Disclaimer: Criminal Minds and all its characters belong to CBS. I own nothing. Feel free to read and review, but please don't copy.
AN- Okay, I'm begging here. There has been precious little Reid in the show as well as on the site (except for Romance or extreme torture). Please help this writer out by giving me something to read. I'm starving for stories to read. And it's extremely hard to write when you have little to no inspiration.
This is the chapter I've been waiting years to publish. The majority of it was written right after I started this story. I can't wait to hear what you think!
Previously on Criminal Minds- The family and friends then spent the rest of their Christmas feast laughing and joking and swapping stories.
CM
Dr. Sawyer pushed back from the table and patted his stomach. "That was the most delicious meal I've had in months!" he exclaimed. "I've been living on fast food, take out, and the occasional dinner cooked by one of the nurses but they've got nothing on this!"
"You're dead on with that." Dean agreed. "This turkey and dressing is so good it's sinful."
"Thank you" Rossi and Will chorused.
"We'll make sure to fix you some to take home with you." JJ told their guests.
"I don't wanna put y'all out or anything." Josh said.
"You won't be." Aaron assured the physician. "We're going out of town Christmas Eve and there's no way we can eat all of this before then. And it won't be any good by the time we get back. You'd actually be helping us by taking some with you."
"You don't have to twist my arm." Dr. Sawyer replied. He startled as his cell went off. He checked the text message and then looked over at the family he'd grown so attached to the past few months. "I'm afraid duty calls. Thank you folks for the wonderful home cooked meal and for inviting me. I can't think of a better way to spend an evening."
"Thank you for coming." Aaron countered. "I know the boys enjoyed your being here. Right boys?"
"Yeah!" Spencer and Henry hollered. They ran over, jumped in the surprised man's lap, and hugged him. "You ouw fwiend! We love you!"
"I love you too guys" Josh whispered, hugging the two boys back. Hearing his phone ping again, he sighed. "I've gotta go now Little Bits. There's some kiddies that need my help." He explained as he set the boys on their feet and then stood. "You guys have a good time on your trip and be good for your family. I'll see you when you get back so you can tell me all about it. Okay?"
"Otay!" the boys agreed.
Josh ruffled Reid and Henry's hair. "That's the spirit!" he exclaimed. "See you later boys! Have a good Christmas!"
"Wait! Don't forget your to go baggie!" Garcia hollered. She raced over to the doctor and handed him a large plastic bag. "I put a little extra dessert in there since you seemed to like it so much."
"Thank you ma'am" Dr. Sawyer politely said as he took the bag.
"You're welcome" Penelope answered. She stood up on her tip toes and kissed his cheek. "Merry Christmas, Josh"
A wolfish grin spread across Josh's face. "Merry Christmas to you to, Sweet Cheeks" he whispered, giving her a peck on the cheek in return. He then reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out one of his cards. "If you ever get tired of that chocolate stud muffin of yours, give me a call." With that the physician turned and walked out of the room.
"I, I will." Garcia muttered, standing frozen as she watched him go. Once the door shut, she blinked and let out a dreamy sigh. "Merry Christmas to me" she whispered. Hearing her name called, she tucked the good doctor's card into her bra before turning and smiling brightly at her team. "Okay ladies, since the men cooked, the clean-up is on us. Hop to it! We have another go bag to pack and tons of leftovers to store!"
"Coming Pen" JJ and Emily called. Grabbing dishes and platters, the two ladies hurried after their friend determined to get all the juicy gossip.
The men and boys then retired to the living room. Henry took his daddy's hand and headed straight for his block set while Reid drug the youngest Winchester over to the Star Wars Lego sets. He had some questions he needed answered and he had the impression Sam was the only one who could answer them. If he knew Reid was really an adult that is. Spencer would have to feel him out; see what he knew. But first…the tiny profiler plopped down on his behind, picked up his X-Wing Fighter kit, and upended it. "You pay bots(blocks) wif me?" he brightly asked.
"Sure" Sam responded. He glanced at the directions before taking a couple of blocks and snapping them together. He continued to build as he secretly studied the little boy across from him. He could tell from the kid's body language that he wanted information and he was pretty sure he knew what info the boy was looking for. He waited for Reid to start the conversation but when five minutes went by and the youngster still hadn't said anything, Sam decided he'd need to be the one to start. Clearing his throat, the hunter grinned down at the boy. "So, are you enjoying your second childhood?" he inquired.
"You know…"
"That you're really an adult? Yeah" Sam told him. "Loki told us what he did. He sounded really proud of himself for doing it."
"Figuwes" Reid grumbled, crossing his arms.
"Hey if it's any consolation, you're not the first person he's done that to." Sam soothed. "He's shrunk me more than once."
"Weally?" Spencer asked.
"Yeah" Sam simply stated.
Reid smiled. "What was it lite fow you?" he questioned.
"Well, at first it was extremely annoying. I was too short to reach anything and too small to do things by myself or for myself." Sam recounted. "And Dean didn't help. He wanted to carry me everywhere and do everything for me. He even went so far as to bathe me and help me dress."
"Sounds familiaw" Spencer mumbled.
"But then Dean and Bobby and I got used to it. We figured out ways to work around my size. And they went out of their way to find things that would help me be more independent." Sam continued. "All in all it wasn't so bad. Dean, Bobby, and I did and said things we never would have otherwise. It was cleansing almost. We were reminded of what was really important in life. What about you?"
Reid thought for a moment before speaking. "It tawted lite youws. It was awtwawd(awkward) and embawwassing and annoying." He carefully stated. "We leawned to wowt wif it, too and it did bwing us tlosew togefew."
"But?" Sam prodded.
"But unlite you and youw bwofew I didn't need fis." Spencer finished. "It's made my job hawdew and mowe fwustwating. And all fis babying is weally getting to me."
Sam nodded. He put a few more pieces onto his section of the ship and then said, "Can I give you a piece of advice?"
"Suwe" Reid agreed.
"I can see from the slide and the stool in the bathroom that your friends are trying their best to give you your space." Sam began, holding up a hand to stop the boy's protest. "Just hear me out, okay?" Getting a nod, he smiled. "You've been given a gift. Don't waste it fretting about what you've lost; focus on what you've gained. You have people who care about you and with you this little they finally have the chance to show you just how much. And you can show them, too. Think about it. How many chances are you gonna have to freely show them you love them? Huh?"
"I hadn't fought about it lite fat." Spencer admitted.
"I didn't either." Sam admitted. "It wasn't until after I'd been turned back that I realized just how great a gift it was. I don't want that to happen to you. Do yourself and them a favor. Treasure every minute you're little. Do what feels natural. Don't hold anything back."
Reid smiled. "I fint I tan do fat." He said.
"Good" Sam replied. "Now do you think you could help me with my part of the X-Wing? I'm kinda stuck."
"Suwe!" Spencer hollered. Taking the offered piece, he ran a critical gaze over it. "Otay, hewe's what you need to do."
CM
Aaron carefully monitored Spencer and Sam's interaction. While Sam had been nothing but friendly and nice, the profiler wasn't taking any chances. He'd let his guard down once and Reid had paid the price. He wasn't about to allow that to happen again. He was determined to be extra vigilant this time which meant he needed to keep an ear out for the other Winchester as well. So keeping his eyes on the duo sitting on the floor, Hotch tuned in to the conversation going on beside him.
Rossi settled in the recliner next to the couch where the elder Winchester brother was sitting surrounded by Garcia and Prentiss. "So, Dean" he began. "Pardon me for saying so but you're nothing like Gabe described you."
"I can't say I'm surprised. Loki tends to see what he wants to see." Dean informed the group. He scooted up a little and leaned towards the senior agent. "Just for shits and giggles what'd the old goofball say about us?"
Dave snickered. "He said that you acted like a poor pitiful pearl and that you were a hypocrite who was going to fall off the pedestal you'd put yourself on one day and break your neck. And that you were always right and your brother was always wrong no matter what." He recounted.
"We're not really like that." Dean protested, rolling his eyes. "We're just written that way."
"Written that way?" Emily repeated. "What do you mean?"
"See, there's this guy named Chuck and he's sort of a writer. He wrote a series of books called…"
"Supernatural!" Penelope filled in.
"Yeah" Dean agreed, scooting away from the excited woman. "Turns out he had some kind of mojo where he could see our lives."
"Those stories really happened?!" Garcia gasped. "You mean, you and Sam really…"
"Yep" Dean swiftly cut in. "Everything in those books actually happened. Of course Chuck didn't know that at first. It wasn't until after we met up with him that he found out he had been transcribing our lives. Anyway, the books sold well to start with but sales started lagging after a while and Chuck was disappointed. He thought he'd be a millionaire by the end I guess. So he tried to think of a way to jazz them up. He knew he had to write exactly what went down so he decided he would see if he could change our storyline. He started out small. He introduced this fan girl of Sammy's; had her kidnap the kid and drug him with a love potion. When that worked, Chuck really got busy. He turned out lives into this awful soap opera with enough angst and fighting to kill a cow. And like you said he made out like I was the good guy and Sam was the evil brother no matter what. It worked for a while, too. But then Sammy and I caught him in the act."
"How?" Penelope asked.
"We went up against an a…a being named Metatron a couple of weeks ago. Chuck was there thinking up all kind of crap and writing it down so it would happen." Dean related. "But Sam and I and a friend of ours named Castiel figured out his game plan and we shut him down. Then after everything was over, we checked out his computer to find any other files he had on us. And when we saw what he had written and when it had been written, we put two and two together and figured out we were being played."
"So, did you make up?" Garcia inquired.
"Yeah and we destroyed the computer and all Chuck's notes as well as his pens, pencils, and anything else we could find." Dean told her. "Sammy and I aren't going to let anyone or anything tear us apart again. EVER!" Catching his little brother yawning out of the corner of his eye, the elder Winchester smiled fondly at his kid. "Looks like I've kept someone out to late."
The agents followed the hunter's gaze, smiling as they caught sight of Sam and Spencer in what looked to be a yawning contest.
"He doesn't appear to be the only one." Dave commented.
"True but unlike Short Stuff I can't just carry him to bed if he conks out while he's playing." Dean said, knowing he could and would if he had to. Rubbing the back of his neck, he stood. "I better go get Sammy before he falls asleep and squishes his playmate. Thank you for having us for your Christmas dinner. We don't get a chance to have home cooked meals very often."
"Then you'll have to come back sometime." Rossi offered.
Dean looked taken aback by the invitation. "Th, thank you sir" he answered. "We just might take you up on that."
"There's no might about it. You will come back. Capishe?" Dave informed the younger man in a tone that brokered no argument. Once he'd gotten a nod from the hunter, Rossi went over to his jacket, pulled out a business card, and after scribbling his cell number on it, handed it to the stunned Winchester. "Call me next time you're in town and we'll set up another family meal."
Dean's smile lit up his whole face. "We'll do that sir." He replied. He then turned in the direction of his sibling. "Come on Sammy! Time to hit the road!"
"Coming!" Sam called back. He handed the partially finished space ship to Reid and stood. "Remember what I told you. Enjoy your little kid time. Play, have fun, and most importantly take every opportunity you can find to show your friends and family just how much you care about them."
"I *YAWN* will." Spencer promised. He pushed himself up off the floor and raised his arms to his new friend.
Grinning, Sam swiftly scooped the tired youngster up. His grin widened as the boy's head dropped onto his shoulder and tiny fingers started playing with his hair. "Night Reid" he whispered before shuffling over to the couch where the others were gathered and handing the sleeping boy to Hotch. "I think Reid's ready for *Yawn* bedtime."
"I think he's not the only one." Dean countered, smirking as his statement brought out his brother's sleepy puppy bitch face. "Come on Baldy, tell the nice people good night and let's go before you face plant."
Sam rolled his eyes but did as he was told. "Night guys, thank you for the meal. It was delicious."
"You're welcome Honey" Garcia responded, wrapping both men in a bear hug. "Take care of yourselves my Handsome Hunters. I don't want to look at the news one day and see one or both of you has been mauled by a bear or something equally as horrible."
"Don't you worry your pretty little head Sweetness. I promise we'll be extra careful around any bears." Dean promised, mentally adding, 'and shape shifters, vampires, werewolves, black dogs, and all the other fuglies out there.'
Sam let out another jaw popping yawn garnering everyone's attention.
Dean snickered as Sammy fidgeted from foot to foot clearly uncomfortable with all the attention. "Alright, that's it. Start walking Sambo." He ordered. "It's beddy bye time for all little brothers."
"Dean" Sam whined.
"Sam" Dean whined back. "Less talking, more walking princess. I will not carry your gigantor ass if you lose the battle with the sand man before we get to the car."
"Will to" Sam argued even as he headed for the front door.
"Not happening" Dean gruffly protested.
"It so *Yawn* would." Sam countered, smiling smugly when he stumbled and his big brother automatically reached for him. "Told ya!"
"Yeah, yeah" Dean grumbled, opening the door for his swaying sibling. He watched Sam shuffled through the entryway before glancing over his shoulder at the BAU family. "Good night guys"
"Merry Christmas!" Garcia cheerfully called.
With their company gone the men and women went about the business of cleaning up and then went upstairs to get ready for bed. They had a lot to do tomorrow and they refused to miss a minute of it!
CM
After a quick breakfast the next morning, the family piled into their vehicles and headed to the mall to do their last minute shopping. Once there they broke into two teams and split up. Hotch, Morgan, JJ, and Spencer wandered through one end of the mall while Rossi, Will, Garcia, Prentiss, and Henry made their way through the other. They stopped in various shops searching for the perfect gifts to give their friends and family. Their quests took them through one crowded store after another and all of them were appalled by the un-Christmas like spirit many of the shoppers had. By the time noon rolled around the group had had more than enough. They met up at the fountain in the center of the mall before swiftly striding towards the doors. Making it out into the cold winter air, the team gave a collective sigh of relief. That was one experience they never wished to repeat. Thrilled to have the worst behind them, the family hopped back into their trucks and drove off to the nearest family friendly restaurant for something to eat.
CM
After a short break for naptime, the team walked into the ice skating rink and followed Garcia up to the counter. They paid to rent skates, walked over to the benches and switched their shoes for ice skates. They then stored their shoes in an available locker and carefully made their way onto the ice. JJ and Will each took one of Henry's hands and the three slowly started out. Eager to catch up Spencer grabbed Hotch and Emily's hands and began tugging them. "Tome on!" he hollered. "Fey'we beating us!"
Grinning, Aaron and Emily held the excited boy's hands tightly and began skating while Rossi glided beside them giving Reid instructions, encouragement, and praise. It only took a couple of laps for Spencer to get the hang of it and once he did he raced around the rink with Hotch, Rossi, and everyone else in their family. Well, everyone except for…
"Tome on Mowgan! It's easy!" Spencer called as he skated past his best friend again.
"Says you!" Derek yelled back, holding onto Garcia and the rail for dear life. He huffed as the rest of the team sped past him. He didn't understand it. He was a natural athlete. Ice skating should be a breeze. He grew up in Chicago for crying out loud! Then again he could remember having to sit and watch his friends and his sisters merrily skating away. His mom had told him he would be able to skate one day but it didn't look like today would be that day. Still, he had to try. He couldn't let Pretty Boy have all the fun. So, Morgan tightened his grip on the railing and attempted to move his feet the way Garcia had shown him.
"Hotch! Loot!" Spencer cried, giggling as his friend and big brother fell on his behind.
"Reid, that's not very nice." Aaron scolded even as the corners of his lips turned up.
"Sorry" Spencer apologized. "It's jut tinda nice to be good at a powt(sport) fat Mowgan tan't do. It's usually the ofew way awound."
"True" Hotch agreed. "But it's still not…"
"Uh oh! It looks like Garcia has some competition." Dave advised, gesturing towards a tall thin man who'd skated up to the duo. The man in the skin tight red, white, and blue body suit was clearly making a play for Morgan which from the look of things neither agent was taking well. Rossi and Hotch were however content to watch the situation play out. They knew both Morgan and Garcia could take care of themselves and they didn't want to interfere and embarrass Morgan further if they didn't need to. When Penelope reached for her ever present purse though, the two heads of the family knew they had to step in and fast. They handed Reid over to JJ and Will who had also stopped to watch the show and then hurried over to the trio.
"There you are." Rossi said, skating between the threat and his family. "We were wondering where you two had gotten off to."
"Yes" Aaron agreed as he added his body to the blockade. "We know you're still newlyweds and all but this is a family outing, remember?"
"What?" Morgan muttered before catching on. "Oh, yeah! Sorry man, we just kind of lost track of time."
"We figured as much." Dave replied. "Come along now, Reid's been asking where his daddy and mommy are and I'd rather he not have a meltdown today if we can avoid it." Smirking at the gasp that sounded behind him, Rossi took the hand Morgan had on the rail and he and Garcia quickly led him away from the intruder.
Aaron stayed behind to ensure Morgan's admirer didn't follow and then skated over to Prentiss who was standing on the other side of the rink. "Worn out already?" he asked.
"No, I just stopped to take a few pictures." Emily replied, snapping off a few more.
Hotch looked in the direction she was pointing her cell. He smiled as he watched JJ and Will skate around the rink with Henry and Spencer in between them. They looked like the perfect little family. Swallowing the lump in his throat that thought caused, Aaron pushed off from the railing and skated towards them. He and Spencer had some memories to make!
CM
The weary family finally made it back to Morgan's place at sundown. After their extended day of fun, they had just enough time to use the bathroom, wash and change the boys into their pajamas, and throw their bags into the trucks before they'd have to leave again. Their flight to Florida left at ten o'clock sharp and they weren't about to miss it! To give themselves a little extra time they split up the work. Hotch and JJ bathed the little ones while Morgan, Will, and Rossi loaded the trucks and Prentiss and Garcia checked to make sure they hadn't forgotten anything important.
Once both boys were bathed and redressed, Aaron and JJ carried them back downstairs hoping to read a story to the two before they fell asleep for the night. That wasn't to be though as they quickly found out. Walking into the living room, they were greeted by Santa himself sitting in a giant golden chair.
Handing Spencer to JJ, Hotch reached for his weapon.
"No need for that Mr. Stick in the mud." A very familiar voice called out.
Hotch narrowed his eyes. "Ga…"
"Yep, it's me Santa!" Loki broke in before the profiler could spoil things for Henry. "I heard there were two little boys here who had been super duper good all year so I came to ask them what they wanted for Christmas personally."
"Santa tome see Henwy?!" the littlest Jareau squealed.
"That's right Buddy Boy! I came all the way from the North Pole just to see you and Reid." Gabe replied. "So hop up on my lap and tell me what you want for Christmas!"
Henry wiggled his way out of his mother's arms and ran over to the trickster claus. He eagerly told the jolly being what he wanted and then hopped back down and toddled over to Hotch. "Weid go see Santa now." he instructed.
Spencer sighed. He was too tired to go see the fake Santa but he'd do it because Henry wanted him to. Fisting his eyes, he asked Hotch to put him down and then shuffled over the waiting man in red.
Gabe picked up the mini profiler and sat him on his knee. "Okay munchkin, since this is your first and probably only childhood Christmas wish, it needs to be extra special. So I want you to think long and hard about what you'd like it to be. You can wish for anything pretty much. No bringing people back from the death or making you big again or anything like that though." he explained.
"Otay" Spencer told him. He thought over the possibilities for a moment. He didn't need or want any material things and he already had everything he could possibly want. What more could he wish for? Grinning as an idea popped into his mind, the little boy motioned for the trickster to come closer and then whispered his request in the being's ear.
"You sure?" Gabe questioned.
"Uh huh" Reid answered.
"Okay then you've got it kiddo." Loki promised.
"Tool! Fants Ga, I mean Santa!" Spencer shouted. He hugged the being's neck before jumping off his lap and running back over to Hotch. Once in the safety of his father's arms, he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
CM
Spencer awoke the next morning to find himself alone in a beautifully decorated hotel room. He crawled to the side of the bed, slid off, and then hurried through the open door and into the sitting area of their room. "Mowning!" he called.
"About time you got up" Morgan good naturedly grumbled. "I was starting to think you were going to sleep the day away."
"And miss all the fun? No way!" Reid declared.
"And that fun is just beginning!" a voice boomed from behind them.
"Untle Gabe!" Henry shouted.
"In the flesh" Loki replied with a smirk. "And guess what I brought…Presents!"
"Yay!" Henry hollered.
"Yeah yay" Gabe repeated. "Now before I give out the gifts a certain somebody" he looked at Reid. "wished for I need to go over a few ground rules. These presents are only good until midnight Christmas Day. They are completely safe. All of you are under my protection which means nothing bad can happen to any of you."
"Gabe, what does that have to do with anything?" Morgan asked.
"You'll see." Loki hedged. "Without further ado! The first gift of Christmas!" he bellowed, waving a hand at one of the closed bedroom doors which then magically opened.
"DADDY!" Jack yelled as he raced into the room and leapt into his surprised father's arms. "Daddy, I missed you."
"J-Jack? Hailey?" Aaron stammered, hugging his family fiercely. "What are…how did you…"
"You're looking at Reid's Christmas wish Mr. Eloquent." Loki explained. "I told him he could have anything he wanted and for some reason what he wanted was for you to have your family with you."
"But Fo…"
"Will never know" Gabe assured the worried father. "You're under my protection, remember Einstein?" He then turned to the littlest profiler. "Now to give out the other wish."
"Ofew wish?" Spencer repeated. "But I didn't wish fow anyfing else."
"With your mouth no" Loki agreed. "But your heart was another story. And since it was your one and only childhood Christmas I decided to honor both. This one is same as the first. It's only good till midnight Christmas Day and so on and so forth. I did turn back the clock on this one though. I thought you'd enjoy it more that way. Are you ready to see what it is?"
"Yes peas" Reid answered. He couldn't imagine what the trickster had brought. His family was here and he had everything he wanted already. Maybe he de-aged the director and brought him? Or Dr. Sawyer! He bet Dr. Sawyer would be a lot of fun as a kid! Or, or…his thoughts ground to a halt as a door opened revealing… "MOM!"