Title: The Madness of Megan Reeves

Author: Emmeline Black

Rating: PG-13/T for language and adult themes (I know you're all deeply disappointed, but no smut in this fic.) in later chapters

Spoilers: none really. Maybe Killer Chat if you don't know why Larry left

Disclaimer: As hard as it is to believe, I don't own Numb3rs and profit in no way from my jaunts in their fabulous world. I know, I know. It's a bit of a shock, but one day you'll come to terms with it.

AN: This is something I started a very long time ago. The entire story will be posted before Numb3rs airs on Friday, 1/18/08. Judging from the preview, I think the main idea in my story might be mirrored in the new episode, so I wanted to finish this before the ep, mainly so I'm not accused of plagiarism if I'm correct, but also so my story doesn't deviate from my original plans for it. A refined version may appear at a later date.

The Madness of Megan Reeves

Chapter One: An Early Christmas at the FBI

Don snapped his cell phone shut and turned around to find that every eye in the room was on him. He allowed a slow smile to spread across his face. "It's a match." A cheer went up; the federal agents looked like children who had just been told that Christmas had come early. Don grinned back at them and went over to congratulate his team. They had been largely responsible for tracking down Antonio Marchesi, a serial rapist to whom they could now add a face.

"Don't you just love DNA testing?" David asked, a wide grin resembling Don's settling on his face.

Earlier in the week, David and Colby had picked up Marchesi on a few unpaid speeding tickets after receiving a tip on the rape case from one of Colby's informants. Marchesi had been in jail for the last eight days awaiting the DNA results and his trial for the traffic violations.

"It's amazing that you two were able to pick him up so quickly," Megan commented.

Don watched her carefully. Rape cases really seemed to bother Megan. There was no question that they didn't bother every other agent as well, but the calm, collected, ever-confident Agent Reeves always seemed rattled during a rape case. The smile on her face as he made the announcement had seemed relieved rather than jubilant like those of the agents around her. Don had just made up his mind to ask her about it later when Colby's voice pulled him from his musings.

"Hello? Don? You with us?" Colby waved his hand in front of his boss' face.

Don shook his head to clear it. "Yeah. Just thinking. What were you saying?"

"We think we should go out to eat to celebrate," David informed him.

"We're deciding where to go," Megan added. "Any suggestions?"

"As long as the food's good, anywhere's fine," Don answered. "Just let me call Charlie first."

Charlie and Amita had been at a math conference at Harvard for the better part of the two weeks that Don's team had been working on the rape case. They had helped tremendously via e-mail and telephone. They weren't coming back for another seven days due to Charlie's last minute decision to take Amita on a week-long vacation to Washington D. C.

"Charles Eppes," Charlie answered after a few rings.

"Hey, Chuck," Don greeted his brother. "We got 'im."

Charlie was so excited that he forgot to reprimand Don for calling him Chuck. "Yes! Amita, they caught the guy! Did that Curvelet analysis help, Don? What about the Chapman-Kolmogorov equation? Were the pursuit curves accurate?"

Don laughed at his sibling's ebullience. "I'll send you the full report later, Charlie. Have fun at your conference."

"Bye, Don!"

Before Don hung up the phone, he could hear Charlie already chattering a mile a minute with Amita about the different analyses and algorithms they had used to help with the case.

He was still grinning as he turned back to his team. After a few more minutes of intense debate, they finally settled on a cozy little Italian place a few streets over.

When they had received their food, Colby asked, "So, how are we going to run the interrogation with Marchesi?"

"Does the case have to be our only topic of conversation?" Megan asked, her tone slightly annoyed.

David and Colby exchanged a puzzled look. Megan was usually the first to want to discuss tactics.

"You okay, Megan?" Don asked carefully.

Megan sighed. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just a little sick of this case. Can we just talk about something else for a while?"

"Sure," David agreed, shrugging, "but what else has happened in the past two weeks?"

Megan grinned, seemingly back to normal. "I know something that's happened," she said in a sing-song voice, glancing a Colby.

He glared at her. "Reeves…" he growled menacingly.

Megan just smiled at him, a teasing glint in her eye.

Colby narrowed his eyes. "You wouldn't dare."

Don and David looked back and forth between the two. "Anything you'd like to share with the class?" David asked.

Megan and Colby, locked in a staring contest, ignored David's question. They seemed to be having an extremely heated, nonverbal argument. Finally, Colby's shoulders slumped, and he sighed in defeat. Megan grinned triumphantly.

"Granger had a date last Thursday night." Megan had the air of the cat that had finally captured the canary.

"Colby's got a girlfriend!" Don teased lightly. It seemed that while Don liked to keep his relationships private, his team's love lives were up for a little ribbing.

"Ooh, she's not gonna eat you alive like the last one, is she?" David asked.

Don and David laughed heartily.

"Maybe she'll just fry him, and leave him for the scavengers," Don suggested.

"I think a blender might be more likely," Megan added helpfully.

"I've heard Siberia is nice this time of year," David said told him with a serious look on his face.

"I'll book you the next flight," promised Don.

"Who's the lucky lady?" David finally questioned curiously.

Colby grinned in spite of himself. "Alyssa Mackenzie."

"She's the brunette in Williamson's unit, isn't she?" asked Don.

Colby nodded.

"Watch your step, Granger," Megan warned. "Alyssa Mackenzie won't take any crap off you."

Colby looked affronted. "Who says I give anybody any crap?"

His team members just laughed.

"What about when you were dating the lawyer, Claire O'Donelly?" asked David.

"I don't know what you're talking about," insisted Colby evasively.

"I remember," Don volunteered. "You told her you were washing your hair the night of your date so you wouldn't have to go out with her."

The other agents laughed at Colby's helpless look. "Desperate times called for desperate measures!" he protested vehemently. "She wouldn't leave mean alone!"

"Did you try breaking up with her?" Megan asked reasonably.

Colby actually looked scared at the prospect. "Do you know what the woman would have done to me if she hadn't been the one to break it off?" he asked.

"I don't know," David mused. "Ambushing you in Merrick's office and then leaving the door open while she screamed at you … You gotta admit, that was pretty bad." He appeared to be trying not to laugh but was failing spectacularly.

"I think Merrick wet his pants," Don chuckled. "And he wasn't even the one she was angry with."

Megan added, "Don't forget about the eggs she threw at your car as you were leaving, and the packaging peanuts she put in your desk."

Everyone but Colby laughed. Colby had come to work the next day to find all of his desk drawers filled to the top with the little Styrofoam peanuts. He'd spent the next few weeks finding peanuts that he'd missed the first time he'd cleaned them out.

Colby shuttered at the memory. "That was horrible, but it could have been worse."

"I don't see how," Megan stated, attempting to contain her mirth.

Colby just shook his head and studiously turned his attention back to his food while the other agents' laughter filled the booth.

Colby was forced to endure several more gibes about his current and past dates through the rest of lunch and all the way back to the office.

Just as the agents were sitting down at their desks, a junior agent hurried up to Don. "Agent Eppes, they've finished the paperwork at the PD so Marchesi's ours. He's in room two waiting for interrogation."

Don grinned. "Finally."

A smile on his face, the younger agent nodded and left.

"How do you want to run this?" David asked Don as the four agents stood and moved toward the interrogation rooms.

"Just Megan and I at first," Don answered thoughtfully. "Megan, you be 'good cop.' After a while we can add David on my side and Colby on yours."

Colby, Megan, and David nodded their agreement as they neared the room. Megan glanced through the one-way mirror and froze, Colby and David almost running into her from behind. She swayed, and David caught her arm to ensure that she stayed upright.

"Megan, you okay?" Don asked, looking at her closely. "You look a little pale." In truth, her face was white as a sheet.

Megan started at the sound of his voice but recovered quickly. "I, um, I don't feel so well," she said shakily, tearing her eyes away from the man in the interrogation room to look at her boss. "I think I'll sit this one out if that's okay, Don."

Don was disappointed not to have Megan in on the interrogation, but he tried not to show it because it wasn't often that Megan actually admitted to being sick. Last time, she had come into the office with a temperature of 105 degrees, protesting that she was fine and had a lot of work to do. Only the threat of carrying her out of the building in handcuffs had convinced her to allow Don to call Larry to take her home. It had to be bad this time. "Why don't you take the afternoon off, Megan," he suggested. "Get some rest and come back in a day or two when you feel better."

To his surprise, she agreed without argument. "David, could you drive her home?" Don asked. "Colby and I can handle Marchesi for a while."

David nodded and, keeping his hand at Megan's elbow, led her to her desk for her purse.

"Megan, we'll keep you updated," Don promised. "Feel better soon."

Colby watched his teammate curiously as she avoided looking back into the interrogation room. He found it odd that she would take so much care to look in the opposite direction. He glanced at Don who also appeared to have noticed. Don shrugged. Colby decided that he could wait until she returned to work to ask her about it.

AN: So, what's wrong with Megan? Any ideas? A shirtless FBI agent of your choice for those of you who guess correctly!! The comment about Colby's hair was taken from an episode of Sue Thomas FBEye, which is sadly no longer on the air.