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AN- I'm still wading through reviews but if I don't post this now, I may not have another chance for a while.
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Previously on Criminal Minds- Rossi glanced over at the mirror with a sigh. He patted the man on the shoulder before standing and leaving the room. He'd gotten what he came for.
Hotch walked out of the Sheriff's office and made his way across the station to the interrogation room door where Rossi was waiting for him. "It's all arranged. The Sheriff has agreed to personally deliver Mr. Remington to the Vegas Police." He told the older agent. "And before you ask, Baxter's given me his word that no harm will come to him while in transit."
"Good" Dave replied, glancing back at the closed door. "Are we going to head back now or do you want to wait until the Sheriff leaves?"
"I think we'd better wait. It's a small town. Word of his arrest has probably gotten around by now and I don't want to risk Remington being attacked by a well meaning friend of the family or some publicity seeking vigilante." Aaron decided. "We'll stay and escort them to the Sheriff's cruiser. Then follow them out of town. We should be back in Quantico before midnight."
"I was hoping you'd say that. Leaving Remington here just doesn't feel right to me." Rossi said, lowering his voice as one of the deputies strolled past them. "Have you called the team yet?"
"No, I wanted to let you know our plans first." Hotch responded, raising an eyebrow as another deputy trudged by. "I think I'll go outside to place the call. It's a little too crowded in here."
Rossi nodded. "I'll stand guard till you get back. Just be careful. From the look of the bustle around here, I'd say something is about to go down." he advised. "You might want to ask Morgan to be packed and ready for us. Then we could get a quick bite to eat at that restaurant we passed on the way into town and go straight to the airport from there. Oh, and be sure to tell him to get Reid to the biggest playground he can find so he can run off some of that energy before we board the jet. I don't think I can handle being in close quarters with an energizer bunny for five hours."
"I will." Aaron chuckled. Frowning as yet another deputy slowly sauntered by, the BAU leader hurried through the busy station and out the door. He walked a little ways down the sidewalk before pulling out his cell phone and hitting speed dial.
Morgan jumped as loud music accompanied by a deep voice singing "I like big butts and I cannot lie" filled the corridor. Swearing under his breath, the muscular agent switched the ice bucket he was carrying to his left hand and snatched his cell off his belt with his right. "Morgan" he answered.
"We've got him." Hotch declared, wisely choosing not to comment on the man's new ring tone. "Kyle Remington was the unsub. He confessed to everything."
"Great!" Derek exclaimed, stopping at the hotel room door. "So, are you guys on the way back?"
"Not yet, we're going to escort the Sheriff and Remington to the Vegas Police Station first. It shouldn't take more than a couple of hours." Hotch informed his colleague. "Tell everyone get their bags ready so we can go to a restaurant and then the airport from there. Save ourselves an extra trip."
"Yeah, about that, do you think we could put off leaving until tomorrow afternoon?" Morgan asked.
"I could probably swing it. Why?" Aaron questioned.
"I was thinking Reid should see his mom before we leave." Derek replied. "It would do him a world of good to see her."
"I'm not so sure that's a good idea, Morgan. She might not see Spencer as an adult and there's no telling what it would do to her mentally if she was faced with her grown son in toddler form." Hotch reasoned.
"Could we at least ask Dr. Norman?" Derek asked, knowing how important the request was for his friend. "The kid really needs this, Hotch."
Aaron sighed. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask." He conceded. "If nothing else, it'll give us a pretty good idea of Diana's reaction. She'll probably see him in the same form Dr. Norman does. I could be wrong, though. Remington told Rossi he saw him carrying an adult Reid into the hotel the other night."
"That makes sense. The trickster said anyone related to our cases would see the kid as an adult." Morgan mused. "The unsub would have to see Reid that way for this to work. Otherwise, we'd end up in one sticky situation. I mean, can you imagine Spencer going into an interrogation room with one of us and the suspect asking why you brought a toddler with you? Not sure how we'd explain that one to the cops or the criminal."
"That would definitely be one awkward conversation." Hotch agreed with a smile. "By the way, did Spencer enjoy getting out of the room for a little while?"
"You better believe it! He wore me out just watching him." Morgan replied. "I didn't think we'd ever get him back to the hotel."
"Spencer didn't give you any trouble when it was time to leave, did he?" Hotch asked, hoping the answer was no. He really hated playing the disciplinarian.
"Nah, he didn't put up a fight. We thought we were in for one when we called him and he didn't come out of the pipes. But when Reid didn't appear after a couple more calls, Emily crawled in the pipes to get him. She found him half laying on one of the steps sleeping." Derek recounted with a grin. "How the heck he managed to fall asleep like that is beyond me. It looked like one of the most uncomfortable positions ever."
"I thought you said Prentiss went in after him?" Hotch queried.
"She did." Derek simply replied.
"Then how do you know how he was laying?" Aaron prodded.
"Easy, Emily took a few pictures before she brought him out." Morgan informed his boss. "Hang on a sec and I'll send one your way."
Hotch pulled the cell away from his ear as a beep sounded announcing a new message. Hitting a couple of buttons, he swiftly brought the picture up, laughing as a photo of Spencer standing bent over a step fast asleep filled the screen. "Does he know you have this?"
"No way, Hotch" Morgan answered. "The kid would freak if he knew Prentiss took this. No, this one's going straight in the baby book and maybe my desk drawer. I'm always looking for new blackmail material and this definitely qualifies."
"That it does" Hotch agreed with a smile. Seeing a small group of men climbing out of a car across the street, he silently swore. "I've gotta go, Morgan. I'll call you when we're on the road." Flipping his cell closed, the FBI agent hurried back inside the station. He had to warn the Sheriff and Rossi of the approaching trouble!
CM
A few hours later, Hotch and Rossi wearily stepped out of the hotel elevator and trudged down the hall to the BAU leader's room. After the ruckus at the police station earlier, both men were more than ready for a hot shower and a warm bed. Stopping at the room door, Aaron knocked before calling out, "Morgan, it's me!"
After glancing through the peephole, Morgan swiftly opened the door for his colleagues. Closing it behind the men, he looked from one to the other. "You two look worn out." he observed. "Was the stand-off with those goons that bad?"
"No, that was nothing Hotch and I couldn't handle. It actually wasn't much of a scuffle." Dave explained. Glancing down at Reid's grey pinstriped overalls with an embroidered jack o' lantern on the front pocket, the profiler bit back a grin. "Nice duds, Spencer. What's the occasion? Are you going somewhere special?"
"Uh huh" Reid excitedly replied, nodding his head. "Gawcia said we tould go to Tatle Fawm(Kackle Farm)! Fey have a town(corn) maze and a petting zoo and a hay wide and…" The toddler hesitated as he caught the exhausted look on his friends' faces. "But ummm, we tan tay hewe and, and…"
"And miss out on all the fun! Not a chance, kid!" Rossi declared. "Give us ten minutes to change and we'll be ready to go, right Aaron?"
"I wouldn't miss it for the world." Hotch stated, raising an eyebrow at the surprised expression his words brought to the youngster's face. Figuring Reid was still upset with him about the earlier phone call, the profiler made a mental note to speak with the boy about it later. But for now: "Morgan, you and Reid go tell the others we'll meet them in the lobby in ten."
"Okay" Morgan agreed. Holding out his hand, he turned to his pint sized friend. "Come on Pretty Boy. Let's go light a fire under the girls."
Spencer shook his head. "Tan I tay hewe?" he asked, pinning Hotch with the puppy dog eyes he knew no one on the team could resist. "Peas, Hotch?"
"You can stay if you'd like." Aaron told his youngest agent.
"Okay, I guess I'll meet you guys downstairs then." Derek said. Locking eyes with the unit Chief, he gave the man a knowing look before exiting the room, leaving his two colleagues alone.
Grabbing a chance of clothes from the small closet, Hotch started for the bathroom. "I'll just be a minute. How about picking out a snack for us while I change?" he suggested.
"Otay" Reid replied. He slid off the couch and trudged over to the mini-fridge. Opening the door, the youngster grabbed two grape juice boxes. After setting them on the small table, he went over to the dresser and pulled out the bottom drawer, where his snacks were stored. The toddler carefully looked over all his choices before making a decision. Taking two boxes of animal cookies, he closed the drawer and walked back over to the table. Spencer set the boxes next to the juice and then pulled himself up into one of the chairs. Getting up on his knees so he could see over the table, he unwrapped both straws and stuck them in the juice boxes before setting one of the juices and cookies in front of the empty chair.
Hotch stepped out of the bathroom and walked over to the closet. He stowed his work suit and shoes, got his tennis shoes, and went over to the bed. Taking a seat on the end, the BAU leader quickly slipped on his shoes. He then looked over to the table with a sigh. 'Time to fix things.' He thought. Aaron ran a hand across his face as he worked out how to approach the conversation. Once he had his wording in order, he gazed over at his small charge. "Spencer, come over here for a minute. We need to have a little talk." He called, patting a spot beside him.
Reid's eyes went wide. He knew Hotch had to be angry with him about the jumping on the bed incident but he hadn't thought the man was planning on spanking him. Not wanting to make his friend angrier by making him wait, the tiny agent slid off the chair and shuffled over to the bed. He climbed onto the bed and after a moment's hesitation, draped himself over his boss's lap.
Aaron's eyebrows shot up into his hairline at the boy's action. Reaching down, he quickly righted the boy, setting him on his lap, face up. "I'm not going to spank you, Spencer." He said.
"But, but I, I jumped on the bed." Reid countered.
"I know but as I already told you on the phone, I'm not upset with you about that. While I'm not happy with your actions, I do understand them. You were cooped up in this room for days without any way to expend your pent up energy. You had to do something to get rid of some of that energy. Jack was the same way when he was your size. Keeping him in bed when he was sick was almost impossible. He was always moving, even in his sleep. Toddlers have a never ending supply of energy. Knowing that, I never should have kept you in the room for so long. JJ told me over and over that you needed to get out of the room for awhile but I didn't listen. I thought you would be alright since you were used to spending hours on end in one place. I forgot your toddler body wouldn't be able to handle that. If anything, you jumping on the bed was my fault. If you had fallen and gotten hurt, that would have been on me."
Reid vigorously shook his head. "No, it wouldn't. You didn't mate me jump on the bed."
"But I didn't give you any other outlet for your energy." Hotch pointed out.
"Yes, you did. I tould have wan awound the woom." Spencer replied.
Hotch glanced around the room before looking back at the toddler. "Spencer, there's not enough room in here for you to run without getting hurt." He said.
"I know but…"
"How about we say we were both to blame and leave it at that?" Hotch offered.
Reid thought for a moment before nodding. "Otay" he agreed.
"Good" Aaron said, ruffling the toddler's hair. "Now come on, let's eat our snack and get downstairs before the others decide to leave without us." Scooping Spencer up, he tossed the youngster in the air and then deposited him in the chair. Taking a seat next to the giggling boy, the profiler yanked open the boxes of animal cookies and the two quickly dug in.
CM
Twin black SUV's drove through the gravel parking lot and pulled into the parking spaces at the front of the lot. The doors opened and the BAU team stepped out. The small family walked over to the gate. After paying the entrance fee, the group headed into the farm.
Rossi whistled as he glanced around the field full of activities. Looking down at the wide eyed toddler beside him, he asked, "What do you want to do first, kiddo?"
"Tan we go see the aminals?" Reid inquired, pointing to the petting zoo.
"Sure, Short Stuff" Morgan replied. Taking the toddler's hand, he led the way over to the fenced in area housing the petting zoo. Opening the gate, he ushered the boy inside. "Go to it, kid" he instructed, releasing the boy's hand.
The team watched their youngest member race from one pen to another, petting the different animals. He chattered away as he gently petted each animal. The profilers were happy to see the littlest agent having a good time after being cooped up for so long.
Reid giggled as the baby goat licked his hand. "You'we hungwy, huh?" he asked."Otay, be wight bat." Promising to return, the youngster went over to the feed machines in the middle of the area. Taking the change Rossi had given him out of his pocket, he placed his quarters in the slots and turned the handle. Grabbing a handful of feed, he hurried back to his new friend. "Hewe you go" he murmured, holding out the treat. Grinning as the goat slurped up the treat, the toddler patted the goat's head before dashing back to the machines. He ran from the pens to the machine and back, feeding the animals until his money ran out. Spencer then went back to pet the animals some more. After making one more full circuit of the pens, he raced over to the gate. "Tan we do somefing else now?" he asked.
"Of course" Aaron answered, reaching over the fence to pick up the toddler. "What would you like to do?"
"Ummm, ummm"
"Why don't we try that?" Garcia suggested, pointing to what looked like a giant yellow pillow coming out of the ground.
"What is it?" Reid questioned.
"The map says it's a jump pillow." Rossi informed them as the group started for the strange attraction. "Apparently, it's like a giant trampoline."
"A trampoline! Awesome!" Penelope exclaimed.
"I don't know" Reid said. "I'm not suwe I…"
"It'll be fun!" Penelope interrupted, taking the boy from Hotch. "You don't have to worry, Sweet Pea. I won't let you fall."
One look at the woman's sparkling eyes and excited expression had Spencer nodding his head. "Otay, I'll twy it." He agreed.
Clapping her hands gleefully, Garcia hurried over to a nearby bench. She slipped off her shoes and Reid's and then stood and walked onto the giant air mattress. Making it to the middle of the pillow, she carefully set the toddler on his feet. She took his hands and slowly started jumping.
Spencer squealed as he bounced into the air. Tightening his grip on the tech analyst's hands, the youngster closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable fall. When that didn't happen, he opened his eyes in surprise. Discovering he was safe, Reid relaxed. He began giggling as the two bounced higher and higher. Glancing over at the rest of the team, who were standing on the sidelines, he hollered, "Tome on! Fis is fun!"
"You heard the kid. Get moving!" Morgan ordered, sliding off his shoes.
"I'll pass. You guys go ahead though." Rossi told the others.
"Suit yourself" JJ said as she tossed her shoes beside the others.
Nodding, Rossi watched JJ, Emily, and Morgan walk onto the jump pillow. Seeing movement out of the corner of his eye, he turned to find Hotch taking off his shoes. "Aaron, you're not really getting on that thing, are you?" he asked.
"Why not? It looks like fun." Hotch replied with a shrug. "You know, Jack asked for one last Christmas. We didn't get him one because Hailey thought it was too dangerous."
"Aaron, you don't"
"It's alright, Dave. It helps to talk sometimes." Hotch broke in before changing the subject. "I think I need to try this thing out for myself; see what the big deal is."
Taking the cue from his friend, Rossi smiled. "Why do I get the feeling this is going to end with us putting together a trampoline in Morgan's back yard?" he good naturedly groaned.
"You know, that's a great idea. I'll be sure to talk with Morgan about it." Hotch declared. He glanced at the laughing group on the jump pillow before looking back at his friend. "You sure you won't come with me?"
"Thanks but I think I'll have to pass." Dave told him. "You go have fun though. I'll be right here when you're done." Getting a nod in reply, Rossi chuckled as he watched his straight laced boss run up and jump onto the pillow. Grabbing the camera Garcia had set on the bench, the senior profiler snapped picture after picture of his colleagues bouncing around like children.
The team stayed on the jump pillow for a long time. They jumped and bounced as more and more people joined them. Deciding it was getting too crowded, Hotch signaled to the others that it was time to leave. Picking up Reid, Aaron walked to the edge of the pillow. He jumped up, landing on his backside and then slid down the side of the colorful trampoline. Once at the bottom, he followed the other members of his team to the bench.
The profilers quickly put on their shoes and walked to the entrance of the corn maze. After reading the directions for the maze, the group went inside. They were several feet in before they came to the first fork in the path. The team carefully studied both paths, attempting to discern the correct route. Noting that the paths looked identical, they turned to the Halloween question on the sign for help.
"In "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" which characters waited in the pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin to come?" Prentiss read.
"That's easy!" Garcia hollered. "It was Linus and Sally!"
"She's right." JJ agreed. "Henry and I watched that this weekend."
"It's a tawtoon?" Reid inquired.
"Wait, you mean to tell me you've never seen it?" Morgan incredulously asked.
"No" Spencer replied, shaking his head.
"You've never seen Charlie Brown?" Garcia gasped.
"Uh oh, Spencer, you're in for it now." Derek teased. "I've seen that look before. Be prepared to watch every Halloween cartoon ever made, Short Stuff."
"Sounds lite fun" Reid commented, smiling up at Garcia.
"If you three are finished, can we get on with the maze now?" Rossi asked.
"Sorry" Morgan said. He glanced at the sign. "Okay, Linus and Sally is choice B and it says to take the left path."
"Left path, got it" Emily said. Taking the toddler by the hand, the two led the way down the chosen path.
The team continued through the maze, following all the twists and turns and answering the trivia questions. Making it to the middle, they found two people dressed as scarecrows guarding a giant cauldron full of brown paper bags. The scarecrows congratulated them on making it half way, handed them each a bag of candy and a strofoam cup of apple cider, and sent them on their way. Several turns and questions later, the BAU stepped out of the maze.
Spotting the finish line bell, Hotch scooped up Reid. He held the toddler up while the boy pulled the rope to ring the bell. The two posed for a picture before rejoining the group.
Seeing Spencer yawn and fist his eyes, Rossi decided it was time to bring the evening's festivities to an end. "I think it's time to go." He said, motioning to the toddler.
Hotch nodded. Settling the tired little boy on his hip, he started for the entrance.
The rest of the team fell into step behind him. At the entrance, they stopped long enough for Spencer to pick a small pumpkin and then proceeded to their SUV's. Hopping into their vehicles, they quickly drove to the nearest restaurant for supper. They quickly walked into the building and up to the podium.
"How many?" the busty blond waitress asked.
"Table for seven" Rossi answered.
The waitress checked her notes before grabbing several large menus. "Right this way" she instructed. She escorted them to a table at the very back of the restaurant. Handing the menus to the adults in the group, she said, "Your waitress will be right with you."
Ignoring the booster seat, Aaron settled Spencer in his lap. Needing to keep the toddler awake long enough to eat, he opened the menu. "What would you like to eat, Spencer?" he asked.
Reid looked at the children's part of the menu for a moment before answering. "Tuwtey and dwessing" he mumbled.
"And to drink?" Hotch prodded.
"Cho *yawn* late milt, peas" Spencer replied.
After giving the waitress their order, the team discussed plans for Halloween, making a point to engage Reid in the planning to keep him from falling asleep. By the time they finished mapping out Halloween evening, the waitress had returned with their meal. Knowing their youngest member wouldn't last much longer, the group dug into their food.
Yawning, Spencer stabbed another piece of turkey and dipped it in the dressing. Bringing the fork to his mouth, he slowly chewed and swallowed the mouthful. The toddler washed it down with a sip of milk before setting down his fork. Leaning against Hotch, Reid closed his eyes. His thumb made its way into his mouth as the boy drifted off to sleep.
Feeling Spencer's head come to rest on his chest, Aaron glanced down. Finding the toddler sleeping peacefully, he sighed. He'd hoped his charge would last a little longer. Picking up the tiny agent, the father gently laid Spencer's head on his shoulder. He exchanged glances with the rest of the team and then quickly went back to eating his meal. He needed to get the toddler back to the hotel and in bed. They had a long day ahead of them.
AN- Bored?