Title: Lions, and Tigers, and Bears... Oh My!
Author:
Rating: PG/PG-13
Pairing: Morgan/Reid
Warnings: Slash - an established Morgan/Reid relationship
Summary: "Set him down." Derek said to Spencer. Spencer looked at Derek with a guffawed expression, obviously offended by this suggestion, but did so when Derek nodded, still holding Clooney's collar...

A/N: This is a fic for gingerberrycat, who asked for something like this. Hope you enjoy, ma'am!

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds.

Lions, and Tigers, and Bears... Oh My!

It was a decent, Autumn day as Spencer walked home to his apartment from the bookstore, four bags in hand. It was chilly outside, but nice, and there was a slight overcast that seemed to promise rain. His favorite type of weather.

He paused outside of his apartment building, groaning as he remembered his security key was still in his pocket. He sat his bags down on the ground as he rummaged through his pockets.

"Ha!" He cheered enthusiastically as he retrieved his key, but paused when he heard a pained squeak. Spencer momentarily forgot all about his bags of books and looked around confusedly for whatever was responsible for the sound.

Finally, he laid eyes upon a small and malnourished black and white kitten, limping his way towards the shelter of the roof.

"Hey there, buddy." Spencer whispered, walking over to the kitten who eyed him suspiciously. Spencer crouched down to examine the kitten, taking note of his unhealthy body, and finally scooped him up in his hand and returned to his bags.

Once upstairs to the cozy apartment that was shared between Spencer and Derek, Spencer slowly and quietly unlocked the door and peeked his head through the opening, searching for any sign of Derek. When he didn't see his partner, he slid himself through the cracked door and quietly jogged his way to his office with the kitten in hand, leaving his newly bought books on the kitchen table.

Spencer closed his office door and sat the kitten down in his office chair, and left again to go fetch some temporary necessities for his new kitten. First, he made his way to the bathroom, gathering a couple towels, and then made his way to the bedroom.

Spencer stood there and thought for a moment, peering around the room for any ideas. Finally, he went over and rummaged through Derek's drawers before retrieving an old fleece sweatshirt that he never wore anymore. After that, he gathered a few bowls from the kitchen and quietly walked back to his office.

He placed the bowls on top of the towels, one filled with water and the other filled with tuna until he could get to the pet store. He laid the fleece sweatshirt down as a makeshift bed underneath his desk, that way Derek wouldn't be able to see his new pet from the entrance, and it would also provide a nice cozy corner for the kitten.

Once Spencer was finished, he lifted the kitten up from his chair, who had been watching him intently, and sat down with the sickly cat in his lap.

"Tomorrow we'll go to the vet." Spencer promised. "But for now, get some rest and eat. I think I'll name you..." Spencer thought for a moment, trying to come up with a suitable name.

Spencer smiled to himself and scratched his new friend behind the ear, watching his eyes close shut in pleasure. "Roi... King in French..."

A couple hours later, Roi had found his way to his new fleece bed at Spencer's mismatched socked feet, and Spencer was busying himself with case files and books when there was a soft knock on his office door. Derek peaked his head in and raised an eyebrow.

"Why is Clooney sitting outside of your door like the excellent watch dog he is?"

Spencer's face fell. He knew. Derek hated cats, he was strictly a dog man. Spencer shrugged, and immediately let his eyes fall back down to his book.

"You're lyin' to me, Spence."

Spencer frowned. "No, I'm not."

"I'm a profiler."

Spencer took that opportunity to use his anatomy to his advantage. He looked up to Derek with huge doe-like eyes and gave a slight pout. Derek could never say no to that.

"I, uhm... found an injured kitten on the way home from the bookstore..." As Spencer spoke, he noticed Derek raise his eyebrows and continued to talk faster, as he always did when he was nervous or uncomfortable.

"He was limping and purring at me! I couldn't just leave him!"

Derek walked into the room then and smiled. Spencer was just so damn cute. Derek shut the door behind him so that Clooney wouldn't get in and stood in front of Spencer's desk, peering down.

"Let me see him."

Spencer's frown deepened as he swiveled his way around to pick up his kitten. He sat Roi in his lap and began scratching his head as he curled back up.

"I named him Roi." Spencer said, curling himself into a protective position over the injured kitten. Derek's smile only grew wider as he watched his lover hold this tiny kitten, and he winked.

"Just don't let Clooney around him. We should probably go get him some cat food, don't ya think?"

Spencer beamed then and gave a huge grin, hopping up with the kitten in his arms, a paw lazily draped over his arm, and excitedly bobbed his way over to Derek.

"I can take him in Petco right? They let animals in..." Spencer wasn't even really talking to Derek as much as to himself, and gracefully left the office, kitten in hand. Derek smiled as Spencer passed him and left the room. He loved it when that little kid mentality of Spencer's showed it's face.

0-0-0

By the end of Spencer's and Derek's shopping excursion, Spencer had dutifully handed over all six plastic bags of various assorted toys, two beds (one for the office and one for the bedroom, of course), and numerous varieties of organic cat food over to Derek as he slid into the car with the kitten.

Spencer beamed the entire way home, absently scratching Roi's head, and Derek couldn't help but grin to himself at how happy and excited Spencer was. Before the car even came to a complete stop, Spencer had hopped out and was jogging inside of the building and up the stairs into the apartment before Derek had even opened his door.

When Derek finally struggled his way up the stairs with the cat's bags, he stopped in the doorway to find Spencer standing completely still, hugging Roi to his chest.

"Spence?"

Derek peered around the young man's shoulder to find Clooney standing there, teeth bared ferociously and growling. The little kitten had his claws dug into Spencer's shirt and was trembling severely, trying to contain his hisses.

"Clooney! Stop that!" Derek placed the bags down and made his way over to Clooney, attempting to shoo him away. Clooney wasn't in the mood to be obedient, however, and only let up once Derek began to lead him away by his collar.

"Set him down." Derek said to Spencer. Spencer looked at Derek with a guffawed expression, obviously offended by this suggestion, but did so when Derek nodded, still holding Clooney's collar.

Roi stood there on wobbly legs in front of Spencer's feet and looked at Clooney, who was eying him rather suspiciously. After a few intense minutes, Clooney stuck his nose out, trying his best to check out the small kitten despite his restraints.

Finally, Derek cautiously let Clooney go. He bravely trotted his way over to the kitten, looking him up and down, and eventually nudged his nose against the kitten, almost tipping him over. Roi reciprocated and slunk over and began rubbing his side and back up against Clooney's legs, purring in enjoyment as his thin back arched up, tail sticking up in the air.

A huge grin spread across Spencer's face as he looked to Derek, who was still crouching on the floor near Clooney. Derek winked, causing Spencer to only grin wider as a light blush crossed his face, and he slid his hands in his pockets, watching Clooney and Roi mingle. Derek stood up then and wrapped his arm around Spencer's waist, beaming at how proud he was of his dog.

"Looks like I'll just have to come to terms with you bein' a cat man, Spence."

Spencer laughed and gave Derek that small, innocent smile of his. "Yeah, I'm sure you don't want to be in the doghouse tonight."