Author's Note: Good afternoon. One thing I always appreciate about new seasons of CM is that with each passing year, the characters evolve into new characters to get to know. I gotta say that Season 8 Reid is better than ever. He's still got all the elements of his previous years but now, he's coming into his own skin fully. He's opening himself up to the possibility of love (even when it looks like it's spiraling headfirst towards disaster…) and the student is outgrowing his teachers. The teachers and mentors (mainly Morgan) are truly becoming his equals and it's awesome as hell. The softball prep and the subtle as a brick to the face metaphor for Reid were just great and I'm really looking forward to more of the season.

Disclaimer: "Honestly, it's not mine!"

"Rossi's an asshole."

"Water is wet. Is one of those for me?"

Emily let out a surprised huff of laughter and gamely handed him a bottle of mountain dew. Setting down his markers, Reid opened his bottle and drank heartily, tossing it into the recycling bin nearby. She smiled at his small fist pump of triumph and peered at the map curiously as she sat down.

"How's it coming?"

"Slow but steady. Garcia's running a couple of leads in relation to the 3rd and 4th victims but it's getting dark. Nightfall means another body. Why is Rossi an asshole?"

"He's got a mini-notebook that he keeps writing in when he thinks nobody's looking. He's not contributing anything that we can… and for god's sake, it's a team dynamic. The BAU is not what it used to be and he's acting like a lone wolf and it's…"

"… bullshit. Not only is it bullshit, it's unnecessarily complicating an already volatile situation. You're preaching to the converted, Emily but until he realizes what time it is on his own or Hotch gives him a swift kick in the teeth, there's no use getting angry about it. Did you know he asked me how old I was while Morgan and I were getting breakfast this morning?"

"Seriously?"

"Yep. I told him but then I politely asked if he was born before or after Lincoln's assassination. He didn't reply but I swear that I could see a smile tugging at his goatee as he left with his cup of Starbucks triple whip latte. It took Morgan about 15 minutes to stop laughing, not to mention Garcia when he texted her but that's not my point. My point is that… we're transitioning. All of us. It's difficult and annoying and a severe pain in the ass now but I have faith that we'll work it out and the unit will be all the better for it in the long run. And frankly, I'll take Rossi over any of Strauss' or Capitol Hill's disciples any day. He may be a lone wolf but he isn't a sycophant. There's still hope for a lone wolf. "

"Thank God for that. Sycophants give me indigestion." she replied dryly.

He chuckled and spun in the precinct office chair slowly. He had on a gold and tan argyle sweater with a white button down underneath, dark green cords, and his legs were crossed Indian style, showing mismatched pink and lime green socks above his sea foam sneakers. There were still circles under his eyes but not in a want to take him straight to the doctor way. His color was a slightly healthier pale and she had a quick image of sucking on his full lower lip, just a little bit…

"Emily?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you okay? You look a little distracted."

"I'm good. I just…we need to solve this case."

"This case and thousands of others. Thank you for bringing me sugar." he replied while standing up fluidly. He cracked his neck and stretched his arms above his head (showing a sliver of flat abs…since when did he have abs?) before returning to the board. Swallowing, she withdrew towards the main area of the precinct and nearly collided with Rossi himself.

"Sorry."

"The kid's…Reid's right and so are you."

"You overheard."

"I liked the whole water is wet bit. I'll have to use that in my next novel. Hotch already laid it on the line and…I can adapt. It might take me a minute or 10 but I can do it."

"It's worth it. The methods may be different but the work's still the same and we need all the help we can get." she replied as she opened the door to the parking lot.

"Mm. Oh and Prentiss?"

"Yeah?"

"Whatever's going on between you and the good doctor…I'll keep it under my hat."

"There isn't anything going on between me and Reid."

"Oh. Never mind then." Rossi replied innocently but not at all.

Emily frowned as the Legend entered their domain and shook her head, finally outside. There wasn't anything going on between her and Reid. Not really. Yes, they were closer but there wasn't anything sexual going on. They were just friends, coworkers. Just because they hung out frequently and she could initiate a bitch and bull session with him talking her down while in the middle of a case and she had inappropriate thoughts about his lower lip (and his fingers and perhaps 4 pack abs…) did not mean there was something going on. Rossi was wrong. Morgan was wrong. Garcia was wrong and the niggling voice in the back of her head was wrong, too.

Right?

An image of them collapsed on her living room floor laughing as she tried and failed to dip him in a tango gave her an answer.

Oh, shit.