A/N: Thank you so much for your guesses… and I'll go ahead and say that someone touched the actual ending. Yay you! As always, please review!

Five

The mingling of Garcia's bubble-gum scent with Morgan's charcoal aroma, plus the idea that the sun's rays were just outside of the supply closet nearly drove Spencer mad. He felt caged, isolated, and suddenly very, very cold. Then he heard Morgan advance his inquiry. "What do you mean, Reid?"

He could just barely focus his attention on Morgan, not the smell of Morgan, just Morgan. "I… ah… I think I'm the unsub's last victim. He won. He was out on a mission to find the perfect… perfect companion I assume, and he found me, made me what he wanted to make me, and left."

Morgan gave Reid a look, glancing up and down. "What did me make you?" he asked.

"Morgan, I'd really rather not say. I won't even let Haley or Penelope say it. Let's just say that I'm really, really far from what left the BAU a few days ago."

"Okay then," Morgan agreed, knowing that if his friend didn't want to share it with him, then it must be something that he didn't want to hear, or something he wouldn't believe. Morgan already had a few ideas floating around. "Well, how do you know that this is what he wanted?"

"He tried to tell me, last night. Only I was worried for Haley, so I didn't really hear him out."

"Worried for Haley?" Morgan asked.

"Never mind that, all part of the 'Reid Doesn't Want You to Know' thing," Garcia said. "He came last night?" she asked worriedly.

"Yeah, he tried to get me to come with him. It was… intriguing to say the least, but I wouldn't have gone with him anyway," he said.

"What was intriguing?" Morgan demanded. "Reid, this is an actual case, regardless of how much you are involved. It's not helping that you two are holding something back from me that seems essential to finding this guy!"

"Derek," Garcia whispered. "Calm down, if Spencer doesn't want to tell you, then he has the right-"

"Garcia, he's right," Spencer said, looking around the small closet. Then to the crack of light under the door, how the sunlight beckoned for him to go into it. He began to yearn for it harder. He sighed. "I don't want to say it though. Morgan," he began, but looked down at his feet. "You know, I'm still the same person. I'm still Spencer. I'm still the guy you joke around with day-to-day. You gave me dating tips. Just… just don't freak out."

"Why would I-?" he broke off before he could finish the sentence as Reid opened his mouth to the point where the older agent could see the fangs. "Oh, God… You've… Damn…"

If he could have blushed, he would have. This was worse than the philosophy joke in front of the college class. And of all the emotions he thought he could have felt, why would embarrassment be the one emotion? Maybe because he himself thought the whole notion was kind of silly.

"Reid, man, you've got to tell me what happened," Morgan said.

Spencer nodded and recounted the story watching his friend closely as he nodded, grunted, and shook his head at certain parts of the tale. Once he had finished, Morgan stood silently. "You know, I don't think you're what you think you are."

"Come again?" Penelope smiled.

"I don't think Reid's a vampire," he clarified. "I think he thinks he is."

"And I think that this goes a little beyond thought, Morgan," Reid made sure to flash his fangs.

"Oh don't go showing those to me to try to prove a point!" Morgan said. "You yourself told me that if the mental is strong enough it can try to physically manifest itself. You did! Maybe the idea of a man in black stalking you and attacking you in the night… well… that might have stricken some sort of fantasy in your head. Some way of trying to cope with it, you know? Your brain went wild, and let's face it, you have a lot of brain to go wild with."

"And what? It started producing chemicals to make the enamel on my teeth longer? Make me start craving… well, let's say raw meat for now?"

"I'm sure those exist," he said. "And your speed and strength? Adrenalin, more than likely," he concluded.

"It's a good theory, but… Morgan, I doubt it. First because you don't know all the details, you don't know the half of it. Second: why would this man have the same thing happening to him? The physical manifestation in one person is implausible enough, but in two people in the same city at the same time? Nearly impossible," he answered himself. "Morgan, you should have seen the messes I've made in both my house and Penelope's."

"Well, after hearing about the encounter last night, my house not so much as yours," she conceded. "I only gave you a bite to eat."

"And I thank you for that," Reid said. "I didn't say so last night, but thanks."

"Getting back to the subject," Morgan coughed. "It doesn't matter if you've somehow morphed into a mythical being, or if it's that big head of yours going crazy, this guy's hurt you and killed about five others. And he's good, you've met him twice, intimately, might I add, and you still haven't caught his name."

"I can't figure out a way to find him either," Reid said a bit desperately. Then he jumped as his phone rang. "Haley," he gasped as he reached for his holster and opened the phone in a split-second. "You okay?" he asked, black eyes wide. "What?... Okay, okay, I'm coming over… Right now! I'm on my way over right now!... see you in a few minutes…" he hung up.

"Is she okay?" Garcia's voice jumped up a few octaves.

"She's not hurt, just scared," Reid said, folding the phone back and putting it into his holster. "The man… he's got my number."

"I know he's after you, but you're not going to die yet," Morgan said sternly.

"No, Morgan, you didn't understand. He's got my number, my phone number. He's been calling the house all morning threatening my sister."

"Then that could be where we start," Garcia said hopefully. "I could help with that. Let me grab my laptop and I'll be ready to go with you guys."

"You two don't have to come," Reid said, going for the door.

"Oh, but we do, darling, you know that," Penelope pushed past him, the door flinging wide.

"Yeah, man, don't try to be a lone wolf with this guy," Morgan admonished. "This is a BAU case after all." Morgan smiled at him, trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, have fun writing up the case file," Spencer raised his eyebrows as he left the closet, Morgan following closely.

--

As they pulled up to Spencer's apartment complex, Morgan noticed Reid grow stiff, a slightly paranoid look come over him. "You okay, sweets?" Garcia asked him.

"No, I'm fine," Spencer gave her a mixed answer. "Just park, Morgan, it doesn't really matter where."

"Okay, man," Morgan relented. The second the vehicle was set to PARK, Spencer was out of the car and out of sight of the two agents, who could only run after him.

Five minutes and one very out of breath Penelope later, they found Spencer at the door, pleading with his younger sister. "Hales, it's me, you've got to believe it's me."

"I don't know that," she said, muffled to Morgan and Garcia, but clear as a bell to Spencer.

"We're here with him!" Penelope said. "Baby, it's okay, we're here to help." She slapped her hand on the door thrice. "Baby, it's okay!"

Suddenly, Spencer threw himself back against the wall, grasping his head, the sensation that someone was driving a nail through his forehead overwhelmed him. "Baby, it's okay!" resonated throughout the hallway as Garcia kept pounding the door. Did no one notice? A flash of white and he suddenly looked up at Penelope who was wearing a worried face, repeating her mantra.

"Pen?" he asked weakly.

"Good, honey, good," she said, relieved, but the nail driving through his brain stopped, and he snapped back to the present.

He looked back to the door, Haley had opened it and was running at him and into his arms. Spencer held her close and looked, worried, over her head and into the apartment. Someone had seen his episode, right?

Apparently not. He followed Garcia and Morgan into the messy living room. "I'm sorry I didn't pick up," Haley admitted. "I was going to take a shower first and then the man called. I was too afraid to move."

"It's perfectly all right," Spencer said, his voice fading, overcome by a foreign smell. "Were you cooking anything?"

"I ate a bowl of cereal," she said. "But no, I hadn't made anything else. What do you smell?"

"Like something burned," he murmured. He didn't stop his body from crouching lower to the floor to better acquaint itself with the scent. He could only assume that it was the man's. "Burned… like burned… burnt oregano? Yeah, burnt oregano."

"I don't smell anything," Morgan said, not disrespectfully, but with a lack of understanding as he leaned against the back of the couch. "Nothing at all."

"You know what happened to him, right?" Haley asked with raised eyebrows. "He smells things that… I don't even think a K9 dog could."

"Could… could you guys just stay in one clumped up spot please?" Reid asked, straightening. "You're muddling up the… you're messing up my tracking," he spit out, revolted enough that he could say that and be serious.

"You can smell us?" Penelope laughed, clearly and strangely delighted.

"Yeah…" Reid's voice trailed off as he began to crouch over and shuffle through the house, following the scent in the exact pattern the man had walked the night before. "This is definitely his smell. I was too distracted by Haley last night to really register, but this is absolutely him. I'd recognize it anywhere now."

"What do I smell like?" Pen continued.

"Bubble gum," Spencer waved off. "Anyways, we'd have to walk, but I think I can-"

"Wait a minute," Morgan said, standing up again. "How do you know that this is reliable?"

"Morgan, I think this time, you just have to trust me. There are a lot of ways that I can prove this to you, but right now we don't have any time. Haley's in danger. And so are you and Garcia for even being around me. But if you want a more clear way of catching him, then Garcia needs to get out her stuff," Reid said a bit defensively. "Haley, how often has he been calling?"

"Every thirty minutes or so."

"Do you think you can answer the phone again?" he asked her in earnest.

"Yes," she muttered.

"And keep him talking?"

"Yes," she breathed, going to the phone. She nodded at the clock. "He should be calling around now. He doesn't call every thirty minutes exactly, there's normally a five minute window around the dot."

"Got it up. Any call that comes through now should be completely traceable by moi," Penelope said happily. "Sweetheart, you'll do just fine."

"I'm not even sure what to say. I've just been hanging up," she said nervously.

"I'll help you out there," Reid said, sitting on the counter next to where Haley stood, watching the portable phone set. He grabbed her shoulder, not squeezing for fear of hurting her. He looked again at Penelope's sprained wrist and mentally scolded himself.

A sudden, sharp chirping ring of the portable sounded twice. Haley reached for it only to be stopped by Spencer, who had raised his eyebrows in admonition. It rang a second time, a third… "Halfway through the final ring," Spencer mouthed, instructing.

Haley picked up right on cue. "Hello?"