The team had been out on the case for four days, and they were at the point where they didn't need Penelope quite so much, so she decided to do a little digging into Strauss's background. She had really gotten to thinking about the change in pictures in her office, knowing that the small change was deliberate, even more so for one so focused on family as she was. Or at least, that's what Penelope thought, since she had had to find the special book for Tabitha. Feeling a little guilty, she tapped into the public divorce records and searched for Strauss's name.
"Son of a bitch. On her fucking birthday? Ugh, some men are just down right cruel," she muttered as she added Strauss's birthday to her calendar, just like she had for everyone that she worked with. That done, she closed out of the records, not bothering to unseal the more private parts of the document, since she didn't need that information, she had just needed to confirm her hunch. And now that it was confirmed, her heart ached for some strange reason. She knew that Aaron would just blow it off as their boss getting her just desserts, but no one deserved to be dragged into court on their birthday and witness the dissolving of their marriage. Not even their perhaps too stern boss.
Swiping away a few tears, Penelope picked up her laptop and logged onto her email, deleting a bunch of messages, replying to a few and saving others for later. She knew that she was skirting the boundaries of her agreement with the FBI, but this was an open connection, and she wasn't doing any hacking of an unauthorized sort, at least. That was what she did for her teams, for a good cause. When that was squared away, she went over to the MMORPG that she was currently playing and immersed herself in that. It wasn't until she heard a distinctly feminine throat clearing behind her that she tore herself away from her game and looked up to see Strauss standing there, a bemused smile on her lips.
"Oh, I didn't hear you come in, ma'am. Were you waiting long?"
"No, not too long. Is this what you do while you're waiting to hear from your team?"
There wasn't the accusatory tone that she had been anticipating, and Penelope relaxed into a smile as she nodded. "Hotch said that as long as it doesn't interfere with my work, I'm free to do what will help take my mind off the horrors that I have to look at every day. You know my background, ma'am, so you know that I don't have the same sort of training that even an FBI cadet fresh out of the academy has. I have been slowly acclimating to all of that, but…there are certain cases that just get under my skin, and I need a way to escape."
"I know, Ms Garcia. I just wanted to see if you'd be honest with me. Agent Hotchner has written of how well you cope, and what you do to blow off steam, in your yearly evaluations. Though I suppose that Agent Rossi will have to take over those duties from now on."
It took Penelope a moment to recognize what Strauss was saying, and then a wide grin spread across her face. "Please, tell me that you mean what I think you mean?"
"You and Agent Hotchner have approval from myself and the Director to continue on with your relationship. There are some ground rules that I have to go over with you, such as Agent Rossi being your direct supervisor for the duration of your relationship. Now, I know that you think it will last forever, but there is the possibility that it might not. If that should be the case, I will have to ask you how comfortable you are with remaining attached to the BAU, since things have a way of turning quite awkward following a separation."
From the look on Strauss's face, Penelope knew that she was thinking about her own divorce, and she longed to sympathize with her, even though she knew that that was the last thing the woman would want. "There is that. I hadn't thought that far ahead, I guess, so I'm glad someone is being rational and thoughtful here."
A red tinge colored her cheeks, and Penelope reached out to touch her suit coat sleeve. "That is what I need to do as a Section Chief. At least you're not as much trouble as the red cell team. But, yes, you will need to think about that for the future. Also, discretion is going to be your best friend from here on out. I know from personal experience that you flirt heavily with Agent Morgan, and while that is perhaps not always in the best of taste, I understand why you do so. That will not be possible with Agent Hotchner, I'm afraid. I cannot have there being any hint of favoritism for you from him."
She nodded, trying to wrap her mind around the fact that she really was getting the green light to go ahead with her relationship with Aaron. "I will keep that in my mind, yes. Is there anything else that you need to tell me?"
"Not at the moment, no."
"Okay. Seriously, thank you so much for going to the Director for us. I know that it was not an easy thing for you, since you had to stick your neck out for us. Um, since I can't leave the office today, they're too close to finding the jackass, would you like to have lunch with me? I just want to repay a little of the kindness that you've shown Aaron and me." Penelope closed her fingers around Strauss's wrist, squeezing gently. "It would be my treat."
"You drive a hard bargain, Ms Garcia. Fine, I will accept your kind offer and be back here around noon. If something changes, I will have Helen call and let you know."
Penelope grinned as she released Strauss's wrist and nodded. "I will see you in a few hours, then. We'll meet in the conference room, since I can use the laptop in there, and I don't have to worry about food spilling around my babies."
A short chuckle slipped from her lips before she composed herself once more, giving Penelope a short nod before she turned on her heel and left the office, closing the door behind her. As soon as she was gone, Penelope let out a pleased sigh as she turned her attention back to her game, picking up where she left off for a little while, until her phone began to ring. "Garcia here, what do you need from the Oracle?"
"I need you to find a few addresses for us, Kitten."
She smiled at the sound of Rossi's voice, setting aside the laptop before going over to the computers and taking a seat, her hands poised over the keyboard. "All right, Rossi, let me have it." As he rattled off the name of who she was looking into, she typed into her search engines, letting her system do the work for them. As she waited for the results, she decided to reveal what Strauss had said to her. "So, I now get to have you perform my yearly evaluations."
"What? No. Aaron does that, Garcia."
"He would, but Director Shepherd decided that our relationship wouldn't break the frat rules, so long as we tread lightly. Strauss just delivered the good news to me, and while I haven't told Aaron yet, I thought I'd just take the opportunity to let you know. It will be nice to have you as my supervisor, Sir Stallion."
He laughed lowly, and Penelope could picture him shaking his head a little. "I think that that nickname is going a little too far. But I am glad that Strauss was able to smooth your way with the Director."
"I am, too. Oh, and here are those addresses that you need. I'll forward them to your cell phone, and you can pass them on to the rest of the team?"
"Sounds good to me. I hope that we see you soon."
"That is my fondest wish, too, Rossi. Stay safe while you hunt the bastard down."
"We'll try."
She ended the call, but felt like she couldn't concentrate on her game any longer, not when she knew that they were headed out to truly hunt the unsub down, and so she did the next mindless thing that she could do to divert attention away from the danger her team was now in. It was definitely more difficult this time around, since it was the first time that she had a more vested interest in Aaron making it home safely than she had before. On her second monitor, she loaded up reddit and began to scroll through her favorite cat subreddit, allowing the adorable pictures to lighten her mood and distract her from the tight feeling in her stomach. She also tried to keep in mind the fact that she would be meeting Strauss for lunch relatively soon, and that she didn't want to be a bundle of feelings when she made her appearance.
Finally, having not received the call that might tell her Strauss wasn't coming, Penelope ordered Indian food for them and brought her laptop into the conference room, setting it up there before heading down to the break room and grabbing two bottles of water and bring them and two glasses up to the room, not knowing what Strauss might like to drink, but wanting to still make her feel welcome. After all, she had been the one to invite her to this lunch, and she wanted to make it worth her time. And maybe, just maybe, she'd get to know her a little better, so that she might know more about the way she made her decisions, and help to take some of the scrutiny off her team when they did something outlandish. Either way, she was determined to have a good afternoon with the woman, and not focus on what Aaron and the others might be facing.
