A/N This is different from everything else in this series. AU MAEVE NEVER DIED. Child!Reid and future Reid. Remember Reid's imaginary friend, Riley? Right now add borderline schizophrenia to the mix and ba-bamb! This story was created. REVIEW PLEASE! And the names at the end... Did I overdo it? XD EDIT: I Will Clarify THIS IS AU IF REID WAS ACTUALLY SCHIZOPHRENIC or borderline schizophrenic, whatever.

Spencer had always known he was different, from his first memories. He understood things other kids his age couldn't. He could read and write and do math all by the time he was four years old.

He knew something was wrong his mother to, she would talk to someone when no one was there. And he didn't understand it until one day he was at the park and a little boy came up to him and introduced himself as Riley. He started talking to the boy until his dad came over and asked him what he was doing.

"I'm talking to my new friend Riley," Spencer said.

"There's no one there," his dad reply angrily, grabbing his arm. But since I knew there was. He could see him. It finally dawned on him that maybe this is what was wrong with his mom, and maybe something was wrong with him too. They both saw things that no one else could. When he realized this he was both terrified and excited at the prospect of being even more special. But his mother was paranoid-he didn't want to end up like that.

Later that night, he heard his dad talking to his mom about what happened at the park.

"You see? You probably passed it down to him this-this disease! He was talking to someone that wasn't there." His father's voice was angry and scared. But Spencer new Riley was real. He had come home with them and was now sitting across from him in his room.

He knew talking to Riley would just make his dad angry, so he decided he couldn't anymore. His dad already yelled at his mom enough, Spencer didn't want to add any more fuel to the fire.

"Riley," Spencer said, "I don't think I can talk to you anymore."

"Why not?" His new friend asked. "We're such good friends already. I don't want to be alone."

"I know," said Spencer, "but it's scaring my dad. I'm the only one who can see you. I don't want to make my dad anymore angry at my mom than he already is."

"But Spencer! You seeing me makes you special!" Riley argued.

"I don't like being special. Other kids don't like it," Spencer said, hanging his head.

"But that's why I'm here, Spencer. To be your friend. You don't need the other kids, just me," Riley replied.

The offer of friendship was tantalizing, too tantalizing for a friendless four year old, however smart he was, to resist.

"Okay," Spencer said. "But my parents can't know about you. I have to tell my dad I just made up an imaginary friend because I was lonely- that I know you aren't really there."

"As long as we can still be friends," Riley agreed.

As the years passed, Riley and Spencer grew closer. Riley was just as smart as Spencer-some would argue even smarter maybe.

By the time Spencer reached high school, at the tender age of 9, he finally understood. His mom had schizophrenia. After a few moments of reflection, he remembered Riley who had slowly stopped showing up around the age of 6. When he woke up in the morning and Riley wasn't there, Spencer had panicked and went to tell his mom before he remembered she couldn't know about Riley be spent the rest of the day miserable until during dinner, Riley had showed up again. He had been so surprised, he spilt a glass of water all over himself.

After that day, Riley's attendance in Spencer's life had been spotty at best, and at 9 years old, Spencer hadn't seen Riley in almost a year.

"Schizophrenia. Riley was because of schizophrenia," Reid thought to himself. Within weeks, Riley was back. But now Spencer ignored him. That was, until Riley got violent. Riley had changed in that year he didn't show up to Spencer. Now he was a tormentor. Like all the other kids at his high school. Except this was worse. Because it was all in his head. That was when he learned that words can hurt just as bad as physical pain.

But knowing what was going on now, Reid ignored Riley. And once again he faded from Spencer's life. This time for years and years.

Until the headaches started. And Riley came back again. Spencer was in his mid-twenties now, and working for the FBI Behavior Analysis Unit. He also knew that Riley was the result of borderline schizophrenia, he had been a drug user, drugs increase the chance of getting schizophrenia, and schizophrenia usually shows up in your early to mid-twenties. So to say the least, he panicked.

And it lasted for months and months, Riley whispering in his ear. The headaches were terrible and he spent those months living in terror that he was going to get what his mom had. It wasn't until Emily's death and he got ideas from Maeve to get rid of the headaches that Riley left. He was finally gone and Spencer could sleep at night again.

Now, six years later, he and Maeve were married with a four year old and a two year old. His beautiful baby girls. The older of the two, Emily Jennifer Reid had his hair and eyes. Penelope (Penny) Diana Reid was the younger of the two and so far looked just like her mom.

Spencer came home from work one day after a hard case and saw his wife's worried features. "What's wrong?" he asked her.

"Emily was talking to an imaginary friend today," she replied. They both knew the weight of that sentence, and all at once, Spencer felt his world crashing down.