The X Files

Hatochiisai

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Criminal Minds, OR the X Files

Hotch/Reid

Chapter 7

Hotch jerked awake to shouts outside of the motel room. With a start, he realized that Reid was no longer in bed. Then he heard the shouts.

"REID!!! LET HER GO!!!"

Hotch leapt from the bed when he heard Rossi's shout. He stumbled out of the room and stared. Down in the parking lot, Reid was sitting on Agent Scully's hips… his hands were wrapped around her throat and she was struggling desperately.

"REID!" Morgan shouted. He ran across the parking lot and tackled Reid. Hotch ran down the stairs and towards his wrestling Agents. Reid squirmed away and bolted. Morgan turned and looked at Scully. She was coughing, but seemed okay. With the others tending to her, Hotch and Morgan took off after Reid.

"REID!" Morgan called.

"Spencer?!" Hotch shouted down the street. Reid ran like a hunted rabbit, frantically darting across the street, narrowly missing getting hit by a car. He ended up on a playground at an elementary school. There, he dropped to his knees, panting.

"… Bastard…" He hissed. Slowly, he raised his eyes and stared at Nagi. "Stop the illusions… You're driving me mad! I could have killed her!"

"… You would have." Nagi said. "If it weren't for the man." Slowly, Reid stood. He took a few steps and wrapped his hands around Nagi's neck.

"Maybe I'll kill you…" He hissed.

"… Not before I send you spiraling into insanity." Nagi snapped and he placed his hands on Reid's head. Reid stiffened and gasped, and his eyes went out of focus. His hands fell from Nagi's throat to his side and he sank to his knees, whimpering.

"REID!" Hotch shouted. He and Morgan ran across the playground. Hotch seized Reid and Morgan grabbed Nagi. Nagi gasped sharply, and then everything flashed white…

Hotch and Morgan winced when bright sunlight nearly blinded them. They heat would have been stifling had it not been for the cool morning breeze… Slowly, they lowered their hands and looked around. They were in a quiet neighborhood where women in bathrobes with their hair in curlers were standing on the porch drinking coffee or watering their plants. Men in suits were getting into their cars and driving away. And then, the front door of the house they were standing in front of opened. A small boy came out. He had large glasses and a shaggy head of dark brown hair framing his pale face. He looked to be about ten.

"No way…" Morgan breathed, his eyes widening. "Hotch… That's Reid!"

"Where the hell are we?" Hotch gasped.

"You fools!" They both turned and stared. Nagi Naoe stood behind them, looking pale and frightened. "What have you done?!"

"What have WE done?!" Morgan repeated.

"We're inside his mind!" Nagi hissed, his clenched fists shaking. "TOO far!"

"In his mind?!"

"These are his memories we're in! And thanks to you, we might be trapped!"

"YOU brought us here!"

"Not on purpose! You startled me! Made me push too far too hard!" Nagi snapped.

Hotch paid no mind to the arguing pair. He only had eyes for the young boy making his way down the sidewalk with an empty backpack slung over his shoulder.

Nagi and Morgan turned when they realized that the Unit Chief was walking away, following little Spencer Reid down the street. Morgan and Nagi glanced at each other, then turned and chased after the man, deciding that they could continue their argument later; best to stay together.

"Hotch?" Morgan called, jogging up beside his superior, who was staring at Spencer with a strange look on his face.

"He's so…"

"Puny?" Morgan offered with a slight smile, looking down fondly at their team mate as a child.

"How old do you think he is?" Hotch asked with an enchanted smile.

"Nine. Ten. I dunno." Morgan shrugged, eyeing the look on Hotch's face.

"He's eleven." Nagi supplied as he shuffled along behind them. "It's the first day of his senior year in high school." Morgan glanced back at the fifteen year old psychic, then looked up at voices. At the end of the block were half a dozen boys from ages fourteen to seventeen; high schoolers. They all stopped and watched Spencer approach. The pre-pubescent boy stopped several yards away and just stared at his sneakers.

"… Is that Spencer?" One of the youngest boys blurted. "I thought he went to private school."

"No." Snorted one of the older boys, eyeing Spencer with a sneer. "He was sent to high school."

"You know that kid?" One of the other younger boys asked.

"Yeah. He went to the same Junior High I went to my first year. He was supposed to be in fourth grade or something." The first kid said, then walked over to Spencer with a smile. A smile that neither Morgan nor Hotch liked. "Hi Spencer. What grade are you in now?" Spencer glanced up at the boy and scuffed his feet a bit.

"Twelfth." He mumbled. The fourteen year old stared.

"You're not a freshman?!" He exclaimed. "How the hell did you manage that?!"

"… Tested out of the other grades…" Spencer said with a small shrug.

"How old are you?" Asked one of the other boys on the corner.

"… I'll be twelve in October." Spencer said. The oldest boys just stared hard off down the street. It was no secret that Spencer had finished their junior year at the top of the class. Rumor had it that he had been getting offers for a full scholarship for the best universities around the world for years. And the kid wasn't even five feet tall yet!

The school bus appeared around the corner and the boys all forgot about Spencer. They boarded the bus, greeting friends. Spencer parked himself right behind the driver and pulled a book out of his backpack. Morgan and Hotch smiled as they watched his dainty little finger skim down the pages.

The world grew hazy. When it came back into focus they were in a high school cafeteria. Little Spencer was in line, a small quiet child amongst rowdy pubescent teenagers. The freshmen behind Spencer were all murmuring and eyeing the boy with predatory looks. Hotch and Morgan both knew something was going to happen. But they didn't know what and they knew that even if they did, they couldn't stop it; this was a memory. These events had played out long ago. But that didn't make it any easier.

Spencer collected his lunch (milk, chicken nuggets, mashed potatoes and green beans). He smiled at the lunch lady who gave him the biggest piece of cake when he reached the desserts… as she always did. He reached the register at the end off the line. Students could pay by cash or by a lunch account. Spencer had learned long ago to never bring cash to school with him unless absolutely necessary. He reached the register and punched in his little PIN number.

"Hello Spencer. Welcome back!" The cashier said with a smile. "You still have seventeen fifty three left over from last year."

"Here." Spencer said, and pulled a wrinkled check out of his pocket and handed it to her. She smiled and took it, looking it over.

"Okay, sweetie. I'll have this added to your account by tomorrow. Have a good day!" And she ruffled his hair as he turned away with his lunch. But he didn't make it far. One of the boys behind him stuck out his foot. Spencer gasped as he pitched forwards. There was a loud clatter as his tray flew out of his hands and onto the floor, and Spencer whimpered as his chin cracked against the linoleum. Laughter and cheering swept through the cafeteria. The cashier was immediately by Spencer's side, pulling him to his feet and guiding him away, shooting glares at the freshmen. She pulled Spencer back into the kitchen and sat him down on a stool, pressing a wet paper towel to his bleeding lip that his teeth had cut into. She said nothing. Neither did he. A moment later, the lunch lady bustled over bearing another tray with chicken nuggets, green beans, mashed potatoes, CHOCOLATE milk, a piece of cake AND Jell-O.

Spencer smiled and thanked her. This wouldn't be the first time he had eaten lunch back in the kitchen, and it wouldn't be the last…

The world faded again and Hotch, Morgan and Nagi found themselves standing in a locker room.

"Oh no…" Morgan groaned. Hotch didn't look too happy either. The room was noisy, full of boys changing clothes and snapping each other with their towels. A moment later, Spencer walked in. His back pack was now full of books. He looked around the room in distaste.

"Spencer Reid?" A man called. Spencer turned and watched the coach approach him. "You Spencer?"

"Yessir." Reid mumbled.

"Okay. I'm Coach Fredricks. Coach Guillory told me about you. Come in, please." And he walked into his office. Spencer blinked, then followed. Hotch and Morgan went after the boy, Nagi still slouching along behind them.

"Coach Guillory?" Spencer asked.

"Yes. He told me you're a very bright young man. Excelled in his geography class." Coach Fredricks said. Spencer didn't reply. "But he also told me that you've had some problems with you classmates. Especially in P.E."

"… Yessir." Spencer mumbled.

"Well… I don't want any repeats of some of the things he told me happened last year in the locker room." Coach Fredricks said, and Spencer stared at his feet. "You can keep your gym clothes here in my office. And you can change in here as well. And if anyone gives you a hard time, I want you to tell me immediately." He said, laying a hand on Spencer's shoulder. "Okay son?" The boy paused, then nodded. "Good. I won't tolerate bullies in my class." The man said. "I'll let you get changed." And he stepped out of his office and closed the door, glaring at the boys who were showing a little too much interest in Spencer being in his office. A few minutes later, Spencer emerged from the office and the coach walked him out into the gym.

"At least some of his teachers protected him…" Hotch sighed, relieved. The class went smoothly. Coach Fredricks kept an eagle eye on Spencer the entire time, and several times thwarted attempts to bully the child. Towards the end of the class he sent Spencer to the showers, then kept the other boys working for another ten minutes before he let them go. By the time they got to the showers, Spencer was already safe in the coach's office, dressing. And so when the boys were dressing, Coach Fredricks walked Spencer outside, smiling down at the boy who was looking very relieved. He walked Spencer over to the school bus and bid him good afternoon before returning to the school. Spencer was curled up in his seat, contentedly reading one of several library books by the time the bell rang and students were clamoring onto the bus.

When Spencer got off of the bus, the storm hit. The freshmen surrounded him as soon as they bus disappeared around the corner and shoved him to the ground. They pulled off his backpack, scattered his books around and proceeded to beat him up. Hotch, Morgan and even Nagi watched sadly as the eleven year old was shoved around by boys almost twice his size and several years older. When they finally left, Spencer gathered up his books and limped home. He unlocked the door and slipped in, dropping his bag on the floor and listening to his mother in her bedroom, pacing back and forth and shouting about how she was being watched…

Spencer went to the bathroom and slowly took off his shirt and stared at himself in the mirror, inspecting the bruises that were already forming. Then with a sigh, he turned on the sink and began to wash the blood from his beaten face.

The world spun out of focus again and came back to reveal a high school classroom. The teacher was talking about the school open house. Spencer was slouched in his chair, staring hard at his desk as the teacher passed around the fliers that the students were to give to their parents. The bell rang and the students all left the room. Spencer gathered up his bag and heaved it onto his back, then approached his teacher's desk. He lay the paper down.

"My parents won't be there." He mumbled. The woman blinked and cocked her head.

"Why not?" She asked. "The open house lets your parents meet your teachers and understand what to expect from your classes for the year. It's very important."

"My mom is sick." Spencer said, softly. "She really can't leave the house."

"What about your dad?"

"… He left a year ago." Spencer mumbled, staring at the floor.

"Where did he go? Overseas? Is he in the army?"

"No… He just… left." Spencer whispered, and tears welled up in his eyes. His teacher stared at him for a moment, then moved around her desk and knelt before the boy, taking him into her arms and holding him as he cried.

The world faded out of focus again. When it came back, Spencer was in gym again. They were playing basketball.

"Hey! Short stuff is open!" One boy called. The kid with the ball turned and grinned, then chucked the ball at Spencer. The boy yelped as it made full impact with his face, snapping his glasses in half and sending him sprawling on the floor.

"HEY!" The coach roared in anger. The world spun again. This time, the class was doing tennis. They were playing in pairs. The ball came for Spencer, who lifted his racket. But his "partner" hurried over and swung his own racket, bashing it into the back of Spencer's head, sending the boy toppling forwards.

"Sorry, Shrimp." The boy snorted, trying not to laugh along with the rest of the class. "Didn't notice you there."

Volleyball. A boy leapt up into the air and spiked the ball over the net, straight into Spencer's face. The boy crashed to the floor, and another pair of glasses clattered to the floor in pieces. The boys were laughing themselves silly. The coach was beside himself.

Football. FLAG football, no tackling allowed. The boys conveniently "forgot" that rule and Spencer was sent to the nurse with a black eye, bloody nose and sprained wrist.

Hockey. Five boys got detentions for cross checking, slashing, hooking, tripping and roughing their smallest classmate.

Bowling. The boys seemed to enjoy targeting Spencer instead of the pins.

Wrestling and dodge ball. Coach Fredricks wouldn't even let Spencer participate.

Even ping pong on a rainy day resulted in the boy getting smacked in the head multiple times with the little paddles.

Hotch, Morgan and Nagi bore witness to the gauntlet that Spencer had to run between every class. He never made it to any class without getting tripped on the way. Each and every teacher had to call down to the main office several times over the year when Spencer didn't show up for class. Then the janitor was sent to walk the halls and call for the boy, listening for the child's answers to lead him to the locker he had been shoved into this time. On five separate occasions the janitor had to leap back as Spencer fell out, face red and head aching as he had been shoved in upside down.

Then came a quiet scene. Spencer was sitting in the library, studying. A girl came up to him.

"Spencer?" She called. He blinked and looked up.

"Harper?" He stammered, looking confused.

"Alexa wants to talk to you." She said, calmly.

"… A-Alexa Lisbon?"

"Mm hmm. C'mon."

"Oh no…" Morgan groaned, wincing. The world seemed to move in and out of focus. Spencer and Harper spoke to each other but they couldn't hear what was being said.

"what is it?" Hotch asked.

"Reid's worst high school memory." Morgan sighed. "He told me about it during the Owen Savage Case." They watched little Spencer stand and follow Harper out of the library. But the world continued to swim in and out of focus. Nagi was looking around, nervously.

"This way." Harper's voice said, as if from a distance. They walked behind the field house. Hotch's eyes widened. There stood the high school varsity football team and the cheerleading squad. Little Spencer froze… the world spun slightly… the large boys surrounded the child… their voices were echoing faintly. They seized Spencer and began shoving him around. The boy's shirt ripped and colors began to bleed, like rain was falling on a watercolor painting… Nagi was looking alarmed now.

"Brace yourselves!" He shouted suddenly. And then the world went black. There was a whoosh and several yelps. Morgan, Hotch and Nagi all found themselves lying on the ground, staring up at the night sky. Hotch slowly sat up.

"… Reid!" He gasped. The boy was sprawled out beside him, but had lifted himself up onto his elbows. He looked horribly pale and even more sick than before.

"Reid! Are you okay!?" Morgan asked, and the pair closed in.

"DON'T!" Reid cried, jerking away from them. His face was streaked with tears and his chest heaved with ragged gasps. "Don't touch me!" And he looked over at Nagi.

"You threw us out." Nagi stated calmly, but his eyes showed his surprise.

"You have NO business in my past…" Reid hissed, glaring at the boy. "NONE of you do!" and he stumbled to his feet.

"Reid." Morgan said, standing and placing a hand on Reid's shoulder. Reid whirled, viciously smacking Morgan's hand away.

"DON'T touch me!" He shouted, stumbling away from Hotch and Morgan. "Just leave me alone!" And he broke into a run. Hotch stood.

"Spencer!" He called, but Reid disappeared into the darkness. Morgan turned and looked at Nagi. The boy narrowed his eyes, then turned and began to walk away.

"Hey!" Morgan thundered, and went after Nagi. But suddenly, the man called Jei leapt out of the shadows. Morgan cursed and leapt back as a knife sliced through the air and caught his shirt. He dodged as the pale man lunged again.

"Morgan!" Hotch shouted and ran over. Morgan yelped as a trail of fire sliced across his belly. The man looked back. Nagi was gone. He slammed his fist into Morgan's jaw, then turned and darted after the young psychic. Hotch knelt by Morgan, barely noticing the sound of his team calling them.

"Are you okay?"

"… Yeah…" Morgan gasped, pressing a hand to his stomach. "It's not bad. We have to find Reid…

"… You need to get that looked at." Hotch said as Rossi, Prentiss and Mulder ran over to them. "I'll find Reid."

"What happened?!" Prentiss gasped, kneeling by Morgan.

"… You won't believe it." Morgan snorted.

"Try me." Prentiss said, dryly.

"I'm gonna go find Reid." Hotch said.

"… I'll come with you." Mulder said, and the pair ran off into the dark in the direction that Reid took. "So… What happened?"

"… We were… projected into Reid's mind." Hotch said. "Into his memories… Until Reid decided that we had seen too much and threw us out."

"… Wow." Mulder said, looking fascinated.

"Reid ran off… I think he feels… violated."

"He was in a way." Mulder said. "So… you're the profiler. Where would he go?"

Twenty minutes later, they were standing across the street from an all night coffee shop. Reid was sitting by himself, staring down into a mug.

"How'd he get that?" Mulder asked Hotch. "He's in his pajamas. He has no shoes for God's sake."

"… You have your wallet?" Hotch asked.

"Yeah…"

"… Can I borrow five bucks?"

The woman looked up from her magazine at a soft jingle. A handsome man walked in and over to the counter. He slid a five dollar bill across the surface. "For his coffee." He said softly, jerking his head towards the young man in the corner. She blinked and watched the man cross the room and sit down across from the pale boy sitting there. Odd. Another man in pajamas with no shoes on…

Slowly, Reid looked up. "… Aaron."

"… Spencer. Are you okay?"

"… Is it possible to be… raped? I mean… mentally?" Reid asked. Hotch winced.

"Spencer… I'm so sorry…"

"It's not your fault." Reid said softly. "God, I just…" He lowered his head. Hotch reached out a laid a hand on Reid's hand. And he frowned. Reid's skin was cold and clammy. His hand was shaking.

"Reid? I think we need to get you into bed." The man said. A moment later, Mulder walked in.

"Agent Rossi is here with the car." He said. Hotch nodded and helped Reid stand, then guided him outside and into the car. Once back at the motel, Rossi helped Hotch get Reid upstairs and into bed again.

"What happened?" They both asked the other at the same time.

"… You first." Hotch said.

"… From what I can tell, Scully heard Reid shouting outside in the parking lot. Went out and found him backed into the wall shouting at the air. She went down to check on him and he just attacked." Rossi said. "You?"

"Nagi accidentally sent us into Reid's memories." Hotch said, staring down at Reid who had passed out the moment his head hit the pillow. He sighed and wet down a cloth, laying it on the boy's forehead again.

"Get some sleep, Hotch."

"Night Dave." Hotch sighed, and slowly moved to lie down next to his lover. He turned out the light and rested on his chest, draping an arm over the boy's hips and just… watched him until he fell asleep.