Shaving off his moustache wasn't supposed to be a signal; it wasn't supposed to mean anything and yet it seemed that most if not all of his team seemed to be obsessed with the fact that it was now gone.
He'd heard Tim at the scene of the dead marine who'd been dug up and then left in the arm chair of the property for sale warn Ducky that the "Old Gibbs was back." Abby had commented on it down in her lab too. Finally Ducky had snapped at him that, "shaving off his moustache had brought back his usual impatience."
The fact of the matter was simply that he couldn't stand the sawdust getting stuck in it when he worked on his boat. However he had to wonder why everyone was so fascinated and worried by it.
They all seemed to think that it marked the start of things getting back to being stricter; an end to the DiNozzo era. Things did need shaking up a bit, he needed to put his stamp back on his team, remind them that Tony was no longer in charge and he was no longer on his Mexican sabbatical.
He didn't mean to do it to undermine everything Tony had done, it was just that he needed things to be as they were once before; he needed the team to anticipate his needs and requests, carry out his orders without hesitation, and they just didn't seem to be up to speed.
For instance, two days ago Tim had questioned why he was being requested to get down on his hands and knees at the crime scene, Tony had to be reminded to start sketching, Ducky was a little dismissive of him, almost angry with him, when he had gone down to autopsy to find out if there was a preliminary cause of death. Abby had continually tried to get out of him what type of underwear he wore whilst all he needed her to concentrate on was her job. Neither Ziva nor Tony had questioned the sense in putting the two grieving fiancés of the same dead man in the same room.
Yesterday Ducky had snapped at him again, something he never really did before Mexico; Ziva was constantly making sexual innuendos in an attempt to get Tony to react and do or say something stupid; Tim seemed incapable of thinking at all, walking in with a shirt covered in blood and importantly the DNA evidence they needed and not even thinking about preserving it as evidence.
What exactly had happened in his absence he had no idea, but it needed to stop. He'd give them all just a little more leeway and then he would step in to put an end to it. Maybe he had been too nice so far; perhaps the old Gibbs did need to make a return.
That leeway ran out quicker than even he thought; Tim and Tony were the first to test the boundaries of his temper and find themselves sent to the conference room to wait for him.
The two waited nervously in the old room at the far end of the second floor of the building. It had been some time since they were last in here and not keen to relive the old memories.
The door slammed open as Gibbs stormed in, coffee mug in one hand and the discarded shoe of one of the two fiancés left after he had broken up the fight in the other.
Neither Tony nor Tim needed to be reminded of the need for them to stand front and center whilst their boss marched back and forth in front of them trying to control his temper enough to find the words he needed.
Hoping to get it all over and done with sooner rather than later, Tony spoke up first.
"Boss, we realize we overstepped the mark…" he began only to be cut of by a glare.
"Overstepped the mark," spat Gibbs, "even for you Dinozzo that has to be the understatement of the year."
Looking to Tim, he asked, "anything you want to say to justify what just happened down there in the bullpen?"
"No Boss," came the mumbled reply.
"I thought we were supposed to be the MCRT," shouted Gibbs, "I thought that meant that we are the best agents the agency has, grown up, mature. Don't you think?"
"Yes Boss," they both uttered wishing he would just get to the point and get this over with, the anticipation of what they both knew was to come was uncomfortable and unsettling and they way he has hitting the sole of the discarded shoe against the palm of his hand as he spoke made both of them rather nervous.
"So what the hell makes you think that shouting out 'Chick Fight' anywhere, let alone in the middle of the bullpen was ever a good idea DiNozzo," he asked.
"Well Boss," Dinozzo tried to answer, "I was just trying to draw peoples attention to it so that they could help break it up."
"Cut the crap Tony, I'm not an idiot and don't ever try to lie to me again," he shouted. Tony could feel the small flecks of spittle on his face but dared not move his hand to wipe them away. The Boss was not in the mood.
""Sorry Sir," Tony replied, wondering to himself why he had even tried to get away with lying about it.
"And you Agent McGee," he turned on the younger agent, "do you always do as Tony directs?"
"Boss?" questioned McGee unsure as to what Gibbs was getting at.
"He tells you to start filming and you just can't wait to show off your new film gizmo thingy," yelled Gibbs exasperated.
"It's a 5 mega pixel, 15 x zoom…." Tim broke off; Gibbs clearly was not looking for a technical breakdown of the words 'gizmo thingy'. "Sorry boss," he uttered.
"This is not high school, this is not two kids taking shots at each other behind the bleachers. This is a federal god damned agency and you are supposed to be highly skilled, highly trained agents not hormonal teenage boys getting their kicks watching two hot girls fighting," he lectured.
Both men bowed their heads in shame; they had known at the time they should have broken it up but for that few minutes they just let immaturity take over.
"So you able to tell me, what the hell possessed you to do it?" he demanded, "Or should I tell you what I think?
Neither of the two young men responded, each hoping that the other would say something, neither prepared to be the first to open their mouths.
"So now neither of you have anything to share with the room?" prodded Gibbs. "Well then listen and listen well."
Moving in front of Tony, "You Dinozzo think that now you aren't the lead you can revert to being the comic relief of the group, perhaps to hide the fact that you are peeved at the fact that I'm back," his cruel words not part of his usual lecturing tools cut deep into Tony.
Turning to McGee, "and you McGee just can't resist the chance to show off, to impress the comedian of the room, in the hope that he will want you as part of his gang, am I right?" he questioned.
"No Boss, it's not like that," argued McGee, "I just didn't really think it through," he explained.
"DiNozzo, anything to add," questioned Gibbs.
Tony just shook his head dejectedly, "No Boss."
"So maybe you both just need a little reminder of the job you are here to do, so here's what's going to happen," he said, "first DiNozzo you are going to lose the jeans and get your backside over that table, Tim you are going to use your camera and film it. Then the pair of you can change positions. Understand?"
"Boss please no," begged Tony, "I will take the spanking but please not with an audience."
"So you are discerning about what should and should not be captured on film?" asked Gibbs.
"Look I get it but please don't make Probie film it," he tried again.
"And you McGee, how do you feel about it?" asked Gibbs turning to the younger of the two boys.
Tim stood frozen to the spot, pale and with a sheen of cold sweat clearly forming on his brow. His mouth opened to speak but no words were forthcoming.
"How things change when the shoe is on the other foot," commented Gibbs. "Tim go and wait outside." Tim did as he was told, albeit it was more like he was on autopilot rather than choosing his own direction.
As the door closed behind Tim, Gibbs turned back to DiNozzo. "No doubt you think I'm being cruel Tony, with what I've said," he started, "and whilst I don't mean all of it I think there is some truth in it."
Tony did not answer.
"You got anything you want to say?" asked Gibbs.
Gritting his teeth ever so slightly so he didn't let slip what he was truly thinking, Tony took in a breath and responded, "what do you expect from me Gibbs, you walk out on me, on the team, we hear nothing from you and then you just waltz back in and take over and I'm just expected to take it without a word. Well maybe its not that easy to get used to being used and then dumped, maybe its taking me a little time to re-adjust to the role you want me to fill, and what exactly is that role Gibbs? Hey? One minute you are shooting me down and reminding me that I'm no longer in charge, and then you have a go because I'm not taking charge. Where do I fit in this team?"
"You are my SFA DiNozzo, I thought you knew how to do that job," replied Gibbs.
"Look," said Tony, "the camera thing and the chick fight comment was stupid, shouldn't have happened and I accept I should be hauled over the coals for it and the rest, well I will work on it."
With that, Tony turned towards the table, lowered his jeans and waited for the first smack. However there was no tell tale sound of Gibbs unbuckling his belt, instead Gibbs moved close to his side and began to spank him with the discarded shoe. It did not sting as much as the belt nor hurt as deeply as the paddle but it was still going to leave an unpleasant reminder of the incident.
As he continued the spanking, Gibbs lectured him, "You will not disgrace yourself or this Agency with behaviour like you did today," he began, "its below you Tony, you are better than that." He added, "short term cheap childish thrills will have long-term serious consequences."
Ordinarily by this stage Tony would be signing up to promise to be an angel, but this time he just winced at each blow and let silent tears fall. After fifteen strikes with the sole of the shoe, Gibbs stopped. As he went to put his hand on the boys shoulder to tell him the slate was now clean, Tony shrugged his hand away.
"May I stand up Sir," he asked.
"Tony…" Gibbs paused at a loss for what to say, "Yes of course."
"Thank you Sir," Tony stood and pulled his jeans back up. Gibbs could see tear stains on his cheeks but Tony continued, "should I send Agent McGee in?"
Gibbs simply nodded. What was wrong? Why had it been different?
As Tim walked back into the room to meet the same fate as Tony had received Gibbs was still in a little shock at Tony's reaction to the punishment.
"Shall I drop my slacks?" questioned Tim after a minute stood waiting for Gibbs to say or do anything.
This seemed to bring Gibbs back from whatever place he had gone to in his mind. He nodded to Tim and moved to the side of him, placing a hand onto the boys back and bringing the shoe down onto the upturned backside in front of him.
The spanking he delivered to Tim was no harder or longer than that he had delivered to Tony, but the effects of it were totally different.
When Gibbs finally returned to the bullpen both young men were working silently. Maybe he had just imagined the strange atmosphere, he hoped that was it.