Chapter 2

As soon as Sam and JJ left the other four looked at each other. Penelope could hardly contain herself. "Oh my chocolate gumdrop, she is perfect for you." the technical analyst gushed.

"Baby Girl, what do you mean perfect for me?" replied Morgan in a huff.

Emily felt the need to pipe up. "Come on Morgan, you were all but drooling over her when she walked in. Which is interesting because the women you typically go for have a larger bra size than IQ and are just dying to fall into your bed as soon as you bat your big brown eyes at them. She, on the other hand, would challenge you. But now that you know she's gonna be on the team and thus untouchable you are acting all grumpy. Poor Agent Morgan, victim of unrequited lust." Emily concluded snickering alongside Garcia while Reid tried to cover his giggles with a manly cough.

"Face it my Chocolate Adonis, you like her. You are attracted to her. This is perfectly normal. You're hot, she's hot, ohh, think of the cute little nieces and nephews you could give me! Little babies in biker jackets with little t-shirts that say "I Crawl the Line" or "Bad to the Bottle." Swoon! But, thanks to Rossi's younger days you two are just gonna have to keep it in your pants. I never thought I would see the day that you would be denied. Now, if we are done picking on Morgan I am going to try and come up with something to convince JJ that Henry needs a little sister or brother because I NEED another niece or nephew to spoil and nobody else is in any position to give me one." And with that Penelope gathered her things and whirled out of the room like a rainbow infused cyclone, bringing to Derek's mind what it must be like to watch the Wizard of Oz after dropping acid.

Derek shook his head before standing and heading out into the bull pen. He watched from the railing as JJ got Ryan settled at an open desk. Ryan pulled a few cursory things out of her bag before turning to speak with JJ again.

Ryan noticed Agent Morgan approaching. She was determined not to let him rattle her so she continued on with her conversation with Agent Jareau. "I was planning on hitting gym here today."

"Tell me Agent Ryan, when was the last time you sparred?" was the question from Agent Morgan interrupting the ongoing conversation.

"It's been a few weeks Agent Morgan." was the simple response as she turned to look at him, lips set in a line and eyes hard. She was sure the man didn't have a problem with women because he didn't act this way to Agents Jareau or Prentiss or even their tech analyst. What the hell was his problem with her?

Hotch and Rossi walked out of Hotch's office as they saw the ongoing confrontation between the agents. They were both almost bristling reminding Hotch of two alley cats sizing each other up before a fight. Hotch decided it was better for Ryan to show rather than tell of her skills as it would do a better job of convincing Morgan that way. "Agents, we will all be heading to the gym. I think it is a good time to brush up on our hand-to-hand skills. Meet in the gym outside of the locker rooms in fifteen minutes."

Everyone gathered their things quietly, locking sidearms in desk drawers before trickling downstairs. Hotch turned to Rossi. "You might want to let Garcia know about this. I am going to put Ryan against Morgan and see if she is as good as her jacket says she is. And, I don't plan on telling him what he is up against. If I know our tech analyst, she won't want to miss this."

Rossi made a detour to Garcia's lair to announce their leader's intentions before following the team to the locker rooms. Even with his late arrival he was ready before Reid. "Dragging your feet Reid? You know it won't get you out of it."

Reid sighed. "I know that, but you know I still struggle with some of the physical aspects of being an agent."

Rossi gave an encouraging pat on Reid's shoulder. "Put it this way kid, at least you won't be the only one being put through their paces out there."

Reid cocked his head at Rossi's cryptic remark. What did the older agent know that he didn't?

Hotch called the team together as Reid and Rossi exited. Rossi noticed that Ryan was stretching. 'Smart girl' he thought to himself. 'She can sense something is up.'

"We all know that sometimes we have to take down a suspect with physical force rather than being able to talk them down. Morgan, you are usually the first one through the door on this team. Ryan, according to your last supervisor and your jacket that was your role on your last team. You two will spar, all out, no holds barred. I want to see what Agent Ryan's skills are and I want to see if Morgan is losing his edge by training cadets rather than going against people of his skill level."

Morgan's eyebrows shot up. Hotch had just challenged him without challenging him. And, he asked him to go all out on a woman that he estimated was no more than five and a half feet tall and he'd ballpark at one forty five max and that was if she was soaking wet.

Ryan was curious. This wasn't the welcome she expected. The people she usually sparred with at least had some knowledge of her skill level, unless it was a new agent that needed knocked down a peg. In that case, she had always taken great delight in wiping the mats with them before informing them of her years of training. It just didn't sit right with her that she was being unleashed on a new team member who didn't have that knowledge. "Sir, what are the rules?" she asked curiously, getting the feeling that her new Unit Chief had a point to make and this was how he was choosing to do it.

"Fifteen minutes. Two taps to get out of a hold but then you go right back to it. Any surface and any item of the room is fair game with the exception of the people in it."

Both Morgan and Ryan were surprised by this. It was going to be a long fifteen minutes.

"Agent Hotchner, shouldn't Agent Morgan…" she started before being cut off by Hotch.

"Both of you agents have all of the working knowledge you need for this confrontation. An Unsub isn't going to stop to chat before he attacks you. Now, get into position."

Obeying their Unit Chief Morgan and Ryan squared up across the circle on the mat from each other, both beginning to feel the tingles of adrenaline shoot through their systems. "Fifteen minutes Agents, no rests. And I expect to see your best efforts." ordered Hotch. "Go."

Morgan and Ryan squared off before he decided to be the first to move in. He went to flip her and go for the easy pin. She allowed him to grip her wrist before reversing on him, rolling over his shoulders and using the momentum to continue the motion once she regained her feet so that he was the one that was flipped. Quickly she hooked her leg around his and effectively pinned him to the mat, controlling both his right leg and having his left arm twisted firmly behind his back. Morgan struggled for a second before deciding to tap out. Ryan let him up and both regained their feet, squaring off again.

Morgan waited for her to make the first move this time. He was surprised that she went on the attack rather than for the pin and found himself fending off her blows before falling for her feint and taking a very square kick to the ribs for missing it. 'Damn,' he thought. 'That feels like it's gonna leave a bruise. All right, time to step it up.'

Ryan felt it when the rhythm of their sparring changed. She knew Morgan was drawing her in, suspected from his first moves that he was trained in some form of martial arts that concentrated on throws and pins but that he had enough practical experience to be able to hold his own in a standing fist fight. She should have known it was coming but she missed her chance to deflect the powerful swing she saw heading her way. Her only choice was to duck. Bending quickly backwards she missed the blow and surprised Morgan when she caught him with her legs, using the momentum to pull them both to the ground. He was quicker this time and reversed out of her pin feeling her struggle beneath him for a moment before she decided that it was better to tap out and take him on again.

Both agents rolled to their feet. Sam decided that it was on. She was going to prove once and for all to this man that she could hold her own against anyone no matter if they were physically bigger or stronger. She knew he was used to being the top dog around here and she was fine with that. But she wanted him to know that while he could run at the front of the pack she would be running right next to him.

The team watched in fascination. Ryan was quick and fierce; a flurry of punches and kicks, more of which were connecting than Morgan was used to. That being said, she took a few blows of her own, blows that sounded like solid hits without stopping. The agents would occasionally grapple but neither managed to get another pin. Hotch looked at his watch. They had three minutes left. He absentmindedly wondered how long they could go before they dropped if he didn't call time.

Sam knew she was getting tired and she saw the same in her opponent. She had been on the defense and Morgan had worked her back almost to the pull out bleachers that lined the wall. 'Time to pull out all the stops' she thought. Whirling she feinted, causing Morgan to lunge to his left. She continued the spin until she faced the closed bleachers before pulling herself up them and, pulling her feet under her, using them as a springboard to push back and land her hands on Morgan's shoulders. She continued to vault herself over Morgan's head to land behind him, using the momentum to bring him down with her.

Both agents grappled on the floor, deadlocked. Morgan was amazed by the all or nothing move she had pulled. If he hadn't been in just the right spot she would have had nothing to vault off of. And, she wasn't giving up. If she was half as tired as he was, she should be tapping out. He struggled to gain leverage. He was stronger but she had better positioning. He was a heartbeat away from giving in when he heard "Time."

Instantly both agents let go; relieved that it was over. They rolled so they were laying on their backs, panting heavily as the team walked up to them. Hotch reached out a hand to pull Ryan up while Rossi did the same for Morgan. Both agents allowed themselves to be pulled to their feet before putting their hands on their knees, trying to catch their breaths and assess the damage that had been done. "I don't want anybody to doubt their fellow agent's effectiveness in the field. Each of you is fully capable of taking care of yourselves. Now to finish introducing Agent Ryan. She is a fully qualified field agent who also holds FBI Marksman qualifications. She holds a black belt in Ninjitsu and has also benefitted from training in military special forces hand-to-hand techniques. As such, she was typically the first one to enter a dangerous situation and has worked on multiple situations where forceful entry was required. She holds multiple undergraduate degrees as well as a PhD in Criminology and has a unique ability to read people, especially when under duress. In fact, her last supervisor called her ability to know how to interact with suspects, especially in the interrogation room, uncannily intuitive. I expect you all to welcome her to this team and don't want any more posturing for power and position, especially since she demonstrated her abilities. Rossi, take over for me, the rest of you, I expect a thorough workout. This includes you Dave. Morgan, Ryan, I expect you to meet me outside of the locker rooms in fifteen minutes. We are heading to the firing range." With that, Hotch turned on his heel and strode into the locker rooms. Ryan and Morgan shot each other knowing looks. The range was going to be a bitch with as tired as they both were.