To address a few comments: Up until the last part, the whole chapter was written from Mike's point of view. I remember more cases where Hotch is featured in leading negotiations compared to Rossi. I know there should have been more plot development before the climax. The thing is I am not comfortable enough with writing the detective elements of this show. I'm afraid of screwing up the technical terms and hate the idea of "dumbing it down," too much as this drives me crazy when I read crime show fan fiction. I may fix this in the future. But honestly, figuring out the middle of this story has been driving me crazy all week. It is time to put the story that I am the most proud of conceptually to bed.

At the end of this story there will be a plug for a writer who will be publishing a very interesting story in the future. There is also a lengthy personal commentary piece on the subject of bullying.

The name of the location featured in this chapter is fake (would someone please take a stab at guessing where it might be from?), but the other official names I provid are very real.

Review are welcome and encouraged as always.

Chapter 5:

"Come on Dad. Throw the next one higher! You know I can catch it!"

I smiled as I watched Tyler arrange the ball in his glove to set up his next slider. It was a gorgeous day in Andrews Park. It had been three days since his abduction and he was growing restless in the apartment as we wouldn't let him go back to school until the start of next week. I decided that eleven o'clock on a Wednesday was safe enough and made sure that we were playing on the highest hill in the park from where I could see everything.

I noticed a tall thin figure approaching the base of the hill. Tyler's ball bounced off my stomach as I watched Spencer Reid walk up with the hill with his messenger bag slung across his shoulders.

Tyler turned to see what I was looking at. "Spencer!" he shouted delightedly and ran down to greet him.

"Hey, Tyler," Spencer said cheerfully. "How are you feeling?"

Tyler looked his wrists. "These bandages feel weird but the doctor said they can come off soon. I can still throw a wicked slider!" he said.

"That's great!"Spencer said and then looked up at me. "I called your office and they told me this is where I'd find you."

Tyler saw the ball rolling down the hill and picked up it up. "Do you want to see my cut fastball?" he asked Spencer.

"Maybe you can show me later," Spencer said. "But I need to talk to your dad about something first."

I nodded. "Tyler why don't you go help Mom prepare lunch?"

Tyler sighed. "Is that adult code for 'scram?'"

Spencer smiled. "A more accurate interpretation would be: "we believe that it is in your best interests for you to leave while we discuss something that you would consider very boring,'" Spencer said.

Tyler looked to me. "Does he always talk like that?"

I chuckled and then said: "Never known him not to. It's why he always did better than me in English class. Now go do 'what we think is in…' blah. Scram buddy!"

Tyler groaned and walked down to the picnic pavilion where Sally was spreading out a table-cloth.

"How do not I screw him up?" I said as I watched him open the picnic basket.

"You've been doing a great job raising him so far," Spencer said.

I turned to him. I didn't him see him again after I left the house with Tyler. Standing there, he looked happy and relaxed. A pair of words I would never use to describe his appearance whenever he was around me seventeen years ago. He also looked a little less dorky in black pants and a light-blue dress shirt. I was beyond grateful to see him and tell him what I couldn't properly say in the heat of my son's abduction.

"Spencer I'm sorry," I said simply and with conviction. "I am truly sorry for all of the horrible things I did to you."

Spencer nodded. "I know you are Mike. Thank you. And while I accept you apology, I am not ready to forgive you."

I was confused and felt the slightest bit hurt. "I don't understand. What can I do to earn your forgiveness?"

"The root word of forgiveness is forgive. In the English World Dictionary it is defined four ways: '1. To cease to blame or hold resentment against someone or something 2. To grant pardon for a mistake, wrongdoing, etc 3. To free or pardon someone from penalty 4. To free from the obligation of a debt, payment, etc.' Mike I am no longer angry at you about what happened. But I don't think my forgiveness would be enough to ease your guilt in the long run."

I suddenly remember my wrist hurting after I pulled an extremely large book out of his hands and nearly missed when I tossed it out the window. I realized it was probably a dictionary. Only he would split hairs over the different meanings of a word.

"Okay, so what do I need?"

"Mike do you know what palliation means?"

"Isn't it some sort of medical term?"

"Yes, it is more commonly used to describe a form of medical treatment. The root word is palliate. The definition is: '1. To lessen the severity of (pain, disease, etc) without curing or removing; alleviate; mitigate 2. To cause (an offence) to seem less serious by concealing evidence; extenuate.' Mike I can't stop you from feeling guilty through forgiveness but I can help by giving advice and suggestions for how to begin the process of palliation."

He opened his bag and began to pull some folders out. "I have been doing some research and learned that there is not nearly enough data on what happens to adolescents defined as bullies after they become adults. The most commonly high-lighted statistic is that one out of every four bullies serves jail time before they turn twenty-five."

"Well," I said sheepishly, "I have slept off a few hang-over in the drunk tank after getting into bar fights when I couldn't find work after college."

"But the charges were dropped due to lack of evidence as you were always part of a mob. You did not serve what would be defined as a prison sentence. That statistic is used in the 'Why prevention of bullying matters' on the Pacer Center's Teens Against Bullying website to describe what might happen to bullies if they aren't stopped. I think you could provide a few lines to that description." He handed me the folders.

I flipped through the folders and noticed the different headings. I shook my head. This seemed like too much. "I'm not sure I'm ready to tell the world I was a bully. And how could my little 'testimonial,' help anyway?"

Spencer took a step towards me. "Mike hiding from the shadows of your past has been eating you alive for years. Your guilt has become pain and one of the best ways to deal with it through sharing your experiences with other people. I know this from personal experience," he said and face turned grim.

I had a feeling he was on the verge of telling me something extremely personal to drive home his point. I couldn't let him do that. "So where would I begin?" I asked quickly.

His face lightened up. "There are a few options. The first folder has information on where to post testimonial information. The second contains the thesis statements for ongoing university research studies on bullies and the behavioral history of men who run successful businesses. The third contains a list of credible non-profit organizations that develop anti-bullying programs in schools that lack funding. appears to be one of the more well-established organizations."

"What about a folder on 'how to make sure your kid doesn't become you when he starts high school?'"

"That is something I think you need figure out with your wife."

I resisted the urge tear up at the mention of my wife. "After we put Tyler to bed I told Sally everything. I was expecting her to scream, to hit me, to throw me out of the house. But she didn't. Instead she hugged me. She said that my reaction to you showed that I was indeed the man she married. That I am capable of learning from my mistakes and becoming a better person. A trait that she thinks is necessary for our marriage to last as we grow older." I glanced down at my wife. "I am one lucky man."

Spencer laughed. "You always got the best girls Mike."

The sound of a loud clown nose honking filled the air. A woman on a bike covered in purple streamers rode to the pavilion. "Aunt Lexie!" Tyler shouted and ran to greet his aunt.

I laughed. "My sister in law does know how to make an entrance."

Spencer looked confused as he watched her take off her helmet, revealing her short spiky hair that was half pink and half purple that strangely matched her paint-spattered navy jeans and pink tunic. "But your wife is an only child and you have an older sister-"

"Well not in legal terms in the State of Nevada. But Tess and Lexie have their marriage certificate from the state New York hanging on their bedroom wall next to a photo of them in their wedding dresses at the base of Niagara Falls."

Spencer shook his head in disbelief. "Alexa Lisbon. I had heard rumors that she had kissed every guy on the foot ball team."

"Only the starting line-up," I said trying not to sound too delighted in knowing something that Spencer didn't. "She met my sister during a GLAAD rally at UNLV when she was a freshman and Tess was a junior. It turns out Alexa hated the way she found herself noticing other girls at the end of grade school. She worked insanely hard to fight these feelings and creating the opposite image by dating as many guys as possible. Lex or Lexie, as she like to be called these days, said that she was on the verge of committing suicide when she came across that rally and bumped into my sister."

Spencer stood there watching Lexie juggle plates. "What does she think of me?"

"Why don't we go find out?" I said and began to walk down the hill. "Sally always packs too much food and you did say you wanted to see Tyler's cut fastball."

"Mike I'm not sure-"

I stopped. "Spence you did not have to come here to give me these folders. You could have emailed them or left them at my office. You did not have to do any of this. The more I think about it the more I think your helping me is part of your own 'palliation' for something."

Spence gave a small smile. "That is very perceptive Mike. The truth has to do with my-"

"Hey boys!" Lexie shouted. "Are you going to gab all day? I really hate Sally's pasta salad when it gets warm!"

I turned to Spencer. "Spence I knew you as a sniveling, know-it-all, child who was considered the basketball team's magic eight ball. I think I'd like to learn more about the bad-guy chasing man you've become."

Spencer took a few steps forward. "You know, this goes against the findings of every research survey conducted-"

"Wow Tyler said you still talked like a walking encyclopedia," Lexie said as she marched towards us. She suddenly reached over and touched Spencer's cheek. "I bet you still don't have to shave that often," she said as Spencer recoiled. I thought I was going to kill her.

She then pulled his head forward and kissed him on the lips. She gently pushed him back and smiled. "You weren't missing out on much Spence," she said kindly.

I still wanted to kill her. "Lex can you greet anyone without making a spectacle out of it?"

"Not a chance Mike; especially when some very thick ice needed to be broken."

Then Spencer began to laugh. It was a very strange sound. It was squeaky at first and then grew into hearty guffaw.

He looked at me and Lexie. "It is my job to study human behavior and I am very good at it. But I don't think I could have ever predicted the occurrence of this meeting! And I think that is truly fascinating."

I rolled my eyes. "So is that genius code for 'Yes I'll have lunch with you former bullies?"

Spencer nodded. "I guess. I have been reading about baseball and would like to see how a cut fast ball-"

Lexie threw her arms me and Spencer. "Come on Genius Hero and Repentant-Bully Dad. Let's take this show on the road."

The three of us walked down the hill together.

…

"One's friends are that part of the human race with which one can be human."

-George Santayanna

The End

Final Note from KESwriter:

The story: I know there are a few unanswered questions and strange transitions. This is the start of a very unusual friendship. And as in real life, you don't learn all of each other's secrets during the first encounter. I think a few people might be wondering about Spencer's ulterior motives. Think about the last time he returned home and what happened. Quick Confession: I renamed the story Palliation after finding so many stories with the word forgive in the title. I literally went to and chose the most interesting synonym. Personally I think it made the story twice as intriguing and it defines the theme of the story better.

The Plug: Anonymous Heavy on the Anon will be publishing a story soon about Spencer Reid meeting a bully from high school while working on a case. Anon was kind enough to inform me that he was planning on writing a similar story that he did NOT rip off from me, but still wanted my permission to publish. We both had similar ideas, I just happened to publish mine first. From his description, it appears that his story will have a more CM episode feel as the team will be looking at a series of crimes related to a nursery rhyme. The bully will be a little more active as he is the chief of police and his characterization is slightly different. There are going to be similarities, but I think in the end it will be very fun to read two interpretations of the same concept. The story has my blessing.

Personal Commentary on Bullying: I was bullied verbally relentlessly in grade school because I couldn't seem to make friends. Things got better in high school until senior year when I became a lone wolf in a very small school as the result of few misunderstandings.

So why was I bullied? Because I have a mild form of Aspergers. This also explains my fondness of Spencer Reid. But I am not a genius. I struggle with reading non-verbal signals, say the wrong things, and can't always tell when people are joking. As an adult I basically do what Spencer Reid appears to do on the show: I continue to live my life, learn how to fit in a little better (just look at how his wardrobe has changed since season 1), and avoid discussion of a personal idiosyncrasy that has a name that might alarm some people.

Each day 160,000 students stay at home in the US for fear of being bullied. There are no easy solutions. I know the story has a fairytale-like ending. But I do think it is plausible to some extent based on personal experience. I see a kid who was a bully in my grade school at mass regularly and we say hi occasionally. The girl who hated me in high school gave me a tip for a story that increased my assignment grade by twenty percent. People do change for the better in many cases. And that is really awesome