#by ejzah

[densi-mber]

Just Give us a Reason to Compete

“I’m just saying, of the two of us, one is clearly a better speller than the other,” Deeks proclaimed as he and Kensi walked into the bullpen.

“Deeks, I misspelled one word. It’s not that big a deal,” Kensi insisted, tossing her bag onto her already crowded desk. Callen reached out to catch a bottle of lotion. “And that was autocorrect’s fault.

“Uh-huh. Sure.”

“Hey, guys,” Nell said. “Do we want to know what’s going on?

“Kensi can’t spell,” Deeks announced loudly, before Kensi could respond. She rounded on him with a glare, and Deeks grinned back at her. He could tell it wasn’t true anger, so he didn’t feel all that bad about teasing her.

“All right, that’s it. I challenge you to a spelling competition.”

“Ok, I’m in. What do I get if I win?”

“The knowledge that you’re the better speller?” Kensi said with a shrug.

“Nah, that’s not good enough,” Deeks decided. He thought for a moment. “If I win, I want control of the radio for a week.”

“Then I want you to make me frittata every morning for a week.”

“Deal.” Turning to face the rest of the team, who had been watching the conversation with varying levels of interest, Deeks asked, “Any other takers?”

Callen snorted. “Not a chance. Sam, you in?”

“Oh no, I already know my spelling abilities. I once won a state spelling competition in high school,” he said, a hint of pride in his voice.

“I thought you were a mathlete,” Callen commented.

“I was.” Sam jabbed a finger at him. “And no jokes.”

“I would never,” Callen said solemnly. “Though it is impressive that one man can hold so much geekiness within him. I think you’re running neck and neck with Beale.”

“He thinks that’s an insult,” Eric said wryly. “For the record, I am not beyond competing in a test of spelling acuity.”

“Nell?”

“I would, but I don’t think you guys could handle it,” she responded.

“Ooh, that sounds like a challenge, Jones. Why don’t you put your money, or similar compensatory item, where your mouth is?”

Nell stepped toe-to-toe with Deeks, standing as tall as she could.

“All right Mr. Deeks. I’ll participate, but you’ll regret it. And if I win, the losers will write all my expense summaries for the next week.”

“It’s a deal,” Deeks agreed.

“Oh, you’re going down hard,” Kensi goaded him. “I’m looking forward to breakfast in bed.”

***

“Alright Kensi, your word is “onomatopoeia”,” Callen called out, waiting as Kensi stepped forward. He’d been assigned the role of choosing and assigning words, mostly because Sam refused.

Eric had dropped out after three rounds with the word chiaroscurist. Personally, Deeks thought he’d done it on purpose, in deference to Nell. Deeks had nearly lost it with lachsschinken, but somehow managed to squeak through solely by chance.

Kensi correctly spelled her word; she looked decidedly tense, biting at her thumbnail in between turns. When it came back around to her again, Callen gave her the word “arachnophagous”.

“A-r-a-c-h-n-o-p-h-a-g,” Kensi started, then hesitated. “u-s?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, that is incorrect,” Callen said, not sounding sorry at all. “Now it’s just down to Deeks and Nell.”

“Damn it!” Kensi hissed, plopping into her seat.

“I can’t believe I’m watching this,” Sam mumbled.

“You got this, Nell,” Eric encouraged, then shot Deeks an apologetic look. “Sorry, man.”

“It’s ok, brother. I understand.”

“Ok Nell, your next word is “budgereegah”.

“Now you’re just making things up,” Deeks muttered even as Nell rattled off the apparently correct spelling liked she’d actually heard the word before.

“Excellent. Deeks, yours is “sesquipedalian”.”

“Awesome. Uh, s-e-s-a-u-i—p-e-d-a-l-i-e-n”.

“That is…incorrect,” Callen called out. “Congratulations, Nell. You’re the NCIS Office of Special Operations’ inaugural spelling bee winner.”

“That implies there’s going to be another one,” Sam commented under his breath.

“Nicely done, Nell,” Deeks congratulated her, and Nell accepted the praise with a nod.

“Thank you. And thank you for the week of expense reports. I will enjoy going home early.”

“It won’t be so bad with Eric and Kens helping. Right, Kensi?”

“Right,” Kensi said with a grimace. “Congrats Nell, but I was really looking forward to those breakfasts.”

“Well, there’s always next year,” Deeks said brightly.

***

A/N: This one was a bit sillier, but I hope you still enjoyed it. I think the team would compete for anything under the right conditions. Also, some of the words I used were selected from the national Spelling Bees list.

[ejzah]

As promised, here is a summary of my experience at Epic Cons Chicago and meeting Eric! I’m including some of the pictures I took (with poor attempts to censor my face). Heads up, this is a long post.

I started off early in the morning with a long drive since I’m a scaredy cat and avoid the expressway as much as possible. The convention center was very full when I arrived and it took about 50 minutes for me to register because the process didn’t seem well-organized, so that wasn’t the most fun.

But after that, I was on my way to watch Eric’s panel! The panel he appeared on, had actors from several different shows, so he wasn’t asked that many questions. As usual though, he was charming and disarming. One fan asked everyone what word they would use to describe their character and I believe Eric chose “fearless vulnerability”, which is technically two words, but so very in character for Eric. I always love listening to him talk about Deeks and the depth that he infused into the character.

I have a few poorly filmed videos from the panel that I can share if you message me. I’d rather not post them just in case my account would get deactivated again. I thought of asking a question myself, but chickened out.

After that I had a very long break before my next event, so I got some tacos from a little place inside convention center. I’d give them a 5/10. They were overpriced, pretty tiny, and overall mediocre.

Now on to the really good parts!

Next I attended a meet and greet with Eric. I was super nervous leading up to it, and kind of regretted the tacos at that point. About ten of us were ushered into a small private room with chairs set up in a circle. We were instructed not to take any videos, picture, etc, before the start, so I don’t have any additional content. Eric came in a few minutes later and ended up sitting one seat over from me (😱), which was pretty darn distracting for me.

After telling us he’d never done a meet and greet before, answered several questions and chatted with us. One of the things that really struck me was just as with every video and interview I’ve seen over the years, is that Eric was so genuine, honest, and generous.

In answer to questions, he talked about the last few seasons and why there were some irregularities. Such as that the show was supposed to end after season nine and each season after that was considered a bonus and based on ability to form a tight budget. He also confirmed that none of them knew what was in “the box” aside from possibly Shane Brennan.

The greet part of the event went by far too quickly, and before we knew it, one of the volunteers announced it was time for the selfie portion. Fortunately, another fan noticed I had been trying to ask a question and spoke up for me.

Before I asked my question, I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to shoutout wikiDeeks first. Eric really lit up and expressed how much he appreciated the hard work and thought put into the writing and contributions. He brought up an episode many fans had issues with (we figured out it was probably from the FLETC episode that shall go unnamed), and said he showed a piece of wikiDeeks writing to the writers/TPTB and basically said that it was deeper and better writing. I believe that might have been @anonkp’s wonderful work! In general, he was very appreciative and complimentary of everyone at wikiDeeks. He’s so very gracious!

We were really short on time, but I did get to ask the question “what would you change about Deeks if you could?” Eric couldn’t come up with a response on the spot, so he asked me the same question in return. I told him I didn’t think anything needed to be changed about Deeks, but didn’t always enjoy how silly he was written in later seasons.

Eric shared that he tried to play those moments in a way that put Deeks in on the joke instead of being the butt of the joke as much as he could. Unfortunately, he didn’t always have that luxury.

During our conversation, Eric was very engaging and attentive. For those couple minutes, I forgot to be nervous because he made the atmosphere so comfortable. It felt like he genuinely cared about what I was saying. My only regret is that I didn’t have time to emphasize how much I appreciate Eric’s acting and portrayal of Deeks.

After that, it was selfie time! When it was my turn, Eric bent down to my level (oh my lord he’s tall), naturally in my usual awkward way, I bent down too. 🤦🏻‍♀️ Hopefully Eric saw it as charming rather than incredibly silly and awkward. Hey, at least I made him laugh, right?

He’s so beautiful!

If any fans on here were present for the meet and greet, please let me know if I forgot anything or misremembered events. My memory is often faulty.

I also chose to get a professional shot with Eric and for that one I got a hug! I’m still not over it yet.

It was a really long day and a lot of driving, but so worth it for the chance to meet and talk with Eric. And, I’m pretty sure I came out this experience even more of a fan of Eric than ever.

[mashmaiden]

NCIS: Los Angeles - The Squid & Dagger

[aprylynn]

Happy Birthday! 🎉

Thank you, Emily 💗💗💗

[chicgeekgirl89]

Photos below!

Thanks for the tags @nisbanisba, @lemonlyman-dotcom, @bonheur-cafe, and @aprylynn!

Tagging @bluenet13, @ejzah, and anyone else who wants to play!

[wanna-be-bold]

NCIS LA REWATCH!

Join me and @ejzah this Saturday, May 4th, 1:00 pm central time to rewatch

9x24 - Ninguna Salida

10x01 - To Live and Die in Mexico

[imperiumwifestrikesagain]

Thanks for the tag @ejzah !

Reblog what you did/will do today, and what you are looking forward to tomorrow!!

Today so far, I have taken both kids to Sunday school, the older one stayed for church with her godparents, and the younger one came with me to my parents house after. We’ve been here chilling so far.

We’re meeting my IL’s for a late lunch for mil’s birthday around 2. After that we will probably head home, since my energy levels are still in the toilet. Might try to get some cleaning done. Idk

Tomorrow I want to actually get some school work done with my kid.

I’m tagging @arch78, @chenfordspiral, @mamadoc, @amy97213, @kanerallels

@ellickalways, @sisterofficerlucychen

[bluenet13]

10 Shows 10 People

Game: Add 10 gifs from your favorite shows and tag 10 people.

Thanks @chicgeekgirl89 for the tag!

1. The Rookie

2. NCIS Los Angeles

3. Brooklyn Nine-Nine

4. Outer Banks

5. Breaking Bad

6. 911 Lone Star

7. Tracker

8. Chicago Fire

9. Young Sheldon

10. Hearstopper

Tagging @queseraone @ejzah @mashmaiden @thisnightissparkling089 @timandlucy @ravens-words @strandedchesspiece @wanna-be-bold @aprylynn @pragmatic-optimist

[glenncoco4]

Can’t believe I’m saying this but I’m closing up shop. It’s time. I just wanted to thank you all for the ride and listening to my wild theories. I’m still gonna do my best to post fics on ff. It’s been real.

Special thanks to @mashmaiden @ejzah @chicgeekgirl89 @wanna-be-bold & @psyched1328 for getting me through some of my darkest days. ♥️

[herveiwfromthefloor]

@ejzah Your handwriting analysis fic wasn't too far off.

[densi-obsessed]

15 Question, 15 Mutuals

Thanks for tagging me @ejzah! I’m so behind on this I’m sorry!

1. Are you named after anyone?

No, my parents found my name in an Irish baby book

2. When was the last time you cried?

This is so lame but last night watching the eras tour movie 😳

3. Do you have kids?

No lol I still consider myself a kid lol

4. What sports do you/have you played?

I played soccer and softball when I was younger but stopped playing when I reached middle school cause kids are mean

5. Do you use sarcasm?

Yes but mostly just when I’m with family and friends

6. What’s the first thing you notice about people?

Eyes or hair but also there outfits

7. What’s your eye color?

Green

8. Scary movie or happy ending?

Happy ending

9. Any talents?

Honestly I can’t think of any off the top of my head

10. Where were you born?

PA

11. What are your hobbies?

Watching TV, listening to music, writing, and being obsessed with Taylor Swift

12. Do you have any pets?

No and fun fact the only pets I’ve ever had is fish

13. How tall are you?

5”2’

14. Favorite subject in high school?

English or history it depended on the year

15. Dream job?

I wanna do something in PR but if I didn’t have such bad social anxiety I’d love to be an actress

I feel like everyone has done it by now since I’m so behind lol but if you still want to do it here’s your sign!

[densi-mber]

He Plays the Violin

If someone had told 20 year old Marty Deeks that one day he would be sitting on the couch with his girlfriend, watching a rebroadcast of a symphony, he would have scoffed. Yet here he sat, happily doing just that. It had taken a little coaxing to convince Kensi, but now she seemed enthralled by the performance.

During a particularly lively version of Rhapsody in Blue, Kensi nudged his shoulder with her elbow. “You know, something you’ve never shown me—?”

“Can’t be much at this point,” Deeks interrupted, speaking over the music. “I’m pretty sure I’ve shown you everything I’ve got.” He winked at Kensi, just in case she didn’t get the innuendo.

“Yes, it’s very impressive,” Kensi said, pausing to give him a once over. “That’s not what I’m talking about though. It’s something more skill-based.”

“Oh, I’ve got all kinds of skills.” Deeks grinned at Kensi’s groan.

“Deeks, stop it.”

Shifting to face her, he adopted a serious expression. “Sorry, go on.”

Inhaling shallowing, Kensi pressed her palms together. He couldn’t imagine what was about to say.

“Remember when you mentioned taking violin lessons?” she asked.

“Yeeees. Why?”

“Well, this concert reminded me that you’ve never played for me.”

“Kensi—”

“Baby, please?”

“I’m not that good,” Deeks protested, even as Kensi looked at him pleadingly. “I haven’t had a lesson in years.”

“But you’ve played since then, right?”

“Yeah,” he admitted reluctantly. Smoothing her hand up through his hair, Kensi cupped one of his cheeks.

“Hey, I won’t push it anymore if you really don’t want to, but I would really love to hear you play,” she said, which was remarkably convincing.

“Fine.” Sighing, Deeks pushed himself off the couch, heading for his bedroom. He felt Kensi’s eyes on him the entire way.

Even though he didn’t play regularly, he still kept his violin in good condition and stored it along with some other fragile items in his closet. When he came out a few minutes later with the violin tucked under his arm and the bow in his other hand, Kensi sat up, clapping her hands together in delight.

Deeks gave her a wry look, tucking a leg under him as he sat down. He plucked a couple strings, lowering his head in concentration. He spent a several minutes tuning the strings, adjusting the little knobs on either side. When he was reasonably satisfied with the sound, he turned to face Kensi again, and found her watching him.

“To reiterate, it’s been a few years since I even touched this, so listen at your own risk,” he warned Kensi one final time, tucking the violin under his chin, and bringing the bow up.

He chose a piece he’d taught himself in high school. The first few drags of the bow across the strings were a little rough, but he quickly fell into the rhythm, relaxing as motor memory took over. He closed his eyes, leaning into the emotion of the music, letting certain notes swell while other were softer and more subtle.

He played the final note, drawing the bow back slowly to end, and opened his eyes again. Kensi stared back at him, her lips slightly parted, her expression stunned.

“Sorry, guess I got a little caught up in the music,” he said, feeling oddly embarrassed. “My teacher always complained about that. Didn’t remember the audience.”

“No, Deeks, that was—that was beautiful,” Kensi quickly assured him. “I’ve never heard that song before.”

“It’s called “Ashokan Farewell”.

“It’s beautiful.” She leaned forward suddenly, cupping his face as she kissed him fervently. Deeks moved the violin out of crushing range. When Kensi pulled back, there was a fiery gleam in her eyes. “That was one of the sexiest things I’ve ever seen,” she told him, fingers slowly, but sure,y moving down his chest.

“Yeah, Mrs. Kayler definitely never said that,” he joked, a little breathless with Kensi’s unexpected response.

Sliding off the couch, Kensi took his hand, tugging him with her. Deeks started to set the violin to the side, but she shook her head.

“No, bring it with,” she said, guiding him back towards his bedroom.

***

A/N: “Ashokan Farewell” is a piece written by Jay Ungar and featured in several of Ken Burns’ documentaries.

Title taken from the song of the same name from the musical “1776”.

[ejzah]

A/N: Since I’m still thinking of Neal revealing more of his past to Peter, here’s a little fic on that topic. Yes I’m, shockingly, taking a tiny detour from my usual fandom. Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon.

***

The Conman Revealed

Peter has known for some times that Neal didn’t exactly come from a stable family. Most people didn’t end up criminals because they had a happy childhood. Plus, there were the various kernels dropped over the years, dolled out almost like strange gifts or slips of the tongue.

He’d never graduated high school, his dad was a dirty cop, and on it went. A part of Peter had wondered if some of these details were the complete truth or just another example of Neal Caffrey creating his own legend. He could usually tell when Neal was being completely earnest though; not to mention Neal didn’t reveal more than the bare minimum in those moments.

So, Peter sits at a crappy picnic table, eating his fancy takeout, and listens to Neal unravel his past. Neal’s voice is a little softer and quieter than usual, even though it’s just the two of them out here. Peter knew this would be a difficult conversation, but didn’t anticipate how vulnerable Neal woul be.

“When my dad went away, my mom just checked out. I mean, she was around, but she wasn’t around, so Ellen looked after me,” Neal says. His eyes shift from Peter to just beyond and then back again.

It takes Peter a moment to process Neal’s revelation, and another to decided it doesn’t make sense.

“Well, how could she look after you if you she was in witne—” breaks offs, and now Neal looks him in the eye, his look knowing as he lets Peter put the pieces together himself. “You grew up in witness protection,” Peter says, and Neal nods, his voice a little rougher when he confirms,

“I was three when the marshals took us away.”

Everything makes sense now: Neal’s ability to create new peronas, to live those personas so vividly, his strange mix of self-preservation and extreme recklessness. His impressive ability with firearms; Peter smiles a little when he thinks of that particular skill.

In the following weeks, Peter learns a little bit more each day about Neal’s childhood. He’s slightly more open now that the biggest secret is out in the open and Ellen shares bits and pieces with the kind of calculation that makes Peter believe she must have been an excellent cop. He even sees signs of Neal’s shrewdness in her.

One morning a couple weeks after Neal’s revelation, they’re set up in Peter’s office with a stack of fraud cases. Every so often, Neal throws often a question or observation, which Peter makes note of. It’s not the most riveting work, and Peter finds his mind wandering back to Neal, his parents, Ellen.

“What’s stumping you? You’ve been staring for the last five minutes,” Neal says, catching Peter off-guard.

He hadn’t even realized he’d been staring or that Neal had noticed. Peter briefly considers deflecting, but quickly shuts that notion down. They’re trying to be more honest with each other, even if it’s not always pleasant.

“I thinking about what you said about being on WITSEC. If your mom was dealing with her own issues and I assume Ellen was working some of the time, what did you do during the day? Who took care of you?” Peter asks as neutrally as he can.

Neal doesn’t bother looking up from his file. “You’ve been talking to Ellen,” he surmises and Peter shrugs, not denying it.

“She tells some pretty good stories.”

“What do you want to know Peter?” Closing the file, Neal sits back with his arms crossed, perturbed but not completely closed off. That’s a good sign.

Peter sets his own work to the side since it’s not like he was making any progress with his thoughts on Neal’s past.

“Between what you and Ellen have shared, it sounds like you were left to your own devices a lot,” Peter starts, approaching the topic carefully. Even so, Neal visibly bristles.

“Ellen did the best she could,” he objects emphatically. The fact his mom isn’t included in that defense doesn’t go unnoticed.

“I’m sure she did.” Peter holds up a hand to head Neal off before he gets too worked up. “I didn’t mean anything against her. I can tell she cares about you a lot.”

That seems to mollify Neal for the moment and he sighs, rubbing his forehead. “Sorry. Touchy subject.” He smiles, maybe at the understatement. “Ellen tried to take care of me as much as she could, but she did have to work and especially when my mom,” he sighs again. “Sometimes my mom could barely even brush her own hair. She wasn’t in any state to take care of an energetic little boy, so I figured out how to do things for myself when she couldn’t.”

“That had to be a lot of responsibility for a kid.”

“Well, I didn’t have a lot of options.” Neal says with a shrug, his eyes softening with a combination of fondness and melancholy. “I remember when I was seven, there was one day that Ellen had to go into work early, and mom was still asleep. There wasn’t anything ready to eat, so I pulled a chair up to the stove and started making eggs for both us. Mom came out about halfway through. I thought she’d be so proud of me, but she was furious—in restrospect I realize she was terrified I would burn myself or set the apartment on fire—and told me to never touch the stove or oven without an adult around.”

Peter feels profound sadness and a touch of disquiet as Neal finishes the story with a slight smirk, which looks somewhat genuine. He conceals his reaction, knowing that Neal will not appreciate pity or worse, horror, in this moment.

“So what did you do?”

“I learned how to use the toaster and be a lot quieter until I was about ten and she randomly decided I was old enough to handle open flames without supervision,” Neal says, like it makes perfect sense, and Peter sees a little bit more of how the conman was born.

“I imagine you got pretty good at pulling the wool over adults’ eyes wherever you went,” he observes. For once, Neal doesn’t take it as a compliment.

“I had to if I wanted to stay with mom, and Ellen. I mean, it wasn’t like I was being hurt, I just didn’t have anyone around some days or mom wouldn’t have signed the paperwork for a field trip, so I learned to do it for her. My crimes were pretty harmless back then.”

“It’s a shame it came to that ,” Peter can’t help but observe. He wonders what Neal would have been like if he had a solid parental presence in his life, if he hadn’t felt forced to lie and fight his way through his childhood. Clearly Ellen had done her best, but she had her own demons and life to deal with.

“Hey, I could have turned out worse,” Neal points out with a charming smile that lacks the sincerity of moments ago.

“That you could have,” Peter agrees, chuckling as he shakes his head. He tosses his open pen on his desk, grabbing his suit jacket off the back of his chair, and stands, gesturing to Neal. “C’mon, let’s go get a coffee. I’ll even buy.”

Neal makes a show of checking his watch. “It’s only 9:45 and I thought we had important acts of fraud to uncover.”

“Are you going to turn down a free cup of your fancy, small batch roasted coffee?”

Neal tilts head, eyeing Peter suspiciously for a few moments, then his mouth morphs into a massive, and this time genuine, grin. “Peter, are you attempting to make up for my crappy childhood with overpriced drinks and quality time?” he asks, clearly delighted.

“Hey, if you don’t want the coffee, then we can just go back to—”

“Oh no, I’ll take any excuse to leave.” Quickly pushing his file to the side, he stands and doffs his hat with an extra flourish. “If you really want to make it better, I’ve been dying for a cinnamon scone all week.”

“Don’t push your luck,” Peter warns him, though there’s no heat behind it. They walk down the stairs, through the building, and outside together, they’re halfway to Neal’s favorite cafe when he nudges Peter’s shoulder.

“Thanks, Peter.”

[mashmaiden]

37 and 39 for the 30s asks. 🙂

I totally meant to answer these while I was waiting in the airport coming home yesterday, and then I completely spaced.

37 - Do you still listen to the same music you listened to in high school?

For the most part, yes. I've obviously added to it in the last 20 years, but I still love a lot of my teenage favorites for sure!

39 - What little treat do you always get when you run errands?

Probably buying myself a 44oz Dr. Pepper from Sonic. Or Ice Cream (from anywhere really), ice cream is a common "little treat" for me too.

[aprylynn]

@chicgeekgirl89 @raccoonsmate4life and @ejzah are liveblogging three different shows that I don't watch and I just love seeing them on my dash even though I have no idea what they're talking about!!!

[chicgeekgirl89]

Tag Game: Share some photos from your phone.

Thanks @nisbanisba for the tag!

1. Times Square- my least favorite place in America, but it’s pretty from above.

2. Simone Biles

3. The best boy!!! 🐾

4. My “I survived a month of Whole30” dinner lol

5. Fall leaf

6. Churro cookies from Crumbl

Tagging @bluenet13, @lemonlyman-dotcom, @ladytessa74, @ironheartwriter, @guardian-angle22, @emsprovisions, @ejzah, @mashmaiden, and anyone else who has things to share!