Got this idea watching an old movie. Hope you like it.

It was late and she was tired, but M waited anyway for Bond who was due back any minute from his latest mission. She had no intention of formally debriefing him tonight, but she had to admit over the last six weeks she had missed their normal banter back and forth and she was almost certain tonight's ridiculous explanations would not leave her disappointed. Eve and Tanner had been gone for hours, so she was alone when he finally arrived, looking a little worse for wear, but at least in one piece.

"007, how nice of you to finally grace us with your presence" she said sarcastically as she walked around to lean against the front of her desk with her arms folded in front of her.

"Sorry for the delay Ma'am, It couldn't be helped" he replied in a somewhat expressionless tone

"So the mission, albeit a bit messy, was a success I assume?"

"Yes" he replied with no indication he intended to elaborate or even attempt to defend his actions

"And Rene`? Where is he?"

"Downstairs in custody Ma'am"

"What's the matter Bond?" she asked rather puzzled by his marked departure from his usual sarcastic behavior "No snappy comeback? no incredibly asinine defense for your actions during the mission, no explanations as to your lack of communication for more than 36 hours..."

"It's nothing Ma'am. Just a bit tired I guess" was his response

"I see" she said suspiciously as she moved closer to inspect his facial injuries "I trust you will be stopping by medical on your way out?" she said reaching up to lightly trace the fresh scar above his eye with her finger.

Bond's reaction to her touch more that startled her as he immediately pulled away from her. Although she was his boss, Bond and M had always had a rather less than conventional working relationship. Not quite colleagues and not quite friends. It wasn't unusual for them to share the occasional odd friendly physical gesture, so Bond pulling away and clearly avoiding direct eye contact was certainly cause for alarm.

"Of Course Ma'am, Standard procedure" he said again in an almost expressionless tone

"Alright then. I will expect a full written report tomorrow" she said half expecting to hear any one of a half dozen reasons why he couldn't possibly comply with her request.

"Of course Ma'am. It will be on your desk in the morning" was his reply as he turned and headed out the door.

M was stunned by his behavior, particularly his attention to rules and procedures, Two things he absolutely detested and made it his personal mission to avoid whenever possible. The fact that he never once referred to her by her title also did not go unnoticed. M returned to her chair and quickly picked up the phone and called Tanner, something was defiantly wrong and it needed to be sorted out sooner rather than later.

Tanner arrived at the office to find a rather irritated and concerned M waiting for him.

"Tanner, Thank you for coming back. I know it's late." she said as he entered her office

"Of course M. What exactly is it you want me to do?"

"I want all of the paperwork related to Bond's latest mission, Intel reports, communication transcripts, receipts, any scrap of paper even if it's an unauthorized doodle."

"May I ask why?"

"I've just spoken to 007, and his behavior, in fact his entire demeanor was anything but normal, especially for Bond. Perhaps I am overreacting, but I believe that something happened to him on this mission and we need to know exactly what that something was and the sooner the better" she said her voice suddenly displaying a great deal of concern

"Ma'am, all due respect, but you are trained to notice odd behavior, especially in one of your agents, so if you say his behavior is odd it isn't an overreaction" replied Tanner in an attempt to reassure her

"Thank you" she said with a hint of relief

"Right. Is there any one particular area you want to focus on?" replied Tanner as he was writing down the list of information she was requesting

"Yes, I want to pay particular attention to the communications directly before and after the 36 hours where we lost communication with him" she said flatly

"Right Ma'am. You do realize that this could take a few hours to gather this much information, and due to the fact that he's only just returned, most of the reports aren't even completed. Perhaps you should go home and I'll have it waiting for you in the morning"

"I suppose you're right" she said looking at her watch. "I want you to call me as soon as you have them" she said as she rose from her chair.

"Yes Ma'am" he said as he turned and left her office

"Oh James, what have you gotten yourself into this time" she muttered to herself as she switched off her light and headed home.

TO BE CONTINUED...