Title: The Shell Game
'Verse: Criminal Minds/Dead Like Me

Author: Kuria Dalmatia

Rating/Warnings: FRT/PG (mild profanity)

Characters/Pairing: Haley, Roxy (Hotch/Haley)

Summary: If Haley Brooks Hotchner had trouble following the "no contacting your loved ones" while she was in Witness Protection, what in God's name made them think she would follow it now that she was a Reaper?

Timeline: Criminal Minds' Season 5 "Slave of Duty"

ARCHIVING: my AO3, LJ and FFNet account... anyone else? Please ask first.

January 2013

COMMENTS: Unbetaed. All mistakes are mine. This was originally written in January 2013 and I had planned it to be much longer than it ended up. I guess you can call this a "posting failed concepts from my hard drive" story. It's been a while since I watched DLM, so the characterization of Roxy may be a bit off. Also, this doesn't really follow the DLM 'verse.

Feedback always welcome.

DISCLAIMER: The Mark Gordon Company, ABC Studios and CBS Paramount Network Television own Criminal Minds. MGM and Showtime own Dead Like Me. Salut! I just took them out to play and I promise put them back when I'm done. I'm not making any profit just trying to get these images out of my head.

If Haley Brooks Hotchner had trouble following the "no contacting your loved ones" while she was in Witness Protection, what in God's name made them think she would follow it now that she was a Reaper? Of course she tracked down her family. She wasn't just going to walk away from them, no matter what some idiot said.

She went to her own wake.

She caught sight of Aaron, only to find him a shell of the man she shared her last words on Earth with.

A glance in the mirror reminded her that she looked nothing like her old self. Roxy had been quite thorough in explaining that no matter how hard she tried, her family wasn't going to believe that this middle-aged, overweight brunette was in fact Haley Brooks Hotchner.

She had a hard enough time with that herself.

"We done here yet?"

Haley jumped at the sound of Roxy's voice. She glanced around quickly, wondering if anyone had overheard. She hissed, "I have to try, Roxy."

"Oh, so you're just gonna saunter up to your baby boy and tell him his mama's is trapped inside a woman that doesn't look a thing like her?" Roxy fired back, her voice low yet sarcastic. "Oh, like that's gonna make that boy feel better. All he's gonna be is scared, and him being scared means that his daddy's gonna be all up in your grill, demanding to know why some psycho is freaking his kid out. And the thing about your ex, girl? Is that he's got friends with badges and guns and they're not afraid to use them. Next thing you know, you're in jail and they're pressing charges. You see how edgy these people are? They wouldn't think twice about it."

"Roxy …"

"You can't go back, Haley," the woman spat. "No matter how hard you try. You only make it worse for them. There are rules, girl. Rules that you have to follow. If you really loved them like you say you do, you need to walk the hell away right now."

For a moment, Haley almost retorted, That's what they told me when I went into Witness Protection. And look how well THAT turned out.

Another part of her chimed in, And you broke the rules then. Maybe Foyet wouldn't have been able to track you down as easily if you hadn't broken the rules…

But those internal thoughts weren't what changed her mind. It wasn't Roxy busting her ass for being there in the first place.

It was Aaron kneeling in front of their son, tears unabashedly streaking down his cheeks as the two of them held a framed photograph. Haley couldn't see which one, but right then, she knew that she couldn't integrate herself back into their lives.

No matter what she said. No matter how hard she tried. No matter how many intimate memories she could rattle off, Aaron would never believe that she was his high school sweetheart and the mother of their child. Even if she approached it differently, saying she was a friend of Haley's from work, Aaron would run every background check known to man and then some in order to verify she was who she claimed to be.

Haley lived with Aaron's hyper-awareness and paranoia for years. It was always worse after those cases when he was unable to save a victim.

He wasn't going to let anyone just waltz into their son's life.

The pain was sharp, burning.

She could feel her own tears gathering in her eyes.

"C'mon, girl," Roxy tugged her elbow. "Tall, dark and heavily armed is making a beeline over here, and he ain't gonna ask us to dance."

Haley looked over and saw Morgan striding towards them, a scowl edged deep in his features. Prentiss was a few steps behind him, looking equally concerned and intense.

She spared one last glance at Aaron and Jack before allowing Roxy to lead her away.

~~~ Finis ~~~