I DO NOT OWN NCIS OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS.

A/N I want to thank all those who have kindly reviewed. It makes my day! Hope you continue to enjoy this story. As always any advice is appreciated!

Chapter 21

Three months was bound to be a very long time with an angry teen, so Jack planned plenty to keep his son busy. On top of his regular chores and the work in the store, he wanted Leroy to clean out the basement. Throw out all the boxes of junk that were stored down there and organize the rest of the items that were put down there through the years.

Needless to say, Jethro was less than pleased with the added work, but at least he'd be a good distance away from Jack. He was also curious about what kind of stuff was down there.

As he worked his way from the stairs to the outer walls, he made dozens of trips putting boxes next to the garage to be taken out for garbage day. One box he went to pickup was open; before he could close it he caught a glimpse of something that gained his interest.

It was a picture he had made for his mom while he was in kindergarten. He half smiled at the memory, but then went to see what else was in the box. There were a few photographs of his mom with him at various ages, a couple letters mailed from overseas, and some other items that he recognized his mom having.

He suddenly wondered if all the boxes he was told to throw away were filled with his mom's things. Things Jack had referred to as 'junk'. He swallowed the anger and tried to figure out what he wanted to do. He didn't have room to keep all the boxes and most of the things weren't things that he could use. He figured he would find a few items to keep to remember her by.

He opened one of the letters and recognized his father's writing. Only partially curious what the letter could contain, he skimmed over most of the words. He could tell that when the letter was written, his mom had meant the world to Jack. It didn't change what happened between them later on though.

After gathering a handful of mementos Jethro continued moving the boxes outside. Eventually he came upon the household goods that his dad wanted him to organize. How some of the old tools and small appliances could not be considered 'junk' he couldn't fathom.

But in just under 2 weeks he had the basement cleared and organized. So much so, he decided to move some of the woodworking equipment down there. It took some time moving the stuff around all the items from the store put in there a few months back. His task was completed in another 2 weeks.

Jethro found some old wood still in the back of the garage and started practicing again with it. The skill was such a natural one that he soon was able to begin crafting some newer shelves for the basement. In the next two months he made 2 storage shelves, a bookcase, a set of matching chairs and a miniature sail boat to put on his dresser.

The three months were relatively quiet between father and son. Their interactions flowed smoothly but with little to no words used. It was almost like they anticipated the other's actions, before they were made. Jethro found during that time to keep a stony front by showing little or no emotion. His dad never knew what kind of mood he was in.

Jack was pleased with the hard work his son had done and was relieved that there was little confrontation between the two of them in the past three months. When the 'sentence' was over, Jack returned the truck keys to Leroy and thanked him for doing all the work in the basement.

Gladly accepting the keys and a chance at freedom again, he just nodded his head at his father's gratitude.

"I hope you won't foolishly try anything like that again. If you want to continue your outings, you make sure you only take things that belong to you," he warned.

"Got it, Jack," Jethro answered.

With winter in full force, Jethro wasn't planning any overnight trips. He didn't think he'd have the right equipment to stay warm and dry. Instead he kept up with the woodworking to avoid interacting with Jack any more than absolutely necessary.