Author's Note: Originally posted on AO3
Xxxxxxx
Leadership
„-not being fair, don't you think?" Kensi hissed.
„I did back him up, Sam," Deeks words could be heard practically simultaneously to his partner's, his voice quiet and sullen but defiant at the same time.
Callen rounded the corner and stepped into the armory, taking in the scene in the gun range from outside. Sam had crowded Deeks against a partition, standing toe to toe and ignoring Kensi who tried to pry him away.
"Then why does he have another bullet hole in his body?" Sam growled.
Before anyone could say anything else, Callen threw the door to the gun range open and barged into the room. "Enough," he barked, noting with satisfaction that the trio instantly sprung apart. He usually kept a lid on his fury and even if he let it show, it was more of a cold and calculating fury. What he let them see right now was white hot and angry. He was angry at their conduct, angry they were in this situation in the first place.
Sam turned to him, a glimmer of surprise in his eyes before they fell to the bloody stain on his shirt and darkened in anger once more. Sam turned back to Deeks but Callen strode forward and deftly positioned himself between his partner and Deeks. He shoved Sam back, again seeing the surprise enter his friend's eyes.
Sam opened his mouth and Callen could see the words forming, Sam's eyes still on Deeks. "I said 'enough'," he said again, his voice low but not hiding the fury he felt. His eyes bore into Sam's when they snapped over to him.
When Sam's mouth opened again, this time obviously wanting to direct the sentence to him, Callen shook his head. "Not another word!" Callen warned darkly. He consciously relaxed his posture a little bit, giving some ground and trying to deescalate the situation. His voice was softer when he went on, "don't say anything you know you will regret later on," he told his partner. When Sam kept his mouth shut and didn't try to attack again, Callen decided to take that as a win for the moment. "Now," he looked at Sam and Kensi both before he straightened, "out," he ordered. Callen held up a hand when he saw them both draw breath to argue, "both of you: out. That's an order."
He could see the impact of his words, the way they both recoiled.
Callen had never gone in much of an over-dominant style of leadership. He managed to maintain both control and respect, while encouraging his team's various strengths. He also usually didn't specify an order by tagging on that it was an order. The team worked as a coherent unit and he usually tried to keep his lead subtle and unobtrusive. Right now, he saw the need for a heavy handed approach to stun his team into silence and derail the train wreck in the making.
No one moved and Callen felt his eyes narrow in anger.
"Out," he muttered again, his voice taking on a hard and dangerous edge that the others obviously knew better than to disregard since both Kensi and Sam stepped away simultaneously. "And if I hear you yelling at each other outside you will both regret it. Don't make me come after you," he warned in a low growl.
Once the door closed behind Sam and Kensi, Callen blew out a breath, letting go of his own anger about the situation. Only then did he turn back to the only person remaining in the room.
Deeks watched him somewhat cautiously, but the man sometimes threw self preservation out the window. And right now, he was still smarting from Sam's unnecessary and unprovoked attack, so the first words out of his mouth were a counter attack. "What? You're gonna ride my ass about the mission now, too?" Deeks accused.
Callen felt his hackles rise; "shut it," he snarled and then snapped hi owns mouth shut, clenching his jaw. He briefly closed his eyes to push the anger away and when he opened them again, Deeks hadn't moved, his expression wary now though, most certainly unsure what he was facing. Callen drew a slow breath and once more consciously relaxed his frame, noting the way Deeks posture eased a little bit as well. "Actually, I came to thank you for saving my ass," Callen said evenly.
Deeks didn't move, but there was an easing of his muscles that gave his relief away.
Callen sighed and rubbed a hand over his face, moving over to one of the partitions and leaning against it, facing the younger man.
Deeks was watching him still somewhat wearily, but looked less like he was bracing for an attack. He also didn't look like he would initiate the conversation, which was rather unusual since they normally couldn't get him to shut up.
"Whatever Sam said or implied, don't listen to him," Callen advised quietly.
Deeks tilted his head to the side, his expression curious now, though still guarded. "Don't you think he should be the one to offer that apology?" he asked quietly.
"Oh, yes," Callen agreed, "and he will. I'll make sure of it."
There was a hint of surprise at the ferocity of his words in Deeks' eyes. It was no secret that Callen and Sam had a strong friendship that went way beyond that of a normal partnership between agents. That didn't mean that Callen couldn't see that Sam was wrong sometimes.
"Sam is one of the most solid men I know," Callen said calmly, raising his eyes to meet Deeks', "there are very few things that scare him and throw him off balance. Losing his partner is one of them."
Deeks seemed to contemplate the words before he nodded slowly. "It feels like he still - after all these years, after all that we went through - he doesn't trust me," he confessed softly.
Callen gave him a small smile, "he trusts you, Deeks. He's furious he couldn't be there to back me up himself," he said evenly before glancing away for a moment. Returning his eyes to Deeks', he gave the other a small shrug, "that and the anniversary of Michelle's death is coming up," he added quietly.
Deeks hissed out a breath between clenched teeth and silence fell between the two men as they both contemplated the impact of that day coming up.
"I'll talk to him later," Callen told his team mate, "but don't hold what he said against him."
Deeks looked up and held his gaze, "yeah, no, sure," he murmured.
"Good," Callen nodded. He once more let the silence fall between them for several seconds before he straightened and hardened his features, "that being said… you screwed up today. Both you and Kensi screwed up," he said. The words were quiet but harsh. Callen held up a hand before Deeks could say anything. "I've broken apart long standing partnerships today because you took your private life into the office. That has never happened on this scope before and it cost us a case today. It nearly cost us lives. Whatever spat you two have, clear it and fix it," he ordered in a low voice.
Deeks didn't say anything and that - more than any words - let Callen know that the younger man was aware of the impact their personal lives had made on today's events.
Callen nodded and pushed away from the partition. He moved to the door, but stopped and turned his head back, "you're both exceptional agents and you work incredibly well together," he told him gently before once more firming his voice, "I don't stick my nose into your personal business, but if you ever bring it into the office again like this, I will not hesitate to bench you both and put marks into your files. Are we clear?"
Deeks briefly returned his gaze and then glanced away, drawing a hand through his hair. "Yeah, perfectly clear," he murmured.
Xxxxxxx
He found Kensi in the bullpen. She had her laptop open but as Callen watched her from the shadows, he could easily see that she wasn't working. Instead she was staring off into space.
Callen sighed and continued watching, not perfectly sure how to go about this conversation. With Deeks it had first been about mending whatever bridges Sam had weakened in his anxiety, to make sure the strong bonds that shaped this team remained firm. Afterwards he had taken him to task about their previous behavior.
When Kensi and Deeks had come in earlier that day, clearly miffed with each other and slinging words at each other that held vicious undertones, Callen had first considered leaving them be. As long as they had been on paperwork that day, he had ignored their shots, but when a case came up by mid day and the two of them still hadn't managed to find their rhythm, he had decided to break them up.
Sam and Kensi had always worked well together. Callen had hoped that Sam's calm and stoic strength would ground Kensi and maybe even give her the possibility to ask for advice. Whatever troubles Kensi and Deeks had brought in with them today clearly had to do with their relationship and Sam was a family man, had been married for many years to a strong willed and capable woman. If Kensi was inclined and Sam played his cards right, Kensi would benefit from pairing up with Sam.
Plus… Deeks could still get on Sam's nerves sometimes when he was his chatty self, but Sam knew how to handle the Detective them. What was an unknown to them was a sullen and withdrawn Deeks and Callen hadn't been sure if Sam would be able to draw Deeks out of that without clonking him one. So he had decided to pair up with Deeks himself.
He couldn't speak for Kensi, but Deeks had been focused on the case. He couldn't find fault there, definitely couldn't say that Deeks hadn't had his back. What he could find fault in was their earlier situation that led to having to break up the partnerships. There had been moments when he had to coordinate with Deeks in a way he would have never had to coordinate with Sam since they were so in tune with each other they knew what the other would do without specifying it. It was those moments of hesitation that had cost them the case.
On the other hand, it revealed to him that they had become complacent in their partnerships. Those pairings worked well, were instinctive and solid, but today had shown him that it was a dangerous illusion of safety. They would need to break up the partnerships more often to make sure they remained in tune with everyone. There would always be situations - and he didn't mean domestic fights since he hope that particular thing wouldn't happen again - that called for different partnerships and they couldn't have a clusterfuck like today to push a wedge into a well oiled machine like their team.
Callen shook himself out of the silent musings, his eyes on Kensi who was still lost to her own thoughts. Rolling his shoulders, he moved over to where Kensi sat. He drew out his chair and sat down, his movements deliberately loud and meant to draw Kensi out of her head.
He turned to her and waited, watching her, deciding to wait until she started the conversation to see what approach to take.
It only took a few moments before Kensi turned towards him, her eyes somewhat wary, testament to the impact his entrance into the armory earlier had made. "Is Deeks alright?" she asked quietly.
The words gave him comfort that those two would fix whatever had happened between each other earlier. "Deeks is fine, Kensi," Callen told her calmly, seeing her release a breath. "I didn't find any fault in what he did while he was backing me up and I will make sure Sam knows that and apologizes to him. What I do find fault in however was how the two of you behaved today."
Kensi glanced away, her eyes downcast while she nodded.
"You've never taken your relationship troubles into work like this before. I don't want to know what happened between the two of you, but you both should know better than this."
He saw his words impact, the way her shoulders curled slightly forward. This wasn't the independent woman who defied expectations in a male dominated world, or the by now seasoned agent. In front of his eyes, he saw a younger version of Kensi, one she had been years and years ago, less self-assured and uncertain.
"I know," she murmured.
"Good," he said evenly and then stood. He put a hand on Kensi's shoulder and turned her so she was facing him. "I've told Deeks the same… fix whatever is between the two of you, but if you ever bring a lover's spat into the office like this again? Never mind what Hetty would do. I will sign the papers to split you up myself. Do I make myself clear?" The words were spoken in a low tone and he let her see both the disappointment and his resolution.
He straightened away only after she gave him another nod.
"I'm sorry, Callen," she said quietly.
He gave her a small smile. "I know," Callen gave back in the same tone of voice before he stepped away and left her to her own contemplation.
Xxxxxxx
He found Sam in the gym, following the sound of his partner taking out his frustration and anxiety on the heavy bag. His partner was predictable in that.
Just as he had done with Kensi, Callen watched Sam from the doorway for a few moments before entering the gym. Sam glanced up briefly before he refocused his attention on the bag. His punches strengthened. Usually, Callen would put himself on the other side of the heavy bag to hold it stable while his partner pounded out his emotions, but the muscles in his arm might not like that. The bullet hadn't done a lot of damage, but the wound was smarting anyway. So instead, Callen sat down to wait him out.
It took nearly ten minutes of silence that was only broken by the punches impacting and his partner's heavy breathing before Sam stepped away from the bag.
"You know as well as I do that I have taken bullets on your watch too," Callen pointed out calmly.
Sam's jaw worked, clenching in frustration. He stalked over to the bench and snagged his towel, roughly wiping his face.
"Deeks is not at fault for this," Callen added evenly.
Sam sighed and sank down on the bench beside him, "I know," he muttered.
"Good," Callen nodded, "then you will apologize to him tomorrow."
Sam's eyes snapped over to him and his posture straightened in affront.
Callen held up a hand to stall his words, "he thinks you still don't trust him, and seeing your outburst earlier, I can't blame him for that deduction. Kensi and Deeks have fucked up today by bringing domestic trouble into the office. Don't complicate the situation further by weakening the support beams of the integrity and trust within the team."
He saw Sam wince slightly when he told him about Deeks' worry.
His partner sighed and hung his head, "you got lucky today."
Callen rolled his eyes and made sure to keep his tone flippant, knowing it drew Sam out of his funk faster than any rationale argument, "not the first time, Sam. A measly graze doesn't even count as an injury. It doesn't even win me any sick leave."
"You're sick in the head, that's what you are," Sam grumbled, but Callen could see the telltale loosening of his shoulders.
"Yeah, and I'm hungry. So you can treat me to some steak before we have a beer on your boat," Callen needled. While he would very much like an evening to himself to lick his wound in private and contemplate the way he needed to adapt the team to be more effective and work smoothly in different combinations, he knew that Sam needed his presence today. Sam would need to have him in his sight to reassure himself that he had not lost his partner. Callen already knew that he would spend the night on the boat and allow Sam to take care of him.
He also knew he would happily take this road to ensure his partner was doing ok.
Xxxxxxx
Hetty watched on the monitor as the two senior partners of her elite team left the gym, bantering with each other.
Using the sophisticated set-up of their building, she had virtually followed Mr. Callen through his talks with each member of his team.
Once again, she was impressed by and content in his leadership. The notorious lone wolf had been shaped into a capable pack-leader. His handling of the situation let her know the team was in good hands and didn't require her input anymore.
Each of his team members had needed a different handling and he had managed to do just that.
Neither of the two junior members of his team had had father figures in their lives - similar to Callen himself - but while Deeks' had had an abusive father, Kensi's father had been loving but had been taken from her at an early age.
With the Detective, Mr. Callen used a curt and swift approach to take him to task about the junior partners' earlier failings. Deeks had sometimes referred to Sam and Callen as the parents in this team and in a way that was exactly how Callen had played it with the other man earlier in the armory: a father making his displeasure known - though not in a way the Detective had known in his youth by an abusive father. Instead Callen had first shielded him from Sam's wrath, making sure the younger man knew he would back him up and shield him when necessary, but would also make sure the Detective knew where he had fucked up.
With Kensi, it was the disappointment in her actions he had made her aware of that had been most effective. Kensi was a smart and capable agent, by now seasoned in her own right, but in some instances, she was still a little girl looking for approval. Callen's disappointment in her actions would have more of an impact than any furious words and accusations.
With Sam, it had been the calm assertion that the Detective had done nothing wrong during the firefight that left Callen with another scar on his body as well as the sly and underhanded technique of inviting himself over to his partner's boat to reassure him with his presence instead of with words.
Hetty smiled slightly and flicked off the monitor. Her team would fare well under his continued guidance. And if he ever faltered… well, Hetty would be around and use her own subtle - or not so subtle - guidance if need be.