"Hotch mentioned something about you wanting to talk to me?"

Erin looked up to see Agent Jareau standing there, looking vaguely disturbed. Smiling a little, she nodded and beckoned her into her office. The woman closed the door behind her and took a seat in front of her desk. There was an air of distress about her, like she didn't want to be there, and Erin wondered what Aaron had told the woman. "Yes, I did want to speak with you. Would you like any water?"

"That would be nice." The question seemed to put her at ease, and Erin smiled gently at her before getting up and going over to the little fridge that had replaced the liquor cabinet. Opening it, she pulled out two bottles of water and handed one to Jennifer before sitting back down. "So, what's up?"

"First, let me allay some of your fears. I am not being forced to hand you over to the State Department once more, you're not going anywhere if I can help it." The woman nodded as she opened the bottle, taking a sip. "How would you describe Spencer's behavior lately?"
JJ cocked her head to the side, her eyes narrowing as she stared at Erin. "Are you looking to fire him? Is that what this is all about? Because I will have you know that he is absolutely fine, his behavior in the field has been exemplary. I won't let you get away with destroying his career like you almost destroyed mine!"

She blanched a little at the woman's vehemence, taking a long drink of water as she tried to calm the shaking of her hands. "Jennifer, that's not what I'm asking here. I honestly want your assessment of him, how you feel he's doing. I, I'm worried about him."

The woman's head shot up and they locked gazes. The shock evident in her caused a pang of regret in Erin's chest and she rubbed it absently as she took another drink. "Why would you be worried about him, Ma'am?"

"Because I know a little of how his mind works. When you are as intelligent as he is, you start to see connections, even where there might not be any. His mother's name is Diana."

It seemed that Jennifer made the connection much more quickly than Aaron had and she gasped lightly as she shook her head. "And that woman's name was Diane. I never thought about what that could mean to him. He seemed to be doing so much better after we all went over to his apartment following that case."

Erin shrugged a little. "Sometimes, we appear to be fine, but that's not really the case. Especially when you lose the love of your life. I think Spencer is a lot better at putting on a brave face than we all give him credit for, even me." She thought about their afternoon and evening together, the conversations they'd had, and sighed. "Maeve is gone, none of us can do a thing to change that, but I think that you need to step up and be the sister to him that he considers you to be."

Once more, the woman's eyes narrowed. "How would you know that?"

"We spent an afternoon together…"

Jennifer's jaw dropped as she quickly put together what had occurred that day. "I'll assume that no one else knows what I know, Erin?"

"That would be correct." Her cheeks felt extremely warm and she knew she was blushing. "Please, don't let on that you know about what we shared. It was a one-time thing, we both needed comforting that day, even though I didn't know that would happen when I went over there."

"Did, did it seem to help?"
"A little. I think he's just so adrift, trying to find his equilibrium once more. He's not moving on from a breakup here, he has to learn to live again without a vital piece of his life." She blinked rapidly, willing the tears away and taking another drink of water. "But you, also, need to talk to someone, to find your balance once more. I've noticed how you get here later and leave earlier than the others."

The woman nodded, swallowing loudly. "Will's gone back to New Orleans, he's found a better life than the one he was living here." Jennifer couldn't meet her eyes as the words tumbled from her lips, as if she couldn't bear to admit that her marriage had failed.

"At least you have that distance. I get to see Alan every time we have an official FBI function. It's one of the perks of marrying a lawyer associated with your job." A tear splashed down on the paper in front of her and she smiled sadly at the pattern in made. "That's how I caught him, and that's what started my problem."

Jennifer looked up at her, her brow knitted together in concern. "That seriously sucks, Erin."

"Yes, it does." She drew in a deep breath and clasped her hands together tightly. "But I moved on, or so I thought. And I'm sure that you will, too, with time."

"I don't know about that. I feel like I'm adrift in a sea of uncertainty, and I've been trying to keep that brave face on for the team, since we really do need to be focusing on Spence right now. His concerns matter much more than mine do."

Erin shook her head. "I don't think that's true. All of you need to be able to be honest with each other, to be able to work together well. Has anyone asked after you?"

"Just Hotch." The woman's cheeks flushed a little as she said his name, and Erin smiled, too, knowing that the woman's crush was so evident to anyone who asked. "He's always asking after us. And he has been keeping me by his side while we're out in the field."

"He's trying to protect you. He is a marvelous profiler, and he knows that you need someone to watch after you." She shrugged as the woman looked at her oddly. "It's my job to pay attention to my teams, to see if they need anything. That's how I knew about Spencer's struggles and your troubles. I'm learning that a good Section Chief doesn't let petty squabbles come between her and her teams."

Jennifer nodded, her eyes focusing on the bottle in her hands. "Thank you."

"There's no need to thank me for doing my job," she replied, feeling a bit embarrassed. "It's something I should have been doing all along. I will let you in on a secret, though. Aaron and Beth have gone their separate ways."

That caused Jennifer to look at her, cocking her head to the side. "I didn't really see you in the role of matchmaker, Erin. And, isn't it against the frat rules?"

A wry smile flitted across her face. "So was my relationship with David. Certain things can be overlooked as long as there isn't friction in the team."

She nodded and let out a deep breath. "Do you miss Rossi? I only ask, because while I do have…I mean, I miss Will. A lot. And I want to know if, I mean, Penelope misses Kevin, too, and I feel like we should be stronger than that, that we shouldn't be dependent on having a partner in our lives."

Erin bit her upper lip, thinking about the relationships in her life. "I missed Alan for a long time. David was a different ball of wax, though. My heart aches to think about how we left things, how sometimes love isn't enough, especially when your beloved is still in love with a ghost. I've trained my heart not to miss him, because if I let myself miss him, I would never get past things."

"Oh, I never realized…" Jennifer got up and leaned against her desk, reaching out and resting her hand on Erin's shoulder. "I guess we're in the same boat here, then. Would you like to head out to lunch, perhaps? I know it's a little early, but…"

"I think I would like that, Jennifer."

"You can call me JJ, if you want, or Jen." She nodded a little as she pushed back from the desk and stood. "I don't know what to say to Henry," she said softly as Erin grabbed her purse from desk and followed her out into the hall.

"That is going to be a bit of a struggle. He's so young and probably missing his father so very much right now." JJ nodded as they stopped by her office and grabbed her purse. "Does Will contact him at all?"

"He calls almost every evening. But it doesn't replace the face to face contact that he was experiencing every day since he was born." They got on the elevator and rode it down to the lobby before stepping into the brisk February afternoon. Unconsciously they huddled together a little as they walked down the sidewalk. "I was thinking we could go to Yesterdog. I've had a craving for hot dogs all day."

"That sounds good to me." They continued on and then Jennifer turned into the restaurant, holding the door for her. "What would you recommend here? I haven't had the opportunity to try it yet."

"Anything, really. I prefer their chili dogs with extra cheese." She nodded at Jennifer's smile and they got in line. "We're together," she told the cashier before putting in her order.

"I'll have the same, I suppose," Erin said as she fumbled to take out her credit card. She was too slow, though, and the woman paid before she could even catch hold of it in her purse. "You didn't have to," she protested as they were given a number.

"I wanted to, though," she replied as they claimed a booth. "What kind of soda do you want?"

"Root beer, please."

Jennifer nodded and took their cups over to the dispenser. While she was gone, Erin pulled out a twenty from her money clip and slipped it into the woman's purse, not comfortable with her paying for her, when she had Henry to think of. "I saw that, you know. I have a toddler, which means I see everything."

Erin blushed a little, shrugging. "You saw nothing." Jennifer nodded, sliding her cup over to her, "So, how have the cases been lately? Not too much of a trial, I trust?"

Jennifer shook her head, once more focusing on her drink. "There have been some times when I wish I could be home with Henry, holding him close. I think that's because I don't have Will there to fall back on. My emotions are harder to control."

"That's to be expected, you've lost your safety net. Just, rely on Aaron, he's a tremendous help in situations you feel like you have no control over. And I've discovered that he can be a great listener, hearing even the things that we don't say aloud."

She nodded, a sad look crossing over her face. "I just with Mom lived here, or that we got along better. I need a mom to talk to about a lot of things."

Erin longed to say that her ear was always open, anytime she needed a sounding board, but was hesitant to do so, not sure how Jennifer would react. And then the younger woman reached across the table and held up her hand. Erin clasped it hesitantly, not sure how to react. "Jen?"

"I, that is, would you mind if I came to you sometimes?" Erin shook her head, smiling softly at her. "Thank you. I know we haven't had the best relationship, but there is something about you now, after so many things have happened, that calls out to me. And please, don't tell anyone else I told you that. I don't think that they'd get it."

She nodded, squeezing her hand gently. "When you're ready, you can tell them that we're friends. I understand why you'd want to keep me a secret."

Jennifer gasped a little, rubbing her thumb against the back of her hand. "It's not like that, I just want to save you from any gossip. It's not like some of the other don't think of you in the best light already. I, I wouldn't want to add any hint of favoritism."

Erin grimaced a little. "I didn't realize that the others still spoke ill of me."

"No one on Alpha, Hotch made sure of that. Blake tries to stir up trouble, because that's who she is. I'm learning to deal with her dismissive behavior."

The way that she said those words upset Erin, and she frowned, sipping at her soda. "Has she been putting you down, then?"

"Me and everyone on the team not named Hotch or Reid. She is such a, a, witch! I mean, I can see now why you had issues with her on the Amerithrax case. She doesn't listen, she doesn't collaborate, she condescends to everyone, it is a nightmare!"

"Why hasn't anyone said anything, then? I could have her written up for any one of those complaints."

Jennifer shrugged. "I think we try to make do, since Spence is so close to her. We don't want to do anything that would rock his boat too much. I can put up with a lot of things, if it means that he's okay."

The dedication that she displayed touched Erin's heart, and she sighed delicately. "You are a wonderful friend to him, Jen. Thank you for opening up to me about this. Do you think there's anything else we can do to make certain that he's going to be okay in the long run?"

"If anyone were to know that, it would be Derek. They're about as close as Garcia and I are. And I don't think he'd mind a visit from you, Erin. He really respects you."

Erin cocked her head to the side, wondering what she meant by that statement. "I really don't think that he could think of me very highly. I haven't exactly been the most even handed in my treatment of him."

Jennifer shook her head. "You'd be surprised, actually. Just, meet him in his office tomorrow, and bring him a large black coffee. He's really easy to talk to, once things get going." She smiled encouragingly at Erin and Erin smiled back, feeling a little more at ease by her proclamation. "He tends to get in by eight, these days."

"I'll keep that in mind tomorrow." Their food arrived, and Erin tucked in, relishing the somewhat unhealthy lunch, so different from her normal salads or fish. "Is there anything else that he likes?"

"Chocolate. He has a sweet tooth a mile long." Erin giggled as she nodded. It felt freeing to be included for a change, and she knew that she had found a cure she hadn't been looking for. "Actually, he loves marble cheesecake brownies."

"I'll keep that in mind, Jen." She finished up her lunch and then relaxed against the back of the booth. "I really don't want to go back out there quite yet. It is so cold out."

"I have nothing pressing to do today. And it's not too busy in here."

They locked eyes, and she sighed as a certain sense of peace settled over her soul. This was proving to be a very happy afternoon.