so, I said i had a second chapter planned, and this isn't it... what was originally going to be my second chapter will now be my third chapter. I hope you enjoy this, i know I ended up rambling. let me know what you think!

-owl

It had been four and a half weeks since Torres had been forced to leave Gibbs and McGee in Paraguay. Thirty-one days, one didn't need to be a former NSA analyst to figure that out. Anyone could count the days and know that it could not be going well for the missing agents. Nor was it going the best for the ones in D.C. although, arguably, it was probably better for them.

In the absence of both Gibbs and McGee, Bishop was made acting leader. Quinn had left to return training the hopeful agents at Fletc quite soon after the news of Gibbs being gone had circulated. Of course, that meant Ellie only had Torres, and, very rarely, Reeves on her team. The MCRT team hadn't been that small since before Caitlin Todd had joined in 2003.

And they had been struggling, at least Ellie had been. Nick was used to being on his own, or at the very least, in a small group.

It was one in the morning, and Ellie had just gotten back from a short-term undercover op, though it was to become a recurring op. She had been gone for not quite two days, 46 hours, and she was quite ready to finish her report and go home.

"How'd it go?" Nick asked as Ellie entered the bullpen, a steaming cup of coffee held directly in front of her face.

She lowered the cup and looked at him, an almost confused look hiding the surprise in her eyes. "Torres?" she asked. "Why are you here at one in the morning?"

He was silent, and as she waited for a reply, she glanced down at her desk as was her habit after an undercover op. Get back, say hi, check her desk. That was what she always did. Her face fell when she saw nothing out of the ordinary on it. She hadn't really been expecting anything, though, as McGee was being held captive in Paraguay.

"I was just finishing some of my paperwork I had been putting off while you were gone." Torres was quick to answer as he got up and approached Ellie.

"I was gone two days, how much could you have put off in that time?" Ellie asked, raising an eyebrow even as she began smiling.

Torres shrugged, a small smile on his face, not answering her question. "Come on," he said, resting against Ellie's desk. "You need to go home and sleep, not stay up until three working on something you can do in the morning."

Ellie opened her mouth to argue, but decided not to and sighed as she turned back towards the elevator.

Torres went to his desk, grabbed his bag, and followed her. She was waiting in the elevator for him, her hand in between the doors so they wouldn't close before Nick got into the elevator.

"How'd it go?" he asked her once the elevator was moving.

She turned to him with tired eyes, and took a sip of her coffee before speaking. "I think it went well. I'm in, so that's good."

"When do you go under next?"

"I'm not sure. They told me to wait for their call, so I will have to be ready at a moment's notice."

Torres nodded. "I wish you didn't have to risk it like this, staying here when they don't need you."

She sighed. "I know. I wish I could just stay undercover the whole time. But, you know I can't. Besides, it works, the part I'm playing, that I only need to be there when I'm doing something productive for the case."

"Just…" he trailed off, before seemingly rethinking his words and continuing. "Don't let them find out, it is extra dangerous if you are only under for part of the time."

Ellie nodded, and the rest of the elevator ride was silent.

That morning, when they arrived together at O' eight hundred, Ellie was greeted with a whole box of donuts on her desk. A note sat on top of it, written in Abby's handwriting.

Ellie read the note quickly.

'Hey, Bishop, I'm sorry to hear about Gibbs and McGee, let me know if there is anything I can do to help. And if you need advice about being team leader, tell me. In the meantime, Abby told me you were undercover, so I had her get a box of donuts for you, can't have you missing a donut! With brotherly love, Tony (and Tali).'

Tony must have asked her to transcribe his note as well.

Ellie looked up from the note to peer into the box. In it was a half dozen chocolate glazed donuts. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nick approach her desk.

"What did you get?" he asked, looking at the box.

"Donuts. Do you want one?" she asked, opening the box and offering it to him. "They're from Tony."

"Sure, Bishop," he said as he grabbed a donut. "Why did Tony give you a box of donuts anyway?" he asked. "And how? Isn't he in France?"

Ellie nodded. "He is. But he had heard about Gibbs and McGee, and wanted to make me feel a little better about being team leader. He sent Abby a message and asked her to get me the box of donuts." She grabbed a donut for herself and sat down.

Opening her computer, she started working on her report from the undercover assignment.

She didn't get very far when Vance was all of a sudden in front of her desk. He had walked up quietly, and she had been engrossed in her work, so she hadn't noticed him.

"Goodmorning, Director," she said, looking up from her computer. "What can I help you with?"

He shook his head. "I just wanted to check in with you after you got back from the op."

"I would say it went well, sir. I got in, and I am waiting for them to call my alias to go back under."

"Good," Vance said, nodding to himself.

"Hopefully we can find Gibbs and McGee soon, then it will be easier for me to be undercover." Ellie added, cautiously mentioning the missing agents.

Vance gave her a thin smile. "Hopefully, Agent Bishop," he said as he nodded to Torres and left the bullpen.