Chapter Twelve
"I got the papers," Gibbs told his team that morning. Carrying his charge on his hip, he was smirking quite satisfactorily. Ziva smiled at the kicking baby as Gibbs lowered James into the playpen and popped his pacifier in his mouth with his stuffed bear.
"That's great, boss!" Tony cheered as the team gathered around Gibbs desk while he withdrew the papers. Most of the papers were surprisingly simplistic. There were questions already answered by Draco thankfully and some of them were the baby's allergies and health.
"How'd he know the baby's allergies?" Tony asked, "I thought he didn't know the kid even existed."
"I have a feeling he did some digging. It says his birthday is July 31st," Gibbs muttered before he finished signing his name in his usual jagged signature. James was giggling at the faces Tony was shooting his way, hiding behind his stuffed dog when Tony pretended to make a snag at him.
"What are you going to do now, boss?" Tim inquired as he hid a smile when James threw his stuffed dog at Tony and erupted into giggles when Tony faked collapsing. Gibbs had also seen his agent and he shook his head, clearly amused.
"McGee, watch James with DiNozzo. I need Abby and Ziva," Gibbs said as he stood up and left, the two girls following immediately. Tim gulped, remembering before, and looked over at Tony who had lifted the baby out of the baby-prison and was bouncing him in the air.
"You're really comfortable with throwing Gibbs's kid around," Tim coughed.
"Well the little brat has already head smacked me, bit me, whacked me, pulled my hair. The kid has done a lot and I find myself… growing attached to the little nugget," Tony said with a cocky grin, swiftly avoiding the baby's little fist as James attempted something else. It was a clear sign that Tony was, perhaps, getting too used to the kid.
Suddenly James halted and whimpered, looking incredibly upset at something. Tony hesitated and raised the baby to him, cringing as he realized the cause of the baby's whining. Tim was about to ask what the problem was when Tony hastily dumped the infant into his arms. He grimaced as he felt the baby's diaper. Ah no, Tony was NOT going to make him…
James looked up at him with an uncomfortable frown on his face for a baby and tried to escape his clutches. Tim hurried to right his hold on the kid, with a glare at Tony, took the diaper bag, and headed for the men's room.
He found the changing table easily enough and he rested the squirming nine-month-old on his back. Taking a deep breath, Tim awkwardly unpeeled the diaper and ignored the baby's intense kicking, wiping James up and hurrying to replace the diaper before the baby had a chance to play hose on him.
It took him several tries to get the tapes on the diaper to stick and he finally did with great relief. James wasn't too pleased and began to kick his legs at Tim's face as his pants were pulled up and readjusted, being lifted into Tim's arms moments later. He carried the baby out of the bathroom and was about to return to his desk when he heard his stomach growl.
"Up to a little grub, James," Tim asked with a smile on his face when James clapped eagerly in response. He had just the place too…
Tony was nearly half asleep when Abby and Ziva walked into the pen, wide smiles on their faces as they returned with a bag between them.
"Where's little Gibbs?" Ziva asked her coworker.
"McGee is changing him," Tony yawned before frowning, "which was twenty minutes ago." Before any of them could panic, Tim walked in with a giggling James Gibbs. Abby and Ziva looked clearly relieved before Tim set the baby on Tony's desk, smirking when Tony hastily cleared the desk of anything the kid could use to hit him with.
"What did the boss need you for?" Tony asked as he watched the baby prod the computer on his desk. Eventually he transferred James from the desk to his lap, making sure the infant's pacifier remained in his mouth. James was smacking his hand on the computer experimentally and Tony was relieved the electronic was off. He didn't know what he'd do if James made him lose everything on the computer because he wanted to play whack-a-mole on his keyboard.
"A little shopping trip and to get Jamie this," Abby announced as she pulled out a pair of dungarees with ducks on them and a yellow jacket that had 'Gibbs' embedded on the back. James giggled at the outfit and lifted his arms up so Ziva could steal him from Tony.
"Now that our part has been completed, the boss has something he needs you two to do at his humble abode," Ziva told her coworkers as the ladies bore James away, no doubt to Abby's lab to dress him. Tony and Tim shared a look before wordlessly heading for their cars.
Surprisingly, Ducky came into the lab and gave a thorough examination of little James to make sure his cold was gone among other things. James was developing a small sneeze but he was otherwise fine and healthy. Ducky winked at the girls and announced they better head to Jethro's home.
Ziva drove while Abby kept James occupied in his car seat, tickling him and making the best faces that she could. The drive wasn't very long and soon they were parked outside his house. Abby unhooked the 9-month-old and carried him inside.
"There's the little junior G-man," Tony announced as Abby handed James over to Jethro who smiled and bounced James around in his arms. James gave a very toothy grin and tried to bat at Tim's head. The MIT graduate was quick to move away, shaking his head in amusement.
"Ah, Jethro, such a fine establishment you've created for young James," Ducky said as he reentered the room from the nursery.
"First things first, Duck. You bring the camera?" Jethro asked. Ducky nodded and began to set up a very old fashioned camera with a timer. Jethro sat in the middle of the couch and plopped James on his lap. Tony and Abby sat on the right of him with Ziva and Tim on the left. Ducky smiled and turned the timer on, jogging lightly to stand right behind Jethro, putting his hands on the back cushion.
"Say cheese everyone," Ducky announced and there was a chorus of cheese (and a small 'ee' from a little certain someone) as a flash went off, signaling that the picture was taken. Jethro let out a hearty laugh as he looked down to see James had been wrinkling his nose and cocking his head at the picture. The team joined in the laughter when they also saw James and his little antics.
"I guess we better head off. Jenny said she has given you the week off to be with your new son," Tony said as the others bid their goodbyes. Jethro nodded his thanks and waited for everyone to depart before he lifted James up.
"Time for a certain little man to hit the hay too," Jethro said teasingly as he carried James to the nursery. When he reached the room, he heard the gurgled happiness from the baby and he smiled. Between the three men, they'd finished the nursery in no time. He had already built the furniture in the basement after all.
The room was painted a deep green, a little darker than James's eyes. The carpet was a soothing brown to match and a darker green curtained the window. Below the window, a large white crib was assembled with the jungle themed bedspread inside. A dresser was in a corner beside a cabinet, a changing cushion built into the dresser. The cabinet was also adjacent to a large bookshelf that contained children's books and toys galore. Overall, the nursery's jungle-like features made for quite the comfort.
"Night Night, son," Jethro whispered after switching James to his pajamas and tucking him. James looked up at him and smiled happily. Jethro wasn't sure whether he imagined it or not, but he saw a flicker of something unknown in his son's eyes. He shook it off and kissed James on his forehead, raising the crib bars and leaving the nursery. It didn't matter what now.
James was his son and he wouldn't have it any other way.
OK, a few things. I changed my mind quite a lot on some things and whatnot. The sequel is already written three chapters in on my computer and will appear before this story is even completed simply because the prequel will be more fluff now of Harry growing up. This is the adoption scene after all and the next part of this story is his childhood. The sequel skips to when he is 11 so I'll wait maybe a chapter or more until I add it up. Look for it coming soon! Also, I added a livejournal (Angelictiff) if you want to keep track of my musings for this story's future and whatnot.
