Upon his return to school following Violet's suicide, Tim was met with a sea of sympathies and condolences from teachers and students, most of whom he barely knew. No one teased him for his mental breakdown two days earlier; some even congratulated him on giving Joey his comeuppance. While Tim appreciated their words, he had to wonder where this kindness and understanding had been for the past four years and especially where it had been these past weeks when Violet so desperately needed it. These people were obviously capable of compassion, so why had it taken so long and such drastic measures to pull it from them? Was this really the only way to get a point across? Would someone have to die just to stop the incessant bullying in every high school?

Principal Caine had been thoroughly shaken by the incident and it had catapulted him into action. The people Tim had named as the cause of Violet's depression were required to perform one hundred hours of community service before the school would give them their diplomas, a decision that had been met with hostility from the students' parents, but had been upheld by the school superintendent. Anti-bullying posters had been placed all around the school and there was talk of the school implementing a biannual mandatory bully prevention workshop which would be a day long event including horror stories from high school bullying, steps to stop bullying, and ways to get help if you become the victim of bullying. The school was now ready to crack down on something that had been plaguing their halls for quite some time.

For Tim it seemed too little too late.

"Um, hey…"

He looked up from his locker to see Robbie White, one of Joey's chucklehead friends, standing there contritely. The jock was rocking back and forth on his feet, looking down awkwardly at his hands.

"Hi," Tim muttered tersely before turning back to his locker.

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry about…well…you know…"

"You'll have to be more specific than that."

The other boy's face turned beet red. "Um…about your friend."

"Violet," he supplied.

"Yeah…Violet. I didn't mean…well, I didn't think she would ever…"

"Kill herself?"

The jock nodded. "If I had…I mean I never would have…" He stopped and took a deep breath. "That's not a good excuse, I know, and I don't blame you for hating me. I guess I just didn't think it was doing that much harm. Just all in good fun, you know?"

It was a piss poor excuse and Tim wasn't about to consider the boy a friend or even an acquaintance. Still, he appreciated the attempt at an apology. Robbie was the fourth bully to apologize to him so far. Neither Joey nor Stacey had made any attempt, though both had pointedly avoided Tim since he'd returned to school. He wasn't holding his breath for an apology from either of them.

"If there's anything I can do," Robbie continued, "let me know."

"No," Tim said, "there's nothing. Thank you for your apology, but forgive me if I say I hope I never see you again."

The other boy nodded. "I understand completely." He turned to leave, but stopped. "By the way, I thought it was pretty cool the way you beat Joey to a pulp like that. He'd kill me for telling you, but he was really shaken up. I think he's kind of afraid of you."

Tim felt a certain sense of pride in knowing that. But he wasn't going to use that fear against the other boy or exploit it for his own gain; then he would become the very thing he hated. He was better than that and he knew it.

In a way Tim felt like David of biblical fame. He'd slain his own personal Goliath. He only wished he'd done it with one less casualty.

That evening he was seated at his computer when there was a knock at his door. "Come in," he called without looking away from the screen.

The door opened and his father peeked his head in. "Hey, Tim. Are you studying?"

"Homework," he said. "Just a paper I've got to finish for Ms. Shaw's class."

"Ms. Shaw is English, right?" his dad asked as he entered and sat on the edge of Tim's bed.

"Yeah, but this isn't really an English paper. We're supposed to write a paper on what we want to do with our life and why."

His father peered at the computer screen and saw that so far Tim only had the header typed up. "You seem a little stuck."

"I am," he agreed. "I'm just not sure what I want to do with my life."

"Well, you're planning to study Computer Science in the fall, aren't you?"

Tim nodded. "But I'm not sure what I really want to do with computers. I don't really want to be stuck in an office." He sighed and looked back at the computer screen. "I've actually been thinking about what you said."

"What I said when?"

"Monday; you said you went into the Navy to prove you could fight against bullies." He looked at his dad with a half-smile. "I kind of like the idea of fighting back against bullies and defending people who can't really defend themselves. It might even be therapeutic for me."

Cdr. McGee reciprocated his son's grin. "I think those people would be lucky to have you defending them."

"The thing is I don't really see myself in the Navy. No offense," he added.

"None taken. The Navy was a great experience for me, but it's not for everyone."

"But what else can I really do?"

"There are other ways to protect the innocent, Tim. Law enforcement is always an option."

He was dubious. "I don't know, dad. I can't really see myself in some police station or running down an alley after someone or even shooting a gun."

"You watch too many TV shows. Believe me, most of the time law enforcement isn't as action-packed as it seems in movies and television. In fact, a good bit of it requires intellectual strength above physical strength. Investigating is about analyzing facts and seeing anomalies."

"Don't you think my computer skills will go to waste, though?"

"Not necessarily. Many agencies and offices are starting to use computers more in investigation, so if anything I imagine you'd be ahead of the game."

"So you think I should be a policeman?"

"You could, but I think you could even try for a job in one of the federal agencies. The FBI, Homeland Security, CIA. If you wanted to stay close to the Navy you could even go with NCIS."

Tim nodded. Having grown up with a father in the Navy he was well aware of NCIS, though he'd never considered taking a job there. "Yeah, maybe," he said noncommittally.

"No matter what you choose to do with your life, Tim, I know you'll be great at it. Law enforcement is an important job, but so are many of the other careers you might consider. Just go with your gut. It will rarely lead you astray."

"Thanks, dad." It was strange how greatly the relationship between him and his father had changed. A week ago he never would have imagined having such a conversation with his father; now it seemed normal.

His father stood and gave Tim a paternal pat on the back. "I've got to tuck Sarah in to bed. Don't fret too much about the paper or about knowing what you want to do with your life. You've got a lot of time to figure it out, more than most people since you're so young. I doubt Ms. Shaw expects the paper to be an accurate depiction of your future, just a way to get your mind on the future."

Tim continued to stare blankly at the computer screen after his father had left, trying to decide which route to go. He had never considered himself a good candidate for law enforcement, but his father's argument had been very persuasive. He was a bright guy and he liked to think he had a good attention to detail, so why shouldn't he consider investigation as a career option? Not only would he be putting his intelligence to good use, but he'd be protecting the world from other bullies, and that was the best part of it.

He glanced down and caught sight of the friendship bracelet that Marian had given to him; Violet's bracelet. And suddenly he knew what he was going to do.

AN: One more chapter!