I've just been playing around with this for the last week or so, to sometimes take a break from all the angst of "Fight To Survive." Just a little something different. Will likely be three chapters, hopefully finished up before the season premiere.

xxxxx

"Now if there's any emergency, don't hesitate to call, okay? You can reach us if you need to." Sam tried to keep the nervousness out of his voice. After all, this was his partner, his best friend. He trusted him with his own life. Of course he trusted him to take care of his baby girl.

"Everything will be fine, Sam," Callen said with a bit of a smirk, using the tone of voice he used when trying to calm down jittery witnesses at the boathouse.

"Daddy, don't worry," Kamran said. "You know Uncle Callen will take good care of me. We're going to have a lot of fun."

"You see, big guy?" Callen said, giving his partner a light punch on his arm. "You don't need to worry about a thing."

"I'm all set, Sam," Michelle said as she came down the stairs with a purse and a carry-on bag. "Thank you so much for taking care of her for us." She hugged Callen and then gave him a light kiss on the cheek. She then bent down to hug and kiss her daughter.

Sam pulled Callen into a hug and patted his shoulder. "Thanks man."

"What? No kiss?" Callen asked, grinning at his partner.

"Keep it up, G," Sam said grinning back at him. He then picked up Kamran and hugged her tightly. "You be a good girl for Uncle Callen, okay?"

"I will be, daddy," Kamran said as he put her back down on the floor.

"Her medical insurance card and a list of phone numbers are on the countertop in the kitchen," Michelle informed Callen, "just in case you need them. And I cooked some meals that are in the freezer, including your favorite casserole."

Callen nodded and tried to pull off a genuine smile as Sam smirked at him behind Michelle's back, knowing how Callen really felt about the casserole. Sam then picked up a large suitcase from the floor. "Come on, baby. We don't want to miss our flight."

"Bye, guys," Callen said. "Have a safe trip."

"Thanks again, G," Sam said, grasping his friend's hand. "We'll see you Saturday." He and Michelle hugged Kamran again and then they were off.

xxxxx

"So, what would you like to do today?" Callen asked Kamran after her parents had left.

"I don't know…whatever you want to do is fine with me," Kamran replied, shrugging her shoulders.

Callen looked back at her blankly, not really having any clue as to what they could do. It had been easier when she was a very small girl. Playing make pretend with dolls and stuffed animals hadn't exactly been manly activities, but it had been easy to keep her entertained. Now that Kamran was getting older, it was definitely more difficult. He hadn't even known he was going to be staying here until a few days ago. Michelle and Sam had been chosen some time ago to partake in a five day specialized CIA training exercise in an isolated European location. Michelle's mother had been all set to take care of Kamran but she was laid up with a badly sprained ankle and was unable to do so as was Michelle's sister who was caring for their mother. Sam's mom was away on vacation. Not wanting Sam and Michelle to miss this opportunity, Callen had volunteered to stay with their daughter. He figured since he would be at work and Kamran would be at school for a lot of the time that it wouldn't be much of a hardship, but now he was at a loss as to what they could do. "You want to go to the mall?" he finally asked and Kamran's face lit up.

"That would be great! Can we bring Bridget with us?" Bridget was Kamran's best friend. Callen didn't know the girl but Sam had mentioned her many times in the past.

"Uh yeah sure, if it's okay with her parents."

Kamran pulled out her cell phone and quickly pressed the speed dial next to her friend's name. "Hey Bridget. My Uncle Callen is staying with me while my parents are away. He's going to take me to the mall and he said you can come with us. Can you come?" Kamran turned to Callen. "She's going to ask her mom."

Callen nodded then walked over to the sofa to sit down while he waited.

About a minute or two later, Kamran walked over to him and held out the phone to him. "Her mom wants to talk to you."

"Hello?" Callen said, taking the phone. He briefly talked to Bridget's mother and then handed the phone back to Kamran. "Her mom said she can come. We're going to pick her up."

Kamran squealed as she took the phone from him. "Yay! I'm so excited Bridg. We're going to have soooo much fun! I'll see you soon."

She clicked off the phone and looked at Callen expectantly. "When are we leaving?" she asked, excitedly shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

"Is now soon enough for you?" he asked, amused by her exuberance, wondering if he had ever been as excitable in his younger years. He didn't think so, but then again, he hadn't lived in the kind of home Kamran lived in, with loving parents and an older brother who adored her.

They headed off and arrived at Bridget's house after only a five minute drive. "Hi Bridget!" Kamran opened her window from the back seat and waved at the girl and her mother who were walking towards the car. Callen got out of the car to greet them.

"Hi, I'm Callen," he said, "It's nice to meet you both."

"I'm Angela Ford and this is Bridget," the woman said. "Thank you for offering to take her."

"Sure. It's no problem at all," Callen said. "We won't be home too late. I'll have her home around 5 or so?"

"That's fine. Bridget, don't give Callen any trouble," Sarah instructed her daughter who nodded as she got into the back seat next to Kamran.

Callen said goodbye to Sarah and off they went. About 20 minutes later they arrived at the mall. After Callen found a parking space, he followed the giggling girls inside. "Okay. You can go where you want and I'll just kind of follow along. Just make sure you stay within my sightline so I can keep an eye on you," he directed at Kamran who nodded.

"We'll stay where you can see us, Uncle Callen," she said. "I promise."

"How much money do you need?" he asked, having no idea what to give her.

"I have ten dollars," Kamran replied. "You don't have to give me any money."

He looked at Kamran's friend. "How much money did you bring, Bridget?" he asked.

The red haired, freckled faced girl, blushed bright red when he addressed her. "My mother gave me thirty dollars. That includes money for lunch," she said, staring down at the ground.

Callen reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet then handed Kamran a twenty dollar bill. "Here you go," he said. "I'll treat you both to lunch so you don't need to worry about that," he said.

Bridget blushed even redder as she thanked him and the two walked on ahead of him, whispering to each other. The first store they stopped in was Claire's to look at jewelry and accessories. Since the store was small, Callen found it easy to watch them without having to go inside. About 10 minutes later, the two happily exited the store, both carrying small bags and seemingly having a wonderful time.

After that, they headed to H&M and Callen had to follow them into the store. He was glad he knew how to remain relatively unobtrusive while still being able to make sure they were okay. He was pretty sure they would have been fine inside the store on their own, but he refused to take a chance with other people's children. He knew better than most what a dark place the world could be. The two girls began trying on clothes and Callen fought boredom as they went in and out of the dressing room. He didn't understand how they could possibly enjoy trying on so many things. Thankfully, they finally finished and brought their merchandise to the cash register as Callen wondered how far they could possibly stretch 30 dollars each.

The next store they went into was Hot Topic. Callen followed them inside more out of curiosity than anything, unsure of what kind of a store it was. He found himself browsing through the merchandise in spite of himself, amazed at the amount of merchandise he found for the television show, Supernatural, which he couldn't recall ever having watched. There was also merchandise for Pokemon, Harry Potter and countless other movies, comics, t.v. shows and musical groups. The girls mostly just browsed in that store and ended up leaving without buying anything.

After stops at Icing, Payless Shoes, See's Candies, where Callen actually bought some candy to bring to work, and an overly long stop at Justice for another clothes trying on session, the girls approached him. "I think we're done, Uncle Callen," Kamran said, happily smiling at him. "Where should we go to lunch? The food court?"

Callen inwardly grimaced at the thought of eating lunch at the overly crowded area they had passed by a couple of times. That wasn't happening if he could avoid it. "Would you girls like Italian food?" he asked. He was really hungry by this point and wanted to go somewhere not overly fancy, but where they could get a halfway decent meal.

"We'll go wherever you want," Kamran said.

"Okay, I know a place I think you'll like," Callen said, eager to escape the mall. He shepherded the girls back to the car and drove them to Andre's Italian Restaurant, which was a favorite of his. It was cafeteria style with a casual atmosphere which he thought would be good for the girls. Callen got chicken parmigiana and the two girls got spaghetti and meatballs. With the addition of salad, garlic bread and a piece of double chocolate cake, which Kamran and Bridget shared, they were all pretty well stuffed by the time they finished the meal.

"That was really good, Uncle Callen," Kamran said as they headed back to the car. "I liked it a lot."

"Me too," Bridget said.

"Well I'm glad you both liked it," Callen said, smiling at them as he unlocked the car and they got inside. Then they headed back to the Hanna's residence where Bridget was going to spend the remainder of the afternoon hanging out with Kamran.

Xxxxx

At 5 o'clock sharp, Callen called the girls downstairs and said it was time for Bridget to go home. After the short drive back to her house, Callen pulled into the driveway and parked. "Thank you very much for taking me to the mall and for lunch," Bridget said as she opened the door to exit the car. "I had a very good time."

"You're welcome, Bridget," Callen said. "It was nice to meet you."

"I'll see you at school tomorrow," Kamran said.

"Bye, Kam!" Bridget got out of the car and closed the door. Callen waited to see that she was safely inside her home and then pulled out of the driveway.

"She seems like a nice girl," he said, glancing at Kamran through the rear view mirror.

"She thinks you're very nice too," Kamran replied. "But it's more than just that."

"Oh?"

"Bridget is in love with you," she whispered, looking very serious. "She thinks you're very handsome. She said you have beautiful blue eyes."

"Um…" he felt his cheeks flush, unsure of what to say. He was very glad Kamran hadn't told him this in front of Bridget.

"Don't worry. I told her you were too old for her."

Callen couldn't help but smirk. "Well, thanks for that."

Kamran nodded. "You're welcome. Besides, I don't think Daddy would be very happy if you dated one of my friends, even if she was old enough."

"No, I don't suppose he would," Callen agreed, trying to hold back his laughter.

xxxxx

"Are you going to make my mom's casserole tonight?" Kamran asked, watching as Callen poured them each a glass of spring water from the refrigerator, then handed her one.

"Well…we had a big lunch. I figured we'd just make sandwiches or something. Why? Do you really want the casserole?" Callen asked, giving her a curious look.

Kamran smiled impishly. "Don't you like my mother's casserole, Uncle Callen?"

"What? Yeah, um of course I like it," he said. "Why wouldn't I like it?"

"I don't know. You tell me," she said, her brown eyes sparkling.

"There's nothing to tell. If you really want it, we can have it," Callen said, wondering if Sam had told his daughter that he didn't like the casserole. "I just didn't think you'd be that hungry, but its fine if you want it."

"I'm just teasing you, Uncle Callen. I don't want it. It's not my favorite either." Kam laughed and winked at him.

"Okay, good," Callen said. Kamran obviously knew something, but he wasn't going to pursue it. The less said, the better. And he honestly had no intention of heating up the casserole this week unless Kamran pushed him into it.

After an easy dinner of grilled cheese sandwiches, the rest of the evening was spent quietly. Kamran studied for a vocabulary test she had the next day and Callen alternated between quizzing her and reading a book he found in the family's bookcase, The Tears of Autumn. At 9:25, before Callen had to say anything, Kamran announced it was time for her to go to bed. "Good night, Uncle Callen," she said, giving him a hug. "Thank you for taking Bridget and me out today. It was fun. Love you"

"You're welcome, Kam," he said returning her hug. "I love you too. Sweet dreams. I'll see you in the morning." He continued reading for about another half hour or so and then he too headed to bed.

xxxxx

The following morning, Callen was up early. He had just finished showering and dressing when he heard Kamran calling him from her bedroom.

"Uncle Callen! Come here! Quick!" Kamran called out, sounding distressed.

Callen headed back to her room and knocked on the door. "Kam? Everything okay, sweetie?"

"No, no it's not okay. Come in, please!"

Callen opened the door and saw Kamran sitting in bed, her eyes filled with tears. "What is it? What's wrong?" he asked.

Kamran shyly pulled up the bottom of her pajama top, exposing the lower part of her abdomen which had clusters of reddish blisters and spots.

"Oh no," Callen murmured, his blue eyes widening.

"What?!" she asked, looking panicked.

"Oh I'm sorry, honey. Don't worry. You just surprised me. I just think you may have chickenpox…Are they itchy?"

"Yes, they're itchy, but I can't have chickenpox. I have my test today!"

Callen shook his head slowly. "No test for you today, I'm afraid. I'm going to go call your school and then call the doctor. If I'm right, you're probably going to miss school for the whole week."

"The whole week?! We're not going to have any fun," Kamran said, pouting. This wasn't at all the way she had expected the week to go while her parents were away.

"One step at a time, honey," Callen said. "I could be wrong. We'll see what the doctor says, okay?"

Kamran nodded, but she didn't look at all happy about her possible prognosis. To be honest, Callen wasn't particularly happy about it either.