#melioro

An electric shock went to Spencer at the first touch of soft fingers around his wrists. And in his surprise he fired another shot, missing the target at the end of the shooting range noticeably. "Sorry," he muttered knowing Aly wouldn't be able to hear him through the hearing protector. It was why she had touched him without asking in the first place. It was a practicality. And over the months of their budding friendship, he had grown more accustomed to her touch. Just as she was slowly learning when and how it was okay to touch Spencer. And his surprise, the sudden rigidness in his body, was gone as quickly as it had appeared and he became malleable. Offered no resistance as Aly corrected the position of his hands and shoulders. And he pulled the trigger again when he gave her signal with a tap on his knuckles. This time at least the bullet hit the paper, missing the black figure on it by only a hair's breadth.

Spencer was confused as he woke up from a pleasant dream, finding the other side of the bed empty. But the confusion didn't last long once the delicious smell of pancakes reached his nostrils, and he couldn't help but smile. The same smile he gave his wife and kids as they entered the bedroom to wake him for his birthday breakfast. Since meeting Aly, his birthdays had become something they celebrated together. Much like it had been as a child when he and his mother had lived together. On a good day, she would make him breakfast, too. She would gift him a new book, and they would spend the afternoon reading together. He had not paid much attention to his birthday while he had worked on his degrees. And he hadn't noticed how much he had missed it since Aly made an effort for him.

Aly's gentle kiss was interrupted when their daughter Penny jumped up on the bed beside him and tackled him into a hug. "Happy Birthday, Daddy!" Spencer chuckled. "Thank you, pumpkin!" Seeing his son's pout, he pulled him into the hug, so Jason wouldn't feel left out. "Do I smell pancakes?"

maggie creek road

               it’s   moments   like   these   where   carol   questions   her   dedication   to   this   field,   to   the   justice   system   in   general.      a   mother   having   to   go   to   prison   for   simply   protecting   her   child.      carol   knows   she   killed   a   man,   but…      he   wasn’t   a   good   man.      he   was   their   unsub   actually,   the   one   they’d   been   chasing   down.      a   serial   killer,   who   brutally   beat   and   assaulted   the   women   before   he   killed   them.      those   were   the   kind   of   men   that   sickened   her.      who   had   his   way   with   them   and   then   dumped   them   like   trash…      it   was   all   too   familiar   to   her.      the   only   difference   between   her   and   the   victims?      she’d   never   been   killed.

               carol   sets   the   file   down   on   the   desk,   chewing   on   her   lip   before   looking   at   aly.      if   there   is   anyone   she   can   confide   in   and   not   face   reprimand…      it’s   the   blonde.      ❝   she   gave   me   her   statement.      said   she   always   knew   something   was   off   about   her   daughters   boyfriend   but…      she   never   imagined   this   magnitude.      that   mothers   intuition   told   her   to   follow   them   when   he   picked   her   daughter   up   last   night.      saw   him   pull   over   on   the   side   of   a   road   beneath   a   big   tree.      when   she   got   out   of   the   car,   she   heard   her   baby   crying   no   but   he   wouldn’t   stop.   ❞      carol   knows   if   it   hadn’t   been   for   this   mother,   her   daughter   would   have   had   the   same   fate   as   the   other   victims.      ❝   with   a   pistol   in   her   hand   she   opened   his   door…      well,   you   know   the   rest.   ❞

featuring: jason gideon and alyssa williams

               carol   knew   it   wasn’t   safe,   she   knew   it   was   stupid.      she   also   knew   that   every   second   they   spend   out   here   waiting   for   the   team   is   another   second   closer   to   their   victims   death.      he   was   inside   the   house,   it   was   just   a   matter   of   having   the   extra   hands.      neither   her   nor   aly   would   be   able   to   sleep   knowing   they   left   the   poor   widower   inside   to   die   when   they   could’ve   rushed   in   to   stop   it.      hindsight   is   a   real   bitch   though,   isn’t   it?      in   that   moment   they’d   made   the   decision   to   enter   the   home.      two   against   one   was   better   than   nothing.

               alyssa   had   gone   in   first,   with   carol   behind   to   watch   her   back.      they   didn’t   split   up   far,   but   carol   had   lagged   behind   enough   for   it   to   be   her   biggest   mistake   of   the   night.      she   heard   alyssa   call   out   to   the   unsub,   telling   him   to   drop   the   weapon.      just   as   she   was   approaching   behind,   an   arm   emerged   from   the   shadows,   closing   around   her   throat.      her   gun   fell   to   the   floor   just   as   aly   fired   two   rounds.      she   felt   the   cool,   sharp   metal   dig   into   her   neck,   so   close   that   if   she   swallowed   she   risked   slicing   her   own   neck.

               they   hadn’t   profiled   a   partner…      and   if   they   had   just   waited   for   the   team   like   they   should   have,   this   would   never   have   happened.

               icy   blues   meet   alyssa’s   greens,   her   chest   heaving   as   the   mans   grip   on   her   tightens.      alyssa   could   take   the   shot…      but   carol   was   too   close   to   the   line   of   fire.      the   blonde   would   never   risk   it,   carol   knew   that,   and   apparently   so   did   their   second   unsub.      a   harsh   drop   it   was   spoken   into   the   quiet,   and   carol   felt   deflated   as   aly   obeys   the   order.      they   were   too   important   to   each   other,   neither   would   risk   taking   him   on   for   fear   it   would   cost   the   others   life.

               it’s   mean,   she   knows   she’s   being   mean.      the   same   thing   she’d   nudged   aaron   for   she   was   doing   right   now.      judging   reid   on   his   new   haircut.      it   wasn’t   the   worst   he   could’ve   done,   but   it   just…      the   way   it’s   styled   right   now   didn’t   seem   to   be   doing   any   favors   for   him.      alyssa   clearly   disagreed   with   that   statement   given   how   she   was   ogling   him.      maybe   they   just   needed   to   get   used   to   it.      it   was   a   drastic   change   from   the   long   hair   he   had   before.

' do you think hotch would allow me to go back to work early ? '