Title: Power Play
Rating: R
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Universe: Creatures of the Night (Part 1)
Pairing: Morgan/Prentiss; JJ/Hotch
Genre: Supernatural/Drama
Summary: Tensions are running high when a vampire joins the BAU, but all differences must be put aside as the team investigate a series of suspicious werewolf murders. AU.
Author's Notes: Betaed by Windy City Dreamer. Also, I'd just like to throw out my thanks to all you awesome reviewers out there. You've all said some really nice things, most of which are making me blush a little, so kudos. You're the power source that keeps this engine turning. Also, as of this chapter, this is my longest CM fic. And it's nowhere near finished.
Chapter Twenty-Three
He walks into the conference room, taking one of the two available seats at the round table. Rossi gives him a sideways glance, which he ignores. He hasn't cleaned the blood off himself yet – had come straight from the medical office.
'She's awake,' he tells them, adding, with a slight scoff, 'Getting a change of clothes from her car.'
Hotch raises an eyebrow. Evidently, that's a conversation that will be had when she makes it back. Morgan's not so sure whether he'll be successful in convincing her to go home, or at the very least, get some rest.
It's a little after three a.m, and everyone is looking a little worse for wear. Morgan's sensitive nostrils can pick up the several distinct coffee types, the fifth of which JJ pushes towards him. He doesn't need to ask how she had known. She always knows, even if she's not listening.
'We have an I.D. on the vamp you tagged,' she announces. 'His name is-'
'William LaMontagne Junior,' finishes Garcia, from her position on JJ's shoulder. She levitates slightly, and then does a quick jaunt around the room. 'I pulled his file from DHHS records. He's a relatively new vamp; no criminal record.' She buzzes around again, almost dive-bombing into one of the polystyrene cups on the table.
'Did someone give her coffee?' Hotch asks, not quite bothering to hide the exasperation from his voice.
'Sorry,' says Reid apologetically. 'She looked tired.'
'I think giving her a tiny sip of your coffee is about equivalent to an entire cup of anyone else's,' JJ points out. 'She'll be bouncing off walls for hours.'
Reid gives a tiny shrug; not in apathy, Morgan knows, but more so because he's not quite sure what other gesture to give.
The light-hearted moment is over, and JJ continues. 'I gave his mind a quick once over, but someone's been messing with his thoughts. I can't get anything other than that.'
'False memories?' enquires Morgan. It's entirely possible that a psychic or a sorcerer could be covering their tracks by convincing the vamp that he had committed the murders. That doesn't explain why he had attacked them, though.
'No,' JJ shakes her head. 'More like…psychic blocks. Blocked by someone much more powerful than me. There's no way I can break through without scrambling his brain. We'll have to do it the old-fashioned way.'
Hotch bristles slightly; since the incident, he's had trouble controlling his emotions when interrogating vampires. Morgan's surprised that the initial meeting with Emily had gone as well as it did, considering the person responsible for Hotch's reluctance. He's not going to be the one conducting the interrogation.
'As much as I hate to say it, Aaron…' starts Rossi.
Hotch doesn't miss a beat. 'I know.' He's not looking at Rossi, though – he's looking at the door. Morgan suddenly notices the scent of vampire stimulating his olfactory glands. Faint, but getting closer.
A minute later, Emily walks in. She has a slightly abashed look on her face, as if she's embarrassed that everyone seems to be paying attention to her. In fresh clothes, she looks a little different; the form fitting black jacket gives her an almost mercenarial look. That, coupled with her overly pale skin makes the whole "vampire" thing a little more blatant. The wide eyes and slightly elongated teeth certainly don't help.
'Hey,' she says, heading straight to the last available chair. She's limping slightly, and Morgan can hear her breathing a little louder than is ordinary.
'Are you alright?' asks JJ, in concern. Any vibes Morgan is getting are probably being felt tenfold by a psychic.
'Fine,' says Emily, giving the media liaison a small smile. The fact that it's probably not the truth does not go past anyone in the room. Lie or not, the discussion carries on without the matter being brought up. Morgan knows that if it becomes a problem, Hotch won't hesitate to deal with it.
JJ and Garcia continue their treatise on the life of William LaMontagne Junior, at least, as far as this life is chronicled in the files. As with most people, there's probably a great deal of information that had never made it as far as a database.
'Prentiss, I'd like you and Morgan to interrogate him,' Hotch announces, as soon as the info dump is complete. Morgan's head shoots up, and he notices Emily making a similar reaction. Hotch doesn't actively trust Emily yet, that much he knows. His reasons for putting her in the interrogation are pragmatic; a vampire unsub is more likely to react to a vampire interrogator. But that doesn't take into account the fact that the interrogator in question had been stabbed less than twelve hours earlier.
'Hotch, are you sure that's the best idea?' Morgan asks, earning him a slightly scathing look from Emily.
'I can handle an interrogation, Morgan,' she tells him, any warmth towards him she might have built up suddenly dropping away.
'You were stabbed,' he says bluntly.
'And by the time Vlad the Impaler wakes up, I'll be fine,' Emily retorts, anger filling her voice.
'Fine. Do what you want.' He crosses his arms, looking straight ahead. It's not his fault if she lets herself get killed. He can see her rolling her eyes in his peripheral vision, and chooses to ignore it.
Evidently this newly found amiability still requires some adjustment.