When the Worst Happens

This latest case was a mess. Rossi, though a brand-new addition to the current team, could tell with just one brief look around how everyone was on edge. It had always been like that when the crime they were investigating involved children as victims; that hadn't changed from the time he and his oldest friend, Jason Gideon, had been the only two people within the FBI forming the section now called BAU.

The strict but nonetheless caring unit chief, Aaron Hotchner (in Rossi's memory previously a green, enthusiastic newbie, now a tired and determined accomplished leader) was bearing an even deeper frown on his otherwise handsome face than normally as he strolled down the street with his team in tow towards the local police station of Kansas City to go through the files again. Something wasn't adding up in their profile and they had decided to go back to the roots and begin anew from there to find the fault.

Derek Morgan, a man with a no-nonsense attitude towards unsuspecting doors and anyone threatening his team (also known as his family) was quietly chatting away with Garcia.

The multicolored computer analyst (now wearing pink high-heels that made it quite difficult for her to keep up with the hurrying team leader and caused her to depend from time to time on her 'chocolate thunder' for help) had been dragged along with them on the ride, seeing that her expertise was needed on field – at least, according to Hotch. Rossi still wasn't sure about her, but kept his opinion to himself, acknowledging the fact that making calls like that wasn't in his job description anymore. Anyway, those two together were something to see; at normal times (meaning: when the entire team wasn't about to explode of nerves) it was even a little entertaining to listen to their constant bantering and uniquely worded phone calls. Rossi was sure these conversations sometimes bordered on the definition of sexual harassment and was curious about what the HR department of the FBI would say if they knew about them behaving that way.

JJ, the media liaison ('we didn't use to have a media liaison in my time for sure and we still somehow managed to get by!') and Emily Prentiss were talking among themselves as well, probably about some 'girls only' topic Rossi didn't want to know about and wouldn't understand a word of anyway. Not that he had anything against the women per se: apart from them both being quite easy on the eyes, they also had brains, courage and skills.

Then there was their youngest and strangest one: Doctor Spencer Reid. Never forget the 'doctor' part because then Hotch would take off your head! At first, the seasoned profiler had thought he'd hate the annoying snotty kid with his mindless rambling and continuous spouting of useless facts. Really, what had Jason been thinking bringing a child like that onto the team!? A boy was still only 21 for God's sake and had been on the team for over a good year now! How was that even possible!? That couldn't have happened before, he was absolutely sure of that: when he was young they all had to climb the ranks and nobody was catapulted over other people's heads just because they happened to have a bit higher than average IQ. A walking encyclopedia, nothing more; nowadays they had computers for that. What did it matter in the field anyway? Well, a lot, as it had turned out since then…

Doctor Spencer Reid had very quickly changed Rossi's first impression on him, even though it wasn't easy to admit, since it so rarely happened that the older man was this wrong about something. The boy had proven his worth on the team and had become… well, if not a good friend but something akin a protégé to him during the last weeks. Now, Rossi could see what Jason Gideon had: the incredible potential and the constant thriving to grow and improve. He had promised himself (and silently, his absent oldest friend as well) to look out for the young man and make sure he didn't get himself killed before he could become the greatest profiler ever he no doubt could be someday. And a real, present danger it was! Rossi had heard the story about the young man's kidnapping and subsequent torture. Also, how just a few months into his new career he'd walked onto a train and got himself captured by a lunatic madman threatening to kill all the hostages. Or his first successful shooting being into the middle of an UnSub's forehead after being repeatedly kicked by his unit chief as a distraction… No, that wouldn't do. The child was too precious to be wasted so early on. Or ever. Luckily, all the others seemed to agree and it looked like everyone had made it their personal mission to save the boy even from himself – and Rossi didn't need to be persuaded anymore to join the party.

"What are you thinking, Kiddo?" – He asked, having caught up to the young man who was so deeply in thought that he had needed Rossi to steer him away from a pole that had come his way. Not that the boy had noticed it. – "I can particularly hear your brain working a mile a minute."

The youngest BAU member turned to him confusedly as if only now realizing he wasn't alone on the street.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Well. I'm just thinking about the case…"

"Care to share your thoughts?" – The older man prodded gently. He knew by now that the boy would talk when he was ready and not a minute sooner. But then he wouldn't shut up until he had everything off his chest and more than likely solved the case with his ideas. That was simply the way he worked; it certainly wasn't conventional. But what was about the child!?

"I think we might have more than one UnSub. And at least one of them is female. Most probably two males and one female, in my opinion. One male and the female are sibling and the other male is the boyfriend."

"What makes you say that?" – They hadn't profiled that at all. Up until now, they had been looking for a white male, mid-thirties, well-educated and highly intelligent (though nothing like their very own genius, obviously). Never mind they all had realized by now the profile was inaccurate – hence their stroll to the police station at this very moment – but could they have been so wrong!?

"It's because-" – But Rossi never learnt the reason, and what happened next would haunt his worst nightmares for years to come. He'd blame himself forever, thinking if he hadn't 'woken' the boy from his daydreams with questioning him, he hadn't been aware enough to realize what was going on just across the street from them and hadn't reacted the way he had.

One second the boy was walking right next to him behind the other team members, the next second he was running madly and navigating between honking cars towards the other side where a toddler of about two and a half years had just dropped her mother's hand and run out onto the road, right now standing frozen in spot, right in the path of a racing truck that had absolutely no chance whatsoever of stopping in time to avoid hitting the baby.

Rossi saw it as if in slow motion: the boy miraculously managed to avoid all the cars and ignored the angry shouts of the enraged drivers. He reached the toddler just in time to none-so-gently push her out of the way. He himself wasn't so lucky though: there was a loud 'thud' and the horrifying sight of his thin, lanky figure being hit by the truck then disappearing under it in the next second. He baby was crying loudly in fright and her mother, previously transfixed and stock-still with shock, now dashed towards her to check for injuries. People were screaming and the BAU members ran frantically to the now halting vehicle and their 'little brother' lying deathly still behind it on the hard and cold road.

"Somebody call 911!" – Shouted Hotch the unnecessary instruction; Morgan was already dialing before he could finish the sentence. – "Reid! REID!"

They reached the terrible scene and saw… blood. Lots of it. All of them coming from Reid – the child was thankfully unharmed, though understandably shaken and a bit bruised from being shoved out of the way and falling on the asphalt. Her mother was crying as well, still not completely coherent.

None of them dared touch the bleeding and broken young man, afraid of causing even more damage by moving him even an inch. They tried to talk to him instead and waited for a reaction – which never came.

Morgan stepped up to them gravely.

"The ambulance is on its way. How is he…?"

"I don't know, he won't respond… I can't see if he's even breathing!" – Answered Hotch, clearly upset to the point where he couldn't think straight anymore. – "I don't know if he's alive… Somebody help!"

JJ and Garcia were sobbing, and Emily wasn't much better than them. She was trying to keep the two young women away from their dead/dying/unconscious friend, not wanting any of them to have this sight etched into their memories forever.

Rossi stood perplexed, staring at the bloody heap of a boy he had become to think of as his protégé in just the brief time he'd been on the team after Gideon's departure. Gideon... the man would be devastated if they lost the child! No, he couldn't think like that… This was Reid; he'd be fine. He was always fine. Right?

It seemed like an eternity had passed until they finally heard the sirens of the approaching ambulance. Soon, three EMTs jumped out with one of them heading right to the still wailing child and her shaking mother and two hurrying to check the young man over, looking for any signs of life.

After about half a minute, one of them explained to the anxiously waiting team:

"He's alive but just barely. We need to get him to surgery immediately but we'll have to be very careful with moving him to the stretcher."

"How old is he?" – Asked the other medic, carefully feeling for broken ribs and possible injuries to the spine.

At first, nobody seemed to be able to answer him but then Rossi cleared his throat and said:

"He's 21 and an FBI agent. He's name is Doctor Spencer Reid. Please, you have to help him!"

If the paramedic was surprised upon hearing the young man's age and accomplishments, he didn't show any signs of it. Instead, he assured the team they'd do their best and continued working on the injured young man.

None of the BAU team could later account for the time between the horrific accident and then finding themselves in front of the closed doors of the surgery where the doctors were trying their hardest to keep their beloved boy genius alive. No one knew what the future held for them.