Emily didn't leave the BAU in this story. May have some darker themes later in but chapter 1 shouldn't be too bad. Sorry if it's kind of confusing, the wording is weird. It should get better though. I claim parts of the plot and only my oc characters. The bau is sadly not mine despite how much I wish it. Enjoythough!
When you first joined the team, they had been weary. Closed off from you. You weren't surprised. Of course they'd be weary.
Their family dynamic was undeniable. They each had their own tramas. Their own ways of coping. You didn't know how you'd fit in but you were determined to try.
~~~
Spencer Reid was the first to warm up to you. A game of chess ended with a shared dinner on your couch and Star Trek playing in the background. The two of you discussed everything from music tastes to your thoughts on the stigma around mental health. That night planted the seed of trust that quickly grew into a close sibling like relationship. He talked to you when he needed and you to him. You two got closer and began naturally going to one another in times of need.
~~~
Penelope Garcia was next. She saw you cheering Reid up after being told to shut up by a big headed police officer asking for consultation on a case. After the incident she approached you, extending her hand in friendship. In her exact words,"anyone who makes the good doctor happy is a friend of mine". The peppy queer queen ended up dragging you out for some coffee the next morning, setting the foundation of your carefree friendship.
~~~
After a couple more coffee dates and other get-togethers with the tech analyst, she invited you out on a girls' night with Jenifer Jareau and Emily Prentiss. The two other agents were always friendly with you in the field and on cases but you have yet to really get to know them.
Turns out, you fit right into their trio. The night was missing the awkward silences and even more uncomfortable conversations that you were used to when joining a new team. The talk flowed naturally and slowly you loosened up. By the end of the night, the four of you left the club laughing and talking like you've been best friends all your life.
~~~
Derek Morgan and you became friends completely by chance. You were practicing some basketball in a park near the office one Saturday when he appeared. You noticed him watching you for quite some time and after swishing an impressive three-pointer, you invited him to join you for a quick game.
The 'quick' game became an hour long scrimmage that ended with you beating him by a point. The two of you wandered around the park for a bit after that, talking and bonding.
By Monday, you two had become pretty solid and of course you got a good laugh as you watched Derek reenact your basketball victory to the rest of the team.
~~~
Your bonding with David Rossi was a more gradual one. It went from casual small talk by the coffee machine to long deep conversations on the jet.
Slowly he opened up to you and in return you opened up to him. There was no one get-together or one moment that helped you understand David Rossi. The buildup created a friendship closer to familial than professional.
You couldn't help but see the older man as a dad, clear from countless nights spent looking at the stars together on the roof of your apartment that nobody seems to go on. Countless disasters in the kitchen. Countless healing talks between the two of you. You'd like to think he depended on you as much as you depended on him.
~~~
Aaron Hotchner was the last one you actually bonded with. The man was stoic. He rarely smiled openly, and when he did it was only around those who his love for was strong enough to be sensed.
He was fiercely protective of his team and in turn they took care of him. As you bonded with each member of the team, you could sense Hotch in the background observing.
You guys actually had your breakthrough moment during a case.
The unsub had snuck behind Hotch as he passed a secret door nobody knew the existence of. Without hesitation, you tackled the unsub, jostling his hand, causing the bullet to hit the wall instead of the back of Hotch's head.
He managed to get a couple blows to your head and torso as you fought to unarm him. In the end, Hotch got him off you and with your help, pinned and handcuffed the struggling man.
He had watched from the sidelines as the paramedics took care of your cuts and bruises. The quiet thanks he gave you when the medics left, filled with guilt and shame, made your heart clench. You had smiled then, despite the pain, and reached out your hand to the man.
You two shook hands firmly, your eyes communicating what you couldn't say with words. You knew he understood though. He had gave you a small genuine smile, something you never thought you'd see, before letting go of you, straightening his suit and rebuilding his boss-man persona.
You know that moment was the start. The trigger that started the chain reaction. Of small smiles and quick glances. Of shared mirth, showing clear as day in his expressive eyes. The way the carefully constructed fortress around his heart opened their doors and slowly let you in.
~~~
As your bonds grew, you got to see more and more of them. You got to see beyond their masks.
You observed and learned their tells. Their triggers. The topics to avoid and the topics they would willingly talk about for hours on end. They slowly opened up to you about some of their tramas and you opened up to them about some of yours.
You were present for team bonding sessions that more often than not resembled more of a family gathering. You were there for the happy times and the moments where you leaned on each other for support.
You had time outside but personally you loved your time on the plane the most. Returning from a newly solved case, the atmosphere was always different depending on how the case went. Those were the moments where the family dynamic of the team really showed. Whether it was just talking or listening to music, it was a moment where it was safe. At least for you.
When you were on that plane, all you could see were your teammates around you. There was no fear of losing each other to another dangerous criminal. You could see these strong people at their most open. Drained emotionally and physically from another case but safe. When you could be there to help as they let down their walls safely away from the world.
Despite all the good things, there were always bad days. Days where cases ended terribly. Moments where all anyone could feel was hopelessness.
The first time it happened when you joined the team, everyone was silent. Nobody talked. The atmosphere was crushing. There was no quiet conversation, no friendly games or stories. Nobody was asleep. Everybody lost in their own thoughts.
It was in that moment when you looked around and realized the pain written on everyone's face. As much as the victims' loved ones hurt, the team hurt as well. The pain of not being there fast enough. Of wishing they could've done something else. Done better.
You've seen JJ looking at pictures of your victims, teeth worrying her bottom lip.
You've seen Rossi staring at an open book, eyes scanning the same paragraph over and over, mind not taking in anything.
You've seen Emily messing with her hands, occasionally digging a fingernail into her arm or lifting a hand to her mouth to bite at it as her thoughts ran.
Morgan listening to his music and snapping at anyone who got close to him.
Reid picking at his clothes or his bag instead of playing some sort of game, mouth moving silently as his brain reworked the entire case over and over.
Hotch staring out the window, back stiff, feet planted firmly on the floor. His normally bright eyes dull and blank of any emotion as his walls build themselves back up stronger instead of lowering.
Even in the rare cases Garcia joined in with you guys, there have been moments where the case went horribly wrong.
You've seen her walking into the bathroom, eyes staring straight ahead. You've seen her exiting the bathroom later, eyes red but dry, still looking straight ahead. Her peppy mannerism dampened by the misery.
~~~
It was after you've seen this happen over and over. When you've felt your heart split at the way your team took the blame as families blamed them for not doing enough. When they blamed themselves for not doing enough. It was then you decided.
Although everyone felt differently about being on the jet, you realized that after everything this team has gone through together, at least the jet should be a safe space. Somewhere where they can unwind in peace, far away from the rest of the world despite the technology. Somewhere they could let their guard down. And you decided that you would do anything and everything in your power to help the people you've gotten so close to feel safe, if not everywhere, just in the safety of the jet.