Chapter 1: Diagnosis McGee

"Keep up McGee! Go faster!" Gibbs shouted at the youngest member of his team.

There had been no cases for the past few days and so Gibbs had brought the MCRT down to the gym to practice incapacitating a suspect without seriously harming them...or in Ziva's case killing them. But, Gibbs had noticed that McGee had been slower for the past month.

"Hit the showers David, DiNozzo! You stay here, McGee." Gibbs said pulling out of his crouch.

Tony gave McGee the "ooh, you're in trouble with the Boss!" face as he passed by McGee.

"What's wrong?" Gibbs asked the second the door shut behind Tony.

"I don't know, Boss. I'm just been really tired and achy lately. It's probably just something left over from that respiratory infection I had." Tim said stretching his arm at an odd angle trying to relieve the aching in his arm and elbow.

"Go and see Ducky after you shower." Gibbs said

It took Tim a while to shower but he did eventually get redressed in his normal work clothes. While they were in the locker room at the same time Tony noticed bruising on Tim's back. Just as he was about to tease McGee for letting Ziva beat him up he felt a familiar pain on the back of his head. Tony wisely decided to shut his mouth before Gibbs decided to smack him...again.

Ducky turned around as the doors to Autopsy hissed open.

"Hello Timothy. I was just about to make a pot of tea, could I interest you in a cup?"

"Sure, Ducky." Tim said sitting down on the table.

Ducky finished warming the water and poured it into the cups before speaking.

"What brings you down here, Timothy? I thought Gibbs had you all working out right now?" Ducky asked holding up the sugar and milk.

"He told me to come down and see you. I haven't been feeling well since that respiratory infection I had earlier this month. I'm also really achy all over." Tim said before taking a sip of his tea.

Tim and Ducky spoke a bit more about how Tim felt while they drank their tea.

"Would you mind if I did a quick physical examination?" Ducky asked when Tim had rained the last dregs of his tea.

"Of course not Ducky."

Ducky went through a normal examination. When he had his rarely used stethoscope on Tim's back he noticed the bruising on Tim's back. This gave Ducky a suspicion about what could be wrong with Tim but he didn't want to say anything in case he was wrong.

"I think you need to go and see a doctor, Timothy." Ducky said after he was done, "You should head to Bethesda immediately. I'll inform Gibbs where you've gone."

After leaving the Navy Yard it only took Tim 20 minutes to get to Bethesda Medical Hospital. He waited in the emergency room for a while before he was called in. After explaining to his doctor what was wrong and having another examination and blood being taken, Tim was left in an examination room. An hour later the doctor came back in to do more tests on him. When the doctor returned there was another doctor with him.

"Hello, Agent McGee. My name is Dr. Alyssa Martini." she said.

"Call me Tim, please, Dr. Martini." he said.

"Alright, Tim. I'm here to take a sample of your bone marrow. We believe we know what you have but taking a sample of marrow will allow us to be as sure as we can. Once we're 100% positive I'll inform you about our diagnosis." she said.

Five hours later Dr. Martini returned to Tim's room with his diagnosis.

"I'm sorry Tim, but it's as we thought. You have Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia." Dr. Martini said. "We did catch it fairly early so there's a good chance that a few rounds of chemotherapy will put you into remission. I'll be your oncologist. That's why they brought me onto the case when blood tests showed the possibility of leukemia."

Tim nodded at this information and Dr. Martini left the room. He knew what had to be done now--he had to tell everyone about his diagnosis.

The following day Tim left Bethesda and headed to his apartment to change. He called his parents and asked if they could come down for dinner soon and was glad to know that they would be coming down on the train the following day. He then called his sister Sarah and told her to keep tomorrow night open to go to dinner with him and their parents. After changing and having made all of his phone calls Tim headed to the Navy Yard to tell everyone what was wrong. He knew that everyone would be worried about him and try something to make him feel better. The moment he stepped into the bull pen Tim knew that Gibbs knew something was wrong.

"What did Ducky say yesterday?" Gibbs asked.

"He told me to go to Bethesda. And I did. But I want to tell everyone together what's going on." Tim said knowing that having to explain it once to his NCIS family would be easiest.

He sat at his desk and waited while Gibbs called Abby up from forensics and Ducky and Palmer up from Autopsy and even Vance down from his office. Tony and Ziva returned from where ever it was they had been. Tim suspected they had been having another conference in the men's room. They both gave him worried looks when they saw everyone (including the Director of NCIS) crowded in front of his desk.

"As everyone knows," Tim began, "I haven't been feeling well for the past month. Yesterday, Boss told me to go and see Ducky to find out what was wrong. After doing a physical examination on me, Ducky told me I should go to Bethesda. They took some blood and then checked me in for more tests. When the results came back my doctor gave me the news. I have cancer, leukemia to be precise."

He looked at his co-workers. Ducky and Palmer both looked nervous, while Vance looked contemplative. Tim turned to Tony and Ziva who both had the same expression of shock on their faces. Tim knew without looking that Abby was crying, she always got emotional when someone on the team got hurt--even Palmer. The most surprising face was Gibbs he had his normal stoic face on but Tim could swear that there was a hint of worry in his eyes.

"Will you be okay?" Ziva asked.

"My oncologist Dr. Martini thinks there's a good chance that I'll go into remission with just chemotherapy since it was caught fairly early. I'll be starting the chemo next week." he replied.

"Once you are done here Special Agent McGee please come up to my office." Vance said before leaving the core group of NCIS around McGee's desk.

"Does your family know yet, Timothy?" Ducky asked.

"My parents are coming down tomorrow on the train. I'll tell them and Sarah tomorrow night over dinner."

"I'm coming with you." Abby said, "You'll need someone there with you who's already heard the news."

"We will all go." Ziva interjected. "After all, someone will need to be with Tim, especially once he starts the chemotherapy. Isn't that correct, Ducky?"

"Yes, m'dear. Perhaps you should all take turns with Timothy during his chemo to keep him company and watch over him afterwards."

"As long as McPuke Bucket doesn't hurl on me." Tony said trying to make Tim smile.

Tim looked at his teammates in shock. He knew they would want to do something. He had thought it would be send fruit baskets and keeping him up to date on Navy Yard happenings, not truly helping him during this time. The thought of having his NCIS family around him while he was sick made him smile.

"We take care of our own, McGee. Don't look so shocked." Gibbs suddenly said. "We'll all take care of you McGee."

McGee nodded and after a few more minutes of talking and lots of gentle hugs from Abby he headed upstairs to Vance's office. He waited for Cynthia to tell Vance he was there before going in.

"Well, Agent McGee, it seems you won't be working for a while." Vance said in his usual way of stating the obvious.

"I was hoping to be put on medical leave, sir. I'd like to continue working at NCIS and specifically the Major Case Response Team. Once, I'm healthy of course." Tim said

"Medical leave is no problem. However, your position with the MCRT will need to be decided once you're healthy. It may be safer for you to go back to Cyber Crimes."

"Then I'm afraid I'd be forced to resign from NCIS, Director Vance. My place is in the field not a basement."
Tim said.

"I never said that you would be going back to Cyber Crimes, Agent McGee. Just that it may be a possibility."

"Of course, Director."

"That should be all. You'll need to leave your side arm with Agent Gibbs but you may keep your badge."

Tim walked out of the Director's office after that and dropped his gun on Gibbs' desk. Gibbs gave him an icy stare.

"I didn't resign, Boss. Medical Leave. Vance said I was to leave my firearm with you but I could keep the badge. But just so you know Boss, Vance may put me back in Cyber Crimes once I'm healthy. I told him if that was the case then I'd be resigning since my place is in the field."

Tim left the building after that. There was nothing more that needed to be said. He'd email Tony, Abby, and Ziva the time and place to the next day's dinner once he made the reservations. Maybe he'd screw with Tony's mind and see if he remembered anything from Rock Hollow and tell him they were going to Alfredo's.

Tim sat with Abby at a corner table in Alfonso's waiting for Tony, Ziva, Sarah, and his parents. Abby had just arrived and was asking Tim how he was doing when Sarah came in and spotted him.

"Hey Tim. Hello Abby." she said once at the table.

"Hey Sarah." Tim said standing to hug his little sister.

"Hi Sarah! How's school been going?" Abby asked.

"It's been good. I'm really enjoying my Deviance and Crime in the Renaissance class." Sarah said launching into a long story about the class to Abby.

Tim kept his eye on the door of the restaurant. Tony and Ziva came in and were closely followed by his parents.

"Mom." he said giving the woman a hug. He turned to his father and they did a manly handshake. "Dad."

"Hello, son." said Tim's father.

"Tim, what's going on? Why the big dinner?" his mother asked.

"I'll explain in a bit. First I'd like to introduce some of my co-workers." Tim said, "Mom, Dad. These are Anthony DiNozzo, the senior field agent, Officer Ziva David our Mossad liaison, and Forensic Specialist Abigail Sciuto. Tony, Ziva, Abby these are my parents Former Lt. Commander Harold McGee and Emily McGee. I think everyone here knows Sarah."

"Very funny, Tim." Sarah said sticking her tongue out at her older brother.

After all the "it's nice to meet you"'s and "how do you do?"'s the group of seven sat down for a meal. After the waiter had taken their drink and appetizer orders Tim cleared his throat.

"Mom, Dad, Sarah as you all know I've asked you here for a very important reason. The thing is it isn't good news. I went to the hospital two days ago at the advice of our Medical Examiner, Doctor Mallard, I usually call him Ducky." Tim paused here for a moment and Abby grabbed his hand under the table. "The doctors diagnosed me with leukemia."

"What are you going to do?" Emily McGee asked. Tim could see the unshed tears in his mother eyes.

"I'm on medical leave form work. I start Chemo next Tuesday." he explained.

"What do you need us to do?" his dad asked.

"I'd like it if you can be here. The team is going to be with me during the chemo as much as we can but I know it would be nice to have all three of you there too."

Their appetizers arrived then and everyone placed their dinner orders. They stayed off the subject of Tim's illness during the appetizers and dinner. Instead Tim's mother and father asked Tony, Ziva, and Abby questions about themselves and NCIS. However, Tim did notice the looks his mother would send him everyone once and a while like she was afraid that Tim would just keel over right there. It was after dinner once everyone was having coffee or tea and Tony was eating dessert that the talk turned back to Tim.

"I think your mother and I can be here for you during this time. It will take us some time to get set up but once we're settled here we'll be around as much as we can during your Chemo." Harold said.

"That's perfect!" Abby exclaimed, "Gibbs left me in charge of the schedule of who will accompany Tim to and from the chemo and who will take care of him afterwards and in case of an emergency such as a case or something to that effect who should be called in."

Emily and Harold just raised their eyebrows at the young goth.

"Timmy forgot to mention that. He said that we'd be with him and we meant it. We didn't mean just stopping by to check on him every once and a blue moon. We're each going to take care of Tim. He's one of us and we never forget one of our own." she explained.

"Semper Fi." Ziva whispered.

"Exactly." Tony said, "Besides McGoo has become a decent agent. I'd hate to have to train another new Probie to take his place."

"Semper Fi?" Sarah asked.

"It means always faithful. It's the motto of the Marine Corps. I guess we consider it to be our motto unofficially too since Gibbs was a Marine." Tim explained.

It was only a little while later that the dinner party headed their separate ways. Tim drove Sarah back to Waverly since she'd taken a taxi earlier. Emily and Harold headed back to their hotel, while Tony, Ziva, and Abby headed to their own apartments.

It was 10 when the knock came on the door of the hotel room. Harold and Emily McGee had just begun getting ready for bed when it happened. Harold opened the door to find a man with icy blue eyes and silver grey hair behind the door.

"May I help you?" he asked.

"Lt. Commander Harold McGee?" the man asked.

"Yes, what can I do for you?"

"I'm Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs."

Harold knew instantly that this was Tim's boss and opened the door wider to let him into the room. Emily gave Gibbs a strange glance but after he introduced himself she smiled and said that it was nice to finally meet the real man since Tim always had wonderful things to say about him.

"Tim's a good agent. I wouldn't trade him for twelve Tony's." Gibbs said, "But that's not the reason I'm here. I know Tim told you about his leukemia tonight and I wanted to come here and tell you that if you need anything during this time to just give me a call."

He handed Harold his card.

"Thank you, Agent Gibbs. We truly appreciate everything you've done for our son the past 6 years. I've never seen him this happy." Harold said.

Tim knew there was a schedule for his Chemo that everyone (both his biological and NCIS families) followed to a "T". Each person had their own way of keeping Tim's mind off the drugs going through him and then getting him through everything at home afterwards. Everyone came for the first few minutes on the first day to meet his oncologist.

"Hello Tim. I see you've brought half of D.C. with you." Dr. Martini said, "May I inquire as to who they all are?"

"Of course Dr. Martini." Tim said and pointed to each person as he spoke. "That my father Former Lt. Commander Harold McGee, and next to him is my mother Emily and my younger sister Sarah. Next to Sarah are most of my coworkers: Abby, Tony, Ziva, and my boss LJ Gibbs. Everyone, this is my doctor."

"Dr. Alyssa Martini. It's wonderful to meet you all and to know that Tim has a large support base." I assume I'll be seeing all of you during Tim's chemo?"

Everyone nodded their assent and after Tim was hooked up to a couple IV's with the drugs everyone except for Abby made their see you later's to Tim.

Tim soon discovered that each person had their own way of trying to keep his mind off the drugs during the Chemo and then while he was home feeling ill. Tim was glad that they barely ever left him alone at his apartment since he wasn't quite sure how he would handle having to do everything on his own.

Abby's preferred method was to have him dictate the currently unnamed title of the third book in the LJ Tibbs series. Though sometimes she would tell him stories of Tony before he came to NCIS and about herself. Sarah also liked to take dictation but would also tell him about her classes and the novel she was currently drafting.

Tony, being Tony, liked to watch movies with Tim. Tony only allowed him to watch comedies though since laughter is the best medicine. Tony also would tell him about cases and the stupid things that suspects did to try and escape capture. He also would tell him all the scuttlebutt from the base from how Vance had been sleeping on his couch for a few days to that Palmer was reading the Harry Potter series.

Like any mother trying to calm her son, Emily McGee usually sang to Tim to keep his mind clear. She sang his old lullabies and other songs that he had liked as a child. She would also play his jazz records for him at home. His father would tell him stories from his Navy days. Tim had loved them as a child and now that he understood more about the Navy he enjoyed them even more.

Ziva, the ever practical one, took this time to teach Tim how to kill with office supplies and incapacitate attacker with pressure points. She would show him how to bend something or move something in midair while he was undergoing his chemo and then would show him the pressure points by practicing on Tony (though she never used any of the lethal ones).

And finally there was Gibbs. Usually Gibb's mere presence was enough to keep Tim preoccupied--after all he was the boss. Gibbs would sit there and read one of his magazines...usually Sniper's Monthly or Boat Building Monthly. Both of which would make Tim chuckle since it reminded him of their trip to OPSEC in LA almost two years prior.

One day Tim just couldn't stand the silence between him and Gibbs anymore...and he was burning to ask just one question.

"Boss, I have to know. How do you get the boat out of the basement?"

"It's simple McGee..." Gibbs said before continuing his explanation.

Six months after Tim had been diagnosed with leukemia and he'd gone through all his chemotherapy found Tim back in a hospital bed. They'd just taken more bone marrow for another biopsy to see if he was cancer free. He hoped that all the chemo had worked so that he could get back to work soon. He knew he'd have to stay out of the field but he could at least sit at his desk and do all of the computer stuff--like he usually did anyways. It was at this point in Tim's thoughts that Dr. Martini entered.

"So, can I go back to work?" he asked like an impatient child.

"I'm afraid not, Tim. The cancer is still there. We need to discuss your options." she said.

Alyssa explained what Tim could do. They decided that the best option was for him to have a Bone Marrow Transplant. Everyone was sad when he told them that the Chemo hadn't worked and that he needed bone marrow. While the NCIS team was ready to go and have theirs tested right then and there Dr. Martini explained that the mostly likely match was with family.

"I'll do it right now." Sarah said.

"Anything for my son."

"We'll do it." Harold said.

A day after the news that Tim's chemo hasn't worked Leroy Jethro Gibbs was waiting with Tim's family to get the results of their bone marrow tests.

"I'm sorry," Dr. Martini said, "None of you are a match. Is there anyone else-?"

"We'll do it. One of us might be a match." Gibbs said interrupting the doctor. He flipped open his cell phone. "Tony. Hospital. Bone marrow test. Now. Bring Ziva, Abby, Ducky, Palmer and Vance."

"Agent Gibbs, Like I said before we're more likely to find a match among family."

"We're part of McGee's family. Just because we're not related by blood doesn't mean we aren't like family." Gibbs said glaring at her. "We're going to get tested. Now let's go and do whatever it is you need to do before my team gets here."

It took two days for all the results to be processed and there was a match among the NCIS team. Everyone was crowded in Tim's room to tell him about the match.

"None of your family was a match, Tim. So your co-workers were tested and we found you a match."

"Who is it?" he asked looking among the people he also considered his family.

"SURPRIZE!!!!!!!" Tony yelled.

"I'm going to have some Tony in me?" Tim said faking anxiety, "Can I choose the death option instead please?"

Everyone knew he was joking but it still hit them hard. They had forgotten that Tim could die from this. He wouldn't die the next day but eventually this could kill him.

Tim sighed. After this surgery, he was never going to the hospital again he decided. He was sick of white walls, white floors, white....EVERYTHING! He didn't even want to be in the hospital right now, but the doctors wanted to keep an eye on him during the night so he was stuck in the hospital the day before his surgery. Tony was sitting with him right now since he too was spending the night in the hospital. He was reading an old back issue of GSM magazine, Tim vaguely recognized as the one that Tony and Ziva had both had when she arrived to take a place on their team.

"Did you ever find out if what she said was true, about number 57?" he asked.

"Page 57, McVirgin, page 57."

"Well, did you ever find out if it was true?"

"No."

It was moments after this at Ziva walked into the room to relieve Tony of his "Keeping McGee entertained" duty. Of course Tony didn't go far...since he was donating his marrow the doctors wanted to keep an eye on him too. They were afraid he'd eat and be unable to have the surgery.

"Hey Tony," McGee called as his fellow agent was walking out the door, "Thanks...for everything."

"You're welcome ...Tim."

The time Tim spent with Ziva was full of quiet words and jokes and Tim once again explaining that idioms do not always have to make sense. Two hours later found him with Ducky and Palmer as companions...he was wary about having Palmer around especially after that one time in chemo*. But things went smoothly and both Palmer and Ducky said they'd see him after the surgery when Vance came in. Vance was only there for half an hour mostly to tell Tim about the technical upgrades occurring at the Navy Yard...including touch screens. He spent the next few hours with his parents and Sarah. His mother was terrified and Tim was the only one who could keep her calm.

"It'll be fine, mom." he said.

"I just wish we could stay longer after your surgery."

"I've got the team. They'll be there all the time until I can be on my own."

Sarah also promised that she'd drop by Tim's apartment more often than usual. Just as his parents were leaving Gibbs came in to spend some time with Tim. Tim had gotten used to the (now comfortable) silences when Gibbs was around. They were comforting in a way that was only a product of the aura of Leroy Jethro Gibbs. Tim smiled when Abby walked into the room. She flopped into the chair that Gibbs had just vacated. With a shoulder pat and a promise to see him the following day Gibbs headed home. Tim was glad Abby was the last one to visit him but felt bad because he was starting to fall asleep on her.

"It's alright, Timmy," she said, "I'll be right here for as long as I can. You go to sleep. When you wake up tomorrow, you'll be all better."