Chapter Text
Prologue: Another Monday At Casa De Graham
“Will...Will, It's time to get up.”
Will Graham, despite burrowing further into the bed sheets and loose crochet blanket on the low bed mattress, knew he wouldn't allow himself just fifteen more minutes of sleep. He would have to get up officially to start a new Monday, again as always.
“If I had my way, we'd never leave this bed.” He smiled not yet ready to open his eyes yet, a smile deepening in amusement as his companion just embraced his back into a loving hold of her arms.
“If I had my way, you would get to sleep in for another hour to get enough sleep. And 'if' I had my way, you wouldn't have to go in that cold and miserable building, to teach, or have to deal with a demanding pain in the ass boss like Jack Crawford or the rest of your colleagues at Quantico who look at you like your a trained circus lion to demand he does magnificent tricks in his cage,” a soft speaking feminine voice grumbled, placing a loving but protective kiss against his ear and brunette hair curls.
“You're right Sugar...about all of that. But I have better and good days when it's just me in my classes, teaching my student cadet trainee little agents. When I know that Jack won't be showing up trying to throw peanuts at me demanding I start performing dance monkey tricks for him, it's always a better day then.” Will answered back, moving a hand to his partner, taking her hand in his to try to assure her that everything was alright.
His loving companion, who Will considered his best friend, confidant, lover, and spouse...his wife stared back at him. Hazel's eyes stared at him with not only love and affection in them but a fierce protective look in them with that knowing darkness. Will always loved how passionately strong and intensely protective and loyal Margot was when it came to him and their beloved pack, their family. Even after years had passed from when they had first met, they formed a bond of trust, and loyalty that with time became passionate honest love between the two of them in becoming married, creating their own unique family and life together...the fire was still burning between them. Margot Graham (formerly in the legal past tense Verger) was still in love with him and protective of him, her companion, mate, and husband. Will knew deep down, still that like Margot, he would do anything to ensure she was loved, cared for, happy, and protected at all times. It went for all of their family, their pack.
“I know...but if Crawford or anyone else at the always demanding bureau starts making things worse for you or it starts to affect your mind, your empathy disorder, or well-being exactly like before when being a cop had...Just say the word, and you have me defending you in your corner sweetheart. You put in your three weeks' notice to leave, quit, retire whatever. I will stand by you in full support, and if Crawford doesn't let you go free willingly, then I'll call in the big guns...” Margot sighed, sounding very concerned, tightening her fingers protectively around Will's shoulders.
“I know you will...Hmm, The big guns?” Will mused, knowing exactly who Margot was referring to.
“Yes, the 'Big Guns'. I'll call your brother Nolan to see if he or someone else he knows can represent you as legal support to make sure Crawford, his bosses boss Kade, and the rest of the goddamn FBI leave you the hell alone. I'm sure Nolan has a lot of close friends in high places beyond New York that wouldn't mind taking down Jack Crawford of the FBI or his cronies for abusing his and their power of causing severe harm to Nolan Price, the EADA's younger brother.” Margot sighed, stroking her husband's wild man hair curls with affection.
“I'm sure my big brother does...being the firstborn before I was out of the triplet trio of him, myself, and Adam. Nolan would just love to raise fiery hell on anyone who would be stupid enough to ever try messing with either me, Adam, or anyone that he considers a part of our pack family. He'd do the same for you Margo...he adores you, and personally, Nolan says you're his favorite sister-in-law.” Will replied, not being able to help to tease Margot a little about being his older triplet's favorite.
“Pfft, I'm his only sister-in-law! The only girl you brought home for the holidays for him, Adam, and your Daddy to visit for the first time technically that they all ever had approved of being with you concerning your family.” Margot snorted with amusement, shaking her head, still petting Will's curls.
“I know that. Always knew that everyone would love you the second I brought you home to Dad's place when he was hosting the Graham family's small Thanksgiving gathering. So...You think we could get five more minutes together cuddled up like this before all of our furry and not-so-furry little monsters wake up?” Will pondered, though he already knew the answer to his question like he did every other morning.
“Hmm...Not a chance of that happening because I can hear our little starling already plotting her paddling walk routine of getting out of her and her sister's bedroom early to come downstairs to get an early morning kiss and cuddles with you before you have to get ready for work.” Margot snickered, grinning as she sat up, readying herself for the littlest member of their babies to venture downstairs.
“Of course not...She is our daughter, after all, gets it from me. Why don't you lay in bed with her still, and I'll tend to get ready after I get attacked by the starling?” Will offered, getting himself up, looking towards all of the various doggy beds with slumbering dogs in each one, surrounding their bed in their openly simple but nicely decorated country farm meets rustic living room that doubled duty as their bedroom space on the main floor.
“It's fine. You prepare yourself for her attack with early morning hugs and kisses. I'll start making the coffee and get your to-go breakfast with your lunch ready. Besides, I have to make our other monsters breakfast and lunch before they take off later to make it to the school bus pick-up route stop.” Margot replied, putting on over her sleepwear that consisted of a worn-in Bob Dylan faded t-shirt and women's lounge gray shorts, a plain looking plaid button long sleeve in black and green from Will's old sitting armchair, that she had left there the night before.
“Sounds like a plan. Hmm, Buster's not in his bed...only two guesses where he disappeared in the middle of the night last night.” Will mused, looking at Margot who was in the open kitchen getting their electric coffee maker ready with classic black roast extra strong blend and water ready for brewing.
“And I doubt that he snuck into Petey's bedroom to blanket snuggle with him last night or Georgie in her bed.” Margot smiled, turning to where the stairs leading upstairs were when two little beings were quietly marching down to meet them.
Buster their spitfire little mischievous maker the brown and white spotted Jack Russell Beagle mix was lazily sticking his tongue out. He looked quite pleased with himself as he was being held and carried down the steps by the youngest human member of the Graham family. His little human partner in crime, who considered him to be her best-friend, was dressed in little girl toddler-sized pajamas of long john pants and a long shirt in light purple with printed various colorful fuzzy looking lambs patterned on.
She looked like a combined spitting image of both of her parents: You could see in her face that she had both Will's eye color of blue with his intensity of wonder and at times knowing stares while having his eyebrows exactly the same. In her mother Margot, she inherited her facial cheekbones, her adorable nose, and lips.
But from both of them blended together the five-year-old had exactly a lovely mixture of their brunette and dark brown hair colors with soft and curly hair down to her mid-shoulders, messy.
“Good morning to you and Buster both my little sneaky Boo,” Will greeted his youngest child picking her up into a warm loving hug with the dog, the one out of all of his canine and human children he couldn't help but dot on a little more who held his heart besides everyone else in his family the most special.
“Mornin', Daddy! Georgie and Petey sleep.” Her soft tiny voice spoke, nuzzling herself into her Daddy, Will's shirt-covered chest comforting as Buster hopped out of their Father and Daughter morning embrace for the floor to go to his doggy bed.
“They'll be sleeping till it's time for them to get up once your Mommy gets breakfast ready and then get out of bed for the morning when the sun's up. Buster joined you last night after our story time with Georgia finished long after Mommy and I went to bed?” Will asked with a grin as his 'Boo' giggled, nodding shyly as she could get sometimes. Reminding him a little bit of himself when he was shy with being on the spectrum when he had been at that same age.
“Good morning Clarice baby. Always up before the rooster's ready to crow and the sun's rising to be able to say morning and hello to Daddy first my love.” Margot called gently from the kitchen, Smiling even more happily as her youngest daughter squirmed in Will's hug, to move, taking off towards her to get her second round of loving cuddles from her other parent.
“Hi, Mommy. Are we getting pop tarts for breakfast?” Clarice chirped excitedly looking towards their round wooden and hand-carved made family dining table, for her favorite junk food breakfast treat.
“No pop tarts this time little lamb, I'm sorry Clarice. We're out of the strawberry ones. But don't you worry or fuss because we're going to be picking up some more at the grocery store later after Georgia and Peter both have left for school, and once you and I have gotten dressed and ready to go do errands.” Margot assured her, holding her in a loving but very protective motherly hug, held into the kitchen further.
“Egg-witches? With Jam berries and cheese?” Clarice asked, hopeful that her Mommy would be making her second favorite breakfast of cheese and spread strawberry toasted egg sandwiches.
“If that's what you'd like for breakfast then egg sandwiches toasted with American sliced cheese and strawberry jam it is. Will, would you like me to make two for you to wrap up with your coffee thermos, and a bento lunch pack to go with you for work?” Margot asked her spouse, as she moved towards the fridge to take things out for making breakfast and to get Will's lunch out that was already made and packed by her the night before ready to go.
“Two with bacon sliced in the cheese is fine for me. I can have an extra one to snack on during my fifteen-minute break period between my nine and eleven class lecture hours before lunch hour.” Will nodded, his stomach growling in agreement as he fished around for his clothes to put together his outfit for the day as a profiler and main instructor teaching serial killers and murders 101 at Quantico.
Two classes for lecture and discussion he taught daily each week at the FBI academy when he wasn't called in for staff meetings, grading papers, or managing lessons or tests, the days he wasn't asked by his bosses here and there to deal with taking off for case investigation trips for Jack Crawford of the Bureau to assist in his expert profiling field. When Will wasn't in those multiple roles of his job, he enjoyed being home as just a husband to Margot and a father to all three of his kids, Clarice, Georgia, and Peter. The four of them along with their six dogs were his home and a whole being of life to him. His whole teacup hadn’t ever shattered.
He couldn’t help but hold off taking upstairs to the bathroom to start getting ready for the morning with a quick shower and shave…Wanting to watch Margot ready herself in preparing breakfast for not only himself and her, but for their little ones, as well as making the bowls ready of homemade dog food for their canine children.
Will silently laughed as he saw Buster then with an awake little overbite-jawed Zoey lead the dogs into a march into the kitchen beelining for his girls for scratches, human pets, and kisses beside their breakfast. Their other two children, the older ones, the ten-year-old, and the twelve-year-old would wake up soon enough once they’d hear the dogs barking more loudly throughout the house, and the smell of breakfast awaiting them on the table.
He still had plenty of time this early in the darkening morning to take his time, as always before heading out the door for work from Wolf Trap to Stafford County.
“Here’s your insulated hot to cold lunch bag with your lunch and bottled waters packed up, and a smaller one that has your breakfast sandwiches, and here’s your coffee thermos. It’s dark mocha blueberry extra black strong. Found this new brew at Trader Joe’s that Jonas’s wife at the pack's vet visit trip recommended I pick up for ourselves.” Margot spoke lovingly and motherly like, as she handed the bags holding food and thermos cup of the hot liquid to Will, who was wrapped up in his favorite knitted gray beanie cap, gray-greenish jean coat over his usual plaid, and dress slack simple but slightly professional ‘professor’ clothes he wore.
“Daddy look hans-some Mama,” Clarice declared looking at her beloved Daddy with adoration in her eyes while trying to hold in her arms best as she could Will’s teaching briefcase bag and his woven favorite knitted scarf that had been ugly chunky cheap acrylic knitted in orange pumpkin and grayish yarn. The scarf had been knitted handmade by Margot as a gift to him during their first official dating after three months anniversary, years that felt like ages ago.
“He does, doesn't he baby? Mmmhmm, you do look good enough to eat and snack on. Maybe I should pack a little pepper spray gun in your bag so you can fend off all those students from making any attempts at trying to paw at you or ask for extra credit in your classes.” Margot smirked, teasing Will shamelessly as his face flushed immediately blushing red as the dogs' red squeaky toy bone toys.
“Margot! Not in front of our Boo! She’s still our sweet lamb not yet corrupted by Virginia public and private schools like Georgie and Petey have been by making friends with all the little hellraisers happily of the elementary school system of education.” Will half whined, half spoke with his natural sass despite blushing still.
“It’s too late. I'm afraid my sweet sassy husband, This peanut of ours, has been corrupted long ago. Corrupted the second we had unknowingly at the time conceived her in that motel between rest stops we took during that road trip across the midwest when we had taken after we got engaged, eloped, and adopted Zoe to join us and Buster first all within a week in a Summer hot season,” Margot sassed back, mischief in her kiss.
“A quick engagement, then rushing to the nearest courthouse within barely hours to be hitched had to have been both the best and craziest thing we had done all at once the second we decided to just go crazy once you were free from all those chains literally, and legally once we made it happen. What did Mama make me for lunch this time Clarice sweetheart?” Will agreed before asking their daughter, getting down to Clarice’s level as she hugged him while he took his funky knitted scarf from her little hands, to wrap around his neck.
“Mama made you leftovers. Meatloaf witches and cheese with hot sauce, and cold tater salad with onions slaw,” Clarice listed, remembering what her Mother had told her earlier that was packed into her Father’s lunch bento tupperware box contained within the lunch bag sack with a few water bottles for drinking.
“Leftovers from dinner last night, always a winning victory if I’m getting it for lunch. Your jalapeno meatloaf with the pickled red onions, and potato salad?” Will asked looking up at Margot with love and still amazement, how much she took the time to take loving care of him and their family.
“Yes, all of your Father Beau’s Mother and your Great Aunt Bonnie’s family recipes. As always whenever both you and Georgia request it for days you both need it as much as dinner nights when Clarice here wants her grilled cheese with tomato and sour cream soup. And Peter wanted his simple comfort food of breakfast scramble sausage, egg, and potato casserole with dry toast. Your comfort dinner for lunch is one of many favorites just in case you have a possible rough day at work,” Margot nodded, smiling, as she helped Clarice hand the laptop bag and bookbag holding all of Will’s work files and graded student papers to him.
“You still know how to be amazing and just really know how to treat a guy right Margot.” Will couldn’t help but compliment her, heading to the door, as Margot, Clarice and the dogs all quietly followed right behind her to see their favorite person off out at the porch.
“You sir are the only man I want to amaze and treat right. But hearing that every day is wonderful too. Drive safely, be careful at work, try to take as many breaks as you can, and Don’t scare too many future wanna be government agents and special agents too badly…unless it’s your nosy coworkers, then please by all means make them cry or scare them.” Margot replied, being half serious and not, Giving her husband a quick hug and kiss on his forehead, then lips.
“I’ll try my best. Give Georgia and Peter my love. Clarice Boo, You be good and listen to your Mama and try helping her out with the dogs, and keeping Buster out of trouble today. Have fun learning with Mama when she helps you with your home preschool lessons for the day. Alright?” Will spoke in the fatherly loving voice he had for just his kids, leaning down to Clarice’s level to kiss her on her cheek as she nodded.
“Yes, Daddy, Buster, and I will be good. I’ll help Mama. Have fun working!” The homeschooled preschooler waved, standing by her Mother’s side, with the dogs all around them like a protective wolf pack, as they watched her Father leave the porch with his things, heading to his old station wagon Volvo, to leave for work.
“Have a good day Will. Be safe, call me if you need to. I love you,” Margot called out to him, giving him a wave while little Clarice did the same, mimicking her from where she stood, the dogs barking.
“Love you and our little monsters just as much. I’ll be safe, promise.” Will shouted back before he got into the driver's side of his car.
‘Time to go back to the grind of trying to be and look normal’, He couldn’t help but think to himself.
To Be Continued…