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𝑷 𝑶 𝑽
❝ 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚖𝚎 𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚗 ❞

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FLASHBACK ━━ Set between Season 5, Episodes 15 & 16

ㅤ"𝑶𝑼𝑹 𝑼𝑵𝑺𝑼𝑩 𝑰𝑺 𝑴𝑶𝑺𝑻 𝑳𝑰𝑲𝑬𝑳𝒀 𝑨 𝑪𝑨𝑼𝑪𝑨𝑺𝑰𝑨𝑵 𝑴𝑨𝑳𝑬, in his mid to late 40s," Hotch began as he stood with his team in front of the officers. They were currently in New York, responding to a string of what appears to be killings of random individuals across multiple states. "Because he crossed state lines, we can assume he's intelligent enough not to draw attention to himself."

"The use of a .280 Remington, which is popular in the hunting communities, and the fact that he's hunting his victims like prey—shooting them directly to the heart—suggests he's got a hunting background and some knowledge in human anatomy," Derek added.

"The way he 'hunts' from a distance classifies him as someone we call a Long-Distance Serial Killer, or LDSK," Emily quickly followed, "which means he's patient, meticulous, narcissistic, and in his case, sadistic. The thrill of the hunt is what drives him to commit his murders."

"Each victim seemingly has no connection to one another, but the fact that the unsub takes his time to carve into them the words 'cut off one head, two more shall take his place' can suggest that, in the unsub's mind, they are connected somehow," Spencer made hand gestures as he explained.

"What does that mean? 'Cut off one head, two more shall take his place'?" The lead detective asked.

"Well, it refers to a creature from Greek mythology called the Lernaean Hydra, or simply just hydra," he started, "According to Theogony by the Greek poet Hesiod, it's a water-snake-like monster with multiple heads. In later versions of the myth, it's said to have a sort of ability to regenerate; that for every head you chop off, the monster would regrow two."

JJ took the reins this time. "At this moment, we have no idea why the unsub references a monster from Greek mythology, nor do we know the apparent connection between victims, which makes it harder for us to catch this guy. But right now, we've got seventeen bodies and the number will rise."

"Seventeen?" The officers murmured to themselves.

"If we don't know what his motive is, how the hell would we be able to catch this psycho?" A random police officer asked as he scoffed at the profilers in front of him.

"Luckily," Rossi gave the officer a pointed look, "like most hunters, they have a ritual, so to speak. During hunting season, experienced hunters know when the best time for hunting is, where the best place to hunt is. The unsub does too. He's been leaving behind breadcrumbs he doesn't actually realize he's leaving."

"Exactly," Spencer then turned to gesture at the map that he drew the geographical profile on. "If you can see here, he goes back and forth between these states," he pointed at Vermont, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. "Our technical analyst was actually able to connect even more deaths to this unsub, hence, seventeen and not just the five here in New York. If we can figure out his pattern, it could lead is straight to him."

"We should look for anyone who's new to the community," Derek instructed. "Someone who comes and goes, doesn't really stay in his 'house' for long. It's highly likely he's got his own vehicle, something inconspicuous, but can hold a lot of things. Something like a pick-up truck."

"It's also likely that he's someone deemed as 'mysterious' by the people he's come in contact with, who's also charming enough to be disarming and have everyone lower their guard," Hotch nodded. "Thank you."

And the room slowly cleared out, the officers all going to their separate areas as they mingled amongst themselves, trying to figure out who their unsub really is. The team went to their assigned conference room looking over the case files, when Penelope called Derek's phone.

"What you got, babygirl? You're on speaker," Derek said once he answered.

"Okay, so I went and checked through databases from all over with your profile and there's nothing, zilch, nada," Penelope complained, "it's like this guy's a ghost! But then, I thought, what if I look through car dealerships? I mean, you guys are hellbent on this guy possibly owning a pick-up, and I actually got something. Meet Elijah Graves, forty-eight years old. The guy's clean, on record, at least. But I've looked through social medias and found out that he's recently just moved into the community from Connecticut where the last murders occurred, and the car was bought from Vermont, where the earliest murders occurred."

"That has to be our guy," Rossi agreed.

"Garcia, you have an address?" Hotch asked.

"Sending everything to you now," the clacking of keyboard keys could be heard from the line. "Garcia out."

"Let's go."

PRESENT ━━ 

Finley sighed as she looked around her new apartment. The mostly plain white walls and light-colored furniture was very much her style, but it all felt too big for her, feeling as though she was being swallowed. But she choked it up to nerves, as today, she was starting her first day at the BAU.

Her life undercover was far from perfect, but somehow it was good enough for her. She was good at it; with a background in psychology and growing up in a not-so-perfect household, she was prepared for a life of secrecy. But out of the blue, it was decided that she would be more suited for the Behavioral Analysis Unit instead.

She glanced at the clock to make sure she wasn't late, before turning her attention to the mirror.

Being the fashionista she is and the fact that she knows first impressions last, she decided on wearing a business casual style outfit, consisting of a loose, white long-sleeved shirt; a pair of black, loose fitting slacks held together by a thick leather belt; and with her being five-foot-ten, she decided against heels and instead wore a pair of white sneakers. She then decided on letting her hair just natural, putting a hair tie on her wrist just in case. Her look screamed laid-back, confident, yet elegant, exactly how she wants to portray herself.

A quick glance at the clock again, she realized she had to leave now or else she'll be late for her first day. Grabbing her go-bag which she prepared the night before—Chief Strauss had insisted that she needed one—a purse, and her car keys, she made her way down to her apartment's basement, where her silver BMW parked.

Quickly turning on the engine, she went and drove straight to the FBI Headquarters in Quantico.

After finding a suitable parking spot, she made her way up the building, getting past the security with ease. Many of the building's occupants had their eyes set on her, and she knew they've connected the dots, that this was the BAU's newest recruit.

Back in the bullpen, the team—excluding Hotch and Rossi who were in their individual offices—were all standing around Spencer's desk. Even Penelope made an appearance as they gossiped about the latest team member.

"Well, okay, I know I shouldn't have snooped but I couldn't help myself," Penelope whined. "I mean, half her file's sealed so how else would I know the newest member of the family?"

"What did you do?" Emily teasingly accused, leaning against her arm that she placed on top of Spencer's desk.

"I found out that Finley used to model," Penelope grinned as she whispered to the others as if talking about the latest celebrity scandal.

"What?" JJ asked, her jaw slacking a little.

"Are you serious?" Derek raised an eyebrow, sitting down at the very edge of Spencer's desk.

"Yes!" The technical analyst giggled. "I found a bunch of headshots and body-shots, you know, which you need if you want to get a job, and Christ almighty, they were hot. Like, JJ's hot Cheetos hot. I genuinely cannot believe someone that gorgeous is going to be gracing our floor."

"Now I'm curious," Derek smirked, laughing as Penelope nudged him. "I mean, come on, model-turned-FBI agent?"

"She's gonna turn some heads for sure," JJ chuckled.

"She is," Emily gestured to the doors just as Finley walked in.

It was almost comical how some of the agents reacted. Anderson almost tripped over his feet when Finley had thanked him after he held the door for her, and another agent had dropped her pen. But even the team was no better; Derek had an arrogant smirk on his face as he scanned her up and down, JJ just smiled knowingly, and Emily was laughing at Spencer, who had trouble with closing mouth as he gaped.

Penelope was excitedly hitting Derek's arm saying, "Did time just slow down or is she walking in slow motion? I swear it's like I'm watching Baywatch or something, oh my God, she's amazing."

They all watched as she looked around, before her eyes landed on a nameplate on a door that read 'AARON HOTCHNER'. She nodded to herself before making her way to her new boss' office.

As soon as she walked away, Emily let out a loud laugh. "Spencer couldn't close his mouth!"

The genius flushed a soft pink. "It's not every day you see a woman that beautiful."

"Oooh, Pretty Boy's got a crush on Pretty Girl," Derek teased.

JJ grinned at her best friend. "Well, well."

"Guys, stop," Spencer whined softly with a pout, pushing Derek off his desk as he tried to ignore everyone else.

In his office, Hotch was just writing up his latest report, blissfully unaware of the commotion outside. He knew the latest member of his team will be arriving today, and so when a knock came upon his door, he called out, "Come in."

Finley then pushed open the door with a somewhat timid smile on her face as she set her gaze upon her new boss.

The BAU Unit Chief looked up from the files for a second, before he stopped writing to do a double-take.

"Hi, I'm Finley, Finley Barrett," the girl introduced herself as she walked closer, holding out her hand, ignoring her boss' actions. "You can call me Finn, if you'd like."

Quickly snapping out of his trance, Hotch stood up and respectfully nodded at her as he shook her hand. "Finn," he tested, "I'm SSA Aaron Hotchner, Unit Chief. I assume you've met the rest of the team?"

"Not yet," Finley replied, shaking her head as she pulled her hand away. "I was told by Chief Strauss to come straight to your office."

"Of course," Hotch nodded, subtly scanning her features, unable to stop himself from profiling her. "Let me introduce you to the team."

"Oh, thank you."

Hotch then led her out of the office, gesturing for the rest of his team to come forward.

"This is SSA Finley Barrett, our new team member," Hotch introduced.

With a nearly-blinding smile, Finley reached out to shake everyone's hand. "You guys can call me Finn."

It was Penelope who immediately lurched forward and gave her a hug, causing her to yelp a little. "Penelope Garcia, at your service."

Finley giggled, hugging the woman back. "Nice to meet you."

"Derek Morgan," Derek introduced as soon as Penelope released her, giving her a nod and a wink while taking her outstretched hand in his. She gave him a smile in return.

"Emily Prentiss," Emily smiled at her, shaking her hand after Derek.

Finley turned to JJ, who also gave her a soft smile, bright blue eyes gentle and curious. "I'm Jennifer Jareau, but I go by JJ."

"Hi," Finley greeted, before turning to Spencer who gave her an awkward wave instead.

"The number of pathogens passed during a handshake is staggering," the genius began, "It's actually safer to kiss."

Finley gave him a playful frown, placing her hands on her hips instead. "Right, guess I'll just have to kiss you next time."

With a snort, Rossi entered the conversation, smiling at Spencer's tomato-red face. "I'd pay to see that happen," he winked, "David Rossi."

Shaking his outstretched hand, Finley nodded. "Nice to meet you. I've read all your books."

"Well, thank God."

That's when Hotch's phone rang, and the man was quick to pull it out of his pocket. "Hotchner." As he listened to whoever it was on the other side of the call, his eyes from flicking back and forth between his team members. "Understood. We have a case."

Hotch and Rossi were already at the scene when the rest of the team discussed the details of the case at the round table.

"Aimee Lynch, eight-years-old, was taken an hour ago from a winter festival in Ashburn," JJ held up a photo of the child as she spoke.

"Any witnesses?" Emily asked.

"Her mom, Barbara, was right next to her when she vanished."

"There must've been hundreds of people there, no one saw anything?" Finley spoke up. All JJ could do was shrug.

"It's a temporary gathering with little to no security," Spencer informed.

"Alright, Reid, you and I are gonna head to the family's house," Derek ordered, "The three of you, I want you to work with Garcia. We need to look at every local abduction or attempted one in the past year to see if there's any overlap."

"Good news is that we're barely into the second hour," JJ's optimism was admirable.

"Yeah, well, odds are, we've only got twenty-two hours left to find Aimee alive, so let's do this."

author's note: i've decided that i'm gonna write this in a way that's, like, confusing??? if that makes sense lmao. i just feel like i should reveal things to you guys at the same time that i reveal things to the team so it's a lil ~mysterious~ you know???

anyway, that's finley !!! hope you guys stay tuned for the next chapter!

don't forget to vote and tell me what you think!! and please don't hesitate to point out any spelling or grammatical mistakes. thank you!!