Chapter 9: Dec 30
Lily checked her secret supply in one of the spare rooms. Everything looked in order. Perfect.
It was 0600, the sun had yet to even contemplate rising and nevertheless she already been out in the snow. Her guests and her children were fast asleep, even Gabriel for once. But she couldn't rest – her mind wouldn't shut down and she wasn't physically tired.
So she had gone for a very early morning walk, despite needing to take a flashlight and the snow slowing her down. She had headed for her favorite part of this place.
It was the reason she had decided to stay here, in spite of her concerns of renting such a huge place. It meant more supervision was needed for Gabriel, while she worried about Jasper, who most of the time could look after himself.
It was a beautiful, albeit small, lake at the back of the property. She was fairly sure none of her guests had located it yet and she had not breathed a word. In the summer, if she decided she could stay in one place for long enough, she planned to swim out there, to introduce Gabriel to water and let Jasper practice his swimming.
But right now, the little lake was frozen solid. More than enough to take her weight and hopefully a few others at the same time. She had ice skates, having picked up a box-worth for next to nothing. Searching for the right sizes had taken time, but she had enough for everyone and a few spare.
Her next job, after knocking most of the snow from her shoes, was to start making lunch. There was no point in making the trek if they couldn't enjoy their time outside. It wasn't freezing, but it wasn't exactly warm either.
She had more than enough time to get ready for everything. A cold lunch could be sorted first, then a warm breakfast around the time everyone was likely to start stirring.
Thinking back to the pattern of the last few days, she decided Ziva would be the first to rise, gladly taking a few sips of hot chocolate before setting off for her morning run. Some days Lily joined her, still fit mainly through her desire to fill her hours in a constructive manner, even though she now ran more at night.
LJ would be up next, hunting for coffee. She normally obliged, aware one cup would be for Jenny and the other for himself. If neither of them spoke, they tended to sip their caffeine in silence together, putting their feud on hold for a few precious minutes.
Jasper always came down at the same time, a habit drilled into him at boarding school where a late start meant no breakfast. He would be the first to eat, politely asking for something fairly healthy and clearing his plate. Lily smiled to herself, absurdly proud of her little boy. She would tell him the plan for the day and he would add his own opinion, which sometimes lead to her changing a few things. But he would enjoy ice skating; he had been quietly asking for the last few days.
Then it was a toss-up of Tony, McGee or Abby. Ziva seemed to relish the chance of a lie-in for the moment; Tony often took food up for her anyway. If the males were in the kitchen at the same time, she could guarantee a teasing conversation, the odd insult and a possible food fight. Abby loved to hold Gabriel and stay out of the way.
And finally her sister would appear, greeting her with a big hug and a smile. Coffee would be shared, they would gossip and gently tease LJ about something. Yesterday it had been his bed-head hair, all sticking up at the back, and the day before it had been his choice of aftershave.
Lily smiled to herself. It might take a while to get everyone ready and out, but she wouldn't miss it for the world.
Timothy McGee stared out across the lake. How had he missed this on his walks?
It was small, but big enough for all of them to get on the ice at once if they so desired. Snow surrounded it, the surface only slightly covered in a dusting. By the looks of it, Lily had cleared most of the snow that morning.
He wished she had mentioned it; he would have gladly assisted her. Not that he didn't think she could manage on her own, but she was taking everything on and refused to allow anyone to help her. Shoveling the snow from the lake must have taken some energy.
He hoped it had tired her out enough to sleep for a while.
Beside him, Abby was bouncing up and down at the thought of going skating. He was more nervous – he hadn't done this in years and hoped the ice was thick enough. Everyone else seemed to think so, judging by the excitement building.
Glancing behind him, he smiled as Jenny and Gibbs set about getting the twins into their skates. Both of them were bundled up tight against the cold and would probably roll if they fell over. Lily was holding Gabriel in one hand and helping Jasper with the other, allowing her son to lean on her and sort himself out.
Lunch was concealed in several boxes, all tucked slightly away from the lake in case of an accident. Jenny had insisted on a first aid kit as well; Lily hadn't seemed fussed. Probably because she was used to dealing with injuries without any such kit to hand.
Abby thrust the skates in his hand and set out towards the ice.
"Don't go too far to the east!" Lily yelled immediately. "The ice isn't as solid there and I don't want anyone going through."
"How far is too far?" As usual, Ziva wanted the details.
Lily waved vaguely at a portion of the ice. "I managed to clear the snow, but I'm light and some of you aren't. And it was creaking as well. It's best just to avoid it."
McGee nodded, somehow managing to change shoes without stepping in the snow. His first steps onto the ice were timid, until Ziva grabbed his arm and forced him out further.
"I will catch you if you fall," she promised him.
Smiling his thanks at her and feeling more confident, he began to remember how to skate. Still cautious, he set about doing a few laps of the lake before joining in the game of tag Tony had arranged.
From the corner of his eye, he watched the children. Jasper definitely seemed to know what he was doing. Lily had joined him, Gabriel still in her arms, thankfully asleep for the moment, and they circled in a corner. Jenny and Gibbs were catching their own troublemakers as the redheaded twins kept falling over. McGee grinned as he realized he had been right – they did roll over.
Tag tired them out a little, Ziva coming out on top. She was a natural on the ice. Tony did not seem pleased at being bested by his partner yet again and settled for teasing McGee.
"Hey, McChicken," he yelled yet again.
McGee turned in time to see Tony skating on the very patch Lily had told them to avoid.
Ziva must have noticed him too. "Get back here," she demanded. "Now."
"Relax, my little ninja chick," Tony grinned. "It's perfectly safe. McGoo, why don't you come over here?"
McGee was torn between glaring at Tony and looking like a coward, or going out there, feeling like an idiot but appearing brave in Tony's eyes.
"Tony!" Ziva yelled, exasperated.
McGee made up his mind. The ice was clearly safe if Tony could stand on it. He took a step forward…
And Tony tripped over his own feet.
The now familiar sound of skating on the ice stopped as everyone held their breath. The ice seemed to hold.
"DiNozzo!" Gibbs bellowed.
"Getting up, boss," Tony instantly replied.
He didn't have the chance to move before the ice collapsed underneath him.
Abby Scuito busied herself with another mug of hot chocolate. Tony needed to be kept warm and she was going to force hot liquid down his throat all night if need be.
Tony had definitely been shocked when the ice had collapsed, but Ziva had been the first to reach his side. Despite the danger of the ice collapsing further, she had half-pulled him out, assisted by Gibbs. Blankets had been produced out of nowhere and he had been frog-marched back to the house, Gibbs yelling at him the whole way.
They had been able to hear every word back at the lake.
Skating had continued for a little while longer, but no one's heart was in it anymore so they had headed back to the house. El jefe had forced Tony in front of a now massive fire in the living room. Ziva had made him change out of his wet clothes and Tony looked a little worse for wear.
Everyone had spent the day together. Lily stoked the fire, McGee had produced food, Gibbs had warmed Tony simply by his glare, Jenny had checked his temperature constantly, Ziva had forced him to move about to keep warm, while Abby had hugged him as much as possible.
Possibly a little too much as she was now in charge of hot drinks.
Overall, Tony looked as though he would be back to normal in no time. Abby smiled to herself; everyone was just a little overprotective of him.
And with good reason. Life without Tony was unthinkable.
She shuddered, in spite of the warmth. Cradling the steaming mug, she began to carry it through to the other room. Tony was going to be fine.
