Quick A/N: I'm sorry if I gave the impression that this was an extraction mission – but I've went through the first chapter and edited what may have insinuated that. This has always been, and will be, an inception mission. And thanks everyone for the feedback – it really makes my day.

Of Secrets and Doubts

Dreams are excursions into the limbo of things, a semi-deliverance from the human prison. ~Henri Amiel

Spencer was pacing back and forth from his desk to Emily's, fidgeting with two balls in one of his long hands. He was muttering under his breath and breathing short and shallow. Emily looked quizzically over to Derek, who just shrugged in response, but took it upon himself to snap the young genius out of it.

"Hey, kid! Did you sleep at all last night?"

Spencer turned sharply and faced Derek front and center, only faltering slightly before taking a seat at his desk.

"Possibly…" He responded rather sheepishly. His hand started moving more vigorously as he rotated the balls within his palm. Derek chuckled.

"You were too excited to sleep, weren't you?" He probed. But Spencer ignored his jeers and continued to mutter, all the while thinking rapidly.

"What are those things you're playing with?" Emily spoke up, giving Derek another knowing look. After the meeting yesterday, Spencer just couldn't get his head in the game. Well, of course he was able to ramble off stats and answer any question with speed and accuracy. But his usual nature of questions and curiosity had gone out the window.

"Baoding Balls." He stated simply.

Emily raised her eyebrow before sighing in defeat. Yet, Derek wasn't as submissive as her.

"Paging Dr. Reid. You've got to explain a little more thoroughly for us simpletons." This time he stood up to go over to where Spencer was sitting and quickly snatched the balls out of his hand.

"They are Chinese exercise balls. They are meant to improve manual dexterity and strength within the hand, by rotating a pair of them. The usual method is to begin with a smaller set of balls and slowly make your way up to the largest, thus most difficult, pair. They are also called Chinese Mediation balls, which denotes to the idea that they are a method of calming."

At the end of his explanation, he swiftly stood up and snatched the "meditation balls" back from his team member before walking away to grab a cup of coffee.

Something was really off with Spencer Reid.

"It's too bloody early for this." Eames muttered while taking his coffee from Yusuf, who continued to pass a few more to the back of the car. The whole team was driving to the FBI headquarters, only to make a quick pit stop at a Starbucks after Eames' many disgruntled comments of needing caffeine.

"We heard you the first hundred times." Arthur mumbled before he took a gratifying sip from his green tea.

Yusuf thanked the Barista kindly before putting the car back in drive and setting out on the road. Cobb sat in the front seat beside him whilst Ari, Arthur and Eames sat in the back. Already, Cobb could tell it was going to be another testing day.

Last night the team had stayed up until the wee hours of the morning, planning and researching as much as they could. They had stumbled across a few disturbing finds which only made the idea of this inception all the more difficult.

"So when are we going to pull the girl aside?" Ariadne questioned, changing the topic back to something more productive then complaining and bickering.

"The right opportunity I suppose, being that we aren't sure whether it is appropriate to talk about in front of the others." Arthur responded, gaining a nod from Cobb.

"Do you think she ever planned to tell us?" Yusuf asked, looking at Eames in the rear view mirror. They all were quiet while Eames contemplated this.

"I highly doubt that." He finally answered. "She doesn't know too much about our team, therefore not knowing the accessibility I had to Interpol. Sneaky little lass isn't she."

Emily followed Spencer over to the coffee machine, with Derek closely in toe.

"Reid, are you okay? You've been acting jumpy and on edge since the meeting yesterday." She asked once in earshot.

Emily knew that the whole team had a different feel after they had talked to Cobb and his members yesterday. She knew her mind was elsewhere, worrying about these "projections" she could bring along into the dream world. It made her even more nervous since she knew that her past was still secret to her FBI family. But, she had been dealing with the idea of it better then Reid seemed to be.

"It's nothing." He responded quietly, eyeing Derek before shifting his gaze towards the ground.

"What is it kid?" Derek questioned, slightly hurt. He could tell Spencer was avoiding saying something because of him.

"It's an irrational and completely lunatic notion. Thus, I know you'll use it to make fun of me relentlessly." Spencer answered this time with more force. Derek's face softened significantly, feeling guilty for making one of his best friends feel that way about him.

"You're like a little brother to me. You know when I pick on you it's harmless." Derek started, but when he saw Spencer begin to open his mouth in retort, he quickly continued. "Whatever's bugging you, bugs me buddy. I promise not to be immature about it."

Emily looked kindly over to Derek, giving him a look of approval. Spencer topped up his cup of coffee and took a sip before deciding to tell them the truth.

"After the meeting, I was excited but still confused. And then this idea sort of took me over. I have read so much on dreams and reality – I just kept running it all over through my head – word by word." He began, looking nervous again. "I just can't seem to find the proof of what reality is. How am I supposed to know that I'm awake?"

It took everything in Derek's power not to pinch Spencer to prove he wasn't dreaming.

"What about the youngster?" Eames asked his team.

They were getting closer to their destination, using this time in private usefully. The one thing they had still not decided upon was probably the most important aspect of their mission. Who was coming all the way under.

"I reckon he'd be good use." Yusuf said smartly, still rather awestruck by the intelligence of Dr. Reid.

"Yes, but he may be one of the most damaged of the team. And that many levels deep, an extreme risk to all of us." Ariadne added wisely. She always was cautiously thinking about the risks and dangers of the people she, and her team, went under with. Cobb knew this side of her very well.

"That being said, we could say the same about Aaron Hotchner, but I guarantee we wouldn't be able to convince him to stay back while his team went under." Cobb noted, while everyone responded with sounds of agreement. "I know I wouldn't."

"So then we seem to have a real problem here. The three that we need on the third level to succeed in the inception, are the three that can bring along the most dangerous issues." Arthur said rather irritated. He knew this was going to happen. Things never could go smoothly. Or at least, as smoothly as possible in this kind of situation.

They all pondered what Arthur said as they pulled up to the large building and made their way to their new job.

Emily sat alone at her desk. Derek and she tried their best to explain to Spencer that he was, in fact, awake. Yet, after twenty minutes of the doctor having a rebuttal everything they said with actual theories and facts, they had no clue how to proceed. He was too stubborn and intelligent for his own good.

So now they all sat at their separate desks, pretending to be doing some case-related work, but really just letting their minds wander until the team got there. Which, would be any minute.

Yet Emily was having a more difficult time concentrating on anything but her past. Interpol and Ian Doyle. He was in prison and her team knew nothing of her past as a spy. She knew this for sure because the only person who had the accessibility to find that piece of information out was Garcia, and she would not be able to hold back from talking to Emily about it. Thus, she deduced, and rather correctly, that they were all in the dark.

With this conclusion, she assumed that the other team they'd be working with would be as in the dark as they were. Yet, this was not as correct as her previous assumption. And soon she'd find out.

"Agent Prentiss." Cobb was standing alone at her desk, while motioning her to follow him. Derek and Spencer were heading up to Cobb's other members to greet them before Hotchner and Rossi came to join them. At the moment, they were having a quick meeting for themselves.

"Rather odd group of people aren't they?" Rossi stated before sitting himself down on Hotch's couch and moving a blanket aside. He looked down at it curiously. "You didn't sleep here last night did you Aaron?"

Hotch was sitting at his desk, pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. Case files were all astray upon his desk and a canister of something, most likely coffee, was sitting to his right.

"This was really a bad idea." He groaned before he stood up and moved himself to the front of his desk. He leaned slightly on the edge of it. "I'm not sure we are going to be able to handle this."

Rossi looked at him in understanding. He knew that Hotch was most likely up all night, going over whatever files he could on Spagelli. He also knew of Hotch's special order for Garcia. Rossi assumed the majority of the files were on their new team members.

"Did you find out anything about them that would be a risk to us?" He asked smartly, gaining a slight smile from Hotch.

"The whole team probably knows I asked for background checks. Shouldn't have expected any different really."

"No." Rossi answered bluntly. "Since we all would have done the same thing."

Hotch stood up a straight again before looking out the window of his office. He could see his other three agents over at their desks. He noticed Reid was still pacing.

"How do you think they are going to handle all of this?" Hotch asked honestly. After Gideon had left, he never thought he would be able to find someone else as seasoned or perceptive as his former boss. But, Rossi soon filled that position with grace and a new kind of flare. The man knew people, and thankfully, he knew this team.

"They're strong Aaron. You've never failed with them before. Why doubt yourself now?" Rossi stood up now too to take a look out the window. Emily and Derek were now following Spencer over to the coffee machine. Where Reid spent the majority of his time. His gaze fell onto Emily's face.

"She's hiding something." Rossi said, very sure of himself.

"I know. But it's not our business to probe David." Hotch answered with a stern look before closing the blinds and going back to his desk. "Let us get back to why I asked you in here."

He walked her to the back of the room, avoiding any people who could over hear. He knew this would be a sensitive subject.

"May I ask what you need from me Mr. Cobb?" When he responded with a laugh, Emily looked confused but stood her ground with poise.

"No need for that Agent Prentiss, you can call me Cobb – or Dom if you prefer." Cobb looked at her kindly and she relaxed whence realizing the reasons to his laughter.

Yet, she noticed his change in demeanour as he straightened his back and took a step closer to her, He put his head down before beginning to speak in a hushed voice.

"We brought up yesterday, something about what we can share with other dreamers Agent Prentiss. Do you remember this?"

She nodded and swallowed slightly before opening her mouth to speak, but he put a finger to his lips to signal her to stop.

"Before you object, I'd like to point out that we have no purpose in meddling in others' businesses. Therefore, it is your own responsibility to do with your past what you may." He stopped to see if she had any objections to what he was saying, but her look of understanding prompted him to continue. "Your team will be informed later today about how important you are to our proposed plan. So I am warning you now, please be aware and conscious of your subconscious. It is far too dangerous a risk to be lacking in control when it comes to the matters of dreams."

"What roll do you have for me to play?" She asked incredulously, getting hung up on the least important thing he had said.

"Patience Agent Prentiss. You'll know in a matter of minutes. But do not neglect to listen to what we tell you." Cobb finished by putting a hand on her shoulder comfortingly before walking away calmly to rejoin the, now complete, team. He extended his hand to Aaron, before continuing this greeting with the rest of them.

"Are we ready to proceed?" Hotchner asked as soon as everyone had finished pleasantries.

Eames looked over to a subdued Emily – and winked.

"Why inception?"

Derek had decided to ask the first question as soon as the meeting was underway. It had been bothering him since getting all the information last night.

"What else would you propose Agent Morgan?" Arthur responded, knowing full well what he was going to say.

"We need to learn things from him, not plant something in his head. Shouldn't it be an extraction?"

Cobb looked at Arthur, slightly humoured, but masked it well. They had talked about this earlier, and it seemed they gave a bit too much credit to the team. They thought they'd find the flaws with an extraction when it came to this specific unSub. Or maybe they didn't know enough information about their specific line of work to get a clear picture. Arthur took the liberty to do this for them.

"With the information we have received from your team, is it right to say that the unSub's traits consist of being a highly organized anger excitation rapist and pathological liar with psychopathic and sadistic tendencies?"

Eames looked at Arthur in confused.

"And here I was just calling him a royal git."

Arthur ignored his comment before going back to what he was saying, this time, looking more at Dr. Reid than anyone. "So do you see a problem with trying to extract information?"

Derek looked slightly confused, as he slowly worked out what that would mean in his head. Suddenly, the light when off and he realized where the issue lies. But, of course, Spencer had already gotten there.

"Pathological liars frequently confuse fact and falsehoods and have proven to be inconsistent in their responses during controlled studies. It is unknown if pathological lying is controllable by the entity, thus it is highly probable that a pathological liar may believe his lies to the point that he is delusional." Spencer hummed off without much acknowledgement of the others in the room.

"I was going to say that." Derek said under his breath. "Know it all."

"I highly doubt you would have said it like that though Morgan." Emily laughed before retreating back into her previous position from the look he gave her.

"Rein it in dark chocolate. You've got the beauty, give Reid the brains." Garcia joked while giving him a reassured pat on the knee.

"Are you saying I'm unattractive?" Spencer snapped out of his thoughts, giving Garcia a confused look.

"In retrospect, giving Morgan the brawns would have been a better choice Penelope." JJ chimed in, winking at her friend.

"So now you're saying I'm lacking muscle." Spencer responded with a defiant tone before realizing what he had just said. "Well I like being the brains."

Both Rossi and Hotch looked at each other and smiled, enjoying the brief moment of humour.

"So," Hotch began, regaining everyone's attention. "You are saying that because Spagelli is a pathological liar, you can't extract information?"

"No we can extract information, but the issue would be to actually decipher what is fact. And frankly, we don't have the time or leniency to make mistakes with the information that we'd extract. Your boss may have brought us here, but she warned us that if we don't get it right the first time – there'd be no point in trying to put him away with those charges. With a good defence attorney – and no physical evidence – it won't matter if we find that he is guilty. We still have nothing to link him to it." As Cobb answered Hotch's question, he noticed their faces drop slightly. He could tell that they had some kind of wishful thinking of an easier mission.

But if there was an alternative, they would have thought of it.

"So then, what's your plan?" Emily asked the loaded question, ready to hear what she had been waiting for since her ominous talk with Cobb.

"Well we need dreamers. I can't start building until I have the dreamers to collaborate with." Ariadne pointed out.

"And I need better access to information on Spagelli, because Ari can't start building until we find out the majority of that information. Like blue prints of his house?" Arthur continued, looking at the analyst as he asked this.

"After the meeting you can set up in my office sweetie. I can get you anything your heart desires." She smiled sweetly before getting out a big blue pen with a fuzzy pink palm palm on the top. She began to write down notes.

"Yes, and I'll need somewhere to start setting up my lab. I've got a few ideas for specific compounds that will make the dreamers connections clearer than ever before, since so many are going under to the deeper levels." Yusuf said hopefully, yearning for some kind of FBI laboratory he could work in.

"So who are the dreamers?" Emily asked again, trying to get the conversation to move in the direction she wanted it to.

Cobb's team looked at each other, contemplating what part of the plan to start with. They knew it would end up in some kind of disagreements.

"We talked to you guys yesterday, about things you can bring into the dream world." Cobb began. "Well, there are a few issues in that respect. Some of you are, less of a risk, then others. Therefore, those people would be the safest to bring down to the lower levels. Ms. Jareau and Ms. Garcia will not be coming under in any respects. They will be there to watch over our sleeping selves and make sure it runs smoothly in reality."

"So does that mean the rest of us are coming under?" Spencer asked curiously.

"Yes, but – not everyone will be coming down to the final level. The first level, Yusuf will be staying behind to give the kick. As he told you yesterday, he does not like to partake in actual dream sharing, so he will stay at the highest level. Now the second level, we have decided that it must be one of you who stay behind to administer the kick. We need as many of us down at the third level, to make sure things go smoothly."

"This is, of course, you're decision… but we ask if Agent Prentiss could not stay on the upper levels, since our plan revolves around her." Cobb finished, waiting for the looming question to be asked.

"Why do you need her?" Hotchner spoke up first, feeling protective of his team.

"You'd be the bait darling." Eames answered first, but he spoke only to Emily – with a sympathetic look. She stared back at him, slightly fearful but with determination.

"Absolutely not." Hotchner responded bluntly. "I will not use one of my team as bait to a sadistic murderer, no matter what Strauss wants of me."

The rest of the team looked either angry or terrified.

"There has to be another way." Garcia said pleadingly.

"I assure you, unless you are withholding any information about Jake Spagelli… there isn't." Arthur responded solemnly.

"I highly doubt that. I'm sorry, but we aren't going to need your services anymore." Hotchner said aggressively before standing up to show the team out.

"I'm sorry we've offended you." Cobb looked at Emily knowingly before standing up to leave the room.

"Wait Hotch." Emily said quickly, as she stood up to close the now opened door. "If this is the way to get the bastard, I'd feel horrible if I didn't do it." She spoke only to Hotch. "Please hear them out."

Hotch let out a deep breath before moving back over to his seat and sitting down, his fingers going back to pinching the bridge of his nose like so many time he had over the last few days. He waved his hand signalling to continue before lifting his head up to listen.

Cobb breathed in a sigh of relief. The storm seemed to pass for now.

"The files have stressed that there is no physical evidence of Spagelli linking him to the murders. It also said that your team had trailed him after this, and even after you had left, the local police task force has been doing the same. Even though you all believe he has the means and ability to shake his tail, he hasn't. What does this tell you?" Cobb asked the team, trying to get them to understand the gravity of their choice.

"It means," Prentiss started. "he isn't planning to kill until he is out from under our eye."

"Exactly, so how are you supposed to catch the bloody bastard?" Eames responded quickly, seeing as Emily was catching on.

"He needs to come out of retirement." She said clearly. She furrowed her brow in confusion. "But I won't be enough to do that will I. If we've learned anything about this unSub, it's that he is very patient and intelligent. If he doesn't want to go to jail, he won't do anything to incriminate himself. Why would he risk his livelihood for one woman?"

"Ah but see, that's where inception comes in." Cobb spoke up. "Once the idea is planted well enough, it will be impossible to ignore."