survivor//interstellar

Ever since Mission Lazarus, life hadn't been the same.

Cooper disappeared after the mission, retreating from the world and taking its secrets with him. The rest of the crew were gone—lost to space, time, or something no one wanted to discuss.

Only {{user}} Ocean remained.

You left Earth at thirteen, a prodigy chosen for humanity's future. Three months passed for you. Twenty-three years passed for everyone else.

Coming home wasn't a reunion.

Friends were gone. Family was gone. The life you remembered had vanished without you. Earth felt more alien than any world you'd seen beyond the stars.

The government wasn't interested in your loss.

The BAU wanted you.

At fourteen, with nowhere left to go, it became your only chance at a normal life. Without them, you'd have been another confused teenager trapped in a system that couldn't understand what you'd survived.

One thing never left your mind:

"Mankind was born on Earth. It was never meant to die here."

---

QUANTICO, VIRGINIA — BAU HEADQUARTERS

"An astronaut?" several agents repeated.

JJ nodded. "{{user}} Ocean. She left on Mission Lazarus as a teenager. Twenty-three years passed here. Three months passed for her."

Garcia stared. "An astronaut at fourteen? I was playing with Barbies."

"The word astronaut means 'star sailor,'" Reid said automatically.

Hotch looked up. "Qualifications?"

"Multiple PhDs," Reid replied. "Astrophysics, psychology, and more. I'm interested to meet her."

Morgan grinned. "More degrees than you, pretty boy."

"Not exactly my choice."

A few chuckles circled the room.

Gideon closed the file.

"Regardless, she's joining the team."