Disclaimer:

I do not in any way own Criminal Minds or the characters in it.

I do, however, own the plot of this case and Mattie since I wrote it on a whim. ^-^'

I do not own the credit of the story Mattie tells Reid, as well.

Author's Note:

I'm sorry if the characters seem OOC D: I tried my hardest, and please forgive possible errors, it's my first Fanfic. Enjoy and leave reviews if you want more chapters..xD Update: I edited a few specific parts thanks to some reviews.

Beginning

[bee-gin-ing] n.

The starting point, the source of origin.

As she stood in front of the building, she wondered if she had approached it a few years back would she would be as willing as she is now?

Given the circumstances, she figured saving lives and throwing bastards in jail would be something to be proud of as she grew older.

And she needed something to be proud of in her life.

Her dark hair shone in the light as she cautiously strode to the building. It was choppy and midlength. She had cut it off with kitchen scissors herself because it had been getting in the way. She really didn't care about her appearance, and it showed in the way she dressed. Nevertheless, she was stunning. Her stormy grey eyes inspected her surroundings warily. It was around midnight. Sleep never came easy to her anyways. Besides, she was determined on speaking with Aaron.

She stepped in the silver elevator and winced at the ridiculous music playing softly. Before the doors closed, a young, blonde woman stepped in, grasping files in her tan arms. Smiling apologetically, she nodded at the dark haired girl. The dark haired girl looked at her ID. Jennifer Jareau. Jennifer tilted her head at the girl. "Uhm, are you lost…?"

The other girl shook her head. "No, actually, I'm here to see Aar—Agent Hotchner." Jennifer's blue eyes looked both curious and surprised. "Oh…I'll lead you to him then. This is our floor." The girl nodded gratefully and followed Jennifer.

Bet she thinks I'm his daughter. Analyzing her tensed jaw and reassuring smile at some of the members still at the office, the girl quietly followed behind like a shadow. An African American man with smooth tan skin locked eyes with the dark haired girl. She gave a small nod, then looked down awkwardly, stuffing her hands in her trenchcoat pockets. Accidentally, she bumped into a tall, young man, most probably in his mid-twenties. "Sorry," she mumbled, averting eye contact. She wasn't at ease here.

Jennifer opened the door for the girl. "Hotch…there's someone here to see you."

Matilda stepped in. Once Jennifer shut the door, she grinned. "Hey, Uncle Aaron."

"JJ." Morgan stepped closer to JJ as she walked towards them. "Who was that?"

JJ glanced back, seeing the shadows of Hotch and the girl across each other behind office shades. "No clue."

Reid stuffed papers into his satchel. "Well, she certainly had her guard up." He lingered on a few files. "Any new cases for tomorrow, JJ?"

She nodded grimly. "Yeah…we got one."

"Wait…" Reid's brow was furrowed, looking up at the window in Hotch's office. "Wasn't she…? Yeah..that girl in Maryland. She was involved in a case. A psychopath was raiding houses and shooting everyone as a result of severe psychotic episodes. She was the victim's girlfriend."

JJ thought for a moment, then seemed to remember. "What's she doing here?"

Morgan sighed. "Look, the last thing we need is more things to worry about than cases. I don't know about you all, but I'm tired. Good night." With that said, he waved and strode away, scratching his neck.

"You know you aren't ready for this kind of career yet, Mattie."

"Try me. I've been to school. I've worked my ass off for this job. You know I have, Uncle. Please." She leaned over his desk, biting her lip anxiously.

Hotch eyed her tiredly. "Did you talk to—"

"Yes, I talked to Strauss. I just need to get the paperwork done, is all." She smiled, a little bitterly. She hated paperwork. She really did.

"…Sean would think I should go for it…"

He sighed, burying his face in his hands at the mention of his brother. "I know…you really are similar to your father, Matt. At least," He smiled a little, lifting his head to look at his niece, "on the inside. On the outside, you're the spitting image of your mother."

Mattie averted her eyes and took a sudden interest in her dirty boots.

Hotch paused. "I'll give you a chance. And not because I'm your uncle. One chance, Mattie." Hotch stared at her sternly, but his eyes were kind. He loved his niece. She was the only thing left that made him smile. Putting her as an agent in such a dangerous job was something he dreaded. But her heart was set and there was nothing he could do.

Mattie smiled vigorously, trying to hold in her joy. "You won't regret it. I'll be the best damn twenty year old profiler you've ever seen." She burst out the doors happily.

The only twenty year old profiler I've ever seen, the unit chief thought, staring after his niece, bemused.

Deep breaths, Mattie. They're nice people. Not those judgmental fucks in high school.

"Alright, before we continue with this case, there's a new member of the team I'd like to introduce."

Mattie stood there, smiling awkwardly, hands inside her sleeves. All the unit members' eyes were on at her. "I'm Mattie. Mattie Jones. I'm a new Special Agent. Just recently graduated with PhDs in psychology and philosophy, with doctorates in engineering and medicine, as well as chemistry. And I have a B.A. in English literature…" She laughed nervously. How she despised introductions. What was this, high school? She could almost hear jeers and snickers from her homeroom bullies. With a slight shudder, she turned her attention back to the team.

"I…I managed to get in touch with my uncle after my…" She trailed off and closed her eyes for a second. Why am I saying this? She continued anyways. "After there was a case that involved me. I don't know if any of you remember me." Who wouldn't remember that pestering, grieving monster that wouldn't leave them alone after hearing her lover died?

She hoped they didn't.

"How could we not?"

Shit.

"You really put up a fight, demanding to know if the case had any suspects." Morgan's tone was serious, but he had a smirk on his smooth mocha brown face. Mattie glanced at Morgan, smiling apologetically. "Sorry about that…I must've been a real pain."

"Not really." Reid smiled at her, a little uncomfortable. "I mean, it happens. It's natural in the stages of grief to feel angry at yourself or even guilty, even though you really couldn't have done anything to stop it."

Mattie pressed her lips together tightly and glanced down, gritting her teeth slightly. Yes, I could have. "I suppose."

Clearing her throat, a lovely dark-haired woman with a pointed nose stood up and extended a hand. Her smile was warm. Instantly, Mattie was reminded of her mother and she blinked a few times, trying to clear her head. "Anyway, it's a pleasure to meet you, Mattie. I'm SSA Emily Prentiss." The woman, Emily, continued to smile.

Next was JJ, Jennifer Jareau, the media specialist she had met in the elevator. Then Reid, the man she had bumped into. Morgan, a seemingly playful and assertive man. Mattie couldn't help but smile a little when he winked at her. And Rossi, the senior special agent who struck her as strangely familiar.

They were all polite and genuinely pleased to have her on their team. They seemed to be curious about her age. "Well, I was a bit of a nerd…actually, a total nerd. I graduated early. Got my doctorates and worked on my PhD's. And I enrolled in the FBI Academy."

Everyone nodded. She desperately wanted to get on with the case JJ had in her hand, anything but this incredibly awkward introduction, but the team was much too interested in the strange girl that looked like she belonged in the Matrix movie. Twenty year old Mattie. She could pass for a seventeen year old if she tried hard enough.

Suddenly, an eccentric looking woman trotted into the room, her bright pink heels making clicking sounds on the floor. "Sorry I'm late, sorry I'm late!" Her hair was up in a neat bun, and her bright eyes behind her glasses were casted down. She sat down on the chair next to Morgan and Prentiss, looking at the screen of her laptop.

Mattie tilted her head, about to say something before she was cut off.

"Alright guys, what's the—"

Morgan cleared his throat, grinning. "Er, baby girl?"

"Yes, my precious sugar plum?" She looked up and then noticed Mattie, who was trying to figure out what was with the pet names. "Oh! I didn't realize…Gah, I'm terribly sorry!" The newbie waved a hand, smiling dismissively. "No worries, I tend to not get noticed often."

"Heh, I assume you're not the type to get follow the uniform either, huh?" Garcia smiled motioning at Mattie's black skinny jeans, combat boots, and trenchcoat. She had loosely thrown on an old, red tie belonging to Sean. She shrugged, stuffing her hands in her pockets. "Nah, I've never been a fan of suits." Everyone chuckled lightly and Reid managed a small smile.

A thought hit her. Her eyes widened and she gasped, causing everyone to frown with slight concern. "Y-you're David Rossi!" She smiled gleefully at the senior agent wearing old jeans, clapping her hands together. "Oh, I love your books! Do you mind if—"

"Mattie."

She jerked away from Rossi, who was grinning a little, apparently surprised she was a fan. "Whoops." She smiled sheppishly. "Sorry." Mattie shuffled back to Hotch's side. Damn. Had she messed up? Surely her uncle was going to have second thoughts. Mattie waited to hear Hotch's stern command to sit this case off because she wasn't ready. "I want you all to make her feel at home. Alright?"

Mattie looked up, surprised.

They nodded at her, friendly smiles everywhere. Dr. Spencer Reid had his head cocked and appeared thoughtful. What, is he profiling me? Mattie frowned ever so slightly. The fact that she was being profiled on her first say did not sit well with her. But apparently, he was not the only genius anymore. Mattie smiled to herself. So be it. She liked competition. A battle of the know-it-alls. Of course, she had to make sure he was a worthy opponent, first.

"Where is he?" Mattie yelled at the officers fiercely. "I'm his fucking girlfriend! Where is Chase Nicholls?" She was clearly distraught. The officers said something that was supposed to sound soothing, but she only got angrier. "What the hell is going on?"

Reid and Morgan approached her. They absolutely hated being the bearers of bad news. It didn't help that this girl seemed like the type to shoot the messenger. Reid hoped that statement would remain hypothetical. "Miss, you need to come with us." Morgan's tone was soft. She looked at them, glaring. Reid saw something else in her eyes.

Fear?

"Where's Chase?"

Reid and Morgan exchanged glances and directed her to a glass room. "Charles Nicholls has been murdered."

Her face slowly paled. She was deathly white before, now she looked gray. She took the news in with a stoic face even thought her quivering lip was obvious to the agents. The girl immediately ran away, faster than a speeding bullet. Morgan turned to leave, frowning solemnly, but Reid watched her for a little while longer and saw her angrily dial a number into her cell phone outside. She was crying.

The girl was back the next day, but avoiding the subject of her lover. She was interrogated and instructed to leave, however it didn't constrain her demands to know who had killed Charles "Chase" Nicholls.

Reid had watched her from a distance as his eyes flickered to the girl then back at the map. In a way, she resembled his old high school crush. Except something about this girl seemed off. Even though she'd been interrogated and nothing seemed suspicious about her relationship with Chase, the young agent had the feeling she was hiding something.

"Dr. Reid?"

Someone was shaking him. Reid awoke, blinking. They were on the jet. He instantly knew it was dawn, before looking out the window. Mattie smiled at him, her dark grey eyes piercing into his own hazel ones. "Hey."

Reid straightened, yawning a little. "Have we landed?"

"Not yet." The girl blinked. "Sorry if I interrupted a dream…but, ah, I've been meaning to ask you something."

"Go ahead." He had to admit, he was a bit uneasy. He wasn't used to interacting with females around his age. Especially the pretty ones.

Did I just call her pretty? No, no, Spencer. Get a grip. He shook his head slightly and looked at Mattie. "Er, sorry, I was thinking. Mind repeating the question?" Mattie raised an eyebrow and repeated, "Were you a prodigy, too? Is that why you're the second youngest?" Reid cracked a smile. She called him a prodigy. Not a geek, or nerd. "Yeah, actually, I graduated from Las Vegas high school at age 12."

"Las Vegas, huh?" The new agent looked surprised. "High school must've seriously sucked for you." When he nodded, Mattie grinned softly. "It's good to know I'm not alone." Reid inspected her face. She looked relieved. Well, he was, too. He thought she would have been a harsher, more competitive colleague. Reid smiled back a bit. Maybe she was a bit competitive, but in a playful manner, he assumed.

Reid was struck with a small epiphany. She had come to him because she thought she could relate to him, hadn't she? He looked at the others. They were still asleep, except for Hotch who was preparing to wake up the members of the team to start reviewing the files. Maybe she chose him out of all of them to befriend first. He smiled to himself. She seemed nice enough. It was good to feel wanted.

"I got bullied often, though." Mattie continued, smiling awkwardly. "High school was a drag. I only made one or two real friends. The rest were teachers." She scrunched up her nose. "God, I was a total dork. I had a different sense of fashion, I stuck to textbooks, and basically alienated everyone. Plus, I made everyone look ridiculously dumb. And I think feeling inferior wasn't really something the big boys enjoy. As for the renowned girls, I think my sense of style was enough reason for them to hate me and call me a vampire freak." Mattie seemed to realize she was blabbering now. She was treading on dangerous territory. Her dangerous territory. Her history was something not up for discussion. "Oops. Sorry, bothering you, am I not?"

"Not at all." Reid smiled carefully, somewhat bemused at the young agent. "But, ah, because the obsession with vampires usually cause teenage girls to wear heavy make up and dress in idolization to the strange, blood-sucking creatures. Personally, I don't understand our generation's obsession with vampires." She dresses in black to emphasize her trying to hide from the world. To not be noticed. She doesn't like attention.

"Ah." Mattie grinned. "I think it's because the idea of attractive, dark, seductive creatures whose bite turns you into one of the elite with eternal youth is rather fascinating to humanity. Specifically, teenage girls."

As she continued to ramble on, Reid decided he liked the fact she could talk to cover for his awkward silences. Like she was a natural storyteller. Before he could stop himself, he blurted out, "Mind telling me a story?"

He winced, waiting for a cold laugh and the words, "Stories? What are you, eleven?"

"Uh, sure, I guess." Mattie laughed quietly at his surprised face. "What? I remember one I read once. It's kind of creepy. Still wanna hear it?"

Reid nodded curiously. "Go on." He scooted over on the beige couch he was sleeping on to make room for the girl, but she took a seat on the floor in front of him, legs crossed. Strange girl.

"A man went to a hotel and walked up to the front desk to check in. The woman at the desk gave him his key and told him that on the way to his room, there was a door with no number that was locked and no one was allowed in there. Especially no one should look inside the room, under any circumstances. So he followed the instructions of the woman at the front desk, going straight to his room, and going to bed. The next night his curiosity would not leave him alone about the room with no number on the door. He walked down the hall to the door and tried the handle. Sure enough it was locked. He bent down and looked through the wide keyhole. Cold air passed through it, chilling his eye.

"What he saw was a hotel bedroom, like his, and in the corner was a woman whose skin was completely white. She was leaning her head against the wall, facing away from the door. He stared in confusion for a while. He almost knocked on the door, out of curiosity, but decided not to. He crept away from the door and walked back to his room. The next day, he returned to the door and looked through the wide keyhole. This time, all he saw was redness. He couldn't make anything out besides a distinct red color, unmoving. Perhaps the inhabitants of the room knew he was spying the night before, and had blocked the keyhole with something red.

At this point he decided to consult the woman at the front desk for more information. She sighed and said, 'Did you look through the keyhole?' The man told her that he had and she said, 'Well, I might as well tell you the story. A long time ago, a man murdered his wife in that room, and her ghost haunts it. But these people were not ordinary. They were white all over, except for their eyes, which were red.'"

Reid grinned widely. "Impressive. That was slightly spooky."

"Not as spooky was Edgar Allan Poe's stories," Mattie told him, remembering The Tell-Tale Heart.

"I have to agree. Where did you read yours, though?"

Mattie's smile faded. "I…I don't remember." She then pretended to have the urge to use the bathroom and left Reid sitting there, wondering what he said wrong.

"A badly burned body of a child was found in a ditch in a suburban area near Houston. Forensics said the ten year old girl, Sara Logan, was sexually assaulted. They were only able to identify her and deduce that there were bruises on her, indicating signs of struggling, as well as open wounds."

Mattie cocked her head to the side. "Open wounds? That doesn't quite fit the regular child predator."

"She's right. What type of blade?" Morgan looked up at Hotch, clearly disturbed at another child rape case. "The wounds were sloppy and showed bruises surrounding, not clean cuts like knives would make, so—"

"Scissors." Mattie and Reid exchanged glances. Mattie smiled with a hint of competitiveness in her stunning eyes.

Emily rolled her eyes slightly. "Two geniuses are going to be a challenge, you guys. Start placing bets!"

"Actually, the probability of bets—" began Mattie, then caught a look from Hotch. "I'll shut up." Some of the agents chuckled quietly and they returned to the case.

"The child's family is extremely well-known, so there will be media coverage," JJ stated before answering a call from her silver cell phone. Mattie looked at the picture deeply in thought. "Any witnesses?" Prentiss asked Hotch.

"None."

"Then…there have been more victims." Reid proclaimed whilst looking at the pictures of the girl's body grimly. Morgan grabbed his phone. "I'll call Garcia." Hotch nodded. "Good. We land in less than ten. Morgan, you and Mattie will go to the parents, who haven't been attending their work since they've been informed." He handed Mattie an address. "Reid, you and Prentiss will go to the crime scene. Rossi and I will meet with the Houston police. I want you all back at the police department by noon."

Mattie felt some excitement, as sick as it sounded. Her first case. Her chance to prove herself. Reid patted her shoulder. "You look excited."

"Damn...what gave it away? My expression?"

"The way you looked at the case file." He sounded a little strained. Mattie looked at him. "Headache?"

"Yeah...I get them sometimes."

Mattie slipped on her trenchcoat. She knew by the tone of his voice he got them more often, but he was unwilling to share that. "The ancient Greeks and Romans used peppermint tea to treat their headaches. They also drank infusions made from camomile, rosemary and lavender in an effort to relieve headaches," she blurted out, with a small apologetic smile.

There was a moment of silence before Morgan whistled behind her. "Sorry Reid, I might have to start placing my bets on her now." Mattie's face flushed in embarrassment. Then she smiled brilliantly. "So, do we actually own this jet?"

Garcia was typing hurriedly into her laptop, looking for any child murder cases in the area that could be the work of the same unsub. Her bright pink phone rang. "This is Garcia, Oracle of all Knowledge, speak and be heard," she sang.

"Hey, it's Reid. I was wondering if you'd also pull up some information on the family. See if there's anything suspicious."

Garcia smiled. "Sure thing, my love."

"Thanks, I'll call again later, alright?"

"Wait! Before you go, I've been wondering…what do you think of the new girl?" Garcia bit her pencil, thinking about the newcomer. She had to admit, even if she was dressed like a punk slash gothic girl and wore no make up, Mattie was naturally pretty. The spunky analyst tilted her head, wondering if Derek could possibly be interested in her.

She dismissed the thought quickly. Derek? Into girls like Mattie? Garcia laughed at the thought. Not that she had anything against Mattie's style, of course, but the idea of her man and Mattie just made her giggle.

Reid was quiet. "She's…interesting. She should adapt quickly." He tried to keep his voice calm, but at the mention of Mattie, he couldn't help but feel like he'd finally met someone who could cure him of his loneliness. Like Gideon had. She was easy to talk to and kind, but it was obvious she had her own secrets and she was none too willing to start giving them away any time soon.

"Don't tell me…you like her don't you?" Garcia giggled like a little girl. Reid was taken aback. "No! When did I say that?"

"Ah, whatever, you two would look adorable nonetheless, darling." She hung up, a smug look on her face. Garcia could imagine him frowning slightly in confusion over the phone. She enjoyed teasing him about the opposite gender. Pondering the thought of Reid liking an actual girl for a minute, Garcia smirked and continued browsing through files, like the goddess of computers she was.

"Remember, the loss of a child is a huge impact on parents like these."

"Because they might be overwhelmed with the guilt that they haven't been present in much of this girl's life?"

"Precisely. So take it easy, alright? Act sympathetic and soothing. Trust your gut. You're a girl after all. You specialize in these things." The agent smirked playfully at her, yet hoping she would react lightly. There were those unfortunate occurrences when women took his teases seriously. They often resulted in the FBI agent being in some sort of pain.

Mattie's eye twitched a little and a tiny grin spread across her face. "I hope that was a joke, Derek Morgan, because I might be about a second away from making you sterile."

Catching the joking tone in her voice, Morgan's brown eyes widened slightly in mock fear. "Have mercy."

They laughed quietly and walked up to the white mansion, Mattie following like his shadow. She knocked on the door, biting her lip. In less than ten seconds, a puffy-eyed, blonde woman opened the door. She was dressed formally, as if she was ready to go out to a fancy restaurant. But her eyes said otherwise. She had no make up on, probably because the tears would ruin the effort. Mattie smiled softly at the woman. "Hello, Mrs. Logan. I'm Mattie Jones. This is Derek Morgan. We're with the Fbi and we've come to ask you a few things about the murder of your daughter."

Mrs. Logan sniffed, dabbing at her eyes with a black handkerchief. "May we come in?" Morgan sounded gentle, but a little forceful. "O-of course…" She swung the door wide open for the agents to enter. "My husband refuses to leave her room…"

"That's quite alright, ma'am. We can take the questions to Sara's room if that's fine by you." Mattie kept the sympathetic smile plastered on her face. "Okay.." The woman pocketed her handkerchief and led the two agents up the stairs.