"Ok, what was that?" JJ turned towards the eerie noise she'd just heard.
"A scream?" Emily suggested.
"Sounded more like a howl if you ask me." Reid interjected.
"A scrowl?" Morgan said with a grin.
Reid looked confused. "A scrowl? No such word exists, Morgan."
"Does now, kid. It's a scream mixed with a howl."
JJ rolled her eyes. "Yeah, ok, Morgan."
"Hey! Why, not? It's a full moon and Halloween. Anything can happen. Including the invention of new words!" He grinned wider.
The noise pierced through the night again. It sent a shiver down JJ's and Emily's spines.
"Ok, I'm changing my vote to a wail." Emily said.
"Or a screech." JJ thought aloud.
"Perhaps a…" Morgan started.
"Let me guess…a scrail?" JJ interrupted.
"Nah. A weech." Morgan winked at JJ who gave him a light shove.
The team was combing the woods for yet another psychopath, and they had failed to make it back to the ranger station before darkness fell. They were attempting to find their way back there, but the general consensus was that they'd lost their way and gotten turned around in the confusion of the darkness.
Rossi sighed. "It's probably just a coyote, or some other native wildlife. Nothing to worry about."
"It actually sounds kind of like the sound a wolverine can make." Reid added.
"Oh lovely, only one of the most vicious animals. Just what I want to encounter out here." Emily said, voice dripping in sarcasm.
"I think, maybe we should try to either try to find some form of shelter or build some." Hotch interrupted the team's conversation. "It's going to get cold tonight, and the forecast said possible snow flurries. We need wood for a fire, and preferably something over our heads."
Morgan shone his flashlight around. "Well I don't have an ax, but I bet that there is a substantial amount of wood on the forest floor, and I can definitely break some of those weaker branches."
"Check out Derek. Always ready to get his hands dirty. Always looking for something to break." Emily teased.
"Yeah. Or kick in." JJ joined in.
Morgan winked at the girls. "You know it." He reached up to the branch above his head and tested it out. It seemed somewhat unstable. He jumped up, catching ahold of it and hung from it. The branch cracked under his weight. He bounced a little and the branch cracked more, before finally breaking away from the tree. "Here's a start."
"Show off." Emily teased again.
"As helpful as that is, Morgan, we still need to find someplace a little more suitable for spending the night. Right here won't do at all. The trees are too bare to provide any cover and they're too close together to make a campfire without causing a forest fire." Hotch said, trying to keep the team on task. He loved when his team got a chance to goof off and tease each other. It was when he most felt that the team was really more of a family. But right now was not the time.
"Didn't the ranger say that there were hunting lodges scattered around these woods?" Rossi asked thoughtfully.
"Yeah. Actually I remember seeing one on the map not far from where we were the last time we knew where we were." Reid said. He glanced at Morgan.
"Hey man, keep those accusing eyes away from me. I was headed in the right direction before Miss Emily over there decided I was wrong and took over reading the map." Morgan said.
"Morgan, you had us walking uphill. We didn't walk down a hill to get to where we were, so we shouldn't have needed to climb up one to get back." Emily retorted.
"Not to mention, that was a really, really steep hill, Morgan." JJ said. She'd managed to catch her ankle in a root during the climb and the pain was still shooting through her ankle. She was doing her best not to limp. She didn't want to worry the rest of the team.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Morgan waved the girls away.
The spine-chilling cry floated through the air again. Emily could have sworn that it was closer than it had been before. She unconsciously scooted closer to JJ.
"What direction was the hunting lodge from our last known location?" Hotch asked Reid.
"I believe north, north west. But I have no idea which way that is from here." Reid replied.
Hotch looked up, trying to get a fix on a recognizable star constellation so he could get his bearings. No luck. The trees were just close enough together that they obscured a clear view of the sky.
"Well unless somebody else has a better idea, let's chose a direction and head that way." Rossi said.
"Let's go that way." Hotch said pointing. He didn't know why, but he had a gut feeling.
"Sounds as good as any other direction to me." Morgan said, starting off in the direction Hotch had pointed.
The rest of the team followed along behind him, each scanning the forest with their flashlights for any sign of shelter.
They'd been walking for about an hour when Hotch spotted a flash of something that wasn't a tree.
"Look over there." He called out.
The team pointed their flashlights in the direction that Hotch indicated. There was definitely something manmade amongst the trees. They headed towards it. It was indeed a small cabin. It seemed that they'd have some luck tonight after all. Hotch couldn't help but feel slightly relieved.
They cautiously entered the cabin. More luck. It seemed to be unoccupied. It was small. There was a cramped room with a single bed shoved in it, and then there was a main room with a kitchen attached, and a small bathroom. The main room had a fireplace and a working light.
"I saw some stacks of firewood by the side of the building. I'll go get it so we can start a fire in the fireplace." Morgan said.
JJ and Emily headed to the kitchen and began rummaging through the cupboards. They both shivered as another wail interrupted the stillness of the night.
JJ moved closer to Emily. "Is it my imagination, or did we walk in the direction of that sound? 'Cause it sounds a lot closer if you ask me." She said quietly to her friend and colleague.
"Definitely closer. Something about the noise just creeps me out." Emily replied.
"Any luck finding food?" Hotch appeared behind them.
Emily shook her head. JJ opened another cupboard.
"Wait. I think I found something." She pulled out a box. "How do crackers sound to everyone?" She asked.
"It's a start. See if you can find anything else." Hotch said, nodding approvingly at the blonde.
JJ put the crackers on the counter and opened another cupboard. Emily rushed to her side when JJ let out a shriek.
"What? What?" Emily asked, concerned.
"Ew…cockroach! I hate cockroaches!" JJ said as the offending creature scuttled out of the cabinet and across the floor.
Hotch, who had also moved closer to JJ when she'd shrieked, stepped on the cockroach.
"It's amazing that an organism that is so enduring can be so easily killed." Reid said.
Feeling a speech on the wonders of the cockroach coming, Hotch cut Reid off. "Reid, why don't you check out the bedroom? See if there are any blankets in the closet in there."
Reid nodded and headed to the bedroom.
A definite howl pierced the night air.
"Ok that was a lot closer. That sounded like it was right outside!" JJ said, shivering involuntarily.
Emily put a comforting arm around JJ, although she had to admit that it was to comfort her as much as to comfort JJ.
Rossi, who'd been surveying the main room, looked out the window. "Maybe I'll go see if Morgan can use a hand. Hurry him along a little. We don't need the whole stack right now, just enough to get a fire started and some heat in this place." He headed for the door.
"Good idea." Hotch agreed before Rossi shut the door behind him.
Rossi shone his flashlight around outside. He saw no sign of any animals. As he was looking around, he heard a clatter and a yelp from Morgan. Rossi rushed around the side of the house and found Morgan laying on the ground with the firewood splayed around him.
Morgan sat up slowly as Hotch and Reid rushed out of the house to find out what had caused the commotion.
"What's wrong? What happened?" Hotch asked as Rossi reached out a hand and helped Morgan to his feet.
"It bit me!" Morgan said, clutching his arm.
Rossi shown his flashlight on Morgan's forearm and indeed blood was oozing from what appeared to be a bite mark.
"What bit you?" Reid asked, looking around in alarm.
"I don't know. It looked kind of like a dog, only bigger. A lot bigger. And it was no fucking coyote. I promise you that." Morgan peered into the woods, looking for the creature.
"Morgan you go ahead inside, we'll get some of this wood and be right behind you. None of us should come outside alone again." Hotch said.
Morgan did as he was told.
"Morgan, what happened to you?" JJ rushed towards him as soon as he entered the cabin. "You're bleeding!" She exclaimed.
"Something fucking bit me. I have no idea what it was. With my luck it had rabies or some shit." He frowned at his arm, then reached down and ripped of a strip of cloth from his shirt.
"Any excuse to break something, including your shirt, huh?" Emily taunted him.
He smiled. JJ dragged him over to the sink and tried the water. Rusty brown water flowed for a minute before it cleared. "Good enough." She said and pulled his arm under the stream of water.
"JJ, I can do this myself." Morgan said.
"Yeah, like you got wood by yourself and then got attacked?" She replied.
Morgan sighed. Sometimes JJ really was like the mother of the team. She finished rinsing his wound, then took the strip of cloth from him. She tied the makeshift bandage around his arm and stood back to regard her handiwork. She frowned. "I guess it will have to do for now. You should get it checked by a doctor once we get back to civilization tomorrow." She told him.
Morgan nodded. "Yes mom." He said with a grin.
JJ rolled her eyes and headed over to where Emily sat on the sole piece of furniture in the main room, a ratty old couch. Emily was huddled under a blanket that Reid had managed to find, eating the crackers. They'd also found an unopened box of cornflakes, but with no milk she'd opted against it.
"So what bit you exactly?" She asked looking up at Morgan.
"I dunno. Some dog-like animal." He told her as Hotch, Rossi, and Reid entered the room carrying firewood. Hotch had also collected some pine cones to use as fire starters. Hotch set to work making a fire.
"Possibly a wolf. They have been known to inhabit this area." Rossi said.
Morgan shook his head. "I'm telling you, it was too big." He said taking a seat on the floor and leaning against the couch. "No way it was a wolf."
JJ, who'd taken a seat next to Emily on the couch, huddled closer to her friend. She didn't like that some wild creature had been just outside their cabin. She didn't like it at all. She had never liked the woods, and this experience so far was not endearing her towards them. JJ had to admit: she was scared. Emily offered the box of crackers to her and she took one.
"Thanks." She whispered.
Emily nodded.
"Anyone have a lighter, or some matches?" Hotch asked.
"Yeah. I've got a lighter." Emily volunteered. She rummaged through the small pack she'd been carrying all day.
"You smoke?" Morgan looked at his friend incredulously.
"No. I've just found that a lighter can come in handy." She said handing it to Hotch.
Hotch lit a pine cone then stuck it into the fireplace. He repeated the act with three more pine cones, before the first log began to catch. "We should have enough wood to last us through the night. I doubt that that creature, whatever it was, will come back, and if it does, it's instincts would most likely lead it to avoid the cabin. It would smell too much like people and fire."
JJ nodded. She wasn't convinced though. The creature had come to the cabin to begin with, and had attacked Morgan.
Emily sensed the discomfort in the woman who sat next to her. She reached a hand out from under the blanket and took JJ's hand. JJ looked up into Emily's brown eyes. Emily winked at her. "We'll be fine." She whispered as she gave JJ's hand a squeeze.
JJ smiled. Sometimes there was nothing as comforting as a friend saying exactly the right thing.
"As for sleeping," Hotch continued. "I think that the girls can have the room if they want, and we can stay out here. Otherwise we can all share this room. It's apt to be the warmest since it has the fire in it. If you wake up in the night, please check the fire and, if necessary, throw another log on. Ok?"
Everyone nodded. Morgan, however, was barely paying attention. The bite itched beneath the makeshift bandage and it was very distracting. He scratched at it. And on top of that he was boiling. "Is it hot in here? Or is it just me?" He asked, shedding his coat on the floor.
"It's just you." JJ said with a shiver. Emily rearranged her blanket so that it covered JJ's lap as well. The two snuggled closer together for warmth.
Hotch gave Morgan a strange look as Morgan began to unbutton his shirt. Rossi, on the other hand, was busy observing the two women in the group. Reid was mindlessly watching the flames dance in the fireplace. Morgan scratched at his wound some more.
A piercing wail shot through the night. JJ jumped. Hotch and Rossi both looked out the window, sweeping the nearby woods for any signs of movement. Morgan sniffed the air. The beast was still nearby. He snarled.
Emily looked at Morgan. "Did you just snarl?"
Morgan looked up, surprised. "Me? What? No! I wouldn't do that!"
"Uh…yeah…you did. That was a definite snarl." Emily accused.
Morgan shifted uncomfortably. "No way! You're hearing things Em."
Emily shook her head. "No I'm not. You snarled. Why did you snarl?"
Morgan was growing frustrated with this line of questioning. He emitted a low growl.
"Ok…I think whatever bit you rubbed a little wildness off on you." Emily said.
"Baby I was always wild." Morgan said in a sultry voice and winked.
Emily rolled her eyes. Hotch simply raised an eyebrow at his friend. It could have been his imagination, but he could have sworn he caught a glimpse of something…wild in the young man's eyes. Something primal. He began to wonder what had really bitten Morgan outside.
Another howl rang out in the woods. Morgan bared his teeth. The creature was very close.
Rossi looked from Morgan to the woods outside. "That beast is lurking around the cabin. I don't know if it's an immediate threat to us in here, but I don't like it being so close. I'm a hunter. Even in this low light, I think I could get it."
Hotch looked skeptical for a minute. It was a dangerous idea, but at the same time, he didn't like that this creature, whatever it was, was so close to his team. "I'll go with you. None of us should be alone outside. The rest of you stay here."
Morgan growled. "I can help." He said as he started to get up.
"You're injured. Let us handle this one Morgan." Rossi said soothingly.
Morgan relented and leaned back against the couch, scratching unconsciously at his wound.
Hotch and Rossi made sure their guns were loaded and headed outside. "It's not my imagination that Morgan's acting strange, is it?" Hotch asked his friend.
"No. It's not your imagination at all." Rossi replied.
They heard a twig snap in the woods nearby.
"It's close. Keep your gun raised." Rossi said.
Hotch nodded, peering through the darkness. They were close. He knew it.
Even Reid began to notice that Morgan wasn't acting himself. The two women had moved as far away from their colleague as possible. Morgan was scratching away at the bite mark and growling to himself. His face had turned to a snarl and Emily would have sworn that his teeth were pointier.
"Uh, Morgan? Are you feeling ok?" Reid asked.
"I'm fine." Morgan snapped. He was focused on the beast outside. He could smell it. It was so close. This was his territory though. The cabin was his now. The beast needed to leave. He growled again.
"I'm…uh…I'm gonna go to the bathroom." Reid said, edging his way towards the small room.
Emily felt uneasy about being left with her irritable colleague.
"I'm hungry." Morgan snarled.
"Well, we've got these delicious crackers." Emily offered, holding out the box.
Morgan batted the box away. "I don't want that shit. I need something with substance. Meat or something. I need protein."
Emily edged further away from him, angling herself protectively in front of JJ. "You're not acting like yourself."
Morgan scratched at his head. His whole body was starting to itch. He scratched at his shirt, inadvertently ripping off more buttons.
Emily couldn't believe her eyes. Morgan was literally sprouting hair as she sat there and watched. Except it wasn't quite hair. It was more like…
"Is he growing fur?" JJ asked nervously behind her.
Emily nodded slowly. "Maybe we should go to the bedroom. Check out that bed."
JJ and Emily stood slowly and crept around Morgan who seemed distracted by his scratching. They reached the bedroom door before Morgan noticed them.
"Hey!" His voice was deeper, gruffer than before. "Where are you going? You can't leave me alone! You have to help me find food." He growled. He was so hungry.
Emily smiled at Morgan attempting to placate the agitated man. "We're just checking out the bedroom Morgan. We'll be right back."
Morgan took a menacing step towards the two women. Now Emily was certain that his teeth were both longer and sharper. What the hell is going on? She thought.
She felt JJ step further into the bedroom behind her and she took the opportunity to step back, just inside the room.
Morgan took another step closer. "I'm so hungry, Emily." He unconsciously licked his lips. Another step closer.
Emily closed the door just as Morgan lunged towards them. "Oh God! Please let there be a lock on the door!" She felt the handle in the dark and was relieved to find a lock there. "Oh, thank God!" She heard what she could only describe as a clawing at the door. Emily turned to JJ who was huddled on the bed. She looked so nervous. Emily went to her and pulled her into a hug. "It's ok. We'll be ok. Hotch and Rossi will be back any second."
"Do you have your sidearm on you?" JJ asked.
"Shit. No. I left it out there. And anyway, I couldn't shoot Morgan." Emily said.
"That was not Morgan anymore." JJ replied shaking. She turned to Emily. Even in this situation she still seemed so calm. How did she manage it? JJ wished she knew. She admired the brunette so much. More than Emily ever realized. JJ ran her fingers through Emily's hair. "Em?"
"Yeah?" Emily replied.
"It's a full moon, right?"
"Yeah."
"And Halloween. Right?"
"Right." Emily said, wondering what JJ was getting at.
"And earlier Morgan said that anything can happen." JJ continued.
Emily nodded.
"Well, we got lost in the woods, found a cabin by sheer dumb luck, a creature attacked Morgan, Morgan now seems to be trying to attack us, not to mention he grew fur and fangs from what I saw, so I'm inclined to believe that anything can happen tonight." JJ started to shake more, but now it was no longer out of fear. It had become nervousness.
Emily nodded again. "Yeah. Tonight certainly seems to be a night for 'anything.' I don't think that anything else could surprise me tonight." She replied, still anxious about the scratching at the door."
JJ swallowed hard. "Well in that case, there's something I've wanted to do for a while. And now seems like as good a time as any. Especially since I don't know how long that lock will hold and I don't know what Morgan will do or what he will be when he gets in here."
"What is it?" Emily asked interestedly.
"This." JJ replied as she pulled Emily's face towards hers, locking her lips in a passionate embrace. Emily's lips were so soft. They were softer than JJ could have ever imagined.
Emily pulled back in shock. "JJ!"
"Sorry. I just. I didn't want to die and not have done that." JJ said, turning away from Emily.
Emily stopped her and turned her back. "Jayj…I don't mind. In fact…well let's just say I've thought about doing that too. But we're not gonna die. We're gonna be ok."
JJ barely heard the second half of what Emily said. Had she heard right? Had Emily said that she'd thought about kissing her? She leaned forward, tentatively, but didn't lean all the way.
Emily couldn't resist. She closed the gap the rest of the way, bringing her lips to meet JJ's. Their kiss deepened and Emily's tongue began to probe at JJ's mouth which parted willingly to allow Emily's tongue entry. Emily had almost forgotten about the events going on outside of the room when a shot rang out, resonating in the cold fall air. Emily and JJ both jumped. They heard the clawing at the door subside. Emily stood up and approached the door. She put her ear against it and listened. She heard nothing. She tentatively opened the door.
Morgan lay slumped on the floor. Any signs of fangs and fur had vanished. Emily went to his side, followed by JJ. "What do you think happened?" The young blonde asked.
"I have no idea." Emily replied.
Reid emerged sheepishly from the bathroom. "Werewolf?" He suggested.
Emily laughed, but only half-heartedly.
Hotch and Rossi came triumphantly into the cabin. "We got it. It was a big wolf or something, but we got it." Rossi said with a grin.
"What happened to Morgan?" Hotch asked in concern.
"Exhaustion?" Emily suggested. She didn't want her boss to think she'd started hallucinating things.
JJ nodded in agreement. "Must have been exhaustion."
Hotch looked skeptically from one girl to the next. He turned to Reid who shrugged. Hotch sighed. "Well it's been a long day for all of us. Why don't we all get some sleep." He said as he tried to wake Morgan.
Morgan stirred. He felt funny. His brain was all fuzzy and he had a faint memory of craving raw meat. "What happened?" He asked.
"Apparently you just collapsed from exhaustion. Why don't you take the couch." Hotch suggested.
Morgan stood up unsteadily. "Yeah. Ok. I guess I was more tired than I thought." He said. Something seemed off, but he couldn't place it.
"Ladies, are you going to stay in there?" Hotch asked.
JJ felt Emily's hand slide into hers. "Yeah. We are. Goodnight boys." She said. Maybe the woods weren't so bad after all if she got to spend the night with Emily. They closed the door again and locked it for good measure.
Emily turned to JJ and pulled her close. "Now where were we again?"
JJ grinned and gazed up into Emily's eyes. Emily gazed back, lost in those beautiful blue eyes. As their lips met again Emily couldn't help but think that anything really could happen tonight.