Title: Here In Your Arms

Chapter One: The Places You Have Come To Fear The Most.

Summary: Set after the "end" of Season Three. Veronica gets a call that will turn her world upside down. Duncan is back and he wants the gang to all meet up for a holiday. Secrets will be revealed and old wounds healed.

Rated: PG-13

Disclaimer: All characters and elements of "Veronica Mars" belong to the great Rob Thomas. Sadly, I own nothing.

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Veronica sat in the over-lit interrogation room at the FBI headquarters in Virginia. However, in this instance it was no longer the interrogation room but, for the sake of the departing interns, it had been turned into a festive, balloon and streamer filled nightmare.

Surveying the horrifying scene in front of her she noticed the typical brown-nosing interns chatting animatedly to the Chief and everyone one else was mulling around trying to kill time before they could leave. Veronica sighed and remembered her worst weeks at the bureau.

Flashback:

Veronica awoke in the hospital, battered and bruised. The pain she felt from the large gash in her head was soon forgotten as feelings of relief washed over her.

They had found the kidnapped girl and she was safe at home with her parents. Veronica wished that she herself could be safe at home with her Dad. Anything to, shield her from the wrath of the Chief. He had expressly told her not to get involved but she saw the gap and she just couldn't let the kidnappers get away.

She snapped out of her reverie when she heard a throat clear. Glancing up at the doorway she saw the Chief leaning against the frame. He was a huge man, not someone you would want to mess with, but in the first few days of her internship he had taken a liking to her sass and intelligence. He mentored her and allowed her to assist on cases that none of the other interns were allowed to be in on. That was how she ended up so deeply embroiled in the kidnapping case of little Sarah-Jane Mahew.

"Chief" she started, "I'm so sor…"

"Enough Mars!" he bellowed. Veronica's voice caught in her throat.

"Veronica," his voice softened, "you could have been killed and you disobeyed direct orders. That's not how we run our operation. You lied to me, after all the trust I put in you…"

"Chief please let me exp…"

"Wait Mars, this needs to be said and for once in you're life you're going to listen!"

"I trusted you and you betrayed that trust, you put your life in danger and you could have cost that little girl her life…" Veronica looked down at the crisp white sheet she was wringing in her hands as a silent tear worked its way down her pale cheek.

"All that being said.." he continued, "that was some detective work Mars, we may never have gotten to her in time had it not been for some creative thinking on your part."

Veronica looked up and saw the proud smile gracing his features.

"Thank-you sir" she whispered.

The Chief turned to leave and on his way out he glanced back at her over his shoulder.

"Oh, and Mars, next time, be careful. I wouldn't want to loose my future agent before she graduates."

Present:

Veronica snapped back into focus when she felt a warm breath tingle her ear, "He sexy" he drawled.

Veronica turned around and looked straight into his piercing blue eyes.

"Nathan, I do have a real name you know."

"I know," he purred, as he slowly circled her like a predator, his eyes never leaving her. "I just prefer to call you sexy."

"Well I'd prefer it if you didn't call me at all" she punctuated her words with steely determination, her eyes narrowing into dangerous slits.

"Come on Veronica," he smiled. "That thing with Casey meant nothing to me, you can't still be pissed about that!"

"When you say that 'thing' are you referring to the fact that I caught you and Agent Burrows doing a little 'in-depth investigation' on the staff room coffee table?"

"Come-on Sexy, we never said we were exclusive, it was just a little fun with Casey. Get over it. Besides, the sooner you get over it, the sooner we get to make-up" he leered at her suggestively.

"Nathan, I suggest you get over yourself." Veronica stated calmly.

"It's time to move on, the summer is over and I've got bigger fish to fry. Did you honestly think I would be heart-broken by your little tryst? You obviously never got it did you? I was filling time with you Nathan, you were just a replacement for someone better, and you were a cheap one at that." Veronica calmly turned around and headed towards the door, leaving a shocked and angry Nathan on her wake.

As she headed out the door she could almost hear her fathers words in her head,

"That's my Veronica, making friends and spreading love wherever she goes."

Dad would be so proud.

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Veronica stared at her small little cubicle; it contained the sum of her time at the FBI. She began to remove all the case files she was working on, alphabetizing each to store away later. When she was done the last thing that remained on her desk was a photo. She stared at the picture of herself, Wallace, Mac and Logan. It was taken at a Hearst picnic when she still knew where Wallace was, when she still talked to Mac and when she didn't systematically avoid all Logan's phone calls.

Veronica sighed and packed the photo into her bag.

"Mars" the Chief called out, Veronica jumped a little at the sound of the voice that invaded the silence.

"A little jumpy are we? I thought I'd find you here"

"I'm not really one for fake goodbyes and air kisses," she mumbled.

"Understandable, look Mars I just wanted to congratulate you on a job well done. Not many people can hack it in the big leagues but you've more than proven yourself"

The Chief placed a protective hand on her shoulder.

"The powers that be have asked me to offer you a permanent position with us when you graduate, they've even offered to pay for the rest of your studies, providing you major in Criminology that is."

Veronica stared at the Chief, shocked. "I….I don't know what to say." She stammered.

"There's nothing to be said Mars, it's done."

Veronica stared long at hard at the man she respected almost as much as her own father.

"Thank you Chief, I won't let you down."

"I know you won't Mars" he smiled at her before turning to walk away into the darkening office.

Veronica was broken from her trance by the shrill ringing of her desk phone.

Veronica picked up the phone, "Agent Mars, hello."

"Veronica..." Logan's voice cut through the line, "Listen to me, please don't hang up it's important."

The urgency in Logan's voice caused Veronica to rethink slamming the phone down on him. She had refused to talk to him all summer long after what he had done to Piz. He'd called and texted almost everyday, and she had ignored him almost everyday.

"Veronica… hello? Are you still there?" When Logan got no reply he swore and went to put the phone down.

"Wait! Hello?" he heard Veronica's voice cut through the tinny phone line.

"Logan are you there? She shouted.

"Yeah I'm here Veronica, look I'm sorry to bother you at work but it's important."

"What's so important Logan, did you piss off another Russian Mafia child." Veronica's annoyance rang through his ears.

Logan took a deep breath and mentally willed himself not to turn the conversation into a pissing match.

"Veronica, this is serious, it's Duncan…"

The words shocked Veronica into civility.

"Logan what's happened to Duncan? Is Lilly alright!"

"Calm down Ronnie, Lilly and Duncan are fine. In fact they're better than fine. They're home…."