"It's Not About Trust, It's About Family"
Bard15
AU Epi Tag/NCIS LA- HAWAII 5-0 X0
A/N; in the real world Danny and Chin wouldn't have rushed back to Hawaii so fast...there would have been days of debriefs (and reports)...Danny just only ever wanted to be a cop, have a family...but his ex-wife, 5-0, Steve McGarrett and the high caliber of bad guys he now faces leaves the Jersey native overwhelmed.
...HAWAII 5-0...NCIS LA...HAWAII 5-0...NCIS LA...
The alphabet soup of agencies, CIA, FBI, NSA and some Danny hadn't even heard of before, left him feeling more overwhelmed than the actual case; commenting to Chin after one such grueling debrief that had felt more like an interrogation, "And these are supposed to be the good guys; they do know we're on the same team..."
Chin just gave his friend his every present smile and clasped him on the back, "After working with Steve, brah, this should be a walk in the park..."
The older detective knew he had said the wrong thing when Danny shrugged off his hand and ran his hands down his face. His friend looked beyond exhausted.
"Still not answering," Chan said knowingly.
"Nope, called him at least fifty times...and nothing; how do we know this isn't like last time—like Korea; he could be...he could be anywhere, dead...tortured..." Danny's rant was subdued and full of worry.
"Because we have Joe...if Steve was really in any trouble Joe would know," Chin said, trying to catch his friend's eyes, "I don't like it any more than you do, but its Steve's fight...we have to respect that..."
"Steve's fight...Steve's fight...excuse me, but where have you been the last two years...it stopped being 'just' his fight the day I met him...the day Hess strapped a bomb around your neck...the day San Ming almost killed Kono..." Danny ranted angrily. "He made it our business when he pulled us into 5-0...and now..."
"I know brah, I'm worried too," Chin said quietly, "and when he needs us we'll be there to help him end this thing with Wo Fat..."
Danny finally gave a heavy sigh and shook his head.
"Now, we are done with everything...the case is locked up and the virus back in quarantine...let's just go collect on our beers and this time tomorrow we'll be back home..." Chin coaxed.
Danny gave a lop-sided grin and grumbled, "...thought we were going to Hawaii...not Jersey."
Chin just gave the detective a 'don't argue with me' look, "let's go, we're supposed to meet them at seven."
...NCIS LA...HAWAII 5-0...NCIS LA...HAWAII 5-0...NCIS LA...
They were sitting around a large table in the outdoor, ocean side restaurant, celebrating the end to the days of debriefs following the whole "small pox" scare.
"Excuse me," Danny said as he checked his ringing cell.
"Hey monkey, it's late..." they heard him say as he headed down the walk towards the beach.
At the curious stares, Chin answered, "His daughter, Gracie..."
"He's like talked to the kid a hundred times since he's been here," Deeks commented off-handedly.
"Be nice," Kensi chastised her partner, hitting him in the arm, "I think its sweet..."
"I'm just saying; could have stuffed the kid in his luggage; saved a ton of the long distance..." Deeks grumbled, rubbing his arm.
Chin gave a heavy sigh, adding to the stress of the case and the continued lack of communication from Steve, Danny's had been a little more biting in his rants of late and Chin felt the need to defend his friend, "Gracie is his world...several months ago an ex-con kidnapped her...so yeah, he's a little over-protective...we all are."
The agents raised shocked eyebrows, Deeks backpedaling, "Ah, man, look I'm sorry..."
Chin just shook his head, "It's alright, not like you could have known."
"Hope you got the bastard," Callen ground out.
"Yeah, we got him and we got Gracie back unharmed," Chin said.
"Is she alright...his daughter," Sam asked, his mind on his own kids.
"Yeah, I think she's bounced back from it a whole lot better than Danny..." Chin replied with a gentle smile, looking out to where his friend sat.
"That's definitely enough to make any man crazy...no wonder he's been on edge..." Sam commiserated.
"It's not just that, it's the whole case; I think it hit just a little too close to home...reminds him to much of last time..."Chin said quietly.
"Last time...you've had other cases involving pathogens..." Callen asked in surprise.
"Not pathogens...sarin," Chin supplied.
"Sarin," Callen asked with concern.
"Danny chased a fugitive into a house, wasn't even part of the case we were working; anyway he was exposed to Sarin from checking a dead Vic; we..." Chin took a deep breath, looking out at his friend who was just finishing his call, "it was bad...we were within hours of losing him..."
"God, that's awful," Kensi gasped, "But he's okay now, right."
"So that's why he's been so jumpy..." Callen commented, remembering how hesitant the detective had been when they found the medical containment area and the dead small pox victims.
"Yeah, he's fine," Chin answered,
The assembled group watched as Danny made no move to return to the table, instead sat staring at his phone for a few minutes before dialing a new number and closing his phone in frustration moments later.
"Still haven't heard from Steve yet either," Sam asked, as he too watched the detective. While not privy to the details of his friends 'mission', Sam was aware of enough to know the extreme danger involved in Steve's hunt for the man who killed his father: but unlike himself, who was used to the secrecy involved in ops, he knew the detective did not easily accept that particular piece of military propriety.
"No...And after what happened in Korea; let's just say tensions have been very high at 5-0 of late," Chin replied.
Though having no Intel on the particular incident in Korea, the agent's knew well enough from their own experiences that Chin was referring to an Op that has obviously gone south.
"Steve always did have a singular focus when he's on a mission," Sam said in exasperation, shaking his head.
"Yeah, his old man was the same way..." Chin commented, adding wearily, "I just hope it doesn't end up killing him like it did his father."
Reaching out to place a comforting hand on Chin's shoulder, Sam said grimly, "Me too, buddy...me too. Just remember if you guys, or Steve, need anything, you call me."
Chin gave a small smile, "Thanks Sam."
Sam just nodded and grabbed up his and Danny's beers from the table and headed towards the detective.
"Not sure Danny will appreciate the standard navy SEAL pep talk," Chin commented as he watched Sam walk towards his partner.
"Not a seal pep talk...a friend to friend one," Callen said, "McGarrett is his friend too."
...NCIS LA...HAWAII 5-0...NCIS LA...HAWAII 5-0...NCIS LA...
Sam walked down to the small retaining wall separating the outdoor restaurant from the beach, stopping several feet from the detective.
"Is that some super-seal thing...the stalking and laser eyed stare...," Danny asked with tired irritation.
Sam just gave an amused snort and moved up to sit by Danny on the low wall, handing him his unfinished beer.
"You alright," Sam asked.
"Alright, why shouldn't I be alright? We just stopped an insane woman from wiping out half the population with a super germ," Danny said with a hint of sarcasm, adding, "But it just another day at the office for you guys right...ranks right there between the terrorists and shoe bombers..."
Sam gave a mirthless chuckle, "not quite, but yeah, we go after some heavy hitters sometimes."
Danny took a long pull from his bottle, staring out at the waves, his next words subdued, "and this is what it's about, this spy stuff...what NCIS does, what the 'black ops' Steve can never talk about are all about...do I want to know how many times things like this go on...how often the world gets saved that us mere mortals never hear about...?"
"If we do it right, no one is the wiser," Sam answered truthfully. "I know it can be frustrating when all Steve can share with you is the standard disclaimer..."
An amused snort stopped Sam, as Danny ranted bitterly, arms waving, "no, he shares quite a bit of what our illustrious government has taught him...roof top interrogation techniques, making a weapon out of pine apple and bamboo, using the trunk of my car like his own personal arsenal...speaking in his super-seal code..."
Never having experienced a true on Danny rant, Sam didn't quite know how to respond; but was saved from having to figure it out when the detective suddenly became quiet, replacing the verbal tirade with agitated pacing
Sam watched as Danny finally stopped and ran his hands down his face; turning to look Sam square in the face, "I get it, I really do...since being on the task force and seeing what's out there...stuff I'd never dream of seeing in Jersey; I get it, the things out there that need taken care of..."
Sam just nodded as Danny continued, his tone becoming low and tight with emotion, "I get why you and Steve do what you do; why we need all the super spy cloak and dagger routines...I was there..."
Sam just looked at the Jersey cop with some surprise; he didn't need to ask the detective where "Here" was. Sam's estimation of the man's character going up a few notches in the former military man's eyes; Danny may not be a trained soldier, but he had seen the horrors of a bloody battlefield in his own backyard, and had no doubt reached out with everything he possessed, and then some, to get through the days following the tragedy.
Clasping his hands and giving them a shake Danny continued, his tone now taking on a pleading quality, as though asking Sam to help him understand Steve's motives. "...and I know I'm just a cop from Jersey...I don't have all his super-seal, cloak and dagger training but...we're a team, we're his team, and he's shutting us out..."
Sam quickly jumped up from his spot, grabbing the smaller man by the shoulders, "Hey, stop right there; don't you dare sell yourself short. Steve trusts you...the few times I've been in touch with him since he came back...you've impressed him more than you know—keeping up with his 'super-seal' methods, your strength of character, your dedication; you're like family to him..."
"Yeah, family huh; that why Super Seat still isn't answering my calls..." Danny replied flatly, his new rant colored more with betrayal than anger, "Cause he has so much trust in me that he just up and leaves us behind to track down one of the most dangerous bastards I've ever come across...not like we don't have to worry ourselves sick wondering if he's dead or anything..."
"He's doing what he has to do...doing what he's been trained to do; and he's doing it to protect you," Sam said.
"No one asked him for his protection," Danny snapped, adding with more restraint, "Look, I know why he's doing it, I really do; but he gave up any right to cut us out of all this the day 5-0 was tasked...super seal has to understand there's no "I" in team..."
"Maybe it's not you he's protecting..." Sam said.
"What...what are you talking about...," Danny asked in frustration.
"It's not about Steve not trusting you to have his back, it's about keeping his family safe...all of his family," Sam responded pointedly.
Danny just watched in confusion as Sam reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet, opening it up to the pictures and handing it to Danny, "My kids...Zoey and Jerome..."
"Cute kids," Danny said as he looked at the picture.
"A SEAL team is like a family...you spend a lot of time with the guys in your unit, live in each other's pockets for weeks or months on an Op," Sam explained, "my team was scheduled for an Op about six years ago to a real hot zone...we were twelve hours from shipping out when my orders get pulled and I'm on a bus back to LA..."
"Your daughter...she's about six..." Danny commented.
"Commander McGarrett wasn't just looking out for me...he was looking out for my little girl...wanted to make sure she wouldn't be born an orphan..." Sam supplied, "I got to the hospital just in time for them to put that precious baby girl in my arms..."
"So, what you're saying is he's lookin' out for my baby girl...my Gracie," Danny said with a sigh.
"Steve doesn't just see you as his partner...he sees you as family—sees Gracie as family..." Sam said pointedly. "I'm his friend...a fellow SEAL, but you my man...you are his brother..."
Danny smiled self-consciously, "Gracie loves her uncle Steve, that is for sure...and I; I trust him with her life..."
"I know it's hard...even in the military we're not privy to the details of another teams op, as soldiers, we're trained to accept that—but trust Steve to do everything he can to come back to his family..." Sam said, "...and trust that if the word comes down, SEALS do not leave a man behind..."
"You, agent Sam Hannah have been a good friend, to Steve...and to me; and I thank you for that," Danny said, holding out a hand to shake.
Sam smiled broadly and took the proffered hand then pulled the smaller man into a bear hug.
"Yeah, thanks, big guy..." Danny said, patting the larger man on the back, "uh, you can let go now, oxygen becoming an issue here..."
Releasing the detective with a smile and a forceful pat on the back, Sam slung his arm over Danny's shoulder and turned him back toward the restaurant, "let's get back to the party..."
...NCIS LA...HAWAII 5-0...NCIS LA-HAWAII 5-0...NCIS LA...
A/N: hope it didn't seem too convoluted or OOC for either, I just felt there should have been a little more bonding between Sam and Danny.
I'm also playing around with the idea of a second chapter...Steve is going to be none too happy when he reads the small pox case report and realizes the danger his team faced during his time away...and really...do we really think he doesn't know someone in the CIA, and that he won't chew his way to the agents that kidnapped his partner while he was flying back with Wo Fat...
...and, yes, I am working on my other stories—hope to have another chapter up for Interagency Co-op up soon...got two ways I want to play it and can't decide which to go with...(have Deeks prove his loyalty to Cooper by taking out the commander, his secretary and the two merc's he hired, -ie. David, Kensi, Sam and Colby, thus leaving him alone undercover again -OR—the expected 'killing' of David & Kensi and hiring the merc's to act as body guards at the buy with the terrorists.)-suggestions welcomed...
