Disclaimer: I own nothing. Sad, but true.

Gibbs walked into the Autopsy room and did not like what he saw. Abby was lying on the Autopsy table, looking worse than she did when he had left her, and Ducky looked worried.

"Oh Jethro, excellent timing as always," Ducky said in the grave voice he saved for times in which he had serious news to tell Gibbs. "I was just about to call you to come get young Abigail."

"How is she Duck?" Gibbs didn't like the serious tone in his friend's voice.

"I'm fine, Gibbs." Abby sat up quickly, but then started swaying. Gibbs took two quick steps and caught her before she fell back onto the table.

"Ya, Abbs. You look fine." He said quietly and sarcastically to her unconscious form. He tapped her gently to wake her and then helped her to slowly and carefully sit up. "Do you believe me now that you are not fine?"

"That is the second time in the past few minutes that she has fainted." Ducky said quietly.

"What? That's it. Abbs, you are going home now. Ducky, do you know what she has?"

"She has nothing but a fever, but it is a high one at that. I will need to retake her temperature before she leaves to make sure that she is ok to go home instead of to another doctor, but I think she will be fine once she gets some rest."

"All right, do it, Duck."

"Well, I would Jethro, but Abby—" he started to explain that Abby wouldn't open her mouth for the thermometer, but Abby saw that this would get her in trouble with Gibbs, so she cut him off quickly.

"Was, um, not ready yet because she wasn't done telling a story about Major Mass Spec. Oh, weird, Abby is talking in third person again. She wants to stop but she doesn't think she can because—"

"Abby!" Gibbs cut her off. "Stop rambling and let Ducky take your temperature so I can take you home."

"Fine."

Ducky took her temperature and found that, as he had suspected, it had risen. It was high, but not so high that she had to see another doctor. "She should be fine to go home, Jethro, but she can't be left alone. Someone needs to stay with her to make sure her temperature doesn't rise any more and make sure she gets sleep."

"That is not a problem, Duck. I was already planning to take her to my place to watch her."

"Aww, Gibbs! I get to go home with you?"

"No, Abbs. You HAVE to go home with me."

"What? Did you think I was going to protest? I feel fine, but I would never deny the chance to stay at your house and help you with the boat."

"Abby, you will not be helping with the boat. I will not even be working on the boat. You are going to sleep, and I am going to watch you."

"You know, to many other people, that would be kind of creepy." Abby said with a slight smile.

"I know, but I figured it would take more than that to creep out someone who sleeps in a coffin." He matched her smile briefly, but it disappeared quickly, because Abby moved quickly.

"And you were right, Gibbs! Now let's go!" Abby hopped down off the table and was only on her feet for two seconds before she fell into Gibbs, who caught her for the third time that day.

"All right, Abbs, I am carrying you now." Gibbs picked her up and started walking towards the elevator.

"No! Gibbs! Let me down! This is humiliating!" She yelled at him, but then she stopped because it was giving her a headache. "Please, Gibbs," she said in a voice that was barely above a whisper.

"Abby, if I let you down, you will only be on your feet a few seconds before you get dizzy. Bye, Duck. Thanks." Gibbs carried Abby out of the Autopsy room and pressed the elevator button.

"Good bye, Jethro, Abigail. And Jethro, call if you need me or if she gets worse." Ducky turned around and headed to his desk to finish a report.

"All right, Duck," Gibbs said as he stepped onto the elevator with a protesting Abby still in his arms.

"Giiiiibbbbbs," she whined softly. "At least put me down on the elevator so that if anyone gets on I won't have to explain anything. Gosh, I hate being pitied and having all this negative attention."

"It's not negative attention, Abbs. It's just the attention of concerned people who love you and don't want to see you hurt or sick."

"I know, Gibbs, and I appreciate and love you all. But there are some people who I would rather avoid alarming with my health. You were, of course, the first person on that list, but seeing as it is too late for that, I just want the list of worried people to be as small as possible. So could you please put me down? And carefully? All this talking is giving me a headache. Can we go home now? I'm tired."

Gibbs saw that she was starting to show the fact that she felt sick, which she had been trying to hide all day. It was either that, or her caffeine high was wearing off and her body was finally letting her know that it was not healthy. He felt the elevator slowing down, and so did she.

"Gibbs, please," she pleaded with him. "Don't walk off this elevator with me in your arms. Ziva and McGee will freak, not to mention whatever comment Tony will come up with about this situation."

Gibbs said nothing, but he saw her point. Distracted agents were not good agents, and Ducky had said that she would be fine, so he supposed there was no reason to worry the team. He slowly let put her feet back on the ground and helped her stand up. Then he put his arm around her waist to support her and help her keep her balance as the doors opened and they stepped out and towards the bullpen.

tbc

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