A/N Hey there, finally got around to trying another story. It's one that has rattled around in my head for a long time... Turns out, once I started writing it, it didn't turn out ANYTHING like I originally thought... I hope you enjoy it and please leave me a friendly message when you are done. Constructive notes for improvement are always welcome... Just remember, be kind.
Hetty sighed contentedly as she pulled her chair up to the desk and sat down to a freshly brewed pot of tea. Rays of bright sunshine bathed the momentary stillness of the mission. Hetty always liked coming in early before everyone else. She appreciated the quiet solitude as she enjoyed her exotic tea choice and centered herself for the day ahead.
Today was a special day, she thought, as she breathed in the aroma of her "white pearls white tea". It was a treasured gift from a dear friend. This tea was an extremely rare find…not unlike her elite team.
She took a tentative sip of her tea, savoring its distinct flavor, letting her mind ponder the comparison.
Newly sprouted buds were carefully harvested and hand rolled into delicate pearls that gently unfurled when infused in the hot water. Her team was not so different. They were an equally rare and precious find. She carefully hand-picked each and every member for a reason. Set aside from one another, they seemed an unlikely group. The few things they had in common seemed far outweighed by the differences, but with gentle guidance and handling they would each come to the table a valuable member. When put to the test, the end result was one to be savored and appreciated.
She was brought out of her reverie as the once quiet building began to hum with life. "What a beautiful sound", she thought as she raised her cup in response to Eric and Nell's 'good morning' as they made their way up to Ops.
She watched as more and more people began milling around as they started their day, sharing with each other stories of their weekends.
Slowly her eyes drifted to the bullpen. The chairs still tucked up to the desks, no "go bags" yet graced the space….but soon….soon they'd be coming through those doors one by one…soon they'd be back together…as they should be.
She refilled her cup and took a sip, her mind once again wandering. It had been a long and hard 7 months. It seemed as if they were hit with one difficult case after another. Cases that left them all emotionally and physically exhausted and with little or no chance to rest and recoup before the next. Gradually it began to take its toll. The last case they all worked together threatened to tear them apart. It started out as a case involving drug dealing and gun running requiring she put her two best undercover agents into play. All was well the first several weeks until Callen uncovered another piece to the unsavory puzzle….human trafficking. A chill ran the length of her spine as she recalled the facts in the case. She held her cup in both hands in an effort to draw warmth from it. When Callen brought this news to light, her first instinct was to pull them and regroup. Not only were Callen and Deeks her best undercover operators but they were also the most volatile and vulnerable. Their pasts combined were frequently constructed of horrors and pains no one should every experience, much less a child. Cases like these were often grim reminders of things they wished they could forget. Still, her boys insisted they needed to stay and she knew better than to argue. Callen would see the job done. His mind was set. She knew he'd compartmentalize his feelings and memories and if he saw fit would deal with them later or as was more likely the case, he'd file it away in the back of his mind, never to see the light of day again, if only. Deeks on the other hand was not quite as adept at ignoring his feelings, though he tried. It was he that she worried about. Marty Deeks had survived a traumatic childhood while managing to keep some piece of that childish innocence that eluded G. Callen. For that, she was glad.
Just as she feared, the more ingrained in the case they became, the more she could see them unraveling. By the end, Kensi had been kidnapped, Sam had been shot while attempting to save her, Deeks cover had been blown and he too had been shot, beaten and left for dead. That left only Callen angry and alone in the field trying to locate and save Kensi….which he did with little thought to his own well-being. In the end, her entire A-Team had been taken out. G. Callen had kept his promise of bringing Kensi home, though it was not without injury and emotional trauma which both of them refused to talk about. Neither was willing to discuss what had happened. Kensi had shut down in what could only be described as self-preservation. Hetty had known Callen well enough that she could see the guilt and self-loathing he carried on his shoulders. She knew he would blame himself for all that went wrong with the case regardless of whether it was true or not. In this case, it most definitely was not. With no team to come home to, Callen immediately accepted an assignment co-opting with the DEA to finish what they started. Just two weeks later, word came back that Callen had been compromised and was taken hostage and tortured before finally being rescued.
She shook her head sadly. Watching her team members each struggling with their injuries alone was hard enough but now the real work began. Now she waited to see if they would come back together as a team or would she find herself back at square one. Today would be the true test. Their first day back as a complete team after nearly 3 months. Nate had come back in an effort to help Kensi deal with what she'd gone through. Sam had retreated to the quiet and loving support of his family. Though he tried and reached out to Callen a few times, Callen had made it very clear he wanted left alone. That had been a real concern. Not all that long ago, Callen had been prepared to leave the team and while he had , in the end, decided to stay…the offer had been left on the table for future consideration should he change his mind.
True to character, Callen eventually found the need to disappear as he licked his wounds and contemplated what came next. What surprised her was that Deeks showed up on his doorstep as he was preparing to leave and insisted Callen let him tag along. Once Callen was convinced it wasn't Hetty's doing, he acquiesced. She didn't know where they went or what they did but Deeks came back in a much better frame of mind and for that she was thankful. Deeks had been full of such guilt over letting Kensi down and not being there to protect her…but Callen was a true leader. He always had his team's back. He watched out for them and wouldn't allow them to hold onto blame that wasn't theirs to bear. If only he was as generous with himself. However, Callen remained a Ghost for another 5 weeks. Today the last of her team would return "home".
Slowly, one by one, they had come…First it was Sam. Just a few weeks later, Kensi had returned to the fold. It remained just the two of them for the next month until Deeks found his way back. For the past 5 weeks the bullpen remained a quiet and somber space. No one really spoke to one another and short of an easy case or two, their days were filled with paper work. Each day spent with frequent tentative glances towards the entry expecting Callen to walk in. He never stayed away for his entire sick leave, not even when he had taken 5 bullets….until now. That fact weighed heavy on each of their minds.
"Everything okay there, Hetty?" Nate asked as he approached her desk looking at her with a show of concern "you seemed lost in thought."
"Good Morning, Nate," Hetty smiled welcomingly as she offered him a cup of her prized tea, "I'm fine. I was just doing a bit of reminiscing. Did you have a good weekend?"
"Yes, thank you. I did actually. Did my last follow up with Kensi yesterday." Nate replied as he accepted the tea hesitantly.
"And how is Miss Blye doing?" she asked looking over the top of her glasses.
"She's doing well. Actually, she is doing much better than I expected. Being that this wasn't her first time dealing with a situation like this, I'm rather surprised at how well she is handling it all. Still, it leaves a mark" Nate replied.
"You would be referring to Afghanistan, would you not?" Hetty quarried quietly.
Nate only nodded as he swallowed his first sip, "This is very good."
"You seem surprised" she said with a smile.
"You know me, I prefer coffee normally but this could just be the thing that sways me." Nate said as he took yet another sip.
"hmmmm, best not get too attached, Mr. Getz. It is a very rare and hard to find tea. Its leaves are harvested but just a very few days each year, making it a rather expensive tea should you actually find some. Best stick to your coffee." Hetty grinned over the rim of her own cup before continuing. "And Sam? Where does he stand?"
"Sam? Oh he's fine. His shoulder is healed and back to normal. It was good he had time to spend with his family." Nate replied, "He has Michelle to talk to, which is a great help and a rarity in our line of work."
"Yes, family is one of the best cures for what ails us, and our Mr. Deeks? Is he 'back to normal'?"
Nate thought for a moment, "Physically, yes. Emotionally? Well, let's just say he's getting better at camouflaging his feelings. If I didn't know better, I'd swear he was taking lessons from Callen."
Hetty chuckled as she watched Sam take his place at his desk and began unpacking and starting up his computer. She noticed as he took note of the desk diagonal from his. His partner's desk was as bare as his house, void of anything personal. She found it sad that little had changed in that regard since their close call with him leaving. Some things just never changed. "Has Mr. Deeks ever let on where he and Mr. Callen disappeared to?"
"You mean you don't know?" Nate asked before adding, "I thought the great Hetty Lange knew all." He grinned as he finished his tea.
"Cheeky!" she exclaimed, wagging a finger at him.
Nate let out a soft laugh before sobering once again, "Seriously though, they didn't stay put at any one place that I know of. He did say that Callen made sure that he was okay with everything and that he knew the team needed him…that Kensi needed him….and that he needed the team…and most of all, Callen made sure that Deeks was not to blame for anything…that Kensi held no anger towards him for not being able to be there." Nate just shook his head.
"And our Mr. Callen. How is he handling things? Did Mr. Deeks share any insight on that?"
"Well, I think you know well enough that Callen isn't sharing anything with me anymore. It's my own fault, I know…. As for what Marty knows…..he didn't say much, out of loyalty I presume….but he did say that Callen is handling it his way…and he'd be back when he was ready. Hetty, he'll be here."
"I do hope you are right, Mr. Getz." Hetty replied, shaking her head sadly.
They fell into silence as they watched Kensi enter the bullpen and set her stuff down. She quietly placed a cup of coffee on each of the four desks. Sam smiled appreciatively before returning to the file he was reading. It was only a few moments later before Deeks sauntered in. He plopped down into his chair and gratefully accepted the coffee. Missing was the all too common banter. It was sorely missed.
Hetty sighed as she leaned back in her chair, her hands resting together, "This isn't good Nate, not good at all."
"Give it time, Hetty. They've been through a lot and there's still a missing part….an important part." Nate almost whispered.
"This isn't the first time we've had this conversation." Hetty stated with a fleeting smile.
"That's true, when you first started the OSP."
"Yes." Was all she replied.