By JudyL

July 14, 2003

This takes place after "Covert Oops!" And leads into "It's All Relative."

Disclaimer: I'm with Jim on this one, some rules are just made to be broken. So, I'm taking them and not giving them back. <EG>

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"Jim, could you come into my office, please?" Captain Simon Banks asked, leaving his door open as he went back to his desk.

Detective James Ellison came through the open door seconds later.

"Close it and have a seat, Detective."

Uh, oh. I'm in trouble here. Jim closed the door and took a seat in one of the chairs in front of Captain Banks' desk.

Simon looked at him for a long minute and Jim began to squirm internally. He had no idea what this was about, but Simon seemed very serious.

"I wanted to talk to you about what happened at your birthday party," Banks started.

Jim's mind jumped to a quick conclusion. "Sir, Blair's not in trouble for that Kincaide gag is he? He had no idea I would react so strongly to it. He was just…"

"Jim," Simon interrupted, "Sandburg's not the problem here, you are. Just what were you thinking? If it really had been Kincaide up here, there would have been a blood bath. You threw every procedure out the window coming in without backup, without trying to assess the situation. You screwed up, Detective."

"Simon…"

Banks held up his hand. "This is not the first time you've flouted regulations. And I'm somewhat at fault. I've let things slide. However, this time I'm not going to let you off the hook. You and Sandburg are going to attend the Procedures Seminar in LA next month. Don't even try, I'm not going to let you out of it. Until then you had better pay attention, cross your T's and dot your I's."

"Captain…"

Simon shook his head. "I'll have Rhonda give you the information on the dates and set up your transportation and hotel. It's a week long seminar and I want to see results. You and Sandburg will be expected to brief Major Crimes on the topics covered when you get back. And don't think you'll get away with letting Blair do all the briefing, Ellison."

Jim groaned silently. Simon was pissed and he wasn't going to budge an inch on this. "Yes, sir. Am I dismissed?"

"Dismissed." Simon watched Ellison leave and sighed. Maybe this will teach him that the rules and regulations are there for a reason. And that reason is not so that Jim Ellison can ignore them. "Oh, who am I kidding?"

Jim went back to his desk and sat down with a sigh.

"What was all that about, Jim?" Blair Sandburg asked his partner.

"Simon is not happy about how I handled the "news" that Kincaide was loose. We get to go to the Procedures Seminar next month."

"We?"

"Yeah, you're my partner, remember?"

"Yeah," Blair answered vaguely remembering the incident. He'd been trying to surprise Jim with a birthday party. It wasn't easy to put one over on a Sentinel, but they had managed to get the party planned and ready without Jim finding out about it.

Then Blair had used a little obfuscation to get Jim back up to the bullpen. A memo at the front desk saying Garrett Kincaide had escaped was just enough to cover for the elevated pulses in the bullpen when Jim listened in.

Unfortunately, Jim had assumed the worst. He'd raced upstairs, weapon drawn and barged into the room all by himself expecting to face off a bunch of Sunrise Patriots. It was only Jim's split second reflexes that had saved them from disaster. He'd leveled his gun on a room full of friends and coworkers wishing him a happy birthday.

Blair suppressed a shudder. He really hadn't thought about how Jim would react to the white lie. But he should have known. The Guide looked up at his Sentinel, a rueful grin on his face.

"I guess we earned this one, didn't we?"

Jim grunted, but looked a little embarrassed. "Actually, Simon said I'm the one at fault here. I think you just get to go along to make sure I attend everything."

Blair grinned. "Really? He's not mad at me?"

Ellison shook his head with a slight smile. "Naw. But if I had gone by the book, you would have had a SWAT team busting your party."

Sandburg's chuckle turned into a thoughtful frown. "He's right, you know? We do tend to rush into a situation without following all the protocols. Most of the time it's okay because we have your senses to rely on. We know how many perps are in the building and where they're located. But there are times we deserve that reprimand."

Jim nodded. "Well, we also get to brief the team on the seminar when we get back. Simon wants to make sure we remember what we learn."

"Cool!"

"Yeah, for you. I'm not really into the whole lecture thing, Chief."

"No sweat, Jim. I'll help you with some notes. You'll do great. When do we leave?"

"Whoa! Hold on there, Professor. The seminar isn't until next month. Rhonda's supposed to let us know when, where and get us set up with the hotel, etc." Jim grinned at the crestfallen look on Blair's face. "In the mean time, we have to behave ourselves like good little boys or we might get sent to bed without supper."

Sandburg grinned. "Better not let Simon hear you say that. He's liable to put you behind a desk until the seminar."

Jim grimaced. "Right, let's get out of here before my mouth gets me into more trouble.

To be continued in "It's All Relative." (Story in progress)

Comments are always welcome, please let me know what you think. Judy

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