A/N: So after rewatching the season 8 moment when Kensi said she wanted to ask Granger to walk her down the aisle, I started thinking. And that thinking led, for once, to happy feels, and this happened. I hope you enjoy this bit of fluff! (Might be a little cheesy towards the end, but hey, I rarely write happy things. I'm allowed some cheesiness.)

Kensi jabbed the submit button on her last piece of paperwork and closed her laptop triumphantly, looking forward to finally going home. Their latest case had taken a grueling three days to close, with the entire team living off coffee more than sleep. It was heavy on emotion too, at least for Kensi, as it had involved a string of brides with murdered grooms instead of happy weddings. With her and Deeks's wedding growing nearer with every passing day, that idea was not something she wanted in her head.

As if summoned by the sound of her closing laptop, her fiancé appeared. "You ready to go?"

Kensi nodded, slinging her bag over shoulders. "So ready."

Deeks reached over to wrap his arm around her shoulders, and she started wrapping her own around his waist, but movement caught her eye. It was Callen, yawning and limping towards the tunnel. Kensi winced guiltily, remembering the beating he'd taken while waiting for her to run in and back him up.

"You ok?" Deeks asked, looking at her as he felt her wince.

"Yeah," Kensi said quickly, wiggling out of his grip as a blindingly obvious answer to a question she'd had for a while popped into her head. "Go ahead and get the car – I've gotta talk to Callen."

Concern flickered across his expression. "Ok. But you know what happened wasn't-"

"Just go," Kensi said, turning towards Callen. Deeks pressed a kiss to her forehead before walking away.

"Hey, Callen," she called, moving to intercept him.

He stopped and blinked blearily at her. "Hey."

For a moment, she considered just going and letting him rest, but she knew it would take forever to find the courage again. But she didn't want to get to her main question just yet. "Are you ok?" she asked instead.

Callen shrugged, scrubbing a hand across the eye that wasn't black. "I've had worse."

Despite what Deeks had said, she couldn't help it. "I should've gotten there faster."

He shook his head minutely. "It wasn't your fault, Kensi. Besides, I think Sam enjoys an excuse to drag me to his house to take care of these days, with the empty nest and all."

Kensi chuckled – Sam's fatherly instincts had grown more evident in the field lately, and it was more preferable to pin it on the empty nest than... the other thing. For a moment, she wondered if she should ask him instead, then decided against it – he would get the chance with his own daughter someday.

"I assume you didn't risk the wrath of a SEAL by stopping me just to ask a question you already know the answer to?" Callen pressed, but he just looked at her patiently.

"Yeah, no I didn't. I, uh, I was wondering…" She trailed off, wringing her hands together. Callen just shifted his weight as he waited.

Kensi took a deep breath and started again. "I've been wondering about something for a while, something about the wedding, and I honestly can't believe I didn't think of you sooner. I was going to ask Granger to do it, but, well…"

Callen just arched a brow as she trailed off again, probably wondering what had gotten into her, and what request she could possibly have of both him and Granger.

She cleared her throat. "I was wondering, Cal- Grisha. Grisha, would you want to walk me down the aisle?"

Silence. Callen just stood there, not responding, his eyes widening slowly and his mouth hanging open a bit. Kensi awkwardly wrapped her arms around herself and looked away. This was a mis-

But then Callen spoke, his voice a breath of awe and confusion. "You… you want me to walk you down the aisle?"

Kensi smiled in relief, realizing where the hesitation came from. "Yeah, Callen. You're like the big brother I never had – who better to give me away?"

"I, um, well- if you're sure- I mean, I'm sure Sam would be happy to- or one of your friends' dads-"

Carefully, she rested her hands on his shoulders. "Grisha. I'm sure."

A smile broke across his face, still a little bemused, but beaming regardless. "It would be my honor, Kensi."

She couldn't hold back a little squeal, sweeping Callen into a light hug and kissing his cheek. "Thank you!"

He hugged back, his grip tight. "Any time, little sister."

Kensi broke away, grinning, and went to tell Deeks, walking with an elated skip in her step. For a moment, she paused, looking over her shoulder. "Will your family be there?"

"Yeah," Callen promised, and she swore she saw tears beginning to glimmer in his eyes. "Everyone will be there."

-NCISLA-

Grisha watched Kensi practically skip away, unexpected warmth chasing away the pain of his injuries. As she disappeared around the corner, he knew he looked like he was smiling at nothing, but he couldn't find it in himself to care. He did, however, swipe away the threatening happy tears before they could touch a cut on his cheek.

"What are you standing there for?" Sam asked, coming out from where Kensi had disappeared. "And why's Kensi so happy?"

"She, uh… she just asked me to walk her down the aisle," Grisha replied, the conversation finally sinking in.

I'm going to walk her down the aisle.

Sam grinned. "That's great! Wait – you said yes, right?"

Grisha rolled his eyes at his partner. "Ye of little faith. Yes, Sam, I said yes."

"Good. Now, let's go get those bruises off your face before the big day."

With Sam's hand on his shoulder to guide him, Grisha let his eyes close to savor the moment.

"You good?" Sam asked.

Grisha nodded. "Yeah. I'm… I'm happy," he realized aloud. Not smiling and laughing happy, but content happy. Safe happy. Because, in that moment, with Kensi's words floating in his head, he realized he had found something. Something rarer and more precious than words could express.

Between his newfound blood relatives and this eclectic group of people he worked with, he had found his family. It was odd and small and a little broken and definitely dysfunctional, but it was his, and he wouldn't trade it for the world.

For the first time in decades, Grisha finally, truly knew that he was home.