It's been said that Reid is the person who people at the office confide in, but that is not the truth. The truth is a secret, as all sacred truths are. There is a woman who fills that role. Not JJ. Someone far more imposing. More impressive. More everything.
As strange as it may sound, no one has ever asked JJ where she came upon her skills at secrecy and manipulation. People on the outside make assumptions. Most believe she's learned from Hotch, who has the most impressive poker face…almost.
That award unofficially goes to Miss O'Malley, who has worked as Hotch's administrative assistant for the past fourteen years. If JJ had to guess, she would assume that she had the job long before that, and also worked for Rossi. Miss O'Malley is a stern-faced woman, close to fifty. She has never married and is likely more dedicated to her job than anyone else. She is tight-lipped and formal. She insists on referring to them by their titles - she is Agent Jareau - never JJ. While several of JJ's coworkers are avoided in-office because of their tempers, Miss O'Malley is well liked, though she is as manipulative as the rest of them.
The truth is, the things JJ would like to take sole, or even half the credit for in the field or in the office, often aren't her victories. They are the result of Miss O'Malley working tirelessly behind the scenes. Making phone calls, taking phone calls, typing documents, and making endless arrangements for things she must pretend she has no knowledge of.
When Emily went into Witness Protection, it wasn't JJ or Hotch who booked flights, found available aliases, or opened bank accounts. It was Miss O'Malley. She was also the one who came up with the solution for what to put in Emily's empty casket. While JJ was in the dark about her friend's identity and location, Miss O'Malley had all the information and never spoke a word of it. It was Miss O'Malley who cleaned out Emily's desk. It was Miss O'Malley who found a trauma counselor for Emily after she returned. It's Miss O'Malley who never shares a word of what she overhears in the office.
There are other things that Miss O'Malley knows. She is the only one who knows how JJ got violently ill after coming back from visiting Jacob Dawes in prison. After playing a role that would turn him on. She was in the restroom when JJ couldn't stop throwing up.
"Agent Jareau?"
JJ had gagged and attempted to get control of her. "Miss O'Malley?" she asked, leaning her head against the stall door.
"Are you all right?"
"Yes, ma'am," JJ responded, out of instinct. For though administrative assistant was far below her in the chain of command, the dignity Miss O'Malley carried herself with, and the fact that she was several years older than JJ's twenty-seven, at the time, she seemed to demand that level of respect.
JJ had emerged, pale and shaky, to see Miss O'Malley at the sink, washing her hands.
"The trick is," she had offered, as if they had been in the middle of a conversation about this very thing all along. "To put up walls. You do what you have to. Understand? So, you had to go to a prison and speak to a psychopath. You did it, didn't you?" she asked rhetorically.
JJ had nodded, momentarily mute. She didn't ask how Miss O'Malley had known their whereabouts or that JJ had gone in and she and Hotch had played Draw Poker for answers. Or, for Dawes, to have the chance to touch her hair. She shuddered, and nearly lost it again.
"Walls, Agent Jareau," Miss O'Malley said stoically. "This is something you'll learn as time passes. But until then…" she trailed off, producing what looked like a small, wrapped candy. "Ginger, for your stomach," Miss O'Malley had said, with a sad smile. "And…" she continued, reaching into her purse. "Until you develop those walls, this is the name of someone I greatly trust and admire. She'll help you make sense of what you had to do today."
"Thank you," JJ had managed.
That memory was the first time Miss O'Malley came through for her, but it wasn't the last. Though she is technically Hotch's secretary, Miss O'Malley takes care of them all, like a severe schoolteacher that JJ had in elementary school. She doesn't put up with any crap, but neither does she let them flounder without trying to help. It's Miss O'Malley who pointed Reid in the direction of NA, who sat quietly and listened on those nights when Garcia couldn't let go of the horror she had seen. She has been an invaluable resource for Derek, during his brief appointment as unit chief. She is the one who finds a treatment center for Strauss. She is the one who cleans the dozens of bottles out of her office.
In short, Miss O'Malley has been like the heartbeat of this place for the seven years JJ has worked there, and long before that. So, today, coming in and seeing her desk empty is a shock. Receiving the call that she died suddenly of a congenital condition no one knew she had, shakes JJ to the core. Well…almost no one. JJ knew. She found out by accident, and her knowing never got back to Miss O'Malley. JJ never told Hotch. She never told anyone. JJ walks by the desk, but doesn't touch anything. It's a model of organization that JJ would love to emulate but still cannot manage to.
She blinks back tears, remembering Miss O'Malley's words about building walls. She pulls her phone out and checks her text messages for the first time.
Your secrets are safe with me. Glad mine are safe with you. Miss O'Malley.
JJ smiles in spite of her tears. She doesn't know how they will go on without Miss O'Malley, but she knows they will.
Gently, quickly, efficiently, JJ gets to work cleaning out the desk of the woman she silently admired. She shreds personal documents. She saves nothing. Because she isn't the first secret-keeper, but she has without a doubt, learned from the best.
It's what Miss O'Malley would have wanted. This much, JJ is sure of.
The End.
A/N: I did a bit of research on Helen Gandy for insight on an FBI secretary and what I read was fascinating. The original character Tilly O'Malley was assigned to me as a part of this challenge. She is made up of bits and pieces of Miss Gandy as well as my own inferences.