A/N: Heh, looks like this update came a day or so early. 'Wonder if that's a good thing or bad…

BUT, before getting to the business… THANK YOU, from the bottom of my heart, for your fantastic reviews! (GLOMPS) I'm always insecure when it comes to launching a new fic, so your support means the world to me. So thank you!

Awkay… (takes a deep breath) I guess it's go-time, no? I REALLY hope you'll enjoy the ride.


'I'm saying to myself, 'This has got to be a nightmare'. I haven't woken up yet.'

(Curtis Sliwa)


The Dark Side of the Moon


Flight attendant Kiki Rawson had had a extremely long night of fighting with her boyfriend. That's why she wasn't at her sharpest when she served the customers of morning flight from Quantico to New York. But despite that a strange pair caught her attention.

On row fifteen sat a about thirty-years-old man with bleached hair and the sharpest eyes she'd ever seen. Beside the man slept a approximately four or five years old little boy that seemed to be shaking ever so slightly. The child's head was leaning against the man's shoulder in a extremely adorable way.

In the end Kiki's curiosity got the best of her and she found her feet leading her towards the two although a voice in the back of her head whispered warnings.

The man immediately looked at her, extremely subtly shifting his body so that he was half shielding the boy from her sight. "Yes?"

Kiki blinked once before speaking, taken aback by the tone. "Is everything alright, sir?"

The man nodded somewhat stiffly, his eyes never once leaving hers. "Yes. The boy's sleeping like a log – I think he's coming down with a flue."

If Kiki had been even a little bit more aware, she might've noticed the danger in the man's eyes. As it was she smiled. "What if I'd get a blanket for him, then?"

The man gave her a smile that made her shiver for some reason. "Thank you, Kiki."

It took about two seconds before she realized that he'd caught her name from her nametag. As soon as she recovered from her stun she gave him a somewhat awkward smile and walked away as fast as she could without making it look ridiculous.

The flight couldn't be over soon enough, she decided.

(It wasn't until an hour and a half after the flight landed the report of missing Henry found its way to Kiki.)


Even though she threw her usual somewhat cautious driving style to the wind, it took JJ eleven minutes and thirty-two seconds to make it to the police station.

Eleven minutes and thirty-two seconds that felt like eternities. Will's words on the phone kept echoing in head, taunting her.

/ "Someone… Someone took him. Someone took him." /

The car's tires screamed for mercy when she pulled to a stop by the police station, abandoning the vehicle to a spot that'd most likely earn her a ticket at very least. Although her legs felt dangerously weak she ran faster than ever in her life – until she stopped like she'd ran into a wall of bricks.

There were tears all over Will LaMontagne's face when she stormed in. He lifted his gaze upon hearing her steps. As soon as he saw her the tears kept rolling faster, so violently that he could barely speak. "I… I'm so sorry, JJ. I'm so sorry…!"

The scream – or perhaps a howl – that crawled through her throat broke the hearts of everyone who heard it. At that moment she couldn't control her body anymore. Will or even the police officer walking past her didn't have the time to break her fall until she'd already stumbled ungracefully to the floor.

Will moved as though planning on touching her before changing his mind. "Jayje, please calm down – we'll get him back. Just get up."

She didn't. Didn't even hear. She knew it was cruel and unfair, but her eyes were full of flames and something dark when she cast them at her husband. "What happened?"

Will shuddered like someone had just stabbed him. And started to speak in that same forcibly detached voice he often wore at work – it was the voice she'd made him swear to never bring at home.

He told her how he took Henry to a park, because the boy begged to get there although it was far too cold for it to be really enjoyable. His voice changed, gained a hint of something she didn't recognize when he continued to tell that he received a very important call from work, such he had to take. He almost whispered when he finally revealed that he left their son all alone, for less than three minutes but still – how he came back to find nothing but a couple of droplets of blood from the ground. He spat out those words like they'd been acid on his tongue, never once meeting her eyes.

For a minute or two JJ couldn't react in any way, couldn't think or feel. Then something so dark and vicious she couldn't recognize it took over, made her unable to control herself.

The following moments were later nothing but red blur to her. She managed to recall unleashing a scream that should've come out of a wild beast, remembered quite faintly that she smacked someone hard enough to cause a sickening sound. And then she ran away, as fast as her feet could carry her, deaf to the cries pleading her to stop.

JJ had no idea where she was going, but her subconscious side seemed to have an idea.


Dr. Tianna Wargas wasn't nosy, not really. But sometimes curiosity managed to get the best of her. That's exactly what happened when she entered the office she shared with Dr. Oliver Wilson after a lecture, and noticed that the one locker he usually kept firmly locked was now wide open.

The said man was nowhere in sight. This was most likely her only chance to get answers that'd been bugging her since the man took over half of the office.

Making sure no one was about to walk in she approached the locker and peered in. What she discovered made her frown.

There was nothing but a simple photograph of what looked like a team of some sort, four men and three women. They weren't all smiling openly, but it was clear that they were enjoying each other's company. One of the men caught her attention so sharply that her heart skipped a beat. The man had brown hair and eyes, and he wasn't wearing glasses, but… Gosh, he was a exact replica of Oliver!

She'd always imagined Oliver as a loner who knew just about no one outside the university. So who were these people? Because it looked like they'd meant a lot to him. And could the man on the picture really be Oliver? Why would he have changed his appearance so much?

It was a small miracle that she managed to catch the approaching steps before she would've been caught red-handed. She'd just sat to her own chair when Oliver walked in. "I noticed the pile of papers is gone from your desk", she commented instantly.

Oliver looked at her with visible confusion while sitting down. "Yeah, I finished a while ago."

"The bet was that I'd get you coffee if you'd finish with the essays in forty minutes, remember?" She grinned. "You were done in thirty. So let's go."

Oliver frowned. "But the day won't be through in two hours."

She scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Oh please! You work overtime pretty much every day, and I've got at least a five hours to spare. So let's go." Seeing the incredulous look on his face she came close to breaking into a laughter. "It's not like we'd be committing a deadly sin. So come on, Wilson. Live dangerously just this once. It won't kill you."

Oliver licked his lips, still looking a bit like a deer caught in the headlights. She was stunned when in the end he nodded slowly, even came close to smiling just a little bit. "Okay."

As they left the building she couldn't help noticing the way Oliver looked around, as though expecting something or someone to attack. For a moment or two she wondered if he was always like this outside the university, even went far enough to muse what could cause such behaviour. But then she stopped herself vehemently.

Perhaps some secrets were best left buried.


Henry was still partially asleep, scared and extremely confused when his eyes finally opened halfway. At first his tiny heart was pushed beyond its limits when he saw nothing but blur, but little by little his gaze managed to focus on a wooden roof that had a dusty, filthy and ugly lamp hanging from it. Henry frowned, curling so that he was as small as possible, and swallowed although his throat felt sore.

What… was this place? Why did that man want to bring him here? Where were mommy and daddy?

That last question spinning around his mind brought tears to Henry eyes, and his lower lip quivered dangerously.

Daddy would be so, so mad at him because he'd ran away like this. And mommy would be worried – she always worried, about him at least. What would they say to him when he'd go back home? They'd yell, of that Henry was sure. Yell and cry. He didn't want to see them cry.

Just then something jumped on him, startling him so badly that he yelped. His gaze turned quickly, frantically searching for the attacker. He found himself staring at a grey cat that had sharp, yellow eyes.

Despite the situation and fear, Henry smiled while stroking the cat's fur. The animal didn't seem quite sure what to make of the affection and recoiled slightly. "Hey, kitty", Henry greeted quietly, unsure of why he was whispering.

The feline looked at him with big, mistrusting eyes, not daring to move. And then there was a sound of door opening. The cat jumped off of him with a loud mew and disappeared into the furthest corner. Henry felt the need to do the same when Liam walked in. He was far too young to name the look on the man's face, but he didn't like it.

"Well good morning, Henry. You're finally awake. Guess what that means?" Liam closed the heavy, metallic door he'd just walked through and started to approach the cat. "We can finally get the games started."

Henry's eyes widened significantly when Liam picked up the cat although the feline hissed and growled in a protest. "Leave him alone!" Henry screamed, his voice full of tears. Some of them spilled when the man crushed the animal to his chest, making the feline's anxiety grow. "Please! You're hurting it!"

Liam gave him a smile that chilled him while walking towards him, the struggling animal held tightly in his irony hold. "Oh, no I'm not – not yet. But you see, this cat is just a part of the game. It's just a part of the cycle of life."

Henry could do nothing but watch when Liam freed one hand and pulled out a long, sharp knife. Henry was crying openly while the man kneeled and placed the clearly discontented cat to his stomach, holding it there. "Please don't, please!" Henry begged although deep down he knew the man wouldn't listen. The cat was clawing him hysterically, making his tears fall harder. "Don't hurt it!"

But it was already too late. The man brought the knife down, and in a couple of seconds the cat screamed before growing utterly still and silent. There seemed to be blood all over Henry.

Henry had never screamed like that in his short life.


Spencer was by no means an expert when it came to relationships between men and women. But according to the knowledge he had over such matters, men were supposed to walk women home.

Perhaps it was logical that in his case things worked the opposite way round.

He cast a somewhat wary glance towards Tianna, who was walking beside him towards the house in which he lived and talking excitedly about some new theory she'd just come up with. The situation felt so foreign that he had no idea what to think about it.

They were by no means on a date, not even close – it wasn't long he'd considered her a little bit more than a colleague. But it felt strange for him to feel comfortable around her. He hadn't felt that way with anyone outside his BAU-family.

It made the torturous gnawing of homesickness inside him ease just a little bit.

He didn't wake up from those thoughts until he realized that they were stood before the block of flats where he was currently staying.

Tianna arched an eyebrow and grinned, taking in the sight of the shabby yet oddly cosy building. "Looks like you."

It was his turn to arch an eyebrow. "Should I be offended?"

Tianna's expression was nothing short of cheeky. "That's up to you, doc." She then shuddered slightly with startle when her cell phone bleeped surprisingly loudly, announcing that she'd received a text message. She read the message and grimaced. "I've gotta go." She gave him a brief wave, moving to leave. "Thanks for company. See you tomorrow, Wilson."

Spencer felt his stomach knot, the feeling of comfort from before vanishing. How was he supposed to be comfortable around anyone when he couldn't even tell who he was? "Yeah. See you tomorrow."

Spencer watched her walk away for a couple of moments, a strange feeling of dread rising within him, then turned the opposite way and walked into the building. He was deep in thought while he opened the door of his apartment, ensured the five locks installed to it and fed his loudly mewing cat.

Feeling this restlessness he couldn't explain, Spencer decided to direct his over excitement to something productive and opened his computer, then logged in to his work e-mail.

As a professor Oliver Wilson received a lot of e-mail. But one of the fifty new messages made him lose his breath for several valuable moments.

It was sent by 'Uncle John'. There was no message to it, only a file that looked like a web-camera recording. In a flash he wished he'd never opened it.

The picture quality was absolutely horrible, but he could nonetheless make out all too clearly what was on it. Liam, now with bleached hair, sat on a bench in a almost dark room. In the man's arms was a hysterically crying Henry, who had blood all over his face and clothes. After about two gut-wrenching minutes the screen went black until scarlet text began to appear.

'Let that team of yours lead you to me, or Jennifer will never see her son again. Or which life do you consider more valuable?

Our game is nowhere near finished, Cody.

The clock is ticking.'

Less than a minute later his chair was empty.


When Will called Aaron – explaining that JJ once gave him the number just in case – and told the whole situation to him in a weak, shaking tone, the unit chief felt sick to his stomach.

Aaron's thoughts spun around in wild, angry circles until Will told him quietly that JJ was now missing as well. She'd ran out on him as soon as she heard everything. He'd gone home as soon as the police was done asking him questions but there wasn't a trace of her. Since then Will had already checked everywhere and had no idea where she'd gone.

Will wasn't a profiler. Aaron was.

Aaron grit his teeth so tightly it hurt before managing to speak in a voice he didn't recognize. "I think I have a clue. I'll let you know as soon as I find something."

After a breathed out 'thank you' from Will the phone call ended. Neither of them was in the mood for a long conversation. In a couple of seconds he took off, trying to ignore how weak and heavy his feet felt.

Less than ten minutes later Aaron walked slowly through a gate he'd wished he'd never have to open again, and trekked through the seemingly endless journey to his destination. Once he was there his feet pulled him to a sudden stop while the bleak sight seemed to crush him under its weight.

JJ was right there, less than five steps away, fallen to her knees before Spencer's grave. She wasn't crying at the moment, but it was easy to tell that she had been not too long ago. She was still shivering like a leaf while staring at the name on the tombstone. Her lips were parted slightly, as though the words on the tip of her tongue had been stuck there. It didn't look like she'd even known the rest of the world existed.

Aaron braced him as far as he could, then dared to take a cautious step forward. In an instant JJ stiffened and looked over her shoulder. She didn't relax until several moments after discovering him. She looked away, appearing embarrassed. "I… came here to talk to him, but… I don't know what to say."

It seemed Aaron had the same problem for a while. His voice sounded off when he finally spoke. "I'm sorry, about Henry. But we'll find him – he'll be alright." It sounded flat even to his own ears, but it was the best words could do in such a extreme situation.

It appeared JJ didn't even hear him. Her eyes grew watery for a while until she blinked the moisture away with all her willpower. She was almost whispering when she spoke again. "Do you know what's the worst part?" She swallowed even though it appeared painful. "If the police will ask me what Henry was wearing this morning… I don't remember – I don't have a clue. Everything was a chaos this morning." She wiped her cheeks with a angry motion. "I snapped at him, when he dropped a mug. I made him cry. I'm not even sure if I told him I love him before going to work. And now… Now I can't even get up, when I should be looking for him." She grit her teeth so hard it hurt even him. "I'm never there when those I love would need me the most. What does that say about me?"

After only a moment of hesitation Aaron laid a hand to her shoulder. She leaned in to the comforting touch. "Trust me, he knows how much you love him. Henry's a smart kid." He looked at the tombstone, unsure if he should voice the rest. "And Reid knows how much he means to you as well."

JJ's facial muscles tightened. "But I still wasn't there for him when I should've. I wasn't there when he…" Finally she looked at him with eyes he didn't recognize. "I'm not going to lose my son as well. I can't."

Aaron opened his mouth, still feeling a ton's weight on his chest. But in the end he realized that he couldn't speak out the just about only words that would've offered her any consolation, so he pressed his lips together tightly once more instead. He looked away, unable to meet her eyes anymore. The weight on his chest grew tenfold as they kept staring at the tombstone in a grim silence.

Aaron had always been a good liar and actor. This was the first time he truly despised himself for it.


It was nearing nine in the evening, and Erin Strauss would've wanted nothing more than to go home. She longed for good vine and a dinner with her husband, especially because the day had been hell due to Henry's abduction.

The following day the team had been supposed to go to New York to investigate the newest leads on Liam. But there was no way the team would've been able to work on a case, especially one that involved Liam, under these circumstances. That's why, despite their objections, Erin announced that the case was cancelled. Since then she'd made about a million phone calls and completed a gigantic pile of paperwork in order to explain everything properly. About a hundred people had yelled at her and Erin was so pissed off that she had a migraine.

And the team was, of course, a mess. Penelope Garcia had barely managed to keep herself from crying when she'd stopped by at the woman's office to finalize cancelling the case. Derek and Aaron looked fully ready to kill. And JJ… was a wreck. She'd seen JJ briefly before Aaron had herded the distraught woman into his office, and hadn't needed a lot of profiling skills to notice just how unstable the younger woman was. One look at JJ's face gave her a very loud premonition of doom.

So now all Erin wanted to do was to go home and get her mind off of all the day's load. But fate seemed to work against her once more. For as she was walking through a already pitch black parking lot she suddenly sensed that she was no longer alone.

She stopped in her tracks and stiffened, her eyes darting around. She couldn't see anything out of ordinary in the darkness.

Or didn't until she took a look towards her car.

Erin wasn't one to become shocked easily. But at that moment ice ran through her veins and her eyes grew significantly.

The man leaning against her car, his arms folded tightly to his chest… He just couldn't be who she thought he was. That man was supposed to be dead.

Erin managed to convince herself of that until the man's eyes – very different in color but still the same – rose to meet hers. He swallowed with visible difficulty and shifted uncomfortably. It seemed to take ages before this Dr. Spencer Reid look-alike finally spoke in a chillingly familiar voice. "I… I think we need to talk."

For some reason Erin's very first coherent thought was that now she'd have to call her husband and put that dinner on hold.


TBC, or…?


A/N: If it offers you guys any consolation, it hurt me to write that scene with the cat. (winces) Those poor people!

So… (gulps) What's the verdict, folks? Was that any good at all, or is delete-button calling? PLEASE, leave a review! It'd totally make my day since it's rainy and gray were I live. (gives puppy's eyes)

IN THE NEXT ONE (if you want such, of course): Reid's returns flips JJ's world upside down. How will the team react when he tells them his intentions? On a flight to New York they prepare for the final chapter of the nightmare to begin. And Liam is right there waiting for Cody Jones…

Until next time, folks! I really hope I'll c ya guys then.

Peace out!


ari: (chuckles) I did, didn't I? For once!

I'm thrilled to hear the first bit sucked you in! I truly hope you'll find the next one as captivating.

HUGE thank yous for the review!


sarahloulabellx: I'm THRILLED to hear that you like the plot revealed thus far! (grins from ear to ear)

Let's hope Henry comes out of this unscratched, no? Because otherwise JJ would be crushed. (grimaces)

Massive thank yous for the review!


vetgirl1231: The bunnies win again! (smirks) And AWWWWWWW – that ninja one is absolutely, totally, super adorable! See how fast I updated? (chuckles at oneself)

Poor JJ indeed! This is all hell for her. And she doesn't even know that Reid's alive! (sighs) Let's hope Reid gets his closure, and that the bastard of Liam pays dearly for the pain he's brought on so many people! (hisses)

Colossal thank yous for the review!