Writing Deeks: Writing Densi

We can’t discuss writing fan fiction about Marty Deeks without talking about Densi. The connection between Kensi and Deeks is a component of virtually all Deeks fan fics.  It’s a special relationship, with several aspects that inspire our fan fic authors to tell their stories.

“I know Jack told you coming home to you was like hitting the ground,” he continued. I looked up at him in surprise. “But for me, coming home to no you was like hitting the ground. And now, coming home with you… laughing with you… kissing you… that’s like flying.”

Trust and Loyalty. The trust we see now between Kensi and Deeks hasn’t always been there, and it took time to grow over the course of many episodes. “It was hard-earned and we watched it happen gradually and realistically and that gives it a great deal more worth to the viewer, I think,” says peanutbutterer.

Now the duo easily trusts one another with their lives.  This trust, and the loyalty that came with it, are many writers’ favorite Densi qualities. Sweet Lu loves “their commitment as partners… They are loyal to each other no matter what comes their way.” Kadiedid and Belle Walker both love the way they can tease each other, but don’t allow outsiders to threaten. “They might put each other down in front of others but for the most part, they seem to rise to the occasion when it comes time to defend the other,” Kadiedid says.

For aslycsi1315, it’s what most inspires her to write them. “They are the quintessential love story in the loyalty and love you see with every glance and smile between them,” she says.

Once, he was just a pawn in her life. Now, she just doesn’t know how she can win this game without him. How she can make it through the days, though all of this, without him. He has made it through all the traps she put in his way, trying to push him away, force him to walk back and leave her alone. He’s managed to make her want him by her side; need him, even. Once he was just a pawn, forced on her by Hetty, forced on her after she lost Dom, and today… Today she’s stronger thanks to him; she’s stronger not only because he thinks she’s Wonder Woman, but because he taught her that sometimes, it’s okay to go back to your true identity, and just be normal. No need to be strong and fierce all the time.

Banter and Chemistry. You can’t talk about Densi without talking about their famous banter. Bamie02 admires “The effortless way they can go back and forth with their war of words no matter what the situation is.” Kadiedid names it as a favorite characteristic, noting “I like the chemistry between them. They are obviously good friends as well as partners and from the very beginning it was obvious that there could eventually be more between them. Not all shows have characters that exude chemistry even though they try to force it. In this case, it seems to have been easy to play with the emotions of these two.” It’s what led her to start writing her first fan fiction, and it’s what drew Jessica237 to write about Densi. She was attracted to “the banter, the playful one-upping, the teasing (and it also most definitely helps that they look so very good together!).”

For imahistorian, that chemistry is what made her notice Deeks when he first appeared. “The second the camera turned to him in ‘Hand-to-Hand’ I remember literally sitting up straighter on my couch,” she says. “You could just tell that he was different. Aside from how physically he was strikingly different from everyone else, the way he honed in on Kensi and that first spark between them, it made me pay attention. Because until that moment there really hadn’t been an interesting, real romance on the show and he brought that possibility just by the sheer chemistry between the actors and characters.”

There’s Deeks. She might as well admit it, she’s attracted to him. If she’s being totally honest with herself, she’s been attracted to him ever since meeting him in that gym. But the hard thing is admitting that her attraction goes beyond the physical aspects and the sexually charged banter. The hard thing is admitting that what she feels goes far beyond that.

What she feels about Deeks is hard to describe. Like she told her mom, it’s complicated. Her feelings for him can change by the second, all depending on what comes out of his mouth. He has the uncanny ability (and nerve) to call her out on her shit (really no other way to describe it) and still make her smile within the minute. He has this ridiculous protective streak that will get him killed someday. He jokes about everything, even when he shouldn’t be joking. He learns fast, and has gained her complete trust so quickly that it scares her.

He’s like a damn golden retriever, following her around and making adorable faces at her to appease her when he says stupid things. And she’s fallen for it, dammit. She shouldn’t fall for it, shouldn’t have to defend the fact that she is too his type, shouldn’t even CARE whether she’s his type or not.

The Good Guys. Other writers name the characters’ basic goodness as their favorite quality. Bamie02 loves Kensi’s strength and Deeks’ empathy. Tess DiCorsi says, “They’re good people. Underneath the bad-ass, brave, smart, tough, whatever personas the readers or viewers like, these are two people who could have done anything with their lives. She’s an Ivy Leaguer, he’s a lawyer. Instead, they’re working for their country/city.” She notes, “While there is an ‘opposite attracts’ feel to the two of them, I think they’re more alike than different. They’ve both pulled themselves up from difficult situations. They’re both smart and tough. With the dangerous situations they find themselves in, Kensi and Deeks always work the case hard and seem to enjoy doing it with their partner.”

Their Evolving Thing. Densi’s ever-changing relationship has been the source of occasional frustration among this group of writers, but it has also provided a wealth of inspiration. peanutbutterer loves “…the way we’ve seen them grow. There was a very distinct and logical partnership/friendship progression from the moment they met straight through the first few episodes of Season 4 and I loved it. I loved knowing that what happened the episode before had changed their relationship in some way and tuning in each week to find out what that was.” thepixiesmademedoit feels the same way, noting that, “We’ve seen them from the beginning which means that, to quote Detective Deeks, ‘the possibilities are endless’ when it comes to writing them. I’ve loved watching the changes to them both- the way they have actually changed each other; the way they have slowly worked their way towards the middle ground and have become a fantastic team, and great friends with the very real possibility of it becoming more. The trust they have for each other is implicit and that has taken time and effort. You can understand why they are cautious when it comes to changing what they have worked so hard for.”

And yet this evolving relationship has had more than its share of obstacles, the least of which is the pair’s lack of communication skills. phillydi says her favorite quality of theirs is actually that “They are like a train wreck sometimes.” A train wreck, maybe, but one that’s fascinating to watch. Belle Walker finds them so interesting because, “You have these two people who are obviously in love with each other, who would do anything and everything for each other, and yet who struggle so badly with admitting their feelings to each other out loud instead of always beating around the bush and avoiding it.”

Sweet Lu translates their wariness in her stories. “On the show they have always seemed to keep circling each other, drawing closer and closer, yet still afraid of that final step that will bring them together in the center of their universe,” she describes. “That tension is mesmerizing, but also frustrating as hell. Even though they are a couple in my stories, they still hold something back and that tension and fear of complete commitment is what draws me to them. They love each other, but fear that love because of their sad life histories, so they fight it. We all root for them, because we can see what they can’t seem to and because we want them together.”

While they were partners and trusted each other implicitly, their friendship was actually fragile. ‘That’s not entirely true’ he thought. Their friendship was solid also but when he thought about it, it was the “relationship” that was fragile and the reason it was fragile was that they had not discussed it. Other than the one time he mentioned their “thing” after he had been “fired” the subject had not been brought up again by either of them. It was a loosely formed triangle. Both were afraid of ruining the other corners of the triangle. If the relationship was in trouble then it would affect the friendship which could and probably would ultimately affect the partnership. Neither one of them wanted to ruin any part of the triangle. But what if they actually defined the relationship and it made the triangle stronger? How would they ever know for sure and could they afford to take that chance? God knows he really wants to. He can’t sleep at night for thinking about her. Most nights he has to get up and take a cold shower just to try to get to sleep. It was only getting worse but what should he do about it? What if they actually made the relationship work and the corners of the triangle were all so strong that the space inside the triangle actually became a truly happy life?

imahistorian notes that, “What inspires me, makes them interesting, and makes them special is really the same thing. They are complex people and that makes the possibilities for them, both together and separately, endless.” Similarly, thepixiesmademedoit writes a variety of Densi’s at various stages of their thing. “I have no hard and set rules for writing Densi and I try just to keep the state of their relationship in fitting with the whole story,” she says. “Sometimes they lead the story, sometimes the story leads them.”

We’ll explore more about what makes Densi special for these authors in upcoming installments of Writing Deeks, including how the progression of Densi’s relationship has frustrated and inspired them, how specific events from the show have affected their work, the experience of writing either character with someone else, and what it’s like to write M-rated content. We’re taking a Thanksgiving break, but in two weeks we’ll be back to get the Densi discussion rolling with a closer look at their infamous banter.

In the meantime, what quality of Densi do you find the most interesting? What makes them special?  Why do you think they are so compelling as a couple?

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Want to Read More?

To find the stories quoted above, follow these links:

bookdiva, “And I Didn’t”

ZBBZL, “Promotion”

ZeGabz, “Who You Are”

Kadiedid, “The Plan”

Or, go back to the previous Writing Deeks, Underdog Deeks.

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A special thanks to @thewingsofnight for creating the wonderful artwork.