Tension was rising in the squad room of the MCRT. Gibbs was scowling. Tim was, unsuccessfully, pinging a cell phone, Ellie was wishing she was still allowed to sit on the floor and Tony … well, Tony was missing.
Actually, Special Agent Timothy McGee realised that it was unfair to say that Very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo was missing; it was just that he was cutting his return from lunch fine – very fine. And with Gibbs already in a bad mood with a case that was stubbornly remaining unsolved while they waited for a search authorisation to be granted – it wasn't a good day to be annoying Gibbs. Although Tim, with his customary scrupulousness, couldn't think of when would be a good day to annoy Gibbs. Correction, Tim couldn't think of a day which would be good for him to wind Gibbs up but Tony didn't seem to have the McGee sense of self-preservation.
McGee tried Tony's cell once more but it went to voicemail again. He risked a glance towards Gibbs who seemed to be building up a good head of steam. Tim wondered if Tony was doing this deliberately so as to allow Gibbs an outlet for his frustration; if so, then McGee would consider giving him a nomination for the Meritorious Civilian Service Award and hope that it wouldn't have to be awarded posthumously.
He cleared his throat as he tried to think of something to break the tension.
"Got something to say, McGee?" growled Gibbs.
"Uh, no. No, Boss. Nothing to say. Just got a bit of a tickle in my throat," said McGee as inspiration died in the face of Gibbs' displeasure.
"I've got some cough drops. Menthol, strawberry or tropical fruit?" offered Ellie.
"Tropical fruit. Jeez, what's the world coming to?" groused Gibbs. "Tropical fruit!"
Ellie and Tim wisely decided this was a rhetorical question and didn't answer. Tim was feeling a little nauseous from the tension and decided that cough drops wouldn't help although, personally, he quite liked the idea of tropical fruit. And, on the plus side, it was always good to know that Bishop was prepared for emergencies.
"No, no thank you. But, thanks," said Tim.
He began to scout around for something else to distract Gibbs but then looked up hopefully as the elevator sounded to announce an arrival. It was Tony, looking carefree and happy and carefully carrying a small plastic box with a grille on the top.
"Hey," he said cheerfully, apparently immune to the wave of resentment coming his way. Tony placed the box on his desk and then looked across at Gibbs. Fifteen years of working with the Boss stood him in good stead and he realised that he wasn't in a good mood. Tony's eyes narrowed slightly and he looked ostentatiously at his watch, "59 minutes. Less than an hour for lunch," he said neutrally.
Gibbs grunted.
"We get that search authorisation through?" Tony asked.
Gibbs grunted a grunt which sounded negative and glared at McGee who was responsible for trying to get the paperwork completed.
"Then taking lunch didn't hold anything up?"
Gibbs grunted again.
"Good. And McGee, don't sweat it. The Boss knows that you're doing your best," said Tony.
Gibbs' next grunt was interrupted by Ellie asking, "What's in the box, Tony?" She was a little disappointed that Tony hadn't returned with some sort of edible treat but was intrigued to know what he had brought back.
"Hamster," said Tony. Tim could have sworn that his co-worker's eyes were almost misty with some unexplained emotion. Tony looked at the cage where he could just see a patch of golden fur and found himself travelling back in time …
FLASHBACK
"You mean it?" asked the 8-year-old Tony.
"Of course I mean it," replied his mother.
Tony jumped up and down in excitement and ran into the pet store. His mother smiled indulgently and followed him in. She soon found her son standing with eyes as big as saucers in front of a cage containing six yellow Labrador puppies. Mrs DiNozzo's smile faded.
"Mommy! That's what I want! One of them!" said Tony.
"Sweetie …" began Mrs DiNozzo.
Tony's face fell. He knew that tone of voice. It was the tone of voice that told him it was time for bed, time to wear his sailor suit, time to eat his cabbage, time to do one of the multitude of things which 8-year-old Tony didn't want to do. He prepared to do battle.
"But you promised …"
"I know, but …"
"You said I could have a pet. For my birthday!"
Mrs DiNozzo realised her mistake. She should have realised that, in her son's eyes, a pet meant a dog.
"And you can," she said soothingly.
"I can?" Tony's smile was so wide she was surprised it didn't split his face open.
"Yes, you can. But a dog is a big responsibility."
"But I'm 8," said Tony with the air of having made an unarguable point.
"I know, Sweetie. And you're very big for 8."
"Then I can have a puppy?" said Tony looking yearningly at the dogs who were lying in an adorable heap.
"I was thinking of something smaller," said Mrs DiNozzo.
"But they're small," said Tony.
"But they'll get bigger," said his mother.
"Please?" said Tony in his most desperate voice.
Mrs DiNozzo found herself wavering but steeled herself. "I'm sorry, Sweetie. Daddy won't want a puppy running around the house." She hated the way that Tony's face fell and the argument went out of him.
Tony took one last look at the sleepy puppies and turned away, "OK," he said sadly.
"Did I ever tell you about my first pet?" asked his Mom.
Tony perked up. He loved listening to stories about his mother's childhood. He shook his head.
"It was a hamster. A golden hamster."
"Gold?" breathed Tony.
"It was gold coloured," said his mother hastily before Tony could begin to imagine a solid gold animal.
"What was it called?"
Mrs DiNozzo was a little vexed when she remembered the unimaginative name she had bestowed on her pet. "Goldie," she said.
The 8-year-old Tony obviously thought this was the best name in the world. "Goldie," he said, rolling the word over his tongue.
"I was about your age when I got him," said his mother, trying to remember if they had ever worked out if it was a male or a female.
"Cool," said Tony.
"I used to love watching him. Running on his wheel. It was fun."
"A wheel? Like Daddy on his treadmill?"
"Something like that. Shall we see if the pet shop owner has any hamsters?"
"Yes, please. A golden one!"
END FLASHBACK
Gibbs drew himself up even straighter as he prepared to tell his Senior Field Agent what he thought of him bringing livestock into his squad room but even as he drew breath, Ellie had hurried over to Tony's desk to look more closely.
"A hamster! I love hamsters," she squealed happily.
"Hush," said Tony. Ellie looked at him enquiringly. "Hey. Remember what your first day was like? Pretty daunting, wasn't it? Like being dropped into the middle of a pumpkin. And if it was scary for you, just think what it's like for this little cutie."
"I'm sorry," said Ellie contritely and quietly. She peered into the box. "She's so beautiful," she cooed.
Tim sensed that Gibbs was delaying his explosion so walked over to make his own inspection.
"Wouldn't have thought you'd like hamsters, Tony," he said.
Tony was stooped over the cage with something like an adoring expression. "How so?" he asked.
"Aren't they a bit like a rat? Only with a shorter tail?" suggested Tim.
Tony turned a wounded look on Tim. "They're nothing like rats. They don't spread plague for one thing."
"And they're adorable for another," added Ellie.
"I had one. When I was a kid," said Tony.
"What was it called?" asked Ellie.
"Well, at first it was called Goldie …" Tony trailed off as he remembered Goldie's first adventure.
FLASHBACK
"Where's Goldie going to live?" asked Tony.
Mrs DiNozzo wasn't paying complete attention. "Where do you want him to live?"
"The lounge?"
"Daddy has business guests in there sometimes. I don't think they'll want to see Goldie on his wheel," said Mrs DiNozzo.
"They might enjoy it. Those meetings can be very boring, you know. I think they'd like to see Goldie having fun," suggested Tony.
"I don't think the lounge is a good idea," said Mrs DiNozzo.
"How about the kitchen?" said Tony as he thought of one of his favourite rooms in the house.
Mrs DiNozzo shuddered at the potential reaction of the highly paid chef if his domain were infiltrated by a mouse like creature. "No, Sweetie. Kitchens aren't places for animals to live. What about the garage?"
Tony was outraged. "But it's cold out there. And he'll be lonely."
"All right. Then I think Goldie will have to live in your bedroom. How does that sound?"
"Perfect! I can watch him on his wheel. And watch him play …"
"You mustn't stay up all night watching him," warned his mother.
"I won't," promised Tony.
Having decided where the new arrival should live, Tony and his mother processed up the stairs with Tony proudly carrying the small cage containing Goldie. One of the household staff carried Goldie's new permanent home. Tony and his mother took some time deciding on the best place to put the hamster cage. Tony favoured his vanity table but, although it wasn't a genuine Louis Quinze piece, it was an expensive reproduction and Mrs DiNozzo didn't want to risk it being damaged by having a pet cage placed on it. A compromise was eventually reached whereby Goldie would live on the beat-up desk set which had once belonged to Mrs DiNozzo.
Tony carefully took the small furry creature out of his temporary home and clutched him to his chest. "He's so soft," he said, as he stroked him gently.
"Put him in his cage," said his mother.
Tony looked a little mulish at this suggestion. He wanted to carry on getting to know Goldie. Mrs DiNozzo knew her son well,
"It's nearly time for tea. Chef said he'd made pizza."
If yellow Labrador puppies weren't available, then pizza was the way to Tony's young heart. He nodded enthusiastically and walked rather too quickly over to his desk. Goldie started wriggling as he made a bid for freedom and before Tony could stop him, he had fallen to the floor and started running.
Mrs DiNozzo prudently shut the bedroom door but there then followed 45 minutes of chasing the rodent around Tony's room. Eventually, Goldie was caught and placed in his new abode where he almost immediately began to tuck into the food that had been placed there.
Tony and his mother sat on the bed feeling a little weary from the excitement.
"He's really fast," said Tony.
"He certainly is," said his mother beginning to wonder if the puppy might have been less work.
"I think he needs a faster name," announced Tony.
"What?"
"I'm going to call him Ferrari," said Tony.
END FLASHBACK
"But then I called him Ferrari," said Tony.
"Why?" asked Ellie.
"Let this one out of the cage and you'll find out," said Tony warningly.
"I hope nobody's going to be releasing animals in the squad room," came Director Vance's voice. He had come into the squad room to see how the MCRT were progressing with their case and had been surprised to see the team members huddled around Tony's desk.
"Oh no, Sir," said Ellie earnestly.
"And Tony has a theory that it'd be terrified of the pumpkin walls," offered Tim.
Tim, Ellie and Tony watched in fascination as a smile dawned on the Director's face. "Don't know about that. I had a hamster. Called Cassius. She used to love pumpkins."
"She?" asked Tony.
Vance looked embarrassed, "Pet shop told my father it was a boy. Turns out they were wrong."
"I had a toad called Felicity," said Tim. All eyes swivelled towards him. "Oh, turned out it should have been Felix. But it's tough to change an animal's name."
Ellie kept a straight face, "Yes, I'm sure it's very traumatic."
"What sort of pet did you have, Bishop?" asked Tony.
"We had loads of animals. Dogs, cats, guinea pigs, stick insects … my brothers were always bringing back strays."
"And did you have a pet just for you?" asked Tim.
"I had a peach-faced lovebird," said Ellie with a hint of defiance.
"Of course you did, Bishop. Of course you did," said Tony.
"Carry on," said Vance majestically as he turned to leave.
"What's it doing here, DiNozzo?" asked Gibbs.
"I didn't want to leave it in the car. It might get lonely," said Tony.
"Instead of being traumatised by the orange walls?" asked Gibbs drily.
"It's cold where I park. Hamsters are sensitive," protested Tony.
"It can't stay here," said Gibbs. "We don't want a MCRT mascot."
Tony didn't reply immediately. He couldn't help but think that Abby would be very enthusiastic about a MCRT mascot.
"It'll be leaving with me tonight," he replied.
"And you'll need a bigger cage. It can't live in that," said Gibbs sternly.
Tony kept his temper although he felt like pointing out that he was old enough to know that the creature needed a bigger home.
"Don't expect me to build you one," said Gibbs.
Tony turned reproachful eyes on Gibbs and felt a pang of sadness as he realised that, once upon a time, he might have expected Gibbs to make him one.
"Wouldn't dream of it, Boss," he said flatly. Then, with a hint of malice, he added, "Wooden ones aren't always the best anyway."
FLASHBACK
Tony and his mother had chosen a beautiful handcrafted hamster cage made out of wood. It looked a little like a sprawling ranch house. It didn't quite fit with the Louis Quinze theme of Tony's bedroom but it was certainly impressive.
Tony allowed himself to be taken away from Ferrari to have tea but then hurried back to watch his new pet. An hour later, his mother called him down to do his piano practice.
"Mommy! Ferrari is so funny!" said Tony as he came running down the stairs.
"What's he done?"
"He put all this food in his mouth."
"They're called pouches," his mother told him.
"Oh. So, he put all this food in his pouches and his mouth stuck out … miles!"
"Miles?"
"Well, a long way. And then he tried to go into his bedroom. And …" he began to giggle.
"What?"
"He couldn't get in because his face was too big! He had to go in sideways!"
Mrs DiNozzo laughed as well and pushed her son into the music room. It was a couple of hours before Tony returned to his bedroom and he soon came running out,
"Mommy, Mommy!"
"What, Tony?" asked his mother, definitely beginning to wonder if a puppy would have been simpler.
"Ferrari's gone!"
"What do you mean he's gone?" said Mrs DiNozzo in sudden dread that the hamster had died already.
"He's chewed a hole through the side of his house," said Tony frantically.
"Hurry up," said Mrs DiNozzo, "Go and shut your bedroom door."
A two-hour search finally ran Ferrari to earth in the canopy over Tony's bed. He was temporarily rehoused in a cookie tin with some holes punched in the lid and a heavy weight placed on the top. The DiNozzos decided they would visit the pet shop the next day and buy a metal cage which Ferrari's efficient teeth would not be able to bite through.
"Perhaps you should rename him, Darling," said Mrs DiNozzo as they once again sat wearily on Tony's bed.
"Why?" asked Tony.
"Perhaps Houdini would be a better name," said his mother.
"No, I like Ferrari. It's like Daddy's car."
END FLASHBACK
"Explains how you learned how to get so much food in your mouth, DiNozzo," said Gibbs when Tony finished telling his co-workers about Ferrari's antics.
Tony looked at his Boss warily, unsure whether this was an attempt at humour or was more criticism. He didn't get a chance to find out as the warrant came through and the team were finally able to get the piece of evidence they needed to close the case.
Later that evening, Tony was sitting in his apartment looking at the new hamster which was still in his travelling cage. He was wondering if the pet was a good idea or not.
Ferrari had turned out to be something of a lifeline to the young Tony. Mrs DiNozzo had died a few months after Tony had acquired the pet. She and Tony had both loved the little creature and Tony had many happy memories of all three of them together.
After his mother died, Tony used to talk to Ferrari for hours about how sad he was about his Mom: Ferrari had seemed to listen gravely with his eyes fixed on Tony and with his whiskers twitching sympathetically. The hamster had made Tony feel a little less lonely at a time when he had not only lost his mother but his father seemed to withdraw as well.
Hamsters, however, do not live for ever. About a year after Mrs DiNozzo died, Ferrari also passed away. Mr DiNozzo did not understand the depth of Tony's grief for his loss and he felt it was out of all proportion. For Tony, however, it brought back all the memories of his mother's death and seemed to break a link to her. Tony had loved Ferrari for his own sake but also for the connection to his mother. His father offered to buy a replacement but Tony could no more imagine replacing Ferrari than replacing his Mom and had tearfully refused.
As an adult, Tony knew that it was good for children to learn about loss through having a pet but, with his mixture of memories, he wasn't sure. He was considering what to do when there came a knock at the door.
"Boss," he said when he opened the door.
"DiNozzo," said Gibbs.
"Did we get a case?" asked Tony.
"Don't have to catch a case for me to show up at your apartment," said Gibbs.
Tony gazed at Gibbs, wondering if he meant it. It had been a long time since Gibbs had visited him at home.
"Right. Well, come in," he said finally.
Gibbs reached behind him and picked up a package. Tony's stomach lurched.
"Go to thinking. That hamster can't live in that tiny cage. Not fair. So I built you one. It's wood but I put a metal band round it. That should stop him gnawing his way out. It's rough at the moment but, if you want, I'll make you something better."
Tony looked at Gibbs incredulously.
Gibbs had gone home from work with the memory of Tony's look of sad reproach burning within him. Gibbs knew that things had not been as they used to be with Tony but, until that moment, he had persuaded himself that Tony was unaware of it. Tony seemed to be as upbeat and cheerful as always and Gibbs had decided that the coolness between them was a matter of regret to Gibbs alone. The wounded look Tony had directed towards him had convinced Gibbs that he was wrong and he found himself wanting to make it right.
"You want it or not?" asked Gibbs gruffly, in sudden doubt that his offer was welcome.
Tony hesitated for a moment and then said, "Want it? Of course I want it. This is great, Boss. Thank you. Hey, do you want to help me make the transfer. Don't want him making a great escape, do we?"
Later that night, Tony sat on his couch looking at the hamster cage on his coffee table and watched the hamster running on its wheel.
Tony wondered what the pet shop would do when he returned to buy another hamster the next day. He hoped they wouldn't think he had murdered the first one. He guessed that Lottie, the girl down the hall who fed his goldfish when he was working, would have to wait another day for her birthday present. Perhaps he could give her the bright pink hamster cage currently residing in his bedroom, as a first instalment of the gift.
Tony sighed as he looked at his new, unexpected, pet. He raised a glass in toast,
"Guess it's you and me, Ferrari Mark2! Welcome!"
Ferrari Mark2 was unimpressed and kept on running.
The characters don't belong to me.