Ok so this is my first Criminal Minds/24 crossover so reviews and suggestions welcome. Sorry if I get some of the details wrong, but it's fanfiction :)

It had been four months since Erin Strauss had died and David Rossi was still struggling to cope with the loss. They had been able to have a little over a year of happiness together before it all came shattering to a tragic end when she was killed while trying to capture the unsub John Curtis, otherwise known as the Replicator. Although the members of the BAU team and his superiors had been supportive during this extraordinarily painful time in his life Rossi still had his moments of feeling completely devastated and alone. She was gone and no amount of time would ever take away the pain. Rossi had been sitting in his office going over case files when the new Section Chief Mateo Cruz poked his head in the door.

"Agent Rossi, could I have a word?" he asked

"Chief Cruz, nice to see you. Please come in and have a seat"

Cruz entered the room, closing the door behind him and quickly took a seat

"I'll come straight to the point" he began

"I assumed you would," replied Rossi with a hint of sarcasm

"I've had a request from Homeland Security of a delicate nature and I was wondering if you would be willing to help me out,"

"Shouldn't these types of requests go thru our unit chief? You know Agent Hotchner hates to be left out of the loop when it concerns a member of his team"

"In this case the assignment shouldn't take more than a day, maybe two at the most, so it shouldn't affect any of the cases you are currently working on."

"If I may be so bold, what exactly is the nature of this case, and why me?"

"The President is considering bringing back one of his former employees as one of his National Security Advisors, a position she has held before..."

"So what seems to be the problem?" I'm sure she was properly vetted the first time, so why bring in a profiler now?"

"It would appear that there is some question as to whether she can perform her duties..."

"What would give the administration that impression?"

"Her husband was killed during the attack on the White House by General Juma a few years ago..."

"So now they want to know if she's harboring any resentment that could get in the way of her objectivity," concluded Rossi as he leaned back in his chair.

"Something like that"

"So why me? Why not send in someone like Agent Jareau or Agent Blake? They are both more than qualified to handle this sort of task"

"To be perfectly honest, although neither one of them are strangers to pain and loss, you, and forgive me for saying this so tactlessly, You are the one who has most recently lost a loved one, and we feel that you, more so than the others, may be able to pick up on any hidden resentment she may have toward the administration"

"I see. So you want to exploit my pain and sense of loss to gage hers?"

"I knew that would come out wrong. Look, you are closer to her age, and some say that you have a way of putting people at ease so that they are more willing to open up and talk about their feelings..."

"Again, wouldn't Agent Blake or Agent Jareau be a better choice? They're women and you know how women are..."

"No, I would rather send you"

"Alright then. I see I am not going to win this battle. When do you want me to meet with..."

"Karen. Karen Hayes-Buchanan"

"If I'm not mistaken, Karen Hayes was agent with the Bureau before she left to head Homeland Security"

"So you know her?"

"No, I've only heard about her, I've never had the pleasure of meeting her"

"She is aware that you will be meeting with her, however, she will be under the impression that you are there to discuss new psychological tests that are under development to be administered to potential agents for the BAU and Homeland Security as well as the CTU"

"So you want me to profile her and lie to her?"

"Look. Her knowledge and expertise would be invaluable to the administration, as she has worked on both ends of the spectrum, so to speak. We're lucky she agreed to assist with the psych test evaluations, we just want you to feel her out on the possibility of returning"

"Alright. Anything else I should know about her?"

"After the death of her husband, she became rather reclusive, so it may take some of that famous charm I've heard so much about to get her talking, but I have all the confidence in you so this shouldn't be a problem"

"Right" replied Rossi "So when do I meet her?"

"I've arranged for you to meet her at her this afternoon"

"Where if I may ask?"

"She will meet you down at FBI headquarters, conference room 4B at 2:00 pm"

"Anything else in particular you want to know while I'm asking? Perhaps her shoe size or her favorite movie?" Rossi asked sarcastically

"Just stick to the main talking points Agent Rossi" replied Cruz in a less than amused tone as he rose to leave

"Gotcha, 2:00 pm conference room 4B"

"Let me know how it goes" replied Cruz as he left, brushing past Hotch in the process

"Was that Section Chief Cruz?" asked Hotch as he stepped into the office

"In the flesh" replied Rossi

"What did he want?"

"He wants my assistance in re-vetting a former National Security Advisor the President is considering bringing back on board"

"Wouldn't protocol dictate that he should go thru me for that type of request? Chief Strauss would have never circumvented the system to obtain the services of one of my Agents"

"No, she wouldn't have, not unless she had a really good reason, and then..."

"Well he isn't Chief Strauss is he?" replied Hotch quietly

"No...He isn't, and it's his department now, so I have a feeling this isn't the last decision of his we will be questioning, but then again, we questioned a lot of Erin's decisions at first if you recall, so we're just going to have to get used to him"

"Keep me appraised if you need any assistance" replied Hotch as he turned to leave

"At least this assignment should be fairly easy. She isn't an unsub, so I don't have to look for her, I just have to profile her without her knowing, which should prove to be interesting if she remembers any of her bureau training"

"Good luck with that"

Rossi turned his attention back to the files on his desk and began watching the clock. It was nearly lunch so he had just enough time to run home for a change of clothes and a quick bite before his meeting.

TO BE CONTINUED...