batgurl88 | Criminal Minds - Hark 1/3 [Gen

Title: Hark 1/3
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Rating: Teen
Summary: A child murder case darkens the BAU's Christmas, causing Reid to question his way of thinking.
Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds, 'It's a Wonderful Life', 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas', or 'A Christmas Carol'.

A/N: I wrote this last year - my first attempt at a Christmas fic, and a complete monster to finish. This is set sometime between Elle's departure and Emily's arrival. Posted in three parts because LJ is being a pain. Finally, Groverton, Pennsylvania is a fictional place.

Part I Part II Part III

“And in despair I bowed my head;

"There is no peace on earth," I said;

"For hate is strong,

And mocks the song

Of peace on earth, good-will to men!"”

- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The doors of the elevator slid open, allowing its lone occupant to exit swiftly, adjusting his hold on the brown paper bag in his arms as he made his way through the glass doors into the FBI's Behavioural Analysis Unit.

Derek Morgan glanced up from his paperwork and immediately wished he hadn't as fellow FBI profiler, Spencer Reid, entered the bullpen, a large paper bag in his hands and a Santa hat atop his head. Morgan sighed, shaking his head in a disbelieving fashion as his friend spotted him.

"You do know you're a federal agent, right?"

Spencer smiled as he placed a candy cane on his partner's desk.

"Happy holidays to you, too, Morgan."

Morgan picked up the candy cane, eyeing it with some amount of distrust.

"No offense, kid, but I think you're a little tall for the elf gig."

"Are those candy canes?" JJ asked, walking down the steps from her office, a smile on her face as she studied the package in Reid's hands.

Reid speedily fished another treat from the bag, holding it out for the media liaison. JJ accepted the candy cane gratefully, her smile growing. "Thank you, Spence." She grinned. "Nice Santa hat."

The young genius' hand raised self-consciously to the red and white cap on his head as Morgan smirked.

"Did you know most people contribute the modern image of Santa Claus to the Coca-Cola Company and their portrayal of him in a 1931 ad campaign?" Spencer remarked, his grip on the paper bag tightening as his voice squeaked with enthusiasm. "But the artist, Haddon Sundblom, actually based it on a pre-existing image of St. Nicholas set down over the previous century by a multitude of writers and artists."

JJ chuckled, by now quite used to the young profiler's impromptu lectures.

"I take it you're excited for Christmas?" she queried, leaning against Spencer's desk as she unwrapped the holiday treat.

Reid nodded, the Santa hat slipping forward on his head.

"Christmas was always my mom's favorite time of year. She used to say that you could feel a change in the air that just made the world seem happier. I guess I adopted the same point of view."

Morgan shook his head.

"Christmas is for kids who don't know any better. Now, I know you're too old to believe in Santa Claus, Reid."

"You're never too old for such a thing, Derek Morgan," Penelope Garcia reproached as she and Gideon neared the trio. Her eyes immediately landed on the bag in Spencer's hands and narrowed jokingly. "Dr. Reid, are those candy canes? You know better than to withhold tribute from your computer goddess."

"Sorry." Reid's face flushed as he quickly extracted a treat for the blonde-haired tech. He held a second one out to Gideon who politely refused.

"Oh, you know I could never stay mad at that face," Garcia grinned, slowly unwrapping her candy cane. "Now, what's all this about Santa Claus?"

Morgan smirked, and gestured towards Spencer. "I was just explaining to the genius here that we're all a little old for the whole 'Christmas magic' thing. I mean, it's all fine and good for kids, but eventually you realize it's just a story."

"How can you not enjoy Christmas?" Reid asked, frowning. "It's the time of year when anything's possible."

"You don't really strike me as the religious type, Reid," Morgan commented.

"I may not celebrate Christmas in the religious sense," the younger profiler countered, "but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy the spirit of it. I don't believe in a magical man who goes around leaving presents under trees, either, but I do believe that something about Christmas brings out the best in people."

Morgan gave a small laugh. "Don't be getting all 'real meaning of Christmas' on us, Linus. I'm just saying most people grow out of all of that."

"I think it's sweet," JJ defended, pretending not to notice the small blush on Spencer's face at her words. "There's nothing wrong with believing in the spirit of the season."

Derek eyed her with a small air of incredulity, turning his gaze to the rest of the group. "You guys can't tell me you actually believe in all of that 'holiday special' stuff."

Gideon shrugged, his eyes half-lidded. "Everyone has their own beliefs and traditions about the season, religious or not. For me, the holidays mean a fireplace, a warm cup of cocoa, and a good friend."

JJ nodded. "Yeah, my aunt always said that everyone should be free to celebrate the season in their own way." She smirked. "Of course, that didn't stop her from dragging me to midnight mass every Christmas Eve."

Morgan's pleading eyes landed on his last potential ally. "Baby Girl, you too?"

"Afraid so, my Chocolate Grinch." Penelope's cheeky grin held only a glimmer of an apology as she waved her candy cane about like a wand. "The holidays have become overly commercialized, but that doesn't mean there isn't still good in the air."

Agent Morgan heaved a sigh, "Believing in Christmas magic is like believing in the Tooth Fairy - sooner or later, you realize it was all a lie your parents told you."

The media liaison smiled jokingly.

"Jeez, lighten up, Morgan. How do you spend your Christmas - knocking down snowmen and trashing lights displays?"

The team's chuckles died off as Hotch approached, the grim look on his face squelching all feelings of merriment.

"I need to see all of you in the conference room in two minutes."

- ~ * ~ -

"Groverton, Pennsylvania. Two boys, Dillon Mackelray and Jason Daley, ages six and eight, kidnapped within the last six weeks."

Hotch pressed a button on the remote, and the two children appeared onscreen. He pressed another button, and two more photos appeared, this time of their corpses lying in bloodstained snow. "Their bodies were found one week after each abduction, in a public park near the middle of the city. They'd been dead less than three hours. No signs of sexual assault. Cause of death was exsanguination."

"A week?" Reid frowned, looking up from his case file. "That's unusual. Most child abduction murders occur within the first twenty-four hours."

Morgan nodded, turning to Hotch. "If there's no sexual assault, what was the unsub doing with them all that time?"

"There were indications of minor physical abuse," Hotch replied. "And both bodies showed signs of exposure prior to death. Marks on their wrists indicate that they were restrained."

He clicked the button and the photos vanished, a new one taking their place, portraying a smiling sandy-haired youth.

"A third boy, Tyler Fibbs, age 7, went missing from a Groverton shopping mall at nine o'clock this morning local time."

"So, assuming it's the same unsub, we've got seven days to find him," JJ commented, her face grim as she perused the details of the file.

There was a short moment of silence, each of them glancing at each other as they counted the days. They had only until Christmas Eve to find Tyler Fibbs alive.

Hotch paused, taking a moment to look at each of them in turn, ensuring he had their full attention.

"I know that we're supposed to have Christmas off this year, but this case is the priority. I want each of you giving this your full attention. It's going to be a rough one." He nodded, an air of finality about him as he began to gather his files. "Wheels up in thirty minutes."

- ~ * ~ -

The atmosphere on the plane was muted, each of them absorbed in the details of the case files before them. Gideon glanced up at Hotch, who sat across from him wearing a troubled expression upon his face as he stared at the photos of the victims.

"You spending Christmas with Haley's folks?" He questioned, momentarily drawing Aaron's thought away from the brutal images.

Hotch looked up, temporarily confused, before shaking his head.

"Haley's parents are in Florida this year, so Christmas is at our house. Her sister is coming on Friday, and Sean's going to spend the day with us. Haley's been going crazy with preparations - the house is a disaster zone. I'm actually a bit relieved not to be there at the moment."

It was a lie, and they both knew it – there was no place Hotch would rather be than amidst all that chaos, decorating a Christmas tree with his family – but Gideon simply nodded, his eyes returning to the reports in his hands.

"All three of the boys were abducted from public places," Morgan commented, taking a sip of his coffee as he sat on the armrest of one of the chairs. "Each of them was with one or more family members, but there were no witnesses. Whatever the unsub is doing to lure them, he's doing it quietly."

Reid shrugged from his seat across the aisle.

"It's the holiday shopping season. No one's going to notice a boy wandering around by himself or with an adult."

JJ sifted through the papers in front of her, her tone calm and professional.

"There's been a lot of media attention with the first two murders. It won’t be long before the press gets a hold of the third kidnapping."

- ~ * ~ -

"I only turned my back for a second, and he was gone."

Moira Fibbs bit her lip, attempting to control the emotion in her voice.

Reid and Morgan sat in the Fibbs' living room across from the worried parents. Cody, the couple's younger son, was on the floor nearby, playing quietly with his Tonka Trucks, seemingly oblivious to his parents' dismay. The room was already brightly decorated for the holidays. Strings of red and silver garland lined the papered walls and a large pine tree sat in the corner, swathed entirely in handmade ornaments, most of which appeared to be the work of the two sons.

"When did you first notice Tyler was missing?" Morgan questioned, leaning forward to rest his forearms on his knees.

"I got to the cash register and he wasn't next to me," Mrs. Fibbs' eyes filled with unshed tears as she recounted the experience. "I- I thought he'd stopped to look at the toys...But I couldn't see him anywhere. I called his name--"

She stopped, her head falling as she struggled not to cry. Her husband put his hand on hers, offering her a comforting expression before turning his gaze to the profilers.

"The news said something about other boys," he stated. "Do you think the man who has Tyler is the same one who took those other kids?"

Morgan and Reid shared a brief uncomfortable glance, neither wanting to worry the parents further.

"It's possible," Derek conceded. "The other kidnappings were similar and Tyler does fit the description."

Jeff's grip on his wife's hand intensified as the two parents exchanged grief struck expressions. Cody looked up at his parents, confusion evident on his young face as he gripped his toy truck to his chest.

"When's Tyler coming home?"

This time, Mrs. Fibbs couldn't hold back the rush of tears, her hands covering her mouth in an attempt to stifle her strangled sobs. Jeff squeezed her hand one last time before rushing to pick Cody up.

"Hey, Sport, why don't we let Mommy finish talking to these nice men? We'll go play with the trucks in your room."

The pair disappeared from sight and the profilers returned their attention to the weeping mother. Over her shoulder, Spencer spotted a line of stockings hanging over the nearby fireplace. Tyler's name was stitched neatly on a green and red one, in between his brother and father's. A small lump formed in the young genius' throat as he forced himself to look away, Moira Fibbs' breath hitching once more.

Compassion filled Morgan's eyes as he reluctantly attempted to restart the conversation.

"Mrs. Fibbs, I know this is difficult, but can you remember seeing anyone strange hanging around you? Maybe someone who was paying special attention to Tyler?"

She shook her head; her tears subsided for the moment.

"No, no one." She locked eyes with Reid, her expression full of confusion and pain. "Who would do this to a little boy? What kind of person does something like this?"

Spencer was at a loss for words, but was thankfully saved from responding.

"Mrs. Fibbs, I promise you, we're going to do everything in our power to find Tyler."

Moira nodded at Morgan's soft but determined words, her lips set in a firm line.

A few minutes later, the pair of profilers found themselves walking down the front steps of the house, each of them braced against the biting winter cold. They made their way to the SUV, Reid wrapping his arms more tightly around himself as the wind intensified. Morgan stalked angrily towards the rental, tearing the door open, stopping only briefly to glance up at his partner.

"Still think Christmas brings out the best in people?" He questioned, his fury at the injustice of the crime radiating from him in droves. Spencer had no reply, his eyes on the ground, and his thoughts still on the empty stocking. They got into the car, neither caring to say another word. The rest of the trip was made in silence, each man lost in a sea of his own reflections.

- ~ * ~ -

"What do we have so far?"

Hotch brushed into the room local police had given them to work out of the past two days, Reid and Morgan not far behind him. JJ looked up from the press reports she'd been reading to glance back at Gideon, who was studying a map of the abduction and dumpsites.

"We know he's not asking for a ransom," Morgan commented, sitting across the table from JJ as Reid silently made his way over to the map without looking at anyone. "That implies that there's some sort of personal reason for the kidnappings."

"He has a victim type," Gideon mused, his arms folded across his chest. "He takes boys with blonde hair and brown eyes, six to eight years old, who're with their families."

Officer Martin frowned, eyeing the profilers. "That mean something?"

Hotch glanced at him.

"If we know what type of victim he looks for, it may give us a clue as to why he's kidnapping them in the first place."

"What's this district right here?" Reid interrupted, a curious expression on his face as he pointed to an area on the map. The officer moved closer, following the profiler's gaze to a region of downtown Groverton.

"An old commercial development," he replied. "The city bought up all of the business down there a year ago. There were plans to build a new shopping centre, but negotiations fell through. Most of the buildings are abandoned now."

"Are we certain the latest kidnapping is connected?" JJ questioned, bringing things back on track.

Gideon turned from the map to glance at her. "Tyler Fibbs fits the victim profile. He was taken in a similar fashion. The odds of two kidnappers with nearly identical M.O.’s operating simultaneously in a town this size?" He shrugged, Reid giving a sign of agreement beside him.

Hotch nodded. "JJ - you help Reid with victimology. Morgan - call Garcia and see if she's gotten anything from the mall surveillance. Gideon and I will go talk to Jason Daley's family."

Part II