The Meeting

I parked into the car park, I grabbed my stuff and walked to the front of the building. I stood, biting my lips and holding a container of chocolate chip cookies and blueberry muffins and a tray with cups of coffee. Each cup was marked with a name and each cookie and blueberry muffin was tweaked a bit for every member's personal preference. Though I didn't know them and I didn't have a proper source, I wanted to know just how correct I was when I profiled them in the weeks prior. I straightened out my black blazer and brushed back my thick black hair before opening the door with my gloved hand. Agents moved about as I made my way down the hallways towards the offices.

I walked in and went straight to the unit chief's office. After knocking on the door, I heard a deep voice say, "Come in." I opened the door counted to three before entering and closing the door behind me. "Good morning Agent Stekwhold, my name is Damien Sylvester, you may call me Agent Sylvester. For the next year, you will be with this unit of the Behavioral Analysis Unit as a trial run. During this time, you will be observed and make no doubt, if I see that you are not fit for this team, you are off," Agent Sylvester said sternly. I nodded and took a coffee out of the tray and placed it on his desk.

"Happy to be here sir," I said to the dark skinned, bald headed man while also placing a muffin and a cookie on his desk. I sighed internally not allowing my nervousness to show. He took a cookie in-between his plump lips and jagged white teeth and bit into it. He hummed before placing the cookie back in the container "I am going to honest with you here. I am not the one you want to impress-" he started.

"I'm sorry if that's what this came off as but I feel no need to impress you with my baking sir. Plus, not to be rude, your position is temporary, right? This office doesn't seem like yours" I said fiddling my hands behind my back, "You don't seem comfortable being here, so I would assume it isn't yours. The writing materials are on your left, yet you're holding the pen in your right hand, meaning you are trying not to move anything around because the person who does actually use this office is left handed and is a bit particular about having things a certain way, and you respect him. There's also a picture frame on the desk which from the glance I took, is a family picture and you don't seem like a family man from the way you're eyeing me up and down.

You keep glancing outside as though someone is going to burst in which tells me that whoever's office this is, probably doesn't know that you're in it. And by the way your eyes keep flickering between me and the door, I assume said person is at the door." I could see the his eyes stop at the person behind me, but I made no move to look back. His gaze snapped to mine and he went slack jawed.

"Am I correct?" I asked staring blankly at him. His mouth open and closed as though he was a fish out of water I was finished. "Well done. It seems Hernandez at least had the decency to force someone with a modicum of intelligence onto us," a deep, accented voice spoke from my right and I nodded.

"Supervisory Special Agent Ezra White, I haven't seen you since I was eighteen and you were arresting me for a murder I didn't commit. How have you been and how is Agent Monroe?" I inquired with a small smile turning to the Lithuanian man leant against the door. Agent White blanked for a second and I took in how much he's changed since the last time I saw him. His once platinum hair was now a dark shade of brown and was pulled back from his v-shaped face into a low ponytail. He was more muscular compared to his lean stature a few years ago and it seemed as though he had gotten taller as well. He gathered himself quickly though and nodded at me. "Xe-na Stekwhold. Adopted daughter of Mason Stekwhold," he said calmly, "Good to see you. I am well."

I noticed he didn't speak on Agent Monroe but I didn't comment on it. I pulled out a cookie and a muffin that was in a container and a coffee from the tray and handed it to him, or tried to. "Trying to take your revenge on me for almost ruining your family name? I know you Stekwholds are sticklers when it comes to your reputation" he asked playfully, taking the muffin and coffee from my hands.

"No. That would not be smart. There's a witness in the room and other than that, we're in a government building surrounded by cameras," I responded. I saw the corner of his mouth twitch as he took them from me. "Sorry to interrupt this heartfelt reunion, but we have a case," my gaze flickered to the blond woman, who I assumed to be Agent Alison Amber, the communication liason.

"Yeah, we're coming, give us five minutes," Agent White said authoritatively. So he was the unit chief. I wonder when he'll get his job back. I much rather take orders from him than Agent Sylvester. He just seems a bit more confident in his movements and the way he carries himself in general. "I hope you have a go bag, princess," Agent Sylvester said walking out of the office.

"Do you need something Agent White?" I asked with a smile. He rolled his eyes and walked behind his desk. "Yes, in fact, I do," he said and I stared at him patiently, "The murders eleven years ago, I was right about the partner being you, wasn't I? The person who confessed didn't fit the profile as much as you."

"Even if I was involved Age-" I started speaking but he cut me off by holding up his hands.

"Ezra," he said but I just shook my head.

"Agent White," I reiterated, trying to be as professional as possible, "Why would you think I was involved? A woman confessed to and died for those crimes and you. You think I was somehow involved. It's been eleven years and you won't let it go. You think I didn't know you were watching over me all these years, Agent White?" I discreetly rocked back and foward as he sat down. I tried to remember what my father had thought me about these kinds of situations and hid my discomfort at the thought. He stared at me calmly as I walked around his desk and spun his chair with one hand.

"What would you like me to do Agent White? Would you like me to confess to crimes that I didn't commit?" I asked staring into his dark eyes and tilting my head, "Also, a peace of advice, don't accuse people of murders randomly. That's a lawsuit waiting to happen." He rolled his eyes at me before simply standing up. "Am we going to join the others now?" I smiled, looking up at the brunette man.

He stared down at me slightly since I was only a few inches shorter. "Not yet," he said as he stepped closer to me, causing me to step back. I glared at him and he grinned smugly. He stepped back, creating a large area between us. "Now, we can go to the briefing room," he said as his face returned to the previous scowl and he walked towards to the door.

"Ezra!" I heard a female voice yell excitedly, before a curvy indian woman rushed into the office and ran up to Agent White. "Damien told me that our new member was here so I rushed over as quickly as I could without breaking my freaking ankle to meet her" she rambled on, "So hand her over right now or I swear on all that is pink and furry that I will scare you into never touching any technology until I'm dead." I made a soft squeaking sound and hid behind Agent White slightly. He shook his head but didn't move.

"Amelia," he paused, "Calm down or you'll overwhelm her." She froze before nodding. I poked my head over his shoulder and blinked at her. She squealed and rushed over to me. "I'm Amelia Rampershad, the resident Oracle. In other words I'm the tech analyst but Oracle sounds so much cooler. You're gorgeous and adorable."

"Please stop touching me," I said as her hands wandered from my shoulders to my wrists and to my hair.

"I mean like Aphrodite type gorgeous," she said not hearing me and continuing to touch me.

"Please-"

"How is your hair so soft? How is your skin so utterly perfect? What's your secret?"

"Please sto-"

"Amelia!," Agent White yelled, seeing how I began shaking in distress. Unfortunately, I couldn't control my reaction as I began to shake. When he called her, she seemed to notice my reaction. Tears began forming in my eyes and I back away from her. Agent White walked briskly over to me and pulled me to sit down. He rubbed my back and Amelia handed him a cup with water for me to drink. I took the cup as he handed it to me and began to drink from it.

"I'm sorry," she said with a with a look of guilt on her face. Agent White sent her off and we sat in silence as he rubbed my back soothingly. "Are you alright?" he asked keeping eye contact with me.

I nodded at him and said, "I'm fine now. I hope the rest of the team aren't as energetic as she is."

"They aren't trust me. Amelia is like that, she doesn't like to listen to me but she'll feel bad and try to make it up to you so try to forgive her," he said with a fond smile.

"Ok," I responded before getting up and motioning for us to leave. He nodded and we exited the room, walking side by side.

When we walked out, I saw the team scramble to get into the briefing room. They had obviously seen when Amelia had rushed in and demanded to meet me then proceeded to fawn over me, meaning they also saw what went down afterwards. I sighed in embarrassment. My first day and I had and anxiety attack from being touched too much. How would I survive this job. When we entered the room, they were still scrambling to sit down and an older man sat in the corner. I walked to where the seemingly youngest of the group sat and put my things right next to him. I took out what I had for everyone and just put them in the middle of the table in a straight line. I took out my container of cookies and began nibbling at them quietly. "I- Uhm- I didn't get a cookie," the lanky red headed man next to me said.

"Oh yeah. Sorry. The batch of cookies I made for you were also the recipe for my batch and I must have forgotten to pack some for you. Just for that you can have some," I informed, clumsily pulling out plastic gloves and putting them on. I took three cookies and put it in the container with his muffin.

"You- uh- you gave me three," he said. I nodded in acknowledgement and continued eating the rest of my cookies. "Can-uh- can I have four instead?" he asked with a little stutter. I nodded and handed him another one trying not to let the number bother me. I hated even numbers with a burning passion. All through growing up my parents struggled to get me to eat anything the wasn't an odd number. I remember I would somehow know when the amount of macaroni on my plate was odd or even. It was always strange but I am a lot calmer about the numbers now.

Agent Sylvester whistled lowly as Agent White sat down next to me. "Alright. Let's get down to business," Agent Sylvester said authoritatively, "First, meet our newest addition to the team, Special Agent Xe-na Stekwhold." I looked up at them with cookies still in my mouth, only to see all eyes on me.

They stared at me for all of two second before all of them except Agent White, who sat beside me beside me, bursted out laughing. I swallowed the cookies quickly and stood up. "Hello, I am Agent Xe-na Stekwhold, I'm twenty nine, if anyone was wondering," I said while rocking a bit. They all said their greetings before I sat down. Agent Amber began to speak, "So the case..."