Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or Fringe.
Author's Note: I was going to write this whole story before posting it, but that didn't happen. What I am going to do, though, is handwrite each chapter before I post it, so updates won't be too hasty, though I'll try not to keep you all waiting too long. And I know I'm working on a bunch of different stories right now, but I can't help the ideas that pop into my head. This'll be taking place post-'100' for Criminal Minds, of course, while JJ is still on the team. And, it'll be a bit AU for Fringe- while everything is still good between Peter and Walter, before he knows he's from the alternate universe, and there's still the romantic tension between him and Olivia. Hope you guys like it. The case might not seem like much of a Fringe case at first, but don't worry, it'll get better.
'Foreign Invaders'
Chapter One.
It was a cold day in Boston- the kind you'd rather spend wrapped up in a blanket beside a roaring fire, sipping hot chocolate, rather than trudging through thick, frosted foliage. But there the Fringe division was, standing in the midst of a crime scene square in the middle of a small bit of forest nearby a park that was normally rather crowded on warmer days.
Olivia Dunham, swathed in a navy blue windbreaker emblazoned with the gold initials 'F-B-I' stood with her hands shoved deep in her pockets. Having grown up in Jacksonville, Florida hadn't exactly aided her in building up a tolerance to the much-cooler weather of Massachusetts. But she'd lived in Boston long enough that she'd learn to deal with it. At her feet lay a corpse; a white male in his early thirties, shrouded from head-to-toe in a white sheet. Patrol officers and federal agents milled about, collecting evidence and snapping pictures of the scene. The sounds of the bustling city drifted through the trees, despite the fact that it was barely six in the morning. The call she'd received just an hour ago, courtesy of Agent Broyles, certainly had not be a welcomed one.
Behind her, there was the sound of scuffling footsteps, and soon both Bishops appeared at her side. Peter was on her left, bundled in a gray wool coat, with Walter on her right, tugging at the collar of his own winter jacket. It was lucky for them that no snow had fallen as of yet; it would've made this crime scene much worse than it already was.
" 'Morning, Liv," Peter greeted her, shooting a grin her way. Walter, having seemingly forgotten his formalities, had already peeled back the sheet and uncovered the corpse. "Another body, I see?"
She nodded, a frown tugging at the corners of her lips. "This is getting ridiculous. A third body, and yet we haven't made any progress with this case."
Walter whistled, beckoning to the two of them with one raised finger. "Look here, both of you." The victim was dressed in the same white scrubs as the other two had been, though Walter was focused on something else entirely. A second index finger directed their gaze to the crook of the victim's arm. It had bruised slightly; turning the skin to a light purplish-pink, and small, round depressions were evident in the flesh.
"Track marks," surmised Peter, sounding bored.
"That's right son," said Walter with a tilt of his head. Olivia knelt down beside the older man.
"So, this guy's been on experimented on just like the others."
"It seems so. I'll need this body taken back to my lab. I'll do some tests; hopefully we can find out what was put into his body. Perhaps it'll give us some insight into this case." He sounded optimistic, but Peter simply shrugged, turning round on his heel, dry leaves crunching under his boot.
"I don't think we'll be able to find out any more than we already have." And yet, despite his cynicism, Olivia's lips quirked upward, as if with a sudden epiphany, and he asked, "What is it?"
She turned to him, her smile growing wider. "I know who we can turn to for some help."
SSAIC Aaron Hotchner sat at his desk, a rare look of incredulity plastered on his normally impassive mug. "JJ, I don't know. We've never dealt with a case like this before. I don't even know much about the division."
The media liaison was seated opposite him, his hands folded on top of a stack of manila folders. "The Fringe division is a multi-agency task force- Agent Olivia Dunham is a special agent on the team, and it's headed by Homeland Security Agent Phillip Broyles." He still looked doubtful. "Well, if you need more incentive, I know who can give you it." At his quizzical expression, she added, "Agent Dunham is here, with a colleague."
"A colleague?" JJ paused, flipping through one of the folders underneath her hands.
"Peter Bishop. He's a civilian consultant. They're both here. Do you want to speak to them?"
He nodded. "I'd like that."JJ scurried out of the room, and he laced his fingers together, his brows furrowing in thought. This was certainly one of the strangest cases his team had been presented with; more so, even, than the cannibal, or that dreadful Canadian ordeal at the pig farm. He hadn't heard much about the Fringe division, but he did know that the unit had become the butt of many jokes inside the bureau. Because their cases were so clandestine, no one really knew what went on, and that brought on a lot of suspicion and disbelief. But, Hotch did know that the bureau wouldn't fuss with the upkeep of a unit that did nothing. They must've been doing something right, then.
JJ returned, this time with the two others behind her. The skinny blonde with the serious face he knew had to be Agent Dunham. The other, a slightly stocky, thirtyish year old man, was presumably Peter Bishop. Hotch got to his feet, stretching out a hand to shake both of theirs. Olivia had a surprisingly strong grip.
"Agent Dunham," he said, a smile ghosting his features, if only for the sake of appearing welcoming. "It's nice to meet you."
"Same to you, Agent Hotchner," she replied, her voice even. She pointed with her thumb towards her companion. "This is Peter Bishop, a civilian consultant for the division."
"So I've heard. Nice to meet you, Mr. Bishop." Hotch straightened up, clasping his hands in front of his body. "Now, Agent Jareau has given me some details of the case. But what I need to know Is this: how can the BAU help?"
Olivia's lips pressed together into a thin line before she spoke. "We can handle the science of it all. What we need is for your team to help us find out who's doing this. A profile could really help us in finding this guy." She smiled tightly. "We're at a dead end here. We're a bit desperate, to be honest."
Hotch plucked the file that JJ had given him from his desk before turning to the liaison. "Gather the team in the conference room. We have a case."
Peter and Olivia shared a brief flash of excitement.
It was clear as soon as the two of them stepped into the BAU's conference room just how professional this all seemed. They worked out of the high tech Academy, while the Fringe division was based in the bowels of Harvard University, with a cow and a near-senile, ex-psychiatric ward patient. But, then again, in comparison to the BAU, the Fringe division was still in its infancy The team was more polished as well; the traditional, suit-clad G-man as their Unit Chief, and JJ, the tiny, yet tenacious blonde that they now knew to be the media liaison. Surrounding the conference table were mostly unfamiliar faces, save for that of the exalted David Rossi. They were introduced to the rest of them; the exotic, raven-haired beauty that was Emily Prentiss, tough guy Derek Morgan, and the awkward, shaggy-haired Dr. Spencer Reid. Once the introductions were finished, Hotch started in.
"Agent Dunham with the Fringe division has requested our help with a case." He glanced over to the two, and Olivia quickly opened her mouth to continue,
"We're dealing with victims of various ages, genders, and races; the only thing they have in common is that they all live in Boston. They were kidnapped from the city by an unknown person, or persons. We've done autopsies; the victims had been pumped full of various drugs, though we're not sure of a reason why yet. We're on our third victim, though there are quite a few missing persons cases in the city, and we don't know how many people are being held at one time. We think they're the subjects of experimentation, though there were also indications of physical assault. We're on our third victim, though there are quite a few missing persons cases in the city, and we don't know how many people are being held at one time.""
"Hm, that's strange," murmured Reid, resting his chin on the tips of his fingers, staring off into space. Peter cocked his head to the side, his brows coming together as he said,
"We specialize in the strange. This is nothing new; it's actually mundane compared to some of the things we've seen."
"No, no. That's not what I was talking about."
"Well, spit it out then, kid," prompted Morgan, irritation permeating his tone.
"You would think that UNSUBs performing experimentation would be solely mission-based, and yet, there appears to be some aspects of sadism as well."
JJ loaded the case files into her arms. "Well, it looks like there's no time to waste them, huh? We'd better get to work."
Hotch nodded his assent. "Wheels up in twenty."
Author's Note: More of a teaser than a real chapter- don't worry, the rest will be longer. What do you think so far?