I blame my good friend Vickie for this fic. She and I were discussing one of her stories, and one of our conversations gave me the idea for this completely goofy, fluffy team piece. I loved the idea too much to just leave it be, so I wrote it up and she betaed it for me. Hope you all enjoy it as much as we did!

Disclaimer: I do not work at CBS and so cannot claim anything in this fic other than the plotline. *sniff*

"Federal agents!" Kensi yelled as she stormed through the warehouse door. She had her gun up and ready, holding a flashlight alongside the gun barrel, and she quickly turned to take in her surroundings.

Sam and Callen were right behind her, also armed and alert. The team quickly searched the large room, which was empty except for several stacks of crates and the support pillars that held up the roof. After checking behind each for any hostile gunmen, the three continued towards the door to the adjoining room.

They hurried through the doorway, only to be greeted by the sound of gunfire that echoed through the spacious interior of the warehouse. A well-placed round from Kensi's weapon brought the shooter down, but as he hit the ground, another gunman stepped out from behind one of the dozens of pallets of crates nearby. This time, Sam fired several shots in quick succession to take the man out.

After a moment of waiting to see if anyone else appeared, the team stepped out from behind their cover. Callen led the others as they cleared the second room. It took several minutes to clear all of the potential hiding places. As they checked behind the last stack of crates, Kensi's eye caught on a door in the far wall.

"Guys," she said quietly, motioning with her head. Without waiting for acknowledgement from either Sam or Callen, she headed for it. She tightened her jaw and took a deep breath. Even though she was doing her best to squelch any emotions over the situation, it was getting harder the more tense things became. The case with Dom had been torture and she was not ready to go through anything similar ever again.

If they didn't find Deeks soon, it would become that whether she was ready for it or not.

Before her thoughts could go any farther, she reached the door and after a brief pause to ready her gun, she tried the knob. It turned easily, and Kensi pushed it wide open, allowing it to swing inward as she stepped through.

"Kens!" Deeks' voice, over-energetic even for him, greeted her as she entered. Her partner was seated in the middle of the room, his hands tied behind him and feet secured to the legs of the chair. "Have I ever told you how pretty you are?" he asked. His voice was slightly slurred as he grinned lazily at her.

"Really?" Kensi strode over to the chair, pulling out a pocketknife as she did. She reached behind him to cut his restraints. "You get yourself abducted and worry me sick, and all you have to say when we find you is one of your stupid compliments?"

Deeks gave an exaggerated pout. "But I think you are," he said.

After freeing his hands, Kensi bent to cut into the ropes around his legs. "Are you okay?" she asked concernedly.

"I'm just glad you found me," Deeks continued, his words continuing to run together. As soon as Kensi had freed him, he leaned over and wrapped both arms around her neck. "You smell good. What is that... vanilla?"

"Deeks, shut up," she reached up and pushed him away. "Deeks," she repeated as he hugged her again. "I'm glad you're okay, really, but this is too much."

"We found him, Eric," Callen's voice came from where he stood in the doorway, speaking with the team's tech operator who was back at their office. "He seems to be all right as far as we can tell."

"Callen! Sam!" Deeks exclaimed as he caught sight of the other two agents. "It's the whole team, together again!"

"Did they hit him in the head?" Sam wanted to know. "Jostle the few brains he has?"

"I... take offense to that," Deeks informed him, raising a finger and standing shakily. "Come here, buddy. I know you didn't mean it."

Sam started to put up a hand to keep the other man's outstretched arms from his own neck. He wasn't fast enough, however, and found himself wrapped in a bear hug. "Uh, Deeks, buddy," he tried, patting the other man on the back. "Come on, man." He finally disentangled himself from the detective's arms and stepped back as quickly as he could manage.

"Uh, no. Not happening." Callen crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow as Deeks turned his way. "Deeks, why don't you sit down for a minute?"

"Aw, Callen, I'm just glad to see you guys," Deeks frowned, crossing his arms and attempting to mimic Callen's facial expression. "Just one little hug?"

"You called that little?" Sam asked. "I think my ribs are still trying to get back to their original shape."

"Come on, let's go," Kensi stepped forward to stand beside her partner. "We need to get you checked out. What drug did they give you?"

"Drug? Who says I'm drugged?" Deeks protested.

"The way you're acting, for one," Kensi supplied.

Sam reached for Deeks' left arm. "And this injection site, for two," he said, pointing to a spot just below the elbow.

"How did you even see that?" Deeks asked, peering intently at the place Sam had indicated. "I don't see anything. Man… I hate needles!"

"You don't remember getting a shot?" Kensi asked.

"I got shot?" Deeks yelped. He began inspecting himself. "I don't see any bullet holes…" He suddenly paused and looked up. "Did I die and go to heaven?"

Kensi just stared at him, then shook her head. "I don't believe you."

"I'm not lying," Deeks told her. "I was serious. But wait, shouldn't you be nicer if I was in heaven?"

"I'm done," Kensi turned and strode past Callen and Sam, who were watching with amused expressions on their faces. "You two can get him to the car. I'll go start it up."

"Wait!" Deeks was right behind her. "You can't forget me. I got shot, remember?"

Callen laughed as he watched them go. "Wait until we get him back to the office."

Sam nodded, chuckling in agreement. "What do you want to bet he tries to hug Hetty?"

"What do you want to bet she shoots him when he does?" Callen returned.