A/N: This fic has been a long time coming, considering how long ago I started planning it, but here it finally is- my Criminal Minds/White Collar crossover! This story will focus on Reid and Neal (of course, since they are two of the most gorgeous men on the planet). This fic is gonna be dramatic and angsty and of course romantic all at once, and while the title may make no sense now, trust me- it will later! In the White Collar timeline, this is set loosely after Kate's death, and Criminal Minds- well, I haven't figured that out yet. The timelines may be out between the two shows, but oh well!

This is my first foray into any fandom other than Criminal Minds, so I really hope I can do the White Collar characters justice! Well, time to begin reading Magic!

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds, White Collar, or any of their characters.

Magic

Chapter One: We're Working With Who?

Agent Peter Burke never thought that there would be a case he wouldn't be able to crack. He never thought he'd have to admit to himself that he was completely stuck, and he had no idea what to do next. Even when he had been tracking Neal Caffrey, arguably the greatest con artist of all time (although he'd never actually admit that to the man in question), Peter had never thought, at any stage, that he wouldn't be able to catch the culprit. But this guy, whoever he was, had Peter scratching his head.

Peter and his team had been trying to catch this con artist for nearly two months now. The man had been performed investment and insurance scams across the country, before heading to New York two weeks before Peter had gotten the case. Only a week ago, however, the con artist had turned to murder. There was no clue as to why. He just had. And Peter had no idea how to stop him. He had nothing. Even with Neal helping them out, providing his own insights, he had no idea what to do.

"I honestly have no clue how we're gonna get this guy," Peter sighed, resting his head in his hands. "I've got nothing."

"You know, normally I'd make some sort of joke right about now, but surprisingly I'm stumped too," said Neal, twirling his hat on one hand. "This guy is good. I mean, not as good as me, of course, but still good."

"How good can you be if I managed to catch you, but I can't catch this guy?" said Peter. Neal scowled at him, but Peter didn't even notice. He was too busy focusing on the case, thinking over the information in his head again and again, trying to think of anything that he might have missed. Absolutely anything that could be used to crack this case wide open.

Peter sighed again. He had nothing. He had absolutely nothing except for what the con artist had wanted him to find. And he knew that if he wanted to catch this guy any time soon, before he fled New York and moved on to another city, the minds of his team and Neal weren't going to be enough. They were going to need help.

Peter pulled out his cell phone, and went searching through his contacts until he found the number he had saved in there.

"Who are you calling?" Neal asked, confused.

"Jennifer Jareau," Peter replied. "Communications Liaison of the Behaviour Analysis Unit in Quantico."

Neal started in his seat at Peter's words, but luckily the agent was too busy looking through his phone to notice. He recognised the name of that unit. He knew the name of that unit. In fact, he knew it very well.

"Agent Jareau?" Peter suddenly said. "Hi, Agent Peter Burke here, from the White Collar Division in New York. D'you remember me?" Peter laughed at something the other agent had said. "Yeah, well, we really need help here. We have a con-artist-turned-murderer here, and absolutely no idea who he is, how he's managed to do what he's doing, why he's turned to murder, or how to stop him." There was another moment of silence, as Agent Jareau said something to Peter. "You will? That's fantastic, thank you." Peter hung up, turning to face Neal again.

"So are they coming?" Neal asked.

Peter nodded. "Jareau's going to present the case to the rest of her team in an hour, and they'll be here about two or three hours after that," he replied. "And thank god they're coming. God knows we need the help."

Neal hesitated, opening his mouth and closing it again. It was obvious that there was something he wanted to say. "Whatever you have to say, say it now," said Peter. "But unless it's 'I know who the con artist is', I don't particularly want to hear it."

"Do we really need that unit's help?" Neal asked. "I mean, come on, with enough time we can crack this."

"The thing is, though, we don't have any time," Peter pointed out. "We need to stop this guy before he strikes again- more importantly, before he kills again. And I know you know that we can't do this on our own. We need the help, Neal."

Neal looked at Peter, like he was trying to stare the agent down. "We've cracked every other case that's come before us, Peter," he implored. "We've never needed help before."

"And we may never need it again," said Peter. "But we need it now." He studied Neal, confused. "You're awfully opposed to this, Caffrey. Any particular reason why you don't want the BAU's help?"

"I just don't think we need the help, that's all," Neal replied, a sense of finality to his voice. Peter knew there was definitely more to the story, but he also knew that there was nothing he could say that would make Neal open up. It was strange, though. What kind of connection could Neal possibly have to the BAU? He'd never come up against them before; Peter knew that for a fact.

"Well, it's too late," said Peter, wanting to bring the argument to a close. "I've already called them, and they're already coming. And I happen to disagree with you, Neal: I think we really need their help."

Neal just sighed, not wanting to say something he'd regret. He didn't want to admit it to Peter, but he agreed that they desperately needed the BAU's help. That wasn't why he didn't want them to come. He had his own reasons. Personal reasons. Reasons that he didn't want to tell Peter. Ever.

As soon as Jennifer Jareau had hung up after her conversation with Peter, she'd called his team to tell them to bring their go bags to work. She'd gotten the same reactions to the request as she always did; Morgan and Prentiss's conflicting emotions of excitement and disappointment, Hotch's and Rossi's acceptance and almost non-reaction, Reid's intrigue, and Garcia's disappointment that her 'babies' were flying away and leaving her again.

The team arrived at work between half an hour and an hour later: Reid and Hotch first, Morgan last. They headed into the meeting room, chatting, while JJ set the room up to explain the case they had been given.

"Okay," she said, and the team took their seats, pulling their files towards them. "We have a con artist, name and detailed appearance unknown, who has been conducting insurance and investment scams across the country for quite a long period of time. Two months ago, he headed to New York."

"Okay, not to sound sceptical, but why is this a BAU case?" Morgan asked. "I mean, a con artist? Really?"

"It's a BAU case, because one week ago the guy did this," JJ answered, pressing a button on her remote and changing the image on the screen. It became one of a young woman with multiple stab wounds to her chest, and large cuts down her face and arms. "The UnSub turned to murder."

"This reminds me of that William Hodges case, in San Diego," Reid mused. "When the con artist snapped and started killing his victims."

"Except this UnSub isn't only targeting women," JJ pointed out. "His victims are of both sexes." She pressed the button on her remote again, and a series of images passed across the screen: the known victims of their UnSub.

"That's a lot of victims," Prentiss realised, her eyes growing wide as she stared at the screen. "This guy's prolific."

"And this is just his known victims," Rossi added. "There's no telling how long the actual list could be."

"Actually-" Reid began, but Morgan interrupted him.

"That didn't require an answer, kid," Morgan said. Reid looked at him apologetically, and Morgan laughed. "No need to apologise."

"The main problem is, the team in New York have no idea why this guy turned to murder," JJ continued. "And they have no idea when they're going to strike again. That's why they've called us in."

"Get everything ready," said Hotch, gathering up his files. "Wheel's up in an hour." He left the room, JJ and Rossi both following behind him. This left Garcia, Reid, Morgan and Prentiss.

"I can't believe you guys get to go to New York again, and I have to be left behind all alone!" Garcia whined dramatically.

"Come on, baby girl, you know we'll be working," Morgan laughed. "We won't have any time to take in the sites or do anything fun."

"Yes, but New York!" Garcia exclaimed. "Morgan, you do not understand! New York is, like, my ultimate American destination!"

"Well, Garcia, next time we get time off I'll take you up there myself, okay?" said Morgan, eliciting much clapping and squealing from the technical analyst.

"Well I guess that will have to do," said Garcia, sighing dramatically. "Off you go, my fine furry friends." She headed off to her office, files in hand.

"You know, the last time Garcia called us that, Hotch said he was going to have her drug tested," Reid informed the other two to their stunned laughter.

"Somehow, I think that's just who Garcia is," said Prentiss. "A little bit crazy; but that's the way we love her."

"And I don't know about you guys, but I wouldn't have my baby girl any other way," Morgan said fondly. Prentiss and Reid nodded emphatically, before the three of them headed off to their desks to make their final preparations before leaving for New York.

True to Hotch's word, the team was on the jet an hour after the briefing, on their way to New York. JJ had put in another call to the agent in charge of the case, letting him know that they were on their way. As soon as she hung up the phone, she returned to the rest of the team.

"Okay, so let's go over this again," said Hotch. "What have we got so far?"

"We have an UnSub who has been conducting insurance and investment scams all over the continental US for over two years," Reid began.

"Hang on a sec," Rossi interrupted. "Are we so sure it's only one guy? I mean, is there any chance it may be two?"

"Well, there isn't any definitive proof of that," JJ mused, looking down at her file, "but there isn't anything that proves that it's only one person. So yes, it is possible."

"Anyway," said Hotch, "this guy's been operating all over the country. He only headed to New York about two and a half months ago."

"This is the first time he's been to New York?" Prentiss asked. Hotch nodded. "Has he visited any place more than once?"

"Once he leaves a state, he doesn't go back," Reid supplied helpfully. "New York is the last one. Well, other than Alaska and Hawaii, anyway. And by the looks of what we have so far, he isn't going to go there. He isn't going to risk flying, I don't think."

"So after leaving New York, he's going to have to start again," Morgan realised. "And then we'll have no idea where he is. He'll be completely lost to us."

"Which is why we need to work fast," said Hotch.

"Hey, this guy hasn't killed before, correct?" said Prentiss, receiving murmured assent from the rest of the team. "So why has he killed now? What's changed? What made him snap?" She jabbed at the photo of the victim in her file with a finger.

"Sally Weston," said Reid. "Single, no children, lived alone, but with strong ties to her family and a number of close friends. She was a… secretary for a marketing firm."

"So what we've really gotta figure out, is why this particular victim caused our UnSub to snap," said Morgan.

"If we figure that out, we should be led to our UnSub," said Rossi.

The team fell silent, each of them lost in their own thoughts about the case. Suddenly, though, JJ spoke up. "There is something you guys need to know about the team we're working with, though." The others all looked up at her, confused. "We will, of course, be working with the White Collar Division. The lead agent is Peter Burke."

Reid almost flinched in his seat, staring at JJ with shock in his eyes. "I-I'm sorry, did you say Peter Burke?" he asked.

All eyes of the team turned to Reid, watching his reaction. As far as they knew, he had never met Agent Peter Burke before. So why was he reacting this way? It was strange, even for him.

"Yes, that it what I said," said JJ slowly, making her confusion obvious. "The thing is, though, he's got someone consulting with him who isn't- well, your usual consultant. He's a convicted forger, and he is also alleged to have carried out a number of other forgeries and cons. His name is Neal Caffrey."

If Reid's reaction had been strange and unexpected before, this one was even more so. His face went white, and his eyes were almost bulging out of their sockets. Luckily for him, though, while the team had noticed his shocked reaction, they hadn't noticed the severity of it. They were too busy feeling shocked themselves.

"I'm sorry?" said Morgan. "He's working with a convicted felon?"

"Burke's success rate has shot through the roof since he started working with Caffrey," Hotch pointed out. "And Caffrey has genuinely been helping him, he's been putting his own life on the line to help the FBI."

"He's genuinely switched sides," JJ agreed. "Although I heard that personality wise, he hasn't changed a thing."

"Hey, as long as he helps us out, I really don't care what he used to be," said Rossi. "We've seen far, far worse guys than him." Morgan and Prentiss nodded in agreement; Reid, however, remained silent.

"Reid, are you okay?" JJ asked.

"What? Oh yeah, I'm fine," said Reid quickly, clearly anything but.

"Are you sure?" Morgan insisted. "Because I mean, if you're not, you can sit this one out if you really want-"

"I am fine," said Reid. "Really."

The rest of the team looked at Reid sceptically, but they all knew that his answer wasn't going to change. He would never admit that something was wrong, even if it was. They could only hope that whatever it was, it wasn't something that would destroy him.

"Come on, come on, pick up," Neal muttered, as he listened to the dial tone on the other end. "Come on, man…"

Finally, it stopped. "Hello?" said a voice on the other end.

Neal sighed in relief. "Hey, Mozz, it's me," he said.

"Well, of course it is," said Mozzie. "Who else would be calling me from your phone?"

"Mozz, now's not the time," said Neal. "I need you to do something for me."

There was silence on the other end of the phone. Neal could practically hear the cogs whirring in Mozzie's head. "Okay," he said finally. "What is it?"

"It's nothing illegal, Mozz," Neal told him. "I… I need you to get something out of storage for me."

"Get something out of storage for you?" Mozzie repeated.

"Yes," Neal replied. "It's here, in New York. You know where."

"Alright," Mozzie agreed. "What is it, may I ask?"

"It's an old, wooden box," Neal answered. "Mahogany. And it's not stolen, either," he added, sensing what Mozzie was about to say. "It's mine. It belongs to me. And Mozz, don't look at what's inside. Just get it for me."

Neal could tell that Mozzie was confused. "Neal, is something going on? Did Peter say something to you?"

"This has nothing to do with Peter," said Neal hurriedly. "Just please, get it for me."

"Okay, Neal, I'll get it." As soon as he'd gotten Mozzie's agreement, Neal hung up the phone. He still couldn't believe that this was happening, but it was. And he was just going to have to make the best of it.

A/N: So, there's chapter one, everybody! What did you think about my first attempt at a crossover? Love, hate, meh, in between, all three? Please shoot me a review and let me know, I love receiving them- they totally make my day!
And don't worry, chapter 2 won't take me as long to post as I did posting new chapters from my last multi-chapter fic, as it is almost finished! Look for it soon!

Oh, and I've finally set up that twitter account I was going to set up connected to this account, where I am going to post when I update my stories, post new ones, and also ask any of you guys that might have prompts for me to send them to me there, and I will be sure to right them for you. So any of you that have twitter, follow me and tweet me any prompts you have for me- my username is EternalFanFics :) I will also post there when I start working on a new story or come up with an idea for one, so you know when I am writing new stories for you lovelies to read. Thanking you in advance for following me! :)

Note from Diamond Cobra: "Neal is my favourite criminal. He's like Patrick Jane, but more badass."