(Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or its characters)

Thank you to everyone who reviewed.

Please check my profile. I have a poll for the next story I write. Read the options and vote to give me an idea of what to pursue. Thank you.

So this chapter is based on IceLunaWolf and Shia Rephic's idea: nightmare and flour fluff in the kitchen.

Enjoy!

"Ouch! O-ouch ouch!" he stuttered, his hands coming up over his mouth before he could say more.

Aaron's eyes widened and he booked it up from the couch as Spencer lurched forward.

"What's that mean?" JJ asked just as Spencer threw up over the carpet.

Spencer sat up suddenly in his bed. He was unaware of the pacifier in his mouth which he sucked on in panic. He blinked around the room, pulling in sharps breaths through his nose.

"Mommy," he whispered around the pacifier. He scowled down at it, pulling the slimy thing from between his teeth and wiping his lips with Arthur, his new rabbit.

He huddled in his bed and watched the door. "P'eas don't eat me, p'eas don't eat me," he whispered to the monsters behind the door. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried not to cry. "Don't get me..."

He swallowed thickly as the words left his mouth and he grabbed Darwin off his bed, clutching him and Arthur to his chest which was rising and falling a little too fast.

"D-Daddy," he called out in a quiet voice. He waited and the longer the silencer swindled the more his chest rose with great swooping gasps.

"Daaaad," he said, wiping away tears from his cheeks with his rabbits.

He heard something move and he help his breath and pressed his back into the wall.

There were footsteps and Spencer didn't know whether to feel scared or relieved.

The door opened and Spencer, unable to stop himself, shoved his face into his palms and willed a cry back inside.

"Spencer?" The voice that spoke was soft and small and Spencer lifted his face and it fell relaxed at the sight of the speaker.

"Jat'," he murmured. Jack smiled and nodded making his way over to the bed before sitting on the edge.

"I heard you from my room. Why are you calling for Dad?"

Spencer stared at Jack and glanced towards the dark, uncharted edges of his room. Without thinking he blurted, "a monstew..."

Jack scowled and looked over to where Spencer's eyes had paused.

"Huh?"

Spencer swallowed again to slicker the way for words and he rubbed his damp eyes. "De monstew fwom my dweams," he added and he looked at Jack seriously clutching his rabbits close to him. The stern 'Hotchner look' softened on and he smiled at Spencer.

"There's no such thing as monsters. Except the ones mommy and daddy catch and those aren't even monsters, they're just people," Jack said. Spencer gazed at him in awe. He knew the boy was right, that the monsters in his dreams were only people too. He also knew they were just sour memories clogging his mind hiding the things he used to know, like what was before mommy and daddy. It felt like he'd been with this family an eternity but if he was just two then that wouldn't make sense. But then again that would be his entire existence.

Spencer pressed his knuckles to his head and whimpered. It was all too much.

"Hey, Spencer, it's okay, look, I'll check for monsters if you like. You have to help me though," Jack said, standing up from the bed and holding his hand out to Spencer. Spencer curled up on the bed and shook his head.

"Dey get me," he whispered. Jack shook his own head.

"No, they would've gotten me if they were in here. I'm bigger so they'd want me more."

That didn't seem to make Spencer feel better because two fat tears rolled down his cheeks.

Jack quickly got to his knees and stuck his head under the bed.

"Nope, Nothing here," he said, grinning at Spencer as he came up. Spencer peeked over the side of the bed to be sure.

He watched Jack routinely search until his door creaked open again.

"Monstew!" Spencer squeaked as Henry poked his head around the door.

Henry squinted through the nightlight, his hair mushed to one side of his head.

"What are you doin?" he grumbled.

Spencer wrapped his blanket over his shoulders and whispered. "Jat's huntin monstews."

Henrys eyes popped open. "Monsters?" he repeated.

Jack shook his head and dropped a book back on the book shelf.

"There's no such thing but I'm checking just to be extra sure," he said.

"Can I Help?"

"No, you should be asleep, Mom and Dad will ground you."

"You're awake and so is Spencer and he was supposed to be asleep ages ago," Henry whined. He looked at Jack and they both glanced at Spencer.

"Fine. Quickly, you check the toy box, I've checked the bed."

Spencer giggled as the boy's snuck around his room looking for 'nothing' if only to make the toddler happy. Jack came back to Spencer nesting in his bed and he clasped his hands together.

"Well, no monsters, I told you," he said.

Spencer double-checked under his bed and he sat up and nodded.

"No monstews," he mimicked. Jack smirked and gave Spencer a warm hug. Henry poked Spencer's side fondly, forcing a giggle from him.

"You can go to sleep now," Jack said and he helped Spencer lay back down. The younger boy lifted his head as expression of panic seeped across it but Jack just smiled to reassure him.

"Sleep," Jack said. He and Henry left after muttering to each other about connecting on their Nintendo's before going back to sleep. Spencer wished they'd take him with them so he could watch and fall asleep with them beside him.

When they did leave Spencer lay watching his nightlight. He felt tendrils fear start edging up at his back so he kissed his rabbit and squeezed his eyes shut.

"Dewes no such fing as monstews, Dewes no such fing as monstews..."

He said it twice more before he was pulled back into a sweet slumber.

He would have been glad not to have gone with the boys as Aaron caught them playing Super Mario after Henry celebrated a little too loudly.

When he looked in on Spencer he smiled softly at the sleeping boy, his rabbits glued in his grip.

"When's dad back?" Jack asked as he stirred the cake mixture, watching as clumps exploded from bubbles revealing treasures of unmixed flour.

"Soon so we need to get this in the oven and-" JJ grabbed the sugar off Spencer just as it had started to tip. "Not make too much mess."

Spencer giggled sheepishly, wringing his sticky hands in the hem of his top. He was wearing navy shorts and a stripy blue, pink, and yellow top. He'd already got milk on them at breakfast so JJ wasn't so worried about him getting dirty. She looked down at his one orange sock with tigers on and the yellow one with rabbits, and smiled seeing as they were the cleanest items of clothing he was wearing.

Jack and Henry didn't mix their socks, Henry chose to go barefoot more often than not. They were also in shorts, Henry's shorter and red and Jack's long denim. Henry wore an old white shirt while Jack had a minecraft top on.

Spencer smiled up at JJ deciding not to reach for the bags of ingredients from his meagre height. Instead, he hurried to the table and nabbed a chair from its place. He struggled with it but was determined to move it himself, his tiger and rabbit socks slipping on the floor as he pushed it.

JJ had taken up the mixing bowl again and was giving it a good stir.

Henry peeked over the counter and managed to dip his finger in the mix when JJ's head was turned.

"Shall we make the icing now?" Jack asked. JJ paused, tasting the mixture herself before she shrugged.

"Might as well. You think you three can do it while I put these in the oven?"

"Yep!" Was the chorus she was confronted by. As she spooned and scraped the yellow mixture into tins she tried to ignored the crazy and messy actions playing in the corner of her eyes especially when Henry sent a cloud of icing sugar up into the air.

"I'll stir!" Henry took charge of the bowl but Spencer and Jack were trying to butt in.

"Share, Henry!"

"Not yet!"

"I stiw?"

"Not yet, Spence, I just gotta..."

"Give him a go."

"Fine."

"Keep the spoon in the bowl!"

"You're barely mixing it."

"I was stiwing!"

"Sorry, Spencer, but I haven't had a go."

"Jack, don't hog it!

JJ looked at the clock. Aaron should be back in another thirty minutes. She could easily jump in the shower and be done before he got back.

She smiled at the boys mixing the clumpy icing, bickering lightly and sharing turns stirring. Spencer was leaned up on the counter with both hands, his toes on the edge of the chair. JJ grabbed him off the chair and pulled Henry off the counter, setting him on his feet.

"I'm going to have a shower. Can you three please stay and watch TV until I get back. Don't touch the oven okay?"

Jack pushed the icing bowl away and nodded solumnly at JJ.

"Jack's in charge," JJ said as she walked to the front room and set Spencer down on the couch. He crossed his legs and reached for the remote but got there just after Henry.

"I'll be back. Listen to Jack you two."

Spencer just huffed watching the TV flick away from the nature channel.

"Yes, mom!"

Spencer honestly did try and follow JJ's directions. He sat on the couch for a whole ten minutes, watching Henry's favourite show reluctantly. He felt as if he'd followed the order so well that perhaps he'd earned himself some leeway for just five minutes or so.

With that in mind, Spencer slid off the couch and snuck into the kitchen.

He looked around at the mess they'd made on the counters and in clusters on the floor. He tilted his head to the side thoughtfully.

He didn't have anything to do, either risk the stairs which he was certain he'd fall from sooner or later, go back to the boys or clean.

He could have the best surprise for mommy when she came back. He beamed to himself at the mental image of JJ walking into a clean kitchen. He affirmed his choice and started picking up bits of plastic packaging off the floor and he swept some sugar into his hand, making two trips and back to the bin.

When he was done he glanced at the chair and pulled his gum between his teeth.

He could really get some things done up there. Spencer nodded slowly to himself as he thought about it and after another moment's hesitation he grabbed the seat of the chair and shimmied up onto it, kicking his orange and yellow socks against the cabinets to get himself up.

Once up, Spencer turned to the messy counter and grimaced. They had made a big mess.

Spencer sighed and reached his tiny fingers across the counter to grab a cloth. He started to carefully wipe up the mess, making lines of clean and keeping it separate from the dirty.

He got all he could reach after a few minutes of his tongue poking out and his toes straining. He dropped the cloth and looked around for something new to do. He noticed some ingredients hadn't been put away and he reached eagerly for the half full bag of flour, unknowingly dropping his cloth on the chair seat by his feet.

JJ jogged into her room, a towel clinging to her wet body as she clung to it. She peeked through the curtains and saw Aaron's car come to a stop in their drive.

"Crap," she muttered, dropping the towel and grabbing her bra.

There was a loud bang downstairs and JJ paused. A wail followed shortly after and JJ snatched up her pyjamas and quickly pulled them on. "Double crap."

"Where's Spence?"

Jack raised his eyebrows at Henry and turned to the spot where their brother had been. "Oh," he mumbled.

Henry stared boredly at the TV. "We should find him," he said, with little intention of moving.

Jack hopped off the couch. "I'm in charge, remember, stay here a minute."

Jack trudged out into the hall and heard a small grunting noise in the kitchen. He made a beeline for it and found Spencer tip-toeing precariously on a chair.

"Spencer!"

Spencer turned suddenly, a bag of flour in his hands. He smiled at Jack and made a move to get down.

"I tleaned up," Spencer said proudly. He held up the flour in his unsteady hand and grinned.

Jack held his hands up in surrender. "Just get down from there, Spencer," he said.

"I was 'bout to-"

Suddenly, Spencer's foot caught on the damp cloth, sliding against the varnished chair and taking him with it. Spencer tumbled off the chair and onto his butt. Jack could only gape in horror at the loud and painful collision before the bag of flour, that had gone up in the air, crashed upside down on the back of Spencer's head, dousing him in white.

The kitchen was almost smokey and Jack waved the powder away just as Spencer's hands went to his backside and he let out a cry of pain.

Aaron practically bounced out his car. He grinned as he slammed the door shut and hurried to the house. He paused with the key and decided to knock instead.

There was a scuffle inside and a strange whining sound as the door clicked.

Hotch smiled down as Jack appeared in the doorway looking a little frazzled.

He then saw Spencer in Jack's arms.

The toddler was covered in flour, his normally brown hair, a milky white. Flour had clumped together by his chin where his tears were accumulating but thankfully Jack had wiped the rest of his face. Spencer sobbed louder and Jack passed him over to Aaron whose face had twisted with concern.

"What happened?" he asked, taking Spencer urgently.

JJ rushed downstairs then, her hair soaking and her pyjamas askew.

"What's wrong!?" she cried. She saw Spencer in Aaron's arms and the flour on his shoulders, ears and hair and she scowled.

"He fell off the chair. Then the flour fell on him too," Jack said.

Spencer fisted his eyes and continued to cry. "I-I-I twied to t'ean," he whined, rubbing his lower back.

Aaron put his hands on the back of Spencer's neck and stroked the powdery skin there. "Shhh, it's okay," he said as he exchanged a worried look with JJ. She wiped some flour off Spencer's eyebrow before shooing Jack back into the front room and going back to the kitchen.

Aaron followed, bouncing Spencer gently and talking to him to calm him down.

JJ fished the cakes from the oven while explaining to Aaron what had happened. Spencer calmed down in Aaron's arms but his one hand kept absently rubbing his backside.

"Someone wasn't listening," Aaron said as JJ leaned back on the counter.

"I shouldn't have left them."

"Still, he should have listened shouldn't you Spencer?" Aaron asked, shaking Spencer who nodded weakly against his shoulder. Aaron scruffed up Spencer's hair, creating a flour cloud.

"And now look at you," he said.

Spencer raised his head, his mouth turned unhappily. "And my... butt. It 'till huwts."

"I'm not surprised." Aaron looked up at the clock and shifted Spencer. "I'll give him a bath. I'll be back to help clean."

JJ shrugged. "I'll have the boys help me."

Aaron smiled and leaned over her, pressing a firm yet loving kiss to her lips. "And thank you for the cake."

"The boys did most the work. Someone helped too much," JJ said and Spencer nuzzled his face into Aaron's shoulder.

He took that as his cue to take Spencer upstairs for a bath since he was ghostly white with flour.

His clothes went straight into the basket and Aaron ran the bath. Spencer rubbed his backside, whimpering at the sight of the dark red marks the fall had left.

He bathed quietly, pushing his boat under so water filled it and letting it slowly float back up.

Aaron was eerily silent and Spencer was almost relieved when he fished him from the tub.

He had only been helping. He didn't mean to make everyone angry. No, they were worried came another thought as Spencer shivered in his towel, waiting for Aaron to finish cleaning his ears.

Spencer put his thumb between his teeth as Aaron scrubbed a fluffy towel over him. He saw the action and yanked the offending hand away from Spencer with a scowl. Spencer whined, his eyes getting teary.

"Here," Aaron said and he picked up a pacifier on the sink and pushed it into Spencer's mouth. The boy looked less happy than he had with his thumb but he started sucking it quietly as Aaron pulled his pyjamas on.

Aaron pulled Spencer to his feet and held him by his shoulders.

"Spencer," he said seriously. Spencer's wandering and sleepy eyes found him. He swallowed heavily when he saw Aaron's dark eyes. He felt his eyes blur with tears and he really couldn't help it. Why did he look so disappointed?

"I'm sowwy, Daddy," he whispered. "I'm weally sowwy, I just-"

"Spencer," Aaron said sternly and Spencer shut his mouth, tears decending his cheeks. He sniffled loudly despite trying to be quiet. The sobs were starting to bubble up.

Aaron felt equally as guilty as he watched Spencer struggle with keeping his emotions under wraps.

"You know what you did wrong, don't you?" he asked. Spencer nodded shakily, heaving in a breath and hiccuping.

"You didn't listen to Jay- mommy after what she told you and you got hurt. You know not to be alone in the kitchen."

A sob did break through then, and another followed it while Spencer burrowed his palms into his eyes.

Aaron locked his jaw and continued. "You could have been hurt worse-"

"I-I-I was just twyna help mommy!"

"Spencer stop."

"I w-was t'eanin up, D-Dadeeee!" Spencer whined, hiccuping loudly and rubbing his red eyes. Aaron felt his stern expression slip a little and his grip grew limp.

"That's very nice of you but you didn't listen to Mommy," Aaron said. Spencer just sobbed weakly.

"Sowwy," he whispered between a hiccup and a sob. Aaron finally had enough and he pulled Spencer into his chest. He enveloped the boy and Spencer wrapped his arms and legs around him.

He patted Spencer's backside and the boy wailed into his shoulder.

"I guess that will be punishment enough," he said, recalling the red mark creeping up Spencer's coccyx. Spencer nodded into his shoulder.

"I-I'll nevew t'ean again," he promised. Aaron raised and eyebrow in amusement.

"Not exactly the lesson you should learn from this, buddy."

Thanks for reading. Next week will be Eris's suggestion where the boys find a stray and I'm so excited to write that.

So many good ideas! I can't wait to write them all. I'll be sending messages out to you soon to let you know what future your ideas will be used in.

See you then.