hands slide under the sides of your thong, and he smirks. He knows you're expecting him to slide them off, but with how you look, it's like you're a gift waiting to be unravelled, and he knew exactly how to unravel you. A tearing noise is heard as Leon uses his brute strength to tear your thong off. You gasp, "Leon-" He cuts you off immediately, "I'll buy you a new one, let me see my gift." He mutters darkly. He spreads your knees, and gazes down at your silky, wet pussy. He groans, the deep rumble making your pussy drool more.

He leans down and nuzzles his nose against your clit, and you let out a stuttered gasp. Leon lets go of his control and licks a long stripe up your cunt. He lets out a shuddered moan of his own, like you do. "'S like fuckin' heaven. It's like the sweetest honey." He mutters to himself, his pupils fully dilated as he gazes at your heat, his eyes nearly black with lust. He burrows his head between your folds, licking eagerly like he was dehydrated, and you were the only water available. He moves his head up to lick at your clit, abusing it with his desperate tongue lashes. One of his hands slide up your thighs to your folds, he slides his fingers up and down your folds getting them soaked. He sucks your clit into his mouth as he eases two fingers into your cute little hole. Leon's eyelids flutter as he listens to your melody of moans and how tight you're gripping his fingers.

He begins to thrust them in time to his tongue lashings. He lets his other hand slide up your stomach and slide under your lingerie bra. He squeezes the fat of your breast, his finger flicks over your nipple before he circles it. You squirm and whine at the sheer pleasure coursing through your body. Leon continues his eager lapping at your pussy as he crooks his fingers against your g spot, and your eyes widen. Your hips shift up and your thighs shiver, you tense up as you cum hard. Leon groans in a deep growl. He pulls away from your throbbing cunt, and he spits on it, he pulls his fingers from you and smiles, "My cunt. Understand, Bambi?". He brings it them to his lips and licks them clean. "'S like the sweetest thing I've ever goddamn had. Wanna taste you on my tongue forever." Leon crawls on top of you, his large body hovering over you with an animalistic look in his eyes. He tears your bra off just as easily as he did your thong, and he lets out a growl as he gazes at your body. "Look at these beautiful tits. Can't believe you hid them from me. Stupid slut, I was always gonna see 'em. Was always gonna have them." He hisses down at you.

He pulls away and eagerly strips, revealing his muscular body. His cock is throbbing and standing tall. He leans down and pulls the condom for his pants. He tears it open with his teeth and smirks. "You wanna roll it down on me, Bambi? You wanna feel my cock before it ruins your little baby pussy?" You blush but nod. You sit up and shyly take the condom and slide it down his strong, veiny cock. You gasp at the feel of it, "'S so big, 's not gonna fit." You whimper out. Leon takes your small hand off his cock and pins you down on his bed. "I'll make it fit." He hisses dangerously. He slides the tip of his cock between your fold before he presses it against your entrance. He begins to slowly push in side before he quickly slams his hips against yours. He grabs your thighs, you lay with your jaw is slacked, and your eyes are closed tightly in shock at the sheer feeling of the stretch. He had taken your virginity.

You didn't have a hymen, having broken it when you were riding your bike when you were young. He wraps your thighs around his waist before he slowly begins to rock his hips, his pubes rubbing against your clit, making you moan. Leon begins to thrust more now, faster and harder now that you were feeling pleasure. He can't help the filth that rolls off his tongue as he fucks you, "Such a sweet cunt. 'S so good. Gripping me so good. Fuckin' knew it would. Your little cunt was made for me. Such a fuckin' whore that your cunt accepted me so eagerly. Fuckin' perfect little Bambi, saving your little pussy for me. Feel how tight you're gripping me? Can feel every vein of my cock?" He hisses down at you before he presses his lips against yours. He kisses you sloppily and desperately, the sounds of your soaking heat echoing through the room, as well as Leon's balls slapping against your ass. Leon growls as he pulls away ad looks down at your blissed out face. Leon grabs your knees and bends them to press against your chest, Leon fucking you even stronger, all his control out the window.

Your bodies were covered in a sheen of sweat and his eyes were closed as his groans joined into the song of your moans. He pants as he watches your thighs tremble beneath his grip, your eyes fly open and you arch your back. You let out an earth-shattering moan a which turns into a squeal as you cum hard, squeezing him impossibly tight. He lets out a whimper at how tight you're gripping him and his hips stutter as his muscle tenses and he cums too. He stays on top of you, keeping you folded in half. He pulls out of you slowly and smirks as he sees some of his cum dripping from your heat. He walks to his bathroom bin and throws the condom in, and grabs a wet towel. He returns and gently cleans between your thighs.

"Did so good, baby. You were perfect. Let me take care of you now, okay?" He coos down at you, and you nod lazily, wiped out. Leon pulls out a pair of his boxers and gently tugs them on you, and then one of his oversized T-shirts. He smiles as he sees you already fast asleep. Leon continues around the house, turning the lights off and double-checking that the doors locked. He walks back up and into his room. He picks you up and cradles you in his arms as he gets into bed and tucks you close to his chest, pulling his sheets over you. He kisses your forehead and drifts off to sleep beside you, keeping you close to him.

That night truly was perfect and the morning after was something born from fairy tales, Leon’s soft kisses lingering against your neck before travelling up to kiss you cheeks then your closed eyelids and then finally your forehead. You hum softly as you woke up, your lids fluttering open to see the beautiful man you called yours perched above you. His strong arms caging you in under him in a protective pin almost like he was tying to hide the world from seeing your beauty this early in the morning. “Mornin’ Bambi,” He coos down at you in a whisper, his voice sleepy and deep making him almost growl. You lean up and kiss him softly to which he eagerly returns the action, his lips pressed against yours, his body pinning your further down to the bed as he lowered his weight down onto you. He pushes your head down with his own as he kisses you, making you rest your head back against the plush pillows. He pulls away a deep rumble of satisfaction leaving his throat. He nuzzles his nose against yours and you finally speak in a small whisper, “mornin’ Leon.” A grin spreads across his face at that, loving hearing your sleepy voice as always. It was like a lull to him, a melody that was as beautiful as your moans. Any sound you make, Leon would rejoice in it. It was magical and enthralling to hear his beloved speak, something that would pull him from the grave and fight wars for.

“I gotta go to work, baby.” He mumbles down to you, an apologetic look on his face. Your pleading eyes meet his and he presses his lips to yours again in a sweet, little kiss. “Don’t leave the house though baby, want you well rested after our night. Understood?” You nod agreeing with his command. It was easy to obey him especially in the sleepy, love struck state you were in. Leon knew best, he was the talk of the town, a police officer and everyone loved him. Leon raises an eyebrow down at your relaxed face, one of his hands move to stroke your cheek, “Words, baby.” He mutters and you nod again, “Understood.” You murmur and Leon’s grin soon returns. He presses one finally kiss to your forehead, nose and the lips before pulling away and getting ready for work.

You watch him as he pulls his boxers on, admiring how well the fabric shapes his ass and how lean and muscular he is. Your eyes scan his back, admiring the long scratches down them which you had left on him. He pulls his black t shirt on and then his pants, he pulls his belt through the loops before tightening them. He turns to you, a smile painted on his lips. He gazes at you, admiring the way your hair is sprawled out on the pillows almost like a halo. Your sleep hazed eyes staring at him, he can’t help but move towards you. He leans down and kisses you again, “My Bambi baby, I promise to take care of you. Just stay home, get familiar with my house. It’ll be yours too one day, you know.” You can’t help the flutter in your chest at his words, all cation thrown to the wind about it being too early. You were in love. And he loved you back. What could be more delightful than that.

That blissful morning was now 5 weeks ago and something had changed, Leon had become a lot more protective and clingy. You now spent nearly all your time at Leon’s only ever returning home on a Sunday. You didn’t know that it was because Leon had gone to your family that blissful morning and offered to step up and be your provider, that and a generous wad of cash presented to them which they eagerly accepted. But Leon would never tell you that, not unless you found out and to which he would fixate on the fact your family had sold you off. That to your family, you had a price tag but to him, you were priceless. He would never give you up or trade you off. You were his.

Not only that, but Leon had also bribed your boss, making sure that he kept a close eye on you and that during your shifts, which had changed from 5 days a week to now 3 days a week, you were only ever to speak to men when necessary. If you were to try and start a conversation up with a man, regardless of who it was, Mr.Wesker would instantly shout your name and demand for your to go back to serving behind the counter even if no one was there. But that was just the tip of the ice berg. Leon had paid quite a few people to keep an eye on you, to ensure you wouldn’t speak to another man and to make sure you were safe.

Soon he had began taking things from your room and integrating them into his house, slowly at first. He didn’t want you frightened off. He took clothes, a few panties and tops and skirts and folded them nicely and tucked them into his dresser beside his clothes. He then began to convince you how much easier it was for you to have your stuff at his house. How accessible for it was for you and you had eagerly agreed with his observation. With that little push you had begun to move your clothes into his dressers. Then he pushed for you to start brining the thins you found comfort in, your books, plushies. And of course, you had done it again. Eagerly following his commands disguised as suggestions.

The main thing that Leon kept secret was when how dirty his job had become. He had started to abuse his duties ever more than ever. Of course he had abused them when he first started pursuing you, checking any and every file he could get his hand on. From school reports to resumes. He had been learning about you since the day he first saw you, and now that he had you he was doing a lot more. Now he had been hunting down any old boyfriends that you had and when it was dark he would either set them up with a life charge by smuggling drugs on to there person. However sometimes, if he had learned that they had kissed you he would adorn a mask and break their legs. No emotions on his face but joy in his heart for punishing those who had dared touched what was his.

He sometimes went even further, hunting down bullies or people who had done you wrong in a minor way and threatening them with ears in prison for ever hurting you or your feelings. If they even dared to stand up to him then he would go after their families, sending letter after letter about the laws that they had ‘broken’ and how they would have to pay or go to court. And every time they would back down. Leon had it all set out in motion.

After every time he had punished someone, he would head home and bury his face into you cunt, lapping happily at your sweet nectar until he would roll a spiked condom on and fuck you mercilessly until he came. He’d always take care of you after, cuddling and cooing happily at you making sure you knew how perfect you were in his eyes. How wonderful it was to even be in your presence.

Whilst Leon was keeping his dark desires a secret, you also held a secret. For the past 2 weeks you had thrown up every morning and your appetite had changed drastically. Leon never noticed the vomiting as he was always fast asleep in the morning, but he had noticed your appetite had changed and he was worried that you had changed your diet or that there was underlying health issues or body issues. He had encouraged you to go to the doctors and you did. Which was yesterday. Now you had the knowledge that you were pregnant. You were in shock, Leon had used protection every time after your first time, there was no way unless…unless the condom broke. You gulp down the anxiety coursing through your veins. How were you gonna bring this up to Leon? You wipe your sweaty palms on the apron that was tied around your waist. You shake your head and focus on the dinner you’re making for you and Leon. You pause and gaze down at the apron tied around your waist, pink and white with frills. Your brows furrow, Leon never owned this. Leon didn’t have anything pink in his house, you tilt your head up and gaze around and see the small things he’d added while you were on autopilot in the honeymoon phase.

You were so blissed out all the time that you didn’t see the golden cage that you were lured into until now and now it was too late. The cage was closed and locked and you had no means of escape. You gulp, how could you let this slip by? And now you had his child inside you, you were truly trapped. You continue to cook around at the pink oven mitts and tea towels, it wasn’t too bad. It wasn’t like he was evil. But it felt sneaky to you, like he’d almost trapped you as a housewife. But what was the worst that could happen? He would never hurt you, he was a provider and your family was directly across the road. It wasn’t so bad, it wasn’t even close to bad. And the more you voiced these thoughts in your head the more you started to shake off his sneaky actions.

Soon enough, You hear Leon park his car I the drive before unlocking the door- wait when did he even lock it? You shake those thoughts away again and listen to him wiping his shoes on the matt. He closes the door before approaching the kitchen smelling your cooking. He leans against the doorway, a frown on his face. “Why didn’t you tell me?” He mutters, his eyes piercing you, demanding an answer. “Tell you what?” You ask confused, you watch as he pushes off the door frame with his shoulder and strolls over to you. His frame towers over you, he reaches a strong hand out and rests it on your stomach. Your eyes go wide as you gaze up at him, “H-how did you know?” You mutter, but Leon’s gaze is firm and cruel. “No, Bambi. My question first. Why didn’t you tell me?” He nearly hisses at you. “I- I just didn’t know how to. I was scared and I’m still wrapping my head around it. We used protection every time and I don’t understand how!” You nearly sob to him.

His demeanour softens his large, rough hands cup your soft cheeks, “Baby, ‘s okay. Sometimes these things happen. I’ll be here, we’ll get through this. But we’re keeping this baby, I’ll provide and protect you.” You sniffle and nod, you couldn’t just get rid of the baby everyone would look down on you and disown you. Leon tilts your head up, “I know it’s a lot baby, that you might not be ready, but I promise we can do this. Okay?” His voice lowers softly until he’s whispering his reassurance to you. Your eye search his for comfort and when you find it in his ocean eyes, you open your mouth and whisper “Okay.”

And just like that, your fate was sealed, you didn’t go back and ask how he knew, but he would have given a well thought out lie that would have calmed your anxiety and worries. In reality he had gone to the doctors today after you didn’t answer him yesterday. He bribed that doctor and got his answer and his dream. The ruined condoms had worked, the very first one had worked. Leon had you under his thumb and now all he had to do was to chain you to him with a simple ring that would link you to him forever and he couldn’t be happier.

He pulls you into his arms, laughing happily, “We’re having a kid Bambi!” He sings down to you joy gleaming in his eyes. He was overjoyed and he couldn’t help but rain kisses down upon you. You giggle at the kisses, he tilts you head up and presses his lips to yours eagerly before pushing your body up onto the kitchen counter, he stands between your legs as he kisses you more desperately. His hands slide up under your dress, pushing the skirt up and pulling your panties down in one quick flash. Your lips stay glued to each other, you can feeling fiddling with the zip of his pants and belts between your legs.

Soon the sound of his pants hitting the ground echoes in the kitchen, and Leon rubs his cock between your folds. He growls at the feeling of your juices coating his cock, he leans forward and you wrap you legs around him. With a push of his hips you both moan, Him at the feeling of your tightness and you at the delicious stretch. He begins to hump into your cunt, his lips pressed against your ears. “Can finally fuck you bare. Nothing hiding your perfect little pussy from me any more. Can you feel my cock, yeah? ‘S fucking perfect baby.” You whine and he fucks you harder, the tip of his cock bullying your g spot. You nuzzle your head into his neck crying with pleasure. He smirks before he groans feeling you tighten, “Already gonna cum on my cock you slut? Just desperate for my cock ain’t ya?” You nod desperately to him before you cum. You thighs shake and you whimper biting at his neck. Leon humps pathetically into you before he lets out a whimper of his own and cums deep into you. “So good baby, so good,” He whispers.

This was the perfect life to him something which he had scraped tooth and claw for planning. Finding the perfect girl that would fit him, his need, his life, his soul. He’ll never forget the day he saw you across the road, dressed in your cute little shorts and vest and bunny slippers too early in the morning. And he knew, that he was going to have you. So he would slowly start his plan, mowing his garden shirtless, watching your window inconspicuously waiting for your eyes to peek out and see him. And when you finally did he set his plan into action. And now you were to have his child and marry him. What a perfect dream. The white picket fence and you would never have to worry about money or love, anything. All you had to do was be his good little wife and who were you to deny one of the most beloved men in town.

You were settled in now, this was your life. You were pregnant with his baby and his house was now fully redecorated to fit both your tastes. The spare bedroom filled with baby things and Leon was working hard in the nursery. A lovely ring was in your finger and life seemed easy, calm. You were finally happy in your golden cage even if you didn’t know the truth of the bars that trapped you in forever. And you would forever remain blissfully unaware. Leon made sure of it.

[januaryembrs]

WHO'S AFRAID OF LITTLE OLD ME? | Spencer Reid x Prentiss!Reader [10]

description: the one with Cat Adams + the one where she tells him.

length: 13k

warnings: literally just watch 11x11, mention of vomit, blood, alcoholism. mention of pregnant wives??

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‘who’s afraid of little old me?

you should be,���

She remembered when she was little when she would wake up so early even the birds hadn’t uttered a morning chirp, her stomach grumbling because she usually hated the fancy stuff they had for dinner and ended up leaving it on her plate. She remembered thinking her mother would be no use, that Elizabeth would tell her to go straight back to bed, even if she whined and cried that she wanted breakfast, remembered thinking Louise, the au pair that usually took the morning shift, wouldn’t be in for another hour or so, and she certainly wasn’t tall enough to reach the cabinets yet. 

Which left her with Emily. 

Nineteen year old Emily, who was already in and out of the house with college, her hair a box dyed black, singed from all the crimping and hair spray. Emily, who liked to take her to the park even if she pretended she was too old, who played Barbies with her and helped her cut all their hair off probably because she figured that was better than her constant urge to do whacky things with her own locks. Emily, who had never wanted a little sister really until Elizabeth had brought home the carrier and suddenly she had never loved ten chubby fingers and toes so much.

She remembered waking Emily up, usually by pulling herself up onto her sister’s Mötley Crüe themed bedding and prodding at the girl’s shoulder until she stirred, how Emily would lead her down the long, ornate hallway into the kitchen, when the only sound in the house would be their bare feet padding along the cold tiles. How Emily would yank two bowls out of the cupboard, tipping a generous dose of coco pops in each of them, back when they were full of sugar and real chocolate, not the healthy crap they sold nowadays. 

It would just be the two of them at the breakfast table, crunching on their spoons, five year old Bugsy no doubt dribbling the brown milk down her chin and pyjama top, but she was happy. Because she had her big sister.

She stared down at the dregs of cocoa that whirled into the white milk as the cereal sat there longer, because she was only picking at it really, and it had nothing to do with the fact she was almost certain they had changed the recipe since she was little. 

“I was thinking,” She said after a moment or so, while Spencer pottered around the kitchen, fixing them both a pot of coffee that she usually was usually bouncing over to grab at this point in the morning. Except today she felt sluggish, lost in that maze of thoughts that only Spencer could really unpick, and the second she’d started speaking his head whipped over the counter to where she idly stirred her breakfast, “About what you said when Gideon… We could probably afford to start looking at buying a house soon, what with the mortgage rates dropping,” 

She looked up at him hopefully, hoping he couldn’t sense the hesitation on her breath because he usually knew what she was thinking before she said anything, and for once she wished he didn’t have that crazy ability to read her mind, only to see him with a small if not saddened smile. 

When Gideon had passed, Spencer had gotten in his head that they needed to leave the apartment, that if the Jason Gideon could have been caught unaware, then they weren’t safe either. Of course he hadn’t meant it, at least not entirely, but Gideon passing had spun the logic half of his brain that spouted the statistics that they were no more in danger now than they were before he’d gone, but still it was something he’d been thinking about. A house meant more space; more space meant they could stop tripping over each other's laundry, meant they could get the bigger shower they’d always talked about, maybe even a tub. A house meant the garden he knew he always wanted Niko and Sergio to have now they were grey around the whiskers and couldn’t run so fast. 

“I think that’s a great idea,” Spencer said, picking up their mugs of steaming hot goodness and carefully stepping towards her, gently sliding the drink over to her as the liquid sloshed and threatened to dip over the edge, “Is there any place you want to look?” 

He left his own mug in favour of circling his arms around her shoulders and pulling her in for a soft hug, her head falling beneath his chin where she sat on the barstool. 

Kissing her hairline gently, she heard him inhale her shampoo scent, and she plonked her spoon back in the bowl to wrap her arms around his waist, squeezing herself into every crevice that they weren’t already touching. 

“I don’t care,” She said, tilting her head to look up at him with love sick eyes, only to see him already besottedly gazing at her, and she guessed by the way his lips draw up at the corners that he didn’t realise he was still smiling, “Anywhere with you is good enough for me,” 

He looked down at her in that way he usually did, expression soft and sweet and entranced, but she saw the traces of worry in his gaze, “You feeling okay? Today is going to be… hard,” 

Bugsy’s expression faltered slightly, and she turned away to push her face into his stomach so he wouldn’t see the doubt lingering in her eyes. She nodded anyway, even though she knew he would catch her in the lie.

After Scratch, Hotch had ordered her to take three months off for a psych evaluation, had granted Spencer at least a month of holiday to watch over her because he knew Reid’s head would be all over the place with worry if he’d returned to work without her. It was like asking Garcia to leave her computers and fluffy pens at home; it just wouldn’t work. 

By the time she was cleared to come back, despite the recurring nightmares of that day still eating away at her sleep, Hotch had set her up to work solely from the office, strictly no field work.

He liked to think it was for her own safety, for her own good since he saw the way she pounded coffee like it was juice while Spencer lingered around her with a worried stare. But if he had to be honest with himself, Hotch couldn’t get away from the things Scratch had made him see just as much as she couldn’t. He couldn’t escape seeing her throat slit like she was a lamb for slaughter, the life leaving her eyes as she faded away. And it was the thought of her carotid artery spraying over his boots that made him want to lock her up in bubble wrap and never let her go. 

But that was feasible in their job, not really. So desk duty it was. 

“You don’t have to go with us into the field, you can always stay with Hotch and Garcia,” He offered, stroking her hair behind her ear and tempting her to look back up at him with gentle fingertips under her chin, and when she saw the unease in the muddy hues, she squeezed him tighter, knowing the past five months had been just as hard on him. 

“No, I want to,” She protested gently, her hands weaselling under his shirt and onto the warm, soft skin of his back, pawing at him like a cat trying to settle. “If you’re being made this woman’s number one target, I want to be there on stand by,” 

And he couldn’t really argue. Because no matter what frame of mind he was in, even if it had been him captured and tortured, he would never let her go out as bait and not be there breathing down her neck. 

He sighed, the urge to protest stuck in his throat and all he could think to do was bring his lips to hers gently in a soft kiss, because his resistance to her being put in the line of danger would only be futile. 

She hummed into the kiss, his hands skirting over her back and she swore she would be content if the rest of her life was spent in Spencer’s arms, in the warm mornings at their kitchen table just the two of them, and the idea of that last part spun her stomach into turmoil all over again. 

What if he freaked out? No, scratch that, he was definitely going to freak out. Spencer hated change, hated having things dropped on him, and Diana was already getting worse with the symptoms of Alzheimers she had begun presenting. He had more than enough on his plate as it was, and she knew she was the only thing that could keep his head from exploding with the worry, even if she was sometimes the cause of it. He’s always been a worrier, and part of her despised herself for the fact that he had shot out of bed every single night she’d been in the midst of a night terror, when the room spun and Peter Lewis seemed so real and so close and she woke up screaming. Because she’d brought him enough stress and trouble, and now she had an extra helping of it dished up and ready. 

It wasn’t one of those things she could keep to herself, not even if she so desperately wanted to sit on it and mull it over for a few months. She needed to tell him soon. 

Spencer looked down at her eyes, the way they’d glazed over slightly, and he wished he could crawl into the space where her thoughts bounced between one another if it meant he could figure out what had gotten her so twisted up the past few weeks. She hadn’t been herself entirely since Scratch, but she had been getting better. She’d started getting more sleep, seemed less jumpy when they were in the quiet of their apartment, and part of him thought maybe that was why she wanted to look at houses. A fresh start. And yet overnight, she’d had this guilty look in her eye like she was suddenly a million miles away, and he hated it. Bugsy had never been distant, which seemed odd to think considering she was burying her hands and face into him like she had no intention of letting him leave. But there was something in the depths of her brilliantly big mind that seemed to hold her tongue for her.

He kissed her again, hoping it was all in his head, hoping she wouldn’t keep things from him because it was them and they always told each other everything. Even if it was gross and weird and inappropriate, everything. 

And he thought maybe it was because he was going on a date with another woman, using himself as live bait to flirt and charm and seduce an assassin in order to take her into custody without fuss. Yeah, that was probably it. He couldn’t say he would be all too pleased if it had been the other way around and he would be watching her ravish another man even if it was just for the job. 

That was definitely it. There couldn’t be anything else. 

“You know I love you,” He said as a statement, yet she nodded as though it was a question, and he kissed her again because he’d regretted not doing it a hundred times a day the second he’d seen her in that closet, regretted not seeing the fact she was more than likely uncomfortable with her boyfriend of two years wining and dining a murderer. “Whatever I say when I’m there with her, you know I love you, more than I could ever love anything else,” 

He seemed so sincere, his eyes turning into that soft puppy like frown, and it only served to drive the knife in deeper as she nodded, her hands wrapping into his hair and pulling him down to kiss her again, this time just a little harder like his lips could wipe away the pit in her stomach. Because it was Spencer, and she was lying by omission, and god did she need him to know how much she loved him before things went wrong and they changed and-

“We have a little time right?” She said, his hands taking the hint as they pulled her to her feet gently, cereal long forgotten in a chocolate slush, and his hands reached down to cup her ass in the way he was more than used to doing now. Didn’t stop him from blushing however. 

“Y-yeah we have time,” He said, and she barely let him finish his sentence before she’d claimed his mouth again, not that he was complaining. She looped her fingers through his belt buckle, stepping backwards with his guidance towards their bedroom, and he hummed through a moan when he felt her run the other hand through his already messy bedhead, tugging on the ends of his curls gently.

“Good,” She responded, with a drop of that natural Bugsy cheekiness he was used to, and the sound of it made him smile. Maybe it was just the job after all, “I think I need a demonstration on just how much you don’t mean whatever you need to say to her,” 

He smirked, because she was more like herself than she had been in days, and god was she pretty when she smiled at him before they had sex, like she knew what was coming, like she knew what she did to him. He wouldn’t be surprised if she could hear his heart thumping in her ears just as clearly as he could. 

“I think you’ll need multiple demonstrations,” He said, his fingers looping in between her buttons on her trousers and popping them apart softly because they’d done this before, rushed it so they weren’t late for work, and ended up ripping good jeans, “Gather multiple sets of data before you draw a conclusion,” 

He kissed down her neck and her small laugh became a moan, “I think it’s pretty much the only way, Doctor Reid,”

He laughed, and she felt it against her pulse, the sound of it making her shiver as he shoved the door open with little remorse for the way it slammed into the wall. And she made a promise to herself that once they’d caught their UnSub, she would tell him, even if it meant all of this would change. 

–

He arrived at the restaurant five minutes early, his suit steamed and neat, a single red rose in his hand. His skin was already crawling at the idea of flirting with another woman, but Spencer knew none of it was real, knew he was just doing his job. Still it didn’t diminish the desire to glance where Bugsy and Rossi were sat in a booth, because he’d seen her in that red dress a thousand times before, and yet it still made his jaw drop the second he saw her in it.  

The brief had been black tie, something to fit in with the five star restaurant, and god had she delivered. He ought to have protested, told her that she was too distracting and maybe insisted she stayed in the office if she looked so striking, but then again she could have worn a bin bag for all he cared, he would still be fighting the urge to look over at her. 

He chose the seat with Bugsy at his back as to eliminate his urge to stare at her, because Dave could keep her safe, the rest of his team could watch her, he had to trust that. 

He lay the rose on the other side of the table, fiddling with the other parts of the cutlery to make sure everything looked perfect, even though in his mind he was thinking of all the things Bugsy would have been saying if she was his date tonight. She probably would have made a comment on his suit (she already had before they’d even stepped out the hotel, just as he’d given her arse a quick squeeze with cheeks even more crimson than her dress because she looked divine), probably would have offered to go to the in-and-out down the street instead because she never cared about splashing out on dates, just being with him was enough. 

Adjusting his jacket a little, he waited, trying to keep his head far away from his girlfriend, although that was much easier said than done. He couldn’t remember what his brain was like before it was filled with thoughts of her.

The ring sat in his sock drawer, buried in one of his older pairs that he hoped she wouldn’t go after since he’d made the mistake of putting it in with his boxers and almost got caught within a day when she went to steal some ready for bed and he’d chided himself for the sloppy work. He knew he wanted to ask her, thought he might even bring her to a fancy place like this, maybe prepare a small speech that attempted to tell her how much she meant to him even though he knew there wasn’t enough words for such a thing. Would he hide it in the cake? No that would be cheesy, she found cheesy overdone. Would she even like it done in public? No, she would hate that, he would wait until they got home, maybe even try that thing she’d wanted to do in bed for a few weeks, and then when they were done-

“Spencer?” A woman appeared at the table, a woman who by all accounts was objectively pretty, yet he felt that small kick of victory when he recognised her from the FBI database. 

Cat Adams. Assassin. Mastermind. UnSub. 

“Cat?” He said with practised naivety, and this time he forced all thoughts of his loving girlfriend from his head like they were about to be tainted by the woman standing in front of him, “Hi,”

“Hi,” She replied, her grin too bright and sparkly for anyone to ever guess she was a killer though he supposed that was the point,

“Hello, it’s nice to finally-” He cut himself off when she leaned up to hug him, her face drawing closer to his suddenly and she looked like she was gearing up for a peck on the lips. Forward. Much more forward than he’d given her credit for, and his stomach flipped in discomfort as he leaned away, “Oh s-sorry, I have kind of a germ thing,” He excused, which wasn’t a total lie. 

Also my girlfriend is sat ten feet away and I can already hear her clenching a fork ready to ball your eyes out like a melon, he wanted to say, though he kept his snark to himself. 

“Oh, sorry,” Cat said, holding her hands up in surrender, and looking up at him with what he knew to be false innocence. But he played along, because the sooner they caught her, the sooner he could be done with the entire thing.

“I’m kinda weird with hugs,” He explained, his face boyish as he gestured her to take a seat, because at least then he could put some distance between them, “Please, sit down,”

She smiled dizzily, slipping her jacket off to reveal a blue dress that accentuated her pixie short hair, her collar bones that could cut glass, her small, sleek figure, and she adjusted her straps as an excuse to divert his attention to her breasts.

“That’s like the oldest trick in the book, get some new material, bitch,” Bugsy mumbled under her breath, drowning her venom in sparkling apple juice disguised as champagne from where they sat in a dark corner booth and Rossi chuckled, shaking his head. 

“I wouldn’t worry about boy genius having a wandering eye, kid. Reid is more devout than my mother on Easter Sunday,” He said, picking at the starter they’d ordered as a way to seem busy. She hummed, diverting her attention into her chicken salad, making sure she wasn’t looking at the happy couple for too long as they talked awkwardly, “Do you think you could take her?”

“I know I could take her,” Bugsy responded in a clipped tone, and Rossi sniggered, and they heard Tara and Derek do the same down their earpieces. 

“It was a joke,” Cat said, to something they hadn’t quite caught, though by the looks of it they were still just making small talk, “A bad joke,”

“No, no, it was funny,” Spencer said reassuringly, and he chuckled, though Bugsy knew off the bat it was fake because she loved making him laugh and it sounded nothing like that. They fell into an awkward silence and she could hear Spencer scrambling for things to talk about because if she walked away their lead to the other assassin went right with her. 

“Can we start over? Hi, I’m Cat,” The woman said, fixing her skirt with a shy smile. She certainly didn’t seem like a killer, Bugsy thought, where she glanced at her in her peripheral. She certainly was pretty, spritely even. A little too eager to kiss a guy she just met. 

“Hi, I’m Spencer,” He replied, in that nervous tone he usually got when she flustered him. 

“Is it true you have three PHDs?” Cat asked with, well, cat-like eyes flicking between sly and seductive, and Bugsy could see how any man who wasn’t as smart as her boyfriend would fall for the act.

“Yes, that’s true. I do have three PHDs,” 

“What’s your favourite book you read last year?” She pressed and Bugsy sipped her juice to stop herself from answering for him.

“I’ve honestly never read a book I haven’t loved,” He said, deflecting the subject, while his girlfriend smirked into her almost empty plate. 

Demons by Fydor Dostoevsky, she corrected to herself because she knew he’d gone back to it more than a handful of times. 

“Tell me about your wife,” Cat went in for the kill, her timid smile morphing into something wicked as she watched Spencer squirm. 

And the second she’d said it something had reared its ugly head inside him. Because try as hard as he might, all he could think about was Bugsy’s face and that damn ring. 

“If you don’t mind, I’d er…” He cleared his throat, wondering why it was so difficult to get through a single conversation when they’d ran through the plan a million times. He knew she would ask, and yet all he could do was get defensive thinking about Cat damn Adams setting her hands on the woman he wanted desperately to marry, “I’d rather not talk about her,”

“Might as well get it out in the open right? I mean, it’s why we’re here,” She said smugly, like that innocent bounce in her step had wiped right away, revealing the murderess underneath, “How long have you been married?”

“Four years,” He lied, though he thought back to JJ’s wedding that same amount of time ago and how beautiful she looked in her dress and her cast and how he’d wished it was theirs. 

“When is she due to give birth?” Cat’s eyes narrowed at the man, pushing her hair behind her ear in a playful manner. 

Bugsy stopped, licking her lips and hoping Rossi wasn’t watching her as she finished off the last of her sparkling juice, raising a hand to a passing waiter to order a second round. 

“You having another one, Grandpa?” She said innocently, despite the stink eye he gave her and nodding to the non-alcoholic beer he’d ordered. 

“Watch yourself,” He said as the waiter retreated, and she snickered into her meal, “Grandpa will knock you on your ass,” 

“You would never, Hotch would hate that kind of paperwork,” She said setting her cutlery on the side of her plate to signal she was done, “HR would have a field day,”

“I wanna hear you say it,” The line crackled in their ear as Bugsy’s drink arrived at the table, and she couldn’t help but think the woman’s seductive voice could easily pass for a call girl. She chanced a quick look over at their table, her heart rate spiking when she saw the woman all but eye fucking Spencer with a bit of her lip, like the thrill of the chase was half the fun for her, and Bugsy felt the disgust settle in her stomach. 

“To have her killed,” Spence replied, and she looked away then, the bitterness settling on her bottom lip in a sneer. She didn’t think for one second that Spencer would think the woman was alluring, it didn’t make him flirting any easier to watch. 

The UnSub smiled wryly, looking down at his arm, “Let me see your ring,”

Spencer froze, holding his hand out hesitantly, the feeling of the gold band entirely alien on his finger even though he was trying to get used to it for the sake of the case. Cat’s hand shot out like a snake striking, holding his ring in between her perfectly manicured fingers, her eyes roving over the jewel.

“You know what that is?” She said with contempt, shaking her head, “A noose, only it doesn't kill you all at once it kills you slowly, day by day,” 

And he couldn’t have disagreed more, in fact the only thing that was killing him was the fact he had been dumb enough to wait so long to propose to the woman he loved more than life itself. 

Spencer Reid, dumb and in love.

“You ever feel that way?” She said, ripping him out of his thoughts, and he nodded wordlessly, sighing for effect.

“I feel that way all the time” Except his every day was spent wondering just how he ever got so lucky, how he managed to fall in love with the same woman who gave him apple cake when he couldn’t remember the last real meal he’d had because he was three months deep in an opioid addiction and having her look at him like he hung the damn cosmos. 

“Take it off,” She ordered, and Spencer tried flashing her a surprised if not charmed smile, though his hackles were slightly raised, “As a sign of your commitment. To me,” 

He bit his cheek, knowing better than to argue back if he was playing the part of the down beaten husband, and began twisting the gold ring off his wedding finger, handing it over to her expectant palm. 

“If she sticks to the pattern, she’ll take him to a secondary location and then kill him.” JJ observed, sipping on her mocktail in her own fancy, ruffled dress, shooting Tara and Derek a look where they played the part of a sweet couple on a date. 

“I’d like to see the bitch try,” Bugsy said through a wide fake smile, her face showing no symptoms of anger except the flash of teeth. 

“Don’t worry sweetheart, we’re not letting it get that far,” Rossi added, and the two of them clinked their drinks together in a ringing chink, “Hotch, do you two have a visual?”

Penelope confirmed with a few taps of her keyboard, and Hotch nodded as Spencer confirmed with a small flick of his eyes he could hear the feed, ”Alright, all agents stand by. Dr Reid will give the green light, don’t move until we have it,” 

“Twenty four carats?” Cat asked, twisting the ring in between her fingers with a smug grin like she already knew the answer. 

“Yeah,” Spencer replied, looking down at the band and back up the soulless dark hues of the black widow woman. 

“Twenty four k times… four years. Means this ring should be dinged and nicked, but,” She huffed, reaching into her purse under the table, and Bugsy damn near spat out her juice when she heard a gun load through the mic, “This sucker is brand new. You’re not married.”

“What was that, was that what I think it was?” Penelope’s stressed tone rushed through the ear piece, and the sound of it plus the smell of the chicken she’d just eaten made Bugsy’s stomach turn again. 

Except this time she felt it coming up into her throat, the same way she’d found herself feeling queasy for a few days. Spencer had thought she had a stomach bug, had tried to get her to stay home with some mint tea, but this was more than the last few times. It was like her anxiety clenched her gut in a tight grip and twisted painfully, and she lurched forward, slapping a hand over her mouth. 

“Kid?” Rossi said, his brows frowning at the expression on her face, and she immediately began untucking her napkin from her chest. 

She needed to make it to the bathroom now, hoped on everything that the sudden movement didn’t distract where Cat held a gun to Spencer’s midriff beneath the table. 

“What is she doing?” Morgan hissed into the mic, while Hotch and Penelope began barking protests. 

“Oh, good lord, Bug, stay down, you don’t know what that psycho is going to do!” Penelope squealed, watching Bugsy rush out of the booth seat, a hand firmly over her lips, and Aaron brought a hand to his head, a splitting headache forming at the sight of the youngest agent rushing for the bathroom. 

“Prentiss, what are you doing, you could blow your cover,” He snapped, though there was no anger there, and she could only switch her mic off for what was about to happen, knowing the team had much bigger things to worry about. 

Bursting the doors open, she dived for the nearest stall and fell to her knees, head in the bowl before she could hock up her guts over the floor, and then came a horrid retching sound. 

Spencer’s eyes widened at the table, hearing his team yelling out orders at the one person he couldn’t keep track of, and it took everything in him not to turn in his seat to investigate for himself what happened for her to flee the safety of the table, or go after her even. Because even if he wanted to, even if he needed nothing more than to make sure she was okay, he couldn’t move an inch. Not with the gun being pointed at all of his important organs by the experienced killer with a smile.

“Do you know why I’m so good at my job?” Cat asked in a sweet tone, her eyes cold and calculating as she cocked the gun beneath the seat. 

“Because you kill without compunction or remorse,” Spencer bit, the flirty look in his expression long gone the second he’d heard the rest of his team calling for his girlfriend. He needed to keep his head, Bugsy was safe so long as she was far away from the woman pointing the gun at him. Having the weapon aiming for him he could deal with. 

“That only gets a girl so far in life,” Cat agreed with a nod, her jaw setting in a hard clench, “No, it’s because I think through every possible outcome and then I plan accordingly,”

And Bugsy’s stomach seized hearing her voice so cold and viscous, and she would give anything to hear her partner flirting with that bitch of a woman if it meant she knew he was safe. She emptied her stomach again right as she heard their UnSub speak once more.

“You see, I didn’t walk into your trap. You walked into mine,”

And with that Bugsy gave another hurl.

–

“Spencer, why did you take time off from the FBI?” Cat insisted, her voice nails on a chalkboard, and he felt the apathy on his face flick into slight annoyance. 

Bugsy. Because Bugsy had been ill, because she hadn’t been sleeping, because she hadn’t been herself for a few months, because his mom had gotten worse, because they needed him. 

Spencer would take the bullet before he ever told her about Bugsy, because he knew for a woman who loved male attention, telling her about the girl he loved most in the world would only draw a big target on her back, and he would never dare to put her at risk. Never again. 

Not a single hair on her head, he’d promised. Not even a scratch. 

“You can ask me as many times as you want but I’m still not going to tell you,” He snipped, making sure to keep his face expressionless if he really wanted to sell the deal that she was a nobody to him.

Her mouth tightened in frustration, “Then you’re cheating, and I don’t like cheaters,”

“You don’t get everything you want just because you’re pointing a gun at me under the table.” He stated blankly, his team waiting on bated breath to see if they needed to send in their back up since JJ’s cover had already been blown. “You’re not the first killer to point a gun at me, you’re not even the first woman to point a gun at me. Sorry.” 

Cat’s smile shifted into something akin to a snarl, and she leaned forward on her elbows, and Spencer matched her challenge with cool ease. “You’re really gonna take this all the way, aren’t you?” 

And Spencer smiled wryly, because her composure was collapsing beneath her, “Yeah,”

“So am I,” 

“Dave, go,” Hotch ordered, and Rossi drew his gun beneath a napkin, shuffling to his feet, “Prentiss, where the hell are you?” 

And she knew she was wasting time, but her stomach had picked the worst time to flip. Perhaps it was the anxiety, or the pressure of a gun being pointed at her love, or maybe it was bad chicken. Either way her mouth felt like it was stuffed with cotton, her legs weak where she’d crouched on the floor, and she chided herself for not being able to pull it together when Spencer needed her. 

And as if her nerves weren’t rattled enough, she heard Spencer’s mic mute out, and she knew then that the time for sticking her head in the bowl and screaming at herself to get up was over. Spencer was in trouble. Two of their agents' cover was blown. With Tara and Derek sitting the opposite end of the restaurant, he was alone if Cat Adams decided to pull that trigger. 

Spitting the rancid taste from her mouth into the toilet, she reached up for the flush, wiping her mouth with a handful of toilet paper. 

“Hotch,” She tuned in, and she heard the sighs of relief as he and Penelope seemed to both ease slightly at hearing her voice, “I’m back, how’s Rossi?”

“His cover’s blown, he’s heading out to find JJ,” Hotch responded, his heart rate in his throat the second he’d heard her sound through. He knew it would be unfair if he pulled her from field work for another three months, but the second she’d disappeared from their screens, he’d already began thinking of the excuse he could give if it meant he knew she was kept out of harm’s way, “Where are you, are you hurt?” 

“No, no, just,” She cleared her throat, leaving the stall and heading for the sinks, “Bad chicken I guess,”

Taking a handful of cold water up to her mouth, she swilled the liquid around to try freshen herself up, sputtering it back into the sink and running the back of her hand over her lips. 

“Do you need to get out of there?” Hotch asked, the concern thick in his tone, almost as clear as it was on his brow as he leaned in to Penelope’s monitor, “Lewis and Morgan have got eyes-”

“No, I’m not leaving him out there,” She protested, leaning over the sink with an exhausted huff, “I can’t head back to the table, she’ll know I was with Rossi,” 

And as if she had spoken a plea to the universe, one of the waitresses waltzed through the bathroom door carrying glass cleaner and a bunch of fresh toilet paper under her arm, smiling sweetly at Bugsy who seemed like any other patron of their restaurant. 

Her eyes snapped over the girl’s body, figuring she was about the same size, perhaps a tiny bit bigger than herself, she almost audibly heard the click of the idea and before she knew it she had reached out to grab the girl’s attention. 

She just hoped it worked, because otherwise the scolding she was going to receive from Hotch wouldn’t be worth it in the slightest. 

“Here’s what I’m gonna do, I’m gonna penalise you by adding ten minutes because I actually did learn something important.” Cat said with a smirk, her finger flicking over the clock on his phone as she prolonged the countdown, and Spencer squirmed where she shuffled closer to him, close enough that their knees were touching and he could feel where the toe of her heels were teasingly stroking up his calf, like threatening him and his team for information was getting her off. He felt filthy, like he’d need a dozen showers before he fell into his girlfriend’s arms, and part of him considered skipping the whole dinner and speech, asking her the second he saw her again if she would be his wife. 

Because this, having another woman so close, was making him sick. 

“Oh really? What’s that?” He snapped, his patience wearing thin as his lips pressed in a straight line. 

“Your back up, I flushed them out,” She replied with a smirk, looking around the room with an arrogance Spencer wished he could wipe right off of her face, “It’s just me and you now,” 

“Hi, how are we all doing this wonderful evening?” A chirpy voice came from the end of the table, slamming two menus down between them hard enough that their attention snapped to her immediately. Spencer felt his eyes morph into horror, though he fought hard to hide it, as he saw a familiar face, the same one that had been running through his mind since, well, forever. Her red dress was gone, replaced with a maroon shirt and a black pencil  skirt, her hair tied back in a neat bun and she had a pen pushed behind her ear for good measure as she smiled at them tightly. 

Bugsy had really done it this time. 

“My name is Emily and I’ll be your waitress. Can I get you started with some drinks?”

–

“Prentiss, what in god’s name have you done?” Hotch barked, as she waltzed behind the bar, ignoring the looks from the barman that clearly had never seen her working there before. 

“I’m making sure Spencer has back up if she decides to get trigger happy,” She bit back, snagging a pitcher of water from the fridge and two crystalline glasses, placing them on an upturned tray. 

“And what happens if she gets trigger happy towards the waitress that won’t leave them alone?” Morgan snipped, shooting her a look where their table faced the long, walnut coloured bar that wrapped around the back of the establishment. 

“Well then, I guess we pray there’s a doctor in the house that isn't Spencer,” She huffed, plastering a fake smile on her lips, and carefully shuffling the tray onto her palm, “You’re going to have to take me out yourselves if you think I’m leaving him there alone,”

And they huffed, Hotch running a hand through his hair. Because they knew she wasn’t kidding. God help the man who tried to stop Bugsy when she had her mind to something. 

And with that resounding silence, she listened to Spencer’s mic, hoping to catch a foot in to the conversation.

“You should have seen right through me the moment you walked in, but you didn’t,” He said, and she didn’t need to take a glance at Cat’s face to know she was getting more than riled up. Why was she here? What happened to staying with Rossi where it was safe? It was her first day back in the field, what was she doing? He didn’t think he’d ever been so angry, though he knew if he scratched the surface of the feeling he’d find it was fear. And unfortunately for the woman sat opposite him, he’d stopped pulling his punches because of it. “You couldn’t. Because you can’t get to the man you really want to hurt, so you need to hurt every man who reminds you of him,”

Cat’s face flashed with what he could have sworn was hurt, before her eyes steeled back over and she shrugged nonchalantly, as if he hadn’t hit straight home, “That’s kind of boiler plate psychology, isn’t it? I’m just another girl with daddy issues,” 

“You’d be surprised how many killers do what they do because of their parents,” He snapped back, because he couldn’t dare take his eyes from their UnSub, no matter how desperately his gut told him to check on Bugsy. “If it’s so boilerplate, let's test that theory. How hard did you look for him?”

Her mouth screwed up in bitterness, “Very hard,”

“And how disappointed were you when you realised you will never find him?”  Spencer drove the knife in deeper, watching Cat’s resolve fade under his hateful stare, “You needed some other outlet for your rage and for a while this worked, but it also tripped you up,” 

And Bugsy stopped, because Spencer always had a way of saying the exact right thing that made her brain tick into genius, like everything about him made her the best version of herself even if he didn’t mean to. That was what tripped her up. Her father. 

“Hotch, it’s her dad,” She murmured, flashing a couple of customers an easy smile as she took the plates off their table, because Cat would catch on way too fast if she seemed to be the only person not be doing a job, “That’s what she wants, that’s her endgame,” 

And there was only a single second between them, before Hotch caught up to that wonderfully big brain of hers, “Serial killers with an endgame will do anything to get to them, even if it means taking themselves down with it,”

“Why would I make you sit here for thirty minutes?” Cat’s voice crawled down her ear piece as she burst through the kitchen doors, dumping the plates at the pot wash and looking to where JJ and Rossi were talking with the manager. 

“Because you’re stalling,” Spencer said, though he didn’t have that usual tone that told her he was sure of himself, and she knew from the direction it was going that something was missing. They’d missed something, otherwise they’d have Cat in cuffs by now.

“Then you don’t know me at all,” She hissed back, and Bugsy shook her nerves out through her fingers, peeking at where they were sat through the thin glass pane on the door, “Do you think I would show up here without an escape plan. Or is that just what another girl with daddy issues would do? Maybe if you hadn’t fallen victim to your own gender bias, and yes all men have gender bias, even you Dr Reid, you would have recognized that your entire strategy was based on one faulty detail. Can you see it?” 

Spencer paused, his frown shifting on his face, “You’re not here alone,” 

“And my partner? Less paranoid than you think,” She said, and by the sounds of it the smirk was back on her face, and Bugsy fought the sneer twitching at her lips. 

“You planted a bomb in the building,” Came Spencer's response, the grave realisation setting all three agents into motion. JJ’s head whirled to where their youngest stood by the door, her eyes widening at her partner’s words. 

And for a second she wanted to beg Bugsy to take cover outside, to get out while she still could, because it had been a miracle the last time a building had exploded around her and she’d only broken a few bones. JJ didn’t think she could stand to grieve her for good, not the girl who had already gone through so much for them. All because they had missed it. 

But she knew better, knew Bugsy would fight tooth and nail to stay if Spencer was still in the building. Knew that that argument would only be futile, a waste of time, because the Prentiss girl was not leaving. 

“We’ll go check it out, you stay put,” JJ ordered, drawing her gun to her side as Rossi did the same and Bugsy nodded, “Don’t do anything stupid, don’t draw attention to yourself, Spencer knows what he’s doing,” 

And Bugsy paused before she answered, choosing to give them a slow nod because she already had a good idea of what her next move would be, and it absolutely did not involve staying put. 

Like hell she would stay put while he was there. 

With that, JJ and Rossi turned on their heel to head for the stairs leading underneath the building, and Bugsy picked the tray back up, right as Lewis burst through the revolving doors, a serious look on her primped face. 

“We need to evacuate,” Tara said, and Bugsy nodded, flicking a look behind her to where the rest of the kitchen seemed to be waiting on their order, because the second JJ had flashed the FBI badge, they had frozen.

“You get the customers out safely, I’m going to buy us some time,” Bugsy said, and Tara watched her slip through into the restaurant, the tray pressed against her stomach. 

This was stupid. Stupider than she’d ever been, but her thoughts struggled to make sense whenever Spencer was in trouble. And it was like she saw the splash of his brains against the table, the same way she’d seen it in Lewis’s house all on the ceiling, like she could see now just what his organs would look like when Adams shot him however many time in the abdomen. 

She couldn’t think like that. They would be okay, they would figure it out together, they always did. They always managed to put their heads together when they were in trouble. 

Being in danger together seemed like a much better bet than having to watch the love of her life killed in the middle of this damn restaurant because she hadn’t done anything. She wanted to do everything with him for the rest of her sorry life, and if that meant sitting at the nozzle end of a pistol with him, then so be it. 

She just hoped he would forgive her quickly. 

“All we want to do is-” She heard Spencer begin, the other waiters filtering out of the kitchen with shaken looks on their faces, as they carefully slipped their patrons the bill that had already paid off, asking them to leave calmly and quietly. 

“Minimise collateral damage, I get it, I’m not mad,” Cat snapped back, rolling her eyes, “It’ll give me the cover I need to slip out. I just need to know it’s clear, so do me a favour and tell your boss that nobody leaves until its safe for me to do so,” 

Spencer chewed his tongue. He couldn’t let her leave, not when they had her so close, not when they were pursuing Penelope, not when they were so close to catching the woman responsible for so many kills. 

Spencer hated losing, he hated knowing that she was about to get away because he had been too wrapped up in his overwhelming thoughts to figure out her plan, too busy fretting over the two women who meant the most to him to think ten steps ahead like he usually did. 

He’d been sloppy, even though he knew he should cut himself some slack. His fiancee, girlfriend, had been tortured, his mother facing a different kind of terror in her mind altogether. He hadn’t been thinking about work, he’d been thinking of the house they were going to buy with the picket fence and the porch swing and the mortgage, and the damn ring-

“Well?” Cat’s goading voice ripped him out of his reverie, and he huffed in defeat, “Spencer?”

“You can leave,” He murmured, the agitation scratching at his skin because he was struggling to think of a final card to play. He was usually so good at games, usually won every single one of them. But his head couldn’t settle when Bugsy wasn’t near, when he couldn’t make sure she was safe. 

Cat shuffled out of the side of the booth, her eyes flicking across the restaurant for her contact, and Spencer had barely opened his mouth in protest before he watched the UnSub walk straight into a waitress, a false smile slipping on her face as to not raise alarm. 

“I’m sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was-” And yet his breath hitched when he spotted the hair he’d ran his fingers through just that morning yanked into a bun, the lips he could kiss for an entire lifetime curled in disdain, the body he worshipped refusing to move out of the way for the woman in a hurry. 

And it seemed Cat only realised that the woman who had brought them water wasn’t a waitress at all, despite her plain face that had faded into the background, despite the fact Spencer hadn’t given her a second glance; Only when she heard a gun cocking behind the serving tray at her stomach did the fake smile drop from Cat Adams face. 

Because she hadn’t flushed out Spencer’s back up. Not while Bugsy was still alive and breathing. 

“Sit back down,” Bugsy growled, keeping her tone low but with enough bite that Cat’s eyes narrowed to hide the surprise. 

“Well, well, seems I hadn’t planned for everything, I thought a pretty face like you would know better than to pull a gun on a woman with her finger on the big red button,” Cat said wryly, though Bugsy caught her eyeing up her chest as if to be checking for a bullet vest, “Move out the way, sweetheart. You don’t want this to get ugly,”

Spencer’s jaw flexed as he ground his teeth, though he kept his breathing even. What was she doing? 

He didn’t care that he had no more power over her than anyone else on the team, he wanted to drag her out of the room himself if it meant she would stop throwing herself in the way of danger. 

“Unfortunately, sweetheart, that’s not happening.” Bugsy snapped back, her expression melting into something rogue, something teasing as she leaned towards Cat with a challenge in her eyes. “You’re going to sit back down, and I’m going to show you exactly why you should have accounted for a pretty face like me,” 

“You’re stalling,” Cat snickered, trying to push past the waitress, who wasn’t a waitress at all but an FBI agent, only for her hand to shoot out and grab her wrist, tossing the tray on the table. 

Spencer felt his heart lurch into his throat as he saw both of them pull their guns to waist height, a blink and you’d miss it kind of movement, and it was like he’d seen the game set and matched then and there. 

Bugsy wasn’t backing down. And neither was Cat.

“I make it a habit of knowing what kind of women are going on dates with my boyfriend,” Bugsy’s hand tightened around her wrist, watching the surprise flicker in the woman’s eyes, and she scoffed, “What? You really thought all that flirting and nervous glances were real?”

And the woman said nothing, her ego clearly a little hurt, though Bugsy was just sticking to the profile, and the profile said she revelled in male attention. 

“Cat got your tongue?” Bugsy snipped through a grin, even if her chest was pounding at the feeling of the gun pointing at her abdomen, “Well, lucky for you I have a present for you. On the condition you sit back down and play my game,” 

“You think I’m going to fall for that shit?” Cat seethed. It was one thing to outsmart a man, that was fair game, that was easy pickings for a woman like her. But a woman, a woman who seemed to love playing with her food as much as she did. That was different, “What is it, a reduced sentence? The good TV in my two by four cell? You can keep dreaming, I don’t want your worthless promises,” 

“I’d hardly call your daddy dearest worthless,” Bugsy mused, and she watched Cat’s expression falter, “A dead beat drunk maybe, but worthless? A little harsh considering you waited so long to meet him,” 

Cat paused, eyes flicking over the woman’s face for any signs of a lie, “You have my father?”

And Bugsy smirked, “Do I look like I’m bluffing?” But her face was set in stone, and Cat hated to admit she seemed too confident to be lying, “Why don’t you make this a little easier for everyone and sit back down. I’m not done with you yet,”

The murderess scowled, her shoulders straightening as she ripped her wrist out of Bugsy’s grip and retreated back to the booth. 

And it was only then that Bugsy looked at Spencer, his eyes wide in a horrid mix of terror and rage, and it was a sight she swore she never wanted directed at her again. But she couldn’t leave him, he had to understand that. Because if all the bets were off, if all the cards were dealt, she knew he would need to be dragged screaming from the building before he left her to deal with a hostile UnSub alone. 

And Spencer knew that too, of course he knew that. Yet it didn’t diminish the sickening worry bubbling up in his chest as the women sat down at the table, and their game had a playing field. 

“So, I take it this is the darling wife you wanted killed,” Cat sneered, and Spencer didn’t dare take his eyes off the woman with the gun, even if Bugsy did have one pointed right back at her, “I don’t blame you, I’d want to be rid of her too,”

And they both knew it was a dig, a stab in the interest of getting them both riled up. But it wouldn’t go far. Because despite the anger Spencer felt dwindling in his chest, he always worked better with her. Like a puzzle piece in the tangle of his mind had clicked into place, and suddenly they were a team again, and she seemed more like herself than she had in months, an ease about the way she leaned back in the plush seat despite the fact her finger was resting on the trigger. 

“Have you ever played Cat’s cradle?” Bugsy asked her, knocking her knee against his as if she’d heard his thoughts. They were together in this. Together. Even if the building went up in flames and bullets and the plan went to shit. Just the two of them, the way they’d always been. 

And he felt himself ease back too, something akin to security shifting over him. They always were safer together. 

Cat’s eyebrows raised as Bugsy dodged her comment, “What, do you want to braid my hair like sixth graders, too? What about it?” 

Bugsy shrugged, reaching over with her free hand to the glass of water she’d set down for the two of them, “The way I see it, Cat, you have got those little paws caught in yarn and are scrambling to get out of it,” She chuckled, taking a quick sip, “Now, if we were to let you go, you’d end up walking out of here scot free, and who knows, might even blow up the whole building anyway. But, if we help you out of this little tangle you’ve got us all in, then maybe we cut a deal that doesn’t involve all of us going out in a ball of flames and champagne. Sounds good right?”

The woman’s lips pursed tightly, her head tilting in annoyance, “Alright. Get on with it, no one likes a show off. How did you find my father?” 

Bugsy smirked, “Well that was pretty easy once you have access to the files we have. We traced your birth record to a Daniel Adams, who did in fact leave the country in 1987 but returned in 2012. Based on confidential records in rehabs and sober living houses, which in turn pointed us to flophouses and soup kitchens.” 

The brunette’s eye twitched, like the girl had just spat in her face, which was what it felt like, and she felt the taste of her own medicine was just as sour as she’d always presumed. 

“He couldn’t put twenty four hours together sober, sweetheart,” Bugsy summarised, shrugging her shoulders as if it was no big deal to her, just another bum on the street, “You can probably imagine our surprise to find that he lives here in DC,”

“Where?” Cat hissed, and Bugsy snickered, shaking her head and taking another sip of her water. 

“I’m an agent, not a miracle worker. It wasn’t that simple,” She replied, boredly tracing her finger over the restaurants emblem they had printed on the napkin, “I found him on the street, showed him your picture and said I’d like to ask him some questions about his darling daughter,”

Cat’s lip pulled down in annoyance, her matt red lipstick smudging with her pout, “And?”

And perhaps Bugsy was being cruel. Perhaps she was playing into the profile that indicated Cat needed someone to match her wit and zeal if she was going to listen. Men, she could squash like bugs. Bugsy, ironically, not so much. 

Perhaps she was thinking about how she’d reached into Spencer's pants to retrieve his gun, and wanted some of what she was saying to hurt. 

“He didn’t even know he had a daughter,” Bugsy said simply, with a small shrug of her shoulders, and she watched the woman’s onyx brown eyes glisten with unshed tears as the realisation crashed on her, "Didn't really seem to care,"

“He-he didn’t remember me?” Cat asked, the tease that had been there half an hour ago wiped clear from her tone, and Bugsy shook her head. 

“Nope,” She said, popping the last syllable, “Alcoholism really rocks your brain. Sorry, honey,”

Adams scoffed, shaking her head with venom, “You’re not sorry. Sorry is what people say when they don’t understand,”

And Bugsy’s brows raised, a bitter empathy flicking in her gaze. Quick, but not so quick that Cat didn’t catch it, and she shuffled in her seat. 

“Oh,” Their UnSub paused, the trodden down look on her face rekindling with interest, “But you understand, don’t you? What, does your father like a good beer or ten, princess?” 

Bugsy snickered emptily, “Ofcourse I understand,” She said, leaning over the table to hold the woman’s glare, because like hell would she back down just because Cat was treading on home ground, “I haven’t spoken to my father in five years. He picked the hot wife and holidays to Aruba over his little girl and he thought a new pony or two would make up for all the times he forgot Christmas. I can’t even remember the last time he sent me a birthday card on time, and yeah he was a bit of a mean bastard once he'd had a whiskey,” She shook her head with contempt, and she felt Spencer knock his knee against hers gently, but she only watched the viper woman with careful eyes. And to her shock, Cat seemed like she understood her, like she had some kind of respect for her telling the truth. “Don’t look so surprised. I’m very good at making sure old guys like that get what’s coming to them. Or is that just what another girl with daddy issues would do?” 

Cat’s face seemed to shrivel in frustration when she heard her words repeated back to her, “Is that really why you came here today? To help me?” And Bugsy tilted her head, knowing their UnSub was running out of time, that her window of opportunity was closing with the patrons of the restaurant getting antsy to leave. “Do you know how many men have told me they want to help me?”

Letting her expression smooth into empathy, she leaned forward, her tone dropping into a hushed murmur, “That may well be true, sweetheart, but from where I’m sitting, I’m not a man,” 

And Cat paused, something like regret drifting over her face, before she spoke again, “Do you want to know how that worked out for them?” 

And with that, JJ and Rossi watched the C4 charge’s switch to green, indicating their line was live and ready to blow. 

“Hotch, she just armed the bomb,”

Bugsy’s expression dropped an inch, the sight of it making Cat’s lips curl into a cheshire smile. 

“You’re not the only one with a loyal partner, honey,” 

But the Prentiss woman was quick on her heels, watching Morgan and Tara rise from their place at another booth, heading towards a woman sitting at the bar on her phone, and she forced her lips together to stop herself from looking too smug to cause suspicion. 

“It seems so,” Bugsy agreed with a nod, handing her gun off to Spencer beneath the table. 

If he was confused, he didn’t show it, probably because he trusted that big brain of hers with everything in him, even if he was mad enough he could feel the annoyance oozing from his hot cheekbones. Yet to the rest of the restaurant, Cat Adams, included she hadn’t moved an inch. 

“But, there is one thing I can guarantee about this partner of yours,” She said, leaning over to pour herself another glass of water casually. 

Cat hummed in content, “Oh, right? What’s that?”

And Bugsy smirked, barely raising the glass to her lips as Morgan pounced on the Bomber, ripping the phone out of her hands and causing the patrons around her to yelp, “She’s sure as shit not as clever as me and my husband,” 

Cat’s head whirlled around to see her partner’s face slamming into the hard wood of the bar, Tara yanking the cuffs from her belt, and she barely had time to flick back to the two agents facing her before a pitcher of ice cold water was thrown in her eyes, her thick mascara running down her cheeks and blurring her vision. Spencer dove over the table and grabbed her gun from her grasp as Bugsy ripped her out of the booth with rough hands. 

She threw her to the ground in the few seconds she was disorientated, her hands tightening around her wrists as make shift cuffs, and she saw Spencer hurrying to grab the real things from his pockets. 

“That was a cheap shot, you’re a cheater, you said you’d play fair,” Cat barked, her cheeks pressing against the rough carpet as the agents cuffed her, ignoring her protests and shoves. 

“Honey, this is me playing fair,” Bugsy snapped with a cruel smirk, “You threatened my friends, you stuck your hand in my boyfriend’s pants, and pointed a gun at him. Believe me I could have done so much worse,” 

And with that Cat Adams was hauled off the ground by the two of them, as they led her out to the police van waiting outside the restaurant. 

–

The doors pulled open, empty, and Cat’s face dropped, because her only silver lining on the entire outcome had been that she’d be able to meet the dead beat dad that ran out on her. 

That agent’s face had been so genuine as she’d said it. It had seemed so real, and yet… 

“You lied to me,” She said as Bugsy set her down on the bench, Spencer pulling another set of handcuffs from his belt and the two of them looked up at her, her lashes lining with disappointment. 

“If it helps, we really did try to look for him.” Spencer said, his tone blunt because she had a crazed look in her eye he didn’t like one bit the second she stared at his girlfriend.

And even though she was the one in chains, heading for prison for a twenty year sentence at the minimum, she laughed. Cackled. 

“It doesn't matter anyway, I still won,” She said, that venomous gaze turning to Spencer because she had learned atleast two thing in the time she’d been sat with the two agents that ruined her life. 

One. Spencer’s mother had Alzheimers, that he hadn’t been lying about. That she was sure was too real to be a story he’d pulled out his ass. 

Two. The girl wasn’t phased by insults or bites or cruel words directed towards her. Yet when it was at Spencer…

“How do you figure that one?” Bugsy said, her brow furrowing as she shook her head at the woman.

“In ten years, Mommy dearest won’t remember anyone’s name,” Bugsy’s head shot up at that, her lips curling into a snarl, and she forced her fingertips into her palm to stop herself from throwing a slap at the woman’s face, “But I’ll remember yours,” 

Bugsy daren’t react, no matter if her chest boiled in anger at the woman’s callous words. Spencer had to give that information up, give a small bit of his soft underbelly to get the woman to trust him enough not to shoot. 

And she couldn’t exactly blame him when he rose to his feet, darting out of the van with a clenched jaw, because the day had been an entire shit show, and she knew by the growl of annoyance he let out that their was a big conversation looming over her head, one she could only see ending in a fight.

It was just the two of them in the van, Cat entirely bound to her seat, and her painted lips had pulled into a grin the second he’d stormed off, her sleek eyes snapping to Bugsy who looked ready to slit her throat. 

“Oh, come on Princess, it was tit for tat,” Cat shrugged as if she didn’t seem destroyed, “You took my dad from me, I guess I had to do the same for that hubby of yours,”

Bugsy looked down at her, swallowing her rage with a purse of her lips, feeling her breath rattle with unfiltered animosity.

“You’d make a shit profiler, for what it’s worth. What you profiled about him was all off,” She snarled, stepping away from the woman and looking down at her as if she was shit on the bottom of her shoe, “At least he’s going to make a better father than the bum who would rather sleep on concrete than know you,”

And with that she slammed the doors closed behind her, darting off on Spencer’s heel. 

+1. The one where she tells him.

She saw his stress lines, the way the day’s events had weighed heavy on him. He sat on the sofa, his shoes thrown by the door after a tense drive home, and she'd found a space on the coffee table in front of him.

He was quiet, he had never been quiet with her, not in the years since they’d kissed that first time in her room. He wasn’t one for the silent treatment, she knew that much. Yet he was just that. Silent.

“Are you mad at me?” She asked, her voice that of a child as her brows scrunched together in worry. She felt the words bubbling in her throat, the thing she’d needed to tell him for a week gnawing at her tongue, crawling it’s way out, only she worried that after what she had done, he might just be ten times more annoyed at her throwing herself in the line of danger. 

He stayed quiet for a moment, and she thought this might turn into their first real fight in the two and bit years they’d been together. Her skin went cold at the words that loomed over them, and she knew by the way he sighed alone he was pissed. 

“You can’t do that,” He said, his voice a restrained bite, and he shook his head for good measure, “You can’t put yourself in the way of danger again, I can’t do that again, not after Scratch.” 

Her throat closed up with tears, and she glanced at him, her fingers itching to take his warm hands in her own, her body begging to preen into him, have him kiss her and tell her he wasn’t mad, that he still loved her, that everything was okay. But he wouldn’t. Not because he didn’t feel any of that, of course he still loved her, but the wet that lined his lashes told her all she needed to know. That seeing what Scratch had done to her had scared him enough that even the idea of her coming close to a hostile UnSub with a loaded gun, that straying from the plan that was designed to keep everyone safe, had tipped him into a grey area that had him both wanting to hold her close and never let her go whilst yelling at her in that broken cadence to show her just how hurt he was. 

“I’m sorry, I just-” She choked, her eyes becoming watery and pathetic and she hated crying during arguments, not wanting to look weak but that was exactly how she felt. Weak. Like she had no backbone to lean on because she knew she shouldn’t have intervened, but the snake-like woman undressing her boyfriend with her eyes while cocking a weapon at him had pushed her over the edge. 

“Oh, you’re sorry, that makes it much better,” Spencer shook his head, furrowing his brows and it was only when he leaned forward that the salty hot tears dribbled down his cheek. “You- you can’t just do that, Bugsy, you know that right?”

She nodded, the words building in her trachea like word vomit, like she wanted to scream the confession at him that she should have given him the second she’d found out. “I know, I’m sorry,” She said again, her words entirely warbled with guilt because she’d never seen him so distraught, and she thought back to the horror that had spread on his face when she’d sat down. 

“You can’t do that to me, sweetheart, do you understand?” His tone had shifted, something a little softer and he grabbed her hands tightly when her shoulders hunched together, and she leaned forward to try to hide her cries in her lap, sitting silently like a scolded child, “What were you thinking? You just got back into the field today, you could have been hurt, you could have gotten someone else hurt-”

“I know, I know, I’m sorry,” She sniffled, her expression truly guilty, because everything he was saying was exactly true, she could have gotten him shot. “I didn’t think, I wasn’t thinking, I just was worried that…” She trailed off, her heart rate spiking when the words almost slipped from her tongue. She couldn’t tell him, not like this.

“What?” Spencer pressed, because he didn’t like the look of whatever had just passed over her face, and she shook her head in denial, “Bug, tell me,” 

“No, I can’t,” Her breath clogged in her chest, coming out in a shaky rattle, and it was then that he leaned forward even more, trying to dip his head down to catch her eye, "Not like this,"

“Please tell me,” He begged, his eyes still stinging where another wave of tears threatened to burst at the seam when she shook her head again, her chin pressing down into her chest because he hated this. He hated arguing with her. “I’m sorry I yelled, I didn’t mean to, honey, I just got- worried.”

“I know,” She said quietly through another sniffle, rubbing her cheek on her shoulder to dry it, “I know, I’m sorry I didn’t think it through I just,” She took a deep breath, because she knew she needed to tell him, knew there was no more running from it. 

He lifted a palm to her cheek, his thumb skirting under her eyelashes, and he forced himself together because he could never stand to see her cry, not when it was partially his fault, “What?” 

“I just can’t do this without you,” She murmured, her heart in her throat, and it only made it difficult to swallow. She chanced a look at Spencer, his eyes wet and red and worried as she continued, “I can’t be the one to tell this kid their dad died because I didn’t do anything,” 

“What..” He started, his brows immediately falling into a frown as he looked at her. She swore she could hear every single contraction of her heart muscles in her ears, the blood rushing through her veins making it sound like waves crashing on a shore right in her eardrum. 

“It’s still fixable,” She jumped in, before he could say anything, like she needed to justify immediately what she’d said, or even just talk to fill the silence because she hated not knowing what he was thinking, “It’s only five weeks along, I still have time to… fix it-”

“Five weeks- you-you’re pregnant?” Spencer’s eyes were wide, with horror or shock she had no idea, nor did she want to find out judging by the way he had turned pale, reading between the lines, “W-What- fix it? Is that what you want to do?” 

She stopped, because he seemed to be keeping a lid on his emotions, trying his hardest to sound calm and somehow that made it all the more worse. Because she would rather him get angry, or get frustrated and tell her this was too soon, or tell her there was no way he was ready to be a father, because at least then the pressure of it wasn’t on her back to decide for both of them. 

But he would never, and she didn’t know why she’d ever second guessed him. He wasn’t yelling, or turning away, or leaving her the second things got tough, because it was Spencer. And Spencer would never. Spencer gave her the choice of what she wanted to do. 

She stopped, her lungs suddenly feeling just that bit tighter, as she shrugged pitifully, and she thought this was perhaps not the most ideal way to tell someone you’re pregnant, “I-I don’t know, I think…” She stopped, because what did she think? She’d been so wrapped up in worrying about what Spencer would think, worrying about his mom and her nightmares and Cat God Damn Adams that she hadn’t even let herself entertain the thought of a little them. 

But if she said she didn’t like the idea of a little boy with Spencer’s hair and glasses and smile, if she said she couldn’t see the photo album his mom had handed her full of pictures of their kids butt naked and watering the flower beds, she would be a liar. 

“I think… it would take a lot of work, I mean it’s a baby for christ sakes, Bugsy, of course it’ll take work,” He nodded slowly as she chided herself, but she felt his hands tighten on hers, and the tiny gesture gave her the encouragement she needed. She took another breath, that boy with brown curls and her eyes in a jedi costume flashing through her head, “But.. I think having a mini you is everything I could have ever wished for,” 

His lip quivered for a minute, and she worried she’d said the wrong thing. And then…

He smiled, wider than she’d ever seen him, like she could count every single one of his teeth, and she copied him despite the way a frog leapt into her throat, and she saw his eyes line with a fresh set of tears. 

“Really, we’re really doing this?” Spencer asked, quietly, like someone could hear them, or perhaps he couldn’t believe himself even as he said it. He thought his chest was about to explode, thought his heart could never love someone so much as he loved her, thought it would never beat the same way again as it had before he’d been told he was going to have a baby with the woman he’d been in love with for nearly nine years. She nodded, her shy smile turning into something happy, maybe even excited as he pulled her in for an achingly sweet kiss, his hands cupping her cheeks as he kissed her lips over and over and over again, ignoring the salt that trapped in her skin, and he realised then he had started crying just as much as she had. Two wailing saps sitting in their living room, happier than they’d ever dreamed they were allowed to be. “I love you, I love you, I love you more than anything, I was so stupid, I’m so sorry I shouted-” 

She chuckled, shaking her head, and drawing him back in for a long, silencing kiss, “I was stupid, very stupid.” Bugsy said, the weight lifting off her chest like a dumbbell had been moved, and she could breath again. Because Spencer kissed her like he wanted to merge their bodies into one, like he didn’t care for breath anymore as long as he had her lips on his, and she couldn’t help think if that was what he thought of her too, “No more being stupid from either of us. Kid’s got to have at least one smart parent,“

He smiled, enough joy in his eyes to make her think she was handing him the universe. And yet that was exactly how he felt. Like everything he dreamt of as a kid, when he was in his room wishing his dad had stayed because sometimes looking after his mom was tough on a twelve year old, or when he’d held Henry for the first time and thought maybe he wouldn’t be terrible at it by the time it was his turn. 

He looked at Bugsy, the idea of their kid growing inside her, about the size of a petit pois pea at five weeks, and Spencer damn near felt like he’d won the lottery. 

And all thoughts of Cat Adams were gone from both of their minds, the viper woman she wished she had gotten a good right hook to when she’d had the chance entirely unimportant now. 

Because they were going to be a family, more so than they already were. And Bugsy felt as though she couldn’t love Spencer any more than she already did, but she could love his baby more than she’d ever thought possible. 

--

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