Warnings: Angsty, mentions of rape, but no worse than some episodes. Will become explicit with some very tasty smut later.

This concept has been in the back of my mind for years, I think it would be inevitable IF the show didn't depend on a lack of long term character and relationship development for its ratings

This is, in its essence, a mystery. We're trying to work out who, where, when, why, how and what happens once the dust settles. Some of those questions are easy, others are more difficult. As usual, there is enough angst to balance the happy ending into a satisfying emotive story curve, but not so much as to torture readers.

One last thing, I'd like to reassure you that I haven't taken anyone dramatically out of character. My BF, on reading this, kept saying "It's Tony, it'll be Tony, you hate Tony!" ...Okay, so sometimes certain characters annoy me, but that's no reason to accuse them of horrible crimes!

Timothy McGee was sitting at his typewriter in the golden light of a single bankers lamp, drinking tea and writing profusely. He had a plot, he wanted it down and it came easily, he could play with the details later. He was intent on his work and was fairly irritated when he was distracted by sirens driving closer and closer to his building. Finally a vehicle turned off its siren right outside, but there was at least one more in the distance. The fire alarm hadn't gone off, but it was still worrying, he looked out the front window to see an ambulance parked right outside, and a police car approaching. He quickly pulled on his coat and went to investigate. When he got outside he was glad to see that very few others had done the same. The ambulance crew was focused on something going on in the alleyway, he stood back.

Eventually they rolled out a stretcher with a patient, obscured by the paramedics. He wondered, on seeing the patient's big, scuffed, buckled boot, if an addict had ODed in the alley beside his home, it wasn't a comforting thought. After a little turn of the trolley he could see that the boots were long, knee high, with buckles all the way up. Everything went cold, into slow motion. He ran forward and saw her, bruised and unconscious with only one pigtail, being rolled into to the back of an ambulance in the street outside his house.

"Abby!"

Someone stopped him.

"Are you family?"

"Close enough!" He replied, stepping around the man and jumping into the ambulance.

"Agent McGee, NCIS... Friend, co-worker. Will she be okay? What happened?" He asked the paramedic frantically.

"She's has bruises and abrasions, a mild concussion and very high blood alcohol, but she's stable, no signs of any more serious injuries at this point. Looks like she was attacked, her backpack was emptied all over the ground."

He sat beside Abby in shock as they drove. Abby stirred then looked up at him, struggling to focus.

"Tim!"

"You'll be okay Abby, looks like you've been attacked, we're on our way to the hospital, don't worry."

She reached for him, then, in a slurred voice, said the last thing he expected. "Don't... Don't call Gibbs! Don't call... Anyone! Timmy, promise me!"

"Abby why? Let me call Ducky, at least let him have a look at you, please!"

"Just Ducky... Tell him not to... No one else..."

Her eyes feel shut and after watching her for a moment, he pulled out his phone. It had been on silent, he hadn't looked at it in hours, not while he was writing. There was a missed call and a voicemail, he ignored them and quickly called Ducky.

"Hello?" Came the sleepy voice of Dr Mallard after far too many rings.

"Ducky! You gotta meet me at the hospital, I'm with Abby, don't call anyone, just meet me!"

"Timothy..."

"Ducky, do it!"

Ducky dressed as quickly as possible and got to his car before realizing the vague nature of "the hospital", but he decided to make an educated guess, and started speeding in that direction.

Tim looked at Abby, then checked his missed call, it had been her, then the voicemail.

"Tim... Timmy, I need your help... please help me... Please be home! I'm on my way over." She sounded drunk and shaky on the phone, the time on the message was only an hour before.

McGee and Ducky stood by Abby's bed as she lay unconscious, make-up smudged, hair ruffled, new bruising coming up under their eyes. Tim was leaning over to touch her cheek when Abby's eyes twitched, they gently opened, then were suddenly wide. She tried to grab his with both hands, but one was tangled in blankets and tubes.

"Timmy! Timmy..." She looked terrified. "Don't tell Gibbs! Please!"

"Abby, why?"

She was saved from answering as they were interrupted by a young doctor.

"Excuse me, could I see you outside? It's important."

As Ducky walked out, Tim bent down and kissed a small part of her face that didn't seem to be bruised and said

"I'll be back, don't worry." As calmly as he could, then followed them out of the room, gently closing the door.

"I'm afraid it's not good news" said the doctor. McGee felt panic begin to cloud his vision. "It looks like she may have been raped." He stood there feeling numb as the two doctors discussed details. Eventually he was lead to a waiting room, at some point someone handed him coffee, he assumed, because he had coffee. He sat looking into it for what could have been minutes or hours.

Eventually Ducky came back to him.

"I'm sorry Timothy, it appears they were right, but..."

He snapped to attention at the hesitant tone "But what?"

"She has classic defensive wounds, it was clearly an attack. She's bruised all over... There must have been quite a struggle before the blow that sent her unconscious... But there are some less consistent injuries."

"Like what?"

"Some of the trauma to her body appears to be several hours old, in particular, she has significant bruising to her lower back and buttocks, as if she'd been hit violently with a large, blunt object. I thought at first that it might have been from hitting the ground, or something on her way down, but there are no abrasions, and I doubt her skirt would have protected her, either way, they appear to be too old to have been caused by this attack. There are also some scratches and abrasions in other areas that seem to fit an earlier attack. I believe she may have been attacked twice today."

Tim had his head in his hands.

"This is my fault. She called me asking for help earlier... I didn't answer."

"Timothy, there's no way you could have..." He was cut of as Tim got up and briskly walked down the hall.

"I'm going to see her."

Dr Mallard muttered to himself "Jethro will never forgive me..." and pulled out his phone. He quickly found his friend's number and called. It rang over and over with no answer.

Gibbs heard nothing, lying on the basement floor, surrounded by bourbon.