Emily Prentiss is a Special Agent with the BAU.
Background
In her first appearance, she recognizes Hotch from one of his first commands: security clearances for her father, a US diplomat. Her arrival surprises both Hotch and Gideon, as neither of them had signed off on the transfer. Prentiss insists her parents have not pulled strings for her. Ultimately, she joins the team at the end of episode 209 ("The Last Word") on a probationary basis as a replacement for Agent Elle Greenaway. She is a graduate of Yale and has been working for the FBI for little under ten years, primarily in the Midwest. Due to spending her early life with her parents on diplomatic missions to the Middle East, she speaks fluent Arabic and is familiar with that area's local culture. She also speaks some Russian and Spanish. She appears skilled at chess, and it is possible that she is better at the game than Reid. JJ once asked Prentiss how she could handle the stress from being with the BAU, especially since her last position was a desk job. Hotch concurred that she had "never blinked," and Prentiss could only reason that she "compartmentalizes better than most." ("Revelations") After a bad date in the following episode, she admits to Derek Morgan that she is a "nerd," despite how much she tries to hide it. For this reason, she hasn't had much success romantically. She discovers that she and Morgan share similar tastes in books when they begin discussing Kurt Vonnegut, particularly Slaughter House 5.
On the Job
At the end of season 2, BAU section chief Erin Strauss reveals to Emily that she arranged for her to join the BAU, contrary to Emily's belief that she was accepted on her own merit. Strauss asks Emily to sabotage Hotch's career by spying on him and relaying confidences back to Strauss, especially concerning Elle Greenaway's shooting of a suspect and Reid's struggle with narcotics. She seems to consider this offer, and the season ends with a cliffhanger until the second episode of season 3, in which she resigns from the FBI to avoid betraying Hotch.
Season 3
Emily has previously told Hotch that she thinks politics "makes people distrustful" and "tears families apart," ("Sex, Birth, Death") implying that her home life as a child was not pleasant due to her mother's job. After some convincing from Hotch she returns to the team in the next episode, her resignation having never gone through system due to technical interference from Garcia, and the issue has not been brought up since. Upon her return, Section Chief Strauss remarks that neither Prentiss, Hotch, nor the rest of the team would be able to climb the ladder to the top because of all this, thus putting an end to some of Prentiss's future ambitions. In episode 319 ("Tabula Rasa") a high school photo reveals that Emily was a goth. Also, in episode 312 ("3rd Life"), she implies to Hotch that she smoked as an adolescent as a way to rebel against her parents. In the season 3 finale "Lo Fi," she shoots and kills an armed suspect after the suspect shoots a New York police officer.
Season 4
In episode 403 (Minimal Loss) she and Reid are held hostage by a religious cult. When the cult leader finds out that one of them is an FBI agent, Prentiss admits her identity, partially to protect Reid, and ends up getting beaten by the cult leader. Prentiss antagonizes the leader by twice repeating "I can take it" to keep the rest of the team from coming in, knowing that they are listening via bugs and that it would put everyone inside of the building in danger. Later, Prentiss reassures Reid that it was not his fault and asks him not to feel guilty.
Notes
- Her sidearm is a Glock 19.