TWO CUPS OF COFFEE AND ONE RATHER INTERESTING CONVERSATION LATER, Spencer and Katharine were back in the BAU building, chatting like two friends that had known each other for years.

"And that's how I broke Derek's nose in the eighth grade," Katharine concluded her story, tossing her empty coffee cup into a bin. She didn't normally drink coffee so close to boarding a plane but she figured one cup with the good doctor couldn't hurt. Besides, it's been at least four hours since she'd had her last cup. She needed the caffeine. 

"You know, most people who have healed broken noses wind up with it being crooked for the rest of their lives," Spencer commented. "I'd say Morgan was one of the lucky ones. He still looks good."

She laughed. "Depends on how you would define good. I'd say I did better off in the genes department."

"I don't know," Spencer bumped her side, "Derek Morgan isn't far from the modern-day Adonis. Or at least, that's according to what Garcia says."

Katharine gave something halfway between a laugh and a sound of disbelief. "Adonis?" she wrinkled her nose. "Hephaestus, at best."

Spencer laughed--no--giggled, at Katharine's words.

Adorable, she thought. Katharine observed the man she had gotten the pleasure of knowing thus far. Whether it was the ten minutes they'd actually spent together, or the x amount of years they'd get in the future, Katharine was sure she wanted to be a part of every moment like this.

She picked herself up off his desk, running a hand through her hair. "I'm gonna run to the bathroom before we head to the airstrip. Wait for me?"

Spencer found himself nodding. He messed with his own hair, pushing it out of his face before settling his hands around the cup of coffee he'd yet to finish. "I'll be right here when you get back," he promised.

Katharine sent him an award-winning smile before departing from his desk, Spencer watching her move through the office. It was almost like she had always been with the BAU, how easily she moved through the office space.

"So," Morgan rolled himself over to Spencer's desk, leaning over the armrest and toward the younger boy, "what are your intentions with my baby cousin?" 

"Wh-What?" Spencer flushed, looking down and away from Morgan's eyes. "Nothing. I-I don't have intentions with Katharine."

His last sentence came out as more of a question. 

Morgan narrowed his eyes. "Look, Pretty Boy, I don't need Kat's abilities to tell that you're lying. In just ten minutes, she's got you wrapped around her finger. You're usually never like this, especially with girls."

Spencer was silent, for what seemed to be the first time in forever. His coworker was right. He had been acting uncharacteristically social around the light-skinned woman and he had no idea where the additional confidence hh had gained came from.

Then, there was a complete 180 in Morgan's demeanor. It was like a flip had been switched, going from prying best friend to protective older brother in less than half a second.

"If you do anything to hurt her, I won't even have to come looking for you, Reid," Morgan threatened. "You hear me?"

"Loud and clear," Spencer managed. "Besides, I think that if anything did happen, it'd be her I'd have to look out for."

Morgan clapped him on the shoulder, a little too forceful to be entirely friendly, and squeezed. The man's concerns came from a place of caring. Spencer could understand that. If he were related to someone like Katharine, he would've been doing the exact same thing that Morgan was. People like her deserved the best, and sometimes the best didn't come cheap.

Besides, the odds of Spencer even getting involved with Katharine romantically were about as good as his odds of getting killed by a vending machine (1 to 112 million).

In simpler terms, it would never happen. The odds were just about impossible.

KATHARINE WAS A LITTLE MORE THAN PEEVED when she found out Derek had essentially threatened Spencer while she was in the bathroom.

After scolding the older boy, saying that she could full and well take care of herself, she boarded the plane and took a seat next to the only other brunette on the team.

Emily Prentiss reminded her of Steve Rogers more than Natasha Romanoff. She was serious and focused when she needed to be and could follow orders well enough but her overwhelming sense to do the right thing made Katharine think. She was almost one-hundred percent positive that the woman would disobey a direct order if she felt it was the absolute right thing to do. 

It was a trait that Katharine admired in people. Their willingness to put themselves and everything they worked for on the line for the greater good. 

In the end, that was what made people heroes in her eyes. Not the people that played by the rules, no. If anything, that was a good way to get killed by others more willing to play dirty.

Not every fight was going to be a fair one, Katharine learned that the hard way.

So, in conclusion, Katharine liked Emily Prentiss enough to even consider putting in a letter of recommendation for the woman. SHIELD, and any other organization, would be lucky to have her, though it didn't look like she would be looking to leave the BAU any time soon.

Emily was comfortable with her current station, Katharine learned, and even if she would make one hell of a SHIELD agent, Katharine had to respect that. Besides, Emily had a long way to go before she could go off pulling Captain America level stunts, like jumping out of planes to fight gods and beating up Chitauri in Times Square. 

Once the jet was in the sky, everyone congregated around where she sat. Rossi and Derek were sat directly across from her while Emily remained on her left. JJ and Hotch sat on the couch across from the table while Spencer opted to stand, leaning against the back of her seat and looking over her shoulder. 

Almost nervously, she looked around. This would be the first time she'd be taking point with a team that had never taken a mutant case before. She wracked her brain for anything that could help, whether it was previous encounters where Agent Davis had taken point or ever just general knowledge about mutants and how to subdue them without harming them too much.

Clasping her hands in front of her, Katharine decided on where to start. "What you all need to be able to understand before we do anything more with this case is that most science is essentially rendered useless when working on mutant cases. You never know what you're up against most of the time. Abilities make things tricky in the field," she explained.

From across from her, Derek smirked, "So what you're saying is that Pretty Boy is pretty much useless with his facts and proper logic."

Katharine kicked him under the table, shooting him a warning glance. "No, what I'm saying is that you're all at a disadvantage because you're human without abilities. Said abilities alter what we know about simple sciences and physics, though biology remains mainly the same. Again, this is dependent on the type of mutant we'll be looking for. We have a database on what abilities the mutants we'll be up against hold, but that's not to say we know the full extent of what they can do. Not to mention mutants are stronger and more resilient than your average human, which makes subduing them harder for regular law enforcement."

"So how are we supposed to make the arrest?" Rossi asked, leaning forward in his seat. He looked intrigued, more curious if anything.

"I don't expect any of you to do any of the fighting if that's what it comes down to it," Katharine said. "Without the proper training, there's a huge possibility that you could get extremely hurt even with a weapon on your side. Some mutants are resistant to certain metals or just have thicker-than-normal skin. Think bulletproof armor."

She took out a set of handcuffs from her bag. They looked like regular handcuffs except for the fact that they were blue and glowing. "These cuffs were designed with mutants in mind. They prevent mutants from using their abilities."

Katharine reached out a hand to Spencer, who was leaning against a chair rather than sitting. "May I?"

He offered her a hand, watching in fascination as she cuffed him. The color of the handcuffs remained unchanged.

"There are different color levels. Blue signifies inactivity or human." Katharine unlocked the cuffs and handed the key to Spencer. "I'm now going to demonstrate what happens when the cuffs go on a powered individual."

She stood from her seat, holding onto Spencer's arm for stability. If she was going to provide a demonstration, she might as well give them a show.

Katharine brought the cuff down on her wrist as if it were a slap-on-bracelet and immediately felt the effects. She collapsed in a heap on the floor, warranting some shouts of surprise.

She heard Derek call, "Get them off her!" and then there was clarity.

Slowly, she sat up. Derek helped her off the floor and Spencer handed the key and cuffs back to her.

"What does it feel like?" JJ asked. She picked up the cuffs from the table, looking at them curiously. Katharine held back from making an R rated comment. This team seemed to be more interested in the handcuffs than in the case itself at this point. She figured it was because this was a technology that they didn't regularly get to use or something along those lines. If it was anything else, Katharine was sure she didn't want to know.

"Sometimes it feels like I've just been punched, other times it feels like I've been given drugs. The point of the cuffs is to subdue. A few more minutes with the cuffs on and I would have regained the ability to walk and think coherently." Katharine watched as JJ passed the cuffs to Hotch, who examined them before passing them to Derek.

"There'll be a box containing maybe two or three more of these cuffs in Arizona for when we arrive," Katharine told the team. "We'll be needing you to return the ones unused after the case, but you'll definitely be needing them. Especially if you decide that you want to try your hand at kicking a mutants ass on the field."

"What are the different power levels?" Spencer asked. "Earlier you mentioned that humans ranked at color level blue and the cuffs were orange when they were on you."

Katharine nodded, taking the cuffs that had made their way full circle back to her. She closed them up before sliding them back into her carry on. "Well, there's blue for inactivity or human, as I've said. Then there's grey for low-level, yellow for lower mid-level, orange for higher mid-level, and red for high-level. There's technically one last level, black, but god-tier mutants are rare and most of them are either dead or in schooling."

They talked as a group for a bit more, Katharine answering any and all questions that she could before Hotch had decided that they'd asked enough for the time being. Any outstanding questions on the matter could be asked on personal time or when they got to Arizona.

Katharine didn't mind the questions. This was a jet full of people that wanted to learn rather than stick to harmful stereotypes and prejudices. It was refreshing, knowing that there were still people out there like these six that sat on the plane with her. 

Not too long after, everyone except for Emily, Katharine, and Derek, decided that a seat rearrangement was in order. JJ had taken Rossi's seat, the older man having opted for the seat directly across from Hotch further down, and Spencer had relocated to be closer to the cockpit.

"So," JJ was quick to break the ice. "Any guys in your life?"

Katharine laughed, she seemed to be doing that a lot more around this team than her last. Under Unit Chief Davis's thumb, there was no such thing as fun. Not when there were bad guys to be caught and innocent civilians to save.

"No," she shook her head. "SHIELD had a strict no fraternization policy and it's difficult to find people outside of work that have shared life experiences."

"I get it," Emily empathized. "But really? Not even Captain America? I mean, if I got my hands on him..."

"Ladies," Derek interjected. "As much as I love talking to you all, I do not want to hear about my baby cousin's love life."

"Oh yeah? And what do you want me to talk about?" Katharine smirked. "How about that time in high school when you--hey!"

Derek threw a crumpled up napkin in her face, effectively cutting off her sentence. "No, Kat. We agreed to never speak of that again."

"But Derek," Katharine whined. "It was really funny and I think your friends deserve to know!"

"Yeah, Derek," Emily teased along with her. "I also think your friends deserve to know."

The man shook his head, standing up from his seat across from Katharine. "You know what? I don't have to sit here and take this slander. I'm leaving."

Katharine smirked as he walked away from their little group. "Get me a coffee, five sugars while you're at it," she called after him, laughing as he threw up a middle finger in response.

"Five sugars?" JJ questioned. "Setting yourself up for diabetes?"

Katharine snorted. "I'd sooner have a severe case of tooth rot." 

She looked down the aisle, distracted by the way Spencer played with his bottom lip subconsciously as he read. "But to answer your question, Emily, Captain America is really not my type."

Emily leaned over Katharine, trying to see what had gotten her so distracted. 

"I see," Emily teased, "you prefer the studious type."

Katharine swatted at the girl. She could already feel the heat rising to her cheeks. She pressed her cold hands to her face, silently thanking her inability to actually blush. 

"Hush," Katharine scowled. "I don't need everyone on the jet knowing my business."

And then, as if he were the bell, Derek walked past the group of girls with a cup of coffee in his hands. She watched in mock disbelief as he held the disposable cup in the air as if he were toasting to her health or some other bullshit like that.

"That bitch," Katharine muttered under her breath. "Sorry, girls, I've got an asshole to beat up."

With four and a half hours left in the flight, Katharine decided that she didn't want to stay up the entire time no matter the jet lag she'd have to deal with.

"Don't rough him up too bad, Kat," JJ warned. "We still need him for the case."

Katharine waved the blonde off. "I'm just gonna bug him a bit, maybe take a nap while I'm at it," she said. She stood up and put her bag in the overhead compartment. "Catch y'all on the flip side... And if you hear Derek calling for help, please ignore it."

Emily winked at the younger girl while JJ sent her a supportive thumbs up.

Katharine made her way over to her cousin and all but collapsed into the seat next to him.

"Tired of talking about boys, Kit Kat?" Derek teased, poking her side.

She squirmed out of the way, a laugh bubbling its way out of her mouth.

"You wish," Katharine adjusted her skirt, "I'll be talking about boys until the day I die."

"Yeah? Any particular boy on your mind?" Derek asked, bringing up his coffee cup to cover his mouth. "Maybe a particular genius."

Katharine froze slightly before letting a grin slide onto her face. "What's up with you and the girls, huh? You guys conspiring against me?"

The girl had to admit, she thought Dr. Spencer Reid was cute. He was more textbook savvy than any other guys she had dated before but somehow he was exactly her type. He was the total opposite of whatever jerks her coworkers would try to set her up with on their Friday night get-togethers at whatever mediocre bar was around the corner.

Her gaze drifted over to the good doctor yet again, who was still absorbed in whatever text he was reading. His eyes scanned the page at what seemed to be lightning speed, devouring the information that the inked words held for him. In the light that streamed in through the jet windows, he looked ethereal, like an angel or whatever romance novel bullshit the kids back home would pull out of their asses.

"Nevermind that," Derek shifted gears, "I wanna know where you've been hiding out for the past seven years."

"I sent a postcard, didn't I?" Katharine asked, tearing her gaze away from the beautiful doctor that sat right across from them.

"Yeah," Derek scoffed. "One postcard. You gotta give me more than that. C'mon, girl."

She rolled her eyes, giving in to her cousin's demands. "Well if you insist on hearing about boring ol' me. After I left home, I went through SHIELD training and then was put deep undercover for roughly two years. I got shot. They nearly sent me home then and there but I got a job at a local preschool. They agreed to give me back my credentials so long as I took a year to recover. After that, I got tangled up in that Thor stuff I told you about in my postcard. I considered coming home but my friend, Natasha, convinced me to stay on and the Director put me on interrogation for the whole Loki debacle. Then, I was put on Davis's team and the rest is history."

Derek looked at her in disbelief. "Boring my ass. You did all that in seven years?"

Katharine shrugged. "What? It's not like you haven't also been working for a government agency for the past couple of years. You know how it is."

Derek shook his head, leaning back into the couch. "That sounds like a little more than just working for the government, Kat." He took a sip of his coffee, looking at the girl with an eyebrow cocked. "You sure that's it?"

"Yes, I'm sure. It's not like I was there or whatever," Katharine sassed. "Now hush, I want to get a nap in before we touch down in Arizona."

Derek held his hands up in surrender, sliding a pair of headphones over his ears. "Don't let me stop you from getting your beauty sleep. You need it."

She said nothing, instead, kicking her legs up onto Derek's lap and relaxing into the seat as best she could. She was glad that the time hadn't made the two into strangers. It was almost as if she'd never left. Things were going back to the way things had always been Katharine could feel all the stress of the day start to wash away with every moment she spent with the man she considered her brother.

She closed her eyes. Her reunion with Derek had brought her one step closer back home and she couldn't help the contented smile that slipped onto her face.