Again, thanks all for the support. Shout-outs especially to Cassadee Willows and Ren Kayashima, for helping me know where I went right and wrong. You're both very loved.
I own only the word-mass and Haley (the OC Haley, just to clarify that...)
Please be honest in reviews. If something sucked, tell me! R&Rs very much appreciated! Thanks tons!
Habaeus diem.
As Reid entered the barn, Morgan broke into a massive laugh, along with Hotch. Prentiss looked reproachfully at the two, who continued to guffaw, while Seaver stared straight ahead at Haley, who had already tied the gray and was hopping up on Vice. Rossi and Garcia both let out a long-held-back chuckle in unison, and eventually the laughter died away just as Reid came back out.
"Alright, Haley", Reid called from a good distance away. "Show us what you've got." He was content to walk up behind the team and watch from that distance-in short, he wanted a barrier between him and the horse.
Haley took this order silently, instead asking the horse to speak for her. She trotted airily over to the far corner of the arena, turning the trot's one-two tempo into a slow, prancing cadence around the bend to the long side of the rectangular arena. Balance was evident; the reins held a slack barely visible, and Haley was exerting herself with almost no visible signs as she brought the horse to trot in place halfway down the long side. The strides had about a second between them, and it was astonishing to watch.
The horse turned, still in this soft, slow rhythm, to face the team, trotted in place for a few strides more, and lifted its front end, front legs folded under, but slowly being brought upward. Once the forelegs had reached their most upward position that they could with the knees still halfway bent, the horse launched into the air, kicking its hind legs out and the top of the jump, and landing into an energetic trot, legs unfurling gorgeously, seeming to flow much like the mane was flowing, except that the legs flowed forward and the mane flowed behind. The horse was still facing the team; its legs simply crossed over, with its nose in the direction of the movement, continuing out of the arena. Tail set high, with the head in, the horse stopped perfectly square, coming literally toe-to-toe with Morgan.
"Go get the horses put away, come in and wash up for dinner", Reid ordered.
Haley backed up Vice, made him bow, bowed herself, dismounted while Vice was still bowing, and led him away with a single hand motion.
"She didn't say a word the whole time", Morgan observed casually as soon as Haley was in the barn.
Reid turned away and began to lead the way back into the house. "She's nervous about people yet. She's better when it's just me." He felt bad about taking away Haley's confidence by making her interact with strangers without a horse to perch on, but she had to learn one day, and preferably one day soon. His face was set in a pensive expression, glancing about at the semi-wilderness, trying to let its natural beauty soak in and soothe his mind. However, he had no such luck.
"She's scared, Morgan", Prentiss said with more than a hint of maternal intonation. "She has to be able to trust someone to touch her before she can really talk to them, and she couldn't even let me touch her without freaking out. I think that says a lot right there."
"Hence, all the trust exercises I have her doing", Reid said. "They're odd, but if she won't let you stroke down her back at least, you're doing her more harm than help by trying to make any progress beyond that."
"So you treat her like an abused dog?" Morgan asked, more than a little irritated about this kind of talk, his expression showing it as he entered the house after Reid through the back door.
"I wouldn't if she would be willing to step past it, but she's been debased by sadistic Type As and she's absolutely terrified of anything, even physical contact." Reid looked guilty, but an encouraging look from Prentiss lessened the guilt somewhat.
Morgan nodded, the severity of his disapproving expression lessening. This made some more sense to him, but he silently resolved to treat her like a normal human being when the opportunity presented itself.
Everyone fell into a quick flurry after this, as they'd reached the kitchen and were carrying the food to the table down the extended hallway. Prentiss stubbornly refused to be helped with the massive ham, while Garcia was smart enough to do so with her desserts, delegating which desserts Seaver and Reid were to carry. Everyone else simply picked up their own things and carried them into the dining room, returned to the kitchen to wash their hands, and walked again down the long hall to the dining area.
Haley came in, looking refreshed but insecure, just as everyone was about to sit, and began to busy herself with straightening the tablecloth, setting the drinks in the glasses exactly level, making sure everything was absolutely straight and evenly spaced, and all the while refusing to make eye contact with anyone.
"Why don't you sit down?" Morgan asked her.
Haley shot him a sidelong glance full of confusion and amazement that someone would suggest that she sit with everyone, and when the table wasn't just right to boot. She'd never eaten at a table with Reid, so her shock was understandable.
"You can sit, Haley; we're not expecting you to do anything", Reid reinforced.
At this, Haley nodded, said a quiet "thank you", and looked for a convenient seat. There were a few further-away ones, and she made for those.
"You know, there's a seat across from me", Morgan said, gesturing to an empty seat.
Haley turned on her heels, nodding meekly and taking the suggested seat. Seaver was at her right, and Hotchner at her left. It made her nervous, and she couldn't see Reid from where she sat, but she stayed put and tried not to be noticed.
Morgan, however, picked up on this, and was intent on not letting her get away with it. "So, Haley, does Reid have you in a school yet?" He leaned on the table a little, showing interest in her, but in a strictly platonic way-something Haley had known very little of over her years of existence.
"It'll be online", she replied softly, barely audible, looking down and shrinking a little in her seat. Reid saw Morgan's body language and looked on with a mixture of mild interest and moderately severe fear about what would happen if Morgan's approach failed. At this point, most of the team was watching, but only Haley was acutely aware of it, as Morgan was focused on her, and all eyes on her made her all the shier.
"What school? Do you know?" Morgan slipped into his relaxed conversationalist mode, gesturing freely and naturally and leaning back against his chair.
"Online Honor Academy, most likely." Haley was beginning to really curl up; she was clearly nervous, and unsettled all the more by everyone's looking at her, as if judging her by what she was doing.
"So are you some kind of genius? Is Reid taking on a protégé or something?" Morgan's face now showed more interest, and this scared Haley a little, but she moved her black hair back behind her ears, breathing calmly and evenly, bracing herself to launch into a wordy reply that would help her figure out this guy's exact nature.
"I don't believe intelligence is quantifiable", she began. Morgan looked on, interested-looking as usual, seemingly not offended at all by her opinion. Good. "However, my IQ is estimated at 140, and that's without schooling. I'm hoping to improve, though that seldom happens and it's hard to do. I can read at approximately one-third of the WPM rate Reid can read at, and, well, if that qualifies as 'genius'…" She trailed off, looking at Morgan with mixed hope and apprehension.
Morgan leaned back and folded his arms, content to back off at this point. She'd acknowledged her own existence and given her own opinion. Now it was time to simply prove he could be trusted. "Genius, maybe not. Your choice on that one. How are you?"
Haley dropped a good part of her guard immediately, uncurling, relaxing her muscles, fear dropping off her face, looking Morgan in the eyes for a moment. "I'm doing fine. You?"
"The same." He grabbed the ham, cutting a piece for himself nonchalantly. "Ham?" he offered.
Haley ducked her head a little. "I'll pass; thanks." It was said politely, almost delicately, and some of her shifty nervousness returned.
"Alright. You vegetarian or something?" He passed the ham off to Prentiss at his right.
"If Reid hasn't told you my background, I'm sure you can guess", she replied, somewhat uncomfortably, but letting the fear leave her. "I feared the same end they came to, and I know how bad it is, knowing that you might die any day, feeling only pain and fear. Some places made me eat it, but if I can get away with being vegetarian, I'll do it." She looked at the large, muscle-bound black man for a moment. "Not that I hold it against anyone who doesn't know what it's like, of course."
Morgan nodded at her. "I can get that." He wouldn't say this, but he now viewed the ham on his plate in a totally different way. He didn't want to eat it, but then, he couldn't let a mere idea get in his way. Besides, he wasn't about to return it to the original platter. He forced himself to dig in a little, and since the whole team had paid attention to the entire exchange, everyone now cut less ham than they would have originally, with Seaver avoiding it entirely, instead heaping corn, green beans, and mashed potatoes on her plate.