Spring Is All Around
Summary: Resistance is futile – especially when one Penelope Garcia teams up against Spencer Reid with something else. A surprise is in for all of them as well.
Notes: Answer to "The Challenge From The Other Challenges" on "CCOAC". I got the pairing Garcia/Reid and the following three prompts: "spring allergies, celebrating birth/rebirth, tulips". The story is set about five years in the future and follows the series canon to a certain extent. But I couldn't help to mix up things a little bit. Pairings are: Hotch/Garcia, JJ/Rossi, Prentiss/Morgan, Reid/Seaver. Most of the places and locations are made up by me. Might not be my best work, since I simply can't write the walking talking mystery of one Spencer Reid.
Disclaimer: Nothing you see in here and think "I think I have seen that before" is mine – neither the first line of the summary (Star Trek – TNG) nor all the characters in this little tale (Criminal Minds – CBS)
April 2017
Grant Park, Quantico, Virginia
"Achooo!"
"Bless you, Spencer. Come on, you gonna stand there till forever?"
Dr. Spencer Reid, resident genius at the BAU in Quantico, Virginia, was used to be at the mercy of other people for the most of his life. But today, it was like the whole universe had teamed up against him. Not only his teammates forced him to participate in an outdoor spare time activity (something he tried to prevent at any cost, especially in springtime), all the trees and flowers, especially the tulips, decided to start blossoming that very day (or so it seemed to him). And since he had spring allergies since he was a little kid, this day was going to be a very interesting and partly humiliating one (at least for Spencer himself).
Right now, he was standing at the entry to the Grant Park in Quantico, and from where he was rooted to the spot, he could see the rest of his team, nicely squatted on a giant bedspread near the pond. Jennifer Jareau-Rossi with her husband David and their kids Henry and Gina sitting next to Emily Prentiss-Morgan, now a fulltime-stay-at-home mum to the two kids she had with Derek, the new appointed Unit Chief, followed by Aaron Hotchner, now a proud father not only to twelve-year-old Jack, but also to almost two-year-old Christine, the sweet little girl he had with no one else than Penelope Garcia, who married the stoic Unit Chief and appointed Section Chief four years ago in a secret ceremony, surprising not only the whole team, but also half of the FBI building. Last but not least, there was "his" girl, also known as Ashley Seaver. The young woman, introduced to the team years ago after JJ was forcibly transferred to the Pentagon, had already become a full FBI agent and was currently working with both Aaron's and Sam Cooper's team, whoever was in need of an extra brain. But something else was more important to Spencer than that. When the "old" team was reassembled with the return of JJ and Emily, he kept contact with Ashley, helped her with troubles along the way to be an FBI agent, and somehow (he, the man with the eidetic memory, couldn't remember how, when or why) friends became lovers. Right now, the elite team of the BAU could also be labeled as the "Baby Adding Unit", because all women where in different states of pregnancy. While there was next to nothing of a new life visible on JJ (4 months) or Pen (5 months), both Emily (8½ months) and Ashley (7 months, 4 days) had nice baby bumps, both closing in on the date of birth in the next time.
"Earth to Spencer."
"Yeah, Pen, what's up?"
"You coming over to us or keeping a guard over here, zooming in and out from time to time?"
"I don't know if that's such a good idea."
"And why on God's green Earth would you say that? All of us are here, even Hotch."
"Well, he can hardly say no to his wife, can't he?"
"That's not the point. We both know very well how stubborn he can be. Like someone else I know."
"Pen, I have allergies, spring allergies to be specific. And I don't think that with me sneezing every ten seconds it would be a good afternoon for the rest of you."
"Nah, it can't be that bad. And if it is? Don't worry, we have enough tissues to cover the whole park. You should be on the safe side. Now, come on!"
And with that, the bubbly blonde Head of Tech Analyses pulled the younger man over the rest of the team. As predicted, Spencer sneezed a lot on this afternoon, but it wasn't as bad as he had thought. By the time they decided to head home, he was even enjoying being in the open, entertaining the kids (and the adults) with magical tricks.
Spencer was walking Ashley to their car, watching the other couples doing the same, when all of a sudden both Ashley and Emily uttered a gasp, followed by a pretty loud "damn it" from Emily and a not so loud "oh oh" from Ashley. Spencer had a hunch on what was going on, and so he ushered his girlfriend in the back of the car, seeing Morgan was doing the same with Emily, and with a last "Follow us!" to the rest of the team, both men took off to the nearest hospital.
When Aaron, Penelope, JJ and David arrived at the St. Trinity Hospital 15 minutes later (thanks to Jessica and Will, all four kids were looked after on such a short notice), they all didn't need any directions as to where their friends and colleagues might be. Emily's voice, filled with alternating curses worse than a drunken sailor's mouth and pain-laced screams, was more than enough to lead the quartet through the halls to the birth room. They just managed to take seats, when an exhausted, but utmost happy Spencer Reid came through the doors leading to the birth room, holding a little blue "package".
"Hey guys! Good timing! May I introduce you all to David Aaron Reid, my son?"
He hadn't even finished the sentence when he felt his son taken away by Penelope and found himself in a bear hug from Aaron and David at the same time. When he got released from their arms, he saw tears glistening in their eyes. Their respective wives were not better, gushing over the little baby boy with all their might. Right in the moment he had "fought" his son back and gathered the precious little miracle in his arms, the doors opened again and revealed Morgan, holding a little "package" as well.
"Looks like you survived "Hurricane Emily"."
David Rossi's dry statement caused them all, even the nurses at the station, to chuckle. One had to be deaf for not hearing the very expletive and chosen language of the raven-haired woman.
"Yes, we all did, more or less. Especially this little princess here." He turned to show the little girl, which was almost vanishing in his big, strong arms, to his friends, their "family". "Ladies and Gentlemen, please meet Jennifer Alexandra Penelope Morgan."
And like Spencer with his son before, Morgan soon lost track of who was holding his little girl at the moment. When he got her back somehow after what seemed like an eternity to him, both Spencer and he took off to the birth room in the blink of an eye, reuniting their little families and leaving two very happy couples back in the family room, who were in the spirit of celebration the birth of two new lives and the coming of three new ones (Penelope was with twins, but Aaron didn't know yet) in the near future.