Author's Note: Well, look at me. Several stories on the go that I haven't updated in ages and I'm starting a new one.

I know this isn't the most original idea, as there have been several movies with the same sort of plot, but here's to hoping I can make it work!

Tick, Tock. Tick, Tock. The seconds dragged on, leaving the profiler feeling very anxious. JJ shifted uncomfortably on the couch. She thought the couch should be soft, maybe even squishy. It should be relaxing. After all, it was a therapy office. But it was neither relaxing nor soothing. It was very much like sitting on a wooden chair and no matter how many times she adjusted, there was no getting comfortable. The room in general was boring, not just the couch. With its plain white walls, and the fact that it only had what was needed… It didn't put you at ease. That was what she expected, to be put at ease or at least see an attempt on the psychologist's part. She'd expected to see a personable room, which was almost home like. But instead, she was here. Though, she doubted the room itself would make much of a difference in how she was feeling.

She hated this. She hated being here. The abundance of certificates on the wall behind Dr. Genoe bothered her more than they should. The ticking of the clock added to her aggravation and she began to tap her foot lightly on the floor. "Feeling a bit more fidgety than normal today?" Dr. Genoe asked, her eyebrows raised as she examined the woman in front of her.

There was no response, not that one was expected.

JJ's eyes darted toward the clock on the wall. There was still another agonizing half hour to go.

"Any way we can cut this short today?" she asked hopefully.

"Jennifer – I don't think that'd be a good idea. We haven't made any progress today. I'd like to at least get to know a little about you in our first session."

"This isn't the first person I've seen die. So why, now, am I forced into seeing a psychologist?"

"Who did you see die?"

"There was a victim that was killed by the murderer in Florida," JJ said, her voice leaving a hint of confusion. That was the main reason she'd been forced into these sessions, so wha else would she be referring to? Even more so, every single time Dr. Genoe started scribbling down notes on her notepad it frustrated her.

"Murderer in Florida? You found out who he was?" Dr. Genoe inquired, glancing at JJ over the top of her glasses.

"My team and I did. Why is this relevant?"

"Because obviously you feel as though you failed the girl by being too slow, like you should have figured it out sooner."

"Actually, I don't feel that way. I wasn't the one that put it together. Reid figured it out, and none of us could have done it faster, if at all. He saw the pattern. I don't blame anyone in this but the killer. Of course I wish things were different, that we had saved that girl, but I wish the entire world was different. I wish our unit didn't need to exist because that would mean there were no more horrific crimes. But we do exist, and what we do saves lives." JJ stopped, allowing herself to catch her breath.

"You're angry, I can see that. I understand that you blame the killer, but is any part of you angry at this Reid?"

"Of course not," JJ snapped. She'd been trying. She knew it wasn't the psychologist's fault she had to be here and that she was doing her best. However, JJ felt like she didn't quite live up to her qualifications and that this was all pointless. There was also the fact she'd said 'this Reid.' As in, she didn't know who he was? As an FBI appointed psychologist, shouldn't she have been aware of who he was? Shouldn't she have some sort of background of the members on her team or at the very least, know their names?

More scribbling. JJ shot another glance at the clock. There was still fifteen minutes left. That was close enough, wasn't it?

"Look, I have a lot of paperwork to do," JJ mumbled, getting off the couch.

"Paperwork? For what?"

"It's part of the job," JJ said, resisting the childish urge to roll her eyes. She should know all this! Even if this was her first session, she should know that part of working at the FBI involved paperwork. In fact, most jobs required paperwork.

"What's your job exactly?"

JJ groaned, and though frustrated, she didn't want to be rude. Sitting back down, she met the psychologist's eyes. Did she actually not know? How could she not? Or was she simply trying to get her talking about her job in hopes of making what she would define as 'progress?' "I'm a profiler. I work in a team in the Behaviour Analysis Unit."

"You study human behaviour to catch serial killers?"

"Yes. We use it to aid in the catching and identification of serial killers, and a variety of other criminals."

"I see," Dr. Genoe said, writing some more notes down.

I see? That was all she had to say.

"Look, I get you have a job to do but I'm afraid I'm cutting this short. I don't feel this is a productive use of my time." JJ blocked out whatever the psychologist tried to say to her and walked out of the office. It wasn't even worth a glance back.

*~ Fragile Illusions ~*

Sandy Jareau placed her head in her hands. "There's no improvement?"

The man in the white coat shook his head. "I'm sorry to say in the past couple weeks she's been here, there's been no improvement. It appears she's suffering from the delusion that she's an FBI Agent. It's all very real to her. When Dr. Genoe spoke to her, she was convinced she'd been forced into the sessions due to witnessing a victim die."

Ashley bit her lip and reached over to give her mum's hand a squeeze. "It's okay, mum. JJ will get better. She's a fighter." A flicker of guilt appeared on her face as she recalled her suicide attempt that sent her family spiraling in her late teens.

"When can we see her?" Sandy asked.

"You can see her tomorrow, but I think it delicate to hold off on Ashley seeing her."

"Why?" Ashley demanded before her mother could say anything.

"Because in the persona of Agent Jareau, it appears Jennifer thinks Ashley killed herself when she was 11 years old and I think that a very delicate thing to approach."

The silence in the room was broken by the sound of Sandy's sobs. The feeling of helplessness was overwhelming, and she was losing hope that she'd ever have her daughter back.

Author's Note: Sorry for the short, boring intro. But I kind of needed to introduce it this way.

All the fun stuff starts next chapter.

Thank you for reading!