"I can't believe we are actually doing this," Deeks said dolefully, kicking away a broken bottle.

"It's good training!" Eric sad brightly, bouncing on the balls of his feet and looking far too excited about this whole situation.

"You aren't even an agent, Beale. You don't get an opinion," Deeks retorted.

Eric pulled a face and rolled his eyes.

"I actually agree with him," Sam said, looking vaguely nauseated at the thought.

"With who? Eric or Deeks?" Callen asked curiously from his look out position which was a slightly higher stack of tyres than the ones the rest of them were crouched behind.

Why were there even tyres here? This was an unused plot of land, primed for development before the company fell through. How did tyres always appear on bits of land like this?

"Eric."

"I can't believe I'm actually the voice of reason here," complained Deeks. "I should have gone with the ladies."

"They were doing knife training again," Eric reminded him. "You said you didn't feel like being the assailant for the tenth time."

That was true. He was getting kind of tired getting his arms twisted and "stabbed" on his torso. Let them practice technique today, it wouldn't kill them. Heck, it might save them.

"We didn't force you to come with us. You volunteered," Callen pointed out without looking back, keeping an eye on their targets.

"Because I thought you were doing something way cooler," whined Deeks, ruffling his hair in frustration.

Of course, he was going to choose going with the guys when they said they were going to have a bit of fun in downtown LA with Hetty's permission. It beat catching up on his paperwork and it certainly beat getting beat up in the gym. Those ladies of theirs were feisty with those knives.

"This is cooler," defended Eric, almost pouting.

"You're just happy to be out in the daylight."

They really needed to get him out more, that didn't involve lonesome surfing. The meerkat needed human interactions that weren't via a screen.

"Technically it is good training," Sam said, also looking a bit too excited by this.

Giving both of his colleagues a look of disbelief, Deeks turned to Callen in the hope for some sanity. Surely their team lead could reign this in. He really should have known better.

"I'm starting to think you don't want to do this, Deeks," said Callen drily.

"In what world is taunting a pair of on duty LAPD officers, who are patrolling a known drug trafficking area, to the point that they chase us in complete frustration a good idea?"

"It will improve our escape and evade tactics," Sam pointed out.

Deeks resisted the overwhelming urge to bang his head against the tyres, the tyres didn't deserve that.

"What part of 'I don't want to get shot and thrown in jail' don't you understand?"

"I'm sure they'll be cool with it once we explain," said Eric naively. "Should I get my knife out?"

The three agents (well, two agents and an LAPD Detective), gave him variations of a look of disbelief.

"No," they said, almost simultaneously.

They did not need an armed Beale running around. Deeks did not want to be the one the one to tell Nell that Eric had managed to stab himself or something. This time Eric did pout but no weapons, improvised or otherwise, were drawn. Who knew what he had "added" to his knife?

"Shouldn't you be able to 'liaise' us out of that hypothetical situation, LAPD Liaison Detective Deeks?" quipped Sam, smirking at the blond Detective.

Oh, Deeks was so tattling on Sam to Hetty when this was all over.

"No," he said bluntly. "You know these guys hate me."

You beat a few police officers up when you're undercover and maybe accidently destroy a stack of paperwork and suddenly you're a persona non grata.

"True," acknowledged Callen. "Remember last time we had to work with this pair? I didn't know they could be so scathing."

Sam frowned at the memory, not liking disloyalty in an organisation. Especially when the work is so dangerous. He still didn't understand how Deeks survived until his work with NCIS with how much LAPD refused to have his back.

Shaking his head resolutely, he was where he belonged now, Sam said almost gleefully, "Even more reason to do this. They need to pick up their game."

Sighing heavily in reluctant acceptance, but technically looking forward to one upping these guys, Deeks muttered, "I am not going to be the one to explain this to Hetty."