a/n - A little shorter chapter after a couple of long ones, but this one had to end here. (why, yes, I am evil. Thank you for noticing.) Enjoy.

Tim had just climbed out of his sleeping bag when his phone rang. The display showed 'Gibbs' and the young man groaned. He'd hoped to call and leave a voice mail citing the need for a day off, but now it looks like the request was going to have to be direct. "McGee."

Need everyone in early, McGee. Tip line caught a weapons deal going down this morning. We need all hands on deck.

"Damn it." As soon as he'd uttered the words, he hoped they'd been soft enough that Gibbs hadn't heard them.

Problem, McGee?

"I've got a situation here and was going to call in for the day." Situation barely covered it. This was a critical day of sobriety for his father and he didn't want him to face it alone.

Anybody dying?

"Well, no, but..."

Your team is expecting you to watch their backs, not some strange agent they've never worked with. I expect you here in an hour with everybody else.

"Yeah, sure, I'm on my way." Even Gibbs couldn't ignore the depressed tone.

Hey, I'll let you leave as soon as the paperwork's done. That's the best I can do. One hour, McGee.

There was no point in thanking him for that small favor, he was already talking to a dial tone.

His shower was quick enough that the water didn't have time to warm up, and less than ten minutes later he was bending down, waking his father. "Dad, I need you to wake up for a minute, okay? Dad?"

Confused green eyes, so much like his own, opened slowly and blinked. "Timmy? What..."

I'm sorry, Dad, I have to go to work."

"But I thought..."

"We're going after some stolen weapons. The team needs me, but I'll be back as soon as I can. I just need you to stay strong today. Can you do that?"

Will nodded, his eye drawn to the weapon already strapped to his son's side. Tim was so careful around his father, locking his gun away the second he walked in the door, that this was the first time the older man had seen it. "You be careful, too."

Tim bent and kissed his father's forehead. "I'll call."

---NCIS---

Vance waited until the briefing was done before pulling McGee to the side. "My office, now."

"Everything okay, Probie?" Tim didn't answer as he followed Vance out of the bullpen. The early morning calls he'd made to Sarah and Abby had been difficult enough. He didn't want to deal with Tony and Vance at the same time, and the Director was non-negotiable.

DiNozzo watched as his teammate followed Vance up the stairs before turning to Gibbs. "Boss?"

"He's fine, DiNozzo. Leave him be." Gibbs turned to check out the weapons they would need from the armory, leaving DiNozzo and Ziva alone in the bullpen.

"You are still concerned, yes?"

"Yeah, I am. He won't talk to me, Ziva." Tony double checked his weapon, just to keep his hands busy. "When have we ever not been able to get McGee to talk to us?"

She thought about his question. "Perhaps I should get coffee."

"What?"

"Yes, I believe that would be the best option." Ziva rolled her eyes at Tony's baffled look. "His sister works at a coffee place near the campus. If something is wrong, she will be worried also. Perhaps she will speak to me about it."

---NCIS---

McGee stood in front of Vance's desk, waiting. He was pretty sure he knew what this was about, after all, there had been plenty of time for his request to be processed. Sure enough, Vance laid a printed copy of the transfer paperwork out on the desk surface.

"This tells me everything but why. Why do you want to leave NCIS? Don't give me some bull about more opportunities at the FBI."

That was going to be his official reason, instead he settled for a half truth. "I just want a fresh start, Sir."

"What has DiNozzo done now?"

Tim had been looking over Vance's shoulder during the discussion, but now he looked the man straight in the eye in shock. "What? No, this has nothing to do with Tony, or with Ziva. This is about what I need to do for me."

Vance couldn't help notice the glaring absence in McGee's words. "You're not the first person to butt heads with Gibbs. That doesn't mean you have to leave the agency. There's a lot of other teams, a lot of other positions here at NCIS that could use an agent with your skills and experience."

"I appreciate that, Sir, but the truth of the matter is that the MCRT is the top team at Headquarters, therefore, the top team in the agency. Any move to another posting would be looked at as a demotion, and I haven't done anything wrong. Like I said, I just want a fresh start."

Director Vance wasn't quite ready to give up. "If you haven't done anything wrong, has Gibbs?" There was only silence, which didn't surprise him. "All right, McGee, I'll handle the paperwork personally. If you change your mind or want to discuss other options, my door's open."

"Thank you, Sir." The words were barely out of his mouth before McGee was out of the office. Vance carefully looked over the paperwork again. He had two weeks to process it at his end, with any luck that would give him enough time to get to the bottom of what had gone wrong with his best team.

---NCIS---

William poked at the leftover pastries that Sarah had brought the day before. Nothing looked appetizing that morning and the coffee was bitter no matter how much sugar he added. He abandoned the food and began pacing in the small apartment, avoiding the workbench and the box of cords that had turned into snakes only a few days ago. It was windy, and the howling set his nerves even more on edge. He tried to ignore the sound of the wind, but eventually he couldn't because the wind was whispering his name.

"Stop it, stop it, stop it." He dropped to his knees, covering his ears as he rocked back and forth. He could see into the bedroom, darkened by the heavy curtains and watched a figure form and come out of the shadows. "Julia? Is that you?" She pointed at him before vanishing back into the gloom. Will scrambled to his feet and rushed into the bedroom to turn on the light, but the room was empty. Still confused and disorientated, he ended up in a corner, once again on the floor.

---NCIS---

Gibbs reached up and touched the mike button on his collar. "McGee, you in position?

Affirmative.

"David?"

In position, Gibbs.

He looked to his left, where he could see DiNozzo, who nodded. They were all ready, McGee was at the back door of the warehouse, Ziva had entered the next unit over in the complex and climbed up into the rafters and over. He and Tony were at the large roll up door in the front. Gibbs cut the lock as he gave the command to move in.

At the back door, McGee set off a small explosive charge on the door, blasting it open and distracting the hostiles while Gibbs and Tony rolled under the partially open loading dock door. The firefight was brief, but intense before two of the suspects dropped their weapons and surrendered. The third tossed a flash-bang grenade into the back hall, before running into the hallway, firing indiscriminately. From her vantage point, Ziva could not take a shot, but a second later three shots from a SIG echoed back.

Gibbs and DiNozzo quickly slapped the handcuffs on their suspects before Gibbs approached the now quiet hall. "McGee? McGee?" He edged around the corner, weapon at the ready, as glass from a shattered interior window crunched beneath his feet. "Damn it, I need a medic in here, McGee's hit."