Pairing: Poly!BAU w/ an emphasis on Hotch x gn!Reader (can be read as platonic all around!)
Warnings: A/B/O fluff! probably some errors cause I tippity-typed then copy-n-pasted
Summary: “being the omega at the bottom of a BAU puppy pile”
It was weird at first, being a new addition to the BAU and an omega. On my first day I was hesitant, not knowing how the other members would react. Most of the alphas (Prentiss, JJ, Morgan) were reserved but friendly, with the acceptation of Hotch, who I could have sworn hated me with the way his eyebrows were always furrowed. Reid, a beta, kept his distance but I think that’s just a beta thing. The omegas (Rossi & Penny) however, were tactile and friendly from day one.
The alphas started taking their cues from the omegas and soon it was common to feel a hand ruffle my hair as JJ walked by or Prentiss to hold the back of my neck during rough briefings. Morgan was the most affectionate, treating Garcia and I like his little rays of sunshine. He loved on Rossi too, but in a more filial way. It took a long time for me to recognize Hotch’s signs of affection. It wasn’t until Reid made a comment one day, crinkling has nose and telling me I smelled like Hotch. Thinking about it, I realized how many times Aaron would brush by me, put my coat on for me, lead me with a hand on my spine. He touched me all the time, just in less noticeable ways. It made me smile every time I noticed now.
Reid was affectionate in a different way, not liking the overly scent-focused affection of alphas and omegas. Instead he showed his care in other ways by telling my helpful information about my hobbies, rescuing the middle brownie from the feral alphas just for me, and saving me a place by the heating vents on cold days.
The best part to get used to were the post-case (and sometimes mid-case if the case was really bad) puppy-piles. The whole team would pile onto one bed, or the jet’s pull-out futon, in a giant tangle of limbs. The only rule was that pajamas were mandatory (something about a button nearly taking out an eye??). It was the best feeling ever being at the bottom of an alpha pile, burrowing between Rossi and Pen. Reid always hung on the outside, but he would hold my hand when I managed to sneak it between Rossi and Morgan.
The piles shifted and changed, depending on how people were feeling, and sometimes who was mad at whom. I noticed that no matter how we started, Hotch always managed to end up with his nose buried in my neck. At first I just wrote it off as his alpha instincts needing to comfort his newest member, but after the 20th case, it seemed like more than a coincidence. This latest case was particularly awful. The victims had struck a nerve, resembling some bad memories from my past.
While I’d managed to keep my cool while we were investigating, the facade had quickly snapped the moment we got into the SUVs headed for the hotel we’d be staying in one last night. It was me and Morgan in the back with Reid and Hotch up front. The SUV doors thudded shut and a high, distressed whine finally escaped. That was all it took for me to break down into sobs. I barely noticed Morgan undoing my seatbelt and pulling me into his lap. The low rumbling coming from his chest was soothing, but it wasn’t nearly loud enough to cover Reid’s distressed noises or Hotch’s low growl. The ride to the hotel was spent with me buried in Morgan’s neck and him murmuring in my ear until I finally fell asleep, exhausted from the waves of emotion that had just crashed over me.
I was blearily aware of some more growling and a short argument before I was being carried through a series of halls. I woke up later that night tangled in sleep-heavy limbs. I could feel Morgan blanketed above me, holding me and Penny together in a bear hug. Rossi was to my left with a hand on the back of my neck. I think my feet were tangled with Emily’s, but it may have been JJ’s. What surprised me was the firm body below be with thick arms wrapped around my waist. I could tell just from scent that it was Hotch. What surprised me was that he was at the bottom of the pile.
Alphas hated being beneath the pile, something about how instinctually it was a vulnerable position. He must have felt me moving and sense my confusion, because one of his hands came up to tangle in my hair, pushing my head back down. “Go back to sleep” He said lowly. I could tell from his voice and heartbeat he was wide awake, and knew he would be all night. I settled back down, stretching out my limbs, tangling them further into the pile of limbs and nuzzling into Hotch’s neck, pressing the lightest of kisses to his pulse point. That earned a soft growl from him. “Go to sleep sweetheart, we’ve got you.” came Morgan’s rumble from above me. I slipped back into sleep feeling completely secure and protected with my team.