Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds.
Aaron Hotchner, Emily Prentiss, David Rossi, Spencer Reid, Derek Morgan, Jennifer Jareau, and Penelope Garcia all sat in the round table room at FBI Headquarters in Quantico, Virginia. This was the first time any of them would meet officially. All of them had entered the room at different times, starting with Hotch and finishing with Garcia. Every time someone new had entered, the entire room sized them up. It was unnerving for most.
They had all gone through training to become agents and profilers, accept Rossi, who took a refresher course. No one had spoken since they walked in, and they all felt the tension. This tension was due mostly to the fact that everyone knew that everyone else in the room could do something, but they didn't know what it was. That tension broke when Jason Gideon walked into the room.
"Hello, everyone. Welcome to the team." He said. "I will make introductions, to break the ice. This is Aaron Hotchner, he will be your unit chief, and he can create force fields and heal most injuries." He began. Everyone was slightly shocked when he mentioned his power, thinking it was only names he was telling. "This is Penelope Garcia, she will be your technical analyst and she is a technopath. Emily Prentiss is a shapeshifter, Derek Morgan has invulnerability, Spencer Reid is an Empath and telekinetic, Jennifer "JJ" Jareau will be your media liaison and she is a pyrokinetic and hydrokinetic. David Rossi, your senior profiler, can phase and teleport." He gestured to each person as he said their name and power. This is going to be the strangest group I've ever worked with, Rossi thought with a slight shake of his head.
…
Morgan caught up with Reid after he left the conference room, wanting to introduce himself.
"Hey!" He called out as he caught up with him. Reid turned.
"Oh, hi." He said, waving awkwardly.
"So," Morgan said, lowering his voice slightly. "Telekinetic, huh?"
"Uh, yeah." Reid said.
"So you can move stuff with your mind?" Reid nodded. "That's pretty cool." Morgan said. Reid looked surprised.
"Really? Not freaky?" He asked.
"What? No way. That would be an awesome power to have." Morgan said. Reid still looked surprised, but a small smile showed on his face.
"Thanks." He said.
"Yeah. So, what's empathy?" He looked genuinely curious.
"It, uh, I can feel other people's emotions and if someone touches me I can, um hear their thoughts." Reid explained quickly.
"Woah. And I'm just indestructible." Morgan joked. Reid laughed.
"I don't know, that sounds pretty cool to me." Reid said. Morgan nodded. They had reached their desks, and Reid sat down at his own. Morgan turned in the direction of his desk and ran into someone carrying a cardboard box. She stumbled backwards in a flurry of black curls, dropping the box. Morgan reached out and steadied the woman, and he recognized her from the conference room.
"My bad, Prentiss is it?" He confirmed her name. She nodded. They had been in the same class in the FBI Academy, but had never talked. They hadn't known they would be on the same team, of course.
"Yeah, I'm sorry, I'm a clutz." She laughed, reaching down to grab the box. It wasn't on the ground, but floating a few feet. Prentiss blinked at it before reaching down again and grabbing it. She looked around and saw Reid a few feet away at his desk. He opened his mouth as if to say something but closed it. He looked embarrassed.
"I- I'm sorry, I just thought that maybe you had something in the box tha-" He began, but she interrupted.
"Thank you." She said, taking a small black glass cat out of the box, setting it on her desk. He turned slightly pink.
"You're welcome." He said, still looking slightly embarrassed.
"Way to save the day, Pretty Boy." Morgan laughed.
"Pretty Boy?" Reid asked, making a face.
"Yeah, man, it fits." Morgan laughed.
"How?" Reid said, throwing his hands in the air. Morgan was about to explain when the woman he recognized as JJ rushed in.
"I've got consults for you guys." She said, setting files on everyone's desks, then shook everyone's hands.
"Jennifer, JJ if you like." She said cheerily. They all greeted her and she hurried off again. It seemed as though social time was over. Everyone went about their respective tasks.
…
Rossi leaned back in his office chair, spinning slightly. There was a knock at his door, which was slightly ajar. Hotch poked his head through.
"Come in, have a seat." Rossi said, and Hotch did as bid.
"What do you think of the team?" Hotch asked. He and Hotch knew each other in the same capacity that Hotch and Gideon knew each other.
"They are… unique." Rossi said. Hotch laughed.
"So, that's your nice way of saying they are strange." Hotch ventred.
"Um, yeah." He said.
"Well, that is the reason they were recruited. Same reason you were recruited, too." Hotch jabbed at his friend. Rossi grimaced slightly.
"Please, don't remind me." He said. There was another knock at the door, and their media liaison stepped in. JJ, his mind supplied.
"I've given everyone their assignments." She informed them, leaving again.
"She's efficient." Hotch commented.
"Yeah, if only we had media liaisons in my day." Rossi muttered.
…
Reid knocked on the technical analysts door. He heard a faint "Come in." from her side of the door and opened the door to reveal a surprisingly decorated office. There were many computer screens, which was a given, but the colors were not. He expected the darkness in her clothes the be expressed in her work space as well. He was mistaken.
"Um, Garcia?" He asked and she spun in her chair to face him.
"Hello, genius boy." She said. He raised his eyebrows. Had she looked him up? He hadn't exactly told his colleges that he was a genius. Being a freak that could move stuff with his mind was enough for one day, in his opinion. He knew they would know eventually, of course. It was hard not to if you were around him often, but he hadn't expected it this fast. "Yes, I looked you up." She said, as if reading his mind.
"Are you sure you're not an oracal, too?" He joked. She smiled at him.
"The Oracal. I like that." She said. "You're not too bad, Boy Genius." He resisted the urge to roll his eyes playfully. Yeah, she wasn't too bad herself.
A/N: Wow, this one was difficult. I just could not make myself write it the way I wanted, something akin to writers block. Before I get myself off topic, I think it is necessary to mention that Gideon has slight precognition and can also sense supernaturals. I tried to incorporate that, but it wasn't working out for me. Hope you enjoyed, please R&R!