Disclaimer: It's quite obvious by now that I do not own Criminal Minds.
Notes: Set in early/mid S2. Jack was never born and Hotch got divorced in early S2; Haley called it quits after the Fischer King incident. Strauss is more S8 version than the original S2 bitch we loved to hate. My thanks go to Pandorabox for her invaluable help in capturing Strauss' 'voice'; she's the Strauss expert, not me!
Newly appointed Section Chief Erin Strauss sat back in her chair with a tired sigh, fingering the personnel files in her lap. She had a meeting scheduled with her Unit Chiefs first thing in the morning and still needed to review another eight personnel records before then. She'd been working towards this position for years and had stepped on a lot of toes along the way. But her pride in the accomplishment was starting to give way to fatigue. It wasn't easy working your way up the ladder as a woman in a male-dominated organization like the FBI and, though many wouldn't believe it, acting the cold, uncaring bitch became exhausting by the end of the day. It also didn't help that she'd admittedly been stalling on this last set of files: those of the BAU's Alpha team.
Oh, the unit itself was no stranger to her; she'd worked with them off and on over the years and had personal ties with several former and current members. Between those ties and the unit's pre-eminence within the Bureau, it was relatively easy to keep up to date with their activities. It was more the emotional baggage that was connected to that team that had her stalling.
Well, stalling wasn't going to get her to sleep any faster, so she sighed again and flipped open the top file in her lap.
SSA Anderson, the liaison between the BAU teams and the various other departments within the Bureau. His duties varied at times and he rarely went into the field but smoothed the details that the teams needed to do their jobs to the peak of their abilities.
Technical Analyst Penelope Garcia-a brilliant analyst and computer genius, but tended to buck most Bureau norms in protocol and dress. The Unit Chief gave her a lot of leeway and while Erin wasn't sure how she felt about that, it was noted several times in Garcia's files that she worked best when her quirks were indulged. All things considered, she figured she'd have to wait and see before she tried to force any changes. There was one recent incident in Garcia's file about her system being hacked but she had been cleared of any disciplinary issues by the Unit Chief.
SSA Elle Greenaway, currently on medical leave due to injuries sustained when the so-called Fischer King stalked the team, via the aforementioned hacking of Garcia's system, and led them on a 'quest' to save a young woman. It was currently expected that she'd return to the team when she was cleared for duty, but Erin made a mental note to see if her old friend's daughter was still interested in a position within the BAU, just in case they needed a replacement. Some eyes and ears who would be grateful to her for the placement and thus, probably more willing to tell her details that others might not, would be handy to have on the Alpha team.
Dr. Spencer Reid was an anomaly to the usual experience requirements for the BAU; he'd been recruited directly to the department and the Alpha team due to his incredible analytical skills, eidetic memory and overall brilliance. Of course, he could hardly hit the broadside of a barn with his sidearm. His youth was a bit of a concern to her but, as with Garcia, she'd keep a weather eye on the situation. They'd also need to keep an eye on the potential medical issues that could sprout if the young man ended up inheriting his mother's medical issues.
SSA Jennifer 'JJ' Jareau, the team's Media Liaison; that was a relatively new position within the team, created after the Boston incident and the subsequent media snafu at the hands of the then-Unit Chief. While relatively young, the woman was brilliant at managing the media and also took on jobs such as triaging potential case files and being the primary point of contact for local law enforcement on the ground. Judging by the handwritings on the unit paperwork that Erin had been reviewing in preparing for taking her position, Jareau also took on some of the more incidental paperwork for the Unit Chief, which was helpful by all accounts.
SSA Derek Morgan; his file showed him as a bit of a hothead at times but his time with SWAT, the bomb squad and now the BAU made for a solid agent. His leadership potential was also well noted in his file and he would make a good second in command for the team in another year or so, should the need arise. She noted the recorded childhood trauma in his files, as well as the incident from a year or so ago that stemmed from that trauma. While the issue was seemingly resolved, she knew she'd been keeping an eye out for any further issues in the future.
Setting Morgan's file aside, Erin paused to pour herself a drink before reviewing the last two files. The truth was, she already knew most of the contents of those files, having known both men for quite a long time. Well, there was no use in putting it off any longer…
SSA Jason Gideon, the former Unit Chief, who stepped down while on medical leave after Boston, and was now the Senior Profiler; former Marine, founding member of the BAU and mentor to the current Unit Chief. He was also now the primary instructor for the Bureau's profiling courses. The notes in his file recorded ongoing concerns amongst higher-ups and psychological staff about possible lingering issues following Boston and exacerbated by the Fischer King incident. He still holds the loyalty of his team members, including his former protegee, the now Unit Chief.
Erin set Gideon's file aside and took a sip of her drink. With Jason no longer in charge of the BAU, she probably would not be forced to interact with him often and that was very likely a good thing. They'd clashed often in the past, right from the start; their personalities were like oil and water. He'd disapproved of her long-ago relationship with David Rossi and she'd resented the way he'd acted towards her during her time as an agent in the unit. He'd thought she'd only gotten the position because she was a woman and later because of her relationship with David. They'd been only too glad to see the backs of each other when she'd been transferred to another office position all those years ago. Yes, keeping her interactions with Jason Gideon to the absolute minimum was definitely a good idea. Though, considering Boston, the Fischer King and his ability to talk circles around the average Bureau psychiatrist, she knew he was definitely yet another someone to keep a close eye on in the near future.
She tossed back the remainder of her drink and flipped open the last file: Unit Chief Aaron Hotchner. But she didn't start reading right away, taking a moment to think instead. Aaron was honestly the one person on the team that she was most apprehensive about interacting with and she'd have to do so frequently. While she and Gideon hated each other, at least they both knew where the other stood; it made things easier. Aaron, on the other hand, was a different story. He'd never been outright rude to her, even in the old days but she knew that between Gideon's lousy opinion of her and the messy end of her liaison with David, he likely did not have a very high opinion of her. The two men had a lot of influence on him back in the old days, though he'd never been a blind follower. Lord only knew what he thought about her being in her new position and how she'd gotten there.
Honestly, the man was a bit of an enigma to her too, or at least his motivations were. He' d left a fast-rising career as a federal prosecutor to become a junior profiler back in the unit's early days, going from a cushy office to sharing a desk with two other agents in a bunker. He'd been in and out of the unit a couple of times, once with SWAT and most recently on a two-year stint in Seattle; he'd been called back to fill the Unit Chief position when Gideon stepped down two years ago. She already knew, without reading his file, that as much as Gideon held the team's loyalty, Aaron held it even more. It was something she envied about him, that respect and loyalty that he seemed to gain so effortlessly.
She could also privately admit that she was a bit jealous of the trust and confidence he received from their mutual superiors as well. Long before she'd been appointed Section Chief, she'd heard the talk among the brass about Aaron and his leadership potential. It wasn't hard to guess who'd be the first pick to fill her position should she step down or be reassigned. She figured that it was only the fact that he'd been a Unit Chief for only two years that had kept him from being offered the job over her at all. Hell, there was already speculation as to how long it would be before he became a Director. The most baffling thing was that the man seemed to hold no personal ambition for advancement and stayed out of the office politics that normally led to promotion as much as possible. His Seattle transfer, as she'd found out through subtle inquiry, had been a move made for the sake of his marriage as the position had had a more stable schedule, not a step to advance his career. He'd been summoned home on what had been supposed to have been a temporary basis when Gideon had stepped down, but the position had quickly been made permanent, as Gideon was commonly viewed as semi-damaged goods after Boston.
Erin finally began reading the file, picking out the minute details that she didn't already know, feedback on his performance as Unit Chief from the former Section Chief and things she hadn't already heard from the grapevine. It was noted that he was very protective of his team, which was no surprise to her and it was noted that the one guaranteed way to piss him off was to try and mess with his team. Commonly known as 'Hotch' to both subordinates and superiors alike; the glare was apparently still his favorite weapon and had only gotten more intimidating over the years. Lord knew, she witnessed and loved its usefulness on suspects, but it was not fun to be on the wrong side of it.
She also noted his recent divorce; the notes indicated that between the transfer back to Virginia, his ex-wife's fertility issues and the unit's travel schedule, Aaron's marriage had gone downhill and the Fischer King incident that brought the job home had been the last straw. Reading between the lines, Erin also suspected that infidelity on his wife's part had come into play, which wouldn't surprise her in the least. She allowed herself a little huff; she'd never cared for Haley the few times they'd met in the past so it wouldn't break her heart to not need to interact with the woman. Mandatory evaluations after the King incident indicated no true issues but did have notes about him working too many hours, even by Bureau standards. She also noted the exceptionally large balance of accumulated leave; she might have to force that issue soon.
She was about to close the file when something in the medical paperwork caught her eye; it had recently been re-done and the Media Liaison, SSA Jareau, was listed as his emergency contact. It was odd but considering his divorce and the distance that she knew existed between Aaron and his brother, she supposed it made sense to have a team member listed in case of injury on duty and Jareau was in the field less that the others. Out of curiosity, she flipped through the other files again and found that Aaron was listed in that position for Jareau, Reid and Gideon. It wasn't bad, but it was odd, and she resolved to do some digging…when she wasn't so tired. Yes, it was nosy of her, but she was curious.
She sat back and set the files aside for the last time; it would take time to establish a comfortable working relationship with Aaron again. His potential couldn't be neglected but their past history and her own cool public persona practically guaranteed that he'd see her as little more than a bitch. She could sympathize with him over the divorce, regardless of her opinion of his ex; her own marriage had crumbled due to the demands of the job. Not that she'd ever say that to his face of course.
Files done and aside, she rose from her chair and pulled her coat from the rack. She had less than six hours before the early meeting and she needed at least a little rest before she could face that. Being the bitch queen was exhausting and she'd have to be twice as bad tomorrow to establish her authority over some of the Unit Chiefs she'd be meeting tomorrow. Aaron shouldn't be too bad but some of the others…. and a woman had to do what a woman had to do.