Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or NCIS or any of their characters. I do however own this story, I wrote it and I do NOT give permission for anyone to post it anywhere else. If you want to share it post a link.
Spencer found the work on his new team immensely rewarding and enjoyable. Being constantly immersed into different cultures was fascinating and meant that his lack of knowledge of American pop culture wasn't as noticeable. His new team wasn't about to make fun of his ability to learn languages and cultures. It had saved them from inadvertently giving offence on more than one occasion, and they found his ability to memorise maps or obscure places that were in languages they couldn't even read to be invaluable.
The team were friendly to Spencer from the start but he tried hard to hold himself aloof.
Hotch had shared with Garrett, the reason that Spencer felt the need to leave the BAU, even if it was hopefully only temporary. And Garrett had explained to the team on vague terms what had happened and why Spencer didn't want to build personal relationships with the rest of the team. He assured them that no matter how withdrawn he seemed to them they could trust him absolutely to do his very best in the field, and also shared with them the fact that Spencer's lungs had been damaged (though not how) and that he was vulnerable to infection and may have some difficulties in the thinner air and higher altitudes, or in severe pollution or high pollen environments. He pointed out what to look out for and the need to avoid being near Reid when they had even a mild cold. Garrett reassured the team that even on crutches after being shot Dr Reid had managed to pull his weight on his former team and that his former supervisor was disappointed to lose him and would be keen to have him back if and when he chose to return.
The team were shocked with what had happened with the BAU team. Like the BAU, the IRT spent a lot of time travelling and living together and they formed more of a family like relationship than mere work colleagues, and they couldn't begin to imagine treating any of their team like Spencer had been treated. They attempted to be understanding, remaining friendly while not taking offence when Reid tried to keep things distantly professional. They built up trust to have each other's backs in the field, and shared motel rooms when required and meals when they were away, and made him feel that he was invited to all team social events and would be welcome to hang out with any of them at any time. The team also showed an interest in his studies and supported him when he needed to duck out early to catch a class or study group, while they were in town.
Spencer tried to guard his heart from making close friendships in the team but the supportive environment relaxed his guard and this time his trust in his teammates wasn't betrayed. The team might chuckle at times at his personality quirks but it was always in a friendly manner and any teasing that occurred was gentle and good natured. The team respected his skills and thanked him for them, rewarding him when he learned new languages and skills specifically to benefit solving cases. In this new environment, Spencer started to thrive and build confidence again. He relaxed and stopped profiling his teammates looking for ulterior motives and hidden malice, and started accepting the genuine friendship the team offered.
-o0o-
Spencer was able to get past security into NCIS headquarters by showing his ID, even though he hadn't been expected. The guard rang up to warn Tony that he was coming and Tony grinned. He'd last heard from Spencer the night before telling him that he was on his way home from India and that his first case with Garret's team had gone well. He wasn't expecting him to visit the yard though, they had plans to meet for pizza and movies later that night provided Tony didn't catch a new case that day.
He looked up as a very confident and bohemian looking Spencer came out of the elevator. He was wearing the jeans he and Tony had compromised on, flatteringly slim fitting but still not too tight to be comfortable sitting down, hiking boots a long sleeve heavy cotton purple shirt and a purple satin vest and knit scarf all topped by an unstructured quilted silk patchwork jacket Tony hadn't seen before but seemed to suit him perfectly.
"Hey Tony!" Spencer said cheerfully.
"Hey Spence," Tony grinned. "I thought we were meeting up tonight?"
"We're on our way to Peru in a couple of hours," Spencer replied sighing. "Can you take an early lunch?"
"Please Boss," Tony said looking at Gibbs beseechingly.
"Oh go on with you. Be back in an hour," Gibbs agreed.
"Spence, I'd like you to meet my team. This is the famous Leroy Jethro Gibbs, my probie Tim McGee and Mossad liaison Ziva David."
"I don't want to meet any of you Frat Buddies DiNozzo," Ziva said disparagingly.
Tony went to answer but Spencer dragged him away. "Argue with her later. I'm starving, my stomach's still on Indian time."
"See ya Boss, Tim, can I bring you something back," Tony offered.
"Indian?" Tim asked.
"I was kind of hoping for some American food before I leave again," Spencer said.
"Take him to the Diner DiNozzo. I fancy a good old American Burger," Gibbs replied.
Spencer grinned at his understanding. "Thanks," he mouthed to the gruff older man.
"How come you let him go?" Ziva asked resentfully.
Uncharacteristically, Gibbs chose to explain his actions to his team for once. He'd been impressed by what little he'd seen of the young genius and had long respected him for the positive influence he had had on Tony's sense of self-worth and contentment levels, and the profiling skills Tony had picked up from the younger man. "Tony's reports are finished and filed, and I know how hard it can be to keep appointments with friends with our caseload and from what I hear, Reid's schedule is even worse. I know Tony has been worried about him. I didn't want him distracted for another couple of weeks until he arrived back in the country again."
"Where does he work?" Tim asked.
"He's a profiler, currently on the FBI International Response Team, though he also worked on the Behavioural Analysis Unit for years," Gibbs said.
"He's the genius Tony bangs on about?" Tim asked surprised.
"He doesn't look like a genius" Ziva commented.
"You mean he doesn't look like a geek Ziva, intelligence can't be determined by appearance," Tim corrected her.
"You can't tell me you expected him to look like that?" Ziva replied.
"I don't know what I expected him to look like but I knew he wouldn't look and act like a geek, otherwise he wouldn't be Tony's best friend," Tim said. "He's a little more colourful than I expected."
Gibbs barked with laughter, "I think he was a little more colourful than DiNozzo expected. He will blend right in in India and Peru but he's not dressed for Washington, that's for sure. Can you imagine him at Quantico among Fornell and the suit brigade?"
Tim laughed at the idea but Ziva frowned thoughtfully. "I do not think he would notice whether he fit in or not," she said.
"He'd notice," Tim replied. "From what I saw today I don't think he'd care, but he would notice. I don't think he ever did fit in with the suit brigade and he's given up trying."
-o0o-
"How is your new team?" Tony asked. He knew Spencer planned to try to keep an emotional distance between himself and the new team but he was hoping they'd be able to break through his barriers.
"They're all very welcoming still," Spencer replied. "Most of them are in relationships and more settled than the BAU. We had a team dinner and there were more children there than adults. It was really cool, like a big family dinner."
"So they're all highly motivated to get home and not spend their downtime making work for themselves," Tony said optimistically.
"They haven't been dumping extra files on my desk either," Spencer said grinning. "And if we're home and I'm finished my work, Garrett lets me go early on days I have class."
"Meet anyone interesting in class lately?" Tony asked smirking.
"Yeah maybe, but I'm about to ring and reschedule our first date for the second time," Spencer said negatively.
"If she can't understand your work hours she isn't the right woman for you anyway Spence," Tony reminded him.
"I wouldn't blame her if she didn't understand. We haven't spent enough time talking for her to understand my work yet," Spencer replied.
Tony nodded. "At least you're getting out and interacting, there'll be plenty of women interested now that you have the confidence to approach them and eventually the stars will all align and you'll have time to get to know the right woman," he said supportively.
Spencer nodded.
"Why are you heading to Peru?" Tony asked.
"Three twenty-one-year-old girls, college roommates on holiday before separating to start grad school, found dead of unknown causes" Spencer replied. "Smart girls, not known for being high risk takers. We're not entirely sure there's a case here for us but one of them is a daughter of a senator's aide."
"Are there any other girls missing? Or is this an isolated case?" Tony asked.
"If there were American's known to be missing we'd be halfway there by now," Spencer said dryly.
"What language do they speak in Peru?" Tony asked.
"Nearly 85% of the country speak Spanish as their first language and the majority of the rest are bilingual with Spanish. The area we are going has a high number of people who speak Quechua but there are several dialects," Spencer replied.
"And do you speak Quechua?" Tony asked.
"No and the languages library didn't have any materials to help me learn it either," Spencer replied frowning at the thought of not being able to learn something that might be useful.
"Is it important?" Tony asked.
"Impossible to say until we identify what's happened to the girls," Spencer said sighing.
Tony nodded in understanding. "You'll find out what happened Spence."
"Enough about me, how are you?" Spencer asked.
"Still single, haven't met anyone lately that I'm interested in for more than a night or two of fun," Tony said lightly, though the truth was that he did want to meet someone special.
"Maybe you should take some of your own advice," Spencer teased. "Nightclubs and bars are no place to meet women looking for something more than a hook up. You should take a course or sign up for a group where you will actually get the chance to have real conversations and get to know someone before asking them out. If I can be brave enough to do it I know you can."
"You might be right Spencer. Have you got any ideas what I should sign up for?" Tony admitted.
"Well you mentioned when we were choosing what I should do that you'd take a class on chick flicks, maybe broaden that to serious film though and take a course in cinema history or something related. Or join an alternative cinema group. Isn't there a campaign going to save the Avalon Theatre? You could get involved in that, it would be a worthwhile cause for you to get your teeth into, even if you don't meet anyone interesting," Spencer suggested enthusiastically.
Tony laughed, that's a lot of options for a spur of the moment suggestion," he said noncommittally.
"It wasn't spur of the moment," Spencer admitted. "You haven't really been happy with your current life of random hook ups for a while now."
"Okay, I will look into it so long as you promise to try to be positive when you call to cancel your date and explain exactly why you need to leave the country again so suddenly," Tony bargained. "Give her a chance to understand, Spence."
"Okay, but you better order your boss and Tim some food and get back before you're late," Spencer agreed.
Tony looked at his watch and then jumped up and ordered the food to go, mentioning that it was for Gibbs. The staff smiled sympathetically as they put a rush on the order and Tony and spencer hugged briefly before the older man headed back to work, food in hand.
-o0o-
"Thanks Tony," Tim said paying the senior agent for his meal.
"Your welcome Probie," Tony replied grinning, while he still teased and pranked the younger man, his treatment of him had improved markedly after getting to know Spencer and even more after his friend had been shot. Hearing how Spencer interpreted some of the remarks made to him by his team in the wake of that event had made him think twice about the way he spoke to his own team mates, and his relationship with Tim had improved.
Gibbs also reimbursed him for his lunch but Ziva just frowned at the vegetarian burger and fries he'd brought her.
"I have reservations at Trattoria Alberto and my dinner partner is on his way to Peru, you interested McGoo," Tony asked.
"Are you inviting me to dinner or offering your reservations?" Tim asked.
"Inviting you. I've been craving their chicken piccata for days," Tony replied. "I was looking forward to dinner with my geeky genius friend, I figured one geeky genius might be as good as another, and it's about time we became better friends."
"What's wrong, can't find a girl to take out tonight? Your infamous black book let you down?" Ziva asked.
Tim ducked his head and went back to work and Tony cursed internally that Ziva had cheapened his invitation. "I didn't even think of getting it out. I wanted an evening of friendly conversation, which Ziva is why I didn't invite you," he retorted.
"Back to work!" Gibbs barked, "Or you'll be here all night eating takeout while you rewrite your reports."
"Yes Boss" Tony said scurrying to his desk before Gibbs got up to head-slap him. He sat down and opened the report before he remembered he'd finished it and given it to Gibbs just before Spencer had arrived. Checking his email and catching up on his expenses claims, he spent the afternoon praying that they didn't catch a new case and finished on time, ready to power down his computer as soon as the boss gave the word.
"DiNozzo, McGee get out of here, Ziva fix this and then you can go" Gibbs said handing Ziva's report back to her again.
"Gibbs, I've done it twice," Ziva protested.
"Then do it right the third time so you don't have to do it a fourth," Gibbs replied cheerfully.
-o0o-
Tim nervously approached the restaurant, he still wasn't sure why Tony had invited him for dinner, sure his previous plans had just fallen through and he'd been much nicer to him lately but they still weren't friends away from work. He had to meet he would like to get to know Tony's friend Spencer, he'd researched him and read a lot of the articles he'd written both on the psychology of serial offenders as well as the older article on chemistry and mathematics though he had to admit a lot of it went over his head. The man was a true genius.
He made sure he wasn't early, the last thing he wanted to do was spend time sitting there worrying about whether Tony was going to turn up or if this was all just a horrible joke. Tony was there waiting for him and greeted him with a friendly smile. "Hey Tim, I thought we'd eat outside, it's such a nice night. Are you okay with that?"
"Yeah why wouldn't I be?" Tim replied.
"Spence would have a problem with the amount of beetles in the air tonight," Tony said. "I didn't know if that was a phobia of yours too."
Tim looked at Tony suspiciously. "It's not" he said.
"Then let's grab a table," Tony said eagerly.
They sat and looked at the menu. "Why did you invite me?" Tim asked putting his aside.
"Spence had a lot of problems with his old team, some of it was probably just teasing taken too far but a few months ago he was shot in the line of duty and spent 14 days in traction waiting to find out whether he was going to be able to walk again. He thought of his team as family, pretty much his only family and yet none of them came to visit him. There were extenuating circumstances, they were being targeted by the Boston Reaper but Spencer was really hurt by their abandonment. It made me think of our team and what I could do to make things better. We've been team mates several years now and while I don't promise not to prank you I will make more of an effort to make sure the pranks are funny, not hurtful or humiliating. I want to get to know you better, to build up our friendship. Make a fresh start," Tony explained. "We might not have much in common but I never thought Spencer and I could be friends when I first met him and he's become one of the best parts of the last year."
"You never did tell us how you got to know Spencer" Tim said.
"I wasn't just teasing when I said it was classified. I met him in rehab for my lungs, but I can't tell you why he was there. Like I said we didn't have much in common, he seemed to be such a kid and way too smart for his own good. But he was in the same situation as me, he understood the fear of not being able to breathe and the worry about not recovering enough to live a useful life let alone return to the field. We bonded over that and I thought that maybe if I gave you a chance we could bond over the hassles of working with Gibbs, or the cases or something."
Tim nodded, "I didn't realise how hard that was for you. You were busy teasing Kate and you just seemed so indestructible" he said.
"I didn't expect you to care, we were still pretty much strangers and I'd been hazing you too hard. I see that now. What Kate did lying to stay in that containment with me was beyond anything I could have expected, but once I was out of danger I didn't see her again until I came back to work.
"Tony, none of us realised that your recovery was so difficult. I thought you were just waiting for clearance, not that you had to work for it or that you might not have recovered at all," Tim said, ashamed of his short sightedness. "We should have known, and supported you better. I'm sorry."
"And then we lost Kate and we were all hurting," Tony said.
"I really miss her" Tim said. "I know you guys were closer but she was nice to me. I trusted her."
"You seem to be getting on well with Ziva?" Tony said.
"I'm trying to be friendly but there's something about the way she treats us I'm not so sure about. I'm not sure whether it's just that she never had team mates she could trust before and is waiting for us to stab her in the back or she is spying for Mossad or something. I wish I knew why Gibbs trusts her so much, is it just because the director does. She and Gibbs have some kind of history."
"Ziva and Bossman?" Tony asked shocked.
"No Director Sheppard and Gibbs, and Director Sheppard an Ziva too for that matter but I don't know what," Tim said.
"How do you know that Probie?"
"They acted strangely so I hacked Gibbs personnel files and he and Ducky worked with the Director in France years ago. Of course, it could just be that she's a redhead," Tim said.
Tony laughed. "You hacked into the files to find out more about the director?" he asked unsure whether to be impressed or worried about the consequences.
"Not into the Director's file, the security on that is sure to be too good for me to get away with that, but Gibbs wouldn't have upgraded the security on his file and I bet he never checks to see if it's been hacked," Tim replied.
"I doubt he'd know how to check" Tony replied laughing. "You've got balls, I take it you didn't try to hack Ziva?"
"She's Mossad, if I got caught hacking her it could create an international incident," Tim said shaking his head. "No way DiNozzo."
"I'm not asking you to hack her, you're probably right. Was there anything in Gibbs' file that indicates they may have met before we all met her?" Tony asked.
"No but there's something fishy about the report of Ari's shooting," Tim said thoughtfully.
"I can take a look at it for you, see if I can put my finger on what smells," Tony offered.
"I'll print out a copy of it for you tonight," Tim said.
"You're going back to the Navy Yard?" Tony asked shocked.
"No, I wouldn't keep something like that on my computer, it's on a thumb drive hidden in my apartment," Tim explained.
"Is it safe there?" Tony asked.
Tim looked taken aback, "I know it's an official report and I'm not supposed to have a copy but it isn't an open case, nobody's going to come looking for it. I don't even think anyone knows I have it," he said slowly. "I just hid the thumb drive out of routine caution."
"Well that depends on what is fishy about Gibbs report of Ari's shooting, there would be plenty of people who'd love to get their hands on proof Gibbs did something wrong," Tony said.
"I think it's safe enough, nobody knows I have it and it's with a whole lot of other computer components and stuff. Is that safe enough? What else should I do with it?" Tim asked.
"You shouldn't keep it at all" Tony said. "I'll come see it tonight and then you can wipe it, unless we think we need the proof and if so maybe we shouldn't keep it on either of our places. Do you have a friend who would hide it for you without looking at it?"
"Not one I could guarantee wouldn't look" Tim said frowning.
"I could ask Spencer to keep it when he gets back," Tony said. "I'd have to tell him what's on it and why we looked up the information but he understands secrecy and need-to-know better than most."
"Are we making a mountain out of a mole hill?" Tim asked suddenly.
"I don't know McHack, you're the one who hacked the files and kept the results. You must have had a reason," Tony said.
Tim flushed a little at the name.
"I don't mean anything nasty with the nickname McGee but I'll try to stop if it really bothers you," Tony said.
"No nicknames like that don't bother me but the mean-spirited ones do," Tim said deciding to be honest.
Tony nodded, "I apologise" he said sincerely. "I'll try to think twice when I come up with a new one."
"Do you want to go now, we could ask for our meals to go" Tim asked.
"No let's agree not talk about it here and enjoy our meals, we eat far too many meals reheated or eaten hurriedly over our desks. This isn't urgent enough to ruin our dinner," Tony declared, Tim couldn't help but agree, there were so many nights they worked so late he ended up grabbing something at a drive through on the way home or eating cereal for dinner. He smiled as the waitress arrived with their food thanking her politely.
They enjoyed their meals talking of music, movies (of course) and literature.
"This place reminds me a bit of Spencer's old flat, without the technical gear of course and more books, lots more books" Tony said, looking around Tim's tiny apartment.
"Where's he live?" Out near Quantico?" Tim asked.
"No he lives in DC near union station. He had this dinky little studio apartment on the third floor of a building where the elevator was always breaking down. He stayed with me while he was in crutches after being shot and I helped him find a condo to buy. I could help you too if you wanted."
"Tony I couldn't afford a condo!" Tim replied.
"Are you sure, from the look of it you're living well under your means, so unless you have expenses I don't know about you must be saving."
"I'm sure, why did Spencer need your help anyway, other than being less mobile for a while?"
"I told him how I could afford a condo in Dupont Circle by buying a condo that had been a crime scene and he liked the idea. But his team don't often work in DC so I kept an eye out for him. He bought the condo on 4th Street NE where Rear Admiral Dawes and his wife were killed," Tony explained. "He got it and the flat below for $375,000."
"Wow! That was a sweet condo, even the apartment wasn't bad. Has he rented it out?" Tim said whistling.
"Yeah to a navy lieutenant commander on the Regan, who spends as much of his shore leave as possible in Baltimore visiting his boyfriend the navy doesn't know about. The rent pays the mortgage and Spence gives him a discount on it when he's at sea. They both chip in for the security, since they're both away on an irregular schedule.
"Could you help find me a place, I don't have anywhere near that much to spend though?" Tim asked.
"Well you can keep an eye out yourself if you see a place you like in a crime scene not on base, or I'm sure you could use your computer skills to look for scenes worked by the DCPD. The more press coverage the case or the scene gets the more impact it will have on the price, particularly if the place is damaged and the owner wants to sell quickly and get out of the area rather than repair the place before he puts it on the market."
Tim opened up Gibbs' report from the night he shot Ari in his basement and Tony read through it, he then opened up the autopsy report showing him the photographs of the bullet wounds. Either, Ari turned his head to look at something behind him, or was shot from the side. Either way Gibbs couldn't have claimed to be in imminent danger, Ari wasn't facing him let alone trying to shoot him," Tim said.
Gibbs would never have shot Ari like that" Tony defended their boss.
"I don't want to believe it either, but what else could have happened? There was no one else there," Tim replied unhappily.
"What if there was?" Tony asked. "From the description of the standoff and the bloodstains on the floor we have Ari trying to turn his head to look at the stairs. Why? Did he hear someone walking overhead? Did Gibbs shoot him to protect whoever was walking down the stairs?"
Tim examined the photo's more carefully, "Or did the third person shoot him to save Gibbs? He was shot with a 22 and while I know Gibbs has one as his backup piece why would he be using it at home?"
"A 22 doesn't penetrate the skull to leave an exit wound and doesn't damage the wall behind the victim. There's no real way to tell which angle the shot came from," Tony agreed. "We have only Boss' word."
"Which doesn't quite fit with the crime scene photos and evidence," Tim said slowly.
"Why would he lie?" Tony asked.
"To protect someone," Tim said. "It's the only reason that makes sense, he wouldn't lie to protect himself, I'm sure of it. But who?"
Tony thought hard for a moment, "Ziva?" he exclaimed.
Tim frowned.
"No think about it, Ziva's not an American, and neither was Ari. They were both still officially government agents for Israel. So, if Ziva shot him she'd be extradited to Israel, who may or may not believe that he was a traitor. Her life might be in danger," Tony explained.
"So if she shot Ari to save Gibbs, he'd lie about it to return the favour. And that would be why he trusts her all of a sudden. She saved his life" Tim concluded. That makes sense, it would have to be something huge to make Gibbs lie about it."
"Yes but does that mean we should trust her?" Tony asked.
"To have Gibbs back in the field, Yes! To not try to pass on classified information to Israel? I don't know," Tim replied. "We still don't know why the director trusts her."
"And we're probably not going to be able to find out without you risking your career" Tony warned his subordinate. "It isn't worth it Tim."
"For a risk of national security? Really?" Tim said.
"Let me try some of my contacts and see if we can get the information without putting you at risk" Tony said.
"You have contacts who could get this information?" Tim asked surprised, until recently Tony had always denigrated Tim's computer skills as being unimportant.
"Spencer does, and this is for national security, she was Mossad and her brother became a terrorist, it's not like I'm asking him to background check a date," Tony replied. "I think the thumb drive is safe enough in that mess for now."
"What do we do about Ziva?" Tim asked.
"Same as we have been, try to keep our heads down and avoid Gibbs ire. Be friendly enough not to raise her suspicions. Trust her in the field and pray we don't get any cases with sensitive information we don't want Mossad to gain access to," Tony said. "I'll have a quiet word with Balboa try to make sure that he tries to pick up the classified cases."
"Wont he go to the director?" Tim asked.
"I'll explain everything and hope he agrees to keep it quiet," Tony said.
A/N: Thank you to ahowell1993, save the sharks, Guest, Guest, Guest, Criminal Minds Queen, DS2010, Guest, Locket1, Rori Potter, Reader Ethiriel, julschristine975, Hedwig Edwiges, Astrahan, Guest, XxXxJackBlackxXxX, knuckles 8, Village-Mystic, Megan1339, tlcroft, tlyxor1, 1bibliophile, TellaBells, Btwitsaimee, MonkeyBootCamp, Shadowmaster14, rhiannonlaing69, kessM, lotje01, ZoeW2000, AndDeathShallHaveNoDominion, GordonTM, TomB2201, angeleyes24245, klinde6364, Buttercup333, matechan, blackprincess2466, Caethel, InlovewithMalfoy, VWRock21, Not A Muggle, lillysmj, ChocolateRedVelvet, giderasia, atlantis11, Lady Rosencrantz, hetero-bi, sydneymarsh, totallypakaha, Chaosgod7, siameselover, The Queen's Fabler, EsmeCullen2398, alexdcl, Rydrian Gunn the Journeyman, Arishaa, viki83, scubatrex, 1988, Naia, b5j2s1, book-zealot and kittenlore for your support.