Author's Note: Oops! In the last chapter, I called Terry 'Natalie.' That's what I get for flying without a beta. I've been a fan of Sabrina Lloyd since she played Natalie on Sports Night. This story is (very) loosely based on an old Sports Night story of mine. Hope you don't mind. Sorry for the flub!

Special thanks to Jelsemium!

Chapter 3

Charlie stifled a yawn as he shuffled into his office at the university the next morning. The trio's impromptu practice last night lasted less than an hour, but was followed by a lengthy strategy session at a nearby all night diner, and Charlie hadn't made it home until very late.

The practice itself had been rocky. Charlie, normally a skillful player, had only managed to make a few baskets. Several attempts had been so bad that Charlie still winced at the memory.

Terry seemed more interested in thinking up new and better insults than in practicing. She repeatedly made mistakes due to lack of focus. Charlie was horrified when he accidentally hit her in the face with a pass because she hadn't been paying attention. She immediately shrugged off his repeated apologies, insisting the fault was hers, but he was mortified and his playing grew more hesitant as a result.

Don strapped on a knee brace with a vague explanation about a recent injury and quickly grew sullen and snapped at Charlie when he pressed for details. Don played the best out of the three that night, but he had slowed and developed a slight limp by the time he stopped and suggested they call it a night. A suggestion Charlie quickly seconded, eager to put a stop to any further humiliation that night.

Fortunately, their mood had rallied over the course of their late night talk at the diner and their confidence had slowly been restored. By the time they finally parted ways, they were all looking forward to the upcoming game.

Don had assured Charlie his game would improve. "Relax! Relax! Don't force it. Look, when I played for the Stockton Rangers, the first day of spring training was all wild pitches and fielding errors. Guys spent the entire day either clowning around or trying too hard. We got it out of our system and we settled down. You will too, alright?"

Charlie again took heart as he recalled those words, but decided to try and get in some extra practice time on his own. Just as Charlie was pulling off his messenger bag and putting it down on his desk, he heard a quick rap on the door. "Hey, Charlie," Terry greeted him.

"Hey." Charlie studied her for a moment, puzzled by her arrival until suddenly the reason for her visit hit him. His hands flew up to his temples. "Oh, that's right! The uh, the findings based on the new equation. Right! I promised to give it to you this morning. I have it. It's here. Just… Hang on!" Charlie began frantically rooting through his bag.

Terry calmly waved her hand at him as she strolled into the room. "Take your time. Larry stopped Don on our way into the building. Something about wanting the inside scoop on your Dad's chess game."

Charlie smiled. Larry had played quite a few chess games with Alan recently and he always lost. Determined to best him, Larry had pressed Charlie for strategic advice more than once. He wasn't surprised to hear Larry was now attempting to get information out of Don.

As Charlie continued his search, shuffling through the stacks of paper on his desk, he realized Terry was quietly muttering to herself. Glancing up, he noticed she was doing an odd little dance that seemed to involve a lot of clipped, repetitive movements. She had her head down and kept her movements small, as if rehearsing something in her head. He was about to teasingly ask her if she was having some sort of attack, when he caught some of the words.

"…can't be beat… yeah, uh-huh… we'll knock you off your feet…"

Tilting his head, Charlie inquired with a smile, "Terry, is that a cheer?"

Terry's head snapped up. She looked flustered and colored slightly, but held his gaze. "Yeah."

"Were you… You were a cheerleader?"

Terry laughed and shrugged. "A lifetime ago. High school."

Charlie shook his head and smiled. This new discovery marked yet another shift in what he knew about Terry. He'd always been impressed with her abilities as a profiler, and he knew Don trusted her implicitly as an agent, but he found he was just now starting to learn about who she really was as an individual.

Before he could say anything, Don sauntered into the room. "Charlie," he greeted with a nod.

Delighted by his new discovery, Charlie was eager to share it. "Hey, Don! Did you know Terry was a cheerleader back in high school?"

Don chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I think that's where she first developed her talent for trash talking on the court. When..." Don broke off and froze momentarily.

Don's eyes shifted back and forth between them rapidly before settling on Terry. He studied her for a long moment, taking in her body language and the way she wouldn't meet his eyes. Then he broke out in a big smile and crowed, "You did a cheer!"

Terry sputtered, "No, not… Not really… I just…"

Don glanced around quickly to ensure no one else was in the room and began advancing on his partner. "You did a cheer!" he repeated, only this time in a slightly lower voice. He said the word "cheer" in a lascivious tone normally reserved for words like "lap dance" and his face took on a look of naked admiration.

Terry, now blushing, waved her hands at him vaguely with a slight laugh and muttered, "Idiot."

His voice lowered further as he reached her side and coaxed, "Do it again."

At this point, Charlie cleared his throat noisily to remind them he was still in the room.

Don glanced up as if just remembering Charlie was there, and then his eyes narrowed dangerously. "You did a cheer. For him?" he asked her.

Terry rolled her eyes at this comment, which only seemed to encourage him. He took on a heavily melodramatic stance and cried, "My own brother!"

At this, she shoved him away and stalked out of the room, pointedly ignoring Don and only offering a quick goodbye to Charlie.

Don laughed and tauntingly called after her, "Go Wildcats!"

Terry paused briefly but refused to turn around and quickly resumed walking out the door.

Turning to Charlie, Don explained, "Her high school team was the…"

"Wildcats," Charlie finished for him. Charlie's eyes darted between Don and the open door Terry had just walked though. "What happened to being afraid of her? All of that talk about how scary she can be?"

With a wide grin, Don declared, "Some things are worth the risk."