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Chapter Text

Part I: Deployment

It was just another regular morning in the Faraday household. Which was to say: it was chaotic. While the adults were trying to get ready for the day, the twins were running around laughing and screeching with joy.

“Ah, mierda, I’m gonna be late,” Vasquez hissed, pouring himself a cup of coffee while trying to pull on his jacket at the same time. “Alejandra, Gabriel, will you please settle down? You’re gonna get hurt running around like this!”

“Yo, Uncle Josh!” Alena called as she rushed into the kitchen, dressed for school and juggling her backpack, keys, thermos, and… phones? She cleared that last one up quickly, setting Joshua’s phone on the kitchen island, “Your phone was ringing upstairs. I brought it down for you—someone named D.C. was calling.”

Joshua, who was in the process of cleaning up the mess from fixing breakfast, dropped the pans into the sink. They clattered, loudly, and all noise and movement in the house ceased.

“Uncle Jos?” Gabriel asked, the first to find his voice, dropping the ‘h’ in the redhead’s name as he was still unable to fully say Joshua’s name at three years old. He peered around one of the barstools, “You okay?”

“Uh, yeah—yeah, buddy, just fine,” Joshua cleared his throat as he picked up his phone, eyeing the missed call on the screen. He turned to his husband and Alena, looking between them, before settling on Alena, “Allie, sweetheart, would you mind taking the twins to daycare this morning? Vas is going to be way late for work otherwise. I’ll write you a note if you think you need it.”

“Nah, I got Phillip’s class first this morning, he’ll understand,” Alena waved it off. “… can I ask why you can’t take them instead?”

Joshua grimaced as the twins in question deemed the situation boring and started playing again.

“I gotta answer this call back, ASAP,” the redhead answered.

“Will you be able to pick them up from daycare?” Vasquez asked.

There was a long pause; Joshua looked decidedly uncomfortable. In fact, he looked nervous, which had Alena and Vasquez trading wary looks.

“I’ll… let you know,” Joshua shook his head, and turned to grab a lunchbox off the counter and hand it to Vasquez, “Just in case, here’s your lunch. Allie, yours and the twins’ are in the fridge…”

Joshua’s voice trailed off as he walked out of the kitchen, easily dodging their youngest charges while putting the phone to his ear.

“… what are the chances that D.C. is the place and not a person?” Alena asked, ever observant and ever suspicious.

“For all our sakes, let’s hope it wasn’t,” Vasquez sighed.

When Alena returned from school that afternoon, the first thing she noticed was both her uncles’ vehicles in the drive. That alone made her suspicious, because she knew her Uncle Vas wasn’t scheduled to be back home for at least another three hours. After she’d cut the engine and grabbed her stuff, she carefully entered the house.

It was eerily quiet. No Alejandra and Gabriel running around or shrieking with joy, no bickering from her uncles…

“Hello? Anyone home?” Alena called as she toed her shoes off by the door.

“In here, pequona sol,” Vasquez responded from the den.

Alena followed her uncle’s voice deeper into the house, pausing in the doorway to the dining-slash-den area to see both her uncles, Jake, Teddy, and James sitting at the dining table. Her uneasy feeling grew.

“Where’s the twins?” she asked.

“Laura’s watching them, kid,” Jake answered. “Vasquez picked them up and dropped them by our place.”

“So, you didn’t get to daycare,” Alena said, mildly accusatory, in her Uncle Josh’s direction. She paused as she took in his blank expression, “Okay, now I’m worried. What’s going on?”

“Now that you’re here, maybe we can get answers,” Vasquez muttered. “Does this have anything to do with that phone call this morning, guero?”

Alena settled herself into the chair at the other end of the table, facing her Uncle Josh. The man in question closed his eyes and took a deep breath, steadying himself. When he opened his eyes, they were full of grief.

“I’m going to be leaving at the end of the week. I’ve been called on assignment.”

There was a beat of silence as each person absorbed this information.

“… I’m sorry, but it just sounded like you said you’ve been called back into active duty,” Jake said, flatly.

Joshua said nothing against this. Immediately, every occupant at the table started talking at once.

“Pinche cabron, tu idiota!”

“Mr. Faraday, you can’t be serious—”

“But we saw your discharge papers—”

“You’ve been out for over a decade—”

“Why do they want you back?”

James’s voice rose over the chaos, calm but pointed as the others fell quiet in the wake of his question.

“Especially, and I’m sorry for the low blow, after your entire team was killed under your command?” James continued with a raised eyebrow.

“They’ve built it back up,” Joshua said. “And… they need a C.O. with more experience than the one they got for a few upcoming operations. I don’t know anything about them, won’t until I get on site.”

“You’re talking like you’ve decided you’re going!” Vasquez exclaimed.

Silence.

“… you’re not going, right?”

Uncle Josh closed his eyes and said nothing.

“Mierda—tu idiota—” Vasquez went off on a rant in Spanish, all of which Alena understood and all of which she agreed with. Despite her anger, she couldn’t find anything to say that wasn’t already said or being thought. Even if they could change her uncle’s mind, Alena suspected it wouldn’t matter.

“How long will you be gone?” Alena asked, quietly.

“… a few months,” Joshua answered, meeting her gaze. She was thankful for that, for his always open honesty with her, “I honestly don’t know. Again, I won’t know until I get on site.”

“So, you’ll be who knows where for an undisclosed amount of time?” Vasquez bit out, cursing again when Joshua nodded.

“Will you make it back home in time for graduation?” Alena tried to keep the hope from her voice, even though she had a feeling the answer wouldn’t be a good one.

“I would hope so,” as all her Uncle Josh said. Alena knew that meant he’d try to do all in his power to make it back, but that there were no promises.

“When do you leave?” James questioned.

“Saturday, for Corondo,” Joshua sighed. “Boots on the ground by next week, from what I understand.”

His eyes flickered across the occupants of the table, lingering on Uncle Vasquez and Alena, but stopping on Jake. The man in question’s blue eyes were narrowed, a slight gleam of determination in them.

“Er, Jake?” Teddy’s voice was nervous, “What’s with that look?”

“I bet I can find out what it is you’re heading into,” the man said. “It’s coming from the higher ups, right? That means they have intel, and if they have intel it comes from CIA, and I still have contacts—”

“Do not,” Uncle Josh said, sharply, cutting Jake off. “Don’t risk your safety on my account, Jake. If there’s a breach, you could get in trouble, you know that.”

“But—”

“That’s an order, Jacob.”

Jake’s mouth snapped shut at the emotionless tone of Joshua’s voice. Every other occupant of the table froze, minus James, who merely sat back in his chair with a huff and crossing of his arms. With a start, Alena realized that this was the man whom her Uncle Josh had been, when he’d served. Expression flat, eyes cold, voice toneless—every bit the soldier that the government had called upon to neutralize threats.

“Yes, sir,” Jake muttered.

Funny, how they were the same age, and yet Jake always deferred to Uncle Josh, Alena thought. But, projection of one’s self was half the battle.

“What time you leave?” James asked.

“Need to be at Fort Carson to catch the flight for California,” Joshua sighed. “Five A.M. I’ll go myself.”

James, who’d been opening his mouth to say something else, shut it. Alena realized he most likely was about to offer to drive her uncle to the fort.

“I’ll… want the time alone,” Joshua added.

“You really can’t get out of it?” Vasquez asked, a pleading note in his voice. Like he was hoping Uncle Josh would break and declare it all a big joke, apologize for putting them in this agony, say that there was nothing to worry about.

“If I could, sweetheart, I would,” the redhead said. “Believe me, I would.”

Vasquez swallowed, looking decidedly emotional. After a moment, he stood up and left the table, climbing the stairs and disappearing. Upstairs, the group heard a door shutting, most likely Alena’s uncles’ bedroom.

Joshua stared up at the ceiling, grief-stricken.

“What do you need us to do, Mr. Faraday?” Teddy asked, “You wouldn’t ask me, Jake, and James here if there wasn’t something you wanted from us.”

“I want you to keep an eye on Vas and the kids,” Uncle Josh glanced at Alena. He must have deemed her presence needed, “Be each other’s support, Allie. Let these three take over the ranch, manage it while I’m gone, but don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it.”

“Like with the twins,” Alena mused.

“Kat and I will be happy to look after them, when needed,” James volunteered. “Our twins are close enough in age, anyways.”

“Uncle Vas is probably gonna want to work a lot of overtime,” Alena sighed. “He won’t want to be in the house without you, Uncle Josh.”

“I’ll call Nicole and let her know,” Joshua shook his head. His lips quirked up a little, bemused, “Try to keep him out of the kitchen.”

Alena grimaced. She could feel the headaches coming on with that task. Nearby, Jake chuckled.

“Laura will be happy to make some meals you can just pop in the oven, red,” Jake assured her.

“Gracias Dios,” she muttered. “What else needs to be done?”

“Not that much,” Joshua admitted. “I’ll have to get some paperwork and stuff together for these guys here and get a few phone calls made to let people know.” He looked back up to the ceiling, “First thing’s first, I want to talk to Vas.”

“Good luck,” Alena said as her uncle stood. “Seems like you might need it.”

Vasquez had locked himself in their bedroom. Joshua shouldn’t have been surprised, but he was.

“Vas, babe,” Joshua knocked gently on the door, “C’mon, open up. I don’t want to have this conversation through the door.”

There was no answer, prompting him to sigh.

“Vas, you know a locked door isn’t going to stop me. Please, don’t make this any harder.”

A few beats passed, before the lock clicked. Joshua stepped inside their room to see Vasquez cross the space and sit on the edge of the bed, his side. He looked wrecked, and not in a good way.

“Vas—”

“Don’t,” Vasquez shook his head, sharply. “I don’t… por favor, don’t speak.”

Joshua didn’t, standing where he was.

“Come here,” Vasquez said after a moment. When Joshua settled beside him, the brunet immediately slammed his fist into Joshua’s arm, “Tu idiota! Tu es loco—”

Joshua let the other man wail on him and rant, tears and sobs eventually mixing in with his shouts. When he settled down some, the redhead wrapped his arms around Vasquez and pulled him in for a hug. The brunet was trembling in his grip, hot tears soaking the collar of Joshua’s shirt.

“You really can’t get out of it?” Vasquez’s voice shook as he repeated his earlier question.

“I tried,” Joshua said. “I promise, Vas, I tried. Every excuse in the book, every reason I could think of—I even told them I’ve been going to therapy. But they wouldn’t hear it. They want me and they’re not budging.”

Vasquez swallowed, “Fuck.”

“Yeah,” Joshua agreed.

“… you’re remarkably calm about this. Why aren’t you freaking out, cabron?”

“I…” Joshua hesitated. “I don’t know. I really don’t. Maybe I’ve always expected this to happen? Or something similar. I’m not surprised to have gotten the call; I’ll tell you that much.”

“Of course,” Vasquez muttered. “If you were one of their best, they’d probably want to keep you in their back pocket for whatever reason.” He took a deep, shaky breath and sat up, wiping his eyes with his arm, “Okay. Okay… I’m taking the rest of the week off.”

“What? No, Vas—”

“My husband is about to go back to war,” Vasquez deadpanned. “I think I’m entitled to taking a break from work and helping him prepare, don’t you?”

Try and argue with me on this, Vasquez’s eyes said. Please don’t make me act like everything’s normal, because everything’s not.

Joshua sighed.

“Alright, then. I’ve got to be at Fort Carson on Saturday at five… I want to leave Friday, so I don’t have to get up at ass o’ clock.”

“So, that leaves us technically three days,” Vasquez mused. “Okay then. What needs to be done?”

Three days could pass equally long and short. News got around fast as the appropriate people were informed of the situation. Phone calls were made, paperwork put into order, and Joshua got his bags packed.

Vasquez had never known that Joshua still had his issued weapons in the house; it’d startled him when his husband had pulled the case from their closet to check that everything was in order.

“Been out a decade, probably got all sorts of new toys,” Joshua muttered.

Friday morning finally came, and the house was… subdued. Even the twins weren’t their normal energetic selves, the other three members of the family having sat down with them earlier and explained the best they could as to why Joshua would be away for a while.

Gabriel, predictably, had a meltdown, demanding that his favorite uncle stay, asking why he was leaving, the typical questions of a toddler faced with their parent disappearing. Alejandra just gave her uncle a hug and said she loved him and asked if he’d call.

So, here they were, the family of four plus James, Jake, Teddy, Laura, and Kat on the front porch.

“I’ll call as soon as I can,” Joshua promised them all, bags at his feet as he gave the two youngest members one last hug. “I’ll have a few days to do so, alright?”

Gabriel sniffled, pouting, but hugged Joshua, nonetheless. Alejandra solemnly handed over a string bracelet with charms.

“Hm, what’s this?” Joshua asked her.

“Allie helped me make it. So, you’ll remember us every time you look at it,” the girl said. “Each bead is our favorite color! Pink for me, green for Gabe, red for Uncle Vas, and blue for Allie!”

“That’s very sweet, Alejandra. I’ll make sure to keep it with me every day,” Joshua promised and secured it within his pocket. The girl gave him one last hug and Joshua stood up.

Alena moved in next, grabbing him in a tight hug and burying her face in his neck.

“Keep an eye on Vas, sweetheart,” Joshua murmured in her ear.

“I will,” she vowed. “Uncle Josh… I really would like to see you at my graduation.”

“I’ll do everything I can to make it,” Joshua told her. He pulled away and ruffled her hair, “Keep these fools in line, yeah?”

“Aye, aye, commander,” Alena grinned and mock-saluted, earning a scattered round of chuckles.

“You come back alive, you hear me?” Vasquez demanded as he came in for his hug last, his grip the tightest of them all, “And in one piece. Otherwise, I’ll kill you myself.”

“Lo prometo,” Joshua told him, smirking a little when Vasquez shivered against him. “Like I said, I’ll call every chance I get.”

“You’d better,” Vasquez muttered. He leaned in for a fierce kiss, ignoring the younger kids’ complaints and cries of disgust, “Te amo, guerito.”

“Te amo, vaquero,” Joshua murmured back.

“You sure you don’t want me to drive you?” James asked as they separated.

“I appreciate it, but I want the time to myself,” the redhead replied. “You guys just keep an eye on everything and everyone here. I’ll expect a full-fledged report when I get back.”

“We won’t let the place burn, Mr. Faraday,” Teddy nodded. “You just get back safe.”

Joshua stepped back, casting his gaze over the group one more time, trying to ignore the churning in his gut at their various expressions. Giving them a smile that didn’t feel appropriate given the situation, the man leaned down to grab his bags.

It never felt this hard, walking away for his next deployment all those years ago, but then, he didn’t have a huge family to speak of, either. Not as many people to come back home to.

Joshua threw his bags into the back of his truck, keeping his back turned until he finally started to climb into the driver’s seat. Only then did he look back up, giving the gathered group a last look.

“Love you, Uncle Josh!” Alena shouted, “We’ll see you in a few months!”

Joshua grinned and waved at them all, “We’ll talk soon!”

Before he could do anything else, like rush them all and break down into the tears that were threatening to choke him up now, Josuha shut the door and turned to head off to his next assignment.

He very purposefully didn’t look into the rearview until his home was well out of sight.

Chapter Text

Part II: Operations

Week One

When Kenny Rogers’s ‘Gambler’ split through the silence, both Alena and Vasquez lunged for the latter’s phone sitting on the coffee table. Papers and books were thrown to the side in their haste. The device went flying off and under the nearby armchair, prompting the teen to scramble and grab it, cheering as she answered.

“Hah! Beat you, Uncle V!” Alena stuck her tongue out.

“Aye, put it on speaker, mija!” Vasquez griped.

“Hold your horses, sheesh,” the teen grumbled as she put the call on speaker. “Uncle Josh!”

Laughter greeted their ears, the sound relaxing both individuals. Vasquez set to cleaning and sorting their mess of homework and paperwork while Alena settled on the couch.

“What, were you two fighting over the phone or something?” Joshua asked.

“Essentially,” Alena confirmed. “So, what’s going on? You said you’d call when you got to California!”

“And I am, aren’t I?” was the response, “I’d have called sooner but they pretty much threw me into chaos as soon as I hit the tarmac. Got to meet the team I’ll be leading and did a mission briefing.”

“Anything you can tell us?” Vasquez asked, hopefully.

“About where I’m headed? Nope, that’s classified. Don’t go asking Jake to investigate it either,” Joshua warned. Vasquez’s determined expression immeadiatley fell, proving he had been considering doing just that.

Alena giggled.

“Okay, so what about the team?” she queried. “Can you tell us about them?”

Joshua paused for a moment.

“They’re… young,” he said, haltingly. “They’ve had a few missions, but not that many. Not enough to really get their hands dirty, yet.”

Vasquez grimaced.

“And the hero worship—good God, I didn’t realize how much my name had gotten around,” Joshua grumbled. “They said it was an honor to meet me, good lord.”

“You’re the one man who survived an ambush and was well known in your circle. There was bound to be a little, guero,” Vasquez pointed out. After a moment’s hesitation, he added, “James once said you at fifty percent could outclass a lot of higher up persons at a hundred percent.”

Alena blinked, wondering when had James said that?

“… huh,” Joshua mused. “Didn’t realize that was my reputation.”

There was a beat of silence, before Joshua cleared his throat.

“Any chance the twins are up? I wouldn’t want to call without speaking to them.”

“Jake or Laura should be by any minute with them,” Vasquez said. “They were watching them while I was at work and Alena at school today.”

“Awesome, I’ll stay on until I can talk to them. How’s Gabriel been?”

“… quiet,” Alena answered. “He’s upset. He’s woken up crying a couple of nights.”

Joshua cursed under his breath. Alena and Vasquez exchanged looks.

“But Alejandra has been fine!” Alena quickly said, “In fact, you’re not going to believe this…”

Alena was quick to spin a tale of one of her younger cousins’ days at daycare that week. She played up certain details, hoping they distracted her uncle from his guilt. She managed to make it last long enough that eventually, Jake arrived with the twins.

“Hey, Gabriel!” Alena called, “Guess who’s on the phone!”

Gabriel looked at his cousin from his spot in Jake’s arms, his solemn expression slowly lighting up.

“Uncle Jos?” he asked, timidly.

Alena grinned, and Gabriel promptly started to squirm to get out of Jake’s hold, the man in question laughing as he set the toddler on the ground. Alena offered no objections as the child climbed into her lap.

“Uncle Jos, Uncle Jos!” Gabriel cried, “You called!”

“Hey, bud!” Joshua chirped, “I promised, didn’t I? What have you been up to?”

Gabriel began to babble about everything that he could, from his days at school, to what had been going on outside of it.

Alena smiled. She knew the phone calls would be few and far between, but that every one of them would savor what they could.

Week Two

He had no idea of his husband’s schedule, and all he knew was that presently, it was probably the middle of the night back home. Still… he wanted to hear the man’s voice before he couldn’t get a chance to.

The line rang and rang, and just as Joshua was resigning to have to leave a message, the call picked up.

“Nicole, I’ve barely had four hours of sleep, you can not be calling me back in,” Vasquez sounded exhausted, which made Joshua grimace in regret.

“Sorry, sweetheart,” Joshua said, keeping his voice low. “I couldn’t remember what shift you were on this week, and I know it’s late back home.”

“Guero?” Vasquez sounded a bit more alert, “Where are you?”

Joshua glanced out the window at the sun and desert, “Somewhere in south sandistan.”

“Classified, got it,” Vasquez huffed. “Couldn’t this call have waited?”

“No,” the redhead admitted. “We’re heading out in a few hours, and I have no idea when my next chance to call would be. I at least wanted to hear your voice.”

Vasquez hummed, tiredly. Joshua’s lips quirked up in bemusement.

“I got what I wanted. I’ll let you go back to sleep,” Joshua said.

“Don’t make a habit of it,” Vasquez warned. “I argued my way into day shift for the next few months so I can be home with the kids at night.”

“Understood,” Joshua chuckled. “Hey… I love you, Ale.”

“Hm, love you too, guerito. Be safe.”

“I will. I’ll call as soon as I can.”

Week Five

To say that some nerves were a little frazzled, seeing as it had been three weeks since the last time anyone had heard anything from Joshua, and even the weather was reflecting the gloomy mood of the family.

They were in the barn when the next call came, seeking shelter from the absolute downpour outside, and the crash of thunder nearly drowned out the shrill tone of Alena’s phone ringing. She didn’t recognize the number, but she answered it anyways.

“If this is a scam caller, then you’d better just hang the hell up right now because I am not in the mo—”

“Easy, alley cat, it’s just me.”

“Uncle Josh!” Alena cried, catching the group’s attention. She scrambled to put it on speaker, “Uh, you got me, Uncle Vas, the twins, Teddy, and Jake.”

“Uncle Jos!” Gabriel cheered.

“Hey, guys,” Joshua chuckled, sounding tired. “Sorry for the radio silence. Been pretty busy.”

“We get it,” Vasquez said. He added, “You sound good.”

All the adults present could read between the lines: you aren’t spiraling. Alena eyed her uncle, noting the line of tension that had had him standing stiff the last couple of weeks slowly fading. She smiled.

“There is sand in places sand should not be,” Joshua reported, flatly. “Otherwise, yeah, I’m fine.”

There was a shout in the background, causing Joshua to hiss a curse, “Hang on—Callen! If you and Armstrong are gonna roughhouse, take it outside! … I don’t care who started it, I’ll finish it! Do you want me to run extra training drills?” There was a beat before Joshua sighed, “Sorry about that. These guys have been high strung for a couple of weeks now. Goddamn spooks aren’t helping matters any…”

“Hey, I take offense to that,” Jake objected.

“You’re an exception.”

“When you coming home, Uncle Jos?” Gabriel asked.

“I, uh,” Joshua cleared his throat, “I don’t know, buddy. I really don’t. I promise, though, I’m trying to get back as quick as I can.”

Gabriel’s face fell. Admittedly, it wasn’t the answer any of them wanted to hear, but the fact that they could talk to Joshua at all was something they appreciated.

“Only move as fast as the government does,” Teddy muttered.

“True,” Joshua agreed. “But, Gabriel, I may or may not have something for you when I get home.”

Gabriel lit up, “A present?”

“Uh huh,” Joshua said, amused.

“You still have my bracelet, Uncle Josh?” Alejandra piped up.

“Course I do, sweetheart,” the man assured. “And I’ve had plenty of my coworkers ask about it and I’ve been only too happy to explain where it came from and talk about you.”

Alejandra squeaked and blushed. The adults chuckled as she scrambled to bury her face in Vasquez’s chest.

“Hey, Allie, you mind passing the phone over to Vas? I need to talk to him in private,” Joshua requested.

“Sure thing. Love you, Uncle Josh,” Alena said, and handed the phone over to her uncle. She watched as he took it off speaker and put it to his ear. She watched more of the tension drain out of him and his eyes fall shut, relief washing the worry lines in his face away.

She couldn’t help but wonder how much longer he could take.

Week Seven

When the phone rang, he didn’t bother checking the ID. Since Joshua had left, Jake had pretty much taken over as the head honcho, a title he had quickly grown tired off. Now, he had no choice but to take it until his friend got back, but thankfully, Teddy Q had happily taken up the temporary position of ranch foreman.

“Eagle Eye Ranch, this is Jake,” Jake greeted, expecting a client on the other end. Instead, he was startled when a familiar laugh filtered through the speakers.

“Hey, Jake,” Joshua said. “How are things going?”

“… Not that I’m glad to hear your voice, but shouldn’t you be calling your husband or kid?”

“I would if I didn’t know what time it is over there.”

Jake glanced at his watch. Ah, it was just after one in the afternoon. Vasquez was on shift and Alena in school.

“So, why not wait?”

“We finished a mission and… I needed to talk to you, truth be told.”

That spelled exactly nothing good. Pursing his lips, Jacob made his way into the barn office for a little more privacy.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, quietly, “You okay?”

“Yeah, actually, that’s the problem.”

“… I fail to see the problem, actually.”

Joshua sighed, heavily and loudly. Jake would say he sounded annoyed.

“It’s weird, I just… I feel more settled. I think it’s ‘cause I’ve gotten a second chance to make sure my team comes home.”

Jake perked up.

“Wait, are you done over there?” he asked, hopeful.

“Almost. We got one more run to do. Can’t tell you too much, but I’ll be going dark for sure. Next time you hear from me might not be until I’m back in the States.”

“Yeah, you’d definitely better call your husband and kid before you go off on that,” Jake scoffed. “They’re already going crazy. We all are, to be honest.”

“I can tell when I talk to you all. Trust me, I’m ready to come home, too. I just wanted to let you know where… where my head is. I know you were really against me doing this.”

“I’ll be honest, I thought about going behind your back and getting you off that roster.”

“I’m sure,” Joshua chuckled. “… Jacob, thank you.”

Jake’s lips quirked up. He didn’t have to ask to know what Joshua was referring to.

“Anything for you, brother. Come home safe.”

The line clicked Joshua hung up. Jake took a moment to himself, before leaving the office and returning to his job.

There was still a ranch to run, after all.

Chapter Text

Part III: Homecoming

“Alena, let’s go, we’re gonna be late!”

“Coming!”

Alena grabbed her bag and ran down the stairs, coming to an abrupt stop on the landing to give her uncle a shaky smile.

“How do I look?”

Uncle Vasquez looked up from where he was adjusting the collar of Gabriel’s shirt and smiled at her, “You look muy bueno, mija.”

Alena hoped so. She rarely dressed up (heck, her most expensive clothes were her barrel racing outfits), after so many years of living on a ranch, but tonight, she’d decided to go for it. Jaqueline had helped her pick it out: a floor length, off the shoulder turquoise jumpsuit paired with her dressy cream-colored cowboy boots. Her make-up was neutral, minimal, too, and her hair, which fell around her shoulders in soft waves, had been redyed their rust-red color a week earlier so it’d faded out enough to look natural for tonight.

Graduation had finally arrived.

She was in the top twenty of her class, despite struggles with certain classes. She had scholarships lined up to go to a few colleges of her choice. A family and boyfriend who supported and loved her, and…

And one person was missing tonight. Her smile fell a little as she thought of her Uncle Josh. They hadn’t heard from him in a couple of weeks now, when he’d said he was leading his team through their last mission and then he’d be home.

Even then, he’d been unsure if he’d make it back home in time for her graduation, and it looked like all their fears had been confirmed.

“Hey,” Vasquez said, softly, catching her attention. She descended the last few steps to stand with him, “Kat’s filming the whole thing tonight, and then we’re meeting everyone at Billy’s to celebrate. You know he’s happy for you, wherever he is.”

“Lo se,” Alena sighed. “But… it’s just not the same, you know?”

“I do,” Vasquez nodded and swept her in for a hug. Alena returned it, blinking back tears, “But tonight, you put on a smile, and you walk across that stage with pride, pequena sol.”

“Not that little anymore, Uncle V,” Alena choked out.

“You’ll always be little to me,” Vasquez released her. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, “Now, let’s get moving. Wouldn’t want to be late for your own graduation, would you?”

There was a buzz in the air, parents and students alike excited for tonight’s events.

For Alena, though, she was slightly subdued. Make no mistake, she was happy for her achievements clapping along with the crowd when a student’s name was called and ignoring the looks that some of her friends were sending her where they could. Tony especially seemed concerned.

She was worried, hoping that soon, they’d hear from her pseudo father. His deployment’s end was coming up soon, and she was a wreck of nerves and anxiety. If she was worried, she wondered what her other father figure was feeling.

“Our next student places at fifteen in the top twenty,” Principal Kelly’s voice caught Alena’s attention, prompting her to stand up a bit straighter, “While still presently unsure of which college she’d like to go to, she has made a name for herself on the cheer team and in the rodeo circuit as well.” The woman paused, before slowly smiling and looking at the crowd, “She also comes from a military family, both of her uncles having served, and one having been deployed back in February. Please give a round of applause for Miss Alena Faraday.”

As Alena climbed up the steps to begin her trek across the stage, she slowed to a halt, eyes going wide as a figure in a white uniform came up beside the assistant principal. It took a moment for her brain to comprehend what her eyes were seeing. A loud roar began to emanate from the crowd.

“It is my pleasure to announce tonight, however,” Principal Kelly continued, the smile audible in her voice, “That Chief Commanding Officer Joshua Faraday made it back home in time to help present his niece with her diploma.”

Alena let out a cry of joy, bolting across the stage to nearly tackle her grinning uncle in a hug. He grunted, surprised and pained, and wrapped an arm around her, picking her off the stage and spinning her around.

“You’re here!” she cried, tears streaming down her cheeks, “You’re here! How—when—”

“I touched down in Corondo this morning,” Joshua chuckled. “And hauled ass to get here in time.”

“Dios mio,” Alena sobbed. “I didn’t think you’d make it!”

“I couldn’t promise anything, but I’m here now,” Joshua murmured and hugged her close again. He stepped back, smiling as Alena shakily took her diploma from him, and it was then she noticed that his other arm was in a cast and sling.

“You—” she began, still choking on her tears.

“Heh, yeah,” Joshua gave her a sheepish smile. “Think you can help me field your uncle Vas off?”

“No way,” she immediately said. “He’s been a mess, and he deserves to worry over you.” She wiped her eyes, “Ugh, Jaqueline’s gonna kill me for ruining my makeup.”

“I’m sure she’ll understand,” Joshua offered his good arm, “Shall we?”

“Gracias,” Alena smiled and took his arm, letting him lead her across the rest of the length of the stage and down the opposite stairs. When they hit the turf of the football field, Alena turned her gaze up towards the stands, catching sight of her Uncle Vasquez, the twins, Jake, Kat, and James. She grinned and lifted her diploma into the air and waved it at them, which also helped Joshua spot them.

“Get back to your seat, alley cat,” Joshua smiled at her. “I’ll see you in a little while.”

The cheers and applause started up again as Joshua climbed the stairs to where he’d seen his family sitting. He grinned wide as Gabriel and Alejandra wiggled their way out of the aisle and began bounding down the stairs. He swooped down to pick up his nephew with his good arm, bracing himself as Alejandra wrapped herself around her leg.

“You’re back!” Gabriel cried, “You’re back!”

“I’m back, buddy,” Joshua confirmed. “I’m not going anywhere.”

He’d had his reservations, going back overseas, being called back into active duty, but truth be told, now? He felt… light. More settled. Guilt-free, almost. Grinning again, he gently herded Alejandra back up the stairs while carrying Gabriel until he came to the bench he’d seen his group sitting on. James had made his way out, and as they came face to face, he gave Joshua a salute, smirking wide.

“Welcome back Commander,” James said. “You’ve been missed.”

“Stand down, soldier,” Joshua chuckled. “We’re off duty.”

“You’re in uniform,” was the response, but the man relaxed. “Hey, Gabe, come here buddy. Your uncles need a second.”

Joshua passed off Gabriel to James and made his way to the second most important person in his life. Vasquez stood slowly from his seat, smiling gently and easily as he looked Joshua up and down.

“You’re late,” Vasquez crossed his arms.

“I’m sorry,” Joshua responded, still grinning. “I should know better than to make my husband wait.”

“Hm,” Vasquez eyed Joshua’s sling, “I thought I said to come back unharmed?”

“Ah, you said to come back home safe and in one piece. I managed both,” Joshua responded. “Vas?”

“Si?”

“Please let me greet you properly.”

Vasquez grinned and opened his arms. With no further incentive needed, Joshua stepped in close and brought his mouth to his husband’s, kissing him to the sound of another cheer going up around them.

“A toast! To our guests of honor fighting their way through what I will always dub four years of hell,” Kat lifted her drink with a grin, “And, of course, to Joshua, too, for somehow managing to get back home just in time to see his kid cross the stage.” She turned to James, “And if you ever do that to me, I will make it where they won’t take you back.”

James held up his hands at the cheers and laughter that ripped through the group; Billy had offered the private room at Seoul Garden for the celebrations, and Alena had happily accepted the suggestion.

“That’s fine by me, hon,” James grinned at her, eyes sparkling with mirth. “Thankfully, I don’t have the status Joshua does, so I don’t think you’ll ever have to worry about me getting snatched up by the government anytime soon.”

“I am very tempted to fight them myself,” Vasquez griped, fussing over Joshua. “Don’t think I’m not letting this slide. First thing tomorrow, we’re going to the hospital to check this arm.”

“Babe, c’mon, I’m fine! The military docs cleared me—”

“Exactly, I know what military medicine is like because I worked in it!”

“Just let it happen Uncle Josh,” Alena said, solemnly.

“Yeah, you’re back, Jos!” Gabriel, perched up in Joshua’s lap, reached up to poke Joshua’s cheek, “We missed you!”

“I missed all of you too,” Joshua rolled his eyes. “But tonight, is not about me, alright? This is Alena and Tony’s night.”

“Your fault for showing up at our graduation,” Tony pointed out with a smirk. “You had to know this would happen!”

“You’re acting like I’ve been gone for years, not just a few months!”

“… Vasquez, you might be his husband, but as his best friend I’m calling dibs on smacking sense into his idiot head,” Jake said with narrowed eyes. “Joshua—”

“No fighting!” Alena immediately said, “Por favor, can’t we just—we’re all here together, now, and I—listen, having Uncle Josh here tonight is the best gift of all, in my opinion.”

No one argued, and through the rest of the celebrations, it was all good vibes and cheerful humor.