The Wizard and the Shapeshifter
A/N If I get a decent amount of reviews for this story that I split into many chapters, I'll start putting my other stories into chapters to make them easier to read
Part One
"Guys! I'm home!" Spencer called.
He was extremely tired, but then he had just finished a 16 hour shift at Murphy's Hospital for magical injuries. He was just 19 years old and he had graduated from a small magical school in the Las Vegas area. You see Spencer Reid was a wizard and so were his 3 brothers and 4 sisters. Luckily, for him, as soon as he had graduated from his small private magical school, with top grades he had been offered an internship at Murphy's Hospital in Virginia. He had accepted, but he had made to stipulation that his brothers and sisters had to finish their education and he had to spend sometime with them as well.
Spencer remembered being amazed when all his brothers and sisters were born, because he knew that his mother had had trouble getting pregnant with him as he was oldest. However, Spencer had learned since then that both William and Diana Reid had wanted more children, so when his mother still hadn't gotten pregnant within three years she had agreed to take a fertility potion and by the time he had been four he'd had a twin sisters. Two years after that he had another set of twin siblings this time both boys and less then a year after that with this time no fertility potion his mother had gotten pregnant while she had been nursing and given him a sister. His mother's last pregnancy had produced another set of twins a boy and a girl and they had been quite a surprised since Spencer knew neither of his parents had been aiming for anymore children, even though his father had a well paying job as an attorney.
Spencer had always known that his mother was a witch and that it was possible that he and his siblings would inherit her talent to do magic while his father was a complete muggle.
His mother Diana who had died when he had been 17 in a car crash had actually been astonished that all her children had inherited her ability to do magic, because thanks to their father being a muggle it was likely that at least some of her children would turn out to be squibs.
His father had been so wrapped in grief that he hadn't been capable of taking care of himself, much less his children so it was just lucky that he was old enough to get legal guardianship of his siblings at least in the wizarding world as 17 was considered grown up.
He, Spencer was the only one that had been at home as he had graduated at the top of his class when his mother had died and he was also the only one to see how his father began to drink himself to death. Spencer had tried to tell his father that he should not drink so much, but he had watched helpless as William Reid had continued to consume a great amount of alcohol until he had finally committed suicide by slitting his wrists.
Luckily, for Spencer this had happened before his siblings had come home from their school in the summer. He had to make all the arrangements for a second funeral in less then a year, but since the Reids weren't exactly poor, as they had millions of Galleons, thanks to their mother, as she had come from a wealthy family. The 30,000,000 Galleons was just her portion of her family's inheritance and once his grandparents had died his mother had inherited everything, because one of her brothers had died of a bad heart days after his birth and her brother Cole when he was just 14.
Spencer had since learned that a lot a wizarding families were against their children marrying a muggle, but the Potters had never been like that. Spencer had learned his family history on his grandfather's knee and the old man had taught him that they had originally come from England many centuries ago and that they likely still had relatives over there.
The reason that their family had come to America over 500 years ago, just five centuries after the founding of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was because their ancestor had been a squib and that was quite an embarrassment back then. His ancestor had wanted to make his own way in the world, without bringing shame to his family, so even though his family had loved him and begged him to stay he had made his decision taking his portion of the Potter inheritance and gone to America.
Even back then the Potter fortune had been quite large, even though his ancestor Archie Potter had had 15 children which was quite common back then in both muggle and wizarding families, muggles because there was so many diseases that would kill their children before they were grown and magical folks because they wanted plenty of children to carry on their family name, well the ones who could afford that many children anyway.
How the Potters had first gotten their wealth had been lost into the mists of history as it had never been written down or if it was either back in England with his distant relatives or turned into dust.
Spencer would love to meet his distant relatives someday, but right now he had other things on his mind.
It was, however, thanks to that wealth, plus the money his father had made as an attorney that had allowed him to take care of his siblings after his parents deaths and continued to pay for their magical education, as since he was the oldest he was the one that could access his parents Gringotts vaults while his siblings could not access their portion of the inheritance until they came of age. Also as the oldest he had inherited his grandparents vault as well and that contained another 5,000,000,000 Galleons so really none of them would have to ever work if they didn't want to, but their mother had always preached that idle hands led to unhappiness and boredom, so it was always better to have a career that they were happy with instead of being idle.
Spencer sighed, as he thought back to the last couple of years since his parents death, and realized that he had been so busy that he really hadn't thought about his parents in quite sometime. Most of his siblings were in school nine months of the year, and even his oldest sisters still had two years to go, while his three of his other siblings had considerably more than that and his youngest twin siblings Hudson and Bronwyn hadn't even started school yet, though they were due to next year. Well, thanks to the fact that they were originally Potters, at least he didn't have to worry about money or where their next meal was coming from, because his starting healer's pay wouldn't have covered all his siblings continuing education.
"Hey Spence, you're home early," his sister Leah said.
"Did you forget I was going to take some time off to spend with all of you before you go back to school?" Spencer asked sister who was four years younger than him along with her twin.
"No, I didn't forget," Leah assured her brother with a smile kissing his cheek. "I was only teasing you."
"So what have you been up to while I've been working?" asked Spencer curiously, "and where are the rest of your siblings?"
"Me? I've been doing a homework assignment for the last couple of hours," Leah explained. "Before that, I went to get my hair and my nails done and I also bought a new outfit because I have a date tonight."
Spencer nodded for this was quite common with his sister since she'd had quite a few boyfriends over the last year. Spencer remembered the argument that had ensured with her when she had wanted to start dating, that he wouldn't allow it until she was at least 15 as he thought that she would be too young to even think about it before then.
"And I have I met your current boyfriend yet?" asked Spencer.
Leah rolled her eyes, but knew that that her brother was only trying to protect her from doing something foolish or getting herself in serious trouble
"Yes, dad," Leah said sarcastically, but with a smile to take the sting out of her words. "Conrad and I have a date."
"Alright then, you know the rules, you must be home by no later than 11," Spencer reminded his sister.
"Don't worry so much brother dear, Conrad and I are only going to the movies and to dinner," Leah told him rolling her eyes again.
"All right then, I'll see when you get home," Spencer told her with a smile, "and of course, I'm going to worry about you, you're my sister and I love you, therefore, I worry about you."
"I love you too," Leah assured her brother giving him a hug, "and just so you know we worry about you to for you are alone for most year you know while we were in school. Well, except for Hudson and Bronwyn, but next year they are due to start as well and then you really will be alone, for nine months of the year."
"I do all right," Spencer said with a shrug not telling his sister how lonely he was, although his job did keep him busy and therefore, distracted. He had never been one to date much and his older siblings that he had been in school with knew this and knew it was mainly due the fact that he was shy when it came to the opposite sex and also his know-it-all attitude and excellent grades didn't help. Also the fact that it didn't look as if he had to study just as hard as anyone else in order to achieve his grades didn't help either and Leah had to admit that that accusation had some validity. What only his family knew was that Spencer only had to read something once in order to remember it and he also read incredibly fast, like 20,000 words a minute, which she knew was a rather unique talent. He had always downplayed his abilities in school as he didn't want to be considered even more of a know-it-all then he already was for he was the only one he knew of that had this very unique ability to read as fast and remember every word.
"I had better go get ready for my date. Conrad will be here pretty soon," Leah said.
"Scat," Spencer told her kissing her on the forehead and shooing her out of the room.
"Just so you know the rest of our family had plans tonight, except for Hudson and Bronwyn."
"Well, of course, they don't have plans they are only ten and they don't even start their magical education until next year, although if it wasn't for the magical babysitting service that there's no way I could work and look after them too."
"Yes, Annabel is great," Leah admitted with a smile. "but I miss Isadora as she taught me, well, all of us really a lot before I was old enough to go to go away for my magical education. She taught me more then mom ever did."
"Well, mom was more of a scholar and although she was decent at magic, she hardly ever used it except to clean and cook," Spencer said, as he remembered.
"Yes, that's true," Leah admitted as she headed back to her room. "I'll see you in the morning big brother, don't bother to wait up for me."
"Of course, I'm going to wait up," Spencer told Leah quite seriously. "I have to make sure you get home safely after all that's my job, as your legal guardian as well as your big brother."
Leah gave her brother a wary grin as she had expected no other response and stuck her tongue out at him before she started to walk upstairs to prepare for her date.
"Now that's certainly mature," Spencer teased her causing Leah to laugh
"You deserved it, big brother," Leah said. "Besides, when have I ever claimed to be mature?"
"Never," Spencer said immediately.
"There you see," Leah said with a grin. "You just answered your own question."
"So I did," Spencer said with a smile, "so I did. Scat, as I believe you said you had a date to get ready for."
"Yes, sir," Leah answered with a mock saute.
"Get out here you brat," Spencer told her the humor clear in his voice
Leah laughed and disappeared upstairs to get ready for her date.
~~~The Wizard and the Shapeshifter~~~
Aaron Hotchner sighed as he completed yet another piece of paperwork. He would never admit it out loud, but he was melancholy and lonely. He and Haley had only been married for a few years before they had both mutually decided that it was for the best if they divorced.
Hotch still didn't know why he had gone along with his mother when she had arranged a marriage for him or why Haley had agreed to it either. His only excuse really was at the time he had still been a young man who had just finished college and that it was tradition in a lot of shapeshifter families for their parents to arrange marriages for their children, as a lot of the older wealthier families didn't believe in finding your True Mate and even if they did it was likely that you would never meet the person that you were meant to be with, so why not arrange marriage for their offspring? Hotch remembered thinking at the time that it was just easier to give into his mother then have her pester him for the next 10 years which Abigail Hotchner would have done and made his life miserable as well as lonely.
Hotch and Haley had mutually decided to give marriage a try, just to get both sets of their parents off their backs, but they had both discovered very quickly that they just weren't very compatible as anything more than casual friends and so less then five years after they had tied the knot both had decided that they wanted to be free to pursue other relationships, so had parted ways, which hadn't made either of their families happy, but that was just too bad as it was their lives and not their parents. Unfortunately, for him though, even though he had dated as frequently as his time allowed he still hadn't found anybody that he just sort of clicked with as a shapeshifter just knew when they had found the one person they were meant to spend the rest of their life with, as it was supposed to feel like a puzzle piece just snapping into place in his or her soul the moment they met. When that happened it was kind of a recognition single and the bond would only be complete once they'd made love for the first time. It didn't even matter if that person was the same-sex or another Shifter or not, what did matter was that the shapeshifter's mate accepted it. It had been known to happen that a Shifter's mate rejected them, but only if they weren't another Shifter themselves and when that happened a lot of times the Shifter in question took his or her own life and if they didn't they were never very happy for however, long they lived after that, which was sometimes only a few months, and other times the full length of their lives.
The ones that only lived a few months at most had been known to let depression overtake them and died from it. Of course, when that happened the Shifter in question usually wasn't very strong-willed and also there were usually other things going on in their lives that caused them to go into a deep depression not just because they had lost their mate, because the person hadn't accepted them or died for some reason.
"Hey, Aaron, you okay?" Rossi asked his friend.
"I'm fine," Hotch told his old friend. "Just trying to complete all this paperwork like usual."
Hotch tried his best to sound normal, but the sharp look that Dave shot him told him that he had not entirely succeeded. Hotch admitted if only to himself a little ruefully that his old friend and mentor David Rossi knew him a little too well, and although his outward appearance at normality would probably have fooled the rest of the team, but Rossi was a different matter entirely.
"No, you're not," Rossi said seeming to read his every expression and body language, quite accurately. "Why don't you meet me at my place and we can talk about it?"
"No, thank you, I'll be fine," Hotch promised his old friend.
"It'll help you to get it off your chest and not keep it all bottled up inside," Rossi pointed out to his friend. "You'll feel better if you talk to someone about what the problem is, although I'm sure I can guess without any trouble."
"I'm fine," Hotch said again, but this time the sent a glare Dave's way who ignored the look entirely.
"I'll get you tell me what the problem is of eventually so you might as well just give in as you know how stubborn I can be, as the Rossis are known for their stubbornness," Rossi told his friend.
Hotch snorted at that for it was true at least in Rossi's case.
"It's nothing that won't work itself out in time, Dave," Hotch told the other man who knew that wasn't really the answer.
Dave studied his old friend for a minute and then the answer of why Aaron was so melancholy struck him like a bolt of lightning.
"I know why you have been so sad and melancholy lately," Rossi announced.
"Oh, and why is that?" asked Hotch knowing that his friend was a very intelligent man and it was very possible that he has hit upon the answer.
The whole team knew that he was a shapeshifter, and so did the FBI and in fact there were many Shifters that worked within the government as well as other jobs and their species was not limited to the United States and in fact there was a percentage of them in most every major city in the world. No one remembered, if they had ever known where Shifters had originally come from, but there were many different kinds. There were wolf Shifters, different types of bear Shifters, various types of cat Shifters, and even kangaroo Shifters, although those types of Shifters were mostly in Australia and Papa New Guinea. The wolf and cat Shifters particularly lions and panthers were the most common, but there were others as well.
He was of course, a wolf Shifter which was one of the most prevalent species at least in the United States and he was also the only Shifter on the team. Most wolf Shifters had very strong personalities and knew how to get what they wanted, although some were also bullies, but that was true of other species including just regular humans which were known as Normals so it wasn't as if Shifters were the only species that had people that forced themselves on others or stole from them or bullied them or any other crime.
"Well, your 30th birthday is just around the corner and I know you're thinking that you'll never find your True Mate."
Rossi was well aware that Shifters were the only species that had what was known as the True Mate. Dave had heard this phenomenon described as a puzzle piece clicking into place in your soul, a part of you that he didn't even know was missing until you found it or at least that was true for most Shifters. Some though refused to marry until they found their True Mate, which meant that they never married in a lot of cases, others married someone that wasn't their True Mate and most of those marriages were happy most of the time just not with a deep sense of satisfaction and connection that a Shifter's True Mate brought. In fact Dave had even heard that a lot at times a Shifter could feel the pull of their one True Mate, especially the older they got, but only if the two of them were in the same city, as the connection didn't work if they were hundreds of miles apart. 30 was a critical time for that rather tenuous connection to strengthen and he knew that his friend was approaching that critical birthday in just a few short weeks. Rossi was sure that his conclusion was the correct one and that his friend's True Mate was in this very city or at least in Washington, since it was close by, because otherwise why would his friend be acting so melancholy?
"I wouldn't be surprised if you're starting to feel a pull, considering you're approaching that critical birthday, which would mean that you're one True Mate is close by," Rossi continued after a moment of thought.
Hotch looked at his old friend for a moment and then revealed, "You're right, I've been feeling this pull for a couple of years now, which is one of the reasons why I haven't gotten into any serious relationships. However, the pull is not coming from anyone here at Quantico, as the connection is much more distant then that and it would also be much stronger if my mate was that close by."
"Well, if you've been feeling the pull for two years now, which has slowly gotten stronger as you've approached your 30th birthday that means that he or she probably just moved into the Virginia or Washington area at that time," Rossi said well aware that a Shifter's mate could be either male of female, although he didn't really approve of same sex relationships, but he also knew that a shifter had no choice in who their mate would be.
"That was my conclusion as well," Hotch admitted. "However, even though I know that my mate is somewhere within a 100 miles, that doesn't make finding them any easier, as that hundred miles covers a lot of territory in every direction. I could search for the next 10 years and I still probably wouldn't run into them as that amount of space has thousands of people or even tens of thousands. The uncertainty of not knowing is driving me crazy, as is having my mate so close with no way to locate them, except by accident."
"It might seem impossible, but I have a feeling that you'll run into your mate when you were meant to," Rossi encouraged his old friend.
"I don't know about that," Hotch said trying not to fiddle with the ballpoint pen in his hand, as he didn't want his old friend to know how afraid he was that he would never meet the person meant for him despite their being within a hundred miles. "After all we are out of town quite a bit and I'm only home for a short stretches of time. When we are home I'm usually here in the office filling out the endless amount of paperwork and when I'm not doing that I'm at home asleep."
Not that I've been sleeping very well lately, Hotch added to himself.
"So, you need to get out more so that you have more of a chance of meeting your mate," Rossi advised. "I've been telling you for years that you work too much anyway and that includes when you were married to Haley. Paperwork or no paperwork you do have a right to a private life and those stuffed shirts upstairs and Strauss be damned, as they can just wait for their damned reports for a change. I know you like to do the paperwork immediately so it doesn't pile up and I can understand that, but it's not going anywhere and it's also neverending as I know you're aware of. I know you have a strong sense of duty, when it comes to your job and there's nothing wrong with that, but all work and no play... or at least time to relax then you'll burn out much faster than if you do take some time for yourself to truly destress."
"You're right," Hotch admitted. "I'm going to go home as soon as my shift is over instead of staying behind to do paperwork. You're also right that I'll have a easier time of meeting my mate if I get out of the office and something I should've done a couple of years ago."
"Good, you'll tell me when you do meet him or her, right?" asked Rossi.
"Of course," Hotch agreed not mentioning that when he did find his mate he intended to not mention it to the team for at least a few months, although he was sure that they would suspect since they were profilers and therefore, far from stupid and very observant. He had no doubt that they would be able to tell he was so happy because he had met his mate that he'd probably be bouncing off the walls. Of course, they wouldn't know the reason his whole attitude had suddenly turned much less serious, though it was likely to be a very subtle change, but still they would likely be able to guess the reason for it, as he admitted wryly, the team knew him rather well because they had worked together for so long.
"Don't just go home, go out to dinner or even to a club although I realize that isn't really your scene. Go to places that people gather as it will be easier to meet your mate if you don't make a hermit of yourself."
"I can't see my mate being a crowd person since the mate bond would never exist with someone that wasn't at least similar to me in personality and interests. Yes, my mate likely doesn't have exactly the same personality as me, but they will be intelligent and share some of the same interests that I do or the bond would never have formed in the first place, as a Shifter and their mate must have at least a few things in common, although it varies from Shifter to Shifter, of course."
"Well, then try quiet places with only a few people instead of large crowds," Rossi suggested. "What you said makes perfect sense because if you and your True Mate don't have anything in common it wouldn't make any sense for a bond to exist between you."
"All right, then that's what I'll do," Hotch promised, "Now if you don't mind I would like to get as much of this paperwork done as possible before the end of shift and Dave you had better not mention this conversation to the rest of the team."
Rossi looked upset at the other man's words and Hotch felt guilty for he knew his old friend could keep a secret. "I won't," Rossi promised solemnly after a moment before getting up from the chair he had been sitting in and heading for the door.
~~~The Wizard and the Shapeshifter~~~
Some months later Hotch birthday had come and gone and he had celebrated it privately and since he wasn't working for once he had bought dinner for himself at a nice restaurant and even indulged in a bottle of wine. Normally for the most part Hotch forgot about his birthday entirely as his family besides, his brothers and sisters had normally forgotten about it, as it wasn't like any of the pups of Abigail and Blaise Hotchner had presents forthcoming, so Hotch as well as his ten brothers and seven sisters had learned to treat birthdays very casually and sometimes even forgot about them entirely or at least he did. Besides, he was usually out of town when his birthday rolled around anyway, so it was not like he had time to celebrate it most years.
Hotch had taken his old friend's advice and had begun to get out more leaving the BAU most days after his shift was over instead of staying behind to do paperwork like he had done in years past.
Since he didn't have to work in the morning he had decided just to drive around and stop for dinner when he got hungry. He knew his way around Virginia and Washington, but only on the main roads he would like to discover all the little back roads that saved you time when you were going somewhere. Besides, it wasn't like he really had any plans, as he didn't have anyone to come home to, as he and Haley had never had pups in the short time they had been married, even though Shifter females were usually very fertile. Maybe Haley had been using protection to stop herself from getting pregnant, Hotch mused. That would've been like her to do that and not tell him. He would've liked a few pups, but since his and Haley's relationship had broken up after less than five years maybe it was just as well that they hadn't had any as both of them would have wanted custody and they would have likely battled it out in court, since both of them were stubborn and he wasn't sure who would have won in the end.
Hotch finished loading his clothes into the washing machine, fixed himself a light lunch and then went on his way.
Finally it was several hours later and just beginning to get dark when Hotch decided it was time to stop for dinner and just as he was looking around for a restaurant to eat at he heard a scream and immediately spotted a young girl who couldn't be more than 16 running away from a boy about the same age. Her blouse was ripped, Hotch noticed as he braked his car before he ran over either teenager.
"Stop right there!" Hotch ordered getting out of his car with his gun in hand. The female looked startled, but immediately raced towards him before the bigger bulkier boy could catch up with her.
"This is none of your business so why don't you just vanish?" the boy suggested rudely.
"It is my business because I'm an FBI agent young man," Hotch told the boy quite seriously showing him his identification. "Now I will have your name, address and phone number so I can contact your parents. If I'm not mistaken you were about to force yourself on your girlfriend and that would have been rape, which is a punishable offense of up to 10 years in prison just for a first offence and even though you're only 16 or 17 the courts would likely try your case as an adult and not a minor as rape is a very serious crime."
"No, it's okay, he just got a little excited," the girl said.
"That's right," the boy replied nervously.
"Can't we just let this incident go?" asked the girl. "Alexander just had a little to much excitement tonight is all and so went to far."
"Very well, but I warn you if I ever hear of it happening again you and I will be having a very different conversation," Hotch growled. "You had better thank your lucky stars that your girlfriend saved your ass this time. Keep in mind that men who force themselves on woman without their consent can be prosecuted, not to mention you're both underage, which is another set of charges altogether."
Alexander nodded and as Hotch put his gun away he ran towards the alleyway again and was soon lost to darkness.
"Thank you for saving me," the girl said. "I really appreciate it."
"You're welcome, but you need to learn to be more careful in the future, as somebody might not be on hand next time to save you," Hotch said. "By the way I'm Aaron Hotchner, supervisory special agent for the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI."
"I'm Liya Reid," Liya introduced herself.
"Can I take you home, Miss Liya?" asked Hotch with a smile.
"Yes, although I don't fancy telling my brother what happened, not to mention my other siblings. My brother Spencer is not going to take the news well and he's going to want to hunt Alex down," Liya said.
"What about your parents?" asked Hotch as he got into the driver's side and Liya got into the passenger's.
"Oh, our mother died in a car crash several years ago and our father less then a year later, from a broken heart. Luckily, for us my oldest brother Spencer had just come of age and so he received guardianship of us."
"What about money though?"asked Hotch. "Doesn't your older brother need to work in order to support you and your siblings?"
"Money isn't a problem as our mother came from a wealthy family and we are the last remaining branch, so we inherited quite a tidy sum and therefore, it is unlikely that any of us will ever want for money. Our grandparents died about 10 years ago, and the money passed onto our mom as she was the only living child's since Uncle Cole got himself killed."
"How old is your brother?" asked Hotch.
"20 and yes, I know that's young but he's also one of the most responsible young men you'll ever meet and he's also a certified genius. He absorbs information like a sponge and his memory is eidetic so he never forgets anything."
"So how many siblings do you have?" asked Hotch.
"Seven," Liya said causally.
"Seven?" asked Hotch trying not to sputter as he thought about that. Most families, well unless you were a Shifter, never had more than two or three children and occasionally four, but no more than that, but he supposed he wasn't one to talk considering his parents had had 18 children within a 13 year period.
Liya giggled at her rescuers reaction. "Yes, seven, which is quite common in our family. Most of our ancestors had at least 10 to 15 children, as not only could they afford to they tended to marry right out of their teens."
Liya didn't mention the fact that thanks to the magic witches tended to be fertile for much longer then human women as they could have children up until their late 50s if they really wanted to and if one had trouble having children there was always a fertility potion which often resulted in at least twins, even if they didn't run in your family until then.
"I shouldn't have reacted like I did since I have 17 brothers and sisters, it's just rare to find a family with so many children in it, unless they are Shifters, so you surprised me," Hotch explained.
"Your parents had 18 children?" Liya asked sounding absolutely flabbergasted and Hotch couldn't blame her.
"They did, as my father believed that it was a woman's sacred duty to provide as many pups as possible to her husband and he only allowed my mother to have her tubes tied when she nearly died during the birth of her last pregnancy."
"That's just wrong," Liya said winkling her delicate nose in disgust.
"It is, but there's a lot of people like that in the world, I'm afraid," Hotch said. "Cruelty, apathy and indifference is not limited to just humans, Liya, but Shifters suffer from it as well."
"I know," Liya said softly, "but it's still wrong."
"Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect world," Hotch said philosophically, "because if we did me and my team would be out of a job. What about college though?" asked Hotch changing the subject as he knew that a college education was essential to getting a good job.
"Well, as I said Spencer is a genius and so he completed his college education just last year. He had plenty of time to do that as we are in boarding school for most of the year while he's graduated."
What Liya said was true, but what she didn't mention was that he had done his college courses online and completed them in record time.
While it was true that most wizarding folks didn't know a thing about electronics that was not true of her family since her father had been a muggle and they lived in a perfectly normal home that had electricity even if it was bigger than average.
"So what does your brother do?" asked Hotch.
"He's an intern at one of the local hospitals," Liya replied, "and has been for the last year."
This statement was not completely accurate as Spencer had been working as a healer's apprentice for the last three years ever since he had graduated, but it wasn't like she could tell this muggle, well Shifter, that for he knew nothing of the magical world.
"He'll be finished with his internship in another year and he would've been done much sooner if he hadn't taken the summer off to spend with us before we headed back to our boarding school," Liya said.
"I'm surprised that the hospital allowed him to do that," Hotch said.
"Well, it's not like he needs the money or expects to be paid for the time he takes off since he has plenty to support himself. Once Spencer explained the situation to his employers they agreed to allow him to take the time off once they realized that he was supporting all of us and that his situation was rather unusual. Yes, I know it's not normal to take the summers off when you've just begun working, but the doctor he's working with has been very understanding that not only does Spencer want to spend time with us he's also responsible for us and paying for us to go to school and everything else. Yes, my twin sister and I are old enough to stay by ourselves now but several of my siblings are not and while Leah and I don't mind babysitting occasionally Spencer realizes that we don't want to be trapped in the house for the whole summer."
"So this Alex...?" Hotch began.
"Let's not talk about Alex although if he calls I'm going to tell him that I'm not interested in another date with him after what nearly happened. He expected me to have sex with him just because he took me out to dinner and a movie as it was only our third date and I'm only 16. He just got a little aggressive that's all, but I'm definitely not interested in dating a guy that doesn't listen to me when I tell him no."
"He probably believed that you were just playing hard to get," Hotch suggested.
"He did, as that's what he said when I told him no when he tried to convince me to come back to his place as his parents weren't home and are on vacation. He seemed like such a nice guy and he turned into such a creep," Liya said.
Liya had no idea why she felt so comfortable with this man, but she somehow instinctively knew that he was the genuine deal and a nice guy. She sensed somehow that this Aaron Hotchner believed in justice so deeply that he would never betray his principles by accepting bribes or caving before blackmail or threats from the criminals he caught and that he would always do the right thing. He was a man that knew himself and knew that he would never betray what he believed in.
"Unfortunately, there are a lot of creeps in the world," Hotch said, "that come off as nice guys at first. At least you've learned a lesson and you'll be more careful in the future."
"Definitely," Liya. "My parents didn't raise any stupid children and me and my brothers and sisters have ways to protect ourselves from creeps like him. Our parents believed in teaching us self-defense, so I kicked him where it hurt and that gave me the opportunity to get away."
"Perhaps, you and your sisters at least should consider starting to carry something like mace. If it's sprayed in the eyes it will blind a man enough for you to be able to get a head start. I've heard it stings like the dickens, which gives you an advantage."
"I'll mention it to, my brother," Liya promised. "I'm sure that Spencer will be all for it. He'd do almost anything to protect his sisters from being forcibly violated. Here we are," Liya added as Hotch drove down a very familiar street. "My house is a fourth one on the right."
"Big place," Hotch commented as he turned into the driveway.
"Yes, well it's been in my family for generations and it was the wedding present from my grandparents on my mother side of the family. Mom's family owns quite a few properties around the world that they rent out, mostly to families on vacation," Liya said.
"So unlike a lot of wealthy families the Potters didn't lose their money in the stock market crash," Hotch said.
"No, they didn't," Liya agreed.
The two of them got out of the car and Liya took out her key inserting it into the lock.
"Liya, you're home early," Spencer said coming into the into the entryway to greet them. "Who is this and what happened to you?"
Hotch automatically and mentally cataloged every bit of body language, facial expressions and tone of voice and instantly realized that, although Liya's brother acted calm and in control he had taken in the scene at a glance and the anger beginning to spark in his eyes told Hotch all he needed to know about the conclusion that Spencer had come to.
"Let me go change and then I'll tell you what happened," Liya promised her brother. "By the way this is Aaron Hotchner and he rescued me."
"It's nice to meet you," Spencer said relaxing now that he knew that this man hadn't been responsible for his sister's condition. "You can go and change," Spencer added looking at his sister.
"It won't take me long I'll meet you in the den in 10 minutes."
"All right," Spencer agreed kissing his sister on the cheek affectionately. "Shoo."
"Yes, big brother," Liya said sticking her tongue out at him causing Spencer to laugh.
"Go on, you brat," Spencer told her his tone gentle and affectionate.
Once Liya had disappeared Spencer turned back to his unexpected guest. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Spencer Reid, as I'm sure you've guessed by now Liya's older brother."
"Aaron Hotchner," Hotch officially introduced himself. "I work with the FBI the Behavioral Analyst Unit specifically."
The two men shook hands and the minute they touched Hotch knew. Hotch stared at Spencer for a few seconds as if transfixed. This Spencer Reid was his mate. He knew it with absolute certainty, as he felt as if a puzzle piece that he had never known he was missing snapped into place in his very soul. Hotch had been nearly certain that this man was his mate from the minute he had entered the house and Spenser's smell had hit him like a sledgehammer. He had needed a few seconds to gather himself and luckily, both Liya and her brother had been significantly distracted not to notice his rather odd behavior. He had been nearly certain that Spencer was his mate from smell alone, but the handshake confirmed it.
Spencer led the way to the den. "Can I offer you some tea or coffee?"
"Coffee, black, if it's not too much trouble," Hotch replied trying his best to act normally and not stride across the room and ravish the younger man. He had barely met this young man who was 10 years his junior and yet his rather vivid and healthy imagination kept coming up with ways to seduce him and also very sexual scenarios that were driving him absolutely crazy. Hotch had no trouble telling what Spencer looked like under his clothes and he tried his best not to go there at least for right now, as that would be a conversation for later when they were alone.
"No, no trouble as I have a feeling what Liya is going to tell me isn't going to be very pleasant to hear," Spencer said, as he rose from his seat and headed to kitchen to fix the requested coffee and also a few snacks.
~~~The Wizard and the Shapeshifter~~~
"He did what!" Spencer's exclaimed looking furious. "I'll kill him and bury his bones where they'll never be found."
"Calm down, Spence," Liya urged her brother. "I took care of him and don't worry if he tries to come near me again I'll make sure he knows that he will get the same treatment, as before and that our relationship is over. I kicked him in the nuts and also punched him in the face and I wouldn't be surprised if his nose was broken."
"Still, I can't believe that he tried to force himself on you even after you told him no. I'm not naïve enough to not know that there are plenty of perverts and other types of nasty people in the world, but he seemed like such a decent bloke when I met him just a month or so ago."
"He likely is and he probably just got caught up in the heat of the moment. That happens to teenage boys especially," Hotch said. "He is only what 16?"
"17 actually," Leah said.
"There you go, most 17 boys I know have trouble knowing when to quit and even if they know that they are going to far sometimes they have trouble stopping. I'm not saying that makes it right, just that they're young and their libidos are in overdrive. By the time they get to be my age that will likely have calmed down to where they can control themselves better," Hotch said.
"I've never been like that," Spencer said.
"Every teenage boy is different, as I'm sure you know," Hotch said. "From what your sister has told me about you, you have always been serious and responsible while other boys or young men are totally different."
"Yes, that's true," Spencer admitted calming down a little. "I'm very proud of you sis, as not only did you give that boy what he deserved you actually reported it when you could've kept it to yourself and gone back to him thinking it was all a mistake." Spencer held up the hand when his sister looked ready to protest. "Yes, it's very possible that he just lost control of himself, however, on the other hand, he could be a rapist in the making or even done it to other girls before for all we know and next time even if you know how to defend yourself you might be put in a situation where you are sexually molested."
"You're right," Liya admitted grimacing even as she sat sipping her tea.
"So what I meant a minute ago was that you made them mature decision and I'm proud of you for that as I know most 16 year olds would not have been so calm about and likely snuck out to see their boyfriend even if it was forbidden, as I know most teenagers go through a rebellious stage."
Liya nodded and then asked to be excused and her brother nodded.
Liya disappeared upstairs without looking back, but she smirked to herself, as she had not been unaware of the looks that Aaron Hotchner kept shooting her brother. It was easy to tell that the older man was interested in her brother and Liya thought that was a good thing, because Spencer had never really dated much as girls never gave him a second look and it wasn't because he wasn't handsome, but because of his shyness and the fact that he was far more intelligent then any five people. Liya knew that Spencer had had several crushes while he had been in school on both male and females, but had been to shy to do anything about them. She doubted very much that any of the girls would have agreed to date him for she remembered having to defend him more then once when the other students had complained about how he outdid them in every class and she knew that Spencer hadn't been half trying or showing off on purpose. Liya along with her twin Leah had always suspected that if their brother was ever going to get involved in a serious relationship it would be with someone older, simply because he was to mature to put up with the silliness and immaturity of most people that were his age.
Liya had been sad for her brother for he had been practically a nonentity during his school years, but she had to admit that he had come into his own ever since his graduation and their parents deaths.
While the three of them had been talking, Hotch had been trying to figure out a way to tell Spencer that the two of them were meant to be together, unfortunately, he wasn't even sure that the younger man swung towards his own sex.
Well, I might as well plunge ahead as it's unlikely that I'll ever meet him again and if I waste this opportunity...It's unlikely that I'll ever get another, Hotch thought to himself.
"Spencer, I have something that I need to tell you," Hotch began trying to hide his nervousness. Normally he was very confident in just about any situation, but this was different. If Spencer rejected him he wasn't going to kill himself, but he would be extremely unhappy for what remained of his life.
"What's that?" asked Spencer looking at the older man curiously.
"Well, for one thing I'm a shapeshifter, a wolf Shifter to be precise," Hotch began and Spencer nodded saying that he understood for Shifters were quite common in the United States and had been around for centuries. No one knew where the shapeshifters had originally come from or if anybody ever had for it had been lost into the mists of history.
"What does your being a Shifter have to do with me?" asked Spencer curiously.
"What do you know about Shifters?" asked Hotch.
"Not much really," Spencer admitted after thinking about it for a few moments. "Mostly all I know is general knowledge. I know that Shifters have been around forever, but that nobody remembers where they originally came from or if they might be just a genetic anomaly. I know that there are many different kinds of Shifters, wolves, various kinds of cats, bears, and kangaroos, though those last two are rare, except in certain parts of the world. I know that wolves and lions are the most common with panthers and cheetahs being close seconds, but other than that really I don't know anything. Not very much is published about Shifters and what's out there, well, I don't know if it's either truthful and accurate or falsified and exaggerated, but really how do you know?"
Hotch took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. "Well, what you don't know is that a Shifter only has one mate, also known as the True Mate. The True Mate is identified by a combination of scent and touch and the Shifter in question can feel a pull towards their True Mate so long as they are within a hundred miles of each other and the pull gets stronger once a Shifter reaches their 30th birthday, which I just passed a few months previously. Also a Shifter's True Mate gene doesn't activate until they are 16, even if it's rare for a shifter to find the one person they are meant to be with at that age, it has been known to happen."
Spencer absorbed what he had been told and his intelligence and quick mind immediately came to the only logical conclusion.
"So you're telling me that I am your mate, is that correct?" asked Spencer.
"Yes, it is," Hotch said trying to keep his voice even and not show how nervous he really was.
"But both of us are men or does that matter?" asked Spencer genuinely curious.
"Not in the Shifter community it doesn't," Hotch assured him. "It has been well established that fairly often another Shifter's mate is the same-sex, as they are and that it could go either way. Even if you don't believe that you like your own sex before, once you meet your True Mate that proves how wrong you are. As for the regular humans or Normals as we call them, yes, some will object as a matter of principle or just because they don't believe in same-sex relationships, but if they do it doesn't really matter for those people have to obey the laws and trying to break us up just because we're the same-sex is against it. Besides, we are both adults, so people really have no grounds to object."
"They might not have any grounds to object but that doesn't mean they won't," Spencer pointed out logically, grimacing as he thought about at least some people's probable reactions. "If nothing else they'll see the difference in our ages and figure that you are taking advantage of me. That doesn't make it right or true I'm just telling you that is what people will think, some of them anyway."
"I'm well aware," Hotch told Spencer. "Just so you know however, I am very comfortable with my sexuality and those opinions won't bother me, because I know they are not in the least true. Anyway back to what we were just discussing as I was saying a few minutes ago a Shifter only has one True Mate and they often commit suicide if that mate rejects them or if they die before their time. Of course, this only happens to the Shifter and not to the mate unless they are also a Shifter."
"So would you commit suicide if I rejected you?" asked Spencer genuinely curious.
"No, as my team depends on me, but I would be extremely unhappy for the rest of my life and I would never get into a serious relationship or even a shallow one and mourn your rejection until the day I die. Once a Shifter finds their one True Mate they are unable to become attached to another in that way. I'm not saying that they can't still make friends, but romantically or sexually, well, I would for all intents and purposes become an eunuch."
Spencer winced at that, as he knew very well about most men's sexual drive and Aaron Hotchner was still quite young, especially for a Shifter, so to never have sex again when he was only thirty... Finally Spencer had an inspiration and he immediately understood what the older man had indirectly been saying. Aaron was saying that if he, Spencer Reid rejected him it would be like having his heart broken and he knew many people never recovered from that or got involved in any sort of relationship again.
Spencer had never imagined finding himself in such a situation as the one he was currently in and was sad to say that even at 20 years of age he was still a virgin. He had secretly despaired of ever getting rid of that particular moniker, even if he was the only one that knew it, but it looked like it might happen in the near future. However, he was not going to go straight to bed with this man as he was one of those people that needed to get to know someone first, which was why he was still a virgin even at 20, as a lot of young people and even older ones wanted to hop into bed right away, but he could see himself falling for Aaron Hotchner very easily, given sufficient time in his company.
Finally Spencer reached a decision and said, "I'll tell you what I'll do. I won't reject you out of hand, but..." Spencer paused.
"But what?" asked Hotch trying to conceal his anxiety.
"But I won't go to bed with you right this minute as I'm one of those people that needs to get to know someone before I reach such a decision. I hope you understand that I'm not saying that sex is completely out, as I won't object if you want to kiss me or hold me or even if we makeout heavily, however, there will be no full blown sex until we get to know each other. Yes, you have a True Mate Bond with me, but I don't with you since I am not a Shifter. Now I'm assuming that because of the bond that you say you have makes you immediately want to have sex with me and that your feelings for me are already those associated with love."
"Yes, they are," Hotch confirmed, "and yes, I do want to take you to bed to show you how much I already do love you, but I also understand where you're coming from and so I'll wait until you tell me that you are ready for that stage of our relationship. I'm not saying it will be easy, but you'll soon learn that I am one of the most stubborn people on the planet and I have an will of iron."
"Alright then," Spencer said softly with a small smile playing on his lips suddenly happier then he had been in a very long time.
"There are many things that we need to discuss however," Hotch added, as he got up from his chair and moved to sit on the couch to be closer to his mate, as he had been given tacit permission to touch Spencer anywhere if he wanted to so long as full-blown lovemaking wasn't on the menu for the moment. The wolf in his chest disagreed violently with that decision wanting to take his mate immediately to bed and leave him with a permanent hickey one that would tell other Shifters to back off that the young man was claimed.
We cannot force ourselves on him as that would be just as bad as what that boy tried to do to his sister, Hotch told the wolf in him silently, but firmly.
The wolf subsided unhappily, but knew that his other half was right and his mate just needed a little time.
"What do we need to discuss?" asked Spencer with a raised eyebrow not objecting when Hotch moved from the chair he had been sitting in to sit beside him on the couch and immediately placing a hand on his bare arm. Spencer blushed a bright red for Aaron Hotchner's touch felt absolutely wonderful and he was welcome to keep his hand right where it was all day or all night for that matter. For some reason Aaron's touch felt absolutely perfect and so right. Spencer assumed that it had to do with the bond that Aaron had said he had with him, but what didn't make sense was why he felt that Aaron's touch was so utterly perfect, because it was the older man that had the True Mate Bond and not him, yet it did.
Hotch noticed Spencer's reaction and the wolf in his chest was absurdly pleased to know that his mate was attracted to him, as that would make their new relationship hopefully, move along faster and the faster the better.
"I just need to tell you that with my job I'm going to be gone a lot and this is not a reflection on you, just that the BAU travels a lot for their work and usually we are not gone more than a few days at a time, but there have been cases that have lasted a week or more although that doesn't happen very often. I'm hoping you can accept this or our relationship is over before it's even begun and that would devastate me."
"No, our relationship isn't over as I can understand you being devoted to your job," Spencer promised him making a bold move and kissing Hotch's cheek, which pleased the older man immensely. "It's actually nice to meet someone who has a decent work ethic as most of the people I went to school with were incredibly lazy. I'm not saying I won't miss you when you're gone, but we can keep in contact through text messages and phone calls."
Hotch nodded breathing a silent sigh of relief that Spencer was being so accommodating.
"Besides, if you must know I tend the work a lot myself and some of my shifts are 16 hours long, but then I also tend to work two shifts back to back because I didn't really have anything else to do, but I don't have to do that anymore with you in my life. I'm not saying that some of my future work days won't be a incredibly long and demanding, but I can cut back now, as my employers know what kind of worker I am and they'll understand that I've met someone that I want to spend time with, since most of them are considerably older than I am and married. Besides, it isn't like I need the money since the Reids are incredibly wealthy and in fact we wouldn't need to work at all if my parents hadn't taught all their children that working at a job you love is better than being a bored aristocrat. My mother in particular always told us that you have brains and you need to use them and not to cause trouble. She said you are more likely to never get in trouble with the law if you had a job you're happy with instead of sitting around home thinking about what was wrong with the world and blaming other people for all your problems. She often told me and my twin sisters that we would be much happier with ourselves in good careers and therefore, happier with humanity in general."
"Your mother sounds like an intelligent lady," Hotch said impressed.
"Oh, trust me she was," Spencer said with a small smile. "Her and dad were very happy together until her death in a car crash when I was 17."
"So your sister was telling me on the drive here," Hotch said, unconsciously moving his hand up and down his mate's arm.
"So when would you like to have our first date?" Spencer asked shyly.
"Well, it's too late tonight to even think about it, so how about tomorrow as it is Saturday and since the team isn't already out of town on the case we automatically have it off. We aren't ever called in on the weekends, unless it's something like a child abduction, since time is critical in those cases or a lot of people have been killed in a short amount of time, so we should have a lot of weekends together."
"Alright," Spencer agreed immediately. "I took the summer off to spend with my siblings and I've been doing this ever since our parents passed away."
"So Liya was telling me," Hotch said with a smile. "So when do I get to meet your brothers and sisters?"
"Probably tomorrow," Spencer said, "as it's already way past Hudson's and Bronwyn's bedtime since they are only ten. Liya and Leah of course, don't have a set bedtime since they are 16, and Chance and Andrew have a set bedtime of eleven o'clock as they are both fourteen and so does Natalie who is a year younger at thirteen."
"Three sets of twins?" Hotch asked in astonishment. He wouldn't have been so astonished had one of Spencer's parents been a Shifter, but neither of them were which is why it was so flabbergasting. Hotch didn't claim that it couldn't happen since it was of course, possible, just that it was such an unusual event.
Spencer shrugged nonchalantly and said, "My family has been known to produce multiple sets of twins in the past. It seems to be kind of the family legacy you know? It doesn't happen every generation of course, but more often than not it does and most Potters have at least one set of twins. Our family history is rather well-documented and other members of our family have kept it current and up to date and there's only been a few times in at least the last 600 years that a female Potter hasn't produced at least one set of twins and it's usually more. None of my twin siblings are identical and it is very possible to produce more than one set of fraternal twins per generation, since it has to do with a woman's ovulation. I'm not saying it's very a common thing, but it just seems that the Potters have been lucky in that respect."
"So you're saying about having twins come from your mother's side of the family then?" asked Hotch and Spencer nodded.
Hotch didn't bother to mention at least at the moment that multiples also ran in Shifters families quite frequently simply because they were a great deal like their animal counterpart at least in that way. Of course, twins along with triplets and quadruplets quite frequently happened when the pair were True Mates and not so much when a Shifter only married so they wouldn't be lonely. Of course, almost all female Shifters had at least twins whether they were married to another Shifter or a Normal, but with the male it wasn't as common if they were married to a Normal and not one of their own kind. However, with Spencer being male pups born naturally were out of the question, although they could always adopt, but that was a discussion he would have with his mate at a later date. Hotch admitted that he did want pups someday, even if that was five or six years in the future and through adoption.
"Are you sure that you don't have Shifter blood somewhere in your family tree within just a few generations?" Hotch asked half teasingly, half seriously finally voicing what he had been thinking about a minute ago. "Shifters are well-known for producing more multiples per pregnancy no matter the species and a wolf like me, well if I was female that is, have been known to have anywhere from 2 to 6 pups at one time. Of course, multiples are more common if both are Shifters and also True Mates, but it has been known to happen when the male is not a Shifter just so long as the female is. Of course, a female Normal and a male Shifter have been known to produce multiples as well, but it's just not as common."
"Actually my family on both the Potter and Reid side have known to marry Shifters in the past, although not for a couple hundred years for one and sixty-five or so years for the other. Well, at least as far as I know it didn't happen or if it did it wasn't written down."
Of course, it could have been erased from the records, Spencer admitted to himself, as purebloods tended to be vindictive and if one of their family did something they disliked or disapproved of they were erased from the family as if they had never existed and disowned. Of course, from what he knew of the Potters this had never happened before, since they tended to love their children and didn't believe in the pureblooded crap of keeping their families pure and that meant only marrying other purebloods, even if they were your cousins. Of course, here in America most purebloods weren't as inbred as the ones he had heard over England were, but there were still some families that believed they should only marry other purebloods and that meant a wizarding family that went back at least four generations with no muggles or squibs on their family tree and for some of the snottier pureblood families their lines had to go back at least six generation in order to be deemed acceptable to marry their child.
Spencer realized that if his and Aaron's relationship did reach the level where it got serious he would have to inform the older man of a few things before they actually took it to the next level. He doubted very much that he would be rejected out of hand once Aaron revealed that he and his entire family were witches and wizards and had been for as far back as there had been Potters.
"Well, that's not too far back really and if the Potters at least have been producing twins for 600 or more years the Shifter blood probably helped at least for the last couple hundred years, but it's really not the whole answer."
Spencer shrugged and said, "It doesn't really matter, at least to me. My family has always considered it a gift, one we don't question since most of us love children anyway and this enables us to have the large families that we desire without our spouses getting pregnant more then a few times. As I said earlier most Potters usually have at least ten to fifteen children, even in this day and age. Of course, this is not always true, but for the most part it is, especially if the child was originally a Potter before she married."
"If the Potters usually have such large families how come you and your siblings are the last surviving branch or at least you are according to your sister."
"Well, my sister has never studied the Potter history in-depth like I have, since it's always fascinated me and she definitely doesn't have my eidetic memory. However, she is mostly correct that we are the last surviving branch that I know about anyway. It is more than possible that there're more families out there with the Potter blood just not with the last name anymore, just like me and my siblings. Our family is originally from England, although my ancestor moved here to America many centuries ago now. For all I know I might still have relatives in England, as our branch of the family wanted to get out on their own and away from conservative and stodgy old Britain. Also it's very possible that there are other Potters that are related to us in other cities as children grow up and move, but although our branch of the family is originally from Las Vegas, there were no other Potters that I know of in the city at least not ones related to my family. My grandparents on the Potter side of the family were rather unusual that they only had three children a girl and two boys. One of my uncles died before he was grown up, so he never had a chance to get married and have a family of his own and the other one died as an infant."
"I had better get home as it's quite late now," Hotch said looking at his watch, noting the time, but not really wanting to leave his mate for even a few hours and he knew it would take every ounce of willpower he possessed to get out of here without throwing his mate over his shoulder and taking him to bed, whether or not he was ready.
"Yes, you're right," Spencer admitted looking at his very modern watch. "I need to get some sleep myself, as I have two siblings who are early risers and they usually make enough noise to wake the dead. I usually manage to go back to sleep and they know better than to bother me unless it's an emergency, but still I had better head up to bed."
Of course, Spencer didn't mention how he usually wrapped his room in a silencing spell, so that he could sleep in peace, but there had been a time or two that he had forgotten to do that and it did wear off.
"I'll call you tomorrow," Hotch promised.
"You had better make it noon or later," Spencer told him with a smile, "as I'm planning to sleep in if at all possible."
"All right," Hotch agreed kissing his mate on the cheek, although he really wanted it to be his lips instead. "I'm so glad I met you," Hotch added his tone reverent, as he kissed the top of his mate's head inhaling the masculine scent of his shampoo and imprinting it into his memory. "I knew you were somewhere in the city, thanks to the link, but I knew that it would be nearly impossible to find you, except by the sheerest luck considering that a hundred miles in all directions covers a great deal of territory."
"And has thousands, even tens of thousands of people," Spencer added and Hotch nodded.
"Believe me, I know it," Hotch said, "and I realize that I'm a lucky son of a bitch and that it was fate that brought us together."
"I'm glad it happened to," Spencer told him with a smile. "I'll show you out. Make sure you're careful driving home, since it's quite late and I know you're tired. I wouldn't want you to get into an accident just because you fell asleep at the wheel."
"I will be," Hotch promised genuinely touched at his mate's concern.
Spencer rose from the couch and with Hotch beside him escorted the older man to the front door and gave him a kiss on the cheek as a goodbye.
"Remember to call me after noon so we can set the time for our date," Spencer reminded Hotch.
"I will," Hotch promised. "Believe me, I'm eager to get to know more about you, but if I don't get out of here I'm going to throw you over my shoulder and take you to bed despite my best intentions."
"If our relationship progresses the way I hope it will you'll soon have that privilege and I promise you when that time comes I not only won't object, but will in fact eagerly participate," Spencer promised silkily feeling very bold, as he ran just one finger gently up and down Hotch's inner thigh on top of his pants right near his crotch.
Hotch groaned with desire and wretched open the front door stepping outside before all his good intentions went out the window.
"I'll see you tomorrow," Hotch promised his mate huskily grabbing Spencer roughly around the middle, pulling him as close as possible and kissing him one final time before he forced himself to walk towards his car, get into the driver's side and start the engine.
Spencer watched as Hotch backed out of the driveway and drove away and realized suddenly that his life had just gone from normal, where he knew what he would be doing every day to very interesting, even exciting for the first time in years and so he admitted if only to himself that he was looking forward to getting to know Aaron Hotchner better. Hopefully, he and Aaron were on their way to the beginnings of a very satisfying and thrilling relationship, one that would change both their lives for the better.
~~~The Wizard and the Shapeshifter~~~