magnetic ◊ criminal minds

il.

il. what happens at home...
( season six, episode ten )

LYRA, truthfully, was not gone long. Only a month. She refused to be gone for longer, to be treated like glass about to break. She was stronger than that. So what, if she had died and came back to life? What did that matter? Ororo tried to convince her to take more time, but this time, Lyra had to say no to her. Erik too was reluctant to let her leave his proximity, but he knew it was no use arguing. Once she put her mind to something, it was hard to deter her. Erik liked to think she got that from him.

She got to work early, before even Hotch did. Erik dropped her off, wanting to spend as much time with her as he could. He did not know when he would see her next. When Hotch arrived at his turn he stopped by her desk, where she was sitting. He took a breath. "Can we talk in my office?" he requested. In the past few weeks, none of them had heard from her. Even if they made her do a psych evaluation, she knew all the correct answers to the questions. So, he wanted to talk to her himself.

Lyra took a breath herself and followed him there. He closed the blinds of the office windows, which the others were sure to question when they arrived.

"Are you okay?" Hotch asked softly. "Really?"

"I can be back at work," Lyra signed.

"That's not what I asked."

"I'm fine, Hotch. Really."

"Lyra, you died. That's not something you can just come back from so quickly."

Lyra looked at her arm, where the blue marks now were. They were hidden by her jacket, but it was as if she could see them clear as day. "I've been kidnapped before. I've almost died multiple times. This is just... a new achievement," she signed.

Hotch was unimpressed by the comment, but more so worried for her mental health. Not that saying any of that would get them anywhere. In the end, he just sighed. "Well, it's good to have you back," he said. He opened the door for her, gesturing to the briefing room. They had a case.

"Three women murdered inside a gated community in southeastern New Mexico in the last two months," Hotch said. The others were only just walking into the room, Lyra the only one sat down.

"All three inside," Morgan noted, sitting down. He nodded at Lyra. "Welcome back, Little Red."

Lyra gave a half-hearted attempt at a smile in response.

Hotch showed the first victim on the screen. "Marjorie West was strangled in her home in the middle of the night while her family was out of town. They found her the next morning," he said. He put up the next victim. "Jill Long was strangled in the laundry room while her husband and sons were camping in the backyard. And last night, Aubrey Jacobs was killed in her home office while her daughter and husband were asleep in the house," he said.

"Occupied dwellings is as high-risk as it gets," Morgan said.

"He's fearless," Reid said.

"Proximity, the chance he might get caught, that could be part of it for him," Prentiss said.

"You said gated community. I assume that means security?" Reid guessed.

"A small security staff and perimeter cameras," Hotch confirmed. "Everything's recorded twenty-four/seven, and no one has entered or left the compound since last night, except residents. It looks like the UnSub is part of the community. The local detective says that demographics, general makeup, and socioeconomic status of the residents is essentially the same," he said, a sky-view of the community on the screen.