A/N: GOSH, you guys! (gasps) You… You totally blew my mind with your reception towards the first chapter, ya know? You totally swept me off my feet. I seriously can't believe you liked it so! (GLOMPS) Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! You guys are seriously precious. (hugs again) See how fast you made me update? (grins)
I really, really hope you'll be just as pleased with this new chapter! (gulps) Uh huh, I suppose it's time to get started…
The Seed
Two weeks later
Spencer Reid didn't really enjoy looking at his own reflection. But that evening he stared at the image on the filthy mirror that hung on the wall of his apartment building's elevator.
He was almost surprised that he didn't look different. It shouldn't have been a surprise – all he got from the attack was a concussion and some bruises. He didn't even have to spend longer than one night in the hospital.
His memories of the attack were hazy at best. According to official reports their UnSub, Wesley Strummer, attacked him and killed himself. As much as he would've wanted to Spencer couldn't really believe that. Because he did know that he'd been attacked by something else, by something… not quite from this world. He knew although he only remembered hissing and flying through the air.
He winced, all too aware of how delusional and insane that sounded even to his own ears. He just wished he would've remembered what really happened in that room.
He was so deep in thought that he jumped with startle when a dog was barking all of a sudden. Looking towards the elevator's open doors he felt his eyes widen upon discovering a huge German shepherd that was first barking, then growling at him. The hair in the back of the canine's neck rose while several teeth were revealed. From the animal's eyes he could tell that it was about to attack. He'd never heard a dog make the kind of noises that one did.
The dog's owner, a quite athletic man of his age with blond hair and dark eyes, gave him a apologetic look. "I… I'm so sorry. Rex is usually kind towards everyone. I don't know…" The owner was forced to pause when Rex's growls became even more aggressive and the canine took the stance of a soon attacking wild animal. "Rex, NO!"
Just then, as fast as they'd opened, the elevator's doors closed, separating Spencer from the dog and its owner. He backed as far as he could, leaning heavily against the wall. His trembling fists balled while he gulped hungry breaths.
That… That was beyond the infamous Reid effect. If the owner had lost control for even a fleeting second…
Spencer took a one more shuddering breath, fighting to calm his nerves.
He was really glad that he was going back to work the next day, because staying at home was clearly becoming too much.
It was a blessing, really, that in his emotional turmoil Spencer didn't have the time to notice his own reactions in the situation. For his stance hadn't been scared or even defensive. He'd been fully ready to attack.
That night Spencer had a bizarre, extremely disturbing dream. Or to be fully honest he wasn't sure it really was just a dream.
He saw blood spraying absolutely everywhere, despite the fact that his dream world was almost completely dark.
He heard screams of terror and despair, people pleading and praying in far more languages than he could count.
He saw brutally butchered bodies, hundreds of them. They all came to him in a stream of flashes, each of them staying in his line of vision for only a second but seeping to the depths of his mind. His attention focused on their dead eyes. Most of them still had traces of tears.
He heard the sound of a heartbeat coming to a stop.
And then, finally, he heard this strangest chirping sound. It didn't sound like any animal he would've known but it was most definitely very, very pleased.
Spencer woke up to his own whimper, his whole body trembling pitiably and his heart racing without any control. He gasped desperately although he felt so nauseous that it sounded almost like gagging.
What the hell was that? Where did that dream come from? He was well used to nightmares but that one was something worse.
Even now that he was awake flashes of those dead faces, of the blood, kept assaulting his head and eyes. That chilling chirping still echoed in his ears. In the end his stomach couldn't handle it anymore.
As fast as he possibly could he scrambled out the bed, away from the sweaty bedsheets. As soon as he made it to the bathroom he threw up loudly.
Spencer wasn't surprised that the morning after he was dead tired. After those dreams he was relieved he was able to get up at all. He was extremely happy when Aaron Hotchner announced that they'd spent the day in the office to catch up with the paperwork that'd been piling up.
The relief was short lived, though. Almost as soon as Spencer sat down behind his desk he was attacked by a tiny yet extremely annoying headache.
He groaned quietly, rubbing the bridge of his nose with two fingers for a moment.
"What?" Derek Morgan's surprised voice startled him. There was a stunned look on his friend's face. "No morning coffee?" Before he managed to stop it the man placed a hand to his forehead. "Nope, no fever."
Spencer growled although it felt like a stab right through his brain, narrowing his eyes a slight bit while brushing the invading hand away. "I'm fine, okay? I just… didn't sleep a lot last night, that's all."
Derek's eyebrow immediately bounced up and the man gave him a sly, knowing grin. "I see. I didn't know you had it in you, kid."
Spencer didn't feel up to correcting the assumption so he focused his eyes on the pile of files in Derek's hold instead. His look turned into a glare of warning. "Stop slipping your paperwork into my pile."
Derek gave him his best innocent look. "I don't know what you're talking about." With that the mocha skinned agent vanished behind his own desk.
Spencer rolled his eyes, despite the headache the tiniest of smiles flashing on his lips for a split second. With that he focused on paperwork once more.
Or tried to, at least. Because his head seemed to have other plans.
While he scanned through the pictures and documents, furiously trying to formulate a sufficient report, the flood of information seemed to gain a life of its own. It seeped into all of his senses. He felt the presence of death, smelled the victims' terror, heard a heartbeat disappearing, saw how blood spilled from fresh wounds, actually tasted the blood. He'd never experienced anything as terrifying.
The chirping sound he'd heard in his nightmares stirred once more. This time it was even more excited, he would've almost dared to say aroused. And he didn't have the slightest clue of what to think about it.
He swallowed thickly, feeling some cold sweat on his skin.
Was he… losing his mind? Because that was what it felt like.
"Earth to Reid." Emily Prentiss's voice caught him so off guard that he unleashed a quite embarrassing yelp. The woman was looking at him with a great deal of amusement. "I know you tend to get absorbed by the workings of your mind but this is a bit creepy."
Spencer frowned, pleased to discover that the headache seemed to be easing slightly. "What are you talking about? I've only been working for about ten minutes."
Both Emily and Derek, who was standing beside the woman, gawked at him like he'd said the most absurd thing they'd ever heard. "Uh, kid… It's lunch time. Don't tell me you're not even hungry yet."
Spencer shivered, a bit rattled by those news. What happened to all those hours? He hadn't even gotten anything done.
"Oh no, you're not zoning out again." Derek's voice pulled him back to the present. The man was putting on his jacket. "I doubt Hotch ever eats, but Rossi and JJ went to get some Chinese and we're also hungry as hell. Are you joining us?"
Spencer swallowed thickly, his stomach performing backflips. Even the thought of food… "No thanks, I'm not really hungry. I think I'll get a couple of reports done."
Derek and Emily didn't appear convinced but they also knew that there was no changing his mind once he'd decided something. Spencer was lulled into comforting familiarity when the two of them began to argue whether Char siu was better than Kung Pao chicken.
He took a deep breath, trying to focus on work once more.
If he wouldn't get a hold of himself soon he'd be deemed unfit to do his job. What the heck was wrong with him?
He stared at the pictures before him, unable to look away. It was like something had taken complete control over his body. He stared at the dead body, at the blood. And somewhere in the depths of his head the chirping sound echoed once more, sounding almost like purring.
Spencer's stomach flipped upside down and his hand flew to his stomach. He could actually feel how all color slipped from his face.
He must've unleashed some sort of a sound because all of a sudden Derek looked towards him. A deep frown of open worry made its way to the man's face. "Reid? Are you okay?"
Spencer couldn't even open his mouth. His feet barely had the capacity to carry him as fast as he wanted to go. The exact same second he made it to the bathroom he threw up the little he'd managed to force down that day.
He spent almost ten minutes on the tile floor, puking and his body shuddering with new gags. On his way out he paused by the sink to rinse his mouth and spill some cold water on his face. He also made the mistake of facing his reflection and winced.
Great. So he looked just as shitty as he felt.
When he finally made it back Derek and Emily were waiting for him with looks of sympathy and worry. "You okay now?" Derek inquired.
He nodded, not managing to convince even himself. "I think so." He rubbed his stomach gently and winced. He could've sworn something squirmed in there. "Must be something I ate."
Emily didn't appear all that sure while she nodded slowly. "Uh huh." After thinking about it for a moment she handed a package of breathmints towards him. "Do you want one?"
He nodded gratefully, immediately accepting her offer. "Thanks."
Derek took a breath, pocketing his hands. "Well, I take this as a clear sign to close up for today. I'm going to take you home, now." Seeing his parting lips the man went on. "I'm not going to listen to your objections, kid. You're stuck with me."
Spencer shifted his weight to another foot, feeling extremely embarrassed all of a sudden. "'K", he muttered in the end, sounding like a sulking child. Then, as a sudden and very unexpected afterthought, he went on. "I'm… sort of hungry. Do you think we can get something to eat on the way?" To reinforce his words his stomach churned loudly. That extremely unnerving squirming sensation was back.
Derek stared at him like he'd had three heads all of a sudden. "Are you freaking kidding me? You just spewed your guts out and now you want food?" Seeing his desperate look the man seemed to choose not to press any further. "Okay, then. You really need to get some meat on those bones, anyway."
Spencer barely managed to focus for most of the ride. The headache he'd been suffering from before came creeping back, nagging somewhere close to his forehead. He felt a desperate need to lean his head against the car's window. Only the fact that Derek seemed to be monitoring him constantly stopped him.
He must've been even more exhausted than he'd thought because he woke up to the nod of his head when the car pulled to a stop.
Derek gave him a sideways glance while parking. "Well morning, Pretty boy. 'Still up to eating?"
Spencer nodded eagerly and brought his hand instinctively to his stomach when it churned, his intestines forming knots. "Yeah." He opened the car's door – and froze.
That scent… It was meat. He shouldn't have been able to distinguish it from so far away but he did. And it allured him, hell a lot more than it should've.
Derek laughed when they entered the far from inviting grill. "Geez, kid! You weren't joking when you said you wanted food."
Spencer gave his friend a somewhat embarrassed grin, feeling some heat on his cheeks. Without anything further he focused on the about eighteen-years-old girl with orange pigtails, grey eyes and a bad acne who stood behind the counter. She was clearly feeling uncomfortable in her horrendous pink dress uniform. "What can I get you?" she inquired.
Spencer swallowed, his fingers growing restless. It was quite disturbing to feel like he was starving and about to throw up at the same time. "A beef sandwich, please." Without having any control over his tongue he added. "And… I'd like to have the meat raw." He had absolutely no idea why he'd asked for that. Even the thought sounded disgusting.
The waitress – Suzie – gave him a weird look, then focused on Derek. "And you?"
Derek blinked twice, as though waking up from a stupor. "Just a cheeseburger." As soon as they were left alone the dark skinned man gave him a look. "Raw meat, huh?"
Spencer looked away, almost squirming inside his own skin. "It's… I don't usually like that stuff, but…" He trailed off with a shrug.
He heard Derek's grin although he didn't look. "Who might've thought. Even after all these years you still have surprises up your sleeve."
Spencer wished he could've been as amused. But just then something seemed to shift in his stomach again and he had to fight back a grimace.
The sandwich tasted like that best thing he'd ever had in his life, even though he could taste blood. The chirping was louder than ever before when he gulped down the meat. He even allowed the taste to swirl on his tongue for a moment.
He really was going crazy, wasn't he? That sounded like the most plausible explanation.
As soon as he was alone in the security of his own apartment he rushed to the bathroom, throwing up absolutely all there was in his stomach. It took all he had not to scream out loud while he squeezed the toilet seat so hard that his knuckles turned white, holding on for dear life.
This was just another nightmare. Had to be. Just a sick trick of his mind.
He really needed to wake up.
"Reid, wake up."
Spencer frowned, not recognizing that voice at first. He also didn't seem to have the slightest clue of where he was and what was going on. It should've terrified him but all he wanted was to go back to sleep.
"Reid, it's time to wake up." Aaron Hotchner. That voice most definitely belonged to his boss. "We've already landed."
Spencer opened his eyes slowly, almost unwillingly, and couldn't quite fight off a yawn. Embarrassment could most likely be seen on his face. He was really glad the others had already left the jet. "I, uh… I'm sorry. We were supposed to talk about the case…"
Aaron interrupted him with a shake of head. "Don't worry about it – you looked like you could use the rest. We'll have plenty of time later." The man frowned. "Reid… I didn't want to talk about this with the others present, but… Are you alright?"
Spencer shifted with immense discomfort, licking his lips. He'd been dreading this conversation for the past few days.
He knew that although he ate more than ever before he'd been losing weight during the past couple of weeks. He was also tired all the time, not enough to affect his performance at work but still. That coupled with his even more pronounced paleness, nausea and headaches the others must've noticed by now…
He swallowed, fidgeting as though he'd been trying to shed his skin. "I… Yeah, I'm fine. I guess I'm just coming down with something." He then chose to answer the unvoiced question that hung thickly in the air. "And no, I haven't started using again."
Aaron nodded although the worry didn't quite disappear from the man's eyes. "You do know that you can talk to me whenever you feel like it, right?"
Spencer nodded. He did know, but it wasn't Aaron's fault that he didn't feel comfortable with trusting his boss with this. For now he'd try to work through whatever the hell this was alone. "Yeah. I know."
Aaron nodded, appearing a slight bit more satisfied. "Then let's go. The others are waiting for us, as is chief Kensington."
Spencer switched his body on autopilot, mimicking Aaron's motions as the man took his bag, then headed out of the jet. He shivered when cold air wrapped around him as he stepped outside.
Clearly he was still a Vegas kid, deep down.
He wrapped his jacket a bit more tightly around himself, not paying much attention to how his hand rested almost protectively on his stomach. He shuddered when there was a yet another bizarre, fluttering sensation in his abdomen. A rotten taste rose into his mouth.
This… was no horrible dream, after all. He wasn't about to wake up.
And he really, really needed to find out what the hell was wrong with him before he'd lose all of his sanity.
Spencer and Aaron were so deep in thought that they didn't notice the person observing them.
A slightly unsteady hand dumped a cigarette before grabbing a cell phone and making a call. "You won't believe this." The gulp was thick, choked. "It attacked again. And… And I think it planted a seed this time."
TBC, no?
A/N: Something wicked this way comes… (shudders) Things don't look too cheer-worthy right now, eh?
PLEASE, leave me a review – let me hear all your thoughts and feelings! Hell, tell me about your day. I just love hearing from ya guys! (glances with the most adorable puppy's eyes) I'm starting to fall for this and I have most of the story to come planned out, but I don't dare to fall in love with it just yet.
Would you guys like to read more of this?
If you would… A rough frama for the next one: With new 'symptoms' appearing Reid finally goes to see a doctor. What he hears is something he sure as hell wasn't ready for.
Until next time, folks, with whichever story that'll be!
Take care!
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