This story starts as the Season 12 Episode 11 ends...

Taking care of Diana was much harder than it seemed. Spencer knew how hard, how devastating it could be. But he had no other choice. Sleepless nights were just one of many problems. Getting Diana to take her medicine and putting up with episodes. Spencer wasn't a child anymore; Diana's mind wasn't sharp anymore. It took her longer to remember him now. Spencer took a deep breath, sat on the chair, pressing his temples with fingers. It was starting, slow pulses of pain. He had to do something to stop it before getting stronger. A few unsteady steps to the kitchen, he looked for some 'safe' pain killer. But he couldn't farther as he was had tied himself to Diana, just in case she woke up and decided to leave. Slowly and carefully, he untied the scarf and walked out of the room. He searched through kitchen cabinets and finally found some pain killers. After taking them, he tiptoed back to the bedroom and again tied the scarf around his wrist.

The night seemed peaceful. He had to take his rest. Tomorrow the new nurse would come, and he had to be on time for his work. If only this new drug worked… everything would simply fall into place again…

"Who are you?" Diana's scream made Spencer jump.

"Mum?" Spencer pushed his eyelids aside. "Mum, it's me, Spencer," he mumbled as he was still very sleepy.

"Why am I restrained?" Diana cried, "Where am I? what is this place?" she was freaking out.

"Mum, calm down. Look at me! it's me, Spencer, and you are home" he was fully awake now. "you're not restrained, look it's just scarf, I tied it to my arm… I can…" he moved his hands slowly close to Diana so he could open the scarf.

"Don't touch me!" Diana shouted and pushed him away.

"MUM! It's me!" Spencer shouted as he was trying to untie the scarf and give his mum space.

Diana turned around, she was freaking out. The first thing that came to her hand was a book, a thick old book she was reading just before falling asleep. The old french book came straight to Spencer's head. "Jesus!" Spencer said. The scarf was finally off.

Diana noticed she jumped out of bed. "What is this place!?" Diana screamed again.

"Mum, relax! Home! It's home!" Spencer tried to stay calm and assure her, but he could tell one of those horrifying episodes of his mum was happening, combined with the taste of dementia she was experiencing a lot earlier today.

"No, it's not! No, it's not!" Diana ran around the room, finally go to the door and tried to open it. "it is locked! Why it's locked?!" she strived harder. The door wasn't locked, it was a bit stuck. With one strong pull, it was finally open, and Diana was free into the living room, she rushed back and tried to close the door, so Spencer couldn't get out.

"Mum! Please, I'm not going to hurt you!" his brilliant mind wasn't working. With every new crisis, every further chaos, it was like he was getting absent-minded! These days fear easily could paralyze him. Sometimes he just felt so helpless, so small. Lots of darkness to handle.

"Mum!" he cried. Diana finally let go of the door and ran to the kitchen.

"Stay away from me!" she warned as she started looking for something in drawers and cabinets. She was out of control.

Spencer rose his hands as a peace sign. He stopped moving, "Mum, listen to me! You are safe here! I am Spencer, your son," he said, slowly taking one step. Tears rushed in his eyes, made everything kind of blurry. All bad memories, all horrifying nights in his childhood, all scary nights working on case didn't seem so bad anymore. He had never seen his mother like this before.

He was slapped, trapped in the darkness of the basement. He was bullied in school and came home to his mum, searching for refuge only to find her having a breakdown and being thrown out in the middle of the night. He had sleepless nights sitting on the porch, cold winter nights. He even was harmed, unintentionally, he was thrown away as he was trying to keep his mother in the house, cracking bones, lying about them to the whole world of people asking. But he never had it this way, he never had Diana holding a knife, not even recognizing him.

"Don't come any closer!" Diana hissed. She swayed the knife in the air swiftly, warning the 'enemy,' the man who swore was his son, the spy who was placed as him. "You can't trick me! You can't fool me! you are not him!"

"I am him, I am Spencer, do you remember…" Spencer took a few seconds to find good old memory, secret memory which only he and Diana would know. "you told me about the time when I tried to be an Acrobat? On the backyard fences? We just talked about it a few nights ago? Remember it? Then I fell, and you said I have a scar? You used to call me Crash?" he smiled, tried his best to stay calm and less of an outsider.

Diana listened. How could he know those things? How could… they had been spying on her for her whole life! She wasn't safe! She could never be safe! Diana felt devastated. Suddenly the entire place was circling around her head. She felt tired, weak.

"Mum, listen to me, you need to take your medicine now… remember? Dr. Rosaline? The new blonde doctor we met a few months ago?" Spencer reached for a bottle of medicine, which was on the counter. It was special treatment, a prescription just to make sedate her, something precisely for this kind of situation. The situations, now, expected to be seen and lived more. "Do you… remember her? Or me?" he was fighting tears so hard.

What was that drug? Why would he accomplish but getting Diana to take that? Diana felt confused. Her mind was clouded, He was trying to drug her, he was trying to restrain her. Diana held on to the cabinet. She couldn't focus anymore. She left the knife there and closed her eyes.

Spencer slowly walked toward her. He knew she was under a lot of stress and lots of pressure. Her body was physically tired. Few more steps and now he could touch her arm. Slowly Spencer put his hands on Diana's arms; he waited a second.

"I don't feel good," Diana mumbled.

"I know mum, let's go to bed," Spencer said.

Diana picked up the knife. She turned around in second and aimed for her captor's heart. But Spencer was stronger now, he was a trained agent. Once in his life, he never felt safe without Morgan in the field, he needed a protector, but now he was the protector. The struggle got intense. Diana screamed and tried to kick him. But he pushed the knife back, un in the air and tried to un-arm his mum. They fell on the kitchen floor and rolled over, once and twice.

"let go of me!" Diana cried.

"Mum! Stop it" Spencer shouted.

The last drops of strength left Diana's body. Now she was all weak, curling on the ground and crying.

Spencer finally got hold of the knife and fast through it as far as he could, not minding about later when he had to search around for it. He was worn out and panting too. After a moment of hesitation. He grabbed his mum's arms and brought her into a warm, protecting hug.

Diana's sobs broke his heart and chewed on his soul. For a moment, he couldn't take it anymore. He closed his eyes, leaned against the cabinet, and waited. Waited for the moment of angst to pass. He was washed off every feeling, every sensation. But he didn't have time for that. In his whole life, Spencer Reid had just one mission… his life only had meant when he was working on that, 'protecting his mum.' He had to stay strong, he had to…

The thoughts running through his head got silenced as he noticed Diana was asleep. Everything was at peace again.