PSOLC ( Criminal Minds AU) Drabble- Based On The Amazing Themetaphorgirl’s Fic

Sunrise on The Reaping thoughts ( tried to not spoil anything)

Well, I read it in 6 hours, give or take! 

It was really gripping, the characters were all really distinct and relatable in some way. Some of them were really surprising and there were some neat parallels to other Games and characters in them.

So much bird, flower and snake imagery, it was a bit much at times.

Haymitch’s Reaping ceremony was brutal, not at all what I expected, but very fitting for his character. 

All the nods to other characters throughout the series was fun, though maybe a little overdone.

I liked the full-circle aspect of the plot and the character connections.

The mentor situation played out in the opposite way that I thought it would, and I thought it was a bit unlikely/unrealistic, but maybe it was just because it was a Quarter Quell that it happened like it did.

It was interesting to see the evolution of the Games since TBOSAS, and I felt some of the events from that were mirrored/echoed in this book. 

I will elaborate more once more people have finished it and don’t want to avoid spoilers. 

But overall, it was a great read and I think it will make a fantastic film.

Criminal Minds Season 14

There have been several episodes with characters having flashbacks and none of them feature Hotch at all, which makes me sad! No-one even mentions him anymore, which just makes me sad! They could have little moments like “Do you remember when we worked a similar case and Hotch did/said X to help us figure out who the unsub is”… 

The episode focused on JJ’s hometown and her relationship with her sister was an interesting one. I mostly just have it on as background noise, though some episodes do draw me in.  One of my best friends bought Seasons 2-8 after I got her Season 1, which she has yet to finish. I am so excited for her to watch the finale, it is excellent! 

SVU Season 10 thoughts

The first few episodes of this Season are just excellent!

Swing is one of those episodes I could rewatch on a loop and not be bored of it and it’s great that it is followed by Lunacy, so we get to see Elliot as worried/concerned/angry dad and then his more fun, playful side with Kathleen and then Dickie. He is still super protective of them both!

We also get some info for the timeline, for those of you that are working on it (@ocstabler). Bernie says she was married to Joe Sr for 27 years, and, in OC, I figured out that Elliot is in his mid 20’s ( about 25) when he makes second detective and says he celebrated by bringing two beers and a sandwich to his father’s grave, so if he’d just died, Elliot was born after his parents had been married for 2 years or so, making him the first or second child, unless Joe and Bernie were forced to get married due to a teen pregnancy ( like Kathy and Elliot did). I think Randall is directly acknowledged as the eldest child/brother, though when he leaves home, aged 16,  he joins Shannon/Sharon and Dee who are already in Florida, which would suggest they are older.

Regarding Swing, I love that Bernie and Elliot’s similarities are showcased , as they both need to go outside to get some air when they get stressed/upset, and they both clearly love each other deeply. Elliot tells her he has always needed her and she tells Olivia that she tried to be a good mother.

Their differences are shown too, especially through wardrobe: she is wearing loose, comfortable clothes in fun colours ( a flowy yellow jacket and matching scarf/wrap and wide legged trousers) whereas he is in a shirt and tie, in plain, dark colours. Obviously, he’s dressed for work, but he could have taken 5 minutes to change into more casual clothes.

It’s also super interesting to see them both recount their version of the same event which differ so wildly. When Bernie is talking about running off to Paris when he was 10 or going to see Georgia O’Keefe, dressed in her nightgown, I think he is reminded of that when Kathleen runs up to him and wants him to swing with her. 

When Bernie is talking to Kathleen, she cups her face, just like Elliot often does when comforting/reassuring his kids. 

Bernie talking about how she was treated in hospital is just heart-breaking, I totally understand why she didn’t want to be on medication, but the fact that she was in a catatonic state for months at a time has definitely caused Elliot pain/resentment and made him go completely the other way with his kids.

Lunacy is such a great episode, as we get to learn some more about Elliot’s past and see his lovely relationship with Dickie. They’re very comfortable with each other and seem to have a very easy, teasing yet affectionate relationship. It’s a shame that Dickie’s namesake turns out to be a total douche canoe, but it’s a good episode with quite a few twists and turns/red herrings. 

Even episode 2 has the photo of Lizzie, so she kind of features in an episode, for once. It would have been lovely to somehow include her in the episode, maybe a scene with Elliot as he is trying to figure out how the guy found a picture of Lizzie online…

Just wondering how everyone got into the shows they watch, and if there are some funny or random stories.

Most of the shows I watched were from TV advertising, watching a random ep or recommendations ( Castle, Gilmore Girls, Desperate Housewives, Grey’s Anatomy...) but I got into Criminal Minds via fanfic, more specifically @themetaphorgirl ‘s boarding school AU fic called Patron Saint of Lost Causes. I had heard the name of the show, and generally like crime/detective/mystery shows, but was intrigued by the teen characters in the fic and how they were as adults. I liked the adult characters even more than I thought possible than as teens, and inhaled 11 of the 15 seasons in under a year!

1. Red ( pretty much any shade)

2. Forest green

3. Mustard yellow

4. Teal

5. Purple ( pretty much any shade) 

top five colors

ask me my top five of anything!

pastel grey

duck egg blue

sage green

pastel yellow

lilac

marjorie - taylor swift

Bernie breaking Elliot's heart.

PSOLC vignette « Grades »

OK, so this is inspired by the amazing @themetaphorgirl ‘s PSOLC ( Criminal Minds AU) as we discussed a situation with Hotch and Emily in the same class and she gets a better grade than him, though he put in way more effort. I haven’t written in aaaaaages, so 1m super rusty, but I had fun and feel like I nailed Strauss’s character

“ Did you hand in your essay OK, Bubba?” Alex asked Hotch as she sat down at the table, deftly readjusting Spencer’s tray once she had put hers down too.

“Yeah, thanks Birdie. Once you looked through it for me I typed it up and printed it, then I handed it in last week.” he replied, stirring raisins into his oatmeal.

Emily’s head jerked up, eyes wide and her spoon halfway to her mouth. She quickly regained her composure.

“Uh, Hotch, what’s today’s date?” she asked.

“It’s the 22nd, Emily. And yes, it is the date our 2000-word  essays are due in for Strauss. The essays she assigned us last month that are worth 40% of the semester’s grade.” he replied, shaking his head and frowning at his classmate’s disorganisation.

“Oh, I knew that, I do actually listen in class sometimes, Hotchner! And it’s no biggie! I’ll write it in French and Chapel.” Emily responded nonchalantly, her eyes reflecting her panic and stress. «  We’re studying the present indicative of first group verbs and adjective agreements, which is obviously very difficult, but I’ll make it work » she announced, trying hard to sound convincing but failing miserably.

“Alexandra Catherine Miller, room-mate extraordinaire,  what can you tell me about the leitmotifs in To Kill A Mockingbird? Just asking for a friend!” she asked Alex, eyes wide, fluttering her eyelashes and smiling, tilting her head to the side.

“Oh, that’s easy! I read it when I was 7, but the main themes are…”, Spencer interjected, gesticulating wildly, his eyes shining with excitement, as Alex placed a finger on his lips to quieten him.

“Sorry, Emily, but I really can’t help you now. I asked you if you wanted help when Hotch asked me to look through his first draft, and you told me you had ‘almost started it’, so you’re just going to have to face the consequences” Alex answered, a sympathetic look on her face. 

« But if I don’t get an A, I’m going to fail! And Strauss offers no make up tests or extra credit! I hope you’ll come to my funeral as Strauss is going to eviscerate me. » she replied, biting her lip as she realised just how much of a challenge she had to face.

Hotch muttered something that sounded suspiciously like “you made your bed, now lie in it”.

Penelope looked aghast.

« Well, I am so glad I only have Strauss for debate. She sounds like the kind of person who has a favourite child! » she shared, shuddering at the thought of having more classes with her most terrifying teachers. 

Just before the bell for second period rang, Emily dashed into class, almost tripping over Chris Callahan’s legs and narrowly avoiding crashing into Kate Carter’s  neighbouring desk before flinging herself into her assigned seat towards the back of the class, clutching several sheets of rather crumpled notebook paper. 

Ashley Seaver smiled sympathetically at her before resuming her chat with Jordan Todd about the new crime series with the hot male lead that they were both obsessed with.

The final bell rang, cutting their conversation short. The class fell silent immediately.

“ Pass your essays up to the front now. Some of you have already handed them in, but I needn’t remind you that is no guarantee of a good or even a passing grade. “ Strauss announced, shooting a pertinent look at Hotch.

“Miss Carter and Mr Callahan, how many times  have I told you that there’s no PDA in my classroom?” she scolded, glaring at the offending students, who were holding hands.

“And no, don’t answer that, it’s rhetorical! Get out your grammar books, page 82 and complete the sentence parsing that we started last class. There is no need to talk.” she announced, having gathered all the students’ work in a pile on her desk.

The class got to work and their teacher turned her attention to the papers in front of her, scowling at some and shaking her head at others, that she liberally annotated with her red pen.

Two weeks later

“ Well, on the whole, I was disappointed with your essays. As Juniors, you really should have mastered these basic concepts by now. You do realise, if you go to college, your professors will make me look like a Disney princess. I have a feeling that college might not be the right fit for everyone here” Strauss declared, casting a disapproving look around the class.

“However, there was one standout essay that I gave an A to. I had to take some points off for presentation, but the student in question provided some excellent analysis. It’s the only A I have given so far this semester. Emily Prentiss, I did not expect work of such caliber from you. » she continued.

She then proceeded to return work by grade.

«  A valiant attempt. Mr Hotchner, but you should definitely ask Miss Prentiss for some pointers for the next assignment » she said, handing Hotch his paper that had a big red B+ on it. 

He shot Emily a dark, murderous  look, but she just grinned and thumbsed up when their eyes met.

As the bell for lunch went, Hotch uncharacteristically shoved his books and papers haphazardly into his backpack, pushed his chair against his desk with more force than necessary and stomped out.

Emily was smiling broadly at their usual lunch table, chatting to Penelope about hairstyles as Hotch arrived, slamming his tray down.

Alex looked over at him with a concerned look, but he just prodded his mystery meat violently, eyebrows knitted tightly together.

«  Hi Hotch! Are you still hung up over your grade from Strauss? I’m sure I can help you do better next time » she said sweetly.

«  Just how did you get an A? » he questioned angrily.

Rossi looked up from his mashed potatoes, intrigue written all over his face.

«  Emily! How did you do it? Strauss hardly ever gives A’s! Please teach me your ways, you… witch! » he exclaimed.

«  I’ m just naturally brilliant, I guess. Perhaps I should request a transfer into the AP class. And don’t ‘Emily’ me! » she replied smugly.

« That’s a great plan, Emily. Except a) there are no places left in the AP class, and b) your last grade was a C minus, I believe? » Hotch declared.

She sighed and returned her attention to her plate of food.

Hotch would hopefully get over it by the time they graduated, she mused.

I love how Hotch almost always thanks her for her help, he’s so polite!