I LOVE THIS EPISODE SO MUCH, IT IS SO GOOD AND LUKE PERRY DID SUCH AN AWESOME JOB! The dynamic between Em and Reid is so good and all the angst of the team being separated is amazing. I felt like they didn't give me enough of a resolution at the end tho. You can't just sucker punch Reid in the gut twice with a gun, have him stumble out of an explosion, and then act like he was good. I like to think that he acted ok cuz of his guilt about Em, but perhaps he isn't as okay as he pretends. Another Reid hiding an injury fic coming right up!

S4 E3

PT1

When Benjamin Cyrus had offered him the chance to leave, it was hard for Reid to say no. But it only took him a second to turn the offer down. He knew that his team members probably would've been mad at him for this choice, but it was Reid's fault that Emily's life was on the line, and he had to stay in the building to make sure she got out.

He felt so guilty that he hadn't stepped forward. When he heard Emily's screams and grunts coming from the room, his heart felt like it was being stomped on. And when he'd seen her a few hours later, cuts and bruises all over her face, a wave of hot shame poured over him and guilt pooled in his stomach.

This was his fault.

She was injured because of his stupidity, and his fear.

Reid shook his head, refocusing on the present. It was clear that Mr. Cyrus was ready to go down in a blaze of fire, taking as many people with him as he could. They'd hoped a surprise attack would work on them, but it seemed that he was too smart to fool.

As Mr. Cyrus looked out the front doors, realizing that something was wrong, Reid swallowed nervously. He knew that Prentiss was going to try her best to get the women and children out, and he needed to make sure that he gave the FBI and SWAT teams enough time to get as many people out as possible.

But the man looked ready to go ahead and arm the explosives. And he was waiting on the vehicles to close them in, that way he could take down as many of the government employees as he could.

The man stepped outside, shooting his gun, making sure the press was filming. This was his endgame.

Reid knew there had to be something he could do to stall the man. He didn't need a lot of time now, only ten or so minutes. The scenario was minimal loss, Reid knew that they weren't going to successfully extract everyone alive, so now it was time to stall those who wouldn't be making it out.

He raced towards the two men who were standing at the doors, holding weapons. He had to do something, he had to distract them. Reid could hear the gunshots coming from down the hall, he didn't have enough time.

"Jeremiah, 29:11; 'I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to bring you hope and a future.'" Reid quoted, watching as Cyrus began approaching him, "Is blowing yourself up part of the prosperous future that God wants?"

"You think you know the word better than I?" Cyrus asked, placing the butt of his gun against Reid's sternum. His eyes traveled down to the weapon, heart racing.

"No, I'm just demonstrating that you can use the Bible to manipulate anything."

"Matthew 10:24; 'Do not suppose that I've come to the Earth to bring peace. I did not come to bring peace but a sword." The man then shoved Reid backwards, the gun's stock hitting him directly in the ribs. It was hard enough that he felt a few of his ribs crack and the wind was completely knocked out of him.

"Agh." Reid groaned, doubling over in pain.

"You cannot convert my brothers." The man said. He then stepped back slightly before throwing all his weight into the next blow. The gun hit the same spot, and Reid collapsed on the ground in pain, ears ringing slightly. His ribs were throbbing in agony, and he was still trying to catch his breath from the first blow.

'I'm not gunna make it out' was all Reid thought, groaning on the floor. He didn't know if he'd even be able to stand, much less fight his way out. 'Please say Prentiss got out' he prayed to anything that could possibly be listening. As long as she got out, he did his job.

His ears had stopped ringing and he glanced back up at the man standing over him. Cyrus's finger was dancing over the detonating button, ready to blow the whole place up with them inside.

"No one had to follow. God could have stopped me."

Suddenly shots rang through the room. Reid covered his head instinctively, watching Cyrus and his follower get hit.

He pushed himself up weakly, smirking. "He just did." Reid stated half-heartedly.

Reid felt a new surge of adrenaline. There was a chance he could get out of here now, and Morgan was inside the building too. They had to get out. He pushed himself up and stood unsteadily, still hunched over, ribs sore.

Morgan immediately rushed to his side. "You alright kid?" He asked, gun still drawn and ready to bolt.

"Fine. Where's Emily?"
"We got her out of here."

Reid sighed in relief. She was out, she was safe. Injured but alive. That's all that mattered.

The young blonde girl who they'd originally been interviewing suddenly walked into the room. Her eyes were on Cyrus. A look of despair crossed her eyes, but it was quickly replaced by anger.

"Sweetheart, come with me, we need to get you out of here, come on" Derek encouraged, gesturing for her to join them. But Reid knew that she wouldn't be leaving the church alive. Not now that she saw Cyrus was dead. The man who'd brainwashed her into believing that he was a God.
She was going to blow the place up. Her eyes danced towards the detonator that sat a few feet away from her and Reid grabbed Morgan's arm

"Run!" He yelled, pulling Morgan towards him. He flung open the door and dragged his partner out behind him.

The force of the blast flung the two of them to the ground. Reid landed hard on concrete first before his body continued rolling into the dirt on the side of the sidewalk. He sat there, stunned. It was incredibly difficult to breathe, and he couldn't hear anything. His eyes threatened to shut as his body was beginning to collapse.

An arm gripped his shoulder, attempting to pull him up. He blindly attempted to get his footing, coughing as his body was hauled from the ground. When he finally got his feet under him, he stumbled forwards, a hand still securely around his arm, looking at the now burning building.

Reid let out another round of coughs, doubling over in pain, but he managed to stay standing.

"We're okay!" yelled Morgan from next to him. That was who was holding his arm, Reid registered as his mind began playing catchup.

Morgan began pulling him away from the building and he stumbled along. He awkwardly limped forwards, ankle beginning to throb as well, and pushed the sweaty hair out of his face. He let out a few more coughs but had finally seemed to catch his breath again.

Then, the world seemed to slow. He saw Emily, limping towards him. Immediately Reid's own pain was forgotten as he made his way towards his teammate. He approached her awkwardly, feeling the guilt enter his body once more.

Reid turned back, glancing at the fire again, before turning to face Emily. Her face held no anger towards him, but instead she had a look of relief on her face. She immediately reached forward, pulling him into a hug. Quickly, Reid wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her shoulder.

He was so thankful that she was okay. She began laughing wetly in his ear and he realized that she was crying. Tears began to fill his own eyes at this, but he hid his face in her shirt.

They held onto one another for a long time, not saying anything. They didn't need to say anything. The two of them were just celebrating that they'd gotten out alive, albeit a bit injured.

Reid's eyes snapped open suddenly, and he ended their hug. She looked at him, confused for a moment.

Her arm stayed around his back for a moment, and another joined it. He looked to his other side, seeing Morgan standing there, smiling. Reid turned back to Emily though, after a few moments.

"You need to get checked out by the paramedics." He stated, flicking his eyes back towards the row of ambulances. She nodded at him, patting his cheek, before walking away. He watched her go, still feeling guilt about her injures.

Reid knew that he should probably get checked out too, his ribs were aching, and his ankle could not support his full weight. However, given the circumstances, he decided he'd just take care of it himself, later.

Emily deserved the full attention of the team. She had gotten hurt protecting him. She had taken all those hits for him. She didn't deserve that.

Reid, on the other hand, had gotten injured simply because he hadn't come up with anything clever enough to stall. The only thing he could think of was to aggravate Cyrus. It was his own fault he got hurt, so he should have to treat his own injuries.

It was only fair, right?

He waited on the outskirts of the team, watching family members reunite and press taking photos and videos of the fire. When Emily rejoined them, the team began to trek to the cars, getting ready to head back to the hotel.

Reid was quiet the whole ride to the hotel. His body was sore, and he was exhausted from the past few days.

He'd studied a lot of standoffs such as this one and he'd known the team needed him alert at all hours. He needed to take in as much information as possible so he could manipulate it and send subtle messages to the team.

Reid supposed he hadn't slept in over 48 hours, and he was starting to feel the fatigue.

When they arrived at the hotel, Reid fumbled out of the car, grimacing as his injured foot hit the concrete. He stood, hunched over, a white-knuckle grip on the door as he tried to manage the pain.

The world began spinning and he was beginning to feel nauseated.

"Spencer?" a voice asked, echoing around him. Reid squeezed his eyes closed, willing off the onslaught of vertigo. He felt someone lift his free arm up and over a shoulder and he immediately shifted some of his weight to them. An arm snaked around his back, gripping his waist loosely.

Someone began slowly coaxing his other hand to loosen its grip on the door. He quickly let go, allowing the second person to take his other side, supporting him there as well.

They began moving him forwards, but the movement made his vertigo worse. Even with his eyes closed, he could feel the spinning and was beginning to feel lightheaded.

He felt his body begin to relax as his mind lost its grip on consciousness. Reid felt his body start to fall but it was stopped before it hit the ground. He cracked his eyes open a moment, seeing Morgan and Rossi staring back at him.

His eyes proceeded to roll up in the back of his head and he fainted.