Those who read my fics are aware of my love for the characters of Eric and Calleigh, but I've neglected to write or mention the special place in my heart for Horatio, who has always been a favorite of mine. I love everything from his shades, to his one-liners and his devotion to his team and Miami. A lot of people think I'm strange because I love the character and certain aspects of him so much, but "Quite frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."

Any who, I've been hesitant to write an H fic because I wasn't sure if I could really write the character, but I'm going to take a chance and see how it goes.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

There had always been an odd balance in the way Horatio had lived his life, the harmony he maintained between solitude and companionship. The balance had always been more of an intention of the world around him more so than his own deciding. Every night, it seemed he always ended up alone, either in his office or at his home. He would stare out the window and let his mind replay through the images of the case he and his team had solved that day; nine times out of ten, some aspect of the investigation could be tied back to his own personal tragedies. Whether it be from the abuse and hardships he and Raymond endured as children, losing Marisol and his brother, discovering Kyle only to have him vanish as well not long later. The comings and goings of all the people he ever held dear, he ever loved, were enough to make him begin to believe maybe this was how it was meant to be, maybe Horatio Caine was put on this Earth to be a lone wolf.

But Horatio had defied the title it seemed God or Fate was constantly forcing upon him. He had tried to have relationships in every way possible, whether it be friendship, brotherhood, matrimony and even unexpected parenthood. He had gained all, maintained few and was still left alone when the sun disappeared on the horizon.

It always seemed to be every time he managed to have one or more of said relationships, some catastrophic event would occur and one or more of the relationships would be demolished. Horatio had only discovered the existence of his son a little less than four years ago, one of those he was serving his country. Of course Horatio had been enormously proud of his son's decision, but Kyle being basically torn away from him not incredibly long after their meeting seemed all too typical. The same could be said for Marisol, the only woman he had ever loved and adored with a passion the greatest Renaissance artist couldn't meet. It felt like a never ending struggle through her cancer, but when the call came of her remission, she and Horatio felt the same weight lift off of them; they were now truly free to start their lives together…only for hers to be drastically snatched away. Horatio remembered all too clearly Marisol's hand going limp in his, the color draining from her beautiful face and paleness remaining in the once magenta cheeks.

It was the same hospital he lost her in which he now lay, he was certain of it, though he had yet to open his eyes. He felt a pain in his side, no doubt where Randy had taken a shot, and a hard bed that was slowly being raised as he drifted back to consciousness. Horatio could hear the steady beats of his heart on the monitor, registering with a constant pattern of beeps, and an oxygen tube resting under his nose. He could see a bright light shining through his eyelids and he heard a medley of voices speaking lightly from around him.

Finally, he began to repetitively blink to open his eyes and look around him. He was, indeed, in a hospital room, the faces of his family standing around him. Alexx was standing at the end of the bed, letting out a sigh of relief as she placed a hand over the crucifix on her necklace. Frank and Ryan were on either side of her, Ryan smiling as Horatio rejoined the world from which he almost escaped. Frank, whose head was still injured from the incident from earlier that day, nodded and grinned slightly. Walter saw Horatio awaken and he let out a heavily exhale, folded his large hands atop his head and stared out the window, collecting himself. Natalia, who he was relieved to see, was in a wheelchair beside his bed, a wide and grateful smile coming to her slightly haggard face.

Calleigh and Eric were standing closest to him, standing on parallel sides of the bed and careful not to look at one another, but they had an identical look of easement upon their faces. Calleigh's eyes brightened as a smile tugged on Eric's lips. Horatio kept his eyes on his brother-in-law for a moment, holding his gaze as a method of reassuring Eric he was fine. Once again, one of them had almost eluded this world and entered the one that held Marisol. One of them had once again narrowly escaped the claw of death that snatched her from them, living to tell the tale.

But when Horatio's eyes left Eric, they landed on Natalia. Her face was wan and her body was slightly rigid, but the grin on her face counteracted the stress present throughout her.

"Are you okay?" Horatio asked her.

"Yeah," she sighed, her voice slightly hoarse. "You?"

"I'm okay," he nodded. "Toller?"

"We're working on it," Calleigh assured him, voice soft and kind. "Don't worry."

Despite her reassurance, Horatio was worried and he would remain so until Toller was caught and brought to justice once again. The madman was walking the streets of his beloved Miami with everything needed to print as much money as his evil heart desired. Horatio hadn't had a decent night sleep since the convicts broke out of prison all those months ago and they had been close to putting the most elusive of the prisoners back in his cell behind bars. The very thought Toller had slipped through their fingers once again made Horatio feel slightly nauseous.

"We'll get him, H," Eric promised, sensing Horatio's anxiety.

This Horatio was sure of; he had every confidence in his team and their ability to follow the evidence, no matter how limited their usable evidence may be.

"Now, I know I'm wasting my breath saying this," Alexx spoke for the first time. "But try not to stress about this case, okay? Both of you," she turned to give Natalia a serious look, one mother's normally gave when giving a warning, "you guys are going to be out of commission for some time and constantly worrying about this will not set your recovery back."

"Hey, you guys might like being out of work for a while," Frank interjected in an attempt to be helpful, but falling short; there wasn't a CSI on the team that liked having a lengthy period of time off, especially due to the health related incidences.

Ryan cleared his throat. "Umm, Frank…when you hit your head this morning…how many brain cells did you lose?"

Frank shot Ryan a dirty look and a silence fell across the room before eight smiles broke out across their faces and multiple chuckles, laughs and giggles filled the air, the moment of tension having been broken. Frank tried to suppress a laugh, but didn't succeed as a small grin broke across his face.

It was in that moment, with the entire team together and laughing, was Horatio once again reminded of how he must have been envied by every other lieutenant, for he was certain none of them had a team as unbelievable as his own; sometimes Horatio forgot that they were his team other than his family. Yes, he had been through hell and back occasionally in his life, but these instances made it bearable. But had this team been made of people that weren't the ones who had surrounded him for all these years, coping wouldn't have been so easy.

This was his niche, where he belonged. In this team he wasn't the lone wolf or the damaged man. He was Lieutenant Horatio Caine…he was H.

You're never gonna be alone

From this moment on

If you ever feel like letting go, I won't let you fall

When all hope is gone, I know that you can carry on

We're gonna take the world on

I'll hold you 'til the hurt is gone

-Nickleback "Never Gonna Be Alone"