AN: Hello, Everyone! I just wanted to say I'm sorry for the long wait, I usually post new chapters much sooner. But my mother died in February and after that I had trouble writing about death and funerals for a while, so I just couldn't finish this chapter at all for weeks.

Now I'm back and I'm hoping to finish the story soon. :)

II. Brody

Meredith Brody had left NCIS years ago and she still couldn't get over how much she missed her team. Yes: in her mind, they were still her team. Ever since leaving New Orleans, she hadn't managed to find her place and had been moving around the country every few months – just like before her time as a naval criminal investigative service agent. She couldn't understand how resigning had seemed like a good idea at that time; just because she'd been humiliated and used by someone who didn't even have anything to do with her job, she shouldn't have thrown everything away. Well, she knew that now but not back then.

Back in 2016, when they had gotten their unexpected leave after the whole Russo fiasco that felt more like a punishment than a chance to relax, she'd been certain the whole thing was her fault and she needed to make it up to the others somehow.

Anyway, she had left and there was nothing to do about it anymore. Since then, she hadn't retained any job for longer than half a year, and each one was worse than the last. Right now, she was working as a private investigator in Chicago and was barely getting by. Apparently, people didn't want to spy on each other that much anymore, so jobs were few and far between. As a matter of fact, she was already thinking about moving on again…

The worst of all was that she hadn't kept in touch with her friends who used to be her family.

Pride, the caring team leader who'd do anything for his people… Oh, how he'd tried to talk her out of leaving! He'd even offered to give her more time away from the job when the others had to go back, and would have allowed her to take on less responsibility in the future, had she opted to stay. In the end, she'd had to lie through her teeth and say she'd been thinking about leaving for a while and that it wasn't just Russo causing her anxiety. Normally, lying to Pride was out of question and totally impossible anyway, but on the phone, under those circumstances, it had come easily enough. And in the end, he had let her go with a resigned sigh.

Loretta, who had given her a home and had made sure she felt safe and sound there. With whom she could talk and be sure her secret was safe with her.

Sebastian, dear Sebastian… He had tried so hard to help her. He'd been the only one to notice something was up and had done everything in his power to change it. Had she just allowed herself to accept the help he was offering…

Triple P with his kindness and humor… He had been through hell and back when he'd been paralyzed and still: he'd never given up. The man was stronger than she'd ever be and she admired him for that endlessly.

Percy had been her first real female friend in a profession mostly dominated by men: someone to have girls' night out with, someone who was there to just talk, someone who understood her. Sonja had such a strong personality; she could stand her ground against anyone, and give a hard time to any man around her. Merri had always been a bit jealous of the easiness she navigated in the world with but she loved her enough not to be bitter but happy for her success.

And LaSalle… Oh, Christopher, her pain-in-the-ass little brother who had the heart of the size and shape of Alabama, and who had been so good to her during her time with the team. In the beginning, Merri had been afraid he'd resent her just for being there, since before that, it had only been Pride and him, the legendary and successful 'father and son' duo. Surely, they didn't need her and couldn't wait to get rid of her, right? Well, it turned out, he hadn't been envious and/or feeling threatened by her; quite the contrary: he had gone out of his way to make her feel welcome and at home with them. He had constantly assured her with actions (sometimes even words) that she really and truly belonged and it wouldn't change ever. Receiving her very own Lego building… that had been the moment she really knew she'd arrived at her destiny.

Now, it was all gone because of Russo. And because of her own stupidity. But mostly the latter. Damn.

Well, no use dwelling on it anymore. She heaved a heavy sigh and just started to stir her morning coffee when the phone rang. A glance at the cell revealed an unknown number that didn't seem familiar at all.

'Who could it be?' – She asked herself as she answered the call. Of course, she had a brief thought that it could be a client calling with a new assignment but she barely dared hope.

- Yes…?

- Merri? Oh, thank God, I didn't know if you'd be available…

Sebastian!? – One of the persons who had done so much for her and she'd left him high and dry. Without even a goodbye. Her heart broke again at the reminder what she had lost as she cleared her throat to be able to speak normally. – Wow, Sebastian… How are you? How is everyone?

- I… How are you, Merri?

- I've been fine… - She wondered if he'd be able to tell she was lying. He'd always known before but so much time had passed since…

- No, you haven't. – Okay, maybe time didn't matter after all. – And I'm sorry because what I'm about to tell you, won't help with that.

- What happened? – She had a very bad feeling, since it wasn't habitual for Sebastian to call her. Actually, they hadn't spoken at all since her last day at work.

- It's Christopher…

Merri felt dread upon hearing the name spoken in that broken manner and instantly got the feeling something very serious was up. She hoped the young man hadn't gotten himself too badly injured. She still remembered how they had all felt when they learnt he'd nearly been shot.

- What about him?

- He was shot.

- Oh, God! But he's all right, isn't he? I mean, he doesn't usually care about such mundane things as his health… Is Pride very angry? And Sonja? I can't begin to imagine the lecture she's probably giving him right now. I bet he's whining about it more than about the injury itself. – She tried to joke because anything else would result in her bursting into tears.

- Merri… He's not all right. He… ahm… died. Yesterday. – Meredith Brody was a strong woman. She needed to be in order to survive everything life had thrown at her, beginning with her twin sister's untimely death many years ago. But this… this she hadn't expected. – I know it's unbelievable… We're all still in shock. You should see Pride; I think he's near his breaking point now.

- I... I just can't believe this.

- Me either.

- What happened?

- He was looking for Cade's murderer and-

- Cade? His brother? He's dead, too?

- He died just before Christopher. Now we're trying to finish what he was doing and solve both cases.

- Their parents… - She couldn't imagine a mother and father having to bury both their children at the same time.

- Both dead, Merri. His mother died when he was little and his father about a year and a half ago. But his stepmother is devastated. They were close.

- The whole family… gone…?

- Cade and Christopher have an older sister but we don't know anything about her. Pride will try to find out though.

- Okay. – What else was there to say? She wasn't even sure if she was dreaming or if this was really happening. – How is Sonja…? I know they were… whatever they were.

- She doesn't know yet. Tammy has been trying to reach her but no success so far. Ahm, Tammy is a teammate you haven't met.

- Sonja isn't with NCIS anymore? – She had obviously missed a lot.

- No.

- Oh. – What to do? What should she say? – I… suppose… When is the funeral? – The question came out of nowhere, surprising both of them.

- Ahm… He's in the mo—I mean, with Loretta right now. After that, in a few days… He'll have a military funeral.

- That's good, he certainly deserves it.

- Yes.

A long, heavy silence followed during which Merri tried to come up with something to say. In the end they both spoke at the same time.

- You know-

- Will you- ahm. Sorry. You go first.

- No. You. – She didn't have a clue what she'd been about to say anyway.

- I just wanted to ask if you'll come? To the funeral, I mean.

- Ahm… - Did she want to go? Could she bear to be there? – I don't know my work schedule yet. – Okay, that was lame. – I will try…?

- Sure. Of course.

- I will try, I promise! I want to go, but I work a lot, and I never know when I have to go and-

- Merri: it's fine. I'll send you the details and then you can decide. No pressure.

- Thanks.

NCIS NOLA * NCIS NOLA * NCIS NOLA * NCIS NOLA * NCIS NOLA

And Sebastian, true to his word, really had texted her the place and date, which was today. Merri was standing, hidden from others, in front of the graveyard twenty minutes before the ceremony was due to begin, and watched from afar as her old teammates – no, family members – arrived all together, very clearly keeping each other company during these difficult times. Oh, how Merri longed to be there with them, holding their hands, giving and receiving support! But it wouldn't happen. Not anymore, because it was impossible to erase the past, so she only entered when she knew the others were occupied with finding their place around the coffin and wouldn't notice her.

During the ceremony, she remained concealed and watched from far away as Loretta continuously wiped her eyes with her favorite handkerchief while Sebastian patted her shoulder in a futile attempt of consolation. A dark-haired woman Merri had never seen before – probably the new girl she had been told about – was, in turn, rubbing Sebastian's back even though she herself had tears running down her face. Right next to them, holding the woman's other hand, was Triple P in his wheelchair, looking small and endlessly sad. This was something Merri hadn't seen before: the man was usually larger than life, endlessly optimistic and always ready to crack a joke to lighten the mood. Not this time, though. This time it seemed like he had run out of things to say or do, so he was just staring ahead into the hole in the ground where the casket was to be placed soon, unmoving and completely lost to the world. But the worst of them all was Pride. Seeing the man like that sent a painful stab into Merri's hardened heart and nearly caused her to fall over crying. The man who had been for all intents and purposes a father to the young man they were burying right now, seemed so lost and old that she couldn't imagine him surviving the ordeal. If the sight of the others was heartbreaking, she couldn't even find the right word for that. The man was broken. Simple as that. He wasn't talking to anyone. He clearly didn't realize the others were trying to communicate with him, or that, at some point, Loretta grabbed his hand and held it tightly to her heart. He wasn't even crying. It was as if he wasn't there at all in mind, only in body. Maybe he was in a trance, or something? That would explain the empty, glassy eyes, at any rate…

Many times, Merri was about to move closer, to let them see her, try to give strength with her presence… But something always held her back. Did they even want her there? Okay, Sebastian had invited her, that was true, but what about the others? She hadn't talked to them for years, hadn't even said goodbye when she'd left… Surely, they would think she had no business being there, wouldn't they? After all, she hadn't kept in touch with Christopher either… So she remained behind a tree in a distance where she had no trouble hearing the speech that praised LaSalle's bravery and loyalty but that had nothing to do with the person he'd really been.

For he'd been more than an agent. He had been first and foremost family. Someone they'd always been able to count on. Who would do and sacrifice everything for those who mattered to him. According to the speaker, he'd liked to focus on his job and had always strived to be a better agent. In reality, he'd liked to play pranks on his teammates and to build Lego buildings for the children's hospital more than anything. Yes, a grown man who played with Legos. It was probably something you didn't mention at a military funeral, but it was the truth nonetheless. When the speech turned to the topic of how Christopher had made NCIS proud, Merri couldn't take it any longer and turned to leave.

It was all just a façade, nothing more. That man, he didn't know what the hell he was talking about. The ones who did, couldn't find their voices and were probably just as nauseated by this whole theater as she was. It didn't matter anyway: they could mourn in their own way, they really didn't need a ceremony for that.

With a last look at the sorrowful team and a sobbing elderly woman who was most probably Chris's stepmother Sebastian had mentioned, Merri quickly walked toward the gate, away from it all.

She never found out that she missed Pride's well-practiced and much more heartfelt speech.