Disclaimer:

I do not own Criminal Minds.

Arie's POV (APOV)

My phone rang as I was trying to wrestle my cat into her cat carrier. "Shit" I cursed as Laurie scratched at my arms. I held the flailing creature in one hand and pulled my phone out of my back pocket. "Hello" I said, holding the cat as far from my body as physically possible. "Are you sure you want to go, Arie" A soft southern drawl asked.

"I'm certain, Tiffany… they need someone to care for them until I can find them a 'help house'" I said. She huffed. "You can't blame me for wanting someone to hit the clubs with" she said as she walked up to me. My eyes lit up at the sight of the familiar red head.

"I thought you weren't coming" I said, as she reached out her arms for a hug. A stinging pain snapped me back to what I held in my hands. "I'm sorry but I can't hug you until I get this rabid monster into her cage" I winked at her. "Care to help." Tiffany laughed and opened the cat carrier. As quickly as I could, I stuffed the hissing thing into her cage and hinged the lock. I pouted.

"Now I need a Band-Aid" I said, holding out my hand for inspection. She raised an eyebrow at the scratches. "How about Band-Aids" she replied, producing a box out of her pocket. "You're a life saver" I sighed happily as she patched me up.

She snickered. "Actually I've been best friends with a really accident-prone girl named Arie and I've felt the need to carry Band-Aids and Neosporin in my pockets since I was five" she so sarcastically replied.

When she was done fixing me, I enveloped her in a hug. "It's only until the fall semester" I muttered softly. "And it will be just me in the clubs until then" she finished. "Just because you finished high school at 16 and have 2 degrees doesn't mean you can't have fun." I could sense she was about to cry.

I sighed impatiently as I stepped back and looked at her. "How about this" I said, willing to compromise. "When I get back, you can drag me to all the clubs you want and if you want to you can come and visit. It's only three hours away, ya know. It's not like back home when you have to drive 11 hours to get here."

"I know" she sighed, but her expression brightened. "Do you promise?" I smirked at her. "Do I ever break my promises" I told her as I walked to the driver's side of my sensible Honda Accord. "Nope" she replied. I gave her one last hug. "I'll call you after Criminal Minds" she rolled her eyes at my favorite show but nodded and watched as I buckled myself in. She closed the door and stepped back. I started the engine and drove off.

Great… Now it was only me and the radio.

After a coke, 60 songs, and a bag of tortilla chips later, I arrived at my destination. As I cut off the engine, I smiled at the familiar house. I had spent my childhood summers in this house, being bored out of my mind until I had turned 12 and discovered Criminal Minds. That's when I had decided I wanted to be an FBI agent. After watching four episodes, I had gone online the next day to find out if I could be a profiler.

Imagine my dismay when I had realized that there was no such thing as a 'profiler', but I could still be like one of the team. All I had to do was do all the rigorous training, have a degree, and have twenty-twenty vision. The last thing was hard enough.

When I went home that year and demanded laser eye surgery, my grandparents had been adamant about me not getting it. But after 2 years of throwing temper tantrums, they had finally agreed and three weeks late I could see without glasses. Now all I had to do was apply for a position. I had gone through the training a year ago when I had turned twenty-three. Now that I was twenty-four, I hoped I was ready for the gory and sometimes violent job.

A rumble of thunder in the distance snapped me back to reality. I realized I had better go inside now lest I get rained on. Laurie wouldn't mind. The psychotic creature loved bathes and would do anything for one, rather than avoiding bathing altogether like other members of her species.

I pulled her cat carrier out of the trunk along with my collection of meager belongings, I closed the trunk. Looking around one last time, I walked up the driveway, set Laurie down, and unlocked the door. "Grandma, I'm here" I called.

"In the bedroom, dear" she replied. She sounded a little…odd. Gosh, my life felt like a scene out of Little Red Riding Hood. The girl is sent to deliver some goods for her sick grandmother (and aunt, in my case) - I stopped myself right there. I did not like the thought of being cast in a fairy tale even if it did have a happy ending.

Setting my bags down and letting the psycho out of the cage, I took a look around. Nothing had changed since the last time I had been here. The portraits were still the same and the once-new flat screen television was still in the same spot. I walked into the kitchen, my low-heeled boots (that boosted me up to at least 5'2) clicking on the pavement. Yep… it was still the same. I cast a glance towards the dining room and smiled faintly at the familiar sight. I had spent many years, sitting on that floor and I had always been doing the same thing… Watching Criminal Minds.

Casting one last glance at my favorite room, I walked down the long hallway that led to the bedrooms. Still the same, all the way down to the bookcase at the end. Knocking on my Grandma's door, I waited for her to tell me to enter. "Come in" No wonder she sounded odd… she was rasping. That's when I had the sinking suspicion that no one was going to be going to a nursing home. Entering the room, I crossed over to her bedside.

"Do you need anything, Gran" I asked softly, as I leaned down to kiss her forehead. She glared at me and rolled her eyes. "We already had a nurse and we didn't need any help, Arie" she rasped out. "Your pa didn't need to send you here to watch us." I sighed. "I'll just go get unpacked then." Smoothing her hair from her forehead, I walked out and closed the door behind me.

Crossing the hallway to my room, I leaned against the doorway and marveled at the unchanged appearance of the room. Laurie was already curled on the bed, licking her paws. "Demon" I muttered under my breath as I began unpacking. I was probably the only person in the world who had a cat who loved to injure her. Laurie would do anything to injure me but after I had patched myself up she would come and curl herself on my lap.

I laughed to myself as I placed my last belonging on the dresser and yawned. Glancing down at my watch, I checked for the time. It was 7:30. Criminal Minds started in half an hour. I could make myself dinner and get changed for bed. Flipping through my suitcase, I spotted my favorite over-sized t-shirt. Sliding into the shirt, I pulled my hair back into a ponytail and made my way into the kitchen.

The amount of my cooking ability was very small. I could make a fried egg sandwich which was the end of my skills. Pulling the ingredients out of the fridge, I pulled out my phone and set it to music mode. Dancing around the kitchen, I sang along to my favorite songs as I fried the eggs and toasted the bread. The only time I wasn't clumsy was when I was dancing, dancing seemed to bring out the only graceful component of me.

Grabbing a spatula, I held it to my lips as though it was a microphone. "I love you" I began and struck a pose. "But I gotta stay true. My morals got me on my knees. I'm begging please stop playing games. I don't know what this is but you got me good… Just like you knew you would." I'd always been proud of my singing voice; it was my one pride and joy. The sound of applause broke me out of my Duffy- induced trance. I whirled sharply to find Auntie watching me. I pressed my hand to my chest and took a couple of deep breathes. "God, Auntie" I took a glance at her. "Shouldn't you be in bed? I'll bring you your tea at ten 'o' clock." She laughed before crossing over to give me a hug.

"I can't greet my niece" she said, before stepping back. I kissed her on her cheek before shooing her out of the kitchen. "You shall get your tea at 10 and we'll talk then." She walked back into her room and I finished making my dinner. Glancing at the wall clock, I saw that it was almost eight 'o' clock. Pouring myself a cup of ginger-ale, I walked into my favorite room and set my dinner on the table. Flipping the power switch, I turned on the TV and put it on channel 8.

Settling back I began to watch my favorite show. Two episodes later, I drifted off to a dreamless sleep.

Salem, Massachusetts

Unsub's Apartment

"So what exactly are we looking for" Spencer asked quizzically as the team entered the building. Morgan shrugged. "The unsub seemed to have disappeared into thin air. In my opinion, I think someone killed him but we can never be too sure" he replied. Entering the apartment, Spencer pulled a pair of gloves on. "So basically we have no clue" Spencer concluded. He glanced around the apartment.

It was well furnished and it seemed as though the unsub had been a neat person. Something caught Spencer's eye as he looked around. Strolling over to the bookshelf, he picked the strange object up and before he had a chance to say anything the team disappeared in a blinding flash of white light.

In Quantico, Virginia, A woman named Penelope Garcia disappeared from her desk.

APOV

I was being shaken awake. Yawning, I opened my eyes. 8 pairs of eyes gazed down at me. I sat up and glanced down at my inappropriate state. My eyes widened as I looked at myself. "'Excuse me while I go pull on a pair of pants" Running out of the room, I ran into my bedroom and pulled on a pair of sweatpants. When I was suitably dressed to appear before company, I calmly strolled back into the room. "Now" I began, placing my hands on my hips. "Who are you and what the hell are you doing in my Grandma's house?" I said that before I could take a proper look at them.

Holy shit. I breathed in deeply. "You guys are not real" I said, pointing a finger at them and beginning to back away. A thought occurred to me and I stepped forward. I poked the one that looked like Morgan in the chest before my eyes widened. "My God, you are real" I muttered. I could feel myself starting to get light-headed. Placing a hand over my forehead, I checked for a temperature. "This could be a delusion" I rationalized.

The one that looked like Hotch stepped forward. "Would you mind telling us where we are" he quizzed. The room was starting to spin. I spoke two words before I faded into darkness:

"Bloody Hell"