memento vivere - supernatural & criminal minds

chapter 36

Chapter 36
False Face

Jude stretched her legs beneath her desk and winced at the pins and needles that prickled through them. The team had entered the office that morning to find stacks of paperwork on their desks, always an unpleasant sight. She, at least, had made more of a dent than Morgan, who was glaring at the files as if he could intimidate them into completing themselves. Taking a moment to breathe, Jude leaned back in her chair and fiddled with the little crocheted pumpkin Penelope had made her. Halloween was that weekend and the thought of their upcoming movie night was the only thing maintaining Jude’s sanity.

Just one member of the BAU had any pep. Jude watched with an amused smile as Spencer entered the bullpen, identifiable only by his sweater vest and leather messenger bag. A comically large Frankenstein mask covered his entire head. He had paired it with a giant noose for a necklace, two rubber zombie hands, and a jack-o-lantern bucket from which he procured candy for passing agents.

He had been struggling the most with Gideon’s absence. The departure of the senior agent had left a void for the whole team, but he’d been a mentor to Spencer. Though they had managed their first few Gideon-less cases just fine, his slot was supposed to be filled today. David Rossi, the co-founder of the BAU, had volunteered to come out of retirement as Gideon’s replacement.

Spencer crept up behind Morgan, who was slumped forward with his head in his hand, and shouted, “Boo!” Morgan flinched back and raised a fist, then rolled his eyes when he caught sight of his ‘attacker.’ “Happy All Hallows Eve, folks!” Spencer chirped as he pulled up his mask. “To paraphrase from Celtic mythology, tomorrow night all order is suspended, and the barriers between the natural and the supernatural are temporarily remooooved!” He grabbed a plastic shrunken head from his bag and tossed it to Jude. She faked a smile as she set it on her desk. There was never a barrier between the natural and the supernatural. Hunters were the closest thing they had to a line of defense.

“See, that right there is why Halloween creeps me out,” Morgan jabbed a finger at Spencer’s mask.

Prentiss turned her chair and asked, “You’re scared of Halloween?”

“I didn’t say that, I said I was creeped out. There’s a difference.”

“Ah, yes, our mistake,” Jude quipped. She side-eyed Prentiss, who laughed as she fished a Kit-Kat from Spencer’s candy stash. “What creeps you out about it?”

“I don’t know…people wearing masks, I guess. I don’t like folks in disguise. Wesson, you just don’t get it because–” Morgan cut himself off, spinning to see Prentiss more clearly. “You ever watched a scary movie with her? No reaction. Being fine with gore, I get, but nothing phases her. No jumpscares, no monsters, nothing.”

“Because I know the monsters aren’t real.” She was spared from having to elaborate by David Rossi strolling into the bullpen. “Look alive.” The team straightened up as he passed and Spencer snatched the mask from his head. Rossi gave them an easy smile when he saw them, probably able to tell who they were just from their sudden attention. There was an air of confidence about him, almost a swagger. His slick haircut and neat goatee read like an Italian mobster, but from the neck down, his tweed suit jacket and jeans made him look more like a teacher.

Once he was securely behind the door of Hotch’s office, Prentiss addressed the group. “Does anyone know anything about him besides his work?”