They're lab rats, affectionally named meerkats, used to computer screens and digital footprints. They do the tedious work that allows the team to be successful. Without them, there would be no team. Their work is imperative, but seems to go understated and underrepresented in terms of success.
To both of them, it only feels like they're taken seriously when on unfamiliar ground, in the field, where they aren't supposed to be.
Their only praise comes when they undertake actions anathema to who they are as people; when he's strapped with a gun and she's taken from her numbers.
Eric doesn't like guns. He hasn't for as long as he can remember, yet the initial cause is unknown. It probably has to do with a life's work full of building: computer programs, relationships, a family by choice over blood. He knows, and has seen, how quickly one bullet, metaphorical or not, can tear apart years and people.
Nell loves analysis. There's nothing she won't break down to bare bones, grinding details out of until just dust remains. Her skills are only honed because of her perfectionist eye for detail. Everything, even if it's unknown at first, has a significance that she would undoubtedly place, even at the expense of her own sanity. It's a danger, but one she's been forced to accept.
They know their value, but that doesn't mean it's often reflected. It's their had work that saves lives, but their efforts don't really seem to count because there weren't bullets involved. Hypocrisy abounds when it comes to results, and all they can do is grin and bear it.
Some days, they ponder the what ifs:
What if she left analysis behind for the field?
What if he got officially firearms certified?
What if they explained the impossibility of their situation?
What if they just quit?
Regardless of hypothetical potential, they don't change. They follow their normal patterns, concealing questioning hearts and exhausted minds.
They continue, because they know the world depends on people like them, even if they're not slapping handcuffs and reading rights.
They stay because their work makes the world a better place, no matter how tedious or inconsequential it may seem.
They know they are imperative, understatement and underrepresentation be damned.