Note: today, I watched the episode where Jimmy's adoption falls through, and the end scene of that episode where Jimmy and Gibbs talk in the evidence garage is AMAZING. I love it. I always love when Gibbs gives his younger colleagues parenting advice. I also love Gibbs's interaction with kids. I even though we don't see his interaction with either the palmer-kid, McGee-twins, or Dinozzo-David-kid, I like to think they would have a fantastic connection with Gibbs. So this idea popped into my head. Enjoy, and as always, please let me know what you think.
Autopsy
Gibbs walks into autopsy. The dead navy commander is lying on the autopsy table, ready for the final examination.
"what do ya got, Doc?" Gibbs asks in his usual fashion when he walks in. To his big surprise, it isn't Jimmy, who is there performing the autopsy. It is Ducky.
"Doc? What are you doing here? Being a historian doesn't suit you anymore?" Gibbs jokes.
"hey, Jethro. Yes, it does. I am just simply filling in for Dr. Palmer today. He had a family emergency."
"anything serious?" Gibbs asks a bit concerned for the younger ME.
"The school called. Victoria fell and sustained an injury in preschool. She is in the ER now."
"Okay." Gibbs says, worried for the young girl. "what do ya got?" Gibbs asks, and he is back to business. He will check in with Palmer later.
ER
Gibbs and the team went to arrest the suspect of killing the navy commander but ended up finding beaten half to death, so they had to take him to the ER. Bishop tagged along with the suspect in the ambulance and promised to call Gibbs when the suspect would be ready for questioning. Bishop stayed with the suspect for a good few hours before she got permission from his doctor to question him, and she called Gibbs.
Gibbs leaves the room where the suspect is being treated after he has finished questioning him. He tells Bishop to stay with him for protection. As Gibbs is about to leave the ER, Gibbs sees Jimmy Palmer sitting on a chair in a corner. He walks over to him and sits down next to him.
"hey, Agent Gibbs." Palmer says, looking up at the senior agent. "do you need something from me? Dr. Mallard is filling in for me today."
"I know, Palmer. Take your time. Take care of your family."
Jimmy nods. He is an emotional mess right now. He is just starring at the stuffed rabbit he is holding in his hands. It is a cream-colored rabbit dressed in light blue colored clothing.
"This is Victoria's," Jimmy explains and looks at the rabbit.
"how is Victoria?" Gibbs asks.
"they say she might have fractured her arm," Jimmy says, almost choking on trying to hold back his tears.
"I am supposed to keep her safe, Agent Gibbs," Jimmy says no longer trying to hold back his tears.
"you can't protect her from everything, Palmer."
"I worry about her all the time." Jimmy looks up at Agent Gibbs with tears in his eyes. He takes off his glasses.
"that is what it means to be a dad Palmer. You can't keep her safe from everything."
"she had climbed on to the monkey bar they have at the preschool. Since she started there, she has been terrified of that thing. I didn't mind that, but now. She is getting ready to go into elementary school next year, and she is getting so brave. She is just climbing and jumping on everything." Gibbs notices the small but worried smile on Jimmy's face. He is proud but also worried about his little girl.
"she is a kid. She needs to explore the world, Palmer. You can't stop her from doing that."
"no, I wish I could."
"no, you don't. you don't want a kid who lives in a world of fear."
"But I live in a world of fear, Agent Gibbs," Jimmy says, looking over at Gibbs. "I am constantly terrified of something bad is going to happen to either Victoria or Breena. We see so much evil every day in our work. It terrifies me."
"the world can be a scary place to bring up a kid, but the best thing you can do as a parent. As a dad is to show your kid not to be afraid of exploring." Jimmy nods. Jimmy knows that Gibbs is probably the best person he could ever get parenting advice from.
"Thanks, Agent Gibbs."
Gibbs just shrug as a you-are-welcome and takes a sip of his coffee. A female doctor comes over to Jimmy. Jimmy immediately stands up and drops the rabbit on the chair.
"Is she okay, doctor?"
The female doctor has a smile on her face. "yes, she is going to be just fine. She is asking for you. She is a very strong young lady. She will be just fine." The doctor says with a smile.
"can I see her now?" Jimmy asks anxiously and eager to see his little girl.
"yes, go ahead." The female doctor says, and Jimmy is quickly almost running towards the room where Victor has been treated.
"are you family too?" the doctor asks Gibbs as he stands up and smiles at the young father's reaction.
"Nah… just a friend." The female doctor nods with a smile and leaves. Gibbs picks up the stuffed animal Jimmy placed on the chair when the female doctor came. He looks at the rabbit and smiles. Then he walks towards the room where Palmer disappeared into.
"Daddy… where is my Ducky?" Victoria asks, disappointed.
"I think he is…." Jimmy says all confused and disoriented as he is spinning around himself, trying to find the stuffed animal his daughter is requesting.
"my Ducky," Victoria chirps when she sees Agent Gibbs is standing in the doorway with her ferry friend.
"Agent Gibbs?" Jimmy asks, relieved but also confused. Gibbs enters the room and walks over to Victoria and hands her the furry friend. Victoria immediately hugs her friend.
"thank you," she says, looking up at Gibbs with a big smile.
"How are you, kiddo?" Gibbs asks.
"look what I got," Victoria says too occupied with her furry friend to answer any polite questions. She is holding up a surgical mask to Gibbs.
"It is for my Ducky. Now he is a doctor just like Daddy." Victoria says proudly. She is trying to put the mask on her rabbit, but she has trouble doing it with one arm wrapped in a pink cast.
"Daddy, can you help me?" Victoria asks her dad and hands the rabbit and the surgical mask to Jimmy. Jimmy has sat down next to the bed, and he is just looking at his little girl. "Daddy," Victoria impatiently says when Jimmy doesn't answer her request.
"Right sorry," Jimmy says and takes the rabbit and the surgical mask.
"Mr. Gibbs, can I show you something?"
"sure," Gibbs says and pulls up a chair next to the other side of Victoria's bed.
"look what I got," Victoria says and holds out her arm in the pink cast.
"How did that happen?" Gibbs asks. Gibbs is well aware of Jimmy's concerned look, but the little girl is eager to tell someone about her adventure.
"I climbed on the monkey bar. It was so much fun. I was so high up. The little kids are scared of it, but I'm not. I'm a big kid." Victoria says with great pride in her voice. "I do cool things like uncle Tim. He jumps on things, too, right?"
" yes, he does." Gibbs says with a smile and looks over at Jimmy. He is forcing a nervous smile on his face.
"the doctor told me that I have to be more careful now. I don't like that."
"well. being careful isn't the same as not doing anything."
"When I come home today, I am going to continue building my slide."
"no, you are not Victoria. You need to relax. You hurt your arm."
"no, I didn't, Daddy. It doesn't hurt." Victoria says, persistent.
Gibbs stays with Jimmy and Victoria for about a half an hour longer. He gets up to leave when Victoria has fallen asleep. Gibbs gets up from his chair.
"she looks so vulnerable, right now. In this big hospitable. With a cast on her arm. I just want to keep her in a cocoon from harm."
"you can't Palmer. The best thing you can do as a parent is to provide a safe environment for her to explore. Help her build a safe slide instead of stopping her from building it." Gibbs says and walks towards the door.
"thank you, Agent Gibbs," Jimmy says without ever looking back at Gibbs. Gibbs just smiles to himself as he leaves the room.
NCIS bullpen
It has been about a week since Victoria Palmer was in the ER with her broken arm. Jimmy has been at work, but he has taken short days to be more with Victoria. While Ducky has been filling in for him. Gibbs, Bishop, McGee, and Torres are sitting in the bullpen doing paperwork. It is a quiet day with no big case awaiting. The quietness stops when the elevator bell dings and Jimmy's voice are heard from the elevator.
"who comes first?"
"Meeeeee…" a young girl is heard giggling all the way from the elevator and into the bullpen as she comes running around the corner of the bullpen and straight towards Gibbs's desk.
"I win." The little girl exclaims loud and giggles.
"I thought it was Tim's desk we were racing to," Jimmy says as he has entered the bullpen and is standing in front of Agent McGee's desk.
"no, daddy," Victoria says determined, and then she turns to look at Gibbs, who is sitting at his desk.
"Hey Victoria, how are you?"
"good." The little girl says. She still has the pink cast on her arm, and she has her rabbit in her other hand. He is hanging from his arm.
"is it family day Jimmy?" Nick asks.
"Victoria made something for Gibbs; she wanted to give him herself," Jimmy explains.
"mommy. Mommy. mommy." Victoria says and runs over to her mom. Breena has now entered the bullpen and is standing next to Jimmy.
"are you seriously racing her when she has a broken arm?" Breena asks Jimmy accusingly.
"she was going to race towards Agent Gibbs's desk whether I did it with her or not," Jimmy says and looks over at Gibbs from whom he receives an approving nod.
"right," Breena says.
"Mommy, can I have my painting now?" Victoria asks and jumps impatiently in front of her mom.
"yes. Here sweetie." Breena says as she takes out Victoria's latest artwork from her purse. Victoria takes the painting and runs back to Gibbs while Bishop gets up and greets Breena, followed by McGee doing the same.
"I made this for you, Gibbs." Victoria says and hands Gibbs the painting. "that is my slide me and daddy made at home. it was really fun."
"that sounds like a lot of fun, Victoria. Thank you." Gibbs takes the handed painting and puts it up on the wall behind his desk. Victoria is just smiling proudly as Gibbs puts her gifted artwork up.
"Daddy has promised me that in the summer, we are going to build a treehouse together," Victoria tells Gibbs proudly.
"wow. A treehouse. That sounds like fun."
"have you ever build a treehouse?"
"I have yeah," Gibbs says.
"was it fun?"
"it was a lot of fun, yeah. I built my first treehouse with my dad when I was about your age."
"My daddy and me are going to build it together."
"that sounds like a lot of fun, Victoria." Gibbs notices the drawings on Victoria's cast.
"who made those?"
"My friends. They think it is so cool." Victoria says proudly. "but my daddy says I have to slow down on monkeying around while I have my cast on." Victoria sys disappointed and looks back at her dad.
"that might be a good idea. Victoria." Victoria looks at Gibbs with a disappointed look. She didn't expect Gibbs to agree with her father.
"Nah… not fun."
"well, you can have twice as much fun once you get the cast off as you can now. But if you hurt your arm more while having the cast on. You have to wear it even longer." Victoria seems to be thinking about that for a moment. Jimmy walks over and kneels next to Victoria.
"you should listen to Agent Gibbs. He is a very wise man." Victoria looks at Gibbs and then around at all the agents around her and then to her dad. She then catches her dad entirely by surprise when she throws her arms around his neck.
"I love you, daddy." She hits her dad in the face and knocks his glasses out of place in the process. It doesn't seem to bother Jimmy at all. He embraces his little girl in a big hug.
"I love you too, Vic."
"is that my granddaughter I hear?" that is Ducky coming into the bullpen.
"DUCKY," Victoria exclaims loud. The moment Ducky steps into the bullpen, everyone else seems to be forgotten by Victoria. She is quickly occupied with telling Ducky about her adventure on the monkey bar, about the slide she builds with her dad, about her adventure at the ER, and about the surgical mask she got for her stuffed rabbit. Jimmy stands up and walks over to Gibbs's desk.
"thank you, Agent Gibbs, for your advice last week. I really appreciate it."
"you are a great dad Palmer. Enjoy it while it lasts. Soon she will be a teenager."
It makes Jimmy laugh. "yeah, and I can't wait." He says with a smile as he observes his daughter chatting along with Ducky and now Bishop and McGee, who has joined in on the conversation.