Disclaimor

I do not own Criminal Minds or it's characters

Note: Raul and Dorien are the father and son in the Gypsy family from the season 4 episode Blood Line. They were never named in the episode but for story purposes, I needed to name them.

Morgan stepped into the round table room and all eyes turned to the tall, dark skinned agent as he made his way to the head of the table, the chair occupied for so long by his friend and mentor Aaron Hotchner. He had sat here for a time before temporarily while the team hunted for George Foyet. Still, it felt strange to take this place. Morgan supposed he would grow into it.

"Good morning everyone," Morgan said, lowering himself into his chair. "I see you've all made introductions."

We've started, Tubbs." Xander stated, drawing quizzical looks from the others. Morgan gave the younger man a stern look.

"I thought we discussed this Gallagher." Morgan said coolly.

"I understand why Garcia and I are here," Reid began, "Emily and Hotch were vague about what this team is and how it will function."

"Then we'll start there," Morgan said.

"The auxiliary Investigation Unit is designed to go a step further than The BAU or local law enforcement. In many cases particularly some of the ones the BAU handles, the unsub we take down for the specific case we've been called in on is connected to, or part of something larger. Their capture brings to light other criminal activity, or the potential for more. Then there are cases where the criminal tries to retaliate against us for ending their fun."

Garcia and Reid shared a look, each remembering cases that impacted them directly where the Behavioral Analysis Unit itself was targeted.

"After 2 cases the BAU dealt with in the last two years, the brass decided a team like this was necessary to handle the branch off cases so the team itself could focus on moving forward, even when these kinds of situations came up." Morgan adjusted the position of his tablet on the table top, "Rather than simply creating another team of profilers, it was decided that we needed a group that could get into their heads in a different way."

"It takes a criminal to know a criminal?" Xander guessed. Gesturing at Garcia and Reid Xander asked, "But how do they fit. They're agents?"

Morgan took a deep breath, "Each of you has a special and unique perspective on criminal behavior and psychology that goes beyond case work and book learning." Morgan turned to Garcia, "Penelope Garcia was a skilled hacker who caught the bureau's attention when she hacked our system. Alexander Gallagher started out as a pimp in Chicago. Eventually he moved on to an impressive array of cons and computer frauds that left some of the bureaus best and brightest computer forensics guys shaking their heads."

Garcia glanced curiously at Xander who was giving her a dubious look; not at all sure he believed Morgan's words.

The senior agent glanced down the table, giving Reid an apologetic look, knowing what he was about to say was bound to make his friend uncomfortable. There was no way around it he knew, but Morgan regretted it.

"DR. Spencer Reid spent 3 months living among hardened criminals. He had been framed for murder."

Reid fidgeted in his seat, letting his gaze drop and quietly fuming. Did Morgan really need to talk about his ordeal to a these strangers. Be honest, you just don't want Aurora Ashleen to see you as other than her white knight from her childhood, Reid chided himself. He risked a glance at his old friend, she leaned forward, her hair falling across her cheek. She brushed it back impatiently. It seemed Aurora was on the verge of saying something. But as Morgan went on, Aurora's entire demeanor changed again.

"Aurora Carstairs, while earning a degree in European History, focusing on nomadic cultures, in particular, Romani, she has been a member of the Fallen Angels."

"Sounds like a stable of exceptionally skilled prostitutes, maybe a high end escort service." Xander winked suggestively.

"And you'd know all about prostitution." Aurora sneered at the hustler, giving him a disgusted look.

"Actually, it's a unique outreach that assists run away and throw away kids by creating safe, judgement free spaces where they can come and interact with individuals who have chosen a less high risk life." Reid explained. He turned to Aurora, smiling appreciatively, "The kind of group Aunt Melinda would approve of."

"They're not related," Garcia whispered to Morgan whose eye-brows lifted at Reid's words.

Aurora felt a swell of pride as Reid turned an appreciative gaze her way. She was impressed he had such a strong grasp of what her work entailed. She was grateful Morgan had not mentioned her ethnicity.

"Spencer's description of Fallen Angels is simplistic but accurate." Aurora said, "Fallen Angels does host events in donated warehouse space. We set them up like raves. Kids can come in; if they work in the streets they can ply their trades, so long as no one is forced. Weapons aren't allowed and violence is not tolerated. If kids want to make any change, they can talk to people there who have been where they are, people like me. We get them what they ask for, no more, no less, no questions, no strings. We also walk the streets: We mediate disputes; we offer an encouraging word, a warm blanket, a ride to the bus depot and a ticket to wherever they think they need to go. Whatever is required?"

Morgan noticed a skeptical look come over Xander's face while Garcia was regarding the other woman with admiration. Morgan smiled to himself. He might have known something like Fallen Angels would capture Penelope's interest.

"Really, you just handed out charity on the streets and didn't tell girls to respect themselves and stop turning tricks or tell dealers to stop selling drugs. You just let them carry on?"

"We don't call it charity though," Aurora responded, fixing the pretty boy with a cold glare. "We aren't that far removed from who and what they are. We try to give them what we were seeking, at their age. What the system often can't or won't give them, acceptance, understanding and empathy."

"So what law did you break college girl?" Xander challenged, still skeptical.

Now it was Reid who turned a hostile gaze on the hustler.

Someone's got more than fond familial feelings, honorary or otherwise for the flame haired Aurora, Xander thought to himself, wonder if he's read the sexual harassment policy?

"It's okay Spencer," Aurora said quickly, "As I'm sure Agent Morgan would have gotten around to mentioning before he was interrupted, until Aunt Melinda helped me face some home truths about why I was living the way I was, I ran up a bit of a rap sheet of my own. I had seen the inside of a police station and spent some time in booking for pick pocketing and running some short cons. I'm sure nothing as elaborate as your action." Aurora said this last with a sarcastic smirk on her lips that had Xander contemplating the grain in the table top.

Penelope Garcia stifled a giggle at the take down of this cock of the walk. Morgan too put a hand to his mouth to cover a grin. Even Spencer couldn't suppress a small laugh. He felt his admiration for Aurora growing as he observed her behavior. There was not a trace of the sad, broken little girl who wouldn't speak and sat staring at a family photo contained in a cheap, brass locket. Here beside him sat a strong, confident young woman who owned all parts of her life and wasn't afraid to stand up for herself. He was going to appreciate working with such an individual. Reid wondered what had guided Aurora's choice of study.

There was a knock on the door; Emily Prentice stuck her head in the room.

"Are you ready for us, Derek?" she asked.

Morgan would have liked a little more time to talk about his expectations. The mini skirmishes of the group had cut into that. But Morgan knew the discussion had been necessary, and maybe it was better to let them feel each other out that way. So he nodded to the BAU team leader.

Reid glanced at the door, watching as those on the team he'd been a part of for most of his Career with the FBI entered.

First to enter was dark haired Emily Prentice, in a dark grey pantsuit with a red blouse and matching black leather boots. She took a seat across from Morgan and to the left of Garcia. Next was the stylish David Rossi, his snow white Goatee neatly trimmed. He wore a rust colored suit jacket and pants of the same hew, and expensive, Italian leather shoes.

"Hey kid," Rossi greeted Reid as he took a seat to his left. Reid turned to his right and saw that Aurora was regarding his friend with avid interest, she leaned toward Reid.

"Aunt Melinda would love to make him husband number lucky 7." Aurora whispered, "When I brought home his Anthology Twisted hearts, Aunt Melinda looked at his book jacket photo like a dog eyeing a t-bone steak."

Reid couldn't suppress a laugh.

"Anything you want to share with the class," Rossi smiled as he spoke. Aurora flushed crimson and Reid began fumbling in pockets for writing implements.

"I think they were admiring your tie." DR. Tara Lewis suggested as she settled in a chair beside the bestselling author.

"I heard steak, so maybe they were hoping for an invite to Rossi's." JJ stated taking her place to Aurora's right.

"Did someone mention steak, who's buying?" Luke Elvez wanted to know as he and Matt Simmons joined the group. Simmons started to close the door then stopped as one more figure entered. Section chief Aaron Hotchner remained apart from the group, leaning against a wall on the far side of the room. When everyone was seated, Emily Prentice stood and gestured the room to silence. Introductions were made for both teams. The meeting then began with Emily Prentice taking the lead.

"Both of our groups will be working parallel on certain cases. The way this will work is that the BAU will take the lead, working with local authorities and then requesting the Auxiliary Investigation Unit. They will develop additional leads while we move on to other cases."

"What kind of additional leads?" Aurora asked.

Prentice and Morgan exchanged a look then Morgan spoke."That can take on different forms on a case by case basis."

There was a long pause, and then Hotch stepped to the Plasma screen, pointing the remote and showing a picture of a family, a blond haired woman, a tall man with shaggy hair and pitted skin, and a boy of about ten years old with shaggy, dark hair falling in his face. Aurora stifled a gasp. She had seen them before. She remembered them all too well. She felt rage swirl inside of her. How much do they know? Why didn't they stop it? Aurora wondered.

"The Gypsies that were grabbing young girls as wives for their sons and killing the parents as a forensic counter measure?" Rossi said.

"That was while I was on maternity leave," JJ brushed back her hair.

"It was the last case before you came back" Hotch said. "In order to gain the cooperation of Kathy Grey aka Sylvia," Hotch indicated the blonde woman, "We had to allow her to see her son one last time before he was taken into juvenile detention. During that meeting she admonished him not to tell authorities about his brothers."

"He didn't either." Prentice said, regarding the picture of the boy thoughtfully. "We tried everything.""We attempted to search for these brothers but there wasn't much of a digital footprint."

Aurora stood, keeping her voice calm as she spoke. "Did you ever think of looking for his sisters?" Aurora's glance moved around the table. JJ's eyes widened in horror, Garcia looked like she was going to be physically ill, Rossi and Prentice shifted guiltily in their seats, Spencer had gone pale, Lewis, Simmons, and Elvez wore expressions of concern but they seemed to be taking things in, in an impassive manner by their silence, Aurora decided they hadn't been in on the case. Only Morgan and section chief Hotchner seemed completely composed. Though Aurora thought she detected a fleeting look of regret in the section chief's eyes before he slammed a carefully neutral expression on his face.

The reactions of the others kindled long restrained feelings Aurora thought she had locked away. Again, she thought of Eden Anne, seeing her face pressed against the window of the trailer before the woman Sylvia pulled her out of sight.

"You couldn't have thought every baby she had was a boy, or that the other men's wives had only sons. What did you think they did with girl children? Did you even give them a thought or were you just as dismissive as they were?"

Reid met Aurora's piercing gaze.

"We should have considered that. Statistically, there was an equal chance of there being girl children." He gave his friend a look of apology.

"Do you know what they might have done with those daughters?" Rossi asked. His voice was kind and the look he gave Aurora was, like Spencer's, apologetic.

"Yeah, I do?" Aurora folded her arms across her chest, still angered by the memories, though she felt some of her rage ebbing in the face of David Rossi's compassion. He reminded her of Melinda's husband Dallas, the only man her foster mother married more than once. She took a deep breath, "Usually they killed girl children, left them in dumpsters and like that. Sometimes they let them live and kept them around a while, but not past 2 or 3, then they got rid of them, gave them to other bands or sold them. The men usually did it, but sometimes they just handed the baby to whoever delivered it and told them to take care of it."

"Are you sure about all this?" JJ's tone of voice was full of incredulity and rankled Aurora's nerves.

Aurora turned her fury on Derek Morgan, "You knew, didn't you?"

"We weren't 100% certain until just now." Morgan kept his gaze steady. He hadn't intended the meeting to go this way. He had hoped they could ease into confirming what the evidence had suggested about Aurora Carstairs.

"You were one of the girls?"Reid broke into the silence that descended. He furrowed his brow and Aurora could see him putting the pieces together, "It all makes sense, your behavior when you first arrived at Aunt Melinda's, your selective silence and your knowledge of what was done to girl children. Only someone who lived within the culture would have such extensive knowledge of their practices."

Aurora gave a faint smile and nodded. "Aunt Melinda didn't advertise my heritage because of societal biases."

"We believe Aurora's parents were murdered because they stumbled onto this perversion of Romani culture and may have threatened to expose it." Hotch brought the meeting back on track."That's part of the reason Morgan selected her for this team. It's time to cut this particular branch out of the Romani population and hold those males involved with it accountable for their actions."

Aurora resumed her seat. She glanced at Reid; please don't let him pity me she thought. But she saw only understanding in his look.

Hotch handed the remote to Garcia who brought up a new picture. This was a picture of a smiling family. A broad shouldered man with a full beard, his attractive, chestnut haired, oval faced wife, and their ten year old daughter who wore her brown hair in braids.

"Meet the Rivers family." Garcia began, "She clicked the remote, Phil and Marylyn Rivers were found dead in their bed this morning, their 9 year old daughter Miriam gone. This happened in Davisville Mississippi. The sheriff there has a fishing buddy who happened to be working the case in Alabama we worked and he suggested the Mississippi Sherriff call us to see if this was another branch of that particular creepy family tree."

"The BAU will start trying to run down the family using case work but the AIU will begin a wider search, so that we can try and bring the rest of the family to justice." Prentice said, "The clock is ticking for Miriam and who knows how many others."

"Will we all be going to Mississippi?" Reid wanted to know.

"Yes," Morgan said, "Initially anyway. The plane leaves in an hour. Reid, I want you and Aurora in the streets, Garcia, you and Gallagher will track migratory patterns and crime waves to see if we can find a pattern that way."

"You won't get anywhere through those channels," Aurora told him, "Like Agent Prentice said before, we gypsies are a low tech crowd. All you'll find are complaints and arrests for small crimes that result in misdemeanors. They'll be long gone by the time we get there. This branch as stayed off law enforcement's radar for generations and they've done it by staying in the shadows."

"So how do we find them?" Garcia asked.

Aurora stood once more, beginning to pace and gesturing as she spoke, "You look for the people they engaged with. Primarily we stick to within the community but there are times when it is necessary to deal with individuals outside. Those are the ones who might point you in the right direction. Look at pawn shop owners, fences, hackers, and forgers. Probably especially the latter two. They wouldn't exactly be going to the hospitals when their women were giving birth or having birth certificates and drivers licenses made up at city offices. Too many questions."

"So maybe even midwives?" JJ ventured.

"Aurora shook her head, "the midwives they would use would be people in the Romani community who would not ask questions."

Garcia and Xander looked to Morgan who nodded, "Start compiling a list of likely contacts they'd use then and see what you can find out about who they dealt with and how."

"We might have to get creative to accomplish that task," Xander said.

Morgan glanced at Garcia who gave a slight inclination of her head.

"Do what you need to do," Morgan said.

"Alright, people, wheels up in 60." Hotch said."

"Wheels up, what does that mean?" Aurora asked.

"It means you have an hour to get a bag together for a few days trip." Morgan said as he pushed up from his chair.

"Thanks for the advanced warning," Xander scowled, "I need an hour just to pack never mind the time to get back to my place to do it."

"My backpack's at my desk, just tell me what airline terminal to be at." Aurora stood to leave.

Morgan and Hotch exchanged a look.

"There is a child's future in the balance which means the clock is ticking, otherwise I'd give you the time." Morgan said. He scribbled an address on a piece of paper and handed it to Aurora then did the same for Xander

"Derek maybe Xander and I would be more effective if we were both here."Garcia suggested.

"Baby Girl, you're a part of this team, you're coming along too." Morgan's grin widened as his friend blushed furiously and fidgeted in her seat.

"I'm going in the field. I never go in the field. I don't have a go bag." Garcia rung her hands together and glanced nervously to Hotch, He gave Garcia a faint smile.

"Then I guess you better get your little butt moving." Morgan gave her a look of encouragement.

Just before the room emptied, Hotch spoke, "Your groups will work on their own in the future but for this first case, the deputy director suggested I go along." Hotch noted Morgan's annoyed expression and Prentice's raised eye-brows. He remembered the affect Strouse had when she joined them in the field. "I promise, you won't even know I'm there unless it's necessary, or you want to involve me."

"Sure," Prentice said.

"Okay man," Morgan shrugged.

The room quickly emptied out. Spencer Reid remained behind. "Is Aurora on this team because of her work with Fallen Angels or because she's a Gypsy?"

"I'll see you guys on the jet," Emily Prentice said as she gathered up her folders. Hotch started to follow her but Reid called to him, "you knew, Morgan picked his team but you had to approve."

Hotch stopped, "I agreed with Morgan's choices and his reasons for them. I believe Aurora's background as well as her work will make her an asset to this team."

"I picked her because of her work in the streets, because of her work with Fallen Angels, she knows how to reach people who can help us but won't be willing to come down town and talk to law enforcement. I knew one thing we would be working on was going back to find the rest of Dorien's brothers. So yes, I was looking for someone who might know how to penetrate a closed society. We'd hit dead ends with the brothers so I wondered if there were sisters. I didn't really expect we'd end up recruiting one.

Reid glanced between the two older men then nodded.

"It wasn't fair to blindside her," Reid shifted on his feet, digging his hands into his pockets.

"That wasn't the plan Kid," Morgan said, "And is that really what your upset about, or are you pissed because I alluded to what happened to you in front of people outside the family."

"You could have let me explain about why I lived with criminals." Reid admitted, "But Aurora's a friend and the past, especially the part of it where she was with her family is painful. I don't like seeing friends hurt."

"She's lucky she has a friend with her on this team," Hotch regarded Reid kindly, "It may make this case easier for her."

Reid nodded then picked up his messenger bag and left the room. As he strolled through the bullpen, He spotted Aurora hunched over one of the desks. He changed course and headed to where she sat staring pensively at a piece of paper. Reid leaned over her shoulder to study the page. It contained a child's drawing. The picture depicted a brightly colored trailer, with red curtains on the window. A girl's face peered out from the window. She looked to be between 10 and 12years old and very blonde.

"Who is she?" Though Reid's voice was gentle, Aurora started when she heard it, spinning around and then smiling at her friend.

"I didn't hear you."

"Sorry," Reid moved around and perched on the edge of the desk, "Is she a friend from the carnival?"

Aurora took a deep breath. She knew she should tell the team about her private quest but after all this time, she was reluctant to tell strangers what she had seen. Spencer will understand. He'll help me make the others understand too and maybe we can save Eden Anne, Aurora told herself.

"Her name is Anne." Sylvia and Raul had her with them when they came to Starlight. Raul and his older son Nico worked as Roustabouts for a while and Sylvia helped with cooking chores. They were just passing through. They had a younger son Dorien."

Aurora watched Reid's expression. His brow creased as he took in Aurora's words and quickly put the pieces together.

"Anne was taken the way Miriam and the other girls were.?

"That's right. Anne was her real name but the family called her Eden. I've called her by both names. It's my way of honoring who she was while knowing who she is now. I failed her before but I've never given up hope."

Reid nodded his understanding. "How did you learn her real name?" Reid asked.

"We talked through the window for a while. Then Sylvia pulled her away and told her to come help her. She was crying. She begged me to get her help. Raul came out and told me not to speak of what I saw She was Nico's wife now."

"Who did you tell?" Reid leaned forward, gently placing a hand on Aurora's shoulder.

Taking another shaky breath Aurora spoke in a voice barely above a whisper, "My parents."

"Your silence makes more sense now."

"Can we talk about something else please? "

"Like?" Reid asked.

"You're Career, Aunt Melinda's love life, I don't care."

Reid thought for a minute, "How about the case?"

Aurora nodded slowly; "Tell me about this other case," Aurora asked, "Take me through what you learned."

Reid knew it would be even more helpful if Aurora told him more about her life with her family, but her troubled expression told the young profiler this was not the time. So he took her through the case, starting with the attack at the home of the Hale family, the murder of the parents, Jeff and Nancy Hale and the abduction of their 10 year old daughter Kate. He explained how Kate was eventually released when the kidnappers discovered she was Epileptic.

"They believed she was cursed," Aurora interrupted, "She would bring bad fortune and would pass the curse on to any children she might bare. She's lucky she wasn't killed."

"Kathy Grey eventually confessed her husband wanted her to kill Kate." Reid said.

Aurora nodded for Reid to go on. As he did so, telling her how after talking to Kate, they understood it was a family they were looking for. He took her through the steps of the investigation, their creation of a profile, the similar attack on the Roubolard family and the eventual capture of Raul Trevelyan, his wife Sylvia and son Dorien. As he recounted the events, Spencer Reid felt the knots of tension that had coiled within him since receiving Emily Prentice's text that morning receding. He could see that focusing on the facts of the past case was diverting Aurora's attention. He recalled Hotch's words, that it was going to be good for Aurora to have a friend on the team as this case was bound to bring forth painful memories. Maybe it's good for both of us to have a friend who understands where we came from, Reid decided.

"Did you know Reid and Aurora had a history?" Hotch asked when Reid had departed.

Morgan got to his feet, "Not till I walked in and saw them with their heads together like a couple of kid's passing notes before the teacher shows up.

This image drew a small chuckle from the normally somber section chief. The ghost of a smile played over his lips. "Reid certainly seems protective of her."

"The two of them look out for each other it seems like. Before the rest of you came in Reid mentioned someone called Aunt Melinda, Garcia said it's not a blood relative but when you call someone Aunt you're not talking a casual acquaintance."Morgan stuffed his hands in his pockets, "Maybe it's a good thing the Kid has someone around who knows him well but didn't know what happened to him."

"How much did you tell the team?" Hotch paced back toward the door.

"No details. Just enough for them to know he'd been inside." Morgan let out a long sigh, "Maybe I should have let the kid disclose that himself."

Hotch nodded "It would have been more comfortable for him."

, Morgan bit back irritation at the mild rebuke.

Thanks for the ride," Xander told Garcia's he threw a suitcase into the back of Ester, Garcia's convertible." Xander climbed into the passenger seat, lying a laptop bag over his knees.

"We couldn't have you going around buck naked," Garcia kept her eyes firmly on the road as she started the car.

"Come on, you wouldn't appreciate a view of a fine specimen of manhood?" a lascivious smile broke on Xander's face.

"When would that happen?"

Xander turned toward the window, contemplating the row houses they passed on their way to the airfield.

"You know, your God's gift to women routine is really kind of tired. I can't understand how all those women fell for it?" Xander turned back, his eye-brows raised in surprise.

"You didn't think I was just sitting here twiddling my thumbs while you threw together some essentials. I looked up your record. You were a hacker, a pimp and a hustler."

"I was using what I had to make my way." Xander's voice was bitter, "I didn't have any angels, fallen or otherwise landing on my shoulder to show me the way."

"No, you had a drunkard father, a tragic mother and a strict grandmother. That couldn't have been easy."

"Strict, Grandmother Claire was an inflexible tyrant." Xander found himself confessing.

"Lots of people have crappy childhoods," Garcia slowed as they approached a traffic light, "Look at what Aurora must have gone through being discarded just because she was a girl child. But she turned herself around."

"Good for her" Xander scowled. "She made the right connections. I mean that Aunt, she couldn't have been any Gypsy to put her in the same orbit as someone like Reid. Some people get lucky and then there are the rest of us."

Garcia sighed in exasperation. Well, no one can say I haven't tried to work with this gigolo, Garcia thought to herself as she turned down the access road to the airfield.

"You'll want to change into your street clothes before we go probably," Aurora said as she and Reid moved out of the bullpen, following several members of the BAU.

"These are my street clothes," Reid gave Aurora a puzzled look.

Aurora looked Reid over; he wore khakis, a light blue, button down the front sweater, a tan dress shirt peeking out from under it. He was carrying a messenger bag over his shoulder as well as an overnight bag. Even his shoes were wrong she decided, plane, canvas sneakers nothing that would be associated with a big name athlete.

"Let's see, Aurora began, Staying Reid's progress with one hand as she spotted JJ, Elvez, and Rossi standing together by the elevator. She didn't want to make Spencer uncomfortable.

"If you go Morgan wants us in the streets as soon as possible, right?" Aurora fixed Reid with a steady gaze as she spoke. She raised a hand, ticking off points, "In the streets, that ensemble will make you stand out like a mother superior at a brothel, you should be wearing jeans: nothing fancy or designer (faded would be best), high top sneakers or boots with a place to stow a knife .

If possible, a baggy t-shirt, and probably a hoody, something that would cover your holster. The only thing in your outfit that works is your socks. They're a bit retro but Chris Cross was memorable for their fashion statement so that's still hip.""

"I don't have time to go home and get the pair of jeans I hav,e and I've never heard of some of the articles of clothing you mentioned. What is a hoody?"

Aurora knit her brows together, trying to think of the best way to describe it. This could be a challenge. JJ had left the others and was approaching them. Aurora's expression turned to a scowl, they didn't need an audience. The doors from the bullpen opened again to disgorge Morgan and Prentice.

"I'll explain when we go shopping." Aurora said quickly.

"Don't worry, you won't need to shop. We have everything we need." JJ interjected.

"No, we need to go shopping." Aurora folded her arms across her chest, drawing herself to her full height of five foot two.

"There isn't going to be time," JJ said,

"Then we better make time or Spencer here is just going to be asking to get his ass kicked. No one will believe a fallen angel would walk around with someone who is either some kind of social worker or a lay preacher. We both need to look like we belong."

"I've been in the field dressed like this, and it wasn't a problem." Reid squared his shoulders. He shifted his gaze to Morgan, looking for help. He noticed the look that passed between JJ and Prentice. Both seemed amused by his predicament which made him feel worse.

"I'm not talking Neman Marcus or Just for men," Aurora now also looked to their boss, "Just about an hour in Old Navy or a local consignment store." Aurora turned to Reid, "I wouldn't suggest this if it weren't important."

"She's right Pretty Boy," Morgan gave his friend an apologetic look, "You two are going under cover in a sense and that means you have to look like you belong, not like a federal agent." Morgan turned to Aurora, "Fine, do what you need to do but get on the streets as soon as you can when we land. Take Aurora with you on this shopping trip., she'll know what you need."

Morgan patted Reid on the shoulder. The younger man gave a resigned shrug and the group continued. Aurora again put a hand on Reid's arm as the others boarded the elevator.

"We'll take the next one," she said. When the doors closed she turned apologetically to Reid.

"I'm sorry Spencer; I should have talked to you about this before we left the bullpen, We didn't need an audience for this conversation. I was so wrapped up in my past in feeling shell shocked…"

"It's okay; I'm use to providing entertainment for the group. And you were blindsided this morning." Now it was Reid who gave Aurora's hand a light squeeze. Aurora gave him a grateful smile. She tapped the call button for the elevator, "We'd better get down stairs before we provide them with gossip as well as entertainment which by the way, It bothers me they do that to you."

Reid was touched by Aurora's fierce defense of him. Yes, he was going to enjoy working with her, even if she did intend to put him through one of his least favorite activities, clothes shopping. However, Reid knew Aurora's hopes of keeping them from becoming a gossip item were going to be in vane. He knew that Garcia would be passing on the intelligence about his mom and Aurora's foster mother teaching together and just before the elevator doors closed, Reid caught sight of Rossi and Simms exiting the bullpen. Rossi winked as he spotted the pair inside. These two teams were in many ways, one big family and Aurora was going to learn what he already knew, this family cared about one another but they also liked to have a little fun.

Aaron Hotchner was in the act of slipping on his jacket when there was a knock on his office door."Come in," the section chief called, buttoning his coat. The door opened and a pretty woman with light brown hair tied in a neat pony tail entered the room. She wore a maroon sweater and sky blue yoga pants. She carried a bakery box. She placed it on Hotch's desk.

"Since it was my fault you were behind schedule and missed breakfast, I stopped at Donnelly's after I dropped Jack at school and picked you up blueberry muffins. Marjorie says they came fresh out of the oven this morning." Hotch stepped to the woman, catching her in a warm embrace.

"You're going to spoil me Beth." Hotch pressed his lips to hers in a tender kiss. Beth laughed happily as she wound her arms around her husband's neck, deepening the kiss.

"I'm so glad I decided to take that trip to Vermont for the early foliage."

"And I'm glad I got another chance to ask you to marry me." Hotch cupped his wife's cheek, stroking the smooth skin. He remembered the chance encounter at the rustic general store when his son spotted Beth purchasing hiking supplies.

They kissed once more before Hotch reluctantly released her.

"Did you hear anything yet?" Hotch asked.

"They want to talk to me today," Beth straightened her sweater, "I'm sure I'll have an answer by the time we take our trip to the cabin."

"Then I will be sure to be home in time for our weekend."

"Or you could fly directly to Vermont and meet me there."

"I shouldn't need to stay more than a day or two, just to make sure the Auxiliary Investigation Unit and the BAU can function smoothly together."

"How did it go when the two teams met?"

"It was a little bumpy; there are some tensions, especially regarding two of the members of the AIU. And Reid and one of them have a history of some kind. I'm not sure how that will impact Morgan's group."

"Well, if anyone can see that both groups compliment rather than hinder each other it's you Aaron."

"I appreciate the vote." Hotch said. He hugged Beth once again then picked up his go bag.

"I'll walk you out."

"Don't forget your breakfast Hotchner," Beth picked up the bakery box and thrust it into his free hand. Hotch smiled his appreciation and the pair left. Hotch glanced at the clock, wincing as he realized he was going to be at least 5 minutes late getting to the airfield even if he ignored speed limits. Morgan and Prentice wouldn't let him hear the end of that.