Disclaimer: I own nothing!

A/N: Right, this is an idea that someone reviewed me a while ago, asking if I ever thought about writing the plot and if not, could I give it ago... So I am using it, and if you're reading this, seeing as there was no name =(, I hope you like what I did with your brilliant idea!

And I hope you all like what's going to play out!

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Believing the Devil's Advocate -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Penelope looked at her workload and sighed, it was growing ever more mountainous as the days passed. Team A and team B were really collecting the cases lately and it was all put on her to keep on top of it, to make sure the technological side was all up to date. Not only did she have this, she had special requests from other units, from the director, from the she wolf, Strauss, herself. It was part of the job, or that was what she told herself, because it was. She wasn't just a technical analyst for nothing; her job required her to be ready for tasks like she was given. It just didn't stop them from clashing with one another and from getting overwhelming once in a while.

She had had no contact with anyone all day, or all week for that matter. It was just her, her computers and work.

It wasn't just her that had lost contact with the outside world, since Emily's death she had felt like the team had become divided. They had become individuals, not a team and however hard Hotch tried to pull them back together it just didn't work. Even he lost the battle this time around.

It saddened her how the presence of one another dwindled and disappeared, especially hers with Derek.

It reminded her fiercely of when Derek had become acting unit chief, how she seemed to be forgotten by him, how life really did just step up and take over.

She couldn't mistake they were still a family, because they were. Years had built that status, but Emily's death seemed to just put them into isolation from one another. It was all part of the healing, or so she made herself believe.

If she closed her eyes she could still envisage the last time she had a heart to heart with Derek, she could feel the buzz of emotions, the feel of his affection and tenderness, the lingering sensation of his kiss on her forehead, the longing in her heart as he left her apartment that night, and the feeling of dread she felt at seeing their lives change before their very eyes.

She didn't even need to think hard to remember how it ended either.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Believing the Devil's Advocate -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

"You sure you're going to be okay, Baby Girl?" Derek said as he stood in her living room, watching Penelope's actions carefully.

Penelope looked up at him, shot him a sad smile before the tears began to flood again. In an instance she was surrounded with Derek's odour as his arms snaked around her and he kissed into her hair, kept her close and comforted her.

"It's not going to get better is it?" She asked him as she pulled back minutes later and looked up at him. "I mean, we're not going to recover from this. It was too close to home and he's still out there and Em's now in a box in the ground."

"It will get better," Derek almost promised her, even though deep inside he knew not to believe that. "I don't when, but it will and we'll find Doyle and we'll get closure."

"It's just not fair," She whispered, "It's not fair how everything's changing."

"Everything's not changing," Derek told her, "Don't worry your pretty little head about that. We're still here, we still have each other."

Penelope smiled a little at him then. "I kinda love you, Derek Morgan." She whispered even softer than before.

"I know," He said and pulled her close to him. "I guess I better head off, don't want Kevin getting ideas."

Penelope looked stunned as Derek pushed away from her and all of a sudden was seeking an exit. Her brow furrowed, everything's not changing, moments earlier he had said that but here he was wanting nothing more than to be out of her sight. Usually he was the first to rile Kevin with their friendship and now he was worried about his feelings. Usually he repaid her gesture of I love you's with his own amount as well.

She felt the sting of tears hit the back of her eyes.

"See you in a couple of days, Penelope," Derek told her, giving her a quick hug, a quick kiss to her forehead and then he headed down the hallway towards the stairs.

Penelope knew then, with the sudden lack of nickname used on top of it all, that death had brought them together for a limited time and now it was dragging them apart.

She just hoped it didn't take anything too drastic to pull them back together.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Believing the Devil's Advocate -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The sting of that day hadn't lessened any.

If anything it was only made worse as the weeks cascaded into months and their communication became limited, the nicknames stopped, as did the signs of affection and the moments of pure tease.

It was like she was the tech of the team and they were the agents. They were just colleagues when deep down they were yearning for one another like the family they were.

She knew it had to change.

Looking at the time, Penelope decided she needed a bit of respite, she needed to get away from her thoughts the most, and from the place that felt more like a prison today than her sanctuary.

Sitting outside she felt some sense of peace lapse into her system, the fresh air filling her senses. She watched other people come and go and she just remained sitting there, getting the break she needed. She knew it was getting late and the basic home time was hours ago, but she had work and she wanted less to do before the next load took over so she was prepared to work well into the evening.

If there was one thing she knew she needed to do it was that she needed to fix them, she needed some way to help bring them back together. She needed to fix her superheroes and realise that they were a pack, they were a unit and they were one another's support system.

They just needed to see the light and she needed to gather the courage to be the one that fought for all of them.

At long last she smiled as if her life had meaning, had purpose. There was an ease and a promise in her day now.

Finally she saw a speckle of light.

Smiling a little more, she looked at her watch and then got up to go back to work.

Penelope walked back to her office, she felt like her body was more awake, now she had taken a break. She was ready to kill the pile of work, so she could go home and then arrange a team get together, something meant just for them. She was prepared to settle down for the rest of evening to work, to accomplish the work so she could show how capable she was of being competent and independent, even when her energy level was waning.

She was ready to be the best of the best again.

Except when she worked into her office she saw her plan go straight out of the window.

"Hello Penny," Kevin said as he span around in her seat, her desk wrecked already, his smile almost burning into her.

There, in front of her, was her own form of the devil's advocate.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Believing the Devil's Advocate -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-