A/T: I know it's been too long and I am sorry for that but I promise I will have this story finished by the end of the year. As always, many thanks to my girl Gina for putting up with me and the story!

As always feel free to comment. Happy holidays!

She hadn't left her house since the day she got back. She hadn't seen the daylight in three weeks.

Even though she had always been a tomboy, the outdoors seemed threatening all of a sudden.

But now, this man came out of nowhere and just like Prince Charming, he took her by her hand and offered to save her.

God, Kensi hated fairy-tales ever since she was a kid, but those blonde locks definitely resembled to a Prince.

As she was sitting quietly in the car she couldn't help but wonder which fairy-tale their story would be.

Could it be Cinderella?

No! A blonde chick who needs a makeover to get the Prince's attention? Absolutely not. Besides, there is no evil stepmother or sisters involved.

Snow white?

Not really. Even though she has quite high self esteem, Kensi never consider herself to be the most beautiful woman in the world. Not to mention that she would never survive living under the same roof with seven men.

Rapunzel?

Maybe….Besides, Deeks did save her from captivity, much like Rapunzel and her own Prince.

Beauty and the Beast?

At the thought of that she turned her head and faced the silent Deeks as he was driving. Could he be her beast? After all, Deeks said it himself. They really didn't get along in the beginning, but as time went by, they fell in love. She changed him into a better man. Well, that was it. That was their fairy tale.

"What are you smiling about?" Deeks asked when he noticed a smirk forming on her lips.

"Nothing," she diverted her look embarrassed and gazed again outside the car window.

Within a few minutes they were pulling right outside the Ops.

"Do you remember this building?" Deeks turned off the engine.

"Yes!" Kensi replied relieved "I remember this place. That's my parking spot," she pointed to the spot right next to them.

"Look at that Princess, your memory is coming back in pieces,"he smiled.

Kensi shook her head trying to control her enthusiasm " I am not so sure about that."

"What do you mean?" Deeks exited the car and Kensi followed him.

"I remember being her and working here, but not with you. This is an old memory not a new one." she sighed disappointed.

"It's ok," Deeks approached her and placed his hand on her back "Sooner or later it will all come back to you. You just have to be patient."

Kensi lifted her gaze from the ground and her eyes met his. "Promise you'll be patient with me too," she almost begged with pleading voice.

Deeks caressed her cheek, his thumb slowly stroking her soft skin.

"I've already made that promise and I am not willing to break it," he reassured her.

She couldn't help but smile at him. Why did she always feel the need to smile whenever he looked at her?

"We should go inside," Kensi slowly pulled away from his touch and headed towards the familiar entrance.

As soon as she stepped inside she recognized every single bit of the building. Surely, the furniture seemed reorganized, but the vibe was the same.

'Kens?" Callen's surprised voice was suddenly heard as he climbed down the stairs.

"Hey there," she awkwardly responded.

"What, no hug?" Callen opened his arms and waited for her embrace.

Kensi smiled and hugged him tight. Yeah. That was Callen, just like she remembered him to be. All mysterious and tough on the outside, but a softy on the inside.

Soon Sam joined their little reunion. "Is that special agent Blye my eyes are seeing?"

Kensi left Callen's embrace and let Sam do the hugging now.

"It's good to have you back," he whispered to her.

"I am not exactly back yet," she took one step behind "I am only accompanying Deeks today."

All three of them turned around to look at the extremely quiet Deeks. Kensi's comeback went better than he actually expected.

To be honest, he feared she'd loose her courage and drive back home as soon as they reached OPS.

But no!

This was Kensi. She never retreats. She had always been a fighter and soon, she'd be herself again.

But sadly, a part of him also feared the day her memory would come back.

"You did a good thing bringing her here," Sam woke him up from his trance as he patted his shoulder.

"I know! Where is Hetty?" Deeks looked around biting his lip.

"She is in the armory. Do you think this is a good time?" Callen stepped into the conversation obviously reading Deeks mind.

"As good as it gets," Deeks shrugged his shoulders "I did my waiting. It is time to set some things straight."

"It'll only take a few minutes. I will come back for you," he winked at Kensi.

Kensi also needed some answers out of Hetty, but this was obviously the worst time to demand them. She watched as he Deeks walked away and let out a deep breath hoping that there would be no casualties after that encounter.

"Hello Mr Deeks," Hetty's steady voice was heard before Deeks even stepped into the armory.

"Have you been spying on us again Hetty?" Deeks bluntly responded clearly not in the mood for games.

"By now you should know that I never spy on my team Mr Deeks. I just keep track," Hetty didn't even pick up her gaze from the dagger she was carefully attending.

"We need to talk," Deeks firmly demanded.

"Very well, let's start with when are you planning on coming back to work? Your absence has been noticeable noted."

"I am still not sure whether I want to come back," Deeks shook his head.

"I assumed that since Kensi has been brought back to safety, you would at least consider reclaiming your position in the team, "Hetty slowly placed the dagger on the table and then looked at Deeks.

"It is not that easy Hetty. I have changed! I am not the man I used to be and I certainly don't blindly trust you anymore."

"You have to understand that everything I did, every choice I made, was to keep you safe," Hetty kept her voice steady and calm.

"Are you even listening to yourself Hetty? Keep me safe! How were you exactly planning on doing that? By keeping me in the dark and sending Kensi to the God dam war zone? That was your master plan? I deserved to know the truth. You had not right to keep me in the dark. That man was my brother. He was my responsibility and I deserved to know the truth," Deeks was quickly starting to lose his temper.

"You hadn't spoken to your brother in years Mr Deeks."

"That doesn't give you the right to lie to me."

"I never lied to you."

"Oh yes. You never lie Hetty. You just manipulate people. Even those you claim you care about," Deeks started paving up and down the room nervously.

"Everything I ever did I did it out of best interest," Hetty repeated but it sounded like she was just trying to convince herself and not Deeks.

"Best interest?" Deeks stood still for a second and run his fingers through his hair.

"You made me believe that I was the reason behind Kensi's reassignment. I was prepared to go back to LA PD if that's what it took to have her back. Not to mention that you sent her over there without even warning her first. You put her life in danger Hetty. Do you even know how many good men died over there during that ambush? Do you even care? And for what? So that I wouldn't find out my brother was a terrorist? Was it worth it?"

"I felt responsible for your brother," her voice cracked and she diverted her gaze.

"Responsible? Why?" Deeks asked in surprise.

"Sit down Mr Deeks," she pointed at a chair nearby.

"I don't want to sit. I want the truth."

Hetty let out a deep breath. "After your brother was diagnosed with PTSD, he tried to reach you."

Deeks frowned his eyebrows. "He mentioned something about trying to contact me, but I thought he was lying."

"He was telling the truth. He did try to reach you and he actually got pretty close. But I was afraid that he was a bad influence for you, so I had him taken care of."

"What did you do?" Deeks glared at her.

"I offered him money to forget all about you."

"You did what?" Deeks shouted. "He didn't need money, he needed his brother. I could have helped him. All this could have been prevented had you not interfered."

"He was unstable and in need of medical attention. I notified his superiors about it. He needed to be locked in a mental institution." Hetty tried to justify her actions.

"When are you going to realize that you can't play God. You can't toy with other people's lives. That was my brother. ….my own blood and you just…you ruined his life," his anger was rapidly boiling up inside him.

"That is why I sent Ms Blye to Afghanistan. I knew he was the White Ghost. I had known it all along. I also knew that if Kensi ever got a clear shot of him, she wouldn't take it."

"What made you so sure?"

"Because of your resemblance. She would see you in him, and hopefully that would trigger her instincts. Unlike all of our agencies, I wanted Max alive."

"Hetty you are not making any sense," Deeks finally sat on the chair holding his head.

"Why didn't you warn her before assigning her?" Deeks desperately tried to understand Hetty's motives.

"Because she wouldn't be able to keep it a secret from you. If you found out the true identity of the White Ghost, you would run to his rescue. All I ever wanted was to keep you safe," Hetty looked deep into those blue eyes.

"Only problem is, that by keeping me safe you nearly got Kensi killed."

"I never expected things to make such an ugly turn," Hetty shook her head sadly.

"I am responsible for those people's death. I am responsible for Mr Blye. I am responsible for your brother. But believe me when I say this. I only wanted the best for you," Hetty stated.

"The best for me? Hetty I shot my brother! It doesn't get any worse than that. You are a liar and a deceiver," Deeks pointed his finger towards her.

"It takes one to know one," Hetty bluntly responded.

"What are you implying?" Deeks asked clearly offended.

"Before you start accusing me, take a moment and look at yourself in the mirror. Have you ever been honest about any aspect of your life? Why did you never mention to Kensi your brother? Why do you avoid any conversation regarding your abusive father and dear mother? Why do you always use humor as a defense mechanism?"

"Don't try to turn this on me!" Deeks growled "Yes, Max was my brother and I never talked about him, but it was your lie that got us into this mess. If you had told me that Max was looking for me we could have prevented this catastrophe."

"At what cost though?"

"My life….I don't care. At least then my conscience would have been clean. At least then I would know that I tried to save him," Deeks voice slowly broke "He died thinking that I let him down."

A single tear streamed down his cheek and even though he quickly wiped it, Hetty noticed it. She had made a terrible mistake interfering with his life. She knew that now. And for the first time in her life, she had no clue on how to fix the problem.

"You can hate me all you want Mr Deeks; I even hate myself right now. But that doesn't change the fact that you remain a valuable asset to this team. Your presence is much desired," Hetty stood up and walked towards the door.

"I don't hate you Hetty," Deeks managed to say. "I am just mad at you right now."

"You and half of the agency Mr Deeks," Hetty cockily smiled.

"I won't come back until Kensi is ready to come back!"

"I didn't expect anything else Detective. Now, let's go see your partner. I have missed her dearly."

Hetty left the armory but Deeks remained still in the quiet room for a few minutes. He thought he hated Hetty, but that was obviously not true. Sure he was as angry as hell at her, but he could never hate her. It is thanks to her that he has the previledge of working with NCIS agents. If she hadn't hired him, he would still be working as an undercover cop on cases that nobody else wanted and he wouldn't have met Kensi.

For the first time in his life he felt like he actually belonged in a family. After all family is not just blood. It is something far more. It is love, trust, honesty. Feelings that he never shared about his brother.

The past is in the past. Right now, all he wanted was to focus on his future. A potential future with Kensi.